Navigator: 12th Grade Launch Curriculum - 121

UNIT 2: Reflect
STUDENT HANDOUT

Personal Statement by Kpodon J. Patterson

"Petie"
He was given to me about seven years ago for my birthday. Yellow, white, green, and black were the colors that covered
his soft-feathered body. His songs were so delicate and beautiful that sometimes one would think that they were in Egypt
or some other exotic country. My pet parakeet Petie was the only thing I could call my own. I was kind to him; in return he
was kind to me. I gave him his tan colored seeds and he would eat any insects that were in sight. If you let him out of his
gold and peach colored cage, he would walk right up to someone and just jump into their lap. I assume that Petie liked
to be around the warmth of a friend. His delicate, frail, small body did love to sit on my shoulder.
I remember coming home from school one day in February. The day was partly cloudy and the wind rustled against my face;
there was not a leaf to be seen on the trees. I was on the school bus, just thinking about how Petie and I would enjoy watching
TV, and doing my homework. As I approached the house on the corner of Pensacola Place, I noticed that the peach colored
door was open, so I went in and walked up the steps, which were right in front of the door in the front hallway. I looked into
the brilliantly colored cage and Petie wasn't there. My thought was that he was with my brothers downstairs.
"Kpodon," my brother said in a dull unsophisticated voice.
"Yeah," I yelled.
He started walking up the steps with a cloth in his hand. The cloth took on a shape that was like a fairly large egg. My
mind was wondering where was Petie.
He wasn't in the cage. I was quiet the whole time he walked up the steps.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Petie" he said. "I accidentally stepped on Petie. I didn't see him on the floor," my brother said.
Almost instantaneously I started crying and I had to check to see if it really was Petie, my responsibility. The only thing I
could call my own was gone, dead. It felt like my childhood was taken away and not be given back to me.
I wasn't angry or mad at my brother because I knew he loved Petie too. I forgave him, and was really thankful for that. I
guess what helped ease the pain was that I knew that he was in a better place. A place where the sun never dies out. He
now has wings that will let him fly higher than the wings in this life would ever let him.
It's not often that I think about Petie anymore, except when times are really hard. It was about one year ago that my life was
changed very drastically. My family separated because of issues with my mom and dad. Some members of my immediate
family moved 20 miles away, 10 miles away, and others 3 miles away. It was particularly hard because I wasn't prepared. Even
though I knew that my family did have arguments, it was so sudden, the death of my family. My mom and dad went their own
ways and so did my brothers (all of them are older than me). I went with my dad not by my own choice but because he was
the only one who had another place. I used to hate him because he was the one that initiated the whole transition.
Summer ended and school was just starting as I entered the 11th grade. My studies for first semester went pretty well
except for one class. I tried to maintain my academics throughout all of my stress. I was taking three advanced placement
classes; I had a job after school to support myself. I only saw my family on average about 5-6 hours a week, sometimes
not at all. When second semester came I tried and tried, but my family problems kept arising. My grades were slipping
and I was making it to class less and less. My ACT scores and final grades were far less than what I imagined. Despite losing my way, when senior year did come I found my wings through a combination of the college programs I'm in, and by
talking and opening up to friends.
Day by day is how I'm now taking it. I am in one Pre-Collegiate program and the Daniel's College Prep Program. I realize that
it's up to me to make my future despite the death of my family. With a combination of these two programs and good friends,
I know that I can soar high above the clouds with wings of an eagle. I can see Petie just ahead of me as we begin to play and
fly with each other even though I'm still in this life and he's in the next. Here's looking at you. ONE DAY. ONE DAY.
LESSON 7: YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT
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lesson 7: Your Personal Statement

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