Personal Narrative: Mckeesport

When I was younger, one of the first things people would ask me when we met was “Where are you from?” In response, I always said, “McKeesport”, but felt contempt every time that word left my mouth because I knew my hometown was a cesspool of poverty and demoralization. Even though I still know McKeesport is a bad place to live, the feeling attached to my response to inquiries about my hometown has changed. Instead of contempt, I feel determined to enact a citywide metamorphosis. Growing up, there were two contrasts in my life. On one side, there was the city in which I lived, McKeesport, with its abandoned and dilapidated buildings sprawled all over like the weeds in gardens, dark clouds with permanent residences in the sky, and daily news of violent deaths. On the other side, there was my loving, caring home with my parents and siblings. My supportive parents always instilled in my siblings and me the importance of education as one of the only reliable ways out of your circumstances. Additionally, they adapted the teachings of Ralph Waldo Emerson by reminding us, “Although we live here, the true essence of who we are is not from here.” As a child, I was identified as precocious, but I had few viable options to achieve more than what McKeesport dictated. After three years in a charter school, my parents made one of the best

Back home, I had and still have already beaten some of the low societal expectations of the harsh socioeconomic realities of McKeesport life. I have never been arrested, incarcerated, or used drugs or alcohol. I attribute those successes to my diligence, tenacity, and high personal goals which motivate me to strive for excellence at all times and do not allow me to be swayed from my