Growing up in the dusty and busy streets of Accra was a normal upbringing for my parents. I’m from Ghana, a country located in the Western part of Africa.Abdul Mujeeb is a name given to me after birth meaning “The servant of The Responder”. I serve God who responds and listen to all of our prayers. I was born Jan,27 2001 on a Saturday at 11:32pm. I’m the first child to my parents. They taught me how to speak my first language (Twi).They provided for my needs and put me in school when I was 4 to learn Mathematics and English language.
My mum has a highschool level of education so she helped me with my homework assignments when I was a kid. Unfortunately, not every child in my neighborhood started school at that early age. They spent their time playing with car tires and empty tin cans throughout the day. They watched me go to school in a black and white uniform. I walked half a mile from home to the bus stop in my well-polished black shoes with my mum holding my hands.My friends always yelled out my name and told me to join them play when I got back from school.
After school was over, I will go home to complete all given assignments before I go out to play. I will return home exhausted, take a shower and prepare for school the next day. I was attending a private school named De Youngsters International.My parents sacrificed everything to give me a quality education and also let me have a good learning facility with available resources.There were a lot of foreign kids who lived on campus and were from rich families.A lot of them were Nigerians or British.Im from a middle class family with two brothers and two sisters.
In kindergarten, I was taught to spell my name and how to read . I was slow at first, it took me sometime with consistent practice each day. Before I got to middle school I was one of the best students in class. I had the clarity in speaking and knowing how to pronounce words clearly.I expressed my thoughts and shared my ideas confidently. I participated in seminars by always understanding the topic and shared my perspective on the discussions made.
However, I was a good student in class just to get promoted to the next grade. I did my assignments because they were mandatory. I spent my time at home doing homework because my mom will always ask me to do so. I did my readings because I was examined on it at the end of every month. I did good work in school because I was monitored. It was not because I loved it or had passion for it. Fortunately, I made it to middle school with very good grades. I was acknowledged by my teachers for the good work I did. My parents were ecstatic for my good work and decided to bring me abroad.
In September 2013, I found myself in New York City.I wondered to the beauty of the city as I strolled on a tour bus with my parents in Manhattan. Everything was perfect to me. The cluster of tall buildings were glamorous and luxurious. I was startled at the population of people who walked hurriedly on the sidewalk. I enjoyed my first week , I went shopping, went out to dinners and tours. luckily , I started middle school at PS 28. I was troubled at the beginning because I barely understood what people said to me. They talked really fast and had a different way of pronunciation. They had a certain type of melody in their speech which sounded beautiful. It was common . I was frustrated because I didn’t understand nothing. I started watching tv shows and animes with subtitles which I imitated the way the characters spoke. I started reading and writing a lot to cope with my environment.
After a while , writing became a habit . I loved to write because I wanted enhance my handwriting skills. I was taught how to write autobiographies and reflections in school. I enjoyed my reading and writing class. I had a great teacher. I saw progress because I wrote everyday. I had new vocabulary words which made it easier to express myself in my writings. I won student of the month so many times. I loved it. My achievements made me write more and work harder. I graduated from middle school and became a freshman at Dewitt Clinton Highschool. I had a lot of experiences in highschool.
Sophomore year, My principal got fired for stealing grades to help students graduate. Teachers were also fired. We barely studied in class. There were fights in the hallways and outside of school on Jerome Avenue most of the time. There was no discipline instilled in the school. Students did not pay attention in class, mocked the teachers and distracted other students who tried to learn. It was difficult to study. We barely covered all the topics in class required for the semester. It was traumatic.
Junior year, we had a new principal, new teachers, the school was renovated and cleaned up to make it a better place for learning. They taught well and assigned reading and writing assignments each day. We spent time in the library writing essays and doing research. We were taking outside to the soccer pitch to refresh our minds and have new thoughts on what to write about. I enjoyed the new protocol. I went to school happy each day knowing I had completed all given assignments and ready to learn something new. I spent my leisure time writing poetry/spoken words and metaphors. I wrote about my experiences in life and shared my ideas on a piece of paper.which has a positive impact on my life today. I completed 49 credits at the end of my junior year and did not have to do much in Senior year.
In Conclusion, I love to write because it helps me get familiar with words, it helps me express my thoughts and feelings in a unique way and manner.I’m able to write about my life experiences when I write. It builds me to be a learned person and it reduces my grammatical errors.Writing is something I started doing gradually since I was four years old. I get expose to new ideas, new writing techniques and format as I increase my level of education.
