I grew up in many different areas throughout my life. When I was first born I lived in Brighton, Michigan. Then it was very different than it is today. We lived on a dead end street that butted up to I-96, which only had three homes total on it. There was quite a bit of open space, yet there was a couple of grocery stores, Movie Theater, and a small mall in town. My parents got divorced and I moved with my mother to Wellington, Florida. This was a small town that almost had a community feel. When entering it you had to go through large pillars that had the communities name on it. I lived there from the time I was six until I was fourteen. These places most likely did have benefits and challenges to them, but there were none that stuck out. When I was fourteen, we moved to Ocala, Florida. This was a very large city, but we lived on the outskirts of the town, between the city of Ocala and the city of Dunnellon. This is where my life seemed to begin. The high school I went to was located in the middle of several cow pastures and farms. This was all you could see for several miles either way. I got a job at a Chick Fil A in the huge mall in town. This is where I was learning to be an adult. When I was sixteen I moved back to Michigan with my father. This time Brighton was much different, there was less open space and more of a city with lots more stores, restaurants, and car dealers.
I am not sure of what our social class was, we didn’t have the best of everything, but I never went without whatever I needed or wanted for that matter. I was always raised to be thankful for what I had, not to worry about what others had that I did not. I think this made me a better person today, since I never knew whether we had a lot of money or not. I only knew that my mother and her husband worked very hard for what we had, but we lived comfortably. I honestly believe that it has helped me get through the hardships that I have faced as an adult. We haven’t always had a lot of money, and we have had to struggle more than I would have ever liked, but I have managed to raise my children with the same standard as I was raised. They do not know of the struggles that we face. It does not matter to them that they have the best of everything or not, just that they have what they need.
I attribute my character development to the multiple locations that I have lived. With each place introducing me to different types of people. I have always been thankful for what I have and blessed that I have woken up each day. I had a heart attack at the age of thirty three that changed my life, I have passed on to my children that they should be thankful for what they have and are given and that they wake up every day blessed knowing that they will get through the day no matter what challenges they have to face.
I am not a religious person, and I am not really sure about my heritage, so I do not believe that either have impacted my life. I was never made aware about my make up, it just wasn’t anything that my family thought was important. I have done some research into my ancestry and have learned that my maternal side of my family is of polish descent. I was able to uncover that my paternal grandmother was French Canadian, and my paternal grandfather was German, but I have not been able to trace if they had any mixtures in them. So I am not aware if any of the values have been instilled in me or not. Though I do know that I have values that were instilled in me by my family, which I have tried to pass on to my children.