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A Weekend at the New Haven Green

By: Alejandro Rojas

On Saturday morning I arrived at the New Haven Green. I took a seat on the bleachers close to College Street and saw myself surrounded by a whole city of early birds. Right on College, breakdancers and grafitti artists had been popping their creativity since earlier in the day. Dancers and rappers from all over Connecticut had been practicing their routines since nine a.m., hoping to win the big prize. Grafitti began being made at 10am and by noon, these amazing pieces of art could be seen from across the Green.

Girls in hula-hoops...

There are so many people who have had a big impact on my life, but there is only one person who has changed my life for years to come. My mom has had a strong, profound effect on me as an individual. She raised my brother and me by herself, and I can only imagine what she had to go through. It amazes me that she was still able to work, pay the bills, and spend time with me without relying on anyone else but herself.

I know times were tough for her without my father. I could hear her crying in her room sometimes, but every time she looked at my face, the more determined she became to...

When I first acknowledged the fact that we were going to be interviewing board members, I wasn’t as nervous, but when I stepped inside that room it was like someone flicked on the nervous switch. I managed to get through it, and I’m still not sure how, but maybe it had to do with the fact that my interviewee, Kevin, made me laugh.

Mr. Kevin told me that being a board member is not hard, but there’s lots of discussion. I asked him if he ever volunteered anywhere else, he replied, “No, just here is really time-consuming, it’s a very active board.”
He added that he was bribed into becoming a...

I have been through a lot throughout the course of my life. When I was born, my mother and father were in the military, which involved a lot of moving around. I was born in Middletown, Connecticut and from there we moved to San Diego, California, where my other two sisters were born. From California we moved all the way back across the United States to Virginia, where my youngest sister was born.
Shortly after that, when I was still just a young girl, my parents got divorced and my mother and I, along with my three sisters, moved to another part of Virginia. After a few years of living there...

As the oldest of four siblings, I find it my responsibility to encourage myself and my younger siblings to go to college and create better lives for ourselves. My mother never made it out of her junior year of high school; going to college would help me build pride in myself, and, my mom would be proud of me as well. I know that education is the key to life; college presents a significant opportunity for me since I will be the only one from my family to complete high school – some didn't even make it out of middle school. I think that college is a huge step, and one I am ready to take.

My...

When I think of the word personal, the definition that comes to mind is the private side of a person’s life. Basically, things people don’t and can’t see judging by a person’s outward appearance. It seems like it’s easier for people to talk about others, good or bad, but when you ask people to write about themselves, it’s one of the hardest things to do. This is everything I’m thinking about as I type this essay. That’s one thing I can say about myself, I’m a thinker. It doesn’t matter what, I just think about everything and sometimes I ask myself, “Is that a good thing? Isn’t that what all...

As I walk down the streets of my neighborhood, I see a lot of crimes being committed. Living in a neighborhood where there’s nothing but violence makes you think about changing your life around. If I had to choose one person that influenced me to do my best living, it is my mother. The same reason why she gave birth to me is the same reason why I give thanks that she is still here.

The people who are most important to me are God, my family, and my friends. I can’t live without my mother because of the simple fact that I love her too much and she means the world to me. Even though I have a lot...