Fighting+for+My+Life

On October 2, 1992, I came into this world fighting for my life. I was a premature baby weighing only four pounds. I was choking on the blood that filled my inadequately formed lungs. The hospital staff hooked me up to the life-support equipment and warned my father that I was unlikely to survive. When my mother became more alert after her labor medications wore off, she was informed that her newborn daughter was struggling for survival. The hospital physicians gave me a 50 percent chance to live. If I did survive, I had a 50 percent chance of being mentally retarded. Disobeying her doctor's strict orders to stay in bed, my weary mother weakly walked to the nursery windows. She peered through the sqeaky clean glass, hoping to catch a little glimpse of the child she might never hold. To everyone's surprise, I quickly became stronger and healthier. The doctors were amazed at my speedy recovery, but they warned my parents I might still suffer from some learning disabilities. The doctors were right. When I entered first grade, I was bewildered. Puzzles did not make sense to me. Numbers and letters that other children seemed to understand were just jumbles. In order to stay afloat, I often copied work from my neighbors' papers. When my teachers handed back my work with big fat X's all over it, I was proud. I thought those X's meant my work was perfect! After another month, I was placed in a strange classroom that was designed at a slower pace with greater teacher attention. In September, when it was time to try first grade again, I was ready. Why was my birth so difficult? And why did I have so many problems learning when I was little? As I grew older, I began to form my own opinions. My father and mother were alcoholics. I believe that the alcohol nearly cost me my life as a newborn baby and caused my learning disabilities. From the moment I was born, alcohol has negatively influenced my life. It is part of my life, now and forever. I will not risk losing what I have accomplished since then. My education is a privilege and a cherished gift. I am making sure that my life will be guided by positive choices. Alcoholism nearly cost me my life. I will not let it determine my future.