Mathew Garcia

Block 2

April 30, 2019

Personal Statement

In life we have many obstacles, some of which challenge us emotionally . A time in my life,

in the second semester of 9th grade, where I encountered an obstacle was when I found out I was

going to be a parent. At that moment, I did not know how to react or what steps to take.Sitting in

the doctor's office, waiting for the results to come saying what my future had ahead of me was

the beginning of a decision that would define the rest of my life. Then, the doctors came in with

the results we were told that she is pregnant. My partner and I were out of words. I looked at my

partners eyes and I could see that she’s hurt and it hurt me to see that. The toughest part for me

was explaining to my parents and finding out what their reaction would be. I was at a point in my

life where I did my know what to do. I had so much on my plate. I was overthinking so much

about what I was going to do at that period of time. I was struggling in school. I was slacking off

and doing things that I thought were “cool”. It took me a couple of days to get back to myself.

Until going back to school I was being questioned by so many people and everyone was judging

me because I was going to be a father and honestly it did hurt me and bother me.I realized that

these people aren’t going to be here for me 10 years from now and I told myself I will prove

them wrong. Now, it still sticks with me.

 However, when my son was born on December 14, 2016 . I carried him for the first time and

looked at him and told him “I love you, I got you”. Just being in the room was different. The

vibe I felt was as though I was a different person. I took a step out of the room to clear my mind

and I was emotionally happy because i have the greatest person with me now. I know he’s gonna

look up to me and so I will push him to be better than me. Therefore, my partner and I were

worked together even though there was so much criticism and hate towards us. We didn’t let that

bring us down. Having a child, at such a young age motivated me to be a better person. I had to

change my mindset and goals from one day to another. I had to acknowledge that my decisions

no longer affected only my life, but the life of my son. My son is not only my motivation , but a

blessing in life. He pushes me to be a better person. My biggest challenge is being a teen dad.

Not only was it hard, but it was an experience. An experience I’m grateful for. Now today, I’m

living my best life with my incredible son of mine. There’s nothing I would change from my

past. I continue to work hard in school and try to be the best father I could.