WE LEARN

Patty Fenton

I Am the Best Nana!

It is different raising my grandson than raising my own children. It is more rewarding.

Brendon, who is eight, and I are always hanging out together. I love it. He is my best buddy. We like to talk about when I was little. He is always asking questions about something. He asks if I had TV when I was growing up. He has a big interest in science and especially the stars. I think it started when my mom passed away. I told Brendon that she was a star looking down at us. Then one of his little friends passed away about a year ago, and he asked if she was also a star looking down on us, and I said, “Yes.” Since then we were able to go to MIT to a kind of science fair. The students put together exhibits for the weekend. Brendon liked it so much that we went on both Saturday and Sunday. I was really impressed that he was interested in stars and the moon. He was also amazed by the prism and the rainbow that it made. He has a curiosity about all kinds of things.

Brendon is very helpful. He likes to wash my dishes. He likes to help to make cakes. He likes to help me with my homework when I am helping him with his. He enjoys helping the lady next door too. He will sit and watch TV with her. He will come and get me if she needs something at the store. He likes using the microwave and likes to stir macaroni and cheese or cake batter together.

I enjoy talking to Brendon. He calls me when he is mad at his mother. He tells me to put her on time out, and I ask him what he did wrong. I teach him to be kind and that he cannot always get what he wants. I always tell him he has to stay in school and I think he understands that. We talk about everything.

I enjoy playing with Brendon. One time we painted my bedroom wall. When we were done, we started being goofy and put our handprints and footprints in a different color on one wall. I enjoy playing baseball and basketball with him. I like taking Brendon to the Frog Pond.

Being a grandma is the best, and it is important because you teach values to your grandchildren.

Kacey Linehan

MY JOB AS A MOTHER

I am a 25 year old single mother of a 1 year old boy and I add value to society by being a good parent and teaching my son independence, success, and respect.

Independence is very important for me to teach my son while he is still young. I watch my 17 year old cousin who at this stage in his life has no independence. He doesn’t help around the house without being told to. Even at 17, he has to be told to clean his room. I want Dennis to be independent so when he grows up he can take care of his stuff, help around the house without being told, so that some day he can manage his own home and family.

Success is also a big thing that I’m still working on for myself. I believe that in order to be successful in life, you need a good education. I want my son to go to school and stay on the right path so when he’s 25 he’s not going back to school and trying to get his life back on track like I am now. I hope by 25 he’s already where he wants to be in his life.

Respect is the biggest thing for me to make sure my son has for all people. I would never want to hear that my son was talking disrespectfully to a person in authority. But most important, I am a single mother and I hope he sees how hard it can be for women to be treated with dignity. I hope he respects all women.

My son’s only 1 but when he grows up to be a successful, independent, respectful young man I think he’ll be a great person to add to society. It’s my job as his mother to make sure he grows up with all these values.

Ariana Spinella

Forever there through thick and thin.

Always together.

Miles apart or close together.

Inspiration, determination.

Loving and supporting.

Years of memories forever lasting.

Angelita Semedo

Someone That Influenced Me in My Life

The people that get to know us best, from our virtues to flaws are our parents. They have the greatest influence in our life because they are the people we see the most and have known for the longest. They sacrifice many luxuries in order to give their children the best life possible. My mother has had a huge impact on my life and it is because of her that I am the person I am today. She has taught me things I could have never learned in school. From observing my mom’s behavior and listening to her lectures, she has had a great influence on my life, choices, and personality.

My mom was born in Cape Verde to a well-off family. She never had any discomfort or traumatizing experiences in her childhood. When my mom was thirty one years-old her life changed though when she found out that she had become pregnant with me, at that time she had four other kids and I was her fifth child and she made the decision to keep and have me. When I was four years-old my father passed away and it was a rude awakening for my mom when she started to struggle. All the comfort she had as a child quickly went away. Soon her life became a worry about paying the bills and putting food on the table. Aside from all her struggles my mom never lost hope and kept on working hard to improve her family’s quality of life.

Finally she made the decision that it would be best to move to the United States and start a business. We moved to Boston, Massachusetts because we had a lot of relatives there. It was a huge struggle to get use to the country, the people and mostly the language. Presently my family’s lives are very comfortable; my mother was able to lift our family off the ground because of her perseverance.

My mom’s ability to improve her family’s life has inspired me to always try my hardest to get the best out of life. Thanks to her I have more opportunities than she had at my age. I feel that if I do not take advantage of everything she has provided for me, I am being lazy and a disappointment to her. I believe that if my mom was able to achieve such a comfortable life with very little to start out with, I should be able to do the same because of all the advantages I have compared to her. And I have been starting to work hard by going to school and raising my son to the best of my ability.

My mom’s story makes me realize that there are no excuses for me not to reach my goals. My dream of being a successful independent woman will become a reality if I constantly work and fight for it. I admire my mom so much and her major influence on me is that she has made me a very determined person. I never give up, even if I feel my adversities can sometimes be overwhelming. This drive that my mother has inspired in me since an early age will always help me in any difficulties I encounter in my life. These lessons are invaluable and I will keep them with me throughout my life.