"Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get the original essayMy name is Cassandra Duncan I grew up an only child, I was also an only grandchild on both sides. The youngest of all my cousins ​​and the only child in a small neighborhood made up of a group of adults. never really learned what it meant to just be a kid I certainly never learned how to interact with other kids Used to being around mostly adults, I was always mature for my age. often bored during my teenage years, and many people invested in me I excelled in most of my many and varied hobbies I did well in school, often knowing how to solve complex math problems. before the concept was even introduced to our class, I'm sure I was pretty smug even though I was doing it. I didn't realize it at the time. Unfortunately, self-awareness wasn't something I learned until many years later. During my six years in high school, my parents never bought me textbooks just because I always received them as prizes. to be the best student in my class. I gradually stopped my extracurricular activities, including music and art classes, and chose to work instead. I graduated at the top of my class, even though I wasn't valedictorian, perhaps because I didn't want to give that satisfaction to my overbearing family. And then I chose a large public university much farther from home than the small private college my parents hoped I would attend. For a change, I wanted to be a small fish in a big pond. In college, I participated in a few outside activities. I pledged a sorority and even served as its president, but only after several of my sisters convinced me that I would be good at it. After a handful of jobs that paid my bills right out of college, I finally went to work for a large investment firm. There, I continued the trend of simply tapping into my potential, taking on new challenges only when someone pointed out that I would be perfect for the opportunity. I've never been one to think of myself as having a family. Not wanting to be bound by the constraints of a husband and children, I always thought I would never marry. But then I met Don in 2010 and agreed to marry him after so many of my friends and family pointed out what a great couple we made. Our son was born a little over a year later. And before I knew what had happened, this independent, externally motivated, lifelong single career woman was a stay-at-home mom. I am proud to say that this new role suits me. I am motivated, not to do great things for myself, but to inspire my son to do even more. I still don't know how to relate to children in general, but I can distinguish the smallest nuances of my son's cry of fatigue and his cry of hunger. I still don't know how to be a kid, but I hope he teaches me. Despite living a life that often falls short of my true potential, I have always remembered a quote from the writer James Baldwin: “The world is before you, and you don't need to take it or leave it as it is. was when you came. in." It always seemed like something I wanted to do. I never knew how. The moment my son entered the world, I knew I had made it. Keep in mind : this is just a sample."