Labeled Troublesome
Some names have been changed. Walking through the front door of my middle school, it feels like someone’s turned the temperature up. I start sweating as if I had a fever. It seems like everything just stops and all the attention is focused on me. Today feels like a trouble day. My music teacher stands […]
Read More
University of Kitchen?
“We’re halfway through the summer. Are we going to New York or what?” I asked my older sister Yasmin. She had come to visit us at our house back in my country, Yemen. We were in the room we’d shared until she got married and moved away. “Do you really want to go?” she replied, […]
Read More
Abortion: It Was the Right Choice for Me
During my time in foster care, I have lived in several homes with teen parents. The most memorable teen mom was only 16 when she had her first child, and was getting ready to turn 18 when she had her second. The only people she could depend on were her social workers, and sometimes not […]
Read More
Poetry Brought Out the Performer in Me
When I was younger, I had no real creative outlets. I couldn’t dance to save my life, I could sing okay, but not well enough, and any sports that required physical contact were out of the question. But I always loved reading and writing. When I was little and got lonely, books were always there […]
Read More