Student’s Writings

The topic was Fatherhood, but the set-up was a video about men who experienced domestic violence as children, then carried it forward as adults, until “fatherhood” changed everything.

RUTH…turns the topic on its head, with her tribute to her mom in “Womanhood.”

Womanhood

Going through domestic abuse is NOT for the weak. It’s something that can scar you for life. I have personally seen my mom go through it on multiple occasions. I’ve mentioned it before when I wrote stories in honor of my mom. 

If some of you don’t know, my mom grew up in El Salvador. She lived in a decently big family that consisted of four young daughters in total and workaholic parents. My grandparents were tired after long days of work and would come home to take care of their children. The way my mom described her story growing up was that she would see her sisters getting beaten by my grandpa. Sometimes it could’ve been because one of my aunts misbehaved or because my grandpa didn’t like something that one of them did. My mom said she was a good kid and never had too many beatings, which I honestly don’t fully believe. She just wants to put up a good picture of herself for us. Still, even through all the hardships, my mom came to the United States to find the means to help her family.

Around 2005, my mom met my dad. They were together for a good three years before my mom got pregnant with Karla. Two months after Karla was born, she got pregnant with me, and nine months after that, her miracle child (me) was born. Since the day I can remember, my parents have never had a good relationship. During my earlier years, a lot of what Karla and I would hear was my parents arguing about finding a way to pay bills, fix all the houses, keep food on the table, and essentially, contribute to the household. Slowly, things would start getting worse for all of us.

The very first time I remember my dad hitting my mom was a day when my aunt was visiting from El Salvador. We had all gone to the mall, but my mom still had to go out to work, so she was working in the kitchen. My dad soon came in and looked more irritated than usual. My mom had asked him, again, for the millionth time, to help her with a bill payment. He said no, and the argument quickly got heated. The next thing I know, I see my dad grabbing my mom’s arms before he slapped her. My aunt had to physically intervene, and Karla and I were told to go outside to play in the pool. It was raining that day, and our pool only had about 4 inches of water. Soon, my dad left for another four months before coming back.

There have been other occasions where my dad has gotten physical with my mom. Once, Karla and I were walking back from elementary school. My mom was out working, and we had no food to eat. My dad was complaining that my mom didn’t care for us. When my mom arrived, she told my dad to at least get us some food. Another argument started that led to my dad pushing my mom against the kitchen table and putting a knife to her face. The very words he said were, “If you don’t shut your mouth, I’ll cut your tongue out.” That was the very first time I was scared of my dad’s physical abuse. He snatched my mom’s phone from her hand and threw it across the room. The one brave thing I did was call the police. By the time the police arrived, my dad was already gone, again, just like the coward he is.

Even after all of the wrongdoings that men have done to my mom, she always finds it in her heart to forgive them. She’s one of the women in my life that I look up to. She went through so much. She, alone, had to take care of three kids, run her business, fix her houses, and pay all of the expenses. She stayed up every night until two or three in the morning, getting her food ready to sell the next day. Some of my core memories were because of her. Because she worked so late, she would wake up in the middle of the afternoon, so Karla and I would wake up early to watch TV and hang out. When we got hungry, we always pulled a chair in front of the stove before cooking eggs and sliced sausages. On the good weekends, my mom would take us out to Chipotle so we could all share a bowl.

Honestly, I’m really glad I grew up this way. I don’t think I would be who I am today without my mom. Even after everything she’s gone through, she continues to work hard for the things she wants. She has never, not once in her life, had something come to her easily. You can still see how tired she is sometimes. That’s why I want to work hard for her. I will take care of her and give her everything she deserves. Basically, what I’m saying is that I love my mom.

Ruth Rivas

March 6, 2026

The topic was Fatherhood, but the set-up was a video about men who experienced domestic violence as children, then carried it forward as adults, until “fatherhood” changed everything.

KENNEDY…puts herself in her father’s shoes, quite literally.

My Collar’s Blue

Despite how much I talk about my father, I really don’t know all that much about him. It was only just recently that I learned about where he used to live when he was younger, and the schools he’d gone to growing up. We joke around all the time at home, but I can’t remember the last time we sat down and had a thoughtful conversation with each other. The solution for me was obvious. They say to really understand someone, you have to imagine yourself in their shoes and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

     So instead of going to school today, I put on my father’s shoes to really see what it’s like to be him. As soon as I laced his work boots on, I felt the difference immediately- almost like a transformation. My dreads started falling out, and my hairline receded. I felt an itch in my chin and soon my long crinkly beard started forming before my eyes. I also felt the years of blue collar work caught up with me instantly, my knees hurt and my back ached. These must be the eventual effects of blue collar work, no wonder why they look so similar. Right from the start, things were already going rough. When I got to the site late, I got chewed out by my supervisor and was told to get to work immediately. I had to climb down into a large hole in the middle of the road, something to do with distributing gas. Everyone was already doing their set job, so I tried to make myself look busy. After a couple minutes of banging my wrench on the pipes, I heard someone call for me.

Ethan: Aye Davon!

It was one of my co-workers.

Ethan: Go and run this to Pee Wee,

Kennedy Who?

Ethan: The big ol’ bald black guy near the site.

With that, I climbed back out and started jogging in the direction the guy had pointed. However, once I arrived, I encountered a new problem. There were too many people who fit the description of bald and black; it was like entering a flood full of milk duds. Took me hours to find PeeWee, but I eventually did. I may have only got a snippet of what my father does, but I guess I got a taste of the blue collar life. 

Kennedy Lewis

March 6, 2026

The topic was Fatherhood, but the set-up was a video about men who experienced domestic violence as children, then carried it forward as adults, until “fatherhood” changed everything.

JUDAH…focuses on the addiction that is violence, and the weakness of those who resort to it.

Seeing and Believing

When someone sees something, they have a choice… to either copy what they saw, or follow their own path. This goes for everyone, except a young child. They can’t make the choice, especially when it’s the first time they see something. 

Violence is like an addiction. I thought about writing about my own personal experiences when it comes to hurting others, but I don’t feel like it. The following story isn’t my manifesto or supervillain origin story. But I will say this: When you land your first punch, the entire room falls silent, everyone in awe, and you feel a rush of adrenaline. You think that you just won the fight, but all you did was lose the war, and there’s three reasons why. 

Reason one: Every time you meet someone new, you have the chance to make a new friend. When you physically hurt someone, all you make is a new enemy, even if you’re able to kill someone. Everyone in the world is loved by somebody and that person may be willing to get revenge. Reason two: Everyone on the planet has the same amount of power. Nobody is above anybody. When you attack someone else, it just shows that you have no patience and can’t handle your emotions, meaning that you’re someone who never grew up. And finally, reason three: Nobody has the right to physically harm another person.

I personally can’t stand people who carry guns. I may be known as Glock 19 n*gga, but truly, I think even people who use guns as “protection” are the weakest of all. If you handle a gun, that means that you are truly ready to kill another person. 

In my own opinion, and I say this just to get my point across, a person who carries a gun and is ready to kill is no different from a person who is prepared to rape somebody. Rape by definition is having sex with another person without that person’s consent. Murder by definition is taking another person’s life without that person’s consent. And that’s all I wanna say. The End.

Judah E. Patterson

March 6, 2026

The topic was Fatherhood, but the set-up was a video about men who experienced domestic violence as children, then carried it forward as adults, until “fatherhood” changed everything.

MINGO…needs only her opening line to convey how special her dad is to her.

My Dad

If I had one hundred lives, I would want him to be my dad in every one of them. I have always loved my dad more than I could describe. When I was eight or nine years old, I was separated from my dad for one whole week. He had to work in Maryland, while my mom, siblings, and I went to Delaware. I cried the whole time. We have always been close, and I gravitate toward him because he made me feel safe.

We share a lot in common. All of my hobbies are his and his are mine. Reading, crochet, birding, movies and so much more. I am a replica of him in a way; we have such similar personalities and sense of humor that makes us so compatible. Still, it’s hard to explain the bond we have because I don’t want to capture it incorrectly. I think very often about how blessed I am to have MY dad because it feels like no one else could compare to him. 

We do nearly everything together. My favorite days with him include birding, reading, and getting breakfast or lunch somewhere. We have been planning something for a bit; since I get out of school before my mom (a teacher), and siblings, we are planning to go to Rehoboth the day I get off school. Just him and me. I am so excited for it. 

I mentioned having a similar personality and humor as him, and an aspect of that is the jokes. The inside jokes and references that are a huge part of our connection. On the topic of personality, I believe I get my work ethic from him. I grew up watching him at work. He taught me to try my hardest in my school and it would pay off. 

I have been rambling this whole writing, but there is honestly no other way. There is so much to cover and I don’t have words to do so. To finish up, I love my dad. He is my best friend.

Mingo Cord

March 6, 2026

With the recent passing of Jesse Jackson, the students were reminded of his association with the poem, “I Am Somebody.” They were asked to consider this concept.

RYLEE…has a fascinating discussion with her emotional alter ego.

Know Who You Are

A-“I know who I am, but who are you?” 

B-“How can you know who you are when I don’t know who I am? In fact,  A-“you are exactly who I am.”

B-“No, I am sad, happy, angry, and quick to react. That is not you.”

  A-“But you tell me who to be, how to feel, and how to act. If I am constantly following your directions, then how am I not you?”

B-“So in another sense, you act like me? Yet you do not act like yourself. Simply because you don’t know who you are.”

A-“So what if I don’t know who I am? What am I supposed to do?”

B-“Who you are comes from your actions, no matter what I tell you to do. What matters is how you follow my directions. That’s what builds you.” 

A- “I only do that because you aren’t always right, that’s not me as a person”

B- “So you do know who you are as a person? And you do know right from wrong? So you do have your own personality.”

A-“Well I guess if you put it that way”

B-“When you act on your own, you are being yourself. Your mind is not always right. I am just the basics of emotions. I am your emotional reaction. So don’t always listen to me, know who you are.”

Rylee Breeden

2/20/26

With the recent passing of Jesse Jackson, the students were reminded of his association with the poem, “I Am Somebody.” They were asked to consider this concept.

 JORDAN…recalls an experience in middle school that helped her identify her true self, and the somebody she wants to be.

I Am Somebody

Being somebody is interpreted differently by everyone. Some people would think social status makes you somebody. Others would say it depends on how you live your life. Did you make any accomplishments? Does anyone recognize you as someone important? There’s one other question that comes to mind. What does it mean to be somebody? The answer is people define their own meaning.

Personally, I’m not sure how I would define somebody. A person’s physical existence could count as being somebody, or their individuality. I struggled at some point with figuring out who I am and what my values are. During my suspension in middle school, I spent a lot of time thinking about myself. How did I get here? Why did I decide to hurt someone else? Those were some pretty big questions to ask. 

I didn’t like the feeling of guilt floating around in my head. The deafening silence of the room made it worse. Even though my environment was tense, I somehow found a bit of peace. I’m not the kind of person to meditate, but I found myself doing so, in my own way. That was hard because I needed to have my mind clear, and I tend to get lost in my thoughts. I wanted to learn how to control my emotions better, so I wouldn’t hurt someone again. In that moment, I found my true self, the somebody that I want to be.

That self reflection happened a few years ago. Now, I feel like I have a clear understanding of who I am. However, I’m still learning things because I haven’t fully grown up yet. Asking yourself who you are is an important question everyone should think about. At the end of the day, everybody is still somebody.

Jordan Smith

February 20, 2026