his year, students responded to the prompt below. Some wrote an as-told-to account in the voice of the person they interviewed. Others wrote it from their own perspective.
"Choose someone you love, respect, or are just interested in learning more about, and ask him or her to tell you a story. Specifically, your question for them is this: Tell me about a moment when a place made a big impression on you, when it did something to shape the person you are today."
By Ariel Hill
It was what I had believed to be an ordinary day. I remember it was hot, the sun blazed down upon my skin, fiery. I knew I’d have a sun burn when I got in the house later that day. The only thing that kept my mood on the bright side was knowing that in a few hours I’d be at Six Flags with my brother, begging him to get on every roller coaster with me, even though I knew he wouldn’t.
My brother, he’s afraid of heights. As much as he appears to be tough and fearless, he’s actually afraid to get on roller coasters. It was weird to think about, yet I wouldn’t judge him for it, nor would I pressure him into doing it with me because he’d never in a million years do that to me. My brother and I have been tight for as long as I can remember. Anytime you’d see him, I was bound to be following with quick steps behind him. We had bumps in the road but they never lasted, because I could never stay angry with him. I looked up to him. Everything I didn’t learn in school, I learned it from him. Any question that I had, he always had an answer. I could’ve did my own thing growing up. I could’ve hung with my own friends. However, they didn’t have his intellect, his maturity, or the bond that we shared.
And when we got older, he was always there to cheer me up when I was sad. When my mom and I got into our daily arguments, he’d pick me up and take me to get food. He knows how much I love food. Little things like that meant the world to me. He meant the world to me, my brother.
So as the hours passed, my phone chimed, and it made me jump from my daydream. I looked at my phone and it read “Brother”. It was a text from him that said “I'm outside.” My heart began to quicken from excitement. “Okay, I’ll be right out,” I replied, containing my childish excitement. As I ran down the marble stairs and out the big red door I spotted my brother’s silver Chevy. His girlfriend rested in the front seat, and of course my brother was the one driving. I jumped in the back seat of the car as I heard my brother greet me. “Hey Meeps,” he said. Meeps is what he called me. “Hey,” I replied.
As we pulled off, I remembered that I had forgotten to get money for Six Flags. “We have to stop at dad’s,” I said to my brother. “Okay,” he replied. Though he didn’t have a problem with stopping, I still felt quite bad about making him go out of his way.
When we were close to my Dad’s, I called him to let him know we’d be there soon. But as soon as the phone call ended, I saw we had missed a turn. As I looked up I saw my brother pulling over. I could see his worried expression in the mirror mixed with a little bit of nervousness and maybe fear. No. It couldn’t be fear. My brother? Scared? It was a weird thought. As I turned around to look out the back window I saw cop cars approaching the vehicle. My heart dropped. I’ve seen the videos on social media, on the news. But I never in a million years thought this would happen to my brother. Not my brother. “License and registration please,” said one officer as my brother rolled down his window. Another officer approached and looked inside to observe the car. My heartbeat sped up, and I could hear the blood pumping in my ears. My body felt heavy, and I couldn’t find the strength to move. My knees felt so weak and my palms were so sweaty. “Step out the car please,” I heard the officer say in the distance. This is what brought me back to reality. The cuffs they put around his wrist. bounding his two hands together.
Just like that, his freedom was stripped from him.
The ride home was silent. The rain poured down so heavy. Yet hours ago it had been such a perfect summer day. None of us spoke though. I don’t think any of us knew what to say. As I laid in bed, I couldn’t help but let the warm tears roll down my face. It was all my fault. If it wasn’t for me leaving the money home, he and his girlfriend would have been at Six Flags at that moment, enjoying their time together. If I had just stayed home, he wouldn’t be in this predicament. As if it would help, I banged my head against the wall repeatedly, trying to rid the thoughts from my head.
I wish I could’ve switched places with him. As hard as he works, he shouldn't have had to fall victim to this corrupt system and their stereotypes. This whole experience made me lose hope in our government. Innocent men are thrown in jail, torn away from their families, and stripped of their freedom. This experience is the reason I chose to major in criminal justice, because everyone always talks about the problem but never tries to be the person who helps to resolve it. Change won’t come unless we go out and get it. So I plan to be the first step in the right direction.
"Choose someone you love, respect, or are just interested in learning more about, and ask him or her to tell you a story. Specifically, your question for them is this: Tell me about a moment when a place made a big impression on you, when it did something to shape the person you are today."
By Ariel Hill
It was what I had believed to be an ordinary day. I remember it was hot, the sun blazed down upon my skin, fiery. I knew I’d have a sun burn when I got in the house later that day. The only thing that kept my mood on the bright side was knowing that in a few hours I’d be at Six Flags with my brother, begging him to get on every roller coaster with me, even though I knew he wouldn’t.
My brother, he’s afraid of heights. As much as he appears to be tough and fearless, he’s actually afraid to get on roller coasters. It was weird to think about, yet I wouldn’t judge him for it, nor would I pressure him into doing it with me because he’d never in a million years do that to me. My brother and I have been tight for as long as I can remember. Anytime you’d see him, I was bound to be following with quick steps behind him. We had bumps in the road but they never lasted, because I could never stay angry with him. I looked up to him. Everything I didn’t learn in school, I learned it from him. Any question that I had, he always had an answer. I could’ve did my own thing growing up. I could’ve hung with my own friends. However, they didn’t have his intellect, his maturity, or the bond that we shared.
And when we got older, he was always there to cheer me up when I was sad. When my mom and I got into our daily arguments, he’d pick me up and take me to get food. He knows how much I love food. Little things like that meant the world to me. He meant the world to me, my brother.
So as the hours passed, my phone chimed, and it made me jump from my daydream. I looked at my phone and it read “Brother”. It was a text from him that said “I'm outside.” My heart began to quicken from excitement. “Okay, I’ll be right out,” I replied, containing my childish excitement. As I ran down the marble stairs and out the big red door I spotted my brother’s silver Chevy. His girlfriend rested in the front seat, and of course my brother was the one driving. I jumped in the back seat of the car as I heard my brother greet me. “Hey Meeps,” he said. Meeps is what he called me. “Hey,” I replied.
As we pulled off, I remembered that I had forgotten to get money for Six Flags. “We have to stop at dad’s,” I said to my brother. “Okay,” he replied. Though he didn’t have a problem with stopping, I still felt quite bad about making him go out of his way.
When we were close to my Dad’s, I called him to let him know we’d be there soon. But as soon as the phone call ended, I saw we had missed a turn. As I looked up I saw my brother pulling over. I could see his worried expression in the mirror mixed with a little bit of nervousness and maybe fear. No. It couldn’t be fear. My brother? Scared? It was a weird thought. As I turned around to look out the back window I saw cop cars approaching the vehicle. My heart dropped. I’ve seen the videos on social media, on the news. But I never in a million years thought this would happen to my brother. Not my brother. “License and registration please,” said one officer as my brother rolled down his window. Another officer approached and looked inside to observe the car. My heartbeat sped up, and I could hear the blood pumping in my ears. My body felt heavy, and I couldn’t find the strength to move. My knees felt so weak and my palms were so sweaty. “Step out the car please,” I heard the officer say in the distance. This is what brought me back to reality. The cuffs they put around his wrist. bounding his two hands together.
Just like that, his freedom was stripped from him.
The ride home was silent. The rain poured down so heavy. Yet hours ago it had been such a perfect summer day. None of us spoke though. I don’t think any of us knew what to say. As I laid in bed, I couldn’t help but let the warm tears roll down my face. It was all my fault. If it wasn’t for me leaving the money home, he and his girlfriend would have been at Six Flags at that moment, enjoying their time together. If I had just stayed home, he wouldn’t be in this predicament. As if it would help, I banged my head against the wall repeatedly, trying to rid the thoughts from my head.
I wish I could’ve switched places with him. As hard as he works, he shouldn't have had to fall victim to this corrupt system and their stereotypes. This whole experience made me lose hope in our government. Innocent men are thrown in jail, torn away from their families, and stripped of their freedom. This experience is the reason I chose to major in criminal justice, because everyone always talks about the problem but never tries to be the person who helps to resolve it. Change won’t come unless we go out and get it. So I plan to be the first step in the right direction.
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