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Expectations Change

Joined: 11/13/2012
Posts: 2
MHjesse

Posted: Tuesday, November 13, 2012 5:07:08 PM

When most girls think of their future they usually have pretty high expectations or at least in Tiana’s world they did. Marrying a doctor, living in a big perfectly decorated house, and having lots of kids. Tiana was determined to have a perfect life.
Tiana had the perfect model like body. Tall, thin, dark brown hair, and a smile that could get her anything she wanted. All her life she had lived in a small town, just shy of 500 people. Everybody knew everybody along with their life story. With graduation right around the corner Tiana had a lot on her mind. She had gotten honored with a lot of local scholarships and was beyond ready for receive her diploma. She couldn’t wait for the day she would drive past the “Goodbye, Come Again” sign and never turn back. She was ready to explore the city lights.
Graduation came quick and moving to South Florida came quicker. Before she knew it she was boarding her plane to fly half way across the U.S. She looked nice as usual wearing cute little flat shoes, white shorts and a royal blue shirt. She was seated right next to an elderly guy that wasn’t exactly going to be her trip the most pleasurable flight. She could spell his body odor from the bathrooms, he didn’t look like he was a very happy person, and the one thing that bothered her the most was he didn’t have matching socks on. She couldn’t keep from looking down at the grey and black sock.
She tried to focus on how much she couldn’t wait to step foot on the sandy beach, and how much she couldn’t wait to meet the love of her dreams. Her eyes kept on returning to those socks but her day dreaming was taking over her mind.
She could see everything falling into place. She would go to her classes for health and fitness, go to the beach to keep up on her tan and there she would meet the perfect guy. He would have every quality that she had on her “check list.” He had to be a doctor, had to be tall, athletic looking, and of course be able to top her smile.
The plane landed sooner than she thought. All her things had already arrived at her apartment. All she had to do was show up and arrange them how she wanted them. She spent the next few days rearranging and figuring out where all her classes were and had exactly one week before they all started. She spent almost every minute of that remaining week in the sun on the beach.
Tiana had very high expectations for the first day of class. She wanted to meet all these new people and make all these new friends. She walked into the room and her eyes immediately got huge. She had never seen so many kids packed into one room before. Back in high school Tiana was the center of attention most of the time because of how pretty and smart she was, but this was going to be way different.
Tiana made it through that first class and in fact she made it through a whole year of school and really got the hang of how everything worked down in florida. She liked it so much that she decided to stay there for the summer instead of going home. A month into the summer Tiana saw an unfamiliar face on the beach. She wondered if he was just on vacation or maybe even a honey moon trip so she just dropped her curiosity. But the next day she saw the same guy. She kept asking her self “who is that good looking guy?” She wondered if he was going to attend school there in the fall? Or if he had just moved into town? It took her an hour or so but she finally worked up the courage to go and talk to this tall and very good looking guy. She walked up to him, introducing herself and asking if he was new to the city. His reply will forever stick in Tiana’s memory. “Well hello there, I actually just got the new job at the hospital. I’m a pediatric surgeon.” Tiana was immediately attracted to Bryson and wanted to continue their conversation. She asked if he was familiar with the town, just trying to make conversation. He said that he had been to a few places to eat by him self but didn’t really no any of the famous places. He asked if she would be willing to show him around a little more. She agreed to the plan and told him that she would be free later this afternoon, gave him her number and with the happiest attitude went home to her apartment.
The night couldn’t come any sooner. She was so excited and could already see a possible future with Bryson. He picked her up around 6 in his little sports car where they talked and flirted for the next hour and a half. Things were going so well that Bryson asked Tiana if she would like to go out to dinner with him. She immediately accepted and he proceeded to drive to one of the fanciest restaurants in town. She was need less to say very impressed. The night ended with a “I will call you tomorrow” and a kiss on the cheek. It was a perfect first date.
The next day Bryson called like he said he would and they continued seeing each other for almost two years. The conversation of getting married and spending the rest of their lives together came up more than once but Bryson had still not popped the question. Their two year anniversary came up and they had planned to go to the same restaurant where they had their first date at. Tiana was almost positive that tonight was the night. She was getting all dressed up, doing some final touches on her makeup and she got a phone call. It was Bryson telling her that he is not feeling well and suggests that she go out with the girls tonight and have fun instead. She up all her friends, tells them the situation and they all decide to go to some clubs and have some fun. Tiana decides to leave the club early and go check up on her sick boyfriend. Walking up to the door with soup in one hand and medicine in the other. She can sense that something was not right because the living room and kitchen lights were both on. She invited her self in and went straight up stairs to Bryson’s room where she found her worst nightmare. Bryson was sitting there on the bed in his robe and another girl, she knew looked familiar stepped out of the shower with as little as a towel wrapped around her. Not even allowing her self time to react she dropped the soup on his fresh cleaned carpet and ran down and out to her car. Bryson tried to run after her to explain himself but Tiana knew exactly what was going on and she wanted no part in it. She stated that she wanted nothing to do with him and drove to her apartment with a crushed heart.
Tiana felt like her fairytale ending was never going to happen. For the next year she tried going out on several dates but they never worked out. She than made what later became the best decision of her life. She went off to med school and was determined to become one of the best doctors.
Med School was challenging at times, but she knew that this is what she was meant to do. She completed school and finished in the top 3 of her class. After Graduation she got an opportunity of a life time. She got invited to go over to South Africa for two years and help build and develop a hospital there. Going over there with an open mind and heart was the best thing for Tiana. She fell in love with all the people and loved her job. When she was over there she got to go into the orphanage a couple times to treat a few children. This became her favorite part of her job. She wished that she could have a family and children of her own someday.
The two year contract was almost up and it was about time for her to return to her home in florida, which now by the way was her dream house decorated like a beautiful barbie’s house. A week before she had planned to go home she had the best idea ever. She went to the orphanage and straight up to the main office. She told the president of the orphanage her wish and asked if it was possible. After going through days of paper work. Tiana got her wish. She was not going to be going home all by her self and not going to have to sit by any old smelly men with unmatching socks. She was going to be flying in first class with 2 beautiful 4 year old girls that she had adopted earlier that day.
Her life might not of turned out like she had planned or like the picture perfect fairytale. But it was even better. She had her perfect house, her perfect children, and a job that not only let her help people but a job that she loved. So Tiana was happy to say that she did get her perfect life.
 

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	March 2013 National Writing Contest: When have you applied the phrase "No Fear" in your life? Writing Contest Details: Every teenager or college students has fears. Some are things you can touch, like snakes. Some are situations you want to avoid, like public speaking or test taking. Some come from childhood stories, like ghosts or monsters. And some fears are things that unfortunately find us, like terrorism, natural disasters, or cancer. However, we can't live in the shadows of our fears everyday. To do so would dishonor the act of living. So this month, the Stage of Life national writing contest prompt is simple: "As a teen or college student, how have you applied the phrase "No Fear" in your life?"

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	April 2012: MOVIES - What movie has made the biggest difference in your life? Writing Contest Details: In honor of the hottest student movie ticket in town right now, "The Hunger Games" (based off the YA fiction novel of the same title by Suzanne Collins), we wanted to find out what films speak to teens and college students. Which movies inspire you? VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: Teens and Movies

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	August 2011: SELF-REFLECTION - Letter to Me Details: We want you to write a letter to yourself. Yes, you heard us...a letter to yourself. Take 15 minutes, alone, and spend some time thinking about the upcoming school year. Think about the things you want to accomplish. The things you fear. Think about where you've been and where you're going. Think about how your summer has been going. What are you looking forward to? What are you dreading about the return to school? Think about your goals. Think about if you're looking to make a big change this year...or simply survive? After all of that thinking, now write a "Letter to Me." This is a letter addressed to yourself. Tackle some of the topics we've outlined above...or get creative and come up with your own original angle for the letter. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See what teens had to write to themselves in our "Letter Me" writing prompt

	July 2011: BULLYING - Have you ever been bullied, teased, or picked on? If so, about what? Details: Whatever you want to call it, bullying is a problem in many schools and continues to be a hot topic in the national press. We've know many students experienced some form of bullying during high school. Our writing contest question this month asks teens and college students to share their stories about being bullied or about being the bully. The student is then asked to write a short essay about that experience. Were you once a bully who regrets it now? Share your experiences with us and help prevent students from bullying others. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See what teens shared about being bullied.

	June 2011: PARENTS - What is one thing you don't know about your Mother or Father? Teen Trends: How well do teens really know their parents? Our writing contest question this month asks teens and college students to interview their parents and ask them to share ONE thing about themselves their son/daughter doesn't already know. The student is then asked to write a short essay about that experience. Did you learn something that shaped the way you think about your parent? We call this contest the "Parent Paradigm Shift." VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See what teens learned about their parents...

	May 2011: OBSTACLES - What was the most difficult thing you overcame this school year? Teen Trends: What major obstacles stood in the way this school year? From friends to family to graduation to grades to self esteem, teens go through a lot in a school year. Tell us about one area or experience that caused you the most trouble, but that you were eventually able to overcome. Help inspire another high school student to gain some courage to tackle or navigate their problem by sharing your experience. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See what challenges teenagers face today...

	April 2011: PROM - Is prom a positive or negative teen tradition? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about prom? Going to prom is a high school milestone, and prom traditions have been around for decades. Dresses. Dinner. DJ's. Dancing. For most teenagers, it's about celebrating life with friends and/or a significant other. However, we've all heard the "negative" aspects often associated with prom too. Drinking. Drugs. DUI's. Damaged self-esteem. Date rape. So we want to know - is prom a positive or negative milestone. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens feel about prom...

	March 2011: MEDIA - What form of media impacts your life the most, and why? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about the media? The "media" is an undeniably powerful entity in our daily lives, and even more invasive for teens and college students, a generation growing up with more forms of media choices than any other generation before them. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens feel about the media...

	February 2011: MARRIAGE - What is the value of marriage? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about marriage? This contest came out in February 2011. The month of love. Valentine's Day sits right in the middle of this month and helps (or in some cases forces) all of us to pay homage to the idea of romance...love. We got little controversial this month and asked teens to share their point of view on marriage. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens feel about marriage...

	January 2011: MAKE A DIFFERENCE - What organization, company, non-profit or 'cause' will help make the world a better place? Teen Trends: How do teens want to better the world? Our mission on StageofLife.com is to help change the world, one story at a time. What a better way to do that than to ask teens and college students about worthwhile causes we should all know about. This was an opportunity for teens to shed light and share with us their favorite non-profit, company, organization or 'cause' that could help make the world a better place. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens feel about making the world a better place...

	December 2010: MONEY - What is your relationship with money? How do you spend (or save)...and why? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about money? Money....Cash. Coin. Greenbacks. Pesos. Gravy. Deniro. KaChing. Moola. So we're curious...how do teens and college students feel about money? Whether the student knew a homeless teen or has a friend living in the penthouse, we wanted to know about their relationship with the almighty dollar. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens feel about money...

	November 2010: GIVING THANKS - What are you most thankful for? Teen Trends: What are teens grateful for? This writing contest rolled out in November 2010. We all get busy during the day-to-day routine of our lives, but it's important to stop once in while and reflect on what matters most, and to give thanks for that. Keeping that in mind, we wanted to hear from teens about who or what, in their lives right now, should receive public acknowledgment of their thanks. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See for who and what teens are thankful...

	October 2010: TEEN STRESS - What stresses you out, and how do you cope with that stress? Teen Trends: How do students deal with stress? From classes to homework to jobs to extra curricular activities to social outings, teens and college students are maintaining hectic schedules. Add on top of that any current relationship hardships, social issues, e.g. bullying, illnesses or other personal problems and it's not surprising that many young people feel...stressed. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens deal with stress... .

	September 2010: HEROES - Who is your hero? Teen Trends: Who would a teenager name as their hero? We wanted to talk about heroes, both big and small, with high school and college students. We asked teens to name their hero, it could be a family member, someone famous, or an everyday person in their lives who is quietly making a difference, and then write a 500 word essay about that hero. You'll love these responses. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See who teens nominated as their heroes...

	August 2010: EDUCATION - What suggestion(s) do you have to make a positive change at your school or with the educational system as a whole? Teen Trends: How would teens improve education? We wanted to know how students were perceiving their educations, educational environments at their high schools, colleges and universities and the overall trends in education. We asked the teens for ideas on how to improve the educational environment. VIEW SUMMARY REPORT: See how teens would improve the educational system...

	July 2010: FOOD - Do we have an obligation to take better care of ourselves by making changes in the way we eat and/or buy and consume food? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about food, obesity and nutrition? TV shows like NBC's Biggest Loser are big hits and books like Michael Pollan's Food Rules are flying off the shelves. Even film documentaries like Food, Inc. and Super Size Me have pushed into the mainstream consciousness. It goes without saying a tipping point is occurring in our society's awareness in regards to people's relationship with food. Obesity in America is reaching an epidemic...but are people ready or really willing to change? Is our addiction to unhealthy food too hard to break? See how teens feel about food, obesity and nutrition...[this summary report is being pulled from the essay archive for posting here soon]

	June 2010: COLLEGE - What is the most difficult thing (for you) about college? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about college? We want to know what's making the college process or college itself difficult and why. Financial aid? Application process? Juggling classes and work? What is making college difficult? This contest was held in partnership with "Take America to College" initiative. See how teens feel about college...[this summary report is being pulled from the essay archive for posting here soon]

	May 2010: ENVIRONMENT - What is one behavior you can either change or incorporate into your daily life that will reduce our negative impact on the environment? Teen Trends: How do teens feel about the environment? The negative environmental impact and tragedy of lives lost from the BP off-shore oil rig disaster was obvious. What we wanted from our high school and college students entering this month's writing contest was not their outrage about how this could have happened, but rather, share one solution (big or small) that can help combat man's ever-reaching environmental impact. See how teens feel about helping the environment...[this summary report is being pulled from the essay archive for posting here soon]

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The Meaning of Cookies

This post would be my first as a featured writer of Stage of Life. I was thinking about what to wri...
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"Shooting Stars" and Scared

A few hours ago, I plopped myself in front of my TV to catch up on Glee before heading to be...
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StageofLife.com is an education-based, grassroots, non-partisan, free blogging community with a mission support digital literacy by making the world a better place, one story, essay and blog at a time. Stage of Life users (teens, college students, Millennials, Gen Y, Gen X, and Baby Boomers) can share and archive their life stories via their Stage of Life profile page and specialized content includes digital literacy resources, lesson plans and writing prompts for Language Arts teachers and other writing educators, monthly writing contests for high school students and older generations, student blogging initiatives, blog directories, and financial literacy tools, including Life Rewards® - a free discount program for all Stage of Life users, readers and writers dedicated to providing printable coupons and coupon codes tailored towards each stage of life.

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Expectations Change

Past Student Writing Contests

May 2013 National Writing Contest: Share a Special Memory of Your Mom, Grandmother, or Important Woman in Your Life?

April 2013 National Writing Contest: What Current National or International News Story Do You Think More Teens and College Students Should Care About, and Why?

March 2013 National Writing Contest: When have you applied the phrase "No Fear" in your life?

January 2013 National Writing Contest: Where do we go after Newtown?

December 2012 Writing Contest: How will you be the change in 2013?

November 2012 Writing Contest: What was the most inspirational or important book you've ever read?

October 2012: SPORTS & FAMILY - How have sports positively (or negatively) shaped traditions in your family?

September 2012: POLITICS & PASSION - Share a story about what one political issue is most important to you in the upcoming U.S. Presidential election.

July & August 2012: MUSIC - Share a story of a song that played an important role during a unique time in your life.

June 2012: NATURE - How has nature inspired you?

April 2012: MOVIES - What movie has made the biggest difference in your life?

April 2012: MOVIES - What movie has made the biggest difference in your life?

March 2012: POETRY - Dedicate a Poem to Someone Who Matters

February 2012: LOVE - What's Your Definition of Love?

January 2012: Person to Watch in 2012?

November & December 2011: AWARENESS - What issue or cause should receive its own "awareness" month?

October 2011: TRUST & SAFETY - Do you trust our institutions to keep us safe?

September 2011: EDUCATION - Teacher Appreciation essays

August 2011: SELF-REFLECTION - Letter to Me

July 2011: BULLYING - Have you ever been bullied, teased, or picked on? If so, about what?

June 2011: PARENTS - What is one thing you don't know about your Mother or Father?

May 2011: OBSTACLES - What was the most difficult thing you overcame this school year?

April 2011: PROM - Is prom a positive or negative teen tradition?

March 2011: MEDIA - What form of media impacts your life the most, and why?

February 2011: MARRIAGE - What is the value of marriage?

January 2011: MAKE A DIFFERENCE - What organization, company, non-profit or 'cause' will help make the world a better place?

December 2010: MONEY - What is your relationship with money? How do you spend (or save)...and why?

November 2010: GIVING THANKS - What are you most thankful for?

October 2010: TEEN STRESS - What stresses you out, and how do you cope with that stress?

September 2010: HEROES - Who is your hero?

August 2010: EDUCATION - What suggestion(s) do you have to make a positive change at your school or with the educational system as a whole?

July 2010: FOOD - Do we have an obligation to take better care of ourselves by making changes in the way we eat and/or buy and consume food?

June 2010: COLLEGE - What is the most difficult thing (for you) about college?

May 2010: ENVIRONMENT - What is one behavior you can either change or incorporate into your daily life that will reduce our negative impact on the environment?

Current Writing Prompts...

1) Twitter Contest: "Short Short Short Story" Writing Contest

2) Our National Blogging Contest: Letters to Mom - Share a Memory About Your Mom or Grandmother!

Enter our Writing Contests

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