On War & Immigration:

One thing Tucson should know about people that left their country because of war or people that immigrated to the United States is that they leave their countries and come to the U.S to live a better life. People that experience war, as I did in Liberia, dream everyday of a better life. They work hard to feed their kids and a lot more. Everyone comes to the U.S to have a better life and a better future, but not to be teased. For example, no one wants to get arrested because of where they come from or not get a job because they don’t have papers. Both immigrants and refugees leave their country because they have to, not because they want to. By coming together, we all can save people’s lives and help immigrants with jobs. If we come together, we can also feed the hungry, and give water to the thirsty. If we come together, we can help everyone have a better life. But if we come together, it must be with peace and harmony in our hearts.

Autobiographical Writing:

Life in the Past

Who was I before I came to America? I was just a young boy trying to live my life in Africa. When I left my country Liberia, I went to Cote d’ Ivoire where I was a refugee. Being a refugee means you left your country because of war, and now you are living in a different country. It is not easy being a refugee in a country where you can’t speak the language. It is hard to get money and to get a job. In some countries, refugees don’t have house to live in. In some places, people look at you like you’re nobody, like you mean nothing to them. Being a refugee is something that no one would ever dream of being. To me, I think if you are a refugee, people don’t think of you as a human. To them you’re nothing.

Living in Cote d’Ivoire, I had to work hard to get food. Because I had to work all the time, I was never in the house. I lived with my mom, my brothers and sisters. At that time, I was about ten years old. I had to help the people that are building houses. My mom was working at a school as a cook. My mom had to work everyday; she never had a day off. As for me, instead of going to school I would go to work. Some of my friends and I worked at the same place. We didn’t really want to work, but we had to in order to get what we wanted or to buy what we needed.

Because of the work and hustle, I wasn’t in school all the time. Growing up, I was a bad kid because of all the hustling I was doing. The life I was living and things I was doing made me sad and depressed. I was depressed because the life that I was living wasn’t the life for me. Because of the things I did in school, the kids called me bad boy. I remember one time I was mad and I got into a fight with my teacher. That day is one of the days I will never forget in my life. I really wanted to go to school everyday but because of the work I was doing it kept me away from school and made me do bad stuff. If I have a chance to go back and fix my past life, I would.

Who I Am Now

I look at myself and ask who am I now? I am a student at Catalina Magnet High School. I am a soccer player at Catalina Magnet High School. I am doing things that I never had the chance to do. I stay in school everyday. I study hard and have good grades in school. I still work hard everyday, but I don’t work as I used to.

I live in a big house. I am a big brother of three sisters and one little brother. My family and I hang out together more than we used to. I have things that I didn’t have in my past life. I have a lot of friends but I still miss my friends from my past life. There have been many changes in my life. Sometimes people say changes in life are not good but I think they are wrong.

All of the changes in my life have made me learn new things. I’m learning to do things that I never thought I would do one day. I get to do new things everyday, like working with friends, playing the sport I love and more. I’m living a happier life than I was in the past. My past life wasn’t as good as it is now. Looking at myself now, I am a better person. And I’m working hard to build a better future for everyone.

My Future Life

Who was I in the past
Who am I now
Who will I be in the future
I don’t know all that
But I know my dream
My life moves everyday
Like the sun moving around the earth
Like a soccer ball moving around a field
I never know what might happen
Or what I might do.

My dream is my future
My future is my dream
I dream of playing soccer
Playing soccer is my dream
That I wish to live in the future
It might be hard to live this dream
But I will do what I can to live my dream

I believe everyone has a star
And when my star starts to shine
My dream will begin to shine too.

The dream is what made me who I am
We dream to live a better life
Our dreams inspire us
Our dreams make it rain
Our dreams put us in the top rank
My dream is to become a soccer player
And to help others reach their dreams.