July 21, 2005 Compared to July 21, 2006
By Dianna C.
This is a paper about my life today compared to my life at this time last year. I was working at Rockcastle Manufacturing and had been back from vacation for only a few weeks. During these few weeks, my own life as well as my coworkers had been turned upside down. The day after returning from vacation, our management staff called us all in a meeting and announced that our factory would soon be shut down. I remember sitting in that break room looking at all those faces and thinking what would they all do? I was thinking about the single moms, and the older workers who would have a hard time finding a job and those that would be left without any insurance. When you see these people more than you see your own family, your natural response is to worry about them first. It really didn’t sink in that I was in the exact same situation until I was home later that evening, by myself, allowing my mind to roam. When you are given such a shocking set of circumstances, I think your mind partially goes numb.
The next few weeks and months are kind of a blur to me now. It consisted of countless discussions of what each person would eventually do with their life. I remember seeing faces with tears walk by every day and comments of disgust where abundant. People were scared, upset, mad, relieved and some even happy. It was quite a mix of emotions amongst people who had grown very close.
Eventually the last day of work arrived and then it was over. I don’t know what I thought would happen but it just kind of ended. I went home and sat there like an idiot. I suddenly had all the time in the world to do whatever I wanted but nothing seemed remotely interesting. After all, you can only clean your house or sleep late a certain number of times before you become immune to the privilege. I busied myself with life in general and then it was time to start adult education classes in preparation for college.
Starting the adult education classes was a little intimidating at first but soon proved to be very interesting. During the first few months, I think we were all a little concerned as to whether we could actually handle this whole college thing or not. Pretty soon we were all learning new things and levels of confidence were starting to improve. I don’t think any of us thought that we would do as well as we have. Some of us have mastered some complicated algebra and some have become quite accomplished writers. Most all of us have completed the entire process to begin college in August, which in itself is a huge accomplishment.
This pretty much brings me full circle to now – July 21, 2006. At this point in time, I am only a few weeks away from starting college and can’t believe what has happened in a year. Looking back on the last twelve months, it sometimes feels like a lifetime has gone by. I think it feels this way because I am not the same person. I am not the same person that would stand in that factory and settle for whatever the day brought. I am not that scared person nor am I that subdued person anymore. I am now a person who has gone through the first phase of something very difficult and truly believes that she can make it through the rest. I understand that it will be very difficult but at the same time I know that I will ultimately reap the rewards. It is amazing what can transpire in a short year, lives can completely change and in our cases, I believe for the better.
I am proud of my group of friends and coworkers, as well as myself. I am looking forward to seeing these people in July of 2008 with their degree in hand. I hope they never again doubt themselves or their abilities. I have always been a firm believer in the saying, “that which does not kill you only makes you stronger”. I think we will be fabulous examples of this
This is a paper about my life today compared to my life at this time last year. I was working at Rockcastle Manufacturing and had been back from vacation for only a few weeks. During these few weeks, my own life as well as my coworkers had been turned upside down. The day after returning from vacation, our management staff called us all in a meeting and announced that our factory would soon be shut down. I remember sitting in that break room looking at all those faces and thinking what would they all do? I was thinking about the single moms, and the older workers who would have a hard time finding a job and those that would be left without any insurance. When you see these people more than you see your own family, your natural response is to worry about them first. It really didn’t sink in that I was in the exact same situation until I was home later that evening, by myself, allowing my mind to roam. When you are given such a shocking set of circumstances, I think your mind partially goes numb.
The next few weeks and months are kind of a blur to me now. It consisted of countless discussions of what each person would eventually do with their life. I remember seeing faces with tears walk by every day and comments of disgust where abundant. People were scared, upset, mad, relieved and some even happy. It was quite a mix of emotions amongst people who had grown very close.
Eventually the last day of work arrived and then it was over. I don’t know what I thought would happen but it just kind of ended. I went home and sat there like an idiot. I suddenly had all the time in the world to do whatever I wanted but nothing seemed remotely interesting. After all, you can only clean your house or sleep late a certain number of times before you become immune to the privilege. I busied myself with life in general and then it was time to start adult education classes in preparation for college.
Starting the adult education classes was a little intimidating at first but soon proved to be very interesting. During the first few months, I think we were all a little concerned as to whether we could actually handle this whole college thing or not. Pretty soon we were all learning new things and levels of confidence were starting to improve. I don’t think any of us thought that we would do as well as we have. Some of us have mastered some complicated algebra and some have become quite accomplished writers. Most all of us have completed the entire process to begin college in August, which in itself is a huge accomplishment.
This pretty much brings me full circle to now – July 21, 2006. At this point in time, I am only a few weeks away from starting college and can’t believe what has happened in a year. Looking back on the last twelve months, it sometimes feels like a lifetime has gone by. I think it feels this way because I am not the same person. I am not the same person that would stand in that factory and settle for whatever the day brought. I am not that scared person nor am I that subdued person anymore. I am now a person who has gone through the first phase of something very difficult and truly believes that she can make it through the rest. I understand that it will be very difficult but at the same time I know that I will ultimately reap the rewards. It is amazing what can transpire in a short year, lives can completely change and in our cases, I believe for the better.
