The Brown Velvet Couch - Narrative Essay Sample

My mama always told me not to give up in what I did in life. At times I would ask myself why I had to be persistent despite the challenges I experienced. The school was not my everyday cup of coffee. But since it was a system that every child had to go through after turning three or four years, I had to abide by the rules. Doing complex mathematics problems, carrying schoolwork back home and having to wake up early to prepare for school always bothered me. "Do I have to go to school today?" is the question I would ask my mother every morning. However, after I completed high school, I appreciated the saying never give up.

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"Wake up baby, it's a beautiful day." "Get ready, today you will learn new things at school." These were the words my mother used to say to me every school day. I think she used these words to at least psych me up for school since I wasn't really into school stuff. Let's say those words influenced me a bit because I would wake up, prepare myself, pack my books in my small bag, take breakfast, and wait for the school van.

Back at school, I would try my very best to cope with the other students during class time, but I would always find myself drawing or disturbing other children in the class. Our teacher would often if not ever ask me to stand in front of the classroom as a form of punishment, and at other times she would call my mother to take me home. I was the queen of the playground during break times because I was familiar with all the games we played.

There was this day during fifth grade that I stumbled upon a novel Think Big by Ben Carson in our school library, and I wanted to know what it was all about. Literally, with the book's title 'think big' I thought by reading it I would get some skills to help me dodge school since I would be this brilliant kid who knows everything and doesn't have to attend school. Little did I know that whatever the novel talked about was different from my stupid perspective.

I carried the book with me back home after school and started reading it that very night. The first chapters spoke about this young boy, Ben Carson, who was not good at his class. He came from a middle-class family, and his classmates would always make fun of him because he could not answer the questions asked in class correctly. "What 'think big' mentality I'm I getting from the background of this boy?" was the question I asked myself after reading the book for a week. Nonetheless, I decided to continue reading the book with the thought that maybe 'think big' was somewhere in the next chapters.

I would read the book during break times and before retiring to bed. There was this time I read of how Carson began to do extra studies to help him improve his grades and how his mother would encourage him to continue studying. He would borrow books from the library to help him study what he did not understand during class time, and I related his part of the story with mine.

Back at school, Carson started improving his grades, and his mother and teacher were very proud of him. The jokes his classmates made of him did not deter him from taking the extra mile in his studies. Through his determination and hard work, he managed to be the best in his class. He completed his junior school, went to high school and finally made it to campus after which he became a successful surgeon.

From reading the book, I got a new perception about the title which made me have a positive attitude towards school. I started by changing my view of school as a system that I had to grow through but a form of gaining knowledge that would be of great value to me later in life. I started working hard at school and participating in extracurricular activities that enabled me to develop new skills. My grades improved and I was proud of my new 'think big' decision.

Junior school was not easy, but with the endless motivation from my parents, teachers, and friends I made it through to high school. The high school had its own set of challenges too, but my mama was always there to guide me and to remind me not to give up. While at the high school I decided to find myself a job where I would at least get money to cater for my daily needs since my family was not that well-up.

I managed to secure a job at a diner just a block away from our house. I would work there after school and on the weekends. The manager was pleased with my work, and he gave me a pay rise and even made a permanent staff at the diner. I graduated from high school and joined campus.

Through Ben Carson's story I changed my view about school, and despite the challenges, I managed with the school work all the way to campus and held on to mama's words "never give up." Had it not been for my determination in studying hard, working diligently at the dinner, and not allowing the challenges I faced bring me down, I would not have bought my first couch, the brown velvet couch.