The Time Keeper
American Goldfinch
I always thought getting out of your parent’s household was supposed to be fun and exciting, but all I am feeling is stress and regret. I had the perfect support of my mother and father always doing everything they could to make sure I was doing well in school. My mother giving me small snacks as I finished up my homework and my father with small motivational speeches that always helped me continue when I was stuck on a homework problem. If I ever did feel like I was too stressed with the pile of homework, I could easily get in the family car and just drive to ease my mind. Small things like these were never a problem since there was always a car available to me. I could easily drive for hours without the worry of wasting gas since I always had the money, from a job as a server, to refill the gas tank after my drive. Everything seemed to be perfect back at home except for the thought of needing to leave. I suppose I had watched too many movies where teenagers left their house at the age of eighteen to start their own life, and I felt as if I needed to do this as well.
All of this changed when I decided to move down to Austin with all of my friends who were also leaving for the same reason; to start their lives. Everything at the time seemed like a great idea, I would be living in the city where the university of my dreams, University of Texas, was located all while being with the friends that I grew up with. What could go wrong?
When we moved down here, everything was great. At that moment, the location was all new with a long and beautiful river just a few miles from where we live. The smell of the river was not the most pleasant as it smelled like water mixed with dirt and algae, but occasionally it would give off a fresh breeze of air that would refresh you as you calmly sat next to it to hear the calm and passing flow of water. The view of the sun reflecting its waves from the water was a great mood-setter for any occasion, especially
I always thought getting out of your parent’s household was supposed to be fun and exciting, but all I am feeling is stress and regret. I had the perfect support of my mother and father always doing everything they could to make sure I was doing well in school. My mother giving me small snacks as I finished up my homework and my father with small motivational speeches that always helped me continue when I was stuck on a homework problem. If I ever did feel like I was too stressed with the pile of homework, I could easily get in the family car and just drive to ease my mind. Small things like these were never a problem since there was always a car available to me. I could easily drive for hours without the worry of wasting gas since I always had the money, from a job as a server, to refill the gas tank after my drive. Everything seemed to be perfect back at home except for the thought of needing to leave. I suppose I had watched too many movies where teenagers left their house at the age of eighteen to start their own life, and I felt as if I needed to do this as well.
All of this changed when I decided to move down to Austin with all of my friends who were also leaving for the same reason; to start their lives. Everything at the time seemed like a great idea, I would be living in the city where the university of my dreams, University of Texas, was located all while being with the friends that I grew up with. What could go wrong?
When we moved down here, everything was great. At that moment, the location was all new with a long and beautiful river just a few miles from where we live. The smell of the river was not the most pleasant as it smelled like water mixed with dirt and algae, but occasionally it would give off a fresh breeze of air that would refresh you as you calmly sat next to it to hear the calm and passing flow of water. The view of the sun reflecting its waves from the water was a great mood-setter for any occasion, especially