My Transition from Childhood to Adulthood

There are some critical moments in life that cause a person to really change and have a different perspective on life. It causes them to understand how significant a thing is that they take for granted, simply because they do not see the importance of it until it almost slips past their grip and they can only see life pass them by like flashes or moments that they wish could end or have taken a different, less tragic, course. I can still visualize those moments like they were yesterday and remember every detail, no matter the insignificance. I remember how I used to think that grades and doing good in school were the most important things in the world. Last summer has completely changed my perspective of what I hold to be most dear in life. It has changed how I view, and will view, every single person in it. My father had a life-threatening experience that changed everyone in my family for what I believe to be the better. It is that specific event that marked my transition from childhood to adulthood.

I distinctly remember my father coming home one day saying that he felt different, like he had a hard time breathing. He had never had any major problem before then, so it seemed odd that he felt that way. He was taken to the emergency room and hospitalized a couple of days later. I had slightly mixed feeling of being sad and scared but did not give much thought to them because I thought everything would go back to normal. Little did I know that it would change my life.

A couple of day after that, I got a call from my mom saying that my dad was in critical condition and on a ventilator (A machine that breathes for you). That is when I got a glimpse of the full capacity of the situation. It was one of the most devastating things seeing my dad helpless and fighting for his life. It completely shattered me and it felt like part of my life was slowly slipping away, and I could do absolutely nothing to stop it. I know me and my siblings had to be strong because my mother felt the pain of it the most and we had to calm her down and try to make her feel like everything will be alright. I know that I could not slack off and be careless anymore because it literally felt like that was my only chance to grow up and it is now or never.

I took whatever responsibilities I could because I know that the world would not stop, even if it felt like mine did. I did all of the chores and errands that I was capable of doing, anything that would take the load off of the others. No matter what I did, I could only see the image of my father lying on the bed. I felt frustrated with many mixed emotions and tried to channel them into doing anything that would have a positive outcome.

He is alive and doing better as the days go by, but those moments in the summer will be with me and change my life forever. I am happy, simply knowing that he is still with us; but I have to grow up and continue taking responsibility, knowing that anything can still happen and I have to be prepared for it. I used to think that grades were the most important thing in the world, until this incident occurred, which opened my eyes to the real truth and dangers of the world. A person should never take anything for granted and I learned that the hard way. Although grades still hold a degree of great importance to me, I now understand the real problems and that is what caused my transition from childhood to adulthood.

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