I can remember when I turned 14 and the summer fun, I had like it was yesterday. I was getting ready for High School, so I felt older even though I was still a little underdeveloped toothpick. There were a lot of hanging on the stoops of New York City this summer. I even got to sit outside until 10pm on some days. I can remember walking in groups to places like the pizza shop. This was a transformative summer because it was the last time I hung out with some of the friends I had during this time. These were people I had known for years. Things change as you grow and sometimes you just grow apart. But life goes on.
I went on to high school at a school that was further from home than I had ever traveled. I had to take a bus and the subway to reach it. At this school I had no friends there. This was the first school transition in which this happened. Only myself and one other person I knew got into this school. That person chose to go to the school with most of our friends instead. I chose this school as my teacher’s told me it was a better choice academically. I can remember my first day being a culture shock. New York City is diverse, but on the first day, I was the only Black student in my homeroom. As the early days went on, my first real friend was Chinese. This was a new experience but one I appreciate today. I experienced meeting people from different backgrounds at that transitional point in life.
As this year of turning 14 went on, I went through a lot. Learning was different because I actually had to study for test and complete long papers. Also, I went through a transitional period of my personality as I began to become quieter after being a shy but outspoken child. This lasted throughout my time in high school, where I met people, but I didn’t feel connected. In the end, now many years later, I sit here reflecting on my past at this specific moment in my life. When a person turns 14, so many changes happen between starting high school and just discovering who you are as a person. I appreciated being given this opportunity to live and learn then and all the years since then.
Today is August 28th, 2025. This day makes 70 years since the brutal killing of Emmett Till. A young boy who had just turned 14 a little over a month before this date in 1955. He begegd his mother to spend a summer with family in Mississippi. He was from Chicago a big city and Mississippi was following Jim Crow laws. What happened while he was down there is horrible. Its not something you wish for any person let alone a 14-year-old. As I mentioned earlier, this age is a time for self-discovery and transition. Emmett did not get the chance to do any of this. So, on this day, may we remember his story and may we appreciate the opportunity we all had to experience being 14 and all the ages we have reached after.