Preparatory School Jim example essay topic

On his tenth birthday Jim Walker was introduced to the game of basketball by receiving a basketball from his uncle Mark Walker. Jim acted as if he loved the gift to please his uncle but really expected more from him. Jim never really played basketball at this age because he would rather spend his time doing things most other ten year olds did like riding bicycles and playing with G.I. Joes. On the same birthday Jim's mother, Althea gave him ankle weights. She gave him this because she realized her son had a talent, which was jumping high, hoping this talent would payoff for both of them in the future. Jim and his family were not very wealthy living in the Harlem projects were drugs and constant violence plagued the neighborhood so he didn't really receive many other gifts.

With these two gifts in hand he started playing basketball at the local parks developing his game. He would play and practice with the ankle weights on, realizing he like playing and was pretty good at the game. At the age of thirteen he was playing a full court pick up game at a local park with a group of older guys. While coming down the basketball court at the height of five feet four inches Jim dunked on one of the older kids he was playing with.

Word got around neighborhood that there was a thirteen year old who could dunk on the standard ten foot basketball rim in the park. People started to respect Jim because of his basketball skills. He also started getting girls because of his skills and off the court began hanging out with a bad crowd doing drugs and not doing his schools work. Sometimes as a bet and to show off exactly how high he could jump he would snatch money that was placed on the top of backboard rims. Jim was then recruited by a very good New York City preparatory school.

Jim and the other members of the basketball team were giving preferential treatment because of their good record. They were allowed to get away with murder. The coach of the basketball team made sure Jim's work was done and showed him ways to cheat on tests. One day the track coach approached Jim and asked him to join the track team to high and long jump for him. Jim refused his request to join the track team because his primary interest was playing basketball and did not want to join track. The track coach then got mad and reported all of the illegal activities that were taking place in the school concerning Jim to the principle getting him thrown out right before the city finals.

This really upset him to the point that he started becoming depressed. Also at this time Jim's mother died which made matters worse. To battle his depression and stress Jim turned to drugs and alcohol making his situation worse. A friend of his heard of his situation and pulled some strings to get him into a down south preparatory school in Georgia where he played using drugs less often. At this preparatory school Jim met a girl by the name of Janel who he fell in love with.

He loved Janel so much that she convinced him to stop doing drugs and concentrate on his basketball career. Janel also convinces him to start doing his school work which he excels at. At this preparatory school Jim is recruited by a small Georgia college where he plays. He gets along with the recruiter and decides on attending that school.

He convinces Janel to also attend this college so they could be together. When Jim arrives at the school he does not like it very much because he did not get along with the coach or any of his teammates. He hated the coach and the team so much that he decided to drop out of school and stop playing basketball ruining his life. Janel also drops out of school with Jim and move back to his old neighborhood with him and their baby boy, Jason. Back in Harlem Jim, Janel and Jason, stay at his aunt's place for a while until they can get back on their feet. Janel enrolls at a small local college and majors in nursing transferring the credits from his old school to the new one.

When Jim goes out one day he looks for all his friends and realizes that all of them are drug addicts. He starts associating with them again and starts doing drugs himself becoming and addict. Janel and Jim's aunt noticed that Jim is starting to deteriorate and decide to kick him out of the house prohibiting him from seeing his son. Janel decides to become a single mother raising Jason and going to school at the same time still living a Jason's aunt's house.

Jim is now homeless turning to a life of crime to support his drug habit. He begins selling drugs and stealing. Stupidly he gets high of his own supply. One day while robbing a corner store Jim is caught by the police with over a pound of heroine on his person. Jim is giving a light sentence of fifteen years because he was able to work out a deal with the District Attorney. While serving his time Jim begins to kick his drug habit and start playing basketball again in prison.

Janel and Jason now visit him in prison on a regular basis. In prison Jim gets along with everyone and becomes popular making few enemies. In prison he gets his associate degree in Business Management. After getting out of prison at the age of thirty-seven, serving his full term, Jim is able to find a job and does well at this job. With his job in hand Jim attempts to be a father to his son and is accepted buy him. Jim is a good father to his son and helps put his son through college.

Two years later while Jim is walking down the street he suffers from a heart attack and dies on his way to the hospital. The doctors attributed the heart attack to the drugs he used. The moral of this story is to stay away from drugs and chose your friends wisely.