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Virtual Reflection Jose Rodriguez
Early On… If I had to start somewhere on why I am who I am, I would have to start with my mother. She is the reason that I am going into teaching. She taught herself for 20+ years and has been an elementary school counselor for almost 10 years now and is my biggest inspiration hands down. Growing up, my father was never around, so my mother had to take on the role of raising my sister and I on her own. As far back as I can remember, I have always been around the schooling system. I use to help my mom grade papers, which I enjoyed at the time, and would always help her set up her classroom when she would be setting up for different units. My mother and I have always been close, even though we’ve had our differences throughout the years, she has always been there for me when I needed her. I have always looked up to her, more so now I think than I did when I was much younger, and am very grateful to have someone in my life that cares about me so much.
Elementary… During my elementary years, I was involved in a lot. I loved little league baseball and was lucky enough to have the fields where I played walking distance from where I lived. I would walk down to the fields on a regular basis, even when I wasn’t playing in game, just to be around the action. I use to love running the scoreboards of other games and really enjoyed being around everyone that was involved. There really wasn’t anything else, besides playing video games of course, that I enjoyed doing than being a part of little league at this point in my life.
Middle School… Once I got to middle school my mother, my sister, and I ended leaving San Antonio, where we had lived for the past 5 or 6 years , and moved back to my home town of Del Rio, Texas. For one reason or another I discontinued playing baseball and starting playing basketball a lot more. I fell in love with the game and never looked back. I had put on some weight the year I started middle school and basketball is what ultimately helped me get back into shape. I honestly think that if I had never started playing, I would probably have remained very overweight throughout my high school career and the rest of my life up to now would probably have gone very different.
High School… When I got to high school, my love for the game of basketball continued to grow. My basketball friends and I would constantly be working on our game and I pretty much knew what I wanted to do then with my life. I knew that basketball is what made me happy, and that’s the direction I wanted to go when I got out of high school.
After high school… After high school I left home and attempted to start college right away, but quickly learned that I was not ready to be on my own. I quickly moved back to my home town and enrolled in junior college and continued my life playing ball wherever I could. For years I did not take school very serious, and my biggest focus was getting out of my mom’s house. I found work , left home, and lived on my own for a few years while sporadically completing classes at the juco. I played a lot of basketball in those years which included being involved in about 3 leagues in my area and traveling all over Texas and Mexico and playing in some very competitive tournaments. I was happy with my life at the time but after a while realized I was going nowhere in a small town and had to get out…
Growing up… In 2007, four years after graduating high school, I finally left my home town and moved to Austin, Texas with some family of mine and started working at a local Sam’s Club to support myself. I lived there for a total of two years where I finally finished up my associates degree, upon which I made the decision to move to San Antonio and attend UTSA and pursue my dream of becoming a teacher/coach. Not long after arrived in San Antonio I would meet my future wife and I could not be happier. Not long after meeting I we found out we were going to be blessed with a baby boy, and it was at that point that a switch in my head seemed to turn on. I found myself taking my life a ton more serious than before and everything that I was doing after that point had a whole new purpose. I took on more responsibility at work moving in to a full-time supervisory role, all the while going to school full-time as well.
The Present… The day my boy arrived was the greatest joy I have experience in my life without question. I have had a blast taking care of him and watching him grow, it really makes me proud to see how far he is coming along in the three short years that he has been on this earth. I cherish every moment I have with him, and he is the reason I wake up early every morning and put in countless hours each day, because I know one day it will pay off for myself and my family. I have been through many ups and downs in my life but I know they have shaped me into the person I am today and if given the opportunity I would not change a thing because they have helped discover who I am as a person and have led me to where I am today. I am very close to finishing my degree and I know once I am out in the field, I will be a great asset to whoever gives me an opportunity to teach for their school and look forward to the rest of my life in this field where I will be able share my knowledge and experiences all the while helping to develop young people into positive functioning members of society .
