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On May 29, 2001, a baby girl named Zada Gabriel Neal was born in Thompson, GA. My parents are Adam and Shandice Neal. They were extremely young when they had me, 18 and 19 to be exact. Our family lived in Forsyth, GA, with my mom's parents. We all lived in a double-wide; it was me, my aunt, my mom, my dad, my Nana, and my Papa. My aunt was only 9 years older than me, so I grew up annoying her. I was the first grandchild, so I was as spoiled as could be. I developed numerous disciplinary attributes during my adolescence. I was an athlete, an artist, and a very independent child. I didn't have stable friendships from the beginning, I didn't have all the materialistic items my peers had, and I didn't have a sport I excelled at for the rest of my life.

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In 2005, my dad decided to go into the Army. He left for basic training, and once he graduated, my mom decided it was time for us to move with him to Tacoma, Washington. I was four at the time we moved; my parents were 21 and 22 years old.

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I don't remember too much about Tacoma. Nothing too good anyways. I remember becoming extremely independent. I'd wake up in the mornings, go to the kitchen and fix my own cereal. I might have made a huge mess with the milk, but I still figured it out. I wanted to make sure my parents slept as long as they could. Tacoma was the shortest place we've ever lived. We only lived in Tacoma for six months before we had to move. I didn't even have time to start school.

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Vilseck is where my education story begins. I attended school at Vilseck Elementary from Kindergarten to second grade. In Vilseck we had a different elective every day. We'd go to Art, PE, Spanish, German, and Music. I learned how to speak some Spanish and German before I learned how to multiply and divide. Vilseck is also when I started to cheer. I was a cheerleader for most of the time that I lived in Germany. In first grade, I excelled at reading and spelling. There was one time that my friend was struggling with their spelling test and I tried to help them. I ended up getting in trouble for cheating by my teacher. I remember crying and feeling so terrible because I didn't know what I did wrong. This moment not only shaped my early disciplinary identity but also the empathy that I will carry into my classroom. My need to help people, even when it was wrong, was essential to my growth (Vygotsky, 1978).

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In 2008, we moved from Germany to Lawton, Oklahoma. This was heartbreaking for me as I met so many great friends in Germany. My first day of third grade, I remember wanting to puke. I was so nervous about making friends. This was the first time I had ever felt that way.

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My experience in Lawton, Oklahoma, is one I'll always hold close to my heart. I met my best friend Leah in Lawton, and we did everything together. My friends and I would make music videos in our spare time. To do this, we'd choreograph a dance routine, I'd edit the video with effects, and we'd find a way to make it all work together. I loved to do this. This has played a significant role in shaping how I approach teaching. I understand that students learn differently. Therefore, I try my best to make sure all assignments have multimodal options. I also continued to cheer, but I also started playing softball. Our softball team was insanely good; we won city championships two years in a row. As I grew older, I dreaded the idea of ever having to move. Towards the end of my fifth-grade year, that dreaded day came. I was devastated about moving. We had to move before I got out of fifth grade, and I was missing the fifth-grade graduation, the last softball game, and the softball end-of-the-year party. I had never been more upset than when the softball team won the city championship again after I moved. It felt like a punch in the face. I was no longer involved in the success of all of my friends. Being involved in softball and cheer, and having a huge community, showed me the importance of community in my identity development.

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After Lawton, Oklahoma. We moved to Oahu, Hawaii. This was a significant cultural shift for me. I felt the same sense of fear on my first day of school. Around this time, I didn't have as many friends as I once did. I tried to play softball, but I was now the only 12-year-old on a team with 16-year-olds. I wasn't as good as I once was. I tried to play basketball, but I wasn't very good at it. According to Maslow (1943), motivation and identity can be tied to a sense of belonging. In Hawaii, I lacked that sense of belonging. I was depressed, and I didn't enjoy going to school or anything like that.

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In 2014, my dad decided to leave the Army. We had to move in the middle of the school year. We came back to Forsyth, GA, in February. When I started school in Forsyth, GA, it was halfway through the year. I was not excited about starting school. For a while, nobody knew me as Zada. I was called "The girl from Hawaii" until the beginning of eighth grade. I remember feeling out of place. Everyone came to school with Vera Bradley lunch boxes, with Vera Bradley purses, and more. I didn't have any of those. I had a pair of Converse that I wore down to the brink, and I remember girls telling me I needed new shoes because of the holes that were in the fabric. It was awful. I felt so alone. I finally found my people, and it made it easier. This experience is connected to Gee's concept of Identity Kits, which means that adolescents feel they must have the right outfits, language, and characteristics to fit in with their friends. I wanted to have friends so badly, but they were all the same. I just had to stop looking for friends and comparing myself to what I'm not. I had to learn to just be myself and let any friendships that may or may not develop happen naturally.

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The summer before going into eighth grade, I tried out for softball. I didn't make the team because I didn't have any experience playing travel ball. It sucked. Travel ball was expensive, and my family couldn't afford that. However, I recently played softball in Hawaii with girls who were much older than me. I think part of the reason is that I played first base, but I refused to try out for first base. I was scared I wouldn't be good enough. At the end of eighth grade, I tried out for the color guard, and I successfully made the team. I was on the color guard team until the end of my senior year. I found what I was passionate about. I improved in my flag work and dance skills. I was the captain of the team my senior year. There is so much from that experience that I'll take into the classroom with me when I teach. I will remember to have patience for those around me, as not everyone learns at the same pace. I will also understand that some people need to be taught differently.

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My journey in Education was never easy. It was difficult; I had to find a lot of things out the hard way. Not everyone is your friend, and not everyone wants to be. I excelled as an athlete, an educated student, and a friend. But I was also really bad at those things as well. I didn't always excel in the sports I chose, which is why I gave up softball, but that led me to color guard. I didn't always have a huge group of friends, but it led me to having the best group of friends for the rest of my life. I didn't always make the best choices, but that didn't stop me from pursuing a career in teaching. I have many disciplinary identities that I identify with, but there are also many that I never gave a chance to explore. However, it's never too late to try again.

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Gee, J. P. (2000). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of Research in Education, 25, 99–125.

Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.