Autobiography
My name is Jordan Fleming. I was born in Athens, Georgia on March 15th of 1996 — or if you’re a history buff, the Ides of March. It’s always a great day for me, but a terrible one for Julius Caesar back in 44 BC. Growing up, everything in my life stayed pretty consistent. Where I lived or who I was friends with never really changed. That’s not an exaggeration, it’s just a fact of small town life. My best friend was born exactly a week before me, so there was never a long time where we weren’t a part of each others lives. Our moms were best friends during pregnancy, so obviously we had no choice but to automatically love each other.
All of my life, up until I left for college, I lived in the exact same place. My family owns a farm in a little town called Winterville that is about 15 minutes away from Athens. I’m not sure what other kids did for fun when they were young, but I imagine it is pretty different than what my brother and I got ourselves into. Being a farm kid leads to a wild imagination. We had several hundred acres to get lost on, as long as we didn’t pester the animals or hurt each other. We spent most of our days building forts in the forests, catching tadpoles in the pond, or riding around with our dad while he checked on the animals.
Growing up, it was just my brother and me trying not to kill each other while play fighting and acting like “raggamuffins” according to our Memaw. That all changed on the day of my eighth birthday party. Picture it now, my mother sitting at the kitchen table crying as she finds out she is going to have another (unexpected) child. And then there is me, running outside yelling at my friends with excitement that I’m going to have a new little brother or sister, and exclaiming this is the best birthday gift ever. My sister, Jenna, was born in 2004 and our lives haven’t been the same since. I took the dreaded middle child spot, but it’s okay because our family wouldn’t be complete without her.
Together, my brother, my sister, and I provided plenty of opportunities to turn my parents’ hair gray. We all manage to stay close to each other though, and to support each other no matter what.
After finally finishing high school I made my way to the University of Georgia to pursue a higher education. I’m not entirely sure what I plan to do with my life, but I do know I want to travel the world. I took a study abroad trip during the summer of 2015 “to get it out of my system,” but that only increased the travel bug to my parents’ dispair. In the future, I think it’d be nice to teach children English overseas. Maybe I’ll even make it to Scotland or the Philippines one day.
I led a completely different lifestyle than what the majority of Americans are used to. The farm shaped who I am today though, and taught me a lot of important life lessons. I think where you come from has a big impact on who are you. That being said, I hope you enjoy my project and come out with a better understanding about my life, my family, and the cultures that shaped us in general.
