Some teenagers have homework to balance,
honor classes, and a job. Junior Crystal
Morales does that and more.
Not only does Crystal manage school
and work, but she also has to babysit her
nephew Michael Jr, who has Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (A.D.H.D.), which is
another obstacle to her daily routine.
“I love my nephew, baby Michael, to death,
but sometimes it gets so frustrating when his
A.D.H.D. gets the best of him,” Crystal said.
“I’ll be trying to teach him one thing and his
head will be somewhere else; it’s always time
consuming.”
Hoping to become a certified anesthesiologist,
is difficult for Crystal because she can’t find
the time to devote herself to her studies other
distractions in the way.
“Some people don’t know how lucky they
are,” Crystal said. “Forget about having time to
hang out with my friends; I can barely find the
time to do anything.”
Money remains as another obstacle her
family struggles with as well.
“A lot of what my parents argue about is
money,” Crystal said. “Money for this and that,
to get my brother Michael out of prison, to pay
for my car, for this bill and for that bill. It gets
annoying after a while.”
Because her older brother Michael is in
prison, Crystal rarely gets to see him, and
when she does, it’s limited.
“I love my brother,” Crystal said. “He made
one mistake and now he’s in prison. I miss him
and wish I could see him more often.”
Costing a $10,000 retainer fee, it’s hard for
her family to find a good lawyer to get Michael
out of prison.
“It’s ridiculous the amount of money they’re
asking to get him out,” Crystal said. “It’s really
sad that just because of the money problem he’s
staying in there longer.”
But the Morales family is not just worried
about the money, but Michael Jr.’s relationship
with his father.
“He hardly gets to see him,” Crystal said.
“I’m not complaining or anything, but I end up
having to babysit him because everybody else is
always too busy.”
Being able to see herself in a big city, Crystal
and her best friends made plans to move away
from Texas in the future.
“We all want to go to the same college and
agreed on moving to California for school,”
junior Kristen Chinn said.
Even though college is in Crystal’s future,
honors classes are not an option right now due
to her drive to take care of Michael Jr. and the
need to work.
“I wanted to take all honors classes like I did
last year but it was really hard with work and
all,” Crystal said. “This year, the only honors
class I’m taking is Pre-AP Pre-Calculus.”
Since her older brother Anthony didn’t take
any honors classes when he was in school and
is also going the medical field, giving Crystal
hope that not taking honors classes won’t slow
her down.
“When I look at my brother, knowing he
didn’t take any honor classes, it gives me relief at
times that it never really stopped him,” Crystal
said.
Whether it’s taking difficult courses or not,
Crystal is astonished at how she is able to
manage things.
“Sometimes I’ll go to work, watch Michael
and do my homework all in one night and I
shock myself at times,” Crystal said.
Family and friends are also astounded at how
she manages to do well in school and balance
everything else going on in her life, and her
friends learn a lot by the way she handles
things.
“Sometimes I complain a lot and I feel so
weird because she hardly complains,” Kristen
said. “She makes me appreciate what I have
sometimes.”