Seniors Journal #1: The Common App Essay "Warmup" due Wednesday, Sept. 7
Many of you will have to write an essay as part of your college application process, and some of you, for sure, will have to submit an essay to the Common App organization. Regardless, all of these prompts can inspire effective personal essays that will help tell your "story" to a college admissions counselor.
NOTE: Much of what follows comes directly from the Common App website
For the Common App, you must choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don’t feel obligated to do so (the Common App organization won’t accept a response shorter than 250 words).
For this blog response at Schoolsville, choose an option and write a response of 200-250 words or more as a "warmup" or first draft of the "real thing." This blog response "warm up" is due Wednesday, Sept. 7
Here are the 2016-2017 Common App Essay Prompts
Here are the 2016-2017 Common App Essay Prompts
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2016-2017 Essay Prompts
1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.
Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don’t feel obligated to do so. (The online application won’t accept a response shorter than 250 words.) Visit the archives to read what other students wrote in past years (August 2015, August 2014, August 2013, etc. )
posted by JTF @ 10:10 PM
39 comments
39 Comments:
Failure is a very important part of our lives. Even though we view failures as huge negatives in our lives, they usually end up helping us in the future. I have first-hand experience with this. Back in seventh grade, I wasn't doing very well in a couple of classes. In order to try and solve this problem, my mom and I decided to have a meeting with my English teacher, which was one of the classes I wasn't doing well in. One of the things that were discussed and changed at this meeting was how I sat at my desk. I sat very low in the desk, with my leg crossed across my knee. Ever since then, I have stopped doing that, mainly because it is very uncomfortable, but also because it is much easier for me to concentrate than it was before. Another thing that was changed was my approach to schoolwork and homework. What I used to do fairly often was put off work in school, which would mean that I would have to finish it at home. This would mean that I would push extra, unnecessary work on myself when it could be easily avoided. Since then I have made an effort to finish schoolwork at school, leaving less for me to do at home. I am a procrastinator, which does mean that it's sometimes hard for me to always push myself, but ever since that meeting, things have been a lot better than before. I truly do think that this meeting really did help me mature and help me be a better student that I was five years ago. From the failures that I had five years ago, I have learned from them so that I will no longer make those same mistakes again.
It may not seem like a very unique background to have, but my job experience for the past 5 years has become a crucial part to who I am and what I aspire to achieve. I have worked for small town colleges and large universities since I was old enough to get paid. Starting in 2013, at age 14, I began working at the Washington College Geographic Information System Lab, or GIS Lab. There, I was introduced to three dimensional design programs developed by Autodesk. I worked exclusively with Autodesk 3DS Max. For two summers and holidays I worked on the Pluckemin Project. Washington College’s GIS Lab had, at the time, contracted with a museum in New Jersey to create a video of a historical military site from the American Revolution. It was a great experience to partake in and one that has forever changed who I am. My current summer job experience, is at the University of Delaware, in Newark. I was offered a job in the Physics department, by professor Unruh, during early 2016. I am currently engaged in research there dealing with solid state diffusion and new phase formation. I am, specifically, working to develop platinum nano films and simultaneously refining techniques to measure such nano films by the use of helium neon lasers.
Failure is something that everyone experiences at some point in their life. Knowing that everyone fails makes it easier to believe that it's just as easy to come back from failure as it is to fail. Throughout elementary and middle school I was always one of the smartest kids in my class. Getting straight A's came naturally to me and I never had to try too hard to get the grades I wanted. Entering into high school was one of the most exciting and nerve racking things to happen to me in my life. I knew that the classes would be harder than middle school but I knew I was up for the challenge. I had hard times with some assignments but never got to a point when I had a C in a class. This was until my junior year when I took AP Psychology. I knew when I signed up for the class I was going to be challenged but I never backed away from something that scared me. I studied every night for the first quiz and as I walked into class I knew I was ready, or atleast I thought. I got the quiz back and saw that I received a 64, an F. I was devestated. This wasn't the last time that I did bad on a quiz or test. Failing multiple quizzes and tests made me rethink what I was doing in that class. This was until I realized that in the long run it would be worth it. I ended up with my first C ever in that class and it was a huge deal to me. To other people a C is an average grade that they wouldn't mine getting on their report card but for me it had a larger meaning. Knowing that I had to devote more time to that class I started to study more and pay more attention to detail. A few months later it was time for the AP test. The day of the test I was confident I knew what I was doing, and this time I was right. A month later we got our AP scores back and I received a 4, almost a perfect score. This is when I realized that no matter how many times you fail at something there is always room for growth and there is always more things to learn about yourself and others.
I feel the greatest wealth parents can bestow is support, and now as I apply to college I am particularly grateful for it. I remember my room from when I was a little girl. It was pink and charming, full of toys, dress up clothes, and a tea party set. What I remember seeing each night before I went to bed was a quote that my mom hand stenciled above my bed that read "Dear daughter ,I wish you two things, one is roots, the other is wings". My roots were laid early on: be kind, play fair, share, do your best, tell the truth, say please and thank you and dream big. I have grown from a child to a teenager and my room also changed. It now holds pictures of friends, yearbooks replace fairy tale stories, medals and trophies now replace the toys, but I still have a picture in my room that reminds me to dream big. In high school the pressure turns up in junior year. There are guidance classes and college placement classes, meetings with parents, college visits ,and the application process. Adulthood is right around the corner. While attending one of these meetings they ask you to think of what you want to be when you grow up. That was an easy assignment because I have always known. Since I was little, I have loved any thing relating to medicine. One of my earliest memories of loving the medical field was my Fischer Price doctor kit that I would play with constantly. I would treat all kinds of imaginary ailments that I would bestow upon my family and even the family dog. Unfortunately, I had a lot of real life experiences as well. There have been bumps and bruises, broken bones, stitches, and even a helicopter fly out. For over ten years my grandfather referred to me as "Calamity Jane". At 4 , I had an outpatient surgery. Upon my release, most kids would ask for a lollipop or sticker, but I begged my parents to ask the nurse if I could keep the anesthesia mask I wore and a pair of plastic gloves so I could add them to my doctor kit. Both of my parents sacrificed so I could go to Saint Mark's High School and at times worked two jobs. My parents pushed me to get good grades and be the first person in our immediate family to attend a four year college. At times my frustration would get the best of me. It was in these discussions that my mom would tell me that she pushes me because she wants me to succeed. She wants me to dream big. I can't say I was always as grateful as I should have been growing up as a child, but I can say now that I always will be. The days of pretend are over and my dreams are just within my grasp. If I had one thing to say to my parents as their little girl going off to pursue big dreams, I would tell them I am rooted, ready to fly and most of all thanks for the wings.
People encounter various types of problems that can distract or discourage them from achieving a goal. They devise different methods to try and solve their problems. The problem that I’m still trying to overcome is learning how to cope with ADHD. In kindergarten, I was diagnosed with this medical condition and I could not fully comprehend what having ADHD meant. It took more effort for me to learn things in school and to stay focused. I wouldn’t let this discourage me. My goal was to not let ADHD deter me from excelling in school and being successful in life.
Finding ways to cope with the effects of ADHD was a step for me in achieving my goal. Taking medication was a way for me to counteract the effects of ADHD and help keep me focused. Completing homework was a challenge my parents and I had to tackle, when the medication wore off. To keep me focused, homework had to done at the dining room table and directly after school. Even now in high school, I do my studying and project work at the dining room table so I won't get distracted. I also saw a psychologist when I was younger, who helped me with my socialization skills. Even though I'm still struggling with ADHD, I know I can overcome it and will be successful in all aspects of my life.
Your transition from childhood to adulthood is a big step in your life. Everyone transitions at a different time and pace. We all have things in our life that can influence our transition whether it's family, peers, your community, school, or your workplace. All of those things did have an impact on me but something that also marked by transition was the time I spent at the hospital. I volunteered there for three years and it was an experience that I'm glad I had. I managed to meet a lot of great people through it. I began volunteering when I was fifteen and I just finished my freshmen year. I had signed up to do flower delivery and greeting. I'm kind of a shy person so I was nervous at first to do greeting and flower delivery. Doing greeting meant that I had to stand by the entrance and say hello to people coming into the hospital as well as directing them to where they needed to go. I'm usually not the kind of person to approach people and talk to them first. Flower delivery is pretty self explanatory. I had to do deliver flowers that I got from local florists to the patients room. On my first day I was told to stand by the entrance and I talked to the people coming in and out and walking them to where they needed to be. I ended up enjoying it because I was able to meet new people and hear about their stories and why they had to go to the hospital. Some of the stories I heard were sad but some were happy. It helped me get rid of my shyness because I was social and I put myself out there to talk to new people. Flower delivery was my favorite job there. It taught me responsibility because I was held responsible for the flowers until they came to the patients room. I was able to meet the patients in their room which made me sad seeing them in that state but I was happy that I was able to brighten their day by giving them flowers. I ended up doing flower delivery for the next two years that I worked there. I met a lot of great people through that and I learned a lot about a serious work environment. It taught me how to become more responsible and how to be more social and work with other people.
Having been born and raised as the only female middle child, it is no surprise I undeniably am the most arduous child of four. Upon being raised, cultivated, and to a degree nagged in a strict Catholic household, I have obstinately inherited a vast means of ethics and morals. It was by my choice, however, if I chose whether or not to abide by said standards. Through no fault or choice of my own, since birth I was cursed with bearing the burden of not only being the middle child, but upholding the responsibility of being a well rounded, well behaved Catholic girl. This responsibility proved tedious and elementary for my fellow middle school peers, many arguing it was not a responsibility to begin with. While I struggled to uphold pristine grades and balancing the task of coming to the realization in and of itself who I was, everyone around me seemed to have it already figured out.
The problematic principle with the concept of time is that it is irreplaceable, and untouchable. If having known this is sixth grade, maybe I would have spoken earlier. "Mom, I think there's something wrong. Dad, I can't sleep at night." These are few of the innumerable thoughts that rocket through my mind each morning and night. In school, I performed exceptionally well for my age and grade. I was very proud of myself, yet still felt this guilt in the back of my mind; "Something's not right." Upon being a mere child, I hadn't the slimmest thought as to what evil truly existed in the world; the innumerable diseases, disorders, and everything in between seemed all so distant to me. It was not until my ninth year that I realized something was deeply wrong. I struggled on a daily basis to stay away in class, often sleeping through multiple lectures entirely. I thought nothing of this, as neither did my classmates who made fun of my for my inability to stay awake for a full sixty seconds. I mean, it's hilarious how as soon as I sat down, I was un-reachable and incoherent. As I continued to shrug this off as a joke and assessed my occurring issue as lack of sleep, my grades began to plumate. Before I knew it, I was about to fail the ninth grade.
I never knew such an impact that a new school would have on me. I never knew it would change every aspect of my life. I never knew I could actually like going to school. I never knew that I would be saying This to myself. Now, as a senior in high school, it is clear to me that my choice to attend a different high school is one that I will never forget.
Growing up, I followed my brother through schools. First the same elementary school, then a small charter school just down the road. It was the same drive day in and day out that became monotonous over time. By the time eighth grade rolled around and it was time to either enroll in the continuation of the charter school into the ninth grade, or to apply somewhere else. Taking a step off the beaten path and abandoning everything I knew, I chose large, Catholic high school not far from me. When I first shadowed at the school, I knew it was the one for me. The teachers, the people, the social aspect of everything drew me in right away.
I remember my first day almost perfectly. I was an awkward freshman with a backpack stuffed full of books, pencils, etc. I knew almost no one, which I saw as a good thing. It forced me to step outside of my comfort zone and meet new people. Overall, this journey to a new school is something that I believe has shaped me for a lifetime. The friends I've made, the teachers that have inspired me that I can do anything, the coaches who constantly push me to be better, even if it's through yelling and sprints. I believe the last 3 years that I've spent at this small Catholic high school in Wilmington, Delaware have shaped me as a person by helping me develop a strong idea of morals while also forcing to me to be personable and open to trying new things. One thing that I'll never forget is the years I've spent on Saint Mark's campus, and I believe the time was very well spent.
Childhood to adulthood : job
What does it actually mean to be an adult? Providing for yourself? Maturity? Marriage? For me, the defining moment of adulthood was getting a job. I filled out application after application, but still no calls. Was it really that bad that I hadn't had any work experience? Were my hours too limited? Did I fill something out wrong? I had been trying to get a job for months with no luck. Until finally, I got a call.
I'm sitting on a beach chair, it's spring break, I'm on vacation, how could it get any better? My phone rings; it's Chic-fil-A. I had only applied a few days ago. Was it a good thing that they were calling so soon? "Hi, this is Mike, a manager at Chic-fil-A. I was wondering if you could come in for an interview." I had never had a manager from anywhere call me before so I was a little nervous. "Of course! Anytime!" I said, completely forgetting that I was in Mexico. We figured out the time and the date over the phone and I was anxiously awaiting it.
Here it is; the big day. I'm getting ready, my hair looks good, outfit picked out. I can do this. I get to the restaurant and I'm told to sit at a table while I wait for the manager to be ready. He comes out, I stand up and shake his hand, introduce myself, and he starts asking me questions. He asks what I think is different about Chic-fil-A than any other fast food restaurants and gives me an overview of the rules. He knows I'm anxious, I know I'm anxious; it's time to know if I got the job. "So you seem like the type of person we're looking for." Yes! I got it! I got a uniform, a schedule, and was told what I needed for training. I was finally going to be able to make my own money. With no real job experience, I was making a "leap of faith" into adulthood and it paid off. I still work at Chic-fil-A today and it has made me more mature and able to provide much more for myself.
Do you watch the news? Have you ever been educated about the United States political system? Do you understand how your vote impacts the future of the U.S. government? These are just three of the eight survey questions I recently designed for a personal project I am working on. My generation, not so affectionately known as the ‘millennials’, gets a bad reputation for lack of work ethic and the need for instant gratification. I, however, noticed a bigger problem. This year’s presidential is the first election that most of my generation will be able to vote in, yet no one seems to care. Out of 45 people polled in my survey, 26% of them do not watch the nightly news. 15% of people polled understand the U.S. political system at a score of 5 or lower on a scale of 1-10. That is not good enough.
In June of this year, I attended the Girls State program for Delaware. I was the only representative sent from Saint Mark’s High School. This program was a 4 day camp held at a college campus near legislative hall. We all proposed pieces of legislation, learned about the legislative and political processes, and had the opportunity to shadow our state elected officials. Personally, this program changed my life. It inspired me to go to law school; it inspired me to make a change. Once I have completed all of the data for my survey, I plan to design a presentation and bring it to my school and community. I want to center it around how each vote can make an impact. I want people to understand that voting for someone without any solid reason as to why you support that candidate is as bad as not voting at all.
In April, I had the opportunity to meet and speak with actor, singer, and activist Mandy Patinkin. He told me to use whatever platform I have to make a difference, no matter how small. Hopefully the results of my survey and presentation can make a difference in my small community and maybe one day nationally.
Change is a good thing
One of the worst things to hear as a thirteen year old girl is “We’re moving.” It was terrifying to hear, I didn’t want to believe it. I was going to leave my friends, my family, and everything I’ve ever known. I wasn’t ready for it, it was my eighth grade year I had so much to look forward to. My parents bought a house in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, which is an hour and fifteen minutes from where I used to live. Because it was my eighth grade year my parents didn’t want me to change schools for one year. I had to stay with my uncle until I graduated and it was time for me to move at the beginning of the summer. When the move finally came I had a hard time adjusting to it. I was moving to a place where I knew no one. I was alone, all I had was my family. I would spend time alone and watch my friends posting pictures of them together and wishing I was with them. I wasn’t big about sharing how I felt inside, I would just let everything pile up inside me. I was sad and alone, I wanted to be somewhere where I know I couldn’t go to. One day I finally cracked, I told my mom how I felt. Like most moms she was worried about me. I ended up getting help. Once I started to get help I felt much better. Summer was finally over and school was about to start, not just regular school, but high school. The first day of school I felt sick, I was worried I was going to have an awful time and know I shouldn't be here. But to my surprise the day was great, everyone was friendly and welcoming. I soon realized living here wasn’t bad. Looking back at how much I struggled I ask myself “Why?” Why was I so attached to a specific place when there are so many better places and better opportunities. I learned I am not good with change but change is good for me. I learned to step out of my comfort zone. Of course I miss where I used to live, but what I know now I wish I knew then, I would’ve saved myself from the sadness. I’m happy I moved, it gave me a reason to grow up and look at life from a different point of view. I am grown up and now know not to dwell on things I have no control over and to just let everything go the way it’s supposed to be.
It's funny how life can change in an instant. I have always heard people say that, but never really understood it, until it happened to me. On the night of November 20, 2014, my mother and I were awakened by the sound of my father's voice. It was a different type of sound coming from him that neither of us recognized. Bright lights were shining from the kitchen when we realized that it wasn't the lights themselves but fire that was blazing from the back of the house. We heard my dad call again and this time understood what he was saying. "Fire! Fire!" My mom grabbed my sleeping brother and we ran as quickly as we could to get out of our home. In a matter of seconds, we were in the front yard watching my childhood home become engulfed in flames. And in a matter of minutes, it was gone. The home that I only remember, no longer stood there. Fourteen years of Little League trophies and numerous amounts of childhood pictures were no more.
That's when I understood what is really important, family. The love of my family and friends keeps me going. Little League trophies and beautiful pictures are nice reminders of times in my life, but love and support from my family will always be with me through all of my "fires". So now I say, "love you", a little more and hug a little tighter than I did before.
When I started my freshman year at St. Mark's I had never been on a school sports team before. I was a pretty shy kid and hardly talked at all. After some convincing by my parents I decided to join the cross country team and that decision made a tremendous impact on my life. I instantly made some friends in preseason before school even started which helped build my confidence. I wasn't nervous my first day of school because I knew I had already made friends. Cross country made me better appreciate the value of team work and also gave me a disciplined mentality. Participating on the cross country team inspired me to continue running throughout the school year by joining the indoor track team in the winter, and the spring track team. In order to be in great shape for the next cross country season I ran over the summer, and by my junior year I successfully completed the 300 mile club, an initiative started by my coach to keep us in shape while we were out of school. This involved running in extreme heat and although it was difficult, I realized that I could achieve it, which built my self esteem both physically and mentally. When I am challenged academically I know that with enough effort I can succeed, and I believe this will carry over into college. Completing the 300 mile club and running cross country and track has helped me become goal oriented in both athletics and academics. Just as I set a mileage for myself every week for the 300 mile club, I also set goals for myself academically and plan ahead to successfully achieve them.
Growing up is never easy and your first real break-up can be painful and life-altering. For me, this marked the end of childhood innocence and the reality of exactly how cruel people can be to each other. This also forced me to recognize how much I needed to depend on myself for my own happiness and fulfillment. I learned that you cannot depend on one sole person for your daily happiness. I also learned that you cannot let someone control your emotions and base your mood off of what the other person is feeling themselves. Of course it took some time for me to learn these vital lessons, and sometimes I wish that I knew them sooner so I could prevent myself from getting into certain situations. For a long time I let a boy decide how I was feeling for the rest of the day, whether I would be beaming or miserable. I knew the relationship was not a healthy one, but when he was happy, I was happy and things were amazing. Being a naive teenage girl, I did not want to let those feelings go, despite all the warning signs. My mentality of the relationship was distorted, and that is what got me in trouble in the end. I let this boy control me day in and day out. I let him define my life and the way I tackled my daily objectives. I put him before myself, which was something I never should have done. I will never again be defined by another person.
This experience truly taught me the appreciation of self that so many other young women do not seem to embrace. Being in a relationship or not does not validate who I am or define my identity. My lost innocence of childhood and early teen years will give the insight to avoid such pain and enter future relationships with my eyes wide open.
They say having a strong core represents balance within the body. You receive the most power and strength from your core. It lifts you up out of bed, digests your food, gives you that warm feeling you’re safe or that gut-wrenching sensation called guilt when you've done something you regret. I rely on my core just like I depend on my friends and family. When I'm down or feel trapped, I know I can reach for help to those who have showed me more compassion than I could ask for. My friends know how to make me laugh while my family knows how to make me feel loved and cared for. When I’ve done something bad and don't know how to fix it, I turn toward my parents who have been there for me every step of the way. When I’m crying or have a heavy weight on my shoulders I look for my best friend who knows just the right things to say to me. These people are my strong core. Just like my core uses its stomach to digest food, I use my teachers, coaches, and peers to learn and take in as much knowledge as I can. With the skills and information I digest, I act upon them in my everyday life hoping to make an impact on others. For example, my field hockey coach shared a team bonding experiment with us. She gave a large group of us a hula-hoop and placed it on everyone’s pointer finger. The object of the game was to lower the hoop down to the ground working as a team. At first there was chaos and girls blaming each other for the struggle the whole team was having. I stood there watching and thinking critically on how we could work together to accomplish the task. I spoke up and told the girls to bend their knees and squat down slowly. They listened and as soon as we saw progress it became quiet. Once we were all squatting as low as we could we came to another standstill. My second idea was to drop our elbows down slowly. Once the hula-hoop hit the ground we all cheered and the coach said this game was about when to be a leader and when to be a follower. What I gained from this experiment was that it is one thing to work as a group of people, but it’s another thing to work as a team. A team needs players to be on the same level as everyone else, willing to follow, and willing to take charge.
Leaving the nest: moving from your parents' home and living independently. Most of the time, people decide to 'leave the nest' when they are going off to college at the age of 18. In some scenarios, people don't leave until they are in their mid 30's when their parents are 'pushing them off the nest'. In my case, I decided to 'leave the nest' at the end of my sophomore year... sort of.
Now I know what you're thinking, "What on earth was this girl thinking to just leave her family and live on her own and why did she do it?!" Just to clarify things, I am not living independently on my own. I live with my grandmother and my aunt and yes, it was a conscious decision. When the middle of my sophomore year came around, I was excited to be almost halfway done with my high school experience. I had moved to the Pennsylvania/ Delaware area when I was in 5th grade from Puerto Rico with my mom and two younger siblings and got used to the way things were around here. Little did I know that everything was about to change based on one difficult decision.
Baking in the sun on my last shift of the summer, I sat in my guard stand with sweat glistening
down my leg, wishing I was anywhere else but there. Already stressing about the upcoming school year, college plans, and everyone talking about their SAT score, I was at my breaking point. I have always been well balanced and grounded but lately, everything seemed miraculously to go any way but my own. I scanned the pool as my job as a lifeguard entailed and I looked at all the kids laughing energetically, soaking up the last few moments of the summer. As my eyes made their way around the pool I noticed that in had walked a middle aged man pushing a young girl in a wheelchair through the entrance. Sharp eyes darted to her as she entered, drawing attention to her disability, most likely making her feel insecure about herself. I cringed with pain as I saw children and adult's wide eyed stares towards this human being who simply didn't have the option to walk unlike the majority of people. Looking more closely to the man I realized he was the girl's father and I knew from just looking at the way he looked at his little girl that he would do anything for her. He lifted her out of her chair and gracefully grasped her wrist to the railing of the entrance to the pool. He slid in slowly with her in his arms and she smiled blissfully as the chilled pool water grazed her lower body. Her father looked at her with a warm, gentle smile and right then and there, tears forcefully filled my eyes behind my sunglasses. With mixed emotions, I couldn't control the pity I felt for her but at the same time I was overcome with joy. The pure happiness the father and daughter felt regarding their situation filled me with an unconditional sense of perspective in my life. That was the exact moment when I realized how much a positive outlook can reflect even the most devastating reality. Everything I was so consumed in worry about seemed like the smallest issue compared to the fight this young girl seemed to have to battle daily. The mere fact that she smiled gratefully when simply swimming with her father astonished me. The appreciation of a simple joy in life coming from someone who had a handicap and didn't let it stop her deeply inspired me. As I sat there secretly crying to myself, my eyes had been opened as wide as they ever were. It had been an awakening in not only my rough day, but my life. It was an actualization that being happy is all about how I perceive the obstacles in my life. I was so busy worrying about the past and the future, It felt as if i needed to see this to refresh my present moment and bring me back to myself. I know in my heart this moment was meant to happen in order for me to realize the bigger picture in my life. Being grateful, happy, and cherishing every moment is my bigger life picture. I think about all the blessings I have been graced with and carry that moment with me wherever i go in my life. The loving father and his genuine daughter granted me with the perspective of simplicity in life which will forever impact me in the person that I am today
Failure is a part of life. We all have to fail once in our life in order to succeed. Middle school is a time where kids try all sorts of different sports. They decide what they want to stop playing and what they want to continue playing. Me? I wanted to do cheerleading. I told my mom and she told me if I did cheerleading I would be a flyer, since I’m so tiny, so it would be important to me that I'm comfortable being tossed up in the air. After hearing that I immediately changed my mind about cheerleading and switched over to volleyball since all my friends were doing it. Little did I know it would be a huge part of my life. I tried out, never really knowing how to properly play volleyball, and I ended up making varsity. After playing volleyball and being on the middle school varsity volleyball team for a year I knew I wanted to continue playing. I tried out the following year and made the varsity team once again. I did the same the year after that, but was shocked by the results from tryouts. I received news from the coaches that I didn't make the varsity team that year. Having most of my close friends on the varsity team and also being a member of the team for two years, the news really surprised me. It feels like just yesterday my mom and I had a talk in the car of what my decision would be, quit volleyball all together or stay and play for the JV team. Of course at the time I was in tears not really understanding how or why I hadn't made the varsity team, but once it came time to make a decision I realized something. Yes, I didn't make the “best” team, but I still loved playing volleyball. I still wanted to go to practice and play games and although it would be with new people and a new coach I knew it was something I didn't want to give up on. Thankfully I didn't give up and I pushed through my failure because I wouldn’t be on my high school varsity volleyball today if I did.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” This simple question is asked as early as the age of three and is a small fraction of what lies ahead in the adult world of responsibilities, bills, and jobs. A six year old version of myself would have answered this question with an excited exclamation that I wanted to be a princess. The answer to this question becomes more sophisticated as the years go on. When junior year of high school comes, that is when the answer to this question determines the rest of our lives. As an adult, the idea of becoming an astronaut turns into being a chemical engineer, the idea of being a superhero turns into being a businessman, and the idea of becoming a princess turns into becoming a nurse.
My interest in nursing began sometime in my sophomore year of high school. It was not until I was 1500 miles from home in one of the poorest countries on earth that I realized that I was set on my future career. In a recent trip to Leogane, Haiti on a medical mission I was able to pretend I was a nurse for a week, just like I pretended to be a princess in my basement when I was six. I dressed up in scrubs, carried band-aids in my pocket, and had a stethoscope around my neck. I took blood pressures, checked pulses, held sick babies, handed out medicine, and by the end of the week I was “the wound care girl” on our team. The night that I had taken my first blood pressure I could not stop thinking about how good it felt to politely smile, say “Bonswa,” and begin to take vitals on a 100-year old man who was hypertensive. I was doing something worthwhile and once that feeling was in me, there was no going back.
This is a feeling that I want to incorporate into my daily life. The feeling of helping people that truly need it. And the only way I will be able to experience that type of desire for something is by wearing scrubs, carrying band-aids in my pocket, and having stethoscope around my neck.
So here I am, and I have answered the question that determines my education, my career, and my future. I am officially stepping into adulthood.
Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?
Lifeguarding has become such a huge part of my life. Throughout my several years of guarding, I have had to make some tough decisions. This summer I was promoted to a guard "captain", which means I am in charge when I am on duty. Being a leader and a person of authority means you are not always well liked or appreciated by piers. I work with most of my friends and we do not always have the same motives and beliefs. I am known as a strict rule enforcer around the pool. I make sure the environment is safe for everyone, and that means no short cuts, which most other guards find annoying. I make sure things get done, whether it will be scrubbing bathrooms with other coworkers or picking up trash around the deck. In order for things to get done, you need a leader to orchestrate and assign roles. This also means you have to act strong and serious which most of my friends and fellow guards do not appreciate. So I pretty much have to choose between being liked and not taken seriously, or not being liked very well but sticking to what I believe in. Even though I may be perceived as bossy and annoying, I know that I am doing the right thing and my actions are keeping people safe. I would not change who I am or what I believe in order to be liked. I feel I have really grown because I have realized the difference between doing what is right and simply following the crowd.
Have you ever thought about ways to decelerate global warming across the Earth? It has always been my dream to have a role in making this Earth a better place. Many people have already done that in numerous ways from saving lives all the way to enhancing our technology. My goal in life is to exchange the number one energy source, nuclear energy and fossil fuels, for something that would be much safer and healthier for the environment, such as hydropower, wind power, solar power, or even geothermal power. Believe it or not, our Earth is made up of about 29% land and 71% water so why not put all that unused water to use by creating energy with it. By doing so we would eliminate all the unwanted gasses and toxins that flood the air. Hydropower is fueled by water, so it's a clean fuel source, meaning it won't pollute the air like power plants that burn fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas. Hydroelectric power is a domestic source of energy, allowing each state to produce their own energy without being reliant on international fuel sources. Some major benefits of hydropower are that its a renewable energy source, it promotes guaranteed energy and price stability, it contributes to the storage of drinking water, and there are so many more the list could go on almost forever. All I truly want is to make a change and to be remembered, not only for the community but for myself.
When girls think about growing up, they always think about having a boyfriend, getting a new cell phone, or getting all types of new makeup from the Sephora counter. On August 17th, 2014, I woke up, opened my eyes, and a billion butterflies grew in my stomach. The day has finally come. After many long years of waiting and long hours of planning, the day of my Quinceañera had arrived. Following my Puerto Rican and Colombian tradition, I did not have chamberlains, which lean more towards the Mexican heritage. Although the countries may be different, Quinceañeras still serve a main purpose- transitioning a young lady to a woman and showing her off. Family from all over Colombia and Puerto Rico flew down, just to come celebrate with me. Many would've thought it was something close to a super sweet 16 that would appear on MTV, but to me, it was much more than that. Waltzing up and down the dance floor with my dad within the sea of family members that filled the ballroom made me realize how special this day was. Making sure my makeup did not smear, I held in my tears as the priest continued to give my family and I the blessing to tattoo this moment into my memory. Soon enough, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and started swaying to the Salsa music blaring through the speakers.
As I gazed deeply through the airplane window upon the depressed country of Haiti, I was unsure of the experience I would undergo on my second visit. As the airplane’s wheels touched the ground, the adrenaline and nerves dashed through my body. “This is it”, I thought to myself as I took my final steps away from the last place with air conditioning. As I walked through the airport, memories of the last trip projected in my head: the inevitable heat, the Haitian boys and girls, and the hope I provided for the children. All these memories were interrupted momentarily as I got swarmed by an abundance of Haitians asking to help me with my bags. Without even being in Haiti for a single day, I was already being swarmed with their love and positivity.
During the past two summers, I have completed two medical mission trips to Haiti with the Notre Dame Haiti program. Ever since my mother’s first trip to Haiti, I always wanted to join her on her travels. Since my mom is a lead figure in this program, she inspired me to follow in her footsteps and accompany her on the journey. The past two summers I was fortunate to enough to embark on these incredible journeys with my mother. On my first trip to Haiti, I kind of sat back and watched things happen but during my second trip I had a whole different experience. During my second trip I “sucked the marrow of the bone” and got much more involved in the activities present at hand.
It was a shock. I thought I would win the senior class president election. Everything was going up for me. My grades were getting better, the baseball team was closing in on the number playoff seed, and I had already been named president of the SADD YELL club and the Law Club. For about two days I was upset and felt sorry for myself. After that I realized that it's wasn't about the fact that I had failed, it was about how I would respond to it. I learned that it doesn't matter if you fail sometimes in life, because failure brings out people's true character. The best athletes, singers, actors, and scholars have failed at one point or another. They became the best at what they do because they responded to failure with the right attitude and an even greater hunger to succeed. Instantly after losing, my mind went to all of the reasons why I should've won. I didn't realize that winning the position of senior class president simply wasn't in the cards. As well as that I only thought about the negative effects it had on me and nothing else. I was so closed minded that I completely missed all of the new possibilities that were made available.
The day my life became every child's dream and every parents nightmare was the day me and my sister were born. I think I have the best sister out there. Don’t be jealous I know that other great ones exist, but my sister truly is a blessing. She makes me feel beautiful, and special and whole; whole because she’s my twin, we’re identical, actually; more, we’re mirror-image identical twins. To me she was a built in best friend, a never ending supply of fun; to me anyways. To my parents I'm sure they had it up to their ears with us. Imagine all the commitment and hard work it must have taken to ensure me and my sister had a fun and great childhood. Well good thing for me I don't need to imagine all my parents did for me and my sister; I remember every single thing. When my sister and I were young we had to have everything the same, whether it was having the same lunch packed for the first day of preschool or the same outfits we wore to Sunday church with grandma, it had to be the same. I mean God forbid one got an Uncrushable peanut butter and jelly and the other get a Danimals yogurt. We just didn't know what to do with ourselves if it wasn't the same. After going preschool right down the road my parents sacrificed much to send us to Saint John the Beloved School for kindergarten. Little did I know all that I would happen to spend the next 9 years at that school. I remember fondly the times when we laughed endlessly over our inside-jokes that only we could understand or how we'd simultaneously complete each others sentences without even the slightest thought of it being any other way. We were inseparable. She is my confidante. She are my most concrete and vigilante supporter. To have someone I know will stand by me and be there for me no matter what is what helps me go for and achieve things that I may believe are out of reach; but she never thinks are out of reach. Here I am after my entire middle school, grade school, and high school career. Much has changed but one thing has stayed the same. My sister. You were there waiting for me when I was born, even if it was only thirty seconds before me, when I got my tonsils out, you were there when I broke my heart (for the first time), and you were there after, to tell me to grow up and that failing is a part of life. We learn from each other. You are what keeps me going and I you. I am you, and you are me. We’re twins, we’re more, we’re identical mirror-image twins and that is a special confidence that no one can take away from me and that will stay with me forever We came from the same egg and share the same genetic blueprint. To a standard DNA test, we are indistinguishable. The only thing that makes me me and you you, is the unique pattern of whorls and lines on our fingertips; and thats okay with me because there is no one I'd rather be the same with then you.
Two minutes and thirty seconds. That's all the time we have out on the mat to impress the judges. In these short two minutes and thirty seconds all of the hard work and long practices pays off. We show, not only the judges but our coaches, friends, families, and anyone that has been there for us along the way, what we have worked so hard for.
Cheerleading has been a big part of my life for ten years now. It has taught me a lot about hard work, dedication, and time management. I started with just cheering for basketball games, then football, then finally competition. Competition cheerleading when a team puts together a routine that is a combination of jumps, stunts, dancing, cheering, and tumbling. Our team starts practicing in the summer for our competitions in the winter. Every aspect of the routine must be perfect in order to receive the maximum score for our routine. It's absolutely devastating when we fall from our stunts or mess up.
My first varsity competition my sophomore year was very stressful and nerve wrecking. We didn't do as well as we possibly could have. We go out to perform and stunts are falling everywhere, people miss tumbling passes, and people don't know where to go. It was definitely not one our best performances and we did not score well. Thought we may have failed and not performed our best, it was a type of motivation and lesson for all of us. It motivated not only us as a team to worked harder and thought us what we needed to focus on, but myself too.
Though cheerleading is the type of sport where in order to be successful, the whole team must each play their part in reaching this success. Me as an individual person on my team much master the skills that I must perform in order for the routine to be a success. This could mean going to tumbling and working hard to get skills for our routines or to work on my own part in either flying while stunting or doing my motions in a dance. I always want to be at the top of my game for my team in order to help us be as successful as possible. When we performed poorly at a competition, I did not get discouraged, I only worked harder to get better at what I do. Ultimately reaching the goal of success.
The average Joe walking down Main Street will say that they know what the word understanding means and give you a funny look for questioning them on it. Now they may know what the word means, but do they know what accompanies it. Understanding. Everyone knows it's definitions. The word as a noun can be defined as having comprehension. As an adjective, to have tolerance as well as awareness of others feelings, good judgement, being forgiving and having insight. Yet many people treat the word with little respect, assuming they know what it means. But in fact many people don't fully grasp this words meaning, what this vault of a word holds. The power and responsibility that accompanies understanding is normally ignored, unseen, or simply forgotten. I wish to show people how much understanding can change this world, even our own communities. Through understanding we don't just comprehend others suffering, we see the issue at hand. May it be starvation, lack in there of medical supplies fit to treat injuries, or even blankets for the young and old of age. We know what is happening in our communities, the issues our youth face as well as those we face due to our skin may it be any shade of the spectrum. We are able to solve all problems, issues, wars, disasters, heart breaks, and schisms through understanding. Which is the only mental and emotional act we have that allows us to bring true peace. And through our understanding is it not our moral duty to help those in need, to solve issues or problems? If we see and understand problems or issues in our community let it be global, national or local. Our moral duty as a human is to see, recognize and follow through with our understanding on issues we are faced with. The problem I would like to solve is as much an intellectual challenge as an ethical dilemma. For through understanding comes peace, solutions to the issues we may have at hand, mended relations, and a common respect for our fellow man whether he sits on the curb out side a tower or at the top on an economic thrown. I would like to open the eyes of my fellow man to see their duty to one another through understanding.
Having an identical twins is a rarity in and of itself. Everyone is always saying, "wow that must be great to have someone look exactly like you," or "Do you like having a twin?" The truth is that it's a mixture of both good and bad. All my life I have been dealing with this ridiculous notion that I have to always try and be better than my sister. Sure, maybe there are some things that are better about her, but the same goes for me. We just have to deal with our differences and focus on our similarities. That doesn't mean I should try to bring her down just so I can feel like I'm better. Instead we should use our likenesses to pull ourselves up and grow together. These likenesses that we share are what made us the way we are today. Growing up, we had an advantage that most other kids don't have. I'm not sure it was such an advantage for my parents, but we had it pretty good. Always being with my sister and doing everything together unknowingly helped us develop many qualities and mannerisms that we carry with us and use each day. We learned the virtue of patience, how to share, and learned how to work well with others. Embodying these traits and skills makes it easier to succeed in our day to day lives and will hopefully help lead us to successful careers and lives.
The whistle blows and the game is over. That's how most of our senior athletic seasons will end at St Mark's and can never be replayed. This is the reason why I am told to "play my heart out" and "leave everything on the field" before each game. I only have one chance to play high school football and I want to embrace everything that comes with it, wether its the celebration after winning a game or the exhausting practice in 90 degree summer heat. As a senior, I know just how important these moments are because this is the last season I will get to wear the green and gold to represent St Mark's on the football field.
Freshman year I came to St Mark's knowing a few people from middle school but had no real friends going here. This was a slow year and though I was beginning to fit in to the community, I didn't participate in any sports and I can never get that freshman football season that I wanted so badly as soon as I started playing the next year under my belt. My first season ,as a sophomore, I was exposed to a whole different level of camaraderie and work ethic that you can't get from middle school sports programs which created a whole new attitude toward the idea of teamwork and what it means to fight for the guy next to you. Along with the friendships and fun I had also came responsibility and commitment that defined my character and challenged me to be the best possible player I can be on and off the field. This is the main reason football is important to my identity. In a way, it made me blossom as a high school student by bringing me into the St Mark's family and teaching me individual responsibility that comes with getting older.
I found my sophomore math class to be very difficult. My sophomore year of high school I took pre-calculus. The course covered many different subjects from trigonometry to polynomial equations. The difficulty of the coarse made it so that advancing to AP calculous the next year was a very daunting challenge. Given my poor performance in the class leading up to AP calculous I did not know what to expect. I felt as if I had failed. However this gave me the opportunity to improve. My performance in Calculus the next year was a lot better then my performance in pre calculus. The main thing that I learned from the failure, and then later success was that small changes can lead to very large differences. This is true for many different things. For example, I am a fan of baseball and one aspect about the game I find particularly interesting are the statistics. An Ok hitter gets a hit about 26% of at bats, while a very good hitter gets a hit about 30% of the time. This is only a difference of 4% but it's the difference between mediocrity and Greatness. Similarly, when it came to my math classes, small changes such as doing just a few extra practice problems, or asking the teacher an extra question lead to a very different and better outcome.
When I walk to the starting line of a cross country race I remember my first race. I remember the first time I ran when I was out of breath and could barely keep up with everyone else. This was before I started running and even before I started to play any sport. I joined the cross country team freshman year. I figured I would join because people always told me I was fast and my brother was a good runner. The first day of practice I was nervous not knowing what to expect and being unprepared. I hadn't run all summer and I was expected to go on a 45 minuted run with the team. I could barely run for more than 5 minutes. I was out of shape. I remember how hard it was to keep up with everyone else. I couldn't believe how they were doing this! It felt impossible and it was embarrassing having to keep stopping. I was far behind everyone else and almost got lost. I've learned so much from running that although I was probably the slowest as long as I kept working every day I would improve. This also made me want to work harder to be better. Running has taught me how to endure and that I can achieve anything as long as I set goals and work for it consistently everyday. I may not be the best but I will strive to be, and that will get me further than not trying.
It all began when I was three. I remember it as if it were yesterday. Walking through the tall glass, down the hall then into the large carpeted room surrounded by one way mirrors. It was my first karate class. I was barefooted with my hair tied up into a pony tail and my new stiff white belt tied around my gee. I didn't yet understand the lessons the sport would teach me, at the time it was just a way for my mother to burn off some of my toddler energy. But the years past and over and over again I walked barefooted into the large carpeted room, as my belts changed from white to yellow, to orange, purple, blue, then green, and finally three degrees of brown. I was nine when I walked barefoot into the large carpeted room with my third brown belt. My hair still tied in a pony tail, and an even stronger love of martial arts. My heart was set on achieving my black belt. In order to do so I had to pass a both a physical and mental test. Classes became more serious, but the fun loving nine year old I was didn't take it to seriously. A year past and before I knew it I was ten walking into the same room with eight other people, me being the youngest with the oldest being forth two. It was the hardest thing my ten year old body had ever done. I wanted it more then anything in the world. It was a three day test. I made it through the first day unsure of how I did. I was so nervous the thought of the day made me Ill. The next day during school it was all I could think of. And when it came to taking my shoes off for the next day, I couldn't do it. went up to my room eyes red and wet from the pain I felt in my chest. The thought of never returning to that large carpeted room crossed my mind once or twice, unable to take the embaracment. But I was a stubborn ten year old, when I have my eyes set on a goal I can't quit. The next day I returned to class, more determined then ever to achieve my goal of becoming a black belt. For the next six months I went to class six days a week, stayed focus, and learned all I could. Six months later I took the test again. Giving it my all for the whole three days. A week Past when I heard my dog barking signaling the mailman had arrived I raced to the mailbox found the letter tour it open, my heart racing, it was ready to be a black belt then I read the words, "I regret to inform you," that was all I read. I. Once again I felt that stabbing pain. And again I had a choice to make, quit or preserve. I trained another six months. Thanking the test again at the end. And after the third attempt, I achieved my goal of becoming a black belt.
Finding something you're passionate in is not only difficult, it can be troubling. This point strikes even harder when the thing you're passionate in was something that you hated before you started high school. This is my long and complicated history with performing arts. As elementary and middle schoolers, students are often "forced" to participate in whatever Christmas of spring play the school decides to put on. I believe it's these shows that cause high school theater to get a poor reputation, which is a shame because real shows are not even similar to the kinds of plays put on at those levels of schooling. So where do I fall into all of this? My very first class as a freshman, exploring theater arts. The teacher of the class, asked me if I wanted to volunteer to read a monologue. I said no, but he insisted. I read the scene and apparently I read it well because at the end of the class, the teacher asked me if I wanted to audition for his fall show. It was at that moment everything changed for the better. I auditioned and got into the cast of a show called fools. The show took place in Russia in a town called kulyenchikov. The town was cursed however, the curse being stupidity. This show, this experience, changed my life forever. It let me come out of my shell and be more comfortable in my own skin.
The stowaway
One of the experiences that has greatly effected my life was day that I decided to skip school to meet the Vice President of the United States. At the end of my freshman year, my father gave me the option of going to meet Vice President Joe Biden as he left the Delaware Air national guard base. My father is a colonel in the air guard and one of his many jobs is formal greetings and send offs for the Vice President when he flies into Delaware. On that day I traveled into work with my father completely unaware that my life was going to change. After I was positioned outside of Air Force 2 with my father Joe Biden's motorcade showed up and he stepped out of the beast (a little nickname the base gave to his armored car). Joe Biden shook my fathers hand and exchanged pleasantries with him and several other people there. When he got to me his eyes lit up and the first thing he said was "shouldn't you be in school? It's close to finals!" I informed him that I had skipped school to meet him and that I was overjoyed to finally meet him. At that point he hesitated and said "let's make it memorable, why don't you hop on the plane and we'll get going."
I was so close. Thirty-four points to be exact. I wanted to qualify for tetrathlon championships so badly, and I fell short. Tetrathlon is a four-phase sport consisting of riding a horse, swimming, running, and shooting. All sorts of thoughts raced through my mind; maybe I could have pushed myself a little faster in the run or the swim, maybe I could have been a little less rushed in my last two shots. Initially, I was devastated and angry with myself for letting the chance slip away, but when I was really honest with myself, I had not trained as hard as I could have, and maybe I would have made it if I had a committed more to the training.
At the awards ceremony of the competition, someone mentioned to me that there was another opportunity to qualify at a competition almost two hours away in three weeks. I learned from this experience that I was capable of qualifying, I just had to dedicate myself to the training, and I did.
The weekend of the next competition came fast, but I was ready. I absolutely crushed the score I needed to qualify; by two hundred and four points! I was thrilled to be going to championships and I knew that I had to keep training hard for championships which were still a month away.
Since this experience, I have continued to compete in tetrathlons at the regional, national, and even the international level.
Having grown up in a very music-focused family, I was given the opportunity to take several private lessons for different instruments. Although I was trained to play the piano and cello for much longer, my love for singing overshadowed both instruments tremendously. Over the course of seven years, I was classically trained and learned to evolve my shallow, breathy voice into one that is now much stronger and more mature. In the sixth grade, I was just beginning to sing in the chorus for the first time and was inspired by my older brother and his also music-oriented friends, who were members of the different choral groups in the school. I knew I would want to do the same and take every opportunity I had to sing. Seventh grade was the first year at my elementary school that students would be able to participate in the more "prestigious" choral groups and be given more chances to perform. I was then able to participate in the crusader choir, for seventh and eighth graders who wished to sing more complicated songs. That was also the year I was first able to audition for the Delaware All State Junior Chorus, where only the best in the state would be able to join. It was my first ever experience at an audition and faced fierce competition. I significantly remember the anxiety I had felt when singing the required selection and then having to hit every note of a scale perfectly, next having to sight read a line of notes to determine my ability to read music. I anxiously awaited the list of those who made it, constantly refreshing the website online, until I got the news from my music teacher that I had been ranked the 9th top soprano of those who had auditioned. After attending my first All State concert, I then began to take singing seriously. I had never heard such wonderful music come from a number of talented singers my age in one room.
Failure is being human. You can not go without your entire life without failure that I know is impossible. So here I was 13 years old playing my last game of field hockey. In my last game we were down by 2 goals and I was determined to end on a good note. In the last quarter my teammate made a goal and the crowd full of parents roared. I made a pass to my teammate hoping she'd make it, anxiety filled the air. My teammate when for it but unfortunately she missed. There I was on the ground just sitting there staring at goal post, for my teammates it wasn't that big of a deal because they could go on and play more games but for me it was the end. I played field hockey for 7 years and for those 7 years it was my life but I knew it had to come to an end. I lost my passion for the game. What was the point of playing if if I didn't want to anymore. But like I said field hockey was my life. I had my team and my coach whom I've knew for 7 years and I had to come up with the difficult decision of letting them go of course, I would still know them but not as close as I once did. Failure is in everybody but without it we can't grow to become better than who we once were.
When I walk to the starting line of a cross country race I remember my
first race. I remember the first time I ran when I was out of breath
and could barely keep up with everyone else. This was before I started
running and even before I started to play any sport. I joined the
cross country team freshman year. I figured I would join because
people always told me I was fast and my brother was a good runner. The
first day of practice I was nervous not knowing what to expect and
being unprepared. I hadn't run all summer and I was expected to go on
a 45 minuted run with the team. I could barely run for more than 5
minutes. I was out of shape. I remember how hard it was to keep up
with everyone else. I couldn't believe how they were doing this! It
felt impossible and it was embarrassing having to keep stopping. I was
far behind everyone else and almost got lost. I've learned so much
from running that although I was probably the slowest as long as I
kept working every day I would improve. This also made me want to work
harder to be better. Running has taught me how to endure and that I
can achieve anything as long as I set goals and work for it
consistently everyday. I may not be the best but I will strive to be,
and that will get me further than not trying.
On my seventeenth birthday I crashed my car into a basketball pole. Well, "crashed" is kind of an exaggeration. What happened was the result of an inexperienced driver put in an unfavorable situation and completely wrong calculations. The inexperienced driver being me and the unfavorable situation being my best friend's oddly shaped driveway. I think this tale should be prefaced with the background information that my birthday was on a Saturday that year and so my friends and I decided have a party the Friday night before since my parents would want to do something with me on my actual birthday. We didn't have a definite plan of what we were going to do but I am pretty sure they weren't planning on calling the Honda repair shop.
Seventeen was the age that I was most excited about being. I know everyone makes a big deal about turning sixteen and then an even bigger deal about eighteen, but I just really could not contain my excitement for turning seventeen. Yeah, I'll be able to vote in the upcoming election and I can now defy my parents and get a tattoo without their permission or start smoking if I feel like it but there was something about the idea of being seventeen that was thrilling. It had to do partly with the freedom of being legally allowed to drive by myself without a curfew and with as many people in the car as it could fit. The fun of adult privileges without the responsibility of being about to enter the adult world and coming another year closer to making decisions that alter the course of your life forever.
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