Hi! Was just hoping I could get some feedback on my common app essay for SCA, don’t hold back please!
I chose the prompt: “Discuss an accomplishment, event or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understand of yourself or others.”
I have had to face a lot of setbacks in my life due to my poor health from a young age. I never really felt like I had control over my own body, that it was helpless to try to do anything new because I would just find myself right back at the beginning. And for a long time, I just accepted that. I gave up trying to fight myself and accepted that my life would never really feel like it belonged to me. I just focused on school without trying to make any friends and because of my differences, I was bullied. I was never made to feel like I could be enough. I believed this since it felt like my own body was constantly acting against me. I felt like a shadow trailing after a body that wasn't my own. I started closing myself off from all the people who were important to me, I got bitter and resentful over the fact that I could never know what it would feel like to be in control. To not be confused. Until I met someone who showed me that it's okay to not be in control. I learned that it is okay to be vulnerable and sensitive and to not let things you cannot control overtake you. I learned that I am far stronger than I initially thought I was. She helped me understand that what makes life so worth living is the unpredictability of it. Knowing I don't have all the answers and likely won't for a long time now gives me comfort. I embrace the fact that I am not always in control of my situation or my body, but I still have the power to get myself out of bed in the morning and keep moving forward. It's okay to not be in control and to have setbacks. I later used what I learned about myself from this period of my life to help a grieving friend come to terms with the loss of a close family member. He was lost and confused, and I knew the only thing that he could do was let himself sit with it and truly process what had happened so he could appreciate that this family member would always be an important part of their life and they would want him to honour them by moving on. That the fragility of life is what makes it so special. With helping my friend like this, it sparked in me a profound realisation. I just want to help people going through a rough time, because life is short and no one deserves to suffer for things they cannot control.
I chose the prompt: “Discuss an accomplishment, event or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understand of yourself or others.”
I have had to face a lot of setbacks in my life due to my poor health from a young age. I never really felt like I had control over my own body, that it was helpless to try to do anything new because I would just find myself right back at the beginning. And for a long time, I just accepted that. I gave up trying to fight myself and accepted that my life would never really feel like it belonged to me. I just focused on school without trying to make any friends and because of my differences, I was bullied. I was never made to feel like I could be enough. I believed this since it felt like my own body was constantly acting against me. I felt like a shadow trailing after a body that wasn't my own. I started closing myself off from all the people who were important to me, I got bitter and resentful over the fact that I could never know what it would feel like to be in control. To not be confused. Until I met someone who showed me that it's okay to not be in control. I learned that it is okay to be vulnerable and sensitive and to not let things you cannot control overtake you. I learned that I am far stronger than I initially thought I was. She helped me understand that what makes life so worth living is the unpredictability of it. Knowing I don't have all the answers and likely won't for a long time now gives me comfort. I embrace the fact that I am not always in control of my situation or my body, but I still have the power to get myself out of bed in the morning and keep moving forward. It's okay to not be in control and to have setbacks. I later used what I learned about myself from this period of my life to help a grieving friend come to terms with the loss of a close family member. He was lost and confused, and I knew the only thing that he could do was let himself sit with it and truly process what had happened so he could appreciate that this family member would always be an important part of their life and they would want him to honour them by moving on. That the fragility of life is what makes it so special. With helping my friend like this, it sparked in me a profound realisation. I just want to help people going through a rough time, because life is short and no one deserves to suffer for things they cannot control.