I always considered acting as a viable future career, and was always looking for opportunities to strengthen my skills as an actor and gain some experience. My older brother participated in a group called Playwright's Theater Teen Troupe, an acting ensemble for high school actors. As a group of nine students and our director, we worked on various acting techniques, mostly movement based...
When I began watching the series Kung Fu and my father sat beside me, I knew that he was waiting to find out what I would learn from Kwai Chang Caine’s example just as my father learned when he grew up. I saw my father in his mother’s ten-square-foot kitchenette in Buenos Aires marveling at the ten-inch television screen while making dinner. I thought how different it must be to watch an episode, that he had originally saw dubbed in his own language, spoken in words that he never imagined he, nor his children, would speak...
Cross Country trains but also teaches. Throughout the two seasons I have partaken in the sport, I found that “sport” does not even bring into scope the meaning of the experiences involved. Running has shown me that I have an inner drive to push myself to my limits. No coach can tell me as I cross a finish line, sweating and exhausted, that I did not try hard enough, but, somewhere, I know; I am the only one who will ever know...
Growing up in Union City, New Jersey is tough; growing up in Union City without much parental tutelage is even tougher. My father was away for many of my early years while my mother, with whom I lived, did not offer much support. My eldest brother was the prodigal child, and everyone else paled in comparison to him in the eyes of my mother. Because of this, I was the victim of constant taunts, of her saying I had no future, of my dreams being bashed every time a new one was conceived; however, resilience was key. I felt I had a purpose, and I would let no one detract anything from that...
The Greek tragedian Aeschylus believed in the maxim “man learns through suffering,” and Friedrich Nietzsche felt that “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.” As is evident in my college essay, I suffered when I was younger, but I believe I have only benefitted from my upbringing. Although I was forced to mature faster than I should have, I learned to become self-sufficient, to make a living for myself, and to find happiness when it was not present elsewhere...
She was sanguine in every way. Her gait had a certain bounce that was unique in that part of the world, and she had the most infectious smile. She spoke very little English; yet her presence and expression communicated more than words. This young girl was named Nosipho, or ‘gift’ in English – and she was certainly a gift to me...
Magic amazes me. Ever since I saw my first magic show as a young child I have been eager to unlock the secrets that magicians hold. As I became older, I began to teach myself sleight of hand – the building blocks of illusion. Basic moves became advanced techniques, and those techniques required weeks to master. Yet there is no magic in a single sleight...
My fascination and curiosity for the field of science began when I was just a young boy. At the mere age of six, my parents would continuously find me in our backyard searching and playing with loose rocks. I was beyond mesmerized and fascinated at the brilliant colors and surprises that I discovered by simply breaking open ordinary looking rocks. Because my parents are first generation immigrants to this great country, I grew up in a poor household. I did not have many of the “normal” toys or video games to occupy me, contrary to my friends...
It was the day of prom. I was dressed in a long red gown--but instead of going to the Ball Room, I found my heels walking across the XXX Symphony Hall stage, where a large audience waited to hear me play the Saint-Saens piano concerto with the XXX Symphony. Having just taken my AP exams three days ago and in the midst of preparing for the last final exams of my junior year, I was still nervous backstage, knowing that this would be the moment that reflected all my hard work for piano...
Walking down a cracked, muddy, trash-infested road, I breathed in the hot, pungent air of burnt oil and cow feces, as people scurried across the street, dodging the cars roared in dissonance. Unfortunately, the street that was filled with cars and pedestrians was also lined with beggars tattered in rags. Coming from the comfortable suburban life of St. Louis County, I wondered where India, my ancestral home, would fit into my American identity...
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