My leadership did not start at the snap of a finger. It all began when I started playing for my high school's volleyball team in the ninth grade, but I wasn't the greatest player. I struggled to please my coach, only because I couldn't make it to most of the practices. As a result, I barely played and my skills did not improve. I was stuck in this state of mind that I did not want to be in. I truly wanted to do my best and show others that I could improve and help my team win...
As I slow my stride to look around, I see others on my track team working through their exhaustion and keeping a steady pace. Most of the time I can push forward, as the track is where I find solace and really feel alive. Sports have always been a large part of my life, but today I can’t help imagine running off the track straight into my home to fill the mold of my bed. I normally don’t concede to my fatigue, but sometimes the early wakeups, long train rides, and hours of work at school leave me wanting nothing more than to go home to recharge and come back rejuvenated another day. Unfortunately, home has not always been the best place for me to do this..
It wasn’t unusual for me when my mother told me that a strange spot had been found on her skin. I was used to hearing that she had “found another spot”, and was going to get it removed “just in case.” But this time was different—the spot on her face was not benign, basal cell carcinoma as it had so often been in the past. It was melanoma, one of the most malignant types of cancer...
Leaves in their autumn colors are strewn about the path, the lawn—beat and browning—is roped off for the cold weather, and the gray waters of the East River are lapping rhythmically against the pier.
I’m alone, walking along the path in my jogging gear. I pause where the path meets the peak of a hill, and stare across the field and the East River to Manhattan. There are a few clouds in the sky ringed around the Freedom Tower, partially shrouding it in a clouded crown.
“Don’t worry baby… Everything will turn out alright” The Beach Boys coo in my ear. I pause to sit on a bench.
I’m the worrier, the fret-er, the panicker, the overthinker. This is one of the places I come to reflect on the things that have made me worry, fret, panic, over-think. My mistakes, my errors, my failures...
CAS captures the essence of why I choose BU. Enclosed within its walls is a globally-conscious, diverse, intellectual and passionate community. My school’s community is, in many ways, analogous to that of BU. It has taught me a lot about the importance of being open, and I think continuing this experience can help me grow...
One of the most attractive things about Columbia, for me, is the prevalence of structure. Probably the most obvious source of structure in Columbia is its Core Curriculum. Without a Core, I’d probably be more likely to explore only the courses I'd expect to be interesting. As a mainly math-and-science oriented student, this would mean shying away from many humanities courses that I could possibly have enjoyed. By requiring me to be immersed in all disciplines, not only would the Core open up my mind to subjects I might otherwise not have explored, but it also would mold me into a Renaissance woman...
8:27 on a brisk September morning: I sat in the health center classroom, surrounded by eight freshmen boys, some slouching in their seats like high-school had already drained the life out of them, others blinking away sleep as the sunlight peeked in through the windows. The faculty member who co-taught the class had called in sick, and in three minutes I was to single-handedly guide the boys through a discussion on gender identity- a difficult feat considering my lack of experience in being male...
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