marina
Nov 7, 2009
Undergraduate / Describe environment you come from - feedback [5]
Is this narrative enough? Please help me!
Topic: Describe the environment you come from - for example, your family, community, or school - and how this environment has affected or influenced your plans for the future.
Requirement: under 400 words
From Thoughts to Destiny
Every day at my house, when I pass by our bulletin board, my eyes automatically focus on an aging sheet of paper that features Frank Outlaw's wise quotation:
"Watch your thoughts; they become words
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."
I smile to myself because this rich message has molded my life. My mother and I frequently follow its principles.
I come from a single-parent home. My mother and I immigrated to the United States just before I turned eight. Like far too many children in today's society, I faced parental divorce, guilt, fear of abandonment, disappointment, frustration, loneliness, and blame. We persevered by living a structured life. My mother would draw our life's path on a map. The fact that I could see our footprints moving forward helped me find roads, and later I started projecting goals many steps ahead.
My mother helped me understand that bad thoughts tend to waste time and focus on problems instead of solutions. She also helped me see how my choice of words expresses ideas that will influence my decisions. Sometimes she only needs to say, "You are using a strong word!" I recall the quotation and refocus myself.
I was very young when I began to learn these lessons. One of my first exercises in organization involved my backpack. I made sure to keep my homework in the right order. Today, the same principle helps me keep up my busy lifestyle. Sometimes, I see my classmates struggling simply because they cannot put things in a meaningful order.
Although my mother has shaped my habits, I also shaped my own. While my home environment influenced my future, I understood that other processes give me control over my own destiny. I do not know my ultimate destiny, but I know that I possess the right tools and strengths to move forward.
Is this narrative enough? Please help me!
Topic: Describe the environment you come from - for example, your family, community, or school - and how this environment has affected or influenced your plans for the future.
Requirement: under 400 words
From Thoughts to Destiny
Every day at my house, when I pass by our bulletin board, my eyes automatically focus on an aging sheet of paper that features Frank Outlaw's wise quotation:
"Watch your thoughts; they become words
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."
I smile to myself because this rich message has molded my life. My mother and I frequently follow its principles.
I come from a single-parent home. My mother and I immigrated to the United States just before I turned eight. Like far too many children in today's society, I faced parental divorce, guilt, fear of abandonment, disappointment, frustration, loneliness, and blame. We persevered by living a structured life. My mother would draw our life's path on a map. The fact that I could see our footprints moving forward helped me find roads, and later I started projecting goals many steps ahead.
My mother helped me understand that bad thoughts tend to waste time and focus on problems instead of solutions. She also helped me see how my choice of words expresses ideas that will influence my decisions. Sometimes she only needs to say, "You are using a strong word!" I recall the quotation and refocus myself.
I was very young when I began to learn these lessons. One of my first exercises in organization involved my backpack. I made sure to keep my homework in the right order. Today, the same principle helps me keep up my busy lifestyle. Sometimes, I see my classmates struggling simply because they cannot put things in a meaningful order.
Although my mother has shaped my habits, I also shaped my own. While my home environment influenced my future, I understood that other processes give me control over my own destiny. I do not know my ultimate destiny, but I know that I possess the right tools and strengths to move forward.