jphwang
Dec 14, 2008
Undergraduate / Difficulty need not foreshadow despair or defeat; Amherst supplement [2]
topic is
do you agree or disagree with the statement
difficulty need not foreshadow despair or defeat. rather achievement can be all the more satisfying because of obstacles surmounted.
The runner from the third base tries desperately by sliding to make it to the home base where the catcher is ready to tag the runner with the ball as soon as he catches it. Yes, this is a very hackneyed image used numerous times by athletic commercials and advertisements to excite the viewers with the intensity of that moment. What if, the whole game is to be decided by that runner scoring a point? Would it be an excitement that the runner feels at that moment? Or would it be fear and despair?
Maybe the answer is simply- nothing. Yet I, not being a baseball player and thus never had a chance of experiencing that moment, would like to think that some thoughts go through his or her mind at that decisive moment which allows no time to reason out the thought but to just think it. I personally hope that the runner, until the very end, keeps his or her hopes of scoring that point regardless of the difficulties. I wish that the runner doesn't give up, but even bends his or her toe in hopes of touching the plate faster, because it's true that difficulty need not foreshadow despair or defeat, and overcoming that difficulty is most certainly exciting and satisfying.
One of the most important lessons I learned in my 17 years of life is that attitude doesn't change everything, but it certainly can. The moment that you feel despair and hopelessness, everything turns against you and comes to bite every chance that you cling on to. Because I learned this luckily early in my life, every time I face what I think is too difficult, I try to feel the satisfaction and rapture I would experience when I overcome it, to change my attitude.
I can certainly say when your attitude is optimistic the difficult task becomes stimulating. When you overcome it, you wonder if it was difficult at all in the first place; at that point you have escalated yourself to a new level, and the next time you face something similar you effortlessly achieve it without even feeling the need to change your attitude.
Moving to and living in the United States after 15 years of living in a foreign country was difficult. However, being optimistic, I found enjoyment in learning the new language, and experiencing cultural differences that led me to overcome that difficulty. The achievement upgraded me to a person who no longer fears meeting new people and experiencing different things.
Difficulty doesn't foreshadow defeat, and you have to believe that because your attitude can change everything.
topic is
do you agree or disagree with the statement
difficulty need not foreshadow despair or defeat. rather achievement can be all the more satisfying because of obstacles surmounted.
The runner from the third base tries desperately by sliding to make it to the home base where the catcher is ready to tag the runner with the ball as soon as he catches it. Yes, this is a very hackneyed image used numerous times by athletic commercials and advertisements to excite the viewers with the intensity of that moment. What if, the whole game is to be decided by that runner scoring a point? Would it be an excitement that the runner feels at that moment? Or would it be fear and despair?
Maybe the answer is simply- nothing. Yet I, not being a baseball player and thus never had a chance of experiencing that moment, would like to think that some thoughts go through his or her mind at that decisive moment which allows no time to reason out the thought but to just think it. I personally hope that the runner, until the very end, keeps his or her hopes of scoring that point regardless of the difficulties. I wish that the runner doesn't give up, but even bends his or her toe in hopes of touching the plate faster, because it's true that difficulty need not foreshadow despair or defeat, and overcoming that difficulty is most certainly exciting and satisfying.
One of the most important lessons I learned in my 17 years of life is that attitude doesn't change everything, but it certainly can. The moment that you feel despair and hopelessness, everything turns against you and comes to bite every chance that you cling on to. Because I learned this luckily early in my life, every time I face what I think is too difficult, I try to feel the satisfaction and rapture I would experience when I overcome it, to change my attitude.
I can certainly say when your attitude is optimistic the difficult task becomes stimulating. When you overcome it, you wonder if it was difficult at all in the first place; at that point you have escalated yourself to a new level, and the next time you face something similar you effortlessly achieve it without even feeling the need to change your attitude.
Moving to and living in the United States after 15 years of living in a foreign country was difficult. However, being optimistic, I found enjoyment in learning the new language, and experiencing cultural differences that led me to overcome that difficulty. The achievement upgraded me to a person who no longer fears meeting new people and experiencing different things.
Difficulty doesn't foreshadow defeat, and you have to believe that because your attitude can change everything.