Posts by Asiak

Asiak

Jan 3, 2014

Undergraduate / Describe a topic central to your identity: My Mother and Poland. [2]

I'm working on the title, don't worry, haha. Anyway I'm wondering if my essay is any good (obviously). I'm really afraid it may be much too casual, or too vague, or not say enough about me? (sorry if I've done something wrong, I'm new here!)

"Hey, what's your mom's accent? Is she French?"
"No, actually, she's Polish."

It's not my own story that I'm telling, but I certainly believe that my Polish heritage has played a part in shaping my identity. While dad comes from a small farming town in rural Alberta - a great place, but nothing really to talk about - my mother was born in Poland during the Communist era. She was lucky: just before martial law sealed the borders, she managed to escape the country with only what little she could fit into her backpack (we still have that ratty old piece of history, somewhere up in our attic). She found herself in Sweden as a refugee with a job as a cleaning lady, and a year later she'd saved up enough to come to Canada. It was the only country she'd applied to for immigrant status that hadn't rejected her on the basis that she wouldn't be an "asset" to them. So there she was: 19 years old and in a foreign country with no money, no knowledge of the language, and no guarantee she would ever see her family again. To me - a North Vancouver kid who's been lucky enough to have a stable life - it's hard to imagine.

Alright, fast forward 30 years and my mom is a neuropsychologist with a PhD and her own business. Every time she tells this story she laughs about how she wishes she'd saved the rejection letters from those other countries - "Look at me now, Australia!" She took ESL classes and lived on welfare, and eventually, she took the University of Alberta's entrance exams. Get this: she failed. But only by a hair. And what she didn't do was take no for an answer: she went to the school and told them her story, and they gave her a second chance. Me, I'm more like my father; more ready to accept what comes, more ready to adapt and make do with what I have. Storm the board of director's office and plead for mercy? I don't think so. But what my mother has given me is a challenge: if she can do something like that, what's stopping me from doing what I want to do? I have to work for what I want, and work hard - but I can't be afraid to ask for help. I've learned about the values that have helped her to succeed in life, and in the process I've found some of my own.

But then - having a foreign background has its downsides. For one thing, family means the world to me, and I think the fact that there are people who are basically required to love and accept you is a wonderful concept. The Atlantic Ocean isn't the only thing that separates me from my Polish relatives: there's a language barrier that exists between us, too. I gave up learning Polish when I was younger, and I regret it now; my excuses were that I was too young and too stubborn and it was too hard. But when my jadek passed away a few years ago, it struck me that I might not have much time left with my babja, so I began to take steps to learn what I could. Still, Polish is a difficult language (it's true - want to see their longest word? It's konstantynopolitańczykiewiczówna) and I haven't made much headway. I'd love to be able to talk fluently to my grandmother, but I've learnt that communication isn't limited to words. Hey, my mom found her way in a foreign country with little of the language, after all.

So, my Polish heritage, then, and the family that came with it - some of the parts central to what make up who I am. My identity is sure to change as I grow older and learn more, but right now it's a many factioned-thing, an amalgamation of Canadian values and Polish culture and the lessons that my mother and her success story have taught me. One thing's for sure: (oh boy i have to think of something to put here).

Asiak

Jan 4, 2014

Scholarship / In what areas (non-academic or academic) have you acquired knowledge or skills? How? [2]

It's pretty good, just some edits to make it flow better!

Every experience I went thr ough I have learned something, and whether it was small or large, I gained something knowledgeable. In school, there are no courses on leadership, goal-setting, risk-taking, or team-work. We all learn the basics when we are young but as we mature and become wiser, we have to put forth ourselves forward in situationsthat teach us to better understand and use those skills in the right manner. (Avoid 'you' in essays) I myself learned most of my skills by putting myself outside my comfort zone, which was really something new for me.

I joined various clubs starting in 8th grade, and one of the most memorable experiences was when I was selected as a "Student Ambassador" for the upcoming 7th graders that year. I was able to help these students get adjusted, when I barely knew how to do that myself. It was definitely something I'd never done before and I felt like a better person because not only did I help them around the school, but I was there for those who were having a difficult time adjusting to the change. ~~By being an ambassador for those upcoming 7th graders,~~ I felt like an important role model for these 7th graders; it made me realize how much more mature I had become, how much more my social skills increased, and lastly, how much my self-esteem had increased. Even though they were just little tasks, I felt content with myself, and I hope that the little things I did for them will reward them later on.

Continuing onto my high school years, I participated in other clubs that have also impacted my life positively. Junior year was by far one of the most challenging years for me. The summer of my Junior year I was selected among those who applied to go abroad as a Central American Youth Ambassador through Georgetown University. This was the most life changing experience I had ever encountered in my life. I once again was given another opportunity be a role model in someone else's eyes. I took this as another chance to take the skills I had gained from being an ambassador in the 8th grade but to expand the skills on a higher level. I put my role skills on a higher level where we all helped each other become the ambassadors we wanted to be for those in Panama and Dominican Republic. I learned leadership and team-work while abroad. I learned how to communicate effectively while working together on tasks. T eamwork isn't as easy as it might sound but I learned how to make it a positive atmosphere verses a negative one; thus, the trip much more memorable and valuable to me. Upon returning, I was able to recognize the better person I had become and the amount of knowledge I gained from the trip. I will always use this trip in all my essays that I need for scholarships, job applications, resumes, college applications, etc. because I truly believe this trip helped me become a brighter and more intelligent person.

Once my Junior year started, I became more active around the school by participating in more clubs. That was the year I was vice-president for the high school's Human Rights and International Club. That year, we were meant to leave to Seattle for Model United Nations; unfortunately, the event was cancelled. I did everything I could in my power (might want to give an example of what you did? ) to find a replacement but funds were too low for us to go that year. Doing that was another thing that was added onto my plate that school year, along with community service, working part-time after school, volunteering at the hospital, and mainting a decent GPA. This was str enuous for me because I don't think I have ever been so occupied and busy, but I was taught to balance ~~everything~~ so that I wouldn't stress myself over the top. Somehow, I managed it all and although I may not have accomplished what I wanted to my full potential, I will use those unfinished and mediocre work in the future so that I can use what I've learned about prioritizing in my future years(This is an awkward sentence, I would just simplify it and say something about how you've learned to prioritize). I made a few mistakes my Junior year~~, by not being able to fufill my full potential,~~ but I will use those mistakes later on as an example of what I could have done better.

I achieve knowledge by living through experiences and seeing the worst but knowing that I can do better in the future. Not everything I do is perfect, but in the end I know that I have left a positive impact on not only others but on myself as well.

Asiak

Jan 4, 2014

Undergraduate / "Kelsey, art extraordinaire" Common App essay about my background in art [2]

I like it. I thought it was very concise and simple (a good thing, don't worry) and I liked the motif of the child. That's a good sentence to end off with, I wouldn't add any more, personally. If anything you might want to write a few ideas in the first paragraph about why science interests you, just so it doesn't come off to the reader that art actually interests you more.

Asiak

Jan 5, 2014

Scholarship / CENTRAL TO IDENTITY: Why I Love My City [3]

Too cheesy? Too vague? Doesn't say enough about me?

"So where are you applying?"
"Oh, schools out east. I'm bored of Vancouver."
"Really? Huh."

I love my city. There's something about the tall buildings and the ocean and the mountains and the diversity that has always made me feel alive. It's an odd sensation, but I feel both connected and alone when I'm in my city - alone in the sense that I feel like I can finally breathe a little easier and just relax, and not worry about the scrutiny that surely every teenager feels at home and at school. I will never get tired of my city, and there is something about getting on that seabus to take me downtown that cracks open a seed of excitement in me. I think it's the feeling of What's going to happen today? What new thing am I going to be exposed to this time? I certainly believe that this city has helped shaped me, helped me open up to different experiences and develop myself as a person. To get bored of Vancouver is simply something incredible to me.

I've learned practical things from Vancouver - which bus to take to get where, the best Korean karaoke places, the cheapest sushi restaurants, and not to hang around the seabus station at night. But this city has also made me realize things that I was never aware of before. Last year I was part of a program called Peer2Peer. Our object was to walk the Downtown Eastside, to gather information on drugs and alcohol to give presentations to younger students. Accompanied by police officers, we were a group of clean-faced North Van kids in bright marshmallow winter jackets, nervously clutching onto cameras and notepads. We thought we knew everything about this place that has the reputation of being one of the 'cesspools' of North America. We toured old hotels deprived of their glory days, walked seedy alleyways, stepped gingerly around used needles; but what I soon felt was the sense of community that began to emerge from the people we talked to. I got the feeling that these people once could have been our friends and neighbours. One man, Styrofoam coffee cup in hand, was waiting outside a treatment centre for his best friend. "I've been sober five years today," he told us proudly, "And I can speak 5 languages. Bet you didn't expect that." Another lady bid us welcome to the "yellow brick road!". These people were friendly and eager to impart advice to us. This was their home, and they wanted to show us that it wasn't all what it has been portrayed it to be.

So would the idea of the Downtown Eastside being a tight knit community like this ever had occurred to me? Probably not, because I was only ever exposed to the idea of it being a lost cause. Maybe this is why I am so passionate about writing - there's so many different ways of telling a story, and so much more than meets the eye to a situation; so much we don't know about someone who may appear mean or sad or happy or any number of different things. This, too, is perhaps why I love Vancouver, why I love cities in general. It's the prospect of possibilities and opportunities and untold stories hidden among these buildings and the people walking the streets. And finally, I won't try to defend Vancouver's reputation as being an aloof, cold city - but maybe it's just full of people who like to observe and dream, like me.