dtfrostfire
Nov 27, 2010
Undergraduate / (Exposed to different cultures) The World I Come From & (Ice dance) My Experience. [NEW]
Hi,
I was wondering if you could help review my two prompts which are due on Tuesday for the UC Applications. Thanks!
Prompt #1 Describe the world you come from - for example, your family, community or school - and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
Coming from a culturally diverse family, I was exposed to many different cultures. My parents were born in Indonesia, however, my mom went to dental school in the states and my dad studied engineering in the states as well. They finally decided to settle down in the California to start a family and after several years, they decided to move to Singapore so they could preserve our Chinese heritage. While I was living there, I was fortunate enough to experience many different cultural practices and gained a deeper respect for the world around me. Since I was younger, I have always aspired to be a doctor just because of the immense difficulty and challenges it presented. I did not find out the real reason until much later in my life.
Growing up in a family of five, we were all very close. My dad would be overseas most of the time because of work and so it was up to my mom to raise three kids up on her own. She retired from her job as a dentist just to take care of us and she has had a great impact on my life. Sacrificing her career to raise ours, my mom truly worked hard. She has always lent a helping hand to anyone in need.
My mom influenced me to help anyone in need so I decided to volunteer for a program in which I teach special-needs children how to ice skate. I was surprised by how courageous they all were. Usually children would start bawling the first time they step on ice, but for them, they were so excited to get started. At first, I would get frustrated because they wouldn't listen to me. All they wanted to do is skate by themselves. Now, after working with them for two years, I realized that most of the children would behave if you treated them with respect and patience. After multiple lessons, the children became more comfortable to me and started listening. The children have changed me to become more patient and kind. Watching them practice one day, I was filled with joy because of their improvement in both skating and character. I finally found out why I truly wanted to become a doctor.
At first, I only wanted to become a doctor for self-gratification, but now because of my experiences with the special-needs children. I decided that I want to change the lives of others, especially those of children. Applying what I have learned from my experience with Special Olympics, I hope to give them hope when there seems to be none. I am going to fulfill my dream in order to make sure that children everywhere will have a healthy future when they grow up.
Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud, and how does it relate to the person you are?
One of the goals I had in mind when I started ice dancing was to podium at nationals. During my first month of practice with my new partner, I was told that our chances of placing well at Nationals were slim as we had started late into the season with no ice dancing experience. We had to work twice as hard. Hearing all this, I prepared myself for a grueling five months till Nationals started. Considering that I didn't do my programs that often while skating in the Single's Category, I started to dread our soon-to-be finished free dance.
The months flew by faster than I had expected, feeling excited and ready. I flew to Lake Placid, New York to participate in the National Championships. While warming up for an official practice session, I could hear my heart thumping in my head. It was getting intense, once on the ice, we had almost crashed into another team who were twice the size as we were; I finally realized the depth and strength of the competition. We had to perform three dances and our first dance finally came around. Being nervous, my partner and I skated tentatively and ended up in tenth place. Hearing the result, I felt like the world was coming down on me and that my goal to place on the podium was dashed.
I could see that my coach was a little disappointed, yet later on before the last dance, he calmly told us: "It's not over yet, never give up." Hearing those words, I saw that my coach still believed in me and the team as a whole, I felt like a load was lifted off my chest. My muscles began to loosen and I stepped onto the ice. Once the music had started, it was just like another practice session back home. I executed all my elements and lifts flawlessly. At the end of my dance, my partner and I were very satisfied with our performance. No matter what place we ended up in, I knew that we both had tried our best. The scores finally came and to our surprise, we placed second in the last dance and it was enough to pull us up from tenth to fourth place overall.
Reflecting back upon my experience at nationals, I saw that I didn't give up even though I was in tenth place after a few bobbles in the first dance, I didn't bail out and withdraw from the competition so I do not plan to take the easy way out in life and give up. If I had decided that the podium was too steep off a goal after the first dance, I would have never been awarded the pewter medal. My experience at nationals has taught me to never give up and keep going. Now that it is time for a milestone in life, tasks will be more challenging and I will not back down.
Thanks Everyone :D
Hi,
I was wondering if you could help review my two prompts which are due on Tuesday for the UC Applications. Thanks!
Prompt #1 Describe the world you come from - for example, your family, community or school - and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
Coming from a culturally diverse family, I was exposed to many different cultures. My parents were born in Indonesia, however, my mom went to dental school in the states and my dad studied engineering in the states as well. They finally decided to settle down in the California to start a family and after several years, they decided to move to Singapore so they could preserve our Chinese heritage. While I was living there, I was fortunate enough to experience many different cultural practices and gained a deeper respect for the world around me. Since I was younger, I have always aspired to be a doctor just because of the immense difficulty and challenges it presented. I did not find out the real reason until much later in my life.
Growing up in a family of five, we were all very close. My dad would be overseas most of the time because of work and so it was up to my mom to raise three kids up on her own. She retired from her job as a dentist just to take care of us and she has had a great impact on my life. Sacrificing her career to raise ours, my mom truly worked hard. She has always lent a helping hand to anyone in need.
My mom influenced me to help anyone in need so I decided to volunteer for a program in which I teach special-needs children how to ice skate. I was surprised by how courageous they all were. Usually children would start bawling the first time they step on ice, but for them, they were so excited to get started. At first, I would get frustrated because they wouldn't listen to me. All they wanted to do is skate by themselves. Now, after working with them for two years, I realized that most of the children would behave if you treated them with respect and patience. After multiple lessons, the children became more comfortable to me and started listening. The children have changed me to become more patient and kind. Watching them practice one day, I was filled with joy because of their improvement in both skating and character. I finally found out why I truly wanted to become a doctor.
At first, I only wanted to become a doctor for self-gratification, but now because of my experiences with the special-needs children. I decided that I want to change the lives of others, especially those of children. Applying what I have learned from my experience with Special Olympics, I hope to give them hope when there seems to be none. I am going to fulfill my dream in order to make sure that children everywhere will have a healthy future when they grow up.
Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud, and how does it relate to the person you are?
One of the goals I had in mind when I started ice dancing was to podium at nationals. During my first month of practice with my new partner, I was told that our chances of placing well at Nationals were slim as we had started late into the season with no ice dancing experience. We had to work twice as hard. Hearing all this, I prepared myself for a grueling five months till Nationals started. Considering that I didn't do my programs that often while skating in the Single's Category, I started to dread our soon-to-be finished free dance.
The months flew by faster than I had expected, feeling excited and ready. I flew to Lake Placid, New York to participate in the National Championships. While warming up for an official practice session, I could hear my heart thumping in my head. It was getting intense, once on the ice, we had almost crashed into another team who were twice the size as we were; I finally realized the depth and strength of the competition. We had to perform three dances and our first dance finally came around. Being nervous, my partner and I skated tentatively and ended up in tenth place. Hearing the result, I felt like the world was coming down on me and that my goal to place on the podium was dashed.
I could see that my coach was a little disappointed, yet later on before the last dance, he calmly told us: "It's not over yet, never give up." Hearing those words, I saw that my coach still believed in me and the team as a whole, I felt like a load was lifted off my chest. My muscles began to loosen and I stepped onto the ice. Once the music had started, it was just like another practice session back home. I executed all my elements and lifts flawlessly. At the end of my dance, my partner and I were very satisfied with our performance. No matter what place we ended up in, I knew that we both had tried our best. The scores finally came and to our surprise, we placed second in the last dance and it was enough to pull us up from tenth to fourth place overall.
Reflecting back upon my experience at nationals, I saw that I didn't give up even though I was in tenth place after a few bobbles in the first dance, I didn't bail out and withdraw from the competition so I do not plan to take the easy way out in life and give up. If I had decided that the podium was too steep off a goal after the first dance, I would have never been awarded the pewter medal. My experience at nationals has taught me to never give up and keep going. Now that it is time for a milestone in life, tasks will be more challenging and I will not back down.
Thanks Everyone :D