Undergraduate / "Just Be Who You Are" - Villanova Teachings Prompt [2]

"One of the core values of Villanova, as an Augustinian university founded on the teachings of St. Augustine, is that students and faculty learn from each other. As you imagine yourself as a member of the Villanova community, what is one lesson that you have learned in your life that you will want to share with others?"

so, I am also confused as to if it needs to be a FULL page. because it says, "Please answer the following question in an essay of at least one typewritten page" if so, mine is about a paragraph short. please critique and help, it is due today, 01/07/2011

As she walked down the hallway with her boyfriend and her clique, the world seemed to stop and all eyes were on them. Crystal was the picture of perfection, what every girl wanted to be. She had the perfect life with the perfect boyfriend and friends. She was hated by many and envied by even more. That group of envious girls included me. In middle school, I was not the most popular girl so the boys looked right past me and it hurt.

However, one day, I decided to change all that and gave myself a complete makeover, personality as well as appearance. I did all that I could to act like the popular kids. That included acting like I was not smart, talking back to teachers, and even wearing revealing clothing. My grades began to drop and since I was in the Academy Prep Program, I was at risk of being put on probation. My mother noticed these changes in me and sat me down to talk.

During our conversation she said to me, "Don't try to be someone else, just be who you are." I simply brushed off what she said because I felt like she had no idea what middle school was like.

A few days later as I was walking in the hallway, a boy groped me and kept walking. He turned around and winked at me as if there was something between us. To me, it was humiliating and degrading and I ran to the bathroom in tears. As I looked in the mirror, I was upset not because of what he had done, but because of what I had become. I realized that what I saw in the mirror was not me; it was another one of Crystal's clones. I changed myself to get noticed and was so worried about what other people thought about me that my identity got lost. I was no longer an individual, just another one of those girls. My mother was right.

Ever since then, I have used that piece advice to guide me. It is the best advice I have ever been given because what my mother said to me that day has allowed me to stay true to myself and be who I am. Now, in my senior year of high school, I am a person that is envied not for looks or intelligence, but for my individuality. My mother taught me that you do not have to act a certain way for people to like you. If you change who you are, then they do not like you, they like who you are pretending to be and who they think you are. This advice has also allowed me to stay focused and not get distracted by the cliques and drama in school.

This is a lesson that many people still have not learned so I would like to share this with the Villanova community. It is a lesson that helped me greatly and can also help other people who are struggling to fit in rather than being themselves. College is a place where a student's personality and individuality may get lost due to the new and different people around. I feel as if this lesson, about staying true to oneself, can guide and help a student through the stress of making new friends or meeting new people in school.