Undergraduate / 'I signed up to volunteer for the Special Olympics' - Common App Essay [2]

Describe a place or environment that you feel content. What do you experience there and why is it meaningful to you?

I originally had no idea what I was going to write this essay about. But just a month before I'll be submitting most of my applications, something completely life changing happened to me. I was sent on a photo assignment by my yearbook teacher to photograph the Special Olympics, an event that multiple students at our school were participating in. I hadn't had much sleep the night before, and wasn't extremely excited about driving 45 minutes out to a place I had never been before. I had even gotten lost multiple times on the way. But, when I finally arrived, I was surrounded by something so different from anything I had ever experienced before. Hundreds of people were scattered about in bleachers and on the track and field. The most surprising thing, however, was how much love was being exchanged from person to person. Everyone had so much passion and care for one another and there was no judgment of one another. I had never experience something like that before, where people were caring for each other that much and all just to make this group of people happy. These people were so remarkable and being able to help them feel remarkable, even for a day or a moment, is one of the most valuable things you can give someone. Their smiles were priceless and all of their happiness was evident in their eyes. This was their time to shine, and it felt wonderful to be able to provide them with that feeling. Everyone should be given the opportunity to feel special and be happy, and that's what we were giving them. One of the boys that was participating in the competition even waved at me and I had never talked to him before, just seen him in the halls a few times. It warmed my heart more than anything I had ever felt before. The accepting nature of every single person there made me content. The modern world is a place full of judgment and evils, and when I stepped in this little area of the Earth, all these evil realities seem to disappear. That day, I immediately signed up to volunteer for the Special Olympics, because this is definitely not a feeling I only wanted to experience once. This is where I feel the most content, surrounded by the most special people in the entire world.

Undergraduate / "Life's a Gas" - this song really affected me in an unsettling way [2]

This essay is just in the primal stages but I think I need some help to get it off the ground. Any comments left are welcome! Thank you!

The charisma in Marc Bolan's voice is unmistakable in a crowded room. When I can't even hear myself think, I can still feel his voice. It relaxes me and sends me to another universe. I have always idolized his extraordinary talent and work with the band T. Rex in the 1970's but there has been one song that has really affected me in an unsettling way: "Life's a Gas." Not only does it have emotional value in my life, but it has philosophical value. It caused me to look at life from a different perspective, because it says that you can love and you can live but in the end, life will disappear into thin air. Before I heard this song for the first time, my entire life philosophy was built around putting as much in as I could possibly could, and that ultimately lead to a very stressful life for me. At first, I became enraged at the words he was putting forth, and completely disagreed to what he was saying. But now I realize that he was right, and that his words have weight. I learned to not take things as seriously, and if things went wrong, that was how they were going to be. I learned to accept fate, instead of stress about what had already happened.

Undergraduate / 'emotion, unlike any other, struck my body like an arrow' - Villanova Essay [2]

Topic: What sets your heart on fire?

In August of 2009, at the age of twelve, an emotion, unlike any other, struck my body like an arrow. Little did I know it was passion: a sensation that would develop me into the person I have become and continually to develop into.

My family was in Atlanta visiting the Georgia Aquarium. Since it is known as the largest aquarium in the United States, it was an extremely exciting day for me. My family didn't travel a lot, so getting to witness something held in such high regard like that meant a lot to me. As we ventured through the multiple floors, each floor housing truly remarkable aquatic life, I was enamored by the beauty of the creatures. I didn't know most of these creatures existed. It seemed as if there was a world within our world, one completely unbeknownst to us. These aquatic creatures were so similar to us but led completely separate lives. By seeing them up close, I was surprised of how little of a barrier there was between us humans and them. But, it wasn't until I saw it, that I was completely blown away. I felt my heart sink below the ground that my feet were planted on and I could feel my body floating. My naïve twelve year old eyes had never seen anything that magnificent before. While my body stood still, I could feel my presence drifting into the tank along with it. It was a whale shark, the largest fish in the known world. It was so remarkable, and I imagined it as the queen of the ocean. There was a beautiful grace about it that I wanted to mimic in my own life. A presence it had that I wanted to have in my own life. It seemed to embrace who it was and never cowered in the shadows. People and animals alike respected it for that. It also didn't cause any harm at the expense of others and I greatly admired that.

I think it was because of this experience on that day that I have subsequently donated so much of my money to the Safina Center, which is an organization that studies how the ocean is changing and works to educate people on how they can help conserve the world's oceans. Their objective is extremely admirable, because we only have so much time on this planet and we owe it to ourselves and our home to conserve its resources. As I continue to grow and mature as a person, I want to become involved with the Safina Center, continuing the goal of conservation education to the general public, and ultimately striving towards saving the remarkable gift that is our oceans. There is so much left to learn about these underwater creatures that exist in this world beyond humans. The feeling that I get when I'm around these animals ignites a fire of passion of within me. I am continually amazed at the capabilities that these animals possess, and want to model my life after some of the admirable qualities that they possess. In the future, I want to provide generations to come the opportunity to connect with aquatic life because of the connection I made on that day and the connection that I continue to establish every day. Connection is so important to humans. It's our only way to empathize with the world around us. Helping to conserve our world's oceans sets my heart on fire, and I hope to pass on that flame, one human at a time.

Undergraduate / If you created a Flash Seminar, what idea would you explore and why? (UVA) [2]

It wasn't until August of 2009 that I discovered the importance of the other worlds that exist within us, particularly the world that exists within our oceans. My family and I were visiting the Georgia Aquarium. As I was surrounded by a plethora of aquatic life, I was enamored by the beauty they possessed. The barrier between humans and aquatic life faded as I discovered what seemed to be a world within our world. They were so similar to us but led completely separate lives. By seeing them up close, I established an unspoken connection with each creature. I admired the way they seamlessly coexisted.

I think it was because of this experience on that day that I have become so passionate about the efforts made by the Safina Center, which is an organization that studies how the ocean is changing and works to educate people on how they can help conserve the world's oceans. We only have so much time on this planet and we owe it to ourselves and our home to conserve its resources. As I continue to grow and mature as a person, I want to become involved with educating the general public about the importance of conserving our oceans, hopefully establishing a connection with the humans and the ocean we rely on. Connection is so important to humans. It's our only way to empathize with the world around us. I hope to start connecting and educating the world with a Flash Seminar, where we can discuss the real effect that the ocean has on our world and discovering the dangers of a world without our oceans. Through that, we can discover meaningful ways to preserve our oceans and its wildlife, and hopefully keeping our Earth healthy for as long as possible.

Thank you for any comments that you have, they are very much appreciated!!!