Undergraduate / Who you are? The general picture of what you represent - UC Personal Statement #2 [6]

PROMPT: 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?

When I was 6 years old, my parents forced me to join Taekwondo so I could become more active and lose some weight. I could barely even speak English when I joined, so it was very difficult for my instructors to communicate with me. However, as the years passed by and I matured, I became one of the best students in the studio and was rising quickly through the belt ranks. Before I knew it, I was testing for my second degree black belt. I'd grown from a shy, overweight kid into a confident, courteous, and disciplined teenager. These changes were for the most part a direct result of my dedication to Taekwondo. The tenets of our studio were courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, indomitable spirit, and victory. These values, without realizing it, were being instilled in my character as I trained 5-6 days a week year-round.

About 5 months before my second degree black belt test, my very strict master called me into his office and told me that I had to lose some weight for my test. I was about 110 lbs at the time and I set my goal for 95 lbs; the difficulty of this goal was compounded with the fact that I was just about to go to India for 3 weeks to visit family. The fact that I was able to abstain from eating the sweets, fried food, and other Indian delicacies there really spoke volumes to how much I wanted to achieve my 2nd degree black belt. When my belt test finally came around, I'd comfortably been 95 lbs for a while and was ready to take the next step in my Taekwondo journey. The two-day test was the most difficult experience I've ever had in my life; the hundreds of kicks, punches, and other techniques soon just got bunched together in my mind into one word: pain. I silently thanked my master during the endurance drills for forcing me to lose weight, because I was moving so much quicker and jumping so much higher now. My hard work and perseverance finally paid off when my master yelled out "Sukhpreet Pabla" at the black belt ceremony months later. The sheer ecstasy I felt as my master untied my first degree black belt and put on my new belt was a result of not only the pain of enduring my black belt test, but also having to lose so much weight and show how dedicated I was to doing whatever was necessary to receive those 2 stripes on my belt.

My master's doubt months prior to my test had motivated me to work that much harder and show him and myself how much I wanted to achieve my goal. Now, even in school and basketball, I get motivated when other people doubt me because I've developed the self-confidence from Taekwondo to know that I can do whatever I set my eyes on. My personality now is based on those six tenets that I developed through my 8.5 year journey, which included tournaments (including the Junior Olympics) and training in the advanced section of the Competition Team, along with my regular training to progress in belt rank. Now, when I look back on my 6 year old self, I realize how grateful I am to my parents and my master for helping me grow up and become a man ready to take on whatever challenges I may face in the future, because I will tackle those with the same resolve as the obstacles I faced before and during my second degree black belt test.

Thank you so much!