'Small town and my English teacher' - Biographical Essay

ESSAY #2: BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY (MAXIMUM 500 WORDS)
Please describe a major event or an important person that you believe has had a significant influence on your life and has helped you grow and become the person you are today. Please limit your response to 500 words or less.

I grew up in a small town near a river where the nature is vastly beautiful and breathtaking. It was a place prepossessing to have a great memorable childhood and big dreams as it was for me. Although all people knew each other and were friends sometimes small cities are closed for new ideas and different way of thinking. That is the reason why I will never forget the person I am going to tell you about as it was one of the first events shaped me as a person.

I was in eighth grade and one day my English teacher asked me and my classmates to follow her to the teacher's room because she had to introduce us to a special person. We all became curious and nervous but we immediately went in front of the door. When we came in I looked around the room and I saw a sophisticated man who was sitting near the window and drinking tea. Unfortunately, I can't remember his name but I will never forget his face - I felt his irradiation and assuredness. He was a man from the U.S. Embassy who just wanted to talk with us about our future and the way we can achieve our goals.

First of all the man asked us about our dreams and goals. We all had big dreams so the man told us we were the happiest people on the world. He said: "Nowadays to have dreams is a bad thing - people are afraid having radical dreams, people are afraid to set goals because they have fear of failure." The man talked to us for three hours but it was like a minute for me - I was shocked and fascinated from his speech and ideas whereafter my mindset changed totally. He told us never to give up on our dreams and showed us how important the education is for our future by using examples form his life. I understood how decisive is to work hard as this is the only way to become a valuable person and to be able to help other people. I learned to control my focus and to have a burning desire to achieve my result which is tied to a specific, clear goal. He showed me how to create more choices in my life and move myself in the direction I want so no longer seeing education as work but as an opportunity. I have and will continue to seize that opportunity and try to find a way to make value for other people because it makes me feel fulfillment.

This is one of the first persons who radically shaped my way of thinking and my life. After I met him I was thinking again and again over his words. I talked with my friends from the local school organisation I was a member of and we created a project for inviting more people like this man. It was my way to inspire my classmates and to help them in building their own future and to be not afraid of the changes in their lifes. I saw factors caused me to grow and I believe every challenge I have faces has made me the person who I am today.