Hey guys, it would be much appreciated if you could help me with my college essay.
I'm applying to schools such as Carnegie Mellon, NYU, BC, Brandeis.
Thanks in advance:
Every once in a while, when you least expect it, Death's cruel embrace reaches forward and abruptly takes hold of a person you love. Last summer, Death took my friend and close companion, Jeffrey Lee, from my grasp. Only this time, Death came invited. On July 15, 2011, Jeff had taken his own life. I remember everything that day: the 7:00 phone call, the frantic scurrying to get to Jeff's house, the crying and the denial. I was in denial even when I saw his lifeless corpse. He's sleeping, I told myself. He was tired. He's sleeping. I remember thinking, the day before the funeral, as I lay down in my bed, "Why isn't he waking up?."
Jeff's funeral was moving, to say the least. I had never seen so much grief and mourning, collected and amalgamated into one spot. I looked around at the several hundred people, all with their heads down, silent tears dripping down onto the pews. An unmistaken air of grief and despair had made itself present. And as I continued to look around, I realized something. Jeff's life was not only his. Since the day he was born, and until the day he had died, the decisions, actions, and choices he made influenced not only him, but also those who he had come to love and in turn, those who came to love him. In essence, Jeff became a part of their hearts and lives, and when he had selfishly made the decision to take his own life, a prodigious amount of people had lost a part of him in their own lives. Indeed, our actions and decisions are our own, but our hearts are not.
Jeff showed me that my life is full of those who love me and support me, and because they do so, they become a part of my life, and I become a part of theirs. I know now Jeff was too late to realize something that I have come to finally understand: because these people love me, they want me to succeed. I realize now that there are several people in my heart who want me to accomplish my dreams and goals. This is why I am not willing to give up. There may be some dreams that appear far-fetched right now, some goals that seem unattainable. Yes, for me alone, the work that must be put into reaching those dreams or goals is, euphemistically put, daunting. The beauty of it all; however, is that I am not alone, nor will I ever be. Suddenly, that dream doesn't seem like a dream, it seems like it's just another thing that must be added to my daily planner. And I just can't wait to check it off.
A month before he died, Jeff told me that he would be there when I needed him. And he hasn't faulted on that promise since.
I'm applying to schools such as Carnegie Mellon, NYU, BC, Brandeis.
Thanks in advance:
Every once in a while, when you least expect it, Death's cruel embrace reaches forward and abruptly takes hold of a person you love. Last summer, Death took my friend and close companion, Jeffrey Lee, from my grasp. Only this time, Death came invited. On July 15, 2011, Jeff had taken his own life. I remember everything that day: the 7:00 phone call, the frantic scurrying to get to Jeff's house, the crying and the denial. I was in denial even when I saw his lifeless corpse. He's sleeping, I told myself. He was tired. He's sleeping. I remember thinking, the day before the funeral, as I lay down in my bed, "Why isn't he waking up?."
Jeff's funeral was moving, to say the least. I had never seen so much grief and mourning, collected and amalgamated into one spot. I looked around at the several hundred people, all with their heads down, silent tears dripping down onto the pews. An unmistaken air of grief and despair had made itself present. And as I continued to look around, I realized something. Jeff's life was not only his. Since the day he was born, and until the day he had died, the decisions, actions, and choices he made influenced not only him, but also those who he had come to love and in turn, those who came to love him. In essence, Jeff became a part of their hearts and lives, and when he had selfishly made the decision to take his own life, a prodigious amount of people had lost a part of him in their own lives. Indeed, our actions and decisions are our own, but our hearts are not.
Jeff showed me that my life is full of those who love me and support me, and because they do so, they become a part of my life, and I become a part of theirs. I know now Jeff was too late to realize something that I have come to finally understand: because these people love me, they want me to succeed. I realize now that there are several people in my heart who want me to accomplish my dreams and goals. This is why I am not willing to give up. There may be some dreams that appear far-fetched right now, some goals that seem unattainable. Yes, for me alone, the work that must be put into reaching those dreams or goals is, euphemistically put, daunting. The beauty of it all; however, is that I am not alone, nor will I ever be. Suddenly, that dream doesn't seem like a dream, it seems like it's just another thing that must be added to my daily planner. And I just can't wait to check it off.
A month before he died, Jeff told me that he would be there when I needed him. And he hasn't faulted on that promise since.