Tell us something about yourself or your interests that we wouldn't learn by looking at the rest of your application materials.
I learned how to ride a bike when I was eleven. It would not be as embarrassing of a statement if my friends had not already surpassed me in their two-wheeler skills by age eight (ouch). It wasn't that I was afraid of it, or that I did not have the time. Believe me, between completing spelling sheets and watching afternoon cartoons, I had time. The problem was, I did not want to fall.
Children commonly fear falling, but I was different. My fear of falling morphed into a fear of scraped limbs and torn jeans, which morphed into a fierce determination to be the first eleven year old in history ( or at least my street) that had learned to ride a bike without making sudden impact with the ground. So, one summer afternoon, I took my neglected bicycle out for a spin. Well, I tried taking it for a spin. What actually ensued were five glorious hours spent pedaling forward one foot and then stopping whenever the bike began to teeter. Despite the frustrated words from my parents who had gotten quite tired of the endless "stop and go," I was determined to get it right, and I did. I succeeded. When I think back on that day, the thought of falling isn't as horrible. I now wish I had fallen and learned early on that the point of life is not trying to stay steady, but learning how to get back up again when balance is lost.
I learned how to ride a bike when I was eleven. It would not be as embarrassing of a statement if my friends had not already surpassed me in their two-wheeler skills by age eight (ouch). It wasn't that I was afraid of it, or that I did not have the time. Believe me, between completing spelling sheets and watching afternoon cartoons, I had time. The problem was, I did not want to fall.
Children commonly fear falling, but I was different. My fear of falling morphed into a fear of scraped limbs and torn jeans, which morphed into a fierce determination to be the first eleven year old in history ( or at least my street) that had learned to ride a bike without making sudden impact with the ground. So, one summer afternoon, I took my neglected bicycle out for a spin. Well, I tried taking it for a spin. What actually ensued were five glorious hours spent pedaling forward one foot and then stopping whenever the bike began to teeter. Despite the frustrated words from my parents who had gotten quite tired of the endless "stop and go," I was determined to get it right, and I did. I succeeded. When I think back on that day, the thought of falling isn't as horrible. I now wish I had fallen and learned early on that the point of life is not trying to stay steady, but learning how to get back up again when balance is lost.