Full title: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
My grandfather had to pause three times on the road from the zoo entrance to the panda cages. Each time he paused, he told me to run forward,because "he wanted to enjoy the scene." At that time, I was six, and I believed him. I kept running, gazing at animals that I had never seen in real life before, such as chimpanzees, orcas, and many more species that I can not remember names of . Later, when I was older, I realized that my grandfather did not pause to enjoy the scenery, but rather to catch his breath, rest, and then regain his strength to continue the journey. Before that trip, my grandparents had saved their pension for a month to take me to the zoo and my favorite fast food restaurant. And all day long, they were so happy to see me enjoying myself. .
One night, a few years later, my family gathered together to watch the news as usual, in which a reporter spoke about counterfeit milk, which could cause great harm to the elderly. After hearing that, my mother called my grandparents immediately to validate whether they purchased that inferior product or not. Unfortunately, they had purchased, consumed, and lost a considerable amount of money to those kinds of milk, which could threaten their health that they were trying to keep. The news left them shaken. They had only wanted to stay healthy for their children and grandchildren, but instead they not only experienced a large financial loss by purchasing a large quantity of products but also damaged their health as well. During the entire phone call, my mother tried to appease them, and my father and I could only look at each other.
That night, I could not sleep. I was worried that this problem might happen again in the future, because its consequences would be not only a financial loss, but also a heavy emotional blow for them. A few days later, my father and I tried to find a practical solution. We initially thought about checking on them every day, but they could not always take all of our phone calls. We also thought they could ask their children before paying, but they do not want to bother us. Every single solution had a critical flaw: we could not be with our grandparents all time. Then one idea escaped my mouth before I could judge it: If we can not always be there, then let's create something that can replace us.
I pictured something simple : a mirror with the size of a television, large enough for my grandparents to read comfortably but familiar enough to belong naturally in their home. It always stays active and shines all day to make sure that our grandparents could access the information displayed on the screen whenever they need.
That image became a starting point for a "smart mirror" that could answer questions about products, remind my grandparents to verify unfamiliar brands, and provide immediate guidance when nobody was available.
We were working together to create the product. My father handled the programming, while I took care of the circuitry and the mirror's construction. I had never learned about microcontrollers before, and the technical documents I read were like a different language. One night, I sat there with the microcontroller in hand, scrutinizing the same page of the datasheet for the third time, yet the signal still would not transmit. I was tired and wanted to give up; but I thought of my grandma, of the scene of her resting on a stone bench at the zoo all those years ago, and I picked up the circuit board to work again. I was not better at technology than anyone else, but I turned the lamp back on.
After numerous failures, the mirror finally worked. I immediately took it to my grandparents. At first, they found it unfamiliar and even considered it unnecessary. A few weeks later, my grandfather had started asking the mirror about the weather each morning before stepping into the garden, as if it had always been there.
When the mirror finally lit up, I did not watch the display. I looked instead at the wooden frame I had built and remembered the stone bench at the zoo. Years ago, my grandfather waited there without complaint so I could discover the world. That day he was doing something for me that I was too young to understand. Now I am learning how to do the same thing for my grandparents-only using circuits and lines of code. The mirror has not been completed yet, and still has functions that we have not done, but it is the first time that I realized that electrical engineering for me was not only a subject. Every time I sat down to work, I did not see a technical assignment but a different scene: a stone bench at the zoo, and this time, I was the one waiting.
P/s : Could somebody help me improve this personal essay or send me feedbacks? I am still struggling to make it better, so your feedbacks are remedies for me, even if it is subtle.
My grandfather had to pause three times on the road from the zoo entrance to the panda cages. Each time he paused, he told me to run forward,because "he wanted to enjoy the scene." At that time, I was six, and I believed him. I kept running, gazing at animals that I had never seen in real life before, such as chimpanzees, orcas, and many more species that I can not remember names of . Later, when I was older, I realized that my grandfather did not pause to enjoy the scenery, but rather to catch his breath, rest, and then regain his strength to continue the journey. Before that trip, my grandparents had saved their pension for a month to take me to the zoo and my favorite fast food restaurant. And all day long, they were so happy to see me enjoying myself. .
One night, a few years later, my family gathered together to watch the news as usual, in which a reporter spoke about counterfeit milk, which could cause great harm to the elderly. After hearing that, my mother called my grandparents immediately to validate whether they purchased that inferior product or not. Unfortunately, they had purchased, consumed, and lost a considerable amount of money to those kinds of milk, which could threaten their health that they were trying to keep. The news left them shaken. They had only wanted to stay healthy for their children and grandchildren, but instead they not only experienced a large financial loss by purchasing a large quantity of products but also damaged their health as well. During the entire phone call, my mother tried to appease them, and my father and I could only look at each other.
That night, I could not sleep. I was worried that this problem might happen again in the future, because its consequences would be not only a financial loss, but also a heavy emotional blow for them. A few days later, my father and I tried to find a practical solution. We initially thought about checking on them every day, but they could not always take all of our phone calls. We also thought they could ask their children before paying, but they do not want to bother us. Every single solution had a critical flaw: we could not be with our grandparents all time. Then one idea escaped my mouth before I could judge it: If we can not always be there, then let's create something that can replace us.
I pictured something simple : a mirror with the size of a television, large enough for my grandparents to read comfortably but familiar enough to belong naturally in their home. It always stays active and shines all day to make sure that our grandparents could access the information displayed on the screen whenever they need.
That image became a starting point for a "smart mirror" that could answer questions about products, remind my grandparents to verify unfamiliar brands, and provide immediate guidance when nobody was available.
We were working together to create the product. My father handled the programming, while I took care of the circuitry and the mirror's construction. I had never learned about microcontrollers before, and the technical documents I read were like a different language. One night, I sat there with the microcontroller in hand, scrutinizing the same page of the datasheet for the third time, yet the signal still would not transmit. I was tired and wanted to give up; but I thought of my grandma, of the scene of her resting on a stone bench at the zoo all those years ago, and I picked up the circuit board to work again. I was not better at technology than anyone else, but I turned the lamp back on.
After numerous failures, the mirror finally worked. I immediately took it to my grandparents. At first, they found it unfamiliar and even considered it unnecessary. A few weeks later, my grandfather had started asking the mirror about the weather each morning before stepping into the garden, as if it had always been there.
When the mirror finally lit up, I did not watch the display. I looked instead at the wooden frame I had built and remembered the stone bench at the zoo. Years ago, my grandfather waited there without complaint so I could discover the world. That day he was doing something for me that I was too young to understand. Now I am learning how to do the same thing for my grandparents-only using circuits and lines of code. The mirror has not been completed yet, and still has functions that we have not done, but it is the first time that I realized that electrical engineering for me was not only a subject. Every time I sat down to work, I did not see a technical assignment but a different scene: a stone bench at the zoo, and this time, I was the one waiting.
P/s : Could somebody help me improve this personal essay or send me feedbacks? I am still struggling to make it better, so your feedbacks are remedies for me, even if it is subtle.
