Some students have a background or story that is so central to their identity that they believe their
application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story in 650 words or less.
For as long as I can remember, I have always been a comparison. "Which one is the smarter twin?" "Are you faster than Noelle?" When I was little I reveled in the extra attention that I received due to my physical likeness to my sister. Peers seemed to be drawn to the strawberry-blonde, green-eyed girls that looked and dressed exactly alike. Noelle and I actually auditioned for commercials in New York City during elementary school based purely on our twin-ness (unfortunately we never did anything). However, even then I struggled to define myself as an individual. At any opportunity I dressed myself differently than my sister, much to the dismay of my mother. Our struggle for separate identities went so far as inane physical fights over the same Elmo bubble bath.
The truth is, Noelle and I are quite similar. We have analogous interests; we both love reading and writing; our love of food, specifically dumplings, is unparalleled. We think the same; there are countless times in which Noelleykins and I have heard seemingly benign things, turned to each other, and burst out into hysterics. As cliché as it sounds, we sorta complete each other. Our connection is incomparable to anything that I have ever heard or read about, and I truly treasure our relationship. At the same time, it has made growing up an extra struggle.
I think everyone can relate to the mystery and confusion of the adolescent years in regard to one's individuality. Everyone tells us that we need to figure out who we are, and what we want to do with our lives. It's especially hard to do that when other people associate your identity as one entwined with another individual. Even I have a hard time describing me without comparing myself to my sister. I think when people ask me "how are you guys different?" they are looking for superficial differences to appease their slight curiosity at the uncommon phenomena of identical twins. A response of "Well, I'm an inch and a half taller," or "Our hair parts in opposite directions" is enough to satisfy the low appetite of the average inquirer. It's sometimes frustrating trying to differentiate myself from Noelle based purely on physicality's; I want to tell people that I love horses, have a passion for long distance running, and want to be a journalist. Of course, people never seem to be interested in those things.
I suppose my interest in individuality stems from the seemingly lack of it in my own life. In my attempt to discover myself as an individual, I have delved into the rich narratives of John Green and Jack Kerouac, filled with characters oozing idiosyncrasies. I am completely enraptured with the uniqueness and non-conformity of these individuals, something that I am striving to figure out in myself. Originally I thought that in order to "find myself," I had to be different than my sister. I thought of my own individuality in regards to my sister's, which sorta defeats the purpose. But as I've gotten older and had my own experiences, I've come to learn that I shouldn't constantly be comparing myself to Noelle. We are our own people; we have different passions and different dreams. Our similarities make us special individually while contributing to the unique connection that we share. I still think that together we are unstoppable; our differences compliment each other and I'll always feel that something's missing in my life if Noelle isn't there. But I think that college is the time for me to develop the qualities I never had to because of Noelle; it's time for me to complete myself.
application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story in 650 words or less.
For as long as I can remember, I have always been a comparison. "Which one is the smarter twin?" "Are you faster than Noelle?" When I was little I reveled in the extra attention that I received due to my physical likeness to my sister. Peers seemed to be drawn to the strawberry-blonde, green-eyed girls that looked and dressed exactly alike. Noelle and I actually auditioned for commercials in New York City during elementary school based purely on our twin-ness (unfortunately we never did anything). However, even then I struggled to define myself as an individual. At any opportunity I dressed myself differently than my sister, much to the dismay of my mother. Our struggle for separate identities went so far as inane physical fights over the same Elmo bubble bath.
The truth is, Noelle and I are quite similar. We have analogous interests; we both love reading and writing; our love of food, specifically dumplings, is unparalleled. We think the same; there are countless times in which Noelleykins and I have heard seemingly benign things, turned to each other, and burst out into hysterics. As cliché as it sounds, we sorta complete each other. Our connection is incomparable to anything that I have ever heard or read about, and I truly treasure our relationship. At the same time, it has made growing up an extra struggle.
I think everyone can relate to the mystery and confusion of the adolescent years in regard to one's individuality. Everyone tells us that we need to figure out who we are, and what we want to do with our lives. It's especially hard to do that when other people associate your identity as one entwined with another individual. Even I have a hard time describing me without comparing myself to my sister. I think when people ask me "how are you guys different?" they are looking for superficial differences to appease their slight curiosity at the uncommon phenomena of identical twins. A response of "Well, I'm an inch and a half taller," or "Our hair parts in opposite directions" is enough to satisfy the low appetite of the average inquirer. It's sometimes frustrating trying to differentiate myself from Noelle based purely on physicality's; I want to tell people that I love horses, have a passion for long distance running, and want to be a journalist. Of course, people never seem to be interested in those things.
I suppose my interest in individuality stems from the seemingly lack of it in my own life. In my attempt to discover myself as an individual, I have delved into the rich narratives of John Green and Jack Kerouac, filled with characters oozing idiosyncrasies. I am completely enraptured with the uniqueness and non-conformity of these individuals, something that I am striving to figure out in myself. Originally I thought that in order to "find myself," I had to be different than my sister. I thought of my own individuality in regards to my sister's, which sorta defeats the purpose. But as I've gotten older and had my own experiences, I've come to learn that I shouldn't constantly be comparing myself to Noelle. We are our own people; we have different passions and different dreams. Our similarities make us special individually while contributing to the unique connection that we share. I still think that together we are unstoppable; our differences compliment each other and I'll always feel that something's missing in my life if Noelle isn't there. But I think that college is the time for me to develop the qualities I never had to because of Noelle; it's time for me to complete myself.
