Oh! The Places that Fate Will Take You---Peace Corps Application Essay #1

Hello! This is the first draft of my essay and I need some help with grammar and punctuations. I would love to hear comments about its content as well! Any other corrections are welcomed and appreciated. Thank you.

Faith and Volunteering

I am believer in the concept of fate. My personal interpretation is a little different because I believe in a combined definition of the two opposing definitions. I believe that fate controls us and that we have the power to control fate. I believe that a portion of life is predetermined but a person's own individual choice in a given situation can also play a very important factor in the equation. I base this idea on my own personal experiences.

On a whim, I traveled to Quito, Ecuador in the summer of 2007 with a friend I barely knew. The invitation was very last minute and I was skeptical at first. Fate played an important role in this situation because this was a life altering crossroad in my life. I had two choices and each one would create a different path that would lead to a different fate. Path A: travel to Ecuador; or Path B: stay in the US and work. I had a choice, I chose Path A and it changed my life forever.

After spending most of my life in a middle class community conveniently located right next to the beach, this trip to Ecuador opened my eyes to the world outside of my own. Ecuador was the first under-developed country that I have ever traveled to without a chaperon. I was young, vulnerable, and highly impressionable. I wanted to embrace the culture and get to know the population so I decided to volunteer.

I volunteered with an organization called CENTI: Centro de la Nińa Trabajadora. CENTI helped working children and their families overcome grinding poverty and improve their quality of lives through education. For the first time, I saw dire poverty of the developing world and its effect on the given population. The whole environment was radically different from my own life. After my experience in Ecuador, my fate was forever changed.

I am confident in my ability to fulfill the ten expectations of the Peace Corps. The most challenging core expectation for me will be meeting, adapting, and integrating into a new culture. In order to overcome this challenge, I will research important aspects of the country and culture differences. The Core Expectations will be challenging at different points in my service, but I will readily accept and overcome these challenges.

My past international and domestic volunteering experiences lead me to explore the idea of the Peace Corps. I want to serve as a Peace Corp volunteer I want to direct my energy towards something that has a greater consequence. The Peace Corps is the next step in my life where I can make a difference. It is the path that I have wanted to walk since I volunteered in Ecuador and the Peace Corps will lead to the life that I am dreaming of.

Words: 470

I want to serve as a Peace Corp volunteer I want to direct my energy towards something that has a greater consequence. This is 2 sentences in one.

It is the path that I have wanted to walk since I volunteered in Ecuador and the Peace Corps will lead to the life that I am dreaming of. This should be separated into 2 different sentences.

I am a believer in the concept of fate.