My dad, who has been a single father for many years, expects a lot from his three daughters. Being the oldest of the three, my dad especially has high hopes for me. Basically, he wants me to attend the best university in the country and pursue the most prestigious career. But I won't allow him to plan out my life for me. Although I don't know what I want to do, I know that I am not going to pursue a career just because of the number of zeroes it will produce in my bank account. I want to be someone that can help my community and make a difference. Despite our disagreements I know that what we both basically want for my future is a better life than I am living now, which means that I must further my education. With a more advanced education, I believe that I will be able to help my community better than I already have.
Since my mom left, my dad has continuously struggled to raise my sisters and me. Although he tried to make a better life for us by moving us to a new city, the poverty we brought with us didn't help. When my dad lost the job he had because he had to continuously miss work to pick up my sisters and me, I knew that the pressure he put on me would become an unbearable burden. I continuously struggled to live up to my dad's expectations because I wanted to make him proud. That meant basically replacing my mom by walking my sisters to school, picking them up, helping them with their homework, cooking, cleaning, and translating for my dad while keeping up my grades. The endless list of chores I had to complete everyday were never an excuse for me to not do well in school. They were more a way for me to learn how to manage my time and become a more responsible person and I continue to think of them as character building exercises.
There are many days when I wish I lived a more comfortable life, but I know that I'm not the only person that goes through these obstacles and I have learned to accept them. My community service has opened my eyes to the fact that there are people in my community that are a lot worse off than I am and I am determined to somehow help those who are struggling.
Most of my peers say they want to be engineers and business people. I have considered both possibilities but I realized that there are other careers I would much rather pursue, like social work or therapy, which will allow me to help other people. I want to provide a better life for myself and my family but not if it means having a career that I won't like. I am passionate about helping others because it gives me the satisfaction knowing that I made a difference in someone's life. In order to do this, I must go to college and receive the skills that will allow me to assist others properly.
I have been reminded again and again by my dad that I will be the first person in my family to attend college. Although that may be a disadvantage,it actually drives me to want even more for myself because I know that there will be an endless amount of opportunities that will be available to me
Since my mom left, my dad has continuously struggled to raise my sisters and me. Although he tried to make a better life for us by moving us to a new city, the poverty we brought with us didn't help. When my dad lost the job he had because he had to continuously miss work to pick up my sisters and me, I knew that the pressure he put on me would become an unbearable burden. I continuously struggled to live up to my dad's expectations because I wanted to make him proud. That meant basically replacing my mom by walking my sisters to school, picking them up, helping them with their homework, cooking, cleaning, and translating for my dad while keeping up my grades. The endless list of chores I had to complete everyday were never an excuse for me to not do well in school. They were more a way for me to learn how to manage my time and become a more responsible person and I continue to think of them as character building exercises.
There are many days when I wish I lived a more comfortable life, but I know that I'm not the only person that goes through these obstacles and I have learned to accept them. My community service has opened my eyes to the fact that there are people in my community that are a lot worse off than I am and I am determined to somehow help those who are struggling.
Most of my peers say they want to be engineers and business people. I have considered both possibilities but I realized that there are other careers I would much rather pursue, like social work or therapy, which will allow me to help other people. I want to provide a better life for myself and my family but not if it means having a career that I won't like. I am passionate about helping others because it gives me the satisfaction knowing that I made a difference in someone's life. In order to do this, I must go to college and receive the skills that will allow me to assist others properly.
I have been reminded again and again by my dad that I will be the first person in my family to attend college. Although that may be a disadvantage,it actually drives me to want even more for myself because I know that there will be an endless amount of opportunities that will be available to me