HELP! UC Personal Statement 2... Is it any good?

unsand
Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:40:29 +0000

Would you mind telling me what you think about this? I am REALLY lost and have absolutely no idea if this is good or not :S

Personal Statement 2
Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud, and how does it relate to the person you are?

I held the pages tightly and tried to smile at the fifteen small faces looking up at me. I stood in front of them for a couple of seconds, not really sure of what I was supposed to do. All I could think of was looking calm and confident, not on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I couldn’t help but feel nervous - terrified even. I had spent the last two months writing this book and it was finally the time to show it to the most important judges I could think of: fourth graders.

Strangely enough, when I finally sat down and introduced myself, the anxiety suddenly vanished and I came to the realization that this was where I was supposed to be, where I wanted to be.

As I started reading, this feeling only grew. I was thrilled to share something that meant so much to me with the children. Slowly, “Cuentame, Abuelo” started becoming theirs as well. They understood Diego’s pain because they had felt it too, and celebrated his victories because they could have been their own.

When I left, I was smiling. This time, though, my smile wasn’t a mask to hide what I was actually felling, but a reflection of it. I remembered the books I had read as a child, how they had changed me, and hoped my book had done that, even in a small measure.

I knew I hadn’t written the best book, but that didn’t seem to matter. Its value laid in the fact that it was mine, that I had finally had the courage to share a piece of myself with somebody else, and had discovered that it was a piece of them as well. I did not feel self-conscious or embarrassed, but confident and empowered.

I think of this experience now, two years later, as being also one of the most important indicators that I was right in choosing the path I want for my life: teaching.

Thanks!