What are the cliches?

[digmedia]

<p>I’ve posted this essay before, but here it is one more time:</p>

<p>Many people make a mistake in thinking that the topic of an essay needs to be unique, that somehow the essay will stand out from the crowd if only one could think of a topic no one has explored before. In fact, your essay will stand out if it’s written well and lets the reader know something about YOU.</p>

<p>Take, for example, the death of someone close to you, one of the most overused of all topics. But if it’s written well, evokes the moment, and says something about you, then even that can work:</p>

<p>

*The small chest was opened by my grandfather’s frail hand and the contents began to sparkle even before the lid was completely lifted. He had called his grandchildren together that night, and we were brought into the bedroom one at a time. His leukemia was advancing daily, but there was no mistaking that he was enjoying this little ritual. His parents had run a jewelry business many years ago and this chest was all that remained of it. The antique jewelry was valuable and he wanted each of his grandchildren to take a single item. The heaping pile of shining gold and polished gemstones could have been the contents of a pirate’s chest. But I saw what I wanted almost immediately: a tarnished sterling silver frog ring. </p>

<p>It was nearly worthless, but it seemed to call to me from the tangle of treasure and I retrieved it. With the certainty of fate, it was a perfect fit for my finger, the rear legs of the frog transforming into the ring band, and the front legs reaching forward to grab my finger.</p>

<p>“Don’t you want something more valuable?” he asked. “No,” I replied, already in love with this little silver frog.</p>

<p>His heart failed him a few hours later.</p>

<p>I still wear the ring. Since I’ve grown over the past few years, I’ve had to have it resized, requiring that it be cut from my finger. Afterwards, as I slipped on the ring with its larger band, the front legs of the frog reached out and grasped my finger with its comforting grip.</p>

<p>My siblings and cousins may have a more valuable item stuffed away in a drawer somewhere. But I have the silver frog, holding my finger like my small hands once held my grandfather’s finger as we walked together, side by side.*

</p>

<p>It’s a topic that essay readers might see many times in an admissions season, but this would be unique because it describes a very personal experience without the typical emotions and maudlin interpretations. Yes, the grandfather died, but the essay is about the student, not the grandfather. OK, OK, I do admit that the ending is really schmaltzy, but still not bad in this context.</p>

<p>What does this imply about the writer? What does it imply about his or her relationship with the grandfather? Notice that the writer did not have to interpret everything and lay out exactly what he or she wanted the reader to know. By letting that reader discover some things about the writer on his/her own, the essay is more memorable.</p>