College Admissions Essay: Personal Identity

There have been labels placed upon me throughout my life. Some have stayed with me while others have dropped off. Without these labels ruling how people see me I feel like I would be more free to do things than I am now.

Regardless of the fact that I was a dare devil as a child, I have learned to take chances, be my own person and to take on as many adventures as possible. As a child I would always be doing something, whether I would be talking to new people or going to find a rock to jump off of. It wasn’t always a good quality to have because I would take my adventures too far and put myself in a situation where I could come to be hurt. Nevertheless, I am still alive functioning and it made me the person I am today.

An entire town, consumed in one, deafening silence. How hundreds of tranquil, peaceful slumbers were rudely disturbed were what mattered more. Whichever amount of them were filled with the hibernal, uncomfortable and unforgiving chill that all winters had, nobody deserved to be rudely awakened. One slumber in particular, though, had already been brought to an end long ago.

Yamil Cruz College Essay Seven colors have followed me my whole life. Up to this day, I still don't know whether it is a blessing or a curse. In the world I live in, who I’m attracted to matters.

There’s always that one person who’s outgoing, fun, captivating. That person never blinked an eye at drama, gossip, judgement, or thought about what others thought of them. Everybody knows them. Then, there’s me. “Who’s Samantha De Castro?”

I will never have my father’s smile or my mother’s eyes. My skin tone will also never match their pale skin even though I am their daughter. Although my siblings and I are all adopted from China, growing up in this unique family dynamic played an integral role in my development. I have grown to realize my ethnicity and upbringing are not labels used by my peers to define me. My background has helped me push through social barriers to build friendships. It challenged me to impel beyond the world’s “black and white” boundaries to see a society that thrives on diversity. My multicultural background equipped me with experiences that gave me a new perspective on privilege and responsibility, preparing me to overcome obstacles in the global industry

Growing up, I have always loved to play sports. All through middle school and high school I have focused on lacrosse. Playing a sport has taught me a lot, and something I have learned over the years is that when you can work well with others you can conquer a lot more than working by yourself. I have used that life lesson at my job as well. Everyday, before and after school, I work at a local daycare. When I started working there, I knew that I wouldn't be able to accomplish everything by myself, so my co-workers and I would pair up to achieve our goals for the day.

The word ‘hello’ - a simple word- reluctantly forms on my lips. I am at my first leadership training, surrounded by well-spoken and appearingly confident individuals. Throughout my childhood to even now, I have been presented with numerous opportunities where I could converse with others, but I didn’t possess the prowess to introduce myself. My shyness– my social anxiety– needed to be confronted and conquered immediately.

There are various stages of life. As we get older the lifestyle and habits rapidly changes. Although the standards of my life have changed a lot since I was twelve years old, but still some of my hobbies, looks, lifestyle, interests and learning styles are still the way they were twelve years ago.

We need to stop checking under our bed for monsters, and realize that the monster is inside of us. Everyone is in this battle of trying to be our authentic self but also that struggle of finding ourselves.

I began the habit when I was 15 years old. It was a result of moving into a new environment and shedding an old life. I craved a friend to share hopes and fears with, so I created one. With a notebook and pen, I created a space where a hidden me could reveal herself. My journals aren't anything extravagant. They are decorated minimalistically but are well loved. My favorites are covered with nail polish and have titles reading, ¨ I Am Being¨ and ¨Feel deeply without remorse.¨

Who am I? I don’t really know. Am I someone good or evil? I was so confused, everything seems to me so ambiguous and scaring. The only thing that I knew is that I am a human. In the summer of the 9th grade, I wanted to feel a little independent so my father suggests me to spend the summer in Belgium alone, he wanted me to assume all my responsibilities, after this trip I recognized a little part of my personality but the bigger part was missing.

Growing up in the truck-stop town of Monument, Colorado certain commodities exist that are always guaranteed: one’s “private life” is never truly private and in result is entitled to the school’s colorful opinions, in entering the local Walmart be expecting to awkwardly encounter, and be judged by, the sound majority of your classmates, and friend cliques are not, nor will ever be, tenuously cohesive. Monument’s very existence screams juvenile, and I was perfectly content with this dog-eat-dog world. I had seemingly adopted, and preferred, a lifestyle of isolation- I was a lone wolf complacent with distressing over solely my well-being; concerning myself exclusively to those of who were of relevance to me, and essentially disregarding all others. Only in the beginning of my junior year did I genuinely grow up by escaping my prolonged stay in solitude.

When I become old, I want to be someone who has lived life to the fullest of their potential. I want to be an individual that others can look up to for assistance and find inspiration in. As we get older, we go through countless experiences that shape the outcome of our lives. I want to look back at all the glorious memories and not regret a single thing. I want to be someone who has exceptional stories to tell their grand-children as I want them to learn from my mistakes. By the time we reach the age of 70, we have a lot of knowledge of the world and we can take on the role of providing this knowledge to our young ones. Since I have a kind nature, I genuinely believe that I will be that person that takes care of my loved ones and inquires

Who am I? To answer this question let us go back to my childhood. When I was eight year old a major life-changing event took place. My step-father (an American) decided that after fifteen years of living in Thailand he was ready to come home. My first year in America was a definite culture shock. I went from being an outgoing child to one of quiet and reserved; I was afraid to do anything or talk to anyone because I didn’t want to embarrass myself. My English was very limited (I was just starting to learn basic English words when we left Thailand). When I was in school I always feel like my classmates were talking about me or making fun of me for being different.