Lyricalsinger: A Short Story

I have always loved to write, and it became even more evident when I entered elementary school. I quickly befriended a girl named Beth, who lived just down the road from me. One afternoon that I remember in particular was in the middle of the summer. She and I were set to write a book. We had read countless storybooks on our own, and we could not see why we could not write one too. We sat down with a notebook and two pencils, and we were set to go.

Please describe any socio-economic, educational, familial, cultural, or physical hardships or challenges you have overcome. You may attach a separate sheet if you need additional space.

On July 17, 2002 my family, friends, and I heard the worst news ever that impacted all of our lives especially mine. I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at the age of three. Being so

I have wanted to be a writer since before I could read. As a child, I copied picture books out onto sheets of paper, with the illustrations and all of the letters, before I could even put

From ages 6 to 12, I suffered from epilepsy, contributing to my phobia of public places and anxiety. At 14, I was diagnosed with severe scoliosis and needed corrective surgery, which still affects my back to this day. From age 13 to now, I have experienced (in order) gastritis, gallstones, pancreatitis, gallbladder removal and have been diagnosed with a genetic mutation in my liver that causes stones to form. Needless to say, this has affected my diet and requires me to take medication. I have been hospitalized many times for treatment of my illnesses, the longest and most excruciating being three weeks for pancreatitis. Everyday, I wonder what it would’ve been like to have grown up healthy and lived without the constant stresses my conditions put on my body, my mind, and my family. As I got older, I only developed more problems as my personal life took a bad turn. The transition from one school to another in the eighth grade was incredibly difficult and my memories of the isolation and pain I felt are still deeply upsetting. It took me years to get accustomed to my new school and finally find myself in a place where I have made many good friends and feel comfortable with who and where I

I was ready to succeed! Since I was not in magnet freshman year, I had an abundance of spare time, so I ended up spending the majority of it reading and writing. My favorite book at the time was Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. Although I had to read this book for an Honors Composition and Literature, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. I loved the way the author incorporated historical events and facts such as the end of the Cold War. Over the course of 9th grade, I started to compose a diary. Every week, I would summarize my thoughts from my diary and write a couple pages worth of what I had learned into another book. One day, I got the idea of writing about my past experiences and sharing them with others. That is when I decided to start writing a small book. I had found my new passion! I had always loved reading, but there was something about writing that made me look forward to each

On November 26th 2013, I got diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Needless to say, it was an extremely difficult period for everyone in my family. I got admitted in the hospital for emergency treatment. My whole family came together in this crisis.

Reading and writing has always played a vital part in my life. From toddler to adult, pre-elementary to college, I’ve managed to sharpen both skills to my liking. However, even though it significantly helped, schooling was not what influenced me to continue developing those skills into talent. Many different things shaped and influenced my learning, and now reading and writing have become the safety net of my life. I know that even if I have nothing else in the future, I’ll still have my talent and knowledge. To ensure my success, I hope to further develop those skills so that I may fulfill my wishes.

I have been a busy little bee planning out ideas for 500 First Drafts! I've even made my own blogging schedule! (I'm very proud of this) The main element I want to include is some sort of writing challenge, every week I will attempt a piece of writing: be that poetry, fiction, script writing etc. I will update you with my struggles and what websites I found useful along the way. Each Friday I will post whatever I've managed to do, even if its not finished, even if I don't like it. I can tell you're currently questioning my reasoning/sanity. Why would I post something unfinished and poorly written? Because apparently I enjoy torturing myself ... but in all seriousness, it's to push myself outside my comfort zone. During university we were given weekly writing tasks which forced me to write quickly and often, unfortunately over the past year I have fallen out of this habit, and the best way to get good at something is to do it over and over and over and over and over until your fingers hurt and the sound of the tippity tappity keys on your laptop make you want to scream ...

My dad got diagnosed with prostate cancer in early 2014. It was a hard year for my family, and I still remember it like it was yesterday. Not even in my worst dreams did I ever see my dad having cancer. The man that I looked up to, and loved to pieces had cancer. I was devastated, I remember crying and being afraid that I was going to lose him to an incurable disease that lurked the lives of many.

I experienced illness when my Dad was diagnosed with cancer. The most devastating aspect of this experience was when we had to make a choice as a family on how we were going

At a very young age, I was diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease which is a blood disorder that causes the red blood cells to act abnormally. So far, I have only had two crises in my life. Crises are caused when there is a lack of oxygen flowing through the body, and pain attacks occur because of the lack of oxygen, stress, and improper rest. During my worst crises, I was dehydrated and my spleen was seriously inflamed, and I faced being flown to Children's Hospital for a blood transfusion and further examinations. My hemoglobin dropped to four and death was knocking on the door, and the only thing I was worried about was getting better so I would not miss any more homework. I was bedridden for days. When the news about my health got to my family, my immediate family rallied around me

     From a very young age, writing has been a passion of mine. Through writing I have developed an

In 2013, my mother was very ill and had to travel interstate for life saving treatment. It was a very long year, and it forced the development of my independence and self-direction, given my family’s focus on my Mum’s illness.

up and followed my daily routine: brush my teeth, put on my clothes, and went to school. Little did I know, that would be the day that changed everything. I found out that my uncle Danny had been diagnosed with lung cancer. The chemo originally worked and he went into remission. After a few months of remission, the doctors said he would have a few months to live. After he passed away, I couldn't talk to him. I couldn't see him anymore. He was just gone. Cancer ended the life of someone very precious to me and his death sparked the beginning of my desire to battle this disease.