My Monomyth Journey

Over the course of this semester, I have learned a lot about who I am. I have discovered things that I did not know about myself. Choosing Spelman College as an institute to education myself at was only the first step that I took. Overcoming the challenges that it has brought is the second step that I am yet taking. I am slowly, but surely transforming into a Free Thinking Woman.

Bill Skarsgård, a Swedish actor, has said “A character on screen that's the 'good guy' or the 'bad guy,' they're never interesting. There's got to be an internal struggle, the duality is important to find.” The internal struggle is a very important and fascinating aspect of the monomyth journey. It evolves the hero morally and expresses the author's philosophy. It is mentioned in Joseph Campbell’s book: The Hero with a Thousand Faces “The first step, detachment or withdrawal, consists in a radical transfer of emphasis from the external to the internal world…” (Campbell, 12).

The thought of college is often overwhelming and fills a person’s head full of anxiety and stress. If you look back on what you have accomplished up to this point in your life this large step in life suddenly seems much smaller. I have been going to the same small private school all my life so many people could argue that I have been sheltered for most of my life or see the world through “tunnel vision.” Now all of this is entirely true, but throughout my high school years I have gradually become more of the person who I am today. For example, my junior year English teacher assigned my class the daunting task of a junior thesis. At first I thought this assignment was simply busy work and had no meaning to it, but as I began to pick a topic and research it I began to discover a possible

Even after making the transition to Deer River High School in sixth grade, I continued to glide through school. My pattern of being underchallenged continued until I discovered College in the Schools classes this past fall. Finally, I was challenged (perhaps at times even more so than I imagined,) and I’ve grown exponentially in the past academic year. However, I feel as if that exponential growth is reaching its capacity in this specific environment. Becoming a part of the College of St. Scholastica’s academic environment would allow me to begin a new pattern of exponential growth both as a student and as a person.

As my high school career ends, I notice increasingly how much life that I have yet to live and the opportunities available to me in the years ahead. The past four years have been great preparation for my future endeavors, but college is the path leading to my full potential. In order to reach the end of this path, I utilize my most valuable trait—determination—to set short and long-term goals and achieve them. It is with this “can do” spirit—like the one my grandpa, a former Navy Seabee, evinces through his stories—that I have set my personal goals: to volunteer my time in service to others, further develop leadership skills through experiential learning, and excel at my school work no matter how challenging it may seem. Though these may

Last summer, I hiked the Appalachian Trail with my wonderful partner Travis—who graduated from WCU with a Bachelor’s in Psychology. This was our first big hike together on the AT; spanning over 400 miles in just about 30 days. It was an incredible experience that grounded me and influenced a new-found discipline that only genuinely wholehearted, physically-taxing effort can provide. I was enlightened to my own personal values, goals, and abilities in such a way that I could analyze them as a network, as opposed to individual aspects of my life. I uncovered my path to continue wholly dedicating myself to my studies and my ambitions; I found what was truly important to me and what I truly wanted. Within this experience, I resolved to have “West Chester University” on my

Four years of my life drained away at this place called Troy High School. After this year I will be walking away from Troy, worn and torn from the hours of anticipation for grades to be posted, the next weekend to arrive, the answer to whether that special someone will say yes to the next dance, or the unbearable wait for that painstaking bell to ring. Troy is a place of education, a very good one at that, with its Blue Ribbon Award and national recognition, you’d think I would be walking away with knowledge that will serve me well for decades to come, but no. I could have learned the same things I learned at Troy anywhere, it is the insight I picked up that will take me far. “What insight?” you ask. Its priceless wisdom really, it’s a

It is the beginning of my life and the results of all the hard work I have put in between my family, work, and school. Mount Wachusett Community College has been the success in my life from the day I began attending until the day I graduate. I have had my hurdles like anyone in this world, yet I push myself to be the best that I know I can be and it is thanks to the Mount. I wake up each day with a better reason to now than I did before. I wake up to the taste on my fingertips to my life’s career. I am more determined now than ever. They say that the sky is the limit. However, thanks to the Mount I realize that the sky is not the limit, it is just the beginning .That life beyond that sky is what I am truly reaching for and searching for within my dreams in

I am eager for what my future has in store for me. I am apprehensive about the obstacles i will have to overcome on my way to success. I have a great deal of support from my friends and family when it comes to what I am driven to do after graduating from Buckingham Charter Magnet High School. Throughout all the years of my school career, I have always been indecisive about what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Buckingham Charter Magnet High School has helped me finally decide that I wanted to go to Solano Community College to attend their Cosmetology Program.

The monomyth is one of the most recognizable stories as it, in its most basic form, is about a hero who must face an obstacle and is changed by doing so. Its popularity stems from the fact that all have experienced it. With each person having experienced several variations of the monomyth, the archetype existed before the establishment of writing. Each person presented his or her story in the form of song. By structuring stories through stanzas with rhythm and rhyme, the stories told would be remembered better and thus would be passed down more often. Ultimately, these songs became a staple of society as they had the ability to create a sense of community; giant masses will gather to hear or to sing other’s or their own songs. As years passed

When I was a little girl, I dreamed of being an adult. I remember watching the movie “Thirteen Going on Thirty” and relating to the thirteen-year-old, Jenna Rink. She wished to be thirty because she thought those would be the best years of her life and in the end, she realized that the choices you make when you are young determine and shape the person that you become as an adult. As a child, I learned foundational spiritual and moral lessons. Those lessons have guided me through tough times from a little girl who dreamed of being an adult to the young adult woman I’m learning to be today. I am excited to go to Lipscomb and develop more independence through the experience of living on campus. I am hopeful that my experience at Lipscomb will enable me to grow into the woman I want to be. There have been a lot of female role models in my life. My mom, my teachers, and my mentors whom I have spent a lot of time with and observed. They all have similar characteristics: strong, brave, independent, and supportive. Eleanor Roosevelt and Princess Diana are women that have inspired me with their generosity and wisdom. I’ve absorbed my

Knowing the struggles my ancestors have prevailed upon to provide me the opportunity to pursue my dreams is humbling. They’ve taught me that education is power. I was able to understand its magnitude by becoming an English teacher to students from a local underprivileged public school. I had been capable of reminding them that they are entitled to dream, simply by giving them the knowledge and opportunity to think outside of the box. As I move on to college, I hope to continue to empower individuals through education, providing them the opportunity that my great-grandmother wished for but did not have. Despite the tumultuous path to accepting and understanding myself, I know that college will be another colorful fragment to the patchwork of my

Life’s too short to wait and see what’s next, so let’s dive in and see my future. Many seniors often worry about tending a college after high school graduation. Just last week I started my senior year and I’m starting to get really excited. When I graduate in May, I plan on going to Hondros Community College in Columbus, Ohio to be a nurse practitioner. As I start college in the fall, there will be many setbacks, fears and people who motivate me.

For many, after graduating high school the next big step is college. I never asked myself why or if I even wanted to. Yet, since I was not yet ready to join the work force, and didn’t want to disappoint my parents, I simply followed the path that I was supposed to take. For a while I had no direction, but through the loss of my high school English teacher and my dream of making my family proud, I discovered that college was the place I wanted and needed to be.

I have really high expectations for myself and what I am capable of this fall at Mount Olive College. I have very high goals for myself and have revised what I believe to be a well guided plan to achieve them. I feel eager and excited to unleash my mind, thoughts and the power of my determination. I know that it’s going to be a lot of hard work and its going to take a lot of time. Also, with that comes the bittersweet of sacrifice, of parts of my life that I am going to have to change in order to succeed. But my grandfather has always told me “anything worth having is worth working hard for.” I am my biggest critic and supporter all in one. I know that the only person that can stop me from doing what I came to do is me. No one else has the