The Path Of Life : The Wrong Path In Life

After days of sorrow and helplessness, I contemplated quitting everything. However, I then got results that I had been accepted into my second choice university. I realized that I did have a future, just not the one that I had planned perfectly. I could still become a successful nurse and still help others by taking a different route. This experience taught me to become flexible I was so used to everything taking place the way I wanted it to that I forgot that some things are beyond my control. This challenge helped me to realize that there are more paths than one in life. With an optimistic attitude, I can still succeed and contribute to society. I also learned that my time spent studying and participating in extracurricular activities was not wasted. The memories that I made from participating in the activities are worth the time and effort. As a result, I came to not regret my spending a great amount of time toward my education. It still helped me develop into a well-rounded student. I learned that I will continue to face more difficult challenges in the future as I enter college. However, I will continue to persevere with a positive outlook because the challenges will one day serve as memorable experiences that I can learn

My childhood was a happy one, for a moment at least. The first seven years of my life had gone by in a flash living in Bear, Delaware. I don’t know if I had so much fun that somehow, I transported myself into the future. The next thing I knew my family along with the new addition of my younger brother Ethan was moving to Powder Springs, Georgia. This tendency to stop and look at my existence at specific points in my life continued through 6th grade with the family moving again to Dallas, Georgia. Fast forward a few years after 8th grade my family and I moved for the last time to West Chester, Pennsylvania. I have moved a lot and it caused a lot of stress and uncertainty but I don’t regret it for a second, because from this constantly winding journey I learned one important lesson. There are challenges and obstacles everywhere you go but your reaction to the situation will decide how successful you will be in life.

Our lives aren’t granted to last us forever. We grow old and were all given a certain amount of time. We live in such a beautiful world, giving us so much to offer. For example; having mountains to climb, rivers to swim in, cities to explore but people don’t acknowledge the beauty of their surroundings. I don’t understand why society would settle in one spot when there so much to see. I want to travel the world and see the different cultures and environments this world has created. I got the chance to visit Utah this past summer and it made me realize that Utah might be the state where I want to continue school. It will be a drastic change in my life, but I have come to realize that change doesn’t always have to be necessarily bad, but for the better. I have watched my mom change her whole life around from working at a liquor store to now working for the city of Riverside. She has inspired me to go out and do what my heart desires. My mom continues encouraging me to pursue my dream job of being a fashion designer. There’s so many careers that interest me that I wish I could major all

When I graduated in June of 2014 I really wasn't sure what I wanted out of life. I was prepared to go to the local community college undecided. I was dragging my feet when it came to getting ready to start school in the fall, and I knew I wasn't ready. I approached my mom with the idea of flying out to California and get to know my family and grandparents there better. 3 weeks later I was on a plane flying to Sacramento, as all my friends began their freshman year of college. I'll admit it was tough to see all my friends take the next step in life and I was a couple thousand miles away with nothing planned out. I decided to take that weekend and head to Lake Tahoe. It literally was a breath of fresh air for me. I was at (debatably) the most beautiful lake on earth. Things seemed clearer to me after that trip and I was able to remind myself that not everyone takes the same path in life, and we definitely won't all end up in the same place. I took the rest of those few months to be outdoorsy, paddleboard, hike and ride horses. When November came and it was time to come home, I was ready.

I have had my whole life planned since the third grade. I was going to be Brain Surgeon, save people, make money, life's two most important things. But as time progressed that future career morphed from being a brain surgeon to a teacher to a lawyer and et cetera, et cetera. Senior year came and I was dead set on being an environmental lawyer. I did it all, applied to colleges, got accepted, and even enrolled. All summer I was thrilled to begin my next four years. I arrived to my college on Freshman Orientation day and the moment I stepped onto that campus, I realized I was not ready. All of these kids, the excitement in their eyes, the constant chatter of, “I’m studying this…” “I’m double majoring…”, they wanted to be there, yet I was counting down the minutes to when I could go to my car and make the 3 hour trek home.

By forcing me to reassess the flaws in my life and indentify them as inadequacies rooted within myself, the move became both an opportunity to change and chance to grow. As once stated by Pope Paul IV, “All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today”. I personally feel as though both my struggles and successes have made all the difference, transforming me into an individual I once only dreamed of

My first year at Montclair State University, was something that was completely unexpected. I went into my first year with an expectation to succeed. Yet, I was hit something different. My mother was diagnosed with stomach cancer. My worries did not just stop there, because I had to fight a long case with Great Oak Charter School for the mistreatment of my special needs sister. Stepping in the role of the head of household was physically, emotionally, and mentally draining. There was no time for me heal from the events taking place, because I had to sustain my family in all aspects even financially. As I tried so hard to hold an exterior that I was fine, my whole being began to plunge. I abandoned my studies to focus on my family. Yet, I didn’t

My decision to move to NYC and attend NYU was initially fueled by a desire to squeeze every ounce of experience from life. Though it ended up being an abrupt push into adulthood that was more daunting than I expected. I found myself in a large, fast paced city very different from where I had grown up. Also the costs of living were extremely high, and this was something that fell completely on my shoulders because of my family’s financial situation. On top of dealing with these new responsibilities, I started to attend a university with a demanding and difficult course load. I found myself needing to learn to manage my time, make money, and navigate the workings of this foreign place. This led to a rocky start academically.

Occupied with obstacles, life is not tranquil. I’ve been attending college occasionally since 2007. A brilliant student throughout high school, but life changed for me in college that resulted in being incapable to stay. From living in my car to unable to pay the high cost of college, resulted in having to drop out. My dreams of going to college seemed unreachable. I was the first in my family to attend college. Above all, my family came from Mexico to provide a superior life for my siblings and I. College was always in our conversations and it fueled my desire to outshine in school. That dream was cursorily diminishing away. Luckily, I discovered the Urban Leadership Program (ULP) at Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver) in

Over the summer of 2016, I moved away from my lifelong hometown where all my friends lived, to Shelton where I ambled into school September 6th knowing nobody. On one hand, I could have receded into a shell and stayed indifferent to those around me. On the other hand, however, I could stay positive and acquaint myself with people I would have never met had I stayed in my hometown. Frankl’s sentiments about the purpose of life resonated with me and gave me perspective into the fragility and value of life. Grieving would hold me back from personal growth. Because my surroundings changed, I had a fresh opportunity to reinvent myself—someone more involved with the community and less serious. As I stood at a crossroads, Frankl’s wisdom guided me like signposts to the direction that promised a happier tail-end of my high school career. Had I not thought optimistically, I doubt I would be where I am now—befriending others and joining DECA, Spanish Club, National Honors Society, the tennis team, and other organizations. Now, I live my life with integrity and honesty so that I can better relate to my peers. Although I miss my friends and the familiarity of my old town, I keep my eyes focused ahead of me, not clinging to foregone

While I am rigorous in my pursuit, life is seldom accommodating. Whether it is liberating myself from toxic relationships, changing residence from Boston to Philadelphia, or doing minimum-wage jobs to pay rent and remain solvent, life has afforded me many opportunities to build character and resilience.

Going to College was a new door opening in my life, yet I didn’t know should I walk through it. I knew senior year I was going to have to do something with my life; get a job, learn a trade, or go in the military. A few weeks after making my decision to go to college, I signed up for the ACT. I didn’t do as well as I thought I could, after that things in life started to snowball down. Even though learning a trade or going in the military, could of lead me on many cool adventures. The effects of going to college has led me to wonderful things as well.

I will be living on this campus for four years, and in that time, I can create ample seconds of human experience. It can be daunting to live on your own for the first time, and I spent a portion of my senior year stressing about leaving the only town I have ever lived in. However, now I am taking a step into the future. I hope that when my college days are over, I will feel more comfortable in my own skin. When I imagine myself a few years from now, I see an intelligent young woman who feels confident in her ability to make a life for herself. The growth from the girl I am now to the one I aspire to be will have roots in the new experiences I have and the memories I will make. It will come from the people I meet, whether it be new friends, professors, or a kind stranger. It will emerge in all the tricky bumps in the road

The achievement of life goals is a vital step in the process of development, according to the research paper titled The Path Taken: Consequences of attaining intrinsic and extrinsic aspirations in post-college life by Niemic and Deci. The literature concludes with the idea that the goals for which we place value on, whether they are extrinsic or intrinsically motivated, are often achievable. However, only intrinsic aspirations have the strength to cause positive wellbeing. The two researchers determined this by selecting a group of 246 graduating seniors from two universities in the east to answer two surveys for them regarding their lives after graduation. One due after one year and the second being assessed two years

This past semester, I wrestled with car troubles, 5am shifts, and family trials for my dream. Often, I questioned why I didn’t leave home, accept my offer to be a BFA in Musical Theatre, and start a new narrative on campus. However, I’m glad I didn’t. These tests have revamped my resilience, teaching me that circumstances shouldn’t hinder my ability to choose joy and how to rise up to these “grown-up” difficulties, rather than let them suppress me.