Creating My Own Proudness by bria

Creating My Own Proudness by bria - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

“Be proud of your accomplishments and let them shine through so it leaves the world in awe.” My High School English teacher told me this, yet it was not until recently that I fully embraced and understood what she meant.

Growing up, I had a very strong support system from my family especially in an academic sense. A’s were the standard and anything less would not suffice. As I got older, I realized the “strong support system” felt more intense, harsh, and almost nerve racking. I felt as though no matter what I did nothing seemed to be good enough to make my parents proud. In turn, I felt that I would never amount to anything.

The fall after I graduated high school, I went to The University of Oregon. It took me a while to realize this, but I picked the school because I believed it was what would make my parents proud. I was anxious, but simply thought that was normal. I believed nerves were a part of the process of beginning a new chapter in my life.

However, as months go by during my freshman year, I realized University of Oregon was not the place for me. I didn’t meet people that had a good influence on my life, my relationships with friends and family were deteriorating and simply I felt as though I had no control. I was depressed, which took me a long time to come to terms with. I went to therapy, which in the long run, benefitted me more than I realized at the time. With going to therapy regularly and writing in a journal, I knew I was not going to continue my undergraduate experience at University of Oregon

At the end of the year, I enrolled at Santa Monica College for the upcoming Fall semester. I knew it was going to be a change coming back home, but I was not anxious and I knew I was making the right decision for myself. At Santa Monica College, I had a goal in mind that I would only be spending one year there and transferring in order to stay on the four- year track. I applied to multiple universities during my first semester at Santa Monica College and I knew exactly what I needed to do in order to fulfill my goal to transfer.

After playing the waiting game, on May 1st 2016, I committed to The University of California at Berkeley. Once I committed, I was filled with emotion of excitement and even more proudness. All of my hard work was worth something. Throughout my life, I always associated the feeling of proudness based on what other people perceive it to be, rather than making my own definition. However, once I received the big envelope in the mail from U.C. Berkeley, I knew my own perception of feeling proud surfaced.

From now on, I am no longer afraid to let my accomplishments shine and to leave the world in awe of them.