A Mother's Influence by Charise

A Mother's Influence by Charise - March 2023 Scholarship Essay

It took me eighteen years to realize what an extraordinary influence my mother has been on my life. She is the kind of person who always tries to help anyone in need, the kind of mother who always has time for her three children, and the one person who always manages to pull her family together. Growing up with such a strong role model, I have developed many of her attributes, the biggest being her dedication to family and her education. Through her guidance I learned the importance of commitment, and the significance of giving back to the community in exchange for a new sense of life, love, and spirit.
My mother's dedication to commitment is most apparent in her hardships. She grew up with immigrant parents who came to the U.S for a better way of life. Unfortunately, those dreams were shattered when my grandmother passed at the early age of 31, leaving my mother (who was five years old at the time), to grow up without the comfort of her mother. She was raised by my grandfather who was determined to fulfill his promise to my grandmother to raise successful children. Because of this, my mother grew to be a very academically gifted child who skipped the second grade. She carried her commitment to her studies through high school, and she graduated a year early. Although she was very committed to education, she had her first child at the age of 18 which prevented her from entering college straight out of high school. Although maturity came much quicker compared to everyone else, she never gave up her commitment to her education. When she married my father, she juggled her professional responsibilities full time, while attending college part time, and finding the time to take care of her children. Although she found her work life balance to be difficult, she persevered and after twenty years she completed college with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
As a child growing up, I never truly understood why she was so hard on me when it came to education and extracurriculars, but now I see that she was trying to instill a desire in me to succeed. Through her experiences I’ve come to learn the importance of what it means to be dedicated despite what the world throws at you. There’s never been anything that I wanted to do that my mom didn’t support me through. She attended every track meet, every game I cheered for, and all orchestra recitals for the last 7 years of my life. When things got difficult, she reminded me that if I am going to do something, I need to commit to being the best at it. She has influenced my life with her passion for learning and changed it with her devotion to self-improvement. I truly do believe that her influence is evident within my desire to excel in my education. With her endless love, I have seen a life that is truly exceptional and has inspired me to become the best version of me.