Influential Book by Emily

Influential Book by Emily - May 2017 Scholarship Essay

As a student who loves to read, I have read many books that have been inspirational, heart touching, and sometimes even heartbreaking. My personal preference is realistic fiction. Although I am very certain about the types of books that I prefer to read, I am open to other genres. The book that has best influenced my life is a biography known as The Lost Boy by Dave Pelzer. Even though it follows Pelzer’s former book, A Child Called “It”, The Lost Boy is a very inspirational and heart touching novel.
There are many children in this world who are ungrateful and unappreciative for everything that they are given, sometimes for the lives in which they live. What many do not realize is that they are truly blessed to have been given the opportunity to live the lives in which they have. Although some might not be as fortunate as others, they should still be thankful that they have a place to call “home”. It is an unfortunate fact that there are many foster children in this world, most in which are often forced to move around from one home to another. It is an even more unfortunate fact that each child was placed underneath the care of the Department of Human Services for a specific purpose.
Everyone is different; therefore, every child is placed underneath the department’s help for a different reason. If you live a similar life to Pelzer’s, you will understand why it was best for him to leave his family behind and constantly move around to live with other families, none of his relocations lasting for more than a few months. After a period of time of living with his abusive and neglectful family, Pelzer finally develops the courage to leave. Although it would be rather scary to be in his situation, there are some positives to the decision that he had made. As a foster child, he was assigned a social worker who was sincere and caring.
Even though foster homes are supposed to be an improvement compared to the child’s original home, they do not always provide a better environment. Sometimes, the environments are even worse than where the child had originally came from. Although Pelzer was happy to escape the abusive environment, he still felt empty because he did not have a place that he could consider to be his home. I, myself, have experienced a few unfortunate life changing complications. After losing my mother to her battle against stage four breast cancer, I thought that from there, my life could not have gotten any worse.
Unfortunately, that was not true. About three years later, I suffered from living with a neglecting alcoholic who was also my father. After receiving help from my brother and sister-in-law, I then began to realize how fortunate my life really was, and it was also because I read The Lost Boy and compared my life to Pelzer’s. Although it was unfortunate to have lost a parent at a young age as well as become neglected by the remaining parent, it is still a blessing to have been given the opportunity to live the life in which I have been given to live. Whether or not if I have experienced what it is like to be a foster child, I would much rather relive my past rather than to go through the process of being a foster child.
That is to say, I thank the Lord everyday for everything that I have been given, especially for the life that I am living. Pelzer would also advise one to be grateful for their opportunity at life because he had nearly lost his many times. If there ever comes a time in which you are unappreciative about something, always remember that life could be much worse. Whether or not if you truly believe that you live a miserable life, think about how it feels to be a foster child. Any opportunity that life offers will prove to you that your life is blessed.