What leadership means to me by Iris

What leadership means to me by Iris - May 2024 Scholarship Essay

Leadership to me means taking charge of a situation to change it. It means making decisions, tough and easy, based on what you think is correct.
Leadership can be found in anyone but I find it most in my mom. She is the best leader I've ever met and a tough one at that. After my mom had three kids, including myself, she found herself with no support to take care of them. She had no in-laws to help her, no family members to offer her a hand, and the role of taking care of the house and three kids around the same age was forced on her mercilessly. She was put in a tough position with a husband who believed he deserved to be served and nothing less.
She didn't falter, however. She rose and scheduled every doctor appointment for her three kids. She made food, healthy and delicious, for her kids, husband, and herself. Even if she ate her food cold after serving everyone first, she never complained. She managed to get her kids ready every day and drop them off at school, pick them up after, and make time for them to have extracurricular activities. My mom also
became part of the PTA. She was there for every bake sale, fundraiser, school dance, and family night. She called every company she could for sponsorships when we had contests and worked tirelessly to help or even
do our projects for us. She taught me how to write, spending hours on a page so I could learn. When she felt her parenting methods weren't right, she went to Mommy-And-Me classes to learn what she needed to improve on. My mom also finished college, earning her degree 20 years after she began. She managed to give her kids an equal amount of attention and showed no favoritism. Many people in her situation would've given up. She had no support system, no one to vent her frustrations to, no one to give her the love she gave to her kids, and no one to show her what her sacrifice truly meant. Because of her, my oldest sister is attending UCLA, my older sister is entering the Marines to serve her country, and I am graduating #6 in my senior class and attending university to better our planet.
Leadership doesn't mean getting all the decisions right or the outcome you wanted, it just means taking charge and guiding everyone to what you think is best when no one else can or will. It means to make a path for your followers to walk on and who better a leader than a mother? I will always look up to my mom as she is the best leader and role model I know. My mom's sacrifice saved three lives, and I will forever be grateful to be one of them.