Ponds and Public Health by Karis

Ponds and Public Health by Karis - December 2023 Scholarship Essay

One day, a man was walking through a park when he noticed a child drowning in a pond. This is the setup of a thought experiment my father once told me. As a philosophy professor, he liked to challenge the ways we thought to help us grow. In this example, the man sees a child drowning in a pond, and he must decide whether he should save the child and ruin his expensive shoes or walk away and keep his shoes at the expense of the child’s life. Even as young children it seemed obvious to my siblings and me that saving the child was the right choice, the only choice. A human life is infinitely more valuable than any pair of shoes. However, the lesson from the thought experiment didn’t end there. If the man should accept the cost of ruining his shoes to save a life, shouldn’t people also donate more money to charities? In the man’s case, he is directly saving a life, something that almost everyone will agree is the right choice. By donating more money to charities, people can still help others, and maybe even save their lives, in an indirect way. Helping indirectly isn’t always people’s first thought, it can be hard to imagine the change that is being done without being able to see progress. However, not seeing progress doesn’t mean it’s not there and in reality, it can make a significant difference in the lives of others.
As the oldest of five, I was focused on trying to help my parents and my siblings from an early age. Because of this, this thought experiment was life-changing to my younger self. It made me realize that while an action might not mean much to me, it could mean the world to someone else. Doing something as simple as donating a little extra money or volunteering for different projects might not cost me too much, but it could help another person more than I could even imagine. This realization greatly changed my outlook on the world. As a young girl I had always felt like there was nothing I could do to help or make a real difference in the world, but this thought experiment helped change my perspective and made me realize every bit of help counts.
From an early age, I always wanted to find a way to make a difference and to use my life to help others. As I prepare for college, I am more focused on those opportunities. I want to fulfill those dreams by pursuing a career in health services. Through this I would not only be able to help people in small ways, but I would also be able to learn and help in big ways as well. Each day I could assist others through helping them heal, while still being able to support other causes and provide assistance by using my stable career to help people around the world. make more donations, allowing me to help people as much as I can with my time and abilities. By doing everything I can in an attempt to help, I can ensure that I am doing the most I can to assist others, allowing me to feel successful through my career and through knowing that the work I have done has made a difference.
People do not always realize how big of an impact they can have on others. Rather than just focusing on my shoes like the man, I aspire to not only help the child, but others as well, even if it means I am not as well off as I could be. In the end, I care less about the material things in life and more about the experiences and things I can do. Using my money and experience would ensure that this goal would become a reality.