Assumption is Never the Answer by Kiera

Assumption is Never the Answer by Kiera - April 2016 Scholarship Essay

After frequent interrogation, Claude Julien intelligently responded with, "We could have controlled our own fate. Right now, all we can do is cross our fingers and hope for a miracle," to reporters after a mortifying 6-1 loss against the Ottawa Senators. Boston sports are not only well known for keeping the integrity of the game, but they are also notorious for being a “second half team”. I tried to keep that in mind as I sat in section 329 of the balcony, witnessing goal after goal after goal, each scored by a member of the Canadian team.
It was exhausting to patiently anticipate, glaring at the timer, counting down the seconds, minutes, or periods that it would take for the Bruins to make a marvelous comeback, or the possible least, to tie the game so Boston fans could experience an all-or-nothing, guts or glory, overtime match. For those who watched that nauseating, horrific Saturday game on April 9th, know that it did not magically occur like we had all enchantingly hoped.
I learned something at this game, which very well could have been the one-way ticket for the Bruins to make the playoffs to get the Stanley Cup once again. I am not here to advise fans to never go to a game at the TD Garden for the likely chance of having high hopes shattered like a china plate slamming against a tile kitchen floor. I am not going to do that for one simple reason: there is always a possibility of losing.
Everything in life is a 50/50 chance; either it happens or it does not. You are either born a female or a male. You either win or you lose. Either you aced the test or you did not perform as hot as you thought. Whatever it is, it either happens or it does not. Clearly, Tuuka Rask was not on his A-game, which forced assistant Gustavsson into starting net. Either Rask was going to play or he was not. Regardless, fate happened and they lost the game. They had the potential to override life’s 50/50 chances. If they played with passion, they may have scored a few more goals. If they played with ambition, they may have even tied the game. If they played with fire in their eyes, they most likely could be currently playing in the playoffs.
Almost one week after that horrific game, it still continues that nothing can be done to bring us back to Saturday. According to the outcome, I think every Bostonian who evacuated their bright yellow seats in the Garden at the conclusion of the third period, can agree on one thing together, which is that you can never assume.
What happens if you assume everything? What if you assume you do not have to work and money will just be given to you? What if you do not study for your Chemistry exam and assume you will do exceptionally well based on the scant notes in your notebook? What if you, as the captain of a professional team, play the worst game of your life, and assume the youngest on the team will lead everyone else to the playoffs? Most of the time, assumptions will never work in one’s favor; they just will not.
Whether you are Patrice Bergeron, a medical student at Stanford University, or a preparing for the SATs, being free of assumptions will be your key to success. If you do not initiate conversation will the boys in your class because you assume that someone will ask you to the senior prom, you will disappointed, dateless, and without a dress one week before prom. If you do not ask your Anatomy and Physiology professor how the heart functions in situations of high and low blood pressure because you assume that it will not be asked on the cumulative exam, you will be disappointed when you receive a C- because you did not know how to answer the essay question. If you fail to meet your internship supervisor’s expectations because you are just trying add experience onto your resume, chances are that he may not only disagree to write you a recommendation letter, but he may also give you an particularly poor review that you may not get offered a job in the future.
Patients are not brought into the operating room, by the surgical team, assuming they will wake up in a few hours in the recovery room; they are always advised of the risks of anesthesia and possible procedural outcomes. Despite the majority of high school juniors who intend on attending college, quite frankly, many of them will lose sight of their vision, and assume that a 1320 SAT score will get them into the business program at Bentley University. Though the Bruins have not been able to reach the goal of being NHL champions since 2011, they have been able to get to the playoffs and final rounds. They did not achieve this through pure talent and luck; they were able to triumph by playing to the best of their ability and having passion for the game. As I mentioned before, it does not matter who you are, as Lemony Snickett once said, “Assumptions are dangerous things to make, and like all dangerous things to make… if you make even the tiniest mistake you can find yourself in terrible trouble.”