Be Confident and Change by Kimberly

Be Confident and Change by Kimberly - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

I will be perfectly honest. I have never really been one of those exceptionally popular students. You know the ones that seem to know practically everything and everyone inhabiting the school grounds: “Nice touchdown at the football game yesterday, Charlie!” or “I like how you reorganized your classroom, Mr. Robins.” No, I was completely the opposite, a regular wallflower. I was pathetic, dripping with social anxiety, and as a result I did not have many friends or even a likable personality. However, there was one teacher who coaxed me, encouraged me, and taught me the most important lesson any teacher could ever teach me: how to be confident and change myself into the person I wanted to become.
At the beginning of high school, I was a complete mess: a skinny, lanky bookworm, short and pale like someone recovering from anemia (a condition I actually was recovering from), with unappealing, ragged hair that cascaded over my eyes plagued with near-sightedness, aided with prescription glasses. I had zero confidence, and every time I tried to talk, it sounded like a muffled gurgle at best. I couldn’t even look people in the eyes, and I constantly kept my eyes glued to the ground. Did I also mention how clumsy I was? Okay, to be a bit fair, I am still clumsy to this day, but back then, I would fall over my own feet even if I was cautious.
In my own eyes, I failed as a human being. I had no talents, no physical ability, and worst of all I was afraid of other people. I was terrified that who I was, a loser who only studied, would never make any worthwhile friends. However, there was one teacher who did help me. He was my history teacher, my Mock Trial coach, my A.V.I.D. teacher, and my friend. He told me that I was special, and within me, was the power to change myself into the person I wanted to be. To a boring person like me with no personality, these words meant a lot. I felt as though I could do it. Within my own hands was the power to change myself.
It was not a change that happened immediately overnight like a magic potion I could drink and instantly cure my lack of confidence. With his words still echoing in my head, I began by joining clubs that forced me into awkward social situations, and I even became the treasurer for the French Club, which turned out to be really fun. I earned respect because I was always willing to help others. I even joined the Mock Trial Club that my teacher coached where my job became to testify in an imaginary court case against another team. I gave myself things to love like drawing, cooking, and volunteering at an after-school program for elementary schoolers. It took a lot of work, and there were times I did doubt myself, but slowly, I was able to change myself bit by bit, and by the end of high school, I was able to talk to anyone like a normal person. I had made a lot of friends that liked me for just being myself. I am so proud of the new person I have become!
Sometimes, I do think back to those days when I was so shy and so silent, and I wonder how if it weren’t for my teacher’s lesson, I would still be the same miserable human being I once was. I really owe him a lot. I was able to change all thanks to my teacher and the most important lesson he taught me, and for that I will always be grateful.