"What is Green?" by Maria

"What is Green?" by Maria - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

“What is green?”

This was the most difficult question a teacher had ever asked me. I would be able to investigate the slope on any graph, or even quantify a protein if asked, but when my sophomore year english teacher asked me this question, I was dumbfounded. What is green? A Color one might say, but that wasn’t what Mr. Carosella was asking. My teacher, who appeared to me at this moment as more of a philosopher rather than an english teacher, told me that he did not want a literal answer. Struggling for the correct answer, I reluctantly admitted that I did not know. How was it that I was able to do so much, but I was not able to answer a question as simple as that? His patient demeanor calmed my frustrated emotions. He explained to me that we must not know the answer to everything. As simple as this may sound to some, it was profound to me.
As a high school student, my own personal demands for excellence were astonishing. As a perfectionist, I constantly sought after the right answer. When struck with a question that I did not know the answer to, I was proactive in later finding the answer. However, when asked a question as simple as explaining what a color was, I was left unable to do so. By coming to terms with the fact that I was unable to answer a question, left me in a state of serenity. Life is complex, and there will be questions that we will not be able to answer, which as Mr. Carosella taught me, is perfectly okay. I will never cease to strive for excellence, however, I have understood that some questions in life do not need answers.