Passion Fuels Success by Nora

Passion Fuels Success by Nora - June 2021 Scholarship Essay

A truly influential teacher evokes a formerly hidden passion and fuels one’s progress as a person. Miss L. lit that fire in my heart, the fire that fuels my academic and social career to this day and for days to come. At my tiny, Christian elementary school, strong was the bond between student and teacher. Wide-eyed and inquisitive, I looked to Miss L. as my role model. The insight and education she would provide to me would begin a snowball effect of greatness that would chart the course of my life.
Writing is my passion. As a child of 7 or 8, I hadn’t figured that out yet. What I had figured out was how much I enjoyed the spelling homework Miss L. assigned. For a total of 100 “points” in the school week, I could choose from a multitude of activities involving my spelling list: copying words in different colors or creating crosswords and word searches. The activities that most piqued my interest, I learned, were more complex but even more entertaining. Two nights a week, I would survey my list of required words then craft a short story or advertisement, impressing and entertaining not only my friends but Miss L. She was the first person to accolade and encourage this side of my creativity. Comments of “Great Job!” and “Fantastic, Nora!” made me keep writing. I found joy in this expression, joy that persisted through these assignments and further.
Though I was no longer under Miss L.’s teaching authority in high school, what she had taught me and allowed me to express created a familiarity and comfort in writing. I excelled in my writing endeavors, in English class assignments and creative writing alike. As part of Tomorrow’s Leaders Today’s selective leadership program, my prowess for composition and creative writing shone through as I drafted group presentations, created fun advertisements like in elementary school, and gave my graduation speech. Dual-enrolled in a local university through my high school program, I developed my love of writing in the collegiate setting and got a taste of higher education. In the current chapter of my life, the education and encouragement that Miss L. provided are laying the base work for me to become a confident writer.
In the next chapter of my life, I strive to continue my passion for writing. I hope to study English and journalism in college. I hope to go into the field of journalism where I can put my skills to use and provide for my community, wherever it may be. I dream of traveling the world and making an impact. I look forward to the day when my friends and acquaintances can look at a newspaper or journal or novel and say with a smile, “Nora Betts. I know her.” In return, I can thank Miss L. for introducing me to my passion and allowing me to take this path of success.