It's Time To Grow Up by Rachel

It's Time To Grow Up by Rachel - September 2014 Scholarship Essay

Spring break of 2014, I was touring the Honors College at the University of Arizona. After touring, my mother and I went looking in some shops nearby campus. On a plain white canvas, “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are – E.E. Cummings” was painted in colorful letters. I’d heard this quote before, but it really struck me again as I was touring a college to determine my future. I believe it takes courage to be successful in life but especially in college when so much of what we are doing is “unknown”.

Growing up, I’ve always known that I want to be a doctor. The type of doctor I want to be has changed frequently over the last 10 years, but as of right now I’m thinking Pediatric Surgeon. I’m scared to pursue such a competitive career because I know how much confidence I’ll need to continue. I try to ignore the fear because I know that I can help with the right training, and I know my life matters enough to make a difference in someone else’s life.

The quote, “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are” is true beyond words. I know how much courage it will take for me to become a Pediatric Surgeon, and I’m nervous thinking of the path that lies ahead of me. When I think of all of the decisions that I’ll make on the way to becoming a doctor, I worry that I’ll lose who I am and change completely. But then I remember this quote, and I get butterflies in my stomach thinking of who I’ll turn out to be, even though the thought of my future scares the hell out of me.

This message can last throughout one’s entire life, and it leaves a permanent idea: as long as we’re courageous, we’ll always keep becoming who we are. We will choose the classes that are in line with our goals and not our fears. People who whole-heartedly believe this will keep growing until the day they die.

It reminds me that I’ll never stop growing and becoming who I am, no matter what point I’m at in my education. Throughout my entire life, I’ve been nervous that things won’t turn out the way I plan. This quotes calms me and tells me that I have no reason to be nervous, because all I need is the courage to trust life and know that everything will be okay. I can trust that with courage I will choose when I need to be perseverant and move forward, when I will need to have courage to realize I need to change a behavior in order to get back on track. It takes courage to realize that college is one of the fastest growing times of our life if we truly embrace all it has to offer.

It gives me comfort knowing that all I need is courage to become what I want. I’m still trying to figure out who I am right now, and it’s consoling to know that I may never know exactly who I am. Because as long as I keep learning and growing as a person, I’ll keep evolving who I am and have courage to know I can be successful wherever I lead myself. There is another phrase about people being afraid of success, well then courage would certainly solve that problem now wouldn’t it?

As a seventeen year old in high school, I probably don’t know who I really am yet, but I’m so excited to find out.