I am in control by Rafael

I am in control by Rafael - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

Growing up, my life was full of opportunities; I just didn’t take full advantage of them. This was until I had a chance to participate for community service as volunteer in puppet shows. There was an opportunity to become a puppeteer for my local church. I had decided to participate in these events as an extracurricular activity during my high school education. The activities were simple, show up, rehearse, and later play a show for certain groups of people. I had never thought how much acting with puppets could teach others so much until I was in front of the audience, acting as the puppeteer and entertaining them. Serving community service as a puppeteer helped me inspire to make a difference in my community.
Before rehearsing, we would always start with a prayer. The prayer helped our group stay in communion and focus throughout the practice. After daily practices we would start recording voices and later go and act for groups of people. I had never thought of the importance of acting as a puppeteer until realizing through several shows how happy the audience was to watch us perform. It was during one show we performed at a medical rehabilitation facility for disabled patients that I felt so joyful to see smiles in the faces of the audience. Where I saw an audience full of pains and struggles, they saw a message full of happiness. It was during this event that I had come to realize how the maneuvering of a puppet can act as deliverance of sorrows for others. I continued to volunteer as a puppeteer for my local church for several years. Every day we participated in a show, there were more smiling faces in the audiences.
This volunteering opportunity help me realize how I am in full control of my life. From the moment I slid my hand into the puppet to the very end of the show, I was in control of the way the puppet would look at the audience, would play the part, and would transmit the message through the performance. It was this opportunity that helped me realize the importance of acting in front of an audience. Volunteering as a puppeteer for my local church helped inspire me to take action in my life and transmit a message to the community so that they too can someday choose to make a difference in society. I am currently an architecture student, and is in the work that I do that I decide to take full control and transmit a message to my community.