The Hard Work In Those of the Past by Shaila
Shailaof Washington 's entry into Varsity Tutor's July 2019 scholarship contest
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The Hard Work In Those of the Past by Shaila - July 2019 Scholarship Essay
While my parents have made and continue to make significant impacts in my life, I still look up to those whom I have never met and will never meet in this lifetime. These people continue to motivate me on my passion for education. The simplest answer to the question I can say is that I look up to the people of the past - my ancestors, Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, H.G. Wells, James Watson, and Gregor Mendel. Theoretically speaking, without their efforts, would we really be this far in technology, knowledge, and advancements today?
The most famous people in history are taught to students about their known achievements/discoveries. For example, Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution. While he was known from the popular image of a monkey transforming into a man and causing a controversial topic in education at the time, many people wouldn’t know of his excellent observing skills and hardships he faced in the science field. It was hard to get his findings believed and taught to young students. It was against society’s religion. Even though he had been studying to become a doctor, he was able to see how natural selection occurred and distinguished the mechanisms for it such as mutations and genetic variations that were best fit for the environment. Knowing that genetic variation was needed, ironically he still married his first cousin and was only able to have seven of the ten children to live. Mendel is also one whose work was often overlooked during his time. Throughout his life, Mendel wanted to share his knowledge about pea plants and a type of recessive and dominant trait going on between the plants - what we know as “genes” and “alleles” today. Back then, it was hard to believe a discovery like this. According to the Greeks before the invention of the microscope, it was theorized that inside the semen in males were tiny body parts and organs that when put into a female will cause a tiny human to construct and grow. Even when the invention of the microscope was used, they insisted that the tiny body parts were too tiny to see with the human eye. While this may sound silly in the modern world, it was the only answer and explanation that these scientists/philosophers/doctors could live and die with. But a lot of these researchers such as Mendel and Darwin were extremely ahead of their time with their theories. Sadly, they were either not able to prove it or didn’t have a thorough explanation to answer how they got to their theory - rendering it invalid. The frustration they must have encountered and their work for future researchers to build upon is what motivates me, which is the main reason why I look up to them. Imagine being on the right track to a discovery, but never being able to prove and use your findings to help others because the technology was not advanced! This is a passion for education - the need and motivation to keep on learning no matter what obstacles are in your way.
I have never met nor known my ancestors. However, I was lucky to learn about my grandparent’s parents and their own grandparents - 4 generations of my family who started it all. I heard how hard they worked throughout their lifetime. Technology that is easily accessible for us today was not invented. The things that we take for granted - air conditioners, heaters, refrigerators, transportation, communication - our ancestors never had those. They had to walk long distances and participate in hard labor work in order to get by. Even when coming home to their families at either a young age or adult age, they would continue working and contributing to the family life at home. Without our hard-working families in the past, we wouldn’t have some of the landmarks in D.C., railroads, or diversity that we are very fortunate to experience today. However, what I usually think about from their efforts is how I can work just as hard as them given my numerous opportunities and privileges in the modern world. Education was a luxury back then that I get to experience - especially being a minority female. Throughout history, women were not allowed to learn, and people of color were forbidden to even pick up a book in America. The opportunities I have today would be something beyond unbelievable for my ancestors. They are the ones who motivate me to do my best, complete my education, and immediately start my career to help others. Technology is continuously advancing, but so are other prevalent problems - such as pollution, diseases, wars. Without action, our beautiful and only known planet that can sustain life will slip out of our grasp. Working hard in school could make you discover a passion you never thought you would feel. One small bit of knowledge you learn can cause a domino effect to research more, keep learning in school, get to your career, and make a difference. This is a passion for education - acknowledging everything it took to get you there, and the many outcomes and impacts you can have by continuing to learn and teach others.