Most Influential Book and Why by Terrence

Most Influential Book and Why by Terrence - May 2017 Scholarship Essay

Through high school, I’ve read many books. Some changed my outlook on life tremendously. Some of those books include, “The boy In the Striped Pajamas”, “The 7 habits of Highly Effective Teens”, and many more. However, one stood out to the most. Without a doubt, this book has definitely motivated me to follow my dreams and to let know one knock me down. The title of this book is “Strength to Love” by Martin Luther King Jr.

In my opinion, Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the bravest men to ever walk this earth. Despite what others thought of him, he was determined to help us black people out no matter what it took as it mentions in the book. When we take a look at society today, we still struggle with racism tremendously. You see us blacks get profiled as thugs, gang bangers, and many other disgusting remarks. Although things are bad, we are still able to attend whatever college/school we want to, get a job as long as you meet the qualifications, and mainly develop good, strong relationships with whites despite the color of our skin. In the book he said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; Only light can do that. Hate can’t drive out hate; only love can do that.” In my opinion, this is the truth about the earth and relationships we have with one another. Hate cannot drive hate from your heart or the hearts of others. According to the quote, the only thing that can do that is love, which I totally agree with. When someone has hatred toward someone else, the solution isn’t to show hatred back and I think we see that too many times today. The solution is to show love and that might just convince them to love you back. That’s exactly what Martin Luther King did despite that fact that he was thrown in jail, threatened daily, and told he was going to be killed. That didn’t phase him at all. Like his quote said, love is the only to way overcome hatred. I know especially in the era it can be very difficult but it simply means that you consider the human bond to be greater than their hate. I can easily relate this to my life and will do my best to apply in many future situations that i’ll be in. I want to be a physical therapist and believe or not, I can see some people trying to drag me down because of the color of my skin. In many black communities, blacks are brainwashed to think that you can only be an athlete, rapper, or entertainer. I say no to that because one the chances are very slim and two it’s much easier to become something from getting an education. Now, i’m not saying that someone should just give up on their dreams of becoming a basketball player or football player. That’s not the case at all. I’m just saying that statistically you're more likely to make it in today’s world with an education. To add to that, once you make it pro on an athletic level, anything can happen. An injury could occur or maybe you're not even producing for you team the way your suppose to. With an education, once you receive that diploma, nobody can take that from you.

In conclusion, Martin Luther King Jr’s book, “Strength To Love” is the most influential book i've read. It’s truly amazing what he accomplished and how he handled each little situation thrown at him. As I mentioned, he went through a lot to get us where we're at today and has ultimately inspired other great black people such as the Obama’s. You know you’re special when there’s a holiday just for you, constantly talked about positively in this day and age, and respected from all races. I’m going to do best to stay focused as he did, and accomplish my goals and love others. I know that not everybody is going to like me but there’s do’s and don'ts to it. Never show hatred toward someone who already has hatred toward you. Nothing but love can only fulfil a hated, darkened heart. “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” Thank you for taking time to consider me for this scholarship and have a great day.