Freedom is the key by Vincent

Freedom is the key by Vincent - March 2019 Scholarship Essay

If I were leading a tour to incoming freshmen one piece of advice I would give to them is to freely enjoy their life experience. At a young age, we are all taught to be “the best” to overthrow competition. To make plans quickly. To be perfect. To be feminine if you identify as a woman and be masculine if you identify as a man. There is never any room to just be and learn yourself, instead, we are taught to learn others.
High school is said to be this dreadful terrible place because of the drama, the fights, the hard work involved, and everything in between. But if you let it, it can be a life-changing experience. And a happy one at that. Happiness is always in our reach but no one tells us that. Instead of constantly plaguing yourself with doubt, self-hate, judgments, and fear try to find the good in every situation. Everything happens for a reason, even if you don’t believe the reason is a “good” one. If something hurts you be sad, but do not swim in your sadness; don’t drown in it. In the ocean of sadness when your eyes are closed the easiest thing to do is drown and give up. Instead, choose to feel your emotions and embrace yourself more. Stopping running from yourself. Be free in your emotions, all of them. If you get upset at a peer or a teacher feel your anger. How does it feel to be angry? Terrible. So let it go. Just breathe and tell yourself you will let it go. Words do manifest. Do not be so caught up in your challenges that you let the good times pass you by.
You're young, go and have fun. Be conscious of your decisions and take things slow. You don't need to be in love at 16, but if you are love hard. Don't let setbacks erase your power to love without conditions.
Lastly, you can fear everything and run or face everything and rise. Looking inside yourself to find the things you love about you and the things you love about life is not an easy task. But that’s why you have lungs and heart. Breathe in and keep going, it’s just the beginning.