2020 Drivers Ed Essay Contest

Driver’s
Essay:

I
have spent a significant amount of time volunteering throughout the 2
years of high school that I have completed. During my freshman year I
volunteered at my church before service started with my granddad,
Greater Christ Temple, located in Tacoma doing maintenance and at a
school event at Clover Park High School called Warrior 101 doing
stock. During my sophomore year I volunteered at the same church
doing maintenance and with a program that I’m in at my school
called Upward Bound at World Vision doing Inventory for back to
school. This gave me a great experience with helping within my
community because not everything is always about me or what I need,
it’s about what the community needs. Just by helping clean or helping
check the amount of supplies for kids before their first day of
school helps you learn the importance of giving back. In the future I
would like to go further with giving back by volunteering at an
animal shelter or a food bank.

I’ve
been struggling with personal financial hardships all throughout high
school. Including not having enough money for clothes or food at
times, my mom’s illness with migraines, and I’ve been stuck in a
living situation with my aunt and brother for 2 almost 3 years now. I
am forced to sleep in my parents’ room with my mom and the baby while
my dad sleeps downstairs. Sometimes this includes staying up late and
helping watch the baby and while I enjoy helping, it’s puts a
massive strain on my life. This would even lead me to be late for
school most times. Although these hardships interfere with my school
life, such as, staying after school to make up things to all of the
massive piles of homework. I am glad to say I have overcome these
hardships by dashing with my dad to earn additional cash so I can buy
my own clothes and things I need to be successful in my home and
school life. This has had a big impact on my life because I am always
tired and groggy along with exhaustion from the dashing, so most
days, I don’t have time to do my homework. Luckily, I was able to
find a happy medium which was to help work DoorDash with my dad on
Saturday so I had all week to get caught up on my assignments; taking
turns with my siblings while watching the baby. Unfortunately, I just
have to wait out my living situation.

Hardships
surrounding me are my lack of self-esteem, self-confidence, and time.
You can imagine as a young child in the third grade that I was never
one of the kids who was the smartest or quick witted or even
prettiest and for that I got made fun a lot. Being like everyone else
was consider normal and if you weren’t oh well. By this point any
bit of confidence and self-esteem I had was gone. Every day it was
tears and the cold, lonely, bitter nights even worse. I didn’t tell
anyone about my issues, not even my parents. Eventually middle school
rolled around and it got better. I ended up supporting myself with
people that loved and uplifted me. A lot of self-check ins and
reflecting on life, trying my hardest to be optimistic and positive
in every situation- finding the light in a dark alley way; now here I
am, a junior in high school, still not the top of my class but
learning to love myself and accept my accomplishments as they come.
I’m still growing today but I’m a whole lot better than I with my
mental standpoint than I was back then.

Doing
the right thing when no one is watching is a big part of character
for me. Along with telling the truth even if it’s hard and sticking
to your moral principles. This may look like picking up trash without
being told to off of the ground outside on a hot, sunny day so
nothing sticks to the cement. As a junior it’s expected of you to
set examples for lower class man by following the school rules, being
responsible, respectful, and resourceful. Set a good example and
others may follow in your footsteps. Outside of school I like to show
integrity by being a leader for the littler kids in my complex.
Telling them what’s right and what’s wrong.

In
college I would love to study medicine. The career paths that I’m
for sure looking to pursue are Pedestrian or Pediatric nurse. What
led me to these two decisions was the simple fact of helping little
kids; I love kids, I’m good with kids, and they love me. After
college I would expect to have a good life of no student loans, no
bank loans- just no debt! I would expect a happy, healthy, good life
with two kids and a husband with a dog, maybe two. We’d own a house
with a big yard so my kids can play in it. Later at night when all
the stars are shining I’d look out the kitchen window and say “Aww
look at my two happy, healthy, beautiful children. I made finally
it!”