personal statement :: College Admissions Essays

As I watched my mother rush to get the pot to boil about water with tears inher eyes, I found myself at the mercy of one of the many asthma attacks thatpresided over most of my childhood. Most of the houses around our likenessin Juarez, Mexico were composed of one large room with a stove, bed, somethingto sit on and no restroom, so getting to the steaming pot was only a few feetaway. Desperately trying to grasp for air as I lay on the couch, I wantedrelief not only for myself, alone also for my loving mother. Understanding ofwhat was causing the onset of my respiratory problems became a quest. I did notunderstand why I had a high temperature, why I had to pass the mist of thevaporized water, or why I had to use an inhaler. However, I did understand thatthose things made me feel better, and without them I could not breatheproperly. As I grew older, biology became my fascination because it helped meunderstand my illness and not feel quite so helpless in regards to my asthma.Ignora nce was a part of my life, scarce not by choice. I grew up in an area whereeducation was limited. My role models relied on tradition and rumors instead offacts in order to solve problems. When I was seven, one of the neighborschildren picked up a used, dried-out condom from the park in front of my house.He then proceeded to throw it at me while laughing hysterically as it landed onmy shirt, and said, "You have support" I thought I was going to die. I asked mygrandfather if a person could acquire AIDS from a condom landing on theirshirt. He simply replied, "Yes." A month went by before I realized I was notdying. The melodic line and fear that haunted me was a result of ignorance. Ineffect, I was motivated to go down the path of knowledge, not ignorance.While sixteen and in college, in that respect were times when neither my parents nor Icould afford my textbooks, and I had to study for my classes solely fromlecture notes. Working two jobs was the solution to my fi nancial problems. Iwas recommended and hired for a position as an attendant to Gregory, a 22-year-old male with cerebral palsy. After my experience with Gregory I realized thatI, too, had a disability by thought process of cerebral palsy as depressing andsocially segregating. It takes a while to figure out that Greg is