I Shall Overcome :: College Admissions Essays

My teacher, my favorite teacher, my source of inspiration and stability, tells me I may wake up tomorrow and be happy. Perhaps so - I've been wondering lately if I'm manic-depressive, and such a drastic shift in temperament would fit the pattern. Â   But today I drift upon an endless, empty sea of despair. Like Blanche Dubois, in A Streetcar Named Desire, I have no cleft in the rock of the world. Â   My family never says I can succeed - my own mother tells me that I never know where I'll end up. When I look around me at home, where I live, all I see is people who have given up. From the group of old men who get drunk every night, to my friend who has the ability, but not the drive, to do her schoolwork so she can attend college, all I see around me is people who have lost the will, the ambition, to do something more than merely exist. Â   Even at school, I see it. Friends who, for no other reason but laziness, choose a community college instead of a four-year university. Teachers satisfied with saving only certain students from the tyranny of other teachers and administration. Â   And within myself. Even as I sit here, lamenting my own anguish, the class swarms busily around me, engaged in a debate I should be involved in, too. Â   I've temporarily conceded to the weakness I despise in others. But I have also realized that being and doing all the things I expect of myself does not guarantee my happiness.

Extremely Disturbing Accident Essay

There was an extremely disturbing accident a couple of years ago. I will never be able to forget that scene which made Daniel lost his words and made him stay in the darkness for such a long time. Daniel was a wonderful man who cared about his family more than anything else. He had a lovely wife who was called Mary and between them, he had the most adorable daughter. I have never seen such a caring and loving family who knows to take care about their neighbors as well. They were especially kind to me who was living next door, old and alone. They knew I had no relatives so they often invited me at dinner and on the special occasions such as Christmas and Birthdays. They regarded me as a member of the family. We used to sing every night and, oh, I remember, the family was very fond of reciting poems. Therefore, we had this party in which all had to recite favorite poems very often. Daniel used to write the poems by himself and the poems were always about love in the family and each time, we were touched and impressed by high qualities of them. However, the happiness did not last long. On Daniel’s 40th Birthday, Mary and her daughter, Kate, and I planed to surprise him by taking a birthday cake and a lot of nice food to share with his friends to where Daniel was working. In spite of the fact that Daniel was very angry when we once visited him long time ago, he said the place is too dangerous, we were taking food to where Daniel was working. Having thought back about what he said, he was right; He did a lot of physical works for building up the structures and the place where he worked was very dangerous indeed. Kate was singing, excited with joys, she couldn’t wait to see her dad’s smile at her little- hand made birthday card. She was running down the hill and at the same time, I just realized that she is not safe any longer at that distance. Mary and I were running after her, shouting to stop, but it was too late. By accident, one of the workers dropped a huge-hard wooden material from high floor of the building, and Mary was hit by it so hard that even before the ambulance came to help her, she was already gone to the other world. Daniel thought her death was his fault and he quit the job. He acted like an insane person and people started to avoid him, even his wife gave up trying to turn him back to normal. At last, they got divorced in few months. I didn’t see Daniel for a few months around his house, and then I found him in his garden. I asked him whether he feels better and he always nodded at my questions. I noticed he became the person I used to know, the person before faced his daughter’s death, but I knew something was wrong. He was quiet, too quiet. His eyes were always full of sorrow and made my heart broke. They reminded me of Mary who was gone long ago. I did my best to make him to speak again, not out of pity, but I felt I am the one relative left to take care of him. He hardly got out from his room; it was so hard to make him to get along with people, to get socialized again. I thought it would be impossible to make him speak again unless Mary comes back to him. One day, I have succeeded to take him to the poetry club where he used to love to go and listen to the poems. I thought this rally was the last chance I have and played to God desperately. That, that was a miracle; he was listening the poems quietly and suddenly, he stood up. After a while he started to mumble something and soon he made a perfect sound. I was frozen, alert. The people around him listened to him. He found the music of speech which was concealed in this heart deeply for a long time. ‘When he is done, before the applause, we observed the flower’s silence. A thrush sings and the daffodils are flame†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢

Comparing Buddhism and Hinduism Essay - 644 Words

Comparing Buddhism and Hinduism As mentioned at the first meeting of our seminar, I originally took this class to fulfill a requirement set forth by the Hutchins School. However upon a little investigation and contemplation of my own, I have begun to think that I might find myself truly enjoying this class. Never having been much of a religious person, I suppose Ive shied away from the ideas of organized religion. Though this may always be the case for me, I have recently developed a craving to learn why so many people, perhaps the majority, flock to one categorization or another. I feel that I have a little bit of an upper hand in these investigations of religion; this is due to the fact that I do not have any current†¦show more content†¦Perhaps it was because of this shock that these images made such an impact. It was at this time that the young Buddha got the idea that life was a transient thing. Something that was ever changing and cyclical. I think that in our own way we all turn away from things we do not wish to see. Maybe it is this reaction by default that helps us get through the day by days. For some, it is enough to ignore these misfortunes for others such as Buddha, finding personal guidance in his own life helps him recognize these upsets. For this, he made personal sacrifice in the Six years that followed, during which his energies were directed to this end. He began his teachings, seeking the guidance of others when he left for enlightenment in the forest. What he found there was others seeking the truth. It was then that the realization came that he needed to find his inner peace on his own. It was at this time that the notion of a middle way became apparent to the young Buddha. Was his body holding him back? He would crush its interference. Having tried both extremes; living a material life and indulging himself as a young ruler, and then to shift to the extreme opposite by starving himself for devotion. Finding this Middle Way was only possible for Buddha after having tried both existences. I am appalled and envious of the discipline that Buddha found within himself. After learning about the teachings of Buddha I am again reassured as toShow MoreRelatedEssay on Comparing Hinduism and Buddhism478 Words   |  2 PagesComparing Hinduism and Buddhism While Hinduism and Buddhism come from the same cultural backgrounds, they are extremely diverse in their beliefs on afterlife, deity, and rituals. Both religions believe in reincarnation, but it is where an individual goes after he or she gets off the endless cycle that differs. These religions also part when it comes to whom they do or do not worship. Every religion comes with rituals and Hinduism and Buddhism are no exceptions. Hindu followers have no doubt theyRead MoreEssay on Comparing Hinduism and Buddhism1932 Words   |  8 PagesComparing Hinduism and Buddhism Hinduism and Buddhism have different similarities and are in some ways connected to each other. Some of the practices of the two religions are similar in various ways and there are several examples to show this. Hinduism first started in India around 1500 BC. The word Hindu comes from the Sanskrit word sindhu, or river. The Hindu community define themselves as those who believe in the Vedas, or also those who follow the way, or dharma, of the fourRead MoreComparing The Religions Of Hinduism And Buddhism Essay1459 Words   |  6 PagesExam II #2. Compare and contrast the religions of Hinduism and Buddhism. What were the essential differences between the two? What hope did they give to the common people of India ? Both Hinduism and Buddhism are prominent religions in the ancient and modern world. 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