Ta-da essays!...and these arent even all of them, only a smidgin..
Common app.- describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.
I consider my self an artist and hold an appreciation for art more than the average person, so when you ask me to talk about a work of art that has influenced me, I am aghast at the multitude of options that lay before me to talk about. But there is only one real option for me, a work of art in more ways than one, the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air. The Bel Air, I believe, is the pinnacle of car design. It holds all that is good and perfect in the era of the 1950s in the mere curve of its tail fins. This car, other than being the beautiful work of art that it is, has influenced me more than other "classic" cars, by being my first car. Yes, you heard it; this classic beauty was mine to drive, to wash, to appreciate, and to repair when broken. Though I am going to have to sell it soon for a more "reliable, sensible" car for college, this car has taught me so many lessons up to this point and has given me so many unique experiences along the way I feel that though the happenings may have been rocky and trying, at times, I would not give it up for the world.
My Dad, back in August of 2000, gave me the go ahead that if I could find a car for under 2000 dollars we would think about getting it. That was a very big if, and little did he know that I would select a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air for sale 700 miles away in Virginia Beach as "the" car. But the price was right, and it was a deal, so off we went and 11 hours later I met the car that would soon become one of the favorite hobbies of me and my dad. This car is my pride and joy. However my "pride and joy," before it could travel to school, would have to undergo a complete rewiring, a reworking of the radiator, new seatbelts, a patch in the gas tank, new tires, a new speedometer and countless other worries. Little did I know that this car would turn the ultimate "girly girl" into a greasy car mechanic. My dad and I have bonded over this car. We work on it on the weekends, me learning the ins and outs of an engine, and my Dad learning just how hopeless it is trying to convince a girl that turquoise seatbelts will match a light blue interior. My car has given me new freedom-freedom to make late night runs for my mom to the grocery store, freedom to pick up my little sister from girl scouts, and freedom to understand the burden of paying for gas (especially for a car that gets 11 miles to the gallon). Nevertheless, I love this car. With the upkeep that comes with owning a 46-year-old car, I have learned responsibility, infinite patience, and the true meaning of the age-old saying, "if at first you don't succeed try, try again," (and if that doesn't work call a garage).
Sewanee- if there were one picture left on your last roll of film, what would you photograph and why?
As I often find, the last picture on your roll of film never turns out, so usually I take a picture of the ceiling, or my shoes last, but for the sake of this essay, the picture I would take for my last one would have to be of something or someplace meaningful. Although my first instinct would be to take pictures of my friends, I already have albums full of those, and I don't need a picture to remind me of the people I love the most, those pictures are already stored in my heart. Photographs are best when they are of something interesting, and touching. The best ones bring a smile to your face and instantly send you back to the moment. For my last photo I would take a picture of graduation day and the mortarboards soaring up into the air. That one simple image, though it has yet to happen, would bring so many emotions to me. With that one motion, all the years of familiarity in high school are gone, friends are lost, or kept, and everyone moves into the unknown future. Memories of late night study sessions, wacky school projects, cafeteria food fights, and early morning tests flash by. That one small 4 by 6 colored piece of paper causes you to instantly reminisce over those many experiences in high school, some triumphant, some regrettable, some making you just shake your head at how young you were, and now, now what? For me, one glance at that picture in the parking lot outside the photo store causes everything from the apprehensive feeling in the pit of my stomach about the first day of school four years ago, to the proud feeling of accomplishment when I get to walk across the stage knowing that four years of toil and stress have culminated into the piece of paper I hold in my hand. This picture holds in it so many different things for different people, it maybe be a happy remembrance or perhaps a sad one, but for me my high school years will always be fond ones. As you place the photo back in the stack with the others so many memories quickly flash by, and so many more memories are going to be made in the future that awaits after that one moment of happy abandon when everyone throws their caps into the air.
Common app.-evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.
At the age of thirteen I made a decision that undoubtedly changed the rest of my life. I arrived at a crossroads, I had to make the choice of whether to stay at my zoned middle school, with my friends I'd known since kindergarten and an easy curriculum, or venture off into the unknown, going to an academic magnet school across town, knowing no one, and knowing nothing of the academic rigors to come. I chose the harder path, and to this day I am so very glad that I chose to go to Martin Luther King. The school and the things I have experienced while there have changed me as a person in innumerable ways.
Though the first few weeks were frightening, I survived, and grew to love it .At M.L. King I made friends from all backgrounds and walks of life. I learned about new cultures, different lifestyles, and I learned to be very open minded, not judging a person by their looks but by how they actually are. With the small student population I feel that I came to know every single classmate personally, and learned things from each of them. At MLK the students have so much freedom, diversity, and are more unique than at any other high school. I've made friends from all over Nashville, going to the most interesting places I would never have seen if I had not ventured out of my neighborhood and into the world. I've acquired new experiences, and a wider view of life from these friends, and their love and support will help me later on in my life.
My education while at MLK has been exceptional. I have always been challenged, and there is no such thing as an "easy" course. I had to take courses that I would not have chosen otherwise and because of this I found I actually enjoyed biology, and learned that geometry might actually be interesting. My teachers were all very dedicated, and strove to teach me that mediocre work would not be accepted, and I should always do my best.
I never knew that the one choice I made in sixth grade would have such a vast impact upon the person I am today. My education at Martin Luther King has proved invaluable to me; not only from a learning standpoint but also from the people I met there, and the things they taught me along the way. I have learned to cope with new pressures, stretch my brain farther than ever thought possible and learn life lessons that I can take with me once my days at MLK are over and hopefully impart them to others in the future.
(This one I wrote and never used, since I got off topic, and the end result, while memorable, was totally un-usable...enjoy)
Nashville has so many great places; the greatest though is Centennial Park. As a student at MLK, which is just a mile away, I have found that most of my fond memories, and experiences reside at that park. Although its main attraction is the Parthenon, where the giant Athena always amazes me, the park has so many other great places. On any given day you can find MLK students, playing ultimate Frisbee on the big lawn, or waiting at the duck pond to go across the street for ice-skating, and meanwhile chasing the frazzled ducks around. I've been to birthday parties at the park with a homeless man as a guest, been drive-by water ballooned, and ended my first date at the art museum there. At the park I've practiced lines of Julius Caesar in the Amphitheater, getting a small taste of Shakespeare, standing on that sunny stage on a fall afternoon, dressed in a toga. I've climbed trees to get leaves for biology class, and climbed monuments to get rubbings for history class. My friends took me for spins in their first cars at the park, and proudly showed off their new drivers licenses. For prom, we met in the Sunken Gardens there and took pictures, feeling truly grown up for the first time, in fancy dresses, awaiting a night of magical expectations. At the park I've met new people, made life long friendships, and learned lessons about myself, and others. Whenever I go to the park it seems like my inner child runs free, at least until I tire of feeding ducks, and settle into a swing for some quiet thinking.
