Check out the Arcade!!
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
In teaching me how to cross streets, my father uttered the following prophecy: “Always look both ways and be careful crossing the street. One hit from a moving vehicle and you’ll be dead or paralyzed for life.” I needed no further cajoling to heed his sage advice, for I, like any small child, was terrified of the massive cars, garbage trucks, buses, and other seemingly larger-than-life objects that frequented my street. Over a decade later, I decided to unintentionally put my father’s words to the test. I was participating in my daily pedestrian commute home from school on January 2, 2008, when I was struck by a Ford F-150 truck. As I awoke from a drug-induced slumber in the hospital the morning after my accident, I turned and found my dad sitting in a chair looking at me. The first words out of my mouth were “You were wrong dad; I'm not dead or paralyzed.” Although this may seem to be an extremely mean and sarcastic statement, he knew exactly what I meant, and his relief upon seeing that I was not paralyzed or dead overcame his offense at my proving him wrong. I was released from the hospital the next day, and although the concussion has changed my life, it has changed neither who I am nor my determination to succeed. Immediately following my return home I began emailing my teachers, letting them know I would be out of school for a while, and requesting my schoolwork. My parents and guidance counselor quickly put a stop to this, and I was forbidden to participate in any cognitive activity. Never in my life could I have predicted that missing a month of school and not having to take midterms would be torture for me. Solitaire was the most intense activity in which I could engage. My good friend Krista brought me Play-Doh and coloring books. I watched movies and slept half the day. Many a student would drool over this lifestyle, and yet I was infuriated. I tried to read books, but my brain couldn’t even put together sentences, let alone chapters. As time passed, my brain condition improved, and I slowly worked my way back into school. The school year was soon over; summer flew by, and I went back to school for my junior year, hoping to be fully recovered. Almost immediately into the year I found this was not to the case, and upon returning to the doctor I found that my brain was again not functioning at full capacity. I was once more given accommodations for school, and told to sleep more. My entire junior year was passed in a sort of stupor; my brain felt cloudy and I struggled immensely with concentration. Eventually the year ended, and the doctor recommended that I take the entire summer off, which would require my not doing any of the summer work required for AP and Honors courses. My public school was unable to accommodate this properly, so I switched to Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School for my senior year with one objective in mind: to sleep when I need to sleep, work when I am able to work, and let my brain heal as much as possible before heading off to college. Throughout this traumatic experience I have learned two things. Firstly, life without learning is terrible. I intend to be a lifetime learner, constantly exploring new topics and adding to the repository of my brain. Secondly, I learn better on my own. I never did as well as I should have in public school, because my style of learning did not fit the system. I refused to memorize things, specifically formulas in math and physics, without first learning why the formulas work or deriving them myself. I also intentionally took different approaches to problems and asked questions to further my knowledge, which not only tended to get me in trouble with teachers, but had the added benefit of exasperating the uninspired students around me. This year of home-schooling has allowed me to learn at my own pace and in my own manner, which has turned out to be very productive for me. Spending weekends at home reading encyclopedia articles may classify me as a loser or a geek, but I find that it’s far more productive and safer than drinking, drugs, or other activities that other teens find enjoyable. I have focused, and always will focus my life on breaking stereotypes and being productive, not popular. I wear my kilt and pocket protector with pride and revel in the stares of others mired in the conformity of this world. Through my experiences in the last two years, if I have learned anything, it is that not even a truck can stop me from being myself or alter my resolve to be successful.
Downloads