"Just so you know, the essay to make you eligible for the one-year scholarship program to UPenn is to be given on Saturday."
It was Thursday afternoon.
So after panicking and wondering what to write, I finally got to a point on where to start and at 4:20 am I finished with it.
It looks a little something like this:
What makes Virpratap Vikram Singh eligible and qualified to being awarded this scholarship? Is it what I have come from, perhaps it is where I am now or maybe it's where I see myself going in the future?
Is that really why one should be awarded this scholarship? Everyone has gone through problems in the past, be it academic or be it personal. Everyone comes face to face with a choice, and most take the easy way out as they give up.
What makes me, me, is that I never give up.
As I write this, I am reminded of a story from the Greek Myth of Heracles; in the story, Heracles is confronted by a shadowy figure, Heracles a headstrong child of the gods questions the figures intentions. The figure replies by offering Heracles a choice, stretching out its arm, it indicates to two paths. The figure elaborates that these are the two paths that Heracles' life can take. The first was beautifully made to ensure the comfort of the traveller – the path of ease. The other one was covered with broken stones and jagged rocks, covered by dark and thorny trees. The figure labels this as the path of strife. On this path, Heracles would be faced with dangers, troubles and sorrow worse than his darkest nightmares; he would lose friends and be scorned by many. But at the end of it all, he would be remembered for his deeds and his name would be sung for eons for his bravery and noble virtues. Needless to say Heracles chose this path, the path of the hero. A path that few walk on and fewer still are remembered for.
I believe in this story and the meaning behind it, and that understanding is what I think makes me more eligible for this scholarship; the knowledge that even when it seems like the odds are against me, I will prevail where others have failed. Not because I am better than them, but because I won't give up and I can keep hoping that all will be well in the end.
I have faith in the concept of the Liberal Arts, the idea of improving the reasoning capability of a student's mind echoes the ancient teachings of the Greeks, which in this day and age are neglected. What seem to matter to people in India is the knowledge that is held by the bonds of a textbook, and the struggle that I faced in my life have been me trying to hold onto my identity of being a thinker and a doer, not just a listener.
Before I even became a student of Liberal Arts, I began to look at the world through critical eyes, after having spent my childhood out of India; my formative teenage years were heavily influenced by the sights and sounds that I saw in India. It was like the world had gone from black and white to full-blown colour, and it influenced my thinking processes to an even greater extent. I would not be half the person I am today if I had not lived abroad, it is a simple truth.
The prospect of being able to leave India with the knowledge that I have learned here so far, to be able to share and add to those thoughts is a beautiful prospect, as in today's day and age, what we need are new thoughts. The exposure that I would get at the University of Pennsylvania from their faculty and from the students there would certainly bring new takes on every facet of life.
The shadowy figure that appeared before Heracles comes not once, but many times in our lives. It comes and offers us a choice. I long ago decided that I would not take the path of ease, but that I would rather face the toils that life had to offer. This opportunity to go to the University of Pennsylvania is a big decision, one that would have an impact on my life in every way. That is why I consider it a challenge, because, I would be challenged to make sure that every second counts.
So what do you think? I thought it was quite an interesting insight into myself. Maybe I won't get the scholarship, but I do like how this essay came out in the end...
Now to start working on the remaining 4 assignments which are due later this week.
