[1]My Helping Hand
As a little girl, my
friends and I would gather our dolls and Barbies everyday and go on an
adventure, sometimes as house mom in the park, or as a doctor in a hospital, or
as an astronaut in a space shuttle. I
enjoyed dreaming of the different people I would meet, places I would live, and
things I would do. Today as I embark on
my college career I realize that those days aren’t too far behind me as I still
dream about the future and who I want be.
What do I want to do with my
life? This question has always been in the back
of my mind, but I've always put it off for the future. I
know I want to play a role in the advancement of humanity and leave a legacy my
children and grandchildren can be proud of.
Regardless
of whether we live a life of deceit and malevolence or a life of integrity and
honor, we will all one day pass out of this world. The awards
and achievements become trivial and unmemorable and eventually will
disappear. After we pass away, the
only thing that will be left is our legacy, what others will remember of us and
carry with them. Our time here on earth is finite, and that is what makes human
life so valuable. There is never the opportunity to return to a
different period and change a decision of the past. I realize the decisions I make at this time
will impact the rest of my life and hopefully the lives of many others since
“now every event has a meaning.”[2] Each person must play their unique role in
the grand scheme of things to continue the advancement of humanity. What do I want to be remembered for? How do I want to touch others lives? What is my purpose here? Thus far, I have realized my passion in life
is to help others and I am positive my future holds a career that will enable
me to make a difference in the lives of many.
I've
always been an avid learner, continually exploring the world at home and
abroad. In the future, I hope to apply these interests as well as my passion
for helping others to ultimately improve our world.
I've always had an
appetite for knowledge. Throughout my education thus far I have always
chosen the more challenging academic path as my standard of excellence never
remains static. Even if I absolutely
abhor a certain class, I feel there is value in simply experiencing the process
of learning something new because “if there is
no struggle, there is no progress.”[3] I attended an extremely competitive high
school where I was constantly challenged to greater heights to maintain a
standard of excellence. The Plan II Honors program is ideal for me since it
allows the exploration of a multitude of areas to expand my horizons of the
world. I believe there is something
really great and valuable in simply learning, as “knowledge is power.”[4] It is “an inward endowment” that can never be
stolen or fabricated and with it anything can be accomplished.[5] The greatest benefit of acquiring knowledge
is being able to share that knowledge with others and finding a way to apply it
to dire problems in the world. My love
for learning becomes the means by which I can help others.
During my high school career, I
spent a majority of my time preparing for debate tournaments and in the process
developed a strong work ethic and greater awareness of critical issues in our
world. In the hours I spent researching
topics to write various cases, I developed an interest in leisurely reading
about different issues from international relations to philosophical
discussions of power. In pursuing my obsession
with learning, I also realized how I could spread my knowledge to increase
awareness and responsiveness about important issues. 
In
particular, my junior year I spent a great deal of time researching the crises
in
[6][7]Although I am interested
in a variety of subjects and issues, the study of the human body has always
been of particular interest to me. From the days of Mrs. Frizzle’s lessons on
the Magic School Bus, the way our body functions has completely fascinated me. As a child rather than spending hours
watching mindless cartoons, I loved to watch the Magic School Bus to learn
about the functions of the human body in an exciting and entertaining way. My book collection from a young age has
contained many science books that allowed me learn the intricate and
fascinating details of the topics I’d seen in the show. 
There is endless room for exploration and
application of this knowledge to so many aspects of our lives. In discovering the intricate complexities our
bodies, I can’t help but feel slightly relieved that at least my daily worries
don’t include controlling and supervising all the functions happening inside of
me. There seems to always be a purpose in
exploring a certain area of biology, whether genetics or botany, which can lead
to improvements in our lives. I wish
to use my knowledge in biology “not to predict the future, but to create it.”[8] Although
I am undecided as to how I specifically want to use my knowledge of biology,
whether I attend 
[9]night or how they will be able to feed their family
of seven. Unlike my Indian relatives who
are somewhat accustomed to the severe poverty, I can’t help but feeling deep
pity and sorrow for the five-year old child who is standing in the intense heat
begging for a few rupees in exchange for his hand-made clay pot. These instances motivate and inspire me to
study hard so I can one day have the ability to better their lives. I know that whatever it is I do in life, I
want to be able to help those who can’t help themselves.
The way my experiences in India has opened my eyes
to the infinite opportunities to help others in need, inspires me to experience
other cultures to gain a better understanding of the different types of
problems that must be addressed in the world.
Learning about a certain culture enables one to show compassion towards
those that might not be as fortunate and open their heart up to a complete
stranger. Over the course of my college
career, I hope to be able to experience a variety of cultures through my
classes, the people I meet, and the places I visit. I would especially like to become immersed in
a different culture to broaden my outlook of the world. Specifically to apply my passion for biology
to my goal of helping others, I would love to volunteer my time in hospitals or
clinics that lack the capabilities to tend to all the people that need medical
attention.
Another area of my life that has been significantly
influenced my passion for helping others is my involvement in community
service. I enjoyed volunteering my time to serve
others, whether the task was caring for homeless dogs or raising money to buy
clothes food for needy families. Upon arriving at UT Austin, I promptly joined Texas
Lonestars, a service organization created for girls to become involved in the
college and
There is no point living a great life of
accomplishment and success if one can’t utilize these to benefit society. Rather than counting the number of awards and
honors we receive throughout our life time, we should count the number of lives
we touch since "to do more for the world
than the world does for you” is the real measure of success.[10]
In pursuing my passion for helping others I
hope to live a full life bursting with many meaningful successes.
Word
count with quotes: 1672
Word count without quotes:1652
