My "I Am" Essay

“I Am” Essay

I am different. Different because of who I am. Different because of who I choose to be, and different because of where I come from. I am someone who has gone through many struggles.  I am someone who chose to live life with no regrets and to follow my parents’ guidance. I am someone who comes from a place that not many people have heard of. This is why I am different.

Growing up, I was always pushed into becoming greater than my people before me. I was pushed into my studies and education. At first I hated it, but now that I have grown into my studies I have learned that education is what I need. I am dedicated to my school work and to my education. I am dedicated to gain that higher knowledge that my people before me didn’t have.  

When I was younger, I didn’t understand that different could mean bad. That different was also being weird, or becoming an outcast. I always thought that everyone would accept me, but living in a non-perfect world and being different was being a freak. I remember when I moved to a new city, and I was the only child with colored skin. I was shunned, ridiculed, ignored, and even bullied. A few of my classmates started avoiding me, and telling other kids not to play with me because of my difference. No one understood why I was the way I was, but I looked past this, and moved on.

When I grew older, I realized why I was being treated this way. I was different. When I moved again, there were other colored-skinned kids like myself, but it wasn’t my skin tone that set me apart. It was my clothing. I didn’t dress like the other kids. What I wore was the traditional clothing of my people. I thought this was normal, but it wasn’t.

I took this opportunity to learn, and to observe things about myself that set me apart from all the other kids. I learned and taught myself how to blend in and not look and act so different, soon I became just like the other kids, and I wasn’t so different after all. Although there are some characteristics that I have that set me apart from others still, like the traditions I carry of my people.

My difference has helped me as well. By being different, I have learned to think outside the box. Where I come from, it isn’t likely that women get a higher education, but I have passed their level of knowledge, and I will continue doing so. My difference has motivated me to prove to others that I can go against the odds and graduate from college, and being different is also what pushed me into being that person who gets into college.

As much as I was dedicated to fit in, I am twice more dedicated towards my education. My motivation is from my people, and my dedication is towards my future knowledge. Being different could be bad, but being different could bring everyone, including me, to a better place. Being different is what caused me to choose the path of knowledge.