Topic #4: What experience has changed me the most in life?
Dear Princeton University,
I know most people will write about a class they took in high school or some type of volunteer work they did that shaped their life. My essay has nothing to do with what I learned in a classroom.
When I was ten years old, I was given the opportunity of a lifetime. I was going on a camping trip for one week to Palau. While that sounds like a life changing experience, that will not be what I am writing about today.
The day of the trip, we were all very excited. There were ten students and one pilot. Everything was going great, until we hit a storm. The pilot tried his best, but things were out of control, and we crashed on a deserted island in the middle of the South Pacific.
After we crashed, three students and the pilot left to explore the island. The seven of us stayed behind hoping for a quick rescue. Everyone just assumed that the other plane of adults would grow concerned when we didn't arrive at the airport, but no one knew just how long it would take for rescue to come.
For awhile, things were really difficult. Because the trip was only supposed to be a week, we didn't have much packaged food, and we had a limited water supply. Problems arose one after another. We needed food, water, fire, shelter, and most importantly, we needed a leader.
Slowly, things started to get better. We elected a leader, and we found a water supply. Once we searched the island, we discovered food, and we started to build a shelter, but just because things were getting better didn't mean things were easy.
We faced monsoons, sickness, and at one point or another, we all almost died. While this was the scariest time of my life, it was also the most life changing. We were all pushed to our limits, and we learned from one another.
Survival was key, and without each person, chances of survival greatly decreased. We all had jobs, and we all relied on one another. On the island, we became a family, and we always knew that no matter what happened, we would have the support of the group.
I also learned many new things on the island. I learned how to rewire the plane and attach it to an Ipod in order to create a sound system. I knew where to build camp so we would not need to worry about the tide, and I designed the shelter that protected us from the storms. I also fixed the plane's radio, but it was destroyed again in a storm.
While I played an important role on the island, everyone else did as well. After a month on the island, we were finally rescued. We had endured through the difficult times, and we survived this adventure.
Through it all, I learned that I was stronger than I though, and I learned how to trust people. Without trust, everyone is alone, and that is a scary feeling. I know those reading this may not believe it, so I enclosed a newspaper article about the crash, and I know others may think that being stranded on an island for a month must have been horrible, but you're wrong.
Being stranded on that island was the best experience of my life. While it was very hard, it was also very enlightening. I learned who I was, and I became the person I was meant to be. I know if you accept me into your University, I will use the skills I learned on the island to make my college career successful.
On the island, I learned that no matter how hard things get, there will always be someone there to help you, and I learned that when things are at the absolute worst, something will happen to completely change things.
My life changing experience truly did alter my life, and I hope you can see how fondly I think of this experience, and I hope it gives you some insight into who I am and what I can bring to your University.
Sincerely,
Lex Marin