One of the classes that has impacted me the most was a metal shop/construction elective I took during my freshman year. In this class I created various welding projects in addition to other 3D works. The first project I made was a three-piece puzzle. I was eager to work on this piece because I would get the opportunity to use new machines in the shop and learn new techniques. Almost immediately, I ran into several problems. I was having difficulties using the milling machine, and even after milling all the holes into my pieces, I still had to make them more refined using a hand file. I spent days at the table vise going back and forth with the file. As each minute passed, I thought more and more about just abandoning the puzzle and starting on an entirely different project; however I also thought about how joyful I would feel saying I had finished the piece all on my own. By the time I completed the puzzle, I was overcome with pride.
Throughout my time in high school, I keep looking back on this experience. I have faced many obstacles and difficulties in my classes and in my personal life, and what motivates me to keep moving forward is thinking about what lies ahead. I still have that puzzle with me, serving as a reminder that no matter what challenges I face in my journey, it will always be worth it once I reach my final goal. My current dream is to become an architect, and I know that there will be many difficulties along the way, but I will keep at it no matter what because I know that working in architecture is something that will make me happy in my future.
This was the essay I wrote as an additional writing requirement for The University of Miami. The prompt asked me to write about how my “past experiences have helped build my courage and resilience to persist in the face of academic and life challenges.” I chose to write about this event in specific because it is one that I keep reflecting on.