[Student Profile]
[Prompt & Essay]
The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Within seconds of being born into this world, it became evident to the doctors who saw my delay in motor development that I suffered from hypotonia, also known as “floppy baby syndrome.” Born with abnormal limpness, as a result of low muscle tone, babies with hypotonia often miss important developmental milestones. While physical therapy and strengthening exercises can help build muscles, and thereby better control of one’s body, my parents were told that I would need a wheelchair for much of my life. “Therapy will help, but her muscles will be too weak to walk or withstand most physical activity,” doctors cautioned.
At age three, years behind my peers, I miraculously took my first steps. By elementary school, however, my severely stunted athletic ability and “clumsiness” led me to constant ridicule as “slow,” “weak,” and “incapable.” Nobody wanted me on their dodgeball team, and everyone mocked my sloth-speed running. Repeatedly, exasperatedly, and on the verge of tears, I asked myself, “Am I that incompetent?” Despite the crush of each taunt, I tried to avoid loathing sports, reassuring myself, “I am not defined by my physical limitations.”
At age six, in joining ballet I hoped to find a physical expression of freedom and to prove to myself that I was capable of inner and outer strength. At first, my undeveloped core muscles made it a struggle to balance on one leg, making basic moves and turns feel impossible. Everyday, attending class, I would stare at myself in the mirror and prepare for the barrage of critiques from my instructor. However, instead of fixating on my shortcomings, I took advantage of one skill I could control: upper body expression.
Technique is the foundation upon which I tell my story. Each tilt of my head or lift in my fingertips indicates the emotion that my character is feeling. Learning to utilize this skill to enhance my overall performance, I developed the confidence that I needed to accept the limitations of my body. The slower speed in which I learned to execute certain movements, which I once found frustrating, instead, now led me to find greatest reward when I finally accomplished a triple pirouette. Through the countless attempts, innumerable failures, and the greater efforts that I had to dedicate to my art, I recognized the tenacity and resilience that I held.
As demanding as this artform is, the rush of excitement that attends every performance allows me to forget the physical differences that exist between myself and others onstage. The beaming faces of the audience express to me their admiration of a body that I have worked so hard to master. While incredibly challenging, ballet has helped me to replace my self-doubt with pride in my body’s competency.
My personal experience has not only inspired me to work harder, but it allows me to better empathize with those who are physically handicapped. Reliant on a wheelchair, due to paralysis of her lower extremities, I look everyday to support my best friend, Hiromi. Connecting with her through our physical struggles, we have developed an invaluable friendship that is focused on elevating one another and recognizing each others’ strengths.
Enlightened by my passage of self-discovery, the value I place over my own capabilities now far outweighs the insecurity and self-doubt that once plagued my dreams. I am strong, resilient, tenacious, and it is my duty to be sensitive to others’ pain, and to make connections with those who need help recognizing their limitations can sometimes accentuate their greatest strengths. Once told I would be confined to a wheelchair for my life, I instead choose dance as my vehicle for expression.