I was a very small child. Friends in my grade school classes would often laugh about it, the fact I was short enough to be their kid brother, and they’d call me names like “little guy” or “small...

All my life, I have been completely uninterested in sports. While all my friends flourished in youth leagues and charged soccer balls head first in gym class, I sat out. If you had asked me why I shied...

First days of school. Dance competitions. Major surgery. Very different situations, but they all have something in common: they all come with unknown outcomes that can cause stress in one’s life. Anyone...

For years, my little sister has been taller than me.   At age 17, I stand at 5’3”, while she, at 15, is 5’11”. Nearly everyone comments on this eight-inch discrepancy—if they realize...

Prompt: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more? Response:...

Hamilton College Supplemental Essay Prompt: We each bring different backgrounds and perspectives, and we teach one another about the world through our individual and shared experiences. How will Hamilton...

This is a story of my younger self. It begins with a little girl who couldn’t draw hands and symmetrical faces, yet her dream was to become a “great” artist: In City View Elementary School, she...

"Denisa, vazhdo shkollën" My mom would say this after coming back from work, usually at around 11:30 at night, while we are both awake. Sometimes she would say the English version,"Denisa, go to school,"...

The afternoon sun blazed like a spotlight, shining on me like a performer in the circus of my life. I had just wrapped up my demanding school day, rushed through a quick Science Olympiad officer meeting,...

I like December.  After Thanksgiving, my parents and I bring out our shiny brass menorahs—one from my dad’s Bar Mitzvah, one in the shape of the word shalom (meaning "peace").  Our ever-growing...

One summer night, my family decided to eat at Moe's, a Mexican grill restaurant that always fit the budget. An employee asked us if we wanted a side of guacamole. My mom interjected, "No thank you."...