College Admissions Essay: My Pursuit Of Purpose

Years ago, my neighbor had this bumper sticker, “You were created for something awesome. Find your purpose.” I would see this bumper sticker every day, and hope that, indeed, someday, I would find my purpose. I never imagined that I was meant for more than being a mom and wife. Content with my role, I still kept hoping my awesome purpose would make itself known. Nearly 20 years after dropping out of college, I have found my purpose – I’m helping to heal my family and friends.
When I was in high school, I had a plan. After graduation, I would take some time off before starting college. After majoring in mathematics, I planned to one day teach high school geometry. Why I chose mathematics, specifically high school geometry, I have no idea, but
When you make plans, life has a funny way of turning them all on their ears. In the short span of 5 years, life threw me a dozen curveballs, and more than a few strikes, but I kept swinging. I had a 6-month-old baby and a new plan for our future when my future husband walked through the door of the pharmacy. 4 months later, we were married, and, by the next year, we were both working for the Village pharmacy. One more year found us pregnant, with another beautiful daughter, and, again, I put my future plans on hold. Emmaline Belle was born 9 months later, and we decided my staying home to take care of the children made the most sense. Three more years found us pregnant, with yet another beautiful daughter, and moving for the 6th time. The town we were living in had a large “granola” community, and I spent many playdates being inundated with information about cloth diapers, homemade fruit leathers, and babywearing. The “crunchy” mommas talked about cough medicine as if it were poison, and immunizations were abhorred by many. I listened with only half an ear. What did these ladies think they knew that doctors didn’t know? It was also around this time that my husband was diagnosed with type II diabetes. Prescription medication was the only solution, at least that is what they told us. Eventually, we would learn better