How A Patient Zero: A Story That Changed My Life

A little girl was having fun on the playground she rode down the bright yellow slide, and as her feet hit the floor, light-up shoes blinked shades of pink and blue. She laughed with her friends uncontrollably. I watched her every day through my window as I was stuck in my hospital bed forbidden to go play with the other kids. I was in preschool; I couldn’t skip and laugh and play with the others because I was born with a disease called Congenital Ocular Dystopia from Orbito Frontal Bone Dysplasia, which means I was missing bones behind my eyes to keep my eye sockets in place. I also had distorted facial bones and visual acuity issues, and no one knew why. I’m the first documented case out of four in the world. Being patient zero comes with its struggles, but it has taught me so much and has led to an astronomical amount of progression and personal growth. In conclusion, even though I spent years dealing with the stale air in the children's craniofacial wing, lying on uncomfortable paper hospital beds, and watching other little
girls playing in their light-up shoes, I am grateful to be where I am today and proud of myself for powering through and finally having light-up shoes of my own.
My road to recovery has been a major challenge in my life that I’ve overcome as I’ve aged.
As soon as I was born, my life was in jeopardy. Ever since then I’ve been fighting to keep up, and now I am thankfully completely healthy. I have pictures of myself lying next to a small pillow, and somehow the green and white checkered cushion was twice my size. That’s what happens when you’re born months early and averaging four pounds. Since then, I’ve had four major surgeries and have used my resilience to push myself forward as I continue to be involved in activities in and out of school. I learned that instead of not doing anything and feeling sorry for myself, I had to be proactive. So I gained self-confidence, unwavering drive, and maintained a kind heart no matter what life threw at me. Because one day, after overcoming obstacles trying to bring you down, there will be a happy ending and the light-up shoes that’ll make everything worth
it.
Living with this condition has impacted not only who I am but what I do. I work hard to be on the honor roll and to do well in my AP classes, not for others, but to prove to myself that I can do anything I set my mind to. I try to say yes instead of no so I can be open to new opportunities and possibilities that arise. Even through negativity and adversity in this world, I wake up every day with a toothy smile spread across my face hoping to evoke happiness and enthusiasm from those around me. I sincerely hope I can continue to do that as I embark unto a new chapter of my life in college as an aspiring screenwriter. Because even amongst the millions of talented and creative writers in the world, multitudes of people and ideas are underrepresented in shows, films, and media. I would love to use my passion for screenwriting and my unique voice as a daughter of an immigrant, a young person who has struggled with health, and a determined female in a field moderated and dominated by men. In conclusion, my afflictions and various hardships have taught me that there is nothing that can stop me from achieving my goals. I’ve earned my light-up shoes now it’s time to use them.