Preview

The title of the essay is "sacrifice".This is a college application essay for the University of Miami. In the essay I talked about what sacrifice means to me.

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
501 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The title of the essay is "sacrifice".This is a college application essay for the University of Miami. In the essay I talked about what sacrifice means to me.
He gazed up at me with the clear bright eyes of a child who was clearly experiencing a rare moment of happiness, and I knew instantly the sacrifice had been worth it. The sacrifice I am speaking of was awaking at five o'clock on a gloomy Saturday morning to take poverty-stricken children in our area shopping at a local department store before it opened. I can't help but to notice life is full of these little decisions. I have longed been plagued by the eternal question of whether to deny myself for the hope future gain or to enjoy the lesser fruits of the present. Of course most people when asked will respond saying the right decision is to deny temporary pleasure for a greater later gain but this is far easier to say than to put into practice.

The story of the little boy resonates so deeply within me because it's an example of a large gain from a minimal act of self-denial. Unfortunately the light at the end of the tunnel can seem oh so far off when one lies in the midst of a trying situation. In the case of my soccer team (state champions 2003-2004 season) we all are driven by an inbred love of the sport, and a natural camaraderie that comes only from.... . However the very seams of our affection for the game are tested during the "two a day" practices in the scorching early August heat. This very test of human resolve is especially tough on high school boys because these practices require the player to give up of the precious last month of summer. In exchange for this month, one receives a 6 a.m. wake up time for morning practices and a coach-imposed curfew. Five hours later that day the actually soccer practice commences in what tends to be eighty to ninety degree heat. The undeniable results of these "two a days" are a six-pack and a darker skin complexion from four hours a day in the sun. What often is not seen or at least remembered are the gradual increases in our personal physical fitness levels and soccer abilities. This led us to a winning season and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Fewer kids play amid pressure.” by Machael Rosenwald, the author addresses an issue widely faced by many children. Quitting sports because of the pressure their parents put on to them to keep playing to hopefully become a professional “elite athlete”. A survey was taken to see what the top factors contributing to kids happiness was. The results helped to prove the fact that children aren’t in games for winning or being the best. This is proven when the article reads, “...low on the list: playing in tournaments, cool uniforms and expensive equipment. High on the list: positive team dynamics, trying hard, positive coaching and learning”(Rosenwald 3). As this shows, children enjoy not being pushed to constantly be the best. Instead, they prefer being encouraged and not being forced into…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the short story “Becoming a Student Athlete”, Terry Telphy discusses some of the issues he encountered during his Freshman year in high school. He had a problem balancing being a great student and being a phenomenal athlete. He proudly revealed he excelled as a football player by committing extra time and effort to make sure he would make the team and be an impact player on the field. The summer before entering 9th grade, obviously he could balance the heavy load of being an athlete, but when the semester started and homework started piling up, he no longer could put all of his effort into sports and little into school. Terry wanted great things to happen in his life — He wanted to graduate high school, go to college, and did not want to…

    • 248 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Growing up, my siblings and I participated in a variety of competitive sports. For my brother and me, this consisted of soccer, basketball, and running track. We would constantly practice together and would make every aspect of it a competition. For example, whoever was breathing hardest at the end of a sprint lost, whoever shot more goals in soccer won, and whoever could dodge and fake out the other was the best athlete in the family. I would try and try to beat my brother but he always found a way to get the upper hand. Compared to my brother, I saw myself as a failure. It wasn’t until one parent teacher conference night that i realized that I was far more academically capable than my older brother. I had better grades and was more well liked…

    • 1012 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    is a typical day in the life of a student athlete, faced with several struggles during…

    • 1269 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Throughout my life, I have had to make many choices. Some have been quite simple such as, whether to have a cookie or ice cream, or quite difficult such as, trying to decide where I wanted to go to college. All these choices, big or small, have made me who I am today. Certain choices have taught me lessons about what not to do in life, while other choices have made me grow stronger in my moral character. One such choice was whether or not to take part in my church’s mission trip called Impact Virginia. I had the choice between spending a week of my summer relaxing at home, or outside working on houses for people in need. I can honestly say at that time it was a difficult choice. I had never gone on a mission trip, so I had never known how…

    • 366 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    They wanted to play the game for fun and camaraderie, not to “slaughter the other team,” (para.7). Nowadays, every kid has been taught that you must be the best and it has made them into little machines. When I was a young child, my father always told me that knowledge is power and that I needed to always strive for greatness. This turned me into a competitive thinker, always looking for ways to be the greatest at everything I pursued. But it also made me socially awkward because I did not know how to make friends. I just wanted to be the best, friends or not. Strick’s son was picked on by other children for not being excellent at soccer. Strick states, “I overheard a ten-year old boy sneer the other day, ‘He doesn’t know a goal kick from a head shot,” (para.7). This bullying should not be part of everyday life, but sadly this is not the case. Bullying is becoming more prevalent in the younger generation than ever before and this is because we are teaching our children to judge based on the skill of a person rather than their personality and character. Competition seems to invade even the most simplest of tasks in today’s…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “children Need to Play, Not compete,” Jessica Statsky put emphasis on the hazardous effects on children when they play the type of sports designed for grownups. These sports are conducted under the rules and standards of professional practice which becomes too much of a burden for the young and growing children. Making them indulge in these type of extreme physical test makes them physically and emotionally in distress. Jessica furthers goes on saying that these sports sole focus is on winning and defeating the opponent team. This leaves the essence of the sports like learning to play as a team, maintaining your health and collaboration, behind. She also talks about the attitude of the coaches as well as the parents that they consider…

    • 1105 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In David Malouf’s poignant novella Ransom, the role of love is explored through some captivating and unique perspectives. Throughout the novel, Malouf alludes that losing loved ones is both powerful and influential on an individual’s mindset, as shown through the protagonists’ reflection and feelings. Malouf also uses different characters’ actions to depict the sacrifices which love is able cause. Furthermore, by using Priam’s reflections, Malouf accentuates that love can make an individual to self-meditate. Finally, Malouf uses the events surrounding different characters to propose that love plays a fundamental role in one’s life, because love is often catalyst of one’s actions.…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I had to deal with disappointment from teammates, coaches, parents, and, above all, myself. On the first day of tryouts my freshman year of highschool, I was kindly hypothesized to possess “potential”. I was horrified. Potential was the label given to those who stood on the brink of mediocrity; those who walked the terribly broad line of “nothing special.” I was painfully average. After being praised for my talents throughout the course of my entire soccer career, you can imagine my surprise and disappointment upon hearing the mortifying pronouncement of my amateurity. I didn’t know it at the time, but my coach did me a huge favor with his frankness. I realized that not everything in life would be handed to me on a silver platter. In fact, most of it would not. I had to prove myself worthy, not only to my coach, but to myself as well. Through my extra workout and practice sessions, I developed determination and a tireless work ethic that I apply to every facet of my life. I’ve learned how to take criticism and losses and transfigure them into improvements and…

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Originating from the Latin word sacrificium, “ which is a combination of the words sacer, meaning something set apart from the secular or profane for the use of supernatural powers, and facere, meaning [‘to make’].” (Faherty) The earliest anyone has proposed the term sacrifice to be used is 1871 as a noun, relating to using sacrifices in religious ceremonies: “Sir Edward Burnett Tylor, a British anthropologist, proposed his theory that sacrifice was originally a gift to the gods to secure their favour or to minimize their hostility.” (Faherty) Another theory of how the word came about, again religiously related, Faherty also suggests William Robertson Smith’s ideology “that the original motive of sacrifice was an effort toward communion among the members of a group, on the one hand, and between them and their god, on the other.” During religious ceremonies when the term sacrifice was being used during this time period, people would present a “holy” human or animal to their god(s) in hope in return of relief from any issues or complications in their life or just a better situation in life in general. Native Americans used to do similar forms of sacrifice in different forms, including dancing, to the different gods of…

    • 530 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As early as the third grade, I remember being involved in sports. Whether it was volleyball, basketball, or dance I have been given the privilege to play on many teams. The life of a young athlete is great, however, it can become very stressful. At all ages an athlete is forced to cope with school, sports, and a social life. Along with all of that, athletes are expected to deal with extra stress and even stricter rules. Over the years I have realized all student-athletes are treated differently and are held to a higher standard. (1)…

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Participation Awards

    • 560 Words
    • 3 Pages

    I want to start this off with a little hypothetical story. There are two kids, one who trained his hardest; working out everyday, physically, and even mentally for a big soccer game. The other, did nothing of the sort to prepare himself for the match.…

    • 560 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From the time I was a young child, I was taught the importance of hard work and dedication. Up to this point, I have lived by these principles, incorporating them into every aspect of my life. Although this determination has proved useful in many circumstances, it has been most apparent in my one true passion: soccer. I have put my heart and soul into the sport since the moment my five-year-old feet first touched a ball. Now I believe that growing up is about making decisions that one’s former self would have been much too frightened or intimidated by to follow through with. In some cases, it is having enough of a backbone to avoid being walked upon by those who think that they have a right to do so, no matter the repercussions. That is why that, in my opinion, the moment that I quit the Seneca Valley Varsity Soccer team was the moment that I finalized my transition from childhood to adulthood.…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nearly every child, at one point or another in his young and impressionable life, has particiapated in sports. Whether it is a pick-up basketball game at a playground after school, or organized Little League, complete with ninety-foot bases and replicated major league uniforms, sports play an intricate part of the development and maturation of a youngster. Beneath it’s presumed purity, however, lies an occasionally seedy underbelly. Win-at-all cost coaches and tyrannical, overbearing parents have turned this innocent recreational activity into a nightmarish hell for some juvenile participants, and have left many wondering if sports is a helpful or a harmful stage in a child’s life.…

    • 271 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As my childhood gradually transitioned into my adolescent years, I was old enough to realize my dreams of becoming a professional athlete wouldn’t serve as a career path. By the time middle school rolled around, I slowly narrowed down by ambitious list of activities to the one I was most passionate about: soccer. Through the first awkward relationships, real homework assignments and horrifying threat of detentions, soccer was always something I could look forward to.…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays