Common App: How You Embody X School's Values

X school cultivates the following characteristics: Intellectual curiosity, leadership, global citizenship, integrity, and courage. Describe a moment when you (or someone you know) exhibited one of these traits. (250 words or less.)

JOOHEE'S COURAGE AND SUMMER VOLUNTEERING

I believe at the core of myself are the very characteristics that resembles X School. During a summer volunteering at the YMCA swimming center, my swim coach told me that I would be instructing a class of students for the local summer program. Naturally, I was thrilled! After hours of eager preparation, I was confident of my flawlessly primed lessons, optimistic to demonstrate my expertise. I planned every lesson by the minute and prayed that my prospective subject be enthusiastic, willing, and cooperative.

What was a glistening spark of excitement turned into exasperation, as I was paired with the most dogmatic, moreover unresponsive child. For days, my student Joohee remained adamantly stubborn, standing in the shallow-end of the pool and furiously shaking her head, refusing to budge.

"Joohee, c'mon! This is so fun!" I tried to gently corral her, splashing encouraging sprinkles of water down her back. What I received in response was a yelp of shock that sent her sprinting down into the changing rooms, and bolting herself inside a locker. The next few hours were spent trying to lure her out. Each lesson, I tried to placate her from hiding in the locker and into the pool. The same aggravating process was being repeated the next day, as was the next, and the next, and the following week.

At the end of the second week, in desperation, I abandoned my agenda and conceded to Joohee's silence—I approached her, held her hand and slowly guided her toward the shallow end of the pool and to my astonishment, she followed. Moments later she spoke.

"Look, I'm floating." Yes, she was speaking! What's more, she was in the water, and she was really floating!

I looked at Joohee and for the first time, saw a flood of warmth and genuine trust that I had been so earnestly searching for. I then realized that for the past days, I had been entirely preoccupied with personal motives, prioritizing my wants over her needs. All she needed was a hand to hold! I wrapped my long, artist fingers around the small ones of her own, continuing to hold her hand. This time, when our eyes met once more, her smile beamed with faith and sent a resonating, heart-felt warmth growing in the center of my chest.

Joohee has taught me that with the simple gesture of a hand, my aspiration of helping others can be achieved as long as I surrender to selflessness as to share compassion and understanding. It was only later when she told me she had nearly drowned at a very young age, did I fully begin to understand the deeper issue of submitting herself to the same experience. Not only has Joohee taught me to have superhuman patience, but she has also taught me how to have the courage to confront challenges that I would have otherwise never considered defying.