“A diamond cannot be polished without friction, nor the person perfected without trials.”
–Chinese Proverb
I believe myself to be like a gemstone, weathered down by recent events and challenges as harsh as a diamond cutter, and I am thankful too for the velvet bed of familial support that awaits me at the end of each day. To say that I have led a charmed life would be off the point by only a few degrees, I had no worries as a child of modest background with a family and an environment that shaped the better part of my character. The possibility of the rug being pulled from under my feet all of a sudden never dawned on me. I had a loving family, and dark clouds on their investments never really loomed large. My parents have provided me with all that I needed to make a better future for myself.
In my adolescence, I had the chance to broaden my horizons by helping out in a family friend’s law firm. Although the practice wasn’t as prestigious as the bigger law firms were, it was there that I learned to appreciate the workings of jurisprudence from a man whom I now consider my mentor by inspiring me to look beyond what can be easily seen. He treated me not like a child sent out on an errand, but as a protege, a fledgling in the art and science of law. A childhood spent playing tennis with my father gave me the reflexes and quick thinking that helped me perform my duties satisfactorily within the law firm that I emerged from that summer with the idea of undertaking the same profession. Believing that I had the drive, the skills, and the financial and emotional support of my family, I had no qualms about setting forth in earning a law degree.
College changed and challenged me in more ways than I can imagine, as I was used to getting high grades in high school without exerting much effort. No matter how hard I tried to study and perform, I found myself floundering in a field that I used to excel in. I decided to shift from physics and took up a course in communication research. Although it was a different field of study, I found it easier to get back on track and my academic record was revitalized. I strived hard to excel in this new field and I found new areas of interests in the field of communications that encouraged me to be more than what I can. Eventually, my efforts were recognized and despite having an unimpressive first year in college, I made it to the top percentile of the class.
I sailed on through the next two years in my new course and law school was once again in my horizons. It was at this point that challenges beyond my academic scope blocked my view of the finish line. My family’s finances took a sudden turn for the worse when my father passed away due to cancer. Expensive treatments and medications left my parents’ savings almost depleted, and I had a younger sibling who was set for college on the same year. I decided to take off from school for a year to help with the finances and worked full-time to support my family and my mother who was emotionally devastated by the events. I soon got back on track and although I have been set back a year from studies, I feel ready to take on law school as soon as I graduate.
Rather than look back with regret, I see the past years as milestones in my life. I am thankful for having been able to go through those challenges and that I have come out as a better person in more ways than one. I see no shame in having had to drop out of school to work as a receptionist at a hotel, as it was the right thing to do for my family. That year of working in a hotel has been as educational and uplifting as a year in school.
I plan to follow the exploits of my former mentor who specialized in corporate law as I have adequate grounding on this field thanks to him and to my undergraduate studies in communication research and I do hope that I can pursue higher legal learning from ______ University.
Photo credits: DanieVDM
