UC ​Berkeley Admissions Essays

Untitled (Prompt #2)

Prompt:

Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?


Mirrors exist to show our outer appearance but nothing beyond that. Only our actions, words, and ideas could possibly represent the personal qualities that matter. The true worth of a person is revealed in those glimpses of light in the midst of adversity and darkness. Those traits that are highly admired are also learned and acquired in those dark moments. More than any other trait, the one I hold most precious isthe quality of honesty.

Honesty is to tell the truth, to believe the truth, and to act the truth when the opportunity arises. But most importantly integrity matters when it is difficult to act nobly. I learned to be honest by admitting that I did not know what the truth was or by choosing to appear ignorant rather than condemning. When I was young I always was quick to judge and blame, but soon I learned that my assumptions without proof were the same as lies. By hurting others in those dark moments of doubt and injustice, I learned to tell the truth as I saw it and not as I wanted it to be.

The best part of honesty is that ifyou see yourself as you truly are then you can shape who you will become. I believe that I am honest with myself because I assess my actions objectively and strive to change accordingly. Pride swells within me because I believe the most sought after quality in most individuals is honesty. Since I strive to bring change I believe that the change needs a starting point, and I volunteer myself as an advocate for integrity.

The Golden Rule taught me that in order to expect honesty from others it is required for me to be true to myself and those around me. My real character shows through my beliefs and actions and the smiles of the people that I've met along the way. Honesty has allowed me to create a future based on my past, without the repeat button being held down. Only the few who learn from their past are not doomed to repeat it. And I hope to never relapse to my days of pointing fingers because there was need for a scapegoat to ease my paranoia.

Honesty is the essence of personal responsibility. And as a human being I am responsible for the future I shape because even one single individual can shape the world, like a single seed unleashes the existence of a tree that can nurture fellow saplings or even inhibit their growth through excessive shade. I look within the mirror and see myself. Each one of us has the potential, a seed within, and only we can decide what kind of trees we will become.

 


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How to cite this essay (MLA)

Im, Melisa. "Untitled (Prompt #2)" StudyNotes.org. Study Notes, LLC., 07 Oct. 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2024. <https://www.apstudynotes.org/uc-berkeley/untitled-prompt-2/>.
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