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Ian Paterniti

Mrs. Cramer

College Comp Pd. 2

2 September 2020

College Application Narrative

It was an unseasonably warm day in February when life got heavy. I was sitting in my

mom’s car, frustrated because I had old ski pants that wouldn’t fit over my boots. My mom

interrupted my whining and said something I never thought I’d hear. She had cancer. I knew she

had a biopsy and this was a possibility, but it never seemed real. The rest of the night when I was

skiing I didn’t think about my pants once.

I was a sophomore in high school, and I relied on my mom for everything. I couldn’t

drive and I didn’t have any money. She was a counselor at my school and whenever I had a

problem with a teacher, I’d ask her to talk to them instead of doing it myself. I’d gotten so used

to going to her whenever I had issues that I didn’t even think I was capable of dealing with them

on my own.

Chemotherapy hit my mom hard and she couldn’t do much at all. My brother and I did a

lot more to help around the house. She couldn’t work, so I was forced to deal with my teachers

myself. I learned quickly that cancer doesn’t just affect you physically, but incapacitates you

entirely. I soon realized the often exaggerated, everyday struggles were nothing compared to

hers.
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Looking back, I was never more stressed out, exhausted, and unmotivated then I was my

Junior year of high school, and my grades and attendance reflected this. I saw going to school

and doing my work as a huge chore with no reward. I didn’t have any goals for the future. As

spring approached, all my responsibilities piled on top of me at once. I had to study for the SATs

and keep up with all my work in school. I also got my first job at an ice cream shop at the same

time track started. On most days I had no free time do to anything, including my homework. My

life was uncomfortably busy, and I never had more responsibilities in my life.

Then unbelievably, I had no responsibilities. The COVID-19 pandemic and its effects

made it all the way to my rural town. Without warning, my school was shut down, along with

track, and my job followed shortly after. I immediately went from having absolutely no free time

to having nothing but that. This seemed like a blessing at first. All the pressures and stress

disappeared at once. I still had to study for my AP and college tests, but that was all I had to do

for school.

I took this time to think more about my future and what I wanted my life to be. My part

time job started back up. Working there solidified that I want to pursue a very different career

path. When my mom was going through her cancer treatments, I went along with her whenever I

could. I found myself interested in what exactly her treatments consisted of. The treatments

saved her life, and I saw how much went into it. I’ve always taken interest in the medical field,

and my mom’s experience with cancer reinforced this as a career goal.

I went into my senior year with a new way of thinking. I’m not blindly doing work that

stresses me out with no clear reward anymore. My dedication and motivation to accomplish

specific goals will lead to contentment in my life. I realize now that waiting to be “successful” in

order to be happy is a self-defeating philosophy. In the past year and a half, the negative
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experience of my mom getting sick forced me to realize that I have to take initiative for my own

success, and find internal motivation.