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Gabriela Pacheco
E. Parrish
English 1010
April 10, 2015
When is it Time to Quit?
It has been so difficult being away from my family for so many years. Following and
pursuing my dreams has led me to be further away from home longer than expected.
My sister Cynthia and I are six years apart, shes 24 and Im 18; its a pretty big
difference. For the past four, almost five years my sister has been living in Cedar City studying
at Southern Utah University. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Biology. Her overall
goal is to someday become a veterinarian to save animals and what not. So for the past three
years she has applied to countless graduate schools. Applying for grad schools can be very
expensive some schools charge up to $180 to $200 just to send in the application. Once one has
applied for grad school, they must wait painstakingly for what can be the stepping stone into a
new chapter of their lives.
While my sister was studying I got to see her, Id say roughly 15 of the 350 days a year
some of which were pleasant surprises but mainly holidays. Each year regardless of anything we
would all spend Christmas together as a family. This last Christmas though was special. My
family and I were blessed with a gift that left us all an emotional mess.
December 25, 2014. Christmas day, the Pachecos (my family) drove down to Cedar City
to spend another lovely holiday with my sister. We unloaded the gifts and stuck them underneath
my sisters tiny tree then sat and ate some tamales my sister made; which could have used a lot

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more salt. Anyways once we were all finished we sat around the tree and finally got to open all
the presents! After every present had been unwrapped and thanked for and there was nothing but
bows and torn up boxes everywhere my sister pulled out a letter and said she had one more gift
go give. She handed the letter to my mom and asked her to read it aloud. So my mother did as
asked.
Dear Family,
It has been so difficult being away from you all for so many years. Following and pursuing my
dreams has led me further away from home for longer than expected. I feel as if I have missed so
many things, so many events, and many opportunities with you all. Graduating from College
with a Biology degree has been such an accomplishment for my family and I. I can honestly say
I have worked really hard to receive the honor of being the first graduate of our family. With this
said, I have been in deep thought about what I want to do with my future. Where do I to go next.
I believed for a long time that I never needed a backup plan, because I knew what I wanted to do
with my life. My mother at this point was fighting back tears and struggled to continue reading
the letter. My father and I sat there with bug eyes waiting for her to compose herself. She then
continued,
For the past 3 years I have been waiting patiently to get into school. I have been working
hard to pass the tests and interviews. I recently went through a slumber; I tried to figure out
what my next step would be. Three years later Im still not a doctor. So what do I do now? What
do I do if I dont get in again? When is a good time to quit? Is it appropriate to quit? Just when I
thought it was time to give up. One day, I received positive thoughts. Am I getting in?
changed into I am getting in!! This is my time to get in! I deserve to get it! I worked too hard

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to quit now. With this said. I would like to give you some good news. I am pleased to inform you
that I have been selected for admission to the Class of 2019 at the College of Veterinary
Medicine at Western University of Health Sciences. This will embark me in an incredible journey
of learning, accomplishment and responsibility. The journey towards my life dreams is about to
move in a forward direction. This journey will change all our lives together.
My mother could not contain herself ok who am I kidding no one in the room could. I
was balling my eyes out I was just so overthrown with joy. We each gave my sister A hug and
then sat down and ate more tamales which honestly werent that bad.
As much as I dont like to admit it my sister throughout my whole life has been my role
model. I look up to her and to see her achieve something that she has worked so hard for was
very emotional for my family and I. After three years of waiting to get in she finally did it, but it
wasnt easy! Things in life wont always come easy, there will be times when life will throw
some curves but with perseverance and faith in oneself anything is achievable.
Seeing my sister push through even when the odds seemed to be against her and succeed;
well you could only imagine how motivating this was to me especially with college just right
around the corner. This experience gave me that extra little push to want to continue my
education. I want to feel like my sister did that Christmas day, prideful and triumphant. I want
to know what it feels like to see my parents eyes filled with tears of exultation but most
importantly I want to make myself proud. I know that in college I am going to be well like a
wise teacher once told me poor, cold, and hungry but thats okay because I know that at the end
of the journey it will all have been worth it.