The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success.

Recount an
incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did
you learn from the experience?

An Origin Story

IV.

The story of my life contains three chapters: The Drowning; Discovering my

Superpower; and a Test of Courage.

I.
One of my first memories takes place on the water. In it, I am in an inflatable boat

that suddenly flips over. My parents had just bought the boat and I remember sitting next to

my father as he blew it up, his confidence palpable as he guided me into the sea, my delight

as I played captain of a ship, and then--the sudden thrust of water. I was underwater,

everything upside down, my father’s legs colored green by the sea, the permeating memory

of betrayal. As I held my breath and tasted the salt in my mouth, I realized, at the age of

three, that parents sometimes fail to keep their children afloat. I’d have to know how to swim.

II.
During another family vacation there was a storm. As a result, the beach was filled

with jellyfish scattered about like half-deflated balloons. As I walked around, I thought: this is

my chance to be a superhero. I went up to the biggest jellyfish, took it with both hands and

carried it to the water. The rescue mission continued slowly as I repeated the process while

tripping on the slippery sand, getting back up again, battling my smallness. However,
countless jellyfish still remained, and I started crying: I couldn’t save them alone. Being a

superhero is not easy, it turned out. For some miracles, I need to ask for help.

III.
On my very first day of school, my friend Katya and I walked onto the campus,

bursting with pride. My education was finally about to begin. Entering a classroom, as we were

eagerly absorbing our surroundings, the teacher appeared, asking, “ Girls, what are you doing

here?”

My smile vanished and Katya’s face turned white. I exclaimed, “ We are students from

1-B!”

“ This is the classroom for 1-V. You don’t belong here.”

The freshly painted door was shut in front of our faces. Ultimately, I remembered that

we were now responsible students and tugged at Katya’s hand, taking charge. “ Let’s go,” I

said, forcing a smile. Someone had to be brave. This mistake was our fault, and as a mature

six-year-old, I was ready to fix it. One foot in front of the other, we walked. While earning an

education, one sometimes must get lost, for revelation begins with a search, one step at a

time.

IV.
My origin story comes in three parts: they are who I am.

Above my desk, the wall is filled with pictures: reminders, inspirational mottos,

awards, and photographs. The other walls are filled with posters of school plays and my

artworks, a large world map. A chorus of moments carefully curated for display, the first

thing anyone looks at when visiting my room.

Nonetheless, this compilation of successes is merely a polished exhibition. If I

painted a portrait of my seventeen years on this planet, it would not resemble the perfection
of my walls. Instead, it’d be a collection with snapshots of my failures: ridiculous moments,

behind-the-scenes bloopers, lines said after the curtain falls. Looking back, my mother still

laughs at how, when little, I always ran ahead, excited, and inevitably fell face down. The next

day I would run off again, exhilarated and undaunted to embrace the world. To this day, I still

do.

Ukrainians say that how the first day of something goes is how the rest of it will be. If

that’s true, then the rest of my life will be shaped by what I’ve learned from my childhood:

first, when times get tough, I need to know how to swim; second, superheroes also need help

with their feats; and third, earning an education, as a journey to transforming the mind,

requires some wandering, literally and figuratively.

Word Count: 640