a draft of my statement of purpose:
Personal Statement
why do I want to be an English teacher — STORIES!
- could try doing a Mary Oliver quote
- World inside of stories
- Yes they mirror, teach, explain, contextualize, validate etc things we all go through, feelings & emotions, shared experiences
- But the world inside of them is also just the gospel
- They are true because they are us. And we were created in the image of Jesus
- Just as it’s important to have the world broken open, it’s just as important to see yourself reflected back within the story.
- How much less lonely does one feel after reading the very words they had only ever dared to think written on a page before them? How much hope can one find when they find a piece of themselves or of their own story echoed back at them, their own story joining a chorus that sings of redemption, resilience, and comfort.
- Stories show us that we are not alone, and they help convince us that our stories, too, certainly must matter.
- Not about the difference that I can make. It’s about the power of education, of having someone that believes in you. Of being seen, heard, having the world opened up for you. Given a space to wonder and to be yourself.
- Every kid, from every background, needs that. Every kid, from every household, deserves that.
- Someone to say "I'm proud of you"
- I believe in the power of education -- that sharing with others is the most powerful tool we can wield.
- When I think about what makes me me, this compulsion, responsibility, joy and enthusiasm for sharing / to share is what marks my person. It's hard for me to read something interesting or learn something new without at least 2-3 people hearing about it in the subsequent days. Essentially, I just love to share things with people.
- Share a story about the middle school lunchroom
Why now?
- I don't think I could be happy doing anything else. I majored in Advertising, flexing my creative muscles and was on track for a career in copywriting, but eventually, I knew it wasn't what I wanted as meant to do. There was a beckoning voice in the back of my head saying "I've got to be a teacher." The half-conscious statement wouldn't come during lectures on advertising strategies, but when I would pass someone who reminded me of someone I went to elements school with, when I would turn the corner in the grocery store and give a smile to an elderly man walking alone, when I would ask students in the lunchroom the middle school I volunteer at how their day was going. I have got to be a teacher. Though I once denied it and even changed my major to prove it, I know that this is what I have been called to do.