Importance of Illusions by Mallory

Importance of Illusions by Mallory - May 2017 Scholarship Essay

Ever since I was little I have had an affinity for reading. I remember always asking for a book as a Christmas or birthday gift. Reading is so enjoyable for me because it is as if I am living the life of the characters in the books. I develop a strong connection to the characters of the books and I feel as if they are part of me. Even though I feel these strong connections to these books, no book has ever had as great of an influence on me until I read Richard Bach’s Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah. If it were not for my junior year English teacher, I probably would not have read this inspiring novel.
Junior year my teacher assigned my class a research assignment to be done on an American author. All of the go-to authors, such as Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger, were already taken, so I had to look beyond the realm of classic literary authors. After talking about the assignment to my dad one night, he suggested I write about American author Richard Bach. I was already familiar with one of this novels, so I concurred and went to a local bookstore to purchase another one of his books; I purchased Illusions because it was one of his top-rated novels. Once I began reading it, I enjoyed it so much that I finished it in a day. Illusions is so unlike most books that I have read, and it really made an impact on me, and it continues to as I proceed into the future.
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah tells the story of a messiah living on earth preaching his lessons to an ordinary crop pilot. His lessons consist of inspiring messages that people should live their lives by. One of my favorites is as follows: “argue for your limitations and they are yours”. At the time that I read Illusions, I was having difficulties maintaining a positive attitude about things. I was having trouble with my friends and I was transforming into a glum rain cloud. Reading this book perked up my attitude, especially the quote mentioned above. Reading Illusions helped me realize that I am in control of my life and things will only happen if I want them too. This empowering message is something that I store in the vault labeled important in the back of my mind. This book will always hold a special place in my heart for helping me realize that I control my life and what happens in it