My Legacy by Marilyn

My Legacy by Marilyn - February 2014 Scholarship Essay

For as long as I can remember, I have had a singular aspiration for fame. Like so many before me, I dreamed my legacy would live on in television screens and posters around the world. In my ignorance, I believed it was only through affluence that I could impact the suffering and strife of the world I saw around me. However, it was not until the seventh grade, when my family journeyed to build schools and hospitals in our home country, Ghana, that I truly became aware of my many blessings. That trip changed my life, and I pledged that one day I would make a difference; through my celebrity, I would change the world. I started small, volunteering in soup kitchens and nursing homes, working with local non-profits, and raising money for national groups like St. Jude's, the March of Dimes, and Relay for Life. In the tenth grade, I was elected onto the executive board of my school's Key Club, a student-led service organization. I was grateful for my position and proud of the work I was doing in my community. But it never felt like enough; my contribution, my change, could not be achieved without reputation and wealth. Then, one day, I found it.

We were ordering new club t-shirts and wanted a quote that could represent our mission. In my search, I came across a sentence purportedly spoken by Gandhi, "Be the Change you wish to see in the world," and from that moment, my perspective was never the same. That quote, that extraordinary sentence, allowed me to realize the true meaning of my life and legacy. The more I internalized those enlightening words, the more empowered and remarkable I felt. Because in those words was the truth. Change is not contingent on who you know, who knows you, or even the size of your bank account. Change is who you are, what you do, and what you stand for. Now, in a rather Newtonian sense, I do believe my every action creates its own reaction. Every day, I strive to be the change and influence I wish to see in others. In my choices to recycle, volunteer, donate, and even come to college, I hope to bring about the difference I pledged to be in the world. Gandhi's words have given me new purpose; they have given me hope for a new legacy.

Years from now, maybe I will achieve fame and success. More than anything, I pray I can look back on my life and know I am a legacy - someone who recognized her blessings and spent her life trying to further those of others. And if I only grow up to be one who gives blood, volunteers, and donates to those who can go further and do more than I, then so be it. Whether everyone knows my name or no one ever hears of me, with Gandhi's words as my guide, I am changing the world because I Am the Change.