“Me, English no speak” was the only sentence I knew how to speak when I first came to America a little over three years ago. As a newly arrived immigrant, I had neither range of vocabulary nor command of grammar; I had, however, a strong willingness to learn. I was told to read newspapers daily. I tried diligently to do so, but it was very hard to understand everything. I must confess that I still have great difficulty comprehending everything I read. Most of my acquisition of English came from people around me: teachers, classmates, and relatives who were already fluent in the language.
Those first few months in America were silent ones for me. Initially, all I could do was just listen and observe. Since I had difficulty expressing my thoughts, I became engulfed in them. When one drowns in the ocean, one becomes part water. Soon, the only thing I could do was contemplate. I constantly thought about everything—especially how and why I thought the things, I did. Then I began to look at those around me and wondered what was going through their minds as reflected in their words and deeds.
Because I was young and naive, I took for granted that everyone’s thoughts were innocuous. Then I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. Of course, I was entertained by the movie’s action scenes and plot twists, but what really intrigued me for weeks after was the psychological aspects of the Joker’s evil. Even though he is just a fictional character, I began to wonder about the roots of his iniquity and its parallels in the real world.
I do not have to look far beyond the New York Times for the darkness in other people. It seems as if every day there are news stories of great wrongdoing committed by those from oppressive regimes to college coaching staffs. Recently, there have been a couple of articles about our often-psychological inability to act morally despite our belief that we will do so when faced with an ethical dilemma. I find such articles truly fascinating and enlightening. I also recently came across a famous quotation from the Swedish psychologist Carl Jung: “Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darkness of other people.”
I am still innocent enough to believe (or hope) that our own light can always counterbalance our own darkness. Over the past couple of years, I have become a better listener and observer of others. I can recall the many gracious acts of kindness and support others have shown me. I do not know if I would have survived my first year in America without those acts.
Likewise, I try to perform such acts for others. As a senior member in the marching band, I made an effort to befriend all the new members. Marching band had greatly helped me acclimate to high school, and so I thought there might be some new members who need similar help. One of the freshmen this year in marching band had become the target of ridicule because of her “perceived” oddness. I recognized that she was just having a little trouble communicating with others. I offered her some advice on how to overcome her shyness and asked some of the senior members to be more understanding. Though it was a small gesture on my part, I believed it helped her to feel more accepted. Put simply, knowing our own inhibitions is the best method for dealing with the inhibitions of other people.
Needless to say, I have decided to major in psychology. I hope to work in a field in which I can help other people with the problems that may inhibit them. If accepted into -----(Example) University, I will draw upon my experiences and try to help others. If I can make a contribution to the university then I will have succeeded.