Common App Essay- Central Story Anonymous

It happened out of sheer stubbornness. Seemingly overnight, I went from being a cross country runner to the girl on crutches. I thought it was just a cramp. All runners have them from time to time, no big deal, right? I stopped running, stretched (big mistake), and ran through it (bigger mistake). The day after, I took my time warming up. My coach, noticing my discomfort, approached me, but I shrugged it off. Still, the discomfort persisted. I paced myself andrepeated “keep going, the pain is in your head” as a mantra to myself. The next day I couldn’t even make it past the first mile. I had ignored my coach’s suggestion to take it easy; I was fine, why give up? I didn’t want to seem weak, and I didn’t want to be the first one to stop running. I was pigheadedly intent on finishing my 3 miles.

A few X-Rays and MRI scans later proved that the pain was not in my head after all. A torn tendon and several fissures in my femur were the cause for my discomfort—cue the crutches. My Hispanic and ever hyperbolizingmother enforced the doctor’s orders to the letter: no physical effort, no activity. To complain about meals in bed, full nights of sleep, and less time spent in school-related activities seems odd for a teenager. When those...