Degredation over time: A Junior Self-Portrait Illustration by Kyle Knochenhauer (2013)

My illustration depicts the part of my Personal Essay about how stress can make one’s patience become limited, and someone can become short tempered. I was also inspired by a part of my essay where I explain how there never seems to be enough time to get what you need done. Another part of my essay that I depicted in the illustration is that if you face the challenges in life, you can work through them, instead of hiding from them.

The eraser and the shavings represent how stress affects patience and temper. The more use an eraser has, the smaller it gets. The hourglass on the podium represents the time that is so prevalent in everyone’s lives, such as due dates, deadlines, etc. The podium itself represents fragility in one’s attitude when stress levels become high. The window is the outcome of hard work after you come across an obstacle.