The purpose of the Personal Essay was to expand on our writing skills and to connect the ideas we had from our media presentation with storytelling. In the essay, we used metaphorical symbols and a personal story to convey a deeper meaning and emphasize our statements.

In WebAudio, we created a podcast for our personal essay to allow the viewer to further connect with the creator by giving them predetermined visuals. This allows the viewer to connect with me further because the viewer can now see how

The curtain wanes and the spotlight is revealed. I am a thousand pounds, nine feet tall, and can run at 35 miles per hour. I am a grizzly bear walking through the dense forest, cutting my way through the sea of brush as I leave my distinct scar on the surface that holds me. Alone in this world with nothing to ensure safety, I continue this adventure and come steadily to a halt as I glance out the minimal opening between the trees and fix my eyes on the target as the sun shines down on it perfectly. The hunt has begun. I stand still, listening and waiting for the ideal moment to charge. Within seconds, I am feet away from the deer and quickly closing as I chase him through the wide and empty field of green. Suddenly, he trips and the curtain closes. The hunt has ended only to start a new. The hunt is everlasting.

At age 7, I began my quest for trophies through competition in the game of basketball. My team had hunted for multiple championships. My uncle was the coach while my teenage cousins were the assistant coaches. I played on that club basketball team for about six years until I was a freshman in high school and tried out for the school team. I encountered a less than favorable team with even less favorable coaches: two elderly men with hunched backs and snowy white hair, one of which was clothed in beach attire wearing a cap that matched his hair, a tropical themed dress shirt, blue jeans, and flip flops. To say the least, I was vexed at first sight. I decided to endure the pre-season under the pressure from my parents’ desires for me to play on a high school team. By the time try-outs came around, I was very hesitant to pull the trigger on quitting. I had spent so much time playing and practicing basketball in my life and was worried about the possible regret that I may face. The try-outs lasted for about a week and on the second to last day, the coach scolded us and forced us to run multiple laps for failing to run a play correctly after his incomprehensible instructions. That was the night that I made my decision. I awaited for my parents to express their frustration and disappointment with me verbally the next day, which to my surprise, was more than I had anticipated. I distinctly remember the one way altercation that led to weeks of silence.

Weeks passed by and I knew that I would need to pick up a new sport primarily for the thrill of competition. I was convinced by my friends to come to a lacrosse pre-season practice. As I sat watching the hour long practice, I was initially discouraged by the immense amount of grass and mud that splashed through the air so spontaneously as well as the sour smell of their sweat stained protection. After speaking with the head coach of the Mountain View lacrosse team and giving the sport a try, I decided to continue and play on the team. Little did I know that I would find love for a sport so foreign to me and end up enjoying it more than basketball. As time passed, my parents began to support my decision to play lacrosse and even began to learn and watch the game.

Quitting basketball taught me the importance of making my own choices, instead of letting other people make my decisions for me because no one knows what is best for me or what I want except for myself. I have learned from this experience that in order to gain the best outcome you must follow your own desires and ambitions because in the end, it will provide you with the most satisfaction. You have to take what you want and not what others give you, just like a grizzly bear would. He takes what he wants without a second thought and that is why the grizzly bear is at the top of the food chain.