《美国大学生作文选》Word格式文档下载.docx

1、FEELING THE PINCH When I started on my long journey to the school I would be calling home for the next four years, I had no idea of the challenges I would be facing. I was leaving my home, my siblings, and my parents, the people who had raised me and protected me for eighteen years. I was leaving a

2、place where all my necessary needs were taken care of my food, clothing, and medical bills. The only hardships I encountered in high-school were paying for gasoline, the movies, or that new CD I wanted. I had it easy living at home, and I took that for granted. The first day I arrived on campus I go

3、t a little taste or what I would be experiencing for the next four years. I was told my tuition had not been paid, and I could not move into my dorm room until my balance was paid. For the first time in my life I had to handle a serious financial situation on my own, because my parents were no longe

4、r around to help me out. My parents did not fully support my decision to attend Marywood College because they know they could not afford it. I had decided at the last minute to take my chances that the loans I had applied for would be approved, and that I could afford to come here. So after writing

5、out a check that would almost completely delete all of my savings, I moved into my dorm room. Being safely moved into my new home and having my tuition bill, for that moment, squared away, I felt relaxed. Nevertheless, that relaxation did not last very long. I soon realized that although I did not h

6、ave to pay for heat, water, or electricity, I had to pay for almost everything else. By that I mean food, phone bills, car insurance, cable, and all my own necessities, and without a job that was almost impossible. luckily, I was eligible for work-study, but seventy dollars every two weeks is not mu

7、ch to live on. I was desperate and falling more deeply into debt every day. I hated asking for help from my parents, because I knew they really could not afford it, but I really had no other choice. My father agreed to give me a small loan and promised he would send money whenever he could to help m

8、e out. So far he has stuck to his promise, which is a big help to me. My mother, on the other hand, has been a little more practical by sending me food, medicine, and other necessities. She even bought me brand new snow tires for Christmas, because she knew I could never afford them. my parents help

9、 has relieved a little of my financial burden, but it will be a long while before I can splurge and by something for myself like I used to in high-school. I have been here for almost three months and every day has been a struggle for me. Even though my loans were approved, I still have to come up wi

10、th money to fix my car, which always seems to be breaking down, to pay my phone bill, which seems to get more expensive every money, and to buy food so I will not go hungry, if I miss a meal in my meal plan. Another struggle I have to look forward to in the future is paying off all the loans I have

11、just to go to this school. Sometimes I wonder if all this money borrowing and penny-pinching is worth it, but then I realize that without a good education I would have no hope of ever making enough money to survive in the real world. So in conclusion, I strongly believe that the financial pressures

12、I have experienced here at college will eventually make me a person that is more capable of balancing a budget and supporting a family in the future. REFLECTION UPON LIFE As we grow throughout our life, mentally and physically, so do our views about our life. When I was a young child, around five ye

13、ars old, I was in a major car accident. At the time of the accident, I did not realize the seriousness of it and how lucky I was to still be alive. As I look back and reflect upon what happened on the night of the accident, I now realize how lucky I, and the rest of my family members who were in the

14、 car, are to be alive today and without serious injuries from the accident. The day of the accident started out great. My older brother, Troy, and I had spent the night before at my half-sister JoAnns house, with her, my niece Heather, and JoAnns husband Gary. The next day we spent playing inside th

15、e house, because it was cold, windy, and rainy outside. As afternoon turned into early evening, JoAnn had us get a bath, and then change into our nice clothes. She told us we were going out and that where we were going was a surprise. The five of us climbed into the car, and old VW Bug, and we heade

16、d off for our surprise. It was still cold, windy, and pouring cats and dogs outside when we left. None of us wore seatbelts; back then seatbelts were not regulated by the government and people just did not wear them. Troy, Heather and I sat in the backseat together, fooling around as all little kids

17、 do in the car. The drive seemed endless, although it had really only been about twenty minutes, and the next thing I knew everything was chaos! Tires were squealing, glass was flying everywhere, and it sounded like there was noise all around us. Then it was totally quiet, except for the sound of th

18、e rain and the howling wind. Troy, Heather and I were all practically laying on top of one another. The three of us were crying and confused, not knowing what had happened. JoAnn and Gary were trying to calm us down and kept asking us if we were all right. Apparently the road was so slick that the c

19、ar lost control, on the hilly bend in the road, and flipped upside-down twice before slamming into a tree. Miraculously, none of us was severely injured, just a few cuts and bruises here and there. After that I only remember sitting there in the cold, damp, dark night waiting for Gary to get back to

20、 the car with some people to help us. We never got to the surprise that night, it turned out to be a surprise party for my older brother, Troy. But at least we were able to go home in one piece. When I think back to that cold, rainy night I cant help but wonder if someone or something was watching o

21、ver us that night. After my brother and I got home that night, I remember my parents let us stay up as long as we wanted to, we were allowed to have two bowls of ice cream if we wanted, and we even got carried up to bed that night. I guess my parents were realizing just how close they came to losing

22、 us that night. As I reflect upon the tragedy that could have happened on that fateful night, I realize how precious life is and that I must still be here on this earth for a reason. I may not know exactly what that reason is yet, but I hope to one day realize it and do my best to accomplish what Im

23、 here to do. As I search for the reason I am here today, I take each day as it comes and try to learn from the mistakes I have made thus far in my life. I treasure my family and friends, and hope and pray that we will share a loving, caring, and rewarding lifetime together. Things rarely go the way

24、I plan them to, but I take a deep breath, and try to laugh and make the best of it. Every time life throws me a curve ball, I do my best to hit a grand slam!EXPECTATIONS FOR COLLECE There are a substantial number of expectations we have when starting a new program or joining a specific event. One ex

25、ample is college. There are so many expectations that an individual has before entering the so-called college life. For example, I had an idea in my head that college would be extremely difficult and that I would achieve less than average grades. I proved myself wrong because I am doing fine in coll

26、ege and have an above-average grade point average, and I have no trouble understanding difficult material once it is explained to me. Since I am doing well in college, I realize that it is not as difficult as I expected. If I study a decent amount of material for a test, I can usually pass an exam w

27、ith an A or B, and I am not studying to the point where I have no social life either. When I came to college, I thought that no teacher curved grades, but they do-and I was surprised. That probably relates to why I received a B in Frontiers of Science. It is not just the curving of grades that make

28、it less difficult either. IT is the ability I have to retain information that has been learned in high school. Any above-average student with a high school diploma or even a GED can do well in college. IF it were not for the expectation of thinking college were so difficult, I probably would not hav

29、e had so much anxiety of fear about attending. Another aspect I found quite surprising was being able to maintain 3.0 grade point average. Within the first semester of my college life, I earned a 3.5 average. Since then it has remained pretty stable at least a 3.0 or better average. I thought maybe

30、it was because the semester was an easy one or because I was going as non-degree seeking at the time, but since then, I have remained an above-average student at college. It is not that difficult to maintain a high grade point average if an individual is willing to study and take the time to retain

31、what has learned. Once again this is without studying to the point of no return. It is not as difficult as I thought to maintain a decent grade point average. If it were not for the difficult material in college life, then there would be no challenge. Although some material can be quite difficult, i

32、t is not as hard as it looks, once explained by the instructor. When material is explained in detail by an instructor, it is easier to grasp the concept and to learn the material that is being taught. A student can learn the principles of algebra and apply them without any difficulty if taught thoroughly by an instructor. It was my expectation that an individual would receive a book, read it, and take a test without the instructor explaining anything in detail and only going over material that a student does not understand for himself. Of course, that was another myth; instructors teach the