Essay #1

Prompt: Write about something that has happened to you that would fit the following title: “Invincible”.

I stared at my classmates, who were all looking at me expectantly. My heart pounded so loudly I felt sure that everyone within ten miles could hear it. For a second, I forgot everything I was supposed to say. Then it all came rushing back… and I began.

   When I was in 6th grade, I had an assignment called the Poetry Recite Project. I had to select a piece of poetry, research it, and recite it in front of the entire class. I had chosen an excerpt of Hamlet: Shakespeare’s most famous monologue, beginning with “To Be or Not To Be.” I completed every part of the assignment and turned it in, aware only in the back of my head that the impending disaster that was the day of my presentation was growing closer. When it finally happened, I felt as if I had not butterflies in my stomach but a swirling tornado of thoughts and worries. I managed to gather up the courage to begin and pretended I was Hamlet for the duration of the monologue, letting my mind go blank. When I finished, I had no idea how I had done- if I had used enough gestures, if I had achieved the desired amount of emotion in my voice, if I had spoken too quickly. The entire room was silent. I felt a rush of panic. What did they think? The students were supposed to clap after each presentation, and they had done it after all of the other presentations. Had I done something terribly wrong? Finally, someone started clapping, and the rest of my classmates joined. Then my teacher’s voice rung out over the noise. “Stand up, everyone! That deserved a standing ovation!” Everyone stood up. I grinned, and at that moment, I felt invincible.

   After my standing ovation in the Poetry Recite project, I became much better at presentations. Speaking aloud in class, which I had previously dreaded, became second nature. I even started looking forward to presentations on topics I was passionate about. Over the next year, my presentation skills improved greatly.  In Shakespeare Camp, a camp I do every summer where campers perform a Shakespeare play for their parents at the end of two weeks, I started trying out for larger parts. The realization that I did so well on my recitation project gave me the confidence to act without as much anxiety, and without being afraid that I would fail and ruin the entire play.

My Poetry Recite Project, just a small school assignment in many to come, was much more important than I thought it would be. It gave me lasting confidence that continued throughout the rest of my middle school experience. Although I was nervous, I realized that even small things can make a person invincible, whether for a moment or for years to follow.