Stars inspired my college application essay.

Janis asked me to post this here, and I am so glad to be doing it...
I am now a senior in high school, and I was in a production of Stars last spring.
One of the prompts for a college application essay said, "Describe a risk you have taken and how it is significant in your life." or something to that extent.
I have agreed to post this because it is just a little something to show how much Stars changed my life, as crazy as that sounds!
One college wanted no more than 500 words and the others wanted no more than 700. so obviously, this is not the one I submitted. This is a more developed version. I hope I did it some justice, and expressed just exactly how this one line made me realize the change I could create in my life...
Well, here it is! PS It's really long...

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The lights are blinding and all I can see is my script, which is sitting on my lap as I lounge cross legged on stage left. I listen as my scene partner, my ‘step-brother’, delivers his lines directly from his script. On this warm spring 2008 day at rehearsal, I am in no particular mood what-so-ever. My mind does not wander, nor is it directly focused on the task at hand. All at once that changes, as I comprehend some of the words that ‘Anthony’ has just said. “…Did you know that the reason people are afraid of heights is not because they’re afraid of falling? What they’re really afraid of is their own desire to jump and their own inability to curb that desire.” I look up suddenly from my script, directly at him, in disbelief. The words had come from his mouth, but I knew they were not his. Still, I search his face for an explanation for why he had said this. The line was added to the dialogue by Janis Craft, the playwright of The Sound of Stars Reflecting. So he continued reading, because those words did not affect him, or anyone else for that matter, as much as it did me. The line lingered in my mind.

As a child, I was quite and dull. I was nice, but painfully shy. I was never adventurous and risky, or unafraid like most kids are. I was not a rambunctious ball of fire that many parents dread dealing with. I had such a mature understanding for the world that it got in the way of me allowing myself to be a child and I was scared of trying anything new... For as long as I can remember, I wouldn’t climb. All of my friends climbed trees, and my sister climbed our swing set. I waited patiently on the ground, looking towards the sky my peers ascended into. When I was thirteen, I was told that I had a mild case of acrophobia – the fear heights. I was given no reason why I might have developed this fear, and I was led to believe it was just because I had never literally been up high ever in my life. My doctor said that since it was a mild case I could get over it, slowly but surely, if I tried. At the time I did not comprehend my situation because my fear did not affect my daily life. I put the thought to the back of my mind. But things changed as I entered high school. I ran Cross Country for the first time during my freshmen year. Running like that, with a team and with a goal, was something I had never come close to ever experiencing before. Running became a part of me, and taught me so much. Every single run, every single workout was a challenge. Once I was able to wrap my mind around the fact that every day I accomplished something great, I was able to do things that I never would have imagined myself doing when I was younger. It was because I accepted challenge.

My summer started quickly after that play production in April 2008. I spent most of that summer before my senior year with my scene partner (who, by then, had become one of my greatest friends). He was all about challenges and he was adventurous, fun, and not afraid. I watched him climb loads of things and I felt inspired to do something he did. I knew I wasn’t ready to climb, so I jumped. I jumped a fence to my friend’s backyard. I jumped a flight of stairs. I jumped off the pool deck in his backyard. I started with the smaller things and I worked slowly at overcoming my fear and conquering this challenge I had set up for myself. Jumping was the first part of my challenge, climbing was the next. I was hesitant to do that, and I waited as long as possible. The time came though, as I knew it would, on the 23rd of August, 2008, that day after I turned 17, the last night of summer.

I scaled a concession stand building at Ehlert Park. He climbed up first, and looked down to me.

I had to think about every single movement. I stepped up onto the garbage can; my head felt heavy. I lifted myself onto the vending machine; my legs felt weak. But I was going to do this. I wanted to overcome my fear and I wanted to be accomplished. I almost spoke aloud, “Come on Ally, it’s not that difficult. Seriously, just don’t think about it… Come on.” He grabbed my arms and lifted me up as I used my legs to push myself up onto the roof of the building. I was breathless. I looked around me at the light up and empty baseball field, at the electrical lines that were inches from me, at the winding path that I had traveled on to get there, and at my friend, who was smiling at me and looking around too. I was up, off the ground. I was in the sky. And here, my friend was with me. I felt this challenge had meant the most to me than any other day to day work out, no matter how difficult it had been. I changed as a person by reaching to overcome my fear. I became more adventurous and willing to work hard at something.

I like to think that that event helped to make me who I am today. I find challenging myself the best thing to do when I need to get something finished. Worrying, or thinking about failing never puts a positive influence on me to do something. But a challenge makes me perform very well in difficult situations. I feel that I am ready for college and whatever comes along with it because of that and I feel that I will do well in college because of this mentality.