The Globetrotters

When I was assigned this task of explaining the most unbelievable thing that has ever occurred in my life, I got to thinking that not really anything extremely insane has happened to me. On top of that, my teacher compared whatever event chosen was to stand out almost like the story of Life of PI. I was stumped, and so I thought of other less unbelievable events in my life, such as vacations and graduations, but even then they seemed dull. Then I remembered the time my parents took my siblings and me to watch the Harlem Globetrotters perform when I was about eight or nine. They were a group of extremely talented and disciplined basketball players. They would always go up against like a regular team who wouldn’t really try, just for amusement, like a show. Anyway, the drive there was only about twenty minutes. We arrived there, purchased food, drinks, and a basketball for me, then took our seats. When the game was about midway through the second quarter, one of the players on the Harlem Globetrotters called to me and told me to get on the court with him. Naturally being shy as a kid, I kind of looked away to my mom who then encouraged me to go with him. Hesitantly I stood up and walked onto the court with him. While the rest of the players were on the other half playing, we had this half to ourselves and he got an extra ball and instructed me to help his team out by making a shot a little short of the three point line. I took aim and shot, but it hit the rim and fell short. He grabbed both my arms and shook me screaming, “Are you trying to make us lose!” I had to take another shot and this time I made it. A big sigh of relief came over me and then the rest of the team came over and presented me with a shirt which was signed by all of them. They then made me do this crazy walk with them up and down the court which was hilarious. His teammate said I’m not allowed to be on the court be he said that I was his son and I looked just like him. This of course didn’t make any sense because he was African American. This was the most unexpected moment in my life I believe, and I received a very nice souvenir out of it.  

The Game

There was only five seconds left on the game clock, and so the intensity rose in the building as our basketball team was down by two points. One could feel the shuddering silence set by the audience as they watched our attempt to win. The inbounds play chosen by the coach was a double screen in which number eight would be assured an open shooting spot. As the inbounds passer, I slapped the ball in order to allow a synchronization of movement at the start of the play. It worked marvelously, as number eight was open and without hesitation, I passed it to him. The ball soared across the court and was placed almost perfectly in his hands. Already in his shooting position and wide open beyond the three point arc, he jumped and shot the ball. It seemed as if it traveled through the air in slow motion as all gazed in curiosity. The ball swooshed in the net in a split second, our entire team stormed the court toward number eight. I could not believe it, we had won. We pulled through the moment of uncertainty and anticipated grief. Our bench charged off the sidelines and tacked us in celebration of what they ahd just witnessed.

The Retake

I couldn’t believe it, there was no way I was going to take it again. I thought those days were over…are they seriously making me doing it again? I have to do it then? These were the thoughts spinning through my head continuously when I found out I had to take the SATs again. I had already taken it twice and that doesn’t include the PAST and the PLAN. I despise these kinds of tests because they stress me out insanely and I thought I had been finished with them. I would have to study and properly prepare for it again, then drive to Princeton, New Jersey, arrive by ten o’clock, take the test by myself with just the supervisor, and it had to be exactly on the day after Christmas! I honestly couldn’t even believe what I was hearing as my dad was explained it to me. It seemed like just a waste of my already short Christmas break. But the sad truth was that I had no other option because of the two times I took the test, my scores differed by more than 500, so I automatically had to retake it, or the higher scores would not count. I was literally speechless as I had been nominated a national merit semifinalist. I thought they would have taken that into account but there was no way out, it had to be done.

College Search

One of the dilemmas I encountered during this year was deciding where to apply to college, as I hadn’t given the future part of my life much thought. Sure, most of my family attended the University of Delaware, but that doesn’t enclose or even narrow my decision. But as the deadline for colleges rapidly approached my unprepared state, I realized the urgent need for me to not procrastinate any longer. I figured that taking into account my grades and high phase classes; I should have a widened range of options laid out waiting to be discovered. I knew I wanted a university excelling in chemistry, geometry, and biology, as I also excelled in these in school. I researched online for careers which included these subjects and found that biomedical engineering fit the criteria with fairly high starting salary. I searched for colleges offering this major and was eventually able to narrow the numerous options to the University of Delaware, Arcadia University, and the University of Arizona. These are all great colleges offering the opportunity for me to excel, so I was satisfied in my decision although it would still be necessary to break down the list to just one. This is a task for me later down the road as I await the letters of acceptance. Arcadia is a small university about an hour and a half away, Arizona is incredibly far away and a huge university and Delaware is 20 minutes away and a medium sized campus. I am still not exactly sure about which option would best suit my abilities.