I was a kid without a cause. School was something I attended, but it did not challenge me. Consequently, I lost interest and performed poorly. My grandmother had high hopes and dreams of me leading a successful life. I made the effort to fulfill her wishes, but I fell short. Maybe her unconditional love was my excuse for not applying myself.
             May 24, 2000, is a day I will always remember. I came home to an empty house greeted only by my cat, Mix. The phone rang and my mom was on the line telling me that my grandma had passed away that morning. I was upset, but I was okay. It was not until I got to my room that I fully understood what the news meant. Whenever I visited my grandma's house, she would make all the madness in my life seem like just a memory. It was then that I realized that now all I would have are my memories of her. So sitting in my room at that moment, I began to mourn, and I felt anger, grief and regret to the point where my emotions could only be expressed in tears. On the day of her funeral, I made a promise to my grandma and to myself that I would not let all her support, kindness and nurturing go to waste. I vowed to apply myself in school and to lead a successful life. Fortunately my transition from junior high to high school provided me with the challenges and opportunities I needed to turn things around.
             My acceptance to the West Philadelphia High School Auto Academy was the first step towards making my grandma proud and for me to develop my suppressed abilities. As a freshman, I tried hard in math and excelled in Algebra I. My success gave me the confidence to join the Electric Vehicle Team where I worked as the web designer, and after working with the computers for so long I became somewhat skilled in fixing as well. My freshman year I won Student of the Year Award, an Award giving to the Student who showed great leadership skills, team work ethics and of coarse academic achievement.
             ...