Purpose Of Accomplishment

Natasha Rodas
ENG 121-71K
Personal Narrative Essay
24 October 2012

The Purpose of Accomplishment
“The greatest accomplishment is not, in never falling, but in rising again after you fall.”
− Vince Lombardi Jr.
The crowd starred patiently as the stage stood still in the warmsummer night. A sense of curiosity endured the most active state of minds within the attending hundreds, which stood outside on the school lawn. Julia, the young star of the show, stepped out on stage dressed in a bright, shimmering pink dress. She walked across the stage to take her place. Her eyes, as if they were diamonds, focused into the hidden lights that glistened behind the crowd. Shetook one last breath and then, with all her force, made a loud shriek! Timidly she then said, “I’m sorry” and proceeded to run towards the back of the stage. She reached for the door to her dressing trailer, opened it, and ran inside with a loud slam of the door. “This is what I get for practicing day in and day out?” she screamed, with tears rolling down her face. Her voice had become hoarse fromseveral hours of practice in the days preceding her school concert. She could not believe this had happened to her, of all people, someone so dedicated and responsible in accomplishing her dreams.
This is how Julia felt on the night of her first school concert. She returned that night and hid in her room until dinner time. I went up to her room and knocked at the door. “Can I come in?” I askedsoftly. She responded impatiently, “I don’t want to talk; go away please!” I opened the door slowly and looked down on the bed. She was lying on her stomach with her favorite pink pillow, forcefully mashed, between her folded arms. She had her face buried in the pillow and was sniffling. I walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge. I softly caressed her hair with tender strokes of a motherlyhand. She slowly turned over in a cuddled position and starred into my eyes. “Why mama, why did this have to happen to me? What is the point in practicing, if it only hurts your performance in the end?” she stated unhappily. I looked down at her and told her to shush. I told her to close her eyes and rest a while. I laid down on the bed beside her, and we fell asleep rapidly.
The next day, weawoke to the warm sunlight that shined on our faces from the window. Julia rolled over and gave me a hug and a soft kiss on the cheek. “I love you.” she stated affectionately, with a big smile on her face. I asked her if she felt better about what happened at her concert the night before. She stated that she was still disappointed, but she was not going to give up. We talked about how she would get towhere she wanted to be to reach her accomplishments. She always wanted to be a skilled singer. I tried to encourage her in our conversation and often assured her that she could do whatever she set her mind to. She expressed several times that she did not think that anyone would care to hear her next time because of what had happened recently. I assured her that she could prove herself to anyoneas long as she had the patience and perseverance to control the situation. Finally, she insisted that she would try to practice her song patiently until her voice came back to normal.
Days went by, and Julia had regained her voice. She was singing, happily, throughout the whole house and in the backyard for hours on end. She came home from school one day and frantically came running in thekitchen. I asked her, “What is all the commotion about?” She excitedly responded, “The school will have another concert tomorrow!” Twirling round and round the kitchen table, she sang her song that she had been practicing. She was extremely thrilled about performing in the school concert again. Confident and with much enthusiasm, she ran to her room to get her clothes ready for the concert that was to...