Stepping out of the Shadow - Creative Sample

“Aren’t you Lilah Rossi’s sister?” is what I would hear almost every day throughout my freshman year. “Nope, never heard of her.” is what I wanted to reply, but, in reality, Lilah is my sister, older than me by four years and I hated to admit it. My sister was not a person to be ashamed of knowing; in fact she was just the opposite. My sister could always see her name on the honors list, win the toughest tennis matches, march on a field while playing her clarinet without missing a step, and never lose her concentration while acting on stage. To top it all off, teachers would approach me with a sparkle in their eye to see if I was aiming to be President of National Honor Society like Lilah. No one could ever wonder why she won “Best All Around.”
Not surprisingly, I felt second rate when I went to high school. Being able to read fluently by preschool and having everything came easy to me in elementary school where I was the only Rossi child helped put me into all Honors classes when I transferred to Malden High. Seeing my sister succeed in school made my mom set the bar high when it was time for my high school career to start. I started to feel the pressure when I came into school when teachers would jokingly tell me they hoped I was as smart as my sister. I was positive that I was going to fail at this expectation. Instead of trying hard in school, I slacked. You would see me in the back of the classroom, asleep on the desk, only waking up to the vibration of my phone. When I received my almost-failing grades, my stomach would drop, then I would remember my motto “I would have done better if I tried.”
This same attitude carried on to my home life. My mother always denied the fact that my over achieving sister was the favorite. So avoiding the awkward conversation, I walked out of my front door and ran to the comfort of my friends. During the rarities where I was home, people yelling and doors slamming was the soundtrack of my household. Holding a bottle of black hair dye in my hand, I could hear people wondering why I would get rid of the “beautiful blonde hair” that Lilah and I shared. If people didn’t see me in a different way, I was going to force them to.
Two years later, I started to work at “Dance with Brigitte”, a dance studio in Malden where I was a teacher to young children. To these one and two year olds, I was Miss Stephanie, the best tower builder, the one with the cool pink hair, and the one who could ease their anxiety about coming to class. Looking at them, I saw that my future was to work with kids. As we were jumping through hula-hoops, I realized that I had been hurting only myself by not trying in school and saw that my dreams would never become a reality if I did not apply myself. Now, paying attention in class and seeing my own name on the Honor Roll list was made possible by keeping the smiles of these kids in my mind. I forgot all about the unsaid competition with my sister and focused on my own success in school and doing what made me happy with myself.
Going into my senior year at Malden High School, I now see the sister who I once resented as one of my role models. I look up to her and see a smart, strong woman, but one who I can not compare myself to. I went on a journey and reached my own means of success. By stepping out of the shadow that my sister and everyone else cast upon me, I found a true happiness and confidence in myself that can not be compared to that of others.