Flip Flops: College Admission Essay Sample

“Don’t turn the flip flop upside down!” I heard my grandmother let out a screech, that truly, could have awoken the dead had my mother not briskly calmed her down. Weird, I thought to myself. It was only a brown leather flip flop that my brother had unwittingly laid upside down on the soft carpet thickened with a decade’s dust. Why was she so enraged by something that was, well, extremely insignificant?

This was not the first time that my grandmother had allowed a superstition to be the cause of her distress. In fact, I can recall numerous superstitious beliefs that my grandmother adhered to– leaving the scissors open brings bad luck, throwing grains of salt over the shoulders leads to great cooking, knocking on wood protects from misfortune, and more. Beyond amusing to think of now, these superstitions had only prompted blank expressions and enlisted fear throughout my childhood.

For the majority of my childhood, I was raised by three guardians–my father, mother, and grandmother. My grandmother, however, carried out what seemed to be the most crucial role of the family. Despite the peculiarity of many of her requests, the Egyptian tradition of respecting the elderly regardless was to be carried out. Her requests were fulfilled, and inevitably, her beliefs were present in my family. In fact, I had also once ensured that every pair of flip flops was not to be turned upside down. I put in optimum effort to avoid “upsetting the holy spirits” which “brought misfortune”. The beliefs that my grandmother had offered were the only ones I had been exposed to in such a closed community. Perhaps, having been exposed to only these beliefs, I thought to myself, this must be true. However, to my surprise, the superstitions that I had once held so firmly to, were essentially revealed to be false. Frankly, following through with these engraved beliefs did not bring about any sacred outcomes. Placing the flip flops in an upside position certainly did not intervene with my health or happiness.

Though superstitions were formerly prominent in my family, and still are in a plentiful of families in my home country Egypt, they no longer constitute any aspect of the lifestyles of my family members, myself included. That is, following the heart-rending death of my grandmother, my father decided to accept a job offer in the Saudi Arabian oil company, Aramco. The company was located within an explicitly international, diverse community.

My parents, brother, and I had fortunately been exposed to various cultures. We became friends with Buddhists, Hindus, Christians, and Jews. We were invited to celebrate Vesak, Diwali, Christmas, Hanukkah, and more. We had even, for the first time, come across individuals who did not believe in any absolute, divine ruler. Though we all experienced a critical transitional period, we ultimately adapted to the varying beliefs that each individual we met had exemplified. Contrary to the immediate adoption of my grandmother’s superstitious beliefs, we learned to accept and respect other beliefs without altering our own set of morals or opinions.

Transitioning from an enclosed community in Egypt and an internationalized community in Aramco has undoubtedly influenced my character today. I have developed a global mindset and gained the ability to assess situations through distinct perspectives, and value different opinions and approaches. Turning the flip-flops upside down surely did not hinder my progression in the past years, and I have come to the realization that no other external force can possibly interfere with the power that I possess to change my own future and reach success. It is all under my control? not that of the flip flops.