Slowly walking towards the dining room, the man used his fingers to gently graze the walls of the home he had lived in for over 50 years, feeling the creases in the wallpaper and the chips in the door trim as he made his progress towards the table. Each creak of the floor was a note in a melody he knew by heart. At last in his chair, his fingers quickly and expertly felt the surfaces in front of him, locating his coffee cup, the edges of his plate, and eventually the soft edges of the folded newspaper. Pulling the newspaper towards himself he lifts it towards his face in a movement honed from years of habit only to remember that the type is mostly obscured now in dark shadows, as if the ink has bloomed across the papers. Sniffing the dry feathery pages, he sighs, replaces it on the table, and waits for his wife to join him so that she can be his eyes and read the paper aloud to him. This man is my grandfather who lost his vision swiftly and mysteriously when I was ten years old. Later it was discovered that a previously undiagnosed rare condition that damaged his optic nerve was the cause of his world becoming increasingly dark and shadowed. As an esteemed psychiatrist, his world was forever changed by his loss of sight and so was mine. I watched him as he gradually lost his ability to read his medical journals, walk independently down a street, and eventually be able to distinguish my features from those of my siblings. I felt helpless in my inability to help him navigate his new reality and wished that I had a cure for him. Those feelings of wishing to help my grandfather and knowing that there was nothing I could do, grew into my drive to help others that could benefit from my efforts. I began seeking out community service opportunities where I felt my time could help others live better lives. I spent a summer volunteering at Kootenai Health, tutored children in math, and worked with young adults with special needs among other community service projects. Eventually, I accepted a position as Lieutenant Governor of Division 48 of the Pacific Northwest Key Club District. During my term, I took my small division with small clubs and transformed it to be a community within itself for all the members to be able to work together for large scale service projects such as running a kids fun area during Taste of Coeur D'Alene. I had many late nights working to ensure that every member does not feel alone and is cared for because to spread care in our community must start with ensuring members feel cared for themselves. The happiness I get from helping others has led me to the decision to make that a part of my future career goals. Becoming a physician and helping heal and improve the lives of patients would bring me incredible personal satisfaction. Knowing I would be helping others feel better and living healthier and longer lives, would be the best career choice I can imagine. Although I can’t heal my own grandfather, I would be honored to follow in his footsteps in the medical field and allow him to show me the way one more time. To reach these goals I know I will have to put the same hard work, focus, and dedication to academics as I have done in my high school career that allowed me to achieve my previous goal of valedictorian of my graduating class.