I’ve been told many times when playing golf that missed hits are just practice swings. I was not young when I finally began to take up golfing, and it did not come easy for me. I played many other sports, some as early as 3 years old, but golf certainly was the most challenging for me. Sure, I had played on putt putt courses countless times growing up, as it was an activity my parents and grandparents enjoyed with me as a family. But it was on an actual 18 hole course that I began to learn what patience and discipline actually meant. It’s far easier with a poor hit to just want to throw the club, which I saw a few men do here and there, and less easy to focus on form and follow through and wait for that perfect hit. I began to play golf out of the need to find some peace in my life and create an outlet for my grief. My maternal grandmother had been diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian cancer, and after years of her courageous battle, she eventually passed, at the young age of 60. My grandmother and I were extremely close and she was a tremendous influence in my life. I struggled mentally after her passing, and after considering taking my own life to end the pain, I decided to forge a new path in my life. I focused more of my time into volunteer work and poured my heart into finding something that would allow me to clear my mind and begin to ease my sadness. That’s when I found golf. Though I will never be league worthy or win any awards, I found a wonderful peace being outside with my own thoughts. There I gave much thought to a promise I made to my grandmother and it is a promise I intend to keep. In the fall, I will be attending The University of Mount Union for biochemistry, specializing in viral science, so that I may obtain a career in a research lab. I intend to find better treatments and cures for diseases, such as cancer and many others, that at the present time do not have one. It is my intention to give back to our society and make a true difference in this world. In a lab, much like in my golf swing, it will take extreme patience to find just the right combination that creates a success story. In every sport I play, my education, my career path, and in my life in general: failure is not a word in my vocabulary, I may just find a million ways that do not work. "The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time." —Thomas Edison.