For A Reason by Haidyn

For A Reason by Haidyn - January 2026 Scholarship Essay

In January of 2025, my father was diagnosed with a rare bone cancer called chordoma. He went through doctor visits, surgeries, recovery, and radiation treatment in Kansas City, about 4 hours away from where we live. The full treatment for his disease stretched through till June, and it was the most difficult time of my life as the daughter of a person with cancer. I learned how meaningful quality time, asking for help, and the importance of hobbies are from my experience of being a child to a parent with cancer.
I never understood the importance of quality time as much as I did until I didn’t know if my dad would be alive the next day. Through the power of worry and anxiety, I wondered during my dad’s surgeries if he would come back out. I thought of growing up with him teaching me video games, us watching his favorite movies together, me hugging him when I was upset, and having the same humor. The day before his main surgery, my dad had taken me to see the new Thunderbolts movie, and during that I wondered if this would be the last movie we would ever watch together. There were a lot of feelings that I went through during his surgeries and recovery time. I learned during my reflection time that I wished I had spent more time with my dad, instead of being alone in my room. Thankfully, he did come out from the operating room every time, and I continue to make new memories with my dad. I learned throughout this stressful time that I need to prioritize quality time with my loved ones, because you never know when they might not come back.
As well as learning the importance of quality time with loved ones, I learned the importance of admitting vulnerability. I have always been the daughter who my parents never had to worry about. I suppressed my feelings from never wanting to bother others with my emotions. When my mother told me that my father had cancer, I did not cry. I just stared at the wall and continued with my life. I know that I felt more than I let on, but I relied on being alone and withdrawing my emotions in order to cope with the situation. However, I had friends and family members who would not take this response as an answer. I had many people continue to ask how I was feeling, and how I was doing with everything. Even if I did not respond truthfully to their questions, it was nice to know that people cared about me and tried to help. Looking back, I now understand how helpful it would have been if I had asked for help or received the help I had been offered. I know now that asking for help is not a form of weakness, but it is a form of strength for admitting that something is wrong.
Through me putting myself in my room to deal with my emotions alone, I turned to my academics as a distraction method. I would come home from school everyday and spend time on homework, notes, studying, and any other thing to do with school until it was dinner and bed time. I became obsessed with my schoolwork, and I had plenty to distract myself with it. I was taking 3 AP classes, one college class, 2 online classes, and 2 electives that kept me busy. From this experience, I ended the year with a 4.3 GPA and a 4 or 5 on all of my AP exams. It was impressive that I was able to do this with all that had happened to me, but this obsession led to negative effects as well. I struggled in doing hobbies during this time and the months that followed my dad’s treatment because I felt useless if I was not doing any school work. I would have to force myself to watch tv or do any of the hobbies I used to love doing. It has taken me a long time to overcome my coping method of being constantly in a school-mindset, but I have learned that hobbies are important in a person’s life. I now enjoy watching movies and tv shows that I have always wanted to watch, and I read and paint with any extra time I have. Making hobbies a priority has led my life to be a lot more interesting and entertaining, and I am glad that I went through the stressful experience in order to realize that a work-life balance is necessary.
In June of 2025, my dad got to come home from his month-long radiation treatment. It was 6 months of stress, worry, loneliness, anxiety, and hopelessness. However, I learned many things that will follow me into college, future career, and family. I learned that quality time is important to prioritize with those you love because you never know when you won’t see them again. I learned that it is okay to ask for help, and it makes it easier to move forward from your feelings. I learned that hobbies are important to balance my life, and that life isn’t all about succeeding in school. Finally, I learned that challenging times can have positive outcomes, and God always puts us through these situations for a reason.