A New Kind of Shoes by Lila

A New Kind of Shoes by Lila - January 2026 Scholarship Essay

Since I was young, I have poured my heart into anything I do. At one time, that happened to be volleyball. I spent my summers in the gym, on the court, and at strength and conditioning in order to achieve my dream of one day playing in college. So, when I was cut from the team my sophomore year, I was devastated. I spent weeks reflecting on where I went wrong, and spent months after that too ashamed to look my old coaches in the eye. However, once I realized that one setback didn't define me, I decided to push myself in a new way.

With no experience, I decided I would make the dance team. I lacked any training, so I spent months learning and growing in any way I could. I stretched daily, took dance classes from YouTube instructors, and practiced tirelessly in my room. When tryouts came around, I made the team.

However, my hard work didn't stop with seeing my name on that list. I continued to pour all of my passion and work ethic into each practice and every performance. Through dance, I discovered something volleyball had taken from me long before I was cut. Confidence. Trading my court shoes for jazz shoes forced me outside of the box I had drawn around myself. By the end of the season, I was recognized with awards for both Best Flexibility and Best Technique. The recognition didn't just celebrate my growth as a dancer, but my newfound strength to persevere through hurt and adversity with resilience. This experience taught me that failure and growth from that failure are necessary in order to find true strength.