Escaping the Cycle by Sienna

Escaping the Cycle by Sienna - October 2026 Scholarship Essay

Four calendars spread across my floor. It seems daunting, thinking back. The next four months consist of my choices. What will I do with this time? How will I ensure each day doesn’t mindlessly pass by?

Goals keep me going. They allow me to look forward to something, to continue reaching for something. Without goals, I fall back into the cycle. Go to school, do homework, doom scroll, go to bed. Over and over. For 180 days I am trapped in this cycle. How do I escape?

A goal.

A half marathon.

A distance I have never previously run.

I begin marking the four calendars with a newly invented training plan, each week containing six days of intensive strength and cardio training, running up to 40 miles per week.

All the time I had previously spent thinking about what I should be doing and not following through was now consumed by training.

And I loved it.

Each day, I woke up more energized and with a newfound sense of excitement. I had something to work towards. I had a purpose.

Eventually, the end of March rolled around, and I was onto the last week planned out on my paper calendar. The half marathon was in a few days, and I was ready. I was determined and purposeful with my habits for months, and now it was time to prove to myself that I was capable of enduring something my body had never previously experienced.

I came home with two medals after my half marathon.

The first one was a participation medal.

Everyone got one of these, and it reminded me that everyone there had a goal. To work towards something that didn’t seem attainable was what we were made to do. Set goals that seem so far out of reach, that seem invented from your imagination, because your imagination is your dreams. Your imagination is what you aspire to achieve.

The second medal I received was for placing second in my age group.

This one surprised me at first. But after hanging it up in my bedroom, I realized that it was a fraction of my dream. My imagination had created scenarios where I received awards for first and second place. To think is to manifest. To speak your dreams into reality is to work towards a goal. To work towards a goal is to prove to yourself that you are capable of more than your mind first allows you to recognize.