Tufts Blogs

For my debut blog, I put myself in the shoes of thousands of Tufts applicants and took a crack at one of our supplement questions.  I’ll admit it was tough (but not impossible) to “Let My Life Speak” in 250 words or less but: I did it!  And so can you.  Here’s a glimpse of why I am the way I am:

My parents raised three bar babies (picture car seats next to pints) who know all the words to “Give Ireland Back to the Irish,” speak too loudly and too often, and pace incessantly on individual tracks in the kitchen that somehow never collide.  They made us skeptics, liberals, and part-time Catholics.  They gave us a love of New York, a deep pride in family, and a very broad outlook.  It was just like the Long Island/New Jersey upbringing that shaped their youth, except it took place in Pennsyltucky: a portion of PA that feels more Deep-South than Mid-Atlantic.  Conservative, rural, and white, my corner of the boonies is the Snack Food Capital of the World, adjacent to 2011’s “Poorest City in America,” and home to both the KKK and the Amish.  In my day, I assisted with a 4am milking, castrated a sheep, survived Republican landslides, and knew the Future Farmers of America Creed by heart (“I believe in the future of agriculture…”).  While charmingly quirky at times, it also felt stifling and backwards and narrow.  I hated it, and even tried to ship off to boarding school.  But while it often fell victim to my youthful resentment, I learned better.  I saw the value in an environment that keeps you in check and doesn't let you think too highly of yourself.   It gave me perspective, as well as authenticity and honesty.  Without Pennsyltucky, I’d be different.  Probably more obnoxious, maybe a bit pretentious.  And I wouldn't like that at all.   (251… close enough, right?)