<p>I am writing my common app short answer. Can someone edit/peer review it for me? Thanks!!</p>
<p>In the eighth grade, I realized that I had a gift. According to my mother, the gift was not as impressive as I believed it to be; but it was what motivated me to join the speech and debate team. Acknowledging my obnoxiously loud speaking volume, I devoted wearisome nights and weekends analyzing research and cultivating ideas on the spot. Over the past three years, debate has given me moments of heartbreak, and moments of pure appreciation, it has opened my mind to different concepts and ideas unfamiliar to my own. Debate is an activity that cannot always be won and is more likely to be lost, but what I am going to take away from it at the end of this year are lifelong friendships, the ability to maintain poise under pressure, and most importantly, self-confidence. For some, public speaking is something to dread and not often exercised, but for me, it is another Saturday doing what I love.</p>