<ol>
<li>I got straight A's all of high school UNTIL junior years (in which i had 4 difficult APs)</li>
<li>I didn't take the APs as seriously because I got distracted from school; I had my first relationship. I was extremely naive about it. I got into this mindset that everything would be okay even if i didnt attend a great college because I had her. I felt that family/love was all that was important and that nothing else mattered as much. I saw her as "the one" and I put in way too much effort to keep it together. I thought I'd end up marrying her. I found out she smoked pot and I spent hours trying to convince her to stop instead of studying and doing my work. She ended up cheating. But when I got upset about it, she told me that she had limited time left to live (she had something wrong with her appendix that made her throw up and stuff), and I believed it and I got all concerned and forgave the cheating. Around this time my grandma got a stroke and was hospitalized. She was being taken care of and all but she was still sick. I didn't worry about it nearly as much as I should have. I prayed and all, but at the back of my mind the relationship was a pressing issue. The girl ended up complaining about 'commitment phobia' so i ended up breaking up with her. my grades instantly improved to nearly straight A's. a little while later, my grandma died though. </li>
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<p>from this entire experience, I've learned that I shouldnt waste my time on trivial matters like i did. i shoudl have focused more on academics and school work rather than being a naive idiot. more importantly i should have been a better grandson. im guilty of this. </p>
<p>that's pretty much my idea. i was going to try to emphasize on the self analysis and how much i learned from this entire experience. how much i changed. how much more cautious ive become when trusting people. how much more academically oriented ive become again. how much more family oriented ive become. </p>
<p>im kind of hesitant about writing about this stuff because this is a little too personal. the incident with my grandma is very personal to me. and i wouldnt ever have the courage to show this to my parents. ever.</p>
<p>i know my naivety sounds extremely stupid. i really do. i don't know how else to convey that im not that stupid anymore.</p>
<p>I’m going to disagree. You CAN write about failure, but only if it somehow made you stronger. I’m writing about how I failed to stand up to verbal and emotional abuse from my adoptive parents, but how it made me strive to branch out and be a better person myself so as to not follow in their footsteps.</p>
<p>I don’t know if it’s the best, but I can certainly write about it.</p>
<p>Just don’t make it a sob story and you should be fine. Everybody writes a sob story. Be unique. In mine, I refer to myself as Evel Knievel in the first sentence. What’s your hook?</p>
<p>@Serentic I was thinking of maybe starting off a little comedic? I was gonna start out with “I’ve never been much of a ladies’ man.” and then go on to talk about the relationship and how it messed me up but made me stronger.</p>
<p>@nyctempo & @ Jpansa
What if I spent a good portion of the essay talking about how i’ve become wider and less naive and more oriented with family? stronger and less stupid in that sense?</p>
<p>I think you’ve received sound advice on this thread already.</p>
<p>An entire essay devoted to excuses (sorry to make it sound bad, but that is essentially what you’d be writing) is not the most optimal way to spend one of your only chances to “give a personality” to your application, save for the supplement essay(s).</p>
<p>If I were in your position, I’d ask my guidance counselor to explain the situation.</p>
<p>“Consider using this failure in a brief part of another essay.”</p>
<p>^Agreed.</p>
<p>You need to address it somehow, since something that glaring would not be overlooked, but devoting an entire essay to explaining what you can say in two sentences max? No, no, no. Unless your situation is so completely unique that it defines who you are, there’s no need. And bad break-ups and sick elderly family members (sorry about your loss, though) are anything but unique.</p>
<p>One line, two lines max on this issue and move on with the essay.</p>
<p>You all are very right. No point in putting an entire essay to this. Should I write about it in the explanation/comments section on the application?</p>
<p>I woudln’t write an entire essay about it. I think putting it in the explanation section or having a GC write about it would be best. The health of a family member affecting grades is usually more acceptable than girl problems. Keep that in mind.</p>