I was looking through some old files the other day and stumbled upon this ghost-written college application personal essay from 10 years ago—by the sand as told to the water.

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The first thing you should know about me is that I’m adopted. Otherwise, I’m pretty much like everybody else, no better or worse. I’ve known about it all of my life and it’s never been a big deal. And yet it’s always there.

Every now and then, I think about my life if my parents didn’t adopt me. I wonder if I’d be any different. I wonder where I’d be living, who I’d be hanging out with, if things would be any easier or more difficult. Then I stop thinking about it because it’s not like it’s going to change anything.

Not that I’d want anything to change. I am who I am. I’ve read about the whole nature vs. nurture thing and I think I’m lucky to have had both. I remember one time when I was a little kid, I was with my mom in some store and a lady asked me, “Where did you get your beautiful blonde hair from?” And I said, “Joplin, Missouri!” My dad always tells me that story because he likes to take credit for my sense of humor.

And I’m okay with that. I know I’m lucky to have parents and a younger brother who love me and, to tell you the truth, I think it may be a little strange being away from them when I go to college next year. But I also know that this is what’s next on the way to becoming the independent adult I want to become.

I want what most everyone wants out of life. I want to work hard and be successful. I want to eventually fall in love, marry and have a family of my own. I want to be happy. My dad always tells me that I can be successful at anything I put my mind to because I can be very determined.

Honestly, I would like to major in business because I really like money. However, there are so many other things that I’m curious about. And it’s those things that I usually wind up loving the most. Like computers. Believe it or not, I always disliked computers when I was younger, mainly because I didn’t know how to use them.

My dad would sit with me for hours and we’d go over everything slowly and I’d complain until finally one day, it just clicked in for me. Now I’ve become the family computer geek (I set up our wireless home network), which my dad finds annoying, although not so much. I recently applied for a job at the Apple Store, but they told me I was too young and should come back when I was in college. I told them that I definitely would.

The last thing you should know about me is that this will be the first time I’ll be leaving home. I’ve never been big on going to summer camp or anything like that, and I’m excited and a little bit scared. And I’m okay with that. I expect college to further enhance my goals for the next chapter of my life.