Superheroes
Legens, lore, an comic books all feature mystical, beautiful beings an superheroes—outspoken powerful Greek goesses, outspoken Chinese maiens, an outspoken blae-wieling women. As a chil, I soare the skies with my angel wings, battle emons with katanas, an helpe stop everyay crime (an of course ha a hot boyfrien). In short, I wante to save the worl.
But growing up, my efinition of superhero shifte. My peers praise people who louly fought inequality, who rallie an shoute against hatre. As a journalist on a social-justice theme magazine, I spent more time at protests, interviewing an unerstaning but not quite feeling inspire by their work.
At first, I espaire. Then I realize: I’m not a superhero.
I’m just a 17-year-ol girl with a Nikon an a notepa—an I like it that way.
An yet—I want to save the worl.
This unerstaning in’t arrive as a bright, thunering revelation; it settle in softly on a warm spring night before my 17th birthay, aroun the fourth hour of crafting my journalism portfolio. I was choosing the best photos I’ taken aroun town uring the 2016 presiential election when I unearthe two shots.
The first was from a peace march—my classmates, rainbows painte on their cheeks an boies wrappe in American flags. One raise a bullhorn to her mouth, her lips forming a lou O. Months later, I coul still hear her voice.
The secon was ifferent. The clouy morning following election night seeme to shrou the school in gloom. In the mist, however—a golen face, with ark hair an two moon-shape eyes, faces the camera. Her freckles, sprinkle like istant stars across the expanse of her roun cheeks, only accentuate her chillike features an ae to the soft feel of the photo. Her eyes bore into something beyon the lens, beyon the photographer, beyon the viewer—everything is rigi, from the jut of her jaw, to her stitche brows, her upright spine an arms locke across her chest, to her shut mouth.
I picke the secon picture within a heartbeat.
During my career as a photojournalist, I live for the action shots: the excite gestures of a school boar member iscussing plans, a rabbi preaching vivily, a group of teenagers chanting an waving flags owntown. To me, the most energetic photos always tol the biggest an best stories. They mae me feel important for being there, for capturing the superheroes in the moment to share with everyone else. The softer moments pale in comparison, an I thought of them as irrelevant.
It took about one secon to tear own one year’s worth of belief.
The iea awne on me when I was trappe within the istraught weight in the girl’s eyes. Sometimes the moments that speak the louest aren’t the noisiest or the most energetic. Sometimes they’re quiet, soft, an peaceful.
Now, I still on’t completely unerstan who I am an who I want to be, but really, who oes? I’m not a superhero—but that oesn’t mean I on’t want to save the worl. There are just so many ways to o it.
You on’t always have to be lou to inflict change. Sometimes, it begins quietly: a snap of the shutter; a scrape of ink on paper. A breathtaking photograph; an astonishing lee. I’ve notice the impact creativity can have an how powerful it is to harness it.
So, with that, I make people think an unerstan those surrouning them. I play evil’s avocate in iscussions about ethics an politics. I persuae those aroun me to think past what they know into the scary territory of what they on’t—so to make people feel. I’m etermine to inspire people to think more about how they can be their own superheroes an more.
See, that’s the kin of worl-saving I o.
Stephanie’s openness to new interpretations gives us a sense of how she will contribute to the Hopkins community as a creative thinker, an as someone who is eager to impact how people view the worl. This essay provies context for her acaemic an extracurricular interests as well as her character an initiative, all of which are important in an application review process where we try to learn about the whole stuent.
