Scholarship Winning Essay to Columbia University

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

“YOU are flying the HELICOPTER, don’t let the HELICOPTER fly YOU.” Moments before my first solo flight in Thailand, my instructor awakened me to the truth of my destiny as a female educator. 

My name, “Shearee'' means education in my native tongue, Dzongkha, of Bhutan, given to succeed my Grandmother’s legacy as the first woman teacher in Bhutan. Destiny appears like the unlimited sky filled with possibilities. Although Bhutanese tradition holds that life is predestined, children still fly red, blue, white, yellow and green prayer flags high up on the forested slopes of the Himalayan mountains, signaling the forces of destiny to listen to their wishes for the future. Once, I also made a wish by adding my splash of colorful flags to further my education abroad. 

The different types of schools that I have attended have molded me into understanding the world beyond Bhutan. My wish for education in the world was answered by the prayer flags when I left Bhutan, at the age of eleven in pursuit of secondary education at The American School of Bangkok. I learned how to speak two foreign languages, English and Thai, and understand the Thai world outside of school. At the age of thirteen, I moved to the Bangkok branch of Britain's Bromsgrove School to experience a more extensive British curriculum. At Bromsgrove, I was awarded a scholarship to the UK on a semester exchange program ranking top of class. The rigorous academics, social environment there taught me how to improve my self-discipline. After a semester at Bromsgrove UK, I decided to opt for the American educational system. I moved to Wells International School, Thailand to take AP classes. 

After experiencing four schools in Bangkok and England, at sixteen, I moved to a boarding school in Massachusetts, Williston Northampton School. Whereas in Bangkok, my curriculum focused on sciences and math; Williston exposed me much more to the social sciences and humanities, opening new interests. Besides the academics, building life-long friendships from all across the globe through Cross Country, Basketball and Water Polo was my highlight. But suddenly, after three years at Williston, the wind went out of my flags, and I had to halt my schooling abroad. The Covid pandemic had created difficulties to attend college.

In that dark interval, I experienced another type of schooling: the commercial helicopter course of the Civil Aviation Training Center, Thailand. I brought the winds back into my flags through my family’s interest in the helicopter industry, and developed a motive in catering to the need for EMS in my mountainous kingdom. It was the greatest learning challenge I had faced. Learning to control a machine a thousand feet above ground was a never-ending wrestling match. My first solo flight had to be delayed, while I was mastering my assigned Robinson 44. When my Thai instructor finally gave his permission, he shouted the ultimatum at his first female trainee, “You are flying the helicopter, don’t let the helicopter fly you.” His words burned into my heart and will forever echo within me.

On June 1, 2022, I successfully performed my initial solo. On September 21, I became the first certified female helicopter pilot in Thailand, and second in Bhutan. When I took control of the helicopter, I had grasped control of my education path too. Although the pandemic had temporarily sidelined my college education, I could look forward to applying my pilot knowledge in fulfilling my country’s need for EMS services. My instructor’s words crystallized the destiny of my prayer flags, when he passed on the controls of the helicopter to my side. I will be building my flying hours with the Royal Bhutan helicopters before returning to Columbia University.

My destiny as “Shearee” has enabled me to gain education in Thailand, England and America. The challenges have shown me the importance of self-discipline in overcoming battles stretching to the skies. With all my education, as well as helicopter training, I hope to be a role model to women in Bhutan to show how far confidence and applying themselves can take them in the vast possibilities of their flags of destiny. I will use my time at college to further my knowledge about Economics, Mathematics and Aviation, with the hope of building Bhutan’s development policies and projects. I want to give back to Bhutan all I can from what my education has given me.