Sylvia Plath once wrote, "If you expect nothing from anybody, you’re never disappointed." I was disappointed by a letter from the president when I was eleven. I had certain expectations about the letter and the letter failed to meet those expectations. I received an award for doing one hundred twenty-five hours of community service. The award was presented to me at an assembly at Willow Hill Elementary School in 2011. In fifth grade, I won the President’s Gold Level Service Award. The award is given to someone who has done one hundred or more hours of service. I received a gold pin with the Seal of the United States and the title of the award on it. I also received a letter signed by Barack Obama, and a personalized certificate. I gained all of my hours through being a girl scout. I collected and sorted toiletries for the homeless, wrapped Christmas presents for foster children, and collected items for mothers who were expecting. …show more content…
When the teacher who was handing out the award explained what the recipients of the award received, she said that the letter was from the president. I expected a letter directly from the president with my name on it. When I opened the envelope, which held the items that I had received, I found a letter with the president’s signature on it. The letter was a standard letter with Obama’s signature at the bottom of the page. This was underwhelming since anyone could have signed the paper and just wrote Barack Obama instead of their real name. I also realized that I had nowhere to go, but down. The President’s Gold Level Service Award is the highest community service award anyone can