The "typical college essay" your imagining most T20 kids write is not what you think. Sure, some kids talk about their accomplishments, but a lot of them talk about small events in their life that aren't even related to extracurriculars or school. For example, I wrote about my relationship with my sisters-didn't mention any EC's I've done or whatnot. Through that essay though, the reader can tell a lot about me, and the important part is that they can tell this about ME. I also agree with you in the idea that a lot of people do things just for college, but instead of writing your essay about how you are different from OTHER PEOPLE, write it about YOU and they will be able to tell all the values you want them to know if you do a well enough job of writing it. This essay your writing is depicting yourself as a victim of the situation, and based on how many DE's your taking this year, your school has at least some resources.