As someone who is apart of the community and has parents in the community I have struggled. My mom’s lesbian and I grew up with two mothers and I wouldn’t change that for the world but they have struggled more than anything with the backlash. My biological mom lost her job leaving us homeless. As a child I was terrified seeing how many crimes there were against lgbtq+ people. At a young age I was mortified of how cruel the world was to our family just because I grew up a little different. Things were hard and I was bullied a lot for it. I never understood why because I was so young and I didn’t know why we were treated so different. I used to be very embarrassed that i didn’t grow up with a father because of the bullying I went through and i wasn’t ever able to participate in father daughter days at my elementary school. We had to move to Chicago because of my mom’s job loss. I stayed with family for around a year before we were able to move back to Florida. My mom was finally able to get a job here however she still wasn’t legally married to my other mom because they didn’t allow it. I had to understand from an early age why my step mom wasn’t able to sign doctors papers for me. Though I saw her as my real mom the world didn’t and that was a harsh awakening for a little girl. She raised me when my father never was around. I grew up happy I didn’t need a dad I had two moms who I was grateful for. As someone myself who is bi I’ve gotten a lot said to me. I am hoping to get enough scholarships to be able to pay for my schooling. Because my mom lost her job and had to get a new job that payed a lot less, i am in need for some money for schooling. I am hoping I can be successful because I know how much my parents have fought for me to be able to have as good of an education as possible even though they were discriminated against and even though times got hard they fought hard for me so I want to work hard to show them that everything will be okay and I don’t need to have a father but they were all I ever needed and wanted and I truly love them.

As someone who is apart of the community and has parents in the community I have struggled. My mom’s lesbian and I grew up with two mothers and I wouldn’t change that for the world but they have struggled more than anything with the backlash. My biological mom lost her job leaving us homeless. As a child I was terrified seeing how many crimes there were against lgbtq+ people. At a young age I was mortified of how cruel the world was to our family just because I grew up a little different. Things were hard and I was bullied a lot for it. I never understood why because I was so young and I didn’t know why we were treated so different. I used to be very embarrassed that i didn’t grow up with a father because of the bullying I went through and i wasn’t ever able to participate in father daughter days at my elementary school. We had to move to Chicago because of my mom’s job loss. I stayed with family for around a year before we were able to move back to Florida. My mom was finally able to get a job here however she still wasn’t legally married to my other mom because they didn’t allow it. I had to understand from an early age why my step mom wasn’t able to sign doctors papers for me. Though I saw her as my real mom the world didn’t and that was a harsh awakening for a little girl. She raised me when my father never was around. I grew up happy I didn’t need a dad I had two moms who I was grateful for. As someone myself who is bi I’ve gotten a lot said to me. I am hoping to get enough scholarships to be able to pay for my schooling. Because my mom lost her job and had to get a new job that payed a lot less, i am in need for some money for schooling. I am hoping I can be successful because I know how much my parents have fought for me to be able to have as good of an education as possible even though they were discriminated against and even though times got hard they fought hard for me so I want to work hard to show them that everything will be okay and I don’t need to have a father but they were all I ever needed and wanted and I truly love them.

In my personal experience, I struggle with a lot of ptsd, bipolar disorder, and anxiety. Hearing about my diagnosis was painful but I know it opens the doors I need in order to receive help. Growing up I always had really crazy emotions. I would feel an overwhelming wave of strong emotions I didn’t understand. It was hard to explain to people because when I would get in these rages I would do things I didn’t want to do. It was like I wasn’t me. I grew up in a harsh household and no one really had the patience to deal with me or help me. It was so hard as a child because I didn’t understand why I felt the way I did and why no one was willing to help me. The one thing that was there for me though was my cat. I learned to cope because she was always there when I needed her. Things were hard but I really felt as though she understood and loved me. As I grew older to who I am now, I learned about my diagnoses and I learned how to weaken the grip they had over me. I never knew how to have fun and enjoy life before but now I understand that the problems I have don’t limit who I am. I don’t let my diagnoses affect who I am as a person. I’ve worked hard to overcome my hardships. I don’t let them define me I still am a kind hearted person and I know that my struggles help me understand others. I use the things I struggle with to help people. I am able to be there for others that used to be in the place I was and I am grateful for that. Not everyone is able to overcome their struggles. If it wasn’t for my cat I don’t think I would have been able to. Using my experiences I’ll be able to save people and give them the motivation they need to succeed. My future goals are to learn to completely overcome and understand my mental health issues so I am able to be fully at peace. I know I have people who will walk that path with me and I want to be able to help others get there too. I know how hard I’ve worked. Hopefully i am able to help others understand that everything won’t end when you are struggling. It’s okay to struggle it’s important to overcome those struggles and find peace

In my personal experience, I struggle with a lot of ptsd, bipolar disorder, and anxiety. Hearing about my diagnosis was painful but I know it opens the doors I need in order to receive help. Growing up I always had really crazy emotions. I would feel an overwhelming wave of strong emotions I didn’t understand. It was hard to explain to people because when I would get in these rages I would do things I didn’t want to do. It was like I wasn’t me. I grew up in a harsh household and no one really had the patience to deal with me or help me. It was so hard as a child because I didn’t understand why I felt the way I did and why no one was willing to help me. The one thing that was there for me though was my cat. I learned to cope because she was always there when I needed her. Things were hard but I really felt as though she understood and loved me. As I grew older to who I am now, I learned about my diagnoses and I learned how to weaken the grip they had over me. I never knew how to have fun and enjoy life before but now I understand that the problems I have don’t limit who I am. I don’t let my diagnoses affect who I am as a person. I’ve worked hard to overcome my hardships. I don’t let them define me I still am a kind hearted person and I know that my struggles help me understand others. I use the things I struggle with to help people. I am able to be there for others that used to be in the place I was and I am grateful for that. Not everyone is able to overcome their struggles. If it wasn’t for my cat I don’t think I would have been able to. Using my experiences I’ll be able to save people and give them the motivation they need to succeed. My future goals are to learn to completely overcome and understand my mental health issues so I am able to be fully at peace. I know I have people who will walk that path with me and I want to be able to help others get there too. I know how hard I’ve worked. Hopefully i am able to help others understand that everything won’t end when you are struggling. It’s okay to struggle it’s important to overcome those struggles and find peace

I started music in 6th grade. I didn’t think I was very good and it was very frustrating for me so I never really got into it. Through middle school and into high school I started to really love music. I’ve always been more artistic I love to paint and draw and I love music. Music has always been a part of my life getting me through anything. I changed my goals and I found my love for playing the cello and I hope to continue to play it through college. I started drawing when I was 7. I wasn’t very good at expression with my words so it really helped me express my emotions. I worked hard and never won any shows I entered. It was upsetting to me as a child but it pushed me to work harder. The first show I ever won I got 2nd place with a painting I did of a mountain side house on a lake. I won 30 dollars and have never felt more proud in my entire life. I also love to play the cello. As I stated, I wasn’t very musically inclined growing up. I’m very competitive so being so behind was very hard on me. I had no motivation and I didn’t believe in myself at all. In my junior year I really started to put everything I had into the cello. I decided to work hard and put everything I had into the instrument I loved. I couldn’t ever afford a cello to practice so all I had was 40 minutes during the school days. During that time I worked my butt off and I pushed through my frustrations. Auditions came up for my senior year and my chair mates convinced me to audition for advanced placement. I had almost no hope in myself but I still practiced until the piece was engrained in me. I even dreamt about it as funny as it sounds. Auditions came up and I kept struggling. I was getting more and more frustrated. I finally submitted the audition and I had no hope of getting in. Placements came out and I was so nervous I didn’t want to even look at the paper. My friend ran up to me and congratulated me and I went over and I made it. I didn’t even believe it. I ran over to my teacher and asked about it and she said that she has high hopes for me and she knew how hard I worked and it payed off. I want to continue to make everyone proud by continuing to work my best and succeed Art is my passion. I love it so much. The beauty and the grace that comes with it is so inspiring. You can see an artists dedication and everything they put into their work. It’s truly inspiring to me.

I started music in 6th grade. I didn’t think I was very good and it was very frustrating for me so I never really got into it. Through middle school and into high school I started to really love music. I’ve always been more artistic I love to paint and draw and I love music. Music has always been a part of my life getting me through anything. I changed my goals and I found my love for playing the cello and I hope to continue to play it through college. I started drawing when I was 7. I wasn’t very good at expression with my words so it really helped me express my emotions. I worked hard and never won any shows I entered. It was upsetting to me as a child but it pushed me to work harder. The first show I ever won I got 2nd place with a painting I did of a mountain side house on a lake. I won 30 dollars and have never felt more proud in my entire life. I also love to play the cello. As I stated, I wasn’t very musically inclined growing up. I’m very competitive so being so behind was very hard on me. I had no motivation and I didn’t believe in myself at all. In my junior year I really started to put everything I had into the cello. I decided to work hard and put everything I had into the instrument I loved. I couldn’t ever afford a cello to practice so all I had was 40 minutes during the school days. During that time I worked my butt off and I pushed through my frustrations. Auditions came up for my senior year and my chair mates convinced me to audition for advanced placement. I had almost no hope in myself but I still practiced until the piece was engrained in me. I even dreamt about it as funny as it sounds. Auditions came up and I kept struggling. I was getting more and more frustrated. I finally submitted the audition and I had no hope of getting in. Placements came out and I was so nervous I didn’t want to even look at the paper. My friend ran up to me and congratulated me and I went over and I made it. I didn’t even believe it. I ran over to my teacher and asked about it and she said that she has high hopes for me and she knew how hard I worked and it payed off. I want to continue to make everyone proud by continuing to work my best and succeed Art is my passion. I love it so much. The beauty and the grace that comes with it is so inspiring. You can see an artists dedication and everything they put into their work. It’s truly inspiring to me.