I consider my greatest talent to be writing. Whether it's poetry or prose, writing is an emotional and creative outlet for me, as well as being an incredibly practical skill that I use on a nearly daily basis in my pursuit of an English degree. I began by writing free verse and short stories, winning contests and being published on a small scale in elementary and middle school. Since then, I have tried my hand in creative writing classes in both high school and college, and have excelled particularly in crafting short stories and novellas. I am partial to creative writing, as the process of world-building, character-molding, and plot-development appeals to my artistic sensibilities. However, I also am able to find joy in a well-crafted research paper, or an eloquently-stated thesis. Recently, I've begun to try my hand at writing and delivering speeches for my public speaking & rhetoric courses in college. I've written everything from original anecdotes intended for an informal setting, to a tribute speech for a retirement party, to an informative speech about conditions within Native American reservations intended to bring awareness to a social issue. To practice this skill of mine, I write every day without fail. I vary the way I write, as well. Sometimes my writing takes the shape of a term paper, sometimes a reflection on a piece of literature, and sometimes it takes the form of bad poetry to organize my thoughts. Either way, I am constantly developing this passion that I have. Thank you for your consideration.

Slipping 1. "Are You Satisfied?" by MARINA Lyrics of note: "High achiever/Baby nothing comes for free/They say I'm a control freak/Driven by a greed to succeed/Nobody can stop me/'Cause it's my problem if I wanna pack up and run away" 2. "Surface Pressure" by Jessica Darrow, from the "Encanto" soundtrack Lyrics of note: "Pressure like a grip, grip, grip and it won't let go/Pressure like a tick, tick, tick 'til it's ready to blow/Give it to your sister and never wonder/If the same pressure would have pulled you under/Who am I if I can't carry it all?" 3. "This Is Me Trying" by Taylor Swift Lyrics of note: "I was so ahead of the curve/That the curve became a sphere/Fell behind all my classmates/And I ended up here...I just wanted you to know that this is me trying" 4. "Stressed Out" by 21 Pilots Lyrics of note: "Wish we could turn back time/To the good old days/When our mama sang us to sleep/But now we're stressed out" 5. "Burning Pile" by Mother Mother Lyrics of note: "All my troubles on a burning pile/All lit up and I start to smiles/If I catch fire than I'll change my aim/Throw my troubles at the pearly gates" 6. "Goodbye" by Bo Burnham Lyrics of note: "Am I going crazy?/Would I even know?/Am I right back where I started 14 years ago?/I swear to God that all I ever wanted was/A little bit of everything all of the time" This playlist that I've made is a kind of journey through my academic experience in college. I'm a double major and I'm paying for my own education, so there's a lot of stress and a lot of weight on my shoulders from a day-to-day basis. The first two songs on the playlist demonstrate that I have a lot to handle but I'm dealing with the stress as well as I can. From there, the songs get a little bit darker, showing that I'm slipping beneath the stress of needing to make enough money to pay off my loans while keeping up good grades so that I can keep my scholarships. The final song, "Goodbye", is a very good look into my mental state currently, almost halfway through my college education.

Not to sound too much like a Romantic-era poet, but I view nature as my connection to the divine. For twenty years now, the natural world has allowed me to believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that our world was designed by an intelligent Creator. It is beyond my vocabulary to describe the awe I feel while studying carpenter bees in my backyard, or when I drove along Going-To-The-Sun road in Glacier National Park and saw the majesty of Middle-Earth-esque mountain ranges. (I do highly recommend that road - it's a must-see for anyone in Glacier.) The beauty of our world transcends anything mankind could ever dream of inventing. Nature is also my connection to my family - my mom and dad raised me as a camper, a hiker, and a biker. The best parts of my life include my family and a trail, and I have them to thank for my curiosity about nature as well as my love for it. I try to appreciate nature by living sustainably - it's very important to me to waste as little as possible and to keep our parks and reserves clean. The wellbeing of endangered species is also a passion project of mine, and my favorite way to give to charity is by supporting the rehabilitation and protection of creatures who have been pushed to extinction by human activity. My dream is for a healthy planet, and harmony between the Earth and the human race. Thank you for your consideration.

I go to a Christian university in a very rural part of the United States. There is an epidemic of homogeneity at my school, and I believe it is poisoning the student body's mindsets and our ability to build a worldview that is inclusive of diversity and supportive of equality. We are a 98% majority white student body, and members of the LGBTQ+ community are too negligible to even merit a percentage point. People with beliefs outside of the traditional conservative-Christian scope are few and far between, and harmful gender roles are reinforced with a vengeance. The subjects of equality and diversity are difficult ones to broach at the school I attend - they are often laughed off as being buzzwords for "political correctness", wielded by "the radical left". As a result, injustice that takes place on campus - such as gay students being referred to by professors as "abominations", and racial slurs being used in everyone's vocabulary - is glossed over and often not addressed at all. As someone whose political beliefs lean considerably more to the left that the college would perhaps like, I have found myself often in the position to have to stand up for what I believe - talking back to students who spout ignorance and hatred, and offering encouragement to others. As a queer woman in an environment hostile to me, I have had the privilege to reach out and find others at my school who, although they remain closeted, are eager to believe that they are not alone, and are worthy of the love of the God that they worship. My goal at this college is to dismantle the belief that queerness and Christianity are mutually exclusive, and I work towards it every day. Thank you for your consideration.

I want to learn as much as I can about everything I'm inquisitive about and I want to travel the world as I obtain this knowledge. Then I'd like to write about what I've learned, and finally I want to teach what I've learned to new generations of curious minds. I'm currently in college for English and History, with a minor in Classics, and I would love more than anything to get a postgraduate education at a university in the United Kingdom, such as Oxford, Cambridge, or Queens. I'd also like to be polylingual - I'm currently fluent in English and Spanish, and conversational in French. My goal, once I've conquered the French language, is to tackle Latin and Greek for a change in pace. My career interest lies in museum curation or the editing and publishing industry, but there's so much more I want to do and learn about outside of my career - archaeology, classical music, and even graphic design are other interests of mine. And then I want to write. As much as I can, I'd like to write the fiction that I've imagined and the nonfiction that I've learned. Even if nobody ever reads my writing, I will feel accomplished. These goals of mine are not hindered by determination or any lack of cleverness. Instead, I am halted by the harsh, unromantic realities of the real world - including student loans. My plan for success includes hard work and dedication, to my grades, to my scholarship applications, to my resume, and to anything else that will demonstrate that I am deserving of the education that I dream of. Thank you for your consideration.

I am - so far - $35,000 worth of the 1.7 trillion dollars currently owed in student loan debt. But I am also my future. I am a future doctoral candidate in literature. I am a future hiker in every national park and a future tourist to every continent. I am a future author and I am a future editor. I am a future wife and a future mom to many cats. I am a future attendee of as many Taylor Swift concerts as possible. And most importantly, I am one of the future thinkers for our country and our world.

I believe that being immersed in a culture other than the one that you grew up in is one of the greatest ways to build compassion, expand your worldview, learn from perspectives that may differ from your own, and overall become a more enriched human being. In my junior year of college, I am hoping to study abroad in Athens, Greece. I chose this location because I am fascinated by the history and anthropology of the area - I grew up reading mythological textbooks about Greek mythology and even taught myself a few phrases in the Ancient Greek language. I find the architecture of the area to be incredible, and I am in awe of the amount of history that surrounds the Mediterranean. Furthermore, I’m studying literature in college and I think Athens would be a very appropriate location to be studying some of the most classic works of literature in history. I believe that studying for a semester in Athens would serve to broaden the way I view the world, educating me not only through books, but through experiences and interactions with a culture different from my own. I think that in order to be a truly educated citizen of the world, I must experience life outside of my own comfort zone, and all of my past travel experiences have supported this idea. Studying abroad in Athens would truly be a dream come true - not only from an educational standpoint, but from a character development standpoint as well.