I am a college-bound student from a Puerto Rican family. My education represents both personal growth and generational progress. I grew up with an intimate knowledge of sacrifice and cultural pride. My journey to college reflects the hopes of those who came before me, who came to the United States seeking opportunity and a better future. My father would not have survived a childhood illness had his family not moved from Isabela, Puerto Rico, to New Jersey. Thus, I am forever trying to ensure that I too make as much as I can with the opportunities I have. Pursuing higher education allows me to honor my family's history while also building a path of my own. Being raised in an immigrant family has shaped my understanding of perseverance. I witnessed the challenges that come with navigating unfamiliar systems, financial instability, and limited access to resources. My family’s experiences taught me the value of hard work and the importance of not taking education for granted. My heritage gave me a strong sense of identity and community, and I learned that success is measured by both individual achievement and also how we uplift others along the way. To summarize it best, I feel like Neil Armstrong, 1969, proclaiming, "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," as I step into unfamiliar territory without a roadmap that actually applies to me. There are no family members who can guide me through applications or financial aid or even navigating campus life. I'm using all of the help I can get. My experience in leaving this symbolic uncharted territory has also motivated me to become a resource for others who may face similar barriers. Normalizing college as an attainable path for students from immigrant backgrounds is an important virtue of mine. I plan to study microbiology in college because curiosity has always been an integral part of my time throughout life. I have always loved the microscopic forces that make our world work, and always will. College is the environment where I can develop the knowledge and discipline necessary to pursue my goals of surpassing personal success and benefiting groups of people as a whole. Immigrant and Caribbean communities are grossly underacknowledged in STEM. My motherland, Puerto Rico, has a strong presence in biomedicine and research. Yet they are never acknowledged for their contributions. By pursuing a career in STEM, I hope to play a role in bridging those gaps between effort and recognition, whether through research, outreach, or community education. My experiences have also taught me the importance of resilience, like the Ceiba trees of Puerto Rico. I grew up surrounded by generational trauma and addiction within my extended family. These challenges shaped my perspective of life and strengthened my empathy towards others. To put it into perspective, they reinforced my desire to create change and deepened my determination to succeed and give back to those who raised me. As a college-bound student from a Caribbean immigrant family, I carry both responsibility and opportunity. My heritage and upbringing have taught me resilience, and my experiences have shaped my sense of purpose. Through my lifelong combination of cultural background, scientific aspirations, and commitment to service, I hope to honor the sacrifices that made my journey possible.

I am a college-bound student from a Puerto Rican family. My education represents both personal growth and generational progress. I grew up with an intimate knowledge of sacrifice and cultural pride. My journey to college reflects the hopes of those who came before me, who came to the United States seeking opportunity and a better future. My father would not have survived a childhood illness had his family not moved from Isabela, Puerto Rico, to New Jersey. Thus, I am forever trying to ensure that I too make as much as I can with the opportunities I have. Pursuing higher education allows me to honor my family's history while also building a path of my own. Being raised in an immigrant family has shaped my understanding of perseverance. I witnessed the challenges that come with navigating unfamiliar systems, financial instability, and limited access to resources. My family’s experiences taught me the value of hard work and the importance of not taking education for granted. My heritage gave me a strong sense of identity and community, and I learned that success is measured by both individual achievement and also how we uplift others along the way. To summarize it best, I feel like Neil Armstrong, 1969, proclaiming, "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," as I step into unfamiliar territory without a roadmap that actually applies to me. There are no family members who can guide me through applications or financial aid or even navigating campus life. I'm using all of the help I can get. My experience in leaving this symbolic uncharted territory has also motivated me to become a resource for others who may face similar barriers. Normalizing college as an attainable path for students from immigrant backgrounds is an important virtue of mine. I plan to study microbiology in college because curiosity has always been an integral part of my time throughout life. I have always loved the microscopic forces that make our world work, and always will. College is the environment where I can develop the knowledge and discipline necessary to pursue my goals of surpassing personal success and benefiting groups of people as a whole. Immigrant and Caribbean communities are grossly underacknowledged in STEM. My motherland, Puerto Rico, has a strong presence in biomedicine and research. Yet they are never acknowledged for their contributions. By pursuing a career in STEM, I hope to play a role in bridging those gaps between effort and recognition, whether through research, outreach, or community education. My experiences have also taught me the importance of resilience, like the Ceiba trees of Puerto Rico. I grew up surrounded by generational trauma and addiction within my extended family. These challenges shaped my perspective of life and strengthened my empathy towards others. To put it into perspective, they reinforced my desire to create change and deepened my determination to succeed and give back to those who raised me. As a college-bound student from a Caribbean immigrant family, I carry both responsibility and opportunity. My heritage and upbringing have taught me resilience, and my experiences have shaped my sense of purpose. Through my lifelong combination of cultural background, scientific aspirations, and commitment to service, I hope to honor the sacrifices that made my journey possible

College represents more than earning a degree. It represents a turning point in the lives of many. College is a chance for people to redefine what is possible for entire communities. Being a first-generation college student as well as a first-generation American, going to college is like stepping out of the observable universe. While a bit dramatic, I admit, what I mean is that it proves that ambition can surpass circumstance and that big dreams are not only for those born with the silver spoon. With all the animosity and pessimism in the world, young children need people to look up to and see that hard work does get you into good places.I plan to study microbiology in college because curiosity has always been an integral part of my time throughout life. I have always loved the microscopic forces that make our world work, and always will. College is the environment where I can develop the knowledge and discipline necessary to pursue my goals of surpassing personal success and benefiting groups of people as a whole. My motivations come from the things that have happened to me—discrimination and generational trauma. This made me see how who I am can affect what I can do. I was around family members who had problems with addiction and the residuals of generational trauma. At first these things made me feel like giving up, but they made me want to try harder later on. I did not want my family to have to live like this in the future. I knew it was important to stop the things that were happening so that the people in my family who come after me can have a better life. My motivations are about my family and the things that we went through.Because financial stability has not always been something guaranteed in my family, college represents security amongst all else. I want to build a career that allows me to support my family and loved ones and also contribute to the world in a meaningful way. Success is the ability to uplift others and yourself through positive action. Where would I be without my community? I would be nowhere near as accomplished as I am today, even with the bumps along the way.I believe community involvement is an essential part of reaching goals, which is why I joined the leadership of my high school's National Honor Society. My school enforces 20 hours of volunteer hours per semester. Despite this, I have never once fallen behind on them. These experiences have allowed me to build connections with many people across the city who share the same inspirations as me, such as people who work for food banks or the fire department. My curiosity combined with my dedication to community service reflects the kind of student I strive to be in college.Becoming the first in my family to take this path, which is scary, but it also means ensuring I am not the last to do so. So far, I have proved that taking the first large leap is possible. I want younger students in my community to see that following dreams is not a far-fetched tale but something that can become reality, even when the journey was as precarious as my own. My story is one shaped more by personal drive than it is adversity. If I had to give college a definition beyond literal, it would be where I hope my significant qualities will be shaped into tools that I can use to build my future as I trek into uncharted territory.

College represents more than earning a degree. It represents a turning point in the lives of many. College is a chance for people to redefine what is possible for entire communities. Being a first-generation college student as well as a first-generation American, going to college is like stepping out of the observable universe. While a bit dramatic, I admit, what I mean is that it proves that ambition can surpass circumstance and that big dreams are not only for those born with the silver spoon. With all the animosity and pessimism in the world, young children need people to look up to and see that hard work does get you into good places.I plan to study microbiology in college because curiosity has always been an integral part of my time throughout life. I have always loved the microscopic forces that make our world work, and always will. College is the environment where I can develop the knowledge and discipline necessary to pursue my goals of surpassing personal success and benefiting groups of people as a whole. My motivations come from the things that have happened to me—discrimination and generational trauma. This made me see how who I am can affect what I can do. I was around family members who had problems with addiction and the residuals of generational trauma. At first these things made me feel like giving up, but they made me want to try harder later on. I did not want my family to have to live like this in the future. I knew it was important to stop the things that were happening so that the people in my family who come after me can have a better life. My motivations are about my family and the things that we went through.Because financial stability has not always been something guaranteed in my family, college represents security amongst all else. I want to build a career that allows me to support my family and loved ones and also contribute to the world in a meaningful way. Success is the ability to uplift others and yourself through positive action. Where would I be without my community? I would be nowhere near as accomplished as I am today, even with the bumps along the way.I believe community involvement is an essential part of reaching goals, which is why I joined the leadership of my high school's National Honor Society. My school enforces 20 hours of volunteer hours per semester. Despite this, I have never once fallen behind on them. These experiences have allowed me to build connections with many people across the city who share the same inspirations as me, such as people who work for food banks or the fire department. My curiosity combined with my dedication to community service reflects the kind of student I strive to be in college.Becoming the first in my family to take this path, which is scary, but it also means ensuring I am not the last to do so. So far, I have proved that taking the first large leap is possible. I want younger students in my community to see that following dreams is not a far-fetched tale but something that can become reality, even when the journey was as precarious as my own. My story is one shaped more by personal drive than it is adversity. If I had to give college a definition beyond literal, it would be where I hope my significant qualities will be shaped into tools that I can use to build my future as I trek into uncharted territory.

1. Everyone can think of an act of kindness they have done in their life. The first one I remember doing in full detail is picking up a spilled water bottle for a younger girl when I was a child. I have tried to incorporate kindness into my life and actions as much as possible. From helping wait staff at restaurants whenever my family goes out to regularly volunteering for my community and school, I have always tried to help others. Helping others does not always need to be grandiose, it can be as simple as opening the door for somebody on the way out. You don’t always know what somebody’s situation is but that never means you can’t make their day even a small amount better. When I engage in an act of kindness with another, I always try my best to make their day better than what it was. Donating blood is something that can scare many people—especially those who are afraid of needles or blood. As somebody who is not afraid of either, I found that it was something easy for me to do in order to help others that not all people are able to do. I donate blood regularly, the first time I did so was for volunteer service hours. At first, I was afraid and even passed out at my first blood drive. But the realization that I was helping somebody, even if they’ll never know who I am, helped me get over that fear. This deed is important to me because it is something simple that can go quite far, and is also something I can do repeatedly. While the impact is relatively small, following up small acts repeatedly can help a lot of people. 3. Being one of the first generations to grow up with lifelong access to the internet, I noticed how different my age group and those younger are with social media and concepts like cyberbullying. More people have been developing their livelihoods online than ever, which allows for broader connections, but offers more concerns over safety and mental health. Most of the online safety advice we learn early on is outdated, as the internet has developed more nuance. Cyberbullying has found it's way in tandem with in-person bullying. To address this, I helped our counselors coordinate seminars over recognizing cyberbullying and how to deal with it. A concerning amount of cyberbullying online is done by total strangers, which is why advice over telling a trusted adult doesn't work as much as it used to. An adult can't really do anything on social media when it comes to strangers bullying with the level of education most people have, even addressing a peer who bullies through burner accounts can be hard to stop. We decided to prioritize internet privacy and education over how to report instances of inappropriate behavior on social media as an objective for our school's anti-bullying campaigns. Overall, my commitment to community involvement is deeply iccted in my personal experiences and desire to make a positive impact.

The community I live in isn't necessarily tight-knit, but I'm proud to be a part of it. Community service plays a large role in how I express appreciation for others in my area—I have been active in neighborhood clean-ups and giving to drives and charities. The sense of contentment one feels by helping another person, even without meeting them, is immensely fulfilling. I continued to serve for my community after I started high school, as I began seeking out more chances to give back to my community. During my time in high school, I joined the leadership for my school's National Honor Society. This meant that I not only had to participate in community service projects, but coordinate them as well. I am involved in my town's homeless shelter, the food bank, blood drives, and charity drives. Ultimately, during my senior year I was also in charge of teaching the underclassmen how to do the job that I would leave behind after graduation, which allowed me to further spread interest in community service to a younger platform. I was especially fond of coordinating with my former elementary school to donate school supplies for the students. Learning begins early on in life, and it's crucial to teach them important life advice and lessons. As the first person in my family to pursue higher education, I have essentially had to pave the path blindly. Having to juggle both a lack of resources and limited information over college has been quite difficult. Having nobody familiar to relate to has taken quite a mental toll on me. Since my freshman year, I have been ensuring that I took every chance possible to get more funding for college—ranging from scholarships to being eligible for merit-based grants in my state. Despite this, I still find that more financial aid is needed for me to be able to focus on my studies. As somebody who is deeply ingrained in community service and charity, scholarships and grants allow me to continue this focus and even use my education and position to do more significant acts as I approach adulthood and independence. I used to be bullied for most of my childhood before I had a phone—once I left campus, the bullying usually stopped. But now? It can fester online after class. In order for me to address in-person bullying at my school, I have been in close contact with the administration. We developed clubs that meet weekly during our school's activity period that allow students to connect with peers or counselors for help and resources, including anti-bullying measures. In addition to this, we have also implemented initiatives into our school forums that prioritize awareness over the lifelong impact of bullying. Being one of the first generations to grow up with lifelong access to the internet, I noticed how different my age group and those younger are with social media. More people have been developing their livelihoods online than ever, which allows for broader connections, but offers more concerns over safety and mental health. To address this, I helped our counselors coordinate seminars over recognizing cyberbullying and how to deal with it. A concerning amount of cyberbullying online is done by total strangers, which is why advice over telling a trusted adult doesn't work as much as it used to. With the level of education most people have, even addressing a peer who bullies through burner accounts can be hard to stop. We decided to prioritize internet privacy and education over how to report instances of inappropriate behavior on social media as an objective for our school's anti-bullying campaigns.

The loss of all that is familiar while still young can change everything. Jack Terry's story speaks to me because of his ability to live through severe trauma: the loss of what was quite possibly all he knew. Even after arriving in the United States, the seering effect of trauma and loss still remained. Jack Terry still had to work harder than his peers in the United States to make up for the setbacks he experienced, and even more so to achieve all of what he accomplished. He had to catch up on years worth of lost time and cope with the immense loss of all of what was familiar he experienced. His perseverance and strength enabled him to accomplish many great things—his resilience and spirit inspired me infinitely, as I am inspired to take action against the adversities in my life. Ever since I was young, I had to deal with the effects of generational trauma and living a lower income life. We managed to stay rather stable for a time, but emotionally we couldn't bond well. I was lonely at school—I didn't socialize well for most of my life, and got stuck with friends who bullied me and spread false rumors about me and my actions. Around my freshman year of high school, everything seemed to get worse. I never had to deal with the worry of loss too intensely until that point—my mother got diagnosed with breast cancer, and with the incidence of medical malpractice from surgeons and wound doctors, it took her almost a year to recover from a mastectomy and an infection in the surgery site. I was afraid and vulnerable at the time. My former friends took advantage of my vulnerabilities, they spread rumors that I was violent and met me with racist remarks over my mother's Japanese heritage. The fear of losing so much at once took over my mental state. There was a looming fear that I had nobody to trust. l was going to school with people I couldn't trust. It nearly put my mentality into a state of helplessness that would have been hard to overcome. Stories of individuals overcoming extreme adversity, like Jack Terry's, helped me understand that self-pity only made things harder—it wouldn't get me out of the situation. He experienced the loss of everything familiar in his livelihood, and didn't let the extreme setbacks and trauma hold him down—he didn't set any barriers for himself. His time served in the U.S. Army and the students he shared his story to shows how resilient he truly was. I wish to pursue a degree in microbiology, as science is an incredibly important topic to me that's grossly underrepresented in many areas. I want to use my experiences in life to introduce more nuance to STEM, making it more accessible and realistic for those who wish to follow the same path as me but have adversities they must overcome. I wish to do the same with my career what Jack Terry accomplished: using personal experiences to support others. I care about those who are of difficult upbringing, and believe they deserve to go into STEM if they dream to—I would love to be able to teach and inspire those who want to make an impact. Hardships don't define a person, but what they can accomplish and prevail with what life gives them is how legacy will remember them. Jack Terry showed that anybody can change the world, and that surviving trauma is the greatest mark one can use as a sign that they can achieve whatever they dream of.

I have lived in the same house for every year of my life. From birth, I always kept my head to the ground and stayed stagnant. I rarely experienced large changes in my life—the few times I did experience change still didn’t sway me to go into motion. However, lingering in the same place physically and mentally caused me to be more observant of the ways things change around me. How people grow. How seasons change. What the things around me do. To feed my curiosity of change, I’d learn everything I could. It started with knowing all the bugs near my home. Eventually, I found myself learning a multitude of the Oklahoma species of everything from what flies in the skies to what dwells in the ground and the waters. In uncertain times, knowledge and recognition would always come to the rescue. Being a shy child meant that my inner circle of friends was always smaller than my numerical age. Sometimes, the only thing I’d be doing was living. But I wouldn’t let that bore me—wondering is the best method of filling up space that inevitable boredom leaves. Since I’d spent so much of my time just living, I eventually started thinking about how I was living. I found the fact that there were bacteria living in my digestive tract fascinating—and I won’t even begin on how much wonder I had for the fact that my own cells had their own little organs called organelles. I never took anything at just face value. I always wanted to work behind-the-scenes, and found a distinct appreciation for what worked backstage, or sub-rosa, whatever it may be called. Physically, I was like a rock, stationary and changing subtly with the environment. Internally, I was and will always be for the span of my life a complex system. So what does that all mean in the long run? I was in my eighth grade science class when I realized something huge about my life—I wanted to be a scientist. I was steadfast on this idea that whatever I grew up to be, it must include biology. Yet, even as a young child this idea was always in my head. I just didn’t have a name for it yet. The very next year was freshman biology, then chemistry—in junior year, I took AP chemistry and AP biology at the same time. I thrived in all of those classes. Something as simple as the act of liquid water freezing to ice or how a plant absorbs water through its roots still had an immense amount of fascinating actions that couldn’t be seen at face value. This developed into an understanding of how certain actions happened and an even bigger desire to find solutions to problems or questions that could arise involving the miniscule components of life—the atom and the cell. If it had a nucleus, I immediately wanted to understand it. As a woman who wants to go into STEM, I've found that we're underrepresented. Not just in the field, but in research in general. Woman's bodies aren't considered as often as men's, which brings up a new issue. Why exclude approximately half of the population? I wish to research things from a female point of view to help close the gap in research that's been created. Even if it's as simple as researching the side effects that one drug gives to a woman compared to a man, it's still steps towards equal representation. We have spent too long dealing woth informational inequalities and underrepresentation in the workplace.

They all think it's Ehlers-Danlos, we all think it's Ehlers-Danlos—but money's always tight, and medical bills are something that bite almost as bad as the medical issue that we still haven't "officially" put a name on. We just know I'm chronically ill. I have hypermobile joints. Even worse, the ball-and-socket joints pop nearly every time—I can't sleep on my side without my shoulder feeling unstable. And the bruising and stomach issues? Even worse. I used to think this pain was normal for a long time until I consistently saw how my peers never felt the same as me. Spending nearly eight whole hours sat down and writing or looking at a computer screen gave me excruciating neck and shoulder pain by the end of the day. Not just aches, but cold, tingling pain that presented early and eased late. I was always told that it was my posture, and that I needed to fix it. But it's hard to fix your posture when it feels like your neck isn't stable on your own body. It got nothing but worse in high school. By my junior year, I was getting chronic migraines, severe stomach issues, fatigue, and runny noses that came nightly. These symptoms made it incredibly to study and do work. In school, we'd have days where classes were two hours, which meant more time sitting down. Sitting down seems like a relief to many, but for people like me with joints too flexible to stay in place for a long time without strain, it's torture. Focusing is impossible when you're in too much pain to think. However, I managed these symptoms by talking with my teachers. I let them know about how I was feeling, and they allowed me accommodations that eased some of the pain from exhaustion and immobility. Next, I started to dabble in meditation and yoga in order to build up my strength. I started to manage my flareups better with these accommodations and gained strength. I've always loved science, so even the intricacies of genetic conditions fascinate me. I've always prioritized my education greatly—it's been my main focus for my entire life. I wish to study microbiology in college. This scholarship would allow me to fund my education, which would not only put less stress on my body, but give me a chance to understand myself and help others who have similar issues as me.

Mr. Hoxie, a biology teacher. He's likely one of the best science teachers I've ever had. In academics, and in extracurriculars, he has deeply impacted the way I approach life. I always loved biology, hence, I want to study microbiology. However, I would have never fully realized this had I not been taught by Mr. Hoxie. His teaching made a subject I was good at suddenly feel like a potential lifestyle—he made things feel actually feasible. He knew what he was talking about, he was the main reason I got a 5 on the AP Biology exam. Besides being great at teaching, he told stories in his class pretty much weekly. These weren't just stories related to class, they were life lessons. Words from a wise man that ranged from being careful while doing housework to how to deal with stress and concepts like grief. When students were stressed with schoolwork or personal circumstances, he'd always be understanding—he knew that with the turbulent times of late-teen transitions, things got overwhelming. He never blamed us for things we couldn't control, which was incredibly soothing to the community of students who were almost always under high stress. Despite being understanding, he also made sure we were prepared. Prepared for college, and prepared for life. Mr. Hoxie's coursework isn't always the easiest, or quick, simple busy work that can be done in a class period. But that's the point—simple and easy work-oriented mindsets won't get us anywhere in competitive environments. He taught his students to think and problem-solve. Outside of just teaching, he managed our school's National Honor Society and is active in teacher's unions. He trusted me to be the historian of NHS—the person responsible with tracking everyone's service hours. It was a hard role, the previous historian fell behind quickly with logging. But Mr. Hoxie believed in me. He encouraged me to take up the role, even if it was challenging. I was just glad to get a leadership role, not understanding how much it would change me for the better. He saw a sense of determination to get things done correctly that I didn't identify within myself. Throughout the three years I've known him, he's always encouraged his students to take up challenges when the oppurtunity rose for them. This mindset carved of hardwork and deep reflection carried me into leadership positions and in roles I would have been too hesitant to take up beforehand. This approach to life had greatly impacted my confidence positively. There were many aspects of myself that I hadn't quite identified before became apparent and easier to utilize. I find that I'm more willing to take leadership, to be responsible, and to take control of my own life. Not only this, but I've gained a solid foundation in a subject that I'm proud to call my dream path.

The world feels different beneath everyone's feet—sometimes it's soothing, sometimes it's rough and unbalanced. I want to show you how the ground feels under my feet. I come from a line of generational trauma that spans more individuals in my family that I have ever been able to even meet. In 2021, my cousin passed away of a fentanyl overdose—her father still deals with addiction, and my other uncle deals with heart issues facilitated by years of drug use. In 2025, the estranged son of one of my uncles passed away of a prescription drug overdose. In the past, my father and his brothers were abused by a stepfather, a disturbed man at best, though we never met. I have had to endlessly navigate through grief, shock, and dread these past few years piled upon the pain I was born with from continued familial pain that never healed. It has not been easy. Being the youngest of my family, loss has hit me especially hard. One day, members of your family who are similar in age to you are suddenly gone without a goodbye—suddenly, those who used to take care of you lost to the throes of addiction. It takes a toll on one. I have been pulled on multiple directions when it comes to my sympathy—my uncle was involved in the very same thing that took my cousin, and it hasn't been easy at all to accept that the suffering put upon my family is more deeply ingrained than personal grievances. It was full-on systemic failure. I learned how easy it was to take things for granted, and how to appreciate life and connections. I was introduced to meditation in my sophomore year of high school. Meditation was an easy way for me to unwind, to take time away from mental turmoil that loss presented to me. Most of my meditation revolves around focused breathing and yoga. I was able to create a healthy way to heal through meditation and reflection. Being able to turn my dread and shock into a source of personal improvement was crucial to my growth. I realize that breaking familial records is a difficult task. Being the first person in my family to pursue college, the pressure is immense. I want to pursue a future in microbiology because of how much I love the subject. As the one who is paving such a path, matters such as funding prove to be difficult. I’ve managed to overcome what my family has not yet been able to. But that raises another question. If one keeps on rising, will they eventually hit the ceiling? I want to answer that question—is there even a ceiling to be met, and can one break through it if there is? I hope to be able to make a change in the field, make a change in my family, and prove to myself that anyone can achieve what seems impossible based on their background. Not only will I benefit personally from this scholarship, but my community too. The biggest influence in my life has to be my dad. Moments with my dad are meaningful learning experiences that I have had outside of the classroom. He knows adept information about vehicles and speakers, and teaches me about them. Through moments with my dad, I have been able to learn a lot about the mechanisms of his world, and thus how they follow patterns with solvable solutions. I learned that it is never impossible to solve an issue, and that with enough attention to detail and problem-solving, anything worth saving can be saved.

Being the first person in my family to go into STEM, or even pursue college on my dad's side of the family, I can say that the pressure is immense. I want to pursue a future in microbiology, but as the one in my lineage who is paving such a path, matters such as funding prove to be limiting stressors for me. From an academic standpoint, I’ve managed to surpass the past generations of my family already. But that raises another question. If one keeps on rising, will they eventually hit the ceiling? Moments with my dad are meaningful learning experiences that I have had outside of the classroom. He knows a lot of information about vehicles and speakers, and teaches me a lot about them. Through moments with my dad, I have been able to learn a lot about the mechanics of cars and audio, and thus how they follow patterns that living organisms follow as well. This has taught me that the most efficient pathways in technological advancements often mimic the existing pathways that organisms take and thus the idea that there is a hypothetical path that all things can follow even if they seem as different as the pistons and lubrication system of an engine and the cardiac muscles and blood circulation of the heart. This has significantly contributed to my personal goals as I now know that there is a path that can get things done, I just need to find it. My learning experience modelled that finding the pathway can be done in seemingly entirely different ways, like how engineering a car and the evolutionary steps the creation of a living organism are. There is not one set way to get to a solution. In moments where I feel bored, I turn to learning about the very components giving me the sentience to be bored. I find that life, both in a personal sense and for all living things, follows similar patterns because what keeps us alive on microscopic levels is inevitably similar if not exactly congruent. I was in my eighth grade science class when I realized something huge about my life—I wanted to be a scientist. I was steadfast on this idea that whatever I grew up to be, it must include biology. Yet, even as a young child this idea was always in my head. I just didn’t have a name for it yet.