"Don't listen to the news," my Dad insisted, "focus on school." I had read yet another worrying article about the current conflict in Ethiopia and decided to call home to see if everything was alright. My Dad’s attempt to shield me from the horror broke my heart. The man who always urged me to stay informed now wanted me to avoid it. There is a kind of "survivor's guilt" that comes with knowing that everyone you love is in immediate danger while you're safe. That guilt is exacerbated by the realization that even with the inflation, the steep exchange rate, and the lack of foreign currency, the constant stress- even with this crushing pile of problems- my family did their best to support me. Luckily for me, I rarely dwell on negative feelings. I got off the phone that night determined to transform my intense but irrational feeling of guilt into a fiery drive that will motivate me to help my family, myself, and my country. I come from a middle-class family that went broke due to a series of unfortunate events and ethnic discrimination. Everything my father worked for was stripped from us, breaking his heart and mine. Despite starting with nothing, he had moved on to become an engineer who built churches, schools, and contributed to many projects around the country, giving us a better life. Though I know it hurts him to see it gone, I see this as my turn to carry the baton. I am in a better position than he was when he started, and I want him to witness me overcoming financial, cultural, and racial challenges, just as he had. I want to succeed not only for myself but to honor his drive and determination, showing him that his spirit- dimmed by old age and external circumstances- still lives on in me. I want to succeed in life and nurture the inner child in him who had to grow up too fast. It’s my turn. In school, I was always in the top 3 of my class. Biology was my favorite subject. I just loved life, every aspect of it, both the scientific and philosophical. My specific calling came to me when I visited the National Museum of Ethiopia on my 9th birthday and saw Lucy, one of the oldest human ancestors. “She is 3.2 million years old,” the museum docent said casually. That statement echoed in my mind all day. “We’ve been around for so long,” I thought. “That means we are strong- that means I am strong.” The idea of using genetics and evolution to better our quality of life quickly became an infatuation. Ethiopia does not have much to offer in this field yet. I believed the advanced educational resources in the U.S. would help me achieve my goal of becoming a genetic research scientist developing durable crops, curing genetic diseases, and learning more about our rich genetic history. Who knows, maybe when my fellow citizens learn how much we’re all genetically alike, this ethnic war will seem trivial. My father and Lucy inspired me to see the beautiful strength life gives us to survive. I will leave my mark on the world that hopefully, millions of years from now, will inspire another little girl to recognize the strength within humans and herself. I hope she finds her calling, and I hope she will have the kind of moral and financial support that scholarships like this have offered me.

I looked at her bare bones laid out in a glass box and wondered: "How did we get here?" The day I visited the National Museum of Ethiopia and saw Lucy, a fossil of an early bipedal Hominin species, was the day I became infatuated with Evolution and Genetics. My country, Ethiopia, is embellished with a beautiful history. The first humans migrated out of Ethiopia and its neighboring areas and evolved into what we are today. I like to see myself as one of those early humans. Those that stepped out of what they knew to explore new worlds. They discovered and tamed the elements and helped the generations after them. By leaving the comfort of familiarity and seeking better knowledge, I hope to benefit my country in endless ways. But sometimes, I have so many goals, it’s hard to keep track. My biggest goal in life is to start a research institute in Ethiopia, dedicated to genetic research. I want to use the knowledge of genetics to help in agriculture, as my country heavily depends on agriculture for its economy. We would develop crops that are specialized to withstand harsh conditions, while maintaining their nutritional value. That would tackle the problem of famine. I also want my research institute to use genetics to help solve problems such as diseases using gene therapy or gene transfer. I also want to dedicate part of my institute to learning more about our evolutionary history. I want our own people to discover their ancestors, to decode the messages and see how far we’ve come. I think that it would be incredibly motivating for my fellow citizens to see how far we humans have come. I would create so many job opportunities in the process. Another goal of mine that is close to my heart, which isn’t really related to my major, is saving the horses in my country. Ethiopians sometimes uses horse-driven carriages for transporting goods along short distances. Sadly, when the horses become sick or old, the owners just leave them on the side of the road, and they end up being hit by cars or eaten by hyenas in the night. I’ve always been deeply disturbed by this sight, so it has always been a dream of mine to start an animal shelter. I would start with horses, but I would also eventually help save other animals as well. We could revive these horses and maybe develop a horse-racing industry, or they could be helpful in agriculture and transport. Or they could just be healthy and safe and beautiful. The US higher education system is multifaceted, so I would be able to learn more about animal activism and entrepreneurship, while pursuing a career in research. I have so many plans for my life, and I want to make sure everything I do benefits at least one person. Transitioning to college in a foreign country can be overwhelming, but with foundations like Crenati financially investing in me, and with my goals set in mind, I would be able to stand on my own two feet- just as my bipedal ancestor Lucy had- and I’d walk through life, not sure whether to marvel at the diversity of the people around me, or at how much we’re all genetically alike. Homo Hablils had stone tools, Homo erectus had fire, and I will hopefully have Crenati. And when, a couple of years down the road, I look back at my life and what I've accomplished and ask myself, "How did we get here?" , I truly hope that Crenati will be part of the answer.