As of writing this, it is January 30, 2023. A year ago was January 30, 2022. One entire calendar year has gone by. There have been multiple areas and ways that I have grown, but one such way has been to gain more independence. My life situation that has inspired this personal growth is that I turned 18, I have ended up having only one parent, and my brother attempted suicide. Regarding turning 18, I have since had more responsibilities and I soon thereafter started my first job (tutoring children who have ADHD and/or dyslexia in English). Last semester, I also began my college journey and realized that although in the past years I had saved all of my money, it is still not nearly enough to pay for all of my college expenses. Furthermore, I have had to learn to balance work and school, which can be quite difficult for me (especially since I am a high achiever). Regarding having only one parent, although both of my parents are alive and well, my mother broke all ties with me while my father has continued to be supportive of my efforts and goals. In 2021, my parents officially got divorced and I only lived with my dad. But, at that point, I had still been in contact with my mother. I had even stayed in contact with her when she had no desire to help me achieve my dreams, when she had no will to acknowledge that I had graduated high school (and with that, also a year early) or that I had received a prestigious award. But last year (in 2022), everything fell apart: I had been planning to visit her (since she lives about 1000 miles away in another state, and she had refused to visit me), but before finalizing plans, I had to take a necessary test that would conflict with the original dates of seeing her. Therefore, I let my mother know that I would have to reschedule, but about a week later, she wrote a nasty message to me, practically disowning me. After that, I began to realize that although she is my biological mother, continuing a relationship with her would be quite simply, toxic. Only then did I begin to reflect on my problem-ridden childhood, and how she negatively influenced some of these problems. Although this has probably been the hardest thing to do in my life, I also feel free without this relationship. I have been able to focus on myself, and do things that I must do for myself. Regarding my brother's suicide attempt, this completely rocked me to my core. I had known he suffered from mental issues (but I also know that every person has had mental health issues, from time to time), but could never fathom him attempting to personally end his life. Once the event happened, I had to help my dad to recover (since he does not have anyone else), and also had to help myself to recover. Especially the first days and weeks after the event, I had some self-blame, and it took a long time to discover that I cannot be at fault for my brother's actions. Overall, I have been able to become more independent and discover more about myself, mainly by officially becoming an adult, ending up with only one supportive parent, and recovering from my brother's attempt at suicide. I have learned that if you do not care for yourself first, then no one will. Although it may sound harsh, one's personal needs must be met before meeting the needs of others.

Songs are influential means of media. They carry messages, of positivity, of strength, of courage, of inspiration, of perseverance, etc. Shortly after Russia's war on Ukraine started in February of last year, I decided that I must do something to be able to help Ukrainians in need. Therefore, I decided to tutor Ukrainians in the English language, which I knew would be influential when rebuilding the country whenever the war ends. With one of my Ukrainian English buddies, we had talked about end-of-year traditions, including common songs that are played. One of the songs she told me about was Carol of the Bells. This rather short song is actually originally from Ukraine, with the original title of Щедрик (Shchedryk). Since then, I have listened to the original version of this song a countless number of times, with it now being the most-listened song I pressed play to in all of 2022. The song's main message is to bring joy to the new year, and is typically sung by schoolchildren in Ukraine at the end of the year. Especially with the ongoing war, I found it so inspiring that these people continued to sing this song late last year, in hopes that 2023 would bring an end to the war. Now that we are more than a week in to this new year, the war is still not at an end, and it is unknown when it ever will be. But I still tend to listen to this song myself, because it inspires me that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and although current times may sometimes be hard, there is a way.

I am a young woman of black and Hispanic descent (and my great-grandmother was an Indigenous person of Brazil). I am also an undergraduate college student (I am working on my first college semester so that I can hopefully get my Psychology degree in the next few years). I never try to let anything stop me or get in my way. Growing up was not the easiest. We weren't technically poor; I know people who have been in worse situations and the media portrays many people across the world who have been in harder situations. For example, I understand the war situation in Ukraine would be awful to go through (I currently volunteer with an organization that helps Ukrainians). But nevertheless, I also know many people who had easier, richer childhoods. So, I like to reflect on my childhood as a unique experience, which could have been a lot better, but also could have been a lot worse. So, my family (parents and older brother) and I lived in a very low-middle class area. From a young age, I started recognizing patterns of ethnicities and races in certain areas (we lived in the poorer side of town, which unfortunately in this country, still is more likely to be more Hispanic and black people, while the richer part of town was more white people). I remember parts when my parents thought we might have to move into a 1 bedroom/1 bathroom apartment for some time and we sometimes got some cans from a local organization because we didn't have enough food at home. I remember our tap water wasn't good and it was always some sort of weird color. I remember how my skin there was so bad and we had a lot of mold and termites where we lived. I didn't have any friends either, and people who I pretended to be friends with (because I so desperately wanted to have people who I could call friends) would always bully me into doing things. There are many things that I remember from my childhood that I don't want to recall. There are also some parts of my childhood that I don't really remember too well, and I personally support the theory of repression (a defense mechanism originally proposed by the psychologist Freud) is true (so people will not remember some parts of their lives or certain events that happened to them). Nevertheless, I don't want to state my childhood was all bad. When I was almost 9 years old, my dad was miraculously able to get a new job, and we were able to move to a better area. But a few years later, there was a massive school shooting, and this made me realize a new thing about the world: that it doesn't really matter if you live in a poorer or wealthier neighborhood, since people will always have struggles, whether they are more visible or not. I have since moved again, my parents divorced, I graduated high school early, I went on a gap year to Germany through a scholarship-based exchange program, and have come back to the United States to start my college journey. Although I am still pretty young (I only recently turned 18), I have had life experiences already to guide me in forming the rest of my major life goals and decisions, such as my future career. I hope that with my Psychology degree, I can do research (about neuroscience and language), and one way to make a positive change such as to do research on a much more diverse and truly representative sample.

Diversity has always been a crucial part of humanity. It leads to many different people of many different backgrounds to come together and think together on topics and solutions to problems, whether minor everyday problems or major world problems. Even diversity on the genetic scale, so diversity of genes, is important so that populations do not all get wiped out by one pandemic, for example. Although especially in recent years and particularly among younger generations (such as my own, Gen Z) diversity has taken more of the center stage in the United States, there is still so much work to be done. Just one example is that now affirmative action is on the table for the Supreme Court to review, most likely in the spring of next year. Without affirmative action, some deserving people will not be able to get admitted into top universities such as Harvard University simply because of their own ethnic/racial backgrounds. This will also definitely not at all encourage other groups of people, such as first-generation students and those identifying as part of the LGBTQIA+ community. I am a female of black and Hispanic descent. But I do not let this stop me or influence my decision in any way to get a college degree or continue to follow my life goals. Right now, I am in my first college semester so that I can eventually get a degree in Psychology. Now, many people I know do not even count psychology as a field of science. Many of my own family members and acquaintances claim psychology cannot, in any way, shape, or form, ever be science. I have had many heated discussions, both won and lost, in trying to explain to others that psychology is a rightful part of STEM, along with all the other typical natural sciences like biology, chemistry, and physics. I fell in love with psychology because of its broadness. After high school, I took a gap year to a foreign country for 10 months to discover more about myself, and at the end I realized that psychology is the right path for me. I have always had personal experiences that led me to this; it just took me to be on my gap year to realize how these experiences have shaped me. For example, when I was in school, I went through a school shooting (it was a major one in Florida, and if I wrote the name down, I'm sure people would automatically recognize it). Thankfully, I was not physically injured, but it took me until recently to find out how mentally and emotionally traumatized I was (and how even to this day, sometimes it can be hard to process). Another experience was that in high school, my parents got divorced, and now a few years later, my relationship with my mother is nonexistent. Then, exactly 1 month ago, my brother attempted suicide. This was quite a shock, but I had to do a paper at about this same time, and I decided to do it about suicide and effective preventions. Thus, my life experiences led me to decide my college major. Furthermore, I think psychology is still seen as as field of straight white men (some famous psychologists people always think of are Freud and Erikson). With my degree in psychology, I will help bring diversity to this field and show that psychologists can be of all different backgrounds. I plan to do research on language, and when I do, I will make sure I have a diverse, representative sample.

Getting a college education and degree(s) is becoming more and more important in our increasingly globalized, technological, and highly skilled society. And also for my own dream career, I need a college education as well. Starting in August 2021, I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to start my scholarship-based (since that is the only way I would have been able to afford everything) exchange year to Germany. I recently came back in late June, and these 10 months abroad helped me formulate my college plan. The first step: get an Associate's (in psychology) degree. The second step: Get my Bachelor's degree (in psychology) at a German or Austrian university. The third step: Find a part-time job/paid internship in the field of psychology. Apply for and get into university to begin my Master's degree (and then complete it successfully). The fourth step: Find my own career relating to psychology (a research career, most likely with my university) and/or apply for and get accepted into a program to get my doctorate (in psychology, of course). Doing research would definitely be me my dream career. Ever since I completed my independent study in Spring 2020 (in my sophomore year of high school) regarding language and linguistics, I got inspired by this book recommended to me: The Bilingual Brain by Arturo E. Hernandez. This book changed my life. It provided explanations of many advances in research regarding psychology and neuroscience, such as the famous case study with Genie in California in the 1970s (a girl who was later found to have been abused and who had a hard time communicating through language). Of course, case studies are typically rare, but there have been and continue to be regular-based studies as well. By reading this book, this completely inspired me to want to do research in psychology and neuroscience. I would love to do more research about monolingual and bilingual language acquisition (especially when people may have language-related illnesses or disabilities, including dyslexia or selective mutism). Before I went abroad, I was a tutor with Children's Literacy Center, in which a tutored a native English-speaking child who needed help with his literacy skills (such as reading comprehension and fluency). I am also about to start tutoring children and adults who have been diagnosed with dyslexia, and need support to be able to learn to read better. If I am to ever be able to complete research about how people learn languages, whether it be their native language or another language, then I could help these people with dyslexia and other language-related issues to learn better and easier (such as the motto "Work smarter, not harder") through new science-based strategies and methods. Thus, I hope that one day, I will be able to complete my own educational journey, so that I have the tools and knowledge to do my own research, and help others in the future.

Mentorship is a very important aspect of one's life. Every human being, in order to reach his/her full potential, needs to have had good mentorship growing up (and throughout his/her life). Mentors are there for their students (whether they be academic students, children, other family members, friends, or employees) in whatever capacity is needed. I, too, experienced mentorship. One of my key mentors during my childhood, and to this day throughout my adolescent years, was and still is my dad. My dad has always been there, no matter what issue I had, whether enormous or miniscule. Throughout my life, my dad has taught and modeled to me how it's so critical to take care of one's body and mind. No matter what life situation one currently is in, it's important to hydrate, have enough food/nutritional intake, exercise regularly, and maintain personal self-care and coping routines or practices. My family was not a "typical" military family. My dad had been in the military, but had been honorably discharged shortly before I was born. So I never had to move to many other places in the country or even world (even though as a young girl I probably would have enjoyed that, since I have always been an adventurous person). In fact, only in recent years has my father told me about his military years and all the places he had been to and the things he had done (one of my favorite things he tells me is how he was so "lucky" to do basic training twice). With the stories he has begun telling me, especially since it's usually just my dad and me (my parents got officially divorced about two years ago, and my brother still lives with us but mostly has his own life), I have realized how influential his military years were to the rest of his life and how he raised both myself and my brother. Instead of being a "tough love" kind of father to his two children, my dad was actually the opposite. He was so gentle and never screamed at us. I think he has always been a more mild, shy person, so sometimes the yelling and screaming he received in the military was not his favorite part (and he did not want to make this a part of his own parenting). But, a quality he definitely strengthened in the military was his discipline. My dad, even though he wouldn't scream or spank us if we did something wrong, would definitely let my brother and I know we had done something wrong. He would tell us in a more authoritative, albeit calm, voice and might have some sort of punishment (like we could not have a new toy anytime soon). Also, if we had harmed or hurt someone else at all, we would have to go over to the person (perhaps a playmate) and apologize to him/her and make an unbreakable promise that we would behave better in the future. My dad's mentorship and parenting of my brother and I was definitely very different that if he had never served for our country. But, because he learned so much in these paramount years, he was able to make sure his children did not take anything for granted and would also live fair and true lives. I am very proud of my dad's service, and make sure other people know he took the time to serve. My hero and mentor has and will continue to be my dad, who was greatly and positively shaped by the U.S. military.

Scientific discoveries have been a part of all of human history. Throughout the time that humans have been alive on this earth, there have been famous scientific discoveries (and theories) made by now-famous scientists, such as gravity by Newton, multiple space discoveries by Galileo, the heliocentric system (instead of geocentric) by Copernicus, DNA by Watson and Crick (along with Rosalind Franklin), etc. But the one scientific discovery that is my favorite of all-time is Sir Alexander Fleming's discovery of the antibiotic penicillin in 1928. This was and still is a classic example of serendipity: a discovery that was found, which Fleming did not specifically seek (but found out anyways). Fleming had simply left out a culture plate with bacteria on it, and later discovered a specific type of mold on it (which had stopped the growth of this bacteria). By frankly leaving something on a counter or table and stopping by later to look at it, Fleming made a scientific discovery that would lead to a revolution of antibiotics and the health industry. I think it's important that people realize that they can make discoveries (whether scientific or not) when they just take a break from trying to concentrate on something and let time take its toll. It is very important for people to pause, because sometimes when people are specifically not seeking out some sort of information or data, then this is when people will actually find something out.

Many people strive for change in their lives and surrounding world. Many people realize that their own and others' situations can be greatly improved. But for these improvements to be made, these people themselves must start the journey in change and growth. People who realize an opportunity for betterment in society must be the ones who also lead and take part in this opportunity. I, too, have realized my own causes that I'm passionate about, and the changes I want to see in myself, my community, my state, my country, my continent, and ultimately the world. Thus, in the late summer of 2020, right before my junior year (and ultimately final year) of high school would begin, I decided that I must volunteer. And that my volunteer work must have a direct impact in my local town. Because I can't just think about problems my community faces and not do anything. I can't continue to just think about something, and hope that someone else will act upon that thinking. So, I searched and searched about volunteer opportunities for people my age (under 18, which has actually been very difficult for me to find). I specifically wanted to do something with tutoring and language, since those are my two greatest passions. Eventually, after looking online and asking community members (such as my neighbors), I was directed to Children's Literacy Center. I was able to begin in November 2020, originally as a substitute tutor. I helped native English-speaking children in my own community from the two local elementary schools to boost their literacy skills (such as their fluency and reading comprehension). With the tutoring I provided two times a week, I was able to help a student get tested for a learning disability (dyslexia). I helped another girl use her passion of soccer to help her start to enjoy reading (from the available reading materials, I found some sports-related readings). I loved seeing the faces on the kids, who would smile when they finally figured something out. This volunteer experience is what ultimately led me to my major decision to graduate early, go abroad, and get my TEFL certification. Because my volunteer service with Children's Literacy Center was so great, both for myself and the students I tutored, I have decided to volunteer again (after not being able to the last year because I was completing my exchange program). This semester's volunteer sessions will begin in September, and I am very excited! In the future, I plan to teach abroad (currently I have found a program in Cambodia, which I am eligible for) after I have received my Bachelor's degree. Since I do not have this degree yet, in the meantime I plan on expanding my volunteering through online sources (such as one where I will meet with a young Ukrainian refugee two times a week to help her with her English). I hope that other people in my community, and all over the world, will begin to realize the own changes in the world that they want to see, and act. It is not enough for one to just think about something (such as thinking that there are children who need help understanding their own language and/or learning a new language), but one must act upon this desire (actually tutor these children, create resources for these children to use, let other people know that this is an important issue). I hope, with my own volunteer work, I can inspire other people to see what is still not just in the world and fix it.

Every person has multiple passions, which can completely change his/her life. As a young girl, reading was my main passion. But as a young person, I have realized that reading doesn't completely consume myself and my life as with what happened with my much younger self. To supplement my passion for reading, I have discovered other things that I am passionate about, such as foreign languages (especially currently German), psychology, neuroscience, environmentalism and sustainability, foreign cultures and multiculturalism, hiking, and volunteering. All of my other passions either strengthened or arose in me because of my current most important passion: foreign language. When I was a junior in high school, I decided one day that it would be interesting to do a foreign exchange program or study abroad. The main reasons I wanted to go abroad is that I had never been outside of the country before, I wanted to have a change/new start in my life, and I wanted to practice communicating in Spanish (I had just finished taking AP Spanish the previous year). So, I started looking further into this, and dived into the world of programs which lead people to go to foreign countries for a set period of time. Since I'm not made of money and don't have wealthy family members willing to fund me to go abroad though, I had to focus my search on scholarships. It was getting closer and closer for many programs' deadlines to come. Finally, in November 2020, I found one scholarship program, which also needed no prior language experience (since the language would be German, which I had no experience with unlike Spanish). This scholarship program is called Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX)/Parlamentarisches Patenschafts-Programm (PPP), and I was able to turn in the application which was due later that month. (I went on to be a semi-finalist, and then I was originally not accepted and put on a waitlist, but was later determined a finalist). So, I traveled to Germany in late August 2021 (exactly a year ago that I am typing this essay and submitting this application). It was such an experience, and I was so sad for it to end in late June of this year. It sometimes seems like 10 months went by so quickly! But I am extremely glad that I was able to have this opportunity, because I know so many people (including other language devotees like myself) would love to be part of this exchange program, but for whatever reason(s) are not able to take part in it. Spending 10 months immersed in a language that I had no previous experience in completely changed my life. Being in Germany and having the opportunity to learn a new language (and culture, of course) helped me to be much more confident in myself and realize what I personally advocate for and what I personally do not advocate for. I was able to form multiple friendships, which I still maintain to this day. Additionally, I was able to complete a B2 German test with the Goethe Institute, which has allowed me to recently become a German tutor. This was another great milestone, since I am an ardent supporter of helping other people in their own language journeys. The 10 months of speaking German helped me to also determine that I would prefer to get my Bachelor's degree in either Germany or Austria. But to get in, I need to first complete my Associate's degree, which I will begin this fall. Without my extreme passion of foreign languages, I would be nowhere close to where I am now!

I believe that maintaining/bettering mental health is a priority for every single human being on this globe. Every member of Homo sapiens sapiens should find a way to make sure he/she maintains mental wellness as much as possible! Of course, certain life experiences and even genetics play significant roles in one's mental health, but there are always ways to combat the negativities in the world. Especially when there are significant life changes, such as moving away from parents/friends/other support and/or starting a new college/university journey, one's mental health could possibly decline. Thus, it is important for every person to figure out what's best for optimal mental (along with emotional, physical, and spiritual) health. Every person has a different path in life. Some people may choose to go to college first, or some people might just start up with their career. Some people will have two children, some will have more children and some will have none. Some people will volunteer or intern, some people may never. Some people will have positive and healthy relationships with their parents and partner, some people may only have a few good relationships. Some people might live in large families, while some may only have one or two other people they count as family. Some people might have large groups of friends, while some people may only have one friend. Some people will have one job, while other people will have to juggle two or three jobs. These are just some aspects of people's lives. The other people and life experiences in one's life completely influence one's health, especially one's mental health. If someone reacts badly to an experience, for example when a person who just moved into a new apartment without family members or friends nearby and starts having panic attacks every month, this person's mental health is going to deteriorate rapidly. Eventually, this person's entire schedule and lifestyle will deteriorate. If these panic attacks continue to be part of this person's life, they will influence all of this person's health. This person could then "cope" by withdrawing from society completely and possibly even contemplating suicide. This could be extreme, but if people don't solve an issue at the beginning, it can keep getting worse and worse, leading to drastic decisions later on. Through some life experiences I have personally experienced, I realize that mental wellness is extremely important, including for myself. The only person who is completely dedicated to helping me is and should be myself. In order to help myself, I need to have good coping skills to maintain and/or better all parts of my health, especially my mental health. I learned this the hard way when I was in a school shooting in South Florida in 2018. At first, I didn't do anything to help myself recover from this traumatic experience. I simply stayed in my room all day, not talking to anyone. Only recently have I realized how bad this was. Only about 2 years after the shooting did I really focus on bettering my own mental wellness. I started talking to my peers about their own journeys after the shooting and I went through a few therapy sessions. I have also practiced self-care, such as exercising each week (hiking and walking), daily meditation exercises, and staying hydrated. I hope that each person understands his/her own personal situations and past experiences, both good and bad, to find out how that influences his/her current mental health. Hopefully, the next generations can continue to emphasize mental wellness.

Racing to the TV, a little girl sat down on the old living room couch to catch an opportunity to watch Cinderella. This little girl also loved reading retellings of Cinderella constantly. She enjoyed all of the Disney princesses, but Cinderella was always her favorite. She even dressed up as Cinderella for Halloween. This little girl grew up into a young woman, who still enjoys reading retellings of Cinderella. I remember that when I was a young child, I was obsessed with Cinderella, often telling my much older brother that "I want to be a Disney princess." I used to tell him this when we were much poorer, living off of some canned foods (I remember one night when my parents came back from the local food pantry and brought back 4 cans of Chef Boyardee). Clinging onto this notion that I could create myself into Cinderella (even though I didn't look like her at all) helped me escape from my dreary, present situation. Through Cinderella and the rest of the Disney princess world, I was able to pretend I was a princess, who had had a rough start in life but who had found a prince to marry, and ultimately make my life and the world much better. Whenever the neighborhood kids would bully me, I would run back home and find one of my books about Cinderella. I would imagine myself as her, trying and wishing so hard to become her. Cinderella was (and of course still is) my favorite Disney character of all time because she had her own hardships to go through, which I was able to connect with. She was a poor girl, who had to work hard, and yet was still treated bad by others (her stepsisters, and especially her stepmother). She had no other extended family to help her, either (which I also never had). I saw myself in Cinderella, and tried to realize that I'm not alone. If this can happen in a fictional story, I had hope that even though I had faced my own adversities from a young age, something good would ultimately happen. (Another not-as-important reason why I enjoy Cinderella is she always wore a blue dress at least once in the story. Blue is and always has been my favorite color). Ultimately, in some ways Cinderella saved my life.