Wind flying through the sky, streams running through a river, birds gliding through the heavens, flowing effortlessly and free. This is how it felt when I finally broke the shackles and pressures of society and became comfortable in my own skin. No longer was I worried about being gay enough to conform to toxic standards set by the world and about not being too gay to make others comfortable. I was finally able to openly express who I was without care about what others thought. Like removing the cast on a broken leg after months, I was relieved. It felt like a clean slate to rebuild my life like I was given a new foundation. However, it is not fair for me to be the only person to hold this feeling. For years, LGBTQ+ youth have been belittled for their discoveries of their own sexuality. Told that it is just a phase, that the new identity they have discovered was not indeed who they are, even though they knew deep down it was. Crumbled and shredded like paper, they are discouraged from becoming who they were meant to be. This is not acceptable. Through my own enlightenment, I would like to guide other LGBTQ+ youth, whether out or not, through the emotional journey of becoming their own person. I want to make sure that I can reach as many people as possible to make sure that no matter how smooth or rough their life can get, they know that sticking to who they are will always remain triumphant at the end. Everyone is allowed to live life to the fullest, and I will make that happen.

Beginning in second grade, I formed a life-long connection with my friend Andrés. Throughout the whole of elementary school, we were best friends until he had moved away. After almost a year of no contact, we finally connected through the PlayStation chat. Rekindling our friendship, we stayed best friends until I had started my freshman year of high school. Unfortunately, in November of 2017, Andrés decided to take his life. Struck into a long battle of guilt and sadness, I began to isolate myself and stop participating in school. This was my greatest challenge. Hitting rock bottom, I realized that my friend would want me to do better for myself, so I did. Motivating myself through the loss of my friend, I dedicated myself to perform well in school in his honor. However, that was not the only obstacle I had to overcome in this situation. When losing my best friend, I needed to find a way to express myself to be myself again. Luckily, I found a source of expression that other people are familiar with, music. Being stuck in the sense of deep sadness, music helped me show others what I was going through. Finally, being able to gain the courage to communicate my problems, I had nothing else to thank except for music aiding me as a form of expression. Not only did that help bring me back to who I was and shape my academic dedication, but it also aided in forming a new characteristic: empathy.

This is me with my mother. I am extremely thankful for her because of all that she has done for me. From birth to the present time she has constantly uplifted me and giving me nothing but encouragement. She is my biggest supporter, and I do not know where I would be without her. From elementary school, she constantly motivated me by making me believe I was extremely smart, and still reassuring me when I got a bad grade. For the past decade, she has continued to do this almost every day. Other than academically, she is my biggest supporter in life. When I came out to her as gay, she continued to support me a lot and is constantly educating herself so she can be more supportive of me. Because of all of this, I am thankful of her.