I am a person who has navigated the intricate labyrinth of life, facing both triumphs and tribulations. As a member of a family touched by the profound impact of mental illness, my journey has been one of resilience, self-discovery, and a profound understanding of the importance of mental health. Growing up in an environment where mental health concerns were prevalent, I witnessed the pervasive nature of these struggles. The shadows of anxiety and depression cast their long, daunting silhouettes over my family, shaping our experiences in ways both seen and unseen. Mental illness, like an uninvited guest, nestled itself within our daily lives, affecting relationships, aspirations, and the very fabric of our familial bonds. Earlier this year, the weight of these challenges bore heavily upon me, leading me to a dark precipice where the idea of taking my own life became a haunting contemplation. The pain, despair, and hopelessness coalesced into a suffocating storm, obscuring any flicker of light that might have offered solace. In that profound darkness, I grappled with the notion that ending my own life could be a means of escape. Yet, within that abyss, a realization emerged — a stark awakening to the profound selfishness inherent in such a drastic choice. It was not merely a personal revelation, but a collective understanding that the ripple effect of my actions would extend far beyond my own existence. The tentacles of despair would reach out to ensnare those I held dear, perpetuating the cycle of anguish that had already marked my family's history. Acknowledging the potential aftermath of my contemplated actions propelled me toward a moment of clarity. I began to unravel the threads of my own suffering, seeking understanding and healing. It became evident that confronting mental health challenges requires not only personal strength but also a network of support. I embarked on a journey to dismantle the stigma surrounding mental illness within my family and society, recognizing the need for open dialogue and empathy. This transformative process unfolded gradually, encompassing therapy, self-reflection, and a commitment to fostering resilience. I began to view mental health not as a sign of weakness but as an intrinsic aspect of the human experience, deserving of compassion and attention. Embracing vulnerability, I shared my struggles with those closest to me, dismantling the barriers that perpetuated a culture of silence. Through this process, I discovered the power of connection. My family, once bound by unspoken pain, now found strength in shared vulnerability. We collectively sought resources, from professional counseling to community support groups, fostering an environment where healing could flourish. As I navigated this path of self-discovery, I recognized the profound impact that societal attitudes toward mental health can have on individual well-being. Education and awareness emerged as powerful tools in challenging misconceptions and dismantling the barriers that hinder open conversations about mental health. In the wake of my darkest moments, I chose not only to survive but to thrive. I harnessed the pain of my experiences as a catalyst for change, advocating for mental health awareness and resilience. By sharing my story, I hope to inspire compassion, understanding, and a collective commitment to fostering a world where mental health is prioritized, stigma is eradicated, and individuals are empowered to seek help without fear or judgment. Life is a tapestry woven with both light and shadow, and in embracing our struggles, we find the strength to create a brighter, more compassionate future for ourselves and those who walk beside us.

The Olivia Rodrigo lyric encapsulating my adolescent trials comes as the bridge crescendos on “GUTS” – “I get older by the hour, losin' my power / Half of me, soup of the day / The other half trying not to waste another day.” That poignant encapsulation of youthful identity crises speaks to the chasm between teenagers’ inner chaos and outward restraint. While peers seemed to glide through social spheres effortlessly, internally I too agonized balancing others’ expectations with burgeoning personal truths. On the surface level, the “soup of the day” metaphor wittily conveys the malleability of teenage personas conforming to whatever recipe garners acceptance that day. Yet below broods the deeper half recoiling against social performance, instead yearning simply to authentically be rather than endlessly become. This tension between external validation and internal values characterizes adolescence’s defining challenge on the path to self-actualization. The lyric captures youth’s dichotomous existence straddling childhood’s wonder and adulthood’s weariness in a single vessel not designed to contain such volatility. Daily I woke feeling centuries older than the night before, the naivete of past summers already fading into jadedness learned through fresh wounds. And yet recess’ laughter tempted still if I dared surrender the armor of maturity so carefully constructed to impress for just dance of freedom. But I stuffed down such childishness in the name of growing up serious until mischief turned to misery. So the lyric manifests adolescence’s polarity between externally adapting to earn belonging versus nurturing an inner ecosystem true to one’s soul – even if it means getting exiled as “weird.” The quest of those four years is negotiating which half to feed. Do you embrace the sly chameleon tendencies which may win social capital but at cost of knowing thyself wholly? Or rebel displaying your odd colors at risk of turning camouflaged peers defensive? Conformity promises safety but severs self-trust. Standing out courts ridicule yet retains integrity. The pendulum perpetually swings those twin extremes. And so the lyric further distills teenagers’ paradoxical return to inward innocence only possible after weathering disillusionment’s gale – another polarity. The “losing my power” helplessness refers back to childhood’s trusting dependency. Yet resurrecting that “power” requires sinewy resilience forged under coming-of-age’s fiery batterings. In retreating to imagination’s wellspring lies remedy to rebuild the broken – yet one must nobly battle forward into the dark before verdant vistas brighten again. Such is adolescence’s labyrinth of contradictions: ambivalently suspending past and future selves split daily between other’s projections and soulful truths, between staying soft or toughening up. But within that messily negotiations between inner and outer worlds lies the birthplace of wisdom once the final mask drops to reveal authentic becoming.

Without question, the character from The Office I most identify with is Jim Halpert. As a fan who basically grew up watching the show since middle school, I related most to Jim’s laidback temperament striving to find meaning despite corporate tedium. I share his dry, ironic sense of humor and talent for subtle deadpan expressions exposing office absurdities. Like Jim, I tend to avoid the spotlight, preferring collaborative roles rather than hierarchical positions. And I can empathize with Jim’s frustration toward irrational policies and questionable leadership decisions that impair morale. His pranks belie the fact he is actually a shrewd judge of character and observer of dysfunctional workplace dynamics. In terms of how The Office shaped my perspective, the pioneering mockumentary style mastered humor-coated social commentary. The writing operates on multiple levels simultaneously. Superficially, the laugh-out-loud awkward moments satirize the mundanity of offices through slightly exaggerated personalities. But subtly poignant themes are also explored about workers longing for purpose and the ways arrogant policies or managers can damage company culture. The Office identified these deeper truths in a funhouse mirror fashion that made me appreciate comedy’s power to reveal meaningful insight about society. Additionally, exposure to Jim and Pam’s friendship organically blossoming into romance expanded my initial immature grasp of workplace connections evolving into personal relationships. Their endearing dynamic modeled nuances of professionalismnegotiating around office dating that I previously lacked frame of reference on as a young viewer. Michael Scott’s cringe yet often well-intentioned leadership missteps illuminated flaws to avoid emulating as managers. Manipulative dysfunction from Jan and Ryan helped me recognize toxicity in workplace power dynamics sooner in my early career. Even tense moments carried comedic momentum that shaped my approach to understanding office politics and conflict resolution. In essence, laughing along with The Office for over a decade expanded my capacity to spot hilarity in everyday workplace peculiarities. It likely shaped my preference for creative roles focused on collaboration rather than control. Most impactfully, the show influenced a mindset persisting in my professional life – that while jobs may temporarily consume us, we have power to bond with colleagues by brightening each other’s days with humor despite monotony. I focus less on promotions as the sole validator, instead prioritizing meaningful connections that make clock-watching to quitting time more bearable together. Even when leadership loses the plot, focusing on lifting each other up can sustain loyalty. That legacy continues making my office surroundings just a little bit brighter thanks to the Dunder Mifflin crew role modeling that camaraderie can make drudgery delightful.

From ancient civilizations mapping stars to track seasons enabling agriculture to pioneering astronomers revealing galaxies beyond the Milky Way, humanity’s persistent curiosity about the cosmos advances entire civilizations. While existential questions about our universe often transcend science alone, empirically probing cosmic mysteries expands knowledge passed down generations. If privileged with the opportunity, I would join this age-old global chorus not just unraveling observable phenomena, but uplifting consciousness about life’s sanctity when regarding creation’s scale. Several reasons underscore why relentlessly pursuing universal truths matters. On a practical scale, comprehending forces governing reality like gravity and electromagnetism enables technology improving daily life from energy to communications systems. Scientific knowledge about space also breeds ancillary innovation later adapted to solve complex challenges on Earth. For example, imaging technology developed for telescopes now detects tumors in the body. Additionally, locating potentially habitable exoplanets has implications for species survival if global catastrophes require human migration from Earth. On an emotional level, contemplating infinite galaxies and billions of possibly populated worlds often yields philosophical, creative and spiritual rewards. What does our existence signify against 14 billion years of cosmic evolution? Do hidden dimensions permeate the subatomic playground? Does stardust retain ancestral memories? Such wonder about existential realms frequently fuels artistic expression, spiritual connectedness and shared reverence at consciousness having arisen despite oblivion’s odds. Most meaningfully, examining heavens reminds humanity that for all Earthly conflicts, we inhabit the same fragile boat adrift – yet never alone – in fathomless waters. Recognizing our relative insignificance against the universe’s ancient enormity awakens compassion. My conceptual frameworks for studying the universe stem from Carl Sagan’s famous assertion that, “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” I too believe astonishing truths await those bold enough to ponder infinity. If given opportunities in astrophysics and planetary science, I would enrich pursuits like analyzing exoplanetary atmospheres, star formation patterns, and theoretical modeling. But I equally hope to blend scientific empiricism with philosophical imagination and spiritual wonder arising from gazing heavenward. My work intends not isolated intellectual feats, but conduits for elevating society’s cosmic perspective. I aim to approach data with humility before universe's complexity while communicating insights through diverse mediums – mathematics yet also prose, research publications yet also museum exhibits – to maximize engagement. I pledge responsible innovation considering society's ethical values. Most significantly, having once mentored marginalized youth, I advocate expanding access and resources in space exploration fields for students of all backgrounds. Their dreams too burn stargazing. Progress wrestling existential profundities relies on multitudes gazing upward individually yet bound in shared yearning encoded since antiquity in every society. My single candle may only illuminate a fragment of eternity’s horizon. But when researchers convey cosmic complexities not through equations alone but also poetry swelling imagination, when NASA scientists mentor indigenous students whose ancestors also mapped constellations, when quantum physics and Eastern spirituality hold hands – suddenly insight rockets farther than my lone mind could conceive. The greatest accelerator is not simply enhancing lone intellects but uplifting collective culture’s inspiration about reality’s deepest recesses which so often transcend intellectual grasp alone. For within awe glows redemption superior to any singular eureka revelation about physical processes: the realization that for all seeming separation on terrestrial spheres, we inhabit the same stellar shores where matter merges indistinguishable from dreamscapes. And in that profound unity with cosmos just may reside hints of life’s deepest meaning. Of course scientifically probing the universe has immediate practical merits but fundamentally owes to primal need to know thy place. To meet this ancient longing, enlightened societies must keep raising sights beyond native shores toward farthest beacons. They must analyze light spectra from galaxies colliding eons ago by today’s instruments yet also attune intuition to still more distant whispers inwardly sensed. For there along the frontier with inner and outer space sharing breath, the better worlds sought through ages dwell. All who dare pass beyond limits need not venture alone when every earthly soul already has stars for eyes. We but await activation of dormant inner observatories revealing ourselves at once insignificant yet integral to brilliance infinitely grander – when one unified voice echoes: welcome home. That awaits beyond rainbows, within heartbeats. Light the way.

The woman who most profoundly shepherded me into the teaching profession has been the rock steadying me amidst storms – my beloved high school mentor and English teacher extraordinaire, Ms. Josie Ball. When turmoil swallowed my family whole sophomore year, Room 201 became the one place I felt seen, heard, and held. I would arrive early each morning, eyes still swollen from another sleepless night with yelling parents unable to handle struggles afflicting our farm from drought. As arguments crescendoed into frightening violence at home, I often couch-surfed friends’ houses to avoid the implosion. In a pivotal conversation with Ms. Ball, I finally confessed secretes locked deep inside about how no one seemed to notice my sinking under the crushing weight at home. Yet Ms. Ball saw my silent cries for help. She petitioned administrators to secure temporary student housing resources while assisting my emancipated youth financial aid applications should I choose independence. She became my lifeline empowering me to rewrite my story when trauma and exhaustion suffocated motivation. I still hear her steady wisdom nurtured over English tea: “This too shall pass, Ariana. Your strength will rise to meet your hopes.” When I doubted my college dreams amidst collapse at home, Ms. Ball spent weekends editing admissions essays until top choices offered coveted spots for this first-generation hopeful. Through my darkest storms, her classroom remained the lighthouse anchoring me. Now a freshman Elementary Education major at Montana State University Billings, I still visit Room 201 when shadows haunt, seeking the familiar glow kindling my inner fire. My passion teaching middle schoolers ignited from embers first lit seeing Ms. Ball fan the flames inside students deemed “lost causes.” I chose this career to carry her legacy of unwavering compassion and belief in resilience, no matter students’ troubles. My advocacy blossomed from once being the wilting flower revived under her care. I now support emerging educators, sharing the wisdom planted in me: “This too shall pass. Claim power to transform the story others wrote for you.” I coach students still just as she rallied me from the brink: “You are the author of your future. These trials will shape the leader you will become.” My darkest storms could not extinguish the sparks within. As thunder raged, Ms. Ball was the lighthouse guarding over me until I shone bright enough to find shore again. Now I will shine that light so others sheltered in my classroom too can glow brilliant – and pay her gift forward when they reach the heavens she showed me.

As an elementary teacher, I view reading instruction as the heart of my language arts curriculum. I believe a balanced literacy approach, dedicated block time, differentiated groupings and text exposure are essential for growing students into skilled, enthusiastic readers. My reading program will contain whole group lessons, flexible small groups, individual conferencing, peer discussions, purposeful independent work and abundant time exploring compelling texts. Each morning my students will engage in a solid 90 minute reading block aligned to key standards. We will begin whole group to model skills and strategies using an anchor text. Students will think aloud with me as we read complex samples together, practicing visualizing, making inferences, analyzing vocabulary in context and summarizing important details. After our shared experience, I’ll assign a short constructed response or discussion prompts to assess understanding. After our opening lesson, students will break into small groups or literacy centers. I will pull 2-3 different guided reading groups each day, for about 20-30 focused minutes per group. Using benchmark assessment data, I'll form fluid groups based on reading levels and skill needs to select a teaching point and just-right texts. We'll read texts chorally or independently while I observe students’ accurate application of strategies. I can note confusions for mini-lessons, prompt problem solving discussions and reteach essential concepts immediately within the small group setting if necessary. While I meet with small groups, the rest of the class will engage in meaningful, differentiated tasks that support our instructional standards. Centers promote reading growth through independent reading, partner book discussions, listening to audiobooks, building vocabulary knowledge, researching texts in our classroom library, responding critically to literature and more. I'll provide folders of resources and graphic organizers tailored to students' needs. Our rich classroom library will hold diverse titles including fiction, literary nonfiction, poetry, biographies and informational texts across subjects. Students will learn to self-select appropriate leveled books matched to interests and confer with me individually to nurture identities as readers. I’ll guide students as they apply comprehension strategies to their independent choices using goal-setting, checklists and reading response journals. Conferences will help me monitor progress and growth. I’ll also infuse literacy connections throughout our science and social studies blocks. Students can build knowledge of the world through grade-level read alouds tied to current units. We’ll analyze author’s purpose and viewpoint in interesting articles. Cross-curricular integration applies our literacy tools to deepen content understanding. With a balanced workshop, flexible grouping, conferences, peer collaboration, purposeful independent work and exposure to a range of quality texts, my students will have the support necessary to blossom into skilled, thoughtful, engaged readers.

I grew up playing sports. I played everything from soccer to track & Field and even flag football for a few years. So, it was no surprise to my parents when I told them I wanted to pursue sports in college. The only thing standing in my way was my bad knees and the fact that I am practically a walking hazard sign. In the back of my mind, I knew that I was probably never going to be able to play any college sports. I tried not to think about it. I took everything in me not to break down and cry when my mom decided it was time to have the conversation. She said she admired my passion for sports, but there was always another option. So we began to do our research to try to find something I could be just as passionate about. It wasn't until the Summer before my Senior year of high school that I began to have an open mind. I was given the incredible opportunity to manage the Senior High Football Team for the 2022-2023 season. I know what you're thinking...a manager? How could this impact my life decisions? Don't managers just wash uniforms? Well, I hate to tell you that you are completely wrong. Yes, I occasionally washed uniforms, but that wasn't the whole job description. As the manager, I got to fly a sick drone around the football field and record different plays, I traveled with the team all over the state (might I add that the pre-game dinners were the best!), I got to be the team's personal hype-woman, and most importantly, I got to work closely with our school's athletic trainer. I won't go into too much gross detail, but man I saw a lot of cool injuries. I'm talking about bones poking out of the skin, bloody noses like you have never seen before, and some crazy muscle strains and tears! I'm usually not the type of person to be excited at the sight of blood and bones, but there was just something about being there in the moment with the capability of helping these athletes and bringing them back to where they were before they were injured that absolutely thrilled me. Although I'm not certain that Sports Medicine is where my college career will take me: what I do know is that I am resilient, and when I put my mind to something, I always see it through.