The thing that inspires me the most is the need to serve others. What good is sitting on your hands knowing you can help someone? What good is it to have a gift and not give it to someone else? Knowing that there are many people who need a kind word, deed, or action that will make a difference in their life is essential to me. So many people are selfish, and there are many ways to get out of this mindset and use your talents to make someone else smile. You can make your community better by helping with an attitude of love, passion, and compassion. There are many things you can do to help others, donate things, teach people how to do something, help kids with homework, feed the homeless, foster an animal, volunteer in a shelter, or help the elderly. The possibilities are endless. You do not need a lot of money, equipment, or even tools to serve your community, all you need is to simply give your time! Your good deed will change someone's life forever. Showing someone that they are loved and you can help them in their care will make the most of this opportunity! When you get involved in the community it gives you a new perspective. It allows you to see others in a new way than you would normally see them. If you do not get out and serve, you may not be aware that your community needs to change. People really need what you can give them unless you act and get out there and see what is happening, change is lost. You can learn new skills by getting involved. You can use the ones you have and develop ones you did not know you had! You can create even more opportunities by doing so! In my opinion, the more you help someone, the more you are helped. You can relieve your own worry, stress, or even sadness because someone is far less fortunate than you are sometimes. You can even meet new friends and have lasting friendships through this process. You will never know unless you try. I have worked to influence change in my community by serving alongside my local church in providing flyers to get the Gospel out in order for them to see the truth of God's love and forgiveness. I have participated in special events in the community for children where we have put on puppet shows, feed them, and did balloon animals, games sang, and danced. I have helped feed people in the community, donate toys and pass out toys and games to those who did not have anything for Christmas. I have participated in prayer services where we went out in the community and had city prayer and have gone door to door praying for people. I also help with Summer Camps every year. I have helped with the MCJROTC in the shooting team, cyber program, and summer leadership programs. I take photos, lead the teams, and compete alongside them helping them to develop their skills. This may not sound like much but every time I take the time to serve others, I touch lives, leaving my mark of love and change. I am one person, but if I touch a life, and they tell the story of the change that was made, then it becomes a domino effect and keeps on going. I want to grow in the knowledge of how to help others in this diverse world and I can do this one step at a time!

I first became interested in computers when I participated in the US Naval Academy Stem Program when I was in the 10 grade. For one week, I got to learn new skills in coding and even created my own coding game. I really enjoyed this and I ended up winning 1st place in coding out of 200 people. Since then I have been fascinated with computers and how they operate. In my spare time, I watch countless videos on how computers work, hardware and software, parts, and computer science. I am currently in the 12th grade and I am in JROTC, captain of the CYBER SECURITY TEAM. My passion accelerated when I started working on the program CYBER PATRIOT learning about Cyber Defense. I was responsible for assembling a team and learning the program, setting up equipment, and competing along with the US Air force trying to stop cyber attacks from various types of systems! This opportunity sparked my senses to develop a newfound passion I did not know I had. Each time we do the program, it is a new adventure trying to find the hidden secrets of the systems to stop an attack. Being in this type of atmosphere is challenging but also rewarding. We have the challenge to be tasked with finding and fixing cybersecurity vulnerabilities while maintaining critical services. So what exactly is Cyber Patriot? CyberPatriot is a STEM program of the Air & Space Forces Association. It was created to ignite passion in K-12 students in careers in cybersecurity or other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines critical to our society's future. This has been such a blessing for me in learning different areas of systems that I had no idea about! The possibilities are endless and it has really given me insight that I need to step up to learn these skills in order to serve and protect our nation's systems! I have been in JROTC my whole high school career. I have had the privilege to serve under two US military veterans in the US MARINE Corps. They have taught me leadership, persistence, and diligence. They have taught me to push through obstacles, to have thick skin, and to always keep going no matter what. The reason I have decided on my career is because of these two men. They saw something in me that I had no idea I had. They saw potential. They had no way of knowing that I was good with computers. They had no way of knowing that I would be interested in Computer Science but somehow they put me over the Cyber Security team. They see past my mistakes and my leadership failure and push me to be all I can be. When I did not think I could lead myself, they kept encouraging me. Now, I am responsible for a whole team leading them to believe in the mission and serve and protect. I have several family members that have been in the military. My dad is an army veteran. My grandfather was a Navy Veteran. My uncle is in the US Airforce on my dad's side and my cousin is. I also have family members on my mom's side who were in the Navy and the Army. The military is really a family and a showcase that shows dedication to fulfill a dream to serve others. I aim to serve others in the field of Cyber Security maybe not in the military but in the technology world. I would be so grateful to learn and keep learning the skills I need to serve others.

The effects of DUIs can be devastating, deadly, and debilitating. I have experienced this in my family. At the hand of a drunk driver, my uncle was the victim of a hit and run. Because of this choice, not one but three cars struck my uncle! When a driver chooses to drive with alcohol, they are putting their lives and the lives of others at great risk. DUIS can cause Bodily harm and fatalities. If you get arrested for a DUI, you have to live with the consequences. It can put your finances in a crunch. You will have to pay for your mistakes in fines. You will pay jail time if convicted and get a criminal record. You will have freedoms taken away such as a suspended license and have to pay higher insurance. You could lose your reputation by losing your job and maybe even prevent career opportunities because of it, and you will have negative labels on you for the rest of your life causing extreme shame and embarrassment. There are some steps to prevent DUIs. The best one is to not drink. If you must drink, you must make smart choices when choosing to engage in activities involving alcohol. Pick a responsible friend who is not going to drink alcohol to watch over you and help you stay safe. Know your limits when it comes to drinking. If you know you are going to drink, maybe drink one drink and cut yourself off so you will NOT get drunk then wait responsibly before you drive or call a friend or loved one to help you get home. You can also decide to spend the night at someone's house before you make your way home so that you will not hurt yourself or others by driving. There are programs and resources available in schools, communities, and states that provide reliable information to make you aware of the effects of alcoholism and drunk driving. These need to be readily available so that you can know the consequences of your actions. If you or someone you know has an alcohol problem, they need to seek help and treatment right away and it needs to be financially affordable, encouraging, and have an attainable reachable goal so that offenders will not give up the program before they even start it. There are also laws and penalties for driving drunk that the public needs to be aware of so that they can know the dangers of driving impaired. Funding and resource information needs to be easily accessible. Taking the necessary steps to protect people from DUI is a must. If you want to get on the road drunk, you will make a life-altering mistake. You need to have a plan in place that would include having designated drivers or using public transportation as a safe way to get home. Smart choices ensure that people do not get on the road after drinking. Make that choice today to either not drink or to use wisdom. Keep safety at the forefront of your mind so that you or people will not get hurt, and you won't suffer an arrest or be marked with jail time, loss of employment, and possibly your loved ones because of it. Take the time to get educated and hide your keys when you are tempted. DUI can have a negative effect on your life and the lives of the innocent. Do not allow three letters, (DUI) to ruin your life, take action today and live with a mind of safety using wisdom when choosing to drink alcohol and drive.

The world is constantly changing and you can't be left behind with extinct technology. This is why I am choosing computer science as a major. This field is so widespread that it provides many opportunities to help the people increase their capacity in businesses, networking, security, programming and development. The science behind computer science helps to problem solving in various aspects of the world around us. It is a collaboration of creative thinking in complex ways. Science is important to researching, analyzing, and finding ways to make the world around us more efficient. It is a way to share ideas, improve technology, create new ideas, and collect data. Without science, our thinking would bring analytical thinking to a halt. So, why not pursue science, and be a part of a way to help improve every area of your life?

Everyone has something that can cause difficulty in life, such as a medical condition that prevents them from being like everyone else. Since I was about 6 years old, I have had an eye disorder called convergence insufficiency that affects the way I see, learn, read, write, and even my coordination in different aspects. I have to use many accommodations, vision therapy, and special eye glasses with prisms that allow my eyes to team up together so I can improve my learning, reading, and seeing skills. When everyone else around me is making good grades with ease, for me, I've had to work much harder, and it has taken me years to learn the skills to get to where I'm at now. When someone does an assignment in less than an hour, it may take me a day. It can be frustrating being different and having to struggle, but what I choose to do with my struggles will make the difference. There are certain steps that I will do to not let this disorder derail me from my goals. The one thing I won't do is give up or make excuses about why I can't do things. I will work hard and get the right help and tools I need to succeed. I will speak positively about myself and my condition. I will help others when I can to succeed because everyone needs someone to believe in them. The most important thing I will do is believe in myself and move forward. I may have setbacks, but I will not quit! My goals for the future include going to school for computer science and eventually becoming a computer analyst. I plan to go to ministry school to help people learn about God and His Word to increase their faith in times of difficulties. I will continue to serve in ministry at my church, ministering to children. I will be an advocate of light and grace, showing others that anyone that pushes forward despite challenge can and will overcome. Having an eye disorder has taught me one thing, I may see differently, but it causes me to see things from an interesting perspective and I can view the world more unique, better than average. I can look at my surroundings with anger and sadness, knowing that I am different, and I take a long time to do things or I can take what I am dealing with and show others that this challenge has strengthened me. I don't think I may have pushed as hard if I didn't have something pushing against me. Sometimes trials produce talents and gifts inside of you you didn't know you had. In this, I increased my diligence, motivation, time management, organization, patience, and inner peace. Many things are against me, but I am ready and willing to climb the mountain of uncertainty no matter how difficult and high it may be. I will get to the top! Have you ever heard the phrase, "going against the grain?" It is significantly more difficult doing things with this eye disorder, convergence insufficiency, but this grain won't push against me and win. My will, determination, and drive will push against this hardship "grain" and prove my worth. It may rub me the wrong way, but I will shove that much harder to stand up in what I believe in, me! My steps are ordered, I will use wisdom and achieve my goals. My eyes are unique to see the world in a rare way and I will use this ability to my advantage.

People view things differently and see the world through a different lens depending on how they look at things. For me, I actually do see the world differently. I have an eye disorder called convergence insufficiency. My eyes don't team up together and I see things blurry, or double and it's difficult for me to read and write.I take extra time on assignments and have trouble completing things. I can let this disorder cripple me and hinder me all the days of my life, making it super difficult to do easy and simple tasks or I can use it for my good and keep pressing forward so that I can finish my race and do what I'm called to do! We all need to make changes in life, and when we do, it's important that we take steps toward them. One of the changes that I've made is making sure that I don't use my eye disorder as a crutch. I do have it; I'm not negating the fact that I do but I accept the accommodations that I have and I speak positively over my future and my present. Some changes that I daily make is not being anxious when I can't do something, keep pushing harder, even if it's difficult, and not letting anyone or anything deter or determine my future. I purpose to finish what I start and this is important for me because once you're stuck, you can never move forward, so I aim to always to keep walking and moving forward so that I will not be stuck! I learned that no matter how I see things, my outlook on how I deal with it makes all the difference. I can be controlled by the negative or use positive words and actions to overcome!

The biggest problem in the world today is self-inflicted wounds, meaning that people are prone to world hurt, culture hurt, relational hurt, and so on. Everyone will experience trials in this life but keeping your wounds will hinder you from moving forward and pursuing your dream. When you experience trauma, disappointment or set back, and do not strive to press forward, you get stuck. When you are stuck, you can't move any further. To help self-inflicted wounds you must do several things. One thing that you must do is expose the wound. Wounds need attention right away if they want to be healed and left untreated, it will result in infection. To expose the wound, you must address it. To only put a Band-Aid on it, will not help the situation. Write down what you are dealing with, get some professional and spiritual help, and make simple attainable goals to help you get past your wounds and heal properly. You can also gain the support you need along the way, because being isolated is not the way to deal with your bleeding wounds. The heart is an intricate organ and if left to itself to continue in self-hurt, it can be damaged and result in potential health risks. Be kind to yourself, forgive, and move forward. Do not stay stuck in things that did not work out for you. There is always a way out and wisdom for you to get out of your hurt and step into your healing. Make the decision today to dive into the refreshing waters of hope and healing today! Self- inflicted wounds will heal and it is up to you to heal. It is your responsibility, do not stay stuck!

What is love got to do with it? Everything. If you do not love yourself, you cannot love others properly. We always hear talk about people criticizing their flaws. Everyone has them but why dwell on them. We need to find the one thing that sets us apart from everyone else and implement self-love. I can reflect on one thing that I love about myself and it is I am compassionate towards others. I know someone just doesn't run everyone this kind of trait but I believe it helps me see people for who they truly are instead of looking at the outward appearance. I love being compassionate because it shows that you are genuinely concerned for others, showing care to them when someone else would not. I have always had a passion for caring for others. It started with my grandmother. We have always lived in the same household because she needs a lot of help. She relies on me for help and I run to her rescue every time. It may get frustrating sometimes but showing kindness and love for her is not only helping her but is instilling good character in me. I am confident in this gift because by showing compassion I can bring attention to others and show them that they are not alone, I can be moved by someone's suffering and they can become greatly affected by it, I can relieve their burdens, and take action to help them get out of the pit they may be in. Compassion is not a weakness; it is a strength. If you don't sow compassion in others, it will not be sown to you. I feel like compassion is a strength to me because it is a gift that has been planted in me to grow.

The mind is an intricate system. A mind is not fixed to only store a limited amount of information, but to expand to allow continual growth. In order to keep a growth mindset, you must have a teachable spirit, a humble attitude, a focus-driven mind. With these attributes, you can continue to grow and achieve your goals. Having a teachable spirit is one that knows that you must continue to grow. You never outgrow learning. You should always want to be taught knowing that you can always improve in life. A humble attitude will allow you to move forward personally. This involves adopting an attitude of constantly wanting to prefer the needs of others. In terms of learning, one must not think himself too highly not to grow and expand. You are to be courteous to the fact that each one of us can grow exponentially if we are willing to listen, be thankful, and be kind enough to ourselves to not settle for less. With a focus-driven mind, you are set on the specific. You have a goal, you take steps to achieve it, you check off those steps, and then when you are done, you make sure to set new ones. If you face challenges, you should not give up, but rather keep pressing on. A focus-driven mind sets out to achieve goals as quickly as possible knowing that there are things that need to be completed and ways to create change. If you are setting out to learn, you are passionate enough to keep learning and make the sacrifices to do so. Being teachable, humble, and focus-driven will enable you to have a growth mindset that will take you further in life. You keep this mindset by making time, making sacrifices, allowing for mistakes, and pressing forward!

There can be a lot of different things that motivate you but you have to look deep within to find the answer. Your motivation should be pure and free of any ulterior motive. When looking deep within my soul, I find that God motivates me and in that answer, several extend from that answer. God motivates me because He gave me a purpose. I am on this earth for a reason and He gave me the tools to be able to achieve this purpose. I know I have a responsibility to do the thing I was created to. When I determine in my mind and take the steps to pursue this, one step at a time, I can have joy in knowing that I am on the right path. The passion that was placed inside of me by God helps me to strive toward excellence, work diligently, and persevere no matter the obstacle that I may face. I purpose to develop my passion in life because it will me to succeed. Knowing that I can make a difference in someone's life is what also motivates me. We are called to help others in any and every capacity. It should not be money or position that motivates you but rather serving others. If you do your part in life, others will be influenced by you and I believe the only way I can do this is to tap into the strength, grace, and mercy of God working in and through me. Without Him, I can do nothing, but by Him, I can do anything. With God, all things are possible. While I realize motivation is different for everyone, God drives me to pursue Him, and as I pursue Him, I will pursue happiness and success because it will be from Him.

There were several experiences that changed my life but one I recall helped to greatly shape my life. In the 4th grade, I had to go to a new school because I was being bullied at my current school. During this year, I met a man named Mr. Cobb. He was the dean of the school and he taught religion. He immediately began to mentor me. He took responsibility for my growth. He knew I had challenges, had come from a difficult school past, and needed encouragement to flourish. Mr. Cobb began to pray with me, seek ways to help me not only to flourish in learning but to get closer to God. He started to pull out the dormant gifts I had on the inside of me. He would allow me to do different things in the classroom like pray, help others and lead. He tried to give me opportunities to find myself and I began to become a different person. His influence was of great importance to me. I had an eye disorder that presented many challenges, but he showed me that I can press forward, work hard, and achieve outstanding academic goals. His diligence to help me be better to succeed and I became a great man of prayer, a confident leader, and a man of integrity. I watched Mr. Cobb's life. He was a devout Christian, a wonderful father, and husband, and served others as unto the Lord well. He taught me to live for Christ and not allow problems to dictate my future. Despite challenges, with Mr. Cobb's help and constant presence in my life, I began to excel. I was not afraid. I did not look to my past. I overcome emotionally. Without his help, I may not be the person I am today.

When I started school, my teachers and my parents knew something was wrong. I was really smart but when I tried to write things down, it was difficult for me. My handwriting was poor, I would misalign things, and write things out of order, omit letters, or add letters. I could do things audibly perfectly, but when it came to writing, it was challenging. A few years went by and I struggled. It would take me hours to do a simple paragraph, essay, or homework assignment. I had to work extra hard and study in unique ways. When I was in second grade, I started to decline emotionally, everything was frustrating to me and I began to act out. My mom took me to see a counselor and we found out that I was being bullied. Because I was different and I would cry if I missed a spelling word, I became a target for bullying. We learned that since 4 years old, I was being called names and beaten by my bully. I was also diagnosed with an eye disorder that explained everything. With counseling, eye therapy, and special glasses that contained prisms, I got better. I confessed that I would see properly, do better in school in writing and spelling, and I would excel. I did. My teachers began to understand me, gave me more time on assignments and tests, and my school experience turned around. Slowly, I began to make the honor roll, I got awards in school, even in English, and started doing better on timed tests. My eyesight improved and now things are easier for me. I do not look at my difficulty as disabling, I looked at it as a way to overcome. The battle was never mine. I just had to keep pressing!

Patience is a virtue and these days it is hard to exercise it. Patience is important because as the saying goes, "Good things come to those who wait." If you get impatient, you will move too quickly, make hasty decisions, and not use wisdom. Patience is what causes you to pause and make good decisions. Patience is the ability to not get easily angered at the problems you will face. Patience is important because it can help pursue your goals. So many people give up because they are unwilling to do the work, put in the time, and be diligent when times are hard. If you stop, focus your time and energy on what is in front of you, be led in the right direction, one step at a time, then you are most likely to have patience on your side. Being patience is exercising love. Did you know that patience is important because it can help you cultivate a love for yourself and others? In doing so, it can cover a multitude of problems. Many people get offended and angry while having patience can disagree but not let it fester and become aggressive. Patience is being humble and gentle. This is important because, in order to be successful, we must not be lifted in pride. If we allow our ego to move forward in every situation, we are destined to fall. Patience is important in this way because we will honor our fellow man even if they fall themselves. Patience is important because we slow down in every area. We need to slow down in our pace, our words, our decisions, in everything. When we do this, we can have better clarity, better mental health, and even better relationships. Patience is a rare virtue but it can be exercised.

The biggest problem that the world is facing right now is conformity. Conforming is to be similar to or the same as something. See the world wants us to conform and be like everyone else. If the standards are set high, they are laid out for us, and everyone does the same thing, then the world will run smoother, right? No, it will not. It takes a bold, confident leader who is ready to stand up and stand up to make the world a different place. It is hard to solve this problem but some tools on helping to do so are by staying true to yourself. It is okay to stand out. Develop your gifts and talents that are true to your character not everyone else's. Be conscious of who you are, do not deviate from the left or the right; move toward your purpose. Be confident and self-disciplined. If you are confident in who you are, then you will always strive for excellence and the best and you will not settle. If you know yourself, you will be able to differentiate what is truth and what is a facade. Knowing yourself and standing up for your morality, will keep the lies, the conformity, the wrong pathway out of your reach. Going against the grain may seem like you are scratching your fingernails against a chalkboard but this is necessary to allow yourself to lead well and create change. You may not be accepted or understood but when it comes to solving the world's problem of being sheep and following the crowd, you must stand alone and be unique or you may just follow the world off a cliff. It is okay to pull against the pricks because the the journey to success is up to you being true.

Staying true to yourself is extremely important. The world has many ways for you to conform but by doing so you will lose your identity. When you compromise who you are, you lose by default. One can stay true to themselves by not conforming to the world's set of standards, having confidence in who you are and what your purpose is, and standing up for righteousness and morality. The world is moving at a fast pace and if you do not look like the world's way, then you are just a square peg in a round hole? Is it so bad to be different? The answer is no, not when you do not conform to the world's standards. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." The world will try to tell you who you are, what you need to do, and how you should do it as they would dictate. You have to set your mind on pure and lovely things, be confident in who are destined to be. You have to focus on what God has created you to be. You can choose to focus your thinking on the negative things of this world and even pursue the wrong direction because it looks right, pays well, or it just seems good but in doing so, you will lose your identity, give up your morality, and compromise your own personal standards. Seek out your purpose, walk in your passion, and pursue with diligence the path that is set before.

Keep going and stay the course; as long as you keep moving forward, you will succeed. When you look back, stop moving due to failure or disappointment, your destiny weighs in the balance. Not only does your destiny halt, but the people that you would have influenced, never exist. Purpose to keep going, one step at a time, and when you do, you will achieve your destiny.