Growing up in a home with two younger sisters forced me to listen to many singers I never would have imagined myself listening to, and Sabrina Carpenter was one of them. At one time, I might have been one of the people who followed along with the criticism of her before I recognized her pathway and really appreciated her success despite many obstacles. A few years ago, I recall having a conversation in my house about adult artists who started out on Disney. My parents grew up with the Mickey Mouse Club stars who later became singers, like Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake, while the era for me and my siblings were the Disney Channel shows that led to singing careers, like Olivia Rodrogo, Miley Cyrus, and Sabrina Carpenter. I have been following the last few albums of Sabrina’s, along with the news and criticism she’s received on social media for some of the lyrics in her songs as well as album covers that some have said spread messages of misogyny and glorify domestic violence. What’s fascinating about Sabrina is how she’s able to use her art to respond and continue to create her own journey. While some artists might be silenced by the criticism, Sabrina is motivated by it and uses it to spread her messages about self-acceptance like in her lyric, “that person was born to be who she is, and you’re born to be who you are”. Sabrina has displayed an example of hard work and resilience as she started at a young age and continues to write and tell her stories. Some of her greatest songs, “Skin” and “Sue Me” are examples of her continuing to push forward and breaking barriers by standing strong despite them. While some might say she crosses too many lines, having two sisters and a desire for them to be successful has led to my seeing Sabrina as a strong, confident role model for women. As she’s said, “I’ve always been taught that if you work hard enough, you can make anything happen”, and I hope that message has lasting effects on anyone that might need to hear it.

Are you "Ready for It"? I found Taylor's performance of the Reputaiton set to be the most moving and inspirational. Tayor released Reputation after a period of discovering herself and dealing with some of the unintended results of having a life in the spotlight. I love that Reputation has an edgy, angsty feel to it and the writing in the songs and that she made the decision to not let others take her down. She grew up quickly in the spotlight and people tried ot hurt her, and for a year or so after she released 1989, some feared she'd be done making music, however she came back with something to say, and she said it better than anyone I know, which is so inpirational. Some of the best lyrics from that album, "my castle crumbed overnight, I brought a knife to a gunfight" is such an amazing way to describe what she had been feeling those past few years, but she adds in another song, "but I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time. Honey I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time". She rose from the dead, stronger, and ready to show the world who she is. Seeing her perfrom that set live, the art and images in the outfits, the snakes, and the emotions behind that dancing and connecting with her audience. I love that Reputation's theme seems to be Taylor coming into her own self, learning who she is and what she wants in life and in love. I think overall she continued to let her fans know that she contiues to search for love, even with so much heartache, but she's also letting any haters know, she's here to stay. While I can't related to having to live my life and my relationships in the spotlight, I think we can all relate to having times of self-relfection and times we need to come back from feeling like we're at the bottom. I think overall we all hope to get to a place in our lives where we feel confident and able to be who we are and let others say what they want, and I believe Taylor has gotten to that place. We all hope to "hold onto the memories, they will hold onto you", those memories, good and bad, will always have a place in our lives, we all just hope they offer us the ability to refect, learn, and grow, like they did for Taylor.

As an athlete I’ve always known I wanted to eventually find a career that involved physical health and wellness. Throughout my school years I have participated in many sports and activities and during that time had to deal with multiple injuries. Additionally, I watched my brother endure injuries and was able to see first-hand what it takes, mentally and physically to recover from injuries. In recovering from injuries, I took a special interest in physical therapy. During the summer before my senior year I was fortunate enough to job shadow/intern with a local physical therapist which allowed me to feel more certain that physical therapy is the career I want to pursue. The internship experience with a local public health agency providing physical therapy treatment to individuals in their homes. This experience provided me with direct experience in the field I am pursuing, but also the added knowledge for seeing the lives people live and the struggles people have in their everyday lives. This gave me such a better understanding of people and their needs, and it made me certain that healthcare is the field I want to study. I want to learn all that I can about physical and exercise-related wellness as well as helping people to recover from surgeries and injuries. Eventually, my goal is to focus on athletes and sports related injury recovery as I know how important and beneficial the teams and sports were throughout my childhood and high school career, and I’d like to do what I can to make sure all kids have the same opportunities. Additionally, physical health is an important part of overall health and wellness and keeping people active is important in their overall health. One of the things I will always remember during my varsity football career was the team dinners we’d have once a week. During these dinners, our coach brought in a local sports psychologist who would give speeches and provide support and guidance to players. This led to my overall career goal of opening my own practice so that I can provide a holistic healthcare approach to athletes and individuals involved in sports or athletic related injuries. I’d love to have staff in the practice that can provide not only physical therapy services, but also athletic training, and sports psychology/counseling services. My coaches, my family, my teammates, and my experiences throughout high school played a huge part in shaping me to be the person I am today. All those people and experiences provided me with inspiration and motivation to dedicate myself to my goals of obtaining a doctorate in physical therapy and eventually opening a practice in my hometown so I can return to the places I grew up and make a difference in the lives of others. Once I return to my hometown, I’d also love to get involved in coaching at my alma mater. I know what a difference sports made in my life, and I’d love to be a role model for students and athletes, as I know kids can never have enough positive people in their lives. I grew up very fortunate, and I understand not all kids are that fortunate, therefore, if I can make a difference in a student’s life, I’d love to have the opportunity to try.