When I was younger, in elementary school, I was diagnosed with anxiety. Not the kind of anxiety you feel before a big test, the kind that destroys you from your inside out. I had a gap in my two front teeth from sucking my fingers and I couldn't do my hairstyles for dance because I would pull out my hair. These were the only ways my little brain dealt with this weird thing I didn't fully understand. Beyond elementary school I would bite my nails, bounce my leg, or bite my tongue. I still struggle with my anxiety to this day. One of the only things that helps put my mind at ease is God. I've grown up Christian thanks to my mom, and my faith has definitely faltered, but God hasn't left me because He's always brought me back to Him. When my mind was racing about what college to choose, my parent's divorce, or why does that boy not like me back, God always reminded me that everything will end up exactly how it needs to and He knows what will happen for me even when I can't see it for myself. God's plan will prevail if I trust in Him. My anxiety can really race and show in performance career as well. I do a professional level of color guard called Drum Corps International where you perform on the biggest fields in America. My favorite story to tell is my first time performing in the Indiana Colt's stadium I was so overwhelmed with stress and excitement. I didn't know what to do so I took a moment to pray. Just taking a second of my time to thank God for putting all the pieces in place for me to get to this point. Now I've performed on that field three separate times along with other famous stadiums such as the Rose Bowl and the Alamodome. My only consistency is I try to take a moment to ask God to ease my nerves and thank Him. Because why should I be scared when I have God behind me? Even now I know that God's plan for me is not complete and any stress I have about my future career will all figure itself out. I may still be scared of the future, but I will never be too scared because of he simple fact that my faith won't falter.

My mom is my greatest inspiration. And I know that is a sentence you hear from almost every girl but my mom is truly the biggest role model in my life. My mom is a US Air Force veteran who served 22 years and currently still works in a civilian job on Nellis Air Force Base. All my life she has taught me the greatest value of my education. But before running public affairs, deploying during the Global War on Terrorism, or her shiny captain rank she was a poor girl in northern California with a single mom. My mom grew up not knowing if she would be able to attend college, the only thing she knew was she needed to get out of her small town. And with no support, even from her mom and no father in sight, she turned to the Air Force. At only 18 years old, fresh out of high school, she enlisted. She was finally able to build her life the way she wanted. After graduating from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University with her degree in airport management and then her masters in strategic leadership from Trident University. She went on to also get into and graduate from Officer Training while having me. After she retired she even went back to art school while she ran her own photography business. It was her endless drive to get her education and keep learning that got her the big achievements to this day according to her. From elementary school she has always made sure I knew how important my grades were to my future and how she would support me every day and in every choice I made. It is in that support that I find myself taking after her footsteps and majoring in public relations in college, just like what she did for the Air Force. I recently achieved a 4.0 GPA in my first semester at college, a time when many student find it easy to push school to the side for their shiny new lives, The best feeling was how happy my mom was for me and how proud she was that I was able to look away from any distractions and keep working hard for what I want. Seeing how far her education has brought her makes me trust that mine can do the same, even more. She tells me stories from her time stationed in England when she was my age and her friends from those times are the people who love me the most. Her stories keep me educated in a different way than school can provide. The obstacles she tells me about show me that nothing can stop me from getting where I want to go.