A leader sets the bar. Those who lead have a gift to go beyond ordinary measures. Leaders are exceptional. They don't just go to college, but they are the first person in their family to go to college. Or they are the first in their family to graduate debt-free. Leaders inspire others to challenge themselves. I have set the bar before. I have always been headstrong, so when I set my mind on being able to drive, all it took was a plan and just a few months short of a year. In my junior year of high school, I set out to get my driver's license. I had no background knowledge on what it took to get a license. So I asked my friend's parents and researched it on my own. Shortly after, I signed up for Aceable, an online driving program. I managed to pay for the $80 membership with all I could scrounge up and got my license. I noticed my 20-year-old and 19-year-old brothers following the lead of their 16-year-old sister. Not long after I got a job and began saving for a car, my brothers took notice once again. After about 6 months of pulling shots, steaming milk, and blending frappuccinos at Starbucks, I saved $5,000. Finally, after working long Summer days and taking many Lyft rides, I bought my first car, a beautiful rich blue 2012 Ford Focus. Which lead my brothers to get their licenses and begin to save up for themselves. Although it makes a great story now, leading is a strenuous task. It tests your perseverance. You've got eyes looking at you in admiration, even when you want to call it quits. At times when I wanted to throw in the towel, those eyes reminded me that I had so much to prove. Not just to myself, but for my brothers to see what started as a will made a way. So they could do the same for themselves. What I learned from my brief leading moment at 16 showed me that it takes one person to elevate so that others will follow. Beyond my high school and college education, I plan to always be a leader for myself. I want to continuously challenge the standard of what it is to be remarkable. Not just in my future career but my personal life and faith as well. I strive to become a better daughter, friend, and Christian. So I'll continue to be a leader to others, starting with myself.

I watched an interview on YouTube titled "Victoria Pedretti Laughs and Cries Her Way to Accepting The Gift of Her Sensitivity". From the moment I pressed play, I was captivated by Victoria Pedretti's rawness. I was in awe for all seventeen minutes and thirty-five seconds. This is because I found myself relating to so much of what she said immensely. She wears her heart on her sleeve without a care in the world for what anyone else may think. In today's society, it's normal to act in a toxic way as if you couldn't give a care in the world. To the point where many people walk around with a chip on their shoulder the size of Mt. Rushmore. I will also find myself throwing on a shield and turning stone-cold to my emotions. Though, this is only because I feel so much. I have so much empathy for others and am deeply intuitive of my thoughts and feelings. I've always been aware of my sensitivity. However, for so long, I put on an act in hopes to hide it. I thought if people knew how much I truly cared I would be perceived as weak. That couldn't be far enough from the truth. My sensitivity and tender nature are what make me an exceptional daughter, sister, friend, and overall person.

I don't think I fully understood the term "growing pains" until recently. I started high school naive with the thought that I would remain in the bubble of my high school's four walls forever. Unfortunately, life isn't like High School Musical, and reality eventually settled in. Throughout the past four years, schoolwork has become unbearable and more friends have started to distance themselves. Even though these things have brought me to tears countless nights, I have realized there is so much more. While I may lose friends, I've come to appreciate the time I have spent with them. It's true, you do encounter people in your life as a lesson or a blessing. Neither is a negative thing as long as you openly accept both as a growing opprotunity. There are life's intimate moments beyond homework. There's also a world full of people I'm eager to meet and learn from. So yes, growth is painful. However, to look back to a moment where I was in agony yet, I can recognize my maturation is absolutely beautiful.

I like to help others by being kind. Do you know how in elementary school, teachers would constantly reiterate how important kindness is? It sounds mundane or typical but, being kind can go a long way. We almost forget how impactful it is as we grow older. Being kind means understanding someone or a situation and treating someone genuinely, without judgment or something in return. It can look like listening to someone, spending extra time with a person, or extending an act of kindness. It's especially rewarding to treat people you don't know with kindness. Often people don't expect strangers to be kind. Though, when you are, they're refreshingly astonished. Earlier this week, the school vending machine was randomly not accepting cards, and a younger-looking boy was aimlessly looking through his backpack for a dollar and fifty cents. So I handed him two dollars, and the look on his face was priceless. He look at me as if I were God himself. So why not be kind to others? It's free. Well, in my case it was the low price of $2.