Two-Hundred and twenty pounds. That’s exactly how much I weighed 3 years ago entering my freshman year at high school. I remember feeling ashamed of my body entering the boys’ locker room. I knew no one cared, but I cared. I knew it would be a potential problem down the road, of course, cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, etc. I knew I should have been eating healthy, but you know I could not garner the motivation or confidence to exercise and eat healthy even if I really wanted to change the way I looked. That is until I got a diagnosis from my doctor- high blood pressure of 140 over 80. I remember that the doctor said I should limit my salt and oil intake and then while looking at me said “and lose some weight”, not in a judgemental way but in an “it’s for your own good” type of way. This completely rocked my world. I remember coming home that day and feeling overwhelmed and confused about what I was going to do. The next day, I started exercising. I did 50 minutes of intense cardio from YouTube. It was the type of cardio that made your lungs wheeze and had your whole body aching by the next day. Being a beginner, I had to stop many times in between to catch my breath and had to change moves like doing assisted push-ups instead of regular ones. After my workouts, instead of eating the usual huevos con jamon, I would instead eat grilled chicken and broccoli with some brown rice. It wasn’t bad, but it took a few weeks for my taste buds to get used to it. At the same time, I was juggling taking care of my 3 brothers while also keeping up my grades during the 2019 pandemic. Throughout that one year, I was either in a Zoom meeting, taking care of my brothers or exercising and improving myself. Exercising in between all of that allowed me to clear my mind and gain a new perspective on my life, how I would solve these math problems, or what I should cook for my brothers. Coming back to school in 2021 made me realize that the self-discipline I learned could also be applied to my school and social life. I started talking to new people and made new friends, became active in clubs like Key Club, played football, and created a true-to-life 3D model of our high school and rendered it in real-time. Now I will use the skills I learned from my weight loss journey and in High School to use on a new one, where I will leave my home of eighteen years to an institution unbeknownst to me other than a few visits, emails, and fliers. Though, I will apply myself and hope that the trial of my life will lead me equipped for the rest of it. I will struggle for sure, but I will try to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I did lose 60 pounds after all.

Ever since I could remember I had to help my parents, whether I was translating for them at parent-teacher conferences, setting up doctor appointments or even communicating with our landlord when we had a leaky roof, my parents always could trust in my help and I could also expect to help my parents. I was also a talented student, was well-behaved, and had good grades. My parents were proud of me, to say the least; they were hard-working Mexican immigrants and were pleased to know that their son enjoys going to school. They also never pressured me to pick a specific profession or university, because they never went to university or had much formal schooling for that matter. There was nothing wrong with that, but because my parents were working-class immigrants with little money, I always had an internal pressure that I needed to push myself to be successful, a drive to break out of this system and support my parents because who else will? Some of this internal pressure even turned into shame and embarrassment for my parents, because even though they lived here for over 20 years, I still needed to make appointments and calls for them. My parents sometimes felt the shame I had for their broken English, lackluster careers and our living arrangements, but they still provided the best they could for me and still loved me, no matter what. That made me realize I shouldn’t be embarrassed by them because they moved to this country after all for a better life for me and my brothers. They may have never had much of an education in the countryside of Mexico, But I self-studied into a specialized high school and during my time there I garnered a passion for math, science, and engineering design. In taking my computer-aided design class, I became proficient in software like Autocad, Revit, and inventor and from there have designed 2D models, buildings, and some mechanical models. I even got an internship through the company Designers Edge in which I learned about ADA graphics and the role it plays in our lives. I learned the importance of accessible design and why it’s important to have ADA standards through door space, handrails, ramps, and turning and clear floor space. I also took college-level courses in college now and multiple of AP courses. Now as a senior in high school with a plan to major in civil engineering at City College,I plan to earn my degree and be able to give back to my parents for all that they have given to me.