One of the most challenging things for me to overcome has been the absence of my father and mother. As a child I had looked up to both of them for comfort and support. Due to extenuating circumstances, my mom had to leave home for Mexico. This left me with my father, who has always been mentally and physically unstable due to his addictions. My father, being who he was, left me with my godparents at the age of three and I still live with them to this today. Living with my godparents created difficulties for both themselves and me and much of this was due to my parents’ lack of responsibility. As I grew older, it became more difficult to have access to certain things like going to the doctors, receiving Medicare, and getting cleared for sports and school activities. I had to learn to be independent at a young age and kept myself motivated because one day, my perseverance would be worth it. Seeing others with their parents and how their needs were easily met only pushed me to work even harder in school. Although there were days where I questioned the point of going to school, I always knew that education would allow me the opportunities for a better future. I had to remind myself to not view my life day by day but understand that it is a long, grueling process. This challenge has taught me to be patient with myself and time. Being patient is important to me because its something I have done my whole life. I've waited for opportunities to open up to me. I waited for my parents to step up, but they never did. Overall I knew I had to be patient with myself and wait for the future to come.

Making change and starting something new that many people enjoy takes time, effort, and support. At my school, many students love sports, especially football. However, being a small school, we do not have the facilities to have it which left students having to give up the sport they loved. As a result, I took the initiative to create a proposal and present it to our administration and teachers to create a flag football club and class. I rallied my friends and other students because I knew that it would show the desire and need of the sport. With my friends as support, I proposed the idea to my English teacher and explained why having flag football was so important to us. Although hesitant at first, he saw that the sport would not only mean a lot to me, but the school community and was willing to be the advisor. However, he told me that it would be my job to lead the class, hold the students accountable, and to model trust, respect, and responsibility. Even though he approved the idea, he told me that I had to get my principal’s permission. So I discussed my idea and explained my reasoning to my principal and showed her that we had not only gotten many students’ support but also a teacher to be the advisor. After I shared, she was open-minded and gave us the go ahead to formally create the club and class! Like my English teacher, she reminded me that it was my duty to keep organized and create a safe place for others to enjoy themselves. It felt amazing to see how something that had originally been just a thought, turned into something real. To my and my teacher’s surprise, we had over fifty students sign up for the class as their first choice. I had created something for my school to enjoy and for the students to bond over. By using my creativity, communication, and relational skills, I found a way to create another outlet for students to feel heard and acknowledged.

I have many passions that make me who I am, most of these include outside activities like playing soccer, I play on three different teams. Though my passion not only is in soccer but in many sports, I hope to pursue my passion for sports by going to college and working to receive a diploma in Communications or Journalism in hopes to become a sports analyst. I want to pursue higher education not only for myself but my family, having the opportunity I have I want to leave a path for my younger siblings to follow and one day go to college themselves. There are many reasons to pursue a higher education, the main one being that this is my one and only ticket out the door. Though if it does not go well I find a way to get back on my feet and try again and again. Participating in soccer has helped my mind and to find peace in myself. Playing two years on Junior Varsity and one on varsity it has helped me to push harder. My freshman year I played very well to try and make the team, which I did, but like many players it doesn't always come easy. For me it was difficult to adapt to my team and the pressure. Though this never stopped me, playing 11 games and not scoring a single goal made me angry, but never once did it cross my mind to quit. I put in my own time, going every day to the park and practicing by myself gave me a sense that i'm on the right path. Going into my second year I felt more confident in myself and in only 6 games I scored 6 goals which was a huge achievement for me. Now currently going into my fourth year of High school i'm looking to finish strong and attend a college in northern California. I hope to receive my Masters in Journalism or Communications to become a sports analyst. Overall these experiences have effecting the understanding of myself because I know I can push through and achieve what I want, every obstacle and setback has made me stronger. I find the positive in everything and always aspire to do better through that, as to my community and the world I find comfort in knowing that they're are people out there helping the community to receive financial need's and other such things.

My greatest inspiration in life are my setbacks and experiences that I have had throughout my life, the setbacks are what drive me to push through things because I know I have gone through a lot. Pushing through these setbacks makes me feel like I can take any challenge on. My father is not present, he is both a drug addict and alcoholic. My mother lives in Sinaloa Mexico, and struggles daily taking care of two of my younger sisters. I myself have lived with my godparents since I was 2, going through the struggle of not having legal guardians has effecting many things, such as my health not being able to attend the doctor monthly, as well as the dentist and any other services provided to the community. It has been a struggle for my family to take care of me due to these incidents. Now currently going into my fourth year of High school i'm looking to finish strong and attend a college in northern California. I hope to receive my Masters in Journalism or Communications to become a sports analyst. Overall these experiences have effecting the understanding of myself because I know I can push through and achieve what I want, every obstacle and setback has made me stronger. I find the positive in everything and always aspire to do better through that, as to my community and the world I find comfort in knowing that they're are people out there helping the community to receive financial need's and other such things.

There have been many experience's in my life that have effected my current standpoint and how I see things such as my life, my community, and this world. I've experienced traumas and have gone through many obstacles to get to where I currently am. My father is not present, he is both a drug addict and alcoholic. My mother lives in Sinaloa Mexico, and struggles daily taking care of two of my younger sisters. I myself have lived with my godparents since I was 2, going through the struggle of not having legal guardians has effecting many things, such as my health not being able to attend the doctor monthly, as well as the dentist and any other services provided to the community. It has been a struggle for my family to take care of me due to these incidents. Now currently going into my fourth year of High school i'm looking to finish strong and attend a college in northern California. I hope to receive my Masters in Journalism or Communications to become a sports analyst. Overall these experiences have effecting the understanding of myself because I know I can push through and achieve what I want, every obstacle and setback has made me stronger. I find the positive in everything and always aspire to do better through that, as to my community and the world I find comfort in knowing that they're are people out there helping the community to receive financial need's and other such things.