"I'm in love with my future, can't wait to meet her." This quote from Billie Eilish's song "my future" is on my vision board. I can't wait for my future, but I'm also scared at the same time. My top three songs are probably as basic as you think, but they have a deeper meaning to me. Her songs have gotten me through the toughest times in my life, so they hold great importance to me. "my future", "idontwannabeyouanymore", and "L'AMOUR DE MA VIE" are my top three songs. I have been listening to Billie Eilish since I was 11. I am now 18, writing a scholarship about how her songs helped me. "My Future" is a song about a girl anxious to meet her future self. I can relate to that because I can't wait to see what my future holds for me, but I'm also scared. You can plan your future, but you can't always get what you ask for. The song also gives the perspective of someone who's living in another's shadow. With the lyrics "I can't seem to focus and you don't seem to notice," I feel as though she is describing what it's like to be burnt out and continuing going to school or work. "idontwannabeyouanymore" is one of the first songs I heard by Billie. As someone who has always struggled with my self-image, I felt like I could relate to the song on a personal level. At the beginning of the song, Billie sings the lyrics "fall apart twice a day". When I was younger, I had severe untreated depression, so I would break down every day for 2 months. I felt like I was living someone else's life. "Was I made from a broken mold?" is a question that almost every teenage girl has asked themselves. We can feel so alone while being surrounded by lots of people who love us. We pick apart ourselves and can make a list of everything we want to change, but a stranger would never notice them. "L'AMOUR DE MA VIE" translates to "the love of my life". To me, the song is about being in a relationship with someone you never truly fell in love with. I was in a toxic relationship with someone who manipulated me into thinking they would end their life if I left. For this reason, the lyrics "It isn't asking for a lot for an apology for making me feel like it'd kill you if I tried to leave" really stick with me. The song makes you understand what it's like to overthink a relationship that you didn't want in the beginning. Billie Eilish is a huge inspiration to me. She can make songs that anyone can relate to because it's art. Art is subjective, meaning that you may have a different understanding of the subject than someone else does. She is such a talented young adult and makes music that most generations can relate to. Thank you for taking the time to review my application for this scholarship.

On February 19th, 2024, I lost of one my biggest supporters worldwide. My grandpa meant everything to me. He was a successful business owner who always pushed me to do what I wanted and not what other people wanted me to do. He was the best grandpa ever, I may or may not be a little biased. He was the type of person who was always holding a baby, regardless of whether it was family or not. My grandpa loved to show his affection for others; he gave them the confidence to accomplish their dreams. I hope I can make him proud with my decision to go to college for what I've always wanted to do, be a nail technician. My grandpa, Richard "Dick" Clark, created and owned his own business, Clark Trucking and Dispatch, out of Brewster, Nebraska. He bought his first truck in 1985. He never finished high school after his dad passed, he had to take over the ranch. Grandpa was a family man, so it was hard for him to keep trucking all by himself. When my uncle, Kirk Clark, who is now the owner after my grandpa's passing, was old enough, he helped. My mom also helped with the dispatch part. The business became a big deal in our small area. Everyone knew my grandpa and only had good things to say about him. When my grandpa passed, it affected the whole community. My grandpa always told me, "In the beginning, it's hard, but as time goes on, you'll realize it's all okay." He was right and always will be. I think about my memories with my grandpa all the time. It's really hard to lose someone who was always there for me. Our family isn't perfect, but my grandpa was as close as a person could get to perfect, but everyone has their downfalls. Everyone is human, and they make mistakes. Humans are the hardest species to understand. My grandpa taught me to be patient. If someone is making me upset, I remember that everyone is struggling in their way. It's coming up on a year without him. I am still in denial that he is even gone. I believe I will never get over it, but that's not what my grandpa would want for me. If he was still here, he would tell me to get off my ass and work for what I want; it's not going to be given to me. I will work hard to make him proud. I'm going to work hard for my future. With this anniversary coming up, I have realized that family will always be there for you, through the ups and downs. As much as it hurts to say, there is nothing we could've done. We will always have him in our hearts and our thoughts. I was pretty lucky to have him in my life. I was able to rely on him for advice. I have one heck of a role model.

"I believe you have to be willing to be misunderstood if you're going to innovate." This was a quote from Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. I want to create a nail salon where people can feel amazing. I agree with Jeff Bezos because if you want to become a business owner, people are going to tell you that you don't have what it takes to make it. Many businesses fail because of certain reasons. I want to make sure that my business takes off and remains successful. I plan to go to Evergreen Beauty and Barber College in Renton, WA, and get my nail technician certification and license. After a couple of years working in a salon I want to go back to college and earn a business degree, so I can open my salon. I want to make people feel beautiful. My only hope is to give someone confidence in my nail talent. Every woman knows the confidence they gain from getting their nails done. When I feel the time is right, I may go back to beauty school to get my cosmetology license to expand my business. I plan to make people happy with what I have to offer. I hope I can be an example for someone who wants to take the same path I do. I want to make sure that no matter what they are going through, they feel beautiful. Confidence is everything for anything you do in your life. I want to be the one to give people that confidence that they need. Building a business takes time and confusion. I am willing to be misunderstood in the beginning to achieve what I set my mind on. I want to make a nail for myself in the nail and beauty community. I want to help people understand that life isn't as easy as they make it look in the movies. I shine my light by having confidence in my work and the talent that I want to show to other people. I hope that the shine I have will transfer to other people, like a domino effect. It's not always the easiest to shine bright 100% of the time, after all, we are all human and have different dreams. If we can all help each other in the simplest of ways, for example, if I can give someone a nail set that gives them the confidence to express themselves, that would make one person's life a little better. I believe that people should follow their dreams even if they might be misunderstood in the beginning. Somewhere along the way, they will find the right people who make them feel understood and confident. I know I will be misunderstood for a while, but I have the confidence and drive to work hard to prove that I have what it takes.

I have chosen to pursue a higher education to make my family proud. My mother wanted to attend a beauty college but my grandmother never allowed her. She decided to go to a state college without ever deciding her major, she ended up dropping out early. My father went into the military and never went to college, he retired from the Navy and still works for the Navy in other ways. My sister and I are going to be first-generation college graduates. She is going to Chadron State College in Nebraska, which is the same college my mother attended. My sister and I had the same dream of wanting to become a pharmacist. She is continuing her dream, but I've changed mine. I want to become a nail technician to help give people the same confidence I get from getting my nails done. I've picked the perfect college for me, Evergreen Beauty College in Renton, Washington. I've prepared myself to be the first in my family, besides my sister, to graduate from a higher education than high school. If I'm being honest, I'm scared. My family has no experience in college life or what I should be expecting. I'm scared because education is always changing and I can't even ask for help on my mildly hard homework. What if I can't afford college? What if I drop out just like my mother? What if my mental health affects my college work? I have considered all these questions to further prepare myself for college. I'm applying for scholarships as a way to help relieve the stress of having to pay for my education, even if I only win one or two scholarships. If I am forced to drop out, I will save up enough money to be able to enroll in college when I am financially stable. I never want to give up on my dream of becoming a nail technician. I want to spread positivity and confidence to other people with my work and creativity. I want to be able to do whatever I want, but the reality of going to college is scary and not to mention expensive! The college education itself is expensive, but I also have to prepare myself for the reality of being an adult and providing for myself. College comes with many expenses. Just to name a few, tuition, supplies, and other miscellaneous fees. In actuality, outside of college, students have to pay for renting an apartment, groceries, bills, and other leisure activities. Getting a higher education is expensive, but higher education opens up opportunities for better-paying jobs. It is proven that people who invest themselves in higher education are more successful than people with just a high school degree. Although, people can always make the best for themselves with the cards they've been dealt. I would say I'm prepared for college, almost everyone can say that. In the real world, there are things that no amount of education could ever prepare you for. Most schools don't teach young adults financial responsibilities, but I was fortunate enough to be offered the classes. I believe I am going to be able to balance life and education. I still don't think that I am 100% prepared for what adult life has to throw at me, but I know I am prepared for what it has to offer me.

I know what I want my future to be, and many kids my age think that as well. The only problem is that the prices are rising. You can know what you want to be, but will you be able to afford it? My dilemma is that I've always been in a low-income household. As a child, I lived in Virginia with my mother while my father was on deployment. When my parents divorced, we moved to Nebraska with my mother. My sister and I had to get jobs from a very young age. Our mother is an addict and would take our money to support her addiction. My sister and I had to pay bills and rent the house from my grandparents. I've always wanted to amount to more than my mother. When she was my age, she wanted to go to beauty school, but my grandmother never let her. When my mother learned that I wanted to go to beauty school, she allowed me to move to Washington State with my father so I could have a better education. I'm so happy I've had to opportunity to move here and meet so many great people. I'm proud of how far I've come. During my freshman year, I thought I would amount to nothing, but here I am, filling out scholarships and applying to colleges to follow my dream career. For the last few years, I've wanted to become a nail technician. I love the confidence getting my nails done has always given me and I want to be able to provide that for other people. No matter what gender, ethnicity, or age I want people to feel their best, even if it's the smallest thing like getting your nails done. I've done my research and I have picked out my dream college, Evergreen Beauty College in Renton. I may not be able to afford it, but a girl can dream! As kids, we're told to follow our dreams, but as you grow up people don't tell you to keep following your dreams. You're told to look at the reality of your situation, will you be able to achieve your dream, or should you give up on it? Thank you for the time to review my application. Thank you for allowing high school and college students to achieve their dreams with your scholarship awards.