My father would always tell me stories about his experience living self-sustainably on a farm in Portugal, the ups and downs of growing crops and livestock, and the pure joy he felt living that lifestyle. I have always wanted to know what that life would feel like. My father is very strong-willed, and I take after him. He knows what he wants, and he will put in the effort to get it. Whether it was immigrating from Portugal in search of opportunity, starting his own construction company after working in construction for years, or completely renovating a house, he started from the ground up. It is important to note that none of this could have been done without my mother by his side. My mother is from Mexico, and she is also a primary reason why I am a go-getter. She left Mexico after graduating from college in Mexico City to work in international business. However, this was not an easy feat. She had to fight for the opportunity to attend college since she was the youngest of three brothers and her parents prioritized them over her. Because of this, she studied relentlessly and was awarded a full-ride scholarship to her university. Unlike my mother, my father did not get the opportunity to attend college. He had to quit school after eighth grade in order to work on the farm, which he would ultimately leave behind. Like my mother, his parents did not prioritize his education. Because of my parents’ experiences, I see education not as something guaranteed, but as something earned and deeply valued. This is what it means to be a first-generation student. Every day, my parents put my brother and me first and try to give us everything they did not have in their youth, especially by prioritizing our education. They want to see us succeed, and their determination ignites a fire in me that makes me feel capable of achieving anything if I set my mind to it. And I know I can. I want to make them proud by putting my best foot forward in college and in my future. I will forever be grateful to have such amazing parents, and I cannot wait to share my future successes with them. Because of this, education is more than an opportunity to me. It is a responsibility. It represents everything my parents sacrificed and were denied, and it fuels my determination to give my best effort in college and beyond. I hope to build a future where I can pass down the gift of education to my children, just as my parents fought to give it to me, and encourage them to pursue their dreams with confidence and perseverance. By doing so, I aim to honor my parents’ resilience and create a legacy grounded in hard work, gratitude, and a deep respect for the opportunities education has given me.

Ever since I was very little, my passion has been to grow plants and to one day tend to a beautiful garden. My father would always tell me about his experience living self-sustainably on a farm in Portugal. The ups and downs of growing crops and livestock, and the pure joy he would feel living that lifestyle. I have always wanted to know what that life would feel like. My father is very strong-willed, and I take after him. He knows what he wants, and he will put in the effort to get it. Whether it is immigrating from Portugal in search of opportunity, starting his own construction company after working in construction for years, or completely renovating a house on his own. My father is my inspiration, and I take after him. Growing up, I lived in a townhouse in Silver Spring with a concrete patio backyard. How funny it is to hear stories about my dad’s beautiful past, then look outside and see concrete. This not only ignited a fire in me, but also inspired me to start growing plants in pots. Little by little, I would germinate seeds of all kinds of fruit: tomato, pear, avocado, peach, etc. Unfortunately, I had little success since in the summer, the sun would scorch the potted plants, leaving them brittle and weak. As time went on, I began learning from my defeats and started growing plants in my room. Once they were big enough, I would take them outside and put them under a chair for protection from the heat. By the time I was eight, my family had moved into a new house. We moved to a lovely community in Kensington, featuring a steep but spacious backyard and a small house. My parents slept in the basement, which they converted into a makeshift bedroom, and as they watched Property Brothers, they planned a huge renovation of the house. In no time, they began demolition and tore up the backyard to level it. By age 11, I was removing the plastic protection wrap from windows, and everything had gotten back to normal. With all the new space, my father and I constructed a garden in the corner of our backyard, and we grew whatever we wanted on the menu as long as my mother approved it. We faced numerous challenges with the garden, as we primarily grew fruits and vegetables, which led to various diseases and pests. Despite this, we have had fulfilling harvests. I find so much joy from gardening, I am so unbelievably thankful to have the guidance from my father and resilience to never give up. I hope this inspires others to buy another cactus or start a garden and see where it takes you.