A show that I have been absolutely obsessed with recently is called “One Day At A Time.” The series is about an immigrant Columbian family and the everyday struggles that the family goes through for being immigrants, women, a different sexual orientation, family trauma, etc. I really enjoy/relate to this show as a Mexican American myself. The struggles that they all face are stuff that I have seen myself in my own life. For example there is a scene in the show about how the family struggles with fixing their car and finding the money for certain things. This has happened in my own life where my moms car, which was our only way of transportation, broke down and to say the least we could spare the money to fix it right away. By the time we did, it had other parts wrong with it. My mom tried to fix it just like the mom in the show did but just like in my life and the show it just couldn’t be saved anymore. Along with this the show is about a single mom raising her family off of her one income which makes money tight. This show and the way it expresses the struggle of the family connects to a lot of immigrant families here in America. That is why I believe that it would be a good series to watch because it could give you an accurate perspective on what life as an immigrant family is like and the struggles we truly got through everyday. Not only this it also shows the struggles of coming out, mental issues like depression anxiety, deportation, marriage spats, post traumatic stress disorder, etc. This show does not only focus on one subject but on many and the struggles that these people face. For example there is a scene in the show about how the mother struggles to sleep because of her PTSD. She doesn’t tell anybody because she doesn’t want to worry them and believes she can handle it herself. Another reason and the main one is that she doesn’t want her family to see her struggling and be disappointed in her. She doesn’t want them to see her weak side, her vulnerable side. Eventually though her mother finds out and helps her realize that she does not have to do things on her own, she has a family who cares about her and wants to help her even at her weakest. This show opens your eyes about a lot of stereotypes and issues that should be addressed but aren’t and the challenges that they bring.

I am interested in pursuing teaching as my future career because I honestly love working with kids. I want kids to like school and not be scared or unwilling to go to school. I want them to be excited to come and learn new things and go home to tell their parents about all the cool things they learned that day. There are so many students nowadays that have bad experiences with their teachers and because of that come to hate school and learning. They end up associating that bad experience with school and is what eventually leads them to debate if they want to go to college along with other factors like not doing good in school, bad experiences with teachers/peers, motivation, family,etc. I know because that is what happened to me. I am a bilingual speaker with my first language being Spanish and my second language being English. As a native Spanish speaker not knowing anything about the English language when I got into school made it very hard for me to understand and fit in at school. My teachers would criticize me for being a slow learner and having trouble reading, comprehending what I read, and difficulty spelling. They never took into consideration what I may have been dealing with at home with my family, they just assumed I was lazy and unmotivated to learn. My teachers never understood that it was hard for me to learn a new language from scratch at such a young age as well. When I had nobody at home who had the time or even spoke English to help me practice or do my homework. One vivid memory I have of school that made me scared of teachers and hate coming to school was my second grade teacher. She never liked me because she would always get the more advanced kids in her class. I on the other hand was by no means an advanced kid. She would yell at me in class in front of other students and threatened to get me sent to the principal's office for the littlest of things. I remember people would have to drag me into her classroom because I would be crying outside her room holding on to my mom because I refused to go into school without my mom. This teacher made me feel like I was not capable of anything and made me hate coming to school. I had this mentality until I got to middle school. During sixth grade I had the same teacher for my history and english class. She was the one who taught me to love learning and school all over again. I remember that I would stay at school until six in the evening everyday because she would help me with my homework. She was always patient with me and would never get mad at me for getting something wrong after she would explain it to me over and over again. She changed my view on school and because of that I became a straight A student because I started to believe that I could be something big one day. I want to be this kind of teacher. I want kids to be happy when they go to school and be excited about what they will learn that day. I want them to know that they can trust me and be comfortable to ask for help when they need it. I want to teach these kids that no matter what anybody else believes that they can do, they can always do better than they believe.

I struggled a lot as a kid when it came to learning something new and understanding new materials. My teachers weren’t much help, they never believed that I could learn more or even try to help or go over it slowly with me. This was my whole childhood because I was a very slow learner, mainly because I was also learning a new language. English is not my first language even though I was born here. I grew up speaking Spanish and Spanish alone. So when I went into kindergarten, which was my first real experience in a school setting, I was very confused because I had no idea what people were saying or what I was doing. This put me a huge step behind everyone because as they were learning more advanced things I was still learning the beginner steps. Since I couldn’t keep up with my peers and the material my teachers would get frustrated with me. Especially my second-grade teacher. That teacher was used to having the smart and more advanced kids in her class, which I was neither. This made me a sort of target for that teacher. I was always being yelled at for one thing or another or getting in trouble for literally doing nothing. For example, this one time I dropped my pencil sharpener and looked behind me to see where it had fallen as I turned around my teacher yelled at me in the middle of her lesson to tell me that if I turned around one more time she would give me a yellow ticket, which is very bad. This made me very scared of teachers and of asking for help even when I needed it. All of these experiences with school and how teachers treated me led me to believe that what they were saying was true. I could not be one of the smart kids that I would forever be the slow and dumb kid of the class who could never understand anything. I believed this until I got to middle school where I met a teacher that was both my English and history teacher. She saw that I was struggling and she would take the time to sit down with me either at lunch or after school to help me with my homework or with any questions I had. Even when I didn’t understand what she explained she would repeat herself or word it differently until I understood what she was saying. This teacher was the one who made me like school and learning all over again she made a straight F and D student into a straight A student who would later go into Honor classes. My experiences with school and teachers are what has made me want to go into teaching. I want to be a teacher who motivates and inspires kids to be the best they can be, just like how my History/English teacher did. I want kids to love learning and coming to school, to know that they can be anything they want and that they are capable of that no matter how slow or fast of a learner they are. I want to be that teacher that kids feel safe around and the one that they will remember later on and motivate them to continue going. That is the main reason why I want to go into teaching so that no kid feels like how I felt in school growing up.

I am planning on majoring in education when I go to university to become an elementary school teacher. I am very passionate about helping others in any way, shape or form. A teacher is a prime example of that. A teacher helps you develop, move forward, and figure out how to navigate life. My teachers were the ones who made me believe in my ability to strive forward and be able to believe in myself and my ability to go to college. I'm 17 and doing high school and my second year of college. If it weren't for my 6th grade English and history teacher I would not be where I am now. When I was little I was not the smartest kid in class to say the least. I was always behind and was a very slow learner. My teachers would never take the time to help me and would just raise their voices and get mad that I wasn't understanding the material. The result of this caused me to grow up with a concept in my head that school was not for me and that I could never be one of the “smart kids”. It made me believe that I was just not smart enough or intelligent enough to ever understand what they were teaching me. Along with this I come from a Latino family that doesn’t know english, my mom didn’t graduate middle school, and me and my brothers don’t have a good relationship because of the big age gap between us. We are 13 and 9 years apart from each other. So I had absolutely nobody to help me when I was struggling to understand what I was being taught. Once I got to middle school as I stated before, my history and English teacher saw the potential in me and convinced me to stay after school so that she could help me understand what I couldn’t understand. This was the same teacher and I remember vividly I was having trouble understanding my math homework and she pulled up a chair and worked through it with me until she was sure I understood what she was saying. Having somebody believe in me and try to work with me made me determined to become one of those “smart kids” because now I knew that it was possible to be one. This is why I want to be an elementary school teacher because the first bit of education that is introduced to us is what shapes our view on education and school. If that introduction is bad then those kids will learn to hate school and learning but if it's good they will come to love and enjoy school. I want to give the new generation a good view of education and have them develop a love for learning then a hate for it. Overall, I want kids to love school and unlike me not be put down when they may not be the smartest or fastest learner.

Incarceration has played a big part in my life since I was a kid. My father got incarcerated when I was about or maybe two years old. This one event changed my life in many different ways. As a kid at first I didn't really see a difference between me and the other kids until I start to see the relationship they had with their fathers and the stories that they would tell me made me wish I could do that too. It made me sad, mad, and jealous because I knew I would never be able to do that when my father was said to get out when I turned fifteen with maybe four years of parole. I realized that at a very young age because it was very apparent the difference between my family and others. This caused me to receive counseling because I couldn't control my emotions I would cry every morning and kind of beat myself down mentally. My counselors made me realize that it is okay to not have a perfect family like others or like it says in books, that it is okay to cry, and ways to encourage myself. It took me years to actually develop this mentality because I didn't really believe her or myself. My dad's incarceration showed and taught me very valuable lessons. The three main ones that I live by day by day are no one is perfect inside or out, it is okay to show your emotions and be emotional, and to believe in whatever you do even if it is small. These three life lessons are the ones that I use the most because they prevent me from putting people on a pedestal of sorts and just seeing them as a person who has their own problems and respects them. With this mindset, I can avoid misunderstands and accept others' problems without judgment. The last way that my father's incarceration impacted my life is in my career choice. I am in college to become a pediatrician or a teacher, both of these careers require you to help others big or small because maybe you still remember your middle school teacher's advice or the way your doctor listened to your problems when no one else did. It helps those kids who are struggling mentally or physically to understand that it is okay to feel these emotions. It is okay to not be okay because we are just human and no one is more perfect than another. My father's incarceration had the biggest impact on my mentality and how I view the world. It showed me many different life lessons and introduced me to various amazing people because of it. I may have not liked the fact that I didn't have a father figure when growing up but I had an amazing mother who was by my side and a father who at least is trying to change. Overall, my father's incarceration was a big obstacle that I overcame.

One of the all-time movies that I love and has had a big impact on who I have become as a person is "The Princess and The Frog." This movie may be for little kids but to me it showed me to never give up, believe in yourself, and that it is okay to rely on others. As a kid, I found it very hard to believe in anything I did because everyone around me was sure that I would fail at it. This takes a toll on a kid especially because they have no one to rely on or someone that believes that they may succeed. Watching "The Princess and The Frog" showed me that even if people think your dream is dumb or that you may never achieve it that does not mean that you can not achieve it. This also showed me to never give up on anything because even if you are the only one who believes that you can do it sometimes that may be all you need, and that is perfectly fine. These types of mindsets are what helped me not only go through elementary but middle school and high school as well. I went from a straight F- student to an A+ student being put into honors in high school. This is also what led me to believe that I may have a shot at getting into middle college, which did happen. The main reason I could do this is that I not only proved myself to others but myself as well. I proved that I could do those things they said I couldn't, that I can be smart and worth believing in, and that I can be something great in this world. The last thing I would like to address on how "The Princess and The Frog" impacted my life is that even though at the beginning I may have been the only one who believed in myself, that eventually took a toll on me. At first, it may feel great but then in the future when you struggle with something you become scared to ask for the help you may need because of the thought of letting that person down. This is exactly what happened to me. I was struggling and didn't know how to change that. Then one day I sat down with my nephew and watched "The Princess and The Frog" this is when I realized I don't have to do anything alone. Tiana at first only had herself to rely on and made it very apparent that she did not want another person's help even though she was struggling she wanted to do it herself. This is where I realized where my mentality of wanting to do everything myself came from but as I continued to watch I saw how she slowly started to rely on and trust the people around her. After watching it I knew that even though I may want to do it myself sometimes I may not be able to, and that is completely okay. This movie has been one of the most important movies in my life because it not only gave my little sad self the confidence and belief that I too could be someone great even though I may not be the smart kid in class or have the perfect family. I just need to believe in my dreams and goals and stick to them to the point where someone's negative comments won't affect them. In conclusion, "The Princess and The Frog" is the main reason I am who I am.

Feminism to me is being able to be yourself and express your will as a woman. The reason that feminism is so important to me is because it shows that we as women can stand up for one another and show everybody else that we can do and deserve the exact something that men do. There should be no reason that because we are different genders we should be treated differently. We all are the same. We have emotions, feelings, two eyes, and a brain, there is no reason for us, women, to be treated like we are less. That is why feminism is important because it proves all of these stereotypes of women as wrong. The main person who taught me this and is what inspires me is my mom. My mom raised three wonderful children all by herself. They are in college and are working hard to achieve their dreams. My brothers and I would not be where we are today or be who we are today if my mother did not care so much for our future. It is because of her that I am trying so hard to become a nurse or teacher because I want to show her that all of her years of effort have paid off and created a smart wonderful young woman. That she can be proud of and brag about. My mother's dedication and effort to prove everybody around her wrong is what impacted my view on feminism. To me, my mother is the definition of feminism. She is elegant, hardworking, strong-willed, dedicated and never ever gave up even when it felt like the world was crumbling down. She changed my view of feminism from fighting for our rights to us showing that we deserve these rights, to showing that we are not weaker, that we are much stronger and dedicated to achieving our goals. That is what my mother taught me about feminism and it is what I live by. This can be seen now in what I am doing, I am showing my little cousins that we can go to college. Even if we are poor we have resources and our own hard work and dedication that will push us forward and prove to everyone else that we Latinas can go to college and become great things. Overall, feminism is my main motivator to keep pushing forward because I will not let people's stereotypes and doubts get to me and stop me from achieving my goals and dreams.

The key thing that made me want to pursue the medical field was my need to help people. I have always wanted to do something that could change a person's life for the better. As a doctor, I could help people feel better and help them find their better selves. Ever since I was little I have seen a lot of my family suffer from many different diseases like severe asthma, heart problems, cancer, or even brain injuries. These diseases that affect my family in there every day to day actions are what have motivated me to try and help others with diseases that affect their actions. As a person in this family who has asthma and knows many other people besides my family that have this. I want to do my absolute best to help people with these types of diseases. I want to make their lives easier, better, and for them to feel free. For these people to be able to do things without their diseases holding them back, to live their lives to the fullest. The way that I plan in the future to give back to the Hispanic community or help them is by opening a clinic of my own where I will offer free services to people without medical insurance. As a Latina in the Hispanic community, I can say that many of the people in this community are scared to go to the doctor. The main reasons being because of the cost and the chance of being deported. People of any type of race should not be scared to get help and treatment. Everybody deserves to get free treatment. The very fact that to get medical treatment of any kind you have to pay for is just ridiculous because many of the people in this country especially the Hispanic community can't afford it. That is the main reason that I want to open my own personal clinic that does not require medical insurance. This will not only be very beneficial to the Hispanic community but to a lot of people in poverty that need medical attention. It is such a sad world we live in, where people die because they don't have the funds or money to get the medication or treatments that they need. This will allow me to help make people's lives better and make them see a better version of themselves, a version that is free and healthy.