According to encylopedia.com, self-identity refers to a person’s self-conception. Self-referent, cognitions or self-definition that people apply themselves because of the structural role positions he or she occupies or a particular behavior he or she engages in regularly. Identity is formed through self-awareness by letting go of conditioned thoughts and beliefs. My choices are supposed to be in alignment with my identity. Jalyn, what do you want to be when you grow up? What college will you be attending? These are questions I have been asked as a rising senior I still don’t have the answers. Trying to self-identify became hard; it left me feelings of uncertainty, insecurity, and started to feel like I was drifting, working towards a vague goal that made one unsure and unhappy. And then COVID hit. When COVID came as a teenager I was confined to my home; mostly my room and was not the summer a kid expected. The unknown of what was going on, scarceness of necessities and the daily news updates of positive testing's or rising death rates made me more scared. Then the killing of George Floyd sparked a bigger movement for BLM. Living in the city of Philadelphia as a young black male amongst the rioting became very frightening. It caused me to experience racism in a way that I thought America was passed in 2020. Going to the grocery store with my mom and seeing it surrounded with police but I was still expected to do well in school and focus on preparing for college. How do I self-identify? No other generation has gone through trauma at this magnitude. During these events, I am still expected to research and tour schools, participate in virtual sessions, campus visits and family discussions regarding school caused me to clam up. I didn’t have the answers. I was embarrassed that I wasn’t as excited as some of my peers were to venture into this next journey in life; especially coming from a college educated family. Scared to share my feelings and ashamed to say I didn’t know. The one thing I did know is that I wanted to go to college but still questioned whether or not I was a disappointment because I didn’t know what I want to do yet. It felt like everyone had a plan but me. But, what I thought to be a preaching/fussing session about my lack of motivation from my mom turned into a release of all the negative feelings I bottled up. I was delivered from the obligation of feeling like I had to please others. That one conversation with my mom gave me the security of knowing I am not alone, I don’t have to have all the answers, it’s okay to be unsure, to be afraid, to make mistakes and ask for help. She assured me that I have the qualities; tools to find my own way in this world. The release/openness of the feelings I kept hidden lifted such a heavy weight off my shoulders. Encouraging me to discover my own passion and moving forward from there. This process helped me realize that college is another tool to help me journey my way through life. To explore different classes, volunteer, maybe pick a sport to participate in, discover a major I never thought of and meet new life long friends. A step towards my purpose; not the determining factor. A purposeful life is a happy life. When you live your life with a purpose, you are much more in control of your long-term happiness. And I am now ready to discover how college will help me venture through this next phase of my life and contribute to me finding my purpose. I am Jalyn, a 18 year young man, that grew up in the inner city of Philadelphia. I grew up learning the importance of family, education, sharing love, making my own way and keeping God at the center. Living through this current pandemic has taught me to be more passionate about life and ready to conquer the world. I am come from a hard working family who has struggled to ensure I live a good life. With the assistance towards tuition expenses I am presented with opportunities to better myself/fill my soul and boarder my horizons. Not only am I hardworking & determined I am kind & compassionate and when I am put in position to give back to others I will do it tenfold.

The summer of 2019, I was afforded the opportunity to volunteer for the Daniel Rumph Foundation basketball tournament. This was my first time participating in an event of this magnitude and the job required me to multitask at a fast pace. Initially, it was not easy but the more comfortable I became the larger my roles expanded. My job was to basically ensure the game environment was neat & organized as much as possible (providing clean towels & water to the players, stocking the coolers and cleaning before & after each game).The organizers of the event saw my work ethic and I was then awarded a bigger role supervising my peers maintaining the same task. I not only became a team lead but I was able to network, meet well known players in Philadelphia and I was exposed to the sport of basketball in which I was never really interested in prior to this event. I was also offered to participate in mentorship program through LaSalle College for that upcoming fall due to my hard work and maturity level. I really felt proud to be trusted with that amount of responsibility. It taught me to put myself out there, be open to new things and give 100% in anything I do. Most importantly, always do the right thing because you never know who is watching you. Alternatively, Covid has diminished a lot of opportunities that I had planned for my Junior and Senior year of high school. I missed out on community service efforts, sports, prom/social events and part-time employment. I thought I would have more time to spend with friends & family as well as developing myself to become more well rounded to prepare for College but the Covid shut-down took those opportunities & experiences away. I was scared and became withdrawn due to the uncertainties of this pandemic. But with the love and support of my family and close friends they encouraged me to stay positive and be ready to grasp new opportunities that will present itself once we all get through this epidemic. I am now more eager than ever to pursue my goals, experience new things, meet new people and venture into this next journey in my life, college. Through this pandemic dealing with the lost of love ones, getting sick and lack of opportunities due to everything shutting down I realized that life is too short and to embrace new opportunities that come my way.