I felt called to nursing once I began to realize my God-given purpose was to serve others. Helping others feel loved and cared for has always been important to me, and once I began to apply that to my career choice I realized nursing was a perfect fit. I started to especially become passionate about advocating for childhood cancer. These interests began to come together when I decided I would eventually become a Pediactric oncology nurse. Learning about the lack of funding for childhood cancer, and the lack of developments in treating it, broke my heart. I began immediately researching the topic, and beginning to follow various social media accounts that were first hand stories of children's battles with cancer. All of this came to a head when a child my age in my hometown was diagnosed and eventually passed from cancer. These children deserve better. I began to pursue this passion, and was a part of my school's CNA program. While I still wanted to pursue nursing, it was not until I had experiences in the field that my call to pursue nursing was truly solidified. Nursing is a career meant for truly caring, empathetic, and strong people. Nurses are genuinely superheroes, and I have gained so much respect for those in the medical field in my job as a CNA. I hope to become a nurse that truly loves and cares for her patients, and can be equally strong and sensitive as I pursue my dream. I hope that my career as a Pediactric oncology nurse is a successful one, and that I can help a child struggling with a cancer diagnosis in any way, shape, or form. Did you know that only 4% of all federal funding is toward Pediactric cancer? Children are worth far more than 4%. They deserve more than 4%. I want to spend my career helping these children, and making awareness for the monster that is childhood cancer. I plan to pursue my career starting at Lander University, then entering the workforce as soon as possible once I acquire my BSN. While I am working toward my degree, I will continue to work as a CNA at my local hospital. Although a small job, it is an under appreciated one, and has taught me so much already. Health care is not for everyone, but for those who are called to pursue it, it is so vital to pursue that purpose.

Although it is still early, if my year had a soundtrack, the songs from 1989 (Taylor's Version) that would be on it would be "Now That We Don't Talk (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)" and "Say Don't Go (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)" . I recently ended things with my two year long "situationship", which is a non-committal relationship that isn't quite a relationship, but isn't quite friends either. The situation was toxic and damaging, and these songs deeply resonate with how it made me feel and how I feel now. "Now That We Don't Talk (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)" perfectly describes the stomach-dropping feeling of realizing you don't talk to the person you once spent so much time with, and how the anger of not being around follows you. Being told they went to a party when you never asked to know, or reminding yourself of all the negative aspects of the relationship, and that you do not want to go back to that. Taylor perfectly describes the back and forth of not being in contact with someone you wish you still spoke to. The feeling of realizing all of them that has changed and how there is nothing you can do to stop the change, even if it's just as simple as "You grew your hair long...". A few months ago I never would have put this song on my soundtrack, but it just perfectly fits where I am right now. Missing the old but knowing you cannot change how things are, especially "Now That We Don't Talk". "Say Don't Go (Taylor's Version) (From the Vault)" is a desperate call for someone to commit, to tell you to stay. "I would stay forever if you say, "Don't go". This song has been on my soundtrack for a while, but definitely has felt more personal recently. The song perfectly describes the feeling of being led on and made to believe your relationship with someone is important and real, then the jarring realization that it's only real to you. "I say "I love you", you say nothing back". Begging for them to tell you they care, even if it's just a little. Just enough to make you stay. The outro of the song concludes the chorus, after Taylor begs the subject to "Say Don't Go", she realizes they won't. She can try her hardest to ask them to love her more, but they won't. She can threaten to leave, but they won't tell her to stay. They won't fight for her like she would fight for them. Although both of these options on my soundtrack aren't that encouraging, I know that there will be a time when "You Are in Love (Taylor's Version)" and "Style (Taylor's Version)" , will be on my soundtrack instead.

Team Conrad or Team Jeremiah? The question asked by millions of viewers and readers who have fallen in love with the story of “The Summer I Turned Pretty”. Although there is an ongoing debate on which brother is the best choice, the answer is, and always has been, Conrad. Although Jeremiah’s sweet and charismatic personality wins viewers over, his lustful choices and competitive nature against Conrad prove he was never “the one” for Belly. The series begins with background on each of the Fisher boys. Conrad, the mysterious, caring, smart, and truly loving older brother, and Jeremiah, the flirtatious, positive, and bold younger brother. Belly has loved Conrad her whole life, and Conrad all of his. While Jeremiah provides a distraction from the chaos caused by Conrad’s inability to communicate and emotional turmoil at the loss of his mother, ultimately Jeremiah proves to be the wrong choice. Throughout all three books, (and seasons one and two of the show), Jeremiah makes it painfully evident how much he feels at competition with Conrad, and even admits in season 2 that he saw how Belly looked at Conrad the previous summer, and was jealous that she didn’t look at Jeremiah like that. Conrad never had to compete for Belly’s love, and always was on her side even as children. Him teaching her to dance as shown in season one, winning her Junior Mint, and buying her the glass unicorn shown in season 2 with his allowance given to him as a child. Conrad, while complicated and difficult at times, loved Belly more than he knew capable. He pushed her away because he knew he was not good for her, and felt unable to be the person he knew he had to be for her. Book three, “We’ll Always Have Summer”, is truly when it’s revealed to the audience that Conrad is Belly’s real, true, and infinite love. Whether it be him remembering Laurel (Belly’s mother)’s favorite flowers when Jeremiah didn’t, always being on Belly’s side even if it meant watching her get married to Jeremiah, and even the letter Susannah wrote to her boys for their wedding days being switched. Also in “We’ll Always Have Summer”, Jeremiah cheats on Belly, and his flaws start to shine through to her. How he is not as mature as Conrad, does not have true life goals, and while admitting that he knows Belly will never love him like she loves Conrad, continues to attempt to go through with marriage to Belly. Conrad’s point of view in the third book of the series really portrays to the viewer just how long and how deeply he loves Belly, even if it’s hard for him to show that. The loss of his mother made his commitment issues and emotional vulnerability more difficult, which led to ongoing issues and conflict between him and Belly. While he dealt with these issues in unhealthy ways, he ultimately proves himself to be the better choice. In the show, even the simple song choices Jenny Han makes for Conrad and Jeremiah prove Conrad is the one. Conrad receives songs such as “Lover” , a classic love song, and “Invisible String”, which is about soulmates always being connected. Jeremiah receives “Delicate”, a song about lustful feelings carefully turning into potential real feelings. Jenny Han, the author of the series, is a huge Taylor Swift fan, and carefully chooses Taylor’s love songs for Conrad. Jeremiah and Belly’s relationship, especially in season two, is shown as purely physical, while Belly and Conrad are emotionally connected. This emotional connection is what makes Conrad the one for Belly.

I want to become a nurse to help the people and the world around me. I aspire to become a Pediatric Oncology Nurse, and help these children heal while also bringing awareness to the monster that is Childhood Cancer. I have always felt a calling to help others, and felt that God’s purpose for me was to spend my life caring for other people. Nursing is an extremely honorable career, and gives me the opportunity to truly help people. You see people in their worst times, and can be a light to them as they heal. I feel a passion to make change and to improve the world around me, even if it seems as simple as giving medications or helping someone walk for the first time after a surgery. My passion for pediatric oncology came from a lot of research and a personal experience. A local boy my age passed away in 2019 from Leukemia. This led me to start looking into pediatric cancer, where I eventually discovered that only 4% of all federal funding toward cancer research goes to children. Four percent. These children deserve far more than four percent. While people are aware of the impact of pediatric cancer, they aren’t as aware of the lack of modern developments toward curing childhood cancer, or really and truly how many families are impacted. Since then, I’ve spent every September drawing awareness for pediatric cancer and posting about going gold for September. While I understand nursing can be an emotionally draining job, I feel as though even one child who gets better from their cancer would be worth it. I want to dedicate my life to bettering the world around me and helping those who should be stood up for. To become a Nurse is an extremely important goal for me, and I have so much respect for nurses and all they do. As I go to graduate high school and choose my own career path, I plan to completely dedicate the next four years to working toward my BSN, and getting into the work force as fast as I can. I want to utilize my degree to the maximum capacity, and make sure all of my hard work was worth it. Which it will be, whether it be something as small as making a child smile or watching them ring the end of treatment bell. Nursing is an amazing profession and I can’t wait to become a nurse myself.

My favorite song on Taylor Swift's '1989' (deluxe edition) is "You Are in Love". I love this song and always have, and I love how it highlights that real, true love is in the simple, small things. The song also describes how love is a force, not a tangible object, stating "You can hear it in the silence, You can feel it on the way home". Taylor has always had a talent for writing about emotions and I feel as though that talent shines the brightest when she writes about love. She even acknowledges that she has spent so much time even trying to put a feeling like love into words. The bridge sings, "And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars, and why I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words". The beauty of a song like "You Are in Love" comes through its description of real love. Not commercialized, dramatized, or filled with toxicity. Something as simple as "He keeps a picture of you in his office downtown", or "You keep his shirt, He keeps his word". In a world full of constant comparison, boasting, and materialistic overindulgence, the world's view of love is skewed. The reminder that true love is still alive and possible is an amazing one. Taylor Swift's reputation at the time of the '1989' era was a misogynistic one. The media constantly wrote her as someone who dated too frequently and only had a career due to the men she had dated. During the '1989' era, Taylor was focused on who she was, even closing the '1989' world tour with the line "She lost him, but she found herself. And somehow, that was everything". In this time of healing and forming an image away from famous breakups and a headspace that love was only a game, her writing a song like this shows she hadn't truly given up on love, she is hopeful. In conclusion, "You Are in Love" is my favorite song on '1989' for how it portrays love and hope. Knowing background information about Taylor's life at the time of '1989' even further solidifies my love for the song. She wasn't in love herself, but still knew it was real, and that it still holds the power and is as strong of a feeling as it ever was. Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff created a masterpiece when writing this song, and I feel as though it deserves all the appreciation it receives.

Being different than others by showing compassion and giving sets you apart in unimaginable ways. Having the care and drive to give back to your community and the people in it is important, and daring to be different by doing so helps you to leave an impact on the world around you. I want to use my empathy, sensitivity, and perseverance to help others and leave where I am a better place than where I found it. I am unique in the effort I put in to set myself apart. Be the person who sits with the kid sitting alone. Be the safe space for the person who feels like nobody listens to them. My goal is to be a light. My faith leads the way for me, and the goodness in me comes only from God. I want to use my life to glorify God and to be different. I want to in any way that I can give and help others who need it. I plan to give back to my community by volunteering at various events or places such as hospitals, participating in fundraising events that help the underprivileged in my community, and by giving to charities or important causes. The best and easiest way to begin to make change is by starting in the community around you. I hope that no matter my age I am or where I am, I can always find some way to help others around me. I've found it very easy to be involved with giving back through my church community. I have helped pack Operation Christmas Child boxes to be sent to children around the world, rebuilt a roof for a family, spent time spreading the gospel to young children, coached soccer teams, and participated in a baby supplies drive for mothers in need. It's really important to me that I make the time to help other people and care for those around (or far away) from me. Choosing to be different than the status quo around you and choosing to willingly humble yourself to help other people is so important, especially in a world that has learned to prioritize self over others. I hope to use my unique personality and care for others to further benefit others, and bring glory to God while doing so. To be a maverick in a world full of people who fall into the crowd so easily. Being different doesn't have to mean working alone or working for yourself.