Love is the most important human emotion because it makes people want to better themselves and be open to positive characteristics such as compassion. Although love is mainly seen as romantic, there are many other ways that we as people can experience love. Love is shared between family, friends, and even pets. The cycle of love is unable to be shared without an initial reception and vice versa. Therefore, we are called to love the people deeply involved in and out of our daily lives. One way that I show my family and friends that I love them, is by continuously engaging in conversation no matter the physical distance. I currently live in East Texas while my siblings and parents live in various parts of Texas. This is an estimated 3-6 hour travel distance between each city area. I attempt to call them weekly if not daily, to show that they have great importance in my life and that I enjoy talking with them. The act of engaging in consistent conversation is important because it helps the family stay connected and be involved and supportive in each other's lives as we individually navigate through difficult and joyous moments. This was especially important during the coronavirus pandemic because we kept each other company through the self-isolation period. Another way that I display my love for my family and friends is through my art projects. Although I am unable to buy gifts for family and friends on holidays and birthdays, I use my artistic talents/passion to create affordable yet meaningful gifts. For example, I created personalized family portraits for each individual in my family last Christmas. By doing this, I am physically displaying how much I love and value my family and friends, despite my current financial struggles.

Gratitude is the greatest virtue of all as it is a direct connection to kindness. Gratitude is therefore irrelevant without the existence of kindness. I define kindness as the act of spreading love despite the circumstances that are presented before you. My early family life was often plagued with abrupt financial issues as my parents worked tirelessly to provide for my grandmother and their five children. Due to unforeseen circumstances, my father lost his job abruptly and was unable to provide income for an extended time period. Because of this, my father later worked multiple jobs to financially contribute while my mother was our sole income source. Typically, these financial hardships result in a parent's inability to spend time with their children however, I and my siblings were always shown how much my parents loved us by them making a constant effort to attend all school functions and hand cooking our daily meals. Growing up under these conditions allowed me to realize how important it is to live a life of gratitude instead of being bitter about uncontrollable circumstances. Although the financial struggles made life more difficult, it made me grateful for my hardworking and loving parents, my wonderful siblings, and my reliable grandmother who cared for us when my parents could not. Another result of my upbringing made me appreciative of not just my family, but my friends as well. My friends were a source of comfort and often many times financially assisted me when I was unable to attend additional activities at events such as summer camp and school trips. I am extremely grateful for my family, friends, and upbringing and often express my gratitude by being supportive of their endeavors and displaying the same kindness they showed me unto others.

The greatest influences in my life are derived from my love for music, art, and my family. I am both a younger and older sibling in my family of five children. I was raised with deep cultural Hispanic roots that are often expressed in my music and art. In my early years of life this was most often seen in my high school mariachi group and as an adult in my architectural designs. With the love and encouragement from my family and friends, I want to design low-income housing and local churches that would be historically, socially, culturally, and environmentally conscious.

Essay 1: Core values are the beliefs a person holds that influence who they are and who they will be. My most important core value is that in whatever you do there should always be love, love for what you are doing and for what you have done. I believe love to be one of the most important human emotions because we were called to love one another unconditionally through the love we receive from Christ. Love also often leads to other positive traits such as compassion, generosity, kindness, forgiveness, etc. I was always taught by my family and community that "we love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). This action of love has also influenced some of my other core beliefs, which are to always reflect kindness and generosity unto others. Growing up I discovered that the generosity of others is a direct reflection of the love and compassion that they wish for others to experience despite the difficult times in life. The core values that I listed above are my direct motivation for every action. I wish to pursue a life that reflects the same love that I have been given by my family, friends, and Christ. Essay 2: Excellence, defined by many is the "quality of being outstanding or extremely good," but I define it as the expression of love, passion, and humility. The foundation of all that we do should be love, because, without love, there can be no passion. As I pursue my architecture degree, I often catch myself reflecting on the true meaning of excellence and how I can pursue it. I have a love for my local Hispanic culture and church community and desire to design architectural spaces that will promote the welfare and productivity of those who occupy them. Architectural designs are often dismissive/inconsiderate of the cultural, social, historical, and economic impacts they have on the preexisting neighborhood/community. My hopes for my architecture career, are to design for low-income neighborhoods and local community churches. Essay 3: When I achieve my dream, I will thank Christ first. My relationship with Christ has allowed me to be open to the love that my family and friends have offered. By placing me in a healthy Christian home, I was able to experience critical moments that influenced the person I am today. For example, the financial struggles of my early family life, showed me the impact of one's actions, both positive and negative, can truly have on others' lives. One can bring in loads of joy by simply extending a helping hand to a friend in need. My family was also the first group of people to show me the importance of being connected to both my local and Christian communities and that I should be embracing my Hispanic heritage with pride. As I have grown into an adult I have gathered these ideas and have implemented them into my current designs/work and wish to continue to do so when I open my architecture firm.

I took this photo when I was about 15 after the cat snuck into the house. She loves our dining room chairs and decided to make herself cozy, while we worked away in the kitchen for a house party. I found her while prepping the dining room table for the event later that evening and snapped the photo. Charlotte has been my pet and bestfriend for the past 11 years and I hope to create many more memories with her. pet name: Charlotte Galloso applicant name: Jocelyn Galloso Instagram: jo.galloso