Leonardo Da Vinci is my favorite artist and scientist. He focused on anatomy with dissection and made flying machines. He painted Mona Lisa and The Last Supper.

When it comes to self-care practices, I have not always done so well. As I grew up, I didn’t like talking showers nor brushing my teeth or hair! One time, my mom had to cut my hair really short because of a knot that I had accumulated over the weeks I didn’t brush my hair. Now, when it comes to self-care practices, I’ve done a lot more. As a nurse, we have to look our best for our patients. If you are having a bad day or you just didn’t have time to wash or brush your hair, a patient will call you out! It is so funny too. In the morning, I love taking a mile jog before washing my face, taking a shower, and a lot of skin care. I work from 9 am to 5 pm, after I get off, I sit outside and read a book. The self care that I do now has a lot to do with my work. If you don’t take care of yourself, the patient isn’t going to think that you can take care of them. This is how self care practices impact my life. If a patient thinks that I look good and I look like I take care of myself, I will do the same for them. I also feel a lot better when I take care of myself!

Being patient is important to me because it helps you analyze a situation before acting on what you would automatically do. I have been a nurse for the last 3 years, being patient is a main goal for nurses. When it comes to some patients, they are slow to let you know everything that is going on. When you wait and talk with them, it will allow you to have a rapport and the patient will feel like they can trust you. As a nurse, I have to be resourceful, calm, empathetic and have a lot of self-control. It is not easy being an impatient nurse. At first, I was very impatient. As my career progressed, I saw that the more patient I was, the less combative and more talkative my patients became. I had some patients that would yell and scream at the staff but when I went into the room, with patience and self-control, I could figure out what was going on and how to fix it. I also have two children that I love dearly, you really have to be patient with children! Being patient is a big deal in the entirety of my life. It has changed my life a lot too.

To me, being American means being free to do and be anything you could ever dream of. As an American, I can make my own decisions on where I want to live, what I want to do, who I want to marry, etc. I am currently a home health nurse but I have the decision to change my career. I have chosen to become a crime scene investigator. I am happy that I have a choice. Being American also means being brave to make your own choices, being confident to succeed, and being proud to be an American. I am all of those things. My mother told me over and over that I just needed to stay a nurse but I have proven her wrong and made all A’s during my semesters at Wake Technical Community College. I have the same vision that your mother had, I have a belief for the impossible. I always believe that things will work out for the best. We have so much going for us in America, even with all the mess going on, we can still come out better. Whatever dreams that are in our heads, we can conquer, as long as we do not give up. I have wanted to be a crime scene Investigator since I was 17 years old, watching CSI: Miami. I decided to be a nurse because they make more money. Now, I have decided to go back to school because being a nurse is not all that it turns out to be. There is a lot of stress with being a nurse. I am happy to say that I have the best opportunity to go back to school to make my dreams come true. I know that this is going to take a lot of hard work, having to pay for school this go round, but I know that it is worth it. As an American, I am inspired to do the best that I can to live the life that I want, love who I want to love, marry who I want to marry. America is the land of the free, full of opportunities, choices, anything that anyone can dream of. As long as people do not give up on their selves, they can achieve anything that they want to do. I love being an American girl. I would never choose another place to be, be raised, or have my children raised.

One of the most important financial lessons that I have learned is to always have a plan for your money. I learned this lessons the hard way, honestly. When I was 18, I had two jobs. I applied for a credit card and was approved for an $800 credit line because I was a full time employee and a student. My life went downhill and changed when one of my boss’s businesses closed and he went bankrupt. I recieved a check for $408 and put it in the bank because my boss couldn’t cash it. Next thing all the employees know is that their checks are bouncing and they didn’t get their money. The $408 plus an overdraft fee went to my bank and made it -$435 in my account. I then lost my second job due to “he said she said” drama. I used my credit card to pay my bills for about three months. Then entire $800 was used and I couldn’t pay my credit card off. My credit score went down to 485. It hurt me terribly. I now make sure I pay all my bills and whatever is left, I put it in my savings for emergencies like gas or food.

My education is the most significant thing in my life right now. My family and friends also mean a lot to me but my education is on line. Right now, I work as a home health LPN. I love my job at times but I learned that nursing is not for me. During the COVID pandemic, I have had three different jobs. I worked at the hosptial as an LPN, food lion as a cashier, and now a home health LPN. When I was working at the hospital, I was called names, hit, verbally and physically abused. No one wanted to listen to what I had to say, even the doctors when someone was bleeding out of her newly stitched wound. I became “burned out”, I called home crying every day to my mother about how terrible my day was so, I left the hospital. I then started cashiering at food lion and the people of today’s society are so rude. They will yell and fuss about anything, literally. I had to leave and go back to nursing. I am now a home health LPN and I love it. I have come to realize this is not where my heart is in the world. I learned that I want to make my career in Forensis Science so I can help people in another way. I want to become a Crime Scene Investigator. I would absolutely love it.

The worst lie is when you lie to yourself about who you are. As a child, I always tried to fit in and be someone that I was not. I am now an independent college student, full time employee, and a home owner. I see, as I’ve matured over the years, that it is not always about fitting in with everyone else around you. It is about finding people who will accept you as you are. If they do not accept you, they should be welcome to walk out of your life. I am very in tune with myself and what I love to do. I am true to myself and I do not lie to myself. Honesty, especially to myself, is a very important aspect of my life. If I feel as though someone is treating me bad or they should not be in my life, I am honest with myself and I tell myself to let that person go. In the end, I am normally alone but I am happy. I love who I am and who I have become over the years. This is why I am choosing to go back to school, I love being an LPN but I want to be a Crime Scene Investigator. I love helping people and I want to learn to help people in another way. Thank you for reading.