I've always known I was different. In elementary school, instead of chasing boys on the playground I wanted to stay and play with my girlfriends. In middle school, when my friends started getting crushes on boys I was always left in the dust just choosing a boy to have a crush on to fit in. I never had any interest in having a boyfriend or even being around boys. I was in seventh grade when I first realized why that was. My best friend had just gotten her first boyfriend, I hated him, they hung out together and she would talk about him all the time. I thought I was jealous of the fact that she had someone else to hang out with or that I too wanted a boyfriend. As time went on I realized that what I really wanted was her... I went on to tell one of my other friends that I thought I had a crush on this girl thinking that she would keep it a secret and that she could be an outlet for me. The next day I come to school and notice that my friends are acting weird towards me and don't want to sit by me. Being ostracized by my classmates was not something that I expected as I had only told one friend about these thoughts and I couldn't have imagined that she would tell my other friends, including the girl whom I had this crush on. It wasn't until boys in the hallway came up to me snickering asking me if I was gay that I understood what was happening. The girl who I thought was a friend who I could trust told everybody and by the time I had realized, what felt like the whole school knew. Before I knew it my classmates were laughing behind my back offhandedly calling me a dyke and lesbo. Every night I would go home afterschool feeling like a worthless freak because of my "friend" that outed me to my school. It wasn't until high school that I felt comfortable at school again. In high school I finally found friends that accepted me and didn't make me feel uncomfortable about who I was. I didn't feel like being a lesbian was my entire my identity nor something that I should be judged over. I still had yet to come out to my parents until I had my first girlfriend in my junior year of high school. Doing so was hard since I was raised very christian, luckily my mother was somewhat supportive, though to this day she still does not believe that I am gay and thinks that this is just a phase, I welcomed this reaction though opposed to my father's. He was not supportive of me at all and hated anytime it was brought up, my mother thankfully forced him to downplay these feelings as I got more serious with my girlfriend. Although I would like my parents to be more accepting I am grateful that they still treat me like a person. Through it all I wouldn't change anything about who I am. I am grateful that I faced these adversities as they have made me grow as a person and though I still struggle with my sexual identity from time to time I know that this is who I am meant to be.

I have always believed that a person shows their faith not only by sharing the gospel but also through their work. As an incoming freshman in college, I have many plans to dream big and change the world, as I’m sure many other people my age also have. Going into a new place with people I do not know gives me so many opportunities to share God’s love throughout the school. I hope to continue my education and go into the medical field, where I can hopefully improve people’s lives. I have had many experiences in a hospital or medical office; from what I have seen, it is all about getting people in and out. I hope that when I am put in the position of helping people who are hurting, I will help to heal their bodies and, hopefully, their souls. I want to change their heart not just by sharing my beliefs but showing them God’s love through my kindness. I hope to be a light wherever I go that attracts people to the love of God and leads them to his word. I hope that by showing people my love alone, God’s love will shine through me and be a beacon of light for people currently in the dark. I hope that when I am on campus, going through my college years, I can make friends who want to share God’s love like me and bring people to God. I wish to create a safe place where people from all religions and affiliations can come and feel safe because I will not shove God in their faces, but I will just show them love and kindness and be what a good Christian should be to these hurting people. My dream is to bring as many people as possible to God by showing them kindness, forgiveness, and the love they may need. I know that so many people who go into hospitals are not only physically hurting but spiritually hurting, and I hope that I will be able to show them the light of the Lord and try to heal them. Saying that the world will be better if I have the opportunity to go into this field and share his love is subjective, but what’s not is that if I am able to do this, many more people will be able to call God’s kingdom their own.

I am a mermaid I float with the waves I swim with the fish I collect seashells on the shore The waves know my name The ocean calls me in and I follow I have trust I have no fear I am lured into the ocean The waves take over my body The fish disperse I've lost all my shells The ocean I once trusted is ruining me I've lost my trust I scramble for my shells The fish leave me The waves float me out past the horizon I am no longer the mermaid I was before I am a siren I lay amoung the rocks I enjoy the storms I lure men in with the sweetness in my voice I ruin them once they get in close I ruin them the way I was ruined The boats pass me by I lure them in I crash their ships I steal their gold I ruin them the way I was ruined

I have struggled with allergies and asthma since I was 5 years old, I had very severe allergies that prevented me from doing the same things as many of my classmates. In elementary school, I would need to stay inside for recess during the fall and spring while all my friends went outside to play on the playground. At this young age, I didn't fully understand why I wasn't able to play with my friends it felt like I was being punished for something that wasn't even my fault. I started getting allergy shots when I was in the 3rd grade, during the first two years of this treatment I was required to get 2 sots in my arms twice a week. I felt so different than the rest of my classmates, during the first two years my allergies were only getting worse and I felt so powerless in this condition. Luckily after the third year, the treatment started to help I finally felt normal and I was able to play outside with my friends and engage in activities I was oreviousky missing out on. Unfortunately, it was during this time that my allergist noticed my asthma getting out of hand. I was in the 5th grade when this happened, I had just been getting my allergies under control and I was happy to play normally with the other students but my lungs had other thighs in mind. I began having severe asthma attacks during the physical education class. My allergist informed me that I suffered from exercise and allergy-induced asthma. Once again my doctor insisted that I try to stay inside during allergy seasons to not bring on my asthma attacks as well as refraining from strenuous exercise. I was so upset by this because I had just reached a place in my allergy treatment where I was able to play like a normal kid but once again I was reduced to sitting on the sidelines and observing my friends play with each other and have fun. I was prescribed an asthma inhaler that I had to use before any physical activity, I was finally able to play with the other students and I was so happy. To this day I still receive allergy shots and use my inhaler prior to any strenuous physical activity. I am lucky that I had the opportunity to receive treatment for these conditions. I intend on using my experience as motivation to work hard and reach my goals. I hope to graduate college with a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering and pursue an education in dental school. Using the opportunities that I have been granted I will use my education to open my dental practice and help people find confidence in their smiles.

Mental illness is something that I have struggled with for many years. Sixth grade was the first I noticed something was wrong, while my friends were doing well in school and meeting new people I couldn't seem to get out of my bed. I struggled to do things as simple as taking a shower and eating. I had many people I could talk to about this but I chose to keep it to myself because I was ashamed and embarrassed, I thought that something was wrong with me and my parents would be mad at me. I started coping in unhealthy ways and once I started I couldn't be stopped, After a while I was able to pick myself up and I finally started to feel better. I had finally started going out of the house to hang out with my friends and I was starting to return to my life. What I didn't know was that this feeling would only last a short amount of time. The next year I started to slip into the same depressive episode I had experienced before I started up with my unhealthy coping habits again and I could feel myself getting worse than before. There was only one difference this time I had friends to whom I could talk to. They helped me more than they could ever know, helping me get out of my room and sharing their stories with me. During my freshman year of high school, my depression got bad since this was during Covid-19 I was trapped in my house and I couldn't do anything. With no responsibilities and no reason to leave my house, I was at my lowest. I fell hard into my old habits but I hadn't realized how bad it was getting until I was failing all of my classes and had not left my bed in days. I finally decided to tell my parents about everything because I feared that if I let it get any worse I might do something I would regret. I was terrified of telling them, not because I thought they would be unsupportive but because I was ashamed of what I had been doing and I did not want them to be disappointed in me. When I told them they tried to help me in everyway they could. I started therapy but because this was during covid the sessions had to be online and they were not helping. I was unable to open up to therapist while still in my room on the phone. After covid restriction had been lifted I was able to get the help I needed. I am so grateful to have parents that were willing to help me when I was struggling. I was able to find the help I needed through the help of my parents and while sometimes I do feel myself start to slip I now have the resources I need to catch myself before I feel myself fall too deep into the pit of depression I was once engulfed in and I am forever grateful to all the people that helped me when I was struggling.

I was raised in a mostly female household. My mother raised me to be my own independent woman, She taught me to the importance of sticking up for yourself and never let a man tell you what they thought was better for you. To me, feminism is the importance of knowing your worth as a woman and sticking up for what you think is right. Feminism is important because future generations should not know the struggle of being seen as less than just because they are women. I want my children to be raised in a world where they are seen only for who they are not for what gender they were assigned at birth. My inspiration is and has been my mom, for raising my sister and me to be incredibly strong and resilient women in a male-dominated world. She struggled from birth but that made her stronger and she never let anything bring her down. My mom inspires me more every day with the work she does. When I was growing up she took off school and work to raise my sister and me, I am grateful for that every day. When I went into third grade she started up school again and worked hard every day between school, work, and raising her children she had a full plate but she never fell behind and she was and still is an incredible mother. She is now a business owner and continues to inspire me daily. She impacted my view of feminism by being a hard worker and making time to raise me right. She has stood up to men on more than one occasion, a few times to my dad. She showed me how to appear strong and confident even in situations where I feel weak. She started me in girl scouts at a young age, through girl scouts I have learned a lot about feminism from different girls' eyes. Many of the meetings in girl scouts taught us about the various important women in the feminist movement or just taught us about being a feminist in general, we have even gone to a woman's march in our city which was truly inspirational. I am empowering my friends and coming to school with a positive attitude every day and having respect for everybody in and outside of school, this is how I contribute to the feminism movement in my community. I am incredibly grateful for the women in my life who have brought me up to know the power behind feminism.