Out of the picture I was diagnosed at birth with Neurofibromatosis (NF1). NF1 does have limitations like not allowing me to play contact sports like football. Coming from a family with two football prodigies, I felt like a tiny bug next to their huge fame. They were getting invitations to join football camps all over the country as well as offers to go to private schools because of their skill while I was getting nothing. I decided to work for greatness instead of perfection. I came to this conclusion because I needed to recognize that I still was doing great with my work. At first, I struggled with this mindset. That was until a letter from the National Society of High School Scholars, NSHSS, appeared in my mailbox this summer. An invitation to join a committee with a plentiful amount of exclusive resources like scholarship opportunities, events, college, and career fairs. I was overjoyed to finally see years of academic work receive recognition. I was different from my friends, classmates, and others in my school. I have NF1, Neurofibromatosis type 1. This makes non-carcinogenic tumors grow on the nerves which can cause numerous symptoms. In my case, it mainly affected my bones. The main issues were in my right tibia, my right ankle, and my upper spine. These areas in my body became more susceptible to injury. The one in my tibia made my leg bow. I was put in a leg brace immediately making me different. Luckily, I had surgery to fix my leg and ankle in 2015. Two years later I was diagnosed with severe scoliosis and had to get it surgically corrected by metal rods. That would seem like it would open the door for more physical activity but only limited what I could do. This made me feel left out from everyone. I still had friends but if we ever found something that we wanted to do, the big one being volleyball, I wouldn’t be able to do it. If it had a possibility to injure me it always seemed like I would get injured if I did it. I couldn’t even have a pool party without the worry of injury. I had an accident where I snapped one of the rods in my back during a pool party in 2020. I jumped onto a pool raft and fell back. I hit my back on the pool wall and that snapped one of the metal rods. Fortunately, I was rushed into surgery to replace the rod. Throughout my life, I underwent many struggles that resulted in learning many lessons. I came to the realization that I should work hard for the things that I want to do. I developed a tremendous amount of patience. I do realize that my story is only one story and that many other people go through a life of adversity. A condition of any kind does not dictate or define a person. It is through these challenges that change the way you see the world. I have a lot of compassion and a great appreciation for anyone who goes through any type of struggle. I’ve learned to accept my restrictions while still being able to fit into the picture.