I was accepted into my dream college, The University of Miami as a Hammond Scholar which would provide full tuition however trouble lies within my housing situation where I am more than likely to be off campus for housing due to the housing shortage that as occurred . As an out of state student, I hope to use that $1,000 towards my first monthly payment for housing which would come roughly to around $1,500 for $2,000, allowing me to have time to find a job where I can further save fund for my first year as it is common knowledge that Miami is not a very cheap place to live especially if you are new to the area with no family for support. If I am able to fortunately find housing on-campus, I would instead use the $1,000 to repair my macbook air battery for around $200 and use the remaining $800 to repair my car which I plan to use on campus to get around and would potentially drive my brother and I to the university overall. The repairs would come to around $500. I will then use the remaining $300 for supplies and non-perishable groceries and used books for my required classes.

I remember it was field day during the 2nd grade. We were doing relay races and it was time for my team to go. I was starting off for my time and as soon as the whistle blew I started running. I was running a lot before, however during the middle of my turn, I began to feel shortness of breath and my whizing became much louder. Next thing I know, I come to a halt trying to catch my breath, however it only leads to me getting sent to the nurses office for my mom to pick me up as I had experienced an asthma attack from putting too much strain on my fragile body. Ever since that day, I was told that sports was out of the picture, and as a child who loved to play, I was heartbroken but I knew I did not want to experience another attack. From then growing out I watched my friends play all they could as I was very redacted in what I could do as enough strain could trigger another attack. As I entered high school, many assumed that I had played some sports due to my athletic physique. However, it was the complete opposite. I had completely missed out on having the high school experience I wanted because I could not physically play sports without my inhaler. Out of curiosity due to my frustration, I remember searching up if it was possible to get rid of my condition. The answer was obviously no but I further read that it can be further controlled and I could possibly outgrow it. It was then that I had a little bit of hope in playing sports. I would talk to my doctor to which he suggested that I slowly train my body so that it can slowly become accustomed to my activities. I would set goals to increase my stamina like going on walks which escalated to hikes every morning. I saw some slight progress as I began to realize that I was less reliant on my inhaler however I always kept it on me. In my case however it was too late to do much as the spring sports season in my senior year had already started. As I finish high school I hope that I will be able to someday participate in a sport as i slow try to control my asthma.

Growing up, I have always felt that there was also more beyond the education that was presented to me from kindergarten to High school. I grew up in a family of 9 where education was something that we strained from as we were immigrants. As the youngest in my family, it was slightly easier to assimilate to the schooling system. Once I was introduced to the concept of learning, I knew that I did not want to take it for granted however, at my young age, it felt forced. I was learning things because I had to, not because I wanted to. I remember in middle school, I would try to seek for more understanding on a topic that piqued my interest as there was some unclarity in the topic. What I had researched was eye opening. There were so many details, especially in history, that were filtered out from our supposed curriculum. Whether that is done intentionally to cover up the truth of the History of our own country or if it was due to lack of time to go through every detail in a given school year, I would take it upon myself to enhance my knowledge and level of understanding in many of these key events. Who would have thought that slaves were skined and used as leather or that Pope John Paul II would commend the practice of Vodou. There was so much to learn that we are not given the chance to. It was then that I loved to do reacher on my own to better my own education and also cultural awareness. I believe that expanding my education has also made me more culturally aware of those that surround me which is crucial in the society that we live in as many intently live in ignorance without truly understanding and learning from their history. That is the importance of education that I value. Simply taking time to acquire some knowledge is not only engaging but important in the world that we now live in. As I pursue my higher education, I plan to take courses to expand my knowledge not only in the math, which does come handy, but in the deep roots of my history as that form of education does not just become general knowledge, it becomes a stepping stone of also understanding my personal history, the many privileges of taking advantage of the education that is always being developed. Having the freedom to acquire more education in anything I want is why I developed a strong devotion to my education overall as it is clear that our current system taught up untill high school is failing us.

Mental health is something that many know about yet do not truly understand what it is. I personally can say that I truly was not aware of what mental health was. With my personal experience there were many times where I just thought the “mood” that I was in was just something temporary I would pass by. Growing up in my family of immigrants, mental health did not exist. As I mentioned before, mental health was often under looked at as something that would simply “pass by”. I vividly remember when I was 10 years old and I told my teacher that I was stressed and anxious and she replied and told me that I was too young to be having these symptoms and simply brushed it off, however, that was not the case .This made it even harder for me to come out to my family and truly address the issue to seek help as I was now confused and not aware of what exactly was going on. It was then that I started to realize the tremendous change in my attitude and behaviors from not being motivated to being very antisocial to my peers and also my family. Those around me would hold the perception that my life is “perfect “as I am seen to be around many friends and to be receiving good grades, however all of that was done in order to mask my own feeling of emptiness which became a habit due to my poor mental health. It was then that I addressed the issue to a trusted member at a webinar that I volunteered to attend and was made aware of the importance of my mental health. Verbally discussing the state of my mental health is a key component and truly understanding the importance of mental health overall and accepting it. Once I finally knew my mental state and why I was the way I was, it made it easier for me to discuss with my peers and further advocate for awareness and mental health and the different forms that mental health can be expressed. Acknowledging the state of my mental help allowed me to focus on the things that mattered to me the most.I was able to cope with art. I was able to express my emotions and my thoughts through the art which not only helped me relieve myself but allowed for others to have a connection with the art and build a relationship with the common experience that can be interpreted from the art. I was also able to take part in the Junior achievement of Greater Washington Company program in which we were to sell a product of service addressing a need. That in itself became a great platform to advocate for mental health awareness as the goal was shared among my teammates. After 4 months, it became a nationwide thing as we have customers and supporters from all over the United States who further helped the agenda on advocating for mental health. As I was able to relate to many of my peers and supporters, I truly understood that mental health is something that everyone in the world shares. With this generation there is no age to define when mental health should be taken seriously. Looking back at my 10-year-old self, I wished I had an adult who would support me instead of dismiss me. I now have somewhat become that figure as I continually encourage those in my community to never be afraid to tell someone or express how they feel.

Mental health is something that many know about yet do not truly understand what it is. I personally can say that I truly was not aware of what mental health was. With my personal experience there were many times where I just thought the “mood” that I was in was just something temporary I would pass by. Growing up in my family of immigrants, mental health did not exist. As I mentioned before, mental health was often under looked at as something that would simply “pass by”. I vividly remember when I was 10 years old and I told my teacher that I was stressed and anxious and she replied and told me that I was too young to be having these symptoms and simply brushed it off, however, that was not the case .This made it even harder for me to come out to my family and truly address the issue to seek help as I was now confused and not aware of what exactly was going on. It was then that I started to realize the tremendous change in my attitude and behaviors from not being motivated to being very antisocial to my peers and also my family. Those around me would hold the perception that my life is “perfect “as I am seen to be around many friends and to be receiving good grades, however all of that was done in order to mask my own feeling of emptiness which became a habit due to my poor mental health. It was then that I addressed the issue to a trusted member at a webinar that I volunteered to attend and was made aware of the importance of my mental health. Verbally discussing the state of my mental health is a key component and truly understanding the importance of mental health overall and accepting it. Once you accept the idea of mental health and that it is perfectly normal, the individual will start to take different approaches towards many of the activities and life overall. Once I finally knew my mental state and why I was the way I was, it made it easier for me to discuss with my peers and further advocate for awareness and mental health and the different forms that mental health can be expressed. Acknowledging the state of my mental help allowed me to focus on the things that mattered to me the most such as my aspirations. I was able to learn new hobbies such as 3-D art in order to cope with my mental state. I was able to express my emotions and my thoughts through the art which not only helped me relieve myself but allowed for others to have a connection with the art and build a relationship with the common experience that can be interpreted from the art. I was also able to take part in the Junior achievement of Greater Washington Company program in which we were to sell a product of service addressing a need. That in itself became a great platform to advocate for mental health awareness as the goal was shared among my teammates. We were able to develop a website where not only donations could be made but there were updates every week with information on mental health. After 4 months, it became a nationwide thing as we have customers and supporters from all over the United States who further helped the agenda on advocating for mental health. As I was able to relate to many of my peers and supporters, I truly understood that mental health is something that everyone in the world shares. With this generation there is no age to define when mental health should be taken seriously. Looking back at my 10-year-old self, I wished I had an adult who would support me instead of dismiss me. I now have somewhat become that figure as I continually encourage those in my community to never be afraid to tell someone or express how they feel, that they have safe space, and a place of acceptance.