I haven't been diagnosed with ADHD, and I don't want to self-diagnose, but sometimes I do wonder if I have it. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I've always struggled to sit still or to pay attention. I get called out at school for tapping my foot or fidgeting with my pencil too loudly. Often, I'll find myself spaced out in the middle of church, not remembering anything about the pastor's sermon. It's frustrating to me and those around me, because most of the time, I can't control it. (Sometimes I get so bored that I allow myself to zone out, though.) For these reasons, patience has become a topic of concern for me - something that I've been pushing myself to improve upon. During lectures in class, Sunday school lessons, mock trail competitions, etc., I challenge myself to stay present in the moment. This is a good self-improvement skill to learn since I want to be considerate and attentive to others. I also want others to do the same for me, but how can I expect them to be courteous if I, myself, am not? By training myself to be patient and not check the clock every two minutes, I can learn new information and earn respect from those around me.

This is one of my favorite senior pictures. I've been heavily involved in sports my whole life and I hope to keep them in my life moving forward. From basketball on Friday nights to dodgeball in P.E. class, if it's a physical competition, sign me up. I've gone to Perkins County Schools my whole life so I've been representing the red and white for years now. I can't imagine taking the court with anyone but my teammates, many of whom have been by my side since middle school. I show my school spirit when I wear my jerseys.

In spite of its extremely small size, my hometown of Grant is home to three retirement homes. One of them houses my 96-year-old great-grandmother, Royce, who is my aspiration and a home-grown boss lady. Naturally, I feel a connection to the retirement communities, as well as the senior center downtown. I wish everyone felt an appreciation for today's senior citizens because of all that they've been through. Just think of all the major world events they saw: the Great Depression, World War II, the space race, the assassinations of the Kennedy brothers. I've spent many a happy hour sitting and listening to Grandma Royce recall the events of the 20th century, or just some funny tidbits about her adolescent and adult life on the farm. Hearing the stories from a living witness is something that can't be replicated by reading them from a textbook. Though I don't work at any of the nursing homes in Grant, I have enjoyed my opportunities to volunteer there. Through Student Council, National Honor Society, and my local church youth group, I've been able to spend time with the elderly folk in some fun, unique ways. For instance, every year in NHS, we take an afternoon off from school sometime to walk down the block to the Westview Retirement Community (where my great-grandma lives) and play Bingo. It is hands-down one of my favorite activities we do for NHS. Bingo is a lot more fun when you get to talk smack with the Westview residents. Last summer, my family and I packed hundreds of (heavily disinfected) goodie bags for all the senior citizens and staff members in each nursing home. I'd like to think that this made life in the retirement community a bit better for everyone, especially during such a stressful time.

One thing about my upbringing that I'm very grateful for is the opportunity to have grown up in a small town. We've got everything we need: three gas stations, two diners, eight state football titles, seven churches, and zero stoplights. True, things move slower out here, especially when they're stuck behind a sprayer on the highway, but the friendship and solidarity we all share is unique, and I wouldn't trade that for anything. Being from the country though, I'm aware that half of the families in the area are agriculture-based. Often, their reliance on Nebraska's very inconsistent weather leads to a very inconsistent income. Due to this, it's not uncommon to see people moving out of town once there's just no more money to be pulled from the land. Even more disheartening, kids will line up at the school kitchen on Fridays for food handouts to take home. I've always had a soft heart and it kills me to watch people struggle. I wish I could wave a magic wand and watch their problems disappear, but since I can't, thank goodness there are a few people in the community who feel the same way as me. In the center of our town, we have the food pantry. I'm told that food banks are relatively uncommon for towns our size, so it's something that I take great pride in. As a student-athlete, I don't have a lot of money to donate without a job during the school year. I do like to donate what time I have to the food pantry, though, because I know my efforts are helping lots of people out, the pantry's workers and consumers. Transporting and organizing items isn't a super glamorous job, but I know the impact is felt throughout the entire county.

One historical figure I admire is the one and only Amelia Earhart. She may seem a glaringly obvious choice, but truly, her story has always fascinated me. I would also like to think that we are alike in some ways. A fellow midwesterner, Amelia grew up in Kansas. She was a tomboy and played many sports, such as basketball. She briefly attended college for a medical degree, but once she took her first plane ride, her head never came back down from the clouds. (Already, the similarities between the two of us abound!) She pursued a career in flight, which proved to be a fruitful one; she set many aviation records, most notably becoming the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic and becoming the first ever to fly from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland. Naturally, she was a very vocal advocate for women's rights, and she displayed her skills their behalf. Her adept flying abilities proved to everyone that she'd earned her seat at the table. But of course, you know this story, and you know that on her way to become the first ever to circumnavigate the globe, she lost radio contact and her plane went down somewhere in the southwestern Pacific. Theories have since proliferated about where she and her plane might have ended up, but no one can be sure what really happened. I admire Ms. Earhart for a few reasons - first, because our young adult lives were very similar. Kansas and Nebraska, despite the proximity rivalry, are virtually indistinguishable in size, culture, and landscape. We are/were both fierce competitors and channeled that into sports. We share a common interest in aviation and a common passion for women's advocacy.

I am privileged enough to say that I grew up in a financially stable household under the guidance of two loving parents. I have plenty of friends and acquaintances at school who know and like me for who I am. In spite of all this, my mental state has not always been in tip-top shape. I'm a high school senior now, but for most of my junior high and senior high school career, I have toiled with self-esteem and self-depreciation issues that have torn my confidence to shreds. From 2018 all through 2020, I battled with self-harm. At the time, it seemed like the only way to distract myself and to alleviate the pain I was feeling. Now that I know better, I want to share that message with anyone and everyone who is fighting their own demons. Fortunately, I found a way to take control of my thoughts before they spiraled out of control. I did this by finally working up the nerve to tell people I trusted what I was struggling with. The next step was finding healthy outlets to relieve my pent-up emotions. Some options that work for me include reading, going for a walk, cleaning my room, or listening to music, just to name a few. The outlet does not necessarily have to be an end-all cure for negative emotions - just a distraction until the storm passes. Now, late at night when things get scary, I have a game plan all laid out so that neither I nor my parents have to worry. I would be lying if I said I wasn't occasionally tempted to turn back to my old ways, but I can easily deter those thoughts by reminding myself that I never what to go back to that old state of mind. I am in a good place now because I found ways to manage my thoughts and because I have plenty of people I know I can lean on if ever I just need a place to rest. However, I understand that many people aren't aware of or don't have access to healthy outlets. It breaks my heart to think about the pain some people are going through right now and how these people are going through it alone for fear or inability to reach out. Suicide rates continue to climb at an alarming rate. Suicide is the second leading cause of teenage death, second only to cancer. Even those who are not contemplating suicide but are still in a bad mental place should be a concern. Mental health should never be an uncomfortable topic that people are afraid to bring up. As some one who has walked that path, I feel compelled to help others through as best I can. Sadly, I haven't many opportunities to do advocacy work, but it is one of my major goals in the long run. When I do begin my advocacy work, I hope for it to be in support of women and those struggling with mental health. If I am fortunate enough to be financially stable, I hope to do even more for people struggling with mental health, specifically teenagers. I've always liked the idea of donating scholarships; wouldn't it be an amazing full-circle moment for me if I started one of these babies myself 30-ish years down the road? In the event that I do, Ii would love to hear from those future teenagers who, like me, overcame their mental health battles and happily emerged on the other side.

My favorite book is "The Martian" by Andy Weir. It is a science fiction story set sometime in the future when men have begun to colonize Mars. During a manned mission to Mars, a U.S. crew has to make an emergency evacuation from their base. During the escape, our hero, Mark Watney is injured and presumed dead; thus, he is left behind. Miraculously, he survives and has to figure out how to survive on Mars for the next four years, when the next mission will come. Growing up, my parents were somewhat strict with the media I took in (they'll deny it if you ask them, though.) Due to this, I wasn't allowed to watch the movies and TV shows that my friends did. One such movie that I heard people talking about in the school hallway was "The Martian," starring Matt Damon. Released in 2015, it was the movie of choice for my 7th grade class as a reward for completing our book reports. Naturally, the school sent home a permission slip to watch the movie which my parents declined to sign. Fast forward 7 years to find me browsing the shelves of my public library when I should stumble upon that very book. I brought it home and instantly loved it. Andy Weir has a real knack for storytelling. The tension he builds by foreshadowing the challenges that poor Mark Watney had to face was so palpable, I often found myself wringing my hands. He's also a very smart guy, which he demonstrates through Watney's ingenuity. This was the type of book that found me late at night holding my eyelids open so I could read just one more chapter. I would definitely recommend it to any fan of science fiction. Or Matt Damon.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I had the opportunity to take a personal finance class. My school had recently gained a program created by the one and only Dave Ramsey. It was a semester-long class that taught us future college-goers or workforce-joiners all about how to handle our money wisely. The main thing I learned from that class is that the future, quite literally, is now. When asked what my main financial goal was in life, I decided that I wanted to be comfortable. I want to be making enough money to cover my expenses, save plenty for later, and have a little left over to play with. From my personal finance class, I learned that if I want to be comfortable later in life, I had better start saving right away. Mr. Dave Ramsey strongly suggested opening a savings account as soon as I turn 18 and pouring a little money into each month. The consistent saving will give me peace of mind for later in life. Not to mention how the compound interest (the 8th wonder of the modern world) will build up over time. I'm so glad I decided to take that personal finance class. Thanks to Dave Ramsey and his daughter, I have somewhat of a plan for what I'm going to do financially once I graduate and head out on my own. This is important to me because I don't like plunging headfirst into new scenarios without a plan. College is a big change, and I'm fortunate enough to be prepared.

One of President Abraham Lincoln's many famous quotes comes from a speech he delivered whilst campaigning for president. "A house divided against itself cannot stand." Little did he know that 150 years down the road, U.S. citizens would judge each other based on petty labels, such as Republican, Democrat, black, white. I think the worst problem we face today is people's refusal to work with others. It seems that we are becoming increasingly stubborn when it comes to, "It is okay that this person's opinion differs from mine." When faced with a conflict, we tend to clam up on the professional conversation and unleash a barrage of insults. This is becoming more and more concerning to me when I look at the example today's adults are setting for my generation, not to mention the global issues we will inherit. It's going to take everyone working together to solve these problems, and that's not possible when we refuse to collaborate. Instead of being petty and unproductive when in a disagreement, however important or unimportant, why wouldn't we try to utilize professionalism? You can start by asking yourself, "Is my stance a fact or an opinion?" If it is an opinion, ask yourself, "Why do I hold it?" This will help eliminate some premature conflict because if you realize that your stance is an opinion, there is no need for any sort of debate. If, however, you find your stance to be a fact, try to calmly explain to the one opposite you where you learned this fact or why it makes sense. In today's technological age, people-skills and common courtesy can seem to take the backseat. It is important that people my age learn these skills before entering the real world in order to efficiently work together.