That the new generation is already becoming aware of the issues in the world and we are instilling values in them so that they can become positive leaders of change

My brother's favorite film became my favorite! My older brother loves the movie "Hum Saath Saath Hain," when we were young. I enjoyed it, but it was not my favorite movie, even though two of my favorite actors were in the film. But I have become older and now that I live away from my family, I realized the importance of being with each other. This movie has become my favorite because it is about a family being together. Whenever I come to visit, I love watching it every weekend with my parents and siblings. I have gotten to the point of looking forward to the weekends when I am with my family to watch the movie because I have become sentimental. When I am away from my family, I can only imagine how the characters felt separated from their loved ones and when I compare it to how I felt, I began to feel a sense of connection. In the movie, the joy the characters felt having been surrounded by people they love is how I feel when I am with my family. It is because of the connection that I have made through this movie that it has now become my favorite film. <3

As an Asian-American, I was very confused about my identity growing up. When I was younger, I knew that Sundays were for Madrassah (Islamic School) and then throughout the week we would go to regular school and have lunches similar to other kids. But when we would get home, we would have foods like Roti, Dal, Stew Chicken, and all sorts of foods. On Eid, we would watch Bollywood movies together and have sweets like Barfi, Jalebi, and Ladoo; for me, this was all so normal. But as I got older and we had to start identifying ourselves, I did not know what I should be labeled as. Being Muslim was a religious identity, and I could identify as being of Trinidadian descent, but it did not feel like it was part of my racial identity because I was not sure what I was. It wasn't until I got into College that I identified as Asian-American and it took me quite a while because I was different than what people considered Asian. But I had to make people more aware of South Asia and not just East Asia. I knew my family was of South Asian descent and the home culture I grew up in was combined with that of South Asia and the Caribbean, but I did not know what that made me. I started learning more about my cultures and taking an interest in my history, and learning who I am and how either in similar situations identify. I always checked the 'other' box on surveys because I did not know what box I belonged to, but now I can proudly identify myself as Indo-Caribbean American/Asian-American. There are times when I feel like I do not fit in with either culture because I was born in the US and I do not possess all the qualities of someone immersed in the culture, but that is part of my identity. Growing up I was either not Trinidadian enough or Indian enough to join in with certain groups. Even now, that still happens; I feel like I am an imposter in a group of people that share so many similarities to myself and yet, I am the fake one. Now, I try to hang out with other people from the West Indies and talk about similar foods and activities, and when I hang with other South Asians, I try to learn from them and compare my knowledge and look for similarities. But, there are still times that I am not Desi enough or Caribbean enough and that is okay. I can never be enough because I am made up of different parts of different cultures. Due to my own journey of discovering myself and how I fit in, I am using my experiences to become a counselor that can help students in similar positions as myself when I was younger. I did not feel like I could share my concerns with anyone because growing up, aside from my siblings and many cousins, I did not know anyone in a similar situation. But as I am older and I am learning about other people from multicultural homes, this has fueled my desire to help others in similar situations. I have begun to look at people in a different way and I try to understand how they feel, especially when I learn about them coming from a multicultural home. I let them know that they are not alone and I am here to lend an ear if need be and I encourage them to accept their identity based on what they believe themselves to be and not what others say.

Chess has always been an activity that I have done by myself for many years, enlisting the help of my computer when I wanted to have a match. My history goes back to the fourth grade when my class had a teacher come in to teach us how to play chess. I was thrilled! The game was intense, full of strategy and mystery, and kept me on the edge of my seat. Since I first learned to play, I would try to teach my family members or other friends that were in a different class than me, but to no avail. As I got older I would play occasionally online, as I had no one else to play with. When I got to high school, I found out about the chess club and I was so excited, but I couldn't join because I was in another club that met at the same time. :( Now that I am pursuing my graduate degree, my younger cousins are seeking interest and I finally have the chance to teach chess and not only play with others but let them experience the incredible game with all the twists and turns. Chess has taught me to look at each situation in more than one way; strategize and compare the different situations and possible outcomes. Each action I take, each move I make on the chessboard of life will move me one space closer to my goal. I use strategy mainly when it comes to money, by focusing on the actions of how to get the best deals within budget and considering the worth of securing an item now versus later. My life/career goals consist of being a counselor with dual licensure in school counseling and mental health counseling. I hope to work in a high-school setting and helping students from minority and lower socioeconomic populations. My goals have been influenced by chess by focusing on the mindset of why settle for the capture of one license when I can adjust my plan of action to obtain two licensure? The outcome is worth the change.

Education is Forever! I am currently working on an M.Ed/Ed Specialist degree in Counselor Education at the University of Florida. This grant would allow me the opportunity to continue my studies as I pursue a career as a School Counselor. Within my studies, I am learning how to be an effective counselor within the K-12 setting, and the population I plan to work with includes minorities and students in a low socioeconomic bracket. Not only am I taking mental health classes, but I am also taking ESE and Special Education courses that will aid me in my future career. Although my specialized track is school counseling, I have decided to pursue dual licensure within School Counseling and Mental Health Counseling. This degree will help me afford to continue my education as I pursue my goal.

Education is never-ending for me. I have always had an interest in learning new things and this interest had followed me throughout my life. But education does not merely mean I learn new things and put that information aside, it means that I begin to pursue that interest to another level. Growing up, having a proper education was of great importance, but even though I did not go to the fanciest schools or attended all the outside school events, that did not stop me from my goals. As I am older I have decided to enter a career within the field of education because I realized how important it is to share knowledge with others. Within my academic career, I have earned a BA and MA in Communication, I finished my MA in Educational Leadership #COVIDGRAD and I am now pursuing an M.Ed/ Ed Specialist dual degree program in Counselor Education. I plan to earn my Doctorate after working in my field and earning some experience, but nothing is going to stop me from my goals even if it has to take me a little longer than others. Education has played such an important role in my life and the development of who I am, that I can only see my future in the field of Education. I work as an Educator and Academic Advisor because I want others to see the value in education. This is not solely dedicated to education in Colleges/Universities, but in all areas, including trade/vocational schools and learning from others through experience. Education is part of my drive and I am determined to obtain all the knowledge I want while I am able and then share what I can.

I first began to learn about mental health within my undergraduate years from a workshop targeted toward the mental health of Asian Americans. After learning about it, I did not fully grasp how my own mental health issues began to affect me until I began to get older. I began attending conferences with workshops focused on mental health. But I became aware of my own mental health when I started to become depressed this year. I recently moved away to attend graduate school to focus on becoming a school counselor and upon taking my mental health-related classes, I was troubled. It was my first time being away from my family for school and even though I was in the same state, I was on my own. I did not speak to my housemates and I barely participated in class because I felt alone. My older brother came to visit and I broke down and it was too much for me. My classmates were understanding of my feelings after my breakdown in class and I realized that I should not have held it in but accepted that it is part of me and the situation that I am in is normal. I started talking to my parents and older brother more about how I was doing mentally and what I was doing for self-care. After experiencing my own situation, I realized that I need to learn more and encourage individuals to embrace their mental health and self-care. I have decided to pursue a mental health counselor license in addition to my current program of study because for many Asian Americans like myself, we do not focus on our own mental health and the discussion of it is also something to be normalized.

Are you crazy? For many that do not understand why mental health is such a major issue, some may consider a person with mental health issues as someone who is mentally ill or "crazy". But there are so many more aspects to mental health that most people understand. Just like physical and emotional health, mental health plays a big role in a person's ability to function. I first began to learn about mental health within my undergraduate years from a workshop targeted toward the mental health of Asian Americans. After learning about it, I did not fully grasp how my own mental health issues began to affect me until I began to get older. I was unsure of my career path and even my life path. I felt as though the only thing I could excel at was school and even then I felt pressured to get As each term. But the relationships that I have with my friends and family kept me from feeling overwhelmed. After some time, I realized I wanted to help students within minority and low socioeconomic populations that struggle within highschool and the transitions that come with it. However, I recently moved away to attend graduate school to focus on becoming a school counselor and upon taking my mental health-related classes, I was troubled. It was my first time being away from y family for school and even though I was in the same state, I was on my own. I did not speak to my housemates and I barely participated in class because I felt alone. My older brother came to visit and I broke down and it was too much for me. My classmates and teaching assistants validated my feelings after my breakdown in class and I realized that I should not have held it in but accepted that it is part of me and the situation that I am in is normal. I started talking to my parents and older brother more about how I was doing mentally and what I was doing for self-care. I also started to interact with others more and I realized that I had a strong support system. After experiencing my own situation, I realized that I need to learn more and encourage individuals to embrace their mental health and self-care. I have decided to pursue a mental health counselor license in addition to my current program of study because for many Asian Americans like myself, we do not focus on our own mental health and the discussion of it is also something to be normalized. Not everyone has a strong support system and it is important that I am to be a pillar of support with my future students/clients because the more we learn to understand the more mental health because just as normal as physical and emotional health.

Homesickness can crash into you like waves in the ocean. During my first semester of Graduate School at The University of Florida during a pandemic, I moved out of my family home to become more independent, learn the layout of the city and the school, and to grow mentally as an adult. I thought that I would be able to handle this new adventure, but when my older brother came to visit, I realized I was not ready mentally or emotionally. As I struggle to keep my emotions in check, I realized that when students leave school because of homesickness, it is not something to take lightly because it has a strong effect on a person mentally, emotionally, and physically. This moment, made me understand that although I thought I was emotionally and mentally prepared to be away from my family, especially during COVID, that I was not ready at all and that its okay to focus on yourself first and challenge yourself only when you are ready to do so. I learned that I needed to focus on my reasons for leaving, why I decided to study in another county, why I wanted to go to a school far away, why I chose this degree to pursue so many whys that I had to focus on. On the day my brother was leave to go home, I could not stop crying all day, he asked if I wanted to go home, if he should stay, he gave me options and I wanted to handle it because I knew it was possible for me. That evening, I spoke to my mom and she asked if I wantedto see her face so we FaceTimed and I broke down crying, and I kept saying "I willfeel better after I sleep". It was difficult, and then my dad called and he told me to be strong. I cried so much more because my dad tried to help me in his own way and encourage me, as a man of a few words it struck me hard and I know that his words are true and that I can make it through. Not long after I fell asleep and when I woke up the next day, I thought I was okay. I knew what I was doing would help me and it would make me stronger, it was an obstacle to get over, but I had to call my mom and I started to cry because even though I know I can accomplish this goal I have set, the tears would not stop. I decided to schedule out phone calls with friends during the week to have some interaction and stay preoccupied. But as I write this, it is currently the day after labor day and this event started yesterday morning, Labor day 9/7/2020. In the future, I am aiming to be a school counselor, and going through this myself I realize that other students will be in this situation one day and they will go through various emotions and question themselves. This experience will benefit me in the future and I will be able to empathize with these students and understand on that personal level what is going through their minds. This newfound perception is something that requires those faced with homesickness to work on their emotional and mental state slowly. The situation cannot be rushed into by assuming that one will get used to the situation immediately. This is a gradual work in progress and having someone to talk to can help ease the emotional turmoil one goes through. Realizing the cause is the first step.