My all-time favorite film is a no-brainer for me. (500) Days of Summer. This movie starts out with a narrator introducing our two main characters, Tom and Summer. In the beginning, the narrator tells us this is not a love story, but the plot begs to differ. We see Tom starting to fall in love with a new girl at work -Summer- while trying to catch her attention. The two form a romantic attachment but Summer explains she doesn't want a "boyfriend", she wants a casual relationship. Tom struggles with this because he believes he has found his soulmate. They eventually break things off and Tom is utterly heartbroken. A few months later the two find themselves going to a mutual friend's wedding and Tom thinks there's something still there. But the next time they meet is it revealed that Summer is engaged. Tom falls into a deeper depression and questions his belief in "soulmates". I won't tell the end because I'd hate to spoil it but the reason I love this movie so much is the feeling it gives me every time I watch it. The feeling of understanding you receive when it's over is otherworldly. You aren't necessarily sad the two didn't end up soulmates, you're more peaceful knowing that everyone has a person, but sometimes that person isn't yours.

My grandmother has been the foundation of my life. She has been a motherly figure to me ever since I could remember. I was never close with my mother, but my Mimi - as we called her - never failed me. My Mimi grew up in extreme poverty with nothing to her name. So growing up she spoiled me to death, making sure I had everything I ever wanted. But she made sure I was humble about it. My Mimi never drew attention to herself, she hated to be in the spotlight. But somehow she taught me self-confidence and how to love myself. One of our favorite hobbies to do together is shopping. We loved ourselves a good bargan so we always checked all the sales racks first. Mimi would just sit and wait for me to model for her. She was also brutally honest so I always trusted her opinion. I can recall one certain occasion that I'll never forget. One evening, as me and Mimi were flipping through my senior pictures, she turned to me with a straight face and said, "What is it like to be so pretty?". I immediatly brushed it off and said, "Oh come on Mimi, I'm just as pretty as the next girl." She was angered by this, or more or less aggitated. She replyed, "Now don't you ever cut yourself short like that! I truly wonder how you can be so beautiful but carry yourself with such a mannor of grace and humblness." I was honestly lost for words, my Mimi was so solem. She told me she never had boyfriends growing up and was never looked at as "pretty". I was now aggitated. My Mimi is the most beautiful person in the world to me. She has the kindest heart and the truest soul of a person that I'll ever know.

Hello, my name is Payton Christophersen and I am a current high school senior at Rivercrest High School, which I guarantee you have never heard of until this point. I was raised up on a huge ranch with three older brothers, and I want nothing more than to get out and see the world. I think my family had a good idea of my plans for the future when I was about six. They watched as I designed magazines and wrote pages after pages of stories relentlessly and asked for critics. So needless to say, my family and I included knew that I was pursuing something bigger than Red River County. I am planning to attend Texas State University in the fall to pursue a degree in mass communication to someday get a job in broadcast media. I also plan to work with philanthropy groups to help make the world a place my children will be proud of. Coming from my humble roots, I am very excited to see the world from a new perspective and to hopefully make a difference in it. I hope to one day inspire other people to reach beyond the boundaries of their own comfort zone and to realize there is a whole world out there past their own minds.