“My life is ruined.” My dad was arrested for domestic abuse. After hurting my mom physically and mentally for years, his arrest and subsequent restraining order were inevitable. My mom couldn’t pull herself out of bed, and my siblings were too young to comprehend what happened. I’d always imagined life without my dad, but now that he was gone, I realized my troubles had only increased. As the oldest of three siblings, my responsibilities overwhelmingly multiplied. On a typical day, I would get up after a terrible night’s sleep to prepare lunch, get my siblings and myself ready then get to school safely, struggle to focus through my school day, and go home to take my mom out for a walk around the neighborhood, make dinner, host board meetings for my clubs, then put my siblings to bed and check in to make sure they were mentally well and kept up with their studies before even thinking about starting my school assignments and extracurricular work. I wrapped everything up in the early morning, finally catching an awful three hours of sleep, and repeating everything again. I was so angry at my dad for leaving my mom, my siblings and I like this, but I couldn’t blame him: he struggled with borderline personality disorder. My family’s will to push through was collapsing, and as their state of well-being fell to me, I couldn't help but be angry with myself for not being stronger. I put in so much effort every single day just for my situation to worsen. Emotionally fatigued as everything fell apart, I began asking myself: what truly makes me fulfilled? Was it bettering my future? Going to college? Supporting my family? I spent weeks scrutinizing about what my life held for me, and figured it out: I need to work hard because I am determined to carve out a prosperous and beautiful future for myself. I try my best to direct my negative energy toward my future and, in a way, working is my escape whether it’s simply taking extra classes or starting clubs about social justice issues I’m committed to. My ambition to take the initiative with my passions has turned my floating ideas into reality, demonstrated through my mental health initiative, my club for reestablishing human connection after the pandemic, and many other activities. Although my schedule is always full, it is filled with activities and experiences that I find fruitful and challenging. However, I don’t just work, I find time for positive outlets as well. I love immersing myself in music and getting lost in old-timey literature. I love discovering new liveliness in the streets of San Francisco with my friends. And I love picking up random niche hobbies like oil painting and origami. With this new mindset, I have learned to be persistent in pursuing my goals, pushing my siblings to do the same. I have become independent and self-driven after realizing that my parents couldn’t be there for me. I found a good academic/family balance, actively working toward my own goals while still handling my familial responsibilities. During my time in university, I plan to major in bioengineering and minor in computer science and neuroscience to build a strong foundation for the intricate research I intend to conduct to create new, viable medical treatments; innovation requires a synthesis of these distinct, intrinsically tied topics. I now understand the time, commitment, and energy it takes to overcome any challenge, having gained strength and perseverance that will guide me moving forward. My life isn’t ruined—it’s just beginning.

“My life is ruined.” My dad was arrested for domestic abuse. He had been hurting my mom physically and mentally for years, so his arrest was inevitable as was the subsequent restraining order. My mom couldn’t pull herself out of bed, and my siblings were too young to comprehend what happened. I’d always imagined life without my dad, but now that he was gone, I realized my troubles had only increased. As the oldest of three siblings, my responsibilities overwhelmingly multiplied. On a typical day, I would get up after a terrible night’s sleep to prepare lunch, get my siblings and myself ready then get to school safely, struggle to focus through my school day, and go home to take my mom out for a walk around the neighborhood, make dinner, host board meetings for my clubs, then put my siblings to bed and check in to make sure they were mentally well and kept up with their studies before even thinking about starting my school assignments and extracurricular work. I wrapped everything up in the early morning, finally catching an awful three hours of sleep, and repeating everything again. So much was happening at once that I felt submerged in emotions. I was furious at my dad for not thinking twice about his actions and distressed about how his mistakes and poor choices would affect our family in the long run. Without him around, my siblings stopped caring about school and my mom spiraled deeper into her depression; everyone’s will to push through was collapsing, and as their state of well-being fell to me, I couldn't help but be angry with myself for not being stronger. I put in so much effort every single day just for my situation to worsen. Emotionally fatigued as everything fell apart, I began asking myself: what truly makes me fulfilled? Was it bettering my future? Going to college? Supporting my family? I spent weeks scrutinizing about what my life held for me, and figured it out: I need to work hard because I am determined to carve out a prosperous and beautiful future for myself. I try my best to direct my negative energy toward my future and, in a way, working is my escape whether it’s simply taking extra classes or starting clubs about social justice issues I’m committed to. My ambition to take the initiative with my passions has turned my floating ideas into reality, demonstrated through my mental health initiative, my club for reestablishing human connection after the pandemic, and many other smaller activities. Although my schedule is always full, it is filled with activities and experiences that I find fruitful and challenging. However, I don’t just work, I find time for positive outlets as well. I love immersing myself in music and getting lost in old-timey literature. I love discovering new liveliness in the streets of San Francisco with my friends. And I love picking up random niche hobbies like oil painting and origami. With this new mindset, I have learned to be persistent in pursuing my goals, pushing my siblings to do the same. I have become independent and self-driven after realizing that my parents couldn’t be there for me. I found my rhythm without my dad, no longer dwelling on the past. I found a good academic/family balance, actively working toward my own goals while still handling my familial responsibilities. I now understand the time, commitment, and energy it takes to overcome any challenge, having gained strength and perseverance that will guide me moving forward. My life isn’t ruined—it’s just beginning.

If you asked me to describe my family with one word, I would say “stubborn”. I always thought it was good to be able to stay so strong in your beliefs until my dad suffered a severe skull fracture and a psychiatrist diagnosed him with borderline personality disorder (BPD): the inability to regulate emotions and behavior. He refused any help because he didn’t believe in doctors; no matter how much I urged him to go to therapy to control his behavior, he just dismissed me. As days turned into weeks, which turned into months, I noticed only one thing would calm my dad down whenever his emotions got out of control: my piano playing. Slowly, I eased him into spending more time with me, composing pieces that he enjoyed. Even though it wasn’t the traditional therapy that doctors recommended, we finally found something that worked for my dad. This was a confusing moment for me; while I was a logical person believing in hard and proven facts, something so artistic and intuitive was able to deliver results that only medical treatments were evidently able to. This is why I intend to become a neuroscientist; I want to dive into the vast realms of the mind. Although seemingly disparate at first, my interests in science and art mesh into an important, unfamiliar area. During my time in university, I plan to major in neuroscience and minor in music and computer science to build a strong foundation for the intricate research I plan to conduct while exploring both the sciences and the arts to understand how they mutually enrich each other. Understanding and creating new, viable medical treatments requires a synthesis of these distinct, intrinsically tied topics. I want to contribute my experiences with music and neuroscience to support research with other individuals, coming together to explore the untapped potential that the arts have to support brain health. As a high school student, two main experiences have shaped my career goals: MESH, and NMP. Because of my curiosity about mental health, I founded MESH (Mental, Emotional, and Social Health): A Mental Health Initiative, where I created content from the information I learned from numerous Google searches and interviews with willing professionals. I was able to educate hundreds of people and raise awareness about mental disorders. This past summer, I was also able to appreciate how beautifully neuroscience intertwines with other disciplines from Michal Lipinski, a neuroscientist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. I got involved in his psychiatric research using stem cell technologies to address the molecular mechanisms underlying BPD, and he guided me through my own short research project examining how sedentary behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic had affected people’s mental health. My dad has always been very stubborn, but it has taught me the value of listening and considering ideas even if they differ from my own and has given me a different perspective on medical treatments. I hope to use my interdisciplinary education and apply it to discovering new, innovative discoveries.

“My life is ruined.” My dad was arrested for domestic abuse. After hurting my mom physically and mentally for years, his arrest and subsequent restraining order were inevitable. I’d always imagined life without my dad, but now that he was gone, I realized my troubles had only increased. As the oldest of three siblings, my responsibilities overwhelmingly multiplied. On a typical day, I would get up after a terrible night’s sleep to prepare lunch, get my siblings and myself ready then get to school safely, struggle to focus through my school day, and go home to take my mom out for a walk around the neighborhood, make dinner, host board meetings for my clubs, then put my siblings to bed and check in to make sure they were mentally well and kept up with their studies before even thinking about starting my school assignments and extracurricular work. I wrapped everything up in the early morning, finally catching an awful three hours of sleep, and repeating everything again. So much was happening at once that I felt submerged in emotions. I was furious at my dad for not thinking twice about his actions and distressed about how his mistakes and poor choices would affect our family in the long run. Without him around, my siblings stopped caring about school and my mom spiraled deeper into her depression; everyone’s will to push through was collapsing, and as their state of well-being fell to me, I couldn't help but be angry with myself for not being stronger. I put in so much effort every single day just for my situation to worsen. Emotionally fatigued as everything fell apart, I began asking myself: what truly makes me fulfilled? Was it bettering my future? Going to college? Supporting my family? I spent weeks scrutinizing about what my life held for me, and figured it out: I need to work hard because I am determined to carve out a prosperous and beautiful future for myself. I try my best to direct my negative energy toward my future and, in a way, working is my escape whether it’s simply taking extra classes or starting clubs about social justice issues I’m committed to. My ambition to take the initiative with my passions has turned my floating ideas into reality, demonstrated through my mental health initiative, my club for reestablishing human connection after the pandemic, and many other activities. Although my schedule is always full, it is filled with activities and experiences that I find fruitful and challenging. However, I don’t just work, I find time for positive outlets as well. I love immersing myself in music and getting lost in old-timey literature. I love discovering new liveliness in the streets of San Francisco with my friends. And I love picking up random niche hobbies like oil painting and origami. With this new mindset, I have learned to be persistent in pursuing my goals, pushing my siblings to do the same. My relationships with family, friends and teachers (amongst other professional relationships) have only strengthened, as I’ve learned how to approach and resolve conflict and adapt, building stronger foundations. I found a good academic/family balance, actively working toward my goals while still handling my familial responsibilities. I now understand the time, commitment, and energy it takes to overcome any challenge, having gained strength and perseverance that will guide me moving forward. My life isn’t ruined—it’s just beginning.