This is a difficult question, simply because I devour art. I am in love with all of the many styles that creatives use to express themselves. Although, the most recent art piece I have researched that has simply taken my breath away is "Ships in Distress off a Rocky Coast" by Ludolf Backhuysen. The Dutch Golden Age is one of my favorite time periods for emotional art pieces. As seen in Backhuysen's piece, it was a time of dramatic lighting and conveying complex emotions through oil paint. It was a time of discovery, and Backhuysen's piece, in particular, is one I can not seem to stop thinking about. As a fantasy author, pieces like "Ships in Distress off a Rocky Coast" always catch my eye. This is because when I see such fantastical and detailed art, all I want to do is write a description of it. Imagery is such a beautiful way to convey art through words and to see such an amazing art piece such as Backhuysen's greatly inspires me.

The wisest words I have ever heard is possibly something that is greater than only a sentence. I was told once, you can only fail if you give up. Those simple seven words have changed my outlook on the world. Those seven words inspired me to start pursuing my dreams at seventeen. My whole life I have dreamed of writing and illustrating my own novel, but I always thought it was something in my future. Not something in my present. After being told, you never fail until you give up, I changed that. I began to write my first book in early 2021. I finished the first draft in only a month. But I did not believe in myself. I do not believe in those 90,000 words I spilled onto that word document. Then, after working all summer and starting school in the fall, I remembered those wise words. You never fail until you give up. I forgot that, and I had, temporarily failed. So I sat down in November, hired an editor and rewrote my book. In January I handed my now 100,000 word fantasy novel to my editor. Since then, I have never stopped pursuing my dream. My book is set to be published on April 1st, and I’ve already sold 30 pre-orders. I am living my future dream in my present. I will never fail this dream, until I stop pursuing it.

We need to work against the social stigmas surrounding mental health awareness and counseling. In high school, I have met many people who do not pursue mental help, simply because they believe the stigmas or stereotypes relating to counseling.

When it comes to my future, I have dreamed as far as my mind will allow. I will be attending Randolph-Macon College this fall, and in four years I plan to graduate from RMC with a bachelor's in psychology. I also want to minor in writing. After RMC, I would like to attend a graduate school to pursue a master's or PsyD in Industrial-Organizational psychology. For my future career, I would like to be an Industrial-Organizational psychologist. It is important to me to have a career where I can help people with their mental health. Beyond my educational goals, I want to be an author. I have already self-published my first young adult novel, These Shattered Truths, which will be officially released on April 1st. In the coming year, I want to publish the second book in the trilogy. Then next year, I would like to publish the third book. In five years I see myself in graduate school, with my first trilogy published, and a literary agent. One day I want to be able to publish my books through one of the 'Big Five' publishers. For me, my future is more than just a career. It is being able to live a life that I enjoy without worrying about the restrictions of finances. That is why I am pursuing my education so that I can have a stable career to support me. Because in truth, writing is my passion, but unfortunately it is not the most sustainable career.

I want to pursue social work and psychology at Randolph-Macon College, because of my own personal experience with mental health and addiction. At eight years old my parents got a divorce. The divorce affected my siblings and parents in different ways. My Mother escaped through her addictions to cigarettes and alcohol. My brother fell into addictions as well and suffered from depression. I myself dealt with depression, but I never used addiction to escape. In the past three years, I've helped and supported my siblings and Mother in their sober journey. Because of my childhood experiences, it's important to me to help others who have experienced the same issues. Depression and addiction are horrible and often feel inescapable, but they aren't. I want to grow my education in the social and behavioral aspects of addiction, substance use, and mental health. With my education, I wish to help those who have experienced childhood trauma and turn those treacherous experiences into a driving factor to better their future. I have seen that addiction is a symptom of a greater issue and is often connected to childhood trauma. It appears that often people escape the pains of trauma by falling into addiction, but escaping is not the answer. I want to one day show people a path that leads them away from addiction and helps people deal with childhood trauma in healthier, beneficial ways.