Like many others, my life went on lockdown in March 2020. Schools across the nation, including mine, were closed, I wasn't able to connect with my friends like normal, and it was a very pressing time. From March to April, I felt worse and worse with every passing day and it seemed like there was no escape. However, everything changed when I filled more of my spare time caring for plants. Instead of feeling lonely, tending to my plants made me feel like I wasn't alone and that what I did mattered. I moved from simply caring for plants to learning to pollinate them, gather seeds, and even created an indoor garden to house plants outside of the summer months. This is the time when all things relating to plants became more than just a hobby to me, it became one of my greatest passions. While one of the major reasons I'm very passionate about the green industry is because of what plants have done for me, there are many other reasons for this. I'm very fascinated by how plants live and by plant biology. They're so different from animals in so many ways such as the fact that plants cannot move, plants, in general, can grow from seed with little to no care from the parents, can form new plants with propagation, and much more. Even with all of the differences, there are also many similarities such as genetics and the passing down of traits to offspring, and how a generic plant and animal cell are remarkably similar in most organelles. I also love how beautiful plants are from their foliage to their fruits and flowers. Sometimes just a glance at some plants is all it takes to bring a smile to someone's face. Plants are something I could never get tired of working with and learning more about. I plan to make a positive impact on the green industry in my future career. One way I want to do this is by researching plants to learn more about what kinds of holistic farming conditions would be safe for the consumer and environment and cost-effective for the businesses that grow them. For example, I would like to research ways besides pesticides and genetically modified plants that would prevent disease. this could be done by dividing up growing spaces into sections of different crops rather than just one, or by using other natural pest deterrents. I also plan to work for the expansion of the green industry into areas that typically do not have locally grown produce such as urban areas. This can be done by creating community gardens, garden parks where people can see where their food comes from, and vertical greenhouses, among other things. In conclusion, plants are a major passion of mine. I am also passionate about the good that plants can do for people. I hope to be able to work with plants in support of others and make an impact.

As someone with synesthesia, music has always been a very unique experience. I can see colors, scenes, and similar things when I hear music. But even past the beautiful sounds and visuals, the message of a song is where its meaning and purpose lie. The message is the most important part. The song "All Things Must Pass" by George Harrison perfectly exemplifies this. The meaning behind this song is that nothing in life is permanent, but that's ok. Things change but it's not all bad. This message has been very important to me in life. From moving on from people who don't treat me well to changing life stages, I've had a lot of changes in my life. One of the biggest and hardest changes was distancing myself from my middle school friends in my freshman year of high school. I cared about them, but we thought differently about many topics. They would preach to me, some more than others, about how their views were best. In freshman year, I told them to stop pressuring me and explained that it's ok that we are different. Unfortunately, these individuals didn't take it well. Some of them even took to gossiping behind my back and trying to prevent me from being liked by anyone. In response, I cut ties with them. This change was hard, but after seeing what they were really like it was for the best. "All Things Must Pass" has a very important message, and that is that nothing in life is permanent. This song's message teaches that change is ok and is bound to happen over time. Some changes are good, even when they can be challenging.

Learning to like things about myself has been difficult to do. I can be quite shy and have had self-esteem issues in the past. However, over time I have improved in both areas. This has allowed me to take a more objective assessment of my strengths and weaknesses. That in turn allowed me to discover that kindness is my most valued attribute. Kindness is my most valued quality because it allows me to make a difference in the lives of others. While all attributes have their uses, few can make someone feel as loved as kindness from another person. I believe that no matter how smart, fast, or professional some people can be, it doesn't compare to the smile on someone's face after a kind act. The smile on a homeless person's face when they are given food to eat, for example, is worth more than any riches. Kindness in turn has made my own life richer from how I affect others. In this day and age, it's easy to feel like everything is out of your control and the world is beyond help. From politics to global crises, it sometimes seems like no one person can do anything that truly makes the world a better place. I have learned that one person can make a difference in the world through kindness. These differences don't have to be as large as solving world hunger or curing cancer to have an impact. Sometimes, these impacts can be as small as making sure a loved one who is going through a rough time in their life isn't alone. Knowing that I can make an impact in this way gives me a more satisfying life journey. My life journey has been impacted by kindness in many ways, most of them highly unexpected. One unexpected impact is that kindness has allowed me to meet other kindhearted individuals who also want to make the world a better place one smile at a time. Having kind people around you in life can make all the difference, especially when going through tough times. There are few things as comforting as knowing that there is someone who would drop what they are doing to comfort you if tragedy strikes. At the risk of sounding cheesy and over the top, every quality has its uses. Being studious brings about good grades, having a good work ethic makes working and making an income easier, etc. However, kindness is my favorite quality that I possess because it benefits more than just me. Kindness is not about what you can do for yourself, it is about what you can do for those around you and that is a beautiful thing.

Being healthy while going to school can be very hard and difficult. Sometimes, there are limited healthy food options, limited times where one can be active, and times where you have to face situations that can cause anxiety and other mental health issues. However, what really counts for your health isn't that you're completely healthy with no illnesses or issues ever. That just isn't realistic. What does matter, however, is that you are able to make choices that put your mental, physical, and nutritional health priorities in your life. To take care of my physical health, I set aside time to walk every day. I go out on walks with my dog every day for an hour to an hour and a half. This helps me to stay active in a way I enjoy. I also walk as opposed to driving whenever within reason. This also helps me to stay fit and active. Maintaining nutritional health is not about absolutes for me, as many others take it. Instead, I take an approach concentrated on moderation. For example, while I will eat salad, squash, and other healthy foods I enjoy, I don't beat myself up over having an occasional unhealthy meal like a burger. Instead, I find healthy meals that I can eat and enjoy so that I will not have to sacrifice the positives of food, like the joys of taste and texture experiences to be healthy. I also will try to make the healthiest versions of foods I enjoy, such as excluding excess refined sugar for dinner recipes. Maintaining my mental health, more than the others, has been a struggle for me. Many things in life have made this difficult for me such as the anxious thoughts that go along with trying to afford college, the isolation that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the burnout from trying to do everything all at once. To combat these issues, I've made many changes in my life for the better. I now have a dog that acts like an emotional support animal to me. I can go to her whenever I need affection and someone to be around. I also set aside at least an hour each day for winding down with a productive hobby each evening and make sure I have no plans every Sunday. This prevents me from feeling overwhelmed and overworked. Staying healthy is very important in life. It helps to maintain your quality of life and quantity of life. This is why putting my mental, physical, and nutritional health as priorities is very important to me.

Disney is a company known and revered for their vast array of creative, lovable characters. There is a Disney character for everyone. While there are many that I love, my absolute favorite is Mulan. One reason why Mulan is my favorite Disney character is because she is not afraid to be different. All of my life, I've been different too. Like Mulan, it always seemed like I just wasn't interested in what was expected of me. I remember as a little girl, I didn't want to do all of the pretty, clean girly things. I would often rather go out and catch bugs, play in the forest, and collect rocks. While luckily for me my family was mostly accepting, like Mulan they still tried to persuade me to do what was expected of me as a young woman. I also love Mulan because she isn't afraid to go to great lengths to do what is right. Her determination to fight in the military as a man to prevent her ill father from being drafted is very admirable to me. This is because she was so willing to protect her father, she risked it all by joining the Chinese military in his place. In doing so, she also did the unthinkable of joining the military to fight for her country as a woman, and as such had to disguise herself as a man. I aspire to have that level of determination and willing to do what is right. Finally, Mulan is an inspiration to me because of how she uses her intelligence and courage to defend her country. In the Disney animated movie, Mulan is able to fight off the Huns in the Chinese army through her strategic thinking and courageous actions. Mulan is also able to even save the life of the Chinese emperor. The fact that she could do all of this through her own intelligence and courage in a country that looks down on women is as incredible as it gets for me. Mulan is a great hero of a wonderful story because she will go to great lengths to do the right thing, isn't afraid to be different, and uses her intelligence and courage to her advantage. She is my favorite Disney character because I aspire to be like her in life.

When I look around at the world, there are some changes I'd like to see. One of these changes is that I want people to be more respectful of nature and to get along better with it. We only have one Earth and we shouldn't squander it. After all, if we damage it enough it may never recover. I want to act locally to address this by showing others the beauty in the natural world. To do this, I want to donate plants to individuals. I've found that people who have plants understand moreso that they need protection and care as much as animals do. I think that this will make people think twice when they want to do something that could harm the environment. I also want people to be kinder to one another. Sometimes it feels like it's almost impossible to simply find a kind, caring person to call a friend. I've spent years of my life looking for this and I still am searching to this day. I've found some people like this, but I'd love to see more. To facilitate this change, I will show kindness to others and care for them. I hope that for them, seeing someone like me who will do this will make a change in their lives. Maybe they'll even decide to be intentionally kind as well. That is my goal.

Ever since I was young, I remember loving STEM subjects. I would get so excited when I solved a new, difficult math problem, learned something new and scientific, learned more about how to use technology, and more. The things that excite me most, however, are geology and botany. While I want my career to be primarily connected to botany, I want to work with the impact of geology and the soil on plants. It is because of this that my dream career is agronomy. One of the reasons I plan to pursue this career is that I would be able to solve problems related to things I love. This is because agronomists study how to best grow crops for human use. Part of this is studying how to best grow a crop in a certain area and what crops would thrive best there. This would give me a chance to solve relevant issues and come up with solutions that would be the most beneficial to everyone. I also plan to pursue agronomy because I would be able to do experiments and follow the scientific method. While this might not seem exciting in many cases, it means that I would be able to discover new things with what I've done and can learn from experiments. For instance, I might discover and even better way to grow a crop than the way previously used. Another reason I want to be an agronomist is because I want to find better ways to grow crops for the environment. Modern farming is very damaging to the world around us. Pesticides can kill off native creatures, lack of crop rotation can lead to soil damage and bigger pest outbreaks. I want to find a better way for people to be able to get the food and materials we need to thrive while also caring for the environment. After all, the environment isn't able to hold out forever and we have to care for it. Finally, I plan to persue agronomy because it would bring fulfillment to my life. Every day, I could go to work knowing that what I'm doing is truly making a difference and it's important for the world. Without agronomy, feeding the world would be near impossible and so would supplying humanity with many of the things we use such as clothing and many household items. The fact that I can have a part in this makes me feel particularly excited about my future.

Few subjects have gotten as much awareness as fast as mental health. Not long ago, it was virtually unknown to the general populous and seen as something only crazy people worry about. Today, this stigma is being lifted with many open, bold individuals who are willing to share their stories. I too value mental health and it has taken a great priority in my life. Mental health has been important to me for many years. This is because it has had a large effect on my life. For a lot of my life, I struggled with hard situations. One of these was my biological father. He did many awful, terrible crimes, so even as a small child this made me fearful and anxious everywhere I went. I also battled with depression from a young age due to having a hard time fitting in and always feeling alone. After my biological father died, the constant anxiety died down somewhat but the depression lingered. Both my anxiety and depression got worse and worse as I went through middle school because I didn't have any true friends. They didn't like me for who I was and this was very hard. After a failed suicide attempt, losing many people who I thought were friends, and struggling to make new bonds, I realized something. I realized that the one friend who didn't leave me liked me for who I was and that if others didn't treat me like that, I was better off without them. After this, things slowly got better over time. Even during the lockdowns, I practiced improving my mental health by not caring as much about what people think of me, finding out what activities bring me joy, and setting apart time to relax. All of these experiences have caused me to greatly value my mental health, especially now that it is faring much better. Mental health helps you do and achieve so much in life by allowing you to have the energy, ability to function, and countless other benefits. These days, I take my mental health very seriously. One of the best things I've done for myself is set aside at least one day a week with no plans. This day is my free day to not be bogged down and to recharge. I feel much happier, positive, and able to function after doing this. I also set aside peaceful areas to retreat to when I'm overwhelmed, such as my indoor garden. I can go tend to it and come back within a few minutes. I have also found that companionship is key to leading a healthy life. Quality is especially important and I've found several good friends who love me for who I am and truly care about me. I also have an emotional support dog that I can go to when I need someone to hug and make me smile. Mental health is just as important as physical health, and it's just as hard to function without the proper mental health. The more you take care of your mental health, the better off you will be in life. You will be happier and more successful. But most importantly, life will be satisfying and not a miserable chore day by day.

In order to truly succeed in life, one must be passionate about something. After all, passion is what drives people. I am passionate about many things, but my greatest passions are making the world a better and more beautiful place, studying the natural, beautiful things on Earth, and helping others. My passion for making the world a better and more beautiful place stems from my need for such things. Even when I'm struggling in life, I find that a beautiful flower or a handcrafted piece of jewelry makes all of the difference. I want to help others in this same way. I am also passionate about studying the natural, beautiful things on Earth because of the value they can add to our lives. For example, I've found that even the simplest greenery, gems, and natural home decor can brighten someone's mood. I want to help people have fulfilling, enjoyable lives through these avenues. I'm also very passionate about helping others. No one is meant to go through life alone. This is a fact, people are social and need support from others. I want to support people in this fashion by being there for them, doing the things they need done but can't do, and anything else I can. Everyone has obstacles in their lives, I have had my fair share too. I have what it takes to overcome these obstacles because I know myself, I'm determined, and I have faith that my purpose will be met. I know myself and my own strengths and weaknesses. This means that I know the best way to combat obstacles in my life given how I know myself. For example, I know that while one of my strengths is creating things, one of my greatest weaknesses is communication. This way, to solve an issue and combat obstacles in my life, I'll do what I'm good at and while I'll do what I'm less good at too, I'll contact those who are skilled in my flaws to help me improve. I'm also very determined in my life. For many years, I've been working very hard in class to have a high GPA, high test scores, and get into my dream school. The fact that I worked very hard, even taking the equivalent of over 20 credits at one point to do and achieve this proves I'm determined. I also have faith that my purpose will be met because I believe all people on Earth have a purpose. I've found mine in natural sciences and helping others through creating, assistive tasks, and helping them in other areas I'm skilled in. I therefore know that if I work at this, I won't fail. All of my life, I've been a member of the church. One of the principles I've followed from the church is the tithe. This means you give back one tenth of what you earn back to helping others. I have been following this principle all of my life, and I will continue to do so. I will give 10% of what I earn now and in the future back to the less fortunate, but hopefully even more. If I am so blessed as to be able to, I want to give everything I don't need back to help others. I also will serve those in my community through volunteering, and giving those in need necessities like food and water.

When I was in third grade, I lost one of my parents. My father died when I was only nine years old. However, I had lost in far before that in my heart. He was in a very bad position even before his passing. Between being addicted to drugs and suffering a severe brain injury years prior, I spent the years between them and his death grieving the loss of everything that made him a father to me. This left me with a large gap in my life from lacking a father and gave me some very unique challenges. However, one of my teachers came into my life and helped to repair this gap. In my freshman year of high school, I had an honors geometry teacher named Mr. Nuechterlein. He's always been a very charismatic and kind individual, often putting his students first. My first experience with him caring for me during the loss of most of my friends. After a personal disagreement, they refused to make amends and most of my friends completely cut me off. When I had his class the day after this fight, he noticed I wasn't doing well. He then paused class and took me aside into the hall to talk. After I explained why I was devastated, he comforted me and was there for me until I was doing alright. After that, I continued to have a devastating year filled with loss. Because of this, he regularly made time to talk with me after class and even stayed late so that I could talk to someone. He was able to support me in a way that I didn't previously have access to. This teacher helped me come out of my tragic freshman year without the internal hurt and strife that may very well have caused me to not be able to go on anymore. In my senior year, I had this teacher once more. While I didn't need as much help because my life was far more stable, he helped me with many other things. For example, he once did a study session with me for my AP exams and bought food so that I could study on a full stomach. The most important thing Mr. Nuechterlein ever did for me in my senior year however, is pull me aside and ask me about my career. When I explained to him that I want to go into natural sciences, particularly plant sciences and earth sciences, he called a friend and got me into a horticulture class at the end of the year. He did this because after the AP exams, his class covers no new material and it would make much more sense for me to be in the other class rather than do nothing. While it took many people to get me where I am today, Mr. Nuechterlein was one of the most important ones to my story. He helped me to cope with my struggles and move beyond them.

For all of my life, I have loved nature. I feel at peace when in a forest or a field, far more than even in my room. I have especially felt connected to the earth itself, such as the rocks and minerals and soil, as well as plants. These interests have led me to pursue a career in plant and earth sciences. These are also my majors I'm pursuing in college. While it's not always obvious, science is important to many aspects of modern life. Even at the start of the day, the first thing many of us wake up to is an alarm clock. Without science, this would not be possible. Without science, electricity would never be discovered, much less put to use. Without this electricity, an alarm would never go off. Even more needed than alarm clocks is food. Without food, humanity would quickly perish. Food production is also largely dependent on science. Science helps farmers to grow their crops efficiently, raise animals in the best way possible for the most production. Beyond that, the modern tools for agriculture allow farmers to produce much more food for the Earth's large population. These tools were created by science, therefore without science humanity would struggle to eat. Without the science of agriculture, humanity would revert to being hunters and gatherers which would not be able to support the 8 billion humans on earth. Furthermore, modern work life would not be possible without science. Not only would it be impossible for most people to commute without a car, which relies on engines created which were created by science, even the little things like office dress codes would be impossible to meet. This is because many of our textiles today are produced with techniques related to science from selectively bred cotton to sheep raised in environments scientifically proven to help them thrive. Even in less advanced societies, science is still prevalent from the chemical reactions of fire to the selective breeding of plants. If science didn't exist, not only as a subject but also in nature, life would cease to exist, and so may the universe. Life is only possible through a series of chemical reactions after all. Science is vital to life and to the modern lives of people today in particular. I want to support our society by helping to meet this need in my career. This scholarship will provide me with the monetary means to do so.

All of my life, I have loved math. I remember when I was a young girl, I loved to practice my addition and subtraction. This love continued on into higher math from multiplication, to finding X, to higher level math such as precalculus and statistics. The biggest reason why I love math is the satisfying of solving a problem. Problem solving has always given me a sort of motivation and joy. It makes me feel like I was able to fix something and this makes me motivated to fix other problems. For example, sometimes I can find or use probability for something related to an interest I have such as a game. This will make me feel satisfied and more likely to fix something else such as fixing up the house. This leads into another reason why I love math: real life application. While it's a common joke that a lot of math has few real world applications, there are also many real world applications for math. These real world applications keep me interested in math and help me to solve these real world problems. Furthermore, math is intrinsically related to my future career path: natural sciences. Math is related to natural sciences in many ways from growth rates to population density and health. Math is an important subject in my life. It is also one I genuinely enjoy and like to use. This scholarship will help me to continue my studies, of which math is a vastly important component.

Today, the world revolves around college prospects and performance. Job opportunities without a degree are few and far in between for most careers, especially those in science, math, engineering, and technology related careers, also known as STEM careers. I will be going into this career field as a vastly underrepresented group: women. I am very passionate about STEM, particularly natural sciences and the relationships between agriculture and earth science. Despite many comments and geers about how science isn't for women, I have made it this far. This scholarship would assist me in removing the stigma associated with women in stem and creating representation to inspire girls like me. I went to an early college program to reduce my overall college costs but a problem is still looming over my head: student debt. I do not have the monetary assets to attend college debt free, like many others. In fact, I would go into debt even to get a bachelor's degree. With the current interest rates associated with student loans, such loans could spell disaster, especially larger loans. This scholarship would help me to avoid this grim reality and to be able to prosper in a life of my own. I would be able to thrive in my career without worrying about how much money student loan payments will take to pay off. The money from this scholarship would also allow me to give back to my community. All of my life, I have gone to church and have learned some valuable principles from it. One of those is the tithe. This principal is that one should set an amount of money to give back to help others, the given amount is ten percent. Having less student debt would allow me to give more of this back to the community and help others. One way I'd like to help others in this way is by donating money towards single mothers and the homeless. Many of these individuals need help to be able to get back on their feet. It would be my honor to help them. Finally, this scholarship would help me to prepare the next generation. In the future, I want to be a mother and raise a family. If I had a lack of finances, I'd either have children and not be able to give them as many resources as they need to thrive or not be able to have a family. With this money, I would give them the education and college funds necessary to have a stable career and a good life. This scholarship will do much more than simply allow me more money for college. It will allow me to represent women in my career, give back to my community, and to prepare the next generation.

All of my life, I've had pets. I remember my first pet to this very day. He was a golden retriever named Max and although I didn't have him for long, from age two to age four he was one of my best buddies. Even though he's been gone for a long time, I still remember him dearly as my first furry friend. I have had many other dogs after Max and today I have a husky named Juneau. She's a very energetic dog with a big personality. Juneau is just the right combination of sassy and sweet that makes my heart melt. She is the first dog I have ever had official ownership of and not a family member. I am very proud to say that Juneau is my baby girl and one of the best friends I've ever had. I was going into eighth grade when I adopted Juneau from the local animal control. She was about three years old, but since she was found on the streets no one knows her exact age. When I first adopted her with my mother, she was so thin. You could even make our her bones underneath her fluffy body. Over time with the right food and some help from my parents, we rehabilitated her into a very healthy dog. Juneau has made a very large impact in my life ever since I got her. She's kept me company every day since I got her. We love to go on walks together as we both love to go out and get fresh air. We walk together every day that the weather isn't too dangerous, even in rain or snow. Having someone to get out of the house with has drastically improved both of our lives. In addition to spending time outside, Juneau has helped me through many hardships. There was a time in my freshman year of highschool where I lost just about all of my friends due to them no longer liking me for who I am. The friends I had before may have left me, but Juneau never did. She was always by my side and even ran over to me whenever I got so depressed I started to cry. During the lockdowns, I felt so alone as I had tried to put my life back together and rebuild the things I lost in freshman year. This made me incredibly distraught, but she stayed by my side through it all. Juneau is also a great protector. Last summer, two pitbulls escaped and started running after us. They ran at me, but she put herself in front of me to shield me from them. She took their bites to her fluff and fought back as much as she could to try to stop them until the owners could grab them. She needed a few stitches but since then, she has recovered and I know that she would truly do anything to protect me. I have now had her for five years and she is eight years old. We've had many adventures together and have grown to be very, very close. I don't know where I would be without Juneau today. She's a fluffy, little light in this dark world to me.