It wasn't the financial struggle that made me feel poor; it was the haunting specter of an abusive household that truly defined my sense of impoverishment. It cast a sinister shadow over my adolescence, making me feel like an outsider, perpetually isolated from my peers. As a child, I witnessed the heart-wrenching sight of police officers ripping my father away. It was an agonizing experience. On one hand, it was the man who was supposed to love me, then on the other he was a molester, an abuser, an alcoholic, and anything you’re thinking, he did. My childhood became court dates, police sirens, and therapy. I was never free the way an innocent child should be. In the end, justice remained elusive, a cruel mirage just out of reach. The system saw the physical marks on my body but left me suffering. We went to court and presented evidence, yet my father walked free, and I found myself unjustly imprisoned, but not behind any physical bars; I was trapped behind the emotional, psychological, and physical bars my father created. Eventually, life moved on and I was granted a restraining order, but I was still mentally trapped. In my freshman year of high school, I began delving into law, wondering why I couldn’t have justice. Then by junior year, I had joined the Mock Trial team. In my very first year, I won an award, and by the second year, I was elected president, and earning another award. The pain of my childhood that chained me down had transformed into a deep and abiding passion. Walking into the San Diego Supreme Court House felt like stepping into a dream; It was there that I discovered my true calling. Everything finally fell into place. Upon graduating and entering college, I continued to volunteer for the Mock Trial team. Joining this team was a turning point in my life, and now it's my mission to give back and help others discover if law can be their passion too. I never imagined that I would find such fulfillment in law. My path was obscured, and I lost myself, believing I'd never be one of those successful students. The future seemed uncertain, and I felt I had let myself down. But today, everything is vibrant and alive. My passion propels me to embrace life, fight for justice, and love everything around me. I yearn for those who have grown up in the direst of circumstances to taste the sweet liberation of freedom. I want them to experience the satisfaction of seeing their abusers face the consequences they deserve. The chance to ensure that the neglected, abused, molested, and anyone facing any physical or emotional unjust abuse to find the justice they so desperately deserve. I long for people to breathe the air of freedom. In a way, my aspiration may be to live vicariously through them, granting them the justice that my younger self so fervently wished for. My life is finally starting because of law and I never want that feeling to end.