I've struggled with my body image since I was in kindergarten. Growing up hating the body I inhabit was extremely hard. The difficult circumstance of becoming so insecure at such a young age has forced me to be resilient, especially throughout middle and high school when insecure kids were an easy target for teasing. But now, I have an opportunity to change the way our society thinks about beauty. I've been accepted into an anthropological research study abroad program for summer 2026 in Tanzania. I’ve loved anthropology since I took an intro to anthropology course in high school. There's a saying in the field that “good anthropology makes the strange familiar and the familiar strange,” and I've had experience doing both. In previous travel experiences in high school, I documented all the differences I noticed between my culture and various European cultures. I visited London, Paris, Florence, Rome, Vatican City, Naples, and the Isle of Capri. At each destination, I documented how European cities differed from American cities and how the people differed from my country. Many of these differences seemed strange to me at first, but as I learned more about the history and culture of the people around me, and as I remembered what my anthropology class taught me about cultural relativism, I began to appreciate their cultural practices and “make the strange familiar.” Now, I want to use anthropology to make the familiar strange in America. I wanted to go on this trip to do research from the time the professor offhandedly mentioned that in Tanzania, the phrase “you’ve gotten fatter” is a compliment. As someone who has been personally affected by the harsh beauty standards of the states, this fascinated me. I wrote a research paper for my anthropology class in high school about how different cultures around the world see beauty. I wrote about how horrific it is that certain east Asian cultures promote eating disorders and how being underweight is considered "healthy." I wrote about how the American version of “overweight” is considered beautiful, and even a sign of wealth, in cultures like Jamaica and Polynesia. Doctors in these countries even prescribe weight gain pills to thin individuals believing that one has to gain weight in order to be healthy. I'm a firm believer that health doesn't depend on weight. Visceral fat is the unhealthy fat that builds around organs due to inactive lifestyles/unhealthy diets. Athletes tend to have little to no visceral fat. People who take care of their health often have very little. It was discovered that sumo wrestlers have the same amount of internal visceral fat as any other athlete and are perfectly healthy despite being larger. The same is true for people with health conditions that make it hard to lose weight, even with healthy eating and exercise. Even though these individuals may be beyond the “healthy” weight range, they still have little to no visceral fat in their bodies, and therefore, their organs are perfectly healthy. I want to use my research on this trip to make people think of how strange the all-too-familiar ideal of thinness is in America, especially the way it disproportionately affects women. I want people to question what it means to be healthy, beautiful, and happy. Ultimately, I want to use my research in Tanzania to combat eating disorders in America. I want to gather data on health, wellbeing, and weight and how these things go along with the cultural ideas of beauty in Tanzania, and I want to use this research to help people, particularly women, in America feel better about their bodies.

I don't have to go far to find inspiration; I just need to look around. There's so much inexplicable beauty and such wonderful moments happening all around us that I can't help but create about it. I like to capture emotions, imagery, and beauty in my work regardless of what medium I'm working with. I am an artist in a diverse set of ways. I draw cartoon comic strips, compose and play music, write stories, poetry, and essays, do general arts-and-crafts, and so much more. It is my goal to capture the wonder of this world in any way I can. People tend to describe my art as "coming naturally to me," when in reality, it took years to find my art style and learn the basics of music theory. My hard work in these fields comes from my passion for them and my love for the world around me. My main medium is music. I can play 7 instruments and am working on an 8th, I've been composing and songwriting since 7th grade, and I want to use music to change the world. Music can unite people over a shared cause, shed light in dark times, form communities, and make people feel less alone in trying times. Music can be a form of communication, a call to action, and a warm hug when you need it most. Songs about politics and current events can help spread education and understanding when it's needed most. These empowering anthems help get people on the same page and ready to create change in our society. Big-time musicians can (and should) use their influence over the media to get people involved in their communities. A Taylor Swift Instagram post caused a surge in voter registration, and Sabrina Carpenter registered over 35,000 voters while on tour right before the 2024 election. In short, I want to make music for charities, advertisements, and even just pop songs that spread awareness about the many issues I'm passionate about to continue contributing to my community after graduation. I have a long history of volunteerism from high school and am currently in the process of joining a few volunteer organizations in college, and volunteering and creating change is how I want to spend my life. The first score I've attached to this application is one of my favorites. It's a short composition I wrote titled "Dragons' Breath." This composition was inspired by the images of dancing flames glowing vibrantly in the dark. I capture the intensity and heat of the fire in every note. From the milder beginning of the C minor scale in piano and the rhythmic thumping of the bass, to the entrance of the trumpet solo and the ferocity of the drums, this piece captures the steady escalation of a fiery inferno burning with passion and vigor. I capture the fury of the red and orange flames as they engulf everything in their path. If you can, find a website that converts PDFs to MIDI so you can listen to the imagery of fire from the file I attached. The second score I attached is a pop-style song called "Stronger Than You Know," which I composed in 7th grade after struggling for months with severe depression. Writing this song reminded me to always have hope. I also attached a short story I wrote that I plan to turn into the first chapter of a novel called "In My Own World" following a recent high school graduate and daydreamer named Clover as they navigate college and adulthood. I attached a few of my comic strips as well.

I am a musical artist. My paintbrush is sound, my canvas is your ears, and my art is composition. My studio is the band room, my mediums are my instruments, and my muse is the beauty in this world. Even the beauty in things society deems as unbeautiful. My musical journey started when I was still in elementary school. I taught myself to read music and play piano in 5th grade then joined the school band on trumpet shortly thereafter. I began experimenting with music composition in 6th grade, then picked up guitar and started writing song lyrics in 7th grade. It was at that moment I knew that I would dedicate my life to music. I then learned ukulele in 8th grade, basic drum skills in 10th grade, alto saxophone and some bass guitar in 11th grade, and recently got a mandolin. I've taken music theory/composition classes for a number of years and composed several original songs. I played in the Fort Lewis College Honor Band for advanced high school musicians for my last 3 years of high school. I also took the GripTape Learning Challenge to buy music recording equipment and learn how to use it. I am currently a student at Fort Lewis College majoring primarily in Music Business and enrolled in the band program there. My passion for musical arts stems from the ways that music can change the world. It can unite people over a shared cause, shed light in dark times, form communities and subcultures, and make people feel less alone in trying times. Music can be a form of communication, a call to action, and a warm hug when you need it most. Songs about politics and current events can help spread education and understanding when it's needed most. These empowering anthems help get people on the same page and ready to create change in our society. Big-time musicians can (and should) use their influence over the media to get people involved in their communities. A Taylor Swift Instagram post caused a surge in voter registration, and Sabrina Carpenter registered over 35,000 voters while on tour right before the 2024 election. The score I've attached to this application is a short composition I wrote titled "Dragons' Breath." This composition was inspired by the images of dancing flames glowing vibrantly in the dark. I capture the intensity and heat of the fire in every note. From the milder beginning of the C minor scale in piano and the rhythmic thumping of the bass, to the entrance of the trumpet solo and the ferocity of the drums, this piece captures the steady escalation of a fiery inferno burning with passion and vigor. I capture the fury of the red and orange flames as they engulf everything in their path. If you can, find a website that converts PDFs to MIDI so you can listen to the imagery of fire from the file I attached.

I knew from a very young age that I was different from all the other kids, but the signs were easy to miss. I grew up excelling in some subjects while immensely struggling in others. I consistently had a lexile level about 5-6 years ahead of my age starting in first grade, but I still can't do basic multiplication without a calculator. I always had interests that were not only unusual for my age, such as geology and beekeeping in elementary school, but every time I gained an interest in something, it would very quickly become my entire life. I would research absolutely everything there was to know about the subject and quickly become an expert. I had weird behaviors, such as rocking back and forth, flapping my hands, and picking at my skin that I would do whenever I was excited or anxious. I got overwhelmed easily and was incredibly sensitive to sound and textures. I found it incredibly difficult to make friends growing up, and I never knew why. It's like everyone else was just able to sense that I was different, even though I seemed relatively normal from an outside perspective. Because I reached the majority of my developmental milestones on time, Didn't have an apparent impairment, and had good grades, it took until I was 15 for anyone to suspect I was autistic. An autistic friend brought up the possibility first, and, me being me, I began to do a ton of research. I wrote a 50-page research paper detailing the evidence of autism throughout my life and showed it to a therapist to receive what is currently an unofficial-but-highly-likely diagnosis. My motivation for pursuing higher education is simply because learning is what I'm most passionate about. I graduated from Mancos High School with both academic and community service honors. I've been taking college courses since my sophomore year of high school and earned 37 college credits through Pueblo Community College before I graduated with 9 honors chords in 2025. I was a member of the National Honors Society, am a member of the National Society of High School Scholars, the National Society of Leadership and Success, and the Family, Community and Career Leaders of America. Striving for academic and community service excellence has given my life meaning. I'm currently a freshman at Fort Lewis College, and already, I'm chasing my creative dream career(s) by double majoring in music business and writing, double minoring in psychology and anthropology, earning two certificates in museum management and diversity and inclusion, and I have a concentration in the Reed Honors program. I plan to get a masters degree in music production, and I've teased the idea of getting another degree in psychology as well. If I ever get rich, I will go back to a 4-year college and major in philosophy and gender and sexuality studies with minors in history and political science. In short, education is my passion, and I wish to be as educated as possible. The journey has not been easy, however. Discussion-based classes are hard for me because I never seem to be able to find the words I need when I'm speaking. Although I can write eloquently, I stutter and stumble over words, take long pauses, and can never think of what to say when asked to speak on the spot. I've gotten Cs in pretty much every math class I've had to take since 8th grade, and the immense workload of college as compared to high school has been a difficult adjustment. But now finally having accommodations, I've started doing better than ever.

It seems like only yesterday my family gathered in the living room to hear grandpa's news. "I'm thinking about getting a haircut." He said, "I'm thinking about just shaving it all off, the beard too, and my eyebrows!" His ability to find humor in the darkest times, even when telling his family that he had liver cancer (which has a 20% survival rate at best), will always inspire me. My sister and I talked him into letting us dye his hair blue before he started his treatments. Hair dye was something that nobody in my traditional family would ever allow, but he let us do it believing it would be short-lived. as it would turn out, the doctors decided to go with immunotherapy as opposed to chemo, so grandpa had blue hair for a while, and it was a memory we can all laugh at now. During this time, my grandmother on the other side of the family, who lived a state away, had a sudden heart attack, and after months in the hospital, was placed in hospice. Her husband died when I was young, and that meant that when we visited her, we would also have to clean out her house for an estate sale. Losing grandma was hard, but losing the memory of her would be even harder, so against my family's will, I brought home as much stuff to remind me of her as possible. My family calls me a hoarder, but I call it holding onto the memories of people I love. I also took pictures of every corner of the house before we cleared it out so I could keep the good memories we shared with her there. At first, grandpa's cancer treatments were working and he was improving. Until one day, he broke his back and was unable to move. No longer able to travel to get his treatments, he was placed in a nursing home. Those are the days I will never forget. Painfully, we watched him decay little by little every day. He was thinner than ever, his skin yellow, his eyes devoid of the spirit he once had. He died just under 4 months after we lost grandma. My grandpa was an avid hunter, so much so that he exclusively wore camo. His entire wardrobe consisted of camo and two nice dress shirts to wear to special occasions. He was a well-loved man in my small town known as "the guy who you'd call if you needed something fixed." He owned his own construction company and was dedicated to helping the residents of our town with any building or repair needs, and at his funeral, the entire town showed up, and everyone was wearing camo. This loss not only rattled my family, but it rattled the entire town. Then this year, my dad solemnly announced to the family that he had been diagnosed with liver cancer, the same kind of cancer that killed his dad. Although he got on the transplant list and generally has a better prognosis than grandpa did, I make sure to tell him every day how much I love him. These losses have shaped who I am today. Having only one grandparent live long enough to see me graduate from high school is a pain I can't describe. I learned to enjoy every moment with the people you love because you never know which fishing trip, which visit, which conversation will be the last. I learned how to hold on to people who are no longer there. I learned to live every day like its the last.

I have changed so much as a person since I was little, but the one thing that's always stayed the same is my passion for learning. I've always loved learning, and during times of my life that I wasn't motivated toward anything else, I was still motivated toward gaining knowledge. I've had teachers my entire life who've told me I'm stealing their job because I already knew the course material and how to explain it to kids my age. I graduated from Mancos High School with both academic and community service honors. I've been taking college courses since my sophomore year of high school and earned 37 college credits through Pueblo Community College before I graduated with 9 honors chords in 2025. I was a member of the National Honors Society, am a member of the National Society of High School Scholars, the National Society of Leadership and Success, and the Family, Community and Career Leaders of America. Striving for academic and community service excellence has given my life a sense of meaning. I am currently a freshman at Fort Lewis College, and already, I am chasing my creative dream careers by double majoring in music business and writing, double minoring in psychology and anthropology, earning two certificates in museum management and diversity and inclusion, and I have a concentration in the Reed Honors program. I plan to get a masters degree in music production, and I've teased the idea of getting another degree in psychology as well. If I ever get rich, I will go back to a 4 year college and major in philosophy and gender and sexuality studies with minors in history and political science. In short, education is my passion, and I wish to be as educated as possible. Despite loving school, I barely made it through my first semester of college. With an ongoing family crisis, my dad's cancer diagnosis, roommate conflicts, personal health issues, and more, all while taking 18 credit hours and working part-time as a tutor, I felt like I was drowning. Under such immense stress of such a big life change coupled with catastrophe after catastrophe, my mental health suffered more than it had ever suffered before. I've struggled with my mental health since I was a toddler, and I have a long list of diagnoses and potential diagnoses that I've developed over the years. I've been hopelessly depressed, inconsolably anxious, and stressed to the point my brain disconnects and my body goes on autopilot, but I'd never experienced anything like this before. I scoured books and the internet to try and find a word for what I was experiencing, and the closest I could find was "nervous breakdown." During that hard time, the only advice people seemed to give me was to drop the tutoring job, drop a class or two, or even drop the whole semester, but I refused to give up. I stubbornly persisted and earned all 18 of those credit hours. Albeit, my grades weren't the best, but I passed every single class I enrolled in and still managed to be there for my family as well. Despite how challenging last semester was, I persevered and I'm continuing my academic journey with a much more manageable course load. At my current pace with all of my fields of study, I should graduate from FLC in December of 2030. After college, I plan to use my degree in music and writing to change the world. Music is powerful. It can unite people over a shared cause, shed light in dark times, form communities and subcultures, spread awareness and education on politics and current events, and make people feel less alone in trying times. Music can be a form of communication, a call to action, and a warm hug when you need it most. Albert Einstein once said "Life without playing music is inconceivable for me, I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music...I get most joy in life out of music." There is no doubt that music is one of the most important things to us as humans. One of the only constants between all human cultures prior to globalization is that we all developed some form of music. Music is a pivotal part of being human that transcends every language and culture. This is why I love music. On top of that, music can help us change the world. Songs about politics and current events can help spread education and understanding when it's needed most. These empowering anthems help get people on the same page and ready to create change in our society. Big-time musicians can (and should) use their influence over the media to get people involved in their communities. A Taylor Swift Instagram post caused a surge in voter registration, and Sabrina Carpenter registered over 35,000 voters while on tour right before the 2024 election. Getting people to unite and collaborate for a common cause is my main goal in life. I want to change the world through music, and to do that, I plan on collaborating with charities to produce music that raises money for a cause. I want to collaborate with advertisers, artists, producers, etc., to create anthems of change that rattle my community to its core. I hope to make a measurable difference in my community and the world through music as well as writing. I want to dedicate my life to writing songs, books, articles, poems, etc., that spread awareness and knowledge of important societal topics such as equality, climate change, war, etc. The more knowledge I can gain, the more knowledge I can share with the world. This is precisely why I'm so passionate about learning. I believe that we can make real societal change through the arts in a way that transmits knowledge. Learning, music, writing, psychology, anthropology, etc., I am driven toward many passions. I want to use my ambitious spirit and thirst for knowledge to build a better future for everyone.

To be completely honest, I've never been a fan of collaborative work. In almost every group project I've ever done, I seem to be the one to do all the work while the others slack off. I never made it in competitive sports because my "un-teamly" attitude always held me back. For most of my life, I've been a loner who struggles to rely on anyone. But there's something different about the collaboration of making music. Music is my ultimate passion. I taught myself to read music and play piano in 5th grade then joined the school band on trumpet shortly thereafter. I began experimenting with music composition in 6th grade, then picked up guitar and started writing song lyrics in 7th grade. It was at that moment I knew that I would dedicate my life to music. I then learned ukulele in 8th grade, basic drum skills in 10th grade, alto saxophone and some bass guitar in 11th grade, and recently got a mandolin. I've taken basic music theory/composition classes for a couple of years and composed several original songs. I played in the Fort Lewis College Honor Band for advanced high school musicians for my last 3 years of high school. I also took the GripTape Learning Challenge to buy music recording equipment and learn how to use it. Making music with the school band is one of my favorite things to do. The way everyone does their part, carries their weight, and plays something beautiful that no one instrument can ever do alone moves me like nothing else can. Music is powerful. It can unite people over a shared cause, shed light in dark times, form communities and subcultures, spread awareness and education on politics and current events, and make people feel less alone in trying times. Music can be a form of communication, a call to action, and a warm hug when you need it most. Albert Einstein once said "Life without playing music is inconceivable for me, I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music...I get most joy in life out of music." There is no doubt that music is one of the most important things to us as humans. One of the only constants between all human cultures prior to globalization is that we all developed some form of music. Music is a pivotal part of being human that transcends every language and culture. This is why I love music; it's the one thing the entire world has in common, the one thing we can all collaborate on. On top of that, music can help us change the world. Songs about politics and current events can help spread education and understanding when it's needed most. These empowering anthems help get people on the same page and ready to create change in our society. Big-time musicians can (and should) use their influence over the media to get people involved in their communities. A Taylor Swift Instagram post caused a surge in voter registration, and Sabrina Carpenter registered over 35,000 voters while on tour right before the 2024 election. Getting people to unite and collaborate for a common cause is my main goal in life. I want to change the world through music, and to do that, I plan on collaborating with charities to produce music that raises money for a cause. I want to collaborate with advertisers, artists, producers, etc., to create anthems of change that rattle society to its core. If there's one thing in the whole world that I trust others enough to collaborate on, its music.

I've struggled with my mental health for as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure I was born with anxiety, thanks to my dad's genetics, as well as autism, which can put you at risk of developing numerous other mental health conditions. I was only a toddler when I developed the classic symptoms of OCD; intrusive thoughts, ritualistic behaviors, phobias, superstitions, etc. My greatest fear was choking, and I hid all small items from myself in a drawer that I wouldn't touch until high school. I endured a substantial trauma in daycare, and I started having hallucinations and paranoia by the time I was in kindergarten. My childhood was rather turbulent. My family was burdened with financial issues, I was a social outcast at school, and my parents fought constantly. My dad struggled with addiction and mental health, and my mom carried the weight of generational trauma passed down from a family that climbed the Berlin Wall to escape from the Nazis and Soviets. I also had a number of health problems as a child and was in and out of doctors offices more than any other kid I know. By the time I was in 5th grade, I had developed disordered eating habits and had what I can only describe as an episode of psychosis. It's also highly likely I developed OCPD during this time, though I have yet to get an official diagnosis. By the time I was in middle school, I had developed severe depression. I was self-harming, suicidal, and failing half of my classes. I couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, went to school in my pajamas, and my hair was grossly matted to my scalp. I didn't think I could make it another day, but I pushed through it for 8 months until I nearly attempted suicide of May 6, 2020. My only real coping strategy was writing poems and songs about my emotions, which I now have hundreds of. I am happy to announce that I am in a much better place now after starting medications and therapy. Despite how horrible it was to go through severe depression, it fundamentally changed my life for the better. Prior to depression, I clung to my Christian-conservative family's belief systems, only listened to country music, and was ultimately a very closed-minded and ignorant person. Depression is what forced me to come to terms with my LGBTQ identity, which, in turn, led me down a rabbit hole to learning about politics, equality, and new perspectives. It helped me find my passion for songwriting and poetry, which I am now pursuing as a career. It even expanded my music taste as I searched for songs of any genre with relatable lyrics. Most importantly, it made me realize that my sole purpose in life is to make the world a better place. I want to dedicate my life to creating positive change in my community and the world. This is the exact reason why I want to destigmatize mental health; to improve the state of the world. So many problems in our society could be at least partially solved if there was more openness about and resources for dealing with mental health struggles, such as substance use, crime, suicides, low grades, unemployment, and more. Mental illnesses can be disabling, and it's about time we treat them like the diseases they are. After all, they can be genetic, they are treatable, they are often the result of biochemical changes in the body, can be life-threatening, and most importantly, they are not the individuals fault. I believe we are making progress with destigmatizing disorders such as anxiety and depression, but we have made little progress in many other disorders such as personality disorders, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, autism, etc. As someone who lives a relatively normal life with all of the listed disorders here, treatment and recovery is possible. Although they all still impact me in the way I see the world and the way I navigate relationships, they have also helped me become the person I am today with my specific goals, attitudes, and resilience. In conclusion, although I have been negatively impacted by mental health challenges, they have also challenged me in a way that makes me stronger, and I wouldn't trade that for the world.

It seems like only yesterday my family gathered in the living room to hear grandpa's news. "I'm thinking about getting a haircut." He said, "I'm thinking about just shaving it all off, the beard too, and my eyebrows!" His ability to find humor in the darkest times, even when telling his family that he had liver cancer (which has a 20% survival rate at best), will always inspire me. My sister and I talked him into letting us dye his hair blue before he started his treatments. Hair dye was something that nobody in my traditional family would ever allow, but he let us do it believing it would be short-lived. as it would turn out, the doctors decided to go with immunotherapy as opposed to chemo, so grandpa had blue hair for a while. At first, the treatments were working and he was improving. Until one day, he broke his back and was unable to move. No longer able to travel to get his treatments, he was placed in a nursing home. Those are the days I will never forget. Painfully, we watched him decay little by little every day. He was thinner than ever, his skin yellow, his eyes devoid of the spirit he once had. While he was fighting this battle, I wrote a song dedicated to him called "One Last Song." He always loved supporting my sister at her sports events and me at my band concerts, and the song is a plea for him to just make it to one last concert and hear me play one last song. He passed the day of my sisters basketball championship and never made it to one last concert, nor did I get the chance to show him the song I wrote in his honor. My grandpa was an avid hunter, so much so that he exclusively wore camo. His entire wardrobe consisted of camo and two nice dress shirts to wear to special occasions. He was a well-loved man in my small town known as "the guy who you'd call if you needed something fixed." He owned his own construction company and was dedicated to helping the residents of our town with any building or repair needs, and at his funeral, the entire town showed up, and everyone was wearing camo. I had my own cancer scare a year ago when I discovered two swollen lymph nodes, one on my collar bone and one below my jaw, that appeared seemingly out of the blue. I remember months later after ultrasounds and a dozen blood tests, I was scheduled to have a CT scan in two days when my dad sat us down and told us he had been diagnosed with liver cancer, and was getting a CT scan the day before me. We went to our CT appointments together. The somewhat-good news is, after a biopsy and surgical removal of one of my lymph nodes, they found it wasn't malignant, but that I had a rare fungal infection. The doctors say my dad's cancer hasn't metastasized, and he is currently working with a doctor who has a very high success rate at liver cancer treatment. Since he's younger and healthier than grandpa was, he is on the transplant list for a new liver, but first they have to shrink the tumor, which has proven to be difficult due to his cirrosis. I have learned so much from my family's experience with cancer, but more than anything, I learned to enjoy every moment with the people you love because you never know which concert will be the last.

I have struggled with my mental health for as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure I was born with anxiety, thanks to my dad's genetics, as well as autism, which can put you at risk of developing numerous other mental health conditions. I was only a toddler when I developed the classic symptoms of OCD; intrusive thoughts, ritualistic behaviors, phobias, superstitions, etc. My greatest fear was choking, and I hid all small items from myself in a drawer that I wouldn't touch until high school. I endured a substantial trauma in daycare, and I started having hallucinations by the time I was in kindergarten. My childhood was rather turbulent. My family was burdened with financial issues, I was a social outcast at school, and my parents fought constantly. My dad struggled with addiction and mental health, and my mom carried the weight of generational trauma passed down from a family that climbed the Berlin Wall to escape from the Nazis and Soviets. I also had a number of health problems as a child and was in and out of doctors offices more than any other kid I know. By the time I was in 5th grade, I had developed disordered eating habits and had what I can only describe as an episode of psychosis. It's also highly likely I developed OCPD during this time, though I have yet to get an official diagnosis. By the time I was in middle school, I had developed severe depression. I was self-harming, suicidal, and failing half of my classes. I couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, went to school in my pajamas, and my hair was grossly matted to my scalp. I didn't think I could make it another day, but I pushed through it for 8 months until I nearly attempted suicide of May 6, 2020. My only real coping strategy was writing poems and songs about my emotions, which I now have hundreds of. It was around that time that a video titled "LGBTQ TikTok compilation" appeared on my YouTube, and I decided to watch it in an effort to disappoint my Christian-conservative parents so that if I died, they'd miss me less. But video after video, I became more intrigued by the community, and started asking myself questions such as "were those feelings I had for my best friend in kindergarten, the one I told my mother I wanted to marry, actually platonic?" The moment I realized I was queer was the moment my depression began subsiding, and I suddenly gained a new reason to live: to dedicate my life to fighting for LGBTQ rights, social justice, and equality for all. I'm happy to announce that I am now taking mental health medication and going to therapy, and I've improved significantly over the last few years. although I gained some new diagnoses along the way, such as BPD and PTSD, I largely have my mental health under control. I will be eternally grateful for the depression I experienced in 7th grade, because without it, it may have taken me years - decades, even - for me to stop denying my LGBTQ identity. I also would've never found my passion for music and writing, nor would I be a political changemaker. Mental illness has been wreaking havoc on me since day one, but I have persevered, and in doing so, found a wonderful community of fellow queer people who give me reason to live. I am in a position where I can largely be open about my identity, and though being queer certainly isn't easy, I am living my best life.

I was in kindergarten the first time I was told I wasn't allowed to marry the person I loved. I was raised in a strict, Christian-conservative household, and even though I had my first same-gender crush when I was 5, it took me until I was 14 to accept my identity. After nearly a decade of suppressing who I really was out of religion-induced denial, I spent the next half-decade in the closet. June after June, I longed to be able to express myself, to love publicly, and to simply live without fear. I joined my high school's LGBTQ club in secret, kept all my pronoun pins and pride flags hidden in my locker, and managed to live a double life for years without my parents catching on. I thought that when I got to college, I could finally be free. My plan was to attend a school on the opposite side of the country so I could finally be my authentic self without judgement from my family, but life has a way of messing with your plans. I ended up at a college 30 minutes away from my house, but it's a college with gender inclusive bathrooms that hosts drag shows at least once per semester. Maybe I could still be free, even in such close proximity to family. Once I got to college, I put all my pride flags on display in my dorm, put my pronouns in my email signature, and wear pronoun pins every day. I joined the Sexuality and Gender Alliance (SAGA), I attended the drag shows, started collecting queer literature, took gender and sexuality study courses, everything I could to finally show my queerness to the world. All the while, I was still coming home every other weekend because my family insisted I continue going to our Baptist church. By far, the biggest struggle I've had with my identity is conflicts with religion. I can say for certain that without God, I would not have made it through some of the darker times in my life and would not still be here today. It's hard to still be a believer in Jesus when most of His other followers believe you're an abomination. But I've studied the Bible and I've done my research, and I found that there is nowhere in the original Hebrew Bible where it says being queer is a sin, and that all the verses that some Christians like to quote are either taken out of context or mistranslated. In fact, the Hebrew language had 8 different genders! This is exactly why I am passionate about writing. I absolutely love researching random topics and descending down internet rabbit holes to uncover knowledge I never thought I would acquire, and I want to share that knowledge to make the world a better place. There are two writing projects I am working on in particular that I hope will change the world one day. The first is for an anthropology class; I am rewriting the book "Gender Diversity" by Serena Nanda to have more appropriate and inclusive wording, to include western religions and their views on gender, and to include the impact the internet had had on the development of identity. The second is a book of poems called "Ode to the Next Four Years," which details my life as a queer Christian living in this politically chaotic time. To me, writing is another part of my identity, just like my queerness, just like my religion. I don't know how to exist without it, and I am determined to share it with the world.

Music is powerful. It can unite people over a shared cause, shed light in dark times, form communities and subcultures, spread awareness and education on politics and current events, and make people feel less alone in trying times. Music can be a form of communication, a call to action, and a warm hug when you need it most. Albert Einstein once said "Life without playing music is inconceivable for me, I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music ... I get most joy in life out of music." There is no doubt that music is one of the most important things to us as humans. One of the only constants between all human cultures prior to globalization is that we all developed some form of music. Music is a pivotal part of being human that transcends every language and culture. This is why I love music. I was raised in a very creative family. My great-grandpa fixed and tuned pianos for a living, my grandma was an avid pianist and oil painter, and my mom plays piano and used to play the violin. My dad is a singer who also plays drums and guitar and used to be in a band. All my life, I was surrounded by and connected to music. I grew up listening to my parents play their instruments and sing in front of crowds and thought it was the coolest thing in the world. I picked up a piano book my grandma gave me in 5th grade and taught myself to read music and play piano. Shortly afterward, I joined the school band on trumpet. I started experimenting with music composition in 6th grade using online platforms like Soundtrap and Noteflight. I had been writing poetry since 5th grade and started turning my poems into song lyrics in 7th grade, and shortly after, my dad started teaching me guitar and I decided that I'd dedicate my life to music. I taught myself to play ukulele in 8th grade, then learned drums in the school Rock Band club in 10th grade, then got an alto saxophone from a family friend and started learning bass guitar in 11th grade, and recently inherited a mandolin that I'm planning to teach myself as well. I've been in the school Concert Band, Jazz Band, and Rock Band (formerly known as the Guitar Club) since middle school. For the last 3 years (including this upcoming concert in February), I played Honor Band for advanced high school musicians at a local college and I even made it to the highest level, the Skyhawk Band, for the last 2 years. I've also taken some basic music theory/composition classes throughout high school and have composed several original songs. Last year, I participated in the GripTape learning challenge, a 10-week challenge where students are given $250 to pursue their passions, and I used the money to purchase audio recording equipment and learn how to use it. My ultimate dream in life is to change the world through music. I want to write and produce songs about issues I'm passionate about, such as climate change, human rights, and mental health, to rally people together for these causes and to help raise money for charities. I have seen the power of music first-hand, so I know it's possible. My current educational plan is to attend a local college for a year to get general academics out of the way before transferring to a big music college. My dream school is Berklee School of Music, and I'm determined to get there.

Dreams and aspirations may change drastically as one grows up, but some things will always stay the same. I grew up in a small rural town of about 1100 people and 1300 cows. The town was founded by - and is still mostly run by - cowboys (our town slogan is "where the west still lives"). It is defined more as "a small ranching community in the mountains" than a full-fledged town. I grew up going to country music concerts at the dude ranch where my mom used to work watching my dad sing and play the guitar. My family was always very musical and creative with my mom's side of the family being piano players and my dad being a guitarist and drum player. I, however, didn't want anything to do with the family's musical careers as I was a stubborn kid and decided that learning an instrument would be too hard. But one of the biggest parts of our economy in this town was cattle ranches and farms, so it only makes sense that my first-ever career goal was to become a farmer. Later in elementary school, I decided being a farmer wasn't for me. I determined I wanted to do something to help others, and wanted to be either a massage therapist or a veterinarian. I stuck with those two ideas for many years until about 4th grade, when I became incredibly indecisive. I went through a brief phase where all careers sounded awesome and I wanted to do everything. I wanted to be a photographer, an astronaut, a scientist, an author, etc. I still have this spirit to this day that makes me want to learn a little bit about everything. By middle school, I had 2 careers that I had narrowed it down to. My first choice was to turn my love of cake decorating into a career in the food industry. While I still love baking and have earned my ServSafe Managers certificate recently, I soon decided I wanted something bigger. My second career choice was to be a doctor, but with my phobia of heartbeats, I figured I'd be a lousy doctor. But soon afterward, I had an unlikely new passion: music. I had picked up a piano book my grandma gave me one day out of pure boredom and ended up teaching myself to read music and play piano in 5th grade, thinking nothing of it, and I joined the school band on trumpet that same year. Then I started experimenting with beat-making and music composition on online platforms like Soundtrap and Noteflight the next year. Then the next year, I started branching off from my love of poetry and began writing song lyrics. That same year, my dad bought me my first guitar, and it was then I decided I would turn music into my career. 5 years later, I now know ukulele, drums, bass guitar, and alto saxophone, and I just got a mandolin. I've taken music composition/theory classes and I've written several original songs, and I participate in Concert Band, Jazz Band, Rock Band, and Honor Band. I can't believe I went from actively avoiding musical pursuits to now building a career out of music. I have changed so much since I was a kid, but I'm still just as passionate (and stubborn) as I was back then. I plan on attending a local college for a year to get general academics out of the way, then transferring to a big music college. My dream school is Berklee School of Music, and I am determined to get there.

I am and have always been passionate about music. Music has been there for me when no one else was, and I think a lot of people can relate. Music can help us feel less alone, whether it be the music itself lifting our spirits when we're down or the lyrics resonating with our situations. Music is often the most supportive friend we have in trying times, especially for those of us dealing with mental health trials. On top of that, music can help us change the world. Songs about politics and current events can help spread education and understanding when it's needed most. These empowering anthems help get people on the same page and ready to create change in our society. Big-time musicians can (and should) use their influence over the media to get people involved in their communities. A Taylor Swift Instagram post caused a surge in voter registration, and Sabrina Carpenter registered over 35,000 people while on tour right before the 2024 election. I want to change the world through music. I want to help people feel less alone and more empowered. I want to bring people together and create favorable change in the world. I want to make a positive impact on the lives of individuals and society as a whole. I plan to write songs about issues I am passionate about, such as human rights, climate change, and mental health awareness, to spread awareness about them and raise money for charities. I currently play 7 instruments and am starting to learn an 8th. My goal is to learn every instrument that I possibly can. I taught myself to read music and play piano in 5th grade then joined the school band on trumpet shortly thereafter. I began experimenting with music composition in 6th grade, then picked up guitar and started writing song lyrics in 7th grade. It was at that moment I knew that I would dedicate my life to activism through song. I then learned ukulele in 8th grade, basic drum skills in 10th grade, alto saxophone and some bass guitar in 11th grade, and recently got a mandolin. I've taken basic music theory/composition classes for a couple of years and composed several original songs. I played in the Fort Lewis College Honor Band for advanced musicians for the last two years and am applying again this year. I also took the GripTape Learning Challenge to buy music recording equipment and learn how to use it. My current plan for my academic career is to attend Fort Lewis College (which is 30 minutes away from my house) for a year to get general academics out of the way, then transfer to a big music college where I plan to earn my bachelor's degree studying music composition and production. My dream school is Berklee School of Music. I have big dreams for my education and for my future, and I am determined to get there. Please help me change the world!

I grew up surrounded by artists of all sorts. My great-grandpa fixed and tuned pianos for a living, my grandma was an avid piano player and an oil painter, my mom plays piano and used to play violin, and my dad is a singer, drummer, guitarist and self-taught chef. I always loved art. I've dabbled in every artistic medium I could get my hands on from drawing, painting, ceramics, paper mache, cake decorating, cooking (I got my ServSafe Managers Certificate in culinary class), sewing, crochet, theater, jewelry making, and much, much more. I've earned multiple prizes in art contests throughout the years and my most recent endeavor has been teaching myself to animate. I've had a love for stories since I was very young. In 1st grade, I had a middle school reading level and would write pages upon pages for every writing assignment. I started writing books and poems in 5th grade and I plan to publish my work in the future. In middle school, a poem I wrote got published in a national book of poetry. But most of all, I am passionate about music. I taught myself to read music and play piano in 5th grade and joined the school band on trumpet shortly thereafter. I started dabbling with songwriting in 6th grade and then song lyrics in 7th grade. My dad started teaching me guitar in 7th grade and I taught myself ukulele in 8th grade. I started playing drums as well as guitar and keyboard in the school Rock Band Club in 10th grade and the next year started playing bass guitar. I taught myself to play alto saxophone in 11th grade and just recently inherited a mandolin that I plan to teach myself to play. I want to learn as many instruments as I possibly can. I've played in my high school's Rock Band/Guitar Club, Jazz Band, Concert Band, and Pep Band for all 4 years and we've won multiple trophies in state-wide band competitions. I've also played in the Fort Lewis Honor Band for the last 2 years and I've applied again this year. Last year, I made it into the Skyhawk Band, which is the highest level of Honor Band. You can find the performance on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L62GBcD0xic (fast forward the video to 1 hour and 45 minutes to watch the Skyhawk Band. I'm the shortest trumpet player in the second row from the back.) I've also been taking music theory/composition for several years throughout high school and have written and composed several original songs. I've taken the GripTape Learning Challenge where I purchased audio recording equipment and learned how to use it. I plan to take the challenge again this year and start a jewelry-making business. I plan to use all of my artistic passions in my career, especially music. My ultimate goal in life is to write, draw, and sing about issues in the world that I am passionate about to reach the widest audience possible with my messages. My dream is to change the world through art and music. I plan on attending Fort Lewis College for a year before transferring to a big music school, my dream school being Berklee School of Music. I'm ready to make the world a better place. Please help me make my dreams come true! The files I've submitted are some photos of various artworks/acheivements I've made as well as the instrumental version of a song I wrote titled "One Last Song." This song uses violin, piano, acoustic guitar, steel string guitar (which has a solo at the bridge), drums, and a glockenspiel.