What matters to you, and why?
In one word: family.
When I was young, my family and I lived in [city], my father worked in the military, and my mother looked after me and my older sister, Christina. My dad worked tirelessly to provide for us. As a result, my earliest memories are not of both of my parents, but of my mother. My mother’s passing due to breast cancer when I was three was difficult emotionally for me, and the events that followed set the trajectory of my life.
After my mother passed, we moved from [city] to Long Beach, California. With Christina and me starting elementary school, and no one to look after us while our dad was at work, we began getting dropped off at Judy’s Day Care. We would stay with Judy during the day, and our dad would pick us up at night. However, Christina and I started living with Judy for weeks at a time, with our dad picking us up on Saturdays, and then dropping us off again on Sunday nights. Living with Judy, and her four children, from kindergarten to sixth grade, is the second factor that shaped my life. This experience taught me that family is not limited by one’s genes or blood-type, because Judy became a mother to me and Christina.
This idea of the importance of family was reinforced in 2009 when Mr. Olson, my mentor, took me in after my family and I lost our home. Both Judy’s and Mr. Olson’s actions made me realize that and that anyone can make a profound impact in someone else’s life.
Recently, I have applied these lessons to my own life. After my grandmother suffered a stroke last year, I took on more responsibility in the household, taking care of family chores and preparing meals for her. A year later, my grandmother has made a full recovery.
Ultimately, I have come to appreciate my hardships. Despite the difficulties and setbacks, through them I have met the most amazing and influential people in my life, all of whom I still consider family today, and that is beyond anything I could ever ask for.