I always believed my life to be one of those interesting novels hard to pry off someone's hands after a couple pages.
I would obviously be the protagonist, and within my story would lie stereotypical villains with wicked mustaches and monocles. There would be awesome adventures to exotic destinations that the reader could only dream about, and a supporting cast that would guide me throughout the plot every step of the way.
Although, while life didn't work that way, I found there were still villains implanted in my life--just not the cliched ones in stories.
Instead, they came in all forms, from nerve-wracking exams to road blocks in future plans. My supporting cast would come in the embodiment of my family and friends that replied in cryptic answers, and the "awesome adventure" I believed to be predestined was something I had to determine and figure out myself.
My tale began in New York City.
When asked “Where was home”, I’ll be quick to respond both New York and Florida without a moment's hesitation. In a way, Florida was my explanation and reasoning on why I was so different from my peers around me. The relaxed atmosphere had influenced me more than the locality of Bronx, New York. Although; I came to realize that the Big Apple had mass opportunities, academically and professionally, to offer me compared to Florida. It offered a future that I could only dream of, and both locations were embedded into the identity I wear proudly today. Both locations made me really think of how such environments and people could heavily influence an individual. The thought really stayed upon my mind that I became interested in how so many variables could influence the mind--hence came my rapid interest in Psychology and the human mind. I grew up in the Bronx. I never really related living there and felt like a black sheep among a vast crowd--a crowd who I’ve known all my life. When I moved to Florida, for most of my high school and college years, I associated the “Floridian” environment as part of my identity and home.
For as long as I could remember, when people would ask me who was it that influenced me the most throughout my life, or who was the most important figure to me, I could never reply with a one person answer--instead, I stubbornly picked four. My mother, sister, grandmother and brother all taught me influential lessons that I would pass onto my own posterity. My mother taught me that “patience will persevere”. My twin sister taught me that “things happen for a reason”. My grandmother showed me to “find love and beauty in all things around you, and apply it to life”. Lastly, my brother, while a man of few words, taught me, “never jump to conclusions without proof”. While it is not one big compact (and generalized) lesson, all four lessons molded and shaped me into the person I am today. The amount of influence I gained from these four special people, and their lessons, illustrated to me that education is the key to setting a legacy, and will forever be embedded in my being. With these lessons taught by my family, I’ve learned to ingrain these values onto my academic, work and personal life.
With my mother’s lesson: I’ve applied patience into the courses I find difficult to handle. With the patience in figuring out the topics that I find frustrating, I’ve achieved a 4.0 GPA, and the ability to handle demanding situations better. In addition, I can apply my mother's lesson towards my work environment when working with children with disabilities.
With my sister’s lesson: I’ve learned that things can’t always go my way. I believe that I successfully applied this lesson towards both my academic and personal life when trying to decide between staying in clubs such as Phi Theta Kappa or Psychology Club, or deciding whether following the path of joining the military (like some of my family members) was for me. My sister’s lesson brought me to the conclusion that life won’t always fit into a cookie-cutter scheme.
With my Grandmother’s lesson: Her words are something I could apply to every aspect of my life. I find when things are hard to face, and the “going gets tough”, I could always find beauty and happiness in something so simple to instantly brighten my day. Tasks such as hiking, reading books from my favorite author Jane Austen, or just simply writing creative stories helps me to see the space around me clearer, and in a newer light.
With my Brother’s lesson: I can instantly apply it towards my personal life when making hasty judgments towards people, foods, or places. His lesson helps me realize that I can't be held back in life from trying new things and forming connections due to mental restrictions and perceptions.
While I might sound strange to admit it, the fictional character Frank Underwood, from the show “House of Cards”, has inspired me to achieve such greatness and do much good with it. While cunning and ruthless Underwood shows skills needed to achieve in a competitive career and states, “Pay attention to the fine print, it’s far more important than the selling price.” This I admit is one of my favorite quotes, and states that while you might quickly jump to the bigger goal, you will get further when focusing on the smaller one. This quote really helped me factor why my change of colleges, from Valencia, a very laid back college in Florida, to LaGuardia, was justifiable. It made me realize that sometimes you need to make the toughest choices to see the bigger picture. With the lessons of fictional character Frank Underwood, I relate to the absolute necessity of cunning, and an unimaginable amount of work needed to tremendously succeed in your future career.
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