Growing up, I was a very school-oriented child. My parents have emphasized the importance of education my entire life and I really took that to heart at a young age. I loved going to school and would often approach my teachers at the end of the day asking for extra homework, something that I now look back on and laugh at considering how busy my life is now aside from schoolwork. Similarly to a lot of young children, I played school in my free time. I would play with my brother so that I could be the teacher, but I would also play with my friends and we would take turns playing the roles of teacher and student. Following my enjoyment of playing school at home came my “obsession,” as my family called it, with all things stationery. I probably have enough sticky notes and pens to get me through to the next decade.  

All of my experiences in life have been a factor in what has led me to where I am now, but I also believe that familial history plays a large role in my desire to be a teacher. Not only was my mother a teacher, but my grandmother as well. In fact, my grandmother just retired in 2019 at the age of seventy-nine and still substitutes in her small town quite frequently. I have been surrounded by teachers for my entire life and many of my teachers have influenced me to pursue teaching as well, whether it was because of what I would do differently than them, or because of what I loved about their teaching. All experiences and memories considered, I am excited to begin my journey towards becoming an educator and I aspire to be a teacher that is always inclusive and approachable.