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There are times when I look in the mirror and I have no idea whose reflection I’m looking at. I often change my personality based on who I’m hanging out with. I spend a lot of time alone trying to figure out what is going on inside my head. Answering the question of who I am is not easy. As I sit here and write, I think back on the past. I have gone through many phases and almost all of them have passed with time. To write about who I am as an individual, I have to think about the past and present as well as my future and goals. There are so many seemingly insignificant things that happen in life that we don’t realize have affected us tremendously.
My past has been one of many struggles. I am not ashamed to say this. I am aware of the fact that many people have had it worse than me, but that does not diminish my problems. My past has shaped me, but it does not define me. Starting from a young age, I dealt with emotional problems. Back then, I didn’t understand why I would feel the way I did. I had a good home, loving parents, basically everything a child could ever need. However, I always felt different than everyone else. I was scared of things that typical kids weren’t afraid of. People in my everyday life would make fun of me for being afraid. I would also get so irritated and frustrated at the drop of a hat. I would say and do things I didn’t mean and I couldn’t control it. I remember being 7 years old sitting on the floor of my parents bathroom with my knees to my chest, crying as I think, “Why do I say and do these things?” I didn’t understand what was going on inside my head.
I’ve always had a good relationship with my parents, which I am thankful for, but the rest of my family have caused me great amou...

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...back to Vanden this year. I have not regretted that decision a single bit. I have had the best time of my life. I don’t think I’ve ever been happier. I have amazing friends who, whether they know it or not, have helped me recover beyond belief.
Soon we will be graduation and that fact is so unreal to me. If someone had told me three years ago that I would be graduation from Vanden with friends that truly like me for who I am, I would have told them they were crazy. If someone had told me that I would finally be happy and strong, I would have told them they were insane. So now I look forward to the future, something
I never thought I would say. I am not the same person I was. So who am I? I am independent, I am ambitious, I am caring, I am loving, I am funny, I am confident, and most importantly, I am strong. This is who I am and I’m not ashamed anymore.