My family and I really enjoy traveling and visiting new places. This past summer, after visiting our extended family in India, we took a flight to Dubai to spend a few days there. This was a really fun trip because I had never been there before and getting to spend time in a new country and try new things with my family was really memorable. My favorite part was walking through the city streets at night and seeing all the tall buildings, especially the Burj Khalifa. I really want to visit new places in Europe when we decide to travel again because I’ve heard really great things about traveling there.
I’ve played many sports over the years, my favorites being softball and basketball. Sports have always been a big part of my daily life and it was another one of my ways to destress from school and work and just spend time doing something I genuinely enjoy. Getting to bond with my teammates and build lasting friendships is such an important part of sports teams and it’s something that always makes playing the sport more fun. Up until high school, I joined and excelled in karate but had to quit because of COVID. Hopefully, I can go back and receive my last belt, as I really enjoyed getting to teach younger students and learn from highly experienced instructors.
click here to visit the dojo's website!
I’m someone who cherishes time at home. Whether it be baking, crocheting, or reading a book, having these moments outside of school and work gives me a chance to recenter and refocus. I find that it’s crucial to have times like these to de-stress to keep your mind clear so that when you get back to your daily activities, you are ready to put in your hundred percent. One thing I want to add to that list is cooking. Surprisingly enough, I love to bake but I’ve never really done much cooking. I think it’s an essential life skill and would like to take more time to learn basic recipes from my mom.
I really enjoy spending time giving back to my community. Last summer, I was accepted into Wooserves, a program targeted at helping students located in underprivileged communities prepare for their upcoming school years. Some responsibilities included helping them with reading grade-level texts, writing analyses based on their readings, and planning and preparing summer projects. I really enjoyed this experience because it was an opportunity for me to interact with other volunteers and design strategies to have everyone participate and offer their thoughts. This was a very valuable volunteer opportunity and I am thankful for being able to spend time giving back to my community.
Click here to visit Wooserves' webpage!
Recently, when I visited my extended family in India, I had the opportunity to visit a school in an underprivileged village and talk to them about the school system and potential future changes. By offering support through words formally translated by my grandmother, I got to meet all of the kids personally and hopefully provide them with some motivation for their future studies. It was an incredible experience, to see and interact with teachers and students in a different learning environment. I remain in contact with the school, and I'm hoping to write letters back to students there to stay in touch until I can return!
Throughout the course of this year, I participated in Walkfit, a volunteer program that pairs volunteers with visually impaired individuals. The pairing can take walks, talk to each other, and have a good time. This was an amazing opportunity for me because I was able to learn about the importance of specific directions when guiding visually impaired individuals. On top of that, I saw the difference between forcing help on someone versus offering your help and only following through if needed. This small change made a big difference and it was an important lesson I picked up on the more times I volunteered.