Throughout my life, family has been the most important thing. Growing up with an older brother, my mom would always tell us that no matter what happened, no matter how many friends we had or didn’t have, we would always have each other and that we needed to cherish that. This really shaped me into the person I am today. I also have a very large extended family that I’m very close with. Of my 18 first cousins on my mom’s side, I talk to almost everyone of them. We all meet multiple times a year for holidays and birthdays and in between those events I always hang out and remain in almost constant contact with them. This has also influenced my life a great deal. It was part of the decision to come to Stony Brook- I wanted to always be there when someone needed me or something happened in the family. The thing about my family is that even though we may get annoyed at each other and not talk for a little while, there is nothing that can tear us apart. We all have such a strong connection and even though there are so many of us it really is as if we all grew up together. There’s nothing in this world that I value more than family and just relationships in general. You can have as many friends in the world, but your family is supposed to be the ones that you don’t have to think about. You don’t have to remember their birthdays, you can go to their house and clean out their fridge, you can say what you really think and no matter what you’re bonded by blood. You’ll always have each other for the rest of your lives.

It’s kind of obvious now that I also have a very close relationship with my brother as we spent a lot of time together as kids. I never wanted to play with dolls or wear pretty dresses. I wanted to build bionicles and play video games. I still don’t know if that was because I actually liked it or if I just wanted to do everything my brother was doing, but either way I always enjoyed it and I still do without him so I guess there’s your answer. Another thing that’s been a huge passion throughout my life is cooking. Whenever my brother would have friends over I’d always be in the kitchen making cookies, brownies, grilled cheese, pretty much anything they wanted. Again this was partially to gain acceptance from them, but also because I just love to cook. Food is the one thing I think about almost every second of the day. The day I first stumbled upon Food Network was the day my family wanted to disconnect every TV set in the house because that’s all I ever wanted to watch (and do still to this day- I drive my boyfriend nuts sometimes). I have actually debated pursuing a career in cooking but, like many childhood dreams, I’ve packed that one up and am saving it for later (maybe I’ll open a restaurant someday- I’m not sure if I can completely let go of this dream). Where I think this passion stems from is really my obsession of creating. I love drawing, coloring, painting, anything that takes something and transforms it. There are endless possibilities when you are the creator. From flour, butter, and sugar I can make a cake. From paper, some pigment, and a brush I can turn something plain into something that catches the eye.

The Spanish language has also been a great influence in my life. Of course we’re all required to take another language usually starting in middle school, but for some reason Spanish has just stuck with me. I picked it up right away and was one of the best speakers in most of my classes. Because of this I’ve decided to continue to learn Spanish in college and hopefully become fluent. I’m also thinking about taking another language course. This also influenced my decision to come to Stony Brook as well. Due to there great study abroad program, it just seemed like the obvious choice.

I have so many dreams in my life. So many things that I’m passionate about that sometimes it’s hard to truly know where my life is heading. All I know is that I’m going to do the best I can with what I’m given and always have fun with it. With my 18 cousins behind me and the rest of my amazing family I can’t help but feel that there’s nothing in this world that I can’t do.