I go to a nice school where all different kinds of people are struggling in countless ways. How can we show each other that, despite all our apparent differences, we can overcome our struggles through help and belief in ourselves?

I have to get up no later than 5:30 a.m. to get to the bus in order to go to school, and get my own food. Living with housemates, I have to get help with transportation from the school in order to keep attending. Some mornings I don’t eat at all because, though I wake up early, there’s little time to waste. Getting into a schedule after couch surfing and then having to move and start again has been hard. Especially when I don’t live with my parents and am not close to family. The constant struggle of finding a job and trying to save any money I can is a lot on top of school and other aspects of life.

The kind of difficulties I am facing at school and at home are not new. Since elementary school, I have never had a normal school life. I remember an elementary school event where each student’s parent stood at the front of the class and said something they were proud of. My parents were always too busy working to be able to attend things like that because they were constantly working. When my parents were home, they were too tired to deal with me, and so at a young age, I learned to care for myself by cooking and learning how to clean. Fortunately, I was pretty good at school – retaining information wasn’t hard for me to do on my own or with my teacher. But it was still lonely being the only one there for myself and my younger siblings.

When I was 12, my dad passed away. That was the beginning of a downward spiral.  I started doing drugs and was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety. I lost myself and my family to our depression, overworking, and drug use. I was constantly inside, sleeping all day and not eating because my mom wouldn’t buy groceries. It was during the height of Covid, so we couldn’t go outside anyway, and my anxiety worsened. I had never grieved loss on such a level. 

I had no money. I had no dreams. I had no faith in myself. All I felt was sadness. I was never enough. I felt I was always the problem because I lived in a group home with no parents around.

In my sophomore year, I had a new start and came to a great new school, Fossil. I met teachers like Ms. Gardner, who helped me learn study habits to help me get my work done, and Mr. Switala, who sparked my interest in math. I was able to live with my brother and had a stable, healthy life, unlike anything I had experienced. I ate well, I had a nice room to myself, and I had a great family to support me constantly by going out and doing activities together whenever possible. Learning about math, especially geometry, I found more and more interest in wanting to learn about architecture and engineering. At the time, I didn’t have money or the best grades, yet I wanted to have a dream for myself; I wanted to think that I had something to live for. 

Living this new life, I began to realize how much I appreciated it and how much I wanted to do with it. Not only that, I realized I wanted to prove something, not to anyone else only to myself. I wanted to show myself that I could be whatever I wanted, no matter what was happening in my life, because I had learned that life is full of constant change, and it can get better. My life had completely changed for the better over such a short period of time. The more I broke bad habits, set new ones, and built a schedule, the easier life became. The more I dreamed of my goal and worked towards my best self,  the less stress or sadness I felt. 

 I didn’t live with my brother very long; still, I continued to carry each lesson that I learned and appreciated everything that was done for me. Whenever I faced anything sad from then on, I never let myself get to the low point that I would get to before. Anytime I felt upset or failed at something, I assured myself that it wasn’t the end of me. 

Habits, the people you surround yourself with, and the experiences you have truly affect you and how you live your life. I learned that the smallest changes can help you, but it can be hard to learn to identify what changes need to be made. Having a therapist or speaking with a counselor is something that I feel can help us identify bad habits and help us find good ones, and is a resource that anyone should take part in if they are ever struggling.

Everyone struggles. My story is just one of countless, at Fossil and in the world. When we pass each other in the hallway, do we remember that? I do. And I know we can all overcome our challenges if we truly want to change and have a goal. Anything is possible.