Family

Family is everything to me! My family made me into the person I am today. I carry a lot of values that came from my family. One of those values is helping others. As a child, I was brought up in the church where I not only learned to help others but also respect others. Respect to me goes a long way and holds a lot of weight throughout one’s life. If you show respect towards people then you will get respect back. My mother always told me “You get back what you put out in this world”. This is why I take so much pride into helping others and having respect towards others as well. When it comes to social issues in our society, it’s hard to turn away from them and act as though they are not taking place everyday in our lives. I’ll be honest, as a kid I had no idea nor did I care about social issues and what it really meant. As a kid growing up in a tough neighborhood, all I witnessed was crime but as I got older and understood the real issues in society, I felt that it was my responsibility to speak up. I take full advantage of all my social media platforms to let my voice be heard when there is some form of injustice in this country. 2020 has been the year of the unthinkable filled with tragedy and unbelief. This past summer, police brutality really stood out as a big problem that we have yet to fix in this country. The deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd sparked protest around the country that lasted for months. People were outraged and tired of the racial injustice that was taking place and where it was taking place in particular the african american community. I too was outraged and tired of the abuse and killings from law enforcement so I took it to social media to have my voice heard. I felt good to voice my opinion because I felt like I had people to share my frustration with. This same type of frustration that I and many others had led to ideas being developed on how we can come together and find a solution. Protests were formed just days later and it will be an experience I will never forget. Even though the country was torn apart during that time, my family grew together closer than ever. People that haven’t spoken in years were talking to each other in my family and I was very happy about that. You never know when you could lose somebody that you love so you have to love while they’re here and I think many people miss that and it’s too late when they finally realize it. The Coronavirus pandemic also drove my family together a lot. When you’re stuck in the house with people you live with for 4 months, it’s almost impossible not to grow closer to them and learn more about them than ever before. I am forever thankful for that time with my family.