My identity is a reflection of all the places I’ve been and people I’ve met. Every conversation and argument, class and store has shaped my perspective, but nothing has developed my character more than traveling. As children, both my parents didn’t travel at all, aside from the occasional trip to Disney. Wanting to break that pattern, they worked hard to give me and my little sister the chance to travel frequently, so we can understand other cultures and grow our perspectives. To celebrate all the places we’ve gone, my family has a map of the US with pins on it. Each pin, a jumble of white, black, and green dots, represents a city, town, ski resort, or national park that my family and I have been to. After going on a trip, we come together to put pins in the places we went. During these moments, we reflect on all that we did, learned, saw, and the amazing memories we had created. With each thunk the pins make as we secure them to the map, we reminisce on seeing bears in Montana or moose in Colorado, white river rafting in Idaho, snorkeling in Florida. But beyond showing the amazing trips I’ve been on, the map reminds me how I’ve grown my open-mindedness, humility, and appreciation. My family’s curiosity and adventurous spirit has led us to explore so many places, all represented by pins on our map, each one impacting who I am today. 

– HL

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