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Moments in your life where you felt liberated or free. Your aspirations for personal freedom.

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This is a picture from my trip to Aruba in the summer of 2023. One of my favorite things is being by the water or a beach, I love listening to the waves crash, feeling the sun, and just admiring how pretty it is. During my week in Aruba, I didn't have to worry about work or sports and I spent my days traveling to different beaches. The beaches there were beautiful and I was in awe of the scenery around me. This specific location we visited I remember feeling "freedom." My family and I hiked through the trees to find a little private beach that led to the water. We swam in the water and I was amazed with how clear and warm it was. Afterwards, there was this floating dock where I layed out on and I just listened to the waves crash and could feel the sun on me. This is a moment where I felt freedom because I felt truly happy and worry free.

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Moments in your life where you felt a deep sense of purpose or meaning, sources of inspiration, or things that you truly enjoy.

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In the spring of 2023, I completed in a lacrosse game with my high school team against who we considered our rivals. I was extremely nervous for the game and couldn't calm my head down. When I entered the game, I wasn't seeing the ball well and I was getting scored on with shots that I felt like I should be saving. When a timeout was called, one of my coaches could tell I was flustered and came over to me. She said "When you first started playing lacrosse when you were little, why did you do it?" I said "Because it was fun and I loved it." She then told me to go back out on the field and to play with that same mindset, to just have fun and play the game I love. After this, I went back into the game with a new mindset and I ended up having a good game and even made one of the best saves I've ever made. Most importantly, I was enjoying myself and felt happy while playing. This picture is of me one of the very first times I stepped in the goal. I included this picture of me because I often look back at it as a reminder of why I play. I picked this for the "Meaning" category, because the story and image depicts something I really enjoy, a sense of inspiration, and a time where I felt deep purpose and meaning.

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Moments in your life where you felt a deep sense of purpose or meaning, sources of inspiration, or things that you truly enjoy.

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I feel a deep sense of meaning when I am with my family. As cliche as this might sound my mom, dad, and my brother are my best friends. My family provides me a great sense of inspiration. My mom and dad have both been through many challenges and have inspired me to push through them like they have. They also are incredibly hard workers and kind people and I aspire to be the same. My brother has also gone through many incredibly difficult challenges especially regarding his health. He has always beat the odds and keeps a positive mindset throughout it all. He's constantly motivated in finding opportunities to achieve his dreams for the future and it inspires me to do the same. My parents have given up so much to make sure that I am happy and that I succeed. They also just provide me with so much love and support through all of the bad and the good. My brother is also one of the most supportive people in my life. He often tells me how proud he is of me and supports me through everything, even when he is living six hours away. I truly love my family and feel a sense of meaning when I am with them because of how loving, accepting, and supportive they are.

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Explore existential questions such as the meaning of life, the nature of existence, or the role of choice and responsibility in shaping one's destiny.

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I could've choose this picture for a number of categories but I decided to go with Existentialism to talk about the nature of existence and meaning of life. This is a photo of a concert I attended. Concerts are one of my happy places because I love music (especially live) and because of the environment. While to some people a crowded stadium with screaming might be overwhelming, I think it's really cool. There are tens of thousands of people here that are all gathered together for a common shared interest. The loudness depicts the happiness coming from so many different people all in the same room. I think it's amazing that for a few hours, so many people gather together and live in the moment together, share joy, and excitement. When I think about existence and the meaning of life this is the kind of thing I like to picture.

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The role of choice and responsibility in shaping one's destiny.

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This is a photo of me during my visit to Jacksonville on the day of my commitment. This photo greatly depicts the role of choice and responsibility in shaping one's destiny. I've played lacrosse for 10 years and my dream had always been to play college lacrosse, but it wasn't something that was just given to me. I played for a competitive lacrosse team where I gave up a lot of my time practicing and traveling to tournaments in hopes to improve and get recruited. I also went to countless of camps, clinics, and private coaches to learn and improve my game. Beginning in high school I really began making choices and holding responsibilities that at times felt really hard but I had to do so if I wanted to reach my goal. I made the choice to give up almost two entire summers traveling to go to recruiting camps and tournaments. I often felt left out and disappointed as I watched my friends having fun together while I was at lacrosse again. I also had to spend my free time at school writing emails to coaches or jumping on calls with them instead of spending time with my friends. Similarly, I missed a lot of school and had to find time to make up all of my work and keep my grades up. This entire process felt incredibly draining and I often felt hopeless. When September 1st came and recruiting finally opened up, I received a lot of interest; however, I also received a lot of disappointment from schools that didn't want me. I watched as many of my teammates and athletes that I've played with or against all began committing to schools and constantly compared myself to them. At times I felt like all the sacrifices I made were for nothing. Eventually, a few weeks into my junior year I received a text message from the coach at Jacksonville, my top choice. Soon after, I flew down there and spent the day touring the school, meeting with the team and coaches, and by the end of the day I was offered a scholarship and a spot on the team. In this moment, I knew that all of the choices I had made and responsibilities I was given during this whole process was worth it, it shaped my destiny and allowed me to achieve my lifelong dream.

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Explore existential questions such as the meaning of life, the nature of existence, or the role of choice and responsibility in shaping one's destiny.

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Sunsets allow me reflect on the meaning of life. When I see a sunset I focus on nature and the Earth. I notice the vibrant colors and beautiful scene that's created from the world. Sunsets also depict the end of a day and I think it's beautiful to end a day with such beautiful views. Sometimes when I had a tough day, I make it a point to go watch the sunset. No matter what happened earlier in the day, I can watch the sun disappear and beautiful colors appear and I'm reminded that as this day ends, a new one will soon begin. Life isn't defined by just one experience or one day, and the sunset reminds me that nothing lasts forever.

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This is a photo of my best friends and I. I choose this photo for authenticity because I feel like my true self when I'm around them. I have always been a person who has cared too much about what others think about me and often I overthink my interactions with people. However, with this friend group I never feel the need to do these things. I'm always happy when I'm around them, I never feel as though I'm being judged or have any reason to over think, and I can always talk to them about anything that's going on.