https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5 Made with a warm hug en-us 2017-09-20 18:53:37 UTC 2017-09-22 03:57:59 UTC hello@padlet.com bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189501270 My best friend Katie moved to New York about four months ago. She's been with me ever since the first day of preschool and now she's all the way across the country. So we could always be together, we made each other matching bracelets. 'Say You Won't Let Go' by James Arthur used to be our favorite song and now whenever I hear it I think of her. Tears are shed whenever the song is played and this bracelet is really something special to me.  ]]> 2017-09-20 18:58:00 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189501270 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189508588 In fourth grade my papa passed away and for a whole year whenever I saw a red and white mint I would burst into tears. The reason is because whenever I told my papa I wasn't good enough or I couldn't do something he would hand me a mint and tell me it was okay. He always held handfuls of mints in his pockets or in my Nana's purse. He always told me I was just as good, if not better then my older siblings. And most importantly when I cried, he told me that girls don't cry and would wipe my tears away. 'Big Girls Don't Cry' by Fergie reminds me that when I cry I need to wipe my tears away and keep moving forward, that's what my Papa would want. ]]> 2017-09-20 19:14:27 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189508588 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189512936 No matter what's going on my life my parents are there to help me. I'm so fortunate to have them and can't begin to image what I would do without them. Obviously everyone appreciates their parents, but my parents have helped me through so many things in my life. Specifically when I was in elementary school because I always felt out of place due to my race. I was one of two kids in my grade that was African American and for some reason I felt as though I didn't belong. But my dad always told me to never worry about the color of my skin and told me no matter what, I was beautiful. Every morning when I was sad or in a bad mood he would sing the song 'You Are so Beautiful' by Joe Cocker to cheer me up. Now whenever I hear this song my emotions get the best of me and I want to cry. ]]> 2017-09-20 19:24:47 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189512936 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189593247 My cousin Candice had her entire life figured out...she was pregnant, about to graduate from nursing school and finally got engaged to her fiancé Todd. Finally their baby boy, Ramsey, was born about a year and a half ago. Although, when Ramsey was three months old Todd unfortunately passed away. It was truly a tragedy to everyone in my family, especially Candice. Todd was an amazing man who inspired many of my friends and family in Louisiana. He's still in all of our prayers and will always have a place in our hearts. Ramsey is going to be raised without his father, but still has many many supporters and I'm lucky enough to be his godmother. Candice and everyone in our family is so lucky to have Ramsey to keep our spirits up. I honestly don't know what we would do without his presence. The song 'Jesus, Take The Wheel' by Carrie Underwood really reminds me that even though Todd is gone, he brought in an amazing, new baby into this world. Ramsey is truly a miracle. ]]> 2017-09-21 03:00:52 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189593247 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189598137 For my entire life, mainly elementary school, I've felt "out of place" because of my race. I used to get made fun of at school due to the color of my skin and my culture. After many painful years in elementary school, middle school rolled around and I thought all the mean jokes would go away. I was wrong, middle school was full of stereotypical jokes about African American people. I honestly didn't know how to respond to this so instead I would only laugh and make another joke about myself and my race. By the beginning of eighth grade it was a pretty normal thing to make a black joke towards me and I never took offense to it because I thought that I didn't care...but I did and I still do. As eighth grade slowly went by I started telling my friends it wasn't funny to make jokes about me and they stopped. I never realized how easy it is to stick up for myself. Also for the longest time I never realized how extraordinary my culture is. Having my Louisiana family is the best thing I could ever ask for! I always feel at home and never "out of place." My family, culture and mainly Louisiana really helped me cope with what was going on in my life. The song 'I'm Almost There' by Princess Tiana is a song from my favorite Disney movie "Princess and The Frog," when I was little and sad I would watch this movie and feel better. To this day, I look up to Princess Tiana and she really inspires me. ]]> 2017-09-21 03:37:08 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189598137 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189856647 Ever since my siblings and I were little we wanted a dog. We begged and pleaded since the day we knew what dogs were. One day in fourth grade my mom surprised our family with Sadie, our dog! At first she was a lot of responsibility, she always barked and needed to use the bathroom at the most inconvenient times. But last year Sadie became somewhat mature and surprisingly enough helped me through a lot of tough times. Even when someone in my family leaves the house for thirty minutes, Sadie still gets super excited to see us walk through the door. After a tough day or when I'm feeling sad, it really helps to have Sadie there to cheer me up. Sadie's like my own little support dog! The song 'If You're Happy Wag Your Tail' by video star one, reminds me of my dog because it's obviously about dogs based on the lyrics, but two because in sixth grade I made a video star (app fro making music videos) of Sadie and my family. Now when I'm sad I watch it and it brings my spirits up. ]]> 2017-09-21 17:18:00 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189856647 bridgetbyrne21 https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189867441 I've always looked up to my older brother Brian. In elementary school we were super close! We did everything together and had fun doing it. But then a new school year started and Brian was in fifth grade. He thought he was too cool to hang out with me anymore and it crushed my heart. I lost touch with Brian and stopped seeing him at home as often. One day I snuck into his room and stole his favorite panda stuffed animal. Even though he was in fifth grade, he still secretly loved his stuffed animals. Brian started to look for the stuffed animal, but couldn't find it. I finally confessed to having it and returned the panda in tears. Brian then realized that I really missed him and decided to give me the panda to keep. Now Brian and I are a lot closer than we used to be. The song 'Count On Me' by Bruno Mars relates back to my relationship with my brother because I feel like now I can count on him to help me with my life. ]]> 2017-09-21 17:39:21 UTC https://padlet.com/bridgetbyrne21/49m9g6aeq8r5/wish/189867441