All I had was  big dreams, and nothing else. I woke up every morning with the same pressure, the same weight on my shoulders, in the same unfortunate situation. I looked at the same rising and setting sun, that seemed to set earlier and rise later year round, but even in the midst of darkness, there was a little light that radiated. I had a dream. I always caught myself daydreaming about this dream of mine. I used to think to myself  “Man if I do this, I could really change the lives of everyone in my family.” I realized that I could bring inspiration, hope and light, and rewrite our story or better said, add to it. My dream would require sacrifice, dedication, but I knew nothing was impossible as long as I set my mind to it. Just a young teen from an underrepresented background in small town called Leicester...where was I to even start?

In the summer of 2016 I began to write my own story, not even knowing that I was doing so. It all started from one email. Mrs. Hippert had sent out a flyer for a Youth Medical Program. ‘Oooh Science’, I grinned to myself. I continued to glance over the flyer which read, Health Professions Recruitment Program at Harvard Medical School. “No way”, I thought to myself, “Harvard? Jeez, that's a bit out of my range. Way out of my league.” But I knew that to succeed and live out my dreams as a Pediatrician, or Pediatric Surgeon I had to stop waiting around and begin to chase and conquer mountains bigger than I. After days and days of considering and weighing my options, I applied. “If I get accepted good. If I dont even better. I’ll learn from a rejection and sharpen myself for the next opportunity like this.” Honestly, I knew that opportunities like this didn't come so often, and that an opportunity like this could fly by and not come back my way. So I submitted my application with just a couple days before the application deadline. Mind you, the application had just opened about a couple months before. It was a long couple of weeks where I continuously questioned my worthiness of applying to such a program at Harvard Medical. An area completely out of my comfort zone, but I had a goal, a dream, and I just chose to start by challenging myself the hardest way possible.  The weeks passed as I eagerly waited for a letter, or email. I was new to this whole Harvard thing, so I didn't know how, or even when, I would be given notice of my acceptance... If I was even accepted.

Suddenly the preface/introduction to my story was completed, and I began to write the first chapter, it all began in my dining room. I still remember the day like it was yesterday; a warm Monday evening where I sat in my dining room completing my A.P U.S History homework. After such a long wait, I had given up the daily routine of checking my emails for what could possibly be an acceptance email. “But why not I thought to myself, just check one more time, maybe just one more time, and then not again for a very long time.” I moved my cursor to the left of the tab that was already opened, and I clicked it creating a new one. My heart began to beat a little faster, each beat. Then I typed in mail, entered, directly taking me to my inbox… Congratulations from HPREP the subject of the newest email read. “NO WAY” I thought to myself. I clicked open the email, and the first line was heaven. “Congratulations! It is our pleasure to accept you into the Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP) at Harvard Medical School and to welcome you to the HPREP community!” I started fiddling and hopping, doing the Charleston, man...was it a good day to be alive. I finally had something to celebrate.What I thought was so big compared to me was actually, not so big at all. The mountain that I once saw as a huge blockade was actually just a small bump, on the road ahead of me. I was my own enemy, I made the bump that lay before me look like the mountain, it was actually not. Suddenly I was filled with motivation, vigor, ready to make a difference. HPREP was just a sign pointing to a road where my dream lay right across the horizon. I could see dips, hills, valleys, and broken paths along the way, signifying the struggles, difficulties, and challenges I was to face, but till this day I always remember the powerful quote by John C. Maxwell: “Your dreams dont work unless you do.” Today I am  ready to make a difference and ready to make a change. They say that you can conquer and climb a mountain, just to realize that there are many more mountains ahead of you. But, I was determined that I would not die with my dreams tied to my belt.

Chapter Two, two weeks into HPREP I've learned that I was one of  68 students chosen out of over 600 applicants out of the Cambridge and Boston area. Infact, for applying so late statistics given to us by Harvard stated that late applicants have just about 4% chance of being accepted into any program, anywhere, when applying latest with a fast approaching deadline. Here's a tip... At HPREP I’m representing Leicester High School out of 39 different schools. Every Saturday I get the opportunity to work with kids like me, students with the same interests as me, students ready to make their own mark in the world of medicine one day. We’re all eager to learn, love, laugh but at the end make a difference. There are so many reason why I love HPREP not only because of the people there, but also because of my mentor Xavier, and all the other mentors and medical faculty around me. Xavier is an alumni of Columbia University and a two year Grad student at Harvard Medical for Neuroscience. Seeing so many students like me who were once in my very shoes,  makes me well aware of the fact that nothing is impossible. The question is, if we’re all really eager to find the answers to what is  impossible to our lives? Are we ready to take that next step to attempt the impossible? There's not much that clearly differentiates us HPREP students from any other student out there. The only difference is the ambition, the desire to learn, the competitive drive and the ability to not fear failure. I believe that you, also, can do the impossible.

Afterword. So what do you even take from all this? To never give up? To always believe in yourself? Apply to Harvard? Follow a career in medicine? No, all the those things may be important or favor you, but what I do want you to remember, is to reach out for the things bigger than you. Many times we fear to do so, and box ourselves into a place where everything looks too big. We all have the seeds of success within us. The question is when are we ready to cultivate those seeds through our hard work, resilience, and dedication? Never, ever, give up. I am just a young teen from a small town with big dreams, where I believe anything is possible.