The first thing I learned to draw was a tree. I remember sitting with my mother, when I was five, and following her steps until I made a tree of my own. Since then I have kept spare notebooks as sketch books. I drew houses and the landscapes around them. At first I felt like it was a simple hobby of mine, until the sixth grade when I learned about geometry, and I realized that I enjoyed putting shapes together and making designs. By the eighth grade I discovered my love for math and building (through a number of projects).

Many things have inspired me to want to become an architect. These include my interests and my love of anything that involves art. Through my experiences I strove to be unique using my creativity. Every time I look at a piece of art I find myself absorbed. I focus my attention on what the artist was trying to express. One thing I realized is that I enjoy looking at things from different perspectives. It really keeps me open-minded and makes me more appreciative. Art to me is not only a way for the artist to express him or herself but a way to communicate with people. And to me that is one of my greatest inspirations. Every building is someone’s idea, someone's creativity, their way of communicating. I would enjoy if individuals looking at my work and got different messages from it.

I used to feel like I should be complimented when I was done with a piece of work, but I now understand that the real strength comes from being able to take criticism (which I get a lot of-courtesy of my sister) and learning to use it to better myself. This is important because over the course of my career I most likely will meet challenges and competition, so I need to appreciate any form of criticism. Like my mom says, "the person criticizing you, wants the best from you." Which may not always be the case but it has always helped me to think of it in that way.