I sat there next to the river, I listened, I closed my eyes,
and for the first time in my life I heard the most beautiful
sound in the world. It was not something that came from outside,
it came from within. The simple sound of my heart beat. It
was only there and then in the creation of the creator that
I realized how beautiful life is.
I come from an environment where it is not rare to hear the
blast of a gun in the night, or to hear the sound of sirens
and helicopters on hot pursuit on a day-to-day basis. My father
whom I admire and respect works full time in a garment sweatshop,
goes to night school, and still finds time to be a great parent.
My mother wakes up every morning at three in the morning to
cook tamales that she sells to provide my two younger sisters
and I with a better future. We all live in a one-bedroom apartment
in south central Los Angeles.
I love every minute, every second, and mil second of my life.
It’s because I’m in love. I’m in love with
the great outdoors, nature, earth’s most beautiful jewels.
It is here that I feel the greatest joys in life. From the
first time I saw stars to the time I had my first solo experience,
I would not trade it for anything. It is impossible to describe
how I feel. Since my first contact with nature I fell in love
at first sight, and a passion came from inside my heart I
never knew was there.
PND224, I will never forget my course number. It is has been
a pinnacle in my life to go on an Outward Bound course. I
pushed my limits in every sense possible. How many people
can say that they slept on top of a peak with eight people
in four sleeping bags zipped-up together, or that they chased
a carabineer in the middle of a river and walked 6 miles in
wet and muddy boots. Not many I think, but for me it was fun!
Outward Bound challenged me in physical and emotional ways
beyond my imagination. I learned to see the world and life
in a new perspective.
It is programs like the Pinnacle Scholars program that have
allowed me to become the person I am today. It is those that
support programs like these that I owe my deepest gratitude.
To express it in simple words is impossible. It is people
like you that make dreams come true.
My journey is long from over. Back in LA we have created
the first ever National Parks Conservation Association youth
advisory council whose main goal is to help others experience
and conserve the outdoors. I am the first to graduate from
High School in my entire family, and the first to attend college.
My ultimate goal is to become an environmental attorney.
Each and every day I wonder where my next journey will take
me but I never forget even sometimes when I ride the bus going
into downtown in between those huge skyscrapers I close my
eyes and I listen, and I hear the most beautiful sound…I
love life.
