There are several people that have managed to add focus to my life but there are especially two people who I remember have shaped my life in an extremely positive manner which has managed to carry me through rough times in my life. Those people have been my high school French teacher and my mother’s sister, my aunt. Each told a tale of its own to leave cherishing moments that have kept me on a very positive road in my life. My aunt helped to raise me as a young child. She instilled in me great strides of educational values and integrity. I learned great creative writing skills from her and to never quit. She always had a compassionate hand to lend in times of need.

Today she has cancer and I am there to give her a shoulder to lean on. She was always different from my mother who was full of anxiety and fear. My French teacher was sort of like my aunt, full of agility and always focused on the positive issues in life. She always wore a smile on her face even when things did not go so good in her day. I admired that about her because it made my day go just a little better when life at home wasn’t so pleasant. She is still in my life today for we still communicate every once in awhile on Face book and she admires me for my intelligence and was not afraid to tell me how bright of a student I was. She always made me feel special just like my aunt. I always felt like I had a safe haven to go to as a child and still today. These are very special people in my life that have helped to shape my inner child and my personality and I am very thankful for the tools they have taught me. They have made me gentle and soft yet strong and self-worthy.