There is no such thing as a self made person and to claim so is not only disingenuous but also disrespectful to those who helped positively shape you. For better or for worse, we are all products of our environment and the people within it. I believe that people can change when presented with new information and new reasoning(and I have done so very much myself), but ultimately the largest changes come from a person’s upbringing. As such, I would like to say thank you to all of the people who helped push me in a more positive direction.
My Mom
My mom has been the strongest force in my life as far as guiding my personality, traits, and ideals whether it be from encouraging my love of horror with lots of trips to local(and not so local) haunted houses, encouraging my morality based on logical reasoning by introducing me to diverse groups of thought and radical feminism, always taking the time to hear out my problems and tackle them constructively, allowing and encouraging me to be open about myself both in sexuality and in personality, inspiring my sense of both adventure and scientific curiosity through trips to various locations of scientific importance and/or beauty, always making sure I knew safety comes over punishment, and for showing me the importance of positivity and love. I couldn’t have asked for a better mom and am so lucky to have her.
My Dad
My dad, while not the strongest force in my life due to his easy going and passive nature, has always been a loving steady constant presence who could have sometimes been misled but always had the best intentions for protecting me and all that he cared about. He taught me the importance of self care, to take time for myself, to always keep calm and collected no matter what, and to enjoy the little things. He was always there when I needed help or someone to talk to or even just someone to keep me company(he even helped me to get through some difficult parts in video games in my much younger years!). He always accepted and encouraged the joy I took in gaming and started it all by allowing me to use his PlayStation 3. He put countless hours in teaching me how to drive(among many other things!) and always made sure I was as safe and comfortable as possible. He was taken way too soon and was the best father I could ever ask for.
My Teachers
Nothing can replace the effort and care that I’ve been shown by all of my teachers but my high school, elementary, and middle school ones especially(through no fault of the college teachers. The previous schools had a lot smaller class sizes so I was able to personally interact with teachers a lot more.). From the very helpful extra work put in from my Latin and Physics teachers to the passion, understanding, and amazing personalities of them all(although I especially loved the history, science, and English teachers, every teacher has been great in their own ways). My teachers have been some of the most caring, sweet, intelligent, and empathetic people I’ve ever met and I owe the majority of my book smarts, my affinity for reading, and a decent part of my dry wit to them. Teaching can often be such a thankless job but they did make a major difference in my life and I can’t thank them enough for it.