My journey here at Queen’s has always been about faith — in myself, in others, and via religion. I was always told that if your dreams do not scare you, they’re not big enough. I came to Queen’s because it was always my dream. I come from a neighborhood in Toronto where people don’t always make it to post-secondary let alone get through high school. Coming to Queen’s was not easy and believe it or not, within my first year literally a week in, I wanted to quit because it felt like such a mistake. I realized it only felt that way because I felt so inadequate and I consistently compared myself and my background to others to help validate my poor performance. Little did I know where I came from shouldn’t have validated why I sucked, but rather why I shouldn’t have been focusing on that aspect of me at all! Now in my third year of life sciences, I couldn’t tell you how much I love this place because it would take forever for me to summarize it all. I found my home within FLOW Dance Club during my first year by joining their competitive team and making the one constant that has truly been with me through everything, one of the biggest parts of my life here at QU. Running FLOW and being on their team as well as teaching for Queen’s Dance Club taught me many things the biggest being that things get better. Factoring in rehearsals, classes both academic and dance-related, lab hours, and other extracurriculars, a lot of people have asked me how I do it or moreover why? This takes me back to the beginning, faith. I think of the place where I come from, my mother and my father, and the sacrifices the three of us had to make so that I could get here. Every missed party, every late night hour in the studio, every midterm, exam, standardized test, it’s all for them. I remember that the dream that I am currently pursuing is not just mine, but is theirs. I’m a keen believer in that one must put their uttermost faith into every decision that they make and that with sacrifice, comes strength. My parents were the first people who taught me that and every day, I take into account every aspect of their journeys towards a better life into my own journey as I continue to pursue the dreams that I fear here at Queen’s.
