Middle school was a struggle; especially the 8th Grade.

I wasn't the prettiest girl; I had bad acne, I had cut out a perm because I didn't know I could have it chemically straightened, I was incredibly focused on being a people pleaser, and I was too afraid to stand up for myself. Girls who I thought were my friends bullied me for my appearance - from my hair, to my makeup (or lack of makeup), to my outfit choices. I felt worthless; I felt low. Every day that I had to wake up and go to school was a struggle. I felt like people didn't see me for the things I was good at - I felt like they only saw me for my hard, unattractive exterior shell. Even when I tried to put myself together and look more "girly" I was judged and made fun of. The more my peers judged me, the more I tried to fit in, and the more my self esteem plummeted toward rock bottom. I went from being fairly confident in my elementary years to going through the school doors like a beaten dog with my tail between my legs. I hated the way I looked, I hated the way I was being treated, and I hated that I didn't feel strong enough to do something about it.

But there were about 3 hours every day that I felt like all the stress of trying and failing to fit in went away; I had two teachers who made me feel special and like I was more than my awkward personality and hard, dark outer appearance. My gym teacher and my literature and composition teacher kept me sane.

These two women took me under their wing and showed me that I was more than what my peers thought I was. These two women believed in me when no one else did. These two women made me feel like I was worth something and that I was special. These two women pulled me out of the darkest times of my life and gave me the courage to get out of my box and become the confident, independent, and hard working person that I am today. I honestly believe I would not have become the person that I am without them investing in me when I was the most low and helpless.

I remember the first time I walked into Mrs. Norton's 8th Grade English class. I hated writing and I only ever did the bare minimum on essay questions. I remember being in the second grade and when my teacher told us to write at least 5 sentences after we read every day I only ever wrote 5 sentences. I could not stand writing and I could barely stand reading. English was not my favorite subject. Mrs. Norton changed that. Instead of reading my writing and tearing it apart by belittling my ideas and telling me things like, "you're smart; you can do better than this." Mrs. Norton was one of the first people to tell me my writing was actually GOOD. I still have a post-it note she put in my writer's notebook that said "You have a GIFT!" and it completely changed my outlook on writing. I was picked on my kids my age, and I felt worthless, but Mrs. Norton made me feel special and she made me feel happy about myself in an incredibly dark time in my life. I'll never forget when she played the song "Birthday" by the Beatles on my actual birthday because she knew I loved them so much. Even on my darkest days she encouraged me to be myself and not worry about what other kids thought of me. She made me more confident and helped me to believe that I had so many things to give the world.

Mrs. Curtis was the gym teacher every kid at Dekalb Middle School wanted. She went to my church, and all of the kids loved her so much. She had an infectious laugh and a gregarious personality. The first day of health class she sang to "All Star" by Smash Mouth and as dorky as it was, I loved it! She was the type of person I longed to be when I grew up. She was unafraid to be herself, she exuded confidence, and she made every student feel like they were special in their own unique way. I was horrible at sports, and when every other gym teacher who had ever taught me would heckle me for it - she picked me up and told me to try again and praised me for doing my best. She made the awkward lessons of sex-ed entertaining, and her drawings of Shaniqua the pregnant woman who smokes weed, drinks beer, and smokes cigarettes while pregnant will forever stick out in my mind. When we drove golf carts with "beer goggles" and I started at the wrong end of the wrong course, she gave me a hard time, but I knew it was out of love and compassion. Every time she needed someone to run errands, she chose me and she made me feel like I was a kid worth investing in. She always made sure to tell me I was smart and talented, and that I was going to raise expectations. She made me feel like I was worth more than my poor athletic ability and horrible vision.

Without these two teachers investing in me, I don't know where I would be right now. I can tell you for sure I would not be writing and I would not have the confidence to talk to people from nationally ranked institutions about internships. I would not be as successful as I am today without the work these two women - and countless other teachers in elementary and high school - that spent time getting to know me and make sure I knew I was worth more that I would have ever imagined. I no longer have my hard, middle school exterior, but I will always hold the impressions these teachers put on me near and dear to my heart.