Influences

Me, like everyone else in the world, has had many influences throughout my life...starting with my friends and family.  I'm the kind of person who cares about what people think of me and so therefore I'm kind and treat others how I would want to be treated.  I was influenced in this way by my parents.

This is my family at my sister's confirmation. From left to right: my grandfather, grandmother, me, my sister Bridget, my mom, and dad

Obviously, my family has had a great influence on me, (they do all the punishing!) but as I get older, my friends probably hold a greater weight of influence. Unconsciously, this is because I know my family will always love me, or at least have to deal with me, but friends are only there because they want to be, anything could happen to make them want to leave.  So it is important to me to always keep my friends close.  My best friends in the world are Sarah Hopkins and Taylor Vassios.  I can call them my best friends because even though I hold a fear of what people think of me, we're great enough friends that I don't need to not be nervous or watch what I say and I know that they'll always be there.

Sarah and I at her ranch in Montana

Me (on left) and Taylor posing for our sorority photo-shoot

I know that these girls will always have my back and I got lucky in that I found some best friends who never pressure me to do anything I don't want to do and are genuinely nice, good girls.  They've been great influences and have made me a better person because of it. Sarah and I met in 4th grade when I had just moved to Southlake Texas from Dallas.  At first we didn't click well.  We had completely different personalities and she came off kind of spoiled.  This is probably why we're best friends though...because we're so different I mean.  Anyways, after years of being friends we were inseparable. I would only ever hang out with her and because of that, it was hard for me to get out and meet new people.  This all changed my junior year of high school.  Sarah and her family moved to Montana which forced me to go out and make more friends.  It's not that I didn't have any other friends, I just wasn't that close to any of them.  That's when I met Taylor.  We actually met through our mutual friend Kaitlin, and since then, I've been lucky to call her one of my best friends. So basically my point in saying all this is to show that my friends influence me to make decisions without even knowing about it.  And sometimes, something that seems terrible can end up being good.  Like Sarah moving away.  We're still close to the point of sisterhood, and I was able to gain Taylor's friendship in the process. 

Other than friends and family, a number of other people influence me as well.  Teachers and peers play a big part as well as my sorority.  However, in the end, I'm good about making my own decisions.  There will always be people who will influence me, but when it comes to serious things like smoking and drugs, I've promised myself not to give in to peer pressure.  And so far, I've kept that promise every single time I've been in that kind of situation.