"Jay, never in my mind since you have been on this earth, have I ever doubted your abilities or the intelligence you possess... never forget what you have been through just to be alive today." I remember this exact statement my mother said to me as I held back tears. Not tears of pain or sorrow, but tears of gratitude and joy. He whispered them to me a few hours after I graduated from high school with an advanced degree and the difficult obstacles have apparently become the “story of my life.” Before I was born, my mother had two miscarriages. During my birth, fluids were trapped in my lungs. This threatened my existence just hours after I breathed air. During my long hospital stay, my parents, who are devout Christians, named me after my father, Johnny. This is because the name Johnny translates to “God is merciful” or merciful, given the obstacles my parents had to endure for me to be on this earth, I know they sincerely believed it The obstacles don't stop there. President Franklin Roosevelt said, “When you come to the end of the rope, tie a knot and hang on.” This quote has been my motivation and encouragement throughout my life. For me, it spoke to my strong perseverance, my ability to continue to overcome adversity. Often, I jokingly told family and friends that sometimes adversity was my best friend, I honestly felt it was just me, adversity and a little piece of hope. That hope is what has given me strength in life every day. As I grew up going to elementary school, many times I wanted to give up and not finish. I started talking about this topic as early as third grade, when a teacher told me that because of my learning style, which is...middle of the paper...or "leaving the world a better place" than how we found it. My early successes and achievements have really helped me in my undergraduate and post-graduation career. Being in a comfortable environment allowed me to take up to twenty-one credit hours per semester and be involved on campus, hold a full-time government job, and succeed in my coursework. I began my university studies unsure whether or not I would be successful due to difficulties in elementary school. However, because I have worked hard and continued to push, I look forward to graduating with a good grade point average and completing my requirements for my MBA while I am still young. I sincerely believe that I will continue my pursuit of excellence while attending Howard University. I am ready for the challenges ahead and am finally realizing my full potential to succeed in whatever I set my mind to.