My first year at the University of Cincinnati definitely took an unexpected turn, to say the
least. Just when I thought I had gotten the hang of classes and the college life, thousands of other
students and I were forced to leave campus and continue our classes online. Due to COVID-19,
billions of lives were completely altered, and all of a sudden, the world became such a negative
place. All I saw when I watched the news or got on social media was people arguing over the
politics concerning the virus or just spreading more negativity. Right when it seemed as if the
virus was slowing down, the cruel murder of George Floyd took place, sending the world back
into another craze. There was more arguing over politics, the justice system, and the rights of the
people. Along with the arguments came riots that caused utter destruction on local businesses
and stores. While this event was able to bring an immense amount of awareness to the injustice
towards blacks, it also brought a lot of negativity and hatred between the American people,
which is something that I wanted to help change.
In my attempt to bring just a little bit more positivity into this world, I began my first
honors experience: a summer of landscaping! With this experience, which will be documented
and showcased more in the future, I am doing landscaping all summer with a group of other
people. This includes things such as mulching, pruning, placing sod, and countless other
landscaping duties. My hope is that my landscaping can bring some positivity into the world as I
make homeowners happy by renovating their yards and giving them a complete makeover. So
far, it has been a very successful summer. I have gotten the opportunity to speak with several
homeowners, and it has been extremely satisfying getting to see the joy on their faces when they
come outside and see the work that we have done in their yard. Not only do I get to make the
homeowners happy, but also many neighbors and other viewers. There have been several
neighbors that have come over to see and compliment us on our work, sometimes asking if we
can come work at their place. Whether their happiness lasts minutes, hours, or days, it makes me
ecstatic and satisfied that I was able to take their mind off of all of the current negativity in this
world for any amount of time.
This has been the biggest issue that I have worked on all year, and so far, it has been very
successful and an amazing experience doing a summer of landscaping. I am beyond excited to
continue with my summer, and I hope to keep bringing joy into people’s lives and instilling some
positivity into this world one house at a time.
Freshman Year
