My Earliest Memory

As my arm inches closer and closer, which feels like ten seconds with how slow-motion this felt, I get a better look as to what I’m reaching for. It was a green ball, with a pink bow sitting on a brown square. As soon as my hand touches the green ball... black; my mind goes black. I never got to see what it was! Why must you do this to me, brain? Was this just another dream? I remembered it so vividly, it couldn’t be.

This happened when I was months old so twenty years later, I decided to bring it to my dad’s attention. He sat there, listened to every word I said without showing any emotion. I was slowly starting to believe it was only a dream; how would my father know this happened? When I finished describing this moment, he told me I had grabbed a cactus that was shaped like a turkey. It really did happen… but why did I remember this certain moment? I was curious and carried that throughout my life.

I’ve grabbed the turkey-shaped cactus in various moments throughout my life, not knowing what would happen next. When I was searching for scholarships during community college, I ended up applying for an internship, not knowing where it would take me. That internship at Phoenix College helped me prepare for an opportunity in Iowa. Then I was introduced to an internship at Arizona State University. One led to another and I want to reach for more.

I’ve always been curious about finding out what makes us, us; our different personalities, anatomy or even our way of thinking. I want to dive into what goes on within the brain that makes us do certain things. Most of my life can easily go back to my curious, eye-catching decisions. Why is that? Even though I don’t know what the outcome will be, I know it will be worthwhile and I will learn from it. This is why biology, my cactus, interests me so much; my curiosity got the best of me!

Figure 1. There is a cactus named "curiosity cactus", which is seen in this picture ("Curiosity Cactus...", n.d.). Even though the cactus I grabbed and have engraved into my brain looks completely different, it is my unique curiosity cactus.

Citation

“Curiosity Cactus - Cereus Peruvianus ‘Monstrosus’ - Weird! - 4’ Pot.” Walmart.com, https://www.walmart.com/ip/Curiosity-Cactus-Cereus-peruvianus-Monstrosus-Weird-4-Pot/339466865.