Razan Alaqeel's

My father always told me about the day he'd take me on a summer trip to the United States.  The land of opportunities sounded like the magical Disney World through my father's stories.  Washington D.C. which established the roots of this nation seemed like a tale of freedom and possibilities through the way he described it to me.  New York City, with its skyscrapers was another land that resembled fine literature and more liberties that were engraved with the power of words through books, and the true meaning of the American Dream and Liberty.  That is exactly how America was drawn in my mind.  A land of everything and everyone simply being good.  Now, that I have been living here for almost two years, I have my own story to tell about the country that not only gave me new hopes, but which also offered me more things to dream about.  Here I am writing from New York City, after attending the United Nations Youth Assembly.  A dream that always lived within me has been coming to

Our lives are not complete without a goal to pursue and a dream to achieve.  Waking up with a plan of success in mind, spending the day sketching future plans, sleeping with a lot of dreams about that next big step.  Having that spark of hope, the attitude of positivity, and the behavior of a respectful and joyful person is why we believe that everything is possible once we work hard towards a better tomorrow, not only for us, but also to the whole world. This past week was definitely the most stressful week of my time in college.  I had to prove myself to my peers, to explain why I stand for my "yes" when the whole world says "no", and to use my words and past experiences to help me walk a new journey for a different future.  I decided to apply to the Appalachian Student Ambassadors since day one on this campus.  Those ambassadors set the standards for me for what I wanted to do in college.  The way they looked, talked, and behaved was so perfect to me that I ha