Aspire to Inspire

The beginning of March marks the beginning of Women’s History Month. During this month, we’re supposed to celebrate famous women and all they’ve done to pave the way for women around the world, but I feel like the women I know personally have impacted my life the most. 

One of the people who’s impacted me the most would have to be my twin sister, Kaycee. She is the smartest, most hardworking person I know. From a young age, she has always excelled in the classroom. I admired how it seemed like everything came so easily to her academically. As we got older, I realized she put in hours of work to be successful in the classroom. She got A’s all throughout high school, was #1 in our class since freshman year, and ended up being valedictorian when we graduated. She got two full-rides to Davidson and Duke. She’s currently at Duke and her work ethic has stayed consistent. Inspiring isn't a good enough word to describe her. During all of the times when she was worried about getting her work done and making sure she was on top of her grades, she always found time to make sure I was just as prepared as she was. She made me want to do and be better. I feel like I’m the student and person I am today because of her. Without her words of encouragement and support, I wouldn’t be at Carolina. Without her, I wouldn’t be the Kamryn that I am today.

As I navigate my way through life, I constantly wonder if I’m fulfilling my purpose. Kaycee has helped me reach my full potential, and I hope I can do that for others someday. I want to be able to accomplish my goals and know that I’m inspiring people to do the same. There are countless Black women who inspire me to keep pushing and working towards my goals so that there can be more of us in every space. I want young Black girls to look at me and feel like they can reach their goals because Kamryn Hailey did. As I move through life, I try and make sure that I’m getting my foot in rooms that I could only dream of, while making sure I’m not the only Black woman in there. I want to be able to inspire women like Kaycee has inspired me. My goal is to aspire to inspire, and I won’t stop until I know my mark has been made.