Anthony Todd '22 Recruiting Profile

This is going to be a very long day.

My suit was soaking wet; my shoes soiled with the sand from the ground. My family was sobbing over my late grandma after the pastor finished what he had to say. One by one, her grandchildren who lived in Jamaica came to the center of the audience and spoke about their life experiences with her. I realized I had none.

I find that you can categorize people into two categories: those who see the value in what they have and those who don’t. And so on the drive back to the house I would reside in during my stay in Jamaica, I thought to myself, When is the Wi-Fi finally going to work? I was in the don’t category. I failed to see the value in my family. I often saw my sister talking to her cousin in her room for hours on end, and I wouldn’t. My aunt would go to her grandmother's house for Thanksgiving every year, and I’d be in my room alone. I was distancing myself from my family. No texts. No calls. No video chats. 

My late grandma and I weren’t close, but through the time I spent in Jamaica, I learned about her. She loved to work in our grandpa’s shop, and through each person she met that became her friend, they all described her as the nicest person who lived each day as if it was her last. A funeral is a day to celebrate the life of the dead; so all loved ones came together and celebrated the accomplishments of my grandmother and the time spent with her. As everyone sang the gospel songs she would use to sing, I moved my mouth with no words coming out. I didn’t even know the words.

I soon after returned home. Cherish the days you have left, my dad told me. I felt like he was trying to give a stereotypically life lesson, but regardless, I interpreted his words as an omen - you don’t know when your life is going to end and you should make the most of it by trying new things. I listened to him and tried new things. Yoga, archery, playing the piano; those were just a few things and while I enjoyed doing those things, I was only understanding half of the message that was in my fathers words. I wasn’t just supposed to find new things to like, but to find solace in the things I already had. 

And so the next time my household went back to Jamaica, I made an effort to adhere to my fathers words. I got driven around in my grandpa’s car throughout Montego Bay, looking at all the buildings near the ocean and asking him countless questions and listening to all his stories. In the living room, I introduced my cousins to games I had and I played some games that they had; in the kitchen, I watched my aunts cook their meals and they watched me cook my meals. I felt a sense of community and belonging. Being able to make memories with my family felt like the world to me, and when I look at the scrapbook with our pictures, I’ll always feel happiness.

I would often push things towards a later day because I thought that tomorrow would always come. For my grandma, tomorrow never came. I want to spend many more days with the family I have and the family I’ll make. We’ll share many life experiences with each other so I’ll never have to say I had none ever again. As high school approaches its end, I look forward to college, being a part of a community I value and family will always be on my mind.