What is my American Culture?

Cambridge Dictionaries defines culture as the "way of ​life of a ​particular people, esp. as ​shown in ​their ​ordinary behavior and ​habits, their attitudes toward each other, and ​their moral and ​religious beliefs". 

Your American culture is what defines you. It can be who you associate with, your religious views or beliefs, the many activities you are involved in, how you were raised, your education and much more. Either way, everyone is apart of a culture in some way or form. When taking a look at what exactly defines my culture, I was able to narrow it down to three specific aspects: Student Life, Religion, and Music.

Student Life:

Being a student and education have played a huge role in my life. I was always active whether it was by me playing a sport or by me being apart of clubs or organizations. Throughout elementary school, I participated in choir and gymnastics. During middle school, I was apart of the step team, the track team, the morning announcements, and the student council. High school is what really defined the start of who I am today. I was able to get involved in many extracurricular activities in high school such as Gar-field's Cheerleading Program, All- Star Cheerleading, Student Council Association, both of the top show choirs, Peer diversity, Student2Student and the Student Activities Leadership Class. The reason I hold my high school experience close to my heart is because it made a huge difference on my life and made me into the leader I am today. Going into high school, I didn't know anyone and was scared I wasn't going to fit in. Throughout the years, I was able to meet a ton of new, diverse individuals and was able to join many extracurricular activities which helped me fit in better. By my senior year, I was the Student Council Association President, the head Varsity Cheer Captain, and Mrs. Gar-field. 
Radford University

Currently, I am a college student at Northern Virginia Community College. While at NOVA, I have been focusing on my studies and tumbling on the side to prepare for my transfer to a four-year university. My plan is to transfer to Radford University in the Fall of 2016. I plan on majoring in Elementary Education and minoring in Music. Also, I am considering cheerleading at a college level, joining a sorority, joining a choir, and getting involved within the Radford Community.  

My experience as a student has been hard while trying to balance out academics, work and extracurricular activities, but when actually experiencing and going through the process, I have gained skills that I didn't have before. This all contributes to my growing leadership and is helping to develop me into the person I want and aim to be. 

  Religion:

Religion is an important part of my life. I was raised in a Baptist church and still continue to attend. I have been a member of Little Forest Baptist Church for 19 years now. While growing up in a baptist church, I have learned the core values and beliefs of Christianity. At the age 4, I gave my life to Christ and it is a day I will never forget.  I currently serve as the youth,  sound, choir and dance president at my church. Each role has allowed me to learn and engage with my peers more. It has also helped me to become a better leader within my community. My churches standard as a whole is to create a "Culture of Excellence". This simply includes what we do in the church, what we do outside in the church community and what we do within our personal lives.  Within the church, we have different ministries where everyone can get involved. Each ministry serves a purpose and fulfills our church standard. We partake in many activities like our service at the Falls Run Nursing Home or our daily check ups with the elderly individuals of the church. We also host clothing drives and food banks for individuals within our community. We even have something for each holiday, whether it is our Easter play and annual Easter egg hunt, our youth marching in the Memorial Day parade while holding fallen Tuskegee Airmen photos, our annual Thanksgiving basket drive or even our annual Christmas play.  

I take what I learned growing up and what I continue to learn day to day and apply it to my everyday life by giving back to my community. It can range anywhere from me simply praying, reading daily devotions,  attending bible study or participating in events like the annual oratorical contests, the annual spelling bees, open mics, community service, clothing drives, food banks, and various ministries. I plan to stay involved and grow more within my religion and continue to grow as a Christian. 

Music:

Ever since I was the age 2, Music has been a part of my life. I began singing at this age, mainly at church. Throughout elementary and middle school, I have participated in my school and church choir, All-County choir and many talent shows. High school again, allowed me to further my music experience. I met a great mentor named Douglass Burney who supported my family and helped me stay engaged in the music industry. I was in both the top shows choirs, took various trips for competitions and participated in many talent hunts, festivals and shows throughout high school. To add to my music experience, I have been learning how to play the piano for the last 3 years. Before, I would always play by ear or would try to teach myself how to play a tune. Now I am actually learning the history of music from various genres, how to read notes, and how to actually play the right way. It is a great experience and I can't wait to see where my piano skills take me in the future. I can most definitely say singing and playing piano are two of my favorite hobbies which is why I plan on minoring in music at Radford University, while hoping to join a choir.  I truly do enjoy and love music with a passion and without it, my life would be incomplete and I wouldn't be the talented, young lady that I am today. 

As I continue to grow in the music world, within my religion and as a student, I hope to further engage with my community, while building my leadership and staying involved in everything that defines my American culture and who I am.