Auschwitz

One of the most important times of my life was when I went to Europe for, not the first time, but the second. The first time I went to Europe I was only in eighth grade and was a bit ungrateful for the opportunity. I was also very homesick which can quickly ruin a trip. The second time I went to Europe I went to multiple countries but the one that stuck out the most was Germany. I was a sophmore in high school about to be a junior so I was starting to explore college opportunities and what I wanted to do with my life. This trip to Europe would help me decide what I wanted to do with my life. I was visiting one of the foulest places in the world, Auschwitz Concentration Camp. Everyone knows that this place was one of the most famous concentration camps during World War II, and being there was one of the most surreal moments of my life. Just walking on the dirt the prisoners walked on and going into the rooms they stayed in was incredible. It's hard to describe how it feels to walk into a place full of death but it just makes you appreciate life and everything else in your life. In one of the cabins, I could clearly see scratch and claw marks on the wall. I could see how the bunks were sinking in because there were too many people packed into one bed. There was also a museum right outside the camp that showed several belongings of people who were on the way to their death. There was pictures all around the museum of children starving to death, freezing to death, and crying in pain. This is when it hit me, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I decided that I wanted to help people, and I decided to become a Health science major. It wasn't until later when I decided to focus on occupational therapy, but after that moment I knew I wanted to help people. That trip made me forever grateful for the life I have and I wanted to do whatever it takes to make life better for others.