My name is Kayla Knox and I am currently an Associate in Arts major at South Piedmont Community College. Although I am unsure of what career path I want to pursue, I am extremely passionate about several things such as writing, photography, working with children, missions and serving others. In my free time, I enjoy practicing yoga and creating art; I would also consider myself to be a huge advocate for the environment. 

Over the course of my educational experience, I struggled immensely with recognizing my potential. I always struggled with school because math was a foreign language to me; this resulted in the false belief that I “wasn’t smart.” It wasn’t until college where I began taking classes that pertain more to my strengths allowing me to recognize my full potential and begin excelling academically more than I ever believed I was capable of doing. 
 

My learning style is a combination of both visual and kinesthetic. When I truly do not understand something I learn better by physically doing it; however, I would consider myself to be a primarily visual learner. I prefer to sit in front of the classroom and use methods such as flashcards and color coding while studying. As for my future, I hope to pursue a career that I not only enjoy but makes me want to jump out of bed in the morning. I envision myself most likely working with children and doing something that allows me to make a difference in the lives of others. 
 

The passion I have for both children and serving others began in February 2017. It was during this time that I stepped out of my comfort zone and went on my first mission trip. My missionary experienced involved spending a week in a small town in Honduras called El Eden. Throughout the week, we spent several hours building the town's unfinished church, painting, cementing, building benches, etc. In addition to this, we spent time with the people of the community; sharing ministry and building relationships. I went into that journey extremely anxious and fearful and had no idea that the fears and anxieties that I was carrying would soon transform into feelings of immense gratitude and a heart-consuming desire to make a difference in the world. 
 

One of the countless valuable things I took away from this trip was not to limit myself to serving only those suffering from extreme circumstances and not to reject the brokenness in my own community because it differs in appearance to a third world country. The poverty of love is everywhere and we should take every opportunity given to help the people around us who need it the most.