I believe that change can completely rewrite your story, and often change is what you need to get yourself back. Sometimes, finding your way back to yourself simply begins with stepping into a place where you no longer feel the need to become someone else.

Throughout elementary and middle school, I had struggled to form genuine friendships or feel a genuine sense of belonging. Looking back, I realized I was doing the wrong things to make true friends. I was constantly reshaping myself to fit whatever version of me I thought others would accept. When I joined BBYO, I never felt the need to change who I was in order to fit in. All of those years, I never had someone I could always turn to or count on, but I believe that finding a space where you truly belong is worth the wait.

Here is my BBYO story: I walked into a room with my current best friend and didn’t know half the people in the room, but little did I know that most of those people would become my best friends. I opened my envelope and found out I was in Litzor and was soon welcomed to the chapter with open arms, cheering, and smiles all around. That day, we spent time getting to know each other, and it turned out that most of us went to camp together, so we bonded and connected over that and talked about it for most of the time. At the time, I didn't realize how significant that moment would become. I spent years wondering what I needed to change about myself to be accepted. For the first time, I was entering a room where acceptance did not feel conditional. Although the first event was over, it wouldn't be long until I would see them again.

The next few events were amazing, transformative, and beyond memorable. I met so many new friends who weren’t at the first event. One of the events that stood out to me was the hamantaschen-making event with Capital, where I met Maya and Emma, people who have since become some of my closest friends. At one of the future events, I also reconnected with my bat mitzvah partner, Mia. During the time of our bat mitzvah, we weren't exactly fond of each other, but because of BBYO, we have grown extremely close, and now she is someone whom I call one of my best friends. We had all just started high school, and people made new friends, some of whom happened to be Jewish. Then they joined BBYO, and every time we had someone new, I would always make the effort to talk to them, and those people I talked to are now good friends.

Convention was a little weekend getaway at a camp where you would get to meet people from the surrounding chapters in Texas. My first convention was in the fall of my freshman year, and I loved it. It introduced me to how many more people are in BBYO, and this was only Texas. I had expanded my circle far beyond just the people in my chapter. When the next regional convention was coming up, I decided to help plan it. It introduced me to a different side of BBYO I hadn’t seen before: leadership. That next term, I decided to run for a leadership position on board, and although I didn't win, I walked away with something I hadn't expected: a reason to keep showing up. For once, rejection didn’t convince me that I didn't belong, and I refused to let that disappointment define my involvement. I have now held two leadership positions thus far, and I am excited to continue to expand that.

This summer, I went to the BBYO leadership camp and met people from all over the world who participated in BBYO. I got to learn about how different everyone's experience in BBYO is. I met people who were presidents of their regions and people who were only general members and barely showed up to events. I got to hear so many amazing stories there. BBYO has brought so many people together and has been the safe space I have been looking for all my life.

I believe that the right community doesn't demand performance; it simply asks you to show up as yourself. After spending elementary and middle school feeling like an outcast, walking into BBYO reshaped the way I understood belonging. It gave me deep connections, lifelong friendships, and the realization that I never needed to change who I am in order to fit in. It allowed me to let my guard down, speak up, and finally form genuine school friendships because I was no longer afraid of rejection and now know I am worthy of those friendships. Moving to a new school gave me a new place to step into where I didn't have to be someone else to fit in. I realized that all I needed to be was myself. The people who truly care about me will be there regardless of who I am trying to become. I never needed to change for them; I only needed the courage to let them see me for who I really am. It's never about changing yourself to fit into someone else's world; it's about finding the people and places where you can completely be yourself.