Invention Process

• Grandpa Larry passed away: In the summer of 1998, my grandpa from my dad's side was nearing 80 years old when his doctors diagnosed him with brain cancer. He was given about 6 months to live, but was told that his health would be deterioriating rapidly. Since he lived in Massachusetts, and my family lived in Florida, we thought it would be a good idea to plan a last trip to see him for our Christmas holidays. But my dad thought things over, and decided we should go before the summer was over, and we did. When we saw my Grandpa, he seemed pretty normal to me, and his health wasnt in too bad of shape yet. So we visited for the weekend, and went home thinking everything was going to be okay, and we would still see him in a few months for Christmas. My dad got a call from his mom 2 days later to tell us that Grandpa Larry had fallen down the stairs and was in the hospital for braking his neck. He was put on life support, and was basically in a coma. By that time, my grandma and my dad's siblings had all given up on him, and were just waiting for nature to take its course. No one had any hope left for him, and so my grandma decided to pull the plug on him. Ever since my Grandpa Larry's death, the Rice family has not been the same. We would usually have family reunions every year at his house, and always fly to Boston for Christmases. A few months after his death, my grandma moved out of their house, and the Rice's have not had a reunion since 1998. Also, almost all communication between the family members has been lost. None of my dad's siblings talk to each other much anymore, even though they all live within 10 minutes of each other.

• Changing Schools: My elementary school, Eagle Ridge, went from 4th to 6th grade, but there was a middle school, Westglades, a few miles down the road that began at 6th grade. All of my siblings had gone to middle school starting in 6th grade, and so my mom thought that I should do the same. Everyone my age from Eagle Ridge were staying there for their 6th grade year, except for me. I got to Westglades on my first day not knowing anyone. I was the only person who had come from Eagle Ridge. Everyone in my class had already known the other kids since kindergarten, and they already had their cliques, and groups of friends. I used to be very outgoing and social when I was little. Everything changed that year though. I didn't know a single person in the school, and so I became very quiet and didnt talk to anyone. I went through the whole first semester like this, watching all the other kids with their friends. Slowly I came out of my shell. I started hanging out with two other girls from my homeroom class, and they brought me around to get to know people. It took a long time before I was comfortable with my classmates. This change affected me, and still does today. I am still extremely shy when it comes to meeting new people, or having to speak to a class.

• Rotary Exchange: Three years ago, I signed up for an exchange program through the Rotary Club. I thought this would be the coolest experience in the world. I was assigned to go have an exchange with a Turkish girl, Ferda, for six weeks over the summer. During the first three weeks, Ferda came to stay with my family in Florida. We didn't get along very well at first, because I was being so shy. And then the tough part came, when Ferda and I had to fly to Turkey together for the next half of our exchange. It was very hard on me, since it was my first trip away from home. Ferda was extremely kind to me and tried to make the best of everything. I was terrified of being in another country, and Ferda took notice in this. She took me under her wing and showed me all the great things about her country. By the end of the trip, neither of us wanted to leave the other, and we had become great friends. Going on this exchange program made me learn a lot about myself, and the Turkish culture.