Aliyah Zuniga

I am a competent and resourceful student willing to learn and adapt to succeed in my position. I am always looking to be challenged and willing to learn. Detail oriented with excellent observational and adaptive skills.

I fell in love with playing the cello around 6th and 7th grade. I naturally excelled at it and was typically top of the group all throughout middle school, however once I hit high school it was a whole new type of competition. Orchestra in general is extremely competitive and I quickly realized that I could no longer rely simply on talent and would have to devote time and practice into mastering my craft. Playing the cello has taught me that certain things take patience and meticulous dedication; repetition. My director always said that there are certain things you cannot cram for, certain things that cannot be learnt in a day and playing the cello was definitely one of them. Playing the cello has instilled discipline and careful observation into my everyday life.

In FFA, I raised a pig for about 5-6 months and prepared to compete and sell her. Raising an animal is difficult on its own but raising a farm animal that is viewed as product is something else. Raising my pig taught me to be patient with others and especially her. She was a stubborn one and extremely smart. I'd feed twice everyday, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. It was a huge responsibility and taught me how to manage time and how to get priorities in line.

I was a part of the PSJA Bearettes for the first 3 years of my high school experience. I loved dancing and loved the kind of connection that always emerged from being a part of a team. Working periods at a time on one dance just to perform it once or twice was always so poetic to me in that we all wanted to succeed at this one thing and once it was over, it was onto the next routine. Dance was inviting and one of my favorite ways to express myself and getting a reaction out of a crowd was always exhilarating. I appreciate the hard work that goes into learning and performing a routine. It takes discipline, repetition, and especially communication. Knowing your place and executing your part was vital; there were no small parts and we worked to become one unit. My senior year, I, unfortunately, did not make the team and was essentially forced to give up my pride and my one identity that had followed me throughout the previous years. After a few months of self pity and doubt, I decided to look on the bright side and join a new organization. That's when I joined powerlifting. Powerlifting was such a new experience for me and opened me up to a new side of myself. Powerlifting allowed me to work on myself and gain confidence. Although I was nowhere near as good as my fellow teammates, I had made the effort to progress and succeed as well as I could. The competitions were very real in the sense that I was competing as one person now and had to show up no matter how difficult.