Role models and behavioral characteristics were a huge part of my life as I grew up. When you think about your life who do you want to be like? The answer is probably your friends or super heroes or any other random answer. But when you think about your life or who you base your life off of you have this thing called a “role model” or someone you want to be more like. Who was your role model? Why did you want to be just like them? Why did you look up to them? Because they had so much influence on your life that’s why.

When I was little I had my entire life planned out I wanted to be a superhero Because they were strong and they always helped other people and were known as the “good guys.” I thought if I could be just like them my life would be complete. People would envy me and look up to me. But then again everyone’s dream has to be ruined by reality at some point, right? I mean after all I was just a five year old little girl who ran around the house in her boots, leggings, and cape screaming “I’m Superman” and talking about how I was there to save the day and what not. I would go around “saving” my big bad brothers from the monsters I made up. The one thing I loved most about being a superhero was even though I made absolutely everything up my brothers always played along and let me save them and made me feel like I was truly a little superhero that protected them.

As I got older my role model changed. I couldn’t decide for a while who I wanted to be like. It fluctuated between a couple people such as Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn. I wanted to be like them because they were strong feminine characters who were loved by all. They were classified as beauty icons but like most things people also labeled them as bad things. They both worked hard to be successful they put in the time needed and did their best at everything and anything they did or at least the best they thought they could do. Their outlook on life and their approach on matters was something I admired about them most. They always had ideas and stuck to their plan until they made reality happen.

Later on down the path of life I learned about Katharine Hepburn. She was my favorite role model by far, I could relate to her. Because when I was growing up I thought I was a “little” headstrong, but my mom begged to differ. I liked things done in a certain way and I absolutely loved getting my way. I was a “Tomboy” because I was the only girl surrounded by brothers and cousins who were all boys. I wasn’t into all the bows for your hair or the little makeup kits and especially not the pink girly clothes. I seemed strange to some people because I would rather die than be caught wearing pink, or dresses, or anything with ruffles. Ew that’s embarrassing. Katharine was a charming actress who wasn’t afraid to share her opinion but knew when to draw the line. She refused to become a beauty icon she wanted to be a bold and strong icon and she made the outlook on women finally start to change. Which made her intriguing to me I thought maybe I can be like that.

Now that i’m older I realize who my role model should have been or should I say has secretly always been. My role model has always been my Grandma no matter how long it took to realize it. She was the best superhero anyone could ask for when you failed in life or got down on yourself she was there to rescue you. She would pick me up, dust me off, and say “ Go give ‘em hell.” My grandma was always such a strong person and would do anything to protect me. My nana was also the best Marilyn Monroe or Audrey Hepburn ever to be born. I mean she wasn’t famous or an actress but dang, was she beautiful. She was absolutely gorgeous and I always wished I could be as pretty as she was. She always would tell me “ You're only as pretty as your outlook on life.” Now being the youngster I was I never truly understood it until I got older. No matter how beautiful you wish you were or how pretty you tried to be if you don’t believe in your heart that you're the prettiest around then you weren’t. Your personality and heart have to be kind and beautiful for your outlook to be appealing and beautiful to anyone. You can be the prettiest girl in the world and still be ugly if you don’t have a kind exterior.

  Now let me tell you about how my grandma was like Katharine Hepburn. Well my grandma is a redhead just like Katharine and people always say with the red hair comes the fiery temper and the mean spirit, believe me when I say she had it all. My grandma was never afraid to speak her mind and when she had an opinion boy, were you gonna hear it. My Grandma taught me how to be a strong woman and to never put up with people's crap which may have been why I got into fights with the boys all the time when I was little. She kind of raised a fighter you could say.  When I was little I learned from my grandma how to take a whooping, but if you tried to whoop me you had another thing coming because grandma also taught me how to give one mean whooping too.

My grandma was such a fun, loving, person she loved kids, she was a strong, beautiful, independent woman. Who wasn’t afraid to put anyone in their place, but she also had that kind of love that made anyone feel welcome even if that wasn’t the case. She had an amazing family who looked up to her, and she gave the greatest hugs in the entire world. She was my rock , my person, the only person I could talk to about literally anything. But she also was the greatest role model any little girl could ask for that’s why i’m glad she was mine.