Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

Upon awakening, it was my birthday, the morning of June 17^th, 2020. Crusty-eyed and still yawning there it was plastered across my bathroom mirror.

“Any Person Can Describe Who They Claim to Be but Evidence of Actions Provides the Truth of Who We Really Are”
– Author, My Dad

I hurried downstairs, note in hand. “Dad, what does this mean”? He replied, “I want you to create a website about you, but there’s a challenge”. “What challenge, I asked”? He replied, “ Content Brooke, you need real content backed by long-term execution. He calls this “The Evidence” which equals Authenticity. Making certain that my public and private life match up while accumulating real-life skills over time through on-the-job training.

I was only fifteen, but I knew now was the time to begin my preparedness. As a fifteen-year-old girl, I lacked confidence in many ways. First, who am I? Social media confused me and seemed to want to define me. Second, what value could an employer ever appreciate in me? Instagram and Tick Tock made it appear as if everyone was perfect, so I played along, pretending I had it all figured out. But there was my dad’s note, playing over in my head.

So, I immediately immersed myself in five different purposeful jobs, beginning to accumulate what I thought was “The Evidence” my dad so wanted. Brooke the Barista, @ The Corner – communications, organization, and money management skills. Brooke the Store Manager, Rachel’s Consignment – inventory controls, reconciliation reports, customer service skills. Brooke the Ski Instructor, Mohawk Mountain– Instructing young children and lesson planning skills.  Brooke the Art Gallery Worker- has interpersonal skills and Brooke the Baby- and House-Sitter – child and home care services, is highly organized and has follow-through skills.

For the past three years, I was out there getting “The Evidence” puffing up my accomplishments so I could have my dad’s brag sheet and approval. No doubt I accomplished a lot by his standards. But what I discovered was that these skills didn’t bring a smile to my face. Just like social media, not everything is what we think it really is. Buy this, be happy, look like that, feel more confident, act like this, be more popular. Sure, my dad was correct that having these skills is necessary in the world we live in but that’s not what fulfilled me. What was it that made me happy?

Initially, I made it all about how many skills I could list on my common application, I made the jobs and the accumulation of achievements about me. Like people trying to accumulate more stuff. The more stuff a person accumulates, are they happier? There’s nothing wrong with wanting to better oneself academically, socially, spiritually, and otherwise but nothing takes the place of making others feel valued.

The smile I create on someone’s face as their Barista when I make a latte with their favorite design or just sharing 5 minutes of listening to a story about their grandchild. The pretty dress from Rachel’s Consignment I help select for that woman who can’t afford nice attire while telling her how beautiful she looks. Instructing that child at Mohawk Ski Mountain who can’t keep up with the other kids as I help her ski faster. Selecting that special piece of artwork for that family who wants to make that empty wall more inspiring, that’s fulfillment for me, making others feel appreciated and valued.

So, I met with my dad on Sunday, September 3rd, 2023, and made him his favorite latte as I watched him smile and said, “Dad, I have the evidence”. As I explained my journey to him his eyes welled up with tears and said, “Brooke, I think I need some of that evidence in my own life”, he kissed my cheek, got up, and left, as I returned to my barista station creating more smiles. www.brookelacilla.com

By working at such a young age, I started to learn the responsibilities and discipline of how to invest, save and spend my money wisely. I have learned so much from my dad on how to not only earn money but how to manage, save it, and to even start my own IRA savings account.

My dad has mentored me through so many different life lessons related to working that it makes me so confident that I could go out at age 17 and hold down a great job and even live on my own if I ever had to do such a crazy thing. He has not only shown me how to find the right jobs but how to manage and save my money. At age 15 I had my own checking account, savings account, and IRA account. At age 16 I managed to save $18,000. Yes, $18,000 none of it was given to me, it was all hard-working money from my jobs (remember I earn some great tips as a Barista)! What did I do with all that money? Well, I needed a car and my dad was about to show me another one of his “Life Lessons”. So he says “Brooke, you want a car well you have to pay for it and that means not only buying the car but maintaining the car”. Oh ya, I was like “What?#@!$%^.  “Are you kidding me, Dad?

He certainly was not. He had me cough up $15,000 and I got to keep the $3,000 just so I can pay for my car insurance, taxes, and gas! I am not kidding, he really took my money. But he matched the $15,000 and I purchased a new Mazda CX 5 2022. So I started all over again saving and I am back up to $12,000!

Although I was upset, I am starting to understand why he makes me work so hard. He can easily pay for things; he’s got the money to do it but he has been teaching me a lesson and each day I am stronger and more confident that I can do anything I set my mind to do. Ever since I was a young child my dad had taught me the responsibilities of working hard. By having multiple jobs at a young age, I learned what I love and what I don’t, which has given me the confidence to select the right college and major for the next part of my life.

60 Seconds

This is a very simple but powerful message to me because it says so little but means so much. If you think about it, life is temporary and everything that you do will one day no longer exist, except your legacy. This forces me to want to become the best possible person that I can be. Giving my all in everything that I do. One day someone asked me a question and I didn’t like the answer.

What would you do if you found out that you only had 60 seconds left to live?

Would you have any regrets about your life?

Would you wish that you had done anything differently?

And I said yes. Even though that question is scary, it’s important to ask because you don’t want to get to the end of your life, whenever that might be, and regret not chasing that dream. Life is short and it is fleeting. Stop wasting it pretending to be someone you’re not, stop wasting it being scared and not living your life because there’s no going back. This gives me the desire to push myself into doing uncomfortable things and doing the absolute best that I can every day.

-Lauren Nicole

I do feel that the best use of one’s life is to love others. And the best expression of love is to give someone your time.

Many people think the word love is spelled L-O-V-E. But It’s better to spell it T-I-M-E. We need to show love through sincere actions, not empty promises.

When you love someone there is almost a desire to be fulfilled in only one manner and that is to have that persons focused attention. When I love someone I want to be with that person, I want to stay focused on that person, look in their eyes, listen to what they have to share with me, and just be content that they are with me.

The greatest gift you can give anyone is your time—because your time is your life, and you only have a certain amount of life that is given to each of us and no one knows how much that is as God has already decided the number of days we are going to live and we are not going to get anymore. A person can always get more money but they cannot get more time, once it’s gone it’s gone. That’s why the time you give someone is so precious and tell that person, “I LOVE YOU THIS MUCH”!!

Footnote: Some excerpts from Rick Warren’s books and sermons

I always need to think about how much time and energy I spend on myself versus what I invest in serving others. My dad always told me “If you’re not careful life has a fast undercurrent and can pull you offshore quickly”, meaning don’t get caught up in the world’s busyness because you will lose sight of the importance of helping others and life will be unfulfilling when you make it all about yourself.

I believe I was put on Earth to contribute. God designs everyone to make a difference in other people’s lives and not recognizing this can lead to a life of self-centeredness. I don’t think I was created just to consume resources and take up space. I was created to add to life here on Earth, not just to take from it.

Footnote: Some excerpts from Rick Warren’s books and sermons

So that leads me to always ask the question “What is my purpose, my destiny, why did God create me”? To fulfill my purposes in my life my Dad always tells me that God has given everyone different gifts and it’s my job to understand what those gifts are and how I can use them to not only help myself but most importantly help others.

There are things I can’t control like who my parents are, my nationality, and race. This also includes other things like my God-given abilities, personality, and experiences. These are the things that make me uniquely me.

My dad always tells me that I am responsible for making the most of these God-given gifts. But I’m not responsible for the gifts God didn’t give me. In other words, I’m not gifted at painting beautiful oil paintings, so I am not expected to paint like Van Gogh. But God does expect me to use my own gifts for the good of others:

If insecurity destroys relationships, then what builds them? Love! Love builds relationships.

Brooke Lacilla

Footnote: Some excerpts from Rick Warren’s books and sermons