The COVID-19 outbreak has allowed me to spend so much time with the things I'm passionate about, and the most important of my passions is botany. I read Andy Weir’s The Martian and since then, botany has been one of the most interesting things I’ve ever worked with. I love working with plants and finding ways to cross them and raise them to be healthy. Quarantine has allowed me to work with my plants more than ever before, and I am so excited for that opportunity. I have lots of control when I work with plants, but at the same time they can be so uncontrollable. That’s what makes the process of growth so special to me, because it shows how even in the most controlled environments, new development is possible. They form vines, blossoms, and colors that are unexpected and exciting. Growth is celebrated (mostly by me) and so genuinely exciting after waiting days or months for seedlings to sprout, leaves to grow, or colors to form. Sometimes, that reminder, that change is possible in even the most impossible situations, is enough to keep me going itself.

—Dani

Share your own story here. Sharing stories is a powerful way to connect with other people. Be part of the Teen Health & Wellness Personal Story Project—like Dani did above—and share your story about successfully dealing with or overcoming a challenge.