Meet Baltej

 My parents are both Indian, and for the most part so am I. But having spent two years in North Carolina and every summer from the ages of 9 to 14 in New York City, I'm not quite completely Indian. In fact, with each passing year I spend away from my homeland, I lose a few more words from my Hindi vocabulary, and my ability to read the language I could once recite lengthy poetry in fades faster still.

I know for a fact that at my core I am a survivor, not just because of the time I spent in North Carolina battling Childhood Leukemia, but because of what came after. At the age of 6 after a month on bed rest, I had to re-learn how to get out of bed and walk again, first out of my room, then out of my hallway, then out the doors. I've never been fast or super athletic, but I've always kept moving. Life didn't stop for me at four when I was diagnosed, or at five when I relapsed, or at six when I received my cord blood transplant, so I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. Where this momentum takes me is a mystery, but hopefully the journey will involve stops at beaches, countless new countries, interactions with a plethora of new and amazing people, and the opportunity to find happiness, love, and true purpose.

My parents have given me more than most, for which we share a bond deeper than that of the average parent and child. They have seen me at my worst, at moments that I thought were my worst, and at my best. But most of all, they have seen me fall and get back up every time, a skill that they have instilled in me. The more I introspect the more I realise I have my father's knack for rationality, but my mother's emotions. I have my mother's need to be right with my father's ability to win an argument with rationality. What I don't have, or rather what I have yet to learn is the selflessness with which they have put the needs of me and my brother first. I hope it comes to me one day.

As a child, I always felt like I had something to prove. I wanted to be more than just the 'sick kid' or the 'fat kid' or the 'kid with the funny hair'. The need to win the approval of others drove me for a very long time, to the point where I think that same desire is now a subconscious instinct in me. But with each day I try to live life on my own terms, discover something new about myself, set my own goals and do things for me. On that journey, however, I still have a ways to go.

My family, especially my immediate family serve as my most direct role models. Beyond them, however, I draw inspiration from the misfits of the world, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs. All these people who struggled to find their place among the construct of society, so instead each of them carved one out for themselves. Their impact on this world is hard to ignore, and it wouldn't have been possible if they hadn't struggled to find their place in this world.

An animal I identify myself with is a Wolf - fiercely loyal and protective of their pack. But they're also secretly playful and can be silly. I've grown to love dogs and they wouldn't exist if a wolf thousands of years ago hadn't ventured out to get a treat from the humans

As a child, marvelling at the magnitude of the redwood forests in Northern California made me realise the scale of the Universe. I remember standing in front of one such tree, towering hundreds of feet in the air. I craned my neck to try and see the top only to realise I was looking at the sky instead, at the clouds, imagining what was beyond those clouds. In many ways, that encounter helped me realise that even small actions by seemingly insignificant beings can have a lasting impact.

Sun : 01 Degrees Cancer

Moon: 21 Degrees Aries

Rising: 17 Degrees Scorpio