This month’s teen is Anna. She’s 14.

If someone said the word overcome to you, what would you think of?
I think that overcoming is when you are able to persevere through a challenging circumstance and thrive in spite of it. 

What is the opposite of overcoming to you?
The opposite of overcoming is when you let something defeat you and get in your way.

What famous person do you think overcame well?
A famous person that has overcome is Malala Yousafzai. She won a Nobel Peace Prize and is advocating for female education even though she was shot on her way home from school in Pakistan.

Who is someone you know who has overcome?
The mother of one of my best friends had Multiple Myeloma, a type of blood cancer.  She has overcome aggressive, difficult chemotherapy treatments and is now cancer free.

What is something you’ve had to overcome?
I had to overcome surgeries on both of my ankles. I had to stop dancing and playing sports while I recovered. But I overcame that challenge, and today I’m stronger than ever.

This is a picture of my cabin canoeing the Moose River at my sleep away camp in Maine, one of my favorite places. The picture was taken when we left our campsite early in the morning before our long day of canoeing.