About Me

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About:

I was born in Houston, Texas in 1992. From a young age, I was a rambunctious child; I always had too much energy, could never stop talking, and ran in circles around the house until I hit a solid object (be it person, wall, or the ground after falling over my still clumsy self). And while I’d like to believe I’ve matured and calmed down since then, the energetic fun-loving child of my past is still alive in me (though, tempered with a certain sense of self preservation I definitely lacked as a child). I had the privilege of growing up with two incredibly loving and supportive parents, and an older brother who I always looked up to, who always teased me, and with whom I always fought.

Coming from a technologically oriented family, I was exposed to computers from a very early age. It started out as just playing games on disney.com, but it evolved into learning to make websites and write programs programs, a passion that I took with me into high school and which shaped my eventual major choice of Computer Science as I came into college.

Coming to UT, I feel like I've learned so much already. Not only in those things I set out to learn in my major, but of things I didn't know I needed to learn. I learned more about people; how to appreciate better the rich diversity of cultures, viewpoints, and people that exist. I learned about the incredible amount of kindness that humans can display for one another, having many times been shown this kindness myself. And I learned so much more about myself; how much i don't have the world "all-figured out" as I thought I did when i was 16, and how much I still have to learn and to grow.

Why I Ride

While my whole life I have pursued my passions, I feel as though I have always wanted a cause in which I could give all of myself, and more. A cause for which I could work harder than I have before, and sacrifice in the service of others. In Texas 4000, I see a cause that I am compelled to give myself up to. The tenets of knowledge, hope, and charity speak deeply to me, having lost my aunt to cancer. The prospect of biking 4000 miles to raise awareness and spread hope gets me really excited. It’s the kind of impact I always wanted to make.

Cancer affects us all; it is the random, haphazard nature in which cancer chooses its victims that makes us all susceptible to it. And until we find a cure, we have no choice but to be relentless in our fight against it. My personal philosophy is no excuses, and no regrets. I don’t want to look back on my life thinking that I could’ve made a difference, but chose not to.

Watching the courageous fight of my aunt Ranjan Parikh inspired me to join this organization. My aunt battled pancreatic cancer for almost two years after being diagnosed in November of 2010. Throughout her fight, you would never have been able to guess my aunt had cancer. She always had a smile on her face despite the painful process of cancer treatment. My aunt never wavered in her selfless devotion to family and community and in her vibrant and powerful spirit in this difficult time. Though she is no longer with us, Ranjan Parikh lives on through the countless lives she has touched.

My aunt’s struggle taught me an important and unfortunate lesson. Cancer doesn’t just affect individuals. Cancer affects families. Cancer affects communities. And cancer haunts our entire society.