My nomination: Sisterhood

No true celebration of sisterhood is ever complete for me without celebrating my most lifeline, Vaishnavi Pallapothu. I had the opportunity to meet Vaishnavi when I taught her class at her school - little did I know that I would become a lifelong student and she, the powerful teacher by example, in our friendship! What began as a conversation around careers, internships, college, and life, led to one of my most valued friendships and bonds of sisterhood and I cannot thank Vaishnavi enough for all that she has been and continues to be, for me.

Vaishnavi is compassionate, gentle, giving, and incredibly empathetic. She holds space and offers silent but constant encouragement to help you heal, to grow, and to be your true self. She celebrates you for who you are, and gives you the gentlest of nudges to help you if you deviate off your path. For someone who often bugs her with questions, requests for advice, and for a bunch of other random things, I am wayyyy undeserving of her generosity, but it makes me want to be a better person to be worthy of her and her goodness.

Vaishnavi epitomizes sisterhood. She is wise beyond her years, and knows when one needs a listener and when one needs advice, and knows how to convey difficult things with the most gentlest and most non-violent form of language. I have learned so much from Vaish - her leadership skills, her dedication to inclusion, her wisdom and intelligence, her capacity to do brilliantly in any task she takes on, and her incomparable thirst for knowledge - these are just a few of the tangible skills. 

How do you fit a whole universe into one post, yes?