I have always been known as either my brother’s sister or my father’s daughter. I have never been known as me. Nobody has ever cared about what I achieved. I have never been as special as the people around me are. My brother has autism. Everybody in our community knows him. My father is a CEO of a big company in Iceland. People know him, know what he has achieved.


I have twice been in a newspaper back home in Iceland, once as my brother’s sister and once as my father’s daughter. The first time I was in a newspaper was when my dad got his job. We posed for a family photo that was printed next to an interview with him about his career. The next time I was in a newspaper it was an article about my brother and his autism. We posed for a couple of picture. I remember how jealous I was because there were more pictures of him. Ofcourse it was an article about him.

I think this is a big reason for me coming to the US. Here nobody knows about my brother or my father. Here people get to know me as me. Lately I have been trying to discover myself, find out what I enjoy doing. My current major is business; I picked that major so I could be just like my dad. Now I have realized I am an independent person who doesn’t necessarily fit into the expectations people have for my as my father’s daughter. I am planning to switch my major into journalism.

My dream is to become famous. I want to become better known than my brother and father. I hope someday my brother will be known as his sister’s brother and my father will be known as his daughter’s father.