I can recite all 118 minutes of the 2014 “Annie” movie. 

I resonate deeply with the movie not only because it highlights the importance of making do in any situation, but also because the first time I watched it, my life was as I imagined it remaining forever — surrounded by all the people I love. 

In my small hometown in Connecticut, everyone knew everyone’s business. The day after my dad suddenly died in an accident, no one looked at me the same. I walked through the school hallways with eyes piercing through me, puncturing holes in addition to the pain from my trauma. My teachers told me I didn’t have to do my work and that I should instead take care of myself, but all I wanted was to feel normal again, and I knew that wasn’t possible. 

My dad and I used to sing the songs in “Annie” together in the living room, and I just remember feeling like the luckiest girl in the world. One of our favorite songs was “The City’s Yours.” 

This song connects me to one of the biggest silver linings in my life: Morgan. She is one of the most special people in my life, and every time we’ve been together since singing it as a duet at a grief camp talent show, we’ve rewatched the movie together. “Annie” and the soundtrack provide so much comfort, with the constant refreshment of the memory with my dad which now translates to the love Morgan and I share for it.

Right before “The City’s Yours” starts in the movie, Annie asks Mr. Stacks, a rich businessman running to be the mayor of New York City, what to do if you can’t play your cards right because you don’t have any cards, and he tells her that you bluff.

The idea of perseverance and faking it until you make it is a central theme throughout the movie, though I never realized the importance of this value when I watched this movie as a child.

I think I love this movie so much because of the ending since everything plays out in the best case scenario. Spoiler alert! — yes, Annie didn’t want to be a foster kid, and Mr. Stacks is able to provide a nurturing home for her. 

I have learned to make the best of any situation I am presented with, and to ultimately bluff. 

When I first moved to California in eighth grade — unexpectedly — I was very scared to enter a new world with no familiar faces. 

At first, I only had one friend: my sister Ava. Ava was also scared to start her new school in the exotic place we now had to call home. On the first day of school, we walked anxiously to her school to drop her off. I walked her all the way to the front door and then turned to my middle school to continue my walk.

She asked me before I left if it was gonna be okay, and to be frank, I really did not think so. I was so upset with my life at that moment. However, I was the older sister, and if I was scared, she would be even more scared, so I told her that it was all going to be okay. Truthfully, in the end, it was.

Now looking back, five years later, moving here was the best thing that happened to me, and I always think about the day I bluffed to my little sister, just to make her day easier. 

I have never fully understood the effect of the trauma I faced on me, but as I continue to reach milestones, I become reminded about the family and support I have. 

I have to remind myself that with any change comes adjustment, and any emotion one feels is valid. 

Throughout my life, I have valued the act of bluffing, which ultimately led me to realize that I gain so much comfort from the things that keep me close to my family, especially my dad, as he will always be a part of my identity.