I learned by building.

With my future leading me to graduate in Spain, I wanted to put my 6 years of English in the US to good use. So in April of 2025 I began studying for the C2 proficiency exam, which I took in June. I scored over 200 out of 230 in every competition: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking.

Now back in Spain, I work every day to sharpen my coding skills and expand my knowledge, all toward one goal: building something everyone will use. I have worked hard to secure my future, and I will keep doing so until I achieve financial freedom.

In the summer of 2024, I started Harvard's CS50x course and completed it in December. Since I wasn't dedicating full-time effort to it, it took me a few months to finish. Through it, I learned the fundamentals of C, databases, cybersecurity, sorting algorithms, and more, essentially a broad foundation across the general field of computer science and IT.

During my freshman year (2023–2024), our entire grade worked on an end-of-year project studying different fertilizers and their effects on plants: germination time, temperature, and other data points. Out of all the groups (over 16), the teacher selected two to move forward, and mine was one of them. We went on to present at Fairchild Garden, where we tied for first place. Our school received a $1,500 check, and the project was recognized for its merit in statistical analysis.

We decided to move back to the US for my freshman year, with plans at the time to graduate and even attend college there. My little sister had been born just over a year before (May 2022), and shortly after arriving in the US she became severely ill, spending over four months in the hospital. Given how critical her condition was, our plans to fully relocate fell through, and I was only able to complete freshman year before returning. It was a difficult situation for the whole family, but we got through it.

The US, and Miami, offers real economic opportunity, you can build a business and achieve financial stability within a few years. But Miami comes with a stressful lifestyle, and that's what ultimately led my parents to decide to move back to Spain. My dad travelled back to the US every couple of months to manage the business and handle everything that comes with running a corporation. Spain is my home country. It may not be the most peaceful place on Earth, but compared to Miami, it's a place where you can sleep at night without too much on your mind. Here I started and finished Middle School.

My dad is a true entrepreneur at heart, it's all he ever did back in Cuba. So when he found himself working over 12 hours a day for less than minimum wage, he decided to take matters into his own hands. He opened his own corporation and started a cleaning business, taking on both residential and commercial clients. Most of his work was in Miami, so we relocated there, and I changed schools once again.

Miami is an expensive city, and the further out you go, the more affordable it gets — until you hit the next major city. Just over an hour away is Broward County, close enough to Miami but significantly cheaper. That affordability is what led my family to move there, which meant changing schools and spending second grade in Pompano Beach.

I was born in Spain, but moved to Miami at age 5, and that's where my education began.