Empowered by the Things that I Can ControlMy name is Eva Marsh, and I am passionate about addressing overlooked and neglected aspects of human health and wellness. In particular, my area of interest is Human Sexuality, and how we as a culture of silence or stigmatize important discussions surrounding sexuality. I believe that the lack of exhaustive sex education, as well as the normalization of conversations about relationships, intimacy, power dynamics, and happiness all contribute to unhealthy ideas about what sexuality encompasses. I hope to work as both a professor and educator, as well as a clinical therapist specializing in couples counseling. This is a goal I never could have formed without a focus on things that I can control. Essential conversations about healthy communication, consent, boundary-making, trust, and respect are too often silenced or stigmatized, and I personally spent too many years of my life feeling that my body was not my own. It was not until halfway through my undergraduate year that I began to challenge the feelings of helplessness and frustration I had about sexuality in our country, and how harmful experiences in my own life were going to shape how I interacted with the world. For the first time, I began to harness those feelings and to reshape them into goals for myself and as problems to fix through education. I saw a therapist for the first time and was able to ask for help in a way that I had been unable to do beforehand. Suddenly, I did not feel like I was a prisoner of my emotions and experiences. I felt proud and powerful for dealing with difficult personal material, and for taking the time to try and heal and move on from the past. Starting this recovery was the hardest part, but after starting therapy and creating a social network and support system, I began to practice self-care in a radical way. Even smell things like saying no to a social engagement to have alone time or a good night’s sleep reshaped the pressures I felt from others and from myself. I found a healthy outlet in my schoolwork, and used my liberal arts background as well as my connections on campus to research sexuality. It may sound like that was my only focus, and I promise that I had friends and other pastimes in college, but thinking about what is in my control and where that has appeared in my life will always make me think about the process of reclaiming my own body, sexuality and identity as a proud woman. During my senior year in undergrad, I completed a qualitative thesis which explored femme queer women and how they navigate visibility and power dynamics in the LGBTQ+ community, and that research is something that I hope to continue once I have established myself in the field of Human Sexuality Studies. I found that interviews were an invaluable way to better understand less heard perspectives and voices, and I hope to utilize those skills in my future as an educator and counselor. Doing this research proved to me that I could make a difference as an individual and that I had control over not only myself, but the potential to enact positive change for other members of my community as well. My own negative experiences began to be overshadowed by the strong connections I was making with other inspiring women. These wonderful friendships showed me just how worthwhile a future in counseling and deep, personal connection would be. Ideally my work as a clinical sex therapist would fund public events that showcase existing resources for families, contraception, safe sex, free testing, and discussions of consent. In addition to public events and workshops, I would love to partner with existing organizations that discuss sexual assault awareness and trauma, as well as create a platform where silenced voices can share their experiences with sexuality. The Time’s Up and #MeToo movements indicate that every community has important survival stories that deserve to be heard, and making even one person feel more healthy, and proud of their sexuality would promote the change I wish to see in our country. and a change that I believe can be brought about through individual control and empowerment. As I prepare to begin my graduate studies, there are many things that I feel uncertain about. I feel financially desperate and trapped, and I just moved to a new state that I had never even visited previously. It is hard to find the things you have control over when you are in a place with no established support system like friends, a steady job, etc, but I worked hard to minimize my feeling of helplessness during the move. I applied for over a hundred jobs in the new area before arriving so that I would have employment by my first week, and I have taken the time to arrange my space and new home in a way that makes me feel comfortable and content. Even applying for this scholarship right now reflects that I am doing everything in my power and control to better my financial situation and stress, and that makes me feel proud. I am excited to see how a focus on things that I can control throughout my graduate studies will promote reformation in our society and lead to genuine connections that value and prioritize individual control and empowerment.
Finding MyselfMost days I would wake up facing myself in the mirror, wondering why I even bothered to wake up at all. The clothes I wore represented no specific style, and I as a person generally stood alone. The truth in the midst of all this is that I was sick. When the word "sick" comes up it tends to bring up drastic accusations, like cancer or such, but in my case, the hormones in my brain weren't working correctly. I wasn't dying or living my last two weeks traveling Europe. Instead, a shadow began following me around. I wish I could give a lesson in which I eased into a supported sadness, but with all honesty, I did not.
I was 11 years old when I started analyzing the looks and body language of the other students around me. I stuttered my words, and my interests seemed null to what was popular with-in that time period, yet this level of darkness hit me, and it consumed me, fast. I felt estranged from the people around me, family members who could never make sense of the drastic mood swings I came across every 15 to 45 minutes. I hurt myself, and I built my own cage to keep others from what I thought I was, damaged. Years past by as functioning normally became a more difficult task the more time went on. At 14 years old I made my first cry for help and the process began. I remember sitting in a nurses office, waiting for my mother who never came, to bring me to a place that was supposed to make me safe. The years that were to follow, that was to change that misguided, neglected, and the negative outlook on life that had already been ingrained. I'll admit outright that I was afraid. I was afraid because I knew the way I had lived, wasn't same as others had, and that day when I was 14 brought a realization that something in my life, wasn't right. I approached the first inpatient treatment I'd ever enter, shaking as I tried to catch looks of those also staying there. Those weeks were merciless. I had night terrors, counting to myself every night as I sobbed begging to sleep. From there I got used to the life of living in a place, that was never a home. The extreme points of my depression brought me in and out of hospitals. A routine formed in my life, breakfast, school, lunch, group therapy, individual etc. I watched people fight this, but I settled in it. My whole life I had been left to nothing but myself but finally, I had found structure building in my life. I learned to trust. I lived for months on end, learning how to just be, how to co-exist with the world. I found support in which I had never known before. My worst breakdowns, I was abandoned by my family, but consoled by the people who took the time to know who I was. Eventually, I found myself starting to cope naturally. I took deep breaths when I felt overwhelmed, and I learned to be proud of the things that others may deem different. A lot had broken me in my life that I didn't have time to include, but I'll say this. Treatment wasn't what changed me. I was. I looked inside myself to fight the demons I had let surround me for as long as I could remember. I slowed down and let myself look at the details I had missed. There is no cure for the hurt that exists within after you've been scarred before; there is a way to thrive, live, breathe, smile, exist, and just be. The biggest battle I ever faced, was against myself. My StoryNathan Robinett
Ever since I was young, I have been an enthusiast of sports. As a kid, I dreamed of attending college and representing my school on the hardwood or on the turf. However, as I grew older my size and skills did not evolve enough to match my will to play collegiately; and I had another game to win. When I was just three years old, I was diagnosed with a non-cancerous brain stem glioma (tumor on the brain stem). As you can imagine, this unfortunate diagnosis came with numerous obstacles and challenges. This included a variation of oral chemotherapies, two radiation therapy sessions, and five brain surgeries. The last occurring during my first year attending the University of North Carolina approaching spring commencement. One of the first surgeries occurred during high school. I missed a substantial amount of school days due to follow up visits, sicknesses, and surgeries, in which I lost almost all my strength and had to relearn to walk; but I never stopped thinking and working towards my goals. With a little extra homework, and a short time in a home-based school program, I graduated high school on time. Approximately 19 years after my parents were told that doctors did not know if I would live to graduate high school, I did indeed graduate high school. I graduated Community College with an Associate’s degree in Arts, I graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and I am now pursuing a graduate degree at the University of Georgia. I am currently on oral chemotherapy and undergoing physical therapy to gain back strength and balance I lost due to surgery, but I am hoping that surgeries and other treatments are behind me so I can focus more on my career. I am confident that the reason I have been successful is because I have always persevered and kept a positive attitude. After every brain surgery, it is like somebody presses a “reset” button on me, my balance, strength, and agility are nearly completely diminished. As a result, I take physical and occupational therapy post-surgeries in order to try to get back to baseline. This past surgery completed at the end of the spring semester was more monumental than others because I had less than three months to recover in order to go back to UNC-CH for the fall semester. I did not waste time feeling sorry for myself and chased after this goal. In less than three months, I was drinking out of the old well on the first day of classes. I think my primary doctor described me well, when before my last surgery, I completed my final exams for the spring semester in the hospital. While every other doctor was surprised that I did this, Dr. Gold said, “I would be surprised if he didn’t.” Certainly, he was making a joke, but I see a lot of truth in this statement. Since I do not like or want to be defined by my illness, this small biography describes me well. Despite my illness, growing up I participated in sports, I was very athletic, I was very out-going, and I was very popular. Serious complications from my illness did not occur and affect me until high school, but I graduated, earned an Associate’s degree, and transferred to the University of North Carolina. I graduated undergraduate studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I majored in Exercise and Sport Science with a focus in Sports Administration. I also minored in Coaching Education. I absolutely enjoyed my time at UNC and that is why I am determined to continue my education. My career goals include graduating graduate school at the University of Georgia with a degree in Sports Management and working in collegiate athletics, preferably in football or basketball. A big reason why I was able to get accepted into UNC-CH and UGA is persistence. If I need or want to do something, I will try again and again until I make it a reality. Similarly, if someone tells me that I am incapable of doing something, I will try my hardest to prove them wrong. I grew up playing sports so I am very competitive, a natural leader, have good work ethic, and believe strongly in team work. I pride myself on being honest and loyal and believe it has gotten me far in life. As a child, my parents were always able to satisfy my needs, and my reasonable want, even though my parents were not always financially stable. However, my quality of life improved as my father increased in military rank, and my mother got more, and more education from college which enabled her to get a better job. When I look back on that example, I know that I want to keep that high quality of life, and I want my future family to have the highest quality of life as possible, and the best way I can accomplish this, is to go to college. Another reason I have chosen to pursue a higher education is to work in a career field that for which I have a passion. At an early age, I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in athletics. My first choice, like most young children that play sports, was to play sports at a professional level, but be it that the likelihood of that was far beyond my talent and size, I decided to chase a career in the administrative aspect of sports. I have always had a passion for sports, and I know that if I get a career in sports, I will never have to work a day in my life. Throughout high school, and my freshman year at college, I researched a variety of college majors and careers that would best suit me. I finally decided that I was going to study Exercise and Spots Science, majoring in Sports Administration and minoring in coaching. These degrees can lead me to numerous opportunities, careers that I will enjoy, and careers that will support me financially. Additionally, I hope to acquire specific character traits, and people skills from attending college. Attributes such as responsibility, communication skills, self-reliance, time management skills, money management skills, and much more. These skills will help me, not only in my career but in my everyday life as well. In conclusion, I hope to obtain a career that will sustain my future family, and me financially. I also would like to get a career that I will enjoy, and love doing. I also hope to gain experience that will provide me with special traits, in which will aid me throughout my life. To me, the pros of going to college clearly outweigh the cons, and my decision to go to college was a “no brainer.” These are the reasons that prompted me to go to college, not only to better myself, and my life, but to better my future family, and their life as well. Focusing on Things You Can ControlJackie DeWaal
According to actor Chris Pine, “The only thing you sometimes have control over is perspective. You don't have control over your situation. But you have a choice about how you view it.” I found this statement to be true when deployment struck my family from June 2017 to May 2018. My husband was “promoted” from a Marine Corps Reservist to an active duty member. One month of training in state, three months of training out of state, followed by seven months of duty in Afghanistan. I have never hated goodbyes so much. As a kid, I never imagined that I would fall in love with a military member. I saw the effects that having a loved when in the military had on those left back home, and I remember thinking that I never wanted to be with a military member and have to endure that hardship. Little did I know, God had another plan for me. He matched me with the most selfless, kind, compassionate man that also happened to be a Marine, and I had no control over my feelings for him. When I met Aaron, he had been in the military for about two of his six-year contract. As a reservist, he always knew that deployment was a possibility, but the chances were not as high than if he were an active duty member. We had been given multiple “warnings” that a deployment could arise, but it wasn’t until January 2017 that a deployment was confirmed. I remember this day like it was yesterday. As soon as I heard the news I broke out in tears. How was I going to survive a whole year without my other half? How was I going to be strong enough to endure this? While many of my husband’s fellow Marines had the option to volunteer for this deployment, my husband was ordered in due to his job specifics. We had no control over this situation. But my doubts and fears were set aside because God had bigger plans for me. Two months after finding out about the deployment I learned that I was accepted into the Speech-Language Pathology Graduate program at Western Michigan University. I had been patiently awaiting this news and it had finally come. I now knew how I was going to keep myself busy while my husband was gone, though I still had to endure a whole summer without him before school started in the Fall. For the first few weeks to a month after he left, I was mildly depressed. I was so angry that he was taken from our home, but also extremely sad, feeling like half of my heart was missing. When I thought about how long he was going to be gone, or when someone at church asked me about him, I would instantly start crying. I was an emotional mess. I didn’t have an appetite; I couldn’t fall asleep at night, but when I did it was because I cried myself to sleep; and I desperately wanted to lay on the couch all day, every day, watch TV, and shut out the world. After a few weeks of moping, I decided something needed to change. I had lost a significant amount of weight and my body was out of balance. It was time to focus on the things I could control rather than the things I couldn’t. My first goal was to get out of the house at least once a day. I made myself get up, shower, brush my teeth, and go out to run errands or meet a friend for lunch. I vowed not to mope around the house in the dark and to try and make the best of my summer days. I also joined a women’s Bible study at my church. I wanted to be diligent about getting into my Bible each day and doing the assigned readings, and to engage with other women in fellowship on a weekly basis. Furthermore, I made a to-do list around the house. There were many rooms that I wanted to paint, and there was trim work to be done. I made trips to Menards and bought the necessary supplies and I would just paint for hours, listening to podcasts or chatting on the phone with a friend who was in Africa at the time. I spent multiple 8-hour days painting four different rooms in my house, and it was relaxing to me. When school finally started, I surrounded myself with classmates. Some of my surface-level friendships became stronger, and I made multiple new friendships. Fall semester was extremely busy as I was trying to orient myself to a new schedule and balance my time between school work and clinical fieldwork, but each night my group of friends would get together to study or do homework. I was never alone, and this was something I could control. I began meal planning with a friend, and we took turns cooking to ensure that each of us were eating balanced, healthy meals. My body soon returned to its normal state, and I started sleeping better and felt more well rested. I couldn’t control that my husband was gone, or that he was in a dangerous area in the Middle East; sometimes I couldn’t even control the amount of worry I felt for his safety. But I could control how I spent my time, who it was with, and what I put into my body. It took great discipline to focus on what I could control, but once I did this, I felt a sense of peace wash over me. There came a time when a day would go by that I didn’t cry over my husband’s absence, and I considered this a small victory. By God’s grace, my husband safely returned home in May 2018. Up until that point I had dreamt about what it would be like to finally hug him in person. We had skyped and chatted through the wonderful modern-day technology, but it was so much different than being able to hold him and be held by him. Since his arrival back home, we have had our ups and downs. We went back to the feeling of being newlyweds, learning how to live together again and how to communicate. Even in our disagreements, we each make the decision to be in control over what we can be, and to disregard what is out of our control, and sometimes this is easier said than done. But God has seen us through and has made us stronger because of it. WhyAlexandra Lana
Rivier University Have you ever witnessed something horrible? Seen things that can’t be unseen? Thought to yourself, “that person will never be the same as they were just 5 long seconds ago”? I have. And that’s why I enrolled in Nursing School. In October, 2015, I witnessed a horrible accident that involved a bicyclist, a JEEP and a busy intersection. A lot of people pulled over and stopped, but not one went to the woman who landed partially on her backpack and partially not. I couldn’t help myself - I pulled my car over to a nearby parking lot and I flew to her. I remember these thoughts raced through my head, “What is wrong with these people!? This woman needs help! Why are they not helping? How could no one have gone to her yet?” I knelt at her side and told her that she was going to be ok. I hope that I sounded comforting and convincing because I, myself, was not completely convinced. I had dialed 9-1-1 on my way to her side. I wanted to give them an exact accounting as to what was happening with her and collect as much information as I possibly could for the Rescue Team, in case she were to lose consciousness before they were to arrive. Her name was Pam and she was riding her bike home after finishing her work-day as a housekeeper for a nearby hotel. Her clothes were dated and tattered. Stringy, straight hair in a pony-tail peeked from under her helmet. And as it turns out, her much-needed eyeglasses had been thrown upon impact and subsequently were shattered by a slow-passing car just seconds after she asked for them. Hearing the crunch of her glasses sent her into hysteria. She hadn’t shown much emotion before then; she was somehow keeping herself composed but the glasses set her off. I shouted at her to look at me, look into my eyes. Surprisingly, she did. She quieted down to listen to what I had to say. I told her that she would get replacement glasses and that it was an easy fix. I told her that what I needed her to do was to take deep breaths and focus on me… and she did. I held her hand, and began assessing the extent of her trauma. Her bones were sticking out of her fingers and blood dripped from her forehead. She was conscious and afraid. In that moment nothing else mattered but her. I talked to her; I kept her alert and calm - and together, the two of us waited for help to arrive. On that day I learned that I could not only deal with the broken bones and lacerations but, I also learned that I could deal with an ailing person and keep my cool in the situation. As I watched her accident unfold in those 5 seconds that seemed to play out in slow motion, I knew then that she would never be the same as she was just 5 long seconds ago. It took little time for me to realize that I, too, would never be the same. DreamArya Bondre
Drew University At the beginning of my high school in India I was introduced to a unique liberal arts way of learning which propelled me to imagine me pursuing my undergraduate degree in the States. When I pitched this idea to my parents, I was met with disheartened attitude because our financial position proved to be a barrier between me and my dream. I would rather term it an undertaking to oppose the rigid educational system in India promoting the propaganda of rote learning and mass examinations rather than my American dream. Looking at my fervor, my mom decided to apply for a US work visa through her company because that was the only way for us to at least financially survive by paying my college tuition. This decision meant uprooting my whole family from our native town of 17 years and coming to a totally new and unknown country. But my parents are the most supportive people that I know of because they agreed to permantly shift for my education if our visa got approved. I wasn’t sure yet what attracted me to the states except the countless stories I had heard about the American dream and of people abandoning every single thing like us to pursue it. I felt a kinship to them in a manner that I could feel the pull of learning in an international environment with millions like me trying to prove their metal. I started going through my college applications in the meantime. As if our prayers had been answered, I had gotten accepted from several of colleges I had applied to and received some scholarships. Even, our visa application got processed and accepted but since the Trump administration had come to power and had put a cap on work visas in the US my mom’s company was reluctant to send us to the States. At this phase of my life I had gotten extremely frustrated due to constant obstacles that managed to appear at the worst times. Coincidentally, I started reading Rhonda Bryne’s ‘The Secret’ and got introduced to the power of the Law of attraction. In her book she mentioned that the secret of this law was passed down countless generations, followed by thousands of notable persons and most importantly was very effective. While reading this book, I felt a sense of relief due to the fact that it provided me hope when there was none. I had moved on from pursuing my education in the US and started searching for local option but when I read The Secret I felt as if Bryne’s whispered the secret to me hereself and I could sense the weight of the historical law being passed to me. Although, I was skeptical about it initially, I rationally reasoned that I had nothing to lose and hence I continued to dream and think about the pursuit of my educational endeavors in the US. I believe that Ironically, the law of attraction was so potent that we received a notice from my mother’s office to relocate to the US within 3 days and hence we didn’t even get to bid farewell to our relatives. The Power of Positive ThinkingJournie Kellnhofer
Arizona State University Being positive should be so easy, right? The craziness in today's society can get quite trying and very overbearing. Deadlines and assignments that we all face come and go, but it is our attitude and determination that allow us to succeed or fail. Changes in our lives will always be a struggle and try to wear down on our positive forward thinking. An experience happened to me quite awhile ago, but was an epiphany regarding my way of thinking towards education and life in general. I was always a great student and even though I was shy, I had a positive attitude and believed I could do anything I set my mind to, until I had a teacher in grade school. It was this teacher who gave me a negative impression of math and made me believe that I would never succeed or be able to learn math skills. I recall my Mom having many meetings trying to understand if I had a learning disability or if I just needed tutoring. My Mom kept trying and telling me to never give up and worked with me night after night trying to help me learn math in a way I could understand. I became so discouraged and had such a feeling of hopelessness that I began to not even like school or anything in life for that matter. I am so thankful that my Mom is always thinking positive and goes through life with a smile and can-do attitude. Even though I had to face this particular teacher day after day, I tried to stay focused with my studies. However, the subject of Math was still challenging and fearful and I continued to believe that I would never understand it. The next year I attended junior high school and the minute I met my math teacher, I became hopeful once again. Her positive attitude and sheer joy, excitement and love of math, encouraged me to try. We discovered I could learn math and was actually very good at understanding the concepts of math. Ms. Henneman was able to teach me techniques to use to learn in a way that I would understand. This positive experience greatly influenced my academic performance by teaching me to never again give up and to keep trying. I realized that one bad experience should not close my mind or eyes to what lies ahead. To this day, math and science are two of my hardest subjects but I love the challenge. This example is one that I will always remember and has guided me through high school. This particular experience has guided me throughout my life in many ways. When my parents divorced years ago, I started to spiral down once again. As any child going their parents' divorce, school, work and relationships become unbearable and life seems to be very scary. My Mom, the one person who always is so positive, became quiet and I remember not seeing her smile anymore. Without her positive energy glowing and being contagious, the feeling of helplessness, being alone and the fear of the unknown began to take over. As I laid in bed crying one night, I recollected the vision of her helping me years ago with my fear of math. I suddenly understood..I needed to be the one to help her! I became the light of hope to lead her back to her way of positive thinking. It was so good to see her smile again and her rays of sunshine became to shine though. She soon found herself again and I remember her thanking me for being able to help her. It felt so good inside to be able to use what she always taught me...to never give up and always try to have a positive way of thinking. I once had a friend who was mad at the world and she was always complaining or talking about this person or this person. It was easy to get sucked into her way of thinking and then I remembered simply feeling sorry for her. I didn't want to continue down that road but I didn't want to hurt her feelings either. I used my positive thinking to always answer her negative comments with something positive. Eventually her attitude changed to be more uplifting. She became tolerable to hang around with and we actually had fun! When things get tough in my life, I always try to stay focused on the positive, even when it seems things are hopeless. My life changed due to two teachers so many years ago..one negative and the other positive. I chose to be positive and it has proven time and time again, more good comes with a forward thinking perspective. That one teacher who changed my life forever by simply teaching me that I can do it and can succeed at anything with positive thinking. I will continue to remember these life experiences at college and for the rest of my life. GoalsKristle Brown
It can be hard to face the impermanence of life without feeling a sense of fear at times. Nothing can change for long periods and suddenly everything can change in a moment. I love going to museums and appreciating the art within them because it is a way to enjoy the transience of life objectively. However, life doesn't always grant objectivity and a person can go from the strongest most capable human you've ever known to a woman lying in cachectic and dying in a hospital bed. I was eight years old, as clumsy as they come, running after my cousin who stole my favorite toy. I was not looking where I was running and in true eight-year-old fashion, fell and split my head open. In my panic and terror, I called to that capable human. This human who raised a young child on her own while working and attending nursing school. This woman who excelled as an APRN, eventually becoming CEO of her hospital. A woman whose kind eyes and demeanor endeared her to every colleague and patient. This woman who was my connection to this world, my mother. Of course, she remained calm and tended to my wound. She would tend to many more of my wounds in the future, both physical and emotional. My mother was a permanent fixture, she was imperfectly perfect (as parents are in children’s eyes), like a Grecian statue that one would find in a museum. Strong with small flaws but largely preserved and unwavering. It wasn't until 2010, when I received a call in a noisy bar in South Korea, when my step-father explained to me that the mysterious bruises she had acquired were a result of leukemia, that this statue began to crack. It only took a year of chemotherapy for that statue I’d admired to become all too mortal. Another year of tears and fundraisers to find a match to mend the cracks with a successful bone marrow transplant. A subsequent year of calm happy remission involving beach trips and future planning. Abruptly followed by relapse, a walker, sponge baths, episodes of psychosis, and finally a fatal bout of pneumonia. It was in that moment, as her grip slipped from my hand so did my connection slip from the world. For the next few years, I existed but I was the statue now. Not one to be admired but one that was trapped while everyone else moved about the museum. This feeling persisted until I found my mother’s school notebook. Initially, I was reading it just to admire the writing, the lines that were once thoughts in my mother’s mind. Then, I began to actually read the material. Words linking pharmacology to physiology, things I never dreamed would interest me but here I was rapt in attention. It was at this point that I decided to go back to school. I left my corporate career and started taking pre-med classes. I poured myself into my studies, getting straight A’s in every course, surprising even myself with this new-found dedication. I began working as a pharmacy technician then as a medical assistant, learning everyday through experience, calling on the knowledge in my mothers notes and growing even more interested in the complexities of the human body. At work, I quickly began to bond with patients and built a rapport with many of them. It was in these moments that I began enjoying being around people again, connecting with their laughter and even their pain. That human connection I felt was lost years ago, had begun to manifest itself with the help of these patients. When speaking with a friend who is completing her MPAS, as well as several professors, I kept hearing “Look into physician assistant, it would suit you”. Until then, I had never heard of a PA, and upon investigation and shadowing, I would agree. While I work well on my own, I also enjoy being a part of a team so the autonomy to treat, diagnose, and perform procedures within the continuity of care while working collaboratively with a doctor has high appeal. I also love that being a PA would allow me a broader scope of practice while affording me the option of lateral mobility as my career progresses. The typical question is who is “the patient” or what “experience” lead you to physician assistant? My mother was “that patient” and finding that notebook with every step since has been “that experience”. I now work at St. Francis Hospital full-time as a medical scribe, and witness daily the provider’s interactions with each of their patients. I have learned so much from a diagnosis and clinical stand point but I have also connected with the story each patient tells. As is the nature of emergency medicine, some stories are tragic and painful while others have hap- pier endings. Every patient touches you in a different way, much like art. They may remind you of a lesson from your past, some even teach you something new. Being a PA, I don't have to be a statue. I can walk in the museum once again, admiring the art, appreciating the stories, and helping to restore pieces while helping to foster a genuine appreciation in others around me. From Which Eyes the Embers GlowLuke Fortier
Grand Rapids Community College “Love seeketh not Itself to please, Nor for itself hath any care, But for another gives its ease, And builds a Heaven in Hell’s despair.” So sung a little Clod of Clay, Trodden with the cattle’s feet, But a Pebble of the brook Warbled out these metres meet: “Love seeketh only Self to please, To bind another to Its delight, Joys in another’s loss of ease, And builds a Hell in Heaven’s despite.”
There is a way of being that marries into the souls of those coming out the other side: scattered interminably among the spectrum of socioeconomic worlds lay the indifferent burden of psychological tumult. Our histories are permeated with stories mourning over the consequences of personal despair. But the source of the darkness which will forever underlay and perhaps define human existence should not consume our focus in our hatred of it. I recognized the inescapable aspect of it when a once quite privileged suburban existence was shocked by a slight rattling of the foundations – by the foreclosure of a home, by the death of a grandfather, and by the new abundance of worried silences hidden from the world. As I look back, these challenges seem too light, and too commonplace to weave any significant wisdom from. But as they had played so large a part in my lowest point that had had ever become of my still very short-lived life, I carefully accept the relative nature of our motives, and the universality of the things they produce. They are the things that produce life and death, happiness and dread, love and suicide. And there is little blame to be placed on those closer to the latter of these. Those who believe the world stands against them have been convinced of it, as I was and as many were in the magnanimous hierarchies of high school that few envy. The demand for escapism manifested through substance abuse, through avoidance of family and friends, and in the years following graduation, a burgeoning pain experienced in the lack of escape. It was through no word of advice that things changed course. It had everything to do with time—with endurance enough to reach for a positivity I had mocked. Among many there is a perceived feigning in the indulgence of positivity, as optimism itself is equated with a kind of shallowness. Sympathizing with the criticism of ‘privileged mentalities indulging in their comfortable proximity to opportunity,’ I could justify the ideology which coaxed the shame from my state of being – often inebriated, having dropped out of college, unable to maintain a steady job – though which had not the effect, nor the will to take me from it. It is a dead end that foresees the end when one believes their fate is sealed by their lack of ability to change. But it is a dead end which holds the chip of integrity, as it is reasonably counterintuitive to lacerate the credibility of one’s entire outlook – no integrity is kept in the ignorance of what one understands as true. It is when I endured long enough that I chose the guidance of those I had resented for their happiness, and had understood this itself as integrity. I chose to rely less on my cynical analyses to reveal the truth, and instead let the truth be something I was not so certain of. I chose, as I sat jobless, penniless, living on the generosity of my family, to get a job. I chose to seek therapy. I chose to mend the wounds I had made among those I loved. And through no short process, these were accomplished, and led me here: with meaningful job at a non-profit counseling agency, back in college for the past two years, receiving the highest grades I have ever gotten in school, and even having won an award for a writing competition. And it is here I stand not perplexed, but impressed by the power held in our capacity of perspective. I very often contemplate the fundamental truths I have learned coming from the brook to the clay beneath the cattle’s feet. In the acceptance of my minute position in this world, there comes an appreciation of it, but there also comes an awareness that all cannot change unless I get a job; no regret and no sadness will disperse unless I take responsibility for the hurt I had caused, and make it right. No direction will come from an anxiously perpetuated brainstorm about my life and the meaning of it, but only from the deliberate first step toward some meaningful outcome will a path reveal itself. I am on track to transfer to a four-year school to earn my bachelor’s degree and to be the first in my family to do so. A profound understanding that now stands considered in every decision I make for my future is that we are all subject to an understanding of who someone like us has the right to be. Does a man from a working-class family with no history of college education have the right to earn a PhD? Has a woman from a low-income family struggling to put food on the table have the right to become a physician? Have we the right to defy courses of expectation put before us that so often limiting the decisions we make? As there is both darkness and light, dread and hope, in this world, it is that which we decide to not only to desire, but to expect, that guides us closer to either. To know who has helped you when low, or when others would have let you fall further into hopelessness, is to choose light. To decide to make one’s perceptions up of the less defeating facts that assert themselves forever among the living, is to choose hope. It is in knowing both who you are, and who you want to be, and in the love of others that empowers the will to change with a vision, and the right to inhabit that vision has, and forever will, lay as embers in the soul, waiting to glow. Gratitude is StrengthAlison Ou
Often times, unexpected hurdles drop from the sky. You contemplate the causes of this hurdle and doubt your previous decisions. However, with the power of gratitude, you will eventually gain the strength to tread the mountain and allow this journey to strengthen you. After attending first grade in Fremont, my family moved to Taiwan. There, I attended Taiwanese elementary school from second grade to fifth grade, successfully adapting to the new environment after much struggle. Just when I thought my life was on track, we moved back to America where I remain till now. The new surrounding threw my life into disarray yet again. The academic struggle was tiny compared to socializing problems. I feared my Chinese accent and had trouble embracing the more liberal culture of the United States. Before the first bell, I would stand alone in a corner, watching other kids happily chat with their friends. I craved for their sense of belonging—how they shared themselves with others fluently and carefreely. I knew I was not a reserved girl. I had fiery passion for education, art, and helping others. I liked sharing my thoughts, but most importantly, I loved knowing others. Listening to others’ stories always expanded my world and inspired a deeper knowledge of humanity within me. The little amount of true me shining through the veils of fear attracted a few close friends who came from similar backgrounds. We stuck together like sisters till college separated us. I am grateful that they supported and exposed a truer me. My mother never understood why friends would want to hangout outside of school. When I asked her for permission, I was always met with hesitation, scolding, or negative judgment of my friends. She would guilt me for disregarding family. I rarely went out in fear of her disappointment. When I fell into my first relationship—a long distance one with my reunited Taiwanese classmate—my parents locked my computer upon discovery. They would force me to break up and give two-hour lectures on how the boy was brainwashing me. Though it was extremely tiring, stressful, and at times depressing, I efficiently spread my time between sports and AP classes to squeeze time for my relationship. I continued to maintain academic excellence out of a genuine passion for learning and entered UCLA with renewed hope. Perhaps my parents would acknowledge me as an adult capable of having my own life. However, nothing changed in college except for the fact that six hours of distance forced them to relinquish some direct control. When I entered my second relationship, my parents coerced a guy friend of mine who liked me to give them information regarding my college boyfriend and other regular friends. Unpleased, they bombarded me with lectures. They secretly met with one of my childhood sisters and asked her to advise me to leave the relationship, which she disobeyed. I started to doubt myself. By then, I have committed myself to the pre-med route. I saw that health is the most essential treasure. Without it, no one can muster full strength to enjoy life, not to mention overcoming hardships. My friends were always loyal, loving, and intellectual. Am I not worthy enough to deserve some freedom? Extremely distressed, I left home early to go to LA for volunteering opportunities as I researched family dynamics. I realized that my parents were unhealthily overprotective. After various cycles of lectures, judgment, and guilt-tripping when I lived life that went against their tradition, I no longer felt the warmth of home. As my therapist guided me through depression caused by years of emotional containment, I set aside my fears and tried various ways to communicate with my family—exchange diary, doing house chores, open conversations, discussing alternative family dynamics, inviting them to family therapy—all of which failed. To avoid suicidal thoughts, I have recently left my family’s house early this summer. They responded by cutting half of my tuition and housing support. My initial reactions such as sadness, blame, and hopelessness never got me anywhere. Only one idea that came with lots of time and grappling with emotions fueled me—gratitude. I am grateful for how my family raised me to adulthood. Although their love might not be healthy, they still did their best for me out of their abilities, perceptions, and knowledge. By halving support, I am forced to actively plan finances, work while studying, and gain important life skills. Because they took the risk to allow me to become independent, I will be able to earn and own every step towards my pursuit of medicine. No matter how hard it is, I know I will one day succeed and return to them with even more gratitude than before. Attitude of GratitudeLauren Hartman
University of Wisconsin As I look back on my high school years, it is easy to see that there was one goal in my mind, one central driving force motivating me in everything I did: college. When I joined a new club, it was so I could put it on my college applications. When I signed up for Advanced Placement classes, it was so I would already have credits towards my degree when I began my first year of college. When I went to an ACT tutor, it was so I would have a shot at getting into my dream school. Despite all of the effort and planning I put into being accepted college, arriving on campus for move-in day was a dramatic shock to my system. For the first time in my life, I began to feel crippling anxiety that kept me from participating in traditional college rites of passage and connecting with my peers, things that I wanted so badly to be able to do. Studying for exams, spending time getting acquainted with new friends, or researching my financial aid options were all common triggers of my newly developed anxiety, leaving me huddled in my lofted bed, tear streaks on my cheeks as I tried to somehow explain my hopeless feelings to my parents. Thankfully, however, this is not a tragic story of my demoralized walk of shame back to my hometown. After many nights spent mournfully talking to my family over FaceTime, begging them to let me come home, I finally began to adapt to my new surroundings and appreciate the good aspects of my new life. This is because I realized the importance of having an attitude of gratitude. I have never been an overly anxious person. It’s just not who I am. In high school, I played tennis, worked a part time job, and took fairly rigorous Advanced Placement courses, so performance and test anxiety really had no place in my hectic lifestyle. Once I began college, however, that all changed. The wild, uninhibited drinking culture of my university made my inner perfectionist feel helpless and alone. Whereas I was used to having close friends who shared my values and interests, college exposed me to people of all types. Every weekend, I felt nauseous as I watched my roommate leave with friends to go to parties while I stayed back, mind racing through all of the horrible things that could happen to irresponsible drunk college students. After several weeks of this, I came to a conclusion: Maybe college just wasn’t for me. Everyone has challenging periods in their lives, I rationalized. Maybe college, so idealized in popular culture, is unpredictably going to be my most difficult time. After spending countless nights talking to my parents on the phone rather than spending time with the other freshmen living on my floor, I finally decided to go to the mental health counseling center at my school. Living with that level of unbearable anxiety was just not sustainable. I needed to make a change. I ended up joining a weekly small group counseling session with six other girls that were all struggling with anxiety as well. Honestly, just having the structure of meeting with the girls at the same time every week was helpful; it made my large public university seem slightly less daunting. During our time together, we compared our difficulties and our counselor lead us through mindfulness activities. While these were helpful for the overarching anxiety, one of the best tools I was given was having an attitude of gratitude. The counselor suggested that each night, we start writing in a notebook three things that we were grateful for. It took a little while for me to get into the habit of writing in my gratitude journal, but once I did so consistently I began to notice a dramatic change in my outlook. At the beginning, the things I was grateful for were not school-related; for example, I was thankful for having a supportive family and being able to see their faces through FaceTime. As I kept writing in my gratitude journal, however, I began to notice the aspects of my school that I really appreciated: my dorm was very centrally located, I was enjoying some of my classes, and the sunsets above the nearby lake were beautiful. My perspective was changing. While I am loving being at home with my family for the summer, there are times when I think about the inevitability of returning back to school and immediately start to feel nervous. However, then I focus my thoughts, reminding myself of everything I have to be thankful for. I am able to attend college, an opportunity that many do not have. I have kind, compassionate friends at school who are always willing to listen when I’m feeling homesick or overwhelmed. My family is supportive, ready to do whatever it takes to help me succeed and be happy with my current stage of life. These are the aspects of my life that I find myself continually writing about in my gratitude journal. As I look back on my freshman year, I am so thankful that I decided to seek out the mental health counseling that I so desperately needed. Adopting an attitude of gratitude is a change that I firmly believe will stay with me forever. After all, I think having bit more gratitude in our lives is something we all could use. From Columbia to ColumbiaLing Lopez
Columbia University My entire life has been shaped by overcoming adversity. I spent a lot of my childhood in survival mode. Coming from an orphanage, to be now close to obtaining a masters degree from Columbia University is the result of my grit, resilience, and inability to quit on myself, my goals, and all who will benefit from my success. I was born and raised in Colombia. I lost my father to guerrilla violence when I was 2 years old. He was murdered by an insurgent group that took over the neighborhood we lived in. I lost my mother to poverty and lack of opportunity. She put my sister and I in an orphanage because she couldn't take care of us. My father's mother found us somehow and made us part of her live. My grandmother did the best she could to raise us and shield us from the toxic environment we were surrounded with. An environment full of drugs, violence, guns, lack of opportunity, lack of hope. I learned from an early age to focus on what I could control. I used this as a safety mechanism. Life around me was too confusing and messy. I needed hope. I needed to believe I had the power to control some aspects of my life, and chose to focus on that. I blocked out everything else I couldn’t control or that I had no way to influence so that I could give my entire attention to that which I could influence and control. Church became my escape. It was the safe place. It was the place where I heard music for the first time. I fell in love with a little guitar with a stick that a girl was playing one day at church. I found out later it was called a violin. That was my introduction to music and set the path for my career. School was another place where I felt safe. Books kept me company and told me everything was going to be ok while everything around me told me otherwise. When things got ugly on the street, when gunshots were being heard, when my family wasn't getting along, when there was little food to go around the table, books were there for me. The corner of the room and books were always available to me. The corner was safer than my bed where I found a gun hidden when I was 8 years old. My schoolwork, school awards and recognitions made me "forget" the challenges I was facing at home. Losing family members, moving to different cities to stay with different relatives according to who was able to take care of me and my sister, not having anyone to provide a stable place or anywhere to belong. The emotional challenges I faced in my childhood started to take a toll on my psychological well being. By the time I was a teenager I was already suffering from depression and started having suicidal thoughts. I realized I needed to reach out for help when I caught myself thinking on ways I could end my life. I was 13. I had heard there was a psychologist at my high school so I started having sessions with her and taking medication. After high school, we got the opportunity to come to the United States. I knew New York is the best place to study music so instead of returning to my country I decided to stay and pursue a career in music, even though I didn't have a place to live, or money to attend school, and could not speak English. I was introduced to the Law of Attraction during this period. I created a vision board with pictures that reminded me of what I was trying to accomplish. Thanks to government grants, part time jobs, and a lot of commitment and discipline, I graduated with honors from Queens College with a Bachelors of Arts in Music and a minor in Business administration and Liberal Arts. My struggle is far from over. I spent the years after college working different jobs in the music field, saving as much money as I could to get to graduate school. I knew I hadn't been feeling well but I didn't know I was ill. I thought what I was having were residues from the depression years before which I thought was a thing of the past. While I was applying to grad school I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Receiving my acceptance letter to Columbia University's masters program in Music Education gave me the courage to fight and to prove to myself that a mental illness was not going to get in the way of achieving my potential, so I chose one more time to focus on what I could control. Weekly treatment, strong dose of medication, consistency, and discipline got me through my first year of grad school while working two jobs. Part of the reason I want my education is to give back to the place I come from. I am creating a music program for children in disadvantaged communities in the city of Colombia where I grew up. A program where kids can escape. Their safe place. The place where violence and guns are traded for instruments and music. A place where they can explore their art and their culture while being sheltered from the dangers and misfortunes of a developing nation. For this to happen I need to be as prepared as I can. I need to have the best education I can receive, and need all the help and support I can get. Your financial support will help me finance my last year of graduate school, and will plant the seed for inclusion and social change for children in South America and maybe around the world. Having an Attitude of GratitudeDarwin Agyei
My name is Darwin Agyei, The topic I’m going to be choosing is having an attitude of gratitude. I’m going to be discussing my experience living and schooling in Ghana, West Africa for 2 years. My parents decided it was time for my twin brother and I to visit their homeland where they were born and raised. My twin brother and I were born in the United States of America but my parents wanted us to get an experience living in Ghana for 2 years. It must of been difficult for my parents to let us stay in another country at such a young age but I think my parents knew this experience will make us view and appreciate life differently as we got older. At the age of 12 where my brother and I lived with our uncle and his family. The house was an enormous gated house with beautiful flowers surrounded all over the house, a guard dog, maid and plenty of bedrooms. On the day of the arrival, as a little child I was in complete shock when I seen the house because it had a lot of space to play and run around outside. Being an American citizen in Ghana. The children around the neighborhood thought we were some type of celebrities because we were from America, owned nice clothes and electronics. Everytime we would hang out with them. They would be so happy that they had friends from the USA which was different for them. The children use to love racing each other and playing soccer. They would race and play soccer barefoot. For me, which was strange because we always wear shoes but the more we started hanging out with them. The more, we would live their lifestyle of wearing no shoes to play soccer and race barefooted. They thought it was cool that we wore no shoes. We had a maid which was different , she was a nice kinded woman. She always asked if we were hungry, offered to do our laundry and do house cleaning duties. But don’t judge a book by it’s cover. She actually took advantage and ended robbing my brother and I for our clothes, electronics, shoes. She left the house and never returned. Another situation occurred as rumors around the neighborhood which my uncle ended up hearing from somebody in the neighborhood. A few individuals attempted to rob the house because a source told them that people from America are living in that household. My uncle ended up hiring a security guard for a week to watch the house 24/7. Schooling in Ghana, we attended a private school. Uniforms were a big requirement, and assembly lines were formed every morning to sing the national anthem of Ghana as one group. During the assembly lines I remember I use to see girls faint due to the fact it was very hot and humid. Teachers at the private school were allowed to beat kids with a thin bamboo stick called a cane. The teachers would hit the children in their legs, back or the palm of their hand. The way one will get beaten is if he or she would do bad on a test or be disrespectful and ignorant to a classmate or an adult. We made friends and some of the children didn’t like us and there reasoning was we were from America. They assumed we taught we were better than them, and would treat us different by being rude. I was too young to come to a realization with the situations that occurred but that’s when I knew being and living in America was big deal. My father grew up in a village where the living conditions were terrible and poor, sharing food and living in a small house with 8+ people in the household. No electricity, my father had to walk a mile to school everyday and obtained a job that barely paid him anything. I remember my father telling me a story as we were talking when I got older “ He woke up one day and said to himself what If I have kids one day I don’t want them living in the same living condition I live in right now. I want to give them better, I want them to have what I couldn’t have as a young child. My father sacrificed a lot to move to America to make sure his children would not live in those conditions and better his future. While living in Ghana, My brother and I visited one of my uncle’s village where he use to live as a child. When you enter the village, there are no buildings, no grass, basically there is no life except for dirt and rocks everywhere. I couldn't imagine living in a village where you wake up to dirt and rocks and having no opportunities to better your life. I was sad to see my people living like this. At the age of 22, Having an attitude of gratitude plays a big part in my life. Individuals need to realize that living in America is an opportunity. There are plenty of kids outside of America that would kill to come here to better their lives and their families. I wake up everyday thankful for what I have accomplished and what I’m going to accomplish. I give back to people that are in need and give them hope because life is hard when you're not prepared and don’t have the tools to pave the way to be successful. My father’s sacrifice has paid off, he owns 3 cars, owns a business, has a good paying stable job and put 4 children including me through college and I wake up everyday thankful for my dad’s sacrifice and being born as an American citizen. Focusing on Things You Can ControlMira Stella Herrick
My strong work ethic along with my ability to withstand bumps in the road of life are two of my biggest strengths and something I take great pride in. I've always been able to focus on my goals without much distraction. However during my sophomore year in high school I withstood an experience that I didn't think I would ever fully recover from, and in some ways, still struggle with each day. In November of 2013 I unexpectedly lost my grandmother and grandfather to murder suicide. These two people, beloved members of my family, two people that couldn't have been more important to me, were gone. I left school for nearly a month and flew to Illinois where they had lived. My grandmother survived her injuries for five days and we all stayed by her side until she passed, the same day a tornado swept through a nearby town. My entire extended family was there. It was surreal and excruciating. When I came back everything was different. I was behind in all of my classes, I had extreme difficulty relating to my peers. I lost friends who did not know how to handle the trauma I had experienced. There were so many challenges that I didn't know how I would ever overcome them. I couldn't sit through a class without having to leave and concentrating on doing the most basic tasks was almost impossible. I felt isolated and confused, like someone had taken my world away. I lost motivation to do most things that had so recently been driving forces in my life. My dreams and goals, things I had been extremely passionate about started to fade and seem pointless; but they did not fade completely. Becoming a doctor has been my dream for as long as I can remember and nothing was going to take that away from me. Each day I worked harder and harder to push through my grief and depression and re-focus on my school work and my goals. The simplest things sometimes seemed like the most impossible tasks. For two years I felt like I would never be the same. Not only had I lost people so close to me, I also felt like I had lost my dreams and future. I had to learn how to fight through difficulty and opposition in a new way. I had to learn how to continue doing the difficult things, like working hard when I felt like I had no reason to; like the future was pointless. I persevered and I couldn’t be more grateful now that I did. I managed to complete high school with good grades and a strong sense of accomplishment and I was able to refocus on my goal of studying medicine. There isn't a day I don't think about my grandparents; they are always on my mind. However there also wasn't a day that went by that I gave up on myself. I continue to reach for my goals and support my family. Over the years, it has become easier to focus, and my motivation continues to strengthen. I no longer feel like even a simple task is an impossible uphill battle. And I have also found ways to make new connections with my peers. My life continues to grow and evolve and blossom. I don't think I will ever be the same. My worldview changed so dramatically after the trauma of losing my grandparents in such a horrific way, and I still think of them everyday. However this has taught me the true meaning of tenacity. There will always be hardship in my life, but I am a survivor. And in the face of great loss and overwhelming challenges, I know I can always keep moving in the right direction If I stay focused, believe in myself, and keep my eye on the goals I have set for myself. Although I cannot make the hardship in life go away, I can dictate the impact it has on my life. This experience was far from an easy way to learn to focus on the things I can control, however i did learn from it, and for that I have gratitude. It also isn’t an easy lesson to learn, but I believe it is one of the most useful ones. My first year of college was very difficult and I struggled adjusting, but instead of letting these difficulties overwhelm me, I accepted them and then used my resources and the things I could control to overcome them and continue being successful. Learning to accept the things we cannot change means we also do not let the bumps in the road stop us from reaching our destination. I know I will face more difficulties because life is far from perfect or easy, but I now have the confidence within myself to keep going without stopping or slowing down. FocusRebecca Blandon
New York University I didn’t always know what first-generation meant. In fact, I’m not sure my parents understood how influential the small but impactful differences between their generation and mine were for me. But I do remember the exact moment in which I understood my relative privilege and intrinsic obligation to my Nicaraguan ancestors and their legacy. On a family trip to Central America, I spent the afternoon scribbling signatures with my grandfather only to find that he couldn’t read or write. That moment has always remained very close to my mind and my heart, reminding me to appreciate and flourish every bit of opportunity sent my way. One of my first greatest educational stepping stones was when I transferred schools in the fourth grade, moving from a Catholic school in the Bronx to a secular all-girls private school in the upper east side of Manhattan. It was a colossal change and one that, at the time, I boasted with pride. I knew that I was being given a unique opportunity to climb the ladder my parents could only dream of. What I had not anticipated, however, was the destructive critique, unjust treatment and incessant doubt I’d have to work through in order to rise and garner respect from my peers and professors. As a first-generation American and college student with a powerful but safe-kept Nicaraguan identity, I learned to harness my heritage and it’s legacy as a shield from the patronizing and discriminatory I experienced as a minority in predominantly white and wealthy spaces. I was always deemed the shy, taciturn girl from the Bronx, who often times served as a token minority among her classmates. Studying in the field of science at Brown provided plenty of challenges in which I was cut off, undermined and often overlooked for what I could only reason was due to my identity as a woman of color. Throughout my experience in high-school and even later on at Brown University, where I studied Neuroscience as an undergrad, I developed a translational personality, in which I valued above all else, the ability to interconnect between the worlds I inhabited. As a native New Yorker, who attended school with the elite, but breathed the underprivileged and ostracized air of the city, I slowly started to bridge connections and discern differences in cultural norms across the people I loved, respected and worked with. My experiences engendered a sense of curiosity and empathy with which I continued to pursue my endeavors throughout college and today. It was after my most recent encounter with journalism upon taking a few classes in my senior year of college that I finally uncovered a career path aligned with my own values and diverse endeavors. Having taken a class in music journalism and another in international journalism for which I reported on hip-hop in Nicaragua – the country of my ancestors – and interning for a few music and culture publications, I am certain that a career in journalism is fit for a multifaceted individual like myself. My former professor finally put my long time worries of being a lost wanderer of many avenues to rest, encouraging me to continue exposing myself to foreign activities, people, and places for the sake of spreading stories that also fulfill my own comprehension of the world. As an aspiring video-journalist enrolled in NYU’s graduate News and Documentary program, I plan to join the vanguard of storytellers, like Ava Duvernay, Barry Jenkins and Anderson Cooper, that reveals the humanity of communities often left neglected. I hope to elevate the voices of marginalized people with integrity and alacrity. If given the support and aid from Achieve Today, I will be able to keep moving forward in my career as a minority rising the ranks in the journalism industry. My studies will give me the tools and practice to creatively and wholeheartedly report poignant stories on social justice, music, food studies, visual art, design thinking, urban studies, and identity politics. I am determined to amplify the voices and experiences of people who have yet to be heard, especially amidst our nation’s racial and political divides today. I’ve always known what it’s like to be the exception and the unprecedented as the first in her family to push the ceilings of social and financial capital. Growing more aware of my power and obligation as a first-generation identity, it is with the help scholarship funds and merit awards that I have been able to continue my studies and further my career. As a journalist with a unique perspective, I hope to create if not provoke progress and change towards a democracy that embraces diversity and challenges prejudice. I’m deeply grateful for the financial support I’ve received throughout my academic career as it’s made most, if not all, my professional pursuits possible, but I’ve still got ways to go in order to achieve my dream job: a role at the New York Time’s culture desk. If granted the Achieve Today Scholarship, I will see my success only as a matter of time and hard work, without the constraints of debt in the near future The Power of PositivityAndreea Iordache
Thunderbird School of Global Management I remember everything about that night. I was out in the waiting room, something didn’t feel right, this was taking too long. I looked around, there was no one in sight. It was almost midnight; I had been waiting for over 2 hours. Some “simple” procedure had to be done, but I knew nothing was simple in this situation. With no one there to be making any sounds, my thoughts were taking over. Worry and fear were taking turns shouting inside my head. I tried to rationalize with myself. “This is taking a long time because they’re doing a good job. It’s okay.” I moved my purse from my lap, to the end of the little bench I was on and laid my head on it. I closed my eyes and tried to clear my mind. I was trying to breath and ignore the horrible feeling I had in my gut. That’s when the ICU intercom broke the silence, echoing the words code blue, code blue, and then I heard the room number and everything stopped. I didn’t know what to do, I jumped and started running, no direction, just hoping I could reach the room in time. A nurse found me and let me in the ICU and took me to his room. There laid my boyfriend, his eyes wide open, a deep, light blue, like a frozen ocean, he was looking right at me. I knew in that moment that he was gone. I was looking in his eyes but there was no one there, just a pair of blue marbles, no feelings, no emotions, no life. I just stood there unable to move. Five men, or maybe it was seven, I don’t remember, were taking turns giving him CPR. His chest was bruised, blue with twists of light red across it, from all the weight they were putting on him. Blood was starting to come out of the corner of his mouth. More than 20 minutes go by and they’re still in a single line taking turns working on him, trying to save him. I sat there just looking in his eyes, trying to memorize every detail, because I knew it was the last time I was going to see him. I had forgotten all about time until someone’s voice cracked “call it” and I heard a response “12:34am”. And then the room cleared out and I was still standing there just looking at him trying to remember all the details of his face and the way it moved when he was smiling or talking about something he loved, like his favorite movies and directors or the times he had a really good day climbing. I sat there not sure what I was supposed to do. How long can I stay? Where do I go after? And just liked that everything changed and for the first time in my life I really didn’t know what to do. According to the hospital, my boyfriend died from an overdose. Strange… since I had known him for almost 4 years and didn’t have the slightest idea that he was doing this. I was upset and a little angry. How could this happen? Why? And how could someone you think you know so well, hide so much of themselves? It would have been easy for me to become a bitter, negative person after experiencing something like this. I struggled for a few days, it felt like I was drowning, and then I realized I had to try and find my way back to the surface. I have always believed that life is only a small fraction of what happens to us and what truly matters is how we react to it, and now I was really being tested. I know that being strong takes effort and it takes courage. It’s easy to hide away and blame everything on other people or situations, but if you do this, you are doing everyone around, including yourself, a huge disservice. I had to make a choice to be positive and allow something good to come out of this. Not easy to do, when you’re hurting and then to add to that you see so much negativity in the world. Sure, it would be easier to give up. What keeps you going? Where do you turn when you feel so fragile? The answer... the only person that can help you is YOU. We have the power to change our world through our perception. I started to focus on good things, I wrote down things I wanted to work, I went to school, I spent time with people that matter to me and I tried to remind myself that being negative and miserable would be the last thing someone who doesn’t get the chance to be here, while I do, would want from me. Going through this I realized that if you can be strong and stay positive, every experience can turn into growth. You learn about yourself and you learn how you can help others if they ever go through similar situations. I thought about the way the world works, a lot, and I came to this conclusion: we don’t have much say in how are lives unfold, we can’t decide when we are born, how we are raised, what we learn when we are young, and sometimes even how we process what we learn, and then before we know it, we’re adults and are on our own in the world. But most of us do have one thing going for ourselves, and that is the ability to alter our perception and put in effort. Without positivity, we would lose motivation and not put in any effort and without that effort we will live unexceptional lives. Every day when I wake up, I think about the amazing things I get to experience and the wonderful people I have in my life, and I stay positive. I have been through hard situations, but I’ve come out a stronger and a better person. I opened myself up and become vulnerable, I learned to forgive and to love someone exactly as they are, flaws and all, and I’ve learned to let go of negative emotions. Without positivity, and being able to appreciate what I have, I know I would be an unhappy person. It’s been more than two years now, since that night in July, and I have been able to experience first-hand how incredible the power of positivity is and how much it can change the world. To whoever is reading this, I hope you try to be positive and look at the bright side always, I hope you let the multitude of good things you attract with that attitude make you happy; I hope you stay grateful and remember that life has its ups and down, but it will get better, and you are still here getting to experience it, and I hope you let go of things that are out of your control and focus on the things that matter and that you can control, like your attitude and how you choose to see things. I promise you, you won’t regret it. Focusing on Things You Can ControlAudrey Vega
University of Nebraska-Lincoln My grandmother changed my life. Not just because I learned to be responsible for someone other than myself when she lived with us but also because she inadvertently molded my view of the medical field. As she got older and was diagnosed with heart disease and other medical issues, my grandma's doctor visits became more frequent. I would accompany my grandma on visits that actually required her to talk to the doctor because her doctors only spoke English, whereas she could only speak Spanish. Having to translate for my grandma made me realize that she didn’t really trust her doctor as much as she trusted me. I came to the conclusion that not being able to convey how she felt and what hurt her directly to the doctor created a divide that didn’t allow them to bond. My grandma and her cardiology specialist had become polarized. To this day, many of my friends have admitted to helping their family members with the language divide at the doctor’s office or even Wal-Mart shopping. While the language divide is unfortunate, what is worse is that the few doctors in the Rio Grande Valley are over-whelmed by the number of people that need medical attention. There is a great need for more doctors in my region, especially bilingual doctors. Had I not grown up with my grandmother living with me, I wouldn’t have been exposed to the medical field and its short-comings to my community as much as I was. I only ever went to the doctor when I was on the brink of death because a $20 co-pay was a family dinner, and the now $30 co-pay is a nice family dinner. So, I can honestly dedicate part of my decision to want to achieve greatness in the medical field to my grandma and, surprisingly, the heart disease that demanded biweekly doctor visits. The thrombosis that my grandma suffered from led me to conduct numerous google searches to try and understand what was going on inside of her body. All of my online research led me to discover the work of Dr. Barbara Alevriadou. I learned a great deal of information about thrombosis from the research conducted by Dr. Alevriadou and was able to understand some of what I was translating from the doctor to my grandma. Dr. Alevriadou has expertise a wide array of topics, but she is an expert in understanding the role of the mechanochemical environment on molecular mechanisms of cardiovascular disease, such as thrombosis. That same year that I had my Dr. Alevriadou obsession, my grandma passed away. As a middle school adolescent, my feelings grew contorted, and I fell into what some would consider to be depression. I would consider it to be a broken heart. After learning how much work Dr. Alevriadou had done and is still doing for people like my grandma, I decided to become like her. My middle school mentality of wanting to be just like her led me to do well in high school and be able to declare a biomedical engineering intent in college. Dr. Alevriadou is a perfect example of how many different paths those with a biomedical engineering degree can go down. She is an accomplished biomedical engineer with many different specialties and focuses in research. After realizing how accomplished she was in her research, I wanted to do some of my own. Later that year, I decided to apply for a research program at the local university. To my surprise, I was offered a spot in the lab of Dr. Yonghong Zhang. Having little knowledge of research, I feel eternally grateful to be able to have learned as much as I have. I can now say that because Dr. Zhang took me under his wing and allowed me to help with his research I would consider conducting research in my own lab a dream come true. As I continue into the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, I will apply to be able to conduct undergraduate research as I am completing my Biomedical Engineering degree. After graduation from UNL, I plan to enter an MD-PhD program to continue my education in the medical field. Though I'm not sure what my future specialization will be, I hope to become well-versed in my area of specialty. After I feel as if I have learned and experienced as much as possible, I intend to return to the Rio Grande Valley to give back to the community I grew up in. Looking back, I remember feeling angry. I was angry at my grandma for not knowing English. Angry at her doctor for not being able to relate to her. Angry that my grandma even had to go the doctor. Angry at my grandma for passing away. However, ultimately, I was angry at myself for not being able to do anything about it. Throughout my limited life experiences, one of the most important lessons I've learned is to focus on things that you can control and merely acknowledge the things that you cannot control. By acknowledging that my grandma's sickness and death was out of my hands, I was able to focus on doing well throughout high school so that I could eventually be able to make in a difference everyday through saving lives, helping families, and giving back to my community. Dr. Alovriadou helped pave the way into the STEM field for women. I, too, would like to help pave the way for minorities, especially because of the divided America we are living in today. I wish to be remembered as the humble, Hispanic woman who gave it her all in the medical field and strove for greatness. I think that you can't go wrong with a reputation like that. I realize that Dr. Alevriadou did not have it easy. She had to fix her life in a direction that led her to a graduate education. I realize that I won't have it easy either. However, I believe that I am prepared and just need to continue working towards my goals one day at a time so I can turn my dreams into reality. The Law of AttractionAmie Maguire
The law of attraction is the notion that when you focus on the positive or the negative, that brings the same back to you. For example, ever hear someone say that they are always unlucky, they never win anything and then in fact they never actually win? That is the law of attraction, what you put out into the world is what you get back. This idea has become a huge part of my life. I am constantly working to change my focus from the person who always thinks negatively, to the person who sees the positive. I am a work in progress. Since I was young I was always a critical thinker. This served me well, I could see what obstacles were ahead of me and how to be proactive in reaching my goal, whatever that was. To this day my husband cannot believe that I can anticipate my child’s actions and take steps to stop it before it occurs. This is a skill I hope to never lose. However being a critical thinker, for me, has led to negativity and drama. I am, or at least I was, very skeptical. I would assume that people were not genuine, that they wanted something from me and this led to ALOT of negative thoughts, emotions and actions. My mother loves to tell the story that when I was in elementary school I went to the school counselor to complain that I had chores and my brother didn’t. According to her account I was very upset that I was being treated differently and unfairly so. I gave example after example of how we are treated differently. This resulted in the guidance counselor calling my mother. What I left out was that my brother was 3 years old. So of course he would not have to make his bed, help fold the laundry, etc. With thinking critically, I could see how our roles were different, but all I could see was the negative, which created drama. This followed me through my teenage years. Where I questioned the affection of my then boyfriend and the support of my friends. I created and participated in a lot of drama and the law of attraction was in full effect. What I put out into the world came back to me. I was in an emotionally turbulent relationship, had strained friendships, lost a few friends due to my behavior and constantly fought with my parents. At one point I even left home to stay with a friend. What I put out into the world was definitely coming back to me. But then I grew up; chronologically and emotionally. I realized that this was NOT the life I wanted to live. So little by little I used those critical thinking skills to change my path. When friendships seemed toxic, and I could foreshadow what negativity was coming, instead of partaking in that drama, I walked away from it. This included romantic relationships as well. It took years but after some time, I ended up with positive people in my life, a loving husband, wonderful friends, and now 2 young children. So how do you do this… how do you change your way of thinking so that the law of attraction works positively instead of negatively? Well that is not easy. But it’s definitely doable. For me to change my way of thinking first I had to surround myself with like-minded people. Positive like-minded people. These people are still in my life today. Then when I began to overthink, negatively over think, I looked around to see the positivity in my life. Then I would remind myself that good things happen when you engage in “good” or moral activities. What you put out into the world is what you get back. By asking myself, what do I want to learn from this experience, what do I want to have in my life, has helped me to shift my focus from negative to positive. The answer for me is always the same, health, wellness and positive experiences for myself and my children. Health and wellness is not always medical or physical. For me, it is being emotionally healthy and strong. This shift in mindset is what has led me to go back to school, years after graduating college the first time. I want to become a school counselor, so I can help students improve their social-emotional wellbeing. So instead of being that drama filled teenager like I was, students can surround themselves with positivity, in turn creating more positivity. I want to help students learn that at an earlier age that I did. So like I wrote in the beginning, the law of attraction has become a large part of my life, and I continue to be a work in progress. I think we all are. ChallengesChristiane Mendonca
It was a sunny day in New York city back in 2005 when my cell phone rang, and on the other end of the phone line I heard my aunt saying, “if you want to see your mother alive you must hurry.” At that moment, the world collapsed into my feet and tears covered my face, my vision became blurred, and I felt hopeless. I flew to Brazil, and 15 days later my mother was dead, sorrow and sadness engulfed me. The following days after my mom’s death I felt lonely, sad and mad. I could not understand why my mom was taking away from me so abruptly. I needed her back desperately, and anger was consuming me. Weeks later and another avalanche punched me again, this time darkness settled in. I felt like I could not handle the pain anymore, it was more than I could have ever imagined. My mother’s diagnosis sounded like a drum out of tune. It ringed in my ears day and night. I lost my piece, my joy and I stopped dreaming. I could not accept that my mom suffered in silence for many years. I desperate looked-for serenity in places such as church, books, videos, friendship, yoga, prayers and even the silence but nothing comforted my heart. I had so many questions in my mind and no one to answer it for me. I kept crawling, and sadness kept following me. I was tired, devastated and I missed my mom desperately. I lived in NYC for many years before moving to Arizona to raise my family. The subway was my method of transportation and distraction. It was a cold night in NYC and snow started to fall; the city was silent, I could hear the wind, my breath, and my footsteps all at once. After a long, cold and lonely walk, I finally found a subway station and went down the steps as fast as I could. I waited on the platform for a long time before the train arrived. As soon as I entered the train, I saw a poster glued to the train wall that was saying “Focus on the things you can control.” At that time, I could not speak much English, but I could read well. I took a small notebook that I carried with me all the time, and I printed the sentence “Focus on the things you can control.” From the subway station in Manhattan to the subway station in Astoria, Queens my mind become a video camera. I started to think about the beautiful relationship that I had with my mom and most important on how she impacted my life in such a positive, loving way. Suddenly, that big avalanche was melting away; the pain was no longer so intense. The next day I removed the page from my small notebook and taped it on my mirror. I was reminded every day to only focus on the things I could control. Like a little flash of light in a dark tunnel, I started to understand that what had happened to my mother was out of my control. Blaming the universe, God’s will, death, disease, misfortune and people would not bring my mom back to me. I started to control my thoughts by replacing the questions, the sadness, and the anger that I had; with the beautiful memories, I had completely forgotten I had about my mom and the moments we cherished together. The long hours we spent on the phone talking about our dreams, our family, and our future. Her smile, voice, and beauty were also back in my mind. I was no longer angry, and I could close my eyes and see my mom; she was happy and peaceful; her fruity voice was pleasant. After spending years obsessing over my mom’s death, I made the decision: to focus purely on the things I had control over. By focusing on the things, I could control I got my life back, and I started leaving again. I was reminded over and over again that my mom was an incredible woman and that what happened to her could never define who she was or who she is. Unfortunately, we are all prone to diseases, misfortune and death and what matters is our integrity and the way we love and respect one another. My mother was an honest, loving mom, sister, daughter, and wife. My mom was diagnosed with HIV in July of 2005, and she died from organ failure two weeks later, but her diagnosis was revealed sometime after her death. Focusing on the things I can control was essential to my recovery and to the life I was able to build for my family. However, I must confess that my mom diagnosis still is something l don’t share. For the first time through this essay, I am sharing the pain, suffering, and agony I lived after my mom’s death. I am focused on who my mom was and how effectively she impacted my life. Focusing on Things You Can ControlSandy Chappell
One of the biggest wastes of time is worrying and focusing on events in your life that you are not able to control. Why is it important to focus on things that you can control? Because if we don’t do that, we end up wasting our time and efforts with disappointment, unmet expectations, and undesirable results. If we channel our absolute best attitudes and efforts on realistic goals, we have a greater chance of accomplishing our goals. Focusing on these controllable variables are the principles to success. I have come to realize that the majority of people, (including myself), spend incredible amounts of time trying to control all kinds of uncontrollable situations in their lives, in which they become disheartened with the end result and then often wonder why they were not able to affect the outcome, or what they could have done differently. The reason for the disappointing result is that they never realized it was something that they had absolutely no could control over it in the first place. But what we don’t realize is that some scenarios, we just do not have any control over it, and so that it is best to focus on the things that we do have control of. The only way to do this is to differentiate between what you are able to control and change, versus, what you cannot. It is important to be able to weed out what you are and are not able to control. What am I able to control? My choices, include my thoughts, feelings, my perceptions, interpretations, self-talk, how I spend my time, my attitude, and how I react to people and the situations around me (what I say and do to others). Also, my efforts, ability to see my weaknesses, understanding why I have them, and how to improve them by practicing, and putting action to my goals. How open-minded (or close-minded) I am, what I’m willing to learn, and the work that I’m willing to do to accomplish them. To always remember that it is counterproductive to just complain about difficult situations, and a waste of emotional energy to focus on the things I cannot control. When I learn to compete against myself, set my personal goals to beat, and not necessarily against my opponents as part of the competition, the strive to be the best version of myself at all possible times; that is what counts as personal high performance. When this change occurs, that is when we’re able to become honest with ourselves, and gain the maturity and ability to look introspectively and work within. These then become life changing strategies that turn your potential and attitude into performance. I remember a time in my life where I kept incredibly stressed my career and was facing my first job hunt, in my industry as a web designer. I have taken every class in my college to make sure that I am up to speed on all the design and programming classes. Yet I was still nervous about my abilities, and I had an incredible amount of self-doubt since I did not have as much experience as the competition. On top of it, I did not have a mentor, have a network of connections, or much less, know anybody within the industry. With the small handfuls of interviews that I was able to get, it showed me the amount of fierce competition that I expected. I did not have very much confident in myself, even though I have gone through more than enough schooling, had good recommendations, and studied hard; for some reason I always thought that maybe I would not be good enough, and focused on factors that couldn’t control. Those things that I could not control because fears controlled my life. I became scared failure and that eventually hindered my positive outlook on life. Although I was not able to control the outside factors beyond me - what hiring companies were planning to ask in the interviews, what type of company and environment they had, etc., what my friends and family thought, and their opinion of what I was doing; there were factors that I knew that I could control, in order to get give me better chances of me getting hired. I took what I feared and changed them into motivation points for me, if I didn’t know something, was not sure about something, I would take the time and effort to find the answer. Many of the times I was pessimistic, doubtful and simply could not afford the equipment or classes to learn what I need to get ahead, but then I realized that much of these things I told myself were just excuses. If I didn’t get ahead or learn something, it wasn’t because I couldn’t, it was because I really didn’t want to. I took responsibly for myself and stopped blaming others, and learned to take control of my own life instead of thinking of my situations are uncontrollable. Listening to others about their struggles, reaching out to groups of people that dealt with similar personal problems, teaching myself new technologies and languages (even if those were not classes available at school at the time), would eventually make me realize that I can only change what I have control over, it inspired me and build my confidence over time, and it finally landed my dream job as a web designer. No matter what situation you are in your life at this moment, you can either choose to let the uncontrollable situations overcome you, or you can decide that you are in control of your life in order to overcome your obstacles. Power of Positive ThinkingKari Ladehoff
My name is Kari Ladehoff. I am currently a registered nurse and hold an Iowa compact license. I have been a registered nurse now for a little over two years. Prior to, I held my LPN license for one year while finishing school and practiced as an LPN. Before deciding to conquered school I worked as a certified nurse’s aide in a nursing home since I was 16. I have always enjoyed healthcare. I have been inspired by helping others my entire life. When growing up I had very little and I was raised by my mom. I have two older siblings who are also in the nursing field as well. My mom is my biggest inspiration not only in my career but also in life. In my essay, I am going to focus on the power of positive thinking. This has been a huge impact on my life especially when things were never looking up for me. I want to talk everyone through the large steps that I have overcome in order to be in my position right now. As stated in above paragraph, I didn’t come from a lot at home. My mom raised my sisters and me with the things we only needed. M my mom is a nurse and also lived paycheck to paycheck. A good portion of her paycheck went to the dreaded words we all hate to hear, student loans. I am trying to do what I can in order to avoid student loans, so that I can give my family a better life. When I was a junior in high school I ended up having some major medical issues which resulted in losing my ability to walk. I missed many weeks and months of school due to hospitalizations and doctor’s visits. I attempted to stay caught up at home with my school work, however it just wasn’t enough. The school informed my mom that I would need to repeat my junior year of high school. I still had a long road to recovery ahead of me, and decided to make the own decision to be done with high school. I promised my mom that if she supported me, I would prove to her that I would still be successful in life. Six months after deciding to not continue in high school I became pregnant. To several others around me, I was a high school dropout and soon to be an 18 year old mother with no diploma, no GED, no achievement. This is where the story begins to show some of the positive thinking in myself. I was tired of nobody believing in me and putting me down. I made a vow to myself that before my son was born I was going to achieve and obtain my GED. In May, 2011 I walked across the stage at Iowa Western Community College at 8 months pregnant and was handed my reward! In June, I became a mother to my first born son who is now six. My second vow, in August, 2011, I would begin my prerequisites to achieve my first steps to my nursing career. I enrolled and was accepted into the LPN program in 2012. From then on, it was a constant success story for me! After graduation with my LPN diploma, I decided to take on the world with my son on my own. We rented our own home and I began a life on my own in this world! It was scary at first but I just kept the positives in mind. In 2015, I graduated from Iowa Western with my associate’s degree in nursing. I positively encouraged myself to complete my dreams and didn’t listen to anyone around me that discouraged me. I bought my own home and now have two kids. I have raised them into believing that anyone can do anything they set their mind to with positive thinking. I have always told my oldest son that you can be sitting in a room surrounded by others who discourage you, don’t believe in you, and put you down to be unsuccessful. However, if you believe the opposite of what they tell you then you have positive thinking. Anyone can do anything they provide the power of themselves to do. The power of positive thinking in my case has done nothing less than made me a very successful woman and mom! I have come from nothing and built my way to provide everything for my kids. The last thing that I want to have to be concerned with when done finishing my bachelor’s degree, are student loans. If awarded the scholarship donation, I would be grateful in knowing that all my hard work and schooling isn’t for nothing. I would be happy and at peace knowing that after all my work, all I have left is debt. I have an amazing success story and I won’t stop now. Limitless: Power of Positive ThinkingRebecca Kangwa
I had marked 2017 as the “Year of Yes”. Once the NYC ball dropped and all the champagne was gone, I was ready to begin accepting new challenges and stepping out of my comfort zone. To my family’s surprise, I had quietly committed to a new job. This new job happened to be as a recovery house manager in San Clemente, California. And I live in Florida. This was a major shock to everyone in my life and my choice to move across the country for this position was not taken lightly. My father and uncles were not supportive and their sour attitudes dampened my spirits. What made my move possible was the support and kindness from my mom, aunts, brother, and cousins. They gave me the positivity and courage to pack my two bags and fly to John Wayne Airport. Getting off the plane and not knowing a single soul in Orange County was the scariest and best decision I made in my entire life. Not only did I gain personal growth but also social, professional, and spiritual development. I was managing a rehab facility at 23 years old with no prior experience. I was nervous and unsure and doubted every move I made. Not only did I survive, I exceled and came out of it a better person. It was a tough adjustment in some aspects like being away from home and handing stressful situations, but overall I was content with my decision. I remember going to an AA meeting with the patients and saw a quote written on the whiteboard that changed my entire perspective. It said, “You are exactly where you are meant to be”. As Oprah would say, this was an “Ah ha!” moment for me. After seeing that, I realized that this was where I was supposed to be and I believed that whole-heartedly. I wouldn’t take back a single second of craziness because it has shaped me into the confident, qualified, woman who is pursuing her dream to become a therapist in New York City. I understand as a parent, it would be difficult to see your daughter venture into the unknown but I knew in my heart (I’m going with that body part) that I had to do this. In hindsight, I was so naïve about the situation, but it worked out in a way that I knew it would. That experience was so valuable to me because without it, I would always be wondering “what if…” and regretting the missed opportunity. I encourage everyone to do something each day that scares them. Obvious caution needs to be taken in regards to safety and well-being, but if your life is not in danger and you can learn a valuable lesson, go out and do it. We get so comfortable in our daily routine and familiarity that we forgot about the art of adventure. It’s incredibly important to introduce different parts of yourself to the world. You might meet someone you never knew existed. My friends, family, co-workers, and clients constantly underestimated me in every sense. I was forced to prove myself and was determined to be successful. Now I’m grateful for having this challenge because it made me realize what I’m truly capable of. That’s one of the greatest joys in life as far as I’m concerned. That moment when you push yourself to the extreme and meet your full potential. It’s liberating, frightening, and ultimately necessary. The power of positive thinking was what helped me get through the good and the bad times of this endeavor. I quickly realized that you have to think what you want into existence. When I was having a rough day, it didn’t help to ruminate in the negativity. Once I changed my mindset to optimistic, the situation magically became tolerable and worked out. It was amazing to see how quickly the effects of positive thinking manifested. The mind is an extremely powerful tool and the choice to use it is up to the individual. When you speak kind words of praise to yourself, whether you believe them or not, it inevitably becomes your truth. I read a quote the other day that said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” I think this is an excellent, honest phrase. I believe that it’s our choice to be happy and successful. Loving yourself in all ways and trusting that you are capable of accomplishing goals is the most important component for personal growth and success. This is a lesson I have recently learned and once I fully comprehended the concept, it has changed how I live my life. I no longer dwell on insecurities and self-doubt. I have realized that I have the ultimate power in my life. The possibilities are limitless when you embody this philosophy as it liberates you from the confines of negativity. Attitude of GratitudeDavanae Melvin
Florida Gateway College Having an attitude of gratitude is one of the many principles that has made a positive impact in my life by helping me overcome life's challenges. Throughout high school I struggled being a victim of bullies. I use to be afraid to speak up and tell authorities of the mental abuse I was receiving. I would just go home at night and cry and I would even cry in front of the very peers who were bullying me. I was bullied for the type of clothes I wore and for being on the honor roll every semester. I believe I am a conqueror because I did not allow myself to get bound by the harsh comments that were spoken to me. I graduated high school with honors (top 10 in my class), with a 3.7 GPA, and merit on my diploma. I was part of senior beta for four years prior to graduating. This was just the beginning of many more milestones to come. After graduating high school, I was connected with a brilliant individual who taught me and is still teaching me about business and how to be creative. He assisted me in opening up a business in 2016. This is one of the best advice a young adult can every receive. He has taught me how to protect my credit and build it. I have learned to be so creative that I don't need to work a nine to five hour job just to put gas in the car or to be able to eat a meal. As of May 2017, I accomplished another huge goal and that was obtaining my AA degree at Florida Gateway College. It was not easy but I can now say that I am a proud AA degree graduate. I believe that I am deserving of this scholarship because I put forth a lot of effort into everything that I do. I do my best in any and everything. When I set goals for myself, I do everything in my power to achieve them. My goals in life are extremely high. I base my goals on the quote “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss you will land among the stars.” I think that the drive I have to succeed is one, of many, reasons why I deserve this scholarship. A second reason why I believe I am worthy of this scholarship is that the career path I have chosen takes a lot of time and money. I want to become a Physical Therapist, and it will be tough for me to obtain this goal without the help of scholarships. College in itself is expensive, plus the extra time that it will take to become a Physical Therapist will add up to a great amount. However, I am determined to achieve this goal no matter how long it might take. I have dreamed of becoming a physical therapist too long to fall short of this goal in life. Another reason why I feel I deserve this scholarship is because I have participated in many extracurricular activities in high school. I have been a member of the dance team for two years, cheerleader, soccer, softball and track. I was also a member of senior beta, key club and explorers. I believe that my participation in these activities show my strength in being a leader and well organized. I feel that the winner of this scholarship should radiate these characteristics. The fourth reason I feel that I am deserving of this scholarship is because I have been a part of many volunteer activities. I have volunteered at nursing homes, schools, churches, and most of all at the Orthopedic Institute and Shands Hospital as part of Physical Therapy hours. My goals overall is to obtain a doctorate in physical therapy and open up my own business and to have the business franchised to be open up all over the United States of America to help veterans, minorities, and majorities. In final, I believe I deserve this scholarship because I have the potential and will to succeed and make a contribution to the world. I hope to one day become a physician and to help those less fortunate. I throughout my high school years showed great academics, leadership, and community work. These qualities I believe are essential to have success in life, because a person with these attributions knows discipline and commitment. Having an Attitude of GratitudeChyrell waters
University of Phoenix Who would think an eighteen-year-old headed to college with a desire to become a Registered Nurse would turn out to be a forty-eight-year-old mother of eight and grandmother of three striving to finish her Bachelors of Science Degree in Elementary Education. Well, that is me! Although, my initial career goal was to become a nurse. Due to the derailments and setbacks in my life not only has my career goal changed but my attitude towards the unexpected events in life has allowed me to become grateful for the good as well as the misfortunes. Though, I was so eager to leave home and get away from my family of which I had never spent time apart from. I was not prepared for living on campus with a diverse group of individuals. For example, my first college experience at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania was challenging but scary to witness students whom I believed were mature making dangerous decisions while taking life-threatening risks to prove their independence. Since I wanted to at least finish my first year of college at this institution it was disappointing to watch myself gather as many of my belongings that I could carry and purchase a one-way ticket on the Greyhound Bus to go home. Whereas, I did not understand and feared the environment I was in. Although I was saddened about my first derailment on the road towards a college degree, I continued to be optimistic about returning to college one day. Without any encouragement from my family to transfer to a school closer to home my dream was put on the back burner as I began to start a family. It was not until I realized that my third oldest child was struggling in school and needed personal attention that I understood it was time to return to college and pursue a Bachelors of Science Degree in Elementary Education. Whereas I had been providing child care services for close friends and family members the transition from a health career goal to an educational goal was not only easy but it also complimented my lifestyle at the time. Not to mention that the two careers flattered each other as well. Since I was a wife, mother, and child care provider returning to college via online was the best option for me. As previously mentioned, my child was in need of individualized educational attention. Therefore, I began home schooling my child at the same time I returned to college as a non-traditional student. Here I was, nineteen years later determined to finish with a degree in education. Even though, I had so many responsibilities at the time I made my school work fit in and even between any of my other obligations. Building a solid understanding of a child’s cognitive development was as equally exciting as watching the teaching strategies I learned show its effectiveness. For example, my child struggled with reading but especially comprehension. In order to address this issue, I began to explain what readers do while reading that helped them understand the article better. For instance, they make predictions, ask questions, and think about real world situations that are similar to the plot. After, a month or two I began to see a difference in her approach to reading where she began to seem more confident and comfortable with reading. Even though it took me nineteen years to resume my college studies I started to appreciate the long gap in time. Whereas, this time I was not only more mature but able to watch my dream manifest itself. Working as a child care provider at the same time homeschooling my daughter while using my course information first hand was a gratifying experience. However, life seemed to always have many surprises for me. It was during my last year of the two-year program at Kaplan University that I became pregnant with my sixth child. Well, needless to say, this was a struggle in itself but I was strong-minded and pushed through even to the point where I returned to class three days after delivering this child by way of an emergency cesarean section. So, as my child was turning eight months old I was graduating college for the first time in my life earning an Associate of Applied Science in Interdisciplinary Studies as an Educational Paraprofessional. Since I wanted to become a teacher I needed to transfer to another school and continue my studies to earn a Bachelors in Education. To say the least my challenges on my educational journey were not over yet. Now that I had achieved a portion of my goal, I was not only elated but so grateful for the encounters I was faced with that allow me to understand my strength. As a matter of fact, these trials I experienced helped me remain focused while looking for the good in all situations. For instance, the incidents I witnessed during my first college experience eventually helped me understand the meaning of diversity. Ultimately realizing that in many circumstances I will have to steadfast on my road in order to reach personal success. Since I had completed two years of college and needed two more to reach my career goal. I had to Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. In June of 2008, I began taking evening classes for adult learners though it was a strain on my family and myself they all pushed through for me to attain my dream. Nonetheless, my family began to have monetary setbacks and my education started to take a toll on our lives. Unfortunately, we experienced homelessness after my first year at Chestnut Hill College, which forced me to take on a part-time job and of course my studies were delayed once again. Taking a position as a Lead Teacher in a day care facility would now put my own children’s education at risk. Unexpected events never hit me lightly, after three months as a new teacher my seventh child is now on the way. Being an optimistic person I graciously get through this pregnancy despite the numerous complications mainly caused by the stress I was under. So, I decided to transfer from Chestnut Hill College and enroll in the University of Phoenix Online to accommodate my life. We eventually move to an apartment but the stress of working and worrying about my children in an unfamiliar school setting took a toll on my body. However, worked up until my early delivery triggered because of stress. In view of my children’s sadness in school, I decided to stay home with them a educate them myself. For the most part, things began to turn around. Although, it was not easy we were all happy. However the unexpected happened in July 2012, I was only eight classes away from Student Teaching when I was informed I no longer had any financial aid available to me because throughout the many school transfers retaking specific classes diminished my financial funds. Now, I was expected to pay out of pocket for college. Needless to say, I fell into a depression not knowing how or where I would get the funds to finish my program. Due to the loss of financial assistance, I had to leave my academic program and put my education on hold. So here I am five years later trying my best to complete my academic program of which I have earned 84.97 credits out of a required 120 credits. This is why I am seeking assistance to help me achieve my goal. Being awarded your scholarship would allow me to get two courses closer to obtaining the 35.03 credits needed to finish my program. MemoriesOscar Nunez
Northwest College of Art and Design One of my earliest memories is waking up in between my two parents: my mom and my sister. My older sister, Irene, served as my second mother. My mother, Pastora, being a Honduran immigrant, did not have the skillset in order to have a well-paying job in America. In order to make ends meet, she would have to work long and odd hours. This meant that my sister, 14 years old, would have the honor of babysitting her 3 year old little brother. Watching me consisted of us learning my ABC’s, watching the Simpsons, and my Irene tickling me to the point of wetting my pants. The family dynamic shifted drastically when the 3 of us moved from Los Angeles to Seattle to live with the father of my two older siblings. The transition was tough for all of us. We were isolated from our family and loved ones who were thousands of miles south. 2 weeks into moving in with my “step-father,” who was an alcoholic, kicked us out with machete in hand. Luckily, our next door neighbors were kind enough to give us their garage to serve as our temporary home. This continued for another couple of weeks until we finally moved into a new, 2 bedroom apartment that we would call home for years to come. Things were starting to look up. However, just before my 5th birthday, Irene moved out. My sister had become pregnant and my mother, the traditional Hispanic woman that she is, told Irene to leave. As I was too young to understand things at the time, I thought that my sister just decided to leave us. This lead to me having to say good bye to yet another parent-like figure from my life. With my mother working odd hour jobs and no family to watch me, I was now alone. I began attending kindergarten at McMicken Heights Elementary shortly after the incident. Luckily, my mom had friends who would be willing to watch me after school. The routine continued until 1st grade when my mom could no longer afford it. This is when I became a latchkey kid. My daily routine was simple: wake-up, go to school, walk home from school, open the door, and lock the door. My mother would remind me not to open the door for anyone that knocked. Thankfully, my mother is an expert cook and would leave me home cooked meals ready to be microwaved. I was not allowed to go outside, as my mother would call throughout the night to check in on me. If I did go out, and was discovered, my behind would pay the price. This routine of isolation continued for years. I would only see my family about once a year and had trouble making friends due to being overweight. I recall feeling depressed at age 7 before I knew what depression even was. It would take me another 8 years until it would be formally diagnosed. Over the years, the only things that I would have to keep me company were cartoons and my own imagination. During middle school, I was able to shed most of my excess weight. Not only that, but I was able to make new friends. I finally felt “normal.” I had gone from Oscar, the overweight, quiet loner to happy go lucky, Mr. Popular. This feeling continued with me going into my freshman and sophomore years of high school. But this was only the calm before the storm. At the age of 17, I attempted suicide. My mind was in the darkest place imaginable. I felt cast aside from everyone: my father, sister, mother, family, and my peers. I had been kicked out of school for lack of attendance. I believed that I was too much of a burden for everyone to bear and that life was pointless. So, one night, I opened up my bottle of citalopram, antidepressants, consumed half of the pills, and went to sleep. I finally awoke a few hours later. I had the hardest time focusing my vision but I could tell that there were 3 bodies hovering over me. As my eyes came into focus, I recognized my mom and her boyfriend Francisco, as 2 of the 3 but did not recognize the 3rd. I finally got a good glimpse of the 3rd individual’s uniform and saw that it was a paramedic. I was laying in my bed and shaking uncontrollably; I was having a seizure. I forced myself to stand from my bed mid-seizure to prove that I was fine, however, I collapsed and black out. I woke up to the most unpleasant feeling. It was a tube being inserted into my nose and down into my stomach. Apparently, the treatment for citalopram overdose is to pump liquid charcoal into the patient. I would undergo this treatment for 2 days until I finally was released. My plan to end my life had failed. As if I did not feel low enough, I now had a new thought running through my mind. “You can’t even kill yourself properly,” I would hear over and over. Luckily, my therapist helped me realize why I failed. “It just was not your time to die,” she said. She would explain to me that surely there must be a reason for me to remain on Earth. There must be some larger power at work with a plan that was greater than my simple one to perish. But she could not tell me what that plan was. “I can only give you the tools. It is up to you to find your purpose.” This experience served as a wakeup call. I never again wanted to experience the pain that I had inside. I knew that in order to change the feeling, I had to change my mindset. As I felt capable enough already, I went in to get my GED a year before I was supposed to graduate. Next, I needed to go to school. I knew that I wanted to help people and serve in some way. I decided to go into medicine and went to Everest College to receive my Medical Assistant degree. During the time, I was on the honor roll and became an Ignitor Ambassador, a high level of prestige in the school. After graduating, I began working. First, I worked at Health Point Community Health Center until I finally felt ready to switch. I was then hired in Pulmonary Medicine at Virginia Mason. I was one of the youngest employees that they had hired, yet, since I handled myself in a mature manor, I was in. After 3 years, I would be promoted to Lead Medical Assistant. A year later, I was promoted to my current post of Clinical Program Coordinator. My time in the medical field has been one of the most enriching experiences of my life. I have met and helped people of all ages, genders, religions, and ethnicities. It showed me the importance of valuing and cherishing every moment. I have made close bonds with terminal patients only to see them slip away. But these patients were some of the most supportive people that I have ever known. They always encouraged me to follow my dreams and pursue my passion. Which leads us to current day. Since my childhood, the only thing that has helped get me through rough times has been my art. It has served as my therapy, allowing me to express my emotions in a constructive and beautiful way. I have seen my art bring joy to others which, in turn, brings joy to myself. In August, 2017 I was accepted into Northwest College of Art and Design. There, I seek to earn a Bachelors in Fine Art specializing in Graphic Design and Illustration. I hope to master my craft and continue to bring light to those that are in the dark. Now, tuition cost for art school is expensive. The contribution from this scholarship would mean a world of difference to me and my family. Since I come from a low-income family, the funds to attend come from my 2 jobs and student loans. This scholarship would mean a chance to reach my dreams and attain the life that I have always wanted. Reader, I thank you for taking the time to read my story. If granted this scholarship, I promise to tirelessly in order to achieve my ultimate potential. Graphic design and illustration is my passion, and I know that it can change the world. Attitude of GratitudeAseret Sperry
Minneapolis College of Art & Design “Am I alone?” I asked myself that question over and over when I was 15-years-old. Those three words kept me up long night, writing until my hands hurt, pricking my eyes with wakefulness and sleepiness at once. I remember very little about my adolescence, but the arguments, the hate, and the fear remain vivid years later. Why was I so angry? I needed a reason, I needed to express my misfortune. Did it begin the day that my father died, seven years prior? Or did it begin five years after his passing, when my mother admitted to me that she’d lied about his manner of death and would do it again in a heartbeat, in order to protect her sweet, innocent, eight-year-old daughter? My entire life, I’ve had a roof over my head, food in my stomach, and clothes on my back. I have a family that loves and supports me, even when they don’t agree with me. It wasn’t until I started to lose those things that I recognized how lucky I really was. With my father’s death went my sense of self-confidence, comfort, and trust. I ignored the things I had in order to concentrate on the things I lost, and every day was a somber sonnet of the life I could have had, instead of the roof, the food, and the clothes that were still there. I reached out to my mentor, a father-figure in his own right, years later. I asked him, straight to the point, why I was so angry. And in his trademark cryptic and encouraging way, he recited a quote by the Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke: “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves… Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.” I grew frustrated trying to dissect his answer, trying to understand what it meant to live the questions. So I sat down to mediate and solve the riddle. In order to live the questions, I first had to know what the questions were. I had a million questions, why would someone do this? Why would the universe allow this? What is the meaning/purpose/drive/point of life? But it always came back to my first question: why was I so angry? I knew the answer to that question: because I didn’t like the way things were. And why didn’t I like the way things were? That, I concluded, was the real question. I later went on to read a book called The Art of Possibility, which simply explains that things to not happen to people, but rather things happen, and people interpret how to react to them. This, then, became an exercise for me. Let things happen, and choose how to react. At first, it was an argument with my mother and my step-father. It happened, and I chose to react with understanding, not vitriol. The next test wasn’t so easy, the next test challenged my life. In December 2012, my family and I had gone on a road trip to visit my step-brother in Alabama. On the way back home, the roads were icy and dangerous. My mother sat in the driver’s seat, my step-father beside her; my half-brothers sat between my parents and me, engrossed in tablets and videogames; and I sat in the back, stretched out across the long seat, listening to music and reflecting on my recent emotional discoveries. Without warning, I felt an unfamiliar gravity, the tug of my seat belt gripping my torso, and the air rush out of my lungs. It felt like milliseconds, it felt like hours, it felt like it was and it wasn’t, and when I gathered myself once again, I felt a cold wind against my face. I brushed the floor (the roof?) for my glasses, and felt shards of laminated glass among patches of snow. I looked around to drink in the scene, my brothers crying with the shock of suddenness, my mother climbing out of her seat, picking glass from her arm, and my step-father outside dialing 911. We slowly exited the overturned vehicle and my step-father sprung to action. He called out frantically for me when I hadn’t made a noise, then draped a coat over me, looking for my boots. The police were there in moments, there’d been another accident ahead and they were already close by. My mother called a hotel and a cab. I was not alone. That was the day I decided to change the questions I kept asking myself. Instead of “why do bad things happen to me?” it became “why do good things happen to me?” Then, eventually, I stopped asking myself “why” and just started saying “thank you.” Every morning I wake up and count my abilities, my achievements, and my gratitude. I recognize that the opportunities I have wouldn’t exist without the consistent love and support of family and friends, and how important it is to return what I’m given. I recently packed everything in my possession and loaded a car to move halfway across the country to begin a new school, an art school, that I couldn’t imagine having done seven years ago. The 15-year-old me wouldn’t have believed that I would do what I am doing today, with the encouragement, love, and support of my family. She wouldn’t have believed that now, in a new city without knowing anyone, I do not feel alone, all because of the exercise of gratitude. Personal EmpowermentLeslie Dobbins
Western Kentucky University I was raised in a conservative home in Kentucky with my mom, dad and my four siblings. After my oldest brother was born, my parents chose to homeschool us as a way of offering us a more flexible, hands-on education, and so we could work for my dad’s business from the home. We spent every morning doing our schooling on a strict schedule, and after lunch proceeded to work for my dad’s business for the remainder of the afternoon. Our evenings were spent building forts in the sinkholes on our property, playing soccer in the front yard, reading books, and playing with the kittens our old cat had surprisingly birthed –she was apparently pregnant when a family friend of ours gave her to us. My siblings and I were thrilled! My parents, not so much. Growing up, I had every intention of going to college. I loved school and I loved to learn. My goal was to study musical theater at a college level but my dad didn’t support that idea, and instead began to encourage the idea of me getting married to my boyfriend at the time. I had always dreamed of applying for the Governer’s School of the Arts as a musical theater student, but that was no longer an option. So instead, at age 18 and halfway through my senior year of high school, I got married. I continued to work and to talk about the idea of applying for college but it simply wasn’t an option for me at the time. In 2012, at the age of 20, I gave birth to my son, Judah. I left the work force on maternity leave and then decided I would stay at home with him until he was almost a year and a half old. After just over 14 months of being at home with my son I ached to be back out of the house and working again though I had little qualification to find a good job. I had always loved coffee, and found the industry and community surrounding it to be fascinating, so I applied at a local Starbucks and was offered a job by the end of the day. Within the next two years I became a single-mother, my husband and I were divorced and so I decided to take on more work to support myself and my young son. I was thrilled at the options I was able to now pursue but it overwhelmed me at the same time. I tried to enroll at WKU, but received a significant amount of pushback from the university due to my home school transcript and diploma. After almost 9 months of battling with WKU’s registration office I was finally able to enroll. During the time that I went through the enrollment process I began serving at two local restaurants (one for lunch, and the other at dinner and on weekends), while teaching preschool classes at the local homeschool cooperative every Friday. I had so much adrenaline at being able to pursue what I wanted at this point in my life that I possibly took on too many things, but I loved it all. After 9 months of working those three jobs, I applied for a job at a local and well-respected coffee shop here in Bowling Green, KY. I got a call from the owner who was interested in my previous 2 years of work experience for a general surgeon. I was offered a job, which I took, and quickly fell in love with the craft coffee industry. I began practicing to compete in Latte Art Throwdowns throughout Kentucky and Tennessee, and placed in my very first one. The following year, I started as a freshman at WKU and continued to work full-time while raising my son and loving every part of the day we got to hang out together, which wasn’t often enough. During the fall of 2016, I was offered a promotion at my job and became the Administrative Manager at Spencer’s Coffee. Since first enrolling at WKU, I have maintained both a full class schedule and my full-time job. I have a 3.75 GPA and have spent precious time with my son who just started Kindergarten two weeks ago. When I look back on the past 6 years of my life, it hardly seems real. I have so much gratefulness for what I have learned not only about myself, but others as well. I choose to keep going, to work hard and to learn more, so that my son grows up to be empowered by my experiences while I continue to learn from everything around me, especially him. I love the life that we live together, though it is incredibly different from how I imagined it might be, just a few short years ago. I’m now entering my junior year at the university. If it wasn’t for the professors I have met, the connections I have made, or the community I have entered and grown to adore through my coffee shop, I don’t know where I would be today. But here I am, privileged enough to live with more support than I could have ever dreamed of having, with my child at my side, growing and teaching me every day. Focusing on Things You Can ControlSabrina Homosombat
University of Texas at Austin Being a perfectionist was my downfall. Defined as a person who refuses to accept any work that is below their standard of “perfection,” it is considered to be a positive trait in society. It brings to mind of a hard worker who’s willing to sacrifice a lot to achieve their expectations. That was me. That was me throughout all of junior and high school and it was only until I entered college was when I realized how much I had suffered trying to accomplish everything that people expected of me. I had to be a doctor. I had to finish this task at this age and if I don’t I’m already falling off the path society had meticulously planned for me. I realize now that I would had been much happier in life if I had just focused on the things that I could control and not on the unrealistic goals that people expected for me to achieve at a certain age. My parents are refugees. As a child living in an impoverished area, I was expected to rise up and escape one day to a better future. My guidance counselors over the years piled an arrangement of difficult classes for me to take. If you want to succeed you must take this course, they insisted. If you want to remain at top you must work harder, you must do this, you must do that. So I said, yes, yes, yes. So over the years they groomed me into a perfectionist, a person who should not accept work that they believe is average. What they don’t tell you is how much of your time and health will be sacrificed. I would work long into the night, checking and rechecking my homework. I would wake up early in the morning to make sure that I did everything correctly, redoing all my work again. It had to be perfect. I had to get an A for it—from the smallest assignments to the major exams. And it killed me inside. I was constantly on the verge of a breakdown if I got a grade that was lower than what I wanted. My anxiety started to grow after I discovered I was no longer salutatorian of my class, but rather ranked third. That feeling then escalated when I attended my first year at college and I started to fail. My exam grades for my chemistry class were miserable. I studied so hard, but my grade didn’t prove it and I felt like a real loser. Because of that I experienced a period of nervous break downs where it was hard for me to leave my dorm. My streak of straight A’s had ended the second I stepped into college and I had no idea what to do with myself. All my life there was someone there to tell me what to do. But what they never advised me on was how to cope with failure. So I had to learn how to deal with it myself and through a series of struggles, I began to understand that failure is perfectly okay. You can’t succeed at everything you do. Learn from it. Stand up and try again. And again. And again. And on that day when grades came out, I was satisfied with my chemistry grade because I had improved from a C- in the beginning of the semester to a B+. One day I woke up and realized that what everybody keeps telling me to do isn’t always what’s BEST for me at my current stage! In the end, you know yourself better than anyone else. Focus on what you can do and go from there instead of anxiously worrying over factors that are beyond your control and ability. I started to carry a notepad with me where I would write down all my tasks for the day and week. A single checkmark on that page can make a whole difference in your attitude. You didn’t waste your time. You did something, just look at that page. That motivation is what drives you to finish the rest of your tasks. For every long term goal you have, write out a series of short-term goals under it. It may seem overwhelming, but you visually need to see that list in order to understand that it’s completely manageable for you to reach your long term goal. Take it one step at a time. For example, my long term goal is to graduate college and be accepted into a physician assistant program. What have I done so far to reach that goal? I finished my first year at UT at Austin. Check. I secured an internship relating to what I want to do. Check. I volunteered my summer to work at a hospital, feeding and socializing with patients. Check. All of this will soon add up. If you start feeling like you can’t reach your long term goal, look back to those checkmarks. Don’t force yourself to go over the limit for every little thing. Train your focus to the things that you can handle such as your study habits and your health and especially your time. You can’t control what life is going to dish out at you so try not to worry about it too much. I couldn’t control what questions would be on the exam. But I could take charge of myself like getting enough sleep and making sure I didn’t skip meals. I accepted the fact that sometimes I won’t succeed. And without that pressure to constantly be a perfectionist, I began to feel happier with myself. But what about money? I can’t control the economy. I can’t control whether or not I get hired. What I can do is to focus my attention on things that I can do specifically, such as applying to as many scholarships and jobs that I can. And although the world may seem to be crying out in pain, I have not forgotten about them. I am just one person, but I do my best to contribute, starting with my community. Two years of volunteering at the local library. A summer of volunteering at a hospital. I’m in the University Leadership Network where volunteering is a crucial part of being a member and I love it. This is what I can do for my world. And I hope to keep doing more even if I don’t get paid for it. Personal DevelopmentKeyonna Hall
The Law of Attraction- This is mind power, that you have within. Every person has this within them. It is up to individual to embrace it. Understanding that you mind is a tool it is very powerful if you use it for the good. These are thoughts that you manifest to become your reality, and the steps you take on a daily basis to get there. You have to believe in yourself like you do you faith in the higher power. Having an Attitude of Gratitude- You have to forgive others for what they have done to you, so you can move on within your power. The forgiveness is for you not them. You have to be happy with what is going on with you life even if it is the worst possible situation. Be thankful for everything you receive. In any issue that come your way, understand they are all learning life lesson, take what you can, and move forward. The Power of Positive Thinking- If you are always around others that is negative put you down or others around them, you will receive this energy back to you. Even if you are not being this way it will still come, because they are around your oral. You have to take a lot of time to yourself to remain positive, happy, empathetic, as well as level headed. In do not get blindside with the peer evil that lives with people that are unable to forgive. They will suck out all of your positive energy, because they have issue within them self. They are afraid to face their issues, so they take it out on you ,and others them that do not have this issues. These kind of humans use other for what they want, and really can not be trusted until they show you hard core improvement stand your ground. Focusing on Things You Can Control - You are your own person be yourself, love who you are, and others will too. It is something about you knowing who you are, and believing it, that others will feed off of. Stop thinking you have to be certain kind of way to be accepted into society, we are all different. Once you embrace this you will have other kind of power that you never thought ever existed. We all have a free will to do as we please it is up to the person to make the right choice. We have learned this from brith. You have the power to hangout with whoever you want. This teached to us as children to watch the crowed we hang around, this is something that you can control. 50% of the time people that we hangout with or we are around most of time has a bad habit. It is up to you to have self-control, and do not get involved, because of love or friendships. Understanding you lose a lot of self control under the influence. One thing I would want everyone to realize is that the police is not our enemy they are there, because of those people who choose to make the wrong choice due to lack of self control. You can only control the person that you are stop allowing drugs, and liquor to make your mind up for you. The Present is ImportantSabrina Owens
University of Akron Contrary to popular belief, there is no way you can control the future. Choices lead to actions, and unseen circumstances can appear faster than a strike of lightning. The past, it is well known, cannot be changed: What’s done is done, and the present is a consequence of that. But there is the silver lining: The present is now, and completely in your power. So, focus on what you can control. This is something I have had to learn the hard way, and am improving on every day. As someone with severe anxiety, the question “what if?” is a horrible, unwanted plague that pops up at the most inconvenient times. When a crisis or problem appears, instead of tackling it, you immediately move into worst case scenarios and all the bad stuff that could possibly ever happen. It’s not very fun. Not at all. Counseling has been a huge aid in that, along with supportive friends and family. And throughout all my freak outs, breakdowns, and shut downs, one piece of advice has always been constant: “Focus on what you can do right now; do the best you can now and what happens from there happens”. Now, this wasn’t a sweet guarantee or assurance. There was no promise that if I tried hard enough, things would go my way. But the situation would become clearer and more bearable if I made motions with what was in my reach at the time. I would be calm and ready. Even if that worst-case scenario happened, I would know that I did what I could, and how to act next time. I’ll provide a relevant example that happened to occur today. I went online to download my financial aid summary for the academic office that I receive a small scholarship from today at the library. Upon review of it, I was heartbroken and terrified to see that I had no aid lined up for Spring semester, except for one work-study grant. Not anywhere near enough for a full-time class schedule. Almost immediately I felt the fear and adrenaline rush the was the tell-tale precursor to anxiety break down. “What am I going to do?” I thought. “I’m not going to be able to go to school next semester. I’m going to have to give up my club roles and opportunities. I won’t be able to take those special topics classes. I’m gonna lose my job.” Immediately, the worst-case scenarios came in. I wanted to cry from the disappointment, already accepting that everything was going to go downhill at top speed. However, I managed to stop and breathe. A voice of reason in my head seemed to break through the storm and start lecturing me. “Breathe. Consider scholarships from the school you can get. Consider a second job to save up. Try your websites, apply for as many as possible. If worst comes to worst, you can always take out another loan.” While none of this was desirable, they were all things I could do right now to try and change the situation. Which leads me to why I’m here now, writing this out. It’s no guarantee and it’s no absolute reassurance, but it was practical action I had complete control over, and methods of changing an undesirable outcome to work for my advantage. I’ve also made plans for the immediate future that is still within my power to control. I plan to schedule meetings with my advisors to explore options, and have applied to two jobs in hopes that I’ll land one to make some extra money to save up. My actions, my choices, are all in my control, and my complete responsibility to control. There’s no guarantee that the meetings will amount to much, or that I’ll get the job. I may even have to break my commitments and leave school early. But the important part is that I did what was in my power to do when I could do it: I tried. And after I took the time to take some action and calm and think, I realized that it wasn’t as big of a deal as my brain made it out to be: I could always go back to school later, my friends and family would still love me, and I wouldn’t be too worse for wear in the end. It wouldn’t be the end of the world. Sometimes we focus too much on how insignificant any action our part could be. “It’s hopeless”, “It won’t mean anything”, “Why bother?”. Well, how do you know unless you try? How do you know for sure unless you take back your present and make changes? It may be hard. It may be scary. But it is always worth taking that personal power in your present and in your environment, and in yourself. When you do that, things become much easier and much more realistic and possible. That is always worth the effort, in my opinion. Law of AttractionLynette Lickley
Achieve Today brings hope to all its writers and is filled with hope like the ocean. With love, determination, pride and a fighting spirit, I can become a writer and an investigator. I have taken a long time to learn who I am and now I can show I am to people at Portland State University, Portland and the FBI. With pride, I give myself to strangers. I did not interpret beauty or the law of attraction because I was seen by beautiful peoples my entire life. Smudge, my first friend, was easy to love for he had everything he needed. I was immature and excited to have a dog and I can improve my attention to detail and psyche. Bethany Rasmussen, however, introduced me to a world of fairy-tail happiness. She was gorgeous with long, wavy brown hair; she spoke of wondrous locations and was a great teacher. I was eager to please her and she became a strong influence for many years. After she moved to Abu Dhabi, I gave little thought about her for I knew she was happy and I still had much to learn. The most amount of change came, however, was attending my adult years at Central Oregon Community College. In the first two years, my thoughts of fear and loneliness vanished as I participated in campus activities. Along the way, I met three role models who were similar to me and were determined to make a difference in their world. The first role model was Beverly Schlegel. She is a Virgo and so I am, old enough to be a sister, and was shy in her teenage years. She was respected and ahead of her time. Because of her, I joined the American Association of University Women on the Bend Campus. There I met women of diverse backgrounds and skills. I put in big efforts to fit in and was received a high position by her to being the lead note-taker at most of the meetings. Now, she is still someone I admire. Heather Van Diest Kolb, a Criminal Justice instructor became a second mother in many ways. I acquired a sense of being correct on laws and good manners. She was beautiful, sharp, honest and short and if I could win her I can move on to bigger challenges. When I was a student in her class, I learned she knew a great deal about psychology and learning I had Asperger’s I did not have to explain what I wanted. I was also proud when I heard she had not known what she wanted to do with her life in her 30s. I learned after a few classes I wanted to work in that field and I showed my affection with gifts. The final role model was Wendi Worthington. She learned how to learn with outdoor activities and many years at college. With organizing materials I was able to focus my thoughts. Another part of my life is seen at the Redmond Athletic Club. I am 22 years old yet I appear like a teenager and I like how I look. I used to believe being short was nuisance but now it is just a thought I used to escape problems. By changing those thoughts of negativity, I saw the law of focusing on things I can control. I am not perfect nor do I want money to become an issue with pursuing happiness. It was small but reinforced by people I choose to surround with; it is to remain unbiased and not feel jaded. This mentality was reinforced by parent’s reactions to change and being a Virgo I want to control situations. In a few minutes, my mind calmed when my grandmother scolded us for taking her jewelry. I will continue to improve my dignity and flourish, thus preventing disgust, disappointment and insecurity. With two laws successfully learned and applied effectively, I was able to interpret the law of having an attitude of gratitude. My family is in dire straits and refuses to spend money unnecessarily yet I want to travel and make them proud, especially, my dad. He gave some of his retirement money as a down payment for an expensive trip. I did not secure a spot on the trip and I felt guilty but he wasn’t annoyed and he made me vow, he and Mom would support my education as long as I can keep my grades up. I intend to do that this term, with not taking as many courses so I can earn some job experience. I can study for the courses better with friends and music preventing isolation and boredom. It will also allow me time to join clubs I want. From that promise, I will follow a path towards completing my dreams. The only law I don’t need to make a large effort is positive thinking. I feel this way with typing scholarship applications for I have not received any in three years but I will continue for there are many applications in the world. I seek beauty every day and I don’t quit easily. I yearn to hear praise for my hard work, sometimes I don’t always hear the exact version of what I want but I realize it is a way of saying thank you. It was a chance encounter but it gave hope and I will only look ahead. The Power of Positive ThinkingBrittnie Thomas
Controlling my mind and the things that I allow to live and grow there has been the primary driver of my success and recent ability to overcome. As a first generation, minority college student I have doubted my abilities too many times to count. While in high school I was doubtful that I could afford college because, although my parents had a middle-class income, they had expressed clear disinterest in financially supporting me through college. This is when I first learned how important my thoughts were and how they would drive my actions. In this case, I used such energy to apply to hundreds of scholarships during my senior year of high school. This action resulted in over a dozen scholarships from various organizations, including Drexel University where I went on to obtain my Bachelor’s degree. Upon entering Drexel, I soon realized how underprepared I was for the college experience. I initially felt defeated, as I had not had the competitive advanced placement and honors level courses as some of my peers. I again utilized meditation and prayer to convert these negative thoughts into positive energy, which gave me the will to go harder. I obtained a tutor in many of my classes, stayed late in the library finishing homework, among other things to ensure that I was successful and not defeated. In so many instances throughout my journey I have had to rely on my faith, which teaches in Romans 12:2 that we should not conform to this world, but rather be transformed by the renewing of our mind. These words are the very thing that most recently helped me overcome the hardest moment of my life. Last year I was reunited with a childhood friend that I had known since kindergarten. We had parted ways after college and were back in communication with the hopes of pursuing a relationship. This person that I thought I knew would take me on a ride that would change my life. After suffering from emotional, verbal, psychological, and financial abuse, I found the courage to leave after a year. The abuse was so stringent that I had developed a dangerous addiction to gambling. Trying to pull myself out of these toxic situations, I sought out help, and once again was reminded that the change that I was seeking started with me. Today I have used this testimony to help others live fulfilling and progressive lives. I started a network and movement locally entitled Happily Better After (www.happilybetter.com). It is through this initiative that I encourage others through civic engagement, volunteerism, music, and social media, the importance of living their best lives. The motto is “everyday better,” which simply encourages others to take life one day at a time, understanding that change starts first in the mind. Often times we depend on our emotions or feelings to make decisions for what we should and should not do. This movement features different men and women who can share their experiences on how change happened for them in various ways. The work I have done with Happily Better After has happened only over the course of the last five months, however the impact has been substantial. The Gloucester County NAACP recognized this work in 2017 by awarding me with a Woman of Courage Award. Positive thinking is something that I pursue daily and am continually inspired to share with others. As a songwriter and musical artist I have written songs on this topic, with one in particular that comes to mind, entitled “Energy.” The song lyrics in this song speak to this topic with the following lines: I’m running, trying to find my way, make it day by day, sometimes struggling I’m pressing, don’t know which way to go, tryna keep the hope, stop looking at me as woe Sometimes it’s hard, with dreams disregarded by those who are so content With the life that they live or the lack of it, you made the decision to stop dreaming The energy I exert has to be worth it, I won’t fight for no reason. Or the lyrics from another song written entitled “Green Light”: Something’s in my way I just move it out When the sun is in my face I pull out my stunner shades In the rain, I pull out my umbrella, I’ll make it through anything, even stormy weather Ain’t nothing going to stop me, not even me and sometimes I’m my biggest enemy There’s something burning deep inside, it wants to come on out Nothing’s gonna stop me no way, no how. Whether it is through the pursuit of education, within a song lyric, or through related endeavors with Happily Better After, I am committed to always rising above any circumstance, simply by changing my perspective on the matter and understanding what the experience will teach me in the end. Things I Can ControlDavid Heavener
Liberty University Have you ever heard the expression “When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade?” Well I would like to share with you my experience with overcoming a life challenge by focusing on the things that I can control. When I was in tenth grade I was diagnosed with Crohn’s and liver disease. I was placed on various medications including a powerful steroid. This steroid caused me to have a lowered immune system which meant avoiding contact with others so I could remain healthy. Because of this I had to stay at home for three months and keep up with my school work through tutors that the school provided until I was well enough to return to school. I did my best to keep my grades up and did well, despite my feeling sick almost every day. In school, I was on the football team, but because of some of the symptoms and medication that I was on I was forced to miss football during my junior year. It seemed like there were just so many things that were not in my control with this disease. I could not go to school, I could not play football, attend school events or social gatherings that teenagers like to go to. I felt that I could not even control my health. I was losing weight and did not retain nutrients from food, I also became allergic to many foods. Side effects from medicines caused my liver levels to get out of control and I could not control the state of my liver. All these things were getting farther and farther away from my ability to control them. After dealing with these issues for some time I realized that I may not be able to control these things directly but can control daily things that can have an impact on how I feel. The first thing controlled was my diet. I became gluten and dairy free. If I ate these things my stomach would become upset more often and I would start to lose weight. For a while I ate only easily digestible foods such as smoothies and soups. This let my intestines heal from the disease as well as helping me absorb food and keep my weight up. Another thing I avoid is corn, that is because it is very hard to digest, but this is hard because corn is in many foods so, I limit my corn consumption as much as possible. Secondly, exercise became a big way to improve how I felt. Being in shape and burning calories helped keep my body feeling right and processing food correctly. I would jog most days and lift weights in a less strenuous amount compared to others. While exercising I felt I had more energy and I actually would gain weight much easier. An easy way I try and control my activity now while at college is to play intramural sports, especially soccer since it is a lot of cardio and keeps me fit. The constant moving helps my intestines process the food and keeps up my energy which makes me feel better overall. A final thing I can control concerning my illness is how much medication I need. If I am able to control my diet and physical activity I can take less medication in order to feel well. This does not always work but when it does it is worthwhile because some of the medicines have possible negative side-effects such as cancer. I can take medication only when the Crohn’s disease flares up instead of constantly all the time. This reduces the liver problems as the liver is forced to work harder while I am on the medication to filter it out of my body. By doing small everyday things that I can control to help me feel better I am able to avoid the full medication for my disease. This disease has by far improved my personal development and pushed it along quicker than normal life would have. I learned how to fully take care of my own health and manage different aspects of my personal fitness. By slowly learning how to control my diet, exercise, and medication amount I found that things that I could not control had less effect on in my life. These methods caused me to gain back more than the twenty-five pounds that I had lost and begin to healthily absorb and digest the food that I ate. The diet and exercise reduce my symptoms so I can live an almost completely normal life if I stick to them. Finally, the ability to do these things helped me gain my energy back. That lead to me returning to school and continuing football, which were originally out of my control. Due to the illness and some of the limitations of it I could no longer play my position of defensive end in football. What I figured out I could do, was kick, so I learned how to be a kicker and after missing my previous year made the team as the kicker my senior year. Learning to kick well was a challenge, but because I wanted to play football I learned to kick and control my path in sports in spite of this disease. Through the small things I did every day I was able to live a normal life without being dependent on medications. These steps helped me develop as a person and allow me to encourage others in situations that they feel that they have no control over. So when I hear the expression “if life hands you a lemon make lemonade,” I relate it to my experience of overcoming this life challenge by staying focused on the things you can control, and not being overwhelmed by the things you cannot. The Power of Positive ThinkingMahKaylah Singleton
Positive thinking contributes to the most important part of team sports, marketing teams and government agencies, without positive thinking society wouldn’t be able to get to where it is today. Benjamin Franklin wouldn’t have been able to discover electricity, Madam Walker wouldn’t have been about to discover the pressing comb, and J.J Thomson wouldn’t have been able to discover the electron, without thinking positively about whether they could do these things or not we wouldn’t have knowledge of those essential things in our life. Throughout all my years in high school I participated in the varsity softball team, which requires positive thinking, team effort and bonding. Typically activities that have to do with a lot of females can be challenging within itself, not being sexist just being honest. Girls are considered vindictive and dramatic so you could only imagine the difficulty of trying to become comfortable with one another. Even though we didn’t have the problem within our group, we experienced outside bullying from other teams throughout my entire senior year. The teams throughout our district would make rumors about us being cheaters and recruiting from other districts. We believe our success had came from our talents and effort, but since we had received a transfer student from a different district that was a spectacular pitcher they assumed we were cheating. The teams caused all types of problems for us before and during the official season. We had a volunteer assistant coach who specialized in hitting, he was removed from being with us on the field and in the dugout during games and practice due to other teams making the allegation of him being a hired coach. This made it very difficult to perform without our hitting coach, but we didn’t allow the other teams to break us or give them the idea that what they were saying was effecting us. We stayed positive by ignoring what the teams would say about us and focused on how to become not only better athletes, but better teammates for one another. We learned a lot about each other and earner each other’s trust even more, this allowed us to have a greater bond then what we already had. We didn’t let the negative energy and thinking effect our game and how we played it, we made the rules for ourself and we played at our pace and our way. By not allowing negative thinking effect us we ended up going undefeated throughout the district season with a record of 13-0 and winning four other trophies, which had never been done in the history of the 6A district. We became the first team to go to Area and Regional Quarter finals in history and win. Our school had never won a trophy in that district when the level had been changed, we had won nothing for 12 years and we finally had. We didn’t allow the negative energy and thinking take us off the path of our goal, it only motivated us to do better not only as a team but as individuals. Being a part of my team taught me the importance of staying positive no matter what other say or think about you, as long as you have a positive mind and positive intentions great things with come out of life for you. The power of positive thinking can be a great reward in the end for you not just in high school but in you college years and professional career. Thank you for your considerations and the opportunity to be a part of the Achieve Today Scholarship Fund. I hope you enjoy my essay on The Power of Positive Thinking. The Power of Positive Thinking: Education is ImportantIngrid Guzman
University of Phoenix My life restarted when I gave birth to my son Matthew. I have learned that the best I can do for my child is to allow him to do things for himself, allow him to be strong, allow him to experience life on his own terms, let him be a better person, let him believe more in himself and the best way to do that is by going back to school and lead by example. I came from a single parent home and lived in housing Authority in the City of Los Angeles. Although I was considered below poverty, I always had food on the table, shoes on my feet and access to public education thanks to my mother. Most important it was made very clear in our home that education was of upmost importance. As I grew, the love for education grew with me. I utilized free public education in grade school, middle school and high school, which helped with utilizing the income available to me for school materials and uniforms. As a came to adulthood and attended a private university, Mount St. Mary’s University assisted me with becoming a well-grounded women who is able to think critically and act conscientiously. Also being awarded a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science with a minor is Spanish, I was able to learn to emphasize in service, community building, and teaching which I used in my daily aspects of life and work in a diverse community. Being able to use my degree and being able to find a job outside of office work was not easy but it was possible with the dedication and education I had accomplished. I worked for the Democratic National Communities and learned the aspects of how funds and donations are attained and how it is dispersed between candidates. With this education and work experience I was able to find a job as a Recruiting Assistant with the United States Census Bureau. Within the four years as a Recruiting Assistant I researched and provided accurate information regarding the country's people and economy. I collected information regarding population, economy, government, communities, and demographics which is used to determine distribution of Congressional seats. I also tested 30 to 40 candidates twice a day and provided test results for job opportunities. Once budget cuts started due to our hardship in our economy, the first affected were government agencies and government employees. This resulted in making the choice to move from the government sector to the private sector of work. I am currently working as an office administer with the Beverly Hills Car Club. Working for the number one dealership nationwide I became accustomed to working in a high-pressure environment where accuracy and attention to detail are essential. I am responsible for all Purchase order request, monitoring all ingoing and outgoing communications, and attending to administrative needs in the department. This role requires a high degree of professionalism, maturity, loyalty, confidentiality and the ability to communicate effectively at all levels. I pride myself on my ability to deal with pressure and multi-task with a positive and flexible attitude. With all the work experience pilling up, I was able to start a family and I gave birth to my son Matthew on January 5th 2011. I almost could not believe it was possible for me to have a baby growing inside my womb but it was not a dream, it was real. I enjoyed every moment, the anticipation, the excitement, and the journey to meeting my little boy. I now understand what is meant when mothers talked about “ecstasy in birth”, it is an incredible feeling. Although there is a lot of hot pain, it is enjoyable because you are bringing a life into the world. Working and going to school for so long I still could not remove an emptiness I felt and when I became a mother, I felt as if my life restarted. As a mother I became more selfless, more loving, and I felt as if I must sacrifice many of my wants and needs for the wants and needs of my child. As a mother I work hard to make sure my child is equipped with the knowledge, skills and abilities to make it as a competent human being. I worked harder and felt more dedicated in my daily work and worked over 100 hours every two weeks to provide a good quality life to my son. Now that my son is a grade school, education is still important in our home and I want to lead by example. As Brigham Young stated “You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” This brings me to the conclusion that I need to go back to school to get my Master’s degree, after 11 years from graduating in 2006 from Mount St. Mary’s University. I have applied with the University of Phoenix for the Master’s program in Psychology with an emphasis in Industrial Organization. This master’s program is the direction I would like to take all the work experience I have. Working close to the Human Resource Dept. has conditioned me because Industrial organizational psychology focuses not only on the psychology of the workplace from a scientific standpoint, but also on its application for the benefit of both the organization as a whole and its individual members. I want to study and learn to apply psychology as it affects workers on an individual level, such as in employee assessment, benefits, and the overall workplace environment. The best way to show my son Matthew to be strong, allow him to experience life on his own terms, let him be a better person, let him believe more in himself is by be being strong myself and teaching him that is education is still very important. Power of Positive ThinkingMohammad Salah
ASU Imagine being trapped in yourself. At first, it may seem like a mild mood swing. Then, it starts growing on you as the days pass by. You start to think you’re worthless, and even question the reason for your existence. Your goals and motives for life fade away as you start evaluating and analyzing your reality. You look at other people around you and see how happy they are, you envy them and hate them because you think you deserve that smile they have on their faces. You start separating yourself from other people, because you think that no one can understand you and feel your pain. And when you interact with other people, you only show them that fake and momentary smile to tell them you’re okay. You start avoiding going to bed because you know that when you try to sleep, all these issues and questions will shatter your mind. You want to break yourself free, not from this mild mood swing, but from your body, and you know that there’s only one way to do that. Depression, that’s what it feels like. When I moved out from my parent’s house for college, I thought that this mild mood swing would be gone. I thought that starting a new life and getting rid of my old friends would make me a happier person. But the real world was different. The further I was trying to get away from my relatives and friends, the worse my depression would get. I felt that there were a thousand reasons for my depression, and the more I thought about them, the more I realized how little control we humans have over our own lives. I lived next to a religious center that was helping Syrian refugees and those in need. As the days passed by, I realized something. There were a thousand reasons for me to be depressed, but there are more than million reasons for me to be happy. I realized that the more I consumed myself with my bad fortunes and negative thoughts, the less I enjoyed the blessings I already have. We waste a great deal of our valuable time comparing ourselves to others wishing we have what they have. But what about the blessings we already have? Now, here comes the power of positive thinking. It is about being satisfied of what you already have because you know that you have great blessings many wish to taste. It is about looking up to people not because you envy them, but because you see yourself in them as a successful person and being certain you can be as successful if not more successful than them. It is about doing your part in helping those in need and being optimistic that soon all this misfortune happening around the world will end. It is summed up in the saying “just look at the bright side”. My experience with depression is probably mild when compared to other severe cases of depression. But living with a positive attitude and focusing on my goals had remarkably helped me wake up each day with a clear head, knowing that I can achieve my goals and overarching dreams. I didn't get accepted to an ivy league school, but I know that I'm in a great fortune for being able to enter higher education and having a family willing to support me by all means to get that degree. I may not be the most sociable or have the most friends, having a few good friends and being able to effectively communicate is by itself a treasure we can't comprehend its greatness. When I was first admitted to ASU, I was very skeptical and thought I deserved a better university. As the days passed by, I started looking on the bright side that I actually have a chance to get higher education, but there was still a part in me that wanted to get to the better schools. I stayed in this state until I met someone that came from Yale University. He explained how that school was very tough and how every student tries his best to avoid socializing because he knows that that will affect his grades. He also told me that even his friends from his hometown refused to help him when it came to studies because they wanted that better grade. “The competitiveness will kill you”, that’s how he summed up his experience at that university. At that moment, I thanked God that I didn’t get accepted to tougher schools, because I realized that having an easy 4.0 GPA and welcoming environment is much better than the prestige the other universities were offering. None of us have perfect lives, and if we consume ourselves with all the misfortunes we have, we will be lost in a maze of depression. The true key for happiness is realizing that you are one of the wealthiest people on earth for having gifts many wish to have a taste of. Positivity has the power to change people’s lives. Most importantly, it has the power to bring happiness to even the simplest of people. Moreover, if we are able to find positivity in everyday events, we might have found the happiness we long for. Take for example all the apparent evil happening around the world, the homeless, the Syrian refugee crisis, global warming, and poverty to mention a few. It is heartbreaking and everyone should do their part to solve these problems. Now here is the silver lining, these misfortunes are actually evil, but they have the power to bring people together and make us all realize that at the end we are all humans and should help each other like one body. In conclusion, life is hard, and very often, incredibly unfair! There’s no getting around that fact, but “Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it” - Charles R. Swindoll. So, we can either choose to be depressed every time we are tested with a difficult situation, or we can look at the bright side and see it as an opportunity for us to seize, use, or learn from it. Moreover, if we try to deal with everyday events with positivity, we might as well be the happiest individuals on earth. Because truly, the most important outcome of positivity is its ability to make us always happy, no matter how bad the situation is. The Power of Positive ThinkingToan Nguyen
ASU My name is Toan Nguyen and I am currently a sophomore studying Biomedical Engineering at Arizona State University (ASU). During the second semester of my senior year of high school, I was in a car crash that resulted in a traumatic brain injury (TBI), a 3-inch scar on the back of my head, and a totaled car. Following the crash, I had an immense difficulty in my classes because senior year was the year that I decided to take college level courses to increase my chances of being accepted into the engineering program at ASU. I remember the headaches that made it nearly impossible to focus in class, the inability to speak/think naturally without strain, and the extreme fatigue I felt 24/7. It felt impossible to do well in school because of this and as I started to get worse grades, my hope of doing well in high school and college began to fade. I was unhappy with everything around me because one accident changed my entire life. I felt like I didn’t want to continue school because even though I worked hard and studied hard, I wasn’t able to get the grades I wanted. However, after failing time and time again, I asked myself if I really should be angry that I’m not getting the grades I want despite trying my best? This question made me realize slowly that if I’m trying my best in all that I do, I shouldn’t be mad that I come short or that I didn’t do well and that I should think more positively about my situation. Even though I was struggling in everything I did, I was learning more and more how to work hard and to find the ways to study that worked for me. Yes, the situation that I was put in was unfortunate, but in the end, there is nothing that I could do about it except work with what I have and make the most out of it. My last semester of high school was not an easy one, but with hard work and dedication, I was able to graduate from high school. When college started, doing work with my injured brain was even more difficult than I expected. I was learning new content in a new environment under new pressures I’ve never really felt before. For example, my grades seemed based off of 3 tests and one final that determined my entire grade. Not only that but it seemed like my life was based off of the GPA that I get each semester. I began to regret what happened to me in high school more and more. Freshman year of college was when I started to lose hope again of doing well in school and felt the pressures of getting a really good GPA as well as many extracurricular activities to make me stand out from other students. I don’t know how many times I walked around campus alone at night, since I was living in the dorms, because I just needed fresh air from the stress I was under. Over time I realized that college isn’t necessarily about the grade you get. College is about the experience you make, the knowledge you learn, and the opportunities you grab. This realization didn’t stop me from trying my best and definitely didn’t make me light hearted about the education I was able to receive because I continued to study hard despite difficulties and stress. I then began to focus more on the learning aspect of college and not so much the grade aspect of college. This ultimately made me a better student with a more positive outlook on college. I am currently in my second year of college and have been fortunate enough to make it onto the Dean’s list every semester so far with a 3.66 cumulative GPA. I have made many life-long connections and learned many things throughout college. Furthermore, I was fortunate to be accepted into Dr. Mehdi Nikkhah’s lab under the supervision of Danh Truong, a PhD student studying breast cancer. Mr. Truong helped me complete two Fulton undergraduate research initiative (FURI) projects that involved the study of breast cancer cells and fibroblast cells. Every day I am in the lab I am learning more about breast cancer, how to work in a group, and how to read relevant publications that can help me design experiments I wish to study. Currently, I’ve been a part of the Nikkhah laboratory for 1 year and hopefully will be able to design my own experiments. In the semesters coming, I plan to grow even more. I aspire to intern for Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGEN), a medical company that can further shape the way I understand biomedical engineering. I understand school is not going to be easy, but I am sure that hard work and patience will ultimately lead to my successful future. The Power of Positive ThinkingNatalie Carranza
Do you ever wonder if the glass if half full or half empty? Mine is always half full! Positive thinking has many perks to it. In fact, it helps with increasing the life expand, lower levels of distress, and lower rates of depression (Mayo Clinic Staff, Par. 6). Imagine living a little longer because you’re simply just being positive all the time. Besides medical benefits, positivity can benefit you by boosting your self-esteem, increasing your confidence, and pushing you to do better. Positivity has benefited me in many ways throughout my life. Even though I am a very positive person, I haven’t always been. My freshmen year was when I realized that thinking positive would change the rest of my life. The first semester of my freshmen year, I kept to myself and always had my headphones in. I never wanted to talk to anyone and I didn’t want to be there. I walked to every class with headphones in my ears and in class, I didn’t want to talk to anyone, I just wanted to get my work done. My last hour, that semester, was Spanish I and I had a friend that was a junior in that class. I remember her telling me that freshmen elections were coming up for student council and she wanted me to do it. I remember my exact response, “Maybe my junior year I will.” She gave me a really dirty look and said, “I hate when people say that! They always say that but never do it!” I realized I did want to do it, I was just scared to run; I didn’t have the confidence to run. I came home and told my mom about it and she wanted me to do it so bad. She knew that this would help me not hate high school so much. I convinced myself to run, but I was going back and forth on whether I should run for president or vice president. My mom told me to run for president, she said, “Go big or go home.” I kept telling myself that I couldn’t do it and that I would lose and be humiliated if I ran for president, that I’m not good enough to hold that big of a position. These negative thoughts kept coming. Thankfully, my mom put so many positive thoughts in my head like “I can do it”. I ended up winning and I couldn’t be happier. Ever since then, I strive to be the best that I can be. I am no longer afraid of any negative outcomes because I put positive thoughts in my head. Most importantly, I am no longer afraid of failure. When that time comes in my life where I fail, I see that as an opportunity to learn, get back up and try again. My mom taught me that if I stay positive, nothing can keep me down. I always hear my peers talk about how they hate a class or how they dislike a teacher. But when I’m in that class or with that teacher they talk bad about, I don’t see anything bad about it. It’s the way the positive thinking works. When you think positive all the time, you will have very few “bad” classes or teachers or whatever the case may be. I always tell my mom that whatever job I end up with in the future, I know I’ll enjoy it no matter what because I make the very best out of what I have. I am so thankful that my mindset is so happy and positive. I thank my mom for my positive attitude. Now, I don’t doubt myself. I strive for the best and reach for the stars. Positivity taught me that the sky is the limit and nothing can hold me down. Personal DevelopmentRobelio Medina
I went to a high school called East Palo Alto Academy in California. It was a good school in which the teachers and students were close. I personally felt they went a bit too easy on the students. For example, they will let us turn in work late or just drop the work completely. While they did prepare us for college I felt the school should have been less lax for the student sake. It was common for seniors who one to college t say they did not feel ready for what college had prepared for them. The transition from our high school and college was too great. That's why instead of going to a four-year university right away I chose a community college instead. I chose to go to De-Anza community college to prepare myself for a San Jose State university. I feared that college would be too tough on me and I thought a two year would make the transition easier. I want to become a clinical psychologist when I graduate college. If there was ever a case in which I wanted to switch major it would be cheaper and easier in a two year. I want to avoid being in debt as much as possible. Going to a two year helps a lot since I can complete my first two years cheaper. I can also learn the life a college student before going to a four year. I have chosen that I am no longer going to UC Merced for transfer anymore. The reason is that they have general psychology as a major. General psychology is a far too broad for any major. I must study in clinical psychology in order to be a clinical psychologist. The school I decided to go to is San Jose State. I want to go study at this school since it’s close and seems fun to go to. I still am not decided where to go once I finish San Jose State. For my major I need a master’s degree. I am considering attending Palo Alto University for my master’s degree. Once I started college I was quick to learn that no one will hold my hand. I can control if I pass or fail I can control so much as an adult now. I focused on all my weakness and learned how to improve in those areas. I could get advice from other students and how they studied and worked. One of the most useful skill I learned was rewriting my notes at the end of the day. I found this helped make it more easy to understand the content of my class. College has been such a learning experience for me. My first quarter at De-Anza I knew I had to do math classes which I am terrible at. This is the first time where I went to get a tutor to help me. This was one of the best decisions in my life since it helped me greatly. I did carry a bad habit in this quarter from high school. Which is that I don't really study since I think I know what I'm doing. This proved bad since I got a B in math but C in the rest of my grades. This was my first wakeup call that I need to change how I did work at school. I started to learn for new ways to study so I can pass my classes with all my effort. In the spring quarter, I took a statistics class. Statistics was going to be my last math class I need to take. So far during the year I have gotten B’s with all my math classes. Statistics was a much harder class than I expected. I got a D in the class which devastated me greatly. This made me realize for this class I need a new way to study. I started my second time taking this class. Using my new methods of studying I have already started to see that I have better grades. I also like that the teacher gives the notes before so I can focus on what she is doing. Ever since this fall my life has been nothing but learning how I can become better. When I started, I thought I knew what to do. I quickly learned that college is so much more different especially with time management. I will work as hard as I can in college to become a Psychotherapist, to become the first one in my family to attend college and to become a role model in my community. I need support since my family cannot help pay for my education. I have tried my best in scholarships, making sure I apply to everyone I can find, but more importantly, I have been making decisions not to spend the money irresponsibly my freshman year. I want to grow into even a better person and can use my skills. With the support of this scholarship. Positive ThinkingMolly Oneal
“I got the job!, we are moving to a new hotter than hell state where you will most likely die from loneliness, boredom, and be permanently damaged for life because of it”. My mother said cheerfully and excited almost like she was singing the news. Lighting and thunder rained down on me forcing me to drag back to the theater room. Okay so it did not truly happen that way, but as a 17-year-old girl who had lived in the same postage stamp sized town her whole life, it's how It felt, and because of that I spent entire year feeling bad for myself. I let my attitude towards moving keep me from enjoying my new home. I walked back into rehearsals bawling my eyes out, black eyeliner streaming down my face and told the cast of people who at the time were closer to me than my family the world shattering news, I was to move after the show. I had lived in Elsinore my entire life, I was Miss teen Lake Elsinore, a tour guide of the town's history museum with the energy of a chipmunk, and had become the stage manager with better organization than Martha Stewart. My parents had to drag me kicking and screaming into the state of Arizona. I had this idea in my mind that it would never be the same as my home for 17 years, and in a way I was right but where I was wrong was this wasn't a bad thing. I learned my closer than family friends were only friends of proximity as soon as I told them I was leaving, I became dead to them. My last week in town they threw a party and didn't invite me. Feeling crushed, beaten, and angry I subconsciously decided never to make friends again. I let in bad thoughts dictate how I lived my life. That no matter how Arizona was I was going to hate it. Around 3 months later I was about to start my first day at shadow mountain high school. With my stomach in knots all morning I put on a facade hair done up, makeup caked on and my outfit I spent months exploring peaks of the mountains of clothes that is my closet to find the perfect dress paired with a ripped vest in tatters and patches. I did all of this to mask the fact I was a sacred mess of a person so pressurized with emotions that one push would make me explode. After spending time listening to a dull plain jane of a receptionist drone on about “ The wonders of shadow mountain!” her mono toned voice barely changing as she recited the speech for the millionth time, I Began to walk into my first class. It was a cave of a room with the only light glowing from the projector. My chemistry teacher rushed over and said angry and frustrated “what do you need miss, can't you tell I am lecturing?” my hands trembling like an earthquake my voice tumbled out a mess and landed on the floor “ I am in this class now, I just moved here.” The teacher removed her glasses hands me back the paper and shushes me to the desolate back row with no further instruction. I stumble to the back row the kids in front of me practically drooling on their notebooks, after 3 centuries of notes, she had the rest of the class partner up and work on homework, while she shoved paper after paper of class instructions and expectations into my hands. When the bell sang I couldn't be happier to leave. I beat the world record for speed as I jetted out of the door. I had to keep my head down and be unnoticed for the rest of the day. As I handed my schedule to this odd french-Russian man who was my french teacher. He had my introduce myself in French to the rest of the class what I meant to say was j’m’apelle molly, what came out was barely a squeak as I rushed to the closest empty desk. I scribbled in my notebook for the rest of the class period. I met Mrs.Porter who was sweet and cheerful and assigned me a watered down gothic girl to help me out. That's when I realized I was a complete outsider in comparison to the rest of the class. Most girls dressed simply and conservatively with great contrast to my black dress and punk patch jacket. Most of the class had brown or blonde hair so my bright neon purple mop of hair stuck out. I spent the rest of the class period and lunch half-heartedly pretending to like the same music as the watered down goth and practically ran to the class I was most excited for production workshop and management. I had always had a passion for building and designing and for once during that day had my head up high, this was my domain! I was greeted by a bubbly actress of a teacher her curls bouncing and her voice dancing out. I was utterly horrified, I knew Instantly she knew nothing about carpentry and an acting was teacher covering for the shop class. I was dead on the money, the normal workshop teacher was out for a semester. As we worked on focusing lights someone ask if I could get them a light wrench I quickly found one and handed it to this large gruff looking man, he just looked at me and laughed and said very annoyed “ I wanted a light wrench, I thought you said you were a light designer” as he pointed to another student holding a pair of dykes “ I wanted something like that. “ and after 15 minutes of arguing with a wall that that wasn't a wrench but a dyke he googled it and very embarrassed apologized and walked away. In this moment I panicked I knew that I could not even find peace in my home, the theater. How was I going to survive? and over the next couple of months I hated every moment of moving but during this time I did what I thought was impossible, I survived, once I realized that almost a year later I had a moment of clarity. The only way I could ever be happy in a new environment was to stop comparing to my old life. To change my way of thinking, I finally internalized what my mom had told me for years “do not get worked up about what you can not change, instead with your head held up high tell yourself you can do it.” With that inspiration, I had to move away from the safe shallows of spending time alone into the depth of living and embrace the differences. After I did this I finally become myself again after a semester of hiding in bed, I learned to let myself have friends again and I grew to love Arizona not because it was like Elsinore but because it was different. After that realization I know I have the ability to adapt and grew wherever I am planted and not only survive but thrive, I now feel I can tower over the world as long as I tell myself that I can Maintain a Positive AttitudeMaya Terry
"We have the power to change things. We have the power to speak up, use our voice, and change things we don't believe in. Don't forget that. You have such an amazing gift of an educated voice, use it. Whatever you believe, speak up, stand out loud. Because I promise you, if you think it or believe it, at least one other person thinks the same thing." -Stacy Nadeau, Dove® Real Body Campaign Model On Tuesday night, as I sat in Graham Chapel on Washington University's main campus, these words echoed and filled the room, the sound waves causing sequential vibrations of the ear drum as well as the other parts that constitute the analogy of the ear. Stimulation of hair cells in the ear would then send information and signals to the auditory nerve where these remarks would be processed by the brain's primary auditory cortex. Just by those last two sentences alone, it is clear that I am getting a WashU education inside of the classroom. I can wholeheartedly say that I am passionate about the psychology and neuroscience courses that I have been excelling in this first semester. But in the short time I have been here at WashU, I have learned many things that go well beyond the scope of an academic setting. Being a student at Wash U has afforded me the opportunity to listen to some amazing speakers thus far, one of them being Stacey Nadeau. As a part of Love Your Body Week, the club Reflections, along with the Alpha Phi sorority, brought her in to talk about embracing real beauty, having been one of the 6 women in the Dove campaign that demonstrated real women with real curves. When the campaign was introduced over 10 years ago, Dove's mission was to make more women feel beautiful every day by widening today's stereotypical view of beauty by inspiring women to take great care of themselves. According to surveys conducted by Dove, only 4% of people will admit to feeling comfortable calling themselves beautiful. As a result of her work with Dove, Stacy Nadeau has become an ambassador for women's empowerment and has made it her life's work to travel the country, offering her expertise on women's issues, body image, and how to better your environment. With every motivational presentation, there are always takeaways that can impact the ways in which you view the world and what steps can be taken to change the society in which you have been placed. As if her commentary on the power of our voices wasn't enough, other pieces of advice have stuck with me since then: Commit to defining your own best healthy self. Find the place where your mental health and physical self meets in the middle. Remember that fat shaming and skinny shaming are both equally as bad. Treat yourself like your own best friend. Demand the level of love and respect you deserve. Confidence is attractive, even in silence. All of these messages seemed to be a culmination of all the reasons why I decided to get "self love" tattooed on my wrist. In Psych, we talk a lot about the idea of positive reinforcement. The goal is to increase behavior by presenting specific stimuli repeatedly. In layman's terms, one example of positive reinforcement would be the more you continue to demonstrate certain levels of optimism and self-assurance, the more these concepts will be ingrained in your mind. As if hearing Stacy Nadeau tell her story wasn't enough, the following morning I was able to meet Amy Cuddy, a social psychologist and professor at the Harvard Business School. Her TED Talk "Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are" with 37,092,646 total views and counting is the second most viewed talk of all time (click here for the link to the video). Her 2015 book Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges is a New York Times Best Seller. While her TED Talk briefly explains some of her beliefs, I would like to emphasize her "fake it 'til you become it" mentality. There is something known as the self affirmation theory in which you attempt to ground yourself in who you are by asking questions such as "what makes you you?" or "what are your core values?" If your #1 core value was taken away, would you still be you? While Amy's research on nonverbal behavior and power posing is fascinating, some of the most compelling arguments she made were related to her research on prejudice and discrimination. In a conversation with her separate from her talk, she spoke to me and a friend of mine about powerlessness, stigma, and the emotional burden of race. One of the concepts she shared that immediately clicked in my head was this idea of attributional ambiguity, which describes the difficulty members of stereotyped groups may have in interpreting feedback. This idea was substantiated by a study done at Princeton University between interracial roommate pairs. It was found that if a black student knew up front whether their white roommate was racist, they were better off than those who had to assume and try to decipher the motives of their roommates while more often trying to prove their own worth. I immediately recognized the attributional ambiguity in my own life. It is the reason why I have a hard time making friends at my predominately white institution. It is easy to stay away from the kid who proudly wears his "Make America Great Again" hat. You can make mental notes of the guys you overhear calling black women unattractive. It is the fear of the unknown that makes meeting new people all the more difficult. Needless to say, after 24 hours of having been flooded with positivity and various ways in which I could begin to improve my best self, I felt like I was on Cloud 9. I seemed to have forgotten all the things that I disliked about being at WashU. In my Facebook post regarding the two events I commented, "Being able to engage in conversation with these two phenomenal women was absolutely incredible and provided me with more clarity on what role I play in this world, my identity, and what purpose I eventually plan to serve." This feeling of euphoria was unfortunately short-lived, and all it took was sitting in my Identity Literacy class for me to be brought 5 steps backwards from all the progress I thought I had made. Identity Literacy is a pilot course at WashU in which students are randomly selected in order to develop skills needed to thrive socially and professionally in diverse communities. This topic of discussion was the structural inequality of St. Louis. Due to my large interest in public health and racial disparities, the subject matter is one of great importance to me. Having lived in STL for about 2 months now, the issue that pains me the most is “The Delmar Divide”. Since the time I stepped on campus in late August, I have participated in two bus tours that explored “North of Delmar,” an area where WashU students are often told not to venture out. Delmar Boulevard is intriguing for many reasons. The racial divide could not be more evident—south of Delmar is 73% white and North of Delmar is 98% African American. This discernible segregation is deeply rooted in the occurrence of white flight throughout suburban St. Louis during the 1940s and 1950s. Local, state, and federal policies led to an intense concentration of blacks in certain neighborhoods and there appears to be a virtually unbreachable wall between St. Louis City and its suburbs. After seeing firsthand “the Delmar Divide,” I still cannot wrap my head around the fact that on one side there are beautiful, old, expensive homes and on the other side you can expect to see the exact opposite, a place that never found its footing. The median home value and household income varies drastically, as does the number of college degrees earned. South of Delmar continues to prosper as North of Delmar struggles with a certain kind of “plantation living.” This structural inequality impacts so many aspects of life in St. Louis such as jobs, education, health, food security, and the general quality of life. The discussion we had in class discouraged me for many reasons. The other students (who all live on my floor I might add) laughed about that one time one kid walked all the way from Downtown STL and back to WashU extremely late at night, a feat that took him about two hours. My teacher, along with the rest of the class, talked about how dangerous his decision was and how he should have thought more about his safety. My instructor also thought it was a good idea to share that she went 10 years living in NYC without being mugged by taking the necessary precautions of carrying "$20 of mug money" in her pocket. One person asked if I had ever been mugged. As a native New Yorker, I took so much offense to all of this. It is pure ignorance to believe that NYC is full of hoodlums and criminals. But on top of that, I didn't appreciate the way in which the black, impoverished areas of STL were being regarded. I wanted to speak out. I wanted to respond to my peers. But as the only black person in that room, I felt silenced. I did not want to come across as the angry black girl, nor did I want to be the spokesperson for my entire race. I knew I should have said something, especially because this was my future life work we were talking about. The conversation should have been more about how systematically fucked up the city is and what we can do as the next generation to fix it. Instead, one person contributed to the conversation by saying that he was afraid he would have to take on the city's problems as his own. Like I do in most instances when I feel like I messed up, I started to beat myself up over the fact that I sat angry and in silence. Unlike what Stacy Nadeau urged the audience to do, I did not use the power of my educated voice to stand up for what I thought was right. I felt defeated and disappointed in the people at the university I claimed I was so proud to attend. Later in the afternoon, I had my first official breakdown in college and started to cry. I expressed my frustration to my mom about the entire situation. If anyone knows how much I love quotes, it's her. She left me with this: "I have a quote of the day for you: 'Don’t lose sleep because you’re not accepted and celebrated by everyone. Don’t focus on your critics or get distracted fighting battles that don’t matter. Just keep running your race and being your best.' I thought this quote was appropriate based on you meeting those two women. Joel Osteen said it." My momma was right. I could not let this one incident ruin the faith I had in WashU and the positive changes I planned to implement in my life. As the title of this piece says, learn how to maintain a positive attitude even when life manages to challenge your newfound sense of empowerment. Stay up, stay proud, and be loud if you have to. Power of Positive ThinkingRyan Stanley
Hello my name is Ryan Stanley. I’m 18 years old I live in Bend, Oregon and I’m currently in my senior year at Bend Senior High School. I would like to tell you my story of how the power of positive thinking helped me get through a very hard time in my life. My sophomore year of high school my talents in baseball were trusted enough to play on the varsity team. Most sophomores play junior varsity, but my coaches wanted me to play up on the varsity team. I was so excited to play on varsity, everything that I had worked hard for paid off. At that point in my life I had never worked harder for anything. It was the most fun that I had ever had while playing a sport. The coaches were great, and my teammate were incredibly fun. Over spring break the team took a road trip to Arizona to play in a very competitive tournament. During our second game at this tournament I got my first start of the season in the field. I was incredibly nervous, it was my shot to prove to the coaches that I had the talents to keep my role as a starter. I played very well, I got on base twice and caught a ball that was almost hit over the fence that would have lost us the game. But that was the last out of the inning and we went into extra innings and won the game. I remained on varsity for the remainder of the season and started over half of our games in either right or left field. We were a very talented team and had a very successful season. We won a lot of games and finished 2nd in our league of 5 teams. To get a playoff birth we had to beat La Salle Prep, it was a win or go home situation. We were losing 4-5 in the bottom of the 6th inning. I was the designated hitter for this game and I stepped up to the place with 2 outs and a runner on first. I needed to get a hit to extend the game, everyone needed me to pull through. I worked a 3-1 count and on the next pitch I hit a line drive into the left center field gap. The runner stretched from 1st base to 3rd base and I ended up on 2nd base. The inning ended with my teammate and I stranded on base. In the bottom of the 7th inning with a runner on first our best hitter hit a walk off homerun to give us the win 6-5. That win sent us into the Oregon 5A playoffs and gave us the 8th seed out of 16 teams. We beat our first round opponent 8-1 and next played the number 1 ranked team at their high school. This was the biggest stage that I have ever played on. I was so excited all week for this game I could barely sleep. Finally game day came, we had a long 3 hour bus to get to the game. The game started and was scoreless through the 1st inning. We scored 2 runs in the top of the 2nd inning and we all started to feel really good about the game. Then we crumbled, they scored 9 runs in the second inning and continued to score runs through the whole game and we lost 14-4. I had 1 of few hits in that game and they had 3 of the best pitchers in the state. The season ended after that game but I still had a blast playing on that team and I was and amazing experience. I saw a lot of success in that season. I had a .400 batting average, had 7 stolen bases and struck out twice in a 29 game season. I couldn’t wait for the start of my junior year of baseball. I couldn’t wait to play a sport that I love and be a leader on the team and be a huge contributor to the team’s success. The whole off season my coaches told me that I needed to be ready to be a huge part of this team and bring my success from last year into this year and be a great player. I was itching for the season to start. I had the worst baseball season of my whole life. It took me 10 at bats to get a hit. I struck out more in one game than I did in the whole season my sophomore year. My coaches lost faith in me and discontinued my role as a starter. Something that I was once very good at I was now bad at and I had no idea why. I stayed after practice everyday to hit and no matter what I did I couldn’t break my slump. I was absolutely crushed. I couldn’t sleep I was upset all of baseball season. I had let everyone who believed in me down. The season finally ended and it was the toughest period of my life. I had never been so frustrated and had never had something effect my happiness as much as baseball did. Football had started I could not have been happier. I wanted to do something that would help me forget about baseball and just do something new. I didn’t overthink I didn’t play for the satisfactory of anyone else but myself. I just played for my enjoyment and the love of the game. I had the best season of my athletic career. I had started on both offense and defense. I had a total of 9 touchdowns, 50 tackles, led the team in receiving yards, was tied for first in tackles, and was tied for first for average rushing yards per carry. I was voted a first team all-league defensive back by other coaches in the league, and was voted a second team all-state defensive back by other coaches throughout Oregon. It an absolute blessing of a football season. I learned that whatever you are going through in life, whatever problems you are faced with, you have to keep fighting for the next day and think positive, because if you fight through the tough times there will be a brighter light at the end of the tunnel. Because I battled through the tough times I faced through the 3 month baseball season and had positive thoughts and got to see the brighter light of the tunnel, which was revealing my talents in the game of football. Which has recently been noticed by division III football coaches. I have my strong belief of positive thinking to thank for that. Thank you so much for listening to my story and thank you for this scholarship opportunity. Achievement Through Focused ProgressionDonald Williams Jr.
Mercer University The want to try and understand the reasoning behind events or lack thereof is a tricky and often unsatisfying business. It dampens the heart when we try to force an outcome but continue to fall short of that goal. It can warp ideals, burn bridges, and isolate an individual. The only way to keep such actions from happening is to focus on the things that we can control and work to make those actions our most defining. That is why I have decided to focus my life on the betterment of myself and my community. Now this might sound like an oversimplified notion but think about it. If every person worked to progress as an intellectual being and citizen while also giving their best efforts to better their community, we probably could solve every problem we have today. Without ideals and principles how do we define ourselves as people and human beings? The only way to define ourselves is through these ideals and by the decisions we make. That is why I want to be defined by a model of progression- one that not only reaches inward but also outward. I want to be a part of an ideal that looks to better what is around it and works to do so with diligence and humility. My principles for progress are what motivate me to strive for grander goals and work my hardest. I want to initiate and inspire progress in others and the only way I know how to do this is to lead by example. Growing up, I spent much of my life as the quiet kid who was always in his books. It really was not until high school that I actually broke out of my shell and started to become the person I am today. It wasn’t puberty or something cliché that sparked the change; it was my desire to overcome my obstacles. I had begun to place myself in programs, afterschool activities, and volunteer services that forced me to face my communication and confidence problems. Freshmen year I earned a spot on the varsity track team and became a part of JROTC. These two activities were my first step to overcoming my challenges. Track tested my communication and teamwork skills while JROTC was constantly working on my confidence as an individual. Over the course of that year, I became more outspoken and outgoing, pushing past my original barrier. I enjoyed this me new; the progress I had made was remarkable. However, I felt it was not enough; I knew that I could progress even further and so I set out to do just that. Sophomore year of high school, was the breakthrough year; it was the year that I joined the debate team which catapulted me into the man I am today. Being a part of the debate team was a constant critique of my knowledge, communication skills, and patience. Debate taught me that through understanding and hard work, you can overcome any obstacle or situation as long as you take the necessary steps to assess what stands in your way. This understanding was truly vital to my forward transformation of myself and my community. Sophomore year was also the year that I helped initiate a progressive program that looked to promote youth education and understanding. The program was a summer debate camp for middle school students with the focus of helping kids think critically, polish reading skills, and become more communicable young citizens. Working within this program was truly eye opening; it gave me the vision and insight necessary to understand that by being a part of this program I am not only inspiring progress in these students but also instilling in them a progressive light that they will want to share with those around them. It was mind-blowing to me; I was initiating progress in my community by focusing my mind on the progression of each student I came across. That year I progressed as a student and citizen, while also uncovering my progressive nature as a teacher and mentor. Moving into my Junior year of high school, I looked to focus farther on progressing myself and my community more than ever before. I took part in service activities with a focus on youth education, reaching out to programs such as Safe Kids Columbus and The Columbus Community Center. These were programs that focused on bettering the knowledgeability and learning environment for kids. The center served as a place to encourage growth and curiosity in young minds and was also a place of safety away from home. Safe Kids Columbus served as an outlet for needed equipment to be provided to kids in order to lead a healthy and active life. Moreover, within each of these activities, I tasked myself with expanding my communication skills by working with adults and children in each program learning the best ways to communicate across the board. Continuing my focus of progress, I also partook in a program called the Georgia State Superintendent Advisory Council. In this council, there were students from various counties and schools from across Georgia, all with one goal- to make Georgia education the best it could be. Within this council, I served as the advisor to the Lieutenant Governor; I was one of six other students, along with the Georgia State School Superintendent, leading discussions for change. This council proved to be an effective tool for educational progress with its ability to allow students to voice opinions of schools and counties throughout the state of Georgia. The council was a herald for success and it continues to progress and move towards creating a better school system for years to come. By keeping my mind focused on progressing as an individual and improving my community I had slowly transformed from the quiet bookworm into a man of confidence and progression working within a state council to initiate change. Senior year I continued my work with the Columbus Community Center and Safe Kids Columbus while also maintaining my various afterschool activities. However, this was the year I stepped out of my progressive ideal of normative education and service. What I mean by this is that senior year was the year I began to teach myself python computer programming language and began to progress in a whole new world- one of ones and zeros. I spent that whole year learning the python language, and with each new skill, I applied it to real world applications. I actually began to create encryption and decryption ciphers after sparking a curiosity in cyber security. Senior year was my bridge year; it was the year I realized that due to my progression as an individual, I was now better suited than ever to lead a life of progress and also better instill that same progression into my community. So, I write to you today, as a progressive community activist looking to spread the principle of focusing on what you can control and using that to progress the world into a better day. Do not let the world bring you down through its confusion; focus on producing the most impactful of legacies- one that leaves your community and the world in a better state than when you arrived. As for me, I spend my life focusing on the principle that I have control over how I progress and how I can share my progression with others. I have the aspiration to achieve today, but I have an even greater aspiration to inspire achievement in those who will lead tomorrow. The Power of Positive ThinkingCodie Schneck
As Swiss physiatrist, C. G. Jung, once said, “I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.” This has been a quote that I feel embodies my life and what I hope to become. Life for me has not exactly been a smooth sailing ship. As with most people, I have been dealt challenges and have had to overcome them. This is how I use the power of positive thinking to better my life. At the age of six, my youngest sister and I were taken away from our parents due to their alcoholism and lack of responsibility. The last thing my mom said to me on that fateful day was how I was a “mistake.” That was something that always stuck with me growing up and to this day. After being removed from my parents’ custody, my little sister and I were taken in by our eldest sister-against her husband’s wishes. From the start, my little sister and I were never really accepted by our new family. To top that, I was frustrated with my parents’ appearance of caring about their substances more than their girls. Growing up, I was angry. It seemed like the whole world was out to get me. Life at home was not great. My sister and her husband’s marriage was deteriorating, causing my sister to follow in my parents’ footsteps with substance abuse, and her husband to resent my little sister and myself. Emotional abuse was starting to take its toll and I was trying to find my way through the chaos. As I entered into adolescence, I began to really think about my future and I realized that those who were supposed guide me were not setting good examples of how to live a fulfilling life. I realized how the dysfunction of the adults in my life was ruining not only their lives but the lives of those around them. I did not want to be like them. I needed to create my own destiny. I realized that the mistakes of my providers were not my fault and I could still be successful in spite of the challenges of my childhood. I had begun to change my life for the better by positive thinking. I knew that I had to stay away from alcohol. I knew that I couldn’t keep taking out my anger on the world. I had to accept that life up until that point was beyond a child’s control. With positive thinking, I could achieve a brighter future. Still, life threw more challenges my way. While I had begun to reconnect with my father, the effects of my oldest sister’s drinking were starting to catch up with her. The woman who had raised me through the difficult years of my childhood, passed away in 2012, due to her body shutting down from alcohol and substance abuse. Even though we had our battles, she still raised me and did her best to take care of my little sister and I. Losing the woman that was for all intents and purposes, my mother, still hurt. Unfortunately, my father was not in a place to take care of me again forcing me to become more of an adult than a person my age is equipped to handle. Through it all, I was able to graduate high school with a good GPA and a promising future. I was on the way to college with my goal of achieving a better life. Funny how life works though, just when you start to taste success, life has its way of throwing you an even more difficult challenge that tested my faith in positive thinking. While my mother was still nowhere to be found in my life, my father had been trying his best to make up for lost time. He became my best friend. He helped make the challenges seem not so significant, with his youthful spirit and genuine care. He had quickly become one of the most important people in my life, even with his continued struggles. In 2014, my dad died. For all the improvement he was making with his life, he still struggled with alcohol. Regardless of the way that he died, it was still the greatest tragedy of my life. While my dad may not have always been there for me growing up, he had been doing his best to reconnect and I appreciated his effort. So now I was without my eldest sister, who had raised me growing up, and my father who was my best friend. After my dad’s death, it was time for me to make serious changes. College unfortunately had taken a backseat. My life in New Jersey, with its reoccurring roadblocks, started to wear me down. I needed something new. So I followed some friends to Kansas to see if a new lifestyle brought better experiences, all while still grieving my father’s death. However, things have seemed to turn around. I’ve found a great job with people who I can call my friends, given birth to my daughter and started a family that I was never able to experience growing up. I’ve even reconnected with my mother, where we are the closest that we have been in my entire life. Positive thinking got me through some pretty serious challenges. Positive thinking is what is motivating me to take the next step in life by going to college and hopefully giving my family and most importantly, my daughter, a better life than what I grew up with. I feel that no matter what life has thrown at me, I’ve done my best to keep my head up and have not let any of the bad things stop me from my achieving my goals. As Mr. Jung said, the challenges of my difficult past is not what will define me. What will actually define me is how I was able to respond to the challenges of life with a good spirit and continued positivity. NamasteKathleen Huynh
ASU Going to yoga on Wednesdays has not only benefited my body, but more importantly my mind. I am exceedingly timid, and I have a tendency to stress over petty things, so undoubtedly I was anxious to begin college. Reflecting over my first semester, it seems as though I have matured more in the last four months than I did in four years of high school. I am a Nursing major at Arizona State University, and I can vouch that it is extraordinarily competitive. As a freshman, I am required to maintain a 3.5 grade point average or else I lose my direct admission into the nursing school that begins my junior year. At first, that seemed frivolous; I exceeded in college level courses in high school, so I thought that I was well prepared. Little did I know, the study habits that I acquired in high school of completing assignments and showing up to class would not be sufficient for college. Strangely, in college I am required not only to regurgitate facts, but to comprehend and to become proficient in the materials presented in lectures. I quickly became avid in my studying; I wrote everything down in my planner so that I would not procrastinate, studied at various locations to stay awake, and even visited my professors during office hours to get extra help. However, I felt like I was working twice as hard as the students around me and still earning the same, or even lower grades. Towards the end of the semester, this became more and more evident to me, which in turn lowered my self esteem. The only thing I looked forward to was going to yoga with some friends every Wednesday. Between 4:45 and 4:55 we would all meet outside of the main entrance of the dorm. Huynh 2 Two walls of the room were glass and looked out to the still pool and sun setting behind the tall building of Downtown Phoenix. The scenery along with the calming background music playing made this the most relaxing place on campus. I was reluctant to attend yoga the first few times because I felt like an extra hour of studying would be more beneficial, and to be honest I had no idea what I was doing, but each week I went. Yoga was harder than I expected-- not only did I find myself sweaty after each class, but the next day I would be extremely sore. However, I slowly learned that yoga is not a group effort, but a personal effort. The instructor would stress the importance of taking breaks in child’s pose whenever necessary, but also pushed me to hold each pose an extra second longer than I thought I could. Savasana, the final pose of each yoga class, lasted between five and ten minutes long. It requires each person to lay on a mat in anatomical position, head centered, palms facing up, and feet slightly apart. While I would rest on the ground, the instructor would repeat that the class was to acknowledge our thoughts, and then draw our attention back to our breath. This position encourages focus on the present while also realizing all of the distractions of life. During Savasana, the instructor wanted the class to be aware of every part of our body, and instead of controlling a deep slow breath, we were to be conscious of our natural breathing habits. The first few times I attended yoga, this was not very easy for me. Rather, I felt annoyed and wished that the class would have simply ended ten minutes earlier. While I laid on the hard, cold floors so many thoughts raced through my mind; I wondered about how hard my tests were going to be, what the dining hall would be serving for dinner, and reminded myself not to fall asleep. By the end of the position, we were to slowly move each part of our body and then get up. When we finally exchanged “namaste” between the instructor and the class, I would be a little frustrated, but being the person I am, I couldn’t tell my Huynh 3 friends. I truly enjoyed the time spent with my friends; however, I was confused because yoga was supposed to be stress relieving, yet I felt more overwhelmed with less time to accomplish all of my tasks. As the weeks progressed, something clicked. I began to get better at holding poses, and when I finished the class, I felt relieved and lighter. For the hour that I was in the class, I centered my energy on improving my poses, and during Savasana, instead of disregarding or dwelling on reoccurring thoughts, I did exactly what the instructor said. I acknowledged the thought, but then gathered my attention to my breathing and the position of my body. I gave more power to the things that I could control at the moment, insteading of allowing the things that I could not control inhibit me from giving my all to the task in front of me. Now, if I applied this during finals week, I would have saved myself from puffy eyes and fifty dollars spent on coffee. Here was my dilemma, in order to keep my 3.5 GPA I could get a “C+” and three “A’s” or I could get two “B’s” and two “A’s.” However, I was for sure going to get a “B” in statistics, but in order to get a “B” in anatomy I had to get an “A” on the final which would be nearly impossible. Still, a little piece of me had hope; I would just study for the next two days and sleep during winter break--at least I told myself that. On Monday, after I took my ethics final, a class in which I was sure I would get an “A,” I cried for the first time in college. I walked up to my room, got in bed, hid my face from my roommate, and silently let tears stream down my face. I knew that I had failed the final, so I was going to get a “B” in the class too. This meant that my GPA would be lower than a 3.5 and I would lose my direct admission into the nursing program. While it was true that I could still be accepted into the program by taking a Huynh 4 standardized test and having competitive grades, part of me foolishly thought that I was not destined to become a nurse. I cried again during dinner in the dining hall. When my friend simply asked how finals were going I told her how worried I was about my grades, and that is when I began to cry. She then tried to comfort me by telling me it was going to be okay, but I continued to cry--not uncontrollably, but to the point that I started to make the others uncomfortable. Knowing that my pity party could last forever, my friend elaborated. “You’re going to be okay,” she said for the second time. “Stop worrying about your grades. You can’t control it. It already happened.” An awkward silence filled our group of friends with the chaotic dining hall students in the background. Her words were tough, but changed my perspective. I would just have to work harder than ever. I could not just give up and change my major that quickly. I took a bite of my dinner, took a deep breath, and changed the subject to break the tension. “I am going to be a nurse!” I thought to myself as I opened my grades the following week. Not only did I get an “A” in my ethics class, but my anatomy professor curved the class so that my “C” became a “B+.” I had earned a 3.74 GPA for the first semester of college. Today, I understand that God has a plan for me and he will equip me with everything I need to get there; all that I need to do is exert all of my attention on what is in front of me. That way, I do not exhaust my energy on what I cannot control, and in turn I will be giving my all in the things I can. The Power of Positive ThinkingVanessa Valdez
Everyone knows that life is a roller coaster and that the only way of getting through it is rolling with everything in a positive state of mind. I think it is safe to say that I have always had that positive attitude no matter what happened. Just having that positivity can spread and good things can come out of bad situations. Life is about learning and growing as a person and how you make of it. So lets start from the beginning of senior year of high school, which was the most stressful year ever. It was my last year of high school, last semester to be exact, and everyone knew where he or she was going to school next year. I was playing softball at the time and was very committed to it so much that every weekend was spent at the fields from morning to night. My goal was to receive a scholarship from a school of my choosing and to have my education paid for. Now whenever we had a big tournament around the corner my parents were always on me about making sure that I wrote enough E-mails to these college scouts to come watch me perform. As I mentioned earlier it was spring semester meaning that I already was late in the game in the “softball world” because girls my age were already committed and what not. Finally I was receiving phone calls and emails from coaches who were very interested in me and I felt like I could breathe again. Everything felt like it was finally coming together until things started to get complicated with the offers. Most of these schools were Division 3 schools, which was a bit of a problem because all they can really offer is academic money. Some people say, “hey that’s great!” but in my situation my family would not be able to really afford the extra fees. Soon my options were becoming smaller and smaller and graduation was only a few months away. Throughout this process I kept trying to tell myself that something better would happen and that everything would work out. Thankfully my positivity worked wonders because my father had told me that the local city college was interested in me and would like to meet. Now going into this meeting I did not know what to think because I would always tell myself I would not end up at a city college, but if this was my only option left then why not give it a chance. I sat down with the coach and my parents and I was actually surprised with myself because I loved everything this coach had to offer to me so I told her I would think about it and get back to her. About three months later I found myself attending Long Beach City College and was ready to better myself so that I could move on to the next level. Now to shorten up the rest of the story my first year at Long Beach City College went pretty well and felt like the coaches had faith in me as a person and player. Because of that I was able to perform at my best and felt like I was falling in love with the game once again. Everything was going well until we got the news that we were getting a new coaching staff, which threw everyone off. All we could think about was what about going to the next level and who was going to help us and in a way we all felt betrayed. By the end of summer we had gotten our new coach and more transfer students. Nothing felt the same, but I knew I was going to have to make the best of this and show her what I had. Although we were all friends on this team we knew that we would have to fight for our positions. The season had started and I no longer started, the faith that the other coaches had in me was not the same for this new coach and I was falling out of love for the game. I made the best of my spot in the line up and did so well my hitting average was looking better than ever. By the end of the year I had made the decision that I was not going to continue softball and that it was my time to hang the cleats up because it was time for me to focus on my schooling. I applied to Grand Canyon University and received my acceptance letter and was filled with excitement because I knew that this new change in my life would benefit me in the future by studying to become a Nurse. So see positive thinking can make bad situations into the best no matter what position you are in life just remember that positivity is key. I know this may sound cheesy but if you believe in yourself and have that mind set that anything is possible, good things will come. An Everlasting Piano LessonRoya Green
Thirteen years ago my parents forced me to take piano lessons. Every week my piano teacher, Leanne, came to my house and teach me how to read music and to play the piano. Leanne was raised in a very strict family and came from a highly structured culture. Her expectations of me reflected her intense upbringings. Needless to say I spent most of my piano sessions crying due to her relentless demands and her yelling at me. This weekly year long unpleasant experience resulted in me resenting piano lessons and I stopped playing the piano before I turned five years old. Little did I know that quitting was a huge mistake. Sometimes one encounters challenging obstacles in his or her life and giving up is not always the wisest approach. Piano was my challenge because it never came easy to me. I sat in front of my piano for hours every day crying because I did not know what I was supposed to do. Later on I learned that piano was the very foundation of what came about later on in my life. Instead of giving up on a challenging math problem that I don’t know how to solve, I think back to when I started playing piano and remind myself that I am capable of figuring out the solution to it just the same way that I learned how to play piano. Playing the piano has taught me dedication, perseverance, and how to never give up. After about a year of taking a break from piano I decided on my own to start taking lessons again, but with a different music teacher. I never forget the day I had my first piano lesson with Ms. Allisen. The moment she stepped through the front door I sensed an aura of confidence and joy around her. Instead of telling me what to play she asked me what I wanted to play and instead of yelling at me, she made constructive comments as to how my playing could improve. Ms. Allisen taught me that piano lessons were more than just playing the correct notes. It is about playing with passion and learning that even when a song is difficult you cannot give up, you have put your whole heart into it and give it all that you have got. The lessons I learned from Ms. Allisen not only have helped me with my piano skills but also have had great value in other aspects of my life. With Ms. Allisen’s help and ten years of classes I turned into the pianist I am today. Two years ago I began competing in pageants with the Miss America organization. In order to win a local title one must have a talent which would help her rank higher in the competition. My talent was playing the piano, with a passion. I walked onto the stage extremely nervous but my nervousness soon turned into excitement. My talent piece was called The River Flows in You, a contemporary piece composed by Yiruma. I would first play for about 8 seconds, then when there was a rest, I would turn my head and smile to the audience and judges. I soon discovered that my performance could be both entertaining and enjoyable as everyone laughed and seemed to have a great time. That night I won the title of Miss Tucson Old Pueblo’s Outstanding Teen and received the highest score in talent for the evening. I discovered that piano was more than just playing notes. It meant originality because a player has to have a unique style in order to stand out, hard work in order to master the piece, patience because not everything comes easy, dedication because one cannot be a pianist without putting forth extreme effort and more importantly, having fun all at the same time. The piano is my best friend. Everyday after school I come home and with great enthusiasm I play the piano. It is comforting to know that whenever I need a friend my piano will always be there waiting for me in the corner of my living room. On days when I feel gloomy I return home and play a sad song such as Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig Van Beethoven. If I am happy I play a happy upbeat song such as Malaguena by Ernesto Lucia. It does not matter what mood I am in, my piano is always waiting for me like a good, loyal friend sharing my highs and lows. My music can tell you more about me than I ever will. My love of volunteerism, and my compassion for helping others will always come out while I am performing. I love playing piano and love sharing my music with others. Once every couple of months I set aside an hour or two and go visit nursing homes and play piano for the residents living there. My favorite memory is when I played Somewhere over the Rainbow and one of the residents started singing along to the song. She was immediately joined by everyone else who started singing as well and the room filled with the voices of one hundred jolly people. If I have learned anything from playing piano at nursing homes it is that people love the gift of music and it is important for everyone to have a little music in their lives. In the end piano has taught me a lot. Originality, patience, hard work, dedication, compassion and joy. With every practice I strive to become a better musician. With the stroke of each key, a little bit of stress gets taken away from me. Through playing the piano, I connect with others at a deeper level. I am able to share my feelings with other individuals and hope that they enjoy listening to me playing the music as much as I enjoy playing it for them. I am grateful for having been introduced to piano at such a young age and I cannot imagine my life had I not re-started lessons despite my fears and frustrations. Afterall a lesson can be just a lesson or it can be a lifelong experience that will carry you throughout past, present and future. Positive ThinkingKasun Daundasekara
ASU When I found this scholarship, and read the topics that could be written about, I was immediately propelled to share my story about my journey from a poor family in Sri Lanka to being an ASU college student in the United States. The topic required in this essay is the exact thing that has kept me motivated and inspired to not give up: The Power of Positive Thinking. I was born in a small town, Marassana, Sri Lanka, a small Indian Island south of Asia. Both of my parents were teacher. My mother an art teacher at a local girl’s school and my father taught math. I feel like my parents being educators helped me seek to study and better my education and myself; not only for me, but for them as well. But seeing my family struggle, I knew I wanted more. I knew I wanted to be able to uproot my family from the poverty we had lived our entire life, and I knew I possessed what was needed to make it happen; my mind. Even when my parents would return from long days of teaching, their earnings were so little that they were barely able to purchase the essentials for our family. Growing up, I would see the struggle and anguish on my dad’s face as he greeted my mom who waited anxiously for him to return with money so she could go to the market and buy rice and lentils for us to eat. My mother always dreamed of cooking us delicious and intricate meals, but with such a small amount of money to provide for five people’s meals, she had to settle for the basics. I knew that when I was old enough, I wanted to give my mother the beautiful silk clothes and spices she desire, and I knew it was possible. I knew I had what it took to make a difference in mine and my families lives; my thoughts. So, I started planning for my future. In the evenings, after I finished school, I would carry water for elderly widowed woman, assist in feeding and taming injured wildlife at a local animal shelter, and do handy man work around the village. I would save the few rupees I could earn here and there for a bigger and better purpose; something I had always dreamed of, and something I knew would give me the opportunities to make the difference in the lives of my family that I had always imagined – coming to the United States to study. After completing college with exemplary exam grades, I applied for a student visa to travel to the United States. I was given priority due to my hard work, and shown dedication to my studies. I applied to begin my college studies at Los Angeles City College in California. I wanted to pursue an engineering degree. While I was granted some scholarships to help pay for my education, I was still required to work 50 hours per week to pay for housing, food and books. I took a job at a local gas station working the night shifts from 4pm until 3am. The tuition for out of country students was extremely high, and working more than full time in addition to my work schedule took a toll on me badly. I was forced to move out of my apartment and could no longer afford my vehicle, but still I paid for and attended my classes. For a long period of time, I was homeless and my only means of shelter was the gas station where I worked at night. I struggled to buy food and attend classes without sleeping. Often I studied outside only by the light of the street lamps. Life was extremely difficult, and I was forced to drop my course load twice. But still, I carried forward. Even though I was sad and depressed, I knew I had what it took to complete my studies and I wasn’t about to let that stop me from trying. Kasun Daundasekara December 24, 2016 As exhausting as handling a full course load was and working more than full time, one thing continued to propel me forward – the power of my positive thoughts and knowing that anything was attainable if I put my mind to it. And I did it. On my third attempt to complete my coursework, maintained a 3.5 GPA throughout my freshman and sophomore semesters and in addition to working more than full time, I tutored students in Chemistry and Physics. Beyond the small amount of money that I was compensated for my assistance, I wanted to instill motivation and inspire other students to truly appreciate the opportunity to better yourself. I became the top tutor and struggled to keep up with the demand for my assistance. It took a toll on me physically and mentally, but I never stopped. Now I am a junior biomedical engineering student at Arizona State University and now, more than ever, I lean on the power of my mind and being positive to lead me through life. I have learned that life has many obstacles that will hinder you financially, economically, physically; all of which you cannot control. However, life can never affect the power you have over yourself. The power of being positive. Focusing On Things You Can ControlAnne Marie Gregory
Delta State University This past October I celebrated my four-year anniversary as the director of Greenwood Leflore Recycling, a municipal recycling center located in Greenwood, Mississippi. Although I have made the decision to follow my dream and go back to school to become a Registered Dietitian, I look back on these past four years as perhaps the most formative time in my life thus far. In what was my first full-time job as an adult, I learned many lessons about a variety of topics, but the one thing they all have in common is that they resulted from my focusing on the things that I could control. Management For a twenty-five year old woman who had just moved to Mississippi from Portland, Oregon to take her first job, the prospect of managing employees caused a lot of worry initially. Over the past four years, I have supervised five different employees. All five were men and four of them were older than me, which complicated the situation. One of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make was when I had to have my first two employees arrested and fired from their jobs after I caught them in an ongoing stealing operation while working for me. Soon after, my third employee fell on hard times financially and abruptly made the decision to quit his job so he could cash out his retirement savings in order to pay his debts. I tried to counsel him into staying, offering to help him figure out his financial situation, but he had already made up his mind. In each of the aforementioned scenarios, I had to reach the conclusion that the specifics of each situation were out of my control. I could not control the fact that my first two employees had been stealing from the recycling center continually for more than a year. I could not control the decisions that my third employee had made to cause him financial distress. The only thing I could control was my ability to hire new employees to fill the vacancies, and in so doing, I was able to bring two new men on board, both of whom have proven their worth to the organization because they are trustworthy, have good communication skills, and follow through on their job responsibilities. By focusing on the things I could control with relation to management of people, I was able to grow the business through outreach into the business community and in the local schools system. I used good management techniques to encourage them to be better employees. I tried to be a positive role model, praised them for doing good work, and did not micromanage them. I think my approach paid off for both of them, as well we as Greenwood Leflore Recycling. Organization When I received a $400,000 grant for Greenwood Leflore Recycling, I was tasked to create and implement a residential curbside recycling program for the City of Greenwood. At first, I was nervous about the responsibility of creating something new from scratch. I knew that in order to do my job correctly, I would have to be organized, and that to be organized, I would have to focus on the skills I could control. In retrospect, by adopting this mindset early on, I do not think I could have done any better. I decided to implement a pilot program in a small neighborhood first and to add additional neighborhoods as demand increased. When we first started collecting curbside bins, I knew it would be important not to make many mistakes so that residents would not get frustrated or confused. The first month, I personally rode on the back of the recycling truck with my employees so we could make sure we did not miss any households, and that we picked up only the things we accepted at the recycling center. It has now been almost two years and because we were organized from the outset, we have had very few missed pickups and even fewer resident complaints. After I fully turned the curbside route over to my two efficient employees, I realized how much I missed it and how much fun it was to start the new program. I learned through experience that organization is really about focusing on the things you can control. Public Speaking Along with the estimated 75% of women who have a fear of public speaking, I was terrified at the thought of having to make public speeches when I first took my job as recycling director. In fact, public speaking gave me so much anxiety that in college, the ability to opt out of the introductory speech course was one of the reasons I decided to major in nutrition! In my first month on the job, however, I was invited to speak at the local Rotary Club along with the public works director and the city clerk. I rode to the meeting with the public works director, who was formerly a schoolteacher, and she told me how nervous she was about the presentation. I remember being perplexed that she was nervous about speaking among peers when she spoke to classrooms full of high schoolers every day at her previous job. To my benefit, I did really well at my first public speaking event and surprisingly even enjoyed it, especially the questions at the end. Looking back, I realize that focusing on the things I could control, like having an in-depth knowledge of the topic at hand and getting a good night’s sleep the night before the presentation, makes all the difference between a good speech and a bad one. Since that first presentation to the Greenwood Rotary Club, I have spoken at dozens of events, civic club meetings, city council meetings and in classrooms from kindergarten all the way through high school. I even presented an hour-long workshop at the state recycling conference in 2014. And although I probably did mediocre compared to others, I was able to conquer my biggest speaking fear by presenting a combined middle and high school assembly on environmental sustainability at the local private academy. Through all of these speaking engagements, I have learned that public speaking is like a roller coaster for me due to the nerves that I fight each time I am preparing a presentation. I am always thrilled when it is over and proud of my ability to meet the challenge. I do my best public speaking when I am able to focus on the things I can control, and not worry about the things I cannot. Conclusion By focusing on the things I could control in my first job, I learned some universal lessons that are sure to transfer to my new career as a dietitian. I look forward to strengthening my management, organization, and public speaking skills in my new field of nutrition. Statement of PurposeChen Chen
Zhejiang University, China Over the years, I have gained a profound appreciation for the field of Electrical Engineering, not only for its marvelous capability of ensuring engineering wonders, or the promising prospective in my career path, but for its unshackling of my social restraints as a “typical” girl. For this, I am eternally grateful, and therefore I will express my gratitude during a lifelong career in this field. To do so, I will require the most advanced professional training offered by a top university, and Arizona State University is my best choice. I realized my strong interest in electrical engineering in my freshmen year in college. Behaving like a “typical” girl during my first 18 years of life, I acted within the confines of the stereotype for girls in China—talented in arts, language and social science but insulated from engineering. That was why I chose to major in management at the beginning of my college life. However, accidentally, I stumbled into a lecture on wireless charging, completely rewriting my perception of electrical engineering. I thought it was amazing that such a technology can save me from finding and distinguishing the right cable for my cell phone, MP4 and digital camera. This small accident rerouted my entire bearing in life, as I steered towards a career in electrical engineering. A romantic beginning was always wondrous, but to reach a happy ending, hard efforts had to be made. To realize my dream, I prepared myself to overcome countless challenges. The first problem I had to deal with was changing my major. After a full semester of hard efforts, I achieved a GPA of 3.87, ranking 1/160 in my college. As a result, I became one of only two management majors to transfer to the College of Electrical Engineering and Automation. After this, I started to enjoy courses covering the fundamentals of mathematics and electrical engineering. I truly enjoyed acquiring knowledge related to my dream, but classroom learning was not enough. The opportunity revealed itself in my sophomore year, when I participated in the Student Innovation Training Program (SITP) and designed a blind spot reminder system. My motive of designing this rearview mirror blind spot detector came from seeing cats hiding under cars for heat in wintertime. When the cars started, cats were in a blind spot, and many of them perished under such circumstances. Therefore, I designed a system using an infrared detection technology to solve the problem above. The detection range can adaptively change with the speed of cars. I also accomplished a publication titled "Design of rearview mirror blind spot alert system based on the infrared technology" in Electronic Design Engineering (Chinese Core Journals) in my junior year. This project allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of this discipline. App Reference #: 892071 CHEN CHEN Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering - PHD [email protected] Fall 2017 2 Through these trainings, my motivation shifted from its interest derived from initial and sped towards a true fascination in academic research. I focused more on practical measures to solve problems that arose in real life, making use of my knowledge and experience in engineering to innovatively attempt in developing solutions by modulating projects, constructing systems, searching through literature and building models. I realized that this is how technological advancement is propelled. I was also alerted in the sense that further academic training is needed for me to become a true electrical engineer. Henceforth, I went on further studied Circuits and Systems in graduate school at Zhejiang University. During my three years of graduate education, I participated in a multitude ofscientific research projects in Prof. Helenian’s laboratory. These projects allowed me to craft out benevolent qualities for scientific research, namely perseverance and executability. Initially, as the only girl in the lab, I was presumed as the weakest link. I aggressively began to alter the views of my coworkers by engaging in intense study and research. Taking advantage of my thirst for knowledge and my desire for genuine creations of practicality, I was on an accelerated path for engineering achievements. After three years of concentrated study and research, I have managed to sharpen my acumen for research. Currently, my research interests include power management integrated circuits, power converter topologies and lowpower analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits. AC-DC converters: I have designed a primary side control LED driver with a novel constant current control mechanism. The driver employs two integrated cascaded power MOSFETs to detect the demagnetization time. Thus, the driver requires no auxiliary winding. The proposed architecture of my original design is capable of detecting the demagnetization time with high precision and realize precise output current by adapting the charging and discharging module. The proposed scheme has been verified through simulation. The demagnetization time detection error is less than 0.2% and the average output current precision is within +4.7%. Subsequently, I published “A Constant Current LED Driver Based on Flyback Structure with Novel Primary Side Control” at the International SoC Design Conference. IEEE, 2015 (EI cited). Ultralow power: The majority of my three years in graduate school was devoted to research in the conservation of power consumption. In order to improve the efficiency of energy conversion, I worked on designing power management modules with low power consumption and high stability. As a result, I succeeded in designing an ultralow power LDO with no off-chip capacitor 1.5V output and 1.5 mA output current. It consumes less than 881nA quiescent current with 2V to 4V supply. The chip has been App Reference #: 892071 CHEN CHEN Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering - PHD [email protected] Fall 2017 3 taped out and it provides high stability during line and load regulation without off-chip load capacitors. The line regulation is 10.417mV/V and load regulation is 1.780mV/mA. The maximum overshoot and undershoot under a 3.3V supply are less than 95 mV for full load current changes within 100ns edge time, and the recovery time is less than 800ns. During this period, I was met with many difficulties, such as how to ensure the power MOSFET be properly turned off under a no-load condition; how to prevent the amplifier from losing gain while turning off the power MOSFET; how to reduce level shifter latency and ensure no current leakage during different voltage levels switch. Moreover, reducing the dropout and increasing the PSRR was also part of my consideration. To clear these issues, I dived into a sea of literature, designed many circuits and eventually kept the static flow within 881nA, substantially lower than the power usage of existing designs in literature. A publication “an Ultra LowPower Capacitor-less Low-Dropout Regulator” on the Journal of Zhejiang University (Engineering Science, EI cited) was soon published. Daily laboratory work not only consolidated my independent research abilities, but also taught me to persist and explore. Besides experiments, the weekly journal club and work report were also important elements of my scientific training. Laboratory-held scientific lectures provided me with plenty of opportunities to communicate with top scientists and science researchers. This type of experience helped me grasp more professional knowledge, absorb design experiences, while at the same time, enhancing my own ability to express my thoughts with logic and clarity. Besides the academic field, there were several things that helped shape my personality. Three hours of practice on the Pipa, the Chinese lute, a day earned me the various awards in competitions, channeling my diligence towards success. Furthermore, as the manager and lead dancer of the Latin dance team of Zhejiang University, I arranged weekly training sessions, invited professional teachers to improve our dancing skills to deliver excellent performances on campus. It was not an easy task to arrange a proper time to fit everyone’s schedule. These various experiences improved my communication and organization skills, both of which benefitted me in my study and work. These experiences shaped my optimal habits in scientific research and I hope to continue my research in IC. Should the opportunity reveal itself, I hope to participate in relevant research in analog and mixed-signal integrated circuit. I am also interested in bioinformatics, mixed-signal integrated circuits for bioelectronics, and low-power sensor and seek to conduct further research during my pursuit for my doctorate if the chance arose. After graduation, I plan to secure a position as a researcher in App Reference #: 892071 CHEN CHEN Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering - PHD [email protected] Fall 2017 4 academia. In my opinion, electrical engineering is not merely consisted of theoretical formulas and simulations, but is an actual applicable science that takes heavy roles in our daily lives. In order to facilitate this objective, I feel the urge to obtain more skills and knowledge. With little doubt, the Arizona State University is my best choice: it not only has beautiful scenery, but it can also provide me with a higher perspective to view tasks, and to simplify them. Besides, Arizona State University wins global reputation for its excellent faculties and talent students in ECEE department and U.S. News & World Report named ASU the “Most Innovative School” of all colleges and universities in America. I have a strong desire to become a member of this great university, so that I may devote my personal efforts to achieve great accomplishments and contribute to the technological advancement of our entire civilization. Attitude of GratitudeAngel Coronado
ASU My name is Angel Antonio Ogaldes Coronado, and I will be writing my essay on the attitude of gratitude. I was born and raised in Mesa, Arizona and I come from a family of ten children. I graduated with honors from Red Mountain High School in May 2002, I was the first of the ten children to graduate from high school. And I was the first to attend a university in Fall of 2002, although I did not graduate my parents were still proud. With life moving and changing I had to leave school and get a job to help support my family. Now I am thirty-three years old and I am back in school. I know finishing school is something I must do not only for me but for my parents that have done so much for me. My mother came to the states at the age of eighteen from Guatemala to better her life. My father is a Native American form the Yaqui Tribe in Tempe, Arizona. Tempe, Arizona is also where my mother and father met and started their lives together. My parents had their children and decided to move to Mesa, Arizona as there are better schools and a higher chance of their children attending college. I have so much to be grateful for all that my parents have done for me, although both my parents only have a high school education they saw so much more potential for their children. When I look back on the things my parents have done for me, I feel like I could never repay them back. Growing up in a household with so many children was not as easy as one may think. My parents were always working hard to ensure we had food to eat. There were days where my parents would not eat to make sure there was food for their kids to eat. Most night dinner was nothing more than beans and rice. But, although it was not much, mother always cooked with love and her heart that meant more to me than anything in this world. Until this day she is still this way on my birthday, always making my favorite dinner which is spicy red chili meat, rice and beans. It may seem like a simple meal but it always reminds me of my childhood birthdays and still makes me warm and sometimes even brings a tear to my eyes. I have learned that it is not what someone can buy or how much money they can spend on you. It is more that, it is about a person willing to take time out of their day, a person that is willing to stop what they are doing to help you. A mothers love is just that no matter how busy her life is, I know that she will always be there to pick up the phone or even drive over to make sure that everything is okay. I try to live by these simple principles each day. I know that when I have my children I will do the same and show them what my mother has taught me in this life as well. Going back to school was a very hard decision I had to make. I had a great career with Bank of America as Operation Project Analyst. I was with Bank of America for nine years where I entered as associate on the phones to collect on past due accounts and over the years I worked my way up to management. People always say “why would you leave your job to go back to school?” yes, I was able to accomplish a lot with just a High School Diploma, but going to back to school is so much more to me than just a diploma. I decided to go back to school to be able to advance in my future career, a personal achievement knowing I was able to get thru college, and lastly as a thank you to my parents to show my gratitude for all they have sacrificed for me in this lifetime. So with that being said I put in my two notice and applied for Arizona State University. I am a full time student at Arizona State University, where I am pursing a degree in Global Logistics Management. My current GPA at Arizona State University is 4.08. With this degree not only do I want to better myself, I want to be able to support my family in a big way. I know I can change the world and the way it trades and this degree would give me that opportunity to do that. I want to thank you for considering me for this scholarship that will help me to achieve my ultimate goal of graduating from Arizona State University, bettering myself, and making my parents proud. Achieve MoreGianfranco Filice
When I was in the seventh grade, my mother was diagnosed with stage-four stomach cancer. I was 12 years old at the time and had no idea what that diagnosis meant or what the treatment would entail, but in hindsight, it’s clear that this experience changed my life in more ways than I could have ever imagined. As my mother began the seemingly insurmountable task of fighting an aggressive form of metastatic gastric cancer; chemotherapy treatments, hospital stays, laboratory tests, and medications became just as much a part of our family as my sisters and me. Her prognosis was bleak at best and the more the disease afflicted my mother, the more I began to realize how fragile life could be. That idea—that life is fragile and more fleeting than I could truly comprehend—taught me that I couldn’t wait for the opportunity to make a difference in the world. I channeled all the grief and fear that I felt about my mother’s diagnosis into an unwavering drive to make a difference in the lives of those who are most in need; to be a voice for those who feel as if they are without one. Enter Ripple, a social-good clothing company that I started as an eighth grader that directly impacts the lives of the disenfranchised. Ripple is based on the idea that people should be able to use their purchase power as a means to achieve social good. We facilitate this goal by collaborating with international charities; the charities receive a portion of our profits from the sale of our originally designed clothing in exchange for a particular metric. For example, for every 500 shirts sold, we can provide a water well for a village in a rural area; for every sweater we sell, we can provide 1 month of education to a child in Uganda. Through our efforts thus far, we’ve established a water-well in Haryana Village, India, provided emergency meals for 500 children, and funded 60 hours of service-dog training to individuals with disabilities. Customers receive fashionable and high-quality clothing while having the satisfaction of knowing that their purchase has made a difference in the life of someone in need. The experience of founding and running Ripple over the past four years has taught me invaluable lessons that are integral to the man I have become. One of the first steps towards the success of the company was recruiting a team of my friends to help come up with creative ideas that would benefit those in need. As eighth graders, we didn’t fully appreciate all that would be required. We spent the next eight months devouring every business book we could find, which eventually lead to a 45-page business plan. I learned about teamwork and leadership, resolving interpersonal conflict, and the importance of basic business skills. These lessons have helped me develop valuable interpersonal skills, sound business acumen, and a strong work ethic; qualities that have allowed me to excel in business, in the classroom, and in my personal life. My mother’s incredible strength, and will to beat her cancer, has inspired me to never give up in the face of adversity. Throughout the process of starting a business, I’ve gained a greater understanding of the importance of perseverance and adaptation on a smaller scale. I’ve lost track of the number of unanswered phone calls, ineffective sales pitches, and denied funding requests I made before finally gaining some financial traction. Moreover, the original vision for the company was to establish ourselves as a nonprofit organization. This direction proved to be a dead-end after countless hours spent filling out IRS forms to obtain 501(c)3 (charity) status, only to realize that our structure wouldn’t qualify. Yet, working with my team, pro-bono lawyers and business mentors to overcome obstacle after obstacle has helped make Ripple what it is today. The most humbling experience surrounding Ripple was developing my start-up costs fundraiser. After years of work, I launched Ripple using a social-networking fundraising platform called Kickstarter. I presented my Kickstarter page to every class at my high school and was featured in a local publication. On our first attempt, we had only raised $2,250 out of the $15,000 that we had set as our goal. Failing to obtain funding had been one of my biggest fears prior to launch. But we pressed forward, made some changes to our strategy, re-launched on Kickstarter one month later with a $5,000 goal, and achieved that goal in less than two weeks. Seeing my greatest fear materialize, and being able to overcome it, reinforced my belief that failure is just a part of the process toward success. Today, our small team of junior high friends has grown into something significant. We now have an international team of designers and strategists, including brand development specialists from Canada as well as graphic designers and marketing experts from Europe. We’ve even created a company video showcasing Ripple’s background story, the journey, and all of the products that we’ve developed. Our success has also allowed me to become the youngest member in the history of my local Chamber of Commerce; an accomplishment I am incredibly proud of. It is through the relentless approach that I adopted in starting Ripple that I’ve learned to transcend my skills and drive to the opportunities at Stanford University. For example, I am currently a research and development coordinator for the Drew Endy Bioengineering Laboratory. Within that lab, I am working with a team of engineers on the development of a robotic pipetting machine for medical research using computer science, mechanical engineering, and product design. The goal of the machine is to provide a device that not only prevents scientists from being prone to carpal tunnel but in fact, augments pipetting and experiment iterations. In the future, this device can indirectly be a factor that increases the speed at which life-saving cures for illnesses are found. It is through this interdisciplinary research position that has allowed me to see how my own talents and skills can be applied to a product with a massive potential to change the world. In addition to my research role, I’ve also had the chance to become an officer for the Society for Latino Engineers (SOLE). Within my role, I’ve had the chance to play a part in addressing the overwhelming lack of diversity in technical roles in major companies. Currently, I work as the frosh director of professionalism in which I am communicating with various Fortune 100 companies and startups to see how they can mentor those within in our group to succeed in the future. In addition, SOLE works to mentor rising high school seniors with limited resources on how they too can attend renowned universities. One of the more meaningful opportunities through SOLE has been the privilege of seeing Hispanic engineers receive job offerings and internship opportunities from organizations I had personally contacted. As with Ripple, SOLE has reaffirmed that being result-oriented in a field that impacts others will always be a priority to me. Lastly, given my entrepreneurial interests, Stanford has afforded me the chance to see my ideas blossom. I decided to take my idea for a financial technology startup called Abi, and recruit co-founders. After many pitches and some discouragement, I found a first-year MBA and a third-year PhD electrical engineering student who have as much enthusiasm behind my idea as I do. The idea for Abi is to develop an algorithmic-based investment platform for college students and millennials. Using machine learning, we plan to understand a client’s cash flow from their checking account, and from analyzing their spending and income patterns, determining an unnoticeable, but progressive amount of money that can be deducted from their account each week and put into an investment account on their behalf. The goal of Abi is to help create a platform that requires no change of behavior while currently building their financial literacy and outlook as they head toward retirement. Ultimately, the goal for this company is to become a social leader in assisting clients achieve financial freedom through unconscious investing and saving, most specifically in developing countries. The lessons I’ve learned over the course of my mother’s illness and my experiences with Ripple have allowed me to discovered that my passion is, plainly stated, to help those who are most in need. Using positive thinking, and the law of attraction, I’ve use my setbacks and obstacles to make my dreams a reality. At Stanford, I’ve been given the opportunities and resources to turn that manifested my goals and visualization. I aspire to utilize my education to further develop the skills required to become a successful, dynamic business leader and culturally competent practitioner of international development. Using the same principles of the law of attraction that helped me get to where I am today, I plan to continue to utilize those practices to make a positive difference in the world. I will strive to become adept in all the pertinent fields, including business management, economics, political science, social justice, public health, and international relations. Through this process, I aim to learn how to make businesses succeed in a way that makes a positive impact on the world and inspires others to do the same. Personal DevelopmentMadiha Charania
Georgia State University As an ambitious senior at Georgia State University pursuing a dual major in finance and accounting, I plan to start a career in investment banking. In the past, I had been dealing with a lot of stress juggling with maintaining a stellar GPA, part-time jobs and fully funding college tuition and expenses. Additionally, I was constantly debating if investment banking will be a viable career option in the future given the work-life balance. Despite knowing that stress is not good for health, I had inevitable become stress reactive, and it took a toll on my mental and physical health. Therefore, I decided to be proactive and looked for videos on YouTube for relaxation techniques and alleviating stress from day-to-day chores. Upon conducting an extensive research, I was able to find videos posted by the Buddhist Society, and the lectures conducted by a monk, Ajahn Brahm to be inspirational and valuable to lead a harmonious and a healthy lifestyle. A healthy lifestyle allows an individual to realize their goals and aspirations without worrying about the uncertainty that the future holds. Mr. Brahm’s lectures focused on the importance of living in the present moment without having the need to worry about things that are beyond one’s control. This healthy lifestyle-to live to the fullest in the present being is now incorporated in my life philosophy. Previously, as soon as I woke up in the mornings, I would reach out for my phone to check for any unattended emails and messages. I began the day with a feeling of urgency to reply back to all the emails and efficiently planning ahead for the day to become more productive. In doing so, I was neglecting the need to have a healthy lifestyle. I spent barely any time with my friends and family and had completely isolated myself with external surroundings. I believed that hanging out with friends would deviate me from reaching my career goals. Also, I had given up a sense of present mind and was always occupied with thinking about solving an obstacle likely to occur in the future. After watching several sessions of Mr. Brahm during the last spring break, I have an entirely different perspective of life. I wake up in the morning and put my phone in my bag without checking for any emails. Instead, I set up an alarm for five minutes in the morning to meditate. In my meditation, I focus on being mindful. I close my eyes to the chirping of the birds, the touch of the morning breeze and the warmth of the rays of the sun. In that moment of surrendering to the beauty of nature, I would indulge in an act of gratitude. The ability to enjoy life with the confusion it holds. I was able to get reaffirmation that the uncertainty will eventually make sense. There is no way that I can plan for events in the future. I learned that future events are beyond my reach and the only thing that I can exert control over is the present. I started appreciating the love and support of my friends and family. I became actively engaged in my community and was motivated to serve the community altruistically. Now, I take pride in every walk of life. My career ambitions are still the same; I still aspire to become a financial analyst at a Bulge Bracket firm after completing my education at Georgia State University. I am particularly interested in mergers and acquisitions sector of investment banking. This area mainly comprises of performing valuations to determine the present value of the company and seeking additional capital required. The company has various options of raising money to fund mergers and acquisitions. These include issuing fixed-income capital such as bonds or by initial public offerings (IPO) in the stock market. The analyst has to conduct research before suggesting the company about a feasible option to generate money. The work is intriguing because of its detail-oriented nature. I am fascinated to find the best possible alternative to raise funds for the company. However, the path that I have paved for myself is significantly different from my previous approach. Being present and alert has allowed me to be more productive and connect with other people. I am no longer clouded with thoughts about doubts. I have learned a valuable lesson to extend care to the community without expecting anything in return. Now, after fully understanding the meaning of life, I feel obligated to inspire other capable students to reach their full potential. I want them to realize that stressing and being overly aggressive will not bring then any closer to their dreams. The only way that they will achieve their goals is by having an affirmative mindset and working diligently towards that goal by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Focusing On Things You Can ControlPhilip Cavello
My father is a Sicilian combat veteran from Brooklyn and my mother is an immigrant from El Salvador. The disparity of their backgrounds are immeasurable, but their lives have impacted me greatly. They divorced when I was 3, but their relationship is unbelievably strong. I lived in a diverse environment, speaking different languages and existing in polar opposite lifestyles. The dichotomy molded me and influenced my character, perspective and state of being. Under my father’s roof, I endured a military-style upbringing-but the love was apparent. I was encouraged to play sports and excel in my academics. I am competitive in nature, and achieving was always my aspiration. However, certain events have caused me to falter, but I now understand that the duty of each human is to delegate their time for the advancement of the species and if no one holds you responsible, it is imperative that you do so. When I was sixteen my father was stricken by Guillain-Barre syndrome, an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves, and he became paralyzed within weeks, and the healing process still persists today. I didn’t tell my mother; and I felt utterly alone- going to school, practice, studying, cooking meals, and tending to my father whom was in the hospital. My father was in shambles, but I remained strong, and will-power kept us going and time helped soothe our wounds. My drive is enthralled by this experience, for he far exceeded the doctor’s expectations; and I intend to demonstrate equal determination in life. Obstacles will always emerge and life isn’t idealistic; however, I have the power to choose my reaction. During the application process, for my undergraduate studies, I always had football in mind, and the University of Redlands presented the best of both worlds: academics and athletics. My yin and yang was seemingly omnipresent until I tore my acl, mcl and broke my knee cap; obliterating my chances of continuing to play football. I was devastated, for my life revolved around two different pursuits and one was lost forever. I lost the yang to my yin, and my chosen response, in retrospect, was undoubtedly poor. I fell to the whims of depression, numbed my pain by partying and ignored my responsibilities. I had too much freedom, and it was a terrifying concept. However the rigid road of college wasn’t over, my best friend took a leave of absence and suddenly died from an overdose. Emotionally distraught and astounded, this traumatic event pierced my soul. I was taught to hide my feelings, but this couldn’t be repressed. I tried to evade the issue and I hibernated in my room; avoiding class and confrontation. In retrospect, this was a dreadful decision, but my closest friend was the first person I knew to die. I came back the next few semesters to persevere, but I didn’t have closure nor did I deal with my depression- I was bound to fail. I ended my tenure at the University of Redlands with mixed emotions, but that opened the door for recovery. I conferred with loved ones and I accepted my circumstances. It was time to begin anew, and I dedicated the last year to finishing my degree and realizing my purpose. As an English major, I was always passionate about writing, reading, manifesting new interpretations and expressing ideas. I could pinpoint details and construct an entirely new implication. Everything has an underlying meaning that is awaiting to be understood, and life presents us with specific points of reference; and our responsibility is to grasp its value. My life has provided me a multitude of lessons, and I am shaped by my hardships, but life is predicated upon the efforts we sacrifice for the future. I am severely concerned of the direction humanity is headed, and legal education will provide me a platform to express my ideas, participate with the political sphere and hold people responsible. This affinity to venture for truth among varying perceptions is quite an endeavor, but I am determined to face opposition and engage in a nurturing environment that encourages challenge. With proper preparation anyone can improve their odds for achievement, and law school cultivates excellency. Coming from a diverse background with various life experiences, I can contribute a new element into your School of Law. I can speak and understand three languages, and I’ve been exposed to a wide range of economic classes. My communication skills, along with my sense of understanding are dynamics that will improve the classroom discussion. I firmly believe to reconcile tensions and conflicts among parties, an equal bridge of communication should be instituted first. I am a first-generation college student whose mom emigrated here and my dream to become a lawyer is as grand as hers was to come here. I come from my family who is willing to change, and I want to reflect that nature upon the world. I have eradicated all the distractions and I am compelled to provide another virtuous dynamic to society by taking hold of what I can control- my future. Focusing On Things You Can ControlFilip Mikijelj
I’ve never felt more out of control of my life as I did when I landed this past August at the Phoenix International Airport. I was in a new country, away from everything familiar, wondering what the future holds. I pondered what college was going to be like – Who would I meet? What would my classes be like? Would I meet the expectations required of me as a student? It was exciting and a bit frightening at the same time. At the same time, I also felt a great sense of accomplishment! It was a huge opportunity for me to be able to study in the United States at an amazing school like Arizona State University. Feeling overwhelmed, I decided that the best thing for me to do was take a deep breath and manage one thing at the time. Attending college in the United States is a really big deal for me. I am from Montenegro, a beautiful eastern European country, where my family’s heritage goes back to the Sixth Century. Montenegro is a wonderful place to live and offers many benefits, however, it is not the best place for opportunity for someone my age. Coming from a southern city in the country as small as Montenegro doesn’t give you many options. People rarely leave, and if they do it is to move to a neighboring country. No one ever goes to the United States of America to study, partly because it is so expensive and partly because no one wants to sacrifice the comfort and safety of what they are used to. This was more than just an opportunity for me, however, it represents the chance to change my entire life. With my family’s love and support behind me, I knew that I had to embrace whatever was ahead of me with courage and conviction. I knew that my first year of college was not going to be easy for either me or my family. I was prepared for the difficult academics but it was hard for me to be away from my parents and my little brother for so long. It was also difficult for my family because of the financial sacrifice they had to make to pay my tuition. I knew there was nothing I could do to make that part better besides honoring their belief in my learning and academic performance the only way I knew how: by getting involved in everything I could and working as hard as I possibly can in my classes to achieve the best grades possible. I decided to focus only on the positive and focus on things I can accomplish that will better me. I joined Enactus, an entrepreneurship club, as well as the ASU Men’s Water Polo Club Team. I also volunteered as a goalkeeper coach for the Mesa Water Polo Club. I knew that being part of clubs and volunteering, in addition to my academic studies, would allow me to meet more people with a similar mindset and make friends and connections. As the fall semester began, I soon realized that for many students it was not a priority to do well in their classes but rather their interests were more from a social. It was quite surprising to me because I didn’t understand how these students could spend so much money on their education but didn’t seem to be taking it seriously in preparing for their future. It was confusing because when I arrived here I had a clear path to follow, but I was soon caught off guard by all these new ideas from people around me. I think every young person wants to make a lot of friends and have fun but I had to remind myself that any of that is immediate gratification and in the end, it is not worth it. I believe that everyone needs a balance between their social life and work, but priorities are priorities, I have found it is always better to sacrifice some things now because in future it’s going to pay off ten times as much. This philosophy of focusing on the things I can control has really paid off for me. I received A’s in all my courses for the semester and ended with a 4.03 GPA. Additionally, I had the opportunity to work ahead in my math class and I finished all of my work and took my exam nearly 2 months before the semester ended. This freed up a lot of time for me to work and study more on some of my more difficult courses. I also quickly learned to tap into the resources available to me on campus, such as the libraries and tutoring. It was a lot of work but I knew that if I started out my college career successfully, it would help me in the future as my course load becomes more challenging. Most of all, I wanted to show my parents respect and gratitude for the sacrifices they have made for me to be able to attend college at ASU. They were both very proud of my grades and accomplishments and shared it with our family and friends in Montenegro. I can never express to them how grateful I am for this opportunity, but I definitely can control how it reflects in the work I am doing in my classes and in my attitude. Strive & ChallengeBrittany Matassa
ASU As the first scholarship I looked into, this seems to be the one that was waiting for me. I strive to live my life by the examples of Achievement Today’s personal development principles. These axioms all go hand in hand. The Law of Attraction forces you to think positively, assuming you want positive outcomes in your life. Once you understand the Law of Attraction, you grasp the things you can control, and recognize the things that are out of your control and how to face those elements. As both a yogi and yoga instructor, I feel an obligation to be a role model and source of inspiration to those around me. And, happily, I will take on that challenge any day! Let us put an emphasis on the words “strive” and “challenge.” I am only human. I err. I slack. I falter. I achieve. I guide. I prevail. Sometimes I feel mentally and physically unwell. My bed in my only sanctity, the lights stay off, I shut myself in; days become nights, and I become exhausted with the world. Sometimes, I cannot see the light on the horizon through this dense mental fog. However, through training, experience, breathwork, and a magnitude of mental strength, I can make it to the next day. Then the next. And the next. What do I have control of in these disheartening times? I know my body and mind work in cycles. I know these feelings will pass and the light will shine. I trust my breath, as the vehicle that carries my health, my happiness, and my sanity. In elementary school, my health education teacher had us breathe through a straw for one minute (a minute in the life of a cigarette smoker). While it may not have been obvious at the time, this is something that stuck with me like a splinter. At the time, I felt overwhelmed and terrified (and to this day, I have never touched a cigarette for fear of this feeling). This was my first lesson that gave me a glimpse of the gratitude I had for my body, especially my lungs, and the beauty of each inhale and exhale they allowed me. Later on in life, formally learning breathwork and the importance of proper breathing has been the most valuable tool that I keep with me. For example, noticing a simple clench of the jaw and shortness of breath allows me to take a step back and observe both my body and mind. It helps me to recognize moments of stress versus moments of relaxation. It allows me transform stressful moments into quiet bliss. This past month, I have been with both of my grandparent’s as they took their last breaths only twelve days apart from one another. As their souls have moved on, each deep breath I take, I am reminded that I am inhaling the same air that they have exhaled. It is the closest I will ever feel to being with them again. Once more, it was my respiration that converted the gale winds into a calming zephyr. Inhale, take it all in. Everything. Notice your thoughts, notice your feelings. How do you feel mentally? Physically? Spiritually? Think to yourself, “isn’t that interesting?” Exhale. Forget it all. Detach yourself from those thoughts or feelings. Inhale all the stars in the universe, drink it up. Pause. Hold it. Exhale, get rid of all the toxins, all the negativity. Pause, start fresh. Once a person can control his or her thoughts, he or she can start to truly gain control of life. A simple breathing exercise can be the vector to start one’s journey of controlling the abundant thoughts running through his or her mind. Controlled respiration has helped in all aspects of my life, from allowing me to, dare I say, feel euphoric when faced with the momentous obstacle of depression, to helping me fall asleep and wake up when necessary. Our breaths are our gift of life and the greatest thing about it: it is under each individual’s control. As Earth exhales, I inhale. As I exhale, Earth inhales. I am pursuing a Master’s degree in Biomimicry (if you have not heard of it, it is the future. Check it out!). I look forward to all the program has to offer me and cannot wait to share my future education with the world. Thank you for your time and consideration and I look forward to learning more about Achieve Today You Catch More Flies With HoneyHaile Skuza
My mother use to always tell me growing up that “you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” I never knew what she actually meant until I got older. I always thought it sounded crazy. “Really mom? More flies with honey. Do flies even eat honey? Makes zero sense”, this was my thought every time she told me that as a youth. She would always tell me this when I was acting bratty or ungrateful. But now, I catch myself saying it all the time (and believing it), whether it be to my co-workers, step children, niece, nephew, pretty much whoever is listening. I like to believe my mother’s infamous words and her acts of kindness shaped the person I am today. I wasn’t always positive. I’ve been through rough patches in my life, as we all have. In those times I couldn’t imagine there was light at the end of the tunnel. But, it was years of heart-ache, mixed emotions, stress, and bad decisions that led me on my path to positive thinking. I know it probably sounds weird, but my negativity and bad attitude eventually made me see the light. I simply woke up, did my morning routine and looked myself in the mirror and asked “is this how you want to feel the rest of your days?” My answer was no. I was tired of feeling run down, tired, negative. I was tired of feeling like Charlie Brown and Eeyore combined with a twist of Stewie Griffin. I was tired of the dark cloud I thought was following me waiting to spill rain on me. It was exhausting to carry such a heavy weight, to constantly be at battle, to be on edge. I was done. It was hard at first. I would wake up singing a sun shiny tune, then something would happen and I would resort back to the old way of thinking. This went on for a while and I battled myself. I read self-help books, went to counseling, and took anger management courses. Anything I could do to stop feeling the way I did. I don’t claim to be a ray of sunshine all the time, but I do see the light at the end of the tunnel, even in a dark hour. I think that is what gets me through the tough times. Those tacos may not have been as tasty as I wanted, but I had a wonderful time catching up with friends. People may get fired from their jobs, but who is to say there isn’t something better out there. When one door closes, another one opens up. I keep these thoughts in the back of my mind. If I was to be bummed about the not so good tacos, it would have affected the good time with my friends. So instead of dwelling on the tacos, I try to concentrate on the good company. Back to my mom’s theory of the honey. She was onto something, I can see that now. About six years ago, I was promoted to supervisor of my department. I had been with the company for quite some time and I was good at my job, if I do say so myself. I was brand new to a position of authority. I only knew how to do my job, not how to run the department. So my thoughts weren’t so positive. I was discouraged. My team was all over the place, unorganized with no direction. I turned to my boss and asked her how she was so successful in running a department. How did she make the employees listen to and respect her? She explained to me the same as my mom, “You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar”. There it was again and decades later. She explained in more depth than my mom had ever done. She explained that everyone has a different personality and each needs to be treated differently in order for them to hear you out. Some people need a pat on the back, some people need a stern voice, and some people need a joke. People take to others who are kind and that are willing to work with them and take the time to understand. So she suggested having a meeting and laying out some rules and ask for suggestions. It’s beneficial to make the group feel included. So, I did and it worked. I was polite when I asked them to complete a task. I took the time for suggestions. I came in with surprises some times to let them know I appreciated them. We were a well-oiled machine and could conquer any task that was thrown at us and all because we were positive. We believed in ourselves, in each other. Though, I have moved on to another job, I still believe in those ethics. I may not be the supervisor, but I still do believe in the power of positivity. If I’m excited about a project, then maybe, just maybe, someone may catch on and be excited with me. It only takes a spark to start a fire. The Power of Positive ThinkingElyse Pozniak
The mind is a vast realm where the famous “what if” statements are played out, memories are revisited, and the future is dreamt of. Carrie Fisher, one who was exceptionally respected and idolized by most, had just passed away. Carrie had a mental illness. She empowered herself to not let her mental illness consume her and take her ability to control her life away. She publicly admitted she had a mental illness, long before mental illnesses were even a topic of conversation. Due to her ability to find the silver lining in her situation, she stood tall, held held high, and showed America she was not ashamed of her illness. The strength it takes to openly admit anything personal, especially pertaining to something not widely accepted by social norms, is moving. Included in her public announcement, she told her mental illness to, “bring it on”. Carrie showed ample confidence and a heroic sense of mental strength. When speaking with others, Carrie would reassure those who had a mental illness in a laughing manner, “you can lead a normal life, whatever that is”. Her lightheartedness on such a degrading topic proves how she was able to overlook the negative facts, and be at peace with the cards she was dealt. The simple statement Carrie would tell others, largely depicts how out-of-this-world her life literally was. Although she passed away, she expressed she wanted her death to be reported, “I drowned in moonlight, strangled by my own bra”. Although she was dying in darkness, she still had her light. She was facing a hellish time, but she still was positive through it to the best of her abilities. Her mental illness did consume her, but it is not her death we are focusing on, it is the journey she took throughout her illness which highlights who Carrie Fisher was and the life she lead. Rather than sulking in your own misery about a situation most hardly ever encounter or have to deal with, you can still live the life you want. Living one’s life all depends on one’s perspective of their situation and how they react or deal with the downfalls. Charles R. Swindoll lead the famous quote, “life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it”. Carrie proved Charles words to America; her mental illness played an extensive part in how she came to terms about her life and how notable it was for her to not let her illness make a front-page burden on her. Life gets the best of us, but throughout her days, Carrie always chose to look at the silver lining in her situations, and through her positive thinking, she created the life of her dreams and ironically, a life others wanted. The power of positive thinking can make one’s life more valuable. Not only does positive thinking make one more attractive to be around and be known as beautiful minded, but it makes one’s life so much more worth living. Thinking positively offers one so much more of the world. Although it is necessary to see negative facts of the world, to be aware of what is happening, it is undoubtedly more essential to find silver linings in situations that are not satisfactory. Life throws many curve balls, and it is up to one to be powerful enough in their own mind to overcome the strikes of the game in a humble and positive way. Some would think it is child’s play to be positive, but for those who have poor habits of dwelling on the negatives facts of life, have a prolonged road of personal development ahead of them. There is everlasting room for growth of one’s personal development, but not all growth is a cinch to achieve. For one person, it may be easy for them to overcome a situation, but for another person, they may struggle beyond compare. It is key to help those who seek for guidance and be their silver lining in their time of darkness. A kind heart is not always the joyous person, but rather, a kind heart is always the most thoughtful and encouraging one. Treating others in a positive way travels measures farther than words can account for. A simple compliment, smile, or wave can turn someone’s day around for the better, all at the cost of a few seconds of one’s time. By having a positive mind, one sees the world as a much brighter and better place than others. Radiating positive vibes is contagious, it is addictive, and it spreads faster than media reporters chasing after a possible headline story. Focusing on the negative is a dark, deep, downward spiral that is nearly impossible to climb out of. Seeing how critical it is to maintain a positive attitude and mind, I try to only surround myself with positive people. Maintaining a positive mindset can work wonders not only for one personally, but for those around them. My positiveness has a healthy impact on my mother, and during my fall semester at Arizona State University, she sent me a generous care package along with a letter. Inscribed in the letter she wrote, “...continue to spread sunshine wherever you go”. I believe this to be one of the most commendable compliments one can give to another. She described my positive thinking as spreading sunshine and with that, it is remarkably true. One who has a positive mind, radiates like the sun, shining bright for all those around. People are remembered by their character and the way they carry themselves; being remembered as someone who “spreads their sunshine wherever they go” or “drowned in moonlight” is a positive way to be thought of once you have left. LifeManon Goodrich
As I fell to the floor on stage during one of the most challenging ballet performances of my life, and I felt that excruciatingly painful “pop” in my knee, I suddenly knew my dance career was never going to be the same. This reality struck even more severely when I realized I could not walk, straiten, or bend my knee without unbearable pain. “Will it be better by the end of the week in time for my competitions and dance festivals coming up?” I kept asking myself, even though I knew something drastic just took place in my leg. * Rewind to six months prior. * I am finally getting noticed in my ballet school, finally being chosen by world renowned choreographers to star in their original works, and I can finally spot a professional ballet career ahead of me. Life is looking good. I’m the best dancer in my studio. People want to be like me. * Fast forward back to the day of that life changing performance. * My parents are in the audience. My ballet director is about to move me up to the highest level. The young dancers look up to me and tell me good luck. But suddenly I find myself in the hospital emergency room with a torn lateral meniscus and find out I have to get 1/3 of my knee’s cartilage surgically taken out. As months passed by after this devastating day, I knew I would never be able to dance like I had been dancing before this show. With limited range of motion in my knee, areas where it is bone on bone, and a claim from the doctor that I will struggle with arthritis for the rest of my life as well as require multiple knee replacements, I contemplated quitting dance altogether. One doctor told me to never jump again. This is when I realized I had been living in a fantasy world most of my life. I was finally being forced to take a step back and actually live and cope with reality. I soon graduated from High School and realized that I now had no chance of becoming a professional ballet dancer, so I needed to figure out what else to do. I went to the local community college and began to take fun dance classes such as jazz. This was the first time I began enjoying dance without trying to achieve something. I did it for fun and without pressure on myself. I soon transferred to Arizona State University. I was tempted to become an English major, something far from dance. But in the community college dance class I remembered why I originally started dancing at the age of five. Dance is part of my soul. It’s part of what defines me. It gives me life when doing it for the sole purpose of enjoyment. This caused me to try again. I am currently a dance major at ASU, but I am not the same dancer that I was when in high school. I no longer perform on pointe, I no longer take four dance classes a day, I no longer am incredibly skinny, and I no longer have 20 hours a week of rehearsals. But I am equally as valid of a dancer. I now dance for myself. I now dance because it is what brings me joy. I dance to bless others. I now dance because I am grateful for the body I have been blessed with. Around the time of my knee surgery, a cousin of mine was diagnosed with lupus and became paralyzed. When I visited her in the hospital, I assumed I was going to bless her. The roles were actually reversed. She was one of the most positive people I have ever met. She was not depressed at all; in fact, she was the happiest I had ever seen her. She was the one who made my day better. She told me: “this gives me an opportunity to bless the nurses and do all the good things I can while in this hospital.” Even though she is still stuck in a home with invalids, she continues to bless and change the lives of the people who come to see her. Who am I to complain that I have knee issues when some people do not have legs? Who am I to complain when I am going to college and some people are not able to afford college? Who am I to complain when I live in a world of second chances and am able to dance even if in a different way than I originally thought I would be? Who am I to complain when I have an incredible support system in my parents and colleagues? After growing up in a strict ballet school, I realized that I had not appreciated the simple gifts in my life and did not have an attitude of gratitude for a healthy functioning body. At Arizona State, the dance students learn a lot about finding integration every moment of every day with the earth, our surroundings, and with people. I learned that to really live, one must get off that constant treadmill of stress that leads to the future, when where we are in the moment is the most important thing to focus on. I realized that we choose how we live our life. Every day we either decide to be grateful for everything surrounding us, or we can decide to allow our trials to overtake us. Our attitude reflects what kind of person we are. I decided to make connections with people whenever possible because that is what life is about. When I put on a positive attitude, it rubs off on others and they become joyful. I made it a goal for myself to bless somebody every day by giving them a compliment or encouraging word. I truly believe my knee injury led me here and allowed me to come to this conclusion. The traumatic experience of my knee giving out mid-performance was necessary for me to change what I found truly important. Sometimes our trials lead to victories, but we need an open mind and open heart in order to reach those victories. Focusing On Things You Can ControlRebecca Cleek
I want to make philanthropic work a vital component of my every day by exemplifying our call to give back, help others, and be the best example of kindness and mercy in our world today. For this reason, I hope to intertwine my professional knowledge and abilities with my personal mission of alleviating physical and financial challenges for handicap individuals, strengthening a person’s self-worth and confidence, supporting the rise of female entrepreneurship, and encouraging diversity in education. With the right drive and the right focus on things I can control, I believe this dream can become a reality. Upon acquiring my MBA and professional engineering license, I plan to use my financial management and project planning skills to start my own company where I will produce lighter, less expensive, 3D-printed prosthetic limbs for injured veterans and low-income families. Most prosthetics cost upwards of $10,000 and undergo significant wear and tear throughout their life span, making them impractical for many individuals to purchase and replace when outgrown, or damaged. 3D printing is a faster, more cost effective alternative that allows us to customize the prosthetic to fit any individual's limbs and print it within hours, at a fraction of the cost. By making prosthetic limbs more affordable, more individuals will have access to the necessary care they deserve and will be able to sustain a more empowered, independent lifestyle. My central goal is to positively impact someone's life and I believe building a purpose-driven business is the first step to achieving this dream. With this business, I aspire to change a life for the better, whether it is through donating a prosthetic hand to a soldier injured in battle or encouraging the scholastic pursuit of men and women in the business and STEM related fields. I want to pave the road forward and lead an example of tolerance and respect for all patients, students, and individuals. This passion is fueled by my own experience and setbacks as a mechanical engineer and now MBA student. I encountered countless situations where peers and professors marginalized my ideas, made me feel inadequate, and fostered an environment of disrespect simply because I was different. I want to create a better tomorrow for professional men and women, so that they never have to encounter the same obstacles that discouraged me throughout my education. I would like to empower students to pursue what they love and rise above the harmful beliefs and stereotypes that label people as less than human or far worth their value as a person. My involvement in Cookeville United Methodist Church, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and Society of Women Engineers has allowed me to mentor young students in after-school programs and help foster acceptance and respect for all students in their academic pursuits. Through this experience, I realized that representation is everything in an industry where you are a vast minority. By starting my own business and succeeding in engineering and management, I want young scholars to realize that the science and business professions are achievable for not just a select few, but for everyone. This dream is open to all budding, creative intellectuals from any demographic who simply seek to make a difference. We need diverse thinkers and problem-solvers because they are the solutions to the many complex, difficult problems in our world today. I want to broaden this spectrum. And I want my business to be the fundamental building block to this life goal. Thank you for your consideration and opportunity to be an instrument in aiding others. My LifeAngela Mackie
Life was rough in the Foster system. I was taken from my mom at seven years of age and never returned. It was also at this time that we started 2nd grade. Because we had never been to school, there was concern we would be behind. The school set up remedial classes for us but by the end of the first month I was reading on a college level. This sparked my enthusiasm for education and information early on. When I graduated high school, I chose Southern University A&M in Baton Rouge. I started as a social work major for obvious reasons. I began experiencing delayed onset PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression from the trauma suffered in and of foster care. I began to drink and fell into abusive relationships with men. My beloved son was later born. He gave me the inspiration to pull myself together. I began self-healing after my daughter was born using yoga, herbs, and other natural healing methods. I realized that I majored in Medical Science since high school but I loss confidence. I, now, practice healing art forms to help others. I am also a trained doula. I have been called to be a nurse-midwife and to help decrease the infant mortality rate in African American communities while giving black & impoverished mothers more holistic birthing experiences and educating aspiring midwives in indigent communities. There is a local nursing program where I can complete my pre-nursing studies. Afterward, I will attend the Nurse-Midwifery program at Frontier University. As an orphan, I have had no family contribution as while in college so this scholarship is appreciated. Focusing on Things You Can ControlVanessa Porea
Learning to focus on things I can control has been one of the most difficult lessons I have had to learn in my life. From a young age, I was considered a perfectionist. I attempted to set up my life in a way that I thought would prove to be successful by the standards of what I saw around me. My parents are successful, my brother is successful, and I was not going to be the exception. I was determined to tell life what to do, not let life happen for me. The period of my life that I really attempted to gain control was right after graduating high school. I was determined to keep my high school relationship going because, after five years, I was convinced that this was going to be it. After all, how else would I be married in my early twenties and have a child by 25? I was determined to also be successful in business, earning at least one or two promotions by the time I had to take maternity leave for the child I thought I would have at this point. In order to accomplish this, I was working 30+ hours at Victoria’s Secret and working on my Bachelor’s full time. In addition to my job and school, I also took on yearlong internship with Taubman Centers working in the marketing department at Great Lakes Crossing Outlets. I was convinced that I was on the right path and had made all the right decisions. When I graduated in 2011 with a 3.6 GPA, internship experience, and a solid work history, I was sure that everything was going to fall into place. Then reality hit. As much as I had been focused on planning what life was going to be, I forgot that life had its own plans and these were plans I could not control. As perfect as my life looked on the outside, it was anything but perfect on the inside. All of the compliments and praise that people gave me and my parents could not fix the self-destruction that I was holding onto internally. While remaining successful, at least on paper, in all of the above mentioned areas, struggles my parents had tried to address when I was younger had taken control of my life. Although undiagnosed at this time, we would learn later that I was struggling with untreated Borderline Personality Disorder and Bipolar II. The relationship that I was convinced would end in marriage had instead ended in a messy break-up. I was self-medicating and using self-harm behaviors to function in the stressful and demanding life that I had built in order to be “successful.” I was utilizing eating disorder behaviors in order obtain that “perfect” image that I was trying to obtain. Everything behind the scenes was a mess, but the outside looked successful. In my mind, I was in control of my life and I would be successful. When I could not find a full-time job after graduation and was instead working two part-time jobs, I considered myself to be failing. This was not what I had envisioned my life to be and this certainly was not what I had planned for. The longer I was working two jobs, the more I lost control and the less I considered myself to be successful. By the time that I landed a full-time job, I felt so defeated that suicide truly seemed like my most logical option. If I could not control my life, I did not want any part of it. When I share my story publicly, I often get asked how I could go from being so successful to considering suicide in about a year. The answer is not a simple one and it can be really hard to explain without understanding how Borderline Personality Disorder can swing you from one extreme to the other with no middle ground. You are either successful or you are not. You are either in control or you are not. People are either good or bad. You do not see yourself as a person with good and bad qualities, but instead as a person who is either good or bad. In my mind, I was bad. I was failing at life and there was no point to it anymore. I felt that, no matter how hard I tried to make the right things happen, I was letting my family down. It was April of 2013 when I was first confronted with the idea of focusing only on the things that I could control and letting go of the things I could not. After everything in my life had seemingly fallen apart, I ended up checking into Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center in Lemont, IL. For the first couple of weeks, I still clung to the idea that I was in control. I was the perfect resident. I ate my meals, I went to group, I told my treatment team just enough to make it seem like I was trying (only to later find out they knew all along that it was not the whole truth), and I followed all the rules on lodge. But the more people pushed me, the more I started to realize I was not the one in control anymore. Things changed when I began to realize that I had signed the majority of my freedoms away and that my treatment team was truly in control at this moment. Sure, I was an adult and I could sign myself out, but the idea of going back to having to live life seemed equally unappealing. I finally “broke” one day when I was sick of being told what I was going to eat. You see, when you check in with an eating disorder, you get assigned an eating disorder specialist. Until you are deemed well enough to begin making the decisions with them, they make the decisions. I was done with having them control what I was eating and after fighting with a worker in the dining hall one morning, I threw my tray on the floor because at that point, that somehow seemed logical. I proceeded to refuse to eat breakfast and went to my next group where I sat in the corner and cried the entire time. After the group ended, the leader of the group, Meghan, sent the other girls back to lodge. She walked over to the corner I was sitting in and sat next to me on the floor. I internally rolled my eyes thinking to myself, “Here we go, another adult who is going to try to tell me how everything is going to be ok.” I had every intention of ignoring Meghan until she just sat there in silence with a box of tissues. When I finally started to calm down, mainly out of curiosity as to why she was not trying to make me talk, I looked up at her and she simply held out the tissues. As I took one, she gave me a small smile and said, “You have a case of the fuck-its. It’s going to be ok, you don’t have to do this alone.” It has been three years and I still remember that moment and those words as if it just happened this morning. It was in that moment that Meghan turned my attention to the fact that maybe I was not going to be able to stay in control and do this alone. More importantly, maybe I did not have to. Meghan, along with my eating disorder specialist, Amy, became my rocks during the time I was at Timberline Knolls. Although my treatment team also consisted of other members, including an individual therapist, Meghan and Amy had shown me repeatedly that I could let go of control and trust others to stand with me. In the three months I was at Timberline Knolls, I had to learn to surrender. I had to learn to give up that control. Like a child, I had to hand everything over to the “adults” and trust that they were going steer me in the right direction. As I progressed, I was slowly given more and more of my life back. It was in these moments that I had to learn what parts I could control and what parts I needed to accept and embrace as they were. To some people, something as simple as looking in a mirror or getting dressed may not evoke feelings of fear, but for someone who is used to attempting to control the world around her, even these things can be difficult. I had to let go of my eating disorder behaviors and learn that my body was my body – it was not something I could control. I could not control the actions or reactions of those around me, instead I had to learn to control my own actions and reactions. With the help of my treatment team and the staff at Timberline Knolls, I began to learn to take responsibility for what I was able to control and work to let go of the rest, no matter how difficult that may be. Learning to focus on what I can control has helped me to get to where I am today. Despite hitting rock bottom, something that was out of my control at that point, I have learned to embrace the fact that the only thing I can truly control is how I move forward. As I sit here writing this, I have almost four years in recovery. Addiction and mental illnesses are not cured like strep throat or eventually clear up like the common cold – this is something I will deal with my entire life. Knowing this, I choose to embrace the fact that there are aspects I can control. I can control the fact that I take my medications as prescribed. I can control the fact that I meet with my treatment team as needed. I can control the fact that despite the fact that I work a full time job and maintain a full time course load in grad school, I must carve out time to meet weekly with my therapist and attend boxing sessions with a trainer five or six times a week in order to maintain that sense of empowerment and physical health. I can control a schedule that allows me, in the majority of situations, to maintain the meal plan that Amy helped me build and to get enough sleep to allow my mind and body to function at their best. I can control the people that I am surrounded by, the people I let into my world on a regular basis. There are still a lot of situations that I cannot control – situations that are not a result of anything personal, rather a result of living a human life. If I gave over that power, I could be easily consumed by these situations and the uncertainties of life. Instead, I choose to focus on the areas I can control, both those listed above and various others. As I was getting ready to leave Timberline Knolls, Amy told me that no matter what happened, all that mattered is that I chose to make the next right decision. Walking out into a world of unknowns, making the next right decision in the face of whatever was thrown at me is truly the only thing I am in control of Personal DevelopmentJinha Chung
I have never done any sort of physical exercise whatsoever in the last four and a half years of my life. Sports became wearisome after realizing that I was not the most athletic kid among my peers. I also gave up school work because I learned that the less effort I put in, the easier my life became. However, I have been persistently working out three hours a day, despite how much I want to give up, and I have 4.15 GPA in Arizona State University’s well-known undergraduate Business program. I would love to share my story about the power of positive thinking that raised a weak-willed teenager into a patient adult. I used to live in Kingston, Ontario where physical activities are much more encouraged to students than any school in my home country: South Korea. I was passionate and almost egoistic about swimming and basketball, which I performed most well at among the various sports activities I often enjoyed. Consequently, I had physical advantage over my peers when I came back to South Korea. They seemed like easy opponents to me until around eighth grade when their bodies started to outgrow mine due to puberty and some of their athletic talents started to reveal as they grew. I practiced everyday to regain my superiority but every time we played a game of basketball, they stood out instead of me. I was sorrowful by the fact that I could not overcome them no matter how much I put my heart and soul into; it was meaningless. Therefore, I eventually lost interest in physical activities. Meanwhile, my school grades dropped along with my ambition in sports. Schools in South Korea has adopted ranking system instead of letter grades like the US and every school has two main exams every semester without an exception. I started middle school strong with the midterm ranking of eighth among nearly 240 people, making into the top three percent. On the finals of that same year, I received twelfth place with significantly less effort. Hence I realized that it takes unnecessarily excessive amount of stress to achieve a higher ranking, but it does not require much effort to receive a satisfactory one. My ranking gradually dropped exam by exam. To make matters worse, emotional wounds from my peers at school overlapped, so I completely lost interest in school life. I slept through classes more and more frequently. I have even received the lowest ranking in the entire school. My pride and self-esteem were at their lowest and I even had suicidal thoughts. I assumed there was no way out of that inferior life. As a result, I became extremely pessimistic and hated the world which trapped myself under the situation. While I was drowning in despair, a life-changing opportunity merged that I did not recognize at the time. I thought it was just an emergency exit of my miserable life, a way to escape. With the financial support from my parents, I started a new life in the US, the land of opportunity. I started going to a high school in Tucson, Arizona as a junior. It was unspeakably tough at first. I had to live on the other side of the globe where the environment is completely different, with a couple of strangers whom I had never met before. I had no choice but to accept their household, including their rules on usage of electronic devices and mealtimes. Furthermore, I was forced to adapt to the exceedingly unfamiliar school system. The school was in the form of a campus, students moved around classrooms from period to period, and the majority of school work involved electronic media. Life there was the polar opposite of what I was used to. My first host family was a couple in their 40’s. It was uncomfortable but peaceful for the first couple of weeks. All of sudden, we received a warning letter from my exchange program agency that supervised us, mostly me. The letter stated that I was failing some of my classes and I could no longer remain in the program if I do not maintain each of my grades above C. It was a shock for me because I thought I completed everything informed during the classes. It turned out that some assignments are posted online rather than being announced by teachers in their classes. My host family got mad and restrained my freedom. They limited my usage of electronic devices and forced me to write down my daily tasks in a notebook after asking around the school to ascertain how assignments were given and what they were. I suffocated due to the pressure from my hosts and the agency. I desperately wanted to run away exactly like how I came to the country. However, I could not let that happen for the second time, knowing how much hope my parents had for me to start a new life and the amount of money they spent on the program. It was our last hope and I needed to step up my game. I decided to change my behavior, attitude, way of thinking, and consequently, my life-style. Thereafter, I started deeming school work as nutrient for my future career instead of useless burden. I confirmed the assignments with my teachers at the end of the classes respectively and checked the assignment website daily. I studied for quizzes and exams and prepared for projects. As a result, my grades successfully improved to As. It was arduous but definitely satisfactory and worthy. I remembered what it was like to give something my best and to think positively. I attended another year of high school in the US as a senior with a different agency, two years in total. Homestay still was not easy even after reconstructing my work ethics; I encountered conflicts outside of school regarding to the host families. Since I was the one living off them, it was unquestionable that I had to be the one to adjust. However, my first agency handled the documents poorly, so I had to change my host family three times, living in five different households over two years. I was to follow a few new overly strict rules, from my perspective, by the host families every time I moved into another household. For instance, one of them required me to stay in my room after a certain time at night and another expected me to watch television shows in the living room before going to bed; these are just the tip of the iceberg. Also, the host families and each of the members’ characteristics varied. I was left with no choice but to adjust myself to each personality, some of them too different from me and the others less. There were numerous times that I wanted to give up. I missed my family, friends, and culture. Nevertheless, I endured by opposing the weakening thoughts with positivity and persistently went on my way. In the end, I was able to put on my cap and gown and return home proudly with unforgettable memories. Currently, I am attending W.P.Carey School of Business of Arizona State University, one of the most reputable business undergraduate program in the US. I do not give up easily anymore due to the worthwhile experience. I am steadily and incrementally working towards my dream of being in the field of business and living a happy life. This is the power of positive thinking that flipped my life from torment to aspiration. Focusing On Things You Can ControlQuimirr Heyward
Now as hard as it to admit, this very important law to follow in life didn't come as easy to me. In fact, I'm still working on it. Throughout my childhood, I was constantly placed into these circumstances where there are multiple things that are just wrong, and things that a child should not have to go through. To name just a few, there were times when we had no place to live, the lights were cut off, and my mom lacked the financial means to properly take care of four kids on her own. I was the only male in the house, and I am the oldest of four siblings. Even though I was still a young child, for some reason I naturally felt like there were things that I, just a little boy at the time, had the responsibility to do. As unrealistic as it sounds, these “responsibilities” ranged from me wanting to help my mom out with bills, make sure we had a place to live, and helping to raise my little sisters. For obvious reasons I couldn't do these things, so when it came apparent to me, I used to feel helpless, and a false sense of guilt as if I failed my mother and sisters and let them down. This false feeling of guilt, shame, and pain carried all the way into my teenage years. Instead of putting all of my focus on school, athletics, and other activities that the average teenager should enjoy, I was always worried about problems I had no control over. Amongst my worries were things like my young sisters who didn't live with me anymore at the time, was my mom going to mess up and lose the house, and what were steps my mother was taking to ensure that the bills were paid, and other things of that nature. I was so worried about circumstances I had no control over, and the life of others, that I started to lose track of my own. Of course it's easy to say, “Hey! don't worry about that because you can't change it”, but when it's your immediate family it's very difficult to think like that at such a young age. Because of this, I oftentimes felt depressed and lonely because, I was constantly worrying about situations I completely had no control over. I was done with having this feeling of hopelessness, so I started to search for the answers of how to combat these issues in my life. Around my senior year when I started reading books like, “The 48 Laws of Power”, and started talking to very knowledgeable people, I learned about the power of concentrating one's forces on the direct things that are in front of you, and the things that are ultimately in your control. I learned that when you apply your energy to the problems that you can control, you have a tighter grip on life and the circumstances around you. At first, the idea of turning my back on my mother and sisters draped over me. This in itself was hard to deal with because, I know the feeling of being left behind, and the last people I would've wanted to transfer that feeling to was my loved ones. As tough as it was, I eventually realized I had to get over this thought, and constantly worked on concentrating on the circumstances I could control. I would immerse myself in the simple things like making sure my schoolwork was done, and maintaining a job to support my needs. I wasn't living with my mother at the time. There were times where I forcibly had to stop keeping communication with her because, I knew there was always bad news, and I didn't want to throw myself off track by getting too worried and emotional about things that were out of my grasp. After months and months of doing this, I noticed that my life started to make positive changes. My grades improved, I started making new friends, became happier, and got accepted into college. Applying the important principle of focusing on the problems that I could control was tremendously a factor in all of this. It taught me the important concept that although we can't control others, we have the power to control our own lives, and to live prosperous. Learning and applying this lesson continues to be very important to me because, there are still problems to this day that I just can't do too much about. Instead of risking losing my focus by trying to intervene with other people's problems, and leaving myself frustrated, I am still learning that it's best to simply just give my advice, and leave it up to God to do the rest. This keeps me focused on what I need to do, and the problems that I have to solve myself. Due to the fact that I am currently a college student, I have to be extremely focused on my schoolwork and the multitude of tasks at hand. I don't have much support to fall back on, so I work hard to strategically eliminate any distractions that have the potential to slow me down, and throw me off track, even if it's my own family. I learned that when I focus very hard on the situations that are in front of me and in my control, I feel more in control, because I am! The law of focusing on things that I can control literally saved my life. I went from feeling sorry about myself, to being one of the first people in my family to attend college, and be in the Honors Society! Although there are still situations within my family I would give anything to change, I know that I can't worry about them because I simply don't have the power to change them. This law of concentrating your forces, and focusing on things you can control, is a vital law to follow, and I plan to apply and teach this as long as I live. Positive Thinking & The Ability to WalkMelissa Hunt
It’s something people always say in bad situations: “Just think positively!” This isn’t always met with a positive response however, but there is truth behind it. I have witnessed first-hand how the power of positive thinking can have positive impact on myself and the lives of others. In order to accurately express the extent to which positive thinking can affect and individual, I will tell the story of how I learned to walk for the second time. Beginning with my early days as an infant waddling around the house, I always walked on my toes. At first it was cute, or so says my mother, but it grew old fast. Soon enough I was twelve years old and it was causing me some pain. I was put in casts for six weeks, but they were glow in the dark so I didn’t mind them. Those helped for years, but eventually the pain came back and quickly got worse. When I was 19 I saw a specialist who determined that my Achilles tendons were too short to walk normally. And as an added bonus, those short tendons had been rubbing on my heels for years and caused a Haglund deformity. Put simply, my x-ray looked like I had two huge spikes coming out the back of my heels. The pain that resulted from this is hard to explain, and I wouldn’t want anyone to understand how painful it was. After a day of work my ankles would be so swollen from the constant rubbing on the spikes that I could barely even take off my shoes without crying out in pain. In the weeks leading up to the surgery, it got so bad that I couldn’t put any weight on my feet at all and they were stuck in the pointed position. I couldn’t move my ankle even if I forced it. This forced me to resort to crawling on my hands and knees around my house on the days leading up to the surgery. As soon as school was out for the summer I went under the knife to correct the issue. And by “correct the issue,” I mean my doctor would use a bone saw to cut off the spikes on my heels, and he would make small cuts in my Achilles tendon to lengthen it. This was a difficult thing for me to wrap my head around. It is my intention to become a doctor one day, so I kept watching videos of the surgery to prepare myself. No matter how much I did to prepare myself, it didn’t help. When I woke up, I wouldn’t be able to walk for weeks. Weeks! When it came time for the surgery that was all I could think about. When I woke up I wouldn’t be able to walk. When I woke up, I was confused. For a moment I thought I was going to be late for school. When I could finally lift my eyelids, I saw my legs and my heart sank. I would’ve much rather have been late to school than wake up in the hospital. The next two weeks were something that I will never forget. I couldn’t do anything by myself. It’s hard to imagine life without the use of your legs until you actually lose that ability. Everyday tasks became a nightmare, especially because there were places my wheelchair couldn’t fit. This became my main motivating force to get my strength back, and to heal quickly. When my wheelchair wouldn’t fit into the pantry I wouldn’t let it get to me. All those times I needed help changing my clothes I would only think of the positives. The whole time I was struggling to do basic daily tasks I was thinking that it was only temporary. That soon enough my strength would come back and I’d be able to get dressed by myself and be able to put on shoes or whatever else I wanted to do! I know that this positive thinking helped, because at two weeks I got rid of my wheelchair and relied on the use of crutches, along with my heavy and protective walking boots. Every day I made improvements. My mother called them small improvements, but to me they were huge. One of the biggest accomplishments was to be able to walk to my dresser and change my clothes all by myself. After 6 weeks I could finally wear shoes again, and I felt I was able to go back to work doing three hour shifts. Now, six months after my life changing surgery, I can walk better than I ever was able to before and with no pain at all. I took my time healing and getting my strength back. I did everything I was told to do. I went to physical therapy two times a week for 4 months. I did my exercises and took it easy at work. I did everything like I was told to do. In my own opinion, keeping a positive attitude and injecting my thoughts with positivity was essential to my recovery. I know I never would’ve been able to learn how to walk again if I kept telling myself I wouldn’t be able to. The same could be said for anyone in whatever situation they may find themselves in. Thinking negatively will not ever accomplish anything. In order to accomplish your dreams and reach your goals, you need to believe that you can. Positive thinking is the first step in achieving this A Brighter FutureEulitta Langley
Becoming tearful for me these past few years has evolved into something normal. So to read the prompts for the essay submission for this scholarship, it was no exception to the feeling. Having so many emotions and reasons to be grateful made the choice of what to disclose to the organization a difficult one. But since I am only asked to discuss one topic, that topic will be my focus on positive thinking. This past November marked the four year anniversary of the death of my mother. That same year, only three months prior to, I gave birth to my beautiful and happy baby girl. These two events met me with such bittersweet confusion. I was utterly negative and depressed mostly because I had spent all of my life taking care of my mother who was often not able to do for herself or for my brother and I. From the time I was able to pull up a stepping stool to the counter tops in the kitchen, I was washing dishes, cooking and cleaning and doing laundry. This was my place of normalcy and essentially all that I knew how to do. I was good at taking care of people and the homes that we had despite the fact that sometimes they were less than inhabitable by many standards. But I made it through all of my schooling while juggling all that life threw at me. However I did not always do this with a positive attitude. My predominant attitude was the question of why is this all happening to me. I could not rationalize why I couldn’t participate in any extracurricular activities or why I wasn’t able to attend sleepovers and parties. I was salty about having to miss school somedays because my Mom was in the hospital and I had to sit there with her all of the time because my Grandmother couldn’t afford the gas money to make multiple trips between the two separate cities in which we lived. Negative thoughts consumed me and this took a major toll on my mental and physical being. Even after high school, after being accepted to several different colleges of which I only had to choose, I made the decision to stick around and take care of my family. This ultimately ended up being one of the most controversial decisions that I have made thus far. I say this because life would have probably taken a much more different turn had I completed my degree earlier. But instead, I enrolled in community college, took on a job and just a few months after that my Dad left us and divorced my Mom. This was basically the end of her. That year in 2006, I withdrew from school, took on two more jobs and became the sole caretakers and head of household for my Mom, brother and myself at 19 years old. This broke her heart because she knew my ambitions and thought with all of her heart and soul that I deserved everything that I sought and much more. But their wellbeing was a priority for me. In my mind everything else could and would have to wait. Years went by and my attitude was still about the same, wondering why life for me had turned out the way that it had. I attempted to go back to school online in 2010 and wasn’t able to keep up with the demand of working two jobs and juggling the commitment of school work. At that time, I had just came to terms with the fact that I would have to market my skills and experience in the workforce in order to excel to the highest paying career that I could without a degree. Then in November 2011 I found out that I would soon become a Mom myself. There is no way to explain in written word how much of an impact that this had on my outlook for the future. Because at that one moment, it was no longer my future, but would be my unborn child’s as well. My pregnancy was a difficult one full of financial and personal stress, but in June of 2012 I welcomed my lifeline into the world and had decided that she will have the best that I can give her but it would have to start with me bettering myself. My every thought from the moment was not ‘why is this happening’, but in turn ‘what can I do to make this happen’? How can I make things better? What can I do now to set a solid foundation for a better future. I researched schools when I was able, but being a new Mom was different than taking care of my brother and Mother so there was an adjustment period for me that took time. But in that time and by November 2012, I watched my Mom take her last breath. My daughter was only 4 months old and I had lost one of the biggest chunks of my heart. Had I not had my daughter, I don’t think that I would have continued on living. But I knew that my Mom would’ve wanted me to strive so that it what I did that following January when I enrolled to complete the degree that I had started. Motivated by the precious life of my daughter and by the memory of my Mother, I changed my negative into positive and completed an Associate’s degree in 18 months while working and being the best Mommy that I could be and I have no desire to slow down now. It is for these reasons that I have written this short explanation of my life over the last few years in hopes that it will grant me the extra help that I need to continue on to complete the education necessary to pave the way for a brighter future. I want to be an inspiration to others while making my baby proud and feel beams from above from my Mother when I reach the goals that I set out to accomplish while jumping the many hurdles that life dealt. The Power of a Wonderful SetbackTaylor Casey
ASU One component that shapes your identity is one’s past experiences, as I have been taught in my COM 191 course here at Arizona State University. Being 1 of 40,000 people diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes each year, according to JDRF, my life had to adjust to new changes. Being diabetic, I now have to watch the things that I chose to consume. Counting carbs and taking insulin was my new lifeline. Fortunately, learning the functions of nutrition granted me knowledge of not only diabetes, but other autoimmune diseases I possess such as Celiac and Lactose intolerance. I am not in control of all of the things that happen to me in my life. It was certainly not my choice to inherit Celiac disease and soon contract Type 1 Diabetes while becoming lactose intolerant along the way, but, I certainly wouldn’t change it. Although they have not been the easiest obstacles to overcome, I accepted them because I cannot change it. The health issues I have received have shaped the person I am today. It has transformed my knowledge, my strength, my love for myself and other people in such an extraordinary course. My conditions allow me to reach out and connect with people who are similar to myself. The knowledge that I have gained from taking care of my own body has found me in situations where I am teaching the community what these diseases are and creating awareness. I will always be grateful for those I’ve met who have shown me incredible insight to life and how to appreciate it to the fullest. Most importantly, I learned a great deal about myself through the process. A rare side effect of Type 1 is hair loss. About a month into my new diagnosis, around 80% of my hair fled my head due to reintroduction of insulin, my junior year of high school. Being an adolescent with this symptom of hair loss soon took a toll on my self confidence. The pain I had felt lead me further away from myself, God, family and friends. A few months into this unexpected aftermath, I had enough of shaming myself for my appearance. I then had a realization that has altered the dreary mindset I was stuck in. I can not control the things that happen to me but I can control the way I handle it. I decided to enter a world that would make the life I live a happy one. I saw beauty just the way I was. I allowed my thoughts to bring upon positive notes about myself and it has changed everything. Not only did I learn to love how I was created, but I was also able to love others unconditionally, because my life is not all about me. It is about what I can do to serve others and love our neighbors with no strings attached. Once I entered this new mindset, grace was brought upon me. I believe that when somebody begins to think positively on the things they cannot change in their life, the world becomes attracted to those ideas in one’s head, bringing forth delightful events. Only a few months later, hair clips were introduced to me. I was gifted with confidence boosters, and everything was falling into place. My world was drastically changing. The way I reestablished love in my life for myself reflects how I love other people. I was able to become a good friend. Now genuinely caring about others, and forgiving generously. Being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes strengthened my soul. That then delivered a person whom was found in self appreciation and a reliable shoulder to cry on. I was portraying warmth and friendliness even to strangers. This event that happened to me in 2014, will forever shape me and who I am in the best way possible for the rest of my existence, and I couldn’t be more grateful. I will use what I have learned from my circumstances to better my outlook on the world everyday. My goals in life are to be genuinely happy, to love my neighbors with no strings attached, to do what is true, what is right, follow God and provide grace. I believe while trying to attain these goals, it will bring me to places I could not even dream of. I know it will take me exactly where I need to be in this world, and while doing so, also, spreading love every step of the way. Personal StatementFu Danning
My father, a graduate who has a keen interest in accounting, has made a profound effect on me, especially on my future career choice. Exactly, my great passion and love for accounting were inseparable from the painstaking cultivation and remorseless enlighten of my father from an early stage. Although he was gone a few years ago, my career goal-to be a competent accounting expert who will play an important role in making strategic decisions and booming the whole company was never wavered, instead, I strengthened my faith and have made up my mind to try my best to obtain this goal. Having been fully aware that to fulfill my career plan surely requires decent academic knowledge and skills. So, I never waste any precious time during university. Now, I am a senior student majoring in Accounting at Nanjing Audit University, a well-known university in Jiangsu Province with an aim to foster comprehensive talents conforming to the requirement of era development. And there, I have been exposed systematically to concepts and theories of accounting. I obtained an overall GPA of 3.5, which not only on account of my sensitivity to figures and my talent at mathematics, but also in virtue of my diligence and endeavor. It seems to me that Accounting and Finance are two closely related and cross subjects. Thus, although an accounting major, I have taken most of the courses in the Finance Department. I was also deeply aware that to be successful in a complicated economic environment required professional knowledge not only in finance, but also in accounting, economics, marketing, management, etc. So, in my spare time, I often read books in related to these subjects. Studying industriously, I earned such certificates as Accountant’s Practice Qualification Certificate, Securities Business Qualification Certificate and Fund Qualification Certificate. What’s more, I managed to publish three academic essays while I was still an undergraduate student, something highly unusual in China. One paper titled “A research on cost management of enterprise resource planning” on Financial Community, one paper named “SWOT analysis of network loan” on China Journal of Commerce, and another paper, “Case study of the effects of audit committee on listed company” was adopted by Modern Business. Of course, resoundingly publishing these essays partly because I consulted a great deal of literature and datum and seek help from my professors, but also due to my solid knowledge accumulation. I like to delve into difficult questions and I am a person with strong views and unique ideas. Several of my professors once talked about how inspiring my ideas as well as questions proposed to their own researches. Now, I grasp the ability to do research independently and prudently, which I strongly believe will contribute to my future research. However, these are not enough for a girl who intends to make a difference in the field of accounting. I profoundly realize that I have to improve and progress a lot, moreover, I am of great necessity to obtain hands-on experience, rather than being content with just performing well in academic achievements. Therefore, I did not hesitate in choosing to join in companies and thus put what have learned from books into practice on vacations. I once took a job in Jiangsu Taizhou RCB Co., Ltd as an account manager assistant, and worked as an audit assistant at Jiangsu Zhongxing Certificated Public Accountants. Also, being a financial assistant, I served in The People’s Insurance Company (Group) of China, Taizhou Branch. In addition, another internship in Taizhou Branch of Huatai Securities I must mention here, since I harvested a lot. During the period of one year, I worked here as a part-time stock broker, and I was mainly responsible for helping the manager handle big customer financial services work. I learned how to sale the financial products and guide customers to buy financial products as experience accumulated, more than that I enhanced team work ability and became acquainted with many talented friends. And it was precisely this internship that brought me great pleasure and thus strengthened my determination to pursue a graduate program. In addition to the work and study, I think everyone should make full use of their time to do something valuable. Throwing myself into volunteer activities has always been my pursuit. In the hope of contributing my little efforts to the Global Community Development Program run by AIESEC Mainland of China, I gave up the plan for a trip to Yunnan, a famous historical city in China, with no regret. Our destination was to Adana, Turkey. During nearly one month, I mainly taught the local youth mathematics and Chinese culture. There, we volunteers from all over the world communicated with the local students and guided them to hold the culture exhibition. Even in this short time, I gained many friendships, reaped much joy, obtained a great feeling of satisfaction, raised the adaptive capacity and broadened the horizons that laid a basis on my further study in USA. Besides, an idea occurred to me that I hope to build a school in remote region some day, to help someone in need. I am convinced that the academic foundation I have laid in both theoretical frameworks and practical skills will help make me a competent student in my proposed studies. I am very eager to further my study in your program, for your leading position in the field of accountancy. Under the guidance of your distinguished faculty and with the benefit of your remarkable research facilities, I firmly believe that I can give full play to my potential and realize my career goal. Focusing on Things You Can ControlNicky Stevens
ASU I am currently an ASU West Graduate student; I appreciate the opportunity to share my story with you. My mother was diagnosed with cancer when I was just 23 years old and was told at that time she only had less than 6 months to live. At that time, I didn’t really believe she could be taken from us so fast; we had not gotten to do all the things we said we were going to do together. I felt it wasn’t fair, my son was still so young and didn’t have much time to spend with his grandma and what about his entire firsts that she would miss now? How could this happen to our family? So my mom and I started to make a to-do list aka a bucket list. We said lets go to Disneyland, Las Vegas, etc. but we still felt there was still so much more things we wanted to do and not enough time. So we started focusing on the things we could control, like living in the here and now, what love could we show one another and those around us. We began with using the time we had to help others in our community; we started with the homeless which has now become my passion and my profession. My mom would go to McDonalds and buy sandwiches and coffee for those who were hungry and cold. She would buy discounted toys and drop them off at family shelters. We were just grateful for the time we had together and what we could do today to make a positive impact on someone’s life. Because you may not be here tomorrow to see it but you can live in the here and now and enjoy the impact of making someone smile from a just small act of kindness. We learned to be grateful for the small moments we had together and not be angry for the little time we had left together. We found that the more we focused on the positive the more positive things started to happen. It was like what were on a journey of healing together, not only a healing of my mom’s body but a healing of our heartache. My mom would go through radiation treatment which made her extremely ill and she lost all of her teeth, then she lost some of her hair, then she would be in and out of the hospital with pneumonia where the doctors said she may not make it through the night but somehow she would make it out of the hospital and home with us again. She would still be so grateful and positive and say, “God says I still have work to do!” My mother would eventually have to get a feeding tube and I was her sole care giver and during the time it was difficult because my mom could no longer enjoy foods like she used to. Food was something we really enjoyed as family so this was a difficult for all of us. But I just remember my mom staying positive and joking “now I might be able to lose some weight”. In the following years my mother got progressively worse and on my sisters birthday she passed away. Doctors told us she would only have 6 months to live but I think her positive attitude and gratitude of her life kept her with us much longer. She was never angry or bitter; she said I am going to live in the here and now and enjoy every moment of her life. I don’t remember feeling extremely sad the day that she passed on. I felt I that I had done the grieving with her for so long and we had a wonderful time together on her journey. I knew that it was my turn to keep her traditions of positivity, generosity and gratitude going. This was a chance for me to share her teachings with the world and pass on all of her positivity and strength to my son and to all those who needed it around me. One of the most powerful things said to me after my mom passed away was, “Nicky you would come to work every day with a smile on your face and positive attitude and I didn’t know you were going through all of this”. Those words have stuck with me all of these years and I always remember just because you are going through a lot of pain doesn’t mean you have to make everyone else go through it with you. That is what my mom taught me, strength and optimism in the face of death! What does it mean to truly live? What you put into others’ lives comes back to you in many ways. I wanted the world to know mom existed that her attitude of gratitude lived on not only in me but in my son. My son has definitely inherited my mother’s positive spirit, as a young man now who works with the homeless and I am overwhelmed by the words I hear about his grateful spirit and positive attitude, he is the true embodiment of the law of attraction. He puts out so much love to the people experiencing homelessness and it comes back to him in ways that words cannot express. I know that is my mother still with us making a positive impact in this world through us by giving hope to so many souls who may have lost theirs. Families who sleep on our streets need to see the face of positivity and generosity so they don’t feel forgotten. This is one of the noblest jobs we can do, to bring hope to those who may have lost their way. Much like the hope my mother gave to me in the face of tragedy, my son is now giving this to so many others. Focusing on Things You Can ControlJoelle Dykstra
If you are alive, there are things that you will never be able to control. As a child, you are probably used to this fact to some degree. You are told when to go to sleep, when to wake up, when to play and when to clean and when to eat. As you get older, the desire to control the happenings in your life increases. You want to be able to say when it’s time to sleep, eat, and play. But, it seems the more you try to control everything, the more everything controls you instead. There will always be something that pops up unexpectedly, making you lose control over certain aspects of your life. For me and my family, this unexpected pop up was my older brother’s heroin addiction. My brother was a destructive force within our family. He severely disrupted any control we had over our daily lives. If I was home, I was constantly worried about the people my brother was bringing into my home. I was stressing over what he was doing in the room beside mine. He was constantly pestering me about giving him money or driving him to a friend or buying him something, and when I didn’t, I would be subjected to screaming in my face, accusations, and name-calling. I was reluctant to say much of anything around the other members of my family because I did not want to mention the agony that everyone knew was already there. If I was at school during this time, I was thinking about whether I would come home to a ransacked house, if all my possessions would still be where I had left them or if they were currently on their way to a pawn shop. I would worry about my mother more than anyone or anything else. Ultimately, I became an extremely reserved and nervous person. My grades in school and my well-being were suffering. My sophomore year in high school was the peak of all the problems, the things I could not control were controlling me. I had started to get sick more frequently, and I had come to realize that talking to people was as hard as quantum physics in my mind. I decided that I needed to focus on the things that I could control. I had to put all of my attention into what I needed to accomplish in order to better myself, instead of putting my attention on chains locking my feet in place. To do this, I made a simple list. First on my list was to get rid of my fear of speaking to other people, next on my list was to achieve a higher standing in my academic status, and third was to stand up for myself to my brother and ensure that he did not have any power over me. Once my list was made, I went straight to work. To become comfortable around others, I decided that I should become a leader on my campus and join the student council. I went out for a position where I did not have to make a speech to the whole campus, but rather just to the selection committee within the current student council. While I gave my speech to this small panel of peers, I was shaking almost uncontrollably, I was sweating like a pig, and I stammered on almost every other word. To my surprise, they selected me for the position. Throughout that year, I became more and more at ease with speaking to others. I eventually went on to become student body president my senior year, and I made the most speeches to a 3,500-student body than any other student on campus. My fear of speaking to others is still relevant in my daily life, but I took control of the fear and turned it into an adrenaline rush. The next thing I decided to focus on was the number of honors courses I was taking and pushing my grade point average higher than it had ever been before. In high school, I had a hard time maintaining a 3.5 grade point average because I was involved in so many extracurricular activities. I decided that I needed to control the amount of time I was dedicating to my studies. I started setting strict schedules for when and how long I would do each of my homework assignments, my planner became my best friend. By focusing on the time and effort I was putting into my studies, I successfully completed multiple honors courses, graduated high school with some college credit, and raised my grade point average. I ended up graduating with a grade point average that was .03 points away from a 3.5, but I could not have been more proud of the work I had done to get to that point. At home, I decided to focus on the one thing I could control in all the madness; my attitude towards facing my brother and the situation I was in. I would repeat positive mantras in my head each morning. I would look at my bed, at the food in my pantry, and I would remind myself how lucky I was. I would look to my mother and tell her how much I appreciated all she did for me. I told myself that even though I am going through a rough time with my brother, even though I can’t control his actions and his attitude, I can still choose to be happy. And so, I became happy. I stood up for myself in the face of his blaming and aggression. I found strategic ways to hide my possessions so that he may never have to chance to sell them. I refused to give him money, to assist him in any way that would harm him even if that meant being subjected to his mind games. I was in control of myself and he in no way could manipulate me. Through all this, I learned that it is vital to focus on what I can control as opposed to consistently worrying about the things that I will never have any influence over. My brother was set on a path that he had no plans of straying from, even if it harmed myself and my family. I was unable to control him and his actions, but I found I could control the way I reacted to them. Putting all of my attention on bettering myself instead of what was holding me back eventually allowed me to become the successful college student that I am today. I am a happier, healthier, and more comfortable in my own skin and with my own accomplishments because I decide each day to put my time and energy in what I can control. Having an Attitude of GratitudeIvan Barksdale
I went through a lot of hardships all throughout my life. I either learned the easy way or the hard way. Life wasn't easy in certain periods of my life. However, I prevailed and overcame the challenges that came my way. My family suffered financially for a short period of time. Our lives were not in sync and nothing was together. At this point in time, it was only me, my mother, and my father. My brother wasn't born until a few years later. I was only about nine or ten years old at the time and I had absolutely no idea what was going on in my family. My mother always told me each and every day to focus on my school work and maintain good grades. I did just like she told me and It resulted in success. My mother and father had to find a temporary home for us to live in for the time being since we didn't have necessary funds to pay for our previous house. Years later, my brother was born and my mother and father had to make ends meet in order for him to fit in the family. Realistically, we were struggling and needed financial support, but we had each other and that was most important. Likewise, my point is that I endured a lot in my life. I always want what is best for my family and getting a college education is a goal for me in order to make my mother and father proud. I strive to make myself a better future and investing in my education will help me pave my way towards where I want to go. Currently, I am majoring in business management at Kennesaw State University. Some students will assume that college is a waste of time because you will be placed in debt before you even head out into the real world. I will admit that college does have its pros and cons. Assuming College to be a waste of time and money, is very prejudge mental. You can’t assume the worse about college if you haven’t experienced it firsthand. Most colleges are very welcoming. The faculty and staff are there to comfort you. You may also use them to help further your future endeavors. It will get stressful at certain times during your college career. However, those days of struggles and adversities only make you stronger. Some students, in those times of adversity, will give up and decide to dropout. Only the strongest survive in college. You can consider that a waste of money if you decide to dropout. In my opinion, if you are so stressed in college and you decide to stoop so low that you decide to dropout. Then, you are in the wrong place. College is not for you if you allow it to get the best of you. Whatever it is that you hope to accomplish in life, it will be pushed back even further because you decided to waste your time in college. Besides that, college is a prime time to meet new peers and learn life lessons. In my opinion, the process is more important than the final product. The journey that you endure now, it is only the beginning when you start college. That being said, I highly recommend you to go to college. Any other alternative besides college is a long shot and will not come with significant benefits. Whatever is to be your destined path will be a foggy road at first, but keep persevering and sooner or later that road will become clear. I have plenty of short and long-term goals, but there are only a few that stand out from the rest. I am truly blessed to be given opportunities to achieve each and every goal. Most importantly, those goals are what drive me each and every day to become the best I can be. I strive to become an entrepreneur and play basketball professionally. On top of being an entrepreneur, one of my goals, I hope to construct my very own Fortune 500 Company. I am willing to learn from the best who are already successful in the business. One of those successors, Michael Jordan, one of the very best in the world of basketball and business, He built the Jordan brand from scratch, beginning when he came out of North Carolina University to the Chicago Bulls. He is a legend when it comes to branding and sneakers. One day I hope to become as great he was. Each and every day, I strive to become the best I can be through God's wisdom and guidance. I have many dreams and aspirations. These dreams and aspirations are my very being and define who I am. I consider my goals to be very broad. Others may consider my goals impossible to achieve. Despite, others not being able to comprehend my future the way I do, it doesn’t justify my purpose because they don’t understand where I vision myself in ten or twenty years. All that is important is that I realize my true potential and live out my future goals and aspirations. All throughout my lifetime, I constantly changed my goals. I could never seem to stick to one set of goals and I didn’t have a true passion at the time. Transitioning from high school up to college allowed me to discover what my true passion was. I was flying “blinded” for many years, unable to find my true path to greatness. Many words of wisdom from family, friends, and peers allowed me to come to a conscious decision. I’ve decided to pursue a career as an entrepreneur and have ownership of an NBA franchise. In order for me to accomplish this milestone, I will gain enough profit from my shoe brand and clothing brand company and use that money towards purchasing an NBA franchise . I feel like this was more of a spiritual decision from the most high rather than my very own decision. I believe in God and I believe that he would want nothing but the best for me. I have total faith in this decision. Focusing On What You Can ControlAbbey Schroeder
The current attitude of the present is to focus on struggles and who to blame. Everyone is entitled to a happy life were hard work is rewarded and nothing bad happens to good people, right? For some people, the answer to this question is accompanied by a brief chuckle and a, “I wish,” or, “So you could hope.” That was my mindset for a period of my life, but now I can happily respond with a firm, “Yes.” It is hard to practice an optimistic mindset with without a definitive strategy. This strategy would have to be one worthy to stand against some of life’s greatest struggles. The mindset that prevails with the best strategy to combat this is focusing on what you can control. From a very young age I have been called upon to sidestep the common joys of childhood and rise to the occasion with a mature attitude. My first attempt at this was when I was 10 years old. My mother was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, following in suit with the past women of my family. This was a daunting reality none of us could hide from, but rather together we could help my mom fight. Throughout extensive radiation and chemo treatment, we each played our part in the constant fight. My father was always there to face the real world dilemmas of adult emotional support, to help keep a rational perspective on the matter, and to be the glue that held our family together. My sister was able to be the diligent helper in assisting me with picking up the extra work around the house while my parents dealt with other matters. I, picking up my fair share of work, also focused on keeping up the personnel of my family. Whether that was filling the room with laughter at my ridiculous jokes, offering an optimistic outlook, or distracting my family with humorous stories from school. Together, my family got through our first hurdle together. I would be lying if I didn’t say we had help from others, focusing on things that we couldn’t control. My mother acknowledged the fact that she couldn’t control how my sister and I, both being so young, would handle her sickness. During one of her trips to the hospital, she fell upon a flyer for Camp Kesem, a nonprofit organization run by college students that put on a summer camp to help children through and beyond their parent’s cancer. She immediately researched the program and signed us up. This seemed to me, at first, a scary overnight camp that would take me out of being able to help my mom at home for a whole week. In a world where cancer has a mind of its own, a whole lot can happen in a week, I worriedly thought to myself, and was extremely reluctant at first. Using my optimistic attitude though, I tried my best to be open to this new experience. Words cannot describe how much this seemingly foreign, scary camp has given me. I have since grown immensely from that first year of camp, having attended for nine years. Not only has it helped me to better face whatever life seems to threw my family’s way, but also it has helped me to assist my friends with whatever life throws their way. Throughout my life, I have been able to successfully help my friends get through depression, abusive relationships, eating disorders, self-harm, sexual assault, and more. Attending this camp, I was armed with what I needed to face all that life had to face me with, and know I could prevail the guidance of my new Kesem family. This was an essential in creating a much needed foundation in learning how to focus on what I could control, and what I couldn’t. My family fought very hard and together breathed a sigh of relief when finding out about my mother being a survivor in remission from the claws of cancer. This first hurdle was just a warm up for the future though as during my Freshman year of High School, my mom started to grow sick again. A new illness rapidly took hold of my mom, reducing a once strong cancer survivor to a fragile, weak woman. Similar to the attack of cancer cells, my mother’s white blood cells were destroying her muscles, reducing her to having to use a walker. This autoimmune disease was the first of many to cripple my mother over my High School career. Going through the basic struggles of High School is hard enough without adding the qualification of being the new adult at home to cook, clean, delegate, and keep up the family personnel. The most aggravating reality was that nothing I could do would directly heal the sickness my mother was, on some occasions, hospitalized for or cure her of ailments facing her. This reality was unacceptable for someone like me who is fundamentally pragmatic when facing issues. Learning the lesson of controlling what I could from my counselors at Camp Kesem, helped put my pragmatic mindset to good use. I became the backbone of my family, assisting in anything I could to take the load of my mother. As my mother got stronger, my family looked strong in rounding the curve of my mother’s diseases. Now being a Freshman in college, I am actively a part of the same Camp Kesem that has taught me so much in tackling life’s greatest challenges. I have been able to actively help teach the successful strategy of focusing on what you can control to people also facing seemingly unmanageable situations. The Power of Positive ThinkingMaria Scott
The year was 1963, that summer on August 16th my mother turned 12 years old and three weeks later on September 7th she gave birth to me. Just a child herself, my mother was in not prepared for motherhood. A few weeks before I was born my mother tried to commit suicide, fearing that my grandparents would rip me away from her at birth, and she was right. I was placed into foster care and my grandparents put my mother in a Catholic girl’s school for wayward girls. My father who was ten years my mother’s senior was charged with statutory rape. He was convicted and sent to Sing Sing, a maximum security prison in upstate New York. When I was five years old and my mother was seventeen she married and I was placed into her custody. Although she was my mother, she was a stranger to me. I was ripped away from the only family I had ever known. Life with my mother was tough, by the time she was 19 my mother had a husband and three children. That was a lot to take on at such a young age and soon after my baby brother was born and she divorced my stepfather the effects of her life began to show. She never forgave my grandmother for sending us both away and when she was just five years old I found out that my mother was molested by a family member. My mother became an alcoholic and a drug user and life for me took a turn for the worst. I was abused physically and sexually on more than one occasion. My mother continued to party, drink and use drugs and make unhealthy choices in her life that always ended up affecting me and there was nothing I could do about it. I had never met my father and my mother was all I had. I survived my childhood and in the 12th grade I got pregnant with my first child. That changed everything. Although I had grown up without the proper love and guidance I knew that I wanted different for my child and I was determined to show my child love, understanding, patience and most of all protection. I never understood why my mother never faced her demons but what I did understand was that because she never faced them they continued to have power over her life. I was determined to live a positive healthy life and to raise my children in a positive healthy environment. As soon as I gave birth to my first child at the age of 19, I moved out of my mother’s house. I worked hard every day to instill morals into my children. I taught them about the power of education and hard work and I would always love and support them. I have had my share of challenges in this life but I have also seen some victories. I have raised five beautiful children and I am the proud grandmother of 8. In 2011 we buried my 5-month-old grandson who passed away from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome while at my home. A month later on Thanksgiving day I found out about my husband’s infidelity. My children were very worried about me but what they seemed to have forgotten was that I had faced many traumatic circumstances in my life. There is no pain in this world that God can not heal. In April 2013 three days after my divorce was final and at the age of 50, I decided to go back to school and finish my degree. I am currently a senior at the University of Central Florida. I have a GPA of 3.8. My major is Sociology and I have a minor in Non-Profit Management. My children are a constant encouragement to me not only with their words but by the mere fact that I want them to see that no matter what life throws your way you can always get up, brush yourself off and push forward in a positive way. My life’s dream is to help families and to share some of the wisdom and lessons I have learned on my journey. To give families like mine, who have faced challenges and circumstances beyond their control the support to grab a hold of each other and keep on moving forward. My plans are to graduate from UCF with my undergraduate degree in Sociology in December 2017. I will then apply to grad school and pursue a master’s degree in Non-Profit Management. I plan to start a non-profit 501C3 called The Family Center which will support families and the challenges they face in today’s society. I will first conduct an analysis of the community in which my organization will be serving using a GIS (Geographical Information System). I will then develop maps that will highlight the needs of the community. Then I will work with families, businesses, community leaders and educators in that community to develop programs that will assist and support the families in these communities. I will develop a marketing campaign that will focus on the importance of the entire community coming together to help its neighbors. It will focus on bringing back the idea of neighborhoods and community responsibilities. I want to instill the ideology that “I am my neighbor's keeper”, and help them understand the idea that no one is going to be more invested in your neighborhood than you, therefore the power to bring change must come from the community, not the government. There is nothing like the power of positive thinking. Ten percent of life is what happens to you and ninety percent is how you react to it. I raised my children to never give up, never give in and never complain. When they complain to me I say “What are you going differently today so that next year you won’t be complaining about the same situation”? On October 2nd 2016 at the age of 53, I heard my father’s voice for the very first time. On November 4th 2016 my children and I fly to Puerto Rico to meet him and the next morning my father ended up in the hospital. I flew back to Puerto Rico and visited with him for a week. Twenty-four days after meeting my father for the first time, on November 28th my father passed away. I could not have been more grateful for the opportunity to have looked into his eyes and hear from his own voice say “I love you”. If I had been bitter and angry I would have lost the opportunity that I been given. I was determined stay positive and not let my mother’s negative feelings toward him taint our relationship and I am so glad I did. Life is definitely what you make it and power of positive thinking can transform a life of struggle to a life of opportunity. ResilientAriane Yumi Kreidl
Resilience is the attribute that carried me throughout my life and will help me achieve all of my dreams. Born and raised in the working class suburbs of Brazil, my life was surrounded by the selfless characters of hard working people and by the violence and injustice of a nation led by corruption. Living alongside the extremes of the Brazilian society contributed to my passion for law and to help my community. In Brazil, I was accepted into law school but unfortunately was unable to afford it. After a great amount of financial hardships and relentless trials to stand on my own feet, I decided to start my life from zero, in a place that is known for having the greatest opportunities for those who work hard, a place of second chance, a place where dreams can become reality; the United States. For the next four years, life proved to be harder than I could ever have imagined- I was an undocumented worker and barely made enough to pay my rent. At that moment, I felt that my dream of going to law school was getting further away from me. Finally, after many years of struggling for better opportunities, for the right to seek my American dream, the right to pursue higher education, I received documentation to legally work and attend school. But my moment of joy and independence was short-lived. Financial burden was a like the great wall that separate me and the opportunity to go to school. I had to still support myself and school was still a faraway dream. Not too long after, I suffered an accident at work, requiring spinal surgery later that year. At that moment, my life changed dramatically, I was no longer able to work or carry on my daily life as any other young adult; I was mourning the death of a person that I used to be. After one year trying to find myself again, I came to the realization that this accident was a wake-up call that meant to put me back on the right track. Life was telling me to go back to school and pursue what I have always wanted; to go to law Kreidl 2 school. Despite all my fears of failure, I was determined to chase my dreams; and now back in school, excited about my future again, life feels complete and on the right track. College filled my life with opportunities and challenges that I am eager to overcome. Today, I am a full-time student at University of Southern California in the Marshall School of Business. I proudly represent the minorities, the students that not only struggle because of their background but also carriers the burden to support their family. I come from East Los Angeles College, a school that gives great opportunities for students where I was fortunate to work with amazing professors and tutor students at the Business Department. I also was part of the ELAC Speech Team, where developed my public speaking skills and competed against other colleges in regional tournaments, which I was blessed to win first-place in the 2016 tournament. Although I will never completely recover from my injury and despite having a great amount of financial hardships, my life feels greater than ever. The great wall between myself and my dreams of education still exists, but I have the strength and effort to climb through any difficulties to achieve my dream. My goals continues to be the same; get into law school. Obtaining my education would empower me to achieve my dream career, which would be working towards the improvement of the local community in public policy or as a human rights attorney. Throughout my life, I learned to never give up on my dreams, to be resilient. Against all the odds and despite all difficulties that I have encountered, I am still here fighting for my dreams, and I can say those difficulties only contributed to the person that I am today, and that I am very proud to be. Mind Over MatterGianna Litrell
The power of the mind is a vital yet neglected focus of living. We are aware that our attitudes shape ourselves and how people interact with us, yet many are unaware that our very ways of thinking and acting impact the very future of the world. Exaggerated? Maybe. But perhaps not. So bear with me as we explore the possibilities of life, and as they are contained within ourselves. It is not easy to be “happy” or “ready” for the adversities and obstacles life and reality throw at us. Some of us are raised in a nurturing environment that protects and encourages us to be open-minded and confident, while some of us struggle to get out of bed every morning with the overwhelming feeling of purposelessness. These ways of living are heavily impacted by our positionality in society (based on race, class, and gender) and modes of thinking. We hear inspirational quotes such as, “Your vibe attracts your tribe” and the concept of “karma”, but how seriously do we live by these principles? And is it that easy? How can a person be stronger and more positive if they see no light at the end of the tunnel? If they are responsible for being the only positive person, surrounded by darkness? Personal development is a lifestyle and one that demands upkeep and offers a “better” future. Personally, I believe personal development to be the very thing humans are on Earth for. Our very consciousness strives for “more”, “greater”, and “better.” We want the most from our fleeting lives in such an infinite universe, and this temporary feeling of being a small part of the world is what I believe brings the feelings of chaos and anxiety into our human realm. We complain to relieve ourselves of our everyday strains in hope that someone cares enough to listen and provide needed insight, yet the very things we complain about and discuss with others alters their view of the world, as it expands their perspective and grants them new intellectual space to cover. Opinions, prejudices, and feelings turn into facts, stereotypes, and ideologies that rewire society. And yet, positive thinking has also managed to uplift nations and oppressed peoples who perhaps just needed to know that there is still goodness in the world. A phrase I have always liked to remember, even in the midst of my own crises, is that a smile can change the world. While sometimes it is hard to force the corners of your mouth to turn upward, that small act can brighten some else’s day and encourage them to be strong for others. Can you imagine if we all had this miniscule consideration for each other? Such is why this essay topic speaks volumes to me and touches the very essence of my soul, as I have struggled many years with positive thinking and being strong for others, which has in certain respects, made me stronger and helped me develop a more positive outlook on this complex world. While positive thinking and living is easier said than done, especially with outside forces you cannot control always trying to change you, the first step is to try. I like to tell myself that if I want to be a better person I am already a step closer. This is all a game of placebo, perhaps. Are there written guidelines to be followed to achieve enlightenment and Nirvana? No, that is the subjectiveness life provides to accommodate the shifting molds of ourselves, but the end goal is usually development. From the birth of religion to industrialization, humankind strives for the sort of development that can liberate us and project us into a brighter, more promising future. So why are we so intolerant to developing ourselves mentally? For and by ourselves for the betterment of the world? We have the power to do so, there is no doubt about that. Though I could not (and like to tell myself such) control my father leaving when I was a child, I was and am in control of how I choose to feel about him not wanting to see me or pay child support, yet I still like to remain positive so that I may not hold disdain for my younger half-siblings. I cannot control how people view and choose to judge me, but I am in control of how I must remain strong and “be myself” so that these judgments do not undermine who I really am. People cannot always control the cancers that force themselves into their bodies via factory plants, polluted water and air, and poisonously chemical foods, but we are in control of how we deal with them. Unfortunately, chemotherapy is always accessible, but foundations and charities can be utilized to uplift those very spirits and bring the power of positivity into their lives. This world is no stranger to tragedy and chaos, but it always thrives beside hope and miracles. The hope for a better future for the entire world has kept the very air in my lungs and the blood rushing throughout my body. This scholarship provides me the opportunity to continue my studies and worry less about the systemic chaos of money and its grasp on society’s new reality, and focus on the possibilities my studies can provide while continuously developing myself. Our lives are not simply about us, for we live among and from people and must realize that we are all similarly confused and uncertain about what the future brings, so let us be grateful for the quickness of time and be inspired by the power of positive thinking. Personal DevelopmentAlex Johnson
The attitude an individual possesses during difficult challenges in life, plays a pivotal role in the individual’s personal development. In the wake of trouble, an attitude of gratitude can launch a person into a maturity that would have otherwise been impossible to obtain without the necessary trials of life. The personal development that occurs through these trials, proves to be invaluable in the future. My life is an example of such development and growth. For some individuals, the growth from trials may be due to the death of a loved one or a physical illness; for others, it could be financial insecurity or marital problems. For me however, it was a crippling addiction to drugs and alcohol. An addiction that nearly killed me daily, and toward the end I became disappointed when it failed to do so. An addiction that brought havoc amidst every single facet of my life. The world I come from is rather different the many people might assume. Most people correlate drug addiction or alcoholism with broken homes; however, my story is radically different. I enjoyed an amazing childhood. My parents remain happily married after 30 years. My three older sisters always loved and cared about me. I never worried about food being on the table, the clothes on my back, or where the school supplies for the year came from. I played sports and participated socially through several outlets. I lived a quite seemingly happy life, but something was missing. I expended my childhood desperately searching for some form of purpose and belonging that I could never quite satisfy. The inability to quench my thirst for finding purpose in this life tormented me constantly. When a completed task left me unfulfilled, I casually moved on to the next, then the next; all the while feeling empty as if I accomplished nothing. The vanity of life began to grab its foothold on me and I struggled to fit in anywhere. I felt misunderstood by everyone around me in school, my friends and even my family. The constant fear of non-acceptance drove me. At the early age of sixteen, I discovered alcohol and immediately fell in love. One fateful night I purchased a bottle of red wine, and a six-pack of beer. The drunken stupor I received became the sensation that I could not live without. From that moment on, alcohol held me in its death grip, yet I continued to live my life oblivious to the path of destruction I chose to embark on. I justified my behavior by convincing myself I was a “normal” teenager who simply enjoyed excessive drinking. My behavior created tension with my parents so, as a solution, I moved out three days after my 18th birthday thereby obtaining the freedom I desperately desired. Now I could party without restrictions. During the next eighteen months, I worked, drank, and abused pain-killers. That became my existence. During that time period, the lifestyle I lived did possess a certain amount of appeal. I had fun. Different women, different parties, different drugs; I lived within the delusion of achieving the “American Dream”. I decided to further my education by attending school in a feeble attempt to discover the purpose I still searched for. I believed school might possess the solution to my trivial existence. I attended a semester at a local community college then transferred to Texas Tech University. Isolation began to dominate my life at Tech. At only 19 years old, I was drinking over two handles of whisky a week in addition to an excessive amount of beer, as well as marijuana consumption; all of which I consumed in solitude. Ironically, I took an “understanding alcoholics and addictive behaviors” course as a science elective. I convinced myself any problem remained non-existent because I wasn’t using the “hard stuff” such as heroin and cocaine. One night, after a terrible breakup with my girlfriend, I went out on the town to self-medicate. My drunken decisions placed me in a position where an older man sexually molested me. The hatred built up inside of me and I decided to go back home. I felt confused and abandoned as well as an enormous amount of hatred towards myself for allowing such a shameful thing to happen. I proceeded to get my old job back as a chef and continued to live the same life; drink, pop pills, smoke weed, work and sleep - nothing more. I despised being sober and constantly sought out better methods of intoxication. My search came to an end when an individual introduced me into heroin and cocaine. My life changed. I found it. I found the euphoria I had been desperately searching for with every fabric of my being. I found happiness; or so I thought. The happiness soon faded as any drug addict can attest to. Throughout my journey, I always placed a significant importance on work. Even though I always showed up high, and/or drunk, I never got fired from a job. For lack of a better term, I was a “functioning addict” in regards to the professional workplace. Due to my work ethic, I received a promotion into kitchen management which meant a considerable increase in pay. This increase enabled me to purchase a significantly larger number of drugs on a regular basis. Slowly but surely, my problems began to grow. Soon, I realized I needed to slow down; however, once I attempted any form of control in regards to my substance consumption, the brutal truth surfaced. I couldn’t stop. Up to this point, I possessed zero interesting in quitting. I believed the delusion that I contained within myself the necessary will power to stop anytime I desired to. When I possessed the honest desire to quit, my lack of control became astonishingly evident. Thus, I began the arduous journey of sobriety. I failed constantly. Unfortunately, despite my valiant efforts, I couldn't stay sober. I attended AA meetings, I attempted therapy, I obtained a girlfriend and used the relationship as motivation, I made countless firm resolutions to stop. Every attempt ended in failure. I became suicidal. What started as the sensation I craved constantly, quickly became the feeling I detested yet couldn’t survive without. Alcohol, heroin, and cocaine owned me. I gave up. I arrived at one simple yet morbid conclusion; this pitiful existence would engulf my destiny. The grim reaper began his approach. I attempted suicide via drug overdose. Failed attempts only strengthened my resolve. I taunted death by driving down the highway, traveling 110mph, drunk and coked out of my mind. I screamed at God with all my might to kill me. Every day that I woke up breathing, I possessed an intense anger towards a God that I ironically didn’t even believe in. I despised life. I began cutting myself because self-mutilation became the only method of confirming my deplorable existence during massive drug binges. The grim reaper was on my doorstep. Substance abuse trapped me inside a living hell to which there seemed no escape. I lived a double life. I continued to maintain my profession identity at work by ingesting only the necessary number of drugs to prevent withdraw sickness. I played the actor daily and somehow held everything together. During a hectic shift on a Friday night, several cooks walked to the restaurant parking lot and drank alcohol. Because of several witnesses, sending them home became my only option. The corporate office god wind of the situation and my hands were tied. The next day, I fired all three with a bag of drugs in my pocket and the smell of fresh coffee and cigarettes attempting to mask the whisky on my breath from that very morning. The guilt tormented me. I wish I could tell the narrative of what happened over the course of the next two months; however, I possess no recollection of the events that occurred. I needed a miracle. I was a hopeless case. My miserable life had caught up with me and I had nowhere to run. The miracle I so desperately craved finally arrived on May 10th, 2014. The police apprehended me for drunk driving and while lying on that hard cement floor, I began to go into alcohol and heroin withdraws. In that moment, it dawned on me. I always attempted recovery on my terms. Who am I to dictate how to run my own life? I kept failing miserably. I finally reached out for help. After years of waiting, my parents breathed a sigh of relief when they finally received my phone call phone call crying for help. They immediately helped me check into a treatment center. Throughout my life, I viewed God through a religious lens, and therefore became trapped within the legalistic rules and regulations of religion. This viewpoint brewed hatred and inhibited me from fully understanding the simple relationship component. Though I still possessed a tremendous amount of resentment toward God because of this viewpoint; I finally gave my will over to him. I decided to participate in life on His terms and see what would become of it. I gave myself the ultimatum, if my decision didn’t work, then I would finally build up enough courage to put a bullet it my head. I attempted everything else under the sun to get sober and nothing worked so I might as well give the whole God thing a chance. Upon the simple cornerstone of the 3rd step in AA, I experienced breakthrough. Through the process of working a 12-step program, my selfishness exposed itself and I finally understood the behavioral pattern that blocked me from achieving any form of success in sobriety. I lived a self-seeking lifestyle driven by fear. I fell victim to the lie that I was too far gone to be loved by anyone, let alone a perfect God. This thinking process began to turn around through therapy I received in treatment; however, the suicidal thoughts still plagued me. I couldn’t see how I could be of any use to anyone. Everyone in treatment kept talking to me about being helpful and how my story could have an impact; however, I did not understand how that would be possible. I still fell short of finding my purpose in this world. As time went on, new guys came into treatment broken down and full of despair. Then it suddenly occurred to me, I travelled the exact same path this person traveled, I know exactly what that young man is experiencing right now. So, I simply started helping the new guys. That became the moment where I found the most amazing aspect of life. Service towards others. Upon completing treatment, I moved into a sober living home in Denton, Texas. The structured environment gave me the amazing opportunity of practicing many recovery principles daily. Through continuous work with my sponsor and growing my relationship with God, I started realizing the full extent of how much my story of hope could help others. I have been given opportunities to give back and be of service in ways I thought were impossible. During my time in Denton, I lead a recovery meeting at my old treatment center. When I moved out of sober living, I continued my involvement by sponsoring men in the house through the 12 steps as well as leading a step study meeting with my sponsor. These amazing experiences gave me countless opportunities to grow through the service of others. My entire life I believed a person might find purpose and happiness through material possessions, professional status, or even fame. However, in my experience nothing can be further from the truth. I found my purpose driven life through self-sacrifice and service to others. Upon that simple foundation, the freedom and joy I receive daily is unexplainable. Every day I possess an attitude of gratefulness. I am grateful that I am alive. I am grateful that my family never gave up on me. I am grateful that I have been given the tools necessary to help others who are struggling with addiction and depression. My attitude is what gives me fuel to be of maximum service towards others. I took my life for granted and almost paid the ultimate price. I stared at death and laughed. I am lucky to have walked away. I want people to know they aren’t alone in their fight. I finally found my purpose that I had been searching for since I was a little boy. Helping others. Sometimes, people ask me if I had a chance go back and change everything if I would. Frankly, I wouldn’t trade my past for anything, I am grateful for it. My addiction put me in a position of desperation where I now possess a relationship with God that I could have never even dreamt of. I appreciate life so much more in hindsight of my trials. Even the mundane daily tasks of life are enjoyable to me simply because of how grateful I am to not be taking up residence in a grave. At its core, the ability to possess a grateful attitude is only a matter of perspective. Personal development can be very difficult, it can be painful, it can be downright revolting. However, with the right perspective, and the proper attitude of gratitude, an individual can turn the growth trail from the most negative event in their life, to the most positive event in their personal development. All it takes, is a little hope, and the proper attitude. Dominant ThoughtsVai Patri
I’ve always known that I possess many talents. Mentally, I have no shortage of intelligence. I’ve harnessed the strength to overcome many challenges through out life: my addictive eating disorder, constant bullying, abusive relationships, and family dysfunction. However, I was the one obstacle I had never overcome, and as a consequence, the challenge that had presented itself daily was none other than my mentality. Equilibrium was a difficulty, one that I faced outwardly and inwardly. Externally, I constantly struggled with the balance of being a musician, full time student and worker. Internally, I was in persistent psychological warfare: The painful, traumatizing influences and mistakes of the past were the offense, and my passion for music and thirst for diligence was the defense. Is this the right decision? Is this who I am? Why would I do something like that? I want to be better. So why am I destroying myself? I was stuck in the negative existence of my past, while wanting to excel in my present so that I could cherish the future. I would take one step forward and three steps back. As someone with an intense cardinal personality, this all left me in a state of constant frustration, depression, and perplexity. I was impeded by this state of ruinous turmoil for years - until I had been introduced to a wonderful novel, “The Secret”. Rhonda Byrne, along with twenty-four gurus who had participated in the creation of novel had changed my life for the better, because they had changed the way I thought for the better. They helped me to realize something incredibly vital: I had a choice. I had already asked for forgiveness, forgiven myself, and learned from my mistakes. So why was I still living in the same anguish? The Law of Attraction answered me: “like attracts like”. If one were to think one bad thought, like bad thoughts would attract to that one bad thought, engendering a cluster of negativity. There was nothing wrong with me; there was simply something wrong with what I thought. This was a truth, and once I had become enlightened, I changed my life. The Law of Attraction taught me that my dominant thoughts were the most powerful; what they were, I was. Previously, my dominant thoughts had not been of my music; they had been of my negative past. Therefore, I had been living in that negative past. I began to think more and more of my music. Every time I found myself thinking negative thoughts, I snapped. I was able to tell myself, this is not what matters. Music matters, your health matters. You matter. I had never really done this before. After seven years, I had finally begun to think positively and with clarity. I finally began to heal, and in doing so, left my past where it belonged: deceased, in the past. By changing the concentration of my dominant thoughts, I changed the course of my actions. I was elevated. I have something magnificent to offer this world, I thought, and so I took initiative to better myself in all aspects. I had always struggled in the gym and with my diet, so I began to focus on the proper nourishment my body desperately needed, and envisioned myself in the strong physique I had always longed for. As a result, I began to work out more efficiently in the gym, which lessened my compulsive emotional eating. Instead of lying in bed grieving, I thought fervently about my aptitude, and began to write new music. I even finished composing songs I had begun to write when I was fifteen, which for me, was colossal. Instead of being bitter about all that had gone wrong in my life, I bought books on music marketing and placed an emphasis on educating myself. I began to create set lists of songs for open mics, searching for a band to play with me during live performances, and putting together an album to share with fans. Instead of running away from my music, I began to play and immerse myself in it. As the stress from the lack of focus on my music began to diminish, my grades improved and I sincerely began to enjoy and appreciate school. In class, instead of thinking of what I would rather be doing, I began to think how as an artist, it is important to possess a well of knowledge; inspiration can come from anywhere, at anytime, from anyone. These were all simple tasks I had been avoiding for years, and by placing my energy and dominant thoughts on what I wanted most (to be a touring musician with a solid education and a healthy lifestyle), I began to gravitate toward becoming just that. The Law of Attraction had permitted me one thing I had been yearning for: internal peace, which I found in perceiving what had happened had happened, I was young, and I could do whatever I thought I was capable of doing. I finally have started to become the human being I had always wanted to become: strong, independent, vigorous, hard working, balanced, and foremost, focused. I am ready this life, and I have made this my authoritative thought. As a result, my life has become ready for me. DreamsLeroy Parker
"Leroy, don't ask any questions. Just gather your stuff and get in the car." Those were the two sentences I never thought I would hear come out of my mother’s mouth. In 2008, my world was torn apart inside and out as my family was physically splitting at the seams. A family built on the values of honesty and purity had now been desolated at the hands of lust. We learned on the night of my 10th birthday, that our mother was having an affair. Despite the dark world my family was entering, enduring this struggle was gradually becoming a lifelong lesson that I needed. My family reached its breaking point once my parents separated. We had gradually fallen under the influence of alcoholism, drug abuse, and physical violence amongst my siblings and I. I knew I could not let this define who I am. My parents have always emphasized the importance of excelling in education; strongly under the influence that they themselves failed to attend college. One night my siblings and I woke up to screaming and banging coming from our garage. All we could hear was our father and mother yelling at the top their lungs at one another. Occasionally my parents argued but not to this extent; where we heard objects being thrown around. The feeling of numbness flowed through my entire body. Terrified to the point that I could no longer move. The only thought occurring in my head was that this quite possibly could be our last night together as a family, so my immediate reaction was to hold my siblings as tears streamed down our faces. Anger, sadness, and shock cannot equate to the emotions I was having at that moment. As my family started separating the essence of hate built up towards my mother. I’ll never forget the incident when I got in my mother’s face screaming and my older brother punched me. As I was laying on the ground blood began profusely coming out of my nose, everything was a blur. That was until I looked over and everything became clear. I saw my little brother and sister looking at me, crying, in utter shock. I could see the fear in their eyes and the breaking of their hearts. Our family was broken and I was breaking it even more. Looking back on this situation, I would not be the person I am today without overcoming this daunting time. My strength and will were tested daily. I am not only proud of my academic achievements, but also my development as a person. Growing up I was always the quiet kid in the corner that many bullied. But with the pain that was consuming me, I learned that I must stand up for myself. With that being said, my maturity developed as I learned that I must not react on instinct. Rather make the responsible decision. The idea of “think first, act later” was once so foreign to me. As a 10-year-old becoming the primary source of guidance made me grow up much sooner than I should have. At first I thought “How could I take on the responsibility of guiding my siblings, since I had so much to learn myself?” But as time went on my education and drive for my future began to flourish. The perception of excelling in school previously being an “option;” now became a “must”. Attending Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University and being a first-generation college student will be my key to building a better future for not only myself, but also my family. Academic excellence has always been a huge point of emphasis of mine. I am currently ranked number three in my class allowing me to attain prestigious awards such as Superintendent’s List, which requires a student to have above a 4.0 GPA throughout the course of high school. A vast involvement in extracurricular activities, such as varsity football, marching band, National Honors Society, and Student Government have instilled core values like responsibility, discipline, respect, and diligence. These values have made me the student I am today. It is apparent that many in family still place their hope in the greater good of my future. Although this serves as my motivation, I have come to the realization that I am the only one that can make this “hope” a reality. Nobody controls my path in life except for myself. Typically, people would dwell on the negative in their past, but the fact that I have only grown both academically and in maturity is what sets me apart from my peers. I am now stronger because if I could make it through that situation at only 10-years-old, I can overcome anything. My dreams are in the palm of my hand and now it is time to grab them. Being The ChangeShaelyn Waite
Waking up at 6 in the morning is not pleasant. Waking up at 6 in the morning to go to a 14-hour shift is painful. Waking up at 6 in the morning to go to a 14-hour shift and work with a difficult boss is downright intolerable. Life became unlivable. I felt stuck. I was miserable at work and when I was not at work, I was stressing about going back to work. After a few months, I began to feel depressed. I learned a valuable life lesson. If one is not happy with their life, change it. I took matters into my own hands. I began to look for a new job. Could not Control: Needing money for life payments. Could Control: Where I work At first I had no success. Despite my rejections, I felt hope! I felt hope because I was taking charge and not waiting for life to change on its own. I was not blaming my boss for making my life miserable but instead focusing on my attitude toward the situation. A few months later I found a job that I love more than all of my passed jobs. I currently am working at a funeral home where I am able to help families plan funerals for their deceased loved ones. I feel love and compassion for my clients who are suffering and hurting. I enjoy working and serving those that surround me. This job works around my school schedule, great work environment, and I get to speak Spanish. I learned that I have more control over my life than I thought. I learned that if I am not happy with something, change it. AnxietyOlivia Napolitano
All my life I have been riddled with a monster so many have faced: anxiety. I have been a worrier since I was a young child. When I was a kid it was little things like “Do they like me,” or “Am I weird,” because I did not want to be left out or forgotten. I wanted to fit in and be like all the “cool kids” since I knew those who were not a part, were made fun of and bullied. I felt like it was normal behavior at the time to be worried about stuff like that because I did not have much else to think about. Since then, it enveloped into something greater. As I grew, the more I participated in school, church, sports, and as I participated more, the more my stress grew with it. In high school, people saw me from the outside as this bubbly, overachieving girl. That is not how I felt on the inside. I was dying inside. I wished to be a child again with less stress. I still worried about whether or not people liked me, but mostly I freaked about my grades. I had never gotten anything lower than an ‘A’ in any of my classes since grade school. I was challenging myself not only academically due to the International Baccalaureate classes and Honors classes, but also in extracurricular activities. I was an officer for FFA (Future Farmers of America), Treasurer for Student Council, member of National Honors Society, Culture Club, and also played varsity volleyball and varsity tennis. I had more than enough to balance on my plate. I cried every night. I was stressed beyond capacity. I had mountains of homework every night to add on to my practices or meetings. My grades were slowly going down because of the tough curriculum even though I was trying my best. I did all my homework for hours every night. I studied harder than I ever had for all the tests. However, I was not holding myself to a high enough standard. For the first time I had gotten not only one B, but three. That was where I kind of gave up. I knew it was too late to fix my grades. I stopped caring about everything. I was begging my parents to let me drop the International Baccalaureate classes or let me do online school. I did not want to see my friends and I could still play sports through online. It seemed like a perfect solution. The only thing was, deep down I knew I would miss my clubs even if I kept saying I would not. My extracurricular activities were what made going to school worth it. I loved being an officer in Future Farmers of America. Agriculture was a passion of mine. My brothers, dad, and Papa were a part of it. Then there was Student Council which was my favorite. I got to help make all the decisions for the school. Then there was National Honors Society which looked great on college applications. Lastly, there was the culture club. We were going on a trip to the Mediterranean coast. That trip meant the world to me. All of these clubs helped me escape the stress of school and my grades. It did not last though. I ended up dreading going to each meeting or function. My anxiety took over and I spent more time crying then with people. However, one day my lovely mother sat down and had a talk with me. She asked me why I was so stressed over things that I could not fix.” I did not have an answer for her. She explained further stating how proud her and my dad were of me. She told me it was okay to drop the IB classes. My mom explained that if I was not personally able to fix something, that I should not be anxious over it. There is nothing I can do in those type of situations. I am powerless. It finally clicked: I could not control everything. Once I had that mindset, I knew I needed to only focus on things in my power. Maybe I could not bring my grades up, but I could still try. I could try to give my all to my sports. I could try in all my extracurricular to be a leader. This changed gave so much freedom to my soul. I was truly happy again. I exceeded in the non-IB classes, and even in some International Baccalaureate classes. Giving it all to my sports also paid off. My team for volleyball made it to final four in state. Also in tennis my team did the same, and my doubles partner and I placed third in state. Those wins boosted my morale. I was even noticed for my leadership in my clubs. Kids would come to me how I did a good job. Overall, even though parts of the year were an awful time for me, to this day I will never forget to only “focus on the things that I can control.” I may have ended that year with keeping those three B’s, but also keeping my happiness because of eight simple words. My Thoughts on The Power of Positive ThinkingNicholas C. Guzy
Negative thinking is a plague that I have seen sweep over the people I’ve grown up with throughout my entire life. There have been a select few that taught me how to think positively even when you don’t believe in yourself. Magic happens when you give yourself the power of positive thinking and that is the magic of transformation. To understand the remedy of positive thinking we have to understand the sickness of doubt. Doubt is a sickness that has plagued the underdogs, the poor, and the middle class. It finds its way inside the brain of these people because they are told that they aren’t as good as the top tier that control all the rules, jobs, and hold public office. To become bigger than you were once before it takes believing in yourself and telling yourself that you are better than how people perceive you and to make them see that. Some people love seeing us succeed but many people feel threatened by the success of others and this is when the seed of doubt tries to be planted by others and it must be eradicated by the magic of positivity. Growing up I’ve had many people tell me that I didn’t need to go to college or that I couldn’t go. I have struggled with hearing all my life that I’m not good enough or that I should change something about myself but it was when I met my friend Patrick Nelson that I learned what it meant to fake it until you make it. It wasn’t just trying to make others believe that you were just fine the way you were but it meant making yourself believe that you were already the perfect self you wanted to be. He taught me the way of the Buddha opening my eyes to chakras and energy and how they work in the world. The power of positivity loosely states that if you put good out you’ll get good in and that is something that I have witnessed firsthand. I have worked in the food service industry for the last 6 years of my life and I can’t even count on both of my hands how many times I’ve been positive towards a customer and at least one of three things would happen. They would go from looking sad to happy, they would infect other people around them with happiness because of our interaction, or they would even say thank you I’m actually going to have a good day now because of how you’ve treated me. This is just one way the power of being positive affects life; it can affect your own life in a much more direct way. Good things happen to you because of the collection of all your experiences throughout your entire life and you have a hand in making it so. I like to call this the snowball effect of smiles. If you start your day out with one good thing the chances of having another good thing happen increase and again after that and eventually you come to this tipping point where you have created this happy bubble so large around you that you’re going to make everything around you a good experience that the bad doesn’t even have a chance to find its way inside. Now this is a really simple way to have a good day but what that means is having more good days and having the opportunity to meet more people to help you on your journey to achieving the self-image you’ve already set in your mind. My point from before is that we already are as we view ourselves in our mind but maybe we just are unrefined and need to take more steps to fully be realized by our peers until we reach that point of evident success. During my life I’ve been riddled with self-doubt that I wasn’t good enough for a degree, have a better paying job, and wasn’t good enough to make a difference in the world but over the last four years I’ve learned to tell myself that I am good enough to do these things and in doing so I have been making steps in the right direction to make these things happen. I have held positions of power, became a manager at two jobs and am about to be a manager at a third, and have completed two full years of my degree even though it has taken me longer than two years to do it. People like me who face adversity on a daily basis need to hold themselves up high and show the world that they are better than bottom of the barrel. This is the power of positive thinking and it will take you to places you only read about. 5:00amMatthew Dietz
ASU Waking up at 5:00am isn’t fun for a college sports prospect. You start with foggy vision that aches each time you start to blink. As you start to move out of bed your muscles throb with fury as the result of yesterday’s practice. You move closer to the edge of the bed but begin to feel the smooth sheets and fluffy pillows pull you back. Some days it can seem impossible to leave the bed, but you the closer the clock gets to the start of your class or work day the less comfortable you begin to feel. Whether you are an adult going to work or a 210 lb. college linebacker prospect getting ready for the first workout of the day, the time you get up in the morning is the first decision made in the day. My mindset always has been the earlier you are up in the morning the more time you have to work hard throughout the day. In my case, the reward of being the best football player I could be outweighed the price of sleeping in. Unfortunately, I never had the power to adjust the time practices starts in the morning. If I did have the power, practice wouldn’t be held that early! However, I knew there was an end goal to my sleep woes that would make it all worth it, becoming a college football player. It took 5 years of work. 5 years of my youth compressed with protein shakes, two-a-days (two workouts per day), recruiting camps, film study, highlight film manufacturing, less sleep, and personal development to get to where I was at the start of my senior year in high school. My body was in the best shape I had ever been in, my football knowledge was crisp, and I was a developed young man ready to take the stage in my final High School football season and lead the Pinnacle Pioneers to their first state title, and earn a scholarship doing it. My goals weren’t fueled by pseudo-confidence by any means. We were a good team. As the year went on, the 2012 Pinnacle Pioneers gained tons of notoriety for being a frisky defensive team with an aggressive rushing offense that completed the regular season at 8 wins and 2 losses. Going into the post-season, we had the chance to host a playoff game against Westview high school and start our playoff run. However, my health wasn’t so sharp going into the game. Since the 2nd game of the 2012 season, I had been nursing a right knee injury that had kept me from playing at full potential. Throughout the season the the pain was manageable because it was intermittent, but what I felt during playoff game-on 11/02/2012-was different, worse. The cold November weather tightened up my muscles and joints more that day because each step taken shot even more pain through the anterior of my knee. I felt like a car driving with a broken suspension. My right knee hydraulic stopped working and every step felt as uncomfortable as a rusty nail screeching across a chalkboard. Then the worst happened. I went down and couldn’t get up. Not only did my right knee give out but my left knee was hit directly with another helmet. To this point in my athletic career there has been numerous moments of negativity in the company of adversity, but I have found prosperity in the chaos of doubt before. Adversity is never easy to overcome though. Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan ‘till they get punched in the mouth”, and in that moment its hard to not let negativity and fear overwhelm you. I was scared, I will admit that; I even cried because never has an injury held me back from playing in a game before. I thought my college football hopes were over as I was helped off the field. The Power of Positivity is a strong force though-in life and in football-and whatever the prognosis was, I would remain positive. The MRI results can back several days later and showed I had torn bilateral patellar tendons. I was shocked and could feel my college football stock slipping, but a glimpse of my positive core remained. I wasn’t ready to give up on my dream and wipe away 5 years of pounding protein shakes, hard work, getting up at 5:00am to train, and most importantly 5 years of thinking positive while working toward my goal. My favorite quote of all time is said by Confucius, “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” Needless to say, months later, I earned my scholarships I wanted and is still one of the most precious glories I have ever had and will always treasure. How I Find the Special Thing of My LifeNguyen Nguyen
Steve Jobs said, “Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” Since I read this speech, I always believed, “There will be another chance after that crisis.” I try to maintain a positive attitude, I used it to conquer the biggest failure of my life. I was born in Vietnam and my family was very traditional. My father was a head son of a long-time family, so I was supposed to become the next head son in my family. Especially, I was the only son in my family. All my cousins were girls, so people counted on me very much. People said I would become the face of the family soon. With their expectation, I had to be the best in everything. Because I was still a young boy, my studying was the most priority thing with them. I woke up at 6 am and went home at 10 pm every day. After studying at school, I went to my teachers’ houses for more studying. People in my family wanted me to get ahead of all other kids my age. Truthfully, I did not disappoint them. I was very successful in school. My best subject in school was Math. In the high school entrance exam for my city, I had the highest score. I was chosen for a special program representing the math team in my city. My rank was 30/100 in that Math Team. I got into the second best high school in Ho Chi Minh city. People in my family were very proud of me. This was the best time of my life. Like all stories in the world, I fell off that high mountain of achievement. I failed in the Olympic Math Contest of South Vietnam. It was designed to choose who could keep going on the Math Professional way. After failing that contest, everything closed to me. I could not attend any bigger Math Contests anymore. It was a shock with me. Imagine, you have learned only Math since you were 3rd grade. All things you have in your life - compliments, admiration, proud - came from Math. At that time, I lost everything. I could not see any hopes in my future. Since that failure, I had more time in my life. I did not have to study as much as I used to do. I had more free time in my life. I used it in reading books. The first book I read was “Steve Jobs – The Power of Thinking Different” by a Vietnamese author. I also read Steve Jobs’s graduation speech. Since that time, my life turned a new page. I had choices, I could choose to live with my failure or rise up. Fortunately, I chose to rise up. I began my new journey by finding another thing I could be passionate about. I wanted to find a thing that I could do the rest of my life. It was not easy to find that special thing, but I was not in a rush. I went slowly on my daily life and noticed things I never noticed before. I quit the mad race. I woke up every day and came to school with a question in my mind, “what do I love most in my life?” I rode my motorbike through the roads of my city. I came back to old places where I had a lot of memories. I tried my best to find that special thing. One day, I realized what I loved most in my life were street foods of my country. Because I could not get home for lunch and dinner, I have eaten street foods since I was a young boy. I found out that I also love serving people too. I wanted to see their smiles and happiness after eating my foods. I wanted to give them the most valuable thing in this world – the warmth of love in my dishes. I also knew all the ways to cook those street foods. Especially, I had a special and exotic culture to share with this world – Vietnamese Street Food. I decided to come to the U.S. A lot of people prevented me and said, “U.S dreams die.” However, they did not know that this was not the first of my dreams to die. I stood up and was stronger than I was before. I set a plan for myself to achieve my dream. I wanted to open a chain of Vietnamese Street Foods restaurants in America. I worked very hard in high school and got into Johnson & Wales University with a scholarship. My major was Hotel Management. I believed that these skills will help me to build a chain of restaurants. Jack Ma said, “Never give up. Today is hard, tomorrow will be worse, but the day after tomorrow will be sunshine.” I know there will be more obstacles on my new way. I will fail again. Fortunately, I am not scared of failure anymore because I believe that there will be a bright future waiting for me after that. I always stay optimistic. I head up into a new race. There will be tears, and blood, but I will never fear anymore. I will go on my new road with faith in a bright future. The Visions of a ScholarDe'Shounda Raymond
On the first Thursday morning in September 1997, I was born. This was September 4th, 1997. I was not created purposely, but was the accident of a naive teenager and an irresponsible adult. When I was born, my mother was seventeen years old and my father was twenty-eight years of age. They are Nora and Frederick My mother was not equipped to take care of a child at that age, so I ended up in the care of my loving grandparents. My grandmother’s name is Dorothy and my grandfather’s name was Jimmy. By the time my mother was pregnant with her last child, my sister Nyla, me and my brother Reginald were legally under the guardianship of my grandma and my grandpa had passed away in the year 1999. When my sister was born in 2002, my mom willingly gave her to my grandma. Later down the road, my grandma was also taking care of two of my other cousins. It was hard growing up in a household with six people and only three bedrooms and one bathroom. It was hell. The older I grew, the more depressed I became. By the time that I turned twelve, I would barely sleep, I ate non-stop, I was bullied in school, and I was immersed in books. When I was old enough to realize that the situation that I was in was unlike others and that my family was worse than poor, I made a promise to myself. I would be successful. I wouldn’t let my situation depress to the point that I would think that there was no other way to get out. I knew that I wasn’t stuck in my position. I also knew that the only way out would be to continue my education. So, I continued to read everything and anything that I could get my hands on. When I was eight, my sister, brother, my cousin Jimmy II, and myself were put into Foster Care. That wasn’t the first time for my brother and me. Our first time was when he was in an accident caused by our mom and his dad when he was a newborn. That was when my mom lost custody of us. We didn’t know that we were there that first time until recently. The second time, I remember perfectly. I was eight, my sister was three and my brother and cousin were both five. They split the boys and girls apart and I rarely got to see them or the rest of my family. We would have scheduled visits to see them every couple of weeks. I remember going even deeper into my depression until I wouldn’t speak anymore. Those six months were very hard for me. By the second grade, I was reading at an eighth grade level. During those times, I found my love for numbers. I had somehow gotten ahold of a math textbook that was far past my levels of understanding. I disliked, and still dislike, not understanding something. To me, it shows incompetence, and I never want to feel inferior. So, I taught myself everything that was in that book. My passion for math is something I don’t understand still. Perhaps I like it because it's practical. Plus, there’s a straightforward answer for every equation. It’s simple and to the point, I take comfort in that. I grew up in East Saint Louis. This community is drug ridden and poverty stricken. I didn’t want to live there. I hated to go places and tell people “I’m from East Saint Louis”. I was ashamed of my origins. I was ashamed of my household. I was ashamed of my family. Looking back at how I saw my family and household, I feel disappointed in myself. I knew then, just like I know now, that my grandmother is doing all that she can for us. She stopped going to school in the seventh grade and she can’t work because of an impairment. This, I knew, but I still put some of the blame on her about how we live. She loves us with her entire soul. I regret every single word that I said about our predicament. I’m just grateful that she cared enough to take care of my brother, sister, cousins and myself. She could have easily let us get lost in the system. I will make everything up to her, as I owe my future success to her care and nurturing. Now, we live in Cahokia, Illinois. Yet, it's no better than East Saint Louis. I’m not as depressed as I was before. Or, perhaps I try to make myself believe that. I tell myself that if I force myself to smile and laugh, then one day it will become genuine. I believe that it’s getting closer and closer to the truth, because, I can see a bright future for myself. When I leave campus for breaks and weekends, it's like a reminder to myself. I can’t give up on myself. No matter how hard, or expensive college gets, I must prevail. It is a must because I never want to end up how my family did. I want to do all that I can to help them. I also try to get my younger cousins and siblings on campus as much as I can. I am the eldest grandchild, so they look up to me. I want to show them that there is a better way of living and they don’t have to continue with the lifestyle that they have. I strive to give them hope. That is my aspiration, this is my goal. I want to show them what success looks like. I will do everything in my power to do just that. To achieve my goals, I will continue my education. If I run out of money and funds to pay for it, I will join the military and pay for it that way. I have studied hard my entire life. I have always forced myself to take the most rigorous courses and to push myself to my limit. I have felt great pain and guilt for even just getting a C on a midterm, or having too many B’s on a report card. My limit is two and even saddened to say that. I will not stop doing those things just because I am in college and have so called ‘freedom’. I never had it, because I disciplined myself. The only difference between now and then is that whenever I am finished with work and have nothing to worry about studying for, I reward myself. The first time I ever went to a party was here on campus. I went to my second ever football game here. I won’t let theses things distract me from my initial goal though. My family will always come first, even before myself. Also to achieve my goals, the first steps I will take are to maintain my gpa, build connections with my professors, and look for internships. I will keep my gpa afloat by studying harder and practically living in the library. I hope to build lasting connections with the professors who teach any of the business classes. These are some of the people that I need to connect with, because networking is a key to prosperity. I also hope to intern somewhere soon. My goal is to get not only experience within my field, but also to create strong ties with some of the leading individuals. To sustain my visions for my future, I think of my family. I know that they deserve better. So, I will give them what they deserve. I don’t even think that they know that I think of them in the manner that I do. I know that they understand that I care for and love them. I’m sure though, that they don’t know that I look to them for mental support. They are the reason that I strive the way I do. Most of my attention is focused on the younger people in my family. I know that their minds can still be sculpted to follow in footsteps similar to mines. I don’t believe that college is right for everyone, but what I want for them is to dream of doing something with their lives. Then, I want them to follow those dreams. I want to make that type of impact on them. Sadly, I believe that I am losing my brother and cousin. They are both sixteen years old and I can tell that they are going down a path that is very similar to other African American youths in our community. This information scares me and makes me feel like somewhat of a failure. It scares me because they no longer see a bright future for themselves. They’ve given up on school and they’re always finding trouble. It makes me feel like a failure because I gave myself the job of trying to be a person that they could look up to. Honestly, I had very little control of that. They are very proud of me, but I am not an African American male. There is only so much that I can do. I hope to, somehow get them back on the right track. On the other hand, I think that I am doing quite well with my little sister and cousins Deanna and Ty’Shounda. Nyla, my sister, is so much like me. When I watch her, it's like I’m watching my past. She’s maintaining her grades, she is reading everything, and she draws just as much as I used to. I am not happy that she is like me, I am proud that she is looking up to me. The only thing that I have wanted was to be a positive influence and I am succeeding with her. Deanna is such a sweetheart. She is my grandmother’s third grandchild. I remember growing up, she followed me around everywhere. When we were small children, she called me ‘bebama’, because she couldn't pronounce ‘De’Shounda’. I am surprised that she thinks of me so highly. I am only two years older than she is. Ty’Shounda, the second grandchild surprises me the most. She is only eight months younger than me. Whenever they come to see me, Deanna and Ty’Shounda are the first ones out of the car and into my arms. We grew up so close to each other. We were raised like sisters rather than cousins. I know that I have influenced them. They had both decide to attend community college to stay close to their mother, my aunt La’Shounda. After seeing me go away for college, Ty’Shounda now wants to transfer and Deanna no longer wants to go to a community college after she graduates. So, to sustain my vision, I look to my family, they are my inspiration. The love I have for them is what helps fuel my desire for success. They are the ones I look to when I’m sad, when I need support, when I’m happy and want to share good news, when things are going horrible for me, and whenever I just need someone to talk to. I know that they can’t do much for me financially, but everywhere else, they always come through. My family is my incentive to be a leader and follow my dreams and goals. The Law of AttractionZachery Berry
ASU The Law of Attraction states, that what you are seeking is also seeking you. It’s almost like a fluid, moving body of water, staying its course just long enough to make it to the ocean. That’s where they were destined to meet. Of course, it isn’t always easy. Tractive forces must be strong enough to get the body over each barrier. Whether it’s the dirt, or the barren landscape in front of its, eventually the river cuts through. Little by little, until the river meets the ocean. Going on its course, until it finds where it feels most at home, that’s attraction. Never open minded for a separate goal. Water doesn’t go up, it follows gravity, flowing down the path of least resistance until it ends up where it in fact needs to be. If I wanted to be a great musician I would simply need to start working my way towards playing music. Listening to it, feeling it and then when the timing is right, practice putting my fingers through the motions. Little by little, the notes make an ocean. Flowing like water, buoyant, but focused. If you put your mind into achieving the things you want, you’ll find them. Otherwise, you’d never have the urge to flow. Not unless acted by another force anyway, not unless called by a different goal. This is what steered be down into the wrong valley. I became divorced; afraid. Then right there, I felt something tug, it wasn’t a new romance, it was almost just a breeze. So, I followed it, because greater men than me had talked about listening to it. Then almost as if a dream, I woke up knowing full well that on the other end of chasing this dream, I’ll find what it is I’m looking for. The ocean, to my meandering stream. Collected thoughts of days old shoved in boxes and I moved to try and start again. When I began unpacking, I saw the pieces of what I could have been, what I told myself I’d be. As I pulled out each piece, a reminder flashed before my eyes. A history of every idea and every question I had never fully answered. To me, alone in that room, with only my failed dreams I saw one goal. To secure the opportunity for me to become the man that my son needs me to be. To display honor, courage and self-sacrifice. To find the love that I’d dreamed would lay down in the grass to classical music when all of this is said and done. I want to stare at the clouds knowing that if I die, I brought bliss to others. I want to walk the pavement, seeing memories of me collecting trash on the ground, or of the birds I had witnessed at that location. The truth is, I want great things for the world, like an endless beauty. What we seek is doing the same. It’s supposed to. If I dream of a huge accomplishment, like saving the world, eventually it would come to fruition, correct? So, I cherished it. Every moment, every lesson. Found my heart, and then was blessed. I walked up to that garden and asked some guy for a fishnet. Fast-forward a year and a half and I had planted more plants there and lured more birds than I think most people have in their whole life. There it was though. Right in front of everyone’s eyes. The code, as I saw it. The balance of the ecosystem, as I toiled away with. So many hours spent gardening, but all that I could do keep growing. Hardly with enough time to pass my classes and get a chance to take it all in, just like that, it was gone. I graduated from Chandler-Gilbert Community College with an Associates in Science, saying farewell to those I learned to love along the way. The seeds were sown, the stories and ideas where told. The next venture had to come soon. I hear the breeze quieting down now. I feel peaceful, knowing that from here on out I can trust that if I pursue this goal, it will do the same. For when I’m done and can without a shred of doubt declare myself a conservationist, in a humble tone, I’ll see her right there. As if I knew her all along. As if the feeling she gives will just radiate from meeting her. Sadly though, the obstacle exists in that, if distracted for too long from this goal, if I never complete it, if I never come close, will I meet her? For me, that’s something that I’ll anticipate never having the regret of knowing. If I die a lonely man, I’ll die chasing a dream. If I die chasing a dream, someone else will see it. Someone else may find their attraction in it and if I died a hero, the legacy remains. That’s the secret that no one ever wants to tell you. To follow the breeze, because it’s creepy to say it that way. It’s far too spiritual or religious. But be crazy, because it’s working for me. I’m finding out, little by little, that if I truly want a life of peace for everyone but myself, eventually, entropy will steer the energy my way. Without greed, I must embrace it. Without fear I must chase it. Because on the other side, is the serenity we are all truly after. On the other side of attraction. The Power of Positive ThinkingBethany Harvey
ASU My mother sat my sisters and me down at the kitchen table to tell us that she was leaving our father. She told us that she had met someone else, but we knew more than what she was telling. Her deep depression left her longing for something more and her new love interest provided her with a numbing agent that helped her forget all of her life struggles and sorrows – cocaine. Shortly after her departure, my father was so overcome by his grief that he only found solace in his alcohol. I was only seven at the time of my parent’s separation, yet I was still able to understand the full ramifications of their inability to appreciate life enough to overcome their circumstances and see the light at the end of the tunnel. Since that time, I moved countless times between Mississippi and Arkansas, ping-ponging from family member to family member and I never quite felt at home anywhere. I remember so vividly the day I saw my homeless father walking down the street. I was riding in a car with my Aunt, and I felt pure sadness from seeing him so destitute. How had my father succumbed to his addiction? He had no one or anything in his life that he felt was worth overcoming his circumstances and it broke my heart. I screamed for my Aunt to turn around, to save my father from his loneliness and suffering, yet she stood fast, determined to let him ‘pay’ for the decisions he made in his life. Now as an adult, I understand her reasoning and the old adage of having to ‘hit rock bottom’ before rising to the top again. When I was a senior in high school, I attempted to successfully live with my mother because I thought she had changed. Upon moving in with my mother and stepfather, they dictated that I must get a job and start helping to pay my way in the household, which meant helping to pay the mortgage and purchasing my own groceries. I obtained a part time job at a local grocery store, working nights but at $5.50 an hour, I still was not able to meet my mother’s expectations. I felt so much pressure from my family to achieve financial stability that I quit high school and picked up a second job as a daycare assistant. With the two jobs combined I worked from 6:00 in the morning to 10:00 at night. I did not have any downtime and while other teenagers my age were going to the movies and borrowing money from their parents, I was giving money to mine. I had to make sure my mother and my younger siblings continued to have the things they needed. After roughly six months of working tirelessly, I caught my mother doing drugs again with my stepfather. I was devastated and once again heart broken. I had put my life and my future aside to help take care of them, while my mother did not have a job and merely wanted to use me for her own selfish reasons. I moved out of her home and into the home of my best friend’s family and they resolved to take care of me from there on out. What a wonderful family they were! My new goal in life was to graduate high school, go to college, and make a productive life for myself. I re-enrolled at my high school, but found out that I would be too behind on credits to graduate in 2006. In order to graduate with my original class, the school recommended that I take make-up courses from Mississippi State University that would help me achieve the required state courses for graduation. In addition, I had to pass the art requirement for all seniors, so one teacher allowed me to stay after school every day to make up all of the assignments I had missed. With hard work, persistence, and positive thinking, I was not only able to accomplish my goals and graduate high school with my peers, but I was also able to graduate with Honors. Throughout my journey, I almost thought it would not have been reasonably possible to accomplish such a lofty goal, but I know that my ability to envision my future and what it would take to get there would require me to stay positive and stay on task. I went on to receive additional awards as well as a few scholarships from the private college I wanted to attend and I was officially the first person within my immediate family to continue my education past high school. In fact, I was the first person to graduate from high school! Today my life has continued to thrive because of the same positive thinking that got me through my childhood and young adulthood. I started working for a top corporate company (DIRECTV, now AT&T) and I have now been employed with them for nine years. I have accepted four promotional opportunities within the organization and one of those promotions enabled me to move out of Mississippi and continue my career growth in Phoenix, AZ. My life was never easy, yet I have come to fully understand and realize that positive thinking has an overwhelming power to change life’s circumstances. The time’s I have been negative and feeling down only created a spider web of discontent and failures, so every day I choose to remain positive and upbeat, even if things do not go my way. Life will continue to offer its disappointments and struggles, but I will always remember that I have a choice in how I react and what I do with my energy. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! The Power of Positive ThinkingAllison Cravens
ASU Despite all of the nerves and anxieties I felt on my first day walking into a lecture hall at Arizona State University, the one thing that kept me feeling okay was staying positive. To be honest, that is what completely got me through my first semester of college – and what has always gotten me through in life. I powerfully believe that having a positive mind brings positive events and actions to one’s life. If everyone in this world focused on exuding love, happiness, and positivity, it would be a much better place. On the contrary, I used to not always have this mind set – and sometimes I still stray away from it. It is not as relaxed as it sounds, especially when life can get really rigid sometimes; and today, I am going to share one of those really tough, personal times with you. In the year of 2011, my family and I packed our lives away into a moving truck and moved to the sticky, hot state of Arizona. I was very blue and nervous, for I was leaving my entire childhood in the state of Washington, along with all my friends and various memories. As a kid, I was one to never really complain. I was fortunate to have grown up in an amazing home, with loving parents and the kindest of friends. Because of the happiness I maintained in my youth, I wanted to continue that onto my next adventures in Arizona. Unfortunately, since the first day of walking into my new junior high, my life was about to change drastically. I was a young and scared 13-year-old when I moved from the damp state of Washington to the barren state of Arizona. In the damp, I was friends with almost everyone that I passed in the school halls; but in the barren, I had no one. I was all on my own, and more terrified than ever. My first two months went well- I got myself a little “boyfriend”, and had made a couple of friends. I missed home, but was adjusting pretty well. Until one scorching summer day in September, this boy broke up with me and suddenly turned into a monster. Now this is not some typical sappy heartbreak story - this boy spent every breath of his on humiliating and harassing me. He would talk so cruelly about me to others- “She is so weird and gross! Do not be friends with her! She should move back home since no one likes her!”- And to my shock, people actually believed him. He found every chance he could to make my life a living nightmare; he knew exactly where to get me. This is all where the gruesome bullying began. It was not only him that started the fire, but the girls who I thought were my friends too. They tortured me, called me disgusting names, and spread awful rumors with false accusations. On top of all of the verbal harassment, one day on the school bus, they circled around me screaming at me and saying awful things. I was terrified out of my mind, I thought they were going to beat me up. To make it worse, they even video tapped the entire thing and sent it out to all of their friends. This occurred for about three months, it was unbearable to me; I felt like it would never end. I simply did not understand what I had done to deserve this type of treatment – this was the type of bullying I had only seen in movies. I spent these months in a deep depression, crying every day, and hiding out in the school bathrooms. No one close to me recognized who I was anymore, not even my own parents. I went from this bubbly and positive girl to a depressed and muggy one. It got so bad to the point where one evening I took a bottle of my mom’s pills, and attempted to over dose on them because I could not handle the pain anymore. Thankfully, my parents caught me and were able stop me before anything happened. I believed this fire would never burn out, unless I did it myself. It was the lowest I have ever felt in my life. After six months of the cruel bullying, I finally made a couple of true friends. They took me in and made me feel special again. They stood up for me, and taught me to stand up for myself. Day by day, I grew strong again. My smile would get bigger and bigger by the minute. I started to feel alive, and I took action and burned the fire out. Gradually, the monsters went away, and I became lively again. I started to appreciate life more than ever, and for the people that saved me from my dark hole of anguish. I will never forget how amazing it felt to beat the depression and to beat the ones that put me into that state. The best revenge was for them to see that big smile on my face, laughing with my new friends, happy again. To see people not believe the atrocious things they said about me, and instead befriend me. I believe that this specific hardship is what has given me majority of my strength and has taught me to love life more than most, and that is what I have become to represent as a person. It has been five years now, and I feel more alive than ever. I am the individual I always strived to be- the bubbly, ecstatic, strong, positive girl that does not let anyone or anything tear her down. I am so in love with my life, and would not want it to have gone any other way. College has already been one of the best experiences for me, and has allowed me to meet some amazing people and really find myself. I truly believe that I would not hold the same values and traits if it were not for the monsters of my past. Whenever I am struggling, I always look back to this significant time and remind myself that I got through it, so I know I can get through anything. When things are tough, life is preparing you for the next thing- and in my case, life was preparing me to discover who I am and who I stand for. After all, it is usually just a couple of bad days, not a bad life - and today is a great day. Focusing on Things I Can ControlChastity Roman
Success is not a common word in my family. I am from a family who constantly lives in a cycle of failure and who redrafts their mistakes. A family where it is not uncommon for someone to go to prison or for a cousin to get pregnant at a young age. I had to grow up around people who never had a taste of success and knew nothing more than the life they were living. They knew what was out there, but they just had no idea how to reach it. I remember growing up and seeing my family go through hardship after hardship due to the ignorance of their own mistakes. Generation after generation the cycle kept repeating itself. My father, my biggest supporter and motivator, wanted more for me. He knew the life that his family lived was wrong, and he did not want me to make the same mistakes that he had made. The biggest problem was that he did not know how to give me more if he had nothing to give. He never finished high school and rarely went to school while growing up. He lacks a foundation and can barely read and write. Not having a high school diploma or even a GED made finding a job very difficult. This struggle has had a domino effect on his decisions. He had to provide for his family somehow, and he did it the only way he knew how, which was by making money illegally. It was not until my father went to prison that I knew I had to make a decision on how I wanted my life to turn out. My father would have talks with me and would always tell me that I should strive for a better life because the lifestyle that not only him but also his family led was not filled with success. He would say that the key to success was my education. This goal was hard to keep when I was constantly struggling with personal problems in my life. When I was in the eighth grade, my parents split. Before that, the only hardship that had happened to me was my dad going to jail. I never imagined that my parents would split. I constantly had to hear them arguing and fighting. I started feeling restless and was up all night trying to sleep in a house full of anger and violence. I had to stay strong for my brother and sister because I was the oldest. While carrying all this weight on my shoulders throughout middle school and into high school, I still managed to keep my grades and GPA up. Just when I thought the worst was over, my mother went off the deep end during my freshman year. She started hurting herself and has been continuously hospitalized for the past three and a half years. This setback has pushed me even harder to be successful. I used my misfortune to push me through high school. I knew my only way out was school, so I strived to do the best that I could. I had to break this cycle that my family kept repeating. I did not want to live this life of failure and ignorance. I wanted to... No I needed to be better than the standards my family had set for themselves. I did not want to be okay with just "getting by." It led to misery and despair and to trials and tribulations. The success that I want so badly can only be reached by my success in school. The way I perform in my classes will determine my future and my hard work will be the key to my happiness. This mindset is why I continue to do well in school and why I will never stop until I can sit back and say that I made it. I want to be able to tell people my story and be satisfied with their look of surprise on how far I have come. I want to be able to say that I came from nothing and made something of myself. My whole life was full of ups and downs but not once did I give up or take the easy way out. The life I wanted to live was not easy to reach, but it could be reachable if I strive for it. Instead of focusing on the things I could not control, I chose to focus on what I could. This chain of events I call my life has shaped me to become the young lady I am today. Not once have I stopped fighting, and I will continue to fight till my last breath if that is what it takes. This fight will prove to not only myself but those who hold prejudice against the impoverished members of society that I am better than they say. AchievementsBrendon Hersey
I’m here to talk about one of the highest achievements I have accomplished. Throughout my whole child hood I was a very chubby. I was no different than another other child, I didn’t care what I looked like because I loved food. I was the type of child then would sneak food upstairs and would keep going back for more. I was unhappy with what I looked like because I was always the big kid throughout middle school. No one ever said anything about my weight and I never got picked on. I wanted and need change for myself. I played sports my whole life growing up but I never stayed in shape because of the food I would eat when I got back. The weight never affected my performance on the field but something inside me said I need change. Going into my freshman year of high school I was weighing in at 190 lbs. That’s a big kid to only be 13. I joined the freshman football team at the high school I went to called Temecula Valley High School. My team was pretty good that year and I made a ton of new friends because I got declined a transfer to Great oak High school so I had to meet all new people. I played o-line on the team and I was the starting center. My team practiced every day 5 days a week. I knew I need and wanted change for myself so I always put 120% into every drill we did. I wanted to prove that I can do anything I put my mind to. I ended up losing 50 pounds by the end of football season because I started to put all my might into football. I weighed 140 lbs. once I lost all the weight, I have now gained 30 pounds of muscle and weigh in at 170 lbs. I go to the gym 5 days a week and have lacrosse practice 4 days a week but soon 5. The gym to me is like a playground it’s like looking around and decided what you should play today. I love the gym and never gets boring there is always something new to improve on every day. Thank you for your time and concideration. The Power of Positive ThinkingBrooke Buckland
ASU The power of positive thinking is something I really took for granted until recently. It becomes so easy to get caught up in the world of chaos and negativity, and sometimes you seem to lose yourself in the process of living life. When I was younger and would have a bad day, my mother would make me say three positive things that happened to me that day. At the time it seemed silly and unnecessary, but years later I would come to learn the importance of addressing the positive aspects of the day. This year was the year that everything seemed to go wrong. Every plan that was put into motion fell through, and difficult obstacles kept popping up on my path. It seemed that my life this year was a constant cycle of everything falling apart and trying to adjust to the unexpected circumstances life was constantly throwing at me. Typically, it is easy for me to handle the curveballs that life throws, but this year seemed to constantly wear me down. This year I had changed schools, had moved across the country and back, and was about to start a rigorous school schedule that I was not as prepared for as I thought. As the year dragged on I could feel myself feeling worse and worse, and it was starting to show in the everyday activities of my life. I began to get frustrated more easily at my friends and family, I would get upset at things that normally would not upset me, and I began to dread activities that I usually love, such as my customer service position at my job. I would wear out more easily than normal and I was constantly exhausted from fixating on all the things that were going wrong in my life. Finally, I realized that I was not happy with the way I was acting and decided that enough is enough. In order for me to return to the happy and energized person I once was, I needed to make a dynamic change in my life. The best thing I ever did was reach out for advice from people I loved and trusted. I began talking to my mom and dad about what was bothering me and how to cope with difficulties. Their advice was helpful, but there is one thing in mind that really changed the way I view life, and that thing was a video. People like to talk about the moment that they decided to make an active change, and I can pinpoint my moment to a TED talk video about positivity. After a conversation about overcoming obstacles with my mother, she sent me a video to watch on the power of positivity. In this video the speaker spoke about how fixating on positive aspects of day to day life will help shift your entire focus on life to a more positive one. His advice was to retrain your brain to automatically think of the good rather than the bad; his advice was to write down three things you are thankful for at the end of each night for a month. It seemed easy enough so I decided to try it. Just like when my mother used to make me state three positive things on bad days, I began to write them down regardless of the day I had. The funny thing: after a couple weeks I began to notice that throughout the day I would automatically pinpoint positive parts of my day. By the end of the night, I had well more than three moments to write down. It began to impact my attitude as well. Difficult obstacles that seemed impossible to overcome seemed that much easier, angry customers were more manageable, and life itself seemed happier again. I was excited to work again, I did better in school, and I didn’t get discouraged as often when things wouldn’t go my way. People would confide in me their troubles and I would start to point out all the good things that are going on in their lives and why everything is going to be ok. No this wasn’t the perfect cure to cope with difficulties in life, but it made a visible difference in my life. In fact, it has been three months now and I continue to write down three things I am thankful for each day because it makes me more thankful for each day and helps me get through the more difficult days. I am a happier person overall, and am a better influence on myself and the people around me. Life is never going to be perfect and there are always going to be problems, but with my newfound respect for gratitude and positive thinking, I am confident that I can overcome any obstacle that is placed in my way. GautamNathan Chiu
University of Pennsylvania “Hey, it’s awesome to finally meet you in person! Let me introduce you to the students and the rest of the co-founders,” my colleague Gautam said with a smile and extended arm. I shook his hand firmly. “Likewise. It’s pleasure to talk to you in person,” I responded, slightly worn out by the three hour flight from Boston to Dallas. For a few moments, I looked at Gautam again. I recognized his face and voice from the hours of conference calls spent working, but for the first time, I could see his warm personality and the intensity in his eyes. Gautam and I could not be more different from one another, which made working on SATUS an interesting and invaluable learning experience. Conveniently, our respective home regions matched our personalities. Like the cold Northeast, I was analytical and methodical in decision making, patient and reserved in dealing with others, and focused on my work. Like the hot South, Gautam followed his instincts without a second thought, chatted incessantly when interacting with others, and passionately chased any activity that caught his attention. I was a conservative. Gautam was a liberal. I was disciplined. Gautam was relaxed. Yet, even with these ideological and personal differences, we managed to run a successful accelerator program. SATUS was an accelerator for teenage entrepreneurs that Gautam and I had worked on during the year prior. I had written the curriculum and organized the classes based off of the lean startup methodology and the business model canvas. Gautam had convinced fifteen high school students to attend SATUS over the summer and had secured a co-working space for us to hold the program. While planning for SATUS, I often grew irritated at Gautam’s laidback work ethic. It annoyed me whenever I would schedule a video call with him and he would show up 30 minutes or even an hour late. “Chill,” he would say, laughing off my complaints of his chronic tardiness. After a while, I realized that forcing Gautam to be punctual was a futile endeavor. Instead, I adjusted my schedule to accommodate his lateness. Whenever I had a conference call with Gautam at 8 pm, I would research and write another part of the SATUS curriculum until 8:30 pm, which was when Gautam usually showed up. As a result of working with Gautam, I grew more flexible and patient. To this day, rather than trying to correct someone’s habits and complaining, I choose to focus on the work and adjust to the person’s behavior. During the SATUS classes themselves, our teaching styles deviated drastically as well. After the speaker delivered his or her lesson, I would walk around to the different teams, sit down for 30 minutes, and listen to them brainstorm ideas. I rarely spoke during the planning sessions, only interrupting if the students strayed too far from the task at hand or if they asked me a question. Since I saw myself more as a mentor, rather than a teacher, I tried to show students the path to creating a successful startup rather than tell them the answer. “Should we offer free tutoring sessions to attract new customers?” one student would ask me. “Well, how would that affect the perceived value? Would you continue using the service after using the free tutoring sessions?” I would respond. “Offering the free tutoring would make it seem like we’re offering low quality tutoring. I wouldn’t use the service after the free sessions. We’ll charge a lower price instead. Thanks!” Through such guidance, I helped this team win a pitch competition at a startup weekend. On the other hand, Gautam certainly had his opinions heard. He would offer his honest critiques of a team’s logo or app design. “Change the font for that logo. It look outdated,” he would say. Initially, I thought that Gautam focused too much on the aesthetics rather than the core operations of the ventures. Over time, I grew to appreciate the effort Gautam placed in improving the look and branding of the ventures. After SATUS, I was shocked to see the modern, sleek designs of all the companies’ logos and websites. I realized, in that moment, that a great product or service by itself will not sell; a venture needs both great products and branding. Prior to SATUS, I would always dismiss logos and designs as secondary to figuring out how the business worked. However, through experiencing Gautam’s creativity, I can appreciate the value of a business’s image. Through changing my mentality towards working with others, I manage to reconcile different working habits and bring out the best in my colleagues. Therefore, expressing positivity and gratitude towards others is essential in achieving great feats just as we did in SATUS. While, I can’t say that I changed as a person because of SATUS and Gautam, I can say that I have become more open-minded to working with enthusiastic and creative people. Regardless of who I work with, I am confident that in college, I will be able to collaborate with a team to create something amazing through conveying positivity and gratitude. Written Voice ThreadMegan Zimbelman
When I was in 6th grade my family moved to Florida and we reconnected with my grandpa and met his wife who we called Nana. Things were going well until a tragic event happened. Basically my grandpa shot my nana in the stomach. I wrote a poem about it that I would like to read to you. Cop approaching Mother’s worried. What is going on? Sirens blaring, helicopter hovering. 10 or more cop cars parking. Dogs go crazy, Mom is crying. Nana pulled on stretcher, We run over. Questioned by cops, All very nice. Nana put into chopper, Air vacced to hospital. Go back inside, A cop stays with us. Why? All over the news, Small town. Everyone at school knows. “It had nothing to do with you, hold your head high.” Everyone knows That’s my grandpa. The media exploited me. Small town. Small school. My life broadcasted. He is still my grandpa. I can’t change that. People know without my consent. No say in the matter, thanks to the news. That’s what you get for living in a small town. That is a representation of what went through my mind during the time of the shooting. While there are many details I could go into that might make the situation clearer, that is not the point of this story. The important thing is to explain what I learned through this. With everyone knowing and living in a small town, it really stressed me out. It stressed me out that people associated me with someone who could do something like that to their wife. There were whispers in students. I am sure teachers were talking about it. The neighbors definitely knew about and had things to say. This made me anxious. I did not want to be known as someone who could do something even remotely like that, which didn’t even make sense. I had nothing to do with this. But that is what I came to terms with. I had no control over what happened. Let the kids in class talk about me, let the neighbors whisper… The truth is that I am completely separate from my grandpa and his actions do not define me. Once I accepted this truth it really freed me. I didn’t need to be ashamed of what my grandpa had done because it had no reflection on me. I focused from then on, on what I could control and what I could do with the situation. I decided to make the situation grow me. I could control how I reacted to the situation and how I wanted to carry the story with me. Now when I start stressing about things, I think back to this. I now know that there is no point in worrying over things you cannot control. In regards to my grandpa, I knew the main thing I had power over was forgiving him or not. It was difficult and even awkward to face him after about a month and tell him I still love him, but I knew it was the one thing I had control over. Our relationship began to mend and my grandpa’s name and my family’s fell out of the town’s drama almost as soon as it had arrived. Selective MutismMichael Jones
ASU My story began when I was 3. My parents noticed that I did not have verbal skills that most children my age did. My pediatrician assured my parents that I was probably just shy and to give me time to come out of my shell. I only spoke to my nucleus family consisting of my parents, sister, grandma and my cousin who was just a year older than myself. I never enjoyed leaving my home to go on outings. I preferred the comfort and solitude of my house. When I started preschool, my teachers noticed that I would never engage with my peers nor make eye contact with anyone. The teachers suggested I be seen by a speech therapist to be evaluated. Being nonverbal, the therapist had difficulty in properly diagnosing me. After seeking other professional evaluations, it was discovered that I suffered from a condition called “Selective Mutism”. Selective mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder in which a person who is normally capable of speech does not speak in specific situations or to specific people. At the age of 5 and in Kindergarten, so began my journey to overcome my condition. Along with my parents, I saw a therapist, speech therapist and had compassionate and understanding teachers. I did not fully understand why I could not speak to others. I just knew that the words would not come out of my mouth even when I wanted them to. In school, I chose one boy that I could speak to by whispering. He became my best friend. The school and his Mom allowed him to be in my classes with me so that he could be my voice. The next few years were not so easy at times. On one hand, I was a teacher’s dream. Never disruptive nor a problem. I was also an easy target, as I wouldn’t or couldn’t tell when others were not treating me as they should. During this time that I was silent to most of the world, I was never made aware that my life would always be in silence. Thankfully both of my parents are optimistic people who always instilled in me that our minds are very powerful and that we can achieve anything that we set out to do, if we have the right positive attitude and see ourselves as who or what we wish to be. I was told that one day, I would find my voice and that I too would be able to communicate as freely as everyone else. That day finally came in the winter of 5th grade. I soon began to openly communicate in my classroom and eventually on the playground. I continued to make great strides in new found ability. What comes so easily to others very early in life, was just beginning to flourish with in my pre-teen years. I not only gained confidence in myself, but soon discovered that I can change just about any situation by believing in myself and seeing my life with this goals accomplished. When I was 16, I became interested in a program offered the city that I live. It was called the Huntington Beach Search and Rescue Explorer Program. It is a program that enlists youth to go through a rigorous 12-week training regime that involves not only physical agility, but written and a lengthy in depth interview process. You are placed in front of a three to five-person panel ranging from Police, Fire and Search and Rescue officers to openly address any questions the officers want to interrogate you on. Out of about thirty applicants to begin, they only graduate about 6. During the process, there were times when it seemed a difficult feat to obtain. Along with my regular studies in high school, I needed to study learn and attend classes at night and weekends to fulfill the requirement of the program. Many of my friends that had joined with me were soon dropping off. It could have been easy for me to have an excuse as to why I shouldn’t continue, but I knew it was something that I wanted to do and more importantly prove to myself that I could do. I saw myself in the uniform that I so desired to be a part of, and my hard work, dedication and positive thinking paid off. I was accepted into the program and served my community for over a year and half. These experiences in my life has taught me that no goal is out of reach if you have the drive, determination and think positive that you can and will accomplish whatever it is you set your mind to. The Power of Positive ThinkingJose Suarez
In life, everyone goes through hard times and it’s not easy to conquer and get by. Some ways we think is the best way to get through things to lock ourselves in our rooms and just think about how we got knocked down. Others will lose themselves in their world, listening to music even. Having a bad day, well it’s just bad. We lose our way of thinking happy. With our happy thoughts gone, we drive closer to despair and depression. Times like those, there’s no arguing that people will think that thinking positive would be a waste of time. But if people give it a chance and give it patience, at the end they could be filled with gratitude. I would know, although my story is a little different. They say that high school changes you into a different person, you’re not the same innocent kid you once were in middle school or elementary. Entering high school, you see things differently, including your way of thinking. High school also tends to be the place where you’re most likely to get your first heartbreak. After my first heartbreak I thought my world was done, typical. I did lose myself to depressing music and my room. My friends told me to think positive, that soon I’ll find someone better. Of course at the time I didn’t believe it, but then you meet new people, new people that you care deeply about. That has taught me that my friends were right, and how you just have to wait for the bright light to shine, because even if it seems like it’s burning out, it’ll always bright up again. It’s not always easy to think up, like I mentioned before. We all have our bad days yes. Thinking positive won’t just help you out, but it could someone else that you weren’t expecting. You may not see it, but just by thinking positive, you start to give off an aura of happiness and brightness. The happiness spreads to other people and with just that, it can turn a frown upside-down. I remember on a car ride after getting pizza from Little Caesar's, my friend had told me that at one point he was feeling down. After a few minutes into the conversation, he mentioned that because of me, because of my excitement and upbeat way of being, I’m one of the people that keeps on reminding him why he is still part of our church group. In our group there, some of us stop going for different reason ranging from they have a job now, to them just not feeling the group no more. After being told that, I did feel a strong feeling of gratitude. All day I was reminding myself how with positive thoughts, I help a friend stay close to us. So you can also say the with positive thinking, you get a sense of gratitude at the end. These two incidents have helped me get a more positive look on life, but there are actually two people that have helped me see things better. When I mentioned before that I found people I care about deeply, I was referring to my friends Azsalia and Verania, who I like to call my sisters, because that’s who they are to me now. One of the basic stories of them helping me think better is where they convinced me to join the church group choir, which I’m referring to the same church group I mentioned before. All my life, I’ve always told myself I can’t sing, even if it was life or death. The only times I would sing would be when my jam was on or just messing around. Still, I would think I sounded horribly terrible. Then these two girls came into my life and just like me, they had this aura of positive thinking and happiness which got a hold of me. They told me to stop thinking like that, and told me they knew and believed I had a great voice, so they convinced me to join the choir. Once again, I felt a great sense of gratitude. Looking back, I learned that in my days of being a negative thinker, I was sad most of the time, telling myself I can’t, I stink, I’m not a good friend and I fail in many things. I was getting nowhere with that attitude. After meeting my sisters, I noticed that most of the time I’m with them, when I’m with my group and in other places, my smile grew. Because my smile grew, I saw more smiles around me I haven’t. Once in awhile, I would get a thought saying it’s too much and I can’t maybe. After having such a thought, I seem to find one that says that there is hope and I can. That’s how it’s been for some time now, instead of just letting myself be a pessimist. There is a saying that goes, “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” I think that’s a saying a lot of us can live up to. Thinking positive also means having hope and faith. Having faith in the things you do or will do and in your dreams. It’s about believing that the bad will go away soon, if you believe it will and think in a positive way. I also positively think that by spreading our positive thoughts, we can sure make someone’s day, and it’s important to do so because you never know when they need that one positive thought saying yes they can and we believe in them. DreamsSonja Cipos
ASU I have always been a dreamer. Since I was very young, I wanted to be a fashion designer, an interior designer, I wanted to travel the world, be an artist, and provide everything for my family, but also visit outer space. I wanted to be an actress, and a singer, even though I couldn’t sing. I had all these aspirations, but there was one thing that stood in the way: my anxiety disorder. I could flourish in the background, but never be the one on stage. After my house burned down when I was in high school, I started separating myself from everyone around me and my anxiety started taking over my life. I will explain to you what living with an anxiety disorder feels like. You have a simple task to overcome, or even a friend asks you to go out. You think about it constantly. All of the bad things that could happen. Your body starts shaking, your heart rate speeds up, you sweat, and your mind races. I got to the point where I couldn’t even practice driving for my license test, I couldn’t see friends, and I couldn’t go to class. But the thing that differentiates me from many other suffering from mental illness was that I wanted to help myself and I knew that I could get better if I stayed positive. I had these dreams that I had carried with me since I was very little and I continued to want to pursue them. I had so many days that I couldn’t imagine ever being “okay” again, but I wouldn’t let my worries destroy my dreams. After a year of being displaced, my family purchased a beautiful, little colonial-looking home from the 1920s. And the room I was given was magnificent. With this new space of mine and my one dream of going into interior design, I decorated and painted my room with my friends, and decided to submit a video of my room and an essay to Pottery Barn Teen, where I was selected to be their new student stylist. I worked with them during my senior year and was given a sense of purpose. I was given a desk that had been my great-great-grandmother’s and I decided that I was much more than my anxiety. I sat at that desk each and every day of my senior year of high school and searched and applied for colleges all around the United States. I had been too afraid to go into the room of people to take the SAT/ACT, so I applied without that important piece. Of course, I was afraid that I wouldn’t be going to college because of how my anxiety had affected me, but I refused to let it overcome my positive thinking. I received letters from all the colleges I had applied to, and I was accepted into each one. I ended up deciding on Columbia College Chicago, my dream school. I waited a year and a half to go to it, but I did it in the end. And I stayed there for an amount that was perfect for me. I stayed a semester, made so many incredible, uplifting people, and found my creative integrity once again. I made sculptures and paintings, took writing courses, and spoke fluidly in front of my peers, all while being in one of the most wonderful cities in the United States. Because I want to travel, I decided to transfer to a university that offered fully online classes, and I found Arizona State University. Within this school, I am able to get an education and do it anywhere in the world. I must say, the power of positive thinking is remarkable. I am pursuing my passions, slowly, but I am doing it because I didn’t let my anxiety stop me and I chose to power through my fears. The Power of Gratitude and Positive Thinking
Corinne Creighton
As an incoming freshman, the principals of positive thinking, gratitude, and focusing on things I can control have all had a positive impact on my life. As an incoming freshman going to Arizona State University, I experienced a crisis of identity in figuring out what I want to do for the rest of my life. I went into a downward spiral of anxiety and depression overthinking every possible outcome of my life. I was in the crisis that I believed being a psychology major was a waste of time, or the fact that if I switched to a business major that I would not be able to pass the classes, and the fact that I did not have the grades to get into competitive nursing programs. Every night and day my thoughts were negatively flooded with the fact that I would never amount to anything due to my major of psychology. I failed to see that I had already accomplished so much in my first semester of freshmen year. Constantly running through my head were the thoughts that I would be living with my parents forever, that I would never land a fulfilling job, and that after college I would just live a depressing life. I cried to my parents every day on the phone explaining that I was so confused on what I should do. I went to counseling sessions just to speak my mind even though I knew that the counselors did not hold the answers to my life. I called and questioned each one of my family members on their life and career choices. I also spent countless hours researching job outlooks in the future and salaries. I also spent a lot of time researching what you can do with all different types of majors. This only had a negative effect on my mind and body. Having these constant negative thoughts made it hard for me to focus on the tasks at hand like my schoolwork. I also lost all motivation to get up in the morning, I also had no motivation to start my day. I suffered from panic attacks in my dorm room and in class. Since the start of the semester I have grown and improved so much. I still have obsessive and negative thoughts about my life and my future but I have learned to take it a day at a time. I am learning to find the positive in every situation. I was influenced so much in finding my “passion” and turning it into work or following my unfeasible dreams because that was what the media was telling me to do. I was tricked by the media by believing that if I don’t find work that I am passionate about that I will have a depressing life. In reality for most people at least, work is work and that is ok. Day by day I am learning to think as work as only a part of my life. I can have a life outside of my career. It is amazing how much better you can feel when you shift into a positive attitude. Now, I have taken it upon myself to exercise regularly which has done wonders on my self-confidence. Whenever I feel worried about my future I think about all the stuff I have already accomplished. I moved across the country from my parents, made great friends in college, volunteer at our college radio, tried out for my colleges equestrian team and earned a varsity spot! I also was lucky enough to even get picked to show in California and earn the team a third-place ribbon in my division. To top it all off I earned amazing grades this semester even with all of the anxiety happening! Another thing that I do when I start feeling down or anxious, is that I take the time to think about all the things I am grateful for in my life. I write down that I am grateful to have two parents that love in support me, that I have a loving and supporting group of family and friends around me, that I have access to food, warmth, and a comfy bed when I need to sleep, and I also think about how grateful I am to be blessed with good health. I realize that half of the negative stuff I imagine in my head are just made up scenarios that are most likely not going to happen. I also came to the realization that it is silly to plan your life so far in advanced because life can change on a dime. Also, that it is a fact that no one can predict where and what they will be doing years in the future. The first semester of college proved to be a great challenge for me that I overcame! With the help of positive thinking, I changed my mindset which has benefitted me in so many ways. I became the happy person I was before entering college. Practicing gratitude helped me slow down my obsessive thinking about made up life scenarios in my head. I now can faithfully say that I will graduate college with my bachelor’s degree and live a successful life even though I do not have every detail planned out. Keep Runnin'![]() Javon Freeman
The air surrounding me was tense and electrifying at the same time. BOOM! The gun had gone off and the race had started. My heart was pacing with every step I had taken. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale were the only thoughts that my mind had allowed to go through my head. I had gone deaf. The crowd had lost their voice, the air seemed to stand still, but the only recognizable sound I had noticed was my own heart thumping as I flexed every and any muscle. As I emerged into the last stages of the race my hearing had returned and the roaring crowd had regained their voice. My only competition was myself as I hit the last stretch with 100 meters to go and a quite noticeable lead. I remember hearing chants from teammates yelling, “Let’s go Peoria!” to my own mom yelling “Run Fat boy run!”, right as my body had given out I passed the baton to my cousin and the race had continued. Somehow I had managed to muster the little amount of energy I had to lift my face off of the dirty track and watch the remainder of the race. I have never experienced so many emotions in my life in only 3 minutes and 25 seconds. My cousin had taken the lead down from first to a very close second. He was thrown into this event just 2 weeks prior so I had already expected this in my mind. Getting the baton next was one of my closest friends. I had been running with this guy for 4 years so expectations were through the roof. He had taken the baton with the aggressiveness I had grown accustomed to the past 4 years and he ran with his heart on his sleeve. No words could even be said at this moment in time because my run had taken such a toll on my body so, I felt that opening my mouth would just add insult to injury. Behind my dead eyes was the most excited human being that had ever walked the Earth. I was proud of my team already, but anxious at the same time because the most crucial part of the race was approaching quickly as the last exchange had initiated the end of the race. As the race was finishing up with the last runner, my heart had been jumping out of my chest and onto the track. “COME ON, RUN, RUN, RUN, RUN “were the only words that my fatigued mind could come up with and my weakened body could communicate. “RUN PEORIA HIGH RUN” was every other person in the stands so I didn’t feel that different. My team crossed the finish line in third place. This accomplishment was bigger than life itself, the moment I had been waiting for since my freshman year of high school. My team was able to do what my school hadn’t been able to do in 4 years. We had medaled in the 4 by 400-meter relay at the Arizona State Track and Field State Championship. On the podium we felt like superstars with cameras in our faces and fans talking about our amazing race. What elevated this moment into a category of its own was the fact that 85% of my family had seen this race. Coming from Palo Alto, Los Angeles, San Diego, and even Chicago, this concentration of my family had never been together in my entire eighteen years of living. They had seen my cousin, basically my brother, and myself run our hearts out in this race and it had paid off. This moment in my life quickly claimed the number one spot of my all-time top memories playlist. But, how ironic is it that the highest point of my life came from me being at my lowest. I remember the night as clear as day. I had come home from a track practice, and had the best nap of my life. When I woke it was about 11’oclock at night and I hear my mom’s phone ring. Of course just another phone call. A few minutes had gone by until my mom had broken down in tears. What the hell is going on? I couldn’t understand any word she was saying. “Ma what’s wrong?! What’s wrong?!” “Your Uncle passed away tonight” My uncle, Michael Freeman, had been one of the funniest people I had known. No one would ever be safe from his jokes. Not their friends, cousins, mom, dad, grandma, or even their first girlfriend. No one was safe. He was one of the only male figures in my life, and behind all of his jokes, months leading up to his death he always talked about how proud he was of me and everything I had done almost every day I had seen him. We arrive at my aunts and uncles house with 2 police cars sitting out front. We enter through the front door and all I hear is my aunt crying so ferociously. One of the officers then explained what had happened. “Michael had been killed tonight when a vehicle exiting a private drive pulled directly into the path of his motorcycle”. That was it? My uncle’s years of life ended just because of some idiot couldn’t wait until an intersection was clear? Even within a room full of sadness with my aunt’s family there trying to mainly console her I couldn’t bring myself to cry. I had been preoccupied with my mom telling every family member we had that my uncle had passed, because who else was going to do it. I had seen her go through the same exact method over the course of 15+ phone calls with the same ending of “the funeral hasn’t been planned yet, but I’ll keep you updated”. I had to be strong, my older brother had already broken down, and everyone had been looking for my mom to console them, so I had to console her. The schedule for next week was as follows: school all week, family flying out on Wednesday, viewing of the body on Friday, funeral on Saturday, and the State Championship Finals for track and field on Sunday. Fun week. I was so emotionless that week of school. I couldn’t show my emotions to all my friends because that’s just not me, but I wanted too. Now that think back, I realized so many people tried to reach out to me because of what had happened, but my stubborn self couldn’t swallow my own pride and let them reach out to me. Graduations coming up, State Championship is this week, and I am about to graduate high school and finally go to a university! Happiest time of my life right. Everyday something reminded me of him and I still haven’t shed a tear for him. Friday had come and it was time to view his body. My tear ducts had felt as if they had exploded. It had finally happened; everything had hit me at once. My own Uncle is gone, and there was no I way I would be able to hear his contagious laugh or see his smile in this lifetime. Why would this have happened at time like this to my family, I needed you at a time like this My selfish thoughts flushed through my head again. How am I going to run at the state finals? My teams counting on me I can’t run in this state of mind. I can’t run tomorrow, I can’t I ca… My grandpa, mom, brother, and nana all interrupted my thought without even noticing. “Do it for him on Sunday Jay, you know he’s already excited to see you run”, my mom said with all of their hands simultaneously touching me like he had it planned. Saturday had come around and the funeral was a celebration of life for Michael Freeman. No more tears, no more sadness, no more sobbing uncontrollably. Why were we crying in the first place? He would’ve so mad at us wasting all those tears and probably would’ve turned it into some sort of joke. Sunday morning had come and I was ready. My coach had taken my friend and I to the finals in a van, in that 40-minute drive full of singing terrible songs, jokes, the race coming up and just life, both of them made me realize that this is what life is about. Love, not sadness. MY ENTIRE FAMILY IS OUT HERE FOR MY UNCLES FUNERAL AND NOW THEY’RE ABOUT TO WATCH ME RUN MY LAST RACE EVER, THANKS FOR BRINGING THE CROWD WITH YOU UNCLE. The air surrounding his was tense and electrifying at the same time. BOOM! The gun had gone off and the race had started. My heart was pacing with every step he had taken.” Run Fatboy! Come on Fatboy! You got this Jay!” my Mom had been screaming for herself and my Uncle. I knew my entire family was watching this race. I was on the podium with my team and my family had to take 1,000 pictures alone in that one sitting. I knew they were all there, saw all their faces and heard every one of their voices in the crowd of hundreds. What if the same events occurred and my family couldn’t watch my last race? I don’t think I would have been able to run. They were the only ones who kept me afloat when I was nearly drowning. I wouldn’t have been able to keep going if it wasn’t for them being there at that pivotal moment in my life. How could the lowest point in your life quickly bounce back to becoming your highest point so easily? Mindset. These past few months have been so hard on me and sometimes I think I’ll never be able to go back to being me. Things that pull you down to your all-time low might just be the point the catapults you to your all-time high. No matter what happens you always have to have one thought in mind. Keep on runnin’ DiversityMartin Barta
ASU Coming from such a diverse location like the Bay Area, I was constantly around all different types of people. California, specifically, the Bay Area, is prideful in being so diverse and interfusing cultures and creating new waves of change and diversity. In San Francisco alone, you will find areas such as The Castro, the largest gay community in California, or The Mission, which gives you a taste of every Latin country you could think of from Central American down to South America and even Spain! However, one common theme that occurs many times in California is most Hispanics are generalized as being Mexican or of Mexican decent. Media outlets and even other Latinos, speak mostly towards the Mexican community or make assumptions that someone is Mexican. One would believe this would the norm, considering a large population of Mexican decent, however, for other nationalities of Latinos, they tend to be forgotten many times. Being of Nicaraguan decent, we are among that group that tends to be forgotten, but no matter what, I am proud of being Nicaraguan and will always show off my pride. At a young age, I was taken to Nicaragua and was immediately engulfed into my Nicaraguan heritage and what it means to be Nicaragüense, the proper Spanish term Nicaraguans identify as. Everything in my family has some Nicaraguan influence from our food, our diction, and even the way we dress or behave. Personally, I embrace being Nicaraguan at every chance and carry my heritage in the way I live my life. Even in my dorm, I have the Nicaraguan flag on my wall, a common theme for Nicaraguans. To have my flag hang in my dorm room and to understand what that means is an extraordinary feeling and incredible journey to say, “I’m here, I made it to college”. Most children and adults of Nicaraguan decent, including my parents, siblings, and other family members, have had troubles academically. My dad had told me stories of how he was a great student during his childhood, but lost his way sometime in high school, forcing his father’s hand. His father shipped him away to Nicaragua and when he returned to the United States, he still did not finish high school until later into his adult life. No one in my family had any higher-level education, and although my sisters and brother made attempts, they succumbed to the pressures of work and other factors. It became a personal goal to become the first family member and of the few Nicaraguans that make it to college. Especially for my intended major, it is something of a rarity to make it to my desired career job. Nicaraguan’s have never been particularly well known for sports or many sports figure, although there are few. Most Nicaraguans turn to playing sports to keep away from trouble and for fun and to past time. Growing up, I was active in playing sports such as football, basketball, and baseball, and enjoyed watching them. However, one sport I always loved watching and our family would hold gatherings for is boxing. Watching the fights, odds would always be against the Nicaraguan fighter and the broadcasters spoke highly about whomever the opponent was, despite the latter’s reputation. I always asked my dad, why aren’t there many Nicaraguans in sports or the sports industry, and he simply told me, “we aren’t good in anything,” and that opinion to me was always based off others criticism and the lack of recognition we garnered. I refused to believe that and in a way, has led me to here today. Writing and broadcasting to me is a way of art and communicating to readers and viewers a new thinking within a sports topic or issue. In high school, I was a writer for the school newspaper and displayed my joy and passion for writing and voicing a story or topic that could allow the readers to ask questions and shed a new light. Writing came easy to me as I wrote with rhythm and success, due to my ability to be social and discover what others opinions are on matters and seeking new light others have not thought of or observed. It’s difficult to foresee exactly how the future may play out with so many factors and changing in society, however I hope to change the minds of those who may simply assume I’m just another Mexican or Latino reporter. Beginning with internships and opportunities I gain, I plan on showing them my intentions to put Nicaragua on the map and to show everyone, we can make it. With the recent election of Trump, and several other factors that may be a challenge in the future, I will welcome them with open arms as I have all my life. I come from an area that as truly diverse as it could be, fails at times to capture that diversity within ethnic groups and often time generalizes, and that idea needs to change. For all Latinos, we each love our country respectively and are different in our own ways, and I hope to show the world the beauty of the Latino culture and more specifically, what it means to represent and to be a proud Nicaragüense. I Almost DiedCorey Crossen
ASU Two years ago, I almost died. Despite being 6’1’, I weighed 118 pounds. My eyes were going bad, I could not sleep through the night, I had daily depressive episodes and was days away from falling into a coma when I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes mellitus. At that time, I kept waiting for someone to help me. Hoping that maybe someone would come along and tell me what I was doing wrong and show me how to turn my life around. With my diagnosis, I realized that my life was my responsibility. I had been given a second chance and was not going to squander it. I now had the opportunity to take agency. I had to measure my blood sugar regularly, eat properly, exercise, and inject insulin. Only I could do those things, and that gave me control over my physiology. I didn’t have much appreciation for the complexity of the human body until I learned about the pancreas. I ride on an extremely complicated set of ongoing chemical reactions which is quite sensitive to external and internal stimuli. Many of its functions were broken, some due to poor fortune and others due to neglect. The medicine would fix some of them but I would have to work to fix the rest. I made a habit of running. It was difficult. At first I could only make it about a quarter of a mile before suffering a coughing fit. Every day, I tried to eat a little more so that I could build back up my atrophied muscle. Over weeks, I steadily moved up to a three-mile route. Running alone in the dark, it was easy to get lost in my thoughts. At first I was trapped revisiting old pains, but gradually I was able to focus on improving my present. In an emotional moment, it’s easy to make a promise that you can’t really keep; easy to say that tomorrow you would work hard to turn it all around. In reality, I only found success improving myself incrementally. Only by focusing on real, tangible actions that I could perform, goals that I could set and then accomplish, was I able to improve my body, and therefore, my life. One of the first goals that I accomplished after getting sick was this: I ran a 7-minute mile. I had never done this, even before I got sick. I believed that it would really demonstrate the extent of my recovery by pushing myself beyond my previous limits. It would be difficult. I made a playlist of two songs, perfect for running to. Each lasted about three minutes, thirty seconds, so when the first song ended I would know my pace based on how close I was to the halfway mark on my mile route. This worked perfectly and I finished my mile with about ten seconds left. I coughed up a lung and walked home in triumph. Though real life is a continuum, I believe that this moment punctuates my transition from sickness to health. After this, I was able to move beyond my depression and make lasting changes to my lifestyle, to feel and be better than I was before. I went back to school to pursue Aerospace Engineering again. With my newfound perspective on agency, I was able to recognize my limitations from before I got sick and move past them. Where before I was passive, I instead strove to act. I collaborated with others when otherwise I may have worked alone. This approach allowed me to perform better in my classes and make new friends at the same time. My pursuit of physical exercise led me to a group of people playing a game called Jugger. In this game, ten players fight with foam weapons to control a ball shaped like a skull, and plant it in a goal on opposite sides of a field. I can run fast and fight well, so I found that I was pretty good at Jugger. A team called the Desert Wolves asked me to join them, and last summer, they invited me to travel with them to Europe to play in a Swedish tournament. Later, I found a group of people that were as excited about the future as I was: I joined a team called Luna-H Map, led by Ph.D. Craig Hardgrove, to work on a shoebox-sized satellite that is scheduled enter polar orbit around the Moon in 2018. I saw an event at ASU where Orbital ATK spoke about their internship opportunities. There, students had the chance to work with real rocket scientists, building flight parts and designing components for practical applications. I applied immediately. A few months later, I got a call from Mike Groenwald and Matt Derr at Orbital. They interviewed me over the phone, and invited me to the facility to meet them in-person. I told them my story, talked about my skills, and said how excited I was to be there. A week later I got the call and after returning from Sweden, I started my internship as an engineer. Today, I weigh 180 pounds, I’m in the best shape of my life, my health is totally under my control, and I was recently invited to stay beyond my six-month internship at Orbital ATK due to my performance there as an engineer. I am returning full-time to ASU to continue Aerospace Engineering classes in the Spring, and though I am taking on student loans to pay for classes, I hope to seek financial help from you as well. My life is extremely positive and I have more opportunities now than I ever dreamed before I got sick. I owe almost all of my success to the change in perspective that my illness granted me. Only I had the power to improve my own life, and that is an incredible blessing that I am happy to share with you today. The Power of Positive ThinkingJake Disarufino
ASU The power of positive thinking is the single most important thing in my life. Positive thinking is what keeps me going every single day. When I was a kid I had a lot of knee pain but I did not like to complain so I never said anything to my parents. I lived with my knee pain until my junior year of high school when in a soccer game I tore the cartilage in my right knee. I went to my doctor and he told me that I had been walking around the last ten years with almost zero cartilage in my knees. From that year the next two years were the most painful for me both physically and mentally and it was the power of positive thinking that kept me going and kept me happy. I first want to explain why I need positive thinking so much in my life and then I will explain how it was the most important thing to me these last two years. When I was a young kid I had extreme mood swings whether it was into happiness or sadness or anger. I hated these mood swings and because I was young I did not know how to deal with my emotions. I rarely thought positively because I often was either sad or angry and rarely happy. Than at the age ten I heard the phrase “the power of positive thinking” and being a fairly thoughtful child I decided to try and figure out what the power of positive thinking was. I came to the conclusion that I could control my emotions that I did not need to be sad or angry as much. If I focused on what was good in a situation, no matter how small, than I could be happy in every situation. If I thought positively in every situation I could make it through anything. It was with this mindset that I went through the hardest situation in my life. These past two years I have had three knee surgeries gone to two different universities and lost a three year full ride scholarship because of the afore mentioned surgeries. When I had my first surgery on my right knee; my doctor told me that I would never need another one. Despite the immense pain and the long recovery time I focused on the positive, I focused on getting stronger and recovering. Every day I felt a little better and I focused on that until one day it was not my right knee that was hurting it was my left. I assumed it was nothing I wanted to be positive. As it turns out my left knee’s cartilage was even worse than my rights so much to my doctor’s surprise I had my second knee surgery. I was also told that I would never get an army ROTC scholarship which meant my chances of going to the college I thought I wanted to go to was essentially impossible. I refused to think about that however, I decided to think positively, and out of sheer force of will I worked harder than I had ever worked. To get and ROTC scholarship I needed to get a lot stronger in a very short amount of time, so I worked through the pain and got stronger. Even though I was told it was impossible I got a three year full ride scholarship because of the power of positive thinking, I got into the school I wanted to and I had it payed for. That is where the story should have ended. However my second week of school all my hopes were shattered; I got a call saying I had been medically discharged from the army. This meant that I had lost my scholarship which meant that I could not pay for the rest of school and I would have to transfer to Arizona State University. I focused on the positive again and thought at least I get the year and when I transfer home I would be with my friends. It turned out though that I hated my major and my school and on top of that the surgery that was on my left knee began to deteriorate and I learned that I would have to have a third more invasive surgery. Unfortunately I could not have the surgery until summer so I was in constant pain and miserable. I will not lie that I did not think positively during that time I fell into a deep depression for a very long time. I was sad for a very long time and I got to the point where I did not know if life was worth living anymore. But one particularly hard day I was sitting alone and I noticed how quiet it was and how peaceful everything was and I was happy. I thought positively for the first time in months and I remembered how it felt to be truly happy and I did not want to lose that feeling. So every day after that I decided to think positively and I am once again my happy self. I hope I got across how important the power of positive thinking is, it can literally change your life because nothing in life is ever as bad as it seems. If you just think positively you can do whatever you strive to do in life. What If?Jiaqi Li
ASU If your grade was the last 10 percent of your school, do you still have the courage to apply for one of the top colleges in your country? If no one supported you or you’ve never been abroad before, are you still brave enough to go to a different country for graduate school? I do and I made it! I can’t achieve all the accomplishments without the power of positive thinking. If you have a dream then go for it, work extremely hard and never give up! My grade was the last 10 percent in my high school but I always want to apply for college in Beijing where there’s a better education environment and more cultural/international resources. I told myself it’s great chance to challenge myself. After two years’ hard work, my grade was the top 1 percent in my province and I successfully attended the Communication University of China (the top university in media/journalism area in China). I was lucky in the fact that I picked advertising as my major in my undergraduate period which provided me opportunities to have access to many wonderful ideas and different cultures. What’s more, my experience during my undergraduate education allowed me to find my real interest, improve my ability in many aspects and determine my career goal. My first semester at college was a rude shock - being away from home for the first time, being in a brand new environment with different living and study style from high school. At the end of the first semester, I ranked the last second, which made me frustrated but didn’t defeat me since I never gave up even when faced with big difficulties. My hard work got paid. In the third year, I ranked in the top ten and my GPA improved to 3.5 from 3.0. This experience taught me that I can make it as long as I tried my best, think positively and never give up. And I know that I have the ability to be the best which also allow me to pursue further study. I saw a documentary about hospital volunteering which touched me so much, so since September 2014, I worked in Beijing Children’s Hospital as a volunteer to guide patients giving them instructions and help. One of my jobs was to accompany children when they were having kidney dialysis. I also teach children with leukemia to paint and make the handwork. I have got along well with the children and really enjoyed the process since I can help to relief their pain from diseases. That’s why I changed my major to public administration/nonprofit management when I came to the U.S. for graduate school. At first none of my family or friends supported my choice. They thought I was insane to spend so much money and go to a new country where I know nobody. But I determined to fulfill my dream of perusing a higher education and experience a different culture in the U.S. I’m very lucky and grateful to join one the top 10 MPA programs in the U.S. at ASU. When I just came to Phoenix which was my first time to go abroad, everything was new and scary considering I was all on my own here. But I know what my goal is -helping people explore their interests and potential as much as I can. This summer I helped teens and adults learn how to go to college and get more education as an intern with the College Depot at the Phoenix Public Library. My current intern is at the Southwest Center for HIV/AIDS in Phoenix, where I support fundraising and community outreach activities to help people know more and prevent the disease. I also work at the University Help Center as a customer service specialist helping people with all different kinds of questions. What’s more I am a volunteer at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, serving as the point of contact for patient families and visitors in the Surgery Waiting areas, ensuring the comfort of family and children. I did all of these in a new environment with a new language and there’ve been many hard times for me but I successfully made it. My friends are always amazed by how many things I’ve done considering I’m still a full-time student. It takes a lot of hard work and I need to be multitasking all the time. My secrets are that knowing your goals, being positive to make the most of what you have and never give up. I hope in the future I can help more people in a nonprofit or public service area. That’s why I want to apply for Achieve today scholarship which encourages students to explore their potential and change our lives in a positive way. Life is a journey: I’m ready to experience and enjoy whatever life will give me. Overcoming ChallengesNatalia Kupiec
ASU My name is Natalia Kupiec, I attend McHenry County College, and I will be transferring to Arizona State University in Fall 2017. I’ve been through many challenges in my life, but there was one time where it was hard for me to function normally for a long period of time. In 2014, I injured my back, I couldn't walk. Everytime I tried walking, I would get shooting pain up and down my body. I would have to leave school early and miss classes because I was in so much pain. I kept losing hope of me being able to be active again. I had to see a physical therapist for six months. I met my physical therapist that day and I saw the love in her eyes for helping. Her goal was to get me walking again and to rekindle my happiness. Her name was Claudia. She did everything to help me when it came down to my physical therapy sessions. Not only did I get better, I also had a bond with her. She helped me walk again, and when it was my last time seeing her, she gave me a very special necklace. This necklace was no ordinary necklace-it was the pope's face on it. She said every time she had it with her, it brought her luck. This meant a lot to me. Claudia inspired me to become the person she is. I stayed positive on this whole journey, I had hope and every day I woke up with a goal to let go of negative thoughts. Ever since, I’ve become a positive person- I feel as in my heart is in peace. My goal is to finish school with a Doctorate Degree and work with people that need help. I want to be able to inspire people and help them. With a positive outlook on life, I can change lives and turn people’s days around. I don't want to be an regular Physical Therapist-where I see patients and don't know anything about them. I want to be able to connect with my patients, and get to know them as people, and see them grow and get better along the journey. I have a passion for helping others, because when I do, I feel complete. At Arizona, I will work hard towards my goals and show everyone I can get through any obstacle that will be in my way. I believe health and wellness are the most important aspects to our life. After I was able to walk again, I got inspired to work at a wellness center. I had no experience with any medical field jobs at the age of 18, so I saw a job opening for a Physical Therapist Technician. I applied, and kept coming into the clinic to show everyone how passionate I was about getting this job. One day, I came home from school and I got a call that I got the job. I was a Physical Therapist Technician at the age of 18. I learned so much about health, body movements, and how therapy is beneficial. I also learned how to work with machines, and patients. On a fine afternoon when I got to work, I found out today was a big day for our long term patient Dan. Dan was 22 and he got diagnosed with a disease that one day he couldn't walk. He didn't walk for three years, and that day was the day we were going to help him walk again. When Dan arrived, I saw the fear in his eyes. He told me he doesn't think he can walk again. I told him to trust all of us, because we would get him through anything. I talked with him to calm him down, and when the doctor came into the room, it was time. When Dan stood up, I already knew he was going to succeed- slowly but surely, he started walking. His face lit up like the sun, and it was the most amazing feeling for all of us. I love seeing people get better, and know that this is just the beginning. Progress takes time, but with patience and a positive attitude, anything is possible. Focusing On Things You Can ControlEric Huerta
ASU In this essay I will explain how following a simple personal development principle has helped me get where I am today. Living by the principle of “Focusing on Things You Can Control” has definitely made a positive impact in my life in many ways. There have been events in my life that have been challenging but having the right mindset has really allowed me to overcome these challenges and come out even stronger as a person. An early example of this is when I graduated high school back in 2002. I went to high school in a poor area and just graduating high school was a big accomplishment. There wasn’t much talk or guidance from counselors about college because most of the kids I went to school with never went to college. After a year of doing pretty much nothing I remember being frustrated and upset because I felt my life wasn’t going anywhere. I knew I didn’t want to be like my friends, who were out partying, drinking, doing drugs almost every weekend. Even though I love and respect my parents, I also knew I didn’t want to grow up poor and living paycheck to paycheck. I decided that I was going to live my life by principle of “Focusing on Things You Can Control” and start living the life I felt I was meant to live. The first task I focused on was getting myself into college, which was difficult because I had no one to ask for advice. Neither my parents nor my three brothers went to college. Two of my brothers actually decided to join the military right out of high school because they felt they had no other choice. Where we grew up it was get a job, have kids, or end up in jail. There wasn’t much of anything else going on around us that we could use as a positive example. I didn’t want to follow in my brother’s footstep because the military lifestyle just wasn’t for me. I focused on what I could control and since I didn’t have anyone I knew that could help me get into college, I decided to just walk to the local community college and ask for help from the employees that worked there. I can remember being so clueless and going almost every day for over a week. I did everything they asked me to do, step-by-step, to get enrolled. It was extremely frustrating because I had no idea what to do but I knew if I just focused on what I needed to do, I would take back control of my life and get where I wanted to be. I stuck with the process and was finally a college kid. Even though I have yet to finish my degree, this experience gave me the confidence I needed to take on any difficult situation. Another event that happened to me was when I had my first child. I was working as a banker, not making a lot of money, and my wife was not working at the time because we could not afford daycare. It was a very challenging time in our lives because I wasn’t making the money needed to live a comfortable lifestyle. We were down to our last penny every paycheck and I felt like I was just getting myself into a bigger hole with no end in sight. On top of that I was waiting to get promoted to a branch manager but there was no timetable on when it was going to happen. It could have been a month or six; it was all depended on when there was a new opening. I remember feeling very defeated and I wanted to just give up on becoming a manger and leave the company because I felt it was unfair that I had to wait when I was struggling financially. The pressure of supporting my wife and son was overwhelming at times and I didn’t know what to do. I then decided to go back to the principle of “Focusing on Things You Can Control” and that really turned things around for me. I started going to work with a better attitude, being the best employee I could be and really trying to set the right example for my team. I would behave as if I was the manager even though I wasn’t because that was something I could control. I also kept a better attitude at home and didn’t take my frustration out on my family. It wasn’t their fault we were in this situation, so why take it out on them? Applying the principle of focusing on what I can control allowed me to turn things around and start living in the moment. I wasn’t worried about when I would get my promotion because that was going to happen soon or later, I just needed keep working hard and be patient. Soon after that moment and staying focused on what I needed to do, I was soon promoted and we are in a far better place. In conclusion, this personal development principle is what has helped me become the person I am today. Life can be very frustrating if you are constantly focused on things not going your way. I found my peace on focusing on what I can control in my personal and professional life and it has allowed me to become the man I am today. I am currently a husband, father, branch manager, and a college graduate (expected in May). None of which would have been possible if I didn’t focus on what I can control. A lesson I plan to teach my little boys as soon as they are old enough. Life is so much more enjoyable when you know you’re in control. Thank you. Overcoming StrugglesMindi Stone
Overcoming struggles can help someone become a better person. Like forging metal in a fire, the difficulties in life can reinforce a person, making them stronger through introspection and perseverance. I have gone through those fires numerous times in my life, and each time I have learned more about myself and what is important in life than I knew before. I was born with Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber Syndrome, which prevented me from walking properly and eventually causing me to have several surgeries. In order to prevail over my surgeries and syndrome, I learned how to keep my eyes on what I can control, and recognize what I cannot. The syndrome itself was a struggle in my life, but it only played a part in the major crisis of my life. However it is important to mention, my syndrome caused my left leg to grow at a faster rate than the right, and eventually I had an inch difference in length between my legs. This caused me to have my first surgery, with intention to slow the growth of my left leg so my right could catch up. Roughly two years after my surgery, my family and I went to a place like Jumpstreet. Somehow my leg bent ninety degrees to the right rather than forward and back like it was supposed to, and that was the beginning of another six major surgeries in my life. From wheelchair, to crutches, to cane, my junior high and high school years were spent between physical therapy and my school desk. After the second or third surgery, I had lost hope that I would get better and no longer believed I could walk without assistance again. Yet despite that, I still did several more surgeries in hopes to repair my leg. One of the most profound lessons I learned was that working at getting better and feeling I could get better are two different things. It is not that I did not need hope, but stopping then would guarantee me not walking again. Continuing to try gave a chance of improvement, no matter how small. Education took great precedence in my life, which still does, so I continued to strive for high grades despite the surgeries and long physical therapy sessions. The pain medications made it difficult to focus, but my mother was very supportive and helped me with flash cards and other ways to study. With her and my family’s support, I kept steadfast in my schoolwork and never made any less than a “B”. Other than study, I always did my best at physical therapy to get the muscles back that had atrophied from my recovery time. I even ended up having a healthy level of muscle. When I could not exercise, I studied. When I could not study, I drew. Although my leg prevented me from walking right, my hands were in perfect order. Art allowed me to focus on my creative side and have a break from the exercising and studying I had to do. I may not have been able to change the fact I could not walk or I kept needing to have surgeries, but being able to focus on something I could proactively do helped me through that troubling time. At first life looked a little bleak, after my last surgery the doctors could not do any more for me. My physical therapist suggested my family and I keep trying, so we ended up with a chiropractic nutritionist. Through him, I learned the importance of healthy eating and a balanced lifestyle. It sounded strange to me that my eating habits could make such a difference, but I decided to change my diet to see just in case. I could not easily change my leg from being that way but I could change what I ate. It turned out that my intestines were damaged from all the pain medications, and through a change in my diet, exercise, and a little chiropractic treatment, my leg finally healed the best it could. I was able to stop the physical therapy, but I still maintained exercise along with my new eating habits. I ended up even losing weight, and became a happier person knowing I could walk again and that I never gave up. Now I am healthy, active, and even my studies have paid off. I still have never made less than a “B”, and I am a proud honors student as well. Sometimes are most difficult times are our most significant moments in our lives. Even in a bleak situation, always find something you can change, no matter how small. Focus on that, and what seemed so insignificant before can be a game changer in due time. Always find something to keep you moving forward, no matter what it may be. Focusing on Things You Can ControlLinsey Thibault
My goal in life has always been to obtain my PhD. I graduated in high school in 2003. I went to a Junior College where I received my Associate of Arts in 2 short years. Right after receiving my AA I went to a University and received my Bachelors of Science. That took a little bit longer to get. A lot of different events happened and it prolonged me on obtaining this degree, but nonetheless in December of 2009 I did just that. Now fast forward quite a few years. I applied to a graduate program. After my application was completely submitted the waiting begun. I told my husband every day that I was so nervous. What if they didn’t like what I had to say in my personal statement? What if they didn’t like what my recommenders had to say about me? All these questions were going through my head. Friday November 18, 2016 I received an email that I had been waiting on. I was accepted in to the master’s program I had applied for! I am one step closer than what I was to the PhD. The first person I wanted to tell was my husband. The only problem with that is he is 9.5 hours ahead of me in time. He is currently stationed overseas. So I called my Mom and my Mother-In-Law, my Great Aunt, and best friend. I let them all know. I waited up until 1 am and finally my husband got the message to call home. I have to say there is no greater feeling then when you have so many people backing you. My husband told me, “See I told you that you could do it. I knew you would get in. Sometimes you need to have more faith in yourself and it will all work out.” He was right. Throughout my life I have had a difficult time staying positive because it seemed like I was getting hit left and right with bad. At 15 I was in and out of the hospital. By the time I had turned 17 I had already underwent 5 surgeries. At the age of 25 I was almost homeless because my then partner in life had left me and took everything I had. I got home from work to find that I couldn’t get in the house that we had bought together because he had a new significant other. A week later I was let go from my job because they didn’t need my anymore. At the age of 27 I was at the mercy of nature. I had built myself back up from everything that happened just 2 years prior, to have the river that was close to my house flood and destroy everything I owned. I knew something needed to change. I knew that the place that I was in was no place for anyone. I was full of self-doubt and was a having a pity party. I said enough was enough. I started looking at life in a new way. Instead of saying what did I do to deserve this? This is so awful. Why does all these bad things keep happening to me? I want to runway to a remote island where no one can find me. I started saying ok this happened, what do I do to build from it? How can I better myself? What can I do to make the situation that I am in better. I could not control what my body was doing at such a young age. I could not control what former people in my life did. I could not control the economy. I could not control nature. What I could control was how I reacted to the situations that were handed to me. I took a deep breath and started writing down everything. I wrote what happened, what lead to each event, and ways to resolve the problem at hand. At the time I finally realized that I needed to get out of the place that I was in, many of the problems had already been resolved. I was hanging onto that grief and wouldn’t let it go. This was another thing that I wrote down. I put everything I could onto that paper. At that point I knew everything would be alright. I stopped letting bad situations and bad people control my life. I looked at everything in my life with a find tooth comb. I ended some friendships that we very negative, that brought me down. I got rid of the clutter that I once thought was important. There was a whole new prospective on life. I could not control anything that had happened and that is what I was trying to do, grad school included. I am truly blessed with having an amazing husband, an extraordinary support system, 4 cuddly dogs, and a wonderful life. It may not be the most graceful 31 years or the most fascinating 31 years, but they are my 31 years. I may not life how some of the events in my life have happened, but I wouldn’t change any of it. I have learned so much from everything that has happened and I know that with everything I have learned I am that much stronger. With any bad circumstance comes a learning situation. It’s not what has happened to you, but how you react to what has happened. Thank you for taking the time to read my words. I hope your day is filled with joy. Positive ThoughtRay Didier
Arizona State University Henry Ford, founder of America's proudest line of automobiles, famously said “Whether you think you can, or think you can't---you are right.” In this year, I have discovered how profoundly right Ford was, how opening a locked door is sometimes as simple as reaching for it with the key that was in your hand all along. That key is your own voice: your own positive affirmation. For the first 25 years of my life I believed that I couldn't ( and so I didn't), do what it took to become what I knew I was meant to be. Then my grandmother, with whom I was very close, passed away and left me with a newfound resolve that life was too short to be ruled by fear. Positive thought began to take over and as much of an upward struggle as it has been, I have found that is more than powerful. It is the very fuel that sparks the ignition of our hearts and drives us forward; it is the catalyst that miraculously transforms a bleak, miserable, and thankfully short lived shadow, into a thriving, vibrant, and fulfilling existence worthy of what we here on Earth call life. Positive thought has altered my identity, changed my future, and transformed my most intimate relationships. The closet is a gloomy place: a place full of fear, shame, and self doubt. When I came out as a transgender man it took more courage than I thought I possessed. I had struggled my whole life with the contrast of who I was expected to be in society versus who I felt I was inside, and this manifested at times in social recluse, in feeling sick in many romantic and familial situations where I was expected to play a womanly role, in blocking out whole chunks of painful childhood memories filled with dysphoria, in bouts of depression, anxiety, panic disorders, and a whole string of eating disorders that required medical intervention for multiple infections, metabolic disorders, and a few serious intestinal dysfunctions. All of these problems were not the problem. All of these dilemmas were symptoms of the real problem: that I believed I couldn’t fully be myself and that the fulfillment of living my life as my true self was impossible. I was told I couldn’t and believed it. People can tell you whatever they want; it only matters what you tell yourself, because you will only believe yourself. Every other voice out there is just a suggestion, an application for you to choose to accept or reject—if you accept it and repeat it to yourself, then it has the power to imprison you. So I stopped accepting the voices around me that had pressured my since birth to present as a woman, and began listening to the voice inside that told me who I really was. I began to believe I could. I spoke to myself positively, and it changed who I was. “Anyone who stops learning is old,” is another saying from Ford, “and anyone who keeps learning stays young.” Positive thought is contagious. Once you tell yourself you can, there is no stopping you. Coming out was impossible, but I did it. When that happened, I looked around and thought, “What else can I do that is impossible?” The answer was readily there: school. I have always wanted to finish my bachelor’s degree, but the staggering price of higher education told me I couldn’t. It crippled me before I even started crawling. I come from a poor family with nine children. I was lucky to find a job that would give me full time work a dollar or two above minimum wage and three sick days a year. But I have started down a road of doing the impossible, and I am not about to go back to limiting myself. I have always been obsessed with nutrition, taking free classes online wherever I could. I early learned about the changing food industry and the epidemic of the overfed and undernourished giving rise to disease across the globe. I’ve avidly watched documentaries on agriculture and dieting effects on populations, studied the chemical reactions in the human body as it broke apart nutrients and how it utilized them, and wanted more. So here I am—making the impossible possible. Making my dreams come true: going back to school to learn and then better the world around me with my knowledge. All because I believe in yes; all because I am telling myself that I can and I will. Positive thought is doing something else, too. It’s transforming my marriage. You might even say it has saved my marriage. I don’t put a lot of stock in marriage as an institution, but I believe that my partner and I have something extraordinary and worth holding onto, and I nearly lost it all because I couldn’t stop the vicious cycle of negative, self-depreciating thoughts I found myself drowning in. “Don’t find fault, find a remedy,” said Ford, and I was busy finding fault in myself. When you are only looking down, you can’t see the sun shining above. I made it my partner’s responsibility to feed my self-esteem, to give me confidence and believe in me enough to make me happy and keep me going. My partner gave me love, but it wasn’t enough to save me; I had to tell it to myself, and I wasn’t. It nearly crushed us as I became more and more self-conscious, not owning my own thoughts and neglecting to love myself or positively affirm myself. It took couple’s therapy to wake me up, to realize that nobody’s love can reach me if I am not loving myself, and that I must stand up and take ownership for my own happiness. There is no better, no other way than to affirm yourself through positive thinking. So it may seem silly to some, but I look in the mirror and tell myself the positive, self affirming things I need to hear. Often I put a hand over my chest and speak to my body, and feel the stress physically drain out of me. This ritual has changed my identity, my future, and my most intimate relationships. It’s transformed my life. When I read about this scholarship, I knew this opportunity was for me. This is my theme. I like to think Ford would be proud of my drive. I can’t wait to go back to school and earn my degree. I can’t wait to live the impossible life that positive thought has empowered me to finally live. Why I am Pursuing a Career in the Healthcare FieldMcKenzie Bingham
My parents got divorced when I was young. This was a difficult time for me; but with the strong support of my mother, I was able to accept this reality and get myself focused in school. My mother, who is a Nurse, encouraged me to study hard and do well in school. I followed her advice and set my goals to take my schooling seriously and set a goal to get all As in my classes. I knew that if I wanted to go to a competitive college program that I would need to get excellent grades. I also knew that I would have to apply for scholarships. I appreciate school and realize the importance of getting a good education in order to become an educated and productive adult member of society. My career interest since grammar school has always been to work in the medical field. My mother is a Nurse with a Pediatric specialty. I have always admired her and the work that she does. I would go to her office frequently and watch her work. I am proud of my mother and impressed by her skills. She knew that I wanted to work in the medical field and she encouraged me to seek out my own specific interests. I have done 20 hours of shadowing at both Sumner Pediatrics and Family Care Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. I found both of these experiences to be educational and rewarding. I decided that I wanted to be a Physician Assistant. My mother supported me to come to my own decision on what career field I wanted to pursue. Although I chose a Physician Assistant field I was greatly motivated by my mother’s own career field as a Nurse. Using Positive Thinking, I set my goal to be a Physician Assistant. I made a plan to maintain a GPA of 4.0 and become a member of the National Honors Society. I knew that I would need to study hard and take courses that would put me in a good position to be accepted into a six-year Physician Assistant program. I have always enjoyed school and take my studies seriously. My favorite subjects are math and biology. I was selected as a member of the National Honors Society and also received the Wellesley College Book Award in 2014. I graduated from Ludlow Senior High School on June 4, 2015 with a weighted grade point average of 4.24. I was ranked 7th in a class of 198. I focused on my high school goals and with my hard work I reached my high school goals. This placed me in good standing for the next step; to get accepted into a Physician Assistant program. I have worked at an elderly Assisted Living Facility where I enjoy working with and caring for the residents. It reinforced my choice to work in the medical field where I am able to care for others. I have also learned that I enjoy working with a diverse group of people. I believe that providing quality medical care for people young and old is not only a rewarding field but also good service to your patients. I believe in being professional and caring towards each person. Treating them as a human being and giving them quality care is a worthy occupation in life. I was pleased to see many people appreciate my efforts. It brought some positive energy into their daily lives. I made a special effort to talk each time with an elderly woman with Alzheimer Disease. I would always give her a positive comment on her clothes or appearance. She surprised me by remembering my name all the time. This experience had a significant impact on me in developing my maturity and insight on human behavior. I feel that I am a mature and responsible young adult with well thought out plans for my future. I was accepted by Springfield College in Massachusetts for their six- year Physician Assistant Program. When I graduate I will have a Masters of Health Science Physician Assistant Degree. One of my concerns is whether my family will be able to afford the costs because of the expense. My family does not have the money for me to go to college and I will have to take out significant loans. I have one younger sister and my mother is a single mother who works very hard to give us what we need. I have learned that costs for higher education are very expensive and this is why I am applying for scholarships; reaching out in hopes to get some help for my future college needs. If I win this scholarship it will reduce the loans I will have to take to pay my bills. I am excited, very motivated, and enjoy going to college. I finished my first semester with a GPA of 3.76. I will become a licensed Physician’s Assistant. My degree is in a field that I have great interest and will also allow me to provide quality medical care to people in my community with human dignity and compassion. When I graduate as a Licensed Physician Assistant in 2021. I plan to work at Bay State Medical Center in Springfield. I want to begin there to get a broad exposure to medical issues and concerns. I will be a great Physician Assistant. Community Service I believe that a human being should make a meaningful contribution to society. I was raised by my family to appreciate people of the world who are less fortunate. Each year we would contribute to different community service projects. We have bought a goat, helped build a water well, paid for a child to have surgery for a Cleft Palate and sent money to a family to India. I have sponsored a Christmas party for the past three years for children at a local women’s shelter. I believe that being a respectful person each day is important both for my own Life Journey but also towards others. AWARDS 1. National Honor Society 2. Make a Difference Award: I was one of a hundred students in the state that received The Make a Difference award at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. 3. Abigail Adams Scholarship in recognition of outstanding MCAS scores. 4. Wellesley College Book Award a counselor selected outstanding student award. 5. Center for Human Development Certificate for sponsoring Christmas parties for children in local shelter for the past 3 years. Opportunity ThinkerAngela Truong
Arizona State University Opportunity Thinker Hello my name is Angela Truong. I am a Vietnamese American and I am currently an undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Business Human Resources. A dream goal or professional goal of mine is to become a Human Resources Manager for a well-known company such as Google. However, my personal goal is to become wealthy enough to take care of my parents in the near future. Here is a little introduction; my parents are immigrants from Vietnam. They decided to move to America because they wanted my brother and I to have a better life in America since Vietnam did not have many opportunities and it was a poor country. My family of three and I started out with nothing in America. We didn’t have two dollars, nor one dollar, but zero dollars. We originally lived in Westminster, California. My parents did not speak any English therefore it was extremely difficult for them to find jobs. I remember my father would travel 3 hours away from home to do some odd job and my mother would cut pieces of fabric for a couple cents per garbage bag. The language barrier made it extremely difficult for them to find well paying jobs. They tried to learn the English language but they could not because their mentality was to always work to provide for us. There were times where we could not have dinner together. My parents would feed me and they would eat nothing. They wanted to make sure I was fine before anything else. This was not the life for my family. We all moved to Arizona when I was about 4 years old. My parents opened up a nail salon here. My dad did not want my mom to work for anyone else because he was afraid that someone would take advantage of her since she did not speak any English at all. After they had the nail salon, their English progressively got better. I used to resent my parents for not speaking any English and not buying America snacks because they were too expensive and we could not afford them. At lunch, I was ashamed of opening up my smelly lunch box because I did not want the other children to make fun of me. I wanted a normal American life. I was ashamed of being a daughter of parents that knew nothing about the American culture. I finally understood their struggles, sacrifices, and pain when I grew up. My shame turned into my pride. I cannot fathom the thought of my parents struggling as immigrants. Today, my parents are in their 60’s, still painting nails, catering to customers every whim, rubbing people’s hands and feet just to provide food on the table. They work 7 days a week more than 12 hours a day. They are getting older and will no longer be able to use their hands anymore. Their obstacles and struggles have been tough, but they sacrificed a lot to provide an education for my brother and I. One day, I want to be successful enough to make sure they never have to work again. I started off my sophomore year of college being diagnosed with thyroid cancer. I was always fatigued and exhausted to the point that I could not finish an assignment. This experience was rough and I wanted to take time off school. My parents always pushed me to continue with school. Just because I thought that quitting was an easier way out. My parents inspired me to continue with school. I know that everyone has struggles, but knowing about my parent’s struggles made me want to persevere even more. This experience has taught me to work hard even when life hits you hard. There are two types of thinkers. There is the opportunity thinker and there is the obstacle thinker. An opportunity thinker sees obstacles as challenges and has a positive attitude while overcoming them. They persist longer and exert more energy. They are usually more successful. The obstacle thinkers are the ones that give up on their goals easily. Having cancer has made me became an optimist person and a strong motivator. I did not let a struggle define my success. I learned to time managed, prioritize tasks, and I became an opportunity thinker instead of an obstacle thinker. I always encourage everyone to always try and never give up. Even when school gets stressful sometimes, always think of positives to help you overcome your obstacles. I also share my parent’s story because I want to encourage everyone even when times get tough, never give up. Always aim for your goals because it will be worth it in the end even if it feels like it takes forever. By telling these stories, my goal is to spread positivity and compassion in others. This is the power of positive thinking. The reason why I go to school is to take care of my parents in the future. My parents have sacrificed everything for me. I appreciate every little thing, but I appreciate my parents more than anything. I am extremely grateful and I want to show gratuity to them when I can. They gave me everything and spent nothing on themselves. They always made sure I was healthy and needed everything before they worried about themselves. I want to make my parents journey to America worth it. I want to make them proud. Worrying Less, Living MoreBeau Salazar
Arizona State University Every person has been told by someone else they need to get a good job if you want to live a successful live. Young adults today know that a college education will get them towards a good job. If they want a great job, then post-graduate schools are a must, and the requirements getting into those schools are a demanding workload and a stressful few years. Everybody gets caught up with how much effort the classes require a student to put into it, in order for them to pass the classes with good grades. Also, that student might have a job and spends on average twenty five hours working in order to survive while going to school. Don’t forget if they couldn’t afford to meet the tuition from scholarships or savings and have to take loans out, and know the burden of all the debt that adds up over the years. Most of these people are in their early twenties and have a lot on their plate. The stress piles up on a student with all the demands life puts on them, and they panic and become overwhelm with everything going on in their life. Their heads are constantly spinning twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. They don’t put 100% of their effort in school because they are constantly thinking what else needs to be done, or don’t have enough time as they would like to put towards their studies and cause stress to build up. If there isn’t enough time, they can’t cover all the material and can’t perform to their potential in the class. This is a repeated cycle that most students get caught up in and half of them struggle to get out of this cycle. They bring all this negative energy through the law of attraction. The law of attraction reflects that every positive or negative event that has ever happened to a person was attracted to them. They brought the positive energy that resulted in a positive result or vice versa have a negative result brought to them by negative energy. The law of attraction differs from the saying “hardwork pays off” because people can work as hard as they want but still bring negativity with them and they don’t see the results they want to and will bring more negativity around. Most people will try to not associate with those people because they feel like their negative energy will rub off on them. Now a person being positive all the time will bring a great sense of energy for everyone they are around. Students who have a positive law of attraction bring out confidence in not only themselves but other people as well. They believe they will accomplish their goals and don’t let their minds second-guess themselves. They are the people who are the most driven and accomplish their goals, especially working hard, because they envision on their success and always stay positive. Students stress on the slightest things when stuff goes wrong and get lost, instead of taking a step back and recovering their mind off of their task, and being able to go at it again with a positive mind at it. They are many different coaching methods for students to learn from, so they are able to not make the same mistakes again bringing that negative energy with them. Using the coaching methods for the law of attraction will have them ask what they want, make them believe that they can do or have it, and receive what they rightfully deserve in return. The biggest factor for young adults is having a stable clear mind, and using the law of attraction will guide them to what they deserve to have. Black Is Not Just a Colour But a CultureHassan Arekemsse
Black is not just a colour but a culture.Born in Africa specifically Nigeria on the midday of February 7 , 1991. I grew up in a big family knowing education as the biggest legacy and path towards everlasting poverty alleviation and sustainable development. My parent worked so hard and succeeded in paying my tuition through primary school, high school and medical school. I graduated as a physician in March 2013. Woah !!! everyone was proud of me but I knew this was just the beginning of my strive to being a leader. I worked as a physician for 3 years in a struggling federal government hospital with limited equipment and manpower . However, i decided to further my education. I was successful admitted into the prestigious University of Evansville for a masters in health Service Administration August 15 ,2016. It's called a struggle to finish because after my masters I will go in for residency in internal medicine and then my PhD in health service administration.Through all this struggle towards emancipation and self sufficiency, it's always being my parent sponsoring me. At this point, I need help and support from individuals who can foresee where am going and how big the picture his. I wish one day, I will be the position to give scholarships to people who are eager to succeed but aren't privileged to. Conclusively, I believe givers never lack and Africa will one day be great again. The power of positive thinkingAlexus Williams
Grinnell College Recently my career path shifted from entertainer to historian. The credit for this change goes to the amount of knowledge I acquired this past year. Last spring, I took an African American literature and an African American History course. In addition, this summer I completed a 30 page research paper under a historian and Urban and Regional Planning professor at the University of Iowa on the experience of African Americans in Iowa. I won’t say that police brutality in the news and the Black Lives Matter Movement did not have any influence on my decision. But the number one reason for my change in career plans is due to learning about the history of African people in America. I did not read a lot growing up. Most low-income Black children in Chicago don’t because it is rarely emphasized in the home and there are only a handful of Chicago Public Schools producing students that go off to college. As a result, reading smacked me dead in the face as I stumbled over words reading aloud in class after I was accepted to transfer to a magnet high school and then again even harder when I decided to attend a prestigious liberal arts institution in Iowa. History and I met in Iowa in the spring of 2015. Prior to our meeting, dance and creative writing were in the spotlight of my life. Creating short fiction stories and showcasing my ability to choreograph and freestyle Hip Hop dance, which had been cultivated in my neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, were priority. But History and I fell in love within the first assignment. He told me stories similar to the ones I liked to write except they were real. He took me places like Mississippi and New Orleans and taught me lessons and skills that were familiar. Although I struggled with reading, I read continuously to become more efficient and because the new information made me question everything around me. I am drawn to History because it puts a lot into perspective. I learned why many of my aunts and uncles spent a portion of their lives in prison at some point, and why my uncle who was rumored to be a crackhead stole money out of my pocket while I was asleep once. We lived in an oppressive system which forced us into public housing projects and prison was just another way to strip African people of their right to vote, own property, and make a decent living. Since we had virtually no money, my family members began selling drugs to make a living and some of them used their own supply. While it was devastating to face the plight of African Americans every day when I came home from college, I was forced to because I lived in it. I watched the drugs dealers and crackheads out of our car window wondering how we had gotten to this point and how to reverse it. Learning this history made me very skeptical of the White people I interacted with at school because History taught me that African people in America were suppressed while others had access to fresh foods, better jobs, better schools and therefore a longer, more prosperous life. I channeled this new reality by studying the contributions African Americans made to society including food, appliances and music. I began to appreciate Black culture a bit more because it has evolved from a lack of resources and a collective struggle. I decided to invest my time into books about African American history hoping to improve current communities in the process. I plan to pursue graduate school to focus on African American History because becoming an expert on the history of African people in America is important if I would like to change our communities. Marginalized communities are immensely affected by unequal access to health and dental care and the quality of public schooling in the U.S. I recognize that I have the opportunity to change these aspects that I am not happy with if I want to take on that responsibility. Though my dreams of improving African American communities are enormous, the youth I encounter in these communities are the reason I have shifted my focus to maintaining my undergraduate GPA in order to be admitted into graduate school to give back to them. My goals to implement youth summer programs with mentoring, tutoring and guidance on topics of nutrition, dental hygiene, finance, etc. will be attainable with patience and positivity. Regardless of minor setbacks in school, I believe everyone should have an equal opportunity to live a fulfilling and prosperous life. The past year has shown me that there are people that need me more than I need to dance. The power of positive thinkingLetitia Tajuba
When I became a teacher a few years ago. I would say to myself that no matter the circumstances that the year would wonderful. In 2010, I was not in that situation. I was working with a not so great company and I was struggling to make my ends meet. I remember telling myself while I would walk into work every day, that this is not my last place and that by the end of the month I would be at a better position by the end of the month. My boss would curse at me, and tell me how horrible I was. I was depressed and nothing was going the way that I had plan. So, I made a plan. Every day when I walk in to work from my birthday and on. I would be nice to everyone. I am going smile to my boss who is not so nice, and I was going to put my best foot forward. All while I was constantly praying, and saying to myself that no matter what that by the end of February I would have a new career. Low and behold there was a crazy winter storm heading towards where I was living at the time. I was thrilled and scared at the same time because that meant that I could possibly get some time off. My roommate and I planned a way for us to make it safely to her parents’ house in a nearby town. However, my boss was adamant that I was going to be safe walking in this storm that knocked out power in the US Government for nearly 9 days. I am from the land where snow falls, and I have seen it all. I knew that this storm was going to be dangerous because people who lived in this area were not used to these snowstorms. I was upset and nervous because within two hours of the snow falling. There was nearly 4 inches on the ground. I got off work, and headed straight to get to my roommates’ parents’ house. I get there, and sit in a corner to just decompress and watch the snow fall. During that time, I was interrupted by phone calls from my boss, and emails as well. He kept asking for a video that was in his VCR, and I kept my phone shut off. Throughout those days cooped up in a house with about 12 people. All I did was think about what I can do and where can I apply. So for about 4 days. I applied to different positions throughout the DC area and beyond. What I did was contact people who I knew. With the thought that no matter what by the end of February I would have new career. After taking a break and enjoying the rest of days off. I went back to my toxic office situation. On the very first day, my colleague and I were yelled at for not going in during the storm. Where I was staying there was nearly 14 inches of snow and no public transportation was running. I could not afford a Taxi, and my roommate’s mother was adamant that she was not going to let me go to work. Needless to say, he wanted one of us to shovel his sidewalks. Right after that meeting, I got a phone call it was from a school that I used to volunteer for. The principal was so excited to hear my voice, and first thing she said was “How soon can you start?” I told her that I could come in the next day. That day, I came in did my sample lesson, and met some of my now closest friends. At the end of the day, I was hired. I became a teacher. I was skeptical about becoming a teacher. I was impatient, moody, pushy, ambitious, and so many more things that I felt made me not qualify to be a teacher. My family scratch their heads because they were nervous about me becoming a teacher. It was not until I learned how I was doing until my 7th graders begin to protect me from the shenanigans that other students were doing. I began to gain confidence in my teaching. I began to fall in love with every aspect of teaching. Until, I started to noticed what my purspose as an educator was to my students. I noticed that they were failing out of college, and that many of them lack the skillsets that most college students needed. I began to become miserable at my job because I was beating myself up, because I did not know the answers to helping my students succeed. So I decided to go to Grad School so that I can able to work with as many students in their collegiate careers so that they can graduate from college. This scholarship will help with many expenses so that I can continue with my classes and complete my Masters. Hard work will take you farBianca Anuforo
Most people look forward to that “college experience.” Being able to not only make new friends, but to make connections and embark on the journey to the rest of their lives. Some people are fortunate enough to have someone invest in their education, while others are privileged enough to afford an education. Many students like myself have to work our way through college, literally and figuratively. Statistics shows that students, who work, often have lower GPAs than their non-working counterparts. Sometimes it’s frustrating to know that you have to work overtime for an education, while your peers get to enjoy and embark in the true college experience. I realized very early that I needed to work hard to pay for school. Although I was a high achieving high school student, it didn’t really show when it came to merit scholarships for a lot of schools. I didn’t qualify for work-study, so I had to settle for the less appeasing jobs, but hey at least it made me some money. It sucked having to sacrifice, freshman events and having the chance to meet new people, all in the name of working for tuition money, but hey, its life. I was always a hard working girl, so after awhile, working everyday didn’t bother me, until I was diagnosed with a chronic illness. Determined as I ever was, taking a leave or quitting was out of the question. Due to a great support system and motivation from family, I was able to continue my studies. Even though I had to work less, it ignited me, knowing that I had the resilience to keep going all in the name of education. In 3 years, I was able to accomplish what some adults still don’t have and that’s financial literacy and responsibility. Having to buy my own groceries, books, pay my bills and tuition has taught me the art of budgeting, smart spending and management of available resources. I know to not spend what I don’t have, leaving me with no outstanding credit card bills, buying groceries in bulk, so I don’t have to budget for food every paycheck and to pry myself away from the technology addiction. Being able to save money on my phone, by reducing my monthly data and forcing myself to use my phone only under Wi-Fi, or unless it was a dire need. Not being afraid to clip coupons and taking advantage of the free stuff that universities love to hand out to students during the on campus festivities. Over time, I’ve never appreciated money as much as I do now. Over the past 3 years, no matter how hard, emotionally, financially or even spiritually it got, I always kept my eye on the prize, the prize being my degree. My primary goal for going to school and obtaining my exercise physiology degree has always been to become a doctor. Not only do I want to be a doctor, I want to be that doctor that gets their patients to adopt healthy lifestyles, but to improve healthcare for minorities. Minorities have been prone to many chronic illnesses, majority of which are highly preventable through diet and exercise. As a student and social justice advocate I know how socioeconomic status affects health and access to healthcare. Sometimes if my patients aren’t able to, I hope to use my privilege of having a big salary to help get them started on picking healthier groceries. Furthermore, I will have a plan to create local cost effective and time friendly diet and exercise regimens that not only reduce the occurrence of chronic illness, but also prevents them. I want to be that doctor that my patients can relate to. The one that knows what it means to count coins for survival, the one that had to work twice as hard as everyone else to get the basic needs. I want to be a friend to them and in return give them what I struggled to obtain while I was in college. That alone is enough to always leave me thinking positively. I’ve come to appreciate the many people that use their finances to invest in the education of students like myself. Even though I may not be a recipient of those funds, just knowing that somewhere in the world, there are many people that still think of the working students and struggling students is humbling to me. I still struggle to accept that I’m still going to be in debt as a result of chasing my dreams, but its satisfying to know that when its all said and done, the cliché graduation phrase, “I did it” will mean so much more. If there are any lessons that I will hold dear to me that college has taught me, it is to remain positive, hard work may not get you exactly what you wanted, but it will take you far. The powers of thinking positivelyEmma Roach
Growing up in the Caribbean island state of Trinidad and Tobago I was immersed in cultural traditions. Those dear to my heart include: dancing in Carnival day parades; lighting deyas for Divali, the festival of lights and; participating in re-enactments on our Emancipation Day holiday. It sparked my awareness in culture and people and as I grew older, I developed a keen interest in tourism. I was accepted to study Tourism Management at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus, Barbados. Upon my acceptance, I became aware that I would receive no financial support from my family. Heartbroken, I fell into a state of depression as I imagined what life would be like without a college education. As upset as I was about my parents not contributing financially to my education, it was not their fault. They themselves never went to college and although middle class, their finances did not allow for their child’s tertiary education. Set to embark on, what I imagined a mundane life, I began to retreat into my bedroom daily. I was mad at the world because I thought I would not achieve my dream. My faltering attitude led to my aunt Joycelyn inviting me to her home for a weekend. I was not keen on the invitation initially. Aunt Joycelyn garnered a reputation for inviting her nieces over to assist with housework. I was unaware of her intention behind this particular visit. Rather than the usual assigning of chores, we spoke for hours. It was unusual to say the least. Though I knew my aunt loved me and we would sometimes speak on general issues in our lives like community gossip or an upcoming event; we never once had a conversation at length revolving solely around me. She began to ask of my dreams and my aspirations. I told her about the disappointment I felt from not having the finances to begin university and how depressed I was by my friends leaving for school to pursue their own dreams. Rather than encourage me to continue working and save money towards attaining my dream in the future, she told me to “Wake up and attack the day!” I was told that I am no longer to retreat to my room and surround myself in self-pity. I needed to think positively. Positive thinking is described as ‘the process of creating thoughts that create and transform energy into reality.’ Thinking positively can therefore bring ideas and dreams into fruition. If I wanted to go to school, I needed to think positively and do what was necessary to fulfil my own dream. I could not expect anyone to hand my dream to me. After my conversation with aunt Joycelyn, I was renewed. So, at eighteen years of age I had to figure out how I was going to independently fund my tertiary education in a foreign country. In addition to savings from my work at that time, I researched funding opportunities from various agencies and was able to secure grants that financed the entire program. I studied in Barbados for one year before being transferred to the Bahamas for the final two years of study. I was able to complete the program with first class honors and was the first member of my family to graduate with a university degree. The experiences learned from living in other Caribbean islands enhanced my perspective of different cultures. I was able to interface with persons of various backgrounds as campus living afforded me the opportunity to reside with persons not only from the Caribbean but from all across the world. After the completion of my studies I worked for the Tobago House of Assembly within the Division of Tourism and Transportation. There, I was provided with the practical skills and experience which subsequently led to me being hired at our country's leading tourism developmental agency the Tourism Development Company Limited (TDC). Since the beginning of my undergraduate studies positive thinking guided me on the course to employment at TDC and from 2010 to 2014 I held two supervisory portfolios at the company. Working in the administration of the industry afforded me the opportunity to interact with persons from various backgrounds from all across the globe. I delighted in the fact that each day I got to experience another side the world. However, to effectively function in my chosen industry I realized that I needed to enhance my proficiency in international business and technology. Though I did not possess a wealth of resources, my aspiration was to pursue higher level education in the United States of America (USA) as I wanted the chance to learn about cultures outside of Caribbean waters and the USA is one of, if not the, most diverse country in the world. I applied and was accepted to Georgia State University to complete a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in International Business and Information Technology. As a result of positive thinking, I am currently pursuing my dream. As a tourism professional, I hope to utilize my experience, talents and education towards economic development via business and technology strategies for the tourism industry. My dream is in motion and it was ignited by the introduction of positive thinking in my life. I am grateful to my aunt for teaching me the powers of thinking positively and I now spread this message to others and testify to its ability to revolutionize one’s life. My advice to anyone now, whether old, young, student, employed, single or married is to first, think positive thoughts! The law of attractionChristian A. Bogans
Valley Forge Military College Although I am still pretty young and thank GOD have not had an overwhelming number of bad experiences. As a young man I automatically associate the law of attraction with financial reward, but I have also learned that it's more then just attracting financial gain. In 9th grade I began playing football I was angry with my Mother for not allowing me to play as a young time. She allowed me to take gymnastics and ballet lesson but she refused to let me play football because she feared I would get hurt. So, when I began to play football in high school the expectation to be a high performing athlete was real. I had never worked so hard to trying to be the best in all my days. Although I have tried positive thinking to help me pass test or to achieve something but I realized it never worked. So, mother is a religious woman and she instilled an understanding of GOD and the Law of Attraction. She taught me how the law of attraction will play a part in my future successes, my friends and financial gain. When my mother was diagnosed with cancer I was in my fourth year of attending sleep away summer camp. My father suddenly left after my mother was diagnosed. After his sudden departure he began financially abusing us, slowly cutting off all sources of financial support. My mother was fighting cancer and trying to maintain a normal life for me without any distractions. So, during this time it was very important for her to keep me grounded because of the instability in our lives. I really didn't know how my mother managed to send me to camp. I knew, I had to think positive and good thoughts in order for me to receive anything good or wonderful in my life. Even when we didn't have enough food or money to buy food or gas my mother somehow made sure it never affected our daily lives. I would often see my mother praying in the morning and at night, I did not understand who or what she was praying for while on her knees. So, as I was sleeping she was praying and attracting good things into our lives. Watching my mother apply the principals of the law of attraction into our lives helped me develop my own understanding and ability when I needed to apply the laws. The laws of attraction do not work when you plan poorly. For example, if you don't study and don't practice hard then it's likely no matter how you attract the law into your situation it will never happen. You will be left with a feeling of disappointment and anger. The ability to learn to use the laws of attraction to reach the minor goals set for myself has served me well. In relation to my football playing goals and the law of attraction I was never recruited by the top colleges or offered large football scholarships. My mother reminded apply to all the colleges I had an interest and make them aware of my interested in playing football. She had encouraged me to apply to eight to ten colleges. I only applied to four, I limited myself for fear of rejection. The law of attraction does not work when you have fear or doubt present. After I followed through with applying to the colleges that were of interest to me including expressing an interest in playing football for their teams. I was accepted into each and every college I applied, the offer to play football. I really couldn't believe it but I was accepted into each and every college I had applied and even the offer to play football. I think youth have to understand the law of attraction and how to use it to attract positive and wonderful things into their lives. Using the law of attraction takes practice but once you master or perfect the ability to attract people and things into your life, you will develop a peace. This peace will surround you when your presented with stressful or confusing situations. The laws of attraction will flow through every aspect of my life if I am open and receptive. My mother used the laws of attraction to bring healing during her sickness, to help find the finances to send me to college, to help us meet our daily financial needs when my father left and to keep us from becoming homeless throughout the school year. Then I learned to use the laws of attraction to help me get to were I am at this moment. I am now in College playing football. I will be faced with many more challenges and situations that will require me to overcome. And I will first call on GOD and then I will draw on what my mother taught me about the law of attraction. Focusing on things you can controlJavid Rzaguliyev
Life isn’t always what it seems and my life is no exception to this. Growing up in Azerbaijan, being torn from my ancestral homeland and becoming a refugee all by the age of five years isn’t the life any parent wishes for their child. It wasn’t a life I wished for my family and I was only a child but understood that this was something that was out of my control no matter how much I wanted just to be a normal kid with normal friends and normal home life. What I did realize from a very young age is that I could control what I became in my future. I could become someone, anyone I wanted to be if I applied myself and didn’t squander my gift of learning, as my father would say. Accepting that I am in control of my mindset and attitude, was the beginning of accepting myself for who I truly was. Like all things war comes to an end or an agreement or truce in our case, and family relocated to another city in our home country and life began to return to some sort of normalcy. I could focus all my energy on my studies and this is exactly what I did. The education system in Azerbaijan caters to the best and the best only, second best is not an option. To get into the best schools in the country, the Presidents Academy of Azerbaijan, you cannot afford to come in second in your class. I always had this in the back of my mind as I studied harder, slept less, and completed isolated myself from a social life. Some may take pity on me but this is what I knew I could control, and I knew it was what I needed to be the best me I could be. Sacrifice a little fun now for an exceptional future later. When I got accepted into the prestigious Presidents Academy of Azerbaijan, the celebrations were wonderful. My family had come together, from all over the country side and surrounding cities to celebrate my top marks that placed me on a full scholarship to the Presidents Academy. As I looked at cousins aunts uncles family friends and neighbors that I hadn’t seen since before the war came, I couldn’t help but be drunk with joy that my decision to be the best me, focusing on what I knew I could do and setting my mind to it, had brought me the greatness that I had hungered for, the love that I loved being in the midst of, nothing could be more perfect at that exact moment for me… except to graduate from the academy with top honors and then the sky had no more limits, this I was sure of. Needless to say I did graduate with top honors and planned to spend the summer soaking in all that I had accomplished, but as the journey of life would show me I wasn’t allowed to be content yet. My father and uncle approached me no sooner than my foot had hit the ground, as I got off the train, their smiles beaming to tell me the great news that I had been given the privilege to study abroad in America! I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, I had just conquered my dream and here I was about to embark on a dream I had dare not dream, for I thought it was too great a stretch at that particular time in our lives. Even more shocking and quite honeslty scary, was that I would be leaving in only a weeks time, and I would be making the trip alone, nothing but a few pieces of luggage and well wishes, to start fresh in a whole new country on a whole new continent, with a totally different culture and way of life, and I would be alone as I began studying for a new degree, an American degree in Atlanta Georgia. This was the dream of all dreams and I couldn’t believe my luck. I buried my fear deep inside of me and again I told myself this is something you can control. You can go to America, and be the best you can be and great things will surely be the result! As I said goodbye to my family and way of life a week and two days later at the airport, I was determined to be as confident and joyful, for my parents sake, as I boarded a plane for Russia, that would take me to new York city, where I would stay with family friends for a couple of weeks to get a crash course in American culture, before being shipped off to Georgia to go at my new life alone. After getting settled in Georgia I realized the English I spoke was not the English spoken in America, everyone and every word sounded different, no one spoke the “proper English” we are taught back home and to my horror I realized I wouldn’t do to well in school if I couldn’t even keep up with the American English that was so foreign to my ears. This new problem wasn’t going to stop me, I knew I had the ability to overcome this obstacle and that is exactly what I did. I studied English first and although it prolonged me actually getting to start my true degree, I knew this foundation would only help me build on my ultimate goal to be successful and graduate with honors from an American university. Fast forward to 2015 and here I am, a senior at Georgia State University, double majoring in Accounting and Finance, and a GPA of 3.87. It has not been without a difficult yet rewarding journey that I have made it this far. I am so close to accomplishing not just my dream, but the dream of my family, so far away yet always managing to send encouraging words and letters and phone calls. This scholarship will help me to complete this dream, my dream, my family dream my American dream. To be able to study and focus on the things I can control have gotten me this far. As I finish my last year of study a scholarship to help offset the rising cost of education will do me tremendous wonders and allow me to focus on what really matters, graduating with honors. The law of attraction gave me the wake up call I neededBraylon Lee
I believe that the law of attraction is one of the most powerful rules of life. I use it everyday to reach my goals and ultimately my dream. In the 2013-2014 school year I fell down from a 3.0 Cumulative GPA to a 1.0 Cumulative GPA. Now in all of the years of my student career that affected me tremendously. But I had to change my thinking because whatever you think that is what you will become. The key to making my comeback to my 3.0 was time management. From where I was spending time at to what I was talking about, I had to create good but not only that I had to believe that I was creating good. One of the biggest things I had to learn is in order to receive good, you must make yourself present and available to give good. I remember everyday that I was on campus I would always talk about success and how to get it, the more I gave the more was given to me. One of the opportunities that was presented to me was to be a Senator to represent undergraduate studies and talk with students, make changes to improve their experience in college while getting a chance to teach success was a amazing opportunity because I attracted the opportunity because I created good. Now I believe that everyone has strengths and that when used correctly can make a effective change toward the vision that a group, organization or a person is trying to fulfill. My biggest strengths are being conversational, strategic and on purpose. Being positive is a huge strength because in order to attract good you must understand the benefits of creating good . Understanding the good instead complaining about the bad, you have the opportunity to not only become grateful but have information to understand why you should be grateful. Being strategic is another strength. In order to complete a assignment or a task, you must have a plan to get to that result by understanding what you are dealing with, you will have a clear focus on what decisions to make to get the job done. Finally being on purpose is my biggest strength. When you are on purpose you are connected with what you are supposed to be doing, for example if someone wants to be a good student they must do things that align with them being a good student from tutoring to networking. So in order to attract good you must do things to align yourself to receive good, everything that you do must align with what you are supposed to do. Your purpose is a big part of the law of attraction. I have learned that my purpose is connected to foundation, mindset and business. What my foundation symbolizes is from Little Rock, Arkansas where I learned hard work and discipline. The hard work is from studying to tutoring in order to complete the work you must understand what you are working on and the discipline is from the fact that I am doing something that matters with not knowing what the outcome will be. In order to have a strong foundation you must think about things that will create a strong foundation from the people you spend your time with to what you are watching. Everyday I wake up on purpose because when I wake up on purpose I must to everything in my power in order to carry out and fulfill my goals in order to complete my purpose. I learned that my mindset can produce thoughts that can affect what I do, when I create good I can attract good. The more positive I think on the better my results will be. Lastly how I conduct business effects how much I am able to do. I use this rule of profit/deficit is every meeting that I go to, are the people I am surrounding myself with and are the events I am going to, are they going to create a profit or deficit. The profit is learning, growing and more while deficit is pain, suffering and more. The law of attraction gave me the wake up call that I need and thanks to tutoring, study strategies and the emotional support of my parents, mentors and GOD plus me using my self-discipline and work ethic I am now at a 2.78 Cumulative GPA on the verge of being back at a 3.0 Cumulative GPA. I believe receiving this scholarship will help my passion for success will grow because of the opportunity to achieve today and the future. In the words of Steve Harvey, "The Dream Will Propel To Get An education." I believe, "In order to know where you are going, you first must know where you have been." I have learned that by projecting what I want to attract along with the power of dreaming and knowing my foundation, there is no doubt that I can be anything that I want to be. Born too soon and defeating the odds with positive thinkingJared Matthew Brown
University of Central Florida Being born a premature infant was a true testament for me and my parents based upon how we faced the challenge of the “unexpected.” My mom often talks about my premature birth and reflects upon the many blessings that occurred at that time. I was born on November, 4, 1996, weighing one pound and 13 ounces. Of course my mom tells the vivid story as if it just happened yesterday. She arose early on that cool Monday morning at 6:00 am preparing to head out to work; however, an extremely nagging cramp prompted her otherwise. So she made the decision to contact her doctor’s office to ask if she could see the doctor because something didn’t feel quite right. Unfortunately, the doctor’s office wasn’t open yet and the answering service attendant suggested that she head to the emergency room. And she did, but little did she know that November 4, 1996 would be the day that she gave birth to a one pound, 13 ounce baby boy. After checking in at the ER desk, my mom explained that she had no intention of being admitted. However, following the nurse practitioner’s brief examination, it became very clear that she would be admitted and moved to the labor and delivery floor. The nurse practitioner explained to my mom that the next step would be to page the obstetrician to request that he report to the hospital. As one can imagine, my mom then became very nervous and frightened, as any mom would. Of course, her mind began racing with thoughts of “will this baby live” or “will he succumb various medical issues?” Medical history proves that normal birth weight babies remain in the womb for at least 36 weeks, and babies born less than 28 weeks usually have a dismal chance of survival. My mom told me that I was delivered exactly at 26 weeks (six and half months), which was by far, way too soon. Per my mom, my original arrival date was February 14th, 1996, so needless to say my parents were really in fear of my extremely early arrival. My mom says that it appeared to take forever for the doctor to arrive after the nurse paged him, but once he did, he responded with somewhat of a doom and gloom prognosis. The doctor informed my parents, “It would be best if you all contact your clergy, the baby is breech (not in the head down position) and we’re going to have to deliver the baby immediately.” Even today, my mom often reflects upon the doctor’s initial prognosis and she feels absolutely certain that her positive thinking and God made up the difference and made all things possible. She explained that hearing the doctor’s prognosis made her stomach curdle, however she wouldn’t take the doctor’s word as the “only” prognosis. My mother recalls hearing my faint little cry right as the doctor cut the umbilical cord. It was then that she breathed a sigh of relief. Her next fear was to check to see if I had ten toes, and ten fingers like that of a normal baby. So after a quick baby scan she breathed a second sigh of relief – all my parts were intact. She described her fear of holding me when the NICU nurse bundled me up and handed me to my mom. My mom mentioned that I was so fragile and tiny, but she soon got over her fear and began the skin-to-skin contact which is so therapeutic for preemies. Following my premature infant research, I learned that less than one percent of babies in this country are born this early, and sadly enough, these babies have the most medical complications. Extremely low birth weight (less than 2 pounds, 3 ounces) babies require special care. Almost all require treatment with oxygen, surfactant, and mechanical assistance to help them breathe. They’re also too immature to suck, swallow, and breathe at the same time, so they must be fed through a vein (intravenously) until they develop these skills. They often can't yet cry (or you can't hear them due to the tube in their throat), and they sleep most of the day. These tiny babies have little muscle tone, and most move very little. Compared to full term babies, babies born at this time look very different. Their skin is wrinkled and reddish-purple in color and is so thin that you can see the blood vessels underneath. Their face and body are covered in soft hair called lanugo. Because these babies haven't had time to put on fat, they appear very thin and fragile. Most likely, their eyes are closed and they have no eyelashes. Premature babies have a higher risk for one or more medical complications. However, most babies born after about 26 weeks' gestation do survive to one year (about 80 percent of those born at 26 weeks and about 90 percent of those born at 27 weeks), although they may face an extended stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Unfortunately, about 25 percent of these very premature babies develop serious lasting disabilities, and up to half may have milder problems, such as learning and behavioral problems. But I’m a true testament that I most definitely beat the odds. I’ve had zero setbacks other than a little minor issue with childhood asthma, which I’ve outgrown (over time). I truly know that I’ve been blessed beyond measure and I’m proud to say that I have no disabilities. With much love and care I soon progressed from a one pound 13 ounce baby boy to a whopping four pounds and was able to be released to go home. That date was January 24, 1997, and my parents could not have been happier. Of course my parents continued their vigilant watch as care takers; for the first year of my birth, especially due to my low tolerance and fragile immune system. Because of my extreme prematurity, I knew that I had to work harder than most of my peers in order to excel in academics to beat the odds. My mom recalls that I was a bit slow to begin walking (13 months old), but she says once I did I was off to the races. My parents were eager to teach me phonics as a toddler and I soon began reading (the one or two liner books) at the age of five. In our household, my parents always highlighted the importance of education, education, education. So there was no doubt that I would excel in elementary and high school and attend college. The lessons learned throughout my “pre-mature” journey have really benefitted me in every area of my life. My early childhood dream was to become a professional football player. However, over time I’ve since changed my dream and have decided to work in the healthcare field to help serve others. I’m currently enrolled as a freshman at the University of Central Florida. If my inspirational story is chosen as a top contender, I will apply the scholarship funds to help further my college education to obtain a position in the Healthcare Field impacting others through health and fitness of the mind, body and soul. It is my goal to utilize my past life experience at beating the “premature infant” odds to inspire the many families and individuals within my community. I have no doubt that my testimony can and will motivate others who face disadvantages in life, to continue striving to “beat the odds.” Positive thoughts about brain cancerKaren Barragan
In Mexico City, I lived a life that most people would have never considered ideal. My family of five and I lived in a one sized car garage, surviving off of my parents’ fruit stand. To me, my life was more than enough because I was blessed with one thing a united family. Although we weren’t the my wealthiest, I never had to worry about anything because my parents never failed to provide. At the age of seven, I would’ve never anticipated my parents urging me to pack all of my belongings and head out. “¿Papa adonde vamos a ir?” (Dad where are we going?) I asked as we walked to a worn out bench on the side of the road. The look on my father’s face said it all. We were on the outskirts of San Diego, in Escondido, with one suitcase, fifty dollars, and no where to go. I didn’t understand it at the time, but my family and I migrated to California without any form of stability. My parents had no plan, they had left Mexico on pure faith that we would arrive and God would provide. We spent the next couple of months without a roof over our heads surviving in community parks. Summer days became shorter and nights became longer as my father, an immigrant with a middle school education, took on the futile challenge of finding a job. As a seven year old, all I wanted was to be with my family, together, even if it were homeless in a community park. My parents were the only thing that were keeping me strong, and the nights I needed them the most, they were not there. They were in a different city looking for a job and could not afford a cab. Days would go by and I wouldn’t hear from my parents because there was no way of communicating with them. Some days, I wasn’t sure if they were going to return and I had to care for my two siblings. While my brothers slept, I stayed awake making sure they were safe, and began to figure out how I was going to feed them the next day. There were days that I would go without eating because my brothers were my priority. Regardless of how difficult times got, I never failed to provide food for them, if it were the most minimal piece of food. It was difficult keeping my family strong when I could barely pull myself together. After eight months, my father found work as a mechanic. Just when my life was slowly coming together, my mother became very ill, she was taken to a hospital in San Diego, where she stayed for four months. During that time, I took on the role of the mother in my household. Every day, I walked my brothers to school, made sure they were fed, and maintained the house. Rather than looking at my duties as a burden, I did everything I could in order for my mother to have peace in mind at the hospital. Even when my mother returned, she was in a state of depression for a year, and I continued my duties at home. In a way, I sacrificed my childhood so that my brothers could have one; it was worth it. I never grew tired of the duties that I upheld, it was an honor to assist my family. I am grateful for the things that I have been through because they have shaped me into the ambitious and empathetic person that I am today. My ambition comes from attaining a higher education in order to one day give back to the less fortunate communities. As an immigrant in the United States, I have strived to take advantage of all of the opportunities given to me in this country in order to set an example for underrepresented minorities. Ever since my arrival to the United States, I have learned that this country is a place filled with opportunities, it is just a matter of taking them. There isn’t necessarily one path towards success, every individual is different, however, I have learned that attaining a higher education is my way to success. Every difficulty that I have encountered in life has taught me to work for what I want. I have worked hard my entire life and will continue to work harder at the University of California, Santa Cruz in order to one day realize my life long goal of becoming a Pediatric Oncologist. I am a dreamer whose ambitious attitude comes from setting goals and taking every opportunity to achieve them. To me, a dream is much more than an idea or a thought. A dream is a goal I plan to achieve through dedication and hard work. Making a dream “possible” doesn’t mean that the dream will be any less more difficult to achieve. I know that I will constantly fail in life, but I will never let those failures get in the way of my goals. Even the most successful leaders have once failed, but my experiences have taught me to improve myself through certain failures. Positive thoughts about brain cancerAngelyn Dodson
My baby nephew was diagnosed with brain cancer in April. No brain tumor is good, but this one was particularly bad. It was one of the rarest, most aggressive and least treatable of all the tumors found in children. So my summer was spent in a children’s hospital. And I have to say, there’s nothing quite like spending weeks on end in a children’s hospital staring death in the face to change a person’s perspective. We heard a lot about positivity in there. Somewhere in between the radiation and music therapy, there was always a speech about continuing to think positively. At first, that frustrated me. What was positive about a life threatening brain tumor? What was positive about a brain tumor that was so rare that the doctors hardly knew how to treat it? What was positive about chemotherapy that made my baby nephew so nauseous that he threw up any bit of food he ate or harsh antibiotics that made his face and mouth so itchy that he scratched until his lips flaked off? What was positive about a little boy facing death before he had even turned two years old? It was so hard to see the positivity in any of that. But at some point, that changed. It had to change. Sometime around the third round of chemotherapy, the anger and negativity started getting to be too much. It was sucking the energy right out of me, it was stressing me out, it was depressing me, and ultimately, it was making the entire situation even more awful. I couldn’t change it, though. I couldn’t magically make the tumor disappear. I couldn’t make the chemotherapy more comfortable for him. I couldn’t rescue him from the confines of those gray hospital walls and bring him outside to sniff the air and feel the sun on his hairless head. I couldn’t make him better; I couldn’t save him. I felt helpless and at times, hopeless. I had no control over the situation. And that’s the worst - when things are out of your reach. I didn’t realize it at the time, but there is always one thing that is within your reach. Every person possesses a perspective and the ability to change that perspective. I didn’t change mine for a very long time, but when I did, things started looking up. That’s what’s powerful about positive thinking - not that it can change actual circumstances, but that it can change the way we perceive and react to our circumstances. It shapes our realities because our reality is the way we think about something. The world around us is nothing but the world around us if we do not think about it. But when we attach our ideas and thoughts to it, it becomes our world. So I had to choose - did I want to think positively or negatively? Would I fill my world with darkness or with light? I could choose to think that the cancer would prevail and I would lose my baby nephew. Or, I could choose to believe that my nephew would be victorious - that he would beat this thing and come out on the other side even stronger. I could choose to think that if I did lose him, I would fall apart; I would lose my light and hope and life would no longer be worth living. Or, I could choose to believe that if I lost him, I would be grateful for the beautiful months I had with him and I would use the story of his strength to inspire others in similar circumstances. Of course I knew that simply by thinking positively about it, I couldn’t make the cancer disappear. But I could make those horrible feelings of hopelessness and helplessness disappear. No, I didn’t begin to think positively because I thought it would heal him. I began to think positively because I knew it would heal me. My nephew is home now. Against tremendous odds, the cancer has not come back. Each and every day, he becomes a little bit stronger and a little bit healthier. And each day, I become a little more grateful and a little more hopeful. Grateful that I’ve been given so much time with him and hopeful that my time with him will be so much longer than I initially thought. Of course, the fight is not over. When it comes to cancer, it’s never really over - not in this lifetime, at least. If that awful beast ever strikes again, I know where I’ll be. I’ll be right at his bedside reading him a book, brushing those few remaining wisps of hair out of his eyes when the vomit comes, throwing a ball to him when he feels a little better and never letting my strength or faith waver. I know now that my positive thoughts won’t heal his body. But they’ll heal my soul and his, too, in the process. I don’t know what will happen to him. Of course I hope that he lives a long and wonderful life. But I know that no matter what, I’ll be able to carry on a purposeful life full of meaning and love, even if I need to live that life without him. The power of positive thinkingMelody Moua
A proton according to science is an atom with a positive charge but in reality, I define it as a way of thinking where you can only find happiness when you are able to block out any negativity from your life. When I was younger I was an electron, I seem to always gravitate towards the negativities in my life; I cared too much about disregarding my feelings, trying to make everyone happy and always looked down upon my self. I am the fourth child out of sixth, having three older sisters and two younger brothers; making me the middle child who can neither relate to her older sisters or younger brothers because of the age gap. Because of this, I didn’t have a leader or a follower, making me a lone ranger. Of course because I was a lone ranger, who had low self-esteem, when someone makes fun of me or gets upset because of me used to make me have a mental disturbance. Everything people say or do closes my heart and mind each time; I became a bitter person who can no longer reach out to anyone. Let’s just say that during those puberty years, I wasn’t so proud of it. I closed everyone off, even praises from others eventually made me second-guess myself. The more I closed others from my life, the more hatred I developed, the more negativity I drew in; becoming an unhappy person. Our human mind is stronger than any other species on this planet Earth, we can control ourselves and train ourselves overtime to act a certain way, be a certain way, and become a person according to our emotions. It wasn’t until the last few years of my high school year where I had met my music teacher that I began to see life in a different perspective. Every morning she always says to every student “Remember to be a positive person, think positively, block out any negativities and be happy because we only live once. Life is short so appreciate, love, and live every moment as if it is your last.” It was because of her words and actions that I began to change the way I view life. Of course this didn’t happen over night but it is something that gradually grew in me. When I finally realized that I had changed for the better, it really amazed me how much a person can appreciate life and find the connection with others. It was because of her enthusiasm, her ability to see greatness and beauty in every person and thing that made me realize that I want to pursue in a career in teaching. When you think positively, you unknowingly give off a positive vibe, thus drawing only in positive people, even giving influence to those who are not happy. Now that it has been about five years, I feel great about myself. I now have great relations with my family and have discovered who I am and know what I want to become in life. I’ve learned not to stress but instead see it as a challenge. I’ve learned the importance of having hope, having faith, and seeing the greatness in others. I have gained acceptance to Georgia State University’s Early Childhood Education program and am currently working my way to landing my dream job. Through this program, I am able to find joy when teaching in my field placement classroom at an elementary school. I have developed the talent of being able to relate and talk to my students effectively while also getting them to see all of the great things in life. I love seeing the face expressions that my students make when they finally grasp a concept or idea. I love the challenge of finding new methods and ideas to help each student improve in their weak subjects. I enjoy making lesson plans that cater to every student’s needs and best of all, I especially enjoy passing on my knowledge to the future generations. I am only now faced with the obstacle of financing my education. Just like my formal music teacher, I want to become an influential teacher and mentor to my future students; with a philosophy of always bringing positivity to their lives. “The way to happiness: Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry. Live simply, expect little, and give much. Scatter sunshine, forget self, and think of others. Try this for a week and you will be surprised.” ― Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking Personal growth Chelsea Walters
“It’s a world of laughter, a world of tears. It’s a world of hopes and a world of fears. There’s so much that we share that it’s time we’re aware. It’s a small world after all…” The profound eloquence of this “simple” children’s song summarizes the best part about my study abroad. Before departing, I believed this once in a lifetime trip to places which I had only previously seen on postcards, would be the great adventure I longed for. My romanticized, preconceived notions did not come close to the lifelong lessons I learned by engaging in daily conversations with people who have never travelled outside of their homeland. The people I met had drive, perseverance, passion and a strong desire to make something of their lives in spite of the many obstacles they faced. This inspired me so that when I awoke each morning. I chose to focus on these positive thoughts throughout my trip. I approached the day as an opportunity to learn from someone new, from someone whose experience was different from mine. Therefore, I gained an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and wanted to learn more about their lives because the experiences they shared, I could not learn in a textbook. I truly believe that my focusing on this positive attitude brought more positive experiences into my life. I was able to take each day as a learning experience for the next. But more importantly, I was able to take my entire study abroad experience, and use it to shape my life into what it is today because I believed that it could. In New Orleans, Louisiana, on the city bus on my way to class, I spoke with a New Orleanian man who weathered Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In Chennai, India, in a rickshaw on my way to an artist's market, I spoke with the driver about his childhood in rural Tamil Nadu. In Buenos Aires, Argentina, I chatted with the cashier of a local convenience store about his daughter's upcoming wedding in Mexico. In Cape Town, South Africa, with a local shop owner, I discussed dreams of future vacation destinations in the United States. These conversations and many others like it allowed me to have a deeper understanding about the culture in which I was immersed and through them, I learned about myself. It was in those moments that I began to analyze and critique my previously limited view of the world. I have come to understand that diversity is not merely having an understanding of the existence of different cultures, socioeconomic backgrounds, or gender. It is a deeper appreciation that enlightens you and helps you realize that acceptance of others, unlike yourself, does not take away from who you are or who you may become. Unique and varied experiences create diversity, discovered when we share our goals and desires. These experiences bring us closer together creating a community in which people can thrive; hence, my full understanding “it’s a small world after all”. A simple smile indicates a willingness and openness of acceptance of one another and thereby creates the foundation for community. It is a way to express positive thinking to others and it is almost contagious. A smile may seem small and inconsequential and many take for granted, but it can have a powerful impact on a human being. Furthermore, it is a way for people to feel like they are not alone in the world. It gives babies, children, and adults a feeling of comfort and safety. It is often accompanied by laughter and kindness, which also strengthens the interaction between people. I believe that one of the most important things that a smile can bring is a feeling of trust in others. It is the basis of many of the interactions we have with each other and how we move around in the world. I strongly value this idea of community and I believe that by incorporating positive thinking within the conscious of the community can have positive results. It could be used to strengthen the relationship amongst students, educators, dentists, and patients. It is very important to include all members in the community because we can all combine our own strengths and work collectively for the greater good. I believe that education sets the foundation and gives students the tools to contribute to the community in which we chose to be immersed in. It is here during our time in school, that we will be able to share our goals and desires in order to thrive. In the end, the true adventure was my trip of personal growth. It is now my goal to leverage these shared experiences into my chosen career. I believe that I have the potential and drive to do this by fixing one smile at a time. I flourish when I set concrete goals for myself. A career in dentistry will allow me to do all of these things. My approachability will bring patients to my dental chair, but it is my honesty, compassion for people, and genuine interest in the well-being of others that will get them to come back again and again. I believe this separates good professionals from great ones. Throughout my travels, I made it a point to have conversations with as many people as I could. I have seen with my own eyes that the core of humanity is the same no matter where you travel in the world, or what language you speak or how much money you make. My approach towards a dental career will be the same as the manner in which I conduct my personal life. To begin with a bright smile and ask people how their day is going so far. I am confident that the life lessons learned during my travel abroad will be an integral part of my dental career as I develop professional relationships with patients and hopefully, bring a new smile to their days and they’ll be able to pass that positivity onto others. The principle of personal developmentKimberly Cross
“All the tests confirmed it- You have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy”. I know a girl who had to hear these words from a doctor she barely knew. Not even the colorful rooms of Seattle Children’s Hospital could cover up how those words cut through her like several knives. She was nine years old. All she had ever known was the torment of bullies and the empty feeling of playing alone at recess. When she would go home, she would not think of the heartbreak that was being caused. She knew she was different, but she refused to let anything stop her from being happy. She didn’t know a thing about adversity, but she overcame it. She was nine years old, and there she was being told that in six years or less she would likely be confined to a wheelchair and barely able to breathe on her own. No girl deserves this, not because genetics say that females aren’t supposed to get this form of Muscular Dystrophy, but because no one should have to face this. She refused to give up hope, even though she had a degenerative and potentially deadly disease that was incurable. What could she have done about it? It was all beyond her control, but she figured her attitude was within her control. Being happy is way better than being depressed, so she chose her own happiness. Nine years later, here she is, still walking, against most odds. She is still living her life. Here in a couple of weeks, she will start college at the University of Washington- Bothell, all because she never gave up. This girl focused on what was within her control, and never let go of those things that were within reach and meant the most to her. She still focuses on what she can control, and everything else is what she leaves for fate to decide. If you’re wondering who that girl mentioned above is, I am that girl, and I am proud to be. I am Kimberley Cross, and I love my life at this very moment, because I accepted what I cannot change. I am the one that sat in that room and was told about all of the “can’ts” there would be in my life. Was I and am I still terrified of them? Yes, definitely. Are they in my control? No, absolutely not. If I can’t control these things, by default, what I have left is what I CAN control. The “cans” will always be up to me. I am in control of those. In general, no matter what a person’s struggle is, aspects of live can be placed into two categories- what we can control, and what we cannot control. I have a choice to make every day, and it’s between feeling sorry for myself, or finding happiness. I always choose happiness, even when I am having a bad day. I give myself a few minutes a day to feel sorry for myself, but that few minutes is enough to remind me why I am so optimistic. That, my friend is why I find happiness. It’s always better to be happy and surround myself with the people I love, and do the things I love doing. Love and happiness are my favorite parts of life. They are not always easy to have as a constant in life, so of course they require some work. Everything that is truly worthwhile takes work, and I do not mean working to make money so you can buy those awesome shoes. I mean you have to put in effort to get what you want in life. We must take a stand when our values are being challenged, and show that we believe in what we claim to believe in. Focusing on things we can control is a principle of personal development that applies here. Our values, beliefs, goals, dreams, and accomplishments are all in our control. These are important. We are not able to control the obstacles that stand in our way, but what we can control is what we do to get around them. I have learned that the way my life turns out is mostly up to me, and that I need to focus on what matters the most to me, or I will lose my sanity trying to focus on what is beyond my control. When I ran for ASB secretary at the end of my sophomore year of high school, I did not realize I would get the position. I had just started at Marysville Pilchuck High School eight months earlier. That was when I realized that I really wanted to serve others to the best of my ability. Being elected ASB secretary was a turning point in my life. Being an ASB officer was a goal I had, and something I could control. This really proved to me that focusing on what I can control truly pays off. The next school year, I walked in as a junior and the ASB secretary of MPHS. I felt super excited and grateful that I was finally an ASB officer. I was ready for whatever life decided to throw at me (Except AP U.S. History. I switched out of that class after the first day due to intimidation. Believe me, that was a BIG mistake). I conquered AP literature, College Algebra and Chemistry. They don’t lie when they say junior year is the most rigorous. I was okay though, because I knew that getting good grades was something I had control of. The 3.95 I got was better than most of my previous GPA’s, but not quite good enough for me, because I knew I could do better. I had three goals set for the end of my junior year. Number one was to finally get a 4.0, which I did do, and my second one was to make nationals for DECA. Goal number three was to be elected ASB president. In March, elections applications were finally released, and I turned in my completed application the day before the state DECA competition. As for what I was in control of, I was fully in control of the DECA competition, and as for the election, I had to perfect my speech and campaign, and the rest was up to my fellow classmates. At the DECA conference, I only placed 35th, and I needed to be in the top seven to move on to Nationals. At first I was upset, but then I realized I still did pretty well for a first time competitor. I knew that I just had to put in more work the following year. It was a learning experience for me. A couple of weeks later, it was time for me to give my speech, and elections followed a few days later. The Friday after elections, our Elections chair and president at the time counted ballots. I awaited a text message for about an hour. When I finally received and opened that message, the first thing I saw was a name that was not mine next to president. I said some profanity, and cried for quite a while. That was all I had dreamt of since I started at MPHS. Just like that, my dream was crushed. I felt like the biggest failure in the world. A week or so later, I had a wakeup call. That was not the Kimberley Cross I knew and loved. I might not have been ASB president, but I was appointed as PR Manager. I did everything right, I campaigned and practiced my speech. It was not my fault that I did not get elected president. What I could control was what I was going to do next. I set goals for my senior year, and I continued with one of my passions, which was being a servant leader. When I started my senior year, I thought it would be the perfect year. I had just gotten a power chair, so I was excited to actually be on time to my classes and not have to walk everywhere. The truth was that my body could not handle that much walking anymore, and knowing that was kind of painful, but I learned quickly that I felt much more independent than when I was walking around. The progression of my disease was out of my control, and it was not something to worry about too much, but having a great year was. That year was going well until October 24, 2014. I was the senior homecoming princess, in the leadership class, I was on the yearbook staff, and I had just started applying for colleges. October 24th seemed like a normal Friday, until a fire alarm went off in my fifth period class. When we headed out toward the football field, there were teachers yelling at students to get inside a classroom, and a student yelling “Someone has a gun!” It turned out someone pulled the alarm to get everyone out of the cafeteria. When I made it into a classroom, my friends were looking at the news on their phones. That was when it really hit me that a shooting just happened at my school. The shooter and two others were dead at the scene. When they evacuated everyone, and I finally got back home, I found out that my friend Zoe was one of the students that died at the scene. I was shocked, confused, and I was just numb. It wasn’t until way later at a candlelight vigil that I was able to actually show emotion. That was the worst day of my life. There is not a day that I don’t think about what happened, but I don’t let it bring me down, and I didn’t dwell on it. Instead, I thought about what I needed to do as a servant leader when we returned to school. I did what I did best, and I made sure that everyone knew they can talk to me about anything. I offered hugs and I helped some people who were having a harder time coping with everything. The principle of focusing on things I could control really helped me. I knew I couldn’t change what happened, or that five members of our student body were gone. I did know that I could help people just by being a good friend to those around me, so that is what I did. Miracles happened after the tragedy, which helped our student body, faculty, and community recover. Our community became more united than it was before. People across our country and the world were supporting us. Our sports, band and DECA chapter did better than ever before. We had a few bomb threats, but our school and community got through it together. I found out that I had been accepted into the University of Washington- Bothell, I was a finalist in the state competition for DECA, and I helped create an amazing yearbook with my fellow yearbook staff members. Sure, the beginning of my senior year had some obstacles, but it ended on a pretty positive note. I am so proud to have graduated from Marysville Pilchuck. This principle of personal development has absolutely made a positive influence on my life. I have always strongly believed that focusing on what I can’t change is a waste of time. It is more important to focus my time and effort on what I can control, because those things will affect my future more adversely. I have overcome so much in eighteen years of life, and if I focused on aspects of life that were unchangeable, I would have used up the time that I needed to reach my goals. By living by this principle, I was able to choose happiness instead of anger and depression. Focusing on things within my control has helped me fight Muscular Dystrophy, come to terms with my diagnosis, and deal with other challenges. It also allows me to not constantly think about the obstacles I face every day. I have overcome adversity in the many forms in which it presented itself, and I will have more to overcome. I will continue to do what makes me happy, and if I ever get to a point where I am not, I know I have the power to change what I have control of, and I will find my happiness again. For now, I need to focus on the new chapter of my life that starts in a couple of weeks, and of course the controllable things in my life. I have grown so much as a person over the past nine years, and I can’t wait to see what my future holds. The Human BrainJanet Campos
Awakening from sleep only to repeat the same thing as before; a norm adapted because the stretch to happiness is out of hindsight. Work is the only objective to true happiness because it leads to money. But who has the time to spend and enjoy it, when you are working twelve hours a day from two in the afternoon to two in the morning, five days a week and, too tired to go out on the weekend because sleep is being lost. Whether it is physically or mentally, many people live this type of life because they don't comprehend the capacity of the human brain. Perhaps not everyone feels little significance towards life because of the overload of work. They suffer from loss, love, depression, identity, society, pressure, family, education, etc. But one this is certain. We pain from so much, yet it feels inevitable. So we begin to panic, and next thing you know we are thousands of feet above ground, standing on the edge of the tallest building in the city; one push can end it all. The human brain is the superpowers we saw on the television that we wished we desperately had. Sure, flying can take us places, super strength can destroy our enemies, and we will be gazed at as heroes by society. However, we have much more than that, much electrifying energy brawling within us since the day we were born. We attract things into our life with every single thought illustrated in our minds, every feeling that makes a shiver run down our spine. Just like the laws of nature and gravity are inevitable, so is this. The Law of Attraction. To explain this amazing phenomenon, I would like to reach out to my audience in hopes that you can relate. I'll begin with rock bottom and the pebbles, although they seem small and harmless, gashed into my knees from climbing to the top. The Law of Attraction is there to serve us, in the good and in the bad. Entering my junior year in high school, I had many high expectations for myself because my immigrant parents didn't have the slightest clue why they signed the blue paper. That blue paper was an Advanced Placement (AP) contract. I signed up for AP United States History (APUSH), AP Spanish Language, and AP English and Composition. My claim behind taking three AP classes was the lack of importance my school had on education. I felt I had not earned those A's and B's my sophomore year by still obtaining credit when turning in late work or even having open notes exams. I wanted to learn something for a change while knowing I earned that letter grade. I wanted to avoid ignorance from hovering over me, and I end up living a miserable life. Now I know I wasn't ignorant for taking the classes. Rather I was blindly ignorant for not looking at the broader overview of taking three college level classes. I didn't know I would be outside the party for honor roll. I didn't know that APUSH was a genuinely complex than expected. I didn't know that by just opening up one flaw I found in APUSH, I opened a closet full of flaws that haunted me for the longest time ever. The speed of these classes was overbearing, I couldn't keep up without falling behind. As I tried to fix my grade in APUSH, another leak would spill on AP English. I didn't know that staying too long patching up one leak, that all "patched" up holes began to leak. I didn't know that I was actually a failure at picking up the slack. I never thought I would cry on the walk home from school after meeting with my APUSH teacher telling me herself, that I am failing. These small nervous breakdown mean nothing as I write them out, but the feeling was that of a hammer cracking my chest open. Many other aspects of my life unraveled, and not the good ones. I lost a friend over a stupid fight, I gained more weight, I was alone, my self esteem dropped further down. I felt less human as the leaks continued to pour out. Insecurities made me come home to eat away my feelings, which just carved a bigger hole inside myself. It came to the point where I was literally drowning from the leaks because thoughts of ending my life permanently crossed my mind, and never left the other end of my brain. I would grab an sharp object attainable to slither it's tusk onto my skin. The pink marks and oozing blood became my new art show. I never told my family because I love them dearly, but they did know I was depressed since I began to see a psychiatrist and a depression group. I felt ashamed in attending these new types of "treatment" because my family discovered that something was wrong with me. I never wanted them to figure me out, I felt like I failed once again to keep my pain at bay from my family. During my senior year, I managed to stop the leaks, but I was still able to see the holes that remained. The hollow feeling developed inside my heart. Salt water stopped igniting a tsunami from my wet rainy eyes. This wasn't a good thing because my brain switched gears. I was no longer afraid of slicing my wrists open, or overdosing until I'm out of it. I didn't just want death, I wanted to erase my existence. A reason was no longer needed to understand why I was suicidal, just that I no longer wanted life. This is how far I brought myself, and I despised myself. My big thighs, circular stomach, saggy arms, geeky glasses, overblown face. I could have lived with that, but the main issue came from my neck. I didn't have one, or as society labels it, a double chin. I didn't have a neck. I wanted to stand tall, see all the things I can't see. How I would gaze at other girls who had the perfect jaw line, no extra fat residing on their beautiful faces. I stopped wearing bangs, allowing my dry curly hair to hide my shame. Eventually, I spotted The Secret. The book that explains the Law of Attraction. I knew it in my sleep, yet here I was, sad and miserable. I did it without thinking and just picked it up from the bookshelf and began to read it. I would read it in school, during passing periods, at lunch, after school as I would wait for the bus, the small walk from the bus station to my house. Throughout the time I read, all I could think about is the life that I am missing out on. My environment was intoxicating, I wasn't happy. I began with something small to make me happy. AP English Literature. It was the only class in which I had an A. The A that I had not seen on my report card for a year! I still cry when I look back at them on my transcripts. As I'm entering the college life, I see the major difference that class has helped me with. It's not just about being able develop an essay so easily. It's the passion I have found in writing, because it makes me happy. Something so small and simple turned my life around, made my life a little less miserable throughout my high school career. I used this new found joy to make it throughout high school. When I was handed my diploma, I was set free. I was no longer binging on food, I was not depressed. It was slowly coming off. Now, I had the chance of either helping myself to a better life or continue a life of misery as before. I'm currently attending a community college. I will transfer to California Polytechnic State University Pomona in 2017, and moving out there in the summer of the same year. By 2020, I will be a licensed Nutritionist in Dietetics, a Bachelors in Science, a Bachelors in Creative Writing, a Minor in English Literature, and a Minor in Business. Blending all of these achievements together, and the world has themselves a famous author who dedicates her time serving aid and information to malnutritioned children, teens, and adults. Aiming to help them to a healthy, diet life, just like she used to struggle with. I don't care if I'm undocumented, I will make it. I don't care if the United States Government or Donald Trump becomes president and every Republican against immigrants tells me I'm not an American citizen, because I know I am. I don't care if my family disbeliefs in my effort to achieve my goals, because I want to be the first to witness their dumbfounded expressions as I rejoice with love and joy as I fling around my bachelor degrees on their faces. This is the power of the human brain. From wailing because of inner pain, to feeling comfort and love within me and the world at large. It may seem like I haven't accomplished much yet, but that's because it is still being written. It may sound cheesy, but we must believe in ourselves because not only are we receiving the nutrients needed to discover our inner beauty, but will also be rearranging our life to the way we want it. The one in which we awaken with a new adventure waiting to be discovered. The only thing that repeats itself is the continued, everlasting, happiness. Focusing on things you can controlMary Giambrone
I was six when I found out that my mom’s cousin had cancer. This was the first time I’d ever heard of cancer. I was shocked. I asked my mom if there was something I could do to help. She told me about a program called Locks of Love, where people donated hair to be made into wigs for children undergoing chemotherapy. Because I was so young, I knew that this was the only way I could help. I was proud to donate 10 inches of my hair to help kids who, other than the fact that they had cancer, were just like me. Cousin Jenni was always one person I could count on to encourage my artistic side. When I was a kid, she would always give me arts and craft kits, like wood painting or beading kits. She organized the crafts at our family’s annual holiday parties. She crocheted, and she greatly influenced my decision to learn how to knit, crochet, and sew. Most of my life centered on school, and she would always show concern that I was being pushed or pressured too much academically. She wanted me to balance out my studies with something creative, and always asked about the progress of my sewing and knitting projects. As she got sicker and stopped being able to crochet herself, she gave me several of her crochet hooks and skeins of yarn. For the entire time that she was sick, all I could do was keep donating hair. I would cut off ten inches about every year and a half. It upset me to see girls place so much emphasis on their hair, while other children couldn’t afford real hair wigs and had to go bald. There’s not much that the average person can do in their everyday lives to help fight cancer, but even a child like me could cut her hair. As I got older, I could do more than just cut my hair. Helping people became a priority for me. Jenni had inspired me to give just as sincerely as she had given me her support and encouragement. I started to do things to help the community, like volunteering at my local library and at my little brother’s elementary school. I started a knitting club at my high school and we did a project to knit chemo caps and donate them. Last year, I cut my hair again for the sixth time. So, to date, I’ve donated around 60 inches of hair - only about half a foot less than my height. Although she fought cancer for almost 15 years, Jenni died in 2012. I distinctly remember the day that she went into hospice. It was devastating. She had lasted for so long that it seemed like the cancer would never beat her. That day made me realize for the first time the finality of it all. I just couldn’t understand it. How could someone know that they had only a few days to live? How did she wake up every morning and think, this could be my last day? How could she not be so terrified? She lasted a week in hospice. In a way, the day that she went into hospice was worse than the day she actually died. At that point, I was just numb. What scared me the most about hearing her going into hospice was the utter lack of control anyone had over the situation. It meant that the end was nearly here, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. I didn’t know how anyone could stand that. Now, when I think of cancer, I think of things I can do to help. I can donate my hair. I can knit and crochet chemo caps. I’m not going to be the person to cure cancer, but I can help the people suffering from it in my own small way. I’ve come to this conclusion over the past several years. Focusing too much on a problem you can’t control just makes everything seem futile and worthless. When I heard that Jenni was going into hospice, I got trapped in a mindset of thinking “What’s the point? We are all going to die anyway, and there’s nothing we can do about it.” Since then, I’ve realized that we can focus on the things that can be controlled; and that’s what I’ve been doing. At the time, donating my hair was the one thing I could do to help, the one thing I could control about the awful situation of cancer - so I did it. I’m still sad Jenni is no longer here, but I know that she’d be happy that she continues to influence my life. She taught me not only to embrace creativity, but to give and to help others. Kindness isn’t futile. Helping is not wasted time. There’s always something that can be done to help a situation: tutoring, volunteering, even holding the door for someone. It doesn’t have to be drastic; it can be as simple as cutting your hair. Focusing on things you can controlCassandra Fulfer
Monmouth College When I was a Junior in high school, my step mom took me to some college visits to four different colleges. I fell in love with Monmouth. A college that is 40k a year. The whole universe was against me. Throughout my whole first semester at the college I knew I wouldn't be able to afford the second semester. No matter how hard I worked that summer, I was 1k short in funds. I fought hard. I studied hard. I asked for help. Professors let me do side jobs, cat sit, what have you, it still wasn't enough. One prof made a case with financial aid in the end and they gave me another $1,000 in loans. I could afford the semester. Then it was summer again. I had my field job but I knew I needed another job to afford the year ahead. In the middle of June I finally got a second job. I worked 70 hours a week just to barely scrape by and afford the year's expenses. The end of the spring semester rolled around. I was feeling good, I would have my field job and my job in the deli and I would be able to afford the trip to Ireland that my band was planning to take nest spring break. I was excited. My brother called me before the end of the semester and told me the fields we work in shut down, the company owed China billions of dollars. I was out of a job that was going to pay me $11 an hour. Three-thousand dollars just washed down the drain in mere seconds. Now I just had Meijer. I was working hard to get a second job but everyone wanted someone who could work longer than three months. There was no way I would be able to drive back and forth from Monmouth to Bloomington to work and somehow get my homework done. I was stuck with Meijer and my small church cleaning job. I figured my expenses and with the RA job I would be able to afford both semesters, barely. And then I realized I was trans. I was a trans man placed in an all girl's dorm who couldn't afford to be in a co-ed dorm and without the RA job. What was I going to do? I needed to come out as myself, my depression was crashing down on me more and more each day, and I wasn’t willing to lose my income to afford school at the same time as becoming myself. Back to square one, much like the first semester of my freshman year. I had to delay becoming myself to be able to still go to my college. Did I let that thought stop me from doing anything? No. The whole world felt like it was against me but I fought for what I believed I deserved because I know no one else would do it for me. I could have given up and taken a year off and came back next year with the funds and it would be easier, and I could be myself. But I was not going to do that, because in my eyes, even coming back like that is me giving up. You’ve got to fight for the things you want and believe in. It's tough, everything might feel like it is against you, but you slap it out of the way and you fight for what you want. So, then came the time for me to come out to everyone. My RA job was up in the air but I needed to focus on myself, to be myself. I had compiled legal documents and laws in a word document, proof that they couldn’t fire me for being transgender. I was ready to fight. A friend and I then started to spread a survey around our college about gender equality to help let the student body speak for the equality the school needs. The responses were overwhelming and over 90% of the people who took the survey answered that they would be comfortable having a transgender RA and also agreed that the college needed gender-inclusive bathrooms and housing. A few weeks after that, while still contacting the Resident Life staff at my college, I finally was told for sure that my job was secure. So, a few days later I came out to everyone with a poem that I wrote and recorded myself saying out loud. The positive responses and encouragement that all of my friends and family showed was incredible. My grandma hasn’t spoken to me since I came out but I try not to focus on that. I can’t control how her religious beliefs tell her that what I am doing is wrong, so the decision to continue to be in my life is a choice she has to make on her own. I can’t control that my mom and step dad are alcoholics. I can’t control that employers won’t hire me for a few months in the summer so that I can better afford tuition. But I can control what I do and say. I can control whether or not I fight for my rights as a trans man. I can control who I am, and that’s exactly what I plan to do. I have fully decided to focus on myself and I know that everything else will come after. Now that I have been out to everyone for a little over a month, I can proudly share the articles about my transition that I have published on the blog Hello Giggles. I no longer have to be so afraid that no one will accept me. I entered my Junior year at college with everyone calling me Hayden and using he/his/him pronouns. I have made more friends in the last two weeks than I did all of last year. My battle is long from over. My next obstacles are waiting for my gender therapist to finally prescribe me testosterone, so my body and voice can finally feel like my own. Another battle is trying to graduate with Honors next year when one single class stands in my way of having to drop the entire program. So, the control I take now, is I have made this video, this scholarship submission to help me afford this semester which leaks into helping me afford next semester, making it more likely that I can afford a summer class in order to graduate with honors in the spring of 2017. While life seems to like to throw everything it can in the way of my happiness, I have no intentions of giving up. I will graduate with honors. I will become the man I have always been on the inside. I will fight for what I want and what I believe because no one else will, I’ll be my own knight in shining armor. Attracting our desires into a realityPerla v. Huerta May
“Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become actions. Watch your actions. They become habits. Watch your habits. They are your destiny,” said Lao Tzu. My mother used to preach these words of Lao quite often to me as a child. At the time I never had a clear understanding of what she was referring to, or what it even meant. Being a child I followed my mothers influence on these idea. However, as an adult I cleared any doubts that I had regarding the law of attraction. Over the years, my beliefs, understanding, and interests over the law of attraction have immeasurably grown. Now I understand there is no tree without a seed, I will cultivate that which I plant. This is why I give my thoughts the importance they deserve. After all, they are the defining point of my future. Dr. Camilo Cruz once said “Change your inner dialogue and create a new kind of image in your subconscious mind of the way you hope and want things to happen”. In this very short statement I can target more than six empowered words. One of them being “Change” which I consider crucial because without change, we cannot grow as a person. We can grow only with change if we modify our old inefficient habits for good new ones and develop the appropriate skills. “Inner Dialogue” is another great pair of words, being that in order to achieve our dreams and goals we need to start with ourselves. The motivation that will guide us to success has to come within us, and the only way to gather this type of motivation is by paying close attention to our mindset. Observe our thought patterns and check if we have established in our minds any type of limitations that prevents us from going that extra mile that will bring us closer to our goals. If we understand that nothing can prevent us from achieving our goals, and trust in our capabilities in the same way that a person who loves us dearly does, we would achieve anything without having any second thoughts. Although, believing in our capabilities is not the only mindset we must maintain, we need to become more disciplined and use this discipline in the form of acting. In order to act first we need to “Create”, which is the third empowered word on Cruz’s statement. As a twenty one year old, I have understood that if I want to live the life I have dreamed of, first I need to know exactly what I want. I have had to dedicate time just to think of what it specifically is that I’m striving for, how do I want my future to look like, and how can I attain it. Which leads me to the fourth empowered word “Images”. To be able to relate images to my goals, I have had to dream, imagine myself proud of my occupation, see myself contempt at the place I will live, and imagine myself already possessing happiness for me and the people in my life. For the law of attraction demands that words are not enough, we need to relate the words with images. In short, I need to know what I want which will allow me to begin acting upon the future that I would be creating for myself. “Subconscious” is the fifth key word. The subconscious mind is one of the greatest gifts we posses as humans. Unlike the conscious mind, the subconscious never sleeps. We can take advantage of that simply by reading books and listening to audiotapes that cover specific areas of our lives. Even listening to motivational speakers will leave an impact on our subconscious mind. Also, if we truly believe in the power of the subconscious mind, we know that we can lie to ourselves. Not in a negative way, although we can make statements of how good we are at something that we desire to excel at, and eventually we will believe it ourselves and therefore become it. We can make our mind believe anything we conceive to be the truth. Last but not least “Happen”, the fact that our most valued dreams actually end up happening, is the entire point of the law of attraction. Every individual has the option and responsibility to work with positive thinking and action towards their dreams. For “The Universe only awards consistent effort” said Cruz. In conclusion, we can have great ideas for our future, and possess the right mindset. However, our thoughts must be followed by consistent action. Thoughts alone will not make our dreams happen. We must stop for a moment and think for ourselves what it is what our hearts truly desire and make it a priority to attract our desires into a reality. For only we can chase our dreams and since life does not wait for anyone, I will not wait for life either, because life is now. It's Not Your FaultZhané Washington
There is no right way, or easy way to cope with a parental separation. It isn’t wrong to cry, or feel confused, scared, and completely thrown off. No matter what age you are or who you are, it is difficult to comprehend that your family is being torn apart. I know I had trouble understanding it back in 2008. I had a typical blissful family complete with yearly trips, timeshares, and amusement park passes. My brother and I participated in several extracurricular activities and our parents were sure to attend as many as they could. Together, as a loving married couple. So the fact that these moments ended so abruptly and cruelly was a hard pill to swallow. Were all of our family memories a lie? Were my parents just faking happiness for the sake of their children? I had no idea, and it hurt to think about it. It hurt to know that I wouldn’t be able to see them in the same household and it terrified me that I would have to choose between them. I ran away from the idea for as long as I could, but reality was quicker than me. It caught up to me the day we sold our house. I remember when we first moved into our bare household. My father spent months decorating the place to make it feel more welcoming and even added drywall to certain areas to make them bigger. My mother took care of interior designing. They worked so hard to build us a place to make memories and to love one another. Then, in a flash, their hard work was being sold to the highest bidder. As we slowly began to prepare our house for sale, I knew the choice was imminent. My mother stayed with a friend until the court date, so my brother and I rode with my father to the building. Before they went in, my parents sat on opposite sides of the room. Quiet, no eye contact, with so much tension between them that it was almost palpable. A court official stepped out from the court room the case would be held in and told us we could come in. My mother went in first, then her attorney who was followed by my father, his attorney, my brother, and then me. I was halted at the door however and instructed to wait outside with the official who had motioned us in. I was too young to take part in the proceedings. The session felt longer than years, maybe even light years, and I was getting anxious. I tapped my heels together and played with my hair that my aunt straightened specifically for the occasion. When the door finally opened I looked at my mother’s face and my heart sank. She was crying and barely holding herself together. She saw me, bent down, and gave me a big hug before leaving. It took me a moment, but then it was clear that I was now in legal custody of my father. I was aware that the court made the decision and it had little to do with me personally but it felt as if I was the one who hurt my mother. I thought she would resent me for abandoning her and the thought was mentally corrosive. It is this kind of thinking that is “incorrect” when experiencing a parental separation. Or rather it is an unhealthy way to think. It is not your fault and you cannot feel down for something that happened between two adults. I know firsthand this is easier said than done but it is important to keep that in mind. Instead of wallowing in guilt and pitying my mother, I doubled my efforts to talk to her from that day forward. I focused on reinforcing our bond and making sure that she knew I loved her no matter what. I also understood that she was not the only one going through hard times as a result of the divorce. My father now had to support two children mainly by himself. Therefore I focused on achieving the best marks possible in class and staying out of trouble. I couldn’t control or fix what transpired between my parents, but I could control how I reacted. I could control myself and my behavior. Instead of acting out or going down the wrong path, I focused on being one less thing for them to worry about. This mentality is one that I still hold today. I focus on being the best that I can be so that my parents can have at least one thing they agree on. That they raised a good kid. I strive to be a stable common ground between them. So if your parents are like mine, try this method of motivation. Turn the negative into something positive. Perseverance and visionLuz Nunez
University of California Riverside Each person has a different sense of style and living because we are all unique in our own way. Our choices develop the personality and background we have. Though society expects us to behave a certain manner, it does not necessarily mean that all will benefit from following the same path. Major factors that define us are the education, the workforce, and self-confidence one obtains. My family offered me limited educational resources and we reside within a deprived community. Neither of my parents had the opportunities like me to be able to attend college. They both are regulated to work in the manual labor work force to earn a living. My father must wake up at five in the morning to work at a glass company, while my mother works in a restaurant washing dishes, cleaning tables, and mopping floors. My family continually faces financial challenges in paying bills and household expenses. Since both of my parents still have family members residing in another country, they regularly send money to their families. Particularly, my mother has an elderly father and two mentally ill siblings, who rely on her for their financial well-being. Witnessing how hard my parents must work to provide for my family and those in a foreign nation, I have applied for part-time work to assist with my family’s income. I reside in a small community that is heavily populated by Latinos, where academic achievements tend to be low and college attendance is a privilege. I am aware that those of my generation are children of undocumented parents, which poses difficulties for our families to secure stable employment and provide a good living. My parents and those of my community strive their best to work diligently to support their families since the majority of us are uneducated, with many never having higher than a middle school education. Without the educational support of our parents and community, I have learned that I have needed to be self-reliant and seek resources for my own academic success. The most significant experience that prepared me for the rigors of college was my acceptance into the Upward Bound Program (UBP). The UBP provided opportunities for me to succeed in my precollege performance and ultimately to be admitted to a four-year university of my choice. While in the UBP, I have increased and maintained excellent scores, as well as being motivated to pursue and engage in higher-level courses. I realized how misinformed and directionless I was in preparing for college. The UBP has offered me services more valuable than knowing how to fill out an application or conduct an interview. During the summer of 2012, I was provided the opportunity to take a Geometry course during the summer residential program at Chapman University. I learned to expand my network capital with other staff, students, and mentors. Additionally, I was selected as a participant of the 2013 Northern California Campus Tour. During the four-day trip, I visited eight universities and was tasked to create a power point about Dominican University, a private college in San Rafael, California. This presentation, along with many others required by UBP, helped me develop public speaking skills, which as increased my self-confidence. Having self-confidence allows me to step outside of my comfort zone and challenge myself to pursue more ambitious goals, new experiences, and access knowledge beyond my own frame of reference. Upward Bound encourages students to pursue their higher educational goals. The staff motivated me to remain focused on my academics. They provided continual academic monitoring and gave me the skills to become a more effective student. The students in the program have reinforced and strengthened my social skills, being surrounded by students who have similar goals to mine reinforced my desire to be academically competitive and ahead of the game. Throughout my high school years, I have also been a member of another organization entitled Youth Speak Collective (YSC). YSC became a second home that provided an academic setting with knowledgeable tutors and staff who have assisted me to learn both inside and outside of the classroom. With the supportive individualized attention I received in counseling and mentoring services, I was able to improve my role in society. YSC offers various programs for youth to be educated, healthy, and safe. Visual Arts is the program that makes available canvases, acrylic paints, and other art supplies so that the youth can express their minds on paper which avoids graffiti on the streets. Women’s Circle is a program that empowers the voice of young women and informs them of resources available. In addition, YSC has provided community service hours to youth by beautifying local recreational areas. YSC has provided me with my first internship at the headquarter office as a Youth Advocate. I have become an inquisitive learner and continue to seek further opportunities for personal growth and development. Youth Speak has offered me the preparation and confidence necessary to take with me to future endeavors. I have confidence in being able to tackle the challenges of being an upright citizen. Being a product of a low-income family and living in a community where education is secondary to making a living, I have become more determined to attend college, earn my degree and having a meaningful career in helping others. Being a Latina has been quite a struggle since I have been imposed with negative stereotypes such as teen pregnancy, lack of education, and “welfare queens”. I want to challenge these perceptions by continuing with my education and making a difference in my community. Focusing on the things I can control have provided me with the fuel and passion to overcome both the negative stereotypes and change the demographics of my community by attending college and earning a Bachelor’s degree. Furthermore, I plan in pursuing a Graduate degree in Psychology. With both degrees, I intend to return to my community to assist other youths in programs like Upward Bound and Youth Speak Collective to motivate and educate them in seeking higher education as means to increase their economic and social status. Therefore, completing my education at University of California, Riverside is extremely important to me. My desire is to further my educational pursuits beyond the Bachelorette experience, while being exposed to the “real world”. These experiences definitely will mold and shape me in becoming an independent, self-confident individual, who is committed to social justice and service to the community. The world has much to offer me and I am eagerly willing to learn from each encounter I have while attending college. Thanking my magnificent mentorsLevi Sweeney
I have heard that the key to success is to have many mentors. Whether they are teachers, youth pastors, parents, other relatives, or even older friends, mentors are essential to learning and personal development. I am blessed to have had several mentors this far in life, having learned much from their diligent instruction and their sharing of wisdom and knowledge. Three of them are especially notable, and it is thanks to them and others like them that I am who I am today. I am grateful for the many people who have supported and guided me over the years, and I look forward to meeting and thanking more such people in the future. Of the many mentors I've had in life, I am especially indebted to three in particular. Don Joss is true man of God, devoted to the Lord and to his family. He helped me to get started on serious study of the Bible and Christian apologetics. Jenny Holmes was my high school academic writing teacher, and the mother of one of my closest friends. She taught me everything I know about writing well. Finally, David Boze, a local radio broadcaster and pundit, taught my U.S. History class in high school. It was under his tutelage that my love of history was reignited. Without the help of my mentors, a sizable portion of my present knowledge would be gone. Take Don Joss for instance. Mr. Joss loves God and children, and every aspect of his life is evidence of his dedication to the Lord and to his family. I first met him when he was my fifth grade Sunday School teacher. Thanks to him, I read my first book on Christian apologetics, a kid's version of The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel. This in turn lead to the regular version of The Case for Christ. Ever since then, I've voraciously devoured every such book I can find. Due to his teaching, and that of my parents, I remain a firm student of the scriptures to this day. Jenny Holmes taught me the finer points of academic writing, including the general format I am currently using to write this essay. This helped to bring my writing skills to the point where they are now. Thanks to her, my other English teachers over the years, and my own incessant practice, I stand tall as a titan in English. What's more, I believe that I can safely say that Mrs. Holmes is the smartest woman I know. She has homeschooled three of her four kids all through high school, taught English at my co-op, and has served in a leadership position in several church programs. Like Mr. Joss, she is a dedicated parent who helped raise a wonderful family. David Boze was my U.S. History teacher during my junior year of high school. His classes at my co-op are frequently quite large, being very popular among students and parents alike. He and his colleague Kirby Wilbur have both taught history at my co-op, and are both from a radio broadcasting background. Mr. Boze made history come alive for me again, and he patiently, tirelessly answered my many questions. His amiable enthusiasm for his subject was nothing short of infectious. It was partly because of his instruction that I am now compelled to go into the field of teaching. I intend to study American history. I couldn't praise my mentors without mentioning my mom and dad. My mom, like Mrs. Holmes, has homeschooled her children for our entire lives. She taught me how to read and write, took me to church and other events, introduced to me to most of my other mentors, and suffered through every bad day. I love her for that, and I will be forever grateful. My dad taught me the value of hard work and responsibility. I've worked with him part time at the family print shop for a little over four years, and I've learned a lot. I've also come to realize that my father's favored pastime of watching World War II documentaries probably influenced my own enthusiasm for history. I now see that in many ways, I'm indebted to my parents more than all of my other mentors put together! Because of the many mentors I've had over the years, I am more than prepared for the journey that lies ahead. For all they have done for me, I am exceedingly grateful. But I can't express thanks to my mentors without acknowledging the One who guaranteed it all: The Lord Jesus Christ. Without Him, nothing would have been possible. His guiding hand is evident throughout my life, guiding me through life's trials and tribulations. He is the ultimate mentor, the ultimate example, the ultimate leader. Above all else, I thank Him for everything. Though I am currently on the road to becoming a history teacher, my plans involve many other things as well. In addition to teaching history, I wish to pursue a writing career, with hopes of becoming a published author and webcomic writer. I've been writing since I was a kid, but I am more determined than ever to make it big. I also wish to make a difference back home, to help make my neighborhood a safe and good place to live. Thanks to my mentors, I've acquired many useful skills necessary to fulfill these dreams. But I hope to meet even more mentors along the way to fulfilling these goals, as I go on with college, jobs, volunteer work, new relationships, and more. I am grateful to the many mentors I've had over the years, and I pray that I will not forget them as times goes by. My gratitude for them remains unwavering, and I have no doubt that I will gain new mentors and guides as I continue my journey. Wherever I end up in life, I know that I can only get there thanks to the skills and abilities passed on to me by those who have gone before me. I have no doubt that the hand of God was upon me when I was steered toward Messrs. Joss and Boze and Mrs. Holmes. It was thanks to them, and others like them, that I have succeeded in the past and will succeed in the future. Living a life with a positive attitudeJerry Thomas
This is one curveball that can’t simply be hit out of the park and never be seen again. It is a perpetual challenge that every living being is faced with once they twinkle into existence. It is wonderful, unfathomable, difficult, and impossible to solve. Although I have not been able to solve this enigma, through the power of positive thinking, I’ve come up with new ways to come at the curveball I like to call life. Negativity begets more negativity; what you put out into the universe is what you get. That’s what I was told anyway, if I project a negative image, then I will get exactly that back. Teachings of a positive, optimistic attitude are things I was taught or learned being a Christian and Buddhist. No matter what life throws at you, turn the other cheek, forgive, and kill your enemies with kindness. I don’t think one can ever conquer life, ever overcome it, but there are ways to enjoy it and make the most of everything. Keeping a positive attitude isn’t always easy when life constantly throws hardships at almost every turn. It hit me like a freight train, seventh grade, also referred to my first test in life. Moving to Texas, I had no friends, was bullied, my brother ran away, and parents were arguing. Saying I went to a dark place at this is an extreme understatement. I was just considering to give it all up, quit in life, and throw in the towel. I couldn’t see any positive sides to life at that point, I did some irrational things. It was serendipitous that I met a high school girl, named Tiffany, who was actually planning on becoming a counselor for kids. Her positive words of encouragement and great outlook on life partly saved my life, literally. From then on, I’ve always sworn to help others when they are having problems and look on the Brightside of all my situations. Due to my passion of helping people and positive attitude, I got very involved in volunteer organizations such as: Key Club, Circle K, NHS, Goodwill and many more. Being able to help someone through acts of kindness or even just a smile brings me joy on a whole other level. I love being an active leader in my community and school and spreading the knowledge and happiness that I have learned from others in hopes that they will spread it too. “I feel good, oh I feel so good, I feel fine, all of the time!” It’s something we used to chant in Key Club to keep our spirits high, enabling us to press on through whatever endeavor we faced. Having a positive attitude though doesn’t and shouldn’t mean that you are optimistically naïve to the world. No matter how much I wish it, there will be times when I don’t feel so good or when I don’t feel fine all of the time. The thing about positive thinking though, is how you utilize it; it isn’t meant as a tool to shield you from the bad things in life, but to come to realization with it and deal with it in an effective manner. My positive outlook on life actually pushed me to grow up and think more rationally. It seems weird, but having a positive attitude to situations really opened my eyes and mind. Everything becomes so much clearer when I’m thinking about how I could improve my situation or how it could be worse and I count myself lucky. Even though I may not always feel good or fine, positive thinking ensures me that I will always return to that state of being good or fine. Living a life with a positive attitude changes everything around you; cliché, but the world has so much more color and vibrancy to it, life is just enjoyable. Now, of course I’ve had other hardships, that’s life after all, but tackling things with a positive thinking allows me to see new avenues that I wasn’t able to before. Overall, it has just made me a better person, someone people want to be around or look up to, someone I actually like. Being a positive, optimistic man has greatly humbled me and helped me live a healthier live. It’s proven that a smile and laughing do make you healthier and less prone to sickness, so I owe my happiness to positive thinking in life. I apply positive thinking in whatever I engage in, whether it be science, school, life, or games. Anything is possible when I put my mind to it, there’s nothing I can’t achieve. Yes, I will run into bumps and hicks, but I know if I keep my head up that everything will work out. I don’t honestly know where I’d be without the power of positive thought, I believe that my energy is sent out into the universe somewhere and then sent back to me. I will keep going through life with this philosophy in mind and I will conquer anything that dares to stand in my way. I’m grateful that positive thinking has had a positive impact on my life. Focusing on things you can controlAlanna Heraghty
Growing up Irish, we are taught to believe that for all the bad luck that comes your way, you’ll get just as much good luck, if not more. I have a lifetime of good luck coming my way. My most recent string of bad luck started the beginning of July, when my boyfriend got a job in Parsippany, NJ. His only complaint was the commute. So we packed up and moved to West Orange, NJ to an apartment that was run-down but unique. Sure, the windows were rotten and the whole house was falling apart but it was our little home and I’m very creative when it comes to decorating. A week after we moved in, my boyfriend and I drove my mini cooper up to Connecticut to visit some friends. I slaved away saving up for that car and little road trips like these fill my heart with joy. When we were about 20 minutes away from our destination, we hit some traffic. So we stopped. The girl behind us, preoccupied with her cell phone, did not. Thankfully, everyone survived and I received the brunt of the injuries. I couldn’t open a door without excruciating pain in my chest and shoulders, nevermind return to work. I’m the type who likes to stay busy so being relegated to couch potato duty was a form of slow torture. I spent my days listening to insurance hold music and making doctor appointments. Our landlord, who has a criminal history though we didn’t know it at the time, started sending harassing texts around this time. He was always a little rough around the edges but we thought it was harmless. We were wrong. About two weeks after the accident, he was drunk and upset and knocked on our door at 12:30am. We called the police once he started yelling. Long story short, we left the apartment that night. When we returned, with a police escort of course, our door had been broken down and he had left nasty notes for us on my dry erase board. This was all extremely overwhelming and emotionally draining on top of the car accident. Not to mention, I have PTSD from a similar abusive incident. I found myself sleeping on a friend’s couch. Everyone was safe but I was mentally floating and falling. Between doctor appointments, car insurance calls, police reports, and paperwork, I lost myself. Before we moved, I was thinking of going to school to earn a bachelors. I always wanted one but could never afford to attend school. I couldn’t control how long it took for the insurance paperwork to process. I couldn’t control my lunatic landlord and his actions. I couldn’t control my pain or how upset I felt. But I can write and I can write well. So I started researching schools and applying for scholarships. This very essay is something I can control. I can focus on the larger picture that all this work will get me closer to earning a bachelors. And through that focus, I have regained myself a bit and am finding peace. Every week I write down goals. I’ve learned that, although I am ambitious, I need to keep my goals bite sized. When something comes up that doesn’t help accomplish my week’s goals, I simply say, “That is not my goal this week.” Of course, some things push ahead. If more paperwork needs filling out or I get a call from the insurance, I take it. But then I breathe and collect myself and get back to the list at hand. With a singular focus, I am able to accomplish full bubbles of tasks instead of just playing at the surface. Riding the pride of accomplishment leads to more accomplishment. Crossing off a small task gives me momentum to tackle the next one. I have to be careful to assign tasks that I can control. Sometimes I get big ideas and, in my eagerness, I overwhelm my nerves and mind. I’m still healing, physically, emotionally, and mentally. I had to learn how to be kind to myself and let go what I cannot do. I find it so easy to be kind to others. I must remember to be kind to myself. Many people like to recite the serenity prayer during times of struggle. The last few weeks have been an exercise in gaining the “wisdom to know the difference.” I’m starting to see how little humans have control over. I thought that idea would upset or terrify me. I find it extremely liberating. The only thing I can control are my choices. Rather than limiting, I find that my eyes have opened up to the vast amount of choices I have. I have no control of the outcome; that’s the luck. But I have all the choices in the world. As long as I keep making good choices, focusing on what I can control, and then leaving the rest up to the universe, I’ll be great. My choicesAlanna Heraghty
Growing up Irish, we are taught to believe that for all the bad luck that comes your way, you’ll get just as much good luck, if not more. I have a lifetime of good luck coming my way. My most recent string of bad luck started the beginning of July, when my boyfriend got a job in Parsippany, NJ. His only complaint was the commute. So we packed up and moved to West Orange, NJ to an apartment that was run-down but unique. Sure, the windows were rotten and the whole house was falling apart but it was our little home and I’m very creative when it comes to decorating. A week after we moved in, my boyfriend and I drove my mini cooper up to Connecticut to visit some friends. I slaved away saving up for that car and little road trips like these fill my heart with joy. When we were about 20 minutes away from our destination, we hit some traffic. So we stopped. The girl behind us, preoccupied with her cell phone, did not. Thankfully, everyone survived and I received the brunt of the injuries. I couldn’t open a door without excruciating pain in my chest and shoulders, nevermind return to work. I’m the type who likes to stay busy so being relegated to couch potato duty was a form of slow torture. I spent my days listening to insurance hold music and making doctor appointments. Our landlord, who has a criminal history though we didn’t know it at the time, started sending harassing texts around this time. He was always a little rough around the edges but we thought it was harmless. We were wrong. About two weeks after the accident, he was drunk and upset and knocked on our door at 12:30am. We called the police once he started yelling. Long story short, we left the apartment that night. When we returned, with a police escort of course, our door had been broken down and he had left nasty notes for us on my dry erase board. This was all extremely overwhelming and emotionally draining on top of the car accident. Not to mention, I have PTSD from a similar abusive incident. I found myself sleeping on a friend’s couch. Everyone was safe but I was mentally floating and falling. Between doctor appointments, car insurance calls, police reports, and paperwork, I lost myself. Before we moved, I was thinking of going to school to earn a bachelors. I always wanted one but could never afford to attend school. I couldn’t control how long it took for the insurance paperwork to process. I couldn’t control my lunatic landlord and his actions. I couldn’t control my pain or how upset I felt. But I can write and I can write well. So I started researching schools and applying for scholarships. This very essay is something I can control. I can focus on the larger picture that all this work will get me closer to earning a bachelors. And through that focus, I have regained myself a bit and am finding peace. Every week I write down goals. I’ve learned that, although I am ambitious, I need to keep my goals bite sized. When something comes up that doesn’t help accomplish my week’s goals, I simply say, “That is not my goal this week.” Of course, some things push ahead. If more paperwork needs filling out or I get a call from the insurance, I take it. But then I breathe and collect myself and get back to the list at hand. With a singular focus, I am able to accomplish full bubbles of tasks instead of just playing at the surface. Riding the pride of accomplishment leads to more accomplishment. Crossing off a small task gives me momentum to tackle the next one. I have to be careful to assign tasks that I can control. Sometimes I get big ideas and, in my eagerness, I overwhelm my nerves and mind. I’m still healing, physically, emotionally, and mentally. I had to learn how to be kind to myself and let go what I cannot do. I find it so easy to be kind to others. I must remember to be kind to myself. Many people like to recite the serenity prayer during times of struggle. The last few weeks have been an exercise in gaining the “wisdom to know the difference.” I’m starting to see how little humans have control over. I thought that idea would upset or terrify me. I find it extremely liberating. The only thing I can control are my choices. Rather than limiting, I find that my eyes have opened up to the vast amount of choices I have. I have no control of the outcome; that’s the luck. But I have all the choices in the world. As long as I keep making good choices, focusing on what I can control, and then leaving the rest up to the universe, I’ll be great. 3 truths and a storyThree Truths and a Story
NOSTALGIA The particular area in which I lived would have been called the "nicer" part of the slums; however, that statement in and of itself is an oxymoron. Living in such a state, one would think I would need some escape from it all, a refuge, or a haven. But no, I never wanted such a thing. I felt I no reason to escape. This is home. My home. My origin. My origin. My inception. These are the slums. THE GENTLEMAN A man, tattered, distraught and painfully worn out by his years would step out from the rusty door that imprisoned him in the night. In doing so, he would find nothing salvageable on the outside. Each morning, he would rise with a smile; however, when he opened the door, the smile would wince and disappear at the site of his destitution. Assenting to this ever-present truth, he would continue, down the one step he built from uneven rocks and feeble sticks to sit on a grey, withered boulder of sorts. He would glare. What seemed like minutes were actually endless hours, not too dissimilar from the warping of time that occurs in hell. He then would stare at the ground, whose mud was always wet because of the narrow space between each mal-established edifice. Picking at each ounce of feces-ridden-mud with his bloodshot eyes, he would search, in some vain hope that perhaps, that day would be the day he would find some base meal in the mud. THE MADAM A woman, empty, distraught and anguished by her days spent seeking for food not only for herself, but for her offspring, stood at her shanty's excuse for a threshold. Glaringat the child who sat in a puddle of stagnant grey water, she would occasionally blink as to remind herself where she was, When she finally managed to pull her eyes away from this image that she new to be abject poverty, she re-entered her withered shack and came out holding bread riddled with darkened cultures of mold. Blackened by disappointment, she would then continue and kneel towards the child who, as a reflex, would jerk her head to the left. The mother and the child would continue this back and forth for a few more moments before the child reluctantly assented and bit into the cultures, and chewed and chewed. THE BABE A baby, yet to become empty, distraught tattered and anguished by its surroundings, sat in its puddle of stagnant waters plashing around, lifting all types of bacterium and cultures of its own. The colors that came from that puddle made it smile. It seldom cried, and even then, it was of a reasonable cause. Hunger. The child would often try to stand up, for it owed it to its very own instincts to at least try to continue its existence. Of course, it would fall, and try to stand up again, and again and again. NOSTALGIA PART Il Often venturing into the worse part of the slums, at age six, all our destitution was equivalent. This area with which I was most familiar was the circle of houses at the end of the dirt road that faced towards each other. I never actually spoke to any of these people. I would just venture, sit, and observe. I knew I had disrupted a flow, but, all I wanted to be was an observer; however, in doing so, I had become an aspect that had conformed into their daily routine and for that, it was no surprise that I was finally included. THE OBSERVER The Madam was the first to approach me. I introduced myself and as a custom 1 told her where I lived and her me. After getting the customaries out of the way, 1 learned that the Madam was a funny lady with an equally funny daughter to boot. The Babe was of one year and had developed a certain genial presence around me. It was only a matter of time before the Gentleman came to talk to me as well. At first sight, he would not have seemed the most intelligent of men, but, growing up in such an area, no one was they appeared. He asked me, "Why do you come here?” I replied, "Because I feel more at home here than 1 do in my own home'' “Why is that?” he continued. "No reason,” I answered fleetingly. I quickly changed the subject by letting him know that I may get to leave for America in a few years. "I see. Well I think that the fact that you think this wasteland home says something about you, wouldn't you say?" My response was my quizzical face. He then knelt to the ground, looked me in the eyes and said, "we need you to leave, and enjoy our life, be happy, meet a nice person, continue this world for us.” He paused. “It has become more clear to me each year that I will never leave, neither shall she. I see you with a future, one that I could never dream for myself for it is too damn far from me, but for you, I need you to move on from this life, you are not deserving of this, none of us are, but now that you have an out, you must take it." The day he spoke to me, that night, I called my own mother on the phone to talk about the day. She had been living in the United States for three years and would often call to see how we were faring. She was not even a bit angered that 1 had been going on my little ventures, but, instead, her voice became firm and true, more so than usual, and she promised me, "I will get you out of this hell hole." I returned to the Madam, the Gentleman and the Babe after a week. The topic was never brought up again, not for another two years. My visits were consistent once every week, on Saturday twilight. his continued each Saturday until I stopped going for three months. The day before we were to leave, I was twelve at this point, I ran to my favored area to tell my friends about the great news. 1 immediately went to the Gentleman and told him, he smiled so deeply that I felt it absorb into me and convert into a new type of motivation; I would work my hardest for his sake. I then ran to the Madam and told her, she too smiled, not at me, however, but through me. 1 asked the matter, and she told me, sternly and without emotion that the Babe had died. Tears welled up from the bottom of my eyes and poured over as I tried to console her, but it seemed that my words could not reach her because she was too far gone. Too far for me to reach, and soon, to her, I will be as well. It was not until I was in this country that I realized it was pneumonia. With the water the Babe played in every day, and the lack of, nourishment, it was almost inevitable. These facts hit me when 1 was in my sixth grade English class. It began as one tear. It rolled down my cheeks and off my face. Then as though the first tear was as a commander, an army of tears followed strongly afterward. I wept and wept endlessly. It was not fair, not one aspect of this entire situation, of their lives, of my own, was fair. Why was 1 here and them there, cursed to cry every night, to scour night and day for one bite of anything that would temporarily hold off the truth that was all too inevitable for them, but not for me. Why? Why? Why!? 1 wept for Honour for that was the Babe's name, I wept for Patricia, for that was the Madam's name, I wept for Ambrose for that was the Gentleman's name. They had names. They all have names. All who lived there, around me, far from me, and even those whom were not mentioned. They all have names. They are not some obscure beings in the back of every UNICEF commercial. They exist. I wanted to stop it: I wanted the best for them. I wanted Honour, to be a proud healthy 13 year-old girl today. I wanted Patricia to be a proud mother. I wanted Ambrose to be happy. The slums and all the like cannot have it all. They can't even have the least. So today, sit here in this air conditioned edifice called a school to uphold and represent where I come from because this is what I can control. I could not stop what happened to Honour but I can control the work that I put in to construct a future that they would have wanted not only for themselves but for me as well. My personality, my movements, my smiles, my words. These are the people who molded me. They are embedded in my past and reflect my future. They will always represent who 1 am. My home. My origin. My inception. My Uganda. Honoring the deadArena Ali
Frozen with shock, feet nailed to the dirt road and a trembling heart pumping blood rapidly that fear nearly convulses into tangibility.but even a rush of adrenaline couldn’t help him I can imagine him standing with wide eyes feeling despair and loneliness, just him and his killer. His fear tangible, I envision him whispering a prayer for forgiveness and thanks as life passes through his eyes like a child going through a flipbook. He feels the impact.The first bullet drops him to his knees. He squeezes his eyes shut and whimpers due to the sudden pain. The second bullet pierces through his chest and gracefully enters his heart. The bullets penetrateinfiltrate his body eating away the years of his life within seconds of contact. The killer leaves untouched, stealing theyears from a father, husband, brother and beloved family member. Four years later, I would fly across the ocean with my parents to visit my uncle’s burial site. I’d stand arms across my chest to feel some warmth. I’d shut my eyes and recollect the memories of his palpable intense passionate anger, his stomach-clenching humor, his charisma and his beautiful heart. I’d shed my grief in tears glancing at a young boy and two teenage girls kneeling in the dirt, eyes shut to hold in their own grief squeezing each others hands with their eyes shut, tear stained, whispering to their dad about their day, their stresses, and their joys. They’d tell him they missed him. The boy would ask if he met God and when he was coming homeback. Their mother would look away to retain her strength. The oldest daughter would join me and hold my hand.; she’d say, “Sometimes, I can’t help but feel like a charity case. that you probably wouldn’t even care to come here if it wasn’t for my dad., that Iif you had the choice you’d be elsewhere. I know he was like your dad, but he was my dad. He was our everything.” I would argue because I’d glance over to my dad and recall the ridiculous argument about wanting to go on vacation with friends instead.words would only add to the guilt from the ridiculous argument about wanting to go on a vacation with my friends instead. Dumbfounded by her honesty, I’d ask her how her life was going and she’d give me a sad smile, the kind that never reached her eyes, and respond, “It gets harder everyday. We have a whole family to support us, but sometimes you can’t help but feel alone. You know I failed and will be repeating tenth grade I failed tenth grade because sometimes I can’t bare bear it. All my friends will be juniors, so now I’m alone in school too. It’s embarrassing. I feel like my future is at a loss, like the structure of my life lies here in the ground.” She would sigh and I would embrace her wishing to take her distressagony away. I’d take them back home with us if it were at my command. I’d always know that their battles would be rougher than mine, sorrow much richer than mine, and burden much heavier than mine. The endless arguments with my parents, the time thrown away, the ingratitude towards my opportunities all comes into prospect. The setting of my life’s Cannon finally refocuses. Meeting my family half way across the world, a place with different beliefs, where the father of the family is most prominent, where the troubles heighten if this source of structure is snatched away, enriches me with gratitude for the blessing of opportunities, family, and life I live. Only to imagine that if I was born in the country my cousin lives in, it could have been my parents. Just the thought fills my heart with gratitude and inspires me to work harder to so that someday I can help them, support them, and give them with the chance to live the life I do. I have witnessed that life and death are out of our control, therefore instead of pondering on the inevitable we should focus on the tangible aspects of life. Changing this mentality will not make death seem petty but it is important to keep the good memories alive. It is vital to keep in mind the positive aspects of their life. I like to believe my Uncle made the world a better place. Even though he was a small town shop owner, he impacted many lives unknowingly; he surely changed my life. My Uncle accomplished many great things in his life; I chose to remember all those instead of the way his life terribly ended. He taught me to be thankful for the privileged life I lead. I am appreciative for all the things I have been provided in my life. For example, I am so grateful to be living in the United States of America. This is a freedom I took for granted for most of my life. My parents told me stories of their lives and how they grew up in run down sheds in the ghetto of India. I was never fully able to understand the efforts, hardships, and sacrifices they encountered to make it to America. I never took into account they left their homes and entered an unknown country with no help or support. I now comprehend the privilege I had of being born in such a country. I did not face any adversities in my life all thanks to my parents. They took all the difficulties onto themselves to provide me with the opportunity at a better future. Having my relatives experience such a heart wrenching tragedy has molded me into an appreciative human being. I am thankful to be given the opportunity to live in a better environment, have access to top education, and live in the land of opportunity, freedom, and diversity. I want to honor my Uncle’s life and memory by helping underprovided individuals and children suffering in third world countries. Everyone deserves the opportunity to live better and experience the simple luxuries of life. My adventure called life - focusing on things you can controlKate Suazo
We humans as are born into a world that we ourselves cannot change, control, or modify, instead we learn, grow, and do what we can to make this world better. In my own life I have faced trials and tribulations that created a mind full of anxiety and worry. Why can’t I change the world, I would ask myself, why can’t I change the past? For a long time it felt like nothing could be changed, that I would need to accept the world as it was and never ask for more. I believed in my heart that one woman could never make a difference, and up until my Nana died that is how I lived my life. I have lost a lot of people in my 20 years on this beautiful planet. 8 close family members and friends to be exact. To say that I am familiar with loss would be an understatement. I was an angry child and my mental illness grew inside of me like a weed. I hated loving people out of fear of losing them. I pushed people away, I grew distant. I began to believe that this was the way life was, this was the way MY life was. Letting people love me was something I began to give up on. Why would I let others love me and I love them if it just ended in pain and loneliness. I was suicidal and disappointed in the world. Then the worst thing happened, my Nana died. My Nana was my best friend. She raised me for a few years of my life due to financial struggles, she taught me how to sing and dance, she made the best food in the world, and she dedicated her life to helping others. My Nana was my best friend. She had been sick for quite some time and we had all said our goodbyes. I was sitting in math class when I felt a piece of my soul rip out of my chest, I knew she was gone. My parents picked me up from school that day and I was silent as they confirmed her passing. My best friend, my motivation, my light was gone. For about a week afterwards I lived in a fog. My world had been torn apart and my depression was taking over. I had worked so hard to not let my anxiety and depression rule my life but at this point I didn’t care. My Dad told me about a “Life Ceremony” we were going to have for her and I was indifferent. I didn’t want to be surrounded by people crying and suffering because nothing could change the way any of us felt. We had no control over the pain, at least that’s what I thought then. We walked into the “Life Ceremony” and sat down at a table. People kept coming over and apologizing for something they had no control over, it made me angry. I didn’t know most of the people saying sorry and I couldn’t sit there and continue to say “Thank you”. I walked away to go cool off. As I was pouring my lemonade an old man walked up to me and said, “You must be Carols Granddaughter.” I gave him a look as if to say, “Yeah, so?” He looked me deep in the eyes and said, “Do you know what kind of woman your Nana was?” We talked for the next hour about all the things she had done to help people around her. Her volunteer work at the food bank, the time she made meals for a month for the neighbors who just lost their jobs, the time she literally took the coat off her back for a small child who didn’t have one, my Nana was a hero. I knew all of these things, I had heard all of these stories, but listening to this man talk about my Nana, it was like she was with us in the room. I felt my soul come back and I felt the smile on my face which had been a miss of quite some time. I felt the warmth of her love wrap me in a safety blanket. This woman, my Nana, who had lived through rough times of her own, loved and gave and shared her kindness with everyone. I began to realize something, my Nana continued living on through the light she shared with the world and with that light she made a difference. I began to work out of my depression. I started doing theater to make people laugh. I began traveling so I could learn about what other people live like. I focused on college and my education. I began to love again as my Nana loved me. It was scary and I was nervous to begin opening myself up, but it was a release. I now work with a non-profit organization helping underprivileged youth prepare for college, I lead workshops on celebrating our differences, I teach groups of people about loving themselves for who they are, and I share my light as often as I can. You see, every time I do something good, every time I share a smile or kind word, every time I step out of my comfort zone to help someone, those 8 people live on through me. I miss my Nana every day and I still get sad from time to time, but I know that by letting myself love again, I am doing more good than I ever have. Losing so many loved ones, dealing with the pain, and learning from my heartbreak as helped me learn how to celebrate everyone. I love deeply, I never let go, and I work hard every day to make myself better for those who love me. I know that I cannot change the cycle of death, and I know I cannot bring back my loved ones, but by sharing my light and by being kind, I can make this world a better place one smile at a time. Focusing on what you can controlSylvia Richardson
College: North Carolina Central University My name is Sylvia Richardson and I just completed my freshman year in the Honors Program at North Carolina Central University, with a double major in accounting and hospitality/tourism. Following my freshman year, I currently have a 3.9 GPA. My career goal is to obtain a management position in the finance department of a major hotel chain or international firm within the tourism industry. I have recently made a giant leap towards focusing on things that I can control by co-authoring a book with my mother. The book is titled, You Are Wonderfully Made: 12 Life-Changing Principles for Teen Girls to Embrace. This book, which will be released in late September of this year, can be used as a tool for others to also focus on the things they can control. As a result of my success in high school, college, church and community, other parents and teenagers have often asked me about the secret of my success. My response has always been that my success is not a secret but that, with the assistance of my parents, I have developed principles that I try to live by on a regular basis. The principles are not complex; in fact, they are simple. Perhaps they are so simple that many teenagers overlook them entirely or discount their importance. My mother and I decided to reflect on my upbringing, especially during my teen years, and develop twelve of the principles in detail, so we could share them with other teenage girls. Black teen girls, in particular, experience common challenges and there are few resources which directly address them. The teen years are challenging ones in an individual’s development, particularly for girls. Yet black teen girls often experience even greater challenges because of the negative messages, labels and images perpetuated by media, music videos, and popular culture. Rather than boost the confidence of black teen girls, these negative messages can adversely affect their self-esteem and their concepts of self-worth. Low self-esteem can ultimately lead them to internalize these negative labels and make a series of bad choices. By embracing these labels, negative outcomes become a self-fulfilling prophecy for far too many black teen girls. But, black teen girls have the power to reject these negative labels and embrace positive ones. You Are Wonderfully Made: 12 Life-Changing Principles For Teen Girls To Embrace empowers black teen girls with the tools they need to successfully navigate their teen years and avoid the pitfalls that can derail their futures. The book’s title is based loosely on the Biblical scripture in Psalms 139:14, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” However, the twelve universal principles in the book are not exclusive to those of the Christian faith. They can be adopted by any teen girl, regardless of her family background, economic status or educational achievement level. The first principle explored in the book – and the most important – revolves around teenage girls appreciating their uniqueness and knowing their worth. One of the easiest things for us to control as individuals is our sense of self, knowing and appreciating who we are. There are no two people in the world who are alike. Each person is a one-of-a-kind individual, unique in every way, and there is no other human being on Earth, in the past, present or future, who has been, is or will be exactly like another. Teenagers have a tendency to want to blend in, to be like other teenagers, and to not stand out. It is often easier to go along with the trend set by the so-called “popular” or well-liked girls than to potentially be targeted for being different. But to get through the teen years successfully, girls will need to appreciate their uniqueness and be comfortable with the fact that they are different from any other teenager on Earth. They should celebrate themselves as one-of-a-kind teenagers who have intrinsic value that no one else can duplicate. Seeking validation from others not only lowers one’s self-esteem, but it also gives others power over them – over their thoughts, their opinions and their ideas about themselves. It also puts teenagers in a position where they do not feel worthy or know their worth, unless someone else validates it. Why give others that sort of power over their lives? When teenagers embrace their uniqueness, their confidence is bolstered. Once they accept the reality that they are exclusively unique, wonderfully made, they will begin to approach others with boldness and courage. Working on this book project with my mother was a meaningful experience. It helped me to improve my writing skills, and learn more about conducting research regarding topics of importance to me. It also expanded my knowledge about book covers and how essential they are in making a book attractive to potential readers. Finally, it allowed me to share my thoughts with other teens regarding focusing on things they can control. The power of positive thinkingAlicia Morales
On September 2, 2010, I lost one of the most important human beings in my life. This human being was my uncle. He was a brother to eight women, a father of two children, and an uncle to me and 10 of my cousins, but it felt as if he were my second father. He helped raise each and every one of us. He was extremely affectionate, even on his bad days, and always managed to keep a smile on my face. Ever since I began attending school in kindergarten, my uncle would tell my mother that I was a gifted child. As I grew older, his expectations of my education continued to escalate. I have always excelled in a school setting, and because he believed in me, I continued to be confident and always aimed for success. His encouraging words motivated me not only academically, but with life in general. He helped me understand that one’s dream can be limitless, which is something I still highly value. Growing up, I spent weekends with him listening to his dreams for my future education. He always told me I had an infinite amount of potential to do great things in this world. When I turned 11 years old, he accomplished his goal of opening up his own restaurant, and even though he suffered economically, which forced him to shut down the business, he managed to open up a new one soon after. He began to tell me about his long term goal of expanding his restaurant into a chain of food services, and hoped to have me in charge of administrating it someday. Unfortunately, his life, hopes, and dreams were taken away by another human being. Sorrow and denial filled the lives of my family. I was unable to concentrate on anything that was unrelated to my uncle's murder and my family's pain. When my relatives left to Mexico to hold his funeral, I stayed in Chicago because my mother advised me to do so. She believed my pain would be even greater if I attended, and it would do me no good. I gave my final goodbye to my beloved uncle here in Chicago right during the same time the summer season gave its own goodbye to us all. My eighth grade year began a couple days later, and my mind was nowhere near focused. All I was sure of was that I wanted to see my uncle again, and I wanted to attend his funeral with the rest of my family. My disconnection from the world quickly brought consequences. My academic work began to roll downhill. I was too distracted by the tragedy that I forgot my life was moving on. My goals began to fade and I had no motivation whatsoever. I became depressed and it seemed to me as if every problem in my life had no solution. I did not complete my daily tasks, both at school and at home. Instead of finishing them, I would feel anxious and scared of what the consequences of ignoring my responsibilities would be. After seeking for help from my family, friends, and mentors, I finally came back to my senses and realized that the last thing my uncle would want would be for me to ignore my academic responsibilities. I decided to try my hardest to better myself. To this day, I am still trying to excel not only in school, but in every aspect of my life. I know I can succeed, and I want to make my uncle proud. He has always been my motivation for academic success, but after he passed away I realized that no matter how big a problem is, I can always get past it. Things will always get better. This new mindset has helped me grow as person, and I am now a more motivated and optimistic individual. I am excited for my future endeavors rather than fearing them. One day after I graduate college, I will become a successful social worker, specialized in children’s welfare and will hopefully work with foster children. My goal is to help as many children as I possibly can, and even though this career choice can bring many heartaches, I am positive it will be worth it. With the power of positive thinking, I became an optimist: a person who searches for the best in any given situation. Regardless of the hardships in life, I am responsible for my own happiness. The universe may send negativity my way, but I should not feel defeated. There are certain factors in life which one cannot control, often leaving one frustrated, powerless, and even depressed, but one must stay positive. These hardships are not permanent, they are only temporary. Happiness will be in abundance in the near future, but only if one values the Power of Positive Thinking! Emphasize what you can control Dylan Lizarraga
When I have brought up the subjects of Boy Scouts around others, I am received with a either admiration from those who have participated in it as well or antipathy for many acts of social injustice that BSA has endorsed through the years. I cannot fully agree nor disagree with any of their beliefs; all of which (in my eyes) are equally justifiable. My experiences in scouting are my own and have come with their own levels of hardship and success. I joined at the age of twelve and have been are part of my troop ever since. The memorable occasions for me, and for many other scouts, were summer camp trips. For an entire week, my troop and I would stay at a camp, isolated in nature, bombarded with weird songs, goofy skits, merit badge classes on any matter of skill, and more exercise than I thought a twelve year old could handle. Camp is truly a strange place to describe in full detail, but it’s a world away from where I lived. Each summer camp was either spent at a new camp or one we hadn’t been in several years, as to not make things stale. Of those, my favorite had always been Camp Cherry Valley. Located on Catalina Island, Cherry Cove is approximately 23 miles from San Pedro Harbor and about 1.5 miles from the isthmus. Although it boasts its aquatic activities, I always had the greatest appreciation for the incredibly friendly counselors. I have come to learn about myself while at this camp, however none more so than the first week I spent there. Every BSA camp has the rule that if one wishes to participate in any waterfront activities, that person must demonstrate their swimming ability by passing a “swim check”. I remember my first swim check and every vivid detail. It began even before I reached the beach. The troop had been assigned a swim check time that was right after breakfast that Monday morning. The mess hall/parade grounds has a trail that lead directly to the waterfront. Placed at different stations along the trail were members of staff that would explain the rules as well as first aid procedures that could occur at the beach. I distinctly remember how excited I was to go into ocean and eventually take out kayaks. Each station moved us closer to the beach until, eventually, we stood on the dock. The morning clouds were burned away by the sun. The ocean was a clear blue with a tint of green. And some funky looking orange fish swam about three feet from the edge of the dock. All set to go, I listened to the lifeguard as she broke down the swim check. From the dock, we had to jump in, feet first, and swim, between the dock and the ropes in the distance, four lengths. Ten of us lined along the edge of the dock and waited for the lifeguard to count us down. “3” I looked left and right towards the other boys. “2” I looked down at my feet to push my toes over the edge. “1” I looked down at the water beneath me. “GO!” I froze. The shaking of the dock made me take a step back to catch myself from falling over. I heard a lifeguard say, “Jump”, but I stood there and shook my head. At the time I could fully comprehend the reason why I resisted jumping in. The ocean water grew darker the deeper I looked. The abyss was now a real concept in my mind. It was the unknown; the monster in the closet I could disprove time and time again but I could feel it there every night. It was creature that drooled under my bed waiting for me to fall asleep. It was fear; the purest I may have ever felt it. I understood the reality of the situation. I didn’t believe in or even imagine for a moment some imaginary monster or fictitious Hollywood shark. I had already learned how to swim. Everyone else, swimming in water was enough proof that everything should be fine. Regardless, another part of my brain couldn’t muster the strength to take this leap of faith. It told me something was going happen; something I couldn’t expect or prepare for. I don’t know how long I stood there before the one of the lifeguards snapped me out of my trance. He asked me my name and wondered why I didn’t want to jump in. I told him I was scared of the water so he asked me what I saw that scared me. I told him I didn’t see anything and that’s what scared me. He wanted to know if I thought there were sea monsters, but I told I didn’t think there were any. We stood there and talked for a while. I tried few times to jump, but to no avail. Most of the boys in my troop had already finished their swim check and were on the beach. The lifeguard stayed with me, trying to convince me to swim. By the third group of swimmers to pass through, he finally convinced me with his words. I know that I can swim, I know I’ve swum in a pool deeper than the water in front of me, and I know that no one is going to get hurt. I also know that anything could happen. The only thing keeping me from a week of fun and adventure was my inhibitions. Everything came back to me and my own head. I have control over what I do. Sure, things can happen beyond my control, but I can find a way to work through it instead of giving up before I have a go. I am the only one in charge of the actions I take and the thoughts I let take control. After taking the plunge, I held firm to that believe. One’s locus of control needs to stay within oneself. I went back to Cherry Valley two during separate summers. The summer after I turned 18, I even decided to work there as counselor. On my first summer I worked with the waterfront staff as a lifeguard and merit badge teacher. One Tuesday afternoon, I had a little boy on the dock with me who didn’t take his swim check the day before. He mustered the courage to come back during Free Time and, just like me, his courage drained while standing at the edge of the dock. I spent the majority of those three hours working with him, reminding him about all the cool things he wanted to do once he passed his swim check. I had jumped in the water to show him the water was fine and even swam alongside him when he finally jumped in. From then on, that moment has stood as a highlight of my experiences. If I didn’t believe in the power of my own mind and body, I would never have discovered my own capabilities. Never would I assume that I made the most dramatic impact on another boy’s life, although I so believe that I helped any number of scouts achieve a goal they wished to reach and opened a new door of possibility. Every time I ran a swim check, I watched numerous scouts from different walks of life take the same test week after week. Some of them have never done a swim, some have never swam outside a pool, and some have never even seen the ocean. Teaching others to emphasize what they can control has held a great deal of meaning to me. In the end, I’m no longer the one taking their swim check for the first time, nor am I spending my first full week away from home. I spend my days giving kids the opportunity to explore a new world and write their own story. Focusing on things you can controlAmanda Christenhusz
Truckee Meadows Community College “I feel infinite. It's moments like this that I live for, moments I can find humor in the dire straights, to pick myself back up and realize that I don't have control over anything but myself. I am my own god. Whether other people laugh with me or not, it is my enjoyment that I am allowed to have, and I don't need anyone else's approval for that. And the more I realize that, the more likable I seem to become to my friends, because I'm no longer seeking their approval and being disappointed when they don't approve. I am myself, and people seem to accept that now more than ever before. I am still learning. I am not perfect. I make mistakes. I slip up. I hurt people. I still have a long way to go before I can say that I am okay, but I know I will get there, because I believe in myself and what I can do.” These are the words I told the Facebook universe just two weeks ago. Five years ago, I was unrecognizable as the person I am today, not in physical features (because let’s face it, I’m still every bit as beautiful as I was back then), but in my mentality, in my approach to life and how I live it. Five years ago, I was a person who felt the need to control every last detail of my life, including the people in it. I lost a lot of friends to my need to control everything. I always had to prove my point, I always needed people to do the things I wanted them to do, and if they didn’t do exactly as I expected of them, well, I acted like a five-year-old. I’m not proud of the person I used to be, but I’m certainly proud of the person I am today, the person who’s learned how to let go and not feel the need to control everything. See, I have Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). A lot of people ask me what BPD is, and my shortest explanation would be ‘fear of abandonment’. Fear of abandonment can come in the most unexpected shapes and sizes, including (but not limited to): someone walking away from a fight, someone snapping at me for something little, a friend canceling plans for the afternoon, and even someone disagreeing with me on something! Yes, I acted like a child anytime anyone disagreed with me, because I was afraid that if they didn’t see it my way, they would “abandon” me. When I was nineteen, I married a guy who was completely wrong for me. I spent my life working a thankless job that barely paid the bills while wasting the rest of it sitting on the computer playing meaningless games, frying my brain on tons of television, and doing absolutely nothing productive. Oh, and I became an animal hoarder, trying to fill the emptiness I felt in my heart with tons of little furries to cuddle and love. I didn’t listen to anyone about how deplorable my home was or how I was wasting my life on the computer. In fact, I got quite combative anytime anyone tried to give me better direction in my life, because I felt like I had control over my life–after all, I was the one that had made all those decisions. In retrospect, in trying to have control over everything, I really had no control over myself. When my husband finally left me (can’t say it was soon enough), it was a huge blow at first. I couldn’t control him anymore and keep him there, no matter how hard I tried. For three days and three nights, I cried my eyes out and begged him to stay. I was angry with him, because he was supposed to love me. Didn’t he love me? Then I did the math. I realized that I could pay all of my own bills, and suddenly, I didn’t need him. Suddenly, I was completely over him. How could I be completely over him if I had been in love with him? I’ll tell you why, because I was in love with the idea of him, and that’s when I came to terms with the fact that I couldn’t just be with someone because I felt like I needed someone and vice versa, I had to be with someone because I wanted to be with them and they wanted to be with me. It was the first experience, among many, that taught me a very valuable lesson in life: I can’t control my love life. That was only one component of my life at the time, however. Another big component was the animals. I had way too many, so many that many of them were dying in my care because I couldn’t actually care for them. My house was absolutely disgusting, with ferrets pooping in every corner, cats peeing down heater vents, maggots growing in my sink, and so cluttered that it was all I could do to walk from one end to the other and sit in one spot. I was neglectful to the point where animals were dying in their cages left and right. It broke my heart. One day, an old friend from middle school came to visit me on her way through town, and since I was working when she arrived, I had to give her the keys to my house. When I got home, she and her boyfriend were cleaning. They gave me a big earful about how deplorable my home was. I was mortified. I realized that I couldn’t control the pain in my heart by trying to fill the emptiness there with animals that I couldn’t take care of. It took some time, but I got myself down to just the cats and dogs and began to really work on keeping a cleaner house. I was an angry person back then, too. My animals feared me, because when they didn’t listen–when I couldn’t control them, I got aggressive. My dogs saw the worst of it, especially Amaya, who was often in her own little world and couldn’t be bothered to listen. My anger only made her want to listen less, which only made me even angrier! I became abusive. One day, after beating Amaya because she wouldn’t come to me (I wonder why?), I looked down into her eyes, eyes that showed pain and distrust and confusion. It broke my heart. It wasn’t her fault that she wouldn’t listen to me. I had done my research on Siberian huskies before getting them, they have selective hearing, and it’s not like I’d made her want to listen to me with how angry I was being. It took a long time, but I slowly worked with her, worked on controlling my anger, and built up my patience levels. The more I learned to let go of the things I couldn’t control and shouldn’t be trying to control, the more I began to discover myself, and the more I discovered myself, the more I realized that I couldn’t control everything in my life. That the only thing I really can control is my own attitude and my own actions. People (and animals) are going to be who they are and do what they do, and I don’t need everyone to like or love me, I just need to love myself. I still have a long way to go, but I am doing better each and every day, and I feel like I’ve lived more in the past five years than I did in the twenty-three years before that. I have always loved helping people, and in the last few years, I’ve discovered a deep passion for psychology. Since I couldn’t find a better way to help people while still being myself if I tried, I am looking forward to going back to school to become a Psychologist in the future and putting all of my effort towards that future and not one that someone else sees for me. I may not be perfect, and I never expect to be, but one day I will be exactly where I want to be, because I realize now who I am and what I want to do with my life. Focusing on things you can controlAllison Bruner
For a lot of people, obsessing over things out of their control can overrun their life and turn daily activities into drama-filled escapades. Stress can take an emotional and physical toll on people that is often overlooked, but can have a profound impact. That is what happened to me during my freshman year of college. With looming student debt, overloading in units, a demanding on-campus job and leadership positions and endless group projects, trying to navigate a new school with new friend groups became a daunting task. Over the course of the first quarter, I had turned into a stress-filled lunatic. My boyfriend felt the brunt of it, but he was the reason I decided I needed to turn my attitude around. When fights about my anxieties were happening four and five times a week, he finally told me after a tearful—on my part—argument that I had changed since the start of school. In that instant I had a moment of clarity, realizing that it was not fair to him nor to myself that I was spending every waking second worrying about things that I had no control over: I did have daunting loans, but also a plan to pay it back and incredible opportunities. I was overloading in units, but it was nothing compared to the course load I shouldered in high school with ease. My job and leadership roles on campus required substantial amounts of time, but I had a fantastic boss and peers and invaluable experience. And while one is generally found between a rock and a hard place to find an upside to group projects, I had to learn to open my eyes to see that I was in a place in my life where I was being presented with incredible, once in a lifetime opportunities. I spent many nights tossing and turning, mind running a million miles an hour and by the time the dawn broke I had no energy left for my daily life. The next day, I sat down and made a list of things that I could change and could productively channel my energy into. Number one on that list was my health; in the following months, exercise not only became an outlet for my stress, but I also focused more on eating healthy foods. This led to renewed health and redoubled amounts of energy, but I also found that I was sleeping easier at night and more relaxed during the day. The second item on my list was my relationship that I had been poorly neglecting. Having already been together for over a year before starting college, it became easy to take my boyfriend for granted; I had become needy in our relationship and it was clearly taking its toll on both of us. I made a conscious effort to be more appreciative of the little things and the time that we spent together, and though the benefits of these changes were not as instant as my health kick, the long term effects led to a stronger, more stable relationship. The third thing I chose to focus my energy on were my classes. It was easy to see the positive correlation between time and energy spent and my success in the classes. Buckling down and putting two hundred and ten percent into my courses was a difficult adjustment at first, but after seeing my grades on the first round of midterms following my new routines it was easy to follow through. This tactic additionally improved my experiences with group projects; I learned that when I stepped up and delegated work, people were willing to do their part ninety percent of the time. I also found that being actively engaged at work created a more productive environment for myself so it was easier to transition back into normal life after my shift ended. Rather than concentrating on the long term ideas I had about my future, I learned to instead plan out attainable, concrete and short term goals: I was worried about getting a good GPA so that my resume stood out to potential employers and I could negotiate a competitive salary, but focused my energy on doing my homework and studying hard for tests to get a good grade in each individual class that would lead to that elusive, intangible GPA. By focusing on things I could control, I took control back over my life. I became more energized, more confident, and more capable in the tasks I approached. Simple steps can have an incredibly profound impact on the overall quality of life that a person has; the most important aspect of that though is that those steps are attainable for everyone. Overcoming my anxieties about what the future holds is an ongoing adjustment, but by far one of the most worthwhile achievements I’ve worked towards in my life. The power of positive thinkingJohn Bavol
California State University-San Marcos “The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible”. - Winston Churchill I am not going to get into the harsh details of my childhood and upbringing. I don’t want to focus on the negative, but show the power of being a positive thinker. And before I get into my story, I would like to encourage anyone who reads this to do the same in their own lives. Don’t focus on the negative. When it rears its ugly little head, focus on ways to alter it into something positive. Easier said than done, I know, but hopefully my story can give some insight on how it can be done. So without further ado, let me start by saying childhood was rough. Now let us skip ahead to the part where my eldest sister felt the need to help my father out by taking his rebellious son off his hands for the summer while likewise helping me by getting me away from the people I surrounded myself with. She proposed I come live with her and learn to surf. I had always loved the beach and immediately agreed. Along with the offer came specific guidelines I would have to follow, and should I fail to abide, I would be sent back to the city where no good could happen. The guidelines stated: I must enroll in summer school and achieve no lower than a letter grade of “A” on every assignment. Any lower of a letter grade would result in no surfing. I must stay out of trouble. The result of being brought home by the authorities, being suspended from school, being caught shoplifting, doing drugs, or drinking would result in being sent back to live with my father. My sister and her husband were a no nonsense couple and were not about to let me get away with the shenanigans I was used to getting away with. As the summer began to come to an end, my brother-in-law felt impressed that the summer worked out. I had made up two of my failed classes and managed to stay out of trouble the entire summer. Having been an adopted child, my brother-in-law saw an opportunity to do the same good for me as his adoptive parents had done for him. He and my sister sat me down after an afternoon of surfing and made me a second offer. Their offer was much like the first but involved coming to live with them permanently. The guidelines were also much the same, the only difference being I would have to get a job as well as make up every failed class while simultaneously keeping up with all my regular classes. After much thought and my father’s blessing, I accepted. Shortly after moving in my belongings, my sister took me with her to the high school I would be attending. We had set a meeting with the school counselor to go over my admittance and to form a game plan on how to make up nearly an entire year’s worth of classes. The counselor looked over my transcript and chuckled. Immediately having given up on me, she suggested we consider a continuation school. Suddenly I felt like this had been a waste of time. My sister, convinced that a continuation school would put me right back with the crowd she was trying to get me away from, pleaded for the counselor to give me a chance. But all the counselor would say was that it was impossible for me to make up all the classes and that it would affect the school’s standing. An hour went by and finally the counselor folded. She reiterated that she did not believe I could do it, and that I would be on probation throughout my stay there. Any class failed, any nonsense, and I would be out. Throughout my junior and senior years of high school, I managed to maintain a job at the local grocery store across the street from the school, make up every class failed with a letter grade no lower than a “B”, and maintain a letter grade of no lower than a “B” in every other class. Oh, and I also graduated on time, the class year I was meant to graduate with. It always seemed odd to me that I was able to do what the school counselor deemed impossible, but there were three things that ultimately got me through it. Number one was the support and stability of my sister and brother-in-law. Number two was the impulse to prove my counselor wrong. And number three was simply surfing. I understand this story skipped through many of the details for which make a story interesting, but the point is I took the good and the bad into a positive form of thinking so that I could do something not thought to be possible. I took the support of my family and used it to fuel my positive goal. I used surfing to give me a clearer aspect on life. I didn’t get into that much but surfing actually gives you a sense of clarity. Through it you learn patience and you are given a chance to reflect out in the water. I also took the negative response from my counselor to urge myself forward because I did not want to let her win. All in all, positive thinking makes it possible to achieve heights you never thought possible. Having an attitude of gratitudeDarryan Robers
Tennessee State University “Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.” ~Buddha This quote demonstrates the highest level of an attitude of gratitude. As an incoming junior at Tennessee State University, I have chosen to make every opportunity to be a learning experience. This will prevent any situation from being a hindrance. I have had some academic as well as extracurricular events that ended up less than favorably. I chose to reevaluate the given situation and if there was an outside assessment given, to truly seek to understand how others may have perceived my intentions. This affords me an opportunity to make necessary changes. I am then able to grow as opposed to missing out on broadening my exposure to new things as well as learning a better way to accomplish my goals. I choose not to take anything for granted. For me to be as healthy as I am and yet there are students who for all purposes, are healthy but ambulate by a wheelchair acknowledge that my life can change in an instant. The most important task is to remember that anything that allows for a second chance can be yours. This year’s task is for me to make choices that will propel me into my future. I am majoring in Psychology but I desire to obtain a Graduate Degree and Board Certification in Behavior Analysis. If awarded this scholarship, it will help to immediately offset accrual of educational loans and expenses that will better prepare me to be able to further my education. I am grateful for the financial support and assistance granted that has afforded me the opportunity to reach this level in my collegiate career but I realize I will have to receive additional education to even begin my career. I have chosen a career as a Behavior Analyst. I chose this career due to my high school volunteer assignment as a Peer Facilitator. I worked with peers who had a diagnosis of Autism and or other Developmental Disabilities by demonstrating appropriate social skills in everyday situations. It was apparent to me as a child of 6 other siblings that perhaps I too take menial tasks such as going to the grocery store for granted. I worked with other “typical developing” peers whose siblings and friends had these diagnosis’s. It became apparent that we never know how a person feels unless you have truly walked in their shoes. The embarrassment from a child demonstrating inappropriate or unusual body movements because maybe they cannot express verbally that “I am nervous” or “I need a break”. Working with these peers be it with or without a known disability, it was apparent that there is so much more awareness needed. I thought it very interesting to observe the Behavior Analyst help these individuals demonstrate more appropriate social interactions by usually giving them a reason to do so. This began to shape my thinking to choose to be grateful. If for no other reason than I want to be. Life is constantly changing. However, my personal goal in life is to always learn in order to be positioned to grow while maintaining a content and grateful attitude. This means to embrace knowledge while seeking to understand each life cycle as not a happen chance but opportunity. This understanding I hope will be a key asset in my leadership skills as well as success. Daily I practice an attitude of gratitude through my academic matriculation as well as in my civil and social living. I hope to receive this scholar ship from Achieve Today. I look forward to being in a position to give back to other young ladies one day to help them to accomplish their goals. I will encourage each young lady and or applicant to implement strong leadership principles that demonstrate innovative applied learning to every aspect of their lives. They too must be able to establish a strong network of support and professional skillset from others who have accomplished what they hope to one day succeed at. Balance school, work life responsibility by maintaining the attitude of gratitude. This means as much as we can, we will make wise choices. My mother frequently tells me that it is imperative to allow for an exit plan because things don’t always go as we plan and once we acknowledge our knowledge; do over or differently. But in all things give thanks. Again, I so agree with Buddha‘s view of my Attitude of Gratitude because nothing just happens. Zig Ziegler sums it up best for me “Of all the "attitudes" we can acquire, surely the attitude of gratitude is the most important and by far the most life-changing. Adopt that attitude and I really will SEE YOU AT THE TOP!” Having an attitude of gratitudeChloe Myers
University of Central Florida I am my mother’s last and, technically, fourth child, but two of them died before me; I sometimes wonder if that helps that my sister Kiara and I are close. I am a stubborn, inquisitive, passionate, ethereal human wrapped around the soul of a woman. I am the child that parents want their kids to be around, because ever since I was in elementary school, I have gotten numerous academic praises and trophies. I was supposed to have been a stillborn, though, and my story wasn’t supposed to be announced, 21 years ago. We are always told to be grateful for every moment that we have, on this epicenter of a planet that we abide in, called Earth. We thank God whenever something good happens, but never seem to praise Him when we are going through our next storm as well. Think about what I have to say, because I am living proof that God is real and that I am a miracle. Breathing, is a luxury. It maps out the plan for the body, and eases us into life. It coaxes us into thinking that everything is going to be okay. It is the memory I have of being hooked up to a machine, fighting for breath, with my mother sobbing in the next room. It is my grandmother reaching her hand out to me and holding on, praying all day and night for my health, even to this day. It is a compass, navigating to our lungs and protruding from our ribcages, giving us a chance to say our messages. A simple ‘hello’ is someone else’s gratitude, because maybe yesterday they had been in a coma. It is a vital thing needed for the epitome of survival, strength, and dedication. My name is Chloe Myers, and I was born on the day before a leap year, February 28th, 1994. I came into the world resembling how a kid usually looks jumping into a pool: feet first, and ready for action. I weighed one pound, and twelve ounces; since I was born prematurely, at six months, I had to stay in the ICU for three months. My weight then decreased to one pound and eight ounces. The doctors told my family that I would have cerebral palsy and mental retardation. I never developed those things, and I would like to think of myself a happy and healthy 21 year old college student. However, because there was a lack of oxygen coming to my brain when I was born, I was eventually diagnosed with a retinal tear in my right eye. I had to take daily breathing treatments when I came home from the hospital for the next couple of years. The tear impacts my vision, especially at night, and some doctors have told me that it could one day be severe enough to the point where I could develop glaucoma when I am a lot older. A healthy retina shouldn’t have any fluid coming through a retinal hole or tear; mine does, and some of the symptoms of a tear or a etachment can include floaters, which are similar to small circles that some people with the tear can see. nevertheless, I am always grateful. I was bullied in middle and high school because of my high prescription for my glasses. They are very thick, but at least I can see. I have my vision; it’s just not as strong as some people would like to think. When I was 16, I also lost fifty pounds, and suddenly all the people who picked on me because of my vision wanted to be my friend. I cried countless times because I wanted to be just like everyone else. I wanted to have glasses with a regular, barely there prescription and perfect vision. I didn’t want to be the ‘freak’ of the classroom who was also a nerd. Whenever I got upset about this, my mom would always tell me to get up and thank God for the fact that at least, I can see. At least, I can breathe without being tied up to a machine. At least I’m not dead. I am her last child, her little model, her scholar, and I am always going to be her fighter. I can’t play the victim, I have to keep moving forward, because there is someone out there who has it much worse and is living in the realm of sunshine, as my grandmother says about happiness. Which, is true. I am humbled by God’s wisdom and mercy. I thank Him everyday that I can drive my car, walk, talk, eat, chew, and do the things the doctors told me I could never do. I can do all of this without an aid, a service animal, a nurse. I have an attitude of gratitude because I am able to share my story. I have a name, an actual birth date, and I am here. A force of willpower and courage to be reckoned with, willing to bestow my story to anyone that will listen, always looking at the stars and knowing I have at least two angels watching me, every day. Breathing, is a luxury, wrapped up in the love of God’s plan for all of us. A simple ‘hello’ is someone else’s gratitude, because maybe yesterday they had been in a coma. That’s the thing about people; you never know their story, until you ask. Going confidently for the results that I desireRobert T. Lee
North Carolina A&T State University As a recent high school graduate, feeling almost like an alien standing at the verge of a brand new world, I realize how important it is to successfully deal with potential challenges and obstacles in my life. I am about to step into college and I’m being told by my family and my friends to expect the unexpected, and be ready to go through things I have never experienced before. The whole thing is a bit much for an eighteen year old to handle, but then I feel better once I think about something I have been through many times already that required me to use confidence and the Power of Positive Thinking to get the results I wanted from what I was involved in. An important moment from my childhood that showed me how to use positive thinking to achieve in my life is the first time I auditioned to be in my school band. I was in the 6th grade and I have to admit, it was majorly intimidating. I could feel the eyes of all the other students who were trying out, even though they had their eyes on their own instruments. I knew they were looking at me anyway. On top of that, my Mom was looking, and of course I wanted to look good in front of her. I also really wanted to impress the director, and his team of instructors. I had imagined how the whole thing would play out when I was rehearsing at home, in my room the week before. I was going to drum my heart out, and everybody was going jump up and give me a standing ovation, and I’d have my place in the band. Easy. But here I was at my audition, standing there shaking and sweating, and trying to hide it. All of these scary thoughts started flooding into my mind. They were almost like voices, and they were telling me all of the reasons why I could fail. All sorts of fears started creeping in, including how talented the other students trying out were, and how they would take up all of the slots in the band before I could get picked. I wondered if I could actually impress the instructors judging my performance, and if I really had the special qualities that they were looking for. I went over my routine, becoming anxious that I would forget something and not even make it all the way through. I stood there watching the other students play, and every time one of their names was called, I got more and more nervous, with beads of sweat forming on my forehead. And then the moment came, when they called my name: “Robert Lee”. I thought about what I wanted, and what would happen if I messed up. I could not let that happen, so I did the best thing that I could think to do. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and pulled out all of the courage that I had inside of me. I used the Power of Positive Thinking to recall the training Iʼd had up to that point, and how much I loved drumming, even at that young age. Once I changed my thinking, my entire routine came back to my mind, from start to finish. I clenched my teeth, took another deep breath, and started my performance. I raised my chest up high, and charged into my routine as confidently as I could. Before I knew it, I was finished, I couldn’t wait to see what everybody thought. Once the instructors judged how I did, I was picked for the band and given my place on the drum line, and I was as happy as I could be. I’ve auditioned for band more than ten times since then, and every time I can’t help but have a quick moment when that same fear and intimidation pops up, they way it did in my very first audition. But whenever it tries to happen, I pull from that same stability and confidence that I discovered within me during those tryouts back in the sixth grade. I am able to pull from positive thoughts to put keep myself on track, and put myself in line with what I want, whether itʼs in school, dealing with my family at home, or socially when Iʼm out by myself or with my friends. The Power of Positive Thinking is a big part of how I approached applying for North Carolina A&T State University, and auditioning for a place in the schoolʼs band. I am able to make negative thoughts go away, instead of chickening out and hesitating to go after what I want, I take a breath, imagine the best outcome that I can, and go confidently for the results that I desire. Knowing how to do this makes me better at going after what I want and continuing to become the person that I want to be. What you fear you can't always controlShaya Crabtree
This isn’t going to be one of those essays about conquering your fears. This is an essay about embracing them. My sophomore year of college I finally caved. Forced by academic standards and core curriculum, I could no longer put off taking the class I had been avoiding since my sophomore year of high school: Speech. The course was disguised as “Fundamentals of Communication” with a syllabus placing emphasis on computer-based testing, outlining by hand, and writing speeches. But I wasn’t fooled. This was a class about giving speeches. I’m a writer by trade, meaning it’s what I’m studying in college and what I’ve always wanted to be. Writing speeches isn’t a big deal to me. Communicating my thoughts through written word is not a big deal to me. Unfortunately, this class was titled wrong. It should have been named “Fundamentals of Oral Communication.” Nobody cared about what I had written. Nobody cared that I had perfect outlines, fleshed out with perfect introductions, body paragraphs, conclusions, and catchy hook words to draw the audience in. My written speeches were textbook, exactly what my teachers were looking for. Except it didn’t matter. All that mattered was what I said at the podium and we weren’t allowed to bring the speeches we’d written with us, only notecards that could hold no more than a couple of lines of key words that would help us remember what we were trying to say. My first speech I memorized. I practiced it well over fifty times, confident that if I tried hard enough I could replicate the exact eloquence of the words I’d written down orally when I voiced them. I was nervous, but I was prepared. I signed myself up as the last student to give their speech in order to give myself more time to practice and time to observe what everyone else did wrong or did right and learn from my classmates’ mistakes and successes. I couldn’t have prepared more if I tried. Then it came time to give the speech. It was awful. It wasn’t a case of blanking on the spot. I retained every word of my speech. It was engrained into the gray matter of my brain. I recited it in my dreams for nights on end. I knew everything I was supposed to say, except I couldn’t say it. My heart was pounding, my palms were sweaty, and the only thing shakier than my hands was my voice. I fumbled through the entire speech, fully aware that I sounded like I was seconds away from crying. I just wanted out of that room, out of the spot light. I chopped my speech in half on the spot, cutting out everything important that I was supposed to say just to be done with it all. I got a C on the speech. I’d never gotten a C in my life. I was a straight A student with a 4.0 GPA that graduated high school with an honors diploma and a 4.4 GPA. I’m the kind of person who freaks out if they get an A-. Only this time I was too traumatized by the entire experience to care that I’d gotten the lowest grade of my life. I was actually relieved. My performance didn’t deserve a grade considered “average.” Devastated, for my second speech I no longer cared about the rules. I changed my speech to 9pt. font, printed the entire thing out, and glued it onto the fronts and backs of my notecards. I knew I’d be docked points for it, but I didn’t care. I just wanted to survive. I thought maybe if I gave the audience no eye contact and focused solely on reading aloud the words on my notecards in front of me, I wouldn’t be so nervous. Yes, it would be an awful, uninteresting performance, but I didn’t care. Still, I had hope that maybe this speech wouldn’t be as bad as the last. I practiced diligently, memorizing the speech in its entirety even though it wasn’t required this time. Again I went last. Again I watched as others struggled and glided through their presentations with ease. Then it was my turn. This time it went even worse. The second speech was no different than the first, really. Shaky hands, shaky voice. Only this time the speech was longer, required by the syllabus to be more of a challenge than the original. It was so awful I barely remember it. My mind has blocked it out, or maybe my blood pressure was so high that day I was nearly blacked-out on stage. I’m almost grateful that I have no recollection of it. My hands shake just thinking about it even as I type out this essay. I was grateful to sit back down at my desk after that speech. It had been awful, but this time I hadn’t skipped any lines. I’d said each and every word and I got the information I needed to out there, even if I was a trembling mess as I said it. Maybe I’d actually deserve the C this time. Then my teacher asked me to stay after class. I was smart enough to know what for. She told me the speech was good, said it had all the information it was supposed to, and that I shouldn’t be so nervous, but I was so high-strung and exhausted that I broke down in front of her. I sobbed. My professor hugged me. I didn’t even care that everyone saw. I went on a ten minute walk outside in the Midwestern winter cold, still crying, just to calm myself down. It didn’t work. There wasn’t a moment I was calm that entire semester. The third speech was a group speech. Once again, I tried to be optimistic. I’m an optimistic person by nature. I’m the person my friends go to for advice when they’re feeling sad. I’m the one who sees silver linings even when the sky is so completely eclipsed by clouds that it’s impossible to see their edges. I thought I could do the speech this time, especially since I was in a group. All eyes weren’t on me. I only played a small role wedged into the middle of the performance when audience attention was at its lowest. It helped that I was motivated not to drag down my group partners. The groups had been chosen randomly and their grades didn’t deserve to suffer just because they’d had the misfortune of getting stuck with the most anxious person in class. We practiced the speech together and it was great. Everything was fine. For once I was calm when we approached the front of the room. I was even calm when the members before me gave their portion of the speech. But then it was my turn and the eye of the storm had passed. I was back in the heavy rains and turbulent wind and not a single thing about my performance had improved. It was awful. I didn’t cry this time, but only because I raced out of the room as soon as I could. My professor didn’t stop me to give me pointers. It hadn’t made a difference before and it wasn’t going to make a difference now. There was only one speech left in the semester, and something had to change. It felt like I had tried everything to get over my fear and excel in the course, but I hadn’t. There was one last thing left I could do: Focus on the things I could control. I can’t control the state of shock my body goes into when I give a speech. No matter how hard I try, no matter how calm I am, no matter how good of a headspace I’m in, my own confidence and preparedness just doesn’t matter when I’m in front of a room. My body shuts down, and I can’t control that. What I could control was my performance in other aspects of the class. I’d gotten great grades on all of my small homework assignments, my written outlines, and my mid-term, and I knew if I could get an excellent grade on my final, it wouldn’t matter how poorly I did on my last speech. From that point on, I focused my energy into studying, something I was good at, a habit I knew I could control. I read the textbook, then reread it. I looked at my notes, then high-lighted them, then read them over and over again. I filled out study guides for the course. I got advice from older students who had already taken the class. I put all of my energy into a single test, and I aced it. I scored 148 points out of 150. I didn’t have to give my last speech. The anxiety I’d felt every day for the last four months was instantly relieved. I never had to give another speech in my life. On my last speech day, I didn’t show up to class. It tanked my grade. No matter how good my tests were, the speeches comprised most of the available points in the class, and with my first ever F on that last speech, I barely passed. But I did pass. And that’s all that matters to me. I said goodbye to my 4.0 GPA and the straight A streak I’d kept up since kindergarten. It hurt to see the measure of my academic success drop like that, but I learned a valuable lesson in the process: you can’t be good at everything. Sometimes practice doesn’t make perfect. Sometimes there are things you can’t learn no matter how hard you try. For me, giving speeches was like trying to dunk a basketball at only five feet tall. You can do it with a boost, but trampolines aren’t allowed on the court. If you’re short, you’ll never be a good professional basketball player. If you have stage fright, you’ll never be a good public speaker. And I’m really, really okay with that. Do what you’re good at, not what other people want you to do. Struggling to do something you don’t enjoy will never compare to the feeling of achieving your dreams. And if you’re afraid of something, that’s okay. Fear is a natural instinct. You don’t always have to conquer it. Learn from it. Grow from knowing and accepting your capabilities and your incapabilities. Let fear be the guide that leads you down a path you aren’t afraid of. You may just find something that excites you instead. Happiness is knowing ourselves and going from thereSarah Richards
Comparison to others is the thief of happiness; controlling what you do, instead of worrying about what other people are doing, is a principle for peace. I can attest that focusing on what I can control (rather than focusing on what I cannot) helps me achieve more. When I worked for a drugstore company, I found myself getting upset at the people who were getting promoted and not doing the work I did; it wasn’t till the end of my time there I realized that though I couldn’t control what my boss saw, I could control my attitude (which wasn’t one of gratitude at the time) towards the unfairness. I asked myself, “Do I really want to continue working for this company?”, and the answer was no. I didn’t like the company culture, and so, instead of fighting a battle I wasn’t committed to, I left. I got a much better job, went back to school, and the quality of my life has improved immeasurably. I went back to school at the age of thirty-two, after an almost thirteen year hiatus. I’d allowed my fear of failure, of not being able to pass College Algebra, keep me from finishing. Now, with a major I am happy with, I am finishing all the classes I can do, not focusing on what I can’t do, or only believe I can’t do…at least for now. With my main classes behind me in a year or so, I can focus on the math. Part of being successful is focusing on the important things first, or the things you can do first. I don’t believe that passing College Algebra is wishful thinking, but the power of positive thinking. I can’t control having to take the class, but I can control how I will approach it when I do. Currently, I am being tested for a learning disability; whether I have one or not will not deter me. At least I will know how to approach it. My life, so far, has been one of only doing things that come easy to me; I’ve done myself a disservice, because I am not trying to be something I’m not by finishing college, I am trying to become something I am. For too long, I allowed fear to control my destiny, rather than faith. Though we should live our lives as if we’re in complete control of our own destiny (as someone like Robert Herjavec or Mark Cuban would say), it is also important to acknowledge those things we cannot control in the different areas of our lives. · Home and family: I can’t always control the way my husband or daughter acts, but I can control how I react. Be proactive, not reactive; it is far more effective. Communication is one of the most important aspects of any relationship. · Work: There will be times when you have to pick up the slack. I’ve learned to be grateful that I’m capable enough of not only doing my job, but having time enough to help others. (Good bosses will know who the good workers are and aren’t.) · School: When you’re working on a group project, if you end up doing most of the work, the work itself and the grade is the reward. Don’t worry about the one who got it and didn’t deserve it. If we were completely truthful with ourselves, we would admit that we all get more than we deserve sometimes. This does not mean be a doormat, but it does mean that our work ethic shouldn’t be dictated by someone else’s, or lack thereof. · Life in general: It’s maddening to watch the news at times, but I can rest, knowing I have done all I can do, or all I want to do, to get the results from others I want. Few of us get everything we want out of life, and probably even fewer get everything they want out of their leaders. There will be times you have to pick your battles, and fight for what you want, but choose your battles wisely. Though I’m not the type to organize a protest, or even participate in one (at least for the present time), I will support those that do fight for the causes I care about. When I was a teenager, I was focused on what I wanted, but not how to get what I wanted. I wanted to marry at 22; I married at 31. Had I married at 22, my husband wouldn’t have been the same, unchanged man. I married the changed man; I married the right person, at the right time. I didn’t fall in love when I wanted to, but that’s the kind of destiny that takes another person to achieve. I didn’t have a child as young as I had wanted, but that takes two (and biology), also had I chosen to pursue my passion the first time, and gotten an English degree, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now: pursuing my passion while pursuing the degree that will get me the income I want while doing what I want. Sometimes, you can have your cake and eat it, too. I made choices, and each choice leads to other choices. Wrong choices sometimes lead to right ones. (I’ve often heard we’re all one person away from our destiny.) Life, such as illness or accidents, can get in the way, and so even though we can’t always control what happens to us, we can control how we react to it. Focusing on myself and not others has helped me become a better person. Without comparing ourselves to others, we can’t look down on others, or get jealous of those we look up to. Always try to beat your best, not someone else’s, because goals like that are attainable. Though I sometimes float wherever the wind takes me, it isn’t before I’ve given the wind directions; besides, I can always take a detour. There are many paths to reaching one’s destiny, and it is never in a straight line. Focus on what you want, and you will find a way to reach it. Remaining strong in achieving my goalsSadie Red Wing (Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe)
North Carolina State University My name is Sadie Red Wing, and I am attending North Carolina State University (NCSU) in Raleigh, North Carolina to pursue a Master of Graphic Design degree. Previously, I graduated from the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe, NM, where I earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts in New Media Arts. I am an enrolled member of the Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe in Fort Totten, North Dakota, but my home relies on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. It has been a new adjustment creating a living along the Atlantic Coast in North Carolina. During my higher education attendance, my journey across the country remains adventurous, which I relate to my venturesome personality. My family and peers honor my hard work and bravery in pursuing my education, for my opportunities have been more fortunate than most in my community. As I accept this role model acknowledgment, I strive to remain strong in achieving my goals, as well as lead encouragement to other tribal students who share the same higher education enthusiasm as me. While studying at IAIA, I realized the importance of reciprocity to the Native American communities. Growing up, I witnessed the struggle and hardship among the Sioux reservations in South Dakota. I believe the lack of educators in the American Indian communities impacts the race dramatically which continues the reservations' inferiority to historical trauma. It had come to my attention that many reservations struggle with a tremendous amount of health issues, especially in the Native American youth demographic. A future goal of mine is to start a project within an organization that will improve the health among students in American Indian boarding schools. During the four years of my undergraduate studies, I have researched the assimilation processes used on Native Americans through boarding schools. For possible research in the future, I would like to conduct activities schools can use to teach the development of a healthier living by switching to an organic lifestyle. Before my graduate admission, I was living with my grandmother in Pierre, South Dakota, where I worked as a graphic designer at a local print shop. During the transition between undergraduate and graduate school, I struggled to find stability in my plans of achieving the goals I set, for my living conditions were poor at the time. I had no computer or internet in my household, and my higher education connections remained in the Southwest—a near thousand miles from South Dakota. My ambitions were too high to settle as a small town designer who made minimum wage, so I put my focus into gathering resources to develop myself as an artist by improving a portfolio and maturing personal statements to suit reputable requirements. With discipline and hard work put into my admission effort, a miracle blessed me with an acceptance to North Carolina State University. My next challenges included moving to North Carolina, obtaining a computer with the required programs needed for a graphic designer, paying the university’s tuition, and executing all of these responsibilities by myself with a very low income. As the ball started rolling on the beginnings of my graduate school dream, I applied to all the means of acquiring financial assistance towards my school funding. With extreme fortune, I received the following scholarships that made my first year at graduate school possible: AIGA Worldstudios "Coyne Family Foundation” Award, American Indian Graduate Center Fellowship, and American Indian Education Foundation Graduate Scholarship. I started the beginning of my graduate program as the underdog, but I am striving to exert my fullest efforts into school in order to excel in my department. I introduced the proposal of establishing healthier living in Native American youth as a possible research thesis during my graduate studies. Inclusions of this researched suggested improvements of healthier eating among students in American Indian boarding schools. In order to raise awareness of the possible project, I advocated my ideas to youth groups on reservations in South Dakota. Unfortunately, I was not receiving feedback from the groups, and they seemed uninterested in the important information I had to offer. I discovered that my new challenge was to learn multiple methods of how to properly approach my intended audience. Instead of pursuing the formality of the advocating organic living to Indigenous children as a graduate thesis, I had to take a step back and form the question of how am I going to target my community members in a way that they will accept my ideas and hold trust in me—as an artist. As a graphic designer, visual communication is an important aesthetic in the profession of design. During my first year of graduate school, I gained interest in the study of visual rhetoric. I believe understanding rhetorical methods for communicating appropriately to audiences are crucial factors when displaying culture-related topics. As a Lakota designer, I have a unique advantage in apprehending cultural significance compared to others in the NCSU design program. I shifted my thesis from producing an organization that will improve health issues to the study of ethnic communication in design and how my artifacts will represent my culture appropriately. I feel recognizing these communication methods through my graduate studies will prepare me for future advocacy and leadership positions. I aim to be relevant in future trends and profound in a profession that is less excelled in the Native American community. Focusing on things you can controlJulie Slama
Yale University It’s 5:30 a.m. on a Friday. Some of my friends are just getting home from their night out, but my day is already beginning. I throw on my uniform and head to work for my five-hour shift lifeguarding at the pool, then head straight to my 11:30 a.m. Chinese class. After Chinese, I have a thirty minute lunch break before my macroeconomics class begins, followed by my international relations class, a tutoring lesson for Chinese, and a section discussion for my European Union class, which had classes earlier in the week. I look to the clock to find that it’s already 4:45 p.m.; I only have fifteen minutes to get to my shift at the fitness center as an attendant. When that shift wraps up at eight, I eat my pre-packed dinner and head back to the dorm to fulfill my duties as social media coordinator for a start-up. Suddenly, it’s 10:15 p.m. and there’s a text on my phone from a classmate, inviting me to a party. Climbing into bed, I’m awake just long enough to type a polite rejection before it all starts again on Saturday. My place at one of the most prestigious universities in the world can be credited to focusing on the things I can control. From overcoming bullying in middle school to toppling academic obstacles in the transition from a rural high school to an elite university, my uphill battles have been fought by focusing on what I can control. On a chilly day in December 2013, my acceptance letter to Yale arrived, making me the first student in my high school’s 126-year history to be accepted into the Ivy League. Coming with this dream, even after my need-based scholarships are applied, is a $25,000 per year bill. This amount is something that my parents are unable to assist me with; providing for my education falls on my shoulders. As a result, I work 40+ hours per week, split between three part-time jobs. My studies come during slow periods during my jobs and during breaks, with larger assignments typically requiring a few all-nighters to complete. Incredibly enough, by focusing on the things I can control has given me a better focus on my studies. My work schedule offers gaps in the day centers around my professors’ office hours, which gives me a chance to build relationships with my professors and to better understand material when compared to my classmates. Avoiding the party scene for the sake of my work schedule also gives me better clarity of thought when study breaks do arise, helping me study more efficiently over a shorter amount of time. Of course, the fact that this extra work is put in for the sole purpose of my education is the main source of my motivation. Receiving my paychecks each month is a weight off my shoulders, knowing that I’m slowly chipping away at my tuition bills while working towards my dreams. So each morning I get up at 5:30 a.m., work, go to class, work some more, and then study. It’s not glamorous or all that fun, but each day I go to bed with the knowledge that I’m doing something that everybody in my hometown is proud of. Someday I’ll return to Nebraska and give back to the community that gave me the educational opportunities I have today, but for now, I’m working and remaining focused on what I can control each day to achieve my dreams. Focusing on things you can controlAnea Gaskin
In life decisions such as making purchases, locating destinations via GPS, choosing insurance or health plans, estate planning or organizing a vacation, all require mathematical competence. Business and industries need workers who can solve real-world problems, explain their thinking to others, identify and analyze trends in data, and use modern technology. I’ve always found that life does not allow for redo; however, redundancy on a consistent basis provides the opportunity to change variables in between attempts. The subjects that I excel in are math and science because of the logical and critical thinking that is required to refine a solution. Math was never my favorite but I knew that I could not escape it, so I buckled down and really had to understand the various components of it. It’s next to impossible to live an independent life without basic math skills. In 7th grade at Hoech Middle School in St. Ann, Missouri, my Algebra teacher challenged us vigorously. I refused to merely accept the B, I was given therefore I pushed to be added to the advanced class which was 1st hour. Not only did I receive A’s in the class but also maintained the highest percentages from all the math classes. My love of science stems from Jackson Park’s after school program called environmental detectives. I participated in the activity from 4th through 6th grade. The program’s basis is similar to what Carl Sagan stated, “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” I was able to become aware of all the links in the natural world of environmental problems. Science always made me question what/ how I can change the environment to become more sustainable for the growing capacity of the people on this planet. Science allows me to deepen my understanding of the complexities in our resources, environmental problems and recognize opportunities to improve solutions for Co2 levels and water depletion. If we don't take better care of what we have and we aren't caution in what we let into the atmosphere. Being able to solve an environmental concern logically as well as factually is essential for becoming an Environmental Engineer, which is my field of study at Arizona State University in fall 2015. Both curriculums absorb, sort, organize, and used to data to make decisions. As science attributes to my success as an engineer because dealing with the quality water, I must have take samples and test then as well as closely examining the specimen that I collect. Also, there is much research that is going to affect how I will be able to clean and change the quality and supply of water that we are able to use in the world. While researching this major, several things became imperative – One that I needed to have a stable background in math and science; Secondly, that STEM professions would make up 40% of new jobs, per the Department of Labor listing in 2013. Not only did I need to have a sound understanding but use the principles of engineering, soil science, math, biology, and chemistry to develop solutions to environmental problems. Throughout my high school career I have made sure that courses were on par to the universities in which I was seeking an education. For the 2014-2015 school years, I had AP Calculus, AP and Ecology among other honors and AP subjects. As Malcolm X once said, “Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.” I was never a kid that sat around and let the days run together. I always wanted to do something to better myself. Education doesn’t set limits, but open doors that were once closed, provide answers to questions and expand curiosity to new things. From a young age, I began reading and questioning everything that I saw. When I was in second grade, due to my questioning, I was put in the G.A.T.E -Gifted and Talented Education program a precept to a college ready culture. Since then, I’ve been in accelerated and honors courses in middle and on the high school level. I attribute my success to many factors; the biggest is the educational foundation that was set by my parents and grandparents. My maternal grandmother was an educator for 35 years; our vacations coincided with her NEA and MEA conventions. She explained that we are not in this world alone, it’s imperative that I familiarize myself with various people, circumstances and demographics that I will be able to have a better understanding of the world around me. It came as quite a shock to learn in my 8th grade history class at Hoech Middle School in St. Ann, Missouri, that some countries do not allow or limit the amount of education a woman can have. I’m not sure if knowing that tidbit of information coupled with my ancestors being denied the opportunity, to which many of us take advantage helped shape my views on education. Nowadays, there are seldom limitations with education and to know that I can accomplish things that are have yet to be discovered, or improve on the quality of life, will keep me excited about what’s to come. You cannot give up on your dreamsNyasia Cooper
Kutztown University When my current mother found me, I was wrapped in a thin blanket in the arms of my birth mother, my face blue from the cold. My current mother then took my birth mother to court to get legal guardianship of me. Her next stop was Saint Christopher’s hospital, where the doctors said I wouldn’t make it even a year. My mother took me and told the doctors, “Don’t ever tell me a black child isn’t going to make it”. During the first two years of my life I had sleep apnea which means I forgot to breathe. My mom would stay up at night to watch over me. On top of this condition, I also needed open heart surgery and suffered from asthma along with cataracts. I am thankful that my mother has helped me overcome most of my health issues, but I still struggle with the cataracts. In middle school, I woke up one day, I looked at the usually colorful cartoon characters on my walls and asked my mom, “why are they black and white today?” She agreed with me saying that they looked a bit dull then sent me off to school, when I came home that day the colors of the characters were back. The cataracts also made it very difficult to read. The doctors suggested laser eye surgery but my mom was too afraid that something would go wrong and my sight would be taken away forever. Because surgery is still not an option, at times I complain about my eyes hurting so my mother gave me glasses to wear for a while. My glasses allow me to overcome this difficulty so I can continue my passion for reading. I used to read a lot in middle school, but no book struck such a chord with me as The Percy Jackson Series did. The series follows the main character Percy and his struggles with ADHD, dyslexia, as well as finding out he is a half-blood. The way he handles his problems and his loyalty to his friends inspired me to tackle troubles with reading during middle school because of my cataracts. It would be very difficult to read in class or just for fun at times, which would frustrate and embarrass me in class. Whenever I wanted to quit, I would try and read Percy Jackson and become empowered by his struggles and want to read more and more. I am particularly proud of my stories on Wattpad.com. I started writing in middle school a short while after I finished the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I love to write stories about werewolves and vampires and even fan fictions of Percy Jackson. I love to write stories of fiction because I hope that my readers will get the same feeling or similar feeling I got from reading stories like the Percy Jackson series. I read and write fiction because it is an escape from the (more often than not) harsh truth that is reality. No matter the situation you could always read a book of fiction and relax and forget for a few hours as you get lost in a story. On Wattpad I have written 7 stories, 4 of them are complete. The length of the stories depend on my inspiration on them, how my readers respond to them, and the time I have available to write. As of now I have 3,181 followers, two of my top stories have over 660,000 reads. I have worked on each of my stories for half a year at the least. I feel as though I will never get bored with writing, because there are always ideas popping in my head that beg to be put on paper for others to read. When someone on Wattpad comments on one of the chapters of my stories, it always fills me with joy and gives me the drive to write more and more no matter what my day was like. I hope that one day I’ll get a comment from one of my readers telling me how one of my books has helped them in a small or life changing way. Even if the comment points out a grammar or spelling mistake, it only makes me want to become a better writer, so I immediately fix the problem and go on writing. I hold pride in my stories because I love my stories and am overjoyed to find others love them as well. I want to write fiction professionally because it comes from a person’s mind and can spring from any person, place, or thing. Fiction is an escape from the sometimes harsh blow of reality. A book of fiction can have it’s reader, crying, laughing, fearful, hopeful, and wanting to strangle certain characters, kiss others, and yell ‘kiss already’ to the two characters that they want together. I know this because I have experienced it while reading many times over the years. It is true that you can learn a lot from school and everyday experience it is the same for reading fiction novels. My major is English, more specifically Creative Writing, because I want to gain as much experience as I can in writing so that I become better for my readers. A English course I took in my first semester opened up my eyes to many things that I really would've learned on my own. What is the reason why humans are at the top of the food chain? We have the ability to write things down. My Honors English teacher in high school told me that, we wouldn't have history or any kind of books without that one thing that puts us on the top. Writing and reading is important, it helps people, changes people little by little or in a big way. Reading and writing has changed me, made me better, more accepting of my weakness and made me stronger. I hope reading this has changed you. You cannot give up on your dreamsKrishma Patel
Having an attitude of gratitude impact in overcoming a life challenge Today, we live in an era where opportunities for success and personal achievement are endless. Boundaries that used to set minorities and women back from pursuing their dreams have slowly disappeared. There is no denying the world in modern times has become open and welcoming to all people in light of their dreams and futures they desire. Born and raised in Georgia, my family and I love it here. My parents immigrated to the United States and became citizens of this melting pot of a country in light of discovering better opportunities for themselves. They started from the bottom and worked hard to give my brother and I an opportunity to become educated and find a better life for us. In order to support my parents and help them out I decided to apply to in state colleges and universities. My list included of the usual public state schools except for Emory University. This college was quite a reach for me, but I decided to apply anyhow. I am delighted to say that a couple of months after I applied I was accepted at Emory University. My family including myself was and is so proud of this achievement. Being a first generation college student, it is a learning experience for all of us, including the tuition aspect. There was no way we would be able to pay such a hefty tuition of 64,000 dollars a year. Therefore we asked for financial aid repeatedly and they came back with money but not enough to cut it. As a full time student, I also decided to take on a job during the year to alleviate some of the payments from my parents. Our struggles have only continued along with this there are the usual college struggles of finding yourself and what you love. College is a time for growing and learning independently and together. This is not an easy task alone, and it is easy for college students to be swallowed up in this mindset. In order to strive for your dreams you have to take a step back and look at the big picture of the opportunities given to us everyday. Emory University, my work-study job, my support system including family and friends are my greatest blessings in life. I am lucky and grateful for these aspects of my life. Even though struggles come to all of us in different, we are able to move forward. These strengths that keep us moving forward are our greatest joys and keep us on the right track towards our aspirations. Instead of worrying and sulking about the struggles, we should hold are heads up for the opportunities we have to get through these struggles. Along with financial troubles, I was also going through struggles with finding what I love and what I wanted to pursue in life. This past year I bounced around from researching and finding different majors endlessly until I decided on pursuing Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology as well as decided to continue my education in Optometry after my next two years at Emory for that I am beyond thankful for education I am gaining at Emory University. Even though life throws curveballs, you cannot give up on your dreams, you have to bounce back from these pitfalls and get back up. This mindset in pursuing my dreams and aspirations is what I am most grateful for throughout my education thus far. Focusing on things you can controlJessica Kolbe
Invictus - By William Ernest Henley Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds and shall find me unafraid. It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul. “I am the master of my fate, / I am the captain of my soul” (Henley 15-16). These words, written by William Ernest Henley in his poem Invictus, appeal to a control freak like me. In an ideal world, I would be capable of regulating and planning out every detail of my future. Unfortunately, Henley’s poetic and idyllic words cannot be taken out of context. Life is filled with variables that are far beyond human control, despite how hard we may fight against them. There are times in life when even our best fails to get us where we want to go. In those moments, all we can do is persevere in the areas that we can control. Throughout my life, school has always been a place where I have been capable of controlling the outcome. As I have aged, however, I have learned that greater, more volatile forces can overcome even the parts of our lives that seem to be controllable. In the face of this harsh reality, a person is faced with two options. One, a person can accept that they have no ultimate responsibility over the outcome of things and become passive, simply moving wherever the current of life takes them. Or two, a person can accept that they have no ultimate responsibility over the outcome of things and, despite this, keep fighting. This kind of individual looks at a situation and does everything within their power to keep moving forward and working in the areas that they do have control over, no matter how futile it may seem. The first individual is characterized by resignation; the second, determination. I strive to be that second person. I have always loved school. There is something very satisfactory about achieving success as a direct result of my own efforts. During high school, I was surrounded by the message that by dedicating myself to my academic performance, I would be able to achieve my goals. For me, my ultimate goal was attending a four-year university. So I did what I was told would lead to success. I pointedly pursued good grades in all of my classes and I challenged myself by taking advanced programs. In a way, my hard work paid off. My focus in school resulted in my acceptance into several great colleges. Unfortunately, for the first time in my life, school relied on more than my own dedication. It relied on money, something that was outside my realm of control. In my limited teenage view of the world, money was an afterthought, the thing the counselors would mention in passing at the end of their “path to success” presentations. For me, this little glossed over detail was the difference between a four-year college and community college. My parents had brought up the dreaded words, “community college,” as I neared the time of college acceptance letters. In my youthful mind, that was not an option. After all, I had controlled my world so perfectly. I knew that money was crucial, but in my ideal world I believed that doors would open simply because of my academic success. Although receiving my acceptance letters was exciting, it was tinged by the nervousness of what my financial aid and scholarship offers would look like. Finally, my parents and I sat at the kitchen table on a Saturday morning and I reached the conclusion that they feared all along – we could not afford a four-year school without taking out student loans. My heart broke as my parents, with tears in their eyes, apologized for not having the money. Still, they told me it was my decision. If necessary, I could take out the loans. I understood and shared their concerns about my graduating college with debt, so I made the only decision that I could. I would be attending community college. Thus resolved, I wasted no time being idle. I began to research the community college, submitted my application, and looked into the programs that they offered. When friends and classmates asked me where I was going to school, their reaction was often a mixture of shock and pity. If asked why I would be going to the community college, I simply told them that it was what my parents could afford. Through this time, I successfully controlled my behavior; however, my attitude was a little harder to conquer. Many times I fought to stave off jealousy of my friends who were going to their dream schools, disappointment at where I was going, and anger at no one in particular that my life did not look like I had so meticulously planned. I would be lying if I said I did not still struggle with some of these emotions today, but I keep moving forward. I have maintained a 4.0 GPA at the community college and have plans to transfer to an excellent university after earning my Associate’s degree. I am employed at a great office, working with wonderful people and gaining experience. Even this essay is an act of assertion over my future. Although I do not control the outcome, I am working as hard as I can to make progress. My life does not look like I thought and planned it would because of circumstances outside my control, but that does not mean I have given up. Every day, I continue to work toward my goals, even though I do not know what my future will look like or where I will be. I am not the master of my fate, but I can control my attitude. I am not the captain of my soul, but I can act to keep moving forward. Perhaps that is what it means to have an “unconquerable soul” (Henley 4). Living in this unpredictable, untamable world, the best we can do is focus on the parts of our lives we can control. Our actions and attitudes are none other than our own. Looking on the bright sideAshley Wilkerson
University of South Florida I currently am a nursing student at the University of South Florida and will earn a BSN as well as a minor in public health at that institution. I plan to further my education and obtaining a Masters in nursing in order to not only better my career but also myself. I never want to stop shy of my best. My goal is to become a Nurse Practitioner in Florida and have a partnership in an established practice. I will complete my two years of graduate school mainly online so I am able to continue working and gaining experience with my Bachelors in Nursing. I deserve to be awarded this scholarship because I have always worked hard and strived to do my best in school, but sometimes no matter how hard a person works they still need outside help. For example, I have worked part time during the school year and added a full time job in the summer in order to put myself through school. Nursing school is my dream and I will do everything it takes to aid in my success. I am also married to a man who is training to deploy in the next couple months, so with this I have to be extremely dedicated to focusing on my studies even with a piece of my heart on the other side of the world. My husband is Active Duty Marine Corps. It is difficult to manage everything on my own while he is gone such as finances and time among other things, but it is all well worth the extra effort. Nursing school is extremely expensive because there are many added expenses that are tacked onto the regular tuition and class prices, such as uniforms, extra books and handbooks as well as medical supplies used in clinical settings. My husband and I have quickly realized that all of these expenses are becoming a financial burden and causing us to struggle in an area that we did not foresee. To save on expenses I am attempting to work nights, and living farther from campus but do not want to continue making sacrifices in these areas as I do not want them to affect my academic success. With my husband being in the military, I have learned to focus on things that I can control and remain positive while being grateful for the experiences in my life. With the schedules that my husband is accustomed to, I am just as prone to having my life turned upside down at the drop of a hat. For example, after our engagement in December we began planning a wedding for the next November only to have it turned upside down when he received last minute orders to be stationed two thousand miles away. I was accepted to school in Florida, and with his orders in California we have to manage being newlyweds across country. It has become financially difficult for us to manage as he is training for a deployment and I have to manage the finances for two people. Everything happens so quickly and without warning in the military community, so I have to learn to focus on the things that I can control. I have to be extremely organized in every aspect of my life and make a detailed to do list in my planner in order to remain calm throughout my hectic lifestyle. I also have learned the power of gratitude, and feel that it is one of the most important aspects of my life because we spend so much time apart and are accustomed to serious last minute changes so I have to be grateful for all of the positives in my life. There are times when we have been apart for upwards of six months during his deployment, so even the couple days we get to spend together every two or three months are like a dream come true. I also have to be grateful for the opportunity of being accepted into nursing school. I understand that I am finishing my schooling and bettering myself while across the country my significant other is doing the same thing. I have to keep my head up and remain positive during this period of my life; otherwise it would be an impossible task. I have to always look on the bright side and understand that things could always be worse than what they are today. I am thankful for the opportunity that I was given in even being able to attend college because not everyone has that luxury. Although, it has become a financial burden to pay the expenses of the nursing school, I have to be grateful that I even had a place in the program. Going to nursing school has always been a dream of mine and no matter the challenges in my life I will stop at nothing to complete this level of schooling. Make the most out of controlling the things you can.Yang Song
When you’re young, it’s easy to forget that while the earth spins on a single axis, that that axis is not you. From our births, we’re spoiled with the idea that it stops when we stop and goes when we go. On our first birthdays, although we weren’t aware of it, we fawned when what seemed like a million people, at the time, gathered around us to sing happy birthday and inadvertently pouted when they would draw their attention away for just a second. Although dulled, this illusion didn’t end as we grew up. Without a doubt, we could stop the world with the mere whistle of importance. We’d throw handfuls of markers and folders in the shopping cart ever August, not worrying once about how much it all cost, but about how cute that pink would look with our new back to school outfits. We’d tossed on clothes to go to the movies with our friends, not even questioning our parent’s exhaustion after a long days work, as we waited at the door for them to hand us a fresh ten for popcorn and drive us off into the sunset. We didn’t always get what we wanted, but we were lucky enough to have people who did their best to give it to us. They did it because they loved us, and although we thanked them endlessly for it, we couldn’t help but develop this idea that we were entitled to some part of the world that would always be there for us. No matter what we were sure that we would always have our friends, our family, and our life. I was no different. I was always categorized as a pretty selfless, caring person, but that didn’t stop me from throwing the biggest hissy fit of my life when my parents decided to move us 1,200 miles away from everything I loved the eve of my sophomore year. It’s not like it snuck up on me, I mean they had been talking about it for months, and it’s not like we hadn’t moved before, because we had; five times to be exact. It was the fact that the only thing I had asked for was to be able to spend one last summer with my friends and I didn’t even get that. Just a few weeks in, my dad decided to take me to China for the rest of the summer, giving me only 48 hours before flying me off to a place where I had no means to communicate with anyone back in the States. Back then I felt like they had robbed me of the closure I deserved with the people I loved the most, and with that came the anger that they had no right to take everything away from me. A month and a half later, after the worst trip of my life, that anger hadn’t left my side. In fact, it didn’t leave my side for another 6 months, which was roughly the time it took me to hit rock bottom. For months, I went to school hating absolutely everything about my new life just because it was new. I hated the name of my new school mascot, I hated how I had to walk up stairs between every class, I hated how I was the only sophomore in mostly senior classes, and most of all, I hated that no matter how hard I wanted it to be, that that place would never be home to me. It’s safe to say that I was pretty miserable and at the peak of my misery, the anger that I had been holding onto for months had finally caused enough pressure for me to crack into a million pieces. I was devastated, and I was done, and then I realized, that maybe all this wasn’t worth it. That no matter how tightly I held on to the past, that it would never come back to me. I couldn’t make the world spin backwards and give me back the time I so desperately wanted back, because whether I liked it or not, the world kept going whether I was or not. I learned that you can’t always control everything, but you can make the most out of controlling the things that you can. After all, life isn’t made up of the big moments, but of the culmination of a bunch of little moments. Sometimes the big things in life aren’t always in your control, but the little ones certainly are, because no matter how little, it can still make a difference. That’s when I stopped focusing on the fact that my mom’s company had relocated her, and started focusing more on the place we were now. Instead of saying no to everything, I finally starting saying yes even if I wasn’t completely convinced; One of which, included joining the track team because a few girls from my English class wanted me to, even though I had no interest in sports. Sure, I hated running around the track, but it was all kind of worth it for the gossip sessions in the locker room afterwards. It wasn’t exactly home, but it was starting to feel like I was building a second one. That year, I learned that although you can’t always stop the world from spinning, you can always add your own twist to it Never give up on your goalsMinerva Mejia
My life before America was much different in the Dominican Republic. I moved to Florida when I was 13 years old. I was born in the United States, however, I was raised in the Dominican Republic and lived there for 10 years with my mother, grandmother and my siblings. You might wonder why I stayed in the Dominican Republic so long. The answer is quite simple. I didn’t have any family to take care of me in America when I was younger. Years ago my passport expired while I was in the Dominican Republic and it would take a lot of time and money before I would be able to travel again. Everything was different there; the schools, shopping centers. Luckily, I still remembered things about America to help me transition. I was so happy in the Dominican Republic because my beautiful family and I were together. One day a few years ago, my grandfather who lived in Florida called. He said to my mother, “We have to fix Minerva’s passport so she can travel again.” My mother agreed but at the same time she was sorrowful. She exclaimed upon hanging up, “Hay mi linda princesa, pronto te iras y me dejaras sola.” In English she was saying that her pretty princess has to leave the country without her. I put my head down and stared at the floor, thinking about being far apart from my family and how it wouldn’t be easy. Nonetheless, I knew leaving was for my well-being and a bright future. The days passed, and finally it was the day I would venture out to live with my grandfather. I went with my mother and my father to the American Consul to renew my passport as soon as possible. The Consul had accepted our request and renewed my passport! I was very excited but all my family was very sad because I would no longer be with them every day. Two weeks later my ticket was booked. I was finally going to America! It was September 17th 2011, the day I was waiting for! My family and I were in the car ready to go to the airport. Heartache filled their spirits, but I was focused only on getting the best education and achieving my goals. They called my flight number, and I said goodbye to everyone. All of them were crying and I began to cry too. I walked toward the airplane doors, and I could hear my grandmother’s voice shouting, “Adios, Adios.” In the airplane I felt gloomy traveling by myself. I just wanted my brothers and sisters at that very moment to be with me. Two years passed and I found that living in Florida was not what I expected it to be. I liked my new school, my teachers and friends. But, my grandfather had a drinking problem. I didn’t understand. I asked myself, why help someone and be nice to them for a couple of days and then make the rest of their stay miserable? I prayed to God for strength but I could not take it any more. I just wanted to go back to Dominican Republic and be happy with my immediate family. I took my grandfather’s phone and hid under the bed to call my mother. I told her what was happening and she said she would send for me soon. On December 22nd 2013, a couple of months after arriving back to Dominican Republic, my sister got a call at 2:00 am. She was given gut-wrenching news. Our father had a motorcycle accident and passed away. It felt like my whole world was paralyzed in seconds. I couldn’t believe it. He was my hero, my everything. Days before Christmas, he passed away. It was the worst experience, ever. My daddy was gone. The man who taught me how to be brave and strong. My father’s death was what really changed my life. The suffering that I felt when I used to live with my grandfather, was nothing compared to this immense pain that will always be present now in my life. The last memory that I have of him was the last time I saw him in 2012. He hugged me and said, “I will always love you, mi Hija.” “What are you doing, Bubu?” my mother asked. (I didn’t like my nickname, it sounded so funny but I was used to it.) “I’m on the computer, don’t you see?” She walked over and continued, “Yes, but are you looking for flights again?” I nodded. “Si mami, I want to go back.” “Back where?” she wondered. “I want to go back to America. I can’t give up mami. I have to become someone in life. It has been 4 months since Papi died I am sure he would like me to have a better life, a better future and Dominican Republic is not the place for me.” July 20th 2014 I came back, but this time to Boston. I would be living with my father’s aunt. She is amazing and the best example for me to become my best self. She helps me, she understands me and she supports me with good advice. And the best part is she is nothing like my grandfather. Different places, different schools and friends have always been a constant since I was born. I’ve moved a lot, but that will never stop me from following my dreams. I am a junior now at West Roxbury Academy. I’m sure I’ll be able to graduate, if I don’t move any where else. I was afraid at first to go to this new school. But when I was named a High Honor Roll student my first semester, I thought that was crazy and amazing! This story is not all about my life before and after coming to America. It’s just the half! My focus now is to encourage all my peers with the idea that, “No matter where you come from, or what has happened to you before in life, never give up on your goals. Always keep trying because it is better to fail a thousand times and fulfill your dreams, than to never try at all.” Importantce of keeping positiveJames Luce
· Helps you move forward · See things in new way · Results in less stress · Gives you a sense of control · Can lead to self-motivation · Results in better choices It is how we act when the world seems against us that truly defines how we are as a person. I would like to say I’m quite positive in this aspect. It is positivity that helps move you forward, the ability to see something to walk towards. The ability to keep up a positive way of being allows you to move forward, view things in new ways, and gives you control over events. The reality is that life doesn’t always throw you a bone and we have to have the ability to move forward. In those times you can very well have your nerves pushed in. Still it is when we linger on the bad aspects of what is occurring in those moments that inseminates the concept that everything is horrid, we become blind to what is good about that event. The ability to keep positive in those situations is indicative to moving forward. Once not so long ago I forgot an important item for my lab class, my goggles. The end result is that I was told I couldn’t join in the experiment and thusly earned a zero for that day. Prior to coming to class I was already bogged down from events in my home. Certainly I was ticked, but if I stayed in that train of thought I would have missed out the rest of that day. Through trying to find the positives of the situation I was able to use the extra time I had to complete my studying early thus opening the rest of the day for other activities. If I had stayed in a negative train of thought I would have failed to study and started the following day on a negative note with more work. Negativity really only breeds more negativity as you can see. Keeping positive in turn opens the doors for more positive events. The trick I find is to keep that train moving forward. It is our emotions that lead to how we view the things and people around us. There is no middle ground as being happy or mad will distort how you perceive something. An example being whether that pencil sitting on the table is just a stick of wood or a tool in which we express our creativity. It all depends on how you are feeling and simple think about things. Through trying to keep up your good mood it is highly likely you’ll look for the good in other things. Really this is a virtue that you have to maintain every day. When you awaken that day you need to keep a positive look on what is to come ahead rather than sulk over the fact that you had to wake up. That type of sulking simple shows that you rather sleep then move forward and be productive with your time. Thus, I say waking up positive is just as important as getting breakfast. That cooked bacon won’t look as good if you are negative about the coming day. Taking that first step allows you to maintain a positive hold on things for the rest of the day rather than waste a part it trying to get into a positive mood. A major dimension of keeping positive is that it provides you with a sense of undeniable control. You can have everything taken from you, but they cannot take away how you think unless you allow them too. As a matter fact losing everything simple means you stand to gain everything. If there is one thing I can say every human desires it is some type of control. Looking at my Mother and Father you can see it in how they exert control by providing chores for their children. I know that sounds bad but it can be noted that once you try to resist it results in their agitation. This agitation stems from trying to break apart from their exerted control; otherwise they would lack much motivation to get angry. Naturally there are a lot more dimensions to that, but that is certainly a factor. Keeping positive thoughts is my way to control things as it always me to not stress out and results in me making better choices. In that sense controlling my view on things rather than allowing others to decide it for me gives me the ability to control the outcome of events in a big. Thus, keeping positive gives you a power that many rightfully think they don’t. At the end of the day things never go according to plan, but I know full well I can influence the outcome of events in some fashion. In that sense I have power. To conclude keeping positive encompasses many things in life such as your ability to move forward, look at things in a new way, and provide you with a sense of control. Positivity is certainly a major aspect of my life as it allows me to work through anything. There is in rock and hard place unless I think there is. Positivity is thusly tied with optimism, but keep in mind being positive is more of an action you take. Keeping positive is the key to opening the door to unlimited possibilities. The power of positive thinkingMichele Phillips
University of Texas Every one of us has the power to influence our lives. Even though we can’t control all aspects of our lives we have the ability as thinking people to decide how we want to live our lives. Do we want to be miserable or be happy, do we want to get angry because we did not achieve something we wanted or do we want to let it go? I believe that I can choose how I want to live my life and that even though I will have bumps and bruises along the way I can have the life that I want. From an early age my parents let me try new things, I didn’t have to be good at them but I did have to follow through until the end. For example, I tried soccer by signing up for a team while I was only five. I did it for a few years but realized that I was a bit afraid of the ball when it came flying at me. Still my parents let me try it. I also was a dancer while in middle school and high school. It was something that I knew I was good at but I also knew and my parents knew I was never going to be a professional dancer someday. Why? I didn’t want it enough. I enjoyed dancing at the football and basketball games, marching in parades and being on a team with girls who became my friends, but I did not have the “drive” to succeed at the next level. One thing I did have the drive for was academics. Great grades did not come naturally to me, but I knew with hard work that I would get good grades. And, why did I care so much about good grades, especially in high school? I had set my sights on The University of Texas at Austin and more specifically on the Red McCombs School of Business. I really never doubted that I would attend UT. I “saw” myself there, I imagined myself on the campus. I knew it was a long shot for me to get it but I didn’t care. Even my high school counselor told me I had a slim chance of being accepted, I believed I could to do whatever it would take to be a student who UT would accept. I did four years of sports and worked a part-time job because I knew the more diverse I looked on paper the better my chance of getting in to the school I wanted: The University of Texas. The UT application asked for essays, up to three if you wanted. I did all three and I believe I wrote the best essays I could. I had the GPA and I had a good ACT score. What was holding me back from being a shoo-in was that McCombs only accepts 6 percent out of state students and I lived in Illinois. Had I been living in Texas I would have automatic admission (and probably a scholarship or two) but I was now competing with the best and the brightest students from out of state who wanted to attend The University of Texas. I never let that deter me. I finished my application with the utmost care, did everything they asked for and then sent it out. Then I imagined myself on the campus. I would follow the University’s website almost every day because I wanted to feel a part of the University I would attend. Sure I humored my parents. I sent applications to other schools as a fall back and even attended an automatic admission weekend at Indiana University for the Kelley School of Business. I didn’t really want to go but my parents said I needed to have a Plan B. I didn’t want a Plan B because I just wanted UT. I looked at my high school’s Naviance program and knew that acceptance into UT from my high school was not promising. I listened to what my counselor told me, but I also knew and felt that anything was possible. I told myself everyone needs a reach school and UT was my reach school and I would never quit reaching for it. I also knew that if I got accepted into the University there was a chance that I would not get into the business school. I knew I wanted to study accounting and UT is the number one school, so I needed to get into the business school. I wasn’t going to risk getting in and then having to transfer into the business school since I knew that was an even longer shot. They say Michael Jordan, formally of the Chicago Bulls, use to envision the ball going into the basket. I envisioned my acceptance letter. That day I did get my acceptance email into the business school at UT I cried. Not because I never believed it would happen, but because all the time and energy I spent envisioning myself at UT was now a reality. I have not regretted for a moment the positive energy or the time I spent willing myself to be accepted in to UT. It is where I belong and where I always envisioned myself. My journeyAngeline Miller
“I'm about to die,” were the words that kept on repeating in my head as I laid among dead bodies, pretending to be dead. I was born in Liberia, Africa. I was eight years old when my country was going through a civil war, a genocide against my tribe. It was agonizing to hear that my cousin and her family were murdered in close proximity to my home. The following night, my family and I had to flee to my aunt’s house on the other side of Liberia, going east. The plight of the journey was that we had to travel across the country by foot. We hid during the day and maneuvered by night. The most abhorrent thing my family and I had to do on this journey was to lay among dead bodies on the street, pretending to be dead, when soldiers came our way. Some of the soldiers we encountered were younger than ten, but because they were armed it was our only choice. As the soldiers approached one of the men kicked my leg to the side, and without thinking I put my leg back facing up. After realizing what I did, my thoughts felt like a scratched CD that kept repeating “I'm about to die” over and over. My body felt as if it had been hollowed out and filled with an unbearable fear. I felt the man’s shoulder over me. It felt like a herd of elephants, pushing me, stomping me into the ground. My fear paralyzed me. After a while, I felt an arm pulling me off the ground. It was my father, telling me to run. I heeded his words and ran, feeling faster than Olympic champion Usain Bolt. This is a moment in my life I will never disregard. After a year or two I came to the United States and my view on life changed. Liberia is a place where women are viewed as no more than housewives. Girls as young as fourteen are processed into womanhood by being circumcised, a traditional ritual that is performed preparing them to become the third, fourth, or even eighth wife of a man well over double her age. A place where school fees are due at the end of the week, and everyday supplies of water must be extracted from a well. I pride myself for being blessed to experience the two different styles of living. Living in America has shown me that it is truly the land of opportunity. After coming close to death, I now realize that life is a very valuable thing. It’s not about the materialistic things that will fade away, but things that will build my future. In life, we all need a platform, as a strong house is built on a firm foundation. I am built on my heritage and culture. My mother always used to tell me it’s not how you start the race, but how you finish it. My race didn’t start off so great, but I sure will make myself memorable, and hopefully someday be an inspiration to someone. The Law of AttractionRobin Collier
Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis I plan to be a Computer Engineer, because I excel in math and science, and enjoy applying that knowledge in different ways. My goal is to obtain a Purdue University Master’s Degree from Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) and work in the Computer Engineering field, preferably writing and programming codes in the area of Automotive Technologies or at an electric/hybrid automotive company. During my years at IUPUI, in addition to doing undergraduate research, I plan to study abroad, and do internships as well as participate in advanced vehicle technology competitions. I am currently a member of the IUPUI Honors College, the IUPUI Brown Leadership Scholars Program, and a student member of the National Society of Professional Engineers and the National Society of Black Engineers. I was also honored as a 2015 Senator Richard Lugar Minority Scholar finalist. I am very techsavvy, and started my own business fixing various types of electronics and cell phones as well as installing audio equipment, which enabled me to have the funds to buy my own car with cash. In June 2015, I graduated from Floyd Central High School with a 4.26 / 4.0 GPA and was ranked in the top 15% of my class. In high school, I participated in the “Project Lead the Way” (PLTW) STEM program where I took 4 college level engineering classes and discovered that computer engineering will be my chosen career. In each PLTW class, we worked as teams to engineer a variety of projects and learned from each other in the design process. Our Senior team design project involved engineering a more efficient way of filling water bottles from a water fountain.We also worked with local engineer mentors to design, patent and market our new product. My work with PLTW has taught me that effective leaders do not act solely as individuals, but rather work with others to find solutions that work best collectively for the group. As long as I can remember, I have played on a variety of sports teams ranging from soccer, baseball, basketball, track, diving, and football to now my sport of choice, tennis. Throughout these years, the lesson I found most valuable is the importance of being a team player. Acting as a part of a team teaches commitment and leadership, builds character, shows one how to deal with responsibility and how to bring people together and ultimately help you achieve personal goals. During this Fall 2014 Varsity tennis season, I was the Team Captain, and was looking forward to facing tough opponents from the state’s best high school teams with my longtime doubles partner. As my coach was deciding the best pairings for the doubles teams, he put me in the lineup with 6 different team members throughout the season. Although this inconsistency during match play was personally daunting, I realized each time I was given yet another new doubles partner in a team competition, this was an opportunity to share my experience and leadership on the court by teaching my younger teammates how to deal with pressure and become a better player, and thus leaving my legacy for the team. At the end of season, I was awarded “Best Team Player” along with being named to the IHSTCA Indiana Boys Academic AllState Tennis Team. I learned that acting as a part of a team teaches commitment and leadership, builds character, shows one how to deal with responsibility and how to bring people together and ultimately helps achieve personal goals. To be an effective leader, I feel one must have initiative, confidence, flexibility, adaptability, and good communication. One must also be respectful, prepared, educated, and organized to be a team player and a mentor to those under your leadership. In my volunteer roles, I strived to exhibit all those leadership characteristics. I have applied this “team player” approach in other areas of my high school career. B y juggling my academic coursework, paid jobs at area restaurants and stores, my volunteer roles as Sound Manager of the Floyd Central Theatre Department, Captain of the Floyd Central Varsity Tennis Team, peer tutor for the school’s Math Lab and participant with my church Youth Group ministries, I gained valuable time management and study skills that will be needed in college, as well as technical expertise that will help me with my engineering courses. I also gained knowledge by completing the summer engineering programs at the 2013 Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy, and the 2012 University of Louisville Speed Engineering School Brown Forman INSPIRE program. Since I am already able to troubleshoot problems and lead a team effectively, I think I will excel in my chosen field of Computer Engineering, since it is a team oriented occupation. I feel that the lessons learned through my leadership opportunities in high school will benefit me in college, as a computer engineer and a future leader. Thank you for consideration of my application and for your commitment to our nation’s college students. The Law of AttractionRainey Boateng
It all started with a sorority my freshman year of college. We were supposed to be going to a party. I’ll add a little disclaimer sorority parties are nothing like the Greek fraternal gatherings of the opposite sex, they are usually somewhat more socially acceptable and cause much fewer problems with the neighbors. The ‘party’ that night was different from any of the others I had attended in the past. One of my sorority sisters had insisted that we all attend. She was beaming. “You guys have to hear this! It is amazing.” She said happily literally pulling us inside. We all kind of thought she was just being a little bit over zealous. “Okay, okay it can’t be all that good.” I remember saying as we entered the home of the girl hosting the get together. I was hoping it wouldn’t involve any game playing or moving around vigorously. I was in luck. The hostess had planned to have us all watch The Secret. I remember thinking oh, no I hope this isn’t one of those multi-level marketing schemes, luckily it was not. It was more like a lesson I had learned in Physics applied in a way I never thought possible. I remember the moment the video ended and feeling elated. I wanted to take on the world and for all that I knew I could. I couldn’t wait to rush home and start my vision board. I am certain that what I experienced was an awakening. It felt as if my soul was reintroduced to the principles and truths of life that it had once known to be true, but had forgotten somewhere along the way. I felt free knowing that I could manifest the life I wanted to create. In the years since watching The Secret I have found that the Law of Attraction has had a very meaningful impact upon my life. I have been craving adventure and found myself training for the bobsled and skeleton development teams at the Olympic Training Center in upstate New York. I always dreamed of travelling and ended up spending four years working abroad in the United Kingdom. I have visualized abundance and have found new better paying jobs and opportunities. I recently had a resurgence of interest in the Law of Attraction after going through a challenging few months. My cousin was experiencing some of the same challenges I was and so we made a decision to visit a psychic together. I think we were both hoping that someone might be able to tell us that everything is going to be okay. It’s okay if you are single, or not where you want to be in your career everything is going to be okay. You are in control. Sadly, that is not exactly what happened, and so I went to another psychic after my cousin left and heard some of what I wanted to hear but not exactly what I was looking for. I was frustrated to say the least that things weren’t going exactly as planned. I desperately wanted the reassurance that everything was going to go as I wanted and with little or no effort from myself. And of course that isn’t what happened either. What did happen was that when I listened to the recordings a few days later I heard in verbatim. “You are a powerful manifestor. What you want I am not currently seeing, but you have the power to create what you want in life.” And then it finally clicked. I had forgotten my own power. I and no one else control my future. I am the manifestor of my own destiny. Suddenly I remembered the secret I had learned that day at the party, and I started looking into other resources around the topic of the Law of Attraction. One of the books the psychic suggested was, “The Work” by Byron Katie. I also came across other books such as, “The Spiritual Guide to Attracting Love,” “As a Man Thinketh,” by James Allen, and “The Power,” Rhonda Byrne among others. It has become an incredible journey. I have found that The Law of Attraction is more than just a one-time thing. It may seem obvious but like most human beings I have found that I need to be reminded and often of the power we all possess to create the life we want. It’s not enough to just read one book or watch one movie at a sorority and find a lifetime of inspiration. It takes constant vigilance and building the bridge of understanding one stone at a time, but I have also found that it is fun and it is magical and I love learning and doing, and as many times as I have seen The Secret that there is something new every time. I love that it is not exclusive and that it works for people of every faith, culture, background, and lifestyle. There have been countless ways this work has changed my life, but in the past few months I have found that the most challenging, powerful, and beneficial way has been in challenging the positivity of my thoughts. It has been in truly understanding that thoughts become things, and that I can with reasonable amounts of intelligence and hard work, become a doctor, or live in the home of my dreams, or find the partner that I have always craved to find. I am the commander of my own ship, the leader of my own life, and the manifestor and creator of what the Universe provides me. Newton’s third law is true, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” For every thought we send to the universe for every positive action it can be returned to us and manifested, and for that I am ever so grateful. Focusing on things you can controlCharlene Nensala
Bowie State University Upon completing my under graduate degree in Elementary Education from Bowie State University; a defining moment occurred; hence, directing my occupational path in relation to the field of education. During the 2003-2004 school year, I obtained my first teaching position within a Title One Elementary School setting. Although my student’s chronological age indicated they belonged within the Second grade, their academic age equivalence stated otherwise. Over 60 % of my students read 1-2 years below grade level. I struggled as an educator to effectively teach the grade level language arts curriculum and provide students with accommodations commensurate with student’s dire instructional needs. At that juncture, I enrolled within a one month professional development course in literacy development and formative assessment training. I was enamored with learning more extensively about customized instructional options for my underprivileged learners who were deficient particularly in the area of word recall, vocabulary development, sight word knowledge, and the application of comprehension strategies. Upon completion of the course, I immediately began implementing the knowledge received with my students. Consequently, their year-end quarterly assessment scores in reading improved remarkably by 70 percent. It was during that defining period I committed myself to further pursue the highest advanced degreed level training in relation to literacy education. Academically, I aspire to become a Doctor of Education with a concentration in Reading Education. Positive thinkingElsa Arzu
Graduating from high school is considered a basic achievement, it is expected for everyone to make it out of high school. But what do they mean by everyone? With the lack of resources, money, transportation, daily survival struggle and time among minorities, high school is the least of our worries. Waking up each day thinking it is our last is the hardest part of all. Over the past six years, I’ve improved not only my life but also the life of others. I started off as a student without an opportunity who only engaged in petty activities to a community involved cofounder of a teenage enrich program and a three year high school graduate. It took a traumatizing change for me to turn my life around, it almost seemed as if it was too late. After a fight with an older girl, a gun was faced in my direction. I never knew that anything in my life could ever lead to this, I would watch the news and say that I was never going to get shot. Luckily, I didn’t. But why did it matter at that time? My teachers told me that I wasn’t going to make it anyways. Not making it is not a surprise, however, everyone was indeed shocked to see me even make it as far as going to high school. My transition to high school allowed me to upscale my decisions and become more mature. My sister was the first black student to attend Harvard in our school and everyone expected better from me. Crazy enough that I did not know what better was. My sophomore year, my friend and I managed to make a teen outreach program called “Miami Youth Coalition” for troubled teens and help them with their personal problems, as well as give them a distraction from the “streets”. It made me grow as a person to see all of the hard work and improvement in others, I saw potential in everyone. I thought to myself, “If there’s still potential in them, there must be some in me.” My grades finally improved incredibly and I was granted with the chance of being promoted and eventually graduated with Summa Cum Laude (top 5%). My mother’s smile could not fit on her face and the tears did not stop rolling down as I walked across stage. She knew that there was something special about me that no one ever recognized, even I failed to see it. As a single parent, she encouraged me each day to do my best. For seventeen years, my mother was all I had. The transition to college hasn’t been easy (I left for the summer term). The first thing they warned us about was the loans, unfortunately, just to help my mother and beg my father to pay for my Summer and some of my Fall rent, I’ve had to take out two which amounted to $3,500. I find it unfortunate that the majority of money goes to athletes and not students that are very community involved, as well as fulfilling in academics. But, I tend to not focus on the negatives, I have managed to find the positive in every situation. What led to such great improvement in me was the idea of “Positive Thinking”. Growing up with so much negativity around you makes it tough to break out of the cycle. I continuously told myself that there is someone whose problem is bigger than mine. I refused to walk around each day like the world owed me life and began to live of what I had left. I knew that change started with no one else but me. There would be days that it will rain and instead of getting upset that my plans got cancelled, I smiled because rain is a natural beauty just like the sun. Stress, anger and depression began to disappear from my life, I started to enjoy helping others, it made me feel better about myself and the teenagers I worked with began to feel better about themselves as well. I began to attract the type of people that I wanted in my life, joyful and positive friends instead of the angry girls I spent my energy on. As a college student, I will continue to personally develop and have the best attitude when approaching any challenge. Positivity led me to where I am and the support of others has made me more appreciative of myself and the path I chose. As a current Criminology major, I plan on continuing the teen outreach program to help teenagers avoid the dangerous path that I took and give them the opportunities that I was detained from. I deserve this scholarship because I am successful, I was successful to make my way out of the ghetto and create uneasy goals for myself. I refused to be afraid of failure, it is indeed proven that only those that do not try fail. The power of positive thinkingKavita Singh
When my sister came home from college for the first time, it was right before Thanksgiving. The day before Thanksgiving, my sister joined us for one of our elaborate breakfasts. While she was talking about her classes, I was turned around looking at the TV watching The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. I whirled around to take a bite from my bagel when I glanced at my sister. She looked visibly upset. “I’m not going to be a doctor,” she told my parents. They also looked visibly upset. They were quiet for a while, and I wasn’t old enough to comprehend that my parents weren’t upset at her. They were simply disappointed. Disappointment is something that I fear in life. I definitely fear failure, but disappointment is an aspect of life that terrifies me. I grew up in a very critical family. When I was in 7th grade, my dad said I couldn’t make writing into a career. He tried making some football analogy, but I kind of got the message. My parents were disappointed when my sister went from wanting to be a doctor to pursuing physical therapy. They were also disappointed when my brother went from wanting to be a lawyer to mechanical engineering. So imagine how pleased my parents were when I told them I wanted to be a journalist. I have so many wild dreams. I want to create, produce, write and travel in my life. I’m constantly adding goals on my bucket list such as volunteering in another country, or writing a screenplay. My family is very conventional so I rarely express these goals. There’s a little part of me that doesn’t want to build up all these expectations just for them to be disappointed. This fear of disappointment consumed me for a while. I doubted myself for most of my senior year where I was busy with random activities such as sports, volunteer work, and student council. Yes, I like being busy, but it wasn’t until college that I started learning some lessons of my own. First off, college was the first time that I was lonely. I’m used to being alone, but it was the first time that I was both alone and lonely. I had an established group of friends, but when they weren’t around there was something missing. I remember seeing a small poster about an on campus radio club that was having a meeting. I was scared as I walked into a room with no one that I knew. I kept telling myself that if it didn’t work out, I could simply leave the meeting. So as I nervously sat by myself, I saw from the corner of my eyes a girl walk in. She was by herself, but she had a confidence that I didn’t exhibit when I walked in. I smiled at her, and she immediately made eye contact and smiled back. To my sheer surprise, she plopped right down next to me and we started talking. Our conversation was so fluid and we both had risky majors and big dreams. When we finished training as a DJ, we walked back to our buildings, and I asked for her number. She texted me the next day, and we decided to do a show together. It was the first big risk I took in college and it paid off. There were so many things that I learned from this experience. First, this was my first real decision. While I kept myself busy in high school, I wasn’t doing anything that I was passionate about. I was just doing what felt like the right thing to do to make my parents happy. But as the radio meeting continued, I started planning topics that I wanted to discuss for my own show. For once, I was doing something that genuinely made me happy. Second, confidence is essential in life. If I can’t make it, at least I can fake it. My friend told me later that she was so scared, but she wanted to be as open-minded as possible. That was something I needed. I needed to stop doubting myself all the time. That also meant the simple act of believing in myself. I think it was hard for me to believe in myself, when my parents didn’t. It’s still really freaking hard to believe in myself when the general consensus doesn’t. However, it all comes down to positive thinking. Here I am with the potential to express myself in college through this amazing media outlet, but my fear almost took over and prevented me from doing it. So instead, I made an active choice to be positive. I could dwell on so many things about how my family doesn’t support my dreams. Or I could prove them wrong. Yes, that is my silver lining. That’s what gets me through each day of college. So, when I did do my radio show with my new friend, we had our friends and her family tune in and listen. Some people from my floor said they had listened, and that they loved our conversations. For once, I wasn’t really concerned of what people thought of me. I just went in with a positive mindset, and said what I wanted to on air. I cared less about pleasing people, and just voiced my own opinions. And I felt alive. It was the push I needed to be more confident with myself. That is the power of positive thinking. Positive things will happen to positive people. The power of positive thinkingKatherine Jeffcoat
The moment oxygen fills your lungs and you are forced to release the carbon dioxide from within you, you have entered this world we know as Earth. All these smiling faces looking down upon you with joy and wonder of what the future will hold. You have many moments like this being cared for by loving smiles and white luscious liquid. You enter a room and you create an atmosphere of love and beauty. What a beautiful world of smiles and caring eyes we live in. This is how we enter the world oblivious to the future that is in store for us. It is not as easy as one might seem or hope. From a young age I was bullied every day at school because of my weight. Comments shot like bullets through my chest every day. You would think after the millionth hit my body would be numb, but it wasn’t. Tears still fell like water falls from my eyes and depression consumed my world. What happened to the loving smiles and caring eyes and voices I once knew? After numerous years went by with constant fear of waking up to another day, I decided to finish this (well I thought). I came back from summer break that began my eighth grade year. That summer was different in a way than the rest. My summers were usually filled with tears and hopelessness but this one had something extra packed into it, Anorexia. I was unrecognizable and some looked astonished and some stood silent. Now the things they use to say to me cannot be said any longer. I was no longer obese. I thought this was the end to the sadness, but unfortunately the sadness morphed into other aspects of my life. My health was failing, my mental health. I was sent to treatment center after treatment center. My depression was bad, my anxiety swarm like angry bees, paranoia crept nearby, suicidal thoughts pounded in my head, binging kept me craving for more, and happiness, the thing I so desired was nowhere to be found, still. I missed out on my childhood, my middle school years, and most of my high school years fighting these monsters. My family lost their daughter. My parents saved my physical life and tried to save my mental life but that one is still being helped. Through my treatments I learned that recovery must come from within. You have to want recovery. It is very easy to let the monsters take over with their powerful voices and abilities but there came a time in my life, just recently actually, that I was tired of not living. I was tired of not having one happy memory to look back on. So my time came to take a stand. The mind is one powerful and complicated thing. My past is very much more in depth than that, but just think of the grudge and that was the thing inside me. Mental illnesses are more complicated than what is put out there as there definitions. Going back to the mind, if these illnesses can take over and control me so quickly and strongly what could I do to fight back so that I could find myself. At first I thought of this idea as insane, crazy, a lie to myself just to make myself feel better but it worked: using post it notes to write positive thoughts like, “you are beautiful,” “everything happens for a reason,” “you only have one life to live,” “you can be a voice to those that don’t have one,” “everyone is different so comparisons are not accurate or fair,” “my dog loves me and needs me,” “one bad thing does not make it a bad day or life.” After that I started saying them to myself and saying them out load. My mind started to turn and the mean voices weren’t so loud. It was weird at first but positive thinking has opened a new door that has never been opened before. I can see with my own eyes and know that life is going to have some downsides but the positive thinking on that issue can affect the way you respond and result in a better outcome. I am not here to say that it is easy. Some days are easier than others to keep up the positive thinking but with a smile, a sword, a shield and those positive thoughts, life blossoms into a pleasing reality. But I am here to say I am a much happier person with the positive thoughts that I have come up with (with my parents and therapists help). Say them, sing them, dance them, write them, and be them. The more you say them, the more you believe them and the more you will benefit from positive thinking just like I did. Recovery, life, love, adventure, dream and live Katherine Jeffcoat Neurons A short poem by Katherine Jeffcoat: A thought comes from the brain, Where everything begins. Make those thoughts be the positive thinking I mentioned. And from there it will begin. Katherine Jeffcoat My lifetime goalJustin Causey
University of Texas My lifetime goal has always been to become a physician, and I believe the choices I’ve made in the classroom, on the field, and in my community have brought me closer to that goal. Those choices have been based on a solid work ethic, a true enthusiasm and gratitude for the life I have been given, and a determination to succeed. They have played a major role in shaping who I am today and have given me the skills to define who I will be tomorrow. Choosing to participate in football is a commitment in and of itself. Texas football is not like any other sport anywhere else in the country. It is one of the most physically and mentally demanding sports, especially at my alma mater, Smithson Valley HS. Pre-season training or “Boot Camp,” is a tremendously challenging few weeks geared toward teambuilding and mental tenacity. During this time, our coaches pushed us to our mental and physical limits. The many exercises involve leadership, attention to detail, perseverance and teamwork – all of which I have learned well over the years and will capitalize on to help me achieve my future goals. Along with meeting the rigorous schedule of extracurricular activities, I began taking advanced courses as soon as they were available to me as Pre-AP classes in middle school, which taught me early on how not just to survive, but to thrive in a high-pressure stressful environment. I am proud that I was able to pass all my AP tests, achieving the status of “AP Scholar” from The College Board. These accelerated classes have taught me that if you want to succeed in life, you cannot just take the path everyone goes down; you must reach higher and work harder in order to achieve your goals. I continued this path of academic success in my college career, earing a perfect 4.0 GPA and a spot on the prestigious Presidents’ List this past spring semester. Participating in community service, allowed me to realize my desire to help people. Involvement in clubs and organizations is a great way to hone one’s leadership skills, while most importantly, staying connected in your community and helping those in need. Through my church’s Life Teen organization, I have been able to volunteer with the local senior center and assist with events such as many food drives and multiple Valentines Day dances. During my time assisting at the senior center, and recognizing their desire to stay healthy, I realized the needs of the elderly. Helping people has always been something I wanted to do, and being involved in these organizations has led me to do that on a scale I could never have done on my own. As I move forward in life, I want to continue to help others by becoming a doctor. Following my dream and true passion of becoming a doctor is something that I plan to see through until this accomplishment is fulfilled. I have wanted to be a doctor since I was four years old and had to undergo surgery for complications following a premature birth. I survived due to the excellent care of my physicians, my parents’ dedication, and my own determination. I know I can accomplish this goal too, as I have always completed and succeed in everything I have done. Having the opportunity to attend The University of Texas at Austin is the ultimate to reach this goal and proceed onto Medical School. I can accomplish anythingVeronica Salazar
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center The Law of Attraction has helped me to achieve finance, happiness, and personal development. I used to believe that things happened to you just by chance; well unfortunately I was never that “lucky” person. Throughout my life, I achieved personal gain by going to college and obtaining my bachelor’s degree while working in a full time job. Not only did I have to sacrifice family life but I had to work really hard in order to put food on table and a roof over our heads. This mentality of working hard led me to believe that I deserved only the best! I started to notice a pattern in my life that even though I had accomplished my goals, I was not happy with myself. That is when things started to fall apart for me. I began doubting myself in my quality of work and felt that I lacked in my professional skills. No matter how hard I worked at being the best, I kept getting pulled down by others’. What was happening to me? Was I a failure? How did it get to this point that I felt worthless? I started reading books on positive thinking and Law of Attraction. At first, I was not enticed at all by the subject; how can one be successful by just thinking it? Well desperate times called for desperate measures and there I was in my living room just reading about this Law of Attraction and how it could have a positive impact in my life. I also saw videos, one of them named, The Secret. It was a huge success all across the world, and even now from time to time I will watch the video; I love to hear stories about other people’s successes. In 2004, I began applying positive attraction in my daily life; as a single parent working full time and attending school full time, I needed some type of motivation. I gradually began shifting my thoughts to a positive one. Though I was not making the “desired” salary I had wanted, I still felt a self-accomplishment in my career. I was beginning to think positive, applying the Law of Attraction. So what exactly was Law of Attraction? It is meant to bring self-attraction of purely positive energy creating desired outcomes. I knew that it was just a matter of time before my desires would manifest and I would see a brighter future ahead. I would go into my room as it is my domain from a long day’s work, and sit there quietly with no interruptions; I would close my eyes and daydream of positive thoughts of successes, financial freedom, happiness, and all that is good. After about 30 minutes, I would feel a sense of positive vibes running through my whole body; I felt really good about myself. I would follow the same routine day after day: sit, relax, and daydream. I began noticing my life change, little by little, and started noticing the difference in my work, and even my self-worth as I built a self-confident attitude. My work began to improve in the quality as well as efficient workflow. I was able to manage without asking for guidance. How you are wondering? Because I applied the Law of Attraction, purely positive: in with the good and out with the bad. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2005 and I knew that it was not just my hard work that I put into it, but the Law of Attraction which embodied me to be the person I was meant to be: strong, independent, hard-working, and successful. Now that I have my career at the pace that I want, I am ready for another milestone in my life, to obtain my MBA. I was beginning to feel that I could not do it because I am “too busy” for myself, but I was reminded by a fellow peer who also applies the Law of Attraction that I can do anything I set out to do. I have embedded this principle in my head so when I feel the urge to quit I can get back into gear and start working towards my goals and dreams. Even though I face obstacles in my life, I can quickly shift my thoughts into positive ones and apply what I have learned: The Law of Attraction. There is no task too big or too small with this principle; I can accomplish anything. I can live out my dreams and pick the ones I want to keep and get rid of the ones I do not want. Living by this principle has taught me the good in life and the good in people. I have helped others by educating them on the Law of Attraction and how it can work for them if they put their minds to it. Many have told me how it has helped them achieve success and they too have passed it on to others. Focusing on what I can controlTyler Ham
The world that I live in today is full of people pushing their agenda; they are filled with a vicious animosity towards others opinions and greater still, World Powers battle for control. Like any human being I too have my agenda, and there are times when standing for what I believe is right. In other situations, listening and being able to assess the situation before giving input are more important. Focusing on things I can control has been central in my life, especially as I’ve gotten through my first two years of college. The idea of focusing on things that I can control has a great deal of impact on my overall attitude towards life and the challenges that I face. First and foremost this principle reminds me that I do not have all the answers to life’s questions and I will not be able to solve every persons problems. I have a compassionate heart and when I hear of people suffering, whether it be those close to me, or children in another country, I want to get my hands dirty and solve problems immediately. In my own life I cannot get enough of being organized and addressing problems face to face. I thrive off of problem solving and making things right. If I don’t focus on things that only I can control I become a major nuisance to those around me. Focusing on other people’s problems can be seen as judgment from another’s point of view and this can really upset the people around me. Another big part of focusing on things I can control is keeping myself on task to do the things I want for myself. I am the last person I think about because I love giving my time to others and making sure that they are not in pain. I have big dreams, and if I ever hope to achieve the things I want I have to focus on controlling the things I can control. My dad and his brothers grew up learning all about cars in my grandfather’s body shop. They knew all about the inner-workings of classic cars and repaired many cars in their young adult lives. They each had cars that would be worth tens of thousands of dollars today. As soon I was old enough to appreciate classic cars I developed an interest in old cars, specifically old, fast cars. Two years ago I bought my first classic car, a 1968 Cutlass Supreme, all original with a 350 Rocket engine. There was work to be done, but I was infatuated with the idea of rebuilding something with the help of my dad and my uncles. In the first few months of having the car I worked hard to scrape off the old paint and get my car ready to be repainted the original color, an aquamarine blue. I did various repairs here and there; I bought new wheels and tires, installed new shocks, and cleaned up the car really well. Three months in to my purchase the car was ready for the new paint. When I got the car back a few days later, I was on top of the world in a freshly painted muscle machine. As the year went by, things began to wear out. I had rubber hoses that keep coolant running to the engine to cool it off as it runs that burst and sprayed coolant all over the engine causing smoke to come rolling out of the engine bay. My carburetor, part of the fuel delivery system within the engine stopped working, leaving me stranded on the side of the road. Among other things theses two circumstances were enough to deplete my bank account of money, and frustrate me because I was stuck not knowing what could happen next. After all, I’m not a mechanic and I don’t claim to be. One thing I wish I would have discovered before buying this old car was that I either needed to have extra money to repair things that went wrong, or knowledge of how to fix things that went wrong on my own. The frustration I felt was due to the fact that I had no idea what I was doing when it came down to the mechanics of a car. I figured that problems with my car would be few and far between, but I was wrong. I began to focus on the things I could control. I could make money to help pay for the repairs, so I found other forms of income. As I recognized there were things that needed to be done I made the adjustment to accommodate the problem. Focusing on things that I could do to make things easier on my mind helped. I also started to learn more things about old cars. I looked up things that I would need to do next before things went wrong and then I researched how to fix them. I found friends that knew more about cars than I did and they helped me to fix more parts of the car. I learned two things from my classic car experience, that an old car can be difficult to maintain, and that I could make things easier on myself by focusing on what I can control. I hope to apply my new knowledge of this idea to my studies in the future. I know that in whatever situation I find myself this idea can help me to reassess the negative possibilities to make the outcome in my favor. How the power of positive thinking has affected my lifeAto Ribeiro
Over the next couple years, I am determined to develop and maintain a disciplined professional studio routine for channeling my creative juices, enabling me to produce new artwork everyday. This is a key objective that I will continue to exercise for the rest of my life. With that being said, now that I have confirmed my accepted to the Department of Print Media at the prestigious Cranbrook Academy of Art, receiving a MFA from this unique graduate program will aid me in developing a more holistic art experience, through fusing my artistic strengths to create a new identity for my craft that I will use for years to come. When asked which medium I work in, I have become accustomed to replying “Painting, Drawing, Printmaking, Sculpture and Graphic Design,” and that must stop. Through my graduate experience I intend to investigate various ways to fuse my strengths, creating countless bodies of work that share a unified theme that speaks for me. By converging my skills in these various mediums, I will resolve how to successfully promote patriotism while addressing pressing social issues through installations that further stimulate human senses such as sound, smell and possibly even taste. How cool would it be to recreate the experience of spending time in a tranquil and shockingly well insulated traditional Ghanaian mud hut, while a pot of peanut soup simmers on top of a small charcoal grill? Or meander through a claustrophobic space lined with fingernail scratches along the walls, while the lingering smells of sweat, sea salt, gun powder, and bat guano are overpowering. Just as it was before approaching the Doors of No Return in the Elmina or Cape Coals slave castles, except being located in the middle of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. By joining this community of problem solvers whom exercise thinking outside of the proverbial box, I intend to endure a graduate school experience that I would never regret, and will add substance to the development of my professional artistic career. I attained a BA in Studio Art from Morehouse College with the help of priceless constructive feedback that I received from great mentors and art contemporaries such as Christopher Hickey, Fahamu Pecou, Sanford Biggers, and the late Frank Toby Martin. Under their tutelage, I adopted practices such as focusing less on my finished product and more on my processes of creation, allowing my work over the last five years to transform from solely 2D works to exploring countless new ways in which I can engage my audiences within a 3D space. Along with my creative growth, I was heavily active in communities, art clubs, and projects such as serving as artist liaison for the recent Art on the Atlanta BeltLine project. During my matriculation at Morehouse, I am also proud to have been Bonner Scholar, dedicating an average of 11-15 hours per week towards serving the community. This scholarship achievement was my undergraduate blessing in more ways than one. Who knew that through service, financing my private undergraduate degree would become far more feasible. Under the guidance of many professors, service leaders and members of the community, I have and will continue to explore dynamic ways to merge my artistic talents with my moral obligation to serve others. Service has been a practice that I started exercising in high school through volunteering across the Sandy Springs community to paint murals, assist in fund raising campaigns, and even market for a candidate who ran for Mayor. While at Morehouse I found other ways to serve, such as teaching at the Harlem Children Zone, mentoring in Atlanta Middle Schools, founding and serving as President of the W.E.B. Dubois International Dorm (Morehouse’s first international student freshmen dorm), helping as Morehouse College’s Ambassador to the Westview Community, and spearheading the Westview Community Garden. Through practicing community service over the years, I have adopted many useful tools that continue to aid my growth as a fine artist, such as accomplishing larger goals through persistently overseeing and nurturing smaller ones. I am a firm believer in the concept that every experience in life is valuable to that individual’s personal and professional growth. With my professional experience in a corporate setting over the last two years as Digital Marketing Coordinator of Landtours Ghana and Avis Rent-A-Car Ghana, I have been able to improve my web and graphic design skills, along with finding better ways to manage projects within the confines of strict deadlines. As a result, this experience has armed me with the confidence to manage my professional online presence, however I still have a lot to learn with regards to my writing skills. Being able to coherently document my work’s progression through generating enticing written content on various platforms, as well perfecting the art of drafting excitingly unique grant proposals etc. are all tools that I will encompass in the next two years. I intend to become less dependent on others to chronicle my art’s progression, and constructive critiques with artists sharing similar goals such as those enrolled at Cranbrook Academy will allow my classmates and I to investigate ways for all of us to become more proficient in our writing skills. Further more, you could only imagine my surprise after stumbling across this scholarship opportunity asking to reflect on how the power of positive thinking has affected my life. This is a practice that has molded my blessed life into what it is today. Each year, I write down positive affirmations in the format of a short essay such as this one, identifying specific goals in my life that I intend on accomplishing before the year’s end. With that being said, I intend to use this and many other awards to finance my graduate investigations of exploring more stimulating means of creating and showcasing my artwork without incurring any further student loans. To accomplish this, I have set out on numerous campaigns intended to finance my graduate school expenses such as participating in various art competitions like the l’Atelier Art Competition in South Africa, which I was recently qualified into the finalist round. I have also set up several platforms such as my website, where I will create artwork in return for private donations above specific amounts. These are all examples of things in my control that have and will continue to be done to aid my artistic growth, allowing me to be the greatest artist that I can be. Through earning this award, I will progress one step closer to achieving my 2016 goal of covering my entire 2 year graduate education costs without incurring any additional student debts. Attitude of GrattitudeAlim Wooden
Georgia Southern University I am a senior attending Georgia Southern University, studying mechanical engineering and reaching the end of my undergraduate career. My dream is to become an engineer like the myth busters because that seem to have time and resources to make whatever they want, whenever they want. My plan to achieve that goal was to get into Georgia Tech and research with their robotics department. Over the time spent at the University, I learned a lot and a couple of major changes took place. Going into college as a freshman, like all other freshman, I was trying to find a place to fit in and just a few friends to call my own. It just so happened that my roommate in my four person dormitory was my best friend from high school so I was one of the lucky ones. We both loved video games and had mediocre grades coming out of high school so this was about to be a really fun year, grades wasn’t even on our minds. Also the first year was the year that I received the most Pell Grant, social security funding, and a scholarship from a family friend so stress was at an all-time low. The first year ended in a tragedy. So many bad habits formed from playing excessive video games, going out to bars, skipping classes, not studying, and going against myself to make acquaintances that I thought were friends. The typical mistakes of a modern college freshman. Even worse me and my friend stopped talking to each other over an altercation that year, my GPA was low already, and I felt worse about myself and didn’t make all but about 10 friends that I took for granted. Not knowing what I had, I kept thinking this is exactly like high school and started to drink more because I had the freedom, money, it was cheap and easy, and everyone else was doing it, but even though I wasn’t raised that way and it felt off I continued anyways. Slowly blessings began to fade away. I received significantly less Pell Grant and no extra financial help so I had to take out a loan, started working out hardcore and destroying my body, and was drinking more. A typical college student that I hoped I would never be. I was nowhere near on the path of my reaching my dream. A combination of growing financial stress, my friend dropping out of school, and being in my head too much led to two consecutive years of bad habits, bad health, and bad grades. My hopes of getting into Georgia Tech was fading away and I had one semester to fix it all. The beginning of my senior year was the year that everything started changing around because I decided that being unhappy is not what I want to be. The dean of the engineering college made it apparent to me, by contacting me through a personal call, that I had one last chance to make it into Georgia Tech through one semester of all A’s in Math and Science classes. I knew that I had to make a few changes to my lifestyle and that I did, greatly improving my perception and made me happy and appreciative of all the blessings around me. First it started by praying and getting into the attitude of gratitude. It just so happened that I got in my senior I ended up in the traditional dorms which was an extreme downgrade to what I was living in the previous three years and no roommate so it was, I used to joke around, the cell to myself. I started observing my friends and the people around me and through lots of conversation I figured out that most of the students and even professors were just like me. Then I started realizing that I was actually in a really great situation given my recent let downs and started saying prayers of thanks for everything and everyone that has helped me before every meal. Then instead of listening to music, I started listening to audio books form authors like Brian Tracy and Jack Canfield and became determined to get straight A’s to catch the last chance to make it into Georgia Tech. These two practices alone greatly improve my attitude and relationship with people. Then I started wondered what else can I do to make this dream happen. So I started running and doing light fitness workouts to get back in shape and heal the damage I was doing to my body. Then I started eating one or two meals a day to gain more energy. Then before I knew it I was pulling 8-12 good hours of study with time left over to read and get a good 7 hours of sleep each day. By the end of the first semester I got all A’s but sadly even this wasn’t enough to boost my GPA to meet the standard of the Georgia Tech transfer program but I wasn’t sad but actually happy with my accomplishments and grateful for anyone that helped along the way. Second semester of senior rolled around and I continued the streak making all A’s in the next year and even joined two extracurricular activities giving my practical application to my studies. This is my fifth year now and even though I didn’t make it to Georgia Tech I got a year of all A’s, new relationships, a renewed work ethic, a new goal, and most importantly a clearer head and understanding that being positive and not taking what you have for granted combined with hard work for what you what can get you anything even if not by your desired plan. I learned my lessons and today I am now an intern at Panasonic Automotive Systems of America and looking to do bigger things in the future. Healer heal thyselfJessica Mills
Community College of New Mexico When I was a child and adults asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up, I answered each time, “I want to change the world.” Each time the adult I was speaking with laughed told me that I was young, and that would change in time. But it did not. I continued to grow and learn, and as I did, I dedicated each of my resources to helping others who were in need. In high school, I ran a small unofficial business which booked and promoted local bands, while taking an equal cut of the evening’s earnings and donating them to local charities. Immediately upon graduating from high school, I left to Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana for a month to work with Emergency Communities. I lived in a tent while I helped to develop an emergency childcare facility to families in need in a time where all resources were missing from the town. I returned and began to work with children and assisted a number of displaced youth in finding resources they needed during the time that they were passing through Albuquerque. But as my efforts on their behalf increased, I hit more roadblocks. One night, after opening my home to a young group of traveling boys, one of them had a psychological break followed by a lengthy seizure. I sat on my floor, uncertain what to do or how to help him. He was only 19, had no health insurance and no family to speak of. His friends forbade me to call an ambulance due to financial concerns. I did not have the resources or knowledge to help in a sustainable way. I sat with him until he awoke, and the next morning, they were gone to continue traveling. This was a moment of clarity for me. For some time following this experience, it occurred to me that I was attempting to build a foundation to help others out of nothing more than hay, and sacrificing myself in the process. I took a long look at myself. I had not finished college because I felt I had no idea what I would do. I was working as a preschool teacher which I knew would not provide me the financial stability I needed. I was living in a tiny casita which was small and infested with cockroaches. I had no way to truly help others because I was not helping myself. It was time for me to put the focus on my own life and the things I could control. I formulated a plan that would enable me to work towards an undergrad in psychology and would provide me the tools necessary to both provide for myself and truly help to change the world in a sustainable way. I knew this change had to start from within. I changed my living situation, began working a new job that would help to pay for my education, and started to move forward. I was excited and had a plan. And then, on the cusp of continuing my education, my grandfather died. Within months my grandmother died also. My mother, the only child and single caretaker, was bereaved and fell into a year long depression. To make matters worse, at the end of this year she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Once again, I put my plans for school aside and cared for her in the best way I knew how. But I began to struggle with anxiety and depression, myself. Rather than feeling inspired by my prior plan, it felt a burden that I had not continued with it. I was consistently hard on myself for not having finished my education. I was overwhelmed by the events that seemed to always stand in the way. After my mother was treated and declared cancer-free, I threw myself in to my job as a Child Care Worker with children with severe emotional trauma, inside of a residential treatment setting. It was the precise direction I needed. I worked to help children override unhealthy patterns of interacting and reacting as a therapeutic milieu team member. I was provided access to new knowledge. In seven months, I was promoted to Supervisor where I now, three and a half years later, train a team of professionals, run an operational milieu, communicate with community members, family members and therapists to create and implement ICMPs, IEPs, and treatment plans through a neurologically informed, attachment based model. I help children learn how to be healthy in their relationships and with themselves. I finally found the direction I sought as well as the resources I needed to make a difference in the world. Here, I learned some skills. First, I learned that there was always going to be something happening outside of one’s control that, if allowed it to, will affect personal circumstances. Many of the children I work with had childhood trauma which was not their fault, but the effects were now in their control to change. They, like me, had to choose. Watching them inspired me. If I wanted to help others, I had to first help myself. Much like them, if I wanted to help myself I had to focus on the things I could control. And the number one things I could control were the words I chose to say when I spoke to myself. I began to monitor my thoughts and how consistently I was an opposing force to my own life progressing. I noted how often I told myself that I could not do something, or how daunting it would be. I reminded myself that I had seen the impossible become possible in the milieu. I decided that I had to work smarter, not harder. I challenged these beliefs, rose up, and faced my fears slowly. I began to speak kindly to myself, to use encouraging words instead of devaluing ones. I reminded myself that I was worth self-care. Through this, I learned that my education was imperative to my self growth and also to taking the next step towards helping these children. I learned that I could accomplish it, regardless as to what was occurring externally. I taught myself that instead of beating myself up for having not done it yet, I could simply do it and be kind to myself in the process. This was in my control. I have accomplished enough in my life to know that anything is possible. I have seen enough hopeless children and families do so. I now know that I need to continue to access my resources, and take care of myself. I know I accomplish this, regardless as to what may come my way. With your help, receiving the Achieve Today Scholarship will allow me to place my focus on bettering myself and the lives of others while maintaining the milieu and working on my undergraduate education. It is a balance, dedicating one’s life to others while also dedicating it to one’s self. I am certain that your assistance in this powerful task is greatly appreciated, by all who have been offered it, and I look forward to the same opportunity. Focusing on things you can controlMegan Adcock
University of Southern California There are many things in life that can make us unhappy, that can make us worry or cause us some anxiety, and this is where the personal development principal of focusing on the things you can change (rather than the things you have no control over) comes in. Using this particular development skill has really changed my life for the better, and while it is still a work in progress every day, I continue to make strides. I have been living with acute anxiety since I was very young, the first instances I can remember date back to when I was about six years old. While this has lead to many days of worrying, many sleepless nights, two major breakdowns, three different therapists my family could not afford, (and that I hated too) and also different medications prescribed to help, I decided that I needed to find out my way of coping. While I am generally a very happy person on the outside, (and usually the inside reflects that too) I still always have a lot of anxiety and worry going on under the surface that I try to (at least) keep at bay. Some people have asked me how I can stay so positive about things, and I tell them that since I suffer from anxiety, and never found any help outside myself that worked, I had to come up with certain methods and go about them in my own personal way. This, among one or two other things, includes not worrying about the things I cannot affect or change, realizing that what will happen will happen and I just have to figure out how to deal with it when it does. Also, and above all, focusing on the things that I personally can control, and making sure that if there is something I can do about it, I do my absolute best at it, so not only can I sleep at night with the knowledge that I did everything I possibly could that was in my power to do, that if something does happen, I can rest easy. Thinking positive, but especially focusing on things that I actually have the power to change/control has really helped me calm down, and I am now down to the lowest dose of anti-anxiety medicine I have ever been on! I would like to now outline the things that really make this work for me personally: the first way is how I changed my thinking. I did this by thinking positive, (this is where one of the other personal development principles really interconnects with this one), thinking of the best outcome, and also, even though this may sound counter-intuitive, I also think of the worst outcome and instead of panicking, I think of how I will react and deal with that situation if it comes up. Next, I focus. I focus on the part of the problem that I think I can tackle/deal with myself, and not focus on or worry about what others may be doing and also anything that is not in my power to do. After this, I realize that if I can really, really do nothing about a situation or conflict, I take three deep breathes, think of something that makes me smile, and go on from there. I also try to put everything into perspective, and try not to sweat the small stuff, because taking a step back and thinking about whether this is something I can do anything about in the first place is always helpful with perspective, and if there is nothing, I make a firm note to myself that there is not and carry on. One last thing that I remind myself is that thinking so much about it will get me nowhere, especially if I cannot control it; on the other hand, if I can control it, I just need to put in place the actions I need to take to control it, and wait for the outcome without stressing over whether it worked or not. Because after all, I have done all I can do in a positive way, efficiently in a timely manner, so if I keep obsessing over it, it will just drive me crazy, and that sure does not help anyone. And finally, reminding myself that I do control my own thoughts and emotions, and that is the first step to making sure that I actually try to control them, and realizing I can do nothing to control other peoples thoughts and emotions. All in all, focusing on the things I personally can control has made a big impact on my life. I have learned to let go a little, to not worry so much, because if there is something I can do about it I set about doing it, and make sure I put my best effort into it so that if it ends up going wrong, I still do not need to worry. And if there is nothing I can do (which is so often the case with so many scenarios in life) then I do not let it control me or take over my mind. This has really put a different spin on how I look at things, and has made me much more easy-going and all around better at life. One thing we must control before it controls usErin Hatt
University of Phoenix “It’s a miracle you’re normal!” I cannot count how many times I have heard this in my life; people say it to me as soon as I start explaining my story. “How can you come to work every day, smiling and caring so much about people after you’ve experienced everything that you have been through? I don’t know how you do it.” I tell people it is all about the attitude. When we find something to be thankful for, something positive even in our hardships, we can overcome almost anything! Up until the time I was nine years old, my home life was far from ideal. My father had problems with alcohol abuse and both my parents had substance abuse issues. When my dad drank, he became violent. Almost every night, he would physically abuse my mom when I was trying to sleep. My mom had no release for her physical and emotional pain, so she would abuse me. I always promised myself I would do everything I could to not make her angry when I got home from school, but nothing I did worked. She would get mad at me and physically abuse me. One day when I was in second grade, my mom left. I have twin brothers who have autism who just added to my father’s anger because they never slept through the night and we could never control them. My mom left the boys at a neighbor’s house and left for Florida with one of my great uncles. My mom called on Christmas Day and said she was coming home. I do not remember the day or month that she left, but Christmas is her birthday so I told her I wished she was home so I could make her a cake in my new Easy Bake Oven. She did come home, but only to get some of her things. A few weeks later, she was gone again. She came home permanently, but only when she offered my dad an ultimatum: she would only come home to stay if he quit drinking. He agreed and quit cold turkey, nothing short of a miracle itself. I am grateful for this experience because I saw firsthand the effects of alcohol on a family and on an individual. I know I need to be careful with alcohol because alcoholism runs in both sides of my family. I am grateful that my father quit drinking when he did because he did a complete 180 when he stopped. Our home life got a lot better after he quit drinking. Life became as normal as it could until my sophomore year in high school. I began developing severe abdominal pains, nausea, and other symptoms. I had dozens of health tests and we received no results, so I was a mystery. I missed a lot of school, but somehow kept my grades up and remained at the top of my class. I am thankful for the support I received from my teachers, friends, and family during that time. So many people helped me, doing whatever they could to help me feel better and make sure I had everything I needed when I was too sick to get out of bed. We never found out what was wrong during the year or so I was ill, but I am happy my digestive system is mostly back to normal today. At the end of my junior year, my family decided to move to Florida. My dad went to college in Daytona Beach and he thought my family could get a new beginning if we moved. I was not excited for the move because I was leaving seventeen years of my life behind. I had a lot of friends, I had great grades and loved my high school, and I was volunteering at a nursing home on weekends, always the highlight of my week. I had people offer rooms in their homes so I could stay, but I felt it was important for me to move so I could support my family. We moved to Florida in April of 2004 with the money we had from selling our house in Connecticut. We lived in a nice apartment down the street from the “world’s most famous beach,” the epitome of paradise. However, it took too long for my parents to find jobs in Florida and my job at the local ice cream shop did not even begin to put a dent in the bills. In December 2004, we were evicted from our apartment. Thankfully, we learned about an organization called Family Renew Community. Family Renew had three locations to house homeless families to help them get back on their feet. Our family moved into a two room cottage so I could finish my senior year. I got a job I loved at a library down the street, something I never would have gotten if we did not move. I met a lot of wonderful people in Florida and the six months we were homeless were an enlightening experience. People often think that being homeless is the lowest point you can reach, but it was a blessing in disguise. I learned a lot about family and true friendship during that time. It made me a stronger, more empathetic person. I have to admit that life is great now. Although I suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia, I feel thankful for my accomplishments and all the things I have experienced. I am almost done with my Bachelor’s degree and will begin my Master’s degree soon after I complete my Bachelor’s. I have an amazing job and boyfriend, a cute little house, and so much to be thankful for. One thing we must control before it controls usMaria Luisa Alago, B.S., M.A., (DM, Candidate)
University of Phoenix Eastern and Western ancient and modern educators realized the power of knowledge, as control measure. Teachers from the East and the West, throughout history, have identified the cause of unethical behaviors: Uncontrolled thoughts. Thoughts control the words; words control the actions; actions control the habits, which ultimately become one’s destiny (Aristotle, 384-322; BCE; 1962; Tzu, 6 BCE). Other teachers, focused on modeling mandated top-down prescribed codes of conducts, such as the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule (Jesus, 33 AD; Bible, KJV). A few, such as the modernists, advocated for relativism, leading to nihilism (Foucault, 2003, 2010; Nietzsche, 2011). From an early age, I learned that the only thing that one can control, are one’s most inner thoughts, indeed. Growing up in a dysfunctional family, my thoughts were adroit escaping tools. During my grade school, I had the good fortune to discover the library. After a few enchanting visits, I realized that books, magazines, encyclopedias, and journals were wells of knowledge. The library was a panacea of enriching source for nurturing the consciousness and unconscious within the brain with new information, data, insights, ideas, words, concepts, techniques, illustrations, and abstractions. For instance, they incited the imagination with creativity to escape into a happy place of my own. At an early age I had mapped out my lifelong dreams. I dreamed of becoming financially independent. I dreamed of owning a plush farm in the woods. I dreamed of having a charming spouse and two children, forget the half. And as a caveat I visualized earning the highest academic degree my potential would allow me, even that the odds were against me in the form of extreme poverty. My yet to be fulfilled lifelong dream has been to complete a doctorate to scaffold a platform to self-actualize and help others to develop to their maximum potential. With a surplus of personal setbacks, which I had no control over, I had to postpone my goal, by placing the needs of others ahead of my own. Technological breakthroughs in communication empowered me by opening the doors to online education. Consequently, I had the opportunity to step outside of my paradigm and pursue my dream by traversing the door of online education (OE). Online education (OE) is my platform to aid leaders and educators whom in turn empower the workforce as moral agents. OE granted me freedom after a lifetime of caring for ill parents, younger siblings, a husband, and three offspring’s. My oldest was born disabled, a casualty of my spouse's exposure to agent-orange. We also had a set of premature twins. After facing so many hurdles my dream marriage collapsed, which perhaps I had not fully controlled. Caregiving and putting my life on the line in a public service career preceded my OE. OE enabled my lifelong pursuit of a coveted doctoral degree, while I had the privilege to care young adult disabled offspring. During the doctoral journey, I have invested over $80,000 of student loans and my lifetime savings towards the degree, with countless hours of research and lack of sleep. Just as I was two courses away from completing the program, my mother became terminally ill, which I had no control over. I had to travel thousands of miles to care for her, arranged her burial, and mourn her departure. After a lengthy Sabbatical, upon which I had no control, I intended to complete my research study and data analysis. My committee recommended me that I secure the services of a statistician, and an editor, at a substantial cost. After paying for the technical experts tutors my personal upkeep, my mother’s household bills, my funds and borrowing credit power were exhausted. My FICO plummeted overnight, and I had no control over it. I am required to register prior to submission for the final institutional quality review of the completed dissertation, and my drop-dead graduation deadline is fast approaching, without my control. The title of my dissertation is: Increasing Emotional Intelligence and Moral Reasoning through Andragogy: A correlational study. I did had full control of how I named it and the Alago’s andragogical model. News and social media have exposed the rise of unethical behaviors. Many of those unethical acts had rippled global consequences. For examples economic crisis, food wars, ethnic cleansing, and conspiracy theories. Also governments’ abstractions, sexual harassment, rise in terrorism, bribery, and implosion of organizations, such as Enron (Janszen, 2010; Karaibrahimoğlu et al., 2009). Recent literature findings support that, the adult human brain is pliable. The brain can grow neural connections. Thus emotional intelligence and moral reasoning are augmentable with customized andragogical education, age, and experience (Moll, Oliveira-Souza, & Eslinger, 2003). After securing some funds to enroll in the final course, submit the dissertation for the quality review, conduct the oral defense, and publish my work, I will promote my Alago’s andragogical model. The model will aid leaders and educators to design customized curricula for public, private, for-profit, and non-profit organizations empowerment development. The Alago's andragogical educational model depends on second-order learning, cognitive moral development, and emotional intelligence enhancements (Knowles, Holton, & Swanson, 2005, Covey, 2010; Kohlberg) Also, the neo-Kohlbergian theory (NKT) (Rest, Narváez, Thoma, & Bebeau, 2000). NKT explains the mechanism to store experiences, in the brain's amygdala. Environmental stimuli are detected, translated, and stored as an antecedent mental schema of emotions. The schema helps the individual to associate present experiences with the fly or fight reflex for survival (Argyris, 2012; Rest, Narváez, Thoma, & Bebeau, 2000). In the case of mental role playing future experiences may be assessed and measured to the antecedents, theoretically (Alago, 2015). Vested with the newly gained knowledge, skills, abilities, experiences, and freedom I am confident that I will be able to provide global face-to-face and online programs, workshops and seminars to empower participants. The mechanism is the design of pragmatic adult education curricula under the principles of andragogy (Knowles, Holton, & Swanson, 2005). My learned knowledge, skills, and discoveries have pragmatic applications. My goal is to incite individuals’ imaginations, promote dialog in communities of practice, provide insights to policymakers, influence transformational leaders, guide psychologists, instruct educators, and motivate individual seekers. The coveted ideal is to enable the workforce to become moral agents. Moral agents have potentialities, character, and knowledge to safeguard civilizations for the sustainment and survival of humanity. Moral agents are empowered beings. As such, they understand the route to happiness. Enroute to happiness all demographical and environment factors cannot be controlled. The only controllable factor at any point in the development journey is the thoughts. Subsequently, monitoring emotionally charged words, may lead to bias actions. Good actions will foster good habits, which influence the moral agents’ destiny (Alago, 2015; Aristotle, 384-322 BCE; Tzu, 6 BCE). One thing we must control before it controls usSarah Bellin
University of Phoenix Earning a degree can be very costly, thats why no one in my family has ever received a college education. I'm the first one in my family to even attend college and thats all because when I was a little girl my Mom and Dad started a college fund for me, it wasn't very much but it was a start. Growing up my family never had a lot but both my parents gave me everything they could to make sure I was happy. My parents also taught me the value of money, they gave me a piggy bank and told me to save $5. It took awhile as I didn't have a job and the only way I earned money was with loose change around the house or the dollar or two my Grandpa would give me for helping him out. Once I saved that $5 my parents sat me down and told me they were going to take that $5 and put it in a college fund for me, at first I was upset because only being 8 years old I could've bought myself some candy or a small toy. After they explained to me that it would be worth saving and that in 10 years I would get it back. Once I entered High School and started learning more in depth about college I soon realized how expensive it would be for me to attend a 4 year University. I knew my parents couldn't afford to pay for tuition and all the other fees of college. That summer when I turned 16 I got my first job at McDonalds, every pay check I saved every penny but once school started again I had to quit to focus on getting good grades so I could get into a good school. My senior year of high school the most devastating event of my life thus far happened, my Mom was laid off from her work. We started to fall behind on bills which meant they had to start using some of my college funds to make sure we could keep a roof over our head, before we knew it my college fund was gone. This meant I wasn't going to be able to attend a 4 year, this meant I was not going to get my Bachelors, this meant I wasn't going to be the first person in my family to go to college. It was devastating for me and my parents, they worked so hard to make sure I was going to be able to go to college but now I wasn't. The year after high school I attended a local community college that FASFA fully covered but the issue was overcrowding, I was taking unnecessary classes because the ones I needed were always full. After a year I eventually dropped out and started working full time and started saving for college again. I never wanted to give up on my dream of completing school but wasting my time at a community college wasn’t getting me anywhere. Thats when I found University of Phoenix, its a online University thats half the price of a regular University but I still get the quality education that I would anywhere else. I will now be receiving my Bachelors in Business Management with a Certificate in Project Management. My overall goal after I earn my degree is to work with The Walt Disney Company in the Disney Parks. Disney has always been a big part of my life so I would love to work for them as a manger or even a high up in Disney. I am so grateful that my parents from a young age taught me about the value of an education but like many, I’m struggling financially to pay for it. I want to make my parents proud by becoming a successful person that all their hard work wasn’t for nothing. I feel like everything is slowly being taken away from me though. After filling out an education expense form it'll tell you exactly how much federal aid you will receive and how much loans you will receive during your time in school. The only problem I have is I'm $15,000 short of financial aid that I need to finish school. I have a couple thousand saved up now but that will only cover this school year. So anything would help me greatly. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story. History has taught me to look at the glass as half full rather than half empty, regardless of the challengesOlivia Brophy
My family has always been active in the community – from Scouting to serving food to the homeless. During high school, I formalized my volunteer activities by completing a volunteer project in children’s literacy that required over 400 hours of commitment. For this, I received the Gold Congressional Award Medal. Additionally, I served a plethora of nonprofit organizations through the National Charity League, South Placer Chapter, and spending a week in Mexico volunteering with my school. Finally, I tutored fellow students in middle and high school in a variety of subjects through the Academic Support Class at my high school. My college choice, Saint Mary’s College of California, has many opportunities for volunteer work. By actively participating in the monthly “Saturday of Service” and annual “Jan Term”, I will be allowed to build upon my volunteer work performed during high school. Over my schooling career, I have helped to tutor many students with varying needs and for various reasons. As a third grader, I helped not only younger students learn to read and write, but also a classmate who had immigrated from Ukraine. This was my inspiration to select children’s literacy as my focus for my community service hours for the Gold Congressional Award Medal. I worked alongside a librarian to develop library displays and created resource folders for parents and patrons to inspire literacy in children. I took these resources to work with me when I volunteered at a preschool incorporating “Mother Goose on the Loose” over the course of two summers. This incorporation of rhyme, rhythm, and repetition alongside relevant literature made literacy child’s play! The skills I developed while working with preschoolers included patience, perseverance, and adapting to multiple modalities of learning. These would be expanded upon later in high school. As a member of National Charity League, I had the opportunity to work with a variety of charities. One of my favorite groups to work with was the Special Olympic of Northern California. The athletes taught me that a simple, “You can do this” or “I am so proud of you” was the easiest bridge to connecting two people. No matter how long it took them to cross the finish line, they never gave up and the smile that accompanied their accomplishment was infectious. The athletes I crossed paths with through this organization inspired me to confront my shyness with the same courage and determination they displayed in the athletic arena. It is my hope all the amazing athletes I met have an idea about how critical they were in helping me express myself with the confidence of an Olympian. Their inspiration didn't stop there - my volunteer work took me to Mexico as a foreign exchange student with my school. Leading up to my departure last summer, I was able to use my experience with Special Olympics of Northern California to convince our student group to volunteer with Los Olímpicos Especiales in Merida, Mexico. I knew how inspiring and accepting the athletes had been here in the U.S., and I believed that our working with a similar group in Mexico - where we were required to speak in Spanish - would be the perfect organization to continue building bridges between people regardless of culture or citizenship. As a result of my experience, I trained my peers on how to interact with athletes - from how to communicate with both verbal and nonverbal persons to recognizing sensitivities based on body language to knowing when to ask for assistance from an adult. This was put into action when we visited a children's hospital, and while my peers went off in groups of two, I was able to go off on my own to work with the athletes and event organizers because I had the confidence necessary to do so. As in the U.S., there were many “Puedes hacerlo” and “Estoy orgulloso de ti” comments as well as high fives and hugs. My peers had no idea how rewarding and inspiring this experience was until our time was over, and it was time to go home. These experiences culminated in my opportunity to volunteer with our school’s Academic Intervention Specialist. I have come to regard the time I spent tutoring in Ms. Amira’s Academic Support Classes, as well as during Advisory and Enrichment, as some of the most fulfilling. The magnitude of the effect of this experience stems largely from the fact that it developed organically, not from previous thought or planning. Working with my fellow students, all of a variety of ages and abilities, on almost every subject offered at Western Sierra Collegiate Academy proved to be one of the greatest challenges I have ever faced, but also one of the most rewarding. It is nearly impossible to think of a better feeling than when a student is able to understand a concept after working with you – whether it is for a few minutes or a few Enrichment periods. The smiles on their faces and the pride in their achievements when they’ve done well are unforgettable. Just like the preschoolers and Special Olympians, the pride that students felt with their achievements is etched on my heart forever. One of the most unique aspects of volunteering in Ms. Amira’s class is that the “tutoring” or “peer helping” isn’t just one way, it’s reciprocal. The free exchange of ideas that is possible in one-on-one or small group tutoring helps everyone involved in a variety of ways. For me personally, having to communicate clearly and effectively with a diverse group of students, oftentimes only minutes after being introduced, seemed initially to be very daunting. Throughout the time I have spent in Academic Support, however, I have overcome this challenge. I have grown tremendously as a person, not only because of the fact that I helped others, but because in turn, others helped me. Serving as a student tutor required taking responsibility and, therefore, a leadership role, in regards to each student that I helped to succeed. In being a tutor, I took on the challenge of helping students to excel, especially in areas that they needed extra help in. Furthermore, some of the students required extra tutoring in order to grasp concepts necessary to complete their classes. My presence was oftentimes a reminder of their academic struggles, so I had to work to gain their trust. This entailed that I needed to help students feel that they were capable of doing the best work that they could do. Peer tutoring helped me to advance many skills vital in effective leaders, including clear communication and an unfailingly supportive nature. I feel it is important to reiterate the reciprocal nature of everything that occurred in Ms. Amira’s class – as I grew in these key skills, I made an effort to challenge my fellow students to grow as well. The lessons I learned growing up through giving back to my community have inspired me to seek out a college that values service to others along with academic achievement. Through “Saturday of Service” and “Jan Term”, I will be able to work in inner-city elementary schools, utilizing both my love of literacy and my skills in Spanish to communicate with as many students as possible. In addition, I hope to be able to volunteer in Saint Marys’ Center for Writing Across the Curriculum, furthering my love of peer tutoring and continuing to build on my communication and leadership skills. Through all my studying, history has taught me to look at the glass as half full rather than half empty, regardless of the challenges. Through my years of volunteer experiences, whether working with children to gain a love of reading, tutoring my peers or encouraging the athletes of Special Olympics both here and in Mexico, I learned that a “shy girl” can find her voice in service to others. A personal story of hopeMichele Costantino
There are stories that we share with the world. Some that we share with friends and family. A few that we share with only the one closest to us. Every once and a while, there is a story that we keep to ourselves. There never seems to be good time to tell it and perhaps there is never the right person to tell it to. This is my story from high school about hope in the darkness. I’ve never shared it with anyone and I suppose that I was waiting for the right time. Once upon a time, I took an art class. I didn’t know anyone, so I just sat at a random table. There were four of us at the table and we rarely spoke to each other. Except for Grant McFann and I. We didn’t really speak as much as throw insults at the other’s artwork. We had a great time of it, he with his football player and me with my owl. Grant and I took a few classes together my senior year, including physics and calculus. I remember him arguing for a half an hour with Mr. McPhee about how the M.C. Escher drawing was completely plausible. We competed with each other in calculus over who could do worse in the class. I usually won. Senior year was hard for me on multiple levels. On one side I had AP Calculus. I had never failed at math in my life. I once read the whole LoTR trilogy in a summer math class and passed with flying colors. I was so unprepared for failure. This wasn’t just a low grade. I was actually failing, and even worse, I didn’t understand what was being taught. I still remember crying on the bathroom floor during class while some other girls asked if I was okay. It was very Sixteen Candles. On the other side, there was my home life; hard in a whole different way. Each day was a luck of the draw on whether or not my mom would choose to berate my life choices. I would be called worthless, useless, a failure, the perfect child gone wrong and informed of my impending afterlife burning in hell. Being the melodramatic teenager I’m sure I was, my life was over. The real problem with suicidal thoughts mixed with above average intelligence is knowing all the ways an attempt can go wrong and how much it can hurt. Being a person who likes to do things right the first time, paired with a low pain tolerance, means that while I would not attempt suicide, the thoughts plagued me every day. It was a struggle to put one foot in front of the other. Throughout the darkness, there a small patches of light. A teacher going above and beyond to help me succeed. Being asked to prom, the first time I had ever been asked to a dance. These things don’t stop the depression entirely, but they lift the load from your shoulders for just a little while. One day in art class, I was drowning in darkness again. Having finished my art project, I had started on some extra credit for calculus. As usual, I struggled to even understand the problems, let alone solve them. Being so wrapped up in my own drama, I’m not sure how much was visible to the outside world. Could anyone see me drowning? I’ll never know if Grant knew how bad it was. We were never really friends, never saw each other outside of school. We didn’t have the same friends and we barely spoke in the classes we did share. But that day, he stopped while leaving class and offered me help. An act of kindness I never saw coming. I could have cried on the spot, but I think I was too stunned. I’m not sure if Grant did it out of pity. Maybe he was helping someone who struggled like he did. Maybe it just wasn’t a big deal to him and he never thought of it again. I don’t know his motivation; I just know he saved me. In the all-consuming darkness, he stopped and saw me. And instead of turning away and continuing on his day, he offered me a hand. For a short period of time, I remember being happy. The negative thoughts held at bay by an act of kindness. Grant and I would never become best friends; there would be no passionate valedictorian speeches to show my gratitude. We would pass each other on campus and nod to the other with a slight smile. He would say hello to me in a Taco Bell where I struggled to make small talk while trying not blurt out my thanks for saving me. I never told him how much it meant to me. I have spent 15 years trying to figure out how to thank him for what he did for me. A simple thank you seems so meaningless next to the magnitude of his simple gesture. I know that to him it was just a little math help, but to me, it was a gift that can’t really ever be repaid. This story follows me to this day and it teaches me that helping people is not about the big things. People can be grateful for the smallest actions. Through this lens we know to feel gratitude for the small things in our life. Whether it’s being grateful for the perfect parking spot in the rain or thanking the stranger for holding the door, we can find something every day that makes us smile for a little while. The "Controllables"By Sierra Kaszubinski
University of Arizona Life can be very difficult to maneuver at times. There are high points, and low points, and everything in-between. But, one of the best ways to refocus on life, is to not let the things you cannot control overpower you. It is rather a focus on the things that can be controlled, which can have a better impact on staying positive and reducing stress when life’s roller coaster seems like too much. The strict definition of the statement “focus on things you can control” is an easy concept to grasp. It is a guide to turns one attention to things that you can change, favor, disregard etc. It is an elimination of the variability that life throws as being a source of stress, because if you do not pay attention to things that are out of your control, they no longer have power over you. It is a great way to think; focus on the “controllables.” Yet, accomplishing that mindset can be a whole different story. What are things that one can control versus not? A lot of the times, the thing that can be controlled is you. It’s how you look at the situation, how you put in the effort, and how you seize opportunities. It is your choices, not others’, that you can truly decide. Therefore, the objective of focusing on what you can control is a call to action on your mindset and decision making, more so than a disregard for things that cannot be controlled. Again, a lot easier said than done. Yet, through my life experiences so far, I feel as though I have a good idea on how focusing on my mindset can change a situation for me. One of the most important and most stressful times in my life was deciding on which college I wanted to go to. I had big dream; I wanted to go to the school with the best ballet program and best biology program I could find. I was an extremely driven and passionate dancer, having been in dance since I was two and continuing all the way to college. Also, I was an extremely hard working student. I had put in a ton of effort and managed to become the valedictorian of my high school. But for me, the huge stressor was deciding on a college that appealed to both of my loves. I picked three top schools: University of Indiana, University of Georgia, and University of Arizona. All had a pretty good mix of what I wanted- great academics and great ballet. I applied to all three, and made it into all three for academics. But the ballet, was a different story. Because I could not go and audition for Indiana, I didn’t really look like a serious candidate. I was accepted, but I was only offered a scholarship of 3,000 dollars for the enormous 40,000 out of state tuition. I was devastated, there was no way I could afford it. University of Georgia admitted me for both academics and ballet. I was ecstatic! The head of the dance program offered a scholarship for me being in the dance program, and I flew to Georgia to try out the program. Yet, it was not what I expected at all, and I couldn’t see myself dancing there. The ballet was not as serious as I assumed it would be, because there was a greater focus on other styles of dancing. Plus, none of the dancers or instructors were very friendly at all. The scholarship the dance department head had offered, was nowhere in sight. My last option, University of Arizona, had by far the best programs for science and ballet of any of the schools. I got accepted into the academic side, and now all I needed was the ballet side. I auditioned, everyone was so kind and helpful, and I thought I had a shot. This was my last option! A few weeks later I got the call. I did not make it into the major, but still had a shot at the minor. I was crushed. My dream was the double major in ballet and biology, and that was no longer an option. I decided that a minor was better than nothing, and began college with a biology major in hopes to audition again for the ballet minor. Despite my good initial feelings about the program, I realized that the minor had a lot of flaws. I found myself not enjoying ballet as much as I used to, because the minor level classes were extremely different from the major level classes. That is when I made the decision to not pursue the ballet minor any longer, but continue ballet independently. This was the make or break time for me- I could either spend my college career in jest that I had not gotten my dream degrees, or I could make the best of what I had. I chose the latter. I threw myself into my biology major. I excelled in school, making a 4.0 for four semesters. I got involved in lab work on campus, and realized how much I loved it. I had decided, after strenuous research and experience in the lab, that I wanted to become a forensic scientist. Therefore, I joined the Criminal Justice Association at the university, and three years later, I am now the president. Based off my story, the “focus on the things you can control” turned around my college experience. Despite the fact that my initial dream was not realized, I didn’t sulk about it. I couldn’t change my financial situation, and I couldn’t change the quality of the dance programs. I could only change me. I shifted my dream so that my biology major made me passionate and happy. I shifted my idea of ballet, as being perfect for my own independent expenditure, which took my mind of stressful classes. No matter what life throws at you, it is your mindset which can change the situation. More opportunities can be had with a change in mindset, even if they are not what you originally expected. The only thing you can truly control is you, and a focus on that can bring positives out of negatives. That idea changed my life for the better. The Power of Positive Thinkingby Annie Lawson
Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms-to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. - Viktor E. Frankl I have come to realize that this quote from Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor, has provided me with truth and power to act in my own life. I read his book “Man’s Search for Meaning” when I was in high school. This book has changed my life and made me recognize that humans can go through horrific things and still show kindness, gratitude, and have a positive frame of mind. The power in positive thinking literally, saved Viktor’s life. I think it is easy to blame life, blame others, or even blame God when challenges come our way. Though some trials come through our own choices, I feel that this life is to learn and grow through those trials and help us become the best version of us because of those trials. It is all in how we choose to view the challenge and having a positive thought pattern can have drastic results in determining if something will make us bitter or make us better. I recently saw an experiment with two jars filled with cooked rice and water. One jar was talked to lovingly, given praise, and encouragement while the other jar was yelled at, put down, and talked to negatively. I was surprised to see after a two week period that the rice that was given positive words still was white and fluffy. The jar that only had negative words given was black, moldy, and almost a soupy substance. This experiment has impacted me with not only how I talk to others and my tone of voice, but also how I talk to myself. I feel that we can be our worst critics. Feeling our minds with all of our short comings, things we keep messing up on, and words of failure can do damage to our ability to improve and overcome and ultimately, stop trying. Likewise, positive thoughts and words about ourselves and our abilities can make an impact in what we can accomplish and our overall happiness. There was a reality show called “Out of the Wild” that I enjoyed watching. 12 people with little survival skills were giving a crash course in surviving in the wild such as building shelters, catching and cooking food, and navigation skills. They then were given a rough map to help them reach their destination points, many of them over twelve miles away over a month period of time. The participants had an option at any time to hit a red button and a helicopter would rescue and extract that participant out of the game. The participants didn’t know how long it would take them to get to the end goal and I think the not knowing was what many would struggle with. The conditions that they were in were extremely challenging to not having food for days, weather and lack of adequate shelter, and sheer exhaustion from rough terrain and walking great distances. I found it fascinating that the people that I thought would make it would be the ones that were more physically fit or seem to have a lot of confidence or skill. The surprising fact is the ones that made it through all of the difficulty and hardship were the ones that had a positive attitude. They were the ones that looked for a silver lining, had a good sense of humor, and tried to find joy in the journey. The power of positive thinking is such that can carry us all through many diverse situations and come out on top. I’ve had my own experience with using positive thinking to get me through a challenge. My parents got divorced when I was in 8th grade. At the time, very few of my friends had single parents raising them or were dealing with the many emotions that come from a dissolved marriage of your parents. The first year after the divorce, my mom went on many dates late into the night to the point that my older sister had to wait up for her so that we knew she was safe. She was not a very present parent at that time and with only seeing my Dad every few weekends, my sisters and I had to fend for ourselves. It would have been very easy to succumb to a “woe is me” frame of mind during this time. I felt very alone and confused, but there was always an undercurrent of hope, happiness, and chance to make something of who I was. I started exercising regularly, surrounded myself around positive people, and created goals for myself. I became active in service in my church and community. I feel because I had such positive things around me that it helped me to remain positive. I think part of a positive thinking came naturally and part I had to make a conscious choice to be. I know I would not be the person I am today because of that trial as well as my attitude and approach during it. I’m so grateful for the things that I learned about myself during that time and see that a large part had to do with a positive outlook despite my circumstances. It gave me a sense that I can do hard things and not only can I survive, but I can thrive. We are all given the option in every situation to respond with positiveity and power. I love the things I have learned from people like Vkitor and have seen many examples of what strength a positive attitude can be in others, shows, and experiments. Each trial and challenge puts us at a cross roads where we can choose to be bitter or to be better. My hope is that we will always choose to be better and improve through the power that comes with positive thinking. The Law Of Attraction: The Difference Between What You Could See & Who You Couldn’t See.by Kenyona R. Copeland
When I first heard about, The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne I couldn’t come to fathom why people all over the world was buying this book. With all due respect to this woman, she writes great stuff but I realized something greater than reading another watered down version of a How-To book. The big secret was just her introducing The Law Of Attraction. I’d watched a lot of my friends and family read this book to agrees with almost everything she talked about, in this novel. I laughed sometimes, because I never saw something great come out of reading it. Everyone must’ve been reading this book as if it was God’s mouth-spoken promise of inheriting the Kingdom. My “Law Of Attraction” wasn’t her book, at all. For me, it was finding faith to believe in calling the supernatural into existence. Speaking from the perspective of a being a struggling mother, who nearly went homeless during my second trimester –The secret didn’t help find me a roof over my head. Instead, it sent me back to New York, living the same painfully agonizing lifestyle that I was hoping so desperately to stray away from. And then before I could turn my head straight, enough to walk forward, another bad seed is planted against me. Now, I’m fighting to provide for my child, and to finish my education. I completed four years just to find out that on June 26, 2015 I finish school without a degree. My Bachelor’s Degree is then put on hold, due to an outstanding balance of over $13,000.00. Please, someone tell me where’s the secret in pulling something good out of that? Instead, I choose to pray and see my future fifteen years ahead from today. My kind of Law Of Attraction is telling myself everyday that I am great, even when I don’t feel great. I stand in the mirror and I speak life over myself, even when it’s unclear to see. I am the Law Of Attraction, because no matter what good/bad things happen to me, still I attract it for one simply reason –I’m doing what I’m supposed to be. That’s the significance of life; it’s built around matrix. I said, “If you could just separate your emotions from your head, then you’d know that preparing for your success has nothing to do with how you feel.” Law Of Attraction had become something different for me, after realizing that attracting great things to me had a lot to do with selflessness in my own battles. I believe in myself harder than the absence of a drought in the rain. I will be where I’m supposed to in life, with a better chance financially. And if the last penny could do someone else greater than myself, I’m always up for the giving because some day there won’t be a shortage in sunshine, after the rain. I don’t tell myself that I need this and I need that, but I speak the word ‘must’ so that my brain gets an understanding of what I will not take for a ‘no’. The Law Of Attraction is the pursuit of happiness, and what I keep myself from obtaining is the spirit of fear attacking my head and not my heart. I keep Law Of Attraction in mind, by forgiving those who’ve caused me minor setbacks for major comebacks. Usually it’s a tit-for-a-tat, but without me dishing out bad karma. If I’ve done anything to make a difference in my own life, I’d say I’ve spoken a new life over myself and have maintained a mentality of what it might mean to be durably fit. Solidity beats me into shape, when I’ve given all of my positive energy to possessing a new attitude. Never will you ever hear me say that I hate my life, because what so easily is given can be gone in a grain of sand. And sometimes, though I don’t feel good after being tormented by the spike balls that life tends to throw at me, still I stand and bare the hit. I live by the faith in Law Of Attraction that when it’s time to call forth a miracle, I will not squint my eyes in hesitation to see the birth of a new era. There were some irrelevant setbacks that did try to make me believe that I was in many situations permanently: Like going back to New York to pay rent to live in a cold basement with an infant, or someone being in connection with the fraud of faxing in a death certificate, so that I couldn’t obtain my degree just to dodge the loans that I am partially responsible for. If money is the root of all happiness, there’s evil works in that. There are no limits, when it comes to how I choose to apply FAITH to my life; The Law Of Attraction is faith, but choosing to have it within ones own self. The Law of Attraction & Power of Positive Thinking: My life is greatby Ferry Fleurimond
University of Central Florida I am full of joy, happiness, and excitement. My internal soul is as elevated as can be as I am in this very moment typing these words. Life is great and I expect and believe it to persist in such a way. I graduated high school with great achievements and one of the top students in my class. I've spent two years in Massachusetts serving others in order for them to live fulfilled, joyful lives. The last five years have brought abundance in unimaginable ways. I have encountered so many new friends through sports, school, and social events who makes life special. I graduated college in psychology with honors (top 5% of my class). I have been accepted into one of the top Industrial-Organizational Psychology universities in the nation for their master's program. Most importantly, I've been offered a research assistantship position which allows me to receive a stipend, health insurance, and tuition waivers as I go through school. We've found an apartment in Florida and sold our current apartment on short notice. I found the love of my life on Thursday January 26th, 2012. We were married almost a year after such an eventful day on January 5th, 2013. After a year of trying, we are now expecting a healthy baby on October 19th of this year 2015. Let me reiterate, life is GREAT and my soul is vibrant and full of happiness. But it wasn't always this way. In fact, life was poverty, scarcity, and disappointments. I was born and raised in Haiti with little opportunities. My mother had to move to the United States leaving her children behind when I was only four years old to seek better financial opportunities. As a result, I spent my childhood years not with my mother but lived with my grandmother, aunt, and eventually my father. To make a long story short, life WAS disappointments. I REMEMBER longing to be with my mother when others didn’t treat me well because I knew that my own mother would love me enough to care. I REMEMBER my father borrowing money from people—not the bank or credit cards because they didn’t exist for us—to feed us and send us to school. I REMEMBER my father telling me to tell those to whom he owed money that he wasn’t home. I REMEMBER being grateful for the free school lunches because that meant I would at least have something to eat in case there wasn’t anything at home. I REMEMBER crying and waiting for that day when I would be with my mother and everything would be okay. That day did come to reunite with my mother. My siblings and I moved to Florida to live with mother on the 3rd of January 2001 BUT everything was not okay as I expected. In the eyes of a soon-to-be teenager—I was almost 13 years old at the time—the struggles just continued. On top of it all, I had to adjust to a new culture and learn a whole new, unfamiliar language. I thought it was supposed to be better in America, but that wasn’t the case. I watched my mother worked tirelessly—multiple jobs at times to keep her family of eight afloat. She worked days, nights, overtime, etc. She did whatever it took but it was always the same—we were just SURVIVING. I REMEMBER my mother worrying about where the money would come from at the end of the month to pay the rent and the other bills. I REMEMBER us settling for second best because we couldn’t afford anything better. I REMEMBER my mother doing all she could to get us new clothes and school supplies as the new school year approached. I REMEMBER wondering when and if this misery would ever end. Despite all of these disappointments, starting as a little boy in Haiti and continued even in America, something inside me just kept me going. Why didn’t I surrender to victim city? Why is my life so full of happiness? Why are things going so great? I’ve now come to learn and know that what kept me going all of these years is ONE SIMPLE THING. It has allowed me to go from scarcity to abundance. It has allowed me to go from finite to infinite. It has allowed me to go from sadness to happiness. It has allowed me to go from worrisome to calmness. It has allowed me to go from limit to limitless. What is this ONE SIMPLE THING one might ask? Well, it is MY ATTITUDE. My mindset has kept me from being a victim. I would have remained in my recurring state, and continued to attract lack and scarcity in my life if I had given in to the victim mentality. But I never did. I know now and as a little child I knew internally without knowing explicitly that my attitude would determine my altitude. The mind is a powerful weapon; through it we will create our own reality. Your subconscious mind will go wherever you want it to go, whether scarcity or abundance. Whatever we focus on or send out will come back to us. This is the law of the harvest, and we will reap what we sow in our minds. I CHOSE to be positive. I CHOSE to be optimistic. I CHOSE to see the good that could come out of all my experiences. I CHOSE to be happy. I CHOSE to be successful at work, school, and life. I CHOSE to be great in life. I CHOOSE all of these things because I know that “whatever the mind of a man (and I’ll add woman) can conceive and believe, it will achieve.” As I stated at the very beginning, I am full of joy, happiness, and excitement. My internal soul is as elevated as can be as I am in this very moment typing these words. Life is great and I expect and believe it to persist in such a way because that’s the path I CHOSE and that is my final CHOICE—I CHOOSE to have a great life. Regardless of the difficulties or obstacles I may face, I’ve already made my decision to see the opportunities out of them rather than to be a victim, focus on the bad, or complain. What do you want your life to be? What will you do when the unfortunate events happen in your life? What legacy do you want to leave for future generations? What will you CHOOSE? You are the only one who can answer these questions. NOT your feelings or emotions, I mean YOU have to make that CHOICE. You have to CHOOSE. However, I hope you join me, and CHOOSE the path of optimism, happiness, and abundance. Dreams of a Giving Heartby Nicole Sorensen
I have a dream of rising above my upbringing and shining light upon those who are growing up in similar situations by using my education. I believe that I used the law of attraction to get out of my situation combined with hard wrok. Growing up for me wasn’t your typical American upbringing. My mother was an alcoholic and drug addict who was mentally and verbally abusive. My dad had anger management issues. I grew up couch surfing at various friends’ homes and moved into boyfriends’ homes when I outwore my welcome at my friends’ houses. I traded babysitting and cleaning services for food, a roof over my head, and gas to get to and from school. I didn’t have the best of grades though out high school and into college because in addition to not having the basic items needed to thrive, I also have ADD. I am very intelligent but without additional help academically I struggle. I managed to graduate from South Whidbey High School in 2011 at the age of 17 with around 40 college credits thanks to various kind people in the community. I continued to couch surf or occasionally sleep in my car until I turned 18. Though WISH I was able to move into a trailer that was falling apart with my cousin. I worked 3 jobs to save to get out of my situation. I worked a 40 hour job in Langley, a part-time job in Lynnwood, and watched various children in the early hours of the morning. This resulted in usually working 7 days a week with many days that were from 4 AM to 11 PM. I joined the Board of Directors for Ryan’s House for Youth so others would be able to get out of situations like mine. Within a year, I had saved enough to move to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to be with my boyfriend, now husband. I gained a position as a manager within 4 hours of looking for a job in a restaurant with no previous restaurant experience. I moved to a restaurant with better morals where I earned Employee of the Month my first month working there. I even had my name on a plaque on the wall. I was so honored when my superiors and co-workers took the time to show recognition of my hard work that I cried. My husband went with me to counseling to help me get over my trust issues stemming from my childhood. This is where I realized what my purpose in life was. I knew I wanted to help others but I never knew exactly how I wanted to help. After he got injured in the Army we moved back to beautiful Whidbey Island. Twelve hours after driving 3,013 miles across the county, I attended my first Board Meeting back with Ryan’s House for Youth. I now work a 45 hour a week job, help care for my husband who is now an injured veteran, and I want to fulfill my dream and become a Mental Health Therapist to be able to help those who come through the doors at Ryan’s House for Youth. I have strong hopes for my future because I now have a strong support system and an academic plan that is compatible with my learning style. Using the law of attraction I have focused on positive goanls; becoming successful, rising above my childhood, and helping others. With great gratitude, I have done just that. I need to finish school to complete my transformation and help others use the law of attraction to heal and overcome their situations. I have been volunteering for Ryan’s House for Youth since July, 2011. I have helped with many campaigns, events, organizing, strengthening our board, and even sleeping outside to help demonstrate to the public what our homeless youth go through. It brings me tears of joy and tears of sadness but I know that the sadness will be eventually replaced with triumph as we work through various obstacles. Everyone needs counseling at some point in their lives, the students who seek help from Ryan’s House for Youth are in need of extensive counseling and I feel that for me to educate myself in that field would be the greatest thing I could do to help. With the ease that others, including strangers, have opening up to me or even coming up to me and asking if they can cry on my shoulder, I feel I would be great in a position to truly help heal emotional scars. I dream of having my own practice so I can dedicate however much of proceeds I can afford to Ryan’s House for Youth because if I can stop others from not only feeling abandoned, unloved, and rejected but to help them learn the skills to be productive in today’s society, I will be living my dream. Choicesby Jaime Warhurst
The Serenity Prayer is as follows: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference”. I believe this simple prayer encompasses focusing on things that I can control. It is my further belief that having an attitude of gratitude and focusing on the things I can control are synonymous. For almost half of my life I walked around angry. A veritable ball of rage that would potentially lash out at any given time for any mundane reason. A rage that began with my first attempt at college. When a young person goes off to school, it is supposed to be a time of great celebration. A time when a new and exciting future is opened up to them. My time began and ended with me being brutally attacked and raped. I made a choice when I was raped. I chose to be mad at the world. I chose to blame everyone and thing, including myself, for my rape and subsequent dealings with law enforcement. The disappointment I felt over my treatment by law enforcement and our judicial system led me down a path of destruction for the next 18 years. A path of my own making, and one that would take me further down than I ever even imagined. Setting out to break every single law as often as I possibly could led me to a life in and out of jail. Placed on probation time and time again, I never dealt with the root of my rage, only the consequences of it. I would run rampant through the world, being as a succubus on everyone and thing. My life, as it was, led to a climatic finish on interstate I-70 in Utah. March 7, 2013 - the beginning of my end. In a standoff with over 30 law enforcement officials pointing a gun at my own head, I was at a literal and metaphysical crossroad. What could I control in my uncontrollable life? Whether or not I pulled the trigger. I was facing a lot of time and I knew that this was going to end in 1 of 2 ways. Death or jail. I’d been to jail so many times in the past that death seemed like the far better choice. Addiction riddled my past. From the time I was raped, until I finally was stopped in my tracks. I used my addictions as a crutch, an excuse, to act how I wanted. I used my attack as an excuse for my addictions. Everything in my life had a justification behind it so that my choices would be condoned. I was in a vicious cycle of blame until I was forced to sit down and take a hard look at my life and choices. During what I like to refer to as my “legal time-out period”, also known as prison, I learned that every single negative action I had taken since I was attacked was a choice. My choice, and I had no one to blame but myself for the mess I had found myself in. I also learned that I must focus on the here and now. The things I can control. Myself. My choices. How I respond to the bad things that happen in life. It is a question of whether or not I am going to allow outside circumstances have priority over my self-worth and values. Whose fault is it when there is a storm and hail damages my house? No one’s, it just happens. Do I get mad and rage out at my family? My friends? The world? Absolutely not. I see it for what it is. Something unavoidable, beyond my control. I remind myself to be thankful that I even have this roof over my head to begin with. An attitude of gratitude for all circumstances in life, good and bad, are what I can control. The only “X” factor is myself. A tree will fall in my front yard, and will still be fallen regardless of how upset I am that it fell. Choosing to accept that I can either deal with the things of this life or fight them like a fish swimming upstream is the choice we are all faced with everyday. Grattitude is EverythingBy Amber Kinney
Throughout the years, so many of us were raised hearing the phrase, “attitude is everything.” What many of us did not hear, however, was that gratitude is everything. It is easy to insist on adopting a positive attitude, but I have a feeling that many people simply don’t know what that means. A positive attitude has many components, but I believe that gratitude is one of the most crucial. Having an attitude of gratitude is not just being grateful for what you have, but making that gratitude part of your daily life and your personality. Gratitude is not just being thankful for what one has, but also being thankful for what one has been spared from. Gratitude is more than a state of mind – it is a way of life. I, like many others, have struggled to adopt gratitude into my world and keep it there. Turning gratitude from a feeling into a lifestyle is the best way to reap its benefits, but this is certainly easier said than done. We live in a world where we are constantly being convinced that we need more of this, less of that, or something different. We see advertisements, we compare our lives to our neighbors, we look through the lens of the media into the lives of the world’s most fortunate. We have a holiday for giving thanks, which looks good on paper, but unfortunately perpetuates the idea that we need only be thankful one day out of the year. Gratitude is not a novel concept, but one can see how it struggles to thrive in our society. Indeed, it is all too natural to focus on what is wrong in our lives and ignore all that is right. This is not to say that we should ignore our problems; our struggles are very real, and should be acknowledged as such. Still, it is a great virtue to accept the things that dissatisfy us while also being thankful for the ways in which we are satisfied. The times where I was most unhappy were undoubtedly the times where I was most ungrateful. Understandably, the struggles that hurt me the most were the ones involving loss – the divorce of my parents, the loss of multiple long-term relationships… these are things that so many people experience, yet such events never fail to absolutely floor us. I remember during these times that all I could think about was the loss, that feeling of something being missing that could never be replaced. In those moments, I failed to recognize what I still had left. There was so much I could have been thankful for – the fact that I still had both my parents in my life, my relative privilege in the world, even just the fact that I was alive on this earth while so many others were not. Much later in life, I realized that when you are drowning in life’s sorrows, it is up to you to make your own life raft. We can look to others and accept the help we are offered, but in the end our fate is our own doing. One can choose to see the glass half empty, complaining and staring only into the negative space. Or, one can notice the empty space, acknowledge it, and move on to examining the beauty of whatever is left in the glass. So the next time I encountered a challenge, when I found myself starting to wallow, I chose to be thankful instead. For example, when I found out that my Master’s program will not be funded, I was greatly discouraged at the idea of incurring more debt in addition to my loans from undergrad. The thought of owing tens of thousands of dollars to the government is terrifying, to say the least, especially when doing so is the only way to follow my dream of becoming a counselor. I worried about paying off my debt someday. I worried about how I would do it, if I could do it, and how long it would take. I worried knowing that my current loans were earning interest by the minute. I worried that my education might not be worth it. And of course, I silently cursed at how much easier things would be if I had been accepted to a funded graduate program, like so many of my friends. But this time, even with my anxiety at its peak, I knew I had to stop. I actually found that even though these worries were my reality, I was absolutely sick of thinking about things that way. Worrying constantly about things I could not change had become boring and utterly unhealthy. I worked hard in undergrad, I wanted to go to grad school, and now I was getting my wish! How ridiculous it was, for me to complain after getting exactly what I wanted. So instead, I chose to think of all the great things left in my life, from the enormous blessings to the simple things I took for granted. I am thankful that I was accepted to this program, that I’m able to qualify for loans, and that my parents will always support me emotionally, even though they cannot financially. Having an attitude of gratitude won’t change your circumstances, but it will change you. While being grateful will not fund my graduate education, it will make me a better person, which I believe is priceless. I refuse to enter grad school this fall only thinking about the money it will cost me. I refuse to let that fact ruin my valuable time. If you think you’re unhappy now, wait until you see what focusing only on the negatives does to you. To truly be grateful, one must not expect gratitude to be a fix for one’s problems. Instead, one must internalize the practice of being grateful, until it becomes almost automatic. The act of accepting the way things are involves acknowledging the bad and the good alike. I am still learning to do this myself, but even practicing gratitude when I remember to do so makes all the difference. Gratitude allows us to let go of things we should no longer be holding on to. An attitude of gratitude removes the shackles of dissatisfaction, whether real or imagined, and sets us free. Positive ThinkingBy Wendy Miller
At the beginning of the move “The Secret” Rhonda Byrne describes all the way her life had been falling apart. After listing a few tragedies, such as her father’s death and the stress that her work life had caused her, she goes on to say “little did I know at the time, out of my greatest despair was to come the greatest gift. I’d been given a glimpse of a great Secret.” While many write this movie off as a scam, or a tacky self-help guide, this movie has had an incalculable impact on my life and the life of my family. The message of the law of attraction came to my family in much the same way it came to Rhonda Byrne. My parents divorced, my mother was laid off from her job of over 10 years without warning, my father was arrested, our car was repossessed, and we had foreclosed on our house. Many of my mother’s friends dropped groceries off at our doorstep in the night, wanting to avoid the awkward conversation that would accompany such a kind gesture. We started selling our belongings to pay for hotel rooms to stay in and buy food. It seemed we had hit bottom. It was a hard time for me, but I can’t imagine the pain and guilt my mom must have felt as a mother of four. Then one night, in the bottom of a box of food left on our doorstep, we found the movie “The Secret”. We watched it as a family, all five of us gathered under the covers of the queen bed of our hotel room, and it took all of ten minutes before I saw the tears stream down my mother’s face. The impact that this kind gesture had on my mother has served my family far better than any food left on our doorstep. My mother began to watch the movie every morning before going out to find work – to the point where all of us kids could quote basically the entire movie from memory. The progress was slow, but the results were incredible. Six years later: we live in a beautiful apartment in Berkeley, my mom is getting married to the man she has always dreamed of, and she has a stable government job that she loves at the UC Berkeley lab. Although our financial situation is still very tight, we have come so far, and are so grateful for even the most basic elements of our life. While the movie goes on to encourage people to use their positive mental attitude to attract the things they want, the message my family has taken from the movie is a little different. To my family and me, the message of the law of attraction goes much deeper. We don’t necessarily strive to be positive and grateful to get what we want, we strive to be this way for a better life in general. There are so many things happening in this world that we don’t have control over, but one thing you will always have control over is how you treat people, and how you react to the obstacles in your life. In our case, our struggles could have ended very differently. My mother could’ve decided that life had defeated her and given up, resorted to illegal ways to earn money. My siblings could’ve ended up in gangs, as the part of town we were hotel-living in was a pretty bad neighborhood. Instead, my mother stayed strong and stayed positive. With each small feat my family grew tighter, and more grateful and positive. The results speak for themselves. The fact is, when you choose to be positive, and hit your obstacles head-on with the knowledge that you will be successful, your whole life will be better. Your relationships with others will improve, your relationship with yourself will improve, and the way your life unfolds will be seen through rose colored lenses. With this, you will become an overall happier person, and even when life is throwing lemons at you, you will be able to handle it with a deft grace. Throughout my years in college, I have had no trouble securing jobs to help pay for my college. I consider myself incredibly lucky considering the unemployment rates in some parts of California are as high as 20%. While I am so grateful to have been able to support myself throughout college thus far, what I really want is to be able to enjoy my time in college without having to worry so much about the financial aspect of it. I don’t want to have to squeeze a class or two in between shifts when I can afford it every other semester; I want to squeeze a little bit of work when I can in between classes. My favorite author, John Irving, said “If you are lucky enough to find a way of life you love, you have to find the courage to live it.” Going to art school is my absolute dream; I can’t even explain how surreal it is to do exactly what I love to do every time I go to school. Everything I have attracted to myself so far has helped me work toward this dream – the fact that a scholarship exists based on the very idea that changed the life of my family is incredible in and of itself. While my struggle is not a unique one in this economy, I believe it is unique to be able to take ownership of my own life and appreciate everything I am given. Sometimes these things take a lot of work, and a lot of essay writing, but it pretty much always pays off in the end. Education and life goalsBy Mary Cordle
Education and Life Goals In my younger years, there were three sisters and me that had a magnificent desire to attend college. In those days, there were limited opportunities for this venture. As years went by, and the social and economic environment changed, the college opportunities became very widespread. Corporations were beginning to rise, and their employees were required to have a college degree for a better job. Colleges became more affordable and offered enhanced access to higher education. I had worked at various jobs, volunteered at our local hospital, and established a coupon club in our community during the economic downturn. I had been a member in our local Extension Clubs for ten years before making these decisions. I knew I needed to obtain my bachelor’s degree in management to be more efficient in my job maneuvers. One of my sisters had become depressed and did not get back school. I had entered college in 2000 at our local campus of Bluefield Sate in West Virginia and had graduated with an AAS in Business Administration in 2006. I had taken many college classes because I was so ambitious, but could not decide on a degree program. As our dream began to unfold, our Mom died in 2002 just four months before a tragic death hit our younger sister that had been Mom’s caregiver. I was attending our local college and had stopped by to check on her when I discovered her death. Just four months later, a neighbor that proved to be a stalker had been harassing my family members and informed them he was going to kill them in a short while. He said he was going to kill his dogs then come for them, and that would be their sign to watch for him. After three months, they were caught in a compromising position and shot at close range with a 30-30 rifle. He had been released from prison a short while before stalking began to overwhelm him. He had been an inmate because of murdering two people in the past. My sister’s future dreams and goals had just vanished. I knew I had to stay in school, but my mind had become fogged, and my outlook dismayed. I knew if I dropped out of school, I might never return again. While attending school, I was working part-time, was a caregiver to an elderly lady, and had developed pancreatitis in 2006. I became deathly ill, and my doctors at UVA (University of Virginia Medical Center) had only given me a 50-50 chance of survival. I had become sick and had to be transported to the hospital just about every week of that summer. I always had to be taken off of food for two days each time I had this attack. I was experiencing panic attacks from the prolonged use of anesthesia. Finally, after several weekly attacks and various day surgery experiences my doctor gave me the news I did not have it anymore. With prayer and healing, I recovered within four years. I realized by then I needed to obtain a bachelor’s degree to have even a slight chance of getting back into the workforce. My husband had passed a bad attitude concerning college to my children. I had to change their attitude and show them the benefits of a good college education. I was determined to get this accomplished. Not only for my career enhancement, but also for an advocate for my children and others that needed further education. Plan for Achieving These Goals My career goals are to get my degree, get back into the workforce, and set an example for my children and others for furthering their education. My daughter has been working on a degree at the University of Phoenix for the last two years. She obtained her AAS in Psychology after I began attending there. I am now ready to graduate in June or July of 2015 with my Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management if I get this scholarship. This is my only option to pay for my finishing classes. I crave this desire to obtain my Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management. I would like to be an advocate for further education. I desire to set an example for my children by proving the college experience can be rewarding. This degree will help get back into the workforce. I implore you to; please help me to achieve my dreams and goals to graduate in 2015 with my Bachelor’s in Business Management from the University of Phoenix. Why I Selected This Degree Over the years, I have been in the leadership position. When working at our local hardware store I was in the management position on the weekends. I established a local coupon club for our community during our economic family hardships. I had been planning events in the family. I had become accustomed to leading people in various programs at our local church. For instance, VBS, my children’s church class I had established, and had worked with secretarial positions. I had created and developed church directories, flyers, and invitations. For these reasons, I discovered I would be best in the management position. I had to lead various work efforts before I saw myself for what I was becoming. ___________________________
AchievementBy Amanda R.
UC Davis In November 2008 I was violently mugged at gunpoint by three gang-affiliated males on my way to the library. The devastating event took its toll over the next few months as Post Traumatic Stress sunk its teeth into me and tore through my world. My support group shattered, my grades plunged, my gpa plummeted, my financial aid was cut, culminating in upaid fees and financial debt piled heavily. I transferred to UCLA later that year to seek a specialist’s help for PTSD. Upon my return to UC Davis, I had a falling out with my parents, when I choose to continue to pursue my education. Suddenly independent, I returned back to Davis familyless and alone. Thinking I could get my life back on track by returning, I was wrong. Being unable to pay my outstanding fees nor receive financial aid due to my previous academic standing, I could hardly afford to live—let alone pay for school. The crushing weight of this traumatic event pinned me down and prevented me from being able to provide for myself, causing me to drop out of school. My mindset shifted from attending school to focusing on my survival and the dreaming stopped. In a bad economy nobody wanted to hire a 21 year old girl with zero job experience and no car. For the next 4 years, I would be locked into the system of debt. After four years of struggling mentally and financially, I discovered my inner strength and grew to overcome, shedding myself of this weight, brick by brick. With all odds against me, 20,000 in debt, aggravated PTSD, no form of support, and struggling to eat, how was I able to do this? By changing my thinking. When I decided to come back to school I had no idea how tough it would be. I had no money, no job and times were tough. I had no help, no support, aggravated and untreated PTSD and the outcome of everything was uncertain. At times I really began like giving up. Then one day, it really sunk in that I was all that I had was me, that no help was coming. I was the only one who could get myself out of my situation; that my destiny, despite the horrific actions that brought me there, solely relied on me. Yes it would be hard, yes it would be tough, because the odds were stacked against me and there was very little that I could control, but I was the only way out. The one thing that I did have control over was my mind. It was in the way I chose to perceive things (changing this would be challenging because I did have PTSD). It was in that moment in the school of hard knocks that I began to learn about the Law of Attraction. The Law of Attraction is the principle that what you seek and what you put out will come back to you. If you speak positively and put out positivity into the world, the world will send positivity right back your way. However, it is not that simple. The law consists of the several principles that you must implement to see any effect. The Law of Attraction consists of the power of vision, the power of spoken word and the power of thought. In game planning how to get out of my situation, I realized I need to decided what I wanted- a goal- hence the power of vision. The power of vision is keeping in mind what you want to achieve or where you want to end up, and working backwards from there. More than anything, I wanted to go back to school, hence the solidification of my vision. In order to go back to school, I needed money and with only a part-time job, living paycheck to paycheck and not much luck being hired anywhere else, this feat would be tough. Learning finances were at the core and at the same time that there was little I could do, I was determined to make it work. So I began to look for any opportunity to save. If I was going to really make this happen I needed to have high discipline. It was through my struggle to survive that I learned the true value of a dollar. I chose to stop taking the bus and instead opted for walking a mile or two, saving one dollar at a time. I chose to eliminate the things I wanted, paying only for what I needed. I knew that the only way for me to return to school, was to use my insight to make effective changes. I taught myself how to budget, down to the last cent. How much was I making an hour AFTER tax? How much was I spending and on what? What can I live without? There were times that this was extremely tough on me, but the way I kept myself strong was through learning to change my perspective, thinking, and speech. I decided no matter how bad things got, to only speak what I wanted and only look for the positive aspects of my situation, hence the power of spoken word and the power of thought. In learning to speak what I want and in a positive manner, I raised my self confidence and had more relaxed state of mind. In learning to search for the positive in every situation, I learned to be grateful for what I had which in turn took a great deal of pressure and stress off my back and helped me pull through tough times. Additionally I would keep my vision strong by posting a picture of the school above my bed, so that every night I could see what I was leaving to achieve. With financial self education, drive to overcome, and power of positive thinking, I gained the courage to walk into a bank and interview for a position as a teller with no job experience in finance. I was hired and instantly fell in love with my job. Being something I was passionate about, I took every chance to educate people about their finances. In March 2014 a break came and I finally secured for myself a solid second job. Seizing this golden opportunity, I loaded on as many hours as I could and worked 60-70 weekly for the entire summer with one goal in mind: return to school. With intense budgeting, highly unwavering discipline, and 5 appeals, I was able to pay off the fees and was reaccepted into UCDAVIS for Fall 2014. Through the Power of Attraction and highly disciplined financial management I afforded myself the ability to return to school. Despite the last four years I was not enrolled, I feel more centered than ever. I want to help other victims of trauma overcome their situations and emerge from the rubble stronger than ever; to understand their limitations and defeat them for even in adversity can we grow; I want them to realize that they are not alone. To just hold strong and we will fight through this together. To know they can and will get their life back. To show that our limitations lie in none. College is the place where my dreams may become concrete. As a full-time student who works two jobs as a means to survive, I am unable to partake in necessary activities that aid in educational development that can strengthen my pivotal role in the lives of others. This scholarship will allow me the security and flexibility to partake, experience and grow. It is my passport to travel, and not just stand, in the territory of college. Master your own thoughtsBy Amelia Jones
University of Central Florida Service to others is definitely one of the most important personal development principles that there are, in my opinion, and it is one that is very close to my heart. Helping others is something that has always brought me great joy. Service is what makes a group of people a community. Community members help one another, allowing the world to run successfully. Service to others can be done in many different ways, from little gestures to big projects. Personally, I try to get involved in any service projects I can. Throughout my time in school I have participated in numerous service events and programs. Some of the most impactful projects I have been involved with have centered around children. Last year, I joined a program that allowed me to teach American Sign Language to kindergarten and first grade students at a local elementary school. It was very rewarding to work with the children and enrich their lives. I also volunteered to assist the high school Sign Language teachers with their classes. This last semester I was involved in a service learning program in which once a week I travelled to an inner city elementary school and worked with a class of first graders, teaching them valuable life lessons and instilling in them principles such as the importance of goal setting, how to interact with others and how to be successful throughout life. This was an amazing experience as I was able to make a real impact on these children. Most of the kids who attend the school I worked with were from an impoverished or low income area and did not have the best home lives. To provide further assistance to these children, the university I attend held a Thanksgiving food drive to allow the students and their families to have a Thanksgiving dinner that they may not have been able to have otherwise. I was especially touched by these kids, and in an effort to provide more for them than we could through the food drive, I contacted all of the local grocery stores and went through their various processes of requesting donations in hopes to provide Thanksgiving turkeys to the children. I received monetary donations from multiple grocers that were then used to buy more food so that we could reach even more families for the holidays. I find it especially important to work with children because I am not only able to provide service for them, but also instill in them the importance of serving others and how rewarding it truly can be. Now is a great time in my life to focus on helping young members of society because I am at an age that is still relatable to children, but old enough to be role model. By serving the children in my community, I am able to set the example for them to do the same in the future, furthering the cycle of service for future generations. In addition to my work with children, I also volunteered with my local chapter of Best Buddies. Best Buddies is an international organization that provides friendship and inclusion to individuals who have intellectual or developmental disabilities. It was wonderful to be involved with the amazing individuals in the program and to be able to make a difference for them in their daily lives. I also had the opportunity to participate in a walk to benefit autism with the family of an autistic child that I cared for. I have also worked with organizations such as the National Beta Club, a service organization that strives to instill a passion for service and leadership in the youth of America. I’ve also found that the small opportunities that we have on a daily basis to help others are just as important as the big efforts. Whether it’s donating a gift to a holiday drive, or donating money to the fundraiser at the grocery store, or purchasing a meal for someone who needs it, these little efforts are more important than we realize. Small gestures of service to those who need it can sometimes be life changing. I think the most important thing to remember when it comes to service is that no matter race, religion, gender, or ethnicity, we are all human and we must take care of one another. One of my favorite quotes in the entire world comes from Mother Teresa: “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” This quote perfectly sums up my feelings on service to others. Service is meant to be done not for credit or for the ego boost, but because it is our duty as human beings to help one another. Service is good that is done without expectation or hope for a reward. Providing happiness or making someone else’s life just a little easier is the goal of service to others. My hope is to use the life I have been given to make as much of a positive impact through service to others as I can, and inspire others to do the same. Master your own thoughtsBy Christina Joseph
I am Christina Joseph. In 2008 my life and the life of my three young children changed drastically. As I spoke to the councilor at the shelter for battered women, I began to realize that I had the power to choose a better life for myself and my children. Living in a homeless shelter with my youngest daughter only four months old was challenging, but the freedom I began to find through changing my thinking made all the difference. I wanted to provide for my children a stable two parent home. The negative thinking, spurred on through the flourishing seeds of brokenness and resentment harbored by my children’s father were given center stage in the marital home. My thought process and daily goals consisted of: if I love this man enough he will intern go back to being the man he portrayed himself to be before we married. In essence I was deceived into thinking I could, through selfless devotion and servitude earn the love that is right of every bride. Daily life turned into a game of emotional Russian Rullet. Which personality was going to walk through the door? Was it the charming church goer who so many single women swooned over? Or the egotistical, dictatorial, and patriarchal man who emerged only hours after we said our vows. At the time I did not know how to verbalize the helplessness I was learning to become accustomed to. To pacify the aggressive nature of the man I married I had to back down from pursuing my education, my choice of clothing, city to live in, and control of my money. Like a frog in a pot of water, with the temperature rising little by little so it was with me. Each an attempt to control the choices of my husband but I was blind to the fact that I was his puppet. I surrendered my power to choose. I gave it up, progressively, but true to the course I became defeated in my mentality. After the birth of my third child, we all took a trip to visit my husband’s family in the Caribbean. There, the culture of family violence of which I was entirely naive to, became a blazing red flag in my sight. After a violent episode perpetrated by my husband towards his mother, my children, my husband, and I came back to the states. It was a matter of weeks before he threatened me with the same treatment if I didn’t get in line and listen to him. It was at this point, I started to awaken, and change my way of thinking. I had come face to face with the fact that my way of doing things had gotten me the polar opposite of what I was aiming for. By the end of the week, I took my children and I to a local women’s shelter. Although homeless, we were finally safe. The freedom from living in constant fear for our safety was a complete relief. Were we homeless? Yes. Did I have two children in diapers and one in kindergarten? Yes. Did I have answers about how all the detail of what to do next worked out? No. But what I did have was my freedom, and the peace of knowing if we were going to get hurt it was not going to be at the hands of my husband. This was the start of a shift in the fundamental way I thought. I awakened to the reality that as a mother I have a responsibility before God to first provide safety for my children. That my safety and there’s matter to God. I didn’t know it at the time but my self-image was very low. I did not have a positive self-image at all. But as time passed and I saw that I was capable of making right choices that produced positive results, thus I grew in my strength and confidence. Less than a month after I left, I was served divorce papers. Although this was a shock, it was a blessing dressed up as another heart ache. Within five months of leaving the women’s shelter I was enrolled in college, and my children started swimming lessons. Now, seven years later I look back and it is as though I am watching another’s life. I wish I could give my former self a hug. If I could give some advice to the old me, one important aspect I would focus on is to be the master of my own thoughts. I realize now, that I have the power to choose what I think. I use to believe that if I kept thinking about all the times I failed, that I would remember to improve. I now know to focus on the light not the darkness. I use to desperately try and search for some trace amount of light to praise about my children’s father, all the while in my mind I replayed the same tired track of my own short comings. Now I know, to be kind to myself. As I continue through this journey that is life, I choose to educate myself on how to improve instead of ridiculing myself. I choose to stand in the light. Is there darkness in the world? Yes, this is undeniable. But the paradigm shift takes place when I make the choice, on purpose to focus on the light, and be a part of the light. Can I force another person to do the same? No. That is not my job. By putting practical steps into place to make my dreams a reality I am creating better moments in which to live. Now, as a free woman, I use all of my mind and heart. To survive in the environment that was my marriage I had to not live in the moment. I had to suppress that intuition that was my true self. As I went through the metamorphosis that has been the past seven years one of my montra was “No wasted moments.” This was the daily commitment to being present in the moment. Being a participant of my own life. Not allowing fear and shame to numb and mute me. I learned to forgive myself, and improve myself. The gift of brokenness as watered the seeds of hope. Rebuilding myself from the inside out has been a difficult but worthwhile endeavor. Now, as a student in the Bachelor’s of Health Service Administration, being certified in electronic medical records, and pursuing my 501 C3 not for profit to help other women live in the light and my certifications as a personal trainer, I am proud of the life I am living. Each moment is a choice, and instead of signing out mentally I am signing in and loving it. Are there hard days? Of course, being a young single mother of three young children, a full time college student, part time employee and community volunteer create a lot of responsibility. But responsibility, as with life is a gift. As I stand in the light and choose daily to be grateful for the life that I have and the miracles around me both big and small; I often pause to breath in and thank God for the progress I’ve made and the process that is still taking place in me. I am encouraged, humbled, thankful, and hopeful as I continue to grow and demonstrate to my children and community how to do the same. Understanding through personal experienceBy Cassi Saunders
I believe in the power of real-life experiences. I am only twenty years old, therefore, I have been in school practically my entire life. I have recently came to the conclusion that no matter how many lectures we sit through or the advice we receive, we rely heavily on our own real-life experiences to provide us with the knowledge we need. The following essay demonstrates the importance of real life experiences. On September 28, 2004, at the age of 10, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. This diagnosis launched my curiosity in medicine and the human body. After my diagnosis, I continued to be a very sickly child, visiting more specialists and primary care doctors at the age of 18 than most have seen in a lifetime. My experiences as a patient, primarily the patient-doctor relationships, have been my motivation to excel in school and in my community so that I can achieve my goal of becoming a physician. In order to achieve this goal, I am currently double majoring in biology and pre-medicine. I aspire to one day become a pediatric endocrinologist to treat kids, like myself, who suffer from type one diabetes. In order to be admitted into medical school, an applicant must have a four year bachelor’s degree with specific science courses under their belt. An admissions committee also reviews an applicant’s GPA and MCAT score. However, the admissions process has no requirement for an applicant to shadow a physician or gain any clinical hours. In my opinion, if an applicant does not have these experiences, then he or she cannot say with any certainty that a career as a physician is the best path to pursue. I am very knowledgeable in various sciences; not only will I have a major in biology, I will also have a minor in chemistry. The many science classes I have taken have led me to understand the way in which our body systems interact with one another, the major chemical reactions that take place, how bacteria and viruses infect human cells, and how certain drugs function. Knowledge of these subjects will benefit me in medical school and I will also be able to apply them to my every day work as a physician. My undergraduate university has given me more than enough textual knowledge to succeed in medical school. However, being a physician is not just about knowing the science behind a disease and a way in which to treat it. A physician’s primary concern is their patient. Without real-life medical experiences, a pre-med student cannot gain an accurate feel for what the life of a physician is like. Through my volunteer work I have discovered what it means to give back and how I can make a difference as a physician. I began volunteering at a local free clinic several months ago and will continue to serve there until I am admitted into medical school. The John P. Murray Community Care Clinic is situated in the rural town of Albemarle, North Carolina. When I first started volunteering there I wasn't really sure what to expect, but to my surprise, I fell in love with working at this free clinic. Not only have I gained real-world healthcare experience, but I have gained new insight into our healthcare system. Prior to starting at the clinic, I only had the opportunity to shadow at various doctor's offices and hospitals. Once I began at the clinic, I started to better understand the lack of medicine and physicians available to those without insurance and the unemployed. Through volunteering at the clinic each week, I have been privileged to watch many well-respected physicians donate their time to the members of their communities. The physicians receive absolutely no compensation other than the satisfaction that goes along with community service. These physicians have shown me the real meaning of making a difference. Not only do they work in a rural, under-served area, they also feel compelled to give back to their community. I am inspired week to week by the numerous physicians that have made a commitment to the John P. Murray Community Care Clinic. I one day hope to serve my community in the same way that they serve theirs. My responsibilities at the clinic include checking patients in, taking their vitals, and assisting the nurses and doctors in whatever they need. I have seen first-hand a level of poverty that was once unknown to me. The patients that are seen at the John P. Murray Community Care Clinic are out of options and many would not receive any type of care if it was not for this clinic and the doctors that volunteer there. Some of these patients, have been sick and in need of medical attention for long periods of time but have not received any care due to the fact they cannot afford a trip to the doctor. I have seen tears in the eyes of the patients, many on their last straw, desperate for some relief. Having gained this experience shadowing various doctors for the last year and a half, my aspirations to attend medical school have held firm, only intensifying with every experience. Through my experiences I have come to the conclusion that not only can I fulfill my dream of being a physician, but I can also volunteer my time to give back and make a huge difference in the lives of others. My experiences at the John P. Murray Community Care Clinic have shaped my future. Before volunteering there, I had no real knowledge of what life as a physician entailed. The classes that I have been required to take for admission into medical school have given me a very strong science background, but gave me no real world knowledge of what to expect as a practicing physician. My experiences in the clinic have given me a taste of what to expect, which has motivated me to really buckle down my junior and senior year of college. Sometimes a lecture on a particular subject does not do the subject justice. We can understand and give a more significant meaning to something when we go out and experience it on our own. My experiences in the clinic have shaped my understanding of how physicians treat problems more than any textbook or pre-medicine class could ever teach me. Passion and responsibility in helping othersBy Elizabeth Burroughs
We at Meadow Montessori School commit to challenge and empower one another to discover our unique talents and abilities so as a community of life-long learners we are inspired to serve humanity. This mission statement of Meadow Montessori, my alma mater from preschool through high school, has shaped the young woman I have developed into today. It has influenced my entire outlook on life. During my fourteen years immersed in a Montessori education I have been able to cultivate three attributes necessary for a fulfilling and successful life: curiosity, concentration, and compassion. I was not able to acquire these qualities effortlessly; Meadow taught me the importance of these attributes, but I had to put them into practice outside of the classroom. Through numerous experiences, including a service trip to Belize, a local music event I participated in, and a farming trip in Maine, I have learned how to develop a hands-on approach to life--to see, to touch, to actively engage with the world around me. In ninth grade, as “servers of humanity,” my high school class decided to extend beyond the local community and embarked on a service trip to Belize. I was able to test my leadership skills and establish friendships in a completely different and larger environment. My class volunteered to build a concrete sidewalk and garbage pit, and to establish a recycling program for a local elementary school in an impoverished area of Belize. Upon arrival, I was astounded to see their schoolyard littered with garbage because they lacked a sufficient garbage disposal system. In addition, almost all of the students went barefoot on a campus that had no sidewalks. I was amazed to learn that when it rained, students had no choice but to walk through large mud pools and bring the mess with them into their classrooms. Part of the process of building the sidewalk and garbage enclosure included collecting water from a small, nearby stream to combine with the concrete mixture and manually “kneading” the mixture with shovels. We then put the mixture in wheelbarrows, wheeled it to the dug out area, and shoveled and carefully spread it out evenly. While the new sidewalk was being made, we also built a cement container to hold all of the school’s garbage. The work to renovate their situation was challenging but very rewarding. During our work breaks, we sang songs and played games with all of the students. Soccer was the game that everyone gathered around to watch. I remember so many students approaching us with hugs to thank us for not only improving their school, but being such good friends as well. It was a wonderful feeling knowing that we were making a difference in their lives--and they were making a difference in our. After that trip in ninth grade I looked for ways to remain a server of humanity. As a volunteer, I tutored under-privileged elementary children in my hometown on a weekly basis. In 2012, I was in a folk-rock band and our group volunteered to perform at a homeless shelter benefit concert held by my local community in Monroe, Michigan. As part of the Homelessness Awareness week, the goal of the concert was to educate the community on the local homeless situation, to assist in changing the perception people may have of homelessness, and to bring the community together to raise donations in blankets and money for the homeless community. This annual event hopes to reduce, if not eliminate, homelessness in my town. Monroe is only a small city nestled between the larger Michigan cities of Ann Arbor and Detroit, yet it has 119 homeless people--children as well as adults. Before I participated in this event, I was completely unaware of this tragedy existing right around me. I was committed to continuing my service efforts and building relationships with communities. During my first year in college I decided to utilize my service efforts as well as my love for nature in a wwoofing experience in Maine. Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) organization’s goal is to establish a connection between visitors and organic farmers, facilitating an educational exchange and promoting the development of a global community that fosters ecological farming practices. This past summer I traveled to a small town in Maine to work for a month on a small plant-based vegetable farm. Daily tasks on the farm included soil prep, planting, mulching, weeding, watering and harvesting. We built compost out of seaweed, leaves and spoiled hay that we gathered. At one point, we had so many tomato seedlings that all of us on the farm decided to give the seedlings away to residents in the community. In addition to working on that farm, I volunteered at two other farms as well as an animal sanctuary. Not only did I learn and promote sustainable farming methods and lend assistance where help was needed, but I also built relationships with incredible people whom I still stay in contact with. These experiences helped fuel my curiosity, concentration and compassion. Through all of the service opportunities I have participated in I am consistently reminded of Meadow Montessori’s mission statement. I have found a passion and responsibility in helping others and it is my personal mission to share my talents for the betterment of those around me. Put in the effortBy Ashley Rose
The developmental principle that I always remember is “you can do anything if you put in the effort”. That principle has held true all throughout my life, and it still holds true. My dad has always told me “I can do anything as long as I put my mind to it” and I have. The results of fowling that principle show in my personal and school life. I’ve always wanted to learn guitar; I tried for years to get my mom to teach me, but all she gave me was a book I didn’t even know how to read the charts in. I didn’t know what string was which, what the different frets meant, or anything. I decided, finally, I’d teach myself all those things. In about three days I taught myself the strings, how to read tablature, and two songs (one of which is Come as You Are by Nirvana). There are many things in my personal life that I was able to do by keeping the principle “you can do anything if you punt in the effort” like ride a bike, but the biggest achievement was in school. In school, not much was expected of me; I have ADD and was put in special ed. classes and speech classes, because I accidentally cursed when I tried to say bench. But my dad kept on treating me like any other kid and I kept on trying my best at everything. By the time I entered 5th Grade I was in all regular classes and doing well in them too. In middle school (grades 6-8) I always had Honor Role. When I entered high school I went for Honors and AP classes; I started off a little rocky, but my dad kept on telling me I could do it. I kept in Honors and AP classes in Science, Social Studies, and English all throughout high school, even when I was doing poorly in some at certain times I kept pushing to do well. I still remember my classmates surprise when I was doing well in a class or did well on a test; I specifically remember senior year in English we had to write a 20 page research paper, I procrastinated on it because I’d get distracted but I finished it nonetheless. The day I got my paper back one of my classmates asked me what I got and I told them a 95, I would have gotten an 100 had I not forgotten to print my title page, and their response wasn’t what I expected; their response was “oh, we all thought you copied and pasted your paper”. Even in my senior year of high school I was looked down on as not good enough to do well, but I ended you graduating as a member of the BETA Club, Band, in high ranking in our schools Air Force Jr. ROTC unit, and as an Honor Graduate. All of that because I kept by the principle of “you can do anything if you put in the effort”. Keeping your goals always presentBy Kiera Grofsik
University of Central Florida Plan, plan, plan, and plan some more. Sometimes, this is how life can be. Since I was a child, my mentors and the people around me have always emphasized making a plan for my career and following on that path until I achieve my ultimate goal. In my case, this ultimate goal is for me to have a Master’s Degree in Nursing. This dream of mine is always in the back of my head and always tests my decision-making process. This goal is especially present when I decide to watch another episode of the show I’m currently interested in or to go out to dinner with my friends. During this time, I am thinking about how I should probably be focusing on my academics, the goal whispering thoughts in my head such as, “Do you really need to watch this episode again, haven’t you seen it already?” or “You have food at home, don’t waste time by going out to dinner.” Most of the time, I give in to my conscience, feeling a little disappointed as I eat my leftovers and afterwards bringing out my flashcards on the different cells of the body for my test that is coming up that week. Even though sometimes I do become discouraged and wish I could spend more time with my friends or relax a bit more, I feel that I am making a decision that will be best for me for my future. This goal of earning my Master’s Degree does not require one simple step; rather, it requires many to eventually be able to be awarded this honor. I go through these steps and accomplish them monthly, and sometimes even weekly. Being accepted into the University of Central Florida was certainly the first big step. The Nursing program at my school is very highly regarded and difficult to be accepted into. I felt that this challenge would be beneficial to me while I am at the University completing my prerequisites. When I received my acceptance it was the first check off the long list of goals to eventually earn my Master’s Degree. Then, as I continued through school I was able to check more and more off my list to hopefully be accepted into the Nursing program at UCF. Being able to achieve all A’s in my prerequisites for Nursing school was a great accomplishment for me. I believe that I was able to do this by keeping my goals always in the back of my mind. I was able to do this by keeping a planner that helped me organize my schedule. Also, picking up a job in my freshman year of college helped me organize and better plan my schedule. Allowing some of my free time to be spent making outlines for the test the following week and creating flashcards has also been helpful. Having this planner and keeping my ultimate goal in my thought process really helped me be successful in my freshman year and continues to be a big help in my sophomore year of college. As a sophomore, I find that it is much more difficult to balance my time. My main principle is to always keep my goals in mind and focus on these goals in order to achieve them. While in school, my college studies should be my number one priority. This is a topic that my friends and I often discuss. We all understand we have busy schedules and schoolwork always comes first. If we cannot spend time together that specific weekend, there will be plenty of other weekends to come after that to see one another. We are cognoscente students and that has always been a great energy to be around. To always have your goal in mind can seem to be like you are forever on a guilt-trip, having your conscience remind you constantly of all the steps you must take to eventually reach that goal. For me, this is not necessarily the case. To have my goals present in my mind helps me make good choices. An example of this is when I become discouraged if I cannot spend time with my friends or go to an event at night. When I am feeling this way, at the time, it seems that my goals should come easier and then I start thinking I am setting my standards too high. As I start thinking these thoughts, I remind myself to take a step back. I think about how much hard work I have put in to make it thus far, and not about the hard work that is ahead of me. I then think about my goal of getting my Masters, and know that I am able to achieve it. These nights that I spend hours upon hours of studying and preparing for my tests, will all be worth it and my hard work will be rewarded in the end. I will know that I have worked extremely hard for the goal I eventually reach. Now, I am not saying to have your time and energy be completely consumed in this goal that you have; this is definitely not the way to go. Spending time with friends and family is very important to minimize stress levels and to even help you refocus on your goals. During my free time I will go to the movies with my friends or take a walk around campus or in a park. Sometimes, it is good to ignore your conscience and let yourself have a break. It is also very good to give yourself a rest before you decide to study or do some homework. Giving yourself that hour to relax after your day of classes to reenergize is always very helpful. For me, forming study groups with friends and then spending time together hanging out afterwards is always a great reward. In conclusion, a great development principle that I have learned to use is to always keep my goals in mind. By doing this, I have been able to work hard and to enjoy the benefits of hard work. I know that if I continue to persevere, I will reach all of the goals that I have made for myself and be proud of the hard work I put in to help me achieve these goals. The power of positive thinkingBy Luis Sosa
University of Texas Personal development is a lifestyle that I was unaware of until very recently. Many people of whom I am surrounded by tend to be very negative. I was a part of the negative group. I would allow the negativity that was around me consume my positivity. Why? Well the people that I was around lived with the negativity as if nothing were wrong even though they were always looking to put a negative perspective on every obstacle. Being child at the time, negativity was all that I understood. I wanted to fit in a group, so being a part of the “negative individuals” was my only option. My negativity consumed me long enough to the point where I could no longer take being miserable all of the time. During this time I had finally decided to take my twin’s advice. She insisted on being more positive. I also met a person who always had at positive outlook in life. It was through this person that I was taught and understood the principles of personal development. Of course there are several principles about personal development, but there is only one that has made the most profound impact in my life. This principle is called “The Power of Positive Thinking.” I will describe what this principle means, how living with this principle has made an impact in my life, and I will discuss the importance of this principle. What does “The Power of Positive Thinking” even mean? Does positivity even have any power at all? Until just over a year ago, I did not understand what it meant or how it can affect an individual and their surroundings. It is to my understanding that an individual must have a positive mindset even though they are going through a rough time. It was until I met the person, who is now a very good friend of mine, which I began to read books about personal development. The books I read tend to relate about positive thinking. When something bad happens, people begin to think negatively. Why? Maybe it is because bad situations and negativity go hand to hand. Let me give an example of what I mean. When I was in my first year of college, I had very good grades, I was part of the honors program of my community college, and I was doing very well in balancing work and academics. However, after my first year, my grades were not as good as they were before, I was unable to balance work, and I was even removed from the honors program. What happened? Was I partying and hanging out with friends when I was supposed studying? No, I was actually working more to help my family make ends meet and even pay for the rising tuition costs. I was becoming frustrated when I would work thirty to fifty hours a week because I had a very hard time concentrating on my studies. After two years of this constant repetition, I had enough and I began to watch motivational videos on YouTube. This is when I met my friend. He encouraged me to read books about personal development. He shared with me information about having his own business and because of this; he informed that in order to succeed, he needed to have positive mindset. Positive thinking can affect the results a person is striving for. When I failed Math 2413 and University Physics 2425, I began to believe that I was not as smart as the other students. However, after talking with my friend and reading books, I retook the courses again before I could finally pass them with an A. I had to think and even believe in myself even though other people would suggest that I should change my major, because it was too difficult. Living with an understanding of a positive mindset, and going through my personal experience of retaking courses, I can say that having a positive attitude does in fact have power after all. I am not suggesting that it has a mystical power, but for a person who had a negative attitude and then changing it into a positive one, it is power that I did not know I had within me! If I would have never read personal development books, met my friend, or even listened to my twin’s advice, I would definitely not have even looked for scholarships. A few months ago I made the difficult decision of quitting my job. Why? I did not want to go back through the “negative cycle” of working countless hours for money that would not be enough for my college tuition. By keeping my job all I would lose are, study time, good grades, and time that could be spent on looking for scholarships. I risked my job knowing that I would not receive money, but after understanding the “Power of Positive Thinking,” I must believe that I will find scholarships to pay for my college tuition. Even if I am not awarded this scholarship, I will remain positive. I will neglect the negativity. Staying positive is very important to me, because even after graduating with my degree, I have even bigger plans. I want to start my own automotive company. Within my company, I want start an organization for students at all levels of education. I want to inspire students to work in groups and I want them to collaborate with new ideas of addressing certain issues. I plan to make this world a better place for future generations and hopefully inspire “future engineers.” I know that there will be people who will do everything in their power to stop me, but I must not let them stop me from achieving my goals. In order for me to overcome this difficult road ahead, I must keep a positive mindset. I must believe in myself when no one else will. After repeating the failed academic courses, reading and understanding “The Power of Positive Thinking,” I realize that I need to keep a positive mindset to keep trying again until I get the results that I desire. Living with a positive attitude has made me a different person because I took the risk of quitting my job in search for scholarships. Staying positive is very important to me, because I have bigger goals that will have even bigger obstacles that I must overcome. With the help of this scholarship, I will be a step closer towards achieving my dreams of leaving a legacy behind and making the world a better place. Nonetheless, I will remain positive whether or not I win this scholarship. Beating the oddsBy Risa Matsumaura
For the past four years, I have unintentionally lived by the Law of Attraction. It is an idea that people and their thoughts are made from pure energy, very similar to the placebo and nocebo effect where is the false idea that something is some type of medical treatment, but actually is not. The Law of Attraction, in simpler terms, is generated by thoughts that lead to the actions that an individual will take in life. Often times when people start thinking about all the things that could go wrong, they are soaking in so much negativity, making them anxious, fearful, and insecure, that it leads to actions that are self-fulfilling and catastrophic. Instead of focusing on things that one does not want in their life, he or she should shift their focus on things that they want to happen in their lives. By applying the idea that an individual is in control of the outcome of all things in his/her life, it can have a profound impact on their everyday decision making process. From personal experience, I was convinced for twelve years that medicine was the only thing that could cure my headaches and migraines. Some of the symptoms that came with my headaches and migraines were loss of vision, inability to talk or move, lack of hearing and seizures. When I was later diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2013, the doctors began prescribing me a variety of pills in hopes to reduce the inflammation and irritation under my skull due to the tumor. Prior to my diagnosis, I dealt with excruciating headaches and migraines and I often times could not get out of bed for days. With time, my body became heavily reliant on the prescription medicine. It was not until after my brain surgery in November of 2013 that I realized my body had become immuned to the medication and that my body could no longer accept the medicine I was taking, no matter how strong of a pill or how many doses I was taking. Due to the severity of the pain, I began changing my diet, my exercises and the amount of sleep I was getting, instead of hopelessly relying on medicine to get rid of the pain. I knew at a very young age that I would never want to nor would I ever allow myself to rely on medications for the rest of my life. Since then, I have applied the law of attraction to my own experiences believing that if my headaches and migraines can heal on its own with time, medications are absolutely useless to me. Instead of relying on the medicine to relieve the pain, I began focusing my energy and my time towards positive changes. Of course having to deal with the physical, social and mental disabilities has been extremely difficult, but I would not trade it for the world. It has taught me to see past my disabilities because I know how much I am capable of despite the things that are holding me back. By teaching my mind and body that I do not need to abuse medicine the way I had been for thirteen years, I have been able to apply the Law of Attraction to my everyday decision making process. Whether it be through academics or involvement on campus, I know that I am in control of my future. If I want to see something different in my life, I am the only person who can make that happen. For example, the classes I had intended to take at the beginning of the semester during my first year of college were not at all what I ended the semester with. Instead of dwelling on the fact that my expectations of my first semester in college did not go as planned, I focussed on improving on my study habits, finding interest in the courses I was taking, building relationships with other students and the professors, and most importantly, being able to apply what I learned in class to my everyday lifestyle. Looking back, I was able to shift my energy towards something I wanted to see different, which was to better understand my identity and my limits. I have learned to invest my energy and my time into things that will help me rediscover my identity. The Law of Attraction has allowed me to become a stronger, more independent individual since I have begun college. I believe that the best way to apply the law of attraction is to always hope for the best, and expect the worst. Learning through the setbacksBy Kiara Brown
In a general sense, personal development means to do things that help you find yourself and your strengths and weaknesses. It is being able to fully develop your talent and harnessing your true potential. Personal development is a lifelong process of honing your various skills and assessing your qualities, good and bad. Another part of this concept is setting life goals for yourself and growing up into the person that you want to be. But, what exactly does personal development mean to me? To me, personal development is being able to grow into your own skin and become the person that you envision yourself being. It is being able to not succumb to the obstacles that life throws your way. It is about you hardships and turning them into something more, something positive and constructive. This is something that I know very well. I have been dealt many hardships that have made me into the person that I am today. When people hear my story, they look at me in awe and tell me how they would have given up so long ago if they were in my shoes. They respect me for pulling myself up and carrying on. I titled this essay “learning through setbacks” because that is what I have been doing for years. And although my troubles have not completely subsided, I continue to pull through and internalize it in a way that makes me want to do better and be a better person. Growing up was not easy. I was raised in a home riddled with dysfunction and drama. It seemed as if I would never make it out. My father was controlling, narcissistic, demanding, and above all, abusive. His words burned and his hits bruised my skin and my heart. My parents were always fighting and getting into huge arguments that left me and my younger brothers trembling with fear. My parents’ failing relationship turned my mother into an alcoholic and she still has yet to recover. For a short period of time in 2008, my parents decided to divorce. In that time, my brothers and I lived with my mother. This experience is partially the reason that I am who I am today. Living with my mother while the divorce was in action, was a terrible experience that I will be plagued with for the rest of my life. She was extremely abusive and I spent many nights crying myself to sleep. The constant fear and confusion kept me on my toes. I felt as if I was walking on eggshells. I thought that with my dad out of the house, things would be okay. I thought there would be no more abuse and I would have nothing to worry about. I could not have been more wrong. It was a complete disaster. This was the year that I decided that I wanted to become a psychologist. I knew from that point on that I wanted to help people deal with their issues and not become my mother. I also wanted to help people to not feel as hopeless and afraid as I did on a daily basis. The thing about abuse is that it follows you. No matter how old or how stable you’ve become, there’s always going to be a dark feeling lurking around in the back of your mind. Only brought out by familiar cues, like the sound of screaming. This is the past reminding you that you’ll never be whole again. A reminder that the memories are still there, slowly eating away at the furthest region of your brain. No one will understand why it hurts so much. No one will understand why your shield are instantly at the highest of functioning. They won’t get why their tone has suddenly made you feel like the same child you once were, hiding from the harsh hand of life. The only ones that will ever truly understand are those who have seen the same pain. Broken eyes never fail to recognize another set of destroyed pupils. There’s no cure for the broken. No amount of glue and positive regard can reform the shape of what used to be. The only hope of construction management is to figure out a way to channel the emptiness into something better. Something less hopeless. For me, it’s the euphoria from helping those just as broken as I was. No one has the same cracks, no one has exactly the same pieces missing. But somehow all of the missing pieces come together. Fitting as one, like the most perfect puzzle. The only puzzle built in chaos to truly make sense. Personal development is the fact that I realize when it is time to let go and move on from the thing that hurt the most. I am choosing to go to school and make something of myself and one day help other people. I have overcome my hardships by continuing to follow my dreams and better myself and become soothing more than my problems. I have grown into someone that I can be proud of and I am on the path I have laid out for myself. And as I continue to grow, I will be able to make a difference and help people in need. ServiceBy Amelia Jones
University of Central Florida Service to others is definitely one of the most important personal development principles that there are, in my opinion, and it is one that is very close to my heart. Helping others is something that has always brought me great joy. Service is what makes a group of people a community. Community members help one another, allowing the world to run successfully. Service to others can be done in many different ways, from little gestures to big projects. Personally, I try to get involved in any service projects I can. Throughout my time in school I have participated in numerous service events and programs. Some of the most impactful projects I have been involved with have centered around children. Last year, I joined a program that allowed me to teach American Sign Language to kindergarten and first grade students at a local elementary school. It was very rewarding to work with the children and enrich their lives. I also volunteered to assist the high school Sign Language teachers with their classes. This last semester I was involved in a service learning program in which once a week I travelled to an inner city elementary school and worked with a class of first graders, teaching them valuable life lessons and instilling in them principles such as the importance of goal setting, how to interact with others and how to be successful throughout life. This was an amazing experience as I was able to make a real impact on these children. Most of the kids who attend the school I worked with were from an impoverished or low income area and did not have the best home lives. To provide further assistance to these children, the university I attend held a Thanksgiving food drive to allow the students and their families to have a Thanksgiving dinner that they may not have been able to have otherwise. I was especially touched by these kids, and in an effort to provide more for them than we could through the food drive, I contacted all of the local grocery stores and went through their various processes of requesting donations in hopes to provide Thanksgiving turkeys to the children. I received monetary donations from multiple grocers that were then used to buy more food so that we could reach even more families for the holidays. I find it especially important to work with children because I am not only able to provide service for them, but also instill in them the importance of serving others and how rewarding it truly can be. Now is a great time in my life to focus on helping young members of society because I am at an age that is still relatable to children, but old enough to be role model. By serving the children in my community, I am able to set the example for them to do the same in the future, furthering the cycle of service for future generations. In addition to my work with children, I also volunteered with my local chapter of Best Buddies. Best Buddies is an international organization that provides friendship and inclusion to individuals who have intellectual or developmental disabilities. It was wonderful to be involved with the amazing individuals in the program and to be able to make a difference for them in their daily lives. I also had the opportunity to participate in a walk to benefit autism with the family of an autistic child that I cared for. I have also worked with organizations such as the National Beta Club, a service organization that strives to instill a passion for service and leadership in the youth of America. I’ve also found that the small opportunities that we have on a daily basis to help others are just as important as the big efforts. Whether it’s donating a gift to a holiday drive, or donating money to the fundraiser at the grocery store, or purchasing a meal for someone who needs it, these little efforts are more important than we realize. Small gestures of service to those who need it can sometimes be life changing. I think the most important thing to remember when it comes to service is that no matter race, religion, gender, or ethnicity, we are all human and we must take care of one another. One of my favorite quotes in the entire world comes from Mother Teresa: “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” This quote perfectly sums up my feelings on service to others. Service is meant to be done not for credit or for the ego boost, but because it is our duty as human beings to help one another. Service is good that is done without expectation or hope for a reward. Providing happiness or making someone else’s life just a little easier is the goal of service to others. My hope is to use the life I have been given to make as much of a positive impact through service to others as I can, and inspire others to do the same. Success seekingBy Kate Linsley
You dream big, you stay positive and work through the trials, and then you succeed. That statement sums up attaining success, but it doesn't explain the full picture. Achieving your goals usually starts with a dream, yet I've come to realize that there there is lot more in between the dream and the realization of it. Sometimes you don't succeed or, at least, you don't find success in the time frame you were aiming to achieve it in. There have been a lot of ups and downs in my own life and quite a few times where I couldn't tell if I was even going anywhere. More than anything else, I've started to notice that success is an ongoing process that I continue to learn more about each day. I have been at college for over a year now, and I have never worked so hard in my life at reaching my goals than during this past year at college. I've learned how to make goals that I actually achieve and how to continue moving forward even when it becomes a struggle. The main thing I have taken from my experiences is to trust in my future. This idea does not mean I believe everything will be easy and work out just how I want it to be. It is the idea that when I focus on taking control in my life and put in my share of work, I can achieve my goals. It takes a lot more effort than just believing. Believing is only the start. It is the motivation needed to actually work on my goals consistently. Like any kind of trust, my trust in the future is built up through working towards and appreciating the small successes, and learning from the times when I fail. A large part of learning to trust in my future has come through goal-setting. I am surprised how often I fail at doing something well because I did not start by creating the goal to succeed. I learned this point the hard way during my second semester of college while I was studying for a midterm exam. I was doing very well in the class and I wasn't worried about this test. While I was studying, however, I had the thought that I wasn't going to do well on the test. I allowed that thought to stay in my mind, and I did poorly on the test. At first I thought I had predicted the future. But that idea would mean I didn't have a choice about what I was doing and where I was going in my life, making it sound as if I was “doomed” to fail. Since then, I've come to view my life differently. I realized that when I allowed that thought to stick in my head and make me believe I could not do well, I didn't even try to do better. I managed to raise my grade back up by the end of the semester, but the lesson I learned from a time I failed has stayed with me. Even after learning to make goals in order to succeed, I still need to be reminded of it once in while. This past semester was a struggle. I was distracted by family issues at home, and I got off with a bad start the second week into the semester by doing poorly on a test. For weeks I studied more than I did during my freshman year, but I wasn't getting the same results as before. I started wondering what I was doing at college. I didn't have any clear career plans, so what was the point? These negative thoughts distracted me from doing well. I had forgotten to trust in my future. Over Thanksgiving break, with only about three weeks of the semester left to change, I realized I hadn't been making clear goals to study and do well on tests. I decided I would get 100% on my Japanese quiz the next week, even though I hadn't been able to do that well all semester. I only studied a little more than usual for it, but I felt much more focused and positive about the situation. I reached my goal. That inspired me to make goals for the other classes I was struggling with. I chose to succeed. There were still the family problems and other issues in my life that were out of my control, but I focused on what I could do, and put my trust in the future. Now that I've learned to attract success in my schoolwork, I've started to consider other areas in my life that are lacking in success. For the past few years, I've wanted to write stories and become published. I've tried to make goals to complete them, but those goals always fell to the wayside. I got caught up in schoolwork and doing other activities that were more straight-forward. I want to adjust my strategy to reach this type of goal. How do I do something I've never done before, something I don't believe I can do? I needed to change my mind somehow. Instead of becoming frustrated with my inability, I've decided to replace the old phrase “Ugh, I can't do it!” with “what if I could?” Thinking of challenges that way leads me consider how much I would enjoy being able to do that thing, and I create a future vision of success rather than just giving up and stopping myself from being happier. It's only the start of reaching my goals in these areas, but I need to change what I'm thinking inside before I can create what I want on the outside. Searching for success in my life has become a challenge I look forward to mastering. Like learning any other skill, finding success takes consistent practice. Of course, I often wish I could just have a certain skills suddenly without constantly doubting my ability to do them. However, I've come to realize that is not how my life works. Thank goodness. What would I do without challenges to master? Plus, when I make and overcome more challenges for myself, I will gradually learn more about how to get through the one's I don't have any control over. I hope I continue to be surprised whenever I do succeed at something. It is a sign that I am still working towards being who I want to be rather than expecting myself to be perfect and giving up when it gets too hard. Giving backBy John Hernandez
West Texas A&M Hello, my name is John Hernandez, and I live in the city of Long Beach CA. I’m married with three children, and I’m pursuing a Masters in Business and a Masters in Divinity. My reason for studying both majors is because I have a strong desire to make a contribution to my community and the society. The principle of giving back is something I admire a lot because I embrace the Biblical teaching of “it is more blessed to give than receive” (Acts 20:35). However, when I thought of making a difference I then realized how much I needed to prepare in order to make it happen. It was then that I followed my passion to be Biblically ethical and business oriented to keep balance in my life, and focused on my goal of giving something back. One activity I consider outstanding and very meaningful to me is having the opportunity to see a small group of teenagers gathering together once a week to seek direction in life. Everything begun by an invitation to share a Biblical principle to them, and quite frankly this group was small because their expectations were merely within a traditional religious concept. However, my approach was Biblical yet practical at their life stage, and this is what got their attention. I touched on themes such as goals in life and different lifestyles. This was done to motivate them to aspire for more than just what they were experiencing in their social environment. In addition, I was able to talk about actions and their ‘reactions’ or consequences, either positive or negative. I was totally amazed at their awakening! They spread out the word, and what was a small group became a good 40-60 in attendance. There was a lot of interaction, and many interesting and relevant themes, so much so, that even parents were involved and wanted to be part of the class. After a year of continuous teaching, those who had been attracted to gangs and violence, they saw themselves with new possibilities if they could only give a chance to education. Two years after this event, I know of about 10 of them who have persisted in pursuing their education by attending college –this is very meaningful to me because I was able to inspire them. In addition, those who didn’t continue with their education for the moment are now married with children, but still alive and working to sustain their families; doing well and being productive to the society. The most meaningful thing I can keep with me is the words I got from these young ones “we need more people like you to help us”, and many of their parents also told me “If I had someone teaching me these things when I was young, my life would have been so different.” I think I have made a small contribution that will have an impact on people’s lives, and I want to continue doing it –it’s my passion! I just had my graduation ceremony, and the by the grace of God, I achieved a cum laude distinction. However, this ending year has been the most difficult in my life, as I struggled with my oldest daughter’s auto-immune disease that caused her to be in and out of different hospitals for long periods of time. This situation made me realize how much spiritual and economic support is lacking for the families that navigate through life with such challenges. I had the dream of having my daughter be part of my graduation this past December 13th, 2014, but unfortunately we couldn’t do it because she passed on November 5th, 2014 at Keck Medical Center of USC in Los Angeles, CA. During this year, I had the honor to help a couple of families with funeral services for their loved ones who had passed, and when it came to my own situation, I was advised to get help from someone else to do it for me, but I refused because I considered my highest honor to conduct the funeral for my beloved daughter. I must confess how difficult and painful this is, but I strongly believe that God has a purpose in all our situations, even though this may not be clear at the moment. However, two weeks later, someone who had been present at my daughter’s funeral got the terrible news of her youngest son been shot and died. Two days later, I was contacted by them, and they asked me to give them counseling and conducting their funeral. A week later, a friend in the San Francisco area called and asked me for spiritual support as his mother is in the hospital in a critical situation, and I and one of my brothers took time to go and support him with empathy and love. Today, I was approached by someone who asked me if I could put together an orientation class for a new group of teenagers who don’t know what to do with their lives. In addition, I had counseled a group of small entrepreneurs seeking direction, and I’m glad to see their results and how their lives have been transformed with the business couching I have provided. I want to keep excelling in both areas so my contribution can reach out to more people, and my service can be better with more skills and education. The memory of my daughter is giving me the inspiration to be the best at what I do. I hope I can be considered a good candidate for the scholarship so I can achieve the goal of taking my service to a different level, thank you for the opportunity! My personal developmentBy Kavya Maddali
St. Mary's College Hello! My name is Kavya and I am 18 years old. I live in beautiful, sunshiney California. And I go to Saint Mary’s College of California. I was so excited to recently finish my first semester of college! College has been an eventful adventure so far, and I cannot wait for the future. If I want to talk about my personal development, I have to go back to sophomore year in High School. When I started high school, I was determined to get involved. I wanted to be able to show my spirit and pride that I had in everything I did. I played lacrosse, which let me explore my abilities and the ways that I could perform. I joined leadership, which immersed me into so many activities and greatly improved my social life. I also played in the band. When I was a freshmen, I was a horrible student. I did not really care about grades or about trying. I would show up late to practices and would not take time out to practice extra. But I met some amazing role models. My band director always used to say, “This is the last [month,day,year] you will ever get”. He constantly reminded us to value everyday. He made it very apparent to me that I was not living up to my potential. So I took the challenge and signed up for band again. My sophomore year truly started my personal development. I really took in the idea of living in the now. I was lucky to have one of the best teachers ever, Ms. Hollison my former english teacher, who taught me, with the books that we read, to explore myself and find who I am without society's definitions. One book in particular, Siddartha, was about enlightenment and Buddhism. I was instantly fascinated by Buddhism and wanted to explore it. I read into it and fell in love with the Buddhist values. I started using these ideas as mantras that I could guide myself with. One of these quotes is, “Do not dwell in the past, do not dream on the future, concentrate mind on the present moment”(Bhudda). This quote explains the living in the now ideology perfectly to me. As a sophomore who has started working hard, so that she can get good grades, and then get into a good college and so on, this quote helped me stay sane. I could have easily gone crazy dreaming about the future. This is even true for today. This quote constantly reminds me to appreciate everyday and to take life day by day. Living in the now also goes hand in hand with focusing on things you can control. When I used to play lacrosse, I played goalie. The position of goalie is tough. It can be physically tough but is also very emotional hard. Though the goalie is still a part of the team, their role is special in the way that the whole team depends on them and that they are more independent. I noticed that when I went into a game feeling very negative and in a bad mood that it would reflect the way I played, I would play poorly; and vice versa. Once this became apparent to me, I made a conscious decision to make myself feel positive and filled with goodness before a game. This greatly affected the way I played. I saw my performance get better. Even if we did not win, I left the field knowing that I gave it everything I had. And that is what the living in the now principle talks about. If one can control their attitudes to seize everyday as it comes upon you, then they will be happy and feel content and positive. I just started college but I have already had a very low point. I felt very negative and had bad vibes with me towards the beginning of the semester. I was excited to start college and start a new chapter in my life, but that excitement fell when I kept dwelling on my dreams. I became aware of what I was doing and decided to stop daydreaming. I accepted my tiny everyday achievements and enjoyed everyday as it came to me. I found that I became a lot more happier and ready to continue my days. Living by these principles can help begin your journey of personal development. Growth always starts with making a decision to want to grow. Once, you put an effort into growing, growth is inevitable. Growth is also constant. It does not stop. I am proud and happy with who I am today. But I am still excited to see what tomorrow will bring to me. My growth is something that other people noticed in me as well. I became more responsible, my grades improved, my social life improved, I feel like I became a better person. My parents grew up in India, and my sister was more interested in arts so, I was left alone to explore academics. Once I started my growth journey, and I saw that I could handle challenges, I started taking advanced and AP classes. I did well in them, and I found a love for challenging myself. Challenging myself also helped me focus on the now. I am proud of who I am today, who I was in the past, and who I will be tomorrow. Attracting the sunBy Michelle White
I’ve always believed that in order to be successful, you had to pick a life career, and go after it right out of high school. After you graduate from college; you start work, have kids, and then can be be considered a successful contributor to society. However; I have learned that this is not a dreamer’s reality. I remember watching the constant pouring rain that is the Northwest, and wondering how such a beautiful place could be plagued with such a gloomy fate. I constantly worked to loan money to my mom in an attempt to repay her for dedicating her life to raising my sister and I, all by herself. When I wasn’t working or studying to try and finish an associate’s degree and high school diploma at the same time, I was being talked down to in a relationship that smothered my existence and muddled me into an isolated and scared little girl. I craved love and affection in the constant downpour that was my life, so I stayed in a toxic relationship. Having dealt with an on again-off again father, I had trouble coping with abandonment issues and tried to never leave anyone like I felt I was left. My life was a storm, and there was never a calm before or rainbow after it. Thinking that getting a degree and starting university in pursuit of a career would lead me to happiness, I registered for university after looking up professions that made the highest salaries. Life has a funny way of smacking the ice cream cone out of your hand and onto the ground, forcing you to live up to your true potential. Two weeks into my first semester of college, I got the life-changing news that my financial aid didn’t go through, and if I wanted to stay in my classes I’d have to take out loans. Refusing to go into debt, I began working a second job to save money for school. I decided to wait until the next semester when I could save up money, hopefully get my financial aid sorted out, and start fresh. During the summer of my first year not in school, I fell madly in love with the sun. This colossal ball of heat ignited a flame inside me that will never burn out. The sun that seldom rose and shined upon the majestic Douglas Fir trees and rivers that are ever abundant in Oregon had caused my eyes to crave a new beauty that wasn’t dampened by the rain. The sun was the torch lighting the world in a way I had never seen before. Having a new found joy, and more free time on my hands wasn’t healthy for a poisonous relationship that thrived on negativity. So, quickly into summer we had our last and final separation. I didn’t need him when I felt the heat warming my darkened soul. I dreamt of seeing my lover, the sun, every day. I suddenly saw the mountains as a chance to explore and see sights I haven’t seen before. I couldn’t shake the desire to feel the sun in more ways. I realized my eyes and life were so filled with fog I forgot how bright new adventures make you feel. Then it happened. One of my old co-workers posted a picture of the beach on her social network page, and how she loved living in Hawai’i. The idea became a wildfire in my mind taking over my interest in anything else. Greatness comes when you jump out of the nest and dive into the deep. It scares you from the depths of your core, but if you choose to quiet the fears it will take you to unimaginable heights. There was my calling, my reunion with my dreams. It took only two weeks of living on my old coworker’s couch in Hawai’i before I found a job and a room for rent. Instead of feeling like a slave to cultural expectations, I was defining my own rules and taking control of my life. I made the conscious decision to wake up each day deciding to be happy. I started to realize how much control I had over what happened to me. Just feeling the sun on my back and getting rid of someone who made me miserable changed my whole perception on what I could do with my life. Life was magic, and I had found paradise. Everything brought delight to my eyes and fullness to my heart. The new plan was set, and I had finally figured it all out. My idea was to decide what I really wanted to do with my life, and then start school. I would never again choose a profession for a silly desire such as money. The swaying palm trees, flowing tide, and Van Gogh of all sunsets I witnessed every day in Hawai’i was happiness. I knew that nothing would take that from me. Having one dream come true, I realized my full capacity to make life as wonderful as I wanted it to be. Being out there in the middle of the Pacific, I felt so much closer to the rest of the world. With the world and the power at my fingertips, I was ready to embark on new adventures and keep expanding my ever-growing horizon. As I started to look at all places around the world, I recalled learning about Buddhism my sophomore year, and feeling so fascinated and intrigued by Buddhist values and cultural differences. I knew that I had to visit their magnificent temples, and learn first-hand about Thai-Buddhism, especially since Hawai’i was the closest to Asia I’d ever been. Suddenly, after five months of living in Hawai’i, I discovered that a new friend of mine was planning a month long trip to Thailand. I excitedly asked my new friend if I could accompany her on this journey of a lifetime. She welcomed me with open arms, and sooner than I could imagine the flights were booked, and planning was commenced. That’s really all it took for the Law of Attraction to start manifesting in my life. Eight months after my trip, and it still doesn’t quite feel real. I saw the massive 45 by 15 meter reclining Buddha at the temple Wat Pho, I cuddled my most admired elephants and bathed them in a head to toe mud bath (both myself and the elephants), I watched terrifying yet playful tigers jump around in water two feet from me, I jumped roped with fire, and most importantly, I met the most kind-hearted people from around the world. I found enduring kindness in Thai locals and tour guides throughout the entire country. I found that if you just try and learn a few words of their sacred language, they will smile from ear to ear and repeat it to you as many times as you need to hear in order to repeat the phrase properly (or at least audibly). Every desire I ever wanted came to me so easily and with so much happiness. This couldn’t be the end, and I knew it. I was overcome with gratitude for the reality of being in Southeast Asia, and I never wanted to stop exploring. I was even rewarded the pleasure of finding the love of my life on the wild streets of Bangkok. Inevitably, I learned that the more fulfilled and thankful you are, the more things and people to appreciate come into your life. I wanted to keep going and I brought that desire into my reality. Just three short months after returning from Thailand I was able to see another country without the cost of hotels. It was all thanks to friends I had made in Thailand, which has added another amazing experience I will forever keep in my mind and heart. The whole point is that the more you accept that the world is yours, the more it opens up to you. With a humble and appreciative attitude you can manifest any desire you can dream. Just by realizing this, I have changed my own life, and am a much friendlier and much more cultured individual. I have been delighted and educated by people from 12,590 kilometers away from my home, and have realized the importance of communication in relationships. As I am writing this essay now, I find myself back where it all started visiting family in the Northwest again. I haven’t ever been so charmed by the multitude of beautiful shades of gray that fill the sky. There is beauty even in the sunless and wet places. Happiness is watching the clouds suffocate you as you ascend into the sky. It is landing on new grounds where faces come in many different smiles. It’s watching the tide sneak up on you your first time in paradise. It is staring into the eyes of the gentle giants you dreamed of embracing your entire life. Last but not least, happiness is realizing the beauty in every aspect of life, even in the rain. All these experiences have opened my eyes to the world of possibilities that await me. The Law of Attraction has helped me uncover how much I value communication and relating to people. It has guided me to an English major in which I feel will always fulfill my heart, will enable me to help others, and will empower me to expand my mind and travel other worlds through literature. We all have the power inside us to make every one of our dreams come true, and I am truly blessed to say that I have had the opportunity to make so many of mine come true already. This is only the beginning, and I hope to touch as many people’s lives, as so many others’ have touched mine. Your mind is your only limitBy Hannah Cristina Stahl
Virginia Tech I have learned that perception is everything in this world. “The mind is everything. What you think you become”. In reality nothing is actually good nor bad. Our actualization of these experiences are what label these things as good or bad. Once we realize this, we are in control of our whole world as we know it. We obviously can’t control everything that happens to us in the world, but we are in control of how we experience circumstances. By realizing the power we have within us, we will be able to keep our peace of mind through any experience that comes our way. I have used to the Law of Attraction to guide me out of depression, and achieve academic success. My on-going journey to learn this essential principle has not been easy, and like all hardships it was hard understanding why, but looking back, every experience had to happen for me to understand how I want to continue to live my life. The beginning of my journey began very early and I hadn’t even realized it. As a freshman in high school I was very unhappy with myself. I thought that my only value was the value that other people gave me. I was lost and uncomfortable with myself. I believed that material things and beauty could make me happy. I believed I was worthless; therefore, I was worthless to myself. I found myself insecure due to the comparisons I made of myself and others. My insecurities drove me to Bulimia thinking that if I could be skinnier I would be happy and accepted by those around me. I remember being surrounded by so many people, but feeling so alone. Beginning my sophomore year of high school, I felt optimistic thinking that this could be a great year, but little did I know, this year would be the worst year yet. One thing after another, my self-worth would just continue to be ripped apart, resulting in depression. Desperate to find some support, I remember telling my best friend (at the time) that I thought I was depressed and the response I got was a scuff and the reply “You’re not depressed”. I again felt surrounded by so many people, yet so alone. I began losing motivation for everything. My passion for learning was gone, my smile was always a fictitious one, and my lack of love for life left me empty and hollow. Desperate to rid myself of any feeling, I began taking Adderall. I was a robot simply going through the motions. Indifferent to everything happening around me. There was no flavor to my life. My grades began to drop along with my motivation to do anything. I was isolated in a dark place in my mind, where no one even knew I was in. During all this time my grandfather had been diagnosed with Leukemia. This was especially hard because I was in North Carolina and my grandfather was in Puerto Rico. My grandfather had always lived far away from my family and it was hard accepting that I had missed out on so much of his life due to distance. In the summer ending my sophomore year I was exhausted, and I didn’t want to feel like a lifeless human being anymore. My grandfather was likely going to die within a few months and I guess that reality woke something up inside me. Life is something so precious and you only get one shot at it. That summer I isolated myself from my friends and I took three months to heal. I used my time by going outside and enjoying nature. I reflected on why I had so much self-hatred and I began to become comfortable with myself. I learned to remember that I am no perfect human being and just like anyone else I deserve to forgive myself of any shortcomings I had. I finally healed from being bulimic and was starting to see myself in a more positive light. I started to believe that I had worth. That summer I learned that optimism is not something that is innate, it is learned state of mind. I realized that happiness isn’t some big event, but it is the appreciation of all the little things in life, like the color of the sky, making somebody else smile, or the way the leaves sound in the wind. At the end of the summer I felt healed and ready to take on another school year, but at the end of the summer my grandfather died. I was not able to go to the funeral because I couldn’t afford a plane ticket. I grieved with my family at home and we all helped each other through this grieving process. My junior year I decided I was going to give it my all and work hard for my grandpa. I had a new positive outlook on life and I was so motivated to work hard. I managed to finish all my high school credits by my junior year and spent my high school senior year earning college credit at community college. My passion for learning returned and grew stronger. I worked hard and I achieved my goal of getting into my dream school of Virginia Tech. I also managed to graduate in the top 15 percent of my class. Because I set my sights on being successful, I was able to achieve something that I had never thought I could do my freshman year of high school. I continued to work hard and became part of a research program at Virginia Tech, received a partial grant, and decided to major in Wildlife Conservation. I am so passionate about helping endangered animals and I can’t wait to see will happen in the future. I have come to realize that life is purely what you make of it. I have met so many people who have gone through so much worse than I have encountered and yet, they are still one of the most joyous and giving people. The power of the mind is a miraculous thing. Once you have learned how to control your mind, thoughts, and perceptions, you can do anything. Instead of complicating things with future plans that you have no control over, learn to just be. Let yourself live and to take in every part of what a single moment has to offer you. Let yourself live simply. If you want something to happen go after it like it’s your only purpose in life. My hard work has brought me so much happiness because that feeling of achieving something that you wanted, is like no other. I like to remember that I can do anything, and that there are so many possibilities to what I can do. There are no bad outcomes, they are just the beginning to something unexpected. Although my first two years of high school were terrible and dark, I am so thankful for them. They are the foundation to everything that I believe today, they are my motivation to keep living and working hard, and they are the reason that I can help and they remind me that I am strong. I have gained empathy and humility, and it is the reason I treat everyone kindly because you can never know what someone is going through from the outside. Because I overcame depression I know that I can do anything if I work hard enough. Now I am tasked with the difficult task of paying for out-of-state tuition, but I know that if I apply everything I have learned I will be ready to start this journey as well. I believe; therefore, I will achieve. Make a difference in other's livesBy David Lee Fuhr
Personal development is not something that can come easy, sometimes it can actually be hard not only to grow and change, but admit your flaws. The biggest thing that I felt I always have done was try to be the best, not bothering to help other become better. It was out of the idea if I helped them become better than they could become better than me and I would not be the best. But then I realized from being in the Army that it is wrong to think that and not wanting to help others be all they can be and grow to their full potential. Helping others grow and spear your knowledge with them will not only help them grow, but myself as well. You can learn a lot and see things from other points of views that you might not have ever thought of. I live by a quote that I heard once, not sure where I heard it, but it means a lot of me and something I decided to live by. Since then I have grown a lot and have helped others grow as well. That quote you may as is something simple but powerful. “Inspire the uninspired!” To me this means you should help people and give them hope and support them. Even if they believe they cannot do it or might fail, it is better to have tried then fail. Because sometimes even failure has its best rewards. So, if I see someone that seems to have no motivation to do something or feels hopeless, I talk to them and try my best to inspire them to do it, or at least try. This not only helps them, but help me grow and feel better about myself knowing I inspired someone to grow and gave them hope when they had none. The best example is when I was helping a kid out at a volunteer event. They seemed to feel they would never be a great runner and wanted to run track but didn’t think they would ever be any good. I felt he had too much self-drought and just needed to be inspired to try it and practice. I told him that you never know until you try. That I ran track in high school and felt the same. But I tried and practiced the best I could and never gave up. I even tried many different events to see what one I would be the best at and then worked on that one and practiced all the time, pushing myself past the limits. Then after a year of this I was the fastest 400 meter dash runner on the team and placed 4th my senior year at regionals. I told him you should try and practice and never left fear or drought hold you back from doing what you want to do. That even if you try and you fail, you tried and won’t look back and wonder how it would have turned out. But look back and know how it turned out and feel good knowing you tried. He told me he would try and see how it goes, I seen him a little over a year later at the same volunteer event and he told me he took my advice and practiced hard and tried many events. He found out that he was really good at long distance and his event was the 1600 meter race. He said he practices all the time and he is one of the fastest on the team. He also decided to go the cross country team and raced with them as well. But he is still pushing himself to his limits and knows he is doing the best he can and that is all that matters to him. This made me feel good, I made a difference in someone’s life and they enjoyed it and glad they took the chance. This is just once example of how just a little inspiration can made a chance in someone’s life. I feel that the change I made and inspiring people to take positive chances and do things they felt they never would or could do, give me a good feeling that makes me feel happy and proud. This one thing I changed in my life and used it to help others as well as myself has made me feel good and proud about the people I have helped. I never knew that helping others and supporting them would be so personal rewarding. It makes me want to do all I can to help inspire others to be all the can be and never give up or lose hope. I wish more people would inspire the uninspired or look at themselves and see things they can change that would help them grow. They world would be a lot better place and would together would achieve so much. But I know most of all the people I have helped will help others and share their experience with them, knowing this is being passed on and on, gives me even more hope for the future and knowing if once person can make a difference in a few others life’s and they do the same, it would spread and soon many people will be helping others out and inspiring them. In the end everyone can make a difference not only in their life and personal development, but in the life’s of others. But most people will not realize the changes they can make and things they can do until it is too late. But I know I am starting with me and that is a start. Attracting lifeBy Chada Chiles
What you think is what is attracted into your life. This is also referred to as the law of attraction. Whether good or bad this is what is said to happen. Personally I have witnessed what positivity has been brought into my life, by just a single thought. I have never been a straight A student. My entire life I was forced to faced obstacles in school. My parents are older and had been out of school for many years so they couldn’t help me very much growing up. At times I could turn to my sisters for help, but they were hardly around. Normally the only thoughts that I had were negative, especially when it came to school. I would always tell myself that I was too dumb or stupid to ever achieve straight A’s. For many years I believed that this was true. While all the other kids where on honor roll and received certificates, I made merit list and got a ribbon. I felt like a terrible person. I was trying to live in the shadow of my dad who graduated with a 4.0, but I had no type of intelligence as I thought. I was even told before that I just wasn’t the straight A type of student. Personally I am not the type to give up so I didn’t. I knew that as long as I kept pushing that eventually I would reach my goals. As the years passed by my grades got higher and I even had a 3.8 grade-point average at one time in high school. I told myself that before I graduated high school I would get straight A’s, and in college I would maintain a 4.0 grade-point average. My senior year of high school was very challenging, I was in the hardest English class and I was also taking 6 AP courses. I knew I had it in over my head when my grades started slipping. My grade-point average quickly dropped to a 1.7. With my cheer and tennis coaches on my back constantly I knew I had to make a change quickly. So I looked for every way out that I could, but there was no escape. I just had to work hard and get my grades up, it wasn’t as easy as everybody kept making it seem. I did it, but the scare of that happening to me again made me transfer schools. My mom wanted to see me walk across the graduation stage and I had to do just that. At the next school I went to, not only was I able to walk the stage, but I was able to graduate with a 4.0. No, I didn’t get straight A’s that year, but because I had an A in an AP class my grade-point average went up by 1 point, and a 4.0 is equal to straight A’s. I was very satisfied with myself. College wasn’t going to be the breeze that I thought it was, I found that out very quickly. Every class I was taking had a test almost every two weeks, and required studying just about every night. But I had a goal I had to accomplish. In the back of my head I could always picture myself maintaining my 4.0 grade-point average through college. I turned to prayer, I would pray before I studied and before every test that I took, uttering the same words every time. Just about every time I would get the grade that I had pictured, or attracted into my life. The more positive my life was the more I had positive thoughts, and the cycle continued over and over again. I would ask every night that I just got straight A’s, seeing myself with that 4.0 in my head. I would study for hours, and I was ready for every test that I took. The end of the semester was the worst for me. I didn’t know if I was going to make it or not, my biology teacher had not finished imputing our grades so I couldn’t see the grade that I had. I was at a 95 percent and within a couple of days I dropped to an 86 with two weeks left of school, all I could do was complete every assignment with a 90 percent or better. By the last week of school I was back at a 91 percent but I had yet to take my final. I was terrified of what could happen, it felt like I was slipping back again into stupidity. I studied hard and prayed and thought about achieving my goal. The night after I was done with my finals, my school stressing still wasn’t over. It wasn’t until two weeks later would I find out that all the positivity that I had seen would come true. I passed my biology class with a 95 percent and ended my first semester of college with the straight A’s I had always seen myself getting. Behold! The Law of Attraction: The far from average story of an average girlBy Erika Cervantes
Success is not always what you think it means. My name is Erika Cervantes, I am an undergraduate student at University of California Santa Barbara and if it wasn’t for my parents I would have lived the stereotypical life of an uneducated, Mexican housewife. I don’t want to use the first generation card because I’m more than that, I am the eldest granddaughter in my family; paving a path for the generation behind me. My family made great sacrifices to grant me the opportunities with which I was blessed. Among them, was giving me all the tools I needed to succeed. They migrated to the United States and worked sun up to sun down in order to ensure that I had food, shelter, and clothes on my back. At a young age, I learned nothing came easy and became ambitious about my dreams; I believed in the Law of Attraction. Today, I am a citizen of the United States; a scholar with a thirst for knowledge. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. I find happiness in the pursuit of knowledge, I find knowing a right. I continue to pursue my dreams with a more tangible approach, one that comes from year after year of education. There was never any doubt in my mind that I was going to go to college, not because my family expected it but because I didn’t want to stop learning. My parents have always shined with pride upon my accomplishments, my feats were never done before in the family but still I’ve set my goals higher. The law of attraction was ingrained in my mind and what came next was a succession of achievements that brought me to the doorstep of one of the most prestigious public schools in the nation. My phobia of failure pushed me every day because I knew I could achieve great things if I put my mind to it. I strived to become a well-rounded student and knew that that only came from years of experience. I committed to programs that helped me grow as a person and took on leadership positions that challenged my performance but were essential to society. I became fluent in not only French but in the language of academics. I took on public speaking, from speech and debate to recitations and mock interviews; I wanted to excel. In student politics I took on the roles of president, vice president, and secretary. On a volleyball court my team and I tasted victories and defeats, we left sweat, determination, and unity on that court and took it with us out to the real world. Outside of school, I nurtured a greenhouse in four yearlong project that taught me patience and dedication. I became well versed in veterinary science and efficiently processed newborn livestock complete with ear notching, docking, vaccinating, and castrating. I was fascinated by not only animal science and behavior but with human psychology as well. While studying psychology, I realized that sociology is where I truly want to aim my efforts; I want to dedicate my life to helping others. Knowledge lead me to the future and I indulged in it completely; I gave myself wholly to my dreams and the law of attraction. But in realistic terms, I have accomplished what millions of others have accomplished; I’ve gained entry way into post-secondary education by using the knowledge I’ve acquired thus far. Now I have the power to decide how I will further my education in order to contribute to the betterment of the world. Pursuing my education is only the first step towards realizing my true potential. The law of attraction states that through positive thinking one will receive positive outcomes. I like to envision my goals completely because it gives me the motivation I need to make them a reality. I know that there are variables beyond my control and I win nothing with stressing over outside forces. But I know that through my actions I can influence the outcome for the better. The law of attraction helps me prioritize and focus on what is really vital for my success. I know that despite other variables, I am the fixed cost. No matter what life throws at me I choose to not give up. I choose to find alternate solutions and continue to put my best effort into all that I do. I can’t be disappointed with the outcome if I know I gave it everything I have. I refuse to let my and my family’s efforts be in vain. I refuse to let money have the power to stop me. I refuse to rely on wishful thinking, and utilize confidence that is born from erudite drudgery instead. I am forever grateful for the opportunities that have crossed my path and for those that are yet to present themselves. I vow to treat both expected and unexpected opportunities equally and use them to the best extent of my abilities for the progress of society. The law of attraction taught me that success is not measured by wealth but by knowledge, I feel successful and I refuse to let that go. Never give up!By Adrian Monroy
I never give up no matter how tough the situation looks like. A personal development principal I have experienced is not giving up. There are plenty of examples of famous people who didn’t have it easy, but at the end they reached their glory days. It’s all about being persistent and having patience. Just because you don’t see results in a couple of days doesn’t mean they will never come. One good example of a person who didn’t give up is Michael Jordan. He got cut from his High School’s basketball team. He went home and cried. A lot of people would have thrown the towel, or they would have decided to play a different sport. Jordan didn’t give up and as a result, he is one of the best basketball players to ever play. Everybody has obstacles in some point of their lives. I have some, but I used to a lot of more obstacles a couple of years ago. Back in middle school, I got bullied. Although I was being pushed around and made fun of, I managed to maintain a 4.0 GPA throughout middle school. I didn’t give up on school just because other kids tried to make my life miserable. An activity I love to do is playing soccer. After all soccer is the most beautiful sport in the world. Through soccer, I have learned that you need to work hard and focus. This sport has also taught me the importance of not giving up. I got cut from my middle school team in the 8th grade. This hurt me a lot, but I remembered the same thing happened to Michael Jordan. Today, I still play soccer and a lot of teams want me to play for them. Some teams are willing to pay me. I have also gotten some calls from semi-professional teams here in San Jose, CA. I want to spend my weekend playing soccer, but I do homework and I also work part-time during the weekends. School comes first. All of the recognition I am getting from a lot of soccer coaches happened because I never gave up on this sport. I am a goalie and I used to get scored on 10-15 goals per game. That is a lot! During the last year, I have won two best goalie of the league awards. I felt great after receiving this award. I thanked God because he didn’t let me give up on myself when I got scored on so many goals. I use the principle of not giving up in every aspect of my life. I showed how I never give up in school or in soccer. I also never give up on work. At Lowe’s, I get rude customers every day. They try to bring me down by using curse words. I always keep my cool and never let all of the negativity get to me. Others would just quit this job, but I keep a smile on my face. I also have to sell credit cards at work. Customers are going through hard financial times. I try to keep their hopes up by telling them the benefits of opening up a Lowe’s Credit Card. They save five percent on every visit to Lowe’s. Sometimes, customers don’t want to open up credit cards. The whole point is to keep on asking and not give up, because there will always be that customer who wants to save money. My goal is to sell at least one credit card per day. If don’t accomplish my goal, I keep on trying. I have talked about how I never gave up in the school during the past. During this last semester I started to take Journalism classes at the upper-division level at San Jose State University. These classes got tougher and there were higher expectations. I had to interview people, but I was very shy. I hated when people said they didn’t have time for a short interview. Although these were some tough obstacles, I never thought of changing my major. I kept on going to class and I lost my fear of interviewing people. I turned all of my assignments on time. I am going to take five journalism classes next semester. Giving up is not an option. As I have talked about it, the words “giving up” are not part of my vocabulary. Even though something seems impossible to accomplish, always have hope. You never know what might become of you if you don’t give up. There are many famous people that have accomplished things that people didn’t they would do. It’s time for people to follow the footsteps of the famous stars. Quitting is the worst thing you can do. Be strong and tell yourself that everything will be ok. Just never give up! A better tomorrowBy Logan Thompson
It was early in the morning, my alarm was about to go off to let me know it was time to get ready for work. My phone started ringing, my first thought was it was my wife, but when I looked at the caller ID, it was work. That is funny, I thought to myself as I picked up the call. Me: “Hello?” Boss: “Don’t bother coming in today. We are letting you go.” Me: “What? Why?” Boss: “I don’t have to tell you why, I need you to bring in your uniform as soon as you can.” I called my wife who was living out of state at the time to tell her the news. I wasn’t sure what we were going to do, I had just got into an apartment and wasn’t sure if I was going to find another job before all of our bills were due. I could tell my wife was upset, but was trying to put a brave face on and not let me get too down. She encouraged me to start looking right away for a new job and to go apply for a few that same day. This would be the start of a series of jobs and choices that would eventually lead me to the life that I love and am living now. Choosing a career can be a hard decision, especially for someone like me with ADD and a tendency to get bored of things quickly. Choosing to go to school when you have a small family to support can be just as equally if not harder decision to make. Luckily for me, I have a supportive wife and the strong desire to get everything I want out of life to give me that extra shove that I need. Furthering my education has been tough. I have changed my career choice several times and finally feel like I have landed in a place where I could easily be happy and feel as though I am going to continually be challenged throughout my career. When I started out on my higher education journey, I had a difficult time connecting with the material and couldn’t get motivated to do any homework or even get good grades. I even struggled with understanding what my teachers were expecting from me. The first few years of school I could only seem to manage a 2.0 overall GPA. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, I didn’t think I could get in to any programs. It just took one advisor to hear me out and accepted me into the engineering program to get me started. I still struggled through my classes and with my teachers, but was doing better and started a spark of interest. When I heard of the program I am in now, I quickly changed and knew it was for the better. I am thriving in it! Since I started this program I have managed to pull a 4.0 GPA in every semester which has brought up my overall GPA. Although it was tough getting here-job after job, starting a school program after program, it was those choices and experiences that have led me to where I am today. Having restrictions in life only makes you appreciate the freedom you get. I LOVE the outdoors. I love doing everything outdoors. From rock climbing to dirt biking, to backpacking, to even hunting and fishing; I do it all and love doing it. I could live in the mountains and absolutely always enjoy my time there. If I am not working or at school or at a family event, the mountains are where you can find me. I have really struggled the last few years with having a growing family, going to school, working, and still trying to find time to do what I love. I have discovered that because I have this struggle, I really enjoy and fully take advantage of the time that I have in the mountains. I appreciate it more, I live more when I am there. At the same time I feel as though my mind is like a sponge, just soaking up everything that I am learning because I have a renewed love and passion for the career field I am studying. I can’t get enough. I have even started small projects at home to help me broaden my knowledge. I feel like I am in a constant state of learning and growth and it feels so rejuvenating and lively. To my mind, learning is like a drug and I get a high from it and can’t seem to get enough of it. Feeling this way is hard to contain and am already looking forward to when my boy is old enough to get him started in learning what I know now so he can have a better head start than I did. I have three small children whom I love so very much and can’t wait to share my breadth of knowledge with. Having the attitude of success and learning is a contagious one. When I am learning and succeeding, I can see my children growing and succeeding in their lives. I feel as though I am living the dream that I have always had for myself. All my challenges are ways of opening my eyes to see a better day, a better future, a better here and now. Turn a devastating situation into a brillant oneBy Madeline Baumgart
Grace College There are always two different outcomes for any particular situation, one positive and the other negative. It is up to the participants in each situation to decide for themselves how it will play out, and ultimately if the outcome will be positive or negative. While the situation at hand may have a negative appearance, the outcome can still be quite positive if those involved make the effort to see the elements in a different light. Viewing the situation in a new perspective is all one may need to turn a devastating situation into a brilliant one. Reminiscing back several years ago, there have been numerous times when a bad situation in my life could have been far worse without a the little positive outlook that I clung to. Imagine yourself driving in your car, after recently having received your brand new license in the post. The first place you seem to want to drive to is a friends house for a party; however, it is around Christmas time and you have never visited this friend’s home previously. Directions in hand, you set out. The only specifics you have for the appearance of this particular house is there is a row of pine trees out front. Driving along the road, you find a house with these specifics, and there appears to be a number of cars in the driveway. You pull in, and walk into the home. Walking through the corridor, you see a dining room, with China at each place setting, and after a few moments you reach the kitchen. The surprise waiting there is that you do not recognize anyone, and no one knows the person whom you are looking for. You have mistakenly walked into the wrong home. What are you going to do? Turn bright red, bow your head in shame and leave? Never. Say, “My mistake, I am sorry for crashing your party. Thank you for the invitation to come back if I can’t find the right party.” And you make your way to the door. While this situation of walking into the wrong house was extremely embarrassing, what it did do was give both yourself and this family a good story to laugh about for years to come. It taught you the lesson to always check the address before walking into a house that looks correct. The situation could have been far worse had you not kept a cool head, but it was not as horrible as it could have been. Another situation that comes to mind is just my entire high school experience. Imagine weeks before beginning high school discovering that you are in need of having surgery. But not just a simple in, out, done surgery; it is more complicated than that. Despite the four surgeries, and numerous doctor appointments endured throughout the time spent in high school, you never seem to have dampened spirits, and the smile never seems to fade from your face. Here the positivity in life seems to really show to those in your surroundings. Those around you give you numerous different reasons for such spirits, but there is one reason that stands far above the rest. Faith. Faith that Jesus died on the cross for your sins two-thousand years ago, and rose from the dead, and he is going to return. Knowing that your sins have been forgiven forever, why would you need to ever be sad or angry about anything; the worst parts of life have been defeated. While I have always seemed to hold the more hopeful attitude, one can always explore how a situation would end with the opposite outlook. The situation of walking into the wrong house could have scarred someone for the rest of their life, never again to go anywhere solo. A high school career full of surgeries could have scared someone aways from doctors or surgeons forever, or could have made them a very bitter person. I have experienced my fair share of bitter people and no one ever wants to be caught alone with a bitter person. While the outcome of various situations in life that we are thrust and thrown into may be terrifying or embarrassing, there are always two different ways that they could end. Terrible situation have the ability to make or break a person. These situations with a hopeful or positive or encouraging twist can make a person pleasant to be around. On the opposite side of the spectrum, if a person has a bitter or sour spirit hidden within them, it can be torture for others to have to be in their presence. Positive light within people create positive people and positive situation, but negative people become sour, bitter, and spoiled, and everyone detests spending time with them. We reap what we sow; so sow some hopeful outlooks on life, and reap quality time with people that everyone enjoys. Live life. It's waitingBy Amanda Gasbarro
Three and a half years ago, I was about to graduate college from the University of Central Florida. I had an excellent GPA and excelled in my classes. I had lots of friends and was very busy with my sorority. I lived a happy, supportive apartment with three of my closest friends, and I was on the path to what I’d been working for during the past four years. I was also internally dreading graduation with every fiber of my being. I felt a black cloud looming over the day I was done with school because I knew in my heart my major of Advertising was not what I wanted to do and be for the rest of my life. The year before, I forced myself to get an internship because it was required for graduation. I did what I had to do. I got through it. As graduation loomed for me, I looked around and saw that many of my classmates were on their 2nd or 3rd internship because they enjoyed them and were planning for jobs here and in New York City. My only plans were to move back home and look for jobs there. I did everything I was supposed to do. I thought that was enough, but then as the year was ending I had to face reality. I didn’t want to work in Advertising. I was great at it and I had the skills for it, but I didn’t want to do it. It hadn’t occurred to me before then that even mattered. I thought you choose a path that you can do and you do it. This was what my parents and teachers taught me. This was what my friends were doing. I thought I was doing it. I just wasn’t doing it for me. When I realized that I had to force myself through every interview for internships or future jobs, I was incredibly unhappy with my life. As I was turned down for interview after interview and all I felt was relief, I knew I had to realize that I probably wasn’t getting those jobs because I wasn’t eager to have them, and that surely came across. So I moved back home and my whole life felt like it was falling apart. I was 22, back in my parents house, without a job, and even worse unsure where to go from there because all the knowledge and skills I had were for somewhere I didn’t want to be. I felt stuck and lost, pressured from my family, and scared. I also began questioning everything. I had done everything I was supposed to. How could life do this to me? How could I find my true path? It was through those vastly important questions that I began to search for the answers. What I found not only changed my path, it changed my attitude and my whole life. With the time I had at home, I began spending time alone and getting to know myself for myself. Things from why I’d been on the path I was on to my favorite color. My mom had also been very spiritual and she gave me books such as A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle and showed me programs such as The Secret. Those things helped tremendously. I learned that life wasn’t happening to me, life was happening for me. I had the control and in fact I always had been in control. The only person who’d know what I wanted from life was me. In the past I’d simply let my parents, teachers, and friends guide me in the right path, and I trusted them. I also never thought about what I wanted and never questioned things for myself, and that wasn’t good. When I researched the law of attraction and realized that I had the power to do what I wanted to do, have and give the energy I wanted, and be grateful for the things I had, everything changed. I began reading a lot, and I realized I had a real love of reading, and stories, and the written word. I also discovered that I enjoyed making up my own stories, and writing them down. In school I was told that I wasn’t a very skilled writer and it never occurred to me that they might be wrong, or that I could write anyway if I enjoyed it. I also went back to the things that I knew, and tried to make career paths from them, because while I lived at home, I still had to work. I always enjoyed working with children and found that I could substitute at local private schools with just my college degree. I also went away for the summer to work as a counselor at a camp. The more I did things that I liked, the more ideas about what I wanted began to form. I realized I loved helping people. Once I had ideas about things I liked, I followed the law of attraction and began to visualize having and doing the things I liked. Over the past three years, I followed my intuitions and continued learning about myself and seeing the difference in my attitude about life. Two years ago, I bought The Secret audio-book and listened to it nearly everyday. I made visions board, and I wrote. I wrote a lot. I ended writing a fiction fantasy book and self-publishing it on Amazon. To my amazement other people actually read it, and actually liked it. Since then I’ve written and published two books, and have made money and fans from them. I also realized through substitute teaching that I loved working with children and I liked working one on one with them to help them. I began substituting with the county school system and talked with many professionals about my interests, especially helping kids. I’ve since realized that the position of guidance counselor is exactly the position I want. Last year, I decided, after two years of struggling for a career that I was going back to school. I was going to get my graduate degree and become a guidance counselor. I was going to have my own car for the first time, I was going to get a book published by a traditional publisher, and I was going to Europe for the first time in my life. All these things, I visualized and believed that I could do. I was happier, my energy had shifted, and life was exciting. More importantly, I felt grateful for everything I had and I expressed that often, and found more people wanted to be around me. In the past few months, I got a new job to pay for graduate school at a bookstore. I applied to graduate school. I was able to buy my own car. I started listening to The Secret in my car every time I drove to work. I met a friend at work who wanted to write a book with me, and her aunt is a publisher in New York. She is now anxiously awaiting our final product as we are half way done with it. I also met a friend who wanted to go to Europe as well. She came into my life at the exact right time. We saved up for seven months worth of money and because I believed I could afford it and I believed that the universe would help me get what I want. I worked hard and we went in October. When I got to my hotel room in Paris, France, my WiFi kicked in, and I received an email that I got into the program at my alma mater and accepted into the school counseling program. Now I’ve never been happier. I see the good and the positive side of things. I inspect closely my own thoughts and opinions as well as the thoughts and opinions of others. I work toward the things that I want and visualize them. I have the things I always wanted and that includes a future I can believe in. My family as always is extremely supportive and not a day goes by that they don’t mention how happy they are that I’m happy, and proud of me they are that I’m finally seeing the things that I want, and reaching for them. Even things I’ve tried but failed only encourage me to keep pushing forward. Once I fell flat on face, I was able to get back up. I realized then that I would be ok no matter what because it’s my thoughts and beliefs that guide my actions, and according to the law of attraction, I have the control to change my life and bring my energy up, which coincidentally helps lift up the energy of the people around me. I’m beginning graduate school in January 2015 and while I don’t have all the money I need to afford it yet, I have faith that I will. I already see myself getting this scholarship and many more. I’m already grateful to have it. I feel immense gratitude toward you and this company for allowing me this chance and funding to pursue my dreams. I know that I can help others in my field of choice and as a future guidance counselor, I can’t wait to inspire kids to be what they want to be. Positive thinking, gratitude and the power of love
By Jeanne Licurse
Kripalu Yogapata “There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy.” Ralph H. Blum On August 28, 2011, I woke to sound of rushing water. When I looked outside to investigate, I found a river had replaced the road called “Big Hollow” which runs through the valley of it’s namesake. Hurricane Irene was just getting warmed up as she destroyed homes, businesses and towns in the northern Catskill mountain’s. The year prior to this devastating storm, I used my entire savings to purchase an 1865 fixer-upper farmhouse that required an enormous amount of work. My son and I sanded floors, scraped, painted and put up insulation. We persevered through what seemed at the time to be insurmountable problems and God blessed us for our courage time and time again. Positive thinking, grace and gratitude were the diet we lived on as we brought this beautiful old gem back to life. Now this terrible storm threatened to destroy all we had worked for. As the hurricane waters rose, so did our fears. We watched as the water ripped through my car as if it were a toy model. The old laid up stone basement was filling up faster than I thought possible. Panic was mounting. Once again God stepped in and quietly reminded me to use my gifts. As single mother of 2 children I have learned to be creative and resourceful. As a yoga teacher working with traumatized teens I have learned to “Keep calm and carry on.” I calmed my mind long enough to come up with a brilliant idea: “We have to build a dam!” I said. “With WHAT??” my teen-age son cried back. “With the 2 cords of firewood” I replied. Knowing the topography at the corner of the house where the major flow of water was entering helped me picture in my minds eye how a dam would be the perfect solution...if only we had enough time. We set to work as a team, I held down logs as my son stacked more and more wood and our dam took shape. We used rocks from a stone wall I was building to weigh down the front end. We completed our dam within seconds of the water rising enough to potentially rip the house off of it’s foundation. We waited inside, soaking, shivering and desperate for the winds die down and the waters to recede. Would our dam hold as the storm raged on? Once again, positive thinking kept my head above water (pun intended J). I felt confident that the inspiration that I had received was a sound and solid idea and that it would hold fast and true to it’s function. I focused on gratitude for the idea and the image of the dam that was taking a terrible pounding from Mother Nature and yet still remained intact. I felt grateful for the opportunity to teach my son how to respond in a crisis and even more grateful that he was so instrumental in saving our home from disaster. Although we sustained a lot of unwelcome damage from Irene’s unfriendly hospitality, we ultimately gained so much in terms of fortitude, courage, gratitude and love. In the weeks that followed, my son worked 16 hour’s a day helping others in the community who suffered tremendous loss, he became a hero and was well on his way to manhood. When phone service was finally restored and I spoke to my sister in Pittsburgh. She asked me how much damage there was and I told her “Well, I always wanted waterfront property!” She laughed and later commented on how God had blessed me with an optimistic spirit and it was shining through despite my apprehension and sorrow at the time. This inherent ability to problem solve creatively and optimistically has helped me cope with loss, conquer adversity and ultimately has given my life purpose and meaning as I teach holistic principles to the young and the young at heart. Looking back I wish I had had a teacher or mentor who helped me develop my gifts exponentially. It is my goal to help children and teens develop their brains with a positive mind-set and an indomitable spirit through Mindful Movement (yoga), Nutrition and Natural Gourmet Culinary classes. I believe positive thinking should be taught and practiced and I have made it my mission to do so. Being the seventh of ten children I did not have the opportunity to go to college when I graduated from high school. I have pursued my education at night and on weekends and received several certifications as an early childhood Montessori teacher and as a homeopathic practitioner. Finally my passion for holistic education led me to yoga and I received my training in Kripalu’s “Yoga in the Schools”. I started my own non-profit holistic health educational company and I am presently teaching teens in 2 schools in upstate N.Y. I would be eternally grateful to receive a scholarship in order to continue my education in my 500-hour yoga certification and brain research, I have completed one module at Kriplau, MA, I have 3 more modules to complete. I also wish to study at Yogapata, CT in their “Yogaversity: Anatomy and Body Mechanics modules. Particularly I wish to pursue studying the brain with mindfulness practices so that I can teach my students how brain science supports using our minds in a greater capacity to realize our full creative potential. Imagine lessons in positive problem solving and envisioning (or Joe Vitale’s Nevillizing J) affirmative outcomes from a very early age! What if young people learned how to solve old problems in new ways and stayed open to as much feedback as possible? How different would the world be if they had assignments in how to turn disappointment and resentment into something good? Practices such as Ho’ ponopono are capable of shifting the brain quickly in moments of anger or stress. I can just imagine children reciting it playfully to one another just as they recited Shakespeare’s Sonnet #18 on the playground during basketball practice one year. I had given the assignment as a playful punitive measure after 2 boys committed some harmless transgression. They had 2 weeks to memorize the sonnet and recite it to their mother’s on Mother’s Day. In a matter of days, all of the boys were yelling out lines and improvising in wonderful and fantastic ways. I was astonished. It taught me a great lesson in the power of love (my assigning them Shakespeare) over the irritation I initially felt with the boy’s inappropriate behavior. My goal is my passion: to further my trainings in 2 excellent yoga schools, to grow my children’s and teens programs, film a documentary about the impact of holistic education and write books about it all. My dream is to take holistic health to the next level by introducing these principles and practices in our schools. Furthering my education will help me accomplish these goals. Thank you for considering me for an Achieve scholarship! Always believe in the Law of Attraction
By Aditya Deotale
Lord Buddha rightly said that “What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: Our life is the creation of our mind.” This thought is enough to explain what law of attraction is. Action follows our thought. It’s a mind process which gets converted into actions. If you think you can do something you will do it and if you think you can’t you really cannot do it. Most of the people are unknown to law of attraction but those who know it often don’t believe in its power. But time is changing so are the people. They are trying to know what law of attraction is and are practicing it in their daily life. I have been lucky as I understood the power of law of attraction very early in my life while people take entire life and do not understand its meaning. In our school we used to have a student representative. The position of student representative was considered as a very prestigious position. Like every other student I too wanted to become a student representative. Teachers nominate three boys and three girls from 10th grade and this students are eligible for contesting elections for student’s representative. This students used to go in every class and used to appeal for votes. When I first saw them appealing for votes, I was so excited that I went home, stood in front of the mirror and tried to ask for votes. I decided that one day I will also go in every class and ask for votes. I started dreaming myself asking for votes. In our school we used to have events like Independence Day and Republic day. I saw the way the students representative leaded the school. I was amazed after seeing their power and their responsibility. I started seeing myself in their shoes. I started practicing marching in my home in front of the mirror. This continued for four years. I was thinking and dreaming of it for nearly four years and I think it paid off. When I was in 10th grade teacher nominated for the student representative’s position, but I was not present on that day in the school as I was having fever. If I am not present I could not contest the election. But at the same day, principal had to go for an urgent meeting. So the election was postponed and I was lucky. I knew that I have to go the next day in order to contest the elections. I was having high fever but I still went as I wanted to become the student representative. I won the election and became the student representative. My dream which I saw from last four years everyday was completed. I thought this was written in my destiny. This was the first time when I experienced law of attraction. In our country, studying abroad especially (USA) is considered as a very prestigious thing. As I was born my grandfather saw me and said that I will go abroad for higher studies. Whenever I used to see Hollywood movies, the school used to amaze me. I used to think that one day I will also go abroad, get a scholarship, learn a lot and then serve my country. When I was in high school I wanted to join IIM (Indian institute of management). I cleared the aptitude test and was also selected for the interview. Only 120 students from all over India are selected. I was confident that I will get selected in the interview. But I was in waiting list. So I decided to come to ASU. Now I am feeling happy that I was not selected for the interview, because if I would have been selected I would not have been able to witness such a beautiful country with a beautiful culture. So whatever I dreamt in my childhood came true because of some or the other reasons. As financial condition of my family is not that good I always wanted a scholarship so that I can give relief to my family in some or the other way. I believe in law of attraction and it had never disappointed me so far. So I can surely say that I will also get this scholarship. I believe in law of attraction and most importantly I believe in myself so I think there is no reason why I should not get this scholarship. Law of attraction has indeed given me a new life. Some people even after knowing this fact keep ignoring its power. They don’t realize that their mind has immense power and their destiny is in their own hands. The most important thing in law of attraction is to have faith and belief in it. We should not speak out our dreams in public and keep it in ourselves. Just believe in yourself and your mind. Whatever you want you will definitely get it. I wrote a small poem for law of attraction. It is as follows. Always have belief in law of attraction. Whatever people says, just never get distraction At last I just have one thing to tell. Law of attraction can even bring you out of hell. Persist in thinking negative thoughts over a period of time they will appear in your life
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Knowledge & ServiceAnna Hummel
On a cool, dewy morning in the fall of 2005, I, a small, anxious thirteen-year-old girl, sat and waited to talk to the judge presiding over her parents' divorce. As I sat on the bench, my thoughts were racing about my crumbling family unit and how I would tell the judge I no longer desired to have contact with my abusive father. I realized after my talk with the judge I had two paths to choose from, I could either be like my father or be a compassionate and caring person. My world would change that day and the question of who I would become came into question. I became a better person, a leader. My choice that day created a main difference between me and many other student leaders by altering my purpose in life and giving me an outlook on life that few student leaders have. It ignited a worthy, inextinguishable flame of ambitious passions in understanding behavior, seeking justice, developing stronger leadership skills, and a hunger for knowledge. When given the first taste of knowledge and service, I dove headfirst into becoming the best student and person I could be. I taught myself the material given in school and became accustomed to excelling ahead of other students. In high school, I challenged myself as a student even more with college-level courses and introduced myself to new subjects that fed my passion for knowledge. This led me to become the salutatorian of my high school class. As I continued my passion for knowledge in high school, I volunteered at the domestic violence shelter in my town, the same one that helped my family. Volunteering with those families made it possible for me to seek a change in the community and allowed me to impact someone else's life, whether large or small, in the same way my life was changed. With high school ending, my ideas of what I wanted to become ranged from being a police officer to a history teacher to a psychiatrist. People told me to pursue a job to make money and create a comfortable living. However, the thirteen-year-old girl on that bench in the courthouse reminded me of my commitment to others like her, my passion for knowledge, and my choice to be a compassionate, caring person. After graduation, I desired to continue my passion for knowledge and service. I volunteered as a peer educator on my college campus; I pursued a degree in psychology and interned or volunteered for various organizations. All of my efforts to choose a different path than my father made me realize everything is a learning experience, good or bad. I find great satisfaction in looking back at my education and service experience and seeing nothing has lessened in my level of passion, changed in my path in life or desire to be a better person. I did not choose my path on that cool, dewy morning to change my situation but instead to give myself a better purpose in life. How My Family Shaped My GoalsKendra Ghesquiere
I am a suicide survivor. My father completed suicide in February, 2016 and I have had my good share of burden. It tore my family and life apart. My church gave back to me and I am strengthening my faith. I have decided to be successful in life by dedicating my life to giving back to others with burden. The most important goal to me is to find ways to help someone else in need. I am striving to do so in my everyday life in a variety of ways. I am helping people through my church, youth group and I hope to learn to help people in my career. I feel that my goal is never ending and I plan to go out of my way to help someone else for the rest of my life. After my father’s suicide, I began work to help those burdened by being victim to sex trafficking. I began volunteer work for an organization called Rahab’s heart. We do a variety of things to help the victims escape and move toward a better life. Rahab’s heart has a shelter for victims. Along with my church, I have helped with landscaping and restoring the shelter to keep it nice for the residents. For my birthday and Christmas presents for the past year and a half, I have requested that I receive small hygiene items such as hotel soap, conditioner, shampoo, etcetera. I don’t ask anyone to spend money for them, the samples from a hotel stay works perfectly. With these items, we create hygiene packets for the victims to help clean up when they cannot afford to purchase the items themselves. I have also gone on a mission trip to Miami to help serve food and clean the shelters for the victims there. In Miami, I saw firsthand the struggles that the victims face. We provided food, clean clothing, shelter and kind words to the victims. I will never forget their struggles. Even though I struggle with my burdens, it taught me that life could always be worse and it is never too late to improve with just a little help from others. Currently, I am working on a new project with my church. We are helping children that are victim to having one or both parents in prison. We are working on creating a Christmas play to entertain the children and convey the message that God is good even when bad things are happening. I have been volunteering my time to mentor one of these children and have been taking her out for ice-cream, bowling and other fun things. She is the sweetest little girl and I am trying to show her that the world is still good even when she is in a dark place. I only hope that I can make life better for at least one child, but I pray that I am successful with many children. I am an active member of my church youth group called Street Lights. The high school group that I am in tutors the junior high group. As the group leader, I help tutor the junior high school students in math and science two evenings a week. I was never goodat school, however t eaching it has helped me learn how to study and has helped with my skills. Most importantly, I hope to help my mom. It is now the holiday season, and my mom has lost faith in God and the meaning behind Christmas. Typical with many family responses, people feel comforted by placing blame. Unfortunately, several people in my dad’s family blamed my mom for his death and she does not feel comfortable attending or hosting the holiday celebrations. One would see it similar to divorce, but it is much worse. They blame her for the marriage falling apart and consider that she is responsible for his death. Unfortunately, the family is not acting very Christian like and the celebrations feel empty and have lost their meaning. Aside from the blame, mom has lost her faith and has expressed that she wishes that the holidays just wouldn’t happen. It hurts me when she says this because Christmas is the most important holiday of the year to me and my fragile faith. She has given the family ornaments to my sister and me. It is the second Christmas that she has not decorated the home or celebrated midnight service at my Church. She feels that the holidays are too difficult to bear and does not host any of the celebrations at the family home anymore. Holding the celebration is a trigger and refuses to do it. I pray that she begins to feel differently one day and find her faith once again. I will make it my life long goal to help her find her faith and enjoy life again. For my future, I want be successful in life by continuing my path in faith and helping others. I would like to guide children and teenagers at their time of need and I hope that I can help someone the same way that my youth leaders have helped me. For this reason, I would like to honor my dad and pursue a youth ministry degree at Spring Arbor University. I also plan to dual major in art and possibly be the art director at my church. I feel that God is calling me to the path. I hope that I can keep God pleased and I hope that my dad is watching me from Heaven and he is pleased as well. ClarityLila Cooper
The line seemed never ending; starting at the counter that acted as a barricade against the crowds. The beginning of the month meant that half the town’s population would be here to cash their checks; all lacking patience and most with tempers high. Although I did not know it yet, the chaos that would ensue that Monday at the bank would forever change my life. It started with just another morning filling me with a quiet dissatisfaction of life. One teller is in the bathroom crying after an altercation with a client. Another is too busy flirting with a customer to see the obvious fumes coming from the growing line of people. Then two of my coworkers are more interested in talking to each other in the breakroom than having the common sense to earn their pay. The crowd was overwhelming and I was the only teller behind the barricade that was interested in finishing this business and getting people out. That was the most important moment of my life. Everything slowed and things went into focus. For a single moment I was frozen in time, watching all these people clearly for the first time. I was hit with the realization that I did not belong in this small world that consisted only of this one bank location. I was meant for something better than this minimum wage job. That was the day I decided to go back to school. I’ve always known that I had an undying need to help the world become a better place. The need to improve upon the world only grew greater after meeting my friend Madison. Madison was diagnosed with a rare disorder called Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). The disease causes her heart to speed like that of a hummingbird with doing little to no physical activity at all. She struggles with walking up a steep street and keeping her heart from causing a heart attack. Unfortunately, this is a condition that will be with her through her entire life. It will even prevent her from the one true dream she’s always had; to start a family. I knew that I wanted to make a difference in the world and not just evolve into another deadend job that would cause an emotional tumor-like growth. I also knew that with the right set of tools, I could find a way to help people like Madison and create advances in medicine and technology. I couldn’t afford medical school and I knew my personality wouldn’t do well in nursing. Biomedical engineering is the best fit for who I am as a person and my need to make an impact on the world. Engineering programs are developing large technological advances including prosthetics that sync with brain waves, improved wind turbines, and there is so much more to discover. I know that with my degree in Engineering, I can leave this world better than the way I found it. New Year, New MeSarah Katz
It was a typical night at the Jerusalem Magen David Adom station, except for the fact that it was my first Advanced Life Support ambulance shift. It was a slow night and I was dozing off, but as any superstitious EMT knows, verbalizing it is a big no-go. I was jolted awake by the loudspeaker. “Natan Le Ambulance!” The dispatcher shouted in Hebrew, calling my team to our ambulance. I remember the paramedic looking at the tablet where we receive the information about the call and rolling his eyes. “It’s the birth,” he mumbled in broken English. I instantly started beaming. I had been waiting for this call! The male paramedics dislike messy child deliveries in their ambulances, but it didn’t matter one bit to me, I couldn’t wait! We sped over with lights flashing and sirens wailing, almost getting into a car accident on the way. My adrenaline was pumping as I grabbed the birth kit and pulled my gloves on, ready for whatever was waiting for us in the house. It was obvious which apartment we were called to because the religious neighborhoods in Jerusalem are dead silent at 3am. Following the screams, we pushed through the door into the house and got right to work. As the paramedics warned me, it was a pretty gory scene. Being the only woman on the ambulance crew, I was instructed to take the lead to make the religious woman more comfortable. I’ll never forget the look on the baby’s face when he took his first breath. The newborn baby boy was perfect. His curious eyes scanned me and our surroundings and although he wasn’t crying, we knew he was very much alive. We gathered our equipment and rushed the baby to the ambulance to keep him warm. The ride to the hospital was the best part of the whole shift. While riding in the ambulance with him in my arms, the sun was rising over the mountains of Jerusalem and the clouds were low in the valley. It looked like an ocean. I’m still not sure if it was the sappy Celine Dion song on the radio or the baby in my arms, but I started crying. In this moment, my whole perspective on life changed. Fast forward two weeks and I’m on another night shift. Supposedly, nothing interesting happens on night shifts, but during Ramadan in the Holy City, nightmares materialize after dark. I got my first call of the shift and jumped on the ambulance, eager, as usual, for the paramedics to give me the details. I heard dispatch announce over the radio that there were two volunteers on the ambulance, which was abnormal for them to point out. “What’s going on?” I asked. “There was a shooting,” he explained calmly, “terror attack.” My mouth dropped and my heart started racing. I had no idea what we were in for. We had extensive training on what to do in the case of an attack, but it never occurred to me that I would actually be responding to one. Before I knew it, we were crossing the green line into Palestinian territory with army escorts. We sped to the scene just in time to see the shooters driving off with a car full of bullet holes. Since my ambulance was first on the scene, we received the patient with the most critical injuries. We rushed to attach the EKG monitors and hook him up to the respirator. Everything happened so quickly. There were syringes and blood soaked bandages flying all over the ambulance. By nothing short of a miracle, we kept the young man alive all the way to the hospital. Greeted by a mob of paparazzi, we unloaded the victim and pushed through the camera flashes into the Shock and Trauma Unit. In the swarm of surgeons, we were pushed out of the ER. I sunk to the floor trying to internalize and understand the events of the past hour. It was too much to comprehend. Once I gathered myself, I returned to go check on the patient we brought into the ER. A surgical intern pulled me aside. “We did all we could,” he whispered, avoiding looking me in the eyes. “May God avenge this death and we catch these disgusting monsters”, he added, this time loudly for the whole room to hear. I nodded hesitantly. The last thing on my mind was revenge. For the second time that night, I sunk to the floor, exhausted and drained from the night’s events. My head spun. Just a few minutes later, the other volunteer from my crew pulled me to my feet and dragged me back to the ambulance. I remember feeling numb. This feeling lasted for days. I called my boss and told him that I don’t think I’m cut out for this kind of work and that I was considering quitting. He confided that his first terrorist attack left him with similar doubts and as cliché as it sounds, I need to get back on the ambulance to experience calls like the birth that remind us why we do this kind of work in the first place. Cautiously, I signed up for another week of shifts. Over the course the year, I realized that there are so many things in life that are more significant and bigger than myself. The two most meaningful nights of my volunteering experience were so similar yet so extremely opposite. Both encounters were encouraging and discouraging; humbling and inspiring. I got to experience the miracle of birth and help bring a new life into world. I realized that volunteering my time could not only save lives, but create life. I also realized that as hard as it is, sometimes I have to let go and accept that no matter how much I do, there is so much beyond my control. Before volunteering with Magen David Adom, people could have described some of my less desirable qualities as controlling, shallow, and materialistic. Being young, all I cared about was impressing people with material items and not with the goodness of my character. Everything changed over the course of my year abroad and more specifically those two nights. I am no longer naïve. I am now worldly, appreciative, motivated, and kind-hearted. Israeli culture and volunteer work made me realize that when I have more than I need, it’s important to share. I now live my life with an attitude of gratitude, focusing on what I can give back, instead of what I can take. Generosity is such a valuable trait because in the process of helping others, I experienced the most personal growth through the development of my character. Each day I have unlimited chances to make a difference and have an impact on our world, one person at a time. The Power of a Positive MindAlexandra Kyllonen
I spent a huge bulk of my life wrapped around the finger of both Anorexia and Bulimia, both at different times, bouncing back and forth in a desperate attempt to gain some sort of control of my life through my weight, throwing up after every meal and starvation. This eventually landed me in the hospital with a weakened heart and on the verge of a heart attack, a damaged liver, damaged kidneys and an acid burned esophagus. I felt like a monster, and probably acted like one too. My best friends’ family had been telling me for about 5 months that I was losing too much weight, too quickly, that I was becoming thinner and thinner every time they saw me (which was pretty often) and they expressed their concern quite a bit, but I just brushed it off my shoulder with a laugh and an "oh I'm fine, I'm eating." I wasn't. They saw through every excuse I made, and immediately recognized my behaviors as unhealthy. The thing was, I didn't go from already skinny to skin and bones, aka the stereotypical image of a girl with an eating disorder. I went from slightly overweight, to a healthy weight. Generally speaking, I was praised when people noticed my weight loss because it was seen as a positive change. The fat girl gone skinny. And I loved the positive reinforcement. Because truly, I looked good. I won "Most Changed Since Freshman Year" for my senior year yearbook superlatives, so everyone recognized the difference in me. I didn't really see a problem because I looked healthy. I felt healthy, too. Aside from the constant hunger pangs, never ending fatigue and dizziness, I felt good. When all of my self-destruction caught up with me at 19, I spent 2 months total in the hospital, and then in a residential treatment center until I was cleared to be sent home. Those were the two most miserable, but well spent months of my life. I had to drop out of college, leave my job, make up an excuse as to where I was- but it was either recovery or death at that point. And most times I was too scared to leave my eating disorder behind & wanted to choose death, because it just seemed easier. But something in me knew that I had way too much to live for to take the easy way out. I understood that if I kept a negative outlook on life and recovery, I would never truly recover. I needed to change my perspective on life. So I fought. And in the beginning, I only fought to please those around me. I did this until fighting became a habit & I realized it felt so much better to actually... well, feel good. I still struggled. There were times I felt motivated, but didn't at the same time. There were times I didn't think I could do it anymore. There were times I felt so motivated that I thought I could maintain recovery forever. Recovery is a rollercoaster. It goes up and down and loops around. It makes your head spin. But despite the loops and the unpredictable nature, it is more than worth it. I had to constantly turn my negative thoughts into positive ones, whether I believed what I was telling myself or not. I had to remind myself that every bite I took was one step closer to freedom from a disease that nearly stole my life. I began to grasp the fact that recovery is a mindset. I had to believe I could do it in order to achieve it. With all of this being said, it is okay to have bad days in recovery. It was hard to accept that, though. I'm still learning to accept it. And maybe, one day in the future, I will love my body for what it is, and not for what it isn't. But I'm not quite there yet. That's okay too. Because I'm closer than I was yesterday. And tomorrow, I'll be closer than I am today. But not being skinny does not mean that I am fat. Being "healthy" does not mean I am fat. I'm not fat. I'm where I need to be at this point in time. And I am staring at my computer screen right now, shocked that I just typed that. Further than that, though, I am even more amazed that I am able to believe it. I used to tell myself that “healthy” was okay, and I knew I was just fooling myself. But, with the power of a positive mind, I was actually able to change my point of view. My life should not be consumed by weight loss. I have incredible friends, I have school, I have a job that I love, and so many things to cross off my bucket list. And I am proud to say each thing I just listed has become a main priority in life, no longer calorie counting. My life and my experiences are so much more important than focusing on my Eating Disorder, and I am so thankful I was able to find the good in such a difficult period of my life. GoalsMichael Joiner
Thank you for reviewing my application. By considering the former mistakes I've made, I am using those experiences to find the right help that will assist me in achieving my goal. I graduated from high school with a 3.77 GPA, and a desire to further my education for a bachelor's degree. I attended one of UC's smaller campuses which required a smaller financial investment. Their staff helped students sign up for fall classes; the staff helping me, helped me sign up for inappropriate classes. I could not keep up in physics, and began dropping out. I realized afterwards, those classes were for people pursuing their masters degree in physics. I tried again in 2013, pursuing an associates degree in electronic media technology. I prepared finances sufficient for classes, but was ignorant of the fact that students in these classes would be required to purchase a MacBook Pro, and their own professional camera. I struggled to do all my work using their recourses on campus; I sought counseling, and because the source of the issue was finance (which none of my professors could help me with), I was eventually advised to withdraw. I learned from those experiences that I failed, because I was not prepared for what laid before me. I didn't have a career I truly wanted to pursue. I didn't consider what was out there for me. So I considered, and sought counsel from my godfather. He is a graduate from Kentucky State, and works in computer programming. This time, I have a vision to work in the same field as my godfather. For that, I have sought counsel on how to prepare. I have been advised to pursue a degree at NKU for computer IT. I have been prepared to take out loans and whatever finances necessary to pay for my tuition and supplies. I'm also seeking work in the IT department on campus. I've learned that those who have skills in computer IT or security, have salaries ranging from sixty to a hundred thousand dollars a year. I am convinced that this study will fit my educational strengths, and I am convinced that the sacrifices and risks in pursuing this degree will be more than worth it. I have considered, and I am prepared, and I am convinced. And with that, I have only run into one more problem this semester; one more familiar problem, and that's "finance". After being inspired to go back to school in June, I did just that. But when it came to financial aid, I was "scraping the bottom of the barrel" but didn't know it. How will I make it through two semesters with only $5,500 in student aid? To be honest, I won't. I've already exhausted my other options, including applying for alternative loans, and jobs. I despise asking for help. Out of pride? No; but a concern of becoming an inconvenience to the one helping me. But I realize that if I continue to neglect all of the help that is made available to me, then I will never reach a level in life where I can be a help to others. There was certainly a time in my life where help made itself very hard to find. And now I've developed a very bad habit of not even looking for it. And so, I have fallen short on my ability to pay for my tuition at NKU. And then there's also the supplies I've yet to obtain. Please send help; for I believe that your assistance will help me grow into someone who not only achieved his own goal, but is also able to play a role in helping others do the same. Power of PositivityEric Ernest
University of Southern California I have had a lot of adversities and I have been successful with hard work and determination. Growing up my father was a violent alcoholic, and my mother tried to keep the home together but the pressure of violence and two small children was too much for all of us. Riddled with drug addiction and alcoholism, I was in rehab and jails for years. Until one day I found Alcoholics Anonymous. There I learned to take responsibility for my life and education. At one point I was facing 10 years in federal prison, had no home or family and all of my possessions fit in a paper bag from the grocery store. Upon getting sober I went to culinary school and eventually got a position in a well-known restaurant. Over the last 20 years, I have become an amazing chef and I give a lot to the community. Today, I am in a Master’s of Science at the University of Southern California. It has been a blessed path but not an easy one. All of my family is gone, and I hope to start my own family once I graduate. I have always had an attitude of gratitude and I make a gratitude list every day. School is very expensive and I have some loans, which do not cover a quarter of what I need. This scholarship would be an enormous help. I continue to volunteer for the Chefs to End Hunger program, and the Midnight Mission in downtown Los Angeles because I know that good thing like this will happen. I believe determination and grit have been my secret sauce and I continue to draw on this power to do good. I continue to sponsor young adults and help them get sober. My life’s work has been to spread the message of health through food and that success is possible for anyone if you work hard. I believe the laws of attraction also help me, I know that with positive thinking and gratitude anything is possible. I know that to keep what I have, that I need to give it away. And the Master’s program I am in will help me with my next endeavor. Which is to work with inner city youth and skid row residents, and teach them how to create small businesses in the hospitality industry. I want to teach them how to gain small micro loans, simple permits and stable businesses selling food goods and products. I will also show them the power of positive thinking and how it is necessary for overcoming adversity. I appreciate your organization and the work you do. Thank you and God Bless! Personal DevelopmentRachael Hausin
Personal development comes through life experiences and in my opinion, overcoming hardships. From a young age, I learned that focusing on things that I could control versus things that I could not control would allow me to live a better and more positive life. At the age of twelve, my parents went through a very long and emotionally draining divorce. From experiencing emotional abuse, to having to witness physical abuse that my father acted on my mother, I felt incredibly lost. I was afraid to go home after school and I was also afraid to leave my mom home alone. For months we lived in a hostile and dangerous environment. I always felt like it was my job to protect my mom and be the shoulder for her cry on. My father was a drug and alcohol addict and often flew into fits of rage and anger. Many times this anger was taken out on my mother and I was witness to a great deal of it. At the age of 11 I witnessed my mother get pushed down a flight of stairs by my father and had to be the one to call the police on him. Being so young, I felt that I was a bad daughter or had done something wrong because I still loved my father despite his actions. I would one day learn that I can not control his actions and his actions are not something I should take blame for. For so long, I felt that I would be able to change my father which in turn would change the circumstances for me and my mother. It took me a few years after the divorce to realize that this was not possible.I was exerting so much energy into trying to be supportive for my mother and also have some sort of relationship with my father that I was emotionally draining myself at that point. I finally realized that these were not things that I could control. I could not change my father nor control how he acted. I could not change his drug and alcohol addictions. I also could not change the circumstances for me and my mother. When this realization set in around the time that I was 15, my life and happiness started to improve dramatically. This was after a few years of trying to continuously have a relationship with my father and be the main support system for my mother. I no longer felt like I was a victim of my circumstances. Instead, I felt empowered and in charge of my own life and feelings. In this situation, what I could control were my own feelings and how I responded to what happened to me and what I witnessed. I made the decision to use this unfortunate situation to drive my desire and passion to help other people while also helping myself to become the best version of myself possible. I went on to graduate in the top 25% of my high school class. I then went on to attend the University of Alabama. It was there that I became involved in several different community service activities and my passion for working with others, specifically children, blossomed. During my time at UA, I was involved in a sorority. Our philanthropy was CASA, which means Court Appointed Special Advocates. I was so excited to begin working with this association because their work aligns with exactly what I went through as a child. I also became a volunteer at a program called RISE Center in Tuscaloosa, AL that is a school that serves children with disabilities as well as children that do not have disabilities and integrates those students together. After I graduated from the University of Alabama with my undergraduate degree in Psychology, I moved to Nashville, TN and began my career at Mental Health Cooperative. I was a child and youth case manager to children that had emotional and behavioral disorders. All of the children and families that I worked with lived under the poverty line and were in need of constant support. Through my life experiences, volunteer work, and work experiences, I have found that my passion lies in helping children who have experienced some type of trauma. I am now in graduate school at Arizona State University working towards my Masters Degree in Social Work. From my early life experiences I would frequently focus on things that I could not control. I now focus on things that I can control and making that decision has brought me to the best place that I have been in my life. I have been successful in my schooling and professional life due to making the decision to focus on things that I can control, such as becoming the best version of myself that I can be. Focusing On Things You Can ControlBrenna Hay
August 18, 2017 marks the one-year anniversary of the day I decided to live. So here’s a toast to my friends who recognized pain and didn’t give up on me, to my parents who did their best, to my teachers and mentors and colleagues who gave me work to do, to my counselor who taught me how to cope. And here’s a toast to the power of letting go, to the power of accepting what you can control. Letting go of what I cannot control is an act of faith. Letting go means that I believe that I will go on, regardless of what happens, able to accept and adapt. It is an act of compassion toward myself, freeing me of unnecessary anxieties that I would not be able to accomplish anyway. If you’ve ever read the story of Jesus walking on water, you probably remember Peter. Peter jumped out of the boat to walk toward Jesus, but as soon as he looked away and focused on the waves and the water around him, he panicked and sank. Most people will use this to illustrate a different point than I will. My point is this: Peter forgot to focus on what he could control. All he could control was where he was headed, but he focused on the water instead. We can’t control what happens around us, we can only control how we respond. Sometimes we must just accept and continue forward. August 10, 2017 marks the ten-year anniversary of my grandpa’s paralysis. We’re still not sure what happened; it might have been a blood clot, it might have been a stroke. Regardless, it happened, and it has been ten years since I have seen him take a single step. It was a traumatic occurrence for our family, but we have accepted it for what it is—drastic, disastrous, permanent. And we have continued. He has continued. Grandpa plays tennis and writes books and is active in our community and our family. We are focused on what we can control, and what we control is the quality of life we decide to live together. Other times, we have to change our approach. On August 18, 2016, I finally admitted to my best friend that I was depressed and didn’t want very much to live. I started therapy, which helped immensely, but it did not bring me up to the quality of life I desired. In January, I started taking medication. I have said, and will continue to say, that starting medication was the best decision I ever made for my health. Life is bright and open again, full of possibilities and happiness. I thought, just a few months ago, that I would never be happy again, that I was trapped. But I took control of how I approached my mental health. I cannot control the way my brain is composed; it is possible that I will spend the rest of my life like this. But I can control how I deal with it. Now, instead of my greatest concern being living the rest of my life wanting to be dead, my greatest concern is money. Or, rather, the lack of money. I do not have enough money in my savings account to afford what my parents want me to contribute to school, and they are already several thousands of dollars short to pay for my schooling and my sister’s. But instead of letting myself wallow in financial anxiety, I am doing what I can to make paying for school possible. I am applying for scholarships, I am picking up more hours at work, and I am very seriously considering picking up a second job. I will admit that picking up a second job would be very difficult, as my schedule is consumed by an eighteen-credit workload, my current job, and theatre shows, but I know that I could do it. All it comes down to is focusing on what I could control: my time management. Breaking down life into manageable chunks is one of the things that has made living easier. I have a planner, and on the monthly calendar, I write down due dates and events that I know in advance. And then in the weekly sections, I work day-by-day. By focusing on one day and asking, “What needs to happen today?” I can proceed by making smaller accomplishments in order to fulfill those due dates and attend those events. By narrowing down my focus to one day at a time, I relieve much of the stress that I would otherwise generate in endlessly looping cycles of overthinking, overreaching, and achieving less than I’d like to. By shaving each day down even further to focusing on what I can control, I release some of the unnecessary responsibilities I place on myself. All I can control in this world is myself and how I respond to things. As much as I care about other people, I am not responsible for their feelings or actions. As much as I can contribute to helping solve problems, the world is much too wide and complex for me to simply fix everything. I know that I absolutely must not ignore what goes on in the world around me. And if all I can control is myself, I can focus on bringing as much good into the world as possible. DeterminationMatylda Zamudio
Eastern Florida State College Since joining the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003, Lebron James dreamed of winning the NBA Finals for his hometown. After a 13-year career, James triumphed, finally bringing home a championship title. While Cleveland’s acquisition marked a historic moment in sports, it is James’s persistence that resonates with me. His accomplishment was not only inspiring, but it reflected Lebron’s dedication to fulfill his goals. Since returning to college, I have walked a similar path to pursue my career aspirations. Like Lebron, determination fuels my personal growth in writing, debate, and public speech, helping me discover my interest in journalism. As a child, I loved composing stories. Generating characters and plots for my original comic books became second nature. My childhood outlet to express my creativity and personality transitioned into a long-lasting courtship with writing, especially writing about sports. This relationship later provided me with valuable opportunities, including my recent position as a writing peer tutor. By working with other students, I developed interpersonal communication skills including active listening and self-awareness. Observing other students’ progress not only fulfilled me, it also helped hone my writing voice. My fondness for writing fostered my exploration into new realms of communication, including debate. As part of my American History term paper, I analyzed the 2016 presidential election debates. Aware of the candidates’ disdain for one another, I was captivated by their ability to discuss policy constructively. These examples facilitated my decision to join the Eastern Florida State College Debate Team. As a member, I have polished my critical thinking and problem-solving skills, becoming more objective in research and presenting arguments. Additionally, I have become a better collaborator with my teammates, earning the position of Treasurer, watering my roots in leadership. Ultimately, my fascination for debate and writing brought me into competitive speaking. Last January, I participated in EFSC’s College-Wide “Women Who Shape History” Speech Competition. I chose Senator Hillary Clinton’s contributions to children’s healthcare and women’s equality as my topic. Though nervous, I seized the opportunity to show Senator Clinton in a good light. I had never presented a speech before, but because I felt strongly about my topic, my confidence was evident. I came in third-place. The judges credited my fluent delivery and nonverbal cues to reinforce my main ideas. Thanks to presenting her story from a new perceptive, I had an epiphany about my future. The sense of accomplishment from this experience directed my goal to become a journalist. In summary, determination remains the driving force behind my growth in writing, debate, and speech, causing me to focus my career goals into journalism. My next step is applying what I have learned to enhance my skills. I believe admittance to the College of Communications at Penn State will enrich my communication skills and provide the foundation for my future success. Through Penn State’s excellent academic program, I know I can achieve my long-term goal of delivering compelling stories like Lebron James’s to a nation. The Power of Positive ThinkingPreeti Sharma
Walt Disney once said “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them”. Courage is defined as the act of taking responsibility upon oneself when in face of danger. Everyone has courage whether it is hidden or visible. It’s a matter of expressing it. As humans our sub consciousness often has self-doubts and hinders our ability to think. This increases the lack of courage and self-belief. There are many examples that are seen before our eyes. College students for example, when a college student is clueless of what they want to become and get bad grades, there is no internal drive or motivation to take the particular class or continue college. That lack of motivation cause self-discouragement. As a college student myself I have suffered from self discouragement. In fact the summer of 2017, I took a chemistry class. My advisors advised me not to, because it’s extremely hard to pass with an A when fast paced. There were two lectures (4 chapters) covered a day. I still took that class, because I needed to for my Biochemisty degree. I had also been working 10-15 hours a week at Starbucks. I had my first test and received a 76%. I was more alerted then of how challenging this class is, and how seriously I have to take it. The second test happened and I received an 82%. The third test got me to an 80%. At this point I had a B in that class. I was in self-doubt and lack of self-belief, whether I will pass the class with an A. My subconscious kept telling me that maybe I should drop out of class. However I stayed with the class till the end. That same weekend I fell ill, so it was difficult to study. However I remember crying over an 85% and calling my grandma up, and she told me the exact words of Walt Disney. Since that moment I decided to go to tutoring 4 days a week from 10 till 5 pm. I received as much help as I could and did everything in my capacity to get an A. Ever since college started I pushed my limits and promised that I would do anything to pass with an A. Personally receiving the letter grade B, isn’t good enough. It won’t help me get admission into Med school. My goal is to be a doctor, but I still have my doubts if I want to pursue my bachelors in biochemistry or neuroscience. In the process of pursuit, my negative thoughts changed to positive thoughts, because I had a drive, and someone to help me boost my self-confidence, and courage. Eventually I passed the class with an A, because I had no doubt to hinder my thinking. I already had a B+, so what is the worst that can happen? A similar situation occurs during 2014-2015, as a junior in high school. My GPA was exactly 2.0, and I was getting ready for college. At that point I had realized that college isn’t going to be cheap or free, despite all the scholarships and the grades. I was self–discouraged ,because the only obstacle was managing time. I had 6 months to raise my GPA. I could either make it or break it. I managed to override how I think and I told myself that I will get an A in all of my honors classes. I will put in twice the effort because it will be worth it. This belief came from the internal drive to get into a good college. If I want to be something, I will have to work for it regardless of whether I like it or not. I passed all my classes with an A and then I received an academic award for doing well. This is an award I have been yearning to have since 7th grade. I never knew how much effort goes in to get it. I raised my GPA from a 2.0 to a 2.82. This internal drive kept me moving and built the positivity in me to pursue my goal. These experiences changed me to become who I am today. Today I’m a sophomore in college getting all A’s and have a positive attitude towards life and work. My internal drive and motivation keeps me going and passing my classes. As a result of self-belief and encouragement, I am more successful than I was in high school. I am stronger mentally as result of having these traits. Everytime I have problem where my subconscious tells me that maybe I should drop out or quit, I have developed the ability to fight off the urge. I am more motivated to do better because competitiveness allows me to be that way. Competitive is a big part of me that allows me to pursue my dreams and work harder. As Walt Disney once said, “all our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them”. My dream is to become a doctor and it will be worthwhile if I continue to do so. Positive ThinkingRebecca McIntosh
For the past 8 years, I have worked as a Registered Nurse in a variety of areas of the healthcare field. Those 8 years have been the most rewarding years of my life. However, they were not without their trials and troubles. My first nursing position after graduating was a volunteer nursing job through Dominican Volunteers USA who sent me to work at the Holy Family Birthing Center in Weslaco, TX. A typical week involved working 60 hours a week. I received room and board during my time there and received a stipend of $100 a month. That year of volunteering was extremely frustrating because the organization had weak leadership. They went through a fraud incident and experienced numerous financial crises. One of the darkest days I had there involved the concern that our electricity would be turned off by the power company because no one had paid the electric bill. While in Texas, I lived and worked with the same group of women and that was challenging at times. Not only did I get frustrated with interacting with them 24/7 due to the communal setting, I had to accept some of their lifestyles that I was not accustomed to. Often we had visitors that would stay with us for as little as a week or as long as several months. This was difficult for me because I was not used to living with people that I did not know well. During that year I also had to endure extreme home sickness due to moving from Atlanta, Georgia to Weslaco, Texas and living without my family and friends. Being without them only intensified the problems I was having to deal with. However, I was able to get through that year with good positive thinking. I had some positive experiences during that year. Many amazing memories were made with the women who were my roommates and co-workers. During the summer, we would pile into our mini-van and head to South Padre Island to spend the day at the beach. For my birthday, my roommates/co-workers made a delicious cake from scratch and we went to eat Mexican food on the beach. That birthday is still to this day my favorite birthday memory. Game nights were a tradition and we bonded extremely well over friendly competition. When I experienced dark and depressing days or trouble with my roommates, those memories helped me overcome the problems I was facing. All relationships have problems, even the best ones. In order to get past the bad times, the good memories you have of that relationship or experience will get you through it. When I came back from volunteering, I was thinking that life would be easier and I would have less problems. This was nowhere near true. While I did not have the same living arrangements or have the same financial problems, my stress with work increased drastically. Going from working in a clinic setting to working in an inpatient hospital setting was a major transition. My patient ratio was higher, the acuity of my patients’ medical needs was greater, and I also had to deal with more departments other than nursing departments. Learning to work with doctors was especially difficult for me. At the birthing center, I only worked with nurse midwives and other nurses. They were very easy to get along with because they were extremely patient and kind to me. The hospital doctors were not like that and it was very hard for me to not take their attitude personally or get upset over it. Thinking positive thoughts helped me feel more confident about myself and allowed me to stand up for myself. One thought that I maintained was how grateful I was to have a good paying job with benefits. Working at the birthing center made me extremely appreciative for a job that made more than $100 a month, allowed me to use PTO and was not on the verge of going out of business. Also during my transition back into the hospital setting, I had the support of my loving family and I was thrilled to be back with them. Currently I am a nurse in the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital in Marietta, GA and I have been there for 5 years. This job was also a major job transition and I could not have gotten where I am today without positive thinking. We care for patients who just had open heart surgery and they require extensive attention. Some patients are on multiple machines to keep them alive. When I first started working there, I never would have thought that I would eventually become a preceptor for new staff members or that I would be someone that people often came to for guidance and advice. My plans for the future involve going to graduate school to earn my masters in nursing education. With this degree, I would love to become the nurse educator for my unit and have the option to teach at nursing schools. If I do achieve this goal, I will definitely inspire my students to have positive thinking whenever they are experiencing trials and to never give up. Law of AttractionRachelle Westervelt
So much in life takes courage, and three years ago, that is exactly what I lacked. I sat silently in the corner of my literature class, as the other students discussed Dante’s Inferno. Although engaged, I did not dare speak up, in fear that I would sound unintelligent. I sat there with my hand to my neck until my teacher called on me to participate. She enthusiastically yelled from across the room, “Do you have anything to share?” So many ideas flowed through my mind, but the words came out choppy. Instead of projecting the eloquent dialogue in my head, I rambled, finishing my sentence with, “Yeah, I don’t know.” Unable to look up after the embarrassing scene, I waited until the bell rang, giving me the cue to pack up my bag and wait for everyone else to leave first. I reached my next class without making eye contact with anyone else. Each day I survived this routine until lunch. Occasionally, I sat with a group of rambunctious freshmen boys, one of whom was my boyfriend, but most days I preferred to sit with only my best friend. This was comforting because there were fewer people to analyze me. Even at social events, my self-consciousness would awaken, trapping me in a real-life nightmare that prevented me from venturing out. Each day during my ninth grade Homecoming week, I was given the opportunity to join an activity. One day my friend exclaimed, “Let’s do the relay race.” I looked across the green field and saw track hurdles and a water slide. My stomach dropped at the thought of tripping or coming in dead last. I kindly declined, wishing I had the nerve. Day to day, I played tug-of-war with my anxieties from many directions: academically, physically, and socially. The longer I played, the more I got dragged through the mud. The battle came to a halt, however, when I read The Untethered Soul, by Michael A. Singer. One line in particular stood out. It stated, “If you do not care, if you are no longer afraid of yourself, you are free.” And at a flick of a switch, the lightbulb glowed within me. I mustn’t be afraid. I should not be afraid of what people think. I should not be afraid of failing. I should not be afraid of being unloved. And above all, I should most certainly not be afraid of myself. I needed courage. Three years later, I sit upright in my literature class, as I read to the class vibrantly. I share an excerpt from my journal, Seeing myself in a more positive light and believing that I am capable has allowed me to achieve many things. Although I am still growing as a person, I have learned much more about myself throughout high school and through my reading of the Untethered Soul. Working through my anxieties, learning from my difficulties, and coming to the realization that I choose to either be my opponent or my advocate, not only took courage, but it has also led me to the path of self-discovery. My courage to love and respect myself has given me the ability to be a more loving force toward others. The more I learn, the more I develop the courage to become a free soul. Unchained, finally, from myself. Over the last couple of years, I have worked towards growing as a person in order to overcome my greatest fear: myself. Standing up in class to read my passage was the baby steps to conquering this battle, which has now made me more self-assured and has brought along many new benefits such as close friends, successes, and fun adventures. By being confident, less judgement sat within me, which attracted more confident friends that I now have deep connections with. Not only did people prefer to be around a happier version of myself, but my new mindset rewarded me with better grades. Believing I was smart reduced my test anxiety, resulting in better test scores. New friends and better grades were perks, but my newfound courage also rewarded me with a unique adventure. With my mindset that I am enough and that I am capable, I had the confidence to apply for a five-month program called Wellfit girls. After completing the application process and a couple interviews, I was accepted in to a five-month program of twenty-four girls. We met twice a week to work out in preparation for our camping trip in Peru. After five months of training, we began our hike up the Lares Trail. Once I reached the top of the mountain, I realized that my courage got me here. My courage led me to take action and opportunities. I grew throughout Wellfit girls because the more confident and happy I became, the more I began to see life through a positive lens. Seeing life more positively then attracted priceless memories, friends, and successes. Living with the knowledge of this principle, The Law of Attraction, helped me overcome my tendency to undervalue myself and my possibilities. Changing My MindsetKaren Troxell
When I look back on my life, I am relatively amazed at how much personal growth I have achieved in such a small time. The person I am today is not even close to the person I was six months ago. I struggled with anxiety and depression for roughly a year and a half before ever seeking out help and finally having experiences that helped heal me. In a couple weeks, I will be beginning the second half of my junior year at university. I am happier, surrounded by love and compassion, and in a better place than I could have ever imagined. I have an excitement and joy for life that I have not felt in roughly two years. What changed for me was my mindset. With the help of a wonderful therapist, meditation, and copious self-help books, I began thinking of myself and my life through a positive lens. I began filtering out the negative and choosing to look at situations that would have normally induced a panic attack in a positive light, as emotions being experienced and lessons to be learned instead of as fearful things. In the fall of my senior year of high school, my aunt was diagnosed with Stage IV brain cancer. There was no miracle drug or surgery that could save her. The truth was that she was going to die, and there was nothing any doctors could do for her. Mere months after her diagnosis, my grandmother suddenly passed away. Then immediately after I began my freshman year of university, the man who was essentially my grandfather, although he was not biologically related to my family, passed away. Three months after that, my aunt also died. In roughly the span of 16 months, I lost three people who meant the world to me. And I really had nowhere to turn. My family is not an emotional one. We are not the type to be very loving, or to cry on each other’s shoulders. Instead, all those feelings got bottled up for about a year. I never dealt with the pain or the grief I felt. And then I started having very bad anxiety. I would have panic attacks, and I could barely sleep at night because I could not get my brain to stop thinking. I would lie awake running over every possible scenario in my life that could go badly. Finally it became too much and I was starting to have really dangerous thoughts that led me to seek out help. I visited an on-campus counselor, who recommended a therapist to me. With her help, we determined that I am a classic over-thinker. I obsess over small details, and always wonder if I said something wrong or could have changed an action to get a different outcome. She told me that I am not naturally a negative person, but so much negativity had built up in me that it was seeping out of me, whether I wanted it to or not. I needed to find a way to release the negative vibes, and replace them with positivity. I began using exercise and meditation as my methods of releasing negativity. But to truly change my life, that was not enough. I also had to put positivity back into the equation. It was a journey to the place I am in now. And it is not over, by any means. I still have days where I feel very anxious and like I am not in control of any aspect of my life. But I have developed certain methods that help me deal with those feelings when they come. It is, of course, natural to feel some amount of stress. Stress helps keep our lives in balance. We cannot only play all day, and the feeling of stress reminds us of our responsibilities. For me though, I felt way too much of it, for situations I could not change and things I had no control over. So I worked hard to change the way I think about stress. I look at it in a positive light. When I am in a situation that I have no control over, instead of wailing and crying that no matter what I do I cannot change anything, I remind myself that to have an emotional response is a blessing because that means I am alive and that what is to follow will surely be an improvement on the present. I treat every situation as an opportunity to learn something and to better myself from. When I start to have negative thoughts about myself, I carry a rock in my pocket that I move to the other pocket. This physical action gives me a second to recognize that I am having a negative thought, and then to release it by the action of switching pockets. I then replace the negative thought with an affirmation, reminding myself why I am beautiful, a good person, successful at school or my job, etc. Obviously I still have negative thoughts. I am not sure that I will ever completely eradicate them. Living with a more positive mindset has helped diminish them though, and helped me to recognize that I can have a negative thought and still be ok. Somewhat ironically, I think that is the most important lesson that I have learned from living a more positive life. When you train yourself to think about the good in your life and the world around you, you are able to recognize the bad as well. You can see the negativity in the world and in your own life more fully, but you are no longer beholden to it and you are able to use your mind to accept it, move beyond it, and then change it. Positive thinking has changed my life. By practicing all these methods I have written about, anxiety and depression can no longer grab hold of me. I recognize that I live in a world where those things exist, but I exist on a different plane than them and cannot be touched by them to such an extent. I begin each day by setting an intention of how I will live my life and how my day will go. I tell myself that I will live with grace, love, and joy, and in return others will treat me with patience and love and a world of possibilities will be opened up to me. Positive thinking has given me back my life. It has taught me to love more freely and to open myself to things that would have terrified me before. I credit this change in mentality with saving my life. IndependenceSuzette Warren
Arizona State University Most children grow up relying on others for their survival. They rely on their family to feed them, provide them with shelter, and to nurture and care for them. They rely on teachers to impart them with the knowledge and skills necessary to survive and thrive in the world. They rely on friends to teach and enforce social behaviors and norms. For the first eighteen years of their lives, children are largely dependent. I experienced some of this dependency, on family, teachers, and friends, but I also was required to develop a great deal of independence from an early age. This independence, while empowering and responsible for many of my successes, made it difficult for me to let go in certain circumstances and accept things out of my control. It took a crisis of confidence and aid from a source I would have never considered, but I now understand the peace and positivity that come from focusing on the things that I can control, and accepting those I cannot. From the age of eight I was an increasingly independent child. With my single mother working late, I would walk home from school, let myself in, and take care of my homework on my own. I never resented the responsibility and I loved being in control of my life. In fact, being largely self-sufficient for so much of my childhood prepared me for the challenges of college. My freshman year on campus was not the personally and academically trying rollercoaster that it is for many first-year students. I studied diligently, aced tests, and made the Dean’s List. I was hired as a residential assistant for my sophomore year, and had another successful year, achieving academically, growing personally, and bonding with my new coworkers. The following year, I accepted a residential assistant position without hesitation. My junior year was much different from the start. The training for my position was the same as it had been the year before. It had been mundane at times my first year, but sitting through eight-hour days of the same training a second year felt like an insurmountable climb. The friendships I had found so easy to make my first year did not come as easy with my new group of coworkers. I found myself stressed, wondering if the rest of the staff liked me, noticing if a group of them went out without me. As a senior staff member, I sometimes resented the mistakes of the new members if they caused the group more work. I questioned whether I was handling situations correctly when my residents would come to me with an issue. Rifts began to form in the residential staff, and the conflict took a toll on me. I began to feel consumed by these things-the actions and opinions of others-that were out of my control. As the semester wore on, the combined stress of my classes, personal, and professional conflicts made me feel like I was spinning out of control. I was not myself, and I struggled with feelings of anxiety and a lack of fulfillment. That is when I decided I needed help. At the suggestion of a close friend, I made an appointment with a counselor. I had always been skeptical of therapy, thinking that it was only for crazy people, not for someone like me. My opinion changed almost immediately. Being able to talk with someone openly, honestly, and in confidence allowed me to learn more about myself, and about how to control my emotions. The most important piece of advice I received is still written in the margins of my planner to this day: you are only in control of you. It was liberating. I adopted the lesson my counselor gave into my everyday life, and my stresses and unease dissipated, and I began to once again live a life of fulfillment and achievement. When an issue arose with a coworker, I could reassure myself that not everyone will be friends, but we can still work together and accomplish our jobs as an effective team. If a class had seemingly insurmountable projects and unconquerable exams, I would remind myself that I can’t control the assignments or the tests, I can only control how hard I study and how diligently I work. I stopped sweating the small things throughout the day, and made sure to remind myself that I can’t control what happens to me, but I can control my attitude. I was able to take a step back from my stressors and approach them in a more effective way, becoming much more at peace in the process. My new-found sense of calm did not go unnoticed. Not long after I began focusing on the things I can control, a particularly difficult and sensitive issue arose with a student on my floor. Given the gravity of the situation, my first instinct was to scream internally and panic. A month before, I may have done just that, but instead I took a breath, evaluated what actions I could take, what actions the student could take, and proceeded accordingly. Afterward, my co-worker, with whom partnered in diffusing the situation, applauded me for remaining calm throughout a trying time and ensuring a positive resolution was reached. The greatest test of my new attitude came only months later. I was accepted for a competitive internship program with the Arizona Secretary of State’s office. I was elated until I found that I may have to decide between the internship and my position as a residential assistant. My housing was contingent upon my position as a residential assistant, and even though there had been stressful times, it was a job that I knew and loved. I petitioned my boss to let me take the internship and continue with my residential position. I didn’t know what the outcome would be, but I reminded myself that while I couldn’t dictate the situation, I was in command of my reaction to it, which served to greatly reduce my stress level. It was determined that I would not be allowed to perform both jobs simultaneously, and I had to choose. Although I felt this ruling was unfair, I accepted it as being out of my control. The internship was too good to pass up, I made my choice, and I didn’t stress. I was sad to leave my position, but I knew I had made a positive impact on my residents and that I would do well in my internship. It is easy to be stressed by the things in life that are out of our control. They may seem like insurmountable tasks, unfair decisions, or they may create a tense environment at school or work, but energy spent bemoaning things we cannot change is wasted and ultimately leads to stress and anxiety. I grew up largely in control of my life and very independent. As I have learned though, it is impossible to go through life being independent and in control of everything. I fell into wanting everything to go according to my plan, and found myself stressed when things didn’t go the way I’d envisioned, or tasks piled up and there didn’t seem to be enough time in the day. I am thankful for my decision to get help in dealing with my stress. Now, I am able to free myself from worrying about the things I can’t control, and focus on doing my best at the things I can. I realized that I can’t control every situation, but I can control how I react to them and I can choose to be positive and at peace, and that has made a world of difference. Attitude of GratitudeJesse Lopez, Jr.
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them." John F. Kennedy, 1963 If you ask my family, friends, and colleagues, I am a person of few words but many actions. President Kennedy's quote embodies the way I choose to live my life-one of action and tangible outcomes. This world has blessed me in many ways and I now can show my appreciation by sharing my talents and knowledge to empower others. If awarded this scholarship, the funds will allow me to complete my dissertation, a goal I have been forced to put on hold due to the lack of funds for tuition and necessary research. This essay highlights my journey of learning to live a gracious life, a journey which has helped me create a successful life of my own. The earliest memories of gratitude stem from my upbringing. My parents taught me the concept of gratitude early in my life. I suppose having little, financially, throughout my adolescence helped me appreciate the intangible things in life, such as moral support and motivation. I recall growing up in a small garage in Southern California, ignorant to my level of poverty. However, my parents provided my family the necessities of life through hard work and extensive sacrifice. Despite growing up in a small home and having an older car than most of my friends, I did not feel poor at the time. In fact, I never felt my childhood was deprived of any experiences. Rather, I am thankful for these circumstances, which I never allowed to detract me from achieving my goals. I was taught valuable lessons during those early years, especially gratitude, kindness, humbleness, and perseverance. This stage in my life molded me into the gracious person I am today and impacted the education and career I chose to pursue as an adult. Working within the community college system has been a dream of mine throughout my education and career. However, it was a challenging journey that took over ten years of preparation through self-discovery, educational training, mentorship, work experience and networking. When I originally made the decision to dedicate my life to public service in 2003, I quickly learned I would have to develop my skills and credentials to compete with more qualitied candidates. Public service and education is a broad field. However, even the most entry-level positions require some form of work experience. As a high school graduate, working in public education was also a mystery. Where do I start? How do I find the right job in public education? Not having any family members who had successfully graduated from college made it difficult. Ultimately, I chose to pursue an undergraduate degree with hopes it would help me achieve my dream. Like most first-generation college students, I had to make a difficult decision after high school. Should I work full-time to afford college or delay my educational goals until later in life? Fortunately, I chose to pursue college after high school and found several job opportunities to fund my education. Although there were many late nights, the wisdom gained by working while completing college ultimately shaped my career. I secured a full-time job as a student assistant with the State of California EPA. This opportunity helped me gain a better understanding of public service and added valuable work experience to my resume. However, four years later I was still a young public servant with a Bachelor’s degree lacking the knowledge and confidence to navigate the world of professional networking. Applying for jobs in public education after college proved unsuccessful, once again. I was reminded how difficult it would be finding employment within public education, despite the additional credentials and work experience. However, this time I was better equipped with a network of supporters, mentors, and educated counselors who advised me to pursue graduate education. At the time, it was a difficult decision because I would need to take out additional students loans. However, I ultimately knew it was the step I needed to get closer to achieving my career goals. After being accepted into a graduate program, I also transitioned to a full-time position with the County of San Bernardino Human Services department. This moment in my life was one of my most challenging moments in my life. Little did I know how difficult it would be learning a new job and beginning an evening program to attain a Master’s of Public Administration (MPA) degree. Nonetheless, I persevered and graduated with an MPA degree and greater confidence. The decision to pursue graduate education changed my life and allowed me to compete for higher-level jobs within the public education system. From that point forward, I was determined to achieve the ultimate form of higher education, a doctoral degree. By completing a doctoral degree, I knew I would be better prepared to make a difference in the world by equipping myself with technical skills, knowledge, and wisdom. As a first-generation college student, I never imagined that I would be at this point in my educational journey. I still think back to my high school years in which an Associate’s degree seemed like an impossible goal. Now, I'm concluding the final years of a doctoral program and conducting scholarly research about educational programs for non-traditional students. In the past, my greatest fear was the unknown and self-doubt. Now, my greatest fear is not finishing this last chapter in my education. With much pride, I have served the public sector for over 10 years. In fact, my career began with California EPA and eventually led me through multiple roles with the County of San Bernardino and County of Los Angeles. Eventually, I found my true passion serving underserved students within the California Community College system. In this role, I bring my specialization in career development, employment services, and case management to help underserved students. My experience working with job seekers facing multiple outside barriers, such as poverty, child care issues, academic disadvantages, physical and/or emotional abuse, drug abuse and depression has greatly helped in my role today. As a program supervisor with Career and Technical Education, I lead the newly developed ACE (Accelerated, Certificate, and Employment) Program and assist unemployed residents in securing gainful employment in our community. I also develop and nurture partnerships with regional businesses and stakeholders to provide opportunities for non-traditional students and residents of Riverside and San Bernardino counties. This job is extremely rewarding because it allows me to directly impact students residing in the Inland Empire. In my current role at Norco Community College, I implement programs aimed at helping students find jobs in trade-specific industries, such as manufacturing and automation. My greatest achievement at Norco Community College is the development and implementation of the new ACE (Accelerated, Certificate, and Employment) Program, which assists unemployed residents in securing gainful employment in our community. The 10 years of public sector experience I have already gained allows me to specialize in career development, employment services, and case management. In my role, I work with individuals facing multiple barriers, such as poverty, child care, academic disadvantages, physical and/or emotional abuse, drug abuse and depression. However, I can help these students achieve their academic and career goals due to the relationships I have built with nearby community partners. An Southern California native, I have earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Masters in Public Administration, and I have completed the third year of my Doctorate of Public Administration (DPA). The next chapter in my educational journey will allow me to make differences of much larger magnitude as a college professor. Working within the community college system has been a dream of mine throughout my education and career. However, it was a challenging journey that took ten years of preparation through educational training, mentorship, work experience, networking, discipline, and most importantly, dedication. I am forever gracious to those who gave me a helping hand along the way. In the past two years, I have developed and implemented a successful program, known as ACE, specifically aimed at helping unemployed students, veterans, and other non-traditional student populations. A few of my accomplishments from 2015-2017 include: • Created ACE Program: https://youtu.be/8-3cfwLBEjs • Secured $50,000 in funding for the ACE Program. More information here. • Developed partnerships with local employers. • Coordinated multiple Industry Panel events, which attracted hundreds of students from the college and local high schools. These events promote high-wage jobs within engineering and manufacturing pathways. • Convened industry partners to interview and hire students. Graduates from ACE are making an average wage of $20.00 per hour. More information here. My longstanding career in social services and public education has allowed me to realize my purpose in this world. In fact, I have vowed to pay my success forward by dedicating my career to helping others achieve their academic and career goals. Ultimately, I know my career path will continue to be in higher education, specifically in the public education system. I dream of giving students the same opportunities many educators gave me along my academic journey. My life would be drastically different without the support and mentorship of educators I received throughout my journey. In nearly all my careers, serving the public has been a key motivator. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship. If awarded, the funds will be invested into someone who has dedicated his career to rebuilding and educating the neediest and most vulnerable in our community. As stated on your website, I too believe “You create your own reality”. This scholarship will help me in my journey of creating a reality of success for myself and others. The educational and professional training I received has prepared me to complete my dissertation, which will impact students on a much larger scale. I am confident the findings reflected in my research will benefit many more students in the future. This funding will help me help others, as best said in President Kennedy’s proclamation in 1963, “…share those blessings and those ideals with our fellow human beings throughout the world.” Thank you for considering me. Personal DevelopmentCampbell Mattix
USC Transferring is one of the most stressful journeys a college student can take while juggling class, homework, exams, and a social life. That is why I have transferred three times. Although it may sound exhausting, this courageous choice has redirected my future and my happiness. My experiences at Boston University, while working towards a degree in both English and special education, led me to realize what I truly wanted in life. Although it meant hurting my pride and admitting that the biggest decision of my life up until that point had been wrong, applying to the University of Southern California and majoring in sociology and human resource management has made me happier than I ever thought was possible because I will be able to use this investment into myself to more substantially help make the world a better place. After one quick semester at Glendale Community College to lower tuition costs, I completed my first semester at USC in Spring 2017. Money is tight for my father who has managed to put two kids through college as a single parent, so I am currently working at the human resource department and front desk for a mechanic shop. I have learned everything from how to do an oil change to speaking up for myself in a male-dominated industry all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA at USC. As I enter my junior year, I am excited to continue to grow and further develop my career and life goals. ______________________________________________________________________________ Shelving.com Business Scholarship 1. What inspired you to take a business/industry-related course of study? 500-1000 Transferring is one of the most stressful journeys a college student can take while juggling class, homework, exams, social life, and their family. That is why I have transferred three times. Although it may sound exhausting, the inspiration to have a career in human resources drastically redirected both my future and my happiness. As a high school senior, I thought I was about to take the leap of a lifetime and fly from my hometown in Los Angeles, California all the way to Boston University. I thought that I was breaking away from the world I had always known simply because of the literal distance I was about to experience. It would take over a year to realize that I had been mistaken. By majoring in English education and special education, I was limiting myself to a career in the only field that I had ever spent a long period of time experiencing. Knowing that I could be successful and happy with a career in high school education, I convinced myself to take the safest bet. I now realize that choosing safe opportunities will never allow me to achieve my goals of being successful and using that success to help others on a large scale. Although it meant hurting my pride and admitting that the biggest decision of my life up until that point had been wrong, transferring to Glendale Community College then University of Southern California and majoring in sociology and human resource management has made me happier than I ever thought was possible because I will be able to invest in myself and submerse myself in a challenging, yet rewarding, career. Originally, I was just a sociology major until I discovered my passion. Because money is tight for my father who has managed to put two kids through college as a single parent, I am currently interning at the human resource and customer services departments of a mechanic shop in my hometown. I have learned everything from how to do an oil change to speaking up for myself in a male-dominated industry, while maintaining a 4.0 GPA at USC. As I enter my junior year, I have found my passion in the notorious human resources industry because it mixes my strongest asset, my communication skills, with a love of working with others to solve problems. Although customers at the shop have told me horror stories about what their friends in this field have witnessed, like layoffs and employees who needs to be told they should put on some deodorant, I am confident that this career will provide me with satisfaction and the ability to grow a strong network of meaningful relationships. I am learning the communication skills needed to be confident in my ability to instruct orders and make important decisions for a company despite my gender and young age. This skill will continue to be important for me, so I will continue to practice it and grow even after I graduate and begin utilizing my degree. Today a customer sat in my office as he waited for his car. As he began to chat with me about my school and what I am studying, this unlikely source has once again further shaped my career goals. By chance he was a professor at USC’s medical school and his wife worked for human resources. “What about doing human resources for the federal government?” he asked. After explaining the benefits of stability and retirement packages, I saw an opportunity to accomplish several of my goals with one path. This stanger has opened my eyes to a career path that allows me accomplish large and influential decisions regarding the land that I call home. By helping my state and country via the human resources industry, I will find deep fulfillment in knowing that I am making a difference, no matter how small, with every project that I will accomplish. It was a painful decision to end my pursuit of becoming an educator because helping others, especially youth, is very important to me. However, the professor that taught my first business course at USC proved to be yet another source of inspiration and a strong role model. She began her career similarly to myself and became a human resource consultant. After many successful years in this business, she became a business professor. Understanding that this prestigious path will take dedication and endurance, I will strive towards this career path in order to fulfill my personal goals of firstly helping myself at USC, then my country, and eventually the next generation of eager students like myself. It is my hope that I will be able to help mentor someone looking to find their passion just as my favorite professor did for me this past semester. I will strive to teach him or her the skills to be a strong and independent individual while working and communicating with others because that has given me the confidence to pursue the challenging, yet rewarding industry that is human resources. ______________________________________________________________________________ Describe your educational career and life goals. Explain your plan for achieving these goals. Include your degree/major, why you selected it, and how this degree/major will help you achieve your goals. As a high school senior I thought I was about to take the leap of a lifetime and fly from my hometown in Los Angeles, California all the way to Boston University. I thought that I was breaking away from the world I had always known simply because of the literal distance I was about to experience. It would take over a year to realize that I had been completely mistaken. By majoring in English education and special education, I was limiting myself to a career in the only field that I had ever deeply understood. Knowing that I could be successful and happy in this social career, I convinced myself to take the safest bet. I now realize that by only taking the safest opportunities, I will never be able to achieve my goals. During winter break, I took the long flight home, and ended up helping my friend move into his new apartment at the University of Southern California. The grassy open areas and perfect seventy-five degree sun made my heart ache for the area that I had so badly wanted to flee just months ago. As my freshman year in Boston was coming to a close, I was surrounded by new friends and academic success, yet I was barely able to drag myself out of bed much less feel excited about my future following graduation. Suddenly, my degrees didn’t seem as exciting anymore. I began to look into other colleges, but felt extreme guilt surrounding the idea of admitting that I had made such a monumental misjudgement. Despite this, I convinced myself that sending out one application to USC wouldn’t change anything. The day I was accepted featured more emotions at one time that I had experienced. Excitement, joy, fear, uncertainty, and pride were some of the main feelings that my brain was trying to sort. Although much more expensive, I had the opportunity to live with both of my divorced parents in the town that I had grown to miss so desperately. With the support of the those whose opinions I value the most, I packed my bags and became a transfer student. After one short semester at Glendale Community College to save my parents from financial stress, I found myself signing up for my third orientation week in the heart of Downtown. A new hurdle came my way: what do I want to do now? With a year and a half already used and a determination to take no longer than four years to graduate, I was accepted into USC as an English major. I knew that I have a passion for writing, communicating, and socializing. I also knew that I might want to work with children, but I also might want to work in a business setting. This led me to my current majors: sociology and human resource management. It is the perfect blend of my passions as well as being broad enough to allow myself to --- Career goal(s), Life goal(s), Plan for achieving goals ______________________________________________________________________________ Go Fund Yourself Scholarship What is the most unique way you have found to fund your education before applying for student loans? (<250 words ) I find myself sitting in the air conditioned office with rap music and chatter blaring through my door. At this mechanic shop, loyal customers walk into the office and seemed startled when I greet them. Are you the bosses wife? At almost two decades my senior, I explain that no, I have this job because of my qualifications. This is the nature of working in a male-dominated industry, but this journey, more than any other, has taught me about cars, finances, and myself. After transferring to the University of Southern California from one year at Boston University and one semester at Glendale Community College, I new that I had to be proactive about funding my education if I wanted to achieve my goal of graduating from the school of business and ultimately achieving my dream job of becoming a head of Human Resources. Not only have I learned how much to charge for an oil change and how to create invoices for customers, I have also become a stronger, more confident female. By speaking up and asserting myself daily, I have grown to love my job. The intimidating mechanics are now my buddies who come into my office just to cool off and crack a joke. I find myself smiling everyday and finding new ways to fund my education and career goals. ______________________________________________________________________________ DIDN’T APPLY: Oz Moving & Storage Why is Urban Light my favorite area to live? ~200 After high school I had the opportunity to enroll in a duel English and special education teaching degree program at Boston University which is a highly populated urban area. After a year of snow to my knees, hundreds of people anywhere I go, and skyscraper surrounding my dorm, I missed my hometown: Los Angeles, California. Once I transferred to the University of Southern California my sophomore year, I understood my home in a completely different way. What I thought was a densely urban area turned out to be a light urban area. The open grassy spots and ability to walk up sidewalks without having to stop and move over so others can squeeze by was something that I had not noticed before moving across the country. From Manhattan beach to the stores lining Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles’ hybridity is my favorite environment because it allows me to experience all of the opportunities that an urban area provides while providing me with the space to enjoy nature. What 3 words come to mind when you think about moving? Excitement, organization, change Explain why you chose one of the words from the previous answer. I love moving because I get to go through all of the memories that I have made and I can see how I have grown into the person that I am today. This also means organizing all of my possessions into categories like first grade, souvenirs, jewelry, and items I want to donate. Moving allows me to revisit my past and decide how I want to organize my future. Moving allows me to organize more than a simple clean-up because I’m able to hold each item, thinking through what it means to me and how it will help to shape my future, and then relocate it. Imagine you are moving to a new city and can only take 1 of your possessions with you. What would it be? (not including people or pets) If I was moving to a new city and could only take one of my possessions, I would choose my largest photo album. Although I only recently created this book of memories, it all began when I was a toddler and my mother wanted to capture everything from our family's greatest milestones to those everyday moments that would otherwise be lost in time. I grew up watching home videos and looking at dozens of boxes of photographs showing my mom, dad, older brother, and myself at our happiest. In fifth grade my mom started taking less pictures. By the time I entered middle school my parents had separated and all of these photographs were nowhere to be found. Locked away in storage, those images of smiling babies and newlyweds left my memory as well. That was until I took the initiative to dig through a massive locker to find hundreds, if not thousands, of the pictures that I loved so dearly. With the blessing of my parents, I sorted through everything to find me most treasured photographs and created my own photo album which sits in my room for me to look at --- ______________________________________________________________________________ Make Me Laugh Scholarship (250 words or less) Cats are meant to stay on the ground. However, when my dad asked if I wanted to take a trip to Indiana to deliver two cats, I naively asked myself: what could possibly go wrong? At 5:00am, the cats must have sensed what was to come because we experienced the most intense game of hide-and-go-seek that left us running to the airport to make our plane in time. We finally corralled the beasts into the car; however, the orchestra of meows that ensued made for the longest drive of my life. Heading into the security scanners, we were informed that we had to carry the cats through it too. Well, one of the little balls of fluff spent too much time playing hide-and-go-seek and not enough time doing more necessary tasks. While in the carrier, he went to the bathroom and the embarrassment of carrying this stinky cat through the scanner attracted both giggles, looks of sympathy, and one sweet TSA agent with paper towels and a heart of gold. Unsurprisingly, none of us were asked to stay back for a second screening, and we were sent on our way. Thinking that this mess was behind us, my dad and I settled in our seats, tucked the cats under us, and closed our eyes. About an hour in, I feel something walking on top of me. The cats had escaped! It was that moment that I vowed never to take another cat off of the ground again. ______________________________________________________________________________ Achieve Today Scholarship Fund (at least 800 words) Today the person who dedicated their life to raising my me and my brother as a single parent celebrated ten years of sobriety. After my parents separated, the three of us spent years living in a world that felt out of our control. Oddly enough the teachings of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings have taught me how imperative it is to focus on only what you can control in a world full of the uncontrollable. Often I would attend AA meetings on Friday nights to support my family and to have an excuse not to hangout with my friends while they drank alcohol and made questionable choices. I was on a journey to control my fate by making choices that will help me find happiness in my current state and inspiration to strive towards my goal of getting an education that will allow me to help others. During one of these meetings, a short speech that a man with fifty-two years of sobriety shared with the group of thirty strangers instilled into me the principle of focusing only on things that I can control. It began with a hula hoop. A young man, with only a few month of sobriety, was walking through a store with his mentor. The young man was ranting about how difficult the world is because of stupid people making stupid decisions that negatively affected himself. His sponsor stopped in his tracks, picked up the hula hoop, and dropped it over the young man’s head. Now encircled, the young man stopped in his tracks and finally stopped talking. It was then that the mentor explained that the only thing anyone can control is what’s inside their hula hoop. Everything outside of this small circle will continue to move forward in its path, so the only thing that anyone can control is how they react to these uncontrollable events. It sunk in that if someone cuts me off while I am driving, for example, getting angry at them will only make me upset and will not teach them to never cut off anyone else. After talking with my family about this valuable lesson, we adopted a system of writing our worries regarding the uncontrollable onto paper. We would fold it, place it in a box, acknowledge that all we can do is accept that we must give up our quest for control, and walk away giving it up to our higher power. When I first heard of this “higher power” concept that is talked about quite a lot in AA, I immediately thought of God. Never being a part of my childhood, I repelled against giving up control to something unseeable. Over time I slowly learned that a higher power does not have to be a religious figure; instead, it can be fate, destiny, or even the government. The important aspect of a higher power is that there is something greater than ourselves that is capable of dealing with the controllable issues that plague us, so we can stop spending our precious energy and resources worrying about it. This principle was put to the test when I decided to go to college. I promised myself that, no matter the obstacles I faced, I would go to the best college that I could; however, with that also came a bill larger than imaginable. I spent months worrying about the uncontrollable even though I knew it was useless. I felt that this was an exception because it was larger than any of my other problems, like getting cut off on the road or waiting for someone to ask me out on a date. After high school graduation, reality came crashing onto my shoulders and I needed to focus on what I could control. I applied for financial aid then wrote it on a piece of paper and put it in our famous box of worries. As I waited for the results to come in, I focused on getting a job that would both help pay for my dreams as well as help me reach my career goal of becoming the head of human resources for a large company and then a human resources professor. I began working at the human resource and customer services departments of a mechanic shop in my hometown. I have learned everything from how to do an oil change to speaking up for myself in a male-dominated industry. This valuable experience, plus barely adequate financial aid, allowed me to attend the school of my dreams: the University of Southern California. I continued working at the shop while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. As I enter my junior year, I am continuing to face the fear of having to leave my favorite place on Earth due to financial concerns; however, I must focus on the things that I can control. I must keep in mind that the issues that I cannot control should be left to my higher power, so they can be resolved through time and patience. The wisdom that accompanies the simple principle of focusing on the things you can control can help alcoholics quit drinking as well as stressed college kids from buckling under the pressure to get amazing grades, great internships, dozens of friends, good looks, and a positive attitude. This principle has affected me personally as well as my family’s mental health, so I am extremely grateful for this wisdom which I obtained in the strangest of places. Life’s challenges will continue to cause stress and anxiety, and even make people sick due to worrying; however, I want to use my voice to help others solve the controllable and give the rest up to a higher power. Power of PositivityAlex DeSonnaville
Arizona State University My name is Alex DeSonnaville and I am currently a senior at Arizona State University studying civil engineering. If I were to have read the previous statement during my senior year in high school, I would have not believed it. I say this because while I was high school, I was unsure of what I wanted to do upon graduation. The only real interest I had was photography, but I did not desire to pay college tuition to learn something that I felt was more of a hobby. So with the encouragement of my parents, I decided to enlist in the United States Air Force. As a part of the enlistment process I was required to take the ASVAB, which is an aptitude test to determine academic and occupational strengths and weaknesses. Going into the test, I knew I had to score at least a 55 in order to enlist in the Air Force, which I felt was easily obtainable. After taking the test I found out that I only scored a 54, missing the score I needed by a point and ruining my chances of enlisting in the Air Force. I was devastated to say the least; I was unsure of how to handle the situation. This was the first time in my adult life that I had failed to accomplish something I wanted as I never struggled or failed in my high school classes. Not obtaining the minimum score made me debate whether I was even smart enough to be in the Air Force. I started to really question what my future would be like. Fortunately, it was at this point where I really learned the importance of positive thinking. I decided it was more important to focus on creating the future I wanted rather than fearing failure and not taking control of my personal situation. With a new optimistic attitude, I talked to the Air Force recruiter and was able to schedule another test. Upon completing the test, I was told that I had scored a 70 and was eligible to enlist. This was great news that helped me realize the importance of maintaining a positive attitude. Little did I know, this would only be the beginning of my successes. I spent the next four years of my life as an active duty member of the Air Force. My short career was full of many successes that were a result of always thinking positive and being grateful for my past failures that helped me change my mentality. The most significant of these successes was earning the John L. Levitow award while attending Airman Leadership School. This is the highest award presented at graduation, and is only given to one individual of the graduating class. It signifies that the student exhibited outstanding leadership and scholastic qualities and was recognized by not only the instructors, but by fellow peers. When I found out that I was recipient of this award I was astonished. Not because I did not feel that I did not do well in the leadership school, I just never went out of my way to try and stand out amongst my peers. My mentality while going through the school was to take control of what I can accomplish, and always maintain a positive attitude while doing so. After almost failing to pass the qualification test to even enlist in the Air Force, I was presented with the highest honor in the leadership school, which solidified how far positive thinking could take me. That is why I felt this was the most significant success of my military career. Despite having such a successful career and endless potential within the Air Force, I finally realized what it was that interest me. As a part of the civil engineering squadron I was exposed to the impacts that civil engineers have on society and was inspired to obtain my bachelors in this field of study. Therefore, I decided to get out of active duty and join the Air Force reserves so that I could go to school full time and obtain my degree. Upon beginning my degree program at Arizona State University, I was full of confidence and had the mentality that I could do anything I set my mind to as a result of all my accomplishments while in the Air Force. However, this confidence was rattled when I received the grade to my first exam in chemistry and learned that I scored a 38 out of 100. For the first time in years I felt that I had failed. I once again questioned myself and debated whether I was smart enough to finish the degree program that I had started. Reflecting back on my past failures, I thought that the most important thing I could do would be to maintain a positive attitude and try my hardest to get through the semester. And once again, as a result of maintaining this optimistic mentality, I was able to get through my first semester and pass Chemistry with a B+. Fast-forwarding to the present, I am now in my senior year of my degree and currently maintain a 4.0 GPA. I mention my GPA not to boast, but to highlight the power of positive thinking and maintaining an optimistic mentality. There were many instances where I felt overwhelmed by my course load and that I was going to fail a class, but I never let that feeling over power my will to succeed. Consequently, I have found academic success in an area of study that I never thought I would have been smart enough to understand while in high school. Overall, I hope those reading my story can see the power behind positive thinking. I do not consider myself to be much smarter than anybody, but I do know that I always try my hardest because in the end, our future is what we make it. Personally, I feel that I have come a long way since I was in high school, but I know that this is only the beginning to my story. Although I will never forget my failures, I know my future, as well as anybody else’s, is dependent on a positive mentality and knowing that we can overcome any obstacle in our way. Attitude of GratitudeAnna Marmolejo
Andrew College I became a student leader under the guidance and practice of Malanie Burnett and under the Andrew Serves Student Leadership program offered at Andrew College in Cuthbert, Ga. Andrew Serves is a volunteer program where members contribute their time to learn leadership skills while volunteering their time to the college and local communities. If chosen, we students must complete 60 hours of volunteer hours per semester, ultimately accumulating up to 240 hours upon graduation. I chose to take on the annual Alternate Spring Break project. In this project, Andrew Serves members have the option to give up their spring break and go to a location to volunteer work that entire week. During my sophomore year, I was Chairman for the “Habitat for Humanities” committee. In this project, Andrew Serves members have the option to give up their spring break and go to a location to volunteer work that entire week. My freshman year we went to Bridgeport, Connecticut. I didn’t realize how run down some areas could become. In the house that we stayed at during that week was similar to the ones we would be constructing during the week, but looking around the other houses in the neighborhood proved that Habitat for Humanities projects were really needed in these areas. After the second day on the mission trip I could say without a doubt that building a house is so much more challenging than one expects; especially when you lack certain building skills. But no matter what, our group always managed to find the fun in every project. My team leader, Jacque, really put to work that day. My friends Country, Jospeph, Cara and I tackled two projects dealing with heights; think super scary platforms that would give anyone with a fear of heights nightmares. Needless to say, I was shaking quite a bit. On our first location, we gathered the heavyweight pieces from the house basement and assembled our first scaffolding. But as always, there were some pieces missing. So after a wild ride all over Bridgeport and several trips carrying REALLY heavy metal pieces, we were finally able to completely assemble the scaffolding. I have to give props to the construction and roofing workers. They make it look so easy being up 18+ feet in the air. On more than one occasion, I held on to the cross braces for dear life. Twelve platforms later, we had our scaffolding completed. On our second sight, we come to see a scaffolding already assembled and ready to use. Here was my favorite part; painting the exterior. Granted, the house was already painted a nice dark teal. So we simply gave it a once over coat of paint, careful not to touch the white trims and windows. So this is where the hard part came in; as we would finish painting a platform level, we had to disassemble the platform and bring it down with us. Everyone else was steady and fast, while I was kind of a tortoise; slow and steady didn't send anything crashing down below, which was my biggest fear. After many grunts, splinters and "oops", we completed our paint touch up and took down the scaffolding. At the end of the week, the families and local Habitat agency invited our group for a cover-dish dinner at the agency. There, we met the different families helped by the agency. I remember sitting back in awe at some of the stories these families shared with us. One single mother with children couldn’t afford to live in overly expensive apartments in New York. One working woman was supporting her mother and attending college and couldn’t keep up with the payments for their rent. Immigrant stories, single mothers, elderly couples; everyone has a Marmolejo Rios 2 unique story. But in the end, they were all helped by the Habitat agency in Bridgeport. We helped them complete their 200th house. And out of those 200 houses, only 4 have been repossessed. That meant more than 190 families have been given a place to call home because of the volunteer work people like us and the agency do. And knowing that we helped construct some of those house that would put to so much good use warmed my heart and made every second of that work week completely worth it. And I could see the impact these mission trips made in the lives of the people who we helped. It was a total success! Reflecting back, Andrew Serves helped tremendously with my personal development into the woman I’ve become. I’ve learned how to not be shy and how to step out of my comfort zone. I’ve learned that a leader often must do things he/she doesn’t particularly want to do. I’ve learned that a leader can and will get frustrated sometimes, but it is his/her responsibility to sort through the conflict with a cool head and find a resolution that will benefit the most amount of people. I’ve learned that a leader and a boss is not the same thing; that a leader will have the best intensions in mind for the workers and the outcome/goal. I’ve learned that to be a good servant leader, one must humble his/herself and be a servant to his/her workers. A particular quote I hold dear to my heart is from Servant Leadership’s founder, Robert Greenleaf; “The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead.” I agreed and grew with this quote. These words helped me remember that I should act on that volunteer instinct I have. That gratitude works both ways in volunteer work. Whenever someone thanks my for the volunteer work I have done, I smile back and remind them that they have also helped mold me into the woman I am today. I cannot thank them enough for that immense blessing and attitude of gratitude. ControlEmilio Hermoso
In life, there are many things that people can control, but at the same time there is only so much that we can actually control. Sure, we like to convince ourselves that we can do anything we set our mind to and we can fix every problem or avoid bad situations but in reality, that just isn’t going to happen. And that’s where the personal development principle of focusing on things you can control comes into play. In all honesty, as tough as it may be, once you let go and realize that it is impossible to be able to control everything, life becomes so much better. Thinking of where YOU went wrong in something or about what YOU did wrong will only make your life harder and will upset you more than you could ever imagine. Trust me, I know, I’ve been there and done that. Now that I have said that, I know that you are very curious to hear about a certain scenario in which I had to focus on things that I can control but before we get to that, let me explain this personal development principle a little bit more. This principle is really quite simple and self-explanatory but just in case we aren’t all on the same page here, let me tell you a little bit about what this means. This principle tells you that instead on dwelling on things that maybe aren’t going your way or that probably won’t go your way, you just focus on the things that you personally can control. For example, say you are in a group project and your partner didn’t do their job correctly but you did yours perfect and exactly according to the rubric, well your grade is going to take a hit because of the partner. That’s where principle comes in. Instead of getting upset that you did everything possible to get a good grade and being upset at your partner, just focus on what you could physically control, and that was doing your job correctly and getting the most possible points for you and your group. That maybe wasn’t the greatest example for showing the sue of the principle, but I think we can get the gist of it, hopefully. Now I promised that I would go back to how this principle personally affected me so let’s go back to that now. Not too long ago, me and my friend of many years stopped talking and slowly over time became very distant and not friends anymore. For months I was so upset and wondered, “Where did I go wrong? What did I do to push this friend away?”, and it had me in a very bad state of mind and life wasn’t great. I allowed this to control my life for so long and push me to the verge of depression for many months instead of realizing that maybe it wasn’t something that I did specifically that caused the friendship to wander away but it was just something that occurred over time that I couldn’t control. That realization didn’t happen immediately either, it took time and it got dragged out for a while until finally I started focusing on only things I could control and that made my life so much better and helped my growth as a person and as a man rather than setting back my personal development as was the case before. Ever since I started focusing on things that I know that I can control, I found myself being happy again, a feeling that I had forgotten how it felt like. Becoming distant with a friend like that was a very tough challenge for me to overcome as I felt like the world was ending and that everything that could be wrong, was wrong, but really, I was just putting that burden on myself by telling myself that it was MY fault rather than telling myself, “It’s okay, it is something that happens in life to everyone and something that we can’t control no matter how hard we try to”. If I would’ve just told myself that from the beginning, my life would’ve been impacted positively a long time ago. But definitely coming to that point of realization made my life take a complete 180 degree turn and I couldn’t be happier now so it was worth it for it to come late rather than never. While the friendship may never get back to the point to which it maybe once was, I can still do my part to stay in touch by sending a simple “Hey, what’s up?” message every now and then to stir up a conversation. While that may not seem like much or even like it’s worth the trouble to pursue, knowing that that is something that I CAN control, makes life so much better for everyone. In conclusion, while as simple as focusing on things that you can control seems, it really is easier said than done. It takes hard work and patience to really tell yourself that you can’t control everything in life but once you come to that realization, life becomes so much better. Often times we can let things that we can’t control take over our lives and dominate our feelings and emotions but whenever we make the internal decision that we know we can’t control it all, our lives become so positively impacted and allow us to be our true selves and personally develop and grow to be the best version of ourselves. An Imperfect AdventureRegan Collins
Suspended in the air thousands of miles above endlessly rolling emerald hills, I gazed down at the miniscule dots which gradually grew into German countryside towns. I was overwhelmed with excitement and anticipation. Daydreams of the new life I was about to embark on flooded my every thought. This is it. This is going to be the best year of my life. This is what I’ve been waiting for. Hours later, I met my host family for the first time in the central station of Cologne, a beautiful city which lies alongside the Rhine River. We introduced ourselves on a grey stone platform beneath the metal, rib-caged ceiling of the station, sunlight streaming through the smudged glass windows overhead. My new host mom and sister adorned me with miniature German flags and a lei of red, black, and yellow. We overcame the awkwardness of our first encounter by exchanging smiles and laughs as I attempted to communicate in my broken German: “Hallo, ich heisse Regan. Schön, Sie kennenzulernen.” My hopes rose that first day, as my colossal concern of receiving a “bad host family” dissipated. Everything would be ok; this would, in fact, be the best year of my life. I hadn’t made a mistake in giving up my comfortable, routine life in the United States, missing out on my senior year, saying goodbye to my family and friends, and stepping into the absolute unknown. A few days later I started school, where I struggled to be noticed by my peers and teachers, and strained to understand the language in which I was immersed. I came home every evening to a family who, with each passing day, seemed increasingly unconcerned with how I was adjusting to my new life. Unsure of what I had done wrong, I watched in regret as my relationship with my host family deteriorated. The communication we once maintained dwindled until there came a time when we did not speak at all, other than to say “hello” in the mornings. I learned that my host mom, who was secretary at my school, had been speaking negatively about me to my teachers, which caused them to develop false impressions of me. She seemed determined to find fault in whatever I did despite how much I worked to improve our relationship. I strove to be polite, respectful, and helpful, but her opinion remained unchanged. As the months dragged on, I spent more and more time alone in my bedroom. Asking my host mom for permission to spend time with friends, or even venturing out into the kitchen to grab a snack, crippled me with anxiety. Early on, it became evident to me that I had to make a choice. I could either become discouraged and wallow in my own self pity, or I could pick myself up and continue to move forward. This decision was a hard one to make. It would have been so easy to give up. I was disrespected, discouraged, and uncared for. The environment in which I was living had no regard for my wellbeing. The moment the hopelessness and homesickness began to creep up on me, I could have said, “This is too hard. I can’t do it. I don’t belong here,” and I could have gone home. No one would have blamed me for giving up; in fact, my friends and family would have applauded me for sticking it out for as long as I did. I could not let myself do that, however. I could not allow the negativity win, and I refused to return home defeated. I chose to think positively. Focusing on the good in my situation gave me courage. I centered my thoughts on the silver lining of each day, and incessantly reminded myself of the aspirations I had in coming to Germany in the first place. This was what inspired me to press on, despite the negativity I was surrounded with on a daily basis. When being away from home began to feel truly burdensome, I created a list. I began by compiling all the valuable things I knew would come from my time in Germany, and throughout the months, I added more and more to it as I thought of them. Whenever I felt depressed, I would pull out the list and read it over and over, so that I could keep in mind what I meant to accomplish by being there. I directed my thoughts to the friends I had made, the language I was becoming proficient in, and all that I was discovering about myself and the world around me. Instead of waking up every morning and thinking, “I still have six months left,” I would think, “I only have six months left; I’ve already made it through four.” My goals and the confidence I had that I could achieve them kept me going. I wanted to learn German, so I spent hours every evening pouring over grammar, vocabulary, and idioms. I wanted to make friends from around the world, so I developed close relationships with my peers; not just those from Germany, but also those from Poland, Turkey, Italy, England, South Africa, Australia, and Russia. I wanted to experience the country of Germany, so I explored on my own. I figured out the transportation system, and took trains and buses to all ends of Cologne, seeing ancient churches, museums, and monuments. I visited the other Americans I had met from my organization, traveling hours to see them in their cities, meeting their German host families and friends, and experiencing how unique and diverse their new lives were from mine. Since returning, I have been told that my German is excellent, considering that I have been studying it for only a year and a half. Being bilingual has already opened me up to innumerous opportunities, relationships, and connections that I never expected. I am still in contact with many of the friends I made in Germany, and I know our relationships will last for a lifetime. I will always have a second home in Cologne with them, as they do in America with me. I now possess the knowledge of another culture and country, half a world away from my own. My friends here in Arizona, who have never spent more than a few weeks outside of the United States, often ask me about life in Europe. Nearly every day, I’m able to share what I learned of the German culture with those around me. None of this would have been possible if I had subjected myself to negative thinking. Although the ten months I spent in Germany were incredibly challenging and oftentimes burdensome, my experience there shaped me into the person I am today. I view the world in an entirely different perspective than I did two years ago when the longest and furthest I had been away from home was a week at summer camp in California. Maintaining positive thoughts does not mean ignoring how you truly feel, and it most certainly is not a state of unchanging happiness. Positivity is a process, and it is something one has to strive toward every day. It is not a switch you can simply flip on; instead, it is a habit the mind must be trained to implement. Even now that I am back in the States, my life is not without trials. However, spending ten months in Germany was the most challenging thing I have ever done, and after having fought through that, I know I can achieve anything. What I learned about positivity is something I put into practice on an everyday basis, and it is a value that will remain useful to me throughout my entire life. When I have dark days, I am determined to look ahead into the brighter ones. In Germany, I did not live in a bed of sunshine and roses. Every day was a struggle, and I often felt discouraged, scared, and dejected. However, when my mind wandered to a place of self pity, I had to remind myself that I was on an imperfect adventure; one that I was surely to benefit from in ways I could not imagine, but am now experiencing. Without the obstacles I had to overcome in Germany, I may never have learned the true value of positive thinking. Don't Give UpPhil Foster
The great William Shakespeare was once quoted as saying, “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” Make no mistake about it, I was not born to greatness. Raised by an eccentric woodcarver in rural Oregon, my father took more pride in his creations than he did in his ability to provide for his wife and three sons. As a young teen, my opportunities for higher education were limited as I thrust myself into the workforce at age 13 to help bridge the gap between what my father hoped to achieve and what was actually provided. By the time I was 17, I had been working a full time job for more than two years and dropped out of high school all together and obtained my GED. Several years later, as an adult, I fell into a full time profession that although made a decent living, wasn’t at all a long-term career for a family. Although I did not begin great, I believe I have already achieved greatness. Despite my weak career track, my greatest accomplishment is raising my three children ages 9, 2, and 7 months old. It was their faces that inspired me to go back to school and choose a career path that would give them a more stable future. When I look into their eyes, I know they deserve more from me. I want a different path for them. I want them to see greatness every day as they watch their father fight for their better future. Their future comes at an incredible price. Often times, just balancing my work as a local truck driver, going back as a ¾ time student to pursue a degree in Paramedicine, and being a husband and father has its days when the cost seems higher than the reward. It is especially difficult to leave my overwhelmed wife, once again, to tend endlessly to our small children while I work another shift and take another night class. Sometimes it seems like more than our family can bear. But through all the difficulties, I have isolated 3 keys that make this possible and can help any person find their greatness and have it thrust upon them. First, you must have VISION. The great Zig Ziglar is credit for having said, “If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time”. You must be intentional about your future. No one wakes up one morning and accidentally achieves their greatest dreams. A clear, focused roadmap from where you are now, to where you want to be in three and five years is key to maintaining your momentum toward your better life. Second, SUPPORT. You must surround yourself, your mind and your heart with like-minded people. You will become the combined average of your five closest associates and in every area of your life. As someone seeking to make a huge social and economic leap forward from where I began to where I want to be, I had to find people better than me to surround myself with. When it comes to my family, and creating a better life for them, I don’t have the luxury of listening to pessimism or negativity. I only have time to inspire my mind, motivate my body and preserve toward my goal. Lastly, DETERMINATION - never, never, never give up. One of my favorite quotes says, “You know you’re on the right road – it’s uphill.” Nothing ever worth achieving came easily. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it. It’s hard, and that’s what makes it great. The struggle, the hardship, the sleepless nights and early days, are what make the reward worth it. In closing, please understand, I DO NOT enjoy waking up every morning at 4am to head off to work. My heart BREAKS to watch my children cry as their daddy leaves, again, for another night class. But my children are worth it. I am determined to change my family tree, to take back my education, my career and my future, one difficult step at a time. That is what good father’s do. They do the hard things so their families can have a brighter tomorrow. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to live in this great Nation where anything is possible. Where anyone who has a desire, determination and grit can reach out and grab their full potential. I am grateful for my current challenges because it is making me a better husband, father and man. I may not have started great, but I have certainly had greatness thrust upon me. I will achieve my goal. I will become better than I thought possible, and with the three keys of VISION, SUPPORT and DETERMINATION, I believe that this is possible for ANYONE. Thank you for your time and your consideration. Si Se PuedePaola Pescador
Arizona State University “Si Se Puede!” this phrase, meaning, “Yes, It Can Be Done or Yes You Can!” trademarked by the United Farm Workers has been adopted by several organizations and movements throughout history. What is it about these three words that makes them so powerful? Maybe it’s because they embody the power of positive thinking. History has shown the victories the phrase “Si Se Puede” has helped win at the society level. However, this motto was also followed by my family and our experience demonstrates the power of positive thinking and its influence in our lives. I was raised by a single mother who when I was seven years old bravely brought her three young children to the United States for a better future. She did not speak English and her first job in the United States was cleaning houses. The odds of succeeding were not in our favor, yet she had a dream that we would prosper and that we would all graduate from University. My mother instilled in us a great work ethic and value of education. Thanks to her motivation, I excelled in high school and was granted full tuition scholarships for all four years of my education at Arizona State University. Halfway through my bachelor’s studies, Prop 300 took away my in-state tuition due to my lack of legal status. I found encouragement marching the streets of Phoenix shouting “Si Se Puede!” in unison with other dreamers and alongside my family. Growing up undocumented in Arizona and its tough immigration laws was frustrating but it never took away my dreamer spirit and wish to constantly improve and reach my dreams. My family could have given up and focused on all the negative aspects of being undocumented but my mother taught us perseverance. Graduating with a bachelor’s degree from ASU magna cum laude in May 2008 was the realization of one of my life dreams. I am proud to say that my brother and sister are also ASU alumni now with my sister obtaining her Masters of Social Work and my brother a Bachelors of Kinesiology. In 2015 my mother realized her own dream of obtaining her Bachelors of Accounting from Ottawa University. She never ceases to motivate me either through her encouragement or through her example. My family’s educational achievements are proof that “Si Se Puede!” After graduating I couldn’t use my Business and Tourism degree due to my legal status but I created my own American Dream. I performed jobs that although did not reflect my degree, were positions that taught me countless lessons and are jobs that I held with pride. I also started my own childcare business, travelled all over the country, and married the love of my life. Nevertheless, during this time, I faced the countless obstacles that go hand in hand with being undocumented and navigating a complex pathway to legalization. At times, negative thoughts clouded my mind, but my mother’s positive messages persisted. This experience, solidified my decision to become an Immigration Attorney. During my twenty-three years of living in this country I have met immigrants of all parts of the world and witnessed their different challenges. In my time at ASU I completed my senior internship at the AZ Lost Boys center for Sudanese refugees. Their life experiences and circumstances that led them to this country were different than mine but we shared the same fire and drive to succeed. This spirit is part of what makes this country great. Meanwhile, in my time working in a downtown Phoenix Catholic Church and School I witnessed the fear some of my students felt regarding Sherriff Arpaio’s immigration raids that resulted in the separation of some of the school families. This was heartbreaking and frustrating to witness. I see my own mother reflected in those parents who fear deportation while working hard to give their children the opportunities they never had. Meanwhile, I see myself in the immigrant children who dream of going to college and making their parents proud. Reflecting on these events compelled me to apply to Law School. I was accepted to the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University and I am currently a second-year student with a December 2018 graduation date. I also recently completed a summer internship at the Karina Ordonez Law Firm which specializes in Immigration and Criminal Law. Meeting the clients and seeing how this work positively impacts their lives is further motivation towards my dream of becoming an Immigration Lawyer. Although we all have our personal struggles it is up to each of us to focus on the good and make the most of this wonderful life. I, like everyone else, have gifts and talents to share that may make someone else’s journey easier. This career choice will allow me to fulfill my professional goals while allowing me to help fellow immigrants cross the bridge into obtaining legal status in a country that has given me so many blessings. Now, as a mother of an amazing one year old son, I understand the sacrifices my mother endured and appreciate her hard work to make us prosper in a foreign land. I fully understand that all my family’s achievements would not have been possible without the power of positive thinking. Focusing on the beauty of life striving towards our goals is the road to happiness and fulfillment. The value of “Si Se Puede” is one of the most valuable gifts from my mother and one I plan to pass along to my son. The Power of Positive ThinkingSamaria Thomas
The human mind is a peculiar thing, it can tear you down and make you think that you deserve to be on the ground or it can pull you up and place you on a pedestal of praise. Your mind is your beacon of emotion that allows you to make the right decisions, and positive thinking gives you that natural spur of determination to accomplish any and all challenges in front of you. And just as negative thinking can place you in a sea of emotional despair leaving you grasping for even the smallest scraps of hope to float you to the surface allowing you to breath in the air of relief that your long and frightening endeavor has ended, positive thinking can place you on an enormous, luxurious ship sailing on calm cool waters of satisfaction, happiness and confidence in everything that has just occurred. I have fallen victim many a times to negative thinking. I, for a long portion of my life have constantly found myself bobbing below the surface of relief being pulled down by the weight of all my negative thoughts “I can’t do it. . .I’m not good enough. . .I’m gonna fail. . .why do I even try…” then finally feeling shock and relief when I would somehow manage to break the surface of the water and feel relief gently wash over me. It was a constant routine that I had begun to grow tired of and felt as though I could no longer take. So I sat myself down and began to self evaluate and came to the conclusion that ‘hey I’m not the bad let me try and lighten up on myself a little’. However it’s not that simple, when you continuously place yourself into this negative mindset it eventually becomes automatic as though thinking of oneself in any other way (especially in a semi-positive light) is nearly impossible. However the good thing about my having recognized this negative mindset I had trapped myself in is that I had gained the ability to recognize when all of this self doubt and negative thinking would occur. I was now able to work on myself and refute all of the negative statements that my mind would create “As long as I try my hardest I will be fine. . . I know I can do this. . . it’s good that I’m trying” Though at first I believed that my retaliations to the negative thoughts didn't seem all that powerful against the tsunami of negative emotion and I even expected failure in my battle against my negative thoughts. But I eventually noticed that it was making a difference. It filled me with such joy and excitement at the fact that I was actually beginning to develop some self confidence and courage in myself. I began standing up a bit straighter and I even found myself slowly escaping the internal prison I had unknowingly built around myself. I am truly amazed at how far I've come and I am astounded at how much I have grown and developed into becoming a positive thinker. I love it. I love having random bouts of confidence. I love that the first thing that comes into my head when faced with a new challenge is “oh this won’t be so bad or even I think I’ll do pretty well.” I love that I’m holding my head up a little higher. I love that I’m becoming a better version of myself. I find it mind-boggling that a seemingly slight mental change has had such a physical impact on me. I did not expect much of an outcome when I first begin this journey of having a positive outlook and a positive way of thinking. All I knew was that I was tired of constantly doubting myself and being beat up by my own hands. I wanted change saw the opportunity and decided to take a chance because I felt as though I could not get to a point lower than that of where I already was. By changing my outlook on who I am and how I view my challenges and my chances of overcoming the obstacles they store I have found myself eager for the future. I had previously gazed upon it with a shy dismay eager and curious to see what it held but quickly up turning my nose when I found it rearing its menacing head in my direction, and backing away should it dare take a step in my direction. But now I find myself slowly coming out of hiding and defiantly staring the future in the face should it turn its head in my direction, and now that I find myself staring into the eyes of the future I know notice that its face is not nearly as menacing as it had once looked to me and though I do not yet find myself running towards the challenges that it has in-store for me I do find myself standing my ground should life take a tentative step towards me. I am ready. I am prepared. I am strong. I am determined, and I will come out Victorious Focusing on Things You Can ControlJoshua Capers
Considering my recent mottos for 2017, I find it extremely comical and ironic that my motto runs parallel to this topic and my motto is stated as follows, “CONTROL the CONTROLLABLES!!” Although “controllables” may not be a word, the understandings still apply. My preferred connotation for this phrase would mean to only concern yourself and emotions with the things that YOU personally CAN control and if you can’t, do NOT concern yourself with fixing it. A wise man once told me “you can’t fix the unbroken” so why concern yourself over the matters of something you cannot change. It’s a waste of time, energy and effort my friends. Since the first time my drums laid waste to the sounds of that phrase, I’ve done nothing but consider each and every situation by means of eliminating options I cannot change the outcome of and consider only the one that I can do something about. In the event that I get faced with a set of circumstances that hinder me to making either decision, i.e. neither decision can be acted upon, I simply leave the situation as it is until something maybe down. This principle has established a sort of “Bypass stress system” internally making it automatic for to begin eliminating worthless options resulting in much less stress overall on my body. With this principle enforced mentally I avoid the full impact of highly stressful situations permitting me to act accordingly/effectively in any given circumstance. Over the estimated last 8 years roughly, I’ve had the opportunity to listen to friends vent and share my advice with them with my motto always being the first line of discussion. I noticed the amount of excessive worrying people do and amount of stress each person allows himself/herself to bare. The good thing about this principle resides in its ability to be universally applied to any given circumstance. This principle can be applied to any given situation when you consider any situation one could be placed in calls for options/decisions to be made whether you’re ready for them or not. It took me a while but I’ve learned that the degree of the circumstances depend of the route in which you decide to deal with that issue. Comparing your issues with one another and eliminating issues you cannot control, you’re permitting more space for your brain to work out solutions and effectively seek out problem solving strategies suitable for that particular problem. Notice how easy it is to completely tune out of a conversation and be so consumed on one thought of how easy it is to hear your surroundings when your eyes are closed shut? When our bodies are attuned and focused on one to a few things, our brain uses that time to reset/refresh in other parts of the mind. IN fact, I’ve read over the internet that our brain uses certain behaviors done by every human being as a means to relieve stress and random stares off into space while in mid conversation was listed as one. Even the ideas of one “focusing” spreads like wildfire as a thing a must. Focus and work hard and you will succeed in life, sounds familiar right? I wouldn’t necessarily say the actual act of focusing is easy be one that is fairly simple to grasp in understanding. For some deeper understanding lets apply a real life scenario to the principle of Focusing on things you CAN control. Say we take a look at the infamous rival for all college students, procrastination. Considering procrastination, there are many cases in which I could draw from in order to make my point but the commonality across all boarders comes to be those times when assignments due weeks in advance, are started and hopefully, finished the night before. However, this may work for some but for many this poses as one of the contributing factors to why we don’t generally perform at our greatest. In this case/issue when accessing the situation starting from the point when you realized there was an assignment due tomorrow we can began eliminating irrelevant matters of discussion. Start with asking yourself questions about the power of control you have over the different decisions. Can I hold off a little longer with the assignment? What would be the results if I didn’t have it tomorrow? Could I bang it out early in the morning? Asking yourself these sort of exploring questions gives your brain an understanding of the limits I have and what I have to work it as far as time and ability. Notice in this case I CAN’T get back the days I skipped nor can I get extra time to do the assignment. I CAN take the time I have left in the day to crank out something of worth or if all else fails cheat my way out or don’t do it at all. I wouldn’t condone cheating considering the consequences but for all intents and purposes, it may be worth wild to bring to realization that not all things you CAN do will be the right thing to do. In conclusion a principle so short in text but large in meaning has made such as impact on the way I handle and deal with issues, I’ve come into terms with taking situations as they are, good or bad and no matter what the situation is, if I access my problems for the things I can do I set myself up in better standing for the future. PositivityTalia Lopez
University of Florida Positivity and pushing forward are the key elements to success. Everyone stood. I sat. Just five minutes into the class, and I was already the dissenter. My classmates and I were answering the teacher’s difficult grammatical questions. If she was correct, you stood. “The cat was over there. T-h-e-i-r.” she said moments before. Everyone’s eyes now felt heavy on me, like thick raindrops when you’re sprinting home in the middle of an unprecedented storm. For the last week my classmates and I had been studying homonyms. I ran over every single one in my front porch every day as I waited for my mom to arrive from work. I knew the students were wrong, but how could I be right? My broken English always discouraged me from trying to speak out. I had never spoken English at home. The kids were smiling, and staring at each other. I was still the only one sitting. “You can all sit down. Talia- you’re right.” I was right; I was the only student in the class that was right. I didn’t need to fully know English in order to be right. So I studied twice as hard for math, and ten times as hard for English. And it worked. But discomfort with comfort has characterized my life. Each and every time I improved, I sought out a greater challenge. I am always restless in that way. When I conquered homonyms, I went back and covered all that I missed between K-2nd grades. When I was doing too well in normal classes, I pushed to get into the gifted program. When it was clear that English algebra and Cuban algebra were made in two different universes. When my parents couldn’t help me. When Google translate was no longer of use. When I would wake up before 6 AM afraid of inferiority, I would study for tests days in advance. All in fear of falling behind in a system where the average knows the language, and even so because I couldn’t let my economic disadvantages keep me stagnant, and unable to branch out to learn all that I could. That echoed through my mind in middle school as I redeveloped my notion of excellence beyond academia and into dance. Where others saw an elective, I saw a chance to be a leader. Whenever we had to choreograph, I was the first to volunteer a place to practice, the first to offer a time, and the first to pick out music and costumes. This was optional for others, but crucial for me. Six shows and having raised thousands of dollars later, I felt comfortable again and I couldn’t have that. In high school, my bar went up once more. I proved to myself that I would break the family tradition of just a high school diploma when I was on track to earn an Associate’s Degree by 18. Yet again, academics were just enough. I then fell in love with the peers that once snickered at me. I wanted to make them included, and part of something memorable. Not only did I use my role in student government to lead a video project featuring each and every member of our class, but I also started a dance club. I currently attend the University of Florida and study marketing and mass communications. I hope to one day work in the television industry as a reporter. I recently was accepted to an internship program with a Spanish television network that is letting me grow my skills in camera work and social media. Just last week, I led a project to help the homeless women in the streets by giving them a goodie bag of sanitary napkins, tampons, and wipes since they lack those immensely. But despite all these wonderful opportunities heading my way to improve my neighborhood, I don’t have a way to pay for college except massive loans. My school only provides me with partial merit funding. My Talia Lopez | University of Florida parents work full-time but don’t make enough a year to support my academics. My current EFC as calculated by FAFSA is $0. I work a part-time job during the school year and am a full-time student, as well as am involved in 2 school clubs. This scholarship means the world to me, as I can have the opportunity to be even more involved in my school because I won’t be worried about where my next meal will come from. I would really love to graduate in 2 years and continue to give back to my community. Throughout my career, I want to be a role model and break the notion that underprivileged means under-graduated. Not only for myself, but for all those in the U.S. who don’t have the right funding and have to look for it through any means possible. I want to be a voice for women who are strong leaders. For anyone too afraid to continue to push themselves to be the best. And for everyone in a classroom that is too afraid to stay sitting. Personal DevelopmentJessica Pinos
As the mother of five children I believe that personal development is essential in order to provide the same way of thinking for your children. Parents always want the best for their children, and children always guide themselves by the examples they are taught while growing up. When I graduated from high school six years ago I was pregnant and had my first child at the age of seventeen, I got married to Daniel that same year, and by the age of eighteen I was already dealing with the responsibility of being a mother and a wife. Continuing my education was not part of the plan anymore because making enough money so my son can have everything I did not have as a child had become mine and Daniel’s main priority. But not much time passed before had my second child and the third, and it was not until then that it hit me that in order for us to afford to give all three of our children we needed to make more money. My McDonald’s job was not enough and unfortunately while expecting my third child a fire incident occurred in our apartment and the pet store where Daniel worked closed so he was jobless, this led us to move in with my parents for a couple weeks. It was hard times but after experiencing all this difficulties I knew that in order to make a better living I had to go back to school and find myself a better paying job. Soon after I was attending college along with my sister, who lived with me in the apartment that burnt, we had the support from our family so we had a good start. My husband started a construction company with my father and we took from there. I quit my job at McDonald’s because I knew that I could find a better job, and with the help of my sister I started a new job at a Bj’s Wholesale Club. Moving to this new job was not exactly what I had in mind, I had to start from scratch all over again, getting paid the minimum $ 8.50. And it was hard, every time I went to work to stand for eight hours daily folding clothes and making less than what I was making at my old job was very frustrating, but I wanted to prove to myself that I can develop in any new environment and I did. I am a person with great personality, I am friendly to everyone, I am always looking to learn something new, and I’ll jump in for anything that I know will benefit me later on. Within a month I was placed in the computer room/receiving office, and my job consisted of counting inventory, scheduling truck deliveries and so many things that involved learning something new, soon after I was the “jack of all trades” I knew mostly every department and what to do, and whenever a department was short on people I covered, and besides my supervisor I was the only one in the whole store that knew how to process our DDR (damaged, destroyed, and returned) items which had to be done on a daily basis. But like every other job you are only good until you show you can exceed expectations which I always did until I was pregnant with my fourth baby and was not able to perform as good as I did before. I have never seen pregnancies as an incapacity because is not, but at that time I felt like I was treated like it. I was still doing my inventory climbing up and down ladders lifting heavy boxes because there was times I had to it by myself, and when it my belly became too big I was thrown to the back room to dump out garbage and cardboard. Once again I was feeling frustrated and wondering why I was letting myself go through this when I could do so much better, I had done it before while being pregnant, I had worked until the very end, why would it be any different know? By the time I was six months pregnant one Saturday while throwing out garbage and cardboard my right leg felt numbed, and I did not feel well after that but I still worked my full shift, I got in my car to go home but when I got home I could not get out of my car for I had lost feeling in my leg and had to call Daniel to help me. After that incident I requested to be placed in a different work area because I did not want my pain to get worse, but I was told they would change me and the weeks passed and I was still doing the same thing and the worse part I was not getting an answer from anybody anymore regarding my request, when I went to ask about it again I was told I needed to get a doctor’s note stating that I was disable to perform the work I was doing so that they can something for me. But I was not disable, my doctor gave me my note stating my sciatica which is common during pregnancy but I did not help. I decided to put my two weeks’ notice and stopped working. After having my baby I decided to go back because I refused to go to a different job and starting from the bottom again and getting paid the minimum when I had already earned my way up at Bj’s. I returned to work in a different department because I did not want to be played again like I had the first time. I demanded my fair pay, because when I learned to do everything I did before and doing the job of three or four people by myself I never got a raise. I was placed in the Deli department and I was told my requirements and what I had to do and whenever they came to ask me to do extra work that was outside my departments requirements I demanded them to pay me extra for the extra work I’ll be doing but they wouldn’t. I learned in school that everything that surrounds you is a business, you are always selling, and when it comes to yourself you must learn how to sell yourself for the price you are worth and a person is always worth more when educated. In the past 6 years I have gone from working at McDonalds for eight years and the highest I got paid was $10, moving to a new job and starting from the bottom again, I have felt discriminated in a way due to my pregnancy, but I have learned to price myself for how well developed I have become, for the experience I have earned along the way and for the education I am acquiring through school. This is something I want my children to look up to, and always know that anyone would give you what they think you are worth but your personal development, experience and education is what you have to prove that you are worth more than what they want to give you. And to always persevere because who perseveres conquers. Even though my husband has the company with my father it has become harder on him to support us with all the bills that need to be paid, I stopped working four months ago because I just had my fifth baby and paying for a babysitter or daycare will cost more than what we make. I want to finish school and I hope to obtain some help through scholarships, I have thought on taking some time off from school until we catch up with what needs to be paid and have some money to buy our house but school is all I have, going to school and looking forward to graduation is what keeps me going. And I do not want my children to ask me why I stopped going to school because after all a lot has been sacrificed already, my family helping out, my husband working from 7:00 am – 10:00 pm daily so I can go to school, and all the time invested. I plan to help my husband and father with the company once I graduate and be a part of the business. Don't Give UpLogan Linde
Arizona State University My whole life has revolved around the sport of men’s gymnastics and it started when I was around the age of four. My mom had me in recreational gymnastics until the age of 12, then that was the year I started competitive gymnastics. Ever since then I was all about big dreams and pushing myself harder than the guy beside me. I never quit, I never cheated, and I don’t remember a time when I hated the sport. Sure, there were times when I got frustrated and got a little upset but that never stopped me from pursuing what I’ve always wanted, college gymnastics. Fast forward 3 surgeries and multiple set-backs, and we’re in the month of April of 2017. The ASU Men’s Gymnastics club team are at NAIGC’s in Ohio and they announce my name as the last guy to compete floor on the first day of competition. With my arm raised high by my head, I stood proud and confident about what routine I was about to show the audience. My sword like arm lowered and I stepped onto the floor and raised my pre-game index finger and bow my head to God, thanking Him for the opportunity He has always given me to be a part of the sport I love so much. I look up at the floor and start to aggressively run for my first tumbling pass. Run, round off, back handspring...POP! My Achilles ruptured on my first tumbling pass of my routine, and one second I’m in the air figuring out how to land safely with my foot dangling in the air, and the next I’m on my knees shouting for a medic to hurry to my side with tears flowing down my face. That was the moment that I knew I was done with the sport that had been a part of my soul since I was 4. With 3 surgeries previously, this one was different. Being 25 years old and still trying to just finish my season healthy, this injury was weighing on me unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. Not only in my mind, but it weighed more in my heart. April 17th was the day I got my surgery and weeks after that my mind had been racing one hundred miles an hour every hour of every day. I had called my coach to tell him I would retire early because of this injury and he and I had a long conversation and he told me, “Focus on the things you can control. Don’t think about situations or events that are not in your power.” From then on, I’ve been doing just that, taking one day at a time, one crutch, one limp at a time. I started focusing more in therapy and just focusing on the exercises and not so much about the future. Sure, my mind did go off into a dreamland where I was thinking about the day I would put my uniform back on and show my team and my family how strong I am and how determined I am to get back to where I was and even stronger for that matter. I started going to the gym more in my crutches and doing what I could, ring strength and upper body work. If that was the only thing I could do, then that was the only things I would focus on. Since April 17th, I’m walking more, and more engaged in physical therapy three times a week and more focused in my training in gymnastics. I thought I would call it a career when I tore my Achilles, but God challenges those who struggle just to show them how strong they really are, and He is showing me how determined I really am, and I am grateful. Since then, I’m going to practices daily after my physical therapy, starting classes at ASU and planning on getting a part time job. I never thought I would be so determined to work this hard in my life, but just like my coach said to me, “focus on the things you can control, and take one day at a time.” It really is hard work, but I’m more focused than ever on what I want to achieve, and nothing is stopping me from finishing out my career in something that has been pushing me mentally, physically and spiritually my whole life. Everyone comes to a point in their life when they want to just quit, but it’s up to them at that moment that truly determines who they are. And I chose to not give up. I sincerely appreciate the committee’s time in evaluating my application and giving me the opportunity to tell my story. I look forward to hearing from you soon. My Guiding LightTaylor Hilton
There are many things that have helped to guide me through tough times. It would be inaccurate to only say that I have gotten this far by myself. I have done things that I never thought I would ever do because of other people. This coupled with my general attitude of gratitude and positive thinking has helped me greatly throughout life’s struggles. I have tackled many challenges in my life within a short twenty years. Things like struggle and strife aren’t new to me as it is to some. It started as early as childhood when my family decided to move to Jacksonville to take care of my elderly grandmother. It wasn’t so bad at first. Me and my siblings always had food, clothes, and shelter under our mother’s care. Money was tight as well, but that is true for most. As kids, family stress of taking care of a grandparent is burdensome, but I cherished the moments there was. I knew that in a manner of speaking that her days were numbered, but I didn’t focus on that when she passed. I just quietly mourned her passing knowing that it would do very little to focus on negative thoughts. Focusing on the positives of what lay ahead became my focus because I had figured that tougher challenges awaited. It turns out that I wasn’t far from the truth. We moved around Jacksonville because of the inability to pay rent and bills. Transportation became a rarity for the family and we had to resort to walking everywhere. I found that most people took this lightly as they rarely were forced to do this for their own survival. It had its benefits of course, I had some level of cardio fitness from walking around. On top of that, it saved on gas when we had a vehicle. Then we moved to San Antonio shortly afterwards because of the financial struggle that ensued after our grandmothers passing. Our aunt offered to harbor us for some time while mother got back on her feet. Of course, we packed up our white F-150 Ford truck we had at the time and moved to San Antonio from Jacksonville. This move just reciprocated the same thing despite our hopefulness at a fresh start. We struggled day to day, and moving schools was tough as always. The only saving grace about the school change was an Airforce ROTC Program that was sponsored by the school. I wasn’t there long enough to really get into it, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. We would meet afterschool for the ROTC practice and marching. We would do light drills and learn commands during class time. It was hard at first because I lacked the discipline that I have today, but I liked the challenge. In the morning, we would get in our marching uniform that was a shirt and shorts for about an hour. This later became familiar as I joined the Rusk Marching Band because they were a military marching band. Our sleeping arrangement was sleeping bags on the living room floor, but it wasn’t entirely uncomfortable. To have a place to stay with a roof was a pleasant thing considering what could have happened. On the way, I saw under most bridged in San Antonio people that had resorted to sleeping outside with little food because of poverty. Therefore, I’m glad that we never had to resort to that and am grateful for it. Also, I always looked forward to the next meal since I was almost hungry all the time. This persisted throughout our time in San Antonio and it was sad when we had family tension that caused us to be evicted. My older brother had little respect for our aunt and she had decided that it was time for us to leave. Upon hearing this, I wasn’t surprised after a few weeks of watching them butt heads. It eventually reached a climax that resulted in our aunt kicking us out. That was all too familiar to us, but still dreadful to hear. We started to expertly in some way pack our things that night and depart the next morning. With tarps, rope, and the truck bed; we left the next morning back to East Texas. It wasn’t the best time for sure, but I just focused on the next thing ahead. I found that I tended to not dwell on these things as it was unproductive. The next move was Rusk, Texas in deep East Texas. It as a small town south of Jacksonville and a nice community. The house we moved into was far from ideal, but it had to make due. Mom hadn’t been able to afford all the bills and that meant that having the regular bills were a blessing. Not having water or electricity was tough on us because any social interaction was scary due to the smell of our clothes. Water would have to be carted from one of the neighbor’s water hoses just to do simple task. I did learn a bit about working without running water. This included washing clothes, cooking over fires, bathing, and washing dishes. It’s probably something that most people in modern times never deal with, but I persisted through it. I had to do some things that would be consider unpleasant, but it was what worked to provide for us. During this, I still tried to stay focused on the positive side by reading, concentrating on school, and hanging out with friends. These were just coping mechanisms that allowed me temporary escape from it. To make a long story short, this continued to be a burden on my life throughout high school. The toughest time of my life came about junior year of high school. It was probably the hardest thing that most people don’t have to decide or may refuse to. I had to make a choice of whether to move with my mother or stay in Rusk for school and college. I knew that if I went with her, then all chances of getting this far would have been virtually impossible. She has always lived in poverty ever since moving to Jacksonville and I would only just follow suit. To make my life better I had decided to stay in Rusk with a couple who we had befriended. My thinking was that I wanted a better life even though it would come with a cost. I would have to work hard for it, but I knew it would pay off if I didn’t give up. I achieved this by being grateful for all the help and looking on the bright side of things no matter how hard it got. If I’m to help others first, I must be able to help myself. This is the thinking behind why I decided to stay in Rusk, to be able to eventually be there for the people that I care about. It’s a tough road that I decided to travel on, but one that I know that is possible if I remain positive and grateful for the help along the way. I have already completed two years of college with help from others and I am currently attending UT Tyler. I couldn’t have gotten this far from where I started if I focused on the negative things in my life. In conclusion, my development from a poverty-stricken person to a college student with hopes of a better life was drastic. There were challenges throughout my life to overcome and more to still overcome in the future. I couldn’t have gotten this far without help and I’m grateful for it. Also, thinking about the positive things in life too allowed me to persist even when there was very little reason to keep going. I have and always will continue to find a reason to not give into that no matter the obstacles. GratitudeLea Maleziuex
Oklahoma City University I am grateful that I was born and raised in France in a little town outside of Paris, however, I was not prepared for the shock of moving to America when I was 14 years old not knowing how to read or write in English. My dad is French and worked at the Louvre for 25 years, and my mom is American and is a flight attendant who commuted to Paris from her base in Houston Texas for 20 years. I am grateful that I had the possibility to move to America, the land of opportunity. Having an attitude of gratitude, helped me overcome three obstacles when adapting to America. First, going into ninth grade, I had to learn how to read and write in English, second, I blindly jumped into school activities like color guard and choir, and third, it was hard to leave my friends in France and make new ones in America. High school in America was a big challenge for me. It was hard to go from doing all of my homework in French, to all of my classes in English; especially since I could speak English but did not know how to read or write it. I was in the ESL program (English as a second language) which helped. I became friends with a Ukrainian girl who was good at writing English, but not at speaking it, and I could speak it but not write it, so we helped each other out. It’s one thing to have a basic conversation in English and another thing to study history, science, and math. You would think that math is the same as in France; 2+2=4 right? But it is so different! There are all of those word problems like, “ Bob jumped 8 feet and 5 inches.” How long is a foot? My size foot or Bob’s foot? They don’t use the metric system in America? The French schooling system is very strict, with hours of homework every day, no extra-curricular activities and no time to play. I was so grateful that in America there were several fun activities like clubs, sports, music, and theater to choose from, where you could do interesting things other than math. The second obstacle that I overcame was when I joined choir and learned how to read music. The hardest part was reading the notes at the same time as reading the English words. I liked choir and luckily I’m a fast learner. I worked hard at passing my classes so I could stay eligible and not miss out on any of the choir concerts. In America, they have an advantage to start music classes in 6th grade. I would have loved to have had that advantage. It’s unfortunate that they don’t appreciate it and they think it is normal. What’s really frustrating to see is Americans who don’t appreciate what they have and they complain all day about trivial things. When there is an attitude of gratitude, there is a wider perspective on life, and people are happier. Color guard really changed my life. I learned how to toss a rifle, saber, and flag and dance with the marching band. It was all so exciting, but I had to adapt to how intense everything was. It was amazing how much time we spent practicing. This was the first time I had to really work that hard at a sport; it boosted my confidence and made me feel great. I didn’t have to spend all my energy only on schoolwork anymore; I could be free!! Color guard and music taught me discipline, and how to push myself as far as I can go and how to be a hard worker. The third obstacle that was difficult to overcome, was dealing with leaving my friends and culture behind and making new friends. I have nice memories of growing up in France listening to classical music instead of T.V., riding bikes with my best friend on small country roads, and watching her brothers play soccer with the other boys in our small town, helping my dad grow vegetables in his garden, helping him cook his famous rabbit dish, memories of family walks in the forest collecting chestnuts for winter, apple picking for homemade pies, and bringing the wood in from the shed to make a warm fire. Making friends in America was a challenge because even though they are friendly and they loved that I was from France, I had a hard time understanding the conversations. It was hard for me to understand their way of thinking, and they didn’t understand mine. The French think that Texas is the land of cowboys and indians. My friends would say, ”Did you really think we would ride horses to school?” No, I’m not stupid, but I did think that everyone at least owned a horse and rode in the rodeos. At first, I was like a rockstar and everyone was very helpful, but then after the newness wore off, people started getting frustrated with me thinking I should be American by now. I seem American because I don’t have a french accent, but I don’t know all the expressions, TV shows or movies. It would of been easier if I had a cool French accent, but I am grateful that I am not shy and I could adapt well. In conclusion, people won’t be able to be grateful until they have gone through hardships in their life. By going through this challenge, I have become even more grateful for what I have. I am more humble, and I am a happier person. Even though it was hard to move to another country, it made me a stronger person. When I look back, I think, “WOW !!” I learned to read and write English, read music, and at the same time learn many sports and activities AND keep my grades up, make friends, and adapt to a different culture. If I can do that, I can do anything!! This struggle gave me confidence and a grateful heart to live my dream. The Power of Positive ThinkingMegan Huddler
“Don’t be gloomy. Do not dwell on unkind things. Stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight. Even if you are not happy, put a smile on your face. ‘Accentuate the positive.’ Look a little deeper for the good. Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face, with great and strong purpose in your heart. Love life.” – Gordon B. Hinckley Life is not always easy. Good times come, but so do bad times. Sometimes it seems like life is going perfectly and nothing could go wrong, until it does. In these times, it’s hard not to get discouraged. No one likes being hit head on with life’s trials. Whether it be a divorce, loss of a loved one, financial hardships, or a plethora of different challenges that one might face, it is sometimes difficult to find the good in a negative situation. Five years ago, life suddenly got hard for me. Up until then, life had been pretty easy. Sure, there were hard times and bad situations every once in a while, but nothing life altering. Suddenly, it seemed like my life was struck with a series never ending tragedies. A loved one’s cancer diagnosis and eventual death, a close friend’s attempted suicide, another death, the list goes on and on. For years, I felt as though I was surrounded by negative situations and I had no idea how to cope with it. It was so easy to focus on the bad things that were happening, so easy that I let negativity control my scope on life. I lost the joy I had for life, I lost interest in things that I used to love, I found myself asking “what’s the point?” I spent years struggling to find the good in bad situations. I thought that good times would just come on their own, and that it required no effort on my part. I figured that eventually the heartache, loss and sorrow would end and the clouds would part on their own. One day, I stumbled upon the quote above by Gordon B. Hinckley. As I initially read it, I felt as though it was speaking to me. In all honesty, I was the antithesis of what this quote was describing. I was gloomy. I was stuck on negative things in the past and I was allowing it to bring me down time and time again. I wasn’t able to enjoy the sunlight because I was stuck staring at the dark storm clouds. I never thought of happiness as a choice. I always thought it was a state of being, an emotion that accompanied the good times and went into hibernation with the bad. Stumbling upon that quote two years ago changed the way I saw myself, life, and happiness. I found that even through the tragedies my loved ones and I endured, hope and joy were still present. The hard times could not be erased or eradicated from my past, but I could choose to allow them to become learning experiences and let positivity grow from my losses. Although I lost loved ones, with positive thinking I was able to turn those losses into experiences that could make me stronger. They allowed me to become a fierce supporter of healthy living and learn the value of support for cancer patients in my community. I suddenly found myself throwing myself into volunteer work. I knew that if I was able to find the good in bad situations and help those in need, the positivity I displayed would leave an impact on them as well. The power of positive thinking isn’t just a phrase that people throw around but never take seriously. It made all the difference in my life. Learning to recognize, identify, and accept the negative while focusing on the positive has allowed me to become a happier, healthier, and more involved member of my community. Positive thinking is the conscious choice to accentuate the good things in our own lives and the lives of others. In his self-help book, “The Power of Positive Thinking,” Vincent Peale states “The way to happiness: Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry. Live simply, expect little, give much. Scatter sunshine, forget self, think of others.” Peale emphasizes through his writing that positive thinking does not just happen on its own. We have the make the choice to keep our hearts free from hate, forget ourselves and think of others. We cannot always control our situation. We cannot stop the hard times from coming, but we can stop negativity from taking a hold in our life. If happiness is a choice, let us choose it. We have complete control over one thing in life, our attitude. We have the power to choose each day to allow positive thinking to take the wheel. We don’t have to be gloomy, dwell on unkind things, or miss out on the sunlight. Choosing positivity isn’t going to solve all our problems. Hard times can, and will, still come. But it is our choice as individuals to decide if we are going to allow the negativity to keep us captive. If you search for negativity, you’re going to find it. In a world ravaged with wars, oppression, heartache, natural disasters, national tragedies, and social injustice, it is easy to get caught up in the negative. While we cannot always control the situations that surround us we can control our attitude and reactions towards it. Optimism does not just happen, it is a choice. It is our choice to be happy and joyful. It is our choice not to dwell on unkind things. We have the option to enjoy the rays of sunlight amidst stormy times. Even bad situations can bring about good if one makes a conscious effort to make a change, right a wrong, or strive for personal growth. Someone once told me that if I start and end each day with the mindset of “today is the best day ever” I would have a much happier life filled with positivity. If we make the conscious decision to wake up every day and find the positive, regardless of the circumstances, we will find it and it will have an everlasting effect on our lives and the lives of those around us. Positive ThinkingAshley Adams
From what I have experienced, with a person’s belief system, decisions and behaviors begin to be formed and create a more concrete foundation for what drives people to either act for or against any particular event, especially in how they are treated. I want to utilize what I know and delve into a career in changing the world, and ideals in media, culture and the environment. Once people manifest their decisions, their actions are set forth in the constant changes of the world. These beliefs are then tracked through each person’s actions and create the outcomes, then written down into history as it happened. With how the environment is defined and treated is simply different in everyone’s eyes. This shows how easy it is for society to be manipulated through distractions brought up away from the idea of what has happened to the environment and what that means to humans. With emotional concern, it is a simple task to get a poll of how people feel on the subject, but with the lack of knowledge out in the average person’s mind, it is hard to get someone’s true, thought out answer. This means tools like media or the tabloids are used to take those words and show a dark light around them in order to maintain control over the economy and wealth through destroying our resources. In media, once a person receives a message, it is their duty to in turn to take that message, weigh the possibilities, believe in the words, and try to interpret the words in a way they can understand. Their ethic idealism controls what they will receive from a message how they will interpret that message. These messages are hard to get across to a mass of people in a crowded world full of conflicting exchanges of ideas. Therefore people will use their value system to interpret what each message will mean to them. By observing a large number of people, the media can try to understand ways to get across to people, and the challenge for people remains with one’s lack of knowledge. This gets in the way and conflicts values. This is where values are important because people need to learn in order to understand where their values lie. Core values are devised in one aspect through the anthropocentric pyramid where humans are atop while everything else is below. In this idealism, the communication provides humans with an excuse to justify their power over other creatures and the earth itself. The second aspect is called ecocentric ideals where no creature rules under hierarchy and all are seen to coexist equally. These opposing spectrums of ideology are based on aspects humanity has taken the role of throughout known history. There are some ideologies that play between both aspects and try to consecrate a justification on their value. By teaching people to be more accepting, open minded, and so alternatively that their old values will need to be reevaluated, you open the eyes, heart and mind of a being and allow them to make better choices and start to build themselves. I find myself capable of changing the world with my beliefs and find my ethics to be high and in depth of what truth truly is in reality. Ethics can be described as a moral principle of an individual where values are considered what something means to an individual relative to its worth. I find my morals very high and based off of what I have experienced, feel and read about. Historically, ethics can be traced back to epic poems and written instructions given to ancient societies that describe what it means to do things morally and immorally. Values are constructed by contemporary events, culture norms and having association to things in one’s environment. Immoral events are caused to be associated to what society has created justice wise. Values have often been turned to what I consider evil, showing that society uses people’s moral values and molds them into a more controlled way of thinking. People ultimately have the choice to construct their ethics and values but can also be manipulated to believe moral is immoral and vice versa. Using the example of animals, moral values are devised through pain, love and experience. All animals are examples of how values can be carried out. An antelope values grazing the dry grass while the lion values eating its fill of the antelope. Humans use interactions as a way to learn what they value. Advertisements use people’s fears and insecurities to point out what they need to do in order to feel secure and satisfied. With events like dolphin slaughter in Japan, and animal cruelty, people are drawn to feel discomfort and disgusted by these cruel actions, therefore the value is to help or save these cases. I can debate my view on the Ethics and Values-driven idealism expresses how people will associate their morals and scale of worth with events tied to the environment. People have a hard time using their values to want to help support other life forms without risking their comfort. Science has come a long way and has helped people become more oblivious to the environment and disconnected them from interacting and surviving based off of what ancestors have had to do. Science has also assisted in combating health problems but has impacted the oceans, animals and plants to a level of destruction in their natural state or cycles. This creates mass population disruption and irregular cycles due to scientific advancements. Boats take animals from their natural environment into a new one and change the habitat’s cycles. Animal testing helps products become safe for humans but it can kill or seriously damage the animal being experimented on. Associated with concern are the attitudes and behaviors people carry out of their moral view and how much nature means to them. The examples of numbness in attitude on an everyday basis can go on and on, but the most important thing to understand is why people disconnect. A desensitized attitude is carried in the U.S. that has been passed down for generations in order to maintain a cultural norm of what people should value. This formed habits, which in turn were divided by behaviors that created environmental activism vs. an every day ignorant bliss. This ignorance is carried through walking in parks and going to national forests in order to feel like they are contributing to understanding nature and preserving it. Norms and incorporating the “self” has impacted the actions of people and their beliefs, shaping how much someone will value and endangered species or a cut down national forest. All these examples show how impacted the world can become through how the human “self” chooses to value and use their ethics to understand and conserve natural cycles. With my core value and debating skills, I find it easy to pave a way that others may follow in order to achieve my goals. ControlZachary Toftness
Arizona State University Throughout my life, there have been many things that I have wanted to achieve or wanted to prevent becoming. During this time of figuring out what I wanted to be and how to get there, I realized the importance of only trying to change things I could control. There have been things that I know are already facts about me, as well as things that I am predisposed to by being part of my family. There are also things that I know I have always excelled at. In order to become the best person I can be, I worked hard to control the expression of my negative traits, and worked to change what I could to make sure my life was leading towards one of my strengths, and to bridge the gap in some of my other skills. As an example of something I needed to overcome, the children of my family have always dealt with both anger issues and depression throughout their young lives. Being the youngest of the four of us, I grew up watching each of them go through these struggles and wanted to do anything I could to not go through the same problems. So in growing up, I looked for things that I could control. When it came to anger, I worked to develop my own management techniques early on in my life before any problems became out of hand. When it came to depression, I looked to change my outlook in life and always tried to find a positive aspect in each and every part of my life. Now, I work on doing the same thing as I balance two jobs and school, yet I always try to stay upbeat no matter what is happening in my life. One of the biggest things I have struggled with since I was a child was my interpersonal and communication skills. I am an extremely introverted person, and find it difficult to hold conversations and make friends. To this day, conversing with others is very much a purposeful process. Since I realized this difficulty in my personality early on in my life, I immediately started looking for things that I could control in order to make the situation easier on myself and be more personable. What I found that I could control was, much like ways that people deal with public speaking, was methods of controlling my nervousness and worked to become, if not more comfortable around others, at least better at combating the situation. As a result, I am one of the better public speakers I know, and actually find it much easier to give a presentation in front of a crowd than I do to talk one on one with another person. Focusing on changing things I can control doesn’t only apply to improving negative aspects of my personality. Things I can control also include areas such as the employment I choose to pursue, as well as the schooling I choose to go through. I chose throughout my earlier schooling, as well as my secondary education, to pursue a path that would coincide with my greatest interests and greatest skills. In the case of school, this meant taking any math, science, and technology classes I could throughout high school, and I am now currently pursuing a degree in electrical engineering. As one can guess, my best skills are that of math, logical thinking, and problem solving. When it comes to my career up to this point in my life, I had a rocky start by only being offered an opportunity in customer service fields such as retail and food service. I found early on in my working life that I do best working with my hands to create things, and found a niche that let me grow that skill working at Walt Disney World making candy apples and decoration sweets for the guests at the park. Currently, I am choosing to use my problem solving and skilled handiwork as a supervisor at Starbucks, as well as running my own pet sitting business with my fiancée. Both of these positions let me play to my strengths very easily, and it has led to a large amount of personal development. Whether it comes to focusing on the negative parts of your life and what you can change to improve them, or seeing what the best parts of yourself are and seeing what can be changed in your life to bring them out, it is important to remember to keep focused on changing things that you can control. This can mean looking for techniques to help you overcome adversity, giving yourself better control over your own feelings and aptitude. This can also mean looking forward into your future and seeing how you can affect your own surroundings to be more fulfilling to your strengths, such as going to school for a specific subject or getting a job in a certain field. GratitudeNathan Barney
Arizona State University It has long been motioned that living in a constant state of gratitude allows someone to achieve happiness in its purest form. A happiness that is fashioned by gratitude is not burdened down by material things such as possessions or finances. It is lifted by the small things that are often overlooked, but make us appreciate life so much more. It consists of time spent with family, a favorite song coming on the radio, or having a kind stranger pay for your order in the drive thru lane. The more we strive to live with an attitude of gratitude, the more we see how grateful we really are every day. My road to living with an attitude of gratitude has been a difficult and tedious journey. One that continues to this day, as I believe that ceasing to live gratefully is a dangerous proposition. I am not perfect, but there came a time in my life where I recognized the need to live in gratitude. And it has changed me for the better. I am an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The most well-known aspect of this world wide church is that we serve volunteer missions to spread our message of families to the world. This involves leaving our families and entire lives behind for two years, to go to a place that we have never been before in hope that we can make someone else’s life a little bit better. I had the opportunity to serve my mission in the southern third of Chile, a place that I dearly call home now. To say that it was the hardest and most challenging experience of my entire life would be a great understatement. Imagine being plopped down in an entirely new culture, speaking a language that isn’t your native tongue, and being encouraged to go out and talk to everyone that you see. It seems impossible. Being 19 years old, having taken a couple of Spanish classes in high school, and having practically zero life experience, I went and endeavored on what would be the greatest learning experience for my life. It wasn’t until the very end that I would realize my mission would be the very best experience of my life. This knowledge came after having adapted a life of living with an attitude of gratitude. The beginning of these two years proved to be the most difficult for obvious reasons. I knew little Spanish, couldn’t understand what the Chilean people were saying, was living on my own for the first time (in a different country), and could only contact my family once a week by email. It was at this point of my life that I started feeling down and tended to look at all the negatives rather than the positive aspects of this new experience. It lasted for a while, and I’m sad to say that I focused on myself and my own problems rather than paying attention to the people I was serving. I was ungrateful for the opportunities I was having, which pains me to admit. Change eventually came to my outlook on my volunteer mission, little by little. I did not wake up one day excited by the fact that I spoke broken Spanish in a thick American accent. Nor did I not miss my family anymore. The pivotal point of my journey to an attitude of gratitude came when I read a quote that was said by a leader of my church, which gave me the little spark I need to become a grateful human being. Said President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Russell M. Nelson, “We can be happy under every circumstance. We can feel joy while having a bad day, a bad week, or even a bad year!” He went on to tell a story of a group of people who in the 1800’s were traveling in the middle of the winter. Around 80 people were crammed inside a small cabin for the night that couldn’t keep the cold out, with not food that wasn’t frozen solid. Yet not a complaint was heard. Hearing this, I told myself that if those people in a frozen cabin could find gratitude then so could I. It was the spark I needed. So, my outlook on my experience started changing. I began to be grateful to have the chance to live in a different country. I was grateful to be able to speak another language (Do you know how cool that is, to wake up one day and fully comprehend that you can understand what another person is actually saying in something other than English?). I was grateful for the food, the weather, the chance to live in one of the most southern cities in the world Punta Arenas. I was grateful for everything as I had an attitude of gratitude. My service mission didn’t get any easier, but it became easier for me because I was grateful for every single moment and opportunity that happened throughout the day. Now, I wouldn’t change my time I spent down in Chile for the world. I strive to maintain this attitude of gratitude everyday now that I am back from my service mission. It is tough, but doable as I have done it before. Not only has adapting an attitude of gratitude help me overcome a life challenge, it shaped and made me a better person for the rest of my life. No more can I blink my eyes without seeing something that I am grateful for. I am a new person, and of that I am eternally grateful for. Attitude of GratitudeSierra Gnecco
Belle Glade is a community where many citizens struggle to make a living. Each day they worry about being able to provide food for their family while I worry about an incomparable and simple matter, such as paying off my accumulating student debt. Everyday hardships these citizens suffer such as this made me realize how lucky I am and how grateful I should be for the life I am gifted with. As I visited the area of Belle Glade with my church on a mission trip, I experienced a positive change in my perspective and attitude towards life itself. I began to view the world as something to be immensely grateful for and a blessing, a place that needs not only aid for the physical deprivations and injustice, but also love and acceptance for other nations and their cultures. In the beginning of my journey, I was not prepared for the sights that I witnessed and for the dramatic change in my perspective. I was shocked by the insubstantial homes and lifestyles the people of Belle Glade had to reside in. The majority of them had no air conditioning, stable house structures, proper clothing, loving families, protection, transportation, and unlimited food supplies, like I do and take for granted. They had little to own, yet somehow had to find a method of getting by in order to put food on the table and feed the mouths of their children. They lived a tough lifestyle where one would have to walk up to 20 miles just to get to work and make a living, a task which in itself baffled me. Belle Glade’s community was foreign to me. I struggled to believe that this was reality, and that in some way I lived a life that was a fantasy to some. Unable to relate to the community’s laborious and impoverished way of living, I felt a surge of love and compassion for those who had to make that trip to work, especially after seeing a young boy treading down the sidewalk barefoot. He was shyly glancing over in remorseful jealousy at the air conditioned vehicle my co-volunteers and I were stepping out of, something I would have labeled as a necessity. At that moment, I reached the breaking point, and experienced an impulse to take people like that young boy home with me and give them what they deserve: a suitable and loving home. I then realized after a period of reflecting upon life that the least I could do was impact their lives through unforgettable and meaningful connections. With this new objective, I not only offered them food, water, and necessities, but I also created a relationship with them that would never cease to exist. I offered them my consideration and spent precious moments with them, like the moment I put a smile upon a timid boy’s face by giving him a ride on my back, imitating an airplane. Moments such as when I painted the church of the community and was thanked by a feeble man, when I happily danced with every child I could find, when I played cards with a boy who had never played before, and when I handed food to a man who thanked me in a way I had never been thanked before. I gave hope to the community and touched the lives of those who received my compassion. I left a footprint in not only the sands of Belle Glade, but the hearts of those who lived and breathed within the community. I made my mark in the life of the community that was so unlike my own, and I was happy to have done so. Through memorable moments, significant relationships, and harsh conditions, I acknowledged the fact that people with cultures contrary to my own exist. I realized the vitality of other cultures and that small actions can make a difference in their lives. Deprived and unfamiliar communities like Belle Glade deserve appreciation and consideration. By experiencing a different environment and building this new perspective, I matured as an individual. I became an adult that comprehends the meaning behind caring for others and helping those in need. I learned that by giving individuals, such as a child, a hug and prayer, I make an impact upon their lives and build a positive memory that will continue to affect them for the rest of their lives. Even to this day, two years later, I still reflect upon the mission trip and remember the moments that impacted me, along with the citizens of Belle Glade. I remember the gradual transformation of myself from a young, naive individual to the wise, ambitious, giving, and, especially grateful person I am today. I obtained the gratuity that revolutionized my way of living and viewing the world. I became a victim of having an “attitude of gratitude”. The Power of Positive ThinkingNikolas Berry
The Power of Positive Thinking is an amazing principle that can produce results that seem impossible. In my own life I have experienced the real effects of applying this principle. I have also experienced how negative thinking affected my life and how to combat that with The Power of Positive Thinking. The Power of Positive Thinking is also very visible not only in my circles but everywhere in society. I began really trying to apply this principle around November of 2016. By the suggestion of a YouTube video I used their link for a free book on Audible. I have always been the kind of person that will buy books but then they tend to sit on my shelves. With Audible I was able to listen to books while I drive, mow the lawn, do dishes, and other “mindless” activities. I got a lot of suggestions from YouTube videos I was following, so under their advice my first book I bought which started this change was a collection of seminars from Zig Ziglar titled “Born to Win.” Usually I would dismiss this kind of thing but Ziglar came highly recommended from a channel I was frequenting. Also because this book was the most expensive I figured I was getting the best value. I decided to push through my own issues and listen to his seminars anyway. I heard him repeatedly say phrases like “When you put the good, the clean, the pure, the powerful, and the positive into your mind, your life will dramatically improve.” He told the story of how someone like me who was overweight and going nowhere in life was able to motivate themselves. This person was able to lose the weight and make changes by doing that very principle. I started to believe that phrase and like his title suggested I really felt like I was “Born to Win.” I decided after listening to Ziglar’s seminars that I would continue to listen to motivational books and talks. It became a past-time for me where I have listened to a dozen books, some multiple times. I have also listened to numerous TED talks and other motivational speeches from a variety of other people on YouTube. The belief that I can do more than I have been has come into me and inspired me to lose weight, finally get close to being able to graduate from college, start my own business coaching people, get outside my shell to build lasting relationships with people, and develop daily habits that will shape me into the kind of person I’ve always wanted to be but always talked myself out of even attempting to become. After time and inevitable struggles on many fronts I’ve learned that society, and myself to a certain degree, is programmed to feed off of negativity. I learned that the times I thought I was doing those “mindless” activities I was actually doing mental inventories of my mistakes and perpetuating a cycle of self-defeatism. I went through ebbs and flows over these past few months but for the first time in my life I feel that I’m not relieving the same year over and over. I feel like I’ve turned a new chapter to start the rest of my life. I’ve decided to live intentionally and look at the bright side of every situation. I’m choosing to be proactive about my life. I’m moving forward knowing that although not every outcome will be a positive one, even the negative outcomes will give me something to learn from and improve upon until I get a positive outcome. I know that just because I’m working on Positive Thinking that the people in my circles and community may not follow suit. One of my mentors that I’ve had the opportunity of associating with has been teaching this. She is a third generation Mexican American and she has stated that success is a language. When her Grandparents immigrated to the United States they spoke Spanish. Her parents learned English from school and Spanish as a result of being raised by her Grandparents. She unfortunately only learned English because that is what is spoken in her family. Just like this story she says that many people may have people in their family line that were fluent in the language of success. As a result of living in our negative society newer generations stopped speaking that language and instead are proponents of doubt and negativity. People don’t take chances, they blame others for their mistakes, rely on the government and others to take care of them, and continually just flat out complain about life and its issues. Fortunately just like any language it can be learned. Through daily practicing the Power of Positive Thinking one learns to speak the language of success. The people in our society who are successful are the kind of people who compliment others, give abundantly, work on themselves daily, practice daily affirmations, and many other practices. All these practices would be meaningless without the Power of Positive Thinking. They are unequivocally directly related. Naturally there are people who are successful in life who are negative but they are the exception, not the rule. Typically these kind of people end up inevitably destroying their own lives through a variety of ways demonstrating that they were, in fact, an exception. I strongly believe that, like so many people have already said in countless books and talks available, that if someone practices daily the Power of Positive thinking then, as Zig Ziglar said, their life will dramatically improve. Mine has already and is continuing to improve. Positive ThinkingJacob Anderson
University of Texas My name is Jacob Anderson. I am a first-year student entering the University of Texas at San Antonio this August 2017, hoping to complete a bachelor’s degree in Microbiology and Immunology. I graduated from Georgetown High School with a 3.9 grade point average. As a Jr. in High School, I became a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and this past June 2017, I became a state Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT). Also, in the 2016-2017 school year, I was the Health Occupational Student of America (HOSA) President of my High School. In addition, I attended the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists in Cambridge, MA. My mom has been my inspiration and has invested her passion into me. She enticed me to help others and I grew up watching her work as a school nurse and educator for many years within our community. As a Health care provider, I have already worked in an Assisted Living Center for the elderly and my current position as a Home Health care provider for a young man with Cerebral Palsy here in Georgetown, Texas. From these experiences, I know positive thinking and high energy have been vital for my growth and satisfaction. What has giving me the power of positive thinking: When given the choice whether to stop or continue, I had to ask deep down within myself to make my decision that I was going to accomplish whatever I set my heart to do and pay the price to do it. I’ve realized that this took a lot of work and many times I felt like quitting or just taking an easy way out to go “hang out” with my friends. I reminded myself the harder I studied, the more I benefited. Sure, I had already completed advanced courses and could have easily stopped at that point, but I pushed myself further. The passion kicked in and I knew that by choosing to get State Certified as a Certified Nursing Assistant(CNA) and Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) I was preparing myself for the future. I could fill out job applications with these qualifications and that was so rewarding. The desire to come out on top. I have played sports most of my childhood with my dad usually coaching my teams. He played college baseball and taught me how to compete and take that drive to succeed in every area of my life. Although I wasn’t a great athlete, I worked harder to make up for my lack of talent. My dad would always bring life into perspective and told all the parents and team players before the season started, that “it was just a game” and there is a balance of enjoyment and competitiveness. When I started working on my Pharmacy Technician and Certified Nursing Certifications, I would study and compete within myself to do more than my other classmates. I did find myself helping them study and cheering them on to go after the same goals that I had achieved. Just like I did in sports. I hope to graduate from medical school and someday go into business with my mom who is a Nurse Practitioner. I want to provide home healthcare services and innovative technology that will allow for doctor-patient connectivity where it had not been previously possible, saving both lives and money. Patient monitoring before, during, and after a procedure that can be accomplished with new technology. Technology is allowing us to measure critical health in convenient and inexpensive ways. I envision tiny, wearable, sensors that can collect data without interrupting our daily lives in order to make better, more informed decisions. Diagnostic procedures are shifting towards devices that are portable and able to be performed from home. Medical mobile applications will be prescribed with patient customization. “The smartphones, smart homes and the Internet in general will be the future of medicine, serving as a health-care medical dashboard.” I see Medical schools will preparing future physicians for a world full of e-patients and dazzling technology. It takes many years to go from studying to practicing medicine. During that time, what students are learning is constantly changing in the real world. The old-fashioned textbook is a static learning piece in a dynamic professional field with integrated, innovative technology. Digital classrooms will create new connections between students and healthcare professionals and allow for access to the most current information and resources. When I attended at the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists in Cambridge, MA., we witnessed a ‘live’ operation thru a teleconference and were able to ask questions to the surgeon as he would go through certain steps of the surgery. While this was happening, our parents could login from any location and witness the surgery and hear our questions as to how relevant this conference was to their investment to send me to this conference. Our ability to instantly connect and communicate with a global audience can change our perspective and points of view. This is our future in learning and I see it a positive one. I expect my college experience to continue to be a journey which I embark upon with great passion but I truly believe nothing can stop me. Therefore, I am committed to working hard in school and looking for opportunities that could help me make my goals a reality. I know that with positive thinking and determination I can finish college and build my Telemedicine Business? Pushing myself to compete in this world of opportunity. Personal DevelopmentNikki Dowden
Personal development is misunderstood to be an education. Although learning in school or college does development your mind, personal development assists you to develop a new way of thinking, in some cases a new mindset, personality, etc. I was brought up in a small school, small group of friends and continued my adult life with just a small group of friends (not the same group from high school). I never felt I needed more than a couple of “good friends”. As I get into college and I also am a stylist, I realize that most people have a big group of friends. Their circle of influence is amazing. So, when one of my friends went to cosmetology school, she had friends come see her in school the whole year. By the time she graduated, her appointment book was booked up for weeks. This stems from not only how many people she knows, but how positive she is daily. She keeps the vibe in her salon chair positive. She is an amazing stylist, no doubt, but her clients leave with more than a new color. They feel like they leave with a new best friend. You attract what you put out. If you are putting out a sour face and grumpy attitude, that is the type of people who will be attracted to you. You will surely be one grouchy, unfriendly group and who wants to be around that. But if you wear a smile every day, go out of your way to connect to people even just to say hi or to compliment them on one thing, people attracted to that. They want to feel the way you just made them feel. They want to be around you so that they can feel it again. As they spend more time around you, your actions start reflecting theirs. Over the last 6 years, I have been in a health and wellness company. When I first began, I was that small-town girl who was happy with my close friends and probably didn’t attract a lot of positivity. Social media allows us to be whomever we choose. On Facebook, I became positive and had a lot of people who wanted to be my friend. I was knowledgeable about our company and how to grow an amazing business so they wanted to follow me. But remember, that was my social media personality, in real life, nothing had changed. I reached a certain rank and went to leadership training and I learned so much! Leadership training taught me to be happy where I am in my business because the comparison is the theft of joy. I learned that I needed to change who I am and get some new friends. That sounds harsh, and no I didn’t stop being friends with those people but I quit being with them a majority of the time. I started surrounding myself with people who had goals to reach, who like to talk to strangers and to people who didn’t roll their eyes when I started talking to a stranger about my business. Doing these small changes have been huge for my business and my life. I have heard many motivational speakers but my favorite is Les Brown. He says, “You have the power to create a life in which you are respected for who you are valued, cherished, and celebrated!”. “You have greatness within you!” His words speak life into me every day. The tables have turned for me, my reality is more like the person on social media with my name. I want to share something positive every day that may be just what someone needs to hear. Health and wellness companies offer some sort of supplement that helps you achieve your goals. That is not all it is, it challenges you to reach out and find out what ails your friends and family. You talk with them, pray with them and you do the things you can to help people get to a comfortable and happy place in their lives. So many times since I have made this change, I have had these people come to me and hug me and tell me that my words or the minute that I spent with them has stuck with them and really helped. Personal development is something we all need to work on constantly. There are so many books, videos, audios that we can get our hands on. Learning to grow as an employee and how to work effectively with other people, learning the different types of personalities is eye opening. When you get into a leadership role and have to learn to, not become a boss, but become a leader that people actually want to follow. Someone who make people want to do their job better. A company that employs a leader like this will have the most driven and dedicated employees and have less of a turn over. DepressionCorey Lyons
Depression is the feeling of severe despondency and dejection. It presents itself in the brain as a mental disease to slow its “victim” down to drown in a pool of their own thoughts. The “not good enough” and the “why bother?” in constant rotation like the repeat of your least favorite song on AM radio. I fell into that hole of deep self-resentment. I was a high school graduate, but I wasn’t in college. I felt like I was chasing something I couldn’t see nor feel any time soon. Dreams began to fade and life began to spiral into a continuous destructive loop of even worst behavior. Until one day I fell in love with the most beautiful thing to ever touch earth’s atmosphere. Before then passion was nothing but a myth to me. I believe music saved my life. Making music, listening to music, and writing music rearranged my whole outlook on life. It was therapeutic when music was present it was like heaven. Realizing that I could be involved in something productive. Something that could possibly make a change in my community to make it a better place. Slowly healing myself and obliviously becoming a role model to my little brother along with a lot of other people. My confidence rose to new heights knowing that my written thought, my poems, and my rap could save a person’s life. Thoughts of sadness, being a victim, and excuses were all replaced with positivity. Earth was made to be a paradise to all who inhabit it. One man can change the world and make a better place for a million. The power is in the words that haven’t yet been said or the thoughts. If people think they can become something great it will follow with enough hard work and dedication. Faith is an invisible entity that creates motivation to keep living life and to create it in the image of the dreamer. I quickly realized that money shouldn’t be my motivation to live. My motive to live came from loving myself and those around me. I express my love through song and action. The energy of love and positivity spreads from one person to another. It starts with self-love and the ever-increasing power of love is infectious. During my struggle with self I began to see light once I stopped focusing on the shadow. One thing I have learned is peace of mind rules of all things. Life without peace of mind is stagnant with excuses to follow lack of forward movement. Focusing on the past and how hard it was growing up in Wilmington Delaware was keeping my brain in fog. In all reality, it turned me into a stronger person. My struggle built character and gave me a lot of stories I can past down in my music. I no longer believe in playing the victim, instead I became a creator. One change that had to be made was my language. Speaking good things into existence transferred to good fortune. Turning my dreams into commitments to make my life one that I would want to live in. I close my eyes to create my perfect world full of ambition, togetherness, and peace. Talking to my mirror having conversations about what makes me happy. Plenty of things came to mind such as love, hope, basketball, music, and life. A new love for life has been fruitful and a blessing. The people around me stuck with me through my low times then helped build me into a better person. They taught me valuable lessons in positive thinking and had faith in me when I had none in myself. I was stuck in the mud of pity with a lack of self-love. The time had come for me to rewrite my life. I did what I believe was right and made myself a promise to put my all into my goals. No one can tell my destiny but me. Us as people control our destiny it is up to us to make our dreams come to life. My repetition of the words life, and love were written with extreme personal purpose. Those were things I never thought I would experience. All my life I spent time searching for purpose on why I was here. My purpose is to be different and someone great. A great person told me that I could be whatever I want to be in life. Dreams are meant to be chased. Negative energy is meant to be replaced by faith. Goal of my life is to be magnificent and to be great. Life is like chess every move sets up the next. Starting to think good thoughts sets up the motivation in order to make new possibilities. When everything is positive anything is possible. Taking ControlJeremy Loomis
When you live with depression, it becomes challenging to believe that you have any control in life. Unlike mere sadness, depression breeds a deadness that leads to apathy. And apathy is difficult to escape, but not impossible. This is the story of how I came to see that I had influence over my situation, and that it was my responsibility to take control of it. The story begins not too long ago. I was withering away in a roach-infested apartment in Pompano Beach, FL, splitting rent with two other roommates. My freelance business was dying, and I was trying to figure out what to do next. But I was in a head space that I didn’t understand. My mind was closed to possibilities, and I was acutely sensitive to feelings of rejection. This was a fatal combination when it came to conjuring up new work, because right from the onset I believed that I was not wanted anywhere. I had equated trying with failing. Most of the time, my mind would shut down whenever I tried to approach the application process. I had experienced various outcomes from previous attempts, and they had all left a mark: I’d been called “overqualified,” I’d received no response at all, I’d received exuberant interest followed by a sudden hiring freeze (multiple times), and then there was the time when I’d been told outright that the job was mine, only to be told a few days later that the company decided not to fill that role after all. I felt blackballed. In the midst of these feelings of futility, I was also watching my relationship die. I grew more emotionally unavailable, even as my girlfriend kept trying to encourage me. While it was hard for me to receive encouragement, she was still helping me to see things about myself more clearly. Through her words I began to see that I was built to pursue something that wasn’t on my radar. She liked studying the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and she liked studying what made me tick. Thanks to her, I learned that I was an INFJ, a personality type that often gravitates toward becoming a teacher or counselor. When I saw that I no longer had any desire to work from home, I faced a difficult decision: did I really want to go back to school again? After two bachelor’s degrees and an online master’s, I still lacked a career direction. More college would mean more loans, which would mean even more debt. It seemed grossly irresponsible. It seemed counter-intuitive. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I wanted it. My heart was in it. And my heart hadn’t been in anything for a long time. So I took the first step, believing that it was the path for me to take, and that it would work out accordingly. By the end of the first semester, my professor was impressed with my writing and took me on as her personal research assistant. When I took Individual Human Development, I learned about brain chemistry and discovered that my depressive symptoms indicated treatable issues in my limbic system. Then in Psychopathology class, I realized I was living with a textbook example of persistent depressive disorder. A nutritionist friend got me onto 5-HTP and gave me dietary advice for how I could start producing more serotonin in my body. That, along with a little exercise and sunlight, went a long way in helping me begin to engage again. I was getting help that I hadn’t known to look for. While I can’t say “I have beaten depression,” I can say I’m growing again. I hated myself for being unable to get out of bed in the mornings, but I finally realized that beating myself up about it didn’t empower me to make any progress against it. I couldn’t take control of my problems by being problem-focused. I would empower whatever I focused on, so I decided to start taking ground in another area. That’s where I started to get a hold of what I could control. I could choose not to punish myself. I could stop gauging my self-worth by my ability to perform. I could strengthen beneficial neural pathways by building healthy mental habits. I could go to class and start spending more time with people. I could structure my time with a simple to-do list (even if I couldn’t get started before noon). And I could verbally process the day’s plan with a friend, when the mental fog was too thick for me to see through alone. I’m back in the job market again, and I have what I never had before: a career direction that is life-giving to me. As King Solomon said, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Depression robbed me of my vision, making it harder to see my way out of any problem or into any answer. I ultimately learned that when a goal isn’t real to me, I don’t move toward it. And if I don’t believe I can reach the destination, I won’t even try. I got out of that apathy cycle, but I did not get out by myself. I needed to borrow vision from someone who believed in me in order for me to catch fire again. That relational element has become one of my core convictions regarding mental health, because isolation is what kills us. And I believe that mental health is something we can maintain and enjoy, otherwise I would not be specializing in the mental health track of my Counseling master’s. GoalsAshley Ivey
My professional goal is to become part of a team who provides safe, effective, painless, research based anesthesia to patients. I want to become a CRNA to better myself with a career that will challenge, reward, and expand my care as a nurse. I also hope to be viewed by my fellow staff, family, and friends as a CRNA with character, determination, honesty, diligence, compassion, and one with strong faith. I was undecided on which advanced practice career would be the best fit for me, but I knew I wanted to continue learning and attending school. So, I advanced my education in nursing, earning a Master of Science in Nursing as well as a Master of Health Administration. In 2014, I observed a surgery as an ICU RN and I fell in love with the role of the anesthesiologist for the case. I knew that day, I wanted to become a nurse anesthetist! For the past two years, I have been preparing for the opportunity and challenge of attending nurse anesthesia school. I have a total of four and a half years of intensive care experience. I gained two years of experience in an intensive care unit with a specialty in coronary care as a new graduate in Modesto, California. Then, I moved to Arizona and gained two years of experience in medical/surgical intensive care. I have assumed increasingly challenging roles and responsibilities as a leader in the workplace, such as charge nurse for the medical/surgical intensive care unit, preceptor for new graduates and new nurses to the intensive care unit, and championing as the Sepsis Coordinator for the hospital. I have achieved Clinical Ladder IV in the professional nursing clinical ladder program at Abrazo Health and I am now a mentor for nurses who are working on their clinical ladders. I have attained my CCRN, PALS, ACLS, and TNCC. In academics, I chose my MSN practicum topic of implementing the use of capnography in an intensive care unit. I was inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, The Page 2 International Honor Society of Nursing for finishing in the top of my class. In the community, I have over one hundred and fifty volunteer hours as an American Heart instructor for BLS and ACLS courses. I have gained much confidence from such instructor roles within the workplace and the community. I have job shadowed several CRNAs and anesthesiologists on numerous occasions. One of my greatest strengths is my passion for becoming an increasingly successful nursing professional. The Law of AttractionFeona Peter
I have first been introduced to the Law of Attraction from a gift from my aunty. She had gifted me a video and book that sure changed the way I think about my life in this world. The video was called “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne. One of the lessons in the video has sure made an impact on my life. It was the Law of Attraction. We all, attract to ourselves all the good and bad things in this world from what you are thinking about. If you are thinking about negative bad things you will attract negative bad things to you. Be it events, people, circumstances, they will all find you. But if you choose to have happy positive thoughts and put out into this universe happiness and positive thoughts, you will attract the good things in life. There are steps in attracting these good and happy things. First off you have to know what you want. Write it down in a journal or spend time visualizing what you want. Second is you must Ask. Put the wish out there in your thoughts. Write what you want in a journal or pray and let the universe know what it is you want. Third you must have faith, faith that what you ask for, you will receive it, some way, some how. And last you have to receive what you had asked for. These are the steps in attracting what you want in life. One method that had really sparked my interest was called a vision board. Since I have been introduced the vision board I have accomplished many goals I have set forth to accomplish. What is a vision board you ask? Well let me tell you. A vision board is basically your goals (using pictures as symbols or phrases) on a cork board or what ever platform you wish to use. This board is to remind you daily of what your goals are and it helps you by allowing you to spend a few minutes everyday to focus on those goals in order to give you time to think of steps you could accomplish daily to get closer to your goal. For my first two vision boards I used an old high school art class technique. I took all the images, I wished to put on my board, to remind me of what I wished to accomplish and used a cheap art photo projector and traced the images onto a simple poster board. I then added colors and created a piece of art that meant more to me than being a work of art. The images reminded me of hobbies I wished to partake in, the places I wished to travel to, my careers goals and the social situations I wished to experience, my relationships with the people around me I wished to grow stronger, and the things I wished to own. As often as possible I would sit in front of this poster and imagine myself already owning these items or experiencing these experiences or accomplishing those goals and felt the happiness arise inside of me. That was my time of releasing my request with the universe to provide those to me, in some way. If you believe they will happen then they will manifest, one way or another. Each year or 2 years I would look back at my vision board and I would reflect on how my life has changed in that time frame. Have I accomplished what I set out for? Have I reached the goals I set for myself? What goals do I need to focus more on this year? Then I create a new poster with my new goals and the new experiences in which I would like to have in my life. The theory behind it? Many people get lost in their purpose or path in life. They don’t know where to turn and end up in a rut. They settle in a job they loathe because they don’t have any goals to further their life. This creates dissatisfaction, anger, frustration, depression and anxiety. If you don’t know what you want out of life and you don’t take the time to learn about yourself and create your own purpose to life you will continue to be the gerbil on the treadmill going no where. And if that is what you wish then that is what you are to receive. Having goals in life gives you a sense of purpose and you can become happy even in the process of reaching those goals. How? Pretend you already have what you want. Visualize that it is already something you have and be happy like you own it. Then step back visualize what you need and ask the universe to provide it. Eventually you’ll attract everything you need or desire. So far on my vision boards I accomplish 9-10 of my goals out of 14-15 goals each year. Do I think this doesn’t work because I didn’t accomplish all 14-15 goals? No, I am happy for all that I have done and make plans for my next great accomplishments in life. Your life, is your own adventure, what experiences, things people or accomplishments would you like to attract to yourself? Ask and you shall receive. PositivityCailey Snowdon
If you were to ask somebody on the street, “if you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?”, most people would tell you one of their physical characteristics that they don’t like about themselves. Or maybe they’d tell you that they would like to be a little less stubborn. But how many people would say that would like to show more gratitude in their life? When broken down to its basics, the act of gratitude is such a simple concept. Be thankful for what has been given to you. And in turn, you will receive more of it. Gratitude is a never ending cycle of positivity, yet many of us struggle to find the bright side of things in our daily life. In a society where everyone and everything is moving at an all time fast pace, it’s crucial for us a population to slow down and enjoy life and be grateful for it. My favorite book of all time is one that I find myself reading and rereading constantly. That book is The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. It is a self-help book that talks of the pseudo-scientific “law of attraction” that mentions how thoughts can change the world. That’s a pretty heavy theory, but the book explains how it is the small changes that make one person grateful and that person has the power to change the world. It all starts with things that we take for granted on a daily basis, and how we then decide that what we have is not enough, and then desire more. The worst part about that idea is that this is a false sense of reality, as we will always be wanting more. There will never be a satisfactory period, so we spend all of our days seeking happiness and never attaining it. The book emphasizes this point, and the latter half instructs readers on how to be more grateful in their everyday lives. The first instruction in the book was to grab a journal that you like, and compose a list of three things that you are grateful for. This was to be repeated every day, and eventually you would recognize how many things you have that you should be grateful for. At first glance I thought this would be a super simple task. And it was, for the first few days that is. I started with the most prominent things in my life, things that I see every day. This included my family, food on the table, and my cell phone. But as the days went on, it was a challenge not to repeat any of the items. I really had to dig deep about what I was thankful that I had on an everyday basis. It’s no coincidence that I would sometimes remember more things I was thankful for when I had something else taken away. For example, one night the power in our house went out, but it reminded me that I should be thankful to have electricity (and candles) on a daily basis. This all demonstrated to me to be grateful for what I have, and to not rely on material items to be happy. Then I stumbled upon a growing movement that was exactly what I had learned; it was called minimalism. First starting as an idea, minimalism has grown to an aesthetic, a way of life, and to many people, a calling. A large number of people have now jumped on the hippy dippy bandwagon, and are getting rid of all of their belongings and living in tiny houses with around two hundred square feet each. Leading this movement, are two gentlemen who like to go by the name of, “the minimalists”. Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus go on tour across the country, preaching to groups of people who want to learn how to be happy with a small amount of items in their possession. The minimalists stress the idea that is not about depriving oneself of a certain quantity of items, but instead choosing the items that add value to your life and decluttering anything that does not. This, in turn, allows people to focus on their happiness, and be grateful for life itself, instead of being grateful for material items that are in one's life. As for me personally, I find myself attempting to clean my room and think of the value of the items I have. While it is still a work in progress, I have donated many of my unwanted clothes to Goodwill, and have decided to be grateful for the life I was given, not the stuff that fills my life. This practice has changed my outlook on life and if there was one thing that I’m glad I changed about myself, it’s that I became more grateful and have a positive outlook on life. ControlStephanie Domenico
“If you want real control, drop the illusion of control. Let life live you. It does anyway.” – Byron Katie We all like to believe we have control over something. One reason is because being in control or having control makes us feel safe. Some people don’t fly because they feel safer in a car. This is because being the one the behind the wheel give the illusion of being in control. But statistically, as we’ve all heard before, flying is safer than driving a car. This probably has a lot to do with the number of cars on the road verses the number of planes in the air, but the fact remains, the place you have no control is safer than the one where you think you do. In a car, all you control is your own vehicle and your reactions to other’s driving. “Whoever controls the media controls the mind.” Jim Morrison Another reason some like control because it makes them feel powerful. They like the idea that they can make others do their bidding or that they control other people’s lives. Again, though, control is nothing more than a mirage in the desert. People who believe they control others have control only as long as the others allow themselves to be controlled. In the event of a revolution, or a coup, the control that was believed to be in place vanishes along with the power they thought they had. The older I get, the more I realize that there is not much of anything over which we have actual control. We can’t control how other will act, what they will say or how they will hear and interpret what we have to say. Most importantly, we can’t control what events or people life sends our way. We can only control how we handle those situations or how we interact with those people. For example, some believe that if they exercise religiously and eat healthy they can stave off death, but death comes for everyone eventually and often unexpectedly. What exercise and diet to control is the quality of live you live until death comes. Others believe that they can control their emotions and by controlling their emotions they can control their actions. In my mind it is the other way around. You cannot control your emotions because emotions just happen as an involuntary response to a situation. You can, however, control whether you act on those emotions. This is true control; the ability to admit you are affected by something, yet hold your actions in check, or act counter to those emotions. An area of my life where I have had to deal with not having control is my elderly, adopted aunt. I have been cleaning house for her and acting as a companion to her for a number of years. When driving she loves to take the back roads to get places. This means that it often takes us twice as long to get someplace as it would if we took the highway or more traditional routes. As a person who is somewhat driven and always on the clock, I used to get frustrated at these “scenic routes”. I would say things like, “didn’t you want to turn back there to get to the store?” I soon realized however that she had her own special routes and as long as I was firm with the time I needed to be back by, it was best to just let her have her way. By giving up the notion that I could control her I eventually accepted the fact that I was along for the ride, wherever that ride took us. More recently, her health has been in decline. She has put me in charge of a number of areas of her life such as paying the bills and power of attorney. There are days when her health is bad enough I’m convinced that she should be living in an assisted living facility. But even with the power she has given me however, I do not have the desire to take away what control over her own life she still has. So instead, I take the advice of Thomas S. Monson. “We cannot direct the wind, but we can direct the sails.” I try to direct her do things that are for her own good while allowing her to control her own decisions. I ask how she is feeling, if she’d like me chauffer her around or do the running for her. She has the choice of continuing to exert control over her life, or relax and allow others to take the wheel. Watching her age however has made me realize that I haven’t been controlling an area of my life that I could be, one that would make a difference in my own old age, and that is the matter of my health. After watching my aunt suffer through a knee replacement and the accompanying medical problems that have come with it, I realized that I could control how flexible I would be as I aged by partaking in daily yoga. I realized I could control my likelihood of developing heart disease by controlling what I eat. In other words, while I can’t control when death comes, I can control, to some extent, how healthy I am when it arrives. As C.S. Lewis said, “Don’t let your happiness depend on something you may lose.” If my happiness depends on my own independence, I best work not to lose it. GratitudeKimberly Valentine
Sitting here, trying to write this essay on gratitude for the second time, I feel stumped by the task of articulating what it means to be grateful. It’s such an enormous part of my life and the human experience that it seems I couldn’t possibly sum it up in so many words. Artists have spent their entire lives trying to capture various expressions of gratitude. Art, in its essence, is borne out of feeling grateful for some moment, pattern, or phenomenon. My best definition of gratitude has two parts: the first half is noticing and appreciating the world around you in all its depth, and the latter half is expressing or acting on that appreciation in whatever form is most relevant in your life. My parents love experiences. Therefore, their house is filled with books, art, signed memorabilia, photographs - memories. My best friend loves literature and writes outstanding poetry; her shelves are lined with her favorite books, and she happily takes the time to dissect and unravel every poem she’s ever loved. I love human development, interpersonal relations, and human nature at large; I also worship composition, color, and visual expression, and therefore I’m a psychology & studio art student who loves street photography, drawing, and painting. The purpose of people’s lives, in my opinion, is developed from what they’re most grateful for in the world. Where those inclinations come from is unique for each individual, but it’s in the acknowledgment and expression of them that the world is built. In my own life, gratitude is central to who I am. Most days, it comes naturally to me to notice a heavy leaf falling from a tree, a hummingbird taking a zip from a few flowers, or a cool breeze on my skin. I feel lucky that even when I witness a bad thing happening, or experience a period of difficulty, I have developed the awareness to know that the lessons those experiences teach me are always just around the corner. This attitude is beneficial in every arena of my life. In work, I’m grateful that I even have a job and the opportunity to work and earn a living. There are many people out there who would love to have that opportunity. Thinking about work in this way, even if it’s waiting tables or scrubbing floors (both of which I do), restructures your thinking, and thus changes the way that you work. If you’re thinking, I hate my job, this is a waste of my time, why would anyone care about this? You’re going to do a bad job, you’re going to disappoint people, and you’re going to miss out on an abundance of observations about life and human nature that would otherwise fuel your growth and creativity. There is something to be learned and gained from everything - including, if not especially, grunt work. In learning, gratitude is at the center. If you don’t feel appreciative of all the knowledge, history, and potential for innovation that’s out there, you won’t feel enthusiasm and motivation for absorbing it and ultimately contributing to it. It reminds me of an impactful quote from Walt Stanchfield, who was the lead animator and educator at Disney for over forty years. He changed the lives of countless animators and artists who were lucky enough to be in his lectures, and after he passed, a few of them compiled his lessons into a two-volume book called Drawn to Life. In his words: “Your mental and emotional processes are what motivates you, and without motivation you would accomplish nothing. And without enthusiasm, motivation would atrophy before you could make a quick sketch. Your mind is like a projector - whatever you choose to put into it is what will be seen on the screen (the choice is yours and yours alone). The switch is motivation and the electricity that keeps the whole show moving along is enthusiasm.” Enthusiasm, just like ambition, is borne out of gratitude. With gratitude, comes enthusiasm, comes motivation, comes learning, comes valuable and true contribution. With that, comes a fulfilling life. Gratitude isn’t required in terms of survival. You don’t have to pay attention to the world around you, let alone appreciate it, to get by. Many people don’t. But those who do, those who take the time to engage with their environment and feel lucky to be a part of it, live in a much more colorful, happy, and rewarding reality. In my lifetime, I hope to inspire others to appreciate the moment. I love interactions with folks behind the counter, or a silly child on the street, or a butterfly in a field. I love being able to enjoy the gifts that are all around us every day. These experiences give me such fruits to pull from in terms of creativity, expression, and motivation. I am driven to make the world a better place just by being present and inspiring others to do the same by example. I’m studying psychology and studio art because I want to work in the art community, and contribute to the development of a more appreciative world. A world that slows down. A society that values each other truly. By observation, study, and research, my aim is to understand the complexities of people. After I complete my education, I want to march into the world with this knowledge strapped to my back, and with gratitude and positivity in my hands. I want to influence people with my own actions, words, and accomplishments. I want to live a fulfilling life. And for me, it all starts with gratitude. Thank you so much for your time, and for offering this opportunity for financial assistance to students like me. I look forward to hearing from you. Positive ThinkingDylan Francis
Positive thinking is a powerful thing. I have long struggled in life and I will say that staying positive saved my life. I have failed many times in life; I started college as a pharmacy major, then switched to dental hygiene and failed competences that forced me to choose a different career path; biomedical engineering. I could not find a job in biomedical engineering, and thus switched to electrical engineering. Now I will be attending ASU online full time as an electrical engineering student because I got an offer for a dream job, I will be working full time under the wing of controls engineers up to the time I graduate and afterword. I have toiled long, and failed many times, and I will not be dishonest and I will not say I never felt sad, but I never gave up, I always stayed positive and I always kept trying. Positivity saved my life, if I would have accepted my failure many times before I would never have had the chance to take the opportunities I have now; positivity kept me going, kept me striving for better. Positivity led me to not lay down and accept my fate, I kept working hard and I currently have a 3.91 gap after 130 credit hours. I refused to permit negativity to invade my life, and because I strove and persevered, I am now in a spot where I will be finally starting my career. More than just the job is the location, I will be working 30 minutes from a nature reserve I frequently visit to pet prairie dogs and see other wonderful critters. There were many times after failing that I had the opportunity to give up, I could have bowed out and accepted my fate and went to work a job I hated, but positivity would not permit it. My parents are poor, and I was the first in my family to achieve even an associate’s degree. My life has been hard, I didn’t know what I was getting myself into in college and I have had to pay my own way the whole time. After switching to biomedical engineering from studying dental hygiene I sought internships, I tried for 2 years up until I was just shy of my senior year and only got one interview. I could not make the degree work for me and switched to electrical engineering, and now after trying one more year, I got more than just an internship, I have a job where I am going to be groomed into being an engineer. I will be working and will be promoted immediately into an engineering position when I have my degree completed. Before this opportunity I was accepted for an internship; I was so happy, finally I would be able to quit bussing tables and make enough money to afford to pay for my things, but alas, the corporate office cancelled my internship the day before I was to start. Six months and many interviews went by before I got the offer of a lifetime and excited accepted. One thing stayed consistent that led me to this point: I stayed positive and kept going. I want to share my message with other college students; not the ones with rich parents that permits them an easy life and college experience, but people like me whose parents are poor and who had no one else in their family with any college education. Who had to start from scratch, and knew nothing about what majors are good, or what degrees are worth it. I want it to be known for all of the people out there who felt as I did: wondering if they were ever going to get a lucky break, wondering when their hard work would pay off, I want them to know to stay positive, because good things will happen. They may not happen today, or tomorrow, or the next day. They may not happen next week or even next month, but if you work hard, try your best, and stay positive you will succeed, it’s not a matter of if, it is only a matter of when. when that day comes the happiness will be so great that you will feel that it was all worth it. I want others like myself, the underdogs, those with no one to lean on, with no one to help them, that must fight and toil and worry, to know that your day will come. The power of positive thinking kept me going through not one, or two, but three failed majors and many years of working and going to school. The power of positive thinking led me to where I am now, and that is a place of happiness. The power of positive thinking is what separates the world, that makes the difference between those who fail and keep failing forever, or those that fail and then eventually succeed. The power of positive thinking has saved my life and I want others to think more positively so that it can save theirs. Attitude of GratitudeSimol Shah
Many men wore their thick, leather belts low here, there being many engrossing bellies, some of which were large enough to have respected names of their own and be formally introduced. These men didn’t pull them in or cover them within the loose dress shirts; they allowed them hang freely, they palmed them; they stroked them as if they bore children of their own. Why was it such a bother? My morals could not answer; my mind was not allowed to be critical here, part something we called izzaat. Aside from the fact we were servicing a funeral for my departed uncle, one of the closest people I had the pleasure of receiving influence from throughout my life, there was nothing that really stopped them. Elders always had my respect, regardless of their intentional or unintentional sayings or doings, regardless of the amount of credibility (or lack thereof) they had. Accepting this rule didn’t become hard for me until now. Tension was prevalent, much less the sympathy. The funeral was not that that interested these people to be here. It was my sister: she was diagnosed with schizophrenia early this spring. Ever since, our family lost its stability; but everyone else found entertainment. I noticed many of the men had already tried to make contact with her even before making contact their own sizable bellies. I expected that. It was a funeral, after all. Albeit the image of Mota Papa on the deathbed was not nearly as difficult as the image of him on the M.E. gurney when I saw him, I was still distraught. Each teardrop I shed was in reminiscence of all the support and love he managed to distribute to all us children and his own. My heart flooded: I was expected to be the strongest of all the people there, and yet I was there, sobbing the most. I lost my paternal figure. I stood up, walked out of the room just to have a moment of mental composure. I walked right back in only to find the mourning hymns had ceased to resonate and the men removing him from the bed. My sister stood there; it was apparent by her form that she went through a lot. But, before long the uncles and aunties had surrounded her, interrogating her of her future plans, her college (she is exempted from all schooling for two years), her life. She answered but the answers themselves indicated she was lying; they continued anyway. What I saw through my already baffled mind was the exact sort of harassment I dreaded to wait for. And that’s why I lost “it.” Emotions inside of me formed into invectives and shot out through my mouth, goading them away from her as I took her in. I knew I was going to hear about this misbehavior soon. I asked her, “You okay?” “No,” she looked around as my eyes followed her gaze. “Look what you did!” What? She was alienated, again. She was trying to overcome her social disorganization. I didn’t let that happen. And the funny thing was, she felt sorry for me, not I for her. She felt sorry because I was negative, so indignant, that I forgot I was still alive. She felt sorry because she wanted me to know that nothing good would happen if I did so. I realized then that I wasn’t supposed to shield everything away from us; no matter what antagonized us at any given time, good or bad, we were to overcome it together. We both estranged ourselves trying to avoid them. She got over it and taught me one thing: deal with it. From this point on, I learned a lot of things while growing. Every misery, every struggle I went through made me realize something that not enough of our generation has been a participant of. I had been building character. And when I did, I did so happily, as if I knew this should be routine. These challenges had made myself, my very soul fertile for the knowledge and experience that hold warrants why I should be a certain way. Learning to embrace this series of challenges and sorrows made me actualize the purpose of the human and its capacity to learn. To this day, I have found comfort in one quote in particular: “Never blame anyone in your life. Good people give you happiness. Bad people give you experience. Worst people give you a lesson& to the best people give you memories.” ~Unknown I have never found the author to this quote, however, despite its anonymity, the quote has empowered me on a spiritual level that allows me to get along with those whom with I do not share the slightest shred of beliefs or convictions. This quote has taught me the consequences of labels and labeling, and the disservice one does to themselves when they choose take easier, more familiar paths, which feed their ignorance. And because of this, I have been a victim of having an ‘attitude of gratitude. Power of PositivityShanice Jefferson
The definition of positivity is the practice of being or tendency to be positive or optimistic in attitude. Throughout life, certain circumstances tend to challenge our way of thinking. Sometimes we may go through a world of trials and tribulations that can leave us depressed or turn our positive thoughts into negative thinking. Over the course of my twenty-four years of life, I have learned the importance of positivity and how it can shape whether or not you will be able to make it out of your current outcome. I went to school to study the medical practice for one year. It was my goal to finish college with a 4.0 GPA and become the top of my class. Learning everything in a fast past environment was pretty tough but, it was my positive thinking and will to succeed that helped me achieve my goal! I was able to finish college with a 4.0 GPA, became number two in my class, and I hope to do the same at The Academy of Art University. However, that was not my hardship. April 15th, 2017, is the day that changed everything and my outlook on life. I was in a horrible Skydiving accident and I, have no memory of what happened and how I survived. My friends told me that I flew through a forest and practically fell to the ground. Everyone thought I was dead because of how I landed, but the miracle is I am alive. Following the accident I was unable to move, could not open my mouth to perform the necessities, I could not work, and I did not feel like being social towards anyone. A month had passed, and I began to feel depressed. I am a person who is full of life and an individual who is always positive but, this situation was taking a toll on me. The negative thoughts kept coming to my head. “You will never get better,” “Life will never be the same for you,” “You should have died,” and “You will not get better in time before school starts.” After all the tears I expelled from my red, watery eyes, I came to the point where I was sick of being depressed. My depression was stressing me out more than I could dream. This is where my turnaround began. I realized I had two options at this time. I can choose to sit on the couch and be miserable continuously or, I can turn my thoughts into positive thinking and look forward to a brighter future ahead. I chose the better route, and that was to take my situation by the throat and start thinking better, brighter and faster. Within the next few days I noticed I was able to smile again, perform the basic needs every human has to do and I found myself being able to move more. The movements were not 100% there, but it was something, and I rejoiced in the little things. Two months had passed, and the tears were nonexistent. I was able to socialize a bit more, and I finally gathered up the strength to take a walk outside and feel the wind brush past my skin, the sun shining on my face and I loved the smile that came with it. A couple of weeks after my great success I realized my energy was going down, but then I kept the positivity alive, and my thinking got me through that difficult time. I am here writing this essay, and I am attending the school of my dreams so I can receive a quality education and I am back to being the woman who is always filled with love and life! We can plan our lives or have hopes that schooling will not be hard but the question many must ask themselves is when the water gets rough, how will you respond? Will you choose to let the waves crush you or will you swim up and take a breath of fresh air? When you flood your thoughts with positive thinking, it drastically changes everything! According to, Cherry’s article on “The Benefits of Positive Thinking,” she lists what positivity can bring to your life. Positive thinkers cope better with stress, it improves your immune system, it is good for your health, and it can make you more resilient (Cherry). So, the next people feel that certain situations in their lives are overcoming them, the key to making it through their rubble is to think positive as it has so many benefits and it will get anyone through anything! What Can You Control?Michelle Acia
University of Nevada Las Vegas Focusing on things that you can control for me means to not ruminate about all the worries of the past, present, and future that is out of your control. With most of our lives filled with the stresses of family, bills, work (and whatever else the universe may throw at us) it is challenging to not to worry. Yet with all this worry comes stress and unhappiness. Worrying about things out of your control just simply isn’t productive and can absolutely prevent you from experiencing moments of happiness that pop up in your life. I come from a poor, divorced and unstable family. I have gone to five different elementary schools, four different high schools, and have lived in 7 different homes all before graduating high school. Being from a poor and unstable family I have lived my life very different from other children. Our family never took a family vacation, there was no extra money for extracurricular activities like sports or music, we lived off of food stamps and rent vouchers because my mother couldn’t hold a job with her drug habit at the time. Growing up like that I learned at an early age to worry. I worried about where we were moving to next, if I’d make any new friends at this new school, if we had enough money, if I should get a part time job to make ends meet at home, if that junior thought I was cute, if he’d think less of me if he knew how I lived, etc. I just grew up worrying about everything! I have blamed my parents, how I was brought up, and my past for my tenacity for worrying about things out of my control, but I’ve grown to recognize there is no blame to be placed for worries besides myself. I now make the conscious effort, daily, to distinguish things that are either in or out of my control and focus on what I can rather than ruminate about what I can not. My past self was an around-the-clock, anxious, and tense person that could barely function to accomplish the simplest of tasks because I was a worried mess, even when it came to small potato kind of stuff. I remember a day where I was taking the bus to the community college and my bus was late. The bus was about fifteen minutes late, but after waiting in the sun with no shade for thirty minutes, I started to become heated and anxious. I worried what time the bus was going to show up, if it was even going to show up at all. Was it broken down? Is this line not in service for some reason? I had then decided to walk to the next stop which was about a mile away. As I’m walking, the bus I need to be on drives past me and in the distance I watch it pull up in front of the stop I’m trying to get to. Adjacent to this first bus is the second bus that I need to take and I see it fill up with people from the first bus and drive away. I have missed two buses now and have to wait again for the next bus. At this point I’m tired, sweaty, panicked, and stressed. Despite having a good reason to worry, this was one of those moments where I realized that I can’t worry about things out of my control. If I had stayed calm, waited for the bus, and got on it, I would have made it to my class on time. I was very annoyed and angry that the bus had made me late and I was worrying the whole hour-long bus ride to school. I was thinking about what had just happened, how I didn’t want to look like I didn’t care to my professor because I would be showing up late, how I would miss the quiz, how long it takes me to even get to the school in the first place, etc. I was ruminating about it all and wiping away tears of frustration because I don’t like be a late person and don’t want to be seen as unorganized or someone who doesn’t manage their time well. That ride to that day of school made me think about the time in middle school where how I was suspended because I had too many tardies, but I had too many tardies because my mom took too long in the morning to get ready. Instead of managing her time better, my mom told me that I had to walk to school from now on. It took me an hour to walk to school from the house and every morning after that I woke up at five in the morning to leave the house at six o’clock to get to school by seven and every morning I left for school my mom would still be in bed. Thoughts like this ruminated in my mind for the entire bus ride to the college. I finally get to class and I’m not as late as I thought I was going to be, my prof doesn’t even look at me as I quietly walk in 30 minutes late, the quiz was moved to the next class, and the world was still turning. I realized that the hour I spent on the bus ruminating about my experience didn’t make the bus go faster, it didn’t make me miss my quiz, and it didn’t serve any purpose other than to stress me out. I realized that all of this worrying was turning me into a crazy person and I needed to start focusing more on the things that I can control. Since then I have created a stable life for myself and I don’t worry about the same things as I did as a child. I work, live with my boyfriend in our townhouse, have just finished my associate’s degree, and am on my way to finishing my bachelor’s degree in English to pursue a teaching career where I can be around young people and help them use language to channel negative thoughts and emotions. I still have to remind myself daily to recognize moments that are out of my control and not to stress out in those moments, but I like to think that I have come a long way and I don’t mind the work. You can plan for the future and work towards the future, but sometimes plans can fall apart or not turn out how you envisioned and that’s okay! It does not mean that there is not a future waiting for you and it does not mean that all the work put in was wasted. I try focus more on things that I can control. I can’t control my family or my past, I can’t control whether or not I’ll get that job I applied for, and I can’t can’t control whether the bust will show up on time. The only thing I do have control over is my focus and where and how it should be placed. Lessons LearnedJeremiah Taylor
Louisiana Tech University Unfortunately, every athlete will eventually have to “hang up their sport’s career” and move on in life. The lessons learned from sports such as teamwork, leadership, and discipline can expand beyond a playing field or court. In my personal life, I had to comprehend the importance of these attributes on the basketball court first. After achieving a firm grasp on their importance in sports, it became easier to understand how these concepts transition to my academics. The implementation of teamwork, leadership, and discipline in my academics has resulted in increased success and the desire to work diligently to obtain my future goals. If awarded this scholarship, it will provide me the opportunity to focus entirely on academics and continue development of these attributes rather than being forced to divide my attention between the workload of school and the stress of continually wondering how I will pay for tuition, room and board, textbooks, etc. The definition of teamwork that I learned in the sports setting has been one of the most beneficial lessons acquired. Every player on the team does not have the role of scoring points during each game; however, this does not mean each individual position is not equally vital to team success. This is where the concept of teamwork is applied. In academics, this can apply to group projects and research. I have learned that when everyone knows and functions within their respective role and executes it to their fullest potential, a group project can be completed efficiently and effectively. Also, when the group allows everyone to maximize their individual potential in a noncritical environment, a group project can become one that attracts the professor’s attention, inspires others to become strong and successful, and can lead to a memorable learning experience. On the path to excellence, showcasing the attribute of teamwork brings to the forefront that no role is minor or superior to another. Being a naturally shy person, learning to be more verbal and lead those that I am not acquainted with was certainly a challenge initially. Sports allowed me to fine tune this skill because winning has always been an important goal. In sports, I had the courage to express my point of view and ideas in order to ensure the entire team had the same understanding and goals in order to minimize confusion. Less confusion resulted in greater unity, better individual performances from all, and frequently winning. Even though I had the desire to win, I was able to improve my leadership abilities and motivate the team to accept the fact that even in losing there is a lesson to learn. This translated to academics by instilling in me the courage to be outspoken enough to initiate and lead a successful class chat group. I accepted the responsibility of arriving to class early, staying late, organizing the group, and dissimulating and maintaining the rules for becoming a member of the group. In this case, the objective was not to win a game but to achieve a grade of an A in the class. By forming a chat group with class members, I was positioning myself as the leader, being outspoken, assertive, and putting forth an effort to inspire other classmates. At times, group members would leave study sessions retaining more information than we did following lectures. The leadership skills that I learned from sports were instrumental in helping me create a sense of teamwork which allowed all members to reach a higher level of individual success in the class. Discipline is also an important lesson that I have learned through sports. Essentially, an individual will receive only the equivalent amount of success as effort put forth. This is a direct correlation to the classroom. One cannot expect to achieve high grades if ample quantity and quality effort is not put forth during study time. The most overlooked component of discipline that I have learned is that results are not always instantaneous. For example, an individual must practice dribbling a basketball several weeks before he/she will be able to notice the new skill in a game. Another basketball concept is that a player cannot practice for five hours the day before a game and expect great results. The results of over-exerting oneself the day before will lead to sore muscles, burn out the next day, and possibly being sluggish during the entire game. It is the discipline and constant practice over time that produces the best results. To achieve results in academics the same principles apply. I have noticed the study discipline that works best for me is reviewing the information in small sections approximately forty minutes each day rather than a cram session prior to the test. Being dedicated to this discipline has resulted in my best test grades. Cramming for tests can produce adverse results and lead to failure. The dedication I learned from the game of basketball has resulted in the development of an easier and more effective study habit that allows me to obtain eight hours of sleep prior to a test. Therefore, I am rested, able to focus, and recall the lecture notes and materials studied. The nationwide student loan debt is $1.4 trillion ($1,400,000,000,000). This is an average of $30,000 per person. In an effort to circumvent becoming a statistic, I am adamantly seeking scholarships. This scholarship would have a life altering impact on my education because it would allow me to continue my undergraduate studies without the burden and stress of searching for ways to pay for school. If awarded this scholarship, I would take full advantage of the opportunity that it would provide to pay tuition, purchase books and supplies, dormitory fees, etc. I would also be able to focus entirely on continuing to apply these attributes in the classroom. Lastly, this scholarship will enable me to unlock doors that will allow me to leave a lasting impression for my descendants and those in my future community as I aspire to become a pharmacist. In conclusion, no one will be able to play the sport they love for their entire life. Fortunately, the lessons learned from these games such as teamwork, leadership, and discipline can expand past the out-of-bounds lines. In my personal life, I have learned to apply the lessons I learned on the court to my academics. The implementation of teamwork, leadership, and discipline in academics will result in increased success and the obtainment of my goals. Passion & VisionAndrew Boutros
In August of 2011, at 19 years old I went on my first mission trip to Kenya. I went with the intent to help others, but the outcome saved me more than anyone could imagine. It was there that I discovered my purpose. My eyes were opened to the needs of others in a way that I only read about in textbooks. I saw the future of the world’s generations being depraved of their basic needs but yet regardless of their shortcomings they held onto the light and happiness of their world. Seeing how little they had revived the purpose I was seeking, it revived my calling. Kenya became my drive, it became my goal, I was given the opportunity to see their struggles and I knew I had to do something about it. Since that day I started investing in myself more and traveling more. I pursued a minor in Psychology during my undergraduate studies, so I could understand more on how to deal with the afflictions of others and offer help. Since Kenya, I have attended more than 12 mission trips ranging from 2 weeks and up to 3 months. As of late, I have gone to Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, South Africa and India with a burning passion in my heart and vision in mind to empower more people. Every time I traveled and worked with people from different backgrounds and different faith, at risk youth and low-income families, my heart would be moved and the beauty of their souls touched it. In 2014, I moved to California and pursued two online degrees. The first one was biblical counseling, so I can better know myself and in return use it in my church service where I teach high school and college students. Once I completed that I pursued my life-coaching certificate and I became a certified Life Purpose Coach from the International Coaching Federation. This led me to know more about myself as well as how to coach others in their journeys to come to know their purpose and live a better life. One important skill that I have acquired through my coaching training was the power of positive thinking. I always drowned in the power of “wishful thinking” but it never got me anywhere. But the more I traveled, interacted with people who are different than me, the more this concept became a reality in my life and a skill that I taught to others. I’ve learned how to go to the people, learn from them, live with them and build from what they have as Lao Tzu said. I’ve learned and experienced that each one of us has the solution to all their problems inside of themselves and we just need guidance and someone to hold our hands and walk the journey with us from darkness to light. I’ve learned that what you say to yourself becomes who you are and turns to be your reality so if you wake up every day saying ‘Today is going to be great and I’ll do miracles’ then you will experience this reality in your life. We have power over our life, we can direct how our day goes just by changing the way we see and view things. Our minds are so powerful that no matter what happens we will find a way to succeed and enjoy the opportunities presented to us. My life has always been about human development and community empowerment and after all the unrest that has been happening in the Middle East and all of the refugees who have been fleeing their countries to come here in the pursuit of a better life, it became clear to me that this is where I am needed. I want to be able to work with refugees to empower them to live a dignified, healthy and stable life. I want to be able to influence them in way that they wake up every day knowing that there is still hope and there is a better future waiting for them here or even elsewhere. I want to utilize the knowledge I will get through the master program to build better programs so I can reach more people who don’t have access to any resources or do not know how to use the resources they have. I also want to work with at risk youth who have been neglected by their families, by the society and their own communities. I want to be able to help them see a better future, dream big and achieve their dreams. I was fortunate that when I moved here in 2014, that I had family members and church friends who were able to integrate me in the community and get me acquainted with the system, but this is not the case with everyone. I’ve had my permanent resident card since 2007 and I’ve continued visiting for seven years which made it easier for me to adjust when I made the move, but those who flee their countries and come to a totally new country with no experience, no connections and little to no resources are in need of help and empowerment. You see, I believe life is a very precious gift that we have been granted from God and letting that gift go in vain is a tragedy. It is a tragedy when you have a treasure and you hide it and do nothing with it. It is a tragedy when you have a treasure and abuse it. It is a tragedy when you have a treasure and not know what to do with it. This is where I see myself thriving to empower more youth to live a purposeful life, thriving to enable more families live a dignified life knowing that there is a better tomorrow and striving to make the world a better place. A lot of my friends think I’m crazy because I dream of a better and safer world for the underprivileged and under resourced in this country and in the Middle East, but it’s not crazy that defines me, it’s Passion & Vision that defines me and moves me closer towards my goal every day. EducationVictoria Adeniran
Witnessing my family struggle and breakdown is the hardest part of life I am continuing to live through. The constant disappointment they face with work and the smiles they display to hide their suffering, encouraged me to develop my own life plan. However, not all of life was roughened with the mishaps and burdening situations. One thing I learned from my parents was that in life, there will be problems and dreadful times, but by obtaining an education is the greatest thing that will ensure utmost prosperity. My parents emphasized importance of my academics and thus this became my driving force to acquire phenomenal achievements in life. With the coming of age, my passion materialized into reality as my school classes began to bestow me with immense gratitude. Not every business transaction is a guaranteed success in my household, and so at times money becomes a difficult thing to obtain. Seeing my parents have traumatic breakdowns affects me to the point I cry myself to bed at night, while wishing I could support them. As I grew older, my understanding concerning bills and payments expanded as I witnessed my parents stressing at the dinner table. Always trying to make things work out, they continue to smile after enduring such hardships and disappointments with finances. A lesson learned from such grim times is that no matter the difficulty I am faced with in life, I must not dwell on the negatives, but work towards the positives. If I do not become a positive person, my life will not yield very productive results. What captures most of my worries is my family’s financial situation. I do not wish to burden them with the full brunt of my College expenses. My father has a disability and is retired, meanwhile my mother is self-employed and makes very little money. Although she works very hard , the money she brings home can barely support our family for duration of the month. At times, I was not able to purchase clothes for a long amount of time, and so I wore what I owned. Crying myself to sleep was the only option given to me occasionally, since I recounted all the pain and hunger I experienced. The strenuous financial times have made me realize that steps should be taken in order to not burden my family any further. My ambition, attitude, and work ethic have been consistent in completing my ultimate goals of completing medical school and residency, in spite of my financial situation. With more dedication towards my school work, I began to develop a vast fascination in the scientific field. As a result, I applied the principle of hard work to all my classes and set forth a forever optimistic attitude about succeeding in all of my classes. Not only did my family lead me to make my decision, but I also took the amount of agony people are facing into consideration as well. The news regulates various disastrous and miraculous stories of people's lives. Consequently, my aspiration developed into becoming someone that would rescue children from experiencing any more pain. After all, children are the ones who hold the key to the future, and I especially detest viewing unfortunate stories about them. My inspirations consist of alleviating the pain of children to support them with a healthier and livelier childhood and adulthood through my profession. In life there are no shortcuts to long term success. If I wish to become successful, I have to persevere through the harsh tribulations in life, and continue chasing after my goals. Learning from personal experiences has further refined my knowledge and enhances my ingenuity towards achieving my goal no matter the circumstance. My ambition consists of becoming a successful medical doctor who utilizes my education to the benefit of society. I am profoundly dedicated academically and mentally, to completing my goals of completing medical school, and residency. These past few years of my life have been filled with academic determination to succeed. There were countless situations in which I had to prove myself academically, and I managed to overcome the difficulties by retaining a consistently resolute mindset. My main concern is the financial barrier that might prevent me from accomplishing my goals. I believe I should receive financial assistance because, I can demonstrate being worthy of this scholarship through my character, integrity, and grades. As a result, I simply aim for my financial situation not to determine who I am, and limit what I do in life. Although I was not fully aware of my career plan at first, my family always encouraged me to strive for the highest amount of achievement I could possibly attain. Along the way, I even developed a profound love for the scientific field, specifically biology. I successfully realized my passion in freshman year of high school, and my ultimate career goal developed into becoming a life changing Pediatrician. Never had I been so grateful towards my challenging, yet prosperous upbringing, as I finally came to decide my career. Seeing my parents struggle to get where they are now, has not only encouraged my dreams of securing a better future, but it made me to align myself with utmost determination in becoming successful beyond words. In life I have overcome challenges, and am currently dealing with some difficulties, but my aspirations strive to achieve academically higher than my limits on education. Walk it OffTia Magee
“Walk it off” has been my personal mantra that began when I was a teenager. My mom and I have shared this mantra for over thirty years and it has seen us both through some very troubling times. It is a constant reminder that things will get better if you focus on the positive and strive to overcome what is distressing at the moment. Recalling my teen years is difficult as that is when my mom and dad divorced and I began my weekly trudge between the two homes. Those years were not all unpleasant as my mom and I discovered how quickly a catchy phrase and a sense of humor could overshadow many trying situations and issues. I really don’t know where the phrase “walk it off” originated but it was probably one of my flippant remarks that a lot of teenagers are prone to say when ticked off about anything. I do remember that the first time I spoke those sacred words my mom laughed and asked me where I had come up with that phrase. So began a spin on a negative into a positive just because my mom thought what I said in anger was right down funny. Over the years my reliance on my mantra has been enriched by also following other positive thinking ideas. First, I came to realize that it is a personal choice to be positive. This is not an easy idea to foster when I find myself in a particularly difficult situation. For example, I have been going to college for many years and have yet to complete my degree. The difficulty is financial which has prevented me from obtaining my degree and therefore a better paying job. Often times I find myself trying different ways to secure college funds but it always leads back to not have sufficient fees. Staying positive about college is one of my hardest challenges. Secondly, I really, really try to be around positive people. I stay in constant contact with my mom who always brings me up. Distant prevents me from having in person time with my mom so am thankful for other media. Avoiding negative people has been a tedious task as they seem to be rampant. My current job is a steaming playground for negative people but I have experienced that thinking positively often rubs off on those trying to be disturbing. It is often surprising how a simple, positive sentence can turn a confrontation into an actual pleasant conversation. Poetry has proven to be a hopeful media I can use to infiltrate negative thinking. I know that positive thinking is healthier for my mind and soul. Poetry permits me a way to express my inner feelings without sharing with others yet allows me to vent in a safe manner. Poetry lets in the positivity. Walk it off Don’t allow yourself to scoff Walk it off Let negativity be brushed off Walk it off Avoid the every present face off Walk it off You will be better off Walk it off Reject negativity, just turnoff Walk it off Just walk it off! My mantra can be taken literally and be very effective in discouraging negative thoughts. Walking seems to possess a non-descript form of healing power that can lend itself to positive thinking. Going for a walk can often be a healthier alternative to getting into an argument. Walking can be used to clear one’s mind. Strolling along can be very soothing to the mind particularly if the person concentrates on positive outcomes for a certain situation. If “walk it off” is taken figuratively this means it is equated to positive thinking. Keeping this simple phrase in the upper parts of the mind can prove to be a mighty fortress lending itself towards positive thinking. Taken literally or metaphorically, my mantra is my proven way to think positively. Soliciting a personal mantra helps optimism prevail. Our positive emotions don’t seem to have recognizable automatic responses except the forgiving smile. So it is prudent to be aware that emotions inflict us all and determine the well-being of each individual. We must decide how to cope with negative emotions as it is well known that these visit us more frequently than positive emotions. Time has shown that expressions of positivity are not accepted as emotions relevant to human survival. Negative emotions have, on the other hand, been perceived as being the basis of human survival and an efficient solution to the ongoing everyday problems we face. In conclusion, I wanted to share a 16 second video called “Walk it off” which expresses the more hilarious and ridiculous side of the phrase. Here is the address: https://youtu.be/y1KAuPdhJc4. Whether a person uses a chosen mantra or other various methods to preserve positivity is not really important. What is important is to know that a positive outlook makes life worth living. GoalsNicholas Brown
Going into the spring 2017 semester, I knew that my future academic success was largely dependent on the results of the term’s courses. Not only were these courses the first upper level courses in my major, one of them was considered to be among the most difficult courses in the program. My advisor and I had purposefully planned for a lighter, thirteen hour semester to ensure a sufficient amount of study time in order for me to maintain my 4.0 GPA. While the GPA intention was the motivation for the scheduling decision during registration, I soon needed the time just to find the energy to go to class. When the previous fall semester had ended, I began experiencing digestive issues that had been attributed to acid reflux since the condition was common in my family. As the doctor visits changed to specialist visits, my diagnosis shifted from acid reflux to Celiac disease to functional dyspepsia. I began to feel sick after every meal and soon just felt sick regardless of whether or not I had eaten. Despite only needing four or five hours of sleep before being sick, my lack of calories resulted in me sleeping around twice that amount of time. The development of this mystery medical problem took a toll on my spring course work and some of my grades had slipped by the midterm mark. Unlike my friends who spent their spring breaks tanning at beaches around the country, I was undergoing nuclear medicine tests. These tests revealed my gallbladder was operating at 6% effectiveness, which was alarming given any effectiveness below 30% is a serious issue. I opted to have the gallbladder removed after a week in which I had tests in all of my classes so that I could be back in class a couple weeks before final exams. The trend of my ideas succeeding for all the wrong reasons should be apparent by now, as I experienced the worst pain in my life due to complications from the surgery. The radiologic technician who showed the CT scan to my mother stated it was “the largest ileus I’ve ever seen.” The paramedic who sat with me on the ambulance ride to the hospital had tried to reassure me about the issue, saying that he had experienced a similar issue with no long-term effects. He also mentioned that he did need to have some of his intestines removed due to his ileus. Given his laughably awful attempt to comfort me, I was determined to leave the hospital as soon as possible in order to save both my GPA and my battered intestines. Although I had spent the week prior to the surgery pulling my grades up with each test, I spent three days in a hospital bed with a NG tube serving to stimulate digestive activity. On the evening that I was cleared to leave, I showered and slept for the first whole night since before the surgery. I skipped the next day of classes to email my professors about the chaotic chain of events in the morning and to finish my makeup work in the afternoon. My nurses told me that I might spend the next two weeks in the hospital; I spent three days there and was back in class after five days. Since I was not medically allowed to drive and physically unable to walk for very long periods, my amazing parents took turns driving me to each of my classes for two weeks from my hometown, about an hour from the university. Under normal circumstances, I spend time during semesters playing tennis, attending church services, among other things to decompress from school. After leaving the hospital, I only studied for the four weeks left in my classes. I studied so much that my classmates didn’t need to skim the textbook to find a certain topic; I virtually memorized each of my textbooks and could tell them the exact page number to look at. Not only did I maintain my 4.0 GPA at the end of the semester, I finished with the highest grade ever recorded by the professor in the aforementioned hardest class. Throughout the spring semester, I had lost control over the most basic parts of my life like eating and sleeping. As an individual with a great prior medical record, it was extremely frustrating to lack the physical energy that I usually had to complete each course’s assignments and study for upcoming tests. While the semester was radically different than any other I had encountered as a junior in college, I relied on the same principle that had driven me to that point in my life: my success is based not on the results of my work, but on the quality of the effort applied to achieve such results. I knew that could not look back on this semester and give excuses about how my gallbladder ruined my GPA. I had to take control of every minute given to me and leave no room for excuses. If I was going to lose my 4.0, it would be no fault of mine. As my health has improved, it has become clearer due to this spring semester’s struggles that focusing my entire attention on what I can control is all that I need to do in order to achieve my goals. GratefulRuby Ortiz
As a daughter of a single mother, who has raised me the best she could, and first generation college student there has always been a constant struggle figuring out the next steps in my education. The challenge of staying focused and motivated through the college experience especially when no one before you has had similar experiences is needless to say an exhausting situation. One has to maintain a positive attitude and a sense of gratitude in every little milestone that may come in order to maintain the hope for a brighter future. Things, in general, do not come easy to anyone that comes from a low-income family but nevertheless, it is essential that we focus not on the greatness of an opportunity but instead on not taking any little chance for granted. Success is not about the journey, the decisions we make; it is about having the ability to see beyond and visualize constantly our eminent success. Having a grateful mentality has humbled me; it has constantly helped me appreciate the things that I have in my life and at the same time provided me with a rigorous work ethic that has aided me to succeed. It might seem easy to think positive and be appreciative of every little thing we may be fortunate enough to enjoy, but as one can imagine acquiring this mindset is easier said than done. One’s greatest triumphs take endless hard work, a lot of motivation, and having the right mindset to deal with the hardships that may come along the way. Perhaps, this is the reason why we all value the things that take longer to accomplish because they require perseverance and strict dedication. I am sure I am not the only student that comes from a low-income household and has to maintain good standing grades in school, work, and help around the house with numerous things. I don’t intend to portray any pity, there are many like myself out there that have to look for the resources available, but I believe the most important thing to make it through is the mindset we all live by on a daily basis. Personally, I have come to realize that the challenges in my life don’t define me but instead, they have made me even stronger and more determined to reach my goals. Assessing ourselves on a daily basis is a constant struggle; it is a work in progress to learn to think positive. When one is learning this skill he/she may realize how many times we often go straight to the negative of the situation instead of figuring out calmly how to solve a problem. Gratitude is a skill, it requires practice and those who acquire it not only have a chance of acquiring a higher emotional intelligence but may also be able to live a happier lifestyle with the minimum essentials. I have realized that by appreciating the good things in my life as often as possible I am able to see the possibilities for the future. I study for myself but also for those who I can possibly help in the future. Being grateful has given me a sense of wanting to help others and to be more empathetic in general. It is a fact, that we all will confront hard and maybe uncomfortable situations, but it is impermanent to remember the values we own when taking action in those moments, and being grateful is one of them. Having an attitude of gratitude not only has helped me continue to reach higher but it has allowed me to have the patience to deal with any problem. We all have a choice of how we choose to live our life. I am not saying or encouraging anyone to feel, think, like he/she will never be sad, disappointed, or discouraged because I believe those feelings are inevitable due to the fact that we are passionate human beings. I have been disillusioned many times in my life, in dark places that I thought for a second had no way out, but the light shined through well enough for me to see it. I came to the realization that we make mistakes, our road to success may have curves and intersections that were unintentional, but I’m a true believer that things happen for a reason and saw that the key is to keep going and not dwell or look back. I was able to continue with my goal I had in mind regardless of the situation. I learned that every step forward counts, regardless of how small it is. The Power of Positive ThinkingJazmyn McGruder
It is said that in order to achieve something we desire, the foremost thing that needs to be done is to possess a right attitude and self-belief that it can be achieved. A positive attitude and thinking enables a person to focus on the brighter side of things and life which in turn is the key to achieve success and positive outcomes. A person who stays positive, not only acquire happiness but also has good health and is successful in life. A few people grasp this concept and puts it to use in their real life while others consider it to be gibberish and jeer those who live by it. It’s not a rulebook that lays down the rules for everyone to follow. Every individual has their own way of staying positive and the number of people embracing this is increasing every day. Here is a brief discussion of a few individuals around the globe and how this positive attitude has turned their life around. Short presentation of the Power of Positive Thinking and its impacts on Life: Andrew Kuzyk, born and brought up in McDonough, Georgia, is a five time cancer survivor now. He has devoted his life to help other fellow cancer patients struggling to survive and to be an inspiration to them. It was always not this simple for him, and he had to fight his own life battles. The critical surgeries and therapies he had to go through will continue to have serious side effects for the rest of his life, especially since he is aging. Moreover, there is the constant fear of one of the cancers returning to him, as they have on five different occasions in the past. In 2012, he heard the doctors’ comment that in the western hemisphere, he is the only individual to have surpassed the deadly disease on five different occasions. Most individuals lose their lives during the first time, let alone overcoming five of them. People talk about survival instincts of humans, but until we have put that to use, we will never know what we are truly capable of. Only because of his positive attitude and sheer determination to fight, he is still alive. On another life inspiring story, Zakkenya Johnson from Union City, Georgia, describes how she dealt with and overcame domestic violence. On November 12, 2009, she was a part of a major domestic violence incident. She had been shot five times. As she lay on the floor in a pool of blood thinking to herself that it’s time to leave her body and her family behind, she just prayed to God to let her live her life and only to die by natural causes. She was rushed to the nearest hospital and doctors wasted no time in operating on her. As a result of intensive efforts from everybody and the quick actions, she survived this journey of life. She had to spend six whole months in the hospital in a coma. While she was in the coma, she had a number of conversations with her mother regarding how things occurred and asked her for solutions. Unfortunately, her mother stated that nothing could be done and that there was nothing else new for anybody to do. But she did not let that break her heart or her spirits. She accepted what had happened and turned that into positivity. She had her share of colossal sufferings and she still does suffer. But she does not let that affect her mentally and she knows that she has a whole life to live. Many people fall prey to death after being shot one time. To overcome being shot five times and to still walk on her feet is a huge deal for her. She is thankful to God, to life and all the good things that have come her way and that she is a form of blessing. So with this attitude she says that she has no complains and always wears a big grin. Renu Changia Garg from Rajasthan, India narrates another inspiring life event. She is a happily married lady with a loving husband, loving family members, and she received more than she could ask for. She had a lovely baby boy and when he turned eight, she gave birth to an angel little baby girl. But just as every happy story has an ending, her life turned out to be the same when she found out that her daughter is a victim of Cerebral Palsy. The entire family felt like they just hit rock bottom. When she had lost all hope, God woke her up. She learned to accept her destiny and turned that into positivity. Although she cannot go from place to place because she has to take care of her daughter, she devised other methods to make her own living by teaching, writing and painting at her home. These not only satisfy her, but also help her maintain a positive attitude towards life. She never feels her daughter is a drawback in her life. Rather, she thinks of her as the well-wisher of the family. Her husband and two sons support her every life decision and stays by her through all her tough times. She thinks of life to be an endless journey with new possibilities and hopes and lives each and every moment of it. These real life experiences from various people across the globe prove a few salient points. If will power is strong, people can climb the highest mountains and if the attitude is right and positive, nobody or nothing can stop them from being successful in life. So, the power of positivity is a very big influence over the lives of people and can drive them to accomplish tasks which they never deemed possible in a million years. ControlArmando Gonzalez
Letting go of the uncontrollable was one of the most challenging things I’ve done. It always lived in me, this constant urge to consistently control the uncontrollable and only finding myself in complete exhaustion at the end of my day. See my issue was that I wasn’t focusing on the things that I could control rather I was spending too much time and effort on things that could not be forced into being. Back in January I would have told you that 2017 was not going to be my year. On January 7th, I took my second promotion that I knew would serve as a crucial stepping stone to my ultimate career goal. I knew a few things would be at stake at that point such as my enrollment in school. I had one school semester left at Arizona State University, but decided for the first time to take a full semester off. It had not even been a month before I knew that things were just not right. In those first few months I’d find myself with a job that drained me both mentally and physically. Even more unfortunate was that I postponed my graduation, and to make matters a bit more difficult, I was on the verge of losing a 2-year relationship with my significant other. The matter of events that occurred in the last eight months made me realize that the direction my life was heading was not healthy and that my mental health was suffering. As long as I could remember, self-love was a concept that I never knew how to grasp or even put into practice. I had gotten to the point where I felt so lost in life. Suddenly all the real issues I put away and placed on the back burner soon came up and confronted me all at once, and my only option was to face them and learn to overcome. This past May, I chose to pursue emotional stability and happiness by focusing on things I could control... My Mental health. On May 2017, I gave counseling a third try. I am currently on my third month and have managed to remain consistent with my visits. I’ve been working on self-love, happiness, and staying on track with goals and fully committing and completing them. I can’t control external factors of life, and I can’t control the actions of others but I’ve slowly learned how to control my happiness, my self-love and my health that allow me to be okay with the things I can’t control. Setting personal goals that push me to my limits has become much more exciting. I’ve had the opportunity to set multiple goals, shape them to my liking. Shortly after my relationship ended, I began to write my goals in a personal journal, with dates I wished to accomplish each and every one of them. I continue my journey on traveling the world one country at a time, and begin doing things that I never had the courage to participate in; dance, outdoor fitness, and volunteer work. Even through the friendships I held onto, I was able to control certain aspects related to my personal growth. I now begin to seek friendships with individuals that strive to maintain a clear ambitious mindset who conquer their goals in life, and push out a better version of themselves. See I couldn’t control what some of my old friends were doing and I couldn’t tell them to change and adapt to me, but rather I had control over who I allowed into my circle from this point on. Focusing on the things that matter has led me to new exciting moments in life. I said goodbye to social media in April, a virtual world full of fantasies and misconceptions. I chose to live in the present and nothing but the present. I am currently searching for the things that I am passionate about, and although I changed my mind completely on the career field I originally had in mind and the degree I was pursuing, I have committed to finishing what I started this fall semester and graduating with my bachelors. There is a millions of things that I want to control in this present moment, and learning to let go and move with the flow of things has benefited me through the process. I wasn’t happy with where I found myself in life so I got up one morning and began to go after those things that I had total control of. I think once you’ve learned to stop fighting with yourself, anything can be accomplished, even one’s wildest dreams. Positive ThinkingAngelique Heinsen
Valencia College In 2014, I overcame a lifelong struggle with obesity, depression, and negativity. I have struggled with my weight my entire life and time after time I tried to lose weight only to fall victim of the “Yo-Yo effect” in which I would strive to lose a few pounds but soon thereafter find several more. As a result, I had always found myself dealing with low self-esteem and depression which often led to rejection from my peers and a life of social isolation. Year after year I embarked on a futile weight loss journey and year after year I felt like an utter failure. Following my graduation June of 2013 I found myself weighing in at 250 pounds and at this moment I found myself in the epitome of my despair. I’m ashamed to admit at the time I was borderline suicidal, demoralized and completely morose due to a lack of meaning, purpose and direction for my life coupled with my self-hate and lack of confidence. I quickly fell into a destructive life of addiction and spent countless hours playing online video games. Online games were my escape from reality. I would regularly play for 15+ hours a day, eat, sleep and repeat. I rarely left my room, let alone my home and my social network was strictly online. I ended up meeting someone through the internet and embarked on a relationship that quickly became toxic. He was emotionally and physically abusive towards me and manipulated me into thinking his anger and abuse was my fault. He took advantage of me in a variety of ways and I quickly found myself stuck in a vicious downward spiral; decaying mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I lost all hope. In January 2014, My mother’s friend incessantly encouraged me to accompany her to a health and wellness challenge that took place February 14, 2014. After relentless objection, I finally gave in and honestly it was the turning point of my life. Instead of embarking on a futile weight loss journey, I embarked on a journey of health and self-love. Thus, began a life-changing transition from feeling helpless to feeling hopeful. I was paired with a life coach who encouraged me to end my disastrous relationship and she helped me diverge my path in life. Most of my problems at the time were simply a result of my destructive thought patterns. I made little changes that quickly snowballed into a total lifestyle change. I learned the importance of self-affirmations and positive thinking. I developed a vision for my life and what I wanted it to look like. With the support of my life coach and family, I was able to abolish my victim mentality and take control of my life again. I learned how to stop my depression in its tracks and transition my negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Most importantly, I learned to love and value myself even in the midst of my depression. Because of my newfound optimism, I was able to take control of my physical health as well. I learned the importance of nutrition and how to nourish my body from the inside out. I made changes to my diet which led to a total weight loss of 80 pounds from February to September 2014. I am proud to report I have maintained my transformation to this day. Overcoming my battle with obesity and depression has helped me connect with others and even assist them in their own struggles. It has opened doors for me that would otherwise seem virtually unattainable. I ended up working for the very place that facilitated with my transformation and discovered my love for helping others and the health care profession in general. My dream is to work as an occupational therapist where I can use my passion for art, music, and animals as well as my love for others to assist people in ways they never even thought possible. I am looking to earn my doctorate in occupational therapy and am currently enrolled in prerequisite courses at Valencia college. Winning this scholarship will greatly assist me in my strides towards funding my future as a health care professional. It will substantially lighten the financial burden I am currently experiencing and allow me to continue in my pursuit of completing these prerequisite courses. I am thankful for this opportunity to apply and share my story. Thank you for your consideration. I am FreeHannah Blair
When I was twenty-one years old, I was raped. He was a guy I had met at a bar; he was sweet, seemed like a gentleman. It just goes to show how wrong you can be about people. Because of this rape, I conceived. It was singlehandedly one of the scariest moments of my life, sitting there on the bathroom floor with that test in my hand. I had never felt so alone, so lost, so broken. I had no idea what to do. I am saved and believe in pro-life. Before this pregnancy, if you would have asked me about my stand on abortion, I would have said, without hesitation, that I was against it, no matter what. But that was before it was me. That was before it was my life and my reality. So I began to consider all the possibilities; what my life would look like with a child versus how it would look if I had an abortion. I was not ignorant. I knew the emotional and spiritual wounds that would come with having an abortion. As time went on, though, it seemed like a better option. I would not have to worry about the thoughts people would have towards me. I would not have to worry about doctor appointments and taking care of my body and considering adoption. I would not have to worry about hiding it or how I was going to explain the baby bump. But when it came down to it, I did not know if I could handle it. I did not know if I could be responsible for killing the innocent life that was growing inside of me. So I chose not to abort my child. I chose to bear the weight of the judgmental looks I would receive at the grocery store because I wore no ring on my finger. I chose to fight, to give way to the refining and the redemption I knew in my heart this baby would bring. I chose to allow myself to feel excitement instead of fear for this sweet baby of mine. I chose life. And I don’t regret it for a single moment. This was just the beginning of my nightmare, as this single rape lead to months of human trafficking. Being out of the life has been hard. Diagnosed with depression and PTSD, the power of positive thinking has dramatically changed my life. For the longest time, I did not know how to wake up each morning and feel as if I was not drowning. I did not know how to sleep through each night or to love the things I used to love. Brushing my teeth wore me out; talking on the phone with people made me feel drained; I would have preferred to sit at home all alone on a Friday night than to go out and meet a good friend because hanging out with even a good friend meant having to make conversation, and making conversation was hard. After being in the life for so long, it was hard to function normally. But as I changed my thought process, I began to notice the changes in my life. They were subtle at first, but once I noticed, I realized that changing my thinking made all the difference. I began to wake up each morning and declare a list of positive things, beginning with things about myself and ending with announcing how great my day was going to go. When things did not go my way during the day, I began to uplift myself. . Because of what I have been through, I feel like my story is my platform. A lot of times, people will not listen to others unless it is someone who has been through it themselves. I want to be that person. I want to lead others through the healing process that no one led me through. Because I believe that everyone has a story; everyone has something they can use to help someone else get through the hard times. They just have to get through the hurt first. Any scholarship I can get will help me further my education. I cannot help people like I need to without this degree. I cannot guide them in the right direction without my education. Scholarship money is the only way that I am going to reach my goals. I believe that everyone has scars of some sort. But before that scar, there was a wound. A painful, gaping wound. I never thought that my wound would ever heal, that it would ever stop hurting. But it did. For such a long time, I didn't realize this: I have the potential to heal. What was done was done. I can't take it back, no matter how long I think about what if I had done this, or what if I had done that. All I have left is my future. I'm going to go to college, I'm going to get a job, and I’m going to be independent. What happened to me has forever left a scar on my life- but scars don't control us. We let them. We give them undue weight in our lives and remain forever fearful of them. But I say no to this fear. I will carry my scars as they are. I will surround myself with people who realize, like I'm trying to, that scars don't define you. My name is Hannah; I like worship, crossword puzzles, English, sweet tea and rainy days. While my scars will always be a part of me, they won't define me. It will not always be an easy task, this healing. I will surely hit stumbling blocks from time to time. But it doesn't matter now. The freedom I felt when I finally learned to forgive was nothing I had ever experienced before. And it wasn’t just forgiveness of them, but the forgiveness of myself. This new found freedom, this release, opened so many doors for me. Now I have resolve; I have direction. I will create a life so rich in beauty and wonder that I will one day positively affect others, perhaps even share my story. You cannot stop me now. I am far out to sea, navigating the vast open ocean in a little sailboat with a freedom that some people will never know. I am free. I will heal. The Power of Positive ThinkingVitalis Essala
Positive thinking avails much. On January 7th of 2015, I received a major surgery on my mouth. A tumor of 4x5 cm in size was removed from my palate. The said tumor had already eroded the bone on top of the mouth and uprooted four molars in the upper right side of the mouth. The surgeon decided to cut out half of the right upper jaw. When I came out of the anesthesia, I was a man with an anatomically different mouth structure, a feeding tube protruding out of my stomach right above the belly button, and disheartening medical predictions. Before surgery, the doctor had expressed his concern. He was concerned at first because he had never seen such a big tumor in the mouth in his 25 years of experience. Additionally, he predicted that I would be left with a hole in my mouth requiring an obturator without which I would not be able to speak again after surgery. Furthermore, the doctor anticipated that I was going to lose my ability to swallow also. After surgery, I would have to go to a speech therapist to learn how to speak again. The only good news was that the biopsy before the surgery came back negative. So, the tumor was non-cancerous. The wound was going to last for twelve weeks after which the tube would be taken out, and the obturator put in place. Regardless of the physicians’ predictions, I decided to make good use of the power of positive thinking. Right after surgery, I tried to speak, and I did, but only while the dressing was still in my mouth. But a week later, when the dressing was taken out, I tried to speak again but I couldn’t. Not even a single meaningful sound could go out of my mouth. I tried to stick my tongue in the hole on top of the mouth, but the tongue went so deep inside for so long that it frightened me, and I quit. The hole was so deep that it took 15 feet of gauze for the dressing. I realized that the predicted obturator was accurate. I tried to swallow my saliva, but I didn’t know how. At this moment I understood that we need our palate to be able to press our tongue against it and then swallow. With no palate, I could not swallow. The nasal cavity and the mouth cavity were one so that if I put fluid in the mouth, it would come out through the nostrils. Likewise, a liquid in the mouth could easily run into the trachea coming from the mouth. The facts confirmed medical predictions, but the power of positive thinking was still available, and I still believed something out of normal would happen to me. About two weeks after surgery, the doctor’s office called and wanted to see me. It was not the scheduled appointment day, so we were nervous about what the doctor was going to talk. In his office, he went straight to the point. After surgery, very cautiously, he had sent the tumor to Johns Hopkins for re-evaluation. They finally found that the tumor was benign in the outer layer, which explains why the biopsy revealed no gangrenous cells. Nevertheless, there was cancer in the very core of the tumor. With this news, the treatment plan suddenly changed, so much so that the cancer they found, pleomorphic adenoma ex-carcinoma located in the salivary gland, was very rare and there was not enough literature on it. The doctor ended his statement by saying, “Go home and feel sorry for yourself. We have no plan, for now; we are going to work on it together, but go home for now and feel sorry for the journey ahead.” And I felt crushed, but I never accepted defeat. I stuck with my plan of never surrendering to the disease, but to remain positive for, I knew, I had a life aim that still needed to be fulfilled before I could withdraw from the earth. The days that followed, I met with the doctor again, he encouraged me to stand my ground against cancer, because, he said, in his career, those that outlive cancer are always those that decide to face it with a determination to win the battle. His encouragement met my already determined mind to fight against all odds. At night, when everybody was sleeping, I practiced speaking. I started with the letters of the alphabet. I started with the letter A. In the beginning, it was hard, but I kept on pushing. In the meantime, I was communicating in writing. At home, I had a bell in my room. I would ring it if I wanted something. One morning, I started saying the sound A, but B was impossible. From that day, I knew I could speak without an obturator. Each night I would try, I would push it harder and harder until I got the next sound right. It became easier and easier. I wasn’t focused on the disease or the treatment; I was focused on the learning and the health I was recovering. Most importantly, I was focused on how I would help someone else someday. The doctor, looking at the situation, predicted that all things were possible including imminent death. To me, only good outcomes were possible. Each morning, I was practicing my speech, and I was checking how much deeper the hole in the palate was. Each time I felt the hole filling up. Since there was not enough knowledge on my condition in Northern Maine, I was sent to Dana Farber in Boston, MA. Right there in Boston, the doctors who checked my mouth, about seven weeks after the surgery decided that they would do another surgery. They alleged that the surgeon in Northen Maine had not done a good job. I did not understand the reason of their decision. Finally, they said that the other surgeon did not take out the part he needed to take out. Therefore, they were going to do the surgery again, and I was going to wear an obturator afterward. I explained that that was the same explanation the other surgeon had made. But, they replied, there is no need for an obturator if we don’t perform another surgery. I couldn’t understand what they meant. As I argued that there was a hole, they contended with me that there was no hole, and there was no need for an obturator. But, regardless, I did not accept their suggestion of getting another surgery. I went back to Maine to my doctor. I was confused and confounded. When I called my doctor, he asked to talk to me face to face. When he checked my mouth again, he almost fell backward. The man could not believe my mouth was the one he operated a few weeks earlier. And be it known that by this point, I had made much progress in speaking. I went from saying the entire alphabet to saying syllables. From syllables, I went to words. Simple words, complex words, phrases, and finally sentences. The doctor then realized a miracle had happened. He said that one of his professors was in the operating room that day. He had called on him because my surgery was unfamiliar. “If I were to tell him what just happened in your mouth, he would not believe,” the man said. Then I realized what the power of positive thinking had done. “And why are you even talking to me?” asked the doctor, seeing that I wasn’t supposed to speak after surgery but with an obturator. While positive thinking is not the panacea for all evils, it can still take us from a dark dungeon to a less distressing place. No physician ever predicted that I would recover from the invasive surgery I had without an obturator. More damages were predicted. More defects were anticipated. The people that heard that I was wearing a feeding tube were devastated for me, but I was their comforter. The tube was going on me for twelve weeks, but with the new finding, I had to go through radiation, which prolonged the period to 28 weeks. The very day the tube was scheduled to be taken out, there was a break down in my mouth, and the hole was all open again in my palate. I had to forebear for additional weeks. I kept a hard mind and a positive spirit. I went for more than seven months without tasting regular food. I would watch when people ate. But 30 weeks were just as a quick walk after having been through the crushing pain of three months of radiation therapy. Positive thinking avails much indeed. Never Be Too Busy to Be GratefulCarly Miller
Wednesday nights from 7-10 pm. That was the shift for which I signed up to volunteer at the local hospital in their emergency department. When I first began working in the hospital, I observed an environment that moved incessantly, and one in which no one ever seemed to have time to stop and take a breath, much less have a conversation. Upon beginning my weekly shifts of volunteering, I kept my head down, walked quickly, kept busy, and above all, stayed out of the way of the doctors and nurses who scurried from room to room. After all, they were much too busy to notice a college-aged volunteer taking out the trash, and sanitizing rooms after patients were discharged, or so it appeared. It seemed at first that no one in the emergency department cared if you were there, unless you were dying or injured, that is. It was in this manner that I continued my shifts for several weeks…quiet, busy, and out of the way. Throughout my time as a volunteer in this setting, I realized that despite the fact that the tasks I completed did not require advanced medical training and study, I was nonetheless a part of the medical team, and could bring positivity into the workplace by showing gratitude towards those around me. Moving forward several weeks, I realized that my method of quietly keeping to myself and staying out of the way was not the type of work environment I appreciated, and it simply was not the way it had to be, despite the first impression that I got. While the basic tasks I completed did not involve situations in which an individual’s life was on the line like those other hospital staff members encountered on a regular basis, I still felt that my contributions improved the patient experience, as well as helped the hospital staff be better able to complete their jobs. Once I realized and truly believed that my contributions were making a positive impact on the department and patients, I was able to encourage the other staff members. At first, this seemed to be a daunting goal. Although I consider myself to be an outgoing person, and feel confident in my abilities to be a positive role model to others, I felt intimidated by this environment that at times seemed too fast paced and serious for friendly chit chat or jokes. As each shift went by; however, I grew more and more comfortable with my responsibilities, and gradually got to know some of the nurses, doctors, and various staff members in the department. I noticed that many of the employees often acted as though they really did not have time to stop and take a moment to express gratitude towards one another, but I began to go out of my way to thank the nurses who helped me clean a room, to tell the aides that I appreciated them answering my question, and to let everyone around me know that their hard work and kindness does not go unnoticed, even when it seems that everyone is too busy to be grateful. Now, I look forward to the evenings I get to spend in the emergency room, and I even enjoy the fast-paced environment in which I am able to constantly stay busy, rarely running out of tasks to complete. I love the pace of the department, and so do the nurses and doctors who work there. As an aspiring doctor myself, this volunteer position has given me an incredibly important viewpoint in that I have been able to gain an inside view of the workings of a bustling area of the hospital. Most importantly, I have been able to learn that as I doctor, no matter how overwhelmed and busy I might feel, I can never forget to express gratitude towards the staff members working alongside me to care for patients, and to the patients themselves who put their trust into the team of medical providers when they are in their most vulnerable state. More often than not, the emergency room is a hectic place that at times feels like organized chaos. As the sun sets and I begin my shift as a volunteer, most of my time is spent walking from room to room and cleaning up remnants of past cases, as well as preparing for new patients to come in. I do not always having extensive contact with the other employees who are going about their shifts, providing great care to whoever walks through the doors of the hospital, but when I do have the chance to chat with or work alongside, the nurses, aides, and doctors, I am always certain to make sure that they know how much I appreciate it when they take the time to help me, and that they know that I care about them and what they have to contribute. Overall, there is no environment in which anyone is too busy or important to take the time to express gratitude. In fact, when you feel too busy and overwhelmed, it is likely the time when gratitude is needed the most. GratitudeAllison Cannon
Stonehill College My parents are my heroes and my role models. They embody every characteristic I hope to acquire throughout my life. They’ve instilled in me all the values I hold today such as showing kindness, remaining humble, working hard and craving responsibility. Now I am not saying that my parents are perfect and by no means am I perfect. Everyone fails, everyone gets snappy at someone or brags about an accomplishment. The difference is learning from your mistakes. This is the most important lesson my parents have taught me. Get back up, dust yourself off and try again, but this time, don’t be afraid to try it a different way. My parents’ influence on me has given me endless opportunities. One lesson they taught me could change my life forever. We are not rich. But we are not poor. This is because my parents save as much money as they can. We don’t go out to eat, I’ve never been to Disney Land and we don’t make extraneous purchases. My parents instilled in me with much knowledge of money and how to save it. As a little kid I got an allowance of something like $2 a week. My parents would give me those $2, then I would put one of those dollars in a little jar on top of the fridge. Every couple of months my parents would take me to the bank and we would deposit my money. The teller would stamp my little bank book and my parents would get me so excited to see how much my savings was growing and they would point out that I was making interest. My parents also placed my money into CD’s at the bank and taught me about the importance of saving my money. Plus the teller always had a mug full of lollipops on the counter so that always encouraged me to go to the bank and deposit my money. Because of my parents’ influence on me I was able to save up enough money from summer jobs to complete my first year of college without taking out loans. Fortunately, I also applied for and received a financial literacy coach position at Stonehill College where I attend school. I teach other students about how to manage their funds and decrease their student debt/loans. I work directly with the financial aid department to be accessible to all students throughout the week. I hold events such as cash cab and information tables in the commons to reach my peers on a more personal level. Finally, I run The Financial Wellness Committee on campus that empowers students to educate themselves and their peers on the importance of financial education. Stonehill College and I partner with Saltmoney.org for our education services, but I am currently looking into other avenues as well to expand our set of resources. This position has allowed me to further my financial education even beyond what my parents taught me. I now know the importance of choosing the right loan and how important credit scores are. Because of this knowledge I have signed up for a credit card with no yearly fee and have set up automatic payments as to not accrue interest and to start building my credit. I am not a finance major. I am a political science and economics double major. Yet, I feel as though I am receiving three majors in my time at Stonehill College. With four years of experience in the personal finance field, I will have more experience than the finance majors. This will allow me to explore other career opportunities outside of my double major. Since my parents taught me the importance of personal finance, I now have three possible directions to take my life in. They gave me a backup plan, and I will forever be grateful for their help in every aspect of my life. Is it too narcissistic to say that I feel like I am a good person? At least I try to be. I try to be polite to everyone and treat everyone with respect. You never know the kind of impact your words and actions can have on a person. One rude comment can turn someone’s day dark; but one compliment can lighten their whole world. I want to be the light for people when their light has gone dim. I want to be an inspiration to women and to all who will be able to look at me one day and say, she became successful, but she retained her integrity. All of my attitudes and my behavior can be attributed to my parents. I was their first child so I have no idea how they did everything right! If you were to need a picture definition for the word love, a photo of my parents would do the trick. Mom, dad, I love you with all my heart, thank you for what you do for me. Having an Attitude of GratitudeJennifer Primiani
New York University-Silver School of Social Work My name is Jennifer Primiani. I am thirty two years old with an eight year old son. My journey to my present was a long, hard road to hoe. I was born into a family with intense issues. My father was an alcoholic, drug addict and an abuser. His abuse was not only to my mother, it was also directed at me. When I was six years old my mother had had enough and we attempted to leave. This was a task in itself. He stalked us for two years. We moved constantly in hopes of him not finding us but, to no avail. He always discovered our hiding place. I shook in fear for two years. God was watching over us though and he put us in a second floor apartment with a police officer and his wife who was also a police officer. We became an instant family. My father came bashing at the door as we cowered behind our door. Our angel from downstairs, his gun behind his back, told him not to come back again. AND he didn’t. John became my adopted father. We played video games together, he told me when my blouse was too low and to change, and he gave me my corsage to wear to my eighth grade prom. The doors to our apartments were always open and we came and went between homes as if they were one. It was a safe and happy environment. One I hadn’t ever experienced during my short life. It lasted four years and then my “dad” was killed in the line of duty. My life was over as far as I was concerned. Everything became a blur. I had spent a great deal of my life in and out of therapy, but when peace came over me after I finally had a great “dad” I had discontinued therapy. After John was gone for a year I attempted suicide and spent fifteen days in ICU, my mother not knowing if I was going to live or die. When I finally started to return to earth my mom asked why I had attempted to kill myself and my response was “ I want to go to John”. The immediate reaction was a therapist at my side in my hospital room. Matt was my next angel. I saw Matt for five years and he helped me change my way of thinking to wanting to not only live, but I wanted to make something out of myself. I finished high school and while doing so, became an Emergency Medical Technician. As soon as I graduated I went to work. Attempted college, but liked money more and dropped out of school. I worked for twelve years, had an amazing son, divorced, and moved back in with my mother. Realizing I was going no where, as no advancement was possible in my present job, I decided to go back to college. During my education at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, I discovered I wanted to become a Social Worker in the prison system. I received my Bachelors in Forensic Psychology in May and graduated with a 3.9 GPA. I applied to NYU to begin my Masters for Social Work and was ecstatic until I received the bill. I need your help! With your financial assistance I will be able to obtain my goal and hopefully not finish school with an outrageous bill I will be paying for the rest of my natural life. I thank you, in advance for your consideration and especially for listening to my story. Without the angels that were placed in my life the end of my story could have been quite bleak. Without my attitude of gratitude constantly reminding me of where I came from I could have been drawn deeper into depression, but I was grateful for the opportunity to soar and achieve, realize I was no longer there and become the best I can be, not only for myself, but for my eight year old son. The Power of the Thank You NoteRayna Perry
Georgia College & State University Over the past year, I have witnessed the underestimated power of the thank you note. Having recently graduated high school, I’ve written dozens of thank you notes to teachers, counselors, family, and friends. These were easy to write, because I truly appreciated what these people had done for me. My teachers had guided me through times where I thought it was not possible for me to succeed, my counselors never gave up on me through the college admissions process. My family had remained my biggest cheerleaders, and my friends had always offered their shoulders for me to lean on. However, I didn’t truly understand the power of gratitude when writing these notes. I appreciated the people I was writing to, but I hadn’t experienced gratitude in a transformative way. It wouldn't be until months later that I recognized this power. It began at the end of my senior year, when an organization notified me that I would be receiving a scholarship. They sent me the glowing recommendation letter that one of their members had written based on a resume that I submitted. This person had never met me before, but wrote the kindest letter on my behalf. I was elated, and promptly filled out the proper documents. I shared the good news with my family and friends, and waited patiently for the scholarship to appear in my university account. Of course, I wrote two thank you notes to be sent to the women from the organization that I had been in contact with. It had been a few months of silence from this particular organization, and the funds still hadn’t appeared in my account, but regardless, I sent an email inquiring about where I should send the thank you notes. I was expecting a reply with an address, but instead the response began, “It is with great sadness that I am writing you this letter.” There had been some miscommunication about how many scholarships could be awarded, and through no fault of my own, I would not be receiving the money that I was counting on. I was confused, and frustrated, and naturally, in that moment I did not feel grateful for this experience. I had made financial plans around the expectation that the money would come through, and now I had to alter those plans. I asked the organization several times to honor the scholarship they had awarded, but to no avail. Rayna Perry After a few days, I took a look at the thank you notes I had written before I was notified about the miscommunication. I thought about the kind words written about me in that recommendation letter, and the profuse apologies of the woman who was coordinating the scholarship. Even though the outcome had not been as promised, it was not the original intention of these women to take the scholarship away. I sat down at my desk, and made some revisions to the notes. I thanked the women for writing on my behalf, and for the opportunity to apply. I wanted to be angry, and resentful, but I knew that would that be exhausting, and it would get me no where. Being thankful brought closure, and allowed me to send positive thoughts to people who had brought a somewhat negative situation into my life. I reminded myself that I had done the best I could, and that this organization had done the same. I truly appreciated the effort they had made. As my pen glided over the notecard, I realized that with every word, this action of gratitude was transforming the way that I felt. Gratitude had the ability to help me move on, instead of dragging on the disappointment. I learned that it is easy to be grateful for those who love and support us. It is easy to write thank you notes to your favorite teachers, or the aunts and uncles who gave you graduation gifts. But, it is difficult to appreciate the tough lessons.The things that are not enjoyable, but still allow us to grow as people. It is difficult to appreciate the people, or circumstances that may make our lives more difficult, or less convenient. However, we can choose to appreciate the lessons they teach. The experience of never receiving that scholarship taught me that nothing is guaranteed. The gratitude I expressed in those notes was a reminder that I must continue to work hard, and that is the reason why I continue to apply for scholarships such as this one. An Attitude of Gratitude is powerful, and useful. And I am certain that as I continue to write thank you notes in the future, I will continue see the ways that sincere gratitude, handwritten or otherwise, changes my life for the better. The Power of Positive ThinkingEdwardo Barron
University of Texas At Arlington During my high school years, I participated in marching band. Every summer towards the end of July we would go outside and spend three hours in the morning heat, take a break then come back for an hour followed by another break and then another three-hour session. These days were probably one of the most difficult times for me physically but every band member knew one saying, because it was one we were always told. In the mornings when it was seven o’clock in the morning, temperatures reaching about ninety-nine degrees and we were running around the school campus or learning new drill, our large group of about two hundred students were miserable. Yet, we never gave up. Every time our band directors felt our energy and focus levels were depleting they told us the saying, “Don’t put your focus on the pain it takes to make this path, focus on how much easier it’ll be afterwards.” And ‘till this day, that saying plays over and over in my head. It was true. No matter how much we begged for a break or complained that it was too hot or too much, nothing changed. Even if all two hundred of us complained, the sun wouldn’t stop shinning. The temperature wouldn’t go down. Nothing would change. Instead we all learned to focus on the things we did have control over. We learned that although we may be tired, if we push ourselves and encourage everyone around us, we’ll feel better. And that’s exactly the saying that should drive all of us on everything. Many of us writing this scholarship know exactly what this prompt means. We all have things we don’t like in our lives. In fact, one of the reasons I’m even doing this scholarship is because I didn’t like the choices my parents made in the past. But I can’t worry about what offers they missed out on because they didn’t continue their education. I can’t focus on the fact that my financial aid didn’t give us enough money for college even though we have several people in our household and only one source of income. But what I focus on, is how my attitude can make a difference. I can control what scholarships I apply for. I can manage the little money I have. I can force myself to take up other responsibilities such as getting another job, if it’s what I have to do. There are many things we as people wished were better for us but if that’s all we focus on, we won’t get anywhere. Complaining about things we can’t control comes completely easy to all of us. Absolutely no one can say they’ve never complained, and they are always completely content with everything in their lives, it’s just not possible. When I first entered the world, my newborn self had no thoughts, no words to say. I simply cried when I was hungry or when my diaper was full—because it is something I could not take care of. Years later I can finally talk, I know how to eat and use the restroom, however I pout, wishing I was older so I could hang out with my friends and experience high school like my siblings older than me. Years later I FINALLY gain my parents trust and have matured enough to hang out with my friends. Yet, I miss the good old days when I would have naptime and ridiculously easy assignments. Finally, I am a fully matured adult. Now I have to pay bills, I learned about stress, and I now have to get a job. But wait there’s more! By this time, I have learned about societies standards and how each religion, race, and gender is seen and must act. I learned that men are to be seen as strong and never share their feelings. How women are supposed to be the caretakers of the family, always maintaining the appearance of the home, children and themselves. How many people are entering our nation illegally and how they’ve impacted our nation—the list just goes on and on. And a few years ago, all I did was nothing but focus on what terrors haunted me every day. Who I wish we never met. What I wish we never did. Where I regret not going. So many questions, so many complaints. We all know of them. We’ve all gone through them. But one day it finally clicked. The lesson God has tried to teach all of us. I finally saw the truth about the world We spend our time complaining to our peers and family members about how some states policies are terrible or how the president isn’t keeping his promises. But we never push each other to see the other side. We all know the saying “the grass is greener on the other side” but how can we focus on the brighter side when we’re stuck focusing on how our side isn’t up to par. I know most of this paper seems like rambling but I promise everything I have written is solely because I am so passionate about this topic. In order to see the brighter side, we have to think of the things that are going to get us there. Think of this scenario; let’s say we’re all mountain climbers trying to reach the very top of mount Everest. Now if we focus the trip on how cold it is, most of the people on that journey would die because no matter where they went on that mountain, the cold would follow. But if we all focused on the beautiful scenery that lied upon the top of the mountain, we would push ourselves and one another to reach the top. Our negativity won’t change anything. But if we focus on the other side, and the potential that lies beyond, we will excel. I know if it wasn’t for my band director, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I wouldn’t be applying for colleges and looking for scholarships. I’d probably continue working at Sonic because they are paying me well and providing me with great hours. And that’s not a bad idea either. And before deciding what college I would be attending, I thought it was a great plan, but only because I was focusing on the possible outcomes. I could’ve been promoted to a corporate job for all I know, or probably not. But I know that from even before today, and for the rest of my future, my attitude won’t be an issue for me. It won’t be a barrier I have to face every day, it’ll be my fuel. Positive Thinking & StressChristopher McKinney
We live in a hard world. There are so many things happening that are beyond our control, it would be easy to fall into despair. While shutting down and not worrying might be a very appealing choice, there are numerous more productive and responsible ways to handle when a person has negative emotions. Positive thinking can solve many of the problems that are commonly associated with modern work such as the burdens of stress, doubt, and seemingly overwhelming tasks. All these situations bring on negative feelings, and at worst bring hopelessness. There are numerous ways to promote positive thoughts, and ward off negativity. Some have been in uses for millennia, while others have only recently been brought to the level of use they are currently being unitized. Stress has an overwhelming presence in the working environment. Many people have lost jobs and family to the pressures that come with it. While it can be very difficult to handle, there are many ways that it can be controlled. One of the oldest ways, and arguably one of the most effective, is faith. For centuries, religion has been used to bring comfort to people in their darkest moments. Believing that there was an astral being who could influence their environment and therefor looking out for the common man, if he or she lived justly, would give him or her eternal salvation. That belief has given people the strength they need to push through many trials that they are presented with. However, there are numerous ways of thought in the world, and many of them contradict each other; not in basic tenants, but the in terminologies and methods of worship. Those contradictions cause friction and stress between factions and seem to undo the relief they were meant to bring. Even more recent, people have begun turning to medication. These medications are mostly harmless, but can create a dependence in the user. At a certain point, the user will not act as themselves since their chemical balances have been disrupted for so long. The medication itself is not the cheapest thing to acquire. If their insurance company where not to cover it, or drop it from the provided medication, the user would be without their means to maintain normality. Without that medication, their natural chemical balances would be damaged and would take some time to return to the ways they should, in the best of situations. In more recent times, people have begun turning away from the faith, and trust more in carnal desires to ease the strain of living. The use of alcohol is a common starting point for people who subscribe to this method of stress relief. It takes the users mind off of whatever is putting pressure onto them. While it may prove to be an adequate release when in the act, there can be many negative effects as well. Alcohol alone can lead to severe dependence, and health issues, such as some forms of cancer. Those are only the health risks, not to mention the social repercussions that could arise. With all these negative repercussions, positive thinking can be a much less self-destructive path to ease stress. Another form of stress release is to consciously make decisions to avoid stressful situations. In this world, everyone is always trying to take on more than they can actually handle. If there is no obvious and certain reason for you to take on more work than you are capable of managing, there is no reason to do it. Overworking yourself can cause mental pressure that leads to numerous psychological problems and conditions. To avoid those affects, it is just best to avoid the cause unless you will viably benefit from it. Even if a person does not overwork themselves, it is not uncommon for people to worry about things outside their realm of control. If you cannot control something, simply put it from your mind. There is no point in worrying about things you cannot control, because you simply cannot control it. Stressing about such things that are beyond you will only push you beyond your mental limits and could cause serious harm, similar to that of overworking yourself. However, not worrying about situation can cause extremely negative consequences, as well. At a certain point, it would be easy to not worry about anything at all, thus causing stagnation and unproductiveness. Keeping positive thoughts does not have such negative side effects like liver failure or apathy. Staying positive serves as a way to believe in your own capabilities. Belief is the start of many great things; for if you do not believe, it will be impossible. Positivity alone, is the easiest form of peace and path to achievement. While other methods originate from outside forces, positive thoughts come from within, and are always there for you. Stress is a massive problem in the working world. People are constantly overworking themselves and trying to affect things that they cannot. There are many ways to remedy this tension, both ancient and recent, but both have their respective drawbacks. Some are very internally destructive, such as alcohol or cigarettes destroying your organs, or becoming a religious fanatic and trying to spread your belief system into other continents. With affects such as these, it makes one wonder about whether or not they are worth pursuing. Positive thinking, however, does not create such negative effects; it only puts you into a frame of mind where you believe in what you can achieve. In can neither be bought nor traded, and is made by, and for, you. Having an Attitude of GratitudeSean Brinegar
There are many attributes and characteristics we can develop in our lives. And we should strive to develop all that are considered good. But which are the best, which are the ones that we should focus on first? I have done a personal experiment over the last year and have focused on developing a few different attributes. One of which was gratitude, and I quickly realized this is one of the greatest attributes of all. I found that this attribute became a foundation for developing others, and will literally change your life for the better. Also, it was not hard to work on either. First, I developed a plan. I decided gratitude was my goal, and I wanted to increase it in my life. What did I need to do, how would I accomplish my goal, what were the steps that had to be taken? I formulated a 4-part system that was simple, yet profound when acted upon. 1. Every single morning and every single night, I would take a minute and review my life, my day, my opportunities etc. And then I would decide exactly what I am thankful for, I would tell myself what it was and try to remember it, so everyday I would have something new. (Write it down if needs be, and create a list.) 2. Express gratitude in a verbal manner. (I chose this because I realized that I almost never say I’m thankful for something.) So I made sure to express it verbally so other people would hear and know. 3. Help someone recognize something to be thankful for. Look at the good in other peoples lives and not just mine, and help them see it as well. 4. Give someone something to be grateful for. This one is an expansion off of number 3, which is more action related. It has to do with serving someone, and just making their day better. The items listed above I decided to work out in a priority manner. I gave myself a week for part 1, then added part 2 etc. until I was actively working on them all. They are all action based, and as I continued through the list I had to expend higher amounts of effort to accomplish them. But this process began to build something within me, and I didn’t even realize what exactly was happening. I started to see life differently and to feel better about things. I started to become happier, and I started seeing people around in a different light. It became a habit for me to think about the good things I have been experiencing and what I have been blessed with. When before I often thought about how life was so hard, and my mind would dwell on negative things. When I started I would have to remind myself to try to help others and seek out ways to help them be thankful. But suddenly I found myself just doing these things, without second thought. I found myself stopping on highways when I saw people were pulled over. I would check on them to see if they needed help. I would see people loading or unloading their cars or trucks, and would stop and see if they needed help lifting things. I was suddenly taking time out of my life to help other peoples with theirs… and I was happier than ever to do so. If something did go wrong during my day, it wouldn’t upset me. I would sit back and think, “Well it could be worse!” and I would think of all the good things that are still going on. Building up my gratitude wasn’t work anymore, it was a mission that brought joy. It was something that I loved working on, because my eyes began to open and I saw things that I never had before seen. I realized that gratitude is the root to all happiness. If we can not realize what is great in our lives, we cannot be happy. Our lives are richly blessed with so many amazing things, and we have the choice to recognize them or not. If we choose not to, we will have lives that are filled with gloom and darkness, and it will seem to follow wherever we go. But if we choose to be grateful and live a life full of gratitude, we will have light wherever we are, and people will begin to recognize this. We can be grateful for the smallest of things, and we will be happier than ever if we are. It seems that there is something powerful about these good life attributes. It seems as we develop them, we begin to see greater good through our lives. Things that we wouldn’t expect to have happen, will suddenly come to pass. Our lives will be viewed as one of luck, because it’s the only way to describe the good things that somehow continuously flow towards us. And I firmly believe that one of the best ways to start, is to live a life that is backed with an attitude of gratitude. An Attitude of GratitudeOlivia LeSure
Life isn’t easy. It comes with ups and downs, and many obstacles. Sometimes those obstacles can seem insurmountable, and we as humans begin to resent the position that we’re in and the decisions that led us there. When we’re in those rough spots, it’s easy to forget how much worse things can be. However, having an attitude of gratitude can put things into perspective and help us to understand that things may not be as bad as we initially viewed them. Having an attitude of gratitude personally helped me each and every time I had to begin a new school to due moving. I’ve moved a lot during my 18 years of living, and attended quite a few schools in my 13-year academic career. With the exception of one very special circumstance and graduation from elementary and middle school, every time that I have changed schools it was due to moving houses. I’ve attended three elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Nevada. The longest I stayed in one place was high school, which totaled four years. The shortest I’ve ever been enrolled in a school was 3 months. With every switch, I was completely devastated and grew increasingly frustrated with my parents. Why couldn’t I just stay in one place? Didn’t they know that moving was the worst thing you could to do their child in the middle of the school year? How would I make any friends if I came into school after all the cliques had been made? It seemed like they just didn’t have my best interests in mind and were only thinking of themselves. After the initial shock of hearing about our plans to move (again and again), I was forced to reflect my life. Every time, I came to the same conclusion: things actually are not that bad. I was forced to admit that although moving absolutely sucked, things could be a thousand times worse. Every single time, the first thing my mom looked for in a new home were the school zones. She made sure that each school was reputable and in a good area. To me, it seemed like she didn’t have my best interests in mind because I was forced to move so often, but when I looked at my situation with an attitude of gratitude, I saw that she always had my best interests at heart. When I first learned I was moving across the country from Virginia to Nevada, I was outraged. Why couldn’t my father find a job closer to our family on the east coast? Why did I have to go with him? Couldn’t my mother, my sister and I just stay where we were? When I revisited the situation with an attitude of gratitude, I realized how amazing the opportunity was for my father. He received a promotion and was earning a better pay; it just so happened to be that the position was across the country. My attitude of gratitude showed me that thigs actually weren’t getting worse for me. In fact, they were only getting better. We moved from an apartment to a house because we could finally afford it. That gratitude forced me to put my situation into perspective. As previously mentioned, in one circumstance I moved schools not because of moving, but because of something very special. I actually skipped a grade in middle school thanks to my mom. Having attended school in Virginia, I received an excellent education. But when we moved to Nevada, my mother and I quickly realized they were behind Virginia in education, despite the fact that my school was one of the top rated in the area. In 6th grade in Nevada, I was relearning things that I had been taught in 5th grade in Virginia. I told my mother because I thought she would be happy that I was getting easy As this year. However, she was not satisfied with that. She marched down to the school and had me enrolled in 7th grade classes as a 6th grader. When that proved to be no problem for me, she insisted that I be skip the 8th grade and enroll in high school. I begged my mom not to do it. I didn’t want to go to high school yet! I wouldn’t have friends like everyone else because all my friends would still be in middle school! She ignored my pleas and at the age of 13 I enrolled in high school. I was completely devastated. When my mother talked to me, she told me I could finally be challenged intellectually and learn new things instead of having a stagnant mind for three years. I was not having any of it at the time. But a few months into my freshman year, I re-evaluated my current position through a grateful lens. High school was so much better than middle school! And I found I actually enjoyed my classes a lot more not that I wasn’t just sitting in them regurgitating information I already knew. I was extremely grateful for the position my mother put me in, despite previously being upset. Now when I tell people how much I’ve moved and they tell me how that must’ve been awful for me, I tell them, “Actually, it wasn’t that bad at all.” I only achieved this frame of mind by looking at my experiences through an attitude of gratitude. Of course, being upset is a natural human emotion and just because the situation could be worse, it doesn’t invalidate wishing for something better. But going through life with an attitude of gratitude forces you to put your situation through a certain lens, and shows you the positives of the situation and helps keep you moving forward. The Law of AttractionTara McGuinness
Fashion Institute of Technology Ever since I was little my mom has taught me about the importance of positivity. She was always encouraging me to look on the bright side and find the good in everyone and everything. However, it was not until the movie The Secret came out that I learned about the law of attraction. Every Sunday morning my family has breakfast together and when I was growing up we would always watch an educational movie during breakfast. After The Secret came out, we watched it every Sunday for weeks because my mom thought that it would build the habit to attract only what we wanted from the universe instead of what we did not want. Even though I watched the movie when I was little, many of the stories and concepts stuck with me and I still think about them today. I find the law of attraction to be the most inspiring and empowering concept. I love the idea that your thoughts, not just your actions have an impact on the events of your life. I see the law of attraction as proof that anything is possible. After I learned about it I created a “Magic Book”, which was like an inspiration board. I put everything in it from the cell phone I wanted to places I wanted to visit. I do not have a “Magic Book” anymore, but I think Pinterest has become a digitalized magic book of sorts for me today. I see it as a place to pin anything that I want to manifest. It is a centralized place to focus on what I want from the universe whether that be materialistic items or a dream wedding. I have no intention of getting married anytime soon, but the wedding ideas have the allure of a fairytale. I think that’s the purpose of a “Magic Book”, to not have to adhere to realistic goals or dreams, the magic of them is that they allow you to dream about having a fairytale life. I use the law of attraction as a reminder to focus on the positive. It can be easy to focus more on the negative, for example when you are looking for a parking space and can’t find one. After looking for a while it is easy to become discouraged and focus on how you are unable to find a parking space rather than just focusing on looking for one and picturing yourself finding one. The concept from The Secret that always stuck with me is that the universe does not distinguish between what you do want and what you don't want. You attract whatever it is that you are thinking about. I always use this as a reminder for myself when I notice if I start to have a negative outlook. I am someone who stresses out a lot about tests and it can be easy for me to let my thoughts spiral out of control and think the worst before a test. In an effort to calm myself down and focus on think more positively I visualize myself getting an A on the test instead of telling myself I’m going to fail. I have found when I give myself time to do this it not only helps me calm down, but it has a positive impact on my grade. This past year was when I really started to notice the impact of the law of attraction. Last fall I started attending the Fashion Institute of Technology. It was a dream come true. Within the first month of school I had the opportunity to volunteer at New York Fashion Week. One of the shows I volunteered at was the Sherri Hill show. I was beyond excited because ever since freshman year of high school I eagerly anticipated watching the show. I loved looking at pictures on social media about it to see what it would be like to actually be there. It always looked so glamorous and exciting and I dreamt of being able to go. I would picture what it would be like to be there and see the models walking down the runway in the beautiful dresses in person. When I was standing among the chairs set up for the those attending the show, I realized that the law of attraction had worked. My dream of attending a Sherri Hill show at New York Fashion Week had come true. It was a moment that proved to me how very real the law of attraction is. Having the opportunity to volunteer at New York Fashion Week was a pretty far-fetched dream for a high school freshman from a small town, but after years of visualizing myself there the opportunity presented itself. If I ever had any doubt about the law attraction this moment was proof that it most certainly real. The Power of Thinking PositiveWilliam Akowuah
On a torrid Friday, May 25 1990, I was ushered unto the sprawling streets of Kumasi, Ghana. Just as every human around the globe, I had his vicissitudes in the early days, some worth remembering others better off marginalized but it also did present me with a mistaken thought of how “easy” success can be achieved, a thought that would later be dovetailed as a sheer disgruntling and non existing reality. "Go William, you have the Midas touch" As strange as it might sound, I did believe I had the Midas touch, well perhaps I’m supposed to have such self believe and confidence to attain successes in life but time and again I was caught up in overly reveling in non realistic utopian destiny that I thought was as imminent to me as my shadow. Though born into an impoverished enclave encapsulated by tenement housing, I was still staunchly poised and had all the reasons to believe that everything I touched was definitely turning into gold and that success was just a stone's throw from me. All I needed, I thought, was patience so time will yield the right age for me to realize my dreams. There is an adage that one cannot deceive nature and that’s true but humans often forget that we cannot control nature too. Yes, I did have the Midas touch, yes I was a sui generis among all my peers and beyond but the qualities to unearth those latent talents needed a touch to it and twas' then that I realized that I needed a relentless work attitude, incessant focus and resolute mind set to get to the horizon I aspired to be and practicing those traits initiated the actual Midas touch into reality. That mindset help pave the way for me to believe in my self and helped me believe in the power of my positive thinking. "Talent is a natural phenomenon and I have it" "William passes the ball to Michael, Michael releases a through ball to Bright, Bright in turn gives a diagonal pass to William who had kept running, he shoots from an acute angle and. ...lightening strikes, the ball swings into the roof of the yawning net pass the sprawled legs of the goalie, it's a goal"...... I developed an ardent desire for soccer immediately I learned how to walk. My diminutive figure and agility fits me into the striking role on a soccer field but my decision of playing it as just a hobby did haunt me when I failed to impress a soccer coach during a college soccer trial for scholarship, I will never forget how dispirited and sickened I became after that trial fiasco, a blight that meant I will not be getting enough aid to fund my college fees and thus had to temporary drop out of school and work to raise funds ,having travelled from Ghana to the United to pursue to higher education.. "Lightening had struck twice but this time I was at the receiving end.... "A tiring journey that had its end " Life takes us[humans] to places, places we want to be, places we have to be. It's often said that choices makes a man and mine were just in line of the afore mentioned mantra. After failing to impress at the college soccer trial and without sufficient funds to pay college fees, my only option was to work over time in a beauty supply store to raise money to dole out fees for college, an arduous stint that molded me into one of the best academic students that Kingsborough community college has ever had. Poised on getting back to school as soon as the funding was ready, I spent countless hours during early mornings before work and late-nights after work studying college materials that entailed my chosen major; electrical and computer engineering, daily to prepare my self for the task that awaited me as college student. I had no second thoughts that I was definitely going back to school. There were times that my situation seemed very abyss and daunting but I held unto my self motivated believe of making it back to school. Days painfully passed till it yielded me the opportunity to get back to college on March 5, 2017, a day that marked an inception to the unfolding excellent academic grades that I’ve mustered during my early months in college. As at the time of writing this essay, I’ve attained a cumulative grade point average of 3.868 after my first semester. "Reeling till I found my feet” Prior to commencing my college education at Kingsborough, prior to working so hard to earn such enviable GPA , I had to overcome myriad fears that enveloped me daily, fears that threatened to plunge me into my then status quo as a worker in beauty store, fears that shrouded my self beliefs and blurred the thoughts of me fulfilling my main dream of graduating from an American College but I countered all those fears with the incessant focus and resolute mind set to that I definitely knew would galvanize me into attaining all my long held desires of graduating from an American College and being successful in life. My brief life history thus far truly indicates that indeed, a positive mindset has enough power to refocus any dreams, or plans that drift to the very place it needs to be. I have the Midas touch after all. Trouble MakerKyle Powell
In elementary school, I was a troublemaker. I didn’t care about learning or getting good grades, and I didn’t apply myself. I would often get into trouble and be sent home early. Despite my family’s wishes, my behavior didn’t change. Even in high school I only cared about having fun with my friends and causing trouble. My grades were poor, and I even had to repeat a couple courses because I didn’t do my homework. The guidance counselor kept trying to convince me to think about my future, but I didn’t listen. I didn’t have hope for a bright future. My parents didn’t go to college, and my mother could no longer work, and my father died when I was only thirteen. I had no one to look up to, no one to root for me, and no one to help me financially. One day, I was staying after school to make up homework from skipping class. My math teacher Mrs. Hawk asked me why I didn’t do my work. After I told her I didn’t care, she said I could do anything I wanted. She said my bad grades weren’t because I was doing poorly, they were because I wasn’t doing my work. She called me a sneaky smart person. When I did do my homework, I’d get good grades. For some reason, that stuck with me. I started doing all my homework and even looked into my local colleges. I immediately looked into ways I could afford it. Searching made me excited. I had hope. That comment put me on the path to success. I enlisted in the military during my junior year of high school. After basic training, I returned home in Indiana, brought my grades up, and earned my Core 40 high school diploma. I then returned to Georgia to finish my training. Later on, I received my discharge and enrolled in a local community college. I made it to the dean’s list and stayed on it. I joined a couple of honor societies, earned several certifications, and graduated magna cum laude. All of this was possible because one of my high school teachers never stopped believing in me. The main reason I went to community college was to earn good grades and replace my bad ones from high school. I worked hard and achieved what I set out to do. What I didn’t yet realize was that I had grown complacent. I wasn’t in a hurry to apply at the four-year college of my dreams. Instead, I worked a boring job to pay off all my debts first. I told myself that because I worked hard and had ambition that opportunities would make themselves available to me. I stopped applying myself or learning on my own. Many of my friends and family members chose dead end jobs with reliable pay rather than truly living. All they did after getting home from work was wait for tomorrow to come. First a day passed, then a month, then a year. I settled into the same sad routine as them. I thought tomorrow would be better than today. After three years went by, I realized I had wasted so much time. I was filled with regret, and it kept me up at night. I was passing the time while watching videos online when I came across some by Ze Frank. He created an inspiring video that resonated within me. It was everything I needed to hear to pick myself up keep moving forward. I still remember a quote from that video to this day. “And God let me enjoy this. Life isn’t just a sequence of waiting for things to be done.” That’s what I found myself doing. I fell into the same sad routine as my family and friends. I gave up on my future and worked a dead end job just for a steady paycheck instead of truly living. Thanks to Ze Frank, I continued working towards my dreams. And here I am, applying for a scholarship to help pay for my tuition this fall. I only hope that someday when I’m doing the job I love to do that I can somehow inspire others to not give up like some of the people in my life have done for me. Controlling What You CanCorinna Arabia-Meyer
I have never had a good relationship with my mother. For as long as I can remember, she never failed to let me forget that I was a mistake, an accident that was never meant to happen and one that has consistently made her life more difficult for all the years I’d been alive. Ever since I began middle school, at the time when I began thinking for myself and began to really understand the world around me, things between us got worse. I started to realize the way she acted, the things she did, and the way she treated me was far from how a loving, caring mother should treat her child. I came to notice that the abuse and constant battles within our household occurred because there was something very wrong with the way her mind functioned. Now, ever since I was able to pick up on the fact that my mother had some sort of mental illness, it became increasingly difficult to live with her. When things got bad, when she turned to violence and abuse to handle these situations. I begged her to see someone. I wanted her to get help, for my own selfish reasons, and so that the family wouldn’t suffer. Unfortunately, I soon discovered that any mention of her being the problem would throw her into an even more intense rage, one which resulted in constant 911 calls, police visits to our home, issues with friends and family members, and over 6 DYFS investigations. It took years of struggling with my mother for me to realize that the only way to push past this extremely damaging situation was to focus on myself, and what I could control. Many times I wished I could control my mother. I prayed that somehow I could make her think and see things logically and rationally and that hopefully then things could get better. However, wishing I could control her only made things harder on me. I came to understand that I can only control the thoughts and actions of myself. At first, this seemed like the most frustratingly limiting conclusion. If I could not change the way she was, how could I ever survive this? It took me years to overcome the ongoing battle that was the relationship between my mother and I, and in the end, I learned that the only way to make a real change, was by focusing on the things I could control. My family and I moved around a lot in my younger years, however the hardest transition for my was when we moved halfway through my high school career. This hit me hard, and the new location made me feel more alone and helpless than ever. It was this time in my life that I reached a low point I had never believed possible. I had never thought things could get worse, but somehow they did. I spent many nights crying myself to sleep, because to me, it seemed the misery would never end, and now I had no friends to lean on. Attempting logical discussions with my mother got me nowhere, one wrong word led to unwarranted outbursts of violence, and I became the family scapegoat. My mother tended to blame me for all of our familial, financial, and other miscellaneous problems and this took a huge toll on my self esteem and sense of worth. This was a dark time for me, and I’m finding it extremely difficult to write it down, to form into words these experiences which now feel like a dark, distant nightmare. However, this is something I know I have to share. For the educational journey I wish to pursue, I am going to need as much support and financial assistance as possible to make my dreams attainable. By the time I reached my early teenage years, I came to the realization that my mother was a true master of manipulation. She used her position as a lawyer to threaten others and create personal leverage for herself. She was capable of manipulations so massive and extreme that when I look back at some of these instances, they seem comically unreal. Even myself, who lived with her for almost two decades, was shocked at the lengths she would go to ensure she was seen by outsiders as a victim and myself as a miscreant. My junior year of high school turned out to be the most intense, intoxicating, and inescapably arduous year of my life. Not only was I balancing the massive amounts of schoolwork, AP classwork, club hours, extra curriculars, etc, but this became a thousand times more difficult because my mother did all she could to make it impossible for me to achieve the my goals. On more than 15 occasions in that year, the police were dispatched to our home to settle the violent disputes which frequently broke out. Either my mother would call them on me, saying I had instigated a dispute and she was a suffering victim of my wrath, or neighbors/my friends parents would call concerned for the safety of my siblings and I. This went on for almost a year, and I felt a little part of me fade each time I watched the cop cars roll down my long driveway and back to the station from which they were sure to be dispatched again within the week. I’ll hand it to my mother, she was very good at what she did. Maintaining the mirage of personal innocence in the face of law enforcement was quite impressive. The way she warped the reality of the situation into one that made others sympathetic of her, and believing that I was the true and only problem in the household was incredible. For the longest time, I believed that I was crazy, that something was very wrong with me and that everything must be my fault. Everyone my mother came into contact with was convinced that the dysfunction was my doing, and for awhile I was very confused. Looking back, things near the end of my junior year are blurry. I think I must’ve repressed many hard times. Even today, when having a discussion with an old friend and hearing them describe past instances of when my mother performed some insane act, I find myself drawing a blank. They remind me of things that happened that it seems my brain has rejected, probably for my own protection. It is these times that I realize how far I have come, and know that if I made it out of that miserable pit, that there is nothing today that can prevent me from succeeding in my future. Very slowly, near the end of junior year, the tables began turning. One night, about halfway through the year, there was an especially severe outbreak. Afterwards, I was locked in my room, bruised, bleeding and crying, not knowing what to do. I remember being in the highest state of panic, hyperventilating and sobbing into the carpet, knowing I could not continue enduring this or I would lose myself forever. I knew that I could not control my mother's actions, but that I could control my own. In that moment, I made a decision; to start taking real and affirmative action-to stand up for myself and put an end to the mistreatment that had gone on for years. I had stored an emergency phone I got from my neighbor in my bathroom drawer, and so I had a means of outside contact. I called my best friend Amanda, who lived in my old town a half hour away. I cried into the phone telling her what happened, but she abruptly cut me off and told that enough is enough and she was coming. A brief wave of hope washed over me, but then I realized getting out of the house would be impossible, especially since I was on the top floor. Before I could let that doubt creep into my mind, I began tearing through my room, looking frantically for something I could use to help. I caught a glimpse of bright red in the back of my closet, and then realized it was the escape ladder. I threw it out my bedroom window and made it about halfway down before my mother saw me through the downstairs window. My panic rose as I watched her race towards the door after me. Before she could get ahold of me, I jumped the last few feet into the bushes below, made myself to my feet and ran as fast as I could down the long driveway. After all the things that have happened, I found that when looking back, I have difficulty remembering parts of how these situations went down. But even though I have repressed some of the worse memories, I clearly remember this night. I remember running down the dark, gravel driveway onto the paved main road that led up the hill to my house. I ran, blinded by tears and darkness until I saw headlights ahead. I’m not sure how I knew or if I was even thinking, but as soon as the car pulled over I opened the door and jumped into the back seat. Thankfully it was Amanda and her older sister, Cassie, who was driving. At that point, I couldn’t speak. I just sobbed into Amanda’s shoulder as we pulled a u-turn and drove down the hill. Much happened that night, but between threatening calls from my mother to endless tears on my end, for the first time, I felt a calming wave of hope. I had taken control of my actions, I had broken free(if only for a short while) and said “yes” when my friends asked if they could get professional help involved. My friends drove me to their house, where they contacted DYFS and the very first investigation was opened. And so, for the first time in my life, I saw a faint glimmer of light that proved there was an opening, an outlet to this well I thought I would surely drown in. My actions that night began an even more challenging chapter of my life; the climb to freedom. Many ask where my father was in all of this, and that is the question I find hardest to answer. When I look back, I can’t help but get emotional over my father. I used to admire him a great deal. I was fascinated by his vast knowledge of cars, his stories about growing up in the Bronx, and the repressed passion he had for cooking that only bubbled to the surface when my mother wasn’t around. I especially loved the way he never gave up trying to get my siblings and I to laugh. It’s hard for me, even(if not especially) now, to look back on his role in our family. I don’t like saying he was a sheep, or that he did not have the guts to stand up to my mother, but this is the unfortunate truth. She wore the pants, and carried the belt in her hands. I often begged my father to step in, to stand up for the truth and make a difference. I told him not to be afraid, and that if he left her I would stand by him. I told him I would work, help pay bills, raise my siblings...do anything to live life free from my mother. However, the rare times he dared put up any fight or resistance to her, she berated him with a string of biting insults and threatened him with divorce. She would say, in front of my sibling and me, that she would get custody of my siblings and me because she was a lawyer and he was nothing. I recall pots and silverware flying through the air during some of their more severe fight, but no matter what my father did, she always ended up in an even more unwavering position of authority. It seemed he had forgotten that he was his own person, who could take control of himself, his words, and actions. Giving up on him was by far the most difficult aspect of all of this, because I wanted so badly for him to take control and make a change. However, he gave up his self will time and time again, and my mother continued to rule.Watching my father give up any and all of his power and voice was the most heart wrenching depiction of incarceration one could ever witness. It was in these moments; in the still aftermath of my mother’s victory, where I knew I could only depend and focus on things I can control. This unwavering understanding led me down the path to personal freedom and liberation which would not be possible had I not taken action to change the things I could control. Life in my past home feels unreal to me now. I realize how much I’ve already written, and it shocks me because I know how much has not been addressed. However, for the sake of wrapping up this history, I’ll condense the rest. I spent the last quarter of junior year fighting my way out; focusing on what I could control and working to make the changes I needed. At the recommendation of authorized personnel such as the local police, DYFS case managers, and court officials, I took my mother to court. With the support of my friends and their parents, I was able to get a lawyer and reveal my story to law enforcement and the courts. When I moved out, I was granted a restraining order against my mother due to the proof I had gathered of her chronic abuse and harassment, along with my friends and neighbors testimonies of their experiences with her. The whole process was extremely trying to say the least. I lived with different friends for the duration of the court process. The day I was granted the restraining order and had a court permission to gather my items was the day I knew I had succeeded, and the most breathtakingly joyous day of my life. Since moving out, I have had to wholly provide for myself; this includes basics such as groceries, vehicle expenses, school supplies, phone bills, tuition payments, personal expenses, etc. After I graduated high school, I moved in with my grandparents in Bergen County, NJ and began attending Bergen Community College. This was not my first choice in schools, but unfortunately when I left my home I had nothing, and so I decided getting undergraduate credits out of the way at an affordable community school was a wise choice. Since I took many AP classes in high school, I have just graduated with my Associates in Science Professional Studied a semester early. Since graduating, I applied and was accepted to Arizona State University's online business administration program, and am anticipating beginning classes more than ever. I have always had a thirst for knowledge, and even just these few past months off, I am more ready than ever to get back into the swing of my studies and continue to expand my mind and discover what I am capable of. If I receive this scholarship, it will help me pay for the pile of extra educational expenses I am sure to face in the future. No doubt it will also help me move forward in completing my degree and gaining the knowledge and college experience I crave. I hope this can help me expand/develop more educationally, creatively, and personally. Please consider my application and thank you for your enduring audience. ControlJeana Weekley
God grant me the Serenity… or just sanity to accept the things I cannot control. When my beautiful mother was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, I knew the responsibility of her care would fall onto me, and I gladly accepted it. Little did I know that her cancer and pathway towards her final days would be more about my ability to care without needing to control then it would be about her health. Funny how true love requires a release of the self. We say it all the time. If you love something, set it free. I love my mom, and setting her free was not emotionally acceptable. As a veteran mental health therapist, my brain knew the right words to say, the way I was expected to “control” the doctors, treatment, and family members. My heart did not agree. My heart said that true love would be fighting her fight with her and then letting her go. Isn’t this ultimately, what it means to focus on what you can control and let go of what you control? I discovered that letting go was equivalent to acknowledging that true strength comes from the ability to be weak. I did this through trying to love without my responsibilities and limitations that guide my desire to control. It was during the final days of her life that my fists clenched the hardest. I refused to let go of what I thought I could control: her treatment, my father, the facade hiding my hurt. Fortunately, she did not suffer. Her passing was painless and while she was sleeping. When the hospice nurse came into the home to prepare her body, she recognized that I was the caregiver and asked if I would like to help her in the preparations. With teary eyes, I responded with a soft “No thank you. I have been my mother’s caretaker during her illness, now I would like to be her daughter”. Moments later, I left and drove the hour and a half to my favorite beach. Amongst seagulls and waves, away from the demands of things I felt I should control, I gave myself permission to let go. I released her and my need to control the circumstances that led me to this point in my life. I was 45 years old, with a 73-year-old father to care for, a husband, teen daughter, and a barely 22-year-old son. I felt the urge to control every aspect of my own life, which meant their lives too. Searching the ocean and horizon for clues to life’s mysteries, I saw a truth that I spent years missing. True control lies in my ability to let go. I learned to let each person have their own perspective, live their own life, and for my mother, her own death. Flash forward two years and I am attempting to complete a degree, and working in a government agency with a goal of changing healthcare in Washington State. I spent 16 years as a mental health therapist, walking with my clients through their process of healing. I am now in a foreign world of policy and bureaucracy, with no control. Each meeting I go to, work plan we create, process we pontificate and ponder, it all represents my desire to NOT control but to participate. When I let go of my mom, I was able to participate! I could experience her peaceful passing to another world. This has become my goal as I move forward in my own life. I do not want to miss an opportunity to participate because I have a need to control. What I can control is my will and desire to participate more fully in what life offers me. My racing heart of fear and clenched fists of anger separated me from experiencing life the way I desired. I admit though, it is a daily quest. It means that I do not define myself by my works or by others’ perspectives. I define myself by my ability to control my level of acceptance and participation in life. Using this as my foundation allows me to love unconditionally, others and myself. It allows me to control what needs control and release what doesn’t. I build up from this. Now, when I go to a meeting, I make a decision not to react but to respond. This allows me to control the aspects of the meeting that I can control. When my teenage daughter rebels, I make a decision to love and forgive despite my desire to control her. We both get to experience peace and acceptance when I choose this. Ultimately, what I focus on to control is me; everything else can be accepted or guided, so long as I choose to participate. The Power of Positive ThinkingMeghan Burenheide
Washburn University of Topeka I started the nursing program at Washburn University at age 18. I was asked over and over again how certain I was that I really wanted to do this, reminded how difficult it would be, assured I could pick some other degree. None of this mattered. The answer was always yes for nursing. Once I’ve decided to do something, I don’t give up on it easily. Funnily enough, life enjoys testing you when you imply such things, when you set your heart on something, when you have a goal you’re determined to reach. I thought nursing school would be the test itself, especially when I started the first semester. I was correct to some degree, but I had no idea what was awaiting me beyond the classroom. Semester one of nursing school went quite well the first couple of months. The content and workload were challenging, but I had been expecting this, and genuinely enjoyed what I was learning. Even so, that workload bears down on you, and the word that echoed the classrooms, library bookshelves, and off student and teacher lips alike, was “Stress”. We were lectured on helping both ourselves and our future patients with stress in class, asked to discuss ideas about managing it. I started having migraines that semester, when previously I had barely ever had a headache in my life. Completely debilitating, I knew they were coming by the spots of light I would see puncturing my vision, right before the sharp pain that began in my forehead started moved slowly backwards over the course of several hours. The days following, I would try to catch up on studying and homework that I had missed, barely able to focus in class, groggy and head still aching. Ultimately, one of these migraines led to me ending up in the critical care unit of a hospital, diagnosed as having had a stroke. Losing abilities I had taken for granted most of my life, such as simply being able to form words, name objects and people around me, drink water without choking, go to the bathroom without help, all of this was frustrating in ways I had never experienced. I was healing quickly, remarkably so for a stroke patient. Nonetheless, in that hospital room, lurking around the curtains and chairs, the heart monitor and the hand sanitizer, there was talk of taking me out of school completely. Concern that I would likely never be able to live independently, and that if I could ever continue school and get a degree in something, it certainly couldn’t be nursing. In the midst of all of this, I learned something that I will carry with me forever. This concept sustained me, helped me regain my strength, and continue moving forward instead of only focusing on what had gone wrong. That conviction is this: one positive thought goes a long way. When things go wrong whether big or small, when the stress is eating away at you, when the days are long and the hours endless, when the demons you personally fight are winning, when life doesn’t just hand you lemons, but instead aggressively launches them at you like they’re missiles - you might be surprised how much a single positive thought can do for you. I’m not saying finding something to be positive about is easy when you’re in these places. However, if you can find one thing to be positive about, one thing to be thankful for, one thing to laugh about, even when you’re facing the scariest thing you’ve ever had to face in your life, it provides a place outside of your negativity for you to step into and allow yourself to breathe. A different angle to view things from, that perhaps most importantly, can remind you that you are human, you have flaws, you will get stressed out, sometimes things in life go horribly wrong – but also that the story doesn’t end there. You can find strength within yourself. Thankfully, despite what was murmured in that hospital room, I continued to recover, and quickly. I jumped right back into school after being home from the hospital for merely a weekend, and continued my first semester of nursing school. Now, four months post-stroke, and after a summer that was spent studying and completing classes, I have finished my first semester of nursing school and start my second this Fall. I look forward to graduating with my class in 2018, and possibly someday helping patients in situations similar to my own experience. I cannot disregard the help received from many fantastic teachers, tutors, family, and friends. However, I also cannot deny the usefulness, the value, nor the power, that positive thinking has provided me in my weakest moments. ControlHannah Lyman
ASU I wish I could talk about every one of the topics presented since I feel like they all relate to one another amazingly. And, I’ve had to go through some tough things to live and love these rules, and it’s been pretty recently that I can fully accept these concepts. Out of the four topics; power of positive thinking, having an attitude of gratitude, focusing on things you can control, and the law of attraction, I would like to talk about focusing on the things you can control. This revolves around everything in life including personal and academic lives. As one of my old managers told me, the only things you can control are your attitude and your effort. Let’s get started! I’m a chemical engineering major and so I’ve had a lot of difficult classes that seem even more difficult because I have slight testing anxiety. Last semester I was in serious danger (or at least I felt like I was in danger) of not passing the class. I had been doing well on the homework just not the tests After having a serious mental break down I realized that I would hate myself if I didn’t give it my all for the final, I had spent all semester making friends who seemed to know how to study and so I focused on the final, and what I had to learn and study to understand what was going on. I basically locked myself in the library with a friend and we studied as much as we could as hard as we could to prepare for this exam. In the end, I got far beyond what I needed to succeed in the class, just because I focused on my work ethic and knowing what I needed to do to get it done. This semester I have decided that I will work my hardest to be my best self, school work, diet and exercise included. It’s all just a matter of controlling the controllables and getting the work done. A year ago, I signed up to do one of the hardest things I have ever done, I decided to spend my summer in Texas, selling books door to door. Now I know what you may be thinking, ‘oh, you’re one of those people’, or ‘why in the hell would you do something like that?’. But, I knew I wanted to be stronger and I wanted to be able to control my life, no other opportunity had presented it’s self so I threw caution into the wind. The first few weeks were as expected, I had no clue what I was doing but I was doing what I could, going out knocking on the doors, and just going to work. I couldn’t control if people would open their doors to me, but I could control how many doors I knocked on. After a few weeks of being completely away from my family I broke, I would cry in my car as I was driving around aimlessly, and I went on like that for six weeks. Sure, I still talked to the people that I needed to talk to but my heart had felt smashed. Then I got a wake-up call. My manager sat me down and said, really all you need to focus on is talking to as many people as you can every day you are out there. In all my wallowing, I had either forgotten or I got numb to the understanding that all I had to do was see the people, everything else would take care of its self. From that point on I focused on what I could do, talking to people about education, about something that I love. Don’t get me wrong, it was still hard, dealing with that much rejection, but overall, I just had to remind myself that it was a numbers game. In both of those instances I realized that all I had to do was work, focus on what I’m doing, and not let the crappy times ruin the entire experience. It’s hard at times to keep your feelings in check, it’s hard to forgive yourself for messing up, or forgive those who were criticizing you so harshly. You cannot control how they react, or what you’ve done in the past, all you can do is work your ass off. I used to think that what I had done was so terrible and that I should be doing what’s easy and not feeling like I should work very hard, because I can make that decision. Not all decisions are good, and they aren’t always easy but doing what you can to work as hard as you can, that’s what’s important. Nothing matters besides effort and attitude, and the only thing that can stop you from being successful is yourself. In the Land of RefugeHumna Tariq
Refugee. A heavy word that entails adversity, desperation, and incredible will. It’s a label branded and seared onto my heart. By definition, a refugee wields the power of positive thinking to convince his or her conscience to stay afloat and empower the will to survive. A controversial word that elicits mixed responses for those who’ve never been one. To my testament of such an unfathomable form of hardship, I find that the bravest people on earth are refugees. Being born to a beloved Pakistani politician surprisingly forced me into an exceptionally underprivileged situation. My father was a great man, loved by his country. Not even his enemies had the desire to smear his name; the most disturbing part: he was even adored by the very man who assassinated him. I was ten months old when I lost my father. I never had the luxury to have known my father but he lives on in the stories told by my elders, the news anchors and his fellow politicians in Pakistan. It’s very interesting to me that a man I have never known managed to send such ripple effects throughout my lifetime. We had lost everything. Shortly after my father’s murder, his colleagues looted our family. We lost our savings, we lost our home; worst of all we lost faith. How could it be that a rich politician’s family was now impoverished and living in hiding? It was in these debilitating circumstances that my mother managed to foster the courage to leave Pakistan and accept the uncertain circumstances she’d face in America. I came to the United States on my first birthday. Growing up in a one-bedroom apartment along with my mother and three brothers was a recipe for disaster. Besides constant noise complaints, the predicament involved leaving my one-year-old self and my two-year-old brother Ammar in the care of my two eldest brothers, Ozair (seven), and Omair (eight). Growing up in New Jersey, my mother worked three jobs at a pace of 120 hours a week. While not having much money, our family was abundant in love. Our love for one another fostered our positive thinking. I perfectly remember having a conversation with Ammar in our couch-less living room at the age of five that we both would grow up to achieve that smile of relief on our mother’s face. From that day forward, Ammar and I reminded our mother that her better days were around the corner. It was the type of positive thinking that every refugee family holds onto; however, our family didn’t just hold onto it, we bet our future on it. Ammar was closest to me in age; we had gone through elementary, middle and high school together. Every school lunch involved us scheming to put a smile on our mother’s face. Of course, our straight A’s would trigger a half-smile, but there wasn’t that sigh of relief. It was positive thinking that drove our will to succeed in academia; we both graduated in the top 7% of our class, we went off to prestigious public universities and we managed to relieve our mother of any financial burden when it came to our education. Towards the end of our undergraduate education, I had landed an internship, and Ammar had solidified a job offer from Google. Indeed, things were looking up. That is, until… April 17, 2016. I’ll never forget that terrifying call. While sitting in a library I received a call from my aunt hysterically crying. Initially, her words were very hard to understand, but when she gained enough composure, I learned that my worst nightmare had come true. “Humna, Ammar is dead.” My heart dropped, I gasped, students stared at me for causing such a disturbance, yet my crying seemed to be out of my control. I walked out of the library trying to compose myself, trying to convince myself that this was all just a nasty hoax. I called the police officer that claimed that Ammar had died. “Yes ma’am, he passed away around 4:00 am this morning in a car accident, I could give you the medical examiner’s number if you’d like.” Still, I didn’t believe her, yet I hesitantly called the medical examiner’s office. “Hi, I’m calling to inquire about an individual named Ammar Tariq.” He responded, “Before I answer your question, ma’am, in what way are you associated with Ammar Tariq?” In a shrill voice I said, “I’m his sister, sir.” He replied, “Yes ma’am, Ammar is here in our office. He is in one of our fridges as he is deceased.” A fridge? I panicked, it sunk in; how could my brother be in a fridge? Those words hit me so hard that I couldn’t fathom what reality I was in in which my brother was lying dead inside a laboratory fridge somewhere. How could this walking, breathing human being that I loved so much, that I fantasized giving my mother her break with, that I planned my future prospects with… be dead? Shortly after finding out, I contemplated on how to break the news to my mother. A woman who saw her husband die before her eyes, a woman who raised her four children on her own by living paycheck to paycheck, a woman who was glued together only by a thin layer of positive thinking… was surely to shatter this time. I called my eldest brother Omair; I learned that my mother happened to be with him, sitting in the backseat while he was driving. Before breaking the news to him, I had him promise me that he would keep his composure until he got home. After informing him about Ammar’s death, I advised him to take our mother home, call an ambulance first and then break the news. After that phone call, I drove 270 miles from Austin to Houston just to go hug my family. Arriving upon a scene of hundreds of cars parked outside the house, the rain mercilessly pounding on my windshield, and an eerie thought of the grave look on my mother’s face, I became reluctant to walk in. I unlocked the front door into a crowd of people yelling, crying and all talking to me at the same time. I heard my mother screaming from the other side of the crowd, “My baby! My six-foot prince is gone! Humna your brother is gone! How could this happen to us?” as she tried to fight her way through the crowd to hug me. I had lost all will. What could I possibly do to console my mother at this point? Reliving the heartache from when we first arrived as refugees was too much to bear a second time. For a moment, I had compromised my faith in the power of positive thinking. I knew we would never recover from this, never. But a spark of hope in me lived on because I knew that more than life itself Ammar wanted to give our mother her better days. A year and three months have passed since that pivotal moment in my life. Gradually I regained my strength and emboldened my will to fulfill Ammar’s wishes. In fact, it was the best positive thought I had to carry me through this testing endeavor to put a smile on my mother’s face. Positive thinking has been the cornerstone of my refuge. It’s every day I remind myself that I have reasons to do great in life, I have reasons to make my mother smile again; those positive self-reinforcements gave me that final push to apply to grad school. This semester I was admitted into Arizona State University to pursue a master’s in Health Informatics. The positive thoughts that bind my will to overcome such debilitating heartbreaks manifested themselves in my efforts to immortalize Ammar’s memory in my non-profit foundation (The Ammar Tariq Education Foundation) and in putting a smile of relief on my mother’s face. Indeed, it was in this land of refuge that I found my solace in having compelling reasons to pursue my ambitions. Personal DevelopmentJoshua Blackburn
People look at me, and for the most part they see a normal person. Well, I’m kind of taller than the average Joe. Being on the tall side is usually accompanied with being slender and having long arms and legs, which was true in my case. Throughout my adolescence and teenage years, I would get asked this same question whenever someone would meet me for the first time. They would say something like, “You're so tall, do you play basketball?” I would respond “No, I don’t really like basketball.” This response immediately made the conversation more awkward. “Football?” They would then ask? And again I would respond with a “Nope, not really a fan.” The truth is, I love sports, but throughout my life there has always been something holding me back that I have been scared to admit to people. I was born with a chronic muscle disease that limits me in many ways. It is called Hyper Kalemic Periodic Paralysis. Without going into too much detail, it means that my body has a hard time processing potassium. This makes an imbalance of chemicals in my muscles and results in temporary forms of paralysis that can last for 20 minutes to up to weeks in extreme cases. Some days this disability makes it only hard to walk other times it makes it impossible to get out of bed on my own. It also varies due to your age, mental stress, diet, weather patterns, and many more factors- so it can be a hard thing to control. When I was much younger I was very active. I could actually place sports until I had to rest, and my body would begin a short process of repair causing me to become extremely weak. When I was young, my disability was hardly a problem because I was very positive. I lived in a good neighborhood and had plenty of friends to play with. Elementary school children seem to have little worries in the world. However as I got older I started to realize that life isn't all about going to school then coming home and playing outside. My attitude about life took a turn for the worse when my family moved in the middle of eighth grade. In my teenage years my family decided to move to a larger house and this made me have to switch schools. I transferred schools during winter break so I came in during the middle of the school year. Middle school can be a hard place to adapt to, even with great self esteem and confidence. Unfortunately I had neither of the two and I struggled with the transition. I had the wrong mindset. I wanted so bad to be like everyone else and I worried that people would judge me for having this disability. Life was incredibly stressful during this time and that made my muscle condition even worse. As you might know, stress can have an adverse affect on one's body. So the more stressed out I was, the more weaker I became. This was the start of a slippery slope that leads into a rut of negative thinking. Why am I the one to have a disability? Why can’t I play sports or participate in other physical activities? Why can’t I even do the simplest things some days like climb stairs or get dressed in the morning? Who would want to be with someone like me who struggles to do these basic things and sometimes can’t even take care of himself? High school wasn't that much different. I still worried about this same things. I was paralysed or weak almost everyday. I was afraid to admit to my friends that I had a disability. When they saw me struggle to walk or occasionally fall down I would have to come up with weird excuses like, my legs are asleep, or I fell down the other day and I’m still sore. High School was nothing more than a daily struggle to get through and I couldn’t wait to get it over with. Although people would say I’m a friendly person I struggled making good friends in high school. I was quiet and shy, also was dealing with depression. However, I didn’t want people to necessarily know these things so I put on a happy face for the most part. I tried to be friendly enough but I didn’t put myself out there because I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere. After High School my life started turning in the other direction. I didn’t have to compare myself to everyone anymore. I was less stressed in general because for the most part, everything besides my disability was in my control. I was an adult now so I could technically do whatever I wanted with my life. I started to begin changing the way I thought about life. I could either sit at home and be miserable and weak all day or I can struggle and work hard to try to accomplish something; and maybe it won’t be as hard as I thought. Yes I have a disability, however there are still many things I can accomplish. I was able to graduate High School and some people aren’t even capable of doing that. It took me a while to realize it, but it is impossible to control other people’s thoughts and feelings, so why worry about them. I began not to care so much about what the average person might think of someone like me. I was more open about my disability, and it was all for the better. After High School I decided that I needed to find a job. I was hired at an Elementary School working as a teacher aid. I worked with special needs kids mainly with autism, second through sixth grade. I helped the kids throughout the day go through their classes and taught them mini-lessons. There were some challenging things about the job, however it was rewarding too. There were some days were we couldn't get through to the kids and the day was spent trying to calm them down while keeping them safe. Other days it was amazing to see what these kids could do. What they lacked in some areas they made up for in other ways. I remember this boy named Tyler who loved to talk about Birthdays and Holidays. He could remember any date you told him and could also calculate any day of the week for you in the future to come. For instance, if you told him your Birthday was August 1, he could tell you what day of the week it was on for this year and any year to come, in no time at all. Although it was my job to help these kids everyday, I feel like they helped me in some way. It helped me act and think more positive. These kids were fully integrated with the school, seeing the interactions between the kids gave me insight on the power of being positive. Most kids wouldn’t give our special needs kids the time of day because they required special attention. There were some special kids who could see through that and befriended everyone and that meant the world to us teachers. I was able to work the whole year at the Elementary school. There were some days where I was too weak to go in so I had to call in sick, but I still made it through the year. This meant a huge deal to me. The fact that I was able to make it through a whole year of work while only missing an occasional day here and there was a huge boost to my confidence. Unfortunately the school closed down, so the next year I decided to take some college classes while I was looking for work. It was hard to decide an area of study. There were a few things that interested me however I felt like I had to choose something within my body's limitations. I started taking some general classes while signing up for some psychology and biology classes because I thought those subjects were most interesting. I thought that one day I could be a counselor in a school or maybe a psychologist somewhere. Talking to people was one thing that I seemed to be getting better at. College is much different than high school. The environment is different because everyone wants to be there. I did much better with an positive attitude because I also wanted to be there otherwise I wouldn’t pay the price for the classes. I told more people about my disability if it ever came up and I did much better in my college classes. I even took public speaking classes and did a presentation to the whole class about my disorder and the history behind it. I didn't stress about college like I did about high school everyday. After a year of studying and going to classes, I decided to go back to work so I got another job working at an elementary school doing the same thing. I needed money to pay for my classes so I worked during the day and went to school in the afternoon and night, something I thought I would never be able to do. I enjoyed my new job even more that the first one however and I was able to miss even less days because of my condition. Today I still work and go to school. I work part time at Arizona State University while going to school full time there as well. I have learned throughout my life experience that focusing on things you can control while having a positive attitude will change your life for the better. I went from a high school student struggling to get by day to day because of my disability and battling depression, to a student who loves his job and enjoys going to work and class. I also have have perfect attendance at work and school not missing a single day because of my disability or otherwise and I am proud of that. What I am also very proud of is I am no longer ashamed of my disability. I am very open about it. I was able to tell a girl on our first date that I had a disability and now we are married. I’m going to do my best to teach others especially my future children these principles as they struggle through life's challenges. GratitudeAnna Pollard
Malaria. You've heard the word often enough—perhaps disproportionately often, considering its eradication in the United States. We've seen pictures or commercials of fly-covered children, suffering an incomprehensible sickness. And it does seem incomprehensible. We lived in a house made of corrugated tin, my husband and I, in a country called the Comoros Islands. This is a place generally disregarded and almost unheard of, even to nationals from mainland Africa. Mtakoudja, arguably the roughest village, on the smallest island of Moheli, was our home for two years. The locals cook over open fires and survive on a subsistence lifestyle; they grow their food in their fields on the mountains of the jungle, or trade for what they need. They speak, generally, no English and very little French. Most have never traveled off-island. Our good friends died of things like childbirth, motorcycle accidents, or Yellow Fever. Children with seizures are thought to be result of a mother's promiscuity. Physical and sexual abuse are common, without the education and awareness in our culture which tells us there is a better way. And yes, there is malaria. The first time I contracted malaria, my spleen became inflamed, presenting itself as horrible abdominal pain and fears of appendicitis. The strain of malaria rampant on our island was relatively easy to treat with a strong course of oral medication; malaria was, surprisingly, preferable news. We were there to learn the culture, the language, and to help how we could. Life there is hard. It's hard for them, and it was even harder for us, coming from comfortable Western lives. We realized quickly that we could let the culture and relational differences, the homesickness, the literal sickness, drag us down emotionally. Or we could cultivate gratitude. We could emulate, stubbornly, an attitude of gratitude. So we walked on those poop-covered beaches and watched children play and enjoyed unimaginably beautiful sunsets. We heard the very loud calls to prayer and enjoyed the beauty of the Arabic language. We made friends who laughed with us and taught us how to survive, how to thrive, how delicious rice can be, even on a daily basis. We found gratitude for the goodness of life, for the variety it offers. We faced a lot of challenges on our return to the United States. The excess alone was enough to literally overstimulate our senses. The colors, the food, the smells, were all overwhelming. We had spent many of our hours climbing tiny dirt paths into the jungle, all in order to spend hours digging holes with machetes in order to plant gardens. We chopped firewood, made rope out of leaves, and carried twenty-pound loads down that very same path, back to the village. There is no sliced bread on our island, an American staple we had unknowingly relied on before. Here, we have grocery stores full of produce and canned goods and refrigerators full of (pasteurized!) milk. If the produce is “bad,” it gets thrown away. Some of my hardest moments on the island, aside from desperately missing my family, were days when we just were so hungry, shockingly hungry. Anyone who has never truly been hungry does not understand the physical and emotional toll it can take. One of my hardest days is also one of the days I think I will always look back on as a huge opportunity for personal growth. It was right in the middle of the “hot” season (for a reference point, we'd go on break in Kenya and thought it was too cold). Produce, always sparse to begin with, was nearly non-existent. We had rice (of course we had rice), onion, and garlic. But we'd had that so much and I just felt tired of it. After spending a morning filling up water buckets behind our house and scrubbing our clothes, studying language, playing with rowdy neighbor kids, and just the pure exhaustion of speaking a second language for hours on end, I just wanted some food. I was grouchy. Some people, myself included, call it hangry: so hungry you're angry. I walked around the village to see if I could find anything: bananas, five-day-old french loaves? Nothing. I finally decided on pancakes. I had flour and sugar and salt; I could make pancakes on our gas stove-top. I started up on the batter and...okay, I don't have baking soda or powder. So I called my friend and asked if I could borrow some. After walking across the village and back for that, we were finally in business; the batter was complete and the first pancakes were in the pan. And then, suddenly, the little flames disappear. Obviously at that point, I was getting extremely close to tears. Over food. Because the flames disappearing was not an easy fix. We were out of gas. That would mean unhooking our tank, lugging it up to the road, and waiting anywhere from ten minutes to an hour for a taxi. I'd have to ride in a van with likely twenty other people, sweat through five miles to the capital, all just to fill up the tank. And then the return trip. It all seemed so impossible at the time. I was angry, frustrated, exhausted, and yes, hungry. I ultimately was thoroughly nasty to my poor husband, shed some frustrated tears, and finally conceded defeat. I can't even remember what we ended up eating. But I know we survived. That was one hungry day. We had others. We had days of sickness and frustration with language and cultural barriers. We had days of professional disappointment, teaching conversational English in a country with loose concepts of time. Yet we learned so much. We learned empathy with the poor, the hungry, the sick. We sat with the elderly and enjoyed the breeze off the ocean. We worried with wives when their fishermen husbands were missing. We discovered a resiliency of spirit, tempered with patience and kindness. We had bad days, grouchy days, hungry days, up until the end; but we started ourselves on a path of true gratitude. I carry that gratitude with me, even now, in my again-comfortable life. When our “first-world problems” come to call, I think on those experiences that taught me this absolute truth: there is always something in our lives that brings joy, that reflects goodness, and that evokes gratitude. I hope to continue learning and growing in this, and to foster that attitude in others. ControlAlexis Shaw
There are so many things in the world to be worried about and many of those things are something that we just cannot change. I have realized that when you focus on too many things, especially the ones that you can not change; it causes so much unnecessary stressors in your life. I have learned that it is better to focus on the things around me that I can control versus the ones that I cannot and even those I have chosen not to change. As I have begun to mature over the years I have not only learned a lot about myself but I have learned a lot about people in general. I have struggled with understanding why others chose not to treat others as they would want to be treated, and in trying to understand that I would at many times get hurt when those people did not treat me as such. Many people know me for having a big heart and always willing to help the next person, but they also are aware that sometimes I can be too nice. Then I always criticized myself on being too nice of a person because I was always being taken advantage of and that characteristic was becoming a negative to me. I simply cared too much and blamed not only myself but others for not being the same because I assumed that you would treat me nice because I treat you nice too. Unfortunately, many people that I have crossed paths with did not go by that motto and that wasn't something they took to heart. A lot of times I would be the one hurt because I would always expect more from people in feeling that people are generally good. I had to come to terms with that not all people were bad but that some people are just who they are and that, I cannot change. People would always tell me that I just need to stop being too nice and not allow others to step over you. That was hard to learn because I could not change me. I of course did not like that when I did something good for others and then they turn around and treat me wrong but it was so much easier for me to do the right thing and forgive them. In just forgiving others, I learned that it was just better on myself to focus on the things about myself that I can control and that is me. I feel that somethings are just out of your jurisdiction and you are doing yourself a service by only worrying about you. When you put too much of you into someone else or something else it becomes too overwhelming and I learned that you tend to lose focus on what’s most important and that is you. I have learned that you sometimes have to work with what life gives you and do what is best for you. It took me a while to understand that you cannot change people or the things around you, but that I can only change me. It could not help who I was as a person because being kind to others was just something that I was good at doing. I think that focusing on the things that I could control has allowed me to be happier in general. It has taught me that if you could control something then you would and then there wouldn’t be a point in worrying about it if you can take care of it. While there are many things in life that you cannot control, there are just as much that you can. Living by that principle continues to remind me to live each day as it is and take one thing at a time. “Nobody can hurt me without my permission”- Mahatma Ghandi, this quote helps to encourage and remind me that I can control me and to not focus on the things I cannot control. The quote sums up the life challenge that I have had to endure and help me to overcome that challenge. I think that when I forgive someone or just simply be the bigger person I am not allowing them to control me because I am choosing to control me. I am choosing to focus only on the things that I can control and again that is me. Focusing on the things you can control allows the worries in your life to decrease and you relief to increase. I seek happiness and it is much harder to obtain that if I am trying to take on more that I am supposed to. It all starts with me and I can control me, it is better to accept those things that you cannot control and spend valuable time working on those that you can. When it Rains, it PoursSaidah Wilson
I’m not going to lie to you: I’m not the most positive person out there. I thought I was, growing up. But, I’m not-especially to myself. As I’m writing this, I’m already crying. This essay hasn’t even begun yet! But, the truth will always find a way, doesn’t it? I’ve had a hard summer. I’m slowly getting over this slump I had and it’s not easy. Truth be told, I’m still working on being positive. But, life happened to me. It seemed like everything bad just kept approaching. I had debt collectors calling me morning, noon, and night. I had family issues; money issues-lack thereof, anyway. No one would hire me. To top it all off, I had a few issues with my past, of which I had suppressed for over 10 years! When all of this was happening to me, I was not being very positive about it. I started to develop a negative mindset. Luckily for me, my boyfriend pulled me out of this rut and stated that I was playing the victim in all of this. I stopped and thought about it. This whole summer, I sat and wallowed in my own problems. I whined, cried, kicked, and screamed, but I never once did anything about it. The least I could have done was look at my problems in a different light. Positive and negative thinking are two separate things. That may seem obvious, but when you choose one, you really are a different person. It’s like walking into a clear, glass box and shutting the glass doors behind you. It consumes you and fills you up with all of their charged energy. The amazing thing about this is that you can choose which box you want to walk into. You are in control. That is something no one talks about: you can choose how you want to live your life. That may sound like common sense, but all of us are guilty of getting caught up in our own day-to-day lives to the point of where we forget this common law. Let me show you the power of how thinking positive works. Those debt collectors don’t bother me anymore. As long as I paid the things that will affect me the most, such as my car or the IRS, none of that other debt matters at the moment. I visited my family about three weeks ago. Currently, they live in a different state. It was a lovely trip, may I add. With the help of my boyfriend, we redid my resume and I now have two job offers as we speak. I’m still overcoming my past, but, of course, that will take some time. All I did was look at my problems in a different light; a positive light. I’m not doomed for failure! I just needed to change a few things; my mentality, in particular. Thinking positively will do wonders on your life. The main key factor is trust. It may feel weird talking about yourself in a loving light. It may feel weird getting up and doing something about it. But, you must trust that the process of being positive will work. I must be honest, it’s very easy to walk into that negative box. Everyone is doing it. It’s a habit that’s hard to thrust off. But, we tend to forget that it sets us up for failure. When you think positively, success will just naturally happen. Now, I’m not saying that this is the easiest switch in the world. You have to work hard at it every day, continuously. It needs to become a habit. That is the stage of where I’m at today. Life forces you to choose which side you’re on. Will you join the forces of the dark side or are you one of the good ones? It’s obvious to everyone else which side you’re on. If you’re thinking positively, your aura is bright and attractive. People draw towards you and wonderful things just “magically” happen to you. When you think negatively, you’re all alone. Your aura is unappealing and bad things just always tend to happen to you. But, you must be aware of your own mentality. Remember, you’re in control. I’m throwing the word light around a lot because that’s exactly what thinking either positively or negatively is. It’s energy bouncing around constantly to give you the momentum you need to move forward. Now, there’s good light and there’s bad light. Thinking positive sends off good light and thinking negative sends off the bad light. But, no matter what, a light is always on. I learned a valuable lesson about this summer. Though it was painful to go through, had I have thought positive sooner, I could have enjoyed this summer and would have achieved a lot more. I cost myself time but gained a new perspective. Thinking positive is truly a prosperous journey to undergo. It’s worth pushing past the pain to get to the other side. So, I ask you today, which side are you on? Having an Attitude of GratitudeVinayak Pal
I believe being grateful for what one has is a key to success because gratitude creates humility, which is a quality many inspirational leaders have. No one ever hears a quote or speech from Martin Luther King Jr. or Mahatma Gandhi explaining how great they were, but on how to help society. The attitude of gratitude is something I hold onto all the time, but the process of obtaining this gratitude was a long one. I was raised by a single mother who had to provide for two sons, so I wasn’t raised like how my other friends were. I didn’t have many of the things my friends had, and I would always ask my mom the question, “Why can’t I have that?” She would always reply that we didn’t have enough money or because I didn’t need it to survive. I didn’t have my own room until I was 12 years old, and even then my “room” was a sofa in the living room. What I’ve said so far might make people think I was grateful for what I had, but as a child I wasn’t. I always wanted toys, and if I wasn’t given them, then I would throw a tantrum. My mom tried to handle my tantrums, but she eventually gave in and bought me the toys. I was spoiled until I understood my family’s financial situation around age 7, and then I started to not ask for my wants. As I was growing into my teens, I didn’t want objects anymore, but I wanted to attend different academic trips, conferences, and workshops. My mom was willing to provide these opportunities because she wanted to give me the best education possible, and that included getting these practical experiences. She also put me in one of the best private schools in the world, and I was able to improve myself not only academically but also personally. I was very grateful to my mom for providing me with the best education I could possibly get, but I my gratitude wasn’t at its height until I went to India in the winter of 2015. My mother, brother, and I were visiting India to see family. During this trip I needed to finish a school community outreach project, so I decided to help impoverished children learn English. Once I saw the students in my English class, I was so astonished. All of the children were so happy and playful, and they all lived in the ghettos of India. Their lives are more underprivileged than most people’s, but yet they seemed to have the ability to be extremely happy. During my classes, the kids learned English, and I learned about gratitude. At the end of my English class, my students were able to say basic English sentences, and I was a little sad to let them go. My English class helped me become more grateful, but teaching that class wasn’t the experience that made me as grateful as I am now. Once my English class ended, I had the opportunity to work in Mother Teresa’s Missions of Charity. The Missions of Charity is her renowned humanitarian organization. My volunteer work included washing dishes, cleaning bedding, doing laundry, hanging clothes, feeding children, and playing with the children. The children I took care of had cerebral palsy, and their parents abandoned them. The kids weren’t able to do basic human functions like go to the bathroom or eat by themselves. I could see in their eyes that they would give anything to do as much as move a finger under their own control. I saw some of the most deprived children on this planet, and this made me realize how much of my own life I took for granted. Through my volunteer work at the Missions of Charity, I became more grateful for everything I had. Since visiting India that winter, I have been more humble and grateful for my life. But, that doesn’t mean I want my life to stay the way it is. I want an affluent and adventurous life, so I can help the children who are underprivileged. I want to help impoverished children achieve a good education, so they can succeed in life. My goal in life is to create a world of love and support, and one of my actions to achieve that is to provide education for the children who can’t receive it. I am thankful for everything my mother has done for me, and now I need to show her that I will show the same love and care to the world. It took a visit to India for me to obtain an attitude of gratitude, and I am happy to have it. Through this life-changing visit, I realized I want to help the people who are in need. My mom had always taught me one thing, and that is the best feeling is to help others no matter who they are or what they’ve done. I believe in what she said, and I am grateful for everything she’s done for me. Be GratefulTiera Kimp
I have an attitude of gratitude! A principle of life would be to harness the power of gratitude. In order to do this, we must think positively, try to acknowledge the good things in our life, and have a positive attitude towards life. That can be very hard sometimes, but I am living proof that it can be done. Being a military spouse, everyone around me had a tendency of getting pregnant. Since I was in college, my husband and I decided kids were not in the cards for us now. When I found out that I was pregnant, we were both literally shocked and my son was due to be born at the end of the spring semester this year. My son came three weeks early. He came two weeks before finals and we were unprepared. My entire birth plan was thrown out the window and after twenty-eight agonizing hours in labor, I was told I had to be given an emergency C-section. I was terrified of getting surgery done and even though I was supposed to be awake the whole time, I ended up feeling things I was not supposed to feel, so my doctor knocked me out. I didn’t get to hold my son for hours after my surgery. Then, just like that I was released from the hospital feeling great, until I wasn’t. Suddenly, I wasn’t recovering properly. Fevers, body aches, etc. The er on post kept sending me home saying I was dehydrated. Finally, a midwife saw me walking slowly down the hall and stopped me in my tracks. She told me I didn’t look well. They found an infection and I had to have another emergency surgery. This second surgery I felt the lowest I had ever felt in my life because I was scared. I was afraid they were going to put a tube down my throat and I’d wake up during surgery clawing at my neck. The anesthesiologist on call not only reassured me, he got the woman who gave me my epidural to come in and help him. Seeing a familiar face kept me calm. I did not know the doctors who were going to be working on me. The staff introduced themselves but I was too numb to really remember their faces. Then I remembered finals week was the following week and I got scared again. I contacted my professors to explain what was about to happen and a miracle started to form. My math professor Mr. Rubio told me to not worry about anything, that he would figure something out for me and that I would not fail. Then my speech professor, who previously had cancer, called me from Germany to make sure I was feeling ok. He told me I had an A and that I did not need a final to pass his class, I had exceeded his expectations. I cried so much and then I was out and the surgery began. After my surgery, I woke up with my husband and new born son waiting for me in my room. In that moment, I realized as humans we take life for granted. We are so busy trying to make money or pay our bills that we forget to just live. There are so many scenarios in which I could have stayed asleep or had another complication. It took months on top of the surgeries to heal since my wound was left open so it could close naturally. There were so many days that I felt more pain than I had ever felt in my entire life, but I kept looking towards my son and I remembered what I was here for. Every day I had to go into the doctor’s office so they could reach inside the hole in my stomach and change the gauze. I never cried or complained. I laughed with them. I joked with them and I remembered to thank them and always wear a smile. Even when I was so tired I could barely stand, I smiled. I thanked every nurse, midwife, and doctor who helped me. I remembered to tell them that I appreciated everything they did for me because I really did. Not only was my surgery last minute, I was squeezed in and not scheduled. So, every nurse and doctor who worked on me had been called away from their families. One lady had been stopped on her way out to pick up her daughter. I cannot find the words to express how grateful I am to everyone involved. I can only live this new life with my head held high. Raise my son to be the best person he can be. I can only thank God for this second chance to be more grateful and kind. To be more positive! Law of AttractionEric Reynolds
ASU The law of attraction can change your life if you fully believe and understand how the law of attraction works. I strongly believe that your predominant thoughts or feelings towards something you really want will come to you, and therefore, you have total control over reality just by your conscious and unconscious thoughts alone. Everything in the world is made up of energy which vibrates at a certain level. Vibrations are feelings in the body. When you’re happy you give off positive vibrations, and when you’re upset they are negative. The law of attraction states “you get what you think about; your thoughts determine your destiny.” All thoughts have energy, vibration and resonance which attract other thoughts of the same energy. The way the law of attraction works is if you know exactly what you want, pretend and act as if the object you desire is coming and being open to receiving it, it shall come to you. By having negative thoughts or doubts the law of attraction won’t work. It’s all about having the right mind set and to the certain level of how you think about the object you desire. In life, you attract yourself to whatever you give your full energy, focus, and attention to, whether it’s wanted or unwanted. You create your own reality whether you do it intentionally. People attract other people or situations that match your vibrations. When you really want something, you need to attract more of what you want rather than unconsciously attracting what you don’t. For example, if you’re thinking and focusing all your attention on not finishing or getting something, you want or need, it most likely won’t happen because of negative thoughts and energy. When I really want something, I won’t stop thinking or striving for it until I have it. That’s usually why I get what I want. I’ve experienced the law of attraction working in my favor twice in the past 2 years. Last year I really wanted a brand-new car; I would look at the car online constantly and picture myself driving the car. One day my dad surprised me and the car I had been obsessing over was in my garage. Another example is this year; all I had been thinking about in the beginning of the year was getting into Arizona State University. I would imagine myself going to that school in the fall and every time I got the mail I would picture pulling out the acceptance letter. I received my letter, and I will be attending ASU in the fall. I believe people should be more goal oriented, if you obtain a goal, and a burning desire with a positive mentality, nothing can hold you back. Whatever we believe, we can achieve. Most of the time people are off course, that’s why it is so important to write, affirm, visualize and believe with strong emotion of what we want to stay on course. To help me stay on course I have a success journal and a vision board. As of now, I know where I’m going. I’m so grateful and excited knowing I have my whole life in front of me equipped with the tools I need to succeed by knowing and strongly believing in the law of attraction. It has changed my life in certain ways for the better and has changed my thoughts and mentality towards life. “What you have become is the result of what you have thought” –Buddha. Most of us float along with experiences of life. When everything is going smoothly like we want, we are happy. If we end up in bad situations, we throw a temper tantrum and complain about how unlucky we are at life. Being the passive observers, we assume the role of victim when something happens to us that we didn't want happened. The knowledge of Law of Attraction helps us to wake up to the fact that everything that is happening in our lives is only the result of what we are constantly feeling and thinking. This fact can liberate us from the position of a passive observer to a proactive one. A person with a negative attitude towards life wakes up and sees only negativity all around. He sees that sad things are happening to him and might even feel like he is cursed. But Law of Attraction tells us that we can consciously choose our life experiences and by thinking and feeling positively, we can change our realities for the better. Law of Attraction works through the power of focus. As you shift your focus from negative to positive, you start to change the experiences and completely change your life. You may be a person who has no idea what the Law is or you may be a person who already knows a little about how the law works or you may be someone who has already achieved some success by implementing the Law's principles in your daily life. PossibilitiesMarcus Recile
In our vast universe of absolutely endless possibilities, we humans have a very hard time making sense of it all. We sometimes even think how could anything ever work in our favor in a universe so unfathomably large. We forget that everything and anything we are surrounded by have vibrations that respond to relative frequencies. This means that all of our manifested thoughts and emotions aren’t just intangible things we can’t see, but instead they are the true building blocks of our reality. I have spent 21 years on this planet so far and did not realize I had been utilizing the Law of attraction until I came to college. I am currently pursuing a biology major with a minor in business management at Utica college. To be honest I originally came to college to pursue a career in physical therapy driven by a selfish vision of obtaining wealth doing something I knew I didn’t love at a college I chose at random. This all changed after my first visit when the campus greenhouse mysteriously caught my eye and a new seed was unconsciously planted in the back of my mind. Initially when I was first getting everything acquainted with my schedule and classes, I figured if I were to have a work study job it might as well be something I can actually enjoy. So I applied to the greenhouse and hoped for the best. In reality, I had no previous knowledge of running a greenhouse, let alone any real knowledge of plants except for giving them water. On the first day my supervisor told me to do what I felt needed to be done. This caught me off guard because I really had no idea what I was supposed to do, nor was I expecting such freedom. At first I was afraid of such responsibility because I truly had to be an independent thinker and discipline myself. Starting off nearly all of the plants were dying and poorly cared for with little hope for better days. I saw great potential in this place that no one else did and felt morally obligated to bring it back to life. The only problem was I didn’t really know how to accomplish this at first. I knew I was going to have to work hard, but also rely on the some simple principles that would help me along the way. My two favorite basic principles from the book “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne were finally being put to use by my mental arsenal. Although I felt hopeless at some moments I began applying the principle that “like attracts like’ and started to think about who or what can help me on this botanical journey. Shortly after adopting this mindset, the synchronicity of events were occurring. Coincidently, retired professors who have pristine horticultural skills miraculously found their way into my life. They taught me how to properly clone plants, manipulate soil mixes and some basic pest management skills. From that point on I started making real progress on rejuvenating the greenhouse. With persistence, patience and some lively vibes I collected and cloned a myriad of new plants full of color and personality. The euphoria of mental and physical progression became addicting and something hit me like a speeding bullet. I realized that my unique experience of working in this facility is truly like no other. Most work study jobs are merely just a chore for most students and that wasn’t the case for me.The Utica college greenhouse has given me the opportunity to observe and spread life all throughout my campus. Each and everyday I am blessed to walk into a sanctuary full of vibrant life and have nothing but endless gratitude for these circumstances. Applying the principle of gratitude allowed me to appreciate where I was and clearly define where I wanted to go. Adopting this mindset I started to see this greenhouse as my source of self enlightenment here a Utica college. The priceless gift of academic liberation had been given to me. Shortly after I came to the realization that I wanted others to enjoy this place just as much as I do. The beauty of our greenhouse should be shared with everyone. I started to analyze what the greenhouse could offer to the community that would truly benefit everyone. After much deep thought and concentration it came to me. Making Utica college a more sustainable campus was something that could truly help everyone. So with many big dreams it is good to always start small. My first endeavors started with raising money by selling vegetables and flowers through my organization the Asa Gray Biological Society. My Asa Gray growers assist me in creating a new profound interest for plants and the environment amongst our community. We offer everyone on campus a wide range of herbs, vegetables, and flowers throughout the year. Our greenhouse facilities aren’t very spacious or updated, but we make it work. I knew the most of the materials in the greenhouse needed updating so I focused our efforts there. A portion of the money raised is used to help the organization with donations and other events they decide to participate in. Majority of the money is cycled back into the improvement of the greenhouse replacing old outdated materials with more efficient materials. This allows me to provide the students and faculty of UC with pristine botanical services they deserve. I do not settle for anything other than the best of the UC community. Then I wanted to give more, but on a deeper level. I knew there was more to offer and sure enough I found it. My next goal was to improve the campus in terms of how we use our resources and finances. This lead me to the methods of composting and worm farming. These innovative methods allow me to take unwanted organic materials and recycle them to our advantage. Composting our resources on campus benefits everyone starting on a large scale. Fortunately for me I was privileged to make agreements with the regional sustainability manager of Sodexo to collect coffee grounds to compost. We are using coffee grounds to start with in hopes that we can create a network of compost collections from many locations on campus. Larger resources such as the cafeteria can possibly be utilized to our advantage with newly fabricated composting networks. I mainly use a tumbling composter purchased through our fundraising efforts to use the decaying materials produced by the plants in the greenhouse and my own house full of plants. The disregarded plant materials are put into the composter to produce nutrient rich material that can reapplied to the plants in the greenhouse. I also mix the compost with our potting soil reducing the amount used, thus cutting the costs of soil purchases in half. Substituting my resources appropriately maximizes profit and cuts the cost of materials for the biology department. In addition to the composter, I also have the ingenious system of my worm farm. The worm farm is basically culturing worms as pets that work for you in exchange. I know it sounds gross, but the benefits outweigh the nauseating thought of pet worms. A portion of the groceries I buy contributes to the food needed for the worms. Integrating my expenses with the environment lets me allocate my money more efficiently without burning holes in my wallet or the atmosphere. My organic waste such eggshells, vegetable scraps, and other kitchen waste is feed to the worms and in return they produce a rich compost. I use this material to brew a natural fertilizer commonly known as worm tea created purely from organic materials. The fertilizer is helps reduce the cost of other synthetic fertilizers that are needed in our facilities. The worm tea we use also provides our plants with healthy nutrients and reduces the release of excess nitrogen into the local water system. I am truly honored to manage this greenhouse full of infinite potential. I have learned that nothing is definite and there is always another way to get solutions. I know with a drive for constant improvement the possibilities for Utica college and the rest of the world are truly endless. So you ask how I use the law of attraction? I am living a self created dream of true intellectual freedom here at Utica college. I am truly excited by the challenges of reviving this greenhouse for the advancement of Utica college and myself as an individual. I believe by adopting a more environmentally conscious mindset would not just be bold move for tomorrow but for years to come. I hope you stick around because this is only the beginning. Change Your State of MindAustin Dias
I am currently a junior biology major from Bristol, Connecticut attending Loyola Marymount University. I am not here to tell you all of the negative things that have affected my life. Nor am I here to tell you how much financial strain myself and my family endure. I am simply here to tell you that my entire life has been transformed by changing my state of mind. I am thankful to share that the most difficult thing that happened in my life was the divorce of my parents at the age of 8. This event taught me to only focus on things I can control. Could I control whether my parents wanted to be together anymore? Could I control their happiness? The answer to these questions is without a doubt, no. I quickly realized that this decision was not my fault, or that of my two brothers. The liberation that accompanied this change of mind was life changing. This event, which others may seem as sad or devastating, positively changed my outlook on life. At such young age I learned that some things are beyond your control and you have to learn to live with this adversity. At this point I began to really take interest in school and knowledge. My mother was working a lot, while my dad often traveled for work, so I occupied my time with additional reading, extra homework problems, and tutoring from the mentors at my after school center. Education was the one thing I was fully invested in. Further into my adolescence around the time I was a freshman in high school I knew that my success was one of the things that purely lied in my hands. Nobody else would put in the hard work for me, this would all have to be done by myself. The interesting thing was that school did not come easy for me. I enrolled in accelerated classes and was challenged beyond belief. As a three sport athlete, I had little free time and a lot of late nights finishing homework and studying. I was discouraged because I looked around at other students in my class and it seemed to be so easy to them. I had confided in my parents and told them that I wanted to be put back in regular courses, but they refused. I was told not to worry about anyone else, but myself. They explained to me that I could only focus on myself and trust in my own abilities. From that moment on, I did not care whether an assignment took me hours upon hours to complete I was completely devoted to being the best student I could be. My parents were never persistent about my grades or doing my homework because that was expected of me. They had always instilled in me that I was old enough to know that education and individual success was something I could control. I couldn’t control whether my mom was home for dinner because she had a second job, but I could control my grades and reach my full potential. In the beginning of my junior year in high school my father moved across the country for a job opportunity, another event that was out of my control. The reason I am so successful today is because I have never let unexpected obstacles negatively affect me. I have always embraced the challenges and turned negative into positives by focusing on the things in my power. Focusing on things in my control has taught me that entitlement does not exist. You will not be granted anything you do not deserve. There are always some things that are in your control and it is these things which we must fully embrace if we desire success. I truly believe that focusing on things in your control closely relates to the concept of knowing what we deserve. Did I deserve to have divorced parents? I am not sure. Did I deserve to see my mom work twelve hour days to support myself and my brothers? Maybe not. Do I deserve to be successful because of all the hard work I put in? Yes. In theory I have done everything right from getting into college, accomplishing a 3.30 GPA on a pre med track, and making all the correct decisions throughout the way. Despite all of this, I may never complete college and be able to go to medical school because I am no longer able to afford it. I am not trying to evoke any sympathy for myself. This is the reality of life; these are the things out of my control. An individual can deserve something, but never receive it. I guess the only reason I can give for deserving this scholarship is to be justified that hard work does pay off and the things out of my control won’t affect my dream within my control. Positive ThinkingJalil Rashawn
The Achieve Today Scholarship Fund will support any applicant. I consider myself to be this applicant because the scholarship will help me for what I want to achieve in my future. This scholarship won’t just help me, but also my family. My name is Jalil McDougald and I am a student at Hampton University. I am raised and supported by a single parent. I lived in poverty in some moments in my life, but I did not allow that to waiver me off my path. Throughout my years in grade school, I always aim to achieve the best. Earning a high GPA every grade year. In sixth grade, I was granted the Academic Presidential Award. This award is given to students who not only have a high GPA, but excel themselves and others around them to do better. This award is given to small group of students around the nation. After earning the award, I set myself a determine goal to go to college. Once I arrived in high school, I started to work hard in my school work. Some moments was difficult because I also played sports. I was on my high school wrestling, football, and track team. My teachers and coaches assisted me with help to overcome the difficult obstacles. I was fortunate to earn a associates degree in education when I graduated high school. This achievement made me feel one step closer towards my career goals. I had troubling times just to enroll into college because of financial needs. My mother tried her hardest to put me in college. I felt awful because I knew she was stressing herself out because of this situation. I applied to multiple scholarships but it still wasn’t enough to pay all my tuition. My mother had to rely on her last option to get a loan. At first my mother was denied because of her own student loans wasn’t paid off. Fortunately she was still able to get a plus loan. I know my mother wont be able to do the same thing this year. This situation made my will for achieving my goals even stronger. I want to achieve a master’s degree in architecture and I also want to own a business license. My career goal is to own a construction company. I want to design buildings to support the unprivileged citizens who can not obtain many resources. I believe this will help our nation to become strong and less deprived. First I will build houses and company buildings for the public. Then I will use some of the profit to construct buildings such as shelters, schools, and recreations for the citizens that live in poverty. I will never wish upon on anybody on what I went through in my life. I will also make a scholarship system to help the younger generations. In order to help our nation to succeed we need to help the future citizens. I used my positive thinking and determination to progress myself where I am today. Thank you for you consideration and I hope you can choose me for the scholarship. Think PositiveBeryl Brame
"Look on the bright side…" Sometimes when someone says that we really just want to give them a good punch in the face because it's not easy to look on the bright side all the time; sometimes there doesn't seem to be a bright side at all, for that matter. When you're in a slump, it's so much easier to just focus on the negative. But it doesn't help. In fact, focusing on the negative just makes it worse, right? So what do you do? What is the million dollar answer to being able to see that oh so elusive bright side? I'm afraid I don't have a definite answer. Sorry! What I do have is this: list all the stuff that's going right, not the things that are going wrong but the things that are going right. You might be surprised what a little positive thinking can do for you. Don't believe me? Let me see if I can persuade you. I used to play soccer on a local league. Two of my favorite coaches, who were actually a married couple, told this to my team one season, "you're going to win some and you're going to lose some, that's just the way the game is." In other words, things don't always go the way you want them too, no matter how hard you've practiced. These wise words from my coaches prompted me to always look on the bright sides of my games. I was never super competitive (just moderately competitive; I was in it for the fun of the game) but some of my teammates would get discouraged at times because we were down by a few points. I would remind them that we'd held off the other team for quite a while before they scored and that the game wasn't over yet and other encouraging things depending on how the game had played out so far. It was a way to get their spirits up and remind them that while the competition was fun, it was still just a game. This kind of thinking helped me as well, not just in soccer games but also in life especially a few years after I ended my local soccer career. I went through a stage of pretty mild depression from the age of about 15-16 and it was super hard. The 'press' in depression is extreme. I had a really hard time that year but one thing that kept me going was looking at the positive things; I had family and friends who loved me and supported me and I had many ways to find peace during such a trying time in my life. My religious beliefs also really helped me during this time. Many things helped me when during that year and positive thinking played a big role in that. I don't know if I would have gotten through it without that attitude. Positive thinking, in my opinion, is more than just saying, "well, things may be hard but at least the sun is out and it's not raining." And sometimes it means that you don't fully believe the positive thing you're trying to focus on because sometimes you just have to follow the adage of "fake it till you make it." It doesn't mean you can't recognize the hardships and trials in life; it's not being super upbeat about everything and every circumstance you enter. But I'll tell you what I think positive thinking is: it's not giving up. Mary Anne Radmacher in her 2009 book Courage Doesn't Always Roar said "Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'" I agree. It can take courage and sometimes creativity to be positive. So I'll slightly tweak the above quote to this: "Sometimes positivity is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'" Attitude is everything, as they say, and it's true. They say that, if for example, you think to yourself, "I'm going fail at this job interview" then you will. Now, in all honesty, I cannot say for myself that that's true because I've never risked it, but I do know that if you think positively then even if it doesn't work out, you have all these good things to focus on instead; I've experienced that a lot during soccer games and I think that definitely contributed to my love of the sport because I knew it was just a game and I was just there to have fun and no matter how badly we might have been doing, we still had a lot of good moments as well. Still don't believe me? I won't force you to, I can't. But before you totally throw this idea in the gutter, try it. Think about five things that are going right in your life. Five things, that's all. Do that for a month and see what happens. It doesn't have to be big, it could be as simple as "a man at the store held the door open for me today," or "it didn't rain today." Try it, you just might be surprised at what a little positive thinking can do for you. The Power of Positive ThinkingMike Fitzgerald
When I was just seventeen, I received the four worst words any baseball player could hear in their career; “You need Tommy John”. For those unfamiliar, Tommy John surgery is a surgery in which the UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) in the elbow is replaced, either by a ligament in the leg or from a cadaver. UCL surgery is the end all for most professional baseball careers; success rate for a full recovery is around than 50%, and even then, many players are mere shadows of their former selves on the field. With professional pitchers defying physics and learning new ways to throw a baseball harder each year (and thus, more pressure on the elbow), Tommy John is becoming more common than the game would like to admit. Those usually receiving the detrimental news are professionals, however, not a 17-year- old high school teenager. When the doctor told me that I had a full tear in my elbow and the only treatment was surgery, I couldn’t understand how this could happen to me. My dream of receiving a scholarship to play college baseball was seemingly ruined. With surgery imminent, my junior and senior seasons in high school would be taken away from me, as I would have to undergo therapy on my elbow for close to two years if I even wanted a chance in throwing a baseball again. Once I informed the numerous schools that were recruiting me of my injury, they all backed away. The excuses varied from, ‘Give me a call after the surgery and we’ll stay in touch’ to ‘We have decided to pursue other players’. However, one school, Northeastern University, stuck with me. They had seen me play before I was injured and offered me a spot on the team if I would diligently work on my elbow treatment plan. I nearly jumped through the ceiling of my bedroom when the coach called me and offered a spot on the team. Even after enduring the mental distress of seeing my dreams slip through my hands with this surgery, I caught a break. I was going to be a Division One baseball player. I knew recovery from surgery would be hard, but I thought it would be physically challenging, not mentally. Every day, I would have to repeat the same four exercises, which would take a total of an hour to complete. While seemingly simple, doing this same routine every day for a year straight is mentally exhausting. However, the monotonous treatment would have been more bearable had it worked. As I stated earlier, just because one undergoes the surgery, it does not mean the surgery will work. However, even while I diligently stuck to my prescribed treatment, it wasn’t working. I underwent three cortisone shots in my elbow to reduce the swelling and inflammation that was refusing to go away. I was desperate to get back to the elite level of pitching I knew I was capable of and would do anything the doctor suggested. Heading into my freshman season at Northeastern, I was finally back to the skill level I was at in high school. While the recovery took eighteen grueling months of countless doctor visits and therapy sessions, I didn’t regret a single day. I was blowing away the competition at college and my elbow was at full strength. Deep down, I knew I could compete at a higher level than the league in which Northeastern competed in, but I was loyal to the school since they stuck with me in my hard times. I became the closer my freshman year of college for the team, which is the pitcher that comes in at the end of the game to get the final three outs to win the game. Usually reserved for older and more experienced players, the coaches knew what they had in me and trusted in me to get the most important three outs of the game to make sure the team won. Just when everything was finally right in my baseball world, another pop occurred in my arm halfway through the year, this time in my shoulder. After another trip back to the doctor, I learned I would need another surgery to clean out torn ligaments in my shoulder if I was going to continue my baseball career. This time, I did some thorough soul searching. Did I want to go through another arm surgery? What if I can’t come back from this surgery? I didn’t know if I was mentally capable of enduring another arm surgery. The possibility that my childhood passion would be coming to an end starting becoming very realistic. After deep reflection, I decided that I was not about to let an injury end my career and underwent my second arm surgery in two and a half years, which, as a twenty-year-old, is very uncommon. Many of my friends and even teammates said it was time to give up baseball, but I wasn’t ready to stop playing just because the odds were against me. Much like the last surgery, I woke up early every morning to get my treatment done. Watching my college teammates come up short in the conference tournament days before my second surgery only motivated me more to come back stronger than I’ve ever been. I knew my team needed me and I vowed to work harder than I ever have to make it back onto the field. Like the last surgery, I was able to make a full recovery, this time in only six months, and return to full strength. While the two arm surgeries took a toll on me mentally, the work I put in to make sure I would play again has paid off. Heading into my senior season, I have already set four program records at Northeastern. As the closer, I set the record for most saves in a season as a closer and most saves in a career. On top of this achievement, I also set the record for most games pitched in a season and most games pitched in a career. I was able to use these records to pitch my way into the prestigious Cape Cod baseball league, which is the best summer league in the country for college baseball players. Spots on these teams are usually reserved for players from top tier collegiate teams. While Northeastern may not have this prestige, my stats at my smaller school were too good to ignore. I was finally playing at the level I knew I was always capable of playing at coming out of high school. Even on this team which consisted of top Major League Baseball prospects, I pitched in the most games out of anyone on my team. While I might not have garnered much attention from Major League scouts due to my smaller stature, being able to hold my own against the best talent in the country allowed me to prove to myself that I had the ability to play with the best players at the collegiate level. When I look back at those two moments in my life, I couldn’t be more prideful in the fact that I chose to stick with pursuing my life passion in playing baseball. I could have taken the less difficult course and let one of the two surgeries end my baseball career. I believe it shows that when I am passionate about something, I will not let any obstacle stop me, no matter how daunting the path. Going through those two surgeries at such a young age has also shown me how to never take anything for granted, as everything you know can be an elbow or shoulder tear away from being taken away. Receiving this scholarship would be a great honor. With my baseball career now behind me, I am ready to move onto the next phase of my life. I have been accepted to Thomas Kline Law School at Drexel University and will begin class in the fall. Getting over baseball has been a tough journey for me, since I have devoted countless hours perfecting my craft and overcoming many obstacles along the way. However, I have come at peace with the fact that I will no longer be able to play the sport I love. Now, my new task will be competing in the classroom to become the best lawyer I can be. I know that my determination on the field will correlate to confidence in the classroom to compete with the best young minds in Philadelphia. The Power of Positive ThinkingMichelle Steen
Arizona State University There are 2 types of people in this world, the glass half full and glass half empty. I have always been the optimistic type and always believe that everything will just work out in the end. I also believe that it was this positive thinking that made everything seem to work out when things hit the ceiling fan. I had never had anything good come when I only focused on stress, fear, or what the outcome of a situation could be. I once read a story about negative thinking and fear. It was about a man that was walking in the wilderness and came across a bear. He was so overcome with fear that all he did was run in panic while he knew he could not outrun the bear. His fear kept him from thinking about other options such as picking up a stick or climbing a tree. I think the point of the story was that if you only think about the negative you will never see the positive or the option of a positive outcome. I am 30 years old and a mother to three wonderful children. After high school, I was prepared to go to college to live out my future dreams, of course, a few weeks after I had gotten my acceptance letters I also received a letter from the doctor saying that you are going to be a mother. I was so overcome with happiness that I didn’t see the negative effects of not being able to go to school at that moment. Later, in life I knew I would still have the opportunity to go back to school. It would only be a little later than expected. Now I have the best of both worlds. Positive thinking has gotten me so many places and I have lived a happier life for it. Focusing on Things You Can ControlNadia Davis
We often get upset when we can’t control everything such as our financial situation, family situation, and what happens in the future. Life doesn’t work that way; we weren’t created to control everything. We were created to explore life and see how our minds tells us to deal with certain situations. However, just because we can’t control everything doesn’t mean we can’t control some things. The point is how do we deal with the things we can’t control so we can focus on the things we can control. Sometimes the things we can’t control overwhelm us more than the things we can control and that’s because we focus on them more than we should. We must face the fact that there are some things we can’t control. According to Lori Deschene’s article “ 5 Things You Can’t Control” from Tinybuddah.com, we can’t change what other people think about us, what other people do, and we can’t control the outcome of our efforts. What people think about us are their pinons and opinions are thoughts not facts. Let’s face it as people we do what we want no matter what anyone tells us because we want to believe that we can make the right decisions and when we don’t, we hope we learn from them. Moreover, we can never predict the future; therefore, we can’t know if our hard work will pay off. So, what’s the point on focusing on these things that we can’t control, why not focus on the things we can control? According to Catherine Goldberg’s article “The Only 7 Things You Can Control In Life” from Greatlist.com, there are so numerous things we can control such as: our breathing, gratitude, mental and physical fitness, and so on. These are the simple things that we should focus on. With breathing, all we have to do is inhale and exhale. Showing gratitude is saying thank you, we practice that in kindergarten, our parents teaches us this each and every day until we have it instilled in our minds. Whether to be healthy or not is a decision we make, better yet it’s a decision we can control. If we want to be healthy and fit, we eat our fruits and vegetables, we go to the gym, but if we choose to be unhealthy, we eat junk food and sit on the couch all day. Although, these are small things we can control, how do we focus them, rather than the things we can’t control, those are the ones that get us stressed out? According to Toria Sheffield’s article “9 Ways To Deal With Things You Can’t Control” from BDG, Inc., you want to start the with the obvious question: “Can I control this?” If the answer is no, then move on to the things you can answer yes to. The next step is to reframe your perspective by asking: “is it’s a big deal?” Lastly, accept the imperfections no matter how big or small they are. The world is not perfect. There are things in life we can’t control such as people’s opinions, what people do, and the outcome of our efforts. Then there are the things we can control: our breathing, gratitude, and mental and physical fitness. Some people stress themselves out by focusing on the things they can’t control because they feel they can’t help it when there are so many worries and they pile up. There are simple steps to they can take: ask themselves whether or not they can control the situation and if it’s a big deal, and finally accept the fact that the world is imperfect. Yes, it’s hard but it’s not impossible, you can write out these steps on a sticky note and stick them on the refrigerator or mirror and wake up with a smile on your face. Your Fate is Your OwnForrest Ogden
Arizona State University Charles R. Swindoll once wrote, “I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.” We have all most likely heard quotes very similar to this at some point in our existence, but has it ever been truly registered or applied to our lives? As human beings, we have within us the capacity to not only create such wise pieces of advice, but upon reading them, to extract and assign intellectual and spiritual meaning which further motivates us to do great things. Our complex and seemingly infinite consciousness is our tool to further our species by means of bettering ourselves and those around us. We do this by not only educating ourselves and contributing to society, but most importantly, awakening ourselves within to discover who we are and to find our sense of purpose while in the midst of what feels like a hurricane. In the world we live in, this pursuit of identity can be scary and overwhelming; however, I strongly feel that I learn more from my mistakes than I do my achievements. Perhaps life really is 10% of what happens to us and 90% how we react to it, but how do we learn to adopt said principle and implement it into our reality? The Law of Attraction according to Psychology Today is, “the belief that the universe creates and provides for you that which your thoughts are focused on.” Again, due to the nature of our existence and also in reviewing history, we are able to see the unbelievable power that words can have in our lives. A word can represent more than just letters from the alphabet, but rather an idea or concept. This is how our minds work as subjective and spiritual beings: we give meaning and importance to those words or conceptions that “strike a chord,” within us. For me, the law of attraction was that which struck the chord, as it resonated in my mind and felt “right,” for me. Referring to the previous statements, I assigned a level of meaning to this concept within myself; So much so, that it began to impact not only my life, but my mindset, that is, my perception of the world and all therein in relation to how it all affects me. The Law of Attraction meant focusing on and getting what I wanted, perhaps not today, and maybe not tomorrow, but having the constant visualization and thoughts to reach that goal motivated me to achieve what I previously thought impossible. The best and most current example in my life is that I am very intimidated to go back to school and pursue my Bachelor’s degree in Spanish. This is because I had continuously doubted myself and my abilities. However, because of the wisdom and confidence that I have received from advice such as that stated above, I can begin to understand that my mindset is the source of the problem, and that it is actually me creating those feelings of self-doubt and insecurity. The law of attraction would essentially state that because I genuinely focus on the degree, truly want it and believe that I will get it, the universe will allow for that opportunity to unfold, potentially in the best of ways, far beyond my expectations. Another important idea that changed my life and allowed for concepts such as the Law of Attraction to flourish within me is the search for happiness paradox. The search for happiness and the Law of Attraction can go hand-in-hand and upon learning about it, it helped me greatly to push forward and press on until I achieved what I wanted in my life. The following is a personal summary of what the search for happiness means to me: “If one searches for happiness, one will never find it.” This may seem grim and bleak, but it is actually an extremely motivational and positive message. How so? The search for happiness paradox tells us that our own happiness is shaped and formed by our search for it. Ergo, what we deem in our lives as “that which makes us happy,” will do so. In contrast, if we keep searching for something to make us happy, it never will. This is because while searching for all of those things to validate our happiness, we miss what is right in front of us. I believe that this is where the phrase “It’s the little things in life that matter,” comes from. The Law of Attraction can coincide with this concept in that focusing your intent on not complicating your own happiness rather than relying on a fallible search for it will, in turn, affix your reality so that you begin to be closer to that goal you have set. Going back to college, wondering if you will get the job you applied for, managing stress, anxiety, depression, whatever it may be, all rely on you. You and you alone, are the brains of the operation and the boss of your life. Although it seems that many events in our life end negatively rather than positively, it is up to us to seek and out and learn those lessons that mold and shape our patterns of thinking and ultimately, our feelings and personality. The beauty of learning from your mistakes is that you will always make them, thus it is up to you learn enough so as to allow yourself to prevent them in the future. Without making every mistake and overcoming all failures that have passed, and will continue to pass, we would lack the measure and ability to value our successes as well as our achievements that fulfill our life so. Concepts such as the Law of Attraction and the searching for happiness paradox are just two out of the vast amount of ideas, phrases, or even symbols that, if given the chance, we can allow to influence our consciousness and enlighten our minds so that we too may pass on words of peace, wisdom, and spiritual fortitude. StrugglesShevon Alexander
One might find it difficult to understand how someone like Shevon Alexander is able to perform exceptionally in light of the difficulties I face. My struggles have served as a form of motivation to continue striving for excellence. I have been blessed with an academic talent that I will use to overcome my current situation. My confidence, willingness to work hard, and undaunted perseverance are attributes that I have developed that have kept me successful thus far. In spite of the disheartening situations I have experienced, I am happy that my determination grew and it has made me a resilient person. I am well deserving of this scholarship based on the circumstances I have endured and my ability to remain focused and excel regardless of dismaying events. I grew up in a single parent home in one of the poorest villages in Grenada. My mom worked various jobs to ensure that my sister and I were taken care of and never went hungry. We walked two miles to and from primary school each day since we couldn’t afford bus fare. I graduated valedictorian from my primary school and earned a uniform and books scholarship to take me through my five years of secondary school. This came in very handy as my mom soon became unemployed. In the third form of secondary school my mom left the island to pursue personal business. My sister was left by my aunt and me, by myself. I still went to school despite having no money. I worked at the canteen to earn lunch each day and waited for rides from my teachers to and from school. The library became my favourite place on evenings as I waited to travel home. Much support was given to me by my teachers and I was provided with guidance counselling. This was one of the driving forces towards me successfully graduating top of my class with the best performance in the school for the Caribbean external exams (CSEC). Upon hearing of my success at the exams my father contacted Social Services so he can unite with me. It was very hard to accept him but I did. He began to take care of my financial needs for the first two months of college then told me I had to drop out because the bus fares were too expensive to travel to the town where the college was located. That didn’t stop me. I went out to college each day and sure enough I received rides from many kind strangers, and sometimes teachers, to and from college. I also worked in the tuckshop there to earn lunch each day. I remained undeterred and graduated from college with honors in Natural Science and Mathematics. There are many other struggles I can share but they are too many to mention. My first year at MSU has been one of struggles for me also but I was able to maintain a GPA of 3.74. Added to this I am the proud recipient of the award for Most Outstanding Student in Organic Chemistry 2016/2017. The most important lesson learnt was to never let anyone tell you “you can’t”. Always keep pressing toward your goals. I believe that I can use my experience to inspire and motivate others. If given the opportunity to be the proud recipient of this scholarship I would be very honoured and humbled. It will encourage me to know that someone cares about my efforts and they support my struggle as I strive to be a successful medical engineer. Having GratitudeMireya Villalobos
I could the feel the juvenile sweat running down my temples as the brazen sun cascaded its rays upon my being. I looked around aimlessly, “Where are they? “I thought, scanning the towering trees— my back pressed against the panels of my house. My heart raced faster: ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum. Never had a game of hide and seek been so intense. Soon enough, however, it was not my child hood friends that I was searching for; it was a concept, hiding far beyond my backyard trees, longing—rather than dreading—my discovery of its presence. This ideal was purpose. When looking holistically at a map, my neighborhood, Minooka, is but a speck upon the vast land that comprises Illinois. A town so small, that most individuals respond with an immediate expression of puzzlement and hesitation to believe such a place actually exists. But my story does not end where Minooka begins, for this small place sprouted an immense need to make gold where, presumably, charcoal resided. This charcoal encapsulated the fact that both my parents were born within the rugged terrain of Jalisco, Mexico, where wealth and riches are measured in cattle and smiles, rather than monetary possessions. Needless to say, education was a far set novelty that my mom and dad could not feasibly reach, for my grandparent’s scope of school perpetuated education’s impracticality in their times. As a result, my father completed up to the fourth grade and my mom the fifth, all the while living with the burden of early morning chores and nagging poverty. I wore the black streaks as a result of such an upbringing in my perception; success was a far cry for a girl with the dark eyes of immigrant parents and the dark hair of adversity. However, like my parents, I never allowed the prominent smudges on my face to dictate the person I would mold into glistening metal. From their agonizing journey, I paved the brick rode of clarity, seeing beyond the darkness of my predisposed path and into the trailblazing generation of shining prospects. Of those golden prospects emerged gratitude--an appreciation for my journey as well as those before me. For my family, education was not an unalienable right, rather, it was a rarity within each generation. With that said, when my older brother, Miguel, first held his acceptance letter to a major university, he wiped the charcoal from his brow with the promise of new found hope. He was the first, but he would not be the last. I took the glistening, golden brick he left at home and ran with it, for I craved to carry on the new legacy and definitively close down the coal mine of missed opportunities where my parent’s child hood remained. Revolutionizing generation after generation, education embodies immense and unremitting power, for its captivating holds imprints the histories of cultures past, the adaptation of the progressing now, and the incessant changes of today’s oncoming future. The Law of AttractionMichael Nguyen
The Law of Attraction is essentially the belief that positive energy, thoughts, and focus will in turn attract good things into your life. In turn, negative thoughts and energy will inevitably attract bad things. This law is one that I have followed unknowingly for years during times of hardship. Most recently, this law has helped me handle the stresses of affording college as well as cope with the loss of a loved one. The history of the Law of Attraction is foggy, but it is clear that this law and similar laws were the result of several different religions. Hinduism and Buddhism for example is famous for their concept of karma, which is the law that your thoughts and actions whether good or bad, will always return to you. Currently, the Law of Attraction stems from the “New Thought” branch of philosophy. Although there is little to no scientific backing to this idea, many famous and successful people swear by its benefits and have managed to gain much from it. Authors such as Wallace D. Wattles and Napoleon Hill, who are well-known for their books The Science of Getting Rich and Think and Grow Rich respectively, list Law of Attraction as one of the key components to gaining large amounts of wealth in your life. Their experience and understand of the subject is that someone who is not wealthy and only sees themselves as not wealthy and nothing more will never be able to change their financial state until they change their mental state. Additionally, they bring up the idea that unhappy and unsatisfied people who focus their mental and emotional effort on all that they see wrong in their lives will nearly always miss opportunities and positive prospects that could change their life. Before learning of the Law of Attraction in the self-development books I read, the law was simply a habit I built for myself during times of strain. Most recently, I found this law come into effect the summer before I started college. At the time, my parents had both recently lost their jobs and I was told that I would have to be responsible for paying for school. Of course, this would not have been an issue had I known this would happen earlier, but you can’t always prepare for life. Initially, I was very anxious for my family’s future as well as my own. Many people were counting on me to do well and provide for my family and the pressure was nearly unbearable. However, I soon began to focus on what I could do to better the situation rather than focusing and thinking about how unfortunate it is that we were put into this situation. Sure enough, I soon after found a wonderful job to work part-time that would minimally affect how well I do in school and managed to receive more financial aid after contacting the school. Had I focused on the negatives, I would have missed these wonderful opportunities and perhaps not be able to afford school. Similarly, this law came showed its value while I was having trouble coping with the loss of a loved one. This person was one of the most significant individuals in my life and had made a huge impact in my growth as a person. The loss was unexpected and I was completely unprepared for the situation. After the initial grieving period, I remembered of this particular law and began to make the small but necessary changes in my thinking and focus to recover from the grief. While losing someone important will always be hard, I understood that this is a necessary part of life that will help you grow as a person. I learned to focus on the wonderful memories I had with this person and how different my life would be if I had never met her. Moreover, I began to focus on what I could do to remedy these sad feelings such as spending more time with people who are close to me. By following this law of attraction I not only strengthened the bonds I had with my already close friends and family, I met and befriended countless other people who had also known her. The Law of Attraction allowed me to healthily lament over this person and continue to grow my relationships with others. Had I not used this law, I would have never met wonderful new people and would have spent significantly more time in a depressed state. Despite first hearing of this law while reading the aforementioned books, the Law of Attraction was something I implemented in my life for many years prior to reading about it. I always believed in having a positive mindset when faced with challenges, as I rationalized that having a negative mindset would do little to no good for myself and the people around me. It is because of this that I have managed to more effectively handle stresses and pressures that would cripple anyone attracting negative thoughts and focus. This law have helped me in difficult times to overcome many of the trials that life has put on me and has also developed a mental fortitude that will last a lifetime. The Law of Attraction is something that anyone can learn to implement into their lives to increase their standard of living and have a healthier and more vibrant life. GratitudeKirk Dettloff
In Tijuana, Mexico, one person’s garbage becomes a neighbor’s building supplies. Steel bedsprings serve as fences. Discarded garage doors find new life as living room walls. Our van filled with eight missionaries rumbled along a dirt road, just inches from the edge of a cliff, destined for Monte Sinaí. For seven days, I would do work for this church. It would house me, feed me, and change my life. I had left the comfort of home and family to travel to one of the most dangerous cities in the world. My anxiety vanished within a day after experiencing the genuine love this congregation poured upon us. Our hosts could barely feed their own families, but they managed to feed us each day. Their generosity had a huge impact on me. It was amazing how such destitute people could welcome us into their families. By week’s end, I had begun to feel safe in the heart of a very dangerous city. Mahatma Gandhi once said, "the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." As I reluctantly said good-bye to cold showers, dusty sleeping arrangements and full days of work in the hot sun, these words resonated with me. I knew I had to spend my life taking care of others the way the people of Mount Sinaí took care of me. A year later, when I started at the University of Michigan, I focused on studying medicine. I excelled in anatomy and physiology courses. I was also fascinated by motor control and biomechanics. I was driven to learn more about these topics in order to share what I found most interesting with others. Later, as a teaching assistant for Dr. Bodary's exercise physiology course, I was given the chance to lead a discussion on muscular physiology with a classroom of peers. As I talked about myonuclei’s role in muscle hypertrophy and memory, I imagined myself as a physician, discussing the etiology of a symptom with a patient. Without Dr. Bodary's offering of autonomy, and even encouragement, to share topics I found intriguing, I may have never gained the confidence to lecture in front of a class of hundreds of students in a field I am passionate about. In the summer after graduation, I experienced a whole new side to medicine, serving as a counselor at Camp Kesem. Kesem is a camp for children who have been touched by a parent’s cancer. “Kesem,” in Hebrew, means magic. The majority of camp is forgetting about the real world and just acting like kids again. That I could handle. I was good at enjoying the magic of zip lines, water trampolines, and rock climbing. But how was I supposed to deliver magic to children who, because of a parent’s illness, were experiencing pain that I couldn’t even imagine? I have never experienced a serious illness in my immediate family, let alone confronted with the emotions of losing a parent. Again, Gandhi's words gave me direction. On the fourth night, the campers acknowledge what brought them there: cancer. I was particularly moved by a 7-year-old girl who told me she doesn’t have friends at school, and is bullied, because her mom doesn’t have any hair. She went by the camp name Aqua Marine because of her love for the sea. I gave her a shoulder to lean on. Aqua Marine showed me how a single symptom can destroy a family. She showed me how much healing can take place outside the walls of a hospital. She showed me the impact a physician can make in treating a single patient. She showed me kesem. As the week wound down, I was motivated more than ever to someday treat the parents of kids like Aqua Marine. I spent the rest of the year as a medical technician aide at the Beaumont Hospital Emergency Department. My job was to take vital signs, perform EKGs, clean rooms and transport patients. At the end of one long day, I got the biggest vote of confidence I could have asked for. It came as I guided a 93-year-old patient from her wheelchair to her bed. The look on her face said I’m sorry this is taking so long. But she simply couldn’t move her foot any closer to the bed. She was afraid she was going to fall. I told her I had nowhere better to be. I let her move at a pace she could handle. I wanted to comfort her the way Mount Sinaí taught me. Meanwhile, her daughter was asking me where I went to school and what my plans were. When her mother was finally resting in bed, the daughter said: “You’ve been the most helpful person we’ve met at this hospital. You spent more time with us today than all of the nurses and doctors last time we were here. When you’re my mother’s age, sometimes just feeling comfortable is the most important thing.” Yes, a hospital must treat patients’ symptoms. But it must treat patients as persons, too. Her words have stayed with me as I’ve assisted physicians in my current work as a medical scribe in the same department. I have seen the comfort a physician can bring to a patient by skillfully explaining the etiology of their symptoms. I’ve witnessed the challenge – and excitement – physicians feel when confronted with symptoms they’ve never seen before. I have shared the joy of watching a patient walk out of the emergency department with an arm around her child. In thousands of rooms, I’ve played a small but important role as I’ve witnessed the exchange between physician and patient. I know someday I’ll be able to do much, much more for my fellow human beings from the physician’s chair. I am grateful for the congregation at Monte Sinaí showing me what generosity means. I am grateful for Dr. Bodary giving me the confidence to teach others about what excites me. I am grateful for Aqua Marine demonstrating how far a physicians decisions reach beyond the walls of a hospital. I am grateful to be given the opportunity to take care of my fellow human beings for the rest of my life. Focus on What You Can ControlEllen Meyers
Last year at age 58 I realized I had an undiagnosed learning disability, with which I have struggled for most of my life. I did not test well on standardized exams and always did much better in English rather than in math or the sciences. I always felt something was the matter with me and that my inability to process information made me feel stupid. I spent years being angry with myself when I did not “get things” in what I felt was a timely manner. It has only been after its recent diagnosis that I even speak about it. But as I think about it now, I realize how far I have come by focusing on the things I can control, even as I was struggling. This focus has helped me accomplish a lot, and I would like to help others realize their own capacity earlier, if possible. In the era I was in school, learning disabilities were just beginning to be recognized. Dyslexia received some attention but there really was not a standard with which to test or measure them. By the time the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed in 1990, it was 10 years since my undergraduate degree. My younger brother struggled with dyslexia all his life and two years ago, he received a Masters degree—something that he never thought possible. Special education then dealt with mental disabilities such as mental retardation and physical disabilities. There were no Individualized Education Plans (IEP) or adaptations for students. My learning disability manifested itself in about fourth grade. It was then that learning arithmetic went beyond basic math. I could do the basic math but beyond that I was totally stumped. When learning went into symbols in science, geometry and algebra I was lost. I also was never able to read a map or follow a pattern. Getting a “D” in 10th grade Geometry kept me out of the National Honor Society. Nevertheless, I excelled at all other topics and was placed in an advanced learning track. I didn’t feel great about it, and I didn’t get the recognition, but I worked hard and did well in the classes that did not require math skills. When it came time to go to college, I picked a school that did not have a math requirement. The early part of my working life was spent in the arts, the latter in government. Neither required any math skills. I became accomplished in each career field and made certain that no one knew what I felt were my flaws such as reading a map or figuring out costs. Fortunately, I was able to budget and balance a checkbook. When I was chair of the board of the state’s LGBT rights group, the organization was in a major deficit and I worked hard to balance the books. At board and executive meetings, I would picture the budget as a pie chart and would never let anyone know I had no concept of fiscal matters. When I began working my current job with the state of Illinois, I had to travel around the state. I was dependent on Mapquest, and even with a printed list of directions, I often got terribly lost. The age of Google maps saved the day! It was verbal, not visual! I did not have to figure anything out as all I had to do was follow what the voice told me to do. This opened up a new world for me and now I am unafraid to travel by car to new places. For me, the important thing was taking advantage of the tools to get to the destination, not focusing on the fact that I needed the help. My application of “focus on what you can control” worked for me personally as well as intellectually. Many corners of our society are now supportive of the LGBTQ population, but when I identified as a lesbian in 1979, the Stonewall riots were just 10 years old. I really did not have any role models or know of any LGBTQ people. But all the same, I have always advocated for the gender-nonconforming community, with paid and volunteer work in Illinois. The important thing is to do what you can, not to wallow in self pity. I know there are people in the world questioning themselves for many reasons and I want them to know they are all right. I am so grateful to be living today in a society that values diversity. When I first started this degree in Fall of 2016, I really had to address my learning disability. I was using new technologies, on line learning and research, studies that used percent and quantitative methods. I was really pressed. This was a big moment for me as I had been able to live my life without having to “reveal” that I had a learning disability and now I felt forced to deal with it. Going back to school was overwhelming enough but in order to get ADA accommodations, I had to go get tested. The challenge then was to find a place that tested adults. I found a place and got tested. Prior to my results, I wondered to myself, “What if I don’t have a learning disability? Then what?”. I felt joyous when indeed I did have a diagnosable disability! It had been harder for me to be public about my disability than it was to be a lesbian. But I moved forward. I applied for an ADA accommodation for work and school. And I am just so glad that I have finally found this out about myself as it will definitely add yet another layer to me as I embark on my new career. When I first started this essay, I thought my defining principle was going to be having an attitude of gratitude. And indeed, that principle is what I feel most today. Once I was diagnosed with the learning disability, I stopped being upset with myself and viewing myself as a failure because I could not do things. I began to look at my life with absolute gratitude and realized that my journey had a reason. I was incredibly grateful for my diagnosis and the challenges related to it that I had had. But as I looked further, I saw that I could be proud of something even more fundamental. Even when I was not feeling grateful, and not even feeling confident, I just kept going. And when I did what felt like simply trudging forward, I did a lot. Beginning in 1976 when I assisted a Vietnamese refugee family, I have been blessed to have a continual history of community service. In the early 1980’s, I volunteered with Dehon House, a shelter for the homeless for several years. I then became involved in passing the state’s human rights bill which, at that time, was an informal effort. In 1993, I was a founding member of the Chicago LGBTQ Aging Group, an organization founded to work on issues of LGBTQ seniors. I volunteered with that organization until 2000. From 1993 to 2008, I helped found and then served a board chair for 5 years for Equality Illinois, the state’s LGBTQ rights group. From 2004 -2007, I volunteered for the Lesbian Community Care Project’s (LCCP) board and served as vice chair. From 1992 to the present, I was a driver and then a donor for Vital Bridges, an organization providing meals to Persons with AIDS (PWA’s) and their families. From 2004 to the present, I have been a tutor for Literacy Chicago working with adult learners with Adult Basic Education (ABE). In my current job at the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, I have had the opportunity to develop and implement anti-recidivism programs for all federal, state and identified county correctional facilities in Illinois. The programs were so successful in Southern Illinois that they had to re-assign several probation officers, due to lack of demand. I am honestly not one to brag. The point is that I understood the meaning of working hard towards a goal. I learned that humility was something I wanted to incorporate because there was something greater than me. I learned to accept myself for who I was despite my human flaws. My diagnosis has given my insight into people who have felt shame for things about themselves such as addiction, mental illness and learning disabilities. I want to pass along the very fundamental truth that no matter who you are, and no matter what your limitations, if you focus on what you can control, you can do some amazing things. GratitudeBrian King
There are a lot of things a person can be grateful for; but after reading an essay by Christopher Hitchens, I became grateful for something people may never think often about—my voice. Hitchens was a famous author and lecturer that was born in 1949 and died in 2011, from esophageal cancer. Towards the end of his life, he wrote an essay entitled, “Unspoken Truths.” In this essay, he talks about the effects the cancer had on him in his last days. The effect that was most prominent was the loss of his voice. This forced Hitchens to face the ramifications of living without a one, and by extension, consider the value of it. “And I don’t so much object to his holding my coat in that marked manner, as if mutely reminding me that it’s time to be on my way. No, it’s the snickering that gets me down.” Hitchens felt that the worst part of his death was not the death itself, but the constant reminders. How much and in what way his voice worked varied from day to day. Some days, it would be a childlike squeal, other days it would it would be raspy like sand paper. There were days in which his voice would cease to work, at all. Hitchens felt that this, among other things, served as a countdown to the end of his days. Hitchens describes the loss of his voice as “an attack of impotence, or amputation of part of personality.” He wrote that he felt, to a certain degree, he “was” his voice. He boasted about how he could hail a cab from thirty paces away or about how he could project his voice to the back of a room without a microphone. He was even told by people that if they had their radio or televisions on, they would still be able to hear his voice above it clearly. Then, one day, after a speech in California, his voice abruptly quit on him when he tried hailing a taxi. The relationships with the people around Hitchens changed when he lost his voice. He could no longer do things most people do with their voices such as, laughing, joking, attempting to sing, and all of the other things a person may do with their voice. Even engaging in conversation became a chore for him. He had to find other ways to attract peoples’ attention that did not involve speaking. When they did notice him, they listened “sympathetically” as Hitchens described it. He went on to say that they never had to listen for long because he could not hold his role in a conversation for an extended period. Over the course of this essay, light is shed upon the value of a voice. Without one, we could not do every day things such as: laughing at that dumb joke your friend just made, telling the person behind the counter what you want to eat, or telling the person you care about that you love them. In essence, Hitchens equates the human voice to the projection of a persons’ soul. While there are many ways to express yourself, I believe that speaking is the simplest ways to let the people around you know that you exist. One of the reasons that this essay resonates with me so much is because I spent some time as an aspiring author due to a class I took my senior year in high school. Writing the way I speak is one of the things in learned from the class. In his essay, Hitchens says that he received a comment from an editor named Simon Hoggart to write “more the way you talk.” If this had been said to me a year ago I may not have understood, but I do now. Whenever you write something, whether it’s something you care about or not, a piece of yourself is placed onto the page. Once in my high school class, during peer critiques a girl said to me that the story I wrote had “me” written all over it. I never thought about it at the time, but now I realize that I put a considerable amount of my personality into the characters. I believe that writing the way you talk is not just writing the way you speak, but somehow bringing yourself alive on the page. I enjoy the fact that this essay made me think about how much I need my voice. Whenever I spend time with my friends, I sometimes just sit and watch them. I would watch them do all of the things that we only feel comfortable doing around each other like singing off key in obnoxiously loud voices, or screaming at one another for no other reason than they stole that fry they were about to eat, or just talking about things others may judge them for. One thought rolls around in my mind when I see their faces light up with various emotions: if none of us had voices, would we still be this happy? I believe the main point of this essay is that Hitchens wants people to learn a lesson he was taught in the hardest way: gratitude. Our voices are such a massive part of our everyday lives that people take for granted the connection that they have to the world around them. Losing my voice is one of the worst things imaginable to me. If I lost my voice, I would lose my greatest link to the people around me. I would lose the joy I receive from complaining about things to my best friend, the joy of shouting profanities at the friend that just killed me in call of duty, the pleasure of even a simple hello and goodbye. After all of this, I’ve found a new appreciation for my voice; and that appreciation began to extend to other parts of my life; so I going to strive to maintain these feelings for as long as I can. Link to Christopher Hitchens “unspoken truths”: https://dayonecomptwo.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/christopher-hitchens-unspoken-truths.pdf The Power of Positive ThinkingJeffrey Sagun
You are sixteen years old. You’ve completed the school year and your summer has just begun. Waking up to the pleasant melody of the northern cardinal, you’re craving for a bacon, egg and cheese bagel from Dunkin’ Donuts. As you exit your house, the sharp bang of a Black Cat firecracker disrupts the peaceful morning—it’s the Fourth of July. Why so early? Out of nowhere, your mother charges in your direction, gasping for air. She looks at you, her youngest child, and demands “Where are you going? I thought I lost you...” I was that child. This story is just a small example of a larger problem that Chicagoans face every day. People around the world perceive Chicago as a dangerous city because of its high crime rate and gang activity. I would like to determine: how are impressions formed? This leads to the question: why is stereotyping an issue? Though my encounters with the Chicago violence is minor compared to some of the horrific incidents that have recently been in the news, the issue of stereotyping the city of Chicago is significant to me. As a Chicago teen, the likelihood that I will fall victim to the Chicago stereotype exists each time I leave the city. This question requires a closer examination of how people in the United States view Chicago. While I was at the University of Maryland attending National History Day in my junior year, I encountered many innovative students from across the nation. The night before my performance, a handful of students gathered in the main lobby of Elkton Hall to sing “Happy Birthday” to Elizabeth, a girl from Alabama. It was a joyous occasion! However, the room became more serious when we introduced ourselves to each other. There was Andrew and Nicholas from New Hampshire, Elizabeth from Alabama, and so on. When a new state was introduced, a new stereotype arose. “Do all Alabamians have a Southern accent?” was one of the many generalizations that appeared in our conversation. However, when I introduced myself as a Chicagoan, I was interrogated. “Have you seen someone get shot?” and “Are you part of a gang?” were some of the ignorant questions that the students asked. I would rather be poked fun at and be stereotyped as a Chicagoan who eats hot dogs and deep dish pizza on a daily basis. Disturbed by these notions, I learned that their impressions were influenced by the media. This is an issue because some people are generalizing everyone from Chicago negatively—stereotypes overlook individuality and can have a lingering effect on the individual that is stereotyped. The issue of resolving stereotypes is complex. If I had the ability to end the Chicago stereotype I would accomplish this by regulating what is inserted into the news. Stereotyping is perpetuated because of media bias—the notion that news producers in the mass media select certain events and stories to report on, covering them in a way that appeals to the public. If I had the ability to, I would ensure that the coverage of unethical events, such as murder and gun violence, is reduced to a minimum and I would replace them with news that generates positivity. I intend to do this because the media is a driving force that influences how we think and perceive the world. Negativity in the Chicago news equates to negative perceptions on Chicago. Chicagoans are more than just violence and drugs. When the Chicago Cubs won the World Series in 2016, people around the world did not perceive Chicago based on its troubled history, but they saw how a community came together to celebrate their love for baseball and their love for each other. They saw Chicago as a city of winners. This is what Chicago needs. I do not want to be another name on the news—not because I was a victim of the Chicago stereotype. Born and raised in Chicago, I am conscious of the negative perceptions that individuals have toward urban areas. Some people have labeled major cities as “ghetto” or even in severe circumstances, “dangerous.” Although Chicago is known for its troubled history, I feel as if a paradigm shift will occur where its infamous past will be replaced with an exceptional future. However, I would be lying to myself if I did not say that I was affected by living in Chicago. I have witnessed many tragedies: murder, violence and poverty. Though these firsthand experiences are disturbing in nature, they had brought to my attention the need for change. HappinessRobert Berrios-Garza
My name is Roberto Berrios-Garza. I am a sophomore at Tulane University, and I am majoring in Public Health Sciences. Recently, I was diagnosed with GAS, also known as Generalized Anxiety Disorder. When I describe the condition to my close friends and relatives, I describe it as an issue that can be easily resolved with some minor behavior modification and lifestyle habit changes. Initially, I did not understand the effect this disorder could have on my daily life. I soon realized, however, that this diagnosis was not going to be alleviated with some minor lifestyle adjustments. Anxiety started to affect every portion of my life. Its physical and mental manifestations washed away all my confidence. Suddenly, I became firmly entrenched in a situation that was not considered by my primary care physician to be an “easy fix”. In order to effectively demonstrate how anxiety has affected my life, I have to briefly describe how my life was like before I started experiencing any GAS symptoms. My teachers, family, and friends would collectively describe me as a confident and energetic individual, someone who loved to be the center of attention. I was often pegged as a “class-clown”, and I never ceased to flash a wide smile across my face whenever I talked to someone. I was not without faults, as I often would be nervous in situations where I was not surrounded by friends or familiar peers. I often had anxiety when I was experiencing anticipation of a new experience. However, I had never experienced the force of having anxiety about simple every-day activities. When I began experiencing symptoms of anxiety this summer. For the first time in my life, I felt a crippling and overwhelming sense of fear, due to the fact that I was not certain what was creating an imbalance in my body and my mind. It was not uncommon to wake up feeling extremely groggy and experience fever-like symptoms, body aches, excruciating headaches, and panic attacks. My primary care physician repeatedly was perplexed by my symptoms, as over the course of several weeks she failed to diagnose what was wrong following several tests/ bloodwork samples. It was only after a trip to the emergency room that everything was ruled out, and it was determined that I was experiencing Generalized Anxiety Syndrome. I tried to make my diagnosis appear like a minor ordeal to my close friends and extended family. After all, at the time I believed this would be a quick fix. I convinced myself that I had simply not taken care of my physical/mental well-being during my first year at college, and the anxiety was a manifestation of unhealthy habits rather than a mental health problem. In all honesty, the mere thought of having a mental health issue shook me to the core. I have witnessed my uncle Juan struggle with bi-polar disorder for most of his adulthood, and I can clearly see it impedes his efforts to lead a normal and productive life. I feared the same fate was awaiting me, and suddenly I started to spiral into a world of uncertainty and fear in regards to my future health. Every day I went to work, focusing on the tasks at hand was equivalent in my mind to rocket science. I was so nervous about how long it would take the medication to make me normal again, I lost sight of what was truly important. It took the majority of the summer season, but I eventually came to the realization that life sometimes is not fair, and this is not the first time I would encounter an obstacle in my life that I would have to fight to overcome. Viewing my anxiety as an obstacle rather than the end of living a regular life became the catalyst that drove me to reshape my lifestyle habits. I began to systematically make choices that would pay dividends when it came to my health. I began by simply refraining from eating junk food. I then started going to my local gym to lift weights and exercise four to five times every week. Despite being hesitant, I began to start going to weekly sessions with a licensed psychologist who specialized in ailments experienced from anxiety. I also saw a dietician, and worked closely with him to formulate a realistic and effective eating regiment. My new diet plan was engineered to help me put on weight and consume additional minerals and supplements that would help nourish my pain and negate certain effects from my GAS. I fully bought into every aspect of my plan in order to be in the best position possible to fight my anxiety. What started off as a lingering curse that seemed to interfere with every aspect of my life, perhaps gave me more clarity into the human experience then when I was completely healthy. I say this because as a singular cohort of individuals, I believe students of my generation are often pre-occupied on certain trivial aspects of life that they lose sight of what truly holds meaning. The age of digital media and instantaneous gratification has driven our interests from building meaningful and positive relationships, to making our lives seem desirable to our “followers” spanning one’s various social media platforms. This leaves little time for us to stop, take a step back to be grateful for our lives and for the simple things life affords us. I focused on strengthening my relationship with my parents, a relationship that had been lacking severely in time and proper nourishment. My condition spurred a change in my attitude, and I can honestly say my ongoing struggle has spawned a new individual altogether. I am now grateful for the things I have because it was only through dealing with my ongoing anxiety that I took the time to do so. I am cognizant that my fight with anxiety is still a daily obstacle to overcome, but at the moment I have it under control with the help of fully competent physicians and a support system in my household that is unparalleled in my opinion. Walter Anneberg once said that “Adversity tests us from time to time and it is inevitable that this testing continues during life.“ These words have never rung more true for me. They drive me to grow from this adversity that I am experiencing and use it to fuel my drive towards future success, prosperity, and happiness. Generalized anxiety syndrome may be a part of my life, but it will never define who I am. Personal DevelopmentDominique Guilford
I was born in Stamford, Connecticut to a single parent household. I have two younger sisters, an older brother, and was raised by my mother. I spent most of my childhood in summer musical theatre intensives, vocal and dance training, and later on attended a performing arts high school during my freshman and sophomore years (Regional Center for the Arts). I then attended Darien High School for my junior year, and transferred senior year to Brien McMahon High School to study the Arabic language, upon acceptance to their Center for Global Studies program. Where a lot of high school students would have felt like transferring many times would have been their setback, I viewed it as a vehicle for new opportunities. With this said, I love learning about culture and have always had a heart for inspiring, motivating and activating gifts inside of people. I really enjoy helping those in situations that I have overcome. Through the performing arts, I aim to empower many with a sense of self-love, positive thinking, and rebuilding confidence in those who have been abused and mistreated. Being a domestic violence survivor, I am grateful to say that music, dance, and theatre has given me the voice that was taken away from me at home as a child. I am now at Spelman College as a Theatre Major with a Concentration in Dance, and desire to own a faith-based dance theatre company in order to cultivate artists that are self-produced. I am interested in testimonies and how an individual’s story can be brought to the stage and/or screen as an act of healing as well as entertainment. I also plan on someday developing a talk show for abandoned and abused women. In saying this, I believe that Spelman College is allowing me to gain a strong sense of self, for it is a women's college that pushes me to be a trailblazer, and keeps me focused on achieving my dreams despite the statistics of male dominated fields. I am now one step closer to achieving my dreams, as I plan on spending my junior year in Los Angeles, California at Loyola Marymount University, as a selected student for Spelman’s Domestic Exchange program. I will continue my studies in Theatre and Dance at LMU starting Fall semester 2017. I hold the following: Student Company Manager for Spelman Dance Theatre, Member of Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Member of National Society of Collegiate Scholars, WISDOM Center Residential program (Women In Spiritual Discernment of Ministry), Chapel Assistant for Spelman’s Sisters Chapel, Dean’s List, and one of the few youngest selected participants of the Harvard Divinity School “Diversity & Explorations” 2016 program. In the past, I have also held a position for the Spelman Theatre and Dance Executive Board, “Spriggs Burroughs” as First Year Representative, was as a choreographer in school talent show performances, praise danced in the Freedom Dancers Ministry at New Beginnings Community Church for three years, and served as the chair of the Dance Ministry’s Fundraising Committee. Over my last two years in college, I have volunteered for a women’s empowerment conference, and a middle school girl leadership symposium, which revealed another passion of mine. I never knew how I could vastly impact women, and use my public speaking skills until I volunteered for these two amazing events. I believe that if I remained in my home state, I would have never experienced or learned what I have by being in college. In fact, I am still astounded that I got to study at the University of Ghana in West Africa this past May, in which I had the privilege to volunteer at Future Leaders Underprivileged Children’s Centre. Being able to teach a class for a day at a school that offers free education to orphaned and disadvantaged children, sparked my love for philanthropy. Seeing how eager these children were ready to learn despite their hardships with huge smiles on their faces as they continuously hugged and thanked me, was a truly remarkable feeling. I can honestly say that this once in a lifetime opportunity opened my eyes to how much knowledge is power, and how much education liberates people. Having grown in humility, I now strongly desire to travel the world to help underprivileged and abused women and children. These previously stated experiences have proven to me that there is a serious need for knowledge. My philosophy is that in this world, you can have everything taken from you except knowledge. With this observation, I was lead to develop “The College Flight”, a college prep program to assist high school juniors and seniors. As a part of my program, I serve as a college prep advisor where I help educate, prepare, and simplify the cumbersome process of applying to college. In high school, not only do I remember the amount of free seminars led by outside organizations that I attended to help me along with this process, I remember the amount of classmates that were unaware of important college requirements such as the SAT and ACT tests, FAFSA, and the college essay. Therefore through my program, I aim to give back by helping other students realize that there is no need to fear the process if you are completely aware of the steps required. Also, developing “The College Flight” has allowed me to answer a huge need for students who are in the dark about their possibilities for higher education, all while I am able to use my leadership and mentoring skills on a platform that is my own. In final consideration, despite the domestic violence I have endured in my past, having a positive way of thinking overrided the negative words and comments spoken to me about never amounting to anything in life. Positive ThinkingAntonio Crossley
“Helping others: Your gratitude you pay for your room here on earth.” - Muhammad Ali I am so grateful for this day, because it put my life in a different direction. “Put the gun down man, you don't have to do this...” she walked toward him hesitantly knowing that in one instant moment we could lose one of our closest friends to the demon that is suicide. The sun was at its highest point in the sky, but it was by far the darkest day we ever been in.“Let's just talk man, please.” I pleaded. My hands began to shake as I turned the phone around to breathe. My friend stepped toward him in the ever loud silence that surrounded us in the South Chicagoan apartment….3:36pm.-Pause Throughout my senior year of high-school I wasn’t involved on a sports team, or a debate squad. “He was just the kid who went to class, played music and left to go home.” I barely developed relationships with students, usually forcing half-spoken small talk every day, it became a constant cycle. Just ready to graduate, high school was an afterthought to me... Until I met one amazing teacher named Mr. Young. He suggested one day that I should join his newly created club called EBM. After informing my mom, she made me join the next day. This student, teacher interaction would soon change my life for the better. EBM is an acronym short for “Encouraging Black Males.” We took on dozens of volunteer and community outreach tasks involving change in the lives of young men all over South Chicago. For a specific project, each member of EBM was assigned a younger black male, to look after; sort of like a little brother if you will. I was assigned Vonte. He was a thirteen year old boy, from the troubled neighborhood of Jeffery Manor. For weeks, I never connected with Vonte as much as I should. We rarely communicated, only strangulating small acts of conversation when forced to. This became regular basis of communication for us. I eventually went to college for my first year, and we became more distant than ever. But this all changed with one surprise phone call. Upon opening the unlocked door of Vonte’s apartment; my friend Jane was startled to the sight of him holding a gun in front of his face, gasping for air. She didn’t know what to do, so she called me. This one act of community service dramatically turned into a life or death situation. Resume -4:12pm….After over thirty minutes of me pleading from miles away, He began to vent about his life sharing horrible stories about his childhood, ranging from parent abuse to substance misuse; things we never even knew about him before. As he did I began to analyze his emotions, his acts, and began to encourage and embolden him, just as we did in EBM. I shared my struggles with him, and what I did to overcome them. We continued to talk having a detailed conversation I never realized we were capable of having until at 5:50pm, he spared his own life. This moment and taught me a critical lesson, that we should be thankful for the lives we have. The impact we have on others isn’t some lame chore. It is a blessing; It was an honor to play such a big role in Vonte’s life. My life is going great and I am so grateful. So grateful that I want to help others; when you do that you begin to help others are grateful. It becomes one beautiful cycle. I feel that when a person is set in a certain place it is for a specific reason. We are put through situations and grateful experiences so that we can share them with the world. It is all a part of our story, A story that can change the life of the audience reading it….It just so happens that the title of the book is “gratitude.” And from that moment, my true life’s nature was revealed. To help others. My first big goal in life is to show my gratitude to the world. In the spirit of community service, I to go to Africa. I’ve always wanted to go there because I want to eliminate the narration that Africa has with the media. This continuous downplay has turned the beautiful continent of freedom to a scarce land of sorrow. To go to Africa would give me the opportunity to not only physically give my resources but to mentally change the overall image Africa has; one person at a time. The Power of Positive ThinkingRani-Kai Samunda
I knew from as early as elementary school that I would pursue a career in the health care field. However, even upon completing my undergraduate studies in Biology and Chemistry, I still was not exactly sure of what kind of healthcare-related profession I would pursue. I decided the best way to make a decision was to volunteer in different fields. My first volunteer experience was a physical therapy technician, and I spent the next four years working as one. I realized that my future career would be as a physical therapist. My path to physical therapy school was not easy to say the least. It took three rounds of application for my now entrance into a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program. After an unsuccessful first round of applications, I realized that I needed to strengthen my profile. This included, retaking the Graduate Record Examination completing the pre-requisites – Statistics and Anatomy and Physiology, and retaking two classes to earn better grades. This paid off during my second round of applications as I was granted interviews, waitlisted, and accepted into a program. My dream of becoming a physical therapist was finally materializing. After one semester as a matriculated DPT first year, my classmates and I learned that the program was experiencing difficulty with its accreditation. It was eventually placed on probation with Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). I made the extremely difficult decision to withdraw from the program. While highly disappointed, I decided to spend the rest of year working as a physical therapy technician and then apply for Fall 2016 admission. That was a long year. As I knew that at the time that I would be starting school, if I had not experienced the unfortunate, I would have been graduating that same semester. I had to focus on thinking positively. As hitherto mentioned, after graduating from college, I worked as a physical therapy technician. My position as a full-time physical therapy technician started as a volunteer position, and due to my performance, I was asked to join the company as an employee. Like other health care professionals, physical therapists play an important role in the healing process of patients. I used my employment to expand my knowledge by observing patients during treatment; evaluating data on patients' progress; conferring with physical therapy staff and others, to discuss and evaluate patient information for planning, modifying, and coordinating treatment; and actually participating in the delivery of treatment (for example, showing patients the different therapeutic exercises, administering traction to relieve neck and back pain, the use of different modalities to help relax, strengthen, and heal muscles). As a technician, I have experienced tremendous growth in my communication skills through my various interactions and conversations with the therapists, patients and aides. I have also developed my leadership skills by training the newly hired physical therapy technicians for the DC, Maryland, and Virginia clinics within the company. That exposure served as additional motivation to enroll in a DPT program in order to gain the requisite theoretical and practical knowledge needed for a physical therapist to provide high quality care to patients. Prior to my position as a physical therapy technician, I also volunteered at Medstar National Rehabilitation Hospital where I was able to observe the workings of in-patient care. Additionally, at the Florida Hospital I was placed in the Emergency Room where I observed a variety of treatments. On occasions I would be specifically requested by some patients, because they said I would make them feel very comfortable, and they trusted me. My commitment to the field also propelled me to volunteer at an elderly home where I spent some of my time in the Alzheimer’s unit. This allowed me to improve my caring abilities. My commitment to a career in physical therapy is also reflected in the numerous natural science courses I have taken. I have learnt to practice good time management, develop study skills, and enhance my analytical and problem solving skills. As a Resident Assistant during college, I was able to further develop my team building, leadership, and communication skills, all skills that prove important in a career in the physical therapy field. I absolutely love the hands-on experience with patients. Being part of a team that is responsible for their progress, not only gives me a great sense of satisfaction, but it has affirmed to me that this is the career for me. I also know the importance of appreciating diversity, as during my experiences, I work with patients of different backgrounds, ages, and with different injuries. Interacting with individuals from different backgrounds, you learn how to deal with or handle different characters. In addition to that, as a physical therapist, I want to be able to make positive changes in a patient’s lifestyle. Like being able to keep up-to-date with services rendered, and coordinating with other professionals in the healthcare field. For example, I was afforded the opportunity to observe a few regenerative orthopedic procedures to include: diagnostic ultrasound evaluation, musculoskeletal screening, platelet rich plasma injections, and musculoskeletal prolotherapy. Patients seemed to benefit from both the procedure and physical therapy. My commitment to pursuing this career is also propelled by my growing up in Jamaica where traffic accidents are now a public health problem and the role of physical therapists is critical. My time in Jamaica has also impressed upon me the need to contribute to health systems in underserved areas (both in the US and internationally). I hope to use my physical therapy skills to provide services to those who are unable to otherwise access them. As a rising second year physical therapy student, I am sometimes taken aback by the growth that I have experienced within my first year. My curiosity, compassion, and commitment will enable me to continue to be a successful physical therapy student and eventually an asset to the physical therapy professional community. ControlJason Phillips
When observing life from afar, many people believe that they are in full control of everything that happens in their lifetime, however I disagree. You can’t control the family you were born into or what your last name is, so in hindsight, the only person or thing you can control is yourself and what your particular future will be and the contribution you give to the world. I’d like to share how I focused on the thing I knew I could control and how positive thinking allowed me to do so. It was the typical beginning for a Black child in America. I didn't grow up with much, but I had two parents who loved me unconditionally. When I was four years old, I lost my father to the criminal justice system for attempted murder. Till this day, I do not know any context to his incarceration. I grew up in an environment that most people would consider poverty, but I am thankful to have had a roof over my head. To say my academic career was a challenge, is a gross understatement. Due to my father's incarceration, I was raised by a single mother. My home life was very difficult growing up. A visit from CPS (child protective services) was all too routine. I have even spent several days being homeless throughout my young adulthood. I have had to change schools more times than I can remember. I have never had to use the "my dog ate my homework" excuse because my challenges were much more real than that. In recent memory, I had to replace 8 laptops due to theft and even my own family members breaking them out of anger. This is a commonplace in the world I live. Despite all these negative circumstances, my education was always my number one priority to change my life for the better. I did not want to repeat the same cycle my parents and many of my peers go through. While my life circumstances have made my academic environment extremely difficult, I do not believe it should be of any excuse. Difficult challenges can break a person, or make a person stronger. I may not have the greatest academic achievements or the highest test scores, but I am proud of my accomplishments despite these challenges. Difficult circumstances can break a person. If you do not capitulate to the harsh realities, these same challenges can help us become stronger. Even though I had a tough life, I am blessed to have had people around me who showed me the value of education and its power to change one's life for the better. Although life wasn’t always fair I developed principles, which I believe many individuals perceive the word to be overly complex; however it's more basic than objectives and policies. Although everyone's principles are very different at the end of the day, principles are just values and/or rules for one individual person or group. Principles are very important in my life, for it is which I have to thank for my current success. When hardship arises in one's life it's pivotal to always maintain goals and principles, as it can become very easy to be consumed by the many adversities. As a high school student my entire high school career has been very difficult for me to express my full potential as well as offer all my full academic capabilities. My mother has a learning disability, a cognitive disadvantage with the mind of a 13 year old. Throughout my high school career we have had countless episodes which ended in damaged homework assignments, damaged electronic materials that were vital to my high school participation, which placed me at a severe disadvantage. However with many principles, such as graduating high school never missing an assignment in all my classes, including AP courses, as well as attending college and becoming a Lawyer. Every principle that I have set has become a reality or shaping up to become a reality. I appreciate the subject as it has reminded me of the many obstacles we all face in our day to day lives. While I became extremely busy with school and extracurricular actives, I wanted to be sure to give back to my community that i personally believe invested so much in me, which is why I became a Youth Commissioner for the City of Fresno. Becoming a member of the youth commission has given me the opportunity to better my community. Given the task to represent the youth of my city has been one of the most monumental milestones in my life. I have had the pleasure of working directly with community leaders such as the mayor, city council members, as well as state officials. As a youth commissioner, I'm able to voice my opinion to the city as well as listen to my fellow peers on how they would like the city to represent them. Being part of the demographic that are often times largely ignored, misunderstood or misrepresented, it has been a great honor to serve as part of the city's Youth Commission. The Youth Commission serves as a space where young people can work together to problem solve and create positive change in the community as a group. We have worked arduously to shape and develop social, economic, recreational, and educational changes for our community. This has led to the creation of several committees and programs that directly serve the youth in my community. In closing. As I stated in the beginning of the essay, it’s so important to take hold of the life you’ve been given and run with it, not looking back, but looking forward. I repeat how important it is set goals and a principle, as it gives one the potential to see his/her future. ControlAmanda Gazaway
Death. None of us can prepare ourselves for the loss of a loved one. Not even when given the chance to say good bye. It’s so final. So definitive. A period at the end of a sentence with a cliffhanger ending. You’re backed into a corner, shoved down with a force that even physics can’t explain, and sentenced to a life-time relationship with grief. On May 26th, 2011, I lost my 17-year-old brother, Taylor, in a tragic car accident. He had just graduated high school and had so much life and potential ahead of him. I remember how happy he was on graduation day. He had that glowing spirit all grads have when they are excited for their future. It all ended so suddenly. I had never lost anyone close to me before and I had just been told the news I had lost my closest friend. The world I knew had changed forever. Poof! Just like that. Textbook, ‘Life’s Unfair’. I wish I could say I handled the loss with grace. I wish I could say I followed the steps of grievance appropriately. I didn’t. I found myself doing the wrong thing most of the time. One of my wrongdoings included dropping out of college my freshman year. I felt so defeated after the loss. I had lost all my motivation for any success and became my own worst enemy in life. I spent the next few years making matters worse. The word “goals” became foreign and I didn’t plan past a week. The mourning and pain I felt became my ball and chain that I would drag every day. School was something I had always achieved in. Academic success was a necessity for me and my perfectionist attitude. I had strived to be the best during my education and knew I would be successful in life. But I had just given up. My future no longer mattered to me. And then one day it all changed. Nothing special happened on the day I found my strength to fight back against the darkness of depression. It was an ordinary morning. I was brushing my teeth, stopped for a moment and stared at myself in the mirror. I was not pleased with the eyes I saw looking back at me. Who was this empty shell of a woman? I didn’t recognize myself. And just like that, an earthquake rippled in my body. It thundered into the hollow depths of my soul and brought back a feeling that still gives me chills to this day. If you aren’t religious, you may not understand, but I knew this was God knocking on my door. And let me tell you, when He arrives, there’s no question. Suddenly, that driven young girl was back and she wasn’t taking no for an answer. I harnessed what seemed like a bottomless pit of sadness, anger, and grief and channeled it into motivation to finish my neglected education. A switch had flipped in my brain and I had discovered the power of positive thinking. What a difference it made! Getting everything I could out of my life became a top priority. Taking care of myself became a priority. I ended my toxic relationships and formed a new one with my education. I rediscovered my passion for learning and looked forward to going to school every day. No longer do my circumstances define who I am. Experiencing hardships is a part of life and we cannot control what and when it happens to us. But what we can change is our thinking and feelings towards adversity. I choose happiness. I persevered and conquered my sorrow by changing my thinking style. Positivity since then has helped me to overcome many obstacles. And there have been plenty hurdles to practice my new disciplined way of thinking. Things really don’t seem as dreadful if you choose to think of the positives instead of negatives. I still miss my brother more than words could ever express. I have taken this tragedy and let it become my driving force to the greater good. Instead of hindering me with torment, it motivates me every single day. One day I will be a doctor. There is no question or doubt. I am proud of my accomplishments thus far and I look forward to the future where I am sure I will have many more. I owe my success to my discovery of positive thinking. And even better, I know my brother would be proud of the woman I have become. I truly hope I can keep beaming a radiant glow of positivity in the hopes of inspiring a negative thinker to change their mind. David Bailey said, “A positive attitude can really make dreams come true – it did for me.” It did for me and it can for you. ControlIan Wietecha-Reiman
Life is full of events, variables, and circumstances that are simply beyond one’s control. But what I have learned, and what everyone must eventually learn, is that the best a person can do is control what they can. Whether that simply refers to their actions and reactions, or their immediate surroundings does not matter. A person who tries to control more than that will invariably fail. Attempts at influencing outcomes is certainly possible, but with little more than influence the world outside of one’s self is entirely out of one’s control. All of my life thus far I have been struggling with this concept. I would want something to happen, or end a certain way, and no matter how hard I tried the event would play out like a movie: unable to be altered from its predefined course. The earliest lesson I recollect is back on a cold winter day. My dad dragged me out my warm bed some Saturday morning and took me several miles north to play golf. We called the golf course the cow pasture, since it had originally been one. Snow hadn’t fallen yet on the well maintained pasture, but a sizable amount of frost coated everything. On the bright side, the golf ball would bounce a bit further, and at this point I needed everything I could get; the sooner I got through the first nine holes was the sooner we would take a break in the warm building that housed the front desk and some lovely hotdogs. I’d rather be back home, but that decision was not up to me on that overcast Saturday. My dad and I walked to the first tee. Breathing the cold air stung my nose and esophagus. The cold was already biting through my gloves. Not another soul could be seen across the converted field. At the tee I took out my driver, a golf ball, and a tee. My left hand was stronger, but even putting all 130 pounds of force into the action, I could barely drive the tee into the frozen ground. Eventually I got it down a sufficient amount, so I put my ball on tee and took a couple practice swings. I felt stiff, even after stretching my arms a bit. Nothing was going to go right. Taking my place in front of the ball, I raised the driver head up to the sky and swung down with all my might. I was hoping to drive the ball a fair way up the fairway. The impact between the ball and my driver head ran up my arms and rattled my entire upper body. A large thwack ensued and the ball rolled about 15 feet. I was very frustrated. I had done my best to smooth out my stroke, power through the ball, and make contact to launch the little bugger off into the wild blue yonder, yet it only rolled a few feet. My dad had me try three more times, and each time failed as the first did. After those retries, he had me put my ball down where he hit his. Through this entire experience I should have learned to focus on what I can control and accept what happens, even when I try my best. But, I was an obstinate child. On the bright side, I took away the ability to be patient, but it would take several years for me to truly realize that I cannot control everything, and that I must accept that. I truly became at peace with the concept of focusing on what I can control about two semesters ago. With nothing better to do, and a dismal social life, I decided to try out Isshinryu Karate with the Penn State Karate Club. I’ve had athletic experience before with fencing, track, and golf (ugh), but had not really done any of that in a while. I was too busy with STEM related training. Regardless, I was in decent shape. The first few weeks was ok; they primarily introduced us to the martial art and showed us some basic techniques. Some of the new members would come and go, and a bunch just left for good. Then when we really started training, they really started leaving. Currently only two of us from that fall are still in the club regularly, but I digress. Learning a martial art is not just some fancy, showy dance you see in those old Asian films. It is, as stated in its name, a martial art and requires the development of technique, strength, endurance, and conditioning if one plans to use it for self-defense or competition. At the beginning, my flexibility was lacking, I was not as strong as I am now, and my technique was still waiting to come out of that primordial sludge and fully exist. There were many things I could not do, and there are things I still cannot do. I had to focus on what my capabilities were at the time. But working with myself was a piece of cake when compared to training with a partner, especially another rookie white belt like myself who has little control of their striking (and blocking) power or where they place their limbs. As much as you would want to correct them, most times they just don’t listen, so you have to work with that. If you focus too much on what everyone else is doing and what you think you could do, you will never be able to improve yourself in any endeavor. In two semesters I earned my blue belt because I focused on what I can control right now, and I plan to become first degree black belt by the end of next spring semester. Finding ControlCarleigh Klusman
For a majority of my life I have always felt slightly out of control. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at seventeen months and from then on became controlled by a disease that I didn’t understand or want to acknowledge. I enjoy problems with a clear solution and predictable factors, and I soon learned that my health would not involve any of those things. I could become sick based on hormones or my mood. I would do everything exactly right, exactly as I was told by countless doctors, yet one small trigger could set off multiple unknown results. Part of my very being would always be out of my control. I struggled with this concept throughout most of my life. I felt incredibly frustrated at a disease that would never respond quite the way I wanted it to. The lack of control I had over my own body was embarrassing and I resisted any circumstances that might allow others to see me as weak. In my mind, the easiest way to do this was to handle my healthcare as discreetly as possible. I generally kept my condition private and chose to ignore my disease instead of deal with the questions and opinions that would inevitably come from sharing with others. I distanced myself from anything related to diabetes, refusing to go to the recommended camps or forge friendships over this shared hardship. I became as anti-diabetic as possible. If you had told me only a few years ago that I would ever be thankful for anything involving my disease, I would have told you that you were crazy. I felt that no good could come from something that had had such a negative impact on my entire life. However, I have recently learned how much more rewarding it is to focus on what is in your control, instead of trying to ignore an uncontrollable situation. I was accepted into a program at the University of Michigan that helps undergraduates interested in research find assistant positions. As I scrolled through the countless options, I noticed a project dedicated to the early identification and possible prevention of the development of type 1 diabetes. This would normally be a topic I would avoid at all costs, but for some reason I felt drawn to the work. At my interview for the position, I told the research coordinator that I would make a great fit for their team because I had a large amount of personal experience with the disease. She agreed, and the next thing I knew I was working to help prevent others from going through the same devastating loss of control that I had. The doors that my experience with diabetes has opened have completely changed my life. I have reassured crying mothers that their newly diagnosed child is going to be okay; that I am a diabetic living across the country from my family and I am healthy and safe. I’ve helped young women find the best and least intrusive way to wear a pump. I have been able to tell parents that their child was going to develop diabetes, but we might be able to prevent that from happening. One of the main tasks I have is to recruit participants to the study. I am incredibly passionate about my work and I believe that a small blood draw is a minor price to pay compared to the potential gains of enrolling in the study. When patients or their parents decline to participate, I could feel frustrated or bewildered at their seemingly flippant response to what I believe to be an amazing opportunity. However, I had to learn that patient consent is another factor outside of my control. I cannot be deterred by refusals or non consents. I have to focus on what I can control, which is giving the best pitch possible and trying to identify and correct any false information about the disease or the study. I find that when I focus on my part of the arrangement, I no longer feel dissatisfied because I know that I did everything I possibly could. It may seem strange how satisfying I find research that applies to my disease but could never benefit my health to be. I am already a type 1 diabetic, finding preventive measures will not change that. However, my work has enabled me to focus on what I can control. I can recruit families and alter their quality of care. I can handle the biospecimens and results that have the power to change someone’s life. I am in control of my dedication and my commitment. I work hard because I can and because I am able to do for others what was not possible for me. That has given me control back. For most of my life, I avoided my disease. I never even thought to view it as an opportunity or a way to relate to hurting people. I struggled with my inability to completely control my health. It felt as if I was walking on a tightrope that was constantly being jerked right and left without rhyme or reason. It is incredibly difficult to stare down a lifetime of unpredictability. However, by focusing on what I can control I changed my entire perspective. I now see my future as overflowing with unlimited possibilities. I see the opportunities to change lives arising from the inability to change my own. By dedicating my life to medicine, I am refusing to let my disease defeat me. I am choosing my own life and how I will respond to hardship. I am letting go of the inability to maintain complete control over my health and embracing my ability to impact the lives of those around me. The Power of Positive ThinkingVera Hochhalter
I believe that to be or not to be a victim is a personal choice. Unfortunately, a lot of people are made to suffer as children with beatings, rapes, torture, abandonment, neglect, parental divorce and subsequent remarriage with new stepchildren to compete with, an alcoholic and drug addicted parent, erratic and dangerous consequences of parental mental illness, parental insensitivity, psychological and emotional assaults, constant family turmoil, family violence, and so forth. My name is Vera Hochhalter and I was born in Brazil. I selected Sociology as my major because my goal is to work for the DPS agency in Phoenix by helping children who are in the foster care system. I currently finished my 4th class on my MA in Sociology at ASU and I still have 6 more to go. I am a student that has parents that lack a college degree and did not have the opportunity to finish even grade school, or support me in any means, thus, being a first generation of College student is a challenge that I faced. In these writings I would like to describe how positive thinking helped me to achieve my plans in life and is helping me with my goals for future growth. Despite all of the life misfortunes and initial break down in life at a young age, I learned how to visualize myself being and having what I wanted, and my philosophy become a reality. I would like to take this opportunity to describe a period in my life where I faced a greater level of adversity and how I overcame that adversity. In fact, I had experienced many tribulations in my life, since I left my parents’ home in 1981, when I was 17 years old with no education, money, and job or life experience and to go to Sao Paulo to take care of my grandfather who had a heart attack and was living alone in a big city. The depression sunk in after I searched for any job for months and finally I ran out of money. We barely had money to pay for my grandfather medications. Despite the state of my depression, I tried to stay positive and visualize myself making money, until many days later, I came with the idea of baking a popular Brazilian pastry made of flower and chicken and then fried, called “coxinhas”, and selling it to the employees that stayed outside at the lunchtime break at a factory near my grandparent’s home. I tried to have no doubt in my mind that I would succeed. My efforts worked and I successfully started baking and selling pastries from home, until my grandfather died in 1983. I overcome adversity by being positive, hard-working and never giving up on my studies. Over a decade later, I moved to the United States and had to start from the ground zero by working sixty hours a week to pay my rent and go to school. I learned that education is the most important part of succeeding in America and have worked diligently to get my degree. I believe that in our lives we are going to have some frustrations, but we never should give up in positive thinking. My challenges were overcome by positive thinking, perseverance, engagement. I truly believe in the power of positive thinking and I use my imagination to see myself in a situation that hasn’t yet happened, and picturing myself doing things or exceeding in an exam, all with great confidence. Instead of letting the life situations deter me, I focused on things that I could change and I just accepted the things that I have no control of. Many years ago, I decided that I wanted to go to a graduate school. In any means, I wasn’t able to afford eighteen thousand dollars in tuition to get a graduate degree! Everyone was against my goals, and said I couldn’t do it… Graduate school is too hard for an ESL student! On top of it you don’t have any money! There is almost no financial aid for Graduate students! I didn’t let any negative influential thinking deter me in any way, I decided not to be a victim… I decided that I can do it. I then applied to ASU, I selected Sociology as my major because I want to work at the DCS Department of Child Safety organization in Phoenix by helping children who are in the foster care system. Thus, I decided that I wanted to be successful in my studies at ASU, so, every day, I spent several minutes unwinding so that I was comfortable in body and mind and then I spent five to ten minutes visualizing the reality I wanted. I am currently working on my 5th class on my MA in Sociology at ASU, but I still need 5 more classes to be able to finish my degree. I have worked many years to accomplish my goals and I have met a great deal of it because I learned about family life, equality, civil and human rights, ethnicity, and social problems and its structure and function while studying my major. What I have learned about myself during this time attending College is that I like to achieve, and I like to have goals. I have several goals to accomplish in the next several years. Presently, my current short term goals include working on my Master’s degree in Sociology because I want to contribute to a better and more just society by serving with issues like multiculturalism, and racial and ethnical diversity. I am confident that my Hispanic heritage influenced these goals because, since I moved to United States, I discovered a new World and the importance of being participative in the community. It’s encouraging that the immigration officer who approved my citizenship was very helpful and believed in me despite the unfavorable circumstances towards my petition. I felt that he believed in me because of the efforts he made to make sure my citizenship application was properly completed; I secretly told myself that he would not regret giving me the citizenship opportunity. My American citizenship allied to positive thinking opened the doors for my goals and the willingness to fight the adversities I encountered in life. In conclusion, I always believe and visualize my goals as it’s actually happening right now by making it real on my mind, and I believe that if I visualize my goals it will happen, because there is power in repetition. On the other hand, if doubts or contradictory thoughts arise, and occasionally they did, I just ignored them. Thus, individuals not to fight or resist any contradictory thoughts, but just keep repeating positive affirmations, because destructive thoughts come and go in our minds without much notice and everything will quite naturally look after itself. I am confident that I have the duty and responsibility to become successful for myself, my children, my friends, and everyone who comes in contact with me. Everyone will benefit. The Importance of CreditsI love movies. From the costuming to the tear-jerking scenes, they have been an escape when the world seems to be too much. At the end of every film there is the tell-tale stream of credits that roll up the screen starting with the directors, writers, producers, and so on. Now, unless you’re a Marvel fan who waits until the end to see the “after-credits” scene it is likely that you don’t watch all the way through with the credits. The screen is either turned off or you follow the hustle and bustle of moviegoers leaving the theater.
To many that scene is the least important. There’s no action, no special scene, no plot twist. At most there will be decorative animations like in most Disney movies or some hidden comedic credit about Hitler (they do exist). But to others, the credits are the most important part. Listed are the roles and names of every thread to the fabric of film. The last time I saw a movie, I stayed for the credits scene out of curiosity and saw an interesting role in the film crew. There’s this person called the “best boy grip” or “best girl” (according to one’s perspective gender). To me that sounds like a little girl in the wedding who walks down the aisle throwing rose petals, or a step down from Best Man/Maid of Honor. But no, that’s not the job’s description. The “best” persons oversee the day to day operations of lighting/grips. They do a range of work from hiring to rigging, and even play an understudied role to the “key” crew members. They are the first assistant. The Best Person credit isn’t first, it isn’t last, and is kind of two-thirds of the way into the credits. You’d think being called, “The Best,” the role would be the very first you’d see, but it’s not. Now there are two ways this can apply to our lives. First, even if you are called “The Best” it doesn’t mean you are. There is this stigma that goes on today, especially between ages fifteen through twenty-five, that even if you’re the worst, you are the best in ‘your own way.’ There are prizes for participation and showing up. Look at the millennial snowflake theory. These kids are told they are the best often not requiring proof. This isn’t every time, but many this situation does exist. As millennials, we stereotypically expect that we will get a job and go straight up the ladder as long we keep proclaiming from our cubicles that we’re the best. We’ll get there! But no, that’s not how it works (usually). We need to humble ourselves, and look at the rest of the cast and understand that we are two-thirds through the corporate credits. Now hard work can get us up to the director’s position, but a ‘best person’ can make anywhere from thirty thousand to one hundred thousand dollars per year. Sometimes it’s important to appreciate that you’re even in the credits. The second way this applies to our lives is the understanding that each of us are living in our own movie. We start as the director and main protagonist, and sometimes pick up more roles as we go. In my life, I am the director, the lead actor, hair & makeup, and now that I’m an adult I’m also the producer. My costumer is Target, my props are Walmart, and my set designer is IKEA. Now of course my family and friends play a role as well and they will continue to. It’s necessary to pay credit where credit is due for how they aid in our growth. On the other hand, my adversaries are there too. For example, the current role of main antagonist is played by my student loan debt. But I also play a role in other people’s movies too. For my best friend, I am the best girl grip. I don’t run her life like a key grip, but I am there for her in any way I can and I am so grateful to be in her film. In the case of my little brother’s movie, I can be the sound effects mixer as I tell him bedtime stories and even the caterer at dinner time. Our roles may change and sometimes get swiped off the credits scene, but it is important to know that in other people’s lives you are not the director, they are. They make their own choices which may result in a plot twist or a failure at the box office and that is something that is out of our control but we have the ability to be the best girl/boy grip that we can. Become the favorite supporting character. Just know and understand that at the end of a person’s life, you may be in the credits and it’s up to them to cast you where they will. Focusing On Things You Can ControlMegan Mueller
Arizona State University If I have one operating philosophy about life it is this: "Ford F250 truck bumpers have a silver lining" Four principles guide the silver-lined bumper philosophy. Principle 1: Seeing the silver lining in an Ford F250 bumper is a practice in redefining priorities. Two months ago, I was rear-ended by a Ford F250 carrying a trailer full of Harley Davidson motorcycles on my way home from school. I saw the shiny silver grill of the truck fill my rearview mirror as I prepared for the collision. THUNK. “Awesome. This is what I get for trying to sneak out of school early,” I whisper as I grip my steering wheel to make a hard right turn to the shoulder. Fuming, I slam my car door and stomp to the rear of my vehicle, prepared to assess the damage, get pissed, and immediately call my mom (in that order). My bumper is missing, broken pieces of plastic--once a gleaming taillight--litter the asphalt, and a large gash reveals itself on the rear of my Honda CR-V. My mom, frantic about whether or not I am safe, hurls questions at a rapid pace. “Are you ok? Where are you? Do you need me to come get you? Did you call the police? Did you call your insurance agent? Is the other driver ok?” I glance in the direction of the driver of the truck; I was so concerned about the well-being of my car that I had neglected to check to see if the other driver was alright; all I could think about in the moment was the fact that my bumper was gone, while his was still intact: shining chrome, with a sliver of white paint from the collision. In retrospect, the other driver’s actions I could not control, but my reaction to the situation was something I could and did. Although my beloved Honda was something I had recently purchased, a car that I took great pride in driving because it was the first car I purchased myself, a car that was in pristine condition until a few fateful moments ago, this car was not worth more than our safety Principle 2: Seeing the silver lining in an Ford F250 bumper is a practice in seizing an opportunity. In the weeks after my accident, I felt like I spent every free minute on the phone with either my insurance company or his. I had a month left in my high school English classroom before summer break and I was drained. One of my good friends and co-teachers waved me into his classroom during our plan period. On his laptop screen was an application for another school district. My stomach dropped. I felt like that shiny silver bumper had ruined everything all over again, this time only figuratively. He and I had taught together for five years at a small rural school; he mentored me in my first year of teaching, and guided me through some difficult life shifts as a friend and a colleague. “I think you should do it”, I said as the consequences reeled through my head. This was my first teaching job; I have never known a classroom without him next door, to laugh with, to cry to, to confide in. Days later, he had beat out 80 applicants and landed the gig; on an excitement scale from one to “over-the-moon”, he was halfway to Mars. I allowed myself to grieve briefly. Of course he will still be here, just not here. As a teacher, I count on situations being out of my control; teaching is simply functioning at a certain level of chaos and it is the teacher’s job to maintain that threshold. What I could control was assessing what skills I could contribute to filling his vacancy. With his help over the last five years, I was able to gain confidence in my abilities as an effective teacher. So, I went to my principal requested leadership roles, the opportunity to teach advanced classes, and become a mentor in my department, things I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing even a year ago. My principal agreed and bestowed faith in me to not replace my colleague, but instead to let my talents shine. My colleague sowed the seeds to make me a better teacher; I am excited to watch my career flourish in the environment we built together for me to inherit. Principle 3: Seeing the silver lining in an Ford F250 bumper is a practice in trusting your instincts. A few weeks prior to my accident, I had completed my graduate school application to a local university and was anxiously awaiting their decision. After completing my undergraduate degree and entered the teaching profession, I swore I would never go back to school because school was about to consume my life. But, a move to a new city, the purchase of a home, and confidence in my career prompted another drastic change: I was ready for graduate school. Weeks passed and I still hadn’t heard from my chosen university. Glitches in their system processing my application, miscommunicated information, and five phone calls later, I finally got me the answer I was looking for: ACCEPTED. I should have been ecstatic, but I was underwhelmed and disappointed. No printed letter to show my parents? No congratulations? Not even a little bit of pomp and circumstance? My road to enrollment quickly unraveled. A muddy course enrollment process and a botched online orientation confirmed that this institution wasn’t a place I was going to invest my time or money. My registration packet came the day before classes were supposed to commence. This is a sign, I thought. This wasn’t the right fit for me. Although respectfully declining their invitation to the program, I was thankful that I could start my program search over to find a school and a program that better suited my needs. My initial plan had to be destroyed before a new one could rise from the ashes; I had to relinquish control in order to regain it. Principle 4: Seeing the silver lining in an Ford F250 bumper is a practice in focusing on things you can control. Two months after my accident, I am still in daily conversations with the truck’s insurance company, I still haven’t seen a nickel of the check I am owed for the damages to my car, I am currently awaiting acceptance to another graduate program for this fall, and am still sorting out the repercussions of my colleague resigning from his position. The month of May couldn’t have ended soon enough, but the instances that have occurred in the last 31 days have taught me to tackle one crisis at a time. Do I have food on the table? Yes. Do I have a roof over my head? Yes. Do I have a support system of friends and family that love me? Yes. May of 2017 has taught me that even if I can’t control someone else’s actions, I can control my own reactions. That letting go and focusing with precision on the task at hand is the best way to gain back control over a seemingly spiraling situation. You see that sparkling silver bumper rapidly approaching in your rearview mirror? Let it come. Attempting to stop it is futile. Imagining alternative outcomes is impossible. Focusing on things you can control is vital. Now, about my broken water heater… Why I am Pursuing A Career in HealthcareMcKenzie Bingham
My parents got divorced when I was young. This was a difficult time for me; but with the strong support of my mother, I was able to accept this reality and get myself focused in school. My mother, who is a Nurse, encouraged me to study hard and do well in school. I followed her advice and set my goals to take my schooling seriously and set a goal to get all As in my classes. I knew that if I wanted to go to a competitive college program that I would need to get excellent grades. I also knew that I would have to apply for scholarships. I appreciate school and realize the importance of getting a good education in order to become an educated and productive adult member of society. My career interest since grammar school has always been to work in the medical field. My mother is a Nurse with a Pediatric specialty. I have always admired her and the work that she does. I would go to her office frequently and watch her work. I am proud of my mother and impressed by her skills. She knew that I wanted to work in the medical field and she encouraged me to seek out my own specific interests. I have done 20 hours of shadowing at both Sumner Pediatrics and Family Care Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. I found both of these experiences to be educational and rewarding. I decided that I wanted to be a Physician Assistant. My mother supported me to come to my own decision on what career field I wanted to pursue. Although I chose a Physician Assistant field I was greatly motivated by my mother’s own career field as a Nurse. Using Positive Thinking, I set my goal to be a Physician Assistant. I made a plan to maintain a GPA of 4.0 and become a member of the National Honors Society. I knew that I would need to study hard and take courses that would put me in a good position to be accepted into a six-year Physician Assistant program. I have always enjoyed school and take my studies seriously. My favorite subjects are math and biology. I was selected as a member of the National Honors Society and also received the Wellesley College Book Award in 2014. I graduated from Ludlow Senior High School on June 4, 2015 with a weighted grade point average of 4.24. I was ranked 7th in a class of 198. I focused on my high school goals and with my hard work I reached my high school goals. This placed me in good standing for the next step; to get accepted into a Physician Assistant program. I have worked at an elderly Assisted Living Facility where I enjoy working with and caring for the residents. It reinforced my choice to work in the medical field where I am able to care for others. I have also learned that I enjoy working with a diverse group of people. I believe that providing quality medical care for people young and old is not only a rewarding field but also good service to your patients. I believe in being professional and caring towards each person. Treating them as a human being and giving them quality care is a worthy occupation in life. I was pleased to see many people appreciate my efforts. It brought some positive energy into their daily lives. I made a special effort to talk each time with an elderly woman with Alzheimer Disease. I would always give her a positive comment on her clothes or appearance. She surprised me by remembering my name all the time. This experience had a significant impact on me in developing my maturity and insight on human behavior. I feel that I am a mature and responsible young adult with well thought out plans for my future. I was accepted by Springfield College in Massachusetts for their six- year Physician Assistant Program. When I graduate I will have a Masters of Health Science Physician Assistant Degree. One of my concerns is whether my family will be able to afford the costs because of the expense. My family does not have the money for me to go to college and I will have to take out significant loans. I have one younger sister and my mother is a single mother who works very hard to give us what we need. I have learned that costs for higher education are very expensive and this is why I am applying for scholarships; reaching out in hopes to get some help for my future college needs. If I win this scholarship it will reduce the loans I will have to take to pay my bills. I am excited, very motivated, and enjoy going to college. I finished my first semester with a GPA of 3.76. I will become a licensed Physician’s Assistant. My degree is in a field that I have great interest and will also allow me to provide quality medical care to people in my community with human dignity and compassion. When I graduate as a Licensed Physician Assistant in 2021. I plan to work at Bay State Medical Center in Springfield. I want to begin there to get a broad exposure to medical issues and concerns. I will be a great Physician Assistant. Community Service I believe that a human being should make a meaningful contribution to society. I was raised by my family to appreciate people of the world who are less fortunate. Each year we would contribute to different community service projects. We have bought a goat, helped build a water well, paid for a child to have surgery for a Cleft Palate and sent money to a family to India. I have sponsored a Christmas party for the past three years for children at a local women’s shelter. I believe that being a respectful person each day is important both for my own Life Journey but also towards others. AWARDS 1. National Honor Society 2. Make a Difference Award: I was one of a hundred students in the state that received The Make a Difference award at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. 3. Abigail Adams Scholarship in recognition of outstanding MCAS scores. 4. Wellesley College Book Award a counselor selected outstanding student award. 5. Center for Human Development Certificate for sponsoring Christmas parties for children in local shelter for the past 3 years. Acknowledgement I put down the phone and cried. It was 3 a.m. on a Thursday, and she had just told me that she no longer loved me. Head in my hands, I allowed the wave of self-pity to wash over me, drenching every solitary spot on my soul. Long distance relationships never work. I should’ve known what I was getting myself into. In a way I did, but that helped not an ounce when it finally came down to severing ties. I took a deep breath and whispered a mantra of “composure”. That semester had no intention of letting up. To begin with, the engineering course load I had undertaken kept me under constant stress, as thermo-fluids, circuits, physics, and solid mechanics all took turns kicking me in the gut. Also, though it paled in comparison, my bike had just been stolen, and I absolutely melted at the thought of walking around in hundred degree heat every day. A bitter laugh turned into a choke halfway up my throat. I felt totally and completely lost. I felt the floor giving way beneath me, freefall whipping my hair upward on the eddies of an endless abyss.
Melodrama aside, I began formulating a plan. I knew that I’d sustain some damage over the next few months, that much I couldn’t avoid. Grieving takes time, and any effort to expedite the process meets with the opposite result. So I focused on the things I could change. I prioritized. The three most important things to focus on, I decided, would be grades, fitness, and socializing. I started thinking of my bedroom as a place of solace where I could plan how to achieve all three goals. While in my room, I could knock out homework in peace. I also promised myself that any thoughts about “her” would have to occur outside the bedroom since it had to remain a place of productive thoughtfulness, not directionless angst. By establishing this rule, my bedroom transformed into an escape hatch from grief that promoted study and rejuvenation. I knew that the further along each day progressed, the more burdened with thought my brain would become. Acknowledging that my 9 a.m. class every day left very little morning time for study, I started waking up early. Very early. Bleary-eyed, I’d swat at the moonlit outline of my nightstand to shut off my daily 5:30 alarm. I’d crawl out of bed, make a pot of coffee, then get my mental gears spinning by first checking emails, then cracking open the books. I also made a point of surrounding myself with peers outside of my study time. By doing this, I further avoided listless stretches of time when thoughts of my ex could ensnare me. I edited for the school newspaper, and in the past, that was the extent of my interaction with the news team. Now, I stayed in the newsroom after production, socializing and actively engaging with new peers. I stayed busy because it forced my mind to undergo its own sort of mental calisthenics, putting it through its paces so that it wouldn’t lose its edge. In my history class (an impulse decision driven by a fear of becoming another human calculator) I started an honors contract. The contract required that I research and write an eight-page paper regarding a topic tangential to the course. This project helped me squeeze thoughtful grout between the blocks of studying and socializing. I frequented the library and took notes, investigating topics that kept my mind working while allowing me a break from mathematics. Finally, I addressed the exercise by swapping out my routine. I quit the one that I’d maintained throughout my previous relationship, and started anew with body weight exercises. This meant completing five sets of push-ups, pull-ups, and single-leg squats every day before bed. By maintaining a set regimen at an established time, I avoided the physical decay that typically accompanies grief, while also evading any thoughts of “her.” I knew that, of all the swirling variables in my life, I could most easily control my fitness. It only requires a commitment to starting, then allowing me to go into autopilot as I cruise though the rest of the exercise routine. Sure enough, by effectively managing my time and my thinking, I kept my head above water. My GPA took a tiny hit, but considering the combination of obstacles that I’d hurdled, I was pleased with the overall result. I widened my circle of friends and acquaintances considerably, written a dozen newspaper articles, and kept from growing a gut. I’m still treading water today, still looking for shore. Confidence separates how I feel now from how I felt at the beginning of the semester. I’ve no need to frantically thrash about in search of shore, now. I know how to confidently remain afloat, I’ve reset my internal compass. Creating my list of goals and focusing on the ones I could change helped me pick a direction and confidently pursue it. I’m assembling the building blocks for a better future. My head isn’t just above water; I’m building a boat. Focusing on Things You Can ControlCarl January Jr.
Focusing on Things You Can Control Most people aspire to be better than everyone else, this makes me an outlier. There is so much more to life, to people and to the self, especially when you are open-minded. Psychology to me is like the soul, its existence is a driving force. The closer you get to someone’s mind the more you learn about their heart; specifically what they have done or are doing. To me, this essence is derived from the location that surrounds one’s heart muscle or is of instinct (autonomic response), which is driven by survival rather than nurture. Who I am as a person speaks much louder than words, what I aspire to do is just as parallel. What I seek is very modest: to wake up every day with the same motivation and drive. To retain the courage to go the opposite direction if needed – even if it means going at it alone. To obtain the necessary amount of wholeness, so that my soul can be content and at peace. I prefer to see the world as it is and not how others project it to be. I live for today as I did yesterday, fully understanding, that one day there will be no tomorrow. Also my decade plus of service to United States Army instilled the abilities of assessment, selflessness, integrity and more importantly respect. Self-awareness is a discipline that spreads to other parts of my personality, including my moral character, work ethic, and perseverance. Another quality the Army has given me is leadership. As a Sergeant, I have learned to lead by example, be motivated, ambitious and dedicated as well as overcome adversity. Above all, it has given me a unique perspective, allowing me to truly appreciate life. I also am an advantageous globetrotter, studying abroad and touring over 35 some countries, try to maintain and carry a very neutral prospective of people, places and their behaviors. The search for an understanding or meaning to a particular aspect of one’s cognitions, behaviors or affects, to me, lies in the root of deep Psychology. This can enhance, limit or completely disinhibit a person, their goals and motivational levels that ultimately effects their life satisfaction. These factors all regress to the mean of choice, relating decision making to individual conduct and emotional regulation. Which has me reflecting on the past to present, how new paradigm shifts are formed and maintained. It takes a lot to break old habits or conditioned responses and this became apparent after almost losing my life to roadside bombs overseas. I woke up in a European Medivac site with a severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and epilepsy as a residual. After battling incredible amounts of loss and complications that required intensive rehabilitation, it forced me to develop a system of reconstruction, which I now implement to help others. While trying to conceptualize how one reaches specific levels of awareness, especially that to which pertains to impulse control, I was unequivocally led to the participation in graduate research. The goal of the study was to eliminate smoking sensations using hypnotherapy, exclusively with the Native American populations that reside in the Southwestern region of Milwaukee, WI. After understanding the research process more formally, it influenced a further desire to have isolated individual therapeutic successes. In doing so, I wish to diligently develop new hypotheses, establish new methods, and produce new data that can be replicated with hopes that it becomes empirically supported and provides access for others in my field. When thinking about such a field, I aspire to obtain the highest level of education possible and be a continuous contribution. Having the opportunity to pursue expanded studies (Psy.D.) will allow for me to do more for my community with specialized training and I welcome all avenues of exploration. A metamorphosis into not only a better consumer, but a producer became more evident after exceling at the master’s level. Since procuring my Undergraduate and Graduate Degree within four years, volunteering at Women and Children’s Horizons (WCH) aiding against domestic violence and sexual assault, an agency that has a shelter, crisis hotline and support groups. I have gained insight and experience which contributes academically and professionally by connecting theory with practice in order to be an effective helper; allowed for keener insight on how the world functions, my studies, and personal growth, despite the fact that I have a disability. I believe some of these harsh circumstances have led me to achieve what I have become today. This demonstrates my ability to overcome adversity but also substantiates perseverance and potential to be a psychologist candidate given the opportunity. In the future to best illuminate my goals, I would like to utilize my skills and abilities to provide services to those who are stigmatized, socially oppressed, or economically backward. I believe the doctorates program with enhance probability of therapeutic breakthrough of cycles of habituation, achieving more beneficial and meaningful lifestyle from my extensive expertise. I believe I could assist to develop an advanced depth of research and therefore have an ability to aid in this field. The research I aspire to contribute to entails impulse control with an emphasis on immediate and delayed gratifications. My primary objective of study is to establish an operant definition and to empirically substantiate the Hermit Effect within disability. There are three areas of study that interest me: there are prejudices that coincides with discrimination at work, school, with healthcare and in one’s personal life. These stigmas associated with socially imposed hindrances are due to disability stereotypes, such as aptitude. That doesn’t significantly correlate with standardization, because it doesn’t calculate the disability factor like maneuverability (adaptability), flexibility nor capability. Generalized testing and assessment have little to no adjustment for applied intelligence, achievement or sustainability. It has no exception due to disability thus does not accommodate disability and testing. Subsequently standardization and discrimination both encompass social constructs that clash with self -identity. The social expectation and normative functionability inflict limitations and restrictions. As a ramification, cultural norms and societal structures are not prepared for aiding persons with disabilities so that one can surpass structural inequalities and enhance the lack of self-esteem one would have with a handicap. My goal is to identify how the Hermit Effect can be detrimental to relationships such as: marriage, casual dating, friendships, professionally, and, ultimately unknowingly, with the self. Due to the high prevalence of physical and mental impairment, its results can be acute or chronic, leading to depersonalization, apathy, and negative perceived judgments that activate avoidance. Which is a primary mechanism of the Hermit Effect, disconnecting one from their social environment and limits human interactions. I would like to focus on all areas of exploration, especially on men and masculinity, men of color and how gender roles affect their psyche, resulting in actions such as abusing prescription pills, street drugs (cocaine, marijuana, and meth. etc.) and alcohol to cope with their inability to seek mental health services due to these gender stereotypes. I also wish to develop methods that could elicit cognitive behavioral interventions with adolescence and those traumatized by physical and/or psychological violence. I would like to be able to effectively prevent the diminished capacity of the psychological state that may lead to the violent actions of aggression due to ostracization and/or maladaptiveness as a factor of social isolation. I plan to establish a magnitude of service arrays that analyze trauma informed care among mono, bi, and multi-cultured clients across genders. An alternate interest of research would be on depression, exclusively on the effects it has on a person, personally and professionally. Identifying primary and secondary factors to which one is stagnant; preferably with veterans like myself. Focusing on the box that is built in support of coping or evading. Finding faster routes to the core psychologically, in order to prevent the longevity of the Box Effect. The word disability isn’t just associated with the stigma of being abnormal, physically or mentally challenged, it causes greater resistance of deterrence from employers, university programs and social acceptance. Focusing on Things You Can ControlRayonna Little
When I was growing up, I only had my mother. She was and still is the absolute light of my life, and I am so grateful and thankful to be her daughter. My parents were never married, but we sometimes lived together. When my mom and I moved to Delaware because she got a better job, that’s when I saw less and less of my dad. He spent majority of my life as a disappearing act, it was as if he was my personal Houdini. At max, he would stay around for about a month or two and then just when I got comfortable, poof he was gone. Starting high school without my dad was the worst time of my life because I was at a point where I didn’t see the light at the tunnel and I wasn’t sure I would ever see it. Sure, I had friends and sure, I was involved in sports and activities but it always felt like something was missing. I always wanted my dad to be there on game days, and I always wanted my dad to be front row and center for everything I participated in, and I always had a hope he would show up. One day the hope I had ran out and I had to move on, but I wasn’t ready yet. I always thought that I was less than or not equivalent to other families that had both parents. I used to blame myself for my dad not being around, I used to wish I was anybody but myself because I didn’t have my dad. I always thought that it was me, making him run and hide. I constantly, found myself reaching out for a hand that I always knew in the back of my mind, the same hand I wanted would never grab my hand in return. I called when I missed him, I called when I wanted to see him but the phone would just ring and ring and a voice I was looking for never picked up. I eventually got used to my dad not being around, even though a part of me envied my friends who had a stable parent relationship. My father came back around when it was my Junior year of high school. He was calling more often, he took me on vacations to visit my aunt in Florida but a part of me knew this wasn’t going to last long. I always questioned when he would disappear, and I would never set high expectations for him because he would always let me down. The vacations where nice, my first time experiencing Disney was with him but, there was still something missing. I was lacking the parent my mom was to me in him. At one point, he tried to be a parent and discipline me when he came back but I never respected it because I felt like a parent can’t pick and choose when they want to be a parent, just like how kids can’t pick and choose what parents they get. I felt like he didn’t have the right to just disappear and come back when he felt like it and be a parent when he pleased. I kind of had this you weren’t around for a while, you have no say in what I do or don’t do mentality. I wasn’t used to him being a parent. I was used to him only providing fun times and not placing out punishment where punishment was needed. My mom taught me what it was like to be a parent and make sacrifices for your child. She was the one who taught me stability and taught me how to love people for who they are. She showed me the difference between a full-time parent, and a half-time parent. She taught me once you make the effort to maintain a relationship and the effort is not reciprocated it is out of your control. Do not stress something that will not fit. She emphasized the meaning of focusing on what I could control and disregarding things I can’t. When I graduated high school, and started college I learned something from my rocky relationship with my dad. I learned that I should only focus on things that I can control, and life will fall into place. I finally understood the meaning of you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink. Once I focused on how I treated my dad and the energy on my end with our relationship, I found inner peace with his absence in my life. It no longer bothered me that he wasn’t around when I was growing up. It taught me independence, and not to depend on a man or anybody for things. Focusing on things that were in my control made me happier, wiser, and self-sufficient. RelationshipsTammy Baker
August 5, 2005 in the early hour of 2:45AM, dropped onto the middle of an empty rain slicked street, was the day that I died. As official as a Dr. having called the time of death in an operating room, I felt my very essence slip away. My then fiancé, having pushed me out of a moving car, yelled a series of vicious epithets, and skidded away, leaving me to my own defenses on an unfamiliar road surrounded by dark houses. For months afterwards, I roamed around my parent’s home like the walking dead. I wouldn’t talk, eat, and rarely smiled without feeling that if I smiled wide enough, my mouth would twist and the sound that ebbed from it would become a long all-consuming shriek. I was the new mother of a ten month old, and had discovered that I was pregnant with the second child of an unconscionable abuser. It was only after the two-millionth time, hearing my mother say, “If not for yourself, Live for your children.” That the words actually reached my heart. Like the flicker of a newly lit candle, I began to feel a slow burning, resolve, and determination. My relationship had died on that lonely road that morning, but my life would be saved in the care of my children. Looking back now at those early years of parenting, I admit, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, or getting myself into. All I knew, was that in order to be the best parent I could, I needed to do everything within my power to provide a stable, and healthy lifestyle for my family. It is now May 2017, and I am the mother of four beautiful children. I work a full-time job (forty hours a week), within a small, family-oriented, school in the Tacoma Public School District, and am currently a full-time student, enrolled in the Bachelors of Science Program in the field of Psychology. In writing about the keys to balancing parenthood, work, and schooling, you must understand, that Without a focus point as the motivation for what you do, even before beginning the uphill battle towards your goals, in the face of, self-doubts, feeling overwhelmed, life in general, and seemingly endless problems that will arise, you will undoubtedly quit. Most of us start out, wanting to do, or become something in life that we can be proud of, but as time, and trials wear down the human spirit, we become content to just live, giving up (without official declaration) on achieving the best of ourselves. My focus is giving my children the best of me. The only way that I can do that is to rise to my potential, spiritually, mentally, and financially, in order to not have to focus or worry, about our stability, and be better able to wholly enjoy, the time I have with them. My goal is to earn my Bachelor’s Degree in Behavioral Psychology, apply that towards a profession in Social Services relating to the field of Education, and in doing so, I will be working in a field I love, utilizing my skills within a profession I love, all while making enough financially, to comfortably support myself, and my children. As long as I keep my eyes on what I will achieve if I keep moving forward, I will continue to push myself towards better. Another very important key to balancing these usually altruistic roles, we take on, would be mental management. You are not built to bare the weight of things, people, and circumstances that are beyond your control, or not your priority. As a parent, employee, and/or student, learn when to push, the issue, and when to allow issues to drop from you like water from a duck’s water repellent backside. Be mindful of the time you spend on things/issues that don’t advance you. Allow yourself to be selfish in that respect. Having to choose between a night out with friends (after finally procuring a babysitter), or finishing homework due the next day, you must be willing to sacrifice a little for long-term reward. As parents with careers, it has become common, to be so involved in that career, and the assembly line of barely sustainable paychecks, that we lose track of why we’ve dedicated ourselves to a career in the first place. My first priority is my children. If there is a choice between staying home with a sick child and going to work for their upkeep, I will stay home, till they are well, and commit myself to make up that time (if possible) in order to retain the balance. The same goes for schooling. Thankfully, online classes allow me to properly balance my life in order to be an effective mother, and employee. If my children need me, I will be there, and then I will work on classes at two in the morning, or on my lunch break, if necessary to keep on the path of my overall goals. I have to make lists. They help me prioritize what I need to do, by when, and what I can put aside till I have time. Lastly, let yourself breathe. Keeping track of children, deadlines, bills, and homework amongst everything else, can be draining. We can lose ourselves within the roles we create, and become slaves to their influence on our psyche. However, wherever, whenever you can, take time to breathe, meditate, pray, reflect, read a book, scroll Facebook, or watch a meaningless comedy. I find that some days, while the house is filled with the hustle and bustle, of children, music, and television, to just sit in my van, lay my head back, and enjoy silence, is a comfort. And to think, I died flying out of one car all those years ago, only to find life, flying towards the welcoming cushions within another. Life is full of Irony. And the irony of it is, it’s only what you make it. The Power of Positive ThinkingRicketha Kirksey
From a young age, I've always had an enthusiasm for helping others. Both my mother and godmother spent years working in a hospital; listening to their authentic stories of their everyday lives inspired me to follow in the same career path. I want to make a difference in others’ lives, no matter how trivial. Becoming a nurse means more than just a striking title, it means being a reliable individual, a friend to patients, and a role-model to fellow staff. Currently, I am a freshman at Auburn University in Montgomery. I have a genuine love for people and find that nursing is a career path that would allow me to apply my knowledge and enjoy my work. To become a nurse, I will be the first in my immediate family to obtain a degree. My childhood has been limited financially, but I would never allow that to interfere with my studies. Between work, school, religious events, and my extracurricular activities, I hardly have time for anything else, but when I do have downtime I spend it with my family. Because of my own family background, I tend to push myself harder so that I reach my full potential in everything I do. For me, personal failure is not an option. Life has not been an easy road for me or my family. I was raised by my mother until she passed away from an aneurysm when I was fourteen. Between this devastating circumstance, recovering from emotional abuse, and struggling to find financial stability, I have learned that by setting goals for myself, I will be able to overcome and surpass my tragedies and replace them with accomplishments for the future. I suffered emotional, physical, and verbal abuse from my father throughout my high school career. This aided in my diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. At the beginning of my senior year in high school I had my first panic attack. Soon after, I began seeing a therapist for my anxiety and depression. I had a long road ahead of me. Leaving for college seemed like my only escape then; however, my focus was on fixing my thought pattern and changing the way I perceived myself and others around me. I continued to do exercises where I would take a negative thought on paper and change it into a positive thought. Changing your thought process is a challenging and demanding approach, however, it is not impossible. The vital aspect is to have patience and understand that it will take time and effort. It may not come easy for everyone because certainly isn't easy for me. Personally, I had to accept that my past does not determine my future. Now, a year after completing my treatment; I still recall the specifics I learned with my therapist. Positivity. Positivity plays a key role in the outcome of situations. Of course, there will still be good days and bad days but it is how you perceive the experiences. Many believe that thoughts are impossible to control; however, after extensive practice I learned that you can change the way you think. If you think negative thoughts you are more than likely going to have negative outcomes. This fact is supported in the book Power Thoughts, by Christian author Joyce Meyers. This book was given to me by a supportive aunt on my graduation day. Through this book and scriptures from the Bible, I continue to learn about the relationship between mind and body, body and soul, and mind and outcomes. After being surrounded by negativity a majority of my adolescent years, I began to learn the importance of keeping a positive outlook even when situations seemed hopeless. By the beginning of my Freshman year in college, I had mastered several coping strategies for my anxiety, such as journaling, breathing exercises, and prayer. By keeping this encouraging outlook on life, I have successfully completed my first year of college with a 4.0 GPA while staying active in campus organizations. Achieving and sustaining a positive mindset changes your perception on the world. You began to feel capable of every task you put your mind to. And why wouldn't you? Because you can do anything you set your mind to. While there are still improvements to make, I will continue to have high aspirations; I know that if I persevere there is nothing that can stop me from obtaining my goals. I'd like to think of myself as an overachiever mainly academically since I will settle for nothing less than my best. My plans for my educational goals are to complete my education at Auburn University in Montgomery and receive my nursing license. In the future, I will accomplish my dream of becoming a registered nurse. I will make a difference in someone's life with my career choice. I know my passion for helping others will leave a legacy of inspiration behind for others to keep instilled in their hearts. I Left a Part of Myself in Puerto PenascoGabrielle Hovis
Trash litters the arid desert: bags and paper ribbons caught in the thorny grasp of small shrubs, empty beer bottles and misshapen cardboard laying rejected in the scorching sand. Faded boxes softly tumble across dirt roads, the path distinguishable from the landscape only by the jumbled sculptures of trash that sprout up beside the roads. Defeated, sagging fences mark the boundaries between each trash monument, and the rocky, dirt roads weave along uneven fencing to create an intricate network that connects each monument. Every trash structure is a distinctive amalgam of rusting metal, splintering wood, and faded sheets, their color sucked away by the blazing sun. And if you look close enough, you’ll see that the structures are not abandoned. This desert development of trash monuments and drooping fencing is a community–inhabited by ordinary people with ordinary necessities. What appears to be a trash sculpture has another word in these communities: home. People live in these patched houses, built out of any attainable wood boards, abandoned scrap metal, and various car parts. The luckiest families live in ancient trailers and RVs whose engines have long since been exhausted, or in cramped concrete structures that provide protection from the harsh wrath of nature. Very rarely is there a description that effectively provides the reader with a complete comprehension of poverty, an account that captures the true depth to which poverty impacts the life of an individual. It is impossible to begin to grasp the idea of insufficiency until you see scrawny, emaciated dogs wander along the streets, sniffing despairingly for food. Until you kick worn, depleted soccer balls through the dust with children in their tattered shirts, or hear the loudly broadcasted advertisements aired from megaphones atop rusty, sputtering cars as they drive by slowly, only then can you begin to develop an inkling of understanding about a life defined by poverty. And even then, in the midst of destitution and deficiency, you will still lack a complete understanding of poverty. Because when you search closely, you will find joy and contentment in even the most impoverished locations. Every year, my family travels to Puerto Peñasco, México to build houses with an organization called Amor Ministries. And every year, I am hit with the fierce wave of reality that reminds me that my lifestyle is not universal. Driving up to the building site every day is a memory I will never forget. Bouncing with every bump in the dirt road, peering through clouds of dirt at the patched houses, each a jumbled arrangement of wood planks, various scraps of metal, and tattered bedspreads. Waving through the dirty car windows at children in tattered shirts who stop to stare at the passing cars. Each house is unique, each varying structure reflecting the diverse creativity of its occupants. And just over the edge of the makeshift houses the coast is visible: a line of clear blue water and a jumble of the dazzling, soaring towers of resorts that viciously compete for expansion and power along the ocean. This cruel juxtaposition has always lingered in my mind, stirring questions of justice and morality. But the most memorable element of the trip is the development of relationships. The true happiness and sincere appreciation of every Mexican family I have encountered on the Amor trips never ceases to amaze me. I am constantly humbled by the fact that an individual can be so content with so little, a fact that leaves all my trifle issues to pale in comparison. I have witnessed the dirt-smeared, grimy faces of children light up with broad smiles and laughter during a game of soccer, a shy grin sneak across the face of a small girl in response to a simple compliment, and the stubborn commitment and optimism of an adult helping to mix concrete or lay the foundation of their new home. I have seen tears snake down the lines of sun-tanned faces as families stand in their finished homes, and clung tightly to the warm embrace of people I knew I would never see again. Their contentment and appreciation has inspired me to appreciate everything that I have, no matter how trivial. My trips to Puerto Peñasco are no big feat. I have not solved world hunger, nor eliminated poverty, nor discovered a cure for AIDS. I have simply helped to build small homes for a few small families. But the happiness I have witnessed in the depths of poverty, and the relationships I have developed by simply applying my limited Spanish vocabulary has had a profound impact on my life. My experience serves as a constant reminder for me to appreciate the live that I have been blessed with, and find new value in the small things. I am driven and encouraged by the knowledge that though the problems that I face daily appear to be large, they are insignificant in comparison to the hardships that some face each day. Growing UpMillad Bokhouri
Growing up, I was not like the average child, care-free and bouncing through life. At an early age, I had to realize that life had its own struggles, setbacks, and breakthroughs. This was first brought to my attention when I realized that I had to not only try to adapt to my surrounding environment, but also act as a translator, businessman, and negotiator for my parents who didn’t learn the language of this country as well as I had when we left Iran. This was further challenged by my declining eyesight. When I reflect on these challenges now, I am grateful for the experience, but at the time, it was extremely overwhelming, making schooling very difficult for me and my parents. Being placed in public school, where disabled students are made to feel like a problem to be solved in assembly line order, a rebelliousness was brought out of me that almost threw me into a downward spiral of conflict and hopelessness. The hand that I was dealt in life was one that I felt denied me my full potential, so at 13 years old, I left my home in Los Angeles to live with my aunt and uncle in Philadelphia. I credit them for pulling me away from a damaging path that I could have taken, lovingly bringing me into their home, and planting within me the seeds of my confidence that I now employ in my new way of living. Thus far, my visual disability had been fairly stable, and I was independent enough that to the lay-person, I appeared normal. At the time, appearing normal contributed to the feeling of stability that I needed to understand what I wanted to do with my life after high school. I had the room to discover my interest for helping other people and living an active lifestyle. I began by looking into the different types of therapeutic services that I could develop as a career for myself, which led me to massage therapy. It was an open career field with multiple applications and the education was designed in a manner which I could grasp due to its vast application its tactile core of therapy. After finishing massage school, I delved into entrepreneurship and created a model that was geared not just toward the relaxation aspect of massage, but more so a rehabilitative perspective. While being an independent contractor and working with athletes, I wanted to not only provide therapeutic relief during our sessions, but I also began refining techniques that were rehabilitative in nature. The more I learned about ways to help athletes not only perform better but recover from injuries faster, the more interested I became in helping the average individual suffering from a situational setback, such as hip or knee replacement. I wanted to likewise help them try to regain their balance and momentum in life. During this time, I began the process of looking into cardiac rehabilitation and beginning the tenuous completion of the requirements needed toward achieving this major goal. Also during this time, the vision that I so cherished and hung on to began to rapidly deteriorate, forcing me as an individual to step back, disconnect, and at times, lose my grip on reality. Fortunately, like previous times in my life, there were those who could see the light that I was unable to find. I remember an in-depth discussion with my eye doctor as to which direction I should be taking my life. He reminded me that even though I’m going blind, this is a point in my life where I will learn a key principle about myself, and if I’m able to grasp its revitalizing concepts, it would set me up for greater potential. As I lose my sight, the world around me is closing its doors from one reality, but it is opening up a whole new expansive universe. It was up to me to unlock this realm, not only in life but in philosophy, and leap into the darkness. Most cardiac rehabilitators struggle with reinventing new ways to adapt patients’ current state of ability to a constant change in environment, whereas I am adapting to my environment constantly due to my blindness. This characteristic is what I know will make me the therapist that patients are looking for and need. I am not just the average cardiac rehabilitator that is reacting based off of theoretical principles, but I can empathetically connect with the patients which has a greater impact and greater rate of progress. Since coming to a greater level of acceptance with my eyesight, I feel as though one of the greatest lessons I've learned thus far is that we are all living in a temporary state of ability. In moments of decline, the loss that people feel can be tangible. Having felt similar losses myself, I know that it would be a privilege to help people turn their loss into strength, fear into courage, and find their own compelling inner energy to harness their own iron will. The Law of AttractionVictoria Ann Rodriguez
Texas A&M University The formative college years are some of the best to learn and practice the principals of the law of attraction. It is the belief that by focusing on positive or negative thoughts a person brings positive or negative experiences into their life, and is based upon the idea that people and their thoughts are both made from “pure energy,” and that through the process of “like energy attracting like energy” a person can improve their own health, wealth, and personal relationships. The law of attraction allowed for personal development leading to high performance, and I will share this principle through inspirational, motivational stories and experiences overcoming challenges in my life through living the personal development principle. The law of attraction is a personal development principle. Living that principle made a positive impact in my life and helped to overcome a life challenge, and others should follow it, too. Since I was very young, I have been following the law of attraction personal development principle as best as I can, perhaps unknowingly at first. From my childhood, my parents have always taught me to think positively and positive things would come my way. Karma is a similar principle having to do with actions, which I also believe in, but focusing on positive thoughts has been a more important objective. No matter what happened, I always saw the bright side of things, never wasting energy on negative thought or actively slandering something, to the point where it was hard for me to designate any worry to everyday troubles in my life at all; I always kept that bright, positive attitude through my childhood, and, given the multiple instances this principle paid off, I continue to do so today. One experience I had overcoming a challenge in my life through living the law of attraction personal development principle was in controlling my depression. Despite my cheerful attitude, I have fallen to several mental illnesses in the past, including depression, which I still struggle with at times. As a growing child, I was often alone and confused mentally and emotionally, especially in terms of my identity, self-worth, and what I felt others thought of me. However, through the two short years my depression was at its worst, I focused all my energy on being more positive, and needed only myself to make it through; As a result, I overcame my depression, stayed strong in my adherence to the principle, and am able to keep it at bay today. An inspirational story that resulted from this is the way it has affected my relationships with others around me and attracted people with positive energies who benefit from the principle as well. From childhood, I have been a very bright, social butterfly, and have always helped when needed, comforted where I can, and made sure no peer felt unhappy or excluded in a new place; I made many friends during my youth group years at church in this way, and had positively impacted the lives of others, allowing positive energy-sharing people to increasingly surround me overtime there. As I got older, I became sort of isolated, but refused to feel lonely, and would continue being positive in the face of others for nothing in return; although my resolve sometimes weakened, I still managed to make friends and make others happy—something that fueled my efforts and maintains my drive for spreading positive energy even now. Presently, following the law of attraction affects my relationships by encouraging me to spread the principle to others, and I continue trying to help my friends, family, and loved ones in any way that I can; though the energies are not always reciprocated, I feel that I am at least unaffected by any and all negative energies that I may encounter, and that such resistance allows me to push back in a positive way. In conclusion, following the law of attraction as personal development principle has definitely helped me throughout my life. The law of attraction is rooted in the belief that by focusing on positive energy one can improve their health, wealth and relationships, and since it has worked for me, I strongly encourage others to follow it. Following and adhering to the law of attraction has helped me overcome many challenges throughout my life and maintain my inspiration, motivation, and drive to help myself and others by attracting positive energy. The formative college years are some of the best to learn and practice the principals of the law of attraction and if you have not done so already, it would be wise to follow it now; if you want to radiate and attract nothing but positive energy that leads to positive personal development, high performance, and success in your life, the present is the best time to start. The Power of Positive ThinkingNathan Snow
As the saying goes, “Nothing in life is free!” And the price for a good education is no exception. An enormous amount of resources are required to insure a successful college experience. Money seems to always make the top of that list and can come from a variety of resources. However, I have learned throughout many life experiences— including some very difficult ones— that the cost of success demands much more than money. Hard work, an unwillingness to give up, and being resolute in my goals is how I will pay for my education and that’s a price that I’m willing to pay. Just getting to this point in my life has required an extensive amount of hard work— being embowered by work throughout my life as taught me many lessons. An example of a time when I had to work extra hard is when I was trying to get become sponsored in my skating career. I was told, “you will never get that far,” countless times by my friends, sponsors, and my own parent. In spite of all that, I was recently picked up by one of the main skating companies in America named VNLA Skate Co. My rigorous attitude and the amount of hard work I’ve put out has muted all the obstacles that came into my path. The moment you accept that life will never be perfect is the point where you realize just how important it is to keep going. “It’s easy to be on the bottom, it doesn’t take any effort to be a loser.” Ever since I first discovered this quote, when I came across a video online, my mindset has changed the way I perceived the challenges that I’m faced with. I know college will undoubtedly be tough and you may be inclined to give up, but isn’t that what makes life worth while? The fight and drive behind it all. There’s going to be multiple reasons to quit—out of time, too hard, I won’t get the scholarship—what if i had only filled out half the FAFSA report and never turned it in? You can’t accomplish greatness by giving up. It’s this ability to stay unwavering with your goals when it’s not easy is what separates the accomplished from everyone else. That’s the difference between proficient and incompetent people. Since I was a child, I was fascinated with Culinary Arts. I love every aspect of it, especially as I grew. Back in the days when I was in junior in high school, when I was first obtain my first job, I was impressed with every aspect of food in restaurants, coffee shops, and in bakeries. From that moment on, I planned out my goals and simplified them into daily tasks to achieve growth each day. At the time, I knew I would have to set goals too pursue a major related to Culinary or General Study, I knew I would have to go to college. Furthermore, money is a valuable asset and I’m grateful to those who provide scholarships for those of us who can truly benefit from them. Because money is valuable and NOT an unlimited resource, I will make sure that through my hard work, my unwavering desire to achieve my goals, and my unshakable ability to not give, I will be deserving of every penny I receive! Conquering TrialsJames Johnson
I love theater. I have always wanted to have a career in theater, whether that is acting or helping others through teaching high school or at the university level help others realize their dreams. I think if I can help make a difference in other people’s lives through teaching, then I have contributed to society and the future of young minds. Theatre has always been my second priority. I don’t mean to say that it’s not important because it is, but it could never overshadow my education. I have always put school first. When my grades would start to suffer, I would take it upon myself to spend the extra time after rehearsal to get everything done. The greatest knowledge that I have received has been how to work. This has taught me that you can do anything if you put in the necessary effort. Because of this, I have successfully performed well on the stage, at school, and at work. I do not intend to attempt a career in theatre without receiving the necessary training. I feel that a college education will give me the necessary tools to become a successful performer. I would very much like to attend college. I feel that the BFA in Acting suits my career goals perfectly. I selected this specific major because it keeps my options open in the field. I can use this to pursue a career in acting. I also can use this degree as a stepping stone to a Master of Education degree that I could use to teach in the field. Upon graduation, I will search for acting opportunities, while maintaining a part-time job to sustain myself. I will then audition for as many things as possible to gain a good reputation so I will become more recognized, and eventually will be cast. I do not intend to ever give up on an acting career. I will put in the necessary work to achieve a profession in performance. After this part of my career, I look forward to teaching and helping others in their journey. I can use all the things I have learned in college and out in the field to help in my teaching. I look forward to my career and hope that I can do my best. My Autism has made me a better actor. I’ve been performing for nearly a decade, but this trial taught me how to put in the effort necessary to lead a successful career in acting. Reaching my sophomore year, I had done over 20 full productions, but I had almost never been cast as the lead. My directors had told me that I was just too awkward, and wasn’t lead material, but I didn’t understand why or how I could fix it. That spring, I went to psychiatrist, thinking I had gone mad. He diagnosed me with Autism Spectrum Disorder, or Asperger’s Syndrome, which meant that I didn’t register or express social cues as well. He said that I could never be a successful actor, but another symptom was this laser-beam focus, so ignored his remark. As I worked to improve my faults, I realized that they weren’t faults to begin with. My focus has given me an incredible work-ethic that had me going non-stop. My awkwardness helped me to focus on the littlest specifics, which will help lead me nearly flawless performances. I still make plenty of mistakes, but that’s the thing about mistakes: they’re there for you to learn. I will never stop working to improve myself as a performer, especially once I’m successful, because that’s where all the real work begins. My Autism was never a trial, it was a blessing that taught me that I really can achieve my dreams, and nothing will stand in my way. This leads to my power to worry about the things I can control rather than things that are completely out of my hands. Having Asperger’s is completely out of my control. How I deal with it is in my control. Also, I can use my strengths that go along with Asperger’s to help me with my obstacles. My level of Autism creates a need in the brain to perseverate or obsess over a different thing every few months. If there is something I am interested in, I learn all I can about that subject and kind of let everything else go by the wayside. This can be a hindrance and a help. By focusing myself on the ability to be aware of when I am concentrating too hard on something, I can take a step back and try to become more balanced. However, this ability to really hone in on something has also been a blessing in certain situations. I just must learn to be aware of what is going on and do my best to worry about the things I can control. Your Unconsciousness Causes You PainChristopher Rivas
Your Unconsciousness Causes You Pain. Now, this is not some hocus-pocus theory. You’ve become so good at distracting yourself from the suffering in your life. By putting all your attention into your work, TV, sex, snacks, you name it, that your suffering remains unseen and the source remains hidden. Your life become structured around everything that is sidestepping the suffering you rarely allow yourself to feel. Now if only for a second, you touch the surface of your suffering, perhaps boredom, you quickly pick up the remote control, you run. If we train ourselves to reach for a snack or pick up the phone to text or look at Instagram whenever we feel frightened or bored (yes, this is definitely training), then the next time we feel uncomfortable we will also likely reach for some comfort outside ourselves, eventually establishing a deeply ingrained habit, another brick in the wall of our mental prison. We must feel our suffering. We must rest with it, embrace it, make love with it. Feel our suffering so deeply that we penetrate it and realize where it comes from. Are we in training to distract ourselves from inner discomfort or anxiety? Are we in training to numb ourselves in the face of fear? Or are in training to wake up, to be present, to know our thoughts and in turn ourselves? Are we training to open the heart, or training to shut it down? This is what we notice when we simply sit quietly with ourselves for even a few moments: we experience the accumulated momentum of mental noise, booming and buzzing. We notice how strongly we are trained to want something different from what actually is happening. We notice that our minds are very well trained in dissatisfaction and distraction. Almost always our focus is on something else—not this. We seek another moment of greater happiness— not this moment. Contentment seems always elsewhere—never here. We must restructure our training. We must train to be here. To not run from this moment of “nothingness”. That is the only way we tear down the self-imposed wall instead of building it piece-by-piece, thought-by-thought. Open yourself and wait. Do not cover your suffering. Do not quit before you fall through the whole of suffering and emerge with the truth. Spend time every day in solitude, with no distractions. Stay with suffering until you fall through it and understand its source. We are strong because we know our weaknesses. This is a difficult process, knowing thyself, remaining steadfast and diligent; removing anything that dulls our edge. At times it will mean, no newspapers or magazines, no TV, no candy, no cookies and sweets, no sex, no cuddling, no reading while you eat or sit on the toilet, no movies, no conversation that is not about truth, love, for the divine. We are entirely responsible for cutting through our own laziness, addictions, and unclarity. Whatever techniques are appropriate, we must use them: Talk with your friends, use therapy, practice meditation or prayer, go on a retreat, go on a hike, read a book, read scripture, walk in nature, keep a journal, study with a teacher. It really doesn’t matter what you choose, what matters is your actual commitment to discovering the deepest truth and aligning your life with it. Do whatever you have to do to cut through the dullness in your life. Christopher Rivas – Achieve Today Essay We can spend two hours watching the Super Bowl, it’s a great game, and a great distraction, but the fact remains we have something here we’re supposed to do, something we’re supposed to give. Let’s give it. Finally, we must give up trying so hard. It seems counter to everything proceeding, but it is essential, that we let go and let grow. We have to allow things to simply come to us, to simply happen. In Alchemy the final ingredient is always “Mystery,” or “Nothingness.” We have to let things happen. Don’t get it twisted, this is just as active as a process as going out and doing all that stuff before hand, you are choosing to TRUST the work, effort and energy you have put in, and to now allow things to come, because the seeds have been planted. Otherwise we are just running around constantly trying to get and do more because it is never enough and we don’t actually believe that our work or effort matters. At some point we must let go and allow. If we think about it, ALL our tension comes from us mulling over our own problems. Worrying and fretting over the things I want and would like so badly – this endless endless cycle! The cure is to remove myself from myself, remove myself from the myth that I have to hold on so tight, remove myself from my own worrying about the things I want and need and put myself into a state of giving and receiving. Finally, uncurl your attention from yourself and let go. Let go, let go, so that you don’t even notice you stopped holding onto yourself. FreedomSarah Boroujerdi
New York University I stood outside the Los Angeles International Airport, breathing in the sensational feeling of freedom. This was the moment I was crucially seeking after six daunting months in Iran. With my feet firmly planted on American soil, there was one vital truth; here, the States, is exactly where I was destined to reside. It was summer of 2004 when my family decided to pay a long-awaited visit to our extended relatives in Iran. I packed my suitcase with alacrity and overly ambitious expectations typical of a ten year old adolescent girl. How could anything possibly go wrong? There was not one reason to question my fate for the remainder of the year, especially since I would return to the States for the fifth grade in the fall. Shortly thereafter, I would find out I had been completely mistaken. My time in Iran started out splendidly, as I was overflowed with warmth and endearment by my affectionate relatives in Boroujerd, Iran. I could feel their unconditional love as they waited by their front gate all day for our arrival under the scorching hot sun; our entrance was a blessing to them. Tears filled their eyes that night of our arrival. Vivid childhood memories of our previous trips to our native country were reminisced in my grandmother's garden, a garden bearing its own memories of my mother’s childhood and teenage years. For two months, I stayed at my grandmother's house with my mother's family. Little did I know that a single phone call would unfold my worst nightmare. One lazy, overbearingly hot July afternoon, my mother called me to the phone. "Here, it's your dad," she told me abruptly, with a look so petrified it appeared as though she had been cursed by the devil himself. I nervously clenched onto the phone, not comprehending the next few life-altering seconds of my life. What did he tell her? This thought resonated in my head as I picked up the phone to my dad’s distinctively deep voice on the other end of the line. "Salam Sarah jon, chetori ?” 1 2 3 “I’m fine Baba, is everything okay? How are things going?” “Azizam, I wanted to let you know that it would be a good idea to live in Iran. I’m letting go of 4 our home here in Fresno since we’ll find an apartment in Tehran soon. You and your brother can start school there the fall. I think this would be good for you guys.” I was appalled, not even able to comprehend what I had just heard on the other end of the line. At the wide-eyed age of ten, there was one thing I could certainly recollect from my father’s decision. If my mother wanted to object, she could not. This was Iran, a country where fathers, not mothers, were the heads of the household. The succeeding few months would be the most life-altering stages of my entire existence. Involuntarily, I was required to attend a single-sex international school in Tehran, where girls from numerous countries would learn to speak Farsi, the native Iranian language. After apprehensively stepping foot on campus that first day, I was not aware of the distinct social normalities of the Iranian school system. Of course, a second-generation Iranian American born and raised in a polar opposite Western society was not an experience to be taken lightly. In effect, the aftermath of entering this religiously oriented campus was an instantaneous personal shock. My on-campus persona came to be molded as the “new girl” in town, the girl who must be consistently reminded of the numerous standards of conduct expected of an Iranian 1 short Persian greeting for As-Salaam-Alaikum (peace be upon you) 2 Persian term for “honey” or “sweetheart” 3 Persian term for “how are you?” 4 Common Persian term meaning “my dear” educational institution. Of course, the school system was extremely difficult to assimilate into, due to the embedded and deeply intertwined cultural and religious disciplines. This was most obviously evident with the glorification of Iranian religious leaders by the heads of our school district, as the godly presence of Ayatollah Khomeini’s pictures were boldly framed in every classroom. It was after that first day of school that I had the greatest urgency to return to the States. My mother and brother mutually agreed to my stance. For my mother, moving to Iran had its positives and negatives. Yes, she could see her family any time she pleased, for they would only be a few hours away. However, her predicament was alarming, since by law, my father could take my brother and I away from her in the blink of an eye. With these stressful thoughts of an entrenched Iranian regime suffocating our everyday lives to the very level of family dynamics, there was no other alternative but to abscond. Miraculously, my mother was able to make a private arrangement with her brother to get my brother and I to the Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran. As Dai Reza dropped 5 6 us off, he gave the most heartfelt hug goodbye, leaving me with an immeasurable amount of confusion. As my mother, brother, and I moved closer to the area of departure, my fate became more perceivable as if I were approaching the light at the end of the tunnel. We had finally boarded the plane, our golden ticket of escape. Focusing on Things You Can ControlAngelita Cobbs
Hello my name is Angelita Cobbs and I would like to introduce myself to you. Here is my story “Law of Attraction and Focusing on Things That You Can Control” I am a proud mother and coach. I coached my son and started teaching my son at the age of two years old. I am a successful tennis player and business women. I played in the Australian Open, achieved a world ranking, made a couple of commercials, owned my own business, Director of Tennis, Head Tennis Professional, Director of Junior Tennis, coached nationally ranked players, worked with coaches who were ranked in the top 10 in the world, taught at the top prestigious country clubs, coached high school tennis and have coached people from the ages of 2 to 99 years old. I have done a lot charity work and did motivational speaking with celebrities. My son who is my only child was born 10 months after my father passed away. My son’s name is Miguel. Miguel is very special and means the world to me. Miguel is also a tennis player and finished #2 in the Nation and 201 in the United States Men’s Professional Tennis Rankings, #8 Men’s Singles Rankings in Florida, and Top 20 in the Junior USTA Tennis Rankings in Florida. Miguel also went to college and won the award Player of the Year in the Midwest. Miguel also is the New York State Mix Doubles Champion for year 2011, 2012, and 2013. Miguel is very successful and is a director of a prestigious country club in Westchester County, New York and he just got married. I have traveled around the world playing tennis, Asia, abroad – Europe and my life has been very interesting. In 2012 - I moved to Arizona to pursue my professional tennis coaching career and I became very sick. I did not originally plan to attend school when I moved here; however, circumstances beyond my control transpired and I was forced to make some life changing decisions. I originally moved here in the middle of July 2012 and due to it being the summer time, I was not able to start looking for in my chosen career field as a Tennis Pro, I started applying to for work so that I could support myself until the tennis season began. One of the first position I was able to get was through Integrity Staffing in October 2012 as an Order Fulfillment Specialist at Amazon. I was employed with Integrity Staffing though November 2012 and my reason for leaving the position was due to illness. At that time, I was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure, inability to produce enough red blood cells and a uterine tumor that was 33 centimeters in size. In addition, to these health problems, I became homeless and had to move into a shelter in Mesa, Arizona. For the next couple of months, I tried to maintain some stability while living in shelter and find a way to have the surgery that the doctors stated I needed to stay alive. I was also told that I would not be able to return to my previous career due to episode of congestive heart failure and after the life-saving surgery. I was able to get the surgery done at Maricopa County Medical Center in Phoenix in late February 2013 and moved into the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul Ozanam Manor so that I could start my recovery process. It was during this time that I decided to go back to school. Since my physical health had now restricted what I was able to do for work, I decided to reinvent myself by getting a degree. I started at the community college level because I had not been to school of any kind in over 35 years. I have been attending Gateway Community College since August 2013. Every semester something has gone wrong with my health. I use to walk to and from school everyday in order to keep in shape and get some exercise. One day while I was walking from school, I tore my meniscus and had to have knee surgery. I scheduled my surgery on a day when I had off from school, so that I would not miss any school. I remember having three days off before it was time for me to return to school. I was so determined that I was not gonna miss any school and fail my classes - Nothing was going to keep me from finishing my classes that semester, so I went to school every day on crutches and Physical Therepy. The next semester I went to the doctor to get new glasses and I was diagnosed with glaucoma, and what a shock! I went in for one thing, only to find out about something else. So I came to terms with that and kept things moving forward in a positive direction. After that semester was over, the next semester I went in for my six month check up and then the doctor diagnosed me with Cataracts, I said “ Damn I need to hurry up and get my degree, because it seems like every semester something with my health is going wrong”. Once again I came to terms with my health issues, and was getting closer to my degree. The next semester became very hard for me, because in order to get into the Nuclear Medicine program, I had to pass Biology 156 (which was my second time) and Math 151 (math 151 – with a (B) which was my third time. Well that didn’t happen, here I go again, I failed my math class for the third time. At this point I became very confused, because I wasn’t sure what to do next because I was so sick of math. Something inside of me said go to my advisor and see what other options that I have, and that’s when I found out that I can go in a different direction without having to look back and move forward in getting my Associates degree. I changed my major to Liberal Arts. By doing that, my next semester was to be even more difficult for me, because I had to take five classes and take two in the summertime in order to get my Associates Degree. I remember being so excited that I can finally finish and get an Associates Degree. The next week it was time for me to go to the doctor and get my check up, and to have some test done as well as get a colonoscopy. Once again I scheduled my colonoscopy for a day that I did not have school. Well I guess I was lucky that my doctor recommended me to get a colonoscopy because they found several polyps. My doctor removed the polyps and said that “ They caught everything in time, if I had not come in when I did, within the next year or two those polyps would have turned into Cancer. After surgery was over, I returned to school more determined now to get my Associates degree. Long story short I passed all my classes and I marched across the stage in May 2016, and completed my Associates of Degree in Liberal Arts this summer. When I had Congestive Heart Failure, six blood transfusions, a tumor that was 33 centimeters and growing. My blood level was 2.8. The doctors said “to run the computers again because the computers must be broken.” They ran the computers again and it read the same and all 11 doctors said “It was a miracle and none of them have ever seen that, because the average person’s blood level is 12 to 16.” They believed that because I was a professional tennis player/pro that’s what kept me alive. I have had death knock at my door and yet I have survived. Like the doctor said "I am their miracle patient". That's when I decided to go back to school. I decided to attend Gateway Community College. I was planning to major in Nuclear Medicine, and my plans changed, because I felt God has given me a second chance at life to do something to help peopleI. I don’t know what God has in store for me next, but in the next 4 to 6 years I would like to have a new career as a "Transformational Coach”. I am now attending Arizona State University and I am working on my Bachelor Degree. My long term is to get my Masters Degree and if time permits a Doctorate. I feel that God have helped me to survive all of these trials and tribulations and adversity in life, and “ I am inspired! I feel compelled to help people, because now I am 55 years old and I am reinventing myself. Even though it’s been hard and challenging - I feel that my story and the story that I will tell can help and inspire people of all ages. I would like to thank you for reading my story. This is the “Law of Attraction and Focusing on Things That You Can Control” Personal DevelopmentAnnika Machado
Like it has been for generations past, being a teenager in this day and age can be difficult. We are perceived as requiring “safe spaces”, having a crippling dependence on technology, and being generally unmotivated and lazy. Yet, the real problems stem from those perpetuating these stereotypes – generally pessimistic people who like to declare that their “faith in humanity is lost” because of me and my peers. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts: when we are told that we are lazy and entitled, do we feel motivated to rise up and do great things? And although I have grown up with a love for service and I am very involved with service organizations, I never truly put my personal impacts in a global scale. Because of this, I have grown up as a very cynical person. No, individuals do not make a difference; the issues in the world are too big to solve; and my generation is lazy and will be too busy whining about problems to fix them. Then, I went to ICON. What I experienced there changed my worldview for good. I learned about the impact that a simple change in mindset can have on my entire life path. Key Club International Convention was held in Atlanta this year, and I was excited to go for the expected reasons (time with my friends, no parents and of course, my love for Key Club), but I was honestly unprepared for the entirely new perspective that it would bring to me. I found myself in awe of the visions that hundreds of motivated, passionate, service-minded high-schoolers had for their futures. For example, one girl told me that she wants to be a pre-natal neurosurgeon when she grows up – a career that I didn’t even know existed. What stuck with me most however, was an activity that we did during one of the general sessions. About one thousand of us were seated in the main ballroom, and the speaker of the day directed our attention to the three large boards on the back wall. The left-most board was titled “Is the world in 2016 as it should be?”; the board on the right said “Will the world in 2025 be better because of the actions of you and your peers?”; and the middle board was “What will you personally do to make a change in the world?”. For the left and right boards, we were supposed to put up stickers that represented our thoughts – green for agree, pink for disagree. For the middle board we were each given a sticky note to write our answer. By the end of it all, the left board was a sea of pink. Almost no one in that entire room thought that the world was a good at it could be right now. But on the right, every inch of space was covered with green – we knew that it would be our generation who finally takes on the problems the world faces to fix them. And in the middle, every single sticky note outlined someone’s dream of how to improve humanity. I saw things as small as “compliment someone every day” to movements as large as “end racism”. So there I wrote my own little dream – “become a nurse and help people”. And throughout the rest of Convention, I heard that same message repeated: my generation is going to be the one who finally ends suffering. So I took a grainy picture of that wall on my phone, and I occasionally look at it to remind myself that I am more than a cell phone and a safe space, that I have the power to make that board green. Here I realized what the power of positive thinking can do for not only an individual, but the world. I am changed forever by my ICON experience – I solidified my academic and career goals and (more importantly) in doing so I found a purpose for myself. Having all the positive vibes in one place allowed me to finally believe in my generation’s strength. Instead of focusing on the propagated negative attributes of people my age, I now choose to remind everyone of the positive. I believe in my personal power and the difference that I can make., so I surround myself with people who reminds me of the great good we are capable of. The best way to show the nay-sayers that they are mistaken is to prove them wrong through action. I spur myself to action through positive thoughts. Whenever I hear of a mass shooting, or a chemical attack on innocent children, or a bloody civil war that rips lives apart, I remember not to lose hope. I remember the inherent good of people in the world. And I remember that through my education, career and attitude through life, I can make a difference to make the world a more peaceful place. Personal DevelopmentTimothy Cutler
Utah State University From a young age I have always wanted to learn all that there is to know. Whether that be regarding history, science, or philosophy, it didn’t matter to me, I wanted to know everything. However, this has not stopped me from narrowing my interests and pursing a career. I now know what I want to achieve in this life, and have a plan to get there. That is not to say I have completely abandoned my lifelong goal of learning everything I can, which is why I have chosen to complete a Liberal Arts degree first. This degree carters to my interests, and allows me to continue learning well after I have left the lecture hall. It is also what allowed me to discover my interest in the Philosophy of Linguistics. Durning High School I was enrolled in multiple Honors and AP classes that allowed me to pursue my quest for knowledge and understanding. I was also on the Debate Team, and excelled in Extemporaneous Debate, which allowed me to explain my arguments regarding various topics. However, this was not enough to satisfy my desire for knowledge, so I joined the Computer Tech Program in my school district to learn more, which landed me a job in IT. Like many other Freshmen attending university, I can’t say my first school year went without a hitch. However, after a time I quickly understood what it takes to excel, and I am happy to report a GPA of a 3.64 for my previous semester at university. While some of my acquaintances were dropping out of university, I was learning what it takes to ascend to new academic heights. I learned is that you must never stop learning, never grow uninterested, and never merely cram information to be quickly forgotten after an exam. My life experience has made this possible. Few people will tell you that learning a new language is easy and requires minimal effort. Fewer still will tell you that Latin is an easy language to learn. I was interested in taking Latin for the challenge, and the insight it would give me regarding Philosophy. Latin, with other philosophy classes, has interested me in Linguistics. It is my goal to learn everything there is to know about it, and make a career of it. If I end up not wanting to teach at a university level, I will then seek employment in the private sector to develop artificial intelligence regarding speech recognition software. The connection between a Liberal Arts degree and the Philosophy of Linguistics is not overly apparent. However, I see it as a fundamental and necessary foundation for understanding Linguistics. I want to answer questions like: Why is the grammatical structure of different languages different? How does culture affect the evolution of language? Is language the result of a fundamental structure of the human brain? How can the study of linguistics lead to better understanding of our human condition? These questions are what I seek answers for, and what I hope to answer in the course of my academic career. Liberal Arts is not about learning the basics of a vocation, it is about learning how to learn and the ability to apply complex theories and concepts to real world applications. It is about learning what makes a good life possible. It is about learning reasoning, morality, philosophy and many other subjects to better yourself and society. It is my goal to be accepted into a graduate program, to finish my Bachelors degree at university, and to learn all that I can while I can. Personal DevelopmentMelvin Mathew
People seldom realize the value in the words, “Like attracts like”. This seemingly insignificant saying used many a times to explain the kinds of people; with whom we make meaningful relationships with, speaks much more to the one who understands deeper. It is more a calling to the listener than an explanation. It speaks eons about the emotional state of oneself to achieve greatness. We relate to people similar to us, this is true and practical to a great extent. It is true because of the fact that a person likes to be with people with similar tastes, aspirations and even professions to himself. Also, subconsciously; isn’t it more a self-love that leads us to love others like us? The Law of Attraction speaks of a subconscious effort needed in each person to achieve greatness. It tells to all who are willing to improve themselves that a positive attitude to life ensures a better life. It tells of the importance of looking for the silver lining in every issue. Yes, one may say that it is being blind to all the torn in a rose garden but, life has so much more happiness in it if you just look for it. I was a person who never saw the light in positive thinking and took to watching out for all the mishaps and unplanned accidents in my life. It sorely disturbed me. I alienated my friends for a couple of years due to unresolved issues with some common acquaintances. These three years during my Bachelors were real dark and morbid, seldom did I reach out to my family and best friends. I led the life of a hermit, alone even in a crowd. After attaining my degree, I took a year off to travel and see the countryside. I travelled far and wide through India experiences varied cultures like the Bhangada in the north-west, the Durga puja in the north-east, the food of Mumbai, the metropolitan life in Bangalore, the dance and food from the south. From all these travels the only thing I took away was that there is was so much good in the world, I was too self-centered and sad because of my past to see past those clouds. I came home to find my family all eagerly waiting for me. After the initial period of settling, I chose to immerse myself in reading and self-improvement. One of the advices I came across in that period of my life is “The Law of Attraction”. It completely shook my being. I chose to see the best in all situations. After that day, I had problems in life especially monetary. When I applied for my Masters in the United States, I never had enough to sustain myself for the first six months but, I chose to believe and kept working on achieve the best in me. I went through trials and tribulations during the first year here in Arizona but, the Law of Attraction kept my afloat, it proved to be my mentor, my best friend, my teacher and my core value. I believe it is an essential lesson to be kept close to heart for every person to succeed. One may attain fortune, family, esteem and respect but, he is still incomplete without peace. Peace comes from within and is driven by acceptance. The Law of Attraction proves that one can work towards improvement in one’s life by just changing the way you look at your own life. However, dull the day seems remember there is always a silver lining beind that cloud waiting to be discovered. So never stop looking. Never stop believing in yourself. Focusing on Things You Can ControlCalvin Ho
San Francisco State University After I was raped I laid there for a while, wondering what had just happened. The world was spinning around me and I had lost my traction on the ground beneath me. I felt as though I was fading away. Shame washed over my body as I began to wonder how I let this happen. Confusion followed suit because I wondered how a guy that I was dating could rape me, and was this even rape because I consented to dating him? When I got home a few hours later I began to rapidly fall back into the depths of a depression that had consumed me once before and this time I wasn’t quite sure if I could escape it again. Days went by as I became trapped in my room, my mom constantly asking me what was wrong and trying to coax me out of my room. “I’m fine,” I lied. I always lied about that question with people. In my mind the demonic presence of anger had surfaced, interrogating me on the trauma I had just endured. “Why did you let yourself lose control?” I approached a handful of friends on this topic, seeking desperately for a way to escape the feelings that encapsulated my mind and threatened to end my existence. I was not prepared for their responses or the debilitating isolation that seemed to follow as every single person I spoke to slammed a textual door in my face: “why didn’t you fight back?” Reading that text several times over that week dimmed the flickering lights that struggled to shine inside of my head. I felt more powerless than ever, more vulnerable than I had ever been in my entire life. I was the victim and was being coerced into believing that I was simultaneously my own attacker. One of my friends happened to ask, “did he use a condom?” This question acted as shrapnel from a bomb explosion: digging into my skin even after enduring the initial blast. It dawned on me that my life was in even more danger than previously thought because HIV was now on the battleground. The coming weeks were the worst of my life as I went to the hospital to get tested. I had actually developed a plan to end my life in the event that I had become infected because I could not bear to tell my parents about how this came to be. Shame had become my spokesperson and it was doing a terrific job at it. A few days after getting tested, I was woken up by a phone call. Unknown number. I began to wonder if this was it, wondering if this was the call that was going to change my life in the worst way possible. I think I almost fainted after hearing, “Your test for HIV was negative.” It was such a relief but at the same time bittersweet because the nurse told me that I had contracted chlamydia. I believe that my recovery from that day began when I went to get antibiotics to wipe away the infection. I was doing it: I was getting rid of him for good. Finally I felt like I was in control of something substantial. I was finally able to reclaim my body as my own. In the months that followed, I decided to see a therapist to talk this through and he gave me one key piece of advice: although he controlled my body that day, I was in control of how I perceived the situation and how I was going to cope with it afterwards. I stopped blaming myself for what happened because I did not want to become the monsters that I called my “friends”. I accepted it and acknowledged that it had happened but that I had survived. I wasn’t just a victim, I was a survivor. Kinda like the Destiny’s Child song. Today I continue to use this train of thought in other contexts: for example, when I was denied a job at H&M because I lacked experience, I didn’t get upset because their decision to hire me was out of my hands. However, I had the ability to continue to apply to other places in order to get that initial work experience and so I chose to pursue that goal. I learned that when life seems impossible and intimidating that there are always things within your reach that you can do to make yourself powerful enough to stand up against it. The Power of Positive ThinkingJoy Banks-Chapman
ASU Many of us have heard the saying that life is like a roller coaster; full of ups, downs, twists and turns. While some of us are afraid of the uncertainty of roller coasters, others are excited by the thrill of steep declines, sharp turns, and, of course, being upside down. What we all should take into consideration is that the key to fully enjoying a roller coaster is to think positively. The more you think of how frightening a drop may look or how scary it is to be upside down, the less you are to enjoy the ride, and the more you regret not enjoying it when the ride is over. However, if you’re thinking of how much fun it will be and remain positive that no matter what the ride takes you through, you will come off safely and more satisfied, and the roller coaster will be an entirely different experience. The same can be applied to how we handle the difficulties that life takes us through, and that with positive thinking, we can overcome any obstacle and accomplish great things. Thinking positively during difficult situations is much easier said than done. When you lose your job and your bills are due, or when you’re involved in a car accident and you have no insurance and no money to fix it, it’s easy to become frustrated and upset, not knowing how you can be positive in situations like that. When friends and family members tell you that everything is going to be alright, it’s more frustrating than helpful, especially when situations are being viewed in a negative way. Some of the hardest things that we have to do can have the greatest rewards, because of the simple fact that it was hard to do it. Thinking positively is hard, but it is what will help you get through any situation that you are in, and it is always worth it. When you think negatively, it clouds your judgement and shifts your focus, which, in turn, makes the situation worse instead of better. The only thing that can be concentrated on is how bad things are, where if you think positively, you can concentrate on how things could be, and what could be done so that they can get better. Recently my mother and I went through a situation where she lost her job, and she had no unemployment and no income. Rent was due, bills were due, and I was the only one who had an income. Making a low hourly wage, the situation seemed endless and overwhelming, and I was stressed more than I had ever been in my life. I had my own bills to pay, I was putting myself through school, and through all of this I had the weight on my shoulders of how I can pay bills for the house, rent, all of my personal bills, put gas in the cars of both my mom and I, and buy groceries and toiletries while trying to get through school. School had always been a priority for myself, but it seemed as if it had to be put on hold so that I can take care of my mom and I. Although the financial burden was heavy on me, what made the situation tougher was the fact that my mom was constantly thinking negatively, while I tried my hardest to stay positive. I was not only carrying my mother and I financially, but I also had to carry us emotionally. During this period of our lives, in spite of the situation around me, I maintained positive thinking that our situation was only temporary. My mom being out of a job was temporary, bending over backwards so that I can make ends meet was temporary, and I focused on the positive, such as me having a stable job and the fact that we weren’t starving or living on the streets. My mom would get frustrated at times because she couldn’t understand how I can be so positive when I know what is going on, but maintaining positive thinking gave me the push that I needed to work harder to make things better. My mother’s negative thinking sent her into periods of depression, where she can only focus on what was wrong and she spent most of her time in bed. Her negativity allowed our situation to control her, instead of her taking control of the situation. Her negativity also made her unproductive, which prolonged the situation that we were in. Watching how her negative thinking made things worse and even more stressful helped me to realize how important it is to be positive, no matter what the situation looks like. Although we are still experiencing the setbacks that occurred during the time my mom was unemployed, things seem to be getting better. She recently got a job and is able to contribute more financially, so that I can begin focusing on repairing the damage that this situation has done to me financially. Now that she is working, the times that she remembers the most when she was unemployed is how negative she was being, and how positive I remained. Things only become permanent when you give up on it, and I refused to give up on the fact that she would find another job and be stable again. Staying positive helped me to get through that situation, and it is something that I know will get me through any situation that occurs in my life. The Positive Power of GratitudeLisa Bell
As we sat at a small table in Eida’s modest family home, I droned on about the difficulties of my life. Her eyes widen with amazement as I whined about the inconvenience of working two part-time on-campus jobs to pay college tuition. I explained that in addition to working, I had to keep my grades up to maintain a scholarship. My brow was furrowed as I laid out these hardships and waited for her to offer pity, condolences, and comfort. However, when my complaining stopped, my Peruvian friend offered a different point of view. “Aren’t you grateful to be able to have not only one job, but two and to be able to go to school at the same time, without delay and with a scholarship? How very fortunate you are,” she said. I sat there silent, taking in this new perspective. Finding work as a young person in Peru was difficult and going to college for someone in Eida’s financial and social situation was even more unlikely. My cheeks flushed with embarrassed realizing that my ingratitude limited my vision, making me only see the work involved and not the immense opportunities I had been granted or the tools that allowed me to achieve my goals. Eida’s words have stayed with me as I have worked to live with a greater sense of thankfulness. Living with gratitude has not only unlocked a clearer, more positive view of my life’s gifts and possibilities, but it has helped me navigate the change and challenges that inevitably come and strengthened my relationships with others. Sometime ago, I received an unexpected health diagnosis. While not fatal, it impacted my daily life. One Saturday morning, I found myself wallowing in self-pity, feeling sorry for myself and my situation. I wondered aloud if any part of my body was functioning normally. In response, my daughter responded, “Your eyes work. Watch this dance.” I watched her as she leapt around the living room, and I decided to continue to game. As she twirled, I listed aloud more things I could be thankful for, making an inventory of all the physical gifts I still fully enjoyed. My feet worked, allowing me to hike my favorite canyon trails. My hands worked, allowing me to work in the garden and hold down a job I loved. My mind worked, allowing me to think clearly and critically, to stay informed about my new situation and make informed decisions. My ears worked, allowing me to hear the wise words of my young daughter, sparking a change in the course of my thinking from a negative and narrowed view, back to gratitude and a mindful awareness of my abundant life. This simple exercise brought needed optimism and put the changes and new challenges into perspective. Living with an attitude of gratitude has also strengthened and enriched my relationships with others. Recently, I found myself waiting with several coworkers for an important meeting to begin. The clock ticked from five minutes to ten minutes after the hour and beyond. I watched coworkers become visibly agitated. While it would have been easy to complain about the wait, I found myself grateful for the delay since it gave me time to talk to a colleague about an upcoming project and catch up on each other’s personal lives. I was thankful for this unexpected block of time to focus on getting to know her better and to improve our personal and working relationship. This focus on gratitude turned a setback into a step forward for this relationship. Gratitude has also built my relationship with others as I have sought to express sincere thanks to others. For my birthday this year, my grandmother sent a gift, and as I unwrapped the present, opened the box, and pulled back the tissue paper, it was clear that this gift was not something I wanted or would even keep. Yet, I felt a sense of gratitude and set aside time to write her a thank you note. As I sat down to write her a letter, I didn’t focus my words or thoughts on the unwanted gift. Instead I thanked my grandmother for her thoughtfulness and generosity. She had remembered my special day and expressed her love for me. This was the true gift, and gratitude allowed me to fully receive it and offer my love and thanks in return, increasing the depth of our relationship. While gratitude may seem trivial to some, it has been a powerful tool in transforming my perspective in life, helping me work through challenges, and developing positive relationships with others. Though it is a small thing, the constant practice of gratitude reinforces the positive and productive parts of my life and makes me more aware of the abundance and possibilities around me. Focusing on Things You Can ControlRaquel Willys
ASU Focusing on the details in life that we have no control over will not lead to any joy. Not only will we become frustrated with life, but with ourselves. I feel as though many of can say that they have had to deal with some sort of event or experience that they could not control. And while many times those moments are not great, the ability to focus on things you can control can be beneficial for various reasons. As a little girl, my mom was always one to reiterate the fact that “we cant stress over things that we cant control” and “you cant control what happens to you in life, but you can control how you react to it.” Those words have always played a role in my day to day life and continue to do so. If I said that I had one major life event to test this principle of life, I would be lying because I have been fortunate enough to say that there hasn't been a tragic moment in which this principle was used. Although, focusing on things I can control has come in handy in bigger life moments and simpler life moments. Lets start with the summer after my Sophomore year of high school. I am originally from Los Angeles, but was raised in the gloomy and rainy state of Washington. The summer after my Sophomore year of high school, my family and I made the move down to Palm Desert, California - a small city right outside of Palm Springs. It was August 18th, the day I became the “new girl” at school again and I was terrified. High school is rough in itself without having to make new friends halfway through your four years. I have always been a person who believes everything happens for a reason, which is also why focusing on things that I could control might have come so easily to me. I knew then, that this move was to serve a purpose that I was still not aware of and therefore, needed to focus on things that I could control at the time: my attitude, my grades, and the way I was planning for my future beyond high school. And that is exactly what I did, I graduated in the top 15% of my class with a 4.0 GPA. Its the little things that can stress you out, and unfortunately those things many times you cannot control those things. Now lets talk about the day my grandmother was officially diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. To this day, I still don't feel as though its real. Maybe because I choose to take it out of my mind. To me, she is just my grandma, and nothing else. I was a Sophomore in high school and my grandmother had gone through various tests to try to determine why her mobility had been diminishing, her arms had been bothering her, and why she felt as though she was shaking inside. She described it as “Im shaking on the inside but you cant tell on the outside.” As I sat in at the kitchen table one day after school, I watched as my mother began to cry. My mom looked at me and said “I just don't understand why things happen.” When you cut to a few weeks later, after my grandmother had been officially diagnosed, my mom looked to me and said “you know, at first I was upset, and wondered why things have to happen to people we love, but I have come to terms with the fact that this is not life threatening and that is whats important.” That is a clear cut example of not focusing on the things you cant control, and focusing on what you can. That is exactly what we did, its 4 years later and while the Parkinson's has progressed, she is still around enjoying the little things in life like cooking for her 6 grandkids - which she has always enjoyed doing since we were little. As far as how this principle continues to apply in my life, consists of how I look towards my future both academically and personally. I am currently a Community Health major at Arizona State and intend to apply for the Nursing program in the Spring of my Sophomore year. As my freshmen year passes me by, I find myself having what I call “a minor panic attack” when I begin to think about the fact that there is a possibility I wont be admitted because it is such a competitive program. But as I continue to grow throughout this first year of college, I come to terms with the fact that I cannot focus on the outcome because that will deter me from being able to focus on the present. I can only control what I put into it. When it comes to being admitted, I can only focus on my grades, my work ethic, my focus and my drive. By knowing that I am giving it my all, I know that everything else will work itself out, and that is all I can hope for. All in all, the principle of focusing only on things you can control has always played a role in my life, even if I had no idea. Although, it is more than a principle for me, it is a way of coping, and a way of keeping myself locked in the present. Its a way of life, and I'm fortunate to have had someone in my life to instill that in me since I was a little girl. Principle of Positve ThinkingLeah Weems
Our mind is one of the most important functioning organs of our body; However, it has the ability to hold us back or push us forward in our everyday lives depending on which way we allow it to go. Being a gymnast one of the hardest skills to achieve is staying positive when you just can’t seem to quite accomplish a skill that you have been working on for months or maybe even years. You usually have a choice between two options: you either have a bad attitude towards the situation and admit defeat or you can stay positive and push through the beating you will most likely receive accomplishing it at the end. These options are the two that people have perceived to be the only two paths that you are able to take. This is a fallacy, you have millions of different options to get out of accomplishing what you wanted for the day, or you could completely eliminate the option of failure and have the positive mindset that drives you to accomplish your goals. This is how the principle of positive thinking has helped me through my gymnastics as well as difficult times in my life. It helps me focus on the goal that I have at hand and how much I want it along with the benefits of making that task a reality. When you are able to do this anything seems possible and helps to motivate you more by giving you that extra boost of self-confidence. Looking towards everything on a positive aspect has made me become the person I am today and has etched itself into my personality. Whenever you do this it makes it as though anything is possible and helps people to dream big which is what drives Americas to the most accomplished nation in the world. The biggest way the power of positive thinking has helped me in my life was simply by helping me overcome my fear of speaking to a group of people that I didn’t know? I used to worry about what they thought about me or if I said something completely idiotic or conflicting to what they believed that i was going to make an enemy. However, when I realized that thinking that way was holding me back I started to wonder of about the other possibilities, such as could I make a friend by speaking? This helped motivated me and has helped me with my academic projects, social skills, and public speaking. This has not just not helped me better myself in athletics, it has also helped my academically as well. This is an important character trait to have with your school work as well because it's hard to figure out a reason to keep working if you look at the negative aspects of completing the task. Whenever you work on a project or paper I always like to be able to see how this is going to help me in the future and how I can make it as fun as possible. This way I don’t see it as just another assignment that was given for busy work, but as an opportunity to better myself. In doing so it has helped me keep up my grades in high school to get the best academic help for college. This basic concept of being able to think in a way of thoughts that are of a positive manner has simply made me a better person as well. It helps me with job opportunities by showing others I can be a fun coworker by not being a downer to work with. My sense of humor is strengthened and helps keep others think positively making it a huge cycle of contagious attitudes. If you have a negative attitude most likely everyone around you will feel the same way as well and likewise with the opposite attitude. People struggle in the world, it's just the way it works; however, it’s what you do in the face of that struggle that defines you as a person. Whatever happens I try to have a positive outcome of the situation, because it’s the best way to improve and move forwards in life. If you live to the basic understanding that everything has a sunny side to it you are able to move mountains. I have been able to see it as a way to motivate myself and it has moved my athletic, academic, and social goals to abilities I didn’t think was possible. The power of positive thinking doesn’t come to people who feel as though the world is always against them, it is for those who are willing to go the extra mile to accomplish something to reach the benefits of the end product. The power is the ability to “shoot for the moon and reach the stars”. Personal DevelopmentStephanie Waterhouse
My self-esteem plummeted. I didn’t think I fit in anywhere, and I dreaded going to school. I pleaded with my parents to move somewhere far away. I didn’t care where, I just wanted to leave. I’m usually very positive and optimistic, and I make friends easily, so this wasn’t like me. I had never had to study in middle school and felt ready for a challenge, so I decided to take all honors courses and add Chinese to my freshman schedule. Walking into Chinese the first day, seeing the room filled with unfamiliar faces, and knowing that I would go through this alone was depressing. Most of classmates were native speakers and already friends, while I sat alone, feeling like I was the only one struggling with the material. There was no one to study with and the semester had just started. My teacher lectured about the need to stay on top of the work to avoid a learning gap, but I could feel the gap developing. Weeks went by and things didn’t improve. My grades were regularly in the 60s, something I was not used to. I stayed after for any and all the extra help I could get, but still wasn’t able to grasp the language. I’d never felt the power of words until I felt the brunt of each blow of the sentences I continually fought with each class period. My teacher read the Chinese dialogue so quickly that my brain couldn’t even process the first word. When I asked her to slow down, she said she couldn’t go slower just for me. I had no idea why this class was such a burden, and the difficulties rolled over to my other classes. My A in Honors English plummeted to a B-; my Algebra 2 grade followed. With Chinese always on my mind, I had lost my motivation. I didn’t know how to focus on the the things I could control; I had lost the will to think positively; and I almost lost all hope. But as the semester came to an end, my teacher assigned the final project to be done with a partner. I was paired with a girl, who didn’t speak Chinese at home, and quickly found out that the rest of the non-native speakers were struggling as well. To cope, they went to school early to finish the homework and study for the tests together. I asked to join them and finally made friends because we all were in a debacle over Chinese. I didn’t feel alone anymore. I chose to take Chinese because I wanted a challenge, and a challenge is what I got. While my freshmen year of high school didn’t go as planned, it made me work harder. That summer, I was diagnosed with an expressive language delay, which makes it difficult to comprehend what people are saying to me, and to get my thoughts down on paper. Finally, my struggles in Chinese made sense. Moreover, I share this story with you because I learned the importance of always seeing the potential for possibility. That sometimes it takes a challenge for us to recognize how we’ve been applying creative thinking and problem solving to our academic and personal goals over time. I ultimately realized that math was my native language. When I took calculus in high school, I didn’t feel like I was learning. I was told, “This is a derivative. This is an integral. Now plug these numbers in and solve.” Not to say that I didn’t know what calculus was, but just as one becomes more fluent in Chinese the longer they are immersed within their learning, I needed to understand theories and philosophies of math to help me apply them to larger world issues. In other words, I never understood the why. I would ask my high school teacher how we could form this equation, but she would only brush me off and say, “This is just how it is done.” Frustrated, I would try to wrap my head around the connections between what I had discovered to be true and what I was conceptually lacking. Luckily those gaps of knowledge were filled when I began my college coursework. Risk assessment and management should take into account the implications of decisions, while also creating alternatives and opportunities that others may miss.To be honest, I was surprised when someone first recommended Actuarial Science. But after exploring the possibilities, I thought, “This can’t be real. There can’t be a job in my field that I wake up to every morning and purse wholeheartedly. Surely there can’t be a job that uses math, statistics, business, and allows me to help people. This is cool. This is amazing. This is how I can leave my mark.” For example, removing an integral piece of a policy could result in financial savings, but if those savings aren’t going toward health care policies or infrastructure support - a lawsuit could negate everything. I know that the language that will provide me the most success into the future is the language of math, but more importantly, the language of helping people. If nothing else, my experience in Chinese gave me a solid foundation for solving problems in the future. It gave me the training ground to focus on what was within reach, while maintaining a positive perspective on what was to come. Developing High PerformanceMatthew Daley
ASU How to become a high performer in any subject often plagues many college students, office workers, and athletes. Everyone wants a way to get an edge on their competition and it helps to have some sort of methodology to achieve this. The popular rule of putting forth 10,000 hours to become an expert in something is a nice metric but is too standardized to actually be applicable to every subject one could become an expert in. For instance, the 10,000 hour rule is great for explaining a large percentage of the proficiency of professional musicians but what about students? Many college students have to develop and display a level of proficiency to get ahead in much less than 10,000 hours of experience. So given that the 10,000 hour rule may not be as standardized as some believe, it is likely that the real determining factors in developing high performance are actually found in the aspects how the skill is acquired and not simply the amount of time spent. An obvious factor in the effectiveness of developing a high level of performance in a given skill is the source and order of information being acquired. Consider three scenarios of a 13 year old baseball pitcher in which the first is practicing for an hour per day and taking notes from a book on pitching mechanics, the second is practicing for an hour a day with an experienced coach giving feedback, and the third is practicing for an hour a day with an experienced coach giving feedback and starts reading the book on pitching mechanics after a few months. The first pitcher has access to raw information immediately but does not have a practical way to apply it. The second has a practical method for improvement but no access to raw information. Lastly, the third 2 is introduced with a practical method of improvement and later exposed to the raw information. Most people would predict that the second or third pitcher would outperform the first after 365 hours of practice and that the third pitcher would do the best overall. For beginners of any skill, the most practical and immediate approach for receiving feedback is ideal to lay a foundation for developing that skill. Once a foundation has been established more technical nuances can be introduced to further accelerate development of that skill. The next important factor affecting skill acquisition is knowing what pieces of development to focus on. Consider the concept of the “key log” commonly employed by Canadian Logging companies. These companies typically cut down trees upstream of their processing center such that the cut logs can be pushed into the nearby river and will float down to the processing center. Occasionally, the river becomes so filled with these logs that they cause a jam. Rather than trying to force the logs out of the jam an engineer will survey the situation and determine which log, if moved, will undo the entire jam. Similarly, in skill acquisition there are key components that when learned correctly make the learning of other components significantly easier or obsolete. This is exemplified in the chess coaching techniques of Josh Waitzkin, who is known for removing all but two or three pieces from the board to teach the core patterns of how pieces interact. High performers are often seen as highly motivated because they seemed determined to reach their goals everyday. Motivation is not what makes this determination possible, it’s discipline. Motivation waxes and wanes over the course of months, weeks, and even days. It can start unbelievably high in the morning and plummet simply because hunger sets in, and no one is immune to these fluctuations. Discipline, on the other hand, doesn’t oscillate between highs and lows in short time periods. It is a constant that enables high performers to continue their work regardless of motivation 3 levels. People that reach elite levels in their chosen field have methods of cultivating their discipline built into their habits. The most common habit you’ll find among the highly disciplined is that they all make their bed first thing in the morning. Starting the day with a small exertion of control, no matter the level of motivation, almost always brings about feelings of self control, empowerment, and positive feelings towards self. These small actions have the potential to snowball into the larger actions of consistent training, studying, and practicing necessary to develop high performance in any skill. A popular viewpoint of becoming a high performer in a given skill is that a person must spend 10,000 hours practicing that skill. This metric is easy to quantify but overlooks an important set of factors in determining how quickly one can become a high performer: the methods employed to develop high performance. The most important of these methods are the source and order of information learned, selecting the most effective components to focus on, and the cultivation and maintenance of discipline to put these methods into effect. High performers aren’t super humans, they are normal people that use the methods laid out here to get the most out of their efforts so that they don’t have to spend 10,000 hours locked away practicing the cello. Even high performers deserve sunlight. The Power of Positive ThinkingBrittney Fulop
"A man dies when he ceases to expect anything from tomorrow" - Abraham Miller I remember the tears. I remember the feelings of helplessness, of fear… My whole life I have struggled to deal with stress, I always felt that I was never good enough no matter what I accomplished. It was my freshman year when my stress began to spin out of control. My grandpa, who I was really close to, was sick throughout second quarter and passed away towards the end of the semester. I was devastated by his loss and I was not able to focus on school. My first final was the day I returned from the funeral, it was math. Ever since then I have been wrestling with test anxiety when there are any numbers involved. My junior year, I broke emotionally. I have always pushed myself to get good grades and that year was by far my hardest year academically. What sent me over the edge was not school, it was my coach. She would berate and belittle us, taunt us and try to make us cry. She did not care about our physical or mental pain, she did not seem to think that she was doing something wrong. I did not care much when she targeted me, but when she targeted my teammates I felt responsible to look after them. They did not deserve her hateful words so I took it upon myself to comfort and stand up for them, which only made my own verbal lashings increase exponentially every time. I became absolutely miserable and I did not feel that I could find a way to get out of it. That was when I had my first full-blown panic attack. It was the most terrifying experience of my entire life. I felt like I could not breathe, like the world was ending and I could do nothing about it. There was so much water dripping down my face that I could not see properly. A second attack followed a few days later. As far as I am concerned, my past does not define me and it does not have to define anyone. Everyday when we wake up, we make a choice. We chose how we are going to act and how we perceive the world around us. We chose who we are and who we are going to be. I woke up and decided to take my life back. I started small, I used the internet to search for stress relievers. I started meditating twice a day and eating healthier foods; I scheduled breaks for myself where I spent time with my friends so I was no longer completely antisocial; I stopped playing volleyball competitively and was told by my team mom that my coach was fired because of what she did to my team and I. Instead of letting my coach corrupt a sport that I loved, I decided that I wanted to coach. A year later I am still coaching adorable little girls and teaching them to stand up for themselves. I wanted to be a different kind of coach than my old one, the kind who empowers her players rather than tear them down and I do that every week. My most important change was my outlook on the world around me. I started to find joy in the small things, rather than just in the big picture. I stopped tearing my hair out when I got a B on a test or had a low A in a class. It was not going to impact my future so significantly that I would not be able to have a great future. I started writing in a journal to get my feelings out on paper rather than just hold them in. I would write a weekly list of things that were causing stress and then I would write why none of them were really important. I began to meet my friends outside of school more and I grew to them. Most importantly, I chose to remain optimistic no matter what was going on in my life. The power of positive thinking is unparalleled in terms of personal health. Keeping a positive attitude is vital to living a fulfilled life. After I started using a more optimistic viewpoint, I felt lighter. I was no longer burdened by every little thing I did. Before all I was able to think about was the big picture, nothing could make me happy, but now I have begun to find genuine happiness in moments and I focus more on the present than on the future. My health also dramatically improved; I was able to sleep more restfully, eat more, and focus more on my schoolwork. My days became brighter. Overcoming adversity makes us stronger and wiser. I will never forget the problems I have faced, but I will continue to move forward and not dwell in my past mistakes. The power of positivity is a force to be reckoned with and I will no longer take it for granted. It has been over a year since I pulled myself out of my pit of despair, now I am on the edge of the pit. I am looking into the darkness and choosing to walk away. We always take what we have for granted, positivity included, but just believing there is hope, that there is a way out, can make a world of difference in our lives. Without positivity there is no hope and without hope, what are we living for? The Meaning of GratitudeAndria Albert
To me, gratitude is synonymous to humility. It is the act of humbling oneself in order to truly appreciate every single aspect of one’s life. This can be a challenge in today’s world. With the seemingly continuous releases of new iPhone models and ever-changing fashion trends that encourage consumers to purchase the “hottest” trends, it can definitely be difficult to be content with what you have at the moment. Now before I get too far, let me give a quick background on myself. I, too, was at one point always craving the “next big thing”. Whether it be those high-priced combat boots or that new Matte lipstick line, I was all about it. ‘But why?’, might one ask. Why did I need these high priced items when I had plenty of similar products at home? Because that was simply the thing to do. I was so engrossed in obtaining, that I forgot to start noticing and appreciating. How ironic it was, that each Thanksgiving I would stand, surrounded by family and friends, and give an endearingly artificial speech about all the things that I was thankful for, meanwhile contemplating all of the products that I needed to buy at the Black Friday sale in a couple hours. It was façade of gratitude that never proved to be true. Now this was my life all throughout middle school and high school; I would simply want more, and I could not have it, I would be wholly unhappy. But like in every story, I did eventually come to a turning point in my life. And this was a very significant turning point, indeed. The summer before I started my Freshman year at college at Arizona State University, my parents took me to visit India, which is my original birthplace. This was a life changing experience for me, because it truly opened my eyes to how man of my cousins lived without the internet and at times, even electricity. Yet in spite of these all of these evident hardships, they were so content with their lives. I was appalled by this. Especially because the first week that I spent these seemed like hell. The constant heat was only made worse with the lack of air conditioning. And the absence of any electronic devices also places me in a confused rut. I had no idea what to do or how to deal with the situation. However, slowly but surely, I coped. I learned to live without these commodities, and towards the end of my two month stay, I was completely in tune with my life in India at that time. ‘No internet or electricity? Psh, so what?’ I happily would think to myself towards the end of those two months. After living without such basic commodities for my time in India, I was able to see myself and my life back in the States through a new lens. I was so beyond blessed with the life that I lead in the States. And yet, the contentment that I could not find, even with all of the commodities that I possessed there, was discovered during my short time in India where I was deprived of all of those similar possessions. I was able to take a closer look at the lives of my relatives and as I observed their lifestyles, I was able to see the age-old adage unraveling before me: “less is more”. This adage could not have sung more true for my experience in India. My trip back home to the States was one of determination: I was not just bringing back wonderful memories; I was also bringing back a new outlook on life. I was bringing back gratitude, which was something that I once lost. Now, I wouldn’t say that I became a new person overnight, but it was slow process that yielded positive results. I started appreciating more in life. I valued my education more, and as a result, I found myself applying effort and time into attaining good scores on my exams and assignments. My job at a retail pharmacy, that I once thought to be mundane, was transformed into an opportunity where I could improve my communication and medicinal skills. I was able to realize how grateful I was to even have a such a prestigious job at this point in my life, and that allowed me to appreciate the work even more. Over time, this outlook of gratitude transformed my life. It allowed me to be humble and not want for things that I don’t need, but to simply be happy with the belongings I have now. As a result of gratitude, I have become a more joyful and appreciative individual. And the thanksgiving words that I say during my family gatherings truly have meaning. The Gift of LifeJake Recoulle
ASU The greatest gift you are ever given is life. Every day is precious even though they may not go your way or be in your favor. I realized this early in my freshman year of high school and I looked at how I could change the outlook of my life to avoid the negative things that weighed me down and to allow myself to keep focused on what I really wanted for myself. As I researched, I came upon the “Law of Attraction”. For myself, this best suited to ways I had already thought and my goal-orientated mind set. It is the idea that we bring things upon ourselves. To elaborate, negative things can only affect us if we let them and positive things will come to us if we work for them and bring them into our lives. Just like America is “the land of opportunity”, our mind is as well and we are capable of making whatever we wish happen if we stay focused and occupied in a mindset that is proactive towards it. Much of my high school career was spent under a divorcing household that was not by definition the best place for a developing teenager to grow and evolve due to the constant conflict and volatile situations I witnessed between my parents. With my lifestyle diminishing to a point of being practically self-sufficient by the age of fifteen, one would say from the outside looking in, that understandably life was looking dim to me, and to be honest, the challenges put my mental state through ebbs and flows. Through observing patterns that led to lack of contentment in my parents lives and others around me, I knew I needed to change things for myself and that I needed to take control of my destiny. At that point, the only real thing I could change was my outlook on life and start planning milestones that would be reminders that I was leading myself to a path of my ultimate positive future. My parents had announced their divorce when I was in eighth grade but it did not end short after. It would be throughout much of my high school career that I would be in the middle of the divorce. It was hard for many months listening to constant fighting and having to be quiet about going with another parent or else a fight would happen or something that would be said would anger me. It really affected my mentality and I just kept to myself because I process my emotions internally and had made a commitment to myself to channel frustration by focusing on the path I had set for myself. However, I found that by isolating my feelings internally, it was at the cost of letting in other people who could help me, and I needed to find the proper balance. At such a dark time in my life, I still believed that there was a purpose to everything I had been going through. I had watched other family members process the family challenges in different ways, but found it hard to relate because I felt so different. During this time, many of my friends were experiencing similar circumstances with their families going through divorce, and even though we didn’t talk about it, I found respite and a sense of family in spending time with them because of the common thread we were all experiencing. Towards the end of my freshman year, I sat down to think about my life and where it was going. I came to a point where I was mentally tired and just needed to stop and think about life for myself. My parents’ divorce was pretty brutal at times and it really hurt to see over twenty years of marriage end like that. By sitting there and analyzing what my life had become and what I wanted to do with myself, I was able to realign myself with the path I had set for myself since the fifth grade. I had known I wanted to go to college and get myself in a secure financial state after seeing how hard my father worked for what turned out to be very little toward the end of each year. It only further strengthened my idea once I was working for him in the trenches for twelve hours a day at least six days a week. I knew I never wanted to do that with my life so I set my mind to working hard in school so I could go to the college I wanted and to work in the career of my choice. My goal seemed far in the future, but as I hunkered down and worked to achieve a 4.0 GPA and being in National Honors Society, it became a blur. My life seemed better because all the outside distractions of my family’s tough financial situation and divorce stopped affecting me in the ways they used to. It would still be tough at times but with the idea of going to college and imagining me at a university of my choice in the end, I was able to stay focused and on the right track. Today, I attend Arizona State University and I am an actuarial sciences major. I had visited it on a trip to Arizona and when walking around the campus, I was able to envision myself walking to classes and living there. My goal of going to college became narrowed to going to Arizona State University. It was one of the greatest successes in my life when I received my acceptance letter from there which included a scholarship based on my academic career up unto that point. As I reflect on my experiences and challenges growing up, it’s clear that by abiding to the Law of Attraction and changing my outlook on life, I was able to stabilize my mental state and focus on what I had imagined for myself. My grandfather had always told me, “you can do anything you set your mind to” and with my accomplishments so far, I’m a testament that his lessons resonate with me in a way that are engraved within my core my values. The Attitude of GratitudeElena Hermling
ASU People have become increasingly obsessed with the idea of living the ideal lifestyle and doing what is good for oneself. Very few will the good of others around them or truly appreciate the beauty in giving to those who are in need. My generation has become fixated on the idea that making sacrifices or providing for the greater good, comes at too high a price. However, it should be just the opposite; true gratitude should inspire people to assist those who are in need and to accompany them. It is in being thankful that one can truly come closer to all people and creation on Earth. This wholeheartedly involves setting aside your desires in life and dedicating time and commitment to the lives which surround us. I find this to be absolutely essential in living a life of true kindness and being content with one’s lifestyle and actions. When pondering the true meaning of gratitude, an elderly woman I have known for over fifteen years comes to my mind. This woman, Micky, dedicates her time to the Prince Ministry in South Africa and has cared for those most in need of assistance. She set aside the life she once had as a young woman and founded this ministry along with her husband. She has devoted majority of her life to finding shelter, providing food and water, and bringing a brighter future for children in South Africa who have been affected by AIDS. This woman is means of exemplifying the entirety of gratitude for all lives, as she demonstrates the true selflessness, continued love, and appreciation of the gift of kindness. She is a true inspiration—a woman who has made sacrifices in her life to bring about greater good and hope in the world. Gratitude encompasses a very important aspect of life, which can greatly impact the lives of those around me. For instance, Micky has taken significant steps towards providing for these children who have lost hope because that is what her appreciation for all of creation has inspired her to do. Her sacrifices are truly beautiful and they reflect her good nature. It is important to understand that forming men and women for others demonstrates the kind of social justice which must be a part of our everyday lives in order to bring brightness to the world. Micky’s motivation for caring for the less fortunate has shed light upon the lives of these children and has filled the empty spaces in these children's hearts. There is little time to be selfish, acting solely concerned for our own lives rather than the lives of the many people around us. Educating men and women to be kindhearted towards others can greatly impact their lives, whether it be a small favor or a wholehearted sacrifice. There is great beauty in changing someone’s life, and witnessing the greatness that comes with an exchange of kindness has propelled me to exchange kindness with those around me in hopes of bringing about a more unified society. Witnessing the kindness of the people around me has inspired me to do the same for others who are in need of my help. In focusing on the gift of gratitude, I have come to understand that what is most important in life is treating those around you with great kindness in hopes of forming a more passionate environment. Without this kind of passionate devotion in serving all of creation, we may find ourselves limited in terms of experiencing the fulfillment of kindness in all things. Kindness has undoubtedly inspired me to take part in my community and instill a stronger sense of gratitude and faith in my peers. It is my strong-held sense of appreciation that has motivated me to work in providing for my community through charity and service opportunities and caring for those around me. This has demonstrated the true importance of assisting and accompanying those in need, which has made my life entirely complete and myself far more confident in the future of the world. In my caring for the community through service opportunities such as helping young children learn how to read, I have experienced the fullness of life. I have learned that in order to live a life centered on the fullness of gratitude and love, it is necessary that we set aside all desires in life and dedicate time and commitment to the people around us. An attitude of gratitude is a powerful force in any community and an absolute necessity in changing the world for the better, as well as willing the good of the people in our lives. It is this mindset of being truly thankful that has guided me towards a greater love and appreciation for the many people in my life and without it I would feel incomplete. Personal DevelopmentJustin Lee
I used to be a genius. Perhaps it is slightly strange that I say that in past tense, but this is because my status in society has changed. I was a child prodigy that never made use of his natural born talent. Hence, I “used to” be a genius. In my pre-teens, I was top of my class in about every subject. Put into advanced studies, I conquered material that was three or even four years ahead of my grade level. Math was like a puzzle with which I continuously grappled. Reading opened up hundreds of new worlds in which my imagination ran wild. Writing allowed me to express this abundance of imagination that filled my head. The material should have been extremely demanding; however, the difficulty of school didn’t bother me. Rather, the challenge entertained me while also pushing me to improve as an intellectual. Unlike many of my peers that age, I genuinely enjoyed school. Aside from my studies, my parents decided to spend what little spending money our family had on me. They paid for a personal piano teacher, and enrolled me in a summer basketball program. Surprisingly, I not only relished these opportunities, I was very successful in these hobbies. Once again, I was greeted with a flood of compliments from the people around me. I became the ideal student, proficient in fine arts, athletics, and most importantly, education. My attitude towards school changed with the pressure that accompanied the compliments. I felt as if I needed to uphold my reputation of being smart. Everything I did in life became geared towards pleasing others. I completed math homework not to challenge myself, but to receive a good grade. I read not to let my imagination run wild, but in order to find out how to become more successful. I wrote not to express my imagination, but in order to seem more educated. I played piano not to express my emotions, but to beef up my resume for college. I played basketball not for its addictive competitive nature, but because it made me seem “cool”. All of my actions had the motive of pleasing others, rather than satisfying my needs. I worked tirelessly to uphold my reputation in order to garner compliments. In the end, all of my endeavors had the end goal of portraying an image of a child prodigy. This way of thinking continued throughout high school. My education became geared towards earning the best grades possible, no matter the method. If I had to sacrifice my enjoyment of education in order to advance in the cutthroat high school environment, there was no question that I would do so. My life then turned from vibrant to monotonous. Every day devolved into a series of planned motions in which I strived to minimize the amount of effort I put into school without jeopardizing my grades. By doing so, the compliments fed my greedy appetite without me having to work hard and deserve them. However, this lethargic attitude towards school did not bode well for my future. Eventually, those who were deemed child prodigies alongside me advanced further and further. They maintained a love for school and a passion for learning, enjoying themselves in the journey of life. They garnered more compliments, while the amount of praise I received steadily dwindled. When I was not able to attend my dream school, I took a second to sit back and think why I was unable to attend the top schools, why I was no longer lauded as a genius. I was lost. My whole life was dedicated to receiving the praise of other individuals. It was my purpose of working hard in school, my goal to becoming successful in after school activities. So why did society cease to commend me for my accomplishments? Why did I not evolve as a person, a student, a musician, an athlete, just like other child prodigies had done? I took a look at my successful friends, my rivals in education. I studied what they did, what their attitudes were towards school. The one similarity I found between all the successful “geniuses”, was that they worked for themselves. They studied hard to satisfy their own goals, they played passionately to quench their own desire, they became successful to please themselves. On the other hand, I was addicted. Addicted to the compliments, addicted to the praise. I wanted to please other people. I wanted to control something that I couldn’t control. My friends and rivals, by working on themselves, they accomplished much more than I with much more burning passion and desire. To society, this is commendable and attractive. They were acknowledged by society without explicitly searching for acknowledgement. For me, I studied like a robot, played piano without passion, and lived life methodically. To society, I was nothing better than a machine. Although I could be considered a genius, an individual smart enough to make more than just a living, I was a role model to no one. Although people acknowledged me, they did not appreciate me. By striving to accomplish my own goals without considering what society thinks of me, I truly believe that I can not only help myself reach my true potential, but also due so in a way that motivates and inspires others. I realized that no person wants to imitate a robot, lifeless, mechanical, and methodical. Rather, one should strive to be a person, vibrant and full of life, exuding color and passion as the impossible becomes possible. I have seen that there is no way that one can control another person’s emotions. However, there is a way in which one can influence another person’s emotions. By accomplishing what one wants to do in life, that person gives off a natural aura of confidence and success that many of the labeled geniuses present. Ironically, by succeeding without worrying about what society thinks about you, society becomes more attracted to you. With this scholarship, I see an opportunity where I can take a step forward in accomplishing what I want to accomplish in life. Winning this would signify taking a step in the ladder of success, in an effort to accomplish what I truly want to accomplish in life. No longer do I worry about what society thinks about me. With a positive attitude, shining with passion and love for education, I will become a beacon of light to all who have lost their way in life. I am found. Focusing On What You Can ControlKennedy Allen
ASU When I started eighth grade, I started getting headaches, which I had never gotten before. By the winter of that year, the headaches had escalated into full blown migraines. And by March of that same year, 2012, I had a migraine every day. This caused a lot of problems for me, both at home and at school. Before 2012, I had never had a migraine, but by that March, I was having one every single day. My grades started to slip because I was having trouble concentrating when I was at school, which it felt like I never was, since I had so much trouble just getting out of bed. It was hard to concentrate because my head was pounding and the visual disturbances would make it hard to read. Making it to an afternoon class was an accomplishment to me, because I did not make it very often. And before the migraines, I was a student with nearly perfect attendance, so it was bizarre to suddenly start worrying if I was going to have to do summer school to make up all that I was missing. The longer that the migraines went on though, I started to learn coping mechanisms, especially after I started being seen by doctors for my condition. I started focusing on the things I could control in my life, when I could not control the migraines. The first thing I could control was whether or not I let it take my future from me. Before the migraines, I was a straight A student, and after I started getting them, my teachers did not even have enough of my assignments to calculate a grade. Another thing that I could control was whether or not I even tried to get out of bed. The migraines had started to get me so despondent that I some mornings I did not even try to get out of bed before deciding that I could not go to school. I decided no more of that. I was at least going to try to get up and go to school each day- that was something within my control. From there, the migraines could take control of my day and make it so that I had to ask my mom to turn the car around before we even pulled out of the neighborhood, but at least then I had the satisfaction of knowing that the migraines did not take control of my day from the very beginning and did not keep me from trying to get through the day. That same year, I developed OCD, or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. In order to conquer that, I had to focus on what I could control, and what I could control was not destroy my hands from washing them too often. I found that I could control this urge by using hand sanitizer on just the palms of my hands, and not the backs of my hands, so that I controlled the urge and the urge did not control me. I was later told by a psychiatrist that the method I developed to control my OCD, was better than a psychiatrist could do with therapy and medication, and I was able to do that by focusing on what I could control, which was not allowing the compulsiveness to rule my life. My freshman year, I decided that in order to take back control of my future from the migraines, I needed to make sure my grades were really good in high school so that I could get into a really great college. I could focus on that instead of how the migraines were getting worse. The second semester of my freshman year of high school, I went homebound, but continued focusing on my grades in order to make sure the migraines would not take my future away from me as well. I completed my sophomore year online. I spent most of that year in bed, but I did get up each morning. I may have quickly ended back in bed, but I did get out of bed each morning and attempt school. Junior and senior year went slightly better. I still missed quite a bit of school, but I got good grades and got into my dream school. I was focused on controlling getting myself into Arizona State University, so I kept my grades up and every day I made sure to get out of bed and try to go to school. Now I attend ASU, and the migraines are easier to deal with because I am able to manage my schedule, unlike in high school. I am able to focus on continuing to not allow the migraines to control my life and keep my grades up. Focusing on what I can control helps keep me positive and keeps me ready for what could happen next, but not dwelling on it. I learned through my migraines that I can control that I get out of bed in the morning, and that I get good grades. I have learned much from dealing with chronic migraines, and I think the most important thing I learned is perseverance. Positive ThinkingGarrett Hoy
One intellectual virtue that I have developed throughout my life is positive thinking through self-reflection. Throughout all of my childhood I was trapped by my shyness, which caused me to be reserved and muted during classes; however, self-reflection counteracted this. Although I was generally quiet and didn’t always verbally participate in my elementary school classes, this did not stop me from acknowledging my goals and staying academically sound in reaching them. One major event in my life which allowed my self-reflective trait to guide me was the choice to choose a high school. This was a different decision then I had ever made previously, as it forced me to choose between the possibility of a better education or my friends. The choice came when I received a letter in the mail inviting me to join the International Baccalaureate (IB) program at Westwood. Although I had moderately decided that I wanted to advance to Red Mountain High, a little bit of curiosity still remained in my mind about the IB program, so I attended the informational meeting about it. After this meeting, attending Westwood actually seemed like a very viable option. Everything within the program seemed challenging and I liked that, and as time passed the interest I had in attending Westwood grew until eventually I made my final decision. The reason I ended up choosing Westwood, the lower income school filled with diversity, over Red Mountain, the wealthier school with newer buildings and all my friends, was a period of self-reflection: I decided I didn’t want to continue following my friends’ futures just because I was afraid of sitting alone at lunch or making new friends. I wanted to go to a school which I knew could help me reach my educational goals. I took a risk attending this program, but I had a crutch to support me. This “crutch” was the idea in the back of my mind that I could transfer to Red Mountain if Westwood wasn’t to my liking. The idea that I could always give up and transfer was somewhat of a safety net that I never had to use, until at the end of my sophomore year. This was when my cohort was transitioning from the freshman-sophomore portion of the program to the diploma program. Many of my classmates were debating whether or not to stay through the last two years in the program, but the question didn’t even come to my mind. At that moment I knew I no longer needed the safety net. This sequence of events is one example of my own personal growth and perfectly shows how positive thinking has affected my life. I looked towards the positive side of an opportunity that came in my direction and it changed my life. Now fast forward to present tense, I am a freshman at Arizona State University, studying finance in the W.P. Carey school of Business and the Barrett Honors College and in addition to going to school full time, I am also maintaining two separate jobs on top of being involved in an ASU Marketing organization. With all of this on my plate, I can honestly say that I can account my ability to keep up with all of these responsibilities directly to the power of thinking positively. In regards to schoolwork and staying on track with grades and assignments, positive thinking has inspired me to stay motivated. Specifically pertaining to the first semester of courses which included plenty of unexciting classes such as English, and Brief Calculus. I was able to think positively and optimistically to persevere through the semester. This positive thinking was rewarded with my anticipation for the coming spring semester in which my course load includes more interesting classes such as Accounting and Economics. In addition to staying motivated to do well in classes, positive thinking has also helped me to look towards classes through the lens of learning rather than through the lens of redundant prerequisites. In regards to my employment, positive thinking has indefinitely helped me to grow as a person. I work at Epic Valet, a contracted Valet service throughout Scottsdale, Arizona, as well as Dutch Bros Coffee. Both of these jobs require daily social interactions with customers which in turn not only shapes my mood, but also the attitude of these customers. In valeting specifically, we want to give our customers a quick, and comfortable service so that they can go off without worrying about their vehicle. Positive thinking, leads to positive interactions and conversations with these customers which in turn rewards us as valets with a job well done. In regards to working for Dutch Bros Coffee, we as a company are the embodiment of positive thinking. We market everything towards making our customers feeling great. Positive thinking has allowed me to keep a positive mood which in return affects our customer’s moods positively as well. Positive thinking has had such an extreme effect on my personal growth in the past, and the present. It has helped me to make important decisions for myself, as well as led me to stay motivated in school and to positively affect the moods of the countless customers that I have interacted with. Focusing on Things You Can ControlLily Whitler
I was the percussion section leader in my high school marching band for two years, and I learned valuable lessons about myself during that time. My first year was stressful for me because I had this idea that I was responsible for doing everything that needed doing. That isn’t to say I didn’t think other people could do it; I just thought I could do it best. The constant feeling of “I need to be doing more” was nerve-wracking. I went into my second year as section leader knowing this, and I made a conscious effort to focus more on what I could do rather than what I could not. That new approach made all the difference in the world. Yes, being a leader was still stressful, but it was less about “what am I doing wrong” than “what can I do to improve myself and others.” The lessons I learned from these two years shaped my perception of how I should approach life, especially because I will always have a responsibility for something. Focusing on what I could control instead of what I couldn’t was key. I couldn’t control if it rained, but I could control if I froze up and didn’t know what to do, or if I had the flexibility to handle a changed circumstance. As section leader, one of my responsibilities was to ensure that everything got done when it needed to get done, and it was very easy to become obsessed with organizing everything perfectly. It was also very easy to forget that I wasn’t just dealing with static objects or events, I was dealing with people and sometimes very changeable situations. It took some time for me to realize that I had to be able to easily adapt. Inflexibility only leads to frustration and anger for everyone involved. One moment is particularly poignant to me. It was the day of a major competition and we were running late. I sat on the bus alternating between staring at the freeway exits and mile markers through the window and glancing at my watch. We had gotten a late start, traffic was bad, we still had about an hour to drive, and we performed in two hours. I was slowly working myself in a frenzy, thinking of all the things that could go wrong because of our tardiness. “What will we do if we don’t have time? We still have the unload the equipment truck. An hour is not enough to unload and get in uniform and warm up. What if we don’t make it to the field on time? We have so much to do and no time to do it!” I had to force myself to stop right there, and that was when I had my epiphany. Yes, I admitted to myself, we were certainly going to be pressed for time. That was easy. The hard part was admitting to myself that I couldn’t do a thing about it. I like to be in charge, I like to be in control of myself, and I really didn’t like the prospect of running around like a headless chicken to make up for lost time. However, I conceded, it was going to happen whether I liked it or not, and all I could worry about was how to make sure all of my imagined worst-case scenarios didn’t happen. By the time we got to the site of the competition, I had mostly calmed myself down. We made up a little time on the road, but not enough to entirely dispel my nerves. As soon as we got off the bus, we had to unload the equipment trailer in record time, warm up, and go to the field to play the best show of our lives. This to-do list was all that kept me going that day. I couldn’t focus on how little time we had to do all of it; that was out of my control. Instead, I had to focus on actually doing it because that was what I could control. Since then, I have handled a lot more bad situations, but instead of working myself into a tizzy, giving myself a headache, and freezing up when confronted by something to do, I have learned to stop worrying about fixing something that can’t be fixed. Instead of wasting energy on stress, it is much better to focus on making the best of a less-than-optimal circumstance. Usually that involves a time issue. A deadline, or a due date, or an important meeting that was suddenly moved to overlap another important meeting. It could be other people in a group, who don’t start working on a project until the night before the due date. Whatever it is, you can do nothing except your own part, and have a little bit of faith that the rest will handle itself. Personal DevelopmentBria Lemon-Johnson
I have looked through almost 3 physical textbooks and they all give me the same definitions of love or attraction, but what is it really? What is it based on? Why am I attracted to who I am attracted to? I get the whole concept of “the heart wants what the heart want” but why? There can be an attraction between anything: a person, a place, a thing, even an idea! It is because of the familiarity. It is our predisposition, or the likelihood of doing things a certain way, to gravitate things that brings us pleasure. The world is an extremely terrifying place and to go through it alone is something nobody wants to do. That is why we as humans use defense mechanisms to shy away from situations that are too much for us to cope with mentally. Defense mechanisms contribute to the Law of Attraction because it was a strategy our bodies came up with to fight against high feelings of anxiety and impulses. The things that usually are not deemed as “acceptable” in society get justified by these mechanisms. We want to be accepted, that is really all anybody wants, like I wrote earlier, the world is a scary place to go through alone. In my case, being accepted makes me feel like I belong. That was a good feeling, a warm feeling. This is why so many people, including myself, do not want to try new things. For the fear of being judged. I have recently been diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. Yes, I now know not to let my diagnosis define me, but on some level it does explain why I do the things I do. Growing up I was very shy, it was very easy to shatter the little confidence I mustered up. I stayed to myself and every schoolyear I had one friend who I would just follow around. In Girl Scouts I would do the work but refuse to participate in team-building activities with the other girls. They were different than me personality wise: loud, confident, but also not very motivated. In senior of high school and my first semester of college is when I blossomed. Lemon-Johnson 2 People asked me what changed. Why am I willing to try new things, to be social? This question directly fits into the Law of Attraction. I was always silenced, could not really have my own opinion because of my overbearing mother. I could never go out with friends, causing me to lose a lot of them, had to beg to see my boyfriend, who I eventually broke up with because I did not have the girl advice I need to work out my problems with him. The things that I were able to do and the people I was able to talk to I cherished beyond belief. Thus, they were close to my heart because they were who I chose and want I wanted to do respectively and got my mother’s approval. On some level who I talked to, where I went, and what activities I participated in as a child helped develop me into who I am now, but it is also why I have the problems I have now. I could not make my own decisions, even though I tried many times. When I got to college I had no idea what I was doing, in both the sense of crazy teenager and functional member of society. It was made clear to me that I did not get a chance to “be a teenager” or just simply talking to people my own age. I only knew how to go to school and come home. What were these “party things” people were going to, why are there people shouting at 1 am on a Saturday night, are these people trying to be my friend. How do I write a check, I do not know my bank account information, how do I use a vacuum? I only knew what I my mom decided to teach me, and if I tried to learn other things I needed to “stay in a child’s place.” But we are getting slightly off topic. In simple, you are attracted to things that bring you pleasure. Pleasure is known as something that raises your endorphins and gives the feeling of being happy. My situation is as follows, I did not have much to work with so I grew attached to the things that I was attracted to. With human interaction with many people, including myself, have a fear of judgement making for a fear of change which results in us to being attracted to people with the same qualities and Lemon-Johnson 3 personalities. In my case I refused to even think about stepping outside of my bubble of familiarity. It is human instinct to want to be loved, to crave human contact. I did not receive much of that growing up, just orders. Making it in this world with only a fraction of the support and guidance you need, is a very difficult thing to do. Attraction to what is familiar and provides comfort to me was and is my only option. Focusing on Things You Can ControlKaci Gwilt
Focusing on things you can control will dramatically improve the way you think at life. You can control what you eat, what job you want, or your actions. Controlling all these things is the way to make your life what you want it to be. Nobody can ever tell you that you cannot do something, and you should always prove them wrong if that’s what happens. If you want to lose weight, you can. If you want to gain weight, do it. If you want to get good grades, study. If you want to make money, go after jobs. Of course we only have 24 hours in a day, but you CAN control how you use your time. One of the big things that’s changed my life is creating more time by doing PSEO, or dual enrollment instead of high school. I can take online classes. This has dramatically helped my all around quality of life. I wasn’t really fitting in with the kids in my grade throughout high school (grades 7-12) and I went to a small school. Everyone I knew only cared about partying or sports. I didn’t fit in. I moved to a community college my 11/12th grade years and I feel like I’m surrounded by people with similar goals. Everyone wants to get a degree, get good grades and just help each other out. Although there are typical party people, the majority of the college is adults. Doing PSEO has allowed to have full time/part time jobs during school and I’ve saved up so much money to go on a senior trip in a few days. People I know are starting to call me Miss Moneybags, and it’s a great feeling. I am also getting more recognition for my hard work at the college. I have time to workout. I also have received a lot of advice about my future and made lifelong friends. I cannot wait to go to a 4-year university. My overall point is that anyone can control their life. There are only 24 hours in a day and you can choose what you spend each and every minute on. If you focus on the things you can control, you can improve your quality of life. It may not be easy at first, but it always gets easier with persistence. I wish that more people would take time to focus on themselves and what they can control, not what they can’t control because that creates a negative atmosphere and just makes people depressed. If someone has a rough day and just thinks about everything bad that’s happened, they’ll be very sad. If they thought about what they can still do that day or the next day, or about the good things and what will happen in the long run, they’ll think more positively and it will make them happier overall. I know a lot of people who think negatively and it is because they focus on the things they can’t control. It’s so useless to do this to ourselves. Nobody should feel upset, worthless or helpless. The only way to improve your life with what you got is to FOCUS ON THINGS THAT YOU CAN CONTROL. I’ve been so much more happy with my life since I’ve focused on my life and how I can control it. High school wasn’t where I belonged and I felt more advanced. I tore my ACL going into my junior year so I was pretty upset about a lot of things and I didn’t like where my life was going so I completely changed everything. I’ve found what I like to do, who I like to be around and what to stay away from. I’ve been healing my knees and reduced the risk to hurt either knee again, I’ve bought my own first car (which I love so much), and I will receive my AA degree In liberal arts and sciences about 3 weeks before I walk for high school graduation. I am able to finish my senior year by taking only classes that interest me, such as astronomy, forensic science, calculus and analytic geometry, earth science and tae kwon do. Not many people could say they have done this. I only had one class requirement and 11 credits total to get my AA degree this semester. I needed 12 credits to qualify as a full time student, and I am taking 15 credits. All together, I will have a total of 64 college credits, while my high school class can only have a maximum of 30 by taking classes through the high school. I’m more than happy with my life at this point, but the only problem I’ve encountered with doing PSEO is that most scholarships aren’t given to PSEO students because they already have college credits. I think it’s more like a punishment for doing PSEO because a lot of my classes don’t transfer to the universities I actually want to go to and I took more generals than what my degree will have. Anyways, I think everyone should focus on what they can control, and forget the rest. Focus on you. The Power of Positive ThinkingJames Trainor
Positive thinking can turn a terrible situation into a much better one. In life not everything will go the way you want, things will not always be what you expected, and people don’t always live up to expectations. When these things happen, you have a few options. One is that you accept it, try to find some good that will come out of it, and move on. Another is to ignore it. The last is to try to change your situation. If you accept what is happening and try to look for some positive outcome, then a situation that may seem unfortunate to others turns into a positive learning experience for you. You can then move on and grow as a person learning from the experience at hand. If you just ignore the situation, then nothing comes out of it. You are stuck dealing with the same problem until you try to do something about it. This leads to wasted time, possible emotional damage, and disappointment in your situation. In my opinion, you should only ignore the situation if it has little or no interest to you. Sometimes change may never come, no matter how hard you try and it is for that reason I would say it is the second best option. I came up with this order of choices when I was thirteen. I had been playing soccer for about nine years, and the love I had for the game had begun to fade away. At that point, I was playing club soccer for a rather successful team. I was fairly talented, had passion for the game, and worked hard to earn my place on the team, but the coaching staff didn’t support me. They didn’t give me much playing time, gave no compliments when I played (even if I did do something good), and didn’t even give me any constructive criticism to work with. All they did was put me down and made me hate the game I loved for so long. That hatred for the game I loved had been going on for several years (the first year of my six at the club was good). I decided that I would just ignore the problem thinking that I would be able to meet their expectations, but no matter how well I played I was always ridiculed by the coaches. So then I decided that I should just quit. Luckily for me, my parents were much wiser than I was at the time and knew that I could still enjoy soccer. They encouraged me look for different clubs and maybe one of them would be a better fit. So I went to a few tryouts and found a good fit at a different club. There my love for the game was re-sparked. I thrived there, and when I played for my high school varsity soccer team, I made the All-Sectional team, MVP for the team, and had the most goals in our conference. Now that I am a bit older I have learned a lot from this experience. Part of the lesson was that sometimes no matter how hard you try, you can not please everyone. I also learned that although a situation may seem terrible at the time, later on in life it can be a great learning experience. I also got to play a sport I loved (even if I didn’t at that time), made some friends, and stayed fit. Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I could have tried to get out of my situation sooner than when I actually did. So this year, when adversity hit me, I knew how to handle it. During a soccer game for my high school, I went for a 50/50 ball, got knocked over, and broke my collarbone. When I was told by the doctors that I wouldn’t be able to play for a while and that my season was over I was heartbroken for a short time. I decided that I could wallow in my own sorrow again or find something to do. So I helped coach my team and studied for the ACT. The coach of the high school team said I did a good job coaching and I rose my test scores in multiple subjects on the ACT. I also managed to get all A’s in my courses this year except for one B in AP Statistics, but it may become an A after my final is graded. Because I looked for something positive to do with myself, I feel that I was successful during my recovery time. What I did with my time in a negative situation was far better than just sitting around thinking about what could have been. When my next challenge presents itself to me, I hope that I am just as successful at handling it as I was with the challenge I faced this year. The Power of Positive ThinkingJames Baker
University of Louisiana The tests were given back, and everyone held their breath as they looked at their grades. I stared down at my own and was in shock. I had never made a grade that low in that class before, and I was horrified. I didn’t know what to do. This was the situation I was in last semester when taking my Cellular and Molecular Biology class at my university, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. I thought I knew the material front and back, and thought that I would ace the test. I studied the night before, and had reviewed notes between classes, too, thinking that surely with all the preparation I was doing I had that test in the bag. Clearly, I was wrong. At that point, there was no way for me to go back and change what I had done to study or try and fix the holes in my knowledge for that test; it was over, it was out of my control. I was scared, I didn’t know how to do better than I had, I felt like I had reached my limit. Needless to say, my positivity was at an all-time low. That was when I remembered the advice an upperclassman gave earlier that year: record the lectures and study from those. That was something I had not done before! It was also at that time that I remembered the advice that my best friend gave me during a difficult class I had taken the semester before: change your study habits to fit your class, not your personal style. I began to change how I studied, listening to the recordings of the lectures that were more difficult for me and making sure I understood the concepts from those before I moved on and studied the next section of notes. It was tedious, but I felt I could do it. Rather, I knew I could do it, because people believed in me. If people believed in me, I had nothing to worry about! I knew that they would support me through thick and thin, and through their advice I was able to focus on a new method for studying that would surely lead me to success on this test. So there I was, staring at the next test in my hand, and I felt so confident! I knew that I was going to ace it and succeed like I had not done in that class before. I blazed through the answers and turned it in, feeling very assured that this time I did great. Imagine my surprise when the results came around and it was almost the exact same grade as before! I was so frustrated but once again I knew the results were out of my control, and I knew that dwelling on them would be meaningless. I wanted to give up and to stop trying so hard because it felt like it wasn’t making a difference anyhow, but I decided then and there to think positively even though the results were not what wanted, and to look towards the future instead of the past. All I had to do was study even harder, and keep on maintaining that positive attitude! So that’s exactly what I did: that test, I left nothing to chance. I listened to almost every single lecture that would be relevant to the test material, reviewed my notes, added onto the new notes! I did everything I could think of to make my grade come through for me. I went to study groups, talked to upperclassmen, used tutoring to help me make sure I understood the concepts, and even talked to my professor to see what I had missed on the last test to make sure I would be able to understand the questions she wanted to ask on the upcoming one. I also made sure that through all of this I did not let myself get scared or worried about the results, because I knew that it would not contribute to my success. Instead, I sought encouragement and talked with others to remain as positive as I could be. Finally, the test day arrived. I went into the classroom, looked around, and despite the lack of confidence I felt I made the choice once again to stay positive. I did my best to stay calm, I took my time, and did my best to make sure I fully comprehended each and every question before I answered it, trying to recall anything I had studied, heard, written down, or been taught in the past. I turned in the test, and waited out the next few days for results. When they came in, I couldn’t believe it! I had made an almost perfect score! I was so excited and felt for the first time that my hard work had finally payed off. What I didn’t realize at the time was that it was not just my studying and the help of others that got me through, but it was also the fact that I chose to keep on thinking positively, despite how I had felt. After all, if I had given into my hopelessness and stopped trying to succeed I never would have made that grade! In the end, regardless of how you feel, make the choice to think positively! If you remain positive, you can accomplish anything, even the impossible! Focusing on Things You Can ControlXochitl Valtierra
I teach. What is your superpower? I’m not only acclaiming to be a super hero because I’m a teacher but because of my ability to help my students succeed despite the many uncontrollable factors in their lives. As people say, my students come from a lower socio-economic status and live in the unprivileged area of Yuma, Arizona. I on the other hand, call this ‘status’ and ‘unprivileged’ area my lifestyle growing up. This is why I can relate to my students and can sincerely, from experience, tell them that focusing on the things that they can control is what will allow them to succeed in life. These are my mother’s words of wisdom that still ring in my ear to this day. I was born in San Luis, R.C. Sonora, Mexico and raised in Somerton, Arizona. My mother and father are both agriculture workers. My father is an alcoholic who was never able to overcome his addiction. My mother is the strongest woman I know. I recall how she worked from dawn to dusk in the fields picking crops so that she could provide for the family. She instilled the importance of education in my siblings and I. I still remember her coming home from work at night and watching her take off her muddy shoes and jacket and unwrap her hair from her handkerchief as she would talk to my siblings and I about focusing on things that we could control. She would tell us that we had the ability to control our future and that education would be the only way to a better life than what we had. She often reiterated that although we, kids, did not have the ability to control the obstacles that stood in our way of living a better life, we had the ability to learn from the obstacles. As a child, I never really understood what she meant, but as an adult, I now understand what she meant. My mother has a passion for learning. She always dreamed of someday earning a college degree, but the lack of financial support from my father impeded her studies. Instead, she dedicated her life to working and providing for her children. Although she tried to help my father overcome his addiction, it never was a success. Instead she focused on things that she could control. She could control our happiness and our values. She made sure that we always had food to eat, clothes to wear, a home to live, and that education was our number one priority. I attended Arizona State University and received a Bachelor degree in Education while my mom stood by my side fully supporting my educational endeavors. I too have a passion for learning and have decided to further pursue my studies. I currently teach sixth grade in Yuma, Arizona. My students face challenges and obstacles in life similar to what my family and I faced growing up. I understand where they are coming from and the emotional pain some are currently facing. With my students, I emphasize the importance of focusing on the things that they can control. I have served as their counselor more than their teacher, but I know that one must first overcome their emotional challenges before they face academic challenges. Yuma, specifically the area in which the elementary school I teach at is located, is a 5-mile drive from the Mexican border. Most of my students’ parents are unable to cross the border into the United States, but they have decided to sacrifice seeing their children often and send them to school in the United States. They live with other family members such as a grandma, aunt, family friends, etc. This burden is one that often interferes with my students’ ability to learn. They miss their parents and sometimes see them on weekends but others will not see them until a vacation comes up. I constantly tell my students that this is something that they cannot control. They are minors and their parents have reasons for making the decisions that they make and that although they might not understand these reasons now, eventually they will. In my opinion, education, politically speaking, is an area where we have minimal control. We have endless high-stakes tests that measure solely academics and never once consider the negative, or positive, uncontrollable factors that play a role in our students’ results. Our students are given labels as a result of these scores. This country doesn’t look at our students’ starting and ending point, which is their growth. They focus on the end score period. In my own classroom, however, I have full control education. I focus on building a positive environment where my students will feel successful and protected. Most of my students do not have a mother at home like mine. They do not have a mother who will encourage them to keeping going and to only focus on the things they can control. They do not have a mother who repeatedly tells them that they are loved. They do not have a mother who instills the importance of education in them. I am ‘my mother’ to my students. When my students are promoted to seventh grade, if they can take away from sixth grade to always focus only on the things that they can control, I’m sure that they will become success individuals. Personal DevelopmentGelila Kassaye
My name is Gelila Kassaye and I am a very grateful person. I am extremely thankful for simply being able to breath, walk, talk…thankful for being alive. Not because I have had a near death experience, but because through all the 18 years I have spent on this earth, I have realized that life is too short for us to be anything but thankful and happy. Because I know how it feels to be constantly sad, I value happiness. Because I know what almost not having what you extremely wish for feels like, I appreciate and am grateful for what I do have. Just like a lot of people, I was bullied growing up. That had taken a real blow to my self-esteem and confidence. And so, even though the bullying stopped when I entered 7th grade, I never felt good enough, I always doubted myself and I developed social anxiety. High school was a night mare for me. I was not bullied or anything, it was just the time in my life where I didn’t know where I fit, and I was simply a wreck inside. I felt trapped, One thing I did know was that I didn’t want my future to be like that. I also knew that I had the power to alter who I’ll become in the future so I concentrated on my school. I put all of my energy in to my education and every time I would almost slack, I would envision my future self living a miserable life, pursuing a career I never wanted, and , most importantly, hating who I am because of that. I got my act together and started planning my career. I decided that I want to pursue petroleum Engineering. That is not a field taught in my country Ethiopia, so I knew pursuing that career field would require me to study abroad. I chose to study in the United States of America because it has a great reputation for hands on education, which is very important in my field, and it’s relatively affordable. However, my family was strongly against my idea. Ethiopia is a third world country where what is considered middle class there is thought as poor here in the United States. By Ethiopia’s standard, my family is between poor and middle class. So my family was more than reluctant to send me to the states to pursue my education. I, however, knew that my education was my only hope. I knew for a fact that if I got the opportunity, I would help my family for as long as I live by being the best in my field. So convincing my parents that pursuing my career abroad is not an option but a must had not been easy task. Because I focused on what I can control, I now can say that I am happy and can see myself even happier down the road. I have learned several lessons and have become so much mature now because of my bump. I don’t want to call it a hardship because I know there are several worse things in life and mine is insignificant in comparison. And that’s what makes me grateful. However, it’s something I overcame by myself and I am proud of myself for that. The Power of Positive ThinkingDaisy Garay
ASU Being bombarded with challenges in life can create a negative impact on one’s mindset, or in this case, mine. There are many people that try their hardest to make ends meet. I am one of these humans and up until recently I realized that the power of positive thinking can make my struggles all the more, better. Being born into a family with an abusive father with a horrible drinking habit, my opinions of life and males, in particular, weren’t always positive. I was never truly happy because of my family’s situation. Instead of going uphill, our circumstances seemed to keep going downhill. Because of the constant bickering of my parents and being financially unstable, I put little to no effort in school. Although, I was exceptional in my studies, I could have accomplished so much more. With my negativity holding me back, I was always putting up a front and never allowed myself to be optimistic and to look forward to later opportunities in life. My mother, the one who has suffered the most, was the opposite of me despite our identical appearances. No matter how difficult the situation was at home, she went to work every single day to make ends meet for my three older brothers and I. Nothing stopped her from giving her children a roof over their heads and food, even if it wasn’t much, on the dinner table. Once I was of age to attain a part time job, I applied any and everywhere as soon as possible. I didn’t want to be a burden to my mother any longer. I wanted to be independent enough to be able to help her with payments or whatever else needed. I was already in my junior year in high school when I had become a cashier at Sears. I ended up working part-time, although it felt as if it were full-time. Even though I could financially support myself for school and my mother, I was becoming weary working long hour shifts, only to get back home to start and finish homework. There were some days where I just could not handle much more and would break down from all the stress of school, work and the same family problems that didn’t seem to go away. However, I realized that my mother had been putting up with this pain and more for years, if she could get through it, so could I. Any time that I felt that I just couldn’t carry on any longer, I reminded myself that the day after was a brand-new day. Not only that, I mouthed a quote to myself, “Everyday may not be good, but there is something good in every day” to remain calm and continue on with my day. With each upcoming year in high school, I gradually started to look forward to new things. Without noticing, I was becoming happy. I had a job, I was going to school, getting involved in clubs, participating in community service and actually being of use to my mother. I was doing things that I would have never imagined, such as being Vice President of Community Service for Future Business Leaders of America. I didn’t know it then, but what was motivating me and affecting my mindset was indeed the power of positive thinking. I admit I didn’t really have a healthy way of thinking growing up, but as I matured and accepted that sometimes life doesn’t go as you’d wish, I realized that the most important thing to do is to not let life knock you down. Having a positive way of thinking allowed me to try my hardest and give it my all in order to succeed and most importantly, learn to become happy. It wasn’t until the end of my senior year of high school that my mother decided to divorce my father. Finally, it seemed that our family situation had started to stabilize. It’s amazing how being optimistic can hold one up. While trying to apply to a variety of universities and searching for ways to pay for college, my family was going through a divorce. I say family, because although I never truly had an appropriate father figure in my life, he gave me life as he did to my siblings. Not only my parents were affected by this divorce, so were my brothers and I. The heartache was shared between us all. It wasn’t a smooth divorce either, however we all got through it because we all wanted the same thing. We were all exhausted of the fighting, the arguing, and the tears. Looking at the bright side of all our baggage, we all became strong and learned that by being positive, days become brighter and our lives suddenly don’t seem as gloomy as a rainy day. I may have been named by my father, but it is because of my mother that I am proudly able to say, my name is Daisy Garay and I am more optimistic than ever. Especially to see what the future has in store for me. Focusing on Things You Can ControlLianne Ortiz
Sitting on an old brown leather couch waiting for the psychologist to come back, I thought of the millions of reasons why my son being diagnosed with Autism was unfair. Why him, and why me? I was mad at the psychologist for diagnosing him, mad at myself for not being a good enough mother, and mad at whoever chose this cold leather couch that wouldn’t let my tears sink in the fabric. Instead, my tears pooled there in droplets making them stand out even more making them harder to ignore. I had let my insecure thoughts delay taking him to get diagnosed in the first place and didn’t want to hear the truth. I did not want the fact that my son was Autistic to be confirmed and be true, because then I wouldn’t be able to go back to my denial, and back to a place where if it wasn’t confirmed, then maybe, just maybe it wouldn’t be true. I had let my feelings dictate my actions for far too long and blamed everyone and everything for our struggles. Sometimes it is easier to be naive and simply pretend things aren’t as bad as they are, or convince yourself that the world is unfair and life will tear you down no matter what you do. I always felt helpless and hopeless whenever life would throw some obstacle at me and it was easy to play the victim and blame others for my hardships. But, in the moment that I left the psychologist’s office, I decided that I was not going to be a victim anymore. I decided to focus on the things I could take control of and for the first time, felt truly empowered. I had finally received a diagnosis for my sweet boy and it was hard, I’m not going to lie. I knew that no matter what I felt, I could not change the fact that he had Autism. But, what I did realize was that I did have the power to accept it, and to accept him. I had the power to be his advocate and make sure that his every need could be met. I sat in the parking lot of the psychologist’s office and knew that I may be young, but I was going to do everything I could to help my boy in any way I could, and took control. There was going to be no pity party, and no mourning. My boy was still just as amazing, and I still loved him with my entire being. Nothing had changed but my attitude. Now, I had the knowledge of what was going on with him-giving me the opportunity to help him. I began working with children with Autism and was lucky enough to be given workshops and training on how to help individuals with Autism developmentally so they could catch up to their peers of the same age. I soaked up as much as I could, and did everything I could to learn as much about Autism and effective strategies to help those with the disorder. I took control at home the best I could by creating therapies mimicking programming I had seen to give my son a leg up while we waited on waiting lists to get him enrolled in his own professional therapy sessions. I quickly learned that working and trying to be there for my son were conflicting so I quit my job to care for him full-time. It was hard getting him the help he needed, and dealing with his problem behaviors such as biting and hitting was physically and emotionally difficult. I could not change some of these behaviors because I just did not have the expertise, so I focused on what I could do which was finding an agency that specialized in behavior intervention as well as help with developmental deficits. I spent hours every day calling different therapy centers trying to get my son off waiting lists and to visit centers providing early intervention programming. I spent every day on the phone with insurance agencies trying to find exactly what would be the best fit for my son, and with persistence, we were called for him to be assessed to get him the therapy he needed. It sounds selfish, but in helping my son, it made me a better person and was a life changing experience for myself. I was proud of the assertive person I was becoming, and I didn’t let things that were out of my hands control me or my feelings. I could have dwelled on the fact that I could not cure his Autism, but instead realized the importance of focusing on only the things I could control. I finally felt like I had the power, and if I wanted something to happen, then I was the only one who could create those changes. My son went into early intervention programming as a non-verbal two year old with severe developmental deficits such as not being able to hold eye contact, and not being able to express emotion. He now just turned four and got moved out of his Autism classroom into a regular preschool class. He now looks me in the eye and tells me he loves me every day and that alone made my decision to focus on the things that I can control the best decision I have ever made. Personal DevelopmentTyree Furman
I chose to attend to University of New Haven because I wanted to prove not only to my family, but to myself that I can persevere through the collegiate curriculum and earn my degree while living far from my home in New York City. When I was younger, I was diagnosed with multiple mental disorders that hindered my learning ability while I was at school. I used to get doubted by my peers and my teachers that I wouldn’t be able to maintain at least a “C” average and that I would be better off dropping out of school. Nobody expected that I would graduate from Mount Saint Michael Academy as a member of the National Honor Society and more importantly heading to school out in Connecticut. My mom is the only person who supports me financially. Currently, she is unemployed; she has been for a while now. This scholarship will alleviate some financial burdens that she experiences on a regular basis. In addition, I feel like I deserve this scholarship because I am an extremely dedicated student. My mom has thought me the values of hard work and commitment. I could have easily allowed the words of my peers distract me from achieving good grades, but she made sure that I was always concentrating on my goals of being academically successful. That’s why I’m the student that I am today. I spend the extra time I have completing and reviewing my work with the help of tutoring ever since I was in elementary school. There is even a tutoring program in my university that I visit almost every day of the week; working to make sure that my assignments are perfect. If I continue working to the extra mile, I’ll be able to accomplish task that I am faced with. That’s one way the Law of Attraction has impacted my life. Instead of focusing on the negative that surrounds me in the present, I look forward toward the positive that’s in my future. I became a better student by bringing my competitive nature from sports into the classroom. After the doctors diagnosed me with multiple mental disorders during kindergarten, I had specialists prescribing medications. The amount of medications that I was prescribed to overwhelmed me. I refused to take them. I wanted to overcome my problems on my own, naturally. My mom noticed that I had a lot of energy and put me in sports, believing that it would help me excel. She was correct. Sports was able helped me academically, and once I realized that I could rise to the challenge, I started to push myself constantly to earn better results in my school work and in my exams by bring my competitive nature into the classroom. I’m currently majoring in Communication with a focus of TV and Film. I working to achieve a Bachelor’s Degree and become a broadcaster for a big network like ESPN or FOX Sports 1. Growing up, I’ve always indulged myself in anything sports related. I was highly entertained by the broadcasters like Chris Berman, Lee Corso, and the late, great, Stuart Scott. The way they presented the game with their catch phrases, observations, and analysis made watching sports memorable. Their passion for broadcasting resembled how much I appreciate sports. These men brought passion and intensity to their broadcasts and it influenced me work on my speaking skills and follow in their footsteps. I’m also a person who likes to share my gratitude by giving back to my community. I use to be a member of the NYPD (New York Police Department) Explorers program. This program focuses on volunteering and community service. Every meeting there is a different assignment, whether it’s team-building activities, reading to senior citizens, or tutoring under privileged children. This program had really helped build my confidence and self-esteem. Being in the Explorers program gave me a sense of pride. It still makes me feel like the leader I’ve always strived to be. The people in the program acknowledged my good deeds and hard work. I’ve never been credited for up until that point. It made me proud of who I am. As a victim of bullying, so I know first-hand that young people need to feel protected and safe, this program did that for me. Aside from my mom, I had no one else to run to about my problems; so helping others in their time of need makes me feel like a guardian angel for my community. I still strive to have the same impact on my campus with my positive attitude, just how I impacted my community while I was a NYPD Explorer. All of the principals have a big impact on my life academically, socially, and personally. It shaped me into a mature student whose focused on being helpful towards my community and successful in the classroom. An Attitude of GratitudeKen Ma
My head was spinning, my eyes were wincing, and my tongue was filled with the taste of my own sweat. The wind was pushing me back; my chest was aching from the effort. During my first year on the track team, this was how I felt at every practice and race. Two years ago, running was very painful, and even a jog felt as though it would kill me. I would end up in last place for all the races, which did not make me very popular among my teammates. Even so, I kept going without looking back or quitting. After my first track season, I had focused on things I could control. During the summer, I decided to train independently to improve my endurance and speed. I was working at a youth center that summer, so I had little time to run on the weekdays. Weekends were training days though. I slowly noticed that I was not getting exhausted and winded from running. I observed an uptick in my speed. When cross-country started, I was disappointed. Even though I felt that I was a much stronger runner than before, I was still the slowest and weakest runner on the team. At the first race of the season, I ended up in last place. I did not give up though—this summer showed me that being a good runner was about putting in the time and effort. I continued to attend practices and gave my best effort at all of the races. At the last race of the season, I placed ninth. My running illustrates the power of the mind and persistence. I believe that I can accomplish anything that I put my mind to—whether it be in my hobbies and extracurricular pursuits, my education, or my career. I decided, during my high school freshman year, that I wanted to become an engineer. Math and science were my favorite subjects in high school. Additionally, I loved solving problems, such as my problem with running when I first joined the track team. To learn more about the engineering field, I reached out to some engineers in the Boston area to learn more about the engineering field. I learned that the path to becoming an engineer is difficult—lots of difficult classes and internships. The engineers I spoke to encouraged me to sign up for business classes because it would make me more marketable later on in the job market. Despite the warnings that the path to becoming an engineer will be difficult, I am now entering my freshman year at Northeastern University in the engineering department. I have taken the experienced engineers’ business advice to heart by obtaining an internship at the State Street Bank this summer. My primary goal in attending college is to realize my dream of becoming an engineer. After my decision to pursue engineering, I reached out to engineers in the Boston area to learn more about the engineering field. The engineers advised me to keep networking with other engineers and companies while in college. They also encouraged me to take business classes because it would make me more marketable in the job market. I have taken the experienced engineers’ business advice interning at the State Street Bank this summer. I am registered for both engineering and business classes at Northeastern University. I am particularly drawn to Northeastern’s emphasis on co-ops and internships, so that I can learn about different engineering companies. I also hope to study another language, such as German, and study abroad in Germany to be able to meet engineers and companies in Germany. I am excited to pursue engineering and business classes at Northeastern and meet other like-minded individuals. I am particularly drawn to Northeastern’s emphasis on co-ops and internships, so that I can learn about different engineering companies. I also hope to study another language, such as German, and study abroad in Germany to be able to meet engineers and engineering companies in Germany. To me, no path is too difficult. Skills are obtained by patiently training. I am not a natural runner? There is no such thing as a natural runner, I say. With some time and effort, I can make it happen. Engineering is too difficult? I am determined to be successful at Northeastern University and in my engineering career. An Attitude of GratitudeStacey Sheffield, RN
On April 14th of this year, my life was forever changed. I had a stroke that robbed me of the sight in my right eye and the ability to drive my vehicle. After finishing my rehabilitation, I was told by my specialists that I would not have survived my stroke if I were my previous morbidly obese weight. I began my health change 3 years ago and have maintained my healthy weight for 2 years. I am proud to say that my 125 lb. weight loss helped save my life! It was that day that changed my attitude on life too. I wanted my children to know that just because I now had a disability did not mean that it had to limit what I could do in life. I just needed to learn a new pathway to help me obtain my dream! Having an Attitude of Gratitude is the most important one in my life. One must make gratitude a habit in our day-to-day life in order for us to truly understand the full meaning of it. Having gratitude towards others helps me to focus on the blessings that I have in my life versus what I feel like I may be lacking at the time. It helps me stay focused on the positives in my life and not the negative loss of my eyesight or the setbacks that being suddenly blind in one eye may have caused. It helps me stay excited about being socially engaged and being around others with a passion to learn how I can serve them. Having an attitude of gratitude has helped me work thru the negative and traumatic experience of having a stroke at my age, wondering if I’ll ever be able to take care of my children without help. The answer is “Yes!”, because I’ve chosen to be grateful and share my attitude of gratitude with others. “Focusing on what we have and what’s going well isn’t always easy. But, sometimes the key to getting through distress and misfortune is to find value amidst the chaos” (Wilner, 2011) In the middle of my chaos, I needed to be grateful rather than focusing on the “what if’s” that kept trying to creep into my mind and make my future seem very bleak. I chose to make my heart focus on the people that came out of the woodwork to care for my every need and to serve my family when they needed it most. By making an attitude of gratitude a daily habit in my life, I instantly saw the impact it had on my overall level of positivity. The power of positive thinking can be huge in anyone’s life that chooses to embrace it. Our thoughts have incredible power over our actions. If we allow a negative thought to take hold in our mind, it will control what we think of ourselves and rob us of our happiness. I use my imagination to visualize only favorable and beneficial situations in my recovery. I dreamed of the moment when I would be able to walk up our stairs to snuggle with my children in their beds for the first time since my stroke. I’m still focused on the first time that I’ll be able to drive my children to school again. Or, how about the day that I get to put on my cap and gown to cross the stage for the first time to be handed my diploma and offered my first job as a Nurse Practitioner? These visualizations are what keep me focused on the prize at the end of the day. I believe that we truly have to make all four of the categories you asked us to write about part of our daily living in order to achieve personal success. I selected the top two that have affected me the most but could easily have gone over board talking about the remaining. I personally have chosen to make lemonade out of the lemons that were handed to me on April 14th when I had my stroke. I may have lost my eyesight in my right eye, but it truly changed the vision I had for life. I’ve chosen for this potentially negative experience to be turned around into an opportunity to serve and support others. I am now passionate about becoming a nurse practitioner that specializes in helping my patients achieve their optimum health and maintain wellness. I think too many of our patient population live in the unhealthy zone and struggle to find support. Thanks to my life challenge, my passion to serve others is now ignited with a new fire that can never be put out! Sources: Wilner, J. (2011, March 2). How to Have an Attitude of Gratitude. Retrieved August 30, 2015, from http://blogs.psychcentral.com/positive-psychology/2011/03/how-to-have-an-attitude-of-gratitude/ The power of the human spiritSumia Basunia
Georgia Institute of Technology A breeze lifts my headscarf as gushing water thrust upon the rocks below. Looking far into the distance, water appears a shade of blue. Flowing closer and closer, the water turns to shade of green, but as it falls down to the rocks below, nothing but white, pure white. A mist the fog, a faint yet distinct rainbow appears. Loud clashes of water bombard my ears, yet I stand staring as if frozen in time. Niagara falls. “It’s beautiful.” says my cousin. “Yes, it is.” agrees my aunt. The scene described above requires a number of faculties to understand and comprehend. To begin, it requires the faculty of sight. For a person’s sight to be functioning properly, the various parts of the eye have to work in unison to be able to transfer visual information to the retina. From the retina, the information will travel to the primary visual cortex where visual information is processed. Also, it requires the faculty of hearing. For a person’s hearing to be functioning properly, the air vibrations must cause the mechanical vibration of the bones in the ear. The mechanical vibrations will in turn cause movement of the fluid in the cochlea. From the cochlea, the information will travel to the Heschl’s gyrus where the auditory information will be processed. These are only a few of the properly functioning faculties needed to experience this one moment in my life. How can I not have the attitude of gratitude? Currently, I am a senior at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta pursing Bachelors in Biology. The more I became grateful for the opportunity to study at a prestigious institution, the more I appreciated the courses I was taking. I have come to appreciate biology as an interdisciplinary field that encompasses not only the energy interactions within our biosphere, but also the microscopic cells within the human body. Coming to college, however, I struggled adjusting to my new environment. Creating a friend base and joining organizations on campus took priority over my education. In a sense, it became my escape from the reality of my grades and my lack of participation in classes. As I began to mature, I realized that if I truly wanted to make an impact on the world, I would first have to change myself. As Rumi once said “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself”. I would have to take responsibility for my past and be grateful for my present. On this journey of change, of self-actualization, I am striving to use my past as a source of strength, not as a source of weakness. As Roosevelt once said “…his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat”. My main motivation is that I want to look back, in retrospect and with integrity, say that “I was truly grateful”. As my junior year began, with much reflection and enthusiasm, I was excited to start anew. The attitude of gratitude was instrumental in driving my new perception on life into action. Gratitude truly taught me the importance of hard work because if I wanted to consider myself as a grateful person, then I would have to be grateful for my time, my intellectual ability and my physical faculties to mention a few. I started actively participating in lectures, and recording them to truly absorb and retain the material. Going to office hours allowed me to further investigate interesting topics and really engage myself with the material. This hard work ignited in me a passion for neuroscience. My interest in Human Neuroanatomy became the catalyst for me to begin research. In my junior year, I was privileged to conduct undergraduate research in the Cognitive Motor Laboratory at Georgia Tech. More often than not, I am bewildered by the intricacy and organization of the brain. I am so grateful for the undergraduate research experience because it has exposed me to not only various fields of research, but has also given me a newfound respect for academia. Also during my undergraduate experience, I interned for the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. UNICEF, United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, is an IGO that caters to the humanitarian needs of children in the developing world. My internship exponentially expanded my level of awareness to the plight of children in developing world. With this newfound awareness, came immense gratitude. I became grateful to have grown up in a suburban neighborhood playing outside in the cul-de-sac in front of my house. I became grateful for the Halloween-themed movies on Disney Channel in October, and the Tarzan game on my brother’s PC. Simply put, I became grateful for my care-free childhood. My experiences at Georgia Tech have taught me the power of human spirit, its ability to grow and progress. The two experiences at Georgia Tech that have forever impacted the trajectory of my career are my research experience and my internship. I have decided to pursue a career in medicine with the goal of joining Doctors Without Borders or DWB. I was able to delineate between what I sincerely enjoy and love from what I was simply satisfied doing. For that, I am truly grateful. What I could controlCarol Field
Do you remember falling in love for the first time? Do you remember lying awake thinking about them, half waiting, half running through the hours until you could spend more time together? Do you remember the day your fairytale came crashing down? I remember. I remember the flyer, “COMPANY AUDITIONS” in Broadway font, and the hours I spent on my porch, practicing pirouettes until the concrete burned my skin through the fabric of my ballet shoes. More than anything, I wanted to be a part of that elite group, the company. At auditions, Kim read off each skill as four teachers watched silently, scribbling judgments on a rubric. “Double Stags,” Kim read, and I panicked, not knowing what a stag was. Timidly, I raised my hand, and she obligingly demonstrated before letting us practice. Although I’m sure mine were a rather poor imitation, a week later I found myself dancing ten hours each week, sweating through summer afternoons in the garage that was our studio, fighting playfully with my classmates for the tiny space by the fan between piques across the floor. The exhilaration of mastering new skills, the camaraderie in the tiny company, even the long days and constant soreness made up my favorite part of summer; I was in love. I remember when they announced that the studio was closing, and the morose silence during that infinite, final ride home. Despite innumerable hours spent searching for a studio we could afford, I found myself the lovelorn girl whose beloved had fled. Although there was nothing I could have done to save my studio, I did not give up so easily-I loved dance, and I would find a way. I knew what I could not control; I just needed to find something I could. I remember seeing the cheerleader’s pep rally routine, and finding my answer. By April, I had rebounded from my breakup, and was practicing with my new teammates, the only three from last year’s team to return. We travelled to camp, and experience that proved a curiously harmonious mix between fun and frustration. After camp, several more girls joined us, and we began learning our competition routine. It would never be dance, but I enjoyed it anyway. I remember sitting in a circle in room 108 as my teammates condemned our coach to the athletic director. Finalizing the decision to fire her, Mrs. Oitzman offered us the chance to cheer for basketball under a supervisor. An overwhelming majority had no interest in finishing the season. Again, my love had been torn from me, and I felt helpless-I could not change their minds, I could not unsay their words, and I knew I could never afford to cheer at a gym. Toward the end of the year, and interest sheet was posted to determine whether they would hire a new coach. Spurred on by this glimmer of hope, I set about attempting to persuade every eligible female-experienced or not-to join this future team. Finally, I was able to do something. Despite my relentless recruiting attempts, the list remained mostly empty; there would not be a team. I had failed. Still, I had to dance. After much deliberation, I compromised with my mother. Though I could not devote every second of spare time to dance, maybe I could take one or two classes. I remember telling my best friend that I was thinking of taking two classes at her studio, and before I knew it, she had convinced me to audition for show choir. I applied to be an intern, the only way I could ever hope to afford the classes I would need. Even when I was not selected as an intern, I still joined show choir, thinking we would figure out a way to pay. I ran headlong back into the arms of my beloved, even if for only four hours a week. Still, I cherished every minute. I remember breaking down in rehearsal when I failed my part test, and when I could not stop, Rachel asked me what else was going on, and between sobs, I divulged that not only had one of my best friends moved to Illinois that day, but I had also just found out that could not stay in Showstoppers, as it was too expensive. Again, it felt like there was nothing I could do. I had tried, and tried, and every attempt had been met with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Still, I had never stopped looking for another way. Just because I had been shoved out onto the street and had a door slammed in my face did not mean I could not pry another one open. I remember sitting in room 108 again, the school had hired a new coach, and I snapped at the opportunity. I gave all of the energy that I had devoted to finding an outlet for my passion into the team. What followed was an amazing season, and as we got off the bus from Basketball State Championships, I was already anxious for next season. Squealing with my teammates in joy at each new hair bow, hugging my stunt group in celebration when our pyramid went up, and watching the team improve made me realize how much I love cheer. I will always remember my first love, but in the end, it was the rebound I fell for, and I am not sure I’d want it any other way. Living is not only about mentally willing something, but willfully doing itElisabeth Parroquin
Slumped over my laptop, here I sit in the dark corner of the Chicory Cafe. All the while willing my fingers to fly across the keys as I write an essay on the law of attraction. An idea that I had heard of before, but never had an official name to it. The law of attraction can be described as your attitudes (positive or negative) having an impact on life outcomes, due to an energetic magnetism between similar energies. So here I am, typing away while trying to radiate the energy and desire to win this scholarship; hoping that the universe (or the people reading this) pick up on those energy waves to fulfill this definition of the law of attraction and how I live it. However, I believe that to be an extremist definition, and really everyone who is submitting an essay is in some way willing for Achieve Today to grant them the much needed cash. So how does the universe decide who deserves this money according to this law? I cannot pretend to have an answer, so instead I must argue that there is more to it than two beings creating a magnetic relationship. In a sense, it is true that the state of mind that you carry on a daily basis attracts similar states of being from your surroundings. If I were to have a negative outlook on life, it would appear to me that bad things always happen to me. Now whether or not that is because I attract similar energies as stated by the law of attraction, or because of the self-fulfilling prophecy in that I consciously or subconsciously find trouble, my state of mind has a significant impact on the actions I take, and how I interpret the results. In other words, if I am bent on thinking negatively, I will analyze anything and everything negatively. Unfortunately, I am very familiar with this counterproductive way of living. One example: I spent most of last year believing that my friendship with a close friend was not going to last. Many of the actions I took and things I said actually caused this fear to become a reality, and I was miserable for a long time. According to the law of attraction, my negative energy attracted a negative result. What this theory lacks however, is the process between the initial state of being and the resulting consequences. My attitude influenced my actions, which in turn generated a specific outcome. I must say, I have generally been doing much better since, and my thoughts progressively become less burdened. Which now brings my journey to the present, and keeping the entire “process” of the law of attraction in mind, changes in my attitude have led to positive, tangible changes in my life. I used to be afraid, a prisoner to my thoughts. I still may dwell on some things from time to time, but I can honestly say that I feel more free as I am learning to avoid cynical thinking. Now, I feel that I not only externally portray an independent young woman, but I internally embrace a positive way of being. When I find myself dwelling on something that I cannot change or resolve at the moment or even within the near future, I notice tension specifically in my facial muscles. When I choose to relax, un-furrowing my brow and unclenching my jaw, I immediately experience a change in my attitude. It has been discovered that one’s facial expressions actually can influence his/her emotions/attitudes. So if I choose to smile more or in this case, relax my face, it can directly influence my body chemistry to help me be more positive. I have come to incorporate meditative practices into my life, and thoroughly enjoy exercises that clear my mind to focus on grounding myself physically. For example, savasana in yoga where you lie flat on your back, palms up is one of my favorites. I do not fall asleep, but instead, mentally sink into the ground, remaining transcendently relaxed while still maintaining alertness. My favorite way of embodying a positive cocoon of being without stress, is through physical relaxation incorporating breathing techniques. I am learning to let go of what is retrospectively unimportant. I know that my well-being is ultimately more important than any goal or obstacle. And my ability to liberate myself from pessimistic judgement these past months has allowed me to be a more confident, independent, and open-minded person. Six months ago I would never have traveled to Chicago for the Blues Festival by myself and stayed at a stranger’s house. I went because I wanted to swing dance (a passion I have picked up since starting college). Six months ago, I never would have been okay with the idea of studying abroad in Europe without any connections. I hope to go my senior year, and whether I have someone to go with me or not, I intend to visit as many places as I can afford while studying there. I am excited about my future, and the older I get, the more driven I am to make those dreams happen. Which brings me back to the law of attraction, and what I perceive it to be. What I am currently willing for this upcoming year includes good grades, fun friends, and managing money. What I “will” shall influence my decisions that will ultimately impact how my year goes. In this way, the law of attraction, the type of energy and determination that I epitomize, will show a concurring effect. For example, if I am determined to get good grades, then I will work hard, which will grant me that “A”. Living is not only about mentally willing something, but willfully doing it. And it is in this determination that I live with the law of attraction in mind. I have goals and dreams, and I am determined to make them happen. And so, through willful thinking, my thoughts will turn into actions, which will eventually implement the desired outcome. Being angryAmina Mazhar
For the majority of my life, I’ve felt as if my parents constricted me. They prevented me from experiencing what most people would as they’re growing up. In their minds, they were protecting me from a demonized world. They didn’t want me socializing and thus absorbing the unholy ideas and actions in today’s society. This made me angry. I had no control over my life. Their grip on me slightly budged as I got older, but was still present despite the fact that I was an adult and deserved my freedom. My anger was building up, and I could no longer control it. Any small annoyance would make me boil inside. I always looked annoyed and frustrated. I would constantly listen to people tell me that I looked mad, and that I was being being rude. However, I never really viewed my anger as a problem like everyone around me did. I just thought it was normal to be angry, especially at people who annoyed me. I’m not sure when the time came that I realized I had anger management issues and wasn’t being a reasonable person; I just knew I needed to make a change. The first thing that I did was Google why I was angry all of the time. Scrolling through the pages that popped up under the server eventually led me to an article that stated; the first step to controlling anger is to determine its source. I thought long and hard as to what the source of the anger was. I organized the times and places that I usually became angry, and the times I would have my happiest moments. I realized I was usually mad at home, when I was around my family. This disturbed me. Family should be the one safe haven where I can relieve my stress and talk about my problems. I realized that the things my parents or siblings sometimes said would annoy me to a point where my head would throb with anger. But they were small things, which in reality shouldn’t be an issue. I wondered why my anger was uncontrollable at home but could be controlled around other people who I knew also said and did things that annoyed me. The only reason could be that I lacked control around my parents. They constricted me when I was at home, which in turn would drive my anger. I thought about the amount of self-control it would take to fix my anger problems. I really needed to start taking deep breaths and thinking twice before I said something hurtful or made a face to portray my annoyance. I had to think about how useless my anger was, and that it was better to fake it till I make it. Smiling and hiding my anger would eventually push it away, because it was pointless anger. Having my parents control my life was not the end of the world. It was their way of portraying their love for me, and the only way they knew to protect me. They didn’t know any better. It wasn’t their fault I was angry. It was my own fault. I was the one who wasn’t doing the right thing by respecting my parents and controlling the things in my life that I could control. Why let anger run my life? Why not focus on smiling and laughing more? This would not only make me happier, but it would make people happier to be around me. I didn’t want to be an annoyance to the people surrounding me, and I didn’t want to bring other people down for no reason. Controlling my anger has also allowed me to control other aspects of my life. Anger is something that people find a lot of difficulty controlling. It’s a pretty personal issue. You have to search for strategies to control anger in different situations that work specifically for you. This requires some experimenting, and thus patience. All of that anger isn’t going to dissipate at once, especially if it stems from your family, who are always around you. Gaining the ability to be patient and learning to control controllable problems has really helped me grow into a more organized individual. Organization prevents my life from becoming chaotic. Chaos can cause frustration and thus add to my anger. It’s the little things that really allow me to keep my life and mind in the right state. Writing this essay has allowed me to organize my thoughts and really understand how much I’ve grown in the last couple of years. At the age of 19, I’m beginning to find myself and come to terms with who I am. I’ve gained the ability to control my emotions, which has enhanced my abilities in dealing with issues and focusing on what really matters in life. There is now one less angry person on Earth, which makes all the difference. What you can control could change the course of your lifeEriyana Truesdale
Spelman College In life, there are many things over which we have no control. Steve Maraboli, author of “Life, the Truth, and Being Free”, once said, “incredible change happens in your life when you decide take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t”. There is a certain level of drive and motivation that comes with focusing on things you can control. When you focus on things you can control, it propels your life in a positive direction. This is true for the simple fact that focusing on what you cant control is a waste of time. For example, I can not control the cost of my tuition and the fact that I do not have nearly as much money to pay it. If I chose to focus on that aspect, I probably would not be in school right now, or worse, I would not have even applied. However, what I can control is the amount of scholarships I apply for to improve my chances of fulfilling my goal of graduating college. I grew up in a single parent household, where my mother was responsible for everything. She had me at a very young age but was determined to give me a better life than she had. She couldn’t change the fact that she was pregnant but she could dictate the type of life I would have. Even though my father was not an intricate part of my childhood, the time I did spend with him was precious. He was killed in a tragic car accident that changed my life forever. Now, growing up without a father is a statistic that has been proven to negatively affect the trajectory of a child’s life. Many people tend to take the fact that they did not have a father and use it as an excuse for their failures. However, there is something powerful that happens when a person chooses to look past the lack of a father. Personally, I chose to use the lack of a father figure as motivation not to become a statistic. I chose to focus on what I do have and make sure that in the future my children will not have the same situations. There are tons of experiences where looking at what you can control could change the course of your life. Similarly, my life is a personal display of the importance of this specific life principle and how it has made a positive impact on my life. It is inevitable that obstacles will come. Whether it be overcoming the loss and abandonment of my father, lack of money for school, or whatever obstacles I have faced, it is the solution that has always helped me deal with it. With that being said, it is what you choose to do about them and how you respond, that makes the difference. Hop(m)elessJenessia Cort
10 O'clock. 10:30. 12am. 2am. 6am.These was the times my brother was nowhere to be found. I love my brother. My head was spinning under these bitter cold sheets, thinking…Is he dead? Why hasn’t he come home? Where is he ? Is he hungry? I felt as if my left was crashing down like two airplanes colliding into each other .I was worried with pain. My brother Deonandre was missing. Although this brought stress to my family and I, I’ve learned life will consist of hard times, but the key is not to let bring you down. At a young age I had to have determination, perseverance and most importantly being strong minded /purposeful. In 2011 my brother went to school on a regular typical day. Never would I think he would run away from home and not come back until in the morning. I remember the cops questioning me asking, would there be anything causing him not to come home? Could I ask anyone who has last seen him? Is my mom a good mother? That night couldn’t sleep because I didn’t know what I would do , if I lost my brother. And at that time I lost my grandfather. Tears flowed through my eyes.My head was pounding , I felt so stressed out . My mother would come home and not say a word to my siblings and I. Everything in my life shifted at that moment. At a very young age I took up responsibilities that I was fit or ready for but I had no choice. I became a second mom for my little sister. Nigh, days, and months would go by and things weren’t getting any better . When he came to the door that morning. Many answers I wanted from but he wouldn’t tell me nor nobody in my family. Sooner or later , Social workers detectives and police always would show up at my house. My brother Deonandre would start not coming home, disrespecting his teachers, attacking them, and fighting my mother. He claimed he doesn’t like the way the teachers treat him and the abuse my mother was putting him through. He was “stressed”. He was always sent to the psychiatric ward to find out he had ODD & ADD. His actions were affecting me and remember going to school with all these things happening at home and crying saying I just want everything to be normal. Many nights I went to visit him at the psychartic ward and saw the way things were in that ward. It was sad saying goodbye leaving wishing he was home with us. I didn’t believe he had a mental illness. But the things that were happening in those 2-3 crazy years have taught me that things will take time and learn how to get throughout things and not stop me. It’s the same thing I would do in college. Never let anyone stop me from working hard and getting a degree. Whether it be stressful times, I’ll work it out. GratitudeAmani Edwards
The first time it happened, I was in an assembly with my friends at school. Even though you weren't supposed to use cell phones in school, I found it weird that my mom was calling me, since she's an advocate of “Education first, technology later.” As I picked up, I heard a voice almost similar to a sergeant's, yelling, “Get out, get out right now! Don't touch anything, get out!” I remember yelling, “Mom! What's going on? Mom?!” My friends looked at me as if I were some sort of lunatic, but I didn't care. As wrong as it was, I ditched school and took a bus home. When I arrived, a sheriff was tossing our things out, along with some of the women that work in the office. The neighbors came out of their houses and stared in disbelief. I stood there washed over in embarrassment. But, my mom stood strong, even after recently having surgery, gathered up what she could, and loaded it onto the truck. It struck me as weird that they wouldn't let us inside to take our own things out. And later on, we realized they had stolen about sixty percent of our things. I learned in psychology that you can't move up to the next level of hierarchy if you don't have a place to live, eat, or sleep. And we were below the last level even there. In America, they tell you there's a lot of people that can help you. But, where was our help? Where was our Superman? Phone call after phone call, but these people were all the same; they were all redundant, feckless, and churlish. My mom was exhausted and constantly crying. It's hard to see someone as strong as steel break down every day in front of your eyes. It's even worse when you have little or no money and no family to take you in until you get back on your feet. But, we lived that life every day for a few months. We knew it was bad when we could smell ourselves sometimes. When we were starving and the growling of our stomachs became music that filled the car. When our hair looked wild, from lack of combing or brushing. We “showered” and brushed our teeth from random sinks. We changed into what little clothes we had. All three of us, my mom, sister, and I, slept scrunched up in the car. But, we never begged for anything from anybody. The only good thing we could have possibly had at this time were food stamps. But, those would run out eventually and we'd be hungry for days at a time. I became reckless, doing things I wasn’t supposed to and coming back late, but I never missed a day of school. School was this big fashion show, but I was only really there for the education. I couldn't wait to graduate. Even better, I got selfish and couldn't wait to go to college to run away from the problems haunting me. Education was my key to getting out. One time, I overheard my mom crying for most of the day. And it was heartbreaking. She just didn't want to live this life anymore. I told her what she always tells me, “Hold your head up, have faith, and things will always get better.” That only made her cry harder, but it seems as if those words were only the beginning to our saving. My mom got a phone call. Someone was putting us up in a hotel for a few days. The hotel room even had a kitchen! Along with that were two gift cards from Publix to get food. Up until that point, our stomachs never growled as fiercely, yearning for cooked food that we could finally have. On that same day, my mom got a phone call, ABOUT A JOB! This one day of joy was the happiest we've ever been in our lives. Things were finally looking up... ...Until they started looking down again almost a year later. My mom lost her job and paying the rent became hard. We lost another home, yet again. This time, I had graduated from high school, got a job to help my mom out with the bills, and postponed my dream of going to college in the fall. This time hit me harder than a punch to the gut. There's nothing worse than feeling like you failed and disappointed your mom. None of us wanted to go back to that life we lived before, but we had no choice. Luckily, at least that's what we had thought, a friend of hers let us stay with him, since he was never there anyway. At first, we were more than grateful. Despite how disgusting the place was with roaches crawling around, we made it work. But after some time, we all began to realize that we needed to go. The man said sexual slurs to my mom and spoke to my sister and me as if he was high and mighty and we should approach him as a father figure. Last time I checked, my father walked out of my life more than twelve years ago. My mom sat me down one day and told me that I needed to go to college. I argued and refused saying that I needed to be there with them, but she remained calm and told me to make something of myself. It seemed as if I were her last hope. I quickly realized that I never want to live this way as I grow older and my biggest fear was to fail. That's when I got accepted into Florida Gulf Coast University for the spring of 2014. The day I left for school, my family was still homeless. Either bed hopping or sleeping in the car. I wished I could invite them into my little dorm. I felt selfish living in luxury compared to them and I was constantly worried. I called every day; I never missed a beat. I automatically knew that I would get through school and become something or someone so that I could do right by my family and myself. I was home for spring break when all the good in the world finally came rushing in. My mom found a place she loves and it was for them to stay for a long time. This time I was ecstatic to know that I had my own room for the first time in my nineteen to twenty years of life. I was even happier to find out she had two jobs and they'll finally be alright. My mom being full of alacrity is the greatest memory I could ever cherish. And I couldn't have been more proud. All of this makes me the person I am today. I could never understand how people could be so ungrateful. How could people be so fussbudgety and booboisie, when there's people in the world who have absolutely nothing? You have clothes on your back, a bed to sleep in, food in your fridge, and a clean bathroom to take care of your needs. So why take anything for granted? But, at some point, this was all that I was. I learned not to be ungrateful and to accept everything that I have, even if it isn't much. Watching my mom fight us out of this struggle taught me to never give up and to always have faith. Whenever I want to quit, I realize how strong I am, how strong I've been, and that I can keep going. The only thing I want in life is to succeed and with this life lesson in mind, I refuse to do any less than that. Focusing on things you can controlJasmine Holloway
When I began my first year of high school, I had a precise plan on how the next four years of my life would go, what clubs and sports I would join as well as the academic and personal goals I wanted to accomplish. I knew exactly who I wanted to become and I thought I had complete control of my future. In my mind, it was the perfect plan that would make me successful, and I didn’t think that there was any other way to do this. However, I never expected that early in my freshman year my “perfect” plan would be altered by one basketball game. In the middle of my basketball season, I injured my knee as I was trying to steal the ball during a game. The athletic trainer expected me to be able to return the following week. Unfortunately, the injury was more serious than I had thought and I was told that I would need surgery. Surgery was not an option for me financially at the time, so I despairingly had to give up basketball, one of my passions in life. I was completely devastated and disappointed that I would never be on varsity with the rest of my teammates and I worried about how this injury would affect me in other areas of my life. How could a setback like this happen in my first year of high school? I spent the rest of my freshman year wondering how I would ever accomplish any of the rest of my goals. Eventually I realized that I couldn’t let this one moment define who I would be and that I had to keep pushing forward to accomplish my plans. Although this injury impacted my life tremendously because I could not perform at the level I was capable of, I did not allow this setback to set the tone for the rest of my high school career. I had to change my perspective of the situation, and see it as an opportunity to explore other interests and extracurricular activities that I would have never considered before. The activities that I became involved in was: volunteering at my local community hospital, joining the Associated Student Body and becoming a member of track & field, a sport that I could partake in without causing much stress to my knee. These were amazing opportunities to help my school and community while developing my team building skills, however, during my junior year I discovered a new passion: dance! The artistic expression found through dancing gave me a boost of confidence and a fresh perspective about my life, specifically to be bold and not cower from new opportunities. My new gained confidence transferred to other areas of my life and inspired me to be more open-minded. Additionally, dance has allowed me to display another side of myself by expressing my eccentric personality. The feeling I got when I performed at dance shows was an exhilarating rush of excitement and artistic expression. As I reflect back on these experiences, I also learned about different cultures through music and people, which allowed me to appreciate the diversity of our community. Overall, I would have never dreamed of performing in front of hundreds of people and although dance was not a part of my “precise plan,” I am proud of myself, my personal growth, and being a part of a dance program that plays a huge role in our school’s culture in developing confidence and embracing individuality through the performing arts. The lesson that I learned from this situation is that I cannot always control what life will throw at me and sometimes the unexpected will happen. What I can control is how I choose to respond to the situation at hand. Changing my perspective of the situation and deciding to have a positive attitude allowed me to find another passion in my life that I would have never considered before. I realized when I kept thinking positively and controlled how I responded that everything worked out better in the end. This unexpected pathway led me to a happier future, one where I was completely fulfilled and it didn’t matter that I didn’t get to play varsity. I control how I decide to move on from a bad experience. I control what I will learn from disappointing situations and how I will grow as result. Once I focused on the things I could control and remained optimistic, I applied this to all areas of my life. I could overcome anything and face any obstacle that challenged me. I have a choice in life that I only get to decide; a choice that I can only dictate. Moreover, I could remain depressed and sulk over all of the disadvantages and failures that I had to deal with and never progress to become anyone better. Or, I could choose to keep on persevering with the hope that I will accomplish my goals even if it isn’t the original pathway I thought it would take to get there. Focusing on things that I can control instead of worrying about things I couldn’t has led me to live a happier and more positive life. Control of the selfMadeline Stienhoff
So many elements of this world are beyond control. Gravity ensures the seasons, the years, and the contents of the planet. On a human level, emotions, actions, and social traditions and customs are often out of the control of any individual. A singular human being in this world can only control their own actions, thoughts, and behaviors. As a person, I am only able to truly control myself. I learned this at a young age and from then on focused the majority of my energy primarily on only that which I can control. Doing so has helped me to not only avoid unnecessary stress and negativity, but to also focus on being the best possible version of myself. I am a quiet and rather shy person and I always have been. This is more of a result of liking my own company than self-consciousness or fearing others’ opinions of me. When I was nine years old, my family moved to a town with which I was completely unfamiliar. At nine years old, I could control neither where I lived nor where I went to school. I could, however, control my attitude and how I reacted to this change. By focusing on elements that I could control and approaching the situation positively, I saved both myself and my family excess stress that would have resulted from any negative reaction. Although I was apprehensive about making new friends, I knew I could not force my peers to like me; I could still only control my own behavior. This caused me to greet every new face with openness and kindness, which ultimately resulted in genuine, lifelong friendships. When I left for university at eighteen years old, I moved again to an unfamiliar place, now on my won. This time, I could control where I lived and where and what I studied, but I still could not control what my peers thought of me. Again facing a new place and still apprehensive about making friends, I reminded myself that I could not force my peers to like me or approve of me. Once more, I approached every new person I met with friendly openness. This method of addressing a new social environment does not ensure friends, but it does ensure that I am comfortable in my own company and that I am positive and kind around others. I have always been particularly academically inclined, but I have never been concerned with grades or percentages. While I comforted friends who cried over B minuses or ninety-nine percents, I personally wrote grades off as numerical quantifications of arbitrary evaluations of skill, completely in the control of the instructors. Grades were and always have been out of my control, so instead of relying on numbers to inform me that I had learned something, I focused on my own study habits and accomplishments, always doing my best and achieving what I could. Knowing that others, such as university admissions officers, attributed value to these numerical grades did not affect my philosophy. I could not control their opinions or beliefs. All that mattered to me was that I was gaining knowledge as thoroughly and as effectively as I possibly could. Maintaining this philosophy not only saved me the stress of calculating a passing grade or struggling to answer every test question correctly every time, but also allowed me to freely learn from mistakes and preserve my self-worth by not defining myself in numbers. Instead, I focused on the material and learned as much as possible, regardless of my testing ability. However, as I’ve grown older and more educated, this philosophy has become more and more difficult to maintain. As I learn more about politics and social injustices, such as hunger, poverty, and oppression, I strain to control things that I cannot. I struggle to understand opinions other than my own, and I struggle further to prevent myself from forcing my beliefs onto others. Yet ultimately, whether I expel my energy or not, others’ decisions are beyond my control. Therefore, I try my best to focus my energy on my own actions instead of on changing the views and opinions of others. By taking charge of my actions and voting or volunteering, I can positively effect the change I wish to see. Focusing primarily on what I can control has been largely beneficial throughout my life and is still proving to be so, regardless of the difficulties I encounter. This practice has helped me focus on what I consider truly important, such as self-love, self-improvement, and my education. It has allowed me to understand and control myself entirely and to approach others with an open mind, ready for anything. Focusing positive energy on that which I can control instead of negative energy on that which I cannot has ultimately helped me to live a healthier life. The power of positive thinkingKaryn Taylor
The mind can bring me up or down. The way you think about any situation can determine your outcome before it occurs. People can decide to have an outlook on life that says that the glass is half full or half empty. For me I find value in looking at my situations where the glass is half full. The glass half full shows that I am thinking the best of my problems. If you keep your head up and think positively then nothing can get you down. I have always tried to look on the bright side of things. For as long as I can remember, people in school have always told me I am very positive and happy all the time. They questioned why and how I could remain positive even in challenging times. The reason why I focus on the good over anything else happening is because focusing on the negative never changes anything. Looking at the bad things only make us feel worse; whereas, if you focus on the positive, hope will shine through. I like to stay in the positive mind-frame, so that my thoughts and the way I perceive things around me will appear positive as well. If I want my life to be enjoyable, then all I have to do is choose to enjoy it. Positive thinking is a choice and once you make that choice things really start to look up. For example, I applied to many different companies for summer internships. My first interview was very mediocre. Although this was my first interview with a professional corporate company, I soon after saw so many things that I could have done better. I did not do much company research before the interview and I used too many filler words. A few weeks into Christmas break I received an email from them saying that I did not get the position in their summer internship program. After I reading the non-acceptance email for the internship position, I began to feel discouraged. I noticed myself feeling hopeless and sad. I had to quickly remind myself that maybe I did not get that position because it was not where I was meant to be. The internship that works out for me is where I believed I was supposed to be, and I decided to focus on that instead. God has a plan for my life, and this was the time in my life where I truly learned what trusting in God was really about. The more I surrendered and began to trust in Him, things started happening for my good. After that bad experience, I chose to remain positive and seek out other internship opportunities. I chose to participate in several mock interviews to help with real interviews with companies. I knew I had to improve my interview skills, so I began to do more and more practice questions. I would memorize some probable situational questions along with the answers I wrote down. This was a positive way to purposefully pursue an internship. I knew I could not remain in sadness or go into frustration because neither of those were going to help me obtain my goal, an internship. When I got the chance to interview with the company I ended up getting an internship with, I knew this had to be the one. I did tons of company research, memorized their core values, and practiced interviewing with two of their current employees who gave great feedback. I stayed joyful and in a positive mindset the day of my interview. This helped me press through when I got lost trying to find the correct floor and when my manager interviewing me looked completely uninterested. I went in with confidence, because I knew my stuff by that point and I felt prepared enough that if they could throw just about anything my way and I would be ready for it. This interview did go much better than any previous ones I had done. The one thing that was very difficult afterwards was the waiting to hear back from them. I took about three to four weeks for me to get an offer, but once that letter came in it was like a flood of relief. Going into the interview with a positive attitude and thoughts really helped me move through the interview with ease. I love being positive in my thoughts and words because it not only helps me remain in joy, but it lifts others up as well. I love transforming and lifting up other’s thoughts and words into positive ones. The quality of wisdomLeona Lewis
I can’t be specific about when I first decided to pursue a career as a mental health counselor, but what I do know is that I am quite excited about and proud of the strides I have recently taken to pursue this ambition. As a recent graduate of CUNY’s Medgar Evers College, where I obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, my studies were consistent with a passion I’ve long felt for the field and which I hope will ultimately culminate in obtaining a doctorate. I have been fortunate to be influenced by persons engaged in the practice of various forms of psychotherapy, some of whom have become actual mentors (I’ve even eagerly discussed some ideas for a dissertation with some of them). Additionally, I have always had a special interest in working with youth and my recent experience doing just that has encouraged my belief that a Master’s Degree in mental health is the right direction for me at this time. I can also add, if somewhat immodestly, that it has taken a good deal of dedication and perseverance to come this far and become a graduate student at Brooklyn College. As the oldest of three siblings, I come from a background where family values or interests usually come first. While I certainly share the promise of a closely-knit family, this has often meant that my own interests were jeopardized and in some cases sacrificed. Thus what I believe was my true potential in school or other forms of scholarship was not always manifested. While I certainly take responsibility for these outcomes, I simply could not always give my full dedication to particular tasks or classes because of the priority of these family matters. With the passing years and the knowledge that can only come from experience, I’ve learned from my mistakes and developed a hunger and dedication to do more with my studies. As Freud once said: “If youth knew, if age could”; with that said, I believe the programs that these awards would allow me to continue would provide the keys I need to unlock the next door in my education. And as a native “Brooklynite,” I can think of no better place to have the chance to counsel those who may be drowning in circumstances similar to mine. Not that I believe in the future these will be the only ones I could help, but as I’ve already begun to discover in counseling and group sessions, there are potentially many in this program whose story I will readily and deeply understand. The idea of interning at one or more of the facilities with which Brooklyn College is connected (as I’ve come to learn from an alumna with whom I’ve had some conversations) adds to my feeling at home in this program. As my resume attests, my various positions as a youth advisor or peer mentor or even day camp counselor at present have helped provide me invaluable experiences in preparation for mental health. Moreover, should I be granted more of an opportunity, I will be privileged to work with various individuals not only whose lives I would hope to make more productive but from whom I would learn as much and make my own life more meaningful. In short, I do know something about family dysfunctions, substance abuse and the effects of stress, and I would be so bold as to suggest that this knowledge, learned as much from personal experience as working with others, bolsters my candidacy. I would add a positive note to my mention of family. While I already indicated that in significant ways, my own education has had to compete with some harsh realities of life, it could now serve as a motivating influence. As a first-generation college student and now Masters’ candidate, I could serve as a role-model for my younger siblings, as one who not only exemplifies the virtues of remaining in school but who believes education is life-long. I would also be motivated by a desire to make them and my community proud. In short, receiving this scholarship would allow me to “give back” a portion of what was provided me by exceptional mentors and educators along the way. I was indeed fortunate in finding them and now that I know what they look like, I’m sure to recognize them in future endeavors. I close by affirming that “The quality of wisdom isn't measured by the abundance of knowledge one possesses, but by how and when it is applied.” Such application would be my hope were I to receive the benefits from this prospective scholarship. As I pursue my Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling (a field that undoubtedly has room for growth and potential outlook), I cherish the keys I am getting now to unlock the next door of my milestone. I certainly would not desire to take out more loans (loans I cannot pay back, let alone having accumulated interest). Thus, I would desire nothing more but to be granted the privilege in receiving this monetary award so I may continue enlightening my mind today to treat those of others tomorrow. On a final note, if I hadn’t said enough and my voice was not heard, do take away nothing else but this: Even if I do not get selected and chosen for an award, I thank whose ever eyes are gracing these very words right now for allowing me to share my story and for taking the time to do so. The Attitude of GratitudeAlexandra Seda
Ohio Northern University The attitude of gratitude is an important principle that embodies being thankful for every day that one has to live. Each day of life is a gift. Life is not perfect, there will be good and bad moments, but it is the attitude that makes the difference in approaching these life events. In January of 2013, I suffered an accident at work in which I fell down stock room stairs. My accident resulted in a fractured sacrum, which is the lower part of the spine. The injury was one of the most painful experiences I have ever had in my life. I could barely walk and the pain was constant. My accident happened right before the start of the spring semester. I was able to overcome these circumstances by having an attitude of gratitude. The attitude of gratitude helped me take each day, one step at a time. For two months, I had to stand in my classes. The attitude of gratitude helped me have a positive outlook on life. I was thankful that my injury was not worse. I was thankful that I had the opportunity to stand in class, for it meant that I was blessed with the opportunity to pursue a college education. That same attitude of gratitude helped me through each physical therapy appointment and numerous spinal blocks. The gratitude helped me complete the semester. I was able to apply and get accepted into engineering school. Thereafter, I became a University Innovation Fellow, where I had the opportunity to receive three days of training in Silicon Valley to be at places like Google’s Headquarters and the Stanford D.School. Had it not been for this attitude of gratitude, I would have let my injury define my whole life. I would have taken the semester off. I would have stayed in my room and felt sorry for myself. I would have never applied to an out of state engineering school and would have never become a University Innovation Fellow. I would have never had the opportunity to go to Google Headquarters or the Stanford d.School. I would have never been the person I am today. I am the person I am today because of the attitude of gratitude. I believe that anything is possible as long as one is willing to work to see the mission through. I achieve today, so that I, as well as, my friends can succeed tomorrow. My success is everyone’s success, because I know and do what I can achieve every time. Laws of attractionLisa Garcia
Drexel University I live with the law of attraction in mind by waking up every morning with the expectation that I will have a good day no matter what happens. I accept that I will encounter people who have a different attitude or temperament than my own. However, I do not allow the negative things done or said to infiltrate my being and cause me to be distracted by my goal of a good day. Also, my faith is evidence of my daily use of the law of attraction. Having faith implies that what we desire will come into being. When I want something, I am not dissuaded by the absence of money, time, person, or thing. I am faithful that if it is good for me, it will come. Additionally, I live by the law of attraction by accepting that even the negative things that happen to me are positive for my growth. I am made stronger by these events. Also, negative occurrences are opportunities to make more positive choices for my life. Moreover, I live by the law of attraction by making good causes in my life that will, ultimately, result in good effects. I am conscious to always encourage people and to treat them kindly. It is not enough for me to be happy and successful. I must care for the sick, provide money and goods to the poor, and encourage those who are lonely, bereaved, or hopeless. Furthermore, I open my life, mind, and heart to make room for desired changes in my life. For example, if I want a boyfriend who treats me better, I “remove” the existing boyfriend from my life so that a new one can come. Likewise, if I want love to come into my life, I must open my heart to it. I welcome “newness” in life, as opposed to allowing myself to become stagnant in ways to which I have become accustomed. Also, my life is based upon the law of attraction because I endeavor to be in the company of positive, honest, and thought provoking people. I want to be as they are and reflect the same truth in my daily life. As a child, my mother told me that I would be judged by the company that I keep. She also said that”… water finds its own level.” It is not my goal to lower myself and my expectations in life by affiliating with people who are not only limited in their thinking, but also who wish to limit mine. Additionally, the law of attraction is implicit in my belief that I am worthy of good things happening to me. There was a time when I wondered why I kept meeting people who did not have my interest at heart. I came to realize that I did not think much of myself so I was attracting people who did not care much for themselves or anyone else. I had to work on my self-esteem and to see that I was beautiful because I was uniquely me. Once I did this, I began to meet people who were caring and sensitive to the needs of both me and others. They were attracted to what was the best part of me that had been hidden by my feelings of self-consciousness and self-doubt. Now, I know that I will only attract the good in life when I first see the good in me. Moreover, I accept that I already have everything inside of me to become a happy and successful person. I am, in fact, in control of my own destiny. I was born with these capabilities, but they are improved upon by my continued maturity and wealth of experiences. Furthermore, I apply the law of attraction to my life when I envision what I will to have or to happen in my life. If I cannot see it, I cannot see it happening. I often use vision boards which illustrate the realities, not dreams, of my life. When I do this, I go for exactly what I want. I never leave room for anything less. Also, I believe that our only purpose for being on earth is to be happy and to make others happy. A successful life is a happy life. I believe that this happiness exists even when we are going through trials in life. At these times, the happiness is in our ability to endure and move past these times. Lastly, using the laws of attraction, I always speak in positive terms. For example, I say “I will” not “I wish.” I believe that our lives can be shaped by what we speak into the universe. If I speak with fear, I will live a fearful life. However, if I speak with determination, I will live a determined life. The cure to negativityKassidy Vredeveld
Without the darkness we would never see the stars. This is the philosophy of life I have chosen to live by. Without the negatives, how can we ever truly appreciate the positives? How can we grow as an individual? Negativity is like a disease. It is all around us and constantly taking over aspects of our life, but it is our choice to dwell in the dark despair brought on by the negativity or think positively to grow and thrive from it. Who wants to live a life filled with a negative vibe? I do not and neither should anyone else. Fact is that we will all run into hardships because that is life, but learning how to deal with these things to make an overall positive outcome is the true lesson of life. Yes, we have all heard of the glass filled half way scenario. Is the glass half empty or half full? A positive thinker would say that the glass is half full. This is said all the time but does anyone really think about the meaning. I look at it this way. The glass may be only filled to half, but that means that there is still room to add more liquid. In life there is always more room to grow. We as people are the glass filled half way. The liquid to fill the glass is more knowledge, friendships, intuition, or memories. If we had no need to grow or no room to add more, then what would be the point in living? We spend our time adding to the glass that is our life and once that glass is full, we know that we have lived a long and fulfilling life. We cannot stop the waves, but we can learn to surf. We all have high points and low points in our lives that we cannot control, but we can learn to ride the wave and enjoy the experience. I am not naïve. I know that this can be hard to do. When the waves keep knowing us over it can be hard to convince ourselves to get back up, but if we do not, we could miss some of the best moments and experiences. By dwelling on the fact that once again we were knocked off, we could be missing the perfect wave that makes all the mess ups worth it. By thinking positively, we will always know that the ride will get better if we just hold on and finish strong. Every time we fall off the board, we learn a new tactic on how to stay on when the next wave comes. Life is the same way. When life takes a punch, we learn how to dodge it the next time. Life is a learning experience and it will by no means be perfect, but those imperfections are what make us unique. Life is like learning to ride a bike. We will fall off a few times, but we will get better the more we try. Always look on the bright side of life. Thinking positively can make all the negatives in life easier to handle. Think of a time when a loved one, friend, or pet passed away. My best friend killed himself when we were in 8th grade. I stayed on the couch for days not eating, talking, or sleeping. I was so mad at him for leaving me in that way. “How could he do this,” were the words that kept echoing in my head. I spent those days dwelling on the fact that he was gone and I could never see him again. He would never cheer me up, make me laugh, or be the rock that held me up for so long. I felt alone, but that is when it hit me. He may never be able to do those things for me again, but I still had all the times that he had. Dwelling on the negativity made me miserable. Thinking of all the memories I had, all the good times that could never be taken away from me, and the experiences we had together made it easier to say goodbye. This experience taught me an important lesson in life. It taught me that thinking positively can make all the negative experiences easier to handle. Thinking positively can be a challenge when the going gets tough, but in the end it is more than worth it. It can make life more enjoyable and ease the pain given by negative experiences. Instead of thinking that negatives are a bad thing, think of them as an opportunity to learn and grow. Think of it as a way to become a better person. Imagine what the world would be like if everyone had the positive mindset. Be the change you want to see in the world. Cure the disease of negativity in the world by thinking positively. The Power of positive thinkingElizabeth Juarez Diaz
Back in 2012 my world fell apart. I remember that afternoon my dad came home looking somber. I remember that shiny, tired look in his eyes to this day. He had showed me the letter his boss had given him requiring him to fill out the I-9 form to continue being employed. This basically meant he was getting fired since my father had no legal documents to work in the U.S. That moment changed my life. Not only had we gone from doing ok, to having no income. It was a year before I graduated from high school, and my plans to go to college looked very distant at that moment. I remember having our dreams and goals as a family getting torn in that instant. However I looked for some peace inside of me by choosing to stay positive and thinking those hard times would not last. We would overcome. I helped my father looked for cash paying jobs on craigslist. There was a pretty promising one a couple of minutes away from our home. When he went there at the end of the job the contractor decided not to pay him since he had no legal status, he had no right to get paid, at least that’s what the contractor said. It was harder to stay positive because it seemed that we were not going to be able to pay for rent. We stayed together as a family and even resorted to getting groceries from the local food shelves. My dream of going to college was distant, but still there so I would do everything I could to help my family get out of that situation. Thanks to the executive action that President Obama passed in 2012 that opportunity finally came. I received a work permit and license under DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) since I am an undocumented student that emigrated from Mexico in 2000. I was able to legally work in the U.S. and help my family out. Staying positive brought peace to a family that was falling apart due to depression and poverty. I endured eating canned food and was grateful to go to sleep on a full stomach. I had the chance to help my family pay rent, and hopefully save some money for college. When I was graduating high school in 2013, my dream of going to college was right around the corner. I applied to several schools, and got accepted into one. After getting a decent scholarship I went to talk to the financial advisor to see how much I would have to pay out of pocket. I meet with her and she told me that I had to pay out of pocket. “You still have $16,000 to pay, and if you want to live on campus $20,000.” I remember asking her if I could apply to any other scholarships, because that amount was outrageous for me since I was the head of the household at that time, of my parents and my brothers I was the only one working. I remember that look on my financial counselors face, I felt ashamed for begging for her help and for her lack of understanding or knowledge that the only words she could give me where, “I’m sorry”. At that moment I did loose my positive thinking. I ended up missing much of my last days in high school because I didn’t see as to why I should worry of high school if I couldn’t afford going to college. I was also getting exhausted of having to take the bus to work everyday, and not being able to enjoy prom or many of the other celebrations my friends where having. I admit that positive thinking was hard those days. What mattered is that I was able to overcome those days of negativity and hopelessness with the help of a great woman and great mentor that I will forever be thankful for. She understood me and knew how and why it was important for me to go to college. She reminded me that if I wanted a better life I had to care about college, I had to care about finishing high school strong. And strong I did finish. I was able to get a couple more scholarships due to my high academics and afford most of my tuition at the school that a couple of months had told me, “I’m sorry”. Right now I’m very thankful that my mother was able to find a job to help me pay for school without me having to work full time anymore. Staying positive helped me in the past and it’s helping me right now as well. I recently changed my major from Nursing to Chemistry after an internship doing breast cancer research. I have truly found my passion, and even if it means packing on an extra year of college and a bigger debt, I am dreaming of a future that waking up and going to work will be something I look forward to. I don’t have time to look at the negatives, such as living in a one-bedroom apartment with a family of 5, or not being able to spend as much time helping my autistic brother. I look at the positives in life, because staying positive has helped me get to this point in life, and it will help me become a oncologist in the future. Our connectednessJaqueline Zuniga
There is no doubt we are all connected. Everything in this universe is composed of the elements, and every element has come to be from within the nucleus of stars deep within space. Through the process of nuclear fusion, the nuclei of two hydrogen particles collide with very high energy to create a new atomic nucleus, or element. In this process, hydrogen forms helium, lithium, beryllium, boron, carbon, nitrogen, and all the elements of the periodic table. Throughout time, the cosmic sea of energy propelled new born elements through space and eventually reached Earth to create life: nature, animals, and humankind. If one can understand that everything that ever existed was, is, and will be made up of the same elements throughout this universe, and if one can understand that everything: every particle, every being, every star, has energy, then one would understand that there is no distance between anything because we are all touching, we are all connected, and we are all one. Furthermore, if we aware of this, and if we can concentrate on those things to which we desire most, then we can apply the very real Law of Attraction in our daily lives and have true control over our fates, and our wishes. The Law of Attraction is a universal law that was established by quantum physics principles. According to applying-the-law-of-attraction.com, “The Law of Attraction states: I attract to myself, whatever I give my focus, attention, or energy to; whether wanted or unwanted.” With that said it is important to be mindful of what thoughts we are generating, consciously or not, because we are always attracting our thoughts to our real life. In addition, a key factor in the Law of Attraction is that we must always harvest positive thinking, in that way we generate only positive thoughts to attract to ourselves, and in turn create a positive life. The scientific basis for this law is a fascinating, almost unbelievable, but very true incident that has been proven over and over in labs across the world, and this is entanglement. Entanglement is a physical phenomenon that occurs when groups of particles are generated and interact in ways such that the quantum state of each particle cannot be described independently—instead, one quantum state may be given for the system as a whole. For example, if you send two particles- Particle A and Particle B- which were created together at the same time, across opposite ends of the universe and do something to particle A, particle B feels what you did to particle A instantly, instantly. According to What the Bleep do We Know- Down the Rabbit Hole, “Either information is traveling instantly fast across space, [which is unlikely], or in reality the particles are still connected, entangled, and since everything in the universe was entangled at the moment of the Big Bang, that means everything is still touching. Space is just the construct that gives the illusion that there are separate objects.” This is the evidence for our connectedness and for how the Law of Attraction works, it’s because we are connected! This fact was mind blowing to me, but the more I study quantum physics, the more I understand it to be true. In my life, the law of attraction has made a significant impact. Not only do I believe in this law, I practice it, every day. When I wake up, I give an honest and happy “thank you” to the universe for giving us a new day of life and I pray. I ask for good health, happiness, peace, love, joy, fulfillment, wellbeing, accomplishments, and many good things for my loved ones and myself. Once my prayer is done, I know I have called good things into our lives, and I believe we will all have a good day. I have been practicing this form of prayer for many years, one in which I only focus on positive wishes and cures for bad circumstances, and it has brought much peace to me. If I go a few days without a praying session, I start noticing things are not going as well as they should. When I pray after noticing my troubles, my worries subside and I am at peace again because I know that I am in control of my life, and am attracting only positive things and life will go as I think. Positive thinking and the Law of Attraction has helped me in my financial burdens. My family and I have been going through hardships with money through our entire lives. We are a low-income family. My parents can barely maintain the household, and cannot help me with my educational fees. I dream of studying astrophysics and neuroscience, but my financial troubles seem to hold me back. Nevertheless, I apply to many scholarships and always envision me winning some so that I can pay for my tuition next Spring 2016 when I transfer to Cal State Long Beach and continue my lifelong dream of studying the universe. I know things will go well because I believe, and when you believe you can make anything happen. Our connectedness to the universe and each other is more profound than we will ever see, but it is there, and it is powerful. I pray for people to become aware of our connectedness and to be amazed by our true nature, because it is real, it is true, and it is powerful. Focusing on things you can controlNoah Brown
Tennessee State University My name is Noah Brown from Indianapolis, Indiana. I am a sophomore at Tennessee State University. My essay is about focusing on what you can control. My parents have made significant sacrifices for my education during my elementary and high school years. Regrettably I was not the best student during my junior high and high school years. My focus was playing on the football team, not studying to the best of my ability and goofing off. This disappointed my parent very much. My struggle in school started in junior high. My friends and classmates appeared to get better grades than me, and were able to balance school and recreation a lot better than I could. This affect my confidence and my self-esteem started to suffer. My mother did her best to motivate and inspire me, but I just could not seem to focus on my school work. My test scores were poor and unless I received help, my assignments were always incomplete or incorrect. My parent’s employed tutors and made the most of every resource that my school offered. It would be two long years, before we discovered the cause of my struggle in school. I had ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. I believe I always had it but it was never really an issue until I entered a more structured environment that required concentration and focus, like junior high. As long as I can remember, I was taught to never quit and to turn every negative into a positive. But this was very difficult for me since most of waking hours were spent at school, the one place I was struggling. I am very grateful that I had parents that refused to give up on me. My mother began to take me to counseling and doctors to find out why I was struggling so hard in school. After careful consideration and learning more about ADHD, we decided medication would be the best approach to treat my condition. After taking the medication my grades did get better, but I did not like taking the medication. I did not like the way the medication made me feel. So I would only take the medication the night before a test. This worked for a while, but really didn’t solve my problem, I did not like school. I was able to graduate from high school, but my GPA was so low, I did not qualify for many colleges. My parents continued to take me to college fairs and tours, they really wanted me to have the opportunity to attend college. Honestly, my interest was dismal at best. It was at a Historical Black College Fair I met a student who told me that he struggled in high school as well. His name was Jermaine Tyus. We had never met, but we talk like we were brothers. He shared with me his experiences and struggles in school, I was so relieved to talk to someone who understood my challenges. Jermaine told me, if I raise my GPA, to a 2.0, Lane College would be willing to accept me. I did not believe any college would accept me because I did not like school, it did seem like a good match. Since high school was so difficult, I just knew college would not be a consideration. So I took Jermaine advice, after high school, I attended Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, Indiana, increased my GPA to 2.2, and was able to transfer to Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee, in the fall of 2014. While attended Lane College my GPA increased to 3.187. It was at Lane College, I discovered I had the power to focus on the things I could control. Lane College challenged me, by making me work hard, be disciplined and accept responsibility for my education. I realized if I was going to be a successful college student, it was up to me to focus and take advantage of the opportunity. I started to look up to students that were doing well in their classes, and learn some of their habits. I asked one of the Deans to mentor me. I learn and took advantage of positive things college life offered. Now when challenges come my way, I say words such as, 'I can' and 'I am able'. I learned to truly believe in myself and change the way I thought and felt about myself. This fall, I am a sophomore at Tennessee State, maintaining a 3.167 GPA. As you may know, the cost to attend college is significantly expensive. I will be paying for my college education with money I have earned from my internship at IST Management, work study program, parents and student loans. However this will still not cover all of my college expenses. I am a hardworking and committed college student. I realize the value of a good education. I am pursuing a career in computer science. Tennessee State is one of best colleges to attend for a computer science degree. I would be very grateful to receive this scholarship, and complete my bachelor degree at Tennessee State. Cannot have gluttony without glutenZachary Schwartz
At the age of 11, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that forever changed the way I eat. Celiac, an autoimmune disease, kills off the nutrient absorbing villi in the small intestines whenever gluten is consumed. In simpler terms, I will not be able to absorb any nutrients if too much gluten is in my immune system. Gluten is found in the common ingredients wheat, barley, oats, malt, and rye. I thought my life was over when I was diagnosed. Regardless of the fact that my daily and painful stomach aches would be over, I felt that giving up gluten was too large of a cost. As an eleven year old, all that was running through my mind when my gastroenterologist diagnosed me was that I would never be able to eat any “good food” again. Despite the reassurance from the doctor at the time, it was not enough for me to hold back the tears. Since prepubescent boys are supposed to act tough, I was embarrassed while tears rolled down my cheeks. On the car ride back home, I blubbered to my mom why I had to get cursed with a disease. She replied to my comment by saying, “As long as you are able to stay gluten free, you will not have to lie down on the couch feeling nauseous after nearly every meal”. That was not enough for me to change my attitude and perspective. Throughout the first week of being diagnosed with Celiac, feelings of denial often led to frustration and anger. Four days after I got diagnosed, one of my classmates shared cake with everyone in honor of their birthday. At the end of school, I grabbed one of the plates of cake and walked outside waiting for my mother to pick me up. Seeing me eating cake upset my mother. She told me to throw it away. I replied, “Why Mom? I am hungry and the cake is the only food I see around that I can eat”. My mother reminded me, “Do you not remember going to the doctor and getting diagnosed with Celiac? You are not allowed to have any gluten.” Reluctantly, I threw away the cake because I knew I had to listen to her. I made a fuss once we were a distance from my middle school. Knowing now that I am a late bloomer and was not affected by puberty at the time, my denial and anger about having Celiac Disease rooted from being aware that something simple like eating will always be more complicated than it previously was. My mom caught me that same week eating cupcakes made from wheat flour. At this point, she was frustrated with my actions. The conversation that my mother required me to endure with her was the start of my transformed attitude on my condition. Initiating the conversation, my mom expressed, “I can only imagine how frustrating and difficult it must be to have Celiac Disease. The anger you have displayed throughout this past week demonstrated that your adjustment to complying with Celiac Disease is an uphill battle. In spite of your efforts of denial, there is no correction tape for your genetic makeup. You have an autoimmune disease whether you would like to admit it or not. Attitude and perspective is the only thing you can change about this situation. I love you and want to help you become better. If there are any concerns you have about Celiac, please tell me and I will help you as much as I can”. My morale was still low and I detached all the negative aspects of Celiac. With no specific direction in mind, I ranted, “How am I going to continue with Boy Scouts? They go camping in many different places. They will not get all gluten free food just for one person. Also, what about when I go out to eat? Gluten is nowhere near as recognized and catered to as peanut allergies are. Am I supposed to starve when the waiter and server have no idea what gluten is? Lastly, a lot of gluten free food tastes really bad. It seems like it is worth it to suffer from nausea while eating good tasting food rather than consuming different variations of terrible tasting food.” I held onto the belief that I had persuaded my mother to letting me choose food and suffer possible consequences. However, that is not her personality. She cared too much for my well-being to let me experience the effects of consuming gluten. My mom replied, “You can talk to the scoutmaster and the youth leaders about having Celiac Disease. I am sure that they can give you some accommodations. Whenever you are going out to eat, whether at a restaurant or a friend’s house, let them know that you cannot eat gluten because of Celiac Disease. If they do not know what gluten is, explain it! You know what ingredients gluten is in and can recognize many foods with gluten. Ask about food if you are unsure if it is gluten free. Do NOT eat food if the person who made it is unsure. It is better to be safe and sorry. You were with me when the gastroenterologist said that more brands each year are offering gluten free options. You just have to be patient and willing to try different foods.” I thought over the conversation with my mom for the next couple of days. I came to terms that Celiac Disease will just be something that I will have to deal with no matter the costs. It was difficult to accept, but it is certainly better than subconsciously thinking I can change it. I researched the long term effects of consuming gluten with gluten and saw that a lack of nutrients absorbed could stunt growth. I was already one of the shortest people in my grade. The thought of growing even less gave me chills to the bone. I would rather deal with eating nasty tasting food than being stuck below five feet for the rest of my life. At the next Boy Scout meeting, I talked to the scoutmaster and a couple of the youth leaders. The solution was that I would be able to bring gluten free bread and the gluten free alternatives to food on the meal plan that I could not eat. I brought an entire cooler filled with food on my first campout after I was diagnosed. Even though I was embarrassed for taking a large amount of food, I did not let my mood during the campout change. During the mealtimes, I had to get my special food out of the cooler and prepare a meal for myself. Despite it being a burden to do, I got used to this process after a couple of campouts. Everything else in my life started to fall into place. I began to forget how food containing gluten tasted like and the pastry cravings were curbed. Anytime I went out to eat, I had to explain my health condition to the chef or manager and my needs were usually accommodated. From Celiac Disease, I was able to become more assertive whenever questioning the ingredients in a particular dish. I am an introvert by nature and this forced social interactions allowed me to socially mature. Additionally, the extensive knowledge on food allergies connected me to my first summer job at Sprouts Farmers Market. The key to my success was a changed attitude. Just like poet Maya Angelou once said, “If you do not like something, change it. If you cannot change it, change your attitude”. The different perspective on food allowed me to make my diet healthier. To this day, I eat the minimal amount of processed foods. Looking back on this life changing event, I am pleased that I was diagnosed because I would not be where I am today without this character building catalyst (Celiac Disease). The power of positive thinkingAmanda George
One day while I was flipping through the channels I saw this show that I have never watched before but it had Patricia Heaton, who plays on one of my favorite shows, Everybody Loves Raymond as the wife of Raymond so I decided to watch it. After watching the show for a couple of minutes I really enjoyed it so I placed it on the list of my favorites. That television show is called The Middle. The Middle is a television series that shows the daily mishaps of a married woman and her semi-dysfunctional family and their attempts to survive life in general in the city of Orson, Indiana. I fell in love with this show because it displays a good idea of what the “American family” looks like. The parents, Neil “Mike Heck” Flynn and Patricia “Frankie Heck” Heaton have three children, Charlie “Axl Heck” McDermott, who is the popular guy in school and sits in his boxers all the time at home is the oldest. The middle child and only girl is Eden “Sue Heck” Cher, does her best to find her place in school and always comes up short but through it all she has a positive attitude. The youngest Atticus “Brick Heck” Shaffer finds his enjoyment in books and does not care to socialize with others but he loves his parents and often repeats things in a whisper which makes the teachers and staff at his school worry about him. But he is content with how he is. The kids do a good job of bringing laughter into each episode and you can tell that they all love each other and no matter what the show always end on a positive note. I love the television show because it portrays a good example of what the ordinary family is like and also because of Sue Heck. Sue Heck is definitely my favorite character on the show because of her outlook on life. She is the middle child and there is always talk about the “middle child syndrome” but Sue is very positive and has an optimistic perspective on life. While preparing for this essay and deciding which topic to choose, I thought about my day and all that I did. I remembered how I watched Sue deal with the fact that her parents, mainly her father had favorites when it came to their children. Her positive thinking towards the situation spoke volumes and showed the power of positive thinking. Positive thinking is being able to see a situation for what it really is and decide to view and dwell on the good side rather than the bad side. We are all faced with problems and issues that are out of our control. Also, there are times when it seems as if there is no way out but what a person thinks and what a person says in those moments play a huge part and shows a lot about their character. My character was shown when I was faced with a health issue that needed to be addressed. The summer of 2013 was an interesting time for me. While I was lying around the house, I reached over for the remote and noticed a lump in my right breast. I remembered from the pamphlets that I was given about breast cancer on how to check for yourself to see if something was there so I checked and something was definitely there. It was pretty late at night so waking anyone up wouldn’t be smart so I prayed and went back to sleep. I woke up the next morning and told my mom. She felt it and called some of the nurses that she worked with for advice. They all gave suggestions of what it could be and we made an appointment that Monday to see what the doctor had to say. My doctor told me that it was a mass and the next day I went in for an ultrasound. The results from the ultrasound showed that the thing that was in my right breast was fibroadenoma, which is a noncancerous tumor. A friend of the family, who is a doctor, told me that it is my choice in whether I want to have it removed or not. So a couple of months later, I went to the hospital for surgery. The surgery was short, in and out, I did not have a lot of pain and the recovery process was short as well. I had a biopsy for my right breast and I did not have breast cancer. The whole process was different for me because I have never had to undergo something as serious as that. At that time I was 21 years old and thought I was too young to have cancer. I understand that cancer does not have an age limit but no one wants to go through something like that, especially someone who life is about to start. That night when I realized that I had a lump in my breast, I made the decision right then and there that I was going to think positive and see the good in all of this. Now how can someone see the good and think positive when they could possibly have cancer? I definitely found a way. By me having a positive mindset in that situation, it helped me because I would have stressed myself out and made the situation worse. Stress has an impact on your health so if I would have let stress get in the way then that would have been something else that I had to deal with. Positive thinking has power because it might not change the situation but it will change you. You can turn a bad situation into a good one with something as simple as changing your thoughts. It all starts with a person’s mind. Proverbs 23:7 states, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he” (NKJV). When a person is faced with an issue what they think in their hearts or their minds determines what the outcome will be. If they think negative things then they will have negative results. If they think positive then they will have positive results. It’s really easy to think negative but it takes work to think positive and that is why it has so much power. Positive ThinkingTaylor Moreau
Rutgers University - New Brunswick SAS My emotions, depending on how strong they were, used to be able to have a significant effect on my performances. For most of my life I never really had an issue with academics...until my second year of high school that is. Sophomore year was the first time I had ever truly struggled with school. I had recently moved from Arizona all the way to New Jersey and had to adjust to the new curriculum. The previous schools I had attended were all advanced, so I was confident in my academic abilities. However, I soon realized that doing well in an advanced biology course did not necessarily guarantee success in an advanced chemistry course. I originally thought I would be used to the concepts and assignments by the second marking period, but I was sorely mistaken. The concepts stayed foreign to me much longer than they should have and I received grades I had never received before in my life. Even my teacher, who was a retired chemist for the government, could not help me. I had lost all hope for chemistry. After a while, I lowered my expectations, becoming ecstatic whenever I managed get at least a B on something. With those lowered expectations came laziness and negativity. My strong desire for success was weakening. I no longer believed in myself. Then, all of the sudden, something completely unexpected and out of the ordinary happened. I was introduced to the K-pop (South Korean pop music) world. To some it may only seem like a music genre, but to me (and many others) it was everything. I was absolutely fascinated by the dancing, the singing, the shows, the food, the idols. Everything about it was so amazing to me. But most importantly, it taught me to think positively. I thought I had lost my potential for academic success, but all I really needed was something positive and exciting in my life, something that would never let me down and that I could always go back to. Soon enough, instead of staying up late stressing over my homework, I was able to voluntarily start it right after school because I could sing along to K-pop music while working on it, which made it much more enjoyable. Aside from my mere interest in the South Korean culture, there was something unique that I noticed about the celebrities. They were always ready for an interview, whether scheduled or on-the-spot, and, no matter what the questions were, they were always able to give a clear, thoughtful answer right away. That was almost like an epiphany to me. Suddenly I began to wonder why I felt that school was so hard. My only job was to study the material until I truly knew it, and, at any given time, be able to provide my knowledge on the subject. For some reason, I could not understand that until I watched the celebrities. I had been so used to giving complicated, overly thought-out answers simply because I was in high school, and high school, in my opinion, was supposed to be difficult. All along I had the wrong mindset. From that day forward, I decided to change my view of high school and life in general. It would only be as hard as I chose to make it. Unfortunately, the school year was almost over before I could actually benefit from this new mindset, so I had to apply it during my junior year. Procrastination was no longer an option because it was a form of negativity. “I don’t want to do that, yet, because it’s going to be boring. I don’t want to do that because it’s going to be boring and I have more enjoyable things to do.” I replaced those thoughts with rather uncommon, positive thoughts such as, “Once I apply myself to this, I can enjoy it,” or “If I do work on this with the best of my abilities, I’ll be able to discover new potential within myself.” And, as a result, there was a dramatic improvement in my grades. Over and over I impressed my teachers and went from being placed in CP (college prep) courses to being recommended for all AP courses. I was relieved to find that my rather negative sophomore mentality did not affect the rest of my high school career and that I could save my grades before it was too late. I will continue to use this mentality throughout life. Sometimes I wonder how things would have turned out if I had not found any inspiration to point me in the right direction. I might have failed the year, or I might have struggled on hopelessly, forever being a victim to my own false limits. But I did not fail, and I was no longer hopeless. Korean pop music may have been the inspiration for this change, but positive thinking is the ultimate reason why I was able to believe in myself and achieve success I would have never dreamed of back when I was a sufferer of a negative mindset. The power of being positiveElizabeth Chicoine
Bay Path University Have you ever woken up on the wrong side of the bed, dreading the day ahead of you because of a big exam that you are fearful of failing? This is what some people call test anxiety. The fear of a test and, the fear of doing badly on a test most of the time causes people to not do well on it, for the fact that when the time comes to take this test, you forget everything you have strived to study for because you blank from anxiety. Being positive always has a big impact on how society acts and how society runs. When you think positively, you are motivated to try your hardest, no matter what the outcome is. If you think positive, you will be positive and feel like overwhelming warm happy feeling that you get when you succeed. To be successful, you need to be positive. Those who try succeed, and that’s all to it. As a child, and still today as a pre-law student, I always get anxious on the day of a big exam. Through experiences of always being so scared that I will fail, I never seemed to do well on exams where I doubted myself. In my freshman year of college, the week before a big history exam, I did not believe I was going to do well, I had a negative thought which was effecting my every day activities. I seemed stressed and irritable towards friends and family, and the fear of failing made me miserable and I could not function. The night before my exam I was speaking to my mom on the phone, and she reminded me of my favorite quote that I had once always lived by. Winston Churchill once said that “Success is not final, failure is not fatal, and it is the courage to continue that counts”. After she had mentioned that I realized that I was being so hard on myself and so anxious, and so negative that is was causing me to forget the material that I knew by heart. With all that on my mind, I went to bed so I would get a good night sleep. When the morning came, and it was time to go to class, I was so nervous but I told myself, that no matter what grade I get, it is about how hard I try and that I need to be positive and believe in myself. I aced that exam with flying colors. Ever since then I have never beaten myself up with negativity that I won’t do good. Since then I have always thought positively even if I didn’t know the answer to a question, I would still try and guess and give it my all, because believing in yourself and being positive is the greatest reward possible. I have also used positive thinking, when it came to getting my cosmetology license. I was so nervous, that I thought I would be sick, but I knew inside myself, that there was no reason to be nervous because I had known the material like the back of my hand. And the worse people think, the worse they do. But the more positive people think, the better. It sounds so cheesy but it is so true. With my experiences of positive thinking, and knowing that I have the power to change how I think and feel, that this is the best thing to share with others. I have always told my friends and family, and even strangers that I have met in classes whom are freaking out over and exam, who are telling themselves that they are going to fail. I always turn around and say “ don’t say that, if you think negatively of yourself and of your abilities, then yes, you will fail, but if you think positive and believe in yourself, then I know you will do great because I know you know the material, you just have to see that for yourself.” I say this to my best friend all the time, and she always get nervous and anxious until I let her know to believe in herself, and she has always done fantastic on a test after, she thinks better of herself. So I believe that positive thinking, is the key to success. I truly believe through personal experiences that if you think positive that you are going to pass this test, or get the job, or anything, that if you think positive you will accomplish anything, but you have to try. Success is in the eye of the beholder, and in the positive thoughts of those who can push away, and block out the negativity. Positive thinking is the key to bettering yourself, and passing and succeed through the difficult moments that life, and school throw at us. Positivity has a good effect on society, and with accepting it, people and society will do great. I have lived by being negative before and I did not do well, but I also how lived by being positive, and my success is only growing up, not down. My advice to others whom may read this or who I run into, will always be to try hard, but think positive and believe in yourself, and success will be yours. Showing gratitudeStephanie Martis
Dear Grandma, It has been a wild time without you, but I hope you enjoy your new view at Rosehills, because it is going to be yours forever. I have been thinking of you more. I find myself asking why and how, because some days it is unbelievable how much time has gone and how you really are not coming back. You would be asking me everyday what I need for my dorm and probably be laughing at Mom for being so emotional that I am leaving, because you know I would never wander far. You probably would have loved the story I am writing and would have tried to get me out to a Dodger game so I would not burn my eyes from the computer screen. You probably would have bought all the UCLA gear by now. I guess it just comes down to I miss you. I miss the “could have beens,” but I am so grateful for the “had beens” – the memories. Being grateful, I think, has been the most important value in my life, especially when you left. Without gratefulness, I would be upset, I would be depressed, and I would be miserable after losing you. Gratefulness blessed my life when you had to be taken away from me. That does not mean I do not miss you or that I think of you less, but that I know I was given more than I deserved while you were here. I have to be greater than what I suffered when you were gone. Gratefulness, resulting in hope, helped me understand that I am human, and everyone is, and everyone deserves a blessed life filled with this hope that only comes from the thanks internally sanctified. Having even a couple of years with you gave me that blessed life – one that I cherish dearly. Just because those moments with you ceased, does not mean I never had them. I had them and I still have them close to my heart and that overweighs my greediness for more. Would I want more time with you? Of course, but because of this attitude of gratitude, I do not need more than what you would have given me. Seventeen years with you was enough for me to know you added something special in my life no one else was able to. One second with you would have made just the same impact. Because of you, I want to show others gratitude. I want others to know every time they open up their eyes in the morning that they are grateful. That is why I want to be a hospice physician: to be around those who feel the end coming near, like you did, and keep their spirits up. Keep them living to the fullest feeling blessed, grateful, and fulfilled. I remember you struggled, but I also remember you leaving with peace and hope for those you were leaving behind – for me. I remember you were excited like a child on Christmas morning if you were able to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air in any weather – rain or shine. I remember you beamed when family walked through the door to see you. I remember you anticipated seeing Grandpa again with smiles and tears of joy. You are my model of gratitude. I think so many people, once they reach that point in their lives, leave grateful, because they see the importance of life and note every given moment handed to them with bliss no matter how mundane it may be to people who are not so grateful. You were so grateful if you were able to speak after your tracheotomy. I saw how being grateful, even for the simple things in life, made you excited to live, even when you knew your time was to expire. Being grateful made you happy you were just able to live. And being grateful makes me happy I was just able to know you and call you my grandma. I am so grateful it was you who I brought to my elementary school for grandparent’s day. I am so grateful it was you who went to all my academic achievement events. You were the first person I thought of when I woke up the morning of my high school graduation. I cried. I wished you were there. But then I smiled, because I remembered your smile. I am grateful I was able to see you smile while you were here. I am grateful because you were. Because you showed me an attitude of gratitude. Because you showed me life is only worth living if you are grateful for life itself. And for that, I am grateful. I am thankful. I am hopeful. I am living a life worth living. Love, Your Granddaughter, Stephanie. The Power of positive thinkingDollya Kidd
The mind can be either a mass lethal weapon of destruction or your ticket to a prosperous, happy life. It's your choice. It has the authority to either make you or break you. Having a negative perspective won't get you far in life. In order to be happy, have peace and achieve your goals, you have to have a positive perspective and a positive outlook on life. A few examples of a positive perspective includes knowing your self-worth, not doubting yourself and knowing that the sky's the limit, and not holding grudges against people who do you wrong. When you know your self-worth, nobody's opinion matters. You know who you are and what you're capable of accomplishing. People can't take advantage of you as well. Realizing your self-worth will make your life so much better. Knowing that the sky's the limit is also important to know and realize when you're striving for a positive mindset. Your way of thinking is the most important part of achieving a goal. If you keep thinking negatively, it will be 100 times harder to achieve your goal. In your life, people will do you wrong, I guarantee it. No matter how nice you are, someone is bound to do something that will hurt you. The natural thing to do when somebody does something to hurt you is hold a grudge. Although it's normal, it isn't healthy at all. Holding a grudge and having hate only really hurts you in the long run. Letting it go, moving forward, and staying positive is the only thing that will give you peace. It's all about forgiving. I had to learn the importance of forgiveness the hard way. Born and raised in Queens, New York, I lived with just my mother. My father wasn't around in my life much. As far as I knew, I didn't really have a father. I saw him a few times in my life and when I was told that he was my father, I was confused. This didn't really bother me much until I reached my teenage years. Apart from going to school and living with my mother, I've always attended church. It's safe to say that I've been in church all my life. I love going to church. Every time I go to church, I feel spiritually rejuvenated. Not only that, I am surrounded by loving caring people who I basically knew my whole life. Growing up in church, I used to see my peers in the pews sitting with their mothers and fathers as a family. I was never bothered by this. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I had realized I was one of the only few my age sitting alone in the pew with just my mother. On top of that, nosy people used to ask me about my father. Every time I was asked about my father, I would ignore the question or just change the topic. This bothered me so much that I developed a certain hate towards him. I hated him for not being in my life and I hated him for not doing his job as a father. I also hated not having a father on Father's Day. It wasn't until a tragedy had happened that everything changed. April 21, 2013 was the day my father passed away. At the age of 58 years old, my father had passed away from the long and brutal fight he had with Lou Gehrig’s disease. I was told that since this disease which impaired his ability to walk and talk properly, it was hard for him to visit me. I still questioned why he couldn't at least visit me for the holiday or try to make a way to be in my life more. Two weeks after his funeral, I was in a church service. The preacher was preaching about forgiveness. He was saying that in order to move on to have peace in your life, you have to forgive. After he said that, I realized that forgiving my father was the only way that I could move on and have peace. That day I decided to let go of the hate. I learned the importance of forgiving anybody who has ever hurt me. This led me to activate a whole new mindset and it changed my thinking. When you hold a grudge against somebody, it's only hurting you. You give the person who did you wrong the authority to dominate your mindset. You should never allow anyone to control your mindset and put you and put hate in your heart. You should also never let anybody who did you wrong make you feel bad about yourself. Every individual on this Earth is destined for greatness. In fact as crazy as this sounds, I believe that everyone is royalty. If everyone realized this, we as a human race would settle a lot of issues and accomplish so much more. It all starts with a positive attitude. Keeping this mindset will bring anyone very far in life and enable them to extraordinary things. Laws of AttractionAshley Mason
The law of attraction; it’s a powerful thing. How do I know? Because I am living proof of it. My whole life from elementary school to high school I was bullied. I was told I couldn’t sit at a table because I wasn’t a certain race. I didn’t like meat for a period of time so some girls snuck meat slabs into my lunch box when I went up to get a little carton of milk. There were terrible things written about me on a bathroom mirror along with vicious rumors that ran everyone away from me. The worst part about it was these girls used to be my friends. Once I hit high school, people tried to pick me up and throw me in a dumpster, malicious poems were written about me and circulated through school and I was threatened on several occasions. In gym class, some girls I barely knew decided they wanted to play dodge ball and threw the ball right at my face and knocked me out. They laughed as a classmate took me down to the nurses off. I was in a bad place with bad thoughts. I hated my life and I didn’t see the point of living. I had a number of big dreams and tried to not let people get me down, but they always found a way. They told me I was stupid and just a pretty face. I wouldn’t amount to anything and I would have to marry rich because I wouldn’t make my own living. They would laugh if I came to them with a dream and tell me why it wasn’t possible. I started to believe all the things being said about me as it was said by many people, so why wouldn’t it be true if everyone saw that in me. The end of my junior year, I began working at a library. It was a blessing in disguise and my saving grace. I started reading books all the time. I read nonfiction and many self-help books on spiritual healing. All I knew was I was in a bad place and wanted to get out desperately. Growing up as the oldest of four children, I was not always given the attention I wanted and if I did, it was quickly distracted. I learned at a young age I can only count on myself and that I have control over my life, not my circumstances. I would read several books a week and then I decided to start reading positive quotes for one hour a day. I saw improvements immediately. I thought to myself, “Wow, I am doing a lot of things to help myself and my outlook has changed to a way I never thought I would feel or see again. I can do anything.” That is when my whole life changed. After my epiphany, I started to realize life is about what you want from it. The law of attraction is whether a person focuses on positivity or negativity, and the outcome is whatever their energy is focused on. Most of my life was based around negativity. Once I started looking for good and trying to bring in positive energy, the dark clouds went away. I felt a weight lifted and I felt freed. This brought great success and happiness to my life. Success to me is loving yourself and doing what makes you happy. It’s helping others along the way and there is no monetary value. Without positivity, there is no success. There is no success without failure. No one attempts something and achieves greatness the first time. In fact, if I did something and it came out great the first time, I would be a little disappointed. That seems a little weird, right? What I have learned from living with positivity is when something doesn’t go how you want it, it means something better is ahead. For example, I applied for several jobs because I didn’t feel I was reaching my full potential at the library. I patiently waited and 60 applications later, I finally got a call back from the community college I attended. I worked there for about a year, and still felt I wasn’t reaching my full potential so for six months, I diligently applied to many jobs once again. I would get a few call backs here and there but nothing solid. I could have been upset or angry, but I knew that if I sent out positivity to the universe, they would return the favor. Soon enough, I got a call from the state about an interview. I went in and realized this is not what I had intended it to be, as it was in IT and I was looking for more clerical type work. Rather than being disappointed, I let them know my situation and told them I was willing to give them my all and I would be happy no matter what I did. One of the managers interviewing said they didn’t think this job was the right fit for me, but she knew of one that was and had a special arrangement set up for me as they had already done the interviews for this position but hadn’t decided on a candidate yet. I ended up getting the job and I have been here for two years already! Thinking positive in a negative situation can yield great outcomes. If I hadn’t thought positively through all that, I wouldn’t be where I am now. It’s made me more successful and improved my future. With the different jobs I’ve had, I’ve been able to pay for all my schooling so far. At times, I had three jobs while going to school to make sure I would have enough for my bills and for my tuition. In a way, we create the results of situations based on how we react. I live with the motto of thinking positively brings in positivity. I also believe that everything happens for a reason. When I didn’t get the jobs I wanted, I knew there was something better. I knew I had to stay positive and patiently wait for the right position to come along. Currently, I am in the same position as I am a little less than a year from graduating and I want to find my career job. I’ve applied to several places, but I haven’t received a call back yet. I know that if I keep thinking positively, positivity will come back and I will find the perfect job. I am also applying for many scholarships. I haven’t heard back from anyone yet, but I know that’s because something great is going to happen and if I start thinking negatively and assuming I won’t get anything, then that will be the outcome. My positive thinking has also helped others around me and they have begun applying for scholarships and bringing positive energy into their lives and they have seen improvements as well. I feel this wouldn’t be possible without the positive energy vibes given off that truly show people that all it takes is the law of attraction. Positivity brings upon more positivity and there is no way I would ever go back to negative thinking. Focusing on things you can controlIvan Ost
University of Chicago Prompt: How has the Internet helped your education? The little stainless steel iPod Touch was six months of savings and the most exciting thing since Christmas. It had me tracking, obsessively, its location on the long odyssey from the Foxconn production facilities in China to my home here in Sebastopol and sprinting home from the bus on the Big Day to unravel that intricate, crafted packaging. I was immediately wrapped around that object, emotionally invested in its curves, its touch(!) screen, the earthy click of its finger-molded home button, and most importantly, the cosmos of content that it contained, the more-or-less-entirety of the miracle and library that is the Internet. I could now scroll through that vast repository, digging its depths one 3.5” screen-full at a time. My digital beginnings were simple. I quickly tired of ripoff Fruit Ninja and Doodle Jump and began to dabble in the online world. An email address was the first step. Here’s how it happened. I: 1. set up my email. 2. found my inbox empty. 3. signed up for every digital newsletter I could find. I Googled what I knew and scoured the webpages for their newsletters. I found the Minecraft newsletter, the changelog for an online Battlestar Galactica game, details about Apple’s rumored next iPhones, and, of course, inside each email, I found links with more details that I was hungry to read in my glut of bored summer free time -- pages of the Battlestar Wiki, appleinsider.com, and more, and more. My reliable summer schedule became an arduous two hours of parentally enforced outdoor play, two hours of book-reading, and then an afternoon of exploratory Internet spelunking. I learned to follow threads. I loved to read, but print books were finite and free of hyperlinks, so my thread of curiosity was limited to the width of the author’s story. What they didn’t write, I didn’t learn. When I was curious about the ancient city of Prague, where the protagonists dueled lumbering, river-mud-golems, I had to ask a parent, find a reference book, or give up. The Internet, though, was different. As soon as I discovered that those little blue links could answer any question I had about my subject, about anything, how oolong tea is processed or how fighters catapult from the backs of aircraft carriers, I began to teach myself how to learn. I could start with one topic and follow my lines of questioning until the supposed magic of Vltava river mud and the history of Prague’s golems traced paths like ivy around my first question. Before I knew it, after a few days of reading on a topic, I was borderline well-informed. Following those branching pathways, one place to another to another, I learned why the Internet is called the web. Through the Internet, I learned how to research and wander, the logistics of the action itself but also a love for the process, the satisfying accumulation of finding out more. School has taught me to value education. The Internet showed me how to love the process. The Law of AttractionJulia Wan
Personal development is very important; using the law of attraction has had a positive impact in my life to do the things I want to do. A couple of summers ago I read a book, and I had also read numerous things online about the thought that you attract the things you want into your life. This encouraged me to use the principle in my own life. I thought of things that I wanted to happen, for example, I was going back to school and playing volleyball there, I wanted to be an outside hitter and I wanted to play middle back defense. Through the summer I would play volleyball a couple times a week, and then in my mind I would picture myself doing those things, hitting outside, and playing middle back. When I got to school my coach put me in the position that I was hoping for, but he didn’t put me in middle back. So for a couple of games I played left back, but I kept the picture in my head, the scene, the motions of playing middle back. My coach switched me; he could see that my body moves better with the game if I’m in the middle back. During that semester, I continued to use the law of attraction in my life; I would try to attract positive thoughts of me doing well in my classes, or winning a game, getting a good grade on an exam, or for a happy relationship with my boyfriend. I kept those positive thoughts in my head, which attracting positivity will lead to positive things happening in your life. Just as if you think something bad will happen, usually something bad does happen. I wanted to be happy; I attract happy feelings by thinking about having happy feelings. During my semester I would meditate in my room, trying to attract good things in my life. The outcome was excellent, my volleyball team and I won our conference, and we went to the first round of NCAAs, but we lost. We had a ton of fun, and I really was happy with how far we got, I wish we got further. I thought about the next time I would see my boyfriend, since we were long distance, and when we went to the NCAA tournament he drove 4 hours to watch me play. When we got off the bus that night, that was the end of our season, and it was time for me to focus on my grades. I was taking an advanced course on cognitive neuropsychology and I was so scared that I wouldn’t pass. I studied every night and took excellent notes, I would just think about how awesome it would feel to pass that class. At the time I was also taking a 3D design class, I was somewhat having a hard time since one of the days I missed for a volleyball game and fell behind. The class time is mainly the students designing 3D art projects. I had to attract the positive thoughts that I would get through those classes, that I would make deans list or get close to it. When my boyfriend had his thanksgiving break he got to stay at my school with me for a couple days before I went on mine, everyday I was hoping I would get to see him. The law of attraction has been a huge influence on my life and will continue to be for years to come. Everyday I attract positive thoughts so that I don’t feel depressed anymore, so I don’t have an anxiety attack, or so that I can focus on my schoolwork. I have always had problems with these issues, I never knew what to do, and I certainly had no idea what I wanted in life. By using this principle in my life it has helped me to be a better person, and become the person that I want to be. I have seen my family struggle with the same issues as I do, and I didn’t have a very good role model for what to do. I am the youngest of four kids, and I am the first to go to college; neither of my parents went to college either. My parents always wanted us to go to school; it’s just that we all had a difficult time in school. It wasn’t until my freshman year in high school that I decided to focus of volleyball and my academics more. I thought about how happy my parents would be if I could do the things my siblings didn’t get to do, or that they didn’t get to do. That is the thought that I always attract into my life, how happy my parents would be of me if I could do something amazing with my life. That is what I want to attract. The power of positive thinkingStacia Richard
Thoughts. Do they really ever stop? Even when we are sleeping the brain in a subconscious state still does not pause them. The power of thinking is not known to many. Some do not understand, we have the ability to manifest everything we want into our lives. Dwelling on negatives will only bring relative ideas, literally creating a dark cloud around our cranium. When I finally decided to take action and contradict the negativity positivity took affect, allowing me to relinquish the cloud. When I project positivity that's what I get. I was standing inline at a local bookstore. I’d already gone in and browsed the isles and headed to the register. There I was greeted by an older lady in front of me, she was dealing with a returning a book but the cashier noticed a deformation in the book. If I choose to think about how long she was going to take, the longer it would have taken her. Instead I decided to think of how much I would enjoy reading my book later that evening. My positive vibrations radiated towards the situation in front of me, and quickened the process. Time is ultimately an illusion the more I thought about it the slower it went. I have realized my thoughts do not only effect me, those around me are also effected. A thought goes out in the form of a vibration, these vibrations can and do touch those around us. Positivity isn’t only for when I need to get out of a situation, it is my way of life. The power of positivity is something that should always be spread throughout life. Nothing I truly want is achieved after the first try. The first time I chose to workout the ten pounds I planned on losing was still there. I only began to see changes after I committed myself to the idea of losing weight. The same goes for positive thinking, just because I radiated something positive in that moment does not mean it will appear right then. It is with my commitment that I started to see my desired changes. When negative things happen I choses to not ponder on how much it bothers me, instead I choose to think about how soon it will begone and what I will do when that time comes. Spreading positivity where ever I go, I do not know what the fellow next to me is going through. Those of us who choose positive thoughts have better lives.Through out everyday we face many situations, some we would have never expected. When we choose to take on said situations head on with a positive attitude our chances of getting the results we want are higher. Many choose to think of all the worlds negatives, never realizing thats why their lives are so miserable. The power of positive thinking allows people who incorporate it into their lives to see the bright sides to their situations. By simply choosing to acknowledge the lesson learned from my problems I am accepting it. Positivity allows me to learn from my past and accept my mistakes as a form of blossoming into who I am meant to be. When I finally began to accept my selfs and my mistakes is when I started seeing who I truly was. Being a skeptic and doubting yourself at every turn will only lead to more uncertainty. In life positive thinking allows me to make choices and stand by them. When I choose to make a decision instead of stating how I’m not sure or just don't care, sets the ball of life in motion. Every decision I don’t make happened in another dimension. I make my choices to go on with my life and not have to dwell on, ‘what if?’. Choosing to be positive isn't always easy. What I keep in mind is that nothing worth doing is ever easy. Positive thinking brings light into my life. Granting light into my life makes way for me to look at the bright sides. Understanding that this negative is only for the moment, and the sun will come out tomorrow. I accept that bad things happen to everyone, and I have the power to make it through to the sunshine of tomorrow. The power of positive thinking is abundant. I am aware my power to control everything manifested into my life, because I created it. Keeping positive thought help maintain my happiness and satisfaction with life. When I choose to dwell on the negatives of life that is what I attract. Understanding that positive thinking is a lifestyle opened all the doors I’d been waiting on. The positivity I put out soon returned and entered my life. I do not continuously think of what I can’t do. Once I start believing in not only the impossible but also my self, I was made aware of what all I am capable of. GratitudeJennifer Romero
California Baptist University When I was in high school I was part of the AVID program. The high school I attended was considered an AVID demo school, which meant that our school could be used to train other schools that were developing the program. My sophomore year of high school we were told that the AVID board had chosen our school to be used for the new AVID video. Also we were told that they were picking students from our class to be a part of that video and it seemed interesting, but in reality I did not want to be chosen because the idea made me nervous. The video would be used to teach other teachers and students how to go about doing tutorials. Tutorials were done twice a week and during tutorials students were to come to class with a question that they had worked out but were confused on; and they were split in groups based on their questions so they can help each other. The tutorial process after being split into groups is having the person that needs the most help to go up on the board and write their question, the job for the rest of the group is to ask questions which will help the student answer their question. In order for the board members to pick a student from our class they observed us for a couple of weeks and they were to choose the three they felt represented tutorials to their liking. Those three would then be recorded and then they would pick the one that would be used to teach the process of tutorials nationwide. The day finally came when they announced the three that were the possible contenders for the video. I was hoping not to hear my name but to my surprise the second name they called was mine. All I could think at that moment is that I should be grateful because I was given an opportunity that only three from the whole class were given. I was still a little nervous because I knew this meant they were to record us next week with our groups and that they would then make their final decision. In all honesty as the day to record got closer the more nervous I got; I was scared I was going to mess up or that they might think I was a waste of time. The day before our recording day I was preparing my tutorial sheet and, although I was scared, I could not help but think that I was lucky for them to have considered my work. A lot of people in my class did a very good job as well, so I was thankful for the opportunity. It was finally the day when we were going to record our videos and I was told me and my group were going to be the second group to be recorded. Meanwhile we were to wait for the first group to finish and during that time I just felt terrified. I got more nervous when I was told I had to wait longer because they were going to record the first group again since they could not hear them well in the first recording. Finally the time for my group to be recorded had come. We walked into the room and there was a camera, a boom mike, people from the AVID board, my teacher, and another tutorial group. It was time to take our seats and start recording and I was going to be the presenter (the student that goes up to the board to work out their question). The nerves went away quicker than I thought and the process felt to go by pretty quickly. I felt even better when some of the board members took a picture of my work on the white board. After finishing the recording I felt happy and a bigger feeling of gratitude for this experience that was given to me. The board members told us they were going to announce whose video was picked in about a week. I was actually excited to find out if mine was picked. When my teacher was informed who was picked she was ready to make the announcement. It was what she opened class with that day, she had us do a drum roll and then she announced my name. I could not be more grateful that they picked me. She told me that we were going to have teachers from around the district come to the school to watch the video and learn about the tutorial process. My parents were so proud and excited that I could be a part of the AVID video. I still am very grateful that I was chosen to be a part of that experience. Having an attitude of gratitudeMaryam Sekhery
I felt some poking at the back of my head. I turned around to see who it was and saw my fellow classmates watching the movie on the screen so intently. I turned back around and heard them snickering. “She’s bald.” I went white as a sheet. How did they know? My mom tied my hair in a way that no one could tell… “She was right. I see it too” Who was right? Who knew? RING! The bell signaled that lunch time was over. We waited for our teacher to come take us back to class. Rhea tapped me on the shoulder. Excited that someone was being friendly, I quickly faced her. “Hi.” I smiled. “Hey.” She smirked. “I wanted to ask, why do you wear your hair like that?” I panicked. “What do you mean? I just wanted to.“ I noticed the carefully placed pins in her own hair. “Why do you wear your hair like that?” “My mom did my hair. I can’t touch it. She’ll get mad.” “Oh.” “Take off your pins.” “I don’t want to…” “Why? Are you hiding something?” “No…I just don’t want to--” Ms. Perry came to my rescue. “Girls, let’s go. Everyone has already started their way back to class.” We began walking and I kept my head down trying to hide my tears. I hated this part of my life. I was nine years old. You would think people would be kinder to me, but no they were so cruel. Imagine a chubby cute little girl, yes I was cute, with bangs, short hair, and glasses, and people picking on her. Maybe that seems normal to you, but I despised that time. And you know what shocked me the most? That girl, Rhea, was bald too. That’s why she couldn’t move her pins. Yet, everyone knew about my hair loss and not hers. And you know why? Rhea told everyone. That’s right. Nine year olds can be so selfish. I had alopecia and so did she. We could have become friends over that, but no she didn’t want that. By the end of the year, I was sitting alone at lunch and she sat with the “cool” people at the back of the table. I went to Switzerland, my family reunion summer vacation, earlier that year. When I got there, my mother didn’t tell anyone but my aunt found out when she walked into the room one day and my mom was applying corticosteroids to the various bald spots in my head. My aunt started crying but it didn’t faze me, I was used to it. The doctor had said that there wasn’t any cure and I could get injections in my head with the possibility of hair growth. Fortunately, my hair started growing back that June. It took a while for my hair growth to catch up to the length of the majority of my hair, but it came back and I can only thank God for that. I will be honest, I never thought positively back then. I never thought that my hair would grow back, but it did. I should have focused on positive thinking because if I did, my hair might have grown back faster. However, I have always had an attitude of gratitude. I am thankful to God for every little thing He has blessed me with. Even when the girls in my class picked on me, I was thankful to God that they couldn’t actually harm me, both physically and emotionally, without my consent. I let them hurt me emotionally. What could I have done, especially as a nine year old? I was thankful for my early trip to Switzerland that year. That time helped me get through alopecia. The doctors used to say that I got alopecia from stress. The elders told my mom that I lost my hair because “wicked ladies got a bad eye” on me. All I did was thank God that I never lost all of my hair. Yes, I lost hair in random spots, making it difficult to cover up, but I didn’t really know that I had so many. I had only been told of two spots. I was thankful that all of my other body parts, my heart, my arms, my legs, my eyes, functioned properly. My parents are the reason that my hair came back, and my attitude of gratitude will never be enough to repay them for all they have done. My father used to pray all of the time for my hair to come back. He would say, “Oh Lord, take away my hair, but please make my daughter’s hair grow back.” I showed my gratitude to my mom all of the time, for taking care of my hairstyles, applying the corticosteroids and doing my shampoo. My story didn’t end happily, and honestly, most stories don’t. Although my hair came back, I had hair loss again in seventh grade. That year, I went to Switzerland as well, ironically, and my hair came back. Maybe there’s just something different in the air in Switzerland? The thing that I am most thankful about at times is that God helped me get through these times and so did my family. I am thankful I didn’t have to get injections in my head with a chance of hair growth. I am thankful that my hair came back. I am grateful that I had my parents to keep me hopeful. I am thankful for everything. Having an attitude of gratitude not only gets you through tough times in life, but gets us through everything in life blissfully. When we show gratitude, we are thankful to God and everyone else. There’s a wonderful chain reaction; the people we show gratitude to, get happy, we get happy, and then, everyone is happy. Just keep swimmingJasmine Han
University of Rochester, NY Just keep smiling, just keep swimming. If you are like me, life’s ups and downs may have brought you on a roller coaster ride, leaving you feeling like you are out of control. Of course, we’ve all grown up hearing peers, parents and authorities tossing around the thought that Life’s not fair, you can’t do anything about it, that’s how life is. Despite this accepted idea, I know that there is a way for us to be in the driver’s seat on this path. We are in charge of our own thinking and emotions and by utilizing this piece of knowledge, we can choose how we react to and our outlooks on situations. Gymnastics was never a skill of mine to start off with. Running my hands through glossy pages of the yearbook, I settled on the graceful pictures of gymnasts tumbling and flying through the air. This was the first time I considered participating in a sport in middle school. Gymnastics was a sport that I wanted to learn from and improve my overall body endurance and flexibility. However, young and without prior experience or lessons, I knew that making the team much less joining the varsity team was beyond my dreams. Two months before the actual try-outs, I fiddled with the idea, often imagining the outcomes. More often, I rode my bike to the nearby park and began attempting some of the skills I had seen gymnasts perform on the uneven bars when I visited the local gymnasium and watched 5-year olds perform routines. All I had to do was focus on one accomplishment, one little skill that I had learned by myself. It was all it took to convince me that I could try out and show the coaches my perseverance. Day 1 of tryouts crept up on me. The event started with basic tumbling, something that I had been playing over and over inside of my brain for the past few weeks. “You got this, you know what this is,” I whispered to myself before I could panic and think about all the wrong things I could be doing. By focusing on the things that I could control, I was able to calm myself and provide myself with confidence. Finally, it was time for my group to try the uneven bars. As one by one performed the basic skills, front hip circle, back hip circle, squat on, I murmured to myself as I watched some girls laughing at the girl on the bars in front of me, “It doesn’t matter what others think, just focus on the skills that you have been practicing. You’ve done these a lot so you are prepared. Show them what you’ve got!” It was already my turn to perform the skills. I walked up to the bars with what some would call “a false sense of confidence” but at least I was confident inside. Flawlessly, I executed the flips as I had told myself these past few weeks. With another goal accomplished, I was accepted onto my first gymnastics team! I knew deep down inside that ultimately, my goal was to make it onto the varsity team so I continued to practice my bar skills during practice, replaying and replaying the skills perfectly in my head. I could almost feel the exhilaration and excitement I would have exhibited if my coaches informed me that I had made the varsity team. My friends would no doubt support me as well. One day towards the end of practice, one of my coaches had reported me to the head coach about my performance. She wanted him to come watch me perform the squat on and jump to the high bar. For some reason, I understood that this was my chance to demonstrate my willpower as well as my determination. Jumping onto the high bar will be a new skill that I have never physically tried, but it didn’t matter. I had already jumped to the high bar in my mind. Of course, I agreed and stepped off the bars to begin my full routine. First, I demonstrated my pull-over onto the low bar, my front hip and back hip circle and then last of all, my squat on. Throughout this entire process, I kept such a positive outlook on myself and those around me that I managed to jump onto the high bar for the first time. The head coach seemed impressed by my skill but mostly, by my open-mindedness and devotion to practice. That day forward I was a member of the Lakota Middle School Varsity Gymnastics Team. Without any prior experience, I consider this accomplishment of my most rewarding experiences. As I have grown up, I find it more difficult to maintain such as positive and grateful attitude in my daily life events due to more peer pressure, elements of self-consciousness and the increasing competition and the daunting reality of the world as I prepare for college. Fortunately, this memory will stay with me even when though I am far from it. When I open my seventh grade yearbook, I am left staring into open space as I recall the motivation, belief and attitude I exhibited to reach and catch this goal. A picture of me standing proudly with my team is all it takes to remind me that things, actions, ideas can be done as long as I believed I could do it. But I really had to believe in myself. No fake cover-ups, doubts, worries or excuses. I had sincerely believed that I could make the Varsity Gymnastics Team and my motivation shined through my actions. I am grateful for this opportunity to see the power of human thinking in our everyday lives and it will be an experience that I won’t forget. I cannot wait to see how far I will go in the next decade as I pursue higher education and medical school with the dream to spread my help to others. And who knew that Dory’s quote from Finding Nemo could be so true? Just keep swimming, just keep swimming and Ahead of timeJeromey Martínez
Growing up there was a plot I’d seen many times in film and television. A character literally goes back in time to right their wrongs and correct unfortunate situations in order to alter their future. In the end, what they learned is that no matter how many times they went back in time to try and change the situation it still resulted in the same outcome. They were stuck in time going back and forth trying to fix something that was out of their control. I would often think of this story in relation to my life because, like many people, I had a lot of regrets I wish I could’ve gone back in time to fix. Like that character, I was so focused on the past that I completely forgot about my future. Most of the time the situations I wanted to fix were things I couldn’t control and there was nothing I could have done differently. The principle I chose to write about is focusing on the things I can control because it is the principle that saved my life and I can assure you there is no one who understand the consequences of avoiding this principle more than I do. The hardest lesson I learned through focusing on what I could control was that I was in the position I was in because I chose to be. In early 2009, I was rejected from almost all the colleges I applied to which left me heart broken. In 2010, I attended an art school but was suspended after a few months due to the severity of my depression. By 2011, I had no job, I barely left my apartment, slept, or ate. After my second hospitalization I knew that I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life clinically depressed. Yet there was no one who frustrated me or made me feel helpless more than myself so I chose to do nothing simply because I was afraid to do anything. I felt like a failure and that my life was mocking me. I knew about lost, I knew about pain and sacrifice, but the concept of control seemed incomprehensible to me. I focused so much on what I couldn’t control that it began to control me. Change felt impossible, change was scary, but among the many lessons I’ve learned is that change is imperative to personal development. To accept change I had to accept that I could not control the actions and reactions of other people only my own. Dealing with rejection has never been easy for me because I often allowed the actions that were done to me affect my personal judgment. After being rejected from those schools, I doubted my intelligence, I blamed the socioeconomic faults of my high school for not preparing me for college, and as my world collapsed my life began to appear as one huge dismissal. People will say no, some may say it harshly than others, but no matter what they say or do it’s important to remain active. However, I was stifled and stagnant floating in an ocean of blame and self criticism. My life was supposed to be in my hands but instead it was in the hands of my past and I had enough. I acted by first finding a therapist I was more compatible with and a year later I began meditating at the Transcendental Meditation Center to help manage my emotions and stress resiliency. That action lead to me first job as an administrative assistant there at the center which gave me the courage to transition to a more social environment when I became employed as a theatre usher. Then by mid 2013 I felt it was time to return to school but instead at a community college rather than an art school. I completed my first semester at West La College and continued at Pasadena City College. Going back to school wasn’t easy for me but once I got over one hurdle the rest were a piece of cake. Once I was able to manage my mental health the time came for me to make one last change. By remaining active and in control I understood that one simple action could reciprocate a positive reaction and through this I learned the final and most important lesson; I was more powerful than I gave myself credit for. I had the power to make an impact and produce change. Throughout my adolescence and early adulthood, I struggled with my weight and at the age of 20 I was diagnosed with gallbladder disease. The damage was done but I decided to gain control over my eating and in return lost approximately fifty pounds. In Spring 2014, during my second year of college, I had my gallbladder removed and today I’ve lost approximately one hundred pounds. Of all the changes I’ve made in my life losing weight was the most difficult and the most rewarding. Losing those pounds was more than weight off my body; it was relief from years of pain and unimaginable challenges. The quality of my life improved dramatically because I focused on what I could control and embraced change. After my surgery I continued my studies at PCC and finished my Sophomore year with straight A’s and a 3.7 GPA. Starting this Fall I’ll be transferring to The New School in New York City where I’ll be studying Theatre, Film, and Photography. I chose these disciplines because art has brought an abundant amount of substance to my life. It’s allowed me to deal with the struggles of my past and rewrite the course of my future. Art is an essential part of my power. It was a gift that was given to me and a gift I hope to give to others. Through this principle of control, I realized my strengths, worked on my weaknesses, and progressed into a better and healthier version of myself. I am not a perfect person but even when I have my doubts I am beyond relentless. There is no other student as passionate as I am. There is no other student as honest and courageous. No matter what I educationally achieve, I know I will continue to progress and grow, and I am very proud of myself. I know I cannot control time but the fact that I will be a full time student in NYC living my childhood dream I can live knowing I’m at least one step ahead of it. Realizing what I could and couldn't controlFaith Reed
SUNY Buffalo State College Growing up in what seemed to be a normal household from the outside was something that confused me well into my late teens. My family situation was anything but normal, however all of my friends assumed I lived a perfect life because of the happiness I constantly gave off. So with everyone I knew telling me how lucky I was, I would sometimes stay up and ponder if I was lucky and was just taking what I had for granted. I was so unsure. My parents divorced when I was nine years old, which is the best decision they ever could have made. By Christmas of 2007 I was moved into a tiny ranch house with my mother, sister and brother. My mom never treated us properly, but she would pretend she did when my father was around. Now that she was all on her own, all walls came down. I felt like there was no escape from the negativity and the constant suicide threats and the comments of wishing she had never gave birth to any of us. I eventually got out of there and moved into my Dad’s house when I was thirteen years old, the best decision I ever could have made. However, the pain from my childhood still lived within me, even when I couldn’t feel it tearing away at my soul. With a lack of emotional support coming from my father, I felt as though I couldn’t express my feelings. As I had always struggled with my body, by the time I was seventeen I had developed an eating disorder; bulimic anorexia. It consumed me, and I knew I would never be able to escape it. As much as I wanted to get better, I was so sure that I would die from all of the trauma I was putting my body through. About six months after everything really erupted and my health was plummeting exponentially each day, people began to figure things out and I was forced into therapy, something I had truly feared. I was in a constant conflict with myself because I wanted to recover so that I could be healthy again and do all of the things I used to love doing, like picking up the two year old I babysat. However, I also feared recovery because of my major phobia of gaining weight. At this point, I was more afraid of weight gain than I was of losing my life. My counselor, and many close family friends kept talking to me about control. “I need to feel in control so that is why I am doing this to myself.” And for a long time I hated hearing this. I was in control of myself and my actions and all these people were wrong and ignorant. I shortly realized that I was the ignorant one. I may have not noticed I needed control, but I did. I felt as though I couldn’t control my feelings about what had happened to me when I was a child, and I couldn’t take any of those events back. I didn’t realize this until I learned that what happened to me wasn’t my fault, and all of it was out of my control. I was just along for the ride. It is no surprise that I developed an eating disorder. I was constantly being told I was ‘fat’ or ‘too big’ or should be ‘eating less’ when I was never even over weight. And already having negative thoughts about myself, it seems now looking back that it was almost impossible to avoid. I withdrew from my first semester at Ithaca College because my disorder was out of control and I wasn’t healthy enough to stay there anymore. I received no credits from that semester when I had left just one week before my final exams. I had done so much work and it all ended up to be for nothing, and I have the bills to remind me of it every day. I knew that I couldn’t let this ‘thing’ keep destroying my life and taking away everything I worked so hard for. I worked with many counselors and began to realize that although it didn’t seem like it, this disorder was actually something I did have control over. Not completely, but I could be the one to choose to go back to therapy and to work hard every day to rid myself of these awful habits. Also, I could be the one to reach out when things weren’t going so well and when I was relapsing. I had to choose to not be embarrassed to ask for help every single time I needed it, because maybe it wasn’t possible to get through it alone, but it was possible to get through it. Something that really helped me was the serenity prayer, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” I decided to let go of what I couldn’t change, and start focusing on the things that I could. Realizing what I could and couldn’t control has everything to do with my recovery. Nothing is perfect, and it is still hard sometimes to not give in to my thoughts and act them out as harmful behaviors. However, I am working through it. I am going back to school in a couple weeks, I have two jobs, and I can pick up my now four year old little guy with no problem. I am getting stronger every day, and I wouldn’t trade that for the world. Positive thinkingKamah Bivins
At an early age, I understood the diversity of the community I lived and went to school in. I knew there were an array of minorities from several different backgrounds and economic statuses. Living in the large city of Atlanta, I was able to experience that life is rough for many people. The city of Atlanta has a perception of a very gloom background where many single mothers are barely able to feed their children, homeless citizens without a safe haven and children who lack proper positive guidance from home fall into a life of delinquency. Even as a child, I was determined to not “fall through the cracks” and ensure that I do not become a statistic but rather make a positive impact on my life by deciding to enter college. Deciding to attend college appeared easier said than done because I didn’t have an inkling of the vast amounts of careers I was able to pursue. As I grew older, I observed that I enjoyed leading large groups of people to complete projects for my school and environment. I was always a person who would rather provide someone else the opportunity to shine than to be the one who takes it. I’ve also always enjoyed contributing to intellectual conversations with others from all diverse backgrounds. It appeared clear to me soon that, I was born to become an entrepreneur. After I’ve figured my career goal, I set my sights on the expectations and opportunities of an entrepreneur. The wealthiest of entrepreneurs are also known to be some of the wealthiest people in this world. Even with their loads of money, many don’t make it a priority to change some of the less fortunate parts of the world and put forth an effort to create a better economic status for them. As an entrepreneur, I plan to give back to not only my community but for everyone in need of assistance around the world. My long term goal is to save the world by ending poverty and hunger. “Poverty is not an accident. Like slavery or apartheid, it is man-made and can be removed by the actions of human beings” (Mandela). In my opinion, wealth isn’t given to a person to use for themselves, but to help others less fortunate with the inability to be economically independent. My entire future after high school will be aimed towards that goal of a better future for all. As I have grown up, I have seen people fall into depression and starve because no one would reach their hand out to help. I can become that help even if I have to do it on my own. Being an entrepreneur is one of the greatest ways to get this message across. Initially, I believed that I was destined to become an entrepreneur to display my leadership abilities however; leadership should be given the opportunity of all, despite the circumstances. The power of positive thinkingMarcus Nelson
The power of positive thinking is beyond belief and I personally don’t think people understand the benefits of doing such. It provides a different perspective to living especially in difficult times. My personal experience, which changed my life, came not too long ago. At the time I felt somewhat lost and depressed. The more I thought negative the more things seemed to get worse. I believe this is the law of attraction, you think and so it shall be. I came across some motivational videos while doing a random search on Youtube and from there things began to change. I felt uplifted and powerful, not physically but mentally. I continued to watch more and more feeling determination to change and my mindset began to become more positive. I started to see the silver lining in everything and when “bad things” would happened I was unscathed. The more positive I thought the more positive things would happen and like Confucius once said “He who thinks he can and He who thinks he can’t are usually both right.” If you go into a job interview with a positive mindset it creates a positive aurora around you, you feel good and you’re more upbeat person to talk to. If you do the same thing but with a negative attitude you’ve basically already accepted failure and there is a negative vibe about you. Which would you want to hire? My father, who happens to be a 51 year old bodybuilder, was struggling to find the motivation to continue with bodybuilding. He let a difficult lifestyle and the negativity of individuals get into his head. The fact that he was up there in age, people told him that he should think about retiring due to the fact that his body can’t take the stress and unfortunately he began to think they were right. I pulled him off to the side and showed him some of the motivational videos. I told him about how they helped change my thought process and how things have begun to get better for me. I spoke to him every day giving him a positive motivation as well as outlook on any issues he was having. He started having a better outlook at life and started becoming a more positive person. He started training harder because he wanted to show everyone that he could do it regardless of what was being said. He won first place in his division, first in masters, and won third overall. He even received a promotion for his hard work and positive attitude, his work said it was because he inspired people to have a positive attitude at work. Here is another example on how powerful positive thinking has benefited an individual. My last example of how the power of thinking has benefited someone is about my little brother. My little brother was a very hard working man, he had his own apartment along with someone he loved. His mindset was not always positive but then again it wasn’t always negative. He worked, trained, and then would go home to relax. Times began to get difficult with time management as well as finances. His thinking process started to become more negative than positive. He thought he would never have time for training and that he would never be able to catch up on his bills. This of course began to put stress on the relationship and eventually led to the breakup. At this point it was difficult for my brother to remain positive let alone want to be positive. He lost motivation at work and every chance he got he would call in or go home. I spoke to him about how things were going and told him that it seems the more negative he thought the more negative that would happen. I showed him some of the motivational videos and told him the only way things would change is if he began to be positive. It wasn’t an easy process but he began to do everything he could to be positive. Some days were easier than others and on the bad days we would talk. He started to see the silver lining in everything, something would go wrong such as his car running out of gas and he would see it as an exercising opportunity. Things began to get better and he started doing better at work, working as much hours as possible. He caught up on bills and began training hard. Eventually him and his girlfriend began talking and began to make things work. Ever since then he has continued to keep a positive mind regardless of the obstacles that come. Thus proves my point on the power of positive thinking. The three examples showed not only the effects of negative thinking but how positive thinking has benefits. Every person that began the positive thinking process turned things around. “The difference between a good day and a bad day is…..perspective.” Optimism is a mindset that takes courageApollonia Morales
I grew up with a lot of negativity in my life, and it used to be a huge cloud that would loom over my head. When I was a child, my dad would always come home irate because he felt unfulfilled at his job. It set the dynamic for the evening, and it felt like we were always walking on egg shells. Weekends were worse, even though he was not at work, he carried a lot of the negativity everywhere he went and posed a lot of hostility towards us even if we were not doing anything wrong. He would get angry at drivers for the most frivolous reasons, and he would even get angry at my sister and I for any little thing. It was miserable living this way for eighteen years, but it taught me a very valuable lesson in my life. Negativity hurts yourself and everyone around you, and you can end up abusing the ones you love without realizing it. Still to this day, my dad does not realize how his negativity has impacted me growing up, but instead of living life by pointing the finger at others when something goes wrong in my life, I take responsibility for my actions and learn from my mistakes. By doing this, I can keep a positive mind and live a much better life with the confidence in knowing I am taking the high road. Having a positive attitude intrigues others, and for a long time, people thought I was being fake, when in all actuality, it was the first time in my life where I truly felt like myself. I was not forced to believe a particular situation, I was not letting anyone else’s negative energy bring me down, and it changed my life. Having self-awareness of who I am and why I react to certain situations has given me the power to take charge of my life by having the courage to face the day no matter how many times it tries to break me. Positivity is brilliance, and it changed my life. I now enrich myself and others around me by helping them during the arduous roads in life, and I always reassure them that things will progress in a positive direction. More like than not, these individuals thank me for the kind words of wisdom by helping them stay encouraged through their distresses. Occasionally, others may need a helping hand to guide them through the turbulence, as it gives them hope that they will eventually withstand the hardship and endure the troubles in their life. Constructive thinking has gotten me through some very difficult moments in my life, especially when my parents got a divorce when I was 20 years old. It is kind of funny how people seem to think you can handle a divorce much more cooperatively when you are older, when it is quite the contrary. When my dad told me he was leaving my mom, my whole perspective of love was shattered, and I did not know how to have faith in men. It was hard to believe that anything good could come from a situation like this, but it gave me a different perspective in love, life and happiness. Just because my parents failed at marriage does not mean that I will fail at love. By learning from their mistakes, the relationship I have with my fiancé is strong and prevailing. I have learned that appreciation, trust and communication is key in a relationship, and I make sure that I give my fiancé the love and support he needs every single day. I know it may sound strange, but if I did not learn from the recourse of my parent’s divorce, I could have made the same mistakes my parents did and fail at relationships exactly the way they did. Looking at a the situation in a more positive way has made me a better partner and will also make me a better wife, and I am sure that if my parents had this attitude during their relationship, they would still be together. I love helping people, and the love I have for others has inspired me to go to medical school after I graduate from Arizona State University with an undergraduate’s degree in Integrative Health. After obtaining my B.S., I will then study to pursue my true passion in acupuncture and holistic medicine. By obtaining my M.A., I will become a doctor of oriental medicine and help patients in a more holistic manner. These procedures, such as acupuncture, will greatly reduce the use of pharmaceuticals and chemicals given to patients by replacing them with a natural, non-toxic alternative that will increase the quality of life in the body and mind. It is a great option for those who deal with pain on a daily basis. I want to help those who are done taking pain medications every day and want a healthier option to cure the pain. Although, medications only mask the pain, meanwhile, acupuncture can cure the pain by healing the pain at the source. Having a more optimistic attitude will give my patients the mental and physical strength they need to heal their ailments. Patients need a doctor who cares for them and who is willing to treat them with proper care without the need to prescribe medication to temporarily subside the ailments instead of curing it. I want to be the doctor people count on, and with a positive outlook on life and my patients, it will later lead me to my success. It truly is an exciting journey for me, and staying above the negativity I have been surrounded with has given me the optimism to go fourth with pursuing a medical career. It is a great start to a new beginning for myself and my family, and I owe it all to the major obstacles I had to face in my life. Without them, I would have never found the strength to dig deep when times get hard, and I would be content with never achieving my goals. By staying level headed, I am going to be the first person in my family to graduate from college with an undergraduate, graduate, and doctorate degree. Most importantly, optimism is a mindset that takes courage, strength, and the willingness to overcome adversity without letting negativity consume the freedom to fly. Impossible was not impossibleJordan Alexander
Bentley University The words ‘no’ and ‘can’t’ are common in a child’s everyday vocabulary. They are heard in the house when the child finally learns how to open the kitchen cabinet, and in the mall, where every store looks desirable. They are words which regulate our behavior, speech, and future actions, yet are said with the intention to teach a child wrong from right. Like all children, I commonly heard these words too. I expected to hear them when I did something wrong, and was obedient to avoid hearing them too often. They were common commands which I followed religiously, and was disappointed to find that my dream represent the Team USA at the Olympics in figure skating was being used in conjunction with similar restricting words. It was in November of 2000 when I was first told my dream was an impossibility for me. I wasn’t listening when the doctor first came into the office. He was softly talking with my mom near the door while I was engrossed in the lasted version of the all-too-familiar Highlights Magazine. I immediately looked up though when they turned at address me. Both their faces solemn with grief, they were looking at me in an unfamiliar way. It was not the comforting demeanor I was used to but instead uncomformatable distress. I could tell the news was not one I would be looking forward to hear as the silence seemed to drag on into eternity. That day, I was diagnosed with Kohler’s disease - a rare bone disorder in the navicular bone. The doctor went on to explain the symptoms of the condition, yet I was too preoccupied with his words: “She will never be able to be an athlete.” Within those few words, he leveled my aspirations to be an Olympian, and placed a giant roadblock in front of me. I had been limited by the word ‘can’t’ before, but never for doing something which I loved. This time, the restrictions placed on me were to prevent serious injury. It was something I could not ignore and a hurdle I had to figure out how to overcome. I was only five at the time but two options originated; I could either accept my condition’s impairments, or work to overcome them. I understood it was not going to be an easy process and I had to prepare myself for the possibility of failure. I had to challenge my limits though, instead of just accepting them. My dream was not something I was willing to give up that easily and it was something that I was willing to take the risk for. I had nothing to lose and I understood that even if the Olympics did not end up becoming a possibility, I had to at least see how far I could really go. Looking back on my decision to challenge my limits, I realize how different my world would be today, had I not done so. Since being diagnosed, I have had a whirlwind of a journey in the figure skating world. I won two back to back national championships at the juvenile level in ’07 and ’08. I few weeks later, I was given the honor of representing the United States internationally as a member of Team USA in Synchronized Skating. At that time I was 12 years old and would become the youngest synchronized skater to ever make Team USA. Since then, I have competed in 9 international competitions, numerous national championships, and the 2015 World Synchronized Skating Championships. I was continuously persistent through all the ups and downs. It was not easy and the journey continues to test my strength, but I can proudly say my dream is still alive. Synchronized Skating has a bid to be included in the 2022 Olympic Games and as the reigning US champion, my dream is becoming closer and closer to reality. Although the doctors said my chances of athletic success were slim, I wanted to prove that success wasn’t impossible. The doctor’s focus was on what he thought I couldn’t do on the large scale. By focusing on the small things I could do, I was able to slowly change the big picture of the so called “impossible.” I set out with the goal to someday walk in the Olympic opening ceremonies, and although I am not there yet, I’ve shown that it’s the desire to be the exception is what makes you extraordinary. I am the only commander of my destiny. There are things that I can’t do, but there are many more that I can do. It is by doing the things that I can do that got me to where I am today. I believed in myself and that the impossible was not impossible. Every day I cherish that I have never let Kohler's disease hold me back, but instead fuel my dream to one day achieve greatness, on my terms, not the diseases. Opportunity to overcome challengesDylan Threadgill
American University It is often said that one of the hardest things a student can do is take time off. “You won’t want to go back,” they say, “you’ll settle into the workforce” they say. While this may be true for some it has not been true for me. After two years I returned to my education, completed my Associate’s degree and set my sights on a Bachelor’s. At 23 years young I will likely be the oldest junior on campus, but that’s fine by me. I’ve always been known to stand out. In August of 2013 I followed my heart to Invisible Children’s Fourth Estate Leadership Summit. I wasn’t studying in the conventional sense of the word but I refused to believe that meant that I couldn’t learn and grow. No one was particularly thrilled with my decision but I moved forward in faith that I was on the right path. I was. For the first time in my life I felt completely at home and amongst strangers! I was surrounded by people that believed in themselves as well as one another and it was electrifying. I was hooked and I would never be the same. That was the year I would declutter my life from the inside out. I sold or donated all of my belongings except for what I could fit into two suit cases. My plan was not to over think it. I lived in various communities for weeks or months at a time taking myself as far North as British Colombia, Canada. I read, I ate, volunteered, meditated and I loved. It was time that I needed to find my voice and the inspiration to dedicate myself to making a difference. My choices have been unorthodox but they have allowed me to become more focused and driven than ever. My goal is to learn as much as I can about the social, political and economic differences in the world today. I hope by doing so I am able to make use of societies’ unifying principles. My future lies within a life of advocacy. My dream is to rally a social movement for self respect that is completely inclusive of all people. When individuals cultivate their own self worth it’s reflected outward. I believe this is the key to a more peaceful planet. I didn't always drive my friends crazy with optimism, however. As a young girl I would woefully recite: The only stable factor in my life is instability. At the time I thought this was my particularly unique situation. However, with practice, I came to understand that most daily factors are in fact out of my control. Wrapping my head around this single truth was the beginning of my liberation. One might think that they are relinquishing their power if they cease to exercise control. Quite the contrary. By recognizing and acknowledging our place in the world we may be humbled and empowered to transcend our efforts. This is precisely what I strive to do by moving forward with my formal education. My biggest reservation over school was paying for it. I was terrified of debt and what it would do to my future. When I decided to stop living in fear, however, I was able to gain a new perspective. I am a determined, perseverate young women with gumption and finesse, I tell myself. I can do anything I set my mind to. So I began the search for my perfect school, funds and wealth aside. I knew then and I know now that as long as my intentions are pure I will be a success. And lone behold the one school I applied to accepted me. That school is American University in Washington, DC, over a thousand miles from home. I chose this school because I sincerely believe that my potential will best be realized as an Eagle where I will be faced with the opportunity to overcome unique challenges and soar. At American University I will not only be exposed to the countries most influential leaders but also accomplished professors and genuine mentors of an incomparable caliber. These are just a few of the reasons that will surely make it all worth it. Yes, moving and living expenses can be costly let alone tuition, but I will not allow finances to apprehend my dreams. I understand and practice the Law of Attraction. That is not to say that I will obtain every single thing I strive towards. It may be decided that someone else is more deserving of this scholarship. So be it. At least I was able to share my message with one more person. Some lessons are worth more than their weight in gold and some things have to fall apart so something better can come together. I don’t have a step by step plan for how I will apply my education. How can I possibly know today what I will learn tomorrow? What I do know is where there is passion there may be success. At the Fourth Estate Summit we had a saying: Your life is bigger than your best dream for it. So, what will I become? I welcome the uncertainty because theres no expiration for self exploration. Life is really about loveBrittany Bates
J Sargent Reynolds Community College “There are many aspects to success; material wealth is only one component. ...But success also includes good health, energy and enthusiasm for life, fulfilling relationships, creative freedom, emotional and psychological stability, a sense of well-being, and peace of mind.” -Deepak Chopra Sitting on the cold rock, drinking the last gulps of water I had in my backpack, I noticed the simplistic beauty of fall leaves strewn across the ground. I sat in this still, enveloped by the heart of nature. My legs trickled blood from the previous wounds of fighting with the prickly bushes. I was exhausted, fearful, and quite certain I had sprained my ankle; I don’t know why I thought it would be a good idea to wear Sketcher Shape Up shoes. I thought to myself “how did this happen?”….. A fateful handful of events had brought me to this path in my life, but it all started once I graduated high school. When I graduated high school, I had no idea who I was or what I wanted from life, let alone, what life REALLY was. So as I waved a jealous goodbye to all my friends as they packed up and turned their focus towards college, I turned mine to the world. My friends were fortunate that their parents were paying for their education and if mine had been able to, I would have followed the same mundane routine as my peers. Instead, I was solely responsible for paying for my education. Knowing that I would be fronting the costly bill that is education, I needed to be certain of what I wanted to do. I was 18 and my ideas of my future included an oscillating mashup of: artist, scientist, author, environmentalist, fashion designer, and President. I simply could not afford switching majors. So instead of sampling various college courses, I sampled various landscapes. I sampled various cultures, peoples, foods, social situations, and perspectives. I had an overabundance of aspirations and was packed with an infinite amount of potential, but I did not have any direction. So to find what was missing within myself, I flung myself outwards into the world. Once a year I would take a trip to some desolate location, detached from city life. I would venture out into nature to reflect, center, and seek guidance within the abundance as did mankind long ago. I had been to Chattanooga, the Great Lakes of Michigan, Asheville, Fayetteville, and Hadensville, to name a few. Yet, the most poignant experience I have ever had, that has forever altered me, was my trip to Shenandoah. I set out towards the end of November on a Friday. I arrived at my rented studio space for the weekend a few hours after my departure. I had collected maps and hiking trails from the local welcome center and spent the evening researching the best sights to see and trails to hike. I found the perfect location called Overall Run Falls, the largest waterfall in Shenandoah. I packed my belongings in preparation of the hike and went to bed early. I set off to go hiking at 8:00am that morning with a backpack full of water, a disposable camera, my Rouger semi-automatic 380, bear mace, some almonds, some pickles, and a cell phone. Where Overall Run started was located at a camp site off Skyline Drive called Matthew’s Arm, but in winter Skyline Drive closes and, so, many of the campgrounds were already closed, including Matthew’s Arm. So I decided I would find a trail that connected to Overall Run. I found Piney Branch Trail, a small winding path that intersected, after roughly an hour of hiking, with Overall Run Falls. To make a long story short, I ended up hiking the wrong direction down Piney Branch, resulting in me wandering around, lost in the woods of Shenandoah (which has over 500 miles of trails). There was a moment when my trail had come to an end at a river. I assumed (not the brightest of ideas when one is alone in the woods) that I would be able to climb up to the top of the mountain, see the waterfall and figure out which way to go. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see anything from the top of the mountain, only more brush, and, on my way down, lost the trail I was previously on completely. After walking opposite direction of the river for roughly an hour, I started to panic. Then, from the depths of my being, the deepest depths of my soul, I called out to God: “I am lost, where do I go?” Then, I kid you not, the moment after I cried out my plea….a whispering cool breeze came and started to gently move all the leaves around my feet to the left. So I went left. As night fell everything starting going dark, I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face, and I honestly believed that I would surely die. If I hadn’t gone left, I would not have found Skyline Drive 18 hours later. Nothing lights a fire under your butt like a near death experience. I discovered that somewhere hidden within my core, is an undying fire, an undying will, to survive and to succeed. I will not stop, I cannot stop. True success is not about what you achieve today; it’s not even about all the accomplishments or acquisitions you hope to gain tomorrow. What I know for sure, real success; rewarding, soul filling success is sustained when we can embrace that greater energy within us, love. What I learned from my experience is that life is fragile, precious and ever fleeting. Life is not about pride, ego, wealth or fame. I learned that I needed to take charge and direct my life instead of just drift through it. I learned that life is really all about the inner most core of who we are as beings, love. I want to dedicate my life to allowing that energy within me to flow freely to everyone and everything. I want to make lasting impacts on people’s lives that will ripple throughout time. This is why I decided to go into the field of Nursing. I plan on graduating from J Sarge with an AS in Nursing and then transfer to VCU to gain a specialization either in sleep disorders, forensic pathology, or neuroscience. I now know who I am and what I want. I define my success. Just like the dark, thick envelope of the woods, life can be a scary place to be. You can feel overwhelmed with obstacles or pressures from society; however, I beat those woods. I refused to let them be the downfall of me. If you chose to bless me with this scholarship, you will be helping me in unleashing that success I found within myself, and in turn, making this world a little brighter, a little more hopeful, and filled with a lot more love. Thank you. Vision and passionVamshi Garikapati
My research experience the past few summers has greatly solidified my interest in pursuing a career in scientific and engineering research, specifically in materials science. I have always had an interest in how the world functions dynamically with technology and how we have uncovered and obtained its vast wealth of knowledge, but I was not certain how I would pursue and integrate these interests in my career until recently. In my first month of laboratory research, ambiguity was the first thing that I experienced when I first started my research project. Not because the science behind it was hard or my experimental design didn't work but because it was a stressful period of time where data needed to be collected constantly every class, and it left room for a lot of problems to occur. But with these problems came experience, knowledge, and passion that further intrigued me. With this, I set up my schedule for following up my research from my senior year, which was to utilize a unique etching and coating mechanism to fabricate water-repellent aluminum, and test my modified aluminum substrates with heat, chemical, and abrasive tests this summer as I continue undergraduate research throughout college. As a prospective entrepreneur, my passion for computers and technology extends to the fabrications of material sciences as I hope to be a part of implement innovative materials with the hardware processes and systems in the future computers and electronics. My career plan was formulated based on these experiences and interactions with material sciences, electronics, and entrepreneurship ideology. Those few years of research allowed me to investigate the broad applications of potentially new and innovative materials currently being studied upon by many researchers around the world from zirconium sensors to biologically suitable titanium alloys. As an avid technology fanatic, I based my senior research project on fabricating superhydrophobic aluminum in order to allow military, transportation, and energy industries to prosper with more advanced and energy-efficient systems for its consumers. Personal satisfaction also plays a key role in my career decision. While monetary rewards are of practical importance for anyone, true job satisfaction comes from the opportunity to mature and learn within an industry. This was what motivated me to pursue computer engineering alongside material science. I enjoy acquiring new skills and information to help me adapt to the ergonomically dynamic world, as well as to spur my interest in innovation. In addition, a career plan involving entrepreneurship creates an opportunity for open prospects and ideas to be formulated, and it would give me constant incentive to improve myself and to gain more knowledge further on. I see my academic choices playing an important role in influencing my leadership philosophy on serving the people before my own self-interests. As a rank leader in the Marching Band and tutor in academic clubs, I have learned that interacting and collaborating with the people around you, to help each other, encourages an environment that promotes growth, diligence, and academic and social success. Having the opportunity to collaborate on classwork with my fellow classmates would give me an insight into what concepts and ideas I would be dealing with and how they can be approached from different points of view. With this, uniqueness and openness is what I believe plays a central role in providing innovative products and solutions for the people. Along with this, my choice to engage myself with challenging courses throughout high school and going into college expanded my ability to think, write, and make decisions as a leader while also developing my own perspectives and suggestions not only in the classroom but also within my community and society as a whole. The entrepreneurship community has always been about living a few years of your life like most people normally wouldn’t and then spending the rest of your life like most people can’t. I believe my studies and career plan would have a positive impact on the whole entrepreneurship community by helping reinventing the concept of “risk-taking”. I never intended to become a potential entrepreneur until I found a passion working with and analyzing computers, something I loved doing as a hobby. It was enough to lead me down a career path in STEM where many students relied under teachers and mentors to guide them through their research. However, I wanted to work on my own interdisciplinary research that I could develop with my own creativity, integrity, and intuition. Throughout my three years of research, the lessons I learned and experienced were tools that helped me understand how unique yet useful a process research was in the field of science, technology, and engineering. While I encountered failures and discrepancies with my experiment and research methodology constantly, I had learned that time spent now failing would be time spent later progressing. It followed me throughout high school and was an important aspect to every homework assignment, assessment, and project I had done. People think of entrepreneurs as risk-takers that either reach too far and fall or start too low and go nowhere in life, and I couldn’t disagree more. My goals uptil now have always been funding from my passions and eagerness to serve the community, and these passions have extended to my long-term goal of becoming an entrepreneur for building a materials research company with an adequate amount of knowledge, ideas, and support from myself and those around me. If a leader has a passion and sets a vision, any risk he takes fuels his desire for knowledge and experience down the line. The more time he spends, the more passionate he becomes and the more risks he takes. Progression has always been a desire and goal for researchers, scientists, and engineers alike to pursue in an effort to expand their knowledge base and learning capabilities; but an underlying aspect is progression does not come without service to society so that it is not left behind struggling to keep up with advancements. Having said that, the gift of education provides one of the best opportunities to improvise societal needs which itself becomes a new philosophy that encourages forward thinking and a steady progress to society as a whole, and as an entrepreneur that has found such passions, set his vision, and took those risks during his research, academic, and career plans, I aspire to embrace such a gift on my path towards entrepreneurship and building a successful and impactful materials research company. Vision for my life purposeKatrina Brown
University of Texas El Paso Every great accomplishment that has ever been realized began with a vision. Having an ability to see, that which is not yet present, is quite possibly one of humanity’s greatest gifts. Without vision businesses could not maintain their organizational effectiveness, athletes would never go the distance, civilization might have never existed. Vision precipitates inventiveness, resourcefulness, and buoyancy when necessary. It allows us to see the big picture while striving forward one step at a time. More importantly, an effective vision helps us to remain level headed when the going gets tough. It instills just enough motivation to appreciate the value in hard work and determination. Sometimes, maintaining focus on your vision can get tough, and life has a tendency to get in the way of your dreams. Sometimes you have to put your dreams on a shelf because of circumstances beyond your control. But sometimes, the vision reignites with full force and projects you back on track. After over fifteen years of part-time study while working full-time to support myself, I finally earned my Bachelor of Arts degree in Corporate Wellness and Health Behavior at DePaul University. I never took the SAT or ACT because my parents had terrible credit and couldn’t help me with tuition at a four-year university. Because my grades were less than exemplary and I was a first generation college student, there weren’t many available resources either. My only options following high school were community college or trade school. I chose community college and persistently chipped away at my courses, taking one or two at a time whenever I could afford the tuition and work capacity. For fifteen years, I worked within my limitations to carry out this endeavor. Although I initially preferred a Bachelor of Science, I was not proficient in college level algebra and I was unable to take advanced math and science classes since they were only offered during the workday. Eventually I found myself in a position that provided just enough income and flexibility to complete an adult education. As fate would have it, I was finally able to pursue a degree that integrated my experience as an office admin with massage therapy training that I had acquired along the way. My final push to reach this milestone developed after observing health risks in my workplace. People frequently complained of chronic stress, myalgia, and a variety of repercussions resulting from sedentary lifestyles. The more I learned about health behavior and environmental limitations, the more acquainted I became with the larger issues at play. I was confounded by the fact that so many people willingly put themselves at risk for life threatening and debilitating illnesses. That awareness ignited a desire to provoke changes, which ultimately transpired into a vision for my life purpose. Because I was merely an admin at a large corporation my influence at this organization was very limited. But I still wanted to make positive changes. My initial attempt at making a difference started out with corporate wellness promotion in Chicago, Illinois. I volunteered to help push the company’s wellness campaign by leading health challenges, organizing fitness events, teaching seminars on stress management, and I utilized my massage therapy knowledge to treat chronic dysfunctions like tension headaches and carpal tunnel. While completing these projects, I used the experiences to supplement my coursework at DePaul University. I took a social marketing course so that I could learn how to target my audience of corporate employees. I completed a mindfulness meditation course so that I could teach this concept in the workplace. Although I found these undertakings unbelievably fulfilling, my capacity to make a difference was still undeniably limited. I also found that I particularly enjoyed treating other peoples’ ailments. I found pleasure in explaining the reasons why someone’s neck was hurting. The more I helped others, the more I realized that I could not actually heal anyone with my inadequate scope of practice. I was simply not equipped to do enough for them, and I was disheartened when I learned that my degree would not likely permit enough capacity. Following these realizations, I decided that I needed to make a drastic change to my life if I was ever to fulfill my self-created prophecy. I need math and science in order to see my dreams through, and I cannot afford another degree at DePaul University because the tuition is so high. Chicago is an expensive city to live in as well. My only feasible option is to complete my coursework in an area where I can survive on a significantly lower income. So I quit my job and relocated to El Paso, Texas and enrolled at the University of Texas – El Paso. Throughout my entire adult life, the necessity to support myself limited my educational opportunities. I tried to work within my limitations to find a fulfilling career, but I have since learned that if I accept my limitations I can transcend them. I have set myself on a long arduous path but I am grateful for the lessons I have learned to get to this point. By focusing on things that I have control over, I have learned that anything is possible as long as I progress one step at a time with the mindset that has carried me thus far. Redefining successTiffani Brown
Florida A&M I have always been the type of student to thrive under pressure. I enjoyed taking enough classes to keep me super busy and provide a “good” level of stress. I always received the best grades on assignments when I waited until the very final hour to get them done. This was the lifestyle I was embracing and fully accustomed to. When I went to college, all of this changed. It was culture shock for me to have to deal with living 4.5 hours away from home and also deal with collegiate level work. This created a level of stress I was not used to. Rather than thriving under this bone-crushing pressure, I cracked. It was Spring semester of my freshman year that I experienced my very first episode of depression. I never felt so unmotivated in my life. I didn’t enjoy anything, nothing made me excited. I just wasn’t who I knew that I was and this realization pulled me all the way to rock-bottom. This episode of depression not only affected my overall happiness and mental health, it caused me to be physically ill. In early February, I was diagnosed with having an upper respiratory infection. This infection was not completely gone until the first week in May. My immune system suffered just like my grades did. I lost my full-ride scholarship to my top-choice school, Florida A&M University. I was completely devastated and it felt as though everything that could go wrong did. It took me coming home and seeking professional help that really pushed me in the direction of recovery. What I went through almost two years ago has made me who I am today. That experience shaped and molded me into a better person. I have taken what happened as a learning experience and feel as though I can “pay it forward” by sharing my journey with as many college students as I can so that they know that self-care is the most productive thing you can possibly do in this life. I think the Millennial generation has so many positive qualities, but many of those qualities can turn negative as well. Our generation is frequently described as being just as fast-moving as the technology we use. We are constantly on the go and this is awesome! However, it can also be a bad thing because we are, at times, moving too fast to listen to our own bodies. Rather than listening to my own body, telling me that I was doing too much, I ignored the signs and took 17 credit hours’ worth of classes my Spring semester. Our generation is also described as being hyper-concerned about reaching “success”. I used to be the same way. I still am the same way. However, I’ve learned to redefine success. Success shouldn’t be measured by the job you have or how much money you make. Success should be measured by your level of happiness and feeling of content. I was more concerned with my schoolwork and making sure I secured an internship than my happiness. I now know that if I’m happy, the success will typically follow and if it doesn’t- that’s okay too. I would love to be given this scholarship because it’ll help me stay in school and be able to spread this message of stress-reduction, self-care, and the importance of redefining success. I believe the conversation of mental health is one that happens very rarely in the spaces we most need them to be discussed. College is the perfect space to mention and teach about mental health and its importance. All too often we assume people are doing just fine if they’re not crying in public. We rarely dig deep to see how people are really feeling. This is something that needs to be changed and I feel like I can begin conversations at my university to spark that change. This is very important to me and I would love to be given this opportunity to make our world a healthier and happier place, one campus at a time. GratitudeNo narrator could write about gratitude from the heart. Myself included. Especially myself.
But I know how to tell my story to others. Rather simple, you see; once live it, you’re not going to forget so easily. No one ever does. Sit back, bring some drink. Enjoy my story, and maybe you’ll learn some from me. I hope you do. We all do. I come from a country called Ecuador, a little mountainous retreat, sandwiched between coffee-toting Colombians and the occasional Peruvian. Still walking tall since 1999. Never thought it possible. I’ll keep that year short. No one got out of it free. Not even ourselves. We had property and businesses to our name, so we had something to fall on. But that was us, not the rest. They were all out cold, there were tears on the streets. There was food where the money was, but the money was scarce. Not for us. What could a kid of 3 understand about those times? We all had it comfy. We had food on our table, plenty of television, I got my toys and reading glasses, and my family was content to see my chubby face grinning with love. They were the best at facades, that I know now. You try to ask them what’s wrong, they say “nothing dear, they’re all just a little worried”. I took the answer, with my 3-year old logic. What else did I know? My childhood went smooth too, something I frown at. My school was one of the lucky ones, they had people in it who were good friends with the major. He donated some buses to us, the newest Hyundai models. Beautiful buses, those; the paint was new and the windows clean. Helps to have friends in high places. I’d ride that bus from home to school and back again. I’d walk 5 minutes to the station and no more. I’d live unknowing of the outside. My bubble with four wheels and a clutch, comfy seats and a radio to the other buses. I looked outside my window every day, taking in the sights. It wasn’t a pretty one. I grew up watching the mountain outside, a foggy cover as a skirt, covering the valley and leaving only the peak above, almost at hand’s reach. I’d always look up as a kid. Never gave a glancing thought at looking below. Although, the more I grew, the more I looked down from the cloud. To where I live in. They never lie when they say a book is a mighty fine weapon. I started studying history then, reading up on the news and whatnot. Spent my days reading and learning history, finding my reality. The reality I craved for. Opened my eyes at last, to what I hadn’t ever seen before, hidden away behind my parents and their fortunes. The bubble they caged me in. I saw it. And I wept. The banking crisis of 1999. Learned it all, too quickly. The great exodus from Ecuador, the frozen bank accounts to pay a foreign debt, the I’ll-gotten riches from those in power, the hypocrisy behind the people’s government, and my position in it. The child of textile moguls who built an empire many years ago. A legacy standing in name only, but with surviving property and wealth enjoyed by the very few. A wealth I did not understand, until it was put to perspective. The things I craved as a child, the toys and the baubles any infant could want. The plastic trivialities that so appetized me in my younger years. The want for things and activities and the ignorance behind them, which my parents would satiate with loving hearts. All of the medicine and eyeglasses and medical contact lenses. These things weren’t everyone’s ritual. I was one of the privileged ones. I could have these because my wealth allowed me to. It made me sick. The people were suffering, and here I was with everything they lacked. I felt guilty for it all. My parents, they had token charities. Free food during Christmas, clothing donations, but it wasn’t enough. My debt to everyone was too high. My burden, unattended. I wallowed in excess yet everyone had only meager scraps. I could go to college, in the States. Most of my others did not. Those I studied with, my classmates, they went to study Industrial Engineering, Computer Science, International Affairs, all personal achievements. But what of those left behind? Forgotten, ignored? They had no remorse for those marooned away, yet they had the audacity to exploit their position only for themselves. Without a second thought for everyone. I would return though. To the land that raised me, gave me plenty, to repair it. Life has gotten better back home, but the injustices still have to be addressed, wounds must still be healed. I have the power of my family, few of whom have amassed back home. I can’t abandon them, after what’s happened. Damage must be mended to my home before I can free myself of my burden. And my wealth should be enough to start. My father has retirement benefits, and my mother works part-time as a dermatologist. They have around $34,000 in yearly income, which is a fortune back home. I work full time to pay my college, to study City and Regional Planning. My mere presence here is already a step forward. My studies, a door to retake the burden others have carried for me. That brings us to today. Writing my essay on a laptop purchased with my savings, a wealth now hard-earned with my own labor. Another step forward to controlling calamity. Ending strife back home. I’ll use what I have to fix my home. Bring out dignity back. Make the people stand tall again, retake the pride we lost so many years ago. My tale spans much longer than that, but for now that will do. If you ask me to be grateful for what I have, I’ll tell you I cannot; the tears of many stain the home I live in. To say that I am “grateful” would ignore their pleading and supplications. And I cannot abandon them. I can’t be grateful now. I haven’t done enough to earn my gratitude. My studies will take me forward though. I’ll head to the edge of home, and step forward. My hope will not disappoint me. I’ll be grateful when the sins of the past have been fixed. By my hand, the disproportionate wealth I’ve accrued will not go to waste. My gratitude will arrive once I repay my debt to home. I’ll be grateful for having the chance to mend the shattered lives of everyone. I’ll repay my debt to home. I’ll be grateful then. You’ll see. I don't want to miss a thingSabrina Ashleigh
"I don’t want to close my eyes, I don’t want to fall asleep…” I can still hear Aerosmith blaring through the speakers at my senior prom. No, this wasn’t the 90s. It occurred around a year ago on one of the most memorable, and stressful, weekends of my high school experience. A few days earlier, a couple of my friends were pressuring me to go stag with them to our senior prom, because “It’ll be so much fun,” and the cliché, “If you don’t go, you’ll regret it.” Unfortunately, I have a strong aversion to attending school dances-I’m petrified of dancing-so you can imagine how easily excuses come flying out of my mouth anytime this situation comes up. However, this time, I really did have a valid excuse, “Guys, I’m going to be flying to New York this weekend. I’ll be too exhausted.” And true to my word, I was preparing to go on a spur-of-the-moment trip with my mom to New York. By that time, college acceptances and rejections had all been sent out, and I had narrowed my options down between attending UCLA (pros: an hour away from home and significantly cheaper tuition) and NYU (pros: I would be able to major in film and live out my inner Carrie Bradshaw). Of course the battle between passion and practicality is never an easy one to fight, so my parents decided that in order for me look back with no regrets, I should be able to visit both campuses and decide from there. Being an academic control freak (I never miss a day of school if I can help it), I was highly on the fence about flying to New York, especially during testing season. But, luckily, my eternally supportive mother was persistent and I knew she was right; if I didn’t go, I would always regret it. So there I was on an airplane, on a school day (gasp, I know), sitting window seat with my mom on my right, headed off to The Big City. I’m not going to lie. New York didn’t embrace me the way I imagined it would. First, it was extremely cold; my LA clothes were no match for an East Coast winter. Second, unaccustomed to walking being the primary form of transportation, my feet became very sore early on. Third, my mom and I were staying with a family friend who had work all day, so we (two directionally challenged individuals) were off navigating a foreign city on our own. It was not the ideal situation, and by the time I was on the NYU campus tour, I realized that I may have oversold myself on the fantasy of attending college in New York. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the tour and I was thrilled to be experiencing people and culture outside of my own LA bubble, but I also began to see that I was not quite ready to take on such a fast-paced environment at such immense tuition costs. With this realization setting in, I knew my Big Apple dreams could stand to wait a little longer. After two days of New York, I remember how relieved I was to be flying back home. I now had a sound mind with my decision to become a Bruin, and I was about to see my friends in a few hours at prom. I know what I said about my tumultuous relationship with dances earlier, but I guess the New York trip awakened a fearless spirit in me; I realized that the less I tried to control things, the more I began to live outside of my head. So I let my relentless friends wear me down, as I found myself going to prom. And truth be told, I’m so glad I did. I didn’t have a date, I was wearing a DIY dress that wouldn’t stay in place, and I still couldn’t dance to save my life. But as the last song played, and I disappeared into a hazy sea of slow-dancing couples, I heard Steven Tyler belt out “…And I don’t want to miss a thing…” and I knew I was doing just fine. My attitude of gratitude - an educational journeyAmy McBirney
University of California - Davis I am continually amazed at the many blessings and opportunities that have filled my education. These experiences are only possible because I have been given the chance to pursue a university education, despite financial barriers. As I continue my education, I now have the unique opportunity to study veterinary medicine at the University of California-Davis, an institution renowned worldwide for its ability to produce leaders, educators, and innovators in research and medicine. As I pursue my educational goals, I reflect on the numerous experiences that have given me this attitude of gratitude in my education. As I look forward to new opportunities that await me in my future, I seek to express my appreciation to those who have impacted my educational goals and contributed to my personal growth as a leader. I will continue to engage with youth in my community, encouraging them to achieve their goals despite ongoing obstacles while also striving to show them the importance of living with an attitude of gratitude. As a child, my parents often did not have the resources or funds to enable me to take part in costly extracurricular activities. I did, however, have the opportunity to join 4-H, the nation's largest youth development and mentoring organization, which encourages youth to reach their full potential through the provision of youth leadership, educational, and community service experiences. The program’s mission and values have been a driving force in giving me opportunities to lead by example. I can honestly say that I would not be the person I am today without the many dedicated leaders, parents, and volunteers that form the backbone of this life-changing organization. The generous donation of time and resources these mentors contributed to my personal development has fostered within me an eagerness to learn and grow, while always maintaining a thankful spirit. Through these valuable relationships and friendships formed with my mentors, I was blessed with opportunities that opened my eyes to the rewarding nature of a veterinary career, which is capable of perpetuating a spirit of gratefulness and giving back. From the time I was young, I was certain of the career I intended to pursue. With my passion for people, teaching, animals, and science, I determined that veterinary medicine encompassed all these elements and would lead me to a fulfilling career where I would have the ability to enrich the lives of those around me. Perhaps this determination is attributed to my mother who immigrated to the United States from the small Caribbean island of Barbados to pursue her study of Biology. She has been a personal mentor in my academic life, encouraging me to dedicate myself to my education and pursue a veterinary career regardless of academic and financial challenges encountered. My mother’s mentorship has inspired me to serve as a source of encouragement to others. My appreciation for her guidance has compelled me to focus my attention on transitioning into a mentor for others and establishing my own leadership role with youth in my community. After many years in 4-H, raising poultry, rabbits, miniature donkeys, horses, dairy cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and more, I knew I was meant to be a veterinarian. My 4-H involvement confirmed my fascination with veterinary medicine and presented numerous opportunities to develop my leadership and teaching abilities in this capacity. I shared my knowledge about proper animal healthcare, handling and exhibition techniques with younger members. It was rewarding to witness the success and newfound confidence gained by these youth, which I had the opportunity to mentor. I enjoyed sharing my passion for animals with others and soon realized this feature is interwoven into a veterinary career! I have continued pursuing youth mentorship roles during my college years and am repeatedly reminded that regardless of what avenue my veterinary career may take, I will always maintain involvement in mentoring and educating young people. Because of this passion, I have maintained involvement in 4-H. After personally benefiting from the guidance and mentorship of 4-H leaders during my youth, I have served as an alumni leader so I may impact young people’s lives in the same way my own life was impacted. I volunteer at county youth livestock exhibitions, assisting students in competition preparation and speaking to 4-H youth about agricultural and veterinary career opportunities. I treasure the interactions with these young people and will remain in youth leadership roles throughout my education and into my career because I find joy in passing on my attitude of gratitude. As an aspiring future leader and veterinary professional, I hope to fill the shoes of my mentors who came before me and empower youth around me with the courage needed to realize their dreams. Obtaining my veterinary degree will allow me to complete my personal story of victory over hardship. The completion of my education will enable me to impact the lives of youth, demonstrating to them that seemingly unachievable goals are indeed attainable. Though financial hardship continues to threaten my pursuit of a veterinary career, I have determined to hold firmly to my attitude of gratitude. It is this frame of mind that has helped me reconcile the financial and academic challenges in my education. I remain encouraged at the thought that I might one day be able to reciprocate the guidance and kindness that was once shown to me, through my role as a mentor. By sharing my personal story of an educational and career goal accomplished, I hope to compel young people to endure through hardship with an attitude of gratitude that will enable them to find and follow their dreams. The power of positive thinkingPatricia Etienne
Florida International University I was placed in the foster care system at the age of four with my older sister and younger brother. The biggest adversity I had to face throughout my years in and out of foster care is the sense of stability. I never had it. I was stuck in foster care after a huge incident with my older sister and my mom. That is where my journey of going to one foster home or group home to the next began. You could be there one day and gone the next. You just never know. The years that I was able to be with my biological family was as unstable as a foster child’s placement: tiring. I moved 5 times in the 7 years I was ‘home” and at each house we were threatened of eviction more than I can count and then we were eventually evicted anyways. You'd think I would be a messed up girl by now after being in and out of foster care for 13 years. But I try looking at the brighter side of life. At least I'm not dead somewhere in a ditch. I'm alive and well and thanking God every day. I had to realize from a very young age that sometimes life can throw you a curveball. What you do with it determines the outcome. I chose to think positive for myself because at times I was the only person that had my back. It sucks to think about when your 8 years old and your parents blame you for everything that has happened to them. Growing up with negativity for years can take a toll on you and eventually you start to believe that maybe their right. That’s a dish served for trouble. Though my siblings decided to go down that path I knew if I just focus on what I have to do, I can prove them wrong. I can make something better of myself. I put myself in a positive mindset and worked my butt off in high school, dual-enrollment and part-time jobs so I could make it to college. Now I am currently a junior at Florida International University in Miami, FL. I’m majoring in Travel and Tourism because I love and believe in great customer service. I also love to travel and sometimes I think it is because of the instability that I’ve had in my life that makes me more comfortable in a change of setting. However, I also believe it could be my backbone into why I’m not afraid to take reasonable risks. I believe there are only opportunities. One of these opportunities is giving back to the foster care system. A lot of young adults who age out want nothing to do with it but I believe that we are truly the only ones who can make a change because we know what it’s like. At my fourth foster home now I help with parents wanting to foster by speaking to them about what it is like to be a foster youth. I’ve talked about the Independent Living program, a transitional program for aging out foster youths, on the news and spoken in meetings and conferences about how the foster care system can be improved. I also know plenty of foster teens who believe they will never get out of their situation to become something more. I want to incorporate a section of my travel business that is geared toward teens in foster care, or homeless or come from low-income families where they have a chance to pursue their own interests in hospitality on a national basis. It would be profit/non-profit and would include community engagement in local hospitality businesses. Not only will participants feel like they’re doing something that they love but they’re also doing something bigger than themselves. Small businesses are and will continue to be an important and growing driver of U.S economic growth and dynamism. My situation had put me through ups and downs but I didn’t let it define me and who I want to be nor will I stand by and let others go through the same things. I'm very independent and tend to do things on my own because I had to rely on myself for so long but I know when I need help and where I can get that help. I'm grateful for my small group of friends and adults that stick with me and support me with anything I do because even though I may not be grounded in any setting I am stable by the people I consider my own family. However, as most may know, college comes with new challenges, hardships and stress. The reward of walking down the aisle during the graduation ceremony and getting your degree makes it all worth it. It is sometimes hard to see the end of your goal when there is so many obstacles in the way. Housing is such a struggle here at Florida International University. When my financial aid came in last year, most of it had gone to paying for housing during the Fall and Spring semesters. Apartments are expensive in Miami and housing at FIU isn’t any better. Books and other required materials needed for my classes can also be expensive- as much as $600 depending on your classes. I believe this scholarship would be a step in the right direction for me. Knowing that I have one thing that I don’t have to worry about gives me relief and I can focus on schoolwork. Thank you so much for reading my personal statement. If I were to receive this scholarship, I would be utterly grateful for my situation. Focusing on things you can controlJordan Matthews
Coastal Carolina University My collegiate career hasn't been what one would call a breeze, but once I developed the mindset of focusing on things I can control, things started turning around in my favor. When focusing on things you can control, you stop wasting liable energy on things you can’t control and begin redirecting that energy to things you can. Life challenges are only overcome through personal development and focusing on things you can do to enhance your quality of life. Developing talent, potential, and setting goals all assist in overcoming life challenges. No matter who you are, your life will be faced with obstacles. You must focus on what you personally can do to change your situation and the outcome of the situation. I attended a four year college for 2010-2013. There I realized I was in the wrong major, I was also in the wrong school for the major I was acquiring. I was in a bad car accident. During that car accident, I had to decide whether I was going to stay in the car, or struggle my way out without any help from anyone surrounding me. My accident was a very trying time in my life. I was scared, vulnerable, and alone. I took control of the situation and removed myself from my unrecognizable car. After my life changing episode, I decided to take a year off from school. After my year off I began, focusing on things I could control and enrolled in a two year institution. There I made sure my grades were perfect. I am now a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and I made the Dean’s list my last semester attending the school, I then earned my Associates degree. Again, focusing on things I could control, I applied to Coastal Carolina University (CCU), where I plan to receive my bachelor’s degree in Marine Sciences. I was accepted and began preparing to leave for school. Like every college student requesting Financial Aid, I submitted my FAFSA. After a couple of problems were settled with my FAFSA, I only received $3,500 for my 2015-2016 collegiate years. Here’s a little background information, Coastal Carolina University out of state tuition cost $12,160. That is a difference of $8,660. In case you were wondering, I do not have that kind of money lying around, nor do my parents. Focusing on things I can control, I began researching ways to pay for school. I tried applying for loans, but couldn't find a creditworthy cosigner. I finally came across Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC). MHEC offered me in-state tuition because my state doesn't offer my major. After the strenuous application process, four months later I was finally approved for in-state tuition through Coastal Carolina University. I now have to pay $5,265 to begin my collegiate career at CCU. Again, focusing on things I can control, I have been submitting scholarships and writing essays trying to earn the remaining money I need. I’m trying to refrain from my parents pulling from their 401K retirement plans. I know they will do it without any question for me, but again focusing on things I can control, I am trying to assist in receiving money for school so it can be less of a burden on my family. I am a little terrified to leave home. I know my family will overcome all obstacles just like I have in the journey of going to school. By applying the mindset of focusing on things I can control, I survived a car accident, earned my associates degree, and am on my journey to finishing my bachelor’s degree at the best school on the East coast for my major. By continuing the mindset of focusing on things I can control, I will get acclimated with campus, keep my head in the books, earn good grades, join organizations and clubs, be accepted into another honor society, make the dean’s list, earn my bachelors degree, and continue being a better steward for my environment and the occupants that reside in our world’s oceans. I will also use this personal development principle by being a good daughter and sister and make my family proud. I will set a good example for all those looking up to me and all those who have inspired me in the past. In my career, I can apply this personal development principle by controlling how I educate others on the environment and how we should put more effort into protecting it. I can also focus on things I can control by doing all I can to spread awareness about the serious problem we are having regarding the pollutants in the world’s oceans. The law of attractionMotunrayo Ayodele
Cornell University At age four, I first learned how to read. At age six, I first learned how to write. At age eight, I read my first chapter book. And at age seventeen, I taught my first student how to do the same. It was the first day of Freedom School. As the Rama Road elementary school students nearly trampled each other to get to their favorite Providence Day volunteer, I kept my eyes glued to the ceiling. Since I had not taken part in the first summer of Freedom School, I had missed the critical period needed to form strong bonds with these kids... Or so I thought. Instantly, a little girl named Ali appeared before me with this dazed look on her face. "Is your name Roxy?" she uttered. Before I could even say no, she said, "Well it is now." She proceeded to then grab my hand and drag me over to her group of friends. Their faces immediately adopted the same dazed look. It was only after much confusion did I come to learn that I looked like the star of the newest Disney Channel Movie, "Let it shine." From then on, I "Motunrayo Alayode Adetoun Ayodele" became known as "Roxy". Freedom School was only the beginning of mine and Ali's tumultuous relationship. When school returned in the fall, I was excited to reunite Ali, who had this quality that only a kid could possess that I so envied. Each reunion that we had was met with much laughing and talking, and reading. One day, in the middle of a conversation, she turns to me and says, "What grade are you in?" So I responded, "Ali, you know this. I am a senior" Then, with a serious expression on her face, she remarked, "You are a senior? Like a senior citizen?" And this was only 1 minute of the nearly 45 minutes we spend together. So then the school year progressed… and something started to change. Ali's big smile that accompanied her even bigger personality began to fade, and it was replaced with this new seriousness. On one occasion, Ali and I spent the whole 45 minutes reading. Not once did she even beg me to read. When I went to hug her goodbye, she then whispered in my ear, "I do not want to go home. I am moving, so I am staying at my grandmother's. She has bugs in the house and no A/C. I miss my friends." I was at a loss for words. For a seven year old who goes to a school exactly .8 miles down the road to experience this, I wondered, what does this mean? With United States newspapers reading, "Black-White Education Gap Persists", "Disparities in Graduation Rates Among White and Minority Students", "The Crisis in the Education of Latino Students", a war on education has begun. All the studies done by various educational researchers lead to one conclusion: minorities do not match up with their white counterparts. While many of them simply do not have access to quality schools, others face a bigger hindrance due to the fact that they come from a family in which English is spoken as a second language. Consequently, these children have already been set back before they have even been enrolled in the school system. I joined Big Brother Big Sister in order to fight this war. After nearly a year together, I have learned much about Ali and her family and what it means to grow up with parents who do not have enough time to read with their child every night. I have even gotten the chance to meet Ali's loving parents. To Ali, our time together has been a chance to work hard, then reap the benefits through some time spent just talking. To me, however, Big Brother Big Sister has been so much more; it is a chance for me to share my endless opportunities with someone else. The belief in each other to succeed has taken our relationships to great heights. At age four, I first learned how to read. And at age seventeen, I have chosen to never stop fighting for these children so that they can do the same. A positive attitude helped me overcome culture shockAlexis Bracey
George Mason University Imagine going to a country where the people do not look like you, where the people do not speak the same language as you, where the people eat differently than you. Imagine going to a country where nearly every woman you see is wearing a hijab, headscarf, over her head, where mosques, instead of churches, light up the city at night, where everyone is reminded it is time to pray when the voice of the muezzin, religious leader, announces the Call to Prayer, five times a day. This was my reality when I went to Amman, Jordan on a government-sponsored scholarship to study Arabic this past summer. Eventually I acclimated to a new way of life. Arabic no longer seemed unfamiliar and catching taxis to explore the city was no longer a daunting task. Amman eventually became my home and its people, my family. However, the acclimation process did not occur overnight and I consider it one of the most challenging, yet humbling, experiences I have ever encountered in my life. One of the most frequently asked questions I receive when I tell people I went to Jordan is “Were you scared?” I always respond with “No. I was more worried about communication difficulties,” which is true. I learned the alphabet and studied a few basic words in Arabic before I went but overall I could not express myself, except for a few basic greetings, efficiently in Arabic. My reading, writing, speaking, and listening abilities improved immensely over the seven weeks that I had lived in Amman. Having Arabic class for seven hours five days a week, from Sunday – Thursday, and studying vocabulary and grammar to prepare for weekly tests for at least two hours after classes were over, really accelerated my communication abilities in Arabic. The most difficult part of my journey to Jordan was not learning Arabic; it was adjusting to my new surroundings. I was fortunate to live with a Jordanian host family for the first two weeks of the program before I moved into an apartment building with the rest of the members of my program for the last five. Living with my host family, and interacting with them through watching television and sharing meals, really taught me that cross-cultural similarities should be acknowledged as well as differences. Eating dinner at my host grandmother’s house during Ramadan reminded me of my own family. We all sat down to eat together. Afterwards, children ran around the house playing, and the women, men, and teenagers were immersed in their own separate conversations – just like at home. I admit, there were times when I was not sure about the proper social protocols in certain situations. However keeping an open mind, and being willing to laugh and learn from my mistakes while keeping a positive attitude helped me overcome culture shock. Keeping an attitude of gratitude and keeping positive thoughts made my experience in Jordan more enjoyable. Seeing the good in every situation helps a person enhance the following personality traits: patience, humility, and gratitude. Even now, when I notice myself becoming quick to get upset, I calm myself down and remember to think about the good in the situation. As a result of the time that I spent in Jordan I have gained a greater awareness of myself, my community, and the world at large. I am more compassionate and empathetic towards people around me. I am always finding a way to approach life from a global perspective. Cultural knowledge is such an important facet of life that ultimately serves to make a person better well-rounded. Going to Jordan has made me even more passionate about communicating with the world. What many people fail to realize is that education is not just analyzing works of literature to compose essays, memorizing historical events, balancing chemical equations, and solving equations for math tests. Education is humbleness, humility, and self-awareness. Education is appreciating humanity in all of its beautiful diversity. My ultimate goal in life is to give back to the world all that I have received through knowledge. One way that I plan to accomplish my goal is to work for an organization committed to making a difference in the lives of others. Receiving this scholarship would be beneficial for me because it would help fund the development of the skills necessary to obtain a job once I graduate from college. Undoubtedly, college is extremely expensive and in order for me establish a career in global education I would need as much technical training as possible. This scholarship would just be one of the many pathways I use to educate and inspire others. Focusing on things you can controlEmily Koenn
IUPUI University Having control over everything going on in around me has been a necessity ever since I was a little girl. As a child, I was sexually and emotionally abused, and it has literally ruined my perception of what self-control is. I struggle with PTSD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Clinical Depression, suicidal thoughts, Insomnia, and self-harm every day of my life, so making sure I have control over everything in my life helps me feel sane. Without control, I honestly feel helpless, and as if my life is spiraling – it’s my obsession. This, however; isn’t the story of my struggle with control, but how I have overcome what has happened to me (with the help of close family members and friends). Slowly, I am learning how to function better by focusing on the things that I can control, and how to let go of what I can’t. Even though I have struggled since I was a child, I really didn’t start to get help until I was a junior in high school. I started up in therapy when I was 10 years old, but it never helped my conditions- it only masked them since I felt as though my therapists didn’t fully understand my situation. One night in early September 2012, my world came crashing down as I was committed to end my life. With a last moments of hope, I woke my mom up at midnight, and I was hospitalized at 3AM, admitted to the children’s section of Parkview Behavioral Health by 5AM. I remember sobbing in the solidarity confinement room (padded walls – think of an insane asylum of a prison), thinking how I failed at everything, even suicide. Eventually, I adjusted to my surroundings and my attitude towards life made a complete 180 degree turn. I began to learn methods of coping with group and private therapy. I also met amazing individuals; since we were all vulnerable, we connected with each other quickly – we even made jokes about how we’d escape (covering ourselves in soap and sliding through the halls, the nurses loved that one), where we’d eat where we got out, and calling our temporary home the “insane asylum”. Besides jokes, we were able to help each other with our problems, and often traded tips for advice - deep breathing, focusing on patterns to calm down, etc. The most valuable lesson I learned while at Parkview Behavioral Health is one that has stuck with me since – Everything will be okay, and I’m not alone. I have always felt like the only person struggling with my hardships, so this was the biggest coping method I learned. Three days after staying there, I was deemed safe to go home. I never heard of or saw my friends again, but their memories will forever be in my heart. Along with my past, I have learned that I may not always be in control of who I am, or my self-identity. College has been a time of self-discovery for me, and where I have come to terms with who I am – a lesbian. To some, this might seem like a small portion of who they are, but to me, it was absolutely terrifying. I grew up in a small, conservative town, raised as a Roman Catholic – where identifying within the LGBT community is considered damnation. Even though I was preached against it, I always knew I had an attraction to girls, but I decided to push my “sinful” thoughts to the back of my mind, snubbing it off as a lustful temptation. I was scared of losing myself, being kicked out of my house, and felt like I had no control of expressing myself. At Indiana University – Purdue University of Indianapolis, I have been able to realize that I can still be a lesbian and Catholic. I even was blessed to meet Lea DeLaria (an LGBT activist, actress, and comedian) at IUPUI’s annual Harvey Milk Dinner. I expressed my fears of coming out, and she gave me the best advice I’ve ever heard, “It’s okay, honey. When it’s time for you to come out, you’ll know, and it will naturally happen. Don’t try to force it, just let it naturally happen. Forget those who shun you, they don’t really care for you. You are loved” (Lea DeLaria). Hearing these words personally by someone who I look up to so greatly was the best experience of my life. When I started dating my girlfriend, that’s when I knew I wanted to come out to close family. I told my father first, who accepted me whole-heartedly. Then, I told my mother; she wasn’t so accepting of it at first, but has recently come to terms with it. Eventually, after hearing Leverne Cox (a transgender activist) give a speech at a local conference, I felt strong enough to come out publically via social media. While I did receive some backlash from some family members, I received great support, especially from my very-religious aunt who used to be a Catholic nun. Hearing how she called me “strong” and “a brilliant adult” made me extremely grateful. For once in my life, I finally felt like I was in control. While I have struggled with having control over everything in my life, I’m slowly learning how to cope. I’m discovering that growing up, adulthood, means that I may not always be in control. I know that I will never be in control of my past, but learning how to control how I react in the future because of it gives me hope. I know I can’t control my identity, but I know that others struggle with it, so that helps. I don’t have to go through anything I can’t control by myself – I don’t have to struggle alone. I’ve realized that I need to let what I can’t control roll over my head like a storm, and to learn how to dance in its rain by enjoying the smaller things in life that I can control. With learning how to focus what I can control on, I have succeeded greatly in college. I am currently the Secretary of the LGBTQ Student Alliance of IUPUI, Undergraduate Student Government Senator for Gamer’s Guild at IUPUI, a JAGversity Peer Educator in the Multicultural Center of IUPUI, and a First Year Seminar mentor for students in their first year at IUPUI. Along with being active in school, I have received the Curtis Oratorical Scholarship and made the Liberal Arts Dean’s List for the Fall 2014 semester. I am currently double majoring in Anthropology and International Studies, and double minoring in Japanese and Political Science. I hope to succeed in working with refugees, and working for the Human Rights Council for the UN. By learning to cope with control, I want to change the world. Being content with your
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