In elementary school I had gone through a lot of trouble when my parents got divorced, I lost my mom in a boating accident, and I was diagnosed with a rare bone disease called langerhans cell histiocytosis, that only two in a million kids get. I know so far this is a little depressing but it has meaning and it will show I promise. Events like this are just testing you to see what you are capable of. I like to think that events like this are working your mental strength to prepare for the hard times and trouble of the future.

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence” (Helen Keller). This quote is said from a woman who was blind AND deaf. Think about that, you might think your day is ruined when your phone dies or you get a bad grade on a test, but this woman was blind and deaf and to me she is still braver than anyone in this room. If this woman doesn’t inspire you to be a happier person then I don’t know what will because this woman aside from all the problems she had still found her way. And you will too. Whether it’s owning a pastry shop or becoming a hollywoods star, we all have our goals in life and no matter what they are you can not give up on them. She was the first deafblind person to win a bachelor of arts degree. You know why? Because even with her disability she still had the optimism and courage to keep going and break the boundaries. Without optimism this woman would have gotten no where. Think about how easy it could have been to just have someone help you around all day with no independence. She didn’t want that. Even though it was the easy way. She knew that it would get her nowhere and that wasn’t good enough.

In fifth grade my life was changed forever and it is still affecting me to this day. This change stressed me out and made thing harder than they have ever been. I was put into a group of 3 kids who got to be in a math class that went to the middle school every day which was weird because the teacher at the middle school taught in such a different way that it was so hard to pick up. At the end of the year I was so happy it was all over all the stress I was being put through is gone. But what I didn’t realise is that all that stress prepared me for the next chapter of my life which was going to be at the middle school. Also I had been coping with the stress so well that everyone thought I was perfectly fine, even… optimistic some might say. my whole experience at my elementary school was perfect. I turned in every assignment and got A’s on every single one. and according to them I did it all with a great attitude and a lot of enthusiasm. This made my teachers choose to nominate me for the PAWS award.  The P-A-W-S stands for Performance Achievement Work ethics and Social skills. Even if this was only in fifth grade at the time I had thought it was the best thing I had ever done.

Google’s definition of optimism is ”hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something.” That is pretty lame if you ask me. What do they mean by ¨something¨? I have to admit, some think of it this way, but most others not so much. Most people think of optimism of just having a good attitude or being happy with whatever happens no matter how bad it is. But there are also the people who try their hardest to see the bad in everything. Those are the people you need to stay away from. They will drag you down and nothing good will come of having them around. Unless you can find a way to change their expectations so even if it doesn’t go the way it’s planned they can still enjoy it. In Rihanna's new song 4 5 seconds Kanye sings a lyric that says “woke up an optimist sun is shining and I’m positive, then I heard you was talkin trash, hold me back I’m bout to spaz.” This is a great example of how a single person can ruin your mood then you take it out on others therefore causing a chain reaction and everyone's mood is dropping like a trail of dominoes. This is the holy grail of why you should stay away from them.

I watched a documentary recommended by my 6th hour la teacher called “Why Beauty Matters” and my favorite quote was right in the beginning which was “in any time between 1750 and 1930 if you had asked educated people to describe the aim of poetry, art, or music, they would’ve replied beauty.” Is that not the same answer he would get today? What changed?  Beauty is on the inside and is a description of how you act on an everyday basis. When you get bumped in the hall how do you react? What about when you bump someone? Do you say sorry as a reflex? Or do you just walk away? Some might just ignore it because the halls are so crowded and it is expected but the way you react is the true test of beauty. And I’m not saying that if you ignore it you are a horrible ugly person because even I just keep walking. But I would just keep in mind that like in the youtube video “Look Up” a single interaction can lead to a life long relationship.

I have learned through many (and I mean MANY) experiences both good and bad that nothing always goes the way it’s planned. But you have to make with what you get and never settle for anything less than your best. That is how you will get the best results in anything you will do. There might be a time in your life when nothing is right and you don’t know what to do. All you really have to do is push through it with courage and hope. When someone passes away don’t mourn over their death celebrate their life and what they have done with it, learn to take the best of the situation and try your heart out to make it better. That, is how optimism will press on to earn you greater achievements. And it might not be a trophy or medal. Maybe it is just coming back and winning a game of monopoly and in your eyes that is a HUGE achievement. I know that whenever I start to lose a game that I get so mad and I just want to quit so maybe I should take my own advice.