Superman

My father and I are very close. From an early age I have memories of his constant involvement in my life. Cheerleading competitions, dance competitions, school, and you name it and he was always there for me.



I can remember fishing trips with Dad and my brother. Days in advance, we would get our poles and tackle ready, pack our food, and dream of catching the largest fish in the lake. The big day would arrive and we would get up before the sun, pile into the car, and begin the long journey.


The road that led to the lake was full of hills; my family called it the “bumpy road.” My dad would drive fast just so we would all get butterflies in our stomachs. It was a blast. Just imagine the scene: the sun shining brightly, the car windows down, and a father and his kids whooping and hollering in sheer delight as they speed along a country road. For a kid, life cannot get any better. I will never forget the fun we shared on those trips.



My dad and I would sit down on a rock every time we went on this trip. We would talk about our family and the things in life that I was most thankful for. He would ask me some questions. My dad would tell me how thankful he was for me. He told me how much I meant to him and that he would love me no matter what I did or who I would become. I knew my father loved me. I felt so safe like I could stay there on that rock forever. I knew my dad loved me for who I was, and his love made me feel secure. I am able to trust my dad because he is a man of his word. I know that he loves me not only because he says so but also because he shows me his love in many different ways. My dad gave me his full attention whenever he was with me. He is the best dad in the entire world.


Word of wisdom: everybody wants a little attention once in a while.

Just Chill Out and Wait

My Science teacher Mr. Carter did a since project last December. He research was done with children. Mr. Carter was determined to see if he could see the future by watching four year olds interact with a marshmallow. He invited the children, one by one, into a plain room and begins the gentle torment. "You can have one marshmallow right now", he says. "But if you wait while I run an errand, you can have two marshmallows when I get back." And then he leaves.




Some children grab the treat the minute he’s out the door. Some last a few minutes before they give in. But others are determined to wait. They cover their eyes; they put their head down; they sing to themselves; they try to play games or even fall asleep. When the Mr. Carter returns, he gives these children their hard-earned marshmallows. And then, science waits for them to grow up.



By the time the children reach high school, something remarkable has happened. A survey of the children’s parents and teachers found that those who as four year olds had the fortitude to hold out for the second marshmallow generally grew up to be better adjusted, more popular, adventurous, confident, and dependable teenagers. The children who gave in to temptation early on were more likely to be lonely, easily frustrated, and stubborn. They buckled under stress and shied away from challenges.


Of course, the moral of the story is that developing the character necessary to delay gratification in small areas can translate into great success in other areas. But the four year olds in the study didn’t know that. They didn’t resist the marshmallow in hopes of getting better grades in high school. They overcame their urge to eat the marshmallow because they had faith- they could envision the moment when the nice man in the white coat would come back with two marshmallows. They persevered because they trusted.


This story really encourages me. I go through the same internal struggle those kids must have endured. Like a marshmallow beckoning the child to eat its sweet fluffiness, something I want right now is calling my name. And let me tell you, it looks good.



Why don’t I snatch it up? Because there may be something better if I wait. But I must have faith to believe it. Like those little children, we’re left alone with something that we think could satisfy us immediately. And we can’t see the reward of delaying our gratification. It gets down to this question: Do I believe that by passing up something good now because it’s the wrong time, something better will come around when it is the right time?



Word of wisdom: make decisions based on the whole picture

Don't be Someone Your Not

I meet this kid a couple of months ago. We were not really close friends are anything. But you could tell that he wanted to become best friends as well as tell me some more information I had no idea about. His story went something like this.



The point in my life that turned me into the person I am now happened when I was a sophomore in high school... When I was in high school I was the exact opposite of how I am in class. Very quiet and very shy... I didn’t make friends easily at all but I still had a lot of friends because people always seemed to talk to me. Anyways when I was a sophomore there was this one girl I REALLY REALLY liked. She was very quiet and shy, and it was homecoming night and I could tell she was a little interested in me but I had zero confidence in myself, especially with woman... So during homecoming I asked her to dance and I ASSSUME she said yes but she was also a quiet person too so I couldn’t understand what she said and I took her answer as a no. she then walked away where I stood alone and very depressed since I got shut down... so I started to walk away and to go sit down at my idiot self. Then for some reason I stop and look back to where I had asked her and she was standing there looking for me... (I later found out she walked away because she went to go take a picture)....



I made several attempts to talk to her again but it only made things worse. I was too afraid of being shot down that I let my shame engulf me. I told my friends because I didn’t know how to deal with this devastating heartbreak. They made it worse because they talked to her and they made fun of me and called me a pussy for not being able to say anything... this added to my shame and built up a wall of depression I only recently overcame.



but anyways to sum it up... I didn’t know it but I fell in love with that girl which is why it hurt me so badly... and I dwelled on this one instance for roughly 2 years before I could go one day without thinking about it. It is because of this one event that I am very loud, obnocsious, and outgoing. So I can prevent any sort of thing like that to happen to myself again. It is also because of this that I have slowly learned to tell people exactly what I am thinking or feeling and to not hold onto it or it will only burden me.


Life is not perfect! I know this very well, but DO NOT let your past consume you... it isn’t fun...and it definitely hurts. Seek out closure so you can move on with your life... It took my friend a rough 4 years to figure all this out, and it was one crappy ride....



Word of wisdom: be yourself.

Cheap or Expensive happiness?

When I was a sophomore in high school I found my true passion. Most girls hated gym class me I didn’t mind it. It was a Monday morning at second period. Our gym was about 4700 square feet. The gym also hand our mascot the bulldog on both ends of the shorter end walls. On this particular day the bleachers were out that’s unusual. They are usually pushed in when we have gym class.
As I got ready for gym class two boys came in. They weren’t your everyday boys they were different. These two boys had disabilities. They didn’t need wheelchairs to walk. They had mental disabilities. When told directions verbally they didn’t to a certain extent understand what they needed to do. So they had an aid help them and direct them in the right direction.


When we finished playing basketball there was fifteen minutes left in the class. The two boys keep playing basketball I went over and rebounded for them. They were so nice and excited that I wanted to help. On this day I realized being happy does not have to be expensive.
After this day I began to feel very blessed for what I was giving. I realized that some people are worse off than me. Those people who are worse off than me I should help them as much as I possibly can. On this Monday I decided that I wanted to help kids with disabilities out. I asked the aid how I could get involved and she told me how. I went down to their classroom after I finished lunch and I would work with the students in there with one on one activities, helping the teacher out, and working with the students.
Following the next year I realized that I fell in love with helping these students. I was happy and my happiness was not expensive. All my happiness cost me was a little bit of my time. All the time I put in for these students was worth it. Just seeing them smile when they finally understood what I was teaching them. All of that hard work was enough to make me happy and I didn’t have to buy some expensive fancy car.

Word of wisdom: Happiness does not have to be expensive.

HEY!

Whoever reads this, my blogs will be about situations from my friends and my own past. Different people deal with problems also how we solve these problems in our life are dealt differently. How we made mistakes and how we fixed them are also dealt with differently. Helping people get wisdom has been a large part of my life and I have a huge passion for helping these people in need of wisdom. Since there are many different types of wisdom and wisdom is a large subject. I decided to break it down into a smaller subject.




The next couple of weeks, I will try my best to cover don't criticize others when you are angry with yourself, love carries expectations, be yourself, make decisions based on the whole picture, try to make someone happy each and every day, fall seven times stand up eight, pain is easier to handle when you go through it with another person, two people can look at one thing and have different opinions, half a loaf is better than none, do not change the rules in the middle of a game, have patience in a friend or you may lose him forever, being happy does not have to be expensive, and finally life is too short to spend worrying simple things in life are usually more satisfying. I plan on stating how I feel about each word of wisdom. Also I plan on describing how these words of wisdom have changed me to be the person I am.


I am hoping that these words of wisdom will cause a lot of people to open up and think and also comment on their own options about the topic. Also if they have dealt with a similar problem how they solved their own problem. Or how they dealt with their own mistakes and what these people did to solve it. I am hoping that people will open up and think outside of the box. I want people to have a different kind of view. As well as look at other sides of what people think. I want people to try to understand others.