There's a kid- everyone knows him - who's always complaining. The weather never strikes his fancy or his English teacher's grading scale is just too much for him to handle. This guy always wakes up on the wrong side of the bed. He's the righteous dude sauntering up to your desk, marked-up paper in hand, asking loud enough for everyone else to hear why the class deserves so much red pen in such a short time span. Can't this guy give it a rest?
You wonder (aloud, if you're the especially expressive type) why a kid like this never tries to fix the problem. His pieces bump along slowly at "C" level, yet he never takes any of your advice on how to improve his writing. You think that if he just took the time to tweak a few sentences here and there, his work would improve significantly. He would be a contributing member of society if he only gave all that he could on his English essays. This kid's biggest weapon is his apathy; his decision to render all the power he holds for good useless. Instead, he moans about the trials and tribulations life has in store for him. So many people choose to spend their time complaining instead of taking the matter into their own hands and improving the world as they see it. All it takes is a little effort from you and me and a great change can be made.
Mahatma Gandhi said, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world", and I try my best to live by those words every day of my life. There is no doubt in my mind that I think about this powerful quote every single day: any morning- bright, dismal, or downright dreary- is met by my conscious entrance into the world. I take a breath and think about what I have to look forward to during the day. If nothing that makes me smile pops into my mind, I look to the week, or even the month ahead. I consider both the planned and the unpredictable. When that doesn't work, I reflect on what I have to be thankful for. This sets my mind up to be the best version of myself that I can be: a charitable, personable, and contributing human being.
I hold doors open for others, volunteer for Key Club, give people all of my attention when they talk and let my spirit shine through in all that I do. I try my best to give everyone an equal opportunity instead of letting prejudices cloud my judgment. I exhibit benevolence because it is what I wish others will do for me and for the beautiful world that we have the honor of living in. I know that I am doing all that I can with what I have and I hope that others will follow suit. I fully comprehend that there is hardly anything other than ourselves within our control in this life, which is reason enough to be who you want to be.
The time has come to rise to the occasion, seize the day, "carpe diem." "You must be the change you wish to see in the world": if not to change the world, then only to live at peace with ourselves.
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