Looking back to when I was twelve years old in 2004, there were many historical happenings going on in the world. For example, the Summer Olympics were held in beautiful Athens, Greece. Although the Olympics is essentially one large competition, it has the ability to bring together nations across the world and within our own individual countries. Every four years the Olympics bring about true pride for our country as the best our country has to offer represent us on the world stage. I, too, gather an enormous amount of pride and support for those who represent the Stars and Stripes with honor.
Another memorable event, although for the wrong reasons, was the infamous tsunami in southeast Asia on December 26. This horrific event took the lives of a reported 200,000 plus people throughout the region of the Indian Ocean. Seeing the footage of the damage and destruction caused by Mother Nature made me realize to never take life for granted because in one instant things can completely change by something that I would have no control over. This event also provided me with an opportunity to help my fellow man by donating food and supplies to those affected by the tsunami. Volunteering to help those less fortunate has now become something I enjoy doing and hope to get more involved here at Hamline.
Another event from 2004 that didn't touch the lives of those around the world was the election of mayor of my hometown of Windom. My dad was one of three people running for the office, and believe me, I was extremely nervous on whether he'd be elected or not. Lo and behold the news came over the radio that he'd been elected by a large margin. I was so proud that he had accepted the challenge to become mayor after very few people were willing to step up and lead our city. His willingness to take a job that no one seemingly wanted and achieve great success showed that in order to make a difference with others, you have to go outside your comfort zone. He sacrificed many things with his job and our family with the hope of making Windom a better city, and I have enormous respect in respect to what he did for our town. Things were different for the next four years and when it came time to submit for re-election, he declined even after gaining great popularity with the citizens of Windom. Although he loved being mayor, family came first and he wanted to spend more time with us as we were growing towards the high school age. Because of this decision, I am a strong believer that family is the most important thing in our lives, not video games or parties or sports. Each moment you have to spend with your family is important whether it's seen that way or not. You never know when your lives can change, your family is no longer there, and you're regretting not spending time with them. Enjoy the time you can spend with your family while you can!
No comments:
Post a Comment