This I Believe Statement
I truly believe that life is a journey and everyone has their own path. This path is not always smooth but has bumps along the way. It is the way in which we choose to look out at these bumps that determines what kind of journey we have. For instance, think about when you make road trips to destinations that take long car rides. The ideal situation would be to go on an interstate or highway where you can drive at a relatively fast speed where there are no speed bumps. The main focus is to get to our final destination, nothing else. You are not concerned about what you see along the way. Who cares if there is a billboard advertising the best amusement park in the city or the small towns are cities you are now entering? You just want to get to your destination, right? The things you pass along the way are just side distractions that keep you from reaching your goal. Picture yourself as that car that is trying to get to its final destination as soon as possible with as little bumps in the road as possible. But you don't know where your destination is. You’re on the interstate called LIFE. If you hit a bump on this journey, you would be able to stop and observe the scenery around you. Remember, you do not know where this final destination is. You are just driving where the road takes you. These bumps force you to stop and think. It breaks up the monotony of just driving on a smooth road. This is a way to look at your setbacks or "bumps". A smooth road to drive on is so boring and you may be driving so fast that you may not even realize where you are.
I know that this is a hard pill to swallow. Maybe you just want that smooth road and love the thrill of speeding but the reality is, life is not like that in the least bit. I have had many experiences where I have come to that realization and even though I know that, I still have a hard time accepting this when I am going through a difficult time. Take for instance my journey here to UC. It was May of 2012 and I was elated that I had finally made a decision on where I was going to obtain my Bachelor's degree. Fortunately, I was awarded one of the top scholarships in my country. With this money, I was assured that going to college abroad was 100% definite. But remember what I said about those bumps in our journey? I had hit one, big time. I was notified that I as a scholarship recipient too late and so I was not able to attend college in the Fall of 2012. What was I going to do? At first, a wave of emotions overcame me. I was angry, anxious and afraid all at the same time. Here I was so ready to begin this new phase of my life. I would have to spend an additional four months home without any sort of plan on how I was going to spend my time. I didn't sulk and place blame on anyone. Instead, I decided that this was the opportune time for me to make the best of a bad situation. I said to myself, 'Okay Mica, what can you do during this time that can make for an enriching experience?' I was an avid volunteer at a environmental agency. I thought that spending four months there immersed in learning more about my environment and how to conserve it would be the perfect way to spend my time. I was offered a paid internship for the four months. The relationships I made and the knowledge I gained are priceless. I learned how to manage money and was able to make some pocket money for college. What if I had decided to give up, stay home or worse didn't even bother with attending college? I wouldn't be here today attending UC. My future would have looked dramatically different. Working for the four months before starting college became a blessing in disguise.
Wayne Dyer said, 'If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.' This statement is synonymous with my philosophy on life. The same is true of the saying, 'When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.' I have this approach to every aspect of my life. I feel that by looking at life in this way, our lives will become richer because we spend less time dwelling on the bad but instead using the bad to make some good.
I truly believe that life is a journey and everyone has their own path. This path is not always smooth but has bumps along the way. It is the way in which we choose to look out at these bumps that determines what kind of journey we have. For instance, think about when you make road trips to destinations that take long car rides. The ideal situation would be to go on an interstate or highway where you can drive at a relatively fast speed where there are no speed bumps. The main focus is to get to our final destination, nothing else. You are not concerned about what you see along the way. Who cares if there is a billboard advertising the best amusement park in the city or the small towns are cities you are now entering? You just want to get to your destination, right? The things you pass along the way are just side distractions that keep you from reaching your goal. Picture yourself as that car that is trying to get to its final destination as soon as possible with as little bumps in the road as possible. But you don't know where your destination is. You’re on the interstate called LIFE. If you hit a bump on this journey, you would be able to stop and observe the scenery around you. Remember, you do not know where this final destination is. You are just driving where the road takes you. These bumps force you to stop and think. It breaks up the monotony of just driving on a smooth road. This is a way to look at your setbacks or "bumps". A smooth road to drive on is so boring and you may be driving so fast that you may not even realize where you are.
I know that this is a hard pill to swallow. Maybe you just want that smooth road and love the thrill of speeding but the reality is, life is not like that in the least bit. I have had many experiences where I have come to that realization and even though I know that, I still have a hard time accepting this when I am going through a difficult time. Take for instance my journey here to UC. It was May of 2012 and I was elated that I had finally made a decision on where I was going to obtain my Bachelor's degree. Fortunately, I was awarded one of the top scholarships in my country. With this money, I was assured that going to college abroad was 100% definite. But remember what I said about those bumps in our journey? I had hit one, big time. I was notified that I as a scholarship recipient too late and so I was not able to attend college in the Fall of 2012. What was I going to do? At first, a wave of emotions overcame me. I was angry, anxious and afraid all at the same time. Here I was so ready to begin this new phase of my life. I would have to spend an additional four months home without any sort of plan on how I was going to spend my time. I didn't sulk and place blame on anyone. Instead, I decided that this was the opportune time for me to make the best of a bad situation. I said to myself, 'Okay Mica, what can you do during this time that can make for an enriching experience?' I was an avid volunteer at a environmental agency. I thought that spending four months there immersed in learning more about my environment and how to conserve it would be the perfect way to spend my time. I was offered a paid internship for the four months. The relationships I made and the knowledge I gained are priceless. I learned how to manage money and was able to make some pocket money for college. What if I had decided to give up, stay home or worse didn't even bother with attending college? I wouldn't be here today attending UC. My future would have looked dramatically different. Working for the four months before starting college became a blessing in disguise.
Wayne Dyer said, 'If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.' This statement is synonymous with my philosophy on life. The same is true of the saying, 'When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.' I have this approach to every aspect of my life. I feel that by looking at life in this way, our lives will become richer because we spend less time dwelling on the bad but instead using the bad to make some good.