Every Day by Patrick

Every Day by Patrick - January 2016 Scholarship Essay

Whether we want to admit it or not, each New Year provides us with the opportunity to change ourselves. The endless resolutions we immerse ourselves in hopes that we can be the very best we are. It is a blank slate to reinvent ourselves and become a better version of ourselves than we were a year ago. I see each New Year as a prospect to improve my abilities as a student, especially focusing on practicing gratitude. Often as students, we take for granted the resources and people in our lives, such as caring friends or even teachers who do everything for us. We are all caught up in the whirlwind of grades and stress and lose sight of what matters. I have seen myself taking even insignificant things for granted. One resolution I have this year is to practicing gratitude, to be grateful for encouraging teachers, to a supportive family, and to caring friends. This year, practicing gratitude helps put into perspective what matters the most – learning to be grateful for the resources and people available. At the end of the day, being thankful for everything in my life is what gets me through the year.

There is an art to practicing gratitude, to wake up each day of the year and be thankful for the things in my life. I take each New Year as a door of opportunity to do so. Beginning each day as a blank page to fill in with all the things I am grateful for. I have the resolution of waking up each morning and telling myself five things I am grateful for. Whether it is having a close family to having an inspirational photo teacher to being alive and taking into full power the opportunities I have for me. I want to learn to appreciate the things I have before aiming for more. As a student, having a resolution of practicing gratitude is what helps me focus on the right things, such as taking each day with no regrets and learning to seize opportunities that come my way. Also, learning to take risks and developing my own voice. The beauty behind it all is that whenever I lose focus on what matters I look at the things I am grateful for to snap back into the reality of life. Having this focus is essential for helping me grow as a person, especially transitioning to college.

Both in the short and long run, my resolution of practicing gratitude has its benefits. In the short run, practicing gratitude each morning sets me up with the right mindset. It leads to productivity and the motivation to take on goals. I want to make 2016 the best year yet, and I know I can accomplish that by taking the time to be thankful for everything in my life. Practicing gratitude shapes me to become a young man with the ability to not take things for granted no matter now insignificant they seem to be. As I approach college, practicing gratitude everyday sets me up with the skills to be happy and focused despite all the odds I face. I realized that there are always silver linings in the bad days, no matter how small they are. I want to grasp onto the things that truly matter.

With each passing second, I never know what will happen. Whether things go smoothly or whether life comes crashing down, I only know that each second is a chance to practice gratitude. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” I know that practicing gratitude every day is what makes life worth it. The indispensable seconds that slowly move from hours to days are what make the year. I take each day to keep my resolution of practicing gratitude to the best of my abilities. I will always remember that every day is an opportunity to start fresh, not waiting for a New Year to do so.