A Meal to Remember by reese

A Meal to Remember by reese - October 2017 Scholarship Essay

Most presidents have already developed their opinions and have most likely considered the other side to every argument. If I was able to have dinner with any President I would not want to waste it trying to convince them off my beliefs or understand theirs further. Taking this into consideration, the U.S President that I would like to have dinner with would be Barack Obama. I have grown up seeing him on the television and in news articles so it would be very interesting to have a conversation with him and get some advice. Obama has always been able to hold his composure and speak very well which are skill I can definitely improve on. President Obama’s composure, humor, and generosity would all be the reason I would want to have dinner with him.

Since I was eight years old I have watched Obama changed a lot in the United States. I have seen him allow gay people a right to fight in the military, get married, and much more. I have also seen the development of Obama Care and the United States recovery from the 2008 housing crash. My family and I have witnessed the downfall of war in Afghanistan and much more. All of these things must have been difficult to do and I would love to ask how he handled it all. He definitely had to stand up for his beliefs and remain calm to get these done. Seeing him in the spotlight for all these years I have seen that he is very good at keeping his composure and focus. If I was able to go to dinner with Obama I would ask him how he was able to to hold back and remain focused when speaking about something he was passionate about?

Along with being a good and serious speaker Obama was also able to speak in very humourous settings. Growing up in an era with social media President Obama was very good at connecting with the younger generations. Not only did I see Obama read Mean Tweets with Jimmy Kimmel but I also saw a video of Obama recreating the social media joke ‘thanks Obama’. Even during less serious conferences he would crack a few jokes in between his speeches. He appears to have a very good sense of humor that I did not see as much when I was younger. If I was able to have dinner with President Obama I would ask him how he was able to remain humourous when his job was not always pleasant?

Throughout his time in office both President Obama and the First Lady conducted many acts that I personally felt were generous. Almost a year ago, I remember watching a video where President Obama was allowing refugees from Syria to come over to the United States. There have also been many photos of Obama going to local school and even inviting young kids into the White House for a visit. Being generous must have been very hard after seeing so much hate in the world, especially in the last few years. Being at dinner with President Obama I would ask him how he managed to still find goodness in people with so much hate in the world?

Overall, if I was able to go to dinner with President Obama I would have many personal questions and less political ones. Presidents are still people and I would love to understand the aspects that made him a good person not just a good leader. Obama’s composure, humor, and generosity would be the main reasons I would choose to go to dinner with him instead of any
other president. I would hopefully learn a lot about how to be a stronger person and hold myself better. There will be many presidents down the line but Obama has defiantly left his mark on America and his mark on me.