the wisest words I ever heard? My father has given me many talks with tons of wise words. many of which I find myself giving to others. the one which I have said most in my life was this. "if you are not happy quiet" if you hate your job quiet. if you no longer love your partner leave. if you hate the place you are in, move. if you are not happy quite. there are always other jobs out there. I was not fully happy in the department I was in at my school. so I changed majors. I have never been happier. my grades, mood, and overall life. has proven it was the best choice I made. the worry I had with this advice was whether or not I could make the changes work. that's when my mother gave me the other wisest thing I have ever heard. "live your life how you want. travel, change majors, work a different job. you have nothing holding you down right now. so live your life" with that advice I started to work at camp 3 hours away from everyone I know. and I loved it! it becomes the place I will live one day. so the wisest things I have ever heard. are "if you are not happy quite" and "live your life while you still can"

how do I live with gratitude and appreciate what I have? well to appreciate what you have you first need to lose it. On December 1st, 2016 I lost my childhood home in a house fire. I was home alone at the age of 15. water, smoke, and fire took everything I ever had. thankfully I still had my family. no one was hurt in the fire. I got out of the house with no problem. I still lost everything. that house has since been rebuilt and I have remade my life. this experience has made me thankful for all I have. I hold my family closer. I appreciate the little things more. the value of what I have does not come from how much it was but how long I've had it. the few things that made it out of the house. are my most loved things. the world has a color to it I didn't notice before. i have never been more thankful for my home, then i am now.

How do I practice bravery and live boldly? There are so many ways one could answer that. I could tell you of my adventures overseas on vacation. I could write about how I scuba dive in the ocean off the coast of Mexico or how I explored rock climbing spots while working at camp. those would be the easy way to write this essay. Those are all bold and brave things, but real bravery is so much more. real bravery is standing up to someone when no one else will. being bold is stepping out of your comfort zone. I work at a summer camp. it's just your typical camp. we train for a few weeks, the kids come in, have fun, and then leave again. well, I live boldly by doing what looks impossible. one might not think that rock climbing training or lifeguard testing are that bold. but when your not the definition of fit it can be. when you never have done that before it's hard. rock climbing training is climbing up our manmade rock wall. I have worked at this camp going on 3 years now. the first year I worked there I could not even climb a bit of the wall. being bold and brave was trying again. climbing 7 feet up. (with help from one of my best co-workers giving me a step) being bold is swimming the 300 meters to be a lifeguard even tho I haven't swam in 7 years. being bold is still swimming giving it your all. when the track athlete gave up. when everyone else stops trying. being bold is giving it your all when you feel like you gonna fall. that's how I practice bravery and live boldly.