I journal throughout the day by writing down things that I am grateful for. Then I look back on the journal when I am feeling down and remind myself of everything I have to be thankful for. We all ought to take time out of our days to be grateful. Doing so will help to increase the overall quality of our lives. It will increase our mental and physical health, help improve our relationships and help us become more satisfied with our lives. There is no use pining after things you don't have when you could be enjoying everything right in front of you. Another way that I practice being grateful is by using mindfulness techniques. Mindfulness is when you pay attention to what is happening in the present, on purpose, with an attitude of acceptance or nonjudgment. You cannot change what is going on around you. You can only change your reaction to it. That is why practicing mindfulness helps with gratitude. Look at your situation and everything that you have from a neutral point of view. Then choose to be grateful for it.

Taking time to relax is very important for me because as a person, I get stressed really easily. In order for me to do this, I usually set aside time at the end of my day to read my Bible and listen to calming music. Other things that I do to destress include painting, drawing, reading, listening to music, and making collages. Letting myself get lost in artwork or a story helps me to take my mind off of what is going on around me. It helps me to change my perspective on the situation. That is why it is important for me to do these things. If you are constantly focusing on how much you are stressed, the amount of stress will only ever increase. Another thing that helps me to manage stress is journaling. Usually when I journal, I simply write down happy things that happen throughout the day. Sometimes there are a lot and sometimes there are none. However, whenever I feel really down/stressed, I can always look back on my journal entries and see how many good things have happened in my life.

The lessons that life throws at me can sometimes be unconventional. When I was growing up, I trained myself to be the perfect student, who would go on to be the perfect worker. However, now that I'm in college, I'm beginning to learn that doing that isn't always a good goal. Yes, being a good worker/student is important, but are you actually bringing something to the table? Are you completing tasks, or learning? This is what life has been teaching me lately. In high-school, they pushed us hard to decide what our future college major would be, and in turn, our career. This didn't work for me. I didn't have a dream job or college, and I changed my mind every day about what major I would choose. So instead I focused on my schoolwork, and making sure that I completed it to the best of my abilities. Finally, the day came where we applied for colleges. I applied to all of the colleges in the area, and a few others that I thought would maybe be a good fit for me. But I still didn't know what I wanted to do. So I chose at random. Now it might seem like I'm just rambling, but there is a heart to this story. Through this first year of college, deciding on my major has been really stressful. I came in as an engineering major, but soon discovered that that type of major put too much stress on me. Confused, and a little sad, I then decided to simply take a lot of interesting classes to see if there is any specific type of class that I like best. But honestly, I still don't know. And that's okay. I'm still finding who I am and what I want my future to look like. I might not know until I get there. My dad switched majors 2 or 3 times and is now in a job not remotely related to his degree. But he is successful and happy. You don't need to be perfect, you just need to try. I'm not ever going to be the perfect student, and I'm not ever going to be the perfect worker. But as long as I bring something valuable to the table, as long as I am always learning, and as long as I try my best, it will be okay.