“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us” (Gandalf, The Fellowship of the Ring). I am inspired! This is one of my favorite quotes of all time. It comes from my favorite book; The Lord of the Rings. This quote can be applied to my life. Sometimes I worry about death, but in the end, we all die. All I need to figure out is how I can positively impact the world with the time I have. As the quote can be applied to my life, so can the book. The book starts out with Frodo receiving the Ring from a begrudging Bilbo. Not knowing what to do with the Ring, Frodo is thrust onto his journey. Sometimes in life, I do not always want to begin a new journey, I want to stay in my comfort zone. The book teaches me to be more open to new experiences. Great journeys cannot happen if I live in fear. By the Council of Elrond, Frodo meets the crew; his Ring destruction companions. Even though he does not trust all of them at first, as the story progresses they start to depend on each other. I learn from the Fellowship of the Ring how to be a great friend. I need to put myself out there and except, as well as return, love. Climbing Mount Doom, Frodo cannot go on by himself. Tired and worn from the burden of the Ring, he collapses. It is only because of his great companion, Samwise Gamgee, that Frodo can complete his mission. I must learn to accept others help. It is only through the help of others that I can make it through this life. This is why The Lord of the Rings is my favorite book.

"Maria, you could save soooo much money!! Apply, apply, apply" my father tells me. I groan; this is the third time I have heard my dad tell me this in the past two days. I can just feel a headache forming. "Do you think he realizes it is the weekend and I am trying to enjoy myself? Nope, probably not." The most helpful piece of financial advice I have received came from my dad was to apply for scholarships. My dad has always been very supportive of my plan of furthering my education after high school. However, my father, realizing how expensive college/universities are has made it his mission to inform me of the whole college-prep-ordeal. Yes, I will admit I have not always received my dad's post-high school lectures most openly. Seven year old me cared very little about such things during the summer! Yet, as the years have gone on as they do, I have found that I appreciate my dad and his advice more and more. He has told me from the time I was in middle school up until today to apply for as many scholarships as I can. Even though there are still times I get tired of my dad's lectures, I know he has good intentions. I know I could not make it through high school without my dad, his advice, and his support. So, if I were asked to give a younger person financial advice, after I told them the importance of good grades, I would tell them to apply for as many scholarships as possible. And I can just picture my dad smiling as I said it!

I think the biggest problem facing the world right now is political divide and political intolerance. We can say in today's world has gotten more tolerant, but of what? Color? Race? Fashion extremes? No, the world has not gotten more tolerant. Opposing ideas are rarely tolerated or appreciated. Something that makes the world a better place is peoples' different ideas and beliefs. Instead people shut others of differing opinions calling them "bigots."This intolerance cannot go on. Society must stop claiming to be tolerant of everyone and then shut some down for their political or moral or social beliefs. Society needs to start teaching children to have open conversations, where everyone's ideas and opinions can be heard. From a young age, people must be taught to civilly debate. Being tolerant does not mean agreeing with everything another believes, however, it does mean respecting their right to their opinions and beliefs.