Those Who Have Influened Me

There have been quite a few people that have influenced my life in many different ways. Some may have been little things, and some may have been big things. But they all have done a part to change my life. Two main people come to my mind when I think of this, though.

My middle school Physical Education teacher, Mrs. Weller, has influenced me in many ways. I am a junior in high school now, and I can still go to her about anything. She will always be there for me. She supports  the team and I in volleyball, always puts my family in her prayers, and is just someone I can talk to. Mrs. Weller is one of those people who will always be kind to you. This has showed me that you shouldn't judge people, and you should always give someone a chance. To get respect you have to earn it. Another thing that is actually kind of silly to think about is that she has given me hope with my sports. I remember when she told us that she had played volleyball in college as an outside hitter. I got so excited because that is my position, and I always thought that I was too short to go any further than high school. But she isn't much taller than I am! So she showed me that with hard work and determination, you can achieve many goals that you hadn't even dreamed of.

The person who has influenced my life the most is my dad. He is one of the most hard working people I know. He always does his best to do everything he can for my family. My dad is one of the reasons that my brothers and I have pretty good success with sports. He will research all he can to find out ways for us to get better. I mean sometimes I do complain, because I tend to get a bit lazy sometimes. But it has all worked out in the end. Recently, we were informed that he had a tumor in his brain. And of course instead of having us sit in the hospital with him, he made us go to school and all of our sporting events. His favorite thing to hear us talk about when we came to visit were our sports. He would get the biggest smile on his face when we would say something good. If it was something bad, he would just say something about how it happens and we just need to fix it. I remember that I came into the hospital room fuming because we had just lost to Moline, and we totally should have won. I freaked out and just laughed at me. I was so upset. I yelled "Why are you laughing?! It's not funny!" But I realize now that this taught me a huge lesson in life. There will always be ups and downs in life, but you just have to go with it. If you live your life in sadness, anger, or fear, then you aren't getting much out of it. So even though my dad is going through this, he always looks for the positive things. This has taught me the biggest lesson of my life. There are always people who have it worse out there. So embrace what you have, and make the most of it.

Nature Around Me

As I step outside, sunlight floods over my body and into my eyes. The chirping of black birds flows through my ears. Every step I take brown leaves that have fallen off from the trees above crunch beneath my shoes. A lot of the trees around have close to no leaves left at all. Although, some are full of orange, red, and even yellow leaves. A light wind blows my hair and rustles the leaves across the dry, green grass. The crisp, fresh air fills my nose. It is much nicer than the stuffy, old school building I was in just before this. A few cars go by, but not many. One car honks its loud horn as it passes. Big gusts of wind have started to blow through the space outside. The leaves are uncontrollable and fly everywhere. My hair and even my paper soar in the direction of the wind. I notice that not many people are out, and it is such a beautiful day. No rain is falling down, and the sky is very clear. But this does not surprise me considering the way society is. We don't just sit out side these days and embrace the marvelous nature. I am guilty of this, too. I usually don't come out to sit and write like I am doing now, but if I may say so, it is quite nice.

When I breath in the fresh air, I begin to feel calm and relaxed. My mind always begins to wonder, but I keep calm. Some of my thoughts are happy and make me smile to myself. But I also have anger and sadness spinning through my head at times. Even with all these emotions, I stay calm. The relaxing features of the nature keep me this way. Normally when I get thinking in a way like this, I get upset. It is hard for me to relax. It is strange for me to be able to relax for a long moment like this, it is actually very nice. I am amazed at what this relaxing atmosphere has the ability to do with my emotions. I sit here and think, but I always stay calm.