Thank Goodness

Thank goodness for leaders. There are those people in all of our lives that have had an impact for good as a leader or friend. I have the assignment in my American Sign Language class to sign for five to eight minutes about one influential person in my life. It has got me thinking about who those people are. The obvious ideas came first- my parents. My parents have taught me, if not everything, most of what I know to be true today. They have loved me and guided me since I was born and helped me shape my character and identity. My next thought was my Young Women leaders. I have become so close to all of my leaders over my many years being in Young Womens. Now, being the Laurel President it is especially evident to me how much they love each girl and are concerned for them. I can see how much effort goes into making sure that each of us feel as if we are welcome and safe in our classes.

The next people I thought of were my school teachers. There are varying ways in which these people have influenced me. Each of them in their own way reinforce that my desire to teach has purpose- I see it everyday. They must love it or they wouldn't put up with the job. In particular, I have been blessed with adults that have, like my parents, shaped me at a time in my life that is so important. My high school years develop who I will be for the rest of my life. I have a teacher this year, Ms. Hatch, that has taught me much more than AP Biology. She has taught me to have passion for everything that I love- to commit to those things which are important to me. She is LDS and I for this reason I feel a connection with her. But it is more than our religion that connects us because now that she has led me by her example she has formed a bond with me that she may never know is there. I'm grateful for her and how hard she pushes each of her students to make them the best they can be. Mrs. Evans, my choir teacher, has also been such a strong influence in my life. I want to "be her" when I grow up in the sense that I want to do the same job that she does and in the way that she does it. She too has a passion for life and for the things that are important to her. I have developed such a strong relationship with her over the past 3 years and she has taught me to have confidence and recognize beauty and talent in myself and in others.

I have so many people to thank for the person I am today. I've never really thought about the saying "it takes a village to raise a child" but i guess it really is true.