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The movie “Forrest Gump” taught me that all types of people experience the ups and downs of life…

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The movie “Forrest Gump” taught me that all types of people experience the ups and downs of life…

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I am lucky enough to live in New Providence, a wealthy town with a great education system. I live in a nice house and love my group of friends. Despite everything I have to be thankful for, I still deal with many problems life throws my way. Instances socially, academically, emotionally, etc. have all been a struggle for me at some time or another. Because I am healthy and privileged, it is hard for me to imagine someone less fortunate, or someone with a disability to deal with life’s issue on top of their own. Forrest Gump showed a main with a low IQ who managed to live a life of adventure and accomplishments. Despite the movie not being based on a true story, it sends the message that one can achieve anything if they set their mind to it. Forrest, instead of being conquered by his illness, was determined to live a full life. After fighting in the army and winning the highest ranked award, he started a millionaire dollar shrimp company and wound up marrying and having a child with his childhood best friend. This movie showed me people can overcome adversity, and that nothing is impossible with a little hard work.

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“Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” by Jeff Buckley is the song that changed not only how I view love, but how I view heart break…

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“Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” by Jeff Buckley is the song that changed not only how I view love, but how I view heart break…

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Heartbreak is something every human experiences. It is described as the worst feeling in the world, because not only are you losing someone you love, but you’re losing a best friend. The intensity of these feelings is often hard to comprehend until one experiences it themselves. Jeff Buckley explains the depth of his emotions for whatever girl he is singing about; that taught me about love, and about heartbreak. When you truly love somebody it is extremely hard to say goodbye. Love is a rare thing and you become very attached to your significant other. Between sharing hobbies and memories together, couples are a big part of each other’s lives. Jeff Buckley sings about his heart break in “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over”. He describes how “a tear will hang inside his soul forever” and basically says how hard he is trying to forget this girl but can’t because of how much he loves her. I’ve learned that despite how string live is, it is always not enough to make a relationship work. Expressing emotions is a healthy way to cope with heart break, and knowing that all people, even Jeff Buckley, feel that sort of pain. Pain is inevitable but the passion love brings is worth its pain. Jeff Buckley’s music makes me for a love as passionate as he describes. It is hard to imagine loving someone so much that the amount you miss them elicits such beautiful words and melodies.

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The novel “Looking for Alaska” by John Green developed my perception of life…

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The novel “Looking for Alaska” by John Green developed my perception of life…

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The last year of high school comes with many questions. One begins to wonder where they will go to school next year, how they will fit in socially and academically; that leads to the even harder questions: what is my future, what am I meant to do and who am I mean to be? Why am I here? Main character Miles “Pudge” Halter from the novel “Looking for Alaska” asks himself these questions as he prepares to go away to a new school. He talks about searching for his “Great Perhaps”, which he defines as his reason to be alive, or his greatest adventure. Ever since I read the words “Great Perhaps” I became invested in the idea of finding something or someone that made me feel fulfilled. Through this journey, I have realized that happiness comes from within and there are times where this can be a hard thing to obtain. As I get older I realize all humans, no matter how different, experience the same emotions and bad days. In the novel, John Green wrote “It always shocked me when I realized that I wasn’t the only person in the world who thought and felt such strange and awful things.” This quote was one of many that made me love the book so much. John Green succeeds in making relatable teenage characters, who are lost and confused by the world. Because this is such a familiar concept for someone my age, I found comfort in the writing and loved reading ever since. My love for books turned into my passion for writing, and it all started with John Green and his stories. They made me feel less alone, and introduced me to how extremely fascinating life can be.

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Musical group “The Grateful Dead” wrote melodies and lyrics that make me appreciate being alive…

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Musical group “The Grateful Dead” wrote melodies and lyrics that make me appreciate being alive…

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Above all, my main philosophy in life is to simply enjoy it. Coming from a high school student who desperately wants to be on her own, happiness is often hard for me to feel. Like I said in previous paragraphs, all people experience the ups and downs of life and I am one of them. Being a teenager is something I think adults tend to forget what is like. We are at the most awkward stage in our lives; experiencing love for the first time, figuring out what we want to be and who we are- I’m getting anxiety just thinking about it- and it is music that has kept me going and taught me that real beauty and happiness exists. For example, when I turn on a Grateful Dead song, I’m instantly drawn into the upbeat melodies and mind boggling lyrics. The Grateful Dead, among many other classic rock bands have written and performed beautiful music, and remind me that nothing can ever be that bad with a little music.

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Grateful Dead & Jerry Garcia Concert Photography by Robbi Cohn