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I interviewed Alvin and Sarah Wilson who are originally from Ghana, West Africa. They lived their for around 30 years before coming to the U.S. and they help to bring a very different outlook on life and our country.

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Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

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Holidays are something we take very seriously in America. We have Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas, just to name a few. Christmas is my favorite holiday. I wait patiently for November so that I can decorate my room with trees and Christmas candles. My favorite thing about Christmas is decorating the house and the tree, and getting to see where everyone else has done the same. There is something about the cold air and colored lights that make me happy. We sing holiday songs with our friends, some of us go on vacation.  But for me, staying home and opening gifts with family on Christmas morning and recognizing the love you have for one another is what makes it so special.

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Daily life can look different for any family in the U.S. But as a general rule, adults have 40 hour work weeks to provide for their families, while children and college aged students are going to school. During the week Students will come home and complete an assignment or finish homework and maybe have family dinner and the adults will catch up on any events or housework they have missed during the busy week.  On weekends the family may choose to have some sort of family outing or simply to do something on their own after a long week of school and work. We have to be careful not to let ourselves get too caught up in life that we don’t have any fun. If we don’t allow ourselves to be free, even a little, it will have an effect on everything we do.

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Clothing is such a huge part of expression and identity in the U.S.

People dress differently to show how they feel on the inside and what they are going through. There are fashion trends that are constantly changing and evolving to a point it can become hard to keep up with them. There are timeless pieces you can never go wrong with that while they may never be in style, they are also never out of style. The way people dress greatly affects our society even down to how some people are treated. If you are wearing the nicest newest clothes you are looked at as better than someone with the old, worn outfit. When in reality it's about who you really are that matters.

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The United States was founded on freedom of religion. A freedom that allows us to worship whomever and however we see fit.  In the physical sense, plugging into a local assembly of like-minded believers grows a person's personal network of relationships. While spiritually you find hope, peace and purpose. That type of fulfillment has such positive effects on a person's everyday life and carries over no matter the environment.

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Music in American culture is much deeper than a melody and lyrics that just happen to be placed together, but music is a release. A release of emotion, be it happy, sad or confused. It helps us to connect with how we really feel and be in tune with ourselves, as a writer or as a listener. Music is a very special thing for me, it helps me every day, whether I need to be calmed down because I'm anxious, or I'm happy and it helps encourage that. Music is such a huge part of my daily life. My brothers play instruments and I love to sing, so my whole life I have been surrounded with music. It's like therapy to me and many others. Without music I can’t even imagine our country. At every ballgame we sing the national anthem. It would change the course of everything we know. I am thankful to live in a world where I can express myself in such a beautiful way, aren't you?

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Sports play a huge part in American identity and culture. Most of us, from the time we are young, play a sport, whether it be for school or recreation. Baseball is my favorite sport. I played softball for two seasons in middle school and it truly, unlike any other sport, interests me. At the end of every season, the two teams who played the best will compete against each other in what's called “The World Series”.  It consists of seven games, and whichever team wins four of the seven is the champion. Last year my favorite team, The Atlanta Braves won “The World Series'' against The Houston Astros. Any sport is such a fun way to be involved to get to understand America even better.

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What is "The American Dream" (307 words)

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What is "The American Dream" (307 words)

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“The American Dream” to most people, I feel, looks the same. Both parents with a college education working a full time job, living in the biggest house, driving the best cars and their children in the best schools. These things to most people are what defines “happiness” and “living the dream”. I, however, think it's different than that. Success shouldn't be measured in a college education, or how much money we make in a year or what kind of car we drive, but rather in true happiness. I think people get so caught up in what they think life should look like that they lose sight of what is best for themselves and their families. I personally want to go to college and I would love to have a family, but if that changes I want to listen to my heart because it's not about what people think it should look like but rather what is best for me. If my friend is happy making one million dollars a year, and i'm happy only making fifty-thousand, shouldn't our happiness be what matters and not the money in our bank account? If I'm a career waitress and my neighbor owns a business, why does that make them any more successful than me if I'm happy?

Albert Schweitzer once said: “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”

So I believe that if you have a passion to go to school and be a brain surgeon and that's what makes you happy, do it. And if you are truly happy waiting tables at your hometown restaurant and that's what you want to do, do it. I want people to see that success shouldn't be measured by other people, only by how you feel.

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How my travels have affected me (303 words)

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How my travels have affected me (303 words)

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I have been to beaches and mountains, lakes and cities, all along the east coast. But by far one of the most memorable trips I have been on was Washington D.C. in July of 2020.

I was one of the few people who had the chance to witness what will be in history books. Windows were boarded up and broken from riots. There were signs and posters up either in protest or support for our president at the time, there were local men preaching in the streets, Black Lives Matter signs covering every window. I remember there was a fence surrounding the streets of the White House and everywhere you looked people were in masks because of the ongoing pandemic. I had never seen such a vivid, but also sad depiction of what America had become. As I went to the monuments and read about what our country was founded on, I walked back to the hotel  looking around only to see how much things have changed. It seemed nobody believed we were equal, nobody had love in their hearts. “How did we get here?” I would ask myself. It seemed almost unreal. But, it was the kind encounters we had with people on the streets, who showed us love despite race or beliefs that made me realize, maybe it isn't all bad. I remember the man who sat on the corner across from our hotel, he would sit there for most of the day talking to people and just sharing kind words. That's what the world needs more of. People who are willing to be kind and show love.

It encouraged me, and made me want to show love to those who may not see it anywhere else, because you never know whose heart you are touching by simply being kind.