Is It More Valuable Than Good Health - 1316 Words

There is nothing more valuable than good health. Most people would agree that one of the biggest aspects in their lives is trying to manage and improve their well-being. An interesting aspect of health is that everyone has a different view of what it is, whilst sharing a recurrent theme. A common misconception about health is that its main focus deals with illnesses. Personally, I believe the term health refers to living a happy lifestyle physically and emotionally. In addition, I think health is impacted by our surroundings such as our peers and the environment that we live in. I take my health very seriously, as it plays an important part in my daily life. As far as I am concerned, without my health I would not be able to do simple†¦show more content†¦I experience this by many different physical activities such as my passion for weightlifting. I go to the gym five to six days a week, working on different body parts throughout the week. In my opinion, I feel lifting weight s not only helps physically, but mentally as well. In the gym, I am always pushing myself to do more in weight and repetitions. It is also mentally taxing because some days I will have muscle soreness, and I have to motivate myself to go workout. Prior to when I got into weightlifting, I always felt sluggish and out of shape which was embarrassing. In addition, I also work on my cardiovascular health by participating in recreational activities like basketball and hockey. Similarly to weight lifting, they are just as mentally exhausting. Recently, I have noticed that none of my friends are able to keep up with the pace that I can execute in sports, owning to the fact that I am always trying to improve my strength and cardio. Undoubtably, I cannot discount a healthy diet. A healthy diet plays a massive role in my physical health. Without eating healthy, I wouldn’t be able to perform to the best of my abilities in the gym, playing sports or in most everyday activities. Everyday I try to keep track of how many grams of proteins, carbs and fats I eat during the day. . Admittedly, some days I eat better than others. There are some days where I will perform little to zero physical activity or I won’t eat

Battle of Marathon in the Persian Wars

The Battle of Marathon was fought during the Persian Wars (498 BC–448 BC) between Greece and the Persian Empire. Date Using a proleptic Julian calendar, it is believed that the Battle of Marathon was fought on either August or September 12, 490 BC. Armies Commanders Greeks MilitiadesCallimachusArimnestusapprox. 8,000-10,000 men Persians DatisArtaphernes20,000-60,000 men Background In the wake of the Ionian Revolt (499 BC-494 BC), the emperor of the Persian Empire, Darius I, dispatched an army to Greece to punish those city-states that had aided the rebels. Led by Mardonius, this force succeeded in subjugating Thrace and Macedonia in 492 BC. Moving south towards Greece, Mardonius fleet was wrecked off Cape Athos during a massive storm. Losing 300 ships and 20,000 men in the disaster, Mardonius elected to withdraw back towards Asia. Displeased with Mardonius failure, Darius began planning a second expedition for 490 BC after learning of political instability in Athens. Conceived as a purely maritime enterprise, Darius assigned command of the expedition to the Median admiral Datis and the son of the satrap of Sardis, Artaphernes. Sailing with orders to attack Eretria and Athens, the fleet succeeded in sacking and burning their first objective. Moving south, the Persians landed near Marathon, approximately 25 miles north of Athens. Responding to the impending crisis, Athens raised around 9,000 hoplites and dispatched them to Marathon where they blocked the exits from the nearby plain and prevented the enemy from moving inland. They were joined by 1,000 Plataeans and assistance was requested from Sparta. Encamping on the edge of the Plain of Marathon, the Greeks faced a Persian force numbering between 20-60,000. Enveloping the Enemy For five days the armies squared off with little movement. For the Greeks, this inactivity was largely due to a fear of being attacked by the Persian cavalry as they crossed the plain. Finally, the Greek commander, Miltiades, elected to attack after receiving favorable omens. Some sources also indicate that Militiades had learned from Persian deserters that the cavalry was away from the field. Forming his men, Militiades reinforced his wings by weakening his center. This saw the center reduced to ranks four deep while the wings featured men eight deep. This may have been due to the Persians tendency to place inferior troops on their flanks. Moving a brisk pace, possibly a run, the Greeks advanced across the plain towards the Persian camp. Surprised by the Greeks audacity, the Persians rushed to form their lines and inflict damage on the enemy with their archers and slingers. As the armies clashed, the thinner Greek center was quickly pushed back. The historian Herodotus reports that their retreat was disciplined and organized. Pursuing the Greek center, the Persians quickly found themselves flanked on both sides by Militiades strengthened wings which had routed their opposite numbers. Having caught the enemy in a double envelopment, the Greeks began to inflict heavy casualties on the lightly armored Persians. As panic spread in the Persian ranks, their lines began to break and they fled back to their ships. Pursuing the enemy, the Greeks were slowed by their heavy armor, but still managed to capture seven Persian ships. Aftermath Casualties for the Battle of Marathon are generally listed as 203 Greek dead and 6,400 for the Persians. As with most battles from this period, these numbers are suspect. Defeated, the Persians departed from the area and sailed south to attack Athens directly.   Anticipating this, Militiades quickly returned the bulk of the army to the city. Seeing that the opportunity to strike the previously lightly-defended city had passed, the Persians withdrew back to Asia. The Battle of Marathon was the first major victory for the Greeks over the Persians and gave them confidence that they could be defeated. Ten years later the Persians returned and won a victory at Thermopylae before being defeated by the Greeks at Salamis. The Battle of Marathon also gave rise to the legend that the Athenian herald Pheidippides ran from the battlefield to Athens to announce the Greek victory before dropping dead. This legendary run is the basis for the modern track and field event. Herodotus contradicts this legend and states that Pheidippides ran from Athens to Sparta to seek aid before the battle. Selected Sources Battle of MarathonPersian Wars: Battle of Marathon

The Secret Circle The Power Chapter Eleven Free Essays

string(34) " in the last second of her dream\." From the start, this dream was clearer than the others. Or maybe it was Cassie that was clearer; more calm, more aware of what was happening. Saltwater slapped her face; she swallowed some. We will write a custom essay sample on The Secret Circle: The Power Chapter Eleven or any similar topic only for you Order Now It was so cold she couldn’t feel her hands or feet. Going down. She was going to drown . . . but not die. With the last of her will she sent her spirit to the place prepared for it†¦ to the skull on the island. Some of her power had been left in the skull already; now she herself would go to join it. And someday, when the time was right, when enough of her body diffused through the sea and washed up on the island, she would live again. Good dreams, I wanted good dreams, Cassie thought frantically as the water closed over her head. A shifting †¦ Sunlight blinded her. â€Å"You and Kate may go play in the garden,† the kind voice said. Yes. She’d made it. She was here. The garden was in back. Cassie turned to the back door. â€Å"Jacinth! What have you forgotten?† Cassie paused, confused. She had no idea. The tall woman in Puritan dress was looking down at the floor. There, on the clean pine boards, lay the red leather Book of Shadows. Cassie remembered now; it had dropped off her lap when she stood up. â€Å"I’m sorry, Mother.† The word came so naturally to her lips. And her eyes had adjusted – but she couldn’t figure out where the book was supposed to go. Somewhere special . . . where? Then she saw the loose brick in the fireplace. â€Å"Much better,† the tall woman said, as Cassie slid the book into the hole and plugged it up with the brick. â€Å"Always remember, Jacinth: we must never grow careless. Not even here in New Salem, where all our neighbors are our own kind. Now run along to the garden.† Kate was already going out the door. In the sunshine outside, Cassie noticed that Kate’s hair was just the color of Diana’s: not really gold, but a paler color like pure light. Kate’s eyes were golden too, like sunshine. She was altogether a golden girl. â€Å"Sky and sea, keep harm from me,† she laughed, twirling, looking over the herb bushes to the blue expanse of the ocean beyond the cliff. There was no wall in this time – it hadn’t been built yet. Then she darted forward to pick something. â€Å"Just smell this lavender,† she said, holding out a bunch to Cassie. â€Å"Isn’t it sweet?† But Cassie was hovering by the open door. Two other people had come into the kitchen; Kate’s mother and father, she guessed. They were talking in low, urgent voices. â€Å"†¦ news just came. The ship went down,† the man was saying. There was an exclamation of joy and surprise from Jacinth’s mother. â€Å"Then he is dead!† The man shook his head, but Cassie didn’t hear the next few words. She was afraid to be caught listening and sent away. â€Å". . . the skull . . .† she heard, and â€Å"†¦ can never tell. . . come back †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"And this jasmine,† Kate was singing. â€Å"Isn’t it wonderful?† Cassie wanted to tell her to shut up. Then she heard words that raised the hair on her arms, even in the hot sunshine. â€Å". . . hide them,† Kate’s mother was saying. â€Å"But where?† That was it. Where, where? If this dream had any meaning, it was to tell Cassie this. Kate was trying to put an arm around her waist, to get her to smell the jasmine, but Cassie grabbed her hand to hold her still and strained to listen. The adults were arguing softly: exclamations of worry and disagreement came to Cassie’s ears. â€Å"Could we not †¦ ?† â€Å"No, not there . . .† â€Å"But where, then?† â€Å"Oh, mercy, my bread is burning!† And then, soft laughter. â€Å"Of course! We should have thought of it earlier.† Where? Fending Kate off, Cassie twisted to try and look into the kitchen. â€Å"Jacinth, what’s wrong with you?† Kate cried. â€Å"You’re not listening to a word I’m saying. Jacinth, look at me!† Desperately, Cassie stared into the dark kitchen. It was too dark. The dream was fading. No. She had to hang on to it. She had to see the end. Grandmother, help me, she thought. Help me see †¦ â€Å"Jacinth!† Darker and darker – Long skirts rustling, moving out of the way. And just a glimpse †¦ â€Å"The old hiding place,† Jacinth’s mother said in a satisfied voice. â€Å"Until they are needed again.† Darkness took Cassie. She woke confused. At first, she couldn’t remember what she’d been looking for in the dream. She remembered the dream, though. Who was Jacinth? An ancestress? One of her great-great-great-great-great-grandmothers, she supposed. And Kate? Then she remembered her purpose. The Master Tools. The members of the first coven had hidden them from Black John, because they’d known he might come back. Cassie had gone into the dream to find out where, and she had succeeded. She’d wondered why Black John had come after her grandmother the night he was released. Not just for the Book of Shadows, she realized now; not just because he’d known her mother and grandmother before. He’d wanted something else from her grandmother. He’d wanted the Master Tools. But her grandmother hadn’t known where they were. Cassie felt sure that if she had, the old woman would have told Cassie. All her grandmother had known was that her own grandmother, Cassie’s great-great-grandmother, had told her the fireplace was a good place to hide things. And now, because of the dream, Cassie knew that the loose brick had already been a hiding place in Jacinth’s time. But there had only been one loose brick, and nothing but the Book of Shadows had been stored behind it. Cassie knew that, and she knew that the original coven had been looking for a long-term solution, a place to put the Master Tools â€Å"until they were needed† by some future generation. Not just a loose brick, then. Cassie thought about the glimpse of the hearth she’d gotten between the women’s skirts in the last second of her dream. You read "The Secret Circle: The Power Chapter Eleven" in category "Essay examples" The fireplace had been a different shape than it was in modern days. Cassie lay for a few moments in the velvet darkness. Then she rolled over and gently shook Diana’s shoulder. â€Å"Diana, wake up. I know where the Master Tools are.† They woke Adam by throwing pebbles at his window. The three of them went to Number Twelve armed with a pickax, a sledgehammer, several regular hammers and screwdrivers, a crowbar, and Raj. The German shepherd trotted happily along beside Cassie, looking as if this kind of expedition in the wee hours was just what he liked. The waning moon was high overhead when they got to Cassie’s grandmother’s house. Inside, it seemed even colder than outside, and there was a stillness about the place that dampened Cassie’s enthusiasm. â€Å"There,† she whispered, pointing to the left side of the hearth, where bricks had been added since the time of her dream. â€Å"That’s where it’s different. That’s where they must have bricked them up.† â€Å"Too bad we don’t have a jackhammer,† Adam said cheerfully, picking up the crowbar. He seemed undisturbed by the chill and the silence, and in the sickly artificial light of the kitchen his hair gleamed just the color of the garnets in Diana’s pouch. Raj sat beside Cassie, his black and tan tail whisking across the kitchen floor. Looking at the two of them made Cassie feel better. It took a long time. Cassie grazed her knuckles helping to chip the ancient mortar away, using a screwdriver like a chisel. But at last the bricks began to drop onto the cold ashes of the hearth, as one after another was pried out. Each was a different color; some red, some orange, some almost purple-black. â€Å"There’s definitely something in here,† Adam said, reaching inside the hole they’d made. â€Å"But we’ll have to get rid of a few more bricks to get it out†¦. There!† He started to reach again, then looked at Cassie. â€Å"Why don’t you do the honors? It’s okay, there’s nothing alive inside.† Cassie, who didn’t want to encounter a three-hundred-year-old cockroach, nodded at him gratefully. She reached inside and her hand closed on something smooth and cool. It was so heavy she had to use both hands to lift it out. â€Å"A document box,† Diana whispered, when Cassie set the thing on the floor in front of the fireplace. It looked like a treasure chest to Cassie, a little treasure chest made of leather and brass. â€Å"People used them to store important documents in the 1600s,† Diana went on. â€Å"We got Black John’s papers and things out of one like it. Go on, Cassie, open it.† Cassie looked at her, then at Adam leaning on his pickax, his face decorated with soot. Her fingers trembled as she opened the little box. What if she’d been wrong? What if it wasn’t the Master Tools in here at all, but only some old documents? What if – Inside the box, looking fresh and untouched as if they’d been buried yesterday, were a diadem, a bracelet, and a garter. â€Å"Oh,† breathed Diana. Cassie knew the diadem that the Circle always used was silver. The one in the box was silver too, but it looked softer, somehow; more heavy and rich, with a deeper luster. Both it and the bracelet looked crafted; there was nothing machine-made about them. Every stroke of the bracelet’s inscriptions, every intricate twist of the diadem’s circlet, showed an artist’s hand. The leather of the garter was supple, and instead of one silver buckle, it had seven. It was heavy in Cassie’s hand. Wordlessly, Diana reached out one finger to trace the crescent moon of the diadem. â€Å"The Master Tools,† Adam said quietly. â€Å"After all that searching, they were right here under our noses.† â€Å"So much power,† Diana whispered. â€Å"I’m surprised they sat here so quietly. I’d have thought they’d be kicking up a psychic disturbance – † She broke off and looked at Cassie. â€Å"Didn’t you say something about it being hard to sleep here?† â€Å"Creaks and rattles all night long,† Cassie said, and then she met Diana’s eyes. â€Å"Oh. You mean – you think †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I don’t think it was the house settling,† Diana said briefly. â€Å"Tools this powerful can make all sorts of strange things happen.† Cassie shut her eyes, disgusted with herself. â€Å"How could I have been so stupid? It was so simple. I should have guessed – â€Å" â€Å"Everything’s always simple in hindsight,† Adam said dryly. â€Å"Nobody guessed where the tools were, not even Black John. Which reminds me: I don’t think we’d better tell Faye anything about this.† The two girls looked at him, then Diana nodded slowly. â€Å"She told Black John about the amethyst. I’m afraid you’re right; she can’t be trusted.† â€Å"I don’t think we should tell anyone† Cassie said. â€Å"Not yet, anyway. Not until we decide what we’re going to do with them. The fewer people who know about this, the safer we are.† â€Å"Right,† said Adam. He began replacing the bricks in the fireplace. â€Å"If we leave everything looking fairly normal, and find a good place to hide that box before morning, no one should ever know we’ve found them.† â€Å"Here.† Cassie dropped the garter back in the chest and put the chest into Diana’s hands. â€Å"Faye’s got the other ones; these are yours.† â€Å"They belong to the coven leader – â€Å" â€Å"The coven leader is a jerk,† Cassie said. â€Å"These are yours, Diana. I found them and I say so.† Adam turned from his brick-replacing, and the three of them looked at each other in the light of the cold, quiet kitchen. They were all dirty; even Diana’s beautiful cheekbones bore gray smudges. Cassie was still sore and exhausted from what had been one of the longest and most horrible days in her life. But at that moment she felt a warmth and closeness that swept the pain and fatigue away. They were – connected, all three of them. They were part of each other. And tonight they had won. They had triumphed. If Diana hadn’t forgiven us, where would we be? Cassie wondered, as she looked down at the hearth again. I’m glad you’re the one who has him; I really am, she thought then. Glancing up, she saw that Diana had tears in her eyes, almost as if she knew what Cassie was thinking. â€Å"AH right. I’ll accept them for now – until it’s time to use them,† Diana said. â€Å"This is finished,† Adam said. They gathered up their tools and left the house. It was when they were driving back to Adam’s that they saw the silhouette beside the road. â€Å"Black John,† Cassie hissed, stiffening. â€Å"I don’t think so,† Adam said, pulling over. â€Å"Too little. In fact, I think it’s Sean.† It was Sean. He was dressed in jeans and a pajama top and he looked very sleepy. â€Å"What’s going on?† he said, his small black eyes darting under heavy lids. â€Å"I saw a light over at Cassie’s house, and then I saw a car coming out of the driveway †¦ I thought you guys were Black John.† â€Å"It was brave of you to come out alone,† Cassie said, remembering her vow to be kinder to Sean, and pushing away a flicker of uneasiness. Diana and Adam were consulting each other with their eyes, and Sean was looking from their dirty faces to the tools on the jeep’s floor, to the hump under Adam’s jacket. â€Å"I think we’d better tell him,† Diana said. Cassie hesitated – they’d agreed not to tell anyone – but there didn’t seem to be any choice. She nodded slowly, reluctantly. So Sean climbed in the back and was sworn to secrecy. He was excited about the Master Tools, but Adam wouldn’t let him touch them. â€Å"We’re going to find somewhere to hide them now,† Adam said. â€Å"You’d better go back to bed; we’ll see you tomorrow.† â€Å"Okay.† Sean climbed out again. He started to shut the door, then stopped, looking at Cassie. â€Å"Oh, hey – you know that stuff about Black John being your father? Well, uh, I just wanted to say – it’s okay by me. I mean, you should see my father. That’s all.† He slammed the door and scuttled off. Cassie felt her throat swell, tears stinging behind her eyes. She’d forgotten about Adam having told them all; she’d have to face the rest of the Circle in the morning. But for now, Sean had made her feel glad and humble. I’ve really got to be nicer to him in the future, she thought. They hid the tools in Adam’s cellar. â€Å"As long as we don’t use them nobody should be able to trace them,† Diana said. â€Å"That’s what Melanie and I decided, anyway. But they’re dangerous, Adam. It’s risky to have them.† She looked at him soberly. â€Å"Then let somebody besides you two take a little risk,† he said gently. â€Å"For once.† Cassie went to bed for the second time that night, tired but triumphant. She put the moonstone back on the dresser; she’d had enough dreams for now. She wondered if she’d ever see Kate again. â€Å"I don’t care if her father’s Adolph Hitler.† Deborah’s voice, never soft, rang out clearly from downstairs. Cassie stood just inside the door of Diana’s room, hanging on to the doorjamb. â€Å"What’s it got to do with Cassie?† â€Å"We know, Deborah, but hush, can’t you?† That was Melanie, a good deal more modulated, but still audible. â€Å"Why don’t we just go upstairs an’ get her?† Doug said reasonably, and Chris added, â€Å"I don’t think she’s ever comin’ down.† â€Å"She’s probably scared to death of all of you,† Laurel scolded, sounding like a cub-scout den mother with a recalcitrant pack on her hands. â€Å"Suzan, those muffins are for her.† â€Å"Are you sure they’re oat bran? They taste like dirt,† Suzan said calmly. â€Å"You’ve got to go down sometime,† Diana said from behind Cassie. Cassie nodded, leaning her forehead briefly against the cool wall by the door. The one voice she hadn’t heard belonged to the one she was most worried about – Nick. She squared her shoulders, picked up her backpack, and made her legs move. Now I know how it feels to walk out to face the firing squad, she thought. The entire Circle – except Faye – was gathered at the foot of the stairs, gazing up expectantly. Suddenly Cassie felt more like a bride descending the staircase than a prisoner. She was glad she was wearing clean jeans and a cashmere sweater Diana had loaned her, dyed in soft swaths of blue and violet. â€Å"Hi, Cassie,† Chris said. â€Å"So I hear – yeeouch!† He staggered sideways from Laurel’s kick. â€Å"Here, Cassie,† Laurel said sweetly. â€Å"Have a muffin.† â€Å"Don’t,† Suzan whispered in Cassie’s ear. â€Å"I picked these for you,† Doug said, thrusting a handful of damp greenery at her. He peered at it doubtfully. â€Å"I think they’re daisies. They looked better before they died.† â€Å"Want to ride to school on my bike?† Deborah said. â€Å"No, she doesn’t want to ride to school on your bike. She’s going with me.† Nick, who had been sitting on the wooden deacon’s bench in the hallway, stood up. Cassie had been afraid to look him in the face, but now she couldn’t help it. He looked cool, unruffled as always, but in the depths of his mahogany eyes there was a warmth that was for her alone. In taking her backpack, his strong, deft fingers squeezed her hand, once. That was when she knew it was going to be all right. Cassie looked around at the Club. â€Å"You all – I don’t know what to say. Thank you.† She looked at Adam, who had made them understand. â€Å"Thank you.† He shrugged, and only someone who knew him well would have noticed the pain at the edge of his smile. His eyes were dark as storm clouds with some repressed emotion. â€Å"Anytime,† he said, as Nick started to steer her to the door. On the way, Cassie glanced back at Doug. â€Å"What happened to your/ace?† â€Å"He’s always been that ugly,† Chris assured her. â€Å"It was the fight,† Doug said, touching his black eye with something like pride. â€Å"But you should see the other fifty guys,† he yelled after her. â€Å"Are we all in trouble for fighting?† Cassie asked Nick, outside. â€Å"Nah – they don’t know who started it. They’d have to punish the whole school.† Which, as it turned out, the principal did. The Thanksgiving football game was canceled, and there was a good deal of ill feeling among the students. Cassie just prayed nobody found out where the ill feeling ought to be directed. â€Å"Can we keep things quiet until Thanksgiving vacation next week?† Diana asked at lunch. Cassie and Adam were the only ones who knew exactly why she wanted things kept quiet – so they’d have time to decide how best to use the Master Tools – but the others agreed to try. No one except Doug and Deborah was really interested in more fighting at the moment. â€Å"I’m afraid, though. I’m afraid he’ll come after us anyway. He could have the hall monitors pick us up for no reason,† Cassie said to Diana afterward. It didn’t happen. A strange peace, a sort of bizarre tranquility, engulfed New Salem High. As if everyone were waiting, but no one knew what for. â€Å"Don’t go alone,† Diana said. â€Å"Wait a minute and I’ll go with you.† â€Å"I know exactly where the book is,† Cassie said. â€Å"I won’t be in the house more than a minute.† She’d been meaning to lend Le Morte D’Arthur to Diana for a long time. It was one of her favorite books, and her grandmother had a beautiful copy from 1906. â€Å"I can pick up some dried sage for the stuffing while I’m at it,† she said. â€Å"No I don’t. Don’t do anything extra; just come back as quick as you can,† Diana said, pushing a strand of damp hair off her forehead with the back of a greasy hand. They’d been having a strenuous but rather interesting time, trying to stuff a Thanksgiving turkey. â€Å"Okay.† Cassie drove to Number Twelve. They were late with the turkey; the sun was low in the sky. Just in and out, Cassie told herself as she hurried through the door. She found the book on a shelf in the library and tucked it under her arm. She wasn’t really uneasy – the last week had been so quiet. The Circle had celebrated Suzan’s birthday undisturbed two days ago, on the twenty-fourth. You see, I told you, she thought to Diana as she came out of the house. Nothing to worry abou – She saw the car, a gray BMW, sitting beside her grandmother’s white Rabbit. In that split second, she was already starring to act, to jump back through the doorway, but she never got the chance. A rough hand clapped over her mouth and she was dragged away. How to cite The Secret Circle: The Power Chapter Eleven, Essay examples

Personal and Professional Goals free essay sample

Everybody designs goals in their lives, some you pursue, others you commence and something happens or you grow unenthusiastic and by no means complete. Then additional goals appear so far fetched you deem there is no feasible means that you will ever accomplish them, as a result you in no way get underway with it. This happens to many of us at different times in our lives. The only way that one will learn to set goals that they plan to accomplish Is to actually start the goal and finish It. However, one must feel a purpose for setting forth to accomplish their goals.Without repose no one will ever accomplish what they design for their future. Myself have had many goals In my life time. First I wanted to become a teacher, on the contrary I grew out of that dream. I think each little girl at one point ponders about becoming a teacher. We will write a custom essay sample on Personal and Professional Goals or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Subsequently later on I sought after becoming a lawyer. I had my mind solidly settled on becoming a lawyer that was until I was in the 1 lath grade. I was on a school mission with a lawyer, and he Informed me that since I was a woman I would not make It as a lawyer. I was really offended having someone advise me that I would never make it.It ought to have made me work harder at working toward this goal, however, instead, I just steered away from it. If it were to happen now that I am older I would have worker harder just to prove that I could do it no matter who was. Now my goal Is to be In the Health Care field. I have always wanted to help others, whether it be as a teacher, lawyer or in the health care field. My goal has always come down to helping people. It all began the morning of February 17, 2003; I woke up with a bad head ACH and knew It was going to be the start of an awful day. I had to be to my new Job at 9 p. M. At night, I hardly had any sleep, and I knew I was not going to get any before starting work. Of course, I still got out of bed and faced the day. The Job was not that bad and I ended up enjoying what I was doing, even though It was not my dream, It was a Job and it was putting meat on the table. I worked for 6 weeks and due to lack of work, they laid me off. I thought I was going to go crazy. We could not afford for me to be out of work. Decided at that moment that enough was enough and I was going to do something about making my life better than it had been. I was tired of working in dead-end Jobs ND getting no where.I saw a commercial on T. V. About University of Phoenix Online, and thought to myself, Hey I could do that. I got online and signed up to obtain my Bachelors of Science In Health Care Services. I knew this was something I would enjoy doing and that there were a verity of jobs out there that I could apply for with this degree. At this point, virtually two years later I am still going strong. It has not been an unproblematic path by any means. I have missed out on a few precious moments with my children, my boyfriend and I have argued about how much time have to 1 OFF irking in a factory.Not because it was a change for the better, but for the reason that being a mom and a college student is not stress-free. However, my children are most important to me, which makes attending school even more important. I want them to mature and be satisfied with there mother for accomplishing something in her life. I know that with everything I have going on everyday and adding college on top of it, that it takes time away from them. But when they are older they will understand why I am doing this. I feel it will give them a better outlook on life, and teach them to reach for the stars.I feel that it is very important to do the best that I can do and make the best out of my life while I have the chance. Not everyone has the want to do something with there lives. Ever since I was a little girl I have always assumed that I can do anything I set my mind to do. I remember sitting on my dads lap, as a little girl, hearing him tell me that I could do anything and be anything I wanted to be. Well now I am showing him and myself that I can do anything and even through all the obstacles and struggles, I have made it this far and I will not stop here.I have always had people try to make me believe I was insignificant or that what I was doing was not what I should be doing. They have always tried to get me to do what they thought was best for me. Well now I am an adult, I have children of my own and I have goals and dreams that I want to accomplish for me. I may struggle at times; I may undergo overwhelming feelings, and suspect I Just can not continue. Nevertheless this is something I want to do; I have decided to go to college because I want to go. The goals I have now are for me. I will make it because I want to, not cause someone expects me to make it.In conclusion, when times start getting tough and I feel like I Just cannot go on, all I have to do is look at my children. Knowing that I have raised my daughter by myself and she is doing wonderful and I have a wonderful man and a little boy in my life. These things will give me the pick up I need to get back up and make things happen. Having support and the can do attitude that I have gives me the will power to make all my dreams and goals come true. I thank God for giving me everything he has and giving me the chance to prove to myself that I am someone.