In today's society, TV or the Internet is always looked down upon
because people believe both have corrupted children's minds, and have exposed
them to adult concepts they are not yet ready for. However, for me, my
experience has been quite positive, giving me access to sites and databases
that allow me to learn, prosper, and help support my research projects. Growing
up I was fortunate to have been able to own both a television and a computer.
Last year was my Junior Year, and the general saying is true, Junior Year IS
the hardest year of high school! I took many AP classes and I really struggled
with my AP Chemistry class. The teacher was not up to my standards, and I felt
like I was not learning anything! I started to even despise Chemistry and
wondered if I should still become a Pharmacist (who have a lot of chemistry
pre-requisites in college). However, I kept my head up high and as a result of
many YouTube videos instructing me on basic Chemistry Topics I was able to
prosper in the class, and finish with a high grade! Yes, YouTube is not just a
website to watch silly cats and babies on, it actually can help you with your
education; if used properly! This experience definitely changed my perspective
on the world, and even though I questioned it many times, the internet has
allowed me to be able to find out who I am, which is a future pharmacist! I was
able to research what colleges would have Pre-Pharmacy Programs that would be
right for me, and has allowed me to connect to current pharmacists attending those
colleges.
Additionally, I read the news daily on the
internet. While many teenagers my age open up Facebook or Twitter the minute
they go on the internet, I have found reading the news has been a much more
life changing experience than seeing countless selfies posted on Facebook. One
of the latest things I have read about is the Malaysian Plane Crash which
killed 154 Dutch citizens. Even though I am Vietnamese by blood, my parents
escaped from Vietnam during the war and went to the Netherlands, where I was
born and grew up for ten years. I am now a seventeen year old American Citizen,
but I definitely identify myself as Dutch. As a result, the disaster struck me
really hard. It resulted in me searching more and more about the incident,
trying to find out if I knew any of the deceased. And, it turned out I did. I
knew three people who were on the airplane: Nguyen Ngoc Minh, and two of her
children Dang Minh Chau and Dang Quoc Huy who were also of Vietnamese blood but
escaped to the Netherlands. While I did not know them personally, they lived a
few houses away in my street and I used to go to Vietnamese classes with the
two kids. If it had not been for the internet or the news telling me about this
incident, I would never have found out. When I moved here in the fifth grade I
was quite depressed. I moved to a hispanic-dominant population and I was not
accepted, was bullied, and made no friends. I am not bullied anymore now, but I
used to always fear that I would be again, because I am currently in classes
with people that used to bully me. It has made me uncomfortable being myself,
and has made me not want to speak up in class. However, the crash has made me
change my whole perspective. It reminds me that life IS short and that I could
have been on that airplane instead of them. It makes me appreciate being able
to be alive, and makes me want to let go of my past and not worry about having
been bullied. It has made me want to be happy and enjoy my life on earth, and
as a result, I have made a promise to myself to smile at strangers in everyday
life. I know a smile is just a smile, but it could definitely brighten up
someone’s day. Not only could it make the people who I am smiling at happy, but
it could make myself happy too. Even though I always worry about silly little
things that I should not worry about, smiling to strangers will help me realize
that life is amazing and that I will be okay. The fact that Dang Minh Chau was my age makes me realize that if I were to die today, I would not be ready for it. I still have not yet explored the world, and I still have so many things I want to do but that I am afraid of doing. As a result, I now carry a positive attitude with me everywhere I go and try to live everyday like I am living my last day on earth. Now, I try to focus less on how I look or what my classmates think of me, instead, focusing on things that truly matter. I am motivated to work hard, and want to leave a positive lasting impact on earth. As could be seen, the internet
and television have definitely made a positive impact on me, and now I live by
the quote: "Live life to the fullest!" (which I found this quote a
few years ago… on the INTERNET)!
R.I.P may you find absolute peace and serenity in heaven.
