Brandi+O.

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Role Models The famous writer Anais Nin once said, "I know why families were created with all their imperfections. They humanize you. They are made to make you forget yourself occasionally, so that the beautiful balance of life is not destroyed." I believe that your family can teach you many lessons, good and bad. I am so grateful to have such a close family that I can talk to everyday and learn from. As everyone grows we learn from our own and others consequences and actions. My family has made me grow so much as a person. I am the second youngest of ten cousins on my mother's side. My cousins are all in their twenties; and like most twenty year olds they think that they rule the world; freedom overrules all and they think that they know everything but in reality they really don’t. I have a cousin named Josephina; her nickname is Jo. She is named after my great-great-great Aunt who is ninety-nine years old and still kicking! Jo came over for a visit one day at my house to talk about taking her life in a new direction, literally; she wanted to move. My other cousin Ted lives in Wyoming and she was going to move out there with him. Jo, my mom, and I sat down and discussed what her plans were for the near future. She wanted to go to school there and rent a place to stay, find a job, and begin her new life. We concluded that since my ‘uncle’ owns a restaurant out there she would work for him while she was going to school. We did research to find out the university that was the closest. We also discussed when she would leave, how she would approach her parents, and financial matters. We spent all day discussing all the plans. When she first arrived at my house early that day she was sad and not very hopeful. But when she left she was overjoyed and realized she really could make her dream come true if she tried hard enough. Only more years are going by and you can’t get the years past back. If you really want to achieve something, you have to do it; you just have to find a way. But yes, you should take people’s advice but the most important opinion is your own. Even though I may be younger and I like to help like the rest of my family to talk her through what she is getting set back on, we can only help so much. We can say what we have to but it’s her actions that override our words. Even though you may feel since you tried to help and they didn’t listen you didn’t waste your time, you left an effect on them that says "I will do anything I can to help you, I’m here for you." Another cousin that I have learned from is named Sofia. She has a five year old daughter. She has been married for a year and a half now. She has been working at a salon for about ten years and can’t take it anymore; it’s not getting her anywhere. At the same time Sofia was going to school full time for many years. Sofia couldn’t do that any longer when she got pregnant; she had to only go to school part time for the remaining years. Sofia finally has only one semester left! She also works at a shelter for abused woman and children. She has gone for so many job interviews towards her major in Criminal Justice and they haven’t taken her yet. Sofia took a job interview about a year ago but obviously didn’t get it, sadly. She recently went for that same job interview and went very far in the testing process. Sofia had to take a strength agility and endurance test, written test, psychological test, and had an actual on-the-job experience. Doing so, she and our family really felt that this time she was going to get the job. Sometimes you make up your own reasons on why you didn’t succeed at something because it just hurts so badly. It also sometimes feels like you’re aspirations and your dreams get washed away and nothing is falling into place no matter how hard you try, but in reality when you look at the bigger picture it’s just a minor setback. I have learned from all of my cousins to make a path and stick to it, follow your dreams no matter how far or wide they take you, take advice but use it wisely, and to think everything through and realize what could happen and what could come out of it, good and bad. Obstacles and temptations often come into your path that you have to get over and right now I feel I know some obstacles that I want to or need to avoid. I feel like I have almost gone through their sad times and obstacles with them because our family is so close. I know that in my future I will have my family standing by me whenever I need them too.