15

REASONS
TO LIVE
MARTA MUNOZ MUNOZ TA#27

MOMENTS IN LIFE WHERE TIME STOPS

There are moments in live that are simply perfect. Everything, all of a sudden, seems to be in the
right place, at the right time, everything is in harmony, it simply fits. This moments only last for an
instant, a few seconds, an ephemera moment and if you are really lucky, even minutes, hours.
For me, this is a big reason to live because it is simply happiness, and happiness is what we all live
for. Happiness is why we get up every morning, why we fight for our dreams, why we take chances,
enjoy possibilities, why we keep going. No matter what happens, the number of times we fall, we are
always looking for happiness, fighting for it, getting up one time more than we fall. In this moment,
something great happens, we feel good, we are happy, and we want more. We live all live trying to
repeat these moments, looking for new ones. This is what keep us going, this is what keeps me going.
Last September, I got one of this moments. It was late at night, all the stars shining out there, in a
foreign sky. My friend and I were give a ride to the Starbucks, all the roads desert. The car was flying
through the streets, my friend and I in the back, no roof, our hands in the air, the breeze caressing our
faces, music loud. In that moment I was completely careless, completely free completely happy.
The landscape was beautiful, the sky breathtaking and we were free. I knew the moment would end
soon, I even knew that in a few months I would never come back, I would never see hat again, I would
never get to see that people again and even I did, everything would be different, it would all have
changed.

FRIENDSHIP
Friendship is something everyone has experienced sometime, in all different levels.
Friendship is connection. For me, friendship is being able to take off the 'mask that we all
unconsciously wear, to be able to be our true selves. Friendship is relying on someone,
feeling supported, feeling part of something, is being there when they need you and
knowing they would do the same for you. Sometimes it is sacrifice, sometimes it is sad,
complicated but friendship is also and most, all the good things in human nature. Is
laughing so hard tears run down your cheeks, is feeling good around someone, is being
confident, is being understood. For me friendship is a reason to live because life without
company, without fun, without connection life without someone to share it with, is not life.
In my opinion, friendship is also love and it is one of the best qualities of human nature that
gives us a purpose, something to enjoy.
In my life, I find friendship in my classmates, in my neighbors, in my family. Is my best friend
, my mother, my cousin they are a reason to love because I cannot imagine life without
them, they make me happy and I want to be there for them as they have always been for
me.

LOVE
Love is one of the most powerful emotions of all times. It has broken hearts, it has
taken blood, it has become hate, it has tore societies apart, countries, it has driven
people crazy, it has made people even die for it. But at the same time, it is the
most wonderful emotion. It makes us what we are, human. It makes us grow makes
us better, gives us goals, reasons to fight for. Love can come in so many ways.
Maybe in the romantic way of a partner, maybe in the love of a mother, maybe in
the hug of a friend. Love is wonderful and incontrollable and is a powerful reason to
live. We depend our lives looking for love in as many ways as we can to feel
complete, part of something bigger, to feel accomplished, to feel loved, good and
to feel like we are worth it. For me this is what keeps me going, the people that
cares about us and that we care about. I think I have become who I am thanks for
the love and care about first of all, my mom. She hs always ben there trying to
make a better person of me. I have also rely in my friends so much, especially on
my best friend carolina that has always supported me and understand me.

PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS THAT

CHANGED ME
One of my greatest achievements that makes me smile and being proud of myself
when I look back is winning the scholarship to come to Canada. I have always
worked hard at school but I never imagined that because of it I would be able to
apply for a grant and travel the world. It took me a year of hard study to pass the
three exams and getting enough marks to being within the top 100 of 6.500
teenagers of my age in all Spain. I remember waiting for the definitive list of the
100 that would get it, so nervous, excited and worried, going down in the list. When
I saw my name I almost cried, I got it! I was going to live one year in Canada, living
my dream, meeting new people I think this is the best personal achievement of
all my life and the best opportunity I have ever had.

FUTURE GOALS THAT ARE IMPORTANT

We need purpose in life, we need goals, a reason to keep going, to work hard In my case,
my main goal in life is to be happy. I think no matter where you are, how you are or your
situation you can always choose happiness. Sometimes is hard, complicated, deep but
happiness is a choice and we have to learn to be happy with what we have till we achieve
what we want. We have to make the best of every day, of every moment. My goal is to be
happy, surrounded by my friends, family, and being successful in life. To do so, I want to
keep study, to be the best of me in every aspect, being the best version of me. I want to
study medicine and help people. I want to study pediatric to help children or be a surgeon. I
also would like to study nutrition and psychology, Im not sure yet. Bu what I know is that
my path is on the medicine one, helping people, helping society and making the world a
little bit better, contributing as much as I can. I want also to move to another part of my
city, living close to my parents, grandparents and my closest friends. I also want to find
love, to have all my needs covered, to see the people I love happy, I want to make a
difference, I want to grow as a person, I want to be loved, I want to have purpose.

FEELING PART

We live in a world full of connections, in a society where we are hungry of human

contact, using Facebook, Instagram, internet we need to be part of something
bigger, we need to socialize, it is in human nature. I think this is a reason to live
because being a part of society, knowing that people appreciate you, that you are
loved, that you are part of something bigger and that you matter, that you would
be missed, fulfill one of our deepest needs. But I also think we have forgot how to
interact with people, choosing the easier way, using the media, instead of actually
hanging out with people, talking to people face to face. I think the media, internet
help us reach more people, stay in contact, but it is a two way street and we cannot
forget the actual and real world. I choose this one as one of my reasons to life
because I, as all the other people, I need to feel part. For me, socializing is being
happy, is feeling fulfilled, accomplished, is feeling good, is something to live for, the
people.

PLACES THAT HAVE A SPECIAL MEANING

TO YOU
I think places, as well as songs, smells, textures or flavors, are really special because we
associate them with moments in our past, with our memories. I think all of these places,
songs or smells are so important for us, for me, because they are somehow part of us and
they have marked some points of our lives. Maybe the song that was playing the first time
you kiss someone, the smell of a product you used to use in your childhood or simply, the
spot under that tree where you used to have picnics with your family. I always take photos of
the places that I love, I always enjoy and try to remember the smell or the texture of
something and I keep up a playlist of music and I never delete a song, because all mean
something. Some of my favorite places are the window of my room, my grandmothers house
in Segovia, the smallest Starbucks of Madrid or the park I used to go to hang out with my
friends. I also love the smell of violets or vanilla and my favorite songs are Apologize, Hold
on, we are going home, 'love is on the line' or 'wake me up. They have marked important
moments of my life or people I remember when I listen to them. This is a reason to live
because all these things represents little pieces of us that have conditioned who we are know.

GIVE
LIFE
I think one of the best reasons to live is to give life. For a woman, in my opinion, the
best experience in live has to be having a baby. It has to be something so big, so
special, so intense knowing that thanks to you something incredible, tiny, fragile
and beautiful has come alive e. I know some people do not feel the same way, but
for me, my mother is the person I have the strongest connection with. She has
always been there for me and thanks to her I have become a better person. In the
future, I want to have a baby too, take care of her or him, protecting, caring and
loving, giving them what my mother gave me. I want to guide them through the
bad or sad moments, teach them to never give up, show the beauty in the world,
telling them my mistakes so they can also learn from them, giving them the
opportunities that maybe I didnt have and sharing with them the little thing in life.
I think this is one of the best reasons to live, to give life, to give all the best you
have, and who you are; to give the world a new generation and to give the new
generation a beautiful world.

TAKE RISKS, LIVE IN THE FAST LANE,

EXPERIENCING
The average life expectancy is around 70 years old for women a little less for men.
But we do not know how long we are going to live. That is why, in my opinion, is so
important to take risks, be adventurous, go out of the comfort zone and try new
things. I think we have to enjoy every second and every moment, making the best
of it. Sometimes, taking a risk is also smile, meet new people, going out and having
fun, do what you really want to do, what makes you happy and passionate, maybe
saying what you want to say if we never take this risks, if we do not live as better
as we can, if we do not take advantage of the time we have maybe someday is
going to be gone, and we will regret it. Living life in the fast lane for me is not only
doing extreme sports or putting your life in danger, it is just enjoying life, trying to
be as happy as we can. This is a reason to live, because it is simply enjoy life, if we
do not do so, we are not really living.

FUN
Having fun is one of the best feelings. We lie to have fun because in that moment
we feel good, we feel alive, we enjoy it and we feel accomplished. We spend all of
our lives trying to repeat the good moments, have fun, do not worry about our
problems, forgetting stress. We have fun, we laugh. I think this is a reason to live
because without fun, live will not be the same, we would not enjoy it in the same
way and e would feel bad. We also ten to remember more and better all those
moments when we had fun because they are the good memories. For so, we are
who we are thanks to that peaks moments that along with the bad ones, had
changed us. We have responsibilities but we need that fun to feel good, to feel
rewarded, to feel like going through the bad parts is worth it. It gives us a reason to
keep going forward, is makes us stronger and makes our lives better. In my case, I
love hanging with my friends, having a good laugh, going to parties, dancing,
running, doing all the things I am passionate about. Having fun is one of the best
parts of our lives and that is why we have to live, to experience more of them,
because even if sometimes it is hard, it is all worth it.

PEOPLE THAT INSPIRE US

People around us are challenging us all the time, they live with us and even if we
dont want to, they influence what we think, do or say. For me, the greatest influences
and the people I look up for example, for advice or simply because I admire them are,
among others, my mother and my father first of all. My mother has always been there
for me teaching me the good and wrong, how to do things, how to be independent
and stay true to myself. My father has always challenge me telling me to grow as a
person and improve myself. I have also been really influenced by my friends and
teachers. My best friend is a person that I look up for when it comes to style, advice
or simply support and approval. My teachers have always help me too through the
knowledge I need to have to have to be a mature and good person. They have also
taught me how to give the best of me and always go for the best I can do. Also, were
really influenced by our society. We have to be aware that it can be good, but it also
can be harmful so we always have to be critical and learn how to think for ourselves. I
think people that influences us are very important but we cannot let them manipulate
us.

MAKE PEOPLE HAPPY

I think one of the best parts of being human is connections. You get to be with
people, with the ins you loe and in order to be happy you want them to be happy
too, to enjoy life, to share your experiences, the little things in life. I think making
people around us happy give us some sort of satisfaction, it makes us feel good and
completed. We dont live only for ourselves, we live also for the people we care
about and sometimes we do things just for them. This is one of my reasons to live
because I appreciate the things my family, my friends and the people around me do
for me, that makes me smile and have a good day, and I want to make them feel
the same. Being around happy, confident people can help us feeling comfortable,
completed, satisfied and simply feel good. That is why in order to be happy, we
want to make the people around us feel the same, have an equilibrated and
balanced environment. I also think making someone mile, doing something special,
doing a favor, enforces and make stronger the relations with people, make us feel
better and give us purpose.

TO BE BETTER US, BEST FUTURE

One of my reasons to live is to become better, to reach our maximum potential and see
where could we go. This is also one of my goals, becoming the best me I could possibly be.
Reading more, learning more, dealing better with myself and my emotion, my problems,
enjoying more what I have and appreciating more the people around me, being grateful. I
want to grow more as a person, find a balance with myself, learn more and see more
places, meet new people. I think time gives a chance to improve ourselves and that is why
we have to live. We also have to live in sustainability so in the future not only we improve
ourselves but we also improve hat we have, our world. We have the chance to be part of
the change, to do little things and being involved in creating a better society, helping
people, and leaving a great world for the next generations. We have a responsibility after
the planet we live in and all the people on it and we have to take action to live the best we
can but also benefit somehow, to leave something good when we die, to leave something
behind that will last. We have the gift of live and we have to take advantage of it, live the
best we can and also leave something good for the ones who will come.

TRAVEL
For me, travel is a good reason to live. I think when you travel, you grow as a person. You get
to know other cultures, other societies, other places, other routines you get to go out of
your comfort zone, you get to see the world. I think this is really important because not only
gives you more experience, good memories it is also a challenge. You have to get used to
things you would never imagine, you get to meet new people, to see new things. I think
travelling is also a very special reason because you can enjoy seeing places you never could
have seen, places so beautiful, weird, special that you are never going to forget. In my
case, my best experience traveling has been Canada. I have see so many new places, meet
so many new people. I have learned to respect more other cultures and to understand them
better. I also have learned about other lifestyles and it has been a huge challenge.
Overcoming it, has made me grow more mature and responsible and has made me appreciate
more the things I always had at home and I took for granted. In the future, I want to travel
through all Europe, visit South America and come back to Canada. I think this is also a good
reason to live because it is a wonderful experience to share with the people you love.

LOVING YOURSELF, SPORTS, RUNNING.

In my opinion, our body is a gift. It is like a new toy we receive when we are born.
With the years, the toy gets older, fragile, and eventually broken. That is why I
think one of my reasons to live, should be taking care of our bodies. For me that
means running. I need the speed, the freedom, the liberation, the stress or pain
relieving with the years I know Im going to be less able to do sports, to jump,
run, dance that is why I have to take advantage of know. I think sports and for me
running, gives us one of the best feelings, we did it, we are free the satisfaction
of knowing you are taking care of your body, doing something good and the
adrenaline! I think that feeling is a reason to live for, a reason to wake up early in
the morning. Above all, the very reason, is loving yourself, loving your body, being
thankful for all the thinks it allows you to do. For me loving I peace wit yourself is
the best mind stage and it is something to fight for, something truly worth it.