by EE, Sacramento
My greatest teacher is mistakes and losses. As you, everyone takes losses and makes mistakes. And trust me, in my life, I have had plenty of both. Mistakes are there for you to learn from them, so you can do better in the future. They are learning experiences.
If no one ever made a mistake, then we wouldn’t know our rights from wrongs. To be honest, we probably wouldn’t do half the things we do. Every time I make a mistake, it encourages me to stop guessing and try my best on each question. If I wouldn’t have come to YDF (Youth Detention Facility) , then I wouldn’t have even thought about stopping what I was doing and thinking about it.
I could’ve been in a far worse situation, but no, my small mistakes saved me before it was too late. I believe everyone makes mistakes and no one can judge another, because you haven’t lived a day in that person’s shoes. Every day is a learning experience, whether you burnt your toast, or you landed yourself in the YDF.
Losses are similar to mistakes because you can always come back from them. Taking losses has showed me that every time I get knocked down, I’ve always managed a way to get back up. No matter the circumstance.
For example, when I lost a hundred dollars, I chalked it up and told myself I’ll work extra hard to make it back. Another real-life example would be when I lost my grandmother, it was very hard on me ‘cause I was very close to my grandma.
But I had a lot of family to help me. I realized that as long as I keep her in my heart, and never forget her, that I would be okay. After every loss/being knocked down, I’ve always managed to get back up and dust myself off.
If it weren’t for mistakes and losses, I wouldn’t be the man that I was today. They have shaped and built me. Mistakes are learning experiences. And in the end, losses will eventually help you win. My mother raised me to encourage your mistakes.
So in the end, the things that usually even break the strongest man and woman have actually instead of breaking me, have made me. It takes a mistake to put you on the right track. It takes losses in order for you to succeed. Every day, I think of my grandma and how much she believed in me. And that pushes me to strive and go harder every day.