My journal, as a product of the past two years, is filled with the critical thoughts of a sensitive teenager, beautifully documented for posterity. It was a period of profound loss. When my parents’ decided to officially end their marriage, my brother who was my chief source of support moved away to college. To compound these challenges, I was thrust into the role of a caregiver when my best friend’s serious boyfriend died suddenly in a car accident. The pages unintentionally told the tragic story of an adolescent who was forced to mature a little too quickly. Tonight, there came an event that turned the tide. It is time for some uplifting news.

Senior year. Sectional finals. Match point… The squad was not statistically projected to win. The story that the senior tennis co-captains clinched the tournament victory for their team is a description of the perfect season. They were the underdogs, an unranked doubles partnership, but defeated their forth-seeded opponents. Glenbrook South High School won the title for the first time in twenty years.

I am victorious. I have never made history before, and never anticipated that I it would feel this surreal. There is a rush that comes when I realize I have made a mark on the big picture. It is this sense of school pride that is no longer forced, but definitely experienced so deeply. It is time to soak this moment into every cell in my body, and amplify the sensation through reinforcement, so that it can make a lasting impact. When an opportunity comes to feel genuine love for my overall circumstances, it’s essential for me to embrace it. The realization that strength builds both from struggle and also from genuine bliss makes me believe in the power of positivity. What we choose to dwell on creates the way we perceive the world, and essentially who we are. For the first time, I have been taught a lesson emerging from a state of bliss. My zest for life, lost for nearly two years, is back. My love for my mind has returned, which strengthens my hope for a better tomorrow, and legitimizes a reason to trust that happiness is possible.