Get Over Yourself 
I like to refer to this as our world as we know it. I’ve met lots of different people, and seen lots of different places. But for some reason…every place you go, no matter what city, what state, or even what country…its still the same problem. Selfishness, and above all LAZYNESS! It’s almost like everyone in the world stopped caring about everyone and everything else. Nobody cares about the future anymore…they care bout the now. As long as you have gas, food, and hairspray now, its o.k. Well its not o.k. for me. And it shouldn’t be o.k. for anyone. What happened to values and goals? On a city level, people need to be more pro-active within their communities. There are too many gangs and not enough education related extra curricular activities in schools. Teacher now a days don’t teach from the heart…they teach for the paycheck. They don’t really care if kids pass or fail….as long as the FCAT scores are high enough, their school gets more money, and in return they make more money. How do we fix this problem? Parents need to step up and realize they can teach their kids better than anyone…. and if they cant…why do people have kids? Why do you have kids if you cant provide a secure and productive future? Do people have kids to fail now a days? Seems so. So many parents do not take active rolls in their child’s education, which is what I believe to be the beginning of the pitfall. Without education, we as people do not have anything. So here are my ideas to start shaping my community, and someday hopefully the world. People in communities need to GET OVER THEM SELVES and realize that if we don’t work together…this world dies alone. People need to educate themselves about our planet. If nobody else is aware but me…. we are killing it. We need to have a mutualistic relationship with this planet and right now we have a parasitic relationship. Lets start with the obvious…1. Not running the water when you brush your teeth, 2. Taking showers instead of baths saves over 30 gallons of water each day, 3. Planting trees in the community, 4. Participating in beach cleanups (Without a clean ocean all that equals is dirty or no water for us), 5. Educate yourself. On the environment, on politics and everything in between. Vote for candidates who don’t want to throw money into senseless wars, but into education and eco-friendly ideas, 6. I know that hybrid cars are expensive, and not everyone has the means to afford one, but car-pooling, walking, and riding bikes help out more than you know, 7. RECYCLE. You have the free bins, you only have to take it 10ft to the edge of the road…just do it, 8. If there are options of buying recycled, and biodegradable goods, always get them, their usually cheaper and much better for the environment. Now that I’ve shared with you the obvious things people should be doing within a community I'm going to tell you my ideas of getting the word out. I’m actively involved in trying to produce my own version of a free article much like coffee talk, that will be sent out around the community and can be picked up almost anywhere, restaurants, delis, small local establishments ect. It will include coverage on the biggest environmental issues this world is facing today, and the things you can do on an individual level to help fix it. I will try to organize beach cleanups and seminars to make people aware of these problems. I’m also a wwf, pita, and aspca donator, and hope to get some support from these organizations (not monetary) for my article to also make my city aware of the rising numbers of animal cruelty, abuse, and over population. I will also provide names, and numbers of organization that provide spays/neuters for little to no cost. I would also love to set up an educational seminar that would be help in high schools throughout my community to make graduating kids aware of all of the possible careers they could pick from, and all of the scholarship/grants/loans that are out there to help make their dreams a reality. So many good minds go to waste. I would also like to make my community aware of safer sex. Not enough people know about the general knowledge of STD’s and methods of birth control prevention. It’s important to educate people about this, but often times cannot happen in school because of the controversy of the separation of church and home. Religious or not, these are concrete facts, and kids should know their options, and be aware of the risks of their actions. AID’s is the biggest world wide epidemic, and continues to grow…people need to know. I cannot do this alone. With the help of my peers in college, and friends throughout the community I’m hoping to bring awareness to people, and one-day awareness to the world. People relate best to other people through experience. I feel that I have experienced a lot for my age, and from the education I've received and am still receiving. When I talk, people listen. I truly believe that I was blessed with that gift, and intend to use it for the better of my world. I am currently seeking a Medical degree; I would like to be a maxi facial reconstructive surgeon. Upon receiving my degree I would like to travel to under privileged countries, and help people. Providing them free medicines and surgical procedures. I want to use my gift of education, to help other people. In my ideal city, country, and world…. Everybody will reach their own potential, and we will be able to help and educate each other. The first step…getting over yourself.