Teenager?? Who me?

I need privacy! Does anybody understand me? Just forget it...whatever.
These are some of the most spoken sentences of teenagers. It seems as if the world is insane and we are the only ones who have a grip on life. But why is that? We want to grow old so quickly, preferably to reach the tender age of 21. And just maybe be..oh I don't know...."Forever 21" ;) -lol-
One of our biggest problems is not being understood by adults, or the world in general. We are always seen as being party animals, who are reckless and careless. When a lot of the times (not always) we are the complete opposite. Or maybe we are seen that way compared to adults, who rarely have fun in life after age 30. There is a reason why we want to have the latest clothing or listen to the hippest music. It's all about being accepted by your peers. Being seen as normal. The odd ball is not always the coolest person to be seen with. I especially don't like it when adults use the line "well...back in my day". I think that is the most ridiculous line ever made. Each day will never be the same as the last. The years are always changing. If half the adults who spoke those words were given a second chance at being a teenager but in "our" time, they would probably do the same things that we do, if not, worse.
The difficulties that I am still learning to this day, is that I am not always right. I hate it when people don't see things my way. I hate when I am told that I am wrong. Especially when I know for a fact that I am right. But i have come to realize that adults also have this problem too. Accepting facts, accepting the real world, accepting humans, peers, strangers, and adults. These are some of the things that teenagers have problems with in life.

Mi Abuela (my grandmother)

My grandmother is definitely the most influential person in my family. She has been through so much, and has really seen the good, the bad, and has lived through it all. She can be really funny, (or the complete opposite), very sweet, is extremely intelligent, and everything she does makes her unique. A few special moments I remember were spent with my grandmother. She was the one who took me on my first airplane ride, inspired me to take ballet, and also sent me and my brother on this awesome vacation to Florida. This vacation included Sea World, Disney World, snorkeling, and body surfing.
I also admire my grandmother for the main reason that she is always willing to help someone else. A good example of this is when my aunt was trying to light a grill at 7 am in the morning. We were having an afternoon cook out that day. Of course the flames sparked up and slightly burned my aunt. Before she called the police or any other type of help, she called my grandmother!! Now my grandmother is NOT a morning person, but that day you would have never known that. She then instructed her to call the ambulance.
Another strong fact about my grandmother is that she is very religious. I can only hope and pray that I can get to that point in my life. A point where I can totally be stressed free. She never worries about anything because she really believes that in the end, god will see it through. Amazingly, she hasn't had any serious problems in the past 30 or so years. Or so it seems. She also prays for other people whether they be family, friends, or co workers. Miraculously, a lot of her prayers are answered.
Without my grandmother, I don't know where I would be as a person. Honestly, I don't know where my family would be if it wasn't for her always saving us( when she usually warns us in the beginning, there to give the best advice, or there to comfort us when we need it the most. She has given us life skills, words of wisdom, and herself as powerful role model to live by.

To Believe or not to Believe?

At the beginning, I only believed in freewill. I believed that Freewill is all about really taking responsibility and, well..living freely. Knowing that you are in charge of your own actions. But what if that is not always the case? What if there is actually another spirit or presence actually determining some of your personal actions? That's what I believe now.Or at least starting to consider. I now believe that maybe freewill and fate go hand-in-hand. Some things are not explainable. Somethings happen where only fate is the possible answer to. I do know however that one does still have some control over their life. I doubt that fate is that strong! -lol- Another way to look at it is maybe life is like a little pattern. Freewill, fate, freewill, fate, etc. Who knows? Maybe life is completely fate. Who is there to determine what is freewill and what isn't?
Oedipus and Mr. Harold have definitely changed the way I view this world we live in. Oedipus went through a lot! All, which I must say, seemed like pure bad luck or just horrible fate. Harold, on the other hand, was about to die, but his fate was changed. So now the questions is, is fate somewhat "choosy"? I wonder, the time I burned my hand, was that fate? Or how about the thousands of people who loose their homes to fires and other destruction's. Is that fate, too? or are these actually examples of lacking responsibility? Once again, who determines fate? Could it possibly be both a mixture of fate and freewill? Are we really living our life freely.
After glancing back over my life, maybe there is a touch of fate. Maybe what we do freely creates the perfect fate. Maybe this whole fate thing is still a bunch of talk. I can remember numerous occasions where I tried to change the outcome of a situation, and I got the same effect!

Ha!! Fate Shmate!!!

Fate is always nice to think about, wonder about, and even dream about. But at the end, it all boils down to free will. A lot of times, fate is placed under the pseudoscience section. Unlike free will. Free will is free and independent choice or a voluntary decision. We as humans control what we do. Yes, things do randomly happen, some which one has no control over. But for the most part, certain things can be avoided or the situation can possibly have a better turn-out. We cannot always depend on miracles to happen, good luck to roll around, or 'fate' to come in and save us when something like this goes wrong.
One of my favorite quotes that mainly follows up on this idea is "I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it." by Stephen Leacock. Basically it says, if one works hard, one will succeed more often, than 'pure luck' happening. Only I can control if I want good luck ALL the time. Not only that, I want to be able to know that I control my own actions. Not some unknown force that I know nothing about. I also believe that 'fate' is for those who are afraid or do not want to accept reality and responsibility for whatever the reason. I guess it's easier to blame it on the unknown, than to believe that, we as humans, pretty much determine our own outcome. Personally, I would feel atrocious knowing that my actions, both good and bad, were not controlled by me. Considering the fact that one's actions always affects someone or something around them. At the end of the day, free will is all about personal choices(no puppet strings attached. Now whether one makes the best choice is totally up to oneself!