Happiness

The definition of happiness found in dictionaries are quite general. In my own words, I believe that happiness means to be satisfied with everything that is going on in life. Accepting the unfortunate mishaps and looking at the brighter side would be a characteristic of someone who is happy. What makes me happy ... numerous, yet random things. Of course, my family and friends make me happy. To be more specific, San Diego never fails to make me happy ... it's my closer version of Hawaii. It makes me happy when people remember the small things about me. My grandma laughing makes me happy. Conversations over coffee or a cupcake make me very happy. Simple things are what I really appreciate, whether it be with one person or a group of friends or family. The one time I really remember being happy was when I feel like I found myself. I learned that the happy moments come from the obstacles that seem impossible to get over in life. I felt alone at one point in my life, but I got over it. I looked around and saw that it could be a lot worse than what it was. Finding my independence is what brought me to my happiest point in life. I personally believe that being happy is extremely important when it comes to life. If we are happy or not, it effects all our decision making, along with how we treat other people. I believe that truly happy people are good towards others.

Culture

Culture is what influences each person to be the person he or she is today. I have been raised under a Filipino-American culture. As a Filipino, I was surrounded by a collective group of people. I learned to care for the group and to watch out for my family, especially my younger sister. I learned to respect the elderly because they are valued within my culture. My culture is extremely important to me because I appreciate what my parents and grandparents have taught me. I have been familiar with the culture since I was born, therefore I follow it. As a being the first generation as a Filipino-American, I find it a little worrisome that all the values and beliefs taken from my Filipino relatives will not be instilled the same way to my children as they were to me. Since my grandmother, mother, aunts, and uncles came to America from the Philippines, I am exposed to a lot of the strong culture from the country. I understand the dialects they speak, and appreciate the food they make. Those are some aspects of my Filipino culture I won't be able to expose my children to alone. Hopefully, I do a good job with that when the time comes. As an American, I am proud to be surrounded by such different cultures. It is interesting to see how well people can get coming from different places around the world.