Life is hard to write.

You can try to look at the fallen tree ahead and say, “Oh it has branches..” but you
cannot just look at your own life and write “I am this.. I am that…”. It may have been simple for the younger me
when I was still innocent of the things that surround me.
Back then I could just say, “I am now happier and healthier!” just because the topic during science class
said that when you are big and strong, you are healthy, and because you are healthy, you will be happy. Back then,
in my childhood, happiness means being able to play every day, skip afternoon naps, and eat fast food that comes
quite rarely, as rare as tropical depression forming in the eastern side of the Philippines every year. Happiness back
then was shallow, and so was my thinking. Whenever something good would happen, I would be happy, but then
when something bad happens, I would be sad. My mood would greatly depend on whether my wants were satisfied
or not. I would only be happy if I was able to play for straight 24 hours a day, minus sleeping time and eating time,
and angry or sad whenever that does not happen. I was only happy when the food was anything but the certain
vegetables that I hated to eat. I was only satisfied when I got to use the tablet without letting my brother take it away
for his turn to use it. Such selfish behavior was what I embodied when I was a child. I mean, I’m still selfish at times
until now, and I still get upset whenever something unexpectedly bad happens, but the biggest change is, I get upset
because I know I’ve hurt somebody in the process, not because my wants were not followed.
Being able to know and relate to the hardships that people go through while doing even the simplest of
tasks makes you be able to appreciate its value more. Back then I would only look at the food at the table, but now,
what I see is the hard work of the many farmers that support the economy of the Philippines. Back then I would be
in utmost joy when I get to keep what I want for myself, but now, I find joy in experiencing things with others. It
seems that the more people partake in one event the more it is real.
Life has its value from the things that are in it. Life has a start, then an end. It is a container that is
embodied by the person or thing that has it, and it becomes more valuable the more it is filled. By living, you slowly
fill it up and make your life weigh heavier on the value scale of the world. Sharing it with other people, however,
makes you be able to experience events that are not part of your own. You are shared with it and thus have the
experience of multiple people at once. Whether it is good or bad, group experiences often weigh heavier and thus
have more impact on the life of a person or a thing.
Life has its value from the things that are in it, more so if it has an end. Life has a start, then an end. The
end that we know of, is death. Whether it is just an entryway to the afterlife or a higher place, we often see death as
the ultimate conclusion for the living experience of a person. But only for a person, and that person is the one that
died. The knowledge of an end makes the things in between more important. Knowing that there is an end
encourages people to cherish something because it is limited. Because there is an end, the reason of why and how it
ended has more value and then giving more value to its beginnings too.
This is my opinion on the value of life and what I believe in.
Life is precious not only because it is a life and that a soul is living and interacting with the world through
the body, but because of the great potential that every living being has to affect the world. For me, the main goal in
life is to be able to do what we want, need to be, within the limit of our lifespans. And, since death comes at any
time, whether we like it or not, we must always aspire to be able to live without regrets every day and do our best
along the way.

By Roy Khalil Granada