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SW-3002

5/21/16
Joseph Samara

Final Integrative Paper

Whenever I ponder on the meaning of life, I always end up with the same
questions over and over again: Who are we and what are we doing here? Well, I still have
no clue; however the only certain feature about humans is that deep in the horizon, the
road will end. Due to this known fact I have learned to value life and live every day as if
it was the last one. This has also given me the opportunity to acquire the inspiration and
motivation I needed to help me move forward. I believe (and people would say) that I am
a joyful person who loves to have fun and also knows to differentiate between right and
wrong. Personal characteristics can be divided into two categories: physical and mental.
Some physical characteristics I have are dark hair, brown eyes, size 13 feet, a somewhat
big (but beautiful) nose, and a height of 6ft 11in. On the other hand, some of my mental
characteristics include an open mind, a joyful personality, and a glorious ability to work
under pressure (hence leaving all semesters work for the last night). Even though these
are some aspects that describe me, I must say that I have acquired many of these
throughout the transition of life. Its hard to think about some characteristics that I was
born with. For example, youre not born with a certain taste in music genre or a palate for
certain foods, howbeit I was born without any severe mental illnesses and with a healthy
constitution of bones and organ systems (in other words: body). I find it rather difficult to
explain why I think this way, but my best guess would be because I can relate to the fact
that I share the same characteristics with millions of other people in the world. I have
developed some characteristics on my own, which include, but are not limited to, my
favorite types of music, my favorite foods, having an open mind, being agnostic, and my
favorite sports, which are soccer and racquetball. Regardless of category, I still have
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some physical and mental characteristics that need some improvement. For instance, I
need some work on my self-esteem, on my nervousness to talk to strangers, and help
concentrating in class and while doing other activities. I believe that people are aware
that every second that passes is a second closer to the end of the road, and by this I mean
that we have to work on changing and bettering our personal characteristics while we still
have time.

There are currently 7.1 billion people in the world, and with a number this big one
cant imagine that only one person has the power to change you completely, for better or
worse. There have been a great number of people that have influenced my life in a good
way, yet the ones that have had the greatest impact on me are my two best friends, my
brother, and my parents. Jimmy and Eduardo are my two best friends with whom Ive
shared my entire life, and even in the ups and downs weve managed to stay best friends.
Theyve taught me that when life gives you lemons, you shove them back into lifes
butthole and get your own lemons. What this means is that you dont have to conform to
what life can give you, but you must try to keep on going no matter what life has for you.
My brother has taught me that it doesnt matter how different you are from one another,
you must not judge your family and that two heads are better than one. Finally, my
parents have taught me that its not important how many times you fall, but how many
times you got back up and tried again. They also taught me that love can come in many
ways and that I have to care and help people that are not related to me; after all, thats
what they did for me. Even though the number of people that influence you in a good
way can be large, the number of people that can make you feel as if you were in the

Final Integrative Paper

SW-3002
Final Integrative Paper
5/21/16
Joseph Samara
infernal regions is even larger. My entire life has been a fight against bad criticism. Ive
had many problems regarding rumors started by people who wanted attention, my
teachers havent been the best at guiding me through the correct path, and even family
members can make you have a hard time trying to succeed; but all this isnt important in
life. After all, Mahatma Gandhi once said Nobody can hurt me without my permission1,
and with this as my motto Ive learned that whats important is the happiness of the
people I care for, not the happiness of the enemy. You dont have to allow harmful
people from affecting you because if you do, they will win. Dont let them win. My
mother.

Everything in life is affected by one thing: location. Where you live can determine your
personal characteristics, the people around you, what problems you have, your interests,
and the programs that affect you. Having lived in Honduras before I came to college has
molded my entire life. Honduras is located in Central America, its a third world country,
and the people are not the best in the world, but hey, its still pulchritudinous. I have lived
all my life in San Pedro Sula, the industrial capital of Honduras. Ive lived on two
separate areas of the city. Firstly, I lived near downtown and you could hear people
honking all the time. My first home had one floor, two bedrooms, and 4 bathrooms. I
didnt have much space since I had to share a bedroom with my brother, but this didnt
bother me at all because I wasnt in my room during the day. My second home was
finished on my last year of high school; therefore I didnt spend much time living there.
Many activities you can do in San Pedro Sula include having dinner at one of the many
fancy restaurants available, having a drink at any club since the drinking age is 18, going
1 http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/show_tag?id=fighting
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to one of the four malls in the city, and finally, playing any type of sport in any sports
complex; yet these are not the only activities available. For example, most weekends Id
accompany my father and mother to their respective jobs. My father is a doctor, owner of
four hospitals and several pharmacies. Id help him to deliver papers or other objects to
distinct places in the hospital. My mother is an agricultural engineer who helps her father
by working on his farms and taking care of the animals. Honduras is a rich country, filled
with activities and places where you can work, and most importantly, have fun while
doing so.

Many people have taught me that in order to live life to the fullest there must be
problems that must be overcome. I believe so. Ever since I can remember Ive been
encumbered by problems; be it school, family, and/or inner problems, Ive managed to
succeed and forget about them. After all, life is all about discovering yourself and trying
to achieve your dreams; and it wouldnt be possible if there werent any situations to
learn something from. Ive had many problems throughout my life, though the ones that
have affected me the most were my inner problems. Due to this Ive learnt new methods
of problem solving that I wouldve never acquired otherwise. As an example, I learned
that writing about the distresses and vexations in life helped me achieve a solution.
Although this method helped me solve most dilemmas, there were some problems that I
couldnt solve by writing; for those, I developed another method. I started to talk about
my problems with my friends, but I didnt ask for help, I made them repeat the same
problem back to me. This worked perfectly because for some reason, I can only think
about solutions when the problems are not mine (even though they are). The fact that

Final Integrative Paper

SW-3002
Final Integrative Paper
5/21/16
Joseph Samara
these methods worked for me didnt mean that they were the best. After writing about
most of my problems and talking to my friends without asking for help, I started to
believe that I didnt need to talk about my distresses, and this lead to unstableness in my
mind; what had started as a method for problem solving finished causing me more
confusion that I could ever imagine, but I am grateful for such confusion throughout my
life, as all those little problems and vexations shaped and colored my mind the way it is
today.

Since the day I was born I have been addicted to sports and other activities such
as running and dancing. My parents have told me that I gave them a hard time whenever I
was home because I would always be moving; I couldnt remain still. Ive become
passionate for movement, so much that Ive practiced almost every sport and learnt to
play some instruments. My favorite sports include soccer, basketball, racquetball, and
volleyball, all of which Ive played most of my life. Ive also learned to play flute, piano,
drums, guitar, and base, plus Ive recently started learning how to become a disc jockey.
In order to be confortable I have to keep moving and learning how to do new things, so I
could say that what I feel most passionate for is learning. Ive loved playing sports and
music since I was a little kid, but there have been some activities that Ive lost interest for
through aging, for example, jumping on the bed, drawing, and my love towards farm
animals. Although Ive lost interest in many other activities, theyve all managed to shape
who I am today. Playing sports since I was a little kid has given me a strong body and
bone structure and superior critical thinking. Ive also been affected by music; I can now
learn how to play any instrument in less than a week because I learned how to read music
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and how to move my hands accordingly to each instrument. However, these are not the
only attributes Ive attained through sports and music. My interests have also helped me
shape my future. My desire to learn has made me adroit to learn math, science, and
mostly all subjects easily. Since I feel most passionate about math and science I decided
to major in business and Im planning on getting a minor on music. After all, we only
have one life to do the things we love.

Whilst still in school, a child can learn about several activities other than the
required subjects, such as the Model United Nations, recycling clubs, and sports
tournaments. There are also other activities outside school; for instance, Ive helped
doctors brigades by translating papers, talking to their patients, and moving medical
equipment to areas where its needed. Being a part of these activities has taught me that
even the smallest hands can do a change. Every activity Ive participated in has left me
with positive thoughts about helping and caring for earth and its people. Even though
anyone can help, one must be aware that there are certain policies that must be followed.
For example, attending all school-related activities required the use of proper uniform,
and when helping in the brigade there had to be confidentiality agreements. Thanks to
these policies I now understand how to act and what type of clothes must be worn in each
event. I believe that policies are put in order to keep a controlled environment and people
must try and follow each policy for the sake of the activity.
Life is in constant change and everything weve done has shaped our own world
to what it is today. People have been changing since the moment they were born and
every factor in life has helped change them. Every aspect such as location, the problems,

Final Integrative Paper

SW-3002
Final Integrative Paper
5/21/16
Joseph Samara
and people have changed certain interests and personal characteristics someone might
have. Everything that happened in my life has given form to who I am today. Life has
given me these characteristics and I know it will not stop changing me yet. After all, we
all still have a long way to go in order to discover ourselves thoroughly. Oscar Wilde
once said, I am the only person in the world I should like to know thoroughly2.

2 http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/person.html#6RqFBL4QwishDOV5.99
Final Integrative Paper 7

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