Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

The Good the Bad and the Ugly

When asked to analyze yourself and pick the things you value the most, what comes to
mind first? For most, it’s the superficial things like their house, or friends, music, or whatever
sport they play. But I knew for this project; I had to dig deeper. I stared at a blank page for what
felt like days, trying to think of what I value most in this world. I realized that yes I value my
friends but why? It’s because my friends contain these characteristics that make them such
amazing people. I discovered that these shared values are what drew me to them in the first
place. Honesty, kindness, loyalty, adventure, community, dedication, and curiosity. These traits
are some of the most invaluable characteristics a person can contain.

For me, honesty is not as literal of a value as some may think. It does not just
mean telling the truth all of the time, but also being open about your opinions and
feelings, or being true to yourself. I believe you should never have to hide who you truly
are in fear of being judged or mocked, and never bottle up emotions until they grow into
spite or resentment. Honesty is valuable to me because if you are not honest and open
about showing who you are to the world, you will never feel whole. It is essential to be
honest about your feelings or else you can never feel entirely like yourself. Your emotions
are all valid; they should not be shoved to the side or ignored. In my childhood, my
parents always pushed me to open up about my feelings and never bottle anything up.
They also always made sure I knew that they would love me no matter what.
Unfortunately, I spent months struggling with my mental health, keeping my emotions
suppressed and covered up by the statement “I’m fine.” Eventually, my body started to
force me to accept and voice what was happening. By hiding my feelings for so long, I
began having panic attacks. It wasn’t until I was not just honest with my parents, but
honest with myself that I got the help I needed and began to feel like myself again. I had
to learn to be kind to myself and not feel like I had failed when I needed to get help.
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Kindness is not just being friendly; I believe kindness is supporting others up when
they are down. It is also being kind and understanding towards yourself. Our worst enemy is
often our own psyche; the voice in our head telling us we have failed or that we are not good
enough. I have learned that you need to talk to yourself the same way you would your friend.
You would never tell another person that they were ugly, or stupid, or not good enough. You
must treat yourself the same way you would treat others. Kindness is also being there for
another person at their lowest lows, not just their highest highs. It is taking the time to listen or
to try to understand how a person feels regardless of your own opinions. I value kindness
because it is what got me through my deepest depressions. I don’t know if I would have gotten
the help I needed while struggling with my mental health if it weren’t for the kindness and
understanding of my mother. Although she didn’t fully understand what I was going through,
she spent nights with me waiting for me to fall asleep; even if she didn’t agree with me, she
listened to what I had to say. I strive to be as kind as she is, it is something that is a precious
character trait for me. Going even farther back, I began to truly value kindness in grade three. I
had just started at WR Best Public School, and I was being bullied. But three girls at my school
always came to sit with me; they offered to play with me when no one else would. If it weren’t
for their kindness, I’m sure the bullying would have continued. Kindness is something that has
pushed me to do much of my volunteering. I have fundraised since grade 5 for Spread the Net
and ME to WE. I also volunteer at RVH as a way to help locally. I think there is not nearly
enough kindness in this world and I have dedicated myself to living a life full of compassion.
When living a life full of goodness, there can be challenges put in front of you; times where
your values are tested like your kindness and even your loyalty to the people around you.

Many people misinterpret the word loyalty; there is a vast difference between
devotion and blind loyalty. Being loyal to me means not abandoning someone in the hardest
parts of their life. It says you do not leave as soon as you get a better offer. Loyalty also
means not thinking the worst of someone, or if you hear something, you do not jump to
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conclusions. You see the best in a person, and you make sure to consider them as a whole, not
just one mistake they may have caused. Loyalty is invaluable, knowing you have someone
who is a loyal friend is such a comfort. It makes you feel like you are never alone; like you
have someone to rely on no matter what. When you don’t have a dependable person in your
life, you feel like you don’t have a support system. Imagine a loyal friend as being a 10 ft
wide concrete post supporting you, but an unloyal friend is a stick. The unloyal friend may be
able to assist you for a while, or when you are at your best, but the moment you start to lean

on them a little more, they crack under pressure. ​My value of loyalty became much stronger

recently. I had a very close friend for years and

​ when I needed not just her support but her

understanding she jumped to conclusions and assumed the worst. It hurts when someone who
you have done nothing but support and showed

your loyalty to is so quick to judge you. It was at that point I realized that I needed loyal
and

understanding people in my life. I make sure I am loyal to everyone in my life as long as they
are

dependable. For too long I was blindly loyal when they did not deserve my loyalty or friendship.

I have learned to be faithful to everyone who deserves it. For example, when one of my
friends

needed my help when she was in trouble, I was there for her. I did this in part because in the past

she has shown that she is a loyal and caring friend. She had supported me not just when I was

fun and adventurous but also when I was sad and tired.

Adventure to me is not just travelling, but a passion for having new experiences. The

fearlessness that comes from a drive to try new things. Adventure is doing something even
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though there is a pit in your stomach because you want to embrace everything life has to
offer.

Adventure is something I value for many reasons one being my grandparents; they have

always travelled for as long as I can remember and I have always loved hearing their stories after

coming back from all their trips. I would sit and listen to my grandparents talk for hours about

nature, the people, and the culture. I dreamt of one day becoming them, being able to tell
my

children and grandchildren about all the things I'd seen and helped build their passion for

adventure and travel. My sense of adventure also came from my dad; he has always been

fearless, he mountain bikes (which I'm not even that adventurous). We talked about going

skydiving together and going on these big hiking trips. He's always supported my need for

adventure. Whether it was through letting me go to Tanzania at fourteen years old; or exchanging

for ten months to Europe next year. Not once have either of my parents tried to hold me back

from what I wanted, and for that, I'm so

grateful.

The root of my love for adventure came from the first time I was on an airplane when
I

was a little kid. I noticed most kids were crying or scared, but I wasn't; I was determined to
sit

right by the window and look out so I could see everything. The concept of flying was so

fantastic to my young mind, how did someone figure out how to build this airplane? It was that
feeling I got sitting on that plane like anything was likely, I've been chasing that feeling
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

my

entire life. ​Adventure is something I am determined to keep in my life, and it's one of the

main

things that drove me going through this Global perspectives program and pushed me to apply for

a 10-month exchange next year. I jump at any opportunity to try something new no matter
how

scary it is. I love finding Adventure in even the little things like going as fast as I can down a ski

hill or trying water skiing for the first time. The childlike sense of freedom and invincibility
is

something that comes from working new things, and when you succeed you feel like you are on

top of the world. When you find other people with the same passion for adventure and travel as

you it gives you a sense of community.

A sense of community or belonging has something that connects you to a group of

people whether it be an interest, religion, or blood relations. A sense of community can

come

from anywhere; I believe that this Global Perspectives program is like a family giving me
that

sense of belonging. There is only one necessary factor of a community; everyone has to
support

each other. I value community because ever since I was little, we've gotten together with all my

relatives each year no matter how far apart we are or how long ago we last saw each other,
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

every

holiday we always come together to celebrate. That feeling of closeness with other people
has

become something I deeply value. I feel something similar to my volleyball team; a sense of

community that you can’t get from many other things. With my local Church, I get the same

feeling as well; everyone supports and loves each other.

The root cause of my strong value of closeness or community comes from when I was in

grade 1, my mother, father, sister, and I had just moved to Alberta. I had no friends, new
people

in all of my classes, and no familiar faces as I walked in on the first day of school. This year was

also the first time I had ever lived farther than a 30 minutes drive from my entire family. The

holidays that year were tough for me because it was just my parents, my sister, and me. I had

never experienced a Christmas without my entire family before. The concept of not having
a

crowded house full of loud people on Christmas day was so foreign to me. It was then I
realized

how much I enjoyed that sense of community that originates from everyone coming
together.

A sense of community is in my life not just because of my blood relatives but

also

because of other groups that I consider myself a part of such as Global Perspectives. I
believe
Global perspectives is a community, my church as well, and my friend group. Community is
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

all

around us it's more of a feeling than a physical thing. Many different things can bring
people

together; I became close with many of my friends because they have the same drive and

dedication that I do.

I would define dedication or drive as the motivation to succeed or is committed

to

following through on promises made either to yourself or to others. Dedication or drive is

when

you have a goal, and you do everything you possibly can to get to it or to succeed. Dedication
or

drive is something I value because it is one of my strongest character traits. It is something I

look

for in all of my friends, and I struggle whenever I have a friend or someone in a group project

with me that is not motivated to succeed. I can’t understand how someone could be okay
with

not doing their absolute best since it is something that is very important to me.

I believe that the root cause of my value of dedication came from when I was in
grade

five. Grade five was the year when the school work became more difficult, and I noticed quickly

that many of the other students didn’t take school very seriously. They would not pay attention
in
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class and never do their share of the work in group projects. I never understood this, how
could

someone be content with putting their name on a test or assignment that was not their best
effort?

I have always taken pride in everything I do, and I couldn’t imagine not trying in school.

Dedication is in every aspect of my life; I put my best effort into everything I do.

Whether it be in school, or volunteering, my job, or a sport, I make sure I get my

homework

done on time and volunteer as much as I can without spreading myself too thin. I do my job
as

well as I possibly can always showing up for shifts, and I never slack off at sports practices or in

games. I p to bettering myself, I do this through reading and learning new things. My thirst
for

knowledge has always been easy for me since I am a naturally curious

person.

When I say curiosity is one of my core values, what I mean is the thirst for
knowledge;

being passionate about something and wanting to know everything you possibly can.
Asking

questions that other people might not think of and making sure you find the answers not
just

giving up. Curiosity is the drive to learn something new every day or experience something new.

I value curiosity because I value knowledge. But not just book smarts, I appreciate the

understanding of life or other cultures — even just the openness and willingness to look at
things
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

from a different point of view. I enjoy learning new things because I understand that there's
so

much I don't know, and so much more I need to learn. I spend time reading news articles or

books trying to gain more knowledge than I had the day before. I spend time teaching myself bits

of new languages because I know that other languages will help me in the future even if
they

don't right
now.

The root of my value of curiosity came from my parents. My mom and dad are some of

the smartest people I've ever met. Maybe they are not doctors or engineers or famous authors,

but the things they've taught me about life and living up to your full potential is invaluable. They

taught me ever since I was a kid when they would read to me before bed that learning new
things

is a blessing. Being able to ask questions and find out the answers is a gift that not all people
in

this world have. There are women and children in other countries that don't have an
opportunity

to go to school. There are countries in this world where if you ask the wrong question you can
be

put in prison. Although access to knowledge is a fundamental human right, it's not one that all

people possess yet. My parents taught me this and I grew up understanding the value of going to

school and of learning new

things.

Curiosity and a thirst for knowledge is something that is all around me in my

everyday

life. Whether it's in my bookshelves or on my computer or by watching the news, my

curiosity

helps drive me to learn as much as I possibly can and find new perspectives to give myself
the
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

most diverse way of looking at

life.

One thing that many of my friends would have expected me to value is music. Yes
I

enjoy listening to music, and I played the piano when I was younger, but it's not one of the
core

things I value. Music to me is a way for me to escape to get out of my head and have some time

to myself. Although I love this music isn't necessarily essential, I meditate, and there are other

ways for me to get the same feeling of calm that I get from listening to music. Although I make

value music in a small very superficial way, I could live without it. Music helps me connects
to

other people, and my family loves to listen to music when we get together, I also listen to
music

when I go to the gym. It's a part of my life, but it's not a significant aspect.

The root of my enjoyment of music comes from my childhood, and I think every kid at

some point has blasted music and had a little dance party. But even before that my mom
always

tells me how she would play music while she was pregnant with me. I'm not sure if I necessarily
believe that my enjoyment of music came from her playing Mozart to her stomach, but it's

possible. Music is a part of everyone's life, whether you're just driving to school and listening
to

whatever is on the radio, or working out at the gym and blasting some motivational songs.
It

helps us disconnect from the rest of the world; it gives us a little bubble so we can disappear for a

bit. Music is something I love, but it's not as important to me as other things.

Quite a few of my values relate to my political beliefs. I believe that politicians should be
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

honest and many of them make promises that they don't follow through on or they promote one

thing while running and another after elected. I also believe politicians should be loyal to the

people that chose them. When the population selected a person to represent and lead them, they

did it because they trusted that the politician would follow through on their promises.
Politicians

also have to be dedicated or driven to make a change. For example, an entire country could want

to take action to fight climate change but if there's no political will nothing will get done.

My values that don't completely connect to politics connect to my personal beliefs on life.

I believe in life you should strive to be kind and curious. To live the best life you possibly can

you have to take risks you have to be adventurous and motivated. My core values are
something

I take very seriously; I look for people who believe in the same things I do. My relationship with

my values changes my worldview completely. They change how I look at politics specifically

when I see powerful men or women that seem to have none of these values I question how they

ever came into power. It seems that what drives most people in today's society is money and

power. I believe that the people that will make a change in our world are not the ones who seek

out the spotlight but rather the ones hiding in the back doing things, not for praise or money but

to be a good person.

I am a Christian, I do not, however, consider myself a Christian in the typical sense of

the

term. I believe in evolution, and that LGBTQ+ deserve all the rights we have. I believe that
there

is a higher power or a “God” that looks over us. It gives me comfort to believe that there is
a

purpose for me being here. I came into religion after my fight with mental illness. It gave me
a
 Zarah Kiley February 11th 2019

sense of community and belonging. Even being a “Christian,” I do not believe that
other

religions are illegitimate or wrong in any sense of the word. I think that we all serve the
same

thing; a higher power, even if it has a different name wherever you are in the world such as God,
Buddha, or Allah. I have never understood why religion divided us when we are all looking for

the same thing; a purpose, a sense of family, and a reason for being on this
Earth.

My relationship with religion and spirituality has coloured my view of the world. I

believe that having a spiritual and religious connection to this world only betters my view of the

world. Mr. Toole described seeing the world through different lenses. I believe that the
more

lenses you have, the better off you will be. My relationship with religion and God has only better

diversified my way of looking at life.

In conclusion, my core values have profoundly influenced my view of the world. The

experiences I have had, good and bad, have only further shaped who I am. Without them,
my

values might be completely different. My relationship with spirituality and religion have also

formed my view of the world. My life and all that has happened up to this point are what created

who I am today and what I

value.