My goal in life, no matter what career path I take, is to work with kids, and to make a difference in children's lives. There is nothing more important than children, they are our future, and it is so important for them to be able to grow up in a stable, strong, and loving environment, and to always have support around them. No matter what I want to be able to offer that to children. This brings me to a story of a little girl who has so dearly touched my heart.

There is a girl I know who is about the age of 9, she lives with her dad and her mother is not around, and she is pretty bad off with her dad. On countless occasions I have seen her dad leave her alone with the staff at my restaurant to go out to the parking lot and drink. Last week upon my asking if her father would like a drink with his meal and he responded no, she whispered to me, "he has beer in the truck." To say that breaks my heart would be a tremendous understatement.

This little girl is so young, sweet, and full of potential. These circumstances she is growing up with seem to be very disappointing from the view of an outsider. I feel for her deeply, and my heart aches for her. What makes this worse is that she isn't the only child who has to go through the struggles of a parent who has an addiction, there are so many kids out there who have a problem like this. However, children are so very important, and making sure they know that is vital to our future.

Every child is a super hero, they are going through life, learning knew things, having fun, and are so adaptable and can bounce back from so many situations. Adversity is a very common thing for children, and they tend not to notice. We want to ensure the kids who face it most are able to bounce back, and don't let set backs negatively affect their lives, but rather mold them into someone who can learn from those trials and become a better person despite them.

I believe we as a society should be prioritize our youth, their safety, and ensure they know that they are loved and cared for. It is so important to me, and it should be important to you to keep this in mind. No matter how "bratty" a child seems to be, or if they're a "trouble maker" they deserve the same love and attention as any other kid. I intend to have a career that helps me impact the lives of children, one way or another I want to be able to provide guidance and love. Any educator, social worker, anyone involved with children should keep in mind, never forget why you got into your profession, it is to benefit our youth and our world as a whole.

Childhood is such a special thing, it is something you will be able to reflect on for the rest of your life, tell your children the time you tried to ride your bike with no hands, build a fort in the woods, have nerf gun wars, hide and guy seek, play pretend, or just make mistakes, they are stories you will have for a lifetime. Unfortunately they might not always be the best stories, so just keep in mind, their is more often than not a little one looking up to you, or one near buy that needs guidance. Lead by example and be your best self so that others can follow suite.