伊麗莎白·切利/Elizabeth Cherry
Always believe in yourself no matter what; love the person that you are and appreciate what God has given you. These are laws of Life that are useful for everyone. I think that before people can live happy lives, they must believe in and accept themselves. The hardest thing for individuals to do is to look in the mirror and like what they see. Accepting yourself, being thankful for God's gifts and believing you can accomplish anything for which you strive is hard for all of us. To live a fulfilling life, you must start with believing in yourself as a person.
I have struggled with believing in myself so many times in my life. Struggling with little tasks such as completing homework or memorizing a piece on the piano, I would get so frustrated. You never realize how much easier your life becomes if you have confidence before you take on a task until you say, "I can do this!" Four or five years ago, I began taking piano lessons. Recital time was approaching, and I had a piece that I needed to memorize. Coming home with a feeling of frustration and poor attitude, I just knew I could not accomplish this task. I sat at my piano and told myself that I would never get it finished. What was supposed to be the me memorization of a few lines of music is now a life lesson for me. I did end up finishing the piece, and the recital went smoothly. The important point is, looking back on this time in my life, I can see how important it is to know that you can accomplish anything you want to do if you try your best. Now, when I become frustrated with a piano piece, I never give up and think that I cannot do it. Always beginning with a positive attitude, I sit down and tell myself that I can accomplish my goal if I put my mind to it. I realize that I should have this attitude in everything I do. Never give up, believe that you can accomplish anything in which you put your mind and heart.
Love yourself, and like who you are. It is hard for many people to look in the mirror and like what they see. The media of today gives an image that many want to follow. Girls should be tall and perfectly skinny, and boys should be tall and extremely muscular. As a teenager, I fully understand all of these pressures that are put upon us. Every time I turn on the television or open a magazine, I see tiny, skinny little bodies that I think I should have. I have wasted more time wishing I could be someone else than I have living my life to its fullest. To this day, I would love to have the perfect body, but I must realize that I am as beautiful as any "perfect" girl on the cover of a magazine and that what counts the most is on the inside, not the outside. Teenagers are also faced with making decisions at their young age. Alcohol, drugs, and sex are so common for the average teenager. Although many people would laugh at and make fun of me because I have not indulged in these rebellious actions, I have learned that staying away from distractions makes me feel good about myself. I do not have to drink, do drugs, or have sex to be a popular and likeable person; I can be myself. Learning to love myself for who I am, not what I look like and what I do, has really made my life more pleasant and fulfilling. Everyone deserves happiness. It is vital to learn to appreciate and love yourself.
Appreciate God's bountiful gifts that he gives you. I am blessed with so much when many are without shelter, food, and other necessities of life. As I sit and gripe because I do not anticipate receiving a car when I have my sixteenth birthday, there are children all over the world who would just like to have a meal to eat. Instead of dwelling on the luxuries that you do not have, think of those for which you are so thankful. These days, numerus people are self-involved. They care about no one but themselves. God put us on this earth to love and help one another, and so many of us continue to think about what we want. We could be spending more of our time thanking God for all of the wonderful blessings he has bestowed upon us. Think about the talents that you have, and know that God gave them to you for a reason. If you are a compassionate person, visit those in nursing homes with no family. A person with a beautiful voice should sing in a choir to make people smile. Thank God for all that he gives you, and use your talents to help others.
Always remember to believe in yourself, and challenges will seem easier. Love the person that you are, and don't compare yourself to others; you are your own person. Be thankful for God's gifts, and use your talents wisely. The key actions to a happy and fulfilling life are believing in yourself, loving who you are, and thanking God for what he gives you. If people lived by these laws of life as I strive to do, they would be content, productive, and fulfilled individuals.
無論如何，你都要始終相信自己，愛你自己這個人，感激上帝給予你的一切——這是每個人都受用的“人生法則”。我認為人們一定要相信自己、接納自己，唯有如此才能擁有幸福的生活。一個人最難做到的便是看著鏡子，喜歡鏡子裏的自己。接納自己、感謝上帝的賜福、相信你能實現自己的追求，這些對於我們來說是很難做到的。想讓你的生活充實而滿足，首先就需要讓自己充滿信心。
生活中，為了相信自己，我曾多次拚搏過。即使是麵對完成家庭作業、把一支鋼琴曲練熟這樣的小任務，我也總是灰心喪氣的。假如在開始一項任務之前，你信心十足地說：“我能行！”你就會覺得生活從未如此輕鬆愉快。四五年前，我開始學習彈鋼琴，獨奏會的日期一天天逼近，我卻還有一支曲子沒有掌握。回到家中，我帶著一副丟盔棄甲的樣子，態度也不好，覺得自己不能完成這項任務。我坐在鋼琴的旁邊，告訴自己永遠都不可能彈好。要牢記那幾個小節樂曲的事情，如今竟成了我的人生教訓。最後，我終於練熟彈奏了那支樂曲，獨奏會也進行得十分順利。回顧這段日子，最重要的是我懂得了這樣一個道理：假如你全力以赴去做你想做的事情，那你就一定能做到。現在，我在彈不好某段樂曲，感到沮喪時，我也絕不放棄，絕不認為自己做不到。首先要保持積極樂觀的態度，坐下來，告訴自己，隻要用心，就一定能實現自己的目標。我認識到不管做什麽，都應該抱著這種積極的態度去做。永遠不要放棄，要堅信隻要一心一意，你想做的事情就都能做到。
要愛自己，喜歡自己這個人。許多人很難做到喜歡鏡子裏的自己。當今媒體充斥著眾多偶像，許多人紛紛模仿。女孩子要身材高挑；男孩子要高大，陽剛之氣十足。作為一個十幾歲的孩子，我十分理解外界給我們施加的壓力。每當我打開電視機，或者翻閱一本雜誌的時候，總會看到小巧清瘦的身材，我便覺得自己也應該有同樣的身材，而且花費了很多時間去期待自己也能改變一下形象，而不是將時間花在充實自己的生活上。時至今日，我也想得到完美的身材，不過我必須知道自己和雜誌封麵上的“完美”女孩一樣美，必須清楚美重要的是人的內心，而非外表。十幾歲的孩子也會麵臨種類繁多的選擇，酒精、毒品和性在一般青少年中是很常見的問題，盡管好多人因為我對這些叛逆行為不沾邊而譏笑我、嘲弄我，可是我知道避開各種**才會使我感覺良好。要成為一個受人歡迎、討人喜歡的人，我沒有必要去飲酒、吸毒、追求性刺激，我堅持自己的本色，學會愛原原本本的自己，而不是因為我的模樣、我的作為，這樣我才會真正地使我的生活更加快樂、更加充實。每個人都有權利享受快樂，重要的是學會賞識自己、愛自己。
感激上帝賜予你的禮物。在許多人沒有住處、食物以及其他生活必需品的時候，我卻幸運地擁有了許多。當我坐下來，因為16歲的生日禮物中沒有汽車而悶悶不樂時，在世界各地還有多少孩子隻是期待能吃上一頓飽飯。不要為不屬於自己的榮華富貴費盡周折，多想想令你心懷感激的那些東西吧。如今，自私的人不計其數，除了自己以外，他們對誰都不聞不問。上帝讓我們到世上的目的就是讓我們互相愛護、互相幫助的，但是我們好多人還是僅僅考慮自己需要什麽。我們原本能夠花更多的時間來感激上帝，感謝他將美好的一切賜給我們。要多想想你的天賦，要知道上帝給你的一切都是有原因的。假如你是個富有同情心的人，那你就到療養院去看望那些無家無業的人吧；假如你擁有一幅好嗓子，就應該到歌唱隊用歌聲為人們送去歡笑。感謝上帝將一切賜予你，並用你的天賦來幫助他人。
永遠記住你要一直相信自己，難題就會變得容易。愛你自己吧，不要把自己跟別人做比較，你就是你自己。要感謝上帝賜予的天賦，你就要多開動腦筋，發揮自己的聰明才智。要讓生活快樂而充實，重要的是要相信你自己，愛你自己這個人並要感謝上帝賜予的一切。假如人們按照我所遵循的“人生法則”生活，那他們就會感到心滿意足、有成就感而且能充分發揮自己的才能。
Man can only be free through mastery of himself.
—Morison
隻有通過掌握自己，才能得到解放。
——莫裏森
strive[straiv]v.努力；奮鬥；力爭
Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.
不要為成功而拚搏，而要為具有價值而拚搏。
memorization[?mem?rai?zei??n]n.憑記憶；暗記
Memorization will not increase one's knowledge, nor would it make
a person more intelligent, that is my view.
死記硬背，不會讓一個人知識豐富，也不會讓一個人變得聰明，這就是我的觀點。
muscular[?m?skjul?]adj.肌肉發達的；強有力的；有氣勢的
The heart is a muscular organ that contracts rhythmically.
心髒是個肌肉性器官，具有節律性收縮能力。
rebellious[ri?belj?s]adj.造反的；反抗的；難控製的
Those rebellious teenagers are hard to control.
那些反叛的青少年很難管教。
無論如何，你都要始終相信自己，愛你自己這個人，感激上帝給予你的一切。
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一個人最難做到的便是看著鏡子，喜歡鏡子裏的自己。
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永遠記住你要一直相信自己，難題就會變得容易。
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I have struggled with believing in myself so many times in my life.
struggle with：與……的鬥爭
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Although many people would laugh at and make fun of me because I have not indulged in these rebellious actions, I have learned that staying away from distractions makes me feel good about myself.
indulge in：沉溺於……
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