What is my purpose?

Purpose is a monumental theme in a person's life. It truly defines who you are and who you want to be. For me, purpose ranges from a number of different topics. All the way from what I want to be when I grow up to what my goals and aspirations are once I'm an adult. Just thinking about the future and what it has in store for me gets me very excited.

High school is a big stage in everyone's life. It was definitely a big stage in my life. But, now comes an even bigger stage, college. The college life isn't for everyone, but I think it is for me. I have a hunger to learn as much as possible and college will definitely fulfill those needs. I think the college lifestyle will fit my personality perfectly and the way the professors teach will go right along with how I learn. At least I'm hoping so. I know that not all professors will be a cake walk, but I think they won't be the meanest people on the face of this earth. I plan to attend either Wayne State College or Creighton University to pursue a degree in pre-pharmacy. It will be a wild journey, but one that will be great and very fun and exciting!


After the first part of secondary education, I plan on pursuing a Degree of Pharmacy at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. This is a phase of my projected life that I'm fearing the most. I'm pretty sure I'll be prepared once I make the trek to Omaha, but just the thought of going to such a prestigious school puts a scare in my mind. My biggest fear about UNMC or undergraduate school is the fear of failing and dropping out. Anything short of obtaining a Degree of Pharmacy would be a let down. As of now this is a huge pressure I'm putting on myself, but I know I'm making it seem a lot scarier than it will end up being. I'm halfway scared of the college journey and halfway excited. Can't wait to see what's on my path to adulthood.

My purpose along the lines of a profession, is to become a pharmacist. I have come to this conclusion every since I started high school and it's becoming more real each and every day. If I do get this opportunity to work as a pharmacist, I would love interacting with patients, helping them out every step of the way through recovery, and also learning about new things each and every day. It would be a very rewarding job. Although some people might think that the schooling is going to be a rough journey, I look at it as a fun and new experience that will be very rewarding in the end. The only way I have this perspective is because, honestly, I love school. It's very weird, but it's just who I am.

Once I have my dream job in place, I want to settle down in a small town in Nebraska, preferably Aurora, and start a family. I love kids. I have loved kids every since I was a little kid. They just brighten the mood and by far the proudest moment of my life will be when I have a child of my own. Of course, everyone knows that this future child of mine would be impossible by myself. I need a partner in crime! My wife is someone that I will want to spend every waking moment with. It will be someone to have fun with. The thought of having a wife and kids to come home too after a long, hard day at work just brings a smile to my face! I cannot think of a more perfect person to fit this description than my high school sweetheart, Anya Ranae Oswald. She is someone who I can definitely see myself with for the rest of my life.

All of these things cannot happen unless I take life one day at a time and enjoy every little thing that comes my way. My life right now is easy going and I honestly don't have a care in the world. I'm definitely enjoying this lifestyle while it lasts because I know even next year it will be back to hectic times. Hectic lifestyle is going to be okay with me it will just take some getting used to. It is just going to have to become the new normal. Which I will love!

Where Am I?

My State

Most people must think Nebaska is the most boring state in the whole United States of America, but until you've acutally lived here and grew up here, you can't say that. I truly believe Nebaska is the best place in the USA to grow up. Nebraska has taught me to work hard and always dream big. In my short life, I have learned that most people think one of two things about Nebraskans. Either they think we ride cows to school, or we are the hardest working individuals in the entire nation. Most people that have grown up in big citites have probably never seen corn, which I think is so bizzare. I see corn every single day of my life in the summer and fall! Nebraska has also taught me to have passion for what I love. It may be embarrasing to say, but I have mainly learned this lesson from Big Red Football. It's not really even a team, it's more like a religion. Everyone gets so fired about on Saturdays and I love it!



My Community

Living in Nebraska has truly been a wonderful experience for me, but living in Aurora has been a blessing. All the people are so kind and welcoming. I have seen countless times when an individual or a family is struggling and the whole community gets behind them to support them in their time of need. I think it's truly something special. There's no place on earth like it. One of my favorite features of this small town is when you're out and about everyone greets you with a hello and a smile. Virtually every business is family owned and has been forever. I hope to move back here after I obtain a degree in college. Aurora is the perfect place to raise a family. I wouldn't trade my hometown for any other town in the universe.

My School

School, honestly, has shaped who I am today! By this time, my senior year, I have probably spent as much time in this "prison" than I have at my own house. It's a crazy thought, but it's not all that bad. I actually have enjoyed it. I enjoy seeing my friends each and everyday. Sure some days aren't the greatest, but if everyday was sunshine and rainbows I think that'd be kind of boring. It doesn't hurt that I enjoy learning and being challenged. Some kids hate the thought of sitting in a classroom to learn about chemical equations, but I embrace it with the most positive mind set possible. It has been really hard for me to wake up in the mornings, however. The thought of leaving my warm, comfortable bed for the dark, cold, and cruel world just makes me grimmace. Once I'm up, I have no problem with anything else. It's just the first initial push to get up and out of bed. School will forever be a part of me. I will continue to learn until the day I die. I love the thought of that!

My House

My home sweet home. The place where I've learned lessons, morals, and how to be gentleman. I have lived in two houses in my lifetime. Two good sized house. I guess you could say I got lucky to have two actually houses to go home to and two amazing and loving parents under that roof. If I hadn't grown up in a stable home, with loving parents guiding me every step of the way, I honestly think my life would be so much different. That is refering to the bad kind of different. I can see myself in a few years, having a beautiful home of my own with a wife to match and coming back to my old childhood house and just staring in awe at all of the memories that were created in that very house. Of course, none of these memories would have been near as special as they are without the support and denial of my wonderful siblings, Travis and Megan. They made me feel apart of something special when they let me hang out with them and their friends, but also made me a tougher person, physically and mentally with all of the beatings I took for running my mouth a wee bit too much. Oops! I wouldn't trade them for the world, however. They have also made me the person I am today, someone I believe that they would be very proud of. My house is probably the single most improtant thing in shaping me as a person. I love my house and the family it occupies!

 

Who Am I?

Who am I? This is the million dollar question. Of course, everyone can say they're either a son or a daughter, a husband or a wife, but when it boils down to it who are you deep down inside? Since being in Honors Composition II, I have really found out who I am. This epiphany has really excited me. With this new found knowledge I believe I can reach my full potential and be very successful.

            So let's start out with the basics, my name is Tanner James Griffith. I was born and raised in Aurora, Nebraska by the most wonderful and loving parents this world has to offer. Jody Griffith, my mother, is the most thoughtful person. She never ever hesitates to lend a helping hand to a long-time friend or even a complete stranger. My father, Bill Griffith, is a man of few words, but when he does speak you need to listen. He is stern, but fair. He is the hardest working man I know and it is a goal for me to be like him someday. I was raised the youngest of three children. My oldest brother, Travis 25, has taught me many qualities such as, how to be a competitor and even how to be tougher, which was probably the worst lesson of them all. The middle child, my sister Megan 22, has always been easy to relate to. She was a little closer in age and always made me feel included. Even being a girl, she has been a vital piece to my growth as a person. I am currently employed at USave Pharmacy in Grand Island where I work 20-25 hours a week. My dream of becoming a pharmacist is all starting with this job. Hopefully I will achieve my ultimate goal of earning my Doctorate of Pharmacy degree, but until then I'll just stick to being a clerk.
            My hobbies are a big part of who I am. You can learn some important core values by participating in the activities that you enjoy. Sports have always been a huge piece of me, especially baseball. Watching, playing, or coaching anything related to sports just gets me fired up.  I think that competitive drive has come from my father. I was introduced to my favorite sport, baseball, early in my life. My brother was a huge baseball fan. My family and I would travel to numerous different towns across Nebraska just to watch my brother and his team play. Baseball was really my first love. I know, for a fact that I would not be the same person I am today without the game of baseball. Baseball has taught me to be the best I can be and always give 100% effort on the diamond. America's pasttime has also taught me to be fair, have good sportsmanship, and always encourage not only teammates, but opposing players as well. Another hobby of mine is school, which to most people isn't really a hobby at all. It's more like, well, the law. I understand that I have to be here, but I thoroughly enjoy learning new things everyday. I love expanding my knowledge. By now, I'm sure I've spent equal, if not more, time at school and at home with my family. School is an important piece to shaping students' lives. Hanging out with friends is more than a hobby to me, it's basically a necessity. Just add it to the list: food, water, shelter, and hanging out with friends. When you're not with family or at school you're with friends. You tend to take on their qualities and, in the case of my friends, these qualities are exactly the way I want to be!
            Now that you know a little bit about my background, the boring stuff, let's get to the real meat of who I am today. I am a loving person. My mother always said I was a sucker when it came to people needing help, which she can definitely relate to because that's how she has always been. I believe the key to happiness is helping others in their time of need. My parents have always taught me that you'll never gain anything without giving up a little bit in the process. I work hard at everything I do and never underachieve. My motto "nothing in this world is worth having, unless you had to work hard to achieve it."

I don't know where I would be without all these things in my life, and fankly, I don't want to know. I'm happy with the person I've become, but I'm definitely not satisfied. There are many more things in life that will mold me into the person I am suppose to become. I cannot wait for those things to happen and hopefully I become a person that everyone likes and wants to be around.