FREE ESSAY ON ITS A WONDERFUL LIFE

ITS A WONDERFUL LIFE

It's a Wonderful Life
Picture a young child full of life and happiness. The love of his parents shows through
his eyes, smile, and tears. Some people would like to think that those things about a
child are exactly what make life wonderful. People who think that way have no idea how
right they are. Its a wonderful life to know that your parent's dreams live on in you.
The dream of a mother; that her son will be a doctor. The dream of a father; that his son
will some day become a major league baseball player. Most of all when its all said and
done, that a child can say as a man, "Its a Wonderful Life".
"It's a Wonderful Life" are true stories about events that took place in my life that
will be with me forever. I can remember when I was a little boy, I played my first game
of baseball. My grandfather practiced with me the whole week before the game. Catching
and throwing that baseball seemed like a basketball in my little hands. My grandfather
showed me how to place my feet in the batters box and how to bat. From that day on, I was
in love with the game of baseball. Now that I look back I wonder what meant more to me,
catching that baseball or the fact that my grandfather taught me the game. 
As I grew older and more mature I learned a lot about my grandfather. I was told stories
about his life and what a great ballplayer he was. He could have gone pro, but he didn't
have the support of his parents. Instead he went ahead and joined the army. It would kill
most men to come that close to their dreams, but if you ask him it was a wonderful life.
I was now a teenager at the age of sixteen, and it was time to get my driver's license.
This was a day that every parent dreads, and my mom was one of them. I can remember
asking my mother for the car keys so that I could take my road test. I detected a small
smile under her rolling eyes and stone hard frown. My mom understood how she felt when
she got her license. It meant freedom and responsibility for someone she raised from a
baby. I can still remember mom saying, "You damn kids grow up too fast" as a single tear
rolled down her face. That night I didn't even leave the house. My mother and I talked
for hours about how it was when she was young. It was an enjoyable evening just talking
to her. It was a wonderful life. 
Graduation day from high school never comes soon enough, so we think. Until the day is
over then we wish half our lives we could get back to that time. It was the sixth of June
1996, graduation day. I never felt so happy to have a piece of paper in my hand. That
paper was worth four years of my life. It symbolized my stressful days at school. It
meant four years of baseball, football, and wrestling. The years of my life that were
hard to endure, but so easy to look back on. These were the days that tested my knowledge
and spirit. These are the people and places that will live in my memory forever. There
was a place called "Tanner Park". This was the place everyone went to get away from it
all. People showed off their cars and threw around the old football. The girls there
wouldn't give me the time of day, but yet I still managed to have fun. I remember the all
night parties that seemed to never end. Although these four years of my life were during
my childhood, they helped make it a wonderful life. 
My life is not over. The life I live is far from over. I don't regret any of the things
that I've said or done because they are what make up my life. The dreams my parents have
for me live on in my heart everyday along with my own. It doesn't matter if those dreams
become reality, for I know I've put my best effort forward and that my dreams will live
on in my children. That's what will make my life truly wonderful.
By Jason J. Hennessey