Essay On Life’s Joy

A1: After reflecting, I feel as though I have been most fulfilled when spending unimpeded time with friends and family. This is where my life’s joy really lies. I spend time with friends and family, often worrying about other things, like school, work, or the future, and this is not what I consider to by quality time. There are instances, however, when I am able to spend time with them without worrying about anything and I leave these situations feeling happy, peaceful, and as if I have really lived and enjoyed my life.
A2: I value many things. Of course I value the typical things, like money and material things. I know I need a roof over my head. I understand I need money to pay for electricity and water in a home. I value these things. However, I also value myself as a person, and who I am, as well as what I contribute to society. Kindness, honesty, bravery, dedication, and other qualities are things that I value in myself, as well as other people. They are important. I also value a peaceful existence, which is something I do not have at this point, primarily because life is chaotic. While I still value the idea of a peaceful existence, even though I do not have it, I do value my quiet time because it allows me to recharge.
A3: Engagement is a funny and elusive thing. We are all so wired into the internet, our smartphones, and enormous flat screen televisions that engagement is difficult to find for me. I feel the most engaged when speaking with another person who is willing to put away the screens and actually talk to me about things that matter, or that I believe to matter. They may not matter to other people, but it provides stimulating conversation. For example, we may discuss politics, or how members of society have been left on the margins, and why they have been forced there. It creates a flow and it is very engaging.
A4: I try as hard as I can to live my day-to-day according to my values. My personal values normally align with my day to day because it is easy to be myself. I can be honest and kind without the help of anybody around me. However, living an engaging life is more difficult because for me that requires the help of somebody else, to a certain extent. I would like to say that it happens every day, but it does not. I often attempt to begin these conversations, but it is not long before those around me revert back to their habitual screen staring.
B: I was most accurately described by the artistic and social groups. I do thrive better outside of a structured environment, which was depicted by artistic groups. While I am not incredibly creative, I do find unique ways of solving many different problems I am confronted with, making me resourceful in my own way. I try to be as different as possible, even when I do not have to be. It is something I have tried to change in adult life in order to conform to a more professional outlook; I hope to maintain a steady career one day, and it is likely I will need to maintain less of a creative streak in order to do this. While I am perfectly at peace with the creative streak within me, it is less likely that an employer will find it as whimsical. I also enjoy working with people, whether it is to help, inform, train, or any other variety of working with them. I enjoy time alone, of course, but working with people is fulfilling, and makes me feel as though I am doing work greater than myself. The two combined suit me perfectly. The two areas that were least like me were conventional and realistic. While I understand the need for data in most circumstances, I am not comfortable working with it directly in most circumstances and I do not find it engaging. Moreover, while I am not averse to working with machines or tools, I find working with humans more fulfilling than fixing something, or working with mechanical objects.