Things Happen for a Reason

            Nothing in life is ever given and everything you do has to be worked hard for. You have to put in the effort to achieve your dreams and solidify them. My generation is very lazy and we think that we deserve things without putting in the effort. I have seen this all around me, in myself, friends and family. It is a very disgusting trait that should be prevented before it gets worse. I never thought that I would become one of these people growing up, but sadly I was mistaken. I am going to tell you guys a very personal story that I am not very open about. It is a topic that has taken time for me to talk about, because of the hurt and disappointment it has put all of my loved ones through, but especially myself because of my struggles I have gone through these last couple of months, I am a strong believer of “everything happening for a reason”. It has destroyed me and broke me down to pieces but I am still standing now stronger than ever.

            It was the summer of 2013, I was ecstatic to be graduating high school, but more excited that I was going straight to a 4 year college. I was lucky enough to get accepted to CSUN (California State University of Northridge) and I was beyond happy because I knew I was going to make my friends and parents proud by chasing my dream of being an athletic trainer. It was the happiest time of my life because I was going to live by myself, pursue my dream career and enjoy the college life. At first I was sad because I was going to leave my parents and friends behind, but I knew it was the right thing to do at the time. It was bittersweet but I knew I was going to come back and show off my degree to everyone back home in 4 years. Sadly things did not turn out as planned and now I stand before you.

            The day came, the one I waited so long for, It was move out day. I was nervous and excited for what was to come. The first few weeks passed by and I loved everything about it. I loved the atmosphere, the library, the gym and most of all the friends that I made there. I was living the good life, I could say. The only thing that wasn’t going so good was my grades. My first semester my grades took a little bit of a plunge and I ended up on academic probation. It was something new for me because I had always had good grades all my life, so being on academic probation was scary. I thought to myself, I have to change my ways and do better my 2^nd semester. I went into my second semester with the mind set of focusing on school and nothing more. I did do that but sadly it was towards the end and there was no hope for me to come back. I remember exactly that moment; I was in my girlfriend’s dorm studying for a Biology midterm. I was just sitting there by myself staring at all the notecards and PowerPoint presentations. I then knew I had no hope at all, I broke down and started to cry. Suddenly I heard my girlfriend come into the dorm, she said to me, “What’s wrong Hugo?” I said, “Nothing”, I did not want to tell her about the whole situation because, I felt embarrassed. I felt as if I would disappoint her and my whole family. After a while, I grew the courage to say to her, “I got kicked out”. When those words came out of my mouth the whole room turned pitch black, I couldn’t think, so I just laid there in pain and agony hoping it was all a dream. At the time I thought it was the end of the world, but I knew I had to move forward and face this situation like a responsible adult.

            Even though it took me a while to get out of the funk, I finally decided to seek my options. There were 3 options that were presented to me. One was to go to the alternative college at CSUN and finish my GEs there, but I would get no financial aid which was something my parents were not happy about. Option number 2 was to go to community college in the valley, but I would still have to pay rent and would not be financially stable. So obviously I took my last option and decided to come back home and go to Oxnard College. It was a hard decision because I would be leaving the life I had already created over there, but it was for the better. I knew god had put me on this path so I can realize that stuff is not given and to work hard for what I wanted. Since everything has happened, I have evolved and have become more motivated than ever. I finally got my first job at Men’s Warehouse and started supporting myself financially, I produced better study habits than before, most of all I realized what being a responsible adult means. It means that nobody is going to make things happen and hold your hand throughout life. You are the only one that affects your future and if you don’t take action then who will?

            The most important thing to my family and I is that I learned from my mistake and instead of taking the easy way out, like dropping out, I am still in college trying to get back to where I was. As long as I continue to have a positive mindset, nothing will stop me from getting to where I need to be. It’s going to be a long road back, but I must admit it’s all going to be worth it in the end. Like I said in my title, things happen for a reason and it just so happens that this happened so I can be taught all the valuable lessons of working hard. This time when I go back to CSUN I will be well prepared with the new study skills I have learned. Until then, I will be nothing but motivated so that I can prove to my loved ones that I can do it. My family, friends, and especially my girlfriend have been my number one supporters through it all. I hope you all take my story to heart and start to take action by not slacking off, because it will bite you in the butt. Don’t take school for granted because it can be taken away in a blink of an eye. Study hard, work hard and whatever you do don’t quit on yourself even when it feels like everyone has lost faith in you. When all of you read this I hope it makes you change your mind in how seriously you should take school. I want to leave you guys with one of my favorite quotes by William J. Clinton,” If you live long enough, you’ll make mistakes. But if you learn from them, you’ll be a better person. It’s how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit”. No matter the obstacles, the amount of studying it will take, I will not end until I am back where I use to be, a proud CSUN matador.