Best and Brightest Essay

Best and Brightest Essay Being at a pivotal point in our lives, middle schoolers especially, are easily influenced. Whether it’s a new fashion trend in your favorite magazine, the album of the latest “artist to watch”, or your friend’s opinion on how to answer number seven on your math homework, we are always being influenced or influencing someone or something ourselves. Citizen involvement and volunteerism not can only influence you, but also those around you, because I believe it is our civic duty. It is our responsibility to give back to our community, whether you’re leading or following, because as Edith Wharton once said, “There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” Volunteering starts with one person, a candle in the darkness, and eventually that light spreads until that once very small light, is being reflected in a hundred different ways. I have always been inspired to give back to my community, because my mom taught me volunteering was important at an early age and inspired me to complete community service on my own time. However, some kids don’t have it as easy as I do when it comes to inspiration and willpower to volunteer, so I try my best to preach the importance of volunteerism to my friends and family. Especially to my friends, because I believe most voluntary community service done by students comes from the influence and inspiration of their friends. It is my personal belief that students are more obligated to give back through the “buddy system”, because lots of students, including me, like to have friend there with them, through the process when trying something new. In order to spread light, there has to be flames, which in lots of cases are friends who volunteer. You can’t light a candle without a match, so you obviously can’t get into volunteerism without a cause or reason for doing so; much less influence someone else to start volunteering. However, when we do find a cause we care about