Wangyue Zhou, Grade 11
UWCSEA Dover Campus

  1. I‘m grateful for being born in a supportive family. My parents and grandparents respect my choices in life as long as they are rational. For instance, when I first talked with them about attending an international school, they supported me financially after careful consideration. If they have not supported me, I would not have the chance of being part of UWC, not to say writing articles for United Worldwide.
  2. I’m grateful for being admitted to schools I like. Instead of being sent to schools chosen by their parents, as most other students in China did, I chose my middle school and high school. These schools all maintain missions that my family and I agree upon. This means that my personal development would be smooth as expected. Contrary to the traditional way students choose schools in China, this way of choosing schools is like blind dating, which means that students and schools are more likely to have good matches. Most students in China can’t attend their favorite schools, therefore I’m grateful for being accepted by my choice of schools.
  3. I‘m grateful for encountering my friends. These young people delighted me with their interesting characteristics. I see humor and gentleness through them. I gain true happiness while being among them because they share the same values as me. They are upright soulmates who encourage each other during dreadful plights.
  4. I‘m grateful for my opponents in life. Their presence gives me opportunities to compete and to win applause from others. Courage, as it’s called, is only gained, after being defeated many times. I would not be who I am today without my opponents in life. I grew through experiences of failure.
  5. I‘m grateful for my favorite artists. They are lights in my life. While everyone else is telling me to love others, they are telling me to love myself first. If one is not able to love themselves first, then they are not capable of loving others either. This quote then becomes my life motto, which serves to encourage me while I’m depressed and abandoning myself.