The Life

by Sam Swire

“These memories I have with my mom truly instilled a sense of wonder within me.”

Curiosity gives people the opportunity to connect with the world around them. It always has, and it always will. Curiosity is something I've always had and always will have because of my family. My grandfather, on my father's side, was a sniper in World War II. He was also a big history buff. While both my mom and dad have instilled a feeling of wonder what the world around me. Since I was a young child, I have always asked so many deep questions. Is world peace possible? Where do we go after we die? Are humans inherently evil? And so much more. Because of my mother, I have continued to think about these questions. Now, I am constantly following the news and reading about what is going on in the world.

When I was five years old, my parents packed our bags up and said, "We’re moving to Paris." I was only five at the time, so I didn't completely understand it would mean we were going to a foreign country for an entire year. Although I never felt nervous about it, my sister who was in middle school at the time, was crying about leaving home for so long, and she felt really bad about leaving her friends behind. And this made me feel bad too.

In Paris, while my dad was working, and my sister was spending time with the new friends she had made—yes, she ended up appreciating the trip and she made lots of new friends—my mom would take me on day trips and occasionally weekend trips: the Louvre, Switzerland, and Luxembourg. I was only five years old and I was seeing an amazing part of the world. My mom would constantly take me to The Louvre to see so many exhibits. After going to an exhibit about knights in the middle ages, I became really interested in the time period. That Halloween, I dressed up as a knight, and even after I came home from Paris, I was obsessed with knights and kings and medieval weapons.

These memories I have with my mom truly instilled a sense of wonder within me. Whether on a train or in a car, my mom would read to me about where we were going and its historical significance. During my year in Paris, my family and I took a trip to Turkey. It was amazing. The culture, the food, I loved it. And my mom had the idea of touring part of the country on a boat for a couple of days. When we got to the boat, it ended up being a very small boat, that not many people would want to spend too long on. We ended up having a really fun time, and from the boat we would take hikes, swim to tiny beaches, and see the country. I am so thankful for having this experience. Without my mom such a thing wouldn't have happened. And my love to travel, my curiosity with the world, would not be as it is today. Even more recently, my mom and I have been to so many beautiful places, like Utah, and many beautiful mountains nearby that I will always remember.