Journal of Influence

These truly are the high times for me. However, life hasn’t always gone the way I wanted. It has been the encounters with people that have helped me make the change. Without the people around me and what they have taught me, I would not be the person that I am today.

My dream has always been to be a musician. I never thought this could actually come true until I met Ricky Wolking. Ricky has been teaching me how to play the bass guitar for several years now and has been a major impact on my life. He is constantly teaching me new techniques and skills I will need in my future career as well as directing me to other outlets of music such as the school band. He tells me what it is like to be a musician and has given me many handy tips that I can use along the way. He also keeps me motivated, always reminding me of my ultimate goal, to write my own music. I know I can reach my goals, but I didn’t always know that. Ricky Wolking has been a good mentor for me and has helped set my life on a better path.

I used to be the black sheep in my family. I somehow always got into trouble, one way or another. Then I met a friend of our family named Greg da Gama. Out of many things he is an established artist with his own art studio. He had me come down to his studio and we would talk about life and he talked to me as if I was already a man. This had a big impact on me. He talked to me about life and how to deal with people in better ways. He also taught me where to draw the line in certain situations and still have fun. The few times we got together changed me for the better, which is what my parents had been trying to do for years. After talking to Greg, I had a straighter head on my shoulders and a little more sense in my head. When I have the time, I still go down to see him for fun.

I have been going out with my girlfriend, Lauren, for quite a while now and her affect on me never ceases. The flame is still alive in our relationship, but sometimes it seems to burn a little. She holds me up to some responsibility and a set of standards, which I am still getting used to. However, it is worth making changes for her because she has brought out an inner happiness in me that I didn’t know I had. She gives me the confidence that no one else can, and I feel like I’m on top of the world when I’m around her. She lets me be myself and she knows how to talk to me, which keeps our relationship in reality. Out of everybody I’ve met, Lauren has changed me the most.

To say I have changed is hardly and understatement, but to say I am done changing is even more of one. I am living a better life than I was, and not to be optimistic or anything, but things are only going to get better. I will keep meeting people who will impact my life in new ways that I hadn’t thought yet possible. I know that someday after I have made my complete transformation, I will be the person to impact someone else.