Essay Contest: Small Differences | Teen Ink

Essay Contest: Small Differences

September 4, 2022
By TessaDreamAuthor_3000 PLATINUM, Tomball, Texas
TessaDreamAuthor_3000 PLATINUM, Tomball, Texas
37 articles 2 photos 147 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." - Dolly Parton
" Balance your life with spiritual experiences that remind and prepare you for continued, daily ministering to others." - M. Russell Ballard
"Love is expressed in a smile, a wave, a kind comment, a compliment." - Thomas S. Monson


“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.” (Mother Teresa) My life was more exciting when I was younger, but one thing I always looked forward to was the visits I would take to my Grandma’s house, and the small differences we would make to the world.

Grandma lived  in a big city in Texas, but not everyone that lived there had a home. When we would drive around to get to her apartment, we would pass a couple abandoned gas stations, buildings, or stores, with homeless people nearby. It would always make me have pity for them, and a fair amount of guilt, even if I didn’t know their story or why they were there, but either way I always felt bad. 

In my mind, it didn’t feel right, or one hundred percent, my instincts said to help them somehow , but my Grandma always had ideas of how to. Out of nowhere she asked me, “Want to get some pizza for dinner?” Eagerly I nodded, excited for the greasy, and cheesy meal. As we went through the drive-thru for our pizza, I was confused when she ordered more pizzas than we could eat, five boxes. I was confused but I didn’t say anything because I was feeling extra hungry and thought it was probably for the next day’s lunch and dinner as well, so she didn’t have to cook. 

As we got out pizzas, she turned the corner and drove into an empty parking lot and parked the car. She leaned towards me and said, “Do you see that man over there with his friend?” I nodded. She smiled and said, “Let’s go give them a pizza.” 

And just like that, we made some unexpected friends, and they were very grateful for the gift. It made me excited to know we made their day. We delivered the rest of the boxes, but still kept one for ourselves. The rest of the night, I was joyful that we had the chance to make a small difference, even if not many people knew that we had. 


The author's comments:

I'm sad that I don't really have the chance to do those kinds of things anymore ever since I moved, but you can always still make a difference, and I encourage you to do so as well.


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