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The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

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Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony

The Weekly Optimist

By Natalie Hale

When you wake up in the morning do you feel overwhelmed? A bit burdened by all of the horrible things happening around the world?

?Are you tired of how depressing the news is every night and often find yourself searching for a Zoloft or something to cheer you up? Do you ask yourself, “Isn’t there more to life than murder, drug busts and politics?” Well, the answer, my dear friend, is that yes, indeed there is.

This column is dedicated to the silver lining on the gray cloud that can often hover over our lives. The glass is still half full, my friends! Despite our inability to control the world around us, we still can control ourselves and, in turn, improve our world.

Now, believe me, at first I was a bit skeptical about optimism, and optimists for that matter-yes, I myself was a pessimist and had a very difficult time finding any sort of happy feelings about this world.

But, believe it or not, there is good in it! People are trying daily to help improve our lives and the lives of earth’s other 6 billion inhabitants. How totally awesome is that?

Take for instance the service project that Sigma Gamma Chi has undertaken. Its goal is to raise $10,000 to help build a new playground for the Carl Sandberg Elementary School in West Valley.

All it takes is a little bit of our spare change in order to make a world of difference to these kids.

Think about the tone that is being set for them as well-that service to our fellow man is not something that only occurs during a crisis, that as U students we have not forgotten where we all once began.

According to the fall census, there were 29,012 students enrolled at the U.

If each of us donated approximately 40 cents, Sigma Gamma Chi would have more than enough money to fund the playground. And this is something that you can do with just your pocket change.

Think what could happen if you donated your time to a cause-the difference that you could make.

But it is not just Sigma Gamma Chi that is doing good deeds. There are many other groups that are also contributing to our communities as well, and I am making it my job to inform you about them.

So if you see good deeds being done on campus, let me know. I cannot possibly catch them all myself.

Remember, my comrades, that life is good, that each new day brings with it the opportunity to make a difference in someone else’s life, including your own. I think that Winston Churchill best described my feelings when he said, “I am an optimist. It does not seem too much use being anything else.”

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