Select Entry- Phyllis Green. Age 37

Welcome to our Optimistic Essay category. Here you will find the $1,000 winning contest essay, 5 finalist essays and 15 honorable mention essays and a growing list of hand-picked select essays that readers submitted during our "Why Are You Optimistic About the Future?" contest.

Why am I optimistic about the future?

Why not? Although it's not proper to answer a question with a question, the question is obvious. To me, the glass is half full. The sky is partly sunny. Honestly, I don't know how else to be.

Too many people are ungrateful for the days they have been given. Even the sun rising every morning is taken for granted. There are no guarantees in this life. So, make each day the best it can be. That's why I decided a long time ago to appreciate what I have.

Every morning I tell the man I love that I love him. I give my niece and nephews a big hug and tell them I love them. When I am leaving my mom's apartment, I make sure I hug her and tell her I love her. The reasons I do this is first, they need to know they are loved. They need to hear it. There will be no room for doubt that they are special to me. Secondly, if I die before seeing them again, my hope is that their last memory of me is warm and loving. No regrets.

So I believe my optimism is based on faith. Love and faith is like Reba and red hair... you can't have one without the other. When you have your faith, you can make each day. When you have faith, you can say things you need to say. When you have faith, you find the good in things. It doesn't make sense to waste precious energy on things you cannot control: i.e. weather, stock market, gas prices, annoying in-laws, etc. And yes, it is possible to be realistic and optimistic at the same time! So, spend your time and energy on things more worthwhile like playing with kids, putting together a great dinner, painting a picture, doing a good day's work, and smiling more. Did you know that you can actually burn more calories smiling than frowning? Optimism has it's perks.

Now, be careful what you put your faith in. For example, take the almight dollar. It can't pour you hot chocolate. Or, start a warm fire. Or cause our 3-year old to laugh uncontrollably when being tickled. Sure, it can buy the cocoa or logs. But it can't buy you that moment back. Once it's gone, it's gone. So make your moments count when they come. And love every minute of it.

What do I love? Without a doubt, my Texas acent lets everyone know I am from the South. Next, being able to cook Tex-Mex food for my favorite guy and his family is so much fun. Being able to go to work at a job that pays a decent wage is a blessing. Being free to write whatever I want without fear is a right that I cherish and am grateful for. The list goes on. When I look at what is good in my life, how could I waste my time by dwelling on the bad?

We don't know what the future holds for us. Really, I don't want to know. If I knew what would happen tomorrow, the excitement and surprise would be gone. So, I have faith in the air I breathe. And, I have faith in the love I feel. The bottom line is that I am optimistic about the future because I have faith that there is a future.