Oh my goodness everyone, this Ted Talk was absolutely amazing. It gave me goosebumps, made me smile, and had me feeling all sorts of happy inside. The young man who did this talk, Sam Berns, was a high school student who played the snare drum for his school marching band and has the most amazing out look on life. Another thing you should know about Sam, is that he has Progeria. This is a very rare disease that only affects about 350 kids world wide today. The effects of Progeria are tight skin, fragile bones, massive weight loss, and usually the children appear to be a lot older than they really are. The life expectancy ranges from 7-30, although most only live to be about the age of 13 . Progeria is a devastating disease that could cause major depression, sadness, and negativity, but Sam is different.
In today’s world, many people tend to focus on all of the things that can go wrong or that are going wrong. Then there are people like Sam who only focus on the positive, yet doesn’t even know if he will live to see the next day. Sam’s philosophy to a happy life is actually pretty simple. He explains that when something negative happens or goes on in your life, then you should find something positive that supersedes it. This concept really made me think about my life, and how many great things I could think about when I am having a bad day. A quote from Sam that also really stood out to me was, “I don’t waste energy feeling bad for myself.” Wow. We never think about ever feeling sorry for ourselves, but we ALL do it. When you think about it, think about how much time and energy you have spent feeling sorry for yourself because of a flat tire, getting a cold, spilling your coffee, not being about to go out with your friends because of work. Trying to not feel sorry for yourself is a very important lesson that could improve everyone’s lives if they tried it.
Bravery. This is a major characteristic of Sam’s that made him strive and succeed to live a happy life. Sam stated in his video, “Being brave is not supposed to be easy.” If it was easy, then everyone would do it all of the time, right? Sam has had to be brave for not only himself, but for his family and friends as well. Sam explained that when he is going through a tough time and he has to be really brave, he always thinks about how he has something to look forward too. Whether it be big or small, there is always something better coming ahead. This is also a wonderful life lesson that can apply to all of us. A forward thinking state of mind could change the world. Sam understood this concept.
After watching this Ted Talk, I decided to go ahead and do a little more research on Sam. I learned that he had passed away about 3 years ago at the age of 17. Although this pulled at my heart strings immensely, I thought about what he just said in the video I watched a few minutes before. There is always something better to look forward too. Although I only watched Sam speak for 10 minutes on a computer screen, he had made an impact on my life, in which I will try to carry out his words by action. In today’s world, we should all try to be like a Sam.
Wonderful Ted Talk, recommended to everyone.
Haley's Learning Life 
Haley,
The Ted talk you chose seems like it was a great one! I like how you pointed out that people tend to grasp the negative longer than they should. We should all take a page out of Sam’s life and like you said be positive. This is also something that we should teach our students. If they don’t see it from anyone else then we should teach it to them. That way, this movement of choosing to be positive no matter what can spread further than just one or two people. I think that it’s important in our world to be positive and look for the silver lining no matter the circumstances.
Hillary
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Hillary,
For sure!! Sometimes teachers can be the only positive influence in a students life, that is why it is so important for teachers to have a positive outlook on life and the future!
Haley
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For sure, being positive is something that can change the whole world if everyone strived to be it!
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I have also heard about Sam once before and I think his story is remarkable, Haley. Sometimes among the craziness of our busy lives, we forget how lucky we are to have all that we do. Hillary makes a great point about being this positive role model in the lives of our students because not every child has that outside of school. I love Sam’s quote, “I don’t waste energy feeling bad for myself.” How different our world would be if we all adopted this philosophy for happy life!
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Our world would definitely be a happier place for sure!!
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I can honestly say reading your interpretation of Sam’s TED talk pull at my heart strings. How wonderful it is that someone that struggles so immensely can inspire so many people/ I think it is absolutely necessary to have a positive outlook on life. Sam has so much to be negative about, but he spends so much of his time trying to show people how to be positive. I am so glad that this had such an impact on you! Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Molly
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I feel that a lot of people who have so much to be grateful for take a lot for granted, so I think that everyone should know of Sam’s story! The world would be such a happier place if everyone thought like him. 🙂
Haley
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WOW! I don’t even know what to say. That was incredible. Very humbling and moving. Great choice! Teachers MUST has a good out look in life for their students and themselves.
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Wasn’t it wonderful? Yes, as a future teacher, I am going to really focus on leaving a life long positive impact on my students, so hopefully they will continue on to have an impact on others.
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This video also impacted me in a big way and I’m glad you enjoyed it that much! I think that if everyone had an outlook on life like Sam did, then everyone would be happier and enjoy the little things in life a lot more. I also think this is a very important outlook to have as future teachers because if we act like this as future teachers, our students will learn it from us and hopefully also use these outlooks on in their own lives.
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This TED talk was absolutely adorable and I think that you described it perfectly. I’m also really impressed that you took time to look up more about Sam, I think it showed just how much the talk effected you. I also know that it affected you because you mentioned it Event Planning and Leadership. I think that you really mean it when you say this TED talk had an impact on your life. This was a great post!
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Just reading your post gave me goosebumps, I loved it. Sam, is what we all need to strive to be like. Such an optimistic person, it is hard to be optimistic and for him to have so many issues but still rise above is truly inspirational. Great post! I must watch this ted talk now!
-Tricia
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I did this TedTalk as well, it’s such a good episode! It made me sad to learn that he passed away in 2014 😦 but his outlook on life was much richer than most.
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