I believe, or at least I hope, that heaven is a place not just for people of one faith but good people of all faiths and backgrounds.  I never felt any personal pull toward a heaven up in the clouds.  Instead, I view it as a place like this one with mountains and valleys, oceans and streams, towns and cities; a place that looks like home but in which everything is sweeter, brighter, and more real than in this life and there is no pain and no suffering of any kind.  It would be faster and more convenient to move around this world, making it easier to explore and meet new and different types of people and we would never feel hungry or thirsty or frightened or sad.

It is my belief that all religions can and will lead to this place if a person is noble and good and that any person who is genuinely seeking Truth, no matter where that seeking leads them, will find their way to this place after death.  I believe that all people who were open and honest in life, whether they were Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, or any other faith, even Atheists, will recognize the entity that is God when they see it, whatever form it may truly take; and they will find a place in that new world. 

I do not view my life, or any other, as a means to an end: an otherwise meaningless quest for this afterlife.  I don't think any amount of bowing or scraping or empty prayer will bring us any closer to this perfect existence.  I don't believe it matters what we called God, or how many hours we spent in houses of worship while we were alive.  What is more important is how we live outside of churches and temples, what kind of people we are, and where our hearts truly yearn to belong.

What is your purpose?

Explore this world boldly and passionately to experience its cultures and people and all its beauty, and make memories I can treasure all my life.

What do you love, and how do (or will) your actions demonstrate this?

I love to learn and to explore human culture and history: the differences that make us unique as well as the ties that bind us together.  So far, I have built upon this by devoting my spare time to the study of world history, religion, and cultural expression and by joining Diversity groups and participating in multi-cultural events on my school campus.  In the future, I hope to further my understanding and exploration by studying abroad, and to become a champion of human rights as a member of Amnesty International through their local branch at my university. 

I believe that all human beings are born equal regardless of their individual differences and I feel that it is not enough to believe this.  It is important to support it in the prevention and cessation of genocide and persecution as well as through the passing of legislation that protects equal rights and civil liberties. 

I also feel strongly about animal rights and protection.  I am a lover of all animals and of horses in particular, and I look forward to joining my local equine rescue league within the coming year.  As much as it is our responsibility to protect our fellow man, it also falls within our responsibility to protect the creatures that mankind has taken as its charge.  In both cases, I will aspire to speak for the voiceless and protect the innocent in the hope that future generations will find themselves living in a safer and more tolerant world.

Write your ideal job description.

After years of scholarship and humanitarian action in college, which I would pursue even if it was not required to further a career, I would like to settle down on a farm of my own.  I would keep predominately horses and would spend my days riding, training, and caring for them.  I would also like to act as a foster home for rescue horses awaiting adoption. 

I have always gotten a strong feeling of satisfaction from a hard days' work on the farm.  I love the smell of the hay and the grain, of freshly-mown grass and leather and saddle soap and I hope to spend the rest of my life breathing in these smells of earth and life and knowing that I am working hard for what I have. 

It is my goal to become just good enough as a rider to make it to national competition so that I can compete in the Puissance Wall high-level jumping event, but I have no real interest in fame or fortune.  I hope to do well enough financially to be secure and to continue my travels from time to time but more than anything, I hope to live a simple life among family, friends, and pets.