I was merely seven years old the time I visited my home country of Bangladesh. I came across many of my relatives and visited a great deal of places; many of which were exceptionally beautiful. However, a moment that stands out was a car ride that took place while traveling from my aunt’s home to my grandmother’s home. The events that I witnessed on that journey were significant enough to change me as a person by making me more aware, appreciative, and optimistic. As a seven year old boy who's lived his whole live in Canada, I really didn't know much about the world and how things functioned. But, witnessing this one instance during my car ride gave me the exposure that I truly needed. It changed my thinking of the people around me and thus made me more aware. During the car ride, I saw two young kids with tattered clothes begging for food and money and their look of despair after being refused by people. This really hit me hard at the time, I knew nothing of how the unfortunate went about their days except for in books. But, after seeing it with my own eyes I came to understand what all those books meant when they described the pain and suffering of its characters. And, from then on my awareness of the surrounding grew as I began to observe the people around me to understand their feelings. The ride was fairly protracted, and I soon became very thirsty and hungry. Most people were old enough to know that it was improper to eat food inside a van, but I was an exception because I was young. My mom handed me a bottle of water and a tuna sandwich. I complained that the tuna was a bit salty and the water was somewhat too warm. It was then that my mom scolded me and told me to be happy for what I got. To some extent, I was able to comprehend how fortunate I truly was. I became more appreciative of the fact that I didn’t need to go out and search for food or beg. I saw some more people on the roads as we passed by. There were many chi