Grit is a rather vague term, which holds a rather vague definition. A personality trait which is widely striven for in the world of psychology and the theme of the 2016 LSHS Tolo Assembly, grit is commonly defined as one’s unstoppable passion towards a specific outcome. Everyone defines grit differently, and everyone holds grit within himself/herself, but what does grit truly mean? What does grit truly look like?

Nearly every student at LSHS displays grit in some way, but here are three specific stories of LSHS students’ grit shining.

LSHS junior Luc Violette, who began curling at the age of four, recently took part in the 2016 Youth Olympics. Juggling many advanced placement courses, a part time job at Nike, and being on the United States Youth Olympic Team, Violette was forced to find his inner strength and determination to succeed.

“Curling is most definitely worth the dedication and hard work. Nothing beats the feeling of playing in a really close game at a world stage representing your country and relying on your grit and trust in your teammates to make that big shot to win it all. Being a part of an Olympic experience is just unbeatable, and it’s something that defines one’s character and motivation for the rest of your life. At this point, curling competitively is sort of who I am, and it drives me to be motivated and successful in all parts of my life,” said Violette.

During high-intensity curling matches, Violette has found the grit within himself to excel.

“The time in my career where I demonstrated the most grit was in the quarter final game against Norway. Even though things weren’t going well to start and as a team we weren’t having our best game, deep down I knew I had worked way too hard, and we were way better than to have a medal just slip out of our hands in a quarter final. I used this determination to make a key shot that kept us in the game and increased morale heading into the fourth end break (halftime),” said Violette.

Upon winning the match described above, Violette earned a Silver Medal at the 2016 Youth Olympics.

LSHS senior Noel Gasca’s grit was revealed in a different way than Violette’s. Gasca recently received a 2016 Gracie Award, an award for women who produce media about/for other women. Other notable recipients include Oprah Winfrey and Robin Roberts, for a podcast which she produced during an internship at the Seattle-based radio station KUOW.

“I wanted to find some journalism opportunities for someone my age because I knew I wanted to study Journalism in college. [The internship] seemed really perfect for me because it was in radio, a medium I had never studied prior to the internship, and because it was a balance of instruction and “real life work”, meaning I got to work in an actual radio station and get feedback on my work,” said Gasca.

When Gasca accepted the internship, she was aware of the difficulties which would arise. The internship entailed a lengthy commute two times every week and she would have to begin planning her homework and other obligations around the internship.

“Balancing the internship and school was very difficult at times. The internship was on Tuesdays and Thursdays from five to seven, so usually I would leave home for Seattle at three, and I would get home around eight or sometimes nine, depending if there was any traffic. At the time I was in two AP classes that had a lot of homework, so I got used to doing my homework during lunch and in the car on the way. I think the internship definitely made me a better student though, I learned how to be more proactive with my time and how to spend my energy. After a couple weeks of starting the internship I had created a pattern and routine for myself that allowed me to go to bed as soon as I had gotten home from working,” said Gasca.

Gasca forced herself to excel by digging deep and finding her true abilities through her grit.

“Grit is doing more than just the bare minimum. It means looking at the challenges in front of you and saying, “I’m going to overcome these challenges but I am also going to do more to thrive.”
Being dedicated and being focused, which I really wanted to go above and beyond with, [the internship] motivated me in all other aspects of my life to be better. It forced me to be a better student and manage my time better,” said Gasca.

Michi Smith, who is a LSHS senior, will have her story shared on the stage of the 2016 WE Day in Seattle in front of thousands of people, including many celebrities.

“It was such an exciting moment to know that I was actually being recognized for something that I feel could help a majority of people. It doesn’t matter to me if I got on stage, the only thing that matters to me is that people, kids, anyone knows that their is someone who understands what they are going through and has been through it too, and turned out pretty good,” said Smith.

Smith has faced many battles throughout her life, but has persevered through those battles in order to help others who face what she has had to face.

“I have one main goal and it is to reach out to people so they don’t feel alone, and I’ve just pushed forward. Pushing forward, and with the help of Big Brothers Big Sisters, they helped me go to different schools and programs to just talk to people. And I guess it is a pretty good message and people like it,” said Smith.

Taking what could easily be setbacks in life and turning them into positivity is not an easy thing to do. It takes grit to not only overcome hardships, but to turn past hardships into a platform for helping others.

“Grit is something that everyone has, and I don’t think that everyone realizes that they have it. To me, grit means you can survive through everything and anything life throws at you. And everyone does that, we all work day to day whether it be at school or work, or even at home. We all have battles, I mean whether be within ourselves or because of others. That is what grit is to, the constant survival we go through to become a better person,” said Smith.

LSHS students are utilizing their grit and are thus making outstanding achievements. Grit is held within everyone and everyone has the power to use their grit to achieve greatness, but not everyone chooses to do so; allow yourself to find your inner grit and you will succeed.