Every second, about one hundred lightning bolts strike Earth’s surface. Bolts that hold the power to set a house ablaze, destroying everything inside of it. Wars can begin with the blink of an eye, sending terror down the boulevards. For these reasons and many more, appreciating what you have is paramount because it could be gone at any moment; you only realize how important something is once it’s gone.

Throughout most of his childhood, Oleg, a young Ukranian boy, didn’t take time to appreciate what he had. He grew up in a small, rural mining village called Nikishino. This boy had everything that any child could ask for: an education, plentiful food and water, clothing, and, most importantly, a roof over his head. However, he always wanted more. Whatever the newest gadget was, …show more content…
Originally, the war was far from Oleg and his family. But one day, Oleg brought home some items he found while biking through the town. It turns out that these items were debris from Maylaysia Airlines Flight 17, a passenger plane that had crashed mysteriously and killed hundreds of people. Oleg’s mother was mortified to see these items, so they fleed to find shelter elsewhere. In just a moment, all of these events transpired. There was no time for Oleg to gather his stuff or say goodbye to his friends. He was forced to leave his home immediately, not knowing if it’d be there when he returned. When cease fire finally put a stop to most of the fighting, Oleg’s family and a few others decided to return to their village. The previously pituresque town was now in ruins. A shell dived from the sky into Oleg’s room, destroying most of the belongings that the family had. Oleg was in shock. He had never taken the time to realize how lucky he really was. Now, it was too late. All he could do was cherish the few things he had left. In fact, Oleg made a promise to himself to never take anything for granted