Different people have different goals in life. Some wish for fame and fortune. Some wish to travel the world. Some wish to settle down and raise a family. Some people, however, create simple daily goals in their lives. For sophomore Moria Shoush, this goal is to make as many people smile as possible.

When Shoush was younger, she was painfully shy and rarely spoke to people which is hard to believe now because of her outgoing personality. As she grew more comfortable in school and with the people there, she began to open up more and talk to people.

“When I was in preschool and elementary school, I would never talk, ever. A lot of people thought I was mute. I’m not really sure when that changed. I think it might have been around ninth grade when I felt more comfortable, because I felt like I knew a lot of the people in my classes, so I didn’t have to be so subdued,” told Shoush.

Now, she participates in many school activities, such as Marching Knights, Winter Percussion, Symphonic Band, French club, International Friendship club, and Model UN. In addition, she was selected to go to France next year for the foreign exchange program. Spending a whole year in a foreign country is an experience that would be terrifying for most people, yet Shoush is excited about traveling, learning to speak the language more fluently, and meet her host family.

“I am not nervous about actually going there. I’m just nervous that something won’t work out, and I won’t be able to go, but I’m very excited to be there, meet my host family, and learn the language. I’ll be bilingual when I come back which is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Shoush explained.

She has also started a blog devoted to her travels called: smiles-and-miles-away, a name which is very fitting for her personality.

In the future, Shoush wants to travel often and have a job where she can help people since she believes it has a great benefit. She loves the feeling of making someone’s day better and cheering them up with a smile.

“I love making people smile or making them laugh if I see someone who’s not having a good day. The ability to make someone else have a better day not only makes you feel good about yourself which is a good feeling to have, but also for the other person it feels like you’re making a difference,” told Shoush.

Shoush finds it important to be able to laugh at oneself and not get embarrassed easily, which can be a difficult task for some people, but she believes it will make one an overall more happy and positive person.

“I used to get embarrassed about everything, but now I just realized that no one really cares and if you’re able to laugh about it, other people can laugh about it and then everyone’s laughing and everyone’s happy and it’s all ok. You can get over it and it will be a funny memory,” Shoush encourages.

Surrounding herself with things she loves, such as friends, acts of kindness, and chocolate, inspire Shoush to be a more positive person and want to make a difference in the world by making others’ days better and, in return, her own.