What is a mentor? To me, a mentor is someone that you look up to. Not only to serve as a role model, but to also make a lasting positive impact on your life. Despite there being many important people in my life, my mentor would have to be my church’s youth pastor, Steve Na. Over the years he has taught me one crucial thing: life is short, so share it with the ones you love. My pastor has always been someone who has consistently checked in with me to ensure that I am on the right path with both God and my family/friends — a true mentor. I would not consider myself an open book. I am more like a clam; it takes a large amount of effort to get me to open up my personal life. However, this has not once stopped my youth group pastor from asking me to have conversations with him. With a simple response to, “Yo! What’s up?” he can sense when my mood is not on par with his. My pastor understands how ugly my personal life can be. Serving as a mediator between my mother and father, he has seen what a long divorce can do to the children of the divorced parents. However, he has seen it. He has not lived it. To me, that has what stopped me from opening up to others in the past. My pastor would often ask me why I never chose to confide in anyone about the feelings that I had. To which I responded with an “I don’t know.” But deep down inside I knew the answer to that question. A divorce was something that not many of my friends, luckily, had to personally experience. Emotions of loneliness and abandonment were not something that was felt by them on a daily basis. That is why. Why I chose to tell no one about my parent’s divorce and why I never spoke about it. As a result, that is why I initially thought that my youth pastor would be unable to help me. However, during one conversation, he had mentioned that his former girlfriend was also exposed to the devastating impacts of a divorce. Even though my pastor had not experienced it first hand, he at least had someone he loved go through with it. As a result, I became more open with my pastor. My pastor would always send texts asking me how I was doing if he ever felt that he and I had not seen each other for some time. To me, that feeling of connectedness was a feeling that I never wanted to lose. Whether it be going on a spontaneous drive to Red Mango or hosting a small get together with me, my pastor, and a few of my church friends, I felt comfort with each and every one of them. During the hangouts, my pastor would always say the words, “Man, what a life.” As much as I wanted to laugh at him for always saying those words at such random times, a part of me loved whenever I heard those four words. I always interpreted that saying to mean that each of us should be grateful for the life that we have, and in response we should spend that life of gratitude with the ones we love the most. Through the many one-on-one conversations that I have had with my pastor, I have learned what I must do in order to not live a life full of resentment or loneliness — be vulnerable to those closest to me. That sense of vulnerability is what will ultimately allow me to talk about my feelings with others. What will allow the transition from a clam to an open book. It has taken me a while to understand that living the best life starts with sharing my feelings and emotions to others. I have much to be thankful for when it comes to the lessons that my mentor has taught me. His words have changed my perspective and attitude towards life and others. Whenever the name Steve Na is brought up I immediately think of three nouns to describe him: pastor, mentor, and friend. I can not wait for the day when I have the opportunity to shout, “What a life!”