attitude

Hi I am posting a small write up I found in my friend’s application to an University in US. Actually I found it a bit impressive and wanted to share it up with you all. Here is an extract of it :
We can touch or influence the lives of others in ways we often do not know. People come into our lives momentarily and can leave us forever changed. Before I sat down to write this essay, I thought about writing on “Imagine” – a piece of cake and easiest of all. I was typing my thoughts down when my younger brother turned off the PC. All my thoughts were just lost and I got really upset with him and we had an argument, which left my day really awful. I had close relatives of mine come over for dinner the same evening. I was not feeling like myself. I felt bitter and sour from what my brother had done. I love my brother and forgave him but still was not in the best of my moods.
When the guests finally arrived, my uncle who always plays tricks on me did the same when he greeted me. I do not recall what transpired, but I snapped back and was rude to him and did not even smile back. But my uncle caught my eye and gave me that ever-pleasant smile, patted my back and left the room. I was not expecting the look he gave me, the same caring look he gives me every time. I was astonished at this behavior and stood there for a moment wondering what happened here. I calmed down and then got curious to know why he continued to be nice to me and smile back when I was discourteous.
As soon as I saw he was alone for a moment, I approached him and asked “So why did you not get upset at me when I was rude to you?” And he said something that echoes in my ears every time I see someone upset – he said with a gentle smile on his face, “Why would I let someone else control what I say and what I feel or what kind of day I am going to have?” He said this and left me, leaving me behind to digest what he had said.
Till this day, I have not forgotten the words he said or the way his smile seemed like a beam of light on that gloomy day. The impact this had on my life has lasted. Just before he left, I thanked him for his words of wisdom. The way in which I try to choose to look at life as a result of those words is his legacy to me and my thanks to him. I was able to take this as I always see the glass half full.
Our interactions with the people we encounter can impact many people that life encounters. A smile and words of simple appreciation multiply themselves. We cannot control people and situations that come to us, but we can always control our response to them. And in such positive decisions lie our control and personal power to make a positive difference. And it's something anyone and everyone can do.