I'll never forget the day in my 10th grade English class, when our teacher told us about our final writing assignment for the year. The assignment was to write an essay about someone in our lives who we consider our hero. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of “hero” is "a person who is greatly admired for great or brave acts or fine qualities." When I read this, I instantly thought of one person who has impacted my life in so many ways. Without hesitation, I started writing.

My father is not only my hero, he is also my role-model. With no exaggeration, I can honestly say that when he was my age, he had nothing close to what I have now. He had virtually no parental support, yet he still managed to graduate high school with honors while he was practically raising his siblings. At his graduation, his father simply shook his hand and said "Good luck, Joe." This meant that if he wanted any sort of further education, it was going to be entirely his responsibility.

While he had every excuse in the book to just say “the hell with it,” he found every excuse not to. He put himself through college with no financial help from either of his parents, worked full-time, and strived to succeed. Even though he didn't have many mentors to look up to, he knew that he wanted be as great of a parent as he could possibly be. He wanted to be a parental figure that his own kids could look up to someday and be proud of. This is something that he has achieved, along with so much more.

My dad inspires me every single day and is my hero because of his outstanding qualities. He is the most brave, generous, caring, and strong person I know.

He is brave because he never gives up. Even if everything in the world seems to be telling him to, he won't do it. I have witnessed him go through some of the toughest things life could offer -- things that he did not deserve -- and he has continuously come out even stronger than before. He takes on life with a smile on his face, no matter what the circumstances are. He reminds me every day that you can overcome anything that you put your mind to.

He is generous because he would give anything to make my brother and I happy, even if that meant taking me to a Britney Spears concert and holding up signs I made, when it was probably the last thing in the world that he wanted to do. Yes, my father actually held up signs with Britney Spears' face on them for me. This was not something that he wanted to do, but he enjoyed every second of it because it made me happy at the time, and that's all that truly matters to him.

He is caring because while I was growing up, he was there to pick me up every time I fell off track. I made countless stupid mistakes when I was younger, but he never gave up on me. He has always been there for me and has taught me how to deal with life in effective ways. He is the only person in the world that I could sit with for five hours on a Saturday night and just talk with. I could be crying one minute, and the next I could feel a sense of comfort that only he could give me. When I felt like the only option I had was to give up, he reminded me of all the reasons why everything was going to be okay. He always finds the right thing to say and somehow, he always finds ways to shine light on even the worst of situations.

He is strong because no matter what kind of curveball life throws at him, he pulls through it. He doesn't project his emotions on others when life gets tough, he doesn't blame others for his problems, and he never complains. He is the shoulder that I lean on when I need guidance because he is the face of positive thinking.

My dad has been my life mentor, my hero, and my best friend. He has been someone I can always count on and someone who has my heart forever. I've been incredibly fortunate to have a father like him, and sometimes I find myself wondering how I got so lucky. To the world, and a large percentage of the people reading this article, he is just a man, but to me, he is so much more.

Life is way too short -- cherish all that you have, be thankful, live life to the fullest, and love the ones in your life.