The Power of a Single Story by Carlie Wilson

Earlier in the unit we learned about the power of a single story. I really relate with this topic because like all of us, I have experienced the influences of a single story. As explained in Chimamanda Adichie’s Ted Talk, the most interesting part about a single story is that it can be experienced from two perspectives. You could either be the one to assume something about someone or something, or someone could assume something about you. Either way, our society can learn the value of understanding each other through first hand experiences and communication.

When I first moved back from South Africa many people around me had come up with some single stories of their own. I had to constantly explain to people that South Africa wasn’t a place full of poor people and dirt roads with wandering lions. Whenever I would come home from school and explain the ignorant comments made by other students to my mother, she would remind me that if I had never had the opportunity to live there, my understanding of Africa would be just as incorrect as the people around me.

When asked about what it was like there, people would often respond with, “So, you didn’t ride to school on the back of an elephant?”. Or “Did you learn to speak African?” Just last year I was asked “How was it over there?”. Before I could respond, another girl who had never been to South Africa before responded “People who need us. I understood that although they may have been joking and that they weren’t responsible for their false knowledge, comments like these were offensive. I rode to school on a bus just like any other American student. I also went to the mall and to the movies on weekend. . My life was very similar to how it is now. I think that it is very cool how teenagers around the world can relate to each other in more ways than we think possible. What we see on the news and other media sources has caused division among our society.

I too am guilty of falling into the trap of the single story. Before moving to South Africa I remember dreading it. I told my mother that I didn’t want to go because I wasn’t ready to give up air conditioning and good food. However, my biggest concern as a third grader was whether or not Santa Claus even travelled to Africa, because from what I had seen, it didn’t seem like it at all. When we had actually arrived in South Africa, all of my concerns had proven to be irrelevant. From then on I had made it my goal to not make assumptions about something I knew nothing about.

I really appreciate Chimamanda Adichie’s Ted Talk because it will help to change our society to become more connected instead of divided by only what we know to be true.

This Year by Sarah West

The end of the school year has come so much faster than I have realized, and upon realizing how close we are, spring fever has really begun to kick in. Yet no matter how excited I am to run out of the dim dark hallways into the open heat and beauty of summer vacation after (hopefully) confidently turning in my math final on that dreaded last Monday, I can't help but reflect on what a positive year I've had, and how maybe I shouldn't be wishing to end it so quickly. I have throughly enjoyed and benefitted from every single one of the classes I took in my sophomore year, except maybe gym. I have yet to find the benefit in running around aimlessly, playing sports not everyone enjoys, and being stuck on teams with overly competitive classmates who dominate the game, especially when I have learned more about health and fitness in one week of my anatomy class than in all 10 years I have been forced to take gym class. But besides that one period that never fails to dampen my day, I have had the best teachers and classes I could possibly imagine.

I have never been more genuinely interested in the material I have learned in class than I was in AP Biology and Human Body Systems this year. We did so many cool labs and experiments, including dropping a mixture of ATP and sodium ions onto a rabbit muscle fiber and watching it contract and using the knee-jerk reflex to roughly calculate the speed our nerves send, process and receive signals. I now know how the very smallest molecules in my body work and are constructed, and I just can't help but be amazed at the complexity of it all. I even got to brush up on my art skills by sculpting different body systems and organs on a skeleton mannequin throughout the year.

History was enjoyable this year for the first time since elementary school. Though this was mostly due to the teacher, I laughed, looked forward to the class everyday (except maybe test days) and as a result I was definitely more motivated to study and improve in the class. English, though it has never been an easy class for me by any means, has also been a subject area in which I feel I have improved immensely. I am not sure if it was the monthly blog posts, or just the many essays we have written throughout the year, but it just feels so much easier to write, especially compared to how uncomfortable I felt writing last year. That class also provided me with my first experience with a student teacher, which is something that will definitely be in my memory for a long time in the future.

I've had such a great year, thats the prospect of junior year, with its fair share of AP classes, mixed reviews of teachers and the pressure of the upcoming search for colleges seems just plain terrifying. We all know summer vacation is over in the blink of an eye, and is usually dampened by a decent amount of summer work, and soon enough we will all be back to do it all again. There is no telling what that next year will bring in terms of my workload, teachers, tests and experiences, but life is going to keep moving forward and whether we like it or not, we are all going to be moving forward as well, to hopefully an amazing, memorable, and engaging junior year of high school.    

A True Photo Gallery in the Life of Alyssa Stouch

As you all already know, in class we have been working on our 'journey journal' assignments. For my journey I chose to take a picture everyday of something I appreciate that I usually look right passed. I tried to make my photos capture the weather and tone of the day I took it while also demonstrating the emotions I experienced that day. However, not all my pictures came out so beautifully...and so I decided for my final blog post I would present a photo gallery of all the lost images from my journey that will never be posted on social media or displayed in any public place. I would love to explain why but I feel these photographs speak a thousand words on their own...

I attempted to take a nice photo of this ancient sculpture but...

 I tried to take a cute picture of my dog but he was a little too tired..

Spot my sister...

It only gets worse from here...












"If you're happy and you know it clap your hands"

This one features our classmate Eve in her finest attire ;)

...Okay let that sink in for a bit. Wow I cannot believe I am actually posting these. 

The one thing I love about pictures is that they never lie. You can paint any scene you imagine and write with specific details, but a picture is always true because it 100% happened. So yeah my life is not a perfect picture but it's okay because this is way more fun :)

Endings By Grace Sander

Well...

It is over, well almost. I feel as if this school year has flown by. It has been stressful, exciting, and rewarding. I almost think it is funny, my first entry on this blog was late, and my last one is too. So we could say I have really come full circle, gooooooo Grace! But in all seriousness I have grown as a person this school year. I have discovered what is really important to me. As students we think that all that matters at this point is our grades. Yes they are important, and we should always strive to do our absolute best. However, it doesn't always work out the way we want. That sometimes it doesn't matter how many flashcards you make, lunches you spend getting extra help, or sleepless nights spent studying, sometimes it still isn't enough. So the stress and panic continues until we have hit rock bottom and either sob hysterically or just throw the book at the wall, sometimes both *cough* me *cough*. What was I trying to say? Oh yeah, what is really important to me. I have learned that grades and awards and all of that will not matter once we leave high school. That at the end of the day, nobody will remember a failed math test. Yes they will remember if you failed the quarter but it doesn't mean that your life is over or that it defines you for the next chapter of life. As teenagers we think that our identity and achievements have to exist or be appreciated inside the concrete walls of our high school to matter, through announcements made in the morning or chatter of our classmates  but it doesn't have to. Every day we accomplish something, getting out of bed yes! Way to go! Getting a B on a paper that you worked for hours and hours on, you rock! You became a nuclear physicist, that is amazing!!!! what is that? But the biggest accomplishment of all, is not tangible, it is something that no matter who you are and where you come from you can achieve. Finding a purpose. Chances are it is not in front of you, that it is up to you to go out there and be brave enough to look for it. It will come when you least expect it, when you need it most. It is going to be so amazing that you will just break down in a chair, in the car, at a concert, on the toilet maybe no judgement, and cry with happiness because you found your purpose. It will hit you that who you were in middle school, high school, maybe even college does not matter, is not nearly as significant or meaningful as who you are in that moment. That is what is important. So let us get through finals, get through the next few weeks, the next few years and celebrate. Celebrate all the awful, terrible grades because we all have them. Celebrate about the fantastic essays and halfway decent math tests. Celebrate that you made it another year regardless of how it went, and that you are not finished at school or in life. Please, join me in a toast, raise your water, the pen in your hand, or really anything that is next to you, go ahead I will wait....to celebrate each and every one of you waking up every morning for the rest of your life to go out there and find who or what sets your soul on fire, to find your purpose
                                                      Cheers, Grace

Live Life to the Fullest by: Jillian Parks

"Philippines declares martial law as army clashes with ISIS-backed terror group"




"Terror Alert in Britain Is Raised to Maximum as ISIS Claims Manchester Attack"




"The US and North Korea: From mutual praise to threats of nuclear war, in 10 years"

We are living in a world with constant war, fighting, tragedies. So many precious lives are lost every single day, and yes, we have to live with it every single day. These recent attacks and threats dig holes into our very souls, yes, because we cannot face the thought of losing a sister, a brother, a friend, a daughter, a husband, a wife or whomever may be dear to us. The terrors drill and drill until we feel as though this may not be a world we want to face, as we are too afraid of what might happen if we step out into it. 

But I believe that we cannot let these attacks and threats shape the course of our lives, because I believe that we need to make sure to live life to the fullest, because if we were to live life in fear of getting a disease, getting shot, getting bombed or even getting broken-hearted, then the life we would live would not be the one we want. Sure, you may feel safe, but would you ever feel excited? Sure, you may have saved yourself from heartbreak, but what if you were to have found a person that made you feel ten times happier than you were before? I think we need to make sure of challenging ourselves throughout life, because even in the small chance of possible death, we know that we would be dying doing something worth while. If we keep our hearts locked up, we may never know what could have been in store for us had we just let someone in. 

The most recent attack, as most everyone certainly knows, is that of Manchester. Our hearts may never heal fully from the attack, and even though I am truly and deeply heartbroken and feel awful for the lives lost only a few short nights ago, I am even more afraid of what may happen after. I am afraid that fans will no longer attend a concert they have been dreaming and saving up for since they were ten. I am afraid artists may not give everything they've got into a performance because of a very small, insignificant feeling that their concert could be the next attack. Or even worse: a performer not showing up for their concert at all. I am hoping that this incident has not shaken the rest of pop culture, because where on earth would we be without Friday and Saturday night concerts to let us let go into music and sound that we have a passionate love about? Again, who was lost a couple nights ago, as well as in the Philippines, will never and should never be forgotten because the world should not be this cruel. But sadly, we have to remember that it is, and there will always be antagonistic and dreadful people who walk the earth. So the only thing we can do is not let it define who we are. 

We need to stand tall and proud. We need to keep selling out at concerts and sing our hearts out with no fear. We have to walk the streets of London with our heads high, showing no signs of weakness because there are so many good people. So many more good than bad, and we cannot let that small portion stand between us and the life we want to live.   

Tragedy in Manchester

by: Sara Nigro

I've been deabting on what I should write my blog post about for the past week and I've written a couple of pieces that I was prepared to settle on, until a couple of minutes ago. About an hour ago, maybe less, I received news about an explosion in Manchester right after an Ariana Grande concert. Despite this tragedy occuring on the other side of the Atlantic, I feel somewhat connected to this and very heartbroken over the actions of others. In February I went to an Ariana Grande concert on the same Dangerous Woman tour all of these people were at and I had a great time, unfortunately for those who went to see the show tonight, this night will be tarnished with this tragic memory. In addition, I sincerely sympathize with those who were present at the concert and planned to have one of the best nights of their lives by listening to their favorite music, dancing to the songs and seeing and possibly meeting their idol.

When horrible events like this happen, the question usually left for us to ask is why would someone commit this act of murder? Who was the person who decided that killing and injuring dozens of innocent people was a conscious decision to make? For all we know, it could've not been a terrorist attack but maybe a speaker explosion. Despite the immense amount of rumours and ideas of what may have happened or caused the explosion, this is an event that makes us all take a step back and think about the world we live in. Some people might say that they hate the world, we live with horrible people and we must learn how to control these attacks from reoccuring, yet they do nothing about it. Others are now scared for their life and feel unsafe walking to the bus stop and hanging out at the movies. But what can they possibly do about it? Nothing. They can either choose to live the rest of their lives in pointless fear, or decide to walk fearlessly into the unknown which is the future. I feel both ways towards this, but despite my fear and loss of faith in humanity, I am choosing to have a positive outlook on this and see how disasters pull people apart to push others back together and help those in need.

Although their is so much pain and hurt in this world, there is also so much kindness and love that makes you forget about the devastating times. And do you want to know what's really amazing? The strength that humans have when they come together for a common cause to help others. Through social media there are thousands of people trying to help anyone in Manchester who is currently in need. For example, there are people who live near the area who are offering free rides to those who can't get a ride back home safely. Also due to this tragedy, there are so many missing children that the Holiday Inn decided to let in and allow to stay with them until they can be reached by their family members. And something that I believe is truly incredible, is how by posting pictures of missing people on the internet and the support of others ALL OVER THE WORLD sharing their posts, they were able to find many young people. At the moment there aren't any stone cold facts, just millions of people from across the world sending their sympathy and hearts to those whose hearts are more broken than their own.

+If you'd like to become more educated on this incident, here are some links below+

http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/22/europe/manchester-arena-incident/

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/22/world/europe/ariana-grande-manchester-police.html?_r=0

 

Journey Journal Assignment- Erin Lyden

Journey Journal Assignment

Recently, we have started a new assignment called “Journey Journal”. This assignment requires students to choose a new task (such as working out, sitting at a new lunch table, trying new recipes, etc.) and perform it everyday, for twenty days. At first, I was not overly excited with this project because it is the end of the school year and I am losing motivation to do any work these days. In the end, I decided to take my dog for a walk everyday throughout this twenty day assignment. It has only been a week, but I am already loving the assignment and the relaxation it has brought me. It is a nice break from the load of paperwork and studying I am normally assigned. My mom has joined me a few times, which normally would not be a good thing, but in this case it has been nice to have the time to ourselves. I have thoroughly enjoyed taking the thirty minutes out of my day to not think at all, just walk. It is  also fun to be with my dog because she is the cutest ever. Unfortunately, today it is raining so I will not be able to go for my walk, but I look forward to going on an extra long one tomorrow.

I am really enjoying this new assignment, and would definitely recommend the idea of trying something new for a period of time. It can be surprising how much you enjoy it, and find yourself more motivated or relaxed.