While reading the Lord of the Flies, I thought it would be interesting to look into the life of Jack before the plane crash. I decided that for this month’s post I would write a diary written from Jack’s perspective just days before his trip. The entries will not only show the everyday life of Jack before the island, but also reveal the meaning behind his behavior in the book.
Dear Diary,
My name is Jack. I am 12 years old and will be starting the 7th grade soon. I am writing in this diary because my mum and dad have decided to send me and a few other boys in my school choir to safe grounds until the war is over. I thought I would be a good idea to get a head start on writing about my life before the trip just in case I never come back and forget it one day.
Today after school I went straight Saint Pauls Primary School to pick up my little sister and walk her home. My father usually walks us home at 3:00 everyday, but ever since he got sick things have changed and mum says that I have to learn to be the man of the house. When we arrived home I made Emma and I a snack. My mum had just finished giving my father his medicine and I could hear his deep cough coming from the next room. She always encourages me to go see him when I come home but I’d rather not to be honest, unlike Emma who runs to him as soon as we arrive home.
I found out at school today that I would be the official boys choir leader. It didn’t surprise me because my mum has always told me that I am a natural leader and when I put my mind to something it’s a guarantee that it will be done. When I was younger I often got in trouble for starting exclusive clubs during recess. Teachers would complain that I was exhibiting dictator-like behavior. I, however, don’t understand why it was such a big problem. In the real world there is always going to be someone on top, it’s just up to you to get there.
Dear Diary,
Emma took my stole my diary last night after she had seen me writing in it. I told her to give it back but instead she began to read out out loud and run around the our tiny living room. I told her that she would be sorry for embarrassing me and that I would get her back one day. I decided that day would be today. When she was off talking to dad I snuck into her room and ripped off the legs of her favorite stuffed animal. The ripping of the stuffed piglet only felt good for a short moment but when I was through I looked down at it and immediately regretted what I had done. I found a perfect hiding place for the pig inside a cupboard in my bedroom.
At dinner today Emma asked mum if she had seen her toy. When I had heard how upset she sounded I suddenly didn’t feel guilty about ripping the animal apart. Instead I felt like I had won and I liked that feeling a lot. As the new man of the house it was my responsibility to do the manly chores like take out the trash feed the dogs out on the porch. Although ever since the war started mum stays out and watches me, which doesn’t make me feel manly at all.
In a few days I will be on my way to America. I am very excited to leave but the thought of leaving behind my family is a bit scary. However, at least I’ll know that I will be safe. Mum and dad have been preparing me for this trip and I think that I will be ready in just a few days time.
I need to get away. I need to get away from the cards that I have been so unfortunately dealt and I need to find peace away from these barbaric beasts that I am supposed to call my companions. In the far distance, I hear the little boys' shrieks of laughter as they have wrestling tournaments and "who can lift the heaviest log" contests. I can't help but wonder if I'm the only sane one here--as sane as you can be, at least. In all fairness, crash landing on a deserted island may drive you a tad wacko. Nonetheless, I trail off from the group seeking some well needed silence and rest.
I mosey my way through the brush, gently pushing branches aside, minding my force so I do not break them. I ironically think about that one question that people always ask you, kind of like a personality test, the "if you were trapped on a deserted island, what three things would you bring with you?" Now that I am actually living through the situation, I realize my answers change quite a bit. I wish for a book, I wish for a bathtub, maybe some soap and a fresh pair of clothes. Seems silly, but living among savages can sometimes take a toll on you. I chuckle to myself.
I plop down in a small clearing and put my feet in the creek. I watch as the water smoothly glides over the rocks and my feet and I listen to the babbling sound it makes as it rushes downstream. I can finally relax. I deeply inhale and the air smells of dew and honey. I take in the lush scenery around me and notice the vibrant colors of the flowers surrounding the creek; there are sizable red and yellow flowers the size of my hand, and peewee purple flowers bunched together and scattered around the clearing. A deep green blanket of moss covers everything: the trees, the rocks, the soil. There are tiny golden flecks of sunlight shining in random spots that managed to make it through the heavy, dense trees. This is a place of serenity.
I give in to the heavy weight of my eyelids and listen nonchalantly to the sound of the birds chirping and the leaves rustling as a slight breeze blows through. I position myself so a ray of sunshine is shining down on my face and I feel the ray warming my skin and tanning my face. "I sure hope nobody finds me here," I think to myself. They would no doubt demolish this place of beauty. My thoughts trail off as I let myself doze off in my state of relaxation, and I am content.....
.....For five minutes. I am suddenly and rudely awakened by a splash of startling cold water to the face. The next thing I know, I am being scolded by Piggy for "slacking off" as he drags me back to the beach. I trudge unwillingly behind him.
The last four days of my life have consisted of excitement, laughs, exhaustion and many many happy memories. Our school orchestra and marching band took a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando Florida. It was one of the best experiences of my life. We got to perform three pieces in Disney Springs, record a song for Beauty and the Beast, and of course get to experience four Disney parks in eighty-degree weather.
The sight-reading workshop in which we played the music for Beauty and the Beast was an experience that really stood out to me. The whole orchestra learned valuable skills and not to mention a cool dvd of the dancing scene from the animated movie with us playing the music. But we also got an inside look at what being a professional musician is like. The recording, the personal stories from our instructor, advice on how to become a professional; all invaluable. Being a musician mostly likely is not something I would do as a career, but it is also one I had never even considered before this experience and I am thankful to have been able to.
The parks also did not disappoint. There were so many fun interactive and immersive rides. One ride, Mission Space, simulated the actual feeling of flying a rocket, G force and everything! I spent an entire ride through the world of The Pirates of the Caribbean questioning how it was possible that we weren't outside (the set was so well done for half of the ride I thought I really was outside). I also had the chance to try out my skills from french class for real in Epcot, plus the opportunity to fulfill childhood dreams by meeting classic characters. Not to mention some pretty funny pictures from the roller coasters and The Tower of Terror and some great firework shows.
While trip may have ended with being stuck at the airport with a four hour delay, not returning home until 5:00 am (at least I got another day off of school), aching feet, a sunburned nose, and the knowledge of how much school work I need to make up, it was all worth it. I got once in a lifetime experiences, made new friends, happy memories, and funny stories to tell. This has definitely been the best school trip I have ever been on.
They are our favorite wardrobe accessory. No matter how busy we are, we always remember that one essential item. Every single one of us wears a mask everyday without even thinking about it. It's become habit, hiding our true selves to the world. It is like a suit of armor to protect ourselves from judgement and to remain guarded. Whether it is the physical mask of makeup we wear to cover up our flawed skin, the letter-men jacket to hide our insecurities, or just the classic "I am fine" because we don't want to burden those around us with our problems. Our masks define who we are, some of us feel more ashamed of ourselves than others, the less of a mask or less frequently it is worn says a lot about our self confidence.
Masks change based on who we are with. There is the friendship mask, worn when with a group of friends and you just really want to fit in . The family mask, maybe a little less swearing and overall being on your best behavior because we are fearful of punishment. In recent years, the social media mask. Where we get to to truly choose what everyone sees. A contest if whose body looks better, who partied the hardest this weekend, and who really has the numbers. You could be sobbing, but you end up posting a throwback picture from a fabulous beach vacation a few months back to let the world know you are okay, because it is better to keep up appearances than be honest.
We all have something we would like to keep hidden from the world. Everyone asks me what it is like to be so out there and so open about who I am. But the truth is, I am just like everyone else. I put on a mask everyday. But I take it off. Some forget that you don't need to be guarded and fake around everyone you meet. There is no greater bliss on this planet than being free. Free from others expectations and the pressure to wear a mask because everyone else is. So I challenge anyone who reads this to take a step back and figure out what you project into this world. Is it making you happy? Or are you exhausted of hiding?
One thing to always bring happiness no matter the season are concerts. With the winter still dragging on this bundle of a happiness is just the medicine. Winter brings everyone into what my mom likes to call "cabin fever". The snow limits the fun things you do, especially if you're not a fan of skiing like me. And now here we are on the brink of spring and I have a fun place to go again that doesn't involve me freezing. With each day I get closer to the day of going to the prudential center my worries seem to feel less intense or necessary. The concert motivates me to know days will start to get warmer, the sun will rise earlier, and I will start to feel everything getting better.
Tomorrow, the day has finally come to go to a place surrounded by people who like the same things as me. I understand completely the term concert fever now. It takes effort at some points to contain the excitement I feel. All concerts I've been to fans usually start to become friends throughout the course of the concert. Making friends reminds me even more of summer and it's hard to mask how happy I am. Concerts, to me, just embody the fact that summer is on it's way! Of course, we still have a little way until school is out but, this is as though you have summer just for a day. This concert fever I have is a little way to hold on to my grades and this school year until it's over.
An excerpt from a piece that will be published in the 2016-17 Trillium Magazine coming out this Fall:
Family
Money in my family didn’t make its first appearance in the wake of Dad’s Hollywood success; wealth and affluence went back for several generations of the Johnson clan. While my mom’s side made out well enough financially, my dad’s side was made up of home grown patriarchal elites who used their tremendous wealth acquired through entrepreneurship, finance and business to live comfortable, exorbitant lifestyles and bring up children who would never want for anything. And where the men were entitled to their undeserved cut the women married into the families of other members of the American elite, the vicious entitled fortunate sons met at Ivy League schools, not dissimilar from their own brothers. The unions forged between the Johnsons and other upper class families through the bonds of matrimony served to keep the money flowing and the production of the next generation of needy, damaged children moving along. I always believed the bloodline had connections to some iteration of European royalty, the kind consisting only as a figurehead to mask the truly important people. We were old money that only my dad was able to translate into new money via the Jimmy the Mick movies.
But where my entire family on my dad’s side loved the decadence and excess of L.A., it was these exact qualities about the city that drove dad away, across the whole country to a quiet New England town. Despite the expansive continent between them, my dad still made it a point to fly us all out once a year around the holidays to visit, or at least this was the case until his dad passed and he cut off all ties with his brothers and sisters over disagreements over his funeral and the handling of his body. I was around Nathan’s age when we made the trip one year. We were greeted at the LAX terminal by Grandpa’s limo driver, Anju. The whole drive over to his 3 story, 80 acre, in ground pool, and movie complex containing mega mansion, I was playing the green Gameboy Color my parents had gotten me that year for Christmas along with “Pokemon Yellow Version.”
My mom was intent on my putting it away the moment we got to grandpa’s house, claiming my little cousins would be there and were it to get lost or broken she wouldn’t be getting me a new one. Looking back though I think the real reason she was so adamant I put it in my travel bag was so that I wouldn’t find an empty room in the house and play it the whole time we were there, only emerging for fresh batteries, a Capri-Sun and a cup full of mini Oreos. At the mention of my cousins a sickness permeated throughout my concave chest and spindly arms and legs. The game became tainted as each step my Pokemon trainer took through the tall grass at risk of getting attacked by wild Pokemon felt the same way each rotation of limo tires did in bringing us both closer to unavoidable trouble, the only difference was that I had no backup while the little character in my game did.
Even though I was technically 3 years older than Grant, the next oldest cousin, they exploited my smallness and outsider status for their wicked games. Each year I arrived at grandpa’s doorstep experiencing a tidal wave of dread and anxiety, mind set on the horrible, unexpectedly expected prank my cousins would pull on me that year. For how big grandpa’s house was it wasn’t big enough to hide from the unprovoked wrath of those children. I couldn’t even stay by my mom’s side as the moment we got there the kids were expelled from the immediate vicinity of the outside patio for the purpose of “letting the adults talk.” The reality behind our excommunication from the patio was so that our parents could construct fictionalized versions of us and all of our accomplishments, each couple trying to outdo the other in order to make themselves seem like the best parents, having been able to create such a wonderful child. In the best interest of these fabrications, it wouldn’t do well to have one of us waddle on by to the bathroom right through the glass doors behind the patio, clutching the bulky seat of a shit filled bathing suit or laughing so hard Coke spilled from our noses.
The whole time while my dad sat out on that patio with his family, doing his best to participate in the fibbing going on between his brothers and sisters, grandpa would just sit there in his cushioned deck chair smoking Parliament lights. By the way he’d take deep drag after deep drag, taking care to watch each exhalation of smoke descend in tendrils up into the California sky, it seemed like he wasn’t even there. The little acknowledgement anybody at that table paid him made it hard for me to discern whether he had gone mute, lost a lot of himself through his old age or if he was just waiting for somebody to look him in the eye and address him, Simon Johnson, the one who had, for the most part, paid for the cars, education, DUI and possession fines and bail outs, marriages and divorce proceedings, studio apartments and houses. Mom chalked it up to loneliness after his wife died. Dad made no mention of it. So there he’d sit for the last 5 years of his life, face expressionless, eyes hiding behind thick lensed Ray Bans smoking cigarettes and wearing ash stained Lakers T-shirts that held in his gut and displayed his enthusiasm (or lack of something better to do) for a franchise he’d been a season ticket holder for for well over a decade, driving down from the hills to the Staples Center alone, a solitary activity practiced amid the backdrop of thousands of roaring fans. Like many people in my family I don’t think I ever loved him.
Although the person who might have convinced me in the first place to write about my trip is Mrs. Kopp, I now believe I am excited to share my thoughts and insight about traveling to a place with a such different culture and lifestyle than here. Sadly I did not keep a journal while there, so I might not remember everything in order, but I will try my best!
To begin, my Youth group and I flew into Panama City late at night from Newark Airport, so we didn't get to see much the first day there. In total, there were nine of us, ranging from freshmen to seniors. At the Panama airport, we welcomed some Panamanians who would be staying with us the whole trip. Kelly, who was around college age, did most of the talking and I was amazed by how well she knew how to speak English. That night, we mainly got settled into the house in which we were staying at. It had a room for the girls and a room for the guys, both with bunk beds. I also vaguely remember that night that we ate a dinner that consisted of mainly Pringles and Snap Pea snacks, but of course we were alright with that because we were just happy to finally get there (plus most of us had meals on the plane.) For the rest of the night, we mainly relaxed and explored the house, excited about the days to come.
*FUN FACT (for the above day): My priest actually left $1,500 on the plane!! So we all started off pretty freaked out because we wouldn't be able to get anywhere since the money was for our bus driver but LUCKILY people in Panama are nicer than people in the U.S. and they found and returned all of it, so yeah, SO pumped to start out this way, but don't worry things got better :)*
Following our arrival day, we all woke up that morning with smiles on our faces, curious and eager to get a real "whiff" of Panama. That day, (and for all the other ones) we started off at 6:00 am and opened the front door of the house, little of us knowing the beauty we would soon encounter. When I stepped out that first day, the gleaming sun already high above the horizon even in the early morning, I could not be happier with where I was that very second. Not only was I thrilled to escape the frigid northeastern weather of New Jersey, but I could also already feel the impact that this trip to put on my life. We then took a bus to a place for breakfast and found our first hurdle in Central America. Those of us who didn't take Spanish struggled a bit in trying to tell the Panamanians at the cafe what we wanted (even though all the adults with us told us that it was a "pick and point"place). But we all got through it and soon found ourselves on the bus again: this was our tourist day!
So I'm sorry I haven't mentioned anyone's names yet, but I soon found myself close with almost everyone. The girls were named Shelby, Katy, Maddy, Natalia and Corinne and the boys were John, Austin and Jacob. Maddy, Shelby, Katy, Austin and I soon formed a very tight friendship which I was very happy about because another reason I had come down to Panama was to get closer with people I only knew of. Although, Shelby and I had known each other before, we became even closer friends on the trip.
Sorry for getting distracted (again oops) but yes today was a tourist day! We visited the Panama Canal, which was probably the most iconic attraction in "Tourist Panama," but my friends and I still enjoyed it quite a bit. Next came shopping, and boy were we in for a treat. Rows upon rows of color blossomed throughout a native market that we came upon. We were all in awe and blown away by the hundreds of handcrafted items that they had to offer, each one representing a level of hard work and determination. I purchased a beautiful tribal, colorful bag with fringes hanging off, as well as some bracelets for my friends back in Sparta!!
So as I'm writing this, I'm realizing that every other memory I have, except the first day, is all scrambled up in my head. From now on, I will not be writing in order.
One of days, probably one of my favorite days, was when our group visited a Girls Home (which is almost like an orphanage, except the children there have parents, but they just can't afford to raise them). Of course, to start off, all of us played some soccer in 90 degree weather which was quite a workout since many of the young girls were surprisingly good. We also played with a couple of college aged guys who had been staying with us most of our trip and of course they were good as well, but I did happen to score a few goals, which I was proud of. After this, we all began bonding with the girls (who ranged fro ages 4-18, but none there were older than 13). I played and laughed with a 4 year old named Katherine, who was one of the kindest, loving, full-of-life girls I have ever met. Even though there was a language boundary, that didn't stop us one bit from having fun together. I pushed her on the swings for some time and we also played hide-and-seek for a little while too. She also loved looking at the Snapchat filters on my phone which is always something little kids find fascinating. The part that broke my heart, though, was when we all had to say goodbye, Katharine would not let me put her down of let go of her hand no matter how many times I pointed to her friends. At one point, she even walked out of the girls home to the bus, saying "Adios! Adios!" to everyone. She had wanted to come with me, and I couldn't bare to say goodbye either. Finally, one of the women who stayed with the girls had to take Katharine away from me. The face she made will stay with me forever as a reminder of just how quickly we can learn to treat someone as family.
Later that day, the Youth group and my friends headed to a water park where we all got to chill and cool down. That day I most surely will never forget because not only did my friends and the girls bond so quickly, but us, teenagers, soon thought of the ones we were staying with as family too.
Another memorable day was the day we all really got exposed to Panama's beauty. This day, we traveled through the hidden jungles, or "backstage's" of Panama to spend a day with a tribe. Alongside our bus flew macaws and parrots, adding splashes of red and blue to the deep green flourished forests of the jungle. When we arrived, we had the mission of painting a small hut, which we did accomplish with a lot of teamwork. I remember laughing a lot that day because of the paint fights and special moments my friends and I had. We had also brought down t shirts and trinkets for kids in the tribe, which they gratefully accepted. That very same day we also went to the beach which was THE perfect temperature. We spent almost until sunset have chicken fights, collecting shells, and drowning each other (not actually) until we were all exhausted. That night I also had one of the best meals of my life at this amazing restaurant that had this incredible seafood platter (it even had octopus which was a first try for me!)
To wrap everything up is too hard to do because I still haven't said maybe even half the details I wanted to include, but I think it turned out to make for still a pretty good blog post. There were also very many iconic moments that happened throughout the trip too which had us all bursting out in unison laughing, but it was a very tough goodbye that day when we arrived back in Newark, but also very hard to enter the Panama City airport to say goodbye to Kelly, Sean, Roberto and many of the other kind and loving friends we had made in Panama.
But I was right, this is a trip I most certainly will never forget!
**Below are some pictures/a video from the trip** hope you guys enjoy :)
Monday, March 20, 2017
A Fictional Diary Entry from the First Day of Spring
by: Sara Nigro
March 20, 2017
Dear Diary,
Today was the first day of Spring which excites me because it reminds me of new beginnings and a fresh clean start kinda like New Years!! Even though cleaning my room is on the bottom of the list of chores I'd like to do, starting over and cleaning out my closet at the start of this season doesn't seem to bother me as much as usual. After it's all over it actually feels like a nice cleanse and that I have given myself a clean slate to start on. Speaking of clean slates, the end of the marking period at school is nearing as well. This is my favorite way to start over because the very beginning of the marking period means that you can do well and not be worrying about bringing your grade back up or keeping it at a certain letter.
Also, Spring means that holidays such as Easter and Memorial Day are just around the corner and when it's time for Easter it is also time for Spring Break! I haven't made any plans yet so I'll need to remember to put that on my To-Do list later. Usually I spend time with family, meet up with my friends, and take the time to relax and enjoy the changing of seasons. Hopefully this year I'll get to do the same but not die of boredom when my family and friends are too busy and I've watched Netflix more than I can handle hahah.
But honestly, my favorite part of Spring is the nature side of it all. Beautiful weather slowly transitioning from 30 degrees up to 70, the trees growing back their green leaves, and tulips and daisies sprouting all over town. Just the sight of life growing back and waking up from hibernation fills me with so much happiness I can't even begin to explain it. I can finally play sports outside, walk around town with my friends, and get ice cream!! That reminds me, since it's the first day of Spring there were tons of places offering deals on cold treats since their stores were reopening today. Even though the line was out the door, my friends and I went to Rita's Ice and got free ice today and it was delicious. I'm going to start writing in my diary more often to keep myself on track and also look back on significant memories or days. :)
During the last unit, students were required to choose groups and participate in a debate on a scientific topic. This was prompted by our reading of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and the question of whether or not scientific advancement is always worth the risk that comes along with it. In order to perform well in this debate, students had to work together, conduct a good amount of research, and delve into a topic that they might otherwise be completely unfamiliar with. Topics included GMOs, genetically modified embryos, animal testing, and the possibility of selling organs. In addition to using research and collaboration skills, students were also able to flex their public speaking muscles in this verbal battle. When students were at the debate podiums, they were allowed to receive help from their teammates, but they could not speak to one another. Many teams used the Google Doc chat feature to feed facts, direction, and encouragement to their teammates. In the end, every single team did a fantastic job! They were well spoken, well researched, and determined to win! Plus, they looked very professional. This is one of those assignments that takes so much work, but the benefits are amazing! I'm so proud of these kids!
As some of you may know, I haven't lived in America very long and I moved here from England, land of beans, politeness, and the Queen. I was a fool to believe that the transition between school systems would be smooth, and this led to a significant impact to my grades. Not to brag, but I'm pretty good at the whole school thing, usually I get pretty good grades and overall I'm not too bad, or so I thought. The shock set in about a week after school started and my grades started rolling in. Some classes were fine, you can't teach History more than one way, but apparently you can with Math.
I got points off my test for answering in decimal form, which is the standard in England, but here it is usually fraction form that's ideal. I object to this idea of having different methods being better than others, and I also object to losing points based on my preferences. Is school not supposed to accommodate me? But this is just a small complaint, I mean I could just switch to answering in fraction form, but it's more the fact that my teacher refused to believe that I'm used to answering in decimal.
The refusal to acknowledge that it was a cultural difference that led to me answering that way meant I lost points, but because I come from another English speaking country, people don't see it that way. For instance, if I came from Germany and I answered that way, there would be more accommodation based on the fact that the German school system is thought to be more different from the American one. However, the English school system is completely different. We don't have high school diplomas, we don't have finals, we have two sets of hugely important exams when you're 16 and 18 that determine your future career choices.
But Math isn't the only subject where the grading is harsher toward foreigners, even PE discriminates. I do not know how to play most American sports like basketball, or ultimate frisbee or whatever else the teacher decides to make us do. Because of this I can't properly participate in the sport due to my having just learned of its existence. I get a lower grade because I don't have prior knowledge for the class, a required class mind you.
I also take issue with the way the grades are weighted at this school particularly. It should not be 60/30/10. If I have to put in a few hours work on a piece of homework I want it to count for more than 10% of my grade. Yet, at the same time, if a teacher decided that a 5 minute quiz that consists of 10 questions is a summative, and I get an 80, this should not be as heavily weighted as a 2 period test. This is why I prefer the way my English class grades, because many of the summative and formative assignments can be completed in school or at home, which allows me to make a positive impact on my grades both inside and outside the learning environment.
Overall there is a lot of work to be done in school systems to help accommodate foreign students, a simple first step is understanding that there isn't anything wrong with the child having been taught a different method to the way you teach.
As a very Irish girl I am happy that St.Patricks Day happens to fall on my assigned day to write a post. Naturally, I have decided to write my blog about the festivities I enjoy taking part in every St.Patricks Day.
1. Erin Go Bragh
This Irish saying translates to "Ireland Forever", and I really enjoy hearing/saying the phrase because it makes me think of my heritage. I enjoy reflecting on the place my family came from and the customs that are in my blood. It is also a cool bonus that my name, Erin, means Ireland.
2. Corned Beef and Cabbage
A delicious dinner I have once a year, cooked by my dad. I always look forward to having this meal. It never disappoints!
3. Green
I always enjoy seeing everyone participate in the holiday by wearing green. It is fun to bring every together for one celebration. The green color represents Ireland (one of the colors of the flag) and leprechauns!
4.Sodabread
Another delicious piece of food that comes around this time of year. It has a unique taste and never lasts long in my house!
5. Parades
The parades are always one big fun party and celebration. It is nice to see many people dress up in Irish colors and support their culture.
These are just a few reasons I enjoy celebrating this very fun and very green holiday with all my loved ones!
As I was deciding what to post for my blog post I had a realization. I have never written anything creative and meaningful. My only blog posts are wildly sarcastic, opinionated, and full of rants. So I made the decision to write a hopefully wonderfully delightful poem. Considering I am sitting in bed on a snow day writing this it seems fitting to make the poem about snow. So here I go...look I'm a poet and I didn't even know it! (Sorry, I'll stop now).
Actual picture of my backyard
Fragile and white.
Tears from Angels that fall in the night.
Dancing and twirling to the ground.
Landing on rooftops without a single sound.
Crisp and cool.
A prime suspect in the possible cancellation of school.
Small white ballerinas falling to the floor.
Building and building until I can't open my door.
Snowmen and sled tracks litter the street.
Without hot cocoa this day would not be complete.
Hearing the sound of the children playing.
Maybe there will be no school I wind up praying.
Repeatedly checking the Woroworld Blog.
Just wanting to spend the next day in bed eating like a hog.
Watching the accumulation on Weather.com climb.
Oh, a relaxing day at home, what a wonderful time.
Warmed by the fire, watching the flakes fall.
Waiting anxiously by the phone for the school to call.
That wonderful "All Sparta Schools will be closed tomorrow"
And in no students heart was there an ounce of sorrow.
We have begun to read William Golding’s The Lord of the Flies in class recently. We haven’t read far into the book, but it's clear the book tells the story of boys crashed on an island, highlighting how they react to the environment and to each other in this scenario. Despite only reading to the sixth chapter (about halfway through the book but still nowhere near the climax), it’s clear William Golding wrote the book with the idea humans are inherently evil. His participation during WWII inspired this idea.
Similarly, Thomas Hobbes, a philosopher studied alongside John Locke, shared Hobbes's view of humans. He described human’s lives as “nasty, short, and brutish”. In contrast, John Locke believed humans were basically good and capable of controlling themselves. Both philosophers as well as Golding clump together humanity, arguing at whether they are good or bad group.
I’m not a philosopher who studied and mulled over the human race for the majority of my life, nor have I lived enough years to be considered an adult. Nevertheless, I’d like to add my ideas to this immortal debate. Humans are large and diverse group of people. There are around 7.5 billion of us on the planet, with many different cultures and languages to define us. With the numbers and diversity that surround us, why do we still try to group humans together?
There are awful people in the world. There are those who will hurt people. However there is also a group of compassionate people in the world. There are people who will devote themselves to the wellbeing of others. Just as there are those who will choose to take lives away, there are those who will chose to donate and bring lives back. However, the fact is that people, both good and evil, exist. Like I’ve said before, it's not easy to say that one group embodies the majority of humanity with the other group intermingled with it, not to mention those who do not fit into one group or another.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m nothing close to being considered an expert on this subject. However, I believe mentioning one group without the other fails to recognize the different aspects of humanity. By saying humans are inherently one thing or the other, the diversity of the human race as a whole is ignored. There certainly humans that fit perfectly into Golding's ideas; humans that will work for themselves and create evil where they go mirror a message from The Lord of The Flies. There are certainly humans that follow Locke’s principles as well, working for the good of everyone. We can argue that the human race is good or bad, but the undeniable diversity makes it impossible to truly say we are all one way or another.
Saint Patrick’s Day is probably one of the most underrated holidays of the calendar year and frankly, I don’t see why. Most people I know don’t celebrate the holiday and just see it as the holiday between Valentines Day and Easter. Few people have learned about the history of the holiday and I believe that if they known more about the significance of this day then maybe they would celebrate it. For starters, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated annually on March 17th to coincide with the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. St. Patrick is one of the most widely known Christian figures, yet much of his life remains a mystery. There are accounts of him performing impossible acts like, banishing all of the snakes from Ireland, that were proven to be false. In Ireland this day was first celebrated with a religious feast day, throughout the years this celebration has evolved and now includes parades, dances, special foods, and a lot of green. In addition, there are many myths about St. Patrick’s Day that people are lead to believe. One of the biggest myths is that St. Patrick was Irish. Contrary to popular belief, St. Patrick was not Irish, instead he was born in Britain, but was also not considered British since the British Isles were occupied by the Romans at the time. Also, historically green was not associated with St Patrick’s Day, this quality was probably added in the 18th century, since the supporters of Irish independence used green to represent their cause. Similarly, Corned beef was not a traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal, instead pork was traditionally eaten. The transition to corned beef came in the 19th century when Irish immigrants in New York substituted pork with corned beef in order to save money.
Personally, I love St. Patrick’s because it brings back great childhood memories of celebrating in daycare and with my family. When I was younger up until I was 10 or 11 my daycare would always celebrate St. Patrick’s day with green everything and rainbows with pots of gold at the end of them. Those are some of my favorite memories, since my teachers would bring in green bagels, juice, and cupcakes and also have us hunt for a leprechaun that they made. My teachers went to great lengths to make St. Patrick's Day fun for us and because of that I love the holiday. For as long as I can remember my family also celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with a family dinner of corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes on the Sunday closest to St. Patrick’s Day. My mom and I would spend the day cooking the corned beef and baking Irish soda bread together. My family and I would eat together, swapping stories and after dinner we would always have a green themed dessert that my cousin made. We still celebrate to this day and because of those memories corned beef, cabbage and potatoes is my favorite meal.
I have always listened to music as a stress reliever so that when I do homework or study for school it would not be as boring. I recently was wondering if listening to music while doing homework or studying would help me in more ways than I thought. Listening to music while performing other important tasks is not for everyone because people can easily be distracted. I read about an experiment conducted by researchers from the Wake Forest School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina Greensboro. These researchers chose 21 young adults and put them in an MRI scanner as they played a variety of music; they played classical, country, rap/hip-hop, and rock. The researchers also collected favorite songs by the 21 young adults, once the music played their brains were scanned using an MRI. The researchers wanted to see how each person's feelings about a song would influence their brain activity. I learned about the part of the brain that is called the default mode network which is apparently is connected to how humans switch between what's going on around them and their self-referential thoughts. The results of the experiment was that most of the people were better connected to the default mode network part of the brain when they listened to their favorite song or their preferred genre of music.
That experiment results showed that listening to songs that a person favors will most likely help them focus more than listening to songs that they dislike. Although that experiment said that music would help overall there are other experiments that have proven that theory to be wrong. Dr. Nick Perham's 2010 study, "Can preference for background music mediate the irrelevant sound effect," explored how music can interfere with short-term memory potential. Dr. Nick Perham also included, "We found that listening to liked or disliked music was exactly the same, and both were worse than the quiet control condition. Both impaired performance on serial-recall tasks." Dr. Nick Perham is saying that music would not help in the case where somebody needed to memorize something in order. A Stanford University Professor, Clifford Nass had similar thoughts to Perham, Nass said, "Music with lyrics is very likely to have a problematic effect when you're writing or reading. Probably less of an effect on math, if you're not using the language parts of your brain. In my day, there was no way you could take music in the library. When (today's students) go to the library to study, they bring their noise, and music, with them." Professor Nass does make a point that when writing or reading the music with lyrics would jumble the words confusing you but does that mean music without lyrics is the best option for reading and writing sections? Nass said that for math music with lyrics would have less of an effect on confusing you because math is mostly studying how to do equations.
Each experiment will say something different but I think that listening to music while studying and doing homework will be a decision for everyone to make for themselves. I personally think it allows myself to focus, but I have realized that I listen to a playlist of all the songs I prefer rather than listening to a radio station with songs I might not know also I do not listen to music while reading. I do know some people that get easily distracted when listening to music while doing work but I also know some people like myself that can listen to music and be completely focused. Every person has a different opinion on listening to music while working, listening to music will effect everyone in a different way. I do encourage everyone to give listening to music a try while doing homework and/or studying at least once if you have not done so before because it could help you concentrate more.
