January 16

Lit Exploration

 The Idea that our Beliefs are Impacted by the Actions of Others.

 

What is your opinion of the idea that our beliefs are influenced by the actions of        others?

 

       Humans are a very impressionable species, once impacted by another individual then it maintains a long lasting stain on the individual. Like that of a mustard stain on a white shirt, it’s a fight to get rid of. In the novel Night, by Elie Wiesel we see this stain make its mark on a young boys life which happens to be Wiesel himself, we see how the torment and devastation of concentration camps change his life, and ultimately who he is. On the other side though through The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch the opposite is demonstrated for the reader as it’s a story about how individuals can shape you to model your inspiration after them.    

 

 In the novel Night, a young boy-Wiesel- is taken away from his family, aside from his father and the family is distributed as if game pieces to concentration camps. However Wiesel is lucky enough to stay with his father, but that is the only way in which the poor boy could be considered lucky. Beaten, starved, and made to feel as if he was less than a speck of dirt on this planet the young man is left with the question of, where is God? Why is he letting us be treated in such a way? When the true question is what would make another human do that to someone else? Because of the actions of others the young man disregarded his religion for a long time, for example he chose not to fast when others were or when if things would have still been normal he would have, not because his father told him to do so. But because of the lack of trust he has acquired in God. The absence of trust comes from the actions of those around him who hurt him so terribly he wasn’t even sure if there was a God out there for Elie to even pray to or fast for. Like Elie not everyone is as lucky to have an action of another have a positive long lasting effect on themselves but when it happens, it’s special.  

 

   In the excerpt from The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch we see the other side of the influence individuals actions have on people, were a good snap decision has the power to impact another person to give them hope and re-inspire them. In the excerpt Pausch is watching the landing on the moon in summer camp and is sent to bed by the councilors because it was thought to be 

‘Too late” so they did not witness man first steps on the moon because of a bedtime. But his father at home however took a photo so the young boy once he got back home could see and relish in the moment for himself. That choice the father made left a long lasting influence on Pausch because of his obsession with space and how later on in life he would become a scientist. “Give yourself permission to dream. Fuel your kids dreams, too. Once in a while, that might even mean letting them stay up past their bedtimes.” this quote is important because it displays Pausch’s admiration for great work that it should be witnessed by everyone. So with the influence his father taking a photo had was significant to Randy because it allowed him to dream bigger even if he didn’t give to see the product in it’s debut.  

 

  Seeing a final product in its debut is one of the most satisfying things a person can witness, so when William Forrester gets to see what Jamal becomes he is elated. Forrester had mentored Jamal and to see Jamal be successful at his new school and pursue writing it is a big moment for the former shut in. Forrester’s influence on Jamal had pushed Jamal to trust himself more and be more confident in himself as opposed to belittling himself for the sake of others. And Jamal had pushed Forrester right back with his actions of growth influencing Forrester to seek out new opportunities all over again in his life. The two men growing together to become better versions of each other demonstrates the positive effect that the actions of another person can have on one individual is by far one of the most important things that can be offered. 

 

  Not every time an individual walks into a life is it for the betterment of someone, sometimes the push is to lose your faith, make you rethink your family, but also sometimes someone can walk into your life and they open new doors create a safer atmosphere. Sometimes that mustard stain lands right in the middle of your shirt and other times you’re wearing a yellow shirt and it’s gonna blend in and only you’re gonna know about and you will be grateful for it. 

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January 16

Persuasive

Erika Carey

ELA 30-2 

11/28/2019

Ms. Hunnisett 

Persuasive Letter 

 

Dear Prosper School Board, 

 

  I am currently writing you and the behalf of the idea of the betterment of my and many other children’s education. Something that, if you hear me out, you can spearhead this as a demonstration for other schools around the world. My name is Alex Wells and I’m currently enrolled in grade twelve at Prosper High School, it has come to my attention that a four day school week could be introduced, I think this could be a game changer because it would give children the chance that we need to maintain our studies, aid our sleep schedules, and keep up with homework among a multitude of other prospects involving the community. 

 

    Researchers have shown that children and teenagers need at least eight hours of sleep per night and teenagers specifically, need more sleep than most age groups because our bodies are growing. According to a Philips Study in 2016 cutting your sleep by even one hour will cut your body’s alertness by ⅓ leaving you in an unhappy state, along with the fact that catching up on sleep during the weekends disrupts our entire sleep cycle because of our body having problems with consistency. Highschoolers especially need that extra day to rejuvenate because of the workload of high school and how it can get a bit hectic at times and that can leave an individual to become riddled with anxiety and numerous other mental health issues. There is a highly regarded notion of the connection between sleeping and learning and sleep deprivation is a major problem because of balancing school, homework, and if you participate in an extracurricular activity. A busy schedule creates a busy body, and busy bodies don’t typically sleep nearly enough as they should and introducing the four day school week would certainly help. 

 

  Financially it would also be beneficial, cutting back numbers on the budget by a few thousand. In the current five day week we spend around $63,000 on operations, $47,000 on maintenance and a staggering $80,000 on transportation. These numbers could be cut back by a noticeable few thousand without even damaging the school systems or taking money out of programs that exist at the school. With the four day school week we look at $58,000 in operations, $43,000 in maintenance, and an impressive drop to $65,000 for transportation. This gives us and extra $24,000 extra that no programs had to be cut in order to attain. 

 

  Another group who would enjoy the benefits of this cutback would be the community and the teachers, because of the extra time it would a lot for planning and being around the people you love and wish to surround yourself with. Teachers would be able to gain an extra day in order to get more time to prepare and prep for their classes, in fact 92% of the Prosper High School Staff voted in favour of the four day weeks more than likely with the idea behind them that it would gift them that extra couple hours to make their lessons so much better so that way the kids would learn better. Then give the teachers a sense of pride, because what better of a feeling is it than when you can put the work you into the world and feel proud of it? No teacher wants to rob a student of a good understanding of the material they are teaching them but if they feel rushed and students aren’t understanding the material because the teacher needs more time, that is unfair to everyone involved. The community would benefit because that would be access to a large space with supply of helpful resources, “We will be able to schedule more Friday activities and attract more volunteers,” Owner of Moms and Tots, Dorthy Miller has said. Their is so much potential good to be done in the idea of having a four day school week with advantages that we don’t even fully understand yet. 

 

 So keeping in mind the amount of people and different groups this would affect, please consider this because for a High School student, if I was given the gift of being able to study for a test for three days rather than two I would jump at the offer. And others would gain access to our space helping out the community, it would even free up a good chunk of money to put towards the school as well and the added bonus that programs wouldn’t have to be cut in order to get said money. So I ask you to consider these factors when making your decision and I thank you for hearing me out. 

 

Sincerely, 

Alex Wells 

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November 26

How Ambition Can Be A Driving Factor.

        Behind every movement there is a presence pushing you to go the extra distance for whatever it is that you want to accomplish in this world. Ambition is what people usually call that presence, it drives a person to work harder, think better, and do more. Ambition gives a reason to get out of bed in the morning. In the photograph of children in the Philippines making an attempt to get themselves to school, which here in Canada is a very simple thing for most it’s waking to your bus stop in the morning, the children are on a makeshift raft trying to get across a wide river. The photographer’s intentions with the peace draws attention to the three children aboard this tiny raft trying to make their way across the wide spread river in an attempt for an education, something that is preached to everyone as a necessary thing and something you need to be at, but here there is no attempts to make that journey any easier. 

   The child that is directly addressing the camera is a little boy with the look of pure determination and ambition, knowing he is in danger but seeing it as a normal childhood obstacle to be able to get over the  river on the makeshift raft so he can get on with his school day. By far he tops any parents story of “When I was in school in order to get there I had to…” and he seemingly does it with no complaint and not a worry in his eyes. He knows he is doing and how it in that moment is what he is supposed to be doing. Ambition leads individuals in situations like this because it is meant to guide a person to getting done what they really want/need and in this case it’s the need for an education to provide themselves a better future filled with more opportunities and possibly a lifestyle where their children will never have to endure the makeshift raft to get themselves to school.

      Children here in Canada have a very comfortable lifestyle yet, we still find ways in which we can complain. Like for example trying to get to school in the morning, you have to wake up , get yourself out of bed and ready for the day, pack a lunch and then boom you’re off to walk to a bus stop to catch the warm and safe school bus or even better a parent or yourself will drive to school and at the worst you would have to take public transportation. And yet somehow we still find time to complain about that. Ambition of having a better future or the ideal “American Dream” after high school and university is what pushes us out the door to more than likely get into a motorized vehicle where we are kept warm, displaying the privilege that we often experience. That little boy’s eyes however are no different than a little boy’s eyes that stare out of a window on bus, it’s a little boy filled with hope for the day, ambition to keep going and that dash of determination that gives them the hope for a good future. 

     Ambition can be present in many forms and the hope is that everyone has their own experiences and the hope is an individual isn’t intimidated by their own potential so that way they don’t stand in their own ways of trying to help themselves towards something better. You decide what happens next not someone else and so, even if you have to ride a makeshift raft to get an education or your have your own personal version of a makeshift raft that you have to ride to what you want, ambition can be your driver. But you have to be the dutiful passenger and navigate for it properly. 

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September 27

This I Believe: Redemption, Resilience.

I believe resilience is a vital trait for an individual to have. 

I believe redemption is the key to making people see you the way you are now as opposed to the person you used to be. 

 

“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” – Dale Carnagie 

 

When I was little I was always taught that i needed to make the best of each situation, no matter how bad everything really was. I was told either to bend to make everything work and if I didn’t bend, I would simply break. I learnt the true meaning of this when I was in the ninth grade. Sure I had little hardships along the way but this was the first thing that directly after I didn’t know how to bounce back. I was completely floored. In the ninth grade I wasn’t in the best headspace. I wanted nothing to do with school work and wanted to be out with my friends all night who were all at least 2-3 years older than me. Which made my best friend, become interested in my brother. That caused major fighting between us and we let that leach into our school environment and into what we both shared for extra curriculars. Unfortunately we both weren’t very mature either so it had cost us a school trip that we had both been looking forward too. That devastated me because I wasn’t sure how to bounce back in the drama program I was, to put it simply young and dumb and had royally messed up. Little did I know they were welcoming with open and warm arms. I realized that year though because of how much I had messed up and had gone through my “rebellious phase” sooner rather than later and I was able to get my head ever so straightener on top of my shoulders and it made a world of a difference for myself because I was able to accomplish so much more because of it. 

 

“She stood in the storm, and when the wind did not blow her way. She adjusted her sails” – Elizabeth Edwards

Category: Erika, Sept 2019 | 2 Comments on This I Believe: Redemption, Resilience.