October 29

Where Have All The Children Gone?

Where have all the children gone?

The creaking silence of longing echoes through the streets. It sounds like the old, wooden floors under dainty feet of all the children running around. Just yesterday they were tying ribbons in their hair and swinging from the branches of their favourite trees.

Their laughs used to flood the home. Toys were scattered all over the floor, always being played with at any free moment they had. New, colourful worlds used to be scribbled onto blank pieces of paper, each more magnificent than the previous. These children were our blank canvas- a fresh start for us.

Where have all the children gone?

Bleached skin and teary eyes are all they are now. The only human contact that they get is the back of a hand across their soft cheek. Their world is just a long line of sad faces, long hours of forced work, and short times of rest. They are forced to become someone new, being told that their old self is ‘ugly’ and ‘unlovable’. They spend hours learning a language that they cannot use outside of the walls they are trapped in.

Those of us who were spared wander around like abandoned kids lost in the woods. The lights in our lives are gone. We do not know what to do without them here, there is no one to guide, no one to tell stories to.

We were told that we were a bad influence on them. The world thought that we were ‘savages’ and that they were saving our children of having the same fate as us. But, who has the right to steal a child away from their mother and call it just? What are a child without their mother’s tender nurture and words of wisdom?

Where have all the children gone?

They came back to us too late. They want to be excited to be home finally, but they cannot. They are just a broken shell of who they were. Their parents talk to them, trying to give them words of love, but they cannot understand. Their language and way of life before are entirely erased. There is nothing from the past left.

We had hoped that they were just hiding. We had hoped that they were just playing a trick on us. We had hoped that those years of their absence was just a bad dream. But we know that this was all real. That the children we once knew and loved are gone.

“When the school is on the reserve, the child lives with its parents, who are savages, and though he may learn to read and write, his habits and training mode of thought are Indian. He is simply a savage who can read and write. It has been strongly impressed upon myself, as head of the Department, that Indian children should be withdrawn as much as possible from the parental influence, and the only way to do that would be to put them in central training industrial schools where they will acquire the habits and modes of thought of white men.”

John A. MacDonald

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I wrote this piece from the prompt on Orange Shirt Day about residential schools and how it has affected a whole generation of people. I decided to use the quote at the end to show how people viewed that residential schools were needed in Canada and how the government viewed them. I also drew information from Joseph Kerschbaum’s piece Where Have All The Children Gone.

 

Category: Paxton, Sept 2018 | 1 Comment on Where Have All The Children Gone?
January 18

Lit Exploration edited (Lasting Impact)

June 2014: What is your opinion of the idea that the influence of others can have a lasting effect?

In life there is so much that can influence and shape us. When something is done or said towards you, the ideas will continue on and affect the future you and that makes you recall the significant things in life.The future you is based on the past you and how things fall together in life, you mainly have to learn to surround yourself with the good people. Something as small as someone stepping out of their way for you can cause a lasting impact and you hold onto that memory. A lasting impact is like a memory that you hold onto it and it can affect you, it is something that will maintain as time goes on. Having a lasting impact that is never forgotten is shown with Paul and Normans brotherhood in the film The River runs through it, The last Lecture by Randy Pousch who tells a story about his childhood and in my personal life with a friend who had his grandmother pass away.

 

Some actions are done to support others in a way to help them be happy. In the film, A River Runs Through It, we see that Norman and Paul grow up together and move apart but one thing they are connected through is fly fishing. This is one thing their dad taught them as kids and they grew up masturing it. When they get separated for school and life they eventually come back together and they go out fly fishing, this is a notable moment in the film because we see the fishing bringing their brotherhood back together as if no one ever left. The lasting impact this one activity they had learnt as kids has carried onto their adulthood. It has become something permanent that they both can hold onto and be brought back together by.

Even when someone makes a comment you could still have a lasting impact that u remember. In the Last Lecture, by Randy Pousch, he tells a story about his childhood. He was at a camp and they were watching the first man take a step on the moon but it was getting late. They told all the kids to go to bed, this made Randy mad so he argued against it because he wanted to watch the first step on the moon. Sometimes the actions of others aren’t always a happy memory, sometimes you have to remember sometimes that aren’t as pleasant and learn or grow from it. To him this was a significant event that he has remembered due to it affecting him. He sees this as a chance where the camp director gave him an opportunity to learn and grow from something not super big. Randy has been influenced in his present life by this once in a lifetime opportunity to see. He learned and grew around it, becoming who he is today.

 

When someone steps out of their way to care for you, that will be remembered and help shape you to be a better you in the future. Just recently my best friend, Devon, had something tragic happen; his grandmother passed away. He was absolutely devastated and there truly wasn’t much I could do to help him out. I tried a lot including, meaningful text messages and or phone calls, hanging out, and even talking to his mom. None of this worked until it hit me that I needed to surprise him. So that day I went out and got a nice hoodie, gum, gatorade, comfort food and candy then put it into a box with a handwritten note. I the drove to his house, without him knowing, and left it on his doorstep so he would find it and open it with surprise. It worked he loved it and it took his mind off things and made him smile, which was exactly what he needed. To this day he will mention this, “Remember that time u left that box on my doorstep…”. This shows that my actions towards others can influence those around me. Devon took what my actions were and remembered it and used it for himself to be a better person. He took into account that I can show empathy and consideration though my actions. My actions had a lasting effect that he now tells everyone what I did for him. It doesn’t just affect Devon in this case but it affected me in the sense that he appreciated all I did for him, makes me remember the situation and build a better me off of it.

 

In the end we all have actions that will affect one another. The positive actions we show are the ones that are most remembered. But action can always influence those around us. Good or bad they change us in a way we like, they make us better people and allow us to grow. We see how lasting memories can impact us as humans and strive for excellence.

Category: Chantelle | 1 Comment on Lit Exploration edited (Lasting Impact)
December 31

Influence of Others

The Influence of Others

 

In an individual’s life, one is faced with situations in which other people’s values and opinions influence them. The excerpt, ‘Beat the Odds’, National Football League player, Michael Oher, demonstrates a man who realizes the impact of an individual throughout his childhood. Sometimes, individuals need the idea of motivation, acceptance, viewpoint, and advice from others to push them to pursue their aspirations or the idea of determination for themselves. It is the action of others to drive them. In the film, ‘A River Runs through It’ directed by Robert Redford, we become familiar with Norman Maclean, who is a man struggling to ideally please his father with the decisions he has made throughout his life. The idea of receiving acceptance from others to fulfill your satisfaction, impacts your decisions negatively and positively.

Throughout your life, there is always an individual you are either trying to please, get approval of, or just someone who just motivates you. Since middle school, I have always appreciated my grade eight teacher. That year, I had just moved schools and I was known as the ‘new kid’. The whole class was very kind and welcoming. I fit in right away. But when I first met her, first period, math class, I say she was the most welcoming. The very first things she ever said to me was “Please do not worry about what others have to say in this class, if you are ever struggling or not, do not be ashamed.” She was very laid- back. You can get that vibe when you first meet her. I really did not get what she meant by that at first, but throughout the school year I started to realize. She used to make few mistakes while teaching us a math lesson or while trying to explain what the cytoplasm, whatever it is, obviously, quite of few individuals used to judge her for that. All she was say is “Don’t worry guys, I am only human.” From those words, I knew she did not let other people influence her, whether it be a mistake or a decision, she always pursued whatever she wanted to be in life. Now, I am an active student, instead of a quiet one, doing whatever I can to pursue my dreams after high school by not letting other individuals to impact those aspirations. She allowed me to realize that with her own values and opinions.

‘Beat the Odds’ is an excerpt about a man who pursue his dream of becoming an athlete through the influence of his grade four teacher. Michael Oher, who is now a National Football player found himself fond of sports throughout his childhood. As Michael was growing up, he became aware of how Ms. Logan became such a big part of his life, how much her encouragement and her words influenced him as he grew up. Ms. Logan made Micheal realize his love for sports and his ability to play by valuing his ability to play during recess or gym, by letting him know what he could achieve in the future. As he is now a grown man with a astonishing career, Michael still reminisces that encouragement and determination he received from her helped shape him as an individual.

In the film, A River Runs Through It , we are introduced to Norman Maclean, who is influenced throughout his life by his father, Reverend Maclean, the church minister. While growing up, Norman always valued of pleasing and receiving approval from his father. This is evident when Norman and his younger Paul, discuss what they what to be when they grow up, right away Norman replies with ‘minister’. This demonstrates that Norman assumed that he needs to become whatever his father approves and values, religion and church. As Norman gets older, he goes to college and receives a degree in education, which is approved by his father, but has the desire of working in the forestry business. As evident in the film, he compromises his dream, and applies for teaching positions. This resulted with an individual being impacted long-term due to the value and influence of another individual, the encouragement and inspiration which developed to impact the future of the individual.

Any individual can influence one to do anything, from encouraging them to play ball at recess to what career is acceptable, whatever it may be. The action of others to recognize the talents, abilities, qualifications we may have, drive us to become and shape into the specific individual that they influence us to be.

Category: Sapna, Sept 2017 | LEAVE A COMMENT