Author: raining17

Boarding School vs. Reality

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Living at boarding school makes for an odd double standard, specifically in the sense of relationships – any type. If a boarder and a day student are friends, the boarder can go to the day students house and get to know their lifestyle.

Over this weekend, or whenever the visit takes place, the boarder explores the day student’s house, and gets to know their family and friends. It’s just odd how this can’t be reciprocated.

Because of the boarding school situation, social events are so different from a standard day school, where people can go over to each other’s houses whenever they please. With a boarding school, it’s so one-sided. The boarding student may become close and acquainted with the day student’s lifestyle, yet there is still a whole part of the boarder’s life that the day student will never know. They will never visit the boarder’s house, or get to know their family or friends.

This unavoidable situation creates a barrier between life at boarding school and reality, and causes day students to never know the boarding student’s true way of life.

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To sleep or not to sleep…

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“You can’t wake a person who is pretending to be asleep.” ~Navajo Proverb

This quote literally means that if someone is pretending to sleep, it would be impossible to wake them up, for they aren’t really sleeping.

However, it also explains in a more figurative manner how if one pretends to try, he or she will never succeed. One cannot be pushed to be successful, or reach success on their own without a true effort.

If a runner pretends to be running their fastest, when, in fact, they can go almost double their speed, there is no way they can push themselves and show their true strength.

It is a form of lying, really, for if one pretends to sleep, they can never be awoken, for they are tricking others into thinking that they truly asleep.

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One cannot fake their true colors, for if they do so, they will never reach their full potential. Be it academically, athletically or professionally, dishonesty does not lead to success.

Social Prejudice

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Although terms such as racism and sexism are given negative connotations, any form of generalization, whether good or bad, falls under these categories.

Racism stems from discrimination against those who are not caucasian, especially in the form of slavery. Nowadays, just because all races are given equal rights, it is a common misconception that racism is no longer relevant. As long as there are different races, any division between them is racism. Grouping a race together and making a general statement about a huge number of individuals is absolutely racist, whether the statement is criticism or praise.

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Sexism follows the same patterns. Former discrimination of women was obviously sexist, but modern-day feminism borders on sexism as well. Although it represents the flip side – the hype is about women’s rights – it still caters to one race much more than the other. Even if men or women as a whole are commended or put before another, it is segregating them from the opposite sex, a form of sexism. Any stereotyping of a gender, no matter the intention, is grouping and labeling an entire sex – a countless number of people – and is therefore perpetuating sexist behavior.

Both racism and sexism continue to be relevant in everyday life. A huge compliment may be given to an entire race or a single gender, but that is still a form of discrimination. These prejudices should not be a standard occurrence, and recognition of their existence is key.

Writer’s Block

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As a first-year journalism student, I have the tedious task of producing two blogs a week. They aren’t hard pieces of writing – they have a 150 word minimum and can be about absolutely anything. However, every time I sit down to write one, I find myself with intense writer’s block.

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It’s not that my life is so boring that there’s nothing to write about, honestly. It’s just that I can never translate it into writing! I never know if I should talk about what’s happening in my day-to-day life or if I should speak more about worldly current events.

The most difficult part of writing blogs is the mandatory aspect. If I sat down whenever I had inspiration and simply wrote, my blogs would be great! However, I’m forcing myself to scrounge up “interesting” material and scrape out 150 words, which just takes the magic out of writing.

I’m not saying that everything I write is dull and completely forced, I’m only introducing the idea that if I were to write of my own accord, my writing would be full of life.

How Old?

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Nowadays, age means nothing. Due to the school system, children standardly grow up with friends either in the same grade, or one grade higher or lower. If one’s sibling is a few years apart, they might socialize with their sibling’s friends, but that’s the extent of it.

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Married couples are often multiple years apart, but at that age it’s not considered odd. At a younger age, however, it would be weird if people were to date even three years up. The age gap of friendships/relationships is a double standard, and it’s simply weird to reflect on how that evolves with age.

More controversially, milestones that come with age seem to be happening at younger and younger ages. Only a few years after reaching double digits, children are drinking and doing drugs. Maturing at such a young age leaves nothing for these adolescents to do at later points in their lives. This premature maturing is detrimental to the children, and it messes with cultural norms.

Color Me Crazy

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The concept of color, and what is visible to the human eye, is impossible to comprehend. For all we know, everyone could see colors completely differently. I might see a color and call it red, and someone else might see a completely different hue but still call it red, for that is the universal name.

In preschool, everyone’s teacher would repeatedly point around the classroom while the children chanted, “blue, purple, yellow.” Kids would also memorize the rainbow – R.O.Y. G.B.I.V.

However, even though everybody might see a color and call it green, they could all personally interpret it as a different color. It could even be in a different color spectrum, which is not comprehensible.

This is impossible to imagine, for people think in color, and if one has not seen a color, it is impossible to picture it. The fact that everybody might see the world in varying ways is insane within itself, along with the realization that if that’s true, it cannot be proven. Any scientists attempting to do the experiment would also interpret the colors in unknown ways, and as a result there would be nothing on which to base the experiment.

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Homework?

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School is a designated time and place for people to learn and increase their knowledge. Because of that, I don’t think it’s fair for copious amounts of work to be assigned out of school as well.

When long hours are spent every day sitting in chairs and taking in lots of information, it seems like overkill to continue to practice what we’ve learned later in the day.

Many teachers argue that class time is for learning the material, and that through homework we are supposed to prove our knowledge. That is a legitimate point, however, if we didn’t have homework, then there would actually be time to execute our skills during class itself.

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So much time is spent during class periods assigning, explaining and reviewing homework. If no homework was assigned, the time originally spent talking about homework after we’ve learned the lesson could be spent proving what we’ve learned. Then, we would have learned what we needed to know and have proven our intelligence all within the class period, without having to do even more work at home.

With all the homework that is assigned – coupled with after school activities – many students are staying up late into the night, and are not sufficiently rested for the next day. That causes them not to perform their best in school.

If this education system could be revised, students would be more attentive in school, have a higher motivation to get their work done in class and overall be more successful academically.

A New Addition!

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Out of date, rusty and constantly in need of repair, Alvarez’s beloved stapler has finally been retired. In its place is a brand new eco-friendly stapler, bought specifically for the classroom by his wife, Tracy.

The old office supply was a hindrance to the classroom – causing anxiety for history and journalism students alike. It always failed to staple papers together, which did happen to be its only job. It survived years of battery and was even recently stolen.

Sick of constantly having to borrow a stapler from others, Alvarez finally invested in this fine piece of equipment, which he has skillfully labeled with his name. Copious amounts of tape was used to brand this item, however it is for good reason. There will never be any confusion as to whose stapler it is, and if it is ever missing it will be easy to find.

Although the tape is contradictory to the fact that the stapler is eco-friendly, the stapler itself is a huge improvement, not only to the classroom, but to Alvarez’s well-being.

Photo Credit: http://www.teachersdiary.com

 

To Each His Own

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When it comes to believing in God, the range of emotions and opinions that people have on the subject is enormous. Although it technically depends on one’s religion, opinions tend to have similarities.

Personally, I don’t believe in a tangible God who lives up in the sky or on some mountain and watches everyone intently. At least according to science, it’s inconceivable for a man to live perched in the clouds. Even if he managed to survive up there, he would have to be pretty darn old and quite observant in order to listen to and respond to everyone’s prayers.

Some believe that God represents more of a presence, which is a more comprehensible notion. I am not religious at all, but if I were to affiliate myself with one theory, it would be this: rather than some all-knowing man, God could be everything, or just something that surrounds everyone. Although it may not answer to prayers, it is the prayer itself, as well as the response, and even the words spoken.

As far as the Big Bang Theory is concerned, the world was created naturally. On the other hand, many still believe that a man generated everything there is in the world today. People are entitled to their own beliefs, and should never be discriminated against – it’s simply fascinating to see the motives behind different ways of thinking.

Puppeteer

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My right hand raises, slowly, until it is pointed directly at the sun, extended toward the heavens and the stars above.

My left is drawn across my face, deliberately blocking my view of the earth surrounding me. Silhouettes dancing over vast, open plains are shut out, blocked from sight, from sound.

Slowly my feet move forward, step by step, moving toward an unknown location. I have lost all physical senses – I cannot tell where I am.

Controlled by a puppeteer, I have no power over my movements. There are strings attached to my every joint so that each microscopic movement is mastered. Over time, every motion becomes second nature, and the puppeteer has succeeded.

The conductor of conscience, and courier of communication, the puppeteer invests hours of time, meticulously perfecting its puppet. The strings bind them together, and until they are cut, the puppet moves as it is controlled – each and every motion, forever and ever.

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