Tag: respect

Objectified

mypetlobster1Leave a comment
ob·ject
noun
/ˈäbjekt/
1.
a material thing that can be seen and touched.

                                    …

Dear strong, capable, powerful, being,

you are not an object.

Nowadays, many people are objectified. Not just for sex, but for money, popularity, and much more.

Dear strong, capable, powerful, being,

your purpose is not just to fulfill the wants of others.

You are beautiful. You are intelligent. You are unique.

And you are here on this earth to do much more than to satisfy someone’s wants or desires and then to be put on the shelf until they want you again.

No person is single-use. No person is only good for one thing. No person is an object.

And no person deserves to be treated like one.

Photo credit: artsyrose.com

Respect our Speakers

lanative1Leave a comment

When a certain well-educated, poised, and cultured Emmy award-winning investigative journalist said that Putin censors the media in Russia, he was probably not expecting a Russian freshman to get up and forcefully contradict him. I guess OVS is full of surprises.

When we invite a speaker to our school, it is expected that we will be polite and kind. However, when Terry McCarthy visited, a few students were upset by what he said and did not hesitate to speak their minds. McCarthy stated that Putin regulates the media in Russia, and then defended this statement by pointing out that stories told one way in the US are told a different way in Russia, and you can see this by watching their news. A Russian kid sitting behind me immediately became upset and started saying things, quite loudly, to his friends. Eventually he grew so angry that he raised his hand and asked our guest how “he could say this” about Russia.

I understood that he was upset, but I thought what he said to our speaker was incredibly rude. Not only was I embarrassed for McCarthy, who was shocked, but I was also embarrassed for our school. In the future, we should be more respectful towards our visitors and appreciate the time they take to share their stories with us, instead of trying to argue with them.


Photo credit: Telegraph.co.uk

Friends Down the Drain

backinphilly1 Comment

I don’t even know what to say anymore. I’m at a loss for words at this point. Always tryin’ to keep up with everyone else just gets so tiring now and I’m just sick and tired of everything. I don’t care about them anymore since it seems that they don’t really care about me. I’m not sure how much it really matters.

I try to channel the belief of the Honey Badger. The belief that nothing affects me is a lot to take. It’s a huge responsibility.

I’m up to it. I want to not care anymore. But not caring is different than being ignorant. It’s just what I do. It’s me.

I want to be able to persevere through anything that may stand in my way. Any obstacle must become invisible. Nothing can stop me. Yet, emotion always seems to drive me backwards. I don’t understand the struggle of keeping momentum going.

It sucks to lose people because of who you are. It’s inevitable but it sucks. My mentality suits me. It doesn’t always suit those around me. Unfortunately, I can’t change what I know to be me.

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I’m an adult: this means I’m better than you.

Yourcupatea1 Comment

respect
As an adolescent I find myself continually being treated like a ‘kid.’ I’m 17, I can drive, make my own decisions, and yes I can dress myself. Yet to some adults they still feel that they are entitled to belittle and undermine me, all because of my age.

I’m independently applying for college and planning my life, an important future decision, yet according to some this is just not enough. I’m beginning to wonder when I will be respected as an adult.

In my eyes I reached my adulthood and gained my independence many years ago, but this is not the case in California. In England, at the age of 16 you are seen as an adult being charged higher fares. I guess age means different things in different countries and cultures. It seems that  in America you reach adulthood at the age of 18.

Some people still believe that with age comes great wisdom, but in my eyes I’m pretty wise already. I guess I will only find out these things with age, but for now I shall just enjoy being a teenager and hope for a little more respect.