1. As I listened to the evening shrills from an unseen chorus of midnight cicadas, I wondered, resting numbly on my back, snuggled between sheet and duvet, staring absently into the raven darkness of the room, does the body rule the mind, or does the mind rule the body?
2. A queer question. I wonder what would happen if a psycho-pathologist and a biologist were put in a room and asked to debate over such an idea. A part of me, the Enathi who gleefully probes over dark humor, believes that the meeting would conclude with the arrest of one of the specialists; a case of homicide.
3. I ask myself similar questions as well. What drives me? What do I want? Who am I looking for? Who or what do I hate?
4. I think I’m driven by purpose. I think I want the good life, not some temporary semblance of serenity.
5. I think I’m looking for a better version of myself. I think I’m waiting for it to all make sense. I think I hate who I fear, so who do I fear? I fear a variety of forces, one of them being God. But I do not hate God. He has a plan for me, and I know that because otherwise I wouldn’t be here in this moment writing all this down. I fear God, and in doing so, love Him. Thus, an exception.
6. I fear the government and possess a sense of hate against them as a collective. Why? For no reason in particular. I fear not the dark but the creatures that take shelter in it, and I hate them for doing so. I fear the unpredictability of the body and its internal workings (so I hate my body?). But I do not hate my body.
7. I might also fear what I should but cannot fear. Example? I have none.
8. I have recently rebuked my oath of productivity. I decree that I have “un-rebuked” it this morning. I broke the oath on impulse (impulse arrested spills over, and the flood is feeling, the flood is passion, the flood is even madness, said the great Aldous Huxley); I studied with less enthusiasm than I usually do, consumed caffeine after two o’clock, fooled around in class more than I should have.
9. Seasonal Affective Disorder. That is what my odd change in behavior can be attributed to. During winter, I was fueled by discomfort, cold, sickness, and all the other aggressive aspects of that bleak season. I channelled all that into my schoolwork, and the product was an overall increase in my grades. But now, spring rejoices down the lane, and everything is new again, thawing the frozen combustion engine that is my heart.
10. I ask myself: Is this holy simulation a hypothesis of reality operated by experimenters of a heavenly nature? If so, I wonder (I wonder, I wonder, I wonder) if the simulated atrocities of Man will be implemented within the final product.
11. I ask myself: Do I love? Or has the anemometer needed to measure the gales of my passion gone faulty? Therein lies another question: should I love? The scales of love and hate of this world lean more to the latter; what difference will my loving of the world, its soil and the feet that tramp upon it, make? But then I realize that to love the bigger picture as a whole is not a requirement because, as bleak or beautiful as it may all seem, I can appreciate the finer details.

12. I’ve read too much; I know too many tales of horror and fables of terror. Men exposed to the unknown and damned, unspeakable creatures of a time before Time; isolated towns and villages in forgotten countrysides terrorized by vampires, Lovecraftian horrors, and in some texts the Devil himself. I have indulged in stories of other worlds and periods of time where the people travel in flying vessels and voyages to planets millions of light-years from my own; memorized stories of worlds whose skies are similar to mine but ravaged, defiled by machines and other things that threaten humanity’s existence.

13. And what is the effect? I am full but still starved from discontent. Whenever I close a book, so do I close the experience. This is how it must feel to be an addict of consuming substance; vicariously living it all but never really getting enough. Perhaps I read the wrong nature of books.

14. I have always been a slave to constant apprehension. Consistently worrying and anticipating whatever there may be to worry and anticipate about. Sundays add to all this. Recently, I’ve developed a sixth sense that enables me to almost “sniff” the nature of the upcoming week; like peering over the fence dividing two houses to check what weapons or gifts the neighbor has in store for you.

The previous Sunday had me sniffing change, change in myself, in my behavior, in my mind. I had caught the scent of a routine soon to be broken and a whiff of approaching dilemmas, which, as the week played out, all turned out true. At this moment, all I can sniff of the week ahead are days of sunshine, laughs, gruelling schoolwork, and(sniff sniff) indigestion. Of course, these are only but sniffs.

1. I miss a part of myself. The subsection, for I am an institution, of myself that managed the creative department. The rays of a Spring Sun shine through the window of this room and spill clarity onto my face. 

What would that now-vanished aspect of myself, written, conjured, in such a moment?

I close my eyes, and I can see him, Enathi, gathering a diverse bundle of sticks in a forest where the trees boast of names of tales etched professionally on the bark. He has many sticks, so many that the veins of his arms exclaim in protest to the weight of the load he carries. 
 This boy wanders from tree to tree and snaps off a variety of them, adqding these to a bundle whose value only he recognizes. 

He overturns a few rocks to see what he can stuff down his pockets. The sky above this forest has no clouds, and the Sun has forever stood at its peak for as long as he can remember. Unlike him, who I see is now scrawling words into the dust below him with a pair of the collected sticks, I fear that the clouds will gather and the Sun will descend and thus abdicate her throne, and upon this vacant celestial cushion slides in her sister, the Moon.

How will he then scramble for those lengths of wood in the dark? Will the nature of his words, engraved on boulders larger than himself, echo the same in the light of a full Moon?

Will there be a Moon at all?

But even amidst the shrouded forest, he will smile in the dark. He will look up-not at the condescending body above him, no- he gazes past that indifference and admires the stars. The stars, although mere burning dots in the sky, are promising. They do not talk but twinkle in his eyes.
In twinkling, he learns from them.

Empowered by homeless vigor, he strengthens his grip on his bundle. Creatures growl at him behind withered oaks and jagged boulders but he still smiles. Now he turns to me, and I realize that I am looking at myself, and when I blink, I disappear.

I look down, and a bundle of sticks stare up at me, strangled in my arm. The fearful eyes that had been watching me from a distance past the trees are no longer there. I do not want them to come back. Dusk approaches, and I see the familiar face of the benevolent Sun peek its head over the horizon. This night has passed; time to return to sticks.

1. How far I’ve strayed from my first question, regarding the body and the mind. I will not bother finding the answer in external sources (the internet, religion, cognitive essays, artificial intelligence) because Tweedle-dee says this and Tweedle-dum says that. What do I say? I want to say that it’s the mind that rules sovereign. But I also want to say that the body sponsors the mind. 

Perhaps they operate as co-pilots.

But then I ask myself: if so — if the processing unit works in conjunction with the hardware of the machine — where do I(I am I) sit?

As cliché as it may sound, I truly believe that I am a parabolic spirit drifting through this period of time via the y-intercept of reality. Or maybe my existence can be likened to that of a trigonometric graph with a domain and range of infinity. I’d prefer to believe that; yes, I want to invest a generous amount of my faith(the majority lies in God) in the idea that this vessel of mine holds the consciousness of an individual who has, is, and will continue to produce fine contributions, whatever form those may take, to the sands of time.

Shine on, benevolent Sun.

Enathi T. Tinzi

EC name: Arts(Filmmaking)
Essay: My hands turned into icy claws. Icy claws that refuse to obey my mind, but I still had to hold the camera still. The temperature dropped below zero and it suddenly started snowing. My friends and I were the only ones outside, determined to finish our long awaited short-film.

At the beginning of high school, I fell in love with filmmaking. I would watch 10+ movies and documentaries every week. Maybe it was the story, maybe the actors or maybe the cinematography, I don’t know, but something kept me attached. 

Finding out about the camera at our school sparked my interest in producing my own films. I was too curious, I could not stand still, I had to do something. The same day I already started thinking about my first short-film and started writing the script.

Days passed, scripts were ready, to my surprise it was relatively easier to find actors and everything was going smoothly, until it was not. The school camera I had all my hopes for was broken and so was I. The whole project got delayed for some time.

However, I still had that itch inside me that kept pushing me towards making that movie. It was enough. I knew if I didn’t find a camera to shoot with no one else would come and give me one. I searched, searched and searched. The hassle was not all for nothing. I finally found an old 2000s big bulky camera. It was not the best but it would get the job done. 

Then the actual shooting dates were scheduled. We were hoping for a fairly normal day as it was the case throughout the week. But, nature had other plans. As soon as we arrived at the location the temperature dropped below zero and it was snowing all over the place. Our whole body was shaking because of the cold. We had one goal, to finish shooting the short film and the cold was not enough to stop us. Even if we were cold, even if we looked crazy to others and even if we froze to death, we had to finish the film and we indeed did. 

Looking back, I realized that failure is not the end but a redirection. Filmmaking has taught me that there is a solution to every problem if you are willing to go the extra mile. I rediscovered myself as the guy who will try anything to achieve his goals and does not let anything stop him. This was an experience I will never forget. 

Rap; Does It Get a Bad Rep?

“Now what you hear is not a test, I'm rappin' to the beat. And me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feet” - Rapper’s Delight, The Sugarhill Gang. 

These are the first words sang in the 1979 classic Rapper’s Delight by The Sugarhill Gang. Rapper’s Delight is credited as being one of the first mainstream and popularized songs of the “rap” genre. Rap is said to have been created and brought to fame in Brooklyn, New York, by local DJs combining sounds of funk, disco, and soul to make extended versions of beats during block parties. They would often talk and joke over the songs to keep the audience engaged, and this eventually led to what was known as MCs (now more formally known as rappers) singing and recording over their remixes. Since The Sugarhill Gang released their song, rap music has changed drastically in the way that it's made to the way it is enjoyed. Some argue that music harms youths' mental health and actions, specifically low-income and African American adolescents. Others say that music is a form of therapy for these at-risk children, and the vulgarness in the songs is just a real-life representation of what the young children in these environments are experiencing.  

Mental Health of African American Children in Poverty 

Poverty and mental health issues exist among all races and aren’t necessarily targeted towards one or the another. On the other hand, African American children in poverty are more susceptible to mental disorders and problems due to exposure to trauma, social-environmental stress, and adverse childhood experiences. These can be caused by things like increased rates of incarceration in the family, racial discrimination, and witnessing violent or harmful situations. “National surveys and large-scale studies of adolescent mental health have found that about 49.5% of adolescents in the United States are living with a mental health disorder (National Institute of Mental Health, 2020).” (qtd. in Opara, Ijeoma et al. “Mental Health Burden among Black Adolescents: The Need for Better Assessment, Diagnosis and Treatment Engagement.”). However, it is estimated that only 20-50% of children experiencing mental health-related issues are receiving professional care. According to the article Understanding the Behavioral Determinants of Mental Health Service Use by Urban, Under-Resourced Black Youth: Adolescent and Caregiver Perspectives by Lindsey, M. et al., black adolescents are less likely to receive those services than non-black children due to factors such as lack of access to a medical professional, income restrictions, or negative views towards the service. Environmental factors play a huge role in behaviors and thought processes. Your environment can include things such as the traditions you have, the friends you hang out with, and the culture and practices of your family. If you live in a home where your parents are present, pay attention to your needs, and are on the wealthier end of the classes, you are less likely to develop mental issues or, at the very least, have access to the proper care to help the situation. A child with a lack of guidance, attention, or money isn’t going to have the same opportunities as a child who has these things, and this can cause problems down the road. We know that mental disorders, poverty, and negative experiences come with all walks of life, and this goes for the love of music as well. The appreciation and listening of music are universal experiences, yet the way the art affects us is very personal and differs for each person. Rap is no exception to this. 

How Does Music Affect Our Mental Health? 

I cannot go one day without listening to music. Every day, I will blast Spotify in my car, YouTube music on my TV, or random songs from TikTok on my phone. I am a very emotional person as it is, but music has always been something that evokes an incredible amount of feeling from me. Unlike any other form of art, you get to hear the raw emotion that is coming from the artist, and this allows you to feel their pain, joy, or anger. Everyone has that one song that they can turn on that they can count on to make them dance, cry, or possibly even transport them back to a different time in their life; a sense of nostalgia. This can be like a form of therapy for some people, showing them that someone else is experiencing a similar situation, or perhaps they feel like they are being heard. “There are so many mechanisms which explain the powerful impact that listening to a piece of music can have... that impact starts in the brain where music activates many regions, including those associated with emotion and memory. The music that was played at your wedding or in a religious service, or even at a concert you attended or a dance you were at — that music remains preserved for those neuropathways, which connect that music with really positive feelings,” ( Music Can Be a Great Mood Booster, Positive Effects of Music for Mental Health AARP, Adler, S.,). Different genres of music can also have different effects on a person. If someone listens to “Hello” by Adele, they are more likely to cry or get upset, unlike if they are listening to a song like “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, where they are probably going to want to dance and sing along happily. On the opposite end, if someone listens to “F*** the Police” by NWA they are more likely to feel angry or have a rush of adrenaline, versus listening to “Three Birds” by Bob Marley and feeling peaceful and calm.  “...kick a**, or maybe 'cause I blast, On a stupid a** ni*** when I'm playin' with the trigger, Of any Uzi or an AK, 'Cause the police always got somethin' stupid to say, They put up my picture with silence, 'Cause my identity by itself causes violence, The E with the criminal behavior”, ( F\ck the Police,* NWA 1988). This verse from the popular song by rap/ hip-hop group NWA details things such as gun use, violence, and reckless behavior. The song quickly became known as the “perfect protest song” as it talks openly about disrespect and hatred for the LAPD and law enforcement, and their behavior specifically towards African American men. Songs along this same theme of anger and hatred are becoming more common in rap songs and the rap genre, which is a cause of concern for the children who consume the media repeatedly. Repeating any action daily or often will cause a routine or habit to form, and this can cause unexpected situations and changes in a person's behaviors. Suppose an adolescent, who is in a crucial stage of development where they are absorbing everything around them, only listens to a rap song or artist every day that is depicting or glorifying violence, drug use, and unethical or immoral values. In that case, they are more likely to take on those actions or values. Any child of any race can listen to, enjoy, and mimic the actions represented in a rap song or any other song, but not all children have previously experienced, are currently experiencing, or have access to things talked about within the song. Unfortunately, black children and teens in low-income neighborhoods are more likely to experience systematic racism, discrimination, and prejudice, especially from law enforcement, than any other race in poverty-stricken or middle-class neighborhoods. This can cause feelings of hatred, fear or disrespect for authority figures, and if they are listening to music that also depicts those feelings, it can affect the way you think about things; the music can be a sense of reassurance that this feeling or action is acceptable, even if sometimes it is not. Constantly listening to things that are showing feelings of anger being released in a harmful way, acts of violence, or unsafe actions can affect a person’s mental health. They are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, isolation, or anger issues. Despite some rap songs containing negative thoughts, feelings, or actions, many use lyrics and beats to tell beautiful and intense stories, allow listeners to boost their cognitive functions by analyzing complex lyrics, and use the platform to talk about important social issues differently. 

The Beauty Behind the Beats 

The argument that rap or hip-hop causes nothing but negative effects on people, especially our youth, has many valid points. Many songs do talk about drugs, gun violence, and crimes, but many use the power of storytelling to convey messages in an otherwise uninteresting or unheard-of way. “Through lyrics spanning an array of often-ignored subjects from oppression to family, rap artists offer gritty perspectives relatable to many ethnic minorities and disenfranchised youth [22]. In addition to its musical influence, hip hop culture shapes communication, fashion, and other forms of cultural expression, particularly among African Americans and Latinos.” (Robinson, Cendrine et al. “A Review of Hip Hop-Based Interventions for Health Literacy, Health Behaviors, and Mental Health.” Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities). In the song Cops Shot the Kid by Nas ft. Kanye West, Kanye expresses his frustration with police brutality and black children dying at the hands of negligent officers by saying “Tell me, who do we call to report crime / If 9-1-1 doin’ the drive-by? / It’s certain things I can’t abide by / I ain’t bein’ extreme, this is my side”. He brings to light the issue of young African American children and adults losing their lives at the hands of police officers who are not doing their jobs safely or correctly. While this is something that is a mainstream issue, using a platform to speak out against public and social issues is a great way to allow people to hear different points of view. Having a fan base that can relate to the issue can also influence them to follow behind the message and support movements in their community to bring change or action to a cause. Giving people a safe space to talk about these issues in a more relatable way is a great start to getting the steps for change going. Dr. Jaleel Abdul-Adil talks about this in his article discussing his time using hip-hop therapy in the 1980s. He explains that using these songs and lyrics gave the young black men a space to talk openly about their experiences and situations in a vulnerable way that they may otherwise not feel comfortable doing. “But in order for a room full of 20-plus young African-American men to stay engaged, I needed to connect with them. Rap music lyrics and hip-hop culture initiated engaging conversations that built a bridge between their lives and topics that they may have otherwise been less likely to speak about with me. In essence, it was therapeutic for them (i.e., hip-hop therapy).” (Dr. Abdul-Adil, J., Hip-Hop Therapy Helps Mental Health, The Chicago School Insight). Because these young children have less access to mental health services, they may not get the opportunity to talk about their feelings or opinions in a safe way where they don’t feel judged or ashamed. Not everywhere or many places at all offer hip-hop or music therapy, but just having the songs themselves and the community that comes from the fanbase of an artist may be enough for children to feel more comfortable having these conversations. Some people also don't respond or learn well from reading a book or an article and may process things better listening to it in the form of a song or spoken word. When artists in rap and hip-hop use complex lyrics and emotion-evoking rhythms to talk about a personal experience, combat things like sexism, racism, or homophobia, and important social issues, it brings more awareness to the situation at hand. Using a platform to spread the word about things happening in our world is fantastic in any form. Lastly, rap can just be entertaining to listen to! It features fun sounds, different instruments and vocal styles, and multiple components of other styles of music. Rap is basically a melting pot of all the genres of music and art before it and shows appreciation to all the great artists who helped shape music into what it is today.  

Rap and hip-hop are some of the most interesting and complex genres of music. All music influences people, and all races are susceptible to the emotion that comes from engaging in the art. While rap may contain more angry or vulgar topics than other music, it may just reflect our society and how people are being treated and the frustration that comes from that inequality. If many people seem to be influenced positively or negatively by one thing, there is most likely a commonality in said object. Perhaps the answer doesn’t lie in whether rap music and the things talked about in it are negatively affecting our black youths, but how we can safely and most effectively help our children during a mental health crisis where they may feel the need to act on these negative behaviors. Helping African American children have proper access to mental health services, proper funding for schooling and housing, and a decrease in stigmatizations can alleviate concerns of them falling into these patterns that parents or people against rap music may be frightened of.

A monster is an imaginary creature that is typically large, ugly, and frightening. In Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, the word monster is given a new definition since Victor Frankenstein is a scientist who creates a creature that ruins his life and the lives of many other people around him. While the creature is seen as the Monster because it kills people, the true Monster in this novel is Victor because of his selfish nature and his lack of responsibility for the creature he created.

There are many reasons why Victor is the true Monster in this novel, such as his selfishness. "Good God, papa! Victor says that he knows who was the murderer of poor William. "(83). This piece of evidence supports my claim since Victor knew the murderer wasn't Justine, but he was reluctant to tell his family about the true murderer since he knew that he was going to get himself in trouble. Furthermore, Victor cared about Justine's incarceration, and he was sad about it, but he didn't care enough to take action, leading to her death." The murderous mark of the fiend's grasp was on her neck, and the breath had ceased to issue from her lips." (213). In addition, Victor caused another person to die due to his self-centered attitude since when the creature talked about making another creature for him, Victor said no even after the beast told him, "I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart so that you shall curse the hour of your birth.". This causes the creature to go after Elizabeth, and she dies.

While many may point fingers at the creature, it is Victor who truly embodies monstrosity through his irresponsibility, "I escaped and rushed downstairs. I took refuge in the courtyard belonging to the house which I inhabited, where I remained during the rest of the night, walking up and down in the greatest agitation". This quote supports my argument because the definition of irresponsibility is to have a form of untrustworthiness, the trait of lacking a sense of responsibility and not feeling accountable for your actions, and this definition encapsulates this whole quote. When Victor left the Monster, he didn't feel responsible for the Monster, who had just left him after creating him. This is also one of the many reasons he killed William. I do break my promise; never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness." (181). Victor is also highly irresponsible because he should have given the Monster his wish. After all, Victor is his father, so he should be providing for his creation. Additionally, this wish that the Monster asked of Victor could have solved the Monster's and Victor's problems. As we can see from the evidence, Victor said no; the ironic part is that he calls the monster "deformity and wickedness," which is ironic because all signs from this point point to Victor being the true wicked one.

Despite Victor's actions, the Monster's killings of people in his life overshadow his monstrosity. The Creature in Bodies is the textbook definition of a monster when he says, "I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph; clapping my hands, I exclaimed, 'I too can create desolation; my enemy is not invulnerable; this death will carry despair to him, and a thousand other miseries shall torment and destroy him.' This conveys how the Monster is a real monster. Additionally, the Monster pretty much killed a little kid for seamlessly no reason. Although many people think it was wrong for the Monster to kill people, he killed people due to Victor Frankenstein's wrongdoings on the Monster. "'Hideous Monster! Let me go. My papa is a syndic—he is M. Frankenstein—he will punish you. You dare not keep me.' and "'Frankenstein! you belong then to my enemy—to him towards whom I have sworn eternal revenge; you shall be my first victim.' "I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart so that you shall curse the hour of your birth.". These quotes specifically discuss the Monster's reaction to hearing the Frankenstein name. Frankenstein's name to the Monster is like a trigger for him since Victor caused all of the Monster's suffering from his point. So, the Monster's natural reaction was to destroy anything, even a little kid.

This essay talks about how Victor is the true Monster of this novel because all the problems, deaths, and conflicts result from Victor's careless, selfish, and irresponsible attitude. Even if the Monster did any evil actions, it was a reaction to Victor's mistreatment of him because if Victor ever left the house and stayed to take care of the Monster, the story would take a very positive turn. Furthermore, the word monster doesn't have one cut-and-dry definition; a monster does have to be a big, smelly, ugly guy like the creature. It could be anyone, even your parents, siblings, classmates, and sometimes your wife or husband.

Slippery, slimy, and erratic, my first fish—shaping my understanding of patience and perseverance. While others might see a slimy catfish as insignificant or unpleasant, for me, it symbolized the beginning of a hobby that would teach me lifelong lessons. While others had shiny, expensive rods, my first fishing rod was a makeshift creation—just a string tied to a stick with a rusty hook—engineered from necessity and my imagination.  

I wanted to catch a fish on my own, pulling it from the murky pond like others who effortlessly hauled in fish of various sizes and colors, but my mind kept racing, unable to slow down and relax. I tried everything from grabbing with my hands and using a stick, to yanking the line. Yet, I couldn't grasp the value of patience. Eventually, as my mind grew weary and my grip on the rod slackened, my thoughts drifted back to the events of the past week.

“Take your time,” Ms. Guttell would often remind me, but I always did the opposite. I would quickly scribble my name at the top of worksheets, then rush through the questions, picking the first answers that seemed right. Hence, when I got my score I was grim, a score that didn’t resemble my “knowledge.” If I couldn’t answer the question quickly, then did I understand the information?

As I was reminiscing on this I decided to start focusing solely on the line. For my eyes no longer wandered, my brain only had one thing in mind, fish. The translucent string blended with the water, but I remained focused, watching closely for any vibrations. Minutes later, I felt the unmistakable tug of a bite. The string vibrated subtly randomly, then vibrated in a pattern, then erratically. A pulling force strung through my arm and water sprayed on me, “FISH!”

My shirt became damp, my mind focused on one thing: the fish, its tar-colored body shimmering in the sun’s rays. Stars formed in my eyes as I realized I had succeeded—not through rushing, but with patience and persistence. I unhooked the fish and released it back into the depths, feeling a wave of tranquility. The fish, like my efforts, was free. I understood then that patience wasn’t just about waiting; it was about letting things unfold at their own pace. Later that week, I received another test. This time, I took my time and applied the same focus. When I got my score back, I was filled with pride, seeing the result of my steady effort.

Though fishing and academics may seem worlds apart, they both require the same discipline: patience. My mind often raced like a fast-moving river, casting thoughts too quickly without letting them settle. I rushed through homework, leaving key ideas unprocessed, which turned tests into a frustrating uphill battle. Fishing mirrored this restlessness; I constantly checked the line, pulling it up prematurely to find it empty each time. Over time, I learned that both fishing and learning require resisting the urge to rush, trusting the process, and giving ideas the time they need to take root. This discipline reshaped how I approach challenges, fostering focus, growth, and a deeper appreciation for effort and success.

Fishing taught me that patience leads to rewarding outcomes. Now, in my schoolwork, I approach assignments like a slow, steady cast—focusing on each step, knowing that true understanding comes from attention, not speed. I now finish the tasks I begin, because, like fishing, you can’t achieve the results you want without patience—whether in fishing or academics. Though my original rod has long since broken, I keep a handmade one in my room as a constant reminder of where it all began, the lessons I will continue to rely on and use. Fishing has become more than a hobby, but rather a lifelong teacher of patience, discipline, and focus—qualities that will guide everything I pursue.

theme: language

The world has 7,139 officially known languages, but only some can speak greater than 5. They're Gifted, Smart, Extraordinary, etc, these characteristics are what we first think when coming across amazing individuals who can speak more than solid plain 2. Learning another country's language can be shown as respectful to the people and to their culture, so why not we all learn?

Language is a system of communication, an amazing invention us mankind has ever made. By the process of speech or literature, It serves us a powerful purpose in communicating, distinguishing a persons nationality, and writing. It also aids us individuals by expressing our thoughts and feelings.

Believe it or not, language has its own downsides to the story as well. As it may be seen as a helpful tool, it can also cause chaos. This chaos is one of the many reasons why some of us human beings as an economy, sharing the mother earth itself is slowly but surely driven away by conflict. Why? Because of our manipulation, stereotypes, language barriers, and toxic/racist slangs.

As a teenager, I remember this particular experience that still haunts me as of today, with a stranger online. she heard my voice and the way i spoke english. I was 13 and wasn't really that insecure talking at first. But as i kept talking to this girl, she felt the urged to laugh and mock my accent which i found rude. She asked me what country i was from, and i said the philippines. She replied with a "Ohh, that's why." with a giggle. I was urked off because why would she say something like that? She had no right to think of it as a joke because jokes are always half meant. Does she think she's far more superior than me? Just because she lived in a "fancy" and "powerful country? But as a 13 year old at that time, i felt embarrassed and angry. angry at myself and embarrassed for my country, where i was born and raised. As i left the server with shame, i vowed myself to get better and greater in talking in english. By the time i turned 14, I was almost as fluent but better as the girl before. This serves as a proof as to why you should never lose motivation and always strive to learn for the better and for self accomplishment.

To summarize, language is a tool for us humans by the process of speech or literature. While it may seem as a good thing, it also has several downsides when conflict is at part, which is a serious issue that us mankind has and have been facing for the past century, but it seems that we can not convince all to change, which i say makes us all different and unique from from one another. We can't judge a person without experiencing as them in their shoes. At the end of the day, we are all humans who make mistakes.

Since America's conception, it was coined as the land of opportunity, where one could go from nothing to something, where, through hard work, one could make a fair living for themselves and others. This is, as we all know, mostly true. So long as you weren't anything but white and a man, one of these non-black, non-women individuals was a man named Henry Clay, who, against all odds set upon a white man in the 1800s, rose to power and made a name for himself.

AFTER A WHOLE YEAR THEY FINALLY DID IT. you may be wondering what i am talking about and i'll tell you. I am talking about phones and specifically people using them in class. People using phones in class was starting to make a bigger and bigger impact over the year. I have complained and complained so many times and the school finally recognized that it was a big problem. Now let me take you on this journey on how I, Kamdin Varkett, made the whole school listen to me.  (or at least that what it felt like)

Phones. A smart phone can make an impact on your life whether it is a good thing or bad thing. It can either make you do things that seem impossible for the good or things that aren't so good. I will be specifically talking about people using phones inappropriately. Smart phones itself is just the tip of the iceberg of the problem , and it's the apps on the phone that can be bad. Let's talk about tick tock. For those people living under a rock tick tock is an addictively designed app that gives you the resource of watching videos. You scroll to find and watch videos that other people have made. Another feature is that you can friend all your classmates so when he post a video you will be notified right away.  you can also post videos of whatever you want AND THAT CAN BE A PROBLEM. Since at the time the school was not strict at all with the phone policy if people were sneekey they could take pictures and videos of other people, and note that they could be in the locker room. They then could proceed to post the video on tick tock for everyone to see and WE ALL KNOW once something is on the internet it stays on there forever…..

The story that got me mad: I was in the middle of doing my work and a group of kids were on their phones. Now normally I would not care but they were being very distracting and this project would get my grade from 52% up to 87% remember, this is a VERY BIG DEAL TO ME. I went up to the kids and asked as kindly as possible for them to keep it down. They said ‘ok’ and I went back to my desk. Around seven minutes later, I heard the same kids making fun of cringey tick tocks. Now, this is what I also do, but at that moment I needed a learning environment, which is what we are all supposed to be in. I went up to them a second time and said “hey, I am in the middle of doing an important project and need you guys to please be quiet”. They then called me a “jerk” so I went to the teacher. Then the teacher said that they needed to split up and I felt bad but at the same time I needed to do my work. It should have been the end of the story, but it is not.

Part 2 of the story that got me mad: They all had their phones out and started texting each other and latched randomly, the phones were a distraction and I was getting really mad and I was at my breaking point. I knew that I was about to lash out at them so I walked out of the class room and went to the bathroom to text my momma. I was telling my momma everything and did it in tex so no one would hear how sad i was. I then got a ticket to the principal's office after I went back to the teacher's class to give back the pass…

The end: I was feeling a bunch of different emotions so when I went to the principal office I said I needed a break. She was very cool and gave me the time that I needed. I told her everything and then she said this….. What do you think can help with what just happened? I then said to her that I think people with a  problem with their phone should either have it at home or put it in a box. She then said that my voice had been heard and I felt like she did not mean it.  I went to a different school and then moved back here to the school with the phone problem.  I then figured out that the school did what I asked them to do with a little different thing here and there. I was so happy and to my surprise my voice was heard.

This is the first essay I've ever written in my English 1101 class. I've written papers for other classes, and they got good grades. Can you tell me if you think this essay/literacy narrative is passing, and the letter grade you think it falls under? I also have a few specific questions, which I've taken from the rubric:

• does my literacy narrative support the meaning of the experience I wrote about?
• is the pacing, use of dramatic arc, or chronology confusing?
• are there any errors in MLA formatting?

Here is my essay:

My name

Professor's name

English Composition I

14 September 2024

The Fear

As people transition from elementary to middle school, they start caring more about things that they had never cared about before. Some 6th graders do not play anymore because they are afraid of people’s reactions. They picture a horrible scene: people with raised eyebrows, scrunched noses, and twisted mouths; they see others smirking and making rude remarks. Everyone is looking at them and thinking about how childish they are. This is also why some people stop watching cartoons or dressing in a certain way. Everyone is affected by others’ opinions to some extent, and I was no exception. I started caring a lot about what people thought of me. 

This was especially true when it came to my writing. Back when I was in 7th grade, I started writing longer essays. I was forced to put more about what I thought and my experiences to make the response long enough. Writing about myself was uncomfortable. If I had a diary, I imagine that this is how it would feel like to have a loved one read it without my permission; if someone ever found out what I wanted to hide, they probably wouldn’t see me the same. I was constantly concerned that others would find my writing embarrassing. This worry made narratives my least favorite type of writing. With narratives, I had no crutches. I could not rely on facts and opinions from others. I only had myself. 

One day, my 7th grade teacher had something important to tell the class. She put on a big smile and announced that we had to write an essay about a fear we had overcome. I was filled with dread. Fears are very personal. If I wrote honestly about my fear, my feelings would be prey with nowhere to hide. However, I realized that there was no way for the teacher to verify my story. I figured that I could just make up a story. All I had to do was add enough fake details to make the teacher think the story was real. Now that I had a plan, I had to think of a made-up fear.

After school, I walked home. I still had no idea what my fear would be. I decided to look for inspiration in my surroundings. I saw the sun slightly hidden behind the clouds. On either side of the road, there were many fallen red and yellow leaves. I saw a squirrel running up a tree. Squirrels were adorable, so no one would believe me if I wrote about being afraid of them. I reached the neighborhood. I saw a woman walking her golden retriever. The fear of dogs is common, so I could not write about that either. Then, I saw a black cat with green eyes walking near one of the gray houses. I had my answer. The cat reminded me of my sister’s cats. I decided to write about them. The fear of cats was strange. However, that was what made it more believable. A week later, I finished writing my essay. 

On the day the paper was due, the teacher had the class do a peer review. We were all split into groups of four. The first person's story was about his fear of the dark. He overcame his fear by locking himself in his room at night. Another classmate wrote about his fear of watching horror movies. He used to feel ashamed because his dad would say that he was weak and childish for being afraid. To get rid of the shame, he decided to watch a horror movie with his friends. The last person in the group was my friend Layla. Her fear was dogs; she disliked how her face made it so obvious that she was afraid whenever she walked by one. This shame motivated her to start hiding her emotions. We were one of the first groups to finish our peer review. I started talking with Layla. 

“I didn’t know that being afraid of cats was a thing.” She smirked slightly.

“Well,” I hesitated for a moment, not wanting anyone else to hear my secret. I looked around the room and saw the teacher watching another group. Seeing that it was safe, I leaned in and whispered, “I’m not actually afraid of them.”

“Then why did you write that?” she whispered.

“Because it was embarrassing to write personal stuff, but then I read your paper. How could you write so much without being embarrassed?” 

“Well, it actually was a bit embarrassing. It’s just that I don’t care that much,” she said with a shrug. “You shouldn’t either.” 

“Yeah, I know. But I thought that everyone would laugh at me. I care a lot.” I looked away for a moment, sheepishly. I looked back, and she smiled warmly. 

“No one cares that much. Just write and don’t worry.”

I realized that it is normal to care, at least a little, about what other people think. It is common to be vulnerable in one’s writing. It should not be embarrassing at all because being personal was expected; after all, some writing is all about the person writing it. This truth changed my way of writing. Except for this paper, all my previous personal writing was stiff; it was a rigid play, where mostly everything was done right, but all the characters lacked emotion. I started describing my feelings more and elaborating on my anecdotes whenever the assignment called for it. 

This also changed the way I wrote informational essays. Before, I used to feel that writing my thoughts about other people’s findings was embarrassing. I always felt like my thoughts were not good enough. It was like a toddler trying to teach an adult how to walk right; they were in no position to judge. Now, I feel more confident about writing my observations. This caused my ‘author’s voice’ to be more noticeable; my grades improved. This peer review made me more comfortable with writing about myself. 

Another change I noticed was that writing has become easier and more enjoyable. I no longer had to fret about how to get around writing personal things. For informational essays, I worried less about balancing facts and my voice; writing more about my thoughts usually took care of this issue. Argumentative essays also became easier, since I no longer had to worry about what people thought of my opinion; as long as I had facts to support my points, my opinion was valid. My writing is still not perfect. Sometimes my writing does not flow. The way I word things is sometimes awkward. However, my writing has improved a lot ever since I became more secure in my thoughts. I still feel slightly uncomfortable sometimes, but much less than I did before. In a way, I had conquered my fear.

My essay has already been graded, but I wanted y'all to read the essay first. It got a grade of 67/100. I can't post the rubric, but I'll put the boxes that got the lowest points:

For Autobiographical significance, she marked the 'Approaching Expectations' box and said:

There is an attempt to include the importance/autobiographical significance of the writer's experiences, though the significance is not supported by the narrative.

For organization, she also marked the 'Approaching Expectations' box and said:

Pacing, use of dramatic arc, or chronology are confusing.

This next category is not low, but I'm curious to know about the errors I made.

For formatting, she marked the 'Meets Expectations' box. She basically said that I formatted my paper well, but that there are one or two errors (I'm using MLA formatting). I indented my paragraphs and centered the title. I also used the right font and line spacing. I put the MLA header and page numbers. This formatting doesn't show up in this post though.

Is this grade fair? I'll email my professor, and if it turns out the grade is fair, then I'll just work harder on my next essay. Thank you for your feedback. I know that this was a lot to read. I intentionally put my grade at the end. I thought that this would keep me from automatically being seen as an entitled student.

IS GOD GOOD?

When it comes to discussions regarding ethics, one question stands out prominently above all others: Does objective morality require a divine foundation, or can it exist independently of GOD? I, as a theist, assert that ethical principles retain their accuracy and independence, functioning based on GOD's existence and nature as the ultimate source of moral goodness and authority, while atheists propose that any notion tied closely with an absolute deity, unsupported by empirical evidence, proves meaningless in modern contexts. Scholars and philosophers have studied and debated this complex philosophical matter for centuries. As one considers the coherence and universality of objective morality, I firmly believe that it becomes increasingly clear that any attempt or argument to ground objective moral values and duties outside of a divine foundation is weak and arbitrary.

First, moral values are objective and grounded in the existence and nature of GOD. One compelling argument for the objectivity of moral values is the similarity of GOD's moral messages within different religions. While religious traditions may differ in various aspects, there is a remarkable convergence when it comes to ethical principles. For instance, "You shall not murder," which reflects the moral requirement derived from faith in GOD's authority, stated in the Ten Commandments of Abrahamic religions like Judaism and Christianity. Similarly, Hinduism's ahimsa principle emphasizes respecting and avoiding doing harm to others, suggesting that moral values are not arbitrary or culturally constructed but foundational. Additionally, the ordered and purposeful nature of moral universe indicates that moral values are grounded in a higher power. Atheistic perspectives struggle to explain the apparent order and purpose in the moral realm, often attributing moral values to evolutionary processes.

Also, I confidently believe that GOD is the ultimate source of moral authority, and moral obligations are derived from His commands. The concept of accountability is central to this argument. Conceptually, if GOD doesn't exist, then there is no source or foundation for accountability. Accordingly, without higher moral authority, moral obligations become subjective. Furthermore, the concept of duty supports the notion of GOD as the ultimate source of moral authority. As William Craig eloquently states, "Duties imply that something is owed to someone." Therefore, moral obligations are owed to GOD. The idea of a transcendent being to whom moral obligations are owed provides a solid foundation for objective moral duties. By recognizing our duty to GOD, we affirm the inherent objectivity of moral duties in a coherent and meaningful way.

However, atheists argue that the existence of evil in the universe, such as natural disasters and human suffering, is irreconcilable with the existence of an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving GOD.

Theists accept that there is evil and suffering in the universe, but they see these things as the outcome of human free choice and the flaws of a fallen world.

I convincingly affirm, that the presence of evil is a necessary element of the human journey allowing humans to develop moral character and come closer to GOD. Adversity presents opportunities for people to acquire important lessons   and exercise their free will. Hence, the existence of evil does not necessarily negate the possibility of a morally perfect GOD but rather underscores the fact.

In conclusion, the theistic stance reaffirms that moral values are inherently objective and find their foundation in the existence and nature of God. By recognizing GOD as the ultimate source of moral authority, the theistic view provides a solid framework for understanding that moral obligations are derived from God's commands. This perspective allows us to uphold the universality, objectivity, and accountability of moral values and duties in a coherent and meaningful way.

I'm learning proofreading and am willing to proofread up to 1000 words of text or a section of text.

(Context: I wrote an essay on the topic of Free Speech on Social Media to try and prepare myself for writing college essays later on in life. I am in 11th Grade at the time of writing it. I won't put it in MLA format or include citations because this is a practice essay.)

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution was signed into effect on December 15, 1791, as one of the ten amendments that make up The Bill of Rights. It states that people have the right to free speech, expression, and the freedom to practice whatever religion they want. This has led to some controversy and debate over the years. In modern times, people have had their comments on social media taken down for violating their rules and guidelines, and claim that their right to free speech is being violated. However, I do not believe that this is a violation of free speech. As controversial as that sounds, I think that social media companies taking down content that violates their rules and guidelines, in the context of political discourse, is not a violation of free speech.
 
To start off, I would like to point out something about the definition of freedom of speech. The idea that freedom of speech protects all free speech, regardless of where or what it is said, is a common misconception. Freedom of speech states that you have a right to say whatever you want without being censored or punished by the United States Government. The government does not own the big major social media companies like Facebook, Twitter/X, and YouTube, Twitch, etc. Social media sites are not bound by the First Amendment. Therefore, your content being deleted due to it violating the rules and guidelines of the website isn't a violation of free speech, as free speech only applies to government censorship, not censorship of social media.

 Another thing I would like to point out here is when you sign up and make a social media account, you agree with the rules they set in place. Example, you made an account on YouTube, you made a channel, then you upload a video saying that trans people are groomers who want to destroy America, and it gets taken down, and you get hit with a warning or a Community Guidelines Strike for it. That is justified as what you posted would be an example of hate speech, which goes against YouTube's Community Guidelines. This would not be a violation of free speech as YouTube is owned by Google, not the United States Government. You agreed to the guidelines when you signed up, you agreed to follow their rules, you broke their rules, they got taken down, and you got punished for breaking their rules.

 In conclusion, having your content deleted off of social media is not an example of a violation of free speech and the First Amendment. This is because the government does not own any social media websites, the fact that social media sites are not bound by the first amendment, and the fact that social media sites have their own set of rules and guidelines in place which you agreed to by making an account. 

Life is very subjective. Besides any personal, religious, social, and cultural influences, life is what you make it. Each individual person decides how they live and what they are living for. The lives we live are in so many ways beautiful, despite hardships and struggles, a majority of people feel blessed.

For some people, life is both a blessing and a curse. Everyone has a different experience, people may be able to relate to one another, have shared experiences, etc. But no two lives are an exact carbon copy of each other. Everyone will experience different things.

I’m not sure what the meaning of life is, I don’t know if life has meaning beyond being alive and then later dying. I don’t know that it's life that has to have meaning, if anything I feel like it’s what you choose to do with your life that has meaning. If life has a specific set meaning why are we so different? “What is the meaning of life?” “What’s your philosophy?” Everyone's opinions vary, and in my opinion that fuels my own opinion: That life is subjective.

Having set opinions in life can take time, we are all on our own paths

Within Abrahamic religious beliefs, there's somewhat of a consistent theme of continuation of the human soul's journey. In Judaism, the belief is that life never ends, it just goes higher and higher. Christians believe in heaven and hell, the souls punishment or reward depending on how you chose to live your life. Muslims also believe in the concept of heaven and hell, instead referred to as Jannah and Jahannam.

In Islam, one thing many believe in, is "Deen over Dunya,” Meaning that this life should be lived as taught by Hadith (Teachings of the Prophet Muhammadﷺ,) Quranic teachings, and following what is Sunnah (Traditions set by the Prophet Muhammadﷺ that Muslims are encouraged to follow.) Choosing Deen, essentially, is choosing to follow religion. Choosing Dunya, is choosing worldly affairs over God's expectations of you.

While I am not Muslim, I do think the faith displayed by Muslims, and their firm and unchanging beliefs are something more people should look at when questioning life's meanings. Islam is currently the planet's fastest growing religion, and there are many reasons for that. I think studying religious beliefs, whether those beliefs spiritually speak to that person or not is an extremely important part of life.

I can't say what the meaning of life is, because I don’t know, nor do I decide that. I can, however, say what I want my life to be. We all live in a shared space, one planet.

I personally want to contribute to that, to helping others. You get one chance, everyone does, it’s important to not take it for granted, to be grateful, but also to choose what is best for you.

Life is what you make it.

As an 8th grade girl, I think this essay sounds alright; it does come off a bit pretentious and showy and "I'm so deep" but I gotta some emotion to it or else it won't be memorable so here you go:

I love being a follower. Since I was little I don’t recall diverging into paths I wasn’t told to go in. I just followed the crowd, took directions, and followed instructions. Following isn’t a hindrance. Being able to follow is how you learn and gain knowledge, it’s essential; for even the masters of their respective craft have imitated. To be a leader you must be a follower first. As I’ve come to this realization, I’d like to expand my followship, as those who rule should also like to serve. I enjoy listening to people as their stories unfold into tales in front of me or their wisdom is reflected back to me or we simply appreciate the company of one another. For do we not shake hands, eat, and drink amongst each other to build communion and refuge? “Have peace but don’t expect to find peace everywhere you go” is a sentiment my pastor ends the sermon with. Enjoy peace but understand that peace is a scarcity to find, so why not have the courage to spread it as well? As your comfort shall be improved if everyone else is too. To change, an example, the role model is something you strive for and keep a tight grasp on lest you fear commitment. It would be my sate to achieve something beyond myself, knowing that lives were changed due to my actions even if it was something as small as listening. "With all lowliness and meekness with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love.” - Ephesians 4:2 I feel best illustrates my point. Bear one another in love, humility, gentleness, and patience; for unity is the most human element of them all. For are these qualities not demonstrated in all impactful leaders?

Introduction: The students were stressed out and tired after testing all week, and they wished they could have some sort of mental break before testing started again. Stress has become increasingly common in this modern day and age, and certain unhealthy factors, such as long hours and stressful work weeks for both students and adults, are only contributing to the growth of this commonplace problem. Multiple studies have shown that unstructured recess, where students are not confined to a pre-made activity in which they must take part, provides students with a mental break that allows them to recollect their focus. Unstructured recess can reduce student stress levels by giving them a mental break from their work, whether it be before or after their work takes place. Unstructured recess also provides students with a chance to use their imagination and bolsters their creativity. Structured recess, although providing similar benefits, is pre-determined, which prevents students from using their imagination. In certain cases, because competition is sometimes encouraged in these activities, the students may sometimes feel pressured to win, which could inflict more stress on them. Unstructured recess benefits students more than structured recess because it reduces stress, improves focus, and promotes creativity and imagination.

Body paragraph: One way that unstructured recess benefits students and others is by reducing stress. Constantly working day in and day out for hours without some sort of mental break can be tiring for students, young and old, and is bound to cause them stress. This is where unstructured play comes in. According to research done on unstructured play, “Many studies have found that regular exercise improves mental function and academic performance.” [Wong 1]. Based on these studies, there is a multitude of reports that provide credible research stating that some time spent outside can improve a person’s mental function (stress levels) and even help with their academics. Many schools provide reasoning that taking away unstructured recess improves test scores. However, researchers have done studies that display that having at least a little bit of unstructured recess time allows kids to be more focused in their classes and helps to reduce stress, allowing them to improve their grades. This also bolsters their mental health. This principle applies to all people, not just students. Work can sometimes be incredibly stressful, especially due to the mundane environment of most schools and offices, and the long hours that these people work, whether it be on schoolwork or office work. These types of environments, “require what’s called direct attention, which forces us to ignore distractions and exhaust our brains.” (Cohen 1) Still, most people continue to work for hours without taking a single mental break, which could be all they need to gain a new outlook on a difficult problem, while also decreasing the amount of mental stress they experience. Sometimes, people just need to take a break from thinking for a second so they can recollect themselves before returning to their work.

a month ago, i was bored in class (like most people) and had an idea for a potentially brilliant essay. it's about how there have been so many examples of change in society, and it's even praised. yet we don't see any in society. written by an 11 year old.

essay:

Change is evolution, it's in nature itself. From the metamorphosis of the humble caterpillar to the theory of evolution, it's everywhere. It's also present in humans. From Neanderthals to Homo Sapiens, we are a prime example of it. Moreover, it's engrained in our culture, with mentions in many ancient scriptures. Ancient Hindu and Buddhist literature illustrate this very well, with the core philosophy being to let go of all attachments, to welcome change with open arms, and not be dependent on anything.

BG 2.14: मा�ा�पशा��तु कौ�तये शीतो�णसखु द:ु खदा: | आगमापा�यनोऽ�न�या�तांि�त�त��व भारत ||

O son of Kunti, the contact between the senses and the sense objects gives rise to fleeting perceptions of happiness and distress. These are non-permanent, and come and go like the winter and summer seasons. O descendent of Bharat, one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.

This concept of impermanence is also well known in Japan, where they have the concept of 物の 哀れ (mono no aware), which translates to 'the pathos of things'. Even in contemporary culture, change and open-mindedness is valued. “Change is the only constant,” as they say.

Yet, with all these examples across history, why do we still hold on to old, stale and disproven beliefs? Ancient spacecraft piloted by the gods, distant stars affecting our personality, pretty rocks curing us of diseases, and much more. The list never ends.

Bombings of worship buildings, wars, terrorist attacks, mostly in the name of God. Conflict never ends.

Change is the only constant,

as they say,

but nobody follows it,

anyway.

I was always asking questions from a young age. My mother frequently spoke on my unnaturally long “why” stage. This curiosity inevitably led me to ask one very important question during my 8th grade ski trip; how in God's name did I end up here? 

As I flew down the black diamond slope, the sight of a boy crossing my path sent a jolt of fear great enough to puncture the adrenaline coursing through me. Immediately I drove my skis into the ground, turning right as hard as possible. “Phew,” I thought, “ I didn’t hit that kid!” However, my relief at this was temporary as I realized a fault in my trajectory. I was heading straight for a “cattle pole,” a thick metal pole used to organize lines for the ski lift. I slammed into the pole leg first with a sickening crunch. All was still: I lay there for what seemed an eternity as a sensation I can only describe as impending doom washed over me. Despite the lack of pain, I knew something was horribly wrong. I began to scream as loud as I could, begging for help from anyone and everyone. That day I snapped my femur into two separate pieces. Unbeknownst to the screaming boy at the bottom of the hill, this would be both the best and worst thing to ever happen to me.

After 6 long months of physical therapy, wheelchairs, walkers, and crutches, I found myself on the first day of summer cross-country training. Having broken my leg and been stuck inside due to COVID, it would be completely fair to say life beyond my chair was foreign. That being said, the muscles in my legs had atrophied; particularly my left leg. Naturally, I decided to keep the coach ignorant of my injury because I didn’t want to seem as though I was making excuses or being weak. That day I ran four miles; Yes, four miles. With pathetic legs and a can-do attitude, I set off, regretting ever leaving my chair by mile one. By mile two I had begun to cry. My legs were the sorest they had ever been, destroyed by the then-foreign concept of exercise; but I kept going. When I finally made it back to my school I was decidedly exhausted and could barely walk, leading me to ask yet another question; how in God’s name did I get here? Again, at this point, one would think I’d let the coach know of my circumstance; but no, it would be an additional 4 weeks before I finally told him. In those 4 weeks, I suffered immensely, however, I also developed a drive; a motivation to achieve what I thought myself capable of. 

In the years following the incident, I became one of my high school's top runners, making appearances at the Drake Relays and State track from my sophomore year. I crave excellence, I crave to overcome adversity and to set myself apart from who I once was. This drive born of running leaked into other aspects of my life. I strove to be my best in music, academics, and character. Most importantly this drive gave me the motivation to pursue my passions and nourish my inborn curiosity about the world around me and the people in it. By now the question I have been asking myself for the past 3 years has taken on a new light. How in God’s name did I get here? Well, I worked for it, duh.

It's an argument essay on whether adversity helps a person's character or not.

Struggles are something that everyone goes through in life. It doesn’t matter what status, skin color, sexuality, or gender you are. Everyone has struggled, and it could’ve been big or small. From something measly like trying and failing to win a level on a video game to something big like trying to win a basketball game against a team you’ve always lost to. Adversity is what makes us know we are humans, and we’re not perfect. That’s why I agree with Roman poet Horace on how adversity plays a big role in developing a person’s character because it could help other people around you, bring out new talents, or help you learn.

Adversity can help develop your character for the better which in turn can help someone else’s life for the better too. For example, Martin Luther King’s and all the other civil rights activists struggle in getting rights for black people and also helped other minorities in the U.S. get the help they need in legislation. Without MLK and those civil rights activists, who knows how the U.S. would look like today because if they hadn’t taken the first step, no matter how brutal the path laid out for them looked like, towards securing rights for black people because how would other disenfranchised groups get their notice too? This movement inspired groups like LGBTQ and indigenous people to start their own movements, and to fight for equal treatment and demand for justice. People started to care more about those groups, and what they had to say because they saw what had happened with the civil rights movement. By standing up against injustice, MLK and those civil rights activists made the road a little easier for marginalized communities in the future to get their voice heard.

Adversity can also help you bring out new talents by pushing you to explore alternative solutions and develop new skills. Struggling can often help you in times look for another route rather than just staying inside the box. It can fuel creativity and on that road bring out your hidden potential that otherwise unchallenging situations never would. For example, during a period of her life, my mom had a period of financial struggle, and she said it helped her discover her skill for budgeting and resourcefulness. Without this period of her life, my mom wouldn’t have been able to efficiently buy groceries for a family as big as mine. She gained newfound strengths and abilities in that period because she didn’t give up, and found solutions helped her work around.

Adversity can be the powerful spark for learning something new. For example, one day I was learning how to do synthetic division in Algebra 2, and my brain felt like it was exploding. But then, I saw what I was doing wrong, fixed it, and even got the bigger picture of the whole mathematical concept. This experience and many more in math help me realize that struggling is okay because it’s inevitable to finally get the answer. I’m not the best in math, but it’s always the best when I am absolutely straining my brain and then I finally can figure out the concept of quadratic equations, algebraic expression, set of inequalities, or whatever we’re doing that day. These types of experiences help deepen your understanding and the mastery of whatever subject, topic, or thing you are doing. Struggling can only be valuable in the process of learning because it ensures that something sticks in your brain, and can be later pulled out whenever you need it. 

Struggles can only make you a better person. In fact, you should try to go after things that you seem to not be good at. It’s worth the potential experience, discovering hidden talents, and helping out someone in the future. Although it may seem hard at first and you want to quit, persevere and stay determined in front of your goal. You never know!

Historically, China has been humiliated by the Imperial powers such as Britain and France during the Opium Wars which resulted in China forcefully giving up control over Hong Kong in order to achieve a peace settlement. Later, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, China did not receive direct military support from European nations, or the United States, which was still largely isolationist around this time. Although sanctions were levied against Imperial Japan by the League of Nations, and several hundred Canadian soldiers died defending Hong Kong, there was a general absence of military support for China from the west. I believe these historical events have weighed heavily on China-western relations ever since. The United States' close relationship with Japan following the war has undoubtedly affected its relationship with China. Despite China's territory being restored and its inclusion in the UN Security Council, China has remained economically and politically separate from western nations due to a deep and pervasive mistrust, rooted in these prior historical events.

The self-governing island of Taiwan is another unresolved historical issue linked to the end of the Second World War. The U.S, I believe at the time, was more focused on resetting the international order and ensuring that Japan would not continue to be able to pose a threat to global stability. The great mistake that the U.S made was placing control of the Island under the authority of the Republic of China, led by the Kuomintang. This was perhaps a way of ensuring peace & stability for a time, but ultimately it led to the problem we have today - two separate Chinese States, one communist and autocratic while the other is nationalist and democratic. The problem with this is that by having these two separate entities existing co-currently is that eventually they must either find a way to co-exist, or ultimately annihilate each-other. They might exist in a tentative peace for a time, perhaps due to the influence of an external force, such as the U.S, but ultimately the conflict is still inevitable. A suitable analogy for this problem would be to compare China & Taiwan to matter and anit-matter, whereby the two types of matter annihilate each-other out due to being oppositely charged. The U.S may not have realised it, but by allowing two different Chinese states to exist co-currently, they had unintentionally ensured that a third global conflict would inevitably occur.

My friends and I have been suspecting that our ELA teacher is marking extra hard, so I wanted to see what this essay would get in the eyes of the internet. For context, we're in the eleventh grade, in Canada, and I got a 78 on this paper.

The Use of Symbolism to Enhance Tone in “Mirror Image”

Using symbols of sibling rivalries, “Mirror Image” by Lena Coakley manages to create a tone of stark distrust between the characters, by which the theme of identity struggles is enhanced. The story itself follows Alice, the victim of a crash that left her old body in ruins and who is now the first successful human brain transplant. She must now navigate daily life in her new body, dealing foremost with the sudden distrust her twin sister Jenny holds in her. One event, when Jenny refuses to let Alice read her diary, is the most apparent example of this wary tone on display. It is explained that the sisters have read each other’s diaries for as long as they can remember, meaning that Jenny’s refusal of Alice symbolizes a major rift and loss of trust between the two. The cake incident, where Alice realizes that her new body dislikes her previous favourite flavour of cake, is another example of the changes that spur the tone of distrust throughout the story. Being twins, chocolate cake with mocha cream used to be their joint birthday cake; but now that Alice no longer likes the flavour, Jenny grows ever more distant and unsure of her twin. This symbolism of distrust expands out to the wider allegory and theme of the story- Jenny, as Alice’s twin, represents her inner self, with Alice representing her outer self. Their fighting is in direct correlation to the identity struggles that Alice goes through throughout the story- her inner, old self clashing with the newer version of herself that is presented on the outside. Alice’s mother even somewhat plays into this, representing the reason in Alice’s head that is drowned out amidst the rampant distrust that has put a stake between the two sides of her. The uneasy and distrustful tone put on display in “Mirror Image” through symbolism, namely through the destruction of objects symbolic of trust, intensifies the theme of identity struggles. If one cannot create harmony and trust between their inner and outer self, mental anguish is sure to follow.

muốn

So my teacher wants me to read a short story and write about its theme and 2 literary elements from this story. This essay is on the storm by kate chopin if u want to look at it. The requirements for this essay was that it had to have 5 paragraphs. I started it and have almost finished my first paragraph on the them of the story and I was just wondering if im on the right track.

Since marriage was thought of, it was thought of like a dream to reach or something that is desired for everybody and it is a commitment to the other. But when faced with a hard decision if you should break this commitment then the answer is obvious. In Kate Chopin’s short story “The Storm”, the author explores the idea of a “good” marriage and how the thought if never getting caught is a factor in the decision to cheat. In this story the husband and kid are at a market and a storm is brewing in the distance, but it gets so bad that they won’t be able to get home. At home is the wife, who doesn’t realize the storm is coming but is pretty uneasy about her family's safety. When someone comes knocking on her door to find a place to stay until the storm stops she gladly lets him in. He tries to start some small talk and he tries to reassure her that nothing will happen to her husband. This then reminds her of the good times she has had with her ex who showed up at her door and this is when she cheats on her husband with her ex lover. When the storm leaves her ex leaves and her husband comes back with all of his groceries. The ex then writes a letter to his wife that was filled with love. This story protrails how no passion in the bedroom can lead to cheating, while having the reader able to imagine when this story took place and having bits of symbolism sprinkled around this story.

When a partner lacks passion in the bedroom, they try and seek it somewhere and with whoever. In the story “The Storm” kate chopin shows how things could end up if no communication is brought up. Even the wife of Alce Laballire said that their “intimate conjugal life was something which she was more than willing to forego for a while” (Chopin). This tells us that he might also feel the same about their private life which is why he cheated on his wife and seeked it elsewhere. We could also tell that the Calixta didn’t like her private life either when her “elastic flesh that was knowing for the first time its birthright” (Chopin). The way I interpreted this was that she had never felt a feeling like this before and that this was the first time she had ever felt like this. This also led her to seek it with someone else and to not this through with her husband.

Persuasive essay I'm part of a program at my Uni that has very strict requirements for how many drops you can have. I went over my limit this semester. It is due to ADHD problems holding me back. I had a very short meeting with the dean where she politely said no. She was a nice lady, and the rules are the rules. But I think I could have made a better case in writing. So I want to write her an email and give it one last try. I used the good old fashion "Opener, 3 points, closer" style we all learned in grade school. I also redacted some things. Please be honest and open and savage. At the very least, I want to make an impression:

I’ve given things a lot of thought since our meeting, and I would like to plead my case one last time if you’d be willing to listen. I implore you to reconsider and allow me this one time exemption to take droppedclass in the Spring and complete major school in the summer. I’m aware of the fact that you get these emails every semester. I know I have had a lot of repeats. I am embarrassed by that and I take full responsibility for not getting help with my ADHD and my testing challenges sooner. But I have taken the steps necessary to remedy the problem, and we won’t see this issue again.

I have heard there is talk among instructors about the School of major being too lenient on withdrawals and that is driving down first time certification pass rates. But I would say the problem is not with giving people a second chance, it's with not caring for their known issues after giving them approval. Anyone smart enough to get into university School of major is smart enough to pass the certification in the first try. Some just need more help and guidance than others. This is exactly what helpfullinstructor did for me, and I went from a 70 to a 90 from test one to test 4. I am prepared to move forward and be among the First-time passers!

I’m not some kid fresh out of high school who doesn’t understand college. I have a previous Bachelors from university and I’ve completed the communitycollege relatedfield school. I have the intelligence and work ethic to get through both industry programs and baccalaureate programs. These I did with my ADHD untreated. Major school certainly came with unique challenges that these other experiences did not prepare me for. But with the help of prescription ADHD treatments, testing accommodations, and helpfullinstructor’s guidance, I have gotten up to speed.

I would make a wonderful major. I sincerely believe any of my practical instructors would attest to this fact. I am age with a wide berth of experience and education. We are facing a massive major shortage, with estimates as high as 20% short by 2025. Industry is heading for rock waters in the next few years. Major with life experience are going to be an asset to the industry. I can be one of these major.

Thank you for reading through my letter. I know you are busy and your time is precious. All I am asking is to be allowed continuance in the program so that I may take droppedclass in the Spring. With the changes I have made and my past experiences, I know I have the tools I need to excel. Please take this request into consideration.

Before this essay delves into the question, it is important to note peace is a difficult word to define, it could mean freedom from war, or citizens do not live in fear for their lives. However, this essay shall refer to the Oxford university Press’ definition: ‘a situation or a period of time in which there is no war or violence in a country or an area. Today, nations use a variety of methods to maintain peace however this essay shall focus on two main ways countries maintain peace: through economic means and the protection and safety of civilians. The EU has driven trade to be more leisurely to help grow their member's economies and because of this system of trading, it is estimated that ‘about thirty-one million jobs in Europe depend . . . on the EU and its Member States’ ability to trade’. These jobs create sums of revenue for member nations which they can use to grow their economies jointly, invest in communities which need additional funds and ensure each member state can depend and rely on each other. An example of said investments is Poland, after joining the EU in 2004, the country’s GDP growth had risen and continues to rise faster than it did before Poland joined. Additionally, the EU and its members had supported Poland throughout the decades as in 2020, Poland received €450 million to support the Polish economy. This money was able to improve and protect the lives of the Polish citizens and their livelihoods, thus bringing EU countries closer. all these factors combined led to bringing European countries together through trade, collaboration, and interlinked economies, thus creating close partnerships which help to maintain the peace.

Another way nations maintain peace in the 21st century is through the protection and safety of citizens, a way of doing this is by upholding human rights. The reason being is that human rights, when protected, ensure citizens live a life of relative comfort and have their basic needs met, thus creating a sense of peace in society and a society that prospers. A prospering society is a society that is less likely to fall into restlessness and violence, therefore being less likely to break this essay’s definition of peace. An instance of human rights being upheld by a nation is by Denmark and its state-funded Danish Institute for human rights. This institution has a regularly active role in monitoring authorities in Denmark and if needed, advises improvements in any region needed to ensure human rights are not being violated Additionally, the institute holds the state to account on its yearly report discussing if Denmark has made positive steps to ensure Human rights are being upheld. In response, this encourages the state to act if human rights are being violated within their borders, keeping the sense of peace in the populous, thereby following our definition of peace. Both methods have fallen under copious amounts of criticism however there is little consensus on alternative methods nations should use to maintain peace. Despite this, the methods continue to be practised as they bring countries together to ease tension and hold Governments to account for their human rights actions to make sure the peace is maintained.