Final Blog

I think that right now a lot of things are important to me that will be important to me in the future and maybe for the rest of my life. Right now girls, school, friends, sports, and family are probably the most important things in my life. However I don’t think much of that will change and this is because I think my mindset will always be the same. Girls, sports, and school I think dominate my life the most as that is what I enjoy the most. Like everyone else I am still looking for love even I am in love with a girl it is not working out like it should or as I imagined and hoped it would. Love kind of sucks but I still pursue it because it will be worth it in the end and I will be looking my whole life until I find it and it is perfect. Sports right now are coming to end but that doesn’t mean that they are over. Playing soccer and running track I know I will continue to run for as long as I can and play soccer for as long as I can. I am playing soccer in college and I think it will always be a huge part of my life. School is very important and always will be even after college. As I know that even after I completely done with my education I will still need to use it every day of my life with the profession I consider pursuing. Friends are also a huge part of my life because I see them every day and they are a big part of my life because they have helped shape who I am as a person. I have surrounded myself with loving caring good kids as my friends and in turn I am a loving caring and good kid at least I think I am. I see my friends every single day and I don’t know what I would do without them especially my close friends. Family is very important for my father but not as important to me. Because of my father however my family does do a lot of stuff together and that is also a big part of my life. I think that these things are important to me because they are my whole life. They are all things I keep around me so I deal with them every day whether they are good or bad. They are important to me primarily because of normality. I am used to these things being there and if they were not I think I would be lost. That is why they are so important to me because I am used to them and they are important to me because they are always there. I think if this ever changed it would be hard for me to change with it because I am so used to it. That is exactly why I say that I won’t change things that are important to me when I get older.

Wild card is hard

Every time a wild card is given it gets harder and harder to think of something to write about.  I remember in the beginning of the year getting a wild card as one of the blog topics for the week was the best thing that could happen, and writing about anything I wanted to, was so easy, and these types of blogs just flowed out.  But now this is not the case, I find these blogs to be the hardest possible and truthfully I do not know why it is getting so hard to write about anything I want to.  So I guess instead of writing about my future I’ll describe an incident that happened in my life that required me to dig down deep, and reach out to people for a helping hand to continue on.When I was eleven years old I was in the gym practicing Olympic sparring, usually I practice kicking moving pads and targets, or focusing on drills to increase endurance power and speed in my fighting skills.  When I would practice fighting someone it would usually be someone my age or an instructor who would only block or fight back lightly.  But to gain an advantage when fighting kids my age, I began to spar with a four years older than I was.  During practice one day I was slow reacting and he threw a kick landing square on my face, shattering my right orbital bone.  It was a devastating blow to my confidence, and after the incident I was reluctant to return back to the sparring ring.  But my desire to return back and accomplish my goals was greater than my fear of getting hurt all over again.  I looked too my parents for guidance as well as my trainers and teachers who encouraged me and pushed me to train hard and get back in the ring.  Without their support and uplifting attitudes it would have been much more difficult to get back up, dust myself off, and get back to doing what I loved.

Advice

Two begin; I would like to say that I am not very pleased that this is the second blog in a row that involves not just a topic that involves my own life but a topic which entitles me to share specific instances in which I must share my life to the world.  This is not because I am embarrassed or ashamed I just feel a tad bit uncomfortable doing so.  On that note I guess ill begin.  If I could somehow meet up with the past me and give myself advice with the knowledge I know hold (which is not a whole lot) I would definitely have a few stories to tell as well as a few hints or pointers to take in so things that did not go so smoothly go a little easier or may never happen at all.  I guess the first thing I would give advice about is school, and by school I mainly mean the grades and school work aspect.  If I could tell my past me about how important studying and grades and applying myself is and will be things would be much different.  I would tell myself that spending the small portion of time now will mean a huge difference in the upcoming years and that my junior year is the most important year of my life and that focusing on my schoolwork for the few months I am in school is much more beneficial than going out with friends and slacking off, and that those few months will dictate my entire life.  That those months will determine how much money I will get as far as scholarships go, and that with larger scholarships doors open up to which college I can attend instead of dealing with the juggling act of educational and financial weight.  On the other hand I would tell myself that during my freshman year and up I should work hard in track because I will develop into a fantastic athlete and if I had trained since hard since freshman year instead of the end of my junior year and senior year I would be a nationally ranked individual runner and not just a state ranked runner.  As far as advice goes I feel like that sums it up for the most part.  Besides a few little tips on how certain things will end with certain people and maybe that I should not invest so much time in certain people due to knowing the outcome that is all the advice I could give the past me of two or three years.

Forgiveness

A well known quote that I feel is sometimes over used, but I believe holds substantial value as it speaks the truth, goes like this, “forgive, but never forget” which coincides with my beliefs and how I handle instances that require me to have to forgive someone. 

I feel that instances that require forgiveness of a person usually involve being left out, forgotten, trust being broken, and pretty much anything that involves you getting the short end of the stick so to speak may lead to you needing to forgive someone in some way shape or form.  I believe forgiveness is something you must commit mentally, and by this I mean you must take whatever problem or action that bothered or hurt you, and make a connection that you are no longer angry at the person for making you feel this way, and that you are okay with the person even if you are not okay with how everything went.  The little ball of anger you feel towards a person due to a specific instance where they let you down, or made you upset or angry, is what must be let go of, and that is what I believe forgiveness is.  Notice I did not say forget or let go of the specific instance as you must never completely forget, which of course is what the famous quote is referring to.  I have found it very hard to forgive certain people of certain things and some things I still have not been able to forgive them, but I believe in time I can and that is all that matters.  It is of course better to forgive right away, but we are all human and that is not always possibly.

Forgiveness should be practiced often and not on occasion as it is unhealthy to hold pent up anger towards someone.  If someone holds onto all their emotions and keeps everything bottled up, they will eventually break down and lose it.  So it is much better to forgive and move on than it is to hold everything on the inside.  I feel that it may seem that something is unforgivable but in reality everything can be forgiven it is up to the person to find it within themselves to do so.  It takes great discipline and to forgive everyone of everything they have done to you, and if a person can do that, they in my eyes are of utmost maturity.

College

I tend to like when there is a set blog topic, as it takes away the painful process and yes I said painful, of picking what to write about.  Usually when there is a topic already set in stone that I must write about, it is easy to sit down and get right to work.  But clearly this is not the case this week as it is a wild card, meaning I must first think of a blog topic and then write about it.  Well after a little bit of consideration and thought I felt like writing about college and what is to come would be a good place to start, due to the fact that choosing a college you are going to attend must be done by May 1^st which is surprisingly extremely close.  It is weird to think that I was once a small freshman, thinking how long four years would be, and that high school would like an eternity.  I was so wrong, high school flew by, I can barely register how fast everything went, and that a whole new chapter of my life is about to begin.  I am sure the feeling of four years and how I thought they would take forever to pass by in high school will be the same for college.  As I ready myself for something completely new, to finally be alone as far as parental guidance goes is a little bit scary.  What makes this whole thing even more frightening is that I do not really have the slightest idea of which school I wish to attend out of the schools I applied to.  They all have really big pros and really big cons and with little middle ground in between each it had made the decision extremely hard to make.  The schools I have to choose from right now are NJIT, Seaton Hall, and New Haven University, although OCC is an option it is not really on the table, considering my parents have had enough of me and do not wish for me to stay another two years.  I am leaning more towards NJIT and New Haven University, and I have already visited NJIT I have plans to visit New Haven on Wednesday.  Hopefully after visiting New Haven I will be able to finally come to a decision on which school I will be attending.  My parents want me to attend New Haven but the choice is ultimately up to me as it of course my future and I dictate where I want my life to go.  The upside of going to NJIT is that I know a few people that go there already and that it is also very close to home so if needed I could come back home on weekends.  New haven on the other hand is a little farther away, but the campus offers much more to do as far as entertainment and the college itself is much nicer.  After Wednesday hopefully I will have my choice of schools picked out and ready to start a new chapter of my life.

unfinished business

I can’t say I have too much unfinished business per say, I feel like I have lived out my high school career to the fullest, participating in multiple sports, obtaining my goals of becoming both the soccer and the track captain since junior year.  Excelling in both sports, and getting multiple school records that I never thought I would ever obtain.  Leaving high school with a great group of friends that I will never forget, and will still continue to be close to after this is all over with.  I feel as though I got as good as grades as I could have for most of my high school career, but I do have some regrets about how hard I tried, but that cannot be fixed in the final two months that are dwindling down to a close.  To answer the question would I change this year, I would have to say no.  I love how my senior year has panned out, if anything I would change it so it would go by slower, but we all know that cannot happen.  I would change previous years though like my sophomore year, because I regret things I should have done regarding sports and my junior year for not studying as much as I know I should have, even though my parents certainly reminded me enough. But besides that I think how everything has turned out.  My future plans consist of NJIT as that is where I seem to be leaning towards going to for the next four years.  I will be participating in division 1 track, and I look forward to that as well.  I hope to obtain a degree in civil engineering and I must keep a C average in all my class to keep all my scholarship money so I have so challenges ahead of me.  I feel like I am ready to start a new chapter of my life with new people but I am nervous that I will be overwhelmed by it all, scared of how difficult the work load will be and how I will find help if I need it.  It is all so new and uncharted territory for me but that is what makes it exciting.  I already visited the school and I like the vibe there.  I love how close it is to the city, as I am a huge fan of New York and the city environment as a whole so I feel like I will fit in quite nicely at NJIT.  I hope everything works out well, but as the next two months come to an end I will enjoy it while I can, cause I know I am going to miss how care free it is right now, and how it will never be like this again.

Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover

Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover

We have all heard of the saying “do not judge a book by its cover” countless times, and I feel like this is a good place to start considering all the books we have been reading in class. 

Have you ever heard about a book, or saw a book and really dreaded reading it, but surprisingly enjoyed it once you actually began to read it?  Or maybe on the reverse side, you saw a book that looked absolutely amazing and you just felt like you had to read it, but ended up not being what you had high hopes of it to be.  Write about an instance or maybe instances where judging a book by its cover was either correct or misleading.

death

Death a touchy subject for most, the word itself ominous and gloomy, and since the beginning of time has been given a bad persona, as death is almost always closely related to the most somber of things and these encompass all the senses. The color black, the sounds of solitude and silence, feelings of cold, the bitter tastes and smells, it seems all things bad go along with death. I hate talking about personal topics or self reflections, as it almost makes me feel weak, like someone possessing this knowledge could use it against me somehow, even though I know it will not happen. But, then again that is what this world does to you. I, myself, have experienced death first hand, as I have had an aunt, a pop pop, and a close friends father pass away, as well as my dog buddy, which I found to be the hardest death to overcome. You can never truly feel empathy for someone else that is going through death without you personally going through it as well. It is simply impossible. The human man cannot grasp the idea of death and forever, without experiencing first hand with an incident that ties directly to them. Death hurts, death seems unfair, but in actuality it is the great equalizer. It is something everyone must face at some point, and when your times up, there is no second chances. Death must occur, and although we hate to think that death should not happen to the people we love, it is something we cannot change or later.  I feel like because it happens to the people we love, we try and not think that death is nature’s way of population control, and that without it the world would seize to exist.  I do believe there is an afterlife as I believe in Jesus Christ and that there is a heaven.  Everyone is born with a soul and when death occurs the soul is released.  As far as believing in heaven, you cannot believe in one without another, thus I also believe hell is a real place, and is a place where people who are not saved will absolutely be going to.  I believe no one can fully understand it, it confuses all of us, due to the fact that no one can really know what happens after death because the people who died are in fact dead and can no longer tell us what is going on.  It is fr this reason alone that makes death such a mysterious entity, in which we may ask question but answers will never come. This is why we must live in the moment, and never dwell on the past, because in the blink of an eye, the ordinary instant your experience everyday may be your last.

My Room

Oddly enough, I have heard of this argument before - that a person’s room is a reflection of them self – that taking into consideration its contents, how it is arranged and how well-kept it is, says a lot about the person. Some say that a room’s cleanliness or its overall ‘vibe’ is a good indication of the occupant’s personality.  If I have to decide whether my room is a reflection of me or is just a room, and obviously I have to decide due to the fact that it is the blog topic this week, I think I am somewhere in the middle of the spectrum.  In general I feel that, when looking at a room, the odds are good that it is a reflection of the person who owns or lives in it, but I also think that just how sharp a reflection it is depends a lot on the individual and how emotionally connected they are to the room.  I feel that my room is not currently a strong reflection of who I am or of my personality, because I do not have a very strong emotional tie to my room.  My room is mostly off-white, except for one wall which has a mural of a Japanese rain forest with a waterfall.  Although I think I was about 9 when I picked that out, it is still pretty nice to look at. Along the top of the longest wall is a narrow wooden trim piece with little pegs every couple inches apart. On these pegs hang easily over a hundred medals that I won during my childhood. I also have a trophy tucked away on almost every conceivable flat surface, also a result of my many childhood athletic activities. There are two wooden and two blue metal dressers where my clothes are supposed to go. I say ‘supposed to’ because I usually live out of the laundry basket, mostly because all my clothes will not fit into the drawers.  My clothes are strewn about and, as far as messy goes, that is the only thing I think that is really messy in my room.  I try not to have food, empty wrappers or drinks lying around; it is mainly just the clothes that make my room look like a bomb went off.  On the other side of my room is a tall wooden book shelf with little trinkets and doodads that I collected over my childhood. It has such things as little fossils and shark teeth, accompanied by an assortment of small toy cars and things of that nature.  My closet is a little bit neater and more orderly than my room, as it has jackets and shirts and such hanging up – most of which I do not wear anymore.  To me, my room is now just a place I sleep and go to relax in or watch television, and beyond that I have no other real uses for it. Unlike many other kids, I never really bothered to update the décor. I was always too busy doing other things, so this is why I feel my room does not represent my personality.  In order for a person’s room to represent who they are, they must have emotional ties to it, which then allows them to pour out who they are into the way their room looks.

My Curriculum

I believe that designing a curriculum for students my age takes some thinking outside of the box. This is due to the fact that students my age are typically seniors, and dealing with seniors can be tricky business. By the time a child reaches senior year, they have undergone a lot of changes, both mentally and physically, and for the most part, are comfortable in their own skin. So, by the time senior year comes along, the usually tricks and techniques used to keep them engaged and under control fall short. As a result, I feel this is a feat most teachers fall quite short in. The most significant proof of this is senioritis – it is most definitely a real thing, and unfortunately is alive and well and the plague of high schools all across the nation. I find myself afflicted as well, having to be constantly reminded to fight off senioritis as my final year of high school winds down. It is for this reason and this reason alone, that a curriculum made specifically for students my age must be carefully thought out.  Although all curriculums must include the basics (English, math, science and gym classes), I feel that it must go beyond that to include options made specifically to appeal to seniors.  In fact, the more options the better, because being able to choose from a wide selection of electives allows a senior to dictate the overall flavor of the curriculum. Students whose interests are more artistic would choose quite a different set of electives than, say, a science student. This would result in a senior being much more likely to be engaged and excited to go to school and take their last year seriously, instead of ‘checking out early’ so to speak.  Another important aspect of designing a great curriculum for students my age is using high-technology to the fullest. Incorporating modern technology in new ways, such as using game-like scenarios, not only teaches what is needed, but engages students in a fun and sophisticated way. I think this would keep me involved and from what I can see, the rest of the students in the class as well.  Although not exactly part of the curriculum, I believe that lunch periods play an important part also.  I know that this has been discussed, argued and turned down in our school, but if I were to design a curriculum, lunch period would be about forty five minutes because I feel that provides enough time to not feel rushed and gives students (especially seniors) a small amount of down time.  This down time goes a long way in regard to how hard students are able to concentrate and work for the remainder of the day.  Lastly, is the almighty homework assignments. I feel that homework is at an all time high during senior year, and this is something I would drastically change for my curriculum.  I believe that homework is a necessity and that it must be given, but at the same time the overall amount and the time it takes to accomplish is unacceptable. It should not take four or more hours to get all your homework done every night, especially since many seniors have extracurricular activities, such as varsity sports. Add to this the college-related tasks that need attention, and it becomes an unbearable load that cause many students to just throw in the towel.  Homework should be brief and to the point, given simply to gauge the students understanding and to determine if more practice is required or some are struggling on a concept. A heavy workload of homework every night would not be a part of my curriculum.

Wisdom

To answer the first question, what is wisdom, I’ll begin with what a text book definition consists of.  Wisdom according to its definition is the soundness of an action or decision with regard to the application of such experience, knowledge, and good judgment.  To begin here, we see that experience is a key word in which wisdom is based upon.  In order to hold wisdom you must also own experience, through a multitude of ways.  To describe the qualities in just a few words, I believe morality, compassion, self-understanding and lastly a person with emotional stability, these qualities are the main ones I think attribute most to wisdom as a whole.  Each of these are highly appraised qualities which I believe are admirable to withhold by themselves, but when you possess all them, along with experience which I find can only be found through time, makes up what wisdom really is.  Is wisdom something that can be boiled down into things like getting all A’s on your report card, or as stated before, getting a P.h. D. from a prestigious college?  To answer that, we must really dive deep down and think.  I believe these things although very impressive and hard to achieve do not prove what wisdom really is or consists of.  Now, getting to the part that gets a little tricky, achieving these things does not make you wise, but the experiences you went through to obtain these things may make you wise.   So it is truly a hard thing to say yes or no to, no they do not make you wise, but the process in which a person achieved them may make you wise or full of wisdom.  No I do not believe a person without the qualifications of wisdom can obtain wisdom, but they can gain the qualifications needed to be wise, and then and only be able to possess wisdom through experience.  Wisdom I believe is a quality which can only be found in humans, because, as I said before, wisdom can only be found in those with compassion, morality, and high levels of thinking based upon past experience, which can only be fund in humans.  I find that my pop pop was a very wise man, who I believe was wise due to the fact that he had experienced a lot during his life, and that he used his past to relate to things in the present which I believe is what made him a very wise person.

Jobs

The question, are some jobs more important than other jobs, I believe is both opinion and factual.  Jobs are the things we do, to accomplish a goal or task, and in return are paid for our services.  Due to the fact that the world is massive and extremely diverse there are mind boggling amounts of jobs, needing to be fulfilled to make society itself run smoothly.  To say one job is more important than another I believe is a very ignorant statement.  I believe it is very easy to just say one job is more important than another, if one does not take the time to really think about how the world of jobs works and how intertwined the entire system really is.  To start, I will use the example stated previously, is a doctor’s job more important than a teacher’s job? At first instinct a person would usually reply yes, due to the fact that doctors save people’s lives and teacher’s, who’s usual connotation is that of a kindergarten teacher, which is ignorant in itself, is no one where near the same level of importance.  But instead, let’s dive into some thought, with the question, who taught the doctor?  The answer is a teacher of course!  Somebody had to teach the doctor to do his oh so important job of saving lives, no disrespect to doctor’s because I do believe saving lives is an admiral career choice, but teacher’s in this seemingly simple yet complex equation, get the short end of the stick.   I believe jobs and their importance is equally, and this concept is hard to grasp for most people.  A garbage man for example, his job in relation to say an astrophysicist is to most people un-relatable.  The astrophysicist clearly makes an astronomical amount of money compared to the Garbage man, pun intended.  And in the end the scale tips towards the astrophysicist in most people’s lives.  Now let’s break it down, and show why this just is not so.  Say every Garbage man stopped working, they just decided to stop doing their jobs, due to the fact that people believe they are not as important as other jobs; they do this to prove a point.  In about three months or so the streets are littered with trash, the smell in almost every town is putrid, to the point that people can hardly think, and now the all mighty astrophysicist can no longer due his job.  Is this an extreme example? Of course it is, but it shows that all jobs are equally important, and we in most cases judge before we think.  It is an entire system intertwined with each other to the point that if one is removed others are affected.  I believe we judge a jobs importance by salary wage, and educationally grounds needed to obtain the job.  But in the end no job is more important than the next.

Love

What is love? Can it really be summed up in a single definition, or phrase? Is it set in stone or forever changing from person to person?  I believe there is not set definition, there is no certain way to define what love is or does to a person, because I believe love is different for each and every single person.  There is no universal equation or formula that fits what love means and really is in everyone’s life, yes there are similarities, but there are no set in stone rules or regulations.  I believe love can come in many variations, but is broken down into two different categories, love in an intimate way, such as a relationship and love in a friend or family way, kind of like the love you have for your mother or father or their love for you and their children.  So to begin I will focus on the intimate love first, I believe this kind of love is defined by what people do for you, and how they make you feel when they are around you, or you are around them.  The feeling of security even when your world is crashing down, their ability to make you laugh at the darkest times, and the feeling of comfort when around them.  Feeling vulnerable and knowing it is okay.  Love is caring, feeling needed.  Love is what happens when you are not with that special person, how you feel without them and how you hope and deep down know they feel without you too.  When you spend an entire day with them and soon as they leave you miss them like you have not seen them in forever.  The other kind of love is between friends and family usually.  It is the love that is like a close bond, you would do anything for them, to keep them safe and to make them happy.  There is no intimacy but you care for them and about them.  You do not want any harm to come to them and would be lost without them by your side and in your life.   These are the two main kinds of love, and most people experience both of them, usually at the same time.  There are so set ways to define it, it is simply how you feel and what you enjoy. Love is shown in the simplest ways, I simple gesture can show the same amount of love as a diamond ring, it depends on the person.  There are no qualifications, everyone deserves to be loved, it is our god given right that we each deserve to be loved.  Love is a necessity; it is something we cannot live without.  Unfortunately, love is sometimes hard to find, although we all deserve it, it can takes years to find the right person.  I do not believe there is ever too much love, it is not something you can get sick of. It makes you, you, and makes you feel comfortable from the inside out.

Risks

Life is about taking chances and taking risks.  It is about going for something even if it means leaving your little bubble or going out of your comfort zone.  Sometimes the results are not always what you wanted but without taking the risk you will never obtain what you truly desire.  Like what was stated before, taking risks is in most cases is dangerous either physically or mentally and taking a risk means that there is always the possibility that harm can be the outcome.  I have taken my fair share of risks, as I am sure almost everyone has, and of course I have personally experienced both the benefits and the consequences of taking a risk.  For instance I remember just last summer, I was lounging around outside and I was struck with the brilliant idea that I should maybe jump off my room into my above ground pool, and it would not just be the close roof that I have already jumped off of, it would be the second story roof, where I would have to run and leap over my deck, rocks, and finally land in the pool or at least this was the plan.  I went to my upstairs bed room where I pushed all my things away from my window.  I then continued to pop open my screen and place it inside my room, climb out the window and make my way to the side of the house.  I then hoisted myself up to the second story roof which was no easy feat considering it was a few feet high, and it left me with some scraps on my arms due to the ruff shingling I just pushed against while wearing nothing but shorts and a short sleeve t-shirt.  I finally reached my second story roof where I then walked to the corner of the roof, and looked over, this is where I planned to make my fantastic leap from, and gracefully land in my pool unharmed.  After looking what I had to do to make the jump successful not really thinking about what would happen if I wasn’t successful, which now in retrospect could have ended in some pretty bad ways.  I got myself to the top of the roof and prepared myself to run and jump, there was no going back now as I started to run, I was going too fast to slow down so either I was going to jump and possibly make it or I was going to fall off the roof and definitely not make it and get injured severely.  I went with option one where I jumped as far as hard as I could, swinging my arms praying I’d make it.  I landed in the pool I would say about a foot away from the side of the pool.  I was glad I made it and my adrenaline was pulsing through my veins it was an amazing feeling, and afterwards realizing that if I had hit the pool’s side that I could have either been paralyzed or possibly have died.  It was a risk I would surely never try again.

America

The current state of the United States of America is in my opinion not deteriorating at such a rate that if nothing is done our entire country as we know it will collapse to an unrecoverable point.  I believe that the current presidential election mainly focusing on the Republican side is a disgrace to democracy and government as a whole.  It is appalling those candidates like we see here are even in the running to become the president of the United States.  None of which are sound enough to lead us in the right direction, as we need a strong intelligent and well spoken leader adamant in their beliefs and willing to do everything possible to get the job done and get the ball rolling in the right direction.  Our school systems are still declining, teachers who are not getting the job done, and are not preparing students for higher level education are not being removed and replaced.  Our curriculum in general is several grade levels behind where it should be, we are dropping in worldwide educationally rankings and changes must be done.  Transportation is very inefficient and at the rate technology is advancing we should be using much more advanced equipment and transports to get people where they need to go.  Our inability to change, stuck in what works and what is easiest is digging us in to such a hole that soon we will be trapped, with no return.  In conjunction with our poor transport, is the environment which is directly related.  With our enormous production of waste and green house gases we are destroying not only our own country but the entire world as well.  We have tainted nearly all our waterways with some type of pollution and the amount of waste we are adding to landfills is more than we can handle.   Our old ways must change.  They must be replaced with new and more environmentally friendly ideas, because if nothing is done the United States as we know it, will no longer be inhabitable.  I believe that the universal healthcare plan set into action is a step in the right direction.  Everyone deserves to be able to stay healthy and not be billed astronomically.  It is I believe one of the few things being done in a positive direction for the country.  The rate of unemployment is insanely high, although people are arguing that it is slowly climbing and becoming less and less.  Yes this is true, but no it is not happening fast enough; unemployment is still a plague decimating our country and leaving not only individuals but families alike barely being able to survive.  We are still one of the greatest countries in the world, but we have our work cut out for us, and it is has be long enough that we sat back and thought about change while staying stuck in our old ways.  Change not only must be made but it will be made, or we will reach a point of no return.

Memories.

It is true, some people have amazing memories and they have the ability, to recall specific instances, or flashbacks of their lives in great and vivid detail.  Sometimes these vivid memories go back many years, to when they are just a small child.  I of course, am not one of those people.  I have a hard time remembering what I had for dinner the night before, or where I went a week ago, and sometimes it is a little upsetting not being able to recall times of my childhood or parts of my life that made me, me.  I suppose with great thought and effort I could jump start a few old memories, but it would take some sort of trigger for this to happen.  At most I can pull very hazy almost faded like pictures out of my memory of times in my child hood, so I think this a good place to start.  I can remember being in Disney World in Florida as a very small child, standing there next to my stroller.  It was a double wide stroller because it was meant for both my sister and I, and I was in a small little red baseball cap.  With some sort of blonde looking bowl cut for my hair style.  I am standing there in the Magic Kingdom, with one hand holding onto the stroller, posing for the picture.  I cannot remember what happened prior to or after that picture was taken, but it is one of my somewhat vivid memories of my childhood.  Another memory of my child brings me back to the back yard of my old house.  I was outside I had laid eyes on a praying mantis, which at the time I had no idea was.  I got down on my hands and knees and put my face really close to the insect, to get a good look.  All off a sudden the bug attacks my face, striking its extremely sharp razor like arm at my nose.  I jumped back in not just pain but out of surprise as well.  I don’t remember noises or things of that nature, but the colors are extremely vivid and the scenery is like I am actually there again.  It is a wonderful feeling, to remember what it was like to be that young although it is only for just a split second of time.  I remember running back, not crying but in shock and somewhat excitement for I had the feeling I had just discovered a new type of bug.  While the bug of course was not new at all, it was new to me.  The things I can remember of my childhood have no real connection to each other besides the fact that they all occurred in my childhood.  Sometimes I wish that I could remember more of my past vividly like these two memories, but it is what it is, there is not a thing I can do about it.

Nature

The balance of nature is all around us, a constant back and forth, cause and effect reactions, that keep the world itself running smoothly as possible.  This push and pull kind of system is of course made up of what was previously stated, air, water, land, flora, and animals including humans in the animal category as well.  All of these things make up what we know to be nature, or the natural world.  It is hard to pinpoint exactly what the balance of nature is, as it would take tears of study that I do not have, but I can certainly take a guess of what I believe the balance of nature is and how it kind of works.  The systems of nature is kept in balance with millions of push and pull chains where when something happens such as a tree dies, another one is created with a seed and so on and so forth.  Things such as food chains are another huge way the balance of nature is maintained.  Without proper food chains there would easily be an over population of some species as well as the drastic reduction of others, and would completely throw off the balance.  Continuing onward, another way nature keeps itself in balance is by using things like safety cushions such as when there is a forest fire and many of the trees are destroyed, a certain type of pine cones open up and release there seeds, this only happens when a fire occurs, providing a way for life to be reborn and start over again.  Other things such as when massive disasters happen and throw off the balance of nature, after only a few days new life is seen, it’s a miraculous thing to see, and it is a way nature compensates to situations, and eventually the balance is restored maintaining the cycle.  Humans I believe used to one with nature, and did not harm the balance of nature, but currently in today’s society we have gone to extremes and are destroying the place we live, to the point there will be no fixing what we have done.  The balance of nature and its system cannot handle what we are doing.  There is only so much nature can do, and when we are working against her at such a jaw dropping rate, it is a battle nature cannot win.  Things such a emissions from cars, trucks, train, factories and so forth, are putting so much pollution into the air nature simple cannot keep up, and it is scary to think soon it will reach the point of no return.  Things such as the oil spills in the ocean will linger for years and years and in some cases will never return back to its original state.  We are tearing apart our land, and we are traveling on a path straight to hell.  The amount of fuels we use is so much; we will run out in the next 100 or so years if we do not find more.  Global warming is real, and very much alive, and the rate we are going earth will no longer be a livable place anymore.

time travel

When I first read this blog topic, I instantly knew where my first destination would be if I could travel to any time period, although the list is quite extensive.  If I could travel anywhere and back to anytime period first the on the list would be back to the Boston Tea party, where I wish to relive the excitement that pulsed through the city, as people dressed as Indians and the harbor turned black from tons and tons of tea leaves soaked in the waters.  To relive such an important event, that forever changed our country and to feel the electricity in the air, as people were filled with fear and anticipation of what was to come.  Next would be when Lincoln declared that slaves were free in the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, as this would have been a tremendous thing to see, as this was the sole even that tore our country into to two and sparked the fire that would lead to the civil war. Next would definitely be the first moon landing, the excitement the country felt, when we took the first steps on the moon, would be something unforgettable and something I would love to see firsthand.  Ancient Greece would be the next place to visit as I would sit and listen to the Greek philosophers, who sculpted the things we learn about today, and forever advancing the scientific and mathematical worlds.  To visit the birth of flight as the Wright brothers created the first flying machine, which eventually lead to the modern day airplanes we know and love today.  Visiting Pompeii in its final moments would be another great place I would like to visit, supposing you could not be injured while on your visits.  Too visit Rome and to witness a gladiator match although very gruesome, I would want to see firsthand how awful one really was and to see how many people gathered to watch two men slaughter each other.  Continuing onward I wish to visit ancient Egypt, as the built the massive pyramids’ that shock and awe people still today.  To see how they really built these huge buildings, and put to rest what really happened there.  To visit the big bang as it happened, if it really did happen, as it would not only put to rest a never ending argument but it would be amazing to watch an entire galaxy explode into existence.  Staying with the same idea, I would like to go back to the time when Jesus was born and to relive the events taught in the bible.  To live when he lived would be an experience that would be unparalleled.  Next would be to go back and witness the march on Washington.  Last but not least would be to go back in time and visit the time when old fashioned gangster’s were common and still ruled the streets of well known cities today, since I have always been really fascinated with old fashion gangster’s and their weapons such as the Tommy Gun.