Winter blossoms into my soul,
And keeps me encased in a flurry of gold.
The seed of merriment and joy,
Cultivates in the palm of our hearts.
What is winter?
It is a song of silence,
Slowly spreading its lyric across the landscape.
It is the sweet aroma of coffee,
Enveloping the morning with a warm hug.
It is the dawn of a new life,
Awaiting to bloom from a deep sleep.
Link to the article is here.
Recently, I began free writing in my notebook whenever procrastination came around, to motivate myself to continue studying. When I read Didion’s article on notebooks, I found myself relating to her in a lot of ways. I write spontaneous notes inconsistently as well, some entries years apart from each other. I really loved the way she used imagery and language in her article. Her detailed descriptions helped me visualize the memories she was remembering: “We were on her terrace by the sea, and we were finishing the wine left from lunch, trying to get what sun there was, a California winter sun.” (Didion 5) Didion revealed the importance of keeping a notebook, and why “preserving everything observed” has value within it. (Didion 3) We often notice when others around us change, especially loved ones. But to notice that change within ourselves is difficult. When I read my entries from 2012, it seemed like I was reading someone else’s notebook. I felt a little disturbed because that carefree person who wrote about her gelato filled summer vacation had smooth, neat printing laced with a witty sense of humor; a huge contrast with the recent scribbles on existentialism and egalitarianism. Years will fly by, and before we know it, we will have aged into a completely different person. Keeping a notebook enables us to stay in contact with not just our past selves, but reality as well.
This article first caught my attention when I saw it under the “video games” category. They have always been a very important part of my life; gaming has formed some of my most precious memories from childhood, and has always offered me a reason to keep going when things got tough. This article is the most ingenious, eloquent piece of literature I have ever read before. Not only does it evoke a lot of emotion from the connections I formed with the author’s experience with gaming, but it also cleverly strings together diverse events, films, examples, and personal memories to create a work of art. After much speculation, I reached a conclusion: The article itself is like a game of Tetris; the paragraphs are like blocks that seem to have no meaning individually, but once the reader connects the dots and fits them together, a clear picture is formed. There is no clear hint as to what the article is trying to address, as it’s been designed to leave that conclusion up to the reader, but I personally believe it is criticizing the concept of gaming. Video games are unhealthy to an extent, but that is not solely what the article is about – rather, it is that mindset, that mindset that we have when there is a challenge before us. Instead of relishing in the struggle to work through levels to beat the final boss, we would rather take shortcuts and cheat to win the game. But once we win the game, what next? There is no point anymore. We do not feel so mighty anymore, even though we beat the game; all that is left is a feeling of emptiness. Due to the Tetris effect, the lines between reality and the virtual world blur, and our lives are nothing more than a game to beat. There is no room for connections with NPCS or exciting side quests to do for the sake of adventure; just objectives and achievements to reach.
Humor is a strained silence filled with bodies shaking of laughter.
Feels like a sharp slap on the knee, the punch line hitting it’s mark.
Tastes like a pomegranate, juice exploding out of nothingness.
Looks like flames leaping into the hearth, warming our hearts.
Humor smells like an intoxicating perfume, dizziness infecting our consciousness.
Link to the article is here.
This article caught my interest the moment I read the title. Anything providing insight on our education system is worth the read, as almost every single person I have questioned have all agreed – it is flawed and needs to be improved. The author argues that teachers are not pushing their students hard enough, and that there is too much of an emphasis on playing nice in order to preserve the student’s feelings and confidence. I am in agreement. When I compare my elementary and middle school teachers to my high school teachers, they certainly encouraged us to challenge ourselves more back then. However, it is not only egalitarianism that contributes to fewer entrepreneurs and innovative students. Our advance in technology has made us dependent on Google, and we no longer read as much as a society. We have become accustomed to receiving instantaneous results, rather than persevering through failure to reach our goals. While I do agree teachers should increase competition and challenge their students more, they must do it in moderation. There is a limit. In South Korea and China, it is not uncommon for many students to commit suicide because of pressure and stress from their teachers and parents.
This author uses very rich vocabulary, and their sentences are very concise: “As a result, the ripple effect of this will undoubtedly instill some level of healthy competition among burgeoning innovative Canadians” (Lacavera). Their style works well to convey their message, as the issue they are addressing is serious.
Link to essay here.
Kate Hutton highlights the potential young people possess, and reflects on her experience as an English 10 teacher. She mentions reading To Kill a Mockingbird with her students, which was a memorable experience for my Grade 10 year. Not only did this connection catch my attention, but also her writing style. She utilized rhetorical questions and her tone changed from humorous to serious, creating a contrast between the beginning and end of the essay: “…the course that I teach – English 10 – should be re-titled ‘Doom and Gloom Literature.’” Hutton explains that as we age, our hearts become “hardened” and we grow to be ignorant towards all the injustice occurring in the world. Growing up, I have always noticed this within many of my older friends. These observations led me to reach the same conclusion as Hutton: We should shed the barriers around our hearts and remain hopeful for the future, in order to make the world a better place.
This quote from Gandalf really captures the essence of Allison Howard’s essay, The South African Storm. Allison discusses the issue of how conventional thinking can influence our instincts and cause us to act with a racist attitude. She suggests that even though she alone cannot fix the past or do anything to change racism around the world, she does have the power to change her own everyday actions. Those small actions change the present in the lives of those around her, which is what really matters. This idea is supported by Gandalf’s quote, which states small, daily actions defeats the greatest conflicts, which would be institutionalized racism in Allison’s essay. From my own personal observations, I have found that Gandalf’s saying is true. When I witness bullying happening around me, adult intervention does not always put an end to it. Instead, when other individuals of the same age stand up for each other, the bullies have less power over them. The more we include and accept others for their differences in our daily lives, the less opportunities bullies will have to take advantage of another’s weakness. Hence, this philosophy presented by Gandalf and Allison provides insight on making the world a better place.
Many of my questions about the life of Miss Brill and the true meaning behind the short story were answered after the class discussion. It was hard picking apart every piece of the story on my own, as there was just so many different components to think about. In some ways, I could connect to Miss Brill. When I access the online world, I feel like I am part of an international community that accepts you for who you are, no matter your race, religion, appearance, and socioeconomic status. However, the reality is that I am sitting alone in my dark room, tapping away on a piece of metal. They do not know who I am in person. I was reminded of how our perceptions of ourselves and the world around us can be false. But then this raises the question – what is the truth then? Is how society measures my value as a human being correct, and everything I thought I knew about myself, wrong? Or perhaps – do our combined perceptions work together to create my identity?