April 2016 archive

17
Apr
2016

The Unseen Forces

categories: English 9

front page mock up MOCK UP SPIRIT TOP.png

 

In the chapter Weeksboro, Maine, Alex is trying to get her friend Steph a boyfriend. Steph is representing the science and logical side of life, the concrete things which can be measured, the tangible. She doesn’t want to have a boyfriend, she doesn’t believe in love, an unseen force. On the other hand, Alex represents the intangible, love, imagination, and hope etc. The theme in this chapter is unseen forces, what Alex represents, but by the end, they both believe in. The two girls go to the spot where the whirligig is, and Alex starts guiding Steph through a guided visual journey, wishing to the Whirligig that Steph gets a boyfriend. As Alex is wishing, Steph starts to go along with it, she’s still sceptical about it, but she really listens to what Alex is saying. Alex tries to convince Steph that the whirligig is powerful and can help her. “Thoughts are powerful. They’re the seeds of events. By thinking something, we can help make it happen.” Page 25. This quote is important, because it describes the idea that something intangible (imagination, creativity, the idea), has to be there first in order to create something tangible (science, math, inventions). This relates to the question, “Why do we only focus on the tangible or the material in our culture?” We need both tangible and intangible objects in our lives, because that’s how inventions are created. Every great invention came from an idea. After Alex is done her visual guide, Steph finds love, the brother of the boy who was spying on them. Proving that unseen forces can overpower the tangible. “But just in case unseen forces do exist, I pay my respects to them by keeping the whirligig painted and repaired.” Page 32 . This quote confirms that Steph believes in the unseen force that the whirligig held. It changed Steph’s life and helped her find her “heart’s joy” and now she believes in its higher power. In conclusion, the two- intangible and tangible need to work together for humans and ideas to move forward.

04
Apr
2016

Whirligig Introductory Assignment

categories: English 9

fe78c7a687cc659a537ea557ef81b0a2I think letting go and moving on is necessary for happiness and peace. However, forgiveness is not. This photo perfectly explains what I am trying to say, forgiveness is for the other person to have peace; But just because I have forgiven someone, does not mean that I am happy or at peace. If someone apologizes and asks for my forgiveness, I will most likely give it to them, but I will not move on right away. Personally, it takes time for me to be able to move on. I cannot forgive someone who does not ask for my forgiveness, and It takes me a long time to move on from that type of situation. On the other side, when I know that I am wrong in a situation, I will apologize. However, it is difficult for me to apologize to someone when they don’t tell me that they are upset or mad at me, and I have to figure it out by myself. As humans, we automatically want revenge, or to “get back at them.” I think restorative justice is something that I wouldn’t be able to do. I don’t usually get revenge, but once someone does something that hurts me, I don’t trust them as much as I used to. However, on a larger scale, for example, the situation in “Walking after midnight,” I don’t know how I would react. If something that big happened in my life, I don’t think I would be able to forgive the person. And without forgiveness, it would be difficult to move on. However, I don’t think I would want to see the criminal executed, or in pain, because that wouldn’t provide me with any closure. Overall, it is difficult for me to move on from a drastic situation, and because I never have been in such a serious and devastating place I don’t know how I would react.  I do believe in the idea of restorative justice, and that I could help someone who has done wrong in someone else’s life, but not if that person did wrong in mine.