Everybody's Free to Wear Sunscreen

"Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not
understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded."
Wow. This piece of advice really touched me.  Its actually funny because just last night my mom was talking to my sister and I about how you never realize what you have until its gone.  Its ashame that we realize we are beautiful when our features start to age.  It really goes to show that you need to accept yourself and appreciate your youth while you have it.  I can remember one time my grandmom told that if she had one wish it would be to go back in time and become more outgoing.  When she was a teenager, she didn't think she was pretty so she never talked anybody.  It took her 65 years for her to realize her beauty.  This really impacted me and I began to look at myself with some respect.  In short, I know Im not perfect, but after hearing this line, I'm learning to accept it.

Joyas Voladoras

The essay we read really made me look at life in a new prospective.  However, I could go on and on about my feelings towards this essay in general.  The line, "Every creature on earth has approximately two billion heartbeats to spend in a lifetime.  You can spend them slowly, like a tortoise, and live to be two hundred years old, or you can spend them fast, like a hummingbird, and live to be two years old." All last night, I could not get that idea out of my head.  So many questions popped in my head.  Can we control how fast our heart beats?  Does someone who has a fast heartbeat fly through life?  Does a tortoise live in "slowmotion"?  I dont understand why this statemnt has made an effect on my life but it has.  It made me realize that life is too short in a way that you can't worry about things.  I mean the poor hummingbird only has two years to conquer everything on its bucketlist! (If it has one). It took me 13 years to build up the courage to go polar plunging! Imagine a hummigbird with only a 2 year span, not that they would do it.

The way I look at this essay is that its not pessimistic but revealing.  For instance, I never thought about the chambers in my heart as a house that only myself could see.  I actually never even thought about my heart in a deep aspect but more of just an organ that keeps me alive.  This essay was an eye opener and taught me things that never even crossed my mined.  Like a whale's heart.  I now look at the reason why they travel in groups is because they have huge hearts.  Before I thought it was just a habit.  However, its kind of boring to look at it in a scientific way.  When you think of it in a deep way, it makes me smile.  That's important.  And throughout the whole essay, I was smiling.:)

Teach me something worth knowing!

In school, we learn concepts that only stay in my mind until after the test.  However, I have learned nothing in school about real life issues that will come affect you day after day in your future. For instance, you spend the majority of your 19 years of life stuck in school learning about things you forget over summer. You dont learn things that are essentail to life such as being a moral person and dealing with love or losing a close one.  School is said to help you prepare for the future but all its preparing you to do is find the angle measurements of a triangle. Nothing taught in school is in a deep meaningful aspect that actually changes you.  It seems as though the events that affect our lives the most are the ones we NEVER focus upon in school.  These events such as losing a loved one can cause depression and many other complicated feelings that us teenagers don't know how to handle because it was never truly taught to us. We feel alone and left for dead because no one is there that understands.

Additionly,  we are never taught about love and marriage and making a commitment.  Marriage and finding that one special person is a major event in a persons life and it is never touched upon in class.  Everybody had their assumptions on what love is but nobody knows exactly since its never talked about.  Now don't get me wrong, teachers don't hold all the right answers.  I've also heard that love is found differently with each person however, we as students aren't taught that and expect a fairy-tale ending.

In short, the things that mean the most to us are the ones everyone seems to shy away from.

Greatness of Humanity

Humanity if you think of it does have an upside even though most of it is overpowered with negative thoughts and ideas.  The person who bests summerizes the happiness in humanity I believe is Lady Gaga. Lady Gaga has been involved in many anti-bully organizations and has given numerous donations.  It sounds like any other celebrity trying to get higher ratings. However, "other celebrities" donate or participate in an organization one time where as Lady Gaga is consistant.  She is constantly helping out with people who are feeling insecure or need someone to talk to about a bully incident.  She even organizes a live chat room once in a while so people are free to spill their troubles and she gives them support.  Also, Lady Gaga is the complete oppisite of normal.  Everything from her exquisit outfits to her spontanous performances screams orignial.  It just shows the lack of care she has for anyone who thinks badly of her.  She's herself and she's not changing.  Unfortuantly, society is not like that but I wish it was.  We were all born different but it seems as we progress we become more and more like each other and it needs to stop.  After saying this, Lady Gaga would be a perfect person to describe the greatness in humanity because she helps out, isn't afraid to be herself, and most importantly excepts her flaws.

The Artsy Outside

Olympic Pride

When I came across this photo, the first thing that came to my mind was how happy the synchronized swimmer was to be participating in the torch relay for the London Olympics.  Nadine Struijk of The Netherlands was in the Dutch national synchronized swim team for many years but now coaches the junior Dutch team.  The vibe that the photo gives off was really addicting to me and thats why I chose it.  It gave me this feeling that you have to strive for your goals in order to achieve them.  I had to stare at the photo for a couple of minutes in order to understand its full significance.  I think at first glance I just saw a lady jumping in the air with the Olympic torch.  But as I stared at it longer, I began to get a feeling of acomplishment coming from the swimmer which is what I think people might miss at first glance.  Basically, this photo is the story of never giving up because one day, you might actually participate in the Olympic torch relay.  This photo means a lot of things to me, but one in particular is that sometimes your going to be out of breath but that doesn't mean you stop.  If you do stop, you never achieve your goals.  If you keep going, you eventually will.  A question I'd like to ask is how much work has she put into synchronized swimming in order to participate in such a honoring event?

Looking In