Are We There Yet?

This school year I have to say has been the most stressful year of my academic career. However, being able to here an enlightening lecture and learn much information in 7th period made up for the turmoil we call junior year.

I am really going to miss being in APLAC next year. This course has taught me how to become a better student, leader, and overall model for society. It opened my eyes to the truth behind our darkest fears and brought me to a new understanding of thinking. I learned new ways to study and make it fun through group games (even though musical chairs was a fail), I learned how to handle others opinions in a positive manner, and of course learn ENGLISH!!! All of these things prepared me for any academic challenge and including college life (which I'm not really ready for).

With the wisdom of Mr. Thomas' off topic anecdotes, I was able to pick up a few life lessons along with my english education. He taught me the true underlying ways of society, preparing me for whatever obstacle I may face. His story of his family and his background ensured me that I am the only person that can stand in the way of my success. I was taught how to argue vividly and without the use of fallacy language which all in all became my favorite essay and very easy to write in my opinion because I could use my personal knowledge to attack the argument as well. Unlike the rhetorical essay which kicked my butt all this year and was very challenging due to the fact I do not know many devices, Mr. T pushed me to accept the challenge and not let it defeat me. 

Ok time for me to be truly honest, I AM NOT A READER!!! However, Mr. Thomas' socratics made me want to read. Partially because I never wanted to seem like the dumb one in the conversation. My favorite read of this year was the Alice Walker piece which really opened my eyes because it reminded me of how my mother and my aunt act towards each other and in their lives. I really connected to "Everyday use" unlike "Fall of the House of Usher" which really creeped me out and was a very boring read. 

Overall I loved this year and Mr. Thomas is such an awesome teacher. He has prepared me for my journey ahead and made me an overall stronger person. But even though this may be true, I am ready for this school year to be over because I will officially be a SENIOR!!! C/O 2015 HERE I COME!!!!!!!!!

Things I Carry

There are many things that I take with me day to day. These things help become the person you all know and see day to day.

First and for most, I will and never go anywhere without my phone. My phone has my entire life on it. Literally! Just like any other normal teen, my cell phone carries evidence of my daily life and if was to ever leave my sight, I just might die. I went one day without my cell phone and felt torn away from the world. I vowed to myself I would never go through that again.

My major goal that I carry day to day is to be successful. I come from a family of college dropouts. The last person to complete college in my family was my grandmother and her sisters which was nearly two generations ago. I watch at how hard my mom and dad works everyday to build a life for my little sister and I and seeing them struggle makes me want to work hard to succeed in my life. Just to have my mom one day say "I'm proud of you, you made it Lauren" drives me to stay in school and do my best in anything I put my mind to.

Just as in The Things They Carried, everyone has a "Martha" and mines just happens to be my best friend. In the past, I have had trouble trusting boys and he has made me finding trust easy again. He has always there for me even when I treat him like the dirt underneath my shoe. I honestly do not know why he sticks around and puts up with me but he does. He has proven to me that not all people are the same, there are some amazing people left in the world and I'm happy that I have one of them in my life.

Respect, hard work, and faith. When I think about personality, these three characteristics come to mind. As I child, I was taught to always have respect for others even when they do not respect you. It was a lesson that I was first exposed to by my grandmother and mom and something I take with me and use daily. In order to reach my goals in life I know that it will take hard work and dedication. I have very high expectations for my life and no shortcuts will be available to reach them so I have do buckle down, get serious, and strive for my goals. Yet no matter how much hard work I do or how respectable I am none of these things can not be possible without my faith. As a Christian, it is important for me to be strong in my faith and trust that my God has a purpose for my life. Only then can I peruse my dreams and truly be successful.

Lastly, one thing I cannot live without it my middle school memory. During middle school, I was bullied by my peers and that deeply affected me in a negative way. Yet, because of my situation
I was able to become a stronger and wiser person. It was a traumatic experience for me and even though it helped me grow as person I still think about those events everyday. They take a very strong toll on me and I still deal with the trauma.

All of these things helped shape and created who I am in life. Whether it was good or bad every event had an effect on me and has made me who I am today and who I am becoming.

The X Truth

Throughout history, people have dug out information to scrutinize and criticize America's most powerful leaders. The higher the position the more faults people find in their work. This can be traced back as far as the beginning of American history. Former President Roosevelt described these people as "muckrakers" and as the world gets smaller due to technology, everyone is a muckraker.

 My main focus example of this American obsession of faults is a man who stated, "We didn't land on Plymouth Rock, Plymouth Rock landed on us." Thats right, Mr. Malcolm X himself. As we know he was a very controversial leader during the Civil Rights Movement who statics were totally opposite than Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Malcolm X, was the premier poster child for the Nation of Islam and heavily followed the beliefs of Elijah Muhammad. 

Malcolm was no stranger to public scrutiny especially since he was against whites and blacks blending as one. His tactics were black nationalism and violence if need be to perserve the beauty and intelligence of blacks. His most outrageous comment however was made after the death of President JFK. He felt absolutely no sympathy and felt all whites were the same and he had what was coming to him.

Even though this was Malcolm during his time with the Nation of Islam, he received personal insight after a voyage to Mecca. He came back to the states open to change his ideas about blacks and whites which led to his sad assassination. Its terrible that his life couldn't be sought the way it should be but that is what the public does to great people.

Truth about Heroes!!

We all have grew up with the image of the Perfect Hero. Someone who does not harm, has no flaws, and becomes the earthly savior. However modern-day television has re-arranged the former conviction of a hero to have them connect more to its audience and add drama that lures us in. Smart people like me know it as the anti-hero.

Anti heroes are growing in numbers in american television. One of my favorites is Gregory House from the hit medical show House. House is known in the show as an drug addicted, egotistical airhead who just happens to be a medical genius. Despite making everyone upset and annoyed he saves lives every episode with his excessive knowledge of medicine.

Another example of anti hero is Ichabod Crane from Sleepy Hollow. Even though the story itself is profound and long and the Disney version is much more entertaining, both movie and the story capture the character of Ichabod. Just like House, Ichabod is seen as the hero in the story. However he wanted a girl for her father's money, stole from children and did whatever he could to get what he wanted. Even though Ichabod does all of these things, the story still sets him up as a hero and the uneducated audience goes along with it.

Both House and Ichabod both carry hero like qualities yet they are overshadowed by their selfishness and egotistical attitudes. Even with the audience's knowledge of this, they still praise the fictional character as heroes. Well sorry to break it to you, they are anti heroes ladies and gentlemen.

You have been officially slayed by the Queen!