Community Service

I started my community service in the middle of January. When I asked my mom about any ideas, she suggested I work at her hospital as a bingo supervisor. Since she was the clinical coordinator at Libertyville, Illinois in Winchester House, it was easy for me to get the job. On the first day, I got to call out the numbers and letters when the elderly played bingo. The room was big and most, if not all the people were nice about me starting.They welcomed me with open arms and was glad to have me aboard. I got to know most of the elderly there, but I became closer with the female portion of the room. Every Tuesday I would start at 2:30-7:00 and the same hours on the weekends. It was such a rewarding experience. I've worked with elderly before, but I never got to knew them personally like I did now. Not only do we get to play bingo, but we get to eat, too. The players get a half an hour break and are aloud to go eat/drink or socialize with other people. However, their drinking fountain is across the hall, so most of the time I'm instructed to help them walk. Some would be open to conversation and others would be reserved. I loved watching people play because it makes me feel happy. Sometimes if there weren't enough players, I would even get in. I've learned that community service is a rewarding experience and I'm lucky enough to have worked with these people. This five hour work day may seem long, but it is indeed worth the while. I knew the minute I heard about this I would want to do it and I'm glad I did. If it weren't for this experience, I wouldn't have met such sweet, amazing, kind-hearted people.

Cookie Thief

When I hear the phrase "cookie thief", I literally think of someone stealing another person's cookies. That all changed today when our class read a short poem about two people sharing cookies. It was about a girl who thought a guy at the airport was being rude by taking her share of cookies, but when she went to go and leave, she realized her bag of cookies was right where she left it and the guy was just sharing his portion. The woman thought she was being selfish and should've been a lot nicer to the man. Also in class today, we watched videos on different people and how they've made an impact on people's lives. Most of these people have disabilities and were very dependent on their wheelchair or prostetic hands or legs. This was so inspirational to watch because I could relate to what the people have been through. Growing up, I was diagnosed with a physical disability called cerebral palsy. There are two kinds - a mild kind and a severe kind. I have the mild kind, meaning I can walk, just  not as well as other people and there are some things I can and can't do. There have been times where I've been told, "you're not going far in life with that disability" or something along those lines. It's a bit of a downer to hear these kinds of things, but I've gotten used to it. I try my hardest when it comes to physical activites or sports because I know if someone else who has another disability similar to mine can, then so can I. People often say, "oh, you can't do this because of the way you walk." Well, they're wrong because people who have any kind of disability - learning or physical - they can learn to overcome it. I know I have.

A Bronx Tale

In social studies or history, whatever you've learned to call it as, people learn about racism and how it has made a huge impact on the world today. Ever since we were little kids, teachers have taught us how whites acted towards blacks. They thought they were superior in all situations. Whites would have their own section and blacks would too. It was clearly unfair. There had to be some changes. In class for the past week, we've been watching a movie called "A Bronx Tale". It's about a young man who grows up in the Bronx learning to deal with racism. Growing up, his parents taught him that African Americans were bad news. It was obvious that racism plays a huge part in this movie. Each group has their own way of doing things. Both groups had their own perspectives of one another, but when the main character interacts with someone from the opposite side, he learns that the girl isn't as different as he thought. Truth is, they were very similar, they just do things differently. I think in everyday life there still is some racism going on. We think it's stopped by now, but there could still be some people out there who are racist. I remember watching an old show on Disney channel called "That's So Raven". There was one episode were the main character, Raven, got a job at her favorite clothing store. She went through a series of tests to prove she was right for the job. She did a great job, but unfortunately didn't get the job because she was black. The second day she went into the store, she didn't realize until then that it was a "Whites only" store. The woman admitted on TV that she doesn't hire black people. I guess that's how she was raised - that's how some people today are raised. There's nothing we can do but accept it. Like "C" said in the movie, you need to learn to accept people for who they are. He had the wrong perception of a girl he truly ended up caring about. Some people think it's okay to call blacks the "N" word or any other hurtful name, but it really isn't. You're not doing anything except making a fool out of yourself. People don't need to like certain others, they just need to accept and realize that different people/different groups shape the person they end up becoming. The choices they make also influence who they are. Watching the movie, I noticed that "C"'s father and Sonny were a big influence on the person he has turned out to be. He may have grown up too fast according to his father, but he was very smart when it came to the streets. Many people feared Sonny, and they feared C, but that's only because they saw what was on the outside. Both of them were good guys, they just had different ways of showing it. So keep an open mind when you meet someone new. If you judge somebody before actually getting to know them, you may find that you have lots in common.

Groups

They say high school is supposed to be the best year of your life. People try new things, make new friends, and change - some for the worst, and some for the better. But in most high schools, there are various cliques - the populars, the jocks, goths/scene, and nerds. As shown on the picture to the left, "Mean Girls" is one of the movies I think displays in-groups and out-groups the best. In this movie, the main character, Cady, is a new student who tries going to a public high school for the first time after being home schooled almost all her life. She makes friends with both the "freaks" and "the plastics" (aka the populars). Everything is kept on the down low until a "burn book" is released to the entire school. This book had secrets about everyone and things that others never knew - probably even found shocking. After a talk with the whole junior girl class, each girl is required to apologize by playing "trust fall". If a girl's apology seemed sincere enough, you would be caught. If it didn't, you would be left on the ground. Eventually every girl was forgiven and the plastics were no more. Other groups got the chance to learn about each other and accepted each girl for who they were. All the drama that happened in the past was no more. "In class today, we got to learn about in-groups and out - groups, which instantly made me think of this movie because of how each group of girls is seperated. Mr. Sal made everyone in class go into different sides of the room - black shirts on one side and colored shirts on the other. Each person in the groups judged one another by what they were wearing. People who were wearing black were told, "It was the first thing that they could find", or "It makes you look slimmer." and people on the colored side were told "They were trying to follow the style."  Whne people are seperated into groups, they don't really pay attention to any other group except for their own. Each one only pays attention to what they see on the outside. They only see what everyone in that particular group is wearing or how they act, but they don't get the chance to get to know the people. From my personal experience, I know many groups I've wanted to become a part of, but never got the chance to because I was either too scared or didn't want to make a fool of myself. Truth is, though, everyone is the same in their own way. They just have different groups of friends or like things that others may find weird. If we all got the chance to know each other or sit down, then maybe things would be different.

Abandoned Ship

Have you ever pictured yourself, ten, twenty years from now being stranded on a desert island? Or maybe even now, being in a completely different environment - not knowing what to do? Maybe you're with a group of friends but you can only keep a certain amount. What would your roll be? Do you want to survive? I know I would. Being alone in the middle of nowhere is one thing - scary, mind blowing - what have you. However, when you're with a group of people, it can ease your nerves just a bit because then you know you're not alone. How would you survive? On Friday, the class did an activity in preparation for "Abandoned Ship". There were sixteen people selected out of twenty - eight students. Of those sixteen, each one had a role. There were two people (in my opinion) who stood out the most - the poet and captain. Although I wasn't involved in this activity, I was observing everything each person did. Each person acted differently toward this situation. The poet and captain took charge and stated their role. Most people would've thought right away to get rid of the poet, but since she stated that she was in the navy, they decided to keep her. However, most of the people who got eliminated were of old age or people who thought wouldn't make good use. In today's world, there's constant judging, both on physical appearance and what that person has to offer. For example, there was a football player on the boat. Passengers immediately thought to get rid of him because he was just some big guy with no intellect to give to the group. Everywhere nowadays - high school or work - people are constantly being judged on how they look or how they do things. If they don't do something the way the other person wants it, then they're wrong. But what most people don't look at is what's on the inside. There is more than meets the eye. Someone who may appear to be muscular and tough could turn out to be someone who is smart and outgoing. I think people should become more open minded and look at what people have to give. We don't pay attention to what people are like on the inside because all we see is how they act on the outside, when in reality, they could be completely different. Getting to know someone is key when starting a relationship of any kind, and if people got the chance to do that in the class activity (in a more calm manner), then things would've turned out a little more smoothly.