Indigenous to our Area

There are a few select items that are indigenous to our area. Some of these things include the horseshoe, and the blue violet flower. The flower does not really surprise me because that is nature related. The horseshoe however is extremely suprising to me. I find it hard to believe that an item so good and so popular in our area in not even sold around the country. It is very surprising and makes me wonder why no one else eats them. I have often wondered this and it makes me think about the possible reasons why. I think the reason is most likely because other people do not know about it. I think that if other states knew about the horseshoe and how good it is, they would start to serve it also. I can not think of any other just reason why it would not be possible in other parts of the country. The reason is defiantly not because of the taste. There is nothing not to like about a horseshoe. It's not just because other people think that the horseshoe is disgusting, because this is not true. I think that people in other parts of the country need to start eating the horseshoe too. They would probably enjoy it as much as we do here in central Illinois. I do not think that I will every really understand why no one else eats the horseshoe in other parts of the country. As far as the flower goes, I do not find this very surprising. There are many things in the world that only grow in one place. Illinois has its own unique climate that is not quite the same as anywhere else in the world. This is most likely why the flower only grows in Illinois. These are two things that are indigenous to Illinois. Maybe one day the horseshoe will spread and become just as popular in other parts of the world. If so, then Illinois will receive all of the credit for it.

Thanksgiving Memoir

I had a very good Thanksgiving. The meal was very good and I enjoyed everything that happened during the day. Thanksgiving turned out to be a very fun time off from school. It was very enjoyable and is making me look forward to Christmas break even more. I guess my epiphany for the Thanksgiving break would be my realization that I enjoy my time away from school so much more than my time in it. I realize this every weekend, but it was even more so over Thanksgiving because of how much time we had off. During the time off I had a lot of fun and did a lot of things. When the Sunday before school finally rolled around, I did not want to go back what so ever. I was dreading going back and I wanted nothing more than the break to just never end. My realization would of had to of been my thoughts about school and how much I did not want to go back. I realize that this is not possible, but it was just what I was feeling at the time. I still maintain that feeling about school, but I do not dread going to it every day. It is not that bad, but I would love to have more time off, especially on weekends. I will not be any happier when summer finally comes around. I cannot wait for it. I find the time that we get off to be very valuable and I even wish that summer could be longer than it already is. It is a very fun time, and I want it to be here already. My Thanksgiving Day epiphany was what made me think about how much I enjoy my free time and how much I want more time off from school. I need a break from all the work that I have this year. Thankfully, next year, I will not have as much homework or as much to do. This was the mental change that I went through during my Thanksgiving break.

Red Badge of Courage Critical Review Analisis

The critical review that I have read says that The Red Badge of Courage was the most realistic depiction of the civil war. The story was written after the Civil War and yet it still manages to capture the feelings and attitude of the entire thing. I would agree that the story was very realistic and factual. It was very interesting and from what I know about the war, was very true. The story was very descriptive, especially about the soldier’s mental state of mind and what they thought about during the war. The critical review says, though the novel treats war realistically, it is primarily a psychological portrayal of Henry's terrifying experience of combat during two days. I would definitely agree with this. There was not much action in the story and it even got kind of boring because nothing would ever happen. The story was all in Henry's mind. I did not enjoy this and thought it needed more action and fighting to keep the reader interested in the story. This would have made the story much more enjoyable in my opinion and would have made me much more interested in the story line of the book. The author of the critical review says that he is not sure if Henry has developed in to a hero by the end of the story. I would have to say that Henry is indeed a hero by the time the story reaches its conclusion. Henry has gone so far from when he first joined the battle. He has a completely different mental state of mind, and makes a difference in the war. Henry did not know what to do at first, but by the end of The Red Badge of Courage, he has changed and developed in to a completely different person. Henry finally found his courage and is now one of the best fighters in his division. I think that he developed in to a hero. I think that I agree with most points made in the literary analysis that I have read about The Red Badge of Courage.

The Red Badge of Courage 9-20

The Red Badge of Courage was much more enjoyable in chapters 9-20. The story picked up and had much more action and adventure. It was a much more enjoyable read for me. Henry actually did not run away from his problems, but he learned to stand his ground and fight. This made the book have much more action and it became very exciting as Henry developed in to the best fighter in his division. I think the author did a very good job developing Henry's character as the story progressed. The young soldier changed a lot as the story progressed. Henry went from a cowardice, scared soldier, to a fearless fighter. He was one of the best in his division, and his commander even told him, If every soldier fought like you then this war would be over in no time. This probably meant a lot to Henry. It was never that Henry couldn't fight, it was just that he never had confidence in himself. Once he gained confidence in himself, Henry was afraid of nothing. He learned that he could defeat anyone and could be the best fighter. He definitely was after he gained the confidence in himself. I thought it was very cool how Henry picked up the flag in battle and carried it for his troop. He saw that his fellow soldier had been killed so Henry got the flag and carried it for the division. This was very important and symbolic. Henry kind of became the leader of the troop when this happened. He was already the best fighter, but this just made it even better for Henry. The Red Badge of Courage was much more enjoyable overall in the second half of the story. Henry finally realized what he had to do and this made the story much more entertaining. I did not think that Henry would ever find his courage to fight, but I was clearly wrong. Henry eventually realized what was best for the army and for himself.

Red Badge of Courage 1-8

After reading chapters one through eight of The Red Badge of Courage, I am not a fan of the book so far. The story is very drawn out and does not really seem to go anywhere. For all the writing that is done, nothing really happened in the story. It is about a boy who enlists in the army. The young soldier is an coward and is afraid to fight. He is constantly worrying about whither or not he will fight, or run. He asks other people what they will do when the fighting comes to hear their opinions. I hope we do not have men as cowardly as this fighting for our country today. Granted, this man had no prior training, but he still should have the courage to stand his ground and fight for what he believes in. I do not think that I would have much trouble staying to fight. Especially if it was my idea to enlist in the army. This is what I do not understand about it. It was the boy's decision to enlist in the army, then when he gets there he does not want to do any of the dirty work. He should have thought his decision through a little better before he got in to that situation. It is kind of a big deal to risk you life for something you believe in, so if you are not willing to do so, you should not try to fake it. The Red Badge of Courage is not extremely interesting so far. I hope there will be some more action in the upcoming chapters. It would be a decent novel if there was more going on. I also think that the boy will become more strong and less cowardly as the story goes on. I think he will stand up for what he believes in and will learn to fight instead of run. Overall The Red Badge of Courage is an okay story and I hope it will pick up in the upcoming chapters.

Field Trip

I thought the Veterans Day field was very fun and exciting. I thought it was very educational and was an overall good experience. I found that everyone was very respectful and had a good time. I liked the fact that we went many different places and did not just do one thing all day. This made the day much more enjoyable and time consuming. I think that we should go on more field trips as a school. I think that everyone would agree that the day was a success, and no one got into much trouble. Since we all behaved so well, I think it would be a good idea to go on an all school field trip more often. It was much better than actual day of normal school would have been, and I feel that I learned the same amount that I would on an average day at school. I hate going through the exact same routine everyday at school and I feel that a field trip on occasion would be a nice change of scenery. My favorite stop on Friday was definitely Camp Lincoln. This stop was very interesting and fun. We got to see all of the guns and artillery used in the past and present wars. I thought this was very intriguing to learn about. We could see how guns and uniform have developed over time and wars. This was very cool and was by far the best stop in my opinion. The trip was entertaining and proved that our school can handle an all school field trip because of the quality student and teachers that we have here. I do not think that many other schools could have handled that responsibility and have done as well as we did on the trip. I found our school’s overall behavior to be exceptional and very mature. Overall the trip was very a very big success and I hope that we will be attending another one very soon.

When Dreaming Seems Real

I can not really remember any of the dreams that I have had recently. I honestly have not been dreaming a lot in my sleep, and if I have, then I can not remember what I dreamt about. I used to have dreams all the time that I could remember. Back a few years ago I would have crazy dreams all the time, but I can not remember the last time I have had one that I can remember. I would dream about all kinds of crazy things a few years ago. It went from baseball to fighting to nightmares. I could remember my dreams all the time. I day dream all the time now though. I will be sitting in class and just stare out the window or at the wall lost in my thoughts. I often do not realize that I am doing this until after a minute or so. I try not to do this when we are doing something important in school, but sometimes I cannot help it. I do not actually fall asleep in school but I do day dream a lot. When I day dream it is kind of an escape for me. It is just a temporary escape from what is going on all around me. I will not really think about anything particular, but I will just relax and try to forget all my problems. I find day dreaming can be very relaxing and helpful, especially if you have a lot of stress on yourself. It is a good escape and just lets you take your mind off your troubles for a few minutes. I will sometimes just think about all my problems and think about what I am going to do to fix whatever is wrong. Other times I will reflect on what is going on very well in my life and I will just think about what I did to make that happen. I like to day dream and I do it often. As far a real dreaming goes, I do not think that I have been doing it recently. If I have then I can not remember it.

My Favorite Tall Tale

I can honestly say that I do not have a favorite tall tale. I can not remember the last time that I have read a tall tale or heard one. I really have no opinion of them. I remember a long time ago we used to read tall tales in school, but I do not really remember many of them very well. I remember there was one about Paul Bunion, Jack and the Beanstalk, and there was Jonny Appleseed. These are some of the more well known tall tales. I also remember one about a black man who worked for the railroad and he challanged a machine to see who could do the job faster. The man won, but he died after he did so. I do not remember what this tall tale was called, but I'm going to say that it was my favorite. It was a very good story from what I can remember from it. I enjoyed this tall tale the most back in the day, even though the name is escaping me at the moment. I think tall tales were very interesting to read. I would prefer reading them in comparison to Moby Dick or some other highly acclaimed story that I have no real intrest in. Tall tales were always interesting and at least kept me entertained. I can not say the same for The Grapes of Wrath, Moby Dick, etc. I think we should spend more time on the subject. I have not heard a tall tale in a very long time and I think it would be very benificial to my education if we spent a few months on the subject. Maybe dedicate an entire quarter or semester to the subject? My favorite tall tale was definently the one about the man who out preformed the machine in the railroad contest. This was very entertaining and a fun read. I do not know the title to this story, but it was the best tall tale that I have ever heard.

Vengence

I think everyone has felt vengeance many times throughout their life. It is a feeling that everyone will go through more than once. If someone does something bad to you on purpose, then your going to want to get vengeance on them. Revenge is not good. Every one will feel the need to get revenge on someone if that person has wronged the other, but it should be avoided at all costs. It is human nature to want to get even at someone if they have hurt you in some way. There are two options if you are feeling vengeance/revenge. You can either let your emotions control your self, or you can control you emotions and be the bigger man. I think the latter option is the best one. It is not always easy to just let something go but this is the best thing you can do. Nothing good can happen if you retaliate on someone. This might feel like the best option at the time, but you will probably end up getting in more trouble than the other person. Even though I know this I am sure that I will retaliate sometime in the near future. It is very hard not to. I find that I can control it sometimes if it is not a big dead. But if someone really makes me mad, I will find it necessary to get vengeance on that person if they have really angered me. I do not think that I personally would do any thing bad to someone if I was getting revenge on them. I definitely would not do anything worse to the other person than what they have done to me. Sometimes I can control myself though and I find that it is usually better when I do. People will learn to respect you more if you try to be the bigger man and do not retaliate. Ill be the first to admit that it is not easy, but you will feel much better about yourself if you do.

My Greatest Fear

This is a very tough question for me to answer. I normally try not to think about things that scare me therefore I am not sure what is the biggest fear for me. I used to have a fear of speaking in front of people but this is no longer a big deal for me. I would probably have to say that my biggest fear is dieing. I do not like the idea of it and is scares me very much. I know it will happen eventually, but I do not want it to happen any time soon. This scares me more than anything I can think of. I like my life and I do not want to leave everything that I have. I am Christian and its my life goal to get to heaven, but I do not want to go anytime soon. I love my life and I think that leaving any time soon would not be good. Other than this, I can not think of anything that I am really scared of. I used to have a lot of stupid fears a long time ago, but I have grown out of that. Spiders, snakes, bats, bugs, clowns do not really scare me. These are some common fears but I do not really understand why. The more I think about dieing, the more I do not want it to happen any time soon. I love living and I try to make the best of my life. I always try to have fun with life and be the best person that I can be. I do not want to give that up anytime soon. If I was depressed or did not care about anything then maybe that would be a different story. But I do care about a lot of things and I think that I have a lot to live for. I do not want to die until I am very old for that reason. I love living and that is why I fear death.

Peaceful Protest

I think that peaceful protests are very important. A peaceful protest can be very motivational. It is much more safe than a violent protest, and I think it can also get more done. When a peaceful protest takes place usually people will listen to what the people or group has to say. Everyone will listen and at least consider what the people are going through. When a violent protest takes place, people do not listen to what they have to say. The group and their ideals are almost automatically disregarded and are considered corrupt. Violent protests do not often do as much as a peaceful one does. Peaceful protests have been around forever, and are very important to the United States. When segregation was a problem, the African Americans used peaceful protests to get their point across and it was very successful. They would participate in, sit-ins and boycott things to get what they wanted. Martin Luther King Jr. did not approve of violent protests so they chose to act non violently and it ended up being very successful. I think that non-violent protests are a very good way to get your point across. People will listen to you if you have a big group of people acting non violently for the same cause. I hope that people will continue to use peaceful protests to get their messages across because it is very effective and is also the safest way to go about doing so. Violence will only result in injury or death to someone and will anger the public. Violent protests will always result in enemies being made of some sort. By using nonviolent protests people can relax and listen to what is being said. It is very hard to listen and understand what someone is fighting for if they are going to be violent about it. It is very east to understand and listen if someone is peaceful about it. A peaceful protest will always have a better result than a violent one.

Importance of Self Reflection

I think it is very important to self reflect and take a break from society from time to time. Everyone gets caught up in their daily routines in society and never take time to self reflect. I admit that I am guilty of this. I often do not take time out of my day to self reflect and evaluate what I have been doing lately. Like today's society I am always in a hurry or rushing to do something. I need to take more time to reflect on what has been going on in my life. I think that by doing this I can be better prepared for the next day and I can try to improve on things that I may have not done well on the day previously. Using self reflection will allow you to take time and think about how to fix all the things going wrong in your life. Self reflection will also allow one to think about all the things that are going well in their life. You can evaluate you behaviors, good or bad, and try to find out what you can do to make your self a better person. Everyone needs a break from the stresses of their everyday life. If you do not eventually take a break from everything then all the stress will add up and make you feel even worse. This is why I think that everyone needs to take a break eventually. I believe that when you do self reflect and take a break from society and the stresses of everyday life you should do it without anything electronic. You can not truly escape with your T.V. on or with your cell phone constantly going off. If you are really going to self reflect and take a break then it needs to be done without the use of technology. I do not think it matters how long you take a break as long as you make a good effort to do so and it makes a difference to you. Everyone needs to self reflect from time to time.

What I Read for Fun

I am not a big reader. I cannot remember the last novel that I actually read for fun. I think that the biggest thing that I read for fun would have to be magazines. I have a subscription to ESPN the magazine and Sports Illustrated. I think reading things about sports is fun. I would even read a novel if it was about the right topic. I pretty much will read anything about sports. I think that they are very interesting. I like all sports and I enjoy reading about what is going on throughout the leagues. I think that all sports are very intriguing. I will read about baseball, basketball, football, or pretty much any other sport that I find worth while. I do not really read novels for fun, especially serious ones about anything that’s not related to sports in any way. I had to read novels in the summer for homework and I did not really enjoy them. I especially did not like The Grapes of Wrath. This was possibly the worst book I have ever read, and is one of the reasons that I do not like reading novels anymore. The book was so bad; I don’t even read books anymore. I will only read them now if they are assigned for a project of some kind or if they are about sports. I will read magazines all the time now though. They are by far my favorite thing to read. I also will read something if I think it is funny. The last actual book I read was titled, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell. This book was very funny. It was absolutely hilarious in some parts and I highly recommend it. Basically, if something is about sports or is funny then I will enjoy reading it. If it is about these things then I will not read it for fun. Magazines are my favorite things to read now days.

My Ideal U.S.

My ideal United States is very similar to the United States that we have today. I do not have any big problems with the county. The United States is not perfect now and will never will be. I guess if I had to change something it would be our economic struggles and problems that we are currently going through. Other than this I do not think I could think of something to change. We have our problems, but so does every other country. Our problems our not near as bad as what other countries usually go through. We do not have people fighting in the streets and massive populations dieing from starvation. I think the country is in a good place despite from every one's constant complaining. We are free to do what ever we want in the United States and that is my favorite quality of this county. I do not think that I could go through life with someone constantly telling me what to do or think. We have the greatest country in the world despite the constant complaining and bitching that everyone does about us. My ideal U.S is very similar to that one that I am currently living in. You have the opportunity to do anything that you want in this country and that is what is so great about it. You can try to do anything with your life and no one is telling you what to do or what to be. We live in a country that does not ever tell you what to do. We have laws, but they are all reasonable and should be obeyed. I do not think that I would change any laws in my ideal U.S. I think they all have their purpose and are in place for a reason. The U.S. is a great place with great opportunity. You can do anything that you want in this country with absolute freedom. I would not change anything in my ideal United States.

My Favorite...

My favorite sports teams include the Saint Louis Cardinals and the Saint Louis Rams. These teams have been my favorite ever since I was young. The Rams have been struggling the past few years so the Cardinals have been my focus. The Saint Louis Rams are currently rebuilding and are the laughing stock of the NFL. They are still win less in 2009 and had the second worst record in 08. Despite the fact they are horrible, they are still my favorite team. I recently went the Rams versus Vikings game and the Rams got killed. They are horrible, but will hopefully will be good sometime soon. The Saint Louis Cardinals on the other hand are very good and have been for a while. They have been eliminated from postseason play already though, and I do not think that they will be as good next year as they are this year. They won the division this year but were eliminated by the Dodgers in the first round. They will probably not be as good next year though because resigning outfielder, Matt Holiday, is very unlikely. I like to go to Saint Louis Cardinals and Rams games but I do not get the chance very often because of all the sports I play. Even though the Rams suck, its still fun to go to the games. Cardinal games are always fun. They have a good chance to win every game. I probably go to about 3 games a year. I was lucky enough to go to game 3 of the World Series in 2004 but they lost that game and the series. Hopefully they can do better next year. This year was very frustrating. They had a very promising team and they got swept first round of the playoffs. They will not be as good next year as they were this year but hopefully they can still preform well. The Rams on the other hand will not be good this year or next year. They are getting better though. The Saint Louis sports teams are my favorite teams.

The Declaration of PPHS Baseball

The Pleasant Plains High School baseball team has a tradition of winning. Every year we lose key players and every year and every year someone else steps up to fill the spot that is needed. I am declaring another productive year for the Pleasant Plains baseball team. Once again we have lost essential players and once again we will have someone else fill the spot. I think we will have a very good year. Its guaranteed that we will have twenty plus wins and a good post season run. Last year we were in the sweet sixteen, winning going in to the last inning, then we lost with two one out left in the game. Coach Greer knows how to get the most out of his players. I did not think that that we would have a very good year last year before the season started. We went way farther than I thought possible with the personnel. We ended up having a very good year, and should have probably won state had we executed in the clutch. We were literally one out away from going to state when the other team started a 2 out rally to win the game. We have lost our starting first basemen, and our starting left and right fielders. Despite this loss I think we will be fine for this year. We have many returning starters and I think we are all looking forward to the upcoming season. We have a great chance at going to state this year. I will be very excited if we do, but will be very disappointed if we do not. We have a lot of potential and if we do not preform up to the hype then I will not be happy. Overall though, I believe that we will do very good and will have a very successful season. Our team has very good personnel and has a great will to win. I am looking forward to the upcoming season.

Logical Reasoning and Emotional Support

There are two main ways to make a decision. You can either use logical reasoning, or emotional support. If you use logical reasoning then that means you think an idea through and take your time in your decision. If you use emotional support then you make a split second decision based on only what you are feeling. I think that I use both of these methods to make a decision. I really just depends on the situation. If I have to make a big decision about something in advance, then I will use logical reasoning. If I have to make a quick decision about something then I will not even try to use logical reasoning. I will just use emotional support. I think many people use their own methods to making decisions. There are many people who will use only logical reasoning and have to think through everything that they do. There are also many people who only use emotional support to make a decision. I think that it is best to use a combination of the two, to make a decision. There are many situations that need to be thought through carefully. You can not use an emotional decision for everything. This will often not turn out to be the best choice you can make. If you take your time to think through your options then you will probably make the best decision. Sometimes you do not have time to make a logical reasoning decision though. There are many instances where you will have to make a quick decision. This requires the use of an emotional support decision. There times where you can make an emotional decision, and there are times when you can make a logic based decision. For me, it just depends on the situation. It is good to use a balance of the two decision making techniques. I probably use logical reasoning more than I use emotional support. If I can, then I will try to think through the situation. I think that this works better for me. I usually will get better results out of my decisions if I think them through first and do not just do what I am thinking.

School Spirit

I think our school has a lot of school spirit. Everyone has been participating in the events throughout the week and it has been very competitive. I though the week was very enjoyable and the events were close to the very end. The assembly on Friday was the best example of school spirit. Everyone in the entire gym was cheering and chanting for their school and class. The seniors had a blackout, the juniors were supporting a white out and the sophomores and freshmen were wearing school colors. The entire Friday assembly was very competitive and exemplified a lot of school spirit. The entire assembly the juniors and seniors were either starting chants for their class or for the school. I think this was very good. Last year the seniors and juniors were making chants to put the other class down, but this did not take place this year. This year, there was more school spirit than any previous year that I have attended Pleasant Plains High School. The junior class was chanting nonstop and the entire grade was supporting the class wide whiteout. I was even surprised when the teachers got up and did a lip sync. I thought that they were even showing more school spirit than usual. Overall the entire school was showing school spirit. Mr. Ward seemed very happy by the end of the assembly. I am sure that he liked the intensity that all of the classes were showing. The assembly was very fun this year because of all the competition. Many people were worried about the juniors and seniors being to competitive but this did not take place. I do not think it is possible to be to competitive. I think the competitiveness only added to the school spirit. Many people worried about it, but it the competitiveness was put to good use by both classes. Almost everyone in the building was showing school spirit and it was very good to see.

Ethics/Values

Everyone has their own set of ethics and values. Some people's values are the same and other people have values that are completely different. I think that a person's ethics and values are very important. Your ethics determine the things that you do when you are in and out of school. It determines the way that you will behave and act. If you gave good ethics then you will behave well in the classroom and will follow the law out of school. It you do not have very good ethics, then you probably do not behave in the classroom and do not follow the law outside of school. It is usually pretty easy to understand what ethics different people have. A person shows their ethics and values through the way they talk and act. Usually groups of friends have similar ethics and values. A perfect student and role model is not going to be hanging around drug dealers or bad people like this. The group of friends that you associate with usually has the same ethics and values that you have. Each group has its own unique ethics and values and each person within that group has their own unique ethics and values. I think it is important to have strong ethics, but your ethics and values should not be too strict. My ethics and values are very important to me and keep me doing the right thing, but they do not prevent me from having fun. It is important to keep your values and ethics making you do the right thing, but if you are not having fun then you should re-evaluate them and change them. It is important to keep your ethics and values true to what you want them to be. Just because a group of people does something that they are okay with, it does not mean you should adjust your ethics to fit in with them. I think this is very important. You should do what you want to do, not what your friends want you to do. Your ethics and values are what makes up your personality. It is your decision what your values are. No one should judge your values, if they are good or bad. Everyone's values and ethics are unique to themselves. Some people strive to be the best person that they can be while others do not care about much of anything.

Working With Partners

I think that it is a good idea to work with partners from another school. This is a real scenario that could happen in a real job. I think it will be a very good experience to work with someone who you have never met. This could be very help full later in life. This is not like any other assignment that I have ever done. Usually you can just talk to your partner in person about what you want to do for your project. It will be much harder to communicate with your partner in this project. It will be a very interesting experience and will hopefully be very help full later in life. I think that we should do more projects like this that are different from the normal things that we do. Projects like this will help us later in life. I think it would be very beneficial if we did more things like this. It will be very interesting to get to know this person that I will be working with and have never met. Take for example my person, their name is Jordon. Jordon can be a girl's name or Jordon could be a boy's name. I don't know which my partner is. Not that it matters, it is just strange to be working on a project and not only not know the other person, but not know whether they are a boy or girl. I have just communicated with my partner. I know my partner goes to school at Farmington High School. is involved in Spanish club, key club, cross country and Science Olympiad, but did not know if they are a boy or girl. I don't know if I will even know by the time the project is over whether I have been working with a boy or a girl. This project is with kids from Farmington High School, but we could easily be working with someone from another country. Overall, I think this project is a good idea.

Organized Religion

Organized religion is found everywhere in the world and there are many types of it. There is Christianity, Muslim, Buddhism, and many more. Religion is a very important part of our society. I believe that religion is very important to peoples values and keeps people out of trouble. I am Christian, and I can say that this is true for me. This is true, but it is also true that religion is the start of many fights. For instance, the Jews and Muslims have been fighting for hundreds of years over religion. With this said, I do believe that religion does much more good than it does bad. Organized Religion keeps people out of trouble and gives people something to believe in higher than themselves. I try to always think twice about what I am doing because of my religion. I will always think about what God would want me to do in whatever situation that I am in. He is a good guide for me and for the most part keeps me doing the right things in my life. Without God, I am sure that I would have made some much worse decisions than I have already in my life. Organized religion is a very important part of my life and is a very important part of many other lives. If there were no churches in the entire world, then i am sure the world would be a very different place. Religion keeps stability in the world and is a very big factor in every nation across the world. Without it, I am not sure what the world would be like, but it would defiantly be much worse off. Organized religion is everywhere, and is one of if not the most important concepts in the world. To worship and value something bigger and better than yourself is to put yourself in someone ese's hands. I think that religion stops a lot of worrying in the world. If you can rely on God to take care of something for you and keep you safe, then mentally, you will save yourself from a lot of unnecessary worrying and anxiety. Organized religion is everywhere and is a very important part of the world we live in.

Blame

Everyone has been blamed for something at some point in their life that they did not do. We have all been in this situation and we have all been blamed for things that we are responsible for. I hate it when people do not own up to something that they have actually done. When you are blamed for something that you have done, you should have the courage to own up to it. Despite what is right, most people will deny doing something wrong unless there is one hundred percent proof that they have done it. I think that this happens in the world all the time. Blame takes place in school, politics, and sports. If something unexpected goes wrong, it is human nature to blame someone or something else for the problem. It does not cross most people's minds that it may have been he or she that made the mistake. Instead it is much easier to blame someone else than it is to take responsibility for one's actions. I hear this all the time in sports. If a team loses a close game, it was the ref's fault. You hear about teams getting "homered" all the time. If someone gets beat at something, the opponent was either cheating or playing dirty. These excuses are very common and if you play sports or are a competitive person, you will most likely hear them more than once. People blame their troubles on someone or something way too often. I think much higher of people who have the courage to stand up and say they made a mistake. It is very easy to blame something else or to make an excuse. It is not so easy to admit that you were at fault, but you will sleep better and will have a clear conscious if you do so.
Blame takes place everywhere and there is nothing that will stop that. We should all try to cut down on excuses and strive to take more responsibility for our actions.

My True Color

I recently took the True Color Quiz and discovered that my true color is orange. This did not really surprise me. I like to have fun and this is the color that overall describes me best. Some qualities of people with an orange personality are, competitive, courageous, upbeat, fun, and risk taking. Out of all the colors, this one by far describes me the best. I am extremely competitive and hate losing. I am sometimes risk taking and courageous. I am usually pretty upbeat, but most of all, I like to have fun. I believe that having fun is one of the most important things in life. If you are not having fun, then life would not be very enjoyable. The color that came in second for me was gold. I find this very surprising. A gold personality means that you are conventional, well organized, and like to follow the rules. None of these things describe me. I am extremely unorganized and do not always follow rules very well. I do not think that the True Color Quiz is one hundred percent accurate. I do not think that you can accurately label someones personality just by answering a few simple questions. Even though the test is not completely accurate it is still very interesting to see what it says your personality is. I personally think that my second color is green. I think logically and think everything out very carefully before I do something important. The green personality describes me much better that the gold does. For the most part, I am the exact opposite of a gold personality. The True Colors Quiz was very interesting and made me analyze other people and think what color their personality would probably be. Now that I have taken the quiz, I think that i can accurately label other people and predict what color they would be. I do not think that the True Colors Quiz is one hundred percent accurate, but it is very intriguing and I would highly recommend everyone try it to find out what color personality they might be.

How I Catorgize/Describe People

I try to categorize someone or describe them after I meet them and get to know them. I try not to judge someone before I know who they are. This is not always easy to do, but I believe it is the right thing to do. There are many different ways to categorize a person. I think that you can categorize a person by the way they act, dress, talk, and by who they associate with. Everyone has a group or multiple groups of people that they hang out with. Usually the people in these groups have a lot in common. They usually dress similar and talk the same. There are many groups like this in our school and I find that people are categorized by this. Everything about a person can be described or categorized. This tells a lot about a person. You can usually tell a lot about a person by the way they walk, the way they talk, their body language, their appearance, the way they smell, etc. If a person hunches when they walk and has very poor body language then it can usually be assumed that they are a shy person. If someone dresses very poorly to school and does not take showers then you can infer that they are either very poor or they just don't care. All of these things tell you about a person before you even talk to them. I do not think that it is fair to judge someone solely on this but it usually helps. Despite all of this, the best way to categorize/describe someone is to talk to them some and get to know their personality. You can not really have an accurate description of someone before you talk to them and listen to what they have to say. Categorizing someone can be very difficult. You can categorize someone by anything, but you should evaluate who that person really is before doing so.

What it would be like to lose everything

I think it would be horrible to lose everything. I would find it very hard to survive without shelter or my family. I cannot even imagine what it would be like to literally lose everything that I own. It would be horrible to live like this. There are so many things in my life that I do not think that I could live without. I think this would be devastating and would literally be a living hell for someone to have to endure. For someone who has been living a good life with a good family and possessions this would be absolutely horrible. I think the same scenario would be bad, but maybe not as worse for someone who is not living very well already. I think this situation would be very humbling. I would have to rely on other people for help in almost all aspects of my life. I would need shelter, food, and care from others to be able to get by. I think the saying, "you don't know what you got till its gone" is true. The more I think about it, the more I realize how much I have. I can not imagine having it all taken away. The worst part would be losing my family. I think I could cope with losing all of my possessions but if I lost my family, I don't know what I would do. Everything would seem so minuscule in comparison to my family. This would be the worst possible scenario for me. I think I would find it very hard to go on with my life without my family there to support me. I am not sure how I would react if this actually happened, but I'm sure it would not be pleasant. I think losing everything is possibly the worst thing that can happen to a person. I do not think anyone deserves this punishment. Losing everything in your life would be a horrible thing to endure. I cannot truly imagine what this would be like.

The Importance of Documented Rules

I believe that documented rules are very important to society. We use documented rules in almost all aspects of everyday life. We use them in the classroom, on the football field, on the roads, etc. There are rules for almost everything that we do, therefore recording them is very important. Without rules the world we be a very different place. Documented rules are the what keeps our society going and is what keeps the world out of chaos. In the classroom there are many guidelines that students must follow. For instance, we must be courteous to our classmates, we must take turns talking, and we must respect everyone's opinion. These rules are not only used in the classroom, but are used in everyday life. The rules that are set up in the classroom are preparing us for life out of school. If you follow the basic rules that you learn in the classroom, then you will have a better chance to be a more successful person overall out of the classroom. The basic rules that we learned in kinder garden will be used for the rest of our lives. This is one of the reasons why documented rules are so important. Without a Constitution, or rules of the road the United States would be in chaos. Documented rules keep the world in order. What would the world really be like if there were no rules? There would be no real difference between humans today and humans who lived thousands of years ago. Documented rules keep our world civilized. If there were no rules to the road then it would be almost impossible to get anywhere. With everyone driving however fast they want and not paying attention to the most simple rules, accidents would happen much more frequently and the roads would be a much more dangerous place. This is why documented rules are so important. Rules need to be established for almost every aspect of life. Documented rules are extremely important to our society and is what keeps our world in order.

Native American Literature

The story How the World was Made is a good example of Native American Literature. The story explains how many things on the earth came into existence and why certain plants and animals have abilities that others do not. The story tells of the Great Buzzard and how the mountains were made. It also explains why some animals are nocturnal and others are not. Although none of stories in How the World was Made are true, I found these tales that the Native Americans believed to be very interesting. There was also an explanation as to why some trees loose their leaves and others do not. The Cherokee Indians most likely had some wild imaginations to come up with some of these explanations. Regardless, I found the story to be very interesting and entertaining to the end.

Symbolism, The Old Man and the Sea

Out of the three books that I read this summer, I found the most symbolism in The Old Man and the Sea. Throughout the novel, Hemingway makes many references to the Bible and leads the reader to believe that Santiago represents Christ. Santiago's hands are cut by the fishing line when the marlin drags him out to sea. This represents the nails that went through Jesus's hands when he was crucified. When the old man finally returned from sea, he got out of his boat and began to carry his mast back to his shack. Santiago struggled with the mast and carried it on his shoulders. This compares to the walk that Jesus had when he carried his cross across his shoulders to his Crucifixion. Despite the Christian symbolism throughout the book, Santiago says that he is not religious. When it comes to sin Santiago says, "I have no understanding of it and I am not sure that I believe in it." Another example of symbolism in The Old Man and the Sea is Santiago's dreams about the lions on the beach. I think the lions represent strength. Santiago thinks of the lions to give himself strength and take his mind away from the struggle against the marlin. The lions are an escape for Santiago. Ernest Hemingway used a lot of symbolism in his novel The Old Man and the Sea. I think it added to the overall effect of the story and made it a more enjoyable read.