Final Reflection

      We have reached the end of the year, in fact, as of today, there are only three days of school left. I have mixed feelings about this. I am sad, because I am going to miss some of the things here, some of the teachers, seeing my friends (because we'll be going to different high schools next year). But, on the other hand, I am so happy for the school year to be over because, who doesn't love summer? 

What is something we did this year that you think you will remember for the rest of your life?

I think that I will remember our TKAM Southern Sampler. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, there were several foods mentioned. When we finished the book, we brought in some of those foods and had a feast. There was fried chicken, corn bread, Tootsie Rolls, sardines (but no crackers, thanks to Carter), and we had a cake war between me and Hazelle. She brought in an Angel Food Cake, and I brought in a Lane Cake. We had a great time. Especially Sam who ate a sardine and almost threw up into the trash can on video.

What was the nicest thing someone in our class did for you this year?

I think that the nicest thing people in our class did for me this year was saying, "you can do it" when I had to present my speech. I was really nervous to present to the class, and I really didn't want to do it, but everyone kept saying, "You can do it!", which I thought was really nice of them.

What is something you taught your teacher or classmates this year?

Throughout the year, we have done many AOW gallery walks, where we get to teach our classmates about an article that we read. I have taught my classmates many things. For example, I taught some of my classmates about a sexual assault that happened on Facebook Live. I taught some of my classmates about the pros and cons of self driving cars, about how smoking can lead to a cancer related death, and about how Donald Trump's comments about a women's weight could've hurt kids with body image issues. 

In what area do you feel you made your biggest improvements? What is something you accomplished this year that you are proud of?

I think that I improved with the level of confidence I have in my work (with the exception of my speech). Especially with the Butterfly Project and the Aphorism project. I am very much a perfectionist, and I am usually never satisfied with the work that I produce. But, I put a lot of work into these projects and I am really proud of how they turned out. 

What was the most challenging part of this year for you?

The most challenging part of the year for me was in third quarter. There was about a month where I was so tired of going to school everyday, and I was so tired of doing my work, that I would just not do it. I would procrastinate at home and end up having to rush to get it done in other classes. It was really hard to stay focused on the work that I was doing, and I just wasn't doing very good work. I am not entirely sure why this happened, but I did eventually get out of this phase. 

What was the best piece of writing that you did this year? Why do you think it is your best? 

My favorite piece of writing that I did this year was a little story that I wrote with Melissa for our Edgar Allan Poe unit. It was a little continuation of  "A Cask of Amontillado". Our story was called Confessions of A Madman. We wrote it as if it was an interview between Montressor, the narrator of the story, and a policeman. And Montressor was confessing to his crimes. This was my favorite piece of writing because it was just really fun to write. I loved being able to write from the perspective of someone who was not entirely sane. (And we had a very long debate about if Montressor was a scociopath or a psychopath because the characteristics of both are pretty similar) It was also really fun to come up with a cliff hanger at the end of the story, becuase you aren't exactly sure how the confession ends. 

Of the books you read this year, which was your favorite? Why?

There are two books that we read this year that were my favorite were To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom. I really liked To Kill A Mockingbird because I liked watching the relationships form and change between Scout, the town, and the people in it. It was really interesting how some of the themes and problems in the book are still relevant today. I really liked Tuesdays With Morrie because of all of the life lessons and advice Morrie gave. His aphorisms were really powerful and beautiful. For example, "Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone", "Once you learn how to die, you learn how to live", "Love each other or perish", "Death ends a life not a relationship", "You are not a wave, you are a part of an ocean", and so many more. We had some of the best Socratic seminars about this book. I actually finished the book the first day that we started it because I was so interested in it.   

What advice would you give students who will be in this class next year?

The advice that I would give to the students who will be in the class next year is that if you need help with something, ask for clarification. Don't just sit there not knowing what to do. And don't wait until the last minute to ask for help either. Send Mrs. Larson a message on Schoology or Edmodo. And chances are, someone else has the same question you do. 

This I Believe - "There's No Such Thing As Trying Too Hard"

      I know that school is not for everyone. Some people like it, some people don't. I know that most kids here are just dying to get out, and they think that because it is the end of the year, they don’t have do anything but show up. However, I don’t believe that people should do that. I believe that people should be passionate and put effort into everything they do, no matter how small.

      A few years ago, when I was in about 4th or 5th grade, I was working on a science project. This boy walked over to me, looked at my project, and told me, “You're trying too hard.” I just stared at him, not knowing what to say. I was confused. Why was that a bad thing? Since when was putting effort into something wrong? I had always been the kind of person to work really hard on everything and try to go above and beyond. I loved school. But I knew that there were kids who didn't. I never understood why some people think that it is “cool” to not care. To not try. Especially now, in middle school. People would say that I was annoying or some other words that would get me in trouble if I say them, because I suggested they to do their work instead of talking. I would get extremely frustrated that they didn't even bother with starting their work. It annoyed me that they didn't care about school as much as I did. But I did think it was kind of funny when we got tests back and I got a better grade them because they would ask me, “Oh my god, how did you get a 4? I got a 1!” Or something along those lines. They didn't understand that not caring, and slacking off was causing them to get bad grades.

      Throughout the years, I have learned that I cannot control other people, no matter how much I want to. I cannot force them to do their work, I cannot force them to stop talking, but I can work my hardest, and hope that they realize that they're not helping themselves. That they will get so much farther if they actually tried. The putting effort into things is not dumb or pointless. And maybe I do try too hard, but maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Tuesdays With Morrie - Final Project

Now that we have finished Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom, we are going to take one of Morrie's aphorisms and make a poster about it. The aphorism that I chose was "Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone." (Pg. 133) I think that this aphorism means that even when a person is dead, love from other people is what keeps them "alive". If the person who loves them keeps thinking about them, and loving them, obviously they will not come back to life, but it keeps their memory alive. They aren't gone completely, even if they are dead.

A few years ago, my grandpa died, and last year, I was talking with my grandma, who said that she talks to my grandpa sometimes, which I think is what Morrie was saying. If the person who died is loved, and remembered, that person isn't gone completely. That is why I agree with this aphorism. It also reminds me of when Morrie told Mitch to visit his grave and talk to him. That would keep his memory alive. On page 170, Morrie says, "'Tell you what. After I'm dead, you talk. And I'll listen." Morrie wants Mitch to tell him his problems, which is "keeping him alive".

My Aphorism: Good doesn't have to be perfect.

Tuesdays With Morrie- Socratic Seminar Reflections

      Throughout the time that we were reading Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom, we were having Socratic Seminars. Now that we have finished the book, I am going to reflect on all of the seminars that we have had. 

What trends did you notice with yourself and your personal goals for each seminar? 

I noticed that throughout the seminars, I started to talk more and more. I noticed that the more I wrote on my guide, the more I participated, even if what I said had nothing to do with what was on my guide. My personal goals changed also throughout the seminars. The first seminar, I said that I wanted to participate more. Then, the second seminar, I said that I participated a lot, and so I wanted to work on engaging people in the conversations who may not have added enough. The third seminar, I thought that I may have participated a bit too much, and I wanted to work on not interrupting people when they were trying to talk. I did try to be mindful of how much I was talking, and this last seminar I definitely tried to engage people in the conversation, which I think I did well. 

What trends did you notice with the class for each seminar? 

I noticed that a lot of the time, the same people were not adding enough, and the same people were talking a lot. I noticed that the people who only added one or two things to their guide didn't add anything to the conversation, and if they did, they only participated once. The people who added many things to their guide, were the people who were participating a lot.

What did you notice that helped or hindered a specific seminar?

I found that the more interesting the questions were, the more people participated. During the second seminar, I asked, "Would you want to know your death date?" And that sparked a really interesting conversation, because a lot of people had a lot of opinions and a lot of really good points. Today, someone asked, "How would you want to die? If you had the choice." That also sparked a really interesting conversation, which ended with Lorin saying that she would want to die on death row, but we don't have to get into that. I noticed that what hindered the seminars was people talking over each other. Because of the no raising hands rule, a lot of people would get cut off in what they were trying to say, and then when that person was finished, someone else would chime in, and the person who was trying to talk originally, is ignored. That was something that happened a lot, but I think that by the fourth seminar, things went really well. And Carter brought the crackers, so that's great. 

  

Tuesdays With Morrie- My Perfect Day

      For the past two weeks, we have been reading Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom, and on the Thirteenth Tuesday, Mitch and Morrie start taking about their perfect day. If Morrie could be perfectly healthy for a day, for twenty-four hours, what would he do? Morrie would wake up, excercise, eat his favorite breakfast, swim, and meet with his friends. They would come over and talk about their issues. They would go for a walk in the garden, and go out to dinner for duck, or pasta, and they would dance all night until they were exhausted. Then, Morrie would go home and sleep. To Mitch, is seemed like just an average day, but, because of Morrie's disease, he couldnt excercise, he couldn't swim, he couldn't walk in the garden, he couldn't eat the foods he liked, and he couldn't dance. So, if he was healthy for a day, he would want to do all of those things.

What would my perfect day look like?

I think that my perfect day would be in the summer. I would wake up, my mom and I would make the Pillsbury biscuits from the can, and have a family breakfast with biscuits, bacon, fruit, etc, etc, etc. Then, I would meet up with some of my friends, and walk around in the park, maybe going to the gas station to get ice cream. We would just walk and talk and laugh. Then, when it got late, we would walk back to my house and have dinner. My friends and I would probably have pizza or Mac & Cheese, and we would eat it and watch a movie, or American Horror Story, or something like that. After that, we would stay up late just talking and laughing until we couldn't keep our eyes open. And then we would sleep. 

I think that if I want more of these perfect days to happen, I need to start getting off my phone, and going outside. I need to spend more time with my friends and family. 

Tuesdays With Morrie - My Favorite Tuesday

      Last week, we started reading the book Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom. It is about the author, Mitch, and his relationship with his old college professor, Morrie. Morrie was diagnosed with ALS, or Amyotrophic Laterals Sclerosis. Mitch reconnects with him and every Tuesday, he comes over and talks with Morrie. They talk about the world, regrets in life, feeling sorry for yourself, family, death, and many more topics like that. My favorite conversation that they had was about the world. 

      The first Tuesday, they talk about the world. They also talk about the news. On page 50, Morrie says, "'The other night, on TV, I saw people in Bosnia running across the street, getting fired upon, killed, innocent victims... and I just started to cry. I feel their anguish as if it were my own. I don't know any of these people. But-- how can I put this? I'm almost... drawn to them.'" Mitch then talks about how, as a journalist, he's reported on many stories like that. People were being killed, innocent people were being killed, and he never cried, he even went to the funerals of some of these people. But he never cried. He didn't understand why Morrie felt so attached to these people. I think that most of the world, because they don't know any of the people personally, they aren't affected as much. If they see refugees getting shot at, and killed, it wouldn't affect them as much as, say, their own child being shot at. I feel like becuase they don't know these people personally, they have a lack of compassion, which Morrie also talks about.

      Earlier in the book, Morrie had said, "The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. We're teaching the wrong things. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn't work, don't buy it. Create your own. Most people can't do it. They're more unhappy than me-- even in my current condition" (Albom 35). I very much agree with that statement. I feel as though in our culture, we are taught to judge people who are different. So many people try so hard to fit in, myself included, because they are afraid of standing out and being judged. I also agree with Morrie's other statement, which is that most people are unhappy, even though they don't have any kind of fatal disease, like Morrie. I think that is because our society is also obsessed with things. Materialistic things. We are obsessed with getting the newest shoes, the newest phones, the newest cars, etc. A lot of people think that money will make people happy, when clearly that is not the case. People are unhappy because they are never satisfied with the things that they have. They will always see something else that they want. Morrie, however, surrounds himself with great people. He has great friends, and great family, so he is happy, even in the condition that he is in. 

Tuesdays With Morrie- Bucket List

      This week, we have started to read the book Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. It is about the author and his relationship with his old college professor, who was diagnosed with ALS. The whole book is about their conversations about life, death, family, love, etc. Morrie, has a wonderful sense of humor and likes to make jokes about his own death, which I thought was interesting, because most people are afraid of death, but he embraces it. He doesn't want to take life for granted. Because of this, I will be making a bucket list.

1. Travel

• Italy
• London
• France
• Spain
• Germany
• Ireland
• New York
• Hawaii
• Japan
• New Orleans (Again)
• California (Again)
• Etc.

2. Write A Song

3. Take A Photography Class

4. Live In Another Country For A While

5. Sell My Photography

6. Get A Tattoo

8. Graduate High School

9. Graduate College

10. Add To And Complete My Bucket List

So, it is not the most original bucket list ever, but these are the things that I really want to do. I really love photography, so I wanted to add something with that. I also love traveling, so I wanted to make a list of places to go. I know that I can work hard to make sure that these things can happen.