Punishement Essay

Kiaya Nickens

Mr. Sanchez

Christian in the World p.8

September 28, 2012

Punishment Essay:

            During class this past Wednesday we were listening to students recite their senior service project conclusion; there were many interesting and inspiring stories about the projects. One of the ones that really stood out to me was Lindsey’s project. She was inspiring on how much time and effort she put in. During Lindsey’s as well as all of the other presenters; as a class collectively we were very rude and obnoxious. The useless chatter and chaotic when we are not directly approached serves no purpose in the learning environment. Most of us failed to see the message in within the presentations given. No only did we not see the message but we were rude to our devoted teachers Mr. Sanchez and Ms. Donaley. Being rude and obnoxious to loyal teachers has no value what so ever. In fact not only does being rude and obnoxious serve no value but in essence it actually hindered our learning experience. If we would have been respectful and courteous to our teachers and fellow classmates Mr. Sanchez would have given us a helpful test review and demonstration for our blog.

            From what I have heard from most of my classmates, most of us preformed at a mediocre standard. Not up to our usual grades, and some even below mediocre. Not only does preforming mediocre reflect on our grades but also reflects on how we acted that week. If only if we were to act respectful toward everyone there could have been a great chance that we all could have preformed a lot better on our tests. Acing our age would ultimately have resulted in all of our grades not dropping as drastically as they did. And as a result of our grades not dropping all of our parents probably wouldn’t be upset at all of us as mines are currently. And if our parents weren’t mad as me like other parents are with their children then we could probably go out and fun this weekend. And if we all could go out this weekend there would be a lot less stress on all of us as a collective class. My point is that the consequences of not being respectful, courteous and polite to our classmates didn’t just stop that day. There is an ongoing cause and effect process that results in us acting out of our character. Therefore technically, we can conclude that due to descending and partaking in chaotic, useless chatter can cause stress for a student. Stress, is obviously not a positive attribute that a student wishes to carry. The useless and chaotic chatter not only serves no value for the learning environment but also serves as a negative effect on the students that are Mr. Sanchez’s period eight class.

            Not only does chaotic and useless chatter cause stress as a result of a cause and effect process and serve not value but it also is not useful for the entirety for the optimum learning environment. In my opinion the optimum learning environment is one that is focused, organized and most importantly quiet. That day in class we desperately needed an adequate definition of an optimum learning environment. We needed a quiet, room to listen to the speeches that were prepared with great care and time. We needed an organized environment in order for the students that were delivering the speeches to be comfortable and at ease while speaking. The speeches given by our classmates are a part of their obligation to graduate to college. If they were to mess up in their speeches, it is possible that Ms. Donaley could not have approved their senior service project. And resulting in not fulfilling their senior service project they could not graduate. If a student did not graduate, it could be looked at as our fault for that student not graduating from high school. This is another example of how partaking and descending in chaotic chatter does not only effects those people that are partaking and descending chaotic chatter, it affects many other people. It affects the students that are giving the speeches as well as the teachers that were present on the classroom at that time.

            Another way how descending and partaking in chaotic chatter serves no value is that it effects the students that were not even at fault. Many students like me were attentive and courteous while students were giving there projects. And because of a few students bad choices to talk at inappropriate times we were punished as a class resulting in composing a essay that is clearly as waste our time, energy, and brain power. The entire time that we sat in our seat not talking we could have been learning about what the course entails. Which is learning about other religions, such as Buddhism and the Islamic religion, but instead we sat there and did nothing. Hopefully as a class we can act in a more appropriate and respectful manner in the future.

Freedom

Kiaya Nickens

Christian in the World – p.8

Mr. Sanchez

September 20, 2012

Blog Entry: Freedom

An experience in which I felt free was the very first week when I received my driver’s license. My parents made me wait an entire week before they let me drive alone. I asked my parents every day to let me drive anywhere, somewhere. Finally came the day, it was best friends annual summer cookout. Both of my parents were busy that day, and neither one of them were capable of giving me a ride to my friend’s house. My dad informed me that I could drive to her house, by myself. I was ecstatic, but I had to keep my composure so that they wouldn’t change their mind. My parents told me at 2:00 pm and the cookout didn’t start until 6:00pm. These were the longest 4 hours of my life. Finally it was time to leave for the cookout. I get in the car and realize that I am the pilot to my own voyage. I know what you are saying; I am only going to a cookout. What voyage am I talking about. But I felt freedom from growing up. My first time driving alone was a mirroring effect of what my entire life will be like for now on. These are the first steps in myself growing up. Freedom from the aspect of adolescence into adulthood compacted into the experience of my first time driving was my momentary time of freedom.

Wonder...

Kiaya Nickens

Christian in the World – p.8

Mr. Sanchez

September 20, 2012

Blog Post: Wonder

The object I have chosen to write about are magnets on my refrigerator. A collection of tiny memories and information with a common purpose, to bring a family closer together through  what is on a refrigerator. As I looked upon my refrigerator I realized how much of a great life I have had thus far. The support of my family during soccer games, the pride in the good grades, and inspiring sayings. There is so much wonder that lies within those magnets on all of our refrigerators. Those magnets serve a far more greater purpose than to simply decorate your refrigerator. The wonder within those magnets is what they do for your family. If people are having a bad day, and need a pick me- up, or an inspiring word look on your refrigerator and remind yourself how great your life is. Remind yourself of the people or events in your life that have made a difference within your life for the better. Today I had the worst day, I disregarded my homework to read in my English class, and ended up having a pop quiz. I was upset for the remainder of the day, until I got home. I walked into my kitchen, and looked at all of the pictures that are on my refrigerator and realized that my life is filled with wonders; joy, happiness, bonding, and pride all describe the pictures on my refrigerator. This made my emotions of having a bad day not disappear but eliminate a part of it. We as humans we can use our imagination for many things, imagination has many options for interpreting things. When we as young adults see the refrigerator as inanimate object, but if we use our imagination it can be viewed as a tool to bring us closer together within our family. As we get older we let go of the figurative sense of life and attach on to the literal meaning of life. I believe that the quote  . St. Gregory of Nyssa is very true, our imagination is only capable if we allow it.

Fundamental Choices of LIFE

Kiaya Nickens

Mr. Sanchez

Christian in the World – p.8

September 17, 2012

Kenyon Commencement Address:

David Foster Wallace

One common similarity that all human beings are born with is the choice of free will. In David Foster Wallace’s commencement address one of the first topics he mentions that life consist of fundamental choices that lie entirely within the human person and allows them to engage the world differently. Which in other words is the aspect of having free will. We make choices every day, to go to school to not go to school, to go to work or not. All of these mundane choices. But these small choices are the building blocks in configuring what type of person someone is. These small, mundane choices are what David Foster Wallace calls fundamental choices. These choices determine your character, and ultimately ones destiny.

Although your everyday choices shape and mold your character, free will is a variable. Which means at any given moment, you can change what kind of person you are. A persons day to day fundamental choices can alter which can change their character as a whole. Of course alterations can be a positive change and can also be a negative change.  A person can go from being a loving, and kind individual to becoming a selfish and self-centered individual. Along with altering what kind of person someone is based on their day to day actions, there is also an alteration on how they engage in the world. People who have a positive fundamental choices view the world in a different light. They believe anything is possible through aspirations and hard work. While people with negative fundamental choices go through life with a glass half empty mentality. They believe things are impossible and cannot be achieved. Anything is capable of being achieved, as long as a person’s fundamental choices are positively intact.

In my opinion this idea that David Foster Wallace has is completely credible. By saying that life choices are completely up to that person, and not predetermined make complete sense. We so very often attempt to make excuses to why our lives aren’t certain ways. We say things like, life may have simply gave us a poor hand. We search, and search for excuses for why our lives aren’t ideal, when simply the answer is right in front of us. Our lives are not ideal because we didn’t make them like ideal. It’s our fundamental choices, the small things that build and make our lives. Who we spend our time with, what we do with our times are all aspects of free will, which ultimately mold our fundamental choices; choices we make without hesitation.

When I am faced with difficult decisions I try to think about what people who I admire would do if they were in the same situation. The two people I admire the most is my grandmother and my mother. Their actions have been the foundation to all of my fundamental choices in life. Both my mother and grandmother have positive outlooks on situations in life. When turmoil is present within my life, I think positive. I try to find the good out of every negative act that occurs in my life. My grandmother would always tell me if I look for the good in the bad, the bad won’t seem as bad as it really is. And when something doesn’t seem as bad as it really is you can handle the situation better. I had the freewill to choose to follow my grandmother and mothers positive outlook on life, and I choose to follow it. This allowed my fundamental to be positive ones.

In the audio version of David Foster Wallace’s commencement address the audience begins to laugh in denial when he says a graduating high school class of young adults does not truly know the meaning of day in a day out. We have been confined into a bubble. We have not truly been exposed to the world where we can determine what our fundamental choices of life are. We have yet to be confronted with the real world. Of course as teenagers that have overcome four years of education we believe we have experienced, we have lived. When actuality, it’s not the four years of school that constitutes and validates what we have been through but what we do with what we have learn that validates life’s experiences and values. It’s not until the diploma is in our hands and there is no one looking over our shoulders that we have experienced a life in the real world that involves making every day fundamental choices.

Caligula Question & Response

Kiaya Nickens

Mr. Sanchez

Christian in the World p.8

September 13, 2012

Caligula Question & Answers:

1.   We have spoken about the 4 truths of the I which make up our innate human experience. In classical terms, this was referred to as the "heart" of man. How does Camus demonstrates Caligula’s heart? What is the implication of this for Caligula?

The four truths that make up our innate human experience that were discussed in class are the following: I didn’t (don’t) make myself, we have desires that are unlimited, we are limited, all of our abilities are limited, and we expect happiness (fulfillment) in life. In the play Caligula these aspects are presented clearly. In the beginning of the play Caligula is experiencing life, and has desires and is experiencing things that will fulfill those desires. In the beginning of the play in which we read the happiness or fulfillment in life for Caligula is identified. Caligula wishes to gain his throne amongst the people of his town. The unlimited desire within the story is his attraction toward his sister, and throughout the story it is learned that they sleep together. The  implication for Caligula, that the only way he will gain happiness/ fulfillment of life would be through gaining the throne.

2. How do those in power (the patricians, etc.) view Caligula, and his "heart"? Do you agree with their view? why or why not? (give examples from the text to support your answers to both questions)

The patricians view Caligula’s and his “heart” as normal, and accepts his evil mentality. I do not agree with their view point. In my opinion I believe the only reason they view Caligula’s activity is because the sensation and fulfillment of life comes from when one has power. Yes the fulfillment in life when one has power must be great, but a man with a good “heart” will establish that power within good morals. Caligula allowed his unlimited desire drive him to gain fulfillment of life in all the wrong places. The patricians show their accepting attitude in the beginning of the play, the discussion between the first patrician, the old patrician, and the second patrician (Caligula 3).