Did you hold the door open for anyone today? Did you let anyone step in front of you on your way into school, the cafeteria, a classroom? Lend anyone a pencil, pick up a fallen book or paper? For most of you, the answer is probably yes, you did in fact do one or more of those things. All of you are well-mannered, considerate and generally just a nice bunch of kids. So, for today, or the next 4 days as it were, let's take that one step further. This will require a bit of imagination, introspection and innovation, so again, don't sit down to this blog on Wednesday night at 11pm and think you can do a respectable job on it.
Ok, so imagine, one morning, after a kindly old wizard--who bears a striking resemblance to Albus Dumbledore--visits you, you awaken with the power to give one person anything in the entire universe. What would it be and why?
Now, that question, while startling limited in word content, is not as simple or straighforward as it seems.
I am not actually asking you to go ask someone what wish they would like to have granted (which seems like the obvious assumption given that I started off talking about wizards and magic),I am asking you what YOU want to give someone if you had the power to give them anything, and I am asking you to explain that choice. Additionally, because there is always an "additionally," I would also like to know what advice you would give this person after you have bestowed this "gift" upon him or her.
(500 words/60pts)
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My sister is… lost. No, there aren't any posters or milk cartons with her face and my phone number on them. I mean that she is lost in what to do next. She doesn't know where she belongs, and she doesn't know why she was put on this earth.
ReplyDeleteMy sister is twenty years old, and is a sophomore at Rutgers University. She is studying a major involved in medicine, and is involved in her favorite past time, the choir.
If I had to describe my sister in one sentence, it would be...A sweet girl who loves the ocean and to sing. Those were two things I can recall that she was passionate about. Our parents, however, believed she could do "so much more."
My sister went through this, I went through this, and my little brother is going through this as we speak. Ballet, gymnastics, Girl Scouts, book club, soccer, basketball, field hockey, and anything else you can come up with. I doubt we haven't done it.
Every activity passed as fast as we signed up for it. See, my sister and I had this "problem". (As my parents described.) We'd never have a passion for anything. I can't even explain to you how red in the face my mother became when I whined about having to go to dance class that one Friday back when I was eleven. After that, I wouldn't complain, I would pretend. I would pretend that I loved dance. I would pretend that I enjoyed field hockey. I would pretend that I liked all these things, and my sister did the same. However, nothing could get passed my mother. She knew that both my sister and I were "hopeless". We were wastes. They gave up on us.
So, if my sister wasn't interested in anything, how in the world would she figure out her major? That was my parent's question, but I already had the answer.
I KNEW Allie wanted to sing. I knew she wanted to improve and maybe one day see her name in lights. I knew this when I listen to her sing to the songs on the radio when driving me to work, I knew this when I could hear her tremendous and beautiful voice echo through the empty halls of our house, I knew this when I looked at her face during concerts, and how much emotion she puts in every verse and every word.
Sadly, my parents could not see this. Or maybe...they refused to see it. How could someone make a life out of a musical career? Idiotic was what they'd call that.
ReplyDeleteSo, she brought up the topic of marine biology. Every person who visits my home gasps at my sister's underwater themed room. The carpet is meant to looks as if it were the water, the curtains look like waves, her bed spread has dolphins, and she has pictures of aquatic life plastered all over the walls. Yet, even though my parents allowed her to have all these things, they didn't support her choice to go to college for marine biology. To me, it was as if they were leading her on. It's as if they were having a laugh and hoping that she'd soon grow out of it and move on to more "serious" interests like ballet.
What was my poor sister to do?
Do whatever my parents told her, of course.
She went to a well known school, went into a difficult degree that would offer careers, get a career that would offer high amounts of money, and with that money have a "happy" and "successful" life.
She's not happy. She hates her classes, and she hates college. When my parents try to discuss her next classes for new terms, she seems distant and apathetic. This makes them furious and the results are threats and arguments.
She called me before break and cried on the phone. She told me she didn't know what she was doing there. She told me that she was scared and lonely, and that maybe if she was studying something she liked, it wouldn't be as hard. I tried to console her. I tried to give her advice. I didn't know what to do though. Was there even a solution to her problem? The only way would be to go back in time, so she could stand up to my parents and somehow go study one of the things she wanted to study. I know she’s not a waste. I know how incredibly passionate she can be about the things she likes. I wish my parents could see that. I wish she could see that.
So, if Dumbledore did come to me, and gave me this power, I would give my sister what she wanted most-- control of her own life. That way she could be happy, have goals, and have dreams!
With these newfound dreams and ambitions, the only advice I would give her would be to simply never give up. Never give in. Never believe that dreams are only what they are--dreams. Dreams can become a reality, but only if she works hard and let them lead her to her destiny.
Ktg- Awwww that was really cute! And with the whole being forced to try activities things- I've definately been there. I think it ended up being a good thing because I loved all of the things I had to try and now I'm not scared at all to pick up a new actvity. But everyone's different of course. I hope your sister and parents work things outttt.
ReplyDeleteMy initial reaction to this question was “Can I give the gift to myself because, if so, I’d want to have the gift of influence, to be able to positively change the world for the better.” Then, nearly immediately after, I concluded that I would not want this gift; I would almost resent it. Being a very self-reliant, individualistic person, I like to believe that anything I want, I have the power within me to obtain. Nearly everything I am proud of, that pride comes because I worked and worked and worked for it. The term “gift” now seems negative, like an excuse for the weak, the unprogressive. I don’t believe anything is out of someone’s reach: if they cannot be successful, it is entirely their fault. Entirely. Thus, I think of a gift as for someone who has given up and whines and feels there’s no other way for them to accomplish what they want except through “magic.” Consequently, I came to the final analysis that I would give no one a gift; they shouldn’t need it. This is only in this context though. I’d have you know, I have no abhorrence towards fuzzy socks and Flapjack key chains. Those gifts are great.
ReplyDeleteIf I ended my point here though, Bunje would probably think me of avoiding the question or approaching it loftily. So, upon further introspection, I came to a something that could be mistaken for an answer to this question. :] First of all, I wouldn’t give the gift to one person. The people whom I find need this gift the most are the first ones to deny their need of the gift, and thus it would be wasted. Let’s face it: some people are just a waste of time. Moreover then, my gift would be given to humanity. We all need it. It has been said that we are the best of animals and the worst of animals. I feel the darker sides of our character could be addressed and stopped, maybe not fully, but at least somewhat, if everyone in the world had the ability to see things in a larger perspective, in relativity to other elements. The reason why most people do wrong, the reason why people can be so cruel to each other as to rape, massacre, torture, behead, and dehumanize is because they do not know they are doing wrong.
Example: I am racist towards Cubans. (Not really! I love you Mr. Costal!). It has never occurred to me that being prejudice towards Cubans is a bad thing because [insert derogatory Cuban stereotypes]. However, with this gift, everything I do something bigoted, a “mental screen” would pop up in my head depicting a similar situation against blacks. Because I am half black, I would see the wrong there, realize the similarity in what I was doing, and hopefully progress morally.
Do not be confused: this gift wouldn’t be to tell people whether they are acting immorally or justly. Every person is a free agent to decide whether they are on the side of God or not. However, being aware of what their actions mean in context of the human race would spark contemplation, introspection. Either way, blind ignorance would be replaced by some form of understanding and knowledge. This inevitably leads to progress, which, to me, is the most important thing in life. My only advice would be not to ignore this gift, for that would only be turning back to the land of conscientious stupidity that hosts the majority of the human population. Making these types of connections can usually only be made through dedication to education. Not only do most people lack this, many more lack the opportunity to do so. Thus, this gift, and a magnificent one at that, would have the potential to put the human race on the path of spiritual fulfillment, not by eradicating the flaws within us, but by starving them, and nourishing the positive aspects we all hold.
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ReplyDeleteOne person. One random person. One random child. Living in...India. The slums, actually, like those in Slumdog Millionaire. One random child about the age of a toddler, but an age old enough to survive living on their own. Abandoned.
ReplyDeleteI want to magically, with the help of Dumbledore of course, bestow upon this child--this child I do not know--a "FORCE". (Not THE Force, from Star Wars) But a force that exists in the world and lies within every one of us. This 'force' is a mesh of unstoppable hope, undeniable faith, unlimited confidence, unparalleled imagination. It's called by many names, but in my eyes, it's a splatter of strength, ability, willingness, initiative, and insight. We all have this force, but over time, it diminishes. It starts out small as a child, but we are distracted by things such as television, ipods, jobs, school, and even pressure from, say, peers or parents. In essence, the chaos of society and life distracts us from this force. The concept of this idea is clear in my mind, but in a world of words, it's indescribable. (This goes in line with the previous blog where we had to describe something we couldn't truly describe with one word.)
Yet, why give this to a random child? I truly believe that it is true when people say something in the lines of “It’s not one person that can change the world, it's many." I want this child to have the power and confidence to change his or her world in a way that brings a community together. I believe that faith alone and the willingness to work and fight can produce monumental outcomes. This child, for instance, may not have the mindset to change or improved conditions. But with this "force," I envision this child maneuvering his way, with plenty of imagination, out of his destitute world. For instance, he may find his way into a prestigious university and later come back vastly educated and in the possession of the capital/resources to give back.
Still, I could have given it to any child--any child I know. Yet I'm going to have to go international with this for certain reasons. They go along with what I'm planning to write for my 3rd marking period Occassional Paper: What's important to Me and How I'm Applying that to my Future Goals. (Well, maybe the title will shorter). In a quick summary of it, I can say I love technology and all its benefits. In fact, technological advances are key to societal growth. However over the winter break, when I watched the NBC special on Google (the company), I realized that in America, we are swimming in it. What I got out of this was not that Americans are greedy (though I could argue we are). I got the idea of studying the economies of underdeveloped countries (a major called development/ international economics) and work to improve their economics status's (stati?). Well, this idea is still in its nascent stage, but this is the general idea of my OP. Thus, to give a child across the seas this power is far—FAR--more extraordinary that merely giving it to a child here.
Also, why a "force"? Why not something ...else? A person can attain anything with enough hard work. So merely handing a child, any child, education and guidance will do nothing unless there is initiative within the child. Children need to have their own thoughts and goals because to do something on their own is unquestionably more successful than having a person hold their hand and guide them through it.
ReplyDeleteFinally, Why...India? Well, I pretty much arbitrarily picked this, but not without reason. Partly it was because of the scenes I saw in Slumdog Millionaire. And partly, it was because I recently read in "Business Week" an article that focuses on a place (on the Arabian Peninsula). Though a bit far from India, my parents saw the magazine and thought Dubai was in India. Yes, that sounds very random. But that's okay!
As for advice, there is no need for any. First of all, that child wouldn't know me and I wouldn't know him/her. Second of all, he or she will just KNOW what to do because after all the decision is up to him/her.
I believe that the best gift you can give a person is something you cannot hold, qualify, quantify, or even speak about coherently. It's a "feeling." (Abstract conception, phenomena)
=) I loved this blog !!!! =)
KTG:
ReplyDeleteWhen you said your sister is a sophomore at Rutgers University, I automatically thought “Hey…my sister’s a sophomore at Rutgers too!” And then you said she studied something with medicine and I thought the same time again (my sister studies pharmacy). I can’t say my sister is like yours, though; my sister loves college. But I can tell that although I’m close to my sister, I can tell that college is tough with academics and social life. Still, the way I see it, she hasn’t changed that much: she’s still close to home and she lives college the same way she lived high school. I wouldn’t really hate that because I want my college experience to be a drastic change. I think both of our sisters need to stray a bit from home and the things their comfortable with. Maybe your sister needs sometime to figure out who she is without the interference of your parents.
Deanna,
ReplyDeleteYou’re completely right when you say “The reason why most people do wrong…is because they do not know they are doing wrong.” This is one of the major reasons, among others like dominance, lack of empathy, and hostility. Some people also don’t know an alternative. For instance, I don’t want to say my parent’s are racists, but they came to America living in New York City then to Atlantic City; both were places where they have personal experiences of crime involving African-Americans. When I was about 5 or 6, I invited a black child into our house to play “Life”, the board game, and my parents stared at him and said things in Chinese they wouldn’t say to him in English. But until both my sister and I made more racially diverse friends, they didn’t know any other alternative. They are better now. When I read your ‘gift’ I thought of what we do in history: expose people to different cultures.
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ReplyDeletePART 1: I came from the doctors today and I had more flaws to add to my list. I had one more pill to swallow. Actually I had two more.
ReplyDeleteMy mom was smiling and told me "Well wow your blood sugar readings are lower then pervious times, you just need to go on a stricter home diet.."
I snapped back at her very sarcastically, "Yeah just freakin great! You know like the whole high cholesterol or soaring blood pressure doesn't exist! I just love my luck mom because I'm such a blessed child, right? You tell me to be thankful, well I am! THANKS FOR ALL MY FLAWS, I"M NOT SMART LIKE MARIAM, PRETTY LIKE YOU OR HEALTHY LIKE MY PERFECT SIBLINGS, THANK YOU!!!! Maybe you will get lucky and I'll die and you wont have to pay so much towards me and be forced to pretend everything is okay."
My statement was loud, partially obnoxious and my mom simply pierced her lips, probably holding back what she was going to snap at me. Her big bright green eyes dulled into a distant sad look.
My dad gives me a warning glance and holds the back of my neck, sincerely and says firmly "Don't speak to your mother in that way Nura, You will be okay and you wont die because you still need to spend time with your father, I need to finish painting the garage and no way in hell I'm doing it by myself." Ny now there was tears streaming down my eyes, I remembered they won't be there forever. I smiled and told them can we have fried chicken today. From that they knew I was calm again.
Yes, I know I sound like a horrible child. I am. How could I treat them that way if they have done nothing but great things for me? I love them yet I only complain. I know I should be thankful and not blame everything on them. I know if I wished the best for them, then I would need to start with fixing myself. We actually have a great relationship between all the pressuring and strict set of rules. My immediate family is very very very close and tough. We cover for each other, as our family was always the target of harsh words and enemies. We have a set of rules from our parents to make us closer, for example we always eat dinner together if your home you eat with the family, never pick your friend over your sister or brother, respect each other, through thick and thin don't ever stop talking to each other more then three days or else parents will get involved. It might seem weird, dumb, or plain out useless but I believe it worked and I plan to do the same with my future family.
My parents have been trying hard and struggling since they first officially talked to each other. They weren't supposed to marry each other and yet overcame that. (Long story; Maybe another blog or Op) My mother gave up her pre-med schooling to travel with my dad to Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and finally the United Sates. At first they were living poor, but never did my mom complain or say she regrets it. My dad always showered her in trips and anniversary gifts trying to make up for all that she gave up for him. While my mom tried to be the perfect wife and mother.
PART 2: My parents are from very well educated families and they themselves are nerds. Yes, the two top students in their college were them. ( No wonder they married each other?!?) My dad had a degree in Geology and Mathematics while my mom had a degree in Biology and Mathematics. My mom taught, while my dad worked in different labs and odd jobs. When they moved here, they had the language barrier to break and their hard worked for degrees seemed worthless. My mom wanting to create a close well brought up circle of children decided that she will not work and be a stay at home caregiver. My dad bought a taxi and started making the rounds in the morning while going to computer engineering school at night. He soon brought more with the saved money and had enough to buy his own taxis to rent out to other drivers. I was born in Atlantic City and as the fifth child my parents thought if we went to Alexandria, Egypt to learn arabic and our culture would be better for us. We went and my father stayed. My father would work and visit for a little while to spoil us with gifts. I would learn to worry about, care, love, and miss people at a very young age. When we finally came to live with him, we lived a strict but fun lifestyle. I never noticed that my dad (now owning his auto-shop) worked ridiculous hours. Then he sold it and bought a Jitney, and drove away his health.
ReplyDeleteRaising five children is no joke. Trying to be equal is hard. I think I grew up and realized what really my parents went through for us. My mom gave up her career. My dad could've easily stayed anywhere and made a lower income yet he tried harder and harder to let us have it better. Sometimes I'd eavesdrop and hear them say how they want to go back to Egypt. I first heard this when I was in 2nd grade. This is nine years later and they're still trying hard and without a break. My dad's famous jet black hair I noticed the other day, that it had white hairs on is sideburns. My mom gets tired and she's sick a lot. She was hospitalized for a blood clot and while her tears poured she kept saying how she wants to rest in peace in Egypt in her family cemetery. My dad's getting older and his health is deteriorating but he is still working full time paying debts off and on top of that trying to make us happy. He is 51 and my mom is 50, and I have a fear they wont get to see my children or worse my dad not shaking the hand of my husband to be and recite the Fatiha (Quranic verse) with him. He hates to see us work because he feels like we should be focusing on our education while he is granting us anything we need. I complain a lot to how my siblings had it so much better when deep down I know my parents can't help it. I say it's not fair they all had private driving lessons and their own cars and I got neither. I tell my parents now that if they want they can go to Egypt when I graduate high-school and I'll pick an American College there. They smile at the idea, but my dad says that wont be possible, he needs to pay off too much. So I think are they gonna work themselves to death?
PART 3: Now what would I give my parents? Love? They have had that and always will. I want to give them rest. I want to get my dad a big piece of land. Huge piece of land. I want to give him Arabian horses he always loved riding but never could afford one. I would give him lush gardens he can work on, and palm trees offering dates for Ramadan. I would give him a big garage with a nice Mercedes Benz, rather then his current one that's getting old. I would get him a big screen t.v. and a nice laptop for his researching. I would recreate his father's library and create the greatest reference library ever! For my mom, I would give her the greatest kitchen with all the imaginable appliances known to chef, so she can bake and make and show off her skills while enjoying herself. I would give her puzzle books, and her own t.v. so she doesn't argue with dad that she wants to watch Jeopardy! Wheel of Fortune, and Family Feud. I would give them a big comfortable house. I wouldn't have them work another day and to only enjoy themselves to travel all the other places they hadn't visited.
ReplyDeleteAfter writing all that, I realized I would give them their health back to be able to do all that. I would give them their chances to become such successful people if it weren't for us. I would give them four children that don't include me. I, the unplanned child ruined a lot for them, If I was never born they would have had two girls currently in college and two leading their own lives now, no pestering high school teen to take care of. Though my parents spoil me and say they saved the best love for last, they always expect best of me, and I know I can't offer that nor can I even compete or be next to my siblings in brains nor health. I feel all I have been is a burden on them, you know the extra bills.
Then I thought of something greater, I know we have to give them one thing. I'm religious therefore I believe in forever Paradise (Heaven BABY!) Well In the Quran married couples that truly had a love bond meet in Paradise and have their own castle of, of course anything they wish for! I would wish for them to be able to go to Heaven! The best level, to be there for eternity to do as they please and what makes them happy! I would literally do anything for them but life is short and I can't achieve much because much time has been lost... This might seem odd to those that don't believe in Hell and Heaven but that is truly what I would wish upon them.
I would I would and I would so much. If only I could :(
(sorry this was obnoxious long...I was going through a panic attack. Lol )
Manar:
ReplyDeleteI loved reading about your family! Some way through your writing you just radiate your personality and sometimes it’s just so funny I can’t help but laugh. Especially when you talked about what kinds of things you wanted to give your parents, I kept thinking “Aww! That’s so nice!” After reading all the things your parents went through, I sure (though my word is pretty much useless) you’re parents are going to go to Paradise! People deserve a peaceful place to go to! Also, don’t worry about it being long. I loved your stories, like the part when you said “through thick and thin don't ever stop talking to each other more then three days or else parents will get involved.” That is so rare in my house because we like to adopt a rule of silence and to just fume until time makes it die out.
KTG: I’ve known a lot of kids that do things simply because their parents want them to. I did track for five years just because doing otherwise would have disappointed my father. However, I have never come across a case like your sister’s, in which she goes as far as to base the rest of her life off of what her parents want. From what you wrote, I think your gift would be the best thing for her, and I hope she becomes everything she wants to be.
ReplyDeleteShirley: I think this is the first time I actually commented on your blog before. Hm. Anyway, your gift is interesting. You’re essentially giving someone who isn’t as privileged the opportunity to change the world. Everyone can change the world, but they need help, motivation. You would provide that. Hm…Shirley, anytime you want to save the world, I’m always available to help!
Manar: Your parents are SMART! Nice! Your gift to them seems extremely well deserved. I don’t think you’re a horrible daughter Manar; the fact you are aware of your flaws already puts you one step ahead of children who think they’re angels. We all don’t really treat our parents as well as they deserve to be treated, but in the context of your gift, since I have a feeling you’re going to be successful, I think you’ll be able to personally give your parents that gift in the future. :] Maybe not Heaven exactly, but some form of peace that will let them breathe, let them live.
The first person that came to my mind when I was reading this was my brother. All my life my brother's done a lot for me. Sure, he's given me scars, arguments, gotten me in trouble, but he's also given me advice, rides, and good times. We're only 18 months apart but he's like a dad. He always sticks up for me and cares for me when I get hurt. There's nothing about him that I don't like- which is why I think he deserves this gift. The gift I want to give him is the power of health. This covers sickness and injuries and gives him the power to be physically very strong.
ReplyDeleteWith this gift, he wouldn't have to endure any sicknesses in his life, except when he's old like 100. He's been through enough with witnessing sicknesses in our own house, and for him to have to go through it would just suck. Also, if he had ultimate health he wouldn't get hurt. He plays football a lot with his friends, basketball, soccer, and any other sport you can imagine. He's pretty much a huge dare devil and that comes with a great risk of getting hurt. Being 17, he's risky on the road too. I don't want him to get hurt doing any of those things because he wouldn't be himself anymore. Everyone knows my brother as a sporty kind of person and if he weren't able to go out with his friends, like if he was disabled some how, he just wouldn't be happy anymore. That would be hard to see for me because he obviously means a lot to me.
If he was physically very strong, he would dominate even more in the sports he plays! He would probably go pro in baseball or basketball, which is his dream. He would be the happiest person alive if he played for any professional sports team and he's been saying that ever since I was born. Not to be selfish, because I know this gift is supposed to benefit HIM, but it would be amazing for me too. I'd have a rich, famous brother. Who wouldn't love that?
There's not really much advice I can give him beside don't tell people because they'd consider it cheating. It'd be cheating in sports and cheating in life because he wouldn't get sick. I would tell him to go crazy- jump off buildings, eat all the junk food you want, crush everyone in sports, and to go win himself a gold medal. He would be able to do all of those things with extreme ease and there would be no harm to him. So, with the power of giving any gift to anyone, I think that my brother deserves this gift of health so he can pursue what he wants and be safe at the same time.
My mother needs strength. Not just physically but also mentally and emotionally. Overall, she needs to be stronger. She needs to be stronger for my family, but most of all she needs to be stronger for herself.
ReplyDeleteOver the past couple of months, my family’s battles with immigration have not been getting any easier. I think I’ve mentioned this in the previous blogs or my occasional papers. But it’s been recently, when the fact that my sister is getting surgery, that it has really hit us the most. It’s hit me greatly. At times I’ve just found myself crying while holding my sister in my arms because I’m terrified. Being the pessimist that I am, every negative thing comes into my mind about her surgery.
But, I think it really has hit hard on my mother. She has so much to think of. She has my sister’s surgery, her immigration deals, and so much other things that regular average mommas don’t usually deal with. Lately, I found her raising her voice a lot more. She’s usually angry and bitches about the smallest things. I usually just let it pass by because I’ve read it in her emotions that these anger spurts are just purely out of anxiety and stress. It’s all like her emotions hitting the nearest target.
So, if I had the power to give her anything, I would give her strength. She needs to know that she’ll have the ability to do this. See, my mother does not grasp the concept of being a little diva such as myself. She needs power. She needs to know that everything will be alright.
After I have given my mom strength, I would tell her:
“Mother, we’ve cried over too much for too long. I have gotten stronger. I’ve learned a lot over the past couple of months from being in my AP classes. I’ve grown and gained strength. Mom, there comes some times in your life when you think that things are not looking great. There comes times in our lives where we feel like we can’t understand things. I’ve learned, Mom, that it’s alright. Mama, we need to get up and make sure that we’re not going to be kept down any longer. Be strong, take this new found strength that I’m giving you and learn to live your life with it. Mom, you can’t afford to waste your life living weak when you and I both know that we’re so much better people. We will be triumphant. We will dominate every obstacle that comes our way. Mother, because I have grown over the past year, I have gained so much strength. Mother, you‘re much older but you know there‘s still some growing left in you. I think it‘s time for you to use this strength and find that everything‘s going to be alright.”
After that, I hope that my mother really does take the advice that I give her. She needs nothing more, I feel, than strength. I think we all do. I mean as long as we all use it for the bettering of ourselves we can achieve so much with our lives. We can all be better people.
KTG,
ReplyDeleteI am on the same boat. I want to do so much in the fashion industry but my parents feel as if it's a job that has no stability. I think they're disappointed at me too that all I want to do is make clothes. But this is when I really want to do it now. I want to do it and succeed so that I'll show them that I'm going to be amazing. I'm going to be well-known so I'll earn whatever respect they'll give me for actually doing something with my life. Now, I've heard your sister sing. She's nothing but amazing. So, tell her that if singing is what she wants to do, then by golly, go ahead!
There a bunch of people in my life that I would like to help. My mother who seems to be getting more and more upset as her last baby gets read for college, my father who just honestly cannot tell when he has gone too far, my sister who has made a lot of mistakes in her life and wishes to take them all back, my neighbor who has problems making friends, or my parents as a whole who have problems paying for our house.
ReplyDeleteThere is one person in my life who I think deserves something more than anyone else I know. It would have to be my brother. He is 25 and out on his own. He came from a very dark and hard past to be a good person. He stopped doing drugs and cut himself off from all addictions. He is one of the strongest people I know. He truly deserves something for his hard work and promising future.
However, times are hard and he is unemployed. I see him try and try each day to get a job. He has gone to interview after interview where people give his naïve soul hope and then I watch as the disappointment of no call back eats away at his insides. I have seen him cry and get upset more in the past two weeks than in my whole life. He truly is in need of a magical wish.
What makes him all the more worthy of such a wonderful gift? He is not the person to just take something without working for it. He has said time and time again, to my mother, “I do not just want money, Mom. I want to work for it. I want a good’s work for a good day’s pay.” He has given me such a wonderful view of what a respectful adult should be like and I love him to death.
For my brother, I would like to magically whip up a lifetime job in something that he likes, construction, a place where he can work outside in the summertime and a place where he can work inside during the winter. I never want to see him upset and sitting at home, drinking his sorrows away. The only advice I would give him after giving him exactly what he wants is to not waste his money on silly junk and to always be thankful for what he has been given.
Katie G: I think what you would give to your sister is wonderful, a gift that everyone would want. I like how you worded it and even gave a good background. Wonderfully written!
ReplyDeleteShirley: i like the gift you thought of. I like the whole idea and the way you described it. I think your gift is a really important one and I liked how it was someone who you do not know.
Manar: I don't really know you and I don't actually know what you look like, at least I don't think I do, but your work always gives me a clear view of who you are. If that makes sense. I like how your writting is a direct reflection of who you are, the person you are. I like your style and usually your topics are pretty interesting as well.
Deanna,
ReplyDeleteHaving people see the bigger picture really will make the world a better place. I think even just having the students of our school do that would make everything a whole lot better. Sometimes I think that people never just take a moment to think about things. I know I'm guilty of that as well. But really, when people give everything a little thought and justification, then everything should work out.
I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason, but some thing’s leave me with questioning. How could genocide happen, how could racism happen, how could rape happen? How could someone so amazing and strong, just leave the earth? How could this happen to a family? How could someone’s mom just leave? How about someone’s wife, friend, sister? How could all of this happen? Why did this all of this happen? No one deserves this. So the one thing I would give, is to the only person who deserves something; Hannah Straub. Hannah, I would give you your mom back.
ReplyDeleteHannah, you are the strongest person I know. You don’t deserve any of this. Since all of this has happened, I can see you changing. You need someone to care about you. You’re mom was more than your mom, she was your friend, your go to person in your house full of men. How you do it, I don’t understand. You need someone to hug you, to tell you they love you; someone to watch your soccer games, to tell you right from wrong, to ask you how your day was, to give you boy advice; to give a shit about you; to love you.
There is only so much you can take, so you need your mom. You know you do, so I’m not going to sit here and tell you what you already know and to make you miss her more. But I know that if you got that second chance with your mom, you would do it differently. Once you have her, you wouldn’t take it for granted. You would be there, as she would be there for you, you wouldn’t ever let her go, you would make her feel wanted and needed and you would appreciate her and love her. Everyday you would tell her; everyday you would hug her, kiss her, talk to her, help her with whatever she needs. You would be her daughter and her friend and her go to person in a house full of men. But this time, no one could take her away from you.
Your mom was an angel even before she died. You are her representation now. Live the life she would want for you. She is always here in spirit and in your heart and in all of our hearts. You can’t be make stupid decisions and take your life for granted. You have this amazing gift to live here on earth and surrounded by people who love you and care about you. Walk this earth with your mom in your heart. She is always here Hannah; we are all here.
I know I haven’t been there lately, but know I’m always here. I care about you, always. If I could go back I would promise your mom that I would never leave you. I’m sure you are sick of people leaving on you. If this could be real, it would be the last gift I would ever gift; it’s the only gift I truly want to give. Nothing and no one can replace your mom. I’m pretty much crying right now. Your story touches everyone and I have no explanation has to why this happened, but I know we all see you are strong. Cancer did take away your mom, but they can’t take away your memories with her. I would give you your mom so you two could create more. Your mom as a gift isn’t just a gift to you, but to everyone. We loved her, and she loved us; she loved you.
KTG: Your blog reminds me of my sister. She goes to Stockton and is a drama major. I know my parents aren'y for it that much;they don't think that it will get her far. But I'm sure the only reason they let her to do is because she would be depressed...and literally, depressed. It makes her happy and after what she has endured, she needs it. So your story touched me and I can relate to the gift you want to give her.
ReplyDeleteHannah: I'm so glad you and Carl are close. You two need each other. He is very good at sports, so by you giving him all this is very selfless. You should show him this, by the way.
Stephanie: I love that you would do that for your brother. I would love to give the same thing to my sister. She is jobless so she has to rely on my parents. I don't know if she feels guilty for taking my parents money, but I would still love to give her a job.
^notice all of mine were sibling related. I'm sucker for family love :)
Meg- Ahh I'm crying right now that was the nicest thing anyone's ever done (well, of course you can't really give me that gift.. but still). That means so much to me and it made me think about a lot. Clearly my decisions lately haven't been the best.. haha but I am working on it. I definately wouldn't take her for granted if she was here. I would do a lot different than what I did in the past years. <33333333333333333333333
ReplyDeleteand Meg- I'm going to show him later when he comes home from his lady's house ;)
ReplyDeleteHannah: You know I got you, and for your decisions I want you to be happy, but smart too. I love you Hannah. I don't know if people tell you that a lot, but I do. and carl has a lady??? Carl!! ooh lala ;)
ReplyDeleteStephanie: That's really nice that you gave something to your brother, I did too. Older brothers are the best. I'm glad your brother turned around and started doing the right thing, I hope it all works out for him soon!
ReplyDeleteMEGATRON: Yea his lady is Kelsey Dickerson! Seriously!!! And thanks Megan, that really means a lot love you too.
ReplyDeleteNanners: whatt??? alright tell me tomorrow at lunch ahaha
ReplyDeleteMeg- K this way we're not blowin up ms bunjes phone with texts from this thing haha
ReplyDeleteShe’s beautiful. Inside and out, she is purely amazing. Her demeanor remains pleasant even when confronted with undeserving sadness… which seems often. You really wouldn’t believe her intellect and depth, she’s so much smarter than she lets out to be. Craziness rages through her life, every day. That man calls, and her happy face slides the phone back on the wall. He calls her everyday, and if she happens to be out, he keeps calling. Why must she be bothered? As if the child has no blood from him. She loved him, gave him every chance that most of us wouldn’t even consider. It’s disgusting how horrid he is. She works everyday, barely scraping by, providing for both her sons. I don’t know how she does it. The love of a mother must be tremendously strong, and she in no way gets that love back. Always in trouble, she knows her son’s teachers pretty well. He’s on the red light again…. It’s really not fair to her.
ReplyDeleteThis woman, is someone that I see as not having enough opportunities. When I say she’s smart, I mean its an almost pure wisdom that she purrs. Of course, her lines of brilliance are always discontinued due to her constant struggle in figuring what’s going on in her life. Not yet thirty, she has seemed to have dealt with every person alive, every situation possible, and every danger there is. However, through all this, and behind her strength I feel as if privately she lacks a kind of self respect. She seems to forget her worth, because all she fights for is her kids and their safety. There is no time for herself. She’ll cut her hair randomly, in crazy lengths. I guess as a way of change. She really looks the same no matter how it is, because her pleasantly plumped face always has a smile and hint of sarcasm.
Which is why, if given the magic, I would give this woman opportunity. The opportunity to get a college education. The opportunity to get a better paying job. The opportunity for her self esteem to stride forward. The opportunity to get the legal action needed in getting rid of that man that always calls. She has the potential to be a C.E.O of Macys. Her creativity astounds me, as does her ability to organize anything, everywhere. She deserves opportunities. Great ones. It’s so hard for her though, especially having both children to take care of. Every chance she has, must be put through the is-this-right-for-the-children train of thought. So the gift, would be opportunities that wouldn’t affect her children negatively. Along, with the gift I would give advice. As awkward as it would be, my advice to her would be to find peace within yourself. You need to accept and love yourself in order to increase self respect. Which explains why this gift is evident. With opportunities comes choices and the right choices will help her to see how amazing she really is. The way I see her.
Paola - Missss, you are beautiful, and your writing shows that. I really enjoy every one of your responses because they're so powerful and each time I can tell they're yours without looking at the name. I don't know how to describe them...the word that comes to mind is dramatic, but not in a bad way. I don't think there's really a word unless I make it up, but that was last week's blog. haha. Your responses are just so tremendous, and I never get tired of your writing.
ReplyDeleteHere we are, in “the land of opportunity.” We brag about equality for all, but Christian has nothing. He lost his home based on his mother‘s decisions. He was kicked out of a homeless shelter because of his mother’s decisions. He has witnessed more than any four-year-old should witness based on his mother’s decisions.
ReplyDeleteChristian and my mom crossed paths around Thanksgiving. She did what she could to help by purchasing much-needed clothes, socks, and underwear for him. However, his mother was kicked out of a second homeless shelter shortly after, so the two had to leave the area. I don’t know where Christian is now. But I want to help him. He thinks that the life he lives is normal. If he were to come to my house, I am positive he would say something along the lines of, “You live here- like every day?!?!” It’s sad really. He’s never hurt anyone. He’s not the one who decided to throw his life away. He is an innocent (and quite adorable) little boy.
I would give him a house, and a really nice house to somehow make up for what he has endured. I’d send him to the best school possible to receive the best education possible. I’d ensure that he has the necessary amounts of food and clothing, especially socks and underwear because I never want to hear of anyone telling his teacher that he’s not wearing underwear because the police wouldn’t let him back in his house but that it’s okay though because he only had a few pair anyways. But considering that Albus Dumbledore is, well, Albus Dumbledore, I’d do so much more. No, I wouldn’t spoil the kid with total lavish. In my opinion, that’s almost as bad as living in destitution.
I’d give him a fresh start. He’d be aware of his “past life,” in which he had nothing, but only so that he acquired philanthropic passion. He’d totally start over though. He’d be born into a different family. This family wouldn’t be perfect- no family is- but he wouldn’t be so negatively affected by decisions out-of-his-control.
He would receive the tools necessary to lead a successful life when the time comes because I believe that people really can choose their destinies, but four-year-olds are not people in that sense. He is completely dependent on an unreliable person, and it’s not his fault at all.
Along with this new life, I’d give Christian some advice. It’s advice that all of us have received at some point:
- Make good decisions because they don’t only affect you.
- It’s not really a dog-eat-dog world. Don’t push others aside to get where you want to.
- Work hard at being the best you can be.
- Give back to the community.
My hopes would be that Christian would reach the potential of which he is being deprived. Most of all, though, I hope that no one needs to step in and provide Christian with a change so drastic. I want his mom to wake up. Thinking about the path she is paving for her son disgusts me. She is ruining his life and although I feel that there comes a time when a person controls their own life, it’s hard to steady a car spinning out of control. All I want to do is reach over and rip the steering wheel from the hands of the current driver of Christian’s life.
Manar:
ReplyDeleteIt’s so sweet how you decided to give the “gift” to your parents! Often, I just don’t stop and think about how much my parents do for me. They put so much time and effort into making my life a little better and they’re always there when I’m having a bad day, which has been frequently as of late. But please, try not to think that your parents’ lives would be better without you (“I would give them four children that don't include me. I, the unplanned child ruined a lot for them…”). Though I don’t know you parents, just from your writing I can sense that they care deeply for you. Their lives wouldn’t be the same without you!
Jourdan,
How sad! I can picture little Christian now: upset, as good as alone, and helpless. He’s a great choice for someone to help, and I really liked your advice for him, especially “Make good decisions because they don’t only affect you.” Although Christian’s situation sounds like a perfect testimony to the necessity of following this, it is easy to lose sight of. People tend to be self-centered, and so we rarely look at the big picture--especially, where others interests come into play--when making decisions.
Steph:
ReplyDeleteMy best wishes to your brother. His situation right now is one of my biggest fears: that I’ll get out of college and have nowhere to turn (or, worse, realize that the sort of career I thought I wanted and spent years earning a degree in a related field will turn out to be all-wrong). What happens then?
He makes me smile. He makes me cry. Sometimes I want to hug him. More frequently I feel the overwhelming to give him a good slap. He’s my always goofy, and often annoying, younger brother Tristan. I love my brother, but he always manages to get on my nerves. He makes rude comments, creates noise or is otherwise purposely agitating when he knows I’m doing something important (somehow his computer speaker volume magically increases, or his remote control model cars--super noisy buggers-- start racing across the yard, when my mind is swimming with homework assignments and my brain is straining to understand a concept), and he knows all my flaws and just how to use them against me.
ReplyDeleteAs agitating as his habits are, they are not what really, truly, drives me crazy. Tristan is my little brother for goodness sake, so even though I don’t at all enjoy it when he bugs me, I expect it. It’s his job to be a little bit of a brat. What I really cannot stand is that he refuses to ever sit down and communicate with me like a semi-normal human being and that he very rarely takes anything seriously. It’s not just me suffering from a bit of “woe is me I have an agitating sibling syndrome”. No, not at all. He does not “talk” normally with anyone in my immediate family (me, Mom, Dad). Instead, it’s rude comments, smart-aleck responses, or goofy/nonsensical replies. Like I said, I love Tristan, and, sometimes being around him is pleasant (he can be quite funny). I just really wish that I could hold a conversation with him once in a while. I want to be able to tell him about my sorrows and joys, without having every word that comes from my mouth warped into something ugly and shot back at me. I want to listen to his issues and offer been-there-done-that big sister advice. I want to hear about the new girl in his class, the touchdown he scored during recess, the A he was thrilled to get on an Algebra test… I want to talk to him.
So if I could give anyone a gift, it would be my brother. So what would my gift be? Easy. An “off switch”. Something in his system that would let him shut down from annoying-brother mode, temporarily, to be a friend, confidant, confider, or just a more pleasant person to be around for a while. Okay, so this would be a sort of gift to me, too, but in the long run it would be Tristan who would benefit most. Like I mentioned earlier, he’s not just annoying, he is often so preoccupied with joking around that he glosses over more serious issues that he should pay attention to. For instance, he rarely cares to give Mom announcements/handouts meant for parents from school, smirking or just laughing it off when she rebuffs him. So that might now seem like a super-serious issue now, until of course he almost forgets to give her a permission slip for a big fieldtrip (as was the case with his 8th grade trip to NYC… which is a trip no Greenbanker in the right mind would miss) or if his lax attitude continues into adulthood, where there is far more to risk missing than fieldtrips to the Big Apple.
As beneficial as a sort of off-switch would be for Tristan, I wouldn’t grant it to him without one important warning: NEVER lose your sense of humor. I am the antithesis of Tristan wherever seriousness is concerned. I overwork, overapply, overanalyze, overeverything. I never relax, barely sleep (happy 2-something AM, readers!), and drive myself to the brink of physical and mental unsoundness. I would never wish my attitude on my brother. Humor is uplifting. He is a much happier person than I am because he goes through life with a smile on his face and a laugh always just behind his lips. Though I do wish he’d be more down to earth when appropriate and that he would leave annoying-brother mode once in a while to just “talk” to me like a friend, I would never want him to lose his smile.
Sorry to everyone who receives notifications on their phones, It would not save on my computer. I hope it does not wake anyone!!
ReplyDeleteHannah S- “With this gift, he wouldn't have to endure any sicknesses in his life, except when he's old like 100.”
I’ve always wanted to be able to do anything and never have a negative side effect. Your brother and you have always been playing outside, in the house, and pretty much any other random place out there. Imagine how great it would be to not have a care in the world about consequences. I am glad you chose to give this to your brother. With all the advantages this allows him to have, he would use them for all the right reasons. I enjoyed your decision in giving this power to your brother.
Jourdan S.-
Wow that was a very touching story. The sad part is, there are so many cases of this occurring throughout the United States, and even all over our area. I know when I hear stories like this, I begin to appreciate the little things that my family has given me. The advice aspect is very important for this little boy. If he just gets all this glory without remembering what he came from, the gift is not fully received. Hopefully someday Christian will be able to start over.
There are things that cannot be given but can be taken, things that can be lost but not found. These things cannot be grasped, and cannot be sensed with the ordinary sphere of perception: they belong to the realm of the mind and soul; they are immaterial. These things are experiences and opportunities, and they are the greatest gifts of all. Traits and abilities can be developed through hard work and dedication, and to have it given to you is only a shortcut - and shortcuts are not really great gifts. What makes a great gift is when that gift opens up the world to a person, gives them a view of new horizons. One of these such gifts that I think I would like to give would be the gift of renewed life. In my short time on this earth I have seen people agonized by a loss, be it a physical malady or a mental handicap, even driven to madness. I have seen lives snuffed out in a most untimely way, out like a candle. Most of these people had such potential, but had it snatched away by a crippling event or the icy grip of death. I would want more than anything to be able to give new life to someone who has lost the ability to live.
ReplyDeleteThe selfish part is who I would choose to receive this gift. I would choose a person based on whether or not they could benefit the world with their life. Whoever could do the most for the world to promote the general welfare and happiness would get my gift. This doesn't necessarily mean that the person must be ideal: new life is a new opportunity to blossom into something good, and I would rather give it to someone who could improve him/herself as well as the world (they are essentially the same thing after all).
My uncle has always been the "different" one on my father's side of the family. While my dad and two aunts have always had decent jobs and a pretty good life, and now all have stable marriages, my uncle hasn't. For most of my grade school years, he worked for a company that made him drive trucks all over the country in order to ship various orders. While it didn't allow him to have the most secure life ever, he was at least sort of happy with how things were going. However, he decided a few years ago to pursue a career in acting. In order to do this, he quit his shipping job and moved out to California. Once he got there, he enrolled in a film school and learned how to act and direct. It seemed like everything was going to go well.
ReplyDeleteHowever, since then nothing has really happened. He has had exactly one film part (an extra in "Christmas with the Kranks") and has struggled mightily since he moved out there. He now works part time as a security guard just to try and get by. To add to the problems, he got a forty something black woman pregnant and now has to support her and the child, who is named Malcolm. From what I know, she has financial problems, and now is in debt. Because they both have to work, there is no one to watch the child, so babysitters must be employed, which costs even more money. To put it bluntly, my uncle's life sucks. No matter what he does now, it seems like there is absolutely no way to fix everything that has gone wrong.
Because of this, as my gift I would give him the opportunity to completely start over. To go back to right after he got out of the Marines would be the best gift I could possibly give him. Given a new start, he could get a real, stable job and not go around getting people pregnant. If given this opportunity, I honestly believe that he would do things differently and not just end up in the same dire situation that he is in right now.
If I had to give him any advice concerning the gift, I would just tell him to use it wisely and not mess things up again. I honestly believe that he would, because he's basically a good person who just made some really poor choices. I'm pretty sure that he wouldn't move out to California an pursue an acting career again, because that was probably the first really bad decision he made. I am SURE that he wouldn't get a woman pregnant again, because that has basically made his life a living hell. Given this opportunity, he would definitely do things better.
It is actually pretty sad writing this, because I know I can't actually do this for him. He really is stuck out in California with nowhere to turn and no solutions to be found. It seems as if he is doomed to a life of just getting by, and no one in their right mind would want to live life like that. It's too bad that there is no quick solution to this dilemma, but the reality in life is that a lot of people just don't get a second chance. One bad mistake and life is all but over. It's a shame magic doesn't exist, because people like my uncle could sure use it.
Jourdan S:
ReplyDeleteThat's so sad! I feel bad for that kid. Oftentimes people don't realize that when they act, the affect more than just themselves. This poor child is the victim of other people's poor decisions, and it's really a shame.
KTG- I feel that no matter what your parents say, you're going to be an artist. I wish your sister had that same uoomph about her, because I'm sure her voice deserves to be showcased. I love how you explained how much the two of you would pretend to like stuff, I don't know if I could do that. Luckily for you, the only ballet in your future will be if you draw a ballerina.
ReplyDeleteDeanna- I agree with a lot of the first half of your blog. Everyone really shouldn't need a gift, however the reality of most situations is that they do. I was somewhat confused at what your gift actually was, but I think its to have an understanding of others and a knowledge of truth. If so, than thats a really amazing gift.
Manar- Don't ever say that you're a burden! You are very intelligent as well as beautiful. I hope that you don't feel as if your life is in the shadow of your siblings, because everyone has something great about them. I love how you gave the gift to your parents. By the way to talk about them in gym, they sound really fun and crazy. They work so hard because they love you, so don't say your a burden, that only makes their work in vain.
Jessie B:
ReplyDeleteI was this boy to my older brother. He STILL gets agitated when I don't like to talk to him about anything. When he tries to help me with college, I basically shrug it off because I don't want to deal with the future yet. My ridiculous, often-goofy responses to his perfectly serious questions have often left him quite angry at me. Sometimes, thought, I think everybody needs somebody like this. Everybody my brother knows is so serious. Despite what he says, I'm sure he doesn't resent my presence every day.
Paola D:
ReplyDeleteI hate when people like this don't get the opportunities they should. There are plenty of people out there that could do great things, but simply never get the chance. It's a shame when a great mind goes to waste, but sadly, it happens all the time. When caught up in family responsibilities and the like, some just never get a chance.
Stephanie, your gift is simple but wonderful. Employment is hard to find these days, especially for the young and elderly. Having steady employment would mean that the employed person could focus on other things: passions, dealing with other important issues, expanding horizons.
ReplyDelete“He is so disrespectful”. “He doesn’t take anything seriously. “He needs to start growing up and acting his age for once”. Those are just a couple remarks that some members of my family have made about my cousin. And for the most part they’re true. I grew up with my cousin living only two houses away from me. My mother and her sister (my aunt) are highly close so my cousin and I were raised together. We went on vacations together, we went to school together and honestly we have more of a brother-sister relationship than a cousin relationship. He has always been the one to tease me and sometimes make mean jokes but I expected all of this. What I didn’t expect was how he acted towards his parents. While growing up he would throw the typical tantrums at his parents when he didn’t get what he wanted. Okay, not so bad for a small child right? Well somewhere in the growing up process, he didn’t actually grow up. Now as a legal adult he still throws those tantrums just in a different way. Instead of crying and pouting he resorts to being disrespectful. My aunt and uncle are always there for him no matter what though. They have always and will always be there for there baby boy. Now believe me, he’s not a horrible person. He has his moments where he seems mature and responsible. I have even envied him at times because he is always relaxed and rarely seems stressed and just seems like he is enjoying his life with every second that he has. He’s definitely one of a kind and I have never met anyone quite like him. But this all does not excuse the disrespect he has for his parents and sometimes even his brother. My uncle (his father) helps everyone and anyone, he’s a charitable guy who his willing to help those who need help. He would do anything for his sons.
ReplyDeleteMy aunt works and worries about her sons all while looking out for my grandpa and grandma. And my other cousin (his brother) is always trying to give my cousin advice and help him when he can. They are all there for him and I have no doubt that that will ever change. So if I could give one person anything I would definitely give my cousin an attitude that would give him more respect for his family and others. I don’t want to change everything about him, just that one trait. My aunt and uncle and other cousin are always there for him so I want him to be there for them. I want him to show them that he does care more and that he appreciates everything that they do for him. I want him to move out of that childish phase and maybe not completely grow up but at least grow up to the point where he knows when he’s wrong and he can admit it. I would tell him to look at all of the things that they have done and still do for him. I would want him to see the way he acts so that he could understand. I would tell him not to change himself but to change how he treats others. They do so much for him and I’d just like to see him return the favor. I know he knows how to be respectful; he just needs to let that respect out more often.
ReplyDeleteLucas: After reading your blog, I really wish magic existed too! I wish those single decisions didn’t always have such a big impact on our lives but they unfortunately usually do. It would be really nice of you to give your uncle a second chance if that were possible. Some people really do deserve second chances sometimes.
ReplyDeleteJourdan: Wow, that little boy sounds like he deserves so much more in life than what is being given. I think sometimes we take things for granted (or at least I know I have before) until we hear about people and children like Christian. I think your gift to him would be perfect and I honestly wish that it could happen.
Paola: Your writing style is amazing! I really enjoyed reading your response, it just flowed together. The woman and the gift you described sounded like it fit together perfectly. Maybe really giving her that advice would help. If anyone could help her I’m sure it would be you.
Lately I’ve been dreading going to history. We’ve gone from talking about torture and genocide, to watching the disturbing part of Amistad, to hearing about the Holocaust. I’ve never bought into “ignorance is bliss”, or the very American attitude that freedom means you should ignore the suffering you don’t have to see. I believe we owe it to ourselves and those around us to be as aware as possible. However it still gets to me. Someone asked Cervi if he thought he would have owned slaves if he had lived in the south during that time. I’ve asked myself similar questions countless times. Would I have pretended I didn’t know what was happening to save myself if I lived in Nazi Germany? Would I have accepted slavery, because my family and friends did and because it would make my life easier? I can usually convince myself that I would do the right thing, but there is always a lingering fear that I wouldn’t. That is exactly why Cervi’s answer has stayed with me over the last week. He told our entire class that he had been bullied and victimized as a child. He said that after feeling that way he could not do the same to someone else.
ReplyDeleteI believe that humans are naturally compassionate, but going through pain and hardships definitely allows us to access this part of ourselves more fully. I would never want to give someone pain or hardship. I think God, or fate, or nature, or whatever someone happens to believe in already has that covered. Instead I would like to find someone who has been through pain, humiliation, and loss. I would like to give them leadership skills and the chance to use them. Martin Luther King had to face prejudice and hate from a young age. Mohandas Ghandi faced racism in South Africa. He was thrown off a train because he refused to give up the first-class seat he paid for to a white passenger. He was beaten up, kicked out of hotels, and severely harassed. After these experiences, he began his lifelong fight against injustice. Both men were great leaders, and have been influential long after their deaths. I would like to give someone who has suffered and has the potential to be extremely compassionate and understanding the chance to have a legacy. More than that I want to give humanity the chance to have another leader, who can positively change the world.
Lucas
ReplyDeleteFirst, I hope that your Uncle figures things out because everything seemed to just go wrong. But when I read your blog through, I felt like magic really did happen when you started to present him with your gift. The way you described it just sounded like everything went *poof* and everything just started over. But anyways, I really do hope that your Uncle solves everything because no one should go through life like that.
In an increasingly globalized world we are coming into contact with more and more different people all the time. There are some people who can easily adapt and understand other people's differences. They can easily see problems and issues from other perspectives. They are very tolerant, open minded, and accepting of others. This is a rare quality, a gift so to speak. Anyone could use the gift of understanding, but I have someone specifically in mind who really needs it.
ReplyDeleteThere's this girl that I've known my entire life, I'm going to call her "Beth." As long as I can remember Beth has always had trouble seeing things from others' perspectives. It isn't like she is self centered and only cares about her self (well maybe when we were younger it was), she just can't understand. She thinks in one way, her way. She is always right, and quick to tell you when you're wrong, and she believes she's doing you a service by saying so. Growing up with this girl was hard, as you can probably imagine. We fought often, but fighting with someone who staunchly believes they're right is an futile battle. Feelings were hurt, but when you're young fights like these were forgot about the next day. Now that we're older the things we fight about are a little more serious than they were, and so these fights are not forgotten about the next day, in fact they remain in my mind for quite a long time. For as long as I've known her I've never been able to tell her that I was gay, because she can't understand. I have no way of predicting how she is going to react, and I'm sure she won't be able to see things the way I see them
I want to give the gift of understanding to Beth because I know she is going to have a rough time going through life without being able to see things from other people's eyes. She wants to be a social justice lawyer that does pro bono work for the impoverished, a job the requires a great deal of understanding. You have to be able to understand your client's point of view, the judge's point of view, and, possibly most importantly, your opponent's point of view. I want her to follow her dream because I know it would make her truly happy, but how can she do it if she doesn't learn to understand? On top of work I also worry about her personal relationships. For a relationship to work you need to be able to understand how the other person sees things.
So if I could I would take the gift of understanding, wrap it up in a nice box, and write this note on it:
Dear Beth,
We've had our troubles, but I'm pretty sure this will help. Use this gift whenever you're fighting with someone, including me, and you just don't get where they're coming from. Use this gift when you're at work and completely stumped on a case because some testimonies just don't add up. Use this gift when you love someone, but don't understand them. Use this when you read these next words, I like guys.
Much love, Stephen.
He walks through the house looking at the floor. He does not speak. He sits at the table, vacuums in the food and leaves. He mumbles his manners as he races out of the kitchen. He shields himself from everyone every time he shuts his door behind him. He talks to some people… I wonder where they’re from and what they look like. I’ll never know because they reside on the other side of the TV whenever he turns on his Xbox. I hear his voice and block it out like he’s a stranger. My brother doesn’t have relationships with anyone outside of his room.
ReplyDeleteI bet you’re thinking, or have thought, “YOU HAVE A BROTHER?!” Yes, I do. He’s 19 and his room is two feet from mine, but I can’t tell you the last time we’ve spoken to each other. He looks like my dad, from what we’ve seen in pictures, and he laughs like my mom, from what I’ve heard across the hall. Anyway, my brother, Kenny, is who I would give a gift to. You’d think it’d be my sister, right? Since I love her to death… but she doesn’t need my help if I had his power. He does.
When we were all little, my brother, sister and I were so close. We’d always play video games together and we always jumped on the trampoline together. I remember when my brother and I would even wrestle because we absolutely adored WWF. We even ganged up on my sister, weird. Things changed when I was 11, he punched me in the face. I can’t even look at him the same anymore. Ashley and I were yelling in my room and playing around like stupid children do. “KRISTIE!” I heard and quickly snickered back a “whhaaaattt” type of answer. He told me to “SHUT THE HELL UP!” He was 15 and for him to curse at me, I laughed and said “You’re not my mommy” and continued playing with my sister. The next thing I knew the attic stairs to my bedroom were cranking and squeaking. He appeared in my room and yelled something and my sister stepped in front of me. He pushed her onto me and she rolled off and hit the floor. I yelled something and he did it. Smack dab in the eye. Ouch.
So, long story short, I’d give him something. I’d give him patience. Not only because of what happened between us but for many reasons. He has a temper like my father, and I’ve explained many times how well that is. I’d give him the characteristic to be patient which would lead to greater things. He’d be able to withstand people in person and he wouldn’t have to hide behind a screen. With patience, he’d gain the ability to socialize and experience life like we all do. I know he loves his games more than life, but that’s because he hasn’t experienced life outside of that realm. I wish time and time again that I had a protective brother, or one that even cared. I know my mom wishes her son would love life like her daughters do. My sister wants a brother to hang out with, just like her and I do. My stepdad would love a son to do things with now that his are in New Hampshire. It now seems like I’m giving this gift to settle something my family wants, but it’s really not. I know he wants to be some big successful gamer one day and to get there, he needs patience above all.
The advice I would give him is to enjoy it. Though I do not hold patience the best way, I know that when I am patient, things work out so much better and I love it. I enjoy it, and I feel like everyone does – to be patient and relax. So Kenny, take this and enjoy it, grow and experience life like I do because I know you’ll love it.
KTG : I absolutely love your gift and the reasoning. My sister is my best friend and I say that with every fiber in my body and I know how it feels. My mom doesn't laugh at our dreams but my stepdad always pushes for the logic behind it all and doesn't see a future in my sisters love for singing. We do, and I tell her all the time how much I believe in her. Keep pushing her!
ReplyDeleteLucas - Reading your blog, I got kind of sad too. The last part you wrote saying that it's sad because you know you can't give this to him isn't necessarily true. Though you can't provide him a time machine, you can still help him and support him in whatever decision he makes.
ReplyDeleteSarah-
ReplyDeleteI quite adored your blog, and I often ask myself the same question. Most people under those circumstances, unfortunately, do not hold those leadership skills to stand up for themselves. They simply do not have the voice and, if they do, they are too scared to use it. And honestly, I don't think we have had an internationally-acclaimed leader who has stood up to rascism since Nelson Mandela in South Africa. I believe every now and then humans are handed these gifted individuals. Thus, even if you never bestowed your gift, the world would still discover the next impactful "leader". They're ubiquitous throughout world history. By the way, did you mention what advice you would give to them? I'm not sure if I caught it? Also, I thoroughly enjoyed your Gandhi reference. I don't think many people nowadays know about that incident in South Africa.
Megan - I'll admit, you made me cry. But that's honestly the best gift I could imagine. My mom's mom passed away young and my mom clinged to her grandmom ever since. It changes people, that loss, but they're always there deep down. I'm going to stop because this is sad. I love you and Hannah, kbye :).
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMegan-
ReplyDeleteYour blog sort of had me tear up. No lie. That was extremely moving and Hannah is fortunate to have someone like you. "I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason, but some thing’s leave me with questioning. How could genocide happen, how could racism happen, how could rape happen?" I, as well, stand by the belief that everything happens for a reason. But, after Cervi's class lately, I'm quite unsure. Why do any of these people, whether from the present or the past, deserve to die? Well, the way I deal with it is to conclude that it was just their time. And although you can never see them until the afterlife, or heaven, or whatever belief, sometimes you just beg to have them back instantaneously. And giving your only gift to Hannah is a beautiful and touching sacrifice, for I also believe Hannah needs it. I give you kudos for being a great friend, and I only wish that this blog was a reality. Sadly, Dumbledore won’t visit us.
KTG:
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear that your sister isn't doing what makes her happy. She really needs to take control and do what she wants! Nobody she be stuck doing something for the rest of their life that doesn't make them happy. They'll only be dreaming about what they could be doing with their lives. I hope one day you figure out how you can give this gift to your sister.
This is the only time I’ve ever looked at a blog and knew exactly what I wanted to respond with and why. I’m so excited!
ReplyDeleteA couple weeks ago, my mother and I were in the car on the way to the food store and we began talking about the movie, The Blind Side. For those who haven’t seen it, it about a black teenager who is taken in by a Southern white family and eventually becomes a professional football player. When he went into school though, he had only a third grade reading level and he had to push himself to learn the material that high school students learn. If the family had never picked him up on the street one day and taken him in as their own, he would have been nothing.
There are so may people today, who live as that man did when he was young. They have one outfit, they sneak into the school gym at night and stay in there because they have nowhere else to go, and they eat whatever they can find that’s leftover from other people. We may not be able to see past our own huge egos and selfish needs, but these people could have the potential to be something amazing. These people may have the drive and determination to make a name for themselves and become something so greater than we have the potential to become.
If I could give anything to anyone in the world, I would give one of these people an opportunity. I would take someone off the streets as that family took Mikey, and give him a chance. I would give him an education and a safe place to sleep and a loving family. I would present him with all of the tools he would need to be successful. He could do whatever he wanted with these tools. Needless to say, I would be highly insulted if he threw them away, but in all honesty, I don’t think they would. If I gave someone the opportunities that I have had as a child to be successful, I think they would do everything they can to succeed. To them, because of where they came from and the limitations that were set before them previously, they would be grateful and use every single one of the opportunities I bestowed upon them. They would take advantage of every chance they got because they finally could become something. They could be whatever they wanted to be.
ReplyDeleteA lot of American children take advantage of their education. They see the opportunities to be something great put before them, but they don’t know how to work with the opportunities. To them, it’s all about instant gratification. They need their dream career to be handed to them on a silver platter, just like everything else in their life. If I gave an opportunity to someone like Mikey in The Blind Side, they would do whatever they possibly could to become something great. It would be a way out for them, and they wouldn’t take it for granted.
KTG- You are soo sweet and I love how you support your sister in what she wants to do. It's great that she has a sister like you who is there for her and wanting her to succeed in her passions! Though I know this will be difficult for her to pursue judging by how your parents support. Just keep reminding your sister in how much you have her back and it will make her more comfortable to want to follow her dreams because she will know that she always has someone that is there cheering for her.
ReplyDeletePaola-
ReplyDeleteI don't exactly know who this "she" is, but that doesn't matter. What matters is how opportunity is key, and giving the key to this girl is being a great friend. Opportunity opens new doors, and supplies you with even more opportunities in the future. They start a pattern: more opportunities follow. It's unfortunate when someone has all of the potential in the world, yet they are restricted from the greatest of oppurtunities, and all because of their lifestyle. For instance, a poor person could have the brains of Einstien, yet could never prove it due to lack of money, and thus lack of an education. So, what you're giving is a true and much-needed gift. However, if I were to give this gift, I'd warn to be grateful for these opportunities, and try not to mess up. Besides, each opportunity comes a responsibility. By the way, I love your writing style. It's very distinct and very you!
Stephen,
ReplyDeleteI really appreciated your point of view. Though this is a little bit different than your context of the gift of understanding, I know you'll agree with me. I HATEHATEHATEHATEHATE when someone I'm close to tells me that they hate a certain race of people. I can't stand it. They have no freaking clue why they feel that way either. If we could sit back adn uderstand everyone's beleifs and point of views, the world would be a much better place.
I could never choose. Being indecisive has never done me well, but in this hypothetical situation I think it’s the only way I could go about it. Indecision. With the magical “Give a Gift token,” I could never choose one person to pass this to. My gift would not be taken lightly; I couldn’t just give away any old thing. I would legitimately go Mother Theresa on this world and just save lives and help people out of hardships like it was nobody’s business. But how the fuck could I choose? Ask me to give the gift of life, I’d say yes in a heartbeat. Ask me to choose between giving that life to a little boy with leukemia or a mother of three with a weak heart and I would burst into tears, curl into a ball, lock myself in my room and never come out. The simple thought of that choice is getting me choked up. When it all boils down, everyone needs something. I feel like giving a gift to one person would be letting down the other 2,999,999,999 billion people of the world. That’s a lot more disappointment then job well done. I just couldn’t pick who to help.
ReplyDeleteHere’s the thing, I love baking. With every fiber of my being, I believe a cupcake can brighten anyone’s day. It’d be immoral to bake a single cupcake, waste all that batter and then bring in that lonely pastry to one lucky student while the rest of the class stared longingly in jealousy. This situation, while far less serious then choosing who to give a gift to holds the same thought…But then, the heavens parted and I realized there was a loophole. Yes, I am a big fan of those and maybe you don’t like it but my indecisiveness won’t accept any other option. I’d give myself a gift. Yea, yea, that’s not in the rules. But I promise it’s a lot more selfless then it sounds. I’d give myself the gift to give out special no questions asked, no charge necessary gifts to anyone I deemed deserving of one. With the 1 time only gift problem out of the way, I wouldn’t have to choose. I could save everyone, I could help anyone, I would change lives. I would literally travel the world in search of people in need of something, anything that could take a burden off of their lives. Of course, I would be sparing with the gift. If a drug addicted mother needed money to feed her children, I’d give her the gift of sobriety to ensure she would not go spending money on things that wouldn’t help.
So what advice would I give to myself? Don’t let being the new millennium Jesus go to your head and don’t help those who cannot be helped; save who you can; save who deserves to be saved; everyone else can do it on their own. If I was the only person on the planet who could give out gifts to anyone I wished, people would love me. People would praise the ground I walked on, people would call me the messiah. Honestly, I wouldn’t want any of that, despite being in drama, I’m no fan of the lime light. If given the chance, I’m more than happy to slide the magnifying glass onto someone else’s life. But that’s off point,essentially, I would stay humble, I saved your life, use it well, I’m glad I could help. I would also have to cope with the fact that there are some who are beyond help, I can’t give out “get out of jail free cards.” I couldn’t help someone who would take it for granted, I would help people who would geniounely appreciate it. So that’s my gift to myself…but really to everyone. Basically, Hello World! My name’s Taylor Palm, here’s my card, how can I help?
Sarah L:
ReplyDeleteYour post really spoke to me. That is an amazing gift to give someone. I also know what you mean about question how you would have acted in those terrible situations. I am almost sure I would have fought against slavery or been in the resistance, but there is always that lingering thought of doubt in the back of my mind, which scares me.
Jessie B,
ReplyDeleteI know what it's like to have an extremely sarcastic and border-line sardonic sibling. The only thing is that she can hold life conversations with me. I save all of the life conversations we have, in the back of my mind, though, because I'm afraid to lose them. They're not rare occurrences, but they do not happen as often as I could like them to. I love having conversations with Carly... until she gets snippy with me and we end up cursing each other out...
Watching one of the closest people to me throw his life away crushes me. Every day, as I sit in AP Lang, I find my eyes fixated on the poster hanging on the podium:
ReplyDelete"No Matter how far you go down the wrong road, you can always turn back."
I wish my brother believed that.
When I was in double arm casts to prevent myself from ripping the stitches out of my mouth as a baby, who was always by my side? Who wrapped me in Christmas lights and put pretty bows in my hair to "make me pretty?" Who was the person I looked up to and would do anything for? Who's always in the crowd supporting me in whatever I do? My brother. My best friend.. or at least who used to be my best friend.
Throughout the midst of his rebellion, heavy drug use, and disappearance with the accompaniment of a letter on his bed saying that when we found him, he'd be dead, I lost my best friend. I didn't know the person staring back at me as the tears streamed from my eyes. And after many many attempts to help, to get back my best friend, you give up on places to look. But you never give up hope. Well at least we don't, though it seems as though he has.
He an extremely intelligent person, in all advanced classes when he was younger, but dropped out of high school. He's been to boot camp, rehab, correctional school, juvenile rehabilitation centers, and and anywhere you can imagine to get help. The saddest part is that he doesn't need the help. He's said before, "I can change if I want to." Where there is a will, there is a way. He lacks the desire. His view on life is that he can never redeem himself. He can never turn back because he's too far down the wrong road. Well guess what? He's wrong. I'd be willing to forget everything in the past that he's done if it means getting my best friend back.
So if a magic wizard gave me the power to give a gift to anyone, I'd give him the desire to change. I'd tell him to realize how much he's hurting everyone and convince him that it's never too late to change. He needs to stare at the poster as I do, and believe that it's true.
Deanna,
ReplyDeleteYour blog almost directly correlates with mine. In my blog, you would be the type of person that I want to give my gift to. That statement was not based on any sort of social or economical problems at all, because u got none girl! It was based on personality. I have always appreciated and envied your drive to get what you want. You never let anything get in the way of what you need in your life, and that's what I love about you. Since I'm giving the gift of opportunity to be something great, someone like you would get the gift!
Sarah C:
ReplyDeleteYou are so right, so many kids in this country feel like they are entitled to everything! They don't see the opportunities they have as something to be grateful for, rather as someone that is expected. They don't realize that not everyone has the same chance they do. A lot of kids could learn a lesson from the story in The Blind Side.
When I sat down to write this blog, a lot of people went through my head. Friends with hard lives at home, relatives with disabilities, even people I’ve heard about who could use something good happening to them. All of which deserve something extra special. All of which would have made for a good blog to submit. Even after weighing each person’s “deservedness” against each other, I couldn’t choose. But then I realized that the person that deserves something the most from me is not disabled or poor or injured. They are the person I look up to most in life. They are the person that has given me more than I could ever give them in return, even with the use of this wish. They are the person that has made me who I am today. This person is my dad. Edward Leszczynski, Jr.
ReplyDeleteI am, without a doubt, a ‘Daddy’s Girl’. Most of you have noticed that I’m rather sarcastic, and sometimes a bit of an asshole. I get that all from my dad, and I’m proud of it. He supports me in everything that I do academically and personally. He is the voice in my head that guides me through things and is there to tell me “YOU CAN DO IT!” or “YO, YOU ARE BEING REALLY STUPID.”
My dad is not only my idol because of the strong relationship we have, but also because of his work ethic. He works harder than anyone I have ever met, but a lot of the time he doesn’t receive half of what he deserves. But no matter what, he never gives up because he knows that that is not an option.
As many of you may or may not know, my dad is an author. He has two published books, Natty Shortfellow: Destiny Revealed and Intersecting Lives, many unpublished books, and hundreds of poems. Writing is his passion. This is why, if I was given the chance to give him anything in the universe, I would make his books become best sellers. This would enable him to retire from work at CHOP and he could be a full-time writer. I would give him this because after all of the hard work he has done his whole life, he deserves to be able to live the rest of his life doing what he loves, and does best.
It is really hard to think of any piece of advice that I could give to my dad, because most of the things that I know in life I have either learned directly from him telling me, or from his actions. The only thing I could think of though is to not write TOO much. I know that sounds a bit backwards because the whole purpose of my gift would be so that he could write a lot, but there is a reason. I would never want my father to lose his passion for writing, or to have writing suddenly become a monotonous job. That is why I would tell him to make sure he makes time for other things, and doesn’t lose sight of the fact that writing is his passion, not his profession.
Taylor: Your blog is one of the cutest ever and I agree with everything you say. It is impossible to choose which starving or dying person to give food or life to. There's just too many choices that we have in the world. That's what the world is though: choices. From the simplest things as choosing soda to the toughest decisions like who do give a gift to. You're like the clever child that when a genie gives you three wishes, you use the last to ask for many more wishes.
ReplyDeleteKristie: I wish Kenny would read your blog. He needs to know that he hurts your family and that you guys really do care. Though I can imagine you saying in some sarcastic tone "He wants to be some gamer someday" in my head(and I laugh), it still shows that you care about what he wants. He's lucky to have such a supportive sister like you, especially because of the way he has treated you.
Jessie: I know what it feels like to always be annoyed by a sibling and their decisions but when I read your blog my reaction was "No, No, No," not because it doesn't fit your scenario but because I have witnessed what it's like to have a brother with an "off switch." I asked my brother once why he didn't care about me enough that he can watch my heart break. His response was that when he does things, he has an off switch that turns off his emotions. I know he cares, I really do, but to hear that was a devastation. I'm not saying your brother is ANYTHING like mine because I'm pretty sure he isn't though I don't even know him, but once he had that "off-switch," believe me, you'd miss him when it was put in effect.
A silly softball practice in the second grade would ultimately change my life forever. Practicing basic throws, I was paired with an unfamiliar, loud, gum-chewing girl. After about two throws, we were attached to the hip. Ever since that fateful day, I came to know this girl like the back of my hand. This isn’t just a friendship. This is seriously an eternal sisterhood. I tell her EVERYTHING, and it’s weird to admit that she knows more about me than my own mother. She’s my go-to gal whenever I am faced with a sticky situation, no matter how stupid the circumstance may be. When I feel down, she picks me up. When she feels down, I pick her up. When she falls down, I laugh uncontrollably. Her name: Brynne Kessler. She’s my friend, my hero, my sister, and the one person in the entire world (besides my Mom) that I would literally do anything for.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this blog, I caught myself in another one of my usual “sticky situations”. I’ve been thinking about it quite frequently these past few days and couldn’t think of a single creative idea to illustrate my blog. Thus, I went to Brynne to aid me through my road block. We talked about the main spectrum of whom I would consider: dad, mom, sisters, family, normally cliché people. I went outside the family, and my mind found the closest person outside the realm. It just happens to be Brynne. She completely escaped my mind. Why didn’t I first think of Brynne when I read this blog? If I had unlimited power, I would cure cancer, end starvation, and create everlasting peace. However, since this is my ONLY gift, I feel the urge to give to someone who has given so much to me. And quite frankly, Brynne needs so much, yet so little. If I just give her this one tiny thing, I believe she’ll be the happiest person ever.
I’d give Brynne the gift of confidence. Now, I’m not saying she has no confidence; I’d say she has the same amount as I hold. We share our lack of confidence dilemma together, and both complain constantly. Confidence, as many have told me, is key. Some achieve it easily, and others do not. At times, she struts and works it out with her immense smile and eyelash fetish (period 9/10 knows). At other times, she criticizes herself, and I’m usually the one to hear about it. It makes me frustrated, because I know that she is incredibly wrong. She’s gorgeous, she’s smart, she’s talented, and I’m afraid that she is unaware of this. Brynne has dealt with so much more shit than I have in her sixteen years, and I feel she deserves this confidence boost. Not only will it improve her lifestyle, but it will definitely release the majority of the stress that I know is just lounging on her shoulder. I’ve desperately tried to improve her confidence with my many compliments, but I don’t think it ever seems to work. Being her best friend, I just want Brynne to stop under-estimating herself. Confidence will finally open her eyes and look at the mirror. Then she will see what is truly in front of her: a great friend and an even greater role model.
Word of advice for you Brynnie: Don’t become cocky. Everything has its faults, so you must be careful when granted with this gift. Yes, confidence is key, but when you use it in a greedy and cocky manner, you simply portray yourself as either a slut or a dumbass. And I know you would never do a thing like that, but this was the only advice that would only be sensible when relating to confidence.
Kristen
ReplyDeleteEvery day, as I sit in AP Lang, I find my eyes fixated on the poster hanging on the podium:
"No Matter how far you go down the wrong road, you can always turn back."
Your post was heart breaking, your undying love for your brother is amazing and for you and your family I wish he knew how you felt. ‘It’s never too late’ is an attitude we should all posess, that poster seems to really sum up your situation. I know it’s hard watching someone go down a road that quite obviously leads nowhere good and being completely helpless to guide them back. I hope someday he realizes that he can change, I hope you get your best friend back.
Kaitlyn Graziano (KTG) - Wow I love your care for your sister; and I wish for your sister to end up happy with whatever she decides! I have 3 sisters and I don't know how it would feel to see one of them lost. That must hurt. I think your brave and a great sister to even notice her struggle and support her.
ReplyDeleteShirley -Wow you're just so sweet! I like your way of thinking that by helping this child it will cause a chain reaction and in a way you will change more then just one child. This child would actually learn from your help and benefit the world around him. So technically the one person can change the world :) I bet the first charity given was copied repeatedly until today right?
Megan S- Hi I'm Manar, I'm not sure who you are but I like your blog! I just want to comment on
"How could genocide happen, how could racism happen, how could rape happen? How could someone so amazing and strong, just leave the earth? How could this happen to a family? How could someone’s mom just leave? "
My personal opinion is that I believe these horrible things happen to nice people because it makes us more human. As humans we can hurt, get hurt, and we are vulnerable. If we were untouchables then who would care? We would lose emotions, such as love, care, kindness because we are "so strong and invincible" like robots? It's hard to put to words I realize but I hope you get what I mean.
Paola - Your piece is indescribable! This week it's my favorite as you already know! I don't know where to start. First of all the actual language and writing is beautiful! You put your absolute opinion and feelings into this and it's obvious you care for this woman. I love the anonymity of the person your helping, that in itself is a gift from you to not expose what she might not have wanted shared. It's respectful and I can see this as an article for Marie Claire or even Vanity Fair! Your definitely talented and did this obviously wonderful lady justice!
Megan
ReplyDeleteOh my lord. I read your blog and got to the words, “Hannah Straub.” My jaw dropped, my eyes fixated on the next sentence and I continued reading with teary eyes, exclaiming in my head, “Oh my God, oh my god.” It was the nicest, most cutest thing I’ve ever read. I didn’t even know what to say. It was kind. It was genuine. It was perfect. I love you! And I love Hannah Straub (sp?).
Hira, is a sardonic, emotionally isolated little girl. She has a “brave” façade and her favorite saying is “I don’t care” (After “I hate you”, of course). Hira is a tough cookie. Or at least that’s what she likes to think. But, I’m going to let you in her little secret. She isn’t so tough. In fact, she is a scared of everything. Especially believing in something.
ReplyDeleteTwo weeks ago, Hira and I were watching a sappy love movie. You know the type. Love at first sight, gooey corny moments, the whole nine yards. Me, being the loser I am, said “That’s what I want. I want to fall in love, JUST like that.”
My sister’s reply, “Love doesn’t exist. It’s all a bunch of BS. Love and marriage is just a compromise. People fall in love so they don’t have to be pathetic by themselves.” When she said this, she broke my heart. Not because she disagreed with me, but because I realized that she completely believed the disturbing words she uttered. She was neither angry nor upset. That was just “reality” to her.
Up until that day, I secretly envied Hira. She was everything I was not; realistic, honest, so sure of the world around her, and her place in it. Yet, for the first time in my life, I pitied her. Why? Because her “realistic” perspective had drained all the magic out of life.
So finally, back to the prompt.
My gift would be a magical ring to Hira. “The ring of believing”. When Hira puts on this ring, she will believe. Believe that love and even love at first sight exists. Believe that there is still good in the world. And most importantly, she will believe in herself, the way I believe in her.
Hira is too afraid to trust anything good. If she won the lottery, her response would be “What’s the catch?” Perhaps it because she has been let down too much. Or maybe that’s just the way she was born. To tell you the truth, I do not know why she is, the way she is. But with the “ring of believing”, she will see the world in a different light. She will be forced to see the glass half full, maybe for the first time in her life.
Even when she was little, my sister was an old soul. I can’t even remember Hira just being a kid. She was way too mature for that! I want the ring to bring her that piece of childhood innocence that she never experienced. I want her to believe if she tries hard enough, she can get accepted into Princeton. I want her to believe that not everyone in the world is conniving and want to do her harm. I want her to be happy, without fear and limitation. I want her to be a kid again.
When I give the ring of believing to Hira, I would tell her that believing in something, which may not even be true, is not being naive or delusion. No, believing in something just makes life a little funnier and beautiful. What’s the point in living in a world, without magic?
The irony is that she would laugh at this prompt. Why? Because a “realistic” doesn’t believe in magical rings or Dumbledore look-alikes.
To Alix:
ReplyDeleteComment 1
Wow, you have to be the kindest person I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. That is an amazing gift. No exaggeration. You are great daughter for looking through your father’s eyes and being so selfless. You don’t care how his writing job might affect you, as so many selfish teenagers do. All you want is him to be happy. That is such a beautiful thing. Seriously.
It may seem cliché. It may seem unoriginal. It may even seem stupid. Regardless of what it may seem, however, the truth is…the best gift to give someone, anyone, is happiness. You can never go wrong with happiness. All gifts are meant to gratify people and to make them happy. The money she got for her birthday was to make her happy. The new videogame he got for Christmas was to make him happy. We give gifts to make people happy. Of course, none of us can read minds (if you actually can, I’m sorry; please don’t hurt me), and this is why we sometimes give undesirable gifts.
ReplyDelete“Oh, thank you so much! I really like it!” Do you really mean it, or are you just saying that? Will you actually wear that orange sweater-vest or carry that hideous paper-like purse or even look at that mysterious contraption ever again? Even money is sometimes an awful gift. Would a person who doesn’t need money want it? Maybe the person wants love or friendship or just someone who is always “there.”
Whatever it is a person wants, it can be undoubtedly linked to the want of happiness. That’s why, if I could, I would give people happiness. It’s simple, but it’s also the greatest, most satisfying gift in the universe. Family would like it. Friends would like it. Even the squirrels outside would like it.
What actually does it mean to give happiness though? Am I giving someone a specific object that elicits the feeling of happiness? Am I permanently changing neural patterns and thought processes so that a person is generally happier, because they look at life with a more positive perspective? Neither is my gift. I would magically infuse the feeling of happiness into a person so that he or she is forever happy. In other words, I would simply make the person feel happy his or her whole life.
Indeed, the person still has other feelings. He or she can still feel feelings such as fear, confusion, anger, or hopelessness. The person can still feel all feelings except for the varying degrees of sadness, for it is impossible to feel sad and happy at the same time. It is possible, however, to feel happy and hopeless at the same time, even though it may seem contradictory. This is possible because my gift passively forces a person to be happy to feel hopeless, angry, or confused. It is difficult to imagine a person who is happy for a negative feeling because the combination of such emotions is uncommon. For the receiver of my gift, however, the unison of traditionally negative feelings with happiness occurs naturally.
Whoever receives my gift of happiness is surely a very lucky person, to say the least.This lucky person is I. I have the power to give one person eternal happiness, and I choose to give it to myself. Call me greedy or selfish. Call me anything. I honestly don’t care anymore because I will be forever happy.
Though before I give myself the great gift, I would be sure to advise myself to never consider self-harm, even if I would be happy to inflict this damage after receiving the gift, because this could lead to the end of life and thus my happiness. I would also advise myself to genuinely help others attain happiness because with great happiness comes great responsibility.
I want to grant peace upon this world. I would want to give developing third world countries a better government, the innocent that are suffering a sickness good health and feelings of hate to forever disappear. Yeah, that’s right, peace….
ReplyDeleteBUT only one person? Hmmm… I would have to pick my uncle, aka Bapuji. Bapuji is an obese man that feeds off my dad. This sounds kind of harsh but this is how I see it. My dad and Bapuji both came from India, around their twenties, and worked as employees at Dunkin Donuts. From there, my dad moved around in search for other occupations that paid higher since he was beginning to have a family. Bapuji was older and divorced, re-married a couple years after my dad‘s marriage. So as my dad was moving up the ladder to live the American Dream, my uncle stayed constant except for his weight. He hardly looked for jobs and always had to depend on my dad for money, in which he spent on liquor bottles and constantly eating out thus increasing his weight. He swore all the time and ate meat, which is extremely bad for a Hindu. That was his life then but he‘s progressed. He now owns a business my dad offered to him, has a child my grandparents waited for and doesn’t eat meat anymore.
Okay well now his life is moving towards the right track. He should be happier, right? He claims that he is, but past all of what he says he’s miserable. He depended and still depends on his younger brother, and though there are many other flaws about him he’s been progressing… just not enough. My uncle is obese, as I’ve mentioned before, so he goes to the hospital frequently. Guess who pays for that? My dad. I’m not upset that my dad pays for it, I’m upset that he doesn’t care about his health. He seems as if he gave up caring about himself, and tends to eat more because of this.
I want to grant my uncle instantly better health. If he was healthy most of my dad’s tensions would be diminished. I would then advise him to maintain his health. He would be given another chance to take care of himself. He’ll be more apt to change as a person, becoming more sensitive and generous since his excessive eating causes him to be more aggressive and careless about the world. He would be a good role model towards his son. He’ll sleep and even look better. I don’t want my uncle to die of a heart attack leaving my cousin at a very young age. My little cousin doesn’t deserve it, neither does my dad who’s always supported him financially and my aunt who worries about him nonstop. After granting instant health track, then I’ll list all the benefits before him to conclude that he won’t have another chance. There is only one life… live it well.
Have you ever felt so strongly about something you’d do what ever it took to change it? After reading this blog I felt a surge of energy because I knew exactly, what I wanted to say. My family is the most important thing in the world to me, I love them more then any combination of words can explain. But sadly each and every night I must endure my mother coming home from work more stressed then ever. Before I go on I’d like to talk a little bit about my mom. My mother Patricia Eitel, was born in the city of Philadelphia, growing up she didn’t have much of a childhood. With three younger sisters and a job my mom rarely found time for herself, but not once did she ever complain. Receiving a college education was never an option for her; she had to work for everything she ever received. But before she knew it she was thrust into the world of real estate, starting from the bottom up. Everyday she would work harder then any other employee, putting in the extra hours and taking the time to learn skills not expected of her. Eventually it all paid off, for a while she owned her own branch of a large real estate company. After working her tail off for many years, she was offered a job in a totally different sector of the real estate industry, title insurance. To give an example title insurance is what you purchase before buying a house, it insures that everything a person is offering you with a house comes with it such as the amount of land, buildings, etc. After my mom worked her way into a management position at this company, I felt things take a turn for the worse. The economy was slowing and business was becoming quite difficult. More and more my mom would come home stressing about different situations happening at work, it made me feel horrible that someone who put so much time and attention into her company had so much stress. Now that the economy has come to a screeching halt, I can see that she’s the one keeping her company afloat; she’s still the one putting in the extra time and attention to detail. After all this time, after countless jobs and rough experiences my mother still finds a way to keep her work ethic. Her strength is immeasurable, and she never looses sight of the big picture. Every day I wish that I could have inherited more of her endurance, and work ethic. But, I finally realized that it’s not something you are born with, everything my mom has done in her entire life is self-imposed. If I could give one anything in the world to my mom it would be an early retirement. She has worked her entire life, bettering herself and other people along the way. She more than anyone on this entire planet deserves some down time. My only advice to her would be never change, and stay true to yourself, because you’re the greatest mom a son could ever ask for.
ReplyDeleteTo Hannah S. :
ReplyDeleteComment 2
Hannah what you and your brother share is so beautiful. That is pretty cool that you have two dad, not just one! I can tell that you really love him and I think that is amazing. Too many family members (especially siblings) seem to not get along and even wish ill on each other. They always are arguing. Biting each others head off. Snitching on one another. It is utterly disgusting. More brothers and sisters should be like you and Carl.
To Jon W: Aww…You are the cutest thing in the world!!!
ReplyDeletePART ONE :
ReplyDelete“Brynne, I just wanted to let you know that your dad is the coolest.”
Pretty much my whole adolescent and continuing teen years my so called famous father has been considered cool. No, my dad is not really famous but he is put under a trance, that makes him believe that his famous because people have told him he looks like Brad Pitt. I think these people are very inaccurate with their compliments because he is not close to looking like Brad Pitt and it only adds to his ego. My dad is cool everyone because frankly he is extremely immature. I guess people classify him as cool because he doesn’t really set any rules, he lets my friends and I refer to him as “Father Kess, he wears baggie basketball shorts, he attempts to talk “Gangsta,” often referring to people as “his brother.” His favorite genre of music is rap, he attempts to give my friends relationship advice and lastly he has a notorious obsession with Shakira. He basically is an eighteen year old trapped inside a 48 year olds body. Though my at times I love my dad’s immaturity because it’s quite comical and refreshing, it’s probably one of his worst traits too. I know quite a paradox but his immaturity has caused a lot of damage to my life, as well as others. If Dumbledore in that one instant came up and gave me the power to give one person any power, I would whole- heartedly give my dad maturity!
Yeah, my friends get to see the fun, optimistic, chill dad side of my dad’s immature ways but what they don’t get to see the emotional instable, self- absorbed and manipulative traits that his immaturity brings out in him. Eighteen year old boys like to play games, they don’t know what they want from you, so at one instance you feel like you are on cloud nine when you are with them, and in other instances they ignore you and bring you to a gloom and doom stage where you want nothing to do with them. They also, from my experience, make promises and act so for sure, when in reality you know that promise will expire. That is exactly how my dad acts towards my brother and I. My dad only cares about one thing and that is about making the big bucks. I am sure he cares about my brother and I but his whole life has been focused on working, so he can have money. My brother one day decided that he didn’t want to play sports anymore and decided to quit them completely. From that day my brother quit sports, my dad stayed pretty distant from my brother’s life. He was that bitter and immature about my brother’s withdrawal from sports that he called my brother’s new interest “weird” and continues to stay distant from him. Until, miraculously one day he started calling my brother and wanting to make a bond with my brother. He promised my brother that he would take him out every, Thursday Night for dinner and my brother was so excited for this. There evening was filled with laughs and memories but this event was kind of like a one hit wonder. It never happened again.
Part Two:
ReplyDeleteMy brother waited patiently, ready, excited to go out on the typical Thursday dinner and he waited, waited and waited until it was finally time to go and he decided to call my dad. My dad being so self- absorbed had forgotten to call him and hadn’t really planned to call to tell him that he had work that night and couldn’t make it. At that moment my brother, never wanted anything to do with my dad because all he was to him was a big letdown. What’s so immature about this whole situation is since my brother obviously wants nothing to do with my dad he puts me constantly in the middle. It’s like a she//he said fight where I constantly play messenger and I feel like I am in eighth grade again. I just want it to stop and it only will if my dad could grow up, get some maturity.
He only calls when he has time or wants too and same with hanging out because it might conflict with his girlfriend time. Anytime I try to confront him on his immaturity he says I am attacking him and he doesn’t need this in his life and he always makes me feel guilty and questioning myself if I am a good enough daughter. He has been there for me but only if he can get the glory in many cases. I give him advice, I help him in his life and he promises me certain things but in some way or another they are always broken. He plays a pretty good guilt trip too and in many circumstances I have found myself following orders of my dad just because he makes him happy. When I don’t follow those orders it’s like a tornado hit, where wont call is me for days and while I will spend my Christmas day crying and worrying about it, he is off somewhere else having a good time.
Maturity, is what I want to give my dad. When bestowed with these power I would tell him that “ To know the proper place where to be a little immature but then to act like an adult.” I think if he knew this it would save his and my brothers non existence relationship and it would save our crumbling relationship from collapsing.
To Lucas S:
ReplyDeleteComment 3
That is a really thoughtful gift. We could all use a redo. I know I most definitely would not mind one. But the thing is, that from mistakes you grow ( I know that is cliché, but nonetheless, it is still true). Your uncle wouldn’t be your uncle if he had not made all those mistakes. Everything happens for a reason ( WATCH OUT, ANOTHER CLICHE ). How knows, maybe given a redo he would do it all over again :)
KTG -
ReplyDeleteI really liked your entry. I completely understand, hah you have no idea. It's super sweet that you and your sister have that great relationship and it's a shame that your parents can't see the already amazing daughters they have now. I remember your sister, and you were right. If anyone was meant to sing, she was one of them.
Hannah -
That's a great thing to wish for someone. I think a lot of people don't realize that having their health is an amazing thing, some people would kill for that kind of thing. Being able to live without hesitation or restraint would be a great gift indeed. This was very sweet.
Megan -
"You have this amazing gift to live here on earth and surrounded by people who love you and care about you. Walk this earth with your mom in your heart. She is always here Hannah; we are all here."
You're blog entry was unbelievably sweet and I'm sure a bunch of other people in the school would agree with you and feel the same way. I particularly love the quote above. This whole blog was truly touching. Thank you.
Steve
ReplyDeleteI really like that you chose understanding, because there are a lot of people who never come close to attaining it their entire lives. As easy as it is to just get frustrated with these people and push them away, their lives are tragic. I think it’s important that you kept the advice simple. You didn’t preach to her or use it to get in the last word. I have a friend I’ve known since we were little kids who can be the same way. She’s blind to anything beyond her own perspective. It can be really hard to be around her or support her sometimes. I think it says a lot of good about you that you chose someone who isn’t the easiest to pity or always like, yet still needs your gift a lot.
Alix
It’s easy to look up to people we don’t know. We’ve never had to deal with them when they were annoying, angry, or failing. We can just idolize the image of them from a safe distance. It’s awesome that you look up to someone you are so close to and that you can appreciate him. Your advice is perfect. It’s really sad that so many people lose their passion for their dream once they make it real. By the way, I hope you showed this to your dad, because I’m sure he’d be proud.
Chrissy- Wow! I am soo speechless, I love you girl! Words cannot describe how utterly shocked I was when I read this blog. You are one of my best friends and without you my life wouldn't be complete either. It's crazy, that we know each other, so well and that mutually we are willing to give each other any gift in the world. I am soo lucky to call you a best friend and really thanks once again, you really didnt have to do that. You have really giving me a perspective on myself that is quite accurate, I am starting to notice you are always right. Being Confident will be a hard task but I want to do it because you showed me there is no reason why I shouldnt! Thanks again my dear friend :)
ReplyDeleteOkay, Ms. Bunje I meant "gift" not power, I was think power because visions of harry potter and his wand were like popping up in my mind!
ReplyDeleteHaha Brynne, I tricked you successfully! And you thought you were going to read a blog about Santa Clause....silly you! No problem, I love you too girl! And yes, let's make a pack to at least try to boost our confidence. I think Tilton Fitness in Galloway is a great start. (cough,cough,hot boys, cough, cough)
ReplyDeleteRoo- I love your blog not because I love you because I love how much you want for sister and because it reminds me of you. I know you may not believe me but it's true. You dont believe in yourself either always doubting looking at the facts of the matter instead of believing in your heart. You are not as bad as hira but in a way Roo you are afraid too of falling in love, you feel you are incompetent to get into princeton and above else you believe that nobody likes you when the whole world loves you and me being your biggest fan. I love how you believe in your sister but at the same token I wish I could give you a ring to believe in yourself because truley you owe it yourself because you are one of the best people I know! :)
ReplyDeletehaha ;)
ReplyDeleteAlix - D'aww. Yours was cute, and I really enjoyed the part about what advice you'd give. I really agree with that. Anyone can tell when an author is starting to write to keep up with fame and fortune when they're writing seems rushed and just isn't the same. I'm a daddy's girl too, so I can really relate. You and your dad are EXACTLY alike. hahahaha
ReplyDeleteI’ve been told that is hard to establish a relationship with someone if you never see them. As a child I was never home. The reason my family is close with each other and not me, or the reason why my brother and I have no relationship at all can be traced back to one simple source, me. Family dinners and game nights consisted of three instead of four. I was, and still am the odd man out. Freshman year I had high expectations that things would change between my brother and me. Yet, walking through the halls of Oakcrest High School, it seemed like he would ignore me as if I was just part of the crowd.
ReplyDeleteNot much has changed as he has entered the college world. I never speak to him, in fact I hear more about him from others rather than a simple text that would be appreciated every now and again. It had become apparent that all through high school he slacked off, and enjoyed himself a little too much. Not many people would know it, but he is an extremely intelligent boy. His intelligence far exceeds my own. Although his priorities seem extremely out of order, there is no doubt he is capable of anything, he just needs to realize that.
If i could give one person anything in the whole world, I would give my brother the ability to discover a cure for cancer. The one time i felt the closest with my brother was at my uncle’s funeral. When my uncle passed away, everyone in my family was in a state of shock. Seeing my dad cry for the first time, and my cousins losing a father just seemed unreal. A person close to me, someone I recently had a conversation with, was now gone. I’ve seen my family over the past few years still dealing with the pain. My grandmother has not been right since, and my cousin has gone on a rebellious streak. It is something I am not use to seeing, turmoil. The big “tough” guy my brother thought he once was, had been destroyed. He now felt emotion.
I began to think about cancer, and how it effects almost everyone in some way. In just sixteen years i’ve witnessed neighbors, friends, relatives, parents of friends, teachers, and parents experience some form of cancer. It is everywhere, and hurting the people around it. Knowing my brother, he would use this gift as a money making scheme. Every cent he could cash into this cure would be his reasoning, so my advice to him would be... 1. Remember how you felt at Uncle Mike’s funeral, because millions of people feel like that. 2. You have intelligence, use it to your advantage. 3. Do not be in it for yourself.
My brother’s life at the moment needs some direction. If I gave him the gift of discovering the cure for cancer, he will have some meaning in his life. At times he does not always know what he wants, and with some help, I could try and lead him in the right direction.
Sarah - "More than that I want to give humanity the chance to have another leader, who can positively change the world."
ReplyDeleteAlright...so, what ya waiting for? haha :)
I enjoy your blogs sooooo. I can just imagine you reciting them in your dreamy and beautiful Luna Lovegood way. I wish you were in my class, so I could listen to your occasional papers! You have so many different thoughts that I wouldn't think of! (haha)
Comments first this week. :D
ReplyDeleteStephen!
I've heard about 'Beth' a lot from you, and it doesn't surprise me at all that you would give her that as a gift. Coming form an outsider's perspective, I think that gift would help you two repair some of the rifts in your relationship, because you may finally be able to understand one another. I do have to admit, however, that your note at the end made me laugh really hard. Haha.
Roosa!
Awh! I had no idea little Hira was like that. I always saw a little bit behind her tough exterior, but I never even fathomed that she would say such a thing. Just from reading your blog, I want to give Hira the same gift [and possibly more], because I don't want her to always grow up seeing things negatively all the time. :/
Alix!
I still have to read your Daddy's book since I only got to read the first chapter...
But anyway, jeesh! You are a Daddy's Girl. :P haha But that's okay, I always thought your relationship with your dad was one of the closest [and cutest/funniest] I have ever seen among my group of peers. Your gift to him is not only thoughtful, but it's a gift I'm sure he would love receiving as much as you would love giving to him. :D
Simon:
ReplyDeleteAh, happiness. Don’t we all want to be happy? I pray for it everyday and night that I’ll live a life full of happiness. I don’t think it’s selfish that you grant yourself to be happy. I would think of it as a smart move in life because you’ve gotten something everybody desires to have… happiness :]
Uroosa:
Was the movie you were watching a bollywood one? Haha :P. Anyways I think it’s cute how you’re the happy believer and she’s the nonbeliever. I really liked how you didn’t just straight out instilled this ability in your person but rather a ring you would give that gives this power. That would be an awesome gift, because it’s a visual object and it has powers! You’re very creative, I love your writing.
Alix L:
Awwwwwwww…. I love your blog. I think it’s extremely generous of a daughter to do something like that for a father. This shows how strong your relationship it and it just makes me want to say awwww (again). I really enjoyed reading it, it made me smile :].
awhh kels:)
ReplyDeleteRoosa Z
ReplyDeleteI guess you can call me a realist too, at least a little, because I disagree with what you said. I disagree with your view on believing and that it’s good to believe in things because it “makes life a little funnier and beautiful.” It takes too much thought and energy to believe and defend a point a view simply because the view “makes life a little funnier and beautiful.” People should believe in ideas because they think that these ideas are true and helpful to know. Believing in something may not deem you delusional, but it certainly may mark you as “naïve” if your belief is scientifically proven false.
Brittany O
It’s funny how sometimes good people do bad things. Of course, some bad things are more severe than others such as when comparing stealing and disrespect. Luckily, people grow everyday, and their behaviors can change. I have a friend with good morals who used to steal and vandalize, but he has stopped. Hopefully, your cousin will change too because it hurts to care about someone who is behaving in a way that you know is wrong.
Brynne K
“…he lets my friends and I refer to him as ‘Father Kess, he wears baggie basketball shorts, he attempts to talk “Gangsta,” often referring to people as ‘his brother.’ His favorite genre of music is rap, he attempts to give my friends relationship advice and lastly he has a notorious obsession with Shakira. He basically is an eighteen year old trapped inside a 48 year olds body.” I have no idea what your dad looks like, but your description of him in these sentences is really funny. It gave me a good chuckle.
Anyway, I’m sorry to hear that you and your dad do not get along. I may not know what it feels like first hand, but it is easy to see that it is awful to have an immature parent. I remember hearing about him in Spanish class, and I now understand on some level how you feel when your friends flatter him.
Well, if I could, I'd give myself the power to grant an infinite number of gifts. But...since I don't know if that's in the realm of what Bunje was thinking for us when she posted this blog, I guess I'll just have to make things more interesting...
ReplyDeleteI think, honestly and with all seriousness, what I'd like to give someone, someone who's insightful, compassionate, conscious of the wold around them, who doesn't have to be anyone in particular, but who realizes all the wrongs in the world, however big or small, and wishes they could do something about it, beyond everything else, superpowers.
Think about it. If we were to have just one superhero or superheroine, minus any possibility of them becoming corrupted or evil or not so superheroic anymore, thousands of the world's problems, criminals, natural and man-made disasters, and any other society-destroying terror would become controllable, maintained, and, for the most part, eradicated. By having some kind of a powerful, mildly threatening being who wants to do right for the world, wars can be resolved and genocides don't have to go unnoticed. There wouldn't be controversy over whether the US or the UN should go into Sudan and stop the genocide there, or settle the border dispute with Russia and Georgia and Azerbaijan that caused the mini-war two summers ago, or try and prevent more ethnic violence in Cyprus between the Greeks and the Turks, or who can clean up the terrorism in the Middle East, so no more innocent civilians and their lives would be destroyed, or the terrorism in Russia, so more schools don't get taken hostage like in 2004, or terrorism in Angola, so more soccer teams don't get shot at like what happened last week, or terrorism in India, so entire cities like Mumbai don't get taken over like what happened two years ago, or terrorism in France, so more airports in Paris don't get bombed like what happened 30 years ago, or terrorism anywhere, so anyone here doesn't have to worry about being blown to bits while visiting a second or third-world country. Of course, terrorism is vaguely defined, and our superhero would definitely need some kind of all-understanding morality complex to truly perfect his abilities. If we didn't have terrorism, America might still be under British control. If we didn't have terrorism, France might still be under a king's control. If we didn't have terrorism, the Star Wars Universe might still be under the Galactic Empire's control, and so on, but anyway...
I'm guess what I'm just trying to say is we just need one superhero, one person who can just do stuff, a lot of stuff, a lot of really good stuff that can help a lot of people. I know this is like a lot of other people's blogs, but this is just my own little way of putting it.
Simon:
ReplyDeleteI agree that possibly one of the greatest gifts possible is happiness. Happiness is the ultimate determining factor in just about everyone's decisions. People do stuff based on what makes them happy, and I think that your gift could really make people have to do a lot less hard work, make less bad decisions, and enjoy life more. I wish I would've thought of happiness as my idea.
Lukie:
My one really big fear in life is to just be stuck, permanently impaired by something. Usually, it's limited to something physical, like loosing a limb or something, but your story about your uncle really made me reconsider how I approach anything risky. I would never want to be an actor, because the odds of actually becoming successful in the field are so slim(though I love acting in itself). I don't even want to have traveling to somewhere to be a major part of pursuing a career, unless it's like tennis, where the destinations are almost always freaking beautiful. Your post and posts like yours really give me quite a few chills while reading them.
Taylor:
Uhhh....did I sum up your entire post in my first sentence? Well anyway, if we're both talking about the same thing then I think your idea is probably the safest of them all. We can trust ourselves to manipulate our powers in the way we want, and I wonder a little why this wasn't one of the first thoughts for most people. Most of the problems I can see for people in choosing who to give their gift to has to do with trust anyway. Oh well. One way or another, I guess it's all for a good cause.
Instinctively, the first thing I thought of when I read this was that I wanted to give humanity all the happiness in the world, all the love, all of his dreams to come true. But, I think that's a bit overzealous. I felt wrong with that response for some reasons unknown. So, if I had the power to give someone anything that I wanted, I would want to give my aunt the perfect man. I would want her to find the love of her life.
ReplyDeleteMy aunt has been living with me for a while now. We don't talk much, but I always wished that I was closer to her. She always gave me money at Christmas and my birthday, she would always eat meals with me, she'd provide meals for me when my father wasn't home, she was there for me on December 8. But that was pretty much the extent of our relationship.
Over the summer I was told to make a family tree for AP History, and I needed to put in my mother's side, so my mother told me to ask my aunt because she knew more. So when I asked my aunt about her family and how she's connected with me, she named all of my relatives that she knew of that did interesting things, her sisters and then their spouses. Then she mentioned that she was the only sister that's never been married. She laughed about it, and I did too, but that's something that's been on my mind ever since she said it.
My aunt's not particularly old, but she's been living in my house for a couple years, it's a slim chance she's going to meet anyone she's really going to fall in love with. It's important though, to fall in love. I am sure she's probably happy and probably is satisfied with what she has instead of what she's lacking, but thinking about my small experiences with "love", I would want her to have that. I want her to find someone who can make her feel amazing about herself and who can really help her enjoy the rest of her life. My mother and father barely have time to stay around with her because of their jobs, and my sister and I are always in and out. I want her to have someone. Every woman should be able to blush, to feel complete, to feel safe and beautiful. She's a great enough woman not to need a man to feel all these things, but it'd certainly be nice. Very nice. Being in love is something someone everyone should experience. Just having someone to pick up the slack when you're stressed, someone to be there when she isn't as strong as she usually is, that would be very nice. I think that'd be great. Her sisters are all everywhere, all of our relatives are everywhere, she shouldn't be alone. She deserves love. She's been through so much, someone should cater to her for once. My advice to her would be to look for more. Even though she's satisfied with not having a significant other, it couldn't hurt to look for more. It can only benefit her. It's an adventure. The perfect man for her would only make her feel even more satisfied.
My father is one of the most important people in my life. Although there are many times when he allows harsh realities to slap me in the face, he does it to make sure that I make it in the world. He wants me to be what he wasn’t able to be. He cares for me and loves me more than I know. I know that.
ReplyDeleteMy father is Superman – at least he tries to be. He tries to do everything his body can handle and more. He pushes himself to the limit and over it. Doing construction work fourteen or sixteen hours a day isn’t enough. He then comes home and perfects the house. He does all the outdoor work, constructing the perfect lawn and flowerbeds, as well as laundry, vacuuming, and anything else he can. And he never complains. In my eyes, that’s only something Superman could do.
This isn’t the life my dad wanted. He says he loves what he does, but I know that he had much higher hopes. My dad’s dream job was to be a cop. He did the tests he needed to and passed with high scores. However, the minorities with lower scores than him got the jobs. They didn’t need any more white men to fill their quota. After retesting several times and arriving at the same outcome, he decided maybe it just wasn’t meant to be. So he went to construction. After all, he didn’t have a college education. Being one of eight children, college wasn’t in the funds. It seems as if he has settled with a job in construction when he has so much more potential.
Before my dad’s struggle to get a job in law enforcement, in high school, he was an athlete. He played a sport every season and when he wasn’t playing in season, he was preparing for the next season. Football was my dad’s specialty though. He loved football, everything about it. He played freshmen year and sophomore year, but then his knees began to give out. They couldn’t handle it and he wasn’t allowed to play anymore. A few years ago, I was talking to a man that my dad went to high school with and he said that if my dad’s knees held up, that he would’ve went pro. I don’t know if this is true or if the man was just trying to be nice, but I believe it. My dad is a workaholic and will do whatever it takes. Like I said, he pushes himself to the limit – and unfortunately over it.
This brings me to the gift that I think my dad not only deserves, but needs. An indestructible body that remains strong, no matter the activity, is just what I would give him. He already has the will to do so many things and still does them, even through the pain. Every morning before he goes to work, he does a long stretch and workout. He does sit ups, push ups, whatever it takes to try to keep his body in the best form he can. Unfortunately, he still comes home from work sore, wincing in pain at times. He says he’s okay, but I can see in his face all the pain he’s holding in. I wish I could just let him be free of this pain.
With this gift, I would tell my dad to go after his dreams. Give football a second chance and if that fails, be a cop. I know how much he would enjoy doing either of these things and I think he deserves it. After all he’s done for me, this is one of the best ways I could repay him, by fulfilling his dreams for him, like he continuingly helps me fulfill mine. The only thing holding his back is his body. With this new strong body, my dad truly will become Superman, like I always knew he was.
Katie G: That would be such a great gift; it’s a shame that this Dumbledore scenario isn’t true. However, you can help your sister out. Talk to your parents since I’m sure you see them more than your sister does since she’s at college. Use your persuasion skills to make them realize how great other careers are and even more how much your sister loves them. I’m sure they truly care for both you and your sister and in the end, just want the both of you to be happy doing what you love.
ReplyDeleteRobby: Great gift, however I wished that you would have given it to a specific person. There’s got to be someone in your life, that you know, that deserves it. Although your blog was very well written, I also wish it was a bit longer. What you had to say was so insightful I wish you would’ve written more!
Lucas: I have an uncle in a similar situation to yours. My dad has seven siblings who are happily married with children (or at least stepchildren) except for one. I have one uncle who was married, but then got divorced when I was very young. I don’t even remember his ex-wife. He then not only dated, but lived with another woman for ten years, helping raise her son like it was his own. Unfortunately that ended also though. He’s only been in one relationship since, which also ended. It seems as if he no longer has the motivation to date. It’s so sad to see him at family gatherings. You can see the yearning in his face when he looks at his brothers with their children. For him to have the same gift as your uncle, maybe he would make different decisions early in his dating life so he could be where the rest of my aunts and uncles are. I completely understand why you would choose that gift.
My family is a family chock full of unique people. Each of us has different interests, different beliefs and different views of life that we all take pride in, not only for ourselves, but for each other as well. Unfortunately, there is always one who seems to slip through the cracks. My cousin, let’s call her Mosi (which means ‘lost’ in my language) is that person. Mosi isn’t lost in the sense where she doesn’t know where she’s going or she doesn’t know what she wants for her future, but she’s lost in that she can’t seem to get a hold of who she is. Whenever she comes in contact with someone new or someone she finds interesting, she instantly attaches herself to him or her. At first, her changes will barely be noticeable. Maybe she’ll talk about that person a bit more than usual, or she’ll suddenly be interested in different TV programs. Soon after, she’ll start dressing like them, mimicking their mannerisms, and even attempting to talk like them. It’s almost as if she undergoes a complete metamorphosis and emerges as someone new and radically different. To some, this may just be plain creepy and a tad bit obsessive in nature. The way I see it though, is just plain depressing. To me, she is neither creepy nor obsessive. The only word that can come close to what she is [flashback to last week’s blog] is dependent. She not only emerges from her metamorphosis as a new person, but she also becomes completely dependent on the person she has now transformed herself into being. Their happiness becomes her happiness, and the things that upset them seem to affect her more than they do that person. If their relationship was to ever splinter or break, she would suffer from extreme depression until she found someone new to associate herself with. Obviously, several things are wrong with her situation and that is why I don’t only want to give her this gift, but I almost feel as if she will desperately need it one day. I want to give Mosi the gift of independence. I want her to detach herself from the people she has practically lived her life through in the last few years. I want her to become her own person. I want her to wear what she finds comfortable, to watch what she finds interesting, and to talk in a way that would reflect her personality from the inside, and not someone else’s. I want her to be able to smile on her own, and to now always wait for the people around her to be happy just so she can enjoy herself. I want her to realize that she doesn’t always have to put herself second to someone else, and that sometimes it is okay to put yourself before others. The only advice I could offer to her along with that is to live her life as she sees fit. Never think that you have to become something different, just to gain the satisfaction you are looking to reach. There are countless ways to live your life, and wasting it in a way where you will never grow or gain anything new, is barely a life worth living at all.
ReplyDeleteIf I could give one gift, it would be happiness and stability to the lives of my two younger brothers. I would give them a stable home, loving parents, the basic necessities of life, and most of all the ability to be in a safe and happy environment. I don’t think these problems are one’s they labor over, but one’s I know that they do. I may not show my affection for them, but deep down inside, I love them and wish only the best for them.
ReplyDeleteI believe every child should have the opportunity to grow up in an “ideal” house, or one remotely close to it. Children shouldn’t have to witness their parents fighting every waking moment of their lives, shouldn’t be exposed to a violent drunk every night of their lives. A parent’s job is one that is most important in the world, and sadly, not many people do their job very well. I just wish that my parents would have done, and will, do a great job at raising my siblings. I want them t have the opportunities every other child has, the benefits and lack of problems that other children have. I don’t want to see their lives affected in a detrimental way because of the lives they are being forced to lead.
My brothers have been exposed to things they need not ever be exposed to. They have experienced hardships no child should ever have to face. I fear not for myself, though all of the same occurrences have been mine throughout my own life, I realize my parents mistakes, I have learned to deal with it and make the best out of every day, I am fearful that they will grow affected by their early lives. I want them to be the happiest they can be, something I know they are not. I want them to love and cherish their family, something I know they cannot do, or at least I will never be able to do.
I may not show my brothers that I love them, but I truly do. We act as brothers do, we argue, we fight, never seriously, but the usual quarrels between brothers growing up under the same roof. Sometimes I just want to tell them that I care, that I would do almost anything to help them, but that’s not really a possibility if you know the common brother relationship shared by so many male siblings you can understand why. I don’t necessarily want them to know this, they might look at me differently, they might feel odd. I just want them to feel safe and that they can trust me.
Children are a remarkable aspect of this planet. So malleable, so naïve, so impressionable. The environment in which they grow up has a huge impact on their lives and I don’t want it that way for my siblings. I don’t want my brothers to be shaped by their surroundings. I don’t want them to grow into a dim adulthood. My gift would ensure that.
Brynne- When I first asked you what you were planning to write about in your blog, I was a little surprised when you told me about your dad. I had always pictured him as this guy who had it all together. With sports, and work he seemed like the perfect “chill” dad. I guess he tends to forget about his children. It may seem like he does not care, or that you are the one at fault, however, this is not the case at all. Eventually, hopefully sooner rather than later, your dad will discover what he lost while he was wrapped up in trying to be young again. “Father Kess” will make you proud one day.
ReplyDelete" The term “gift” now seems negative, like an excuse for the weak, the unprogressive. I don’t believe anything is out of someone’s reach: if they cannot be successful, it is entirely their fault. Entirely. Thus, I think of a gift as for someone who has given up and whines and feels there’s no other way for them to accomplish what they want except through “magic.” "
ReplyDeleteDeanna: Although I agree with you to an extent (I believe that most people who are "unsuccessful" are how they are based on their own decisions), I cannot fully agree with that statement. I believe that there are people who need a boost to accomplish even a subnormal status, let alone their goals. Economics aren't the only thing that make people disadvantaged. Oprah (all hail Oprah) grew up dirt poor, but she had an in-home role model. There are kids who genuinely don't see positive role models. They receive no guidance. No one cares and they don't know where to find love. Even as they try to find something, anything for that matter, they get caught up in the wrong things. An honest attempt to find a purpose and become a "successful" individual becomes their path to destruction. I don't know if that made sense, but basically, I think there are people out there who are in a bad place and it is not their fault.
Katie G:
ReplyDeleteThat gift was very thoughtful, im sure if your sister were reading this right now she'd be smiling from ear to ear. You may be the cataylist for some serious change, maybe you could organize some sort of sit down talk between your sister and parents
When I am asked to give someone anything in the world, I usually think about something materialistic, but in this case I believe my mother deserves an addition to her past. My mother, having growing up in a very poor part of Pleasantville and very limited parental supervision, never really had a normal childhood. When most people look back to when they were 14, happiness is what usually awaits them sugarcoated with butterfly and rainbows. When my mom was 14, she was carrying a baby and looking for places to often stay for short periods of time. My mother never really was embraced with loving arms of a mother; I don’t think she really actually cared about her children. I know this is mean to say about my grandmother, but with such an awful parenting job I believe it’s not fair to allow your kids to get to such a point in life that it influences their own good.
ReplyDeleteI often find it sort of awkward when my friends ask how old my family is, they usually sit there doing the math in their head. “So your mom is 45 and your brother is 31, so that means your mom had him when she was 14!” I hate that people often judge me and my mother for the choices she made early in life, but I feel bad that she did not experience the normal “kid things” that many of us experienced. Just a little side note, many people often jump to the conclusion that for some reason that she is stupid, when in fact she is borderline genius, and I have yet to beat her in trivial pursuit, DARN HER! But back to the point, I would like my mother to live a normal childhood and I would give her the opportunities that my brother and I have today. Because even though we are not wealthy, we still don’t have to worry about living on the streets, which allowed my brother to go to Stanford with a free ride, and hopefully I can go to a prestigious college also.
I am not saying I would not have wanted my brother born, but I would like to give my mother a life that she could look back on and be filled with positive memories, not ones she’s trying to forget. I respect her for all she has done, and the long way she had come. So therefore my wish would be to allow my mother to go to the playground and have sleepovers without being embarrassed, and to live her childhood out further. To have the love and support of a mother who does not have the mentality of “as long as their fine and I’m not bothered, it’s OK.” I feel my mother deserves more than what she had in life, and I believe she should have had a better time in the years that are supposedly supposed to be the best years. I wish she could have had those opportunities to go into the career of her choice, and I would wish her to have an easier time accepting it all.
Jon W
ReplyDelete“My only advice to her would be never change, and stay true to yourself, because you’re the greatest mom a son could ever ask for.”
Awwwww! Jon, this was so nice. Up until the past month or two, my step dad worked from like 12 in the afternoon to like 2 in the morning. I always felt so bad for my mom and my little brother. It’s hard when people work so much! But some time to relax is definitely what she needs! Plus some mother son time because what you said about her was really cute!
Lucas:
ReplyDeleteI think the greatest gift anyone could ever receive is a shot at starting over with the knowledge of our mistakes. Now I feel like your uncle has fallen into a cycle and is therefore in a place where he doesn't really have the opportunity to start over. It just goes to show us that you've only got one shot so make the best of it.
If he needed twenty dollars, I’d give it to him. If she needed an ear to listen to her problem, I’d give it to her. If anyone needed help, I’d try to the best of my ability to give them help. When I see someone confused about a feeling and what to do next as their minds are overwhelmed and ending up quitting, I wish I could give them strength to not give in. The person gave up because of their confusion. They didn’t know what to expect and it scared them. If they had the experience with such feelings, maybe that would be enough to allow them handle it and keep going.
ReplyDeleteI have a friend who would benefit greatly from experience. He is one of the most caring, genuine, and brilliant person I have ever met, but he has a flaw that could threaten his life. He has been through one of the biggest losses of his life on April 28, 2007 that when he hit the age of twenty, he didn’t know how to move on. The tragedy left him bleeding and unhealed. Anger bottled up inside as his soul slowly shrunk smaller and smaller after the loss. This anger would daily just release itself from him, making him inflict pain on himself, his family, and friends. He just didn’t know how to take control of his anger and emotions. Confused, not knowing what to do, he’d result to alternate ways to temporarily “release” the anger, leaving him numb afterwards. But this idea that let him “release” his uncontrolled anger, cause more damage to him than he knew. His body was feeling the hits from his emotions harder than he thought and if he continues to handle his anger this way, I’m afraid he won’t live to celebrate his twenty-first birthday.
With that being said, if I was remotely like the great and amazing wizard, Dumbledore, I would give my friend the gift of experience. There are just those people in the world who lack the experience of certain feelings and simply just give up and let themselves go. With this gift, my friend would acquire the strength and knowledge to learn to handle his anger. He loses too much time from his life not knowing how to keep control and I want him to have more time because he deserves it. Along with that gift, I would advise him to not sulk over something, no matter how much pain it causes. Experience it, Learn from it, and move on. That’s all you can do, just gain from it.
Hannah:
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way about my brother, though we are not too far apart in age, I look up to him in many ways. I believe that an older sibling can really influence you, even more than a parent or adult. Peers sometimes are the best role models.
Sarah L:
Your blog was very deep, and the situations talked about in Cervi’s class tend to open up my eyes as well. The world is a cruel place just relying on the model that our leaders set for us, and for this world to become any better than it is we need someone who can open all the eyes of those who can’t see the bad in the world. We need someone to give hope to a world that seems so unpromising.
Justin:
I also believe that every child should get the same opportunities. Like I said in my blog, I wish my mother could have had better opportunities, and it kills me to see people who have immense potential waste their lives just because of an environment or influence. And I think your brothers will do fine, what was it that your dad said? You guys will be a doctor, lawyer and an Indian chief?
Taylor:
ReplyDeleteYou are very very very indecisive hahaha. I thought your choice in this blog captured your personality perfectly! Because not only are you indecisive, but you are very generous and you really do care about everyone around you. I always like reading your blogs because they capture your personality perfectly, and this one is no exception :D
Jourdan: Our posts were largely the same, and I respect you for that. I can't stand the sight of children living in agony because of their parent's mistakes. I wish I could do the same for every child in this situation, give them better, give them what they are entitled to as a human being. No child should have to suffer because of their parents foolish indifference or wrong choices.
ReplyDeleteKelsey: I admire your choice in gift and can understand the feelings you have about your brother. So many people are "wasted potential", they live their lives in a completeley cavalier way, not caring about the things that plague us every day. So many people could be successful if they tried. I see these problems every day in school, kids have so much potential, so much ability, but they waste it on being lazy or getting a cheap thrill. I like how you incorporated the cure to so many's anguish with your brother and his internal struggle.
Deanna: I like how you can so openly express your opinion with utmost confidence and sincerity. Your initial answer is one some may find heartless or cynical, but I think I understand it. People do need to accomplish things on their own, to work hard and recieve the things they want in life as a result of said hard work. I respect this opinion and can clearly understand its merit.
I wake up every morning to the sound of my dog whining; either to be let outside or to be fed. I always talk to him and say things like “Who’s the cutest dog in the world?” “Hey, babydog!” or “Who’s a good boy? Who’s a good boy!” Usually he responds with a half-jump (since he is old and fat), an ear piercing bark, or a strange look that means, “what the heck are you thinking?!”
ReplyDeleteSo, if a wizened, old man resembling Albus Dumbledore asked me which gift I would want to give someone, other than myself, I would give my dog, Hunter, the ability to speak and understand English.
Hunter is not the average Yellow Lab. He’s extraordinary, and I’m sure there is no other dog like him in the world. Sometimes he reminds me of Marley from Marley & Me. Hunter and Marley are both Yellow Labs and act similarly as well. When Hunter was a puppy he was energetic and always wanted to play. One day during the summer, he was barking in the foyer near the front door like he always does when someone visits our house, except no one was waiting to come in. He would not stop barking so my mom finally opened the door to show him that no one was there. To my mom’s surprise, there was a tiny bird in our driveway. “Look, Hunts,” my mom said, “it’s only a bird!” At that, Hunter started growling ferociously; he doesn’t like when anything crosses his territory. My mom noticed his growling and kiddingly said, “Go get ‘em, Hunt! Go get ‘em!” Hunter bolted through the door in a flash, all eyes on his prey. An animal’s legs have never moved as fast as Hunter’s did that day. He would have given the fastest cheetah in the jungle a run for his money. A minute later Hunter came prancing back to the house, bird in mouth, and dropped it in front of my mom just as he thought she asked.
After this happened, I just wanted to know why he ran after the bird, captured it in his mouth, and brought it back to my mom. The whole incident confused me more than anything else. If Hunter could talk we could have cleared up the whole situation before it even happened. But, I could ask him all about it if it did happen.
If my dog could talk, I would tell him to choose his words wisely. As Ms. Bunje has said before, words can make someone love you, or they can make someone hate you. The power words possess is infinite, which is another reason I wish my dog could use them. When Hunter receives his power, I will teach him how to talk to people differently, depending on the role they play in his life, and even how to sing. It will be so much easier coming home from a hard day at school and swimming to an eloquent, talking dog.
Maryam:
ReplyDeleteIf I could choose a second person to give any gift in the world to, I think I'd choose you. I'd give you the gift of self confidence. Even though this may seem like it has nothing to do with your blog, it sorta makes a connection in my head. In your last OP you talked about how you look out for other people all the time because you don't think you deserve it, and in the beginning of this blog entry, I got that vibe from you again. I wish you could see how great and awesome you are as everyone else sees it!
Paola:
ReplyDeleteThat was amazing. I loved how you used “she” and “her” instead of using the woman’s name. It gave your blog a mysterious tone and made me want to keep reading. This blog also perfectly portrayed your personality in words. You are such a kind and caring person and I’m glad the AP Langers get to see that side of you now!
Jourdan:
I love reading all of your blogs, and this is no exception! You are such a philanthropist and it makes me realize that not everyone in the world is cut-throat and evil. In all honesty, we need more people like you in the world. If everyone cared about at least one other person other than themselves, Christian, and every other child in a similar situation, would have all of the tools they needed to succeed.
Sarah L:
By not directing your gift toward one person, but someone who would be willing to accept it and make the best use of it, made your blog one-of-a-kind. I love the way you write! Everything always flows flawlessly and makes perfect sense. I also liked the references to Martin Luther King Jr. and Ghandi. They showed the type of person you would want to have your gift, without explicitly saying it. Thanks, ☺ I really enjoyed reading it.
Manar: I can see where you are coming from. Although my parents have not sacrificed as much as your parents, they still deserve the peace in the end. They provided me and my sisters with opportunity and that itself is a big gift from them. I think all parents (well almost all) deserve to see their children happy and that’s what makes them happy.
ReplyDeleteSimon: My response: “true happiness depends on wisdom.” I do think happiness is a great gift, but really, happiness is not always the best thing in life. I’m not putting you post down or anything, I like that you would give someone happiness, I just simply don’t believe happiness is something you can give. It’s seeked.
Jon : That is so sweet of you to want to give you mom early retirement. I would do the same for my dad. As he gets older and his body slowly shows sign of his aging, I desperately want to ease his burden by giving him early retirement. I agree that family is the most important entity in our lives. In the end, family is what you have left. You never know who could deceive you, but there is always family there to support you.
KTG:
ReplyDeleteI think you are amazing, smart, beautiful, talented, and did I mention AMAZING??? I always admire your sense of humor, your sense of style, and your artistic abilities. I hope that you can have what it seems like your sister has not been able to have as she's been growing up. I hope that you can go out into the world, accomplish your dreams, and not matter how bad it sounds, rub it in your parents faces!
Shirley:
ReplyDeleteI like your idea of "a force." That force is so real, and anyone who can hold onto it is unstoppable. I also like that you decided that your gift should go to a random child born into a bad situation. I think too many adults, especially disadvantaged adults, developa very pessimistic, optimism-if-for-the-weak view of the world. A person impervious to the scrutiny of those adults would truly be unstoppable and in the same breath, pure.
Lauren:
ReplyDeleteI also love your posts. This one was light-hearted, but SO TRUE. I often wonder what my animals would say if they could talk. All I know is that if they could talk, we would most definitely develop an insurpassable bond.
All parents hope that their children will be blessed with a normal life. But, what is a normal life anyways? When such a conversation struck up between my family before, all of the parents said that they hoped and prayed everything was normal, or okay, for lack of better words. By normal/okay, they hoped that each of us would have a healthy immunity system, social, spirited personalities, good looks, a bright mind.
ReplyDeleteOut of the eight cousins, there wasn't anyone who didn't fit the criteria of 'normal.' Armani, Alexander, Whiskey, Gabriela, Jordan, Jedi, Andre and I were all fortunate enough to be blessed; however, one of us didn't as much luck as the rest of us.
As a baby, Andre was the most daring out of all of us, climbing nearly everything and anything. He was destructive, breaking the average house products from toys to chairs to flat screen TVs. Afterall, what do you expect from this curious bugger? He's a baby.
Even when he was almost three, we blamed his lack of cohesive language structure on 1) he lived in a bilingual household, 2) he's shy, and 3) he's just a baby.
But there was more to this that struck me funny-- something was clearly wrong. When you call out someone's name, there should be some sort of response, at least a flinch or eye contact towards your vicinity. With Andre, this wasn't the case. The thing is, is that Andre isn't deaf. Andre was in his own, complete little world, and whenever he did look at you, he would look right through you with a blank gaze.
It wasn't until last year that everyone couldn't ignore this problem anymore. After intensive studies from various doctors, we were sure that Andre was autistic.
Even to this day, Andre still stares at everyone with that blank gaze. He may look over to your vicinity now, but there it is, blank gaze.
If it were anyone in this world, I would give Andre the gift to be able to connect with the world, and to rid him of his autism. We discovered recently that he can answer simple questions as, 'what month is it,' on some sort of typing machine, spelling the words out perfectly. At least, we know that there is a light in there somewhere. It just seems so frustrating that he's still unable to create a structure of even simple syllables to connect with us.
My father never stops. Since he was eleven he’s been working his ass off. He bought his first restaurant at eighteen years old and has had around six since then. You know those people who are genuinely non selfish, he’s one of them. My dad doesn’t work for himself anymore; he works for me, my sister, my step-mother, his mother, his sister, and his nephew. I know this sounds funny, but it’s true.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago my father was diagnosed with diabetes. He has since changed his lifestyle dramatically and his sugar level is great. However, he hasn’t changed drastically enough. His blood pressure is still too high. This is because his work is to stressful, but he can’t stop. He can’t stop for all of us.
Around a year ago my father had some shoulder issue. I’m still not sure what it was, but I know he needed surgery. He refused, he claimed that he couldn’t take off work. So instead he gets cortisone shoots every few months for his shoulder. I can tell when he hasn’t had a shoot in a while and is in pain. He’s a chief, so he can never just let it rest.
If I could give anyone in the world a gift, it would be my father. It would be the gift of peace. Though peace does not sound like a gift you can give without a wizard, I believe I have figured out a way. I plan on giving my father his gift one day, whether a wizard helps me out or not.
I work hard in school, not nearly as hard as I should, but I work hard. I don’t just work hard for me, I work hard for my father. Since I was little whenever someone used to ask me what I wanted to be, I would say rich. It was the truth. However, somewhere around two years ago I stopped giving that answer because I was sick of people responding with “Money is everything.” I know that. But I also know that if I could make enough money, to take care of my father, then I would be happy.
I know this sounds like a stupid idea, and that there are things I haven’t factored in, but I have. There are just too many minute detail to explain all in one blog.
I would advise my father that the reason I was giving him this gift was so he could stop. When my dad was younger his dad was an alcholic, so he had to work at such a young age just to help his mother out. I think my dad will have a hard time adjusting to being taken care of, but eventually he’ll get used to it.
My only fear about my gift, is that I won’t be able to give it soon enough. I want my father to start relaxing like, yesterday. However, I know my goal will take many years. Hopefully, when I am done I will add not only more years to my father’s life, but happier ones as well.
Katie G.
ReplyDeleteI know exactly how you feel. My older sister recently graduated from FSU with a degree in early childhood education. She had to move home, because she couldn’t get a job in Florida. She recently got offered an aid position in New Jersey, and a maternity leave in Florida. My stepfather, and mother forced her to take the job in New Jersey, because it was the “safer bet”. She is miserable.
Deanna
I love your gift. That is such an inventive idea. I would buy that if they sold it in stores. I always question my self, whether what I’m doing is the right thing to do. I don’t rape people or anything, but in every day life I question. It would be nice to see what the big picture truly looked like.
JV
I don’t know if its because I’m really emotional right now, but I just cried reading your blog. That was beautiful. I didn’t know that all that was going on in your life and I am so sorry. You are one of the strongest person that I know and I know that what ever your family is going through your strength will help them get through it.