Ocean Breeze

I personally think that in our daily lives the responsibilities involved in our choices affect millions of other individuals. When I make a decision in my life I try and consider how my choice will affect my family, friends and even my country. I honestly do not think that a citizen’s first responsibility is to family, political leader or to their country. In my honest opinion I think our first responsibly is to ourself. In the world there are rules stated by politicians, family members, and friends all of which are our responsibility to consider in our daily lives. Though family and our county are our responsibilities the responsibility to oneself is of most importance.

Every choice I make in my life I have to consider how that decision will benefit my life, and happiness. If I did not consider my personal values and beliefs and only considered my families thoughts and politician statements I would live an unhappy life. I remember one time when I made a decision based on what I thought my parents wanted me to do. It made me happy to know that my choice was respectable to them but the regret was not enjoyable. To regret a decision is part of life but also causes unhappiness and eventually resentment. My responsibility to myself is the most important responsibly and I would always advise others to consider firstly themselves and then family, and their country.

I sincerely cannot imagine how celebrities can spend millions on mansions, and flat screens while children are going to sleep wondering if they will get food the next day. When I look at my life I am just starting to realize how lucky I am. Humans always want more then what they currently have but what I am starting to realize is that what I have is what others only dream of. There are numerous individuals that I admire immensely but there is one celebrity that I admire the most. I personally admire Oprah Winfrey and how she built a Leadership Academy School for girls. This school was for 450 girls who showed outstanding promise in life but could not afford schooling. I find it extremely sad how many celebrities abuse their fortunes. Oprah Winfrey uses her money to help the billions of individuals who need food, shelter, and education. Oprah felt very strongly for these young girls in South Africa and spent $40 million of her own personal money in order to help them find an education. I think every individual in the world deserves a chance to live a better life.

I watch television shows but usually I would never watch Oprah Winfrey. I remember one day my mom told me to watch an Oprah episode she taped about a school she built in South Africa. I can’t even explain how much of an eye opener this episode was for me. When I hear about children in other countries that are slaves, starving or without shelter, I feel so greedy and selfish. Every time I do homework or get up for school ten months of the year I definitely do not think of myself as lucky. I am only seventeen years old so I do not personally know about third world countries but because of my education I am able learn about those places. The situations children in third world countries have to deal with everyday are unbelievable. When I think of these children who are so smart but cannot afford education it makes me compare them to my life. I have a cousin who dropped out of school after grade ten. He just decided one day he didn’t like school so he quit and started working. Teenagers in third world countries are also working but not because they dropped out of school. These children were not given the opportunity for an education. Oprah felt so strongly for the girls in South Africa and wanted to help them live a better life. One statement Oprah said was, “If you are surrounded by beautiful things and wonderful teachers who inspire you, that beauty brings out the beauty in you”. I would love to go to a third world country and help the citizens by building houses, or giving food. I remember last year in Leadership our class ran a carnival. The money we raised at the carnival was sent to world vision for families in third world countries. I cannot even describe how good if felt knowing that you were helping those citizens. I never thought that the saying “giving is better then receiving”, was true but giving an individual a better life is a gift in itself.

While I watched the Oprah episode about the school I tried to compare the situation to other realities or shows in my life. What Oprah did for the girls in South Africa made me think of the movie Annie. Annie is a movie about an orphan who is waiting for her parents to come back for her. A rich bachelor decides to adopt Annie giving her a new life, a family. Annie was hesitant to be adopted but in the end she found she loved the bachelor. My favorite part of Annie is at the end when Annie and her new family are opening presents on Christmas day. Annie looked so happy and her smile just made me want to smile. This reminds me of what Oprah did for those girls in South Africa. Oprah gave girls a chance for an education, a chance for a new life. I wish I had seen the girls’ faces when they heard what opportunity they now had. Oprah felt so strongly about the school in South Africa and the girls attending the school. In both the fictional movie Annie and the school in South Africa a new life was given. New opportunities were given and I admire Oprah Winfrey for making a dream a reality for young girls. Oprah has always said she wanted to give back what she has been given. Learning is the best gift that can be given so Oprah wanted to give schooling to the children she loved in Africa. Oprah was very poor growing up so learning was her way of finding possibility in life. She had hope for the girls in this boarding school and she believed building this school was like building a dream.

I think that the reason this story speaks so strongly to me personally is the fact that I am a young girl myself. I have grown up with education, food, and shelter. Not only was I given necessities but I also have technologies like an ipod, cell phone, computer, and camera, which are all a part of the life I have always known. I also think of young girls like Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen who were born on television. I loved watching the Olsen twins but what I didn’t know was how growing up as billionaires affected them. The Olsen twins could buy any idem in the world not having to even look at the price tag. Drugs and eating disorders began to be an issue because they knew of nothing but money. There are those like the Olsen twins who have more money then they can count, the middle class, which I am in, and those who live in third world countries. The gap in between the classes should not be as different as they currently are. Oprah Winfrey is one of the richest human beings in the entire world but she is not like the Olsen twins. Oprah does not use all her money to help herself but to help others throughout the world. In my personal opinion a human being needs to experience life as a regular individual and not as a celebrity. Those celebrities who have lived a normal life are usually more compassionate and selfless then those of whom were born in the spotlight.

I admire my family immensely but when I see a celebrity figure use their fortune to help create better lives to others that is an admirable individual. When I make decisions I consider how those choices will affect others. When an individual smiles from true happiness because of me, that makes me happier then any gift I have ever received. I can only pray that someday I will make as much of a difference as Oprah made to those girls in Africa.

I have grown up in a generation where humans are starting to worry about their effects on the environment. I have traveled across Canada and seen the ocean, mountains, flatlands, badlands, and prairies. It is unbelievable how beautiful the world naturally is. In the poem “Pastoral” by D.G. Jones he talks about the natural parts of earth and how nature gives him hope for the world. For me personally the ocean is an extremely peaceful place. When I sit at the ocean all I do is stare at the waves crashing onto the shore for hours because it just calms me down and gives me peace. When I go into cities I definitely do not feel at peace but stressed. Cities are so busy and huge which does not give off a relaxing atmosphere. One part of nature that really stands out for me is the fact that I feel so small next to nature. When I stand next to the ocean, or the forest and even in the middle of a field I feel like an insufficient tiny dot in such a huge space.

The poem “Pastoral” was very meaningful to me because I agree with what D.G. Jones was trying to say. Human beings consider themselves to be at the top and our everyday lives consist of benefiting ourselves. I have grown up with a very environmentally aware family but most individuals do not think of the effects on the environment at all during their lives. Humans are starting to affect the environment is negative ways. I remember watching the movie “An Inconvenient Truth” which is about global warming. Global warming was not a reality when this poem was written but today in my generation, global warming is definitely a concern. I never really understood the effects we had on the environment but watching this movie allowed me to have visuals on the problem. One scene that really stood out for me was the scene where glaciers were shown. There was picture of glaciers in the past and then today. It is unbelievable how melted they are currently. The hottest years ever recorded have been in the last 15 years. The part that scares me is that if glaciers keep melting and fall into the ocean not only will we lose fresh water but also land will start to flood killing millions. Pollution, cutting down trees are both realities that are hurting the environment.

Even though humans are hurting and changing the environment, nature will always be here. “Pastoral” really made me realize that even if humans die out the rocks, water, salts, all the natural parts of earth are always going to be here. I really think humans are only harming themselves by polluting and cutting down trees. If we flood our oceans it’s human’s that will drown, or by cutting trees our oxygen is depleting. I really do think humans will become extinct probably because of our own actions. This is like the line in “Pastoral” in which D.G. Jones talked about a jet in the sky. The jet flies across the entire sky leaving a small trail of exhaust. A tiny sliver in the entire sky but will disappear with time. To me the sky represents the world and the jet represents us, humans. We leave a small mark in the world but eventually we will disappear and our mark will disappear with us, leaving room for a new existence. Dinosaurs existed before humans and are now extinct. I think in the future humans will be looked at like dinosaurs. We will be history and part of the past.

Humans are like “ a needle in a cloud”, in the entire world we are just a tiny dot. If we look at the world from a distance you won’t be able to see a human, it is like searching for that needle in a huge cloud. This makes me think of when I see pictures of earth from a distance and I realize that you can never see the humans on earth, just the water and the rocks, just nature. No matter how many years go by the earth will look the same from that distance. Whether dinosaurs, humans, or aliens are living, the water and the rock is all that is seen from a distance.

When I think of magic my first thought is magicians, fantasy, and illusions. I grew up wishing magic was real, that I could fly, or make a person disappear. I now understand that magic in the sense of magicians and movies is completely phony. The magic of God though is real. In the poem “God is Alive, Magic is Afoot” by Leonard Cohen, Cohen is talking about how God is always with us and magic exists though God. I believe that God is within every individual so every decision we made, happiness, mind these are all magic. God tries to help all individuals make the right choices and live a happy life. We can accept him and live with or chose to ignore the magic within us.

In “ God is Alive, Magic is Afoot”, the first and last word is God. This is really meaningful to me because the first thought when entering the poem is God and the last thought is also God. I think this is very smart on the poet because it allows the reader to analyze the poem with God and their point of thought. One other part of the poem was when Cohen would rearrange the order of words. Cohen said, “ God is alive; Magic is afoot, God is afoot; Magic is alive. This allows the audience to comprehend the sentence in different ways. Different individuals understand different wording. The repetition this poem also has a huge affect on the poem. The more an individual hears a statement the more like they are to remember that statement. God and magic were repeated numerous times throughout the poem allowing the reading to finish the poem thinking about God and magic.

I really believe that I have magic in me along with everyone around me. I remember my mom telling me about when she fell in love with my dad and the love she felt was like magic. I know that parts of life like war will never be a magical experience. Magic is everywhere if we chose to believe. Every part of our life has potential of feeling like magic if we chose to open our eyes to the magic of God.

I personally think that happiness is important in human lives and as individuals it is our responsibility to create happiness in our own lives and to those around us. Happiness is found through hundreds of different realities and what makes me happy may not make my best friend happy. Leonard Cohen wrote a poem called “I Have Not Lingered In European Monasteries” which I interpreted as a poem about happiness and the responsibility to create happiness in your personal life. Religion is a major part of happiness in human lives for thousands of generations. I think religion does help me find happiness because it helps me feel less alone. I believe there is a God who is always with all individuals in the world. Religion creates happiness for some but an individual does not need religion in their life if faith doesn’t create happiness for them personally.

Leonard Cohen through his poem talked about all the numerous actions he had not done throughout his lifetime. In his poem, he said “ I have not held my breath so that I might hear the breathing of God, or worshiped wounds and relics or combs of iron, or bodies wrapped and burnt in scrolls”. These are just a few lines in his poem in which he talked about religion. He was not a religious man because in his poem all the lines about what he had not done involves religion or religious beliefs. To me this explains that Leonard Cohen was not a religious man. At the end of the poem Cohen goes on to say,

“I have not been unhappy for ten thousand years.
During the day I laugh and during the night I sleep.
My favorite cooks prepare my meals,
my body cleans and repairs itself,
and all my work goes well”.

This part of the poem showed me that though Cohen was not a religious man, he was still happy. He admitted and told his audience all the religious realities he had not experienced but we went on to tell his audience that he had great happiness in his life. I find that Cohen seemed very satisfied with his life and the accomplishments he made in his life. This is a great example of how religion is not needed if religion doesn’t speak to you personally. I think that though Cohen was not a religious man he probably did have some form of faith. My grandparents are very traditional Catholics and church, confession, and prayer made them feel safe and happiness in their lives. My parents though do not have the same beliefs as my grandparents. My parents found faith that spoke to them and found the responsibly they have to themselves to create happiness. I am still a teenager so I haven’t found out whether religion will give me happiness but I am trying to learn different thoughts in faith. My parents have taught me all that they believe and other beliefs and have given me the responsibility to find my own faith.

For thousands of years religion has been a major part of people’s lives but not having a religion has also been the reality to others for thousands of years. Leonard Cohen is a poet and like other poets he is telling a story, stating a truth. I personally think poets take their personal thoughts and the thoughts of others and try and put meaning in those thoughts in a poem. I do think that Cohen may be a philosopher as well as a poet. A philosopher is a person who offers views or theories on profound questions in ethics, metaphysics, logic, and other related fields, which Cohen did throughout his poem. I personally think poets can often be philosophers as well as poets but I do not think Cohen was a religious man. I really found this poem thought provoking and fascinating. The world is massive and complicated. I really want to develop happiness in my personal life like Cohen developed in his.

As individuals we look for faith in order to find answers. I have grown up as a Catholic but my parents have also opened my eyes to other thoughts on beliefs. Faith matters to human beings because it allows us to feel safe knowing there is a higher power looking after us. Jabez Harry Bowering in “ Grandfather” by George Bowering based his entire life on following God and spreading his faith across Canada. Jabez’s faith mattered the most in his life and when I feel really strongly about a part of my life I want to tell others, which is what Jabez did. Faith allows humans to find a meaning in life, and life after death.

Jabez Harry Bowering lived in England until he was twelve when he crossed the ocean to Canada. The entire poem was written without punctuation making it very equally paced without excitement or questions. In my mind when I picture Jabez I see a very calm, gentle man and no punctuation really helps me believe that to be true. I really felt there were numerous expressive words used in this poem including “hacking”, “squared”, and “snarled”. All these words set the tone of the poem allowing the reader to set an image in their head. I found these words brought understanding and interest into the poem. Novels I enjoy reading are like this poem in the way of using expressive words. When I was reading “Twilight” by Stephanie Meyer I really enjoyed all the descriptive words she used because I could actually picture the scene in my mind. “Grandfather” also had descriptive words that allowed me to develop a scene in my mind. It was very ironic that Jabez Bowering past away in a Catholic hospital. Jabez Bowering’s whole life was based on his faith even to the last moment of his life he was acting in faith.

Jabez Harry Bowering was a part of the radical reformation. In the world I find it unbelievable how there is a huge amount of different kinds of faith including Christian, Catholic, Buddhist, Protestant and numerous more. Individuals all over the world have their own personal faith in which speaks to them. As children I find that faith is more difficult to us. I personally don’t know if my beliefs are real all I have is faith but that does not mean I don’t have questions. There are places I know I can go to in order to find out information on faith. I am able to go to youth groups, the Internet, books, televisions and adults. All these options allow me to develop my personal beliefs along with all the other individuals with questions. Jabez Bowering had found his faith and went through his entire life spreading his beliefs. In the poem this one line, “six years on the road to Damascus till his eyes were blinded/with the blast of Christ”, really struck my attention. Jabez only had eyes for Christ and his life was based only on Christ. Faith mattered most to Jabez Bowering and I personally think faith matters most to millions of other individuals.

I honestly cannot understand how the world could lie to an individual about their entire reality. Free will is a right that is given to all individuals and I personally cannot imagine having my life planned out for me. Truman was not given the opportunity to have free will. He was unable to create his own path in life, find love in a job, place, or person. As individuals and as a society when I really analyze life, I truly think free will is what matter most. I understand at a selfish level why the whole world watched The Truman Show. I love watching reality shows because I know that the players of real, not reading a planned script. There is interest and a truth in that. The fact that Truman has no free will is horrible but as for his life being a script I actually think every individual kind of lives from a script.

Throughout my entire 17 years of life I have been taught and told how to do every aspect of my life. My parents, family, teachers and so many other authority figures are teaching me or have taught me so much. I was taught how to speak, walk, manners, where to go to school, what to learn, rules and punishment. Is there an escape from the script created for individuals? I understand that my script may not be as small as Truman’s but between the government, my family, and my teachers I am also shown how to live my life. I remember growing up and every time there was a spider in the house my mom would scream and run away from the spider. My dad would always have to come and kill the spider because my mom was so afraid of the tiny creature probably the size of her fingernail. Fear is not natural, it is conditioned into us so because I watched the fear my mom had for spiders I also began to fear them. In The Truman Show, Truman was conditioned to fear water. When Truman was a little boy he was boating in a storm with his father. His father fell off the boat and drowned. Like Truman if my mom had not been scared of spiders or if Truman’s father hadn’t have drowned neither of us would have been afraid.

I watch many shows on television that are considered to be a drama. Drama in television is what makes them interesting so they are watched. Love is usually the cause of that drama. The Truman Show was completely planned except when one actress truly fell in love with Truman and he loved her back. This was not part of the plan so the director of the show forbid that love and took Sylvia away from the set. This entire scene reminded me of Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet were both children of families that were rivals, but they fell in love. This love was forbidden but as every human being knows, a love that is forbidden only grows hotter. In both the Truman Show and Romeo and Juliet there was a love between two people that was not allowed but stayed strong. I personally think it was extremely cruel to not allow Truman to actually fall in love. Throughout my entire life I have been told love is the most important part of life. Truman deserves to live his life with love along with every other individual. It doesn’t matter who loves one another, I personally don’t think love should ever be forbidden.

Profit is such a huge factor in our world today. Money is so important to individuals and I understand that money gives us food, shelter, and opportunities. I personally know from experience though, that money does not buy happiness. I know millionaires that are extremely unhappy because they are lonely. I am not saying all rich individuals of unhappy but there are numerous. Advertising is a major way in which profit is made. Individuals advertise product in which they are selling in order to make money. As a teenage girl I mainly notice advertising in magazines. In every magazine there are pages and pages of products being advertised. Famous actors are often used in pictures to fool young teenagers into buying these products to be like celebrities. The Truman Show is also an advertisement because every item seen while watching is available in the Truman Catalog.

Though I can compare The Truman Show to my personal reality I still think it is cruel to treat a man the way the world treated Truman. The opportunities I have been given throughout my life may have to planned by my family, and friends but I still consider myself to know the truth. Honesty matters to me immensely and I plan on giving all individuals in my life the truth. Every individual deserves a chance to create the life they dream of, they deserve free will.

I cannot personally imagine watching my family and friends go off to war, knowing they will most likely die at war. Currently there is a war in Iraq and even though I know it is happening I feel so distant from it. I admit that if I am not personally suffering from the war I almost forget that it is going on. This so sad because so many men and women are losing their lives and the lives of loved one and I just forget. My uncle was recently killed in an avalanche in British Columbia suddenly. I remember getting a phone call telling us he was dead. I don’t know what if feels like to be in war or have a loved one in war but I understand the feeling of not being able to say goodbye. I imagine that the feeling of an officer telling a women her father, brother or husband died in war would be indescribable and all I can compare the pain too is the loses I have suffered. There are numerous wars that I have studied in my Social Studies classes that I think of as history. These wars are put into movies to get points across and at first I think of them as just movies. I have realized that the pain and suffering acted in films was actually real during the war and the respect I have for soldiers has increased immensely.

The Battle of Passchendaele is a battle that I have just recently learned about. This battle was put into a film which helped me personally realize how horrible and life altering war and battles are. The Battle of Passchendaele was a main battle in World War 1. The Canadian, British, South African, and ANZAC units all fought against the German army. This battle was known for the hardships of rain and mud making the battle even harder. When the Battle of Passchendaele was over there was 15 654 Canadian casualties and over 4 000 dead. These numbers are horrifying to me because basically men slaughtered each other in order to gain land and that fact shows me how greedy human beings are. In the Battle of Passchendaele the strategy was to weaken the Germans by attacking at different points and have a series of battles.

The Battle of Passchendaele was very controversial because the soldiers would bomb the enemy and shoot at the enemy at the same time. Regularly soldiers would bomb and then advance to shooting. The soldiers were told to shoot and bomb the enemy until they were all dead or until they were personally defeated. War would be a horrible way to die even though I understand that they are dying for their country. There is pain and suffering involved whether you die at war or live to go home again. The Battle of Passchendaele was a horrible battle that resulted in thousands of deaths, injuries, and emotional health. War is a reality in humans, a reality that I personally do not feel is necessary. I do not know what war feels like as a soldier, nurse or just as a women waiting for a loved one to come home but I do understand the pain involved. The cemeteries across the world remind me of how many millions of soldiers died in wars. Soldiers are remembered for the bravery of fighting for their country and I am so grateful for their bravery.

I am so exited to be seeing the historic moment of an African American being elected as President of the United States. I have never enjoyed politics or government. I remember when my class would start talking about elections and whom they wished to win and I would just randomly say a name. I have never followed politics and I wasn’t even following this recent election between Obama and McCain. Though when Obama won the election I reacted strongly because the affect he will have on the United States will hopefully be huge. George Bush has the United States in a huge mess involving the war in Iraq. Since Canada is so closely connected with the United States this election will also be beneficial for Canada.

Racism is a problem that was very severe in our past. I can’t actually comprehend how human beings actually wouldn’t allow black people into restaurants, white schools and many other places. I have met black individuals and they are no different then white individuals other then their skin. Racism has decreased immensely today but is still a problem to certain individuals. I find it amazing that an African American is now president because those racist individuals have a black man running their country. Hopefully this will help racism completely disappear among all humans. On November 4th when Obama was elected president I was watching a television show when it suddenly stopped and started playing the speeches of McCain and the victory speech of Obama. At first I was annoyed because I wanted to watch my show but I am so glad I was able to watch those speeches. Barack Obama’s speech was amazing to me and just from his speech I realized what a wonderful leader he was. In Obama’s speech he talked about all the financial problems the United States is having and how today he wants to change his country, creating peace and creating a country that is one. When I listen to Obama’s speech all I do is sit silently and listen so intensely to every word he says. I was actually shocked that I found the speech so interesting but this speech made me realize how historical his election was.

I really do believe that Obama will help the United States of America to reach the end of their financial problems and allow the country to become peaceful again. I personally know numerous individuals who started to cry when they heard Obama won the election. He is the first African American man to become president and this election will be written down in history. I have learned history in school but I now realize that history is happening every day. When I think of history I think of the past but it’s not just the past but also the present. My great-great grandchildren will learn about how Barack Obama was the first African American to be elected as president. I am so exited to personally witness what Obama can do for the country of the United States. I truly think that he will change the United States because he is such a leader. As much as I hate politics I do want to follow Obama and his decisions as a leader.