What is it like to be the lonely fly on the wall? A black speck, both a living creature and a pest to the giants living in the building. But who really knows my purpose? There is a phrase that means to be unseen and unheard, but in reality am I not always heard and seen? And once I am noticed, why do the giants wish for my death? Why is it that I cannot coexist with the world and not have it wish for my demise? I will not be a bother, all I really want is a few crumbs of food, anything will do, and I will stay out of everyone's way. What a cliche, I must say, it is that I must be "on the wall". Some days I just wish to go outside. But why do the giants of the domicile watch me as I suffer at the window? Do we all not just wish for a bit of help? A gateway to freedom is obtained by the simple opening of a window. And when I escape from the darting tongues of the frogs, the killer rain, and the hot sun, why is it that the giants won't offer me a day of shelter? One day out of my short, short life is all I ask, to become the fly on the wall with a moment's refuge.
The fly on the wall, unseen and unheard. I've made my cries and my pleas known. No longer am I the fly on the wall, my voice is heard, my wings beat strong, and maybe now the giants will give their sympathy to a tiny speck that they would otherwise ignore. For we are all living beings, is a bit of help from one being to the next really too much to ask?
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
The Ingredients of Enthusiasm, They Might Require Visiting Some "Local Markets".
There seems to be a sort of epidemic spreading around school systems in recent years. It is becoming like a drug to children. They call it "apathy" and it is going around like wild fire in kids. In order to douse this fire and spark an inexhaustible passion for learning, new methods of teaching may be required. Kids are becoming "numb" to education due to the recent increase in technology and the trend of what is known as being "linked-in" all the time. A method that has worked to spark some enthusiasm for me and other kids is having teachers become more technology friendly and being able to use fun websites and internet based activities to help kids learn. Because of their already short attention spans and knowledge of the web, incorporating something that they genuinely enjoy and could have fun with will more than likely leave a lasting impression on their brains, thus helping them learn.
If that doesn't work, another thing I used to enjoy that made me enthusiastic about learning was what I like to call the "Cheshire Cat Method". This may seem like a stretch to some but read on and hopefully you will understand. “Only a few find the way, some don't recognize it when they do - some... don't ever want to.” This is a personal favorite quote of mine spoken by the Cheshire Cat in the year 2000 video game titled Alice. It may confuse a few but essentially it is saying that it takes a conscious effort to find the path in life, and not everyone realizes when they stumble upon it, and then there are the few that never wish to put in the effort to reach their path. The number of students leaning towards the third group is steadily growing, something that must be stopped. So I know you are thinking, "Why on earth is he talking about a bloody cat?" This is why, what is the sole word that would be used to describe this children's book character? Curiosity. But not only that, he is a riddle. A curiosity and a riddle, an interesting combination, no? Well this is how you must reengage the mind of the student. I became enthusiastic about learning due to an intensified curiosity about the machinations of the world, this made me want to become more enthusiastic about learning, and the riddle is simply a metaphor for engaging the mind to work harder to sate the curiosity that should be implanted into the minds of the students by the teacher.
So to summarize, the main ingredients to cooking up a nice hot plate of enthusiasm are using things that students are interested, creating a sense of curiosity in the student, and engaging (challenging) the mind to sate the curiosity.
Thank you for reading, this may have sounded really silly to most people.
If that doesn't work, another thing I used to enjoy that made me enthusiastic about learning was what I like to call the "Cheshire Cat Method". This may seem like a stretch to some but read on and hopefully you will understand. “Only a few find the way, some don't recognize it when they do - some... don't ever want to.” This is a personal favorite quote of mine spoken by the Cheshire Cat in the year 2000 video game titled Alice. It may confuse a few but essentially it is saying that it takes a conscious effort to find the path in life, and not everyone realizes when they stumble upon it, and then there are the few that never wish to put in the effort to reach their path. The number of students leaning towards the third group is steadily growing, something that must be stopped. So I know you are thinking, "Why on earth is he talking about a bloody cat?" This is why, what is the sole word that would be used to describe this children's book character? Curiosity. But not only that, he is a riddle. A curiosity and a riddle, an interesting combination, no? Well this is how you must reengage the mind of the student. I became enthusiastic about learning due to an intensified curiosity about the machinations of the world, this made me want to become more enthusiastic about learning, and the riddle is simply a metaphor for engaging the mind to work harder to sate the curiosity that should be implanted into the minds of the students by the teacher.
So to summarize, the main ingredients to cooking up a nice hot plate of enthusiasm are using things that students are interested, creating a sense of curiosity in the student, and engaging (challenging) the mind to sate the curiosity.
Thank you for reading, this may have sounded really silly to most people.
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Sunday, September 8, 2013
Courage: An Unfathomable Strength
Few. Few is the sole word that can be used to describe the amount of those who grasp true courage. It is not something that can be earned, bought, taught, or bestowed upon by an individual. It is a force in waiting chained to the heart of the hero. The lock that holds the seal is broken only by keys even more mysterious than the force itself. For the knight perched upon the hill awaiting the battle that could bring his end, what keeps him from fleeing? Is it the knowledge of his comrades beside him? Is it the pressure of protecting the kingdom and its certain destruction if he fails? Or is it the favor of the lady awaiting his return tucked against his breast? The knight draws from these thoughts in the same way a common schoolboy would steel his nerves to confess to the girl of his dreams. For no one is exempt from this feeling and the circumstances that release it from the heart vary widely. Against a world of negativity, the emblem of courage will blaze in all colors and from its roaring embers rises the power to face down any obstacle.
There was a time not too far in the past when I came upon my dragon. I was a darker time for me. I suffered from a brutal form of paranoia that kept me from taking part in most fun activities. A fear of pain and of the one in one billion percent chance accidents. It was during this time that my family thought it would be a great experience for me to go cliff diving. It just so happened to be that my greatest fear at the time was of heights and falling (you know, the classics) and only a couple of weeks before a group of kids decided to go to the same cliff jumping site that we were going to for the same purpose. That doesn't sound important at all except for the fact the one of the kids broke his leg when he landed on a rock in the water, which is so unbelievably reassuring for someone like me. So the only thing I could think beforehand was that I was going to die and I should start making peace with everything in my short, tragic life.
To make matters worse, the only way to reach the cliff jumping site was to kayak across a rough, open, shark-infested bay. Great, just freaking great. This dragon I had to face just became Tiamat and the knight in my heart had begun shaking in his boots.
Well, there I was, kayaking across the water and bobbing from side to side praying that I wouldn't fall out or look over and happen to see a little grey fin poking out of the water to reveal Bruce from Finding Nemo grinning at me with his ridiculously huge teeth and Australian accent saying "'Ello 'uman. What brings ya to these waters?" (One can only imagine, right?) The paranoia induced insanities began raging through my head as my family and I paddled on towards our destination and I could only think that my future self would be calling myself a huge wimp for acting like this. (You huge wimp....) The storm of my mind raged on like a stormy ocean, if what was happening in my mind reflected what was happening with the water I would be at the bottom of the bay right now, unable to type this blog. And what I had thought was rough water on the bay was really just my paranoia exaggerating a very light series of ripples, but I couldn't tell at the time.
It was shortly after my paranoia began acting up that we actually arrived at the site. It was pretty nice in appearance. The steep and rocky climb up the side of the cliff next to where we beached our kayaks was only diminished by the platform overlooking an even steeper forty-five foot rock face with the waves crashing against it. Merely looking up at that natural stone platform made the blood drain from my face and jump started the gruesome, Guillermo del Toro's The Strain trilogy kind of horror imaginations in my head. I could see the dragon roaring and bellowing flame towards the sky in place of a mere face of rock formed by erosion. Sweat ran down my brow, was it mine or the knight's? I could no longer tell, we had become one and the same. I swallowed my paranoia for a moment and locked eyes with the dragon as I threw my shaking legs in front of myself one at a time up the path along the cliff side. My body was heavy as the water got farther away with each step, perhaps I was coated in a suit of armor? It was with this thought that I reached the stone overlook.
My friends and family were leaping off the cliff with no second thought, no hesitation whatsoever. I stood frozen, weighted down by the fear I wore, eyes peering through my visor at the dragon before me. Do I even have the strength to beat this foe? Whispered the knight in my ear, or was he in my head? I knew I had to overcome my paranoia now or else I would never be able to. Have courage, young knight. But how could someone as unstable as I overcome fear? Courage. The word echoed in my head. It will give you the strength you so desire.
Courage. My gaze fixed on my adversary, the image of which seemed to flicker between that of a dragon and a cliff, and its roar began sounding like waves again. I steeled myself, breathing deeply which gave me the same security as lifting a shield. The knight drew his sword, much like I now bore my courage as an armament. I felt light, each step easier than the last, racing towards the cliff's edge and like a shade beside me I saw the knight charging the dragon. The moment of truth, my left foot on the rim, and suddenly the ground was gone. I heard the roaring pound in my ears and the wind rushed to slow my descent. I was suspended in the air for three, four, five seconds falling faster as each second passed. Then I hit the water, a sweet relief. Swimming up, I broke the surface of the water. I looked back towards the cliff and saw the image of the dragon fade and the knight standing proudly at the cliff's edge, smiling down at me. And I laughed, it was all I felt like doing. A tiny fear became blown out of proportion and all I needed to do to subdue it was use courage.
I couldn't break the binding that restrained my courage in my heart because of fear. All I needed to end my fear was to be put into a situation where I was forced to face it. Going cliff jumping for the first time helped me to manifest that courage and face my fear. Since that day I have faced many more of my fears and I am no longer that crazy paranoid person that I used to be. The knight that I had imagined never manifested itself again. He was merely a catalyst used to create a more courageous person out of myself. Who knows, maybe he is helping some other poor soul face his or her fears as well? All I know is that in his wake, a roaring flame of courage was left, continuing to burn on in my heart and I feel that strength to face down my dragons even today.
There was a time not too far in the past when I came upon my dragon. I was a darker time for me. I suffered from a brutal form of paranoia that kept me from taking part in most fun activities. A fear of pain and of the one in one billion percent chance accidents. It was during this time that my family thought it would be a great experience for me to go cliff diving. It just so happened to be that my greatest fear at the time was of heights and falling (you know, the classics) and only a couple of weeks before a group of kids decided to go to the same cliff jumping site that we were going to for the same purpose. That doesn't sound important at all except for the fact the one of the kids broke his leg when he landed on a rock in the water, which is so unbelievably reassuring for someone like me. So the only thing I could think beforehand was that I was going to die and I should start making peace with everything in my short, tragic life.
To make matters worse, the only way to reach the cliff jumping site was to kayak across a rough, open, shark-infested bay. Great, just freaking great. This dragon I had to face just became Tiamat and the knight in my heart had begun shaking in his boots.
Well, there I was, kayaking across the water and bobbing from side to side praying that I wouldn't fall out or look over and happen to see a little grey fin poking out of the water to reveal Bruce from Finding Nemo grinning at me with his ridiculously huge teeth and Australian accent saying "'Ello 'uman. What brings ya to these waters?" (One can only imagine, right?) The paranoia induced insanities began raging through my head as my family and I paddled on towards our destination and I could only think that my future self would be calling myself a huge wimp for acting like this. (You huge wimp....) The storm of my mind raged on like a stormy ocean, if what was happening in my mind reflected what was happening with the water I would be at the bottom of the bay right now, unable to type this blog. And what I had thought was rough water on the bay was really just my paranoia exaggerating a very light series of ripples, but I couldn't tell at the time.
It was shortly after my paranoia began acting up that we actually arrived at the site. It was pretty nice in appearance. The steep and rocky climb up the side of the cliff next to where we beached our kayaks was only diminished by the platform overlooking an even steeper forty-five foot rock face with the waves crashing against it. Merely looking up at that natural stone platform made the blood drain from my face and jump started the gruesome, Guillermo del Toro's The Strain trilogy kind of horror imaginations in my head. I could see the dragon roaring and bellowing flame towards the sky in place of a mere face of rock formed by erosion. Sweat ran down my brow, was it mine or the knight's? I could no longer tell, we had become one and the same. I swallowed my paranoia for a moment and locked eyes with the dragon as I threw my shaking legs in front of myself one at a time up the path along the cliff side. My body was heavy as the water got farther away with each step, perhaps I was coated in a suit of armor? It was with this thought that I reached the stone overlook.
My friends and family were leaping off the cliff with no second thought, no hesitation whatsoever. I stood frozen, weighted down by the fear I wore, eyes peering through my visor at the dragon before me. Do I even have the strength to beat this foe? Whispered the knight in my ear, or was he in my head? I knew I had to overcome my paranoia now or else I would never be able to. Have courage, young knight. But how could someone as unstable as I overcome fear? Courage. The word echoed in my head. It will give you the strength you so desire.
Courage. My gaze fixed on my adversary, the image of which seemed to flicker between that of a dragon and a cliff, and its roar began sounding like waves again. I steeled myself, breathing deeply which gave me the same security as lifting a shield. The knight drew his sword, much like I now bore my courage as an armament. I felt light, each step easier than the last, racing towards the cliff's edge and like a shade beside me I saw the knight charging the dragon. The moment of truth, my left foot on the rim, and suddenly the ground was gone. I heard the roaring pound in my ears and the wind rushed to slow my descent. I was suspended in the air for three, four, five seconds falling faster as each second passed. Then I hit the water, a sweet relief. Swimming up, I broke the surface of the water. I looked back towards the cliff and saw the image of the dragon fade and the knight standing proudly at the cliff's edge, smiling down at me. And I laughed, it was all I felt like doing. A tiny fear became blown out of proportion and all I needed to do to subdue it was use courage.
I couldn't break the binding that restrained my courage in my heart because of fear. All I needed to end my fear was to be put into a situation where I was forced to face it. Going cliff jumping for the first time helped me to manifest that courage and face my fear. Since that day I have faced many more of my fears and I am no longer that crazy paranoid person that I used to be. The knight that I had imagined never manifested itself again. He was merely a catalyst used to create a more courageous person out of myself. Who knows, maybe he is helping some other poor soul face his or her fears as well? All I know is that in his wake, a roaring flame of courage was left, continuing to burn on in my heart and I feel that strength to face down my dragons even today.
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