Social Ignorance

   In this day in age, the youth that is being brought up follow in the footsteps of their parents, piers, teachers, and media influences. Our ancestor's traditions, cultures, and moral values have been lost through generations under constant external influences. Few people as they grow up actually even know of their historical background and even those who do most likely do not practice their cultural traditions. Without true knowledge of our ancestry and culture how can we embrace our ethnicity our race. People do not know what their true race is because of lack of knowledge.
   In today's society people see race as the color of your skin or where you're from but it goes much deeper than that. Your race is your past your ancestral genes that make up who you are not the color of your skin. People connect race with all types of stereotypes which leaves the next generations following after your bad influences. I see the definition of race today as- a means to describe, categorize, and separate the world's people. This is a shame that the world has come to this point in life where we are judged by the color of our skin and by where we are from but not by what we have done and contributed.
   How we see race and use it, it is just another word for hate. Hate against someone you don't know, someone you never even met before which is taught through the people around you. Stereotypes, bullying, discrimination, isolation, prejudgment, RACE..... all a form of hate, can all be linked to racism. Today we see racism as blacks against whites but it goes way deeper than this it includes almost every race and is taught by mainly fear. We fear of a terrorist attack and we try to single out a single group of people to make us feel better but everyone could be a terrorist. This shows that today people are too ignorant to see past color, religion, and origin but instead go with the easiest option, one that I see as pure hate.
   Sure there are other things like sexism that occurs with racism but it only differs the treatment slightly. For instance, if two African Americans, one male one female, went out for a job interview the male would be judged more harshly but most likely get the job because sexism just adds to hate that is already unknowingly possessed by a person. A female would be let down easy but would have to go find another job to apply for. On the other hand, a female has worse stereotypes than a male of any race when it comes to racism. A black woman is seen as ghetto, a blonde white woman seen as extremely stupid and bourgeois and so on but there are countless people that go against this stereotype but still people are too ignorant to see this and continue to label women.
   As long as people stay ignorant and refuse to see past their own beliefs, if you can even call it their own, we will still be separated as a people. We will always be seen as different from one another rather than just being human. The day we stop caring for one another is the day we lose our humanity and this day has come far to long ago. In order for us as a people to finally be equal we must look past one anothers skin color, origin, sex, sexual orientation, lives, and abilities and judge only by the content of our characters.

Promised Land!

   Cursing, sagging, skipping, fighting, apparently this is who we are, unfortunately this is our promised land! In the speech that Dr. King gave the day before his death he said " I've been to the mountain top.... And I've seen the promised land. i may not be there with you. but i wanted you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land." Martin Luther King believed that even after his death, we as a people would achieve racial equality and he was somewhat right in believing this. If Martin Luther King were  to come to our school tomorrow, i am ashamed to say it but he would truly be disappointed with how we as a school see our promised land.
   The first thing you hear and see when you walk into our school are people cursing at each other and many people sagging. The cursing has even reached the point were it is just a normal conversation between two people. If our parents could hear how we talked in school they would strangle us and Dr. King would just walk right back out those twin doors. Sagging is just a pointless reason to show someone your butts which in the 60's was considered inappropriate. Both off these things together are just blatant disregard for authority (because of school rules) and  disrespect to those who raised you and those who fought for your rights.

   It seems as if every other day someone is picking a fight with another person. These fights are usually for infinitesimal reasons or just for "fun" as some would say. Martin Luther King lived his life by a "turn the other cheek" saying and asked his follower to do the same whenever they went on marches. Even for something as big of a reason as our civil rights he stood by his saying this was his "Cardinal Rule". On January 30, 1956 Martin Luther king was attending a meeting when his house was bombed. His wife and daughter were not injured but an angry crowd was outside his house when he came home. He preached non-violence on the destroyed porch to the crown even after his house was ruined. The only word that can describe our actions are pointless and childish but even children back in the day turned the other cheek!
   For the final 20 years of his life, Martin Luther King had fought for our Civil Rights, for racial equality, for equal opportunities and what do we show for it. Everyday people are walking through the hallways and playing around when they should be in class but they see nothing wrong with this. One of that Dr. King fought for was to have equal opportunities in school for black as whites but once we finally achieved this we are not taking advantage of it. The generations before us fought for the right to read, learn, write, and go to school and all most people can do is just sit in class doodling or skipping class and playing in the hall. We take our education for granted and Martin Luther king would have pity beyond belief for us because of our total disregard for what we have.
   At the end of the day Dr. King would lover his head, turn around, and go right back to his place in the after life baffled and ashamed by what we have become.

Captains' Island

"He set out on his adventure never to be herd of again", announced captain Ayhab, "His crew's last sight was of him climbing into the white cloud that engulfed the top of the island". Captain Ayhab was an elderly ship captain who set sail many time throughout his life with his crew of 30 men to find treasure and to explore the unknown. After every ship docked at the port, their captains made their way to the story tellers club to tell their adventure while away from the little island they called home The Black Lagoon". After being on countless adventure, the captain had so many stories to tell that he wasn't even up to his recent ones but just finished one of when he was younger. When he was a young cabin boy, his captain made his way up the cliff of an island unknown to the crew and never returned. Since then  the captain has told himself "I vow that one day, i will find out what happen to my captain if its the last thing i do" but he never made true of this vow because he thought his life to precious to risk the journey up the cliff.

After many of years at sail, Captain Ayhab was starting to become elderly. His face was as pail as a cold corpse's, his eyes looked so tired they sagged, his wrinkles were deeper that a trench, hair as white as snow, and his bones were so brittle they cracked when he moved. He was starting to become too elderly to captain his crew and just wouldn't admit it. After he finished his story, the captain's second in charge Mr. Brooks confronted him on the situation.

"Captain you must consider finding a replacement for you"

"Do i hear a mutiny being planned before my eyes Mr. Brooks"

" No captain I just believe that with your growing age you should consider having someone to take over when..."

"When what Mr. Brooks, choose your words wisely"

"When your no longer able to lead us as greatly as you have. You must have wondered about leaving the ship and naming a new captain at some point in time."

This was true and Captain Ayhab knew this oh too well as he started to make his way to the corner of the room. A tear began to drip from is dark black eye and then he began to say "Brooks, tell the crew  get ready to make sail". Without a word, Brooks was out the door on his was the dock to convey the demands the captain had given. The captain remained in the corner for a good five minutes until a young boy pulled at his side. He was no older that 12 but looked as if he had sailed the seas longer than Captain Ayhab. "Captain" the boy started to speak, "May I please have the privilege of being your cabin boy?" From the look of the boys clothes, all dirty and old, you could tell that he was homeless and when he asked this question it brought another tear to the captains eye.

That afternoon, the captain set sail with his loyal crew of 30 men and the young boy who almost cried when the captain said yes. The captain told no one of where they were going but only gave Mr. Brooks the coordinates for the place. It took three days, three long days of sea sickness from the boy and silence from the captain. The crew had thought the captain was taking them on a new treasure hunt but this time it was only the captain's hunt.

The captain had brought his crew to the same island that his former captain never returned from when he was younger. No one had a name for the island but they all knew about the legends behind it. It was said that beyond the white fluffy cloud atop the cliff was the lair of a horrible witch that called the island home and would kill anyone who trespasses and eat them. This story did not look like it would deter the captain from whatever he was planning but the crew looked terrified. As they approached the island it became clear to the crew that the captain had come here to have his last adventure, alone.

 

"Captain, I know I said you should think about finding your heir but this is ludicrous" yelled Mr. Brooks. "The crew needs a captain and if you leave now everything will be against us"

 

"Mr. Brooks, I have lived a great life and have been your captain for many years but its about time you take over the ship"

 

From the corner of his eye the captain saw the young boy crying behind a barrel. He walked over to the boy knelled down and began to whisper "the reason I brought you on this journey is to show you that you decide your future no one else. I know you asked to join my crew because of my tail  which is just like how I was when I was younger but I see something special in you and don't stop trying to be something great." With this said, he tied his boat off and started to climb the cliffs. He knew that no one had lived to tell what was behind the cloud, but still he climbed.

 

The cliff was jagged and sharp rocks protruded from everywhere but the captain continued to climb to the top. After safely reaching the top of the cliff, he still had to make his way to the white cloud on the top of the island. When he looked back, his ship was sailing away from him after being its captain for 40 years. Before reaching the cloud and entering it the captain found a air of old boots with the name John sown into the sole. This was especially scary to the captain because his old captains name was John.

 

Without hesitation the captain walked into the cloud once reaching it and couldn't see a thing. After a few feet the cloud started to clear and the captain couldn't believe what he was seeing. A giant tree was at the center of the cloud and had the remains of a tree house in its branches. The captain decided to climb the tree and investigate what was in the remaining structure above. One the floor in the tree house was a diary which the captain picked up and flipped to the final entry.

 

It read "Dear Ayhab, I know that you will be the one to find this journal and I must say I'm sorry for leaving you like that all those years ago, this island is a captains trade secret for those captains that want to end their days in luxury alone and happy. I know you may not understand my reasoning but I left to make you a better captain one day so that you never get to attached to one person, this tree is now your home and I hope you treat it well and it to you just as it did for me years ago."

 

Ayhab began to tear up again and just said yes my captain to the tree and began to smile. After all these year he finally knew what happened to his captain and why he left and regained a peace of mind. For the rest of his life, Ayhab read all his captains diary entrees and made his own. The day before he passed he wrote and entrée to the boy on his old ship explaining everything he found out and why he believed the boy would make a great captain. He passed during the night one unfortunate day and died at peace on his own little "Captain's Island".

The aftermath

7...6...5...4...3...2...1 This was my countdown until super storm hurricane sandy hit New Jersey a week before its arrival. Day after day i helped my family prepare for this foreshadowed disaster with what i can call a sense of urgency. I thought that the storm would be as harmless ass Irene which was the same opinion that my brother had but my mom kept insisting " This storm is going to be way worst than Irene just wait and see." Of course me and my brother had no intentions to take heed to what she was saying, but we still continued to haul in supplies my mom had gotten use to, in her words, survive the storm. Our supplies included a generator, 10 gallons of gas, 4 cases of water, a 3 week supply of food, and and junk food to keep me and my brother busy.

The days went by as quickly as i could count and before i knew it the it was the day of the storm. I was in the middle of playing my game when suddenly the power went out and my mom was rushing to light candles she placed around the house. I was still not worried about anything yet and just started to think of things to do while the power was out. Me and my brother decided to go outside with our friends and see what was going on in the neighborhood. To our surprise from as far as our eyes could see there was noting to see. It was pitch black outside and we thought this was the perfect time to go and do some reconnaissance and military task things with our paintball guns and night vision goggles. With the wind blowing so hard that we were being thrown left and right we decided to try and find our way back home in the bitch blackness we called Plainfield. One after another, transformers that were exploding lite up the sky blue for just a second and then it was dark again. When we got back inside the only problem we had was trying not to go to sleep which proved to be an impossible task to accomplish.

The next few days went by with no problem, my mom had started up the generator and life was normal except for no Internet or phone service. After my moms boyfriend had fried my brother's laptop on day two I decided to go over my grandmothers house to stay as normal as possible. Apparently me and my cousin had the same idea since when i got there she was watching TV and eating ampanatas. Me and my cousin stayed glued to the TV for the next 4 or 5 day and hadn't gone outside or even looked out the window. "Have you even herd from your mom in the past few days" my cousin asked one day, "She might be having problems or even injured". "Yeah, maybe I should call and see how everyone is doing over there" i replied, "But i know it cant be that bad because they have movies, lights, each other, and food." Me and my cousin began to get dressed into day clothes and asked our grandfather to take us to my house.

The entire way home we were all silent, none of us had paid attention to anything outside and fear began to fill my heart. Power lines were down everywhere, trees blocked most streets, houses destroyed, cars totalled and i had no idea what to expect when i got home. At this point i was terrified for my family and tried to rush my grandfather to get me home as soon as possible. Instead of the usual 10 minute drive home, it took and excruciating 30 minutes, 20 extra minutes of mind boggling suspense. I tried to call my mom 5 times during those twenty minutes but the phones still had no signal. So many different scenarios went through my head that i just had to close my eyes and just sit in the car holding my breath.

When we finally pulled up and i heard my brother and his friends screaming at each other i was so relieved. As i went inside everyone started telling me how the power wont be on for a week, their food had gone bad, and how they were bored at home. I immediately made my way into my moms room to find her sleeping through everyones screaming. In the end i learned that mom really does always know best and that its better to be safe than sorry.

A Broken Spirit

“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” 

What i believe Chris meant by this selection was that every living person has some desire to adventure, to explore the unknown but are hindered by the fact that our lives are too sheltered. Growing up we are taught to follow the rules, always do this and that but not what we want to which will make us unhappy in the long run. It is human nature to want to explore and adventure into the outside world and do different things but as Chris stated we are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation. Our future are already planned for us as a child and we are forced, no, tricked into following that path and not setting our own which gives us no real life experience and absolutely no happiness. We stay within a fine line that has been predetermined my the people around us and no one is brave enough to cross it.

Chris however broke away from that line away from his predetermined future and decided to create his own from that day on. He was no longer held back by his sheltered life and went out into the wilderness to let fate decide his future. He went day by day not knowing what would happen or where he would go next but he loved how he was living. He was unhappy with his life and was one of the few people that actually did something about it. he went anywhere he liked did anything he felt like doing which is one of the greatest adventures a man can live, being free.

My life has been conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism in just about anyway i can think of. I abide by all the rules set for me in my house in school and on the streets. i wear my school clothes and I.D. every day which all shows a life of conformity. My mom tries to do everything for me and  teach me everything that's good which is a life of security. Conservatism well just by doing the same thing every weekday is conservatism which is going to school, going to football practice, then doing chores which leaves the mind no time to thing of new things to do. If i ever met Chris, i believe he would most likely ask me "how could i live my life like this day by day" and the only thing i could say would be THIS IS WHAT I WAS TAUGHT.

POETRY

EVERYTHING WE DO

 We may not always realize that everything we do

Affects not only our lives but touches others too.

A single happy smile can always brighten up the day

For anyone who happens to be passing by your way.

And a little bit of thoughtfulness that shows someone you care

Creates a ray of sunshine for both of you to share.

Yes, every time you offer someone a helping hand,

Every time you show a friend you understand.

Every time you have a kind and gentle word to give,

You help someone to find beauty in this precious life we live.

For happiness brings happiness and loving ways bring love,

And giving is the treasure that contentment is made of.

To me, the meaning of this poem is that just the smallest sign of compassion, caring, or thoughtfulness could make someones life better or just brighten up their day. Chris would probably like this because he is always the one person who is happy and rubs it off on other people even if he doesn't know it. He's always bright and brightens up everyone's mood that's around him.

THE PEACE of WILD THINGS

 When despair for the world grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things 

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

The meaning of this poem is that nature by itself can ease any worries or grief that is brought on by the world and its troubles. Chris's whole purpose of escaping into the wild was to get away from the worries of everyday life. He felt that the wilderness would set him at ease and he would have a more peaceful life. 

One Mistake Too Many

On march 27, 2007 i began my six month trip into the wild and had no cares in the world. This was the most exciting time of my entire life and being alone for the first time was a great accomplishment for me. 16 hours had not even passed before i started to encounter minor problems that would ultimately lead to the biggest mistake of my life. First i had to sit in between a fighting couple, then when i got off the plane all the locals looked at me as if i did not belong there, as if i were a threat but i did not worry about these things and just went on my way. Before heading into the forest though i recall stopping at a food stand and buying a bundle of bananas from this old man who was a big help to me. I asked him the simplest question ever "what should i look out for when i'm in the forest alone" and he replied "malaria is your biggest worry" and proceeded to hand me a needle labeled "Malaria Vaccine" without asking for any payment at all. After i said my thanks and gathered my bananas i was on my way into the Amazon alone.

Skipping three months forward into my trip to when i was familiar with the land and living only off of what i gathered that day for food there is one little mistake that changed my life forever. Because i  became very lonely in this lush, green, peaceful, and dangerous environment and no other humans were around to keep  me company i became good friends with a howler monkey who was very timid of me at first but began to warm up to me after a month. Every day i climbed a tree i slept next to and had a conversation with him as if he were human. This was a normal conversation for us, "How are you today BoBo? Are you hungry? Lets go find some bananas shall we." and he always replied with"who" which now that i think about it was pretty weird. One day when i woke up i found that my camp had been ransacked, but by who, you guessed it, BoBo, but he wasn't alone, he had three little monkeys with him who apparently had an interest in my fishing pole and brought it high up into the trees. Before i knew it they had wasted all the line and snapped it in half with no worries about what i needed it for.

Since fish are the only thing i thought you could hunt that didn't hunt you back the fishing pole was my lifeline and without it i would have to improvise my fishing methods. When i was younger my uncle taught me how to fish just by using my shoe laces and i quickly put it to use. For days i was successful at catching the most delicious, flavorful, and exotic fished i had ever tasted but this was only the beginning. I had forgotten that there are always bigger fish in a river, bigger than me and i realized this too late. While i was fishing a fish (a big one apparently) had grabbed my make shift line with my finger knotted in it and in a quick second beyond all disbelief, my finger was gone. Because of my medical experience and quick thinking i was able to close and sterilize my wound when i got back to camp but i was not deterred from my prior goal, to survive six months alone in the Amazon Rain Forest.

Ever since that day i have learned to not put my self at such extreme risk as to lose a finger. lucky enough now that i think about it i was luck the fish did not drag me under. A fish got away with my finger that day but i will never forget that i was able to keep my life and come home after the six months to see my family waiting with terror and happiness on their faces. I kept my life only to almost have it screamed away by my mom though for missing a finger.