Reflection Blog

          As I've stated in my graduation speech before,  my experiences at Heritage have been full of fun, achievement, and stupidity. But the thing is, the occasions where stupidity was present began from frequently to rarely by the end of the year.

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          There are three things that have really changed me so far in the year. A type of writing that actually helped me get better grades, a new addiction, and words on paper.

          TIQA is a new form of writing that I use whenever I have to. I don't really like it, at all, but it works. I'm the type of person that does not like structured work. I do things in the most efficient and productive way to get the best outcome. TIQA is only one form of writing, and it's very structured. To me, that is both a good and bad thing. It gives me a way of writing when I must write formally. But then again, it's structured.

          This new addiction of mine is creating things. Creating. It makes me feel like I'm some kind of king. I move things where I want. I make things the way I want them to be. I do things my way. I can't find a reason why anyone wouldn't fall in love with being a king. This "creation" is design, animation, graphics. I love it.

          Words on a piece of paper is, of course, are books. Tuesdays with Morrie is the most recent. I cried. Several times, know you. Books make you feel something. Something that the author wants you to feel. It's enjoyable.

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         There is one thing that I'll remember this year for my life. That is, this year. It's not like I'll forget the friends I've made, and the things I've enjoyed. I won't forget this entire year. I may forget tiny little details, but they'll always be locked away in a safe named, "Nostalgia".

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         This next question makes me cry.

THERE HAS BEEN NOTHING THAT ANYONE HAS DONE THAT IS NICE TO ME. LEAVE ME TO MY MISERY.

         If I really did say that, every single part of that sentence would be a lie. There have been many nice things that have happened to me because of my classmates. Carlos, he's the greatest person I've ever met. He's always there no matter how many times I annoy him. Whenever I feel lonely, all I've got to do is call him up and he'll make enough time to hang out for a while. Whenever I have something to talk about, no matter how small or stupid, he's going to listen.  Of course, I'll have to do some listening in return, but that's what makes us friends. Thank you.

Thank you class of 2015.

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          I can't stand serious and harsh atmospheres. It feels... awkward. When no one is saying anything because there's this bad feeling in between the entire class. I think it's stupid. It really is.

         If there's a fight between two people, it affects the entire group. People become quiet and the atmosphere becomes hard to talk in. That's where I try to "meddle". I want others to understand that. You shouldn't leave something tough happen. Don't "Let it go", you've got to "Shake it off".

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          The most challenging part of this school year had to be the moments where I had to juggle a lot of things. I remember this one week where 3 projects were due all at the same time, while I had my state qualifiers coming up and the next ranking tournament. It was a busy week. I didn't really have much free time, but I finished. The thing is, I can't say I did well.

          I received a B on all projects, I missed time by Milliseconds on 3 of my events (0.27s 100 Freestyle. 0.87s 200 Freestyle. 1.6s 100 Butterfly.) I cried a lot that day, and to continue with my bad luck streak, I dropped in the tennis rankings from 70s to 100s. A lot of tears were shed that week. It frigging sucked.

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         The best piece of writing I've done would have to be the blogs where I actually started early on. There were 4-5 blogs that were pretty recent, last month. They were blogs with headers and an actual format. They looked pretty nice.

        The content also reflected on what I actually though about the topics and books. I'm very proud of what I've done in those blogs. If only I would've done that from the start of the year.

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         I can't make the classic books that we've read in our class my favorite. Because, to be honest, I was forced to get into those books. It's not that I didn't liked them, don't get me wrong. It's just that, I don't want to label a book as my favorite because someone made me. No.

        Knowing all that, I think my favorite book/series this entire school year would have to be the Maze Runner series. Once I got my hands on those books, I couldn't stop. I would sometimes ignore the teacher and just start reading, and become stubborn once they try to take it away from me. It's just so engrossing. So sad. But mot importantly, it seems "real" and "relatable".

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           Think every action through. Every single word, every single detail. Think about everything you do. Everything. A single word can mess you up big time. THINK.

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Morrie Aphorisms - Death ends a life... Not a relationship

Death ends a life...

         Not a relationship.

Seconds

People waste a lot of time...

Then they wish for more.

More hours in their days,

more days in their years,

more years in their lives.

And if they had all that extra time,

they could fix any mistake.

But here's the thing about time,

if you cant make the most out of every single moment,

you don't deserve a single, extra, second.

Tuesdays with Morrie

          While I was reading in class today, I had to try my utmost best not to tear up. I failed. My glasses got foggy and I had to grab a tissue to clean the lens, all while looking straight down so my classmates would not be able to see me. There is no way to describe what I felt in that moment, honestly, I don't know why I even did sweat from my eyes. I'll try?

         Tuesday's with Morrie wasn't meant to be a tearjerker. The only reason I cried, is that I'm just really weak against these heartfelt moments. To be honest, I believe it's the exact opposite of a tearjerker. It makes you feel better about yourself. When you see Morrie not giving up even in the face of adversity, it relieves you... Somehow. I can't explain it. Really. It makes your heart feel warm inside. That's all I can say.

       Bucket List

• Play in a global tennis tournament.
• Reach 1000 in the world. (Give or take a few 0s)
• Go camping.
• Shoot a wild animal.
• Go to Japan.
• Go to a Japanese festival.
• Eat Japanese candy.
• Eat regular Japanese food.
• Learn how to speak Japanese.
• Make more Japanese friends.
• Go visit the Phillippines again.
• Pay my respects to my grandparents.
• Meet with my Grandma before she leaves (Thank you Morrie).
• Get an honest job.
• Support myself.
• Start a family.
• Be happy.

Life is Beautiful - Night

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          Life is Beautiful and Night differ in many ways. But the theme of both are the same. Both Night and Life is Beautiful show the audience the horrors of the Holocaust. But the way the creator shows the theme is entirely different. Night takes a very explicit approach, by showing specific events of brutality and inhumane situations. While Life is Beautiful takes a very implicit approach.

          Life is Beautiful is a story of a man desperately trying to protect the ones that he loves. Guido, the main character, goes through such lengths to keep his son from being corrupted. He is always trying to keep his son smiling. Witnessing all of these events unfold, you begin to understand how horrible the Holocaust was. While watching Guido's course of actions, you start to notice what he is trying to protect his son from. The audience then begins to sympathize with the protagonist, Guido. He's sacrificing so many things, hurting himself in the process so that his family could stay alive and happy.

          Night gives a much more explicit version of the Holocaust. It shows you explicit events filled with explicit horror creating an explicit understanding of the Holocaust. It's explicit.
         The protagonist, Elie Wiesel, is an actual survivor of the Holocaust. Night is a true story. That book holds back in no way. It shows exactly what Elie has seen, which creates a drastically negative effect through it's direct showing of horror.

         Both the film and the book do have parts in common. A specific event occurred that caught my eye. In Life is Beautiful, the topic of children going into the furnace was introduced in somewhat of a light-hearted manner. Honestly, I found it more of an act of desperation by Guido. Guido tried to desperately hide his son, Joshua, from becoming corrupt so he couldn't let Joshua know something so inhumane. This created somewhat of a humorous atmosphere because Guido forced the atmosphere to become somewhat lighthearted. He lied to his son, making him believe that what he's saying is ridiculous.

          Night also had the same topic as the movie. Though, it was much, much more direct with it's horror. It literally told us that children were being thrown into a pit of fire. That clearly conveys it's message to the audience. That the concentration camps were inhumane.
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Night Blog - Character Development

         In the beginning of Night, Elie Wiesel was an extremely religious man. He was devoted to the Jewish religion. His experiences in the book, changed him. After living through the horror of the Holocaust, Elie Wiesel questioned god.

         In the first section of the book, Elie Wiese showed us how religious he was. He was praying to god, each and every day, while weeping. His tears show that his faith is not forced. Elie Wisel truly believes in god. His faith is on the level of breathing and plain living, "Why did I pray? A strange question. Why did I live? Why did I breath?"
         After being forced to the concentration camp, Elie was to open his eyes and reevaluate the world. His first experience in the concentration camp was witnessing infants being tossed into a pit of fire. After witnessing the embodiment of innocence and purity being massacred, he was forced to believe that God was doing nothing. Elie told himself that God let poor infants die: "Never shall I forget the small faces of children whose bodies I saw transformed into smoke under a silent cry... Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never."

         Elie Wiesel's personality was connected to his religion. He followed the rules of their bible and his personality was led by his faith. If his faith is destroyed, what happens to his personality? It'll change.

          In the first 3 sections of the book, Elie Wiesel still had humanity left inside of him. He still cared for his father, and the people around him. He would usually go out of his way to save his father's life, just as he did during a selection. Elie's father was about to get killed, but Elie created a diversion for his father to escape. That humanity and emotion for his father was gone. Elie changed.
          In section 4 of Night, Elie witnessed his father being beat by a worker in the concentration camp. Elie reacted in a way that surprised me, he did nothing. Truthfully, after witnessing his father get beaten, he even scolded his father for angering the worker in the first place. Elie even admitted that he was considering escaping the scene to make sure he doesn't get hurt himself, "I had watched it all happening without moving. I kept silent. In fact, I thought of stealing away in order not to suffer blows... That was what concentration camp had me me." Elie put himself first. He didn't care about his father that's getting beat down by a metal pole. He was actually more worried about getting beat himself.

I'd Like to Go Away Alone

I'd Like to Go Away Alone

I'd like to go away alone,

Where there are other, nice people,

Somewhere into the far unknown,

There, where no one kills another.

Maybe more of us,

A thousand strong,

Will reach this goal,

Before too long.