"Oh my name is Bishop Patrick. I sailed across the sea to teach the Irish folk about the Blessed Trinity."
This is a song that I taught to the kids at vacation bible school a few years ago. That year, the theme was the story of Saint Patrick of Ireland. For me, St. Patrick's Day is not about luck, leprechauns, or pinching people. Instead, I look at St. Patrick's Day as a day to honor the Catholic saint the day is named for.
Time for a little history lesson:
St. Patrick was born in 385 in Scotland. When he was about fourteen, he was captured in a raid and taken to Ireland as a slave. He remained a slave until he was about twenty when he escaped. After that, legend says that St. Patrick had a dream in which the Irish people were calling out to him for help. Because of this, he returned to Ireland, studied to be a priest, and eventually became the Bishop of Ireland. He went all around Ireland teaching the people about Christianity. His main teaching was that of the Holy Trinity. (I am not going to even attempt to explain that here. You can ask me later if you are really that interested.) He used the three leaves of the shamrock to help explain this abstract idea. One legend says that he drove the snakes out of Ireland. Personally, I have no idea if there are snakes in Ireland today, so I just believe the stories.
I chuckle a little when I see people getting all geared up for St. Patrick's Day. I feel that way about St. Valentine's Day, too. Most people have no idea what this day is about. Good thing you all have me to tell you, right?
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
The Call of the Wild Review
Imagine living a happy, comfortable life. Then, imagine being taken from that life and thrown into the complete opposite: a life of hard work and struggle. This is the beginning of the story of Buck in The Call of the Wild by Jack London. The Call of the Wild proved to be an exciting and interesting book.
The Call of the Wild is about a dog named Buck during the time of the gold rush in Alaska. Prospectors began to race to Alaska to find gold, but in order to get there, they needed sled dogs. Since sled dogs were very expensive, a black market took form. Buck gets sold into the black market and soon discovers just how difficult his life will be. This is the story of Buck's survival in the tough conditions, his fight to be top dog, and his road to answering the "call of the wild."
The characters in this book are very interesting. The entire book is written from the point of view of a dog, so this provides unique insight into the mind of an animal. Each other dog on the sled team is thoroughly described, and I found myself thinking that they were real people. Each dog had his own personality and traits. There are people mentioned in the book, but they stay in the background because the story is about Buck.
The setting that Jack London created in The Call of the Wild was interesting. He described the many places that Buck had to go to including the Alaskan and Canadian wilderness. Each scene was not perfectly clear in my mind, but since there were so many different scenes, that would have been very difficult for London. With that much extra description, The Call of the Wild would have been an extremely long book.
The Call of the Wild illustrates a theme of survival of the fittest. In order to survive, Buck and the other dogs had to push themselves to the limits. Many dogs died because they simply were not fit to work. The book shows what great lengths Buck will go to in order to survive and proper.
The Call of the Wild provided interesting insight into the world of a character who would normally not be brought into light. I would recommend this book to anyone of any age.
The Call of the Wild is about a dog named Buck during the time of the gold rush in Alaska. Prospectors began to race to Alaska to find gold, but in order to get there, they needed sled dogs. Since sled dogs were very expensive, a black market took form. Buck gets sold into the black market and soon discovers just how difficult his life will be. This is the story of Buck's survival in the tough conditions, his fight to be top dog, and his road to answering the "call of the wild."
The characters in this book are very interesting. The entire book is written from the point of view of a dog, so this provides unique insight into the mind of an animal. Each other dog on the sled team is thoroughly described, and I found myself thinking that they were real people. Each dog had his own personality and traits. There are people mentioned in the book, but they stay in the background because the story is about Buck.
The setting that Jack London created in The Call of the Wild was interesting. He described the many places that Buck had to go to including the Alaskan and Canadian wilderness. Each scene was not perfectly clear in my mind, but since there were so many different scenes, that would have been very difficult for London. With that much extra description, The Call of the Wild would have been an extremely long book.
The Call of the Wild illustrates a theme of survival of the fittest. In order to survive, Buck and the other dogs had to push themselves to the limits. Many dogs died because they simply were not fit to work. The book shows what great lengths Buck will go to in order to survive and proper.
The Call of the Wild provided interesting insight into the world of a character who would normally not be brought into light. I would recommend this book to anyone of any age.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Writer's Notebook: Persuasion
Persuasion is used all of the time. Everywhere I look, someone is trying to persuade me into doing or buying something. Often times, I do not even notice the persuasive techniques being used on me.
I would like to think that I am pretty good at persuading people. Feel free to argue. Most of the time, I am persuading people to trust my answers for assignments. That is about all of the persuasion that I use, so I mostly use the technique of logos. I always try to have a reason for the answers I put down, and I rarely just guess. However, I often find that when I am trying to persuade someone, I talk about my subject so much that I begin to doubt myself. Persuasion can sometimes influence my decisions because I value other's opinions.
Persuasion is used on television every time a commercial plays. The whole purpose of a commercial is to get consumers to buy a product. Many different techniques are used in commercials.
I would like to think that I am pretty good at persuading people. Feel free to argue. Most of the time, I am persuading people to trust my answers for assignments. That is about all of the persuasion that I use, so I mostly use the technique of logos. I always try to have a reason for the answers I put down, and I rarely just guess. However, I often find that when I am trying to persuade someone, I talk about my subject so much that I begin to doubt myself. Persuasion can sometimes influence my decisions because I value other's opinions.
Persuasion is used on television every time a commercial plays. The whole purpose of a commercial is to get consumers to buy a product. Many different techniques are used in commercials.
Writer's Notebook: Winning
Winning and losing is part of everyone's life. Sometimes, we are on the winning side. Other times, we are the losers.
Being a winner does not always mean receiving a reward. Instead, being a winner means achieving the goals set for you or receiving an honor. In the game of winning and losing, there are not always losers. For example, one person may receive an award. That person is a winner. Are the rest of the people losers? Since the rest may not have been striving for the award, they are not losers.
I am most proud of the awards the 2008-2009 junior high quizbowl team won last year. We won by teamwork and "brainpower." That means more to me that winning any athletic event by skill or strength. We worked hard to develop our knowledge, and all of those days payed off.
Being a winner does not always mean receiving a reward. Instead, being a winner means achieving the goals set for you or receiving an honor. In the game of winning and losing, there are not always losers. For example, one person may receive an award. That person is a winner. Are the rest of the people losers? Since the rest may not have been striving for the award, they are not losers.
I am most proud of the awards the 2008-2009 junior high quizbowl team won last year. We won by teamwork and "brainpower." That means more to me that winning any athletic event by skill or strength. We worked hard to develop our knowledge, and all of those days payed off.
Writer's Notebook: Commitment
Olympic athletes make extreme commitments in order to compete and train. They commit to their sport, their team, and their training. All of these aspects come together to make a well trained, successful athlete who can lead his or her country to victory.
Although I have not made commitments as extreme as the ones made my Olympians, I have made a serious commitment to my dance studio. I have been taking dance classes for over eleven years, but I have really committed to the studio over the past two. I am at the studio, Batesville Ballet Etc., dancing for about ten hours a week. Three of those hours are on Saturday mornings. I have given up so much time to teach and learn the art of dance. Unlike most kids my age, I do not have many extracurricular activities, but the ones I do have, mainly ballet, take up most of my free time. I have suffered pain and stress, but the outcome is worth the price. Performing is amazingly fun, and ballet has helped me in more than just my fitness. Dancers at Batesville Ballet are not required to be as committed as I, but I would not hesitate to step in when needed. My commitment has hopefully made a difference for others.
Although I have not made commitments as extreme as the ones made my Olympians, I have made a serious commitment to my dance studio. I have been taking dance classes for over eleven years, but I have really committed to the studio over the past two. I am at the studio, Batesville Ballet Etc., dancing for about ten hours a week. Three of those hours are on Saturday mornings. I have given up so much time to teach and learn the art of dance. Unlike most kids my age, I do not have many extracurricular activities, but the ones I do have, mainly ballet, take up most of my free time. I have suffered pain and stress, but the outcome is worth the price. Performing is amazingly fun, and ballet has helped me in more than just my fitness. Dancers at Batesville Ballet are not required to be as committed as I, but I would not hesitate to step in when needed. My commitment has hopefully made a difference for others.
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