Benji Wilson: The Messiah

His aunt is really excited about him joining the church community: “my aunt spoke of it days ahead”. With his aunt at the church, young Hughes gets sat in the front of the church and with the entire congregation looking at him and the other kids that were getting ready to be saved. One by one they all experience God and His divine touch up to the point where only Hughes is left sitting on the bench. After some more time, he decides that he would rather loose his belief in God and lie about his presence than to keep everyone else waiting and looking at him. He lies and gets up and moves to the “saved” side. By lying and pleasing the society, we find out the effect that this has on the congregation: “the whole room broke in a sea of shouting, as they saw me rise”[pg. 181].

Some young people may be more vulnerable than others and a range of indicators have been highlighted to which

There are certain groups of individuals that appear to be most at risk of abuse than others, and therefore more vulnerable. Vulnerable adults can be abused in different ways for different reasons.

Just like any other kid would, Hughes listens and believes word-for-word what his aunt tells him: "She said you could see and hear and feel Jesus in your soul." (181) This naivete is characteristic of youths of that age group. After all, he "heard a great many old people say the same thing" (181) and it seemed to him "they ought to know" (181). With all the hype and anticipation surrounding this event, Hughes is certain something is bound to happen. His disappointment is manifested when he does not literally see Jesus. From what he has been told, Hughes is expecting to see a human incarnation of Jesus. He is actually more than just expecting to see him; he badly wants to be saved! Seeing Westley give up so carelessly, triggers an awkward feeling inside of Hughes. The thought that Jesus is not going to show up after all is starting to grow. That leads him to eventually give up and join Westley in lying. It is only at night that he comes to the realization that he was fooled. All the stories and preaching he heard were just fabulations. He wanted to see Jesus, but Jesus did not come at his rescue. His perception changed because he went from being an innocent child to someone who has acquired the personal experience to make his own judgements.

Tituba and I are very vulnerable people, yet for different reasons. Tituba had no one; no one was kind or friendly towards her. She didn’t have anyone who was true or to help her through anything. When Tituba confessed to the witchcraft she didn’t do, she was put in jail until someone would or could bail her out, yet no one did. I am vulnerable because I believe that no one is there for me when they actually are. I can’t do things myself like keeping my emotions in check, however, I don’t ask for the help I need. I’m also the youngest of my family, so it makes me feel and think that I can’t actually do anything with the way everyone treats me, even so that pushes me to do things myself. Vulnerability is a similar personality trait Tituba and I have in common.

Depression anxiety and even just sadness are seen as the work of the devil or personal weakness. For teens and young adults, peers play a big role in how they express themselves emotionally.Especially of young black men, openly showing emotions is seen as a sign of weakness. Sharing and talking about emotions is not something that is encouraged and so those suffering don't often get that support from friends.Often religious figures or family members place the blame for abnormal mental behaviors on a disconnect with god or the devil trying to come into a person's life( something that can only be solved by going to church and reconnecting with god.) Those suffering are encouraged to pray, read the bible, go to church, repent etc in hopes that God will cure them or take the

Factors that may contribute to and individual being more vulnerable of abuse may include, if the individual has a mental disability such as dementia or not have the mental capacity. If the individual is isolated they become more vulnerable. People who have previously been abused, low self-esteem, no sense of worth, people who have substance abuse, old people, children, homeless, people who cannot communicate verbally, medically dependant people.

People are challenged with many of life’s obstacles every day leaving them emotionally damaged and left feeling helpless. How one copes with these feelings depends on how he/she was raised in terms of solving problems. Success must occur in physical, social, emotional, moral, and intellectual aspects in order for one to achieve his/her full potential. Through the deprivation of emotional and social support in one’s early years, levels of self-esteem are lowered; one is then prevented from achieving his/her full potential. Over time, the accumulation of traumatic experiences can lead an individual to overwhelming guilt and depression; this unhealthy state of mind contributes to lower self-esteem. In order to reach one’s full potential, he/she must meet every need leading up to self-actualization; lacking self-confidence prohibits a person from becoming the best version of his/herself. Richard Wagamese’s Medicine Walk explores how childhood experiences and relationships, whether positive or negative, fundamentally shape an individual; later on in one’s life, healing may allow relationships to be mended, allowing people to become better versions of themselves.

Having to depend on themselves for so long a sense of weakness comes along with asking others for help. “Children witness 68% to 80% of domestic assaults”(secondhand hurt)

Everyday was like walking on eggshells because of the anticipation and fear of not knowing what was to occur on any given day. There were days when everything was calm and serene and other days filled with chaos and wretchedness. Life was like a roller coaster ride that never ended. My parent’s motto was, “Children are to be seen and not heard”, my brother and I never dared to tell anyone else or express our feelings about the traumatic experiences we were going through in our home. I can’t speak on behalf of my brother but I grew up having low self-esteem and being afraid to speak around many people because I always believed I didn’t have a voice that deserves to be heard. Therefore, up to this day, I’m still working on learning to overcome my fear of speaking in front of others and building the confidence to succeed in life. This has been the most difficult task for me to accomplish because my past experiences have been ingrained in my mind and

I found it to be incredibly interesting that an eighth grader would be concerned about his future of being a father. Perhaps some kids that age are thinking about

That is exactly the case for our beloved Wade Wilson, he still has cancer. Unfortunately, Wade's cancer is even worse now due to the Weapon X program. Once Deadpool was given the regenerative healing factor, it made his normal cells along with his cancerouse cells unable to die. This event, in turn, gave him a heavlily scarred and unappealing appearance along with some level of neurological damage. Due to Wilson's near-catatonic state, the Weapon X scientists deemed him a failed experiement and sent him to facility with other rejects of the programs. At the facility, prisoners took bets on who would die next, hence a deadpool, and Wade was chosen as the next target. The prisoners mangaged to nearly kill Wade, but right before that could

The question of what is stopping Darren from fulfilling his role as a father is a complex one. Some may argue, that it is entirely Darren’s fault, others may think Jane has been too soft, preventing him from fulfilling his role as a father. From a systemic view point, it is the whole family system that is stopping him and needs to adapt to a change in order for Darren to feel he is accepted more within his family. (Vossler, pg. 192)

Everyday, we all face people or events that affect us. Some occurrences affect people mentally, making them think differently, and others emotionally, causing a shift in personalities. Either way, every cause has its effect. In Simon vs. the Homosapiens Agenda, by Becky Albertalli, Simon keeps his secret about his sexuality to himself, feeling like the people surrounding him wouldn’t approve. When his secret accidentally gets out to one person, the pressure pushes him to be extremely worried, unable to focus on anything else. In the end though, he overcomes these challenges to show who he really is, allowing himself to be happy. In Turtles All the Way Down, by John Green, Aza struggles with her mental health, constantly being bothered by anxiety

During my typical teenage years up until only just a few years ago, I engaged in the usual defense mechanisms of artificial confidence, hiding my insecurities and holding in my emotions both to protect my self-image and eliminate judgments from others. I wasn’t ready to reveal my true self on the basis that people might use that information to hurt or better yet, to destroy me.