My Reflection Of A Lesson Of Living Through My Life

I'm so glad I've been able to participate in a philosophy class like this. Art of the Living Ethically has made me have many thoughts and ideas about what and how I do things. I never really even thought out my core values or what I fully wanted to do with my life until this course. After sitting around thinking, brainstorming, free writing, and asking others for advice my top value is family and what I choose to stand up for is racism. With values and what you stand up for can be a sensitive and serious subject it was hard to find a poem that elaborates on both topics so I have two separate poems that spoke to me. The first is “A Tribute To Family” by Michelle A Morgan and the other is called “Racism is Around Me Everywhere ” by Francis Duggan.

Something I have always said is “life is about trials and tribulations, but it’s how you react to them that shapes the person you are.” It all started around my sophomore year of high school, the pain was excruciating and on going for months, and I just wanted answers to why I was in pain. Many doctors said the same thing, but I knew that the amount of pain I was in something was wrong. When I received the gut-wrenching news, my perspective on life changed and I realized who I needed most in my life. God helped me through the predicament that I was placed in, and I learned to grow from the tribulations I had to overcome.

Although my house was filled with chaos from Reaghan and I constantly fighting (now I realize it was all in love of course), the household was always filled with laughter and love. It wasn’t until the fourth grade that my life went through a major change from a great life to a not-so-great life, which as a youngster was my view of it at the time. Due to a change in the economy and a drastic budget cut, I was forced to enroll in a public-school system.

It was the year of 2013, I was going into 4th grade and school was just a month away. But it wasn’t the 4th grade that I was looking forward to, because my family was moving to a small town in Wisconsin named Mosinee. I grew up in a suburb just on the outskirts of the great city known as Chicago. I loved it there, and wanted to live there for the rest of my life; I guess my parents didn’t exactly feel the same way. Little did I know that this move would shape my personality and change me in many different ways. And ultimately, to make me a better person as a whole.

Through my whole life I had always been told college was going to be hard. I kept that in mind while choosing classes. I came across women’s studies and instantly thought I knew so much about it that I could take that class and easily do well. I registered for the class and then thought about how the class really had nothing to do with my major. We were probably just going to talk about the history of the women’s rights movements and feminism. I thought about dropping the class seeing as there was really no way to apply the class to an astronomy degree. Now that we are almost done with the semester I realize that this class is interdisciplinary. It does not directly apply to my major, but it applies to my life. I have come to realize things that I have seen in the world and how much it impacts myself and the people around me. This class has had such a positive impact on my life in changing the way I think talk and act in and out of the classroom. I related my life to many topics that we covered in class. From talking about media image to sexual violence and then tying everything to larger issues, the class has covered a plethora of topics that I encounter in everyday life.

Going through the motions of life has always been something I am best at. As a twelve-year-old, sports were what my life revolved around. I would go to softball practice, put in blood, sweat, and tears for my team, and I would listen to my coach’s every word. Eventually, this became a habit- at least before I tore my ACL. However, once I tore my ACL, I had to sit out of all physical activity for a year. I had a negative attitude about changing the habit I loved to follow. Once this happened, I became shaky and sick to my stomach. I clinched my fists so hard that my fingernails cut my palms when the doctor said, “This means surgery, and you know what that means? No softball for a whole year” as if he found pleasure in crushing my dreams. I pitched a fit that I had to be in a wheelchair for a week and on crutches for four more weeks. At the end of the season, my teammates, my teammates parents, and my coaches all hugged me and told me that I was “so strong and such a positive and vibrant team player.” Looking back now, sitting out of softball for a year grew my appreciation for my teammates. I learned to approach every situation, good or bad, with an unprejudiced and positive mindset because a willingness to allow something to alter me might allow drastic revision in my life; now, I can utilize what I learned from the situation to instruct someone else.

I’ll say right off the bat; this course was definitely more than just a history lesson for me. I was the sojourner exploring ideas from the past, learning how history trickles down into the present and future. If I had to do it over again, I would pay more attention to the legends, folktales, and out of class readings that were discussed since they are so rich in life and human nature. Learning about how the different cultures lived reiterated the lessons of the struggle for survival. Heretofore, I was too naïve by expecting this to be a boring history class. The truth is, I ended up learning much about life in the end. If a mind is open to finding some sort of insight when learning, chances are you will probably find what you are looking for.

When reflecting on our lives it is clear to see how different circumstances have molded us into the person that we are today. While we may not understand at the time why this event may happen to us, it is a part of our growth. Dealing with pain that wants to consume everything that makes us unique, we have to find the strength from within to deal with it. Taking a sociology class helps an individual to have a better understanding of what they have been through and why it might have happen to them. Social class, race and gender play a part in the experiences that someone has to deal with throughout their life. In this paper, I am going to reflect on how these three different status have affected my growth and understanding as a person.

In this course, I was able to identify a number of different things I was unsure of before the class. I now have an idea of what pathway I should take (the one best suited for me), and how long this may take me to carry out. Through this course I was able to discover where I see myself in five, ten, fifth teen and even twenty years time.

1999, a time for some people where Y2K was encroaching, a time for others where the famous films Sixth Sense, The Matrix and the beloved Disney film Tarzan was their favorite movie and not to mention definitely a time where we could go to the grocery store and not spend a fortune at checkout. However, for me, this particular year, especially December 7 ,1999, was the worst day of my life.

“To succeed in life, you need three things: a backbone, a wishbone, and a funny bone” (McEntire). Quotes like these help you step back and evaluate yourself and your life to see if yours fits. I know that I did that myself when I thought about it. You also have to break them down to see what they really mean. When you break them down, you can really see what each piece means so hopefully you can understand.

I grew up in Flower Mound, Texas, an affluent town which does not have a large diverse population. As I entered high school in 2010, 2.2% of the town’s population was bi-racial, which meant Flower Mound High School’s bi-racial student population remained minuscule. Due to the small population of bi-racial teenagers, I constantly felt as if a magnifying glass was held above me. For example, in several Pre-AP classes, my work was never showcased, even if I received the same or higher grade than my fellow student—my work and my work ethic were ignored, which encouraged me to excel. With every project, assignment, or test, I would go above and beyond by completing extra credit, asking for unneeded guidance, and going into a teacher’s off-hours

I think my life does reflect my values. I really believe in helping others, helping around the community, and giving back to those in the community. In my life I’m always looking for ways to better myself and make an impact on those around me, which I do all of those things every chance I get. I love to help out around the community by helping out at elementary schools when I have free time; when I’m not working, not participating in extracurricular activities, and not doing family related things. I definitely think my life reflects my values.

When I first start to think about my life, who I am, and who I will be, I begin to reflect on everything that has ever happened to me in the seventeen years I have spent on this Earth. I think about the things that make me who I am today; the cracks and openings of my heart which have shaped my soul to be the way it is. Growing up is never easy; however it is something we all have to go through. I once believed I was being raised by two loving parents, in a comfortable home, filled with laughter, tears, and stability. All seemed right growing up, but for reasons I’m not quite sure of, I always felt alone. My perception of this seemingly normal household with my two loving parents was in fact a façade. The reality of my upbringing was so vastly different in ways I truly cannot comprehend. My parents divorced when I was eight years old, however they continued to reside together. My life as I perceived it became clear to me only after my mother and I left our “Home” though it was never truly a home, but a house filled with secrets, pain, and shame. I began to understand my loneliness was fact and not just a feeling. My life was clearly defined by my perception of my family’s dysfunctionality. This experience has enabled me to take a path in my life different from my upbringing. I will turn this nightmarish life into a new passion for helping others.

I would like to think that through all trails and heartache I will always point my focus toward God, but I do not know what my future holds. No matter what is happening I want to understand that I have a friend, someone on my side, who wishes that I succeed and already has planned my life. Still, I always worry that when my life is no longer in a state of ease and only academic stress plagues my mind, I won’t find the same sunlit joy and steadfast love in God that I do when my life has minimal disturbance. While I have toyed with both physical and mental struggle in my past, and brushed the clutches of this world’s grasp, I look back at those days and think of them as blessings, as they brought me to a better understanding of, and more