Searching For Hidden Treasures

Historic treasures and artifacts are often donated to or purchased by other nations to place in their museums. Often museums are given the objects with full cooperation from the originating country, but sometimes they are stolen or given for protection such as in a time of war. When nations want the artifacts returned it can cause a disagreement with the other nations of who the rightful owner is.

Humans struggle their entire lives to find affection that satisfies them. We assign this affection to objects that we obtain throughout our lives. An engagement ring, for example, is a large meaning attached to a small object. While it still has quite a high expense, women care more about the man who it’s from than the store, well, hopefully. In Akiko Busch’s story The Uncommon Life of Common Objects, she explores the objects her two sons, and people in general, become attached to over time. There’s a certain box she brings up and says “Sometimes the little box had value, sometimes it had none, and its worth seemed to come and go, by pure chance” (1). She discusses why certain things are worth more than others and why certain things have more

I have had many possessions precious to me, but non-mount to the only thing that I have had since I was born, my baby blanket. The blanket has gone through life with me, been with me through it all. This blanket is my childhood; it means the most to me and it is the memories I couldn’t bear to hold. Though it’s a torn up piece of fabric, I could never let it

This game is a number computation game and has rules like any other games. It became a very important game to me. In the process of playing this game, I acquired the skill to count in numbers, self- discipline, and self-control. Also interacting with other children assisted me to learn good social relationships, and social norms. (Fletcher et.al., as cited in Berk, 2007).

We always regard “GAMES” as “pastimes”, but in reality the functions of games are more than that.

Lately though, these games have lost it’s purpose and the lessons these players could be learning are far from what is transpiring. The emphasis on winning or losing has significantly outweighed what these sports are all about; teamwork and having fun. Alfie Kohn, author of “The Case Against Competition” found a study researched by David Johnson, a professor at the University of Minnesota, and his colleagues. They previewed all the studies they could find on the subject of competition from 1924 to 1980. Sixty-five of the studies found that children learn better when they work cooperatively as opposed to competitively, eight found the reverse. It is proven that you can get the most out of a topic whether it’s school work to sports, you learn the most from working in an atmosphere where they work together not against each other. In addition, children have been enrolled in intense sport training as early as the age of 4, not allowing them to have a chance to really pick what sport they are interested in. A lot of times parents hope to fulfill their dream, by having their offspring due what they never got the chance as a child. This doesn’t give kids the chance to develop and make decisions for themselves when it relates to the sports they want to play. This causes children to not only unhappy but dependent on

Children play. The manner in which children have played has frequently changed throughout the years. There was a time where sticks or index fingers were used to symbolize guns or bows in order for children to play “cowboys and Indians.” Later, the same mechanisms were used as children would play “cops and robbers.” Children mimic what they see in reality when it is time to play. However, children are not known to mimic what they play when functioning in real life. For example, children who played “cowboys and Indians” were not known to actually go out and try to harm others in the belief that they actually were cowboys or Indians. These examples are relevant in today’s society as critics of violent video games often attribute violence in reality to the violence in video games. However, videos games are a form of play and, as the previous examples have shown, what a child plays is not reflected in what that child actually does in their real life.

When you were a kid, you probably carried around some sort of toy that you liked. For girls it might have been barbie dolls or the life-sized baby dolls. If you were a boy it was probably little toy cars (and we all carried around a blanket at one point in our life). But for me it was always stuffed animals that hung around in my hands. I was hardly interested in the dolls and doll houses that other girls had. My mother tells me that wherever I went (and there are pictures to prove it) I always carried a stuffed animal around. Whether it be a pig, cat, or monkey, I was always holding a stuffed toy. When I was told that there was a job for caring for the animals that I cherished, I was overcome with joy, I wouldn’t stop answering the question,

There are three stories talking about techniques that we now use in order to find the things we need. They talk about how it was back then, like the old techniques and on how it has eveloved today.

People hold on to pieces of jewelry, furniture, and other symbolic collectables that is passed through generations. These things can remind a person of a loved one that is seen as being priceless.

Since the number of shipwreck discoveries has been increasing over the years, there is a constant disagreement between treasure hunters and archaeologists regarding who has the right to recover artifacts from these underwater sites. This conflict is causing people to consider the positive and negative aspects of both sides of the issue. The documentary, Deep Sea Treasure Hunters Versus Archaeologists, shows the importance of archaeology for understanding the past and settles the debate between the treasure hunters and archaeologists. This film suggests that a more efficient system could be developed for the greater good of archaeology if the two sides worked together.

The author also points out that often items are split-up and redefined into new collections, that do not always makes sense. Collecting started out as a way to define status in society, but today has evolved into who can gather the most interesting collection of everyday items. For example, the Smithsonian has started collecting sick bags from airplanes. It would be important to question if these types of collections are necessary and what limits are going to need to be imposed, especially when there are many collections that sit in Museum vaults, collecting dust. Wouldn’t it make more sense for the museums to exhibit these dusty collections instead of gathering more? I think the author’s look at why we practice the art of collecting is valid and relevant in today’s society. She points out that it is so ingrained in us, that we impulsively gather collections of things whether there is a need for those items or not. It is possible that collecting is a form of self-expression but what happens in the future when museums are full of collections that have not cultural or historical value or significance? I think it would be fair to point out that the definition of collecting is being redefined in today’s society but to what extent and where do the limits need to be

For mom, I reframed the word “hoarding” to collecting. Collecting is a work that doesn’t have a negative connotation.

Let the Games Begin Reality is broken. Many of those in poor conditions across the world don’t feel like they can do anything to change the situation. Everyday, billions look into the eyes of poverty, hunger, war, hopelessness, and the mindless repetition of their seemingly meaningless lives. I’d bet you know someone who clings to addictive games such as Candy Crush or World of Warcraft. In our virtual worlds made for simplistic games that seem to have no pertinence to our betterment, millions find happiness, a sense of accomplishment, and escape.

Richard Rogers’ song “Favorite Things” talks about how the narrator’s favorite things make them feel better when times aren’t the best. People often have a memento from childhood that they keep throughout their life, such as a stuffed animal or a tea set. These possessions represent a memory or event from one’s life -whether it be from early on or from later in life- which in turn remind them of the feelings from the times they received it. These tokens from their early life often mean the world to them, and this is an accurate description of how I feel about my “Blankie.” My blanket is a source of comfort, every small imperfection has a memory behind it, and these impressions make the blanket unique to my life and my experiences. While most of the details that reside on my blanket are small and often remain unnoticed, each one makes it more important to me.