The Mask and Identity

"We Wear the Mask" and "Identity"
In both the poem "We Wear the Mask" and the short film "Identity" there are people with masks on. The masks are hiding something and making people see something different. In the poem, we see black people wearing a mask. The mask tells us that they might be ashamed of their skin color, not because they think that it is bad but because others see it in a bad way. Blacks people are treated poorly and they just want to hide that and make it look like everything is okay even though deep down they are suffering from injustice. "Identity" has a similar idea. People try to hide their true colors from others to try to get acceptance. The only difference is that one is a student trying to fit in and be accepted by her peers and one black society trying to make it through without being ashamed or showing how they truly feel. Everyone seems to just want to fit in. They are different though too because in the end of the short film the girl finally takes her mask off to show her true self to the world while the poet stays hidden behind his mask.

Huckleberry Finn's Impact on Me

Huckleberry Finn's Impact on Me

I have noticed so far in the story that there is a lot of racism. Black people are at a low level in society and people use "nigger" as an every day word. In my opinion, that is a very rude word and I don't think it should be just said so easily (or at all). I have suffered with racism being different in India and I know that I didn't like that. The black people weren't just victims of racism, they were also slaves and treated poorly. The white people thought that their skin color labeled them and their value as a person. For example, it says a person's name and the only description that they got was "she was a nigger woman" while the white people got a description that described them for who they were and not just by the color of their skin. I think that one thing that I can take away from this is to treat everyone equally and be good to them.

Transcendentalism (My Transcendental Song)

Transcendentalism

This week, we were asked to find a song that expressed transcendental ideas. I picked the song "The Bare Necessities" from "The Jungle Book". In this song, Baloo is telling Mowgli about the things that are needed in life and how to live a trouble free, easy and happy life.

 

I connected this song to many quotes. I picked 2 quotes from Emerson's "Nature". The first quote says "The sun illuminates the eye if the man, but shines into the eye and the heart of the child. The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood." Baloo acts like a child in this song and we can see he really appreciates nature ("I mean the bare necessities, Old Mother Nature's recipes"). In the video, he is very playful, childlike and happy. He seems very carefree in nature like Emerson's quote; "no disgrace, no calamity".

 

Towards the end of the song, Baloo says 

"And don't spend your time lookin' around
For something you want that can't be found
When you find out you can live without it
And go along not thinkin' about it
I'll tell you something true
The bare necessities of life will come to you"

These lines reflect Thoreau's 'Economy'. Walden says "the laboring man has not leisure for a true integrity day by day". Baloo is basically saying the same thing. We shouldn't spend all our time looking around and working hard. The bare necessities of life will come to you so don't spend all your time working hard or else you will not be able to enjoy your life.

 

In 'Economy', Thoreau also says "the wisest have ever lived a more simple and meagre life than the poor". Baloo wants to live a simple life with only "the bare necessities" just like Thoreau. They both believe that man only needs the simplest and most needed things to be happy and they are happy in the forest.

 



Hero

Hero

We have been talking about heroes in Language Arts lately so I want to talk about a real life hero and why I consider her to be a hero. Rosa Parks is one of my real life heroes. She stood up (actually, she sat down) for what she believed in. She was arrested for not giving up her seat to a white man. Can you imagine? Lets say you're on a bus. There is an elderly lady who probably someone's grandma sitting near you. A white man asks her to get up just because she is black. When she refuses, she is arrested. Now imagine if that happened to your grandma! That is so unfair and inhuman. It was wrong for people to mistreat blacks. They are humans too. God made us all in his image and we should love everyone. People weren't seeing this. There were even separate black and white churches!

 

Rosa Park is amazing to me because she was not afraid to go against something unjust. I have been in a situation where I feel like I don't fit in. I have faced racial discrimination as a foreigner in India and I did not like it at all. She was brave and selfless. Those are two important qualities of  a hero. She was selfless because she wanted to raise awareness and put a stop to this for others, even if it meant getting arrested. She was also kind. Although people came to arrest her, she didn't fight. She didn't want to bring harm to anyone. Eventually, the awareness spread and she was a part of freeing the blacks in America! She affected society so greatly and helped the whole human race. This is why I consider her a true hero. I have found that true heroes don't have super powers or great looks, they are ordinary people who stand up and do the extraordinary things!

Transcendentalism (About a Quote)

Transcendentalism

"The greatest delight which the fields and woods minister is the suggestion of an occult relation between man and the vegetable."

This phrase stood out to me because when I read it, I said to my self "Is this guy for real? A relation between men and vegetables?". That is a pretty strange thing to say! When I thought about it for a while though, I realized that we do have a connection with nature. I am sure everyone feels at one with nature, like they belong there every once and a while. This does kind of make sense. This means that the greatest thing that nature gives us is a relationship with it. It lets us get to know it and look at it.

This idea is appealing to people because it sounds insane to some at first but when you really think about it, you have one of those moments when you think "I know, right?". People like this idea because it is a beautiful thought. Nature is so beautiful so who wouldn't want to have a relationship with it? The world can be so noisy and chaotic but to have a relationship with nature, that gives us a sense of peace.

When I went to the YMCA camp in Sattal this year, I felt like I had a relationship with nature. I usually don't enjoy getting up early but in Sattal, everything was so natural, so peaceful, fresh and beautiful. It made me feel like I was one with nature. God made the birds sing to me and God made the sun shine for me. There is truth in this. Nature gives us food, clothes and a lot of needed things. It provides so much for us, therefore, we do have a relationship with nature.

The problem with this quote though is that the fields and woods don't give us this relationship, it is given to us by God. He created nature for us to enjoy. We have him to thank for nature. When we start to worship nature as a creator and a God, that begins to be a probelem because God made nature, nature didn't create itself. God made nature for us to enjoy so it upsets him when you worship his creation instead of him, the creator.

The bible says that nature is beautiful and God lets have us have a relationship with it but nature will wear off but God will not. We should remember that we only get to have a relationship with nature because of God and we should thank God. We shouldn't get too carried off with these transcendentalist ideas. The most important thing is God.

The Under Water World

The Underwater World

The water is like a crystal, I am part of the underwater world. As I pass between the colorful coral, I feel like a bird feels when it soars through the sky. The friendly fish greet me, they are as curious as I am. The ocean floor is covered in tiny grains of beige sand and beautiful sky blue starfish. A sting ray gracefully flies under me, majestically flapping its “wings”. The lion fish are drifting slowly with the current, they are deadly but beautiful. They are red and orange; their spines stick up from their backs like a Christmas tree. A Great Barracuda swims by; it is a beautiful and solitary creature. It's silver scales sparkle as it moves slowly. Huge schools of little silver fish move around together. They are a perfect example of a team. They all move together and as they move, they almost seem like thousands of little shooting stars. I can hear nothing but my own breathing. Slow and steady, in and out. No fuss or words, it’s just me and the ocean.  I soon have to rise out of the ocean. I am not a fish; I can’t stay in the wonderful water forever. If I could, I might but I can not breathe there. I will return though.

As the sun begins to set and the sky begins to darken, the stars come out.  All geared up, it is like I hold the weight of the world on my shoulders. The gear is very heavy and it is a struggle to put it on but it is all worth it when I get into the water. In the ocean, fish only kill what they need to eat. They are not selfish, greedy and harsh like humans. I am excited to be with the ocean again. I feel at peace when I enter it. As I take my last leap off the boat, I leave this cruel above water world and I am transported into a different, beautiful, underwater world. I am reunited with the ocean and once again I feel free. The weight is lifted off my shoulders and I can fly again. As I am flying in the dark water, I shine my light source around and see beautiful things. There are little black, orange and white clownfish peacefully fast asleep in their little pink gummy-like anemones. There are little red lights. These are shrimp. They are all tiny but amaze me. They look at me and wonder what I am doing there. As I continue flying, I come across a moray eel. He pokes his head out of a rock in curiosity. At first glance, he is ugly and eerie but then I see that he accepts me. I accept him to and start to see a different side to him. He is unique, majestic and even beautiful. When I turn my light off,  I am not afraid. The water provides its own light for me. When I swish my hand around, it illuminates. It is a slight blue-green glow. I am in awe. God's creation is amazing!

Noiseless Patient Spider

Are you ever like the Noiseless Patient Spider?
I am sure everyone feels like the Noiseless Patient Spider sometimes. Sometimes I feel all alone. Sometimes I feel like I don't fit in but I will never feel like I belong somewhere of I don't try. This spider has taught me that when I  don't feel right, and I feel like I don't fit in, I have to make an effort to "launch forth filaments". It is important to just try my best to be adventurous and reach out and be brave.