Facing the Future

         When I was younger, I remember constantly watching princess Disney films and loved when the protagonist would always seem to act as the "Damsel in Distress." I loved it because the dashing prince would rush to the rescue, fight the monsters in the way and finish with a kiss to win over the heart of the princess. They would look at each other with desire to be together, as if they had no other significant person in their lives that could fulfill the needs that this person met. I could sense they were in love as the prince swept the beautiful princess off her feet, and expressed in magnitude how much he adored her. She seemed extremely happy with everything and left the past behind, looking highly on their future of living happily ever after. From a young age, I longed for that dream to become reality in my life.
         I started to have high expectations for the future, searching for that one person that could be my everything. I dreamed of my high school life consisting of that one boy that would stare me down with his dark eyes and pull a confident smile that would catch my breath. I wanted to find someone who could share his secrets with me, and keep mine hidden from his friends, who support my dreams and goals, and keep me together when I was lost. I wanted prince charming to sweep me off my feet, so I could forget the past and live happily ever after. I could dream so much that I began to get easily disappointed. I tried to connect with people, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find someone who clicked with me. My self-esteem dropped to a low and I had the addiction of trying to become the princess I've always wanted to be. I thought that if no one wanted every part of me, I couldn't survive living alone. Pretty depressing, huh?
          Well, I know now that that dream could possibly happen in real life, but I couldn't make it my main priority. I realized that I depended way too much on something that will eventually deteriorate me, and I needed to gain independence for the sake of myself. I can't rely on someone to save me from every situation, but rather face the future with my head held high and know that it's okay to be alone at times. I have also realized that I am not entirely alone. I have a great group of friends and a supportive family, and in the end I'm in control of whether or not I lead a happy life. So, as Buddha says, "I'll walk the pathway myself," and know that things will look up eventually.

How Can You Remember What You Did Not Experience?

         The past two days consisted of two intriguing speeches from General Romeo Dallaire and Dr. Bill Winegarde. Both experienced the same environment of living through traumatic wars, and strive to preach peace for our humanity and good will through different perspectives. General Romeo spoke for the child soldiers that were forced to be a part of the Pakistan war. He gave a comparison of our peers and loved ones being in the front line of the battle field, ready to pull the trigger and let the innocence fall apart. He concluded that this was unjust, and for this suffering to continue is beyond horrible. Dr. Bill, on the other hand, speaks out for the unfairness of  surviving veterans. He believed these people should be taken care of properly after the post traumatic stress of the Great Wars, but the differing views of the government stood in the way. "How can the government pay billions for troops to go to war, but not spare billions for them to receive proper care?" This was a question he presented to the audience at the memorial, which led to a standing ovation as people began to realize the sad truth and severity of the situation.
          The thoughts I have from this experience are that these two individuals are passionate for our human race to be treated with care and acceptance. It is true that there are child soldiers carrying guns like we carry cellphones, and there are homeless veterans witnessing strangers they sacrificed their lives for walking by them on a daily basis. I believe there should be better treatment for the participating soldiers, and others should not be forced into the battle field. As someone who loves to ponder History, I've learned a lot about war and its results; not one of the facts is pleasant to hear. If I were to ever be a part of it, suicide would be an option in my mind too, because the  events are that crucial. It is impressive and incredible how soldiers today still manage to breathe through it all. One may argue that some choose to participate, such as the many soldiers in both Great Wars, but keep in mind they had to receive a profit and they had no idea what they were getting themselves into. Child soldiers are like machines that can only run and say yes to everything. Their little fingers manage to grab enough of the gun to pull the trigger and have enough will power to move on to new people to kill. When the guns fired off at the Memorial, many of us jumped out of the seats, while many child soldiers try to survive through multiple gun shots and bombs. The fact that some of these children have to face bullets through their bodies is horrifying enough for me.
            When Dr. Bill said, "We take peace for granted," it may seem like a typical saying, but we have to look more into his underlying meaning. There are people, including myself when I was younger, that yawn at the word Remembrance Day because it is unappealing to them. It's set every year on November 11, and all I thought about it was that I had to wear a poppy and sing the national anthem at school, I didn't realize how ignorant I was about the purpose of Remembrance Day. I believe it is right to take some time out of the day and respect those who gave everything to us, often by sacrificing their lives. There are times when we are stressed with our lives, balancing work with studying and then trying to find time for ourselves, but without the freedom these people were ready to die for, we would not be as free and privileged as we are today. These events that occurred and are still happening now aren't some romanticized shooting game or like an epic war-like TV show (e.g. The Walking Dead), it is a gory and vile atmosphere that make many look at the world differently. For those people who think it would be an adventure to go out in a battlefield and fight enemies, they agitate me because not every soldier is an Achilles that can demolish everything that breathes. Even so, he fell down in defeat and witnessed many of his peers slaughtered to the naked eye. Words cannot describe how amazing these soldiers are and for their bravery and wise beliefs on this world, I say, "God Bless."

Photo of soldiers from WWI taken by a local French couple who sold the photos as postcards for the troops to sent home.

Artist, Sebastian Errazuriz showcased the suicide rates vs the killing rates of US soldiers during the Iraq war in 2009. This statistic states that twice as much soldiers committed suicide than got killed during the war.

 

Halloween Rant

             Halloween comes once a year and consists of too much candy to share, anticipating fear from haunted houses, and horror films friends have dared each other to watch late at night. The costumes, however fill the dark streets with imagination from horrific, bold costumes to adorable baby costumes. The creative part with costumes is that anyone can make anything into a costume - literally anything. For example, if you search on Google for couch costumes, I'm sure the perfect couch costume will be out there for you.

I'm in awe right now.

              Halloween can give you an option to buy your whole costume right from a store (for the lazy people like me) or buy bits and pieces from craft stores to design something incredible on your own. Costumes can show off an artist's best potential and passion. 

              Other costumes may not be as creative, and just completely typical, but at least these people want to participate in the fun, and isn't that what Halloween's about? Well, I feel that some people take it too far. These people take the 'fun' of dressing up, and form it into a perspective of making fun of culture, race and religion. It seems that since it only comes once a year, it is alright if they pretend to be an Islamic terrorist or Adolf Hitler for a day. 

             It may be not a big deal to those certain people, but to others, it is scarring and traumatizing to even hear about. Imagine suffering through an event, and then suddenly seeing strangers, dressing up as the people participating in the event just to receive candy and possibly get drunk at parties. I would be offended and angered by the ignorance and immaturity of these individuals and hope they would stop. To me, they take away the pleasure of dressing up and instead make it some sick joke. I'm fine with people dressing promiscuously such as being a 'slutty cat', a 'slutty nurse', or a 'slutty maid'. Even dressing up as a stripper doesn't bother me, but again, if someone decides it's okay to dress up as a 'slutty nun' or a 'slutty Native' I feel this takes it to a whole new level. These people are prominent figures in our society, and to sexualize them is derogatory and degrading. 

             I agree to the idea of costumes, it brings a community of innovative individuals who bring forth inspiring ideas. However, there is always a limit to everything and people should use their common sense to determine their costume types and have fun eating lots of candy.