OK--slight change of plans due to the NHS walking rehearsal that confounds me still. SInce 2nd period was taken from me today, thereby ruining my entire morning I might add, having the BIBLE TEST seemed like a not-so-great idea for today. 12th period will be doing a mini-review in the form of a little I HAVE/WHO HAS, and 2nd period will not enjoy that advantage, therefore, I will post here the words you should know for tomorrow's test. Again, this is cumulative and all bets are off when it comes to what words COULD be on there, but these are ones you should MOST ASSUREDLY know.
ZEUGMA SYNECHDOCHE METONYMY BOMBAST APHORISM MALAPROPISM APOSTROPHE CHIASMUS HYPERBOLE PARALIPSIS APOSIOPESIS ALLUSION PERIODIC, CUMULATIVE AND INVERTED SYNTAX, AD HOMINEM ARGUMENT ANAPHORA ANTITHESIS MOTIF ELEGY NON-SEQUITUR ETHOS PATHOS LOGOS ASSONANCE PERIPHRASIS EUPHEMISM INVECTIVE.
Study hard.
Now, onward and upward.
Please read this blog carefully and consider your thoughts and your responses for a bit before answering.
Passion. Courage. Conviction. These words are largely subjective, completely abstract and open to interpretation; therefore, indefinable in traditional senses. I would like you to look them up before you answer this week's blog question. Once you do that, consider the following:
What is it in your own life, this life that you have been given, that you think you would die for? Do the three words play into your answer in any way? If you need a more solid jumping-off point, ask yourself this: given the denotation of the words passion, courage and conviction what is it in your life that can inspire these seemingly esoteric concepts? What is your passion; what gives you courage; about what do you hold an unshakeable conviction? Once you answer those questions, go back to the original--what would you die for? Do your answers to the second set of questions fall in line with the first? Do you think there should be things you would die for? Why or why not? Be true to yourself and answer these questions in the best way you know how.
What would I die for? I don't even know how to begin to answer that question. Of course the obvious people pop in my head, but let me take a step back first and see if my initial response changes.
ReplyDeletePassion. Passion is any powerful feeling or emotion. I wrote about its indescribable attributes in my dictionary blog. Remember the one we had to make up our own words to describe an abtract concept or feeling? Yeah, I chose passion. It's something beautiful. It strikes deep emotions that leads to something amazing. I say something because it could truly be anything. You can have passion for dance, art, music, love, a sport, a person etc. I think this endless list of possibilities is what makes passion so indescribable. What's my passion? What do I have such a compelling and powerful emotion for? Well, my passion varies. I have a strong passion for broadway and musicals. No, I've never participated in anything like it but it always draws me in. I love the music, the dancing, the drama. But I also have a passion for kids in underprivledged homes. Kids who are poverty stricken, who are abused, or who have been unfortunate enough to obtain a poor father/mother figure. These kids take over my heart. This passion began to develop with the incessant law and order shows, however it grew with a more personal contact. My cousin, 25 maybe, already has three kids all under the age of five. It was the car accident that really opened my eyes. See because I tried to ignore all the times she dropped the babies off to me with no diapers, no bottles, no wipes, but the car accident was it for me. It happened earlier this year, I'm pretty sure I remember writing about it before. They're all okay now, again it was awhile ago, but it's something I'll never forget. It's something that I want to spend the rest of my life preventing. Parents need to be held responsible for their kids, especially when it comes to things like car seats (what my cousin neglected in the car accident). This is was pushes me to major in Social Work and follow my career from there.
Now courage. Courage, the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc. Obviously my intial thought is Wizard of Oz, but I guess that isn't such a bad example of courage. Courage allows people to conquer their fears. It's about being completely afraid of something, anything, but doing it anyway. But it's not the actual courage to do something that intrigues me, it's what motivates that courage. So I think, what gives me courage? It's my little brother trying to get a toy from the dark room. I'm just as scared of the dark as he is, but he'll never know it. Because I can't let him see that sign of weakness. I have to set an example. I have to show him nothing scares me, so he shouldn't be scraed either. Thus we walk into that dark room together, into the unknown. As he picks up his one hundred and one spiderman action figures, he has no idea that he has given his big sister courage. Kayla gives me courage too. I've wrote about her countless of times. You should all know that she is one of, if not the, most important thing, well person, in my life. So, if anyone were to ever mess with Kayla I'm also the first one there. I would never let anyone do anything to Kayla. It doesn't matter to me who it is that's messing with her, I promise I'll be there. And she knows this. Thus she comes to me now, and this gives me a feeling of fearlessness. She gives me courage.
Annnd, conviction. Conviction is more simple than the other two, it's a firm belief. This makes a direct connection back to my passion. I more than strongly believe that when a parent has decided to have a child this is their decision. They must uphold this decision for the rest of their lives, parenting never stops. Your child will ALWAYS need you. And by making this decision you've made a life long committment. Don't make the committment if you can not afford it. Don't make the committment if you're going to be a friend, not a father or mother. Don't make the committment if you will never have time for your child. Don't make the committment if you are not ready to completely devote your life to someone else. Too many people have made this committment without being ready. Too many kids are living in poverty, without a mother, without a ftaher, without both. And something seriously needs to be done about this. Some law, some written document, I dont care. But these people who make these committments, and don't uphold them, need to be punished in someway. They need to held accountable, because right now they're not.
ReplyDeleteSo, what would I die for? My initial response hasn't changed, Kayla clearly. But, after analyzing my other responses, I realized I'd die for more, which surprised me. Because when I first read this question I thought nothing (besides Kayla). But that's not true. I'd also die for my passion and convictions. No, not broadway, but for a child. I'd die for any one underprivledged child in this world if it meant that they received the proper care that every child in this world deserves.
hahaha while reading your response to the word "Passion" you reminded me of a character from a show that drama might do in the summer. It's called Curtains. The character in it that I'm referring to is a detective who is also a regular theatre goer and who always longed to be on stage. On another note, I completely agree with you about the children. It somewhat runs along the lines of what I'd die for, someone's dreams. I don't know if I'll ever get to be a parent one day. I want that just as much, if not more, than being a director on Broadway. I just don't know if I'd be able to have enough time for a little tyke if I end up being a doctor one day. I guess we'll see.
DeleteAfter seventeen years of living on this cruel planet and cohabitating with these strange creatures we call people, I have arrived at the most prophetic self-realization of my life—I have no balls. At least not on the surface. Although it defies nearly every principle of my moral code, I often don’t stand up for what I believe. Sometimes I’d rather accept an irritating reality than fight it, especially when the basis of the fight seems so trivial. In fact, I find most brawls completely insignificant. And even when the purpose for fighting is a righteous one, the battle itself often accomplishes nothing. So I’m not a big fighter. But hold on! Don’t write me off as cowardly just yet. Maybe I don’t much care about defending the small stuff, the stuff that, at least in my mind, doesn’t make a true difference in anyone’s life. But everyone, even the most timid of the timid, has that thing, that passion, that runs so deep in their veins that it seems to both drag them under and propel them forward at the same time. Yeah, I have a few of those. Just because my voice isn’t constantly ringing with testimonies against life’s minor injustices, doesn’t mean I don’t speak up when it counts. Because no matter how reluctant I am to express it, I do have passion, and I certainly have something to die for.
ReplyDeleteI’m passionate about justice and about freedom. I would literally die in order to see more human justice in this world. I would give my mind, my spirit, my everything, to radically change the vicious nature of humanity, and for people to treat each other with less animosity. And I would sacrifice all that I am in order to see the oppressed people of the world, the broken and beaten, set free. After all, we’ve got to stick up for each other, right?
I’m passionate about those I love. I would die for them in a heartbeat. I don’t mean that in a melodramatic I-would-catch-a-grenade-for-you way. I mean I would honestly surrender my joy, my ambitions, my livelihood for those few people closest to my heart, those few people who I know would do the same for me. Although I deeply and selfishly value my own life and everything in it, those people contain, within their souls, nearly all of the love I possess, and I would do virtually anything to protect them. I don’t see anything wrong with such sacrifice, other than the fact that it’s absolutely illogical. After all, aren’t we, as animals, supposed to fight relentlessly to stay alive? That’s the trouble with love. That’s the trouble with passion and courage. We fight for our passions more zealously than we fight for our survival, simply because we’re deep enough and brave enough to. It might not make much sense, but it’s that willingness to die for our passions that makes life worth living.
So guess what? As it turns out, I do have balls. They’re just well-hidden. (Please don't take that out of context...)
After about a half an hour of focused thought, I could not think of anything I would die for. I’m not sure if that makes me a bad person, or if that just means that I don’t have enough passion, courage, or conviction to be willing to die for something. I hope for the latter because I don’t want to be a bad person. Passion is defined by the all-knowing dictionary.reference.com dictionary as “any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling”. Sometimes I feel like the leader of Neutopia from Futerama, sometimes I feel like Romeo outside Juliet’s balcony. Either way, I really don’t think that I have had any life-long passion for anything in my life, despite my love towards my family and such. I honestly can’t imagine dying for anyone or anything at this stage in my life because of passion. Courage, according to the Great Internet Dictionary, is facing danger and all that jazz without fear. Putting myself in danger is much different from dying. I would probably put myself in a lot of danger for others, especially those closest to me, but I would not risk death. Death is something I’d rather meet with after living for a while, not while I am still capable of so much. As for my convictions, I don’t have many. I try my best to keep an open mind and accept when I’m wrong, although I will defend my beliefs if I think that I am right. I will never change the fact that I know racism is wrong, Trickle-Down Economics doesn’t work, Communism will not be successful ever, and my favorite birthday cake is the one with chocolate and vanilla with the crunchy chocolate things in the middle. However, I would never die defending these things. Ice cream cake isn’t that important to me; I’ll just change my favorite to yellow cake with peanut butter frosting.
ReplyDeleteSo, after this little tirade, I realized that I was right all along—I won’t die for anything… yet. Yet, I have the feeling that I would die for something at some point in my life, whether it be my wife, my children, or something else unforeseen. Giving your life is really extreme, but I believe that having at least one thing that you would do it for is important. Without something like that, it means that you have not developed passion, courage, or conviction. These three things are the basis of human impulse, and following impulses reveals people’s true character, the part of each person that should become the person that others see. Okay this is about to go off topic really fast so I’m just going to end it here and say that although I don’t currently feel that I would die for something, I am subject to change as I grow older and expand my view of the world.
Perfectly acceptable response. And there's no way you could be a bad person, Thomas.
DeleteThomas, this is the exact thing that I felt when I first read this post, which is haf the reason Im posting at 10 at night on wednesday. I havnt decided if it makes us wiser to not die for anything or if it makes us blinder.
DeleteTom, life has only just begun for us. We still have a long road ahead of us. I'm speaking in my sleepy voice right now. I doubt I will even know what I meant by morning. But, your life will be constantly changing, especially these next few years. You commented to Mimi about your religion.. that could change later in life when you realize what your beliefs are.
DeleteThe video we watched in Cervi’s class, got me thinking. All those people, who participated in the atrocious events, the SS guards, watchmen, and other Nazi party members, could have spoken up, could have stood up against what was going on. Many of them, when on trial, remarked that they were made to do it, they were only following orders. I, like many others, condemn these individuals, claiming that they could have helped, they could have stood up and made a difference. And yet, I can’t help but question myself. Would I be able to stand up against injustices? I tell myself that I would, but in a life or death situation, I’m not sure if I would have the audacity. And that thought scares me.
ReplyDeleteI’m currently attempting to discover my passions. I don’t really think I am particularly passionate about anything major. I like baking treats for my friends when they’re in a bad mood, but I doubt that I’d put my life on the line so everyone could have free pastries. As far as topics I’m passionate about, they’re simply just issues that I have opinions on.
As far as courage, I have none. After reading multiple blog posts, and hopefully, what you can gauge from my personality, I try to blend in with the wall. I’m not, and never will be, the person screaming in front of the White House, or Supreme Court, or picket fencing something I don’t agree with. I don’t know why, but I have a lot of irrational fears. And I’m aware of that. However, since I know my fears, and my flaws, I feel as if I’m able to fully substantiate my opinions and beliefs. And that’s probably why, I have many strong convictions.
Granted, I’m sure about 97% of you don’t know how I feel on a lot of issues, but just because I don’t voice them doesn’t mean they’re not there. Some of my friends, hopefully, have picked up that I believe strongly in individualism, sustaining one’s culture, and leaving other people’s lives alone. I hate HATE HATE HATE, when others try to impose on another’s life, whether it be their culture, religion, or sexual orientation. I don’t think it’s anyone’s business what someone wants to do with their life. (Spoiler: Wait until speeches Thursday :D)
And so, after examining these three words, and thinking hard about what and who I would die for, I’ve reached a conclusion. I would die for my sisters. They are everything I live for. My sisters, though they don’t know it, are basically my world. My older sister keeps me level-headed, and shows me how to live a fun life. When I’m with her, I can’t help but laugh, she’s needless to say my own personal stress-reliever. And my little sister, thought she drives me crazy, helps me maintain my youth. She allows me to see life differently, and that’s something I’m truly grateful for. They are the single two most important people in my life (sorry parents), and so I would definitely, 100%, die for one of them. Hopefully, they’d return the favor.
Thinking about it, even though I have strong beliefs, I don’t think I would give up my life to protect those beliefs. They’re miniscule in the grand scheme of life. As a result, I don’t think everyone should have something or someone to die for. It’s natural instinct to protect your life. As cliché as it sounds, life is precious. And throwing it away for someone or something, may not be the best idea for everyone.
There is nothing in my life that I would die for, plain and simple.
ReplyDeleteThere are many things that can inspire passion within me. Anything relating to religion or politics is sure to stir up my emotions, whether I like it or not. I can’t stand to be surrounded by things religious or conservative in nature, and while I try to be open-minded, the emotion takes over and I run for the hills. However, there are things much less controversial that inspires passion within me. Art has the ability to directly alter emotion. I love deep music (like symphonic and classical), paintings that use bold colors, and inspiring movies. Art inspires passion in me. Unfortunately, I don’t have much courage. Every major problem I’ve had in my life, I’ve ran from it. Sometimes I have to face challenges, but very rarely can I do that without fear. Finally, I have a strong conviction against conviction (I know, it’s a Paradox). I have a firm belief (conviction) that people should be open minded and objective to new ideas. It’s people who have uneducated convictions that really stirs my passion, but I don’t have the courage to do anything about it.
So what would I die for?
I would die for something that would bring a mass of betterment to the world, more so than I could ever bring myself if I were to live. So according to that, I would die for things like ending wars, ending hunger and such, but nothing less than that echelon of good. Atheists tend to value life more than religious people, which is probably why I would die for nothing below unrealistic. For example, I would never die for my country! I can do a lot more good alive than I can killing myself in some war. I would never die for a religious (obvious) or political cause either. This is because I could change a lot more alive than the event of my death ever could.
Should people be willing to die for things? NOOOOO!
If people were not willing to die for things, think of how the world would be. There would be no war. War is run for either political or religious reasons, so without people willing to die for those causes, no one would be willing to fight. This may sound awful, but did anyone really better a cause by dying for it? Death does very little to promote a cause, which is why I would never ever ever ever die for something.
Rachel, I admired your passion and courage within your blog response. Personally, my ideas about the blog vary dramatically from your own, by I really enjoyed your response. And no I won’t take your comment out of context, but I will mention that it was a good risk in the writing.
Tom, in no way does your response make you a “bad person”. Honestly, the fact that you admit you would not die for anything, makes you more brave and courageous than someone who would die for something.
Nyamekye, your statement “life is precious. And throwing it away for someone or something, may not be the best idea for everyone.” was a greatly worded conclusion. Personally, I would have taken it further and said it IS NOT (instead if may not) the best idea for someone, but nevertheless, I really liked your response, especially your examples.
I could respect your beliefs. I know I play off of being Jewish a lot, or at least I used to, but the truth is I'm not all that religious. I'm also pretty left wing as well. I would never go into battle because I will inevitably die and I wouldn't get a chance to achieve what I want to in life. Chances are I would be too selfish to kill myself for something unrelated to me anyway.
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ReplyDeleteNyame:
ReplyDeleteIt really is hard to know what you would do in a life or death situation. I mean, even if you say you would die for something or someone, how could you possibly know until you’re put to the test? But I think having strong convictions, so strong that you are willing to die for them, is sometimes healthy. It means you’re not letting other people, or society in general, contaminate your conscience. Maybe that’s what those SS workers needed. They needed a stronger sense of human righteousness—one that wouldn’t succumb to nationalism or jingoism. One that they couldn’t be “ordered” out of. Even though it seems extreme, it’s dire situations like genocides that prove that good, solid convictions are desperately low in stock in this society.
George:
You asked if anyone has really bettered a cause by dying for it. I say yes. Gandhi’s death brought the people of India together more than ever, impeding religious wars. Harvey Milk’s death opened the American public’s eyes to the horrors of homophobia. When a person is so passionate about making a change that they place no limits on making that change, their impact can be nearly limitless. However, I’m not saying that’s always a good thing. I agree with you on the pointlessness of going to war. A life, after all, is a horrible thing to waste, and to waste it in pursuit of some purely religious or nationalistic pursuit is senseless to me. I guess it really just depends on what you’re fighting for.
Rach:
ReplyDeleteYou need to start standing up for what you believe in. Such a hypocritical statement coming from me. Either way, your blog posts are always beautiful and insightful. I think it's great that you would truly die to further human justice. I don't think I could actually give up my life for a mere belief. Maybe because I'm not that passionate, or because I just don't think it would make a difference.
George:
You're always so honest with your post, it's something I truly admire. You never beat around the bush, but you always come straight out and say it. I'm kind of confused however, you say you wouldn't die for anything, except "things like ending wars, ending hunger and such."
Death is a scary thought. It’s hard to read this blog topic without considering one’s beliefs of the afterlife. Is there one? Is there a good place and a bad place? Do we fly through the universe in an eternal bliss? I like to think that there’s an afterlife because it’s sure as hell better than believing the ground is the only place I’ll be after my body becomes limp and lifeless. Believing in an afterlife can make the difference between choosing to die for something and steadily holding back.
ReplyDeletePassion: any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate. Unfortunately I don’t relate much to passion. I wouldn’t consider myself completely apathetic, but I don’t feel strongly about most things. After all, “strong” is a strong word. I don’t intensely love or hate most things, but there are a few things to note. First off, I love my family and friends. Do I love them passionately? Sure I do. My family and friends are the most important people in my life. I would die for any of them. I don’t know if every one of them would do the same for me, but it doesn’t matter to me anyway.
Courage: the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery. The first thing that comes to mind is the cartoon character Courage the Cowardly Dog. He’s quite the comical protagonist because he performs tremendous acts of bravery in almost every episode, but you can tell he’s scared half to death by his funny animations. This pretty much defies the dictionary definition because he doesn’t face his problems “without fear.” Some people might call this stupidity, but I think you can show courage in difficult situations while encompassing fear. Something that gives me courage is knowing that someone I feel passionate about is in danger. Now I’m trying to tie the qualities together. I am willing place myself in danger if someone I care about is in trouble, however there is so much I will willingly sacrifice in certain situations. If the life of a loved one is on the line, I will risk my life for him or her. However, without being selfish, I may decide against dying for a loved one because he or she would not wish me to. If my grandfather was of the age ninety-five in his death bed, I would not die for him because he lived a full life. I know that he would not want me to give my life so he may live for a short while longer. Heading back to courage, I believe that I could summon sufficient courage in dire situations, although nothing is certain.
Conviction: a fixed or firm belief. Not surprisingly conviction is the shortest and probably least subjective of the three qualities. Like I said in my introductory paragraph, I believe there is an afterlife. This conviction is pretty much allows me a little more room for humility. I’m not saying that if you would never die for anything that you’re helplessly selfish and self-centered, although that may be the case. Life is precious and no longer living is a difficult concept to comprehend.
I imagine that most of my friends said “I would only die for someone who would be valuable in or contribute something to society.” I can respect that. I would also give my life for someone who I know would do great things for the betterment of society. I conclude that I would give my life in certain situations, but this answer is to be expected because this question warrants conditional answers. I would rather just live my life without having to confront any such dilemmas and live happily with the time I have left on Earth.
To Rachel: I enjoyed reading what it is you would die for because it’s so optimistic. I also really like how you touched upon the fact that people seem to defy logic when it comes to expressing their feelings. Humans, like all other animals, are naturally selfish creatures, but we sometimes give our lives in the hope that someone we love will get a second chance or benefit in some way.
ReplyDeleteTo Tom: I don’t think you are a bad person because you wouldn’t die for something. Death is impossible to comprehend, especially because we are still young. When you get older I’m sure there will be something you feel passionately about. I don’t feel particularly passionate about many things, besides family and friends, but I’m sure I would give my life for my wife or kids when I reach that stage in life.
To George: I was not one bit surprised to read that you wouldn’t die for anything, which is perfectly fine. I also like how you tied together the three qualities together and how you weren’t afraid to admit that you lack courage (paradox). You also seem to think that people who go to war want to die for a cause, but that’s not the case (I hope). These people are willing to die for their country, but I’m sure they don’t want to. Those two things are completely different, you should know.
Dan:
ReplyDeleteYour first paragraph really hit home. I never once tied in my beliefs of an afterlife when thinking about dying for someone. I guess because since I believe in an afterlife, I'm assuming that if I would give up my life for someone, I'd go on to lead a blissful happy afterlife. But if dying only met rotting under the Earth or being cremated, then I would definitely rethink dying for someone else.
Life is precious. I don’t believe in any life after this thing I’m in now. So no afterlife. If I die, my world will be completely gone and I won’t even know it. Yes, Earth would probably still be there, but I won’t see anything, not even darkness, and my brain will no longer function. The things in my life mean a lot to me. But that’s why I don’t want to die, because then I wouldn’t be able to continue experiencing these wonderful things. I thought of saying that I would die for my closest friends. However, I feel absolutely horrible saying this, but I don’t think even my best of friends are that important without me to experience their existence. So I basically just said that I rather have my best friends die than me since if I die, not only will I be gone from them, but I will be gone from everything else in the world too. I know, I’m disgusting and selfish.
ReplyDeleteRight now, I can’t imagine giving up my life. I’m so young. I have so many things I still want to experience. I have passion in many things. Like art. But above all, I am passionate in living.
Now what do I have a conviction in? I firmly believe in true love, friendship, peace, racial equality, gay rights, and other things. But.. to die for these things? That’s a little extreme. I think there’s a better answer to everything than dying. And yet, the rest of the world seems to see killing and dying as the “solution” to everything.
But even though as of right now I wouldn’t die for anything, I would do some crazy risky things for my friends and beliefs. Passion inspires courage, and I would undoubtedly muster up some courage to defend those meaningful things in my life.
But I suppose the time will come that I will have some things that I will die for. When I’m older, and I’m more satisfied with the life I’ve lived, I would probably die for other people, whether my death be for mankind in general or for a close friend or family member. But for now, I’d--selfishly--just like to live.
Rachel: “I’m passionate about justice and about freedom. I would literally die in order to see more human justice in this world.” It makes me happy that there’s people in the world as kind as you. And yet, it seems unjust for generous people like you to die for the benefit of selfish people who wouldn’t die like myself.. But either way, I admire you for your view of things, even though they’re completely different from mine.
Nyamekye: Your mention of all the Nazi stuff got me thinking. I’d like to say that I would sacrifice myself to save all those lives. And yet, the thought of my own death makes me so reluctant. It scares me too, Nyamekye.
George: “...did anyone really better a cause by dying for it? Death does very little to promote a cause, which is why I would never ever ever ever die for something.” I really enjoyed your post, especially this part. You’re right, people just need to stop giving away their life to fight for politics and religion. When you die for such things, you often don’t accomplish anything other than your own death.
Emily:
ReplyDeleteLife is the greatest thing to be passionate about, and clearly you are. That's exactly why you're NOT selfish. I know I emphasized the beauty of putting your life on the line for a greater cause, but some causes are better served by people who aren't...dead. Like you said, passion inspires courage, so the longer you live, and the more passion with which you live, the more courage you could inspire in both yourself and others.
I’m a wimp. I’m not going to lie to myself. If I was put in a life or death situation, I would most likely run. Even though I constantly have great complaints about life, I don’t dislike it enough to die. Life is beautiful and amazing and worth living which is why it would be so hard for me to throw that away for something. But then there are some things that I care about so much that I would not just give my life up but actually hand over for.
ReplyDeleteI am not a very courageous person. I am the person who sits through class and waits for someone to say a point that I agree with instead of voicing my own opinion. Then I nod I agreement. That’s my way of talking. But if it is something that I personally feel a connection to, I will not only talk but I will yell in my screechy voice about. So I guess passion does tie in with courage. Passion gives me a reason to be courageous. I am very passionate about only a handful of things. Other than that most things are not very important to me. Sure I’ll yell about it for a little bit but after that I will calm down and forget it. The things that I feel passionate about are the things that I take charge on. Like one day when someone decided to talk about how my older sister was a whore. Yeah I flipped. I am proud of my sister and everything she is. No one is going to tell me that she is a whore.
The few things that I have really held my ground on are my religious beliefs and my family. When I say I would die for my religious beliefs, I don’t mean in the terroristic way so don’t get scared. I mean it in the way that If someone held a gun to my face and told me to forget my ways and live or die with your religion. I would die. My religion is what has kept me going when I really needed some sort of support. I trust in it. I trust my life in it. (I’m not talking about the extremist Islam, I mean my Islam) When I hear people talking about it and passing around lies, I feel as though it’s my obligation to protect it and show them the truth.
I love my family. I’m not going to lie, I complain about them a lot. We are a dysfunctional family. I don’t think that anyone can spend a day in my house without going crazy. But we found a way to get used to each other. My mom is one nutty little woman who has even nuttier moments, but in the end I know that she would do anything humanly possible to help me in my time of need. In her world, I can’t possibly do anything wrong enough for her not to help me. (Except if I brought home a white boy, I don’t even want to get into that haha) My dad gave up his entire life to raise us and give us anything we have ever needed. So, it would be fairly easy to give up mine for his.
That brings me to my sisters. I have actually thought about this one, isn’t that kind of scary? That’s what too much Criminal Minds and living in the Hoodlands can do to a person. When my mind would wander off during a Criminal Minds commercial I would think about what I would do in case my parents were not home and someone came into my house. My solution was that I would hide my sisters in this little closet that we have and act like I was the only one that was home. Considering my fighting skills, I would probably die in a few seconds. But it would be easy for me to do that because they are my life. My older sister is my best friend and my world she has always protected me, whether it was from bad news or that old man on the boardwalk that tried to grab me. My little sisters are just that. Little. I would want them to see everything that life has to offer. Even if that I meant I wouldn’t.
Just out of curiosity, would she only flip if it were a "white boy" or does that go for multiple races? I couldn't imagine being devout enough to a religion to die for it. I don't think I'd be able to do the same. I use religion as a guide for morals and that only. I wish that I've had as strong of a bond with my sister as you have had with yours. We are pretty distant and I know that one day will drift a bit and see each other only a few times out of the year.
DeleteMikey, it's even worse when it's a "half white, half asian boy." ;) haha Hira's going to kill me. Anyways, Hira, ...crap I lost my train of thought. You almost got stolen by an old man???
DeleteMike G: haha she would flip about any kind of boy that's not brown. And yeah i love my sissy.
DeleteMikey: Really?!!? Not friends anymore lol.
Before I start with what I would die for, I think it would be wise of me to take a step back and define the three concepts listed, both denotatively and personally.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so the first word is passion. According to my dictionary passion is (1) a compelling emotion, (2) a strong amorous feeling; love, (3) a strong sexual desire… The list goes on and on repeating the same definitions, just in a different order. Personally, I view passion as a driving force. I believe that passion is something, an emotion I suppose, that makes a person stand up for something. Without passions people wouldn’t have values or hobbies or professions. So what am I passionate about? I would say the well-being of people, in general. I read a lot about genocides and the Holocaust and make myself sick thinking about all of the atrocities that occur towards people. So I am passionate for life… I suppose.
Next is courage: (1) the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain etc. without fear (2) bravery. I was astounded. That was absolutely not what I went about life thinking courage was. Courage is the ability for a living creature to take their fears and use them to make them stronger. To still be afraid and use that fear to show… uh… I guess strength. If you have courage then you can, in any situation, stand up for what you are passionate about. The past gives me courage and the future gives me courage. Knowing that such horrid things occur and have occurred allows me to look into the future and not give up hope.
Finally, there is conviction (this should be interesting) (1) a fixed or firm belief (2) the act of convicting (3) the state of being convicted. Just as I suspected, the usual vague and boring definition to a word that holds a lot of hot water. Conviction is what makes a person. That might be slightly more vague, but I’ll explain. Every person has a least one value, one belief that they think about every day. Have that be abortion, or drug abuse, or really any controversial topic. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about the millions of people that have died in war. Civilians, bystanders, warlords, soldiers, government officials. All of these people are somebody’s family. None of these people deserved to die. War is pathetic. My conviction is that every person, at some point in their lives, deserves serenity and peace.
Let’s go back to the original question; What would I die for. I don’t know. And I’m not just saying that to get this blog over with. This question has buried itself in the back of my mind all week. I really don’t know. I would LIKE to say that I would die for my beliefs. That I would fall to a bullet if it meant that I died doing what I thought was right, even if that meant going against my family. I would LIKE to say that I would die if it gave every person on Earth sanitary water and food for the rest of existence. But I don’t know. People act differently when they are faced with difficulties. People resort to murder and cannibalism and whatever the hell else they could possibly fathom. It’s really not fair to ask a person what they would die for, but I personally have been asked this before, many times. Each time I answer with what I think I would do. Until that time comes, all that I can do is say what I think I would die for. And that would be my passion, which is also my conviction.
Hira: Running doesn’t make you a wimp. Most people, in reality, probably would run when the time came. It’s all fight or flight instinct. I think that it’s in a person’s body chemistry to decide that. I don’t know you very well, if at all. Being truthful and saying you would run is a good thing, most people would hide behind lies and say they would fight!
ReplyDeleteDan: This probably isn’t the “meat and potatoes” of your blog (sorry I couldn’t think of any other way to put that.) but I prefer to think that there isn’t an afterlife. By keeping the thought that the ground is my future allows me to stay strong in a weird sense. I don’t worry about what I do in a moral sense. I don’t think about my future after I die. If I die for personal beliefs then I don’t have to answer to some leading force. It’s hard to explain, but I feel that believing in an afterlife makes life harder.
Tom: You’re a horrible person for not listing something you would die for. That was sarcasm. Tom, you’re lovely :P I don’t think that someone could say that they would give their life up for something, unless they have been in that situation. It’s all theoretical and what we think. No person could truthfully answer this blog question, unless they have been faced with the choice of death.
Dan: I'm pretty sure all of our friends will say some derivative of what think they will say. Especially Ted. I think Ted will say something like that. Also, I think that the definition of courage in the dictionary is somewhat off because of the courage that Courage the Cowardly Dog showed in every episode: fear ensconced by bravery. Courage had courage because he stood up to his fears rather than let his fears take over him.
ReplyDeleteGeorge: Wow I never thought about it that way. “If people were not willing to die for things, think of how the world would be. There would be no war.” You’re so right! If people did not worry about dying for eachother and for other causes there would be no problems or fighting.
ReplyDeleteRachel: You have so much to say but you never do say it. I mean other than the select few that you talk to, you never say what you believe in. I feel like you have great ideas and even greater opinions. You feel passionate about so much! I wish you would show everyone.
Emily: I do not think you are selfish. You’re being honest. And you’re right; there is so much to live for. It is really hard to give that up for a belief or even a person. I felt that way for a little bit too but then I thought about how much I truly believe in some people and things.
Oh have you eaten at that new fancy restaurant down in the center of town? No? Oh you most definitely should go some time; their desserts are simply to die for. I don’t know why, but for some reason I can’t tolerate when people say such ridiculous things—even in the ironic or humorous sense. It is of my opinion that a person cannot and should not be willing to die for such trivial things. When we say we would give or even risk our own life for something; I can’t even honor the idea of dying for something materialistic. So if I were to donate the most precious thing I have, my life, it would have to go to someone I desperately care about or a cause that is paramount in importance not only to me but to the world. What those cause are or who those people are I really don’t know. But maybe I can figure something out.
ReplyDeleteOne’s passion is really something one needs to simply sit down and ponder. Gladly, I’ve done this before on my own time and probably somewhere in one of these blogs I’ve written it down before. But to recap, my passion is success. To understand what this means, I would have to go back into my extensive and multifaceted idea of success. For me, success would include (briefly); achieving a state of happiness that balances between worldly achievement and personal accomplishment. I desperately want to be with someone that I can deeply care for, and I also want to make a big contribution to society (either scientifically or in the realm of civil liberties). So really my passion boils down to making a difference in someone’s life and in society. It is a natural and burning desire to be relevant. This is what I passionately strive for.
What gives me courage? I want to say something cheesy like courage can only come from within, but I don’t believe that tells the whole truth (even though there is some certainty to this). I want to say that a fair chunk of my courage can be directly attributed to the support of my friends and family. I tend to surround myself with considerate and generally kind people. And I would say that deep down my close friends and I all care for each other and would gladly encourage each other in most of our aspirations. I can sense this encouragement in some capacity at specific intervals in our relationships. I’m not going to name a particular example of this, because this courage that I receive is almost implicitly gained juts by the value and nature of our friendships. When I’m surrounded by friends I feel like I have a greater capacity to thrive and with greater courage rushing through my veins.
In terms of conviction I think I’ve already spoken great volumes about that through my explanation on passion. Honestly, I take both hand in hand. Passion and conviction are, when everything is broken down, tied tightly together. It’s hard to follow through on a passion without conviction keeping us moving along on the road to fulfilling our desires.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I’ve had a few conversations that asked the question—who would you take a bullet for? These were of course discussions among my close friends, and I’m sure they were brought up in light humor, but honestly, I could say that I would take a bullet for some of my closest friends. But, and there most certainly is a caveat, the person I would die for would have to do something with their life and follow through with some dying requests for the betterment of humanity. It would optimally be a situation wherein I’m lying on my death bed after risking my live and I call the person to come closer in a faint voice and give them my instructions in a dramatic fashion—because if I’m dying for someone I’m going to make it as melodramatic and ironic as possible. And I guess I’ll die for my mom. But I think everybody is expected to say that. Just to follow up on a point I posed earlier; would I die for any cause? Eh, I’m kind of against the idea that one person’s death can impact a cause. If I could magically give my life for world peace I would, but one person does not solve a huge problem—especially now that they are incapacitated. I guess the real question in this blog prompt is whether or not we are confident in our convictions to actually put our life at risk? The answer is yes, but this has to be for someone I care tremendously about, like my partner in life. But this person is unknown to me, and I’m not sold on whether or not my friends will be able to carry out my dying wishes. So only time will tell as my relationships and passions grow in the future.
Why die for something? Why waste the most precious gift you were ever given, and end everything, for anything or anyone else. I know I may not seem like the sort of person that would say something so George-like, (no offense) but it's true. Why would you end your life? Then what? You feel good about yourself? No, you don't, because you're dead.
ReplyDeleteSo let me describe these three things.
Passion: Passion is a feeling you have for something. That's the simple version. Passion is what people feel when they care the most about one thing. That is what they are passionate about. I hate when people say that they are passionate about so many things. To me, you can only be passionate about one thing, otherwise, you only care about it, you don't have a passion for it. Everyone knows what my passion is, and that is a perfect example of a passion. Obviously, my passion is music. You can tell this because of how much I talk about it, and how much I listen to different types of music. I'm not passionate about school. Yes, it is very important to me, and yes, I try my very best, but it's not my passion. I only have one passion, and that is the way the cookie crumbles. Hate me or love me, that's the way it is.
Courage: Courage is another tough one. I mean, everyone knows what courage is, but it isn't easy to explain. I guess courage is when you can do something that people doubt you can do, whether those people are others or yourself. When you do something that you wouldn't do normally, but you know you have to. Courage is stepping up, and doing things others wouldn't do. It doesn't necessarily have to be hard or life-threatening, it may just be something so ridiculous that most people wouldn't do it.
Conviction: I'll be honest, I thought this was like when you got convicted for doing a crime until I saw what others wrote and when I looked it up. So i don't have much of an explanation other than "A firmly held belief or opinion." I also like Kendall's definition.
So would I die for anything? Still a no. I wouldn't die for music, I wouldn't die to be courageous, and I wouldn't die for conviction (unless I was convicted for murder or something and sentenced to death, but I'm pretty positive that won't happen). YOLO, don't waste it on something else.
Mimi: A little while ago, I hinted to my parents that I don't believe in God. They were flabbergasted; my father is Episcopalian, my mother is some form of Christianity, my sister is another form of Christianity, and my brother is a non-Christian believer. I am the odd one out. When my parents labeled me as an agnostic, I didn't try to defend my religious affiliation--I just let them say whatever they wanted. It is stuff like this that reveals my lack of conviction. I'm not sure what in your blog made me think of this, but assure you, it did.
ReplyDeleteMy passion, as I hope you all know by now, is the “stage.” It is the one thing in life that I can undoubtedly say I care for more than anything else. So much that I can say that the greatest love I’ve ever felt has struck me while on stilts or in a show. Of course, I love my family. But I know deep down inside that if I were good enough to pursue a life in entertainment, and I proved this to be true, then I would go against the wishes of my family to continue my passion in life.
ReplyDeleteNow courage, courage is a strange one. There is nothing that specifically gives me courage. I would venture to say that all of my courage comes from within and I tend to have the most courage when people are watching. What can I say, I like to put on a good show. Courage comes to me when I beckon for it, though. I don’t necessarily think that what I’d die for would spark the courage. I think it has been there all along.
Convictions are plentiful in my life. I have a firm belief that bagels are delicious, but I don’t think that that will do me any good with this blog. What will is that I have a firm belief that the arts shouldn’t be censored. There’s also the fact that I believe that everyone should be given the chance to go out into the world and discover what they want to be. I completely hate when people (typically adults) tell someone not to try something because they will fail. Obviously I’m not saying that if you aspire to be a cocaine addict that I’d advise testing the drug, but if you think that you would make an awesome cake sculptor one day I would back your aspirations entirely. That’s why I’ve been working on getting Bobby a spot as a rapper at the StuCo Six Flags trip.
So it’s decided, I would die for one thing and one thing only, a dream. I would not choose to sacrifice myself this very second to assure that someone’s dreams come true, but I theoretically would do all in my power to see it through. One day, I will die. When I die though, I hope to have accomplished many of my dreams such as directing a Broadway show, owning a cruise ship (or at least perform on one for a summer), and create the next “Greatest Show on Earth.” However, I don’t want my dreams to be finite, I want to die running, constantly trying to further my dreams.
Is dying for something right for everyone? Not really. If you are pregnant, have suffered head trauma, or are a blood thinners, I would ask your doctor before risking your life for something. In all seriousness though, not everyone should have something that they’d die for. Some people are driven by passion, but there are others who need to focus on what they do with their own life before stressing over someone else’s life. In the end, it’s all preference.
According to the ginormous Webster’s dictionary and thesaurus that my parents use as a decoration in my living room rather than what its intended purpose:
ReplyDeletePassion (noun) – Intense or violent emotion especially pertaining to sexual desire or love; intense anger; a great liking or enthusiasm.
Courage (noun) – The capacity to meet danger without giving way to fear.
Conviction (noun) – A firm belief.
There’s nothing in this world I think I’d die for specifically because I don’t believe that it means much. I’d say it means more to live for something. It’s more meaningful to give your life to something than to give your life up for something. However, there’s nothing in my life I can think of that I would do that for. Maybe I don’t have enough passion or conviction or courage. Maybe I don’t have any passion or conviction or courage. There’s not one thing I can think of that I would give my live for. Not my family, not my friends, not my beliefs, nothing. I’m not exactly sure why. I’m not particularly passionate about anything. I’m not courageous; I shirk away my fears, I don’t face them. The only convictions I really have are about love or fate or those types of things. Yet, none of these convictions are worth living for. I think that once you find something worth living for is when you’re done growing. It marks your spring into adulthood, into maturity. I’m not done growing up yet. I still have a while to go, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m perfectly content where I am, because as of now, I’m living my life the way I want to live it. I write my own destiny, I’m not ready to find that something that I’d give my life for. Not yet, at least.
I’ve thought about this question before. Right now, I would not die for anything. Death scares me. Obviously we’re all going to die one day, but I just can’t imagine myself ending my life right now. I like to believe that when we die, we really will be in a better place, instead of just 6 feet under. It makes death seem a lot more bearable. However, I still don’t want to die. I don’t believe that I’m a selfish person because I wouldn’t die for anyone or anything. Maybe it’s because my passions, convictions, and things that give me courage at this very moment aren’t strong enough for me to be able to say I would take my life for them.
ReplyDeletePassion is how I live my life. I work hard because I’m passionate about it. I’m passionate about love, being happy, family, friends, etc. I’m passionate about keeping myself and the people I love happy. I’m passionate about all the wonderful things life has to offer. I’m probably most passionate about my family. This sounds bad, but I don’t think I would die for my parents. However, they would probably die for me. I’m still young. I’ve got so much to look forward to in this life. So I think as I get older, my passions will grow stronger and I’ll be able to say I would die for someone or something.
Courage is what gives you the strength to get something accomplished or stand up for what you believe in. I’m not the most courageous person out there. I don’t voice my opinions as much as I would like to at times. But, my friends and family give me courage. Passion is what gives you courage. Your passions and convictions are the reasons to speak up and defend every belief. Courage is bravery and resilience.
Convictions are strong, firm beliefs. I believe in equality, peace, justice, etc. However, no I would not die for any of it. I would not die for my country although I do respect all the people that are willing to do that. Of course, no more racism, hatred, famine, war in this world is a fantastic thought, but why should a person have to die to achieve that? It doesn’t seem right to me.
After looking over all of my definitions and responses, I still would not die for anything. I want to live my life. I still have many years ahead of me before I die (hopefully.) I can argue that my life is only beginning. To die right now, would be a waste. But maybe if you ask me this question 20 years from now, my response might differ. Things can change.
Michael: “But there are others who need to focus on what they do with their own life before stressing over someone else’s life.” This is exactly right. Not everyone has strong enough passions or convictions that they would die for. You only get one life, so I would really consider hard who or what is worth dying for.
Hira: I respect you when you say you are willing to die for your religion. This is obviously a strong conviction you have and your religion gives your courage. It’s how you live your life. Not everyone has a worthy enough conviction or passion to die for, so I appreciate your response.
Janel: “I would LIKE to say that I would die for my beliefs. That I would fall to a bullet if it meant that I died doing what I thought was right, even if that meant going against my family.” A life or death situation is always unpredictable. I mean you could always SAY you would die for this or that, but when given the opportunity, would you really do it?
I would die for a greater cause.
ReplyDeleteThere’s not much else, really. Life is so infinitely precious to me that I find myself in concept huddling over it like Golem, aging away and greedy about it. There are people I would die for, sure. I would not for my parents only because I know with absolute certainty that doing so would kill them, would kill any parent. It would be cruel to subject any parent to their child dying at all, let alone dying for them. I would, however, would die in place of my best friend. I would die in place of a child. I suppose it’s due to my conviction about life that I would do the latter. If I find that a child has more life left to give than me, and more to give to the world then in theory I think I’d die for them to live. The former, however, is really selfishness. I would die for my best friend out of love for her, yes, but it’s exactly that that makes me selfish. She’s one of two people that, if I imagine them dying, brings me to tears on the spot.
Just tested it. I am currently wiping the tears from my eyes.
I could eventually live without her, I’m sure. But I wouldn’t be me; I couldn’t be me. The absolute agony and lifeless months that would ensue would leave me almost catatonic. Something inside of me would have to break with such force and indelibility that I simply wouldn’t be me anymore. I’d be much more distant, much less happy, and much emptier. I would die for her out of love for her, but also out of selfishness. I couldn’t truly live without her, so it doesn’t seem like such a great loss to die for her.
It’s rare that there comes a person who you can say definitively is a better person than you. Still, I would die for a president, or anybody of the sort. Even if I couldn’t ever truly say that they were better than me as a person, just the panic of their death and the pain it would cause might be enough.
In essence, I would die for a child because they had more life ahead of them.
Though I am younger than a president, I would die for them for the good of more people.
I would die for my best friend because I couldn’t live without her.
Really, I would die for anything that could bring about a sure, definite, wonderful change.
Who knows if, when the moment comes, I’d actually do it. I’d like to butter myself up and say I would, but I don’t know. Hopefully I’ll never have to know.
Tom: I feel you. Ice cream cake is insanely wonderful, if only for the chocolate crumblies in the middle. I respect that you are not at a point in your life where you would give your life for somebody else. Even though I personally am, I’m generally on one end of the extreme scale anyway. Okay, I’m always on one end of the extreme scale. But of course it doesn’t make you a bad person! Some people would argue the opposite. Not me, but I don’t think anybody is a bad person for appreciating life. After 3 days of Holocaust learning, I would think you were a bad person for not appreciating life.
Michael: Well, I loved your blog, just to set that aside. You’re such a good guy, really. I wish I had passions like you do for stage and I admire your ability to set aside what your family wants and pursue what makes you happy. In a way, doing otherwise would be like giving your life, no?
Hira: I’m the same way with my best friend as you are with your sisters. She means the world to me, and I very similarly watch too much Criminal Minds and have envisioned far too many death scenarios… And I love my Dad more than anything, but can you imagine if you did die for him? That would be worse to him than him dying :(
There's not much I'm passionate about. Life? I am passionate about life. Emotions? I really am fond of emotion. Any emotion. Knowledge? I really do love knowledge.
ReplyDeleteI'm courageous when things are important enough to get riled up about. Fear is temporary. If the situation calls for courage I will be courageous. This is what I like to think. Probably it's not true, but I'll think it anyway. What else can I do? The alternative isn't even worth considering.
I try not to keep hard convictions. Any opinion has the possibility of being proven wrong. People should be nice? Decent, at least? I can't say that's a conviction, that's common sense. That's just fact. Do you have a zealous belief, a strong conviction in breathing? Either way, most things can change when the wind is shifting course. So can belief.
Now, see, I don't want to die. It doesn't seem fun to me. In fact, I'd like to live forever. The world is grand. I like it. It's a good time, even if it's kind of a sucky time, so I think I'd rather like to keep on just the way I am thank you. To this I would make one exceptions: I would die if it would help a bunch of people and I were going to die soon anyway. If I had terminal cancer and I was going out in a month I would die for something. Otherwise, no. I'm not going to die for you. Sorry. Maybe if I fell in love I'd die then. I dunno.
Oh well.
Oh, wait.
To save the human race.
I'd die then, I guess. If I didn't it'd be pretty lonely and everyone would go out thinking I was a gigantic jerkass anyway, and that's kind of a load to bear.
Or maybe if I was really sad I'd be up to dying for something. Just a quickie. It's always nice to go out on your own terms, after all.
And THAT is all.
Oh that Schuyler. I can really see you becoming a philosopher. You are going to become as popular as Socrates. Onto your blog. I hate how you said "Just a quickie." That makes it seem suicidal. Even though you are dying for a good cause it wouldn't be out of passion or courage or conviction. It would be out of sadness. You would be dying not for the cause but to get your life over with.
DeleteWhat would I die for? Well, thinking about it quickly I immediately thought of my dad (don’t tell my mom that). He touches so many lives every single day and I honestly can’t think of a world where he doesn’t exist. I would give up my life so he could keep living. He’s my best friend forever and ever and sometimes he’s the only friend I have. I would give it all up so he could stay around.
ReplyDeleteWhat am I really passionate about? Well there’s a lot of things I like to do and plenty of things I want to do in life, but none of which I can say are a true “passion.” Well, none worth dying for at least. However, one thought did pop into my mind as I pondered it for awhile. I thought of all of the kids out there that suffer from cancer. That will never be okay and it’s something that really strikes deep within me. It will never be okay for me to look into the eyes of a child who didn’t have a choice and is forced to have to endure such a tragic experience. An experience they possibly won’t make it out of. So I would die for a cure for cancer. I really would. There are a lot of terrible things in this world, but cancer is one of the ones that I would lay my life down for if it would go away. What gives me courage? I pondered this for awhile, and the only thing I could come up with is my dad again. I guess he’s more of a “who” than a “what” though. He gives me the bravery to face the world and stand up for what I believe in. He’s taught me that’s it’s okay to be yourself, and I’ve always thought being 100% yourself is courageous. He’s given me the guts to do what I want to do. My dad’s given me that extra push when I needed it. What do I hold with unshakeable conviction? Hmm. This one is kind of hard. I believe in a few things very deeply. One of them is that everyone has a right to love who they want when they want (here comes my speech). However, I’m not sure that it’s something I would die for. At least it’s not something I would die for at this moment. I value my life more than that. Maybe that kind of makes me sound selfish.
I guess the three words to play into what I would die for. After answering the questions, I realized I really would die for my dad. However, I realized that I deeply care for helping sick children, so I would die if I could help cure kids with cancer. Maybe not even cure it. That’s such a big feat. Maybe I would die to make the kids with cancer a little happier and in pain a little less.
ReplyDeleteShould there be things I die for? I don’t think it’s a problem. However, I don’t think people should make their list of things they would die for too long. It’s important to love yourself and put your life above most things. It’s okay if there are a few things you feel passionate enough to die for.
Tibet is under Chinese communist rule. And the Chinese are restricting human rights. I’m not sure why, but they are against the full freedom of the Tibetan people. And they aren’t okay with that. Many Tibetans are choosing to demonstrate their dissatisfaction, through any means necessary. Even self-immolation, the same way Thich Quang Duc sacrificed himself to bring about change in Vietnam.
ReplyDeleteSome of these young Tibetans are doing something I would never do. They’re dying for a cause. Whether it be change or rights or whatever, I would almost never sacrifice myself for a cause. I’m not important enough to cause any uproar through martyring myself. And even if I was, I believe wholeheartedly that I’m more useful alive than dead. Sure, some deaths have caused great cultural shifts, but once you’re dead, you’re dead. No helping anyone anymore. Honestly, I’d like to see progress, instead of having to listen through the dirt six feet under to hear about world peace.
But I would die for people. I don’t know who. Just people. People seem to be my passion, in a way. Music works too, and so does reading, but I wouldn’t die for those. Books can always be rewritten, music reproduced. You can’t produce more copies of people. So I’d give myself up for a few random strangers. Maybe four. I don’t want to put a number on it. I’d die for a person too, if they’re important enough, to me, to the world, to the future.
I tend to avoid situations that I fear. I guess everyone does. But every time I do something I fear, like performing in front of a bunch of people, I just suck it up and deal with it. I guess that’s courage in a way, but it’s not inspired by anything. It just shows up unannounced, ready to do what it’s meant to. Recently though I haven’t had much opportunity to test whatever courage I have, so I don’t know exactly what it is that gives me courage.
As for my beliefs, I have a few. I just think people should be able to do what they want, within reason. No harmful things. Well, there’re exceptions for that too. I just know my beliefs for the most part. At some points it’s wishy washy. I’m sixteen though! I have plenty of years to get this all settled out. But I probably won’t anyways.
In the end, I’ll die for people, and the freedom of people. But there are certain conditions. It has to be multiple strangers or a person who is or will be important. Like I said in the beginning of this blog, I’d almost never die for a cause. But I would if I knew it would make a difference, and if I couldn’t make a greater change by doing something while alive. It’s just that overall freedom rather than just one freedom is something I really appreciate having, and wouldn’t give up without some kind of fight.
George: I appreciated your connection between war and dying for things people believed in things. War wouldn't ever exist if people didn't want to die for something. I also liked how you said that you could accomplish more alive than dying for a cause. I hadn't looked at the question that way and I really liked your outlook on it.
ReplyDeleteKendall: When I read this blog question I immediately thought of you and Kayla. It's so obvious how close you guys are. I love spending time with you two and watching your relationship together. It's so amazing that you guys have each other and I know that both of you would die for one another. That makes me happy that you have someone you can be so close with. (:
ReplyDeleteTom: Just because you won't die for anything does not mean you are a bad person. You value life and all of the beautiful things in it. Don't worry about it! It definately does not make you a bad person!
ReplyDeleteIf anything in my life is worth dying for besides maybe my family and one or possibly two very close friends I don’t think there is much else. In order for me to answer this question I sort of have to weigh what in my life is worth death, what am I so passionate about that I would give my life for it. As insensitive and non-convictive as it is I don’t think there’s anything in my life I would die for.
ReplyDeleteI am so passionate singing. But if one day someone came along and told me that I had to choose between singing or life, I’d probably choose life. If I had to choose between myself and my parents or my sisters death I would probably choose myself. I’m passionate about my schoolwork, but heaven knows id die from it before id die for it. I’m passionate about my relationships, but I still don’t think id die for any of them.
Courage is the one characteristic that I truly don’t feel like I have ever demonstrated courage, because no I don’t count getting on stage something that requires courage, and for the “fears” I’ve had to face I don’t think they help me to demonstrate courage either. Maybe I could talk about hope, which is a less severe version of courage right? My family gives me hope, people who listen to my petty problems give me hope. When things go as I plan I have hope. But that’s not really the same as the others. Optimism gives me hope and naturally people who have it do too, it makes me feel like I shouldn’t give up on the world.
I semi-frequently make add things to the list of things I believe that I have currently going on, on my tumblr. They are usually things that I have let spend a good amount of time marinating in my head first. Here’s some of the things that I really believe in: that people who can hold a conversation are worth talking to, there is always a place for political correctness, age is but a number, and that there is nothing more intimate than hugs and singing. Maybe they aren’t convictions perse but I know assuredly that I believe them everyday of the week and I think that makes them count.
Which brings me to this; I don’t know that I can agree that an activity or an emotion is worth dying for. Because at first I thought of happiness, then I said to myself, “life isn’t always happy, does that mean whenever I’m unhappy id rather die. Absolutely not.” I think that in order to die for something you have to be passionate about it, which In this case also means you must have a strong conviction of it. Finally, we have here, what seems to me, to be a choice. When you die for something I’m making the assumption that it is out of choice, and in order to hand over your own life I believe that passion, courage, and conviction are all significantly involved. But even with that said I think that if it came down to me laying my life on the live for someone there are three people: Sophie, my mom, and my grandmom.
On the whole I don’t know what it is about this blog question but I just have a really hard time answering it. Maybe it’s the nature of the question or maybe I’m just innately very selfish, but I’ve been thinking about this for two days now and I still feel like I havn’t gotten any closer to an answer.
It seems awfully trite, almost as is from a movie, the concept of dying for something you love. Your passion institutes courage, which are both fueled by conviction. I hope I’m never put in the situation where I necessarily have to die for something I love. Sure, maybe I’d be alright with a mild concussion for something I love, but death is serious business.
ReplyDeleteSo, I guess I’m passionate about living. Living is good, in fact, I think it’s safe to say that being alive is one of the best things to ever happen to me. If you don’t go forth with passion and zeal daily, what’s the point of living at all? There are other things that I’m passionate about. My relationships with others, my bike, my secular beliefs, and other stuff make me defensive when others try to encroach upon them. However, I wouldn’t particularly throw my life on the line for any of these things, as I am most passionate about my life.
I can be courageous sometimes. I never rescued a burning house full of orphans, nor have I ever retrieved a kitten from a tree. However, when I feel others are being mistreated, I try to speak out against it. I like talking, especially when someone attacks my beliefs, and I suppose I’m courageous in that sense. If courage translates to me dying for something though, I feel like my courage doesn’t amount to much. I don’t want to die. It doesn’t sound very fun. Therefore, I spend most of my life trying to avoid dying. So maybe I’m a wimp, I guess.
I have a lot of convictions. I think the separation of church and state should be absolute. I probably wouldn’t die for that, either. Maybe I’d just move to Canada and cash in on that universal healthcare. I feel strongly about many things political, and many things religious. However, dying for any of them would be silly.
Maybe there is something I’d die for. Maybe I’d die for my mom, if it was me or her, I’d probably be valiant and sacrifice my own life. But that probably wouldn’t ever happen. I hope it never comes down to that. Conviction, passion, and courage are good, but you probably shouldn’t die for them, as you’re the only person who matters in your life.
Matt your voice reminds me of a mix of Schulyer, Cole, and Connie, which is certainly not a bad thing. But i agree the idea of dying for what you love does seem a bit over used which is part of the reason I feel like I don't really know for sure what id die for. I'd definitely live for the things I love but i'm not so sure about dying.
DeleteTo the group: i find it so interesting that often our blogs all slightly resemble eachother. And on this one i am certainly glad that im not the only one who doesn't think there are many things, if any, that we would die for.
ReplyDeleteTo Cole: I have a lot of wishy-washy opinions too, most likely for the same reason: we're only 16. I like hearing what other people have to say about things before I make my own decisions about them because I think that having a one-sided opinion, no matter how strong, is wishy-washy. If you're not willing to look at the other side of the fence, then how are you supposed to learn about the world?
ReplyDeleteDuring the process of writing my speech, I got a lot of very biased views on certain things that I was going to use. Fortunately, I looked more into these things, and, thankfully, still felt somewhat passionate about what I was speaking about while having more factual evidence and a more unbiased view. It was kind of hard at times, finding something that would get me so angry only to find that it was partially false. I guess people like getting angry over things, and forming their own opinions out of rage. But the opinion based on objective information is always better.
DeleteMatt: I really liked the way you connected all three. I didn't read all of the posts, but it seemed to be different than most peoples ideas. It was different, and made me think a little more. It was a good idea.
ReplyDeleteGeorge: Finally, I agree with your post. Most of the time I think a little differently than you. I mean, we have the same ideas, but you're a little more extreme. However, today, I completely agree. I love your entire 6th paragraph. All the ideas are well put, and make perfect sense.
Cole: I liked your reference to the Tibet-Chinese cituation as an example of people dying for their rights. I can definitely get behind that. But, likewise I don't feel like one person, me specifcally, would make a significant difference to a cause. At least now.
ReplyDeleteAmber: I am warmed by your willingness to admit that there are special bonds you share with people--that you would most definitely die for them out of sheer love. It is bonds like these that make the world a special place.
George: I respect your thoughts on dying only for a great cause that most likely is unobtainable. But I feel you take things a bit to the extreme. You mention a world without a willingness to die. But this is impossible, and even so many are willing to put their life moderately at risk becasue of unforseen circumstances. And in doing so you have to account for the situations in which one is likely to put theselves at risk for a loved one. But on a worldly scale I think there is some truth to your statement.
I'm rather worried that I won't ever be able to attain that kind of importance. It's certainly possible, but I'm not sure I want to attract so much attention to myself. I probably wouldn't do anything good with it. That said, I don't think my death will ever make more of an impact than what I could do with my life.
DeleteQuestions about passion always have two kinds of answers, simple answers and less obvious ones. I have lots of simple passions, from baseball to math, but those are cop out answers. As fun and important as those things are (fun may not apply to all of them) they're not really passions. Passions are a little tougher to come by. Real passions aren't just the things that make us happy when we do them, they're the things we do that make us proud of ourselves. For me, that thing has to be something with a lasting impact, so baseball doesn't quite cut it. To say that I've found my passion would be folly at this stage in my life, although I have some guesses. Engineering is one of those guesses, but I don't really know because I've never really had the chance to try it. I also like being right, but I really don't know how much that counts. I certainly wouldn't die to be right.'
ReplyDeleteCourage isn't something I have a whole lot of in the first place, so asking me what gives me courage seems silly. I recently had to write an essay on this very topic, and the conclusion of it was that I hate taking risks, because I really don't have a lot of courage. I like sure things, and when something has a chance of going wrong with real consequences, I usually don't go for it. I tried it a couple times, and things went wrong, that certainly didn't help. So I guess my courage comes only from my self-confidence, and that's hardly courage at all.
Unshakeable convictions, I'm full of, at least, I think I am. People change, though, and to really call any conviction unshakeable is to basically admit that you're unwilling to accept new evidence into your considerations. That doesn't work for me. What I am full of is convictions that I will debate for, argue for and fight for to ridiculous extents, even if they're silly things. Music is a great example, I care far too much about people's taste in music, but as silly as I know my willingness to debate an entirely subjective topic is, I continue to fight the forces of trashy pop. It's fun, I guess, and I suppose it ties in with the fact that I'm very fond of being right, and having people know that I'm right.
So what I concluded from all of this, is that there are definitely things for which I would die. I just have no idea what they are right now, and that's okay. I have a lot of my values and goals in order, but I think at this point in my life it's okay to not know. As important as those other things are, dying for something is such an incredibly absolute conviction that it actually seems ridiculous that a teenager could know for what he or she would die. I might die if a see another sentence ending in a preposition though, seriously, I'm a little disappointed by that right now.
People should definitely have things for which they would give their lives, but I'm a little worried by how easily something attains that status. Many people would die for their country, and that's something that has always bothered me, because there is little about a country that would make dying for it worthwhile. What we are willing to die for should be a personal decision, and the group mentality behind dying for a country contradicts that.
In my life, the life I have been given, I would end it if my grandparents' lives depended on it. My worst fear is losing my grandparents. It is enevitable that they are going to pass away one day. If I had the ability to keep them alive I would. I would die for them. I don't know a real life circumstance in which this would be possible. Ok, for example, the fountain of youth in Pirates of the Carribean required the death of somebody. Basically it eats the soul of somebody and gives youth to the other person. I would give the both of them youth in exchange for my life. The three words: passion, courage, and conviction all fit in to my answer. Words cannot describe how much I love my grandparents. They have taken care of me since I was born. They've spoiled me rotten. It would be courageous to take my life for loved ones. Many are afraid of their own death. I'm afraid of others deaths. I do not have the courage to see them gone. Conviction, well... I firmly hold to my belief that I would save my grandparents in exchange for my own life. I didn't really need a more solid jumping-off point for that. They would be the same as the first set of questions though. I do believe there are things you should die for. My life on Earth is only the beginning. If I have to take my life to save others or to do something good, then I will. I will have 100 virgins waiting for me in the afterlife. (hahaha)
ReplyDeleteSeeing my value of life is so high, there's not much I would willingly die for, but I would die for my family and my closest inner circle of friends. Unfortunately I can't say that I would catch a grenade for many people, which is where my courage, or lack thereof, comes in. I wouldn't say I have as much courage as some people, some people would jump in front of a bullet for a stranger, I, personally, wouldn't. Also, passion comes in because it's only my family and closest friends that I feel the greatest passion toward, and only for them would I willingly die for. Then there is conviction, for which I am a firm believer of the preservation of life, as are most people.
ReplyDeleteI think that the one thing in life that really brings out all three of these qualities is death. I just lost my grandfather last week in a battle with cancer so I've had a pretty recent experience with all three. It took a lot of courage to come to school the next day and not cry my eyes out like I had done the previous night. There was clearly passion in the situation, because I loved him, which was the reason behind me being so emotional over the whole thing. Then there was conviction. Since I am a believer in an eternal afterlife for good people, I know he's now living the good life and relieved of all his pains.
It's hard to really pinpoint my passion on one thing, but I'd say sports. I love watching them, analyzing them, and of course, playing them. It's not held to one sport either, I play a wide variety of sports, maybe not organized or for a team, but I'll play an occasional pick-up game. I also follow sports from baseball to football to tennis and even women's basketball. I've become so passionate about it, I plan on focusing my college major around it.
Courage is used all the time even when you don't think it's being used. From sky-diving to public speaking to talking to the girl in your health class, all take tremendous amounts of courage depending on the person. What gives me courage though? I'd have to say that I strive to be successful in all that I do and it takes courage sometimes to advance yourself in life, in any sector of living.
Something of which I have the most unshakable of convictions is to live life to the fullest and live every day like it's your last. Cliche? Maybe, but I think it's the best way to live, because without doing it that way, you're gonna find your time sneaking up on you without doing everything you've wanted to do. So, yeah, I'd say I'm a firm believer of living your life that way.
When going back up to my "What would I die for" question, I find that nothing really files in line with my other three answers. I guess you could say that my conviction being live life to the fullest would allow you to die for your family and that'd be the only one I'd say to consider dying for. If you go through life being scared to do anything because you might die, it's going to be a long boring life.
There should be things you would die for because although I am the greatest of believers of living and loving every second of it, sometimes you might need to sacrifice for the greater good of the situation. You've got to be selfless in situations where your loved ones are on the line and you're not always going to come first. I don't think that people should die for things like religion, money, or a cause because those aren't the things that matter, it's not about what is around you, it's about who is around you.
I'm going to just put this out there for everyone, but specifically the people who would die to save other people or for some cause or to save lots of other people. I wonder how much of that attitude is in some way self-serving? Martyrdom always seemed very self-serving to me, because it comes with the fame and the fanfare of doing the most melodramatic thing for a cause possible. Maybe I'm crazy, whatever, there's probably a much better way to explain this than I'm doing it, I would just like to suggest that when we look at martyrs, we take another look at how they benefit from their own martyrdom.
ReplyDeleteBecca- I'm glad you wrote that, because it tied in with what I was failing to say directly above this. Martyrdom is nowhere near as useful to a cause as a lifetime of service, but it comes with a lot of show and fanfare. Especially because most people who die for a cause believe they will be rewarded after death, I agree with you that dedicating a lifetime to something is far more valuable.
Amanda- Here's another better way of putting what I'm trying desperately to convey, we all die anyway. Martyrdom is just dying sooner for a cause than everybody else, so once again, I really don't understand the huge deal in dying for some great cause or something. I also agree with the idea that our responses should change, because at sixteen and seventeen, it's almost ridiculous to expect us to know what could cause us to sacrifice our lives.
Amber- You would die for your best friend, and I think dying for one other person is the only thing really worth dying for, the only real sacrifice. Dying for someone you love is saying that their life is more valuable to you than their's is, and that's for more meaningful than dying for some great cause because dying for some great cause is almost something you have to do, it's something everyone would at least initially agree to because looking that selfish would be worse than dying. But dying for just one person that we love has none of the melodrama and none of the forced qualities of martyrdom, with far more meaning.
Matt- I'm going to totally agree with your statement of your life being the greatest thing to ever happen to you. Without that, well you might not be getting anywhere with this blog. Oh, and I love my mom too.
ReplyDeleteCole- I thought it was so interesting how much knowledge you had on the subject of which you opened your response with. I happen to agree with you there too that I just couldn't see myself dying for a "cause."
Bobby- I'm going to quote someone in the biz, you might know him, he goes by Kanye West, "How could you be so heartless?" You wouldn't even die for the ones you loved? Just a difference in opinions, but I'm surprised by your answer to that one.
What do you live for? What would you die for?
ReplyDeleteThe first thing that comes to mind are people- but of course they speak to the “who” and not the “what”. I would die for my beliefs, my convictions, plain and simple. (Immediately I find the connection between the three words and my thoughts). This question reminds me of the Columbine shooting when a girl named Cassie Bernall was asked by the shooter, at gunpoint, if she believed in god. She said yes and was shot and killed – perfect example of dying for one’s convictions. Though I don’t use this example for the religious aspect, it’s the idea. I would never deny the ideals that bind my persona, because I’d hate to be a phony in my own eyes. And “dying for your convictions” doesn’t always necessarily mean DYING. In a sense, it can be sticking to what you believe in no matter what; and having the courage to against all odds.
In a way, athletics have inspired me in these “esoteric concepts” because they aren’t just common characteristics. Sports have fueled my mental strength and have given me courage – against competitors, against my fears, and against my own deceitful mind. Athletics have given me something to be passionate about, something to work for and strive for. Athletics have given me a mental drive and competitive streak that transferred over to the educational field and even into my personality.
Different experiences can inspire courage, passion and conviction. Every seemingy significant event can shape us in life, from a death in the family to trying something new for the first time. These are things that build courage (when facing fears), passion (when discovering talent or interest) and conviction (when learning about something that becomes important to you). In life, I don’t see why there shouldn’t be things to die for. Passion is such an essential element of life, it is a feeling of great intensity, to the point where some people feel as if it cannot be compromised. If someone holds their passions/convictions/beliefs in such value, I say let them be. And that takes courage. And that is the true connection of these words.
Dom - I think it's really interesting how a lot of people started off, or at least mentioned, dying for people. I did too! It stems from the main idea of dying for anything at all, and I think the fact that you truly would die for someone speaks volumes about your character. Some can say it, but never mean it. I'm glad that you were true to yourself here.
Schuyler - One line of your blog post really struck me. "Fear is temporary". I don't know whether to agree or disagree! I guess it depends. The one thing i DO disagree with is that anyone can just muster up courage when necessary. Especially if someone fears the whole premise of courage!
Kendall - Your voice is so prominent in your blog, I love it! The process you went about in answering the question was interesting, and like I said with dom, it shows a lot about someone's character when they express truth in people who they would die for. You differentiated all three brilliantly. Great job :) loved it.
As many people have written, there probably aren't many things/people I'd die for. Other than my close knit friends and family, I don't really have any other people I'd die to save.
ReplyDeletePassion- any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate.
Courage- the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.
Conviction- a fixed or firm belief.
Whether this is good or bad, I'm not sure, but I can honestly say that I don't feel passionately about a lot of things. Hot topic debates don't really matter to me, no matter how much I'm involved. Of my passions are sports and music. Would I die for the Flyers to win the Stanley Cup? Eh, I wouldn't go that far. Would I die to hear my favorite band in concert? Well, I've seen my favorite band in concert, and let's just say that it wasn't worth dying for.
How do you judge one's courage? Because I choose not to speak in front of a crowd, I'm not courageous? If someone performs an act of courage, or bravery, does that mean they're considered that for the rest of his/her life? I can't say whether I'm courageous or not. Does this mean I've never had the chance to show courage? Who knows.
As I said in my paragraph about passion, I don't feel passionately about a lot of things. In correlation with conviction, there aren't many ideas that I feel strongly about. One of the few things I can think of, my belief on religion isn't going to change anytime soon, and I don't see it ever changing, to be honest. I wouldn't die to get my point across to others. I think it would be great if people had the same view as me on religion. The world would be a lot better of a place to live.
James- I strongly disagree with your view of some people here being martyrs. For me, at least, that is certainly not the case. I genuinely love the people I'm usually with and would do anything for them.
Kendall- Turn on the lights! The dark isn't so bad when you know nothing can harm you. Scary movies aren't real, and neither is the boogie man under your bed.
George- I highly agree with how you view dying for a cause. Our country isn't worth dying for. Someone as smart as you can change the world by being alive (like you said) rather than going to war.
(I have no opinion on war so this isn't an anti-war comment)
ReplyDeleteAccording to dictionary.com, these three words are defined as following:
Passion: any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate.
Courage: the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.
Conviction: a fixed or firm belief.
Even before I knew the extent of what ‘anything’ meant, I’ve always known I’d do anything for my family. I may not always like them, but I always love them. I’ve been told that I’m a big ‘mother’s helper’ I like kids, and taking care of people. With this, I’d say that I would definitely be willing to die for my family. Depending on the situation, I might even be willing to die for a stranger-maybe-probably if it were a kid.
Courage definitely plays into this decision. There is no doubt in my mind that it takes courage to die for something. Because dieing for something isn’t giving up-it is the willingness to give yourself up for something you feel is greater than yourself. Dieing for something undoubtedly means facing difficulty, danger, and pain-perhaps not without fear, but with bravery. I think my family gives me courage, as does my thoughts. If I can think about something and come to a sound conclusion about it, I usually don’t have any anxiety and am able to face whatever it is without fear-of being wrong or of screwing up or of getting hurt.
Taking passion at its denotative value, my family is definitely a passion of mine, as are children and animals. I’d say you definitely have to be passionate about something you are willing to die for-otherwise why would you risk yourself? Without passion, your self preservation would kick in long before you were able to die for anything.
Conviction has a place in my willingness to die for my family-it is my conviction in my family and in the fact that I am willing to die for them which helps to give me the courage necessary to face death.
There is no question that I would die for my family-probably without a second thought. If you ask me, everyone should have something they are willing to die for. If there isn’t anything that you are willing to die for, then that means there is nothing that you believe in so firmly that you would stake your life on it—and without something like that, what kind of life could you really lead? It would probably be one without passion, courage, and conviction-which are three things that make life worthwhile.
Kayla: I completely agree with your willingness to die for a child. I think that is probably something most people have in common. Perhaps because of their innocense, there is just something about children that (usually) brings out the best in people. Maybe that is one of the reasons i love them so much.
Mimi: Though I still firmly believe that I would die for my family, I also have those moments of doubt: would I really be able to step up and help someone if the situation required? I'd like to think I would, but we really can't know until such an event falls upon us. I think it would help if we could all be subjected to a little 'What Would You Do?' though I'm not sure everyone would like what they found about themselves.
George: I don't know why, but I was really surprised that you said you weren't willing to die for anything. I can see your point about war and etc. but at the same time, I can't see a world that we, as humans, exist in where some sort of war doesn't take place-it's the price we pay for free thinking and opposable thumbs. I also think that maybe, were you actually put in the position, you would be willing to die to protect someone-you just seem like the type (that's a compliment).
Olivia: I read Schuyler's post before I wrote mine. I tend to mimic styles sometimes. Whoops. There's a reason we all agree on this: maybe we just don't want to die.
ReplyDeleteGeneral statement: I find it odd that people would sacrifice themselves to save the life of someone significantly older than themselves. Maybe I'm just being selfish, but I believe that they had more of a chance to live than you, so why let you die? Honestly, it may be rash, but I'd let someone older than me die before I did. Sounds like a good debate topic.
Nick: Was it Brand New? It would suck dying for that, because then you wouldn't be able to see it anyway. Sleep well tonight. Sweet dreams. <3
The thought of death - much less the thought of sacrificing myself - isn't exactly the most efficient method of getting my gears turning. That being said:
ReplyDeleteAbandoned subway tunnels. Histories of haunted graveyards. Urban legends. Military hierarchies of foreign countries. Esoterica, in a word. I have been cursed with what I can only refer to as a chronic case of morbid curiosity. My defining quality - my lust for knowledge, as it were - is not only the thing for which I live the most; it's also the thing that keeps me searching for more and more ways to make my life interesting. I need not mention the simultaneous convenience and inconvenience of the Internet, and how it has helped/hindered my productivity over the years whilst acting as my primary portal to the infinite realms of the unknown. In other words, having constant access to information beyond my imagination has given me a special addiction, the symptoms of which include an inability to prioritize, an increased attraction to the mundane, and general tiredness.
But I’ll defend my addiction to the bitter end. (Hey, there’s that conviction part!) My passion lies within my increasing ability to absorb and analyze information in order to be able to respond to any mental situation. Going by the standards to which I have chosen to hold myself, I can never let myself be caught off guard, mentally more so than physically. I don’t spend my independent research on the mundane simply for the sake of having something interesting to say – or feigning the state of being interesting. Rather, I fill my brain with information so that I can be *sure* that I can stand my ground if a conversation were to arise involving esoterica, so that I may feel courageous enough to open my mouth every once in a while.
I would stand by my ability to learn, to expand upon the knowledge of this earthly world, and to use that information to help myself and others, until Death pulls me quietly into that dark night.
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ReplyDeleteI've been raised to be very independent. Actually, the lack of "raising" by my parents has caused me to be very independent. So although I've come to take care of and focus on myself, I feel like the deprivation of foundational people in my life has caused an even greater internal want for them. I may not necessarily need people, but I want them.
ReplyDeleteI am passionate about my relationships and friendships. I recognize each person as a special, unique individual, despite all my "I hate the world" ranting. I form connections with people, regardless of whether they know it or feel it. I've often heard of people escaping to their hobbies, their passions, to "make sense of things". I use people as files for my memories and emotions. I care dearly about every person I've come in contact with, many of which may not even remember me. I make sense of my life through the people I know. I am passionate about each and every one.
Continuing on with this idea, the strongest courage I feel is always when others are assuring me. Somebody standing by me, holding my hand, or even just offering a push or positive word, gives me the ability to accomplish anything. As long as somebody else is supporting me, I possess the strength to conquer to world, because in my heart I know that even if I fail, they'll be still be there to pick me up after a nasty fall. My entire life I've had to do everything myself, and on my own terms. The world's too big and I'm too small to continue doing everything for me. There are too many other people to only provide myself satisfaction. Knowing that other people care provides my ultimate drive.
After stating all this, I sincerely believe in the beauty of every human being. Every form of life, even. The quirks, the nuances, the flaws and the strengths that inhabit every creature are all so valuable and yet so under appreciated. I don't care who you are or what you do or what you believe in. I don't know if you're ugly or attractive or stupid or smart or right or wrong. Who can know that? There's no way to. We are all on this Earth, and we don't know how or why. And the key word is we. We are all together. All connected. All the same. All are beautiful.
And it is for this reason that I would die in order to spare the life of someone or something else. Relative to the world, my life is no more important than anyone else's,