We're the young generation, and we've got something to say

After the Associated Press released a report detailing a new North Korean nuclear facility, my family (as we often do) sat in the living room and discussed how this latest development will affect the world and ultimately, the future. My parents are extremely conservative thinkers, and my brother is almost as conservative as they are. I'm the family "liberal" although I simply consider myself to be moderate. (Some of my classmates tell me instead that I'm a "liberal conservative," but labels work so much better on soup cans, right?) While I agree with my family on a lot, we also have our differences. Especially concerning nuclear capabilities.

This won't be a blog discussing the pros and cons of having a nuclear arsenal. This is a blog discussing what other topic came up in our debate: Why is my generation so idealistic and why do a lot of us have pacifist leanings?  My parents tried to figure this out after I mentioned that no human being has the right to create such a destructive weapon as an atomic bomb. Of course they disagreed with me and called me a pacifist, but we still came up with some answers to the aforementioned question that may or may not be true. Below is a list of theories that came up in our discussion (and in my brain).

1.) This recent "Peace, Love, and Happiness" fad is just "blowin' in the wind," as Bob Dylan would say, and we'll eventually forget about peace signs and war protests.


2.) The liberals in the American government have "brainwashed" the young people to believe that nuclear weapons, wars, and any kind of violence should be put to rest.  Unfortunately, this is not the real world, so we might as well realize that war gets stuff done.

3.) Hollywood (e.g. Michael Moore and Barbra Streisand) has leaked anti-war in Iraq views into movies and music, which of course does not represent real life.

4.) The parents and adults that govern the young generation were the original picket protesters, so they're the only reason we're so outspoken against war and the government.

and finally, my personal theory:

Young people have always been able to see what society is doing wrong.  It was young people who marched in the civil rights movement.  It was young people who protested the cruelties of the draft during the Vietnam War.  It was young men who fought in the Civil War.  It was young revolutionaries who fought in the ragtag armies that captured independence for the colonies.

So what is my generation doing now?

Are we trying to put an end to war as a whole?  Are we daring to dream that maybe a world without war could exist?  Could it be possible that war can one day be as outdated as segregation in America?

Could it be that like every other generation before us, the young people are one step ahead in our thinking?

I think it is certainly something to consider as the older generation is building nuclear facilities and drawing lines in the sand. Perhaps my generation won't be the one to stop all the fight, but maybe we'll plant the seeds in the hearts of the next generation.


You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will live as one. 
--John Lennon

And so this is Christmas...yet the world is so wrong?

As Christmas approaches, we Americans are getting excited about family gatherings, holiday food, Christmas trees, and of course, lots of presents.  So while we start to gain our holiday pounds, chew on this:

• If you live on more than $10 a day, you are in the top 20% wealthiest people on earth.
• 22,000 children die each day due to poverty.
• 40 million people are living with AIDS/HIV.
• 15 million children are orphaned due to AIDS/HIV.
• Each year, more people die from indoor air pollution (due to the poor's burning of solid fuels) than malaria and tuberculosis combined.
• 1.1 billion people have inadequate access to water.
• There are 2.2 billion children in the world. 1 billion of these children are living in poverty.
• $12 billion a year goes to the worldwide human trafficking industry--and yes, wealthy world leaders and politicians are responsible for much of this.
• Less than 1% of what the world spends every year on weapons could have been used to put every child into school by the year 2000.
  
   If these stunning facts don't strike a chord with you, then maybe this video will. I don't ever hide the ugliness of the world, so if these images disturb you...well, maybe that's a good thing.
  
   So how can we fight back?
  First of all, I don't think that literally "fighting" is the answer, so the Peace Corps really has my respect. They don't represent one political view, religion, or people group. They're just doing good in the name of peace. I'll be donating to the Corps this holiday season.
  
  But, here are more specific charities that may capture your heart:
  
  
  Charities, foundations, and organizations that are taking donations or gifts to fight world poverty:
  Compassion (sponsor a child in a developing nation)
  United Nations Children's Fund (more widely known as UNICEF)
  The Hunger Site (give monetary gifts)
  World Vision's Haiti Mission (sponsor a child in Haiti)
  Somaly Mam (an organization to stop human trafficking and sex slavery)
  
  FREE ways to fight the cruelty of the world:
  Free Rice (play games for free to donate rice to hungry people)
  The Hunger Site  (click the big yellow button and sponsors will donate food, sign petitions, and register with the site to donate food)
  NeoAid Search Engine (surf the web and rack up donations at no cost to you)
  Campbell's Chunky Click for Cans (vote for your favorite football team to donate cans of soup)
  End Homelessness (click and sponsors will give money)
  
  Get your Christmas shopping done AND give back at these retail sites:
  Toms Shoes (buy a pair of shoes [the most comfortable shoes ever, I might add] and they will donate a pair to a child in need)
  Survivor Empowerment Store (scarves, jewelry, and books--proceeds go to Somaly Mam and survivors of human trafficking)
  St. Jude Children's Research Hospital  (clothing, jewelry, toys, accessories, and more to benefit St. Jude [finding cures for sick children, even if families cannot afford medical care])
  (Red) (tons of popular products including Apple, Converse, Starbucks, Dell, Gap, etc...50% of proceeds go to AIDS/HIV programs in Africa)
  
  And so this is Christmas, for weak and for strong, for rich and the poor ones. The world is so wrong. And so happy Christmas, for black and for white, for yellow and red ones. Let's stop all the fight! A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Let's hope it's a good one without any fear.
  (War is over, if you want it!)
  (John Lennon and Yoko Ono)

A Love Letter

Dear High School,

Since we are in the fourth year of our relationship, I feel that I should write you a love letter and let you know how much I appreciate everything you have taught me.  This has truly been an enlightening experience, and every year just adds a new layer to the vast knowledge I have culminated in roughly 125 weeks.  How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways...

English taught me that essays should convey lots of emotion and conviction; and that Atticus Finch, Snowball, and Juliet Capulet would change my life. Never climb a tree with your jealous friend, because it didn't work out too well for Finny.  Antigone, Anne Moody, and Adolf Hitler were also the professors of various moral lessons I learned. Biology enlightened me on the fact that the periodic table is not really necessary to understand the world around you. I was also taught personal health and anatomy and physiology.  I even dissected a mink. In Algebra, I learned that there really is a method to the madness of alphabet soup in an equation. In Geometry, I learned what a rhombus is and was educated in how to defend my postulates and theorems. Mississippi Studies and Geography enlightened me on the wonders of soil and the lies of "global warming."  In Spanish, I was educated on other cultures and even learned how to get by in Peru, which I exercised the summer after my sophomore year. When it came to art, I was taught that creativity should have no limits. I mastered the art of driving. I learned to respect the Medici and was able to list every single belief in Gandhi's personal religion.  Since I went to high school in 2008--the eve of a great change--I even debated the policies of John McCain and Barack Obama, and celebrated the fact that finally, my great nation was able to elect a minority to the highest office in the world.  I made friends with the wonderful Jay Gatsby, Huckleberry Finn, and Tea Cake--and I made a coveted "8" on my expository essay.  I explored the physics of a falling balloon and even learned the recipe for silly putty. I became a master of linear programming and invisible numbers.  US History also educated me on the dark history of America and how far our country has come since our founding.  I also took a physical education class, and as a result can send a birdie over a badminton net.

But I learned lessons from the outside world and from other students that, somehow, overshadowed all of those wonderful education opportunities.

For example, I learned that SparkNotes are far more interesting and shorter than the actual books.  I realized that you don't actually have to do your homework if your teacher only checks it for completion--for Spanish, just write the entire Taco Bell menu, and for math, just write random numbers and X's in an orderly fashion.  I found that it is ridiculously easy to throw a project together the period before it is due.  It's useful to have the same handwriting as your friends.  If you have a creeper male teacher, the "dumb blonde" act scores you an A.  I learned that you should become best friends with the person sitting next to you, but only if that person is smarter or more studious than you, because you don't want assistance from just anyone.  And though this is an overused Facebook cliche, the word "finals" really actually does mean "F*ck I Never Actually Learned (this) Sh*t."

And now, as I'm in the throes of my senior year, how am I using all of this knowledge?  Well, my dear, these three years of high school, you have really helped me.

Suddenly, you are supposed to have NO emotion in your essays.  I don't even remember the main characters in the books I just alluded to--once again, SparkNotes helped me with those few characters I listed there. Yet I'm still expected to be able to crank out a "9" essay on them in 40 minutes with a pencil? The periodic table actually IS important and will kick your angle-side-side if you don't know how to use it.  I've never used a rhombus but suddenly math has a limit--and it doesn't exist?!?  Silly putty is completely useless but apparently it's important to know how many moles are in a chemical I've never even heard of?  The benefits of invisible numbers are, well, invisible.  And as for the rocky road that America has been traveling, according to AP Microeconomics and AP Government, we haven't even made it to the dreaded fork in the road.  Even though I learned about herpes and cancer, I was never taught that seniorits is actually a life-threatening disease that no one will take the motivation to cure. And the only letter that is actually useful in math is K--as in, "Our university will cost you $15K a semester."

Obviously, high school, you are not working hard enough to outscream the promises of SparkNotes and the Taco Bell menu, because my slacker "let's just scrape by" methods have left me desperate and disappointed in the most important year of my high school career.  But I still love you...because...well...oh, never mind.

Thanks a lot,
Your latest senioritis patient

P.S. As for the social studies lessons you have taught me...it's November and I'm wearing shorts, so global warming is taking place somewhere.  And as for our great minority president?  He's handing out my college money to illegal immigrants.  Suck on that, you extreme conservatives and extreme liberals.  Seriously, high school, can't you hire some moderates?

P.P.S. You're probably wondering: where does this leave our relationship?  Well...we're done in 2011.

Fancy Seeing You Here!

Okay, I've done this like...118347234 times. I've customized a really cool blog, brainstormed blog titles, written really promising first posts...and then I never think about it again.

So why am I doing it again? I'm really not sure. I don't know if I will stick to writing this blog, or if I will simply desert it and move on to another one a few months later.  But my argument as to why I should keep a regular blog is this: how will my writing ever improve if no one is allowed to read it?

I've never had a problem with expressing my opinion about anything, but when it comes to my poetry and my) prose, I'm a little more private. I also tend to write news articles and columns and commentaries that never see the outside of my little green notebook. I don't do it because I want to be a reporter or because I consider myself to be the next George Orwell. I won't ever be either. I do it because sometimes I think I see the world differently than those around me. I don't view the world through a rose-colored glass, but instead I think it's a yellow-colored glass. Bright, loud, cheery, and sometimes sad. (Have you ever seen a single yellow wildflower in a field? It's lonely, and it has no one to cheer up. It's one of the saddest sights in the world.) Yellow has the ability to offend people--like my beloved yellow nail polish that a friend has described as "a fungus"--and yellow has the ability to make people smile. Yellow can actually represent every different mood in the world, if you use your imagination, unlike "rose," which only represents the good.

But enough with color analysis. Let me introduce myself, in case you've stumbled upon this little blog and are still interested after all of that...

My name is Sarah.

I am a senior in high school.

I am at peace with the past, bored with the present, and terrified of the future.

My current list of career possibilities includes:
-high school English or Creative Writing teacher
-graphic designer
-photographer

But I will be writing novels and poetry no matter what I do.

I am obsessed with the idea of being a wife and mother, but I will never, ever be a Stepford or a Proverbs 31 woman.

I feel most confident when I'm wearing high heels and lipstick.

I am very idealistic when it comes to politics, but I figure I'll be an "Independent" when I'm able to vote.

I am extremely clumsy, and my foot apparently likes to be in my mouth.

I am a hopeless romantic.

I am a living testimony to the phrase, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Feel free to leave a comment and introduce yourself, friend.