During this unit I think I have improved on several skills. Talking with my peers about my book help me realize more things that I missed about the book when thinking about it on my own. Having to fill out the booklet while reading it helped me focus more and pick up on things I wouldn't have noticed if I just read the book. I think my analyzing skills have improved during this unit a lot. Knowing that we had frequent meetings for the lit circles made me organized and self regulated. If we didn't have meetings that often I wouldn't have read the book as fast and wouldn't felt as motivated to finish my work.
In the book Motorcycles & Sweetgrass one of the main characters that could be referred to as inferior was Virgil. He was a quiet, withdrawn teenager who would often skip school to go off and be on his own. He was a sad character who had recently lost his grandmother, putting him in a vulnerable mental state.
When Virgil was off one day at his rock in the grass, a threatening character named John made his intentions clear regarding his interest in Maggie, Virgil's mother. Virgil must have felt inferior at this point because everyone else didn't seem to realize that John wasn't some perfect guy. It must have been very frustrating and worrying having to be associated with such a guy, and having no one believe or understand the truth about him. Virgil contradicts his inferior trait by getting his uncle Wayne to help get John out of town. Virgil knew what was right or wrong, and even though no one else could see John through his perspective, he knew he need to get John away from his mother and their reserve. By the end of the book Virgil proved to actually be fairly superior, Motorcycles and Sweet grass is mainly located in an aboriginal reserve by Otter Lake. The Lake is a very important aspect of this story. In the prologue a man and a woman swim together in the lake with fish which I'm assuming were Lillian the grandmother and Nanabush, the trickster. When the grandmother passes away Nanabush meets her daughter Maggie who he pursues. He takes her swimming in the Lake at night after a date. I think this shows how much people are interconnected in life and how each different person leads you to meeting new people. If Nanabush hadn't been associated with Lillian would Maggie have ever met him? When they meet it causes tension between Nanabush and Virgil. Virgil travels across the Lake to where Wayne, Maggie's brother, lives. I think the distance that Wayne lives from them could also symbolize their emotional distance. It shows in real life that even your loved ones will begin to lose contact, and you'll struggle to keep close with them. The Lake in this book creates a lot of connections to the real world.
I learned a lot in the past week or two. Some really shocking things that I was so oblivious to before about what aboriginal people have gone through and still are going through. We live such easy going lives especially compared to what a lot of other people not far have to go through. One thing that really stood out to me was learning about residential schools. It's unbelievable some of the things that went on in them, I can't even process it. The amounts of physical, sexual, and verbal abuse that went on is sickening. Child labor was very common because of how poorly the schools were funded. The last school was demolished in 1996. Think about how recent that it. There are still many awful things that still go on today. Aboriginals don't have enough clean water in some situations and the Government prioritizes the wealthier people still. It's insane the society we live in. It's truly unfair what the aboriginals must go through, but it is improving. A while ago it was a lot more terrible than it is now, but it's still currently not enough. We must continue giving them more fair rights and treating them better because they are people too. I hope one day that they will be treated with as much respect and fairness as everybody else.
http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/government-policy/the-residential-school-system.html I really liked the Ted talk "Your body is my canvas" by Alexa Meade. Her talk was very captivating and interesting. Personally I love art so right away I knew I would be engaged in this video. She shocked me with her unique talent and all of the examples she showed really impressed me.
Alexa Meade is very inspirational because even though she studied political science in school she discovered that being an artist was what she was meant to do. She showed me that you don't have one set path in life, and you're not forced to do what others and yourself feel you have to do. If you want to do something, you can do it. You should do whatever will make you happy. Her technique in art is very creative. She literally paints onto people then photographs them. The 3D person she painted then appears 2D in the photograph. I've never seen anyone do what she did before and I think that it's awesome that she was the first person to come up with this, and will be remembered for a long time. She is a very talented, unique, and inspirational artist who I definietly look up to in many ways. Staying motivated in life is a hard thing to do, and sometimes even the smallest things can help, like treating yourself to buying something new. Don't get me wrong, going out and spending all your money on a shopping spree won't do anything except increase your stress, but buying one little thing to boost your mood is totally worth it.
Personally buying a new piece of clothing that I love will immediately bring up my spirits. Walking around in something you feel good in will without a doubt help your confidence, and your mood. If you're feeling stressed and unmotivated and have been eyeing a certain thing for a while, go out and buy it! Now, if you're struggling with money don't go buy something you can't afford, but if you've been saving a bit of money, go for it. Nothing is better than boosting your mood and confidence by treating yourself once in a while! Life is hard for everyone, and you all deserve to get a little something you want every now and then! You're walking home in the freezing cold. You're walking along the icy sidewalk and fierce snow and winds are hitting what feels like every inch of your body. All that's on your mind is reaching your warm house. Your face is so cold you can't even feel it anymore, and you're wondering if you'll make it home alive. You never knew how much you appreciated the warmth of your house until this moment. You're so close to your destination you can almost taste it. Only a few more steps now. Your whole body feels frozen as you reach to open the door. You step into your home and you say a sigh of relief. Warm air fills your presence and your whole mood changes. All the unpleasant thoughts that filled your mind a moment ago are now replaced with only happiness. You are safe from the cold and can now relax and enjoy the warmth. You don't have to worry about hypothermia, frostbite or making it home anymore.. until next time.
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