Traditions

     Traditions are everywhere in the world. There are the simplistic holiday traditions that are celebrated every year. Plus there are everyday traditions or various other traditions celebrated at different times. Traditions are kept alive by different people throughout different countries and the whole world. Traditions are a good thing, because they keep alive different cultures and beliefs. Plus they usually bring people together happily for at least that time period. However, I would be curious to see how many people in America do not know WHY some of the traditions are done, but have always followed along because that is what society does. For example, Christmas, I wonder how many people celebrate Christmas to be religious vs. the amount of people that could care less and celebrate because they get gifts or because everyone celebrates it. Traditions are good because it forces others to recall parts of their lives or teachings, but they are slowly becoming irrelevant as more and more people could care less about why they are celebrating but as to the more materialistic side of the matter. 

Feminism/Being Single

     My parents are divorced, and my custodial parent is my mom. My mom and my dad have been divorced for quite a while now, and so my mom has been trying to date again. I put her on a online dating site, with the hope that she could meet somebody nice. She goes on dates, but she always comes back disheartened. My mom has trouble at times, getting along with my friends parents too. Both of these situations though, were caused by my parent’s divorce. My mom had to work hard to support my sisters and I, causing her to only believe in herself and us. She is an atheist, because of what God doesn’t do, leading her to not believe in one. She fights so hard every day against society, because some people do not like the fact that she is a very independent and strong woman. She now considers herself a feminist because of who she is. Yet, a lot of people do not care much for her because she is unafraid of voicing her opinions on a subject. She knows when to bite her tongue, but she is usually pretty brutally honest. I admire her for it. She doesn’t enjoy asking for help unless she needs it, and I respect her for it because I know that she is part of the small like-minded minority in America. Feminism is a slow growing movement, but it really needs to hurry up because women need to band together and voice their thoughts to stop the judgment of others!

A World Without Emotions

     A world without emotions would be quite emotionless. Obviously. A world where people don’t express their feelings would be quite interesting. The question however that would come next would be if whether or not people still had feelings and they just didn’t express it, or if they have no feelings at all. If they had feelings and couldn’t express them, I feel that there would still be some form of society left. There would still be a working society because nothing could emotionally affect the people that they could verbalize. However they can still interact with each other. If the world was completely without feelings, I think that everyone would walk around like zombies, not caring what happened to them. If their hand was accidently cut open, for example, I don’t think that that would affect people without emotions. Yet if the society was taught to do certain things if they ever saw blood, since they couldn’t feel it, then humanity might have a chance at survival. If not, then humans would get killed off really fast because they would not know their limits. In general, a world without emotions would be a very boring place, that would eventually die off. 

Drugs and Alcohol

Drugs and alcohol, I feel, are more prominent in today’s society than previous older societies. Drugs are all over the news, as talks about finding drug stashes in schools to people growing and selling. Drugs are now seemingly common in our everyday lives. Alcohol is part of the growing trend, because it is not as big of a deal if you drink compared to previously. Alcohol is almost a prerequisite or a must for every major and “good” party. To me, it seems like society is lowering their standards or people in the world just stopped caring about the welfare of the next generation. However, the younger generations of kids are looked down upon by their elders because they rebel against society and are not always conforming to what is “correct”. What causes the defiance of these rules is that there are so many different ways to portray your inner self in these times than before. There is something for every type of person. By having this though, causes kids to disobey what others say because they want to be different. Alcohol and drugs are just the number one way to be cool and different at the same time, yet that is still not an excuse for using either. 

Popularity and Conformity

     Popularity is one of the most common words heard in today’s world. Kids want to fit in and be cool, so idealizing what’s popular is the best thing to do. Whether or not they agree with what it is, or if they actually like what they are pretending to like is debatable. I don’t usually like things that are popular, because it seems to consist of too much conforming to society for me. When I was little, I recall how everyone was different, but as they slowly grew up, people changed to fit more into society’s view of how the world should be. I remember thinking how everyone is like a clone of each other. I think that conforming to society is alright, but to a point. I enjoy standing out, but yet there are times when conformity is the best way to go, just because it’s something important and you don’t want to be judged off of how you act or look. Conforming to society is one of my fears though, because I think that each person needs to retain their individuality.    

What is the Point of Working Hard?

     All throughout elementary school, kids are told to learn the basics and do well in school, while still having fun. In middle school, kids are told to strive harder for better grades, and to not get too involved in the drama of other kids. Also, to work on building good study habits to be prepared for high school. Plus, middle school classes affect the classes taken freshman year of high school. Then finally, the long awaited four years of high school have finally come. High school is made out to be the best four years because everyone is attending parties and maintaining good grades, while still having a social life. Everything leads to these four years. Then those notions of good times are slowly replaced during freshman year, with the concept of hard work. High school ends up being one of the most stressful times in kids’ lives. The student is expected to get good grades, do what’s right, participate in extracurricular activities and/or sports, volunteer, take care of responsibilities, and have some sort of a social life. Everything leads up to college then, where everything becomes tougher then in high school. There’s time where I wonder what the point is. Why do we strive so hard to achieve? It just seems like a never ending cycle, which causes me to wonder why humans put up with it, beyond feeling like they did something with their lives.    

Music's Affect on Moods

     Have you ever listened to music and have become more depressed, happy, sad, or angry, because of that music? Music changes the moods of humans because music is proven to relieve stress and help people relax. Music is also used for motivation and there is such a thing these days known as musical therapy. Music is a great elevation of one’s mood because it also alters one’s brain waves so then the mood becomes happier even after the person is finished listening to the music. I think that also what type of music listened to helps with moods. For example, screamo music helps with anger, while orchestral music is soothing. Plus the perception of the music playing, I feel also, affects one’s mood. I can make this conjecture because if someone is listening to music that they don’t like, then it’s going to put them in a bad mood because they are bored and dislike the music. The opposite will also occur. I just believe that music can be uplifting for one’s mood based off of that person’s perception of the taste of the music.