FREE WRITE !

What to write, what to write.... well what's on my mind? I've been pretty chill lately actually. Nothing's been going on except school and cheer leading. I find it to be really fun even though sometimes we look bad out there and practice isn't always fun, I make the best out of it. School is going pretty good STILL which I'm very proud of myself with because I have tendencies to slack off once I see I did a good job first marking period. but I was working on it and I'm passing all of my classes STILL :) . I'm pretty satisfied with everything but I shouldn't speak too soon because we all know how that goes. Guess I just have to see what's next to come.

I've Changed ..

As humans, we grow. Positively, negatively and overall we just develop in ways that are mental and physical. Yes, I, Yasmin Mercedez Lopez, has CHANGED. Some may say for the better and some may say for worse, but what do I say? I say I'm living. I don't like how everyone portrays change as a bad thing, because EVERYONE changed whether it was from a long time ago or recently, people change and even though no one will tell you that they feel it's in a bad way, everyone will have their own opinions. So why dwell on what anyone else has to say about yourself if you are finally comfortable in the skin you are in. The reason why people are so uptight about change is because they are afraid. Afraid of trying new things and liking it, afraid that a new lifestyle would actually be okay and that it can teach you new things; but people are afraid to let go and move on and start something new. It's a problem, I feel that we humans as a whole have, not necessarily basing it on change EXACTLY , but overall we just don't know how to adapt with situations where we are WILLINGLY taking control of our future's. But, I can honestly sit her and say that yes I have changed, but I'm perfectly fine with who I became, whether it had been positive or negative, I am finally comfortable with who I am. 

In other classes, there isn't much that I can say about what we are learning and how interested I am in it, except for one class. Global and World History have never been my favorite nor strongest subjects, but this year the seniors are taking Government and I won't lie but it's interesting. Ms. Tomlin goes over the amendments and how the Government uses them in cases against the people and how they go about it, whether they won or lost we have to know the ins and outs. I feel like this Government class helps us as people and citizens know how to approach certain similar situations if we were ever to get involved in, and what amendments help protect our rights in those cases, which is actually very helpful in all honesty. I'm a good person though :D lol

Recently, we have been going over the general idea on how life is. Not intentionally, but Fahrenheit 451 seems to direct us into the philosophical way of thinking, which is rather great because I love questioning the way of life and why everything is the way it is. In one part of the book, it talks about how the use of books are slowly dying down, and other "items" are being put into full use. "No WONDER  books stopped selling, the critics said. But the public, knowing what it wanted, spinning happily, let the comic books survive. And the three dimensional sex magazines, of course." [page 61) This is actually my favorite quote throughout that whole section because it has a lot of meaning deep into it. When the author says 'no wonder the books stopped selling', it makes me think of a time where books will NEVER be heard of. It's kinda hard to actually grasp that idea because books aren't just objects, they are someone's livelihood, as Ms. Gilpin once said, so it means so much more than just paperweight... it's knowledge that can benefit someone if not you. So for the fact that the book stated 'no wonder the books stopped selling', it shows me that they are in a crisis. A time where the people lacked knowledge of their surroundings and how their government is trying to dumb them down, and the society is okay with it because all anyone wants to do is the follow the rules and fit in. So standing out in this scenario would be a crime because if all you know is order, rebelling is going against that, and who wants to be different anyway right? WRONG. So from that piece of text from the book, I concluded that people are so consumed in obeying the rules that no one wants to take initiative into asking WHY the rules are the way they are. It's okay to be different though in my opinion :) .

 What is "Passion"? To feel passionate is to have an strong and unbearable emotion . Now the next question is ' What Am I Passionate About ? ' I honestly love to draw and take pictures. I love being able to use the world as my inspiration, and I love being able to look at everything from a different perspective. I had an interest in art ever since young. As a little girl doodling would calm me down and excite me- it would 'fill a whole' that I was missing and put me at a calm place. It relaxes me and I can never say that I would want to ever stop drawing. With photography, I never really was into pictures. I didn't like too many pictures of me [which is odd to hear because I literally take selfies every day) but it always starts off in a funny way. I do remember in the summer of 6th grade, I took a photography class just to try it out because it seemed fun, which it was, and it always remained in the back of my mind. Then 7th grade I received my first iPhone and that's when Instagram was new and so I could just take pictures of everything and I really enjoyed it. Now here I am , senior year and I'm looking into the Art Institute of Philadelphia, trying to turn my passion into a lifelong dream that became a reality. I would say that I'm really into drawing and taking photos, not only because my work is nice, but because I feel as if I can expresses my inner feelings and no one will judge what I draw or take pictures of, and that is why I love it so much. I am able to be free.

So I am aware that there was no blog due today, but the purpose of a blog is to express your feelings on a topic and that's what I'm deciding to do right now. Yesterday we had our very first Socratic seminar and I was apart of the first group who went and participated. Our discussion was about teenagers and their usage on technology. We came up with our own questions, went around the circle and read them aloud. We began with Marshay's question which was asking something about what would happen if there were no more books, and only technology was available, could we still be able to learn. I was the first to start the discussion and I blatantly said I feel like we just wouldn't learn. With my response to her question, everyone began to have very different opinions, which was a very good thing in the case that as a class we could be okay with having an organized and well respected discussion. Yes, even though I heard many responses saying that we can learn without books, I am holding my ground because of personal reasons on that question. But its okay to have a different opinion in a Socratic seminar, that's what it's all about anyways right?

Today in class, we were reading articles about the media and television. I honestly don't watch t.v, because of the fact that I feel its fake and just not good for our minds. The articles that we were reading weren't glorifying the media, they were explaining how "all that glitters ain't gold", which is true in this case because of the fact that they only get a $20 to $30 stipend every day, most reality shows aren't actually 'reality', they are staged, and not everything that was recorded was shot in the same day, which is what some shows fail to tell the truth about. Things like that really bother me because of the fact that the television is something that every household has and we rely on information from it, but not all of it is accurate. I feel like the media lies due to how gullible society views everyone. Whatever we see on TV we believe because its on TV which is a big problem we as the people have. Those are my thoughts on the articles and my opinion on the media.

Yasmin. Yasmin is a name that I would say is undefined. It has no specific meaning, but then again there is still MEANING in the word. I know a story of a girl who comes from the projects of Harlem who was raised by a single mother, Whos' significant other wanted nothing to do with his child, and so the child was always the outcast. The child was always alone. The child felt as if all she knew in this life was her mother. The child was never good at speaking aloud, or showing her emotions, or standing out. What the child did have though was a very good head on her shoulders. She was smart. She loved school and the child found joy from learning new things. Overtime she outgrew her shy phase and began to make a lot of friends and was beginning to find herself, becoming more outspoken, vibrant and free. Life became rather difficult over the years for her and there have been multiple times where she wanted to give up. But everyone always says God gives his hardest battles to his toughest soldiers so I know that kept the poor child going. Overtime things slowly but shortly began to look up for her and now she cant complain, but it was a long journey to get to where she is now even though nothing has finished yet for her, Life's only just begun. Yasmin is undefined. Yasmin is me and this is my blog.