Cancelling Captivity

I was somewhat aware of the issue concerning the captivated Orca population. People have been saying these things for years. Many stories have come up about the Orca killings of their trainers. The trainers would say that they had done something wrong. They would say they had upset or scared them in some fashion to make them attack. When Orcas are in the wild, they do not attack. This would suggest that the way we capture and contain these creatures psychologically affects them in a negative way. It makes them have violent bursts which can be deadly for the trainers who get so close and intimate with them. To me it seems like they might be having panic attacks. They might finally start feeling too closed in and freaking out. 

I first heard and learned about it when I went on a field trip in the fifth grade to Sea World. That was about seven to eight years ago. I do not think Orcas should be kept in captivity. They are wild creatures through and through. The only reason they shouldn’t be in the wild is for rehabilitation and they should be released back with their pod. They travel over the entire ocean. There isn’t a tank big enough to adequately give them the swim space they need. I think the Orca Awareness Project is needed. They need our help from ourselves. They will no longer be the majestic creatures we love if we don’t help them. People need to be aware exactly what buying a Sea World ticket actually is costing them and the Orca population. 

Cracked Mirrors Reflection

We do not reflectively show the people of our country through our elected officials. Many still believe that it should just be white men governing the country. Although, many of the past presidents have shown that even though they themselves are the president, the first lady is a very strong role as well. They have shown that the women have a lot of pull about what happens. In the past the women have made their influences behind closed doors, with the mask of a man voicing their opinions.

That is not how it is meant to be anymore. We should hear every ones voice, not only the white men and the white women. We should let all races and genders be heard. Gone are the days of silent women. Gone are the days of slavery and unequal rights to people of color, or of different ethnic background. Gone are the days of being seen and not heard. For our democracy to reflect more accurately we must make the changes we want to see in it ourselves. We as a people must elect the women. We as a people must elect the minorities. We as a people must allow them to represent us for everything we stand for.

If we continue to let our elected officials be represented by a minuscule population of the public, we will never get the results that we are striving for. This reflection is of our own doing, and it’s the job of the people everywhere in the United States to correct it.

Naming Your Integrity

I am friends with a family. I have known them since I moved here over eight years ago. They are from a Polynesian, and more specifically Tongan culture. The generation that is my age was all born in the United States, but all the older generations were born in Tonga. They are a very proud people and do not hide from their culture but celebrate it in their everyday lives.

To everyone else, they have names you hear in everyday life. Danny, Sam, or Simon, but if you are around them during other times, like at their house, or during close family gatherings, they go by other names. You will hear Taniela, Semasoni or others. They do not loose integrity because they go by two names. If they are only allowed to use their real name on Facebook, which name should they put? Their Tongan name is their real name, but their American names are also their real names. Those names are on every paper they turn in at school, the name they sign the bottom of letters and notes with.

Our society has ruled that their Tongan names are too hard to pronounce. We have said that they are not American enough for us. With these judgments that we have passed we have made them assume another identity. This however, makes them no less of a person. They should feel free to make their name on any social media site be either name, or even both if they choose.  I do not think that they lose any integrity by having both their names. I believe it gives them more integrity.

Mr. Fix It Takes a Nap.

There should be no fixing of other peoples writing. Each of us is here to discover our own truths, to listen to our inner teacher, to take our own inner journey. We are not here to set someone else straight, or to help right another's wrong, to "fix" what we perceive as broken in another member of the group.
It is no ones business the exact thoughts or things happening in someones head. We do not need someone telling us we are wrong. The case just might be that our answer, or action, is wrong for the person disagreeing. In truth it might be exactly what the speaker needs. We are all broken in some way or another. If we all tried fixing everyone at once, or tried to tell them we knew best for them, no one would ever progress.
We speak/write to find out the things we cannot diffidently say. Some things are not as simple as 'what is your favorite color?'. Sometimes we do not know we feel a certain way until we read it on paper. This is the true meaning of an inner journey. 

I love the 'To This Day' video. I've watched it many times before and every time it gets me like it did the first time. We, as a whole, are a cruel generation. Just as the one before us and the one that will be after us. 

There are people everyday who take their lives. My cousin hung himself only a couple months ago. He chose not to leave a note. For everyone who he left behind, we have no idea why he decided that it was to much for him to stay. He left family and friends with unanswered questions and a broken heart. 

Could he have been saved if people knew that words hurt like sticks and stones? Could all the other people who chose to leave this world of their own choice been saved countless pain? 'To This Day' wants us to know that these things are real and they happen all the time. People can change this and they can make it through. 

To This Day I miss Daniel. R.I.P. cousin. 

Shit to Stupendous [1]

Writing is not all about the finished product. It's more about the process. Anne Lamott says that your first draft is to get started, it's get something on paper. I completely agree with that. When I sit down to write, everything is jumbled in my head. Nothing is where I want it to be and some concepts that I think are so important to the point you are trying to make end up being tiny things you end up cutting out of your final draft. 

You can always fix something terrible but you can't fix nothing. When you have something written on paper you can go through it, add words and ideas. You cannot just sit down and pour out a master piece in one try. It has to be formed and molded through revision and drafting.This takes time but leaves you with a fantastic end piece to present.