What I Believe About Art

               Art can be expressed in many forms. It may be expressed in a drawing or a painting. Music and dancing can also be an art. Performance art like playing an instrument can also be an art. There is also a combination of the two like drama or a musical where people sing and dance at the same time. Art diversified as time passed and now, it is being combined with technology. There are instruments like digital piano and synthesizers that make the music richer.

               Many people say that this progressive trend of art is harming its original form. More people are beginning to ignore the original types of arts like classical music. Not many people these days favor classical music over dub steps. It is important to treasure the original types of music. However, if only the original types are favored, there will be no change in art. Art develops because it follows the trend. As time passes, the trend is going to change. Also, there are still people who love original types of arts. As long as it is completely ignored by the human society, it is going to exist in the world.

               Music is therapeutic. Many people use music to heal people’s emotional or mental problems, and results show that they are truly effective. There are also other experiments that are not based on humans. The experiment shows that plants that are exposed to classical music regularly are more likely to grow faster and healthier than those that are not. The experiment also showed that not every kinds of music worked. Music like heavy metal on the contrast had a negative effect on the plant. Plants that were exposed to fast tempo songs became ill even though they had ample amount of sunlight and water. Slow tempo songs, especially classical music, worked the best. It is assumed that this is because slow tempo songs calm the mind. Music promotes peace in one’s mind, and this both helps human and non-humans.

               Although classics are not my favorites, I was constantly exposed to them as I grew up. I played clarinet in band, and some of our songs in band were classical music.  Before, I just detested listening to them. Now, I can actually appreciate the beauty of it (although I don’t enjoy it as much as listening to fast tempo songs). Listening to classical music calms my mind and actually it really did help me focus more on whatever I am working on. Still, I favor fast tempo songs. Slow tempo songs tend to calm people and fast tempo songs tend to excite people.

               I love music also because they invoke memories about the past. Sometimes, it brings up bad memories, but most of the time, they remind me of the good times I had. Thinking about these memories bring happiness at least for a moment (listening to music is a way to escape reality) and lets me forget about whatever that is going around in my life (usually bad). Music is like another part of the world. World that is not realistic but more like imaginative. Listening to music is a way of relieving stress. Without music, I would be stressed every day trying to figure out a way to escape reality. 

What is Meaning of Life

               Life is defined variously depending on people. It may differ depending on their gender, nationality, cultural background, or their political beliefs. Many people live want to live to their fullest or pursue happiness, but how do people live to their fullest and pursue happiness? It may be an ordinary thing like meeting someone you love and having a family. It might be going to a good college and getting a good job to earn a lot of money, and this is actually part of my meaning of life. Having a good reputation or a lot of money isn’t everything, but these are the things I need in order to achieve my ultimate goal which is to travel all around the world.

               Whenever I go to airports (anywhere. I mean any airports even including Saipan…which I think is weird too), I get this sense of joy, I get so excited and elated at the thought of going somewhere. I have always been the kind of person who does not like to stay in one place but like to go around and learn and experience the culture of different places. I like meeting new people at new places and making memories there. Going to different places is really inspiring. I learned more lessons about life in my trip to London than my whole junior high school years. Going to London really made me mature because I could actually manage things by myself. There was no one who told me what to do. I could spend money on whatever I want to, but I also had to use it so that I had enough money to use for food. I also could do whatever I want to do. No one was there to tell me what to do (especially no one to start nagging).

               I want to get good grades in school, so I can go to a good college. I want to go to a good college, so I can earn a lot of money. I want to earn a lot of money, so I can have enough money to spend during my trips. If I don’t make a lot of money, it will be difficult for me to travel around the world.

               First of all, I want to travel to Europe. I don’t know why, but I always wanted to go to Europe. I think that it might be because all Koreans think that Europe is the ideal place to go to. It might be also because I have already been to Europe. Although I was born and raised in Korea for 10 years, I don’t feel the pull to travel to Asia rather than Europe. I think that this is because I feel like I already know a lot about Asian culture or at least I know one of the Asian cultures very well. When I go to Europe, I’m going to visit London again. I have so many memories about London. Then I want to travel to Paris, Rome, and many other countries. After I finish my Europe trip, I’m going to travel to countries around the world and experience what it is like to live in different places. World is there for a reason. Countries are different for a reason. My goal is to find this reason before my life ends.

What I Believe About Justice

Although America is called the Land of Justice, I do not think that justice exists or at least it is so corrupted that it can no longer be considered as justice. There is corruption everywhere. Justice in America is based on the laws, but how can it be called justice when the law itself is corrupt? Law is created by man, and humans have faults. No one is perfect; therefore there is no creation of men that is perfect. Since the law is one of the many creations of men, it is corrupt. If it did not have any faults, there would be no trouble in the land of America. Everything would be settled by the law, and everyone would be happy about it.

               No one can define justice. There is no standard in which justice can be determined. One’s mind cannot be the standard for the morals, because everyone has different opinions. It cannot be based on the law, because it is corrupt. Democracy does not work, because it is made up of opinions of people. What is justice? It is what is right and wrong. But what is right and wrong? What is right? What is wrong? Is doing what your authority (teachers, parents, and the government. Yes. Parents in particular) tells you to do the right thing to do? Is disobeying the authority the wrong thing to do? Can your mind decide what is right or wrong? Yes, it can. However, it would only be right to you. To some extent, it would be right to many other people’s mind, but it cannot be right to everyone’s mind. Finding the standard in which everyone can agree on is a problem the humanity has to solve, and there is no certain that this standard will ever be set. Many forms of government have been invented and disappeared. Fascism is one of the forms that disappeared. Majority of the world believes in democracy, and so far, I think that the democracy is the best government form that has ever been invented. Although one’s mind cannot be considered to be the standard of moral, minds of many can be at least be considered close to being the standard of moral since the majority agrees with it. The mind of the majority would result in less criticism, and majority will agree on the subject.

               In Korea’s court, there is a scale that weighs justice. The person holding this justice is blindfolded so that the measurement would be done in a fair way. However, Korea is not following this either. There is corruption everywhere. People lobby and bribe. Because of these, regardless of what it should have been, the winner is always the one who forms an intimate relationship with the one in court whether it’s the judge or even the prosecutor. If the person judging is blindfolded, knowing nothing of who is involved, then the person would be able to make the right decision based on the law. But the opposing side would not agree with their loss. Unless there can be a decision where everyone can agree on, there would be no set standard or the right standard for determining what is justifiable and what is not.  

What I Believe About Truth

               I believe that truth needs to be concealed sometimes. Trying to hide the truth by lying is bad. I’m not saying that everyone should lie just to hide their faults so they don’t have to deal with the consequences. Lying leads to lying, so lying in the first place would not be a good idea to choose at first. However, there are some instances where truth must be hidden.

               One reason is to keep the innocence and the childhood dreams of children. Children are fascinated by things so easily, and Santa Claus is one of the things they are mesmerized by. Of course, the adults know that Santa Claus exists, but every Christmas, they would buy presents for them and say that Santa Claus came by. Some would even dress up as a Santa and be a Santa Claus for their children just for a day so they would not ruin their thoughts of Santa Claus. Debunking the idea of Santa Claus may bring shock the children. Some children find out the truth by discovering by accident that their parents were the Santa Claus. Even though the truth that Santa Claus is not real cannot be concealed forever, having the thought of receiving presents from Santa Claus at the time of your childhood should be treasured. Childhood is the time when you should be innocent, knowing nothing of the truth about the real society.

               Another reason is to hide something that will hurt the others emotionally. Although it is not a good idea (since they are going to find out sometime later), I think that it should be hidden so that they can be unaware of it as long as it possibly could to prevent them from experiencing mental or heart breakdown. It may be the death of a distant relative (I would not say close relative, because the news is going to spread fast and it must be known soon. Not knowing the death of your close relatives can even bring guilt, and this would hurt the person more). Some people might argue that they should face it when it comes to them since they are going to find it out anyways. Why not face it now and get over with it? I do agree to a certain degree. They are going to find out in the end, but there are some people who can never get over these things because of emptiness, guilt, or whatever it may be. To these people, I just want them to live a happy life for at least a little bit longer, so they would not have to live in misery for a longer time.

               I think that hiding the truth may aggravate the situation. Some will certainly get mad for not knowing the truth earlier, but they would have to realize that it was done for the benefit of them. When it is done for the benefits of others, lying should not be considered a bad deed or even a sin. How can it be bad when it is benefitting someone? It is certainly bad when a person tries to hide the truth, like cheating in a test for instance, to prevent from getting a detention or a suspension. However, lying must not be looked in a bad way when it is for the benefit of others. Lying can bring peace for at least a longer period of time (Why not keep the peace longer when it is certain that it is going to be broken soon?) and this would mean that everyone would be happy at least for a longer period of time. 

How Do I Connect to Others?

               In movies, I’ve seen people connect to others by telepathy. In real life, that never works. Telepathy is just one of the supernatural powers movie directors have created just to make money. I connect to people by sharing my opinions and listening to theirs whether it is about a political subject or about real life.

               In books or essay, the author tries to build a relationship with the readers to convey their message more effectively. Sometimes, they try to establish a persona by sharing their personal experience of something. By reading about a little bit of authors life, the readers are able to better understand the thoughts of the author and are then able to comprehend the message the author is trying to convey, or the thesis of the book. Establishing a personal relationship also makes the book more fun, because it feels like the readers are able to connect with the author. As people who read bits about the author, the readers feel as if they have known them personally. I think that the author wrote a good book or an essay when they are able to connect with the readers through their writing.

               I, as a reader, could better understand what the book was about when I could connect with the main character. Jane Eyre was one of the classics I could read without getting bored in the first ten pages of the book. Most classics like Pride and Prejudice and Emma (I know..they are both by the same author, Jane Austen) really bored me. Maybe it was because they only dealt with romance, but even the Adventure of the Tom Sawyer was kind of boring to me. I could read through the whole book without getting bored, because I could connect with Jane Eyre. She had to move to different places and adjust to that environment and get used to new people. I felt like she was in the same situation as I was when I first came to Saipan 8 years ago. The environment was totally different, and everyone spoke in a different language. Going through this adversity was really hard for me, and Jane faced the same troubles. Knowing how it is like to live in a totally different place, I could sympathize with her throughout the novel and understand how she felt.

               I think that building connection improves the relationship between two people. When I was discussing a topic with my friend, we had the same opinion. I think it was about the time of presidential election in Korea, and we both were hugely against the candidate, who is now president of Korea. She was the first woman president in Korea, but this was not what drove us mad. She was ultraconservative, and she was the daughter of President Park, who was almost like a dictator in Korea. Although he did improve Korea’s economy, the way he treated the nation and his own people were brutal and unfair. Also, we were generally against the idea of conservatism. Since she was the extreme kind, we abhorred her a lot. We would share our views about her and agree with each other. Because our opinions matched, we could talk on and on about this issue for couple of hours. After this talk, I felt like I was closer to her than before because I not only knew her personal side but her political side.

Stay in One Place or Move Around?

               I’m not used to staying in one place for a long time. I’ve stayed in Korea for 10 years and in Saipan for 8 years. After I moved to Saipan, I often went off island during breaks and I kind of got used to moving around places. Actually, I started liking it. At first, I didn’t like it because I had to get used to a new environment. But now, I really like meeting new people and going to new places. It gives new memories to treasure.

               If I had the choice to live in a town or a city, I will definitely choose city. In Korea, I did not have any problems because Korea had both. I enjoyed both environments although I dwelled mostly in cities. I liked aspects of both of them, so I loved living in both the city and the town. After I moved to Saipan, my opinion totally changed. Saipan is an isolated island only few miles wide and long surrounded by water. It is not its tropical weather that I hate or its scorching sunlight that I hate. It is the isolation that makes it undeveloped like a town or not even a town. Hawaii is also an island, but it’s one of the exceptions. There is absolutely nowhere to go in Saipan, and there is nothing to do here. When you drive, all you see is palm trees and jungles. Most buildings are old-fashioned and worn down.  All you see are markets and no shopping malls.

               When I went to Guam I was so happy, because it was totally different from Saipan. They actually had shopping malls where I could actually spend hours shopping. There was a lot more people to interact with, and this also made me happy.

               Even when I apply for college, I’m going to try to apply to places where there are lot of things to do. I’m NOT going to apply to any islands including Hawaii and Japan and apply to big cities in the states like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. Big cities attract me the most. Their busy streets and noisy mood appeal to me. I think it’s because I’m too used to the placid mood of Saipan. No one honks in Saipan, and people work slowly. I used to be a fast-tempered person, and living in Saipan frustrated me massively. I think this shaped up my mind of my lifestyle. My only hope is to live in a place totally different from Saipan. The weather can be similar, but I don’t want to go to a place that is hotter than Saipan. It can be an island but not isolated like Saipan. I do not really care about the environment. Actually, I really don’t want to see the beach every single day as I do in Saipan right now.

               I think that staying in one place makes people more comfortable and people don’t have to worry about meeting new people and adjusting to a new lifestyle. As I have said before, I just really love going to new places and meeting new people. After I live Saipan, I’m planning to move around to many more countries and experience how it is like to live in different areas.

10 Maxims

There is one maxim that I always remember. “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you will land among the stars.” It is one of the quotes by Les Brown, and I’ve always remembered this quote ever since I was in elementary school. I thought that this was very encouraging and motivating. When you try, you will at least get something out of it. If you shoot for the moon and succeed, you will be happy because you get what you want. If you fail, you will still be happy because you will still be awarded for your hard work. This is my all-time favorite.

Another maxim I live by is to live optimistically. I learned that it does not help at all to be all negative about everything. I think that living positively actually lower down my stress level and relieves worries that may be troublesome.

Similar one is to forget about the past. I think that keep thinking about the past makes me more negative. I think that it is more important to think about what is happening right now and focus on the present stuff rather than thinking about what has already happened and what is going to happen. Past cannot be reversed and present things are going to be the future, so there is no reason to think about the past and the future.

Another quote is to treat others like how others will treat you. I think that this is really true. When I am mean to others, they are also mean to me. When I am nice to others, even the mean people try to be nice to me too.

Similar one would be to care about your friend as much as you love them. I think that just loving them is not enough. When you love someone, I think that you have to show that you love them so they would actually notice that they are being loved.

One maxim that I really like is to live as if today is the last day. Everyone says that destiny is unknown, and that everyone does not know when they are going to die. I think that it would be really sad to die without doing something that you really love or trying your best, so I try to put all my efforts in for everything to reach a point where I can do things that I love without being troubled.

Another quote I live by is you only live once. This is kind of similar to the other one, but this is like the prolonged version of the previous one. Since you only live once, you should try everything you want to try and live to the fullest.

There are much more quotes, but one thing that I firmly believe is that education is the golden lock to freedom. I believe that education will lead to liberation. This is one of the reasons I study hard, and this is proven because women and African Americans were granted liberty through educated people.

Most Beneficial Book

               Mitch Albom is one of my favorite writers. Although not all his books are fictions, which are the books I usually enjoy reading, his stories are very interesting and inspirational. They contain rich themes a

nd morals that I learned a great deal from. Two of my favorites from his books are Tuesdays with Morris and Five People You Meet in Heaven. These are probably, I think, the books that I learned the most from. If I had to pick one that was the most beneficial for me, I would choose Five People You Meet in Heaven.

 Although both of them are great stories, I absolutely love the story line of the Five People You Meet in Heaven. I read Tuesdays with Morris quite a while ago (maybe when I was in 6^th grade or 7^th grade) but I read Five People You Meet in Heaven recently (I think it was last year fall or winter). After reading this book, I also watched the movie. The movie and the book was not exactly the same, but their story line was almost the same and the messages the author tried to convey were very apparent in both. I prefer the book better, but it was the movie that actually increased my love for this book. When I first read it, I thought that the theme was a brilliant idea.

In the beginning, Eddie, the maintenance, runs to save a girl, who is under a malfunctioning ride. The book and the movie do not tell if he saved the girl or not. They continue on to a different setting where Eddie meets multiple of people. Here, he learns a great deal from five people in order. The first person is one of the people he spent his life with in the military. Even though years have passed, Eddie cannot forget the memories of being out in the field surrounded by enemies. Although he is in good terms with this guy, he feels anger and deep hatred against him after he confesses that he was the one who hampered him from saving a girl who was in a fire. The second person he meets is a blue guy. He represents people’s greed and Eddie realizes that he dies because of him. The third person he meets is his wife and the next person is the person who Ruby Pier, the amusement park Eddie worked in, was named after. Lastly, he meets a little girl whom he never met before. Here, he finds out that he was the girl he failed to save from the fire. After meeting these 5 people, he is relocated to Ruby Pier where he spent most of his lifetime. Here, he sees a crowd of people whom he saved by keeping maintenance. Before, he thought that his life is useless, but now he realizes the importance of his life and what he has done.

Although I didn’t live as much Eddie or have done much to benefit others, it made me realize that my life would at least be beneficial to others. It will actually be worth living. Although I feel like I’m useless, there will be people who benefit from me.

What is Happiness

Happiness is an emotion every person has experienced at least once in their lives. It is what makes life enjoyable and worth living. Happiness can be described as the mood opposite to sadness but this would depend on the people. Sadness is defined differently among people as the meaning of happiness is not same for everyone. I define sadness as having no fun in life, meaning that there is no interesting thing going on in my life. Even when it’s studying, there is some fun although its “fun” may not be compared to the “fun” of having parties. Happiness is what I feel when I have something interesting going on in my life even though it may not be the extreme kind of fun.

               There are many things that contribute to my happiness in life, but there are three things that I need to fulfill my happiness. These are eating, shopping, and traveling. Eating is one of the things that make my life much enjoyable. When I am happy, I eat and when I am sad, I eat. The feeling I get from eating delicious food is ineffable. Desserts are what I enjoy the most, and the sweet kinds of desserts are what make me happy. Some of my favorites are cream puffs, cheesecakes, and strawberry shortcakes.

               Another thing that makes my happiness gauge go up is shopping. When I just enter a shopping mall full of pretty clothes, I get elated. I just feel the sudden rush of adrenaline. Once I start shopping, I cannot stop until I try on everything I want. This usually takes like three to five hours, and I mean that I usually take three to five hours in one shop.

               Traveling is the last thing, and this contributes to a prolonged happiness. Actually, I get more happiness from reminiscing about my trip than actually being in that trip. It is the places I go to, things that I do, and people that I go with that make my trip special even though the things I do may be ordinary. Trip gives it a special meaning, and the memories are the ones I cherish. They are my ultimate happiness of life. This is why I want to succeed in my life so I can travel around the world and build memories that will make my happiness last forever or at least until I die.

               If I could keep one feeling to last forever, it would be the feeling of happiness not hope or even love. If I have love that would mean that sadness would come along with it. However, if I have happiness, that would mean that I will get joy from maybe love and other things but sadness will not there. When there is happiness, sadness cannot exist. This is my opinion.

               I personally think that maintaining happiness is the reason of living. Happiness is what gives people pleasure, and many people do anything they can to get happiness. People try to find their love so they can feel happy and people try to get praise and honor from others so they can feel happy.

Looks or Ideas?

               In Korean society, it is not the idea that matters. Success and popularity are often determined by their looks. Koreans are heavily biased. From the beginning, people judge others by their looks. If the person is pretty or handsome, he or she will leave a good impression. If the person is ugly or fat, he or she will leave a bad impression. This impression may not change regardless of their good personality or ideas. This is very apparent in celebrity society in Korea. Even though the actors have the ability and the idea, they may not be able to appear on the television for a long time. When the actors are pretty or handsome, they will be casted for many programs including drama and show programs even if they do not have the ability or the idea.

               However, this is not true in American society. American society promotes success by ideas. This is why Steve Jobs studied even though he does not look like one of those super models who look like sculptures. He had the ideas. He first created iPod and as the CEO of Apple, he prospered the company. If a handsome (or pretty) person wanted to succeed in America but did not have the ideas for it, he or she would never be able to do it. Sooner or later the person would have to give up the idea of succeeding in America and try to go to Korea and maybe that person will have the chance to succeed.

               Although I am a Korean, I have lived in Saipan (American territory) for eight years and am influenced heavily by American point of view. Still, I have some Korean ideas as well, so I am kind of in between. Sometimes, I agree with the Koreans, and sometimes I agree with the Americans. In this case, I am on the American’s side. Judging people by their looks was one thing Koreans all did, and I was used to this for 10 years of my life in Korea. When I came to Saipan, I realized that that wasn’t the norm here. In Korea, appearance is very important. This is why plastic surgery became so rampant in Korea. People judge others not only by their look but also by their clothes and what they use. If they wear expensive clothes that have names, they will be looked upon as the idols. If they wear clothes that are bought from any shops on the street, they will be classified on the lower pyramid. Women are extreme, because they even classify people by what kind of cosmetics they use. For men, they judge others and their ability by what car they own and drive.

               I think that people’s success should not be determined or even influenced by their looks. Their ideas should be the ones being considered not anything else. If they are brilliant and they have the ideas that are worth succeeding, they should be able to succeed. If people’s looks determine their success, no one will try to work hard to become brilliant. Instead, they will start doing plastic surgery like Koreans to look prettier so that they can be judged highly by others.

Three Qualities of True Friends

               True friends are companions for life. They are different from friends whom you just hang around just because they are the only ones around you or the friends whom you pretend to hang around with just for the sake of it. True friends are friends who share their weirdness with each other and understand each other regardless of what happens. They know how to forgive each other even after fighting with each other because they realize their own mistakes. Even after not talking to each other or meeting with each other for days, it’s not awkward the next time they meet each other. It’s because they learned to become familiar with each other, and even though they are away, they still care for each other.

               Trust is one thing that keeps each other intact even when they are far away. Because they trust each other, they are able to tell each other secrets and share their thoughts. They rely on each other for support. Because they trust each other, they don’t lie to each other. They know that they would not tell others about one’s own secrets. Because of this, they are able to build trust and this deepens the relationship between the two.

               Trust builds on the relationship but love is the one that connects them. Love is an emotion common to all people but it is very influential in a way that it impacts the person greatly. It can move the person and persuade them to change their mind or do certain things. When one of them gets in trouble, the other tries hard to help them get out of the hardships they are facing. When one of them gets into a fight with another, either verbally or physically, the other one will always be there for help.  They are the ones who will always take your side (unless they are the ones fighting and they disagree with each other) and go against the others who disagree with their friends. When one of them is happy, the other one will also be happy because their friend is happy. When one is sad, the other one will also be sad because their friend is sad. They share their emotions because they are like one in a sense that they are bonded closely with love. Even though they are apart, they will never forget each other because love remains in their hearth even if they may forget some memories as they grow old.

               True friends are loyal to each other. They do not cheat on each other or deceive each other. They are faithful to one another regardless of time. True friends never depart. Their bodies may be away but their hearts are always together thinking about one another. One might forget about them as they live on with their life, but when they meet each other again, it will be like they departed yesterday or even few hours ago. They don’t tell other friends that they hate their friends because they don’t. Even if they did hate them for a while, the feeling of love will soon overrule hatred. Because they went through happiness and sadness together, they are able to form a strong bond that will keep them loyal to each other forever.

               

What is Human's Greatest Strength?

Humans have many strengths. Out of all the strengths humans possess, emotion is the strongest in my opinion. Emotion is common among everyone, and there are many kinds of emotion. However, each and one of them have great influence and impact on people around them.

               Happiness represents optimism. Happiness spreads like a disease infecting everyone with the happy mood. When there are group of people who are depressed because of (I don’t know what) some reason and a person who is trying to cheer everyone up with his or her own happiness and joy, everyone will lighten up sooner or later. Emotion is a powerful strength. It is very influential. Even one person’s  emotion can affect multitude of people. However, it can be the direct opposite. Even at a party where everyone is having a good time, one person’s mood(perhaps the star of the party) may affect everyone present in the party.

               Emotion is not only strong in real life but also in novels. There are three ways for an author to appeal to the audience to establish a persona. Logical appeal, logos, is one thing, and ethos, personal appeal is another. However, the most influential of all is pathos, emotional appeal. When the author brings up an anecdote, it not only allows the readers to comprehend the content better but also to think of a situation in that person’s shoe. By reading the anecdote, the readers can sympathize with the person. It is also a very effective strategy that can rivet the readers’ attention.

               Emotion is not only effective in stories but also in speeches. The purpose of the story is to convey the author’s message, and the purpose of the speech is to persuade the audience. Think of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech for a second. His speech is solely about civil rights movements of African Americans, and this maybe a boring, hackneyed topic. What makes his speech different from others is that he effectively uses pathos to make his speech interesting.  He also uses analogies of his own to add taste to his speech to wholly make the speech his own. He talks about the adversities African Americans had to go through for centuries in the land of freedom. America, the land of freedom, ironically was segregating their inhabitants.  

               Emotions are also apparent in movies. In movies, the movie makers create emotional situations where audience can sympathize with. If the story line is continuous(not abrupt like some movies) and the actors are good(playing their role as if they were actually them), then some audiences(if they are emotional enough) will cry along with the actor. If this is achieved, the movie is then known to be a very good movie. Some will have catharsis effect just because it brought up a situation that reminded people of the situation that they were in.

               Emotion can move people. Even though a person is determined to do something, when someone else cries and goes against their decision, the person may change their opinion or even consider about changing their opinion. This is because people care about people around them and no one would want to make other people sad or disappointed. Even without force, emotion can persuade and influence people greatly.

Big Schools or Small Schools?

               Choosing between big colleges and small colleges is one of the important choices you have to make before applying to colleges. There are advantages and disadvantages for both sizes. Small schools tend to have smaller school body and lower faculty to student ratio. This means that one professor does not have to deal with forty students in a class but about ten at a time.  When there are less people the professor has to be in charge of, the professor can spend more time with each student. Each student then can ask more questions and discuss for a longer time obtaining better understanding of the subjects being learned. This greatly helps the student prepare for graduate school and for places they have to work in. Also, it allows the students to get close to each other. Since there are fewer students in a class, they have more chance to get close to each other.  Also small schools are nice, because students can get to class at a faster rate. In a small school, buildings are clustered together unlike big schools. Because all the buildings are near, students can get from one class to another in few minutes.

              

Big schools usually provide more opportunities. Usually, they have more funding, and this allows them to set more programs for their students either for free for at a low price. In a big school, there are more varieties of club. There may be interesting clubs and useful clubs where students can get into, and this allows the students to interact with more people. Also, there are various courses offered to the students. After taking required courses, students may take courses that seem interesting to them as elective courses. Big schools are also nice, because it allows the students choose who they want to hang around with. In a small private school, students have to hang out with friends that they don’t even like. But in big schools, they have choice.

               I prefer big schools over small schools. Its diversity attracted me, but my desire to go to a place totally different from where I live, Saipan, heavily influenced my choice. I’ve been stuck in an isolated, undeveloped island for 8 years, and I really wanted to get away from this place. There is absolutely nothing to do here. All schools are small here, and the island itself is small. There are no places to hang around with, and there are not many people to interact with as much as the states.  Also, big schools have more and bigger libraries that have more variety of sources. Saipan is a very limited place. When I wanted to find a book about a topic I wanted to write about, I almost never succeeded. I had to order the book from a website or read an e-book.  Saipan was nice, because it is multi-cultural. This is why I prefer big schools. Big schools tend to have more diverse school body, and I love mixing in with people from different background. It allows me to understand the cultures of other countries and I think that it will widen my thinking and help me greatly in my life. I also like big schools, because they are usually located in or near cities. After living in Saipan for 8 years, I started abominating rural places. I want to live in urban cities as much as I can. I want to live in cities, away from places like Saipan.

               

My Children

               Children these days seem to be more spoiled than our generation or our parents’ generation. As the world advanced, the standard of living improved. Children in this generation enjoy the prosperity our parents’ generation has built and seem to do no hard work, or at least do the things that they can manage on their own. Parents these days do everything for their children. Even before the children ask them a favor, they will just do it for them. This spoils the children. When I was young, I was supposed to ask when I wanted something. My parents were strict, so they did not do everything for me even though I begged and pleaded with them. Now, I think this is totally different. When I went to Korea 3 years ago, I often went to nearby malls to go shopping. During the weekdays, the malls were little bit less crowded but still there were kids running around the mall. They were screaming and running around playing hide and go seek. When I went near the toy section, there kids lying on the floor crying for minutes begging their parents to buy them toys even when they had a lot in their homes already. There has never been a day where I could shop peacefully. Even in food court, there were kids complaining and whining that they did not want to eat. It was just a chaos.

When I have a child, I am going to first teach them basic manner. I think that behavior is what matters the most now, because there are so many kids who are disrespectful and disobedient. I’m going to teach them about filial piety and how they should respect elders. I’m also going to make them do things by themselves to grow independence. Of course I’m not going to force them to wash dishes when they are 1 but I’m going to make them learn how to do simple stuffs like organizing their shoes after coming back home. I think that childhood habits are really important. It is very hard and challenging to teach them how to have good manners, because they become rebellious and more forceful. I’m also going to teach them table manners.

I’m also going to teach them how to communicate with others. Some people do not know how to socialize because they are not used interacting with other people. So I’m going to take my child to my friend’s place often so she can be comfortable with socializing.

Studying wise I’m not going to force her to study like a dog, but I’m going to ask her to try her best. I was forced to study. I was sent to be tutored until late at night, and even when I wanted free time, I was forced by my parents and teachers to study. If I did not do well in school, my mom got mad at me. It seemed as if it was the most important thing to her. I do not want my kid to be under the same pressure I was in. I want to give my kid liberty as long as she did her work and my kid felt satisfied under the condition that he or she tried the best. I want my kid to be different from others. I want my kid to have his or her own opinion and be able to assert it. I want my kid to have confidence.

Should SIS Have Uniforms or Not?

Before, I used to wear uniforms to school. They were just nuisance. The school says that it promotes unity among the students, but this is a non-sense. It actually had nothing to do with the unity among the students. Those who wanted to unite continued to try and those who did not continued to not try regardless of their wearing of uniforms.

               Uniforms give no color to the school. It just represents the strictness of the school and does not give freedom to the students. I think that the students as a human should have the right to choose what to wear to school. This is a freedom of choice. Wearing the same dull uniforms every day to school limits the students from expressing their own style. I think that waking up every morning to look for clothes to wear to school is one of the things students should do daily. It’s kind of part of the daily routine. Without this choice, they would just have to wear the same clothes the day before. I also think that it is kind of sad to have three or even more clothes in one closet just to wear the same clothes day after day after day.

When I had to wear uniforms, I was not satisfied with it. I could not wear the clothes I bought and I did not like the design of the uniform. There can never be a design for the uniform that everyone in the school can agree on. There are going to be people who like the design, but there are going to be as many people who hate the design. I was one of the people who hated the design of the school’s uniform. Actually, there was hardly anyone in the school who like it. It was a blue and green plaid pattern overall and a white blouse with a blue striped collar. It was a knee length uniform and we had to wear socks that was up to our ankles. I asked if I could shorten the length because it was too long, but the principals said that he was never going to allow it. I hated the design, but it length was the one I hated the most. I was perhaps lucky, because I was one of the students who had the new design. Students who were enrolled in schools previously had the old style uniform which was just a white blouse with their school logo and a navy skirt longer than the new uniform. Promoting unity as the school promoted was nowhere to be found, and I realized that there was no use of uniforms. There was only one good thing that I could actually find about wearing uniforms. It reduced the amount of money that had to be spent on clothes. But as a shopaholic, I abhorred uniforms.

If SIS reinforces uniforms on students, there would be many people who would oppose it. SIS has no uniforms, so having uniforms would actually bring more disapprovals than other schools. Even when people work in companies, they are not forced to wear the same clothes unless they are a service related companies. I think that it is humans’ right to choose what to wear, and limiting this right is just a non-sense to me.

If I Could Bring Back One Person From the Dead

If I could bring back one person from the dead, I would bring Jesus back to life. I’m not a religious person. I am an atheist, but many of my friends are actually Christians who firmly believe in the existence of God. Many friends have tried to convince me that God truly did exist and that the Bible is based on a true story, not made up. I refused to believe it every time someone tried to persuade me to believe that He really existed. If I could bring him back to life, then I would be able to ask him if the Bible is actually true and that He is God as every Christian says.

               I am not sure of what to serve him, because the food he ate back then would be so much different from the food we eat now. Because it is almost impossible to find or even cook the food that he is accustomed to, I would just take him to McDonalds and buy him a Big Mac Meal with Oreo McFlurry. Oreo Mcflurry has been my all-time favorite in McDonalds, and I think that he would even enjoy it. Although Big Mac is not my favorite, in my opinion, it is the biggest burger in McDonalds. Because he has been dead for a while, I think that he would need to eat a big burger to restore his strength. I think that he would be satisfied with it, because almost everyone likes fast food these days. It wouldn’t be bad to try a new kind of food. I would also make him try coke. I absolutely hate coke, but it’s my friends’ favorite soda. I hate the fizziness, but I think that he would like it. Before he goes back, I want him to experience what the world is right now.

               Although there is only one ultimate question to ask, I would also have to ask for something that can be used as a proof. There are millions of people who assert that the Bible is true, so oral assertion would not be enough. Currently, it’s only a theory, so it must be substantiated with a proof that is actually tangible. Perhaps I can ask him if there were any written text that he and his disciples wrote that can prove it or any biblical site that can prove any event written in the Bible. Although it would not be able persuade people to believe that the theory is true or not, I think that it will actually bring a step closer to finding a solution.

               If the theory is proven to be false, I would ask him then how so many people firmly believe that the theory is true. Probably he would be able to answer this question, because he was the one the book was based on. If he cannot, then it would just prove for sure that the theory is really not true. Then I would ask if the evolution theory is true. He might not know, but who knows.

Should Computer Games Be Allowed?

               Computer game is said to have negative effects on the person. People say that it causes people to become more violent. Certain games do involve violence but it does mean that everyone who plays the game will just grab a gun and start shooting around their neighborhood. If the person has the right notion and common sense, the person would be insusceptible to the game.

               Computer games were first created by the companies for entertainment. Surely enough, it became popular throughout Korea. When others saw that games were good profit makers more people started producing new games. Variety of games attracted more people to play, and the game industry prospered.

Most teenagers have already played computer games before. Most of them first contact computer games through their friends and some through random internet search. Usually, teenagers will play about 3 to 5 hours on average, but in extreme cases, they will play up to 8 hours or even more a day. This is addiction. This is when computer games lose their true meaning, entertainment.

               The sole purpose of computer game was entertainment, but it is being changed because of people. Because of this, more people are going against computer games. As a person who enjoyed playing computer games, I cannot go against computer games. I began to play computer games when I was young. I started playing when I was a 1^st grader, and computer game was one of the only things I could enjoy. Even at a young age, I was being tutored for three hours after school, and computer game was one of the only ways to relieve my stress. Other than computer games, I only had the television which showed my favorite shows only at a certain time. So for the rest of the time, I devoted myself to computer games. Through computer games, I was able to forget about all I had to deal with at least for few hours. My parents were always away, and I had no one in my house until late at night when I was already in bed sleeping. I played three hours a day and I felt joy from playing it. I depended on computer games for entertainment, and it really served as a good tool for entertainment. Why try to prohibit one from playing it if one can feel joy from it?

               Most online games require strategies. They have quests that we have to clear, and they help us level up. Sometimes, these quests do not just involve killing monsters but using our brain. Although most of the quests are solo quests, some are party quests. Here, you have to learn how to cooperate to complete the quest within a given time. Raising a character also involves using our brain. Just leveling up does not do any good. One must do the stats to raise certain characteristics of the character to strengthen it, and it needs to be distributed properly according to the character one wants to grow. Computer games also require financial management skills. Currencies are also used in almost all computer games, and one must learn to use it wisely so one can use enough money to invest on the character as well as to not become bankrupt.  Because computer games share so many aspects with our society, I think that it will actually help a person to prepare for their social life.