Oh yeah, why didn't I think of this before?
I could have posted this earlier to hear what all of you peoples thought about it also...if anyone chose to respond of course. Kinda like multiple peer reviews.
Rough Draft #1
In the eastern hemisphere, there exists a continent known as Asia. Within this continent, there exists a country that was divided in half by the 38th parallel. For those who had forgotten, this country was Korea. Below the thirty-eighth parallel lies South Korea, the country where my mother was born and where her family resides. South Korea is a place with much history for both my family and the families of many other Americans. For some Americans, it is a place where a boyfriend, husband, or father may have died in war. For me, it is more a place of family history then one of duty. Shortly after birth my family had moved to Daegu, South Korea, to live with my grandparents for a couple years before moving back to Nebraska. A few short years after that, the family had moved again, but this time to Kathleen, Georgia, where we have resided ever since.
Every two to three years we would try to visit the family that lives nearly on the other side of the planet to keep “physically” in touch, if you will. Mother sometimes receives a random phone call at early hours in the morning and sometimes at night she will call them, due to the fourteen hour time-zone difference between there and here. The flight to Incheon, South Korea from Atlanta, Georgia requires an exhausting eighteen hour flight but all in all, it is well worth the wait once we get to those beautiful mountains of Daegu. With seven brothers and sisters, it often takes more then a week’s visit to South Korea to get to see all of them as they live slightly scattered around the country. My favorite place to be of course is my grandmother’s place, as my grandfather passed on years ago. When I think of going to my grandmother’s place I think of the hamlet where she lives in, the mountain grandfather is buried, and the mountains, streams, and rivers we have visited that bring much excitement into taking picnics with family members.
One thing that has interested me is that a lot of what was there decades ago still exists. Whether it be the way they wash their clothes, eat, work, pass time, or have fun, some people choose to live their life the same way they have long before without all the available technology. Though, of course not with every last aspect of life the same way, my grandmother, along with many others in the hamlet, has chosen to stick with many of her old ways and traditions. I consider this to be an act of peaceful retreat from an ever growing world, severing ties with the interests of new technology and keeping most everything the same from then on to remove your anxiety for new things and instead, enjoy the present and past things even more so. Great things are made naturally, and destroyed artificially. Remember the distant past and review the present, which had less to worry about?
Oh and I guess I could also add in the in class writing I did about 9-11...!! lol, I dunno, I felt like posting it also. I want to share my writings with the world now! lol. I can actually write! Wee! Woot!
Wow, didn't know how much that would mean to me. Thank you Amanda!
In this we are supposed to reflect with or against the idea that 9-11 is a major point in our generation's life. So enjoy! lol.
Right after the bell rang to go to class from break, I walked into my French 1a class. It was second period of my sophomore year in high school. Brent was sitting on a stool watching the new 36” televisions just recently installed, one way thought to make the school more “modern.” I asked him what was on, as I didn’t really bother to look up and found the way to my desk and set everything down. He said a couple 747s went on a kamikaze mission into the two world trade centers. My first thought was, “Where are those at…” I have never been to New York before 9-11, so my feelings were blank as far as I remember. Of course, immediately following is, “Why didn’t someone try to prevent it?” You see, I’m all about the logic, if someone is hi-jacking a plane, they could be doing one of only a couple things that I can think of right now: 1. A kamikaze mission, or 2. A hostage situation. I am also all about wanting to be the heroic type by standing up for myself in times of danger. Now about the logic, if the hijackers are on a kamikaze mission, you are going to die anyways right? See what you can do to prevent further injury to the rest of the world like what seemingly happened in the Pennsylvania fields. A couple more thoughts I had were, “Why would anyone want to do that?” and “How many people on average go to work on any given hour in those two buildings?” What is seemingly a math problem is actually for an estimated death count if the buildings collapsed. I then just stared up at the screen hoping that the buildings don’t collapse all over the other buildings to start a small “domino effect.” Apparently 3 years have passed and any time I am reminded of it, I keep thinking, “Has it really been that long ago?” I am astonished by how quickly time flies by around you and how slow it can seem to pass within your mind. Has 9-11 affected my ways of life? I would have to say it had really no effect on me other then I have another historical moment to put into my calendar to tell me how much time has truly gone by. Life is short, reality is crazy, and time is just a factor in the reality of life that everyone wants to avoid.
Rough Draft #1
In the eastern hemisphere, there exists a continent known as Asia. Within this continent, there exists a country that was divided in half by the 38th parallel. For those who had forgotten, this country was Korea. Below the thirty-eighth parallel lies South Korea, the country where my mother was born and where her family resides. South Korea is a place with much history for both my family and the families of many other Americans. For some Americans, it is a place where a boyfriend, husband, or father may have died in war. For me, it is more a place of family history then one of duty. Shortly after birth my family had moved to Daegu, South Korea, to live with my grandparents for a couple years before moving back to Nebraska. A few short years after that, the family had moved again, but this time to Kathleen, Georgia, where we have resided ever since.
Every two to three years we would try to visit the family that lives nearly on the other side of the planet to keep “physically” in touch, if you will. Mother sometimes receives a random phone call at early hours in the morning and sometimes at night she will call them, due to the fourteen hour time-zone difference between there and here. The flight to Incheon, South Korea from Atlanta, Georgia requires an exhausting eighteen hour flight but all in all, it is well worth the wait once we get to those beautiful mountains of Daegu. With seven brothers and sisters, it often takes more then a week’s visit to South Korea to get to see all of them as they live slightly scattered around the country. My favorite place to be of course is my grandmother’s place, as my grandfather passed on years ago. When I think of going to my grandmother’s place I think of the hamlet where she lives in, the mountain grandfather is buried, and the mountains, streams, and rivers we have visited that bring much excitement into taking picnics with family members.
One thing that has interested me is that a lot of what was there decades ago still exists. Whether it be the way they wash their clothes, eat, work, pass time, or have fun, some people choose to live their life the same way they have long before without all the available technology. Though, of course not with every last aspect of life the same way, my grandmother, along with many others in the hamlet, has chosen to stick with many of her old ways and traditions. I consider this to be an act of peaceful retreat from an ever growing world, severing ties with the interests of new technology and keeping most everything the same from then on to remove your anxiety for new things and instead, enjoy the present and past things even more so. Great things are made naturally, and destroyed artificially. Remember the distant past and review the present, which had less to worry about?
Oh and I guess I could also add in the in class writing I did about 9-11...!! lol, I dunno, I felt like posting it also. I want to share my writings with the world now! lol. I can actually write! Wee! Woot!
Wow, didn't know how much that would mean to me. Thank you Amanda!
In this we are supposed to reflect with or against the idea that 9-11 is a major point in our generation's life. So enjoy! lol.
Right after the bell rang to go to class from break, I walked into my French 1a class. It was second period of my sophomore year in high school. Brent was sitting on a stool watching the new 36” televisions just recently installed, one way thought to make the school more “modern.” I asked him what was on, as I didn’t really bother to look up and found the way to my desk and set everything down. He said a couple 747s went on a kamikaze mission into the two world trade centers. My first thought was, “Where are those at…” I have never been to New York before 9-11, so my feelings were blank as far as I remember. Of course, immediately following is, “Why didn’t someone try to prevent it?” You see, I’m all about the logic, if someone is hi-jacking a plane, they could be doing one of only a couple things that I can think of right now: 1. A kamikaze mission, or 2. A hostage situation. I am also all about wanting to be the heroic type by standing up for myself in times of danger. Now about the logic, if the hijackers are on a kamikaze mission, you are going to die anyways right? See what you can do to prevent further injury to the rest of the world like what seemingly happened in the Pennsylvania fields. A couple more thoughts I had were, “Why would anyone want to do that?” and “How many people on average go to work on any given hour in those two buildings?” What is seemingly a math problem is actually for an estimated death count if the buildings collapsed. I then just stared up at the screen hoping that the buildings don’t collapse all over the other buildings to start a small “domino effect.” Apparently 3 years have passed and any time I am reminded of it, I keep thinking, “Has it really been that long ago?” I am astonished by how quickly time flies by around you and how slow it can seem to pass within your mind. Has 9-11 affected my ways of life? I would have to say it had really no effect on me other then I have another historical moment to put into my calendar to tell me how much time has truly gone by. Life is short, reality is crazy, and time is just a factor in the reality of life that everyone wants to avoid.