ClaireR

//Assignment #1//: My Hero
A hero, according to Joseph Campbell, is "someone who dedicates their life to something bigger than themselves. Heros also "achieve or accomplish something beyond the normal human range." One person in history that has the same actions as a hero as Joseph Campbell defined it to me is Rosa Parks. On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger and was arrested. Other people in the past had done smaller steps of civil disobedience, but Park's brave actions led to the starting of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. By standing up against segregation, Parks became a well-know resister to racial segregation. While she was fighting against segregation, Rosa Parks was a member in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), its mission: to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all people and to eliminate racial hatred and discrimination. Though always honored for her actions, Parks was fired from her job and had to move away from Alabama to Michigan to find work. Parks received many awards, like the Springarn Medal, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Gold Medal. She also earned a statue in the United States Capitol's National Statuary Hall. Rosa Parks, in my mind, is considered a hero because she was willing to stand up to what was wrong, dedicated her life to something that was benificial to the greater good (not just herself), and help greatly the start of the road to an unsegregated country.



Rosa Parks receives the Springarn Medal.



Rosa Parks picture from when she was in jail after being arrested on December 1, 1955.

The bus on which Rosa Parks was riding the day she got arrested, December 1, 1955.

The information was taken from [], [], and []

The pictures were taking from []

//Assignment #2// The Golden Age
My perfect world would be on the very top of a mountain overlooking the valley. During winter/fall, it would be foggy and snowy, and my family and I could go play outside if it was snowing. During the spring, all the plants would be in full bloom and in bright colors. During summer, it would be very hot and we could go down to the bottom of the mountain to the local towns-people swimming pool. In this world, there would be no pets, because it always causes to much chaos to try to find them if they run away. In this world, there would be no punishment because there would be no harm done. Everybody would have good attitudes to everyone because nobody would be mean or hateful to anyone.No one living here would hate anyone else, because no one does anything bad to anyone. The school the kids would go to would be close enough for them to walk to. The school would be very small with only the kids who lived on the mountain would go to. Even though this kind of 'perfect' would does not exist, I sure would like to experience something close to this world in my life-time. image found at: []

//Assignment #3// The God Teacher
One of my favorite gifts to receive are gift cards because I can use them on anything I want in a store. But... gift cards are 2 sided gifts. A two-sided gift is a gift that has a positive side and a negative side. Recieving gift cards is beneficial and positive because I do not have to use my own money to pay for something I want. They are also good because I never have to worry about having to pay for something later. Gift cards are a good gift because I can buy things that I want, even if I do not need it. On the other hand, receiving gift cards is negative because I am usually tempted to buy objects or clothing that I do not really need. When I'm just using money to pay for something, I usually will only buy something if I really need it or if it is beneficial. But...if I have a gift card, I'm tempted just to buy anything in the store. Also, gift cards are a negative gift because some expire, and I usually do not read the expiration dates on the cards, so it catches me by surprise. So, when I receive gift cards I have to watch out and make sure I buy things I actually need, but also make sure I know when it expires. image found at: http://99cats.tumblr.com/post/4932654801/free-50-urban-outfitters-gift-card-i-decided

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Assignment #4 End of Childhood
The loss of innocence or the end of childhood is inevitable. At some point in your young adult life you will experience it. Certain events or turning points cause us to mature and lose our childhood innocence. I think that one major turning point in my life is when I made the middle school swim team. Making the swim team caused me to realize that I needed to get my priorities straight and make better use of my time. It caused me to have to go to bed later, just so I could finish my homework, and still have to wake up just as early, and I had to wake up the next day and start all over again. Because I was now on the swim team, I had new responsibilities to fulfill in order to remain on the team. Even though swim team is fun and worth while, at some points I just wanted to give up and call quits. But I pushed myself to keep up the hard work to stay on the team. I realized that life isn't always fair or perfect like you read in the fairy-tale stories. You have to put effort and work into it. You DO have priorities to fulfill in order to keep up in life.

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Assignment #5 Nursery Rhyme
__**BAA BAA BLACK SHEEP**__ **Baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?** **Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!** **One for the master, one for the dame,** **And one for the little boy who lives down the lane.**

This nursery rhyme is found in all kinds of nursery rhyme books for little kids to imitate the sounds. But other than onomatopoeia, this rhyme has actually meaning. It was written in the middle ages around the time of 1275. In the middle ages, wool making was very critical to the countries economy. King Edward I is referred to as the 'master; in this rhyme. He is said for collecting taxes on the wool in Britain at all the ports containing wool, as authorized by the English Customs Statute. But other research shows that maybe the rhyme was written about King Edward II. The best wool was made by workers from Flanders, Bruges, and Lille and King Edward II encouraged them to improve the quality of the wool. []

image found at:[| http://www.teachersandfamilies.com/nursery/baabaa.html]

Assignment #6-- The End of Time
Dear Friends and Neighbors, the time is coming for the end, do not rush, for it is right around the bend. You can, if you wish, to go and seek, for the end, do not be shy or meek. If you fear it, if you are scared, you surely will not be prepared. I have been told of the great things the are soon to come, so do not be afraid, tell all the little one. I have seen great suffering of those who are not ready, do not act like them, be sure and steady. God has said for it to be, it will happen, why rush? You see. Since now you know the end is coming, make all your words kind and full of loving.

I think that my poem sounds most like the Blue-eyed Son. I warned and readied people for the end, like the Blue-eyed Son did. I also included not to worry and that good things will come of the end, almost like the monks in //Nine Billion Names of God// did.

image found at: []

Assignment #7-- Changes in the Stories
The archetype of "change" is found in stories, myths, even in our modern world. In the Greek myth "Baucis and Philemon", a change occurs to Baucis and Philemon, an elderly, poor couple. When the gods Mercury and Jupiter came down to earth, they knocked on the doors of each hut or house and no one came to the doors. But when they come upon the hut of Baucis and Philemon, the two answered the door. They were both very kind to Mercury and Jupiter and the gods said, because of their kindess toward them, Baucis and Philemon would receive a reward. The gods lead them outside to show that the whole country had been washed away, and standing in place of their hut stood a stately pillared temple of white marble with a golden roof. The couple requested "let us be your priests, guarding this temple for you- and oh, since we have lived so long together, let neither of us ever have to live alone. Grant that we may die together." They got their wish, and when it came time for them to die, they died together, and transformed into two trees, growing from one trunk. The change that took place in this story was good, a reward, because, since Baucis and Philemon were so kind to Mercury and Jupiter, received the reward they wanted. And there was no punishment for asking for wanting to die together.

image found at:[| http://www.ronorpitelli.com/sitebuilder/images/Philemon_Baucis-440x600.jpg]

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Assignment #8-- Changes in our World
There are many things in our world today that illustrate change. Thing that stand out to me that illustrates change are computers. Everyday, there are new advances in computers that change the way we think and live. Today, people soley rely on computers for all sorts of things like their schedule for their week, meeting places for jobs, for directions to new places they've never been, and even to help students with their homework. Before computers, people relied on their own brains/memory and others. I think that computers have made people more lazy (computer games, facebook, twitter). Without computers, I think that we would be more willing to get up and excercise and be active. Also, I think that without computers, a lot of people would be smarter. People, now with computers, do not rely on their own memory as much. They just know that when they get home, their computer or laptop will be waiting for them there, at their aid.

image found at: [| http://macslife.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/mac-computers-2191.jpg]

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Assignment #9-- My Favorite Season of the Year
Everybody has their favorite season of the year. They also have reasons why that particular season is their favorite. My favorite season is summer. I enjoy summer more than fall, spring, and winter because we are out of school and do not have anything to worry about, like due-dates for projects, homework, or studying for tests. During summer, I am on a summer league swim team. On this swim team I have a lot of friends that I enjoy getting to see and hang out with. Also, I get excercise, without even knowing it's excersise because it is so fun. All during June, I have swim team and I July, my family and I go on our vacation. I love going on these vacations because we always go somewhere new. Summer is like my Golden Age, no worries, no stress, no problem!

image found at: []

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Assignment #10 What Have I Learned?
From the book __Man The Mythmaker//,//__ I have learned that life is a big cycle. Everybody goes through the motions, whether they like it or not. Everyone experiances birth, loss of innocence, changes, and finally a flood. Because of these occurances, we look at life different ways all throughout our lives. The most significant part of this book to me was the end of childhood part. While reading the loss of innocence/end of childhood section of the book, it definately changed the way I thought about how people mature and grow up. To end your childhood, you must be introduced or exposed to something new that changes the way you think about life or that makes you loose your innocence. I learned that everyone has to loose their innocence in order for the cycle of life to continue on from generation to generation. If someone DOESN'T have the end of childhood experiance, then the people after them can not either. In the flood portion of this book, I learned that there are different things that carry us through the water, literally and metaphorically. But even in the bad times of the flood, if you deserve it, there is re-birth. Right now, in my life, I believe I am in the Golden Age. I believe this because I am not an adult yet, so I do not have the responsibilities of an adult or the worries of them. I also have god-teachers in my life. Examples of these god-teachers are my actually teachers at school, sunday school teachers, my parents, and my grandparents. These god-teachers have helped my learn how to deal with the cycle of life and how to make it out with a sence of acomplishment.

The god-teachers I have and the god-teachers in __Man the Mythmaker__ are two very different people. But the leasons taken out from them could be the same. Some of the leasons could be how to deal with changes, how to deal with defeat, even how to deal with death. The cycle of life for people does not change as the seasons change or as new generations come and go. We all go through the cygle of life, one way or another.

image found at: [|http://rpodle6.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/midlifewebpix]