Midterm Essay!

Even though we are only half way through the semester, I can honestly say that this English class is 10 times better than last semester. I did learn some things last semester, but it didnt really help me with my writing and I had many unanswered questions about the writing process. The most thing I like about this class is that we are able to research something that we are really interested in and care about. I also like the fact that this research project is broken down intom parts and we aren't doing all of it at one time like most of my other english classes. Although I'm not a fan of blogger, I guess it's a nice way to put your thoughts out in the open on a weekly basis and blogger is essentially an online diary. So far, this class has taught me a lot about the writing process and how your writing can become a conversation. I never really understood thar concept until now and I see how it can make a difference in your writing. I really enjoyed writing the "what is it like to be you" essay because it gave us a chance to be personal and express who we really are. It also gave us a chance to reflect on our lives and who we are as a person. For many of us college students, college is just another 4 years of school we go through to get a degree only to get a good job. Many times I've wondered is it even worth it anymore because the world is changing so much. In some parts of Africa, after you graduate high school you can go straight to medical school. There is no need for college over there because they think it takes too long and you need all the experienvev you can get as soon as possible. As students, we do know that college is a part of our lives right now, but sometimes it gets so tiring we lose the motivation we had to begin with. I guess you could say that some of us take our education for granted, but sometimes you just need to look at the reality of the situation. Now a days it seems like the only way you won't struggle finacially for the rest of your life is if you get a job in the medicine,law,business, or engineering. Anybody who doesnt have a job in those fields is going through the trials and tribulations of this economy. It's sad to say it but having a job you love isn't good enough anymore because you need to make sure that it will take care of you and your family if neccessary. I don't want to become a Pediatrician just because of the salary, but because I love medicine and taking care of children. The fact that the salary of this job is quite high is just a plus! If I complete this goal, I know that I will always have a job and I can support myself and my family all on my own. All I can do is just pray that things work out for the best and I get the education I need to succeed. Having a good college experience is what everyone hopes for, but that only happens based on what you make of it. You can take a lot away from this experience, but you have to make sure you give it your all in order to get the most out of it. The most interesting part of that essay was when I included a poem that described how I was raised.That's the first time I've put a poem in an essay and I was surprised how well it accented the paper. I think the 3-sided essay is going to be interesting also and a challenge because we will have to express three different views in our writing well enough for a reader to understand each view.

I like classes that break down assignments and discuss each of the major points that need to be made in each assignment. I also like teachers that ask for our input and appreciate our opinions. i feel comfortable in class discusions because of the way our class is set up and the environment. I'm also glad that my teacher picked being healthy as our semester question because it made me do a lot of reflecting on the way my life is and i'm glad I did. If it wasn't for the fact that Peace, Butter and Jelly was assigned to us, I wouldn't have really evaluated my spiritual and emotion well being. I'm grateful to Ms. Ingram for that because she made me realize some things that I've never thought about which motivated me to make some changes in my life.

Reading Peace, Butter, & Jelly was also a nice way to reflect on our lives because it's good to make sure you are spiritually,mentally, & emotionally healthy. The author had a few poems I really liked which showed how open minded he was. The book can also be used as a way to reflect on how you feel your life is going. I think the book was really good because David really opened up to his readers and everything was really personal which showed that David was trying to be as genuine as he possibly could be. I also think that you have to have a slight interest in being healthy because the majority of this book expresses emotional,physical, and mental health. As far as our inquiry questions, I'm glad I had the option to focus on something I'm curious about. As I go through life one day at a time, I think about what my future holds and the many decisions I'm going to make. Being spiritually healthy has always been important to me and is how I choose to live my life accordingly. At the end of this semester, I hope to have learned a lot from my inquiry question.

Fourth Blog Post Assignment

While working on this blog, I've learned that there are many different conversations that can occur in your writing process. The writing process is all about having conversations that allow you to further your writing and look at other viewpoints. This process has definitely helped me with my inquiry question because it shows me the different ways people think about my topic. I planned on furthering my inquiry question by discussing the viewpoints from an atheist, doctor, and the church. This shows a wide range of arguements about how religion can affect your life span. I think a lot about how having faith will get you a really long way. These things are definitely important because its how you can be mentally, emotionally, and spiritually healthy.

Third Blog Post Assignment

My inquiry question is: do religious people live longer lives? At this time, I don't really know who my audience will be because I guess it depends on what you believe. I think my audience might be people who are learning how to live longer and healthier lives from all aspects of life. I believe my topic is timely in the sense that my topic is focusing on a person's life span. Now a days, many people are trying new things and figuring out ways to live longer lives because they are unhealthy. To be honest with you, I think I'm invested in this topic because it's reminded me of the conversations me and my mother have a lot of the time. My mother has always given me advice about how it's important to have faith because you will be blessed and rewarded later on in life for your good deeds. I decided to actually do some research on this topic and the different viewpoints I've been reading have been interesting. I think our high school teachers didn't want us personally invested in our writing because they didn't think we were really mature enough for it yet. In college, you are pretty much your own person and you can do whatever you want because everyone is "officially" an adult. I'm starting to find  multiple viewpoints but I'm mostly finding the viewpoints that match mine. One new thing that I've found is that there have been actual studies done on people who are religious veruses those who are not. During the process of researching, you find out that there are so many different ways of thinking and people have a lot of opinions. I've commented on Janie's blog because it's almost similiar to my topic and I think its something interesting and personal which gives her blog a true passionate feeling.

Second Blog Post Assignment

The most interesting soure that I have found so far is a book called Spiritual Healing: Miracle or Mirage by Alan Young. This soure is interesting because he makes valid point abouts whether or not spiritual healing actually works. Some people believe that spiritual healing is in your head and there's no possible way that you can be healed by prayer. I think this is where the title of this book comes from. The author also talks about how some people question whether or not believing in anything is necessary for life. Some people believe that you can live a rich and healthy life without  a belief in anything and it's up to you to control your life. My inquiry question has stayed the same because I want to show how having spirituality in your life can affect your life span. I'm having a little trouble finding a lot of studies and research that have shown the difference of life span in a person who has faith and a person who doesn't.

First Blog Assignment

My inquiry question is about spiritual health. I wanted to find out how being spiritually healthy affects a person's life span. I've decided to explore this question because it's something that I've wondered about from time to time. The thing that interests me about this topic is that I've seen stories and read articles about people who have lived longer because they have a strong faith. I think people would care about this topic because it's something that can truly affect your life style. I expect to find many cases that show the difference between people who live longer because of their faith then those who don't believe in God or any other higher being. I also want to see the difference of spirituality between certain countries and ethinicities. I've read several opinions and I've seen both sides of the question. I believe that having a strong faith and belief will allow you to have a longer happier life. People who are spiritually healthy are more confident in life and will prosper in things they never could imagine.