Teachings of Life

This week in Sociology, we learned about the ways we live in our culture and our potentials. We watched a documentary on a Sociology teacher named Morrie. The narrator used to be one of favorite students and he wanted to say goodbye to him the right way. While he was constantly over at his house, Morrie would teach him the meanings of life every Tuesday. Morrie teaches him that our culture remourses death. Morrie quotes "When we were infants we needed others to live, when we are dying we need others to live, but here's the secret - in between we need others even more." I completely agree with this quote because we don't realize how much we need others while we live, which causes the sense of individualism and isolation. I feel like also distrusting plays a role into individualism because we do not like to rely on others because we learned not to trust anyone but yourself in this society. For example, when given a choice in class to work with a partner for an assignment, I choose to be alone because more than likely I'll be stuck with all the work.

What is this...?

Everyone knows that awkward and uncomfortable feeling they get when they experience something new to them. Just like when someone moves from their homeland, for example like Kenya, and move to the United States. They experience something called Culture Shock. In class, we watched a documentary called "God Grew Tired of Us." It was about a group of Africans moving to America to have an opportunity to escape the war and experience privileges that Americans experience that their home country does not. They were very confused with the different culture and had many questions. For example, they did not know what a shower was or how to use it. They also didn't understand electricity or our stores and foods. They experienced culture shock. Also in class, we learned about American values that we follow. Just like how important time is to Americans. Americans are very concerned with getting things on time and done in detail and precision. Time is so valued because one can accomplish more goals than those who do not. Time=money. For example, my parents need to work a certain amount of hours per week, and if they do not achieve that goal, they'll get fired. It's not worth the stress of being jobless then to do what your supposed too, on time.

In n' Out-Groups

What groups are you in? Imagine all the different groups that you are a part of. Friends, family, race, gender, school, sports, religion, culture, and many more. Many people don't realize how many in-groups they are a part of. An in-group is a group that an individual feels as though they belong, like a member, due to common interests and hobbies. An out-group are basically a group that an individual is not a part of, maybe even takes complete opposite opinion on them. Members of an in-group immediately get along due to their common interests, and also develop favoritism and judgements against groups that are not "them". For example, we did an activity in class where our teacher split us up into 2 groups depending on the color shirt you were wearing, black or colored shirt. A leader in each group was to right down ideas on why the other group was wearing a shirt that was not same colored as theirs. When the whole class got together again, the leaders shared their lists. To surprise, much of the list were judgements that probably weren't true. The groups assumed things about the other group without a logic reason, just "because". A personal example was when I was involved in a sport. Whenever we had competitions, our team would make mean remarks about the others performance, but we don't really know their issue. Maybe they had a migraine that day, or sprained their ankle and tried their best but couldn't do their best. People should treat others the way they want to be treated.

Social Groups

This week in Sociology was very short due to Odyssey, a fine arts exploration that the whole school takes part in. It showed me that everyone can work together to create something bigger and took me out of my 'bubble' to discover new things. We also did an activity in class called "Abandon Ship" where we had 16 members on a boat, and 7 of them had to be thrown overboard. Since I was an old woman, I knew that I was not going to stay on the boat since I had no use and was very weak and could not hold onto expectations. This proved that in our society we view strength and youth as more valuable, then the old and wise. When I made a list of all the groups I was apart of, it was strange to see that II had an influence on many people in my life and I didn't really realize it. It was very interesting to view that I am one person involved in many different things with many different people. 

Social Creation

This week, we learned about how our society affects the way that we see certain things and how we perceive them, which is called Social Construction of Reality. An example of Social Construction of Reality is the way society perceives saliva and spit. It's considered 'weird' if someone spits onto a spoon and puts it back in their mouth, (if they were to do that), but it was just in their mouth, so what's so weird about it? The activity in class really helped me understand what this term meant. It's not considered right because society made everyone think that it's just not normal. This really helps me understand how much of an impact society really has on me and everyone around me. An example that connects to my life is how all of the students at my high school have a high tech cell phone, like the newest iPhone, and if someone doesn't have a touch screen, or a QWERTY keyboard, then they wouldn't accept it and find it odd. This week in class truly showed me how big of an impact society has on everyone.

Sociological Mindfulness

The definition of Sociology is the study of the development, structure, and functioning of the human society. The idea of Sociology is to go beyond the expectations and look ahead of the norm.  In Michael Schwalbe's story, Sociologically Mindfulness, he explains and teaches how people should be mindful of their surroundings. People lack to see how every familiar thing truly affects us because they lack the necessary kind of mindfulness. Mindfulness is more than paying attention, it is to see and appreciate its unique qualities. He gives the example of a person to not just being aware of and paying attention to somebody, but instead trying to see and appreciate their differences as a thinking and feeling being. When they are mindful of a person in this way, they see past the stereotypes and prejudices. Sociological mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to how the world works. We are all tuned-in just by being members of society and living, But to be truly mindful of the world, we must lean to see it for what it is. We must learn the ideas necessary to see what makes the world a unique phenomenon. He asks his readers what the purpose of being sociologically mindful is and he gives three intelligent beliefs. When one is mindful of his surrounding, they achieve a good life. One that society is peaceful, cooperative, and that everyone should receive equal rights. Also, no one should enjoy power and privilege at the expense of others. And finally, everyone is obliged to consider how their actions affect others. In succeeding on being mindful to the world, helps us see that the consequences of our words and actions often escape our intentions.Words are powerful; and can harm others indirectly, even if no harm was intended. Being sociologically mindful also means paying attention to the hardships that people face. If we understand how others circumstances differ from ours, we are more likely to show compassion for them and to grant them the respect they deserve as human beings. Every day people use sociology even when they don't know it. For example, when you interpret the people you meet and how you behave around them. We often fail to see and appreciate all of our connections to others due to our daily concerns for ourselves. Sociological mindfulness held us see these threads of social life and how they obligate to us. The main benefit of this awareness is that it can make us more responsible members of the community. As Americans and individuals of this fast-paced life, we learn that it is good to be self-reliant, to achieve on our own, and to look out for ourselves. This can blind us to our independence with others, and keep us from seeing how they can benefit us and the community. Everyone can try to enrich the lives of others by teaching, promoting health, or organizing for change. He ends this story with the question, What kind of mark do you want to leave on the earth for having lived? This story started my sociological thinking of life and taught me that if everyone were to have sociological mindfulness, the world would be a much better place.

"It is not the consciousness of men that determines their existence, but their social existence that determines their consciousness." -Karl Marx

Who Am I?

Who am I? I am simply another teenager in this enormous world trying to find out the answer to that question. Even though I don’t completely understand myself, there are some aspects that I know and accept. I am a lovable girl with a passion for nature and the arts, curious about everything, and definitely different than others. You will not find someone like me. A curiosity for exploring and adventuring sparks up my imagination and creativity. The most important thing to me currently is my family. No matter where you are, and what you do, they will always be there and love you. My parents and sister have taught me a lot throughout the years and I don’t know where I would be without them. They have taught me love, care, wisdom, respect, and to be responsible for your own actions. They have also taught me in order to be 
successful, you need to work hard and earn it. Everyone knows the best feeling in the world is to complete something you’ve done and be proud of it. I love to make art, always have and always will. I have a sketchbook full of my drawings and ideas. I love to draw, paint, and sculpt. The idea of creating something of your own is amazing. I am a huge animal person; I love all kinds of animals. I have 3 dogs, 2 cats, an iguana, and fishes. I don’t know where I would be without music. Music allows me to let go and just enjoy life. Since my family is from a European background, the history behind Europe interests me because history is the foundation of the world. I love to think deeply and think about the questions of life. My ultimate dream to achieve in my lifetime is to travel the world. There is so much more out there to explore and discover. Some places I would want to visit are Germany, Rome, England, Ireland, and Amsterdam; pretty much all around Europe. My trip last summer to British Columbia, Canada sparked my love for different environments. I also love to snowboard. The fresh air and the view while going down the mountain exhilarates me. Even though I don't know the answer to this question, I'm working hard to find it out and I can feel that I'm pretty close to finding it out.

"To the question of your life, you are the answer. 

And to the problems of your life, you are the solution."