The House I Live in

The documentary was a big eye opener and that it made me see the bigger picture on the war on drugs in the United States of America. I never knew how big an issue drugs were until I saw the number of people jailed due to drug-related cases. I must say that the document is well directed and that it enables the viewers to understand the history of the drug problem in the United States, the efforts made by the government over the years to try and curb the vice. One of the greatest things that I learnt from the documentary is the fact the initiatives set by the government to stop drug abuse have caused more harm than good to the affected population and the community at large. 

As much as I agree with the documentary, I must say that there are certain aspects that have been overlooked and that if I was the one filming the documentary, I would have gone ahead and shown the three sides of the coin and not only the two sides which have been presented by the director of the documentary. The director of the documentary mainly majored on the peddlers of the drugs and the United States Government. I believe that there is more to the war on drugs than only these two parties, and thus I would also feature those families that have been affected by drug addicts. We must recognize the fact the drugs addiction has enormous effects on one's health, family and society at large. Thus, as much as we may condemn the actions of the government we should also take a look at the how bad the issue of drug addiction would be if the government would not have put in place the measures that it put in place then. I believe that it is important to show all these sides and so that the viewers can be left to take a stand on the matter. 

 

Sarah Grimke

One of the characters that I can identify myself with in the book, “The Invention of Wings” is Sarah Grimke. Sarah is one of the two main characters in the book. The book introduces us to Sarah when she is about 11 years of age and ends when she is in her middle age. However, in between these two years, Sarah accomplished so many things that women her age can never accomplish in their lifetime. Motivated by her earliest memory of seeing Rosetta being punished, Sarah becomes motivated to fight for the rights of the slaves and the women of her society. It is such actions that amazes me and makes me like Sarah even more. Despite coming from a slave owner family, Sarah was very kind and she never despised any slave that worked for them. Instead she embraced them and always wished the best for them

​Sarah’s ability to talk to her brothers and her father about her stand on slavery shows her bravery something that is very rare in the present day since most people fear to act on what is right. In the book Sarah is portrayed as very sober, zealous and an abolitionist who stops at nothing and tackles every challenge that comes her way. Another amazing character that I like in her is the fact that she was able to keep her promise to Mauma even after her death. Sarah had promise Mauma at a tender age that she would free her daughter Handful. Despite being banned from Charleston Sarah risks it all and goes back to save Handful and Sky.

​These actions are what make me admire Sarah since she inspires me by her sobriety, courage, assertiveness and the zeal to help others regardless of race, norms and traditions.

 

“The Invention of Wings

The Invention of Wings

I was curious about what the book “The Invention of Wings” was all about. My curiosity began with the title and it was then that I gained full interest in reading the book. I was up to the challenge that was ahead of me. Unlike most books that are organized in chapters, I found out that the book was organized into parts and ranged from part one to part six. All those part were divided into certain number of years. Immediately I began reading the first part of the book I was amazed by the description and the characters of the book. Having not read a lot about slavery before, I was marveled by the story and I wanted to know about the characters, the city, Charleston and how life was in early 19th century. The author’sstyle of writing was very good since it enabled me to understand the book in both angles and by this I mean, through the eyes of a slave and through the eye of the owners of the slave.

​I found the book very unique in that the author is able to show us the other side of slavery which is rarely told. The author is able to show how the Grimke family lived and what their views were about slavery. Excited by this I kept reading through the next parts of the book and I was able to be introduced to new characters who made the book even more interesting and better. Excited the two parts of the book with the author introducing themes such as the theme of love and deceit that is brought about by Burke Williams and Sarah I was more than happy to continue reading the book.

It is in the third part of the book that I really felt saddened by the death of Mr. Grimke, a good man that also hoped for a better life for the slave that worked for him. Just when I thought the dream of seeing the slaves free had gone with the death of Mr. Grimke, I was fascinated that Sarah didn’t let the death of her father affect her course but rather she took the word of her father and went on to pursue what she believed in. It is here that I felt that I needed to read the book even more. The book takes a revolutionary twist one that made me read it till the end. Reading the book was a great experience for me. I was able to learn a lot from the book and the book also helped me build my writing skills and my vocabulary since I would learn new words here and there as read it.

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Reflection

Reflection

            I must say that I was somehow nervous before starting to write the paper. To gain courage. I grabbed my book and paper and put down the question as I kept on brainstorming on the question so as to ensure that I had interpreted correctly and that I was on track. I quickly went through the articles provided but one could not get off my mind and that was Why “Work Smart, Not Hard” is the Worst advice in the World. I was curious to learn the arguments put forward by the writer of the article, Mike Rowe. Because of that I went through the article twice. The first time I went through it like a person just reading a story book and the second time I did it more seriously along with my pen and paper trying to get the main points from the documents. I was able to identify my thesis statement and thus I felt that I was ready to start on the work.

 

            As usual a few negative thoughts came into my mind as I wanted to start working on the paper. My main worry was whether I may arguments would fit the minimum number of words required for this paper. This was because I feared that my arguments were very brief and thus they could barely fill a page. It was then that I resorted to reading more about the topic so that I could have a greater understanding of the paper and also have more points. My main source of motivation was the true life stories that I had read that related to the topic and thus they motivated me to work harder and write and even better paper. After reading the entire articles and understanding it, I set aside two day in which I was sure that I would be free and ensure that the work would be complete. I decided to write two pages on each day this really helped me a lot since I handle the paper easily and even finished before the deadline. I was able to put my arguments in a well set manner, one that would enable any one to read well and understand my points easily.

Popular Culture

     Comparison of Expectation of Education and an Example from the Popular Culture

                                                                                  

        

            Right from the point when we were still young children and never understood why we even needed to be in school, our parents have always tried to show us and to prove to us that education is key in our life. It is from that time that I began to hold a lot of value to education because I believed and I still believe that there are a lot good things that can come from being educated. Personally, I have never let my background influence my decisions with regards to education and that is the reason I have devoted myself, so as to ensure that I get so as to be able to gain significantly from education. I believe that it is only through this education that I am pursuing that will I be able to make an impact, in my community and the world in general. I am determined to be knowledgeable and also practice my knowledge.

            This is the same spirit that I would pass to my kids and my kids’ children since I do have a lot of expectation from my love for education. In the present day, education is key even influencing how one relates to other individuals and also in enabling us understand and accept the diversity of the world. The English language has made it possible for people from various parts of the globe to be able to interact effectively thus accomplish various goals with ease. One of the best form of popular culture that I can relate with is books. My two favorite authors are Robin Sharma and Ben Carson. I tend to admire the source of motivation that one is able to derive from most of the books that are written those specific authors. The book, “Think Big” by ben Carson enables me to relate my life effectively with his though and thus that is where I derive my source of motivation and expectation from education. It is the experiences that Ben Carson that enables me believe that any with the ability to dream can make it in life regardless of where a person is in the world. Books can be a great source of knowledge and a source of motivation if only embraced by a majority of us.

            It is through the same books that I get to have a deeper understanding of life and motivation. It is for this reason that I believe that books are a good pop culture since in every student have a lot interests in various books, apart from the books that I have mentioned above.

High School Experience

 

High School Experience

            High school was one of the most important stages of my life since it was what shaped me to whom I am today. Unlike the present day classes, in Saudi Arabia, our high schools were segregated by gender and thus we were about 24 boys in our class. The school grading system was set in such a way that the examinations grade had more weight compared to the daily assignments and individual class participation and thus that gave me the motivation for reading and would forever change the way I handled my time. I would wake up at very early in the morning, go through my work to make sure that every assignment was great after which take breakfast then head straight to school.

            The school rules were set in such a way that we would have very formal relationship with our teachers and also use formal title when addressing most of our school teachers. As a result I would consult my teachers once in a while whenever I failed to understand a topic of a concept clearly. However, most of the times we would form class discussion groups where we would discuss what was taught in class earlier in the day and that would really assist us in understanding what the teacher had taught way better. Being a silent guy in class, the group work were a platform for me to speak openly and be able to interact with the other class members effectively. I believe that is what contributed to us attaining good grade and also be able to pass the final examinations.

            One of the things that I enjoyed most during my high school years was the extra curriculum activities offered by our school. We had both the Physical Education classes and also time for games. This provide us an opportunity to engage in what we enjoyed best. Unlike all the other teachers, the Physical Education teacher was very open, interactive and friendly. As much as he was a teacher, most students always felt that they would relate to him like a father and mentor and that is what made the Physical Education classes different from the other classes. It is important to understand that our school was very strict and that discipline was a top priority for the management. Incidences of carrying cellphones to schools or even engaging in a fight were never tolerated and thus most of us learned the virtue of self-discipline at an early age. The support I got from my family members such my father, my mother, brothers and even uncles and aunts were immense and this enabled me be significantly motivated during my high school day. I believe such support is what made me work harder each day.

Farhan story

Farhan

Farhan is one of my classmate for writing 100 class his full name is Farhan Alanazi . He graduate from Alawail High school on 2010, then two years later he decided  to complete his education on the united state .  Farhan has fun side of his life however, hi is missing his family so much. Farhan had wrong idea about the Americans society before, coming to the U.S. Farhan loves cooking furthermore, his roommate are so lucky to have  a friend like farhan  living at the same home.

            Farhan decide to leave his family and start his high education at the U.S. so, he started studying English in 2012 . At was in Colorado( Denver) , he was shocked  because, the media is not telling the right story about the U.S. and the people here . What we are seeing on the media, they portray us that the U.S. is full of crimes and insecurity that is even in Hollywood studio. However, his idea has changed, since he came and discovered the reality.   

            Farhan likes mostly the American mores, and how people here are behaves.

He saw by his eyes, and hear by his ears is that the American society are one of the best societies in the world, if not the first. Therefore, he is missing his family so much, and he told me a hidden secret about himself. Farhan cares mostly about one person which is his Mother and he would do whatever she asked him for.

            Farhan is cheerful, enjoyable and joyous; he likes all kind of gaming. Ps4 is one of his favorite game and call of duty game is the best. Cooking is the most thing he good at, and he could cook many kind of Arabic dishes, spaghetti and more and more. Finally, interviewing and find out a person like Farhan it is really a good experience .