riley06’s Blog

Tribute To Sis

by Riley & Alicia

When many people are asked who their hero is, their answers tend to be a bit cliche more often then not.  They come up with a famous football player, or a generic “leader” that they do not really know much about.  To me, my heroes are the people in my life that have taken the initiative to make life better for another person.  Any parent who makes sacrifices for their child is a hero.  Any neighbor that lends a helping hand when a family down the street is going through a hard time is a hero. All the teachers that have devoted their lives to inspiring youth to be the best they can be are heroes.  It’s the people that take actions without being asked, because they know it is the right thing to do.

About a month ago, my only grandmother passed away.  For the past 13 years of my life she had been confined to a nursing home, and while I visited her as much as possible, I never got to see her in her “natural environment.”  Her passing left me feeling empty, like I barely knew the person who was essentially responsible for my existence.

A week after her death, there was a small remembrance ceremony at the nursing home she had lived in.  I entered a room full of elderly men and woman, with clouds of white hair and biphocals that took up half their faces.  When there was an opportunity to share thought about her, nearly everyone in the room, faces tear-stained, voices quivering, would tell stories of her selflessness and optimism.

As the weeks progressed, and my family went through the pain of the loss, I continued to hear a common theme of the stories of her. It was something that I knew, but didn’t necessarily know the magnitude of. She never complained, and never spoke ill of anyone; ever.  My grandma lost her husband when my dad was fifteen years old, and in 1965, being the single mother of two was an extremely difficult task.  But my dad, who had more appreciation for his mom than any other son I’ve met, recollects that she never once complained, or blamed her misfortune on another.  In her final days of life, in which she should have been in a serious state of discomfort, she always made the best of her situation.  She told us how much she loved us, and how much she appreciated the care the nurses, doctors, and specialists gave to her.

To be, this nature of kindness and optimism that she exibited all throughout her life makes her a true hero.  I am blessed to have part of her with me, and look to her as an example of how to live my life.

I’ve only ever been to the zoo a few times, and have very much enjoyed myself there.  I love to see exotic animals, especially as a little girl.  As I have grown up however, visits to the zoo have left me with a sick feeling.  For instance, the polar bear exhibit.  They have always been a favorite animal of mine, and hold my utmost fascination.  So seeing them in an artificial   environment in the middle of the city makes me sad.  Due to the threat of global climate change, the icebergs that these creatures live on are rapidly melting.  Their homes are dissintigrating before our very eyes, but we don’t seem to care; after all, they’ve got some at the zoo.  To me, knowing these animals are able to live where they were intended to is much more comforting than seeing them locked up in a chilled water tank thousands miles away from home.  People need to realize how much harm our selfishness creates for animals such as the polar bear.

Global warming threat – Vets in the Polar Bear Wild – BBC animals

As spring slowly approaches, I am amazed by the glint of golden- yellow radiating from the sun rays bouncing off the trees, flowers and smiling faces. Gold may not be considered a color, but more so the visual image of warmth. It is natures glitter; a gloss that illuminates the beauty in all objects in nature, and it’s presence fills me with joy, for I know it is finally summer.

I pride myself in caring.  I care about my family, my friends, and my future. So it seems to me that caring about the one thing that determines the well being of the things important to me is only necessary.  Taking care of our home, the planet, seems to come second nature to me.  It’s simple to throw old paper in the recycle bin instead of the garbage can, use a canvas grocery bag over a plastic disposable one, to turn off the lights when I’m not in the room;  simple steps I can take to drastically reduce the amount of energy and resources I use and waste I produce.  Highschool is the time that students should be developing goodhabits, and so I believe that our age group should be more aware than anyone.  The impact we are making on the Earth by the decisions we make affects everyone of us, and will continue to do so.  If we are the future, we need to look out for what the future holds in store.  We cannot soley focus on the present and desicrate our planet, or our children will not get to enjoy life like we have.  We needs to keep it in our minds every minute of every day until it becomes routine. Can I reuse this?  I can I reduce the amount of waste this penitraites? Can I recycle it?  Three simple questions that over time, can help our planet to thrive and exists for generations after us.

For my avatar I chose a photo of a bird. While I may often get scrutinized for being such a “tree hugger”, as I citizen of this planet I believe it is my duty to do my part for our world. It is a blessing that we have such a breath takingly wonderful home, and my avatar represents the love and appreciation I have for it and it’s inhabitants. The idea of world peace is surely a lame cliche, but the ideal of striving for world toleranceis much the same, and completely attainable.

ballad-of-gold

secret-life-of-bees-podcast

This past, crisp autumn Saturday, my very best friend Ashtin and I went to the Thurston men’s soccer playoffs at Willamette High School. Our dear friend Calvin Green is the goal keeper, and being highly spirited students of Thurston High School, we decided to show our support. We sat in front of my other delightful friends Jordan Daniel McCornack and Crosby Victor Green, who are passionate soccer enthusiasts.

“Take a rip!” yelled Crosby, as he jabbed his rather bony knees into my back over and over.

Jordan firmly clamped a stress ball in his hands that he violently threw against the bleachers repeatedly in disgust. I narrowly dodged this each and every time; how I am so skilled I have no idea.

Thurston was down 2 – 0 and we could tell by the look on Calvin’s face that he was most certainly not pleased.

I had forgotten how incredibly much I hated watching soccer games, for they make me an absolute anxious wreck.

There was 10 seconds left on the clock as we looked solemnly on North Eugene’s goal and Calvin came darting from the opposite end of the field to somehow salvage the game and tie it up.

There was no such luck.

The podcast that I found most interesting was Drowning Anna by Susan Mayfield.  I think the mood that the performers set was both dark and vibrant.  I could feel the emotion through the dialoge and the acting;  dark, solmn and sad.  But, as sad as it was, it painting a vivid picture of Anna and her bully.  I think the song choices fit the mood of the story very well, and the voices used were extremely convincing.  I really felt like I was listening to a movie being acted out.  This podcast drew me in and kept me interested, and gave just enough information about the story to make me want to read it myself.  It was well thought out, creativly set up, and very chilling.   I had never heard of Drowning Anna before I listened to this podcast, and now that I have I really want to read the book.