My Bubble was Burst

I always thought that the more educated a person is, the more peaceful they are.  I thought knowledge was power. In my view that power meant the ability to be logical and reasonable about a subject because you would have more knowledge about it.  I thought it meant you would no longer have to use violence because you would be smart enough to have different ways of solving a problem. To me violence meant ignorance.  

I read a narrative on Malcolm X called Literacy Behind Bars. The narrative went over how he learned to read and understand books by learning words in the dictionary while he was in prison.  I thought to myself that this guy must be incredibly smart with all the books he read.   I looked up Malcolm X on Google. (I was getting him confused with Nelson Mandela.) I learned a little about Malcolm X and who he was.  A lot more research is in order but part of a quote that upset me was “by any means necessary”…does that include violence? 

I have opened my eyes to my previous assumption.  Are highly educated people more peaceful? Why would such a seemingly smart man use or indorse violence?  Maybe smart people use their knowledge to form new ways and manipulate violence.

I have no conclusion to these thoughts; I defiantly need to do more research.  I guess that a person can be intelligent or book smart, and still be ignorant of what is right or wrong.  Today, my bubble was burst on my thoughts of how the world works.  My husband said something that I liked and felt fitting with this entry; “With power comes great responsibility…. or carnage.”

Ah, A Thesis?

            I have forgotten many things because I have been out of school for six years.  Anyway, I am now in a college English class and having to remember things like dependent clauses, thesis statements and how to write a paper has proven difficult.  Thank goodness for Google!

            I am writing two profiles on a fellow student.  I don’t really know if I am writing the paper correctly because I did not come up with my thesis statements until near the end of my writing process.  Reading through my paper, I think I have a thesis statement that represents and explains what my essay is about.  I guess we shall see once I get my papers back from my professor.  If the papers do not come back with good remarks, I am on my way to a tutor!

A Choice

A profile on poet Jimmy Baca really made me think about the people in this world.  A belief of mine is that you cannot excuse yourself from bad or destructive behavior just because you had a bad childhood or bad experience.  When we become adults we have the right and ability to choose who and what we want to be.

Jimmy Baca was abandoned by his parents when he was seven, lived in multiple detention centers, dropped out of school, was addicted to drugs and spent time in prison.  Not such a great life.  With all that we went through, Baca was able to make a choice to be something more. He became a poet and a writer. Now he is a teacher who helps children who are in his words the “worst of the worst.”

I admire that Jimmy was able to make a choice to want more and to be more.  He used the lessons he learned to help others.  With every event we experience, we have a choice; we can learn and grow from it, or we can let it destroy us bit by bit. 

Lessons from an Interview

In class last Wednesday our assignment was to interview a classmate.  We were given eight sample questions but urged to ask some of our own questions as well.  The objective of this interview was to get as much information as possible so that I would be able to write two profiles on the individual for different audiences.

I was immediately nervous thinking that I had to pick someone to interview.  I did not know anyone in the class.  To my relief, my teacher paired us up and I was able to skip the uncomfortable worries and wasted time finding a partner.

 Some of the sample questions were hard to answer.  A few of the questions included, "How do you see yourself as a person?" and "What do you want out of life?"  It's not every day that you get asked those questions.  Those questions took some time to answer and even now I am thinking about how to answer them personally.

It was interesting to find out about where my classmate was from and why he is attending college.  The interview gave me some insight on how he described himself and what his view of success was.  I noticed a yellow Live Strong bracelet that he was wearing.  He said he liked to help people and I thought the bracelet was evidence and a reminder of his statement.

Overall I think I gained surface knowledge about my classmate from the interview.  I intend on writing a profile that focuses on his career goals and another on how he is an interesting person.

A Surprising Interest

While reading several profiles, one by Sean Smith on Johnny Depp piqued my interest.  Truth be told, I was surprised by my reactions towards the profile.  I had never really cared for Johnny Depp in the past.  While I have enjoyed many of his films, I would never run out to see a movie just because he was in it.

"Fatherhood has a way of changing iconoclasts."  This was the first sentence in Sean Smiths profile.  First of all, I had no idea what the definition of an iconoclast was so I had to look it up in the dictionary.  Iconoclast is a person who attacks, or may I say disagrees with, settled beliefs or institutions.  Iconoclasts are also known as free spirits, non-conformists, and individualist.  Being all of that myself, I took interest in reading further.

I read briefly about Depp's journey growing up and how he became an actor. Quotes from previous directors and producers filled the paragraphs.  A couple of sentences describing his wife and children followed.  I very much liked how Depp wanted to make a movie for his children.  When Depp was at Disney and found out that the studio was developing a movie based on the theme park ride Pirates of the Caribbean, and that it was to be a "real pirate movie" with "real swords", he wanted in.  I  find it funny that Depp made Pirates of the Caribbean with Disney because Disney is so main stream and Depp has been known to be in movies that are strange and  that do not make a lot of money. Despite Disney being main stream and conservative, Depp was still able to put his own individuality on the character and essentially make the character of Jack Sparrow himself.

While fatherhood did change Depp by giving him a sense of meaning outside of being an actor, Deep still holds on to his non-conformity and individuality.  Deep never wanted to be on lunch pails or on the posters that line teen-age girls' walls and while his face is plastered on them now, it was done on his terms while still being a free spirit and staying true to himself.

Now that I have formed this new opinion about Johnny Depp, I just might have to see every movie that he has been in and look forward to seeing Pirates of The Caribbean again so that I might appreciate what he brings to the screen and possesses as an individual.