Final One

This semester really challenged me, especially these past few weeks. I never had a chance to really publish this on my blog, but I have been having tough times because of my attitude. This indirectly ties into my thankfulness virtue and respect for my parents. I have really lost their trust this time because of my stupidity and taking advantage of situations. I was not thankful enough and I regret doing what I have done, however I cannot take any of my actions back. All I can do now is to be the best I can to try to make up for what trouble I have caused. Moving on from my shortcomings, I have also had many successes throughout these grading periods in commitment and assertiveness. I have dedicated much of my time in Science Olympiad, which has been worthwhile and my hard work is being rewarded because I have been brought to Team 2 and been chosen to go to M.I.T. (which is my dream school). For assertiveness, I think I could have done a little better. I do see myself gradually improving because I started noticing that in AP I have been getting lower grades in participation, and now I am trying to answer more questions and not be afraid of getting the wrong choice. In conclusion, I have had my ups and downs but that is just life, and I have to keep moving and improving in my virtues to reach eudaimonia. 

Ups and Downs

I have horrible and amazing news! I got my phone taken away because I was “using it too much, getting distracted and misbehaving”. So I get it taken away for a whole month, unless I can prove to my parents that I deserve it back; 3 more weeks to go, yippy :) . The great news is that I am going skiing for Winter Break, I got to go ice skating with my friends today, and I am going to my friend’s house to decorate cookies!! Anyways, I am trying my best to behave and respect my parents, so I guess that falls into the thankfulness virtue. I am continuing to build my helicopter for Science Olympiad; it is fun when you understand what you are supposed to do.  I have not really improved in assertiveness because I felt that there wasn’t much to do this week, class wise. I had fun this week though because there wasn’t much homework and I actually understood the physics and it was really easy.

Really Long and Boring

This week was really long and boring. We had an Algebra Test that I didn’t study for and a Physics Test that I failed. But nothing much really happened this week. For assertiveness, I knew an answer to physics and I raised my hand. I am going to be committed to Science Olympiad and I will work on my helicopter this weekend. I was really thankful that my mom was back and my dad was able to pick me up today because we had early release today. My mom is also letting me go to my friend’s house over the weekend to decorate cookies even though she is sick. See you guys next week, hopefully it is more interesting.

The Shortest Thanksgiving Break Ever

Thanksgiving break was so much fun, unfortunately time flew by so quickly and I wanted to spend more time with my huge family (consisting of about 40 people).  I met up with my family in Orlando where we rented houses to stay in and celebrate. I was really thankful to be a part of my amazing family and for everyone to come together from all over America, and make our 7^th Family Reunion possible. This Thanskgiving I missed my mom because she is attending her brother's wedding. At least she gets to spend time with her family  when they really need her. For assertiveness, I really spoke out and gave suggestions during our Closing and Feedback “Meeting”. This is off topic, but I was committed to History Bowl and showed up to the meeting on Thursday. I really want to dedicate my time to this club because it will definitely help me in the future for numerous reasons. This week was really packed, and I had a lot of homework, quizzes, and tests; next week will also be busy.  So I am not looking forward to school, only to December Break!!

This is a group photo of my whole family, except some people were not able to attend this time.

Forced to Joining History Bowl!!

This week was long, but short at the same time. We did not do much or have much homework, even though I have been sleeping late every day. I was forced to join History Bowl and we had a competition today and it was a good experience. Except that we lost every time, except once against our own team.  I really want to commit to this club because it will help me in history and it will look good for college if I do excel in it. I didn’t study for my Algebra test and I was stressed for the last question which I couldn’t figure out until the end and I think I got a couple wrong. I knew I should have studied but I was over confident. That is it for this week. See you next Friday. 

3 Day Week!!

So this week was really short and I pretty much forgot about my virtues and blog. I would have forgotten to do the blog if it wasn’t for my friend who reminded me like right now. The only thing I really improved on was commitment because I went to a meeting for electric vehicle, an event I am participating for Science Olympiad. It was fun because I got to know my instructor and got a VIP tour of the new building. For thankfulness, I was appreciative of my mom for waiting for my meeting to end and being there on time to pick me up. That’s pretty much it for this week; sorry my blog was really boring for whoever’s reading. 

The Character Experiment: Inventory and Experience #2/ Week 10

1.           The three virtues I chose were assertiveness, commitment, and thankfulness. I took specific steps to make a serious attempt at practicing each, which was different for the specific virtue. For assertiveness, I made sure to have my thoughts ready and payed careful attention to what the teacher requested, to give a well-developed answer. This guaranteed me the confidence I was searching for because I was satisfied with my answer. I also made sure not to raise my hand immediately, which would not have been a keen idea, since my answer would not have been carefully thought through. For commitment, I really wanted to devote and spend my time in extracurricular activities. I needed, and still need to manage my time appropriately. I do this by setting up a board and writing all my homework down. This helps me to organize my priorities and set them straight. I also made sure to go to my practices for cross country and practice at home, even though I had a problem with this which I will explain later. For my last virtue, thankfulness, I made sure to think before I talk and look at the brighter side of situations. Let me clarify, whenever I wanted something or would receive an item I would say a proper reply and think about how lucky I am for all that I have.

2.            There were many situations and opportunities for me to practice the virtues I chose. For instance, for assertiveness there were discussions that I could participate in and which I connected with. It really helped me, since there were no right answers or views, I could voice my opinions with confidence. For commitment, there were a ton of chances for me to show my assurance. Cross country really helped me, as I had practices and meets, so showing up to them would show my devotedness. Science Olympiad is one of my main priorities because committing to this team and excelling in it could guarantee me a bright future. There are, and were openings for team 2. I took the initiative and ordered one of my supplies for my event for Science Olympiad and this convinced my teacher that I was dedicated. So as a result, she moved to the second highest team out of 3, which for me being a ninth grader and new to this kind of competition, is pretty awesome. For thankfulness, there were some occasions in which I could show my respect and in turn benefit myself. I guess I might be a continental type of person. But I do want to excel in my virtue for thankfulness, because I believe it is the right to be appreciative of others. For example, I wanted to go to a party and I had to show my mom that she could trust me and I was very kind to her and showed her respect. I did not just do this because I wanted to go but because it is good and virtuous.

3.           Well for me, many things got in the way of my attempts to practice the virtues I chose. For one, I wasn’t able to complete cross country because of the pain in my knees due to over exertion from running too many days in a row. The pain in my knees was unbearable, and I missed many practices and almost all the meets due to this. Also, I started cross country later, so it was harder for me to catch up with the rest of the team and make up for the meets that I missed. When I thought I was getting better I decided to go to a meet in downtown, and when I was running for warmup, my knees gave up on me and I had to sit and watch while everyone ran. This really brought me down and made me feel disappointed in myself. But I knew that I would take this lesson and learn from it for the future. I also gave up on Secme for this year because I didn’t really like the organization of the club and left. For thankfulness which ties into respect, I had some rough days which would lead to my unpleasant moods; which in turn, led to me taking out my frustration on my parents. This resulted in a strict discipline, and I learned my lesson once again.

4.              I think I am getting there to becoming relatively successful in practicing the virtues. I do not think I have achieved much though because it has only been 2 months, which is nothing to become virtuous. I still need more time to practice my virtues for it to become a second habit. Commitment is something that requires long periods of time, because it is shown depending on the how long you are devoted to a particular activity. I am dedicated to Science Olympiad and I was for Cross Country, but the season ended. I can do a lot better to become assertive but that will progress as the school year continues. Thankfulness has improved a lot, and I have started appreciating my parents more and more. There is not much I have accomplished here. First because this is something that takes getting used to and bringing into your daily life. Most of us don’t even realize the things we do, so how will we begin to change them.

5.           It is very difficult to become a virtuous person and requires a lot of effort and work. Becoming virtuous isn’t something that happens overnight. You have to practice your virtues consistently. This can be hard because remembering that you have to work on you virtues 24/7 is not something that comes naturally. I have noticed that becoming a better person isn’t a simple task. In my case, I went through many difficulties and bumps in the road. Becoming good is not as easy as it seems. People might think that doing the right thing should not be difficult and should that it should come normally, but that is not how it works. For example, when I get bored of something I want to stop doing it. Since I am not used to committing it is quite difficult for me to adapt to. My knee injury also made it very hard on me and brought me down. Thankfulness was the hardest virtue for me because I am not used to being appreciative and it is not easy for someone to open their eyes and realize all they have.

6.           I think the situations that I will likely to encounter over the next two months that will give me a good chance to grow in being a good person is Greek Night and Thanksgiving. Since I will be volunteering on Greek Night, I will be helping out for 5 hours or so. I think this is a good opportunity for me to become a good person and help out the community. I will be donating my time and contribute which will make me a giving person. Thanksgiving is a wonderful situation in which I can take advantage of to become a good person. During Thanksgiving, I meet up with my enormous family and we have different “committees” to divide the work. I always enjoy joining the food committee because I believe that my family revolves around food and it takes a lot of work to make so much of it. So I like to take the part of the load off of the others and help out. I also really enjoy helping others, so doing my chores isn’t really a burden for me.

7.          The situations that I will most likely encounter over the next two months that will
present obstacles or challenges to my growth in being a good person is when midterms come around or a load of homework is dumped. The stress from Midterms and clusters of homework will lead me to crack under pressure. Then that will lead to me being cranky, sleepy from staying up so late, and in turn to failing. Also, coming to Team 2 for Science Olympiad is a little scary for me because this is all new to me. For one of my events I do not know my partner, so it will be difficult for me to get to know them because they are a sophomore and I don’t have any other classes with them. Also, for that same event I will have to consecutively drive to my teacher’s house and other places whenever he demands. I have heard that he keeps you really late and even on weekdays. But I will just have to learn to adjust and cooperate, if I want to win. 

Study Week/Ending of Grading Period

Hey guys, so this week was really great. We basically just studied in every class since teachers were inputting grades for the end of the grading period(yesterday); except for the two tests I had, everything was pretty smooth. So for commitment this week, I might be moved to the second team for Science Olympiad because I was proving to the teacher that I deserve the spot. So I have to work extra hard and keep proving myself. For assertiveness, nothing much happened because we didn’t really have much class this week, so there wasn’t much to participate in. For thankfulness, I think I really improved because I have been really appreciative of my parents and trying to talk calmly to them. I haven’t been back- talking to them as much and I think before I speak nowadays. I believe that respect is important to gain from my parents so I really want to improve. Anyways, thanks for reading. Goodbye!

Okay…

It feels so like it has been soo long since I have posted a blog. I almost forgot about it… but thankfully I remembered. Today was a really good day, except I had an English test which I wasn’t really worried about because I read the book, except I hate having to memorize which character says what. But it was an okay test… I guess we’ll see when I actually get the grade. Anyways, this week in Ethics I participated twice in a discussion. I actually felt pretty confident with some of my answers, except I said a word which tore down one of my arguments. But I refuted it. I respected my parents and was feeling happy today. I didn’t argue or back-talk to them. I was proud of myself. This week was pretty slow and nothing drastic really happened, it was just okay…

Nothing Much

So this week consisted of two school days…yay!! For commitment, I finally purchased my helicopter kit for Science Olympiad which I had been postponing this whole week. For assertiveness I got the guts to ask a question in Ethics which I was doubtful about, but I did it and I’m proud, I guess. For thankfulness, I told my mom to get me chips from Publix and she said no, but then when she got home I saw the chips on the counter and I thanked her truly this time. Sorry for not having much this week, as I said before it was really  short and not much happened because of the Hurricane that was supposed to come but never came. See you next time, bye!!

“My Life Just Couldn’t Get Any Better”

So um yeah, more disappointing news, my knees failed me again this Tuesday. I went to the meet, but I wasn’t able to run during warmups and I wasn’t able to compete. It was the worst feeling because I woke up that morning so happy and pumped to go and I literally got on a bus to go to downtown (which was about an one hour drive to and from with all this crazy Miami traffic, even though I fell asleep on the way back) and I felt hopeless when I saw everyone else run and I was stuck watching. So now I won’t be able to make it districts. And I wasn’t able to make the meet on Thursday. But I’m still going to go to practice, try to go to the rest of the meets, and train for next year because I’m no quitter and I’m committed all right. So yeah, there we go with commitment. Any who, I input my thoughts for a discussion we had in Ethics, so I guess that was an “improvement”. For thankfulness, I just went back to square one all over again. On Tuesday, the day of my meet in which I couldn’t compete in, I wanted my dad to pick me up because I didn’t want to stay and waste my time while I was in pain. However, he was in a meeting for work and he couldn’t come. So when I came home I got mad at my parents for not understanding me and not thinking about me. I was really unthankful to them and I agree with what I did was wrong. I’ll work on my attitude. Good news is that I went to practice today, even though we only did a mile I still got through with 9 minutes and 45 seconds, for not running in 9 days I guess that’s pretty good. Good bye, hopefully running this weekend won’t kill me. 

The Worst Ending to the Best Beginning

Yeah my title might seem confusing, but wait until I explain this crazy week. So as I told you guys before, I joined cross country and it was great until Wednesday hit. On Tuesday I had a meet, which I did really well in for my first time. I got 33 minutes and 10 seconds. However, the next day my knees were in pain and I thought this might just last for a little while. But this pain has been going on for two days and today it felt worse than it did on Wednesday. Today there was a meet and I missed it due to my injury. So now, I have to compete in all the upcoming meets to reach the requirement of five to make the sport count. So that is my commitment virtue right there. I did commit to the sport and it wasn’t that I was irresponsible, I was actually hurt. For my other virtues, I was really thankful for my dad being able to drive all the way to downtown to come to my first meet for cross country. He gave me courage, cheered me on, motivated and supported me. I was really glad and shocked to see him there because he surprised me by coming. I have been a bit more assertive in AP, I ask questions and answer some but there been minimal progress. Hopefully I feel better by Tuesday, no I better feel better by Tuesday, no actually Monday. Anyways, bye. 

Wow It’s Just Week #3

     Well this week felt like the longest week of my life. We had all five days of school without a break (it was terrible). The worst part was getting 6 quizzes/tests, plus daily homework. Anyways, I guess one good thing happened, I worked on commitment and joined cross country. It’s only been two days but it’s an improvement. I also “participated” in AP (I just answered some questions that required one word). However, I felt that I at least got over my doubtfulness and raised my hand. For thankfulness, I guess I said some thanks here and there to my parents. Overall, I need to really practice for cross country this weekend, to catch up to others. I need to keep saying thanks and actually mean it and not say it for the heck of it. I also need to participate more in each class even if I am wrong; I want to let the teachers to get to know me more by the reflections I give. See you next week with an update. Comment if you can.

My Virtues Put to their First Test

Hello again viewers (probably just one),

This week felt pretty short to me, mainly because Monday was off and Friday I had a fieldtrip. So for my first virtue that I talked about in my previous post, (which was extremely long, don’t worry from now on though) was commitment. Something that I want to commit to, that I signed up for with my friends, is SECME. I really want to stick with that and Science Olympiad. My second virtue is assertiveness, which I really have to work on. I have to start participating more, because I found out that participation actually counts as a grade and if I don’t, I will end up lowering my GPA by a huge chunk. I haven’t really worked on thankfulness as much, because I am used to my lifestyle and find everything normal that I get. Well that’s it for this week, talk to you next Friday (unless something “interesting” happens before).

"The Character Experiment": Experience 1

           The first virtue I chose to make a serious attempt at practicing is commitment. Commitment is an agreement or promise to do something in the future. Basically, commitment is when you say you will take responsibility of something, and sticking with it. I tend to say I will do something, and then when I face it I don’t want to do it. When times get tough I just want to quit. Do you ever ask yourself this way, that way, which way should I go? I’m constantly asking myself what I should do next because of this commitment issue. The opposite of commitment is lacking direction which totally describes me. I just can’t make up my baffled mind. There are just so many paths to take and I don’t want to be the one who takes the wrong turn. That’s why I try to take as much time as I have to choose something.

            I am obviously picking this virtue to focus on because it needs “some” working on. I need to commit to things because I won’t find out what I like without sticking to something and I will be considered a quitter or disloyal. Not only that, but I can’t quit everything I do because eventually there will be nothing left for me to do.  People are already asking me what I want to be when I grow up, and I’m thinking that I can’t even decide what character I want to be in Classcraft. Like how does anybody expect me to decide what I want to be when I’m still a freshman? Commitment is especially difficult when you are new to something and you don’t want to adapt to it. Like a sport, the first month of training is tiring and gruesome and your body just wants to crumble away and fall to the floor and vanish from the face of earth (yea I’ve done it before, I know the feeling).

            I do have a couple of plans for growing in this virtue; let’s just hope I can commit to them! First off, I selected the elective Research A in which you study different fields of science and compete against other schools and so on. This elective requires a lot of determination, commitment, hours of studying and practicing, which is why I choose it. I really plan to dedicate and devote my time, and prove to myself that I can do it if I try. Also, as many of you know you have to work diligently in Archimedean, and you can imagine how long it took me to decide to get out of Coral Reef and come to this school. I definitely made the right decision and I don’t regret it, because I know that if I stay committed my hard work will pay off.

            My second virtue has the most significance to me in particular, which is thankfulness. The literal definition of thankfulness is a conscious of receiving benefit or expressing thanks. I really take what I have for granted, and since I’m an only child my parents can provide me what I want(*not all the times, but when my parents say no, my grandparents step in and spoil me). There is so much to be thankful about which I seem to miss at some points. I tend to get accustomed to goodness that it becomes regular. Thankfulness should come from the heart and be expressed fully to show appreciation. There is always something to be thankful about, whether it is something “simple” like getting clothes or whatever you feel casual about, or getting a brand new car. Saying thanks isn’t hard (its only one word) and it really can’t harm you.

I am picking this particular virtue because I don’t want to get used to not being grateful. I’m always hearing on the news about how many people are suffering around the world and I compare that to what I have. I see how much I have that I don’t even take into consideration. According to (www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-global-poverty), “Nearly 1/2 of the world’s population — more than 3 billion people — live on less than $2.50 a day. More than 1.3 billion live in extreme poverty — less than $1.25 a day.” It is sad thing to think about (and here I am at home sitting in front of a laptop complaining about homework, when half of the world can’t even afford water, let alone food). I don’t want to focus on the stuff I don’t have, but on the numerous things I do have.  I really want to be more grateful and I feel that this virtue should be practiced by everybody.

            As always you need a plan to succeed. Don’t worry I have one (starts thinking about a plan). Since I constantly tell my parents that I don’t have enough and that others have what I want, I’ll stop and think twice about how much my parents already do for me directly and indirectly. Whenever I get something I ask for or something I didn’t ask for, I will show that I am appreciative and say thank you to whoever it may be. In general, I will try asking for less and be more thankful. Like, saying thanks for dropping me off to school and picking me up, and having my breakfast, lunch, and dinner ready for me without me having to ask, or providing me a house and a safe environment to live in, and pure water to drink and shower in. Honestly I could go on forever. So stop and think about what you have, and keep calm and say thanks.

            Finally, we are at the last one. Trust me your part is easier. Reading nine paragraphs takes two minutes; it took me ten hours to write this. Anyways, my last virtue is assertiveness. Now if you don’t know what that means, too bad (just kidding). When you are assertive, you have or show a confident and bold personality. But in my case I just doubt myself. I’m not shy, however I don’t trust in myself and then I end up being right and regretting not sticking with my first choice. So I’m basically doubtful and regretful (wow, what a good match)! It is actually a really terrible feeling to be honest, and you tell yourself that you will be brave the next time but you end up backing down again. Being assertive helps people to stand up for themselves in a positive and serene manner.

            There are many reasons for my attempt to seriously practice this virtue. The number one purpose I need to become assertive is because I want to be brave and answer the question to how I see it, and give my input to participate more often. Even if I’m wrong, it is better for the teacher to correct me, rather than thinking about why it shouldn’t be what I originally thought. I also need to break out of my turtle shell or conch shell, and just speak out. And maybe, just maybe, if I express my thoughts, I might make a good point to help expand on the topic which will add to the discussion. By me being confident, but not cocky with my answers, I can connect with others and my classmates to develop on our ideas and rule the world!
            My final plan (thank god, I can see the sigh of relief on your face and you can probably imagine mine). So my plans relate to what I put for the paragraph above, but I’ll explain more. I obviously need to get over my fear and raise my hand. I need to be brave and not be afraid to get an answer that might not be right. Group debates and group work will help me to participate and get more involved. Also, as you get to know the class overtime, I feel that you can express yourself more and more as you get comfortable and adapted to the people in it. I will convince myself to respect my first choice and stick with it. As most people say, the first choice is the best choice. I’ll try to live by that motive, at least most of the time.

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