Hi,
Today I will talk about how writing blog posts about really helps me in my life and that it is not all about ACE. I would like to explain why I have such a love for writing blog posts and how they can help me in daily life. (By the way, I hope you get the title. Hint: Inception is about a world within a world. So, Blog-ception is about writing about blogs in a blog post)
Ever since primary school, I did not know much about blogs and had the impression that blogs were for grown-ups only. I also thought that blogs were a waste of time and a bit stupid because it was public so many people could see what was happening in your life, which means intruding in your privacy. Therefore, I did not have the habit of writing blogs, diaries or journals. However, after joining Hwa Chong Institution, I was introduced to the idea of blogs and started to write many posts about my feelings on current events. At first, I struggled to come up with my own topics and had to rely on my LA teacher for ideas. From there, I expressed my views on the topic but was not able to do so very well. However, as I wrote more and more blog posts, my confidence in writing grew as well and now, I am able to write blog posts very freely about almost everything under the sun. Blogs have also changed from a compulsory section of my studies to an enjoyable activity that I look forward to do. My writing skills have also improved by a lot, as I can spurn out chunks of words without much thinking. I enjoy blog posts because they help me to know more about current affairs and be used as a platform to pour out my feelings about something. It also helps me to improve my writing skills, in preparation for the examinations. I can comment on others' blog posts and learn many different points of view too, hence helping me to think critically and consider all points-of-view. Therefore, I find that blog posts have definitely helped me in my life both academically and emotionally.
In conclusion, I think that blog posts have really helped me in my life and I recommend that everyone start a blog right now! Thanks to blogs, my writing skills have improved by a lot and I have been exposed to a totally different world online!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Poor Results
Hi,
During the recent LA Reading & Reasoning test, I did very poorly, scoring a D7. I was the second lowest in class and I did much worse than my expectations. I failed! This definitely dealt a major blow to my studies because I was aiming for a good MSG this term. I also wanted to get into Humanities Programme next year but it requires me to get an End-Of-Year LA grade of A1. Of course, an appeal can work. However, i definitely do not want to take such chances. Therefore, I want to share my feelings on this test, why I did so badly and how I will respond to this matter.
When I first got the R & R paper back, I was quite alright with the results, because I expected that I did not do well in the test and I also thought that others were doing as badly as me. However, I realised that everyone around me was doing much better than I was and I even came it second lowest in class! This was a major shock to me because I was quite good in Language Arts. Thus, I felt very devastated and I knew that my MSG this term was going to be very poor. What's more, I was aiming to go the Humanities Programme next year, but I may have to put aside my hopes, thanks to this very poor result. I mean, this is one of my only failures in secondary school and it dealt a huge blow to me. I was feeling very emotional, but I managed to confide in a few of my friends who were nice and comforted me. Although I still feel that it was a pity that I did not get four or five marks higher, I think that I have gotten over it now.
I believe that there must be reasons for not doing well. It cannot be just about pure misfortune. I think that it is important to analyse where I have gone wrong so that I can take future steps to improve during my next test. I would love to say that the main reason why I failed was because the passages were so hard, but this is all but an excuse because I know that my other classmates were able to get A1s, doing the same paper as me. Therefore, I think that the fact that I did not study enough was the main reason. I did not annotate the whole book of The Merchant of Venice and faced the consequences when I was unable to accurately answer the questions tested. Had I read every chapter more detailed-ly and ask my teacher when I had problems understanding, I think that I would have scored much better. I also feel that I did not read widely enough. One key to scoring well in Language Arts is by reading widely; reading newspapers, reading all kinds of genres of books and reading informative texts. As a result, I was not able to understand the Rupert Murdoch case very well and missed out on a lot of marks.
Since I know where I have gone wrong, I feel that my marks are just water under the bridge and that there is no point crying over spilt milk. Therefore, what I can do now is to start practicing for the End-of-Year examinations. Anyway, this test is just a mere 6% in my EOY grade and I believe that I can still manage to score at least an A if I do well in the final examination. Thus, I think that I need to start to read The Merchant of Venice and To Kill a Mockingbird all over again and annotate every passage. I also need to start a journal where I can jot down notes on certain articles that catch my attention, so that I can have a ready supply of articles at hand to use as evidence to support my point in the argumentative questions.
In conclusion, I believe that all is not lost despite this failure and I feel quite happy that I managed to get through this setback quite easily. As long as I work hard from now on, I believe that my Language Arts can get back on track and I will be able to score well.
During the recent LA Reading & Reasoning test, I did very poorly, scoring a D7. I was the second lowest in class and I did much worse than my expectations. I failed! This definitely dealt a major blow to my studies because I was aiming for a good MSG this term. I also wanted to get into Humanities Programme next year but it requires me to get an End-Of-Year LA grade of A1. Of course, an appeal can work. However, i definitely do not want to take such chances. Therefore, I want to share my feelings on this test, why I did so badly and how I will respond to this matter.
When I first got the R & R paper back, I was quite alright with the results, because I expected that I did not do well in the test and I also thought that others were doing as badly as me. However, I realised that everyone around me was doing much better than I was and I even came it second lowest in class! This was a major shock to me because I was quite good in Language Arts. Thus, I felt very devastated and I knew that my MSG this term was going to be very poor. What's more, I was aiming to go the Humanities Programme next year, but I may have to put aside my hopes, thanks to this very poor result. I mean, this is one of my only failures in secondary school and it dealt a huge blow to me. I was feeling very emotional, but I managed to confide in a few of my friends who were nice and comforted me. Although I still feel that it was a pity that I did not get four or five marks higher, I think that I have gotten over it now.
I believe that there must be reasons for not doing well. It cannot be just about pure misfortune. I think that it is important to analyse where I have gone wrong so that I can take future steps to improve during my next test. I would love to say that the main reason why I failed was because the passages were so hard, but this is all but an excuse because I know that my other classmates were able to get A1s, doing the same paper as me. Therefore, I think that the fact that I did not study enough was the main reason. I did not annotate the whole book of The Merchant of Venice and faced the consequences when I was unable to accurately answer the questions tested. Had I read every chapter more detailed-ly and ask my teacher when I had problems understanding, I think that I would have scored much better. I also feel that I did not read widely enough. One key to scoring well in Language Arts is by reading widely; reading newspapers, reading all kinds of genres of books and reading informative texts. As a result, I was not able to understand the Rupert Murdoch case very well and missed out on a lot of marks.
Since I know where I have gone wrong, I feel that my marks are just water under the bridge and that there is no point crying over spilt milk. Therefore, what I can do now is to start practicing for the End-of-Year examinations. Anyway, this test is just a mere 6% in my EOY grade and I believe that I can still manage to score at least an A if I do well in the final examination. Thus, I think that I need to start to read The Merchant of Venice and To Kill a Mockingbird all over again and annotate every passage. I also need to start a journal where I can jot down notes on certain articles that catch my attention, so that I can have a ready supply of articles at hand to use as evidence to support my point in the argumentative questions.
In conclusion, I believe that all is not lost despite this failure and I feel quite happy that I managed to get through this setback quite easily. As long as I work hard from now on, I believe that my Language Arts can get back on track and I will be able to score well.
Pollution
Hi,
In Term 3, I learned about Geography for IH and I enjoyed learning it. The topic of pollution hit me hard and I have decided to write a post all about it: What are my takes on pollution and my suggestions to how we as people of the world can improve.
There are many different types of pollution, namely air pollution, land pollution, water pollution, noise pollution and light pollution. The most serious pollutions that can result in the death of humans are the first three types of pollution. Most of the causes of pollution are man-made. For example, air pollution can be caused by construction works, emission from cars and Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)from household appliances like fridges. Land pollution can be caused by littering and deforestation, while water pollution can also be caused by littering, pesticide overuse and industrial emissions. The effects of pollution can be very harmful, ranging from the mild ones like inconvenience or causing irritance to those that can cause health illnesses like lung cancer and even death. Therefore, it is important that the world try to reduce the amount of pollution it is experiencing.
One thing that I do not understand is why humans are so selfish, including myself. We all know that the world is facing severe pollution, yet we ignore it and do not want to do anything to minimise the harmful effects that can occur. This is a huge irony: Men are complaining about the pollution the world is experiencing but is not only doing nothing about it, but also continuing to cause more and more pollution in the world. Therefore, I hope that every human wakes up and realises that each of us has a role to play in preserving our Earth. For example, we can start just by not littering and using household appliances that are proven to release less harmful gases. As we grow up, we can also choose to buy eco-friendly cars and hold campaigns to spread awareness about the severity of pollution. The government and various environmental organisations should also take some initiatives like banning excess emissions of harmful gases or toxic wastes and providing incentives to companies who help to reduce pollution.
In conclusion, I believe that as long as we all do our part in trying to prevent the world from getting sick of pollution, we need to WAKE UP and stop being so selfish. If we do not want to bear the harmful consequences of pollution, we need to start to do something about it.
In Term 3, I learned about Geography for IH and I enjoyed learning it. The topic of pollution hit me hard and I have decided to write a post all about it: What are my takes on pollution and my suggestions to how we as people of the world can improve.
There are many different types of pollution, namely air pollution, land pollution, water pollution, noise pollution and light pollution. The most serious pollutions that can result in the death of humans are the first three types of pollution. Most of the causes of pollution are man-made. For example, air pollution can be caused by construction works, emission from cars and Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)from household appliances like fridges. Land pollution can be caused by littering and deforestation, while water pollution can also be caused by littering, pesticide overuse and industrial emissions. The effects of pollution can be very harmful, ranging from the mild ones like inconvenience or causing irritance to those that can cause health illnesses like lung cancer and even death. Therefore, it is important that the world try to reduce the amount of pollution it is experiencing.
One thing that I do not understand is why humans are so selfish, including myself. We all know that the world is facing severe pollution, yet we ignore it and do not want to do anything to minimise the harmful effects that can occur. This is a huge irony: Men are complaining about the pollution the world is experiencing but is not only doing nothing about it, but also continuing to cause more and more pollution in the world. Therefore, I hope that every human wakes up and realises that each of us has a role to play in preserving our Earth. For example, we can start just by not littering and using household appliances that are proven to release less harmful gases. As we grow up, we can also choose to buy eco-friendly cars and hold campaigns to spread awareness about the severity of pollution. The government and various environmental organisations should also take some initiatives like banning excess emissions of harmful gases or toxic wastes and providing incentives to companies who help to reduce pollution.
In conclusion, I believe that as long as we all do our part in trying to prevent the world from getting sick of pollution, we need to WAKE UP and stop being so selfish. If we do not want to bear the harmful consequences of pollution, we need to start to do something about it.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Soccer Crazy
Hi,
It is now the transfer window for the Barclays Premier League 2011/12 season, where teams get to buy and sell players in preparation for the new season. This transfer season has been open for very long already and I have followed it everyday, being a hard-core soccer fan. Many players have already left their old clubs in search for better football clubs, but the gastronomical prices that the players cost really make me wonder why football players are worth so much. Many players also earn a lot, with top players like Wayne Rooney earning around $250,000 a week, which means that he can be a multi-millionaire in just a matter of months.
There are many reasons why players cost so much. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, with millions of people subscribing to sports channels and thousands of fans going down to the stadium to watch the match live, regardless of the fact that TV rights and ticket prices both cost a lot. Fans just want to get the pleasure of watching their team win and even go to the extent of wanting to experience the atmosphere in the stadium. Furthermore, many clubs are owned by rich business men, who are willing to pump in a lot of money to contribute to the cash flow of the club. Therefore, professional clubs earn a lot of money every year and can afford the transfer fees of new players and the high players' wages.
Although I agree that the transfer season is one of the aspects that make soccer very interesting because it enhances the quality of the teams and hence the competitiveness of the league, I think that spending such huge prices is quite unfair because it only allows clubs with rich owners to buy better players, which will ultimately allow them to perform better in the league, thus earning more prize money and the cycle goes on and on. Therefore, I hope that a cap is introduced to limit clubs to have an equal budget during the transfer season so that every team has an equal opportunity to improve the team's quality. Furthermore, I also feel that soccer players should not be paid such high wages because all they do is just to play soccer competitively and help their team to glory. This means a large amount of money has to be dedicated to football leagues. I think that a football player should be paid less, because they do not deserve to get so much money. Therefore, I feel that the wages should be cut down and the extra money be given to charity, so that a larger amount of people can benefit.
In conclusion, although I am an avid soccer fan, I feel critical towards all the clubs that spend so much money because this money can be dedicated for better uses like donating to the charity so that the society can benefit from football as well.
It is now the transfer window for the Barclays Premier League 2011/12 season, where teams get to buy and sell players in preparation for the new season. This transfer season has been open for very long already and I have followed it everyday, being a hard-core soccer fan. Many players have already left their old clubs in search for better football clubs, but the gastronomical prices that the players cost really make me wonder why football players are worth so much. Many players also earn a lot, with top players like Wayne Rooney earning around $250,000 a week, which means that he can be a multi-millionaire in just a matter of months.
There are many reasons why players cost so much. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, with millions of people subscribing to sports channels and thousands of fans going down to the stadium to watch the match live, regardless of the fact that TV rights and ticket prices both cost a lot. Fans just want to get the pleasure of watching their team win and even go to the extent of wanting to experience the atmosphere in the stadium. Furthermore, many clubs are owned by rich business men, who are willing to pump in a lot of money to contribute to the cash flow of the club. Therefore, professional clubs earn a lot of money every year and can afford the transfer fees of new players and the high players' wages.
Although I agree that the transfer season is one of the aspects that make soccer very interesting because it enhances the quality of the teams and hence the competitiveness of the league, I think that spending such huge prices is quite unfair because it only allows clubs with rich owners to buy better players, which will ultimately allow them to perform better in the league, thus earning more prize money and the cycle goes on and on. Therefore, I hope that a cap is introduced to limit clubs to have an equal budget during the transfer season so that every team has an equal opportunity to improve the team's quality. Furthermore, I also feel that soccer players should not be paid such high wages because all they do is just to play soccer competitively and help their team to glory. This means a large amount of money has to be dedicated to football leagues. I think that a football player should be paid less, because they do not deserve to get so much money. Therefore, I feel that the wages should be cut down and the extra money be given to charity, so that a larger amount of people can benefit.
In conclusion, although I am an avid soccer fan, I feel critical towards all the clubs that spend so much money because this money can be dedicated for better uses like donating to the charity so that the society can benefit from football as well.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
MP Penny Low
Hi,
During the National Day Parade, cameras caught MP Penny Low looking down at her mobile phone while everyone else was singing the National Anthem. Further controversies were made when MediaCorp censored this part when they screened the replay of the parade one day later. Therefore, many people questioned the PAP's credibility and are losing faith in the party.
In my opinion, I think that it is definitely impossible that MP Penny Low is not to blame for the incident. She looked at her mobile phone during the singing of the National Anthem, which is obviously a sign of utter disrespect to the nation. The National Anthem is supposed to be sung solemnly and with full focus on the flag. However, her actions were contrary to these customs and made herself a bad role model for younger generations. Now, younger generations can use her as an excuse to look at their mobile phones while attending lectures or when someone is talking to them. As an MP, MP Penny Low should have known that all eyes were on her. Her job was to be a leader and I am sure that many people will lose their trust in her leadership abilities after this incident. Therefore, I feel quite disappointed with her actions.
However, MP Penny Low apologized to the media one day later and gave the reason that she was too excited over the parade and decided to post her feelings on Facebook. I feel that her act of apology was good because it should be the right way to go and showed that she was willing to confess her mistake in public. I also think that MediaCorp did the right thing by censoring that part because there is absolutely no reason to show it once again on television, since she has already apologized. However, her reasons make me doubt whether her apology was really sincere. I mean, of all times, posting a Facebook post during the singing of the National Anthem? Why can't she post that afterwards? I looked at her Facebook profile and discovered that she posted a picture of the fireworks at 8.00pm. I am not so sure when the National Anthem was sung so I cannot make a final conclusion.
In my opinion, I think that this incident just another porthole that distances the relationship between PAP and the citizens of Singapore. I hope that the MPs will learn from this incident and act according to how they should behave. I also hope that the citizens of Singapore will be forgiving so that we can enjoy peace in Singapore. Anyway, National Day is supposed to be a day of celebration, so why let this small matter sour the festive mood? However, if only MP Penny Low had exercised a bit of self-control and thought before she acted, this incident would not even happen in the first place.
During the National Day Parade, cameras caught MP Penny Low looking down at her mobile phone while everyone else was singing the National Anthem. Further controversies were made when MediaCorp censored this part when they screened the replay of the parade one day later. Therefore, many people questioned the PAP's credibility and are losing faith in the party.
In my opinion, I think that it is definitely impossible that MP Penny Low is not to blame for the incident. She looked at her mobile phone during the singing of the National Anthem, which is obviously a sign of utter disrespect to the nation. The National Anthem is supposed to be sung solemnly and with full focus on the flag. However, her actions were contrary to these customs and made herself a bad role model for younger generations. Now, younger generations can use her as an excuse to look at their mobile phones while attending lectures or when someone is talking to them. As an MP, MP Penny Low should have known that all eyes were on her. Her job was to be a leader and I am sure that many people will lose their trust in her leadership abilities after this incident. Therefore, I feel quite disappointed with her actions.
However, MP Penny Low apologized to the media one day later and gave the reason that she was too excited over the parade and decided to post her feelings on Facebook. I feel that her act of apology was good because it should be the right way to go and showed that she was willing to confess her mistake in public. I also think that MediaCorp did the right thing by censoring that part because there is absolutely no reason to show it once again on television, since she has already apologized. However, her reasons make me doubt whether her apology was really sincere. I mean, of all times, posting a Facebook post during the singing of the National Anthem? Why can't she post that afterwards? I looked at her Facebook profile and discovered that she posted a picture of the fireworks at 8.00pm. I am not so sure when the National Anthem was sung so I cannot make a final conclusion.
In my opinion, I think that this incident just another porthole that distances the relationship between PAP and the citizens of Singapore. I hope that the MPs will learn from this incident and act according to how they should behave. I also hope that the citizens of Singapore will be forgiving so that we can enjoy peace in Singapore. Anyway, National Day is supposed to be a day of celebration, so why let this small matter sour the festive mood? However, if only MP Penny Low had exercised a bit of self-control and thought before she acted, this incident would not even happen in the first place.
Foreigners
Hi,
Recently, there has been a lot of unrest among Singaporeans saying that there are too many foreigners who have immigrated to Singapore, because they take away privileges that should belong to "true Singaporeans". I would like to express my views on this issue and suggest some initiatives that Singapore can take.
There are two types of foreigners in Singapore: foreign talent and foreign workers. Foreign talents are those that are highly-skilled and have the capability to work in white-collar jobs. On the other hand, foreign workers are foreigners who take up jobs that are unwanted, like construction workers and domestic helpers. Nowadays, more and more foreign workers are entering Singapore to find jobs to provide for their families back home. The same goes for foreign talent. This has resulted in the problem of a rapid population growth and puts a lot of strain on Singapore's already limited resources. For example, the public transports are now very packed during peak hours and almost every cabin has at least one foreigner getting ready to go to work. Some Singaporeans also accuse foreigners of bringing their poor hygiene standards into Singapore ad taking up jobs that Singaporeans are capable of doing, which worsens the unemployment rate. As time goes by, some foreigners also decide to stay here for good and buy housing units, which further drives up property prices. The most important problem that Singaporeans point out is that Singapore will lose its national identity and they do not feel proud to be Singaporeans with this huge influx of foreginers. As such, foreigners are targeted, but foreign talents tend to be victimised more than foreign workers.
In my opinion, I feel that this huge influx of immigrants is definitely a problem for Singapore because I agree that many of them take up our jobs, houses and identity. I just have to step out of my front door to see the huge extent of this influx. Out of four units on the floor that I am living in, half of them are owned by families who immigrated from China. However, I have to say that it is a stereotype to say that foreigners have lousier hygiene standards compared to us. We need to also look on the bright side of the matter and see how foreigners contribute to our economic sector. For example, look at Aleksander Duric, Shi Jiayi, Qiu Li, Mustafic Fahrudin and Daniel Bennett. They were all foreigners once but they toiled their hearts out to allow Singapore to enter the 3rd round of the World Cup qualifiers. Furthermore, since the foreigners are already here, it would be very cruel to send them back and Singaporeans will aggravate the situation by creating tension between "true" and "foreign" Singaporeans. Therefore, I think everyone has a role to play to minimise the negative effects of the influx of foreigners and instead use this to our advantage.
Firstly, I think that the government should enforce stricter laws on immigration to Singapore because we need to curb the number of people coming in. The government should also encourage companies to hire locals first, before considering foreigners to join the company. On a community level, I think that organisations should organise some activities for locals and foreigners to interact so that Singaporeans can understand the foreigners' situations, which will aid in promoting social cohesion. Finally, I hope that individuals can become more tolerant and understanding towards these foreigners and recognise their contributions, just like how I respect the construction workers for their silent enduring of the hard work that they do.
In conclusion, I think that the influx of foreign workers is a serious problem that needs to be resolved as soon as possible. However, things can be done to bring out the potential of these foreigners.
Recently, there has been a lot of unrest among Singaporeans saying that there are too many foreigners who have immigrated to Singapore, because they take away privileges that should belong to "true Singaporeans". I would like to express my views on this issue and suggest some initiatives that Singapore can take.
There are two types of foreigners in Singapore: foreign talent and foreign workers. Foreign talents are those that are highly-skilled and have the capability to work in white-collar jobs. On the other hand, foreign workers are foreigners who take up jobs that are unwanted, like construction workers and domestic helpers. Nowadays, more and more foreign workers are entering Singapore to find jobs to provide for their families back home. The same goes for foreign talent. This has resulted in the problem of a rapid population growth and puts a lot of strain on Singapore's already limited resources. For example, the public transports are now very packed during peak hours and almost every cabin has at least one foreigner getting ready to go to work. Some Singaporeans also accuse foreigners of bringing their poor hygiene standards into Singapore ad taking up jobs that Singaporeans are capable of doing, which worsens the unemployment rate. As time goes by, some foreigners also decide to stay here for good and buy housing units, which further drives up property prices. The most important problem that Singaporeans point out is that Singapore will lose its national identity and they do not feel proud to be Singaporeans with this huge influx of foreginers. As such, foreigners are targeted, but foreign talents tend to be victimised more than foreign workers.
In my opinion, I feel that this huge influx of immigrants is definitely a problem for Singapore because I agree that many of them take up our jobs, houses and identity. I just have to step out of my front door to see the huge extent of this influx. Out of four units on the floor that I am living in, half of them are owned by families who immigrated from China. However, I have to say that it is a stereotype to say that foreigners have lousier hygiene standards compared to us. We need to also look on the bright side of the matter and see how foreigners contribute to our economic sector. For example, look at Aleksander Duric, Shi Jiayi, Qiu Li, Mustafic Fahrudin and Daniel Bennett. They were all foreigners once but they toiled their hearts out to allow Singapore to enter the 3rd round of the World Cup qualifiers. Furthermore, since the foreigners are already here, it would be very cruel to send them back and Singaporeans will aggravate the situation by creating tension between "true" and "foreign" Singaporeans. Therefore, I think everyone has a role to play to minimise the negative effects of the influx of foreigners and instead use this to our advantage.
Firstly, I think that the government should enforce stricter laws on immigration to Singapore because we need to curb the number of people coming in. The government should also encourage companies to hire locals first, before considering foreigners to join the company. On a community level, I think that organisations should organise some activities for locals and foreigners to interact so that Singaporeans can understand the foreigners' situations, which will aid in promoting social cohesion. Finally, I hope that individuals can become more tolerant and understanding towards these foreigners and recognise their contributions, just like how I respect the construction workers for their silent enduring of the hard work that they do.
In conclusion, I think that the influx of foreign workers is a serious problem that needs to be resolved as soon as possible. However, things can be done to bring out the potential of these foreigners.
Kinship
Hi,
Recently, after watching many TV dramas, reading news articles and books, I realised that there are many families with relationship problems. Therefore, I would like to explain the importance of kinship and how relationships affect our lives directly.
There are many cases of kinship problems in the world. For example, in the book "The Merchant of Venice", there were arguments between Jessica and her father, Shylock, because they had differing principles in life and could not see eye to eye over life matters. Therefore, possibly out of frustration with her father, Jessica decided to leave her father for good and become a Christian, contrary to her father's ways, probably in a bid to spite him. I also watched a Hong Kong drama entitled "Moonlight Resonance", which centered its plot around kinship. There were many quarrels among family members, mainly because of monetary issues. Finally, in real life, there was a recent case a few years ago in 2008, where a multi-millionaire died in 2001. His three children had expected the inheritance to be split equally among the three children, however, they were taken aback when the inheritance was all given to the only son, leaving the two daughters with nothing. Therefore, the siblings decided to go to court to fight over $14 million. Thus, from all these three examples, we can see that kinship problems can be derived from differing viewpoints and more importantly, money!
It is very sad to see that many relatives fight over such trivial issues. It definitely shows that man is fallible to temptations of the world, such as money. Is money really more important than kinship? Kinship is for life, but money can be lost and won in just over a matter of days! Thus, I do not know why relatives can make up a big fuss and are willing to sacrifice their many years of kinship just to get benefits for themselves! Family members are very important to us, because they can support, help, encourage and care for us. They play a big role in determining our happiness in life and ensure that we are not lonely. In my opinion, we should always appreciate and treasure our family members and not wait until a bad thing happens that we start to regret. Therefore, we need to treat each other properly and show love to our relatives.
In conclusion, I hope that all kinship problems will be eradicated in this world and that everyone will be aware of the importance of relationships.
Recently, after watching many TV dramas, reading news articles and books, I realised that there are many families with relationship problems. Therefore, I would like to explain the importance of kinship and how relationships affect our lives directly.
There are many cases of kinship problems in the world. For example, in the book "The Merchant of Venice", there were arguments between Jessica and her father, Shylock, because they had differing principles in life and could not see eye to eye over life matters. Therefore, possibly out of frustration with her father, Jessica decided to leave her father for good and become a Christian, contrary to her father's ways, probably in a bid to spite him. I also watched a Hong Kong drama entitled "Moonlight Resonance", which centered its plot around kinship. There were many quarrels among family members, mainly because of monetary issues. Finally, in real life, there was a recent case a few years ago in 2008, where a multi-millionaire died in 2001. His three children had expected the inheritance to be split equally among the three children, however, they were taken aback when the inheritance was all given to the only son, leaving the two daughters with nothing. Therefore, the siblings decided to go to court to fight over $14 million. Thus, from all these three examples, we can see that kinship problems can be derived from differing viewpoints and more importantly, money!
It is very sad to see that many relatives fight over such trivial issues. It definitely shows that man is fallible to temptations of the world, such as money. Is money really more important than kinship? Kinship is for life, but money can be lost and won in just over a matter of days! Thus, I do not know why relatives can make up a big fuss and are willing to sacrifice their many years of kinship just to get benefits for themselves! Family members are very important to us, because they can support, help, encourage and care for us. They play a big role in determining our happiness in life and ensure that we are not lonely. In my opinion, we should always appreciate and treasure our family members and not wait until a bad thing happens that we start to regret. Therefore, we need to treat each other properly and show love to our relatives.
In conclusion, I hope that all kinship problems will be eradicated in this world and that everyone will be aware of the importance of relationships.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Wrongdoings
Hi,
I recently did something wrong that I am ashamed of and would not like to share it on such a public platform. However, through the incident, I learned many things, especially the important lesson of always thinking before I act.
Every time I do something wrong, I always feel an extreme sense of guilt and regret that I had acted that way. I always think, "If only I hadn't....". However, as the incident passes and gets removed from the "memory space" in my brain, I repeat the same actions and go through the same thought process. No doubt it is the human nature to do wrong. However, I should not take advantage of this fact as an excuse to do wrong all the time.
I see this situation in many Singaporeans in today's society as well, especially younger generations, and I know that I have no right to judge them because I fall under the same category too. For example, many students start from not handing up their homework in time, to talking back to teachers and finally to breaking school rules. Furthermore, I find that more and more people are beginning to undermine the seriousness of doing wrong. One possible cause is that many parents do not bring up their child well by not scolding them when they do wrong because they do not want to punish their children. This results in many people not having respect for others and do not realise how their wrongdoings can affect other people very severely. After repeated scoldings, many people also begin to get immune to these punishments and do not care about the consequences of their sins. This is a very bad situation in Singapore now because we, the young, are leaders of the next generation and we need to set a good example so that we can educate our descendants properly.
Therefore, I think that a solution has to be found very quickly in order to salvage this situation. I think as individuals, we need to practice self-discipline and to think before we act. When we think our actions through, we will be able to decide whether or not they will cause harm to anyone so that we can prevent the case of hurting someone unintentionally. More importantly, when we do wrong, we need to be humble and apologise to the opposite party, and not be stubborn and unwilling to be corrected. Parents also have to play a role in the proper bringing-up of their children and inculcate values such as respect in them from young. The community and the government should also organise programmes and campaigns to allow students to build their character in various ways.
In conclusion, I believe that humans are definitely not infallible, but there are many occasions where we can choose to do right or wrong. When we want to repent from our sins, we need to be sincere in our words and try our very best not to repeat the same mistake again.
I recently did something wrong that I am ashamed of and would not like to share it on such a public platform. However, through the incident, I learned many things, especially the important lesson of always thinking before I act.
Every time I do something wrong, I always feel an extreme sense of guilt and regret that I had acted that way. I always think, "If only I hadn't....". However, as the incident passes and gets removed from the "memory space" in my brain, I repeat the same actions and go through the same thought process. No doubt it is the human nature to do wrong. However, I should not take advantage of this fact as an excuse to do wrong all the time.
I see this situation in many Singaporeans in today's society as well, especially younger generations, and I know that I have no right to judge them because I fall under the same category too. For example, many students start from not handing up their homework in time, to talking back to teachers and finally to breaking school rules. Furthermore, I find that more and more people are beginning to undermine the seriousness of doing wrong. One possible cause is that many parents do not bring up their child well by not scolding them when they do wrong because they do not want to punish their children. This results in many people not having respect for others and do not realise how their wrongdoings can affect other people very severely. After repeated scoldings, many people also begin to get immune to these punishments and do not care about the consequences of their sins. This is a very bad situation in Singapore now because we, the young, are leaders of the next generation and we need to set a good example so that we can educate our descendants properly.
Therefore, I think that a solution has to be found very quickly in order to salvage this situation. I think as individuals, we need to practice self-discipline and to think before we act. When we think our actions through, we will be able to decide whether or not they will cause harm to anyone so that we can prevent the case of hurting someone unintentionally. More importantly, when we do wrong, we need to be humble and apologise to the opposite party, and not be stubborn and unwilling to be corrected. Parents also have to play a role in the proper bringing-up of their children and inculcate values such as respect in them from young. The community and the government should also organise programmes and campaigns to allow students to build their character in various ways.
In conclusion, I believe that humans are definitely not infallible, but there are many occasions where we can choose to do right or wrong. When we want to repent from our sins, we need to be sincere in our words and try our very best not to repeat the same mistake again.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Captain America
Hi,
I recently watched the movie "Captain America: The First Avenger" and I loved it very much. It was created by Marvel and is a prequel to the new movie coming out next summer, "The Avengers". It has really peaked my interest on the Marvel superheroes and I cannot wait to go to the library to borrow some of the comic books to see how the storyline of the comic and the movie differ.
In the movie, Captain America was first known as Steve Rogers, who was a very skinny but brave little man. He was often picked on by others for being weak and short, but always persevered when ever he was beaten up and never ran away, standing up tall against his assailant. He tried to enlist for the US Army to fight against the Nazis, but his applications were denied 5 times because of his long list of medical problems and his small stature. However, his perseverance paid off and he caught the eye of a scientist called Professor Erskine, who allowed Rogers to train to become a soldier. Convinced by Rogers' brave and compassionate nature, Professor Erskine decided to test his experiment on Rogers in an attempt to make his strong. The experiment worked but a Nazi operative came and assassinated Erskine, but was eventually killed by Rogers. With his new-found fame, Rogers became known as Captain America and began fighting his way to destroy the Hydra, a cult group that was led by Johann Shmidt (aka Red Skull), with the help of a few of his soldier friends.
I liked this movie because it was action-filled and hence, very intriguing. The plot was very deep, leaving no detail unexamined, but made use of the full two hours it was screened without going off track at any point of time. Every scene was important in the movie and many sensory details were also included to appeal to the audience's emotions. For example, the colours of red, blue and white were on Captain America's uniform, representing America's flag, hence showing that he had a strong sense of loyalty. On the other hand, Red Skull has a very bright red skin, symbolising hatred and anger, making the audience fear and hate him. I particularly like war movies, because they really bring a strong sense of justice and seeing good triumph over evil makes me smile.
One theme that stood out in the movie was the theme of sacrifice. Steve Rogers was willing to sacrifice his life for the country out there in the war even though he knew that very few people returned alive. Furthermore, during a training session, a fake grenade was thrown by one of the commanders and while the other soldiers fled immediately, Rogers was the only one to react and covered the "grenade" with his entire body. The most touching scene in the movie was when Captain America decided to sacrifice his life by piloting a plane down into the icy plains because it was heading towards New York with atomic bombs. Another theme that was prevalent was the theme of character vs appearance. Steve Rogers was chosen to be Captain America not because of his figure, but because of his nature and character. A motif that appeared in the show was the shield that Captain America always held when he was fighting. To me, the shield represented a form of freedom and bravery.
I would recommend this movie to everyone, especially those who like action-filled movies. I also learned a lot through this show, like not to pick on someone smaller than me, to put my talents to good use and to be willing to sacrifice for my friends. I will definitely be one of the first at the cinemas next year when "The Avenger" comes out!
Nathanael
I recently watched the movie "Captain America: The First Avenger" and I loved it very much. It was created by Marvel and is a prequel to the new movie coming out next summer, "The Avengers". It has really peaked my interest on the Marvel superheroes and I cannot wait to go to the library to borrow some of the comic books to see how the storyline of the comic and the movie differ.
In the movie, Captain America was first known as Steve Rogers, who was a very skinny but brave little man. He was often picked on by others for being weak and short, but always persevered when ever he was beaten up and never ran away, standing up tall against his assailant. He tried to enlist for the US Army to fight against the Nazis, but his applications were denied 5 times because of his long list of medical problems and his small stature. However, his perseverance paid off and he caught the eye of a scientist called Professor Erskine, who allowed Rogers to train to become a soldier. Convinced by Rogers' brave and compassionate nature, Professor Erskine decided to test his experiment on Rogers in an attempt to make his strong. The experiment worked but a Nazi operative came and assassinated Erskine, but was eventually killed by Rogers. With his new-found fame, Rogers became known as Captain America and began fighting his way to destroy the Hydra, a cult group that was led by Johann Shmidt (aka Red Skull), with the help of a few of his soldier friends.
I liked this movie because it was action-filled and hence, very intriguing. The plot was very deep, leaving no detail unexamined, but made use of the full two hours it was screened without going off track at any point of time. Every scene was important in the movie and many sensory details were also included to appeal to the audience's emotions. For example, the colours of red, blue and white were on Captain America's uniform, representing America's flag, hence showing that he had a strong sense of loyalty. On the other hand, Red Skull has a very bright red skin, symbolising hatred and anger, making the audience fear and hate him. I particularly like war movies, because they really bring a strong sense of justice and seeing good triumph over evil makes me smile.
One theme that stood out in the movie was the theme of sacrifice. Steve Rogers was willing to sacrifice his life for the country out there in the war even though he knew that very few people returned alive. Furthermore, during a training session, a fake grenade was thrown by one of the commanders and while the other soldiers fled immediately, Rogers was the only one to react and covered the "grenade" with his entire body. The most touching scene in the movie was when Captain America decided to sacrifice his life by piloting a plane down into the icy plains because it was heading towards New York with atomic bombs. Another theme that was prevalent was the theme of character vs appearance. Steve Rogers was chosen to be Captain America not because of his figure, but because of his nature and character. A motif that appeared in the show was the shield that Captain America always held when he was fighting. To me, the shield represented a form of freedom and bravery.
I would recommend this movie to everyone, especially those who like action-filled movies. I also learned a lot through this show, like not to pick on someone smaller than me, to put my talents to good use and to be willing to sacrifice for my friends. I will definitely be one of the first at the cinemas next year when "The Avenger" comes out!
Nathanael
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