A Fading Existence

You don't know what you have until it's gone.

This shouldn't be a new concept to anyone. It's a cliche as old as anyone can remember, and for that reason, it often gets passed off as trivial, stupid, or common sense. Once in a while, however, I think it's important to remember that cliches are around for a reason- they're usually true.

There are some things which we don't always have, and so we are forced to think about their impermanence. Success. A boyfriend/girlfriend. Approval.  Things like homes, money, jobs, or even more abstract concepts like freedom of speech. We are constantly bombarded with campaigns telling us to imagine life without these things, to the point where it seems as though we live in constant fear of either not being able to obtain them or losing them.

There are other things that we are around all the time, and we don't even contemplate their impermanence, as we have never had reason to suspect they could disappear. I'm talking about losing things like your family's love. Your skills. Your identity. Imagine going to sleep one evening and losing your practical knowledge- how to walk, how to talk, how to interact. Or, even worse in my opinion, imagine losing those things over time, without you even realizing it. That happens all the time to every one of us. I'm not suggesting that your parents will stop loving you tomorrow, or that you will suddenly forget what you learned yesterday in English.  But as you get older, things begin to go. First it might be your knowledge from high school physics, then your friend's birthdays, then what you had for breakfast that morning, then your family's names. All things end. Or, more accurately, all things fade.

Time is the great force-

     The absolute undoer of men;

     The steady unraveler of substance;

And no mortal can oppose its deadly pace.

Here's a soliloquy from the "immortal" Shakespeare's play, Hamlet:
   No, faith, not a jot; but to follow him thither with modesty enough and 
   likelihood to lead it; as thus: Alexander died, Alexander was buried, 
   Alexander returned into dust; the dust is earth; of earth we make loam:
   and why of that loam, whereto he was converted, might they not stop at a 
   beer-barrel?

For argument's sake, I'm not sure everything fits into this description. Take love, for example. Yes, it can end. Yes, it can fade over time. Yes, it can be impermanent. But is it not possible to love for one's whole life? I can't provide an answer for that, but it's an interesting thought.

In case you haven't been depressed enough at this point by the mortality of this world and all that's in it, here's an amazing video my friend showed me. It's an artist's interpretation of the last two movements from Messian's Quartet for the End of Time. Watching these videos is a moving experience, and I encourage you to find 20 minutes by yourself in a quiet place and watch it all at once.

Here's part 1, and part 2 is in the suggestions box: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QrGzES0UNk

Humor in the News

"Petraeus Is Only The Beginning," Teases Obama, Promising Second Term Full Of Homeland-Like Twists

New Al-Qaeda Recruit Sick Of Hearing Senior Terrorists Brag About 9/11 Attacks

Scientists Develop Highly Volatile New Relationship

These are but a few headlines from the riotous publication The Onion. The Onion is filled with hilarious articles and satirical videos, largely dealing with the most recent news.

I have told many of my friends about The Onion, and I have been surprised by the results. Many find the website funny, some others dismiss it at a lame attempt at humor, but a couple of people have commented on the inappropriateness of their news, saying things like "making jokes about this issue is making the issue into a joke."

I think that that's a pretty stupid idea.

Humor has always been prevalent in cultures, and poking fun at current events is nothing new. Making fun of these things is a way to lighten the mood. These articles and videos let everyone have moment to breath, step back, and realize the absurdity of the real news being satirized. If anything, I think that publications like The Onion help people think clearly about issues by relieving them of their preconceived biases. "But how does it do that?", you might ask. In making us laugh about a subject, it clears our minds and allows us to reevaluate it more objectively.

I'd love to post more Onion on here, but not all of it is G-rated, so I'll just tell you guys to check it out for yourselves.

Poetry

I used to think poetry was awful. When we read poems in elementary school, I hated how amorphous and open-to-interpretation most of them were. When the poetry unit came around in middle school, I was dreading it. My opinion changed when we read some of Edgar Allan Poe's work. I wouldn't say that his work profoundly affected me in any way, but I thought his writing was really cool.

Though I have yet to read poetry in high school as part of a class, I have found my taste for it growing recently. Some poems do sound nice or, for lack of a better word, are simply 'cool". But some poems are so much more than that. They can reach a level of understanding on a topic that seems impossible to put into words. They can make me feel sad without ever saying anything saddening. They can make me feel happy in a tenth as many words as a novel or short story.

What my elementary and middle school brain didn't understand is that poetry's vagueness and indirect language is what makes it so fantastic and gives it such potential. Some things can seem hard to put into words because our language simply doesn't have ample words to describe them. Poetry strives to explain the inexplicable by making connections and using language as a tool to accomplish much greater means.

Of course, not all poems are meant to delve into greater understanding. Some of my favorite poems are meant to evoke an emotion or make a statement of some sort. However, all types of poetry use language in similar ways.

Below is an example of one of my favorite poems:

"Invictus"

by William Ernest Henley

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

Also, here is the scariest version of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" ever. Because it's Christopher Walken.

Speakin Skillz

I was watching ESPN tonight, and they had a special on UK basketball. They were talking about how people came in to work with the players on their speaking skills. The commentators were saying how important it was for players to be able to speak well, since they have to conduct dozens of press conferences and interviews.

Speaking well has not always been an important thing in our culture. Until the invention of the radio, for example, politicians have never been able to speak to large audiences at once. After this technological advance, it became necessary for politicians to be powerful speakers, as the whole nation could listen to them.

Speaking skills have continued becoming more and more important in society. In MSTC Senior Seminar, we practice our public speaking non-stop through a variety of activities. Many classes have started including a presentation aspect in projects for this reason.

Our modern culture places lots of emphasis on coherence and being able to present one's ideas clearly. I completely agree with the direction we are headed in. Being able to speak well will impact every avenue of one's life, from job interviews to public presentations to not being awkward on a first date.

Below is an example of excellent public speaking skills.