Longer Lonely Essays - Lakota People, , Term Papers

No Longer Lonely The sun shone and the children gleefully played as the lonely man in the worn blue sweater sat feeding the birds. He sat there every day, just feeding the birds and watching the children have their fun. As I ran around the paths in the park, I could see him sitting there, always alone. I slowly jogged around the path and as I rounded the sharp corner, I looked for the man who usually sat on the old bench in the far corner of the park. I could see him sitting there, one ankle, clothed in a shocking white athletic sock, crossed over his knee. He wore the same thing every day, the clothes looked like they had seen better days. His muddy brown pants were threadbare and looked like they belonged to a giant. To hold them up he had to use suspenders, on this bright morning he had chosen a crimson red pair. Covering his stooped shoulders was a worn blue sweater, the color made me think of cornflowers. Navy and dirty white canvas sneakers adorned his feet. His white sock could be seen through a gaping hole in the sole. These shoes had taken him to many different places. They were like an old friend that he couldn't say goodbye to. On this particular day the sun was shining down, warming the earth and lake, so many children played on the wooden swing set. From where I stood on the path, I could hear their cheerful shouts, but could not see them. What I could see was the old man's face. He had strong features: a broad nose, deep-set eyes, and pronounced cheekbones. They had all sunken into a deep sea of wrinkles over the years. You could tell that he had once been a handsome young man. He was of an average height, but appeared taller as he sat with a ramrod straight back. His eyes were an aquatic blue color, like the water off of the coast of Puerto Rico. His hair was receding and had turned a pure white instead of burnished silver. He appeared to be a distinguished gentleman. He watched the children swing and slide on the rickety swing set. From where I stood there appeared to be a look of nostalgia on his face. I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking about. Was it a memory of his own childhood? Whatever the memory was, it made him appear to be missing something. While he sat looking at the children, he reached beside him and pulled out a brown lunch bag, spotted with grease marks. Slowly, with liver spotted hands, he reached into the bag. The act of curling his fingers around something inside made him wince in pain. I could imagine the pain that his body was wracked with, thanks to arthritis. I wanted to run up and help him, but the look of determination on his face stopped me from approaching him. Carefully extracting his hand, he pulled out a handful of birdseed and bread crumbs. With a wide sweep of his arm, he spread the mixture all over the ground. He repeated this act several times, until a few gray pigeons came to feast. With a small smile on his face, he watched the birds eat their meal. It was the happiest I had ever seen him. Slowly, so as not to disturb the birds, I approached the balding man. Sitting down next to him I introduced myself. Nodding his head, he mentioned that he often saw me running. Spreading birdseed from the mixture he offered me, I felt relaxed. Smelling the warm earth and listening to the children's cries mixed with the sounds of nature was wonderful. I could feel the tension easing out of me. As I sat next to him I observed his facial expressions. He appeared to be oddly at peace. Curious about what he was thinking to appear so content, I asked him what he was thinking. His response surprised me, something that rarely happens. He told me that he was no longer lonely; he now had me. A lonely old man in the park taught me an important lesson. Sometimes the greatest things are overlooked. I only saw him as a lonely old man missing something from his life. Then I sat down next to him. Next time, instead of observing, maybe I'll sit with him again. Sometimes, sitting next to someone and keeping them company, is all the happiness they will

Does Meditation Affect General Happiness essays

Does Meditation Affect General Happiness essays The last decade has witnessed an enormous increase in research examining the effects of mindfulness meditation. One of the basic assumptions guiding this research is that meditation ultimately makes people happier (Choi, Karremans, Barendregt. 2012). According to Barongan, findings support that the brain changes through meditative practices. He states how there are changes in the brain that lead to greater self-acceptance, which creates a larger capacity of empathy for others (Barongan. 2007). Interventions that used meditation to reduce the psychiatric symptoms within patients have become more and more common (e.g., Diodonna 2009), and research has demonstrated the effectiveness of this treatment in a wide range of conditions (Hoffman et al. 2010). In Canada, Mood and anxiety disorders are the highest psychiatric disorders treated. Psychotherapies specific to anxiety and depressive disorders have made a positive change in the world we live in today. Unfortunately once patients have decreased their depressive and anxiety symptoms, they do not always feel an increase their general happiness. In 1998 there was a new branch of psychology that was introduced to the world by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. This recent branch was introduced as Positive Psychology. This field was intended to complement, not to replace the traditional practices of psychology. Positive psychologists seek to make normal life more fulfilling. Positive Psychology focuses on the good in life, not the bad and does not just simply treat mental illnesses. The purpose of this study is to find out if meditation will increase individuals general happiness. This study looks at the effects of meditation and how meditation can contribute to positive psychology while increasing patients general happiness. Although most studies have looked solemnly at the reduction of depressive and anxiety symptoms in patients, this study is relevant to previ...

Campus friends report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Campus friends report - Essay Example he also discovered her good mastery of the English language in elementary school and high school that influenced her to take a major in public relations. My campus friend settled on public relations after weighing many other courses that deal with effective communication. She had at some point opted for journalism but did not like the idea of appearing on the television screen every day. She is always shy and felt that she would have difficulties interacting with her television audience. The other reason that made her not to major in journalism is that she did not want to be feared in the social environment as a celebrity. She prefers leading a simple life with little recognition. As I have come to learn her, she likes helping others even when there is no guarantee of other people helping her back. This justified to me her claim that she never wants to be publicly recognized for things she has done. One of the career goals for my campus friend is working in a reputable organization that recognizes and respects social and cultural diversity. She hopes that the major qualifies her to serve as a public relations manager and ascend to the senior managerial position. At the same time, she claims to have a passion for being a Chief Executive Officer for a popular organization. She does not like being employed but prefers to use employment as an avenue to rise to self-employment. Another career goal that my campus friend reported having is establishing her own company in the future and being her own boss. She believed that a public relation major was important to enable her deal with her employees efficiently and incorporate cultural diversity in the organization. She narrated to me how globalization has turned the world into a small village where everyone needs to learn to cope with people of different ideological and cultural backgrounds. For the duration that I stayed with her, the major interest that she demonstrated is socialization and sharing stories about

Tourism task 1 UB Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Tourism task 1 UB - Essay Example of the city is such that it provides access to beautiful beaches as well as rainforests, and thus is able to provide an array of experiences to a visitor (ABS, 2010). The sub-tropical climate is also responsible for making it one of the most sought after cities where people want to live and work. It is well connected by road, rail and air and provides all amenities (ABS, 2010). According to the National Visitor Survey conducted by the Tourism research department of the Government of Australia, Gold Coast is among one of the most visited cities in the country. While the state of Queensland has the third highest percentage of tourists over the last year; Gold Coast is one of the highest in terms of the earnings from tourist activity (TRA, 2012). Queensland had 24% of all overnight visitors in different states of Australia; and 26 – 28 % of all visitor nights for 2001 as well as for the quarter ending December, with a higher percentage for the December quarter as compared to the entire year (TRA, 2012). There were 5,300 thousand inter-state visitors and 11,291 thousand intra-state visitors which shows that the intra-state transit was more frequent. It had the highest number of inter-state visitor nights spent and the second highest intra-state visitor nights which shows that stays were longer in duration as compared to other states (TRA, 2012). Though the trends are consistent across the year, these figures are higher for the summer months than for other times in the year (TRA, 2012). 23% of all visitors came to holiday, and spent 30% of all visitor nights doing so in the December quarter and 26% of all nights spent in the entire year 2011 (TRA, 2012). Average durations of stay were about 4 days, and most (40%) choose to stay in a hotel or resort making up 30% of all nights stayed in a hotel or resort accommodation (TRA, 2012). In Gold Coast alone, people on a day trip spent over 668 million which is 19% of all spending b y day visitors and was ranked 5th in all

United Farm Workers and Mexican Americans Essay Example for Free

United Farm Workers and Mexican Americans Essay The 1960s was a turbulent decade in the American history, filled with conflict over issues brought up by many different minority groups to form the various Civil Rights Movements. In this decade, the Chicano Movement started to gain a mass following and became a dynamic force of social change. Similar to blacks, Mexican Americans were plagued by police brutality, poverty, and inequality. In the pursuit of tackling these problems, the history of Chicanos in California consisted of the convergence of multiple movements: A youth movement represented in the struggle against discrimination in schools; the farm workers movement; and the movement for political empowerment, most notably in the formation of La Raza Unida Party1. The organizing efforts and achievements in California had major impact on the fate of Mexican Americans. Improvements in barrios, farm-labor camps, school districts and politic representation, led other states to sought reform. Education has long been a primary target of Mexican American activists and reformers. The Mexican American community had the highest high school dropout rate and lowest college attendance amongst all ethnic groups. As a result of the constant underestimation of students as well as the failure to upkeep facilities, a hostile learning environment was manifested. Their goals included bilingual, bicultural education, Latino teachers and administrators, smaller class sizes, better facilities and the revision of the text books to incorporate Mexican American history. In turn, Chicano students and activists decided to make their struggle public in order to pressure school boards into compliance of their demands for education reforms. In March of 1968, thousands of students walked out of their high school in L. A. protesting racial inequality among their school district. Their effects were not wasted, as the school board recognized their efforts by recruiting and hiring more Chicano teachers and administrators2. Ultimately, this inspired high school protest across the nation. College campuses also formed groups, like the United Mexican American Students, with the purposes to enforce for more Chicano study programs, financial aid, and Mexican faculty. Activists fought for bilingual educational programs and in schools and won in 1976, their hard work created more than 50 Chicano studies program in colleges. 3 Changes were not immediately apparent in high schools; however a significant change occurred in the college recruitment of Latinos and educational programs. Though most of the demands were not met, the walkouts unified and empowered the Chicano community, which in the process became a political force. Another focus of the Chicanos had been politics. Their goals encompassed the increase of Chicano candidates in the political arena, convincing non-Chicano candidates to commit themselves to the need of Mexican American community, conducting broad-scale voter registration and community organization drives, and for more Chicanos in government offices. 4 Rather than representation within the two major political parties—democrat and republic—activists established an organization dedicated to their empowerment, the El Partido de la Raza Unida. Found in 1970 by Jose Angel Gutierrez and Mario Compean, the party became active in community organizing and electoral politics statewide, campaigned for better housing, work, and educational opportunities5. The changes they fought for was made possible by combining mass action: firing of racist teachers, protecting high school student rights, and taking advantage of federal government monies they were entitled to, but was not utilized by the previous city government. Police polices were modified as well to benefit Chicano communities. The La Raza Unida Party leaders also worked to raise the wages of school and city workers to encourage unionization6. Though La Raza Unida is no longer a registered political party in the United States, its legacy is still very much alive, affecting the lives of Mexican Americans today. One aspect of the Chicano movement highlighted the rights of the workers in the fields of California. In order to fight against harsh working conditions, low wages and discrimination of Mexican farm workers, the United Farmworkers Union Organizing Committee was established. Led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, the UFWOC accomplished its greatest victory when their strikes, boycotts, convinced the largest table grape grower, John Guimara Sr. , to only hire workers represented by the union. Despite their victory, union leaders struggled to create a union to represent all agricultural workers; As a result a three-month strike by grape workers in California began. Due to the efforts of Chavez and his union in 1975, California passed the Agricultural Labor Relations Act; which guaranteed farm workers’ rights to organize. 71 Although seen as an accomplishment, more restrictions were placed on the actions of unions. Today, agricultural workers in California are still being exploited, working in poor conditions with little pay and limited representation. Chicanos in California have played no small role in the social, economic, and political development of California. Not only is California home to majority of the Mexican Americans population in the United States, but also it is the scene of Chicano cultural Renaissance and has contributed to Hispanic cultural renaissance in the United States. California has also been the home of Chicano publication—including magazines, newspapers, and scholarly journals. 7 Although much of the problems faced by Chicanos in the 20th century had been resolved through reforms during the Civil Rights Era, many Mexican Americans are still being marked by oppression and exploitation. Not only in the field, but industries as well. They are often found working at wage jobs and poor conditions. Over the next few decades, other social reforms for Mexican Americans can be expected. Almost six decades after it began, the Chicano Movement still holds a visible impact on California. As a result of activism in politics, education, and farm work, much of the hardship faced by Chicanos in the early history of California have been resolved. The most prominent outcome of the Chicano Movement are still within academia, with the formation of numerous student centers at college campuses across the nation that aims to students of color as well as the establishment of Chicano Studies Departments and so on. The Literary and art movements of the 1970s also left an enduring mark on the Chicano community. The impact of Chicanos in California gave rise to countless Chicano communities where none existed before. Although activists today are still working on the struggles faced by Chicanos today in various fields, such as farm work, their movement in the 1960s has surely impacted California social, economic and political standing.

ear Essay -- essays research papers

The ear is an organ of the body that is used for hearing and balance. It is connected to the brain by the auditory nerve and is composed of three divisions, the external ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. The greater part of which is enclosed within the temporal bone. The ear is looked upon as a miniature receiver, amplifier and signal-processing system. The structure of the outer ear catching sound waves as they move into the external auditory canal. The sound waves then hit the eardrum and the pressure of the air causes the drum to vibrate back and forth. When the eardrum vibrates its neighbour the malleus then vibrates too. The vibrations are then transmitted from the malleus to the incus and then to the stapes. Together the three bones increase the pressure which in turn pushes the membrane of the oval window in and out. This movement sets up fluid pressure waves in the perilymph of the cochlea. The bulging of the oval window then pushes on the perilymph of the scala vestibuli. From here the pressure waves are transmitted from the scala vestibuli to the scala tympani and then eventually finds its way to the round window. This causes the round window to bulge outward into the middle ear. The scala vestibuli and scala tympani walls are now defor med with the pressure waves and the vestibular membrane is also pushed back and forth creating pressure waves in the endolymph inside the cochlear duct. These waves then causes the membrane to vibrate, which in turn cause the hairs cells of the spiral organ to move against the tectorial membrane. The bending of the stereo cilia produces receptor potentials that in the end lead to the generation of nerve impulses. The External or Outer Ear - comprises of the auricle or pinna which is the fleshy part of the outer ear. It is cup-shaped and collects and amplifies sound waves which then passes along the ear canal to the ear drum or tympanic membrane. The rim of the auricle is called the helix and the inferior portion is called the lobule. The external auditory canal is a carved tube and contains a few hair and ceruminous glands which are specialized sebaceous or oil glands. These secrete ear wax or cerumen. Both the hairs and the cerumen help prevent dust and foreign objects from entering the ear. A number of people produce large amounts of cerumen, and this sometimes cause the build up to be impacted and can bri... ...on on the position of the head in space for static equilibrium making it essential for maintaining appropriate posture and balance, where as dynamic they detect linear acceleration and deceleration. There are two kinds of cells in the two maculae, hair cells and supporting cells. The hair cells are the sensory receptors. Laying over the hair cells are columnar supporting cells that probably secrete the thick, gelatinous, glycoprotein layer called the otolithic membrane and over the membrane is a layer of dense calcium carbonate crystals called otoliths. When the head is tilted, the otoliths shift, and the hairs beneath respond to the change in pressure and bending the hair bundles. Dynamic equilibrium functions in the three semicircular ducts, the saccule and the utricle. The two ventical ducts are the anterior and posterior semicircular ducts. The lateral semicircular duct is horizontal. In the dilated portion of each duct, the ampulla, is a small elevation called the crista. This contains hair cells and supporting cells which are also covered by a mass of gelatinous material which is called cupula. When the head moves the attached semicircular ducts and hair cells move with it.

Why are some acts (like sex or killing) considered by others as clean and by some as unclean?

Based on human history, it can be observed that sex and aggression have become very normal part of human life. Procreation involves sex with the objective of creating another life and to continue the existence of men (Casad 1). It is also seen as an act of pleasure and a way of showing affection. However, the sexual act done within particular context will be considered unacceptable or even unclean. Based on the theories of Sigmund Freud, sex and aggression is embedded in the nature of man (Stafford-Clark 1973). In this manner, the notion of killing also becomes a vital part of human nature.Although we are aware that death is the ultimate end of the physical body, death because of killing stirs up moral issues. In these regard, it is very important to ponder on the true nature of sex and aggression. Prostitution is considered one of the longest running professions in the world (Liberator 2005). However, it is also considered one of the main problems of society wherein people of both s exes and all ages are involved and exploited. The fact that these people are exploited and exposed in different kinds of diseases and other problems causes it to be considered unclean.Mary Douglas (1966) also points out the exchange of sexual fluid during intercourse wherein she says â€Å"each sex is a danger to the other through contact with sexual fluids†. In this regard, we are aware that direct sexual contact may pose great harm to the health through sexually transmitted diseases, making it what Douglas calls bodily pollution. In the context of prostitution, sex is also considered unclean because there are no emotional ties between the sex provider and the patron. Also in this case, sex becomes the service being traded for money.Based on the question raised regarding cleanliness, it is said that there is still the clean notion of sex. This is if sexual acts are done within the bond of matrimony or other emotional commitment. In this context, there is the involvement of l ove and the goal of procreation which makes the act clean. Because the sexual union of male and female becomes a â€Å"collaboration and distinctiveness of social units† the act becomes cleaner. Also, this suggests that physical sex is considered less clean than emotional sex or sex done for procreation.Deviation from the normal notion of sex is also considered unclean like people vowed to celibacy suddenly involves in a sexual act or people having extramarital affairs. Animals are known to kill for survival while man also kills for fun (Kemp 1997). Aggression as a part of human nature is also considered a mode for survival. Killing for survival has been a source of the notion of uncleanness. Douglas (1966, 16) quotes â€Å"the ideas of survivals are used to account for irrational rules of uncleanness†.This suggests that other than the fact that killing is morally unclean the savage use of killing for survival is also considered unclean. In the primitive context, Dougl as notes that there is â€Å"no clear distinction between sanctity and uncleanness† (Douglas 1966, 9). This is true for other later acts of killing for sacrifices or other divine purposes. In the present context, although there are still some isolated cases of killing for sacrificial offerings for their divine Gods, killing is just considered immoral and unclean.At this point, it can be considered that there is a clear realization of the disparity between holiness and impurity. This is also considered true because the primitive purpose of killing for religion is slowly fading. Usual reasons for killing and aggression have been rooted on man’s self-centeredness, personal objectives and goals. The two sections on sex and aggression show the other half of Douglas compounding of dirt â€Å"care for hygiene and respect for conventions† (Douglas 1966, 8). Although not explicitly stated in the text, there is always the inclusion of the issue of morality especially if s een in today’s context.