The Foundation

 Good vs. Evil. Which side do we, as humans take? What is our natural persona? Do we fall towards the side that gives us a feeling of hope or pure happiness? Or do we fall into the Pit of Despair where revenge and the Adversary fuels our every move? Us as humans want to try and be good, but are tempted time and time again.

 People tend to be shaken when hard trials come into their lives. Young Goodman Brown faith or beliefs were shaken when he enters the village and a preacher is preaching a sermon from the fire burning alter. This is a symbol of the Devil preaching his false accusations across the world. Goodman Brown awakes the next day in his village, uncertain if the prior events really did occur. He then becomes shaken and has no trust in anyone, so he leaves and lives by himself for the remainder of his life, and becoming skeptical of all who encounter him. 

 We should not let trials affect our lives or others change what we believe. What makes us unique is what we believe and that shapes how we act, and number of things in our lives. Feeling happy gives a thrust to keep going. If others tell us certain information or that our beliefs are wrong and we immediately change our beliefs then they weren't really beliefs to start off. Our foundation as a person is what we believe and how we choose to use our powers as human beings to make our lives sway on the pendulum of life, to either Good or Evil. Life is what we make it, so lets make it right. "And when he had lived long, and was borne to his grave... they carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone, for his dying hour was gloom."

Journey for Another

Why do we do the things for our family? If your sister or brother asks for an ice cream cone and they have been so annoying, that you cannot resist their faces, and crying tone? If you see your mom carrying groceries all by herself and you can't help but go aid your helpless mother? The answer is because we love them so much, whether we are angry or mad we help them, they are our family. I would do anything for my family. I love them, and I know that before I leave to carry on with my life I only have a short time with them until my life has to carry on.

I love for my family just as Phoenix Jackson cares for her family. This women makes a long journey through a very difficult terrain, along with her vision not at its finest, and at an age to be as active as she is. She goes through so many things to just please her loved ones, because they need the help, and her love is so great nothing can interfere or stop her from reaching her goal, "So the time come around, and I go on another trip for the soothing medicine," (227) no matter what we will do anything for our families. Phoenix describes in her entry that you will journey, conquest, or a trip to give our loved ones what they love and desire.

"Love is when the other person's happiness is more important than your own."

Carry on with a Scar

In our lives bad things happen everyday to us, but its our choice whether to get up, brush it off and keep going through our lives. Why dwell on the past when a future lies ahead for us to capture? I'm not saying that if we lose family members, or friends we shouldn't grieve. That is impossible not to grieve our losses, of course unless your some psychotic person with no feelings for others, and yourself. But that should be something to give us strength to keep advancing on in our lives. In basketball when I play, if i miss a shot or make a mistake my team needs me to shake it off and keep playing because its a team effort and others need me, we need each other.

The summer reading that I chose to read was Cold Mountain. There is a lot of death around these characters, especially Inman. He speaks about grievances, and that we should not dwell on them, "All your grief hasn't changed a thing. What you have lost will not be returned to you. It will always be lost. You're left with only your scars to mark the voids. All you can do is choose to go on or not. But, if you go on, it's knowing you carry your scars with you." (334) There is a lot of truth behind this quote by Inman. He is true to say what you lose will not come back, if you mess up in a basketball game, like a bad shot you wont get that back. But, we use that mistake to carry on, a scar, and take that and use that to fuel the fire, to motivate yourself to not take that bad shot again. If a family member were to die, to pass on, of course you cannot just shrug it off, grieving is part of being human. What you cannot do is stop and break down and let it tear you down. As Inman says you have a scar to carry with you forever, but that scar reminds you that, that person is always with you in spirit and they are a force to pick you up when you are down or lost,

It is our choice whether to pick up and keep moving on with our lives, or let our trials get the best of us, and stop us from being the best we can be.