Holocaust Survivors

No matter how many times I hear it, it never ceases to horrify me what those people went through. It is ridiculous and atrocious how inhumanely the Jews were treated just because they were Jewish. I just don't understand how anyone could be that cruel and evil towards another human being. However, I know that as awful as it sounds, this kind of behavior still goes on today in different parts of the world. I admire the survivors and the victims of the concentration camps for their courage and sticking to their beliefs even in the face of death. I cannot possibly imagine what Jews went through in the camps. It boggles my mind and makes me feel extraordinarily grateful for the family I have and the life I have.

Gossip

I believe that gossip is not a good thing. More often than not, the things said are not true and end up hurting people. Do I gossip? I try not to but I do. Do I listen to gossip? I guess you could say it's a guilty pleasure of mine I should get rid of. When I hear gossip I don't believe it's true but normally laugh at the absurdity of it. Some people come up with really outrageous stories that I wouldn't think anyone would take seriously. However, as long as there are people to gossip, there will be people to listen to it. When you spread gossip, you will often get a bad reputation and will be deemed an untrustworthy person. I have been on the other side of gossip many times, but the difference is I don't care. I know its not true and that's good enough for me, people can say whatever they want. I will, of coarse, defend myself if I overhear it but I definitely wont loose any sleep over what other people think about me.

Genome Project

The project I am currently working on is the Music Genome Project on Garageband. I am really into this project because I think it's amazing and a lot of fun. Also, putting the music together is a skill I am very interested in so that makes it easier to concentrate and stay on track. However, I am a little bit of a perfectionist when it comes to these projects. I'm trying the best I can to get it done and get it done right. The topic of my project is American Broadway. This was a great and not so great choice. It is great because I think Broadway is spectacular so I had a lot of enthusiasm for the project. However, it is not so great because narrowing down the topic was a huge, time-consuming challenge. Also, finding information about the roots and things like that was difficult. I did finally narrow it down to power solos, though, and have been working my hardest ever since. I just hope it turns out like I want it to.

Easter Break

This Easter Break has to be one of my greatest ever! However, it did not start out too great. My flight out of Chicago was delayed for 8 HOURS! It was crazy and incredibly boring. Although, during this time I discovered my new love for Starbucks! Once I finally got on the plane my vacation was amazing. The first part consisted of college visits which were actually fun and really interesting. I visited Villa Nova University, Boston College, Yale University, and Columbia University. My favorites are my dream schools, Yale University and Columbia University. Also, while in Boston, I got to go to a Red Sox game! Then I went to New York City for the first time which was a tremendous experience. I got to see all the sights such as the Statue of Liberty as well as attending four Broadway shows. The shows I saw were The Little Mermaid, Shrek the Musical, Chicago, and Wicked! Wicked is my all-time favorite musical so that was spectacular! So all in all this was one of my top vacations!

Lent

In years past, my Lenten promises have rarely lasted the entire season. This year, however, I was/am determined to keep it till the very end. I have been doing great this year. I have only slipped up once this year and that time was today coincidently. Now I wish I would have written this yesterday so I could say I hadn't broken it yet. But today the retreat was long, the prayer/meditation/reflection period was much longer than I originally thought, and I was hungry. I keep on talking about my Lenten promise without revealing what it is. This year my Lenten promise is no junk food during lunch. Previous years I have tried to do too much such as no junk food ever. However, now I am determined that today will be the only slip-up for the season!

Future Career

When I grow up, I am going to be a psychiatrist. I have wanted to be a psychiatrist since the 3rd grade and I am determined to become one. I am interested in becoming a psychiatrist because I like to help people, I like to give advice, and I like to listen to people's problems. I do not know anyone who is a psychiatrist but I think it would be really cool if I could meet one. In order to become a psychiatrist, I will need to attend college and then medical school. Being a psychiatrist is my dream job and I am positive I can achieve it.

Service Project

One upcoming service project that I am particularly excited to start is at Springhill Camp. During this project, I will be helping the campers and the camp staff. I learned about it from my cousins who live in Michigan. They had been going there since they were in 3rd grade so I started going when I was in the 3rd grade. I used to go just as a camper but now that I am in high school I am part of the TST (Teen Service Team) program. I go for 2 weeks in a row. Part of the time I do fun camp activities, and the rest of the time I work around the camp lifting logs, staining cabins, mowing the grass, working in the kitchen, etc. It was great because as much as I impacted their lives, they impacted my life even more. I get 75 service hours for going to camp. I can honestly say it changed my life and I can't wait to go back.