Carpe Diem

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - Gil Bailie

When asked what makes me come alive, a million memories run through my head. There are so many things that can make me come alive, but I'll sum it down to the things that mean the most to me.

One of the major things that makes me come alive is music. Music influences me in pretty much every single way possible. It can change my emotion, inspire me, and even change my overall outlook on things in life. Just by a certain choice of song I can go from being upset, to being the happiest I've ever been. It's all because of the affect music has on me. Music moves me in many ways that other things would never be able to, and I absolutely love that.

The second thing that makes me come alive would be dancing. Dance partially makes me come alive because there's music involved with it. Dance gives me the opportunity to express how the music is making me feel deep inside me. A good description of this feeling would be how I feel right before dancing in dance recitals every year. I'm onstage stuck still in an exact position that I always start the dance in, the lights are down, and everything's quiet. Right in that moment my body is completely filled with jitters and I have a huge smile on my face, and then the music starts. The jitters start to slowly ease away, my smile gets bigger, and the dance comes with ease just as it always does when I practice it. And in those few minutes, the stage is mine and I feel infinite. Once the dance is over I run offstage and feel pumped and instantly my mood skyrockets.

The third thing that makes me come alive is adventure. The idea of traveling to Europe, or LA, or NYC, or Seattle, or really anywhere makes me feel jittery and happy. I love getting to see new places and just getting to explore new things. Every year my family and I either go to the mountains or the beach at least once just to get away for a day or two. Each year it's the same exact scenery, but it never gets old. Sitting on the stone wall at Lovers Leap and just looking out at the vastness filled with trees and fog, it's just beautiful scenery. It's the same thing with the beach. The warm, salt-filled air, the beautiful sunset, and the overall feeling of carefree-ness of the surrounding people. It's ecstatic! Being in new places and traveling just makes me feel so free and alive, because I'm experiencing new things that are more beautiful than I could ever imagine.

The fourth and final thing that makes me come alive would be long car rides. Right about now you're probably thinking I'm crazy because I like long, boring car rides. But you're wrong, so let me explain first. The long car rides I'm talking about are the ones you take with your best friends. The ones where you pack up your car and ride to the beach with your friends when you're a teenager.  Your windows are rolled down, the sun is out, your music is up, the wind is in your hair, you sing along to your favorite songs, you laugh about the little things, and you feel electric. Those are the long car rides I'm talking about. The ones where you feel so free that nothing could hold you back from any of the things you wanted to accomplish in life. Those moments with your friends when you feel like nothing else matters other than right then, and right there. These are the car rides that are worth living for, the ones that make you feel endless. I love those long car rides.

So, these are a few of the things that make me come alive. Now you should think about what makes  you come alive. I hope you enjoyed hearing about what makes me come alive. Now go find an adventure to take!

~Taylor xx

Character Explanation ~ Ismene - Lines 1-99

We chose this character for our Voki because she looked like Ismene. She looks very woman-like, and also very fierce; like she really knows what she's doing. This makes the character really reflect how Ismene acts in the text.

The Voki looks like a very strong and put together woman, this is what Ismene has to be in the book because of Antingone's actions. The Voki explains Ismene's anger towards Antigone for wanting to bury their brother, Polyneices, when it is forbidden.

Originally, Antigone had wanted Ismene to help bury Polyneices, but she refused to do it because she didn't want to go against Creon. Ismene warns Antigone that she will be killed, but Antigone defies her sister.

Even though Ismene is contempt with Antigone with this, she still cares and worries about her.

                                                            -Taylor xx

Fraction Friends

Who are the people you spend the most time with? Your friends? Family? Teachers? Co-workers? No matter who they are, they tend to affect your personality. The most important parts to consider with these five people is if you accept how they affect your personality or not, if it bothers you that they affect you, and if you feel like you've become a better person because of how they affect you. 

The people I spend the most time with are my small group of best friends: Chelsea, Amy, Nicole, Alyssa, Kayla, and Bryson. I do agree that all of them have some affect on my personality, but some have more of an affect than others, and they all affect me in different ways. The person who has the biggest affect on me is Chelsea. I partially think the reason for this is simply because we spend so much time with each other, and because we've been friends for practically forever. However, I also think that why she has such a big affect on me is because she understands me on so many levels and she's able to connect with me on almost all of them. 

All of my other friends have the same amount of influence on me, and that isn't really a problem with me. Overall, I don't mind the affects they have on me at all. I don't feel as if I've become a better, or a worse person because of how they affect me either. I actually try not to let my friends influence my well being because I feel as if it interrupts my ability to form "myself". What I mean is that I don't want myself to become what my friends are, I want to be my own person. 

So now I leave you to answer all of these questions on your own. Do you think the people around you affect you? Do you mind? Are you a better person because of it? 

~Taylor xx

Society, Why Can't You Solve Your Own Problems?

We all know that we have internal and external problems of our own, but do you ever stop and think about societies problems? If so, then what would be the biggest problem that today's society has?

I believe that the biggest problem society has is setting a specific standard for everyone. What I mean by this is that society sets a strict example of how everyone "should" be, and then the expect you to follow it. If you don't follow the trend that they set then you're considered an outsider.

For example: in the U.S., the "proper" image of how a girl "should be" is to be skinny, tan, have flawless make-up, and to most importantly be pretty. The "proper" image of how a guy "should be" is to have a six-pack of abs, to be tall, to be athletic, and to be attractive. Society has these standards and they are very evident, because instances when they occur happen quite often. If a girl isn't tall enough or skinny enough, then she could be turned down from a modeling job because she "isn't good enough." A guy might even be turned down by a "popular" girl because he doesn't fit her "image."

This is a huge problem for society. Not only does it make a big impact on peoples self-esteem, but it also affects how society acts together as a whole. People push themselves to great lengths to fit these "perfect" images of how people should be, and it's detrimental to their health.

But why does society have this issue? Well, this question can be answered about two different ways. The first way it can be explained is by saying that society has become accustomed to what they think perfect is supposed to be, when no one can be perfect at all. Another way to think about it is that each person in our society is in "competition" with each other. Meaning that it's always a race. Who has the best clothes? Who has the best make-up? Who doesn't have any zits? Who has the brand new iPhone? It's always a race to have all of the top-notch things.

I think a really great way to solve this problem would definitely be to have more campaigns like the Dove campaign, and less of the Victoria's Secret campaigns. Dove  has a campaign and it says that "everyone is beautiful." This is what people need to hear, and to be told instead of seeing one-hundred pound supermodels in undergarments and then have other people expect them to be like that. If there were more campaigns like the Dove campaign then I definitely think people would start believing that they're beautiful.

Another solution would be for everyone to take a step back from the norm and realize that everyone's different, and no one's ever going to be perfect. Therefore, stop trying to be perfect. You're absolutely fine the way you are. Always remember: "what you feel is what you are, and what you are is beautiful."



                                                        ~Taylor xx