A Day at the Beach

       I am gasping for breath as I try to orient myself.  I cannot tell which way my body is facing because gravity seems to be absent from my nightmare of tossing and turning waves which run over me like a piece of worn beach glass.  The once soothing cool water that nudged my boogie board along has betrayed me by ripping it out of my tightly gripped fingers as I try to hold on for my dear life.  The dark abyss seems endless as I sink lower and lower until I feel my head and back smacking the hard beach floor.
       My board slaps me in the face like a jealous girlfriend who is trying to teach me a lesson.  My ally in riding the waves has switched teams and keeps coming back like a boomerang for the sole purpose of abusing my face as I am pulled through the craziness of yet another washing machine cycle.  All my senses are heightened as the adrenaline is coursing through my body.  I struggle to find the surface because I know that I am all alone in my fight for survival.
My lungs are bursting from a lack of oxygen because I have not taken a breath in hours.   It seems like a miracle that I finally start floating towards the light to receive a long awaited relief.  I am gulping air, instead of gulping gallons of the salty ocean.  The ocean has spit me out of its angry mouth and I flail in the air until I land on a brown compact patch of sand.   I spit out a mouthful of grainy sand as I lay on the beach and peer out through my dripping wet tangled hair.  I kneel on all fours and my eyes are wide open because there is a major problem.  I am still gasping for breath even though the ocean had released me from its grips.
       Father gently but firmly picks up my tired body and I am able to stand and release the tension in my chest.  As he places his strong hands on my sagging shoulders, he tells me to relax so that precious air is able to travel into my lungs.   I ask him to carry me because as he can see, it is impossible for me to walk.  He reaches for me as I grab his hand and I lean on him the entire long walk to our section of the beach covered by colorful towels, a beach umbrella, and a cooler stock full of ice cold water.  My body fully surrenders to my father and I do everything he says as I walk slowly over the scorching hot sand and dried seaweed all the while never letting go.  My throat feels like the arid Sahara Desert which we are learning about in my Ancient History class in middle school.  Teacher says that hardly any plants are able to live there because of the bone-dry earth.  The sand beneath my feet are smoldering because it is hot and scratchy.  Father sets me down on my towel and wraps another soft one around me for comfort as he brings cool fresh water to my dry lips.  I can feel my insides magically healing as the sweet liquid is running down my throat.  The sun warms my skin and I feel a smile make its way across my face as I sit there calmly drinking.  Feeling returns to my face as the adrenaline wears off and now it hurts like hell.  I wipe sweat off my brow and my hand comes away sticky and red.  I jump up in surprise and my father leads me to the bathrooms as I try to avoid the glances of passing strangers.
       My face is a throbbing red mess as I walk into the sand covered floor of the sanitary beach bathrooms.  It stings as I gently run water over the cuts and bruises on my face.  I gaze through slats of the window and I see Father leaning against the concrete wall, waiting for me outside.  I am excited to walk back to him because I can already taste the sweet ice cream heaven that he promised me for being his brave little girl.  I shuffle out of the bathroom, now warm and dry in my change of clothes.  I skip along the way as I am excited to finally taste the creamy satisfaction.  My father orders my favorite variety of ice cream for me as I rest on a barstool overlooking the beach.  My feet are dangling high above the floor but my father said that when I grow up I will be able to touch the floor and order all by myself.  The only remnant of the horrible situation that happened before is an ice pack that I am holding against my face as I savor my bubble gum ice cream because my father says that it will keep the swelling to a minimum. I believe that my ice cream treat is just the kind of medicine my body needs because it relaxes my insides.   We walk to the end of the pier and I try to lick up the melting ice cream before it drips down the ridged cone and onto my hand.   I stand next to my father and my head reaches just below his shoulder. We are both bundled up because the air is getting cooler as the sun is setting over the vast horizon, painting the clouds hues of pinks, oranges and purples.  I know that I will always have this moment in time saved in my mind in the file of important memories.
       I feel the soothing ocean air flow through my beach hair as I walk to the car with my recovered board slung over one shoulder.  I climb into the backseat as I strap myself in for a long ride back to my house.  The passing scenes hypnotize me and the gliding motion of the car makes my eyes droop as I fight to keep them open. As I settle in for a nice nap, I recall the day’s events and I know that next time I will have a different story to tell.  It will be about the time that I will learn to conquer the mass of blue water as I ride on my board like a throne as effortless as a graceful mermaid.  My imagination takes control of me as I sleep because I know that I am safe with Father in the driver’s seat.  Then I fall into a deep sleep for what feels like a couple of minutes but we are already pulling into our driveway.  I wait patiently because my father will carry me inside so that I will be able to tell the crazy events that unfolded at the beach to the rest of my family.  I see my caring family as they run and fling the door wide open. They stand in a line waiting eagerly to greet us and see if I am alright.  The ocean has not defeated me because I will be back.

Megamind Review

Release Date: Nov 05, 2010


Genre: Animation


Cast and Credits:


Megamind: Will Ferrell
Roxanne: Tina Fey
Hal/Titan: Jonah Hill
Minion: David Cross
Metro Man: Brad Pitt

Paramount and DreamWorks present a film directed by Tom McGrath. Written by Alan Schoolcraft and Brent Simons. Running time: 95 minutes. Rated PG (for action and some language).


I was swamped with homework the week before “Megamind” was opening in theaters.  That same weekend a friend of mine asked me if I wanted to see the movie on opening day at a drive in Movie Theater.  I was so excited because I hadn’t been to a drive in for a while so I went.  I did not anticipate how cold that it was going to be and I wasn’t looking forward to seeing just another kid’s movie in the freezing weather.  I cocooned myself with thick blankets in a camping chair and settled in for a reluctant night.  What I didn’t know was that “Megamind” was going to exceed my prior expectations. 

From the opening credits, I realized that it had a similar beginning to the original “Superman” movie.  Aliens born on a distant planet and packed into a rocket ship and blasted off to Earth just like the Man of Steel. On his way, he meets his lifetime nemesis, a golden child who lands on Earth and in the lap of wealth. The blue child, lands in a prison and is raised by hardened convicts.   

The two super-beings are destined to grow up and play crucial roles in nearby Metro City.  They are named Megamind (voice of Will Ferrell) from the size of his ginormous blue noggin and Metro Man (Brad Pitt) who is the epitome of perfect. We may remember that in Superman, Lois Lane was reporting his every move, and here the story of the two super beings is covered by a TV reporter named Roxanne Ritchi (Tina Fey). Roxanne's cameraman, Hal (Jonah Hill,), later morphs into yet a third super-being named Titan who plays a significant role.

Other movies that are similar to “Megaminds’” genre are "The Incredibles" with its superpowers and "Despicable Me" with its villain. "Megamind" even goes so far as naming Megamind's tall fishy sidekick "Minion" (David Cross), like the little yellow Minions who serve the despicable Gru. Megamind grew up like any other innocent child. When he realized that no one was going to accept him or get credit for doing well, he might as well become a villain. 

What I did enjoy were some timely pieces of dialogue that had appropriate comic timing.  For example, there is a scene where Hal is trying to impress Roxanne so that they can get romantically involved and he says, “I'm having a party. Got a DJ. Rented a bouncy house.  Made a gallon of dip.”  Then Roxanne returns with the comment, “I don't really feel like being around a bunch of people.”  Then Hal exclaims, “No, no, no. That's the best part... it'll be just like you and me.”

It is a universal truth that a hero requires a villain, and "Megamind" has some fun by getting rid of Metro Man and leaving Megamind bored. Left without an opponent, he loses his passion for evildoing, and actually clones Titan to cure his loneliness.  Lots of physically impossible animation action occurs between Titan and Megamind with an unconceived twist.   It also seemed like the population of Metro City consists entirely of super-beings, Roxanne, the prison warden and cheering thousands of anonymous humans.

Tina Fey does a lively job with Roxanne, and again I was reminded of "Superman" and Margot Kidder's high-spirited and sassy Lois Lane. This time Roxanne isn't in love with anyone, which is great because they are alien superheroes of self-promotion in the end. In the last quarter of the movie, there are scenes of realization where Megamind finds that he does have a place in this world. 

"Megamind" is a great family entertainment and gains some liveliness from clever dialogue and the fun Will Ferrell has with his character. I like the way he pronounces "Metro City" like "metricity," for example. The 3-D is done well, but in my opinion unnecessary because I usually like 2D films because they don’t give me a headache or a wallet-ache. Save the surcharge and see those colors nice and bright.

"Megamind Official Site." MEGAMIND - NOVEMBER 5. DreamWorks Animation, 2010. Web. 13 Dec. 2010. <http://www.megamind.com/>.

Medical Super Power

What are the components to a perfect health care system?  Most people would answer intelligent physicians, the best equipment and great service.  What’s missing?  The secret of our shortcomings is in coverage, quality, and cost.  Not only do we need all of the above but the health care system in the US lacks cost and coverage.  One out of three is not a great track record.  What steps can the US take in the right direction to keep leading the world in medicine but also provide the best service possible to the people back home?  

The United States is one of the most powerful, most innovative, and richest nations the planet has ever known.  However, it is not actually healthy compared to other developed nations.  In a book called The Healing of America, T. R. Reid says, “When it comes to the essential task of providing health care for people, the mighty USA is a fourth rate power.” (Reid) We have some of the best equipment and expertise in the world, so it is paradoxical that the medical care does not reflect our resources.  Why is that? 

 The rest of the world even sees what potential the USA has in medicine.  Our doctors have produced miracle drugs that save the lives of people every day.  American laboratories lead the world in medical research and the US has the best equipped hospitals in the world.  If you walk along an airport terminal or a mall in the US you will probably walk by lots of people who would be dead if it weren’t for the dedication and skill of an American physician.    For example Reid explains that in Singapore a brand new medical complex opened and on a sign right out front it states that the facility is run by Duke University Medical School.  The Singapore government believes that the best medicinal minds are in our own backyard at Duke, which is as far as you can get from Singapore.   

My father always told me to examine myself before looking at someone else’s shortcomings. The US is very generous in the sense that we are always looking at different ways to make other nation’s situation better.   In the same way, we need to fix the broken parts of our health care system’s machinery before spending all our energy and resources on other nations.  The sad fact is that we have squandered our treasure because we've wasted our shining medical assets because of the inefficient healthcare payment system.  The next big question is how we are going to go about changing our health care.  Throw out everything and start from scratch?  The US medical field is going through a lot of changes in 2014 and we will see if it will be for the better. 

 

Reid, T. R. The Healing of America. New York: The Penguin Press, 2009. 28-9.

Lucky 3

It is hard as a college student to balance the precious time with school, studying, school, social life, and trying to fit spending time in God’s word. Going to chapel at APU three times a week helps the students attending to manage priorities and put God first. 

                When you want to have a strong meaningful relationship with people, you have to spend time with them because the relationship goes two ways. Having chapel in the mornings enables us to start our day right.

                Most of the people coming to APU stem from many different denominations. The chapels that we go to help us to see a larger body of Christ at work by having many different speakers share about God. The diverse experiences help us see the world through the perspectives of Christians from all over the world who colored the earth with their walk with God.

                Class times are blocked off for chapel so that students are able to attend to fulfill credit of going to chapel. In a sense, Tim Peck, the director of chapel programs says that chapel is a zero unit class and we should treat it that way. We cannot attend a different church to have the same credit as going to chapel because logistically it would be a nightmare. Also it would be difficult to monitor attendance. The curriculum that the campus pastors and chapel programs want to get across to the students would not be the same. For example, it isn’t the same to take a ballet class for a hip hop class. It is important to Tim Peck and the rest of the chapel program team to create a consistent rhythm of worship and discipline through repetition. God calls us to have fellowship and learn from each other and also be a disciplined follower of Christ. Chapel covers all of this.

                My friend Kaylah walked up to me as I was entering the building for chapel, I had been thinking about homework, sleep, and more homework, but Kaylah and I had a big anatomy exam right after chapel so all the information that I needed to remember was occupying my mind. Then Kaylah excitedly explained to me,” this is exactly what I needed to start my day. I need me some Jesus.” It is all about the attitude that you have coming into the experience. It will make or break you. Just like Kaylah did, we should realize we should realize what a great opportunity we have to be able to go to chapel and strengthen our relationship with God.

                Along with many other things, chapel helps us to take a small vacation from classes and dive into the oasis of God. To worship Him and listen to what He has to say through the speakers.

Beauty

Is beauty really only in the eye of the beholder?  Susan Sontag begins by noting in "A Women's Beauty" the extreme differences between the description of an attractive man and an attractive woman.  Sontag has a point that women are forced to preen and yet are categorized as superficial for doing so. 

                To consider beauty superficial is to misunderstand the Christian view about beauty.  God made a lot of things beautiful even though we tend to think of nature as his masterpiece.  Unfortunately most people have the idea switched because everyone is actually created in GOD’S image.  Can it get any better than that?  There are different aspects of beauty which include inner and outer beauty.  We separate the two ideas instead of seeing that they are both part of a whole.  We cannot simply shrug off beauty like a set of clothes because we are stuck with what God gave us no matter if we like it or not. 

                Sontag describes the women’s relationship to beauty as “enslavement.”  Women are reduced to having one feature being scrutinized, which is their beauty or lack thereof.  Their beauty is controlled in a same way that a slave is reduced to labor.  Women’s enslavement is more thorough than a man’s because men are relatively unhindered in their quest for a lifelong partner.   The media and other worldly cultures define beauty.  So if you do not fit into the perfect equation, then what happens?  Do you eventually find a mate?  Beauty is objective in the sense that everyone is beautiful so we have to be careful in the way that we wield our power.  Christians need to think about beauty more often but also in a different perspective than the dominant culture does.  

It's Not Stealing if You Have a Good Reason

Did you know that it is morally acceptable to steal? Apparently there is a fine line between when it is okay to steal and when you should be thrown in jail for breaking the law.  Sometimes the line becomes fuzzy because not every situation is black and white.  So we can make separate rulings on a case by case basis.   People believe that there are different levels of theft.  Are the laws of society up for discussion or are they set in stone?  Isn’t stealing, stealing? 

When I was about five years old I went to the ninety nine cent store with my Aunty.   As we walk into the store and turn down the next isle, I see an overwhelming amount of multicolored flowers lining a whole wall.  I walk up close to the flowers to feel their velvet, and satin petals.  I especially liked a certain purple flower because it had a sweet perfume-like scent.  I happened to see one bud lying on the ground so I picked it up and tucked it into my pocket.  Later, my mother found the crumpled flower in my pants when she was doing laundry.  She asked where it came from and I told her that I found it at the store.  I didn’t see the big deal in taking the flower. It’s only a flower right?  My mother told me that it was a sin as well as against the law to steal no matter what the object was or what type of situation.  She made it easy for me to see that stealing was not debatable.  This concept is easily understandable because a five year old grasped the idea. 

Later I went back to the laundry room to see if my flower was still there and I smelled the aroma of the once sweet flower.  Now the scent made my stomach churn because I felt guilty about what I had done.  I learned my lesson once and for all that there is a price to pay if I want to have something from the stores because it automatically doesn’t belong to me.  I believe that the concept of the American dream is stretched a little bit too far into the idea of egocentrism where we are supposed to get anything and everything that we crave.  There is a nice idea that hopes and dreams can take you anywhere but we can’t fall overboard and think selfishly to award worth where none is merited. 

Children are growing up reading and watching cartoons like Robin Hood which exhibit the “good” kind of stealing.  If as children we learn that the laws are there to for us to follow then we will not fall down a slippery spiral.  Theft is breaking the law no matter which angle you perceive the situation.  We will step into a messy glob of manure if we have a mindset that stealing is not universally bad.  The TV shows, cartoons and “liberal” thinking should not lead us into the direction of lax reasoning.  On the contrary, we should hold firm to the morals instilled in us from the bible and strive to raise the bar on the justice system because the law is there for our protection.  

The World of Creativity is like a Beach

Picture a beach with an aqua blanket of ocean rising and falling against the grainy sand stretching to the horizon as far as you can see.  This is your playground.  Where do you start?  Do you jump and dive in the cool waves first or do you build a giant sand castle on the sand?  There is so much to do and it might be a bit overwhelming.  This can be the same dilemma that we face when we enter junior high and high school then continue on to college with our writing.

The five paragraph structure has been bashed to death by college kids and professors because there is no room to branch out and develop your ideas.  It is nearly impossible to place our abstract ideas into nice, neat, and simple boxes.  Five to be exact. 

But, there has to be some kind of foundation when we enter into the world of expressing yourself with a pen and paper or a computer for that matter.  The five paragraphs teach us that there is a beginning middle and end to every paper.  It also helps us recognize a way to organize our thoughts so that we sound coherent.  For example, if you decide to build the giant sand castle at the beach, you start with a solid base of tightly packed sand and water to support the rest of the fancy towers.  Same with writing, you have to start at the bottom with learning how to tether the English language into an organized, compound idea. 

Next comes the time for the door ways, turrets, and jewels, seashells and as many towers as you see fit.  The bedazzled paper can come from a strong foundation of writing in junior high and high school.  Once we step foot in the collegiate world we add as much decoration and depth because we are in control of our thoughts.  The Professors trust us to communicate our breadth of ideas without much pushing and shoving in regards of paragraphs.  Instead we can call them “chunks” as Thomas Allbaugh explains in Pretexts for Writing. Now we can organize the “chunks” in any way that makes sense.  We have had enough experience to understand how to persuade or argue our point.

 Since the five paragraph form is the base of our writing where do I go from here?   Well, it isn’t so much the structure as the how, what, and who.  The topic should be unique and interesting.  Make sure that you have the audience in mind when writing so that in the end, the final product will do its job.  Also, the detail, description and visualization are key because when you engage the reader, they are more likely to actually read it. Lastly, your thoughts should be well developed and concise.  Like the over used quote says,” Keep it sweet and simple.”  When encountering a beach of creativity we should embrace the opportunity with open arms and show the world that our best sand castle can change the way we view the beach.