Graduation Speech: We Are the Future :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Today is our first day of being the leaders, doers, and problem solvers of the future. Those who persevere, who give it their all and approach each day with optimism will ultimately meet success and happiness. Of course, there will be many a failure on that windy road of life, but with dedication, we can do anything and make any dream come true. But, as we grow older and encounter success, we must not forget those who have had it rough, whose lives may have hit some potholes on the way, and we must take care of those who need a helping hand. As each of us leaves our mark on the world, be generous and be happy, and always remember the good times, good friends, and lessons learned at Marefat. Being Marefat's first graduating class to complete all four years, one can say we've acquired a higher level of school wisdom than any previous class. We've formed traditions, we've set records, and we've made a lot of friends along the way. I remember our freshman year when we could use the excuse of being a new school for every shortcoming we encountered. I remember our sophomore year, the last time I cleaned my bedroom, when Marefat had its first senior class, and the school seemed to shrink for some reason. Last year we were the juniors, and we conquered the SAT tests: And made it through those busy days where you hadn't quite found room in your schedule to pencil in a bathroom break, dinner or sleep. Well, this year we were the kings and queens, there was Star Wars, Starbucks, and a certain football team lost its winning streak to the mighty Knights. Looking back we can see our accomplishments and the marks we made. Now, we must take all that we have learned in our years at Mare fat and apply it to our future. Just as we have set traditions here, we must enter the world ready to tackle new problems and work out new solutions. We are the ones who can break all of those records that have been set, and have our names etched in history. It's our turn -- the world is ours and we just have to decide what we want to do with it. Throughout our successful lives, though, we can't forget those who struggle and we can't forget to take care of our families and community.

How I Would Direct A View From The Bridge :: Drama

How I Would Direct 'A View From The Bridge' In this essay, I will explain how Arthur Miller creates tension and suspense in 'A View From The Bridge' by explaining the dramatic devices, props, characters etc. In 'A View From The Bridge', Arthur Miller employs various techniques to generate dramatic tension and to hold the audiences' interest. The playwright uses the setting, characters, stage directions, props, lighting, language, and setting as the main sources of drama. The characters are a vital element in the play, and are the basis of the drama. Eddie is portrayed as a well respected, hard working, ordinary man. He is dedicated to his family and is presented as an amiable character. "He was as good a man as he had to be in a life that was hard and even." Alfieri explains this at the beginning of the play, and this emphasises that Eddie is an honourable, decent person. However, as soon as a catalyst (in the form of the cousins) is introduced, another side to Eddie is revealed, and his true feelings for Catherine exposed. "What are the high heels for Garbo?" Eddie says this to Catherine, in front of the cousins, to deliberately humiliate her. Eddie sees Catherine's attentiveness towards Rodolfo and becomes jealous. This sexual jealousy grows throughout the play and the audience realize that what did seem like over-protectiveness is in fact romantic obsession and unlawful love for Catherine. This disgusts the audience and so they begin to turn against Eddie. Eddie's attachment to Catherine is his flaw. His demise is the consequence of this weakness. Eddie's fate becomes inevitable and predictable when his inability to compromise and the true extent of his fixation with Catherine becomes apparent. "His eyes were like tunnels." Alfieri says this to describe Eddie. It suggests that Eddie has tunnel vision, and can only focus on one thing - Catherine. This is evident when Eddie calls Immigration to 'snitch' on Marco and Rodolfo. It highlights Eddie's desperation and loss of rational thinking as he acts on the contrary of his own strong beliefs, which he outlined at the beginning of the play with the consequences of Vinnie Banzalo's betrayal. The characters are all involved in very tangled relationships. Beatrice is jealous of Eddie's love for Catherine. "When am I gonna be a wife again Eddie?" She is very frustrated with her husband, but he will not face the reality of the situation. Eddie expects Beatrice to support him, as wives were supposed at that time. So when Beatrice defends Catherine, Eddie cannot understand why his wife is deliberately defying him as he believes he is being perfectly reasonable. Eddie insinuates that Rodolfo is homosexual due to his apparent

Football Accident

Period 5 11/1/12 Unthinkable When I look at my life, and I think about the hardest things for me to overcome, I would have to say, the ultimate being, telling my mother and father that I would be sitting out of football my senior year of high school. Most would say how could this possibly be something that you would find challenging, but then you don’t know my mother and father. I started playing sports, football, in particular, at the age of 7. I was kind of a chunky little kid, even had a funny gait when I ran, but you couldn’t tell that if you talked to my parents. To my mom and dad, I was a superstar.I started playing flag football through the YMCA program, and then moved up to Pop Warner. Here’s the crazy part. My mom or dad came to every practice, and every game, rain or shine. I think I was the only kid that knew one of my parents would be on the sidelines, whether at practice or a game. Now to be honest, those were tough years for me, as most times, my pa rents would be watching me sitting on the bench, because I did not get to play very often. During those years, I put on a brave face and never let my parents know how embarrassed I was and how I felt I let them down.The crazy part was, when my parents met with other player’s parents, they talked about me like I was the star of the team, never made me feel bad for not playing in a game. Again, come rain or shine, they were always there for me. Those were tough years for me. Every coach found a reason why I just wasn’t ready to be a starting player. Then something really incredible happened during my 7th grade year. This didn’t start off incredible, in fact, it was quite humiliating. Everyone that wanted to try out for the 7th grade football team met after school one day.Here were all the players and parents that I had been playing with for the last six years, and as the kid that sat on the bench most of the time, you can imagine, I was the odd man out. All these parents bragging about their own kids, the great plays, the touchdowns, but there stood my mom and dad, proud as ever. They were with their superstar. As the three of us stood there together, my father later told me that it was one of the most intimidating days he’d had in a long time, looking at the parents of the kids that got to play. My mother told me to do the best I could do, and my day would come.My dad always said because he wasn’t a coach or assistant coach on these teams, I didn’t get a fair chance, but in my heart, I just didn’t think I was a great player. Good, yes, but not great. Tryouts came and went, and once again, I assumed I would be a bench warmer. As I said earlier, this turned out to be an incredible year, and something happened that I never expected. Now that I look back, I still have to ask myself, â€Å"Did that really happen? †   Ã‚   All of the kids I played football with throughout the years were, of course, picked for the starting positions.Some of these very kids have made headlines in the last couple of years, but let’s get back to me. One cold dark evening, my Hedrick team was playing the Talent Bulldogs and one of the kids that normally played the wide receiver position was sick that day. The coach asked me to step in and give it a try. I can’t describe the butterflies in my stomach. My hands and knees shook and my heart began to race. I finally was given a chance and I was terrified. Well, guess what? Not only did I catch the ball and run it in for an 80 touchdown yard touchdown, but I did this game and game again.After gaining the starting wide receiver position, I gained the starting linebacker position and proved my dominance once again on the field. At the end of the season, I was voted Most Valuable Player for both offense and defense for not only junior varsity but for varsity as well. Now, with that said, you can only imagine my parents. Their son going from a bench play er to the number one player on both teams. My parents would run down the sidelines, whooping it up as I ran the ball. They finally had the superstar they’d been waiting for. Over the next few years, my playing improved, and I had moved to high school ball.Playing varsity for north as a freshman, and just like before, my parents did not miss a practice or game, even if it meant driving a few hundred miles. My parents and especially my dad kept waiting for my next big break, my time to shine. Then in my junior year, I found myself transferred to a new school, tried out and actually made the Varsity football team. My parents were so proud of me, and I was proud of myself. I don’t know who was more excited, me or my parents. My parents were on Cloud Nine, talking about nothing but football and Friday Night Lights.It was an exciting time of my life. The coach tried me out at Outside Linebacker, because of my speed, strength, and my ability to get around the offensive line. Then the unthinkable happened at practice. I was sent in on a blitz, and hit the offensive lineman with my shoulder. It felt like my arm had been ripped from its socket as I writhed on the ground in pain. The trainers ran over and rushed me to the hospital. I never would have guessed in a million years what a fateful day that would be. My shoulder was completely out of its socket, the tendons and ligaments torn.The most important year of my life had just been stripped away from me. Not only was surgery required, but months of physical therapy. My orthopedic doctor told me I could no longer play football without risking irreparable damage. I never told my parents this, and the doctor never told them. I kept that dream of Friday night lights in my parent’s hearts until I should have been signing up for football camp. This is when I had to tell them what the doctor said, and there would be no football in my life, no letter, no photos, and no glory. To me, this was the hardest da y of my life.On this day, I knew I was breaking my parent’s hearts. Everything they had looked forward to for my senior year of football was gone. I played the game, but they had lived the sport. Something died this day, maybe just a dream of mine, but it seemed so much more. Like a part of me was left on the field that sad day that I suffered my injury. To this day I day dream of the achievements I could have over came if I had no suffered that injury. Maybe one day when I have kids I will be able to live my football career through my future son†¦ but until that day comes I’m stuck watching in the stands

Is Troy Maxson a “Tragic Hero?”

A tragic hero is a character who used to do good deeds in the light of others but allows for his flaws or inner struggles to overcome him. As a result, this downfall leads to the character’s death. In the case of Troy Maxson, main character from the play â€Å"Fences† by August Wilson, it is clear that he constantly struggles to keep up with good deeds for his family, but unfortunately allowed his inner flaws to lead him to his lonely and tragic death. Therefore, Troy Maxson is indeed considered a tragic hero and there are pieces of evidence throughout the aforementioned play that further proves my point. Troy Maxson is a man with two sons by the name of Cory and Lyons Maxson. He had Lyons before he went to jail with one woman and had Cory after jail with Rose Maxson; his current wife. His character is made up of both positive and negative attributes. He can be described as controlling because he has all the authority during the beginning of the story when Cory brings up an opportunity in getting into college football. When this idea is brought onto Troy’s table, his immediate response was to say no. The reason for this action was clear. He was protecting his son from having high hopes because he believed the color barrier was not broken. Although he said no to Cory’s opportunity, he was being a hero in his own way. Troy Maxson was known to be the breadwinner of the family. He provided for his wife and his son which is why he was respected. His characteristics were that of a powerful man. Rose asks Troy â€Å"what you all out here getting into? † And he responds â€Å"what you worried about what we getting into for? This is men talk, woman† (1. 1. 41-1. 1. 42). This quote gives an example of his strong masculinity characteristics. He struggled a lot when he was younger living with his father. His father did not provide for the family materialistically or emotionally. Growing up to this horrible lifestyle, Troy was either going to learn, grow, and live by example, or completely live his own life. He decided to live by example and do the opposite of what his father did. Although there were a couple of mistakes he made, he made sure he did not make the same mistake his dad made which was not providing for the family. Rose was Troy’s wife who respected him as a husband and made him and her children dinner every night. According to what he says, he truly loves his wife; â€Å"I love this woman. I love this woman so much it hurts. I love her so much†¦ I done run out of ways of loving her† (1. 1. 173). This quote allows the reader to realize that the Maxson family does have a foundation of love. Cory and Lyons also admired their father because in their eyes he was an excellent father figure. Bono was Troy’s best friend whom he met at a correction center and has known him for 30 years. Troy was a role model to Bono and he admired Troy's leadership and responsibility at work. After understanding the protagonist’s heroic side, it is necessary to understand that he also had a tragic downfall and that he has certain weaknesses. Troy made sure to provide for his family materialistically, but unfortunately did not expose too much of his love to his children. He was able to reluctantly give Lyons ten dollars a week but that was not enough to help him make a living. Lyons states â€Å"I just stay with my music because that's the only way I can find to live in the world† (1. 1. 153). His dream is to be a musician. But maybe he needed more than ten dollars a week to conquer his dream? Maybe he needed some father to son affection? Maybe being separated from his dad at such an early age affected him emotionally? He did not care for him so this in turn helped Lyons become more independent. Regardless of the lack of emotional support from Troy, he continues aspiring to reach his goal. Troy can also be considered a hero because he allows Lyons to be an independent man. Troy was known to be jealous of Cory because he got the opportunity to play a sport without discrimination against his race. Cory expressed his feelings to his dad in this quote: â€Å"Papa done went up to the school and told Coach Zellman I can't play football no more. †¦ Told him to tell the recruiter not to come†¦. Just cause you didn't have a chance! You just scared I'm gonna be better than you, that's all. † (1. 4. 158-1. 4. 166) Cory is clearly stressing the fact that his father said no and blames it on his jealousy, but what he does not realize is that his father is also trying to protect him from discrimination. The reason why Troy has this mentality is because he grew loving sports, just like his son, during the time of the Negro Leagues. He was discriminated against and he thinks that that is what Cory would go through. He might have been jealous, but he also played a heroic figure by protecting his son. Towards the end of the play Troy seems to be continuing his path down â€Å"tragic lane†. He betrays his wife by cheating on her with another woman, Alberta, and impregnating her. Alberta has her daughter but dies in the act of giving birth. Troy is left with no choice but to care for his daughter. Rose cuts it off with Troy, but not completely because they still live under the same roof. She is more independent now and leaves the house when she pleases. Troy’s relationship with Bono, Cory and Rose changed immensely. He has lost his respect and it will be very challenging for him to redeem it. Bono has made new friends and stops by Troy’s house once in a while. They talk about their hopes for their future and about their wives. They no longer work in the same industry so after work Troy has no one to talk to. Cory and his father are not in good shape either. The scene where Troy sits in his backyard after pay day to drink his gin and sing is when he picks a dramatic fight with his son. Cory refuses to say â€Å"excuse me† when passing by his father so Troy gets offended and tries to assert his role as a father by insisting that Cory leave his house and provide for himself since he lost his respect as the man of the house. He goes on by saying â€Å"You just another nigger on the street to me! † (2. 4. ). He also stresses to his son that he provided for him but Cory does not take that into consideration because to him that was all materialistic. He gave little loving care which ultimately made him fear his own father. Although Troy kicked his son out of his house, the fact that there was a physical blockade during their fight, it proves that it was immature on Troy’s part yet mature on Cory’s because of the way he went about the situation. Cory scolded his father for all his wrong doings and betrayals to the family. He challenges him to a physical fight, in his case involving a bat, just like Troy did to his father. Troy is a hero in the sense that he pushed Cory into manhood. Troy is alone. He is lonely. His life is not the same anymore. He tried his best by providing for his family and by showing his new daughter his better side of him. When Troy died caused by a heart attack, he left his legend as a hero behind. He supported Lyons with money each week; he provided his love to Rose; his friendship and leadership to Bono; and finally his protection and help for Cory’s future. Unfortunately, he allowed for his personal demon or flaw to â€Å"get the best of him† which led him to his death, but did good deeds in the lights of others giving Troy Maxson the title of a Tragic Hero.

Business Cycle in Theory

The business cycle is a nonrepeating cycle of expansion from commercial activity to economic recession, which shows various upward trends. As part of the business cycle, the recession starts as the investment increases, and the economic recession expands as investment increases. From 1929 to 1933, GDP declined by 30% and the economy entered the Great Depression which continued until the Second World War. There have been ten recessions since 1945. To some extent, the 1990s like the 1920s included rapid economic growth and unprecedented prosperity (). From a conceptual point of view, linking innovation-based growth to business cycle theory is not new. The history of this idea can be traced back to at least Schumpeter (1934). Aghion and Howitt (1991) reviewed several attempts to unify growth and business cycle. Implementation cycle theory of Shleifer (1986) is an example of the conceptual relationship between (endogenous) business cycle and innovation-based growth theory. Cycle of repea ted innovation in enterprises due to externality of demand. Because we are looking forward to prosperity, prosperity will be self-fulfilling. However, to our knowledge, this is the first study to integrate diversity-based endogenous growth base and elements of the RBC method (note the attention to exogenous total productivity as the only uncertain factor Including). Because many people believe that there is an economic cycle, the economic cycle theory is important. This is not a permanent belief. In the 19th century, the economic cycle was not regarded as an economic cycle at all, but it was regarded as a spell of crisis that hampers the steady development of the economy. In the next few years economists and non economists began to believe in the regularity of these crises and analyzed how they relate to the segregated and changing economic structure. In society, it is said that history is constantly repeated. This is a business cycle that repeats the cycle that has been going on fo r many years, from the economic downturn to recovery and expansion. It will never end, it will not stop repeating Business Cycle in Theory The business cycle is a nonrepeating cycle of expansion from commercial activity to economic recession, which shows various upward trends. As part of the business cycle, the recession starts as the investment increases, and the economic recession expands as investment increases. From 1929 to 1933, GDP declined by 30% and the economy entered the Great Depression which continued until the Second World War. There have been ten recessions since 1945. To some extent, the 1990s like the 1920s included rapid economic growth and unprecedented prosperity (). From a conceptual point of view, linking innovation-based growth to business cycle theory is not new. The history of this idea can be traced back to at least Schumpeter (1934). Aghion and Howitt (1991) reviewed several attempts to unify growth and business cycle. Implementation cycle theory of Shleifer (1986) is an example of the conceptual relationship between (endogenous) business cycle and innovation-based growth theory. Cycle of repea ted innovation in enterprises due to externality of demand. Because we are looking forward to prosperity, prosperity will be self-fulfilling. However, to our knowledge, this is the first study to integrate diversity-based endogenous growth base and elements of the RBC method (note the attention to exogenous total productivity as the only uncertain factor Including). Because many people believe that there is an economic cycle, the economic cycle theory is important. This is not a permanent belief. In the 19th century, the economic cycle was not regarded as an economic cycle at all, but it was regarded as a spell of crisis that hampers the steady development of the economy. In the next few years economists and non economists began to believe in the regularity of these crises and analyzed how they relate to the segregated and changing economic structure. In society, it is said that history is constantly repeated. This is a business cycle that repeats the cycle that has been going on fo r many years, from the economic downturn to recovery and expansion. It will never end, it will not stop repeating

How can colleges increase their minority students population Essay

How can colleges increase their minority students population - Essay Example Colleges such as University of Southern California, University of San Francisco and even Stanford University have gained many benefits from having a diverse population both in terms of students and faculty. However, it must be noted that, obtaining a high level of diversity is not an easy objective and a lot has to be done by many colleges before they can claim to have diversity as an advantage that the offer to their students. Diversity can be clearly understood as a competitive advantage since it allows students to experience the world as it would be in their real life work environment. As per the suggestions given by Sherman (1996), the experience of diversity can help in breaking any stereotypes that a person may have and this would help in improving not only the overall outlook of the student but also improve their chances of having better future encounters with individuals coming from diverse backgrounds. There are several strategies that can be recommended to colleges for increasing their level of diversity. The most practical advice in this case is given by Dr. Campbell (2006) who works with the NAMCE (National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering). She suggests that colleges should try and reach out to diverse populations rather than sit back and hope that diverse populations will seek them out. She also applauds the GE Foundation that funded the Math Excellence program which helped colleges get more diverse engineering students through financial education support and by creating connections between colleges and students. As suggested by Trumble and Overstreet (2006), such connections work in the corporate world quite affectively when it comes to retention and recruitment and there is no reason why they can not work in the education sector. These connections were formed when colleges brought students from a diverse background to the campus in order to help them understand why

Public Policies Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Public Policies - Term Paper Example These people feel threatened by the public interest groups that jockey for room and influence. However, there are others who believe that these groups prove that America is a vibrant democracy. This latter opinion makes much more sense and will be explored in the course of this essay. America has a truly brilliant political system. Each person has one vote. But by organizing together, groups of people can have a larger impact on the system. For example, people who enjoy owning guns for recreational purposes such as hunting can join together to be members of the NRA. There are millions of people who have done so. This is an issue that is important to them. When a politician suggests that the law should be changed to make possessing guns more dangerous, these millions of NRA members have an effective way of championing their position. Likewise, those who want more gun control are free to organize to present the opposite point of view. The debate will presumably happen in public. The representatives can choose a position and can allow the voters to ratify his or her decision at the next election. That is how democracy works. There is nothing broken about lobbying. As Anderson explains in his book, there are a number of different types of interest groups. Some are professional, some are ad hoc. Some are interested in a single issue, others have multiple interests. Some think tanks provide constant pressure on political issues (Anderson, 64). Others groups are collections of professional activists (Anderson, 72). In all of these forms, these groups contribute to our democracy. One of the transformative decisions of the Supreme Court in recent years regarding interest groups is the Citizens United decision which overturned the campaign financing laws. In the past groups could not spend very much money promoting a candidate during an election period. The Court felt that this was an assault on freedom of expression and overturned the law. In