Interesting story: Black Boy

The excerpt from "Black Boy", sincerely stuck out to me in class. Dialogue was used in such a way, that I felt as if I knew Richard personally. I felt sad, in his times of grief; scared, in his times of fear; angry, in his times of rage, and almost hungry during his hunger pangs. Furthermore, the story flowed well and drew the reader in. Not knowing the ending of the story, I was compelled to continue reading. To me, the passage from "Black Boy" was forcible and vivid.

Good place to visit in Taiwan

A great place to spend a vacation in Taiwan would be Sun-Moon lake. Located in the midst of abundant flora, this place sticks out especially to nature-lovers. The lake water is clear, bright blue, and perfect for a refreshing swim. If swimming does not sound appealing, then boating or simply sitting by the lakeside would suffice for great relaxation. 

The greenery here comes in various forms: ranging from tall, thick trees to young, sprouting ferns. Being surrounded by such beauty gives one the feeling of experiencing Nature in its most original form. Biking is also one of the tourist attractions available, thus allowing adventurers to explore the lake and its surroundings at a quick, but self-set pace.

Night at Sun-Moon lake is gorgeous. The setting sun reflects off the water, creating unparalleled beauty and great night-time pictures.

Sun-Moon lake is the ideal vacation trip for families of all kinds. It provides adventure, peaceful settings, and amazing glimpses of nature. It is definitely a place to see.

Do good fences make good neighbors?

In Robert Frost's poem "Mending Wall", the question arises as to whether or not "good fences make good neighbors." In the poem, the annually fixed fence did, in fact, make good neighbors. It gave the two neighbors a mutual project to work on, and therefore encouraged a friendly relationship. Today, however, things are not so simple. More than half of the world lives in cities and urbanization is increasing every year. Metropolises such as New York, Paris, Tokyo, and even Taipei are limited in space. In cities like this, where millions of people live, most homes are apartments without fences.

In modern society, especially ones surrounded by concrete on every side, it is becoming exceedingly hard to have good relationships with neighbors. Imagine: if you have 4 other homes on your apartment floor, and your apartment building is 20 stories high, that's a total of 100 homes! Perhaps also (as in my case), there are 5-7 other apartment complexes right next to your building. That sums up to a bunch of neighbors. Seeing so many different faces everyday, amidst a busy metropolitan schedule, should certainly be confusing to anyone. In addition, the neighbors don't even have fences to mend together.

While this is a bit depressing, this is the future to which modernization is bringing us. I knew a New Yorker who lived in one place for 3 years and never even knew the name of his neighbor. For some, this may seem absurd, but to him--and no doubt other metropolitans--this only seems normal.

The world is changing, and so are fences. Neighbors are beginning to ignore friendly relationships, but we must accept this future. Without fences to mend, or projects to work on together, neighbors will become estranged from one another. Good fences, do indeed, make good neighbors.

Unfinished poem

As I stood amidst creation,

Suddenly, I felt temptation:

A spontaneous urge to know

Is there a God, and why if so?

I could feel the wind now flying,

And the sunlight gently dying...

See treetops soundly swaying,

Bowing low an act of praying,

Hear! The river's swiftly rushing,

And the leaves together are brushing!

And the breeze, and the air!

Perfumed sweetness do they bear!

All this, I thought, is nature's care,

Autumn’s work, nature’s flare.

"Has evolution played it’s role?"

I asked aloud, and still inquiring:

"Perhaps the big bang's reached it’s goal?”

I wondered while I stood admiring…

And though the Sun continued shining,

I felt, as if, it started whining,

Growling fiercely, it began repining.

It’s burning rays upon me beat,

As nature glared in rising heat.

It seemed to scream at me and say:

“All this? Self-made? No way!"

Queer, I thought, the Sun can't speak,

And if it could, its point is weak….

But now, to compensate for this,

The ground did something quite amiss:

To and fro, it started shaking;

Rocks beneath me began breaking.

Violently the earth was quaking.

Some point, it blatantly was making.

Angrily and deeply rumbling,

The earth then harshly sent me tumbling.

Grumbling, crumbling, it roared humbling:

“Agnostic! Doubter! You’ve been stumbling!

Can ‘nothing’ simply create ‘something’?

Can ‘blankness’ -- an entire planet bring?”

This time I replied: “I see what you mean!

I see what the problem is between —

You believe in a God who is unseen,

But do you believe, He’ll just — intervene?

Comparing Schools

As an unofficial  "exchange" student, I have experienced 2 contrasting cultures over the last 2 months: school in Central Asia vs. school in Taiwan. Both have greatly appealed to me, even despite the many differences. Although I could write a book about this subject, I will stay with the main differences that really "shocked" me.

Of course, there is the #1 difference in curriculum. The post-soviet education system still only involves 11 grades, but starting from 5th grade, students attend school 6 days a week. There, we would study materiel similar to what I studied in Taiwan – Algebra, Calculus, Literature, History– but all in Russian. Instead of American Literature, we had Russian Literature. Instead of US History, we had Kyrgyze History. 

Another more minor difference is the difference in teachers. Because of the strict, "respect your elders" culture in Central Asia, most of the teachers are not nearly as warm as the ones I met in Taipei. In Kyrgyzstan, my teachers are held-back, almost as if they live in a different world than us students. They respond coldly to questions, and personal life is almost never discussed. Food is NOT ALLOWED in classrooms, nor is any sort of drink (including water). The cafeteria sells the same 3-4 bread-based pastries every day, and because of lack of discipline, one must shove to the front of the crowd to buy something. I was truly impressed by the cafeteria at GCA – for the month that I was there, we never had the same meal twice.

The everyday schedule at GCA also differed from the schedule in Kyrgyzstan. In my school in Kyrgyzstan, we would have grades, not classes. Every individual in the grade would attend the same classes as everyone else. For example: 1st hour 10th grade would go to Algebra class; 2nd hour 10th grade would go to Russian Literature; 3rd it would attend Biology; and so on. 

I enjoyed my time at GCA, and I learned a lot more than just the materiel it offered. I gained a valuable cultural experience and cannot wait to go back to my homeland and share it.