Write a 350-500 word tribute. It can be for a favorite historical figure, Saint or almost anything else- a book, a pet or even a special pair of sneakers! Do not choose friends or loved ones. It is best to stick with something less near and dear. Notice the virtues that you are praising. Are they culturally defined, or are they virtues per se" Why are you praising them? Are they virtues that are in jeopardy? Would it make sense to praise virtues that are perfectly established, that there is no doubt about?
Here is a piece of tribute writing that you can can use as inspiration!
In Defense of a Dog
Stories change us. They alter our perception of the world around us, be it through character, motivation, or message. One story that has greatly impacted me is the growth experienced by the supporting character Sokka in Nickelodeon’s Avatar the Last Airbender. Despite being a children’s show, Avatar the Last Airbender has perhaps the best progression of story I have ever seen—and Sokka’s growth is a big part of that. At the beginning of the story, Sokka is a fifteen year old boy living in the Southern Watertribe with his younger sister Katara in the midst of a worldwide war. His father and the other men of his tribe left to go fight in the war when the siblings were young, leaving Sokka behind as the oldest male. He tries to be a strong leader just as his father was, but the shame he feels at being left behind hinders him. Sokka loves his tribe, but above all else he loves his sister, so when Katara decides she is going with the Avatar to the Northern Watertribe, he comes too. Sokka learns throughout the rest of the series what it truly means to be a strong warrior and leader. He sees the way other nations are defended and becomes a better warrior himself. He also proves himself as creative, intelligent, and exceptionally strategic. Upon reaching their northern sister tribe, Sokka learns about the weight of sacrifice. When the Fire Nation lays siege to the North, Princess Yue, someone that Sokka has become rather close to, becomes the moon to protect her people and save her tribe. Sokka carries Yue’s sacrifice with him for the rest of the series, with the moon as a constant reminder of her. From this point forward Sokka is changed. He has matured greatly and actually takes an authoritative role for the rest of the journey. It is Sokka who devises the plan to invade the Fire Nation and end the war, and it is Sokka who delivers this plan to the monarch of the Earth Kingdom, convincing him to join them in their efforts. The apex of Sokka’s character arc is actually not at the end of the series, but during the invasion. Despite Sokka having planned it, his father Hakoda was the one to lead it. Hakoda, however, gets injured in an attempt to take out a watch tower. The invasion force is uncertain whether or not to proceed without Hakoda, but Sokka rises, takes his place, and leads them forward, storming the capital. All of Sokka’s developments are fulfilled in this scene. He is no longer a child, abandoned and ashamed. Instead, he is a proud warrior, strategist, protector, and leader. Through an unlikely, yet altogether fateful, series of events, Sokka is finally the man he has always aspired to be.
ReplyDelete^^SPOILER WARNING in case you want to watch a cartoon that aired 12 years ago.
DeleteI enjoy how much you like this, you seem very interested in how the character develops throughout the story!
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ReplyDeleteThe crowd yelling back with you, a smile on your face, and giving your best possible performance. Cheerleading is something that has taught me a lot through the past nine years I've been involved in it. Cheer has always taught me hard work and determination. When I started cheering in third grade I couldn't do anything. I only based one stunt and didn't do anything else, I couldn't tumble and it didn't come naturally to me, needless to say I did not start off as a talented cheerleader. I worked hard at anything they had me do at practice, and started going to free tumbling classes to better myself. While the stunting came easier to me, tumbling still took me a while. While some girls are blessed with natural tumbling, it took me almost two years to get my first few skills. In short, cheer was something that taught me a lot about diligence, I've learned how to work hard towards something that I wanted. This virtue is very important to society because things don't just get handed to you in life. It also taught me how important teamwork is. No team is composed of only one person, especially cheer. If one person isn't at practice there's an entire group who can't do something. It's so vital to every practice or competition that every single person is there. Not only that, but everyone also has to get along. If someone is fighting the team chemistry isn't right. At this point stunts just don't work the same way. Cheer requires everyone to be on the same page at the same time. This virtue is important to society, especially one who loves to participate in or watch sports in their free time. Cheer also teaches patience. A lot of things take time to master, or even learn. The faster you get frustrated the less likely you are to get a new skill. Because most people don't have it, patience is very valued by almost everyone. Not only has cheerleading taught me these virtues, but they're easier to learn because I enjoy this sport so much.
ReplyDeleteWhile I cannot say that I have any idea what it is like to be a cheerleader, I can say that the lessons and virtues it has taught you were well worth it.
DeleteThe bond you have with your team is unbreakable. You learn how to work with people under stressful conditions and it makes you a better person.
DeleteThere is an abundance of amazing people in this world. I guess I shouldn't say just in this world, some have left us and gone to a higher place. What does the word saint mean to you? To me this is a person who went through hardships and persevered. Saint Bernadette is an example of one of these amazing people. Not just anyone is pronounced a saint by the church, you have to earn that title and it's not easy. Many of the saints are put through terrible inhumane things. They are victims of torture and persecution due to their faith. She was born on January 7, 1844 in Lourdes, France. She received several visions from the Virgin Mary starting in 1858. When she told people about these visions they told her to take back her statements. They wanted her to lie but she refused. People started to hear stories about the cave with a spring with healing powers. Bernadette didn't care what her peers thought she just wanted to do what was right and spread the word of God. One of many times Mary appeared to Bernadette she told her to drink from the spring. To Bernadette this spring was more beautiful than anything in the world. To the people watching her from a distance it appeared that she was eating mud and dirt. They made fun of her and called her insane among many other things. She just took it and continued to love Mary and the rest of the Holy Trinity with all her heart. Her faith was strong, stronger than most people's. I admire her for this, defending your faith is hard and when you're faced with negative peer pressure it gets even harder. She in many ways is just like us she was made fun of by people who didn't understand her. She was humble and had a beautiful soul. I have always felt drawn to her and I've never been able to figure out why. She is my favorite saint and I've loved her ever since I was in second grade. It is now the time for us to choose a confirmation saint and I've chosen her. I am happy and excited to be able to have her name be apart of mine for the rest of my life. She built a church in the exact spot where Mary appeared to her and people still go there to be healed today. In 1933 she was canonized a saint and the rest was history.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you related her to us today. It shows that you can find inspiration from the past for our problems today.
DeleteThat’s so cool that you picked her for your confirmation Saint! The blog really tells how she has impacted your life.
Delete“Would I rather be feared or loved? Easy. Both. I want people to be afraid of how much they love me.” The character, Michael Scott, played by Steve Carrell, tells the people in his office that he wants them to be scared by how much they love him. This quote, like many others in the show, shows the goodwill and quirky humor in the show. The office aired from 2005 to 2013. This comedy about the modern work place portrays amazing relationships, romantic and beautiful friendships. One of the best relationships in the show has to do with Jim and Pam. Jim is a salesman who has a crush on Pam, the receptionist. He waits for about four years until the time is right because he knows he loves her and is willing to wait. The virtue of patience is portrayed in this part of the show. Patience is a virtue highly praised in this society because no one really has I️t. Hard work is a huge part of the show as well. As we know, hard work is very rewarding and we look up to people who work hard to become successful. Two characters come to mind when I think about hard work. The first one is Dwight Schrute. Throughout the whole show Dwight never misses a day of work, He constantly had the highest sales record, and is always respectful and dedicated to the boss. The next person is Pam, who I talked about earlier. She starts as a receptionist, with no degree and ends of being in sales and then turns into the office administrator. Her ability to work hard and move up in the company is awesome. One of the funniest things about the office is the events that the workers put on. They do a work trip to Gettysburg, a 5k for rabies, and a booze cruise. All of these things, although very funny and incorrect, are all for the good of other people. The office, to most people just seems like a funny comedy about dumb people doing dumb stuff. To me I️t is a show about people who always see the good in one another and always try and pick each other up.
ReplyDeleteWow, I absolutely love this sort of analysis. I honestly never thought I would see the day that someone would be praising the Office for its portrayal of virtue, but here it is. With its sometime borderline crude humor, it can sometimes be tough to see where morality comes into play, but you did an excellent job highlighting what it is that makes it one of my favorite shows of all time.
DeleteI love how you took something so many people like and showed the good in it. It shows how good virtues can still be in modern day comedy.
Delete“Oh yes, the hunt!” This is what my great Uncle Gordy would tell me as a young child whenever we were done hunting. Through the years I have hunted, almost all of my life, I have learned what it truly means. Many people perceive hunting as going out into the woods and killing something for fun but it is much more than that! Hunting is a great way to clear your mind and take pride in God’s beautiful creation! There is nothing better than going out into the woods on a cool afternoon and just watching animals. The things you see in the woods are not comparable to anything else. Even if you go with someone else that makes it all the better. Hunting is a great way to bond with someone because you get to witness God’s creation together. My brother and I do not get to see each other as much as we used to since he entered the seminary. But yesterday I had the opportunity to go hunting with him. It gave us the opportunity to converse with each other alone and even the opportunity to harvest a doe for the meat. Although he missed and we were not able to harvest a doe it was still a memory that I will never forget. Another example is last year, I had the opportunity to take one of my best friends hunting and he shot his first deer! Not only is that something I will never forget but it is something he also will never forget. Hunting is such a great way to clear your mind and let go but it also requires lots of hard work and dedication. Although you see some people go hunting once and get something it is not usually not that easy and requires much more work. Hunting shows how luck plays a significant role in life, but it also shows how the more time put into something the more luck seems to come. Hunting always gives me something to do, throughout the entire year setting up game cameras and scouting where the food is at is essential. This makes it all the more fun because of the strategy and work required. Hunting teaches many qualities that are needed in life and that is why I have learned to like it as much as I do!
ReplyDeleteI've always known you've loved to hunt but this gave me a new perspective about you.
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