Honors History Blog 4

1. What did you gain from your experiences as an honors student in the first semester (please consider novels, leadership opportunities, writing, history, projects, etc.)?
As an honors student I got the opportunity to read books and learn about different ages. The Scarlett Letter took place at a time where religion was very important, and Beloved took place in America when there were still slaves. I also go the chance to revise people's papers for the Life: The Book project. I learned different writing tips and history type things.

 I would choose to read The Great Gatsby because I have been wanting to read that book for a long time and it is also informational.

2. Discuss what you might have done differently if you could do this past semester of honors over again.
The only thing I would do differently is probably using better time management when it came to reading my honors books instead of waiting until the last two weeks to read it.

3. Discuss your goals for honors in the second semester.
My goal for honors in the second semester is to learn more about U.S. history.

4. If you could choose any specific parts of literature and.or history for our honors work next semester, what would you pick and why?

Honors History Blog 3

I chose the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 because it made the number of work hours drop and the minimum wage higher. It also doesn't allow people under the age of 16 to work, which happens nowadays. (I know kids younger than me with jobs.) It is good because kids should be in school now focusing on education for their future, not making money. I see this working by giving people the opportunity to make more money without working two or three jobs.
Link

Blog 20: Fed Vs AntiFed Interview

The Civil War, or the War Between the States, was mainly about slavery. The war was between 11 southern slave states, and the rest of the United States. The southern states declared their secession and called themselves the Confederate States of America. On April 12, 1861 Confederates attacked a military base in South Carolina. President Lincoln called for the other states to make volunteer armies and take back the federal property. In September of 1862, Lincoln made the Emancipation Proclamation to end slavery.


The southern states were anti-federalists because they did not want the government interfering and ending slavery. The federalists were fighting to end it because it was wrong. The confederate commander Robert E. Lee eventually surrendered, ending the war. This meant the end of slavery, and it strengthened the federal government.

I interviewed my brother Gabriel Alsheikh, and asked him if he thought it was okay for the southern states to have slavery and he replied saying, "No, of course not!" I asked him what his thoughts were on the war and he said that it was good that the Union was helping to save the slaves. Later in our discussion we were talking about after the war and he said, "Even following the war, when the African Americans were 'free', many of them still lived on the plantation where they worked to earn the bare minimum to live." Which is true, because although the federalists thought they had won, they still had not. There were wage slaves and African Americans were not given the same rights as white people.

Honors Blog 1

People who are retired are usually older, which makes them the most prone to diseases or injuries; therefore, they will be needing the most health care. Since they are at least over the age of 65, they will most likely not have a job and will not be able to pay for health care of insurance. Medicare gives senior citizens the chance to get the health care they need so they can be taken care of. The Social Security Act of 1965 was made a law by President Lyndon B. Johnson so that seniors could have health care through Medicare. President Harry S. Truman and his wife were the first two people to sign up for Medicare, and were the first to receive their Medicare cards.
It is hard for working citizens to pay for health care in general, which shows it is even harder for retired people to pay for it especially with how expensive it is getting. People may wonder why it is even important to have Medicare since it is making taxpayers pay more taxes, but this money goes to paying for retired senior citizens who would find it hard to pay for themselves, and the people who are paying will eventually have their health care paid for them too. Medicare not only helps over 40 million senior citizens, but also helps other hospitals, “On average, the AHA estimates hospitals derive about 38 percent of their revenues from Medicare.” Medicare is one of the biggest most successful health care plans.

 Sources:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3257/is_3_57/ai_98953933/pg_2/?tag=content;col1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicare_%28United_States%29  

http://www.seniorcorps.org/medicare/why-is-medicare-important/ 

Blog 19

1. What are you most proud of in your Life: The Book writing? Try to describe this is detail!
I am most proud of the story line part because I feel like I put a lot of effort into it and it has a lot of details, connecting it to my article.
2. What are some changes or new ideas that you have developed in your writing through the course of this semester?
I learned different writing tips which help me to keep the reader's attention.
3. If you had a little more time to work on your writing for LifE: The Book, what would you do differently? What would you change about your writing?
I would have made my character more developed and tried to get the reader to have a better picture of what is going on in the characters life.
4. How has the additional element of publication in a book affected the way you approach writing?
It made me want to do a good job so that when people read my paper they dont think I'm stupid.

Blog 18: Senate Health Care Hearings

What are your character's main goals for the Senate Health Care Hearings?

My characters main goals are to get better health care for veterans, and to increase the funding for VA health care.

What do you want to accomplish?

I want to accomplish getting veterans better health care for themselves and their families.

How do you plan to accomplish it?

I am asking for more funding to be put into veteran health care by cutting it from some other area that does not need it as much.

Who are you working with to get this done?

I am working with American Medical Associations to get this done. 

Blog 17: More Opposing Viewpoints

The first two articles talk about how health care is too expensive because the amount of money people will be paying is too much. It is already shown that the ratio of working people to retired old people is that there are more old people, and the working amount of people is slowly declining. "In the 43 years since America decided that health care for the elderly would be paid for by people still working, the ratio of workers to seniors has steadily declined. And the number of seniors living long enough to have five or more chronic conditions -- 23 percent of Medicare beneficiaries -- has increased." They say the government is already in debt and the plans for Obama's health care is already messed up. "And even if you put aside the demerits of a government-run health system, Obama’s health-care “funding” plans are completely falling apart. Not only will Obama’s health program cost at least twice as much as his $650 billion estimate, but his original plan to fund the program by auctioning off carbon-emissions warrants (through the misbegotten cap-and-trade system) has fallen through."



The next two articles argue that health care is not expensive. They talk about how we are already paying for universal health care with taxes, so it would not make a difference if we made it nation-wide health care. "We now have the worst of both worlds: we are paying for universal health coverage, but not getting it.  In fact, we pay more for health care in taxes than countries that provide universal coverage.  Then we pay more than that amount again in private coverage.  Additionally, what we have now in the U.S. is nowhere near a free market in health care." They say that what we are already pay in taxes goes to more than just health care. It is implying that if we had health care we would actually be paying less. " The U.S. health care system is typically characterized as a largely private-sector system, so it may come as a surprise that more than 60% of the $2 trillion annual U.S. health care bill is paid through taxes, according to a 2002 analysis published in Health Affairs by Harvard Medical School associate professors Steffie Woolhandler and David Himmelstein. Tax dollars pay for Medicare and Medicaid, for the Veterans Administration and the Indian Health Service. Tax dollars pay for health coverage for federal, state, and municipal government employees and their families, as well as for many employees of private companies working on government contracts."



I personally think nation-wide health care would be more expensive because in many states it is hard to even find a job, and the people who are on borderline poor-middle class would become poorer. I also think that although everyone would have health care, the quality of the work would be very bad and many people would not be getting the care they need.

Blog 16: Opposing Viewpoints

The only thing I can see affected in my topic by the health care change would be people who have health problems because of HGH. With private health cares, doctors may not choose to treat a patient who has used HGH and is in critical condition in fear that they may lose the person and be sued. With nation-wide health care, a doctor does not have a choice and must help the patient.“That’s not what I mean. Why, to force doctors to provide health care services to others would be akin to slavery, especially if it’s for free. I think that doctors deserve to be paid for their services.” 
I believe that nation wide health care is bad. First of all, people who already have insurance have to pay much more now, second, "people do not receive care in a timely manner." Although everyone is "covered" by having health care, they will probably not get any when they need it, and it will most likely be poor quality health care. I at first was for the nation wide health care, but after reading the papers I am against it. 

Blog 15: Life-The Book and American History

Americans pay for health care by health insurance, sometimes jobs cover for health benefits, and their own money. The U.S Congress is coming up with ways to cover all the the citizens who do not have health care, and Barack Obama is making it one of his main goals as a president. The government is also trying to lower costs for health care and coordinate better health care.
Health Care Article 1

1. Someone who the reader would be able to connect with and someone who has some sort of conflict 

in their life. This way the reader will then care about what happens to 

the character. A character should also have personal traits that the
reader would admire and who can apply those traits to their specific
conflicts in their life.

An example is when Francis Collins is an atheist and sets his mind to never believe in God, and one day hiking he sees a frozen waterfall and feels that it is God's message to him.

2. The main thing that makes for a good plot is that it has subtle twists and turns that
the reader would most likely not see coming but enjoys to try and
figure out what would come next. And when something dire happens to the favorite character they can come out of, but it's touch and go for awhile. It also makes for a better plot when you use precise words to create suspense or tension.

An example of this is also in "The Covenant" when you would think that the judge would later allow stem cell research to be legal, but again charges it as illegal and stops the funding to it.

3. They use punctuation in order to include small tidbits of essential scientific information.

4. They provide characters with which the reader can easily connect with and/or respect which will in turn involve the reader more deeply in your plot.

Blog 14: Life-The Book and Humanities

 iGEM
I will be writing about the young adulthood stage. The genetic technology used is iGEM. iGEM stands for International Genetically Engineered Machine. The Congressional Budget Office works in this area in getting the funding for iGEM. Another part of the government that works in iGEM is the National Income and Product Accounts. This makes a distinction between current expenditures and investment spending.
iGEM Article 1
iGEM is being put to use to help stop abuse of synthetic biology. They are working to help gene synthesis companies and the customers to detect manufactured DNA as harmful agents for bioterrorism. DNA is being made easily now but some people are concerned that the use of the DNA will be abused. The Virginia iGEM team is playing a key role in preventing synthetic biology from being used in the wrong way.
iGEM Article 2
iGEM Article 3

Growth Hormone Used in Sports
The stage of life is adulthood. The genetic technology that interests me is growth hormones used in sports such as HGH. The House of Representatives is working to make it harder for people to obtain steroids. Now to get anabolic steroids you must have a prescription from a physician.
HGH Article 1
The government doesn't want steroids being used by professional athletes because not only is it bad for a person's health, but it also shows children who idolize athletes the idea to use steroids too. The government is now testing police officers, firemen, court marshals, and other governmental workers. People who take anabolic steroids sometimes lose a sense of reality and become very paranoid, which causes them to do something crazy. There is no law that requires public workers to be tested for anabolic steroids.
HGH Article 2
HGH Article 3

Blog 13: Life The Book

iGEM
This supposedly takes place through young adulthood. iGEM is a competition that MIT students and other types of students do to create genetically engineered products. Some people have problems with this because it is "playing god" in a way. Students are given "parts" to work with over the summer to genetically create some type of organism.

Growth Hormones Used In Sports
This is usually used in adulthood. Growth hormones used in sports are called HGH or steroids. They help people perform better and help them to build bigger muscles. HGH was first taken out of people's corpses, put into injectable form, and used for children with stunted growth. It was made illegal to use in sports, but people still use it.

Designer babies.
Designer babies start at conception. People are able to choose if their baby is a boy or a girl, and other traits. Genetic testing is involved in choosing things. Some people think this is wrong because you can choose what color hair your child has or what color eyes.

Blog 12: Beginning the Internship Brainstorm

Idea #1:
I would like to work in a small office area with only four or five other people because I enjoy small environments. If I was the owner of my own dentistry office I would definitely have a huge fish tank built into a wall. It is also said that fish help calm people down. It is somewhat like the dentist office in Finding Nemo. I also want it to be an area that me and other people will feel comfortable in.

Idea #2:
The types of skills I'd like to use are mainly just helping out by doing smaller things a dental hygienist would do, like passing different tools to the dentist, and also filing papers and answering telephone calls.

Idea #3:
The main things I would like to learn is basically how many patients the dentist has a day. For a small dental office I'm guessing there are only around fifteen to twenty patients per day, but I'm not sure. Also I want to learn the basics of dealing with your own private dental office. I'd like to see what goes on in a typical day and how the dentist deals with daily problems.

Blog 11: Twitter!

New Web Code Draws Concern Over Privacy Risk

My article was on the new HTML 5 which is bothering people because they have much less privacy on what they do online. I personally would not want the government or markets to be tracking what I do online, not because I have something to hide, but because it gives me a feeling of over exposure which I do not like. I think it's wrong that they are making this and unfair for many people. I don't think I will spend as much time using the internet if the new HTML 5 does come out, I will most likely end up deleting both my myspace and facebook, and only use the internet for emailing and research. 

 

A preview of HTML5

http://www.alistapart.com/articles/previewofhtml5 

Reading this article the opinion of HTML 5 was much different. This article talked about how it is going to make the internet much better. It apparently makes it possible to get to "more exciting sites" which I am very doubtful of. HTML 5 has been in the process of being made since 2004, and HTML 4 has only been around for about ten years. Although this article gave HTML 5 a good review, I still believe that HTML 5 will not only violate people's privacy, but also create problems.

Blog 10: Dying for Dixie

Well, I am extremely nervous because I feel like I am going to have a blank during the trial and I won't remember what to say, but I think that's only because I'm nervous. I don't think I'm 100% ready as of now, but I'm hoping to get there by tonight. All I need to do is finish answering the questions that I will be asked by the prosecution side.
I will be reading and re-reading the senate bill, house bill, and Eric Holder's evidence until the day of the trial to prepare myself.

Blog 9: The Civil War... Today?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFU3qo0TDvU

I chose this because during the Civil War the Amendments were added to the Constitution and one of them was freedom of speech. This pastor is expressing his beliefs and adding to what he thinks is religiously correct without fearing for his life or getting in any sort of trouble.
The Civil War today has helped America excel and become better than other countries. It gives people a lot more freedom than they would have had before the civil war.

Blog 8: The Consitution, The News & You

The main article I read was called "Organic" Foods, which debated the actual meaning of organic and what can be called organic. Since the 1970's the meaning of organic has been argued about by the FDA, USDA, and many other organizations. The first definition made was by Robert Rodale and pretty much stated that the food should be grown without pesticides, fertilizers, preservatives, hormones, antibiotics, etc. But later a group of scientists working for USDA revised it saying, "While striving to avoid the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, these practitioners do not rule them out entirely. Instead, when absolutely necessary, some fertilizers and also herbicides are very selectively and sparingly used as a second line of defense. Nevertheless, these farmers, too, consider themselves to be organic farmers [6]."
This is pretty much saying that if the farmers crops are getting eaten by bugs or are not growing, then they can use chemicals to help their crops grow, which pretty much makes the crops un-organic. Many farmers can use this as an excuse to use chemicals when growing plants which makes it a lie.
The definition of organic and what can be labeled as organic was changed many times, and on October 21, 2001 it was officially revised and put in to effect. The new revision said, "Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers; bio-engineering; or ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled "organic," a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards. Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too [20]." This explains that chemicals and pesticides should not be used, but if there is a great need for them certain ones that are not too harmful may be used to help the growth of crops.
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/organic.html

In the next article Natural and Organic Foods, I'm mainly focusing on page five which talks about what the FDA definition for organic has to be for the producer to put "organic" on whatever he or she is selling. This also took place October 21, 2001 and it stated, " Products labeled "100 percent organic" must contain only organically produced materials .Products labeled "organic" must contain at least 95 percent organic
ingredients . Products in this or the first category may (but art not required
to) display the USDA Organic seal shown an page 2. Products that contain between ?0 arid 95 percent organic ingredients may use the phrase "made with organic ingredients" on the label and may list up to three of the organic ingredients (e .g ., carrots) or food groups (e .g ., vegetables) on the principal display area. Products with less than 70 percent organic ingredients may not use the term organic other than to identify specific organic ingredients ."
These are the rules for what can and cannot be called organic, if someone labels something as organic and it is not, then they have to pay a fine.

http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/dockets/06p0094/06p-0094-cp00001-05-Tab-04-Food-Marketing-Institute-vol1.pdf

The Constitution is relevant because the Congress decides all things, like the example above what the definition for organic is. They are able to change the meaning any time they want. This is shown in Article I Section 8 of the Constitution.

I was interested in this because I am a very health oriented person, I try to have everything I eat be organic and I wanted to know weather all products labeled organic actually were. I didn't know that they do actually allow farmers to sometimes use chemicals and that only 70% of the ingredients have to be organic and not 100%. I have a better understanding now of what organic actually means.

Blog 7: What Stands Out So Far

The writing tips have helped a lot with showing me new ways to make my writing a lot better, especially the loop which if no one had told me about I probably would never have figured out.
I like class discussions a lot a because for me personally talking with other people about things helps me get a better understanding of what we are learning.
I can continue to work hard and put effort into all my work.
I will make sure to pay attention during class time and take careful notes, and go over my notes when I get home so that I can remember everything I learned.
My goals for the next few weeks are to stay on top of all my work and get good work done!

Blog 6: American Icons!

Audrey Hepburn
by Megan Alsheikh

Standing on a side walk in downtown, early in the morning, surrounded by broken down houses and homeless people, I walked into the Father Joe’s Village. Inside I saw children, women, and men, wearing used clothing and going about their business. As I walked around the village I saw different people washing clothes and cleaning. I saw a place where people could have their teeth fixed for free, finish school and get degrees, and a nursing area for young children and babies. Many of the people living there seemed happy and they had an air of self-esteem to them rather than self pity. My visit to Father Joe’s Village showed me that people with nothing aren’t a lost cause and can be helped. It gives less fortunate people hope, and it also gives people like me who want to help poor people the hope that we can do something about it.

As a child, I was obsessed with animals. I would religiously watch animal planet and had great sympathy for animals. Growing older, my empathetic feelings grew. Living in San Diego, I am always seeing poverty and I can barely imagine what it’s like living on the streets and not having a bed. When I first really learned about social injustices, I was in my Ethics II. I was shocked at how many social injustices there were, and what kinds of things were going on. Learning about what’s going on around me has changed my whole view on the world and my own life.

I became more interested in social injustices and one day when I was doing research on the kind of work UNICEF does, I saw a picture of an elegant but aged Audrey Hepburn. I decided to Google Audrey Hepburn and her work for UNICEF and read that she had dedicated a good amount of her life helping people around the world. Instantly my favorite actress was not only an actress to me, but a real human being with a big heart. Her work changed not only the children’s lives, but also their families, and people connected to their families. Some people think that if something does not directly affect them it isn’t their problem, but that’s false. I believe that things going on in the other side of the world affect everyone. One of the wisest quotes I have heard was actually said by Audrey Hepburn and she said, “The 'Third World' is a term I don't like very much, because we're all one world. I want people to know that the largest part of humanity is suffering."

My goal in life is to change people’s lives in a good way. I want to travel all over the world and do something to help end social injustices. Audrey is one of the many people who have helped others, and not expected anything in return. When I help people, the only thing I would ever want in return is for them to be happier. I love doing work at Father Joe’s because not only am I physically helping people, but I am also showing them that someone cares about them.

Blog 5: Questions About Our Writing

The aspect of the American Icons artist statement that has been most successful for me is probably the intro. I understood the full concept of how we are supposed to start off the loop and I could find something that was relatable to what I was talking about. The writing tips that have been most helpful are the loop and make meaning early. The loop helps with starting off without a hook but still making it interesting, and make meaning early helps in the body of the artist statement to keep the reader reading.
The part that is most challenging for me is the outro because it is hard for me to tie it back to the intro well. The writing tip that I think is challenging is also the loop because its difficult to have everything tie together but also be unrelated in a way.

I became more interested in social injustices and one day when I was doing research on the kind of work UNICEF does, I saw a picture of an elegant but aged Audrey Hepburn. I decided to Google Audrey Hepburn and her work for UNICEF and read that she had dedicated a good portion of her life to helping less fortunate children around the world. Instantly my favorite actress was not only an actress to me, but a real human being with a big heart. Her work changed not only the children’s lives, but also their families, and people connected to their families. Some people think that if something does not directly affect them it isn’t their problem, but that’s false. I believe that things going on in the other side of the world affect everyone. One of the wisest quotes I have heard was actually said by Audrey Hepburn and she said, “The 'Third World' is a term I don't like very much, because we're all one world. I want people to know that the largest part of humanity is suffering".

What is UNICEF, Who is Audrey Hepburn, and What did Audrey Hepburn specifically do?

Blog 4: Loop

Standing on a side walk in downtown, early in the morning, surrounded by broken down houses and homeless people, I walked into the Father Joe’s Village. Inside I saw children, women, and men, wearing used clothing and going about their business. As I walked around the village I saw different people washing clothes, cleaning, and a few smoking. Although all these people have no home of their own and barely any possessions, they looked content. I saw a place where people could have their teeth fixed for free, finish school and get degrees, and a nursing area for young children and babies. The village had rooms with beds, several cafeterias, a playground, and many other things to support the people who live there. Many of the people living there seemed happy and they had an air of self-esteem to them rather than self pity. My visit to Father Joe’s Village showed me that people with nothing aren’t a lost cause and can be helped. It gives poorer people hope, and it also gives people like me who want to help poor people the hope that we can do something about it.

My goal in life is to change people’s lives in a good way. I want to travel all over the world and do something to help end social injustices like female genital mutilation, child soldiers, starvation, and the loads of other social injustices. Audrey is one of the many people who have helped others, and not expected anything in return. When I help people, the only thing I would ever want in return is for them to be happier. I love doing work at Father Joe’s because not only am I physically helping people, but I am also showing them that someone cares about them.

I chose this opening and closing combo because it will keep the reader interested on what I am going to talk about. It ties together my big idea by implying that helping people is what I want to do in my future. I am hoping the reader understands how helping a person can change that person's life and not only does it affect that one person, but it ripples out to everyone.

Blog 3: American Icons and Resources

Father Joe's Village and Audrey Hepburn are connected because both work to help less fortunate people. The village supports people with clothing, food, beds, dental care, and many other things. While Audrey was alive she traveled to over fifty countries to help poor children. Audrey Hepburn and Father Joe's Village represent hope and a form of structure for all the people who don't have homes and have no future to look forward to.

Resources:
 About Father Joe
http://www.fatherjoesvillages.org/press/bio.html

This helped me get an idea of the type of person Father Joe is and how he helps people.

Audrey Hepburn Biography
http://www.biography.com/articles/Audrey-Hepburn-9335788?part=0

This website helped me get an idea of Audrey Hepburn's childhood which is what drove her to help children when she was older. 




 

Blog 1 Welcome Back To School

For my junior year I am hoping to take all honors classes and pass them with A's and if not A's then B's. It sounds like a far fetched goal but I believe I can do it which is what matters. I am very excited for one world week and hope to have a good experience doing that, and I am also excited for internship because I would like to see what it's really like to work as a dentist. 
In humanities I hope I can learn how to portray my thoughts into writing better, and also learn how to write in a way to grab the readers attention. I am interested in learning about our history and I love to read so I'm hoping I will get something out of the books we read this year. 
Something in my life I try to do well in is playing piano. I try to practice almost every day because it is exercise for my brain and also a form of meditation for me. If I am not working on pieces for an upcoming piano test I like to listen to music that I like and try to figure out how to play it on the piano and record it onto paper too so that I can remember it.  

American Icon Ideas: Mother Teresa

Mother Teresa was a gift to the world. She devoted almost all of her life caring for poorest people there were, and giving them something every human needs: love. Mother Teresa represents what ever steward should be. People may say she wasted her own life to help others but she truly alive through all her services. I want to be a self sacrificial person like Mother Teresa and get the most out of my life by helping other people. Many people would want someone with good looks or a lot of money, but if I could have anyone as a friend, it would be Mother Teresa because she knows how to truly love a person and show compassion. She displays the best qualities in a person and shows the world that there are good people on this planet. 

The things most important to Mother Teresa were God and the poor people. She was impacted by poverty when she was teaching in a school in Calcutta. The amount of poor people was so great that she asked permission to leave her order to go live with the poorest people in Calcutta and help them. Mother Teresa didn't have money but she persevered and had help from volunteers and funds from other people. She not only helped the poor but she also learned medical techniques and helped treat sick people who could not afford medical treatments. It is clear Mother Teresa did this out of the bottom of her heart and not for fame or her own gain. 

People were programmed to be with other people and have sympathy for them. Now a days if I happen to go into a new house there is three sinks in one bathroom. I wonder what happened to their just being one sink and sharing things with the people you live with. Everything is so separated these days and people are becoming more selfish only thinking about themselves. The first time I actually learned about who Mother Teresa really was, was when I was at mass at the Sacred Heart Church in Ocean Beach. The stories I heard of her work and attitude made me want to learn more about her. When I see Mother Teresa and her ways of sharing everything she had with strangers and helping everyone, I knew she was who I wanted to be like when I got older. She has inspired me to help people, even if I don't know them, and sometimes even if I don't like them.

American Icon Ideas: Father Joe

I had always seen commercials for Father Joe asking to donate items to his village in downtown, but i had never taken the time to  get to know who Father Joe was or did. Until last year, I did not know much about things that went on in different parts of the world, let alone around me. People who have food and a home are sheltered from all the poverty and suffering around them. I took an ethics course at my old school that opened me up to what was going on all over the world. During my ethics course we took a trip to Father Joe's village. That trip showed me a whole different world of living; it showed me what people who are not as fortunate as me are going through, and it showed how they get a chance to try and start a new life. Father Joe helps homeless people all over San Diego have a real chance in life, not only by feeding them, but by helping them get jobs and finish schooling. Father Joe represents all the people who try to help others. He has never had much yet still gives all he can to the people who have nothing. 

Father Joe originally lived in the Bronx, with a family of ten, in a two bedroom apartment. When he came to California he had fifty dollars to his name and was wishing for fame and fortune. Soon he had a change of mind and entered the seminary, becoming a priest and working for the parish. The deacon appointed him head of St. Vincent de Paul where there was only a line for meals. To Father Joe, this was only the beginning of helping the homeless. He expanded by making the village where homeless people can stay for a short term, or long term. When I visited I was surprised to see how organized everything was. As  I walked around, the people who were living there each had their own chores. I was shown a place where people can get degrees and finish college for free, and where they can get suits for job interviews. My favorite part was they had a dental office so people could have their teeth fixed, which boosts any persons self esteem greatly. It is easily seen that the homeless and less fortunate people are important to Father Joe. If they were not he would have never made the village and most likely stayed working at St. Vincent de Paul doing the minimum. Father Joe saves many peoples lives, which is the best thing a person can do in their own life. 

I will cry if I see a sad movie where a person gets hurt. My being an empathetic person is what brought Father Joe into my life. Any time I see someone suffering I can't help but want to do something to help them. Father Joe is one of my idols because he could have easily gone on with his own life making money for himself and living an easy life, but it takes strength for someone to sacrifice themselves for the sake of others. I want to, in a way, be like Father Joe when I'm older because I get joy out of making someone who has less than me or someone who is sad happy. I want to help people all over the world. By seeing how one person could help thousands of needy people, makes me want to do the same. People might think "I'm just one person, what can I do?", but Father Joe is a living example that this is not true, and gives me the hope that I can help many people like him.

American Icon Ideas: Audrey Hepburn

Audrey Hepburn represents to me a humble and dedicated person. Throughout her life she was hit with many setbacks such as living through World War II in The Netherlands which was invaded by Nazis. Her and her mother struggled to live and survived that time. During the war Audrey had also delivered messages helping the resistance groups and was a talented ballerina, dancing in secret and giving all the money she earned to the Dutch resistance. After the war Audrey followed her goals in dance and did acting and musicals. Soon she came to America and became one of the most accomplished and admired actresses. Audrey represents strength to me because she has been through many hardships and still stayed true to herself and the people she loved. Audrey pursued what she wanted in life and succeeded. 

The things important to Audrey was her sons and children in need. Audrey Hepburn knew what it was like to be cold and starving, and she didn't want other children to have to go through that. Audrey dedicated a good portion of her life to helping children by working with UNICEF and traveling all over the world to make people aware of children in need. Being grateful for her blessings, she gave to many children by sending food and clothes. One of my favorite quotes said by Audrey is, "The 'Third World' is a term I don't like very much, because we're all one world. I want people to know that the largest part of humanity is suffering".

Audrey Hepburn became important in American culture mainly because of her acting. She had won many Oscars and had loads of fans. Audrey had an image of beauty and elegance, but what made her so beautiful was her down to earth attitude. Many people could relate to Audrey because of her past and it gave people hope that maybe one day they could be like her and rise on to a better life. In having so many fans, she influenced them to be a part of her work in helping children. Her work with UNICEF has inspired many people and also made Americans aware of what is going on in the world, not just around them. In Audrey's work, she has broken the "bubble" many people lived in, and opened them up to the real world, giving them the understanding of what other people are going through and inspiring them to help too.