Education
You Cannot Lose. You Either Win or Learn!
From the time that we are in kindergarten or maybe even preschool we are conditioned to keep score. We are introduced to scoreboards, on which we receive stars for doing good, or we lose them for doing bad or at least not good enough. The more stars we obtain, the closer we get to winning some type of prize.
We are ranked from childhood. We have report cards that indicate how well we are doing in our school subjects. By December, we even have Santa Clause to remind us if we’ve been naughty or nice. By the time we are deep into elementary school and junior high, we realize that not only do we have to do well because our grades depend upon them, but we learn the importance of conforming to social and family pressures of perfectionism. Read the rest of this entry »
Managing ADD/ADHD: Simplify
As a child I wasn’t diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, but I always new that I was different. As an adult, a doctor would later confirm my suspicions. I recall, childhood was laborious. My handwriting was extremely messy, I read slower than other students, and it was harder for me to get focused. I wasn’t the hyper kid bouncing off the walls, but I remember being a talker. The absolute most difficult thing in the world was taking tests.
From the time I was in elementary school all the way up until I got my master’s degree, test taking was never ever my forte. Only during special situations and classes that really interested me did my brain seem to memorize the material photographically. I recall one of my favorite classes was cultural anthropology at a community college. I don’t know why I enjoyed it so much, maybe because it explored a variety of cultures, societies, lifestyles, religions, and all with such an educated, yet open-minded objectivity. I found exploring cultures so fascinating, and I still do. Read the rest of this entry »
Ghetto-Fabulous is Nothing to Brag About
You’ve got a friend who goes to church, he’s got kids and a family but he’s a wee bit rough around the edges, and that edge is another side of him just waiting to come out. You’ve got a girlfriend who’s a little loud, maybe a little animated, but she’s your girl and is always there for you. She is all smiles and friendliness, but she, too, has an edge about her that you know is waiting to be unleashed. You’ve got a sibling that is a tad outspoken, a little East coast, brash but palatable. She, as you’ve witnessed, also has a side to her that is barely hidden behind her curtness. It’s a side of her that can easily be unleashed, as it doesn’t take much.
You see this in all the new reality shows popping up on various networks, banking off of folks from all ethnic origins, cultural backgrounds, heritage, nationalities, and upbringing with one thing in common— they are ghetto-fabulous. Now, ghetto folks just love to brag about their ghetto-ness like it’s their hidden weapon. To be considered ghetto, someone normally adheres to a culture that they are familiar with, and it’s not always gang related. Read the rest of this entry »
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Writing With Hope 