Essay: Alcohol – reflective

Alcohol is something that people drink because of different reasons. Some drink because it calms them down, some drink because it excites them, some drink because it makes them hysterical. There are so many reasons why people drink but it is not something that is necessary to have in order to have a good time. This usually is something teenagers believe is needed to have a good time, and people can have a good time by just being sober. Often alcohol makes parties interesting but it does leads to choices and mistakes that people regret later. Personally I don’t drink because I don’t like the taste of it, unless its like really aged where it almost tastes sweet. I have seen moments in parties that I wish it never happened. Girls being groped, fights between couples, fights between alpha-males, drunk individuals forcing people to drink more. Alcohol is okay at certain parties but too much consumption of it can be very problematic. This happens whenever there is bunch of testosterone drive boys that thinks its masculine to consume lots of alcohol. I have seen people that have never touched alcohol and can have a good time in a party. Therefore I believe it is not necessary to have it in the party, because it is also expensive drink to have. Some may disagree with my opinion, but since I have seen what takes place when I’m sober and the rest have had quiet a drink I prefer if parties had a limitation on alcohol. A party should definitely not have alcohol is people start forcing others to take a drink, and they cross a line that they can never come back from.
My brother. He is 21 years older than me, and is like my father and mother figure of my life. He is someone that has a strong influence in my life. I aspire to be as pure, good and dedicated as him. I cannot imagine a life without him. He has protected me from the day I was born and is my best friend. Growing up in a conservative and judgmental society, is often difficult for certain individual to thrive. Just like my father and mother he has always believed in having strong morals. This is because we were raised in a society where bribery is very common. In order for public businesses to succeed in a country like Bangladesh, businessmen had to bribe specific individuals in specific ministries to get work done. Because of the simple reason it was difficult for my father to earn money for his family, thus it was also difficult for my brother to do the same. Which is why he took the initiative of leaving the country to settle in a place where corruption is much compared to Bangladesh. He has seen and been through a lot of hardships in his life, and all the time he tried to make sure that I had the best. He really cares about me like I’m his daughter, and I hope I can do that for his children. However, that is difficult since his wife is very delusional. I try my best to do as much as I can for his daughter, but having an individual that takes every good thing in a bad way can be very difficult to live with. As a person he has experienced many things that is not for the faint hearted and he is the pillar of our family.
This is how I felt every time on the first day of school: Suddenly my legs were heavy, it was like I was moving a ton of weight against my feet. As my tremblings hands pushed the doors of the classroom, I could feel the stares of the anxious people in my class. As I walked into the class room, my heart beat fastened, my pulse was racing and I quickly sat down in the seat farthest away from people. My eyes were darting everywhere, my ears were drumming with the sound of the people talking, my mouth became dry, and my skin started to sweat. I was terrified to look at the people that walked in and out of the room, because I didn’t want to faint in front of so many people. I felt like the walls were closing in and the lights were too bright. I counted till 10, and felt a little calmer. I looked around my gaze focusing on the people in front of me. I watched the people in my class, I noticed all the people that I didn’t want in my class were all sitting in the same class. I was upset. I hated that I never ended up in the same classroom as my best friend. It made me sad, suddenly from nervousness my emotion switched to sad then to anger. I rose to my feet and walked to the front, to go and speak to someone to change my class; right then my best friend walked in. I jumped out to hug her and I felt all the nervousness, sadness, anger and remorse fading away. Suddenly I felt a lot more comfortable and confident. Thats how I felt on the first day of school.
I am the happiest when I’m with my family, and that consists of my father, mother, brother and little baby niece. I love to spend time with my family because they mean everything to me. They have sacrificed so much for me and have moved an entire country to be with me. My family has been through a lot both emotionally and physically, and when I’m with them and I can make them smile or laugh it gives me so much satisfaction that I cannot describe it. I feel so happy to see them smile that I can jump out of a building out of happiness. However I am not that reckless, and I value the life the Almighty has given me. My family gives me motivation to keeping moving forward no matter what happens, they make me feel like I am worth it. It makes me happy when they wear something new for Eid or their birthdays, when we eat our favorite foods or buy something we desired. The happiness that they feel, goes through me as well. Their happiness radiates through me and that is enough to make me happy. There has been enough cruelness and barbaric behavior against my family for trying to do what is right ethically. Now we are in a country where people recognize us for doing good, we are in a society that practices the good faith we believe in. This makes me happy, finally my family can smile and feel peaceful. My fathers, mothers, brothers and his children happiness is mine as well.
I had always been a shy and quite student all my life, until the 8th grade. It was when I found a genuine best friend. Someone who cared for me and brought out the best in me. Her name was Noor. She was from Pakistan. Instantly we clicked, suddenly I wasn’t the shy and quite student in school. I became the loudest and naughtiest student in my classes, my teachers loved my loud and mischievous behavior, they preferred loud students rather than tame ones. I had shocked my previous teacher with how much I changed. My best friend would remind that our time on earth isn’t permanent so we should take any opportunity to have fun that we get. She was the reason why I became more confident and outspoken. We had a group of friends of our own, but we were the closest obviously. We went to eat every weekend and sometimes after school. We went shopping and had sleepovers. Our parents we good friends and also loved the both of us. We were called the ‘long lost twins’. She fixed my friendship with another person who I had a fight with for more than a year. She had told me “Just apologize to her first, you’ll be the bigger person that way and people will have more respect for you.” As the fiscal school year ended, her parents had to move to Pakistan. We met up that summer, but the day she left I didn’t even know, because she didn’t have the heart to say goodbye. As of now, it has been 6 years since I last saw her. We still talk, but we know that deep inside we’ll have the opportunity to meet each other again. She made an impact and change in my life that no one ever could. She is my best friend.
If I wanted to be friends with someone who didn’t not speak any English, I would try to communicate to them through whichever language they speak. My utmost favorite quote that I have ever read and most relatable to this question is this: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” This magnificent quote was said by Nelson Mandela. I have been in a situation where someone who didn’t understand the English language had a hard time trying to get around in an international school. He was from South Korea, and had been in my previous school for 2 years. Often I would use a translator to speak to him, however it was difficult because I didn’t understand what he said in return. So I started to teach him basic English. I was also given community and service hours for spending time to teach him English because it was something I was doing out of curiosity and generally kindness. The reason I wanted to know more about him is because I love learning about different cultures and how they vary from us. I had been shocked at how patient he had been trying to learn English and also a little bit of Bangla. It was the sweetest gesture when he said a line in Bangla which he read from a piece of paper “Thank you for being my only friend in this country”. This was simple gesture, yet we learned a lot about each other and I was able to find a friend who I will be friends with forever. Therefore this is something I would do; try my best to speak to them in their language and try to teach them little bits of the universal language for their own benefit.
The one place I would prefer to be in right now would be in Leh, Ladakh in India. It was a place where I visited during my senior year with my friends. As soon as we landed in Ladakh, it was the most beautiful place I had visited to date. As we trekked, hiked and walked all over the place, I quickly fell in love the beautiful place that was hidden within the mountains. On 2nd day of our holiday there we decided to hike to the large golden monk status we saw in mountains. It was a long trek, and it took us 2 hours to get there, but we made it since we all had a great company. Since Ladakh is situated higher than most states and country, the air pressure is very high. Therefore it can make breathing difficult for everyone. In order to calm myself down from the extensive hike, I sat down onto the Rocky Mountain after the long hike. I could feel butterflies in my stomach, my eyes widened as I tried to taken in all of the view in front of me. I could smell and see the bed of colorful roses: red, white, yellow. I closed my eyes and tried to think of the view that I was sitting in front of, trying to capture the scenery in my eyes. I took a deep breathe and the fresh air filled my lungs with delight. I reopened my eyes and I could see mountains in the distance, covered in soft snow of the early winter. I could hear the tinkling of water that streamed down river in front me, I could hear the birds chirping in the distance.1707 Its was so calming. This was a view I wanted to see for the rest of my life.
The reason is very simple, but also conflicting and there are a few of it. This could be due to insecurity or trying to involve people so that they don’t feel guilty themselves. As mentioned in one of my previous journal entries that I don’t drink because of the taste, and also because I don’t feel right after I do, therefore I avoid it at all costs. I have been to a party recently where I was told beforehand and during the party that I will be forced to drink against my will. And I stood up for myself because I won’t be forced do something I wasn’t comfortable with. Not only that but some people encourage others smoke or drink is because it gives them self satisfaction that they are not alone. But the simple reason is happiness. Drinking or smoking releases different dopamines in different individuals minds, for some its relaxing, or calming, or depressing. They think that whatever they feel it is necessary for others to feel the same. Coming from a conservative society, where religiously drinking is shunned as it is a sin. People in that kind of society feel that they have leverage if someone does something “bad” with them. Often living in such conservative society can lead to conflicts in which parents that are very outgoing care that their “image” and “reputation” is at stake if their children are drinking or smoking, and often those children can say “she or he does it too, they drink or smoke as well” that is also another reason why people encourage others to smoke/drink. It is different for specific individuals because of what they believe. Some have an open relationship with their family which makes this “bad” things acceptable but others that are from conservative have a difficult time to condone to action that they ethical believe is wrong but fitting in is more important.
I believe my most successful assignment from Unit 1 would be the most recent one which was the Descriptive Writing Task. It took me a while to get an idea for the entry but I was able to gather my thoughts and with some brainstorming I was able to come up with some ideas of my own. This task shows my strength as writer through its vivid description of imagery that allows the reader to imagine themselves in the same situation. I have certainly noticed a pattern in my written assignments because I prefer to write from personal experiences as it gives a more realistic approach to my writing and allows me to write exactly how I felt or am feeling as of that moment. There are quite a few things that I would like to focus on for my future assignments: firstly one of them would be to come up with situations or writings that is completely from my imagination, secondly I’d like to improve on my word choice and try to concise my work as much as possible. I always try my best to keep it near the word limit and yesterday during the peer edit I was told to explain a part which made my descriptive writing go over the limit. However, it is essential that I try to keep all the work within the limit but also explain parts where necessary. Thirdly, I’d also like to incorporate a lot more literary devices to enhance my work in the future. The tone of my writing would definitely be serious and slightly nostalgic because as a person that’s what I like to write about and this type of writing can allow me to be more descriptive and include certain literary topics. The feeling of nostalgia is very strong and it’s something that can be transferred to the reader if the author can communicate it effectively. Overall this piece of writing was serious and slightly nostalgic as it was based upon a realistic scenario with very little humor and playfulness. I do look forward to writing humorous, ironic or playful writings in the near future, and in order to do so I would like to learn from my peers and from my teacher on how I can do that, so that it captures the readers attention and also makes sense.
As a teacher I would be feeling furious because when a teacher sets homework they have a certain purpose of doing so, not only that but they also follow a schedule and class plan in order for the entire semester to function properly. Therefore thinking about it I would be furious because it could mean that their not taking my instructions seriously. Also I would be very forgiving as well, because it is absolutely normal to forget ones homework, and if everyone forgot their homework then there must have been something more important that everyone had to do. I would ask each person or most people why they weren’t able to complete the homework and then spend 10 to 15 minutes letting the class do the work. I would only allow them to do the homework if I need it to teach something in class. But if not, then they can do it in their own time. As I would rather not waste class time. Not only that but I would try to come up with solutions to make sure this type of thing doesn’t happen again. Firstly, if my class are bunch of good students that always try their best to do their work and it was one time thing I would let it go and emphasize on something like Google Classroom to assign these works nonetheless. If the students are slackers and don’t give enough importance to the subject they’ve chosen to study then I would start grading the homework as well. Often students feel its not necessary to do the homework because its not going to be ‘graded’ when in truth its to help and guide them to do well in their future assignments and understanding of the topic. It is essential as students to be more punctual and aware of what is going on in class. As a teacher I would easy-going and flexible towards my students because I would hope to know that there are a lot of things on a students plate and every teacher tend to forget that there are subjects other than their own.
If I saw someone cheating I immediately start to lose respect for them because it really says a lot about them as a person when they do such a thing. I’m one of those people that is afraid to cheat and because it won’t make me feel good after I do it. My morals are higher than my grades, therefore even if someone asks me to cheat my answer is no. Because as individuals we must be able to distinguish between right and wrong. Therefore, if I saw one of my friends cheating I would confront them, because reporting it is way too childish. I have seen all my life that there are two types of people that cheat. One of them are individuals that slack all semester and rush to get good grades through cheating, and the other one are people that are overachievers and the ones that get the best grades in the class but doubt themselves and are in so much delusion that they cheat to stay on the teachers number one lists. If one of my friends say its an one time thing, I’ll recommend to not do it again, ever. Normally my intention would be to make them guilt enough to not do it again. But if its a repetitive pattern then I’ll let karma deal with them. Because I am no snitch, especially if my friends are more loyal to me. At the end of the day everyone will know who earned and deserved their grade through hardworking and who got it through cheating. Most people I have come across only cheat during Math or Science classes because thats where you have to memorize and remember the most, and I don’t blame them. For example for me Math is a nightmare because I simply can’t do well in it no matter how much I try. And people usually cheat when their parents expect way too much from them. So I’d let it go after confronting them, because Karma does bite those that are unethical.
The world needs a lot of things but most importantly it needs humanity. As of this moment all over the world there are certain things happening that are inhumane and dangerous to human life. Hundreds of people are dying on a daily basis, not to mention how many people are being hurt both emotionally and physically. Racism, corruption, diseases and the spread of global sadness is slowly becoming too much. For example in the United States many individuals are being deported or separated from their families because of not having the appropriate documentation, it is devastating to watch. Then in a country like Bangladesh the government is not giving justice for the victims that died from a bus accident. There was a peaceful protest that took place but people were attacked by machetes and shot for trying to voice their thoughts on injustice and trying to get better road conditions. Annually Bangladesh is one of the most unsafe cities in the world. Not only that but the government tried to stop internet and also limit resources so that the entire world does not get to know about the condition the country is in. So it definitely needs humanity because many individuals are setting aside their ethics and putting their personal wants first, and there are the leaders of the country. Not to mention how we can prevent so many things in the world by just having and maintaining our humanity. The reason we need a lot more of humanity, because we need to be able to create a world where the future generations can thrive in and so can we. With humanity we can equate social justice, understand languages and cultures, make moral and intellectual decisions, have empathy and have the ability to do good for the world by acknowledging ones needs as well as others as well.
I think very negatively of them. A person that is willing to take advantage of someone else, just for their personal gain is an individual that should stay away from me. I have known many individuals who are like that, which is what makes me hard to open to people and try to get to close to them. There have been moments in my life where I have seen many people come and ask help from my father to get promotion in a specific job sector or try to get job because my father is a very well connected man. He’s socially popular and loved by people for his straightforward and ethical character. Many of my relatives that have gotten to where they are because of my father and have never appreciated him for it, instead gave him the cold shoulder when he needed guidance or their help. Asking for help doesn’t make you a smaller or bigger person, it makes you basic human being. This is the sole reason why my family left the country when people didn’t return a favor or appreciate how much my family had done for them. My dad dedicated his whole life helping people through his business and many people took advantage of it. This is solely why it makes me disgusted to see people take advantage of others. I have seen many people in relationships that have had either one or even both partners take advantage of each other in school, and it makes me think whether relationships even hold any value because at home the way my parents are is how I would want my relationship to be like, and it makes me thing what influences those people taking advantage to be that way.
To me honest is the most important trait in a friend followed by loyalty. Generosity comes by natural instincts and upbringing. It is solely their choice on how they are as a person. Honest is a very important trait for me because it allows me to know that I can trust that person, and I don’t care if the trust is harsh or bitter. Its how things should be. In my family we are very transparent with our feelings and important decisions that we make, because not only does it make us stronger as human beings but more supporting and loving towards each other. I often tell my friends that instead of hearing from other people about my opinions they should ask me straight away that way whatever they hear is straight from the actual source. Because there are many people that like to color and twist the words, this can often change the meaning or be interpreted wrongly. Something that I have learnt the harsh way. Secondly loyalty is very important because this shows how much the person really cares and whether or not they value the friendship. It is important to understand and value someone because there are so many individuals that are incredibly lonely, but they don’t show it off as much. Honestly and loyalty go hand in hand for me, because I have lost a best friend because I was honest, and I stand by what I said and if it was too much for him to handle then he needs to grow up. Because it has been nearly 10 years and we were just kids back then, and this has gone on for way too long. Sad part is that a few people took the advantage of this situation and honestly I wish them best of luck and will let karma fuck them over.
My room at home is small compared to the room I used to have in Bangladesh. When you walk into my room you see two boxes on the left on top of each, next to a wardrobe. In the middle there is a bed and a side table. On the right side there is a study table and beside there is a dressing table. One of the boxes contain winter clothes and clothes that I have worn too much. The upper box contains miscellaneous items like phone boxes, books and things I don’t need regularly. The boxes are printed yellow and full of flowers. The wardrobe is small, deep brown. It has two slide doors that have opaque glasses in the middle of each door. On the left side it has all my pants and on the right side it has all my tops. I have stored stationaries in a compartment located on the bottom right side. The bottom left side has shoes that I don’t wear unless it’s a special occasion. In the middle is my bed, it has two box drawers in the front and is covered with purple bedsheets, which is my least favorite color but my Ammu likes it so I have gone with it. There are two bolster pillows and in between the two pillows is a adorable light blue to white color penguin. On one side of my bed there is a bedside table which has a few charging docks, and cables. Right opposite my bed is my study table. It has a printer on top, a charging dock beside it and a storage box. It has two drawers which has my reading books and things I use for my classes. I have white to brown dressing table on the left hand side which mainly has my perfumes and hair bands. I am the proudest of my organization because whenever it usually last its just for 2 weeks, then it gets really messy and I finally clean after 4 or 5 weeks. But honestly I’m the most proud of my wardrobe, because of how organized it is. And it never gets messy because I roll up my clothes and tie them with a rubber band. Its the easiest way to find and store clothes.
My weight. I have been obese my entire life. It was pretty adorable when I was younger but slowly it became a poison to my body. It is the most hated part of body. I am the most to be at fault for it. I have made so many attempts to reduce myself, but it has never worked well. I started to gain extreme weight after we stopped having compulsory sports classes from the 10th grade. More importantly it started when I stopped working out as well, because in the 11th grade me and my brother took the initiative to work out. But soon after we stopped as we both became busy with other things. Its a very touchy topic and I have never been teased but I do notice when people talk about me a certain way. I am very observant when it comes to me, and often when people talk about someone else they get carried away with who could be near them when they do talk. I’m very insecure about myself, thus it is the one thing I despise about myself and need to change about myself immediately. Because she plus size women are being more accepted in the society, but with obesity comes a lot of diseases and problems. Its better to stay a certain wait to avoid such things. Not only that but being overweight and obese is looked very down upon in the society where I come from, even if someone individuals are extremely open-minded. But once insecurity grips its very hard to get rid of it.
January is my favorite month, because it is my birth months and also my brother birthdays is 6 days after month. In my country in Bangladesh it gets pretty chilly in December and January because of the seasonal change. Winter is one of my favorite times of the year because I prefer to stay cold since I always feel warm. Also getting an excuse to wear black or blue sweaters is my favorite. The cold weather is inviting for my occasions. The winter also means wedding season. It is the best time to wear ones heaviest clothes and jewelry. It is a tradition in Bangladesh to have picnics and outings in the winter time when the weather is absolutely amazing. It doesn’t snow but its pretty cold for an average Bangladeshi. Over the years I have preferred to keep my birthday to myself and celebrate only with my family because I value them the most. Some of my friends have had birthdays which were way to extravagant for my liking and also too expensive. I mean I just care about spending time with the people that matter the most to me and have given their entire life in making sure that me and my brother get the very best. Its also the month that my mother gave birth to the best children in the world, so its an emotional month for my parents as well. And we actually get away with most things during January. Which is why I would tell my friends to put parties during January because my family is the most giving during that time only.
I would make a TV commercial that would be engaging. Most ads are social media centered and people rarely watch television any more. Which is why I would try to make a commercial that caters to individual that use an internet connection. It something that YouTube does and other social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat have started to do as well. Since these social media have become extremely popular people have become almost obsessed with it. Many individuals in the world that have access to the internet are able to gain access to a free platform to gain knowledge and be entertained. Ads are very disliked therefore an engaging commercial would be based on social media. Perhaps an advertisement for a social media company. Also diversity is something that should be addressed. Many countries the commercials showcased are pretty biased and will show specific standard of beauty that men and women must attribute to. Therefore diversifying ad segments that incorporates various age groups, races, gender, and religion will allow all individuals to feel involved. This is the ad that I look forward to making if I ever get the opportunity. The whole idea of creating the commercial is involvement. If the social media commercial is a success then it should be catered to TV commercials because there is a majority especially the older generations that watch the television and can benefit from the ad. But more specifically I would base my advertisements around the generations that watch television so if social media doesn’t suit.
I would immediately become heavily depressed. As a person I am one of those people that are terrible when it comes to exams. I always have a hard time trying to do my best, especially when the subject I’m giving my exam in is Math or Science. After a certain age I was unable to perform well in those particular subjects and it made me think that something was wrong with me. When you perform poorly on test, people rarely look at why you could have failed, or acknowledge and try to console you. They put you down on the floor by making the people the people that did great standout. But honestly it hurts me the most when the teacher treats a certain way for not doing well. I hate biased teachers. When I tell my brother he always reassures me and thats what has always allowed me to push through. I really enjoy getting feedback and especially if the teacher is encouraging. I have had only a couple of teachers throughout my life that have done everything they can to help me and I really appreciate their presence in my life. So becoming upset with tests is something that is very common for me to feel. But moreover it is the behavior of people around me that make me feel that certain way. Something that I find is lacking is the way teachers prep students for exams, because often review materials and certain things are given a week or two before the exams which makes it difficult to cover. One of my classes last semester had not a single class test or exam for the entire semester. Not even an example of what the exam is going to be like. So obviously what I had done is follow the chapters he had told us to focus on because the exam would be on those 4 specific chapters only. However some of the information did come from different chapters and there was content that I had never seen before. Probably because we never studied them, and hence the final results were a little different. It was the same for every single person in the class. But it made me miserable because after the exam I immediately knew how bad I would have done.
As we were beginning the Unit I was very disappointed because Poetry is not my strongest suit and I prefer prose. However my feelings for poetry have changed I have learnt how to write poetry rather than just know them. In the past I have never been guided on how to write the poems but in this class I have been given help from the teachers and my peers on how I can improve and things I have done well on. I agree with this statement because poetry is a work of literature, it is written to express ones feelings and also focus on the structure of the language. We will always communicate with language, but poetry speaks to individuals in a specific way. For example lyrics is a form of poetry for musicians, and it is an important tool for them to maintain. The importance of arts in our lives our immense because drama, music and arts all contain forms of poetry and it is often overlooked. We associate with these things on a daily basis and hence the importance and need of poetry is significant. Therefore I agree with the statement since its a form of communicative entertainment. My favorite poem from the poetry portfolio would be the first descriptive poem I wrote ‘Forest wonders’ because it enabled me to express something I experienced personally. Since I enjoy taking strolls through remote areas where there is fewer human presence, and observe the surroundings which gives me a lot of relief, I was able to project what I felt into the poem. Therefore I was able to explore all of my senses, write vivid descriptions, and add literary devices to enhance the meaning of the poem. It is rather long but it represents everything a forest is like in a day. Even the reflective poem was one of my favorites because I was able to cherish someone I never met, whose influences in my life is extremely important. But the descriptive poem is definitely my absolute favorite. I would like to experiment with writing Sonnets in the future because both the Petrarchan and Shakespeare forms are unique. I decided to do the Petrarchan because we worked on a Shakespeare sonnet in class. It intrigued me because of the iambic pentameter and 10 syllable rule, as well as the concentration and the adaptability of this poem type. It’s amazing to think that hundreds of years people wrote poem in this form and it is still applicable but through modern twists.