Hollie's+reflection

Reflections Each student will build their own page for the puposes of Reflection. This is because when two students are using the same page at the same time the page will not save properly.

Each week for 10 weeks you will need to make a relection about your experiences. Each reflection is expected to at least 200 words in length.

The topic or questions you are asked to reflect on at listed below. Copy these questions to your individual reflection page.

Week 1
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?

Some of the best advice I have ever received is to be true to myself, to never try to be someone I'm not just because others wants me to be. At some stages in my life this has been quite hard to follow. At primary school a large group of students would always pick on one boy just because he was small. Most of the students went along with the “joke” because it was a popular student that started it. It was hard for me to go to my friends in the group and tell them that I wasn’t going to be a part of it because it had gone past the stage of a joke. Afterwards most of the students began to stick up for the boy and stopped following everyone else. I've tried to not worry about what other people think of me and to just be myself but I think at some stage in everyone’s life there will come a time where they feel that they have to be someone they're not in order to impress others. Now I'm learning that if people aren't happy with who I am then they're not worth worrying about. What would happen if you threw a piece of trash on the ground? What if everyone did?
 * 209 words **
 * Week 2 **

Throwing one piece of rubbish on the ground may seem insignificant and harmless but, if everyone on the planet decided to leave rubbish lying around it will escalate into a much larger problem. Having trash lying around towns and cities is unhygienic and makes the area look like a lower class. Not only this, but plastic can cause a much larger problem with marine wildlife and land mammals. We may think that we are littering an area which is easy to clean and nothing will be harmed by the rubbish but the fact is that wind and water ways like drains and rivers wash the rubbish into areas where fish and other marine life get tangled or stuck inside it or are suffocated by it. On land the problem is just as big. Not only does the rubbish strangle, suffocate and kill wild animals but the smell of the food which the wrappers once contained attracts animals like bears, raccoons and wild dogs etc into areas where they aren’t welcome. The fact is that littering is destroying populations and having wild animals encroach on heavily populated towns. 204 words

Week 3
What would you do if you saw a friend cheating - report it, confront the friend or nothing - and why? What do you think courage means? What do you think makes a good friend?

When I see a friend doing something wrong such as cheating in a test, it is a lot harder for me to do the right thing and report them. It’s hard to determine the differences, whether I would be helping or hindering them. This is because they might have needed more help to learn what they are trying to copy or whether I’m being a horrible person and getting them into trouble. I would be disappointed in my friend for handing in work written exactly the same as another classmate as both would be left to explain to the teacher the duplicated material.

A friend is someone who is trustworthy, honest, faithful and fun. Sometimes I feel like I’m not being a good friend if I need to report a mistake that a friend has made. I would not be a trustworthy and faithful friend. I would give the issue a lot of thought before I went and reported a friend for cheating as it would also take a lot of courage.

Courage is defined through the ways you deal with confronting and difficult situations. It may be brought on by your determination to succeed or be noticed for your belief. Examples of this are soldiers fighting for their country or an individual defending their point of view when challenged. ** 220 words **

Week 4
What is your most indispensable possession and why?

My most prized and indispensable possessions are my trophies and ribbons that I have won with my horses. Each one holds the key to the memory of the day I won it and the magnificent animals that I once owned. I have the ribbons all hanging on the walls and doors of my tack room and the trophies that are small enough, in a trophy cabinet. As I look around the room I can see just how much I have done with horses and it makes me feel worthy of owning the ones I have now.

Every morning and night I am able to see what I have accomplished in just a few short years, and they help me to feel better about myself when I am feeling down. I am able to just sit and reflect on the days I won the awards and how I have had the privilege of owning such beautiful animals. The sight of so many colours and golden trophies is so relaxing and I am able to leave my troubles behind, it brings a warm feeling to my heart and gives me a sense of accomplishment. They give me a place to leave the troubles of the world behind. What do you think about people polluting the environment?
 * 213 words **
 * Week 5 **

I have always wondered if people that pollute the environment have ever given thought to what their children and grandchildren will be living amongst once the world has been polluted beyond repair. Do they realise that they are contributing to murder? Many people are unaware of the consequences of their actions. For instance, how many of us consider carbon emissions every time we turn a light on. I don’t expect people to be paranoid and obsessed with pollution to the point that they can’t live a happy life, but for them to just give greenhouse and pollution some thought by not littering, walking to places within walking distance instead of driving a car, using public transport and using the least power they can.

I don’t discriminate against people that try really hard to save the environment or the people that go about their daily lives without considering pollution, but the people that purposefully litter and pollute the air really get on my nerves. I don’t think they understand the consequences in the future of the actions they make today. They are being selfish and destructive and they still don’t seem to have a care in the world. People that pollute are bad people that don’t care about anyone or anything but themselves. How do you feel when you do something wrong? How do you feel when you do something that is very good?
 * 206 words **
 * Week 6 **

I am not confident in myself, so when I do something wrong it really gets me down. I feel like my heart has sunk, I get weak through my stomach and knees. The feeling of disappointment, anger and sadness combined. It is about the only time when I want to be alone but when I just want someone to be there and not tell me how disappointed they are, just to take my mind off the problem. But sometimes one action can affect the way I feel about myself and I have to live with the guilt for the rest of my life. Not talking about it often makes things worse. Secrets can be hard to keep. When I do something right my feeling often don’t change. I don’t often pride myself or brag about my accomplishments. Sometimes I just get a little warm, fuzzy feeling in my chest. I do feel a little better and relieved that what I have done is correct but the feelings do not change nearly as much as when I do something wrong. I wish there was a law that said... This would be a good law because...
 * 200 words **
 * Week 7 **

I wish there was a law that allowed people with incurable conditions to be given the dignity of choosing their time for them to depart this world. When someone is diagnosed with an incurable disease they should be allowed to have their wishes recorded, much like the way a Will is made, as to the time in the progression of that illness that they choose to die by medical intervention. This law and their final choice would need to be legally recorded so there has been no possibility of any intervention from a third party with ulterior motives.

People who are in pain and have no hope of living a long, happy and healthy life could have their heart stopped rather than suffering and dying in agony. We give this right to animals but we don’t allow humans to have this privilege. Instead we let them suffer in pain, pleading for their death to come sooner so they are no longer a burden or embarrassed by their diminishing quality of life. I remember back three years ago when my friends’ mother was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Within one year her Mum had gone from having an active life assisting her daughter with show horses and having great conversations to being propped up and wheeled around in a wheelchair – food and drink spilling from her mouth and her head slumped to the side. I couldn’t bear to see my family members go in this way. When you are angry, how do you look? When are you happiest? When have you felt lonely? When do you feel proud?
 * 245 words **
 * Week 8 **

My feelings and emotions are complicated. I have many different moods and sometimes it can be hard to identify exactly what I’m feeling. Sometimes I’ll be smiling on the outside and crying on the inside, but some of my most common moods are anger, happy, lonely and proud.

It makes me extremely angry when people lie to me. I’m such an understanding person that if a friend tells me that I’ve been annoying them or that they’ve been talking about me behind my back, I’m able to get over it very easily if they tell me. What makes me angry is that they try to protect themselves with lies but instead get themselves caught out. Disappointment in myself also makes me angry. If I’m unable to ride a horse well or I don’t get a good mark on a test or assignment I get frustrated and angry which often leads to sadness and taking it out on my family. That makes me feel worse later on.

There are many places and times that I feel happy. When I’m with my friends I’m often weak with laughter, but I also have a peaceful and happy mood when I’m by myself in the serenity of nature. These times are good to reflect and just be at peace with myself, I think these are the times that I’m happiest. That and when I’m riding horses. They are such magnificent animals that allow us as mankind to get onto their back and call them ours. Their heart beating between my legs and their strong chest gives me a feeling of safety and happiness.

I hate being alone, I like to be with someone or something every second of every day, so, as you can imagine, I feel lonely quite often. I feel lonely when I go up to bed at night and when I’m studying in a room alone, but sometimes I feel loneliest when I’m not alone. These feelings are complicated and hard to explain, but at least I know what I’m feeling.

I don’t often express that I’m proud of myself or of others, but I feel proud when I achieve a mark over 98% and when I win at an agricultural show or royal up against people that complete all over Australia. I am proud of my parents for getting through hard times and achieving what they have today all on their own. I’m also proud of my friends when they do something that they’ve been attempting for a long time. Examples are getting points in ballet, meeting Justin Bieber, getting on the new netball team and getting a new boy friend. But when I walk into my trophy room it really kicks in how much I have achieved in just a few short years. There are about five hundred ribbons and thirty trophies including two royal championships. I’m extremely proud of what I have achieved and what my friends and family accomplish.

I have quite an expressive face so all of my friends and family can read me like a book. They know exactly what I’m feeling every second of the day. There are no secrets in my world. Which quality do you dislike most about yourself - laziness, selfishness, childishness - and why?
 * 529 words **
 * Week 9 **

I think that everyone has a quality that they may not like or that others don’t like. It’s impossible to be perfect. One quality I don’t like about myself is that I am dependant on others to tell me what is right and to reassure me. I am forever asking teachers to check my work to ensure that I am doing the right thing and that I will get a high mark. I think that I have acquired this insecurity through getting things wrong. I hate the feeling of failure. Even just have to redo some school work frustrates me. I am also dependant on my friends and family to guide me through tough times. I rarely trust myself as an individual but I know that one day I will need to. Most occupations require workers to carryout jobs on their own without consulting others. I think that while I am a confident and outgoing person in speaking to people, I am unsure of the choices that I make. Some day I will need to just trust my gut instinct and stop asking questions why.
 * 200 words **

Week 10
Why do you think prejudice exists in the world?

I believe there is prejudice in the world through people believing they are in some way superior to others. This could relate to many areas such as, but not limited to, religion, disability, sexuality, nationality, age, social class and obesity. This type of thinking has caused world problems such as White Americans putting African Americans into slavery as they felt they were way below their standard or equal. Hitler despising Jews, killing many in gas chambers whilst putting the able bodied to work as he felt Germans were the superior race, and today radical Islamic groups strike fear into the Western world through their hatred of our democratic way of life and our freedom to choose how we live.

People jump to conclusions. Another example of this is that people perceive some people are gay because they may have a high-pitched voice or dress in a certain manner, and not so long ago, people from the inner suburbs thought that the citizens of Werribee were lower class as we had the Melbourne Metropolitan Board of Works which dealt with sewerage sent down from Melbourne. Ignorance and lack of education play a big part in how we treat others as does our ability to be persuaded on how we perceive people.
 * 210 words **