The Blind Side

The story of Michael Ohre is shocking to many people. Michael Ohre has been an inspiration to me. He has overcome many different obstacles throughout his life and made something of himself. If it weren’t for the Tuohy family Michael may not have made it to where he is today. The movie “The Blind Side” and the ABC news story ‘The Blind Side’: How Michael Oher Made It, have a few similarities and differences. Also, my mother can relate to Michaels story as well. After interviewing my mom I found out information that relates to “The Blind Side” story and inspired me in many different ways.

After watching the movie “The Blind Side”, which is one of my favorite movies, I found Michael Ohre’ story to be an inspiration to me. I think that what the Tuohy family did was very brave and sincere. It took a brave women to do what Leigh Anne Tuohy did. Opening up her house to Michael when she knew nothing about him was very risky. For example, when Leigh Anne went out for lunch with her high life friends, the topic of Michael came up. The main concern was the color of his race and the question was “aren’t you scared with a colored man living in your house around your kids.” As soon as this was said Leigh Anne had enough will power to get up and walk away stating that they should be ashamed of themselves. Leigh Anne held her ground and never let people get to her about her situation with Michael moving into her house.
After reading the ABC news report on ‘The Blind Side’: How Michael Oher Made It, I realized there were differences and similarities between this article and the movie. One of which “ I would have dreams all the time about me playing in the NFL,” Michael stated. This may be true, but in the actual film I feel like it was shown in a way that Michael was athletic but football was not his main concern. In the movie, they showed Michael playing basketball. When Michael was brought to the football field, he did not know what he was doing. They showed his football career progress. Another difference between the article and the movie was when Michael stated that he went absent for 51 days from Westwood High School, and how he had been to 11 schools in nine years. This was not shown in the movie. In the movie it showed how he had got into Briarcrest Christian School, and how he had to work really hard. Luckily, one teacher in particular took real interest in Michael and reached out to help him.
  Relating to Michael Oher’s story, I interviewed my mom who can relate. I asked her a few questions about how her story was similar. She told me a story about when she was a little girl. Her mother, who is my grandma, took in her good friend’s daughter. My grandma’s friend was a single mother raising an 8 year old girl at the time. She had a drinking and drug addiction problem and her daughter being around her mother was not okay. I asked my mom how she felt once the little girl moved in and she responded with “at first I was uncomfortable and didn’t know how to react, but after a few days I opened myself up more to her.” This relates to the Tuohy family in the situation where they took in Michael. My mother told me that they only took the girl in for a few months. Once my grandma’s friend started looking out for herself, and got her life together, the little girl went back to her mom. I also asked my mom how she left once the girl left. “I was sad when she left. You get to know someone and you start to build a connection with them and then next thing you know, they are up and gone” my mother stated. She talked about how she became really close and treated the girl as if she was part of the family. She spoke about how my grandma doesn’t like to talk about the situation very much, and almost covers up the memories like they didn’t happen.
All though my mother’s experience was different than Michael Oher’s they do relate in a way. Both families took in a child to benefit them. In the end, it was worth it. Michael ended up living a dream, and the little girl who lived with my mother, was protected from seeing something she may not have wanted to see. It was beneficially for her as well as her mother. After reading about Michael Ohre’s journey, and hearing about my mother’s experience with the little girl they took in, makes me happy to know that there are people out there who do care.

Take It For What It Is

A statement can be perceived in many different ways.  To believe, or not to believe.  It was as simple as that.  People usually jump to conclusion andbelieve everything that they hear.  Whether it is coming from a family member, or a close community the truth is not always what we get.

Banks (1986) writes that, “My mother tells me stories about her past, and I don’t believe them, I interpret them”(p.174).  Bank’s couldn’t have stated Earl, the narrator’s relationship with his mother any better.  At that, his father.  Little lies such as being the female lead role in the Catamount High School play had been told to Earl.  His mother stated that Sonny Tufts was the male lead who she turned down for his father who she had been in love with.  She talked about the party she and her husband had thrown only to find out a girl there was found dead the next morning.  The story was kept a secret according to Earl’s mother. His mother wanted to have a story to make her son feel good about himself.  His parents wanted to make themselves to be more than they were.  Deep down Earl knew this wasn’t the truth but never said anything to his mother.

Alcohol was the topper to the lies that occurred through Earl’s father.  Bank’s (1986) writes “My father, a depressed cynical alcoholic”(p.175).  Alcohol was the reason for his father’s death.  He drank his life away.  All though his father died, Earl did not miss him.  He was not missed because he had not been a huge part of Earl’s life.

 Relating to Earl’s story about his mother and her lies, I can somewhat relate.  Remember back years ago when I was little I remember my aunt always lying to me.  She is also an alcoholic who would lie consistently.  She was always in such denial about her addiction.  I remember her being someone I looked up to in my life.  She was supposed to be a role model to me.  I remember her telling me stories, to make herself seem like a better person than she really was.  I would ask my mom if some of her stories were true.  Come to find out, they were mostly lies.  She was a single mother raising two kids on her own.  Not only was alcohol an issue in her case, but she was also severely depressed, leading her to vent to alcohol.  Looking back, my aunt was so wrapped up in her life that just about everything told to me, and my cousin was a lie.  She was so sick with this disease that I thought alcohol was going be the death of her.  Gladly, she is still alive and is now working towards getting better for herself and her family.

In Earl’s case, only once did he take the time to listen closely to a story his father told.  His father explained to him how he was named after Uncle Earl.  The story of Uncle Earl was taken seriously.  Bank’s (1986) writes, “He died a few years later, fell into a snowbank.  Passed out.  Froze to death” (p.175).  Earl listened to the story so clearly because she thought the story was about him.  Come to find out Uncle Earl had never been heard of in the family.  The one story Bank’s listened to, he found out was made up. 

Relating to the stories, and lies that Earl states I can relate to.  Neighborhood wise, lies play a big role in my area.  I come from a neighborhood where everyone knows everyone’s business.  At times I feel like there could almost be a reality show about it.  The girls love the drama, and the men take it all in.  It is almost like a desperate housewives episode.  Due to the fact that everyone knows everyone’s business it leads to many rumors.  Most of what is heard is a lie.  I feel like people hear a story, and then twist it around to make it seem a lot juicier.  Regarding the story, Earl’s parents would make up stories to make themselves out to be much more than they really were.  They were trying to impress Earl.

Overall, the narrator made it clear that in the end Earl realized everything was one big lie.  Earl learned to listen in on a story, even if it wasn’t all the truth, as do I.  Sometimes all you have to do is listen.  There are people out there that tell nothing but lies, and you just have to take it for what it is.

Gender Selection Causes Gender Imbalance

Gender selection not only messes with peoples beliefs in society, but also will eventually cause gender imbalance in the United States.  If people start to take advantage of this new trend that is an issue in China it will become a problem in the United States.  Gender selection occurs when parents choose what gender they want their child to be.  This not only messes with the religious beliefs, but also will end up causing an imbalance in society.

Gender selection occurs when a couple decides what gender they want their baby.  This is an issue that is occurring in China right now.  In China, gender selection works differently than is does in the United States.  If a couple does not end up with the gender they want, they will kill the child.  In China, finding out the gender of your baby is banned, but this does not stop people from still finding out.  Finding out the gender of your baby leads to abortion which is also illegal but does occur in underground parts of China. In the United States there is a process that woman can go through called Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis.  This is when your eggs are taken and are biologically looked into to see what the gender of your baby is.  Eventually, they are then put into your ovaries and the female is then impregnated.  The cost of this is very high as well which causes people to think twice about the decision they are about to make (Reproductive Genetics Institute).

Males are of dominance and are over populating China.  One reason males are looked upon so highly is because they are to carry on the family line, work the land, and support themselves in their old age.  Males were also traditionally viewed as more valuable ("China's Gender Imbalance 'likely to Get Worse”).  Males being of such importance will become problem because by the end of the decade, more than 24 million males will end up without a bride (BBC News).  "The chance of getting married will be rare if a man is more than 40-years-old in the countryside. They will be more dependent on social security as they age and have fewer household resources to rely on."- Wang Guangzhou.  A problem that could eventually occur is that inter-generational marriages could occur.  This is where a wife would be older than her husband. 

In the United States, most people have different beliefs on different issues.  But I feel that natural selection pregnancy is the right choice.  Having gender selection messes with morals and is not the way of life.  God created men and women equally in the world.  All though the United States has not taken gender selection to an extreme extent, I still feel that it is wrong and is messing with the typical natural selection.  The issue occurring in China could eventually become a problem for our country.  All though the United States does not have a gender imbalance problem, having gender selection could eventually cause this.

One way to solve this issue in China and to make sure it does not occur in the United States is to enforce laws better.  I feel that if they changed the one child law in China to as many as a family wanted would decrease the gender imbalance issue.  Another way to fix this problem would be to completely ban abortion so that girl’s could have a chance in the world.  I feel that gender selection is not safe and should be banned in the United States.  Eventually, this new trend will slowly start getting taken advantage of and gender imbalance will become a huge issue in our society.

Hopefully the United States can look at the issue that is occurring in China and realize what could possibly happen to the United States if we don’t do something about gender selection.  It is a sad that baby girls are being killed in China in order to have a male continue the family name.  Not only is gender selection just an imbalance issue but it is not the way of life and having natural selection is why men and women are equally created.  As time goes by, gender selection in the United States will eventually become an issue if we do not do something about it early on.

           

“Live Like you Were Dying”



Looking back 10 years ago to the day my family found out my cousin had cancer I remember my whole family’s reaction.  The sadness in everyone’s eyes, the thoughts that were running through our heads I can clearly remember on their faces.  I remember thinking to myself, she’s only 4, she can’t go now.

The song I chose was “Live like you were Dying” which was sung by Tim McGraw.  I like this song because I feel that it has a lot of meaning.  This song pops out to me in particular because I can relate to it.  I think the meaning behind it is very important.  This song relates to me because when my cousin was 4 years old, we found out that she had cancer. Finally after 2 years she ended up beating it.  Whenever I hear this song I think of her.  I think that just the title of the song has enough meaning in it.

The meaning of this song is talking about a guy who was in his early 40’s and found out he was sick.  He didn’t know how much time he had left to live.  When he was asked what he did when he heard the news he explained that he went sky diving, rocky mountain climbing, and lived life like he was dying.  He never took anything for granted.  The man stated that he gave forgiveness that he’d been denying.  I feel like that is a really important statement because holding grudges against someone is never good.  I remember my aunt always asking why this had to happen to her daughter.  She was always blaming herself and couldn’t deal with it.  She was always holding grudges until the day she found out her daughter had beat cancer.

Tim McGraw is trying to tell the audience that you should make the best of each and every day because you don’t know when will be your last.  When the song says “like tomorrow was a gift, and you got eternity to think about what you’d do with it,” I feel like that states a lot (TIM MCGRAW LYRICS.)  That statement is asking the audience what you would do with your life today, if you found out tomorrow would be your last day alive.  All though, my cousin was little and couldn’t take the advice to this song.  Something that my aunt was offered was a gift from make a wish.  This is a foundation to help sick kids.  My cousin chose a trip to Disney World which was paid for.  This trip was giving my cousin a chance to do one last thing just in case she didn’t make it.   I look at this song and listen to the words and couldn’t agree anymore.  I feel like every day you should live life to its fullest and make the best of each day.

Beginning the song slow playing on a piano shows the mood of the song before you even hear the words.  It is a slow, happy upbeat song that makes you think about life.  Having the song slow in the beginning and then somewhat upbeat on the main verses shows the mood.  Instead of the writer making the song depressing he made it more of a reality check in a way.  I feel that the song really tells the audience that you should look at life each day like it’s your last and live it to its fullest. 

“Live like you were dying” put a whole new meaning in my eyes.  Every time I listen to this song I think of my cousin, and also how it inspires me each day to look at life different.  I try to not hold grudges, and I try for forgive people.  Each summer I always plan something big and exciting to do, like skydiving.  I want to make sure I live each day like it’s my last.

              The Fight that Changed Me

Changing up my everyday schedule, the first month or so into my junior year of high school at Burlington Central, led me to make a huge decision that morning.  Driving my neighbor Kevin and my brother Austin to school, walking into the east doors not realizing what was about to happen.  Little did I know I would have blood all over my hands from breaking up a terrible fight that I had witnessed.

                              

The summer of 2008 is when all the drama began.  My neighbors Alyssa and Kevin had been really close friends.  Eventually the two started talking to different groups of people and had started to drift apart.  Alyssa began talking to a “bad” group of kids and eventually started dating the wrong guy.  Soon enough it came down to the point where she had run away from home because of the kids she was hanging around with and the guy she was dating.  Her parents in no way agreed to the guy she was seeing.  He was nothing but trash.

A week or so had passed and school was just about to begin.  Alyssa eventually came back home where her parents then decided to send her away to a correction school where she could fix her problems.  Here, she was unable to contact anyone but her family unless she was given permission.  Alyssa’s parents had updated her old friend, Kevin about everything that had been going on the past few months and he was upset to hear about her.  The kids in my neighborhood were all really close.  Kevin was like a brother to me.  Her parents had asked Kevin to talk to Alyssa to see if he could help her, or try to knock some sense into her.  Once her boyfriend found out Kevin had been talking to Alyssa, he was furious.  Around this time was when Alyssa’s boyfriend’s best friend Dennis started to come into the picture.  Dennis was nothing but bad news to everyone.  Dennis in a nutshell was a 6 foot 3 inch bulky man who had a bad record to his name.  He was someone I was genuinely afraid of.

I remember walking into school going a different way than usual with Kevin and my brother Austin.  I had stopped midway down the hall to talk to my cousin.  A few short seconds later I saw Kevin talking to his friends while unloading his backpack into his locker.  Kevin was nothing but innocent.  All he was trying to do was help Alyssa get her life back on track.  Coming through the door was Dennis, heading down the hallway with a few others by his side.  The minute I saw him walk towards Kevin I knew right then something bad would happen.  I stood still and waited for what seemed like hours.  All of the sudden Dennis had confronted Kevin and swung his fist at Kevin’s face which knocked him to the ground.  I immediately screamed Kevin’s name, ran over and grabbed him before he could swing back.  I put my hand to the back of Kevin’s head where blood had been shooting out to slow down the bleeding.  I remember the fear in Kevin’s eyes the minutes he saw me.  Dennis then backed off because I had decided to get in the middle of it.  I looked at Dennis and remember the look he had given me.  I remember being so scared, asking him to not hit me. 

Walking to the nurse’s office looking back at the trail of blood that was lingering on the concrete floor and Dennis walking himself slowly to the office made me want to puke.  My hands and shirt were covered in blood.  The ambulance was called shortly after to take Kevin to the hospital.  I was cleaned up and sent off shaking to my first period class.  Eventually I was excused and sent home for the day because I was so shaken from what had happened.

Being at home that day made me think about a lot.  What if I hadn’t walked through that door that day?  What if I wasn’t there to stop the fight?  Could it have been worse if I wasn’t there?  Many different thoughts were rushing through my head.  A few hours later I heard the news on Kevin.  He had ten staples in his head from hitting the locker so hard, a broken nose that needed surgery, and an eye that was swollen shut.  It was very hard for me to look Kevin in the face because short flashes of what had just occurred ran through my head.  I was thankful that he was okay, and Dennis was expelled for two years.  Not only was he expelled, but also was sent away to get help.  Because he was 17 at the time, the charges were less than they could have been.  He wasn’t heard of for awhile besides the court dates that Kevin’s family would attend.  Due to Dennis’s past, his time sent away had increased not only because of the fight.

Two years have passed a week ago on Kevin’s last year of high school.  He was excused the first week, when Dennis had arrived.  Because the situation was such a big deal, Kevin and his family decided it would be best for him to transfer to a new school.  He is now attending another high school his senior year being unhappy because of another person, while Dennis is back at school.  I personally feel that this was unfair to Kevin.  Dennis should not have been allowed back into that school after such a huge innocent that had occurred.  He ruined Kevin’s last year of high school.

The fight between Kevin and Denis took a huge toll on me.  I have learned to watch my back more, and to keep the people who mean the most to me close.  I could have let the fight go on, but because I stood up for my close neighbor I decided to get involved and help him.  I truly feel that if I had not walked through that door that day, his injuries could have been a lot worse.

“We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.”
-Harrison Ford