JJ's World Views

Tag: Goals

  • Philosophies of a Humanist

    Philosophies of a Humanist

    As a self proclaimed Humanist  I do not believe in a God or gods.  I believe in the power of humanity in and of itself.  I have been to many churches and they all seemed strange to me, even the Catholic Church in which I was loosely raised in.  The whole sit, stand and kneel ritual was quite irritating along with the sermons and the Bible.  They all just rubbed me the wrong way.  When I got in to my twenties I read the Bible from front to back and the contradictions within it drove me nut as well as the whole lineage stuff.

    It was when I was introduced to Bruce Lee and his philosophy of martial arts  that I started developing my own system of beliefs.  I liked how he took the best parts of other martial arts and combined them together to create Jeet Kune Do.   I liked this and wondered why no one had thought of doing this with religion or faith.  So, over the years I started developing my own philosophies.  I did not just stick to the ideas of religion though I also took from themes within fiction and movies where religion lacked.  I try to live by a code that promotes peace and harmony without being hypocritical to my beliefs like many do with in religion.  Some may think it is naive but I see the world as it is and I aspire to make changes with in myself, so that I may help change the course of humanity in a positive way.

    I strive to eliminate hate from myself, for to hate I feel is to give power to that person or group over me.  This is no easy task.  I may get angry at someone but I will not hate them.  Anger will only last as long as I let it.  I do not hold grudges anymore, for this only hurts me.  It darkens my heart and breeds discontent in those around me.

    I remind myself fear can be both a good and bad thing.  Fear can keep me safe from the dangers of the world.  Remember not to let fear control me, for if I allow it to have control it can hinder my journey through this life and lead to hate.  When fear becomes too strong I must face it by putting myself in uncomfortable situations, this way I understand what I am afraid of, henceforth stifling hate.

    Be kind to those around me.  This is can also be hard to do especially if I am angry.  I am not perfect and will not claim to be.  We all make mistakes so, we must own up to them and learn.

    Love everyone no matter the race, religion, sexual orientation or any other way society deems to separate us.  I have come to the realization that I may not be able to love in a romantic sense,  because my heart is filled with love for all humankind.  I am fine with that.  In some ways it is lonely and I crave the affections of someone but this may hinder me from the mission I have taken on.  I vowed to not be with anyone until I have finished my Bachelor’s Degree that was almost 3 years ago.  I have almost allowed myself to fall back into the old routines, of mistaking sex for romantic love.  I do not wish to do this again.

    I put my heart into my goals.  This is why I think I am so good at being an Educational Assistant and why I will be a good teacher.  I put the kids I work with first, this is how I am.  I want to make sure that children no matter where they are where they are from.

    Do no harm is another principle I try to live by as well.  This means I will make sure to exhaust all methods of nonviolence.  I would rather die than to physically harm someone.

    These are some of the principles I try to live by.  But, I am not perfect and I will never claim to be.  If I do please call me out on it.

  • Changes

    Changes

    It has been a while since I have posted anything here.  Many things have changed in my life in that period.  I graduated from Normandale Community College and now have my first degree.  My brakes went out on my car and I had to struggle to get the money together to fix it.  I am thankful for my brother in law and his friend for helping me with the repairs.  I have started a new job this week as a educational paraprofessional substitute.   I am working to pay off a student loan before I can go for my B.A. in Teaching Social Studies.  So, I am currently not in school for the time being.  I hope to have that all paid off before June, that way I can get back to work on my degree.

    The next few months are going to be tight but I believe I will be able to make it through.  If I do not make my deadline of June I will head back to school by next spring.  It is good to have goals but they should not I believe, so rigid to the point that if you do not make it with in a time frame it kills your motivation.  This is what does happen to me a lot.  I sometimes push myself, to the point where I start to question my own worth and get down on myself.  Then I let everything go and just give up.  I have to make sure I have a secondary plan of action, because shit happens.

    Things happen in our lives that change us for better or worse.  The thing is when we are in a down spin we have to gain our composer and level ourselves off and change direction accordingly.  There is not just one way to get where you want to go in life there are many.  Some are short and sweet, and others may take a bit longer but you will still get there in the end.

  • My goal

    This is my Final paper for Prep. for English comp. class

    The Peace Corps

    To put a new spin on a quote from John F. Kennedy: “Ask not what [our world] can do for you, but what you can do for [our world]” (Kennedy).  As I see it, we are not citizens of individual countries. We are citizens of the world as a whole.  My goal is to join the Peace Corps and help those who do not have the education and resources I have been privileged to have. The reason for me joining the Peace Corps are many and varied. The things I will have to do in order to achieve this goal are getting a degree, volunteering, and learning another language

    There are a few reasons I want to join the Peace Corps.  One reason is I want to help people who need it and share my skills with them. I want to be able to give people hope in what might seem to be a hopeless situation. I want to experience other cultures and to travel to places where no one would think to go.  I would like to build bridges between the people of this world.  An additional benefit to the reasons above is it looks good on a resume. It shows you are not afraid of taking chances and thinking outside the box.  Ultimately, I want to bring a sense of meaning to my life.  Therefore, these are just a few reasons I want to join the Peace Corps.

    What will I need to do to join the Peace Corps?  Well, let’s check the basics: I am at least 18 and I am willing to commit to 2 years (“Peace Corps”) to helping others, check. Those are the 2 basic requirements.  Now, to help me be more valuable as a volunteer, I am going to need a degree.   I am currently working on a BA in Social Studies Education. The reason I chose social studies is the fact that I like history, learning about other cultures, and trying to understand how society works.  The education part is that I want to help others to understand society, so we can make this a better place for us all.  I know I dream big.  Do I need a degree? No.  Does it help? Yes.  Most of the openings prefer people with a degree in something, depending on the focus of the program or project.  Working on this degree will help me with another thing they look for, which is volunteering in the community.

    Now, volunteering is not something I am used to, at least not charity work to be honest.  My family has never really volunteered with humans except by donating food, clothes, or toys.  Through my research, I found many Vlogs (video logs) done by Peace Corps volunteers.  One of them said that “volunteering is not for everyone…this is an extreme version… giving up your life and what you want to do in order to do something for someone else”(Thinking).  I am willing to volunteer here at home to ready myself for this endeavor.  I am looking into Big Brothers Big Sisters where I can get used to working with kids one on one.  This will help me to be a better teacher and mentor in the future.  This can also be a confidence builder for me and a challenge.  Being a volunteer has many perks that go with it.   The most important is the feeling of accomplishment from doing something I have not tried before and sharing that with someone else.

    In addition, I need to get some language training.  I know a few words in other languages, but I cannot read or write one.  The Peace Corps doesn’t require that you know a language. However, it would help me tremendously just to get the practice, so when they train me for my host country’s language, I will be ready (Thinking).  I am thinking either French or Chinese. I am thinking French because there have been many countries around the world that were colonized by them and they still speak a version of it.  Chinese is a consideration for the simple reason I have always been fascinated with their culture and their growing economy.  French and Chinese are two languages that could not be more different, yet have a lot of sway in this world.  This is what makes it such a hard decision.

    There are many things I need to do to get ready for this challenge, from my education, to testing myself as a volunteer, and learning a language.  I know I can do this.   In the end, I want to know that I have made a difference in people’s lives and helped build a better world for tomorrow.

    Work Cited

    Kennedy, John F.  Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961, Washington D.C.         www.ushistory.org/documents/ask-not.htm 1/12/2015

    “Peace Corps Volunteers” Peace Corps Updated Sep. 02, 2015 Web. 18/11/2015.

    www.peacecorps.gov/volunteer/learn/.

    Thinking About Joining Peace Corps? Part 1, You Tube Rickenberger, Bryce        September      13, 2013 youtu.be/LVOELMxGqis Web. 1/12/2015

  • Home

    I have lived in Washington State, California, Florida and home is Minnesota. I have been a cashier, custodian (Disney World), Photographer/Videographer (Discovery Cove), salesman, Transportation Security Officer (TSA) and soldier.
    I am currently a student at the ripe old age of 41 and am Studying to become a Social Studies Teacher. I am a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (honor society).
    I want to travel more and see this great big world we live in. Explore new cultures and share what I have learned. I believe everyone has different experiences in this life. So, that we can grow and learn from each other. In order to make this world a better place for future generations.

    I have many reasons for starting this blog, one of which it helps to build up my writing skills.  I will be posting each draft of what I have written, this way I can get constructive critiques of my work and people can see my writing process a bit.   If you have constructive criticism of my work please let me know do not be shy.  This will help me to become a better writer which is one of my goals.

    Next I am pursuing a career in Social Studies education sot that I can become a teacher and join the Peace Corp.  This blog will serve as a journal of sorts for me to express my feeling on certain subjects and help me to see how I have evolved as a person and a life long learner.

    Lastly this blog is about me and my experiences over the past 40 years.  There will be journal entries, thoughts on life society, Ideas for thing we can do better and I will even put up some of my work from school after it has been graded, I don’t want to risk plagiarizing myself, lol.

    If you have any questions for me or would like to here my opinion on a subject, you can leave them in the comments below the writings or you can leave me a message on Facebook or Twitter for the time being.  I am still trying get a handle of all the uses for social media so bare with me.

  • Personal Goals and dreams

    1. Finish college                                                                                                                                                 a. Finish the next 2 semesters                                                                                                             b. Complete the transfer curriculum                                                                                                 c. Transfer to Metro State                                                                                                                     d. Complete my BA in Social Studies Education                                                                             e. Get teaching licence
    2. Join Peace Corp
    3. Make more friends                                                                                                                                       a. Go back to school                                                                                                                                 b. get out to the parks                                                                                                                             c. Volunteer tutor                                                                                                                                     d. Volunteer in general
    4. Get out of the house                                                                                                                                   a. Go back to school                                                                                                                                 b. get out to the parks                                                                                                                             c. Volunteer tutor                                                                                                                                     d. Volunteer in general
    5. Live life
    6. Help others                                                                                                                                                     a. Volunteer tutor                                                                                                                                     b. Volunteer in general
    7. Grow as a person
    8. Clean up my debt
    9. Travel                                                                                                                                                                a.Take the study abroad course Story Telling Down Under                                                           i. Get passport DONE                                                                                                                             ii.Get visa                                                                                                                                                   iii. Join the Peace Corp
    10. Explore other cultures                                                                                                                               a.Take the study abroad course Story Telling Down Under                                                           i. Get passport DONE                                                                                                                            ii.Get visa                                                                                                                                                   iii. Join the Peace Corp
    11. Fight my fears                                                                                                                                              a. Fear that people won’t like me for who I am                                                                           b. Fear of the ocean I don’t want to be shark food.  lol                                                               c. Fear of being alone                                                                                                                             d. Fear of being forgotten                                                                                                                     e. Fear  that I am not strong enough to achieve my goals
    12. Gain self-confidence
    13. Meet Malala Yousafzai
    14. Meet the Dali Lama
    15. Bring people together
    16. Promote Empathy
    17. Promote peaceful solutions to problems
    18. Become a writer
    19. Quit smoking, sugar and caffeine
    20. Cut back on meat and greasy food
    21. Gain knowledge through experience and research
    22. I want to help make this planet safe and a little, not a lot, scary for my niece and nephews than the world we have now.
    23. Organize the random thoughts in my head.
    24. Work on becoming less hypocritical (this is something the whole world especially here in America)
    25. Be more self-reflective
    26. MOST OF ALL BE KIND

    These are some of the things I just a few things I am working on in my own personal development.  This is also a list of things for me to choose to write about in this blog.