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Celebrating small kindnesses and basking in the little things.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Change and impact

From the time that I was a little girl, I have been an observer. I watch how people are treated, listen to how we speak to one another, and am bothered by the sarcasms that interrupt conversations and push people down into themselves. On television, it is funny! In the real world, depending on the relationship and mood of the receiver, it is hurtful. Why can't conversations be about connection, instead of disconnection?

Looking at the world we live in, what are some of the biggest changes you see occurring and what is the impact on you as an individual and as a young person growing up in this world?

54 comments:

Jacob said...

Hello Mrs. Perrin, it's Jacob, i finally got this to work. I like that post, and definitely agree, it was kind of like you said in class, that seeing flat out meanness is really surprising. I also must say, i have a feeling your blog is going to be much more philisophical then mine. Haha, well i'll see you in a class.

-Jacob

Perkinsdrummer66 said...

I'm second! ha ha ha ha...(look elipses marks) well i agree. sometimes the only reason people open their mouths is to hurt someone. I think that it's funny sometimes, but if the person feels hurt they should say something. Then the antagonist (vocab word) should stop. Well I'll see you in class. later -Perkins

Jena said...

I agree with Ryan.(this is Jena by the way) People like to feel more secure and in doing so they feel they have to put others down to build themselves up. The only reason this is funny is if it is completely false. It's like you have to think before you say something and treat others they way you want to be treated. The two oldest rules in the book, but they work so well. I really have nothing else to add. See you all in class.
-Jena

Dr. Markus said...

I am seeing changes in my friends. I understand that people grow and change, but it hurts me to remember the people who used to be my friends. When we make friends earlier in life,(for us it would be in Elementary School), we think that these people will always remain loyal friends. Now that we are in high school, it seems that people who we used to be friends with have changed too much, which causes us to grow apart. See you all in Class!

-Markus

Unknown said...

Hi Mrs Perrin. Well, i think that in this stage and time of life as teens, many of us are used to put down others just to fit into a group or make us feel better. one of the biggest changes i think is friends. i noticed that my friends have changed and so have those people I've known for a long time. because of these changes, i find myself also changing and trying to fit in.
See you on Monday!

-Talia

Selena said...

Mrs. Perrin,
I am a different person than you. I am not a observer. I like to take action and change the things around me that I feel are wrong. Even if they are older, bigger and more important than me I won't hesitate to speak up. Sadly, the world we live in today is extremely self-centered. Each person can only think of themselves, or what will benefit their life. Humans say things in conversation in order to hurt others and bring themselves to the top. In conversation we often tell other people their faults in a rude way in order to lower their self-esteem and make ourselves feel powerful. Growing up in this world of selfishness, I realize that what you give to other people from your heart is more important than any money can buy. When you truly are kind to someone they respect that, because now honesty is hard to come by.
Selena

Perkinsdrummer66 said...

Markus, I agree completely. I have noticed many of my old frinds changed in high school. see ya Monday- Perkins

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Hi,
Um... this is emily R if any body is wondering. I just wanted to say that I understand what you mean. I notice people all the time using sarcasm. I even use it when I'm habging out with my friends but I don't mean to hurt any one. I've never actually seen anyone straight up insult someone to their face. I've heard about it though, but I still have trouble believing that someone would actually do that. As for a big change we see, everyday I notice people act and talk differently around different people. Like when someone's with their friends I can't help noticing that while they joke around with their friends and don't care what their family members think of them, he or she would act shy and responsible to impress someone new or someone they like. etc. People's attitudes change based on who they are with and that can determine how they talk. (same thing happens with how they are feeling.) I hope that answers the question...I think I wrote enough. See everybody in class.
-Em

Unknown said...

Hi Mrs.Perrin! I agree with what you've posted. I see it everyday, someone getting hurt from a little comment. It makes me think about what type of person would do that to someone. The whole disconnection in a conversation is what makes us different, its how we tell who our friends our, what our social life is like. My friendships have been one of the biggest changes in my life. Its like people have said, when you're young, and you first start making friends, you think you're going to be friends forever. It goes well until we seem to start meeting new people, finding out we have different opinions, or tastes from the types of people we used to talk to. This usually happens around middle school or high school. People change, and we just arn't friends anymore. I guess I've dealt with this by just moving on, and sticking with the friends that have remained, and continuing to make new friends that have the same values. See ya in class on Monday!
-Hanan

♠♥ƔƟƝ♣♦ said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
♠♥ƔƟƝ♣♦ said...

Well, I find it quite different from many. First off Humans aren't born with personalities, we pick them up which we get from the people among us. I use to be really mean, I was always the bully in girl scouts. Then I had to take manner classes and that flip-flopped my view on people, I mean I started thinking about the smaller happier things in life. I think by now that most people in my classes have been punched by me, I don't do it to be mean or teach a lesson, I don't punch to let out my anger, I punch because to me it's a way to see how much a person values my personality. You can't just say that people change and because of that you spread apart, people and YOU change, I've seen with myself and I guess with one of my friends in flordia (seeing as I haven't know anyone here for too long). The biggest change I see occuring is marriage. Way back then marriage wasn't a joke (no offense to anyone) I mean there was no such thing as divore! Nowadays marriage isn't pure, it's forced. I mean there are some cases that are real love but I doubt that over 25% is. It impacts me a lot, seeing as my own parents are divored, my dad always said that it creates an unstable mind for the childern. I haven't gone insane yet but I'm close. I mean sometimes you can tell that a kid gets enough love from home, but other times it seems as though it's just a big game between the parents as the child for the prize.
I think I rambled on for long enough...

Unknown said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin.
I agree with both Talia and Selena. We definatly live in a self-centered world. I also agree that we put down other people to try to make use look and feel better about oursevles. Even through we don't think about it when we make comments, something we say can affect and hurt other people. I also agree that people do change sometimes for the better and somethimes for the worse. I find a lot of my friends changing and acting differently. I try to not say things that would hurt someone else, but every now and again I find that I say something that hurt or affected someone else in a negative way. When I do, I try to fix my mistakes and try to make it up to them. Like Talia said,I also find myself changing, to try and fit in with everyone else. Well i'll see you bright and early Monday morning.

~Lauren

austin said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin, this is Austin O. I think that everyone around us controls how we act and treat others. As teens, i think that some people think that they will get friends from putting somebody down and trying to be funny, even if it hurts that person in the process. I believe that is what insecure people do who care what others think about them, so they change how they act, so that nobody can see the real them. If they were confident with themselves, and did not act so rude, then they would get true friends that like them for who they are. See you in all class!

Leanne ♥ said...

Mrs. Perrin,
I think that a lot of relationships in our world today change a lot. With everymove someone is left hurt or confused. I feel like while some people find it perfectly okay with hurting someone else, I do not find that okay. I find that to be disgusting that our society has come down to hurting others. I am like you. I sit back and watch what others do and I completely agree. People treat others horriblely and people just take it. The biggest changes that I have seen personally is when we go from a old school to a new school. I watched a lot of my friends change when we went from elementary school to middle school. I think meeting new people from different areas is what causes a lot fo change. I watched it happen with a lot of my friends when we went from middle school to high school. I feel like most people change when something big and new happens in their life and I think most of the time people don't even realize they are doing it. Personally, for me, I feel like this affects me just the same as it affects the person that is being put down. I feel hurt if I watch a person getting drilled into the ground by someone they are friends with. It hurts me to see others hurt and I think everyone should just sit back once and awhile and watch how others are treated. It really helped me realize how others get put down by others and how often it happens. It taught me to really think about what I say and how it may affect someone else.
-Leanne

Marissa said...

Hey Mrs. Perrin,
I see many changes occuring in the world around me. The biggest change I see is in highschool. Alot of people that are older than me and are in highschool always tell me , people will change and people who u thought were your friends will turn ur back on you. I thought to myself, is this really true? Well, i discovered the answer. One of my close friends decided she was too cool for me and found a new bestfriend. she made me feel like i wasn't good enough or "cool" enough to be her friend. I have a feeling that this is happening or has happened to alot of people so far.As a young person growing up, this is has a impact on you, but it depends on how we deal with it. Do we change so our so called friend likes us? or do we just be true to ourselves ? the decision is yours.
Marissa=)

david said...

I believe that anyone can say whatever they like without being put down for it. After all freedom of speech is in the constitution. People can criticize others without doing it to be mean.People shouldn't put others down, because everything anyone says s important.

jackie said...

Mrs. Perrin,
I totally agree with your post. Sometimes the only reason people say mean things is because they feel threatened and they want to make themselves feel better. By pushing others down it says that the people being attacked are viewed as better than others so they have to be pushed down to be made like "everyone else". I do agree with Jacob because it is surprising to see how mean people can be. It's also surprising to see how disrespctful kids can be to their parents. If I ever talked back to my parents like some of my friends do I would be kicked out of the house. I figure if my parents spend as much money as they do for me, they deserve to be treated like respectable authority. Well, I look forward to seeing your next post and I'll see you on Monday.

--Jackie

Adog said...

Change... It is always happening whether we are aware of it or not. Some of the biggest changes i see occurring around me is high school and how some people have changed, and how others haven't changed a bit for the better. It impacts me because i come into contact with change so much.

I'd like to add that Jacob's picture is a bit cliché

Nikki said...

>.< Geez, I'm late XD

Hey Mrs. P, Just Nicole :3

What sort of bothers me is some of the really big contradictions I hear about in the world. Like we've taken so long to try and eliminate discrimination and racism but really, we're all still mean, and we discriminate. I think it's an injustice, some people don't want to vote for Obama just because he's black. And gay rights are still not fully legal, which is wrong in my book =/ Just the hypocracy of this nation really upsets me and how far we've come to try and be equals with one another and then when the crunch time comes, we're still mean and won't swallow our pride and make peace.

Jahnavi said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin,
I agree with lauren, because when people put down others its usually because they want to make themselves feel better. But they never look back and see that they are really hurting them. I also believe that friendships are one of the biggest changes today because as we get older we start to realize who we are and usually that comes from who we hang around with. This is a big change in my life because the people I hang around with today aren't who i used hang around with when i was in elementary school. I think that most of these changes happen in middle school and more in high school because we meet new people and try to fit in with them and how they are, and soon we lose our old friendships.

~jahnavi

Jacob said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jacob said...

Hello Mrs.Perrin. Again i find myself at your blog to comment. I re-read your post, and i thought of my friends. My friends and i are complete jerks to each other. We use sarcasm non-stop, and interrupt each other, and put each other down all the time. I have grow a custom to it. I really don't even notice it happening to me anymore. Some of the biggest changes i see happening around me, and my peers, is the way people are acting. Now that we are all in highschool, i can already see people changing, we're finding different friends, doing different activities. It influences me very much so, because i too, am changing, i've gained many friends, as well as lost many. I've started doing things that i didn't used to. And stopped doing things that used to be normal. As far as changes in the world, it seems that many of our changes have to do with the economy. I personally don't like economy. Therefor i don't pay very close attention to it, and it does not impact me very much. I'll see you tomorrow in the Media Center! Woo!
-Jacob

P.S. Thanks to whoever said my picture was cliche. lol

Carme said...

I agree. I think that all people probably had put someone down sometime during their lifetime. Some people are sometimes mean to others because they're insecure or afraid of getting hurt. Others, I believe, be mean to show that they're cool to other people and try to impress them by acting like the famous people and stars that they see on t.v. Sometimes I think that people treat others meanly because they're growing up and having difficulty getting used to this brand new environment they were put in. Like high school, for example. You hear and see a lot more fights then you would ever hear in middle school. I think people having trouble adjusting is a major reason why people are mean to each other.

Nathan Geiss said...

Hey Mrs. Perrin i finaly got this thing to work. Some of the biggest change i see in my life is the election of Sen. Obama. This is the biggest change because it showed us how The U.S.A.has change from being a country full of black slaves to a country with a black president. This has effected me because there was so much arguement between races that could have ended worse than what happened. so it has helped me grow to be a non-racist person.

Unknown said...

One of the biggest changes I see in the world right now would have to be the election of Barack Obama,the first African-American President in the history of the United States. This affects me because as a bi-racial citizen, like Obama, unlimited opportunities exist for me and other people from different countries in the United States.

-Hiroki

Perkinsdrummer66 said...

I was waiting for someone to mention Obama. All he's talked about is change.As soon as I read the post I knew Obama was going to be mentioned.i'm psyhic that way.Later -Perkins

Constantly Emily said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin, this is Emily Dushek. Why can't conversations be about connection, not disconnection? Good question. One that I've asked myself dozens of times, only not in quite that wording. I don't know. People are mean, that's just the way it is. Sometimes I honestly think a bit of it is approprioate, I think alot of people just need to man up, because it's life and it's hard and we have to deal. But, on the flip side people are way to harsh and evil and it's making the world a not-so-pleaseant-all-the-time place to be. People are getting meaner and meaner too, as you get older, because they are stepping into the cold, harsh, real world and that's how you make it out there. If you can't fit comfortably where you are, you feel the need to step on people and push yourself in front of them so that you will make it, and that's just how it is. I'm not particularly happy about it, but I can't change the world.

Unknown said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin, this is Kirstie.
I think some of the biggest changes that i see is in my friends. Since we started High School some of my friends have drifted away to become friends with other people. It really makes you think about if you did anything wrong to make them discontinue the friendship.
-Kirstie

JESS(:! said...

hello(:
Change is somthing that happens alot as you get older i think mostly in highschool.
I think somtimes you just have to get use to the change and its somtimes going to be really hard because maybe you'll lost a best friend or you just cant find anywhere to fit in. Just dont let that change who you are and i think its KEY in life to be yourself, dont ever change who you are to be like somebody else or to fit in. Its dumb and just not cool. I figured out the hard way, and lost my best friend that i had since 2nd grade, just this year.
Just ingor them and dont let them walk allover you. I always think of it as The only people you need in your life are the ones that prove they need you in yours. SO JUST BE YOUURSELF and get try to get use to change(:
-jess

Andy or Tyler said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Andy or Tyler said...

Hi, it's Andy. Wow, let me tell you how hard it was to get on this website. It took ages.

Anyway, I think that the way that people talk isn't taken very seriously anymore. I mean, I walk up to my friends all the time and they will make some sarcastic remark on how my shoes stink and that no one will ever like me. Or I will go up to a friend and say something so sarcasticly mean that it actualy turns out to be mean. These kind of things happen everywhere you look. I deffinately know that you are against it because if someone says "SHUT UP!" in your class they have to write out a green slip. I think that everyone has gotten used to the disrespectful way that people talk to eacy other. The everyday phrases that people use all the time would have been preposterously mean ten years ago.

I can't even walk down the hall without hearing 15 bad words, about 700 creative ways to insult someone, and people saying bad things about someone else behind their backs. I mean, COME ON!! Can the world just be nice for a day? Can everyone just stand up and say "ENOUGH! JUST SHUT UP AND BE NICE TO SOMEONE!"

(don't worry. I will make sure that no one says that in your class!)

Anonymous said...

Mrs. Perrin,
I have to disagree with you. Alot of times people are put down. When I am put down or when I put another person down I interpurt it as a chance to grow. I think that when you insult someone else it shows them there airs and it gives them an oppurtunity to correct them. Or when people are insulted it is becouse they need it. That sounds mean but alot of times people have to big of egos and become to arrogent for there own good (example, Barrack Obama). They usely need to get brought down a little or they will come crashing to the ground all at once.

Connecting to another person in my view is over rated. I do connect with friends and when I do, nothing is usually achieved. When I dont connect with them, both of us tend to benifit more. This is becouse when both of you agree its just like sitting around and nodding at what your saying.

Yes I do see lots of changes as I have grown up. Most of the changes are steps in the wrong direction. Change is a big word this year, when you here it, you think that it is neccasary. The problem is the country is changing in the wrong direction. We do not need liberalism, marxism, socialism or communism. That is not the change we need. We need the change back, to Reagen Conservitism.

My final point is that I do agree with Marisa and Hanan about how you don't always keep the same friends that you used to have. I have gotten rid of friends and others have done the same to me. Im not proud about leaving friends behind to be "cool" but Im not going to cover it up. If we would become a more accepting society everyones life would be much better.

Kevin A.

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

Hello. This is Tom. Looking at the world we live in, some of the biggest changes that I see occuring are gas prices, music styles and language arts assignments. The gas prices don't affect me. The music styles obviously have an impact on me because I listen to music. Most bands are drifting away from the nine-minute long metal songs and more into rock styles with more positive-sounding beats. It affects me because I'm in a band and the music that I listen to affects how I think and what mood I'm in. If I'm in a bad mood I listen to some five-iron frenzy or green day and I feel better. Language arts used to be all about getting out a piece of paper and writing for a while, then throwing it all out and writing almost the same thing again. Now, we are doing more journals, and more importantly, blogs. It impacts me by showing how the world is changing by getting more high-tech. Bye-bye, now.

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

Hi this is tom. I really like that blog right above this one. I hope you do, too.

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

Me three!

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

Wow! a phd! that's impressive!

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

this is really, really, really fun.

Tom Ludwig, PHD said...

I just posted the 40th comment! I'm over the hill!

Andy or Tyler said...

Hello Mrs. Perrin, its Tyler. Fancy little website you have set up. Just so you know, me and andy share the same email, so if something weird happens, its because our email is shared.

One of the biggest changes I've noticed, was that people change. Sometimes its for good, and sometimes not. Now I have this friend, and he's pretty weird, maybe I've mentioned him in class. He use to be cool to me, but now he's a jerk. You know, he use to hang around, but now he stopped hanging around and dispises everyone that I hang around with, he's all like: "OMG! Your friends are so uncool and jerks!" and I'm all "Yeah your right, you sure are, OHHHHHHHHHHH! You just got Burned!"

Sorry if i ranted mrs. Parrin, i do that a lot when I type. Also, sorry if I misspelled, I just like to throw my ideas down, rather than think about how to spell them.

Thank you,

-"Dr." Tyler "Hugo" "Goliath" Golias (Yes, I have 3 nicknames)

Unknown said...

Mrs. Perrin,
i think that one of the biggest changes i see occurring in the world is that everyone does things to help themselves. people always think to themselves "what can i get out of doing this?" or "why should i do it if im only helping someone else?" no one takes the time to do things just for the sake of being nice or helpful for no reason. im worried about our generation and the ones after us because we're growing up in a world where everyone is selfish, we hardly know what its like to be giving people because we think everything is about us. we think our problems are the most important thing in the world and that everyone should focus on us, and how could their life be worse than mine? it stinks, but what can we do about it?

Emily Hotz said...

Hi Mrs. Perrin, its Emily Hotz. I just wanted to start out by saying that i deffinitly agree that when were seeing other people getting talked about in mean ways, it can be funny, but when were the one's getting talked to like that, we don't like it. And yet, we still continue to talk about other people. I guess people that do this thinks it makes them feel less insecure about themselves, but it doesnt. By talking about someone else, your not taking away your insecurities at all,your just making the other person's worse. People don't realize how badly words hurt, and sometimes it gets to the point where it can ruin a relationship. Teenagers think its really funny to start rumors, and talk about people, but its not. Its really sad to see people's friendships end becasue they find the need to talk about them, or be mean to them. I think that its become natural for some people to not think before they talk, and say whatever their thinking, even if it will hurt someone else.
see you in class
emily.

j.spear(: said...

I saw changes in the people that used to be my friends. i stoped trusting them because the moved so far apart and didnt care if i got hurt in the process of it. they changed so much that they ended up talking behind my back and i had to end the friendship one way or another.

I also think it is so low to talk about people just to feel better about themsevels. I am a victim of this and it only got worse as time went on. i realize the people doing this to me are almost watching my every move. They would make fun of the stupid things i do just to make me mad. like the way i say words and the way i tap a pencil against a desk right before a test. Now that i think about it i realizes that its the stupidest thing i have ever heard of.

i also think people know that you shouldn't make fun of other people but still do it anyways. i know the person who did it to me knows its wrong, been told to stop, but still wont.
--jessica spear

Michelle =) said...

Hello Mrs. Perrin!! This is Michelle. Just to let you know. I completely agree with your post. I, too am an observer. It interests me to watch the humans interact with others. Even though they cannot always say nice things. Nowadays, people do things mainly to help themselves and don't necessarily care about others. People tend to say mean things to hurt others or to be considered "cool". Either way it's not. I agree with what Jena said too! Go Jena! I also admire Tom's pride in his own work!!
Well, see you in class! Have a great weekend... =)Michelle!

Ashley Carver said...

I believe that we put eachother down to show how insecure we are.It shows how we dislike ourselfs but instead of handleing that dislike we attack other's dislikes and malfunctions.

Dillon said...

One of the changes i've noticed is the falling economy. change has affected me alot mostly because ive had to move every few years since i was born. in some ways change is good andin some ways its bad. I find that after a change i have to adjust and get used to things and as soon as i get used to them, they go and change again.

Unknown said...

Hello Mrs. Perrin,
I think people should be nicer to eachother and I try to do my best in being nice all the time because I want people to think kindly me of me and besides, I get really sad when I hurt others with my words.

bsman132 said...

Hey Mrs. P.
Yeah I guess I agree with what the blog post thing says. I never am really on the giving end or recieving end of any of those types of things. They may hurt people some of the time but it is a lot of the times funny. Yeah I know my views are kind of demented but hey, its just who I am. Oh well I cant do anything about who I am.
Bunting

Beth said...

Mrs.Perrin,

I would have to say I agree with your post 100%! I would have to say that as I grow up I realize that people you know change. I have had that happen to me many times before. People can just be total jerks sometimes and get enjoyment from putting others down because they think its funny but really its not funny at all. Its pretty sad that people do those types of things.

Okay well have a good weekend!
-Beth Helbley

Unknown said...

hi mrs. perrin.
This is katie taylor in ninth period.
Some of the biggest changes i see occuring in the world we live in today is that people, like you said are treated unfairly, and thats puts others in a position where they are negative. one change i see is that people dont understand that little sarcasm can hurt. people should be treated more fairly and they should learn to respect others. This can affect the world quickly because if someone doesnt have enough respect to not harm others then others will catch on and do the same. all those innocent people who have no slef respect or no self esteem will always be pushed around. when people give up their own self respect they are giving others the oppertunity to critize or to let others disrespect them. its hard to see this going on in the world today, because without respect, we have no boundries. we can go freely and do as we please without the consequences of others saying how that hurts them. a big change i see occuring today, is when people are disrespectfu in class and dont think that is it wrong. I think that teens today have a bad judgement on things that can and cannot harm them. (I could go on and on but its almost 7)
from.....Katie ")

Nathan Geiss said...

i can't find your new blog!

Perkinsdrummer66 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Perkinsdrummer66 said...

I thought the new post was suposed to be at 7. Oh well, check in later peace -Perkins

Bryan said...

One of the biggest changes I believe in my life is the presidential elections. Soon we will be searching for jobs and this will affect us.

Bryan