Please read this blog carefully and consider your thoughts and your responses for a bit before answering.
Passion. Courage. Conviction. These words are largely subjective, completely abstract and open to interpretation; therefore, indefinable in traditional senses. I would like you to look them up before you answer this week's blog question. Once you do that, consider the following:
What is it in your own life, this life that you have been given, that you think you would die for? Do the three words play into your answer in any way? If you need a more solid jumping-off point, ask yourself this: given the denotation of the words passion, courage and conviction what is it in your life that can inspire these seemingly esoteric concepts?
What is your passion; what gives you courage; about what do you hold an unshakeable conviction?
Once you answer those questions, go back to the original--what would you die for? Do your answers to the second set of questions fall in line with the first? Do you think there should be things you would die for? Why or why not?
Finally, do you think the natural follow-up to this question should be: What do you live for? I sort of do...so....yeah. Talk about that, too. Are what you'd die for and what you live for the same? Why or why not? What does that tell you? So.....many...questions... better get started. :)
Be true to yourself and answer these questions in the best way you know how.
Sometimes I feel like there are words where there is no point to looking them up, I still did for the sake of thinking deeply about this blog post, but, passion, courage and conviction are like blank spaces in writing. If any kind of word is open to the most connotative coloration, it is this kind. The kind that are open to interpretation, that can be good or bad, that can evoke completely different responses from a person depending on who you ask. This is why there is no point to looking it up I feel. The definitions that I got were just as ambiguous as the words themselves. I also think that this ambiguity is what gives these words so much weight, that when you are asked about your passions, you immediately think of what you are so passionate about, that you would be willing to die for it, which makes sense in relation to this blog.
ReplyDeleteIf there is anything that I am willing to die for, it would have to be for someone else. It doesn’t have to be anything particular, because as I said, passion is ambiguous so if I were defending a person for their passion, that could mean many different things and therefore many different reasons for me to die. I say that I would die for someone else, because dying for the sake of some sort of preservation of my person is pointless. Why would I die to defend my opinion if dying would mean that I would no longer be able to defend that opinion because, obviously defending is hard to do when you’re a pile of ashes. I guess I could include that I would die rather than go against my beliefs and morals, but that wouldn’t be dying for something but more dying against. I say dying against because you would then allow you life to be taken as a move against those challenging your views rather than for a positive purpose. I know that’s confusing but in other words, if I die for anything it will be for someone else for whatever reason. The only time I would die for myself so to speak was if dying was the alternative to going for something I really, really don’t approve of.
I realize this is all very vague but because there is so much up to interpretation, I can’t help it. I don’t want to say specifics and later change my mind. This is a really touchy subject, we’re talking about our lives after all so I want to make sure I make no exaggerations or understatements. As to courage and conviction, I don’t think either are relatable. In reality, if we are forced to make a decision of whether to allow our lives to be taken, I doubt we are going to have enough time to really contemplate the choice. In my case, where I would more likely be saving someone else, it would be an instinct so having courage to do the act and conviction that it is the right decision don’t really come into play.
As to what I live for, I hate to be cliche, but I live for everyday. I try to live in the here and now. To include at least some specifics into this blog, I live for the overwhelming feeling of satisfaction and comfort I get when I first crawl into bed and when I naturally wake up on the weekends. I live to see the leaves change color in the fall and then come back again in the spring and I live to go on long kayak rides in the summer down the river. I live to hear all of the peepers and crickets at night during the warm months and the silence right after heavy snowfall. Then of course, I live for the interaction with other human beings that continue to shape who I am as a human everyday, making each day a growing process. So whether I live or die tomorrow, I know it will be in pursuit of the things I admire in life.
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DeleteTommi, I think the best way to respond to this blog post was to be vague. I understand and agree with your point that you would die for someone. In that sense I see that you are kind enough to give up your life in the help for another person. As for what you live for, I admire your reasons that mostly revolve around nature and the sounds it produces. You are really living for everyday and that would be honestly one of the best things to live for! This was a great respond!
DeleteTommi, when you mentioned being something like a martyr, I automatically thought of the quote "When the dreamer dies what happens to the dream"? I was also fond of your decomposition of dying for something and dying against something. I never thought of things in such an organized manner. I also enjoyed your statement about being vague about death. We are so young and unseasoned in this world, it may be difficult for us to find something that we would actually die for or die against. I found it interesting that you are living for all of the days; as silly as this sounds, I pick and choose which days I live for. You appear to have a much better grasp on life than I do, keep your mentality and don't ever let anyone take that away from you.
DeleteTommi, honestly, you are very courageous, not many people in this world of ours are willing to give up their lives for someone. such bravery I believe could be found on the battle field. Being vague about death, was an important statement to point out. The idea thrown into this blog was very good "nature". i agree with you, it important to live in the present. Good Job.
DeleteI adored your reason for why you live. For lack of a better word, it's so cute. To summarize, you basically live for everything. You live because you are a live and you live for that experience of living. You're point of view is so optimistic that I can feel myself getting just a little bit more hopeful about life and everything it has to offer. What's the point of being bitter when everything you could ever possibly need is right there in front of you waiting at your disposal. I know you love the very essence of nature and it's something I've grown to admire about you. It's such a simple thing to live by and I think that's what makes it so significant and admirable.
DeleteI agree that those words 'passion, courage, and conviction' immediately bring different things to mind for different people. Almost everything we hear is clouded by our our emotions and our own unique perspectives; this is true for words as well as sayings or even whole stories. In addition, it is certainly respectable to feel like the only true reason to die is for someone else's sake. That shows a great deal of compassion for other people even if you are only willing to give your life for those close to you. And I also admire your decision not to say too much because it is true our feelings and opinions change on things all the time; you can't really know what you're going to do until that moment.
DeleteThe ambiguity that is present in these three concepts is completely understandable especially because everyone perceives these aspects in different ways. No matter how specific you are, it is almost impossible to apply a clear definition of these elements to something so complex as life, death, and a situation involving both. My reasons for living were similar to yours. As much as life brings me down, I could never imagine giving up the even the smallest indulgences of life.
DeleteIt's safe to say I think has been the hardest blog post yet. Maybe not for you, but 100% for me. I read over the post about 5 times and still just sat with a blank stare, as if there was going to be something jump out of the computer screen. Passion, courage and conviction. Just a reminder to myself to hit those three words. I can honestly say when "What would you die for?" registered into my brain I immediately knew the answer. I would die for anybody really. If it came down to it, I would jump in front of a bullet for a stranger. Nobody should have to die, especially something other than a really old natural death. I would die for all the abused animals, and hope to God that my one life would bring back 5 of theirs. I would die for the helpless people in the world who aren't as fortunate that have family dying everyday. I don't need 90% of the things I have, and i would simply die if that could better somebody else's chance of living or living a better life at that matter. Conviction? I'm usually only familiar with this word during my long nights of watching law and order SVU episodes. But I don't really like the definition of conviction as being somebody is guilty of something. "A firmly held belief or opinion," is the definition I'm going to stick to, which also ties in with courage. To die for something or someone is quite frankly a yes or a no option to the person or thing. It doesn't take courage, you're either born somebody who could die for somebody, or you're not. Neither are wrong- you're just born with that thought process or you're not I believe. Passion definitely comes into play with this aspect of who I am. I am more than passionate towards the act of giving, which I mentioned in a previous blog. And yes- the act of giving in my eyes goes as far as to giving my life up for a better cause, easily. There is a really big difference in what live for, as oppose to what I would die for. I wold die for anybody, but I don't live for that general population of "anybody." I think I live for the people that I want to make proud. And yes that could change all the time, but hey, you have to live for the present. I live for those who aren't with me anymore, I live for my Pop-Pop, my dad, my poppy- all those men who I didn't have to see me grow up so strong. Overall though, I live for myself. I come first and sometimes I seem to forget that but at the end of the day I need to make myself happy and live for myself. If everybody were to leave me one day, I would still be here fighting for myself- so I need to keep living for myself.
ReplyDeleteAubree, this respond reminded me of myself a lot. Most of how you answered would be the way I would answer. I like to give back, in which if I were to be in the position of taking my life to save that of another's, I would because I find that as being the humanity type of thing to do, give back to those in need. I also like how you live for yourself! That is true, it is your life, your decisions and you're the one living it! This was a great respond, really caught my attention.
DeleteAubs, I found it rather noble of you that you would die for nearly anyone. I believe that means you have a true dedication to those around you. From reading your response, I found that I am rather hesitant to die for some people. Maybe I'm afraid of the possible pain that may come along with death or maybe I fear the overall process of dying. Whatever it is that is holding me back, you have the to courage to overlook it which is simply amazing. I truly hope to one day harness your valiance and save an innocent person.
DeleteAubree, this is incredible. what would I die for? that is deep, as I have never thought of that question before. I agree with you on the fact that we live for ourselves despite our love ones also being an important reason why we live. I appreciate the thoughts being applied in your blog. You are a brave person to die for some people.
DeleteWow, I knew you were going to say something like that because you such a honest and considerate person. I think that deing for a stranger, for any odd, reason has to be one the bravest things I heard because no one would have the audicity to do such a thing. I laud you for having the courage to say these words. I agree with your opinion because we should appreciate other people and willing to fight for others who may seem trivial to us.
DeleteI am really impressed with the amount of passion (see what I did there) that you infused your writing with. I am even more impressed that you would be willing to die for almost anyone. Me personally, I don't think I have the courage to do that. Like you said, some people are born with the ability to be so fearless of death and others aren't. There are some people I would die for but really, if the moment came where I had to take the bullet or not, I'm not entirely sure of how I would react. It's nice to hear someone like you be so firm in everyone's right to live and respect that.
DeleteI like that you took the time to figure out everything that meant something to you and put it into the idea of what you'd die for. Your response shows how selfless you really are. I admire that besides your family, you thought to include the importance of strangers and even animals that don't have the strength to speak out or protect themselves against a greater threat.
DeleteHaving read the words, “what would you die for?” the thought of family immediately rushed my mind. I think it’s safe to say that most of us would die on behalf of their family. Whether it be to sacrifice your lively hood in exchange of sparing someone you care about, family was an immediate answer that popped up into my mind. However, as much as I would/will die for my loved ones, for the sake of going outside-the-box, I decided to ponder on this question just a while longer. Asides from the obvious answer, I chose to dig deep down into the crevices of my mind and ask myself, “Is there one thing, one thing at all, that I would go above and beyond for? What would I risk everything for? Is it someone specific? Or is it an idea?” Finding answers to these questions were not easy, but I think I’ve finally come up with a suitable answer.
ReplyDeleteIf there’s one thing I would die for, it would be for the sake of proving everyone who has doubted me wrong. I’ve always been a firm believer of the quota, “follow your dreams” and while others stand at a more practical point of view, I tend to be that person who takes “the road less traveled by.” Life isn’t fair, and everyone has their share of ups and downs, but I think if one truly puts in all their effort into a cause or belief, they can achieve it. It’s a cliche thing to say, but I firmly believe that nothing is impossible. I thought of this answer solely because college is nearing the corner and having to decide what you want to do in life is fast approaching. My mother and I have constant arguments with my choice of major, journalism/mass communication, and while she still urges me to pursue medicine, I always refuse. My dream is to one day become a successful reporter. I know that journalism is a very competitive field and I know that the pay is poor, but I would rather pursue my dreams than have hundreds of thousands of dollars doing something I loathe each and everyday. I know achieving my dreams and aspirations won’t be easy, but I don’t care. I will endure anything and everything to get to my goals, and when I know I’ve reached those goals, I can happily say to myself, and to everyone who’s scoffed at my trivial choices, that I did it. I would die for this moment. I would die for the moment where every single doubt my aunts, uncles, and mother has given me is put to rest. I would die to prove that my dreams can actually become reality.
In relation to what I would die for, I live for adventure. It’s such a naive thing to say, but it’s true. I crave adventure. However, my definition for adventure does not limit to climbing mountains and sailing oceans. Experiencing change is an adventure. Meeting new people is an adventure. Traveling to places I’ve never been is an adventure. I love the feeling of adrenaline rushing through my veins whether it be from jumping off a 855ft tower (which I have done by the way) or just the adrenaline of meeting someone you connect with, I love it all. In a sense, you could say that I live for happiness. While happiness is not always present 24/7, everyday that I am happy is a day well lived. We are given this life not to sulk for 80 years, but to enjoy the amenities of the world and those who inhabit it. I have my bad days and I have my really bad days, but those are just a few days out of all my happy days. I strive to live everyday like it’s my last. Don’t worry about the future, don’t worry about the past, just worry about today. I live for today.
Paula, I like how you dug deeper and besides saying you would die for your family, which I completely agree with, you also would die for a moment. That was powerful for me to read. I think dying for something that relates to you reaching your goals in life with what makes you happy is definitely something I would agree with! I would die for moments like these that revolve around me, which is why I think this was a great respond and makes me wish I were able to come up with this idea before reading your post haha. But in any case, I really like how you went deeper with this blog, it really was a great respond!
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DeleteYour belief that you would die to prove that your dreams have worth is powerful. It's a unique take on the question because it's not exactly something physical, or another individual you are saving. I also found your desire to live for adventure interesting because while I am the exact opposite and tend to avoid new, unknown situations in the end we are both striving for the same thing- happiness. I think that's an important thing to live for and we all achieve happiness in different ways. As long as your happiness doesn't come at the cost of others then that is an admirable goal as any. And I firmly believe that we should live life to the fullest as well because it is the only time we are given. It just differs for some people what exactly that may mean.
DeleteThis blog post really hit me, but caught my attention nonetheless. To think about passion, courage, and conviction I only see how one would really play a roll in what I would die for. I have a strong emotion, or passion in giving back to those in need or even just those who have helped me in the past. Being that I am passionate about giving back to anyone really, I can conclude that I would die for anyone in particular that deserves to continue living. I would want to give back to those who fought hard or were bonhomie to everyone around them. The people in this world who don't think of themselves first and instead always put others first, I would die for them. I would die for those who have already suffered from past events and are in need in a brighter future. There are so many all-around great people in this world, in which I would die to give back too because everyone deserves to live a full, happy life. Not many people would believe me saying I would jump in front of a moving bus to save the life of an unaware child, but it's not courage that is needed to do something so heroic like that, it comes during the moment. Though I have never saved someone's life before, I would make that jump if need be. Now when I state I would die for "particular people who deserve to live" I by no means am trying to say there are some people who don't deserve to live; because in my view I believe every one deserves to live happily and equally. When I say "deserve" I am focusing in on all the people in the world who have not done something terribly wrong like purposely kill someone else or many other people with the evil content, because those people made others suffer and I don't see why I should die for something that purposely murdered or harmed someone else (with all due respect). But in any matter most of the people out there I would die for because people deserve to live! With all that being said I must look onto what I would live for. Easy enough, I reply with, I live for myself. This is my life, my choices, options and decisions. It's up to me how I look each day or how I perform in school or gymnastics. It's up to me for what type of friends I hangout with, or choose to stay away from. This is my life, I want to live each day to its fullest, making every moment count. I would not be able to do this if I were living for someone else and not for what makes me happy!
ReplyDeleteI really admire your belief that it's worth dying for other people who have given back to the world, so to speak. I try not to think that any human life is worth me than any other life because we are all individuals with our own consciousness but it is true that there are people out there who provide so much to the world. And they are people that should be cherished because there are millions of people out there who are not kind or giving or selfless at all. And I really wish I could have your courage and compassion for strangers or in general. So keep that conviction and strong sense of right because that sets you apart from most people.
DeleteMichaela, I respect and agree with your opinion. I think that your compassion supports your williningness to help others. I also like how you said that there are not people who should die because everyone was given the right to live. Determing if someone has worth of living is hard because that decision would be cruel.
DeleteI liked that you specified that you would save the life of those who deserve it. I also understand that there is a rather shady line between what makes a person deserve an elongated life and one who doesn't. We are after all, talking about life here. It's no small gift. But for that reason, I have to disagree with you, but in an ambiguous way. I think I would be a lot more selective in deciding for whom to die. I don't mean to sound selfish in that, it's just that, you have just as much potential to go on and do great things for the world as the random person who also deserves to live. I just don't have the courage you have to die for that other person especially if I don't know them.
DeleteEveryone talked about dying in expense for another person, but what made yours stand out what that you specified that person as someone who deserved it. It's quite admirable actually, how you'd die for anyone, deserving of course, even if you didn't know them. As for what you live for, I love how you can easily say "I live for myself" and not sound one bit selfish. You're personality in itself is selfless and I can't help but admire that. It takes a very kind person to be as selfless as you are and I can only hope that one day I can acquire that trait.
DeleteMichaela I agree with your belief, since like you I would die for anyone. But I didn't really give much thought into what type people I would save. I'd like to think that no matter what someone has done good or bad, it'd still be worth giving up my life. I'd hope that seeing me sacrifice myself up may push them in a better direction in life to do something good.
DeleteMichaela I truly respect your opinion and belief. I loved that you want to save someone who helped the world because that is how I believe. I believe that there are certain people that contribute more to the world than others and because of that I would die to save these heroes lives. Because these are the people who can actually change the world for the better and the world definitely need people like them. I don’t know if I have the necessary motive to risk my life but if I could I will be sad but I will be satisfied. I love this world but with all it evil and trouble I don’t know if it will change. However if someone who can actually provide the world some sort of hope than I will risk my life and be satisfied but I will be sad. So great job on this blog Michaela and I hope that I can be like you to fully risk my life to save others.
DeleteFirst of all, I admire you for your ability to say exactly what it is that you are willing to die for, especially for people who have given something back to the world. It's crazy to think that you can say that you would be able to die for someone that you never even knew, that's a huge statement. I see what you're saying in that you would die for people who 'deserve' your sacrifice, but what exactly is the criteria that deciphers who should live and who should die? Like Tommi said, you deserve to go on and live just as much as the perfect stranger you'd be giving your life up for, so I think that your selection process should be a bit more fine tuned.
DeleteI specifically liked when you acknowledged that the action of sacrificing is not necessarily courageous or even conscious. We had some degree of an automatic moral compass and the notion that sacrifice can effectively "give back" to others is one that isn't exactly universal.
DeleteHaha yes Mickey! We're in agreement! I would do the same thing; I would die for whoever deserves to keep living. Questions like this should transcend selfishness and I'm happy to see that you did. I expected nothing less.
DeleteIt's really hard to answer a question like 'what would you die for?' when you consider what death actually is. Death is the end. It's a cutoff point. Once you die there is nothing else. This is an extremely hard concept to wrap your head around if you don't believe in any sort of afterlife like myself. Once you die there are no second chances, there is no continue point, there is nothing. Nothing and you won't even realize it's nothing because your brain will no longer be firing and you will no longer be thinking. Death is the end of you. And it terrifies me when I think about this. It scares the hell out of me to know that my existence could end any day for a countless number or reasons. A freak accident or a sudden illness- however it happened the end result would be the same. There would be no more me. There would be nothing left in life I could do. And if that doesn't terrify you on some deep level than perhaps you have not considered this concept deep enough. So when you ask 'what would you die for?' I would love to say that I would die for my family and friends or for the good of the human race. That I would give my own life in a time of danger to keep them safe. But I know what the truth is. I know that I am too selfish and too cowardly to ever follow through with that sentiment if the situation arose. Afterwards the guilt would certainly drive me into misery but in that moment when I was faced with the choice- I don't know if I could take it. Would any of you be able to say with absolute conviction that you could throw your life away like that? My instinctual need to survive and my deep-seated fear of death would still my own hands and quench my bravery. I am not proud to say this or anything; I am simply acknowledging what I know to be the truth. And if others have conviction in something and believe with all their heart that they would give their life for that... Then I can't help but admire them. They are stronger people than I. People who are truly like that are few and far between but that is what makes them admirable. They go beyond base human instincts and exercise and incredibly strong willpower. So it's not like everyone needs something they would die for. If you lack something that you would sacrifice life and limb for that does not make you a lesser person. Rather it is the rare few individuals who do carry that passion, and courage, and conviction.
ReplyDeleteWhat I would live for is an equally hard question that brings me to an equally weak conclusion. I don't think I'm living for anything extraordinary and earth shattering- rather I am living for the little things that brighten my dad and remind me that life is something wonderful. Getting to talk with my friends or going outside and enjoying a spring afternoon or getting invested in a new game... these things are nothing amazing or noteworthy. But to me they make life enjoyable. I want to live for just that: things I enjoy. And if I can find work that I can enjoy, I will live for that. If I find someone whom I love, I will live for that too. It's not one concrete thing I go through life seeking. Rather I find enjoyment in the small things and glean my happiness from that. I take this moments as they come and remind myself that even if things hit rock bottom there will always be better things in the future. Perhaps I'm living my life wrong because I'm not chasing after some esoteric ideal or world-changing work but I am happy with it. And I think that's one of the most important things.
I admire your honesty when dealing with the question, of whether or not you would die for anything or anyone. I can't remember what TV show, or if I read it from a novel, that talked about two girls who were in a shop together. There was a gunman who pointed the gun at one of the girls, while the other just stood there. For the sake of not confusing you, let's pretend that the girl standing there was Abby. Abby decided to jump in front of the gun blocking the man from her friend, let's just say, Molly. The gun man gave her an option. Either step a side and let her friend die, or stay there and die in place of her friend. Abby stepped aside. Do you think she did the right thing? Do you think she did the wrong thing? I don't have an answer to those questions, because if I put myself in her position, I honestly don't know what I would do. I don't know if I'd let him pull the trigger and let the bullet hit me. It's a scary thing to think about but I can honestly say that I do not know. While other's can judge me for not saying "I'd take the bullet" I don't care, because while others might say they'd take the hit, you'd never know until the time actually came. It's a scary thought, and just thinking about this gives me goosebumps. I don't think your selfish for wanting to preserve your life. It's admirable honestly, that you're courageous enough to say that. As for I? I don't know if I could. I don't know.
DeleteDeath on your side is well said. just like you it is hard for me to find reasons to die for someone, I think because I am not as courageous as others. I always thought it was only in movies when someone sacrificed his life for someone. I cant tell the reaction of others in real life situations but the truth is, hidden within our inner self and only time would tell. I always held myself to the truth especially when it comes to death because I don't categorize myself among the brave just like you and there is only a few people who are brave. it takes an unconditional love to die for someone. I love your blog and the honesty shown . GOOD JOB.
DeleteJust like you, I am absolutely scared of death. I absolutely hate the topic and dread whenever someone brings it up, which is why I freaked out when I first saw this blog. I admire you for being honest in your response. Truth is, I actually discussed this with Alonna when I first saw this blog. I would love to say that I would die for my family and do anything to save them, but I really don’t know what would happen to me if I were put in that situation. I am a cowardly person and I have a gut feeling that I would not be able to move if such a life-threatening event happened right in front of me. It’s such a scary thought and I really don’t know what I would do in that situation. I value my life, but would I be able to live with the family that has always been there for me? I really don’t know.
DeletePaige, I absolutely loved your response. Often times before writing my own blog posts I read responses from other people to try to get the ball rolling for my own writing. And as I read the first few responses to this particular blog, I was frightened by the fact that I simply could not relate to anyone that wholeheartedly claimed that they knew exactly what or who they would sacrifice their lives for. I thought to myself as I read "do they really understand what they are saying" because similarly to you I am terrified of death and the unknown nature of everything that has to do with dying. And I contemplated, just as you did, how very serious it is to say that you would willingly die for someone or something. I do not in any way think that you are a bad person for saying that, I admire your honesty and I feel the exact same way on the topic.
DeleteI also think that death is a really complicated subject to fathom. People are so willing to say they would die for countless things before they actually think about death and that there is seriously nothing after you die, and you can’t ever go back. I totally agree with you that death is scary and no one really wants to think about it. Just like you I don’t think I am brave enough to just take my life for someone or something.
DeleteI think the reason why death scares me so much is because I am fully aware of what dying actually entails. Your description of death is exactly what I think of which is why it scares me so much. I don't think that not giving up your life for someone else makes you a selfish person. Your life is something to cherish and hold on to for as long as you can. It is completely understandable that you would save your life over someone else's in that situation because the concept of death is so much scarier than we may think.
DeleteI think reading this made me a little ashamed I didn't put as much thought into my own answer because I'm lazy. I said everyone should have a thing to die for, but after going through people's posts I just keep thinking I was wrong and doing that thing where you just shut off your brain and finish assignments because your heart and mind were left somewhere else and just ick. Now all I can think about is that and how death is the eternal aposiopesis. There is nothing. How am I supposed to be able to imagine the end of my own existence? I think that's why I'm not scared. I'll freak out about things the same as anything else, but my lack of caring about the nothingness, or just the unwillingness to think about it for too long, is what makes it bearable for me, and makes me think I could die for something. But I don't know maybe it's just wishful thinking I guess.
DeleteI really appreciate that you took the time to stress the true meaning of what it is to die. I think a huge threat to a blog topic like this is that people become too cliche without realizes all the possible consequences and circumstances. I think a lot of people would be shocked if they were somehow able to see what they would truly die for. And it is not a all selfish that you don't think you could do something like save your family, as you said it is simply the truth. Anyone who criticizes you for that is just being overly idealistic. So I applaud you for your realistic approach to this blog.
ReplyDeleteAs you can see whenever we see those horrible war movies in Cervi’s class, I think that I might just have a heart attack .Death is something that scares me the most. Thinking about death is very scary and thinking about dying for someone is even scarier, so my response may be the dumbest one. To be completely honest, I would die for those that mean the most to me. My dad, mom, brother, and sister are the only people that I would die for because they mean so much to me and have made the person I am today. My passion that I have for my family is bigger than that for other people. I see, share, and live with my family every day, and I am so thankful for having them in my life. I would do anything for those individuals(even if the consequence means death)and I wouldn’t regret anything because I know that they will always be by my side. When I look at all the problems that my family has faced, I can say that all the words--passion, courage, conviction--are incorporated and thats why I would die for them. My passion is to have a connection with other people that would do the same thing that I would unto them. My passion is to, one day, help those that have helped me the most.. To me, Courage comes from those that have shown you it and your heart and desire. My parents have shown me courage because of who they are and what they do and what they teach me. My parents show my that I have to fight for what I have passion for and do what’s right. Also, to me, convictions have been taught my parents and family. A belief that has made me consider such an answer, would be to honor and bond with your family. From what I have concluded with, I can say that dying for my family would be a answer because of what I have been experienced to. I think that I should have something to die for because everyone has passion and the people who show me the reason to have passion taught me how to be courageous. I know that my answer hasn’t changed from the beginning, but I live for my family. I have the strongest relationship to them and I wouldn’t want to have that connection with any other type of annoying, aggressive, and aimable people. I hope my answer doesn’t show how I don’t care about others, but I think that dying and living for a group of people that are by my side everyday is my only answer.
ReplyDeleteSaying that you would only die for your family doesn’t mean that you don’t care about other. I believe it just shows how much your family means to you. It shows that you care for your family more than anything else. It displays how close you are to your family to you and how important they are. Just like you, my family would probably the only people that I would die for. I don’t think that there’s anything wrong with that.
DeleteDave, I though it was brave of you to be willing to die for your family even though you have a fear of death and dying. I'm more than sure your family would do the same for you. Family bonds are one of the strongest bonds on earth and it is quite beautiful. The fact that your parents have taught you that you must fight for your passion is wonderful because not every parent does this with their child. I feel as though it is very important to instill in children that they need to stand for something. This stance needs to be formed by themselves without the coercion of their parents. Overall, Dave, you had a wonderful blog response and I really enjoyed reading it!
DeleteI understand it takes a lot to say that you’re fearful of death. You’re not sure what’s going to happen when you die. But there’s nothing wrong with being afraid, if anything I admire you for admitting such things. And I understand that you’d die just for your family. I too care very much for my family because they are with me every day and love me more than I will ever know. But don’t think it means you don’t care about others, your family just comes first before all else.
DeleteOnce again David we have the same views on things I believe I would lay my life on the line for my family. Death is also something that fills me with trepidation, but would face it if need be. My parents have also instilled the three characteristics in me and it is because of them I am who I am.
DeleteDying for your family is noble but I find limiting yourself to your family to be an awesome level of dedication. I admire that you love your family to that extent and that you emphasize the exclusion of others. It shows the purity of your convictions.
DeleteFor 17 consecutive years I have managed to take advantage of something. Something that people in other countries are deprived of and will be for the rest of their lives. Some of the people in these same countries are even willing to die for it just so they can get the slightest taste of it. If I were in their position, it would too. That's right; I would die for my freedom because I am nothing more than a mere husk of a human without it. I love the fact that I am able to wear the clothes that I want, speak how I want, and behave how I want without fear of persecution. I'm not saying that I am a loose person; however I rather enjoy engaging the occasional shenanigans brought about by my teenage years. I like to live by Patrick Henry's famous platitude "Give me liberty or give me death".
ReplyDeleteMy conviction of freedom is that everyone across the globe should be allotted freedom. The freedom to marry whom every, the freedom to part ways with your spouse, the freedom to drive a car, and the freedom to receive an education are essentials that every country must grant to its citizens. I understand that life is not fair, but this denial of freedom is asinine! Why can't people just be free? I feel as though the oppressors should switch roes with the people they are oppressing. The moment they get a taste of what they are dishing out, they will lose their minds. Human beings are not to be treated as caged animals. I cannot see how people can be denied their basic freedoms; it's heartbreaking.
Moving forward, I believe God gives me the courage to do things. I usually let thoughts and doubts devour my mind and absolutely throw me. Then I have to take a second to let go and let God. The next thing I know, I'm walking across the room and performing tasks that are on the outskirts of my comfort zone. Sometimes stepping outside of my comfort zone backfires right in my face, but at least I had the courage to go fourth with the action in the first place. God gives me the courage to push fourth with my school year even though things tend to get a bit hectic.
The chaos from school and the school year have caused me to live for the weekends and summers. Weekends are a quick release for me, but the summers are magnificent. I sleep in, I watch television, and I relax. My entire body is able to take a break and I love and savor every minute of it. Without summers I would have ripped out my hair and scratched out my eyes. I need a break; my parents need a break from hearing me complain about school. Everyone needs to appreciate their summertime and not imbue it with stressful activities. Go to the beach, hang out with friends, stay up all night, eat something crazy (but not too crazy). Take it all in because school will be here again to interrupt your fun.
You make a great point and I absolutely love your response to this blog. There are actually many people in this world who don’t have the freedom that we do and they have to fight to gain the right to be free. This is evidenced by the protests that occurred in Kiev because they don’t have as much freedom as we do. I wish oppressors really would know how it feels like to be oppressed, so they would know how ridiculous it is to not give people their right to freedom. You’re right, sometimes, we just have to sit down, take a second and just let things be because God wouldn’t give us a challenge that we couldn’t conquer.
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DeleteJasmine I truly loved your blog. Every single person in American has so many freedoms that they don’t even appreciate it. So many people aren’t even using their rights to the fullest potential. Every kid in America get a free education and many don’t even try to get education even though there are children out there risking their lives just to get a basic education. Freedom is something that many of us wont fully enjoy until it is taken away from us and that is kind of sad. So because of your amazing blog I will die not only for the future but for freedom also. I want to die to protect someone future and so that they can have freedom.
DeleteI really like your post Jasmine I have not thought about freedom in such death but it is because we have it, and I too believe freedom is something every human should have because who gives those people that try to control others the wright to do so and its just wrong.
DeleteJasmine your post makes me think of your OP about your me time and how you like to just unwind. I also like what you said about just enjoying the summer because I feel when it really starts to get in those last weeks I'm constantly awaiting school, anticipating being there but I think I so easily forget about how hard the school year is. Which is why I think I will take your advice and just indulge in the summer.
DeleteYour take on this blog was quite unique, especially because most people chose to discuss how they would die for a person. Freedom is one of those things that we take for granted because we live in the "land of liberty and freedom." We are continuously fighting for freedom of a specific group of people and this will sadly never end. Many people have also died for the freedom of others and the sacrifice is truly courageous. By dying for the freedom of others, you are essentially saving the lives of millions of people in future generations, and I think that's what really makes your choice of conviction really neat.
DeleteAmong whatever else I listed, I think those short breaks of clarity and sleep that are weekends probably are what I live for if I'm being honest. I'm not so selfless and honorable that everything I live for makes me radiate a beam of goodness and light that I'm now worried I wrote too much about in my actual post. Ah. But I enjoyed this. I shared all of your thoughts even more than I did in my actual, as it was only after reading your post that I realized I had to talk about the principles I cared about too, which were freedom and education and the like, so I had to delete my post and try again. Ah. But good blog post. What I groan whenever I feel any kind of injustice involved is a whiny "Why can't we all just love each otherrrr?" and this made me think of that.
DeleteThe idea of anyone dying is a concept that I try to avoid. However given the purpose of the blog I have to man up and think about this scary concept. I have thought of many things that I will die for including friends, family, or someone who is good. However I feel that those answers will pose a problem for me giving that the answers will be too vague. Instead I have chosen an the idea that my passion, courage, and conviction all are factors of. For me the future is something that I will die for. I truly believe that as long as there is a future in store for humanity or any person then I will gladly die for that purpose. I understand that this answer is sort of vague itself but my answer relate to my own belief mention in a couple of blogs. As long as a happy future is there for everyone then I am happy to die. Well if I say that I am happy to die that will be a lie because nobody likes to die. What I mean to say is that I will be satisfied with my death as long as there is a future for at least one good person because they will be the one to change the world. Given the recent chaos with Russia and the constant threat of a World War 3 and Nuclear War the idea of a future ahead of us is slowly shrinking. If the world is ending and my death will create a future for everyone else then I will die for that cause. My passion is that I am glad that I could live another day because I know that there is a future ahead of me. My courage comes from the idea that the future will contain happiness and if I want to have happiness then I must have enough courage to endure for the future. My conviction is that no matter how bad the past or present is the future will always contain happiness for each person. What I die for and live for are the same because those are my belief. Basically what I am trying to say if that if I could I would die to save someone future. That as long as someone who is good and have good moral can live then I will be satisfied that I die to save his or her lives. I understand that dying is scary and it is something that I try to avoid however I feel that when someone life is in endanger and my death could save them than I will offer my life to save their live. The reason I think like this is because I feel like I haven’t done enough for the world and I will be satisfied with my death for someone who can actually changed the world for the better. The world and present contain horrible atrocities and violence but I believe that if I keep living then I will find happiness. I believe in that there should be things people would die for. Human being need something to drive them to accomplish thing and achieve. The future is something that I would live for and is something that I would die for. The world contain many evils and troubles but as long as there is future for me or anyone else then nothing else matter because everyone deserved happiness So the future hold happiness for everyone and I live everyday so that I could attain happiness and I would die so that other will attain happiness.
ReplyDeleteDeath. Death is the something I don’t like relating myself with. What would I die for? I am willing to sacrifice a lot for people regardless of my relation towards you. From the top of my head and deep within my heart, I don’t have the courage to die for someone. Unlike Jesus Christ who sacrificed his life for his people, to me it remains a different issue. Call me selfish, I understand because people have sacrificed a lot for me especially my parents, friends and teachers. They have sacrificed their time and effort. We have people who are blessed with the courage to die for people. I could relate this blog to the passage we read in class “Death of a soldier” People like John are humans just like us, even though every human is equal, I consider them as super humans. They are constantly risking their lives to save many and protect our human rights. As much as the fear of death would prevent me from dying for someone, if one good deserves another, I believe I would die for the bravery of people who sacrifice their lives for me. Passion, courage and conviction have an important role to play on the question, what would you die for? We all have something we are passionate about including our legacy. Passion is what drives us to do crazy things. For instance, I am willing to dive in and risk my head for a serious head injury (passion for victory) others like life guard are work driven (passion) to save a life regardless of the relation. I guess, I will be willing to save a life when the need arises. Courage, the word I could use for people in the saving private Ryan. I believe, for a group of young man to risk their lives for one human is something we used really take notice. Other world leaders also had courage that allowed them to die for their country. Unlike me, I might have courage to do dangerous work but honestly, I think it would take time for me to develop courage. Conviction are something that defines us. However, conviction and death are something that relates to one another. I have a strong conviction that if one day I am able to save a life, I would have accomplished my purpose on earth. I also have a conviction that we do not necessarily have to die for something to show our deepest affection, despite death being the ultimate sacrificing ones cherished item could be approximately equal to death. What I live for? I live for my mum. I live for my future children. There are a lot of nice things (which are true) I could say I live for. Similarly, I live for myself and the legacy, my heroes built by dying for us. Myself, the word that sounds selfish but I have realized in life, you can’t please everyone but I least you could please yourself. Also, I know that when everyone likes you is bad, when everyone hates you is also bad but when people love you and others hate you is better. The most important thing is to live your life and your dream but no your limits. When I say I live for the legacy of my heroes, it is something I cherish because it is what has kept me moving forward and looking up to them allows me to think like these great individual who help change the world. I feel that there is nothing important about a man who lived his life out of fear of death, however, I hope as I am maturing, I get to be courageous.
ReplyDeleteI've never thought of saving a life as a complete goal in and of itself. That being said, its definitely something I can agree with. If you can continue a full life that otherwise would have been snuffed out, that person's worth is yours by proxy, on top of that fact that it is just a great thing to do.
DeleteWhen asked “What would you die for?” I immediately know the answer. I’d die for my family and that’s probably the case for many others. Those are the people who love and care for you and protect you. They are the people who you know that they’d sacrifice their lives for you. But given the time to delve into my thoughts a solid agreement arose in me. Not only would I die for my family members, but also for anyone else. This being said I’m sure my family wouldn’t be so enthusiastic with such a statement. Though this is my life and I would be content to give it up in moment of conflict or really any situation. And it’s not because I’m in no disregard of my life, since I do cherish it and thank God for it. Although every day I wake and greet the day with open arms and full of excitement to experience and learn. So if the day involves the loss of my life for someone I have no objection. I want to help people and to show them a kindness and love like no other. I want to give them my life for their life to hopefully use it and take my love and kindness to share it then to give it to someone else. I’m not afraid to die for something so seemly insignificant to another. I’m not afraid of death. There’s been enough miracles of my own that I’ve experienced to reassure to not be frightened. In my heart I know God is watching over me and waiting for me with open arms when/if my time comes. I will be in paradise and forever live on with the ones who I lost once before. But until that time comes around I will continue on. I will continue on with a mindset that my life can be given up to save anyone.
ReplyDeleteWhile I’m willing to die for someone I do live for something. And I simply live for the very world itself. It’s the place where my comforting home stands and the place where all my loved ones are. I live for the world to add something of worth to it. Constantly all by itself it withstands all the conflicts and it’s taken for granted for all it offers. But though this happens it still stays standing to continue to hold everyone no matter what’s been done. I strive to live a life and contribute anything I can muster up to where I am now. Then I want to journey forth to explore the rest of the world and appreciate every nook and cranny. While also at the same time quenching my personal curiosity and crave for discovery and exploration. I live for our beautiful world.
Sotiria, I believe in putting my life on the line for my family too, but I agree with you when you say that you want to help people and I understand how you could say you would die to save someone else. I also like how you said you live for the world I never thought of it like this because I want to travel and explore uncovering the worlds secrets.
DeleteSotira I just want to say that I really understand where you are coming from with your post. Just like you I have many family member that I would die for. Family member are something else because even when things get tough or if everyone betray you, only family will be there to help you. I will die to save someone life but I would really die to save someone future. If someone can do something for the better of the world by my death or if I can change someone path to a good path by my death then I will die for that purpose. This whole blog really goes back to what do you love. I love my family and I love freedom but I really enjoy that happiness that comes from the future. Overall good job o this blog and again this is amazing because of your unselfish quality.
DeleteI am joining your position that you would die for your family. Like most of us Langers, our family is on a whole other level of importance in our minds, and I think it's nice that you, as well as others, would be so selfless if there were ever a time when your life was put on the line for your family.
DeleteSoti, I think that your approach in how you view your life is really beautiful. I think it’s wonderful that you value your life and strive to do all that you can with it but I also am happy you find comfort in knowing death isn’t the end. I have found great comfort and have no fear in death because of my beliefs in God too. I admire how you are willing to give yourself to the world and do all that you can to help them. Great job on the blog and in life!
DeleteI agree with you that I would die for my family. This blog post was beautiful, great response!
DeleteI love the way you said " I live for our beautiful world because I don't think you could have said it better. The world is beautiful and we could keep ourselves up at night contemplating all the things we have yet to discover about it.
DeleteFor some reason reading this made me think of when I was younger and all the dreams I would have of me taking a bullet for other people, and other people taking a bullet for me, in the event of any in school shooting which thank goodness has never happened. I used to think about what people I would try my best to save first, but either I was too naive or I really swore I was some kind of hero in the making or I really was just that giving, the answer was never myself. While those were childish notions I think what you described might be a little bit like that. I'm not really scared to die. It's inevitable and the end of all things and blah blah blah but all I can bring myself to worry about would be the people I leave behind and whether will have actually done any good, or anything at all. Dying for a loved one or anyone is a way to make sure that at least something in your life made you worth it, so maybe that's part of why I want to do it so badly.
DeleteDying is something I find scary but intriguing at the same time because it could be a whole new world that is unknown to us or it could be nothing and that is the end of us and once the people we know are dead too and our memory then dies with them. But even though we will one day walk into the world of the unknown, there has to be a reason we are willing to put our delicate lives on the line. I will be the cliché one to say I will put my life on the line for my family. My family are my world because they were the people to raise me and teach me most of what I know now, they are always there to support me, and I know they love me as much as I love them. If there were ever a time when I could save one of my beloved with the payment of my own life I would have to except the price. Doing this for someone to me would display passion, conviction, and courage. These two words have some strong meanings but to me passion is being so devoted to a person or a cause that they will do anything in their power to protect or promote whatever they are devoted to. Dying for someone shows passion because it means I would be willing to end everything, I am and diving head first into the unknown to help the ones I love. It also shows courage because to me having courage is making myself do something I do not want to do, whether it be fear, or whatever is holding me back from taking action. Dying for someone shows conviction that I will do whatever I can in order to help out my family. Knowing how I fear death it would be courageous of me to pay my life in exchange for helping a family member because I know that whatever it is will make them happy in the long run. Personally I think it is good for all of us to pick out something we would die for because it reveals to ourselves what we are passionate about and it aids in finding out what we live for. Since I got older I began to question the meaning of life. Why are we here? What’s the point of living? Do we have a purpose? To some the answers to these questions would be no or nothing, and I think it’s sad that people feel this way because for a while I felt the same, but I think I finally figured out what I live for and what the purpose of me being in this world is. I believe that I was put here to help people, animals, or anything that is in need of it. I find great joy in the knowledge of helping out and making a difference in someone’s life whether it be for one person or globally. It makes me feel good that I can help another person out even if its small like picking up a pencil, whatever it will take for me to brighten up someone’s day, and it is something I try to do all the time. For the reasons that I don’t know what their life is like apart for the occasional ‘hi’ at school, and it is important that people be happy at one point in each day because life is not worth living if it’s just going to be miserable. My reason for dying and living run along the same lines, it is to help others at all costs, knowing I am willing to do this tells me I have passion, dedication, and a strong love for something that no one or nothing could break.
ReplyDeleteAlonna, it was interesting that you find death scary yet intriguing. It’s good that you’re not completely fearful that it stops your curiosity. It’s to think about it and think of the possibilities awaiting you. On the other hand it’s great that you believe that you live to help anything in need. Also I agree that people should be happy at some point because happiness is important to making a good life.
DeleteI would define passion as an emotion that you get from something you really love. To have passion for something you have to have a real zeal for it and really love doing what makes you passionate. I have a passion for dancing because it makes me feel alive and happy. I wouldn’t die for dance though, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I don’t have a passion for dance. Courage is an emotion that you show toward something that you won’t back down from. Courage is standing your ground even when it gets really hard to. Courage and passion go hand in hand because if you have passion for something you most certainly have courage for it too. If I didn’t have courage for dancing then I couldn’t really have passion for it. Dance makes you go out of your comfort zone and without courage you can’t possibly be a good dancer. Conviction is having a strong belief for something and I surely have a strong belief in dance as many people already know. I believe that dance is a sport and no one gives it enough credit but that’s a topic for another time. But again I wouldn’t exactly say that I would die for dance even though I have a passion, courage and conviction for it.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say that I'd die for something or anything but I would die for someone. I think the reason that I would die for this person is because I love him so much. This person is my brother. He is such a big part of my life. I would die for him because he is so young and he has such a long and promising future ahead of him. If I had the opportunity to save my brother by having my own life taken I would do it. I would never be able to live with myself knowing what my brother could be and what he could have done for this world. He might be the next Albert Einstein, or Mark Twain! Without my brother I would be nothing. That's why he's probably the only person I would die for. I believe that people are put into our lives for a reason and I think that everyone has a person that they would die for. Whether they know it now or not there is someone so special in everyone’s life that they would die for that person. Maybe this person hasn’t come yet for some people but I think it will.
Now the hardest question of all, what would I live for.. There are a lot of things in my life that I feel that I live for. I wouldn’t die for these things though, if that makes sense. Each morning I wake up and I think about these things and people that I live for. When I’m sad and depressed I just think about the things that make me happy to be alive and I feel better. I live for dance and my dance family because I love dancing and I love my dance family. I live for my brother and sister and my best friends because I love them. I live for my boyfriend because I love him. I live for my education if that makes sense and a lot of other things as well. I would live for each of this thing because I love all of them. Love has a huge impact on how I live my life. I am so thankful for these things and people in my life and I live each day for them. I wouldn’t die for these people and things though because I don’t feel that dying is really necessary because then I couldn’t share my love for them and live for them. Sorry that I’m so confusing.
In my own life, I don’t think I have many passions for which I could blatantly give my life for. Sure, I would give my life for a loved one. But at the time, I don’t think I would actually mind dying for some stranger or distant idea or for a general good. I don’t place much value on my own life, nor do I really enjoy living all that much. This is not to say I’m someone who is suicidal but at the same time, I don’t think I would resist dying too much as long as it was relatively painless. Passion, courage, and conviction have nothing to do with this decision since it results from a lack of thereof. I wish I could say that I have some intense passion that makes my life completely worth living without a shadow of a doubt, but to say so would be lying. I can’t say I would die because I believe in A because of B. If my own death would facilitate any greater good, so be it. I would be on board.
ReplyDeleteWhen defining passion, I think of simply a strong or intense feeling towards a thing. Courage is basically the ability to confront danger or uncertainty. Conviction is a firmly held belief. These redefinitions really don’t serve to change my answers. All of my passions stem from my personal relationships which, let’s face it, all result out of convenience. Any courage I have comes out of indifference. Sometimes it’s indifference towards the subject or indifference of what others think of me. In the case of academic courage via public speaking like most APers though, I stride for the grade and not much. Though I have very strong personal convictions about life, they aren’t really significant since I have already stated that my utter discontent enables me to give my life for just about anything that I deem as a purpose higher than me.
There really should be things that I should be able to proclaim I die for since it would give me a higher sense of purpose. History really is the study of the human sacrifice that comes with the sacrifice of human beings. What are human ideas if we don’t have people who put their money where their mouths are so to speak.
All this has taught me that I basically live for today. I wake up and deal with everything one day at a time and try not to think as deeply about my personal wants or philosophies. Removing those constant thought processes really helped the stress I used to put myself through. Since then, I have gone through a post-stressful period lag and as a result my identity and belief systems have become rather unstable. In order to retain this lack of stressful thought, I continue to live one day at a time.
I find it so extremely difficult to answer the question of “what would you die for”. That question holds so much weight and importance, and I think that it is imperative that a question like that receives the proper amount of consideration and contemplation before jumping to any conclusions. I mean, we are talking about death here, and death is a really frightening concept. It is the end of life, there is no coming back and there are no second chances. Anyone of us could die at any minute, whether it is in a car accident or from an illness or anything really. There are so many possible ways to die, but the aspect of death that scares me the most is that my life could end tomorrow, and that would be it. My life certainly isn’t perfect, but I enjoy being alive. I love waking up to the sun rising every morning and I love experiencing new things. I love playing soccer on warm spring days and I love spending nights around the kitchen table with my family. And to be asked what it is that I would be willing to give those things up for is mind boggling. I truly do not know if there is anything in this world that I would instantaneously give my life up for. Of course I would love to be able to say that I would dive in front of a bullet for my family or my friends, but in all honesty if the situation ever presented itself I don’t know for sure that I would have the conviction inside of me to go through with it. I am very passionate about many different things, but none of them seem important enough right now to be able to say that I would die for their sake. I feel like such a terrible person for saying so, but if I falsely claim to positively know that I would die for anyone or anything then that makes me a coward. I deeply admire those who can without a shadow of a doubt say that they know what they would die for, I would love to have that sort of courage and conviction in me but the fact of the matter is that I don’t and I might not ever. And truthfully that really scares me too, I suppose the only way that I would ever find out whether or not I could do it is if the situation ever presented itself (but I pray to God that it never does).
ReplyDeleteAs to what I live for, that is another tough question. I really don’t know, I assume that the things I mentioned earlier in my response would suffice as decent answers to this question, but then again would they really? Should I live for tangible things, for people or possessions? Or should the answer be something more complex? I hate to sound cliché, but I like to think that I live for everyday. I live for the unknown, the unexpected, waking up each new morning and being excited about what life has in store for me that day. If I have to answer the question that is the best answer that I can come up with.
Cliche as it might be, I think living for everyday is a great way to put it. It's surprising how difficult that question actually is. I appreciate the caution you put into claiming the things you would die for, it shows that you really do understand the magnitude of the things we're discussing
DeleteAfter reading this blog post, I immediately thought to myself that I would die for my family. However, looking at my classmates' responses, I realize I am sort of late to this party. It seems that a lot of us would easily give up their life for a close relative. I agree with all of them on this part. And this isn't because my family is this super unified group of people that love and care for one another. In reality, my family is in it's own way, kind of messed up. There's bickering, judgment and those select aunts and uncles that just "aren't spoken to anymore." But what I think makes me want to jump in front of a bullet despite all of the tangles, it's that no matter where we came from, my family overcame it, and made a happy medium. However that happy medium of life came after a lot of hardships and struggles. I think what I'm trying to say is that I would give up my life in order to take away some of the pain and stress that my family had to endure to be where they are today.
ReplyDeleteNearing college, I really had to decide what is my passion and what makes me happy. Ever since I was little, sports was my thing. Weekends and holidays and some school nights were dedicated to soccer. However, after all these years, I'm pretty burnt out. So now, I had to realize a new love that had been there all along. I guess my passion is performing. To me, performing doesn't really require being under a spotlight where I am the star. I am just as enthusiastic and get that "it" feeling when I am simply singing to the sleepy faces during Sunday morning mass at church. I have a passion for making other's people days by doing what I love.
I really don't think it's all that easy to say whether or not someone should have something they would die for. I'm only saying this because I think that in life, they should find something that gives their life meaning...which has a lot to do with passion. Maybe not now, but eventually I think everyone will find something that they would sacrifice everything for. It just may take more time to find that "thing" for others.
And last but not least, what I live for. I live for discovery. And I'm not talking about studying a new thing in a book. I live for seeing new things first hand. I live for finding new people that I would have never have thought to even talk to. I live for being around new cultures and smells and music and ideas. I live for traveling and making my own adventure.
I really liked the way that you broke down what exactly it is that you would lay down your life for. Although 'family' is probably the best and most expected answer for any one of us to say, you provided that simple response with enough reasoning to allow it to really make sense. And I complete relate in terms of what it is that I live for. I too live for the new and the unexpected, the experienced and the excitement. Because really, what else is there?
DeleteMaggie, I think it is interesting how you brought the idea of dying for your family to the next level. I never thought of dying for your family as an act of dying to preserve the peace in the family or their emotions. However, after I read your post I do agree that in some cases that is what people would be willing to die for in saying “family.” I suppose it’s really just an umbrella term for all portions of life and relationship that we’d be willing to sacrifice ourselves for. Thoughtful post!
DeleteThis was so good Maggie! The way you related yourself to dying and your family was excellent. Just like Bryanna and Francesca said about bringing it to the next level, that was so good! Well done!
DeleteI like how you made a typical answer unique with how you know that even though there are flaws with your family you would still do anything for them even take the ultimate sacrifice death. And I also live for the excitement in life because no matter I think about how hard right now is I look forward to the experiences to come.
DeleteI loved how you posted about taking some of the stress off of your family. I feel like /i stress out my family a lot of the tie too, and, though I don't personally think I'd die to take some stress off of my family, I could see why someone might consider taking that trade off.
DeleteFor starters, I absolutely hate the topic of death. Death absolutely scares me. Just the thought of me leaving the Earth just scares me. In fact, my mind is going overdrive as I write this. I am absolutely scared of just losing everyone I’ve known and love after I die. Life and life after death is something that we have no clue about and is so uncertain. It scares me to think that everything could just be gone in the blink of an eye. All the plans that I’ve made. All the dream that I have. It could all be gone in the blink of an eye. If the thought of death doesn’t scare you, then I truly applaud you. Now I’m asked, “what would I die for?” Truth is, I would love to say that I would die for my family. In fact, if I had the guts to, I would. However, I just don’t know if I would be able to follow through with this if I was faced with this situation. I am a big chicken and I don’t know how I would react if I was ever faced with this situation. I don’t know if I will have the courage to take a bullet for anyone or if the passion I feel towards my family is enough to make my feet move. However, I do know that the guilt I would feel would drive me insane. I don’t know how I would be without my family. It’s something I can’t imagine and frankly, something I don’t want to talk about. Sadly, I don’t think that I could say that I would die for someone and mean it with all my heart. This doesn’t mean that my family does not mean much to me at all. I love my family with all my heart, but I really don’t think that I would ever have the guts to be able to take that step and take a bullet for anyone. I admire those who are able to risk their lives every day for the sake of others and could only wish that I could somehow have the courage that they possess.
ReplyDeleteIf I said I don’t think I could die for anyone, what would I live for? It seems selfish of me to say this, but I live for my happiness. I live for going through each die and being satisfied with all the things that I’ve done. I live for the moments of being able to spend time with family and friend, while knowing that I am blessed to be able to do this with freedom. I live for making my family happy because I know that I will be happy if they are. I live for the little things in life that people sometimes overlook and for the opportunity to be where I am today. We never know when this all could end, but I want to be able to say that I lived happily.
Danielle, I totally get what you mean when you say you don't like to think about death. I can't really fathom myself not existing anymore myself, so many times I choose to avoid the topic. It all seems too scary. Which is why I really like that you were honest and made the point that though you would die for your family, you really don't know if you'd be brave enough to when the time comes.
DeleteI thought I was the only person that was really scared of death! But it freaks me out too, I hate thinking about it. I said I would die for my brother but like you I honestly don’t know if I would have the guts to either. Your reply was really good, I think everyone will able to relate to you on some aspect.
DeleteDanielle, I commend your courage in answering this blog post. While reading these posts, including my own, posts have read that the individual would die for their family. However, if and when it came down to the situation, how many people would truly put themselves forward for a family member? I doubt it would be identical to the number of those claiming that they would. No one knows what would occur in a life-death situation till faced with the situation firsthand. There isn’t a means of preparation so it is understandable to know what exactly you’d lay your life down for. Great job!
DeleteJust like you, I'm afraid to die. Altough were all going to die, it scares me. I know I would die for my family, but I just can't grasp the fact how I would just kind of be like "take me, not them!" How would that go? haha good job!
DeleteI honestly have no idea what'd I die for. It's no secret that I want to join the military at some point in my life, and sometimes that requires dying, but I don't think about dying for my country as a great honor. I'm not saying that for other men who it wasn't an honor, heck, I respect all veterans to the fullest extent but personally, I don't want to die for my country. What I do think is worth dying for is a couple of things: freedom, family and fellow man. What I mean by freedom is the freedom we inherited from our founding fathers, they fought and died so we wouldn't have to. They fought for freedom, not for a country, they didn't even technically have one. They just wanted to rule themselves which is noble and stupid at the same time but I digress.
ReplyDeleteFamily should be easy to interpret, family is worth dying for. Protecting my future wife and child will be of the upmost importance to me when I'm older, same with my parents and uncles and aunts etc. I would protect them all with my life. The hard one to justify is fellow man, by this I mean i would be content dying in an effort to help someone else live. So naturally, I don't mind putting myself in danger for the sake of others. Because of this, I want to help others in any way I can so I plan on being a volunteer firefighter over the summer. Passion, courage and conviction are all that's needed for an ordinary man to extraordinary. Although, I do believe that you don't need to be extraordinary to make a difference.
I don't think that everyone needs something they "should" die for. It's just an opinion, just because you claim you would die for something does not make you a better person than someone who doesn't. In a real life emergency situation, you never know who will step up.
I live for others honestly. I don't mean that in like a "yeah I'm the most selfless guy in the world, worship me" kind of way. I mean that in a "hey guys I'm not an asshole" type of way. I do my best from day to day to help anyone I can. It's not really because I'm nice, I just feel like it's a moral duty of mine to do so. Like I've mentioned hundreds of times before, I enjoy making this earth better than when I got here. In a way, what I live for and what I would die for is the same. I live to assist others and would willingly die in the process (although this has gotten me in some weird and dangerous situations). So, with these two beliefs put together, putting myself in harm's way for others is almost second nature for me (although this seems to give me a false idea that I'm made of steel and can't ever get hurt #invincible). What this tells me about myself is that this moral obligation I feel is quite strong and won't go away any time soon.
I love the humorous diction that going into the military "sometimes require dying." I've always struggled to understand your desire to serve a country that you have so many criticisms of. I always like the easy-going indifference that you show towards ideas that ideas are sometimes nothing more than just... ideas.
DeleteI think you would be a great soldier and would due your country well with your service if you decide to go down that path. Anyway, great response!
DeleteI really liked this post, not only because it was well written, but because it showed who you are as a person. You are really selfless down to its very essence. You wouldn't die for anything to benefit yourself, just other people, including ones you don't even know. I find that really respectable
DeleteI honestly have no idea what'd I die for. It's no secret that I want to join the military at some point in my life, and sometimes that requires dying, but I don't think about dying for my country as a great honor. I'm not saying that for other men who it wasn't an honor, heck, I respect all veterans to the fullest extent but personally, I don't want to die for my country. What I do think is worth dying for is a couple of things: freedom, family and fellow man. What I mean by freedom is the freedom we inherited from our founding fathers, they fought and died so we wouldn't have to. They fought for freedom, not for a country, they didn't even technically have one. They just wanted to rule themselves which is noble and stupid at the same time but I digress.
ReplyDeleteFamily should be easy to interpret, family is worth dying for. Protecting my future wife and child will be of the upmost importance to me when I'm older, same with my parents and uncles and aunts etc. I would protect them all with my life. The hard one to justify is fellow man, by this I mean i would be content dying in an effort to help someone else live. So naturally, I don't mind putting myself in danger for the sake of others. Because of this, I want to help others in any way I can so I plan on being a volunteer firefighter over the summer. Passion, courage and conviction are all that's needed for an ordinary man to extraordinary. Although, I do believe that you don't need to be extraordinary to make a difference.
I don't think that everyone needs something they "should" die for. It's just an opinion, just because you claim you would die for something does not make you a better person than someone who doesn't. In a real life emergency situation, you never know who will step up.
I live for others honestly. I don't mean that in like a "yeah I'm the most selfless guy in the world, worship me" kind of way. I mean that in a "hey guys I'm not an asshole" type of way. I do my best from day to day to help anyone I can. It's not really because I'm nice, I just feel like it's a moral duty of mine to do so. Like I've mentioned hundreds of times before, I enjoy making this earth better than when I got here. In a way, what I live for and what I would die for is the same. I live to assist others and would willingly die in the process (although this has gotten me in some weird and dangerous situations). So, with these two beliefs put together, putting myself in harm's way for others is almost second nature for me (although this seems to give me a false idea that I'm made of steel and can't ever get hurt #invincible). What this tells me about myself is that this moral obligation I feel is quite strong and won't go away any time soon.
I think that it's great that you have such a fantastic sense of giving back to the world, and sometimes you should be praised. I really hope that everything goes well for you when you enlist in the military, and I hope that you enjoy volunteering as a firefighter over the summer.
DeleteRecently I have become a borderline obsessive reader of the Divergent series. (To those of you who may not find it appealing bear with me and to those who haven’t read the books I recommend that you do.) I will tell you, without giving too much away, that in the book the characters must face their fears. They are put into a room and literally must face any and all fears that they have dead on. This portion of the story made my mind wander and I began to think about my own fears and if I were forced to face them would I be able to. This mindset spun into this week’s blog prompt as I began to think of my fears along with what I’d be willing to die for. It occurred to me that the idea of death, or even of my own death, doesn’t frighten me. I’m not saying that I am wishing for death any time soon, however I don’t fear it. I have a peace and assurance that I am going to be with my God after death and that I can honestly say I am excited for. That being said, though I do not fear death and don’t wish to speed the process, there are in fact things in my life which I would die for. I know I know this is a cliché response but I mean it full heartedly, I would die for my family and friends. If I could in some way assist their lives or protect them by laying my life down than I would. The second thing that I would die for runs parallel with what my passion is and what gives me courage. I would die for my faith. For me, my beliefs in God aren’t about religion so much as they are about relationship. I see God as my friend and I would never want to compromise my relationship with him for the sake of other people. Therefore, if it came down to giving up my life or denouncing my God than it would have to be the first option. Jesus gave his life for me and loves me despite my imperfection and that is what defines me. Therefore, I cannot even fathom the thought of denying all that he’s done just to sustain my life a little longer. My passion and strength are found in God and though I may be persecuted and hard pressed I will not be crushed and will always have the assurance that I am not alone. I think that everyone should have something they are willing to die for because that means they are passionate about something, anything, at least one thing. If there is no drive in our lives than what is the point of living? We all need to have something in our lives that is that important to us. I don’t believe that everyone should die for their cause however they should be so passionate that they’d be willing to. Therefore, the flip side would be if people don’t wish to die for something they need to be willing to live for something. I came to the conclusion that I in fact live for the same things that I would die for. I love God, and I want to live for Him in the sense that I want Him in everything that I do. I want others to see His love through me. This realization that I live and die for the same things tells me that I am firm in my faith, I love God and I am willing to demonstrate it. In spite of the cost, the price He paid was bigger.
ReplyDeletegreat response francesca! Keep strong in your faith!
DeleteI admire your conviction in your faith; I am convinced that in such a situation your strength in your beliefs would supersede any fear even in such a hard situation. As Dom said, Keep strong in your faith!
DeletePassion, conviction, courage are things that I feel are things that vary as you experience different milestones in your life. At this time in my life I must say I have a passion for life, my conviction is that any life is worth living and courage is to live a life for you. Although these answers may seem very vague, I mean them with my entire being. I don’t think many people understand the value I place on life. Not just a human life; the lives of every bug, tree, leaf, flower, deer, spider and even the ugliest of dogs. The fact that we’re all here, blessed with the ability to comprehend and coexist with our surroundings is just magnificent to me. Although I place great value on life, I do not fear death. I’d be ok if I was told I was going to die tomorrow (I think), so my love or passion very much overpowers my own life, which is kind of scary. I’d like to think I would die without a second thought if it meant that this earth can be saved from our wrath, to protect the value and beauty of life. If everyone could see the beauty of the nature of our world I really can’t even imagine the effects it would have on humanity. I live for the same reason I would die; for the sake of life. Life is a slow death that is lived in pursuit of your passion, if I die for my passion it would be the same as living for my passion with a less direct connection to death and less of a sudden reaction. I live to leave my mark, I would die to leave my mark, and I AM dying to leave my mark. And I don’t think it can get much simpler than that.
ReplyDeleteI think it is really great that you respect life so much, and not just your own, but also the life of everything. My sister used to think I was crazy for caring so much about smaller beings, but I don't think it is crazy. Since I'm smaller than almost 99% of the teenage population in America, does that mean that my life is worth less than a 6 foot tall human? No. It doesn't, and looks don't matter either. By the way, I think it would pretty difficult for a dog to be ugly. They are just so cute!
DeleteWhen I hear the words “what would you die for?” I often think how strongly that sentence is worded. The only people I would truly die for is my family. I can relate passion, courage, and conviction to my family. They gave me my passion for the sports I play. They gave me the passion to achieve the greatest goals, and always to go above and beyond. I strive to be he best I can be, because my family is behind me, motivating me every step of the way. Courage. My family gives me the courage and will power to do the best things. They always encourage me and they are always there for me. they cheer me on no matter what, and my flaws are perfect to them. Conviction. My family believes in me. They are there for me 100% of the time, and I can always count on them. I can look in the stands at my sporting events, and I can look in the crowds when i’m getting honored for my achievements and I can always spot my family in the crowd. They know how to cheer me up whenever I need it, and they make me the happiest girl in the world. My greatest passion is my sports. I would do anything to be a professional athlete. If it wasn’t for the support of my family, I would honestly be a hermit. My dad pushes me to be the best on and off the field. My parents work hard to provide me with one on one athletes. My parents dedicate their time to take me and pick me up from various practices and games. My family sacrifices their days off to swelter in the hot sun to watch me play games all day long. i wouldn’t trade them for the world. I believe thats its your own opinion for the things that you die for. I know that in a heartbeat I would die for any single one of my family members. For some people they may not do that, but I know for a fact, I would take a bullet for any one in my family. The same thing I die for is the same thing that I live for. I live for my family. I strive to put a smile on their faces. I do well in school not only for myself, but for my family. I try to be the best that I can be because knowing I can make my parents happy, I will honestly do anything. I love my family to death, and if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be standing right now. They are my support system, my backbones, and my other half. Without the unconditional love of my family, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today.
ReplyDeleteMe and you are simliar with our definition of life and who we would die for . I agree that family knows how to cheer your up and knows when you're down because of a different connection you have with them.
DeleteWhat is life? Now that I think of it I think I have an idea of what life is to me. I think life is like a playground. It suppose to be fun but have obstacles you are suppose to fall but you are also suppose to get back up. Three worlds to describe my life would be family friends and happiness. Without those three things life wouldn’t be the same. My passion as a teenager is to make people smile and be happy but at the same time satisfy the needs I want whether it is sports or getting ready for college. The people that make up my life like family and friends is what gives me great courage to get through every obstacle life throws at me. Dying for those people is a no brainer. I am willing to die for my friends and family any day of the week. They would do the same for me because that is what true family and friends do. I am not saying if I am going to run across a railroad track jump in front of the train to stop it, I am simply saying that why wouldn’t I risk my life for somebody who has motivated me and gotten me through life when it was at its worse and when it was at its best. With my answers to the first set of questions they do fall with my answers to the second set because the things that make up my life I would die for. Those things are things I can buy like a phone or iPod they are living things and emotions that life itself wouldn’t be the same without. I live for seeing people happy. I live for seeing that old couple on the park bench completely in love without a care in the world. I live for that new born that is sleeping peacefully in theirs mothers arms with the priceless smile on her face. That is true happiness. I also live for those family members and friends that pick you up at your worst and show you that the obstacles you face now will only benefit you for the ones to come. I live for that motivation that is given to me to give to other people. What I live for and what I would die for is exactly the same everything I would live for I would die for. It says a lot to me about where my standards are in life. I feel that it shows who I truly am because what I would die for aren’t things like phones, iPods, headphones or anything like that. Everything I would die for has a meaning to me to an extent that no material thing can replace. Once anybody who thinks otherwise gets that through their head they will be going in the wrong direction in their life and I would do anything to get them to turn around.
ReplyDeletePart 1:
ReplyDeleteNot one for emotional extremes this blog was hard for me but after some deep digging I might have it but really the answers to all of these questions are interchangeable, what may be my passion today will not be my passion may not be my passion tomorrow or three weeks from now and probable not three years for now. The same is could be said for the three others.
So I suppose that my passion right now or the thing for which I hold an uncontrollable emotion for is, working hard one thing I feel like I’m never doing even though in reality it’s probably one hundred percent of how I actually can work. To which I think is the fact that I am my own biggest critic. I could be dying after a crew race and then five minutes later I have the thought, “I could have done better.” Even though in reality it’s more like no I couldn’t have. I think that feeling will always be true for me until I work myself to death of working hard. Because I think I’ve been told by someone that I’m working too hard I won’t stop I’ll just keep pushing myself to the breaking point. When thinking about this answer I‘ve realized I should have been my specific so I amend my answer to I’m passionate about working hard at things I love I certainly wouldn’t want to give anyone the impression that I’m someone who is studying vigorously without fail because regretfully that is not me or my mentality. Unfortunately, I have not loved school in a while so I’m afraid that while I work hard to maintain my grades in school I’m not particularly passionate about the place in itself.
Other people give me courage. The things I fear when I’m alone or can’t do when it’s just me are demolished when I’m called to do the same for someone else. I guess that’s why I do group activities in the case of band or team sports in the case of crew. I guess to fall up that statement I guess I should say that I am nothing without my teammates or band members because without them I revert to my couch potato self and am not an athlete or the bad ass marcher that I become during marching band season. Which is kind of frightening in itself because in getting my courage from other people I run the risk of becoming dependent on them, one thing me a fairly independent individual in other cases that are not courage is frightened by. But I guess the fact is that without the factor of other people I’m a coward, I’m afraid and I back down no matter how hurt someone makes me I may never say anything about those feeling of being hurt and just harbor them inside.
Part 2:
ReplyDeleteMy immutable conviction is that other human being should be treated as just those human beings. A statement that could be amended to others that sound just like for example “treat others the way you want to be treated”, the golden rule. This my conviction because one thing I particularly hate and yes I mean hate when anyone is being belittled of treated like their feelings don’t matter because of their gender, race, or sexual orientation because no matter any of those thing we are human beings first and foremost. Not one person is better than the other; even though that’s the feeling I get sometimes. Sometimes I feel like people think that people are like parts in a car once something starts sounding different from the rest or things aren’t going as they think they should they want to throw it out or take the less expensive route of complaining about it ex. “These darn breaks, they suck!” and while I admit that my example was not the best in the world you get my point. Once someone feels like someone is different from them or has a different opinion from us we want to condemn them or even worse throw away their feelings and act like they don’t matter.
After answering the other questions I have come to realize while I am not one for emotional extremes I have discovered something I would die for: I would die for the sake of someone else. I think that’s because one I couldn’t bear to see someone generally hurt or in pain and want to do something about it. While standing up for me may be difficult when standing up for other people I like to think of myself as a big mama bear fiercely protective of my young. Not a description I would generally equate to myself but it’s true because whenever I hear about someone killing themselves of feeling like an outcast I think,” I would have been their friend” which is weird because in normal cases I am extremely awkward around people, in general. Which is why my answer to the follow up question is the exact same thing I live for other people. Which tells me that they are the source from which I gather my strength and power from, without them I am nothing literally because as much as I’d like to tell people I kill myself with AP classes for myself it’s for my parents. So that maybe when I apply to colleges I can actually get into one and graduate to be someone that my parents are proud of, to put it frankly I don’t want to be a screw up an that’s only because I’d hate to see that kind of disappointment in my parents’ eyes.
Part 1: We tend to take life for granted and often times our everyday conversations will include a nonchalant bestowment of theoretical death upon ourselves as well as others. “I can’t believe I have all this work to do, I want to die.” Do you really want to die? Or are you just overwhelmed with stress? Death is a much scarier concept than some of us might make it seem, especially because no one truly knows what exactly happens to a soul once the body it occupies dies. We are encouraged to accept our inevitable death but have we gotten to the point where we all underestimate the value of life as well as the meaning of death? At some point in our existence we have all asked ourselves, “What is the point of life if we’re all going to die anyway?” I still have yet to find my purpose in life and I know that I’m not alone. It’s upsetting to think that there are so many people who have found life so meaningless that they end up committing suicide due to overwhelming amounts of negative emotions that plagues and empowers their brain. These are the types of people who believed that they had no reason to live. They saw death as an escape from all the pain and suffering they faced while living, but it is much more than that. When you die, you are locked away in permanent slumber. That’s the end of all things. I have been aware of the true meaning of death ever since I was a child and this great fear has been carried with me all the way up to the present day. I dread the idea of knowing when or how I’m going to die yet I would equally dread the idea of knowing the specifics of my future death. Dying for something or someone has never been something that occurred to me. My passion for certain hobbies go through my life like phases yet they never leave completely. I will never develop a dying passion for anything, no matter how much I may admire it. I look at hobbies as something to live for rather than die for. On the other hand, I believe that there is a possibility that I may meet someone who will inspire or change my life in some extreme way. They may even change my life so much to the point where I would legitimately be willing to die for them. However, at this moment in time, I can’t honestly say that I would die for anyone. It sounds selfish but the grand scheme of things I am not sure if anyone is worth my own life. Even though I really care about a lot of people, I’m not sure if I would allow myself to face the thing that I fear the most no matter what the situation may be.
ReplyDeleteTheoretically, I can say that I would die for many people, beyond my friends and family. There are many people who are more deserving of life than I am because they have made a huge positive impact on the world. There are many people who devote their life to contributing to society in a way that is beyond kind and generous. Those are the types of people that deserve to continue living when faced in a life or death situation. I can’t answer this question with much clarity because I have never been faced with such an extreme situation (knock on wood) and I hope to never experience anything like this. I hope no one ever has to be stuck in a situation where a life can be terminated by something other than natural causes. To give up your own life in order to save another is a scary idea especially because both lives are too valuable to be given up due to a dire situation. If any of us are ever in such a situation, I’m sure that the decision would be at least the slightest bit difficult and stressful. All in all, there is a bigger reason as to why we take great value in our own life as well as the lives of others. The difference between those who are suicidal and those who aren’t all lies within their levels of passion, courage, and conviction.
Part 2: The role of passion goes along best with the things that we are willing to live for rather than die for. We all have something that inspires us to get out of bed every morning and it’s not necessarily anything specific. We can all relate to each other in some way because we all have a passion, which is what puts value to all life. It’s understandable that without a passion, we wouldn’t have any motivation to continue our lives. In my case, I have a passion for living life, as ridiculous as it may sound. Even though it tires me out very often, there is still a spark of hope and that is enough to keep me going. No matter how many times I dread the physical and emotional pain of life, I still can’t help but stay positive about all the endless opportunities and experiences I have yet to come across in the future. Passion is something that resembles an emotion towards something that is so strong, it’s uncontrollable. I can confidently say that I am passionate about the small bundles of joy that make life worthwhile to the point where the little negative burdens become meaningless and inferior to everything else that’s good in this world. Courage is also important to living because it is the main reason why we are all able to conquer the struggles faced on a daily basis. This concept goes along with the mental strength one has in order to defeat his/her fears. As much as someone may enjoy living, there are still lingering fears in life that they may be too scared to face. The fearful aspects of life can be conquered with the help of courage that way one can continue living in fair harmony. The things that give me courage are the same things that I am passionate about. The good things in life give me all the mental strength I need in order to defeat the negative things that obstruct my path to general indulgences. Being able to live life is what mainly motivates me to build up the courage in order to face both daily struggles as well as inner demons. Lastly, conviction is probably one of the most esoteric concepts out of the three. Conviction deals with a strong belief that one possesses and while that seems fairly simple, it’s definition and concept is fairly vague. There are is an infinite amount of things to hold a conviction for and that’s what makes it significant to life. Being able to hold multiple strong beliefs is what encourages one to enforce, spread, and share these opinions and ideas with others. Just like passion, conviction is the thing that gives us a reason to keep on living. By possessing these beliefs, we are more willing to promote these ideas as well as apply them to different situations in order to pursue the overall art of these opinions. I hold a conviction for, you guessed it, the purpose of living. I believe that everyone has a purpose for living and that there is something out there that will hopefully inspire one to find out exactly what their purpose is. Even though I have not found my purpose in life, I am still out to find it. There is also a possible chance that my purpose is simply to live a life, just for the sole reason of getting a taste of what the world has to offer.
ReplyDeletePart 3: Overall, passion, courage, and conviction tie relate mostly to the things we would live for. On the other hand, the things we would die for can be inspired by these three aspects because we have the ability to relate to each other in various ways. We are fully aware that there are people who live life just like us, motivated by their courage, passion, and convictions. Being able to die for someone or something is not possessed by everyone and that is completely okay. We should all be able to have our own takes on how we handle something as precious as our life. You are not any more or less selfish for having the willingness to die for someone or something because everyone has different views on how the magical three aspects pertain to their own life. My existence is inspired by my capability to live life filled with such great things that will eventually overcome the bad stuff. I live for those occasional moments of grandiose excitement as well as the daily minor indulgences. Sometimes we forget that life is filled with so many great things and I think it’s important that we appreciate them. I live for life.
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ReplyDeleteThe answers to the questions of what I’m passionate about, what gives me courage, and what I have unshakable convictions about are all either irrelevant, cop-outs, or just generally lame. I don’t think there’s anything I care about more than people, and nothing makes me feel passion quite like good games of hockey or tennis, or any sport (except basketball). However, I don’t think I’d be willing to die to play a tennis match. Even though it’s my life’s dream to play a singles match. I’m not dying for it. Even if it is what I live for.
ReplyDeleteWhat I would die for is whatever would be considered the greater good. I do give my own life a bit of value, but I do think that if someone told me something like my death would invent the cure to cancer I would probably kiss everyone goodbye and walk off a bridge. But I don’t consider myself very courageous, nor do I feel like I have ever acted courageous at all. Last week after a particularly maddening game of hockey, I walked into the locker room all ready to beat up a locker like a usually do when I’m angry beyond reason. That’s a euphemism. I was pissed. I’ve never been so close to getting into a fight, or just generally flipping out on 2 certain unnamed persons. But the point is, I was mad. On my way to said locker room I spotted this guy yelling at his girlfriend while she was pressed up against a wall, looking scared, while he used a few choice words he shouldn’t have been using. I didn’t know to take it seriously at first, but I don’t think I’m exaggerating too much when I say I almost laid this kid out. We were about the same size. At the very least I would be sure to leave my mark. The only thing that stopped me was in that moment of hesitation I walked into the locker room and had to push my way back out, because a crowd had gathered the same way they always do when it looks like something is about to happen (which may be another rant in itself). As I pushed through and tried to see if this girl was okay, I saw her with her arm around him and them walking down the hallway like everything was fine. I then preceded to go destroy a locker. The point of that story was even though that could have been one form of courage, it could’ve just as easily been an accumulation of all my feelings of anger and hostility toward every living being. It wasn’t courage. But maybe that is something I would die for. To protect some stranger girl that looks like she’s scared. I would do that. And just because of how I felt in that moment, I don’t completely feel like I’m just saying that. I hope. Not that I’m a superhero or anything. But I just think dying that way would be worth it. For anyone I mean.
But i think there should be at least one thing a person would die for. “The ultimate sacrifice” can only be made once, and is the ultimate symbol of caring about something else. I can’t imagine a person that would place their own life above literally any other thing, physical or not. I don’t expect everyone to take a bullet for someone else but I don’t know. I expect something. The things I believe in more than a anything are basic freedoms and the right to an education, and above all openmindedness and equality. Boring principles I guess but that’s it just the same. If my death would help any of those causes, or a few other things, it wouldn’t be the worst thing for me to die. If it’s going to better the lives of the other people in the world in whatever such a way, it would be wrong for me to not die. I have no death wish but I can’t handle guilt, and I’d like to think my morals at least somewhat exist. If I’m going to die eventually anyway, there is some honor in dying for a good cause, and I think I would if i could.
I understand that you feel as though your action in that situation was just based off of your anger instead of courage, but if you think that you would do that anyday, it's not just anger. It is courage. Anger might be needed to spark your courage, but that doesn't change the fact that you can be courageous, and for that, I applaud you.
DeleteThere are so many luxuries I enjoy and so many passions I can partake in that it would be almost overwhelming for anyone not born into this time period, in this country. The most fundamental thing, I think, that I would die for is the right to the basic political freedoms we have in the United States and the commitment to democracy.
ReplyDeleteI could not live in China. I would much rather march on Tiananmen Square and defy the Chinese military than subjugate myself to a lack of freedom of expression, political choice, and individualism. These fundamental rights I have a passion for because I believe in them so firmly, so much so that I would throw down my life in a heartbeat just to protect their spirit out of mere principle. It is my firm conviction that these principles should be the guiding principles of all of societies. Without the courage to defend these convictions, we would not have them.
The next passion I would die for is the right to die for equality – specifically political inequality. I don’t necessarily support an egalitarian agenda, but I do believe that in a world already so unfairly biased by what you are born into, there should at least be equality in the eyes of the legal and political system. No man should be above the law and no one should be treated as a “second class citizen”, no specific race pulled over more than the other, no one forced to live a subpar life for a biological disposition. This is something I would die for in a heartbeat. If I were born in the 1960s, there would be no doubt I would have been an avid part of the Civil Rights Movement.
Thirdly, I would die for my country. I would never take the position that America is always justified in its actions and is always fighting for justice and freedom. To believe so would be naïve. I pride myself on being a patriot, but not being mindless – the type of patriotism Howard Zinn advocates for so vocally. I believe in a fundamental duty to the community I live in. Obviously, this takes form and shape in many of the things I do. I would lay down my life in a heartbeat for my community if it came under attack and I stand by that principle.
There should always be something you are willing to die for. How else can you prove that you believe in your convictions if you are not willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for them? So this leads us to an even harder question: what do I live for?
I often contemplate why I live as it is the first step in finding a direction I should take. Sometimes, when I hit the low points in my life, I think I live just because I do. What alternative is there? I can’t stop my own heartbeat and I wouldn’t exert the effort even if I could. I suppose I live so I can help the people around me – so I can enjoy the subtleties of life that we as humans derive so much pleasure from. Those little moments that can make me feel so good about life and all the things that I do are what palpably motivates me to live better.
What I’d die for and What I live for are entirely different, and they should be. What I’d die for are my convictions -- my core beliefs. What I live for are the pleasures and motivation I get out of living life. It is my purpose and is thus widely different than my simple passions and convictions.
Ultimately, my passion is acting and listening/performing music, but the one thing that gives me the most courage is neither of those things. There is a situation in which I can feel as though I’m far away from the world and everyone else’s judgements and where events can reoccur and unicorns may fly away. I can go to this place basically whenever I want: while I’m standing up, while I’m in class, when I’m doing homework. Sometimes, I even go to this place without even planning on it (which is why I am posting this so late). This place is my dreams. While you are dreaming, you believe everything that is happening because unbeknownst to you, the dream is not a reality. People’s actions in your dream can show your true perception of them or can be used as an outlet for an idea, but the most significant points are messages about yourself and possibly your passions and convictions. Dreams always say something about your subconcious. Therefore, subconsciously, you know it to be true. Regardless of the lack of awareness of the dream, I still manage to muster up more courage in some dreams (especially daydreams) than I can in real life.
ReplyDeleteTo me, life would be incomplete without dreams. Sleep would just be six to eight hours of silence that I would dread. I imagine it to be like a small taste of death which I find to be utterly terrifying. I would probably do anything I could to avoid sleeping until I become so sleep deprived that I would have to sleep. At first, I might think that I might as well just die considering I’m already going to be spending one-third of my life dead, but then again, I would still have two-thirds of my life left to live and make those dreams become a reality since I wouldn’t be able to have them while I sleep. At least I would have music and acting. That would most likely be the thing that would keep me sane. If anything, I would probably die for those two things. I thought of it this way, if a tyrant were to take control of the world, ban music and acting, and remove all possible ways to make to do those things, I would most definitely die for people’s right to act and perform/make music. What’s the point in living in a world where your only true passions and loves that you use to express your convictions is taken from you?
My passion and my conviction is different than my courage outlet in that I would die for one, but not the other. I would die for music and acting, but I wouldn’t die for dreams because it is a lose-lose situation anyway, so I might as well try to make the best out of it. Music and acting, however, is a cause I am willing to die for because it affects others as well. If I could help defend everyone’s rights to them, I would. It is a universal connection between people that can bring joy even in the glummest of times. For that reason (and dreams), I would live. Just the concept of simple words and sounds bring millions of people together while sending out a positive message is awe-inspiring, and being able to live out my fantasies of penguins riding unicorns and Phil Lester walking on a rainbow at any point in the day is just inconceivable.
I suppose that because what I would live for and what I would die for are the same thing for the most part, my passion and conviction and courage outlet are unimaginably significant in my life. I see that as a very positive thing because people should have things that they would die for other than themselves because what is the point of living if you have no purpose or interest in your life? I imagine that you would become filled with frustration to the point of depression and ultimately result in death. So I suppose that I’m lucky that I feel as though I have a purpose.
First, let me say I really crapped the bed here. I completely forgot the blog was due yesterday. 'm really just doing this for pride's sake at this point. That being said, here we go.
ReplyDeleteFirstly, death absolutely frightens me. The concept of me not doing anything at all is entirely foreign, and while I do believe in a higher power and heaven, the fact that I'm still pretty much shutting off and experiencing something no one has ever actually described before is completely foreign to me, and I'm really afraid of the unknown. But still, I wholeheartedly believe that there should be things that you are willing to die for. If you don't care about something that much, then you really aren't living in the first place. To have a burning passion for something is what makes us human. For me, that passion is acting, now, I wouldn't die to be an actor, because you can't really act while dead, unless you're really good. The things I'd die for are slightly more broad. I would die to make those that make me happy, happy. Not short term, that would be stupid, but if it came down to me dying, or someone I cared about dying, I'd like to think I'd make the sacrifice, although if I could not be in the situation I'd greatly appreciate it. another thing that I'd die for is love. Although I'm definitely a hopeless romantic I'm not necessarily just talking about the romantic kind, although it kinda falls into the same category. If I could die, and be forever remembered as a good man, that would be how I'd want to die. Whether that's by one special person or the entire world, love is something I would die for.