Busca

... 1-5 by Iara Matavelli Page 9  ...

... Nalani Williams QEP Essay Contest recipient of honorable mention Enterprise Mississippi We were completing the last leg of our trip, crossing the border of Louisiana into Mississippi, the weather mild this particular Sunday. The sun was shining on my face as I lay across the white vinyl back seat of my newly acquired 1977 Ford Thunderbird. Finian was curled up under my legs, letting out a high-pitched squeak every time he yawned or stretched. Pigpen was driving, his black-rimmed prescription goggles tight around his large skull, giving him a look of a muscular raccoon. My boyfriend Zack lolled in the passenger seat wearing his quintessential uniform of a fedora hat and vintage cowboy shirt, cracking jokes to keep us entertained. His music was the reason we were traveling in the first place; and we were on a weeklong mission in the middle of March to play as much music as possible across the southeast. On this particular day, we were leaving our three-day stay in New Orleans and heading north to Knoxville, TN to play our last show and then headed back home to Virginia in the morning. Fifty miles outside of Louisiana, I was happily relaxing in the back seat of the T-bird, when I heard a loud clunk. I quickly looked out the window and saw a small square piece of black plastic fly out from under the car. The guys in the front seat noticed the noise too and quickly disregarded it. No less than 10 seconds later the car completely shut off. A 1977 Ford Thunderbird is beast of a car. The big American engine is almost double the size of a Japanese car. From my perspective--as someone who knows nothing about cars--looking under the hood of that beautiful monstrosity was a confusing mess of dirty rubber tubes, rusty screws, and grease. The inner workings of this car created a powerful thunderous roar that no one would ever want to hear silenced while barreling down a busy Mississippi interstate. Page 6 Nalani Williams|Enterprise Mississippi Pigpen calmly whipped the huge vintage steering wheel around, guiding what momentum was left in the shiny burgundy corpse onto the off ramp and towards a conveniently-placed, but abandoned, gas station. Luckily, in the vast emptiness surrounding us there was one house one hundred feet away, where an old black man covered in grease hunched over an old truck. Zack walked over to talk to him and ten minutes later I found myself steering the Thunderbird while Zack, Pigpen, and the old man by the name of Robert pushed the Thunderbird next to the dilapidated truck. Robert was obviously a very kind man, but understanding him was difficult due to his mumbled Mississippi accent. Fortunately his wife boisterously came out of the house wearing an animal print sweater with matching animal print sandals. She put out her plump hand and introduced herself as Miss Mary. Hours into watching the guys toiling over the T-bird, Miss Mary offered to take me to some fried chicken. Since the only place to get food was a half hour away, I settled down into the animal print car seat and Miss Mary started telling sad stories: How her family and friends lost their homes in the hurricane and how she lost her brother to a stroke the same week. She told me these things so nonchalantly, it seemed that tragedy was normal to her. We drove through a little town called Enterprise, which to me was an ironic name for a town that was completely abandoned and torn apart by Hurricane Katrina. I couldnt believe that I was still in America, if I was blindfolded and taken to Enterprise, Mississippi I would have thought I was in a third world country. I wasnt aware of the damage done to Mississippi; most of the damage done to New Orleans came from the levy breaking, not the hurricane itself. Mississippi was hit by the hurricane just east of the eye, which is the worst part of a hurricane with the strongest winds. Miss Mary said she had no choice but to live in the church with many other displaced families for almost a month after Katrina. Page 7 Nalani Williams|Enterprise Mississippi When we arrived back at the house, about four other relatives of Miss Mary and Robert were there all working on our car. None of them knew who we were, and yet they were all compelled to help the strangers in need. The problem with the car proved to be very complex and entailed finding a radiator. Robert spent his Sunday making phone calls and driving around looking for a radiator. Finally, just as the sun was setting, the radiator was in place and the car fixed. The only money they asked from us was $180 for parts. Pigpen later told me it would have cost us more than $600 at a repair shop. We had missed our last gig, but we didnt care. We were just happy to get home safely. We all tried not to think of what would have happened without the help of Robert and Miss Mary as we drove away in that Mississippi sunset. An event that could have been a tragedy, turned out to be an eye-opening experience. I felt like I was supposed to meet those wonderful people and get a glimpse into their lives. Despite their tragic circumstances they were helpful and kind. They didnt judge us or ask any questions about our background, they just recognized us as fellow human beings and did what came naturally to them, they helped. Page 8  ...

... The aim of a value drawing is to create a three-dimensional illusion by focusing on an images light, shadow, and surface tones. Chilton devided this image into a grid of half inch squares. Each square has a different pattern representing the surface tones from the original photographic image. Erin Chilton Page 5  ...

... Angela Hancock Eulogy She wanted to be a kite, theyd say, With vibrant colors, spreading her wings. The fabric stretched taut across the frame, Blue, green, red, and yellow. But my kite would have eyes, shed say, Peering over vast seas of green. Her tail as long as the suns rays, And the color of tie-dye. The hippies would look up with envy. Ill go on adventures, shed say, And leave this dreary place behind. Ill meet exotic birds and theyll tell me tales. Theyll put nuts and berries on my back, And fly by my side until the sunrise. Of course shed meet storms, theyd say, And shed be whipped in the wind, And wounded in the rain. Theyd tell her to come lower, To steer clear of great heights. But I dont mind danger, shed say, Who doesnt long for a little fright? Shed laugh down at those whom she left behind, The ones who tried to ground her flight. I love the wind and the rain, shed cry, Even death could not call her down. Page 4  ...

... Piedmont Virginia Community College The Fall Line Volume II Spring 2010 The Fall Line: a Fall Line is a natural border between the costal plains and the mountanous region that spans Virginia. The Fall Line, Spring 2010, is the second volume selected, edited, and produced by the PVCC Creative Writing Club. Katie Ziegler, President Jenny Koster, Advisor Tom Myrtle, poetry and prose editor Stephanie Morris, poetry and prose editor Kevin Ferguson, cover art featuring the Greek mythological character Icarus Katie Ziegler, layout and title page photograph of the Blue Ridge Mountains Special thanks to Beryl Solla for providing an excellent sample of students art. Special thanks to Danielle Johnson for publishing The Fall Line. This year, in addition to our submissions, The Fall Line is publishing four essays provided by the colleges QEP [Quality Enhancement Plan] Essay Contest. Rosemary Harkraders Water Pistol was the winner of the QEP Essay Contest. Susan Hammonds The Dinner Party was the runner-up in the contest. April Moellers Personal Essay was the second runner-up in the contest. Nalani Williams Enterprise Mississippi received honorable mention. Deborah Poulins PVCC Letter received honorable mention. Table of Contents Eulogy | a poem by Angela Hancock Page 4 Portrait| a value drawing by Erin Chilton Page 5 Enterprise Mississippi |a QEP contest essay by Nalani Williams Pages 6-8 1-5 | art by Iara Matavelli Page 9 Encaustic| art by Jessica Ritenour Page 10 Posthumously | a poem by Crystal Lambert Page 11 Lonely One | a poem by Kevin Ferguson Page 12 Negative Space | art by Caitlin Conan Page 12 Then Silence | a poem by Greg Mika Page 13 Personal Essay | a QEP contest essay by April Moeller Page 14 #4 | a poem by Edward Mattimoe Page 15 Negative Space | art by Jessica Roelofs Page 15 The Dinner Party | a QEP contest essay by Susan Hammond Pages 16-17 Books | a drawing by Lali Stams Page 17 Skeleton | a blind contour by Hannah Grisko Page 18 Boots | a blind contour by Nalani Williams Page 18 Furrows of Time | a poem by James Coles Page 19 PVCC Letter | a QEP contest essay by Deborah Poulin Pages 20-21 Portrait | a value drawing by Jessica Drew Page 22 Coroebus in White | a poem by Tom Myrtle Page 23 Water Pistol| a QEP contest essay by Rosemary Harkrader Pages 24-25 B| a drawing by Christine Kidd Page 26 F | a drawing by Jessica Drew Page 26 T | a drawing by Kristen Bingler Page 26 U| a drawing by Jake Tuck Page 26 Granny Smith and Mamaw | an essay by David Ramey Pages 27-29 1-5 | a drawing by Diane Willson Page 29 Value Drawing | a drawing by Hilary Mathes Page 30 Cousin | a poem by Crystal Lambert Pages 31-32 Angela Hancock Eulogy She wanted to be a kite, theyd say, With vibrant colors, spreading her wings. The fabric stretched taut across the frame, Blue, green, red, and yellow. But my kite would have eyes, shed say, Peering over vast seas of green. Her tail as long as the suns rays, And the color of tie-dye. The hippies would look up with envy. Ill go on adventures, shed say, And leave this dreary place behind. Ill meet exotic birds and theyll tell me tales. Theyll put nuts and berries on my back, And fly by my side until the sunrise. Of course shed meet storms, theyd say, And shed be whipped in the wind, And wounded in the rain. Theyd tell her to come lower, To steer clear of great heights. But I dont mind danger, shed say, Who doesnt long for a little fright? Shed laugh down at those whom she left behind, The ones who tried to ground her flight. I love the wind and the rain, shed cry, Even death could not call her down. Page 4 The aim of a value drawing is to create a three-dimensional illusion by focusing on an images light, shadow, and surface tones. Chilton devided this image into a grid of half inch squares. Each square has a different pattern representing the surface tones from the original photographic image. Erin Chilton Page 5 Nalani Williams QEP Essay Contest recipient of honorable mention Enterprise Mississippi We were completing the last leg of our trip, crossing the border of Louisiana into Mississippi, the weather mild this particular Sunday. The sun was shining on my face as I lay across the white vinyl back seat of my newly acquired 1977 Ford Thunderbird. Finian was curled up under my legs, letting out a high-pitched squeak every time he yawned or stretched. Pigpen was driving, his black-rimmed prescription goggles tight around his large skull, giving him a look of a muscular raccoon. My boyfriend Zack lolled in the passenger seat wearing his quintessential uniform of a fedora hat and vintage cowboy shirt, cracking jokes to keep us entertained. His music was the reason we were traveling in the first place; and we were on a weeklong mission in the middle of March to play as much music as possible across the southeast. On this particular day, we were leaving our three-day stay in New Orleans and heading north to Knoxville, TN to play our last show and then headed back home to Virginia in the morning. Fifty miles outside of Louisiana, I was happily relaxing in the back seat of the T-bird, when I heard a loud clunk. I quickly looked out the window and saw a small square piece of black plastic fly out from under the car. The guys in the front seat noticed the noise too and quickly disregarded it. No less than 10 seconds later the car completely shut off. A 1977 Ford Thunderbird is beast of a car. The big American engine is almost double the size of a Japanese car. From my perspective--as someone who knows nothing about cars--looking under the hood of that beautiful monstrosity was a confusing mess of dirty rubber tubes, rusty screws, and grease. The inner workings of this car created a powerful thunderous roar that no one would ever want to hear silenced while barreling down a busy Mississippi interstate. Page 6 Nalani Williams|Enterprise Mississippi Pigpen calmly whipped the huge vintage steering wheel around, guiding what momentum was left in the shiny burgundy corpse onto the off ramp and towards a conveniently-placed, but abandoned, gas station. Luckily, in the vast emptiness surrounding us there was one house one hundred feet away, where an old black man covered in grease hunched over an old truck. Zack walked over to talk to him and ten minutes later I found myself steering the Thunderbird while Zack, Pigpen, and the old man by the name of Robert pushed the Thunderbird next to the dilapidated truck. Robert was obviously a very kind man, but understanding him was difficult due to his mumbled Mississippi accent. Fortunately his wife boisterously came out of the house wearing an animal print sweater with matching animal print sandals. She put out her plump hand and introduced herself as Miss Mary. Hours into watching the guys toiling over the T-bird, Miss Mary offered to take me to some fried chicken. Since the only place to get food was a half hour away, I settled down into the animal print car seat and Miss Mary started telling sad stories: How her family and friends lost their homes in the hurricane and how she lost her brother to a stroke the same week. She told me these things so nonchalantly, it seemed that tragedy was normal to her. We drove through a little town called Enterprise, which to me was an ironic name for a town that was completely abandoned and torn apart by Hurricane Katrina. I couldnt believe that I was still in America, if I was blindfolded and taken to Enterprise, Mississippi I would have thought I was in a third world country. I wasnt aware of the damage done to Mississippi; most of the damage done to New Orleans came from the levy breaking, not the hurricane itself. Mississippi was hit by the hurricane just east of the eye, which is the worst part of a hurricane with the strongest winds. Miss Mary said she had no choice but to live in the church with many other displaced families for almost a month after Katrina. Page 7 Nalani Williams|Enterprise Mississippi When we arrived back at the house, about four other relatives of Miss Mary and Robert were there all working on our car. None of them knew who we were, and yet they were all compelled to help the strangers in need. The problem with the car proved to be very complex and entailed finding a radiator. Robert spent his Sunday making phone calls and driving around looking for a radiator. Finally, just as the sun was setting, the radiator was in place and the car fixed. The only money they asked from us was $180 for parts. Pigpen later told me it would have cost us more than $600 at a repair shop. We had missed our last gig, but we didnt care. We were just happy to get home safely. We all tried not to think of what would have happened without the help of Robert and Miss Mary as we drove away in that Mississippi sunset. An event that could have been a tragedy, turned out to be an eye-opening experience. I felt like I was supposed to meet those wonderful people and get a glimpse into their lives. Despite their tragic circumstances they were helpful and kind. They didnt judge us or ask any questions about our background, they just recognized us as fellow human beings and did what came naturally to them, they helped. Page 8 1-5 by Iara Matavelli Page 9 Encaustic by Jessica Ritenour Page 10 Crystal B. Lambert Posthumously Sylvia is alone upstairs, Braiding ribbons through her hair And putting flowers in strategically natural positions. Ted, get off your ass and tell her that you need her Like I need her. Assia is on the phone, but her voice Is distant, and Sylvias resonates down the stairs like angel. Sylvia, do you recall that day in the strawberry fields? You were an angel, Pink and laughing, sad when I saw you from the upstairs Of the barn. I know your secrets from that day: I heard your voice Call out in alarm, I saw your hair Disheveled and messy. When you catch a glimpse of her, You cannot help but cry -- her hands are beautiful in that position. Sylvia, he said, you put me in a fucking awful position. You sat, frozen, praying for an angel Or a miracle. You thought surely youd be saved by thinking of her Face. In that big house, upstairs, You bathe Angelica and smile as you brush her hair. You are peace and beauty at the sound of her voice. Sylvia, I regret that I could never voice My true feelings. All I could do was sit each evening, in the same position, And watch the light absorb into your hair While you carefully boiled our angelHair pasta. I never followed you upstairs. Ted always said, I cannot stand her Habits, that Sylvia. The way she changes her Voice When you come around. I saw your gaze, the way you stared At him with nothing but contempt. You had him locked in position. You are crying while Angelica Sits behind you, runs her fingers through your hair. When they found you, I ran up the stairs to fix your hair, Left you in a delicate position. I never really liked her Much -- for me, it was always your voice, my angel. Page 11 Kevin Ferguson Lonely One The road I walk is a lonely one Where shadows creep and light theres none No moon or stars, no bright-lit sun The road I walk is a lonely one The road I walk is a lonely one Where friends are gone and lifes no fun No one can help, no one can come For the road I walk is a lonely one The road I walk is a lonely one Where coldness makes my heart go numb No feelings left, not even some The road I walk is a lonely one The road I walk is a lonely one Where voices sing and voices hum No one knows where they are from I fear of what Ill soon become Before the end is reached and done Of this road I walk, the lonely one Caitlin Conan Page 12 Greg Mika Then Silence Squealing tires on the pavement The crash of metal on metal Squealing tires on the pavement The crash of metal on metal The sound of metal on the pavement Wrinkled metal hitting earth Wrinkled metal hitting trees The sound of loud hissing Then Silence Bells ring and horns sound Voices yell and boots hit the ground A diesel engine roars Sirens wail and air horns sound Brakes squeal and doors slam Voices yell and boots hit the ground One young life breathed its last Then Silence A slight moan and the sound of breath Voices yell and boots hit the ground A slight moan and the sound of breath Another young life just holding on The whirr of rescue tools and metal crunching Voices yell and boots hit the ground Doors slam and sirens wail Brakes squeal and doors slam The whup whup whup of helicopter blades Voices yell and boots hit the ground Doors slam and boots hit the ground The whup whup whup of helicopter blades Then Silence The ringing of the telephone The squeaking of a bed The ringing of the telephone Feet hit the floor Soft voices on the telephone The clunk of the receiver Soft voices in the air The other young life breathed its last Then Silence Page 13 April Moeller Runner-up in the QEP Essay Contest A Personal Essay A sense of belonging is something many people take for granted, but I didnt really experience it until I returned to the United States at the age of fifteen, after living overseas for six consecutive years as the daughter of a U.S Foreign Service officer. My freshman year of high school in Brussels, Belgium ended with a dread of moving; it would be the eighth time in my short fifteen years. But this dread wasnt based on the reluctance to pack up, leave my friends, or go somewhere new; these were familiar feelings, and consequently, much easier to handle. This time it was different. The thought of returning to the United States - my place of birth, but a place to which I felt no real connection - was terrifying. My thoughts were a jumble and my stomach was perpetually knotted. What if I didnt like it there? How could I possibly call this foreign place my home? Adding to my frustration, the question, Are you excited to be going home? was repeatedly posed. While always responding with a forced smile, I would silently exclaim to myself, Its not my home, I dont have a home! I was also anxious about having to attend a U.S. public high school. I had been accustomed to international schools, where almost everyone knew what it was like to move all the time. I feared that American kids would view me as a foreigner because of my lifestyle or the funny international accent I had acquired through my travels. The dread of being alone, of having no one who could relate to my experiences was overwhelming. A sense of detachment overcame me; I didnt feel comfortable calling myself an American. So, with all these emotions ricocheting inside me, I packed up my life and flew with my family to the United States of America. Therefore, it was a great surprise, that on the first day of marching band I was surrounded by people introducing themselves and offering to show me around. As soon as they knew that my family and I had just moved from Belgium, everyone wanted to know the rest of the story. I wasnt alone during lunch, I was invited to parties and to the movies, and I was teased as if Id been around forever. The welcome I received was so warm that I became skeptical of their sincerity. I kept waiting for them to lose interest in the new girl. But they didnt. The people I met those first two weeks were my best friends throughout the year and continue to be my friends even now that we are thousands of miles apart. I have truly never felt such a warm welcome upon arriving at any place I have ever lived. Over the course of that year I found lasting friendship and my sense of belonging. I have a place I can call home, and Im proud to call myself an American. Page 14 Edward J. Mattimoe II #4 With Laces ties tightly And Fingers crossed lightly Left thumb on top of right Smiles keep you warm at night Rosy-cheeked, rosy-hipped Fat-lipped, now youre flipped Cars, Bars, Men, and Boys Life youve traded for some toys Get it back, Take a class Shake your hips, lose that ass We get a prize to come in last Smiles fade too damn fast Fading in, Panning out Hips now sag, lips cant pout Greedy smiles turn in flight Smiles keep you up at night Negative Space by Jessica Roelofs Page 15 Susan Hammond QEP Essay Contest finalist The Dinner Party My rich, red rosewood table is set with the finest silverware. It sparkles with twinkling Baccarat crystal glasses and four places are set with delicate white china. There is a bottle of champagne chilling in an ice bucket on the buffet, as I anxiously await the arrival of my dinner guests. Princess Diana is the first to arrive, a vision of elegance in a vintage Christian Dior red silk gown. I offer her a glass of champagne, which she graciously declines. The bell rings again and I am delighted to see James Dean smiling at me through the glass door. The last and most important guest is my teenage son, since this dinner party is especially for him. We sit down to dinner, and I am relieved to discover that Princess Diana and Mr. Dean seem to like each other, and they chat comfortably together. I signal the caterer to begin serving the first course. My son looks slightly bemused, idly picking at his lobster risotto. He thought it was an unusual request when I asked him to have dinner with two dead people. No doubt he will update his Facebook status later this evening, in an attempt to impress his online friends. Diana is a charming guest, telling us about her charity work. She seems especially proud of her time spent in Angola, attempting to highlight the daily carnage that occurs around the world because of landmines. She glows with pride as she recounts her experiences, only to break off suddenly and her face clouds over with incredible sadness. With a catch in her voice, she half whispers, I had so much more to do. I had so many children that needed my help. James Dean looks at her, nods solemnly, and then gently lays his hand upon her forearm. I know exactly what you mean he said. I, too, had so much I wanted to do. I didnt expect to die at twenty-four. They both have tears brimming up in their eyes, but James blinks rapidly to chase his away. Diana lets her tears roll slowly down her sorrowful face, openly mourning the life that was so violently and unexpectedly stolen from her in an instant. Page 16 Susan Hammond|The Dinner Party Sadly, it is soon time for our guests to leave. We show them to the front door and watch as they walk to their cars. I look at my young son, fresh faced and handsome. He is on the cusp of such an exciting time in his life. The teenage years are so full of fun, but peppered with important decisions that can change a life irreversibly. Princess Diana climbs into her Mercedes S600 saloon and James gets into his pride and joy a silver Porsche 550 Spyder. They both turn and look directly at my son as they purposefully put on their seat belts, and he understands what they are telling him to do. Then they both drive off into the cold, black night. Books by Lali Stums Page 17 BLIND CONTOUR: a line drawing - in this case of a still life - sketched without looking at the paper A blind contour by Hannah Grisko A blind contour by Nalani Williams Page 18 James Coles Furrows of Time There is a road beyond the black way by the fields Heavily traveled by me in my youth Farmhands labour, working their ancient fingers to the bone Staring listlessly and sadly at me I swore never to be like them, caught in time Working my fingers to the bone. In the metropolis I sought a proper education To secure a future in the city, not in the sun To escape the rustic cycle of my ancestors And to hide from the forlorn glances that penetrated me In my youth on the road beyond the black way by the fields Where farmhands labour, working their fingers to the bone. One summer, the war came to the East Pulled from academia and given a pistol for a pen Katyushas and ski teams were all I knew Taking a life also takes from oneself On the front, I contemplated which was more destructive To work your soul or your fingers to the bone. Peace broke, leaving heroes unemployed and unfulfilled Too affected for school and too young for retirement Time slowed to a crawl...-- in the beat of a heart I was there, along the road beyond the black way In the fields, labouring, staring at a bright-eyed youth Working my ancient fingers to the bone. Page 19 Deborah Poulin QEP Essay Contest recepient of honorable mention PVCC Letter Dear I cant do this, August 28th 2009, I put my purple suede boots through the annex doors at Piedmont, abandoning my past posture of self doubt and I got my college swagger on. If you witnessed that day, you might have assumed you were seeing a confident, youthful woman in her stride, sporting seriously hot boots. Not likely youd have guessed that internally, I was emotional wreckage fighting back a full on panic attack with absolutely no self worth to be had. Truth about me goes something like this. Middle aged single mother of four, works 30 hours a week, sleeps rarely, finding Mr. Coffee and under eye concealer, the only two things I can always depend on. My life is really hard and plus or minus details, I imagine yours is too. For more years than I care to admit, I put off my education. I was scared, abused, trapped and hopeless. My fears, as Id bet yours do, varied from legitimate to downright irrational. What I know now that I didnt know then, is that fear is wholly unimportant, until it is overcome If I denied that my first day wasnt nerve wracking, Id be misrepresenting my experience and doing us a disservice. Okay, the droves of kids in crowded hallways totally freaked me out. That literally lasted for all of five minutes, until I realized I wasnt a sore thumb at all, even with the damn boots. There are enough mature students enrolled at PVCC to create a perfect balance to the youthful. That is truly one of the things I appreciate most about this college, diversity. The kids bring something unique to my experience by keeping me fresh and awake with their boundless energy. I in turn bring them my wisdom, life experience and enthusiastic encouragement. Already I have witnessed real reflection in the eyes of a peer twenty years my junior because of something I have said. My unexpected college bonus, I dare suggest far more rewarding than beer pong. Page 20 Deborah Poulin | PVCC Letter The beneficial surprises thus far at PVCC have me eager to experience next semester. Nine short weeks in ITE-119, and Debbie Wenger has cured my irrational fear of computers. Microsoft word, no longer makes me suicidal. In SDV, Annette Williams has offered positive reinforcement and guidance while seeking my true career path, helping me to realize limitations dont exist. And In Ethics 101, Marietta McCarty taught me, my angry voice is not the only voice deserving recognition. All of this gained already, and in an atmosphere as warm and inviting as my family kitchen on Thanksgiving Day. PVCC is the right place to get your foot in the educational door. Especially, if youre in the phase of life requiring good arch support for your practical, comfortable shoes or like me, in your very hot (but very flat) purple suede boots. If I can do this, you can do this. Proudly, Deborah Poulin P.S. Enroll right now. Page 21 Value Drawing by Jessica Drew Page 22 Tom Myrtle Coroebus in White I peer through the peacocks1 clear, glassy eye, And there see a wondrous sight in pure white Crystal and sparkling steel, as round they fly, Swirling and spinning in circles of light. Then next through the eye, I witness on high, Someone hurdling to the basin below Through the light, airy, azure of the sky, As a gold eagle on the wind does flow. Would that I could be among the grand throng, Whose tumult somersaults down the hills And over the hollows like a heroic song, Their crescendos chilling the spine with thrills. Or that I could fly and twist in the clouds, Then alight softly, to delight these crowds. Coreobus was the first Olympic champion in 776 BCE The peacock is the logo of NBC 1 Page 23 Rosemary Harkrader Winner of the QEP Essay Contest Water Pistol It is impossible to comprehend the vitality of the common nightlight until the bulb blows out and you are left in the dark. When the bulb does blow out, you understand instantly. I understood as I lay petrified under the covers trying to decide which would be better: to live in cowardice or die with courage. I didnt ever expect to take that question so seriously, especially at my young age. But, thats what it came down to: life and death. Since light no longer guarded my room, I feared for my life. I feared the ghouls. This fear may not have been reasonable. I had no reason to believe that the absence of light would mark the advent of death. I had no solid proof that the murderous ghouls even existed. I had never seen the greasy skin oozing with venom nor smelled the sharp scent of decaying blood and flesh. I had only seen vague forms and shadows in the darkness, and that did not count as solid proof. Nothing was solid proof until an adult agreed with you. Even though my inner senses screamed Danger, danger! ghouls did not exist because no adult believed that they existed. Even so, I was not about to believe that these horrific monsters were simply non-existent. Adults could take that approach, but kids could not. It was different for us kids. We were vulnerable and ghouls knew it. Ghouls were the sort of nightmare that could smell the scent of terror lingering on you and know that your water gun, your only hope, was too far to reach before they would see you move and destroy you. Under rotting hair, glazed eyes snapped through the night and stared hard at my goose pimpled flesh while I considered the water pistol resting on the nightstand. One blast of water and I would be safe. Then, I wondered if I should even consider resisting the plotting of the dangerous ghouls. It is too risky, my mind instructed me. As soon as you move, your hope and life will be eliminated. Page 24 Water Pistol| Rosemary Harkrader But what virtue is there in cowering before your fears? my heart demanded. Surely there is more nobility in facing the enemy with fear checked by courage than in remaining motionless and afraid. Then, my mind responded with the ultimate question: Which would be better: to live in cowardice or die with courage? I considered it seriously. Quite seriously, for this was a matter of life and death. But, it was also a matter of nobility. Spots swarmed my eyes as I strained to see through the darkness. Ten seconds. Twenty. Adrenaline pulsed through my veins and I focused on the water gun waiting on the nightstand. I tensed, then sprang for the pistol. Page 25 Christine Kidd Jessica Drew Kristen Bingler Jake Tuck Page 26 David Ramey Granny Smith and My Mamaw The apple is truly a wonderful fruit. Apples come in many varieties. And each has its own taste, color, size, and use. Some may be too tart for pies, and some are great for just eating out of hand. You can even be the apple of someones eye. You may be doing work on an Apple. The apple I grew to love and have a special relationship with was the Granny Smith. When I was a young boy, I lived mainly with my mamaw (my grandmother) until about age seven. There standing so majestically was a huge apple tree at the upper end of the garden. This tree was not to be climbed or abused in any way. Mamaw made sure we were always aware of her presence, and anyone around the apple tree better have a good excuse. During the summer when the tree was full of lush green foliage, when the apples were appearing on the tree and looking so tasty, I would find a nice round rock to throw up at the tree with the hopes of being rewarded with a nice juicy apple. I could see the larger ones hanging towards the top of the tree, but could not throw my rocks high enough to get the big ones. Sometimes it took several attempts to get the tree to release one of those large, circular, juicy, sweet, and sometimes tart treats. Mamaw sometimes caught me winding up with my rock, and would yell Rabbit!, I would look, drop my rock, and run for the hills. I knew that when I returned she would tell me for the hundredth time, if I wanted an apple, look on the ground under the tree, and get the ones that have fallen. This noncompliance had gotten me into lots of trouble concerning the delicious fruit hanging out of reach. The Granny Smith is a great apple for apple sauce and for pie making. I became aware of the many uses early on. I would sit on the porch with my mamaw, mother, and aunts, peeling apples. You have to peel fast, and the peels better be thinthat way you waste very little apple. We would have a contest to see who could peel an apple without the peel tearing. When you were finished, you would have just one long strip of the apple skin. That was usually accomplished by one of the older folks. Page 27 Granny Smith and My Mamaw| David Ramey I would sit there listening to the women talk about the pies, apple sauce, apple butter and how many of the apples to dry and so on. As everyone would be engaged in gab, I would slowly peel my apple, and, when the timing was right, I would slice a piece off and in my mouth it would go. Then I would turn the fruit over as to hide the sliced area, and continue until I was either caught or the evidence was no more. After all the peeling was done, it was time to cook, dry, and watch the pie making with joy and anticipation. I knew the following morning and possibly at supper, too, there were going to be fried apples on the table. This was one of those mornings I could not lie in bed. The sweet aroma coming from the kitchen was forcing me out of bed before anyone else. I would make a fast dart to the kitchen, and Mamaw would greet me with plate and fork. I would place a large spoon of apples on my plate, add a few homemade biscuits, and I was one happy young man. The fried apples possessed a sweet, sugary stickiness that was to be enjoyed as long as my stomach could accommodate. This was a ritual late summer and fall each year. When old man winter set in, we were still enjoying the apple. There would be strings of this sweet fruit hanging on the wall behind the wood stove, which was always warm. These drying apples were also a problem for me at times. They were somewhat chewy and delicious. You can buy dried apples, and the ones that are packaged are good, but not as good as those that hung on the wall behind the wood stove at Mamaws. I would never attempt to sneak the ones out of the store, but the hanging ones would always tempt me, and that temptation was far too strong. I was often amazed of how these slices would wrinkle up, look unlike an apple slice, and yet be so tasty. My mamaw would again get the opportunity to instruct me about not taking the apples that were hanging. I would always let her know I looked on the floor behind the stove, and there were no apples to be found. She would smile and tell me about what she wanted to use the drying apples for, and it was usually something I liked more than the hanging apples. Page 28 Granny Smith and My Mamaw| David Ramey That old apple tree and Mamaw are gone now. After Mamaw left us and I grew up and moved on, there was no one left to enjoy the apples. Perhaps the tree had no more purpose and withered away. A gut feeling tells me Mamaw is still baking somewhere and that wonderful tree is her source of Granny Smith apples. For many years it provided us with a bounty of apples, shade in the summer, and conversation. I still can see it standing so gracefully on the hill near the garden, and if I try hard enough I can still see those large, round, somewhat green with a hint of yellowish hue beauties in the top of the tree, still out of reach. That feeling of Mamaws presence is more rewarding than throwing the rock in my right hand. 1-5 by Diane Willson Page 29 Hilary Mathes Page 30 Crystal B. Lambert Cousin one summer you skipped the gap and slipped right into thirteen-it fit you like an old pair of jeans. i hold in my mind the hot nights of july, you and i laying under my open window, counting grasshopper chirps and the freckles poised on the bridge of your nose. you spelled out everything 10-year-old me could ever need to know, like what it means to bleed through your hips and the feeling of lips on lips why should you ever want to marry. my arms grew to match yours, and i wished each day that my body would follow suit. i did not want to be older, i just wanted to be you. once you showed me the scar on your leg and you said, dont you ever think they can tell you what to do. i traced it with my finger, from your thigh all the way up in curves to your hipbone, jutting up like a mountain, proclaiming your strength. i imagined myself as you, taking the threat of the knife over his unyielding desire. i wanted you as my sister. Page 31 Cousin | Crystal Lambert then you were absent for three summers, and i started to bleed without you. when i had to tell my mother, my face lit up with shame. i knew she didnt feel it like you did. my legs grew out to match yours, but i couldnt remember their shape. as soon as i forgot the position of the freckles on your face, the phone rang. my father held it to his ear for three silent minutes before letting it drop between the cushions. i thought surely my blood would stop cold, that i would no longer grow, but remain as you would for the rest of my life. sixteen. it made no sense that i could get that far. then 500 miles pass and i am standing over your body. i can see keloid mountain ranges under the thin cloth of your dress, the look on your face when he stopped his car with a lurch, leaned over to you. i put my head down, adjust the hem of my skirt over my legs. and even after that, after they tossed your ashes across Maines frigid coast, i could feel you every day, a quick pang in my thigh. even now, when its 2 a.m. and the air is cold and my sheets are bare i can still sometimes smell you in my hair. Page 32 Authors Artists James Coles Kevin Ferguson Susan Hammond Angela Hancock Rosemary Harkrader Crystal Lambert Edward Mattimoe Greg Mika April Moeller Tom Myrtle Deborah Poulin David Ramey Nalani Williams Kristen Bingler Erin Chilton Caitlin Conan Jessica Drew Hannah Grisko Christine Kidd Iara Matavelli Hilary Mathes Jessica Ritenour Jessica Roelofs Lali Stams Jake Tuck Nalani Williams Diane Willson  ...

... The Residential School System and its Implications The Residential School System and its Implications S k y la r R a y Tra in u m D isplacement of Native American children occurred all too commonly from the 17th century to the 20th in America. Reports show that Indigenous children were 25-35% more likely to be removed from their homes than the general population (Moore 3). But what is lesser known was the practice of removing Aboroginal children from their families in Canada, where they would then put them into boarding schools within the Residential School System over a 129-year span starting in the late-1800s. The Residential School Program boarded an estimated 150,000 Aboriginal students in the hopes of teaching them the ways of Euro-Canadian living (Gebhard 4). Since the creation of this system, Canadians have argued about its importance and impact on Aboriginal Canadians. Some Canadians have advocated for this system. In the early-1800s the Canadian cleric, John Strachan, considered the governance of Native Canadians to be merciful compared to the American Indian Policy (Hutchings, 304). Social scientist Hilary A. Rose insists that abuse was used within the Residential Schools to destroy Indigenous families(348). This paper will explore the timeline of the Residential School System, stemming from the creation to the aftermath of the system, to answer the questions: What practices were used within the Residential School Program? And what effects did they have on the Aboriginal students and their families? The Residential School Program was implemented quickly after Canada was declared a country, and was influenced by Christian ideals. These ideals were that of Eurocentric living standards, including practicing Christian religions and speaking English. Canadas first Residential School did not open its doors until 1879 but the ideas that would birth the Residential School Program were circulated as early as the 1820s (Hutchings 303). The lieutenant governor, Sir Peregrine Maitland, proposed a plan to Canadas Colonial Office in which he warns that little perhaps can be expected from the grown-up Indians (qtd. in Hutchings 303), intending that hopes to assimilate Aboriginal people would be most effective if primarily used on children. During this time, the aforementioned, Strachan, greatly influenced Maitlands proposal. Hutchings argues that Maitland was inspired by Strachans notion that Aboriginal children would fare best in the modern world by being removed from their families and raised among pious whites... and that just as white settlers saw local flora and fauna as unwanted objects that needed to be rooted out to make way for imported European crops and livestock (qtd. in Hutchings 305), so Strachan understood Indigenous culture as something to be eradicated to make way for the estabINSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 45 The Residential School System and its Implications lishment of Christian cultural knowledge and civilizations. The essence of Hutchings argument is that Strachan played a role in implementing a belief within 19th century Canadian society that Indigenous culture was something that needed to be stamped out and replaced with European culture. Strachan also stressed that it was an urgent Christian mission to do this, that it will save the doomed souls of the Aboriginal people. These thoughts based on Christian beliefs are the ones that would lead to the creation of the Residential School System and create a history of abuse against Canadas Aboriginal people. After the Residential School Program began its operation, Indigenous children were subject to a malnourished environment. The Canadian government, fronted by Canadas first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, was influenced by Strachans ideas that the Aboriginal child must be separated from their culture. This idea led the government to remove Indigenous children from their homes and place them into the Residential schools. In these schools, a process of assimilation was implemented using techniques such as barring the students from speaking their language, wearing their clothes, using their given names (sometimes the children were only referred to using numbers), and practicing cultural and spiritual traditions (Rose 348). The schools were underfunded, teachers were not qualified, and the classrooms were overcrowded. The responsibilities associated with the failures of the Residential School System were put onto the students, who were expected to grow their food, repair issues within the schools, and to sew or mend all of their clothing. The schools were set up on a half-day schedule where children would learn in class for half of the day then be sent to vocational training which in essence, was just glorified slave labor (Rose 350). These harsh conditions were 46 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 expected to teach the students and prepare them to function within a Euro-Canadian society but so far it had seemed to only left the children unhealthy. The harsh conditions the Indigenous children were put through would only worsen. Students were victims of numerous abuses, ranging from physical to sexual. If a child was found to have attempted to run away from school or even just talk in their first language, they would be physically attacked in hopes of civilizing the student. Along with this, the Aboriginal students would often be sexually abused, and allegations of this abuse would always be ignored by the government. When the government-funded the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, they had discovered more than 40 allegations of sexual or physical assaults driven by staff members (Rose 350). Although there could have been countless amounts of other assaults gone unspoken by traumatized victims, or by the fact that many of the Residential School Programs students did not survive their education. One cause of death within the system was the medical experiments conducted on the students. These experiments (which were enforced by the Department of Indian Affairs of Canada and executed by Dr. Percy Moore and Dr. Frederick Tisdall) operated without receiving consent from students or parents, in fact the parents were never told of the practices being used. No matter the circumstances of death or warnings to stop these unethical treatments, the experiments carried on. The studies involved observing groups of malnourished children and the effects of injecting them with various substances such as thiamine, riboflavin, ascorbic acid, niacin, and bone meal (often combined) in hopes that the supplements would cure malnourishment. The opposite had ensued, children were becoming weaker. Theyd contract anemia or cases of anemia would worsen. Reports The Residential School System and its Implications had found that approximately 42 percent of the children held in the Residential School System died annually (qtd. in Gebhard 5). The experiments these children underwent were completely unethical, often they were a death wish. Its hard to believe there was any good intent or logical thinking behind the idea to cure malnourishment with injected substances. Yet the government allowed this to go on, they allowed illegal medical practices that can be compared to the ones used in Nazi concentration camps. Even after the Residential School System ended the traumatic experiences within the schools still impacted the children who attended and their families. These effects are long-lasting and still prevail to this day. For example, mental illness and substance abuse are common among the Native American community. Likewise, 60 percent of prisoners held within the Prairie provinces of Canada are of indigenous descent (Gebhard 16). Rose connects the trauma of the Residential School Program to bad parenting in her article. She theorizes that These children, lacking appropriate parental role models throughout their school years, would potentially grow up not knowing how to parent subsequent generations (352). Roses point is that the current rates of mental illness and criminal tendencies in Indigenous people of Canada are the cause of their Indigenous parents and grandparents being inattentive. However, Amanda Gebhard questioned Roses mentality in her article when she maintains that A popular version of the truth is that residential schools have left Aboriginal peoples broken, and addicted, unable to parent: resultantly, they choose to commit crimes. When the problem is located within Aboriginal families, proposed solutions are individualizing imperatives rather than an analysis of the racism in Canadas justice system and wider society. In making this comment Gebhard urges us to not accuse victims of the Residential School Program of being bad parents but instead to recognize that the Canadian government and education system abused their victims and is to blame for generational depression within Canadas Indigenous People. Gebhard voices a narrative that schools in the present still harm their Aboriginal students when she suggests that Racism is a daily reality for Aboriginal students whose identities have been ignored, misrecognized, and vilified in school. Gebhards point is that racism still prevails in Canadas modern-day school system and teaches students negative stigmas of Aboriginal people. I find Gebhards argument more poignant than Roses. The system traumatized its victims and everyone related to them, the impact of this situation cannot be chalked up to bad parenting. The Residential School Program lives on in the way it still impacts Aboriginal people today. Its negative effect on the Indigenous community is a deep scar. The Residential School System harmed the Indgenous families of Canada when they stripped their homes of their children, the conditions the students had to endure only worsened the situation. This system condoned the abuse and malnourishment of its students leading to thousands of deaths. The conditions of the schools have left a permanent mark on Canada, their schools will never be the same, and forever will its indigenous population have to cope with what happened within the system. On September 26th, 2020 an Indegenous resident of Canada, Joyce Echaquan, was admitted to the hospital, Centre hospitalier de Lanaudire. She complained of stomach pains, to which her nurses restrained her to her bed and against her wishes, gave her morphine. Echaquan was allergic to morphine, and had an adverse reaction to it. She soon died but not before recording her nurses calling her stupid as hell and saying she was only good for sex. INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 47 The Residential School System and its Implications These remarks reflect the emotional and sexual abuse condoned within the Residential School Program. The Residential School System spread ideas that Indigenous people are immoral and deserve to be wiped out, these ideas have prevailed to this day and are the ones that led those nurses to insult Joyce Echaquan and disregard her concerns of her morphine allergy, which ultimately led to her death. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada has done much to bring to light the horrors of the Residential School Program by giving an official report of the abuse sustained within the program. But there is still more that must be done. Schools need to begin to face the racism against Aboriginal Canadians and teach children how to respect Native culture. The abuse within the Residential School System must no longer be lesser known, and I hope this essay has helped with that. WORKS CITED Gebhard, Amanda. Reconciliation or Racialization? Contemporary Discourses about Residential Schools in the Canadian Prairies. Canadian Journal of Education, vol. 40, no. 1, 2017, pp. 130. Hutchings, Kevin. Cultural Genocide and the First Nations of Upper Canada: Some Romantic-Era Roots of Canadas Residential School System. European Romantic Review, vol. 27, no. 3, 27 June 2016, pp. 301308., doi:10.1080/10509585.2016.1163787. Macdonald, Noni E, et al. Canadas Shameful History of Nutrition Research on Residential School Children: The Need for Strong Medical Ethics in Aboriginal Health Research. Paediatrics & Child Health, Feb. 2014, pp. 6464., doi:10.1093/pch/19.2.64. Moore, Skyler. Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978: An Analysis of Policy Implementation. Dissertation Abstracts International Section A: Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. 82, Sept. 2020, pp. 1226. Rose, Hilary A. I Didnt Get to Say Good-Bye... Didnt Get to Pet My Dogs or Nothing: Bioecological Theory and the Indian Residential School Experience in Canada. Journal of Family Theory and Review , vol. 10, no. 2, June 2018, pp. 348366., doi:10.1111/jftr.12261. 48 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021  ...

... The Troubled Child: Adolescent Egocentrism The Troubled Child: Adolescent Egocentrism A n n m a rie S e w e ll I n 1967 David Elkind first discussed the concept of adolescent egocentrism. Adolescent egocentrism can be defined as the tendency for adolescents to have a differing perception about how they believe others perceive them and how others actually perceive them (Adolescent Egocentrism). Teenagers have this belief that other people are as obsessed with their appearance and behavior as they are, also known as the imaginary audience (Elkind, 1967, p.1030). Teens may obsess over their actions or the way they look, because they believe that everyone is watching them, and want to impress them. Elkind used the example of a boy combing his hair in the mirror imagining the swooning reactions he will receive from girls (Elkind, 1967, p.1030). Elkind then explains that these obsessions are most likely in vain, as their peers are too concerned with what others think about them to worry about what they think about others. Adolescent egocentrism does not only affect teens on their perception of how others see them but also on their perception of their emotions compared to others. Adolescents often believe that their feelings are unique to those of others, that no one can feel suffering with such intensity (Elkind, 1967, p.1031). Examples of this can be seen in literature, such as Holden Caulfields character in The Catcher in the Rye, and often is displayed in movies and shows aimed at teenagers, such as Tall Girl and Riverdale. This belief that the adolescent has in their own personal uniqueness can often lead to a conviction that they will not die (Elkind, 1967, p.1031). Elkind called this belief that adolescents have about their uniqueness in emotion and immortality personal fable. As research is done, more and more issues are arising, with adolescent egocentrism at the core. With new technology being invented every year and social media growing, there are many more opportunities for adolescents to fuel their egocentrism. In an article about social media and its effects on adolescents, Daniel Houlihan explains that social media exacerbates teens belief that they are unique, or as David Elkind called it, personal fable (Houlihan, 2014). Along with this, online bullying is rampant on social media because adolescents feel that they are invulnerable to negative outcomes of their actions (Houlihan, 2014). This increase in online bullying then negatively affects the teen being bullied as these comments damage their ego and can lead to emotional struggles. However, adolescent egocentrism does not only harm teens emotionally, but it also harms them physically. This lack of cognitive maturity leads to adolescents taking risks that could seriously injure or even kill them. An article written for the Journal of Youth Studies explains how teens are at a rising risk for skin cancer due to the use of indoor tanning beds (Banerjee et al., 2015). INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 41 The Troubled Child: Adolescent Egocentrism They theorize that teens are doing this, not only to impress their imaginary audience but also because they feel immortal to the risks that indoor tanning poses (Banerjee et al.,2015). This mentality of being immortal can also lead to much more common issues, such as substance abuse, unprotected sex, fighting, and dangerous driving. These risky behaviors are actions that every teen has either done themselves or heard of someone else doing. According to the CDC 67% of students have drank alcohol before twelfth grade, about 50% of highschool students have smoked marijuana, and 40% of highschool students have reported smoking cigarettes (CDC, 2020). These statistics are extremely concerning as the earlier teens start abusing substances the higher the chances of developing an addiction or continuing to abuse substances become. Along with substance abuse, statistics show that 41% of sexually active students reported not using contraceptives in 2013, 24% of high school students reported having been in a physical fight in the past year in 2017, and seven teens aged 13-19 died in a fatal car crash per day, with hundreds more injured in 2018. Nevertheless, how can we help adolescents and keep them safe? Because adolescent egocentrism is a cognitive limitation and part of the brains development, it is not something that the adolescent can change. However, parents play a crucial part in helping their children stay safe and make smart decisions during this time. The first solution to helping adolescents is making sure that parents or guardians are aware of what adolescent egocentrism is, how to handle it, and where they can find the support, they need to help the child, is an important piece in helping egocentric adolescents. When adults lack the awareness that teenagers have no control over their egocentrism, it can often lead to them 42 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 putting their adolescents for their behavior, as it is seen as immature, overly emotional, and disruptive. But adolescents need someone to understand them, someone to support them and lead them on the right path without being harsh or blaming them. Many sources claim that the best way to help with adolescent egocentrism is by creating a caring and understanding environment around the adolescent, and I agree with these claims. I think the best thing that a family can do for adolescents facing egocentrism is give the teen support and a connection to confide in their family about their emotions or behaviors in a safe environment. Perhaps if the teen has a good relationship with a relative, they will be able to call if they are in trouble or need to be picked up because they are intoxicated. This would mitigate some of the risky behavior of teenagers, such as dangerous driving or abusing substances. Disciplining is still essential at this stage, and the teen should know that they will be disciplined, but it is important that the adolescent knows that this discipline comes from a place of care rather than a place of anger or disappointment. Theo Riley wrote that in a cognitive test done on a sample of seventh grade girls and boys emotional support from a parent was associated with a lower level of egocentrism (Riley, 1984). Along with this, it was also found that parental withdrawal heightened levels of egocentrism for both groups (Riley, 1984). Adolescents struggling with egocentrism already believe that no one understands or cares about their emotions,so a decrease in parental support does nothing but strengthen that belief. Although having a sound family support system is crucial to guiding an adolescent through these difficult years, I also believe that the community plays an important role as well. Children in this age range spend the majority of their time at The Troubled Child: Adolescent Egocentrism school, and it is important that they must have a good support system there, especially if they do not have this at home. Middle school and high school are filled with drama, fighting, and bullying, and more often than not, these situations are treated with no amount of understanding. Adolescent egocentrism can lead to a very competitive environment, personal fable can lead to fights and overall bad decision making, and an imaginary audience can lead to competition as every child tries to impress each other. A second solution is for schools to be equipped with mental health services so these adolescents can get the support they need. In my experience as a middle and high schooler, I have seen many of my bright peers give up on their education and turn to be trouble makers because they feel as though no one cares about them and if everyone thinks they are a bad kid, then that is what they will be. A third solution, and something I think would be very impactful, is having more safe places for teens and pre-teens to go to have fun. Even our own city of Charlottesville has very little for teens to do without parental supervision or access to money. Places like rec centers, bowling alleys, or skate parks where there is plenty of activities to do and light monitoring to keep adolescents safe. I believe that this would decrease illegal activities done by adolescents because they could form a community and hobbies in a safe space. Although these solutions can not completely fix adolescent egocentrism, as it is a cognitive issue, I believe that they could help, and slow the negative effects of this issue. By giving the teen or pre-teen the support that they need and a safe relationship or space, they will have someone to go to if they are in danger or need help. It is crucial for adolescents to have supportive and stable relationships with an adult during this period, whether that person is a parent or guardian, a teacher, or someone who leads a program they are a part of. After researching for this paper, my eyes have been opened a little bit more. Growing up, I saw my peers struggling with adolescent egocentrism, and I felt myself struggling with it simultaneously, but I never knew what it was. I have always struggled with wanting people to like me due to what I dealt with growing up, but I felt it get so much worse once I hit seventh grade and started puberty. Due to my home situation, I had to grow up fast, and because of this, I focused less on myself and being a teenager and more on doing what I could to be helpful to my mom and brothers. So, although I was struck with an imaginary audience, I was not as inclined to be risky because I did not want to cause any more stress to my mom. This lack of inclination towards negative actions caused me to judge those around me who acted in ways that I thought were dumb or immature. I think now, after researching adolescent egocentrism, it makes a lot more sense why my peers tended to act out in dangerous ways, especially because they did not have any type of support system. My role in society towards this topic shifted when I hit eleventh grade. I no longer felt judgment towards my peers, but instead wanted to help them, and that is what I continue to want to do. I want to advocate more for adolescents in school, I think this area is one that can be more easily helped and changed than parenting styles. My dream is to become a therapist and hopefully, through that I can further advocate for mental health services in schools and be taken seriously. I believe that I have done well when it comes to civic responsibilities and am continuing to do well. I tend to use my voice strongly to advocate for others who may not have it as well as I do. I always make sure to stay informed on what is going on in society INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 43 The Troubled Child: Adolescent Egocentrism and use whatever means I can to help society as a whole, whether that is by voting, through my art, or by giving out support to those around me. Although I believe I could do more, especially in helping adolescents in my community, for right now, I do what I can without pulling myself too thin. So yes, adolescents are technically immature and sensitive but that is sim- ply because their brains are in fact immature, and they are sensitive because that is how personal fables cause the brain to react. The sooner we as a society recognize that this behavior is not the adolescents fault and something they should be put down for, the sooner we can slow the dangers of adolescent egocentrism. REFERENCES Adolescent Egocentrism. (n.d.). Retrieved November 20, 2020, from https:// www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Adolescent+Egocentrism Banerjee, S. C., Greene, K., Yanovitzky, I., Bagdasarov, Z., Choi, S. Y., & Magsamen-Conrad, K. (2015). Adolescent egocentrism and indoor tanning: Is the relationship direct or mediated? Journal of Youth Studies, 18(3), 357-375. CDC. (2020, February 10). Teen substance use & risks. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/fasd/features/teen-substance-use.html CDC. (2020, November 18). Teen drivers: Get the facts. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/transportationsafety/teen_drivers/ teendrivers_factsheet.html Elkind, D. (1967). Egocentrism in Adolescence. Child Development, 38(4), 1025-1034. Frankenberger, K. D. (2000). Adolescent egocentrism: A comparison among adolescents and adults [Abstract]. Journal of Adolescence, 23(3), 343-354. Houlihan, D. (2014). Adolescents and the Social Media: The Coming Storm. Journal of Child and Adolescent Behaviour, 2(2). NCES. (2019, April). Indicator 12: Physical fights on school property and anywhere. Retrieved April 14, 2021, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/crimeindicators/ind_12.asp ReCAPP. (2014). Statistics. Retrieved April 14, 2021, http://recapp.etr.org/recapp/index.cfm?fuseaction=pages.StatisticsDetail&PageID=556&PageTypeID=25 Riley, T. A. (1984). Adolescent Egocentrism and Its Relationship to Parenting Styles and the Development of Formal Operational Thought (Doctoral dissertation, Utah State University, 1984) [Abstract]. All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. Schwartz, P. (2015). Teens becoming self-centered. Retrieved November 19, 2020, from https://hvparent.com/teens-becoming-self-centered. 44 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021  ...

... How Intentional Wa s the Naming of The 1918 Spanish Flu? How Intentional Was the Naming of The 1918 Spanish Flu? A n g e la S h u lt z T he world is facing a global pandemic as I write, and fingers are being pointed as to which country should be held responsible. But this isnt the first pandemic that the government has attempted to blame on another country. A century ago, another disease swept the globe and received the name the Spanish Flu, but it didnt originate in Spain. The Spanish Flu began in 1918 and killed upwards of 20 million people, though the exact number is still unknown. While the name hints strongly towards the flu originating in Spain, there has been much research that disagrees with what the name suggests. So, what was the real reason for naming the disease after Spain and how intentional was it? Some experts opine that there was an intentional motive behind naming the pandemic influenza after Spain because the name of a disease plays a large role in how the public and authorities will react. However, there are researchers who feel that there was simply misinformation when the flu was named as it occurred during World War I. Researchers are still debating the origin of the 1918 Flu. But even though there is controversy as to where it actually began, they do agree on one thing: it did not begin in Spain. According to James F. Armstrong, the first known case reported was in Haskell, Kansas, on March 11, 1918, at a military camp, Camp Funston. Word came in soon after the report. Of other military bases that had soldiers carrying the infection and before long, all the other states had reported sickness as well (Armstrong). In another study, Edwin Oakes Jordan, a bacteriologist and public health scientist, writes of three other possible sites besides Haskell, Kansas, where the flu could possibly have begun: China or France and Great Britain in British military camps. But as Jordan was looking at a report written in March 1918, he started to wonder if his findings pointed strongly towards Haskell, Kansas, as the origin. The report stated that there had been several deaths from pneumonia, but strangely enough, these deaths were dated to when the first wave of influenza began. Jordans idea was that new recruits may have passed the infection to other military camps in America and overseas. But he was not able to find strong enough information or evidence that would have specifically identified Haskell, Kansas, as the origin (qtd. in Humphries). This simply confirms a quote by Jordan in one of his studies, [I] ts origin is largely shrouded in obscurity (qttd. In Humphries). So, while there have been multiple theories as to where the epidemic began, its still unclear as to where it really originated. The conclusion is quite simple though: it did not begin in Spain as its name suggests. These sources provide background information for the answer to INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 37 How Intentional Wa s the Naming of The 1918 Spanish Flu? my research question. So, while it is plain that the flu did not originally begin in Spain, the reason behind naming it after the country is not so clear. Some researchers feel that there wasnt a purposeful or sinister motive behind it, as Michaela E. Nickol and Jason Kindrachuk suggest in an article. Instead, Nickols and Kindrachuks idea is based on circumstances in 1918. The Spanish flu and World War I occurred during the same time frame. Because Spain was the one of the few neutral countries during the war, newspapers in said country were able to report about the influenza effects. Researchers are unsure as to why newspapers in Spain were at more liberty to report on the flu. But as a result, the 1918 flu became mistakenly named after the country, the Spanish Flu (Nickol and Kindrachuck). This was not the only reason for the disease to be named after Spain, but it may have played a small part. Maite Zubiaurre brings her own interesting perspective to bear on this issue. She talks again about the fact that while there was more extensive media coverage of the influenza in Spain, feelings of distaste which stemmed from cultural prejudice, were also being directed against the Spaniards at that time. Because of this, it could be argued that it was an intentional and convenient step in which other countries could easily hand the blame over to a neutral, but slightly-disliked country. There is not only one theory that suggests the Spanish Flu was unintentionally named after a country it did not even originate from. James F. Armstrong had a slightly different idea though. As Spain was not active in the current war and the disease was being transported mainly through the military, it made headlines when Spains king, King Alfonzo, became sick (Armstrong). Armstrong believes that this news is how it became named the Spanish Flu. Because of this interest drawn towards 38 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 Spain, it is a possibility that it was simply an easy way to name an unnamed global pandemic and call it after a country that made headlines. While this theory by Armstrong is somewhat improbable, it provides a better understanding and basis in which to build off of another logical theory. What seems to be a more plausible answer to the question, based on historical research, lies within Trevor Hoppes article Spanish Flu: When Infectious Disease Names Blur Origins and Stigmatize Those Infected. He promotes the notion that names are a determining factor in how the public and authorities will react to the disease. The previous research proved that the 1918 flu, in fact, did not come from Spain. Hence, Hoppe addresses the reason as to why it and other diseases are oftentimes labelled with foreign names. The 1918 Flu was called the Spanish Flu, COVID19 has been referred to as the Chinese Virus, and the flu in 2009 was dubbed the Mexican Swine Flu. Some diseases are given names based on how scientists think they are transported or where they began. But most often, scientists give names based on where they believe a disease may have started, even if its not accurate. Scholars say that a feeling of safety s established by new sicknesses being given names to associate foreign populations and the spread of diseases, whether done intentionally or not (Hoppe). The theories mentioned previously dont necessarily disagree with each other, but instead tie together to give a fuller explanation as to how the Spanish Flu got its name. There are unfortunate consequences for populations who receive the name of a new disease. Charles J. Van Hook, a pulmonologist, said in the Emerging Infectious Disease journal, The Navajo people reacted strongly against any further association with the disease that had led to so much initial prejudice, and tribal elders appealed to officials to reconsider (qtd. in Irfan). How Intentional Wa s the Naming of The 1918 Spanish Flu? This quote refers to a new disease that was found in 1993 near the Navajo Nation Territory, which then became named after the area. The Navajos became further looked down upon with the sickness associated with them. This reinforces the point of how detrimental the naming of a disease after foreign or minority populations can be to them. Stanley Perlman, professor of microbiology, hits the nail on the head in his quote, The people who live there are being unfairly associated with a virus. Its not their fault (qtd. in Gordan). It isnt fair to ethnic minorities to purposefully tie them to a disease by naming it after them. And it is painfully obvious that it is less powerful countries who are being intentionally associated with new viruses. There are no diseases overtly named after America that can be found in history. And though we could make the argument that it is simply because there havent been any spreadable diseases originating from these countries (Gordan), that doesnt hold true as there has been much evidence, though it is still being debated, pointing to Haskell, Kansas, as the origin of the 1918 Flu. But it isnt just about the name of an epidemic that occurred a century ago. Our current day and age is still struggling with this as well. As noted before, COVID 19 has been referred to by certain well-known politicians as many different things, such as the Chinese Virus, Wuhan Coronavirus, China Virus, and other pointed names. This again shows that, whether or not its intentional, associating the current epidemic with a foreign country promotes feelings of safety and alleviates feelings of blame. Like Carol Goldin, a Rutgers University researcher, said, ...one consequence of such identification is that it allows the rest of society to simultaneously assign blame, and through contrast, define their own innocence... (qtd. in Irfan). By detaching ourselves from an epidemic such as COVID19, we give up any responsibility and place the by on China. It appears though that lessons are being learned and guidelines are being put into place for the naming of epidemics. Dr. Patel is quoted as saying, Heres the thing, we live in a different time now, and people can say all they want, Hey, in the past theyve named these viruses after geographic locations [sic]. What we will say back to them is yes, but with outbreaks in this world we see associated racism, and we see associated prejudice, so why dont we learn from the past, and why dont we set a new standard and get everyone on board with a more scientific process, and thats [sic] actually calling the virus by its actual scientific name, SARS-Cov2 and calling the disease COVID-19. (qtd. in Miguel) So, while we have seen attempts to associate the new epidemic with China by giving it the name of Chinese Flu, it appears that the government and the majority of people are slowly counteracting what had once been the common practice, during the 1918 flu and other past epidemics, of naming diseases after foreigners. While other factors, such as the reporting of the flu in Spain, could have played a part in the naming of the Spanish Flu, other intentional motives weigh in even more heavily. Just as a country was unfairly linked to a pandemic during 1918, even now, China is being bullied with names that point to them as the origin. It is essential that diseases no longer be named with the purpose of manipulating the public or placing blame, as ethnic targeting is often a result. More research is needed to understand the complete consequences of naming a new disease after a foreign population. Researching past pandemics, such as the 1918 flu, will play a large role in doing so. INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 39 How Intentional Wa s the Naming of The 1918 Spanish Flu? WORKS CITED Armstrong, James F. When the Flu Killed Millions. RN, vol. 62, no. 12, Dec. 1, 1999. Gordan, Elana. What to Call This New Coronavirus? Some Cautionary Tales. The World, Jan. 29, 2020. Hoppe, Trevor, PhD. Spanish Flu: When Infectious Disease Names Blur Origins and Stigmatize Those Infected. American Journal of Public Health, vol. 108, no. 11, Nov. 1, 2018, pp. 1462-1464. Humphries, Mark Osborne. Paths of Infection: The First World War and the Origins of the 1918 Influenza Pandemic. Sage Publications, Ltd, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 55-81, Jan. 08, 2014. Miguel, Ken. Heres the origin of coronavirus or COVID-19 and why you really shouldnt call it that other name. ABC News, April 03, 2020. Nickol, Michaela E, and Jason Kindrachuk. A Year of Terror and a Century of Reflection: Perspectives on the Great Influenza Pandemic of 19181919. BMC Infectious Diseases, vol. 19, no. 117, Feb. 06, 2019. Umair, Irfan. The life-and-death consequences of naming the coronavirus. VOX, Feb. 14, 2020. Zubiaurre, Maite. The Spanish flu: narrative and cultural identity in Spain, 1918/The Spanish influenza pandemic of 19181919: perspectives from the Iberian Peninsula and the Americas. Journal of Spanish Cultural Studies, vol. 18, no. 1, Jan. 23, 2017. 40 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021  ...

... The Utilization of Dre ams in Asian Religions The Utilization of Dreams in Asian Religions G id o n R o s e n fe ld W hat does it mean to dream? Sages and scientists alike have pondered this question throughout history, but never has it been fully answered. There are many theories regarding the nature of dreams, and they tend to vary based on ones culture and religion. In the west, dreams are often disregarded as mere illusions of sleep. However, in the eastparticularly in southern Asiadreams are incorporated into both religion and culture and are often considered a valuable resource. This is an ancient belief that goes back thousands of years and can still be found today in many parts of the world (Bulkeley 25-50). In Asia, the earliest reference to the nature of dreaming can be found in an ancient Hindu text known as the Rig Veda. The Vedas are a group of texts that are often credited as the founding scriptures of Hinduism and date back all the way to 1200 B.C.E. The Rig Veda is the oldest of them all, and although the subject of dreaming is merely touched on, we are able to see a glimpse of the ancient Hindu attitude towards dreaming. In Mandala 2, Hymn 28 of the Rig Veda it is written: O King, whoever, be he friend or kinsman, hath threatened me affrighted in my slumberIf any wolf or robber fain would harm us, therefrom, O Varuna, give thou us protection. Evidently, ancient Hindus feared being affrighted while asleep and therefore prayed to the de32 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 ity Varuna for protection (Rig Veda, 2:28). As the later Vedas were compiled, the Hindu attitude towards dreaming remained constant. Hindus in the Vedic period feared dreams and often viewed them as manifestations of evil spirits. Given these beliefs, only prayer could save them from the evil in their dreams. In the west, the average person would most likely not attribute a bad dream to the work of evil spirits. It is widely recognized that nightmares happen and are a harmless psychological phenomenon. Nevertheless, the belief that dreams could potentially harm the dreamer was not uncommon in early civilizations. But as cultures developed, so did their perspective on the nature of dreaming (Eranimos and Funkhouser). Sometime between 900-200 B.C.E., a collection of texts known as the Upanishads was compiled. In these texts, the Hindu attitude towards dreaming fundamentally changed. In a sudden shift of perspective, dreaming became something divine and prophetican idea similar to that once expressed in the Abrahamic religions. Once Hindus began seeing the potential in dreams, they made a discovery that would not reach the west until thousands of years laterthat dreams could be interpreted and used to understand the selfs nature. The Hindu worldview and philosophy are very complex. Many Hindus hold The Utilization of Dre ams in Asian Religions the belief that the world is an illusion created by the cosmic power of the gods. This power is noted in the Vedas and is often referred to as Maya. What Maya does, to simplify, is trick humans into believing that what they are experiencing is real, when in actuality, it is an illusion. The only way to break free from this illusion is to achieve moksha liberation from the cycle of samsara, the Hindu concept of rebirth. Unfortunately, those who attempt to attain moksha face a complicated process, but precisely here is when dreams come into play. Hindus realized that dreams could be used to aid the process of liberation and ultimately understand the true nature of the atman, or what we know as the self. Dreams in Hinduism quickly became a personal path to moksha and self-understanding (Mota-Rolim et al.). One of the most fascinating aspects of Hindu philosophy is that consciousness is separated into four distinct parts. This idea ties into the Hindu creation myth and the primordial soundAUM. Commonly known as the mantra OM, the primordial sound is the expression of the Hindu ultimate reality known as Brahman. However, what is not often known about AUM is that each letter represents a separate state of consciousness. The A represents waking consciousness, the U represents dreaming consciousness, and the M represents deep sleep without dreaming. In its entirety, AUM represents the final stateoneness with Brahman. Interestingly, dreaming sleep and deep sleep are both deemed of higher importance than waking consciousness. Many Hindus believe that only in deep sleep can one be fully free from distracting thoughts, and therefore find it significantly more valuable (Brodd et al. 35). Some Hindus regard sleep so highly that they practice a rare form of yoga known as Yoga Nidra. Sometimes called Yogic Sleep, Yoga Nidra is mentioned in the Upanishads and is seen as a path to understand- ing the atman. This practice involves lying on the floor in the corpse pose (shavasana) and observing the minds reaction. While doing so, the practitioner falls into a state of deep sleep, where they can then observe dream imagery and, in a sense, witness sleep. This practice has led to a philosophical debate in India over whether consciousness exists in a deep sleep, and only in recent studies have western scientists found that indeed, it does. The ancient Hindus, however, knew this long before modern science (Mota-Rolim et al.). It has been established that dreams play a significant role in Hinduism, yet no religion has contributed more to the understanding of dreaming than Buddhism. Founded around 2,500 years ago, Buddhism consists of three major branches: Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana (Brodd et al. 97). Dreaming is not a major part of Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism, rather it is Vajrayanaor tantricBuddhism where it is most prominent. Nevertheless, dreams have been a part of Buddhism since the birth of Siddhartha Gautama himself, as can be seen in his birth story. Before the Buddha was born in what is now Nepal, dreams already held value and were interpreted to gain insight. Siddharthas parents were royalty, and his story begins with his mother, Queen Maya. One night, she had a rare vivid dream where she was carried away by spirits to a lake in the Himalayas. After bathing in the lake, the spirits proceeded to clothe her and bestow her with divine flowers. Soon after, a white elephant holding a lotus flower appeared and entered her womb from the right side. It then abruptly vanished, and the queen awoke from her slumber. What could this dream mean? Queen Maya was determined to find out and had the king send a group of wise men to interpret it. After hearing the dream, the wise men came to a conclusion. The dream, they said, was the spirits way INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 33 The Utilization of Dre ams in Asian Religions of telling her that her child was destined to become an extraordinary being (Life of Buddha). The Buddhist approach to dreams is far more psychologically relevant than any other ancient religion. Ultimately, Buddhists regard dreams as mind-created phenomena that still hold importance. Of course, the Buddhist attitude towards dreaming also varies depending on which sect of Buddhism one follows. One common way to understand dreams is through the lens of the Three Marks of Existence. The Buddhas Doctrine of Impermanence states that all things are constantly changing, and nothing ever remains the same not even for a moment. By holding onto these ever-changing things and mistakenly believing that they are exactly what they appear to be, suffering is sure to ensue. Therefore, in order to free oneself from suffering, one must cease all desire and attachments (Brodd et al. 91-92). In Mahayana Buddhism, dreams are no different. Anyone who has ever had a dream knows that dreams are often unstable and constantly fluctuating. In fact, Mahayana Buddhists view dreams as representative of the impermanent nature of the world. Nothing in a dream is real, and nothing can be held on to. By attaching oneself to the dream state, there can be only suffering. This does not mean that dreams are not importantbut it does mean that the Doctrine of Impermanence still applies when dreaming, and therefore dreams are not exempt from suffering (Sure 1). Just like other ancient religions, ancient Buddhism held the same belief in prophetic dreams. A dream could be a message from a Bodhisattva, an ancestor, or even a god. The purpose of such a dream is often to convey important information to the dreamer and aid their path to enlightenment. However, evil spirits could also send dreams to disrupt a practitioner from 34 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 attaining enlightenment, so one must take extreme caution when listening to dreams. Sometimes, a dream may not be prophetic per se, but can still determine ones good luck or misfortune (Sure 1). Finally, there is a psychological approach to dreaming that cannot be left out. Ancient Buddhists were very advanced in the field of psychology, despite it not existing at the time. Ancient Indian medics would use dreams to aid them in a diagnosiswhether it be a mental one or a physical one. Ancient Buddhists believed that the symbols of a dream held meaning and could indicate both illness and health. Another belief that was commonly held was that dreams could replay the contents of the mind. For example, what the dreamer experienced during the day could come back to him at night in the form of a dream. Those who are familiar with the works of Sigmund Freud will know that he came to this same conclusion thousands of years later and popularized what was essentially the same idea of day residue in the west (Sure 1). The most fascinating dream-related practice in Buddhism is Dream Yoga. Dream Yoga is a complicated practice that originated in the Vajrayana sect in Tibet. What Dream Yoga aims to do is allow the dreamer to manipulate and control the content of his dream to his liking. In the west, many know this as Lucid Dreaminga phenomena thought to be a myth until the late 20th century, when it was finally scientifically proven. Even today, little research has been done on this subject, and it is largely unknown. In essence, Dream Yoga is a step further from the Hindu Yoga Nidra. In Yoga Nidra, as previously mentioned, the practitioner will see dream images but leave them be. Dream Yoga takes these dream images and turns them into a full dream, which can then be manipulated in whatever way the dreamer desires. Tibetan Buddhists use this practice to look beyond the contents of the The Utilization of Dre ams in Asian Religions conscious mind and do things they could not do in waking life. For example, many Tibetan Buddhists will use dreams to meditate on death, as they believe that the dream state is nearly identical to the state of death. In addition, Dream Yoga works in the same way as meditationand it is said that one minute of meditation in the dream state is akin to 30 days of meditation in waking life (Mota-Rolim et al.). Tibetan Buddhism largely influenced the study of Lucid Dreaming or Dream Yoga in the west. It was only recently discovered that the best way to control ones dreams consistently is to meditate and be mindful frequently. A meditation-heavy and mindful lifestyle is none other than the exact lifestyle of a Buddhist, so it is no surprise that Tibetan Buddhists came to this discovery far before western societies. Modern scientists may take credit for the new research being conducted on the nature of dreaming, but in reality, Buddhists were the ones to grasp a complex understanding of how the dreaming mind works and how it can be controlled (Baird et al.). While India may have figured out how to utilize dreams to their advantage, not all Asian religions did the same. In a very different approach, the ancient Chinese feared dreams and viewed them as useless and harmful. In Daoism, dreams are seen as an obstacle to attaining immortality. In fact, only when a person ceases to dream can they reach the highest stage of self-cultivation. A person who still dreams is seen as a person who has not yet attained immortality (Lin 101). It appears as if the Daoist perspective of dreaming never evolved past the idea that dreams are caused by evil spirits. Daoists went to extreme measures to stop these spirits from infiltrating their minds with dreams. These spirits responsible were believed to be the Three Corpse-Demons, and in ancient China, it was common to make a talisman to ward them off and then swallow it to force them out of the body. In addition, praying to various deities for help with their dreams was also a common practice. All of the religions mentioned in this paper continue to regard dreams with some level of importance. Sadly, in the west, society has completely disregarded dreams, and many people rarely even remember them. When they do have a vivid dream, many do not take the time to reflect on it and understand its meaning. The truth is, most people in the west have neither the clarity of mind nor the time to dream, let alone to sleep. Many are stuck working 9-5 jobs with little time to relax and cleanse the mind. In turn, dreams have been left behind and forgotteneven highly religious individuals usually do not contemplate them. Nevertheless, most people do see dreams as important. When any person has an interesting dream, there is often a desire to interpret it. However, in western society the vast majority do not exert the mental effort to do so, and the dream is lost forever. There is much that could be learned from the eastern religions. If the phenomenon of dreaming continues to be researched, maybe the day will come that dreams are reintroduced into western society. WORKS CITED Baird, Benjamin, et al. Increased Lucid Dream Frequency in Long-Term Meditators but Not Following MBSR Training. Psychology of Consciousness (Washington, D.C.), U.S. National Library of Medicine, Mar. 2019, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6490164/. INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 35 The Utilization of Dre ams in Asian Religions Brodd, Jefferey et al. Invitation to Asian Religions Oxford University Press, 2016. Bulkeley, Kelly. Dreaming in the Worlds Religions: A Comparative History. New York University Press, 2008. Eranimos, Boban and Funkhouser, Art. The Concept of Dreams and Dreaming: A Hindu Perspective. The International Journal of Indian Psychology, Volume 4, Issue 4. Aug-Sep 2017. Life of Buddha: Queen Maha Mayas Dream (Part 1), Buddhanet, 2008, www. buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/lifebuddha/1lbud.htm. Lin, Fu-shih. Fu-Shih Lin. Cahiers DExtrme-Asie, Perse - Portail Des Revues Scientifiques En SHS, 6 Feb. 2019, www.persee.fr/doc/ asie_0766-1177_1995_num_8_1_1090. Mota-Rolim, Sergio A, et al. The Dream of God: How Do Religion and Science See Lucid Dreaming and Other Conscious States During Sleep? Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers Media S.A., 6 Oct. 2020, www.ncbi. nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7573223/. Sure, Heng. A Buddhist Approach to Dreams. Urban Dharma, www.urbandharma.org/udharma7/dreams.html. The Rig Veda. Rig Veda Index, www.sacred-texts.com/hin/rigveda/index. htm. 36 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021  ...

... Societ y and Par anormal Belief Society and Paranormal Belief Bran d o n R . Parke r C old, dank, and dreary areas, floating orbs in the night sky, flickering lights, creaking old floorboards, whispers heard through the winds, and ghostly forms passing just out of sight are events that all seem to share commonalities. Many people in societies across the globe believe these occurrences, as well as others, are the physical manifestations of paranormal activity. Others may observe the same phenomena and conclude that they result from poor insulation, failing lighting circuits, settling foundations, plumbing issues, and some creative use of ones imagination. Paranormal activity cannot be proven to truly exist, but it cannot be scientifically and definitively proven not to exist altogether either. However, from a sociological perspective, it matters not whether these paranormal phenomena are real or figments of our imagination; instead, it matters why human beings believe in the paranormal at all and how it might affect our societies. Sociology is concerned more with understanding the influences of these beliefs and what encourages them to persist in the midst of constant scrutiny. After reviewing information relevant to the paranormal and its sociological ties, it is clear that the continued belief in the paranormal is likely influenced and supported through several cultural constructs such as folklore, the impact of social factors, religious ideology, relationship to societal struggles, and the paranormal being adopted into idioculture. 28 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 For centuries or more, ghost stories/folklore have thrived globally, including in the Western hemisphere. Despite the vast belief in paranormal activity, it is often dismissed as unreal and the investigation of it is labeled as nothing more than pseudoscience. However, the massive interest in the paranormal and the medias response to the general publics interest has fostered two decades of paranormal experiences, paranormal programming, and active televised pursuits for paranormal evidence. Culture has created a clear idea of what a haunting may look like, sound like, and even smell like. Society has taken the cultural possibility of ghosts existing, a separate spirit freed from the body, and turned to modern technology to validate the beliefs (Baker and Bader 570-571). Today, one might believe that advanced technology would have diminished the belief in more mysterious things. However, technology is being designed, developed, and relied upon to make retrieving evidence, and even communicating with ghosts, a greater possibility by those involved in the pursuit. Belief in ghosts is not a small, isolated phenomenon; it is shared by many cultures worldwide. Even in modern America, greater than 90% admit to having a belief in some aspect of the supernatural, occult, or paranormal activity (Markovsky and Thye 21). With such a large number of believers, it seems prudent from a sociological perspective to be curious about where Societ y and Par anormal Belief that engrained faith spurs from. Social Impact Theory argues that peoples beliefs in something can be directly impacted by the social environment in which they interact. Considering this, even someone with little or no belief about something may come to manifest those beliefs when encouraged by those people with whom they interact (Markovsky and Thye 23-24). For example, if several people are exploring the dark, dank basement of an old, abandoned hotel and one person mentions the possibility of the place being haunted and ghostly attributes being observed, the other members are more likely to start perceiving the same simply based on the initial persons cues. One might also think that paranormal activity and religious ideology would coalesce. After all, the idea of the soul existing separately from and outside of a persons body is paramount to many faiths. Yet belief in one does not necessarily result in a belief in the other. Those who have no doubt and believe in the paranormal are more likely to have a spiritual ideology instead of adhering to a specific structured religion. According to Baker and Drapers survey study, Diverse Supernatural Portfolios: Certitude, Exclusivity, and the Curvilinear Relationship Between Religiosity and Paranormal Beliefs, those with more devout religious affiliations or none at all tend to be less likely to believe in or be involved in the paranormal (422). Based on this, we can confer that paranormal belief is not directly linked to religious beliefs which is logical considering the large number and varying groups of people who admit to a belief in some form of the paranormal. Some investigate the lengthy influence of paranormal belief from a contrasting perspective. They investigate the hauntings and how they are presented by modern media as a direct reflection of social failures. Often narrated by the everyday, average Americans themselves, credence of events is assumed and even enhanced. In these haunting tales of the American Dream gone wrong, a family often purchases their Dream Home, they settle into their new home, face mounting financial difficulties and familial dysfunction, and ultimately conclude that their home is trying to kill them. Some even end up losing everything in this process. Although paranormal activities are blamed, these tales are a reflection of the loss of the American Dream and the faults of people (Lawrence 228-229). In this scenario, the paranormal becomes a surrogate issue for the people to blame; they consider themselves victims and then survivors making them the heroes in their own story whether or not the haunting actually occurred. As this loss of the American Dream to paranormal activity seems to be serving a social purpose, this might be a relevant area of study and potentially prove fruitful with interesting results. According to Eaton, an idioculture refers to the knowledge, behaviors, beliefs, and traditions that are shared by members of a given group (157). People who believe in the paranormal and those who might have experienced paranormal activity share a common bond. This bond and peoples interactions validate and encourage greater shared beliefs among one another causing the experiences to become further validated and therefore become the defacto standard by which other experiences are interpreted and judged throughout the world. In short, these beliefs are self-confirming. In Eatons ethnography, Manifesting Spirits: Paranormal Investigation and the Narrative Development of a Haunting, the author suggests that this idioculture may be an even stronger influence on paranormal belief than folklore, local legends, and media promotion of the paranormal (177-178). This could infer that there are many implications for future study and a more in-depth analysis of the influence of the idioculture in the INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 29 Societ y and Par anormal Belief area of paranormal beliefs is warranted. It is not the place of sociological analysis to determine whether the paranormal activity that people report is fact or fiction, science or belief. However, such analysis does offer some insight into how beliefs form, how they are perpetuated, and how strongly they can become embedded within society and thereby impact the behaviors and traditions of its people. Through this kind of research, we can gain an understanding of other shared beliefs and influential concepts that guide peoples behavior and interaction within their social circles (Markovsky and Thye 21). Belief in the paranormal may be a small part of the human experience, but it garners enough social significance not to be immediately dismissed or disregarded. Most research into paranormal activity, the presence of what is considered paranormal activity, and the technological proof offered by those who believe is often dismissed by mainstream science (Bader and Baker 580). Many mainstream scientific fields consider the research into the paranormal to be a pseudoscience which makes the topic and any research undertaken in the subject controversial, yet it would be shortsighted to not investigate how and why such a large number of people have embraced the paranormal and how it has embedded itself in the fabric of almost every culture around the world. Further re- search into the cultural, psychological, and certainly sociological aspects of paranormal beliefs would produce immense intellectual research. Throughout the world, there are many people who believe in and associate certain activities, whether audible, visual, or technological observance, with the paranormal. Whether these proposed paranormal activities are authentic supernatural occurrences or are solely embellishments and misinterpretations/misrepresentations of scientific data, is of no significant consequence. From a sociological perspective, understanding where these paranormal beliefs originate, how they are perceived and transmitted, what factors affect the differences in beliefs between different individuals, cultures, and periods of history, and how they become so ingrained within societies around the world is paramount. The supporting evidence surrounding the sociological ties of the paranormal indicate that ongoing belief in the paranormal is influenced by several factors: cultural constructs, like folklore, the impact of social factors, religious ideology, relationship to societal struggles, and the paranormal being adopted into idioculture. However absurd mainstream science might consider research into the paranormal, it remains relevant in understanding a culture from a sociological perspective. WORKS CITED Baker, Joseph O, and Christopher D Bader. A social anthropology of ghosts in twenty-first-century America. Social Compass, vol. 61, no. 4, 2014, pp. 569593., doi: 10.1177/0037768614547337. Baker, Joseph O, and Scott Draper. Diverse Supernatural Portfolios: Certitude, Exclusivity, and the Curvilinear Relationship Between Religiosity and Paranormal Beliefs. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, vol. 49, no. 3, Sept. 2010, pp. 413424., doi:10.1111/j.14685906.2010.01519.x. 30 INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 Societ y and Par anormal Belief Eaton, Marc A. Manifesting Spirits: Paranormal Investigation and the Narrative Development of a Haunting. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, vol. 48, no. 2, 2019, pp. 155182., doi:10.1177/0891241618756162. Lawrence, Amy. Paranormal Survivors: Validating the Struggling Middle Class. Journal of Popular Film and Television, vol. 45, no. 4, 2017, pp. 219230., doi:10.1080/01956051.2017.1302922. Markovsky, Barry N, and Shane R Thye. Social Influence on Paranormal Beliefs. Sociological Perspectives, vol. 44, no. 1, 2001, pp. 2144. INSIGHTS, SPRING 2021 31  ...