Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Blog 2
Mike Gerbino is a young poet from Rochester New York. He was a contestant on the HBO special Brave New World; a poetry competition where youths from all over America come together to speak their minds artistically. Mike Gerbino recited a poem called “Ugly Sunset”. The poem described how the sunset meant and caused so many things, not only to Mike but in general to everyone who has ever been affected by the things he spoke of in the poem. In his performance, the passion he put forth emphasized his point on how even though sunsets appear so physically beautiful; “If there ever was a moment to be labeled 'poetic', this was it. She was everything. And we were endless”; so many “ugly” things happen. He says, “This is to that sunset, which claims to be beautiful with it's shapes, and shades, and mystical colors but really...it's one ugly motherfucker. That sunset has put an end to more beautiful days than you'd care to count. That sunset is the reason for teen curfews, and little girls being taken from their homes. That sunset is the cause of evil worldwide. Fuck that thing! You can paint your canvas and snap your photos, but I submit that that is one ugly sunset. That sunset, in all of it's hideous glory, barked death threats at me, and told me that if I thought it was so fucking ugly, that I shouldn't look at it. And that if I thought these feelings were so painful, that I shouldn't write poetry about them.” He states negative things that happen when the sun sets like little girls being taken from their homes. To think something like that could happen because the sun is going down. But then he seems to switch his stance on how evil and hideous sunsets are. He goes further to say how in reality, ugly is actually beautiful. “I looked at that sunset, because even ugly is beautiful. And humanity holds no standards, so kissing this audience with my break-up poem is not self indulgent. It's taking something ugly, and painful, and heartbreaking beyond comprehension, and showing you just how fucking beautiful life can be.” In the last line he reveals that he is not just talking about a sunset but he is using that sunset to represent life. He is saying that no matter awful life can be it is still a beautiful thing. Life can cause so much pain but the fact that you are living life it the beauty but you have to actually work to find. “I appreciate beauty no matter how difficult it is to find. I hope you can do the same.” The only thing is people are sometimes too afraid to look for a way to make it beautiful. “Ugly sunset. Ducking beneath that horizon. What are you so afraid of?” That's his opening and closing statement and that is a question many people should ask themselves.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Essay 2 Nature
Nature Essay
Emeka Igbokwe
Pathways
10/19/2010
Nature is interpreted differently by everyone. Some people enjoy nature; some people could care less about it. There are people who care so much about nature that they choose to live on a tree-top and risk their lives so that tree wouldn’t be cut down by some development company. Then there are other people that just like nature for the scenery. If there is anyone who falls into that category it would be me. A great view of nature is a beautiful thing to me. Whether it’s a beach view or a field of trees, as long as there isn’t too much influence from unnatural sources, that view can be precious. When nature is tainted by humans it takes away from the true beauty of the scene. A scene as beautiful as the night sky filled with stars is something that many people miss out on because of the light pollution. In my home city of Boston, it is almost impossible to see a shooting star because of all the lights that illuminate the city. The scenery here on campus is beautiful though; there are many things here that are not normally seen back in Boston.
I’m woken up from sleep by the bright light of the morning sun. Although it is almost two hours before my alarm is set to wake me up I decide not to go back to sleep. Instead, I lay and gaze at the beautiful view of the field outside my window. The oval shaped field is surrounded by a group of trees on one side, which acts as a barrier, protecting this field from the rest of the world; only showing small portions of the buildings behind them through their trunks. On the other of the field stands my building, further secluding this area making it private to only those who know of it. The first thing that comes to mind is the possibility of playing a great game of football there because of its size. Since fall has just started the colors of the leaves on the trees have begun to change, shades of oranges and yellows and red surround the field; every tree except two pine trees that maintain their deep green color. To the right, behind one of the pine trees is a walk way that leads to the sophomore dorms. In the peace of the morning only two things can be heard; the music playing in my room is the most apparent sound since the speakers are less than two feet from me. The next sound that’s heard in the sound of cars driving by. This is a sound that slightly manages to show that I am not totally in the middle of nowhere but at the same time it’s odd because from my point of view it is almost impossible to see where this sound is coming from. Now, in a way, the sound of the cars going by becomes less apparent and is almost muffled out. As I close my eyes and take a deep breath the smell of the morning dew overwhelms my nose and my mind. It’s one of the smells that I’m actually familiar with because of the lawn at my house back in Boston. The smell brings back memories from when I was younger and I had to wake up early to wait for the school bus; that would be the only thing I smelled in the morning until I got on the bus. Once that thought begins a feeling of warmth rushed through my body. This is a good feeling because I forgot to close the window that night so the brisk morning breeze blows into the room instantly chilling me. By the time I realize what has happened, it is 8:30 and I have only thirty minutes to get myself to class.
In a journal held by Henry David Thoreau he wrote of a similar scene:
“P. M. - To Cliffs. Looking under large oaks, black and white, the acorns appear to have fallen or been gathered by squirrels, etc. I see in many distant places stout twigs (black or scarlet oak) three or four inches long which have been gnawed off by the squirrels, with four to seven acorns on each, and left on the ground. These twigs have been gnawed off on each side of the nuts in order to make them more portable, I suppose. The nuts all abstracted and sides of the cups broken to get them out. The note of the chickadee, heard now in cooler weather and above many fallen leaves, has a new significance. There was a very severe frost this morning (ground stiffened), probably a chestnut-opening frost, a season-ripener, opener of the burs that inclose the Indian summer. Such is the cold of early or middle October. The leaves and weeds had that stiff, hoary appearance. (Thoreau)”
When I read this it immediately reminded me of the scene outside of my window. Thoreau’s explanation of the scene he was looking at shows that he holds the same value if not more for nature, as I.
On the second occasion I caught myself gazing leisurely out the window at a gray, rainy afternoon. With classes being finished for the day I decided to relax for a while before I started my homework. While laying down a feeling of contentment, both physically and mentally, came over me. Physically content, because I just came back from lunch so I was full; that along with the grayness of the sky made it so I couldn’t wait to take a nap. The only thing was I knew if I took that nap I would never get to do that homework because I would be asleep for the rest of the day. Never the less I was mentally content because I knew I had the next day all to myself. Once I finished that homework I would be free to do whatever I wanted so I was determined to finish. Unfortunately the view out the window was distracting for some peculiar reason. As I lay there, I watched rain drop after rain drop trickle down the window. Watching the drops stream down the window became almost hypnotizing. One stream branched off into two other streams, then those two into two others and so on. In a few minutes my idol gazing became a game of guessing. From the top of the window I watched the streams run down but this time I attempted to anticipate where the crystal clear drifts would end up at the bottom of the window; this went on for a while. The pitter-patter of the rain against the window was the only thing that could be heard for a long time. It was peaceful for while. It was almost as if time had frozen. I just laid there in the perfect thinking atmosphere. Miniature episodes of reflective thoughts occurred as a focused my sights at the top of the tallest tree. I stared and thought, and then all of a sudden my concentration was broken by the sight of two chickadees frolicking in mid-air. I watched to birds soar through the air and wondered, “How is it possible that these birds were still out flying in this down pour? Shouldn’t the rain be slowing them down?” My full attention was diverted to the birds; it was as if they were putting on an aerial show from me. They cut through the sky with ease; the rain meant nothing to them.
The third account of my nature gazing was at night. Lying in my bed with no lights or television on, the room was pitch black with no sounds in it. The only light came from the few street lights behind the trees. From where I was the lights gave just enough light to cast shadows. Because the lights were so low, they didn’t take away from the beautiful night sky. The way the moon shined and the stars gleamed was an exquisite sight. In the bustling city, a sight like this would be hard to come across. The stellar full moon boldly hanging in the sky; looking almost close enough to touch. The shimmering stars like Sirius totally visible in the sky; “Sirius …the brightest star in the night sky. Aptly named, Sirius comes from the Greek word Seirius, meaning, "searing" or "scorching." Blazing at a visual magnitude of -1.42, it is twice as bright as any other star in our sky. (Braganca)” Only here on this campus have I been able to draw out constellations in the sky, consecutively, night after night. The only thing that would stop me from seeing the stars on a certain night would be it was a cloudy night. Aside from that, I have been able to see the stars almost perfectly. It’s a great thing to look at; to just sit back and ask our hows and whys, or to just contemplate on the possibilities.
Works Cited
Braganca, Pedro. The 10 Brightest Stars. 15 July 2003.
Dimijian, Mary Beth; G, Gregory. "Night Sky." Night Sky Images from a fragile planet 17 Oct. 2010 [http://www.dimijianimages.com/More-p20-Madagascar-p7/night-sky-from-Madagascar-gallery.htm]
Thoreau, Henry David. (n.d.).
Emeka Igbokwe
Pathways
10/19/2010
Nature is interpreted differently by everyone. Some people enjoy nature; some people could care less about it. There are people who care so much about nature that they choose to live on a tree-top and risk their lives so that tree wouldn’t be cut down by some development company. Then there are other people that just like nature for the scenery. If there is anyone who falls into that category it would be me. A great view of nature is a beautiful thing to me. Whether it’s a beach view or a field of trees, as long as there isn’t too much influence from unnatural sources, that view can be precious. When nature is tainted by humans it takes away from the true beauty of the scene. A scene as beautiful as the night sky filled with stars is something that many people miss out on because of the light pollution. In my home city of Boston, it is almost impossible to see a shooting star because of all the lights that illuminate the city. The scenery here on campus is beautiful though; there are many things here that are not normally seen back in Boston.
I’m woken up from sleep by the bright light of the morning sun. Although it is almost two hours before my alarm is set to wake me up I decide not to go back to sleep. Instead, I lay and gaze at the beautiful view of the field outside my window. The oval shaped field is surrounded by a group of trees on one side, which acts as a barrier, protecting this field from the rest of the world; only showing small portions of the buildings behind them through their trunks. On the other of the field stands my building, further secluding this area making it private to only those who know of it. The first thing that comes to mind is the possibility of playing a great game of football there because of its size. Since fall has just started the colors of the leaves on the trees have begun to change, shades of oranges and yellows and red surround the field; every tree except two pine trees that maintain their deep green color. To the right, behind one of the pine trees is a walk way that leads to the sophomore dorms. In the peace of the morning only two things can be heard; the music playing in my room is the most apparent sound since the speakers are less than two feet from me. The next sound that’s heard in the sound of cars driving by. This is a sound that slightly manages to show that I am not totally in the middle of nowhere but at the same time it’s odd because from my point of view it is almost impossible to see where this sound is coming from. Now, in a way, the sound of the cars going by becomes less apparent and is almost muffled out. As I close my eyes and take a deep breath the smell of the morning dew overwhelms my nose and my mind. It’s one of the smells that I’m actually familiar with because of the lawn at my house back in Boston. The smell brings back memories from when I was younger and I had to wake up early to wait for the school bus; that would be the only thing I smelled in the morning until I got on the bus. Once that thought begins a feeling of warmth rushed through my body. This is a good feeling because I forgot to close the window that night so the brisk morning breeze blows into the room instantly chilling me. By the time I realize what has happened, it is 8:30 and I have only thirty minutes to get myself to class.
In a journal held by Henry David Thoreau he wrote of a similar scene:
“P. M. - To Cliffs. Looking under large oaks, black and white, the acorns appear to have fallen or been gathered by squirrels, etc. I see in many distant places stout twigs (black or scarlet oak) three or four inches long which have been gnawed off by the squirrels, with four to seven acorns on each, and left on the ground. These twigs have been gnawed off on each side of the nuts in order to make them more portable, I suppose. The nuts all abstracted and sides of the cups broken to get them out. The note of the chickadee, heard now in cooler weather and above many fallen leaves, has a new significance. There was a very severe frost this morning (ground stiffened), probably a chestnut-opening frost, a season-ripener, opener of the burs that inclose the Indian summer. Such is the cold of early or middle October. The leaves and weeds had that stiff, hoary appearance. (Thoreau)”
When I read this it immediately reminded me of the scene outside of my window. Thoreau’s explanation of the scene he was looking at shows that he holds the same value if not more for nature, as I.
On the second occasion I caught myself gazing leisurely out the window at a gray, rainy afternoon. With classes being finished for the day I decided to relax for a while before I started my homework. While laying down a feeling of contentment, both physically and mentally, came over me. Physically content, because I just came back from lunch so I was full; that along with the grayness of the sky made it so I couldn’t wait to take a nap. The only thing was I knew if I took that nap I would never get to do that homework because I would be asleep for the rest of the day. Never the less I was mentally content because I knew I had the next day all to myself. Once I finished that homework I would be free to do whatever I wanted so I was determined to finish. Unfortunately the view out the window was distracting for some peculiar reason. As I lay there, I watched rain drop after rain drop trickle down the window. Watching the drops stream down the window became almost hypnotizing. One stream branched off into two other streams, then those two into two others and so on. In a few minutes my idol gazing became a game of guessing. From the top of the window I watched the streams run down but this time I attempted to anticipate where the crystal clear drifts would end up at the bottom of the window; this went on for a while. The pitter-patter of the rain against the window was the only thing that could be heard for a long time. It was peaceful for while. It was almost as if time had frozen. I just laid there in the perfect thinking atmosphere. Miniature episodes of reflective thoughts occurred as a focused my sights at the top of the tallest tree. I stared and thought, and then all of a sudden my concentration was broken by the sight of two chickadees frolicking in mid-air. I watched to birds soar through the air and wondered, “How is it possible that these birds were still out flying in this down pour? Shouldn’t the rain be slowing them down?” My full attention was diverted to the birds; it was as if they were putting on an aerial show from me. They cut through the sky with ease; the rain meant nothing to them.
The third account of my nature gazing was at night. Lying in my bed with no lights or television on, the room was pitch black with no sounds in it. The only light came from the few street lights behind the trees. From where I was the lights gave just enough light to cast shadows. Because the lights were so low, they didn’t take away from the beautiful night sky. The way the moon shined and the stars gleamed was an exquisite sight. In the bustling city, a sight like this would be hard to come across. The stellar full moon boldly hanging in the sky; looking almost close enough to touch. The shimmering stars like Sirius totally visible in the sky; “Sirius …the brightest star in the night sky. Aptly named, Sirius comes from the Greek word Seirius, meaning, "searing" or "scorching." Blazing at a visual magnitude of -1.42, it is twice as bright as any other star in our sky. (Braganca)” Only here on this campus have I been able to draw out constellations in the sky, consecutively, night after night. The only thing that would stop me from seeing the stars on a certain night would be it was a cloudy night. Aside from that, I have been able to see the stars almost perfectly. It’s a great thing to look at; to just sit back and ask our hows and whys, or to just contemplate on the possibilities.
Works Cited
Braganca, Pedro. The 10 Brightest Stars. 15 July 2003.
Dimijian, Mary Beth; G, Gregory. "Night Sky." Night Sky Images from a fragile planet 17 Oct. 2010 [http://www.dimijianimages.com/More-p20-Madagascar-p7/night-sky-from-Madagascar-gallery.htm]
Thoreau, Henry David. (n.d.).
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