Day 20: Talking

For as long as I can remember, I have been a quiet and private person. I can probably hold a secret for so long that I eventually forget unless someone brings up something similar to what I know. Not sure if that is a talent or not but it does show that I hold a lot of information within me and if I am not asked about what I know then that information just begins to be stored deeper and deeper into my memory. I have always been the listener among my friends. If I talk it is usually when I have something to say, which is what I am doing right now. And you know what, talking it is not all so bad especially when you have a great listener and responder to hear you out. Sometimes I am like a tea kettle, you can pour water in me and I would remain quiet but once when you add heat that is when you are going to start hearing me. Not that I have to feel heated or upset over something to get me to start talking but if you bring up interesting topics or ask me questions, controversial the better, I can speak for hours. In high school I had history for my last period of the school day and while mostly everyone were just dying to get out and go home I would typically stay behind to have intriguing conversations with my history teachers. Since my history teachers' classrooms were relatively close they would just visit each other in their classrooms for group discussions. The topics could range to the most nonsensical topics like having a salad for breakfast to how can recycling have an effect on the environment. The topics were little to no where close to the history that was being taught during regular class hours.

Where am I really going with this? Well talking is beneficial for mental health. When you feel stressed or when you have no clue what to do with the thoughts in your head, it's pretty nice to have that go-to person to spill all the details to. That go-to person could be as simple as your sibling, parents, friends, and or your therapist. There may be a couple of people who take advantage of talking and that I have found annoying that they would talk too much during school but like Shrek said, "It is better out than in." Use your words, speak out your mind, structure your words to portray your ideas, however you prefer to share your thoughts, go for it! You may have the most brilliant ideas or thoughts screaming to be recognized but if you do not share them then how will that benefit anyone? For those who are not as much as the talkers like myself and who does not like to share a lot of the personal details with others, I just think it takes the right person to open you up. Do not feel like you need to change in order to find someone to talk with. Continue being yourself and whenever you are given opportunities to share what you are passionate about you should. You will also find that friend that you can trust with your thoughts, they may be a little hidden (or maybe in front of you the whole time) at first but usually the hidden ones tend to be the ones with one of the biggest hearts. Or be like me and start your own blog!

Have you spoken to anyone today?

xx Chavelita

Day 9: Anna Eleanor Roosevelt

A little bit about Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, she was born on October 11 of 1884 who yup you guessed it was married to Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Inspired by this woman, she remained on her feet and was on top of anything she could get her hands on to change the United States. When she had discovered that FDR was having an affair with her social secretary but since Eleanor was married she remained loyal to him. Although Eleanor was the one who offered the divorce and that her mother-in-law wanted them to remain together, Eleanor told FDR to end his affair or she would divorce him. (Literally no garbage was given to Eleanor) In addition to her mother-in-law not wanting Eleanor to get into politics with FDR, she still did and was she amazing... She became the vice-president and finance chairman for the Democratic Women's Committee in 1925 and was a part owner for a college preparatory for upper-class girls. She used her time by providing exercises that helped girls think for themselves and open their minds to problems that were happening in the nation.
In 1933 she was the First Lady to hold all-female press conferences and in 1935 she provides a meeting to discuss the role of women in politics. Then in 1939 Eleanor was defying segregation laws by sitting in between the whites and blacks at the Southern Conference of Human Welfare. She saw no difference in what made individuals the way they are on their skin color and gave everyone opportunities to express themselves. Eleanor would also travel for her husband during his presidency when he was too ill. This not only gives women recognition in politics but also states that women could do the same things that men can if only they were given the chance to do so.  Her list of accomplishments stretches out and overall she is an amazing women figure for providing a voice to those who didn't have one.

One of the quotes that stuck to me is her well known quote, "No once can make you feel inferior without your consent". Which means that you have the choice to either respond to the negativity or to let the negativity slip right off. When you give consent that means that you are allowing the other person to hurt you. With this quote it entails that you have the choice to react to what is being said to us and let the information effect us or we have the choice to listen but use it as oil to spark the fire within us to create changes in our lives. Just like any news that is told, there are multiple aspects to interpret a set of news but it is up to you how you want to view the news. So just remember everyone has their own opinions and some of them you will agree with and others not so much, but remain respectful. Do not be the person who makes others feel inferior and do not let anyone make you feel inferior. As soon as you let someone make you feel inferior then you already loss. Most of the time those who want to make you feel inferior is because they are already inferior themselves and you do not have to lower yourself to make your statement.

What quote speaks to you?

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt

xx Chavelita

The secret of knowledge

Right now I'm currently researching for my two papers one of them is on the Soviet Union's economy during the Second World War and my other one is on psychology on the physiological behavior of people diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. And let me tell you, I have this weird love for old books. The smell of the books, little notes left by previous readers, the texture of the pages, it's as if they tell their own story beside the ones of their content. If they are hardcover with a simple background color the better because it doesn't distract the reader from judging the cover when there's no pictures in front or back. I could stay in a library the whole day if I was left alone, escaping within the vastness of literature, building up my knowledge, and finding out the secrets left within the pages of each book. Call me weird, but I'm quite excited to be starting college next fall of 2015 and hopefully with the preparations of IB will help lead into this transition. (I seriously need to find someone who is just as enthusiastic to learn and tell me random facts about what they found out..)

What do you want to do with your life when the time comes or what are you planning to major in? 

xx Chavelita