National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish Essay

I. Historical Background The initiative to establish a parish on Retiro Street began in 1941, with the request of the Capuchins in the Philippines to the Rev. Michael ODoherty, Archbishop of Manila. On march 28, 1942, a decree was issued establishing the Sta. Teresita del Nino Jesus Parish, the original name of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish. Construction of the church, however, was delayed because of World War II. Enshrined within the temporary church was the image of our Lady of Lourdes. To keep the image safe during the war, it was moved from place to place, until it rested for a long time in the chapel of Sta. Teresita on Mayon Street. On February 10, 1951, the image was brought back to Sta. Teresita Parish on Retiro. In 1997, on the forty-fifth foundation anniversary, Our Lady of Lourdes parish was declared a national shrine, with the approval of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. It has its own parochial school offering education from pre-school to high school. II. Activities/Programs of the Church SCHEDULE OF MASSES: Monday to Saturday: 5:30, 6:30, 7:30 am and 6:00 pm Sunday: 5:00, 6:00, 7:00, 8:00, 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 12:00 am and 3:30, 5:00, 6:00, 7:00 pm A.Umbrella of all youth organizations of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes. Composed of 13 youth organizations (Basic Ecclesial Community (BEC), Catholic Womens League Jr. (CWL Jr.), Coro de Angeli, Franciscan Youth Movement (FYM-NSOLL Fraternity), Knights of the Altar (KOTA), Lectors and Commentators for Childrens Mass (LCCM), Legion of Mary (LOM), Salvacion Choir (SC), Singles for Christ (SFC-NSOLL Chapter), Squirettes of Mary Immaculate (SMI), Young Artists for Culture Arts and Advocacy (YAFCA-NSOLL Repertory), NSOLL Youth Choir (YC) and Youth for Christ (YFC-NSOLL Chapter). B. Regular Activities Advent Recollection, Youth Night, Organization Fair, Lenten Retreat, T-shirt Selling, Barya Para Sa Kabataan, Sportsfest, Youth Mass sa BEC, Youth Camp, PYM election and induction, Harana kay Maria and General Assembly III. Plan of Action/Realizations Being aware with what is happening in our Parish and knowing the Activities and Programs of the Church are the things that I developed after I did my research. I learned that we must serve our Parish first before anything else so that we can extend our gratitude to them. I also learned that there are so many things and ways that we can do to become closer to God and to strengthen our faith in God. We must learn to spend time to serve God and to bond with our neighbors. With that, we became closer and bonded as a Christian Community to serve and to strengthen our faith in God.

Reasons Why Students Violate School Rules and Regulations Essay

INTRODUCTION The researcher was an alumnus from a private secondary school in Legazpi City, he has been observing student violators facing real problems in the school. This give way to decide in this type of study, the willingness and interest to know the reality in students behaviour on what reasons why students violates the rules and regulations inside the school. At present, the researcher of this simple research is a first year student in A.B. Philosophy in Bicol University. Having this opportunity to learn the basic skill in writing under English 10 and as a final requirement in accomplishing the subject, the researcher never hesitate to present this simple and uncontrollable problems experience by teachers and parents on the child performances in the school. The chosen title, Reasons why students violate rules and regulations is something to use for reference by teachers and parents to discipline the child. This is a simple and humble work of a beginner, inspired by the teacher in this subject and the encouraging manner of the researcher family and friends. This work made everything easy for reference and guidelines both for teachers, parents and students. And the researcher is ready to any correction from this noble work, so to develop more on this special skill in writing. The 4th yr. students in secondary schools in Legazpi City, both in public and private schools experience student violating schools rules and regulations. Despite of the disciplinary measures of each school, students violates willingly. This work will define student violators and as teachers and parents of these poor students, both performances will be addressed. And the purposes of this study are to widen the concern for child performances in the school, and for teachers and parents to check and note for student violators in a school. SIGNIFICANCE In every heart, there is a need to discipline. Student violator is a heart that needs a support for discipline. Not only here in our own local school but worldwide. In every child officially enrolled in any school has the right to learn the social graces needed to developed self-discipline, to internalize discipline in every action and decision. The researcher would like to emphasize this simple yet uncontrollable problem among students to the local and national level. This study will also serve the purpose on reasons why the students violate rules and regulations, like the ones below: 1. Teachers and parents failed to implement a proper discipline among students. 2. The absence of recognition in every student profiles or portfolio. 3. Critical identification for every student’s behaviour, needs and reasons. 4. Over – protectiveness and misuse authority. Thus, the purpose of this research is to widen the awareness on reasons why the students violate rules and regulations, to be familiar of their performances, in support to teachers/parents to discipline properly the child through the check and note for student violators in school. As one challenge in education, the most important aspect is to discipline the child and eventually to internalize it. SCOPE AND DELIMITATION The study consists of 4th year students in Legazpi City, from Divine Word College of Legazpi High School Department. The main objective of the study is to identify the reasons on why the student’s violates rules and regulations on their last year of study in the secondary school. The researcher limits the research to secondary students in Legazpi City and for the 4th year students only, both from Divine Word College of Legazpi High School Department. This is to refer for a feasible results and better interest for teachers and parents to watch the child and guide to gain a better performance in the school. CHAPTER 2 Review of Related Literature School is the training ground of any person officially enrolled to excel academically and for self-discipline to become a better individual. Schools provide the guidelines as disciplinary measures for students and for teacher supervisions. No school is exempted from student violators, very school year the school experience the difficulty in schools discipline. Teachers and parents are collaborators in disciplining the violators. DEFINITION OF TERMS The researcher likes to focus on the following definition of terms so as to attain the research better and simple. 1. School, is an institution designed for teaching the students (or pupils) under the direction of teachers. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School)1 2. Student, is someone who attends an educational institution or someone who studies especially at a school. (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/student).2 3. Teacher, is the one who teaches in a school and a person especially hired by the school. (Learner’s Dictionary)3 4. Violations, is to break a law or regulations intentionally or unintentionally. (Webster New Dictionary) 4 5. Parent, is the caretaker of their offspring. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parent)5 RELATED LITERATURE The act of doing something that is not allowed by a law or rule and the act of ignoring or inferring with a person’s rights. (Learner’s Dictionary)6 In like manner, it is been an old story, when teen agers left home for school, they thrill at the first opportunity to test †their wings† as a young adults.(SunSentinel.Com)7 freed from being under the all seeing eyes of their parents and often unwelcome supervision, judgements and penalties of their parents. Some young student turns successfully in their new found freedom, but others turns violators due to lack of discipline and maturity as well. In this case, the researcher has discovered some basic solutions for this part. As the purpose of this study: 1. To widened the concern for child performances in the school 2. To create teachers and parents check and note for students violators in the school. With this basic concepts, the researcher, emphasize the need to all records of a child performance while in the school, to prioritize the violators and teachers are encouraged to identify students and informed the parents. Likewise, parents are ask to become responsible to check and notes their child performances in the school. Internationally, some violators failed to confess the causes of their irresponsible acts in the school, Some are victims of maltreatments of parents which the students denies all truth and sometimes violators are victims of their own teachers like in Darling Town state a primary school teacher who was previously accused of attempting to â€Å"dack† a student and investigated for â€Å"kissing and cuddling† (couriermail.com.au)8, What effects will it brings to a child in the future? It could be a lost to authority in the school and even to parents and which could turn to become violators in the school. The reason some people break rules is because it may make them look cool, or it may be funny, but sometimes people just don’t know better. Remember that everyone was raised differently, so don’t discriminate, Just try to get along. And sometimes getting in trouble is fun, or sometimes worth it, it depends on who you are. (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_do_some _students_break_school_rules)9. Schools have policies that are being implemented for the general welfare of its constituents. These policies provide a set of rules that the students, teachers, etc. should follow. These rules are necessary for the order and uniformity of the students within the school premises. Even with the presence of these rules, some of the students violate them disregarding the sanctions that go along with it. The word policy originated from the Latin word â€Å"politia† or â€Å"polity†. Defined as a definite course of action adopted for the sake of expediency, facility, etc.; an action or procedure conforming to or considered with reference to prudence or expediency. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/policy)10. Here are some violations that are commonly violated by students, students skip school. Students skip school; it is the behaviour that the children have not enjoyed to learn then they avoid or escape from the school. In my opinion, I totally agree this problem is occurred from several reasons which their family and teachers should coordinate to solve this problem. First reason which may affect student to abstain from school; the child cannot understand the lesson, then they lack of interest in learning and a focus on learning. So, it may make them to have an experiencing failure in school and lower academic achievement. In additional, they may not have the close friends and their friends may threaten them. Second reason, their family is unhappy, poor or rich but lack of love and care from their parents. And the last reason is school and teacher, they do not understand children. There are strict rules and teacher is an authoritarian and inflexible or teacher may punish severely student . Also some teacher has the teaching method as not interesting. These reasons should influence students to keep away from school. For the ways to solve the problem, family and teachers should be the main person to solve the problem, thus I thought that it should begin at home first. Whenever the parents have been known the disappointment because of their child, then they should calm their anger first to find the cause of the children leaving school. The parents should not refer to the question â€Å"Why†¦.† to their child but the parents should begin with love and understanding, and ready to forgive them. Then, the parents begin to solve the problems and engage with the children and the school in order to provide opportunities and activities to reduce the value feeling of children and attitude of children since someone thought that they devalue.11. The next thing to be discussed is about why kids join Gangs; this can be also one reason why students are motivated to violate school rules. Why do Kids join Gangs? Factors motivating kids to join gangs vary individual to individual. A multitude of social and economic reasons can be involved. Power, status, security, friendship, family substitute, economic profit, substance abuse influences, and numerous other factors can influence kids to join gangs. Gang members also cross all socio-economic backgrounds and boundaries regardless of age, sex, race, economic status, and academic achievement. Gang violence typically involves a larger number of individuals Gang-related violence tends to be more retaliatory and escalates much more quickly than non-gang violence Gang activity is usually more violent in nature and often involves a greater use of weapons. School and public safety officials must look at gang activity differently and not as one-on-one, isolated incidents. Otherwise, the problem can escalate so quickly that a school lunchroom fight between rival gang members will escalate into a potential drive-by shooting just hours later at school dismissal. School officials must still discipline individual students involved in gang offenses on a case-by-case basis based upon their individual actions in violating school rules, but educators must see the forest with the trees and recognize that these offenses are interrelated and part of a broader pattern of gang-related misconduct and violence.

Good News Final Question Essay

A young man named Saul stood by and watched as a crowd stoned Stephen.   He went on to be a major persecutor of Christians for a number of years.   One day he was on his way to Damascus, he was blinded by a light and God spoke to him.   He was converted to Christianity and changed his name to Paul.   He made up for his persecution of Christians by telling the â€Å"good news† all over the region. What is the good news?   The good news is that Jesus is the son of God.   He was sent to earth to save the people from their sins.   Those who accept him as their savior will have eternal life in Heaven.   He knew it was true, because God himself told him it was in the blinding light.   The difference it should make in the lives of people in modern society means people should live according to the words God has provided for people to live by.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Paul spent years trying to save people from their sin once he’d learned the truth.   He was taught about God and Jesus.   He taught many to accept the gift of eternal life through the acceptance of Jesus.   Then he wrote many books of the Bible to teach people how to live their lives.   He wrote basic instructions for Christians to follow to be an example for God.   God sent his son to earth for the sole purpose of saving his creation (man) from their sins. He would not choose for anyone to be lost, but he provides humans the opportunity to make the choice for themselves. The life people live on earth is short, for most only about eighty years then there are two possible places to go.   The best choice obviously is the one without eternal torture.   When a person goes to Heaven it will feel like home (familiar, comfortable) (Alcorn, 1999)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Paul learned about God through God himself.   God spoke to Paul through the light on the road.   He then blinded him and gave him specific instructions on what to do.   Paul realized he had been wrong and needed to follow the instructions, because he did this he was not only healed of the blindness, but he received the gift of eternal life. He had no reason to doubt this and neither should those he taught or those still being taught.   Paul taught of God’s love for his people and his forgiveness. He also taught people to continue sharing the good news.   An additional reason to believe the news is true is the hundreds of promises from the Bible, many of which have already been fulfilled and although people fail to keep their promises, God does not (LaHaye and Jenkins, 2003) In order to convince others the news is true, though, his people need to change the way they live in order to set an example.   Just as Saul changed his name to Paul and turned from persecuting Christians to converting people to Christianity, his followers need to live by the words of the Bible.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   How should Christians change the way they live their lives?   It usually does not have to be as great of change as the one Paul made, but it does need to show a change of heart.   God created people to have free will, the ability to make their own choices.   From the moment people are born, they have choices.   They can cry or sleep wet or eat, etc.   As they get older the choices are more difficult.   If they are lucky enough to be raised with religious parents, they are taught the news of Jesus and Heaven from an early age.   Others have to hear it along the way, and like Saul may have several years of making rather bad choices first.   However once the news has been heard and the person has accepted the gift of eternal life, a change must be made. God still expects mistakes since no one is perfect, but an attempt to live as he wants is how Christians teach others.   The first step in this change is to strive to be like Christ being righteous, loving others and overcoming the world (Wiersbe, 1996).   It is popular to wear jewelry that says WWJD, which stands for What would Jesus do?   This is a very important message if people want to live their lives according to God’s word and to teach the good news to others.   When a person stops long enough to consciously ask themselves what Jesus would do in a situation, they would be less tempted to make the wrong choice. Living the kind of life God wants people to live does not mean they have to act extremely different or carry their Bible around with them everywhere they go.   They just need to think they are taking Jesus with them, because if they have truly accepted the gift, they are taking Jesus with them.   He wants his people to be honest and caring.   He wants them to make positive choices for their lives and not get caught up in things that would take their focus off of their ultimate goal (life in Heaven).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What Paul would tell people is that the news he has to share is the greatest news anyone could hear, because it promises an eternity without pain or sadness and it is a free gift.   All anyone has to do is accept it show it off for everyone else in the world to see.   If people receive a diamond or a new car they can not wait to show it off.   How could they be embarrassed or afraid to show off the world’s greatest gift?   Paul would tell people to believe in God and if they have questions to simply turn to the instruction manual (the Bible), because it contains all the answers.   He would say it should change the way a person lives their lives simply because of the hope it offers in an uncertain world.   Paul heard the news, accepted the news and spread the news.   He would encourage everyone who hears it to do the same. References Alcorn, Randy. 1999,In Light of Eternity, Colorado Springs, Colorado: Waterbrook Press LaHaye, Tim and Jenkins, T. 2003, God Always Keeps His Promises..   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers Wiersbe, Warren W., 1996,Being a Child of God, , Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Publishers

The Importance of Processes in Reverse Logistics Essay

The Importance of Processes in Reverse Logistics - Essay Example least cost and highest efficiency). A reverse logistics operation is considerably different from forward logistics. It must establish convenient collection points to receive the used goods from the final customer or remove assets from the supply chain so that more efficient use of inventory / material overall can be achieved. It requires packaging and storage systems that will ensure that most of the value still remaining in the used good is not lost due to careless handling. It often requires the development of a transportation mode that is compatible with existing forward logistic system. Disposition can include returning assets into inventory pools or warehouses for storage, returning goods to the original manufacturer for reimbursement, selling goods on a secondary market, recycling assets, or a combination that will yield maximum value for the assets in question. Reverse logistics, simply put, comprise all activities associated with a product/service after the point of sale, the ultimate goal to optimize or make more efficient aftermarket activity thus saving money. However, easy as it may looks , the processes involved requires a large degree of considerations coupled with careful planning. Speed of retrieval is the primary measure of efficiency and ... Speed of retrieval is the primary measure of efficiency and the choice of the method of transportation is the primary determinant of speed. Unlike in the distribution system where deliveries are made to stationary locations, retrieval would often require door-to-door visits. This is especially a problem in hard to access areas where travel would be tedious and costly. A decision has to be made on what method would be efficient. It may require a combination of measures such as carriers (trucks) for aggregate acquisition and vans/ordinary passenger vehicle for unit acquisition. Now what was stated above is only the acquisition part. There is also the delivery of the warehoused materials to the processing site. Since transportation will now be in terms of aggregate terms, a carrier must be assigned. In all these process, there is the possibility of problems suddenly appearing. In some case, carriers may always experience breakdowns or may get lost from trying to find the retrieval point. This would generally lead to higher costs as maintenance and fuel expenditures become large. Transportation may be outsourced and these would generally necessitate an analysis of current market rates. Again, the efficiency of the carrier should be evaluated as they may prove to be too costly for hiring and ineffective for the planned process. Warehousing A logistician's main problem in warehousing Returned products is how to store them until a decision is made on what to do with them. The returned products will require space - that is a fact that every logistician should realize and the firm can not relegate the storage of returning products to others in a way they can when they are distributing new products. Additional space would mean additional cost of handling to the

Discuss the historical poetics relation with The Devil's Backbone, Essay

Discuss the historical poetics relation with The Devil's Backbone, focus on two close analysis of two sequences - Essay Example The method of production itself includes the principles that determine how the project was composed, the effects, functions and uses of the project and the basic rules that govern cinematography and how they have been applied in the film. The historical poetics of a film mainly seeks to answer two main questions: Horror films are a multifaceted construct whose development and poetics are shaped by a wide array of artistic and historical factors, such that they can only be completely appreciated by considering influences and its predecessors. Apart from this, it is also important to assess the aesthetic distinction employed in these films in the historical and cultural setting that shape them (Gomez-Castellano, 2013). According to LÃ ¡zaro-Reboll (2007, pp.39), Horror is a literary prose described by three important factors, artistic intent (triggering suspense, terror or fear), specific themes (the discord between natural and supernatural), and sufficient motifs (involving presentation of otherness as compared to the norm). Historical poetics is regarded as the outcome of assimilating the director’s poetics with particular artistic and literary influences that affect the fears prevailing in particular periods as well as the form in which they are represented. In the devil’s backbone, various constructional principles have been utilized to make it a truly poetic film. The opening sequence of the film presents a good understanding of historical poetics through symbolism and imagery. In this sequence, a voice over narration plays over the death of Santi and the falling bomb. The narration brings on an argument of what a ghost is. The film then presents a disturbing image of a deformed baby inside a jar suspended in fluid. In the voice over narration, the director uses a rhetoric that strives to gain the audience’s agreement to the

Photographic Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Photographic Industry - Essay Example Photography begins with the actions of photojournalists. They produce images for publications using cameras. Moreover, photo documentarian and photojournalist both capture issues of current affairs around the world (International Center of Photography, 2009). However, photojournalists specifically do the work of publications. Besides, journalists are witnesses of specific events and translate events into visual images that are normally recognizable and emotive without any interpretation. Developments in landscape photograph advances than portrait photography. Photojournalists’ must be aware of the current issues around the world, research specific topics and accept the responsibility of current culture. Therefore, the history of photography has many developments that include the actions of photojournalists and photo documentaries. They help in developing photographic industry through the research and study of current cultures across the world (Vartanian, Crump, Blahnik & Olymp ia, 2011). In fashion photography, the photographer normally tells a story. The main fashion photographers are Tim Walker and Cecil Beaton. They develop photographs in professional ways that catch the attention of contemporary society in broad and diverse ways. The two fashion photographers give stories that enhance the experience of the viewer and client. Moreover, from the business point of view, storytelling with the use of images gives the opportunity of selling more client books, prints and making more of shoot experience.

Cultural Competence in Social Work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Cultural Competence in Social Work - Essay Example It is apparent that acquiring cultural competence causes the ability to communicate, understand, and interact effectively with individuals across cultures. Furthermore, a culturally competent person must value prevalent diversity in culture, and portray actions or attitudes that accept as well as promote different cultures. The individual should respond effectively and respectively to people of all races, sexual orientations, cultures, ethnic background, religions or faiths, and classes. Health and human services profession requires a practitioner to recognize, value, and affirm the worth of tribes, individuals, families as well as community. The practitioner also has a responsibility to preserve and protect the dignity of all people in the community. Standards for cultural competence Health and human services work has several cultural competence standards that govern the practice. The National Association of Social Worker (NASW) has stipulated several standards or norms for cultural competence. One of the standards is ethics and values that states that social work professionals should function in conformity to profession’s standards, ethics, and values. In addition, they must recognize ways in which professional and personal values may accommodate or conflict with requirements of diverse clients. Health and human services work has several cultural competence standards that govern the practice. The National Association of Social Worker (NASW) has stipulated several standards or norms for cultural competence.  ... cerning traditions, history, artistic expressions, family systems, and values of individuals that they serve (National Association of Social Workers, 2001). Acquirement of cultural competence skills Cultural competency in health and human services necessitates the acquirement of cross-cultural skills. In this sense, social work professionals should be equipped with suitable approaches, techniques as well as skills that reflect an understanding of importance and influence of culture in the provision of health and human services. In service delivery, social workers should not only be skillful in and well informed about various available services, but should also be in a position to make suitable referrals for their clientele. They should identify and avoid discrimination of clients from service opportunities because of their diversity. Social work professionals should endeavor to provide services that aptly match clients’ culturally unique needs. Besides, they should promote pro cedures and policies that guarantee access to care or services, which incorporates different cultural beliefs and practices (Doman, 2010). Social workers must acquire various critical elements that enhance their ability to be more culturally competent. These elements include  valuing diversity;  being cognizant of various dynamics associated with interaction of cultures;  having the capability to undertake cultural self-assessment;  attaining profound cultural knowledge; and  developing versions of service delivery revealing awareness as well as compliance with cultural diversity.  Social work practitioners should be proficient in these elements and manifested them in their professional as well as social interaction. Furthermore, these elements ought to be incorporated in policies, attitudes, as

Indian folk dance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Indian folk dance - Essay Example Folk dances are the essential elements of almost every important event of Indian social life and celebration. Despite their extreme simplicity, all folk dances tend to convey certain messages to the community they belong to with regard to their history or survival. As mentioned in the introduction, one of the important features of all Indian folk dances is their simplicity. Dancers normally wear colorful costumes having creative designs and symbols. They also wear extensive jewels which obviously enhance the performance and overall appeal. Though not classical in nature, Indian folk dances are evidently creative works that comprise certain artistic steps and postures. These steps are usually accompanied by rhythmic composition of some primitive musical instruments. Unlike classical dances, folk dances are cherished by common people to express their joy on different occasions. To be more specific, folk dances maintain a social perspective rather than the mere manifestation of individual emotions. Bhangra: Bhangra is a lively folk dance originated from Punjab and is highly associated with harvest celebrations of the state. Therefore, normally it is performed on April 13, the day of Baishaki. The dance is accompanied by Punjabi Boliyaan lyrics and drum beats. The drummer plays a vital role in enhancing the tempo of dancers’ movements. The costume of Bhangra dancers reflects the typical Punjabi outfit. In addition to the traditional turban on head, they wear colorful waistcoat and ‘ghunghroos’ on ankles; and Bhangra, fondly called ‘Shaan of Punjab’ was introduced to Vancouver during the 1st international Sports and Cultural Festival (Dances of India). Although Bhangra songs have been a major influence on the Indian film industry Bollywood for decades, obviously Bhangra has got mixed with western classical music. As Huq (121) points out, a bhangra/hip hop crossover has been visible in the UK produced rap for the recent years. According to the writer, the bhangra beats and Punjabi lyrics have been a major influence on western world of music since 1980s. In other words, Bhangra has been highly influenced by the various dance periods mainly because of its vulnerability to amalgamate with other cultures and art forms. For instance, as Roy (22) argues, contemporary bhangra fails to reflect its primitive folk origin or other classificatory boundaries. Obviously bhangra has become a popular art despite its Indian origin as a primitive folk dance. Padayani: this is one of the important traditional folk dances said to have promoted by some temples of Southern Kerala in India. The most fascinating feature of this art is the ‘Kolam†™, the huge mask which is the imitation of some divine and semi divine characters including Bhairavi, Kali, Kalan, Yakshi etc. The masks or chest-covers the performers wear are extremely huge so that no one can identify the persons. Although researchers are deeply at odds, the origin of Padayani traces back to several centuries. As reported in The Hindu, some are of the opinion that Padayani originated

The Needs of the End-User Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Needs of the End-User - Essay Example Despite the fact that most of the competencies required in IT environments are similar, they vary in a number of ways, albeit marginally. There are therefore, certain definitions and key behaviours and skills associated with each competency, for clarity purposes (Salvendy & Smith, 2009). The behaviors in this regard are the unique and observable actions by which one demonstrates his/her competency. Although there is a variety of models for IT technical competency, there is a general consensus on the stages that one need to follow while evaluating the necessary competency for a given IT management environment or position. First, it is important that an individual identifies the technical competencies applicable for the various IT management functions such as data management, emerging technology, information security, information technology service operations and network and telecommunications technology competencies. The IT management competencies one should have include dependability , ethics, motivation, professionalism, time management, technical skills, teamwork and adaptability (Salvendy & Smith, 2009). ... Just like any other developers, IT developers’ objective is often to produce the best and most applicable technologies and gadgets. They have consequently created rather sophisticated technologies that require a lot of technical knowledge to understand, operate and maintain. It is at this juncture that the end-user-developer knowledge problems begin. That is, while developers are focused on developing the most sophisticated technologies, end-users want technologies that are easy to operate and make their lives easier. However, appropriately or extremely technically knowledgeable audiences are well placed to handle complex information technologies. Developers thus require building IT technologies and systems that help end-users to solve real life/situational problems rather than being just sophisticated and fashionable. In other words, Information Technologies should not only do things that the developers are interested in but should also avoid any unnecessary appliances or opt ions that do not serve the interest of end-users (Watson, 2005). User-testing is one of the approaches used by developers to assess the usefulness of technologies, more so among persons not involved in IT technology projects. These people are then exposed to the gadget in question and their response to the serviceability and the goal-oriented nature of the gadget assessed. Importantly, there is need to promote effective communication between IT developers and end-users as this practice would help bridge the knowledge gap between them. By extension, end-users would be better placed to use IT and other technologies maximally if they are trained or educated on the said technology (Watson, 2005). There are several ways in which an IT

A Dolls house Language Essay Example for Free

A Dolls house Language Essay Ever since reading the text in my own time I have, in many of my past lessons been discussing, acting and re-reading parts of the play as well as researching many other aspects to the play. By doing this I discovered things like the play was firstly written in Norwegian and then translated into many languages along with many more complex things. Back in lessons I was doing tasks that specifically looked at the language in the play. For example before rein acting a scene from the play the whole class gathered in a circle to do a warm up exercise which evolved around the line; What did you do to die today at a minute or two to two, a thing distinctly hard to say but a harder thing to do. I had to say this line in many different accents and characters including a posh upper class character like Nora and Torvold Helmer from the play. The language used in the play not only creates the feel of the 19th century but it also reflects the way the characters are. It does this as the 19th century old English is very formal showing there middle to higher class and well educated. The language also shows the society that the characters live in and is significant as it reveals their inner thoughts, feelings relationships and situations. In one particular part of the play Torvold says: You cant deny it, little Nora now can you? Its a sweet little songbird but it gets through a terrible amount of money you wouldnt believe how much it costs a man when hes got a little songbird like you This rather poetic and metaphoric line compares Nora to a songbird which is petit and shows she can be sweet, innocent and chirpy. It also echos how Torvold belittles Nora and treats her like a child, which in them days was the done thing; men overpowering women and controlling the relationship in addition to this it perhaps shows how he has a fatherly figure and likes to take control over situations. Although in saying that Nora is or should I say acts rather childlike and naive herself but at the same time is manipulative, flirtatious and cunning as it proves on the opening line of the play; Hide that Christmas tree away, Helen. The children mustnt see it before Ive decorated it this evening As well as giving the audience a rough date and establishing shot it shows how Nora seems just as excited about Christmas as the children do. In most houses the children would be helping to set up the Christmas tree but not in the Helmer household Nora is setting up the tree and rather excited about it too. There is some reference to poetry in the text although it is not the rhyming type, its more a usage of poetic words being exchanged. Like in the first quote I made there are countless uses of words like songbird and squirrel being used to describe Nora as well as Torvold (in some parts of the play). There is another quote in Act 1 on page 25 where Nora has just gone out and bought some new things for the family, which Torvold is unhappy about as she has spent so much money which makes Nora unhappy too, it says; Now, now! My little songbird mustnt droop her wings. Whats this? Is little squirrel sulking? (takes out his purse) Nora; guess what Ive got here! This quote to me shows how he just keeps Nora sweet but does not go out of his reach to keep her happy. Also the use of poetic words is very creative and wise it is saying to Nora do not loose hope or become sad. But it says this in a metaphoric way as Nora does not really have wings but a songbird does and this is what Nora is often compared to by Torvold. The majority of the speech used throughout the play is natural from all of the characters as the play itself is done rather realistically and flows well. There are very rare if any uses of Brectian techniques to break any language or any part of the play up for example; there are no placards to make a particular line stand out, this is probably as each line is just as important as the one before. Even though there is reference to use of poetic language I think it gives the play even more of a realistic effect as people do have little pet names for there husband and wife. In addition to this Henrik Ibsen goes that step further and creates for each character there own realm of speech as a quote from the Methuen Student notes verifies: Ibsen creates for each character a habit of speech appropriate to his or her own class and personality With Torvold he is spoken with a rather fatherly/paternal type of speech, Krogstad he always reflects to his training as a lawyer, Mrs Linde speaks direct and could appear a bit bitter and cold, Nora is excitable but finds resolve at the end of the play and Dr Rank speaks in riddles and fondness of using figures of speech. Over all this coursework has made me realise how important the lines actually are in a play and how important it is to deliver them correctly. As well as consistency when delivering the lines in a certain way the character must keep delivering them in that way. I personally believe that this may enhance my skills as a yr 12 drama student.

Study on Is Accounting Profession under Threat

Study on Is Accounting Profession under Threat Recent events in global financial world that is dissolution of companies due to continuous losses has made people to question the efficiency and honesty of the professional accountants in discharging their duties for the interest of public and society. These events have forced global financial scholars and experts to think about the future scope of this profession. this article mainly focus on challenges to accounting profession in the context of strategic management accounting in connections with business firms expectations and the expectations of stakeholders and communities which ensure that the accountants will function for the benefits of society and public. The expectations of employers of accounting graduates is higher when we compare with the present academic system which indicates that the present academic courses should be upgraded as the business firms are expecting only real professionals who can be able to work any type of business environment and they should be flexible to the future changes in business environment. Their ultimate responsibility is to make the business firm trust worthy in the eyes of customers and other stakeholders and society. Today the demand from business firms for accounting professional with sophisticated modern accounting skills is caused revolutionary changes in the accounting and financial management gra duation courses importance of discipline knowledge. The internal and global challenges on the professions related to financial management may be involve win the confidence of public and stakeholders of the business and operating markets, improving the performance of professional accountants and auditors, understanding the increased role of external auditors, preventing the corruption the system of public audit, and making the financial statements and reports trust worthy in the eyes of concerned parties. Todays business environment is very sensitive to the changes in its components such as technology or markets the accounting professionals to work hard with efficiency and honesty to meet these challenges effectively. Introduction In todays business environment are professional accountants directly responsible to their customers, companies and to the society and also they should know possible legal obligations to the stakeholders. Accounting profession is not only limited to preparing accounting statements but also involves in wide variety of functions which provides inputs to the managerial decision making. If an accounting professional is not able to perform his duty and responsibilities in satisfied level according to the universal standards it is the major liability in the hands of an accountant. Compared to other type of professions this profession has its own code of ethics hence it is dignified and respective profession which provides practical inputs for the effective decision making. Advanced Strategic Management Accounting During the past two decades, many organizations in business and finance sectors have to face changes in their business environment. Economic reform polices by the developing countries, policies, competition from multinational companies in local markets has resulted in a typical situation, where most companies are now competing in a highly competitive global market. In addition there has been a significant reduction in product life cycle arising from rapid changes in technological innovations and the need to meet sophisticated customer demands. To compete successfully in global environment, companies have to work towards to satisfy made customer demands. They have forced to adopt new Management strategies, changed their business systems and invested in new technologies. The increasing competition has affected their profits and more attention is required to be paid to the various aspects of Management accounting aspects. These changes have had a significant influence on strategic Manag ement accounting systems. Role of professional accountant has no longer remained that of an accountant, but he has assumed a significant role in improving the competitiveness of firms. 5Strategic Management Accounting is the branch of management accounting which mainly focus the uncontrollable factors which a business firm should more concentrate, and these factors may be financially or non financially but related to the financial and business decisions of the firm. According to the Ken Simmonds, the formulation of business strategy of the firm mainly depends on the financial information of the firm and the competing firms. This information may involve details of Production costs, product price, production volume, Market size, availability of cash resources and other resources such as raw materials which should be emphasized. But Professor Bromwichn compared the past practices in management accounting which have modified with new directions including the active role of professional accountants in business decision makings. These directions may be towards the inclusive of financial information into strategy for cost analysis that is the basic for all future business decisions. Other directions towards having updated information bank related to the strategies of competitors especially their costing methods, cost structures and costing decisions. The limitation of traditional management accounting in the areas analysis of cost and cost related activities is significant which gives birth to the development of modern strategic management accounting system. Traditional management accounting system has no particular techniques to ascertain the costing methods and situation of competitors but decisions are based on only the information from financial statements. Modern strategic management accounting has its own techniques to ascertain cost position. It also helps business firms to how to achieve cost advantages current as well as future years. In this context the role of Accounting professional is very important for the survival of business firm compared to every angle of the present business environment. Accounting profession In the context of professional accounting, the power and responsibility of an accountant can be justified when financial statements provides expected information according to the objectives functions especially protection of public and social interest. Under flexible business environment Accountants are vested with enough power in order to perform their functions without any interruption for the healthy future of business firm.. According to the scholars the up gradation of accounting skill is a specific task as the accounting profession also one of the component of employment structure which is influenced by policies of government and economic policies. . There is a argument the accounting skills and knowledge should be revised and updated time to time because these skills and knowledge should be according to the changing expectations of the society and the stakeholders of the business firm. But as a professional an accountant should utilize these skills and knowledge in optimum level for the interest of the employer as well as interested parties. . The accounting profession has gained enough importance especially it is the sole body which has the ultimate authority on the financial related issues and matters. The one of the primary objectives is to work for the benefit of social interests that has analyzed for making the accounting progression as an appropriate occupation in modern employment world. And According to some experts.. Accountants with traditional views are no longer sustaining in the present environment. According to the research the Todays accounting and auditing methods are in modified forms compared to traditional m ethods of accounting. Changing role of Accountant Todays accountants should mostly focus on knowledge, skills and ability to manage these as a particular service. This requirement in business environment has created business and ethical issues for the accountants/ auditors and their customers. This includes problem-solving and customer advice features of the skilled professional. Changes also include the over emphasis on specific training for developing practical skills as part preparing of new graduates to the practical business world. The introduction of these practical training in academic degrees involves uncertainty and time frame because the academic institutions should ready for accepting the current changes. Companys especially multinational companies mainly concentrate on these practical skills but facing problems of assessment for right candidates with practical knowledge. Challenges to Accounting Profession Due to the influence of globalization changes in financial strategies have been affecting almost every business and services around the world. Especially Accounting and finance sector is directly affected, financial experts world wide are working for the improvements of the accounting system. Several seminars are going on in this regard; financial professionals, scholars have to share their ideas and views on the present challenges in finance and accounting today, and acquire sophisticated skills in order to face globalization effect. Today global recession and financial conflicts has developed new trend of threats and challenges. According to the experts of International Accounting Standards Board, the global financial conflict is the main which emphasized transference in financial reporting and flexible accounting standard with definite principle to face the new trend in future. The context and dynamics of modern strategic management accounting the changes in the accounting skills have forced to adopt by professional accountants who are cautious to provide value added service for their customers. Globalization process has made the business activities to cross the boundaries of nations. The global financial and business environment has put pressure on professional accountants and auditors as they are the important information providers for the business success. Every company seeks opportunities in global market for the expansion of the business. But uncertainty in market conditions and rapid innovations in technology have made themselves to face any type of business situation for the interest of all their stakeholders where their business strategies, their market share and capital adjustments also subject to changes along with the marginal profit. Internal challenges The first challenge to professional accountant is the measurement of financial performance. Revenue is a single measurable indicator of financial performance. The common feeling is that over-emphasis on revenues, unscientific ways of their analysis and interpretations financial information. But this information is the basis for long term business decisions. Secondly issues regarding historical accounting information and statements. Some times there is feeling that a balance sheet prepared imperfect way and it does not reveal accrued profits based on future changes in market condition. This is the major draw back in disclosing true financial information of the company. Thirdly financial statements do not measure the assets and liabilities on the basis of todays accounting standard. Hence investors may be misled in making investment decisions, which will put them at greater investment risk. They also need the information regarding the value goodwill and other intangibles and capital structure. Lastly the financial and accounting statements show only historical transactions and facts and they dont concentrate much on the future events and transactions. They put limited attention on the hard profits and also limited attention to the required process for maximization of wealth. Challenges of Globalization Innovations in technology are the greatest affect on the profession and present system failure to coop with this challenge may be resulted in the devaluation of the importance of the profession. The introduction of the information technology has greatly influence the system in which companies do business, structure their organization and operate their reporting systems and each of these are the considerable challenges for the accounting profession. E- Business has introduced new business risks along with the great advantages which a professional accountant should take into account. The unauthorized access company information; increased volume of business as created credit risks; and the proper allocation of income and expenses, Accounting firms and professionals should be concentrate on with these risks. The changes in Government financial police and company the annual financial statements and other communications can be communicated to the concerned parties through the electronic media or through web sites. Out of dated information will not reveal clear picture and hence share price of the company affected. Market expects the clear picture of financial and business performance and there are pressures on firms o provide such information when required. Lastly the centralization of accounting system and accounting information systems will be the top management based decision where accounting is considered as secondary issue. Branch accounting is in declining trend today information will be directly flow to the head office of the firms. Globalization can be defined as the existence of a situation where there is an easy access to any part of the world. It is in the form of information on any subject matter. A professional accountant should face several challenges with this situation; businesses expand sometimes beyond country borders in response to globalization. In market led globalization model an accounting professionals should play a dominant role. To make the Global markets to function properly, the accounting profession must adapt and modernize in response to the globalization of finance and investment. In corporate-led model of globalization the accounting profession does not merely adapt to forces of globalization. But accounting industry has played and continues to play an active role in the structuring global markets for accounting services. Due to the globalization there are some threats to accountants and the accounting profession as a whole Accountants working for foreign-owned companies, their knowledge, skills, and abilities may be restrict them to performing only low-value, compliance-oriented work. Accounting professionals can be also benefited from the effects of globalization. These are Accountants who are ready to expand their financial accounting knowledge, skills, and abilities they can become expertise in understanding of changing business requirements. Accountants with their theoretical knowledge, skills, and abilities with the performance oriented knowledge, skills, and abilities of management accounting can be achieve high level of experience in this context. Today businesses become increasingly globalize, 10there is clearly more pressure on accountants to increase the knowledge, skill, and abilities beyond their present limit of functioning in order to fit well into the globalization of the 21st century. In this context the accounting profession has an important role in assisting firms to face competitive finance and business environment Implications of Academicians The role of the accountant in past was just recording the facts and figures but the role of the professional accountant has been criticized by many scholars and analysts over the decades, especially the accounting skills developed by students of accounting management schools This demand primarily developed in Academic level, the. The need for this change is based on a number of draw backs identified in the skills taught in graduation schools that students when bring to the practical world. Another criticism is these 1skills cannot be efficiently being taught in schools where the employment is dominated by specialized technical skills. Requisite skills required by future professional accountants and auditors will include easy learnable professional skills along with ethics. These specific skills are necessary for modern business environment because it helps business entities to 1solve the diversity of business challenges. This is the main challenge for the academic institutions to balance between accounting graduate skills which are theoretical in nature and skills sought by modern business entities. There is gap between the actual school syllabus and the knowledge expected by companies. The academic institutions should try to train accounting graduates to suit the interest and expectations o the employers. The accounting1graduates with sophisticated skills are in an environment that requires accountants to show high level of technical performance to meet the demands of financial and business entities. Number of comments and opinions from global academicians and practitioners has forced the Government authorities and International Regulatory Bodies related to accounting issues to make revolutionary changes in the accounting standards, methods and techni ques which are relevant to future years. Majority Charted accountants and Accounting professionals feels present accounting system is not according to the requirements of modern business and it is less flexible to the changing environment. These academicians and practitioners agree that if accounting is to serve a useful role in the changing environment, academic education in accounting and scope of research should become broader, dynamic and not limited by a single approach. Despite these matters, the academicians and practitioners feel that present academic programmes in Accounting and finance area should be reviewed according to the demand from job market. Professional Ethics The corporate financial conflicts has given good inputs to finance professionals and for the monitoring of accounting system. Continuous effort from academicians and financial experts in developed countries there are strategic changes in academic education and training programmes, professional accountants should be able to develop the specific skills they need to successfully compete in the employment market for new types of information and financial services. This vision is used by many of the professions leaders. As per the study in U.S.A there are considerable increase in the number of professional accountants and AICPA membership during the period from 1970 to 1994.  This indicates that in developed courtiers are ready to face the challenges. Study in U.S.A (Courtesy: Annual report AICPA) Table 1 Total Accounting Employment Year Numbers in Thousands 1970 646 1980 1013 1990 1446 1994 1483 Table 2 Membership in AICPA Year Numbers in Thousands 1970 74 1980 161 1990 296 1994 319 Impact of Challenges on Strategic Management Accounting During the past two decades, many organizations in business and finance sectors have to face changes in their business environment. Economic reform polices by the developing countries, business policies and competition from multinational companies in local markets has resulted in a typical situation, where most companies have to face severe competition from rival business firms in a highly competitive situation. In addition there has been a change observed in business life cycle due to rapid changes in technological innovations and the need to meet sophisticated customer demands because production of each product is considered as a independent business. To compete successfully in global environment, companies have to work towards to satisfy made customer demands. They have forced to adopt new Management and financial strategies, changed their accounting systems and investment in new technologies. The increasing competition has affected their profits and more attention is required to be paid to the various aspects of strategic Management accounting aspects. These global challenges have had a significant influence on strategic Management accounting systems. Role of professional accountant has no longer remained that of an accountant, but he has assumed a significant role in improving the competitiveness of firms. Professional Ethics The financial crisis has given good inputs to finance professionals and for the monitoring of accounting system. Today accounting professionals in the business sector should not only concentrate on earning of revenue, but also take into account the public and external parties related to the business. The present accounting system should be able to create ethical environment for the benefit of society in generally and stakeholders particularly. Directions for Ethical Performance The directions towards performing the duty in ethical way Global Charted Accountants Associations encourage accountants and Auditors to conduct them effectively and to do quality internal and external auditing in appropriate manner and other accounting functions. Professional Institutes should develop high level auditing standards and ethics their applications in practical world. There are so many ethical obligations which make auditors in right path of accounting standards and legal obligations. Figure 1. Ethical codes Geographical study requirements Quality control Legal registration Professional programs, training and examinations Continuing education requirements Legal liability Accounting standards Conduct of professional Accounting firm personnel Future of the Accounting Profession: Introduction of specific knowledge and the increased expectations from global business world today accounting profession is a specialized profession, which is resulted in great the movement toward up gradation of accounting graduate or professional education. Advanced programmes in computer technology and its role in updating the information for concerned parties of the business, financial experts are expecting t the new trend in information technology and communications which will reshape the accounting employment structure. Computers are today important part of the accounting information system. Introduction of new computer software programmes has given considerable contribution for the modification of business and accounting from the last decade and will continue to the future also. These days we can observe that the new accounting softwares decrease the work load of accounting firms which is resulted in the decrease of employing fresh candidates for accounting work. But developments in accounting profession have shown steady growth from last 20 years despite the increased use of computer information systems to perform routine accounting tasks. Suggestions and Recommendations accounting profession have an significant role in assisting the management for business decisions to not only contribute for strengthening the financial position but also should be modified to analyze management risk factors as the parallel profession to management graduation, for firms operational and strategic decisions . These personnel should also be able to anticipate and manage risks factors arising from bulk volume of financial transactions which made the firms vulnerable to uncertainty and unexpected price variations. As the scope for this profession increased, it will find itself facing increasingly conflicting pressures arising from convergence. It should be designed to establish proper balance manage internal financial conflicts and external conflicts related to firms financial matter and should be able to these commercial interests to introduce the ability to act as a trusted and independent professional business consultant and advisor. The accounting profession should extend its role and responsibility for promoting good corporate business environment. It should also be concerned for sustaining of good corporate governance is not only fulfilling legal obligations but also should be based on values and ethics.

Causes And Effects Of Deforestation Sociology Essay

Causes And Effects Of Deforestation Sociology Essay Laurance (1999) stated that Tropical forests do far more than sustain biodiversity; they are homes to indigenous peoples, pharmacopeias of natural products, and provide vital ecosystem services, such as flood amelioration and soil conservation (p. 109). This shows that forest is very important to us but deforestation is causing all the forest to be cleared. What is deforestation? Deforestation is the act of cutting down all the trees in a particular area. Deforestation is carried out for some reasons. These reasons could be categorized into legal deforestation and illegal deforestation. Tropical forest takes up about six percent of the earth and a lot of problems could occur when all the trees are cut down. To this day, people are still debating on whether deforestation is appropriate or not. What are the causes and effects of deforestation? What is happening to the tropical rainforest now? We have always read news about Indonesia and the occurrence of forest burning almost every year. Why are they doing it? It had been reported that they burn the forests so that they will have a better land to plant palm oil. It acts as a fertilizer to the land because their plants died and converted into fertilizer. Even thought they did it to fertilize the land but it brought harm to the people who live around the country. Air pollution often happens in Malaysia because hazes are formed due to forest burning in Indonesia. Haze is an atmospheric phenomenon that causes the air around it to be misty and blurry. It brings harm to the people that inhale it. Therefore, the rate of people receiving treatment for illnesses caused by inhalation of haze increases every year. This shows that deforestation is causing a lot of effects on mankind and it is often shown on advertisement and newspaper; however, it seems that people are still not aware of the effects of deforestation. This research paper is discusses about the causes and effects of deforestation around the world. Many people are more aware of the effects than the causes of deforestation. This research paper is going to talk about the causes and effects of deforestation. Besides discussing the causes and effects of deforestation, this paper also argues about what can be done to save the forest too. Causes of deforestation One of the most common causes of deforestation is clearing out the forest to pay back the foreign debt of that particular country (Culas, 2006). Some country has a huge sum of foreign debt and they dont the capability to clear their debt; thus they clear out the forests so that the land they acquire later could be used for crop production. By planting crops that could be exported to another country, they could earn a lot and repay back their debt. This is why most countries choose to clear forests and focus on agricultural purposes. Countries that do not owe other countries any debt are less likely to take up deforestation or will have a lower rate of deforestation. Therefore, countries that are in a heavy debt should look for alternative ways that could gain them a better income instead of clearing up the forests. As I have mentioned earlier, tropical forests only takes up about 6 percent of the whole earth. If these countries continue to clear up the forests without thinking of the consequences, the amount of forests left on the surface of the earth would seriously decline. Another cause of deforestation is the increasing demand of land. Due to the increase of human population, certain countries are also experiencing an increase in the demand for houses. This leads to developers seeking more land to build houses on. Hence, developers clear up forests after forests so that the land they acquire could be used to build houses. Through the development of houses on forest land, they can sustain the population in that country. We dont have to look at other country. We just need to take a look at our own country, Malaysia. Forests in Setapak area were cleared up to build condominiums. Malaysia has the population of over millions and the demand for houses is very high. They choose to clear up the forests so that there would be more land to build apartments, condominiums, terrace houses and other housing structures. This shows that deforestation is the first option when it comes to fulfilling the demand for land. Besides fulfilling the demand of houses, the dema nd of oil has also leads to deforestation. Oil is widely used everywhere in the world now. When the demand for oil increases, lands are also needed for oil plantation. The absence of land made oil plantation a difficult task; hence, deforestation becomes the option again to gain lands. Trees were chopped down and the land is then used to plant oil palm so the demand for palm oil could be met. Besides meeting the demand of land, the weakness shown in the governments policies is also one of the causes for deforestation (Laurance, 1999). Ever since we were kids, we were always taught that there are rules when it comes to cutting down trees. Despite that, many people continue to violate the rules and continue to do illegal logging. Why is it that people constantly neglect the boundaries set up by the government and commit illegal loggings? This is because of the governments weak policies. Rules and boundaries were set by the government but there were no enforcement. Law enforcers are not strict and often neglect their duty when it comes to punishing individuals for violating the rules. For example, the law enforcers just releases those who have violated the laws despite catching them and witnessing them doing illegal logging. This does not help reduce deforestation but rather makes the matter worse. People will think that it is fine to do illegal logging since the law enforce rs, such as police officers, do not arrest those who violated the rules in spite of their crime. Such acts by those who work for the government will only promote further deforestation instead of stopping them. Soon, the trees in the country will gradually disappear. The effects of deforestation What are the effects of deforestation? One of the effects of deforestation includes affecting the habitat of the indigenous people. When deforestation happens, it gravely affects the indigenous people because deforestation contributes to death, illness, poorness, and culturl shock (Mitten, 1997). The indigenous people who live in forests seek their food from the forests and deforestation terminates their only means to acquire food. In addition, logging activities have become an easy way to earn money. Therefore, all the companies build their factory near the rivers. The waste products that were made while processing forest products would be dumped into the river; thus, polluting it. Indigenous people drink water from the river. As a result, they will get sick because of the dirty water caused by the factories. It can even cause deaths if it gets too serious. Besides that, the culture of the indigenous people that has been passed down from generations to generations will soon vanish w hen the indigenous people slowly decreases due to death. Cultural shock will occur and the history of the indigenous people will soon be forgotten. Besides harming the indigenous people, deforestation harms the wildlife too (Bonaudo, Pendu, Faure, Quanz, 2005). This is because around 80 to 90 percent of animal species live in the tropical rainforest. Imagine if all the trees were cut down, what will happen to the animal? It is without a doubt that the animals will lose their natural habitat and they will become extinct. Animals, such as pandas, refuse to breed when they are not in their own natural habitat. Therefore, the population if panda keeps decreasing as time goes by because their natural habitat is being destroyed due to deforestation. When deforestation happens, the animals lose their natural habitats and also their protective shield. This causes the animals to have some difficulty adapting to their new environment and as a result, the animals would refuse to breed. The extinction of these animals is guaranteed if they refuse to breed due to the destruction of their natural habitat. Our future generation will have to l ook at pictures or visit the museums in order to the animal instead of just looking at the animals in real life. Deforestation will soon cause the future generation to lose touch with the animals that exist now and they will only know them through knowledge passed down by their parents or by visiting a museum. Another effect of deforestation is climate change. Bala, Caldeira, Wickett, Phillips, Lobell, Delire, Mirin, (2006) stated that deforestation affects the global climate by releasing the carbon stored in the living plants and soils as well as by altering the physical properties of the planetary surface (p. 6550). Trees take in carbon dioxide that is released by human through respiration. Trees stored carbon dioxide to produce their own food through photosynthesis process. When the trees are all cut down, there will not be any more trees to absorb the carbon dioxide that is released by humans. Carbon dioxide will then be trapped at the atmosphere and temperature will increase. As the carbon dioxide in the air increases severely, so does the temperature. This will results in the phenomena known as global warming. When global warming happens, ice in the North Pole and South Pole will melt. This will result in an increase of sea level. The increase in the sea level will flood countries t hat are geographically situated in a lower sea level and these countries will disappear from the surface of the earth. Soon, all the land will be flooded and the countries will disappear one by one. What can be done? Deforestation has caused a lot of harm to the mankind. There are a number of actions that could be taken to reduce deforestation. For example, instead of cutting down trees to acquire new land, we can perform land reclamation. Land reclamation involves the creation of new lands from oceans or riverbeds. Besides that, government should enforce the rules instead of handling the matters leniently. The people who violate the rules should be fined or prosecuted. This serves as a warning to others so that they will stop their illegal logging and this could help save and preserves the trees around us. Every country should preserve their forests and plant more trees so that the biodiversity could be maintained. Discussion All in all, deforestation has caused a lot of devastating effects not only to the people but also the animals. Before understanding the effects, we need to find the roots of why deforestation happens first. As I have stated earlier, the causes of deforestation are the large sum of foreign debt, the increasing demand for land, and the weakness in the governments policies. Deforestation happens because the trees were cut down for crop production. With the production, they could repay back the debt. Besides that, the demand for land gradually increases as time goes by. This is because the increase in popularity has increased the demand of land to build houses. Moreover, the weaknesses in the policies promote deforestation instead of curbing them. This occurs because the government did not enforce the rules that were set and they did not take illegal deforestation seriously. Deforestation has done a lot of harm to the people and also to the wildlife. The most common effect is causing harm to indigenous people. Indigenous people live in forests and everything they do inside the forest is part of their culture. Deforestation causes the indigenous people will lose their home as well as their source for food. Deforestation will cause their culture to extinct sooner or later. The most precious aspect in a country is its original culture. If the indigenous people are extinct, there will be no more culture for that particular country. Besides harming the indigenous people, deforestation harms wildlife too. Most of the animal species live in the tropical forest. Not only does it act as a natural habitat for the animals, forests also act as a protective shield for the animals. When deforestation occurs, they lose their natural habitat and protective shield. Soon, they will be on the edge of extinction. When this happen, it will cause a loss in biodiversity and ou r future generation will have to know the animals through pictures. Another effect of deforestation is climate change. Trees act as storages for carbon dioxide that are released by humans through respiration. Trees absorb carbon dioxide for their photosynthesis process. If the trees were cut down, all the carbon dioxide will be released to the atmosphere and this will cause the temperature to increase. An increase in the temperature will result in global warming and global warming; in turn, melts the ice in the North and South Pole. This results in an increase of sea level. Therefore, lands that are positioned in a lower sea level will soon be flooded and disappear from the surface of the earth. After understanding the causes and effects, what can be done to curb deforestation? Every government should find another alternative way to boost their economy and repay back the foreign debt. Instead of cutting down the trees for crop production, they can try boosting the economy through the tourism section. This way, they can save the forest and gain profits at the same thing. Besides cutting down trees for more land, land reclamation can be taken to acquire more land. These methods are able to fulfill the demands for land as well as preserve the forest at the same time. Governments should also enforce the rules that were set for logging activities. People who violate the rules by carrying out the illegal logging act musr be fined or prosecuted. This acts as a warning to others so that they do not dare to do it again. Besides that, government could come out with other ways of punishing the people that violates the rules. As an overall, they must enforce the laws and regulations on environmental issues. Conclusion I chose to do this research on deforestation because I have read a lot of news on how deforestation do us harm and yet no one has done anything to stop it. I hope that this research paper could help people to do understand more on the causes and effects of deforestation. Besides that, I also hope this research will help curb deforestation and save the trees from being logged. By doing so, the biodiversity of the earth could be maintained and no harm would befall on humans. If deforestation continues to happen, there will be no more trees in the future. This will result in higher temperature, loss of biodiversity and more. Therefore I hope everybody will do his or her part in preserving and protecting the forest so that there is a better future for our next generation.

animal activism Essay example -- essays research papers

Animals are dying on a daily basis or living out their lives being abused or neglected. Statistics show that more than five thousand animals are mistreated and neglected each year in Michigan#. This number is increasing rapidly due to lack of knowledge of animal care, also the number increases due to the lack of penalty for animal cruelty. I see a need to educate because of violence toward animals. I plan to educate children to successfully care for their four legged friends.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The issue of animal cruelty affects the world by crime related activities. For example dog or pit fighting is directly related to drug activity. This form of â€Å"sport† is well known in the illegal drug business and is often discovered when a drug bust occurs. Drug dealers train pit bulls using weaker animals like cats or small dogs which are nothing but a death wish for these defenseless animals#. These Pit Bulls are trained to fight to the death in the ring. These dogs are often starved and or beat to increase their aggressive nature.# When they get loose in a neighborhood, many children playing on the street are in danger.# The psychological effect of children that abused animals results in adults that commit violent crimes such as serial killers, like Ted Bundy and Jeff Dahmer# who were habitual animal abusers. The underlying factor of people that abuse, and neglect animals is a lack of compassion for living creatures. It’s this lack of compass ion that facilitate violent ...

Depiction Of The American Dream in The Great Gatsby Essay -- The Great

As children, we have all dreamt of money, being rich; owning an extravagant mansion, magnificent cars, and being married to a prince or princess. Basically, we dream of the perfect life, with the perfect spouse. Generally, this dream is known as the American Dream, which is the belief that if one works hard, that person will succeed by becoming rich. The topic of the American Dream can be found throughout The Great Gatsby, the most prime example of this is the dream of Jay Gatsby. Gatsby’s dream is to work hard to get rich in order to win the love of Daisy Buchanan, his long lost love. Despite these beliefs, the American Dream, in it’s modern form, generally fails to make that person happy. As for Gatsby’s dream to win Daisy’s love with elaborate material possessions, his attempts eventually lead to his death. Both the noble intentions and the resulting failures of the American Dream resemble the intentions and corruption of Jay Gatsby in the novel, The Gr eat Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  F. Scott Fitzgerald included many examples of the American Dream in the novel. Myrtle Wilson is an example of this. Myrtle, who was married to George Wilson, a low income mechanic, desired money and a higher social status. This desire, which is equivalent to the desire for money in the American Dream, eventually led to the death of Myrtle. Myrtle was having an affair with Tom Buchanan in spite of the fact that he was awful to her, for example, â€Å"†¦Tom Buchanan broke her nose with hi...

The Twilight Saga 3: Eclipse Chapter 16. EPOCH

â€Å"I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!† I MOANED TO MYSELF. Every item of clothing I owned was strewn across my bed; my drawers and closets were bare. I stared into the empty recesses, willing something suitable to appear. My khaki skirt lay over the back of the rocking chair, waiting for me to discover something that went with it just exactly right. Something that would make me look beautiful and grown up. Something that said special occasion. I was coming up empty. It was almost time to go, and I was still wearing my favorite old sweats. Unless I could find something better here – and the odds weren't looking good at this point – I was going to graduate in them. I scowled at the pile of clothes on my bed. The kicker was that I knew exactly what I would have worn if it were still available – my kidnapped red blouse. I punched the wall with my good hand. â€Å"Stupid, thieving, annoying vampire!† I growled. â€Å"What did I do?† Alice demanded. She was leaning casually beside the open window as if she'd been there the whole time. â€Å"Knock, knock,† she added with a grin. â€Å"Is it really so hard to wait for me to get the door?† She threw a flat, white box onto my bed. â€Å"I'm just passing through. I thought you might need something to wear.† I looked at the big package lying on top of my unsatisfying wardrobe and grimaced. â€Å"Admit it,† Alice said. â€Å"I'm a lifesaver.† â€Å"You're a lifesaver,† I muttered. â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Well, it's nice to get something right for a change. You don't know how irritating it is – missing things the way I have been. I feel so useless. So . . . normal.† She cringed in horror of the word. â€Å"I can't imagine how awful that must feel. Being normal? Ugh.† She laughed. â€Å"Well, at least this makes up for missing your annoying thief – now I just have to figure out what I'm not seeing in Seattle.† When she said the words that way – putting the two situations together in one sentence – right then it clicked. The elusive something that had been bothering me for days, the important connection that I couldn't quite put together, suddenly became clear. I stared at her, my face frozen with whatever expression was already in place. â€Å"Aren't you going to open it?† she asked. She sighed when I didn't move immediately, and tugged the top of the box off herself. She pulled something out and held it up, but I couldn't concentrate on what it was. â€Å"Pretty, don't you think? I picked blue, because I know it's Edward's favorite on you.† I wasn't listening. â€Å"It's the same,† I whispered. â€Å"What is?† she demanded. â€Å"You don't have anything like this. For crying out loud, you only own one skirt!† â€Å"No, Alice! Forget the clothes, listen!† â€Å"You don't like it?† Alice's face clouded with disappointment. â€Å"Listen, Alice, don't you see? It's the same! The one who broke in and stole my things, and the new vampires in Seattle. They're together!† The clothes slipped from her fingers and fell back into the box. Alice focused now, her voice suddenly sharp. â€Å"Why do you think that?† â€Å"Remember what Edward said? About someone using the holes in your vision to keep you from seeing the newborns? And then what you said before, about the timing being too perfect – how careful my thief was to make no contact, as if he knew you would see that. I think you were right, Alice, I think he did know. I think he was using those holes, too. And what are the odds that two different people not only know enough about you to do that, but also decided to do it at exactly the same time? No way. It's one person. The same one. The one who is making the army is the one who stole my scent.† Alice wasn't accustomed to being taking by surprise. She froze, and was still for so long that I started counting in my head as I waited. She didn't move for two minutes straight. Then her eyes refocused on me. â€Å"You're right,† she said in a hollow tone. â€Å"Of course you're right. And when you put it that way. . . .† â€Å"Edward had it wrong,† I whispered. â€Å"It was a test . . . to see if it would work. If he could get in and out safely as long as he didn't do anything you would be watching out for. Like trying to kill me. . . . And he didn't take my things to prove he'd found me. He stole my scent . . . so that others could find me.† Her eyes were wide with shock. I was right, and I could see that she knew it, too. â€Å"Oh, no,† she mouthed. I was through expecting my emotions to make sense anymore. As I processed the fact that someone had created an army of vampires – the army that had gruesomely murdered dozens of people in Seattle – for the express purpose of destroying me, I felt a spasm of relief. Part of it was finally solving that irritating feeling that I was missing something vital. But the larger part was something else entirely. â€Å"Well,† I whispered, â€Å"everyone can relax. Nobody's trying to exterminate the Cullens after all.† â€Å"If you think that one thing has changed, you're absolutely wrong,† Alice said through her teeth. â€Å"If someone wants one of us, they're going to have to go through the rest of us to get to her.† â€Å"Thanks, Alice. But at least we know what they're really after. That has to help.† â€Å"Maybe,† she muttered. She started pacing back and forth across my room. Thud, thud – a fist hammered against my door. I jumped. Alice didn't seem to notice. â€Å"Aren't you ready yet? We're gonna be late!† Charlie complained, sounding edgy. Charlie hated occasions about as much as I did. In his case, a lot of the problem was having to dress up. â€Å"Almost. Give me a minute,† I said hoarsely. He was quiet for half a second. â€Å"Are you crying?† â€Å"No. I'm nervous. Go away.† I heard him clump down the stairs. â€Å"I have to go,† Alice whispered. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"Edward is coming. If he hears this . . .† â€Å"Go, go!† I urged immediately. Edward would go berserk when he knew. I couldn't keep it from him for long, but maybe the graduation ceremony wasn't the best time for his reaction. â€Å"Put it on,† Alice commanded as she flitted out the window. I did what she said, dressing in a daze. I'd been planning to do something more sophisticated with my hair, but time was up, so it hung straight and boring as on any other day. It didn't matter. I didn't bother to look in the mirror, so I had no idea how Alice's sweater and skirt ensemble worked. That didn't matter, either. I threw the ugly yellow polyester graduation robe over my arm and hurried down the stairs. â€Å"You look nice,† Charlie said, already gruff with suppressed emotion. â€Å"Is that new?† â€Å"Yeah,† I mumbled, trying to concentrate. â€Å"Alice gave it to me. Thanks.† Edward arrived just a few minutes after his sister left. It wasn't enough time for me to pull together a calm faade. But, since we were riding in the cruiser with Charlie, he never had a chance to ask me what was wrong. Charlie had gotten stubborn last week when he'd learned that I was intending to ride with Edward to the graduation ceremony. And I could see his point – parents should have some rights come graduation day. I'd conceded with good grace, and Edward had cheerfully suggested that we all go together. Since Carlisle and Esme had no problem with this, Charlie couldn't come up with a compelling objection; he'd agreed with poor grace. And now Edward rode in the backseat of my father's police car, behind the fiberglass divider, with an amused expression – probably due to my father's amused expression, and the grin that widened every time Charlie stole a glance at Edward in his rearview mirror. Which almost certainly meant that Charlie was imagining things that would get him in trouble with me if he said them out loud. â€Å"Are you all right?† Edward whispered when he helped me from the front seat in the school parking lot. â€Å"Nervous,† I answered, and it wasn't even a lie. â€Å"You are so beautiful,† he said. He looked like he wanted to say more, but Charlie, in an obvious maneuver that he meant to be subtle, shrugged in between us and put his arm around my shoulders. â€Å"Are you excited?† he asked me. â€Å"Not really,† I admitted. â€Å"Bella, this is a big deal. You're graduating from high school. It's the real world for you now. College. Living on your own. . . . You're not my little girl anymore.† Charlie choked up a bit at the end. â€Å"Dad,† I moaned. â€Å"Please don't get all weepy on me.† â€Å"Who's weepy?† he growled. â€Å"Now, why aren't you excited?† â€Å"I don't know, Dad. I guess it hasn't hit yet or something.† â€Å"It's good that Alice is throwing this party. You need something to perk you up.† â€Å"Sure. A party's exactly what I need.† Charlie laughed at my tone and squeezed my shoulders. Edward looked at the clouds, his face thoughtful. My father had to leave us at the back door of the gym and go around to the main entrance with the rest of the parents. It was pandemonium as Ms. Cope from the front office and Mr. Varner the math teacher tried to line everyone up alphabetically. â€Å"Up front, Mr. Cullen,† Mr. Varner barked at Edward. â€Å"Hey, Bella!† I looked up to see Jessica Stanley waving at me from the back of the line with a smile on her face. Edward kissed me quickly, sighed, and went to go stand with the C's. Alice wasn't there. What was she going to do? Skip graduation? What poor timing on my part. I should have waited to figure things out until after this was over with. â€Å"Down here, Bella!† Jessica called again. I walked down the line to take my place behind Jessica, mildly curious as to why she was suddenly so friendly. As I got closer, I saw Angela five people back, watching Jessica with the same curiosity. Jess was babbling before I was in earshot. â€Å". . . so amazing. I mean, it seems like we just met, and now we're graduating together,† she gushed. â€Å"Can you believe it's over? I feel like screaming!† â€Å"So do I,† I muttered. â€Å"This is all just so incredible. Do you remember your first day here? We were friends, like, right away. From the first time we saw each other. Amazing. And now I'm off to California and you'll be in Alaska and I'm going to miss you so much! You have to promise that we'll get together sometimes! I'm so glad you're having a party. That's perfect. Because we really haven't spent much time together in a while and now we're all leaving. . . .† She droned on and on, and I was sure the sudden return of our friendship was due to graduation nostalgia and gratitude for the party invite, not that I'd had anything to do with that. I paid attention as well as I could while I shrugged into my robe. And I found that I was glad that things could end on a good note with Jessica. Because it was an ending, no matter what Eric, the valedictorian, had to say about commencement meaning â€Å"beginning† and all the rest of the trite nonsense. Maybe more for me than for the rest, but we were all leaving something behind us today. It went so quickly. I felt like I'd hit the fast forward button. Were we supposed to march quite that fast? And then Eric was speed talking in his nervousness, the words and phrases running together so they didn't make sense anymore. Principal Greene started calling names, one after the other without a long enough pause between; the front row in the gymnasium was rushing to catch up. Poor Ms. Cope was all thumbs as she tried to give the principal the right diploma to hand to the right student. I watched as Alice, suddenly appearing, danced across the stage to take hers, a look of deep concentration on her face. Edward followed behind, his expression confused, but not upset. Only the two of them could carry off the hideous yellow and still look the way they did. They stood out from the rest of the crowd, their beauty and grace otherworldly. I wondered how I'd ever fallen for their human farce. A couple of angels, standing there with wings intact, would be less conspicuous. I heard Mr. Greene call my name and I rose from my chair, waiting for the line in front of me to move. I was conscious of cheering in the back of the gym, and I looked around to see Jacob pulling Charlie to his feet, both of them hooting in encouragement. I could just make out the top of Billy's head beside Jake's elbow. I managed to throw them an approximation of a smile. Mr. Greene finished with the list of names, and then continued to hand out diplomas with a sheepish grin as we filed past. â€Å"Congratulations, Miss Stanley,† he mumbled as Jess took hers. â€Å"Congratulations, Miss Swan,† he mumbled to me, pressing the diploma into my good hand. â€Å"Thanks,† I murmured. And that was it. I went to stand next to Jessica with the assembled graduates. Jess was all red around the eyes, and she kept blotting her face with the sleeve of her robe. It took me a second to understand that she was crying. Mr. Greene said something I didn't hear, and everyone around me shouted and screamed. Yellow hats rained down. I pulled mine off, too late, and just let it fall to the ground. â€Å"Oh, Bella!† Jess blubbered over the sudden roar of conversation. â€Å"I can't believe we're done.† â€Å"I can't believe it's all over,† I mumbled. She threw her arms around my neck. â€Å"You have to promise we won't lose touch.† I hugged her back, feeling a little awkward as I dodged her request. â€Å"I'm so glad I know you, Jessica. It was a good two years.† â€Å"It was,† she sighed, and sniffed. Then she dropped her arms. â€Å"Lauren!† she squealed, waving over her head and pushing through the massed yellow gowns. Families were beginning to converge, pressing us tighter together. I caught sight of Angela and Ben, but they were surrounded by their families. I would congratulate them later. I craned my head, looking for Alice. â€Å"Congratulations,† Edward whispered in my ear, his arms winding around my waist. His voice was subdued; he'd been in no hurry for me to reach this particular milestone. â€Å"Um, thanks.† â€Å"You don't look like you're over the nerves yet,† he noted. â€Å"Not quite yet.† â€Å"What's left to worry about? The party? It won't be that horrible.† â€Å"You're probably right.† â€Å"Who are you looking for?† My searching wasn't quite as subtle as I'd thought. â€Å"Alice – where is she?† â€Å"She ran out as soon as she had her diploma.† His voice took on a new tone. I looked up to see his confused expression as he stared toward the back door of the gym, and I made an impulse decision – the kind I really should think twice about, but rarely did. â€Å"Worrying about Alice?† I asked. â€Å"Er . . .† He didn't want to answer that. â€Å"What was she thinking about, anyway? To keep you out, I mean.† His eyes flashed down to my face, and narrowed in suspicion. â€Å"She was translating the Battle Hymn of the Republic into Arabic, actually. When she finished that, she moved on to Korean sign language.† I laughed nervously. â€Å"I suppose that would keep her head busy enough.† â€Å"You know what she's hiding from me,† he accused. â€Å"Sure.† I smiled a weak smile. â€Å"I'm the one who came up with it.† He waited, confused. I looked around. Charlie would be on his way through the crowd now. â€Å"Knowing Alice,† I whispered in a rush, â€Å"she'll probably try to keep this from you until after the party. But since I'm all for the party being canceled – well, don't go berserk, regardless, okay? It's always better to know as much as possible. It has to help somehow.† â€Å"What are you talking about?† I saw Charlie's head bob up over the other heads as he searched for me. He spotted me and waved. â€Å"Just stay calm, okay?† He nodded once, his mouth a grim line. In hurried whispers I explained my reasoning to him. â€Å"I think you're wrong about things coming at us from all sides. I think it's mostly coming at us from one side . . . and I think it's coming at me, really. It's all connected, it has to be. It's just one person who's messing with Alice's visions. The stranger in my room was a test, to see if someone could get around her. It's got to be the same one who keeps changing his mind, and the newborns, and stealing my clothes – all of it goes together. My scent is for them.† His face had turned so white that I had a hard time finishing. â€Å"But no one's coming for you, don't you see? This is good – Esme and Alice and Carlisle, no one wants to hurt them!† His eyes were huge, wide with panic, dazed and horrified. He could see that I was right, just as Alice had. I put my hand on his cheek. â€Å"Calm,† I pleaded. â€Å"Bella!† Charlie crowed, pushing his way past the close-packed families around us. â€Å"Congratulations, baby!† He was stillyelling, even though he was right at my ear now. He wrapped his arms around me, ever so slyly shuffling Edward off to the side as he did so. â€Å"Thanks,† I muttered, preoccupied by the expression on Edward's face. He still hadn't gained control. His hands were halfway extended toward me, like he was about to grab me and make a run for it. Only slightly more in control of myself than he was, running didn't seem like such a terrible idea to me. â€Å"Jacob and Billy had to take off – did you see that they were here?† Charlie asked, taking a step back, but keeping his hands on my shoulders. He had his back to Edward – probably an effort to exclude him, but that was fine at the moment. Edward's mouth was hanging open, his eyes still wide with dread. â€Å"Yeah,† I assured my father, trying to pay enough attention. â€Å"Heard them, too.† â€Å"It was nice of them to show up,† Charlie said. â€Å"Mm-hmm.† Okay, so telling Edward had been a really bad idea. Alice was right to keep her thoughts clouded. I should have waited till we were alone somewhere, maybe with the rest of his family. And nothing breakable close by – like windows . . . cars . . . school buildings. His face brought back all my fear and then some. Though his expression was past the fear now – it was pure fury that was suddenly plain on his features. â€Å"So where do you want to go out for dinner?† Charlie asked. â€Å"The sky's the limit.† â€Å"I can cook.† â€Å"Don't be silly. Do you want to go to the Lodge?† he asked with an eager smile. I did not particularly enjoy Charlie's favorite restaurant, but, at this point, what was the difference? I wasn't going to be able to eat anyway. â€Å"Sure, the Lodge, cool,† I said. Charlie smiled wider, and then sighed. He turned his head halfway toward Edward, without really looking at him. â€Å"You coming, too, Edward?† I stared at him, my eyes beseeching. Edward pulled his expression together just before Charlie turned to see why he hadn't gotten an answer. â€Å"No, thank you,† Edward said stiffly, his face hard and cold. â€Å"Do you have plans with your parents?† Charlie asked, a frown in his voice. Edward was always more polite than Charlie deserved; the sudden hostility surprised him. â€Å"Yes. If you'll excuse me. . . .† Edward turned abruptly and stalked away through the dwindling crowd. He moved just a little bit too fast, too upset to keep up his usually perfect charade. â€Å"What did I say?† Charlie asked with a guilty expression. â€Å"Don't worry about it, Dad,† I reassured him. â€Å"I don't think it's you.† â€Å"Are you two fighting again?† â€Å"Nobody's fighting. Mind your own business.† â€Å"You are my business.† I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Let's go eat.† The Lodge was crowded. The place was, in my opinion, overpriced and tacky, but it was the only thing close to a formal restaurant in town, so it was always popular for events. I stared morosely at a depressed- looking stuffed elk head while Charlie ate prime rib and talked over the back of the seat to Tyler Crowley's parents. It was noisy – everyone there had just come from graduation, and most were chatting across the aisles and over the booth-tops like Charlie. I had my back to the front windows, and I resisted the urge to turn around and search for the eyes I could feel on me now. I knew I wouldn't be able to see anything. Just as I knew there was no chance that he would leave me unguarded, even for a second. Not after this. Dinner dragged. Charlie, busy socializing, ate too slowly. I picked at my burger, stuffing pieces of it into my napkin when I was sure his attention was somewhere else. It all seemed to take a very long time, but when I looked at the clock – which I did more often than necessary – the hands hadn't moved much. Finally Charlie got his change back and put a tip on the table. I stood up. â€Å"In a hurry?† he asked me. â€Å"I want to help Alice set things up,† I claimed. â€Å"Okay.† He turned away from me to say goodnight to everyone. I went out to wait by the cruiser. I leaned against the passenger door, waiting for Charlie to drag himself away from the impromptu party. It was almost dark in the parking lot, the clouds so thick that there was no telling if the sun had set or not. The air felt heavy, like it was about to rain. Something moved in the shadows. My gasp turned into a sigh of relief as Edward appeared out of the gloom. Without a word, he pulled me tightly against his chest. One cool hand found my chin, and pulled my face up so that he could press his hard lips to mine. I could feel the tension in his jaw. â€Å"How are you?† I asked as soon as he let me breathe. â€Å"Not so great,† he murmured. â€Å"But I've got a handle on myself. I'm sorry that I lost it back there.† â€Å"My fault. I should have waited to tell you.† â€Å"No,† he disagreed. â€Å"This is something I needed to know. I can't believe I didn't see it!† â€Å"You've got a lot on your mind.† â€Å"And you don't?† He suddenly kissed me again, not letting me answer. He pulled away after just a second. â€Å"Charlie's on his way.† â€Å"I'll have him drop me at your house.† â€Å"I'll follow you there.† â€Å"That's not really necessary,† I tried to say, but he was already gone. â€Å"Bella?† Charlie called from the doorway of the restaurant, squinting into the darkness. â€Å"I'm out here.† Charlie sauntered out to the car, muttering about impatience. â€Å"So, how do you feel?† he asked me as we drove north along the highway. â€Å"It's been a big day.† â€Å"I feel fine,† I lied. He laughed, seeing through me easily. â€Å"Worried about the party?† he guessed. â€Å"Yeah,† I lied again. This time he didn't notice. â€Å"You were never one for the parties.† â€Å"Wonder where I got that from,† I murmured. Charlie chuckled. â€Å"Well, you look really nice. I wish I'd thought to get you something. Sorry.† â€Å"Don't be silly, Dad.† â€Å"It's not silly. I feel like I don't always do everything for you that I should.† â€Å"That's ridiculous. You do a fantastic job. World's best dad. And . . .† It wasn't easy to talk about feelings with Charlie, but I persevered after clearing my throat. â€Å"And I'm really glad I came to live with you, Dad. It was the best idea I ever had. So don't worry – you're just experiencing post-graduation pessimism.† He snorted. â€Å"Maybe. But I'm sure I slipped up in a few places. I mean, look at your hand!† I stared down blankly at my hands. My left hand rested lightly on the dark brace I rarely thought about. My broken knuckle didn't hurt much anymore. â€Å"I never thought I needed to teach you how to throw a punch. Guess I was wrong about that.† â€Å"I thought you were on Jacob's side?† â€Å"No matter what side I'm on, if someone kisses you without your permission, you should be able to make your feelings clear without hurting yourself. You didn't keep your thumb inside your fist, did you?† â€Å"No, Dad. That's kind of sweet in a weird way, but I don't think lessons would have helped. Jacob's head is really hard.† Charlie laughed. â€Å"Hit him in the gut next time.† â€Å"Next time?† I asked incredulously. â€Å"Aw, don't be too hard on the kid. He's young.† â€Å"He's obnoxious.† â€Å"He's still your friend.† â€Å"I know.† I sighed. â€Å"I don't really know what the right thing to do here is, Dad.† Charlie nodded slowly. â€Å"Yeah. The right thing isn't always real obvious. Sometimes the right thing for one person is the wrong thing for someone else. So . . . good luck figuring that out.† â€Å"Thanks,† I muttered dryly. Charlie laughed again, and then frowned. â€Å"If this party gets too wild . . . ,† he began. â€Å"Don't worry about it, Dad. Carlisle and Esme are going to be there. I'm sure you can come, too, if you want.† Charlie grimaced as he squinted through the windshield into the night. Charlie enjoyed a good party just about as much as I did. â€Å"Where's the turnoff, again?† he asked. â€Å"They ought to clear out their drive – it's impossible to find in the dark.† â€Å"Just around the next bend, I think.† I pursed my lips. â€Å"You know, you're right – it is impossible to find. Alice said she put a map in the invitation, but even so, maybe everyone will get lost.† I cheered up slightly at the idea. â€Å"Maybe,† Charlie said as the road curved to the east. â€Å"Or maybe not.† The black velvet darkness was interrupted ahead, just where the Cullens' drive should be. Someone had wrapped the trees on either side in thousands of twinkle lights, impossible to miss. â€Å"Alice,† I said sourly. â€Å"Wow,† Charlie said as we turned onto the drive. The two trees at the entry weren't the only ones lit. Every twenty feet or so, another shining beacon guided us toward the big white house. All the way – all three miles of the way. â€Å"She doesn't do things halfway, does she?† Charlie mumbled in awe. â€Å"Sure you don't want to come in?† â€Å"Extremely sure. Have fun, kid.† â€Å"Thanks so much, Dad.† He was laughing to himself as I got out and shut the door. I watched him drive away, still grinning. With a sigh, I marched up the stairs to endure my party.