My charter school requires four leadership credits for graduation. So I've been taking leadership... and really enjoying it. It's been transformational. Now you might be wondering what on earth this has to do with the title of this entry. Well, in the leadership courses, students are required to use the Best Self Journal, which has one set and the achieve 1-3 big goals over the course of thirteen weeks.
For one of my goals (I set two), I decided to design, draft patterns for, and sew two 1950's outfits.
The first step was, of course, finding inspiration. VintageDancer was HUGELY helpful with this. Great historical articles, and images. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in fashion from the 1900s to the 1970s.
So after I gathered all my inspiration (and spend way too much time on the computer), I analyzed my 'data' and figured out WHY I liked each dress/outfit.
After I did that, I sketched a lot of ideas... picked my favourite three (a blouse, a skirt, and a dress), and started drafting patterns.
This was my first time drafting a pattern for a piece of clothing made from woven material (other than my doll...) and so I had a lot of struggles there.
But I finally got the patterns right... went shopping for fabric and other sewing 'notions' (going to JoAnn was the weirdest thing ever thanks to CoViD19 ). The trip was actually pretty stressful... but it went well.
Then I started sewing! Inserting the invisible zipper was a new skill for me, so that was super stressful, but it went well!
Oh, and then I made matching scarves, because in the 1950s, everything a women wore had to match perfectly... dress, shoes, gloves, belt, scarf, underwear... all of it.
And then I got to wear them! And here are some picture of me... because I'm cute and I'm so proud of the two outfits...
It's already been a week of doing this! And yes, I started Project Otulissa before I started my blog.
I've learned some really cool things! I've read three books in the fifteen book series so far (no, I'm not going in order): The Burning (book 6); The Rescue (book 3); and The Siege (book 4).
Here is what I've learned:
~Stand up for what is right; do it precisely and powerfully and you'll make an impact.
~Book learning isn't everything.
~Your value is about you, not the family you're born into.
~Know that we can learn and have fun at the same time.
~Know that you can learn from other people, even those with "less intelligence."
~Dare to stand up for truth.
~Do what you know is right despite your fears.
~We have to acknowledge reality - that life is more than books, simulations, and study - before we can really live up to our full potential.
~After you read something, you need to discuss it.
Wow, lots of good stuff!
So here is what I plan to do based on these lessons:
~Discuss what I read (blog posts like this one are a part of discussion).
~Spend less time in books, or, in other words, try harder to find the balance between life and academic stuff.
~Learn from anyone and everyone.
So yeah, this week has been great! I'm already preparing to check out my next three books (#2; #7; #8) for this next week's reading. And also... you should read this series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole by Kathryn Lasky. It has amazing lessons on leadership, duty, mentors, freedom, and mission.
Stress, lack of focus, and depression are all real problems in our society.
One way that I personally combat these is by rollerblading.
Rollerblading is really good for a few reasons.
First, the act of rollerblading forces your muscles to loosen. Did you know that emotions manifest physically? So when you experience stress, anger, frustration, or almost any other negative emotion, your body tenses. Rollerblading forces your body to loosen up, because if you don't loosen your shoulders, let your arms move, and lean forward, you're going to fall over.
Second, when you rollerblade, your arms swing around to help you stay balanced. They tend to cross over the centre of your body. This crossing the centre of your body actually is connecting the two sides of your brain, which helps you to focus and learn effectively.
Third, rollerblading is physical exercise. Physical exercise can help protect you from heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, and more. But it also does something else. When you exercise and work up a sweat, your adrenaline gets going. The result is a natural "high" where you just feel so good.
So yeah, rollerblading is awesome! I like to rollerblade before my classes start, and sometimes in between them as well, if I have four or so in a row (I go to a blended learning charter school, so I have most of my classes online and at home). It really helps me stay upbeat and efficient doing hard school days.
~this article is not intended to be a cure for mental illnesses but the advice herein can be used as a supplement to other stuff~
TJEd offers a phenomenal online convention once a year that is entirely dedicated to freedom. It's lasts a month long... (so it ended yesterday)
This year's convention has been so amazing, so empowering. Oliver DeMille discussed many things, including the state of freedom in the USA (not so good), the scenario matrix (a very liberating way of planning ahead), how to get real news, and more.
A little bit about the scenario matrix: so with CoViD19, I was kinda terrified and worrying about the future and what it would look like and everything. Well, then I listened to the workshop on the scenario matrix, and that all changed.
But what is the scenario matrix? Basically, you make a six year, two year, and one year plan for all possible outcomes. For example, there are two possible outcomes to this whole CoViD19 pandemic: it all blows over, few people die, and everyone is better off than ever before; or, it stays, it kills way more people than it has so far, it completely crashes our economy, and it totally changes the world. For each of those possible out comes, you create a six year plan, a two year plan to help you reach your six year plan, and a one year plan to help you reach your two year plan.
When I did that, I realized that I actually liked my total disaster six year plan way more than my back-to-normal plan. That was one of the most empowering and liberating realizations ever.
The 2020 Annual Freedom Convention was definitely worth the $50 per household fee. And I'm definitely doing it again next year
Culture begins in the home, and so do many problems in society. School shootings are not an exception.
Whenever there are shootings with fatalities, it sparks a wave of talk about gun control, school security, allowing teachers to keep guns at school, and other methods of prevention. While these things will stop some shootings, they will not help enough.
The factors and problems that can lead to a school shooting can be solved, reduced, or prevented in the home.
Offenders generally do not come from stable homes. Dr. Peter Langman showed that in one sample, 82% of the offenders were from dysfunctional families, while only 18% were from intact families1. Carolyn Moynihan of MercatorNet said that “almost all school shooters come from families where the parents are either divorced or alienated”2. Social scientist Bradford Wilcox also observed nearly all “involved a young man whose parents divorced or never married in the first place.3" Studies show that
within offender's families, there is often a lack of supervision, emotional closeness, and intimacy 4.
President Clinton said, “We're long past the question of whether culture makes an impact. Of course, it does. School shootings...are...symptoms of a culture that too often glorifies violence.5"
Among the topmost motives of offenders were: 76% were bullied/persecuted/threatened, 61% wanted revenge, while 54% reported having numerous reasons. The remaining motives had 34% attempting to solve a problem, 27% suffered from depression and were attempting suicide, and 24% were seeking attention or recognition6. Alienation and persecution also drove many of the offenders to violence7.
Studies have shown that factors behind School Shootings include family dysfunction and a lack of family supervision. These problems can be solved by the parents. “Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. . . . . .Fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners.8" Parents have a duty to teach their children. When a parent teaches their child well (as outlined in The Family:
A Proclamation To The World), the child will know how to forgive those who have hurt them, thus doing away with the need for revenge. The child will also know that they will always be loved, even if they make mistakes.
When a child gets bullied at school, having a loving family to come home to can help them cope with the emotional hurt in a way that can help them forgive those who have hurt them. Having a loving family, a family that accepts a child, weaknesses and all, can help them feel of worth, which empowers them both as youth and adults to accept the past and find peace.
According to School Shooter: A Quick Reference Guide, one reason offenders did what they did was the wish for recognition and attention. Families can effectively solve this problem by creating an environment of unconditional love, acceptance, and approval, and by helping them develop their talents, giving the children another path to fame other than violence.
President Bill Clinton said of school shootings, “when over and over children see cinematic conflicts resolved not with words but with weapons, we shouldn't be surprised when children, from impulse or design, follow suit.9" A strong family unit will give children and youth opportunities to solve problems when differences of opinions arise. For example: parents and child may not agree on a curfew. Siblings and parents will like different TV shows/restaurants/games/etc. Having different opinions in the home
can teach a child/teen to use words to solve problems, not violence—if the parents use the teaching opportunities wisely.
Culture begins in the home, and so do the solutions to many problems in society, including school shootings.
“Around our kitchen tables, on our public airwaves, in our private thoughts, we [should] all [be] asking ourselves, what are the root causes of such youth violence?10"
School shootings are merely one of the symptoms of a culture that glorifies violence.
And what is the sickness that causes these symptoms? Weak families. Families are the fundamental unit of society11, so if we fix the family, then the culture will be fixed, society will be fixed, and school shooting will happen rarely, if ever.
Sources:
1 Peter Langman, Ph.D. “School Shooters: The Myth Of The Stable Home”
2 “Way Back Machine”. February 20, 2018
3 “Sons of divorce, school shooters”. Aei.org
4 Gerard, F.J.; Whitefield, K.C.; Porter, L.E.; Brown, K.D. (2015) “Offender and Offense Characteristics of School
Shooting Incidents”. Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender
5 President Bill Clinton, June 13, 1998, on the radio
6 School Shooter: A Quick Reference Guide. United States. Federal Bureau of Investigation National Center of Crime
Analysis (US)
7 Fein, R.A.; Vossekuil, B.; Borum, R.; Reddy, M.; Modzeleski, W. (May 2002)”Threat Assessments in Schools:A Guide
To Managing Threatening Situations and Creating Safe School Climates”. U. S. Department of Education and U. S.
Secret Service
8 The Family: A Proclamation to The World
9 President Bill Clinton, June 13, 1998, on the radio
10 President Bill Clinton, June 13, 1998, on the radio
Many people don't care about what is going on in the world today, and if they do care, they don't understand. And if they do understand, they probably aren't sure how to go about influencing what is happening today.
That needs to change if America's freedom is going to be restored.
My name is Liliana. I've been homeschooled up until 9th grade, and now I'm going to Leadership Academy of Utah.
I am passionate about many things, some of which include current events, the United States Constitution, good books, designing and sewing clothes for me and my 18" doll, debate, and having a clean room.
I am very excited to have this blog and be sharing anything and everything I'm interested in with you.
). The trip was actually pretty stressful... but it went well.
and I'm so proud of the two outfits... 
