Part A: –
“I would sometimes say to them, I wished I could be as free as they would be when they got to be men. ‘You will be free as soon as you are twenty-one, but I am a slave for life! Have not I as good a right to
be free as you have?’ These words used to trouble them; they would express for me the liveliest sympathy, and console me with the hope that something would occur by which I might be free” (Paragraph 4)
When he was a boy, Frederick Douglas would socialize with the white boys he had met in the street. Douglas had them help with learning how to read, and while discussing slavery with them he would become envious of their freedom. Douglas has every right to be treated with the dignity all people deserve, but the system had put him in an environment where he could never believe that for himself. While the white children had attempted to console Douglas, with whatever semblance of hope that affords, the mentioning of hope correlates to Douglas’s ability to stand in defiance of the circumstances he’s been put in.
Part B: –
When I was younger, I struggled in keeping myself stable during school. I had procrastinated and accepted my beliefs on what I believed school meant and how it was unimportant. I had performed well but would always fall short as I had skipped school or didn’t give any effort, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. I had accepted the things in my life as they were given to me, believing I was undeserving of a promising future. All the while distancing myself from all of the people who had tried to keep me focused and reassured me.
I believe the most crucial factor as to this was my environment and my perception of it. As I continued on with life, I realized after some self-discovery that I could not allow myself to be a victim. I had so many people who would help motivate me to improve, to change for the better, and to allow myself to view things from a different perspective—accepting things as they are, finding hope through virtue & perseverance, and finding strength through courage & discipline.
I struggled with procrastination as well. Whenever a teacher would assign something i always felt that i would have time to complete and submit my work but which this negatively effected me. I was always caught up with life outside of school so it felt like those due dates showed up in a blink of an eye, leaving me to feel overwhelmed with all the work i had to do when the deadline was hours away. Ive learned time management is key and i learned the importance of utilizing my free time to focus on my school work. I also agree that my perception altered how interested i was in school, at times like you said that school was “unimportant”, whenever i felt this way it was very easy to fall behind.
Yea I could relate with the procrastination because I would want to do work but would never get around to it because I would play the game and prioritize that instead of my work
Wow — I feel for you when you say you used to feel “underserving of a promsing future” — I wonder — did someone make you feel that way? OR what event made you feel that way? AND how did you overcome this feeling of being down on yourself? It’s a bit like you had to come to a strong believ e in yourself and like the young Douglass feeling that he was as deserving of freedom just as the little white boys.
I liked this part: I could not allow myself to be a victim. I had so many people who would help motivate me to improve, to change for the better, and to allow myself to view things from a different perspective—accepting things as they are, finding hope through virtue & perseverance, and finding strength through courage & discipline.
OK — so I wonder what is your new perspective? How do you stop feeling like a “victim”? How did you begin to see “virtue and perseverance and finding strength through courage and discipline.” Those are high-minded ideals — Can you show us how you do this in your school life? In other words, instead of high sounding language SHOW ME with a story from your life of one time you overcome feelings of being “un-derserving”…What was that event or moment when you rezlized you needed courage and disciliplne and WHAT EXACTLY did you start doing differently?
From December 2021 to January 2022, I had been going through personal issues as I had been working to support my family through COVID-19 & had experienced interpersonal problems. I began accompanying my grandmother to church masses, as I wasn’t raised with strong religious values, this moment helped me see things from a different perspective. I had developed myself to analyze and work on all parts of myself, no matter how difficult it was. I found hope in living my life based on what was in my control, doing what I believed was morally right, and expanding all areas of understanding in my life. I analyzed all parts of myself, reading & learning various religious and spiritual texts, which began my passion for holistic health. Instead of wishing for life to become easier and pointing the blame for things outside of my control, I saw life as an opportunity for me to develop my will. I know that as long as a don’t give up, if I accepted the difficult parts of life, only then did I develop true strength.