izzie’s web debut
My cat is obviously an up and coming youtube sensation….and you’re seeing it here first!
Archive for April, 2010
courage and honor – the blind side
I watched The Blind Side again for the second time. What a fantastic movie – I love it! This time around, I made an unexpected connection with Michael Oher’s essay on The Charge of the Light Brigade. Michael writes about the difference between courage and honor, and I couldn’t help but think of the 1,700 college students who lose their lives each year to alcohol related incidents. So many young people DIE because they are going along with what everyone else is doing. Even if it is dangerous. Even if death is a possibility. It takes someone with honor, someone who believes in himself, to take the high road even if that road is taken alone. Take a moment to challenge what is “normal” in your social settings: doing 21 shots on your 21st birthday, drinking all day and all night because of a football game, trying a drug because your friend says it’s fun. It’s great to have courage, but without honor, where does it get you?
Here is Michael’s essay:
“Courage is a hard thing to figure. You can have courage based on a dumb idea or a mistake, but you’re not supposed to question adults, or your coach, or your teacher because they make the rules. Maybe they know best but maybe they don’t. It all depends on who you are, where you come from. Didn’t at least one of the six hundred guys think about giving up and joining with the other side? I mean, Valley of Death, that’s pretty salty stuff. That’s why courage is tricky. Should you always do what others tell you to do? Sometimes you might not even know why you’re doing something. I mean, any fool can have courage. But honor, that’s the real reason you either do something or you don’t. It’s who you want to be. If you die trying for something important then you have both honor and courage and that’s pretty good. I think that’s what the writer was saying; that you should try for courage and hope for honor. And maybe even pray that the people telling you what to do have some, too.”
crying sorority girl and her “redemption”
It seems that everyone at Purdue has seen this video. I saw it for the first time after my presentation to 2,000 Purdue Greeks earlier this week. Great example of how those “funny” things that happen when you’re drunk aren’t so funny the next day. “I just wanted it to snow!!”
| Tosh.0 | ||||
| Web Redemption – Crying Sorority Girl | ||||
|
||||
spring break tragedy – matt james
Matt James, a high school student from my home state of Ohio, died last week while on spring break. He was a 17-year-old Notre Dame football recruit. My heart goes out to his unsuspecting family. I know all too well how this feels, and their world is surely upside down right now.
James was said to be “drunk and belligerent” before he fell from a fifth-floor Days Inn balcony in Panama City Beach, FL. I remember going to Panama City both my junior and senior years of high school. However, I don’t clearly remember a whole lot. I would have to say I was more out of control on high school spring break than college spring break, due mostly to the fact that I was drinking mass quantities of alcohol, but not familiar enough with it’s effects on my body.
Most students have already returned home safely from spring break this year. You might want to analyze your trip by checking out these safety tips on Erin Weed’s website. She is a friend of mine and approaches the subject realistically. See how your trip measured up and apply some of Erin’s tips next year. You just never know what might happen, and it helps to be as prepared as possible. You are so important to so many people out there. Keep yourself and your friends safe.
