Facing the Future

“I feel very adventurous. There are so many doors to be opened, and I'm not afraid to look behind them.”― Elizabeth Taylor

Being a little older than most of the students in this class, I've experienced a little bit of the freedom that is to come. I've already worn my gown and cap, I have my high school diploma, and I've applied to, been rejected by, and accepted by Ontario universities. At that point in my past, I was looking at my future, and frankly, that future was something that didn't appeal to me. Living in Toronto, going to a snobby-feeling, crazy dressing school situated in a shoe box way up in the sky, propped up by pencil crayons? Yeah that didn't seem like me, no matter how prestigious OCAD was, or how proud people were of me for getting in.

Seriously?! What were they high on when they built this place?

So then there comes this quote from the fabulous Liz Taylor, a glamorous, diamond obsessed, much loved and adored old-Hollywood actress who passed away in 2011.

Elizabeth Taylor, 1932-2011.

“I feel very adventurous. There are so many doors to be opened, and I'm not afraid to look behind them.” - Elizabeth Taylor

This quote from her really speaks to me because it seems as if the last 5 years of my life have been filled with incredible opportunities, and will continue to be. It encourages me to continue taking those chances and looking behind those doors. I am excited for the future, and it certainly does not scare me. Bring it on, I'm ready.

Remembrance Day

Since I was not at the Romeo Dallaire assembly or the Remembrance Day service due to being sick, I am going to talk a bit about the meaning of Remembrance Day.

We take many things for granted every day, like the clean water we drink, the food we eat, the clothes on our backs, and the school we go to. The biggest thing, and by far the most imporant, is our freedom. Not every country has the level of freedom that we do here, and things that we take for granted here like stating our own opinion and feeling safe while walking around town are only the hopes of people in other countries. Remembrance Day is an important day for us to look back on how we came to have this freedom and thank all those who have fought, currently fight, or have lost their lives in the name of Canada in order to secure our freedom. We are eternally grateful for the sacrifices these men and women have made, and it is only right to have a day devoted to them.

Costume Conundrum

I love Halloween. I turn into a big kid, excited to dress up, go to haunted houses, and carve pumpkins. It's just such a fun tradition. One night that you get to be someone else, to be something scary, or something cute, or funny. My artsy side definitely feeds off of Halloween as well. I love making my own costumes. However, one thing that upsets me about Halloween is the increasing amount of elementary schools which are banning costumes, and even the distribution of candy. The reasons for banning costumes are wide spread, from cultural differences, to it being too much work for teachers, to kids being scared of some costumes. This is an age of overprotective parenting, where parents raise bubble-wrapped kids who will eventually fall apart as soon as they hit the real world. I mean, c'mon, no candy?!

But here’s the thing with banning costumes at school…in Canada it's really freaking cold for Halloween, so kids go out trick-or-treating with full on parkas and hats. Or they don’t wear a coat and develop pneumonia, or they go to the mall to go trick-or-treating, which is lame. So insert costume wearing at school… yay! Way more fun for the kids - they actually get to show off the costumes that their parents spent so long making or paid a ridiculous amount of their hard earned dollars for. It’s about the kids here. I repeat, Halloween is for the kids. Just because you're an adult and no longer have any joy left in your soul, doesn't mean kids should comply to your no-fun joy-sucking ideals. So what if they lose a day of elementary school teaching in order to be able to parade around and eat candy? How much are they learning that is actually fundamental to moving on in life? As for the teachers complaining about how much work it is to attend to costume wearing children all day long? Get over it! That’s the life of a teacher teaching children. Let the kids enjoy their childhood.

This years costume, featuring me as a deer and Blaize as a hunter. :)