IT WAS...IT WILL

IT WAS a wild ride…. I have had many experiences in the past four years: many good, many bad, and many still confusing. Even though some of the decisions I made might not have been the best, if I had the chance I would still not go back and change them. I am a strong believer in the concept that everything happens for a reason, and that in the end you will be doing what you were created to do; whatever that is. I also know that these experiences shaped the person I am today and have given me opportunities that I didn’t know were reachable.

With that being said, these years have consisted of multiple relationships and friends that have either blossomed or wilted as time passed. Some of my closest friends my freshman and sophomore years are not the same as the ones I have today. That may sound depressing to lose some friends, however, the people in my life today and I have made more memories than I could have ever expected.. Without them I am not sure who I would be today – would I really be happy? I’m not exactly sure about the answer but I do know how blessed I am to have friends and family to have completed my journey in high school with me. In attempting to balance my academic, athletic, social, and personal health with them was not easy. However, I know I couldn’t even come close in balancing these things by myself. The care and love I have received at Millbrook could not be reciprocated elsewhere. Even though I did struggle at times and will admit it was sometimes my own choice to struggle, especially in school, my friends seemed to always be there for me whenever I needed them. No matter how close I was with them I always felt at least one person cared for me, and that was enough to get me through whatever I was dealing with. Hopefully in the future I still have these great friends that I have today and will continue to make new ones.

Even though I did have these great friends, I understand today that the opportunities I have are because of my own accomplishments. Among many other things, I have earned an opportunity to attend Appalachian State in the Fall, NC State in the Spring, and receive an offer to play college soccer at Belmont Abbey. The latter is something I had a goal of earning since 7^th grade – an opportunity to play collegiate soccer. This goal of playing college soccer was something I have worked extremely hard for. I have never been very fast, strong, or the most talented soccer player on the field. However, I knew if I could out work the man next to me, whether that was on the soccer field or peppering a coach enough for him to finally come to a game of mine; I always stood at least I chance. This drive payed off my junior and senior years as I could clearly see myself making strides to my end goal. After multiple visits to different schools and impressing my number one College coach, I received something I had worked to achieve since middle school.  However, even though I had finally accomplished my goal since I was in 7^th grade, I understood my future did not consist of college soccer.  

This was one of the hardest realizations I had to come to in High School; even though it was a choice I had made by myself and through my own intentions. The amount of work I had put in to achieve this goal just to turn it down was not something my past self would understand. But, the hard work and passion, in academics, that I have seen myself develop throughout high school has allowed for opportunities that I did know were possible. The excitement of becoming a Mountaineer in the Spring and a member of the Wolfpack in the fall is so much greater than playing soccer for four more years. A surprising realization and situation that encompasses my whole high school experience, one that I do owe a little to the IB Programme (sadly). My future is one that was not earlier anticipated and one that is pretty confusing in its self. However, I would not have it any other way and know that my future WILL BE a wild ride…   

 Harambe died for my high school years?

Signing out-

Connor Finnegan

Whitty Whitman

The Whit of Whitman

Task 1:
Some of the words/phrases I noticed in the audio:
- Young or Old
- Strong
- Enduring
- Capable
- Mute
- Love
- Freedom

Throughout this audio I noticed words that were similar but many that also had contrast. Whitman's audio consisted of a central theme of love in America, which he begun the audio with. He then continued with a word choice that varied; touching on multiple perspectives of what love in America consists of. Some examples of the contrast I noticed was: young or old and mute and freedom. However, many of the words consisted in the same encouraging tone: strong, endurance, and capable. This contrast when discussing love is what the audio focuses on. Whitman uses differing word choices to analyze what love means to people in America. For some people love may be mute, or others it may be strong, or even a sense of freedom. Through this short audio Whitman is able to communicate a message to his audience that love is for everyone, even athough it may cause different feeling and contrasting perspectives. For me, I know I have the capability to love whether I am young or old and it also has a concept of freedom that allows for strong feelings. I have not yet experienced a love that is mute, and hope that I do not have to go through that perspective. However, I do understand that many people have experienced a "mute" love and suffer because of it. It is a sad consequence to something that can be so beneficial and great in life. This reveals that Whitman is aware of what love means to different people and that he is also aware of the differences each individual has. This is then translated to his poems and how he analyzes concepts through multiple perspectives.

The imagery that I create in mind throughout this audio is a calming image. I think of an image of a lake with endless grass and a mountain range behind it. The sun is setting and a red-orange color is lighting the sky. There I understand the life that I live and the love that God has for me and the rest of the world. This is a peaceful image that represents my perspective I have for love. That love is positive and easy. Not complicated or stressful, not mute, but a sense of freedom in society.



Step 2

In Whitman's notebook his writing consisted of his thoughts on America and the politics surrounding America. It should be noted that many of his notes were taken during the time of his life that may be categorized as a "mid-life crisis". Whitman was very opinionated on many presidents and elections throughout his life. He analyzed many in his thoughts throughout the notebook. This alters my viewpoint of the audio to a more reflective tone of the government of the United States at the time. Whitman is documented to be democratic and his audio may offer his opinions on the leadership during the time in the US and Lain America. By using this viewpoint the word choice of "freedom" as well as "strong", "capable" "mute" and "enduring" can be noted to describe the government. Through this word choice his viewpoint on the confusing nature of the government is explained. Whitman understands the importance of the government and does recognize it as strong. However, in some cases he may believe that it can be mute and not reflect the freedom of the United States that it should consist of. This relates to how he uses the word "capable" to describe the government. The use of "capable" offers an understanding that the government is acceptable but not necessarily doing the best of jobs that it could. Through understanding that his notebook analyzes his thoughts on American government, it is useful to notice the effect it has on his poems. I can now contemplate that maybe his poems revolve more around a central theme of politics and government in America rather than love. This then creates a differing tone for the poems, a more realistic tone referring to politics than a romantic tone when referring to love.

RIP Harambe,
Connor Finnegan