Anticipitory Socialization

The shaping of my role as being the future leader for the Hawaii Papua Riders has been an anticipatory colonization experience during early onset of my life-span development. â€Å"Anticipatory colonization,† Is the process by which knowledge and skills are learned for future roles. The pungent smell of morning dew fills my lungs up with the essence of the earth, the cool breeze that gently touches my face, and the neighing of horses has been embedded in my fond memories as a young girl.Growing up on our ranch in Womanly, my grandparents were the one's who instilled a passion of tending and riding horses. I would be at our family ranch before the sun came up and TLD leave until sunset during my summers as a child. My grandfather John M. Cook and grandmother Lit L. Cook were the founders of the Hawaii Papua Riders in 1982, until the year of 2003 of my grandmother's passing. Currently my mother Leila K. Cook carries on the legacy my grandmother upheld, and is now the head of Haw aii Papua Riders as its second generation.Being my mothers daughter I will someday need to carry on these duties as the third enervation equestrian chairperson of the Hall Papua Riders. The Hawaii Papua Riders participate In yearly events that mark an Importance In Hawaiian culture. Events which include the Aloha Festival Parade, Jackhammer Day Parade, and other engagements that the community associates their reverence and respect for the Papua tradition. Hawaii Papua riding is a sense and practice of Hawaiian tradition fitted for Alit, or royalty, which is a lengthy piece of fabric worn to protect their wardrobe while riding on horseback held by Just six UK' nuts.The practice of preparing the horse or each rider, and the wrapping of fabric around the Papua rider has been the focal point Into the art of the royal Hawaiian tradition. Now days, Pap Rolling symbolizes horsemanship, aloha, and beauty of each Hawaiian island, for each island has its own specific color, flower, and repres entation. My grandparents taught me how to saddle the horses properly and securely while maintaining the comfort level for the horse.The preparation of saddling ones horse is a complex process, yet also a crucial one, as It ensures the safety for not only the horse, but for the Papua rider and bystanders. My grandmother would tell me often that safety comes first: no matter what the instance is, because an issue can stir in the midst of a parade ride at a moment's haste, so taking precaution to the welfare of the horse and it's rider is top priority before, during, and after each Papua event. The importance in the relationship between the Papua rider and their horse is also crucial to the accordance of each parade or event.The rider must be confident and comfortable riding their horse, as to avoid Injury to the rider or bystanders. The horse must be confident and imposture through a chaotic environment that a typical parade or event encompasses. Greeting and portraying a Papua rider appearance at all times during the course of the event is a daunting task, as there is a certain procedure to seating position, body posture, and gestures while keeping the Papua fabric taut and the floral arrangement on the Papua rider's neck and head from disarray.I would spend hours practicing to perfect the Papua rider appearance, so that one day I can teach prospective Papua riders the correct and traditional way that has been handed down since the early beginnings of the Papua tradition. Learning from a young age about the necessary responsibilities and comprehensive knowledge of the Hawaii Papua Riders, as well as refining my horsemanship skills, gives me confidence in my ability to uphold my future role within the Papua community.My mother has devoted herself in continuing the perpetuation of the Hawaii Pap equestrian tradition, and I too will continue to keep the Papua tradition alive, being the successor to my mother as a third generation Cook leading the Hawaii Papua Rid ers. But until that time comes, I will continue on this anticipatory colonization path right beside my mother, as a constant minder to myself that someday soon, all this responsibility and task will be the roles as well as standers I will have to uphold someday.From a symbolic interactions perspective, having the opportunity to be able to interact with horses, and family members who are accustomed to Papua riding tradition, has culturally assimilated me to the lifestyle of a Papua rider. With Symbolic interactions, reality is seen as social developed interaction with others. My family members are one's that I could trust, and as a young girl, I was engaged in mirroring their actions, beliefs, and aloes, because I wanted to make my family, and on a broader perspective, the Papua community see the elegance of Papua.The interaction with my family members who have the passion for horseback riding, and also the dedication to perpetuating a royal Hawaiian tradition in respect to the cultu re I identify myself as is the symbolism to my predisposition to my future role as being a third generation Cook family member to one day lead the Hawaii Papua Riders. Most symbolic interactions believe a physical reality does indeed exist by an individual's social definitions, and that social definitions do develop in part or relation to something â€Å"real. As my grandparents and mother interacted with me by teaching me how to ride a horse, how to saddle a horse, listening to stories about their own Papua riding experience has shaped my reality in being accustomed to those ways as my way of living within my own family dynamic. The emphasis on symbols, negotiated meaning, and social construction of society brought on attention to the roles people play. As a child, I did not see the connection of my horsemanship interactions would lead me to being competent in my future role as head of the Hawaii Papua Riders.Role-taking is a key mechanism that permits people to see another person 's perspective to understand what an action might mean to another person. Through the symbolic interactions perspective, it is clear that my everyday involvement with the horses and my primary support group affiliated with the Papua community would have a major impact to who I am, how I see myself, and who I identify myself as within my own family and community on a systems level. So as I continue to stand beside my mother, I know my time will someday come and I will be the third generation of leading and Chairperson of the â€Å"Hawaii Papua Riders†.

Can Technology Dehumanize Our Society Essay

Technology can dehumanize our society including our school/s. Its because in the advancement and modernization of things which to be manipulated by the people(gadgets etc. ), life has to be somehow be convenient and easier but we should also look on the side that technology can remove skills and qualities of people in dealing with things around them and they won’t find any alternatives or options if technology is always present. For instance, in school/s, particularly in a classroom setting, if all of the students have their own personal computers, they will rely and be much independent through visiting websites that could provide answers on their research given by their teacher, the negative result of this is that, yes, they surely easily access information by just clicking one at a time but the traditional way of finding and acquiring information from books(more accurate information than those of the websites) or any reading materials that could somehow develop their reading skills is already gone. Indolence and laziness may occur also. The negative result of technology is that people will just have to sit all day long and will have to be dependent on technology. As i’ve heard also, some people are just infront of their laptops having this†online schooling† and if you could accomplish the length of time needed, you’ll be having/ given a diploma . For me, of course it isn’t bad but the essence of formal schooling(attending school. being evaluated and monitored by a mentor is already gone). Despite of all the advancement of technology, we became a society of indolent people relying so much on it.

The Codex Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Codex - Essay Example By describing brief history of different codices, an attempt has been made to highlight the importance of codex history. Such history will not only provide a better understanding of past work but it will also provide an understanding of the development of ideas as well as a base for future research. Today’s physical form of the book took a series of severe changes of about 5000 years. However, its most popular format has been in the shape of codex i.e. a collection of bounded and covered pages. Just after few hundred years of its creation, the codex book gained a distinct domination over the past well-liked format of papyrus scroll. One important factor that brought the supremacy of codex on scroll was the effective role of Christianity. Christian church took revolutionary steps to distinguish the writings of its holy books from the Jewish influence. They implemented several unique codex formats for its scriptures. Consequently, Christianity spread throughout the history and its codex formats as well. The Romans civilization is considered as the pioneer that used the codices (plural of codex) as personal notebooks e.g. their use in the form of mail etc. For this purpose they used wax-covered pills of wood and stylus. These codices were ephemeral and informal because after using once, they were washed out for their use again. In the history, the first occurrence of the use of the codex is the later part of 1st century when The Romans used the codex for the circulation of educational works. At that time, literary works were carried out through scrolls media which remained dominantly effective till the 4th century. Later on Chinese remained in practice in using of scroll for their literary purposes. Christians also widely used the papyrus codex during 2nd century. Evidences revealed that the most primitive surviving fragments from codices came from Egypt during the 1st and 2nd century (Turner, 1977 and Roberts & Skeat, 1983). An example of egypt

Are Americans Getting Over On Our Welfare System Essay

Are Americans Getting Over On Our Welfare System - Essay Example Even Devilma admits that, if it were not for her son and the recent expiry of her cash aid, she would rather live on welfare than take an entry-level job at McDonald’s, which she considers unsuited to her level of education (economist.com). Thus poses the question, â€Å"Are Americans Getting over on Our Welfare System?† If given the opportunity to have a job which would bring in a source of income so that one would not be solely dependent on federal aid, which in turn would free funds for those who do not have employment opportunities, why not take advantage of it to better your situation? It is in no way equal or fair that some people must work for a living while others sit back and be catered for by other persons’ tax dollars. Seeing things such as this is what persuaded me to really analyze the qualifications, surveys, and federal websites to see if taxpayer’s funds are being taken advantage of (Ramsey, 2010). The research involved analyzing the amount that the low-income earners earn in the US and the amount that people get from the welfare state (Levin, 2011). From my analysis, I realized that most of the people who depend on the welfare state are more comfortable with what they get because they do not work the only receive money for doing nothing (Hewitt, 2012). This is opposed to the people who work hard and only earn a small amount of money that cannot sustain their families. From the analysis, I also found out that most of the people who do not rely on the welfare state are not happy with the initiative. The project was started with an aim of helping the needy. However, with time, the welfare has been exploited and most able people are taking advantage of it. That means that people who have the ability to work do not look for jobs because the welfare state is providing for them some income that they can use to survive. According to a research carried out by Forbes, when the war on poverty began, the poverty levels fell to 1 2.1% (Moore, 2001) However, the poverty level rose to 14.3% in 2009 and it is currently at 16.1%. That means that poverty won the war that was aimed against it. That happened because after the initiative, the poor stopped working so that they can depend on the money from the welfare state. That means that the initiative is currently not helping the poor but rather making them lazy and the poverty levels are rising. Recommendations on the welfare state It would be advisable for the law dealing with the welfare state to be changed. The law should state that only the physically disabled persons should benefit from the money. That will help the able persons to look for jobs. Working to earn a living will make them to be motivated and they will strive to ensure that they satisfy their needs. That will also make them more motivated and that will help them want to achieve more. Since not all people are able to earn white-collar jobs, the government can start up a program that will forward loans to people so that they can start up their own businesses. That means that all the people will be independent. The loans can be formulated in such a way that the financial institutions give the people a grace period of around 6 months before they start repaying the loan. The grace period will help ensure that the business that has been put up is

Viewing the Globe in 2006 and 2056 Part2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Viewing the Globe in 2006 and 2056 Part2 - Essay Example Luckily, I am receiving a fair amount of salary. Software engineers in the company are highly paid. Since I am single, I always have enough money to satisfy my earthly desires. My company is located in Houghton, Michigan. Actually, I can just walk from our house to the workplace. Our family also lives in the City of Houghton. The city is named after Douglass Houghton, an American geologist (â€Å"Houghton,† n.d.). This particular city is among the â€Å"one hundred best small towns in America† (Crampton, 1993). I love my life in this town. It is a safe and quite place to live in. Houghton is far from the populous areas in the state of Michigan. Immigrants in this city are only few. Majority of the people are white. Winter or summer, one can enjoy the beauty of the place. It also offers a lot of outdoor sports like figure skating, ice hockey, hiking, camping, sailing and many others. When I don’t have a work, I go sailing in a nearby lake with my friends and workm ates. In a typical day, I only have two places to go, work and home. It has been my routine to eat boiled potatoes and drink fresh milk every morning. When I go to supermarkets, I always buy potatoes, fresh milk, carrots and bananas. These foods are rich in calcium and vitamin A for strong bones and good eyesight. Being a software engineer, I am always on my chair facing the computer.

Genocide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Genocide - Essay Example This document distinguishes several types of perpetrators and their involvement in genocide through examples. It also defines the content of the crime according to the international law and the convention towards the prevention and punishment of genocide. Finally, the different kinds of genocide based on their intent as retributive, cultural, latent, optimal, and utilitarian are discussed. Most people in the society tend to use the general concepts such as mass murder and massacre, while referring to genocide. They may also associate the delivery of justice with the local governments after the crime, since they have no idea of the international protection by the law. Genocide is a crime defined in the international criminal law, and is currently handled by the International Criminal Court (ICC), based in the Netherlands at Hague. The ICC aims to protect the potential victims, bring to trial or apprehend suspected perpetrators, while giving justice to the affected in the society. Several international organizations define the crime based on destruction targeting a particular group of people within a domain; however, what distinguishes the crime from others is the motivation behind it. According to Rummel (2002), history shows different situations where people had been murdered under the authority of their rulers and governments, either in war or by strict instructions given to exterminate rebellious groups; even though, legal application of the term ‘Genocide’ came into use first in the indictment of the Nazi war criminals, at Nuremburg tribunal between 1945 and 1946, in association with Raphael Lemkin. Although the ICC is an independent judicial system, it works closely with the United Nations to uphold human rights and campaign against genocide. The crime of genocide is not limited to mass killings but it covers a wide scope. It is defined in the international law in the convention on the prevention and punishment

DB4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

DB4 - Essay Example The Crown had to look for new avenues for trade in order to expand the kingdom. He planned on reaching East Indies by sailing west, he under estimate the size of earth. Columbus travelled from Palos towards SouthWest in order to take advantage of the trade winds from the Canary Islands (Paine 1995). The bohemian globe showed that the Indies was on the same latitude as he was, travelling towards Cipangu (Modern day Japan). He assumed that the distance west to China was relatively short and neither he nor his crew would have imagined there was a continent in the way to stop him. For many across the globe, this is still considered as the biggest discovery in the world history, as a result of the discoveries of Christopher Columbus, Western Hemisphere of the world was changed forever and thus gave birth to the Western Civilization. America today is the world leader in international affairs, it would have been not possible if this discovery was not made, and this was one of the greatest turning points in the history. According to historians the natives who occupied the lands that were discovered by Columbus, did not have a rich culture like the Europeans. They were mostly hunters and had no rights over the land. They used to live naked and in an uncivilized manner, which was quite the opposite of the European civilized culture. They used to travel in search of food across the different areas of land. It should not be considered wrong if Columbus took their land to establish European colonies (Roysl 1999). In the opinion of native people, the discovery made by the Italian voyeur Christopher Columbus, wasn’t really a discovery in real. The native Indians have been living there for thousand of years. It was pure ignorance on the part of scholars of that era, who did not know a whole continent existed between Europe and Asia on the west. The discovery should not have been significant enough to become such a historic event in the history,

Workout log system Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Workout log system - Term Paper Example There is a 2-step authentication process in Gmail use. The system uses forms and a database that will access the details of the user. The database is updated automatically. The system is also known to have information about the various courses and the various student activities that are common. This will help students not to repeat common steps and procedures. The system has various useful features like bread crumbs that help users know where they are within the system. This way, they will be able to know where they will move from the location they are. It is an important feature that has been added that helps users to navigate the system well. Given the fact that the system is web based, there is no requirement that the system will use a specific platform. As long as one has some internet connection, they will be able to have connected to the system. The system will be able to restore a session if it was interrupted. This is an important feature and functionality of the system. If the user gets out of the system by mistake, they will be able to restore the previous session after they have resolved the previous issue that caused them to lose connection. This is an important feature that helps users not to remember where they were in the system. This will help the user if they were working out on something that was so important in their procedures. The system also has the functionality to support concurrency. This is the ability of a system to support two users who are accessing it at the same time. This is an important feature as it helps various users be able to access the system without having to wait for someone to finish accessing it first. One has the freedom to access any site and web page without having to wait for others to finish accessing it. With the system, users are able to track what they do and where they are at a given time and place. It is an important feature that helps users to have a way in which they can automatically

Free

Free education Essay When Thomas Edison set out to create the light bulb, his intention was to reduce the amount of time that people spent sleeping. His idea was that if people had light to work by they could and would work longer hours. In his mind, sleep was something that was not needed and stood opposed to progress (Coren, 1996). â€Å"Anything which tends to slow work down is a waste. We are always hearing people talk about ‘loss of sleep’ as a calamity. They better call it loss of time, vitality, and opportunity. † -Thomas Edison Even great minds, like Edison’s, can be wrong at times. Some researchers argue that had Edison spent more time sleeping it would not have taken him more than 1000 attempts to create his light bulb. Research has shown that lack of sleep can have adverse effects on an individual’s physical health, mental health, and productivity. The information presented in this paper will address the importance of sleep in human health, safety, and productivity. First, some physical issues attributed to sleep deprivation will be discussed. Next, mental problems linked to lack of sleep with be outlined with documented cases. Lastly, examples of errors and disasters that have been tied to sleep deprivation will be presented. There are many physical issues that are linked to sleep deprivation. Cardiovascular problems and greater risk of death have been tied to lack of sleep. The human body requires sleep to restore and repair itself. When the body does not get the rest it requires the consequences can be quite unfortunate. Poor sleep has been shown to increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart failure, stroke, and heart attack. The human liver produces a protein called â€Å"C-reactive protein† that is used by the body to aid in response to inflammation, injury, or infection and is removed by the body when the inflammation, injury, or infection is gone or heals. This protein binds to damaged cells, as well as some bacteria, to aid in removing them from the body. This allows the body to heal. One study showed that over a period of five days during which a subject was denied sleep, the C-reactive protein builds up in blood at a steady and significant rate. Sleeping allows the body time to process and remove these proteins. An increase of these proteins can at times lead to heart attack, stroke, or high blood pressure (Meier-Ewert , Ridker , Rifai, Regan, Price, Dinges Mullington, 2004). The body is able to restore itself and heal when given between six and eight hours of sleep in a 24-hour period. While a person sleeps the immune system is working to restore and revive the body. When the human body is not granted enough sleep, the immune system is not able to fully complete the task of taking care of and healing the body. Lack of sleep can also cause the number of T-cells to decline in the human body. T-cells aid in immunity and assist other cells in their functions. Lower T-cell levels mean that the body is less able to fight off infection, subdue inflammation, or heal an injury (Mann, 2010). When the body is unable to heal itself, there is greater risk of death. Sleep deprivation can also lead to an increase of stress, which has been linked to heart disease, obesity, depression, gastrointestinal issues, as well as mental heath issues. Allowing the body to rest and rejuvenate during sleep helps ensure that many physical issues associated with the lack of sleep can be avoided. Another way that lack of sleep increases the chance of early death is in traffic accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gives a conservative estimate that 100,000 reported crashes per year are a result of a fatigued driver (Facts and stats 2012). Mental illness has also been linked to lack of sleep. Issues ranging from poor concentration, inability to focus, memory loss, the appearance of psychosis, and diagnosed mental disorders have been attributed to sleep deprivation. In the past, researchers believed that poor sleep was caused by psychiatric problems. However, recent research is showing that a lack of sleep is usually the catalyst of mental disorders. When the human body needs to concentrate or focus when it has not had enough sleep, it produces hormones adrenaline and cortisol in an attempt to engage and wake itself up. These hormones give the body a short-term boost in energy and they affect the body in much the same way that caffeine does. Once the boost in energy is finished, the body often â€Å"crashes† and a person returns to feeling tired; unable to concentrate or focus again. These hormones, again like caffeine, often make a person feel jittery of jumpy, which may impede concentration and focus. These hormones have also been directly linked to increase stress in the human body (Hart, 1985). Memory loss can also be a result of sleep deprivation. Memories are captured and recalled in the brain by a three-step process. The first step in creating memories is acquisition; where a person has their first experience with what will become the memory. The next is consolidation; which occurs while a person sleeps. In this step a memory becomes stable in a persons brain. Recall, the final step, is the ability to access the memory in the future. When the brain is denied the opportunity to stabilize a memory during sleep, a person is much less likely to retain the memory (Chang, 2011). Studies have also shown that students who study regularly and get a good night sleep before exams generally do better than students who â€Å"cram† the night before. The information that the student needs is better solidified in the brain and is ready for recall when the student needs to access the information (Sifferlin, Augu). Symptoms of psychosis have also been directly tied to sleep deprivation. In at least two documented cases, persons who went without sleep for extended periods of time showed symptoms similar to psychosis. In 1964 Randy Gardner attempted to gain entry into the Guiness Book of Work Records by staying awake for eleven days (264 hours). Gardner suffered a gamut of symptoms. Days two through five found Gardner unable to concentrate, irritable, unwilling to cooperate with others, and hallucinating. During days six through nine Gardner’s speech slowed, his irritability increased, and he began to have lapses in his memory. He often would begin sentences without finishing them and he had difficulty recalling the names of common objects. Paranoia began to set in on day ten. On day eleven, Gardner’s speech was slurred and without intonation. He seemed expressionless and had to be encouraged to talk or respond to someone talking to him (Ross, 1965). A similar story is told of Peter Tripp, a disk jockey from New York. In an effort to raise money for the March of Dimes, Tripp stayed awake for 200 hours. He showed many of the same symptoms that Gardner did. Tripp’s experience with sleep deprivation ended with him mistaking a doctor for an undertaker. He charged out of the room with doctors following close behind. Tripp’s mind could no longer determine what was real and what was not (Ross, 1965). With the aid of doctors, Randy Gardner was able to recover completely from his psychotic episode. He was monitored while he slept and eventually returned to normal sleep patterns and a normal state of mind. Peter Tripp, however, suffered from his self-inflicted psychotic break. For some time after his sleepless stunt he thought that he was an impostor of himself and complained of headaches and emotional instability. Lack of sleep can also affect how people perform at their jobs. Routine and remedial tasks are often affected by a lack of sleep. Simple errors, such as spelling, grammatical, mathematical, or clerical errors are most often made due to a lack of sleep. These errors can either go unnoticed or can be corrected without significant consequence. More significant errors are also attributed to fatigue. Between 50,000 and 100,000 deaths each year are caused by preventable medical errors. Long shifts for doctors, interns, and nurses deny medical professionals sleep required for them to function a high  levels. The nuclear accident at Three Mile Island, the meltdown at Chernobyl, the grounding of the Exxon Valdez, and the explosion of space shuttle Challenger have all been linked to fatigue (Harris, Horne, 2000). â€Å"Sleep deprivation is bad for your brain when you are trying to do high-level [thinking] tasks. It may have serious consequences both on performance and on the way your brain functions. † -J. Christian Gillin, M. D. (DeNoon, 2000) In research and in experience it has been proven that lack of sleep can have adverse effects on an individual’s physical health, mental health, and productivity. An individuals physical health is affected by sleep deprivation by an increased risk of death, cardiovascular problems, and issues with their immune system. A person’s mental health suffers as well from a lack of sleep. Memory loss, inability to concentrate or focus, and even psychotic episodes have been traced to sleep deprivation. Randy Gardner and Peter Tripp are prime examples of what happens to the brain when it goes without sleep. Poor job performance and errors ranging from insignificant to catastrophic have been linked to a lack of sleep. The amount of sleep needed for each individual is different. Where some people are able to function on very little sleep, others need many hours to fully restore and rejuvenate. References Coren, S. (1996). Sleep thieves : an eye-opening exploration into the mystery and science of sleep. New Yok, NY: Free Press Paperbacks. Hart, A. (1985). Adrenaline and stress. United States: W Publishing Group. Meier-Ewert , H. , Ridker , P. , Rifai, N. , Regan, M. , Price, N. , Dinges, D. , Mullington, M. (2004, February 18). Effect of sleep loss on c-reactive protein, an inflammatory marker of cardiovascular risk.. Retrieved from http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pubmed/14975482. Mann, D. (2010, January 19). Can better sleep mean catching fewer colds?. Retrieved from http://www. webmd. com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/immune-system-lack-of-sleep Harrison Y, Horne J. 2000. The impact of sleep deprivation on decision making: A review. Retrieved from http://healthysleep. med. harvard. edu/healthy/matters/consequences/sleep-performance-and-public-safety Facts and stats. (2012). Retrieved from http://drowsydriving. org/about/facts-and-stats/ Ross, J. (1965). Neurological findings after prolonged sleep deprivation. Arch Neurol, 12, 399-403. Retrieved from http://www. psychiatrictimes. com/print/article/10168/54471? pageNumber=1printable=true Chang, L. (2011, March 18). Sleep deprivation and memory loss. Retrieved from http://www. webmd. com/sleep-disorders/guide/sleep-deprivation-effects-on-memory? page=2 DeNoon, D. (2000, February 09). Lack of sleep takes toll on brain power. Retrieved from http://www. webmd. com/sleep-disorders/news/20000209/lack-of-sleep-takes-toll-on-brain-power Sifferlin, A. (Augu). Time healthland. Retrieved from http://healthland. time. com/2012/08/21/study-or-sleep-for-better-grades-students-should-go-to-bed-early/ EFFECTS OF SLEEP DEPRIVATION1.

AA Meeting Review Essay Example for Free

AA Meeting Review Essay Walking into the AA meeting made me feel very awkward and out of place, but as the meeting began and everyone started sharing their stories I began to feel comfortable about being there. When I first went in the room the chairs were set up in a circle with some on the outside of it. I decided to take a seat on the outside so I wouldn’t be of focus during the meeting. They started the meeting off with reading some inspirational words and then reading the 12 steps. Their focus tonight was on a higher power and how believing in that higher power helps you stay sober. After brief introductions and stating their names, they began discussion and whoever wanted to speak had the opportunity to do so. Listening to all of their stories was really interesting. Almost all of the members have been sober for at least 30 days and more and about four people were just recently sober, with one being sober only three days now. One of the member’s stories really stood out to me. He said that he has been an alcoholic for years now, but always believed he can cure himself and control how many drinks he has. See more:Â  The Story of an Hour Literary Analysis Essay He mentioned that he went out last week with his buddies and wasn’t able to stop himself from going overboard with the drinking. He said he was in a blackout for four days and lost his job. That’s why he ended up at the treatment center; he said he realized that it isn’t possible to be a social drinker when you are an alcoholic. During his story he explained how he had the shakes and the classic withdrawal symptoms and I began to think about what I had learned in class and related it. Another member’s story was about social drinking. She said that her friend was coming home that she knew from college and wanted to get together. She thought about the friendship and realized that she wasn’t a friend and that she was just an old party buddy. She explained that she has a whole new group of sober friends that she hangs out with and that she can’t hang out with her old friends of whom she always went out and drank with. She started saying how she realized she doesn’t even like the sport of football and that she always went out to bars to watch it with friends because it was a time for social drinking. It brought to light that anything can become an excuse for people to partake in social drinking and too much social drinking can turn into alcoholism for some people. Another patient mentioned that she had her first drink at four years old and was in treatment by ten. I was really perplexed by that comment, thinking how could somebody even know what alcohol is at the age of four. She didn’t elaborate on what or how it happened, so I was just left in shock by that. There were many other stories told and I felt good after hearing all of them. It’s so nice to see everybody get close with each other and be there for one another when they’re having a bad day or week. They celebrate the landmarks of each other’s length of sobriety and that’s really heartwarming to see. They ended the meeting with the 12 promises and a prayer. Overall, after getting over the initial feeling of awkwardness, it was a successful experience and got to hear about the personal effects of alcohol on their lives.