Salvaging the Coral Reefs 

Where do you see yourself in 20 years? Maybe at the peak of your career, or maybe starting a family, unfortunately, if carbon emissions don’t decrease it’s likely you’ll find yourself at the start of a climate catastrophe. Climate change is caused dominantly by human influences in an attempt to obtain natural resources for profit. These actions include, blast fishing, coal mining, pollution, oil drilling, hydrologic fracturing, and many others. Of all listed being of immense importance, an impactful consequence is the destruction of the coral reefs. The coral reefs serve as a vital ecosystem in our planet’s oceanic life because of its immense diversity among species. In order to preserve our coral reefs and their unique life forms, we must limit and reduce our carbon emissions overall. 

There are many problems that lie within climate change, one of which being the bleaching of coral reefs. Coral bleaching dismantles the algae that lives inside of the coral reefs which they utilize as 90% of their energy source (T. P. Hughes). This algae is destroyed during harsh conditions of temperature, change in atmosphere, and light (Hughes). Coral bleaching is also caused by increased carbon emissions in the Earth’s atmosphere. CO2 becomes trapped in the Earth’s ozone layer which causes an increase in overall temperature. The harsh temperatures amplify the water temperatures of the ocean which coral cannot survive in, this is called ocean acidification (Donald Wuebbles). Ocean acidification can be defined as, “the amount of CO2 in the air increases, the chemistry of oceans changes due to the absorption of CO2 which makes it difficult for corals to grow shells and skeletons that protect them from destruction and storms.” (Wuebbles) From this it is evident that carbon emissions are largely at fault of the destruction of coral reefs and the presence of wildlife within them. 

As the effects of climate change heighten, the loss of the coral reefs escalates. Although the issue of carbon emissions is largely responsible for the eradication of the coral reefs, there are other precautions to take as well to preserve the coral reefs and wildlife. Some of these things include, decreasing plastic usage. Those who want to contribute to this effort can limit their use of plastic by using reusable water bottles instead of plastic ones, bring personal bags to the grocery store, and pack a lunch in tupperware containers (Wuebbles). While there are many ways to reduce plastic usage, those are a few of the suggested. To reduce personal carbon emissions, individuals can opt to travel on public transportation as opposed to driving everywhere, and travel on planes less often. These measures do not have to be taken to the extreme, but any conscious efforts can aid in solving this issue. Overall, people should take interest in this issue and be attentive to it because everyone lives on this planet together, so it is our responsibility as a whole to ensure that our children and grandchildren have a safe and healthy place to live. 

References 

“Home.” Coral Reef Alliance, coral.org/coral-reefs-101/reef-threats/global/. 

Hugues, T P. “Climate Change, Human Impacts, and the Resilience of Coral Reefs .” Science Magazine, 15 Aug. 2003, sciencemag.org. 

Wuebbles, Donald. “How Will Climate Change Affect the United States in Decades to Come?” Eos.org, 3 Nov. 2017, eos.org/features/how-will-climate-change-affect-the-united-states-in-decades-to-come.

Women and Gender Roles in the Middle East

Women all across the globe have unfortunately faced times of extreme oppression, including the United States. Consequently, women in the Middle East are still subjected to this treatment and lack rights that many women in the world do have in this day and age. Although the United States and many other countries have gone through a similar struggle, the situation surrounding gender roles around the world has improved, although there is still immense improvement to come. Many people have a preconceived notion about women and gender roles that are present in the Middle East, but many are not aware of the right that women do have and exactly what they do not have the right to do. 

Although the culture in the Middle East is highly oppressive to women, they have more rights than one may think. Many people believe that the oppressive practices stem from the predominant religion in the Middle East, Islam, but they are embedded into the culture. This is identified in the Quran, that men and women are equal in the eyes of god (Hansen). In the Islam religion and Muslim culture, women have the right to specify conditions of their marriage, and can divorce their husband under certain conditions such as, if they engage with another woman in a physical relationship. Many women in the Middle East do not take their husband’s last name when they get married, because they are not expected to. The Quran also instructs Muslims to educate their daughters and sons, and women have the right to own and inherit property (Hansen). From this it can be gathered that, it is not the religion of the Middle East that enforces acts of oppression towards women, it is the cultural traditions that are present that are dictatorial over women, so Islam may take on a different role in terms of gender in other countries such as the US because of the interpretations of the Quran. 

Because the gender roles of the Middle East are embedded into the culture, this treatment of women is taken as the norm of how their society runs. In this region, the family is the most important social unit, so women are seen and respected at the sustainers of the family, thus they believe that women’s bodies must be protected from their virginity being taken. According to London Douglas, “It is estimated that up to 90% of women never leave their home, and certainly the low number of women in public space supports this.” From this it is evident that women are prevented from living freely in the outside world as a form of “protection” because they are not thought to have the ability to protect themselves. This is why women wear a burqa to cover their bodies, faces, and hair, in fear of sexual abuse. Many women who are sexually abused, are scolded and intended to be killed by their families and their perpetrators face no repercussions. Women have the ability to escape to a safe haven, but then are forced to live in hiding and rejection (Douglas). According to the UN, everyone has the right to education, but the Middle East does not implement this into their culture. Women can go to school, but are then expected to serve their husbands as a wife and a mother. According to Annie Akkam, “Middle Eastern countries such as Syria, Iran, Egypt, and Yemen are almost 10% more behind male literacy.” This means that women are 10% lower in literacy compared to the global average. It is then explained that yes, some girls do attend school, but, “The total percentage of girls enrolled in primary and secondary schools in the Middle East is 44%.” From this it can be gathered that, many women and girls do not attend school for very long, or any school at all due to the oppression that is very prevalent in the Middle East. Overall, the culture in the Middle East is where the male domination stems from, not the religion of Islam. 

Overall, in comparison to other regions, women in the Middle East face immense hardships surrounding gender roles and expectations. Many countries have gone through similar times of women’s suffrage, but have been on the road to equality, like the US. Many people have the misconception that the religion in the Middle East is where the roots of oppression toward women comes from, but it is engraved in the culture as a whole in the Middle East in terms of education and free reign that women have. 

Bibliography: 

Hansen, Jennifer. “Women and Gender Roles in the Middle East.” TeachMideast, teachmideast.org/articles/introduction-women-gender-roles-middle-east/.

London, Douglas, et al. “The Oppressed Women of Afghanistan: Fact, Fiction, or Distortion.” Middle East Institute, 16 Jan. 2020, www.mei.edu/publications/oppressed-women-afghanistan-fact-fiction-or-distortion.

Akkam, Annie. “Women’s Education in the Middle East: Facts About Lack of Women’s Education.” Women’s, Women\’s Gogo, 7 Nov. 2017, women-s.net/womens-education-in-the-middle-east/.

Everything Happens for a reason

I remember the day like it was yesterday, I came home from school on a hot, sunny, September afternoon. It was the Wednesday of September 27th.  I was in the 7th grade. I came home to find my Mom sick in her bed. She was laying there, helpless, and I could tell she was in a lot of pain. I was worried about her, and what was wrong. She assured me that it was just the flu. Her symptoms were a nausea, and the “worst headache she’s ever had in her life” she said. This went on for 2 days, she couldn’t eat without throwing up, or get out of bed without throwing up. Seeing my Mom this weak made me feel helpless because as much as I tried to help her, I couldn’t do much, I was only 12. While my Mom was stuck in bed, I was the only one between my younger sister who was 10, and my older brother who was 16, who knew how to do laundry and mainly how the household ran. It makes sense that my brother would have known how to keep things under control, but he’s a boy, so I was stuck with that responsibility. 

The evening of the second day mom was feeling this way, my Dad came home from work and brought her to the hospital. Before he took my Mom to the hospital, I had to help my Mom get dressed in fresh clothes and brush her teeth so she was somewhat put together, although she was far from that on the inside. While running a comb through my Mom’s hair, she became so nauseous that she threw up the little bit of food she had in her stomach from the past 2 days. I was so scared because I knew that if my Mom had just the flu, she would have been able to pull herself together in front of me, and not let me take care of her. But, I figured that since she cared for me all those years when I was sick, I could do the same for her. When my Dad got home, we knew something was not right. My Dad didn’t want to scare me and my siblings, so he was very vague about what was going on. But, I knew something serious was happening because my older sister came home from college and went to the hospital with my Dad. 

The night they left  was the most nerve wracking time of my life, I lost all focus on anything. I wondered “what could be going on?”, “Was that the last time I would ever see my Mom?”. I prayed more than I ever had before, hoping my Mom would pull through and be okay. I had the biggest knot in my stomach for what felt like forever, just waiting for a call from my Dad and hearing him say “everything’s okay, mom will be just fine”, but that call never came. I was a mess, meanwhile, trying to keep my younger sister, Holly, calm. I didn’t want Holly to feel how I did, so I did as any older sister would look out for her. I assured her that everything was fine and our Mom would be home soon. Little did I know, that was far from true. 

After my Mom’s first night at Elmhurst Hospital, my siblings and I received a call the next day from our Dad. After a night of him saying all was alright, he confessed to us that our mom had just undergone brain surgery. She had 2 brain Aneurysms and one of them burst.  

My heart dropped all the way into the pit of my stomach. But, as my Dad continued talking, he said “The surgery went as planned and Mom is going to be just fine”. I felt a wave of relief come over me. Little did I know, this was only the beginning of the battle to come. 

She was transferred to Rush hospital in Chicago.  I later found out that only 40% of people survive ruptured brain aneurysms and I was so grateful that my Mom was apart of that 40%. I wanted to hug her surgeon so tight and thank him for saving my best friend. 

Although I was a little frustrated with my Dad for not keeping me fully updated, I was just thankful my Mom was okay and still with us. Later it came to my knowledge that my Mom would be kept in the hospital for 2 weeks and I would have to take on the responsibility of laundry and all the household chores, with hardly any help from my siblings. My Aunt, and my Mom’s best friend, were at my house each day after school to make sure we did our homework, and got dinner on the table each night. 

The first time we visited my Mom was the day after her surgery. I walked into the hospital not knowing what to expect or how to react. I walked into her hospital room that was dark and silent, the only sounds were the machines beeping. I saw her laying in the bed, the whole side of her head shaved, and the stitches from her surgery all up the side of her head showing. I was terrified.  I immediately burst into tears and had to leave the room to walk the halls because I didn’t want to make my Mom upset. I felt just as helpless as my Mom looked, but I had to keep it together because she wouldn’t want me to be scared. 

I went back in the room just as nothing had happened and put on a smile and hugged my Mom. I hugged her tightly but didn’t want to hurt her fragile body. Her warm embrace overcame me and I felt a wave of relief come over me that I hadn’t felt in days. Her smell was still present and made me think back to all those times growing up, when she would tuck me in at night or lay with me until I fell asleep.  All the little things that my Mom did for me over the years ran through my head like watching a movie replay. 

When I was let go from her arms, I came back to reality and remembered where I was and what had happened, unfortunately. I laid with my mom in that hospital bed all night while she was in agonizing pain. It killed me to see her like this because my Mom is the strongest person I have ever known, and to see her hurting was the worst possible feeling. The nurse would come in, give my Mom some more water, check her blood pressure, and ask her pain level on a scale of 1-10. That night my Mom had said her pain level was at a 9. Later, the nurse had said “She said her pain was a level 9, she was definitely at a 10 tonight. She’s a trooper.” It was typical of my Mom to hold it together even when anyone else in her situation would not have. 

Each day going back to that hospital room she progressed back to health more and more. I could subtract a day of her stuck in that room, until she got to come home to us. Things were looking up and I had kept up with all of the household functions and my schoolwork during this time. 

When trying times and hardships occur, it really brings out one’s true colors, mine showed through, and how you react to a situation of trying times depicts who you are as a person. I realized that I am a much stronger person than I ever thought was possible and have become a better person because of this. I have grown and matured so much from that experience and am more than grateful to have a mom like I do. From this experience I also learned that not all things come easy, and to cherish the time and life you have with people because the unexpected could happen at any time. You never know when the last time you’ll see someone could be, so make each moment with them worthwhile. I have also aspired to be how my Mom has raised me, strong. Not physically, but emotionally. I now see the value and importance of family and thank God each day that my Mom is still here because I would be lost without her. Every kid deserves and needs a mom; and I think they need their kids just as much. I am more than thankful to have my mom; my best friend, through everything, back with me today.

I’m afraid to express my feelings

I don’t want to seem a certain way

I don’t want to be high maintenance

When it comes out, I explode

Can’t you just read my mind so I don’t have to tell you?

Bottle it up, until it’s full

It all comes out at once

I want one thing but can’t say what it is

You should be able to figure it out

Can’t you just read my mind?

I’ve sent so many messages

Or so I’ve thought

But you don’t pick those messages up

So again, can’t say what I’m feeling or wanting

Can’t you just read my mind?

You don’t get it, you never will

I can’t express what my mind wants

So I’ll just bottle it up

Time and time again

A day that you’ve dreaded for a year and a half

It’s time to go, and start the next chapter in your life

Leave behind you family and friends

“It’s the best time of your life!” They say

I don’t want a fresh start

I don’t want to leave

I don’t want to be forgotten

I want my car in the driveway

I want to spend my Saturday nights with you

I want to do homework after school with you

I want to be with you, in the same town

But, I don’t want to hold you back

I don’t want to suffocate you

But, I want to be with you

“You can stay home and go to Community College, it’s okay.”

But that would be a disappointment

I don’t want that image

You’ve been so excited for me to go and have this experience

But I don’t want it, I’m dreading it

I’ve cried about it everyday

But now is the time to go

I’ll miss you

But we’ll find our new normal

It’s not a goodbye, it’s a see you later

See you later, my love

I am from the United States of America

I am from Elmhurst, IL

I am from a family of Redbirds

I am from three siblings

I am from a two-parent household

I am from a large extended family

I am from a town that expects too much

I am from parents that hold high expectations

I am from an honors household

I am from privlege

I am from pizza

I am from coffee

I am from ballpark hot dogs

I am from “take a breath”

I am from “have more confidence in yourself”

I am from “there’s no need to be nervous”

I am from love

I am from support

I am from hard work

I am from my high school sweetheart

I am from my small circle of friends

I am from quality not quantity

The best is yet to come.

There’s always a rhyme or a reason.

Dear incoming freshman in college,

I know, you’re terrified. I was too. Scared to leave home, my family, my boyfriend of three years. I know, you probably cry everyday like I did, and everything you do seems like it will be the last time, it’s not. Everything will always be waiting back at home for you. Sure, everyone tells you it’s going to be the “best time of your life” and you don’t understand how anyone could possibly enjoy this. Who wants to leave their family and friends behind? Who wants to watch their childhood friendships deteriorate? I promise, those things will not happen. You’ll make new friends, but they’ll never replace your home friends. Change is good, and it’s inevitable. Live in the now and understand that everything happens for a reason. There is a reason you’re doing this even though you don’t know that exact reason right now, one day you will. Find your new routine, keep yourself occupied, and call your family. As much as your mom says you need to go, she’s never been more worried about you but just doesn’t want to make you more scared by showing it. It will be overwhelming, you might hate your roommate, you might fail a test. It is all a learning experience. That’s what you’re there to do after all, learn. If you get there and still find yourself feeling misplaced and alone, seek help. There are plenty of resources, you just have to utilize them. People want to help you, that’s why it’s there. And the day you’re diagnosed with anxiety, you’ll feel relieved and free. The side effects of the medication will wear off and you’ll start to feel like yourself again. Find joy in the little things because after this, the real work starts. And when it’s all over you’re going to look back and wonder why you wasted all that time being so upset and resenting the opportunity you had to actually go away to college. You’ll feel thankful for all you overcame. Dear freshman year of college, I so don’t miss you, but I’m thankful for the learning and growing experience you gave me. You’re going to be okay, incoming college freshman.