End of Year 2007

Wow! This year has gone by so fast. And yes, I guess I was having fun. I cannot deny how important it is for me to live everyday with a purpose. On the days I fail to define my purpose as I awake, I notice how different I feel. Living a life of purpose makes me very happy, content and optimistic. Everyday that I conquer a new obstacle or reach a new goal, no matter how small, I feel uplifted, worthy and confident. I believe every person needs to have a purpose, not a general purpose, but one that is clearly defined, that gives that person energy, hope and a reason to dream and to live. I suppose the best way to explain what I mean is to use a child as an example because children seem to have an incredible way of looking at life. My son plays little league baseball, as many of you know, but because of a knee injury, he suffers with a great deal of pain and therefore sometimes cannot play. When he cannot play, he is miserable and when I tell him he should just rest and wait until he feels better, he says, “Mom, I can’t wait; I live for this.” And so I ask everyone to think about something, anything that makes you feel like that, and once you have found that something allow it to fill your life so it can seep into every part of you.

In a few days my family and I will drive up to the mountains in search of a white Christmas. Going home to this place always makes me feel alive, and yes I must say “I live for this.” My heart pounds as in the distance I begin to see the hills, and then the mountain peaks and then I smell the wood burning and all around me becomes familiar. I know this place and my heart and soul remind me that I belong here. Oh yes home is anywhere as long as you feel that it is where you belong. I hope that you too have a place where you belong, and I pray that you and your family have a joyous Christmas and Happy New Year!

Best Wishes, Marlene Cueto

Listen by Andrea Austin

Everyday I deliver a pound of my energy to the masses, but that load of commitment is never returned to me. I devoted my livelihood to the everlasting fields of humanity, but mankind has left me high and dry. Now my substance is fading. I have given up hope. My family has disappointed me too many times. LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN!
Listen to me my people, my race, my nationality stand up men young and old, women young and old. Be strong and don’t give in, but my time is up and my spirit is transcending. It is time my people to be what I know you can be, be strong, be powerful, be successful and most of all be a family.

Too Long a Semester by Professor Bert Lorenzo

2007 will soon end. This year slipped away from me very quickly but this semester didn’t. For many of my students the semester lasted longer than necessary. I’ll explain why later but first imagine this.

One late August morning a stomachache awakens you. The pain increases by mid morning so you ask a loved one to drive you to an emergency room. A doctor examines you and finds you have a mild case of food poisoning. She gives you some medicine and within two hours you feel fine. The doctor then tells you she won’t release you until one week before the Christmas Holiday. No matter the illness all patients at this hospital must complete a 16-week stay. Whether the patient has an ingrown toenail or a brain tumor it doesn’t matter. All patients who arrive at the hospital that day must leave the same day 16 weeks later. Does this sound illogical? It does to me.

This scenario doesn’t make sense to me the same way our academic semester no longer makes sense. I have students who need more than one semester to master the skills I present in my course but some master the skills after four weeks. Why should student B have to wait for student A before she can move on to a more advanced course?

At our college we’ve played around a bit with schedules but remain locked into the semester hour mentality. Whether students take 16, 12 or eight-week courses they must sit for a set number of hours-usually 48. We penalize students who need more time to master the skills or understand the material in a particular course. They earn an F and must repeat the course. We also penalize students who learn more quickly. They have to wait for their classmates before they all move to the next course together.

I don’t know how or why we use the semester hour system but the more I think about it the more I dislike it. Perhaps it exists because it makes life easy for those who schedule courses, or for professors or for economic reasons or perhaps we still do it because those who came before us did it this way- a case of bad convention. I don’t care what the reason. I care that we can do much better. How much time a student must spend in a course seems arbitrary. We have the creative people and the technology to do better.

Through innovative and some old practices and our advanced technology we can individualize instruction for all students. We can give professors the freedom to certify students ready to go on to the next course whenever said students master certain skills or prove knowledge of certain materials through tests, projects, reports, presentations or other exercises. Professors can certify their students as ready at any time and students can start new courses at any time. We don’t have to invent a new system just adjust some of what we already do. We can adjust the independent study model, a lot of what we already do in virtual courses or the old correspondence course model.

I have students in ENC 1101 who haven’t taken a composition course in many years. They just need to remove some mental rust. Within a few weeks they write good sentences and paragraphs and well-developed compositions. I deem them ready for ENC 1102 by October but I can’t give them their A until December. In an individualized system those students could get their grades when they master all the ENC 1101 required skills then learn to do and present research and finish ENC 1102 by late December or early January. Those students in ENC 1101 who struggle to master the skills could continue to work with me until necessary without penalty.

This requires a new approach to how many of us teach. It requires rejection of the lecture method, less note taking and memorization. It requires more tutorials, more student-teacher conferences, more field-based work, more service learning, more active learning, more trial and error exercises, computer tutorials and constant guidance and evaluation.

Above all it requires innovative, creative, courageous administrators who can see how our current system penalizes all students and how our current system doesn’t consider each student’s strengths and weaknesses. It requires a mental shift. Many companies now individualize their products and services for their customers. Henry Ford used to say customers could buy his cars in any color as long as they bought them in black. Today customers on the Internet can build their own model. We still deliver and schedule most of our instruction the same way they did at the University of Bologna 1,000 years ago. We can do better.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

The Day We Got Lost by Professor Stephanie Packer

I glanced over my left shoulder just before we took the turn at the pankoeken café to go through the village. Arthur was cycling along behind me as usual, instantly visible in his day-glo yellow windbreaker. I followed curving Dorpstraat past the curtain shop, the hardware store, the inviting but ever- empty pub with wooden bar stools and pub tables set out in the gravel front yard. I took the right turn-off at Speulderbosweg to our favorite path. A couple of minutes down the road I glanced over my left shoulder as one does these days. No Arthur.

I pulled off the path and waited for him to catch up. There was a truck just behind so I thought he would blaze into view any second. Seconds became minutes, Still no Arthur. But the village only took 30 seconds to bike through, maybe 35 if you were really poking along.

There aren’t that many byways and black holes in our village.

Where was he? Why did he always do this to me? The simplest things became problems. If he wasn’t hitting his head on the shed door – and how many times did it take to learn where the overhang hung? It didn’t change places every day –if it wasn’t the shed door, it was stubbing his toe, taking too much Klonopin on the plane so I just about had to slap him silly and splash cold water in his face to get him through customs. Forgetting his glasses so I had to do all the work of decoding while he stood there like a dummy. I wasn’t the one who had been valedictorian of an earnest Massachusetts high school. I hadn’t even learned how to drive until I was 26. The first 20 yrs of our life together had been him taking care of me, and it’s not like he got Alzheimer’s.

I guess what he got was tired.

Damnit. I cruised back through the village. No luck.

Oh God, there had been a garbage truck back on Oud Milligenseweg. We were admiring the robotic arm that picked up the perfectly arrayed garbage cans – one smallish one per household – and dumped the contents in the truck. I just assumed he had safely cleared the truck along with me. What if he’d stumbled? What if he’d picked that moment to get tangled up in his feet and suddenly fall off his bike for no reason? These things happened to him.

Oh God, let him be all right. Please God, my life is over if his is. Oh God, and he could be lying there on the wrong forest path. He kept saying he would learn Dutch but he never would. How did I know he never would? There was always a chance. Wasn’t there always a chance?
He wasn’t back on Oud Milligenseweg. The garbage truck was gone.

But what if he’d fallen somewhere else with no one to help him? Maybe he took the wrong path. Even on a summer afternoon with sun dappling through the high spruce, our village didn’t see much traffic, cycle, car, or even on foot.

I headed down our alternate route, racing down the slope of the cornfields, scanning the green fields for his dayglo yellow jacket. I went all the way to the rotary leading to Harderwijk but finally crossed over at the Antiek barn to cycle back.

The slope wasn’t so gentle going back. In fact the incline had grown steep and hard to negotiate and went on much too long. I put my cycle in low gear and took the hill standing up, scanning the opposite side through the copses of birch.

But he had disappeared from the world in an instant.

The path jagged and our windmill came into view in the distance, off to the left across the cornfields. We had never seen it from this view. I remembered reading that there had been a windmill in that spot since the 1300’s. All the lost generations of farmers tilling their fields here must have looked at it as a beacon.

I was numb and frightened, at that stage where the mind equally wants to know and doesn’t want to know anything ever again. Just to keep the body moving so the mind didn’t have to, I raced to the forest path we’d started out for. The weather was perfect, low 60’s without any wind.

There I found him. I spotted his yellow jacket first. It came into view down the hill. Then I saw him, cycling up the slope as I raced down to meet him.

“I knew you had to be here somewhere,” he said.
He had a huge smile on his face but he was quite calm.

“What happened?”

“My jacket. It was cooler than I thought at first so I stopped to zip it up. It got stuck and by the time I fixed it, you’d vanished.”

“Oh, thank God,” I said.

“I knew you had to be somewhere,” he repeated.

On the way back we passed right in front of the windmill. It was Thursday so you could go inside, up the wooden ladders and see the mill still at work. We had never gotten around to doing so, but suddenly now it seemed urgent not to delay.

We climbed up the narrow wooden ladders to the second level and stepped out onto a wooden verandah that wrapped around the windmill. We looked out across the countryside. The view seemed to stretch back into time so far you wouldn’t be surprised to see Frodo bobbing along the green-gold quilt of the cornfields.

On the ground, a white-haired man nearly diaphanous with age pulled on vast ropes to release the brake stone in the tower. Still the wooden windmill propellers did not turn.

“You have to wait for the wind,” said a voice behind us.

We turned to see an ancient gentleman wearing a tan summer suit and well-pressed white shirt. He was leading a small group of children up the ladder to the third level, where corn meal was pouring down out of a metal chute.

“This is enough,” I said to Arthur. “I’d like to go up there but I’m scared.”
The docent turned to us in a kindly way like some angel of the windmill.
“There is no danger,” he said.

Still we stayed on the second level. We could see as far as we needed to.

Back at the bungalow, we wheeled our bikes into the red cedar shed. Through the hedges, I could just see our neighbor Edith, eating her solitary dinner at the dining table. She lost her husband just last year, but still she sits down at her table every night as if to do so keeps him near her.

“Edith,” I call, “come over and have dessert with us when you finish.”
“Ja,” she answers, “okay.”

But when I knock on her wooden gate a half hour later she’s changed into her robe and pajamas.

“Maybe the next time,” she says. “I find I do not have the heart to visit right now.”
“Yes, the next time,” I agree.

Back inside our cabin Arthur is dozing on the couch, listing to 70 degrees. I squeeze in on his left and lay my head on his shoulder. My neck is stretched and beginning to cramp, but I leave it there anyway, for hours it seems.

But maybe the time was much shorter.

The Game by Andrea Austin

Hundreds, Thousands, Millions, Billions of opponents one game, unlimited amounts of chances to win and so many choices to make. Some people will kill to get to the finals and the prize comes in different shapes and forms. It varies from person to person and it takes a life time to get for some people. That prize is happiness and the game is life. Let’s be real. Life is nothing but a game. Relationships, work, school, and even your day to day life. The game never changes just the players. So when someone tells you to stop playing games, just tell them it's not a game. It's life.

History’s Lessons by Professor Bert Lorenzo

In most high school history courses students memorize a set of useless dates, names and places. I study history differently. I look for and identify patterns and habits. I learned I can predict the future because events repeat themselves. Only the players and places change. If you know what events and patterns repeat themselves you can test current events and opinions and predict what ideas will work. Below I share with you some other lessons that inform how I view people and live my life.

1. As a group we don’t learn from history despite its importance. Humans have evolved very slowly for this reason. Children make the same mistakes their parents made and so on and so on. Thus we see discredited ideas like socialism resurrected.

2. Science and technology can’t immunize us from history’s lessons. No matter how advanced technologically we still have defective human relations and communication. Technocrats predicted the end of history at the start of the industrial revolution.

3. Not all groups around the world value freedom although many Americans believe it globally longed for so many went to war in Iraq to spread democracy. U.S. Marines, soldiers and other military personnel succeeded at their mission and hanged Hussein but the Iraqis and their neighbors have failed to do their part. Americans there have helped Iraqis write a constitution, build schools and hospitals and rebuild their infrastructure but too many of them don’t want freedom. Some Americans died or were injured in the Baath overthrow but thousands have died or have been terribly injured at the hands of Iranians and other Islamo-socialists since the overthrow. A noble though historically misinformed cause for us turned into the usual tyranny for them. Notice as you study history the places where democracy has never taken root even after many have tried to establish it in those cultures and/or countries.

4. All cultures desire power, whether wielded by a despot or by a benevolent empire or superpower so the masses attend political rallies and support charlatans they view as saviors. As a group most humans have always expected one person to solve their problems and make life’s most important decisions for them. Many in the United States wanted to crown George Washington a king but he did something unprecedented. He peacefully gave up power.

5. Americans will witness the same destiny as the citizens of all other democracies, republics and superpowers witnessed. This could mean many things. It could mean the United States of your parents will look different with different laws, a different economy and a different standard of living within 50 years. It could mean as some already predict China will have a stronger economy than the United States within 25 years. It could mean that through shear mass those who managed to escape the misery they experienced in their countries will make this country more like their own. Nothing in history guarantees we will always enjoy our current or a better living standard. Witness the ex-world dominant and richest country –Spain.

6. Nothing motivates people more than religion, spirituality and the lust for power. Once you learn this you’ll better understand terror and war. As long as people desire others to decide for them and think strangers will solve their problems we will have those who lust for power and those who want to give them the power. As long as superstition and myth continue to guide people and as long as one group wants to dictate how others should live we will have war and terror.

7. Nations and empires rise and fall not because of anonymous government social and economic forces but because of decisions individuals make. Once you learn this you’ll develop a more self-reliant attitude, blame politicians less and expect less from them. Through the efforts of thousands the Israelis built one of the world’s best economies in the middle of a desert surrounded by poor enemies who did nothing with that same land. Today Israelis lead the world in many medical, technological, educational advances and even tourism. Individual Israelis did this not politicians and they did it all while surrounded by Islamo-socialists. It distresses me when I hear people applaud politicians who promise job creation or an end to poverty. Politicians can’t do this but individuals can.

8. Great/good leaders possess four qualities. They hold to a set of principles, have a moral compass, a vision and can build consensus to achieve that vision. Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan exemplified these traits. These four men had much in common yet they dealt with very different issues at very different times in history. Although contemporaries Gandhi and Churchill worked within cultures that lived at different historical/evolutionary stages.

I encourage you to study history beyond what teachers offer. Read newspapers, biographies and historical texts and watch the history channel. The more you know about the past the more you can control your future.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

The Man I Love by Kiara M. Rodriguez

Baby you’re the man I love,
The man that makes me fall apart
The man that make me drop to my knees,
The man the makes me weak in the knees,
The man that I dream about all night,
The man that keeps me comfortable every day and night,
The love that we share is so true,
Not even god can separate us two,
Not even if the world was divided in two would they keep me away from you.
I will go anywhere you want me to because I was meant to be with you
You are my strength when I am weak you are the reason I am me.
You are the star that lights up my eyes.
You are the angel that keeps me safe all throughout the night.
Even when am down you’re the only one who can bring a smile.
Even if you hurt me 5million times I would still love you till the end of time.
You are the sunshine in my life.
You are the only weakness in my life.
Even if we were rich or poor you will always be my prince and more.
I will be your princess too.
As our home will be our kingdom too
As long as it’s just me and you.
I promise I’ll be true to you,
As long as you know aint no one better than me boo.
You know how I do, so be true to me and I’ll make your dreams come true.
We can be like Bonnie and Clyde,
Just that I’ll drive while you ride,
You know I am just playing boo you can drive because I am your ride or die chick to the end.
Aint no one taking me from you,
That is how you know that you’re the only one in my heart boo.
Hope we will be together to the end,
Let us just try to make this love work.
I promise I’ll do anything to please you.
You don’t have to be scared to ask.
I’ll be what you need and more,
Just be there for me and I’ll be yours.
I just want your love and compassion.
While we share our endless nights,
In your arms I will be while you hold me tight.
You are all I need in my life Humberto,
And I want to keep you for life.
I LOVE YOU!!!! Kiara M. Rodriguez, your wife.

The Effects of Loving You by Jimmy Jean-Simon

From the touch of your hand I felt your souland the look in your eye it blew my soul awayyou’re laying there with that look in your eyes.the look that made me fall In love You came into my life just in timeYou changed my world with a blink of an eyeThat is something that I can not denyYou make my soul run around me like a kid you made me see what I did not for
These are the side effects of Loving You.
One strong dose of you was all it took….
To leave my heart tangled in the hooks.You really are an angel sent from above
You make life worthwhile it is even better every time you smile
I wish I could talk 'til the end of dayBut now I'm running out of things to saySo I'll end saying "I LOVE YOU" more than what I could show.

What you do to me

Who Are You? by Yasmin Moses

“You cannot be who you are without knowing where you come from”
Culture comes to mind; it’s an essential part of who you are. Why are Americans so eager to know about where others come from? Do you know where you come from? …
Why do others constantly ask? Many people are oblivious of where they are from! Culture is a wonderful insight of who you are. Why not embrace it; however, you prefer not to discuss it. What if you only know one culture? Questions are asked, yet no answers…
Where do you come from, is a common phrase. What if you cannot answer the question? People will say “what do you mean you cannot answer”? They are in disbelief; you are confronted by confusion! Suppose you cannot speak your parents’ native language? Well, who are you? , many people ask … so what do you say? I am culturally unidentified; sometimes it’s painful to say.

Timed-Composition Test by Professor Bert Lorenzo

My students often ask me why they must write under a time constraint in my course. They feel enough pressure to write without the limited minutes I give them. The timed-composition doesn’t reflect the normal composition process of plan, write, edit, rewrite and edit and rewrite some more. “So why do it?” they ask.

The timed-composition test measures intellectual potential or abilities in a simple, cost effective and academically sound way. Teachers in many disciplines use it to determine students’ subject mastery. This semester in my course students learn techniques to help them master the timed-composition test. In college, writing well under a time constraint measures one aspect of the brain’s potential. It measures the intelligence necessary for academic success.

Humans disagree over what intelligence means. Some psychologists use the word to describe people who get good grades in school or solve problems skillfully. A great deal of people’s perceived intelligence may also have to do with their preparation or prior knowledge. People may seem very well versed in one subject but not so smart in another. Memory also plays a role. Someone may not have much formal education but have a wealth of memories and experiences on which to draw.

These differences in intelligence draw on different skills. What do timed-composition tests measure? Intelligence means the ability to think and reason and a number of different abilities fall under this definition, like spatial, numerical, perceptual, verbal, inductive and deductive reasoning. The timed-composition test measures several of these abilities.

Over the years psychometricians have developed tests that measure how well people perform on different reasoning tasks. These tests vary. The tests use several kinds of problems that draw upon different reasoning skills. Some may do well on one type of test and not so well on another. Some of these tests measure the ability to analyze or synthesize. Most of these tests have a time constraint to measure the ability to solve such problems quickly. The timed-composition test measures verbal, inductive and deductive reasoning or the ability to analyze and synthesize.

People who do well on intelligence tests tend to possess strong academic and intellectual skills. Test scores indicate how well students may do in school. Strong academic abilities may also translate into success in professional life but poor performance on an intelligence test such as the timed-composition doesn’t necessarily indicate low-intelligence. The test may tell us something useful about the way brains work, give people reason to explore different types of learning than those used in college and university classrooms or encourage some to explore their creative side. Intelligence tests don’t measure all abilities.

Timed-composition tests don’t measure social, personal and leadership skills, physical ability or desire to learn. Most importantly, they don’t measure creativity. Creativity helps in all aspects of life including business, scientific discovery, athletics and governing. From writing a song to solving downtown traffic problems innovation and creativity equal success in many fields.

These two functions, intelligence and creativity, line-up on different sides of the brain. The left hemisphere of the brain controls many of the mental functions necessary for academic success. Such things as memory, language, logic and numeracy allow humans to dissect the individual parts of a problem (analyze) and organize them into a coherent whole (synthesize). The timed-composition test measures these abilities. The right side of the brain contains mental functions necessary for intuition, musical talent, physical coordination and emotion. The right hemisphere houses creativity but timed-composition tests barely measure this brain side.

Both brain halves work together. Truly creative individuals tap into their intelligence and truly intelligent people also create but some people think better one way and some in another. Just why remains a mystery.

Perhaps mental abilities result from two factors--heredity and environment. From parents children inherit a brain wired in a certain way with a certain capacity. The environment in which the brain develops has a great deal to do with whether it achieves its full innate potential. Lack of stimulation at a young age or a poor diet can stymie brain development. Parents might also encourage or stymie their children’s creative abilities.

Even if students do poorly on timed-composition tests teachers should use test results along side other aspects of students’ personalities such as effort, focus, interests and creativity. The timed-composition test doesn’t prove genius either. Timed-composition tests measure just some aspects of intelligence. They measure verbal, inductive and deductive reasoning. Students need this intelligence for academic success but not for success in most aspects of life.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

Clenched by Professor Leighton Spence

Seabird sleepy summer songs echoes in misty Tenjiku valley
Indifferent iguanas shiver and yawn as fountain water chases the skies
Koi of orange, yellow apathy glide past red boxing mitts
Mitts bobbing on rippled water to a somber seabird song.
Nature beckons not the happy but the bruised and tired ones
Boxer drawn through reluctant rings
Dripping mitts from liniment hands
Questions the purpose of the fight.
Incongruous, pugnacious floating mitts
Abhorrent to nature without and within
Evoked a maelstrom in mind and soul
Cherry blossoms blood red rage revealed.
And in one mortal gasp,
Hydrella tendrils ensnares hapless mitts
Pulling them to the murky depths
Sad- even handed order is restored.

Let Us Learn to Walk by Cesar Augusto Marin

Let us learn to walk
Sharing the days, smiles and more…
Living joys that I will not be able to erase…
Already involving denied emotions….
Thinking about forgotten things….
Fearing the fact to love again.
Wanting with you something more than friendship…
Fighting internally against this truth
I do not have nor do I want to put away from me
Then yearning always to be next to me
Your smile has removed me from my solitude.
Your words open to the doors of my soul
The rubbing of your hands revive my desires
Kissing me makes me weak and defenseless
And alive that moment of so intense way
Your glance gives back the calm to me.
Tomorrow I will return to see or perhaps you will call to me
But within my life perhaps never you will be
For that reason I enjoy every day sharing
Fighting against my more beautiful truth
Listening to each one of your words
That opens the doors to you so that you can enter
I want you and you me also, although as friends
But before running we learn to walk.

Learn and Take Control of Life by Professor Bert Lorenzo

Welcome to a new academic year. I love a new semester. I especially love the fall term. I get to start fresh as some say. I can try new ideas in my courses. I revamp old ones and I get to share my philosophy of education with a new group of students.

Part of my philosophy revolves around my love of independence. Like Thomas Jefferson I argue an education should give us the tools necessary to live free. We must learn how to argue our cause.

Below I outline a curriculum I recommend to students who want independence. Some of this you can learn in school. The rest you learn through interaction with intelligent people and through contemplation.

1. Study history. All events repeat themselves. Only the players change. If you know what happened in the past you can test current opinions and can safely predict the future. Only those ignorant of the past say we can’t predict the future.

2. Master language. We make sense of the world and reason with words. With limited language you have a limited ability to reason and understand why things happen as they do. Also those who have mastered language can manipulate you.

3. Understand economics. You can’t gain independence without financial freedom. To do this you must understand how money works. Study the lives of the financially independent and observe their habits. Reject the view that only a certain amount of money exists and as long as others have it you never will. With millions of millionaires in America why can’t you join them?

4. Reject group think. You lose your ability to reason and you make emotional decisions when you let groups think and conclude for you. Groups survive this way. The leaders feed off the individuals. Always think for yourself. Practice your independence. This also includes your actions.

5. Have intelligent friends. Nurture relationships with people smarter than you. You will learn something new everyday and will always develop your mind. Most intelligent people probably do many of the things on this list too. Education requires change. Those who fight new, better ideas and ways to live don’t really want an education. Don’t lament if you outgrow your current friends. Rejoice!

6. Develop a life philosophy. Decide how you want to live and what you want to do with your life. Don’t let others define you. This includes family, friends, celebrities or the latest fashion. Remember those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.

7. Cultivate a sense of proportion. You will think the future looks bleak if you listen to too much television news and gossip. We live better today than kings lived 100 years ago and the future looks even brighter. Those ignorant of the past don’t realize this.

8. Practice gratitude. Thousands of people make our lives possible. We owe a lot to people we will never meet. When you do get the chance to meet some of the people who make your freedom possible thank them. Also constantly remind yourself how good you have it. This has a very liberating effect. Those ignorant of economics don’t realize this.

9. Protect your physical and mental health. Many young people abuse their health. Once you lose it you lose your independence. Start early in life with exercise and a good diet. Reject all drugs and alcohol and poisons to the mind we get from television, film, music and other media. Develop a good relationship with a doctor and speak openly about how you feel.

I wish you a productive, safe new academic year. To all first time college students I say, “look out”. What seems like a long time away-graduation-will get here sooner than you realize. Time flies when you learn and live independently.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

A Tribute to America by Yasmin Moses

We all recollected the tragedy that unfolded on September 11, 2001.
Our America the beautiful was altered.
What we as Americans can learn from this loss is…
“Live each day without measuring it”
“Live for today and not only for tomorrow “
Despite lows or highs …
Leave animosity alone.
Dream immense dreams…
Questions still remain in everyone’s heart.
Is this tragedy supposed to teach us?
Why does life throw cruelty our way?
Needless to say, tell your loved ones “I love you” everyday.
Most importantly keep moving forward.

The Achievement that Makes Us Immortal by Chris Lam

2007 North Campus

College Prep Writing Contest THIRD PLACE WINNER

What in this world of ours deserves the title of “Greatest Human Achievement?” Where can we even begin to contemplate the thought of our greatest achievement and most positive attribute to the human race? Some would perhaps say the automobile is the greatest human achievement for its way of transportation. Others would say the television or the Internet for helping them to escape their daily boredom. Then some would point to performing and visual arts because they are ways to express the inner creativity that is usually locked away inside. All of these contributions, without a doubt, are positive attributes to our society and fellow human beings, but are they truly the greatest human achievement? How can we judge what is our most positive attribute to our fellow brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers? Well, the answer to this question is really quite simple. Throughout all of time, there has been one key element to our existence. This “mystical virtue” inside all of us has lived throughout the past, and it has withstood and will withstand the test of time. That, which I believe is our greatest human achievement, is the strong and mysterious power inside of us known as Love. Yes, the ability to give, show and accept love, combined with the ability to create love when it is needed, is not only wonderful and amazing, but it is this which, I believe, is truly the greatest human achievement.

Have I lost my mind? Some of you might be thinking that I am a college student who has lost his mind over the legendary and infamous college stress; however, I am not kidding when I say love is our greatest human achievement. For one thing, love is our rock through our toughest storm. For example, we as human beings face a dark hour every once and a while. However, the element of love helps us find our way through our darkest hour. It is our guide. Love is always chipper, cheerful and gladsome. In our darkest hours, to hear, see and know that someone loves you brings a smile to any face. We may feel miserable and alone at times, but the simple fact of knowing that someone, a mother, father, brother, sister, boyfriend, girlfriend or a simple friend, loves you puts a joyous smile on your face and a wonderful warmth in your heart and soul.

The world can be cruel, but we must always remember that we are never alone in this performance called Life. In my own personal belief, a gorgeous angel of eternal love and beauty watches over us in our time of need. We may feel lonely at times, but it’s because of this angel’s eternal touch of grace, love and beauty that helps us make the right choices in life, gives us manners to be polite towards others and allows us to give and receive warm hugs. In life there will be times when the world is shrouded in darkness; however, that darkness is broken when the eternal lights of love given to us from another shine through the depths of despair. Yes, we all feel lost every now and again, but knowing that another human being bathes you in their love lights your path and makes life seem a little more bearable.

Certainly there are those who will say that the Pyramids, the Coliseum, and other monuments are the greatest human achievement. Others will point to cars, phones, trains, television, computers and other electronic devices claiming they deserve the title of the Greatest Human Achievement. Yes, all of these things are glorious and amazing inventions; however, none of these inventions have withstood or will be able to withstand the test of time. Other inventions such as the telephone, television, Internet and other modern day devices have made our lives easier, but like the Pyramids, none of the modern devices will be able to withstand the test of time. Love, however, is the eternal spring that was born in the beginning of time, and as such, will continue to live on long after we are gone. Many things have survived from ancient times; however, some of the greatest artifacts from that time are the tales of burning passionate love. King Tutankhamen and Queen Ankhesenamu of Egypt, Marc Anthony and Cleopatra of Rome, and Princess Kaguya and the Emperor of Japan are just some of the many couple whose tales of passionate love were legendary in the past and still read about in history and fairy tales books alike today.

Love is also infinite. As human beings we can make as much love as we want. Our love does not simply have to end with one person or creature. In our darkest hour, we can always make more love to fill our world with light. We as human beings may feel that in our day and age, love is a source that is slowly fading away, but as long as there is one drop of pure love in our world, it can grow and blossom into a beautiful, youthful and bountiful source of love that can fill this world with the love that it so desperately needs. We may be in the depths of chaos, destruction, death and despair now, but with the element of love on our side, that darkness will soon blossom into light. Love does change things, and when we have faith in its power, the darkness that surrounds our world will blossom into some glorious and beautiful.

This world of ours, run largely by technology, can be a dark place, and many may wonder how the word love even comes to mind in this modern day era. The answer to that question is quite simple being that love itself is our greatest human achievement. We will all face a time of darkness, and this darkness may seem deep and endless, but we must always remember that we are never alone. Even in our darkest hour, the element and beautiful infinite power of love will always guide us to safety. It’s bright and cheerful being makes us all smile in our darkest day. If we didn’t have this rare gift of love, then the world would truly be a dark place and that would be the end of it. Thankfully, we have love. It is this gift of love that makes us who we are, and it is what makes our world a bright and beautiful place to live in and raise our children and future generations to come. We have many contributions to our society, indeed, but it is because of our ability to love and to give love that makes us who we are as human beings. This attribute makes love our greatest human achievement, and it always will be for the beautiful future generations to come after us.

A College Student by Amarilys Reyes

2007 North Campus

College Prep Writing Contest SECOND PLACE WINNER

I never imagined myself taking the steps necessary to become a college student. Growing up in a house where I was always considered the lazy one, it did not offer much hope for me to pursue a college degree. Seven years after graduating high school, I have realized that I have learned a lot of things from finally becoming a college student. Once I became a college student, I learned how to be more responsible, open to criticism, and optimistic.

I learned how to be more responsible because I am the only one who can get things done for myself. If I want a good grade on a test, it’s up to me to study in order to get the good grade. It takes all my willpower to be responsible enough to stay in school and not drop out. In the past, I have attempted returning to school, but I never gave it the fair chance it deserved and I quit before I even started. That was a time in my life, in which, I was not ready to accept the responsibility that going to school would bring. Now that I am ready, I have accepted school and it has taught me to be responsible.

Criticism is an important lesson to learn from school. Every time you enter a classroom, you have to be open to the criticism of your teacher and peers, if you can’t accept criticism, then you might as well not attend school. By taking remedial classes, I have learned that I can be wrong, but don’t take it the wrong way; I listen to the comments that others make and learn how to correct the things that are wrong. Criticism is a step to learning, but before you can begin to learn, you have to learn how to accept criticism.

Last, but not least, optimism is the best lesson I have learned from being a college student. Optimism has taught me to see the light at the end of the tunnel. By continuing my role as a college student, I am optimist to the different job opportunities that I will have for my future. A good future is important to me and optimism will remind me each day of the different possibilities. Optimism is also what helps us follow our goals. Without optimism, our goals would seem impossible and our lack of hope will cause us to drop out. All in all, being a college student has taught me to be responsible, accept criticism, and be optimistic. If I would have not learned those three things, chances are that I would have not continued in school this time around either.

Hero in My Life by Yasmin Moses

Hero in my life
You taught me so much, but when I realized you stepped out of my life in the blink of an eye, the impact you’ve left on me; I could not thank you enough for all you’ve done.
Dad, now I know the true meaning of “you do not know what you have until it is gone”
Everyday I wake up and I utilize everything you taught me: mind your manners, treat
Everyone like family, and always remember school is your education of life. Those phrases echo in my ears everyday.
Hero in my life
I miss your advice
I live each day to its fullest just like you did.
I sometimes sit down and wonder why God took you!
I know the answer and as simple as it sounds it was just your time.
You missed out on a lot and although my tears cannot bring you back ….
My heart still aches, and as I ponder what tomorrow will bring ….
I’ll finish walking down this treacherous road called life….
I’ll reminisce on the good times we had as father and daughter….
I’ll tell my children of a wonderful grandfather they had.
“With your farewell you take with you my heart”
I love you…….. hero in my life.
Dedicated to: all the Dads we have lost
Happy Father’s Day

Have A Productive Summer by Professor Bert Lorenzo

I love summer. As a teacher I enjoy many weeks of leisure during the summer months. I try to stay productive and learn during this time but I also let go a bit. I swim, tan, grow my beard, talk a lot with my parents and watch a lot of T.V. I use this time to read too.

I love to read in the summer. I spend hours at the book store or at the library, at magazine racks. Nothing relaxes me more than to spend an entire day buried in a book. I already have my list of books to read for this summer plus some essays. On top of the pile I have Tom Friedman’s The World is Flat. Below that I’ve got Freud’s Vienna & Other Essays by Bruno Bettelheim and I want to finally read Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden.

Same as for teachers summer offers students time off. They usually take fewer courses and might even vacate work. If this describes you I suggest you read and work on your literacy skills. Focus, make intelligent choices and have a productive summer.

You don’t need to make it feel like work or a school project. With a simple approach you can dramatically improve your literacy skills this summer.

1. Take it little by little. You don’t need to work on this for hours. Read and/or write one hour a day. You don’t need more. It adds up. Read the paper one day. Read a magazine article or two the next. Write a letter to a friend. Keep a journal. Read a chapter in a book. Write a poem or song. Find and learn some new words in the dictionary and you’ve just worked on your literacy skills for seven hours in a week.

2. Don’t reinvent the wheel. You don’t need fancy technology or sophisticated techniques to increase your literacy. You just need practice and uninterrupted time. Actually too much technology could decrease your literacy skills. Turn off the computer, cell phone, T.V. and all those other plug-ins and just read and write. Don’t leave for the beach without a novel or your composition book in your bag.

3. Simple doesn’t mean easy. I don’t know of any pills you can take or audiotapes you can listen to that will make you a better reader or writer. No shortcuts exist. Yes you can take simple steps to increase your literacy but you have to do it. You need to practice and you need to practice regularly. Nothing valuable comes without intelligent, focused effort and I can’t think of many things more valuable than strong literacy skills.

4. Teach it. My students tell me they want to learn but words prove nothing. Only action proves intent. Students prove they want to learn when they come on time to every class, do extra work, rewrite all their compositions and do the other things I suggest they do to learn. I remind my students if they want to learn they need to teach. Nothing helps us clarify and understand a discipline better than when we teach it. We all have many opportunities to teach and learn. You can volunteer at an elementary school this summer and tutor children. Many students have parents and grandparents who can’t read or write English. Teach them. Write love and thank you letters to your parents and grandparents. Then teach them to read the letters. Start with the alphabet. Use the caption tool on your T.V. to read aloud with a family member. Teach a younger sibling how to write an academic composition. You have unlimited possibilities to teach.

A Miami Herald reporter recently quoted Shelton Berg the new dean of the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. As a primary goal Berg wants to edit some of the required curriculum for students. He thinks they should play music more and sit less through theory courses. He believes in the power of practice.

Literacy like music takes time and intelligent practice to master. Don’t let your summer time slip away.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

What a difference a year makes

Reflections magazine celebrates its first anniversary this month. Prof. Marlene Cueto the magazine’s creator and chief editor has changed and developed it dramatically in one year. I welcome you to read previous issues and study the magazine’s evolution.

A lot happens in one year. People and things change in one year. Prof. Cueto proved this with her magazine. I often talk to my students about this topic and they write about it as well. Can a person change? I think so if not I picked the wrong profession. I recommend to anyone who goes into the education field to believe in the ability of people to change. I see it in my students and I’ve seen it in myself.

In less than a year I’ve made some big changes in my life. In August my doctor told me I needed to lower my cholesterol levels. Because of my fear of the permanence of death I took immediate action. I applied the same habits I use to keep my resolutions. Below I discuss these habits and I’ll use myself as an example. I came to the conclusion some years ago we have the intelligence to control our lives and to a large extent our health.

To improve my health I had to make the effort. Nothing of value in life comes easy. When did you last find a million dollars strewn on the sidewalk on your way home? First I needed to learn more about fitness and health. I picked my doctor’s brain. I read, talked to wise people, found role models. I couldn’t just wish for better health and make it so. Every time I failed at my goal I tried again. I started fresh. I felt frustration but I said, “If others can lower their cholesterol with proper diet and exercise so can I.”

To lower my cholesterol I had to develop a certain attitude. Attitude affects success and failure. I wrote my goals and I read them every week so I wouldn’t forget where I wanted to go and to remind myself that if others got there so could I. I thought about how everything I learned would take me closer to my goal not that I didn’t want to learn anymore. Once I controlled my attitude I could then control my health.

As I made efforts to train and eat healthy and worked on my attitude I had to focus. I learned when I lost focus of my specific goals I wasted effort. I discovered the paradox that the fewer things I focused on the more I accomplished. When I concentrated and focused my efforts I eliminated distractions and excuses to not exercise and excuses to eat some of the poisons I used to eat. The more I learned about how to control cholesterol the more easily I could focus on my goals so you can see the correlation between focus and control.

I tell my students when we talk about the ways to change aspects of our lives these three habits work together. It takes effort to develop a good attitude. A good attitude helps us stay focused. Focus helps us reach goals more easily. It helps us avoid distractions and helps make effort more effective. As we apply these three habits we must also make intelligent choices.

I made small/simple changes to my diet so I can easily manage what I eat. I edited all fried food, sugars, refined flour and most of the red meat I used to eat. I consider these all simple, intelligent choices. I eat baby back ribs once a month as an indulgence. I found many years ago control came down to the choices I make. When I make intelligent choices I gain more control of my life and in turn can make the changes I desire. I use role models both good and bad. From the bad role models I discovered the correlation between bad choices and bad health. From the good role models I learned about the best exercise routines to lower cholesterol, increase my agility, flexibility, stamina, energy and mental clarity and to lose weight and stick with it.

I continue to learn more about how to control my life and I continue to develop my life philosophy which includes the belief that people can change. Perhaps I can’t change every aspect of my life. Personality and genetics do exist but I do control my actions and choices. This gives me the power to change some important parts of my life and this includes my health. With six months down I’ve got the rest of my life to go. Good habits should last a life time. With proper diet, exercise and my doctor’s prescribed medication I’ve lowered my cholesterol to 122.

If you set a specific goal, write it down and apply these four habits you can do a lot in one year. To Prof. Cueto, I wish you a happy anniversary and many successful years to come.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

Being an Individual by Stephanie Rodriguez

2007 North Campus
College Prep Writing Contest FIRST PLACE WINNER

Have you ever known anyone who always follows trends to be cool? Do you know someone who acts like someone they are not? In life many people are followers not leaders. Knowing who you are at heart is the most important aspect of life; that is why being an individual is the greatest human achievement.

First and foremost, being an individual can be the hardest achievement a human can ever accomplish. It is well known that fashion has a great influence on society, which has made it difficult for people to remember how important it is to be themselves. For example, teens and young adults want to look as beautiful as the models in magazines such as Vogue, Elle, and Men’s Health. In desperation to look fabulous; both men and women are going to extreme measures such as shopping uncontrollably at designer name stores, working out excessively, and even developing eating disorders.

Being an individual is a great accomplishment. It has never been an easy task to walk to the beat of your own drum. Individuals have faced many trials and tribulations, and are not always accepted by society. For example, individuals are constantly criticized because of their choice of clothes, religion, music, foods etc. At one point or another college students that just want to be themselves are rejected by their peers. The strong students stick to the beliefs and choices that make them happy, and they do not care what the rest of society will think of them.

The people that are able to wake up every morning without worrying about what society has to say about the way they choice to live their lives are the happiest at heart. Being able to be yourself at all times without doubting yourself is exceptional That is why being an individual is the greatest human achievement.

What makes a mother? by Yasmin Moses

A wise person once told me “mother’s day is everyday”. Everyone has a different perspective and definition of a mother. In my opinion, I think mothers are a gift from god; I also think mothers are brave, warm-hearted, vivacious individuals. Although I am not a mother yet hopefully one-day I will be. My observations of mothers are like angels sent from above. Mothers are protective providers who take the life that they brought into this world and raise their child to the best of their ability: teaching their child about life and its lessons. As every child matures they are filled with curiosity, heart-aches, and blessings and as teachers of the home mothers have a contingency of scolding with good-intentions. What makes a mother? One can ask the question; however, only a mother can show you the answer: when you see the smile on your child's face after an accomplished goal, or when the child is faced with discrepancies how does a mother cope; especially when the mother has to make a life-alternating decision. What does the child think of the mother's decision in the years to come? A mother provides guidance, when the mother lets go of her child who faces the real world. The child reminisce on the past and is anticipating on the future and is grateful for their mother, yet what makes a mother is her courageous, and unconditional love for a child that blossoms into an unique adult; Moreover, the heart-filling advice given throughout life. A single word cannot express how appreciative he or she feels for the mother they were blessed with. On this mother's day I wish all the mothers a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY.

I Cannot Forget by Cesar Augusto Marin

I have wanted to rub out of my mind
burials in my thoughts
submerged in my memories
and suffocated in the sea of my solitude
to bury my feelings in but deep is my pain
and in memory your love
forgetfulness in silence.
I want to kill the hopes of seeing
but you live in my mind
and also in my deep memories.
I have crossed towns and cities
with the intention of forgetting
with the purpose of not having
but I cannot forget.
The sea, the stars
the sky and the Earth
they do remember you
and they are witnesses of my pain
witnesses of my quiet and disturbing suffering.
I have wanted to always give death to
your love
in my unwanted memories
in the cross of my sadness
but you are.....always here
like a triumph of love
like a feat of pain
you love me.

Angel in the Sky by Yasmin Moses

Angel in the sky

You have touched so many lives.

Your angelic voice is no longer heard.

You left without a word of good-bye, yet you embraced people with your generous ways.

Angel in the sky

As you rest your head with God, you are being remembered through your music and the

positive lifestyle you lived.

Angel in the sky

The songbird that flew away too soon…

The songbird that is loved by many, your fans love you and miss you.

Angel in the sky

It is twelve years without your smile or personality.

You will always be in our hearts forever.

Dedicated to: Selena

Human Nature

Recently some of my students wrote on the topic: Describe something you want to better understand about the world. The majority wrote on a similar theme. They want to better understand why humans behave as they do. Why do we have so much crime, violence, discrimination, poverty, war? My students want answers.

I understand my students’ bleak view of their fellow humans. This past New Year’s Eve 11 people in Dade county alone fell victims to bullets, gravity and sociopaths. We watch endless cruelty and barbarity on the news. I at times have a pessimistic view of the human race and wonder whether we’ll last another 100 years. Evidence abounds that we haven’t evolved much over 50, 000 years.

The images from the battlefront in Baghdad look tame compared to what the Arabs continue to do to Blacks in Darfur. No words can describe it. We live in 2007 and superstition still guides people’s lives. The world remains a dark, cruel place as Maximus assessed for Marcus Aurelius over 2000 years ago.

I can only offer a simple layman’s answer to my students-human nature. Perhaps things happen as they should? Perhaps the psychologists have the estimates wrong and more sociopaths live among us than we can imagine? Perhaps no matter how many laws we write or committees we form most humans will remain savages? As Prof. Keating said, “It was always thus and thus it shall always be.” I suggest to my students that outside small pockets in the United States and other places that have adopted the Anglo-Saxon tradition of respect for the individual most groups will always treat each other cruelly. I don’t see evidence in history to prove otherwise.

Most days however I remain an optimist. How could I not? I live better than kings did 100 years ago. Things look bad but we don’t have to suffer Weltschmerz. We live in the worst of times but we also live in the best of times.

Today exist more opportunities to reach more diverse goals than at any time in history. You can set any goal and reach it. Only your dreams, desires, choices and intelligence limit you. You can even invent your future thanks to technology. In the United States alone today live 5.2 million millionaires and over 500 billionaires. Why can’t you be one of these? A million dollars in the bank alleviates a lot of pessimism.

We see horror on T.V. because newscasts thrive on horror. Few people care to see planes land safely. Most want to see the plane that crashed. We don’t see much of the good news. Today more people (and a higher percentage of the population) live in democracies and participate in free markets than ever in history. The Chinese have a long way to go as communist tyranny gives way to liberty but in India they’ve almost completely rejected socialism for free markets and per capita income increases monthly.

We live in the information age with all the technology, news and knowledge this implies. A lot of useless information exists but we can consume much useful information if we choose intelligently. We must develop and refine our “crap detectors”. No one can keep secret the keys to wealth, health or anything else you want to know. If you master the trivium: language, logic and history you’ll learn how to find, evaluate and use information. As you gain good knowledge you develop a sense of proportion and a brighter outlook.

Practice your individuality and don’t fall victim to “group think”. Most groups force individuals to succumb to the majority. Individuals start to think they can not make it without the group. Group leaders thrive on power and convince individuals to view the glass as half empty and only through the group can we fill our glasses. The independent turn dependent.

Just as we should consume useful information we need to surround ourselves with useful people. I try to avoid negative people. They drain my energy, put me in a bad mood, make me angry and distort my view of the world. I surround myself with positive people and I try to bring positive energy into other’s lives. I always remind myself and others, “If someone else did it why can’t I?”

Take action and you’ll feel better. Right a wrong! Do something about it if you see a problem. A problem equals opportunity. Run for congress and change a law. Write a better one. If you get elected see me. I have many suggestions. Perhaps we can extend the death penalty to sociopaths who fire their guns in celebration? Pessimists complain and whine. Optimists fix, change, create, invent, lead, contribute, discover, explore, laugh, empathize and show gratitude. The good we see around us we owe to optimists like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Edison, Queen Elizabeth I, Andrew Carnegie, Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

You don’t have to go it alone to do great things or make great changes. You can stand on the shoulders of great people. If they did great things why can’t you?

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

An Inconvenient Truth Untold

Some of my students and I viewed Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Gore hit a home run with his production and he probably deserves the Academy Award. The images look beautiful both the real and animated. Gore looks great on the stage. He wasted a major part of his life to politics. He belongs in the academy. He has an ease in front of students he never had in front of voters. He proves his sincere concern for global warming with his tone and body language. I can’t imagine anyone could present a legitimate counter-argument to Gore’s evidence. He overwhelms the audience with facts, graphs and pictures yet he’s mastered the art of simplifying the complicated. Like other master teachers Gore knows, loves and cares for his subject and he cares for his students. I hated the caricatures of Gore when he ran for president. Here he shows himself the way I always saw him as a serious, mature, passionate man. The images of the Earth’s evolution saddened me. We have ruined much of the planet’s beauty and by we I mean everyone. No one escapes blame. The animated polar bear hit me the hardest. I knew bears have started to drown this way but to see the animation of this helpless, beautiful, majestic creature saddened me.

The documentary has some flaws. I wait for the inconvenient truth but it never comes. After 100 minutes the inconvenient truth remains untold. Gore mentions the three culprits of global warming but he does it too subtly. He mentions the population explosion culprit but young students may not understand the connection. My colleague Prof. Preston Allen says Gore doesn’t want to tarnish his image with the inconvenient truth. I can see the logic here. If he preaches, turns off the audience and loses them then he defeats his own cause but Gore should’ve taken the risk. Gore juxtaposes scenes of his slide show with scenes of his travels and personal life. He mentions the strides the Chinese have taken to reduce auto CO2 emissions. Then we see him ride through China in a chauffeured Mercedes-Benz limousine. Other times we see him drive around Tennessee in his SUV or we see him on his vast lands. Because of his unquestionable sincerity about global warming Gore comes off as obtuse when we see how he lives and how as Vice President he had a fleet of Limos and a jumbo jet. To see Gore in Limos and airplanes when he could teleconference hurts his cause.

Gore mentions how all countries except the U.S.A. and Australia signed the Kyoto Treaty but he doesn’t explain to the young impressionable audience the meaninglessness of this act. What have Mexicans, Maldivians, Brazilians, Bulgarians, etc. done since they signed the treaty? With all the environmental regulations in our country we pollute but a fraction of what second and third world country inhabitants like the Chinese and Indians pollute. Better for the environment had we saved the paper used to write the voluminous Kyoto Treaty? I’ve grown bored with people and this includes fellow residents who blame my country for the world’s ills. People who can’t feed their off-spring don’t need to breed. When they do we have to use our advanced technology and vast amounts of energy to feed them. We pollute because of this and then get the blame. We supply a 1/3 of Cubans (horrible polluters) food and medicine. No matter how much we help most people around the world still hate us. We pollute because we have a consumer based economy but we also do the most to help others around the world. Our consumer economy keeps the noble middle class employed. They continue to reproduce and their children need jobs. If we don’t buy the middle class will suffer. Our military uses a lot of energy to keep our allies safe. Our industry (we work harder than any people in the world) produces things people need around the world to survive and improve their miserable lives but this takes a lot of energy and it causes pollution. We could produce less and consume less Chinese products but this will lead to more suffering and as the selfish continue to reproduce and the population explodes we will see mass death. People will criticize us but should we continue to destroy the Earth to help the selfish, irresponsible poor? Gore needs a part two of the documentary to finally speak the inconvenient truth because the Earth lies in the balance.

I have hope for the future though. We may see the solution before Gore’s 50-year scenario. We will run out of fossil fuels (a finite resource which will run out in about 20 years) before this and cleaner more efficient technologies already exist. They only need some refinement. Remember necessity feeds invention. As a worst case scenario we’ll suffer massive droughts and starvation and about 30% of the population could die similar to what happened with the great plague nearly 700 years ago. A horrible scenario but the Earth will cool and we will use the new, refined technologies to travel and produce food in cleaner, more efficient ways. We could do our small part in South Florida in the mean time to reduce pollution. We could lobby local politicians to have them eliminate the most horrendous of polluters-school and public buses. We must inconvenience someone if we want to protect the environment.

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

Simplicity Strategies Part II

In the November 2006 issue of Reflections magazine I describe four habits all students can develop to simplify their lives. I describe how a daily constitutional helps increase aerobic capacity and mental clarity-both important for students. Together with exercise good nutrition increases energy and over-all well being. I recommend students reduce their possessions to the things they love and want to keep the rest of their lives. When we allow too many objects into our lives we become slaves to our possessions. Finally students need to learn to say no to all things that complicate their lives. This includes objects, obligations, activities and people. As students simplify their lives they can apply their new found time, money and energy to their studies.

As you master these four habits you can develop more sophisticated habits that will simplify your life even more and allow you to focus on those things that really matter to you. You may want to spend more time with family and less time at work or you might want to free yourself from debt. Below I describe slightly more advanced habitual changes you can make to simplify and win more control over your life and your education.

1. Spend a few hours a week in a natural environment away from crowds, traffic and buildings. Many of our complications stem from our thoughtless decisions and actions. You need time and the proper environment to think about your life and where you want to go. We make most of our bad decisions when we let people rush us into action. When our senses suffer the over stimulation of the modern world with all the useless information, noise and vulgarity we make bad decisions that complicate our lives. Go to a quiet, natural environment and learn to think deeply. Think about all the shackles in your life you want to remove and about all the things you can say no to. As one of my favorite thinkers wrote you want to learn to live deliberately.

2. Live in a home with only those rooms you use every day. Many students live with parents which I consider the best arrangement. You reduce your worries, expenses and problems and at the same time help your parents. To those who live alone or share a home with a spouse and/or children I suggest you live in the smallest house or apartment possible. If you have a big house sell it and with the profits buy something smaller and let the left over money collect interest or use it to pay off debt. To determine the right size home for you consider the rooms you use every day. If you have one room you don’t use every day you don’t need that room any day. You may want the room. This doesn’t mean you need it. When you learn to fully distinguish want from need you simplify even more. Excess rooms mean more mortgage or rent, more to clean, more to worry about when a hurricane pays us a visit and more stuff to fill the room.

3. Live close to school but more importantly work. I suggest you live within 30 minutes of work. One of my students recently wrote a composition about all the stress in his life and mentioned his terrible job and his three hour commute every Monday-Friday. Some statistics show the majority of Americans spend 20% or more of their day in traffic to and from work. This causes manifold health problems. You need to make intelligent decisions now as a student to plan your future. Where will you live and where will you work? Don’t look at these as separate questions and decisions. You will probably find it easier to live near work than to work near home. Does that make sense? Of courses the best way to solve the commute problem-work from home. Technology allows this for more and more people every day. Remember in a capitalist society you can fashion products and create your own work too.

4. Strive for economic freedom. Many of my students mention all their credit card debt to me and I shake my head in disbelief. The majority of Americans own nothing in the ultimate capitalist society. Can you think of a bigger irony? The average consumer has $8000 of debt and this doesn’t include mortgage and car payments. To gain and/or maintain economic freedom you have two options only. You can take the complex route described by Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki in Why We Want You to be Rich or the simple route described by John Maeda in The Laws of Simplicity. I took the latter route and achieved great peace of mind by age 30. You need to become expert at desire/need distinction. Remember the aphorism, “The poor stay poor by acting rich. The rich stay rich by acting poor.” Decide whether you want to achieve economic freedom or whether you want to help the business owner achieve it.

If you want to simplify try to develop one, some or all of these habits. The results will surprise and satisfy you. Life passes fast. Do you want to live in traffic or as a debt slave? Remember Thoreau’s advice, “simplify, simplify, simplify.”

Copyright Bert Lorenzo, 2007

Having a Heart Matters by Yasmin Moses

Having a heart matters

Holding onto a loved one, or even that special someone

Caring about someone else besides ourselves because Having a heart matters

A homeless person walks by

Giving them your pocket of pennies makes it Having a heart matters

Dreams that you want to come true

Believing makes it all worthwhile because having a heart matters

Do not dampen someone parade over a grumpy day

When time is rough, just smile and have a pleasant day

Because having a heart matters especially if you love yourself and others.

An Unwanted Child by Yasmin Moses

Having one beside you! Having one to hug you!
Having one to say good-bye! Having one to say I love you!
When you see all When you hear all
And no one is around to give a word of advice. An unwanted child comes to mind.
Growing up and finding out your family is not really yours
Living with the knowing of being an unwanted child
This unwanted child has a secret and no one wants him or her to know
An unwanted child burdens this pain for the rest of their life. God created me. If you didn’t want why did you have me?
An unwanted child has a constant reminder he or she just doesn’t fit . An unwanted child no longer This child blossoms to be a love for another family This unwanted child is an adult now and the past still lingers in his or her mind

Do you wonder who this unwanted child was?