PERCEIVING and KNOWING

Perceiving is understanding something in the way that one would know an instinct. If one perceives something, he or she feels that it is true. This type of knowledge is kind of like common sense.

Knowing is understanding something in a more factual sense. If one knows something, he or she thinks it is true. This type of knowledge is similar to being "book smart."

When you know something, you do not always have to perceive it. For instance, when a student learns facts from a textbook in school without really caring about the subject, he only knows the facts, he does not perceive them.

If you perceive something, you do not necessarily have to know it. If one feels something is right, without knowing whether or not it is, they are only perceiving it.

There is no way of knowing that is superior to any other. Each way of knowing something has its own pros and cons. If you know a fact, there’s really no feeling behind that knowledge. If you perceive a fact, there’s no evidence behind that knowledge. One needs to know and perceive in order to be successful; a combination of intelligence and instinct is always necessary.

Know Thyself

In order to know yourself, you must be able to understand your values, morals, views, and feelings. Everyone is different and thinks differently. Because of this, it is important for each person to know him or herself. This self-knowledge is priceless. This is what enables you to grow as a person and develop yourself.

I believe my own weakness is that I’m too empathetic. Sometimes, the problems or other people seem to consume my life. Even if I don’t know someone, I always feel the need to help them when they need it. This is not necessarily a bad quality (in my opinion, it’s more of a good thing than a bad thing), but it means that I end up losing myself a bit in this process. Although I’m able to help other people out, I don’t get to spend nearly enough time helping myself when I need it. Recently, I’ve tried to balance this out more: I try to spend time helping others, but make sure that I have enough time for myself.

I think my best quality is that I’m very tolerant and understanding. Many people say this, but get easily annoyed or angered. I feel that I’m always very accepting of others, even if they’re very different from me. In fact, I enjoy being around people who aren’t like me at all. Because of this, I’m extremely tolerant of those around me. Even, for example, when I’m forced to deal with someone who is tremendously irritating, although they’re trying to be nice, I’m able to be kind. I rarely yell at people or even get mad. I feel that if more people were more understanding, many problems would be easily solved.

It’s really hard to write about one’s own weaknesses and strengths because it means you either have to analyze what you’re doing wrong or brag about yourself. Both of these make people uncomfortable. No one wants to admit to being flawed, and no one wants to be seen as conceited. Personally, I’m getting used to writing about topics like this. I used to feel much more uneasy when writing about myself, but it’s gradually getting easier. I’m starting to realize that everyone has weaknesses, and admitting that I have strengths isn’t necessarily bragging – only if I turn it into that.

I Wish Someone Had Told Me...

I’m never sure of myself; I over think every single thing I do and say. Every one of my actions is carefully planned out. This might seem bad, but in junior high I was even worse. Not only was I paranoid and self-conscious, but I was also extremely shy and unhappy with my life. I wore plain clothes and never spoke out; I didn’t want anyone to notice me any more than they had to. I was constantly bullied and said nothing to defend myself.

I had some friends, but not that many. Making new friends was pretty much impossible, considering how little I talked. For that matter, very few of my friends were more outgoing than I was. Because of this, when my peers made fun of me, no one would tell them to stop. I couldn’t bring myself to say something, and they were just too scared. That didn’t make them bad friends, they were just shy.

However, I did have one friend who was more outgoing than I ever thought I could be. One day when we were in seventh grade, she saw how some boys were talking about me – commenting on my unflattering and plain clothing and saying I was fat – and got extremely mad. No one had ever really stuck up for me before. She yelled at them to stop, even though I’d asked her not to because I was afraid they’d just make fun of me even more.

After she’d said what she needed to, she walked with me to the bathroom to talk to me. She was actually mad at me for not telling her about this sooner, and for not doing something about it by myself. I told her that I couldn’t stand up to them like she had; I honestly felt like I wasn’t capable of it. I had put so much effort into being invisible that I felt like I was completely powerless to everyone else. My friend told me that I needed to stop thinking so hard and just do what I needed to – tell all the bullies to leave me alone.

For a long time, I couldn’t bring myself to stand up to speak out. But once I really thought about what she’d said, I realized she was right. I was never going to accomplish anything in my life if I continued to be silent. The very next time a bully said something to me, I told them to stop and walked away. He was completely surprised and hasn’t said a thing to me since.

My friend’s advice has radically changed my life; I’m a totally different person now. Because she believed in me, I’m now able wear the clothes I like, make new friends, and do things that make me stand out. I’m no longer scared of what other people will say to me.

My Life As I Wished I Lived It

A life has value if you feel that it does. This varies for every person. If you feel that you’ve accomplished all that is necessary for you to be happy, then your life has value. I believe the purpose of life is to accomplish whatever you personally are capable of, and what you feel the need to do. Everyone is different and each person has something else that they feel the need to do during their lifetime.

There are many things I wish to possess and experience before I reach the end of my life. I’d like to make a difference in someone else’s life, be in a successful band, find love, learn how to swing dance, and travel around the world.

Most people want to make a difference in the lives of others. I feel that it’s completely necessary for me to feel like I’ve done anything worthwhile in my life. If no one appreciates what I’ve done for them, then my life will have had no value. This value is important to humanity because it is absolutely necessary to care about those around you. If everyone felt the need to make a difference in the lives of others, then there would be much less negativity in the world.

At some point in many people’s lives they want to be famous. I feel that in a way, having a successful band would prove to me that I’ve had a valuable life. If each person has a goal they want to achieve, then everyone will be more focused and accomplish more.

The majority of people want to find love during their life. Whether or not it lasts forever, I’d like to find love sometime before I die.

Each person has his or her own things they feel the need to accomplish. Personally, I’ve always been very interested in swing dancing; the dancers always look so free and like they’re having so much fun. I’ve always wanted to experience that freedom. It's essential that every person find something that they find fun.

Also, I feel that if I don’t see other parts of the world, I won’t be able to appreciate my own life. Everyone should be able to see other cultures in order to have a greater understanding of the world as a whole.

Thinking About the Hero

In works such as Beowulf, The Odyssey, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there is a common theme of heroism. In a way, the protagonists of these works are heroes. However, I don't think the motives of these characters are completely heroic. Although they may rescue others from danger or some sort, they often do it so they can be seen as brave; they don't necessarily do it because they care about the other people involved. Even though their actions seem heroic, these protagonists are only interested how they can benefit.

In my opinion, a hero is someone who puts others before him or herself. However, everyone has a different idea of what a hero is. There are some obvious heroic actions, such as saving a child from a burning building. I feel that there are many smaller actions that go unnoticed. For example, I think that a single mother can be a hero. Although she isn't risking an immediate painful death, she's risking a lot. In order to be a hero, you must take some sort of a risk in order to help others. For this matter, I believe any woman can be a heroine. However, there are no heroines in the works mentioned. This might be because heroes are often seen as strong men, not women.

Heroes serve as an example of what humans should do and how humans should act. We do need heroes to set an example for us, so we have something to work towards. If no one has an example of what the ideal person is, then it's impossible to know what the right thing to do it (or to understand why it's right).