Similarities and Differences

SIMILARITIES
When others were presenting their powerpoints, I listened and watched as they gave out information. Most tribes' rituals were a bit harsh, compared to how we live. In all the tribes, there's always a special way to celebrate a girl's first menstruation cycle. In the San, for example, the girl is isolated from everything for a week, since that's the time her menstruation cycle ends, and is allowed to go in and out, but she has to know that her isolation isn't done yet.. And in the Sioux!, the girl is isolated similarly, only she is not allowed to go in and out whenever she wants. Usually, environments in all the tribes are harsh, either too hot or too dangerous. Sometimes it's both.

All these tribes are similar in one way or the other. All the tribes that we all presented had something in common; how they live similarly. Even when some of them are nomadic, they still live the same way the rest of the tribes do; they have to conserve a lot of water and food in order to survive. Even those in South and North America, where people are so modern, they still look for their own food. And they still travel by traditional transportations. All these tribes are very similar because they are also aboriginal people to the country they live in.

Someone's Theme

My brother's personality can be kind of irritating. He always bothers you whenever you're trying to concentrate on something, say your homework. He would say something that might make you mad. For example, he could bother you by telling you horror stories that will stick with you for about two weeks. But even though he likes to annoy people, he's a very caring person. He always makes sure the people close to him are happy and healthy. He'd do anything to help those that are dear to him. Even those who are at the side of the road. He'd ask a random guy where he was heading, and even if the place they were going to was further away than my brother expected, he'd tell the person to get into the car.

He has a lot of friends who care a lot about him. If he was sick, all of them would visit the first day he was admitted to the hospital. Although it's an act of kindness to visit, my brother hates attention. Which makes people love him even more.

To sum up, my brother is a caring, kind, friendly, annoying, and loving person.

Steering her heart

I think that Katie meant that whenever Lynn cried, she couldn't ignore the crying. For example, if Katie had an intention to ignore it, and didn't plan on cheering Lynn up, she would do it. But as soon as Lynn would start crying, Katie would forget all her intentions and her heart would change the feeling of ignorance.

There was once or twice when my brother threatened to hit me if I touch his stuff, when I was younger. I had most of the things my brother had, like an iPod, my own shampoo, and my own body soap. My sister though, stole it all and put it somewhere I couldn't find it. She thought I would waste it all. My hair stunk for a week and I didn't want to use my brother's shampoo in case he meant his threat. But after about 10 days, my brother went up to me, hugged me and said he was sorry. He said he had a "change of heart". He told me that when he felt my hair was rough, he gave me permission to use his shampoo, and he didn't hit me after that.

I think that's what "steering your heart" means.

One Cultural Fact

One fact about the San that I found was interesting was that girls were not allowed to leave their place of isolation. They could leave their shelter, sure, but they knew it wasn't over yet. They couldn't look at men or the sun, for the Sun symbolizes death. The females had to stay in their shelter most of the time and couldn't really do anything while they're waiting for their first period to finish. The thing that makes me wonder is don't they feel lonely, or do they get used to the fact that they have to stay inside the little huts for one week?

Normal girls who don't live in Africa could walk around and be free, and I find it kind of sad that the girls of the San tribe have to be isolated from civilization for about one week.

Adolescence

During our parents' teen years, they were more free. They could go anywhere they want anytime the want. They'd just have to tell their parents where they're going. Even though they didn't have much money, people weren't unsafe. These days, there are more dangerous people that can kidnap you, but back in the old days, all the bad guys were caught and put into jail.

One of the things that is similar between adolescents now and adolescents from more than 20 years ago is that we feel pressure all the time, in everything that we do. Parents still are strict, if not all the time. We still play with friends, but not as much as our parents did. We still get homework, too, and we still get in trouble if we don't do it. There's still rebellion, and I don't think that it ever will disappear just like that.

The only difference now is that teens are more daring at doing things they're not supposed to. Our parents didn't need the rule "Don't smoke" like we do. They know it's wrong, even though they might be a little tempted. Teens now are more stubborn and get more involved in things that are inappropriate.

Well, a lot of things have changed. First of all, we have better access to technology, so sometimes we stay inside the house all day, just surfing the net and going on facebook and myspace. Our parents though, since they didn't have very good technology, went outside and played with their friends until it got dark. Second, there's less freedom now than there was back in our parents' day. They could roam about the streets until midnight and not get kidnapped. We have to bring an older person with us so we don't get hurt.

I'm not sure what the changes are, but the technology definitely changed. There are broadbands now, for internet, barely any modems. So we get better internet. And that motivates us to go online everyday. I don't know what to say about all the dangerous people. Maybe they just watch too much television to be stupid enough to harm people and argue with the police, or they might be crazy.

In some ways, being a teenager now is easier because we get better education, and we have better technology. So life isn't that difficult. The bad part about that is we become really lazy and won't get off our butts unless it's something that's really important for us. Our parents though, had a little bit more difficult of a life. They didn't really have or use phones, computers, and other technology things. But during all that boredom, they found ways to have fun, which was playing with their friends. So in a way, that's a good thing because they don't become lazy and sick like most teens do today.

FRIM Trip

Being around so many people for one whole day makes me a little dizzy. I never thought there would be so many people doing the same things I was doing. It felt weird to look around and see forty something kids my age on the same camping trip. The great part about being around that many people is that you don't really fear the rainforest as much as you thought you would. You have friends to help you through hikes and certain activities. They'll support you.

The most hateful thing on the trip was the mosquitoes and the difficult hikes. People already get enough bites from mosquitoes when we're not in the rainforest. People got so itchy and despised the little mosquitoes. And the hikes! Don't even get me started!

The hikes gave you sore legs, arms, and maybe even your own head. You'd climb and climb and you'd stop several times. Sometimes when you're at your best on the hike, the person in front of you would stop abruptly and you'd bump into them, and the person behind you might grab your shirt if they feel like they might fall.

The positive part of the social thing was you always had someone to support you or eat with you, and especially, sleep right next to you if you got scared. The negative part of it is that they might get a little annoying when they ask you to go everywhere with you. Overall though, I would say certain people could cross out the negative part because you always need a friend everywhere you go.

Katie's Mother And Father (Continued)

I think maybe that Katie is closer to her dad, because the way she describes him is so ... admirable. "Our father is proud of us no matter what we do", Katie states. It kind of reveals the admiration she has for her father. She may also feel close to him because she thinks he doesn't judge her too much. Unlike her mother, Katie's father doesn't care if his daughters act manly. He only cares that they don't feel tied down, kind of like a modern dad in America.

Katie and Lynn's mother, though, is more old-fashioned, as I mentioned before. She is more into the works of how she grew up, which was probably not like her own daughters, and maybe she's trying to teach her daughters what she was taught. Doing this to her daughters make them a tad tied down, even Katie, so maybe that's why Katie isn't that close to her mom as much as she is to her dad.