Good Times, Sunshine, and Hammers

Posted on April 1st, 2008 by carolinemd

Summer has always been one of my favorite parts of the year. There is the aspect that school is not in session which means not much work, but then there is the aspect of making memories. During the school year people do make memories and do have fun but everything seems to be taken over by the fact that work is involved. In the summer, everyone is laid back and relaxed with no worries! In the poem, Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle Received from a Friend Called Felicity, the overall theme is how magical summer can be. The thing about summer is anything can happen. You have all the time in the world and all the opportunities, so memories are made and friendships are formed. When the poem says, “When the purpose of knees was to be skinned” I believe this is what summer is all about. It is saying take risks, go wherever your heart takes you, and do whatever you want to do. The poem then goes on to talk about a specific, summer memory of the poet and how it made them feel. It then finishes by describing how summer can be so magical that you might not even believe it happened. The only thing about summer and memories is they are easily missed. If you blink you might miss it and never be able to get it back.

As soon as I read this poem, I immediately thought of three simple letters: M.A.P. Those three letters stand for one of my most memorable experiences, Metro Atlanta Project. In order for you to completely understand what I am trying to explain you will need some background information. M.A.P. is a service project at my church (Northside United Methodist Church) where about 215 people re-roof houses in Metro Atlanta. Every year we re-roof about 15 houses. Rising 7th graders-12th graders along with some chaperones spend the night at the church and enjoy nightly worship.

Now after hearing all of this you may not think it sounds very fun and memorable. You see the thing that I love and will remember most about M.A.P. is not the fact that your helping other people and the fact that by helping other people you are truly helping yourself, it is the friendships and relationships that I have made and kept because of M.A.P. You see people from all over the southeast come to Atlanta to participate in M.A.P. I have friends that live in Texas or South Georgia and I would have never met them if it hadn’t been for M.A.P. I don’t see these people for a whole year and then I come back to M.A.P. and it is as if I have spent every day of my life with them. Now I do get to see some of them and all we can really seem to talk about is M.A.P. It is like M.A.P. has become part of my yearly routine. I mean when I say I am friends with people I never would have been friends with if it had not been for M.A.P. I am not kidding. I am still friends with eighth graders, ninth graders, eleventh graders, seniors, and even some college students! Some people really take for granted what M.A.P. can bring you if you are looking. I do not know what I would do if I was not friends with some of the people that I am now. They have had a major impact on my life and it is all thanks to M.A.P.

Now friendships are important to build but so are relationships. It is not only the relationships with other people it is the relationship with God. I remember my first year of M.A.P. I was a little rising seventh grader and did not know anyone. Within a day I already knew more people than I should know but most importantly I felt like I was starting to get to know God. The next year was even better for God and me because I was older and more mature. I had been through confirmation and so I had grown closer to him throughout the year so when it was time for M.A.P. I was ready. 

Finally, I would like to say how thankful I am for M.A.P. If it were not for M.A.P. I would not know half the people I do know. I would not be as close to God as I am now. I also would not have a summer memory that lasts more than one year. You see the thing with summer memories is after one summer there normally gone, but with M.A.P. it reoccurs every year and it is like it never ended. 

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Is Fluoride Really Neccessary?

Posted on February 6th, 2008 by carolinemd

What is fluoride really? Why do some people disapprove of adding it to drinking water? What are it’s side effects? Here are some answers that Americans need to know.

Some people disapprove of adding fluoride to drinking water because they think of it as medication. They believe that people drinking water that contains fluoride could be harming themselves without their own knowledge. When people take medication there are labels on their medicaiton informing them of the side effects and the dangers. All the other chemicals that are put into tap water are for people’s own safety. Fluoridation is not neccessary.

In my opinion, fluoride should not be added to drinking water because I believe there’s no real purpose and there are a lot of side effects. In order to ensure that our drinking water that has been fluoridated is safe to drink scientists must run tests on every person’s weight to height ratio. There is no way to test every person drinking water that has been fluoridated. Yes, fluoride has its benefits, but I’m sure there is another possible way to receive those benefits without harming you and other’s bodies.

In order to have fluoride toothpaste companies needed to solve some problems occuring in toothpastes. In the early years of toothpaste the abrasive used was calcium phosphate. However with this new fluoridation process, many companies such as Procter and Gamble had to find abrasive combinations that worked. The first combination was pairing stannous fluoride with calcium pyrophosphate. This formula became known as Crest toothpaste. Next was sodium fluoride. Procter and Gamble came out with Advanced Formula Crest in 1982. Advanced Formula Crest uses a hydrated silica abrasive that doesn’t hinder sodium fluoride dissociation. When gel toothpastes started to rise many called for sodium fluoride. Thanks to all these discoveries we now have fluoridated toothpastes.

The side effect that occurs from using fluoride in drinking water is the fact that if a pregnant woman accidently consumes too much fluoride that she could harm the teeth and growth of their own child. The child could begin puberty early and grow at a faster pace than a normal child would. It could also have certain birth defects. This concerns me because you are hurting a child without even their consent. Also, the woman doesn’t truly know as well. They can’t tell when they’ve consumed to much fluoride. If fluoride is added to drinking water then innocent people could be harmed along with children that haven’t even been born yet. There are many harmful side effects due to fluoridation but I believe this is the worst because neither the woman nor the child has any clue that they are endangering themselves.

Yes, fluoride is a great way to get rid of tooth decay, but is that really neccessary? Do the benefits that come with fluoridation make it worth adding it to drinking water?

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Hello world!

Posted on January 17th, 2008 by carolinemd

Welcome to Learnerblogs.org. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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