Sorry to disturb you this late evening, I hope you had a great summer. This summer I read a book called The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown and I really wanted to get the chance to discuss with you, the revelations I've received from this book. Not only have I received my own personal conviction lessons from this story but I've also received insight on how this historical experience relates to our physical education class. This inspiring story main nitty-gritty focused on remarkable underdogs rising out of the shadows in pursuit of excellence and eminent. It honestly reminded me of the story of the Phoenix. The Phoenix, is a bird that is consumed by flames but rises from the ashes. This concept pertains to the 9 Americans who faced off against a hundred challenges just to get to the Rio Olympics in 1936 and conquer the impossible. As I was reading, I thought of our dance class and how Daniel James Brown's descriptions of the impact each member of the University of Washington …show more content…
team had on each other as they were preparing for the olympic games. Even as they physically entered into Berlin for the olympics they were still the source of encouragement for each other. I see why the main idea for chapter 17 and 18 was perseverance and teamwork and it related to our class discussions about accountability. When I read that in chapter 18, when Gordon Adam and Don Hume became sick before the qualifiers match for Olympic rowing but still participated in the preliminaries, I was mindblown. They could’ve easily refused to race or demanded special treatment for themselves and excuse my language but half-butt the competition but they didn’t. Instead they used that same mindset of selflessness and diligence to go out there and race, not only for themselves, but for their teammates and their country. That event is relevant to our class because I feel like it can teach a lot of us about being less selfish when it comes to things. Whether it’s showing up for every rehearsal when the May show starts to approach or being prepared to class everyday of the school year. We tend to look at ourselves individually when we get to the mid-term of the school year that we don’t realize how our small mistakes affect our fellow classmates. This specific event will teach us that no sickness, no missing foot undies or scarf should delay us from ever coming to class or rehearsals. Another event in this book is when Joe Rantz was a young boy and he went on a field trip with his class to the woods.
At home he is an abandoned boy with nobody on his side, living on his own. When he learns that the mushrooms in the woods are actually in good use of a source of food, he takes advantage of that opportunity. He turns a thing that looks like a disinterest to society as a good source of material for himself. He literally raises the value of something others would discard. This event is so helpful when it comes to changing a doubtful mindset into a grateful one. Nobody is a perfect dancer in this world … well at least not in our class, but we tend to doubt our abilities and what we can do when we start to compare ourselves to the people around us and the dances we see on television. This event will teach us that we should be grateful in our disabilities because its what makes us smarter and stronger. We can make a setback into something useful, if we put our minds to
it. This book in general is a book of miracles, encouragement, and pioneers. Specific events in this book could already whip us into shape so imagine if we read this book as a class together. This book will not only encourage the underclassmen who are coming up in the dance program but remind and revise the upperclassmen who are leaving it as well. I hope you will consider including The boys in the Boat as a wake up call gathering in this year's curriculum. Who knows how much we all can mature from the lessons we learn from this book.
It deals with obstacles in life and the ways they are over come. Even if you are different, there are ways for everyone to fit in. The injustices in this book are well written to inform a large audience at many age levels. The book is also a great choice for those people who cheers for the underdogs. It served to illustrate how the simple things in life can mean everything.
The Boys in the Boat has a shared dream of winning gold in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, but not just the gold, it is the overall satisfaction of achieving something greater than ever imagined. Many of these boys
In the book Boys In the Boat, Daniel Brown tells the story of the U.S.’s rowing team’s Olympic journey to gold in 1936. The games were held in Berlin, right under Hitler’s eye. Though the games were held in Berlin that didn’t stop Joe Rantz, the book’s main character, and his team from going for gold. The boys had to show perseverance and teamwork to even be able to row. From country boys, to gold medal winners, rowing and hardships helped them embody the American spirit of hard work and teamwork. The boys had to overcome hardships, to work hard, and they never stopped being a team in order to win gold in Berlin.
...tudents, American slaves, and 1890’s immigrant children, in similar ways. Sport is often vital to the autonomy, freedom, and pride of its participants especially in regards to the Native American students at boarding schools. Even though individuals may have thought that the schools were exploiting the talents of the Native American students, which they may have been, no one considered how the students actually viewed sport at the time. There often needs to be less preoccupation with political correctness and more focus on how certain actions actually affect the ones involved. Even if the schools were exploiting the students by sport, sports should never even been taken away from the Native American students of boarding skills due to the fact that it was sport that often was allowing them to develop; not only as a Native American, but as an individual as well.
Ever since I was a young student, teachers knew that I was not a normal kid. These teachers saw qualities in me that they could not see in many students at that age level. They saw a child who had a profound love to know more and had the ambition of a decorated Olympic swimmer to learn not just the material that was being taught but why it is being taught and how I can I use this information to make people’s lives better. Fast-forward to today, and you can clearly see that not much has changed except my determination to learn and my love to help others has done nothing but expanded.
In the nonfiction novel, The Boys in the Boat, Daniel James Brown emphasizes the importance of persistent dedication to one’s self and their teammates through the use of recollections from the 1936 University of Washington varsity boat. Pushed to the breaking point, the boys sacrifice their own needs for those of the boat and demand more from one another on their quest for the gold at the 1936 Olympics. As the final medal race approaches, the University of Washington’s stroke, Don Hume, falls ill; however, rather than replace their teammate, Joe Rantz insists Don rows, “‘If you put him in the boat, Coach, we will pull him across the line. Just strap him in. He can just go along for the ride’” (335). Through the countless hours of training and
The start of the 2002 track season found me concerned with how I would perform. After a disastrous bout with mononucleosis ended my freshmen track season, the fear of failure weighed heavily on my mind. I set a goal for myself in order to maintain focus and to push myself like nothing else would. My goal for my sophomore track season was to become a state champion in the 100 meter hurdles. I worked hard everyday at practice and went the extra mile, like running every Sunday, to be just that much closer to reaching my goal. The thought of standing highest on the podium in the center of the field, surrounded by hundreds of spectators, overcame my thoughts of complaining every time we had a hard workout. When I closed my eyes, I pictured myself waiting in anticipation as other competitors names were called out, one by one, until finally, the booming voice announced over the loudspeaker, "...and in first place, your 2002 100 meter hurdle champion, from Hotchkiss, Connie Dawson." It was visions like these that drove me to work harder everyday.
Some of us may think we've reached the end of our learning but the truth is, we have not;
We’ve all found ourselves tied up in one way or another: too much schoolwork, too many activities, friends demanding our time. Well, no matter how you’ve found yourself tied up, we’ve all found ourselves tied to one mountain, some for as many as 13 years. Though confined, we all have managed to wiggle around in our bonds to the hill and create other long-lasting ties.
The year 2012 is as unique as our class that’s graduating within it. As the Class of 2012, we should be prepared to answer questions about the things that make us unique. Our children will revisit this historic year through their text books, their TV reruns and our own high school keepsakes which we have held on to over the years. With all this attention will come questions from our children, questions like:
As freshmen, life was overwhelmingly, exhaustingly demanding, Eat, sleep, and school. Don’t trip and fall in front of seniors, And don’t act like a fool. "Each floor is like a baseball field," The teachers all would tell. So why can’t I find room 222?
Congratulations, County High Class of 2012, our thirteen-year marathon is over. Some of you may know I am a distance runner, part of an immensely successful cross-country and distance track program. We were fourth at the state cross-country championships, and we are the best senior boys team in the state. My involvement in athletics truly linked me with our school and granted me friends whom I will remember for a lifetime. One of the most important aspects of my time in high school was getting involved. Wherever your next journey takes you, don't sit back and watch the action. Take the initiative and you will experience the benefits. Just look around you. These are the people you grew up with, the people you were teammates with and the people you have survived dozens of classes with for the last four years. They are not merely faces in a yearbook. They are your people, your community, your family. They are the greatest benefit of being involved.
No love, no friendship can cross the path of our destiny without leaving some mark on it forever. Like footsteps on a beach. People come in and out of our lives, leaving us changed in some shape or form. Like footsteps along our trail of destiny.
Ok, its 12:15 and I just walked into my house from seeing a movie with three of my best friends and I have to write this speech. A speech that’s suppose to inspire all of you, and tell you how the future has so much to hold for the class of 2015, how the possibilities are endless. Right now I’m probably standing in the front of the class and supposed to be addressing all of you as “fellow graduates, or to the class of 15’”. But that’s not what I’m going to do. I put this off as I do with the majority of my work thinking I would just write something everyone expects to hear, but instead I wrote this.
The story envokes the realization that anyone can be mentally liberated if they simply only open their eyes and behold the value of individuality. It is up to each of us to explore this meaning. Through compassion we can unlock the true purpose and meaning of ourselves and others. We need to be open to and understanding of people who are different. Therefore, students who are mentally challenged need to be surrounded by those who dare to add value to their lives. We definitely need more people like the coach.