"I am going to change the world by becoming famous! I will change the world by running for president! I will be a politician, an activist, a warrior!" I will be perfectly honest, I do not have such plans, so I will begin by tossing out the pointless melodrama and the theatrical, banal piffle.
My plans for changing the world are at once far more humble and far more grand, my plan is simple, I will live, I will learn, I will write, and I will teach. I am not concerned with changing the geopolitical boundaries of bickering countries, with winning or losing elections, such things are superficial, they are sometimes the result of world-transforming behaviour, but almost never the cause. The people in my life who have effected me the most are not presidents, not astronauts, not fighters or politicians, they are teachers. I will live and learn, I will accumulate experience and knowledge, I will travel, I will be a thinker, a philosophizer. I will then write, I will collect and spread my ideas and opinions; the old adage "the pen is mightier than the sword" could not be more true. The clashing of swords may echo for seconds, minutes, incremental fractions in history, but the resounding sound of pens meeting paper are heard throughout eternity, immortalized in ink. I believe that all great writers eventually have an epiphany, up until a certain point, great writers write to satisfy their passion for writing, then they reach a point where they realize that their words have the tremendous power to affect strangers in the most complicated and bizarre ways. Christopher Hitchens wrote about reaching this point in his article "A Death in the Family" (http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2007/11/hitchens200711)
I hope to some day reach this point, when my words will become manifested in the actions of others, when I can begin to change the world by changing people's opinions.
Changing the world through writing is merely a hope, it has yet to occur (and I doubt it ever will), my main plan for changing the world is far more simple, and far more achievable; I will teach. The most influential people in my life have been teachers, have been people who have unconsciously created the lust for learning within their students, this task, nay, this duty, is as close to the term "sacred" as I can imagine. To answer the question, I will live my life as fully as I can, I will try to gain as much knowledge and experience as I can, and I will teach, I will pass my knowledge and wisdom (assuming that I have any) down through the generations, to help inspire in my students the same passion for learning, the same burning desire to make a difference that certain individuals have inspired within me.
Aled
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5 comments:
I thought your post was well done. The fact that you want to educate people in order to change the world is just phenomenal. I can honestly say that you do make a good teacher and seem to have a good base knowledge in just about anything. I believe educating people is very important as well. I too agree with you when you say teachers are the ones that are usually most influential in our lives. I had read your post last night so today in English class when you gave us a presentation, I was thinking about the post. I think that you should continue taking advantage of your strong points and really make a difference in the HIS community, as well as the world. Great post! Well thought out and I also learned a few new words just from reading it. See its working!! The world is better..
in respond to your comment..."fool-proof"
I'll deal with you about that later in school.
And now, your blog. To be serious, I think you can be very effective if you are going to be a teacher. Just what teacher are you thinking of being. Because you have the knowledge to be all kind of teachers. You are very smart, and very convincing. Good job anyway.
I can't agree more that teachers are tremendously influential. Not only because they were the one who spend more than 8 hours a day with the students, they are also the one who pass down knowledge and experience. Nevertheless, a good teacher who sincerely cares about the students is rare. In a way, good teachers are endangered within the human specie. Your style of changing the world can be an extensive and slow process, but it is significantly powerful.
Not to mention, your writings are intense and prevailing, just like this post. This reminded me of some of the crucial knowledge I had gained from the teachers. ☺
You are already a teacher Aled and you don't even know it. You have taught me a lot over the past year and for that I Thank You! In order to be effective as a teacher, knowledge is one part. Most importantly, you must truly care for your students, each one every day and in their way. It's hard but incredibly rewarding.
A thought come from my mind is "we change the world by breath in the air and breathe out the air" ( I believe you knew it already)
I totally agree the idea you have and It is something that i was going to write. I think changing world is about teaching and learning. You teach because you let people know your thought, your way of doing things, and your personality. We learn because we can know how to change things and know what happen in the world. I remembered last semester I forgot what the name of the class but I said "I change the world by learning in school" although many people think this is a funny and nonsense idea but i think that is that the main idea
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