Youth

With youth in today’s society, they face many challenges in front of them.  Things have changed a great deal for kids since I grew up.  I believe that technology is one of the biggest risks for youth in today’s society.  With technology, many have become lazy and forgot what it is like to get outside and play.  I know many of my friend’s kids sit around playing video games and staying inside.  I know for me growing up I was always outside doing something like working on the farm, riding motorcycles, shooting, or whatever else I would get into. 

            With this technology, children believe things are a right not a privilege. They have a sense of entitlement. With the technology it also brings violence to teens.  “Technology can facilitate the discovery of violent behavior patterns, and it can help prevent violence from happening. If parents, educators, and mentors are aware of the risk factors and warning signs, they can use technology as another tool to prevent and detect violence among the young people they know” (Thomas).  Technology in today’s society is more than keeping up to date on things but causes a lot more problems for them.

            Going through school, most teens use twitter, facebook, snapchat, and other social media.  These have some positive and some negative uses.  There is a lot of drama and problems that come along with these.  With that being said, children do not know how to communicate anymore.  Instead of communicating face-to-face, children just send a text or facebook message or use some other multimedia outlet.  Children are becoming socially awkward which can lead to hard challenges later in life.  Being socially awkward makes it hard in some jobs that require you to be sociable.  As our youth continue to grow older, they need to realize that technology is great, but they do not need to forget the basics.

Work Cited:

Thomas, N. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ikeepsafe.org/articles/youth-violence-using-technology-for-prevention-intervention/

Geographic Area

            The geographical landscape where I was raised is very out in the country and a lot of farm land.  People always called it “living in the backwoods”.  Most people around the area knew everyone and if they needed something would call up a neighbor and ask for it.  I know growing up if my mom need something for cooking and did not have it, she would call the neighbor and I would have to go get it.  The area made people be more dependant and live off the land.  Most people had gardens in the summer time, hunt, fish, and farm.  I grew up on a small farm where we did all that and in hunting season would go out hunting.  The people in this area were close and could always count on each other.

            My papa has told me all kinds of stories from his life around here.  He has talked to me about working on the farm and using a mule to plow it up because grandpa would not let him use the small tractor they had.  He knew how to work on the tractor but was never allowed to use it.  Papa talked about having to go down to the river to get water a lot to use in the house.  If he needed to get somewhere he would walk to it.  As for the weather, he told me a lot of times he wore shorts year round because it never was really cold. 

            Growing up where I did impacted me by learning how to work hard.  I am able to do a lot of things that most guys cannot.  At a young age I was driving a tractor, plowing the garden, taking care of all the animals, and learning about how to work on different things.  If I did not live where I did, I do not think I would be the way I am.  Most of my buddies are all the same because of where we lived.  Living in the country has only made me a better person and showed me how to work hard.

Religious Experience

Growing up my family and I have always been Baptist.  My grandmother’s father and brother were both Baptist preachers, so being Baptist runs in our family.  For my religious experience I chose to go to a Catholic service.  For me it was a lot different than Baptist.  There was a lot of sitting, standing, and kneeling.  I was getting a workout in compared to a small portion of standing and sitting I am use to.  My friends, who I went with, were getting a kick out of me because it was so much different than what I was accustoming to.  I had gone to a Catholic before when I was very young but did not remember it and I wanted to go again.

            Even though I was with friends and knew some people there, no one really talked to me or introduced him or herself.  Baptist people are very sociable and have that southern hospitality.  Another thing is Baptist pray silently while Catholics have confessions to the priest.  For me, it would be hard because I am not use to talking to someone about my sins even if they know me or not. I feel as if that should be something between God and me.  It was different though having different people come up and do the reading.  Baptist has the pastor come up to preach and he is the only one who reads. 

            For me I enjoyed going to the service to see the differences in them.  There are some similarities but a lot of difference between the two.  It is a good thing to view different ones’ views and beliefs.  As far as your religious beliefs I believe a lot of it comes from your family and how they were brought up.  I know you can switch religions because my buddy is Baptist and his wife is Methodist.  She comes to church with him now so things can change.