Dating: What's the Point?

I do agree that dating is essentially practice for divorce because it is "breaking up" with someone you care about.  But I don't think we should look at dating like that.  We should not date someone just to break up with them.  A lot of people do not date and have exclusive boyfriends.  I feel like that a lot of people at this age do not want to be held back from a significant other.  They don't want the responsibility of having a boyfriend.  We should date to get to know someone and see if this person is the one you want to spend the rest of your life with them.  
I think people should take the dating challenge in the videos.  As the hook-up culture increase, young people are skipping the first stage of dating.  Not having physical contact on the first 3 dates could be hard for some people especially because some people hook-up upon meeting.  But practicing the three stages of dating will help decide if this person is the right person to keep seeing, instead of jumping into something and end up wasting 2 years of your life.  
When thinking about what the words hooking up actually mean it varies so much.  As the age group changes the definition changes.  It means different things for different people and as sexual experience increases the definition goes from kissing to physical sex. 

The New Pope

The new pope should focus mainly on changing some of the guidelines to fit the modern church.  The guidelines/rules/laws have been around for thousands of years and should be tweaked to fit our different society.
It needs to think about really modernizing itself and looking toward accepting same sex marriage and bio-medical research to advance discoveries.
Some women want to be allowed to become priests and I think that the Church should move toward allowing women to do so.  All people are created equal and everyone should be given the same opportunities.
I would change the right for same sex marriage.  These people should be given the same rights under the Church and should not be/feel exploited.  God loves everyone for who they are and it is hard for some people to see that.
There is room for democracy in the Church.  The people make up the Church and should be able to give their input about it.  The Holy Spirit does work through the hierarchy by guiding the pope to make the right decisions that would be best for the people of the Church

Becoming Who You Are

Vocation to me has also been about listening to the call from Jesus to live out what you are called to be.  We need to really listen with our hearts to understand what God has intended us to be because he knows who we are.  God has a plan for us and it is our job to live out the plan through our vocation.  Success can be different for everyone.  My success is being happy in my life and accomplishing the goals I have set for myself along the way.  Success is also figuring out and actually become the person God intended me to be.

I do agree with Parker Palmer and his insertions of becoming who you are instead of striving to be who you think you should be.  We can't change God's plan so we should spend the time we have talking and listening to him and finding out who we are.  God would not lead us astray so following him is the best route.  When it comes down to it, we are never happy trying to be someone else; it truly is just a hassle.  Finding who we are will be true success and no one can take that away from us.

Mission Statement

My mission in life is to truly express myself in a way that will benefit the people around me.  I love to help people and giving back to the community.  I love my family more than anything in the world and I strive to put them first and do anything I can for them.  I respect my parents for giving my an excellent education and I plan to carry it out through college studying business.  I want to give back and help the small businesses in the Philadelphia area and revitalize the working world.  With my love for math and life itself, I plan on living my life to the fullest by doing things I love and care most about.  With hard work and dedication, I can achieve my life's greatest goals!

Sisters
My three older sisters have taught me so much of what I know today. They have shared their secrets and experiences that have given me a larger look on life. They have shaped me into a funny, caring and smart person. We have laughed together and they have distressed me plenty of times. They have cared for m greatly and have made me want to care just as much for other people and aspects of life. They have even helped me with school and taught me to be a hard working person who plans to reach for the stars and achieve my life goals. They protect me from the dangers of life and have shared love with me that I will never forget. I would truly do anything for them.






Mount
Coming to the Mount has also affected me. The education has urged me to keep learning and keep striving for what I am capable of doing. I have learned so many things that I could not learn else where. I have also developed my love for math and other subjects that I will continue to study in college. Along with the education, I have shared laughs an experiences that have changed me. And I have experienced people who are inspirational to keep working toward success.  In Mount I have developed my educational standings. I have also exercised my brain to exhaustion.

Friend
My friend Bridget has lived a challenging life where she had to take care of her mom with ALS. For about 3 years she lived in her house with a diminishing parent whom she could not help cure. She had to make many sacrifices in high school and suffered a lot of emotion stress plus school stress. Her mom recently died over the summer and now she has to imagine her entire life differently without her mom in it. Her mom no longer suffers the struggles of life, but is no longer here to see her graduate, go to college, get married, or have children. It is challenging to imagine a life without a loved one especially a mother and Bridget had to do that at age 17. She has be extremely strong in her situation and is an inspiration for my life and all my hard work and the struggles I will face in life.