Kinsley High School

Kinsley, Kansas

Teacher: Dr. Galen R. Boehme

Understanding Community

By Ashley Naber

12^th Grade

Within my community I have to consider how we learn from one another, how we participate with our community, and how we stay individuals.

We can learn from one another in a community by showing each other respect, honesty, and trust. We can also learn from one another by the actions and attitudes that we share with each other. We learn respect and trust from our elders, parents, teachers, and peers. These people make important impacts in our lives daily. They taught us to say “please” and “thank you” when we needed something or something was given to us. They also taught us to say “you are welcomed” when we did something for someone else and that person said “thank you.” As young children we learned to trust. We had to trust that our parents wouldn’t let us fall when we were learning how to walk or when first learning how to ride a bike. Then as we grew a little older we had to trust our teachers. We had to believe that they would not let anything happen to us and that they would teach us the proper materials. Now, as we get ready to go out into the world we have to trust ourselves and know whom we should and should not trust. As young adults we have come to find out that we cannot trust everyone. Some people out in the world do not understand the meaning of honesty and try to cheat us, so we have to be careful whom we want to trust. We also have to trust ourselves. We have to have the responsibility to do what we want without being dishonest to ourselves. Trusting our instincts or our gut feelings will allow us to go on our own path, not down someone else’s.

In a community everyone needs to participate. By participating in a community we allow ourselves to be involved with things like politics and institutions. By being active in politics we can vote for the president, governor, senators, and representatives. We will know and be interested in what is going on in our local and national governments. If we are truly involved with the government and what it is doing, we will more likely know what is happening around the world. Whether countries are signing peace treaties or getting ready to declare war on someone we will know what is happening. If we are involved and active within our government we will know more than those who just go out and vote that one day and do nothing else. Working in institutions allows us to be involved with many different people, whether we are working in hospitals, schools, or churches. If people are working in community hospitals they are helping the local community, but if they are traveling doctors and practitioners they are helping people around the nation and possibly even around the world. Teachers and others who work in schools help others every day. Elementary teachers help little children learn how to read, write, and count. If it were not for them there would be more people in our society who do not have jobs or who do not know how to read or write. High school and college teachers help students more than ever. High school teachers try and help us become ready for the real world, but whether or not the teachers achieve this that is up to us. We must take the advice they gave us and put it to good use. College teachers try to reach the same goal, but in a different way. They provide us with the education that we need to fulfill our dream career.

For students who do not work or who are not old enough to participate in the local government there are many other activities. A student can participate in sports and other organizations throughout his or her high school career. Some organizations help others all over the nation and the world. After the destruction that Hurricane Katrina caused, we collected items and donated money to the victims and their community. We can participate in a community in many different ways. We just need to go out and find ways to help ourselves and others who are in need.

Within a community people need to remember to stay individuals. At school and at work people can try to change the way we are, but we cannot allow them to do that.  We must remain ourselves. People sometimes do not like the way we are and want to change our actions or attitudes, but we cannot let them do that. We are our own individual with our own personality and qualities. If someone does not like who we are, that is tough for them because we should not try to please anybody, but ourselves. I have had this experience before and it is no fun. I have had friends tell me that I am acting like someone else and that that person is changing me. It hurts because I know that I have not changed and it makes me feel as though this certain friend does not like me for who I am lately. This makes me wonder if they want to change who I am by telling me I am acting differently. This should not happen to anyone.  Friends should like us for who we are and not try to change the way we act or talk. Also we need to remember that we have rights and can use them. Sometimes people forget this and act timidly. Everyone should stand up for what they believe in as long as it is not completely outrageous. We do have freedom of speech and freedom of religion, but we should also be respectful to those around us who do not feel as strongly about the same situations as we do.

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