Rockridge High School
Taylor Ridge, Illinois
Teacher: Barbara Downey
Have We Abandoned Excellence?
By Andrea McKeag
12th grade
What is wrong with the world today? Is everyone too busy to look around and see the problems we are faced with, the advances we have made, or the prejudices we have created? We have speculated that the evolution process has stopped. This can contribute to the idea that we have stopped pushing forward. Maybe there is a median and we have already reached our peak. The fact is people are settling for mediocre instead of striving for excellence.
One way America abandons excellence is through health and obesity. The United States should be known as the healthiest nation in the world, but thousands of Americans are overweight due to the lack of exercise. Many of these people have gotten so used to technological advances that their daily routine has become a lot simpler. With the use of internet and e-mail, many people find it easier to work at home and not leave during the day. This causes boredom and usually causes one to eat more often then they should.
The United States abandons excellence every day due to discrimination of race, color, ideas, clothes, etc. Every day those of other ethnic backgrounds are harassed for their differences. Although these people may look a little different from us, why do we have to judge so critically? One may think that what they say will not hurt someone’s feelings but the words usually do. Many of these people end up hurting others because of the suffering and pain they undergo.
When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke out on civil rights, most minorities felt that they were taken seriously for the first time. Most people thought that they should be treated equally and fairly. Is that the case today? Many people still hold grudges against different ethnic backgrounds because people believe some minorities do not belong in the United States due to their skin color. What people do not realize is that the different cultural backgrounds define what America is today. Of course it is hard to let go of prejudices, but that is the only way for America to function correctly.
Year after year people die because of vehicle related accidents. Sometimes it is caused by the conditions of the road or the weather. It is the government’s job to make sure every road is surfaced correctly. By not filling in potholes, a car’s tire may pop and send the driver in a frenzy. This can cause someone to go into a ditch and roll-over a few times or even cross the center line and hit oncoming traffic. Is this the kind excellence Americans are striving for?
In my senior year of high school I have found myself not striving for excellence. All through grade school I always had to color the prettiest picture or write the best essay. Now I have slowly lost sight of excellence and how much I should strive for it.
It just recently hit me how often I settle for mediocre. When I got in a car accident in January, I knew that I let both my parents and myself down. My goal was never to get a speeding ticket or get in a car accident all through high school. The goal that I strived for slowly diminished. I was really upset about the whole ordeal, but my parents comforted me. They were just joyful that I was safe and not hurt.
A few weeks ago when National Honor Society initiated new members, I felt horrible that I did not put in an application. I knew that I should have applied but I did not meet all of the requirements. I thought that since I did not receive a 25 on my ACT that I would not get in. Little did I know that I read the requirements wrong, and I was eligible to get inducted into this accredited organization after all. It hurts to know that I could have been a part of this organization, but I followed what I thought were the requirements and settled for mediocre once again.
All across America people are like me, settling for mediocre instead of striving for excellence. If everyone sought out the best in other individuals and set their own expectations, excellence would not be that hard to achieve. Most people have their own standard of excellence, but if these individuals believe in what they can accomplish, the country would flourish with overwhelming change.
Questions
Q1. Am I really where I want to be?
In my senior year of high school I am faced with many life changing questions. Where am I going to go to college? What do I want to be? How will I get there? I feel that I am moving on a path towards excellence. Life jerks me off the road every now and then, but I am satisfied with all the decisions I have made so far.
Q2. Am I moving in the direction that will enable me to make the greatest contribution?
I feel that I am making a difference right now in my life. I am trying my hardest to receive excellent grades in all of my classes and work twenty to thirty hours each week. Working has taught me time management and discipline. I know when I have to study or when I can go out and have fun with my friends. With these two key points I feel that in the upcoming years both time management and discipline will help me become a much better student and strive for the ultimate best.
Q3. If I could achieve my highest goals, what would my accomplishments look like?
Next fall I will be going to the University of Iowa. My goals are to receive a 4.0 every semester and get into dental school. I know that this goal will have to take up a lot of my time, but I feel in the long run it will be worth it.
Q4. Do I recognize excellence and search it out or do I find mediocre acceptable and am willing to settle?
Right now I feel that mediocre is all I am able to achieve. I have not been able to actually achieve what I would call excellence. To me it means working a lot of extra time on a research paper and getting the A+ I deserve, rather than doing everything the night before and settling for what I can get.
Q5. Do I seek out people, books, movies, and other things that encourage me to be the best I can be?
Books and music are the only two things that give me comfort when I am disappointed. Books are full of adventure, knowledge, experience, and suspense. Both music and books give me a peace mind of what I should strive for and who I should become: myself. I should be myself always: original and unique.
Q6. Do I recognize the best in others?
Personally I am not the type of person who judges someone based on skin color, what kind of clothes they wear, etc. I feel that I must talk to that person and get to know them before I judge. Everyone has good qualities, but one must find these qualities before they judge someone.
Q7. Do you agree with Morrow that: “Excellence demands standards. It does not usually flourish in the midst of rapid, hectic change. This century’s sheer velocity has subverted the principle of excellence; a culture must be able to catch its breath.”
I believe that excellence demands some kind of standard. Most people do not take the time to look around and see what this country is all about. The United States as a whole has become a little bit lazier due to technological advances. People have become dependent on computers, internet, and cell phones. What would the world be like without these items? Lost? I believe that everyone who strives for excellence may not be great at all activities. Most people prioritize on one item and settle for mediocre on the rest. Everyone needs to set his/her own standard of excellence because then that person knows what they must achieve.
Q8. Interpret this quote from paragraph nine: “Woe to them that are at ease in Zion.”
This quote means that there is no perfect place but Heaven. Everyone should be aware of the people around them and help each other strive for what they want to achieve. Of course that is not always easy, but the world would be a better place.
Q9. Argue pro and con Morrow’s contention that “Americans not yet successful are (the struggling, the underclass) are apt to aim at ease, not excellence”?
I believe that the underclass have their own standard of excellence. Most struggling people feel they have met their goal when they are able to purchase food and other essentials in their life. I also feel that these people are able to work a little more and set the standard of excellence higher.
Q10. Explain what Morrow means when he says “the confusion contaminates character and disables ambition.” Do you agree?
I agree with Morrow because I feel that if a person does not understand something, he/she is afraid to try because of failure. Success does not always equal excellence. Most people have their own standard of excellence, and these people should strive for what they feel is excellence.
Q11. Argue pro and con the effect of over stimulation and under stimulation as discussed in paragraph 10.
Over stimulation can be very beneficial to a person because there is always someone backing you up in any decision you make. The con to this is the fact that a person may become lazy because they always have someone right by their side. Also, if a person is pushed too far, one may want to completely give up and quit. Under stimulation can relieve stress from a person. Usually they have no support in any decision they make. In addition, they never have anyone pushing them to become better at what they do.
Q12. Contrast practical excellence with metaphysical excellence as used in Morrow’s last paragraph.
Practical excellence is something everyone will be able to see accomplished. For example, someone builds a little shed by their house. This is an accomplishment everyone can see done and they know it is done. Metaphysical excellence gives a person his/her own sense of accomplishment. Usually one is not able to see the difference a person makes, but the one who makes the difference is satisfied. For example, someone may practice a musical instrument to get all the key changes down correctly. Most people with non-musical ears will not be able to hear this accomplishment being done.
Q13. Copy and interpret your two favorite quotes. Explain why you chose them.
“I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.”-William Henley
This quote means that people should do their best to strive for excellence so they can achieve all their goals they have set in their mind. The only person that can make up a person’s fate is themselves. This reminds me of myself because I know that I will have to reach for the ultimate best to follow my dreams.
“Let him who would move the world, first move himself.”-Socrates
For a person who wants to make a difference in other’s lives must first change their life so they are able to help change the world. Some people do not have to change anything about them, but to conquer the world everyone must have a positive attitude. I believe that if I stay positive throughout college, nothing will be able to stop me from becoming myself and becoming an orthodontist.