Medicine Lodge High School
Medicine Lodge, Kansas
Teachers: Devra Parker and Mike Hubka

 

 

 

Microcosms

By Kylee Colson

12th Grade

 

 

Walking into the grocery store is a normal occurrence in the small town where I live.  While I was there the other day, however, something new happened.  I was in the checkout line with two people in front of me.  The woman who was at the counter looked upset.  I really did not know what was going on until I over heard a few bits and pieces of her conversation with the checker.

“I’m sorry, but you don’t have enough money for this.”

The woman looked very uncomfortable and as if she were on the verge of tears.

            “What do ya think I should put back?” she timidly asked.

The man in front of me solved the situation by giving her a ten-dollar bill.  She gave him a look a pure admiration, and it brought tears to my eyes.  The man who had probably never even met the woman before paid a seemingly small price to save her pride.

           

What bothered me the most about this situation really was not feeling embarrassed with the moneyless woman, but I astonished myself because I did not know her.  I live in a small town, so everyone usually knows everyone else.  I pride myself on knowing the people in my community.  If the situation had occurred in a larger town, she would have more than likely been mocked.  Living in a community where people still insist on moral standards makes life seem to run smoother.  No matter the size of the town, I feel that it is my personal responsibility to know the people in my community.

           

In the 1950’s, it was a common occurrence for a family to offer a platter of cookies to a new neighbor.  This opened the lines of communication and provided an opportunity for the families to become better acquainted; thus, in essence, defining community.  A community does not necessarily need to be defined as my town but perhaps as those people that I surround myself with on a daily basis.  Now, in the 1990’s since this trend has become less active, it is much harder to gain camaraderie with those in my community.  People allow years to pass by before they even introduce themselves to their neighbors.  Society has become stagnant in the midst of progression.

           

In a small town, many of the residents have the advantage of working in the same primary business area.  Because of this close proximity, work related relationships are gained with one another.  It is no surprise people in smaller communities seem to know their neighbors a bit better.

           

Yet, even the smallest of communities has its fair share of problems.  Crimes are usually committed on a much smaller scale and less frequently, but are still an obstacle that must be faced.  Alcoholism, drug abuse, burglary, and even assault are all very real issues that occur in the smallest of towns.  Although it may seem that the smaller level of crime is because of the minimal number of people, this is not so.  The pressure of the community to uphold a certain moral criteria is why the crimes seem diminutive. 

           

In a larger community, inhabitants have learned to be more self-reliant.  This has caused a major neglect to any sense of community that they should have.  Living in a fast-paced society can be detrimental to the possible relationships with the neighbors found in your community.  The daily routine in a larger city may not include ever seeing your acquaintances.  The crime rates in larger cities are higher and generally, the crimes are more heinous.  The crime factor is very significant because of the lack of relationships among people in larger cities.  While adapting to the atmosphere of a city, the inhabitants have become self-reliant and lost their ability to trust others.

           

The reference of a small town represents a microcosm of every larger city.  The changes we erect down to the most trivial detail all have some minute effect on the overall outcome we produce.   As a microcosm the larger communities are really only small towns at a larger scale. 

           

If I personally make the effort to know the members of the community then expand my horizon and increase the number of those people, I know that I can make a difference. These changes can be introduced by volunteering and being active in my area.   Before I change the world I must change those in my community.  Therefore, a small town must first work towards a better sense of community, which will in affect aide in the progression of our society as a whole.

 

Answers To Questions

 

Q1.)  How does society invest in marriages in the USA and in Manus?

            A1.)  In the United States, society accepts the fact that many Americans face divorce each year.  Long-standing marriages have almost become non-existent.  However, in Manus, New Guinea, the people center their investments around tried and enduring marriages.  The Manus society believes it is prestigious to have an enduring marriage.

 

Q2.)  Interview 10 married people.  State the length and number of each ones marriages and a line or two of advice from each on how to maintain a long, happy relationship.

            A2.)  Couple one has been married for six years.  Their secret to a long, happy marriage is to practice the art of good communication.  Couple number two has been married for twenty-three years.  According to them, an amount of tolerance and carring and family togetherness makes this couple a success.  Couple three has been married for eighteen years.  Their secret is to display a lot of patience, as well as equal balance of giving and taking.  Couple number four has been married for thirty-six years.  They jokingly stated that they never go to bed mad at each other.  If there is a problem with one of them is discussed and corrected.  Couple number five has also been married for thirty-six years.  They also believe that good communication is the key to every successful relationship.  Couple six has been married for only two years.  They stated that so far they have found that honesty is the only way to make things work.  Couple number seven  have been married for thirteen years.  They stated that the key is sharing great amounts of love and honesty.  Couple number  eight  have shared twenty-three years of wedded bliss.  She jokingly said that the key in her marriage is that he knows she is the boss.  Couple nine had been married for five years.  He stated that they had the utmost respect for each other.  Couple ten had been married for seventeen years.  They stated that the best way to maintain a sucessful marriage was to never fall into a boring routine; be spontanious.  

 

Q3.)  According to Richard Eckersley, what should our collective goal be?

            A3.)  According to Richard Eckersley, our responses today could have big outcomes tomorrow.  How we choose to live our lives affects the world around us.  There is no getting around that so we should try to better, and change our world.

 

Q4.)  Write a worthy goal for your local community.

            A4.)  A worthy goal for my community would be to better support the area businesses.  We sometimes over look smaller businesses and unfortunately, they tend to not succeed.

 

Q5.)  Comment on the exerts from “Tomorrow’s Child.”

            A5.)  The exert seems to be sharing the idea of lonely children, who use dolls to replace the feeling of a parent figure.  It also talked about how the gap between the rich and poor is increasing.  We in the future may be living in an extremely competitive world.

 

Q6.) How does the fact that the USA is a democracy make lawyers particularly helpful, according to Kathleen Sullivan?  How do our diversity, wealth and size make lawyers particularly helpful?

            A6.)  According to Kathleen Sullivan, lawyers create a form of public responsibility and accountability that would not occur in an irrepressible government.  The diversity in the U.S. makes lawyers particularly helpful because we are an increasingly conglomerate society.  That heterogeneity brings about more conflict and less agreement about social customs.  Wealthy Americans worry about healthcare and longevity of human life and are often the ones who contemplate about what law can do to solve those problems.  America’s vast and expansive territory transforms our society into incorporating local organizations into national organizations.

 

Q7.) Ms. Sullivan claims bad practices are changed either by regulations or punitive damages.  Which do you prefer and why?  Can you think of an alternative?

            A7.)  Bad practices can be changed by regulations or by punitive damages.  However, in most cases, it would be beneficial for the company and society to have punitive damages.  Punitive damages were designed to make a company absorb the real cost of the activity, rather than to pay the individual and say it is just cost of doing business.

 

Q8.)  Briefly describe three ways society would benefit from the coming retirement of baby boomers, according to the required reading.

            A8.)  Society will benefit from the coming retirement of baby boomers because the retirees will offer services to the large generation X’ers because they will be having families.  Also, the retirees may provide opportunities for teenage entrepreneurs.  The retirees may also become entrepreneurs and start new businesses that will be widely employed by other retired baby boomers.

 

Q9.)  Evaluate the likelihood of President Clinton’s anti-poverty program making a real impact.  Give at least three reasons to back up your conclusions.

            A9.)  The anti-poverty program may not work because it will increase the national debt, the poor are not education or trained enough to fill the new job requirements and the chance of discrimination will widen.

 

Q10.)  Name three things Truett Cathy and Tom Lewis have in common.

            A10.)  Both men are very religious; they are successful businessmen, and they both work with under privileged children.

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