I Love Being in School

I Love Being in School

     Studying a second language is not easy for adults, because we have to put in extra time coming to school. Adults are always very busy doing their daily routine; they have to work, take care of their families, and going to school is an additional effort for them. In my case I have to take one class each semester, because I have to work full time, so it is impossible for me to spend more time in school. Even though it requires dedication to attend school, I love it and enjoy being in school. I wish to be a full time student, but I can’t.

     Each semester is unique, because I make new friends and at the same time I have a different teacher. This semester I met Jeanne Gross who is my Grammar/Writing teacher. I am very thankful to Jeanne. She shares her knowledge with us and she has an excellent technique in teaching. Also, grammar is complicated for me. I think I need to focus more on run-on sentences, coma splash, fragments, introductions and conclusions in essays. Meanwhile, I am going to continue with my ESL classes and I will put extra time in to seek my goal which is to go to regular English class. So, I am planning to use learning center resources to improve my lessons. For this reason I will continue with my education. I know how beneficial it is for me to attend and anything that I learn is reflected in my life. By learning English I can have better a understanding and it is useful for my job and my family.

Spring Celebration in my Town

Spring Celebration in my Town

     Spring is a religious celebration in my wonderful and small town Chilapa, Mexico. This season lasts seven weeks. We call it Semana Santa. It is from Ash Wednesday to Good Friday. I think 95% of the families are Catholics compared  to other big cities where other religions exist. We have different ways to celebrate this spiritual spring season. Going to church is essential for every family. Moreover, not eating meat for seven Fridays in a row is part of the tradition. Families are always well prepared for this time. Also, they are ready to make their new spiritual resolutions.

     Ash Wednesday is the first day that we start this religion season. For example, in my family Ash Wednesday, which is a renewal time for everyone, makes us think about our past mistakes and regret them. Then, we usually go to church and the priest puts ash crosses on our foreheads that represents a commitment between God and us.

      We pledge not to eat beef and pork meat for seven Fridays. It is a big effort for each family. For example, my family usually eats sea food for those  Fridays, and it is very expensive. Suddenly, everybody is prepared for the last day of the celebration "Good Friday". The whole family goes to church and prays. This is a special day for everyone because we have to think about our sins. Asking God to forgive us and at the same time making a spiritual commitment to God is part of our tradition along with having a spiritual resolution for the rest of the year. It helps us to be better people. Finally, celebrating spring season in my town is a good experience. Not eating meat on Fridays, and going to church  helps us be better people, especially if we offer God our thoughts and our hearts. It is beneficial for us to renew our values and love to each other. 

Emma Moctezuma 

 

Middle East

Middle East

     A Middle East conflict is between Palestinians and Israelis. After World War II, The united Nation gave land to Jewish people and is surrounded by Muslim countries. Further, Palestinians view themselves as living in an occupied nation, where invaders (Israelis)have them under military rule. To fight back Palestinians have a built a terrorist network to attack innocent Israeli civilians. Israelis feel they must continue to control Palestinians with military force to protect themselves against more terrorist attacks. However Palestinians demand as one of the condition for peace like, ending Israel occupation of Palestinian territory, and freedom of Palestinian refuges to return to their homeland. On the other hand, Israelis want control of all Jerusalem by comparing their demands the two sides are unlikely to find peace. In my opinion, they need communication between the two nations because Israelite have destroyed much of the government an infrastructure of the Palestinians. The Palestinians will need a great deal of outsides support to rebuilt themselves into a separate nation. Is very important to realize that the Muslim religion teaches peace and tolerance, not terrorism and war. In fact, the Muslim religion does not allow a person to commit suicide or hurt innocent people.  

Emma Moctezuma 

Weather

          Weather affects people's moods. Weather change according to season. Recently we had an unusual cold days. I live in Half Moon Bay and is always cold, but not as cold as the passed few weeks. Weather does not only affect people's moods, also can bring physical sickness. Since the strange cold weather began  I cached a severe cold. As a result, I missed work and I couldn't attend school. First of all, I started coughing a lot. Instead paying attention to my sickness I continue with my daily routine. In addition to that i got to the point where my cold became more severe. I am not used to seeing a doctor when i have a cold, rather this time I did. One's i saw the doctor I did not receive any medication. However I got the recommendation to stay home and rest. it was not the only one dealing with the cold. It was a virus caused by the weather.Also, i missed work for three days and it was my best medicine that I had. Moreover, no attending to my class that cold morning helped me to relief  my cold. to sum up, It it was a challenging weather for me, but I am satisfied to overcome the cold. Even that didn't go to work and I miss my class it helped me to regain my strengths. Now, I am feeling better I take care of myself when going out on cold days.

Emma Moctezuma

My Husband

My Husband

     My husband is a very nice person whom I admire. There are three reasons that I like him the way he is. They are his personality, his integrity and his passion. First, he has a strong personality that makes his stable a member of our family. I think this is positive because in everything that he does, he tries to do the best as he can. As his wife I see that if he is planning to do something for our family, I am pretty sure that he is going to do it. secondly, his integrity is important to him. He is a very serious person. he had been influenced by his father. He always follows rules, and expects others to do so. Last his passion for him family is the third reason that I admire him. He lives, works, and thinks for his entire family. He considers the family in his plans. In brief, I admire my husband's integrity, personality and passion which contribute our family life.

Emma Moctezuma

Resolutions

My 2001 Resolutions

     While planning what I want  to do for this year, I am keeping in mind that I want to do something positive for my family. My 2011 resolutions are to spend more time with my husband and daughter and support my daughter with her education. Because we have been working so hard, we haven't had time to do things together. However, this year I  resolve to take time to do fun things together such as, watching TV, having lunch out, going to the movie theater, and going to the beach.My second resolution is to encourage my daughter to continue with her education because she is almost finished with high school. Attending community college would be a good place for her. We have been talking about it and she is excited to do it. I don't want her to stop there and she agrees to continue with her education. Finally, if I keep my resolutions in mind this year, we will be supporting each other and we will be a happier family.  

Emma Moctezuma

Learning Center

                                  Learning Center

     Having a learning center is beneficial for every student who will take advantage of it. The three resources that I  use in the Learning Center are the computers, the tables and the private room. For instance, last semester I used computers to do my homework, or I used them to search for other information. Next, the tables are a nice area to do your individual homework or work in a group. In my experience, using tables was really convenient because we didn't have to go somewhere else to work in a group. Last, the learning Center has a private room which you can reserve ahead of time and use for one or two hours. I used the private room once . I t was good to use it, because I had privacy. I closed the door and I concentrated 100% on what I was doing. In short, the Learning Center is a good place where you can work with privacy using the resources that they have and it can be beneficial for everyone.


Emma Moctezuma