So there I was last night, looking through possible college choices on my computer, and I had a revelation. After this short year of highschool, I will be out of First Presbyterian Day school forever. As my mind wondered back through the fourteen years I've spent growing up and the people I've shared these years with, I realized that I was crying.

There are very few things in this world that i can honestly say that I hate. Saying goodbye is definitley on the top of the list. Goodbye is very final. It means leaving. I remember last year, sitting in my journalism class with my fellow classmates, all seniors. It was the last day of school, and they poked fun at me asking me what I would do when they're gone. Turn on the waterworks; and I was only with this group for a year. My graduating class consists of people that I have grown up with, been through my hardest times with, and built some of my strongest relationships with. It honestly breaks my heart thinking about us all heading to college and drifting apart. Nothing makes me sadder than imagining running into one of my best friends from highschool years down the road and being almost completely disconnected from their life, knowing nothing about them. I don't ever want that to happen.

The cold hard truth is, it is going to happen with the majority of my highschool friends. It's completely up to us to keep our connections running, and that won't always be easy to do. I will say that regardless of where we all may go in life, I will cherish my highschool memories and the friendships that have impacted my life.

This ones for you, Machiavelli.

Today in A.P European, a discussion was brought to my attention, and it's followed me around all day. During the Renaissance period, the writer Niccolo Machiavelli rose to greatness with his book The Prince, a handbook for all political leaders, if you will. In the book, Machiavelli posed a question: Is it better to be loved or hated from a rulers standpoint? His conclusion was this. People love you... when you're pleasing them. However, as soon as a choice you made displeases your followers, all ties are cut. Fear, on the other hand, leads to obedience. If the people know that they can get punished for disobeying, they will be loyal.
This made me think. Is love really tied to something as petty as pleasing people? If Machiavelli is correct, then it can be argued that love is not a deep, connecting, and bonding emotion, but a meager exploit of people pleasing

I couldn't disagree with Machiavelli more. Love defined is an emotional and sacred bond between family and friends. How could something that meaningful boil down to something only caused when you please those around you? This makes no sense in the least to me. Think about it like this: Your family isn't always thrilled with you, whether it be lack of cleaning to annoyances and everything in between. But, even when your family isn't happy with you, the love doesn't stop flowing. It's much too deep to be cut off by a speed bump in relationships. So, if you are a ruler of a country then yes, fear may be the way to go to gain obedience.

I'll stick with the belief that my friends and family would still love me regardless of if I keep them happy at a constant. If that was the case, I'd be a very lonely person!

picture if you will...

Can you imagine a world with no messes left over from superbowl parties, no self esteem issues, and no akwward pick up lines being thrown your way?



I can. This world is one that lacks the common element that we call males.



In this new world, women would no longer have to obsess over body image. This is because, chances are we would all be morbidly obese. With the men gone, no need for tight abs and buns of steel, right? Women could walk the streets feeling beautiful every day no matter what size. One might think that this estrogen driven life would be more peaceful. For those who agree with this, iI have an equasion for you:

any woman + drama= full scale war

Now, not all girls are scrappy. However, i have dealt with the few that are. It is needless to say why my best friends are guys.

I'm just throwing the idea out there. Although, this man-less world may be more tidy and self confident, i wouldn't want to live in it. I grew up with two brothers, and my best friends are majority boys. Personally, i'm kinda fond of the male species.=)

Macon Telegraph

So. Yesterday in the Macon Telegraph there was an article about three FPD moms that are coming back to teach this year. The article was one of the most popular of the paper. However, on the macon telegraph website, the article underwent many blows via comment, causing a battle of private school v.s. public school.



I will say that reading some of the coments made me slightly embarrassed to be an FPD student. One commenter's views were severely warped on how private school is a safe haven and public schools are basically trash in comparison. She went on to say that her children are well div

ersified and that if they were in public school that they would be having sex, dealing drugs and God knows what else.

My honest opinion on the subject: schools dont have a thing to do with our actions. As highschoolers, we are all old enough to think for ourselves and the school has nothing to do with what choices we make.