you sit beside me & hold my hand as I shed my tears
you chase away those things little or big that abound my fears
you pick me up if I should fall & help me once again stand tall
you light my way in darkend places where I can not see at all
you love me no matter what I do though I deserve it not
you remind me when I think I'm poor of all the things I've got
you are the most amazing friend I could ever crave
and for you my glorious Lord I shall eternally rave
Monday, October 19, 2009
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Inside a shadow of a dream
Inside a shadow of a dream, reality is cowering, waiting...
when you look at me do you see the little girl?
the one on the inside who is screaming?
my heart it breaks with the memorys that rip at me,
wishing I was only dreaming .
ripples across the water growing larger with each that follows,
that is what these memories are to me,
eternal ripples across the water that is my life.
I want to run away from the pain & fear
but there isn't anywhere left for me to hide.
inside a shadow of a dream, I am cowering, waiting...
when you look at me do you see the little girl?
the one on the inside who is screaming?
my heart it breaks with the memorys that rip at me,
wishing I was only dreaming .
ripples across the water growing larger with each that follows,
that is what these memories are to me,
eternal ripples across the water that is my life.
I want to run away from the pain & fear
but there isn't anywhere left for me to hide.
inside a shadow of a dream, I am cowering, waiting...
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Dating and Clothes
'Dating is like trying on clothes at a store, you just keep trying stuff on until you find something that fits. BUT what about all those clothes you left lying on the floor which you didn't like? no one else is going to be willing to buy them if they're left lying in a heap on the floor.'
I really wish I had thought of this analogy but I got it from the book "A Window to the World" by Susan Meissner, however I do believe it makes a compelling argument for NOT dating...
I really wish I had thought of this analogy but I got it from the book "A Window to the World" by Susan Meissner, however I do believe it makes a compelling argument for NOT dating...
Princess Sparkles
Princess Sparkles – The Life Of A Unicorn
(Note: this is what lack of sleep and utter boredom can produce)
Once upon a time there was a unicorn, she was pink and had a big fluffy mane. The Unicorn also had the largest horn of any unicorn, which was made of solid gold and was a magical horn. She accidentally poked out her turtle friend’s eye with her horn once. Which is why it is now gold, because turtle eyes bleed gold (or so I’ve been told). After the eye stopped bleeding the unicorn picked it up and popped it back into the turtles head. Because the unicorn’s horn was magical she healed her turtle friend’s eye and it was better than it was before the unicorn (named Princess Sparkles) poked it out. One day Princess Sparkles met this rock (named Rocky) and she decided that Rocky would be her new best friend. The rock was rough, fat and had BO. Not even an entire warehouse of deodorant could stop it.
You know when you’re on a bus and next to you sits a big dude who smells as though he hasn’t ever showered? Well Rocky’s BO was a cross between that and a super duper rotten egg fart but far worse. Whenever Princess Sparkles went near Rocky she had to put earplugs up her nose. After a while Princes Sparkles couldn’t stand the smell of rocky any more, so she rolled him (with great difficulty as he was so fat) into (his greatest fear) the river! But Princess Sparkles fell into the water when she was pushing Rocky in, so Princess used her magical powers and teleported herself to McDonalds. While at McDonalds she ate 26 big Macs and this led to the deterioration of her health. She got diarrhoea which led to bad gas, then it reminded her of her friend Rocky, she felt sad ate more food for comfort which started an endless paradox.
Two years later Princess Sparkles was obesely over weight so she went on the biggest loser. Her time at the biggest loser was difficult but she got through it… just. After losing all her excess weight Princess Sparkles wanted to do something meaningful with her life, so she joined the King’s army. But she decided that being in the King’s army wasn’t good enough for her and she wanted to go all the way and become queen. Sparkles had always been a drama queen, which would put her one step closer to the throne. She needed to marry a prince, at the time there was rumours of a new prince unicorn called Pebble, conveniently Sparkles knew where he was going and wanted to meet this unicorn prince.
She waited and waited until finally he arrived, she introduced herself and so did he, as they exchanged stories Sparkles had a weird suspicion that he was Rocky. But that was crazy Rocky had been dead for nearly three years plus this prince smelt of chocolate and rain. Princess Sparkles suspicion was correct, it was Rocky, for the moment he had hit the water he magically turned the complete opposite of what he was, into Prince Pebble, although he wasn’t planing on telling Princess Sparkles any time soon. But Princess Sparkles was smarter than he thought and figured out who he really was, then told him she had always loved him and didn’t mean to drown him- she had only meant to go to the river for a romantic picnic lunch. Prince Pebble still hadn’t forgiven her and was still angry with her for trying to drown him. So he went off for another three years.
It was dark but the moonlight breached the trees canopies and made a small circle of light in which a lonely unicorn sat. At last after tracking him for a week the hunter had caught up then suddenly a whinny sounded behind him, before he knew it there was a hoof buried in his skull, he fell to the ground limp. Upon hearing the whinny Prince Pebble and was trying to comprehend what was happening. There she stood the moon light lighting her up life some kind of angel, Princess Sparkles she had tears in her eyes as she looked at him “R…R…Rocky” she stuttered. “Is that you?” Princess Sparkles waited for an answer and with a quiet “yes” he galloped off before the hunter could wake up. Princess Sparkles (who had forgotten about the hunter) sat down and began to cry, the hunter stood and crept up behind her… Feeling bad for leaving Princess Sparkles, Prince Pebble returned to her, sneaking up behind the hunter he stabbed him through the heart with his horn, killing him dead. Princess Sparkles was delighted to see the prince again and said, “thank you, very much” and he answered “your welcome.”
It was a beautiful day sunny but not hot, all the flowers were in blossom and there on a riverbank under a lone willow stood Pebble and Sparkles with a shinning white stallion between them. The stallion said “I pronounce you mare and stallion now joined into one by your love for each other.” They touched noses and the entire crowd whinnied. Two years on they had a foal they named him Sparkly Pebble and they all grew old together.
written by:
Catherine Hooper
Kim Gates
Emily Coxhead
Christopher Coxhead
Joshua Coxhead
Bradley Rose
(october 2008)
(Note: this is what lack of sleep and utter boredom can produce)
Once upon a time there was a unicorn, she was pink and had a big fluffy mane. The Unicorn also had the largest horn of any unicorn, which was made of solid gold and was a magical horn. She accidentally poked out her turtle friend’s eye with her horn once. Which is why it is now gold, because turtle eyes bleed gold (or so I’ve been told). After the eye stopped bleeding the unicorn picked it up and popped it back into the turtles head. Because the unicorn’s horn was magical she healed her turtle friend’s eye and it was better than it was before the unicorn (named Princess Sparkles) poked it out. One day Princess Sparkles met this rock (named Rocky) and she decided that Rocky would be her new best friend. The rock was rough, fat and had BO. Not even an entire warehouse of deodorant could stop it.
You know when you’re on a bus and next to you sits a big dude who smells as though he hasn’t ever showered? Well Rocky’s BO was a cross between that and a super duper rotten egg fart but far worse. Whenever Princess Sparkles went near Rocky she had to put earplugs up her nose. After a while Princes Sparkles couldn’t stand the smell of rocky any more, so she rolled him (with great difficulty as he was so fat) into (his greatest fear) the river! But Princess Sparkles fell into the water when she was pushing Rocky in, so Princess used her magical powers and teleported herself to McDonalds. While at McDonalds she ate 26 big Macs and this led to the deterioration of her health. She got diarrhoea which led to bad gas, then it reminded her of her friend Rocky, she felt sad ate more food for comfort which started an endless paradox.
Two years later Princess Sparkles was obesely over weight so she went on the biggest loser. Her time at the biggest loser was difficult but she got through it… just. After losing all her excess weight Princess Sparkles wanted to do something meaningful with her life, so she joined the King’s army. But she decided that being in the King’s army wasn’t good enough for her and she wanted to go all the way and become queen. Sparkles had always been a drama queen, which would put her one step closer to the throne. She needed to marry a prince, at the time there was rumours of a new prince unicorn called Pebble, conveniently Sparkles knew where he was going and wanted to meet this unicorn prince.
She waited and waited until finally he arrived, she introduced herself and so did he, as they exchanged stories Sparkles had a weird suspicion that he was Rocky. But that was crazy Rocky had been dead for nearly three years plus this prince smelt of chocolate and rain. Princess Sparkles suspicion was correct, it was Rocky, for the moment he had hit the water he magically turned the complete opposite of what he was, into Prince Pebble, although he wasn’t planing on telling Princess Sparkles any time soon. But Princess Sparkles was smarter than he thought and figured out who he really was, then told him she had always loved him and didn’t mean to drown him- she had only meant to go to the river for a romantic picnic lunch. Prince Pebble still hadn’t forgiven her and was still angry with her for trying to drown him. So he went off for another three years.
It was dark but the moonlight breached the trees canopies and made a small circle of light in which a lonely unicorn sat. At last after tracking him for a week the hunter had caught up then suddenly a whinny sounded behind him, before he knew it there was a hoof buried in his skull, he fell to the ground limp. Upon hearing the whinny Prince Pebble and was trying to comprehend what was happening. There she stood the moon light lighting her up life some kind of angel, Princess Sparkles she had tears in her eyes as she looked at him “R…R…Rocky” she stuttered. “Is that you?” Princess Sparkles waited for an answer and with a quiet “yes” he galloped off before the hunter could wake up. Princess Sparkles (who had forgotten about the hunter) sat down and began to cry, the hunter stood and crept up behind her… Feeling bad for leaving Princess Sparkles, Prince Pebble returned to her, sneaking up behind the hunter he stabbed him through the heart with his horn, killing him dead. Princess Sparkles was delighted to see the prince again and said, “thank you, very much” and he answered “your welcome.”
It was a beautiful day sunny but not hot, all the flowers were in blossom and there on a riverbank under a lone willow stood Pebble and Sparkles with a shinning white stallion between them. The stallion said “I pronounce you mare and stallion now joined into one by your love for each other.” They touched noses and the entire crowd whinnied. Two years on they had a foal they named him Sparkly Pebble and they all grew old together.
written by:
Catherine Hooper
Kim Gates
Emily Coxhead
Christopher Coxhead
Joshua Coxhead
Bradley Rose
(october 2008)
Berrima Gaol - then and now
The ‘Dharwal’ Aborigines once occupied the area we now know as Berrima. The name of the town coming from a word in their language meaning ‘to the south.’
Convicts in chains built the gaol out of local sandstone between 1834 and 1839; colonial architect Mortimer Lewis supervised the construction. In it’s early years Berrima Gaol was notorious as one of Australia’s worst. Conditions were harsh and the inmates spent the majority of their time in small cells in which the only source of light was through a small grate set in the door. Rolf Bordrewood (author of Robery Under Arms) was quoted as calling the gaol “the largest, most severe, the most dreaded of all the prisons in New South Wales.”
In 1842 bushranger Patrick (Paddy) Curran was the first man to be hung at Berrima, he and another bushranger, Jackey Jackey, burst into the home of Thomas And Mary Welsmore in Bungendore. Mr Welsmore was not at home Curran attempted to ‘ill treat’ the married woman. Jackey Jackey (who is known as the gentleman bushranger) defended Mrs Welsmore and then parted ways with Curran taking his horse. Curran was convicted of rape and murder and for this was sentenced to death.
Lucretia Dunkley was the only woman ever to be hung at Berrima. Together with servant and supposed lover Matin Beech she allegedly murdered her husband Henry Dunkley. Mr Dunkley was killed with an axe and buried at their farm in Gunning. Mrs Dunkley and Mr Beech died at the scaffold in 1843. The old courthouse has a mock-up of this trial, it is rumoured to be haunted by her ghost, along with others, if you believe such things.
The current gateway and walls were constructed from 1863 to 1868 the prison was also enlarged at this time. This renovation was to coinside with the standards described in the prison reform movement for a ‘model prison.’ However from 1866 it was intended that all prisoners spent one year in solitary confinement. These cells measured eight feet by five feet, some smaller. The ‘silent system’ was also introduced this dictated that an inmate was forbidden from speaking to anyone for the first nine months of their sentence.
A Royal Commission (Berrima Gaol Inquiry Commission) was held to investigate allegations of cruelty by prison authorities. The two practices mainly complained about were spreadeagling and the gag. The Royal Commission concluded, “ it must be admitted that the chaining of a man to the wall is a barbarous means of punishment; which should not be tolerated as a means of punishment, and there should be no necessity for resorting to it as a means of restraint.”
“We desire to see no further instance of the chaining of a prisoner to the wall of his cell and we beg to recommend that the ring bolts be removed.” The complaints were not actually up held.
In 1909 the goal was closed, the outbreak of fighting in Europe in (August) 1914 brought Australia into the Great War. Within a week of the declaration all German subjects in Australia were declared ‘enemy aliens’ and required to report to the government. In February 1915 the ‘enemy aliens’ were interned either by voluntary or enforced means. The Gaol was then reopened as Berrima (internment) Camp. The internees here lived in either stone gaol cells or additional barracks. They were permitted to move freely around the town within a two-mile radius of the gaol during the day.
The internees found Berrima to be a welcoming community and despite the anti-German diatribes being cast around by the mainstream media the residents of the town warmed to the internees who purchased bread and meat from local stores and rented houses for private use. The internees helped the locals rescue animals, fight bushfires and deal with unwanted snakes in the house. The Berrima Camp was closed in 1919 at the end of World War One. In World War Two the gaol was used to hold munitions.
In 1945 the internal buildings were demolished and after extensive alterations was reopened as the Berrima Training Centre, a low security prison. The inmates made woodwork items etc, which were sold in the Old Governor’s House.
In 2001 the gaol had it’s name changed again. It is now Berrima Correction Centre but this was not the only change to be made. After one hundred and sixty six years as a men’s prison Berrima became a woman’s prison, which can hold up to fifty-nine inmates. This change was due to the largest female prison in the state (Saltwater) being full. The inmates perform more than four hundred hours of work in the community a month. Approximately eighty six percent take educational courses such as literacy and numeracy or participate in various courses to do with life management, relapse prevention and health problems. Some of the inmates also do various arts and craft work which is sold in the Old Governor’s House on weekends and public holidays.
Berrima Gaol is Australia’s oldest operating prison it has been approx one hundred and seventy four years since the convicts began work on the gaol, and it’s colourful past is a reminder of how far we (as Australian’s) have come.
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berrima_Correctional_Centre
http://www.berrimavillage.com.au/history_attractions.html
http://www.monaropioneers.com/wellsmoret.htm
http://scs.une.edu.au/Bushrangers/westwood.htm
http://www.warrenfahey.com/bushrangers.htm
http://www.smh.com.au/news/new-south-wales/berrima/2005/02/17/1108500192741.html
http://www.totaltravel.com.au/travel/nsw/southcoastnsw/shoahaven/attractions/heritage/berrima-gaol
http://upperlachlan.local-e.nsw.gov.au/about/1273/1399.html
http://www.heritageaustralia.com.au/search.php?state=NSW®ion=103&view=2
http://www.heritage.nsw.gov.au/07_subnav_01_2.cfm?itemid=2680108
http://research.forbessociety.org.au/index.php?option=com_jake&jrun=%2Fpeople%2Fview%2F1639
http://ndpbeta.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/662778
Convicts in chains built the gaol out of local sandstone between 1834 and 1839; colonial architect Mortimer Lewis supervised the construction. In it’s early years Berrima Gaol was notorious as one of Australia’s worst. Conditions were harsh and the inmates spent the majority of their time in small cells in which the only source of light was through a small grate set in the door. Rolf Bordrewood (author of Robery Under Arms) was quoted as calling the gaol “the largest, most severe, the most dreaded of all the prisons in New South Wales.”
In 1842 bushranger Patrick (Paddy) Curran was the first man to be hung at Berrima, he and another bushranger, Jackey Jackey, burst into the home of Thomas And Mary Welsmore in Bungendore. Mr Welsmore was not at home Curran attempted to ‘ill treat’ the married woman. Jackey Jackey (who is known as the gentleman bushranger) defended Mrs Welsmore and then parted ways with Curran taking his horse. Curran was convicted of rape and murder and for this was sentenced to death.
Lucretia Dunkley was the only woman ever to be hung at Berrima. Together with servant and supposed lover Matin Beech she allegedly murdered her husband Henry Dunkley. Mr Dunkley was killed with an axe and buried at their farm in Gunning. Mrs Dunkley and Mr Beech died at the scaffold in 1843. The old courthouse has a mock-up of this trial, it is rumoured to be haunted by her ghost, along with others, if you believe such things.
The current gateway and walls were constructed from 1863 to 1868 the prison was also enlarged at this time. This renovation was to coinside with the standards described in the prison reform movement for a ‘model prison.’ However from 1866 it was intended that all prisoners spent one year in solitary confinement. These cells measured eight feet by five feet, some smaller. The ‘silent system’ was also introduced this dictated that an inmate was forbidden from speaking to anyone for the first nine months of their sentence.
A Royal Commission (Berrima Gaol Inquiry Commission) was held to investigate allegations of cruelty by prison authorities. The two practices mainly complained about were spreadeagling and the gag. The Royal Commission concluded, “ it must be admitted that the chaining of a man to the wall is a barbarous means of punishment; which should not be tolerated as a means of punishment, and there should be no necessity for resorting to it as a means of restraint.”
“We desire to see no further instance of the chaining of a prisoner to the wall of his cell and we beg to recommend that the ring bolts be removed.” The complaints were not actually up held.
In 1909 the goal was closed, the outbreak of fighting in Europe in (August) 1914 brought Australia into the Great War. Within a week of the declaration all German subjects in Australia were declared ‘enemy aliens’ and required to report to the government. In February 1915 the ‘enemy aliens’ were interned either by voluntary or enforced means. The Gaol was then reopened as Berrima (internment) Camp. The internees here lived in either stone gaol cells or additional barracks. They were permitted to move freely around the town within a two-mile radius of the gaol during the day.
The internees found Berrima to be a welcoming community and despite the anti-German diatribes being cast around by the mainstream media the residents of the town warmed to the internees who purchased bread and meat from local stores and rented houses for private use. The internees helped the locals rescue animals, fight bushfires and deal with unwanted snakes in the house. The Berrima Camp was closed in 1919 at the end of World War One. In World War Two the gaol was used to hold munitions.
In 1945 the internal buildings were demolished and after extensive alterations was reopened as the Berrima Training Centre, a low security prison. The inmates made woodwork items etc, which were sold in the Old Governor’s House.
In 2001 the gaol had it’s name changed again. It is now Berrima Correction Centre but this was not the only change to be made. After one hundred and sixty six years as a men’s prison Berrima became a woman’s prison, which can hold up to fifty-nine inmates. This change was due to the largest female prison in the state (Saltwater) being full. The inmates perform more than four hundred hours of work in the community a month. Approximately eighty six percent take educational courses such as literacy and numeracy or participate in various courses to do with life management, relapse prevention and health problems. Some of the inmates also do various arts and craft work which is sold in the Old Governor’s House on weekends and public holidays.
Berrima Gaol is Australia’s oldest operating prison it has been approx one hundred and seventy four years since the convicts began work on the gaol, and it’s colourful past is a reminder of how far we (as Australian’s) have come.
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berrima_Correctional_Centre
http://www.berrimavillage.com.au/history_attractions.html
http://www.monaropioneers.com/wellsmoret.htm
http://scs.une.edu.au/Bushrangers/westwood.htm
http://www.warrenfahey.com/bushrangers.htm
http://www.smh.com.au/news/new-south-wales/berrima/2005/02/17/1108500192741.html
http://www.totaltravel.com.au/travel/nsw/southcoastnsw/shoahaven/attractions/heritage/berrima-gaol
http://upperlachlan.local-e.nsw.gov.au/about/1273/1399.html
http://www.heritageaustralia.com.au/search.php?state=NSW®ion=103&view=2
http://www.heritage.nsw.gov.au/07_subnav_01_2.cfm?itemid=2680108
http://research.forbessociety.org.au/index.php?option=com_jake&jrun=%2Fpeople%2Fview%2F1639
http://ndpbeta.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/662778
Psych Autobiog
Analytical Autobiography
Part A
Jean Piaget’s process of cognitive learning can be identified in four stages which are as follows:
1. Sensorimotor Stage (Infancy)
2. Pre-Operational Stage (Toddler and Early Childhood)
3. Concrete Operational Stage (Elementary and Early Adolescence)
4. Formal Operational Stage (Adolescence and Adulthood)
I am (in theory) in the fourth stage (Formal Operational) in this stage I am expected to become progressively more capable of adult-style thinking. Which involves the use of logical procedures and their use in hypothetical thinking. That is using them in the abstract, rather than the concrete operations. It is in the formal operations stage that one is able to investigate a problem in a careful and efficient fashion. It doesn’t seem that the formal operations stage is something everyone actually gets to. Even those of us who do don’t operate in it at all times. Some cultures, it seems, don’t develop it or value it like ours does. Abstract reasoning is simply not universal.
In the past four to five years as I have matured from adolescence and into adulthood I have found my self thinking in a more mature way, such as what bills I have to pay, household items that are needed, taking responsibility for more household jobs and so on. I am truthfully not sure if I do use hypothetical thinking as I never actually give my thoughts a lot of time to sit and fester I’m a do first think later kind of person but most of the time when later comes around I forget that I was meant to think. I do believe however that when I do sit and think things out I do examine the problem in a careful and well-organized manner.
Piaget’s process can then be further identified into four mental operations these are:
1. Schemas – A schema describes both the mental and physical actions
involved in understanding and knowing. Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world.
An example of a schema in my life is my Christianity it is through this belief that I view the world. It is the way I get the knowledge to differentiate between right and wrong, good and bad.
2. Assimilation – This is the process of taking in new information into our
previously existing schemas. The process is somewhat subjective, because we tend to modify experience or information somewhat to fit in with our pre-existing beliefs.
An example of assimilation in my life is bible study, with bible study we sit an read a verse which we then discus and quite often a lot of what the others say makes a lot of sense but as I already have so knowledge on the subject I find myself merging the two ideas together.
3. Accommodation –This involves altering existing schemas, or ideas,
as a result of new information or new experiences. New schemas may also be developed during this process.
An example of accommodation in my life is as follows I was raised a Catholic but was never very devoted in my faith so when I became a ‘born again’ Christian I was able to use this existing knowledge (schema) and altering it into what was taught through this new way of looking at the faith.
4. Equilibration –While progressing through the stages of cognitive
development, it is important to maintain a balance between applying previous knowledge (assimilation) and changing behaviour to account for new knowledge (accommodation). Equilibration helps explain how someone can move from one stage of thought into the next.
An example of equilibration in my life through this course I had some knowledge on most of the subjects (eg: Interpersonal Communication) which I could assimilate, yet with others (eg: Phycology) I had no idea what so ever and needed to accommodate them.
I do not entirely agree with Piaget’s stages as he has them written I know for myself that I swing between them at different times. I leave you with an old saying which really sums this up for me “nothing is set in stone.”
Analytical Autobiography
Part B
Carl Jung worked alongside Sigmund Freud developing theories on the relationship between the conscious and unconscious aspects of the mind. However unlike Freud (who gave a psychosexual explanation as the primary motivation of us all) Jung believed the primary motivating force to be of a spiritual origin. Jung went on to say that a lack of spirituality might lead to various forms of mental illness; during his time at Burghölzli where he witnessed some of the most insightful cases (for example internal schism) Jung further determined that mental illness of this form could be so vast that it could start to function as a sub-personality. Thus the confliction of impulses between these complexes (whether repressed or not) created turmoil in the psyche, which expressed its self in forms of anxiety, frustration or contradiction in thought or behaviour.
Due to its complexity and innate spirituality, Jung’s theories have only received a narrow degree approval within mainstream psychology, most often described to be incapable of being applied to everyday life. Ironically, it was a conversation between Carl Jung and a chronic alcoholic (known only as “Roland H”) that led to Bill W founding Alcoholics Anonymous (and other twelve step programs are also based on this conversation). Jung’s advice was as follows “I can only recommend that you place yourself in the religious atmosphere of your own choice, that you recognize your own hopelessness, and that you cast yourself upon whatever God you think there is. The lightning of the transforming experience may then strike you." This advice worked where no psychological, religious, or medical therapy had formerly been successful not only on Roland H but on countless men and women over the years who have gone through this or similar programs and it is worth noting that Twelve Step programs have brought innumerable people to a spiritual way of life.
At fifteen years old I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder (otherwise known as manic depressive psychosis) it was only discovered that something was amiss when one of my teachers read my (personal) journal in which I expressed feelings of being lost and alone. I also had mentioned thoughts of suicide, which I later attempted three times (after being placed on anti-depressant medication). It was only upon learning (through a local Christian Youth Group) about God and Jesus and how this God loved me, even though at the time I could not even love myself, that I started to improve. Now days (at almost twenty three) I am very rarely affected by this disorder and when I feel myself starting to get depressed I turn to God. My faith gives me a sense of acceptance and purpose, which in turn gives me the strength to get through any bad days.
Jung did not see the purpose of life to be a victory of light over dark. Rather he saw it as one of wholeness of all the elements of one’s self, moving in a complicated dance, in and out of equilibrium, in a never-ending, unfolding artistic, performance of development. According to Viktor Von Weizsaecker, "C. G. Jung was the first to understand that psychoanalysis belonged in the sphere of religion." Jung was not a Christian nor was he of any other faith though he dabbled in various forms of spirituality. He believed all religions to be mythologies; that is he thought of them to be not real in essence but as having a true effect on the human psyche. He thought of religion as a useful tool to find one’s self but as little else.Although I resect Jung’s work on Psychoanalytical Psychology in the realm of spirituality I must say that I believe Christianity to be absolute truth and not mythology; that is I believe it to be real in essence as well as having a truly effective result on ‘healing’ the human psyche. However I do whole-heartedly agree with him that religion can be a wonderfully effective tool to finding one’s true self. I am positive that I would not be the person I am today (I may not have even survived) with out my belief that the Lord Jesus died to save my sins, that he did this for love of me, so many hundreds of years before my birth. But though this is absolute truth to me it may be different for many other in this worlds. So in conclusion I leave you with a quote from Carl Jung “the shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases.”
Part A
Jean Piaget’s process of cognitive learning can be identified in four stages which are as follows:
1. Sensorimotor Stage (Infancy)
2. Pre-Operational Stage (Toddler and Early Childhood)
3. Concrete Operational Stage (Elementary and Early Adolescence)
4. Formal Operational Stage (Adolescence and Adulthood)
I am (in theory) in the fourth stage (Formal Operational) in this stage I am expected to become progressively more capable of adult-style thinking. Which involves the use of logical procedures and their use in hypothetical thinking. That is using them in the abstract, rather than the concrete operations. It is in the formal operations stage that one is able to investigate a problem in a careful and efficient fashion. It doesn’t seem that the formal operations stage is something everyone actually gets to. Even those of us who do don’t operate in it at all times. Some cultures, it seems, don’t develop it or value it like ours does. Abstract reasoning is simply not universal.
In the past four to five years as I have matured from adolescence and into adulthood I have found my self thinking in a more mature way, such as what bills I have to pay, household items that are needed, taking responsibility for more household jobs and so on. I am truthfully not sure if I do use hypothetical thinking as I never actually give my thoughts a lot of time to sit and fester I’m a do first think later kind of person but most of the time when later comes around I forget that I was meant to think. I do believe however that when I do sit and think things out I do examine the problem in a careful and well-organized manner.
Piaget’s process can then be further identified into four mental operations these are:
1. Schemas – A schema describes both the mental and physical actions
involved in understanding and knowing. Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world.
An example of a schema in my life is my Christianity it is through this belief that I view the world. It is the way I get the knowledge to differentiate between right and wrong, good and bad.
2. Assimilation – This is the process of taking in new information into our
previously existing schemas. The process is somewhat subjective, because we tend to modify experience or information somewhat to fit in with our pre-existing beliefs.
An example of assimilation in my life is bible study, with bible study we sit an read a verse which we then discus and quite often a lot of what the others say makes a lot of sense but as I already have so knowledge on the subject I find myself merging the two ideas together.
3. Accommodation –This involves altering existing schemas, or ideas,
as a result of new information or new experiences. New schemas may also be developed during this process.
An example of accommodation in my life is as follows I was raised a Catholic but was never very devoted in my faith so when I became a ‘born again’ Christian I was able to use this existing knowledge (schema) and altering it into what was taught through this new way of looking at the faith.
4. Equilibration –While progressing through the stages of cognitive
development, it is important to maintain a balance between applying previous knowledge (assimilation) and changing behaviour to account for new knowledge (accommodation). Equilibration helps explain how someone can move from one stage of thought into the next.
An example of equilibration in my life through this course I had some knowledge on most of the subjects (eg: Interpersonal Communication) which I could assimilate, yet with others (eg: Phycology) I had no idea what so ever and needed to accommodate them.
I do not entirely agree with Piaget’s stages as he has them written I know for myself that I swing between them at different times. I leave you with an old saying which really sums this up for me “nothing is set in stone.”
Analytical Autobiography
Part B
Carl Jung worked alongside Sigmund Freud developing theories on the relationship between the conscious and unconscious aspects of the mind. However unlike Freud (who gave a psychosexual explanation as the primary motivation of us all) Jung believed the primary motivating force to be of a spiritual origin. Jung went on to say that a lack of spirituality might lead to various forms of mental illness; during his time at Burghölzli where he witnessed some of the most insightful cases (for example internal schism) Jung further determined that mental illness of this form could be so vast that it could start to function as a sub-personality. Thus the confliction of impulses between these complexes (whether repressed or not) created turmoil in the psyche, which expressed its self in forms of anxiety, frustration or contradiction in thought or behaviour.
Due to its complexity and innate spirituality, Jung’s theories have only received a narrow degree approval within mainstream psychology, most often described to be incapable of being applied to everyday life. Ironically, it was a conversation between Carl Jung and a chronic alcoholic (known only as “Roland H”) that led to Bill W founding Alcoholics Anonymous (and other twelve step programs are also based on this conversation). Jung’s advice was as follows “I can only recommend that you place yourself in the religious atmosphere of your own choice, that you recognize your own hopelessness, and that you cast yourself upon whatever God you think there is. The lightning of the transforming experience may then strike you." This advice worked where no psychological, religious, or medical therapy had formerly been successful not only on Roland H but on countless men and women over the years who have gone through this or similar programs and it is worth noting that Twelve Step programs have brought innumerable people to a spiritual way of life.
At fifteen years old I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder (otherwise known as manic depressive psychosis) it was only discovered that something was amiss when one of my teachers read my (personal) journal in which I expressed feelings of being lost and alone. I also had mentioned thoughts of suicide, which I later attempted three times (after being placed on anti-depressant medication). It was only upon learning (through a local Christian Youth Group) about God and Jesus and how this God loved me, even though at the time I could not even love myself, that I started to improve. Now days (at almost twenty three) I am very rarely affected by this disorder and when I feel myself starting to get depressed I turn to God. My faith gives me a sense of acceptance and purpose, which in turn gives me the strength to get through any bad days.
Jung did not see the purpose of life to be a victory of light over dark. Rather he saw it as one of wholeness of all the elements of one’s self, moving in a complicated dance, in and out of equilibrium, in a never-ending, unfolding artistic, performance of development. According to Viktor Von Weizsaecker, "C. G. Jung was the first to understand that psychoanalysis belonged in the sphere of religion." Jung was not a Christian nor was he of any other faith though he dabbled in various forms of spirituality. He believed all religions to be mythologies; that is he thought of them to be not real in essence but as having a true effect on the human psyche. He thought of religion as a useful tool to find one’s self but as little else.Although I resect Jung’s work on Psychoanalytical Psychology in the realm of spirituality I must say that I believe Christianity to be absolute truth and not mythology; that is I believe it to be real in essence as well as having a truly effective result on ‘healing’ the human psyche. However I do whole-heartedly agree with him that religion can be a wonderfully effective tool to finding one’s true self. I am positive that I would not be the person I am today (I may not have even survived) with out my belief that the Lord Jesus died to save my sins, that he did this for love of me, so many hundreds of years before my birth. But though this is absolute truth to me it may be different for many other in this worlds. So in conclusion I leave you with a quote from Carl Jung “the shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases.”
The Story Of My Socialisation
This is a comprehensive look at my socialisation process paying particular attention to how the class system, my family, my peers, the education system, the legal system and the media affected my views on gender roles, sexuality, racial issues, work ethics and my personal morality.
My views on gender roles were greatly affected by my family. My parent’s divorce and being raised by a single mother left me devoid of a consistent male influence in my young life. This coupled with the matriarchal nature of my mother’s family, (who see women as baby breeders and men as breadwinners and yet the women ran the family and made the pivotal decisions with little or no help from men) has left me vastly confused as to the role of a man in most family units.
My peer influences on gender roles have varied as I have matured from contemporary in high school too more traditional now. Whilst in high school much emphasis was put on having a boyfriend and being attractive to guys where as in my current social group it is taboo to be seen as attempting to attract men. The language used during my time in high school was crude with slang terms and often swearing now however eloquent speech is more valued and crude speech or swearing is seen as unladylike. In high school clothing was only worn in an attempt to prove how much skin you could show for example mini skirts, boob tubes and hip huggers with g-string hanging out, with my current peer group feminine flowing clothing that covers all body parts that could be seen as provocative are expected.
I don’t recall my mother ever actually sitting down and giving the ‘birds and bees’ discussion, and although I was aware of the truth of where babies came from the details were rather sketchy. So you can imagine the shock I had when it was described rather in detail when I was in grade six and the school began on sexual education. These lessons where followed through to grade ten culminating in a workshop where we practiced putting condoms on bananas (well actually they where plastic penisis which where put in a banana novelty case).
The majority of my family didn’t really discuss sex and sexuality; with school friends it was very much an open subject with my current group however it is a very closed subject. I do recall that my family have a bit of a “their choice” mentality when it comes to homosexuality. Which was totally different to my school friends who thought that it was they way you are born and my current friends who just labelled it a sin. As for me personally I think it’s just the way you are I have always known I’m straight so I suppose this is the same for homosexuals.
My peers growing up, as with my community believed teen sex was expected and there was a certain amount of pressure towards having sex and if you hadn’t had a steady boyfriend/girlfriend by the age of sixteen you were seen as strange. My current peers however (being a church group) believe that you remain a virgin until you are married. With this group also dating is looked upon as only acceptable if you feel this is the person you could marry. Both of these are values I have always believed although I couldn’t tell you from where I got them, with my current group women are expected to have a high sense of morality so not to induce thoughts of sex into the males.
Much of my early youth years was spent in a vain attempt to live up to the women I saw portrayed in magazines and on television. The prompting to be thin, blonde and beautiful, to wear the ‘right’ clothes and fit in with the ‘right’ people became an obsession. The popular programs encouraged (and still do) an early sexualization. Woman were/are expected to dress feminine and wear make up and if they don’t they are often mocked and looked down on. I find this view of women as sex objects to be offensive, shallow and degrading.
Growing up in a lower class area the majority of the community was on some type of welfare payments, I just wanted to get out of there and not be like them.
My school friends were often of the belief that the government owed them something, they focused on what they saw as their rights forgoing any sense of responsibility. My friends these days however are very encouraging towards work and getting educated to get a better job especially in an industry of interest.
Over the last few years my father has instilled in me his views on work ethic. These include a sense of responsibility and dedication not only to work in general but to the boss. He has encouraged me to continue in a job (even if I hated it) to the best of my ability but also to search for a better fit in another if that is my wish. Unlike most Australians my Father is against the ‘traditional Aussie sickie’. I have found in my own brief working life that dad’s views have become my own.
I grew up in one of a cluster of small towns. As the area had a high percentage of Aboriginal people there was a elevated degree of political correctness and positive discrimination to the point where a blind eye was turned to any Indigenous law breaking, and that if an Indigenous kid claimed you where being racist towards them very often you where automatically suspended. An Aboriginal girl beat me up and I was given three weeks of detention she didn’t even get a warning.
I wouldn’t dare take home to my meet my maternal family a non-Anglo guy it just isn’t done and the names they would call other races of people are very offensive. Although I have Ethnic friends the majority of my friends are and have always been Anglos.
I have had no education on other cultures with the exception of A-Week, which didn’t really lead to any in-depth understanding. As for the media it is strongly dominated by people who are white and generally shows Indigenous Australians and Ethnic groups as troublemakers.
My personal beliefs are dominated by my English-Irish family and my Christian up bringing. My belief of the great importance of family comes from the ‘give the shirt off my back’ mentality I was raised with. Though as I mentioned before I can’t work out where I got the no sex before marriage thing, probably the bible.
My mother impressed upon me the belief that you treat others the way you would like to be treated, that punctuality is a way of life and lateness is rude and shows a lack of respect for others, that you always share what you have because even though it may not be much it is still more than what many others have and of course the basics don’t lie, steal or cheat.
Through watching other members of my family I realised the effects of drugs and alcohol, which has turned me off for life. One of the most important lessons I learnt in my life was respect for other people and their beliefs because even though I may think they are wrong it doesn’t give me the right to say so. I think I learnt this one via my little sister.In conclusion my socialisation has been most influenced by my family and friends some influence came from my education and the class in which I grew up however the media and legal systems have had very little impact.
My views on gender roles were greatly affected by my family. My parent’s divorce and being raised by a single mother left me devoid of a consistent male influence in my young life. This coupled with the matriarchal nature of my mother’s family, (who see women as baby breeders and men as breadwinners and yet the women ran the family and made the pivotal decisions with little or no help from men) has left me vastly confused as to the role of a man in most family units.
My peer influences on gender roles have varied as I have matured from contemporary in high school too more traditional now. Whilst in high school much emphasis was put on having a boyfriend and being attractive to guys where as in my current social group it is taboo to be seen as attempting to attract men. The language used during my time in high school was crude with slang terms and often swearing now however eloquent speech is more valued and crude speech or swearing is seen as unladylike. In high school clothing was only worn in an attempt to prove how much skin you could show for example mini skirts, boob tubes and hip huggers with g-string hanging out, with my current peer group feminine flowing clothing that covers all body parts that could be seen as provocative are expected.
I don’t recall my mother ever actually sitting down and giving the ‘birds and bees’ discussion, and although I was aware of the truth of where babies came from the details were rather sketchy. So you can imagine the shock I had when it was described rather in detail when I was in grade six and the school began on sexual education. These lessons where followed through to grade ten culminating in a workshop where we practiced putting condoms on bananas (well actually they where plastic penisis which where put in a banana novelty case).
The majority of my family didn’t really discuss sex and sexuality; with school friends it was very much an open subject with my current group however it is a very closed subject. I do recall that my family have a bit of a “their choice” mentality when it comes to homosexuality. Which was totally different to my school friends who thought that it was they way you are born and my current friends who just labelled it a sin. As for me personally I think it’s just the way you are I have always known I’m straight so I suppose this is the same for homosexuals.
My peers growing up, as with my community believed teen sex was expected and there was a certain amount of pressure towards having sex and if you hadn’t had a steady boyfriend/girlfriend by the age of sixteen you were seen as strange. My current peers however (being a church group) believe that you remain a virgin until you are married. With this group also dating is looked upon as only acceptable if you feel this is the person you could marry. Both of these are values I have always believed although I couldn’t tell you from where I got them, with my current group women are expected to have a high sense of morality so not to induce thoughts of sex into the males.
Much of my early youth years was spent in a vain attempt to live up to the women I saw portrayed in magazines and on television. The prompting to be thin, blonde and beautiful, to wear the ‘right’ clothes and fit in with the ‘right’ people became an obsession. The popular programs encouraged (and still do) an early sexualization. Woman were/are expected to dress feminine and wear make up and if they don’t they are often mocked and looked down on. I find this view of women as sex objects to be offensive, shallow and degrading.
Growing up in a lower class area the majority of the community was on some type of welfare payments, I just wanted to get out of there and not be like them.
My school friends were often of the belief that the government owed them something, they focused on what they saw as their rights forgoing any sense of responsibility. My friends these days however are very encouraging towards work and getting educated to get a better job especially in an industry of interest.
Over the last few years my father has instilled in me his views on work ethic. These include a sense of responsibility and dedication not only to work in general but to the boss. He has encouraged me to continue in a job (even if I hated it) to the best of my ability but also to search for a better fit in another if that is my wish. Unlike most Australians my Father is against the ‘traditional Aussie sickie’. I have found in my own brief working life that dad’s views have become my own.
I grew up in one of a cluster of small towns. As the area had a high percentage of Aboriginal people there was a elevated degree of political correctness and positive discrimination to the point where a blind eye was turned to any Indigenous law breaking, and that if an Indigenous kid claimed you where being racist towards them very often you where automatically suspended. An Aboriginal girl beat me up and I was given three weeks of detention she didn’t even get a warning.
I wouldn’t dare take home to my meet my maternal family a non-Anglo guy it just isn’t done and the names they would call other races of people are very offensive. Although I have Ethnic friends the majority of my friends are and have always been Anglos.
I have had no education on other cultures with the exception of A-Week, which didn’t really lead to any in-depth understanding. As for the media it is strongly dominated by people who are white and generally shows Indigenous Australians and Ethnic groups as troublemakers.
My personal beliefs are dominated by my English-Irish family and my Christian up bringing. My belief of the great importance of family comes from the ‘give the shirt off my back’ mentality I was raised with. Though as I mentioned before I can’t work out where I got the no sex before marriage thing, probably the bible.
My mother impressed upon me the belief that you treat others the way you would like to be treated, that punctuality is a way of life and lateness is rude and shows a lack of respect for others, that you always share what you have because even though it may not be much it is still more than what many others have and of course the basics don’t lie, steal or cheat.
Through watching other members of my family I realised the effects of drugs and alcohol, which has turned me off for life. One of the most important lessons I learnt in my life was respect for other people and their beliefs because even though I may think they are wrong it doesn’t give me the right to say so. I think I learnt this one via my little sister.In conclusion my socialisation has been most influenced by my family and friends some influence came from my education and the class in which I grew up however the media and legal systems have had very little impact.
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