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Friendship

A dictionary contains a definition of friendship somewhere in the F’s between the words “fear” and “Friday.” An encyclopedia supplies interesting facts on friendship. But all the definitions and facts do not convey what friendship is really all about. It cannot be understood through words or exaggerations. The only way to understand friendship is through experience. It is an experience that involves all the senses.

Friendship can be seen. It is seen in an old couple sitting in the park holding hands. It is the way they touch, a touch as light as a leaf floating in the autumn air, a touch so strong that years of living could not pull them apart. Friendship is seen in a child freely sharing the last cookie. It is the small arm over the shoulder of another as they walk on the playground. Seeing friendship is not casual. It is watching for subtlety, but friendship is there for eyes that can see.

Friendship can be heard. It is heard in the words of two friends who squeezed in lunch together on an extremely busy day. It is the way they talk to each other, not the words. Their tone is unique. Friendship can be heard by those willing to listen.

Friendship is felt in a touch. It is a pat on the back from a teammate, a high five between classes, the slimy, wet kiss from the family dog. It’s a touch that reassures that someone is there, someone who cares. The touch communicates more than words or gestures. It is instantly understood and speaks volumes beyond the point of contact, to the heart.

Friendship has a taste. It tastes like homemade bread, the ingredients all measured and planned, then carefully mixed and kneaded, then the quiet waiting as the dough rises. Hot from the oven, the bread tastes more than the sum of its ingredients. There is something else there, perhaps the thoughts of the baker as her hands knead the dough, or her patience as she waits for the dough to rise. Unseen and unmeasured, this is the ingredient that makes the difference. Warm, fresh from the oven with a little butter, the difference you taste is friendship.

Friendship has a smell. It smells like the slightly burnt cookies your brother made especially for you. It smells like your home when stepping into it after being away for a long time. It smells like a sandbox or a sweaty gym. Friendship has a variety of smells. Taken for granted at the moment, they define the memory of friendship.

Finally, more than the other senses, friendship is an experience of the heart. It is the language of the heart—a language without words, vowels, or consonants; a language that, whether seen, felt, heard, or tasted, is understood by the heart. Like air fills the lungs, friendship fills the heart, allowing us to experience the best life has to offer: a friend.

Musical Arts

“Fine arts are important in the curriculum because of what they do for learning,” stated Patty Taylor, arts consultant for the California State Department of Education. In other words, the arts, especially music, should be part of every school’s curriculum at every grade level. Music makes students smarter, gives children something positive to do, and builds self-confidence. Most students don’t have a chance to learn music outside of school, and everyone deserves that opportunity.

Students would be much smarter if they had some music experience. They would improve their classroom skills, like paying attention, following directions, and participating without interrupting. People develop all these skills when they learn music. Musicians are also better in math, and they get higher S.A.T. scores. For instance, a study by the College Entrance Examination Board reported, “Students with 20 units of arts and music scored 128 points higher on the S.A.T. verbal and 118 points higher in math.” A Rockefeller Foundation study states that music majors have the highest rate of admittance to medical school. Making music also lets children use their imaginations, unlike playing with video games and electronic stuffed animals. “It provides students a chance to try out their own ideas,” according to the California Educator. Music makes children well-rounded students.

Music not only makes children better students but also gives them something positive to do. In a music program, children can be part of a band or choir instead of getting into trouble. Parents can enjoy listening to their children’s music instead of seeing them glued to a computer or TV screen. In band, students get to be part of a team. They can interact with old friends and make new friends through music. In fact, on her Web site "The Musician's Brain," Lois Svard explains how music stimulates "mirror neurons," which synchronize performers but also help them empathize with each other. As the great choral conductor Eric Whitacre said, directing a choir is all about getting a room of people to breathe together. In many ways, music helps people connect.

Music builds self-confidence. It gives children a sense of accomplishment and success. Making music is something for them to be proud of, and it lets kids practice performing in front of an audience. As reported in the California Educator, “It gives [students] self-confidence and a feeling of importance to have a skill someone appreciates. They are also learning how to accomplish something from beginning to end and actually come out with a product that they can be proud of.” Music gives children an outlet for self-expression, and that helps develop their self-confidence.

Once again, music is important because it can make children better students, give them something positive to do, and build their character. Unfortunately, the children who need music lessons the most usually don’t have access to them outside of school. That is why music should be offered in every single grade in every school.

Foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten. Discuss.

According to a famous saying, “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” Indeed, the ability to speak several languages is considered one of the hallmarks of a cultured person. From this perspective, foreign language instruction should begin as early as possible in order to achieve near-native fluency. The reasons behind this approach are intellectual, social and professional.

Intellectually, learning a foreign language at a young age enables children to develop their brain. At this age, children’s minds are like sponges and their capacities are limitless. They have less inhibition or biases against learning different subjects. They can learn one, two or three languages without confusion; it would only serve to expand their minds. Therefore, it is ideal to start teaching a foreign language in kindergarten.

Socially, learning a foreign language enables the young child to enter a wider cultural world. By learning to speak, think and understand a different language, the child develops greater cross-cultural awareness. This critical ability enables the child to make friends with, identify with and empathize with others who speak the additional language.

Professionally, by learning a foreign language in kindergarten, the child expands his/her future career horizons. In today’s increasingly globalized world, bilingual and multilingual individuals are in high demand. The child who achieves

this fluency naturally and easily at a young age already has an edge over others in the job market. In summary, numerous benefits flow from teaching a foreign language from kindergarten. The child will most likely grow up to thank those who made such a learning experience possible.

International entertainers, including sports personalities, often get paid millions of dollars in one year. In your view, with widespread poverty in the world, are these huge earnings justified?

The salaries of many singers, dancers and sports people have increased out of all proportion in recent years, while in places like Sudan people are starving to death. I do not believe that anyone should be able to earn such enormous salaries when so many people in the world are living in poverty.

One of the factors which should affect what a person can earn ought to be the benefit of person's work to society. It is unreasonable for a famous singer to be able to earn far more from an evening's

entertainment than, for instance, a medical scientist who develops a new drug which produces a treatment for a common disease. The pop star certainly has a value in society, but the value in no way exceeds, or even matches, the value gained from a successful medication.

Secondly. work done should be paid according to the amount of effort and skill that goes into it. Nobody would deny that a famous person works hard and is skillful, yet such people do not work any harder than thousands of other workers who have no claim to fame. Yet market force is

such that these superstars can obtain millions of dolor while other unknown people sometimes earn less than they need to survive.

Finally, it should be possible for governments to work together to ensure that the amount of money in circulation should be more equally and fairly distributed. This seems only fair given that there are so many sufferings.

To conclude, it is clear that world poverty is a serious problem and yet the problem could be eased if governments and compenies gave more thought to paying salaries on a more equitable basis and if they started to contribute more money to those in need.