Slow Down
Joshua Young
There isn’t enough time to be.
(Author’s Statement)
The picture shows me relaxed and enjoying the moment that I am living in. The flowers and plants in the background represent life and its beauty. I am in a relaxed pose, lying on the ground with my eyes closed, to portray a feeling of content and peace. Yellow, being the prominent color in the image, is usually associated with the feeling of happiness and summarizes the entire mood of the piece. The story conveys that, from my perspective, there isn’t enough time in life to take it slow and just exist. This ties directly to the image and completes the message of a want to just slow down and live life.From the perspective of a high schooler, life is moving way too fast. Soon I’ll have to apply for colleges and start thinking about my future and what I want to do in my life. The idea of the future is a scary world of unknowns and I would much rather take it slow for a while and enjoy myself before I have to be thrown into the short-lived world of an adult. But we live in a society where everything must be instantaneous and quick. Each day is a segway into tomorrow, then next week, then next month, then next year. We don’t take the time to stop and smell the flowers and lie in the grass and just stop for a while; maybe we should
(They Say, I Say)
I used to think that people’s personalities were permanent and couldn’t be changed. If someone was a jerk to me, three years later I would still only think of them as a jerk. This attitude is reflected through our society and everyday life. We have watch lists for people who have made mistakes in their past and post them online so people know to avoid them. People who were ever in trouble with the law at any point in their life will struggle to find work later due to past mistakes.According to Psychology Today blogger, Romeo Vitelli Ph.D., a person’s personality stems from temperences that they had as a child that mature into adult behaviors. He argues that the way people were treated as a child by their caregivers and their genetics determine their personality. Much of this sounds similar to Freudian psychology, which also argues that the psyche is based on our childhood. However, unlike Freud, he argues that one’s personality can change after the developmental stage. Stressful situations like prison and war time can change a personality and leave one with PTSD or other mental illnesses.
I agree with Vitelli that our personalities are based on behaviors and how we were treated and as a child. I also agree with his statement that our personality can change beyond the developmental stage. However, the nature of these changes was never specified. Most people who come out of prison or war time are affected negatively due to the environment they experienced. For veterans, they experienced the hardship of war and death. Most came back with addictions and serious mental illnesses. Former prisoners have trouble participating in society onced they are released since the environment in prison is very different from the America we know. Prison, even in the way it is built, is setup to mentally scar its inmates, “to incarcerate instead of rehabilitate” (“Prison”). Ultimately, personality can change, for better or for worse, despite the beliefs of the general public.
Why did you choose a six word story to illustrate wanting some time to stop and smell the roses instead of something longer?
ReplyDeleteI like how you used only six words to represent many and then elaborated in your Artist's Statement. Also I really like how colorful the picture is.
ReplyDeleteI love how you explained your picture and the flash fiction to a whole new level in your artist statement. I have the same feelings about life moving way too quickly in high school.
ReplyDeleteI loved how you chose to do a six word story instead of a normal flash fiction piece. I read the six words fast, before I could even register what they meant. It ties into the idea that we don't take time to enjoy what's around us.
ReplyDeleteThe photo is fun to look at ( It makes you want to go there and just be happy) because of the color that is in it from the flowers to your jacket. It makes the eyes bounce around the picture because of the intensity of the colors also the fact that everything is kinda in a slant on top of each other with the wood making a divider. It creates layers to your photo.
ReplyDeleteI really like the simplicity of your flash fiction. "There isn't enough time to be" is a really great way to describe all the things in life that weigh down on you and how none of it is even worth the time to list, because listing would take time away from the good in life, which is tiring and not worth the effort in the end. The picture pairs well with the carefree attitude of the flash fiction, making this entire piece feel like a truly refreshing moment to see. Great job expressing that!
ReplyDeleteI love your project and what you decided to do with it. I think a lot of people (especially in highschool) struggle with time and trying to find themselves, I know I do. I really like how you can do so much with so little in your six word story and I think your portrait is beautifully simplistic and vibrant. Your artist statement really sums everything together and I think you did an amazing job on this!
ReplyDeleteI really like your project and the way you portrayed your topic in the image! I also really like how you used only 6 words as your flash fiction, it's very simplistic and straight to the point (At least for me), and the fact that it's so short helps keep the attention on the point you are trying to make!
ReplyDeleteHoly cow! Everything went together so nicely. when you used only 6 words it was powerful, but short and sweet! The photo goes nicely with the flash fiction and shows meaning. I agree with how nobody ever really slows down and stops to smell the flowers. Everybody is always on the go and I like how you related it to everybody and not just you.
ReplyDeleteThe bright colors of your picture made me stop to read more about it. I like your example in your they say I say, about how if someone is a jerk to you three years later you would still think of them as a jerk. I mentioned the same things in my paper about people believe that the personalities of people dont change overtime. Overall well written material!
ReplyDeleteWith the bright colors it makes it seem happier. The flowers and grass make it seem relaxing. The picture and story work well together because it seems like reality vs. ideal situations.
ReplyDeleteI like the picture it really goes with what you were trying to get at. I do agree people really do need to slow down and think about the positive things in life and forget about all the negatives for just a moment
ReplyDeleteits cool that you had your flash fiction short to show that we dont have a lot of time to do things. then your picture showing you relaxing and enjoying life is a good opposite, then putting them together.
ReplyDeleteThe color of your picture really pulled me into this project. I agree with you that yellow represents happiness. I really enjoyed your artist statement because it was upbeat and happy while getting the point across that life is moving to fast. Overall I think you did an awesome job on this project.
ReplyDeleteWhen you look at your flash and photo you kind of just glance over it. And you use that to your advantage. your point that we don't slow down we so stop to take in the world as it is.
ReplyDeleteAnd by making your piece so simple you make your reader realize that.
I think everyone feels this during this point in life. We're told to get perfect grades, have friends, do as many activities as possible, get a job, apply for college. It's a lot to think and stress about and you're right, we should just be able to lie down, smell the flowers, and just have time to be ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI liked that you used only 6 words in your flash fiction. It makes it so you don't have to read a lot but you still get the overall message. It makes you want to stop and slow down your own life. It really spoke to me, you did a great job. I think that your artist statement does a great job of describing the picture and why you chose to do it that way.
ReplyDeleteJosh:
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to remember if I felt like pressure (generally speaking) has increased or decreased since I was a teenager. I still don't know if I have an answer. I think there are some more responsibilities but if you're lucky, you can ease into them and they become pretty manageable. Growing pains are the price we pay for freedom after all. I do remember pretty acutely the pressure of needing to have an answer to who I was going to be and what I was going to do as a young person. No one asks you that stuff when you're an "adult."
I can see the urgency in those questions but at the same time, it gives us the false assumption that we can control the future. The fact is (and happily so I would argue) that we can't. If we spend too much time in our future (or past for that matter) we can't live here, in the now. Not to get too Buddhist, but being present is a key to living each day with a sense of well-being and gratitude. Can you truly appreciate life if you're too busy to remember you are alive? Maybe the skills we need most are the skills of adaptability.
You sparked an inquiry in me when I read, "If someone was a jerk to me, three years later I would still only think of them as a jerk." Something funny happens when we try to apply the theoretical to our real lives. I might say I believe something, but if I apply the same concept to something that happened to me personally, suddenly I have a hard time supporting that belief. Hm.
Thanks for your careful thinking. Keep smelling the roses.
Ms.B