My Experience Essay Example for Free

My Experience Essay As I reflect upon my life I will describe facts and events believed to have contributed to the person I am today. I like how Merriam Webster’s online dictionary explains experience as something personally encountered, undergone, or lived through. I have encountered difficulties, circumstances, and triumphs that have helped me to grow as a person. I am pursuing a higher education as my future goal. In this paper, I will apply theories from Adult Development and Life Assessment in my explanation of challenges I have faced during childhood to adulthood. I was born in Chicago, one of six girls and the middle child of twelve. As early as I can remember we worked as a group. We played together and we worked in the garden that my parents made in our back yard. I hated the garden because every time I wanted to go play, I first had pick vegetables out of the garden. I didn’t understand at the time that my parents used the garden to help feed our large family. My dad always worked two jobs; his primary employment was with a company called Central Soya. When my father retired from there we moved to Alabama because the cost of living was cheaper. We didn’t have a lot of material things like clothes and shoes. My mother would buy tennis shoes from the grocery store and my brothers would be so embarrassed because their friends saw them trying on the shoes in the store. I can remember my dad making me a pair of pants for school; I thought they were the prettiest pair of pants I had ever seen. It was cheaper to make a pair of pants than to buy them. My parents cut corners any way they could. We may not have had material things but what we did have was love and lots of talent. Not real talent but talent that’s appreciated in a family. On rainy days mom and dad would have us put on a talent show. It was so much fun that we kept the tradition even until adulthood. On birthdays and holidays we would use our talents to entertain mom and dad. Birthdays were especially special because my dad would make me a birthday cake. He was a really good cook and everyone in the neighborhood wanted a piece of his cake. My sixteenth birthday marked a significant shift in my life. I became pregnant and it was one of the biggest mistakes that started a downward spiral in my life. I hung out with older girls that had children. They were into partying and so called having a good time. Our environment plays a huge role in how we develop, what pathways are open to us, and which are closed (Witt, G.A., Mossler, R. A. (2010). I feel like the environment that I chose to be in led to early exploration of drugs and alcohol. I could see myself going in the wrong direction with more terrible consequences if I didn’t make a change. I stopped hanging out and got my first job. It was on a military base in the mess hall. I met a soldier and we got married on our way to work one day when I was twenty one years old. We dated for four months then he went overseas for a year. We married a year later after he returned to the states. Being married was a challenge because he was abusive physically, verbally, and mentally. I had listened to his insults for so long that they became part of my own vocabulary. I began to think that maybe he was right, maybe if I could cook, clean, dress or talk better it would fix our problems. In our text Freud believed that the mind uses defense mechanism to protect itself from severe distress. In the beginning I rationalized everything he did, in rationalization: we look for an acceptable reason to justify our thinking or behavior (Witt Mossler 2010). I got involved in church and accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my savior. As a result I think a lot of the abusive behavior was able to continue because I simply forgave, thinking it was the Christian thing to do. According to Haan (1977), coping strategies involve choice and purposive behavior, are oriented toward reality, involve differentiated thinking that integrates conscious and preconscious aspects, and permit affective satisfaction in an open, ordered, and tempered way (Psychology and Aging 2000 ). It came to a point after seventeen years of abuse I couldn’t take it anymore. I had done all that I could physically to have a successful marriage but it wasn’t working out for me. I had to face the cruel reality that my marriage was over. Finally I filed for a divorce, which was one of the scariest things I have ever done in my life. Going through the divorce gave me a sense of freedom and strength that I had never experienced in my marriage. Getting a divorced was the best thing I could have done for myself. It started me on a journey to find out what I want out of life for myself. It marked a new beginning to a better, brighter future in my life. I was free to make my own decisions that impact my life. One of those decisions was returning to school for a degree. I really want to be an example to my daughter and her children that education is the key to success, and you are never too old to be successful in life. I must admit that I was very afraid of returning to school because I thought that I would not be successful. I thought that I wouldn’t be able to remember things or comprehend how to do the work. Some researchers contend that intellectual functioning is a process of irreversible decline. However, most scholars agree that intelligence either remains relatively stable through the adult years, with substantial intellectual changes occurring only very late in life, or that intelligence declines in some respects, remains stable in others, and may even increase in some functions, depending on a persons educational level, life experiences, and overall health (Intelligence and Aging 2007). I am now encouraged to pursue my education. I’m not too old, I plan to finish my courses and earn my degree. My goal is to apply for higher positions that require a degree. There will be many opportunities open to me once I earn my degree in my field of study. In conclusion, I have shared different experiences that have influenced my personal life. I have used theories from this class to support my experiences and I have shared my future plans to achieve my academic goals. Every lesson I complete moves me one step closer to my goal. References Intelligence and Aging (2007) Learning in Adulthood: A Comprehensive Guide. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/wileyla/intelligence-and-aging Witt, G. A., Mossler, R.A., (2010). Adult Development Retrieved from http://content.ashford. edu /AUPYS202.10.1 Vief, G. L., Diehl, M., (2000) Cognitive complexity and cognitive-affective integration. Psychology and Aging. Vol.15 (3) US: American Psychological Association pp. 490 -504.doi:10.1037/0882-7974.15.3.490

Virtual Reality is Reality :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Virtual Reality is Reality In his essay, "A Rape in Cyberspace," Julian Dibbell wrote about a violent event that occurred in LambdaMOO, a virtual reality community. To some, Dibbell states, this event was nothing more than "spidery flitting of fingers across standard QWERTY keyboards" (450). On the other hand, to the victims it was much more. In his essay one of the victims was quoted as saying " ...[I] have thought about it for days. He hurt us both" (453). The effect that the virtual event had on the victim was obviously real; thus, this event effected their real life. According to Heim, the author of "The Essence of VR," virtual reality is "an event or entity that is real in effect but not in fact" (16). Is it the effect of a matter or the fact, materiality, of a matter that depicts how real an event is? If it is the fact, there is a distinct line between virtual reality and real life. However, if the impact that an event has on a person's life is what makes an event real, then virtual reality i s very real and the line between virtual reality and real life is very faint if it exists at all. The use of virtual reality is increasing in many areas of society such as: communication, business, education, and medicine. Perhaps this increase will cause the lives of all people, even those who do not use computer technology which is typically thought of as the medium for virtual reality, to be impacted. It is important to know if and where the line between virtual reality and real life exists due to this steady increase of virtual reality use. This essay will provide evidence focusing on how the line is slowly disappearing as virtual reality is shaping the way medicine effects our health and livelihood. The ways in which virtual reality impacts peoples' lives are rapidly increasing, especially with the increased use of virtual reality in medicine. One example of this is in the testing of colon cancer. An article from ABCNews entitled "The Wonders of Virtual Surgery" states that, "the American Cancer Society predicts that 96,500 people will get colon cancer in 1998, and 47,700 will die of it.

Hsbc Scandal

The HSBC scandal shook Europe as a whole! Britain’s largest institutional bank was accused of a â€Å"drugs and gun-running† scandal. The bank failed to monitor a staggering ? 38trillion of money moving across borders from places that could have posed a risk, including the Cayman Islands, Switzerland, Iran, and Mexico. One of the highest noted disregards by the bank was their financial dealings with Al Rajhi, the Saudi Arabian bank that was linked with funding the 9/11 terrorist scheme.Another report showed that the bank accepted ? 9. 6billion in cash over two years from subsidiaries without checking where the money came from, showing blunt disregard for the obviousness of the transactions. Mexican and US authorities warning HSBC that there was a volume limit (? 4. 5billion) in money sent to the US from its Mexican subsidiary that would exemplify â€Å"illegal drug proceeds†. A HSBC officer admitted that the accounts in the Cayman Islands were abused by â€Å"or ganized crime†, ? 1. 3billion total.The bank became the subject of a US senate investigation, and they dropped a 335 page report that accused the bank of ignoring all of the warning and safeguards that should have stopped the laundering of money from Mexico, Iran and Syria. In December they agreed on a settlement to pay a penalty of ? 1. 2 billion that would further scorch their already diminished reputation. With the settlement of the fee, comes the bank admitting to violating US laws meant to prohibit money laundering including the Bank Secrecy Act and the Trading with the Enemy Act.When presented with the 335 page senate report, the head of HSBC’s compliance division, David Bagley, quit in front of the Senate committee. Being at his post since 2002, one can understand why he resigned when pressed with these concerns. He felt guilty being with the bank for so long and did not want to take responsibility for the actions and accusations of the bank. The affair is also a n embarrassment for David Cameron, because his trade envoy Stephen Green chaired HSBC during the period covered by the allegations.Lord (Barron) Green is probably the person most to blame for these disregards for policy on money laundering and regulations. He was the chief executive and the executive chairman of HSBC. Being a trade minister, it was his duty to ensure that the issues brought to the senate’s attention would be regulated for legality concerns. In failing to successfully do so, the fault of the accusations falls on his lap. The regulators of money laundering actively, domestically, and internationally are the countries of the FATF. Forming in 1989, the FATF has 3 primary functions with regard to money laundering.These 3 functions are monitoring member’s implementation of anit-money laundering measures, review and report trends and techniques of laundering, and promote standards globally. Combined with a unified effort within these countries, the US being o ne of the main ones, money laundering activities will be noted quickly before large scale transactions may go through unnoticed and through the means of illegal activities. The US promotes the most laws against these sorts of offensives. HSBC needs to come to a complete â€Å"retake†.All historical transactions, accounts, and services need to be reviewed and mended to meet the golden standard of banking that they have held themselves to ever since becoming the primary bank of Europe. With the removal and replacement of key executive level positions, they may bring in new, fresh minds and with that comes a new approach to the regulating of the activities of the bank. In short, re-staffing the bank with new executives over the previous ones shows the public that the bank takes serious note to what has happened and a serious effort to mend and fix it. Shipman, T. & Davies, R. (2012, July 7). Hsbc let drug gangs launder millions: First barclays, now britain. Retrieved from http:/ /www. dailymail. co. uk/news/article-2174785/HSBC-scandal-Britains-biggest-bank-let-drug-gangs-launder-millions–faces-640million-fine. html (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2012/dec/10/standard-chartered-settle-iran-sanctions Yost, P. , & Pylas, P. (2012, December 11). Hsbc to pay $1. 9 billion to settle money-laundering scandal. Retrieved from http://www. salon. com/2012/12/11/hsbc_to_pay_1_9bn_to_settle_money_laundering_scandal/

Should Pas Be Legalized - 3599 Words

Introduction In this essay I will try to show why PAS should be legalized. I will do this by first analyzing the value we place in human lives in order to show why in some cases, â€Å"ending someone’s life† should be considered a right action. If it is the case that some cases â€Å"ending someone’s life† is the right action, we would have a positive reason to believe that PAS should be legalized. However, there are some who believe that PAS should not be legalized, even if in some cases assisted suicide might be the right course of action, because legalizing PAS would lead to many unpleasant consequences. In the second section of this essay, I will attempt to respond to these concerns by providing empirical data which seems to show that many†¦show more content†¦Even if in such cases it seems obvious that this person’s life will contain more evil than good if saved, we would not say that someone who saves this person’s life is doing no service by recuing him from death (Foot 1977). This hypothetical situation seems to show that we still regard a live with more evil than good as valuable, indicating that there is an aspect of life that we regard as a good in and of itself. However, we should not be inclined to conclude the fact that life is good in of itself implies that it is always better to live than to die in any circumstance. In the next section I will try to show how it can be the case that in some circumstance it is better to die than to live, even if life is good in and of itself. b) Are all lives good? Although life is good in and of itself, there are circumstances where we justifiably believe that it is better for one to die than to live. Suppose, for instance, that a man were being tortured to death, but he is given a drug to delay his death and prolong his suffering. In such cases we seem to justifiably believe that it is better for him to die early than his life to be prolonged with more suffering. â€Å"It seemed that life was a good in its own right; yet pain seems to be an evil with equal status and could therefore make life not a good after all† (Foot 1977). In other words, although life is good in and of itself, a substantial amount of pain as a result of