|
Work Samples from over the Years
Beth Kempkes
12/05/05
English, 3
Canada and the USA
Canada and the US are very different but at the same time similar. They have a number of differences a couple of them are the land mass, and population’s difference. Canada has a land mass of 9,976,140 sq. ft. which is 347,049 ft. larger than the US who has a land mass of 9,629,091 sq. ft. There are about 31,902,268 people living in Canada, that’s not that many people for how big it is. There are around 280,562,489 people living in the United States. Which brings me to my next point, Canada has 10 provinces and 3 territories, where as the US has 50 states, some smaller and others larger.
Both countries speak English, but between them both, only Canada is a bilingual country. This means that they focus a lot on the French language and culture, because they have a French province. Canada requires all Canadian students to take French as a second language, starting at the age of five or in kindergarten. American schools teach Spanish, but it is not a required course, unless you want to get into a college, or university. And even then you only have to take two years of languages in high school.
Holidays are also different, in Canada they celebrate Canada day on July 1st, and in the US, Independence Day is celebrated on July 4th. Thanksgiving is even on a different date for both countries, in Canada it is in October and it’s not that big of a deal. And in the States, thanksgiving is a huge deal, especially the day after thanksgiving, and it is also in November.
Currency is also another main point; the American dollar is worth more than the Canadian dollar. Canadian money is colored, example: five dollar bills are blue, ten dollar bills are purple and twenties are green. Every different dollar bill in Canada is a different color. There are no one dollar bills, only loonies, which are bronze colored and a little larger than a quarter. The loonies get their name from the loon that is on one of the sides, a loon is a bird that looks like a duck, but makes a more beautiful sound. There is also a two dollar coin, called a toonie, which looks like a penny was pushed into a quarter. American money is just about the same except the color, all the dollars bills are one color, green and no loonies or toonies. You can tell the difference between Canadian and American coins, American pennies have Lincoln’s head on one side and the Lincoln memorial on the other side. Where as Canadian pennies have the Queen’s head on one side and maple leaves on the other. Dimes, nickels and quarters are all the way different also.
Even though these two countries have differences there is still a lot of similarities between them, both countries are free nations. You can choose what religion you want, with no one forcing you into one that you don’t want to. And you’re free to vote at only a certain age chosen by the government. Free to choose what ever job you want!
And lastly, there are some holidays that quite similar, such as Christmas, New Years, Easter and Halloween.
So even there is many differences between the two countries, they have a lot of similarities.
Beth Kempkes
September 21, 2007
Government
Freedom of Speech
As Christians I think that we should tolerate free speech. Even though in the Bill of Rights, Free Speech is protecting behaviors that are sinful like hate speech, pornography and slander. In the bible it tells us to submit to our government because God has established these authorities, and when we rebel against the authorities we are rebelling against God (Romans 13:1-2). All though today our national leaders sometimes do not represent God’s establishment, they are in that high position and we should respect them and their decisions. They are our government, and they are there to keep order and protect us. But, “Since God establishes the powers that rule, we are called to respect them, unless they trample his word.” (Our World Belongs To God) In the 1st amendment I see the government trampling God’s word to a certain extent, obviously hate speech, pornography and slander are not acceptable to God and us (Christians), so in a way, is not the government trampling God’s word? We have to judge for ourselves what is right in the eyes of God (Acts 4:19). And if something is legal and we do not agree with it, we do not have to participate in it, it is as clear as that. We are Christians so God’s Law comes first, just because our rights as citizens might be protecting something that is against what we believe in, does not mean that we have to partake in it. As Christians we should use our freedom of speech when we can, but not misuse it like the rest of this world has.
College Acceptance Essay
December 2004, during the middle of my first year in high school, my family and I moved south from British Columbia to Window Rock, Arizona. My father had accepted a call to be the minister at a church on the Navajo Reservation. While this was a great opportunity for my father, I was not enthusiastic about moving at all. Instead, I was rather difficult because I was leaving the home and friends that I had grown up with, and moving to a world I did not know.
The southwest was a bit of a shock to my whole family, but mostly to me. The landscape and climate were very different from what we knew. We went from a valley surrounded by lush forested mountains to an arid, red rock desert. Not only was the landscape different, there was an entirely different culture on the Reservation. And I felt that I was intruding on their land a way of life. Navajo people are generally quiet and almost shy when you meet them so I did not feel very welcome at first and took sometime to get used to. But because of all these changes, I learned how to adjust quickly.
I had to adjust to a new way of life, a new school, and new people. When I came to Rehoboth it seemed that everyone had already made all the friends that they needed and trying to be accepted was very difficult, especially when I knew that I had friends missing me back in Canada. Even though this was a harder time for me, I had learned, without realizing it, that I can be myself around people, and that I can pick my friends, and who I spend my time with.
This whole experience has given me many more opportunities to travel, to grow and find my talents in ways that I would not have been possible in Canada. I have grown mentally, physically, musically and academically. Rehoboth, this new school to me, pushed me, setting the academic standard high. As a result, I studied more and became more responsible with my homework and time. I worked hard to try and achieve better grades.
Moving to Window Rock also challenged my faith, because three months after we had moved, my youngest brother Michael got severely sick with pneumonia, and we almost lost him. I could not believe that first of all God had “asked” us to move, and then he let my brother get sick. But this is just one of God’s many ways of pulling us back to Him, because I had to depend on God in new ways. I I had to depend on Him to make my brother better, to help me make good friendships, and I depended on Him to help me find contentment.
This move impacted me greatly because it caused me to be moved as a person. This was not only a new place to live; it was a new chapter in my life. My time in Window Rock has shown me that not all new things are bad, even though at the time it may seem that everything has gone wrong. Instead, I now know with certainty that something good will always come and that sunshine always follows the rain.
|
