NOBEL LAUREATE ESSAY

There have been many people who have impacted the world for their various good deeds and accomplishments. However, some individuals seem to stand out more than others, including Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel. No one alive today, unless experienced it themselves, could fully understand, mentally and emotionally, what Wiesel witnessed and was treated like during the Holocaust. He has impacted the world, with his bravery and strength, in such a way that his story of the Holocaust, and his work following, will carry on forever, into the history of tomorrow.

Elie Wiesel was born on September 30th, 1928 in Sighet, Transylvania, which is now part of Romania (Elie Wiesel ¶ 1). Wiesel and three sisters, two older and one younger, were born to Shlomo and Sarah Wiesel (Eliezer Wiesel ¶ 3, Elie Wiesel-Biography ¶ 5). In May of 1944, Wiesel’s world came crashing down when Nazi’s invaded his residence, among others, and deported all Jews to concentration camps. Wiesel’s family was transported to Auschwitz where his mother and younger sister were killed immediately. Wiesel and his father managed to stay together through Auschwitz and into the Buchenwald concentration camp in 1945; his father died shortly before the camp was liberated (Wiesel, Elie 1928- ¶1-2). Following Buchenwald’s liberation, Wiesel was sent to study in France with a group of orphaned Jewish children, which ultimately began his journey to where he has ended up today (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶ 4-6).

Elie Wiesel attended the Sorbonne in France studying philosophy, psychology and literature from 1948 to1951 (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶6, Wiesel, Elie 1928- ¶6). Wiesel started a career as a translator, reporter and journalist and became the United Nations correspondent of the Israeli newspaper: Yediot Aharonet, after emigrating to New York in 1956 (Elie 1928- ¶6). During an interview Wiesel had with French writer Francois Mauriac, he was persuaded to finally speak out and write about his experience at the death camps during the Holocaust (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶6, Elie Wiesel ¶2). His personal encounter with the Holocaust, put down on paper, resulted in the phenomenal book entitled Night (La Nuit). Along with being an author, Wiesel was a Professor, a member of several organizations and is a strong supporter of causes for those in need. Wiesel has won multiple awards including the astonishing Nobel Peace Prize, in 1986. He became one of the more famous Holocaust survivors because of his writings, speeches and humanitarian work (Wiesel, Elie 1928- ).

Elie Wiesel was the voice for those who had perished along with many Holocaust survivors who did not speak out or could not find words to say what had happened to them. Wiesel’s novels describe in great detail the events that went on during the Holocaust. He gave insight to the horrific tragedies he was faced with along with thousands of others. Because he survived he felt it was his duty to share his experience and speak out for those who could not. Although he vowed not to speak until ten years after camps were liberated, his story has still impacted millions. Since the original writing of Wiesel’s memoir, written in 1958, it has been translated into 30 languages and has sold over seven million copies worldwide (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶6, Elie Wiesel ¶2). Following Night, Wiesel has published over 40 other novels both fiction and non-fiction (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶8, Elie Wiesel ¶6). His writings are mostly focused on keeping the memory of the Holocaust, and those involved, alive in story.

Because of Elie Wiesel’s schooling for philosophy and literature, and his early career in journalism, he eventually became a teacher following his studies. Elie Wiesel was the Professor of Judaic Studies at the City College in New York from 1972 until 1976 (Elie Wiesel-Biography ¶7, Wiesel, Elie 1928-¶ 6, The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶13). He has been the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in Humanities at Boston University since 1976. Also at Boston University, Wiesel is a faculty member in the Department of Religion as well as the Department of Philosophy (Elie Wiesel ¶5). During 1982 to 1983, Wiesel was the Henry Luce Visiting Scholar in Humanities and Social Thought at Yale University (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶13). Among other things, Elie Wiesel dedicated his time as being a member, chairman or president of many organizations that benefitted the well being of others.

In 1978 President Jimmy Carter named Wiesel as chairman in the President’s Commission of the Holocaust (The Life and Work of Wiesel ¶12). Following that he was elected chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council from years 1980 to 1986, and then resigned in protest to President Regan (Wiesel, Elie 1928- ¶6, Elie Wiesel ¶3). Elie Wiesel is a large supporter of Israel and defends causes of the Soviet Jews, the Nicaragua’s Miskito Indians, Argentina’s Desaparecidos, the Cambodian refugees, the Kurds, and the victims of famine and genocide in Africa (Elie Wiesel ¶ 4). While supporting many groups and being chairman in different organizations, Wiesel received and is still receiving awards for his great humanitarian work. He has received many awards including: the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal, the national Humanities Medal, the Medal of Liberty, the rank of Grand-Croix in the French Legion of Honor and ultimately the Nobel Prize for Peace; which was awarded to Wiesel in 1986 (Elie Wiesel ¶ 7).

Shortly after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize he founded the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity. Today his foundation focuses on helping those in need, especially the youth. The foundation’s mission “Is rooted, in the memory of the Holocaust, is to combat indifference, intolerance and injustice through international dialogue and youth-focused programs that promote acceptance, understanding and equality” (About Us ¶1). The foundation has different sections and programs that are in the United States as well as internationally, for children. The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity has a program in Israel to give Ethiopian immigrants academic tutoring, support and the opportunity to overcome early educational inequalities. A quote from Wiesel himself states that “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference.” (Elie Wiesel American Novelist ¶ 1). Although the quote explains itself, Wiesel’s word to the world is to not judge someone or use their culture, race or religion to hate them, like the Nazi’s did to the Jew’s. Because of Wiesel’s experience with the Holocaust and surviving, it gave him the courage and the drive to share with the world his story and to give back to those in need of help and support. Elie Wiesel has contributed to more lives than one could imagine and receiving awards, like the Peace Prize, thanked him for doing so.

Is it EVER going to snow?

I swear it just gets colder and colder every single day. I mean come on; if it’s going to be this cold I’d prefer some snow to be falling. It’s not even that I enjoy snow or winter in general; I just think that if it’s going to be the season of WINTER then it should look like winter. I’m sure many of the people who do recreational sports in the winter also agree with me. The lack of snow is preventing those people from participating in the activities in which they enjoy most during this season. Pretty soon Mount La Crosse along with many other places will just have to make snow if it never is going to fall. How are they supposed to make any money from the skiers and snowboarders if the weather doesn’t even cooperate? I know they have machines to make snow, but that costs money, so if it would just snow everything would be fine! 

For me, driving in snowy conditions is not something I enjoy that much. However, it does look pretty on the ground-until dirt gets mixed in or it starts melting, that is. I looked around online and found out that snow plow drivers can make anywhere from 24-58 dollars an hour. If that’s their only job during the winter they could be hurting for money until the snow starts to fall; and if it doesn’t snow, they don’t get paid. I also found out that if you work alone, plowing driveways for people, than the usual rate is around 25-30 dollars per driveway. Maybe I should invest in getting a junk truck with a plow and plow driveways for people. To make some extra cash sounds good to me! Oh wait, I forgot we don’t have any snow. So for now, i'm stuck waitressing at the job i love oh so very much :).

PERSONAL NARRATIVE

Standing up on the bluff looking at the world below it finally hit me that this was it. This is what happens in real life, and she’s never coming back. Tears start streaming down my face as all the emotion of what had happened exactly one year ago started filling my mind.

September 16th, 2009 started just like any other day. It was a Wednesday, so the week wasn’t over just yet. After hearing my mother yell “Turn that damn alarm clock off!” about twenty times, I finally listened and get myself out of my warm, comfy bed. An hour or so of doing a normal morning routine I get in my car and head off to school. As the day goes on it felt like any normal school day; slow paced, boring and a waste of my time. I dragged myself from College Prep, to Psychology 2, to Advanced Civics 2 then to my lunch/release period. I could finally go home to do what I love best; sleep. Taking a good nap was something I was looking forward to all day; so from about 12:45 to 3:00pm I dozed off then sprang up with what little energy I gained. Since it was a Wednesday it was time for me to work. Work actually excited me because it was that time I had to get away from thinking about school or pleasing my family and getting a chance to laugh with my co-workers and have conversation as I waited on my customers.

9:30pm rolls around and I hear, “We’re done!” from my manager. “Thank God” I say to myself, because it had been a slow night. I ran over to the windows to shut the open signs off and sprinted to the doors to lock them as quick as I could so no customers could sneak in. After closing I went home and did what I do best…sit on Facebook. As soon as I logged on, I knew something was very, very wrong. Everyone’s status and messages to one another were depressing and had something to do with “RIP Rachel” or “RIP RMC”. My armpits started to sweat, and my face was getting flushed realizing that someone died; and it was obviously someone I knew. I racked my brain for someone I knew named Rachel, with the initials RMC. All of a sudden, like a ton of bricks, it hit me; Rachel Maxine Cody. In shock, sitting there staring at the computer screen, my cell phone starts vibrating; my best friend, Denali, was calling.

I answered, “h-hello.”

“Are you home yet? Did you hear?” her voice quivered into the phone.

Sighing heavily, I replied “Yeah, I see it all over Facebook. What happened?”


“She fell off the bluff.”


“What do you mean she “fell” off the bluff?” I said in confusion.

“She went out past the fence and the ground fell from underneath her. She was only a few feet from the fence. This is so crazy.”

We only talked for a few more minutes, and then I just sat there staring at my computer in shock. I didn’t do anything that night. I couldn’t do homework, I didn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, I was just so upset and confused on why this was happening, why her? It did not actually kick in to full effect, of what was going on until the next day at school. The senior class did not have to attend classes if they did not wish; however, they needed to stay on schools property unless released by a parent. My close friends, forty to fifty seniors and myself, gathered in the “circle of life” where three hallways meet. Together we were able to confide in one another and grieve the loss of someone so amazing. Although we did not all get along, everyone pushed aside their prior fights and grudges and helped their classmates cope with the heartbreak of losing a friend. I never would have imagined that something so awful and tragic could bring out the best in each person and bring us all closer; which is exactly what Rachel would have wanted us to do.

Rachel Maxine Cody was not your normal senior high school student. She was an exceptional human being. She was a smart student, brilliant actress and had a quirky, creative personality. It didn’t matter if you knew her or not, if she passed you in the hallway or saw you on the street, you would get a “hello!” with a smile, as she went on her way. Involved in many school, church and community activities many, many people knew and loved her. Most knew her for her great personality, addiction to coffee and her talent for acting in the schools plays and musicals. She wrote her “about me” on Facebook perfectly. “I’m an addict to the bean. Persistent. Optimistic. Outgoing. Adventurous. Love my friends. Have no enemies. You may dislike me. That’s fine, I don’t dislike you. I love listening. Come tell me about your day.” The night before her death she posted, “Louder than sirens. Louder than bells. Sweeter than Heaven. Hotter than Hell.”

For a moment in time, my life was frozen. It didn’t really continue on until after I got some closure from her wake and funeral. Those two consecutive days were some of the hardest things I’ve ever had to go through. Seeing all of her loved ones and everyone who knew her and how they were affected by this was a terrible thing to have to see. Hundreds of people showed up, and my best friends and I were there to witness it all. The emotion and expression on her parents face, I can recall in an instant. I cannot imagine the pain they were going through, from the time they got that call from police until that day, and for every day for the rest of their lives. Her parents are two of the strongest individuals I have ever seen. To stand there and discuss the life of their daughter and see her lifeless body in a casket, unable to do a thing, took major strength. I remember her mother saying to a teacher, that “I have no tears. They have all disappeared. All I can do is stay strong for my family and move forward, how Rachel would have wanted me to.”

The moment when Rachel’s feet were swept out from under her was at the exact time she was photographing a rock formation on the bluff called “Jesus Point”. Father Pat Umberger stated that “She was searching for something bigger than herself.”

To me I believe it’s true when they say only the good die young. Holmen, Wisconsin has lost several outstanding students, most of who I have known. Tragic things have been happening over the years, every year, and the lives that have been lost are of those who have impacted the most people.

To this day it is still hard for me to fathom that she is gone. All the things that I have experienced since then and will experience in the future, she will never be able to. She will never get to finish high school, be considered an adult, get married, and watch her children grow or go to college. She has inspired me to be a better person, and I guess it took her death to really show me how amazing a person can be. She crosses my mind often and I can say with confidence that this girl, Rachel Maxine Cody, has impacted my life. I will never forget her beautiful smile, or how good she could make a person feel by just talking to or being with her. Chills run through my body and my eyes swell with tears just thinking about her. I continuously ask myself, “Why her?” The only answer I have ever came up with, was that God needed her and it was her time to go. She is in my heart forever and will be missed greatly, not only by myself, but for hundreds of people who knew her.

“To know Rachel is to have been changed. To miss her is to know love. As I knew you, Rachel Maxine Cody, I have been changed.” ~ Kam-Lin Roswall, Language Arts Teacher/Theater Director

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdMuxKNM9z4

TEXTING WHILE DRIVING

Every time I drive I see at least one person using their cell phone while driving. Whether it is texting, dialing or even just talking on the phone, it has become more and more of a problem. Yes, I admit from time to time I use my cell phone as I drive. However, I feel that I am more aware of my surroundings and not so concerned with my phone or the conversation I was having. I don’t just text or talk to people just to talk to them, as I drive. If it is an emergency or I need to get a hold of somebody then I will use it. I have seen a variety of people, wide range of age’s texting while driving. A couple months ago I saw a woman, probably in her mid thirties, driving a minivan with at least two small children in the back. She was texting and driving and either yelling at the older woman in the passenger seat, or the kids in the back. You can’t tell me that if something jumped in front of her vehicle, a car cut her off, or drifted into her lane, that she would notice. More than likely an accident would have occurred if something like that were to happen. In 2009, 29% of accidents in the United States were caused by the driver (ages 18-30) being distracted with the use of a cell phone. And it is said that 4 out of 5 accidents are caused by distracted drivers, of any age. Something should be done about this and I agree with people when they say something needs to be done about texting/cell phone usage while driving. However, I think when the government makes it illegal in some areas to even use a cell phone is taking things a little too far. In my opinion, if someone is at fault for an accident or is using excessive speed due to being distracted with the use of a cell phone, then they should be fined for that. I do not think it is right to pull people over and give them tickets for talking on their cell phone only. Maybe in the future, if numbers continue to rise with accidents and deaths related to texting while driving, I will agree…but for now, I think it’s wrong to make using a cell phone while operating a vehicle illegal.

GEVER TULLEY-TINKERING SCHOOL

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/gever_tulley_s_tinkering_school_in_action.html

After watching the link above I began thinking about my personal experience with school and learning strategies or types that help me learn or expand my ideas. I came to the conclusion that I have no idea how I learn best or what learning types help me get the most out of my education. The high school that I attended did not focus on helping students with their own personal needs or helping to expand their ideas. Going to class, looking at a power point, taking notes, watching the same informational videos become a routine for every single class period, day after day. Although I rarely had group assignments, from the group work I have experienced before I do believe I work better by myself. However, if I was given the opportunity to grow and expand my knowledge by communicating and working with others than I would do it. Besides gym class, I did not have one single class that had any hands on work. Yes, I could have taken woods or mechanic based classes but that is not the only circumstance where hands on material should be used. By providing materials and giving assignments where the students may make or do whatever they wish with the project, it gives them room to grow and plan out projects that they have interest in. Through trial and error kids can find ways that work best for them on their hands on projects and can expand their thought processes further for future assignments. Although not every person learns by hands on activities it may show them that they are in fact more of a visual or listening type of learner. It could, however show them that the physical project making is their way of learning best and could definitely benefit them on their study techniques or learning practices in the future.
      Change is more often than not a positive experience. Schools should focus less on what classes to cut or how much more they should charge a family to keep budgets manageable and change to focus a little more on how staff members could teach more efficiently and in different ways to help students learn their best. Some may strive and some may fail miserably but in the end they know how that learning process helped them in a positive or a negative way. Personally, I would enjoy attending a school or a class that had a “hands on” based curriculum. Although I may not enjoy every aspect of the experience I would have broadened my horizons on how I can improve my personal learning style.
     If only life were simple, we would know everything there is to know if we were ever going to use it in our lives after we learn it. I have come to ask myself the same question of “When will I ever use this information again?” In all honesty I think a good chunk of things I have learned in my education I will not ever bring up in my life again. I need to try it and see it to believe it and use it to know it. My learning experiences outside of my schooling are just as important as those inside of a classroom. I do not learn from just one technique, there are several factors of each learning process that I can benefit from. I guess that until I reach that point where I have experienced multiple learning techniques I will never know my full potential for learning information or studying efficiently. I may succeed or I may fail but at least I’m doing something that will teach me whether to continue my schooling how I am or how to change myself to learn more efficiently. In the end, all I really have to say is that change is good. Being different and trying things out is a great way to learn and that I wish a lot more people were open minded to new things or techniques. Society may reject the unfamiliar and respond poorly to failure, but at least someone is trying to do something different and make a change. I thought that Gever Tulley’s video showed the potential for some peoples learning capabilities and brought the idea of “you never know until you try” back out on the table for everyone to think about or experience.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND

Going camping is an activity that my family and friends do every year, including this one. This past Labor Day weekend my family and I decided that we would go back to Jellystone Campground in Warrens, WI like we used to do when I was younger. For me, camping was something I enjoyed doing but this year I was very disappointed. Recently, Jellystone was sold over to new owners who it seems don’t really care about making the campground fun and presentable. I know it isn’t possible to enjoy this campground as much as I did when I was little when I thought everything was amazing, but something about the place with these new owners wasn’t right. When we first arrived we received a flyer of things that were going on or activities to partake in. Although they made those suggestions available to us, it seemed like everything we wanted to do was not taken care of, closed down for the day or just taken out completely. The band that night didn’t show along with the “free fresh cotton candy” guy. The miniature golf course was overgrown with weeds and there was only one golf club allowed per grouping of people. Half of the outdoor water park was shut down and some pools were empty, however, the entire new indoor water park was just shut down completely with storage being held in that area. The indoor and outdoor arcade were both closed and emptied out and the outdoor theater screen was removed. The little train I used to ride when I was young was broken down on the side of a trail for everyone to see and every time you decided to leave your campsite with your golf cart security would stop you at the end of your camping row to make sure you had a valid license.

 I literally got stopped by these so called “guards” at least 20 times. The bathrooms and showering area was about 10-12 rows of campsites over. And if all this wasn’t enough to put a damper on my camping experience, the weather was cloudy and windy at 45 degrees. After shivering my butt off all night long, tossing and turning to keep myself from growing icicles on my nose, we decided to get breakfast inside the “Three Bears Lodge” hotel at Jellystone. Only three tables were taken in the restaurant yet we waited 45 minutes for pancakes that had a full mayfly and a long red hair in them. This was a very disgusting, disappointing camping/Labor Day weekend. I will probably never go back to the Jellystone in Warrens again. :(

INTRODUCTION





Hello. I’m Rachel Priebe. I’m from Holmen, Wisconsin which is only about 12 miles from Western. I am 18 years old and just graduated from Holmen this past spring. I am still living at home and just drive back and forth every time I have class. Keeping up with work and school is something I’ve had to do for years so I’m used to managing my time the best I can. I waitress an average of 30 hours a week all year long, but during the summer I work about 65 hours total because

of my summer job at the Holmen Aquatic Center. I’m a very random person; I tend to go from one topic to another in a matter of seconds. I like expressing my opinion, especially if it’s on a topic that I’m passionate about. I am very protective of my friends, family and pets so you can go ahead and pick on me all you want, but say one thing about any of them and you better watch it. :) Traveling, listening to music, eating, sleeping, watching movies, spending time with friends and family are just a few things that I love doing. Listening to people is something I do often and I've been told that I give great advice. I am a huge animal lover and have had a variety of pets. Currently I have one dog and one cat. Driving insanely fast is an everyday occasion for me. My obsession with cars has grown bigger over the years and I'd do anything for a really nice Ford Mustang. I have 6 piercings and 2 tattoos; I got my belly button pierced when i was 14 and my first tattoo at 16. There's quite a bit more to know, so don't be afraid to contact me and ask. I'd love to hear your opinions, comments, etc.