inspired

In Photo, we are doing a new project that is going to be a collage of picture and things that inspire us, drive us, we love, etc. It is going to be a mixed media of photos, magazine cut-outs, etc. She wanted us to get inspired by Dan Eldon's work. She showed us a video of him and we had to look up facts about him.

His work is amazing. His story is amazing. He is amazing. At 23, you can change the world. He taught us that. He was a photographer and humanist who came from Kenya and traveled all over Africa taking pictures of famines and wars, only at 23! He gave aid to many people and opened the world to the poverty and crisis in Somalia and other places in Africa. He died being attacked by an angry mob during a U.N. bombing in Mogadishu.

He represents the kind of person I want to be when I grow up (and well I am kind of almost in that grown up period). I really do want to be a journalist because the reasons he was a photographer. Not just for the love of writing, but for the love of writing about people and observing people and talking about IMPORTANT issues that need to be discussed and open the world's curiosity a little wider. Man I wish I knew about him earlier or I would have totally written about him for my CMC app essay (dammmnnn, i hate realizing how i could have written better essays for my apps because i learn things now about life!!!). I was inspired by his photograhs and his journals.

At 14, he started keeping journals. They were not the typical writing journals. He wrote, kept pictures, drew and cut out amazing collages. They are what is left of him and his legacy. I wish I had kept journals at a young age, but I am not the type to keep a journal because it hurts my hand because I write too much. So I am much more of a satisfactory blogger but I do not think I could ever write as in depth things he did at 14 when I was 14. All I would have written about is complaining about family, school and boys. Perfectly ridiculous. His aspirations and creativity INSPIRE me to keep an inspiration journal now. I think I will start one. But I just hate cutting up my magazines. But I really think it would help me develop my creativity in writing and maybe drawing. And I always have a dream of some day being in Elle or Vogue as a designer/stylist so I think that would help me get some ideas. Hahah. But I also want to write down the ideas and the opinions I have now because I am at the stage of my growth where I have opinions that are actually about important issues.

If he could show the world his opinions, so can I.

So I watched the Oscars and I liked it this year. I definetly think Hugh Jackman is amazing and his singing was very wonderous. I like the musical number it was definetly cute. And Anne Hathaway NEEDS to do a musical sometime soon because her voice is AMAZIIING. I remember she sang in Ella Enchanted. I was so proud she was a nominee for Best Actress. I of course was looking at all the dresses. Everyone seemed to dress so safe this year. I wanted to talk about why Slumdog Millionaire deserved all those Oscars (8!!!). I watched it before the Oscars with my family. And we liked it a lot. I think it is more than just a love story. It really brings attention to the poverty in India and how those kids survived despite all their hardships, even though they had to survive through more criminal means. It was really compelling. And I do loooooove the cinetamography. It was freaking amazing. I could not believe the picture of the slums. It was horrifying and unbelievable.

Honestly I thought the children actors were the best actors in the movie. But I really did like Dev Patel in the movie. He was a great actor. I hope he continues to grow and get more good parts. I think the journey of the movie really captures the innocence of youth and the corruption of that innocence. I liked it a lot. The love story I was not as happy with but it was really beautiful. Frieda Pinto is freaking beautiful. Indians are really beautiful. People do not know that but some of them have the most beautiful complexions and eyes.

---christina.