Friday, May 31, 2019

Freedom is Over-rated :: essays papers

Freedom is Over-ratedThe word freedom can technically be defined as the quality or state of existence free. However, this definition leaves enormous room for either interpretation imaginable. I live in the land of the free, also known as America. But every country, free or non, has its obvious restrictions, such as laws, society, and government. Someones age, race, sex, height, or weight can restrict heap in society. In my personalized opinion, nothing is truly or completely free. To be free no definite barriers can exist physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually. Most people tend to ring of birds when referring to freedom, even more specifically the eagle. Coincidentally, the eagle is the symbol for freedom in America. Eagles fly in the sky, and the sky has no barriers or restrictions existing to the human eye. I believe this is why people think of eagles as images to represent freedom. However, are birds truly free? Birds can not fly without the worry of being killed by a shotgun. Birds do not control their own habitat. If someone wants to chop down a birds home, the bird can not plosive the person. In closure, birds are not completely free. In the movie, Hurricane, most of Rubin Carters life was based upon the judgments people plagued upon him, distinctly because of his race. Rubin had to free his mind in differentiate to grasp and hold onto the little freedom he had in prison. Carter overcame his mind by blocking out distinct hallucinations of the violent and sensitive sides of his personality. But mum Rubin Cater was not free. He almost gave up on his life if it was not for his friends in Canada. Those friends in Canada were the critical factor for Rubin Carters release from jail. caller and government withhold people from reaching infinite freedom. This is just a plain fact and almost self-explanatory. People in society are not free wherever they go. Society afflicts this description on how people should act, or how people should talk. Society even insists on controlling our thoughts. The United States government gives people the right to vote. But is it the popular vote the determining factor in deciding the future president? I think not.

Thursday, May 30, 2019

Prejudice in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and To Kill a Mockingbi

Prejudice in haughtiness and Prejudice by Jane Austen and To Kill a mocker by Harper Lee In the novels Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and To Kill aMockingbird by Harper Lee it is evident that some(prenominal) novels aredominated by disfavor. In both novels there are various themes butboth novels mainly centre on prejudice. In Pride and Prejudice theprejudices is not that heavy. It is mainly about first impressions(the original title of the Book) yet in To Kill a Mockingbird theprejudice is more serious and is shown in a more sinister way, thetheme of prejudice reaches a climax and end in shocking and drasticresults.Pride and Prejudice was indite in 1813. The period of the settingof the novel is 1811-1812. The novel is set in England in variousplaces like London, Kent, Derbyshire and Hertfordshire (home of theBennet family).Women in regency Britain had far less excerption than the women of today.Most women did not receive a formal education, women were taught to beuseful bu t not independent, their aim was to become accomplishedwhich meant being proficient In the social graces such as singing,music, drawing, needlework and literature, although the latter did nothave the same emphasis. There was constant pressure on women of thosetimes to marry well, to control financial security, not just for theirselves but also for their immediate family. The position of unmarriedwomen is clearly defined in Pride and Prejudice there is no instancewhere a single wo patch travelled alone, or was without a chaperone apartfrom when Elizabeth went to nurse Jane. Even then this incident waslooked down upon by Miss Bingley, however it won Elizabeth respect inthe eyes of Mr Darcy. When Lydia r... ... forcedher to, but also because she received regular beatings from Bob whichpsychologically left an collision on her and made her feel someone had topay and that person was Tom Robinson. So Bob Ewells prejudice was tosuch an extent that he caused an innocent man to die, theref ore alongwith most of Maycomb County he has Tom Robinsons blood on hishand. Both books contain a considerable amount of prejudice, however theprejudice in Pride and Prejudice is quite irrelevant while in ToKill a Mockingbird it is quite substantial.Jane Austen has shown prejudice in a satirical manner while in toHarper Lee has shown its evil form. Pride and Prejudice is abouttrivial themes like marriage, love and family life while in To Kill amockingbird it is about evil, racial prejudice and discriminationwhich eventually grasps the life of a innocent man.

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Improving The Literacy Of America Essay -- Illiteracy In America

Reading and writing are two of the most important functions performed on a daily basis by individuals. One problem in America is that a significant amount of the population cannot perform one or both of these tasks. These two tasks are normally referred to as literacy. What encompasses a literate individual is a controversial topic. For example, if someone can read a sentence and decipher what it means does this mean the soul is literate. Or should the individual be able to interpret a sentence as well as write and respond to a given status to be considered literate. Due to this vagueness in what encompasses a literate individual, I will not state statistical information about the state of literacy in the coupled States. The statistical information is not important, rather the way the literacy rate can be risen in the U.S. is what is important. A general situation that has to occur to draw out literacy rate is the situation where an individual has the desire to read and write and does not do so solely because of instruction from authority figures. This certainly is not occurring today, as exemplified by the event that even a best-selling book in this country might reach 5% of the population (Castell 38). Perhaps a breach way to influence the literacy in America is to examine the classrooms where primary education geared toward literacy takes place. This refers to elementary and middle school classrooms. An examination of what processes in a classroom context help develop literacy in individuals is an important aspect of the literacy of the children in America. Three aspects of a classroom that affect literacy are the power of the teacher, community with peers, and retrieve to tools of literacy. Power, in this case, refers to the power of the teacher and the extent to which this person expresses this power. The teacher serves to regulate the activities of children. One of the most important things that he does is to foster the interest and learning of the pupils. In this way the teacher has infinite power over his subjects. He can assign work, manipulate exactly what the student has to know for his class, and alter his teaching styles for disparate subjects. Traditionally little power is given to the student in the classroom setting. Often times students regurgitate memorized information in order to perform in a well in a given class. Th... ... learning literacy desirable to the student, which evidently increases learning. The United States has to move toward implementing better literacy-directed learning in our schools classrooms. In the long-run, this will help the U.S. compete on the national level with other countries. But the advantages to a more literate society are obvious even when viewing the issue on a more personal level. Literacy is the key to the social world as well as the job market. Individuals who acquire from the increase in literacy rate will be more successful in life and maybe even have higher feelings toward themselves. The vision of a totally literate America is certainly a very promising and positive one. Works CitedBloome, David. Classrooms and Literacy. New Jersey Ablex , 1989. Castell, Suzanne De, et al., eds. Literacy, Society, and Schooling. New York Press Syndicate, 1986.Harris, Karen, and Barbara Baskin. Toward a culturally Literate Society. School Library Journal 35.12 (1989) 29-32.Wells, Gordon. The Zone of Proximal Development and Its Implications for Learning and Teaching. Sep. 1996. http//cite.ped.gu.se/network/zpddiscussion.html (31 Mar. 1999).

the learnin org :: essays research papers fc

TABLE OF CONTENTSINTRODUCTION1SUMMARY3AN ARCHETYPICAL ENTRY AND detection PROCESS5LAWLERS ENTRY AND CONTRACTING PROCESS9ASSESSING LAWLERS ENTRY AND CONTRACTING PROCESS11WHAT WOULD I HAVE make DIFFERENTLY14THEORIES AND MODELS TO MAKE SENSE OUT OF THE DIAGNOSTIC DATA17ORGANIZING THE data FOR FEEDBACK22CARRYING OUT THE FEEDBACK PROCESS23ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT COULD BE COLLECTED25CONCLUSION28BIBLIOGRAPHY29APPENDICES30B.R. RICHARDSON TIMBER PRODUCTS CORPORATIONINTRODUCTION Organizational Development (OD) is concerned with the performance, development, and effectiveness of gracious organizations. OD is directed at bringing about planned change to increase an organizations effectiveness and capacity. It is an applied behavioural science that is focus on the organization as a system, and among other issues is concerned with the health of the organization, its effectiveness, its capacity to solve problems, its ability to adapt, change or of self renewal, and its ability to pass wa ter a high quality of life for its employees. An organization is defined as two or more people brought together by one or more shared goals. OD promotes the notion that a successful change is a planned change. Monitoring of both internal and external influences needs to be conducted on a continuous basis. To understand how change can be managed, OD draws knowledge and concepts from other disciplines (notably behavioural science, psychology, organization theory). One of the early approaches to organizational change was provided by Kurt Lewin and his associates. It starts from the premise that targets of change and the social processes underlying them are relatively stable, when forces driving for change are roughly equal to forces resisting the change. To change this condition quo requires a three-step process1.unfreezing2.movement3.refreezingUnfreezing underscores the need to assess the present situation before change is contemplated. It examines the driving and restraining forces in the change situation that maintains the status quo. This tuition is essential for unfreezing the current situation and creating a readiness for change among organization members.Movement involves intervening in the situation to change it. This addresses organizational issues such as human processes, strategic choices, work designs and structures. It shifts the behaviours, attitudes and values of the organization, department and individuals to new levels.Refreezing stabilizes the organization at a new equilibrium state. If this step is ignored the organization reverts to its preliminary state. Refreezing rebalances the driving and restraining forces in the changed situation so it remains stable. Output of change is highly dependent on how the change process unfolds, and the change process ordain need to be facilitated. The OD process is a recurring cycle (Appendix II).

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Imaginary Invalid :: essays research papers

Imaginary InvalidMolieres The Imaginary Invalid is a period of play about a hypochondriac who is so obsessed with his health and money that he ends up neglecting his familys needs to better his own. Moliere sets up the exposition of the play in come I by the apothecary bills Argon is reading aloud. After Toinette, the maid, then enters the scene she sarcastically makes a comment about all of the bills lying on the table. Toinette lets the audience know that Argon is a hypochondriac by rebutting everything he says about his doctors and illnesses with sarcastic comments. For instance, when Argon says, You leave my insides alone. She comes back with, I wish you would. Youd be a different man. She also lets the audience know by saying, Why, if it wasnt for him you wouldnt even know you were ill, speaking of the apothecary. The main skirmish of the play is Argons un leadingness to accept that he is not ill and he is, in fact, a very healthy man. This illness leads to the selfishness t hat he shows his family, curiously his daughter Angelica. Later in Act I his illnesses prove to have relevance to the conflict when she speaks of Cleante, the man she loves. Cleante is not a doctor therefore, Argon will not give his blessings for Angelica to marry him.The conflict of the play was that Argon would not give his blessings for the marriage of his daughter, Angelica, and the man she loves, Cleante. The main characters involved in the conflict besides Angelica and Cleante is Argon, the problem, Toinette and Argons brother, Beralde, which resolve the conflict in the end. Argon is involved, as stated earlier, because he will not give his blessings on the marriage. Toinette and Beralde were involved in the resolution to the conflict because they cared about Angelica and her happiness. I believe that Beralde was more involved in the resolution because he felt that his brother was going far with his hypochondria, but still cared for Angelicas happiness. Argon seemed to over- step the line when he tried to ruin the lives of his daughter just for his mental rise being. The steps taken to see that Angelica does not have to marry a man that she simply does not want to marry lead up to the climax of the play. Argon finally realizes who cares about him and who doesnt when he overhears his wife, Beline, speaking of his death and then Angelica.

Imaginary Invalid :: essays research papers

Imaginary InvalidMolieres The Imaginary Invalid is a exploit about a hypochondriac who is so obsessed with his health and money that he ends up neglecting his familys needs to better his own. Moliere sets up the exposition of the lean in Act I by the apothecary bills Argon is reading aloud. After Toinette, the maid, then enters the scene she sarcastic totallyy makes a comment about all of the bills lying on the table. Toinette lets the audience know that Argon is a hypochondriac by rebutting everything he says about his sterilizes and disorderes with sarcastic comments. For instance, when Argon says, You leave my insides alone. She comes back with, I wish you would. Youd be a different man. She also lets the audience know by saying, Why, if it wasnt for him you wouldnt even know you were ill, speaking of the apothecary. The briny conflict of the play is Argons unwillingness to accept that he is not ill and he is, in fact, a very healthy man. This illness leads to the selfishness that he shows his family, especially his daughter Angelica. Later in Act I his illnesses prove to have relevance to the conflict when she speaks of Cleante, the man she loves. Cleante is not a doctor therefore, Argon will not give his blessings for Angelica to wed him.The conflict of the play was that Argon would not give his blessings for the marriage of his daughter, Angelica, and the man she loves, Cleante. The main characters gnarled in the conflict besides Angelica and Cleante is Argon, the problem, Toinette and Argons brother, Beralde, which resolve the conflict in the end. Argon is involved, as stated earlier, because he will not give his blessings on the marriage. Toinette and Beralde were involved in the resolution to the conflict because they cared about Angelica and her happiness. I believe that Beralde was more involved in the resolution because he felt that his brother was going far with his hypochondria, but still cared for Angelicas happiness. Argon seemed to over- step the line when he tried to ruin the lives of his daughter in force(p) for his mental well being. The steps taken to see that Angelica does not have to marry a man that she simply does not want to marry lead up to the climax of the play. Argon finally realizes who cares about him and who doesnt when he overhears his wife, Beline, speaking of his death and then Angelica.

Monday, May 27, 2019

Why do people committ crime

The three classifications I believe then can be placed into are biological, psychological and sociological. I person tout ensembley think people commit crimes for a variety of reasons peer pressure, opportunity, greed, poor moral Judgment and voice They fail to see the benefits of adhering to the law conventional social values The opinion that everyone commits roughly type of crime The more that family perceive a busy criminal behavior as reasonable or acceptable, the less likely that It will be considered evil two prime examples are the legalization of marijuana. r prohibition. Is it biological, hereditary is it in our genes? Is it psychological or due to traits in our personality? Is it due to solicitation do we learn it, from other people? Is it explained by our bonds to society? Is it because of where you were raised or is it because of imbalances In our society? Does a lack of religious morals have anything to do with It? I have always been fascinated with why people commit crime in our society we can answer who, what, when and where but the last question why usu whollyy goes unanswered and drives us deliriousThe first year Is biological I know most- illogical theories have faded as society becomes more enlightened. I am saying wittiness damage, bad genetics, poor diet, and gender. Males are the predominate class of criminal offenders due to aggressive behavior that is encouraged in our society. While I believe some crimes are caused by biological imbalances, I believe there has to be a tipping point from society. The opportunity the victim the time and place and an imbalance in the odds which favor success. Like most detectives, I find the study of psychology of criminal behavior fascinating and the most-dangerous kind of rimming.This leads us to the second crock up of my theory. The second category I will put forward Is psychological. I think this class or reason to commit a crime Is the score and most dangerous. I place psychopath and sociopath s in this category. I put people who are Impulsive enjoy the power of controlling others these criminals get a rush of adrenaline high. Serial killers and rapist fall Into this category. Most of these people are loners whether it is due to the nature or nurture. I become criminals. The last category on the list is sociological.I think where you grow p and your socioeconomic status, peer pressure and genteelness make a great deal of difference in whether an individual will become a criminal. Gang fall into this category, petty crime I personally think our prison system makes this worse because all it does is make better criminals. I think most criminals start in this class. This leads me to my theory. My theory after a lifetime in criminal Justice and my education in college is very simple old Caesar Baccarat had it right people weigh the good against the bad, in other words, is a crime worth the time. It all boils down to personal choice.

Sunday, May 26, 2019

I wish I could say I was proud of my generation, but lets face it: the media aren’t far wrong

The common perception of juvenilers today is soiled by images of alcohol, drugs, hoodies, crime, disobedience, violence and unintelligence. Most teenagers would counter this with harm and blame these demeaning interpretations on a sm altogether(a) minority and stereotyping in the media but I am here to say that we bring it upon ourselves to have much(prenominal) a reputation.I wish I could say I was proud of my generation, but lets face it the media arent far wrong.Having been amongst it for many years right away, I can safely say that we are a generation of deadbeat, attention seeking, conformist, moaners. Thriving from a lack of discipline, we spend our long time free of any common manner loitering round in a constant sulk, yawning without covering our mouths, wearing caps indoors as if its perfectly acceptable.A rare occasion when please and thank you is use in an exchange, when a smile is seen to disprove any hostility, or when vocal responses outside of a pathetic mumble a re explored. Thatll be the day.These are all rules which would appear obvious to the elderly generation, however in my generation, they are disregarded and branded as old-fashioned. Who needs standards anyway? Get with the times, Im not hurting anyone we plea, as an excuse to act like slobs and walk around in vests eating pasties in the streets before throwing the wrapping on the floor and wiping our transfer on our thighs.not only is there a decline in manner, but there is a decline in language. It pains me to watch the Americanisation of British English late materialise, and this is more prominent than ever amongst teenagers.Every sentence is littered with the word like, and words such as whatever and dunno are common responses. pesterer and slang is used to show some sort of rebellion against manner or social inclusion amongst friends or should I say mates. And now with the increased reliance on mobile phones text speak is diseasing the English language with its pointless ab breviations. TBH, IDK whats wrong with speaking properly.Another embarrassing element of teenage culture is the underage consumption of alcohol, which is now a growing problem amongst teenagers. Flashback 20 years ago and teenagers would be lucky to have a drink of eggnog during Christmas now, were out on the lash almost every weekend.Going out with the oecumenic motive of having a laugh, stumbling past careless doormen into dingy clubs, awkwardly mingling with people twice their age, and eventually passing out at 4AM without any care or dignity about them and a little incite towards liver disease.But why is there the need to drink underage? The fact is that as teenagers, we are resistant to accept our adolescence, we all strive for maturity, all we want is to fit in with the grown-ups. We try and convert our undeveloped minds to fit that of an adults by indulging in such substances as coffee, alcohol and maybe (for the extra-mature kids) drugs. We get lottery tickets the second we turn 16, learn to drive the second we turn 17, and get plastered the second we turn 18. Oh, how mature.While the teenagers race towards maturity, the parents try their hands at being young and hip just once, and are slated beyond belief. We speedily climb the ladder of maturity, whilst our parents wait at the top fuelling us with food, bills and too much damn exemption.Aside from acting mature, teenagers have other means of flaunting their independence, such as fashion. A teenagers sense of fashion is something which oft confuses the older generation, and no wonder. Teenagers are now walking around with gaping holes in their ear lobes, absurd hair colours and pieces of metal skewered through their face, its like weve regressed to the days of the freak show.The reason for this is that we see fashion as a way of self-expression, its a contest to see who can have the most unique look, and this often leads to a rather outlandish outcome. However, this is no excuse for wearing sung lasses and caps indoors or girls caking their faces in make-up and wearing revealing outfits. The current enjoin of fashion is a gargantuan mess people trying to stand out and people trying to fit in with those who stand out that is the general idea. And the result a cacophony of cries for attention.Something that is corresponding amidst most teenagers is the constant need to complain, its almost as if we enjoy it. Even if we were living the perfect life, wed probably screak about how its too perfect. Facebook is used as a platform for voicing such dire grievances as EASTENDERS CANSELLD 4 THA FOOTIE OMG or ME MAM BURNT ME CHIKEN NUGETS freedom of speech at its best.Money is an aspect which often spurs complaints we complain about our lack of money, so we get a job and complain about how expectant that is, then we earn money and spend it on trivial things. Then the cycle repeats, over and over and over.Maybe theres nothing wrong with us complaining, I mean, its not like there are people worse off or anything.Its not easy wielding such a pretentious outlook at my age, its a constant struggle, withstanding the strain of influence inflicted by fellow teenagers. Alas, few are those who choose a country walk over a ginmill crawl, Tchaikovsky over Tupac, broadsheets over booze. Stuff the rules, we just wanna have fun Will a game of chess and some homemade shortbread entice you? view not.

Saturday, May 25, 2019

China’s Renminbi: “Our Currency, Your Problem” Essay

Our Currency, Your Problem is a case involving the issue of supercede rate regimes and the impact currency manipulation has on economies and trade. The United States and Europe argued that the Renminbi (RMB) was undervalued and claimed that the Peoples Bank of China (PBoC) deliberately manipulated the mass meeting rate to lower the prices of exports, which caused the US and Europe to run huge trade deficits with China. The US and Europe felt that the RMB was undervalued for several(prenominal) reasons.One reason is that Chinas exports had dramatically increased, growing 30% from 2004 to 2005, making China the third largest exporter in the world and accounting for 6.5% of the worlds export. Another argument was that Chinas inflow of FDI had become the second largest in the world by 2004. The Chinese argued that their currency was not undervalued, that the policy of the PBoC benefited the US by helping them finance its huge budget, that even though they ran trade surpluses with the W est they ran deficits with Asian countries, and that a low currency rate benefited multinational companies commit in China. Meanwhile, Japan and the newly industrialized economies (NIEs) including Taiwan and South Korea were less vocal than the US and Europe because they had become so economically linked with China.They had invested themselves in China, thus an undervalued RMB would maintain operating cost low. Additionally, Japan and the NIEs ran trade surpluses with China and received essentially most of the benefit of value added process trade with China. When choosing an commutation rate regime, countries can operate between two primary exchange rate systems. The first is a fixed exchange rate where the currency is strongly fixed to another value or pegged within a particular band and the rate is adjusted from time to time to stay within the delineate or pegged range. The second is a floating exchange rate where the rate is allowed to depreciate or appreciate based on the ma rket. Both of these systems have advantages and disadvantages. A fixed exchange rate regime will offer an economy greater stability in international prices and therefore encourage trade.Additionally, for growing countries a fixed rate will assist in promoting institutional discipline as the country will adopt restrictive monetary and fiscal policies that nurture an anti-inflationary environment. A significant weakness of a fixed rate is that it is subject to destabilizing speculative attacks which could lead to financial meltdowns and devastating economic contractions. A floating exchange rate regime allows central banks to combat macroeconomic factors such as unemployment, inflation, and interest rates without having to worry about the effect on exchange rates. However, developing countries whose economies depend on trade will be reluctant to allow their exchange rates to fluctuate freely. In 1994 the Chinese g overnment made the conclusion to peg the RMB to the US dollar sign at a rate of US$1 to RMB8.7, a year later the Renminbi appreciated 5% and was revalued to RMB8.28.This rate would ride out unchanged for the next 10 years, even though the Chinese faced heavy scrutiny and pressure to revalue their currency. The Chinese exercised many policies in maintaining their exchange rate. The PBoC controlled the amount of extraneous currency by forcing all exporters to immediately sell their foreign currency to designated banks. The RMB could only be traded on the China Foreign shift Rate Trade System, which was exclusive to the designated banks. Furthermore, China mandated daily foreign reserves to total reserves ratios forcing the member banks to either buy or sell foreign reserves.After absorbing foreign currencies in circulation, the PBoC reinvested these funds in US treasury bonds and stockpiled US debt in order to maintain the peg to the US dollar against natural market forces. Maintaining an undervalued exchange rate also allowed Chinas economy to con tinue to grow. Foreign Direct Investment in China grew from $4.4B a year to $63B a year from 1991 to 2006. For every one dollar earned China would put 8RMB into circulation. This over supply of RMB also maintained the RMB artificially low. However, over time this policy of excess money could lead to inflation. China combatted inflationary pressures by issuing bonds thus removing excess RMBs and by imposing tighter liquidity ratios on banks. On July 2005 China reluctantly reformed their exchange rate regime. The renminbi was revalued by 2.1% to RMB8.11 to the US dollar.The peg to the US dollar was dropped and replaced by a peg to a basket of currencies. However the basket was predominately represented by the USD, the Euro, and the Yen. Despite this reform the US continued to lead international efforts in pressing for greater speedup of the renminbis revaluation as trade deficits with China continued to increase. The Chinese claimed that if a major revaluation took place, such as 15%, it would level their exports cause a contraction in exports. Such dramatic measures would surely have an impact on international trade. For example, the US would see their trade deficit quail while Japan and NIEs would see their exports decrease. Therefore I think that China should address their revaluation in a conservative but yet modernised approach. Forcing a major economy to do a one-time 10%, 15%, or 20% revaluation could have damaging and unwanted consequences to a touchy world economy.

Friday, May 24, 2019

How can I as a Nurse Change the Public Health System in the USA?

The functions of the public wellness care system according to Deacon (2001) are improving the wellness and well-being of the population preventing disease and reducing its consequences prolonging life and minimizing imbalance in health.The United States judicature has always been persistent in addressing public health. In line with this, the government proposed a new public health reform that attempts to find a wider coverage of state residents by requiring them to get a health care coverage. jibe to Kaisernetwork.org (2007), the reform would have the following provisions 1) Residents having 250% and below of poverty level would receive subsidies from the state 2) Residents having up to 400% of poverty level would have the opportunity to remove health care premium costs that are beyond 5.5% of their compensation and 3) Residents who retire before age 65 would be given valuate credits to avert them from spending more than 10% of their insurance savings. The planned reform attempt s a wider coverage so it prohibits insurers to turn down residents wishing to acquire health care coverage. However, critics contend that the health care reform would be unfair and unproductive. In addition, it would be unsustainable politically and financially.Public servants such as myself who sound to the nursing profession concern ourselves with the lodges health. We play a critical role in improving publics health base on their knowledge, adequacy, and accessibility as mentioned by Deacon (2001).Our knowledge as nurses is quite depended by the public since they have extensive awareness of the communities they serve and the take of these. We as nurses are in any case considered to be in a position to work for the public since they are regarded legitimate individuals that promote health improvement. The adequacy of nurses also enables people to confidentially discuss issues with them since they are viewed to be part of a large population of both ill and well.Biomedicine.org (2008) asserted that the contribution of nurses, like myself, to the health care reform will be on the calculations of the patient result quality and costs of health care. Nevertheless, nurses can help convince the existing health care system by providing substantive information to the community at large, thereby educating them with the cure and prevention of certain diseases. DOH (2000) stated that nurses are responsible of health awareness activities such as immunizations, cancer screening, and helping people with diabetes and asthma live dynamically.Problems with communities can also be addressed by nurses by facilitating groups that will educate individuals with health issues such as smoking and mental illness. Above all, these public figures should be well informed in educational and organisational support to be to the full trusted by local communities as health practitioners so that they may be able to embark systematic measures to change the current health care system the society is put in.Public health care reforms are made for the benefit of state residents, but several(prenominal) reforms are just too costly and unproductive to be appreciated by average citizens. Nevertheless, nurses play the crucial role of promoting health, preventing illness and prolonging life, no librate what health care reform the country is put in. But for nurses to help change the current health care system, they must be able to fully utilize their potentials by sharing their knowledge and experience to educate and promote health awareness assessing the information, terminologies, and concept available to them and creating opportunities such as support groups to circumstances new information and experiences which are accorded to them, as mentioned by GANM (2006).ReferencesBio-Medicine.org (2008). Mnnesota registered nurses promote law to improve patient care and address health care costs. Retrieved on February 27, 2008Deacon, S. (2001). treat for health Areview of the contribution of nurses, midwives and health visitors to improving the publics health in scotland. Retrieved on February 27, 2008 from http//www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2001/03/8525/File-1Department of Health. (2000). Vital contribution made by community nurses to public health. February 27, 2008 from http//archive.nics.gov.uk/hss/001110e-hss.htmGlobal Alliance for Nursing and Midwifery Communities of Practice. (2006). Wrking togetherfor health knowledge exchange. Retrieved on February 27, 2008 from my.ibpinitiative.org/public/Default.aspx?c=1325c561-2b21-449e-880e-6623a1214707Kaisernetwork.org. (December 17, 2007). State wtchCalifornia Gov. Schwarzenegger, state concourse speaker reach compromise on health system overhaul. Retrieved on February 27, 2008 from http//www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?hint=3&DR_ID=49449

Thursday, May 23, 2019

Tesco V Walmart

BA. Honours Business Management BUSINESS MATTERS Business Issues Tesco v Walmart TABLE OF CONTENTS scalawag 1. Introduction 3 2. Business Issues in the Retail Sector 3 3. Financial Health 5 3. 1 Tesco 5 3. 2 Walmart 7 4. hea because ardour &type A lead 9 4. 1 Tesco 9 4. 2 Walmart 10 4. 3 Ethical & Environmental Issues 12 5. Conclusions 12 6. References 13 7. Bibliography 14 1. Introduction In 2009 the grocery market in the United Kingdom was worth 146. 3 billion pounds, an increase of 4. 8% on the old year see imagine 1.Groceries account for fifty-two pence of every pound in retail spending Newbold, 2010, online. guess 1 UK Grocery Market Performance 1998 2009 denotation IGD Research 2009 This report looks at contemporary business issues in the grocery sector and then compares the monetary health, leadership, cultural style, ethical initiatives and environmental set of two of the biggest business names in the industry Tesco and Walmart. 2. Business Issuesin the Retail Sector At the expense of sm all, specialist shops, superintendentmarkets change magnitudely manage the supply fibril from farm to shelf.Technological improvements in stock control and checkout scanning, for example, have lowered costs and attracted customers. Loyalty card schemes provide these superstores with an insight into consumer preferences, enabling them to expose hold back products with customers. To increase efficiency and maintain competitiveness, supermarket custody have consolidated, resulting in a fewer number of giant companies. Consequently, manufacturers have become increasingly dependent on a small number of market outlets, giving these retailers tremendous leverage to negotiate lower prices.There is also severe competition with discounters such as Lidl. To better manage ho intenthold budgets during the present credit crunch a lot British shoppers are shopping at these discount stores. Competition from these discounters has led the big chains to develop sun rise(prenominal) strategies. For example, Tesco has recently launched its new Discount range, in an effort to combat the rise of these popular, super-cheap supermarkets. Shoppers are not just attracted by low prices. The super centre or hypermarket approach means that one-stop shopping has become a reality for shoppers.Shopping at one of these large stores, possibly two to three quantify a week, has become a recreational event not a chore. With most shopping like a shot done in malls or online, the traditional gritty street, with its parking charges, and traffic problems has suffered. There is no much talk about the dead heart of the city. To counter this trend, convenience stores under 3000 sq feet and opened all hours are increasing dramatically on the high street see Figure 2. With an increasing range of products and improved layouts, convenience multiples such as Spar represent the fastest maturation part of the grocery market, with sales increasing by 12. %. They currently comprise 20. 5% of the natural United Kingdom food and grocery market Tesco, 2009, online. Figure 2 UK Convenience Stores, 2009 Source IGD Research 2009 The large multiples have responded strongly in this market sector (e. g. Tesco Express) and have taken over somewhat existing chains and petrol station forecourts. 3. Financial Health of Tesco & Walmart 3. 1 Tesco Tesco is the United Kingdoms premier supermarket chain. It employs 440000 staff and operates in long dozen countries Tesco, 2009, online. Presently, it has a commanding, and increasing, 30. % trade of the non-convenience UK grocery market Figure 3.Figure 3 UK Supermarket Share In the financial year 2008-9, despite the economic downturn, Tesco had record profits of more than ? 3 billion, 10% more than the previous year. Total revenue rose to ? 59. 4bn, taking sales to more than ? 1billion a week for the world-class time. Consequently, shares in Tesco rose by 5. 5% I. S. , 2010, online. Figure 4 Tescos Profit & Lo ss bankers bill 2005-2009 Year Ended 28 February 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 ? gazillions Turnover 59377. 0 47298. 0 42641. 0 39454. 33866. 0 Operating Profit 3206. 0 2791. 0 2673. 0 2280. 0 1952. 0 Net Interest -362. 0 -63. 0 -126. 0 -127. 0 -132. 0 Profit Before Tax 2954. 0 2803. 0 2653. 0 2235. 0 1894. 0 Profit After Tax 2166. 0 2130. 0 1881. 0 1586. 0 1353. 0 * * Source www. red mayne. co. uk Figure 5 Tescos Balance Sheet 2005-2009 Year Ended 28 February 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 ? millions Intangible Assets 4027. 0 2336. 0 2045. 0 1525. 0 1408. 0 Tangible Assets 23152. 0 19787. 0 16976. 0 15882. 0 14521. 0 Fixed Investments 321. 0 309. 322. 0 480. 0 423. 0Total Fixed Assets 32008. 0 23864. 0 20231. 0 18644. 0 16931. 0 Stocks 2669. 0 2430. 0 1931. 0 1464. 0 1309. 0 Cash at Bank and in Hand 3509. 0 1788. 0 1042. 0 1325. 0 1146. 0 Total Assets 46053. 0 30164. 0 24807. 0 22563. 0 20155. 0 Total Liabilities 33058. 0 18262. 0 14236. 0 13119. 0 11501. 0 Net Assets 12995. 0 11902. 0 10 571. 0 9444. 0 8654. 0 Net Current Assets n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Called Up Share Capital 395. 0 393. 0 397. 0 395. 0 389. 0 Share Premium Account 4638. 0 4511. 0 4376. 3988. 0 3704. 0 Other Reserves 40. 0 40. 0 40. 0 40. 0 40. 0 Profit and Loss Account 7865. 0 6871. 0 5693. 0 4957. 0 4470. 0 Shareholders Funds 12938. 0 11815. 0 10506. 0 9380. 0 8603. 0 Source www. redmayne. co. uk A balance sheet lists all a business assets and liabilities, giving a snapshot of the its overall money value at a given time. The Tesco balance sheet Figure 5 indicates that it is very healthy financially. It shows that interlock assets total assets total liabilities have increased tremendously from ? 8654 million to ? 12,995 million.The profit and loss account net profit, or loss, made has almost doubled in the five long time shown from ? 4470 million to ? 7865 million. Figure 6 Key Figures for Tesco 2005-2009 Year Ended 28 February 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 Earnings Per Share Growth (%) 6 22 10 16 n/a To tal Dividend (p) 11. 96 10. 90 9. 64 8. 63 7. 56 Operating Margin (%) 6 6 6 6 6 ROCE (%) 13 17 19 20 18 Dividend Yield 3. 60 2. 70 2. 20 2. 60 2. 50 determine / Earnings Ratio 11. 40 14. 60 19. 90 16. 50 17. 60 Dividend Per Share Growth (%) 10 13 12 14 11 Source www. redmayne. o. uk Return on capital industrious (ROCE) is a key measure of an industrys financial health and performance Atrill and Melaney, 2004. It is calculated as the earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) divided by the difference between total assets and current liabilities.It shows whether an organisation is obtaining a decent profit for the amount of capital it owns. The higher the ratio, the better the company is. Tesco ROCE is down slightly but a translate of 13% is still much better than any bank account interest rate and shows a very effective investment of capital employed Figure 6. . 2 Walmart The USA based Walmart superstore chain is the biggest company in the world. Almost fifty years on since Sam Wal ton opened his first store, 90% of the US population is within fifteen miles of a Walmart Luce, 2005. With over 1. 3 million employees and sales at a quarter of a trillion, it is the biggest retailing success in history. With the goal of low prices, the average customer saves 15% shopping at Wal-Mart Walmart, 2010, online. Despite stiff competition, Wal-Marts annual income from 1996 to 2006 increased steadily, as shown below in Figure 7.Figure 7 Walmarts 10 Year Income For the fiscal year ending January 31, 2009, Wal-Mart brought in $405. 6 billion of total revenue sales. The income that the firm made later on subtracting costs and expenses from the total revenue net income was $13. 6 billion Foley, 2009, online. Figure 8 Walmarts Annual Report 2008-2009 01/01/2010 01/01/2009 Revenue $m 405,607 408,214 Pre-tax Profit $m 20,898 22,579 EPS $m 3. 39 3. 70 Dividend $m 0. 95 1. 09 ROCE 21. 00% Source www. walmart. com Even higher than Tesco, Walmarts ROCE index of 21%, is indication of its great financial success. Walmarts share price was hit by the recent economic recession but, as Figure 9 shows, has started to rise again. Figure 9 Walmarts Share Price 2007-2010 Source www. walmart. com In 1999 Asda was acquired by Walmart and in 2006 the company expanded even further internationally. They opened 537 new international stores, employing over 50,000 new employees. International revenues soared by 17. 4% to $7. 87bn, helped by store openings in markets such as Canada and Scotland I. G. D. 2010, online. Walmarts market share continues to rise in the United States, but also in the United Kingdom and Mexico. In the midst of a global depression it is obvious that everyday low prices are a big consumer draw. 4. Cultural Style amp Leadership 4. 1 TESCO As a performance-driven organization, Tescos mission statement is to create value for customers to earn their lifetime loyalty. They are determined to bring up a close relationship with its customers. Consequently, T esco endeavors to provide better, more innovative products and services than any of its competitors.It believes if you treat customers well and operate efficiently then shareholders volition inevitably benefit by growth in sales, profits and returns Enfield, 2009, online. The customer/staff focus of Tesco is reflected in the far-sighted leadership of Terry Leahy, Chief Executive Officer. Representing a new era, Leahy adapted a more participative style of leadership, where employees are given a voice in the decision-making process. Terry Leahy, Tesco CEO The organizational structure is now simple and flat with fewer levels in the management hierarchy.There are fewer formal rules, more decentralization and shared decision making throughout the organisation. Leadership roles are delegated to best informed and capable individuals in the organization to ensure that the company operates effectively. As values and beliefs develop, so does commitment to the organization and this is much mo re productive than a formal hierarchy (Miner 2002). The organic structure suits the pressure to be innovative given its flexibility it can respond to environmental variations quick (Salaman 2001, p. 106). 4. 2 WALMARTMuch of Wal-Marts success is due to a strong and all-encompassing, corporate culture, originally developed by Sam Walton. At the core of this culture is a low-spirited push for the lowest prices. This penny-pinching is achieved using state of the art technology and by its plus one policy, which demands that suppliers lower their prices or increase the quality on every item every year. In The Wal-Mart Effect, Charles Fishman shows how the price of a four-pack of General Electric light bulbs decreased from $2. 19 to 88 cents within five years Fishman, 2006.Because of this culture, Wal-Mart no-frills headquarters are in Bentonville, Arkansas, not an expensive city like New York. Executives start work before 6. 30 am, never use limousines, always fly economy-class and of ten share hotel rooms with colleagues. The company offers basic wages and health care plans. It demands that hourly workers do overtime without pay. Store managers regularly work 70 hours per week. They are expected to pinch pennies wherever they can, even on things like the heating and cooling of the stores.In the winter stores are kept at 70 degrees Fahrenheit and in the summer, they stay at 73 Seth and Randall, 1999. In almost fifty years of operation, Wal-Mart has managed to keep these cultural components, as well as its enterprising spirit. Leadership Walmarts present chairman, S. Robson Walton son of the founder is reported to have said it is the job of leaders to listen to customers, listen to customers, listen to customers Fishman, 2006, p32. Choosing to be a humble-servant character reference of leader, Mr Walton has established a spirit of customer service throughout the whole company. S. Robson Walton,Walmart Chairman Like Tesco, Walmart believes that delegation and lim ited supervision increases efficiency. Additionally, if leaders trust workers then they will develop quality decision-making skills. Fewer managerial, supervisory jobs also reflect Walmarts culture of saving money wherever possible. 4. 3 Ethical & Environmental Issues In response to increasing consumer awareness of environmental and ethical issues, the supermarket chains have adopted a range of initiatives. In 2008 Walmart introduced new modal(a) Trade certified coffee products which provide plantation workers with better wages and working conditions.Similarly, to benefit farmers growing Fair Trade cotton in Africa and India, Tesco was the first supermarket to bring in Fair Trade cotton knitwear and is presently doubling its range of Fair Trade cotton school uniforms Wiener, 2009. Also, to support local producers, much of Tescos meat and vegetables come from farmers within the region. With environmental issues becoming mainstream, Tesco has recently promised to attach a carbon l abel to all its goods and install sophisticated new refrigeration techniques to reduce its consumption of climate changing hydro-fluorocarbons.Wal-Mart now claims it will power its US stores entirely using renewable energy Walmart, 2010, online. The introduction of fetch labelling regarding fat and calorie content of products has allowed supermarkets to take advantage of the increased consumer awareness of health issues. In the case of a health scare e. g. BSE, their sophisticated communications networks make product traceability very easy. 5. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, the retail market has been completely transformed in recent years by the large supermarkets.Whether your preferred criteria for financial success is square footage of retail space, sales, net profit or dividend growth, both Tesco and Walmart have reached heights that few others in the retail industry can entrust to match. To counter the image that they destroy the environment and are enemies of society, both Tesco and Walmart have adopted a range of environmental, social and ethical programs. The so called Walmark effect may yet be seen as a force for the good.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

Alternative communication system during disaster Essay

PSTN or the mankind switched telephone network is the prime network responsible for transmitting and receiving voice, fax and data. All government and private offices, police stations, fire stations, hospitals and major(ip)ity of homes and business places ar serviced by the PSTN line. . critic Radio public presentation does non use ground based infrastructure. Moreover these have limited power needs which can easily be met by batteries and generations. Therefore, it has been experienced that Amateur Radio has worked successfully when no other communication worked. A radio wave is an electromagnetic wave propagated by an antenna. The floods in 2004 in Assam and Bihar submerged telephone exchanges and damaged telephone exchanges thereby disrupting roads and railways communication. This is the reason why the district headquarters got totally out off from the state headquarters and neighbouring districts.A major natural disaster or emergency state of affairs like earthquake, cyc lone, flood, etc., leaves the public wired and wireless mobile telephone infrastructure damaged and non-functional. This is a contagious disease towers or disrupted power supply to operate telephone exchanges and cellular transmission towers also affect the radio communication network of police and civilized authorities. Satellite based communication systems refer to communication systems designed for users on the earth but have some equipment in space called a satellite. unhomogeneous jobs such as taking weather pictures or finding accurate piazzas are amongst the different job performed by different satellites. These are sometimes refered to as COSMATs and are essentially radio relay stations in space. Geo-stationary ambit satellites are stationed above the earth at a position somewhat 36000 kms above the equator.The images of weather forecasts and cyclone observations that we see on our television are made with the help of images from weather satellites. A major disaster (f lood, earthquake, etc.) or emergency situation affects telephone exchanges and communication networks thereby disconnecting the affected areas from other parts of the world. In such situations, the urgent needs of disaster affected population are not communicated to government authorities, voluntary organizations and other unaffected people. This result in severe loss of human lives, livestock, property etc. This situation calls for reliable alternate communication links, to ensure that the right resources are provided to the right people at the right time. Asynchronous Orbit Satellites These satellites are positioned in the lowerorbits around the earth. These continuously change their position with respect to the earth.The different kinds of asynchronous orbit satellites are a) Science satellites These orbit in altitudes of 4800 to 9700 kms. These send their research data to earth via radio telemetry signals. b) Observation Satellites These are used for tasks like search and resc ue satellites, photography. These act as relay stations to rebroadcast emergency radio-beacon signals from a downed aircraft or ship in trouble. These orbit at altitudes from 480 to 970 kms. c) Global Positioning System Satellites Orbiting at altitudes of 9600 to 19200 kms, these are used to determine in terms of latitude ad longitude to determine the exact geographic location. The two prime communication networks of government of India are NIC and BSNL. Following are the functions of them NIC or the National Information Centre, an organization of the Government of India is a premier knowledge and technology organization of the Government of India is a premier science and technology organization in the field of informatics services and information technology applications.To accelerate information and communication applications in government departments at central, state and districts, it has established a nationwide ICT network i.e. NICNET. The Government has designated NICNET as the Government Network. It has gateway modes in Central Government Departments, 35 state and union territories secretariats and 602 district collect orates of India for IT services. BSNL The Department of Telephone Operations, Government of India was incorporated on 1st October, 2000 and was named Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited. BSNL is today the largest public sector undertaking in India with a network of over 45 million lines, covering 5000 towns with over 35 million telephone connections, it has become the terra firmas leading telecommunication company expansion of telecom network, improvement of the quality of telecom in rural areas are some of its major responsibilities.

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Homi Jehangir Essay

Homi Jehangir Bhabha, FRS (30 October 1909 24 January 1966) was an Indian nuclear physicist who played a major role in the development of the Indian atomic energy program and is considered to be the father of Indias nuclear program. Bhabha was born into a prominent family, by dint of which he was related to Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Homi K Bhabha and Dorab Tata. After receiving his early education at Bombay schools and at the imperial set up of Science, he attended Caius College ofCambridge University to pursue studies in robotic engineering. After taking mechanical engineering, he pursued studies underPaul Dirac to complete the Mathematics Tripos. Meanwhile, he worked at the Cavendish Laboratory while working towards his doctorate in suppositional physics under R. H. Fowler. During this time, he embarked on groundbreaking interrogation into the absorption of cosmic radiates and electron shower production.Afterward, he published a string of widely-accepted document on his theories regarding cosmic ray showers. World War II broke out in September 1939 while Bhabha was vacationing in India. He chose to cover in India until the war ended. In the meantime, he accepted a position at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, headed by Nobel laureate C. V. Raman. He established the Cosmic Ray Research Unit at the institute, and began to work on the opening of the movement of point particles. In 1945, he established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay, and the Atomic cogency Commission of India three Electron-positron scattering was later named Bhabha scattering, in honor of his contributions in the field.In 1936, Bhabha collaborated with Walter Heitler to approach patternulate a scheme on cosmic ray showers. They conjectured that the showers were formed by the cascade production of gamma rays and positive and negative electron pairs.The calculations agreed with the experimental observations of cosmic ray showers m ade by Bruno Rossi and Pierre Victor Auger a few years before. Bhabha later concluded that observations of the properties of such particles would lead to the straightforward experimental deterrent of Albert Einsteins theory of relativity. In 1937, Bhabha was awarded the Senior Studentship of the 1851 Exhibition, which benefactored him continue his work at Cambridge until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. In 1939, Bhabha went linchpin to India for a brief holi sidereal day. In September, World War II broke out, and Bhabha decided not to return to Engcommonwealth for the time macrocosm.He accepted an offer to inspection and repair as the Reader in the Physics Department of the Indian Institute of Science, then headed by ren testifyed physicist C. V. Raman. He received a special research grant from the Sir Dorab Tata Trust, which he substance abused to establish the Cosmic Ray Research Unit at the institute He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society on 20 March 1941. With t he help of J. R. D. Tata, he established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay. With the end of the World War II and Indian Independence, he received a commendation from Jawaharlal Nehru for his efforts towards peaceful development of atomic energy.He established the Atomic Energy Commission of India in 1948. Homi J. Bhabha was in any case a close friend of Jawaharlal Nehru and he, along with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, had played a signifi derrieret role for developing the Indian nuclear program as well as education reforms in India. Bhaba founded and directed two major scientific institutions the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)of India1. He represented India in International Atomic Energy Forums, and as President of the United Nations Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy, in Geneva, Switzerland in 1955. end and legacyHe died when Air India Flight 101 crashed near Mont Blanc in January 24, 1966. Many executable theories have been advanced for the aircrash, including a conspiracy theory in which CIA is involved in order to paralyze Indian nuclear weapon programme. The atomic energy centre in Trombay was renamed as Bhabha Atomic Research internality in his honour. In addition to being a famous scientist, Bhabha was also a painter and a classical music and opera enthusiast, besides being an amateur botanist. After his death, the Atomic Energy Establishment was renamed as the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in his honour.Bhabha also encouraged research in electronics, plaza science,radio astronomy and microbiology. The famed radio telescope at Ooty, India was his initiative, and it became a reality in 1970. Bhabha has since become known as the Father of Indias Atomic Energy Programme. The Homi Bhabha Fellowship Council has been giving the Homi Bhabha Fellowships since 1967 Other noted institutions in his name be the Homi Bhabha National Institute, an Indian deemed university and the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education, Mumbai, India.Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was an Indian nationalist draw who established his countrys freedom through a nonviolent revolution. His beliefs are shown in like a shots society as an excellent heart of resistance to unjust rule. The feel of the Mahatma was a long struggle filled with brutality and hardships. In order to understand passive resistance, we will take a look at his hate-filled upbringing. Gandhi was born in Porbandar in the present state of Gujarat on October 2, 1869, and educated in law at University College, London. In 1891, after having been admitted to the British bar, Gandhi returned to India and attempted to establish a law practice in Bombay, with little success.Two years later an Indian firm with interests in South Africaretained him as legal adviser in its office in Durban. Arriving in Durban, Gandhi found himself treated as a member of an inferior race. He was appalled at the widespread denial of civil liberties and political rights to Indian immigrants to South Africa. He threw himself into the struggle for elementary rights for Indians (Gandhi, Arun). Gandhi was disgusted with the way his people were treated. This paper will discuss his religious and nubual point of view and the environment which c When Mohandas Gandhi returned to India from South Africa, he saw the British ruling India. The British brought roughly benefits to India but numerous costs to the Indian people, such as economic. When the British persuaded farmers to switch from growing crops to growing cotton, there was not enough food for the country and millions of people died from leave out of food. The increasing taxes and lack of food made many Indians suffer on account of the British.The Eleven Vows of Mahatma Gandhi-Their Observance and Relevance Kurangi DesaiAny of us who has attended a prayer meeting at a Gandhian institute is likely to remember a chant beginning-Ahimsa Satya Asteya . The two ver ses beginning with these row count the eleven denunciations that Gandhiji considered almost mandatory for the inmates of his Ashram, in Sabarmati as well as in Sevagram. The eleven vows are(1) Satya-Truth, (2) Ahimsa-Nonviolence, (3) Brahmacharya- arouseual abstention (4) Asteya-Non-stealing, (5) Aparigraha or Asangraha-Non-possession (6) Sharira-Shrama Physicallabour or Bread Labour. (7) Asvada-Control of Palate, (8) Abhaya-Fearlessness, (9) Sarva-D defilea-Samanatva- Equal assess for all Religions, (10) Swadeshi-Duty towards Neighbour and (11) Asprishyatanivarana Removal of Untouch susceptibility. Of these eleven, the first five are found in most of the religions of the world and are called Pancha Mahavratas the Five great Vows. The remaining six almost are somewhat new ideas that have been given the importance of vows to fulfill the contract of the time. The image of Gandhiji in the minds of his contemporary Indians was that of a political leader of unity who brought Sw arajya. Essentially, however, Gandhi was a Sadhaka, maven who was in search of God.His ultimate goal was Moksha or the realization of God. Since he believed that service of man was the best way to realize God, he lived and died in the service of India, which in a mircrocosm, was the service of Man patient of. That was his pilgrimage towards realization. In this context, the eleven were truly important to him. They were a part of Tapa Austerity and self denial for Purification. Tapa is considered necessary in all religions for elevating mavinself invigorateually, for get over over desires, as a check upon an unruly mind and for paving the way to sacrifice for another(prenominal)s all these leading to Moksha. But Gandhiji was a Sadhaka with a difference his Sadhana did not end with himself. He treasured to include society in his spiritual efforts and so he gave a new dimension to the Five Great Vows and extended them into the remaining six. Let us have a closer look at these vows and their observance1. Satya -TruthTruth is the most important vow, being the precise basis of all the others. The word Satya is from Sat, which means Being. On Sat depends accredited knowledge, known in Sanskrit as Chit and Bliss that is Ananda. The three together form the word Sachhidananda which is one of the epithets of the Supreme Being. According to Gandhiji, Truth is God. Satya, therefore, was the pivot of the life of an Ashramite. Observance of Truth was anticipate not only in speech but also in thought and in action. One may oddment what one should do if what appears to be truth to one person does not appear to be truth to another. Gandhiji suggests that after due deliberation and humble rumination of the opinion of the other person, if one still feels his own truth to be truth for himself, he should follow it according to his own light. In order to be convinced about ones ability to understand truth, one should use as the measuring rod those who have suffered fo r Truth and should himself be put up to suffer similarly.2. Ahimsa Non- force-outTruth and Non-Violence are like the two sides of a coin one cannot exist without the other. Using another imagery, Ahimsa is the class along which one reaches truth. Violence leads to more violence and hampers the clear vision which is inbred for the pursuit of Truth. At a in-person level Ahimsa consists in not only forbearing from physical violence in order to achieve non-violence it is necessary to remove from the mind all hatred, all jealousy and all desire to harm even those who harm us. The next step would be to extend our love to all living beings, including living beings like snakes, tigers, etc. At a sociable level, the goal of Ahimsa is to attain a society where there would be no need to act in an anti-social manner and hence no need for any punishment. This can demote only when the economic differences between the classes get considerably narrowed down and when the erring members of s ociety are considered as their own brothers by the righteous.Top3. Brahmacharya- Celibacy or ChastityBrahmacharya normally connotes a rigid control over sexual urge. An unmarried man who shuns sex is called a Brahmachari. According to Gandhiji, however, this is a very narrow meaning of the word. Brahmacharya really means Moving towards, Brahma that is, towards truth. For such a person, a control over all senses is necessary. So also, it is necessary to honour himself away from attachment to social connections. In achieving this end, control of sex is perhaps most helpful, because sex is one of the strongest temptations to cause one to stray from the narrow path of truth. Again marital relations are the cause of the strongest social bond, that of the family. Hence the importance inclined to the control of sex, which became synonymous with Brahmacharya. Control of sex, can also help the Sadhaka to gain control over his other senses. Gandhiji believed that a celibate life was most co ngenial for the pilgrim to truth. However, married couples could also tread that path by subtracting sex from their marital life.Such a step would free them from undue attachment for each other and free them for service of mankind. It is obvious that Brahmacharya, like truth and Non-violence, should be adhered to not only at the physical level, but also at the level of thought. To harbour a passion in the mind, while practicing physical control of the senses is not really Brahmacharya. On one point, however, Gandhiji differed radically from the orthodox believers in Brahmacharya he did not believe that a Brahmachari should shun the company of women.He wanted the Brahmachari of his Ashram to live a life of service to society so it was requisite that he would come into contact with women social workers. In Gandhijis opinion a Brahmachari should keep his public contact with women workers and learn to look upon them as sisters and mothers. If someone could adhere to Brahmacharya only when there were no women around, according to Gandhiji, he was not a real Brahmachari. While laying all this stress on Brahmacharya, Gandhiji was not unmindful of the difficulty experienced by the Ashramites in its day to day observance.. We are told by persons near to Gandhiji that he was completely aware that a number of the Ashramites were only partially successful in their attempts at Brahmacharya. Since Gandhiji himself never claimed complete success, he was satisfied that the Ashramites sincerely tried their best.4. Asteya Non StealingIn an ordinary sense, very few people actually steal anything from others, partly because of the social stigma attached to stealing. Gandhiji, however, gave a far wider connotation to stealing. According to him those members of the family who help them-selves to better facilities depriving the other members, are thieves. Even those who enjoy luxuries not available to the lower strata of society are also thieves. So, a person who wishes to apply Asteya in his life ought to lead such a simple life that he takes for himself from society only his marginal requirements. In the Ashram, one aspect of Asteya, namely avoiding waste, was strictly observed. Nothing was to be wasted-food, water, clothes or even paper. As a matter of fact, Gandhiji would reply to a letter in the blank half he used to open addressed envelopes on all sides, gum them up inside out and use them again the idea was something more than mere frugality he wanted to use as little of the peoples money as possible for his own purpose and thus be as little indebted to society as possible. It was on this principle that he did not allow Kasturba the personal use of the gifts she received in South Africa for his public service.5. Aparigraha Non-PossessionAparigraha is almost a corollary of Asteya. In order to follow the dictum of non-thieving one must have as few pos-sessions as possible. For Gandhiji, Non-possession was also a proof of ones faith in God. He used t o quote instances of devotees who did not believe in keeping back a little food even for the next meal. Aparigraha also helped one in slowly giving up the attachment towards wordly possessions, an essential condition of a seeker of truth, which every Ashramite was expected to be. And yet Gandhiji realized that giving up possessions was no easy matter. So, for non Ashramite she propounded the i transmit of trusteeship. Possessions, particularly in the form of business assets or land, could not be given up without complications. So he suggested that businessmen and landlords should consider themselves not owners but trustees of their property.A trustee is expected to use the income of the trust solely to the advantage of the beneficiaries. In the case of wealthy people the beneficiaries are all the employees and underlings connected with the wealth. So, all income from the business or the land should be shared-with the employees or tillers of the land. The owner turned trustee should avail himself of the bare minimum, thus narrowing the economic gap between himself and his dependants. The theory of trusteeship can be called a, slightly diluted social extension of both Asteya and Aparigraha. These, then, are the interpretations of Panch Maha Vratas. Let us now turn to the other six vows, which project the social application of these five.Top6. Sharirashtrama Physical Labour or Bread LabourGandhiji got the idea of Bread labour from Tolstoy. The idea is that everyone must put in some physical labour to earn his daily bread. An intellectual or an artist or a person with any other ability should utilize that ability for the service of society, while bread should be earned through physical labour alone. Economic differences in society can be mitigated in this way. Even those professions essential to society-those of a teacher, a doctor, a pleader-the wages of the professional should not be more than those of a physical labourer. Gandhiji modified this idea into the concept of shrama-yagna. He suggested that even those who earned their livelihood through other professions should devote at least one hour every day to some kind of physical labour performed in the spirit of oneness with the poor.At the time when Gandhiji presented this concept to India, cheap foreign cloth was being dumped in the country by the British rulers to the detriment of our indigenous industry. So, Gandhiji revived the art of spinning and decided that spinning the Charkha should be the symbol of Shrama-yagna. The Ashramites were expected to spin for an hour every day without fail. This exercise was called Sutrayagna. Over and above this, he made it a rule that all domestic chores should be performed by the Ashramites themselves, including a reformed method of scavenging the break down out of respect for the Bhangi, whom he later called Harijan, the lowest of the low in the Hindu caste system.7. Asvada Control of PalatePalate being one of the senses, its control is obv iously a part of Sadhana of the pilgrim to Truth. Gandhiji gave it a special place as a separate vow because he believed that control of the palate was inevitable for Brahmacharya that observance of Brahmacharya became easier if taste was conquered. Besides, conquest of taste was helpful in the conquest of other senses too. The most important condition of Asvadawas the conviction that food is meant only to fuck off the body for service of others. So, to indulge the taste by a variety of culinary delicacies was against the spirit of Asvada. This vow was adhered to rather rigidly in the Ashram. The food in the common kitchen was as simple as possible, without any condiments, some times even without salt. Individual families who cooked at home did not always develop Asvada to the boundary desirable. All the same most of these families had their own rules regarding simple diet more or less in keeping with the concept of Asvada.8. Abhaya FearlessnessPsychologists tell us that fear is a natural reflex in all living beings on par with hunger, sleep and the sexual urge. How then can one vow, I shall not experience fear ? And yet bravery is the backbone of most other virtues. Gandhiji appreciated the importance of fearlessness partly because he used to be a timid child, full of all kinds of fears. Later on he consciously trained himself into fearlessness. The Gita places Abhaya at the head of divine attributes. Many poet-devotees sing the praises of fearlessness in spiritual life. Fears are innumerable.All of us are afraid of disease, injury, death of loss of wealth, loss of prestige, loss of loved ones of displeasing our dear ones, of displeasing the boss, of displeasing society and so on. Some people can get rid of some of these fears, others struggle to conquer other fears. In order to take a leak truth, it is necessary to remove all fear, which is hardly possible. A Sadhaka should, therefore, endeavour to rid himself or herself of as many kinds of fears as po ssible. The fear of God, which in other words means the fear of wrong doing, is one fear which no one should give up. This fear keeps us on guard against further growth of detrimental traits of the mind and perhaps helps us in going beyond ordinary fears.Top9. Sarva-Dharma-Samanatva- Equal Respect for all ReligionsThis is a very important vow in a multi-religious country like India. One has a natural respect for ones own religion, and rightly so. But that respect need not lead one into disrespect for other religions. All religions help their adherents to proceed towards an ideal life. All religions have had devotees who realised God in their own way. And yet no religion is perfect. Quest of truth being the moving spirit behind all religions, they are always subject to a exhibit of evolution and re-interpretation. So one should never consider ones own religion to be the only perfect religion. On this ground, Gandhiji was against conversion unless it was coveted by some one through conviction.All should study first ones own religion and then as many others as possible and appreciate the good points of all of them. In the daily prayers of the Ashram, there were chantings from the Koran, the Buddhist prayer, the Bible and so on. In South Africa a bhajan was being birdcall which said Dear to me is the name of Rama. A Parsi friend once suggested, Why dont we sing Dear to me is the name of Hormuzd? The congregation took up the idea. That was the spirit generated by Gandhijis ideal of Sarva-Dharma-Samabhava.10. Swadeshi Duty Towards the NeighbourAs early as 1909 Gandhiji had found that India was filled with items of every day use imported from England. This was one of the main causes of the impoverishment of the country. Then again, it was necessary to induce Indians to be proud of their country. In order to achieve this, Gandhiji after returning to India in 1915,researchedon Khadi, reestablished the forgotten Charkha and unfolded his theory of Swadeshi, for the rejuvenation of Indian economy and Indian self-respect But then, Gandhiji was never satisfied with only the economic or political aspect of ideas. He gave Swadeshi a deeper significance based on an ancient ideal which says that ones first duty was not ones neighbours.Fulfilled in the spirit of love, that duty was not to at variance with ones duty to mends further away either. It was in this light that Gandhiji said that the Swadeshi movement was not prejudicious to the British mill hand, as it saved him from exploitation of his Indian brethren. This spirit of love made the labourer in Manchester his mend when Gandhiji went there even though Gandhiji was instrumental in bringing about unemployment of the British textile labourer.11. Asprishyata Navaran- Removal of UntouchabilityThis vow meant that Ashramites would mix as freely with so called untouchables as with all other people. This was, perhaps the vow most difficult to be practiced. Among the Ashramites themselves all were not free from the age-old Hindu belief that a person born in certain castes pollutes others by his touch. For Gandhiji ever since his twelfth year the ideal that any human being was inferior to another was not palatable. He always resisted the very basis of untouchability. He called it a cancer of Hindu Society. He had already started practicing the removal of untouchability while in South Africa. Then, soon after he returned to India he accepted an untouchable family in the Ashram. Several of the inmates, including Kasturba were quite upset at this step the financial aid that the Ashram was receiving all but stopped. Gandhiji, however did not take a hop from his decision. The resentment soon died down and sympathetic friends solved the financial problem as well.Later on Gandhiji gave the name Harijan to the untouchables and gave a great deal of his time to their amelioration. So these were how the eleven vows were observed in Gandhijis Ashram. They were quite well known in his lifeti me. Even non-Ashramites studied them and tried to follow some of them to some extent. People ask us Are Gandhijis vows pertinent today? My husband once asked a counter question Is a lamp relevant in darkness? The eleven vows cover such a vast canvas of life that one cannot say enough about their relevance today and tomorrow. In ending this resume we hope that these spiritual lamps would shed enough light on the paths of the people of India, nay on the paths of the people of the world to alter them to make this poor troubled Earth a better place to live in.

Monday, May 20, 2019

Satying in one place

Some people use their entire lives in one beam. Others move a number of times throughout their lives, looking for a better Job, house, community, or even climate. Which do you select staying in one place or wretched In search of another place? Use reasons and specific illustrations to support your opinion People atomic number 18 coming from varying communities with different backgrounds. Some of them prefer to stay and live In one bucolic as long as they have a shelter, a decent lob, and good friends.However, others may prefer to move around looking for a better life and good living onditions. As farther as I concerned, I give more advantage for the late opinion for some premier of all, people who adopt traveling in their life are more likely to be reasons. booming and reach their ultimate goals. That is to say, if anyone dreamed to be distinguished, he/she should acquire wide information in his/her major. A biology field is one example that is required a biologist to have a terminate vision and abundant information about hormones, creatures, fossils, and so on In order to get a tremendous success.Therefore, moving from one place to another is a great way for im/ her to have a huge background and being overt to different concepts and Another reason Is that these people who are long-familiar with moving perspectives. and changing their llvlng place acquire certain, unique characteristics that differs them from other people. Because these who have the tendency to live In more than one country are open minded, flexible, adaptable, and even cosmopolitan people. In my country for example which has one of the toughest regulations and tribal traditions is receiving more and more foreigners who are interested in living here for a while.When people asked them about their reasons, they might say to break the monotonous routine of their lives, maybe to be exposed with different cultures, or even to better off their financial means. In fact, changing the livin g place is a merit to enhance and develop someones personality. To sum up, east or west home is silk hat is one way to convince ourselves to live In one place whether its good for us or not. In contrary with ambitious people who believe In chasing their fortune whenever It goes. In my point of view, changing the residence Is good as long as we get the advantages and benefits from each experience we have.

Sunday, May 19, 2019

Intergumentary System

Integumentary System Laszlo Vass, Ed. D. Version 42-0280-00-01 Lab Report Assistant This document is not meant to be a substitute for a formal laboratory report. The Lab Report Assistant is simply a summary of the experiments questions, diagrams if needed, and data tables that should be addressed in a formal lab report. The intent is to facilitate students writing of lab reports by providing this information in an editable file which can be sent to an instructor. Purpose What is the purpose of this exercise? The purpose of this exercise in to learn roughly structures and functions of the sputter.Is thither any safety concerns associated with this exercise? If so, list what they are and what precautions should be taken. As always take precautions when intervention the microscope and slides and always have a clean safe work area. Exercise 1 organises of the uncase Observations originally beginning, set up a data table similar to this Data Table 1. Fill in the names of the number ed structures. disrobe Diagram (National Library of Medicine at http//nih. nlm. gov) Data Table 1 Structures of Skin Item Name 1. Hair shaft 2. Arrector pili muscle 3. Sebaceous gland 4. Hair follicle 5. Sweat gland 6. Pacinian corpuscle 7. Subcutis (hypodermis) 8. Dermis 9. Epidermis 10. Sensory impudence ending 11. Dermal papilla 12. Sweat pore Questions A. How does the spit out tan when exposed to ultraviolet light? When ultraviolet light penetrates skin it begins to break down desoxyribonucleic acid causing the body to produce melanin. The melanin makes the body become darker or tanner and when the body is darker the more protected it is from the sun and sunburn. B. Describe the functions of the shell.The epidermis is the outsidemost point that has keratinized squamous epithelium and the dermis. The epidermis has a bunch of diametrical cubicles which allow it to perform many different functions. The keratinocytes produce keratin that produce fibr ous protein that takes skin safety-related properties while the melanocytes produce melanin to protect deeper prison cells from ultraviolet radiation and allows the skin to tan. Merkel cells from sensitive touch receptors on nerve endings and langerhans cells are involved in the immune response of the skin. Stratum basale constantly go through cell division to produce million of new skin daily. Stratum spinosum has think bundles of protein and stratum granulosum contain lipids that pass on waterproofing for the skin. The stratum lucidum is a layer of flattened keratinocytes are only found in duncical skin. Stratum corneum is the outer layer of the epidermis made of squished and flattened layers of dead keratinocytes. C. Describe the functions of the attempt glands. Sweat glands are controlled by sympathetic nervous system and regulate body temperature.When the body becomes to warming they secrete water to the skin surface and the heat is removed by evaporation. D. Compare the structure of the epidermis to that of the dermis. The epidermis consists of several different types of cells while the dermis canonists of dense, irregular connective tissue. E. Fill in the spare-time activity table by either inserting the name of the structure/cell or by giving its function(s) Structure/Cell Function(s) melanocytes Makes a pigment for tanning Langerhans cells Small and involved in the immune response Merkel cells set in motion on nerve endingsStratum lucidum Provides protection, thick found of palms a soles makes skin waterproof Reticular layer The blood supply here provides radiational cooling for the body Exercise 2 Microscopic Structure of the Skin Observations Sketch and guess your keratinized stratified squamous epithelium slide in the space below. Be sure to label all of the structures in the epidermis and dermis you were able to find Questions A. Compare your slide to the photomicrograph example in the lab Procedure. How are they the same and how are they different?Propose a reason why you would put one over several differences between different slides of skin. B. What is keratin? Is fibrous protein that gives the skin its protective properties? C. Why is skin keratinized? Keratinized cells give skin a tough protective barrier. After a cell is born it begins to make protein called keratin that they store inside them. As the cells grow they build up with this protein until their so full they die forming a tough layer of packets of keratin. Exercise 3 Clinical Conditions of the Skin Questions A. What are the three types of skin crabby person?Squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and melanoma B. Which type of skin cancer is easily treatable? Basal cell carcinoma C. Explain why melanoma is so dangerous. Melanoma can spread to other areas of the body. D. What factors can take acne? Acne is ca partd when sebum isnt able to pass through the hair follicle. This causes cells from the lining of the follicle to shed to fast an d clump in concert clogging up the follicles opening so sebum cannot get through. E. What is a common myth about the cause of acne?Eating chocolate, greasy food or dirty skin F. What are some treatments for acne? Dermatologists use a medication that reduces clumps of cells in the follicles, oil production, bacteria, and inflammation. Depending on the case of the acne the doctor may prescribe a topical medication or an oral medication. G. Describe the signs of first, second and third degree burns. First- affects only the outer layer, epidermis. Second- damage the epidermis and the dermis Third- involve damage or complete destruction to the fullest depth of the skin and underlying tissue. H. What are the principle effects of aging on the skin?

Saturday, May 18, 2019

Causes of Unemployement

Causes of unemployment According to a number of economists the rate of unemployment in the united States has not declined now for some time. It is believed that this is due to a lack of education and skills that those who are want work have, as the numerous jobs and careers that have been created since our economic shift are specialty Jobs, which require adept training and certifications to be considered as a candidate. So our current situation may seem to be the same problem as before, but It Is not due to lack of Jobs presented In the Job market, in effect(p) rather suitable positions for those homo are seeking work.As much as the rapid development of the modem engine room and urgency of the new skills, which disqualify more race than ever before, the gap between the Job vacancies and people who are actively seeking Jobs Is be approach path larger and continues to expand. It Is not entirely due to the mismatching of the Job requirement and candidates lack of educations or ski lls It Is primarily due to the companies and firms reducing their demand for resources, especially labor. According to Anthony Calabooses article, if every ace of the public ND private sector job openings were filled by tomorrow, there would still be nearly 1 1. Million people out of work. However, before the recession the gap was much lower, coming in under a million. If it were Just structural unemployment, the gap would not be this large and the companies would at long last fill the positions however, it takes longer time to match the perfect candidate. Whereas, the unemployment rate keeps increasing and has yet to go muckle since the recession, it only makes sense that the cyclical unemployment has taken place in the job market.

Friday, May 17, 2019

Intercultural Competence Worksheet Essay

1. What does intercultural communication mingy to you? Intercultural communication to me means many things. It mainly means the direction that people communicate throughout the different glosss that they derive from. Intercultural communication is basically the sort that one person from a particular country would communicate with someone from America. Every culture has their own set of non-verbal gestures that could mean something completely different to an opposing culture. Verbal communication differs between different cultures and ethnic groups as well. present(predicate) is an example from Chapter adepts reading that I found to be quite interesting Latinos ground up nearly a third of the populations of California and Texas, and they constitute at least 20 portion of the people in Arizona, Florida, Nevada, and New Mexico. I live in Florida and found this interesting because the population of the townspeople that I live in is well over one half populated with Latinos. We a re strained to communicate and experience their cultures in order to better understand them on a personal level. Intercultural competency Interpersonal chat across Cultures, Sixth Edition, by Myron W. Lustig and Jolene Koester. Published by Allyn & Bacon. procure 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.2. square off intracultural communication. How is this definition both similar and different to intercultural communication?According to Yahoo.com,Intracultural communication is often a knowledgeableness for stereotypes. First a definition of Intracultural communication is the type of communication that takes place between members of the same dominant alleleculture, but with slightly different values, as opposed to intercultural communication which is the communication between two diaphanous cultures. An example of intracultural communication triggering a stereotype would be if a person in the dominant culture, lets say of the United States, spoke Ebonics. If a non-Ebonics speaking per son hears Ebonics, a dialect of English with slang,they may assume the person is of low intelligence, and is a criminal or violent in nature. Ebonics is a language that is widely spoken among many African Americans as well as those from very southerly states. For example, in my town we have what we call Rednecks who have their own language. I understand it but I have personally come into contact with people from up North who can non understand a excogitate of what that person is saying.http//voices.yahoo.com/intracultural-intercultural-causes-stereotypes-13680.html3. What are some reasons and approaches behind mastering intercultural communication?Mastering Intercultural Communication can be master by the BASIC dimensions of Intercultural Competence. Here are the skills needed in order to master Intercultural CommunicationDisplay of Respect- The readiness to show respect and positive regard for another person Orientation to Knowledge- The terms people use to explain themselves a nd the world around them Empathy- The capacity to behave as though you understand the world as others do Interaction Management- Skill in regulating conversationsTask Role Behavior- Behaviors that contend the initiation of ideas related to group problem solving activities Relational Role Behavior- Behaviors associated with Interpersonal Harmony and mediation Tolerance for Ambiguity- The ability to react to new and ambiguous situations with little visible discomfort Interaction Posture- The ability to respond to others in descriptive, nonevaluative, and non-judgmental ways.These BASIC descriptions of behaviors are seen as cross cultural. What that means is that no matter the culture that a person may be in, these skills are always used in one way or another. Intercultural Competence Interpersonal Communication across Cultures, Sixth Edition, by Myron W. Lustig and Jolene Koester. Published by Allyn & Bacon. Copyright 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.Part 2 Intercultural Encounters A ctivityInstructions Describe and analyze a recent intercultural experience with someone of a different age, ethnicity, race, or religion. In at least 450 words, respond and include details to the following questions1. Briefly describe the person and the place.2. How were you changed by the come across?3. What do you wish you had known to rent better with this intercultural encounter?A recent intercultural encounter that I was a part of was at my field in a conversation that I engaged in with my laminitis in law. Our conversation was just about his religion and how it differs from my particular faith. You see, my father in law is a very wise man in his mid-fifties. He has a lot of experience about a lot of interesting things. He was raised(a) in the Jehovah Witness faith and talks about it every chance he gets. One evening, he was over at my hall to enjoy a nice dinner with the rest of our family and something in the conversation was brought up about religion. My family and I, as well as his wife practice the pentecostal faith. My father in law does not believe in it what so ever. As a matter of fact, he says that our faith goes against his completely. Now, while discussing the different aspects of his faith, I learned about why they choose not to take part in holidays or birthday activities.Jehovah Witnesses are seen as the people who believe that heaven is here on Earth, which is not true. When someone sees a Jehovah Witness coming to the door, what is it that they typically do? They jactitate the door in their faces and tell them to leave. To be honest, I was guilty ofthe same exact thing until I learned more about how my father in law believes. All my life, I was taught about the Pentecostal faith I was taught to not listen to Jehovah Witnesses because they didnt believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins on the cross. Something that I learned thru this encounter to be entirely not true. Honestly, there have been so many times that I have apolog ized to my father in law for thinking that their faith was not holy, that they did not know our one true God.Boy was I wrong I have been changed thru this encounter and the countless others that I have had to be more understanding of others religions and views of Christ Our Lord. Who rightfully knows what the right religion is anyway? There are so many things that I wish I had known before judging people like my father in law. I did not conk him a chance at all. His faith combined with mine has a lot of common characteristics something I find to be very interesting. I ask him questions that I am curious about and he answers. I have also made friends with a very nice lady that attends his segregation and she comes to our house occasionally as well. He understands and respects my faith and doesnt try to push his on me. I highly respect and love him for that.

Thursday, May 16, 2019

Spirit Bound Chapter Thirteen

THE HELL YOU CAN, I said aloud to no one.No, you cant, said Lissa, with an expression that matched my own incredulity. I write out youve been hornswoggleing to armed combat with fire, solely you take holdnt done both staking.Christians face was adamant. I havea humble. And I can distinguish to a greater extent. Mias got some guardian friends here that have been teaching her physical combat, and Ive learned some of it.The mention of him and Mia operative to modernizeher didnt do much to improve Lissas opinion. Youve b bely been here a week You reach it lumbering standardised youve been training for years with some master.Its better than no liaison, he said. And where else are you release to learn? bloom?Lissas rise up outrage and disbelief dimmed a little. No, she admitted. N invariably. In fact, Rose would drag me a delegacy if she caught me doing it.Damn continuous I would. In fact, despite the obstacles and staff that kept blocking me, I was tempted to march oer i n that location right now.Then this is your chance, he said. His voice act uponed wry. Look, I know social occasions arent great with us, nonwithstanding thats tangential if youre sacking to learn this. Tell Tatiana you fate to bring me to Lehigh. She wont like it, entirely shell permit you. Ill expose you what I know in our free epoch. Then, when we prolong back, Ill take you to Mia and her friends.Lissa frowned. If Rose knewThats why well start when youre away from Court. Shell be as snugly as far away from you to do anything.Oh, for the love of God. I would give them some lessons close to combatstarting with a punch to Christians face.And when we get back? asked Lissa. Shell find out. Its inevitable with the bond.He shrugged. If shes calm down on landscape duty, well be able to get away with it. I mean, shell know, precisely she wont be able to interfere. Much.It may non be enough, Lissa said with a sigh. Rose was right about thatI cant hold off to learn in a few weeks what it similarlyk her years to do.Weeks? That was her timeline on this?You have to try, he said, almost gentle. Almost.Why are you so interest in this? Lissa asked suspiciously. Why do you care so much about rescue Dimitri back? I mean, I know you liked him, but you dont quite have the same indigence here that Rose does.He was a good guy, said Christian. And if in that location was a way to turn him back to a dhampir? Yeah, thatd be amazing. notwithstanding its much than that more than retributive him. If at that place was a way to conserve e really Strigoi, that would change our world. I mean, not that setting them on fire isnt cool afterwards theyve gone(a) on killing sprees, but if we could stop those killing sprees in the first place? Thats the bring out to saving us. All of us.Lissa was speechless for a moment. Christian had spoken passionately, and there was a hope give out off of him that she yet hadnt expected. It was moving.He took advantage of her silence. Besides, theres no telling what youd do without any guidance. And Id like to flash back the odds of you getting yourself killed, because even if Rose needinesss to deny it, I know youre going to prevent pushing this.Lissa stayed quiet yet again, pondering the situation. I listened to her concepts, not liking at all where they were going.Were leaving at six, she said at last. Can you meet me downst aureoles at five thirty? Tatiana wouldnt be stir when she heard about the new guest choice, but Lissa was pretty sure she could do some prodigal talking in the morning.He nodded. Ill be there.Back in my room, I was totally aghast. Lissa was going to try out to learn to stake a Strigoibehind my backand she was going to get Christian to help her. Those cardinal had been snarling at each new(prenominal) since the tell apartup. I should have mat up flattered that hoisting roughly me was bringing them together, but I wasnt. I was pissed off.I considered my options. Th e buildings Lissa and I were staying in didnt have the flesh of front-desk curfew security that our direct dorms had had, but the staff here had been instructed to tip off someone in the guardians office if I got too social. Hans had also told me to stay away from Lissa until further notice. I pondered it all for a moment, thinking it might be worth Hans dragging me from Lissas room, and whence finally thought of an alternate plan. It was late but not too late, and I left my room for the one next door to mine. Knocking on the door, I hoped my dwell was relieve awake.She was a dhampir my age, a recent graduate from a varied school. I didnt own a cell phone, but Id essayn her talking on one earlier today. She answered the door a few moments posterior and fortunately didnt turn up to have been in bed.Hey, she said, understandably surprised.Hey, can I send a school text from your phone?I didnt want to commandeer her phone with a conversation, and besides, Lissa might conscio nable hang up on me. My neighbor shrugged, stepped into the room, and returned with the phone. I had Lissas number memorized and sent her the following noteI know what youre going to do, and it is a BAD idea. Im going to kick both your asses when I find you.I handed the phone back to its owner. Thanks. If anyone texts back, can you let me know?She told me she would, but I didnt expect any return texts. I got my message an different way. When I returned to the room and Lissas mind, I got to be there when her phone chimed. Christian had left, and she enunciate my text with a rueful grinning. My answer came through the link. She knew I was ceremony.Sorry, Rose. Its a risk Ill have to take. Im doing this.I tossed and turned that night, even angry at what Lissa and Christian were trying to do. I didnt think Id ever patch up asleep, but when Adrian came to me in a dream, it became clear that my bodys exhaustion had defeated my minds agitation.Las Vegas? I asked.Adrians dreams always occurred in different places of his choosing. Tonight, we stood on the Strip, very near where Eddie and I had rendezvoused with Lissa and him at the MGM Grand. The bright lights and nor-east of the importunateels and restaurants gleamed in the blackness, but the full setting was spookily silent compared to the reality. Adrian had not brought the cars or people of the real Las Vegas here. It was like a shade town.He smiled, leaning against a pole c all overed in paper ads for concerts and escort services. Well, we didnt actually get a chance to enjoy it while we were there.True. I stood a few feet away, munition crossed over my chest. I had on jeans and a T-shirt, along with my nazar. Adrian had apparently discrete not to dress me tonight, for which I was gpaceful. I could have ended up like one of those Moroi showgirls, in feathers and sequins. I thought you were avoiding me. I still wasnt entirely sure where our relationship stood, despite his flippant attitude back at the W itching Hour.He snorted. Its not by my choice, little dhampir. Those guardians are doing their best to keep you in solitary. Well, kind of.Christian managed to sneak in and talk to me earlier, I said, hoping to avoid the issue that had to be on Adrians mind that Id risked lives to save my ex-boyfriend. Hes going to try to teach Lissa to stake a Strigoi.I waited for Adrian to join in my outrage, but he appeared as lax and sardonic as usual. Not surprised shes gonna try. What surprises me is that hed actually be interested in help with some crazy theory.Well, its crazy enough to appeal to him and can apparently overpower them hating each other lately.Adrian tilted his head, do some of the hair fall over his eyeball. A building with blue neon palm trees cast an eerie glow upon his face as he gave me a knowing look. be intimate on, we both know why hes doing it.Because he thinks his after-school group with Jill and Mia qualifies him to teach that stuff?Because it gives him an excuse to be slightly herwithout making it look like he gave in first. That way, he can still take care manly.I shifted slightly so that the lights of a giant sign advertising slot machines didnt shine in my eyes. Thats ridiculous. Especially the part about Christian being manly.Guys do ridiculous things for love. Adrian reached into his pocket and held up a pack of cigarettes. Do you know how badly I want one of these right now? up to now I suffer, Rose. All for you.Dont turn romantic on me, I warned, trying to hide my smile. We dont have time for that, not when my best friend wants to go monster hunting.Yeah, but how is she actually going to find him? Thats kind of a problem. Adrian didnt need to elaborate on the him.True, I admitted.And she hasnt been able to charm the stake yet anyhow, so until she does, all the kung-fu skills in the world wont exit.Guardians dont do kung-fu. And how did you know about the stake?Shes asked for my help a pas de deux of times, he explained.Huh. I d idnt know that.Well, youve been kind of busy. Not that youve even bring throughd a thought for your poor yearn boyfriend.With all my chores, I hadnt spent a huge amount of time in Lissas headjust enough to check in with her. Hey, I would have taken you over filing any day. Id been so afraid that Adrian would be furious with me after Vegas, yet here he was, light and playful. A little too light. I precious him to focus on the problem at hand. Whats your take on Lissa and the charms? Is she reason to doing it?Adrian absentmindedly played with the cigarettes, and I was tempted to tell him to go ahead and have one. This was his dream, after all. Unclear. I havent taken to charms the way she has. Its eldritch having the other elements in there makes it hard to manipulate spirit.Are you dower her anyway? I asked suspiciously.He shook his head in amusement. What do you think?I hesitated. I I dont know. You help her with most spirit things, but helping her with this would mean Helping Dimitri?I nodded, not swear myself to elaborate.No, Adrian said at last. Im not helping her, simply because I dont know how.I exhaled with relief. I rightfully am sorry, I told him. For everything for lying about where I was and what I was doing. It was wrong. And I dont understand well, I dont get why youre being so nice to me.Should I be mean? He winked. Is that the kind of thing youre into?No Of personal credit line not. But, I mean, you were so mad when you came to Vegas and found out what was going on. I just thought I dont know. I thought you hated me.The amusement faded from his features. He came over to me and rested his hands on my shoulders, his dark green eyes dead flagitious. Rose, nothing in this world could make me hate you.Not even trying to bring my ex-boyfriend back from the dead?Adrian held onto me, and even in a dream, I could smell his skin and cologne. Yeah, Ill be honest. If Belikov were walking around right now, alive like he used to be? in that respect would be some problems. I dont want to think what would happen with us if well, its not worth wasting time on. Hes not here.I still I still want us to take on, I said meekly. I would still try, even if he were back. I just have a hard time letting someone I care about go.I know. You did what you did out of love. I cant be mad at you over that. It was stupid, but thats how love is. Do you have any idea what Id do for you? To keep you safe?AdrianI couldnt meet his eyes. I suddenly felt unworthy. He was so easy to underestimate. The only thing I could do was lean my head against his chest and let him wrap his arms around me.Im sorry.Be sorry you lied, he said, pressing a kiss to my forehead. Dont be sorry you loved him. Thats part of you, part you have to let go, yeah, but still something thats made you who you are. pop you have to let goAdrian was right, and that was a damned scary thing to admit. Id had my shot. Id made my gamble to save Dimitri, and it had failed. Lissa wouldnt get anywhere with the stake, meaning I really did have to treat Dimitri the way everyone else did He was dead. I had to move on.Damn it, I muttered.What? asked Adrian.I hate it when youre the sane one. Thats my transmission line.Rose, he said, forcibly trying to keep a serious tone, I can think of many words to describe you, sexy and hot being at the top of the list. You know whats not on the list? Sane.I laughed. Okay, well, and so my job is to be the less crazy one.He considered. That I can accept.I brought my lips up to his, and even if there were still some shaky things in our relationship, there was no uncertainty in how we kissed. Kissing in a dream felt exactly like real support. Heat blossomed between us, and I felt a thrill run through my whole body. He released my hands and wrapped his arms around my waist, bringing us closer. I realized that it was time to start believing what I kept saying. purport did go on. Dimitri might be gone, but I could have something with Adrian at least until my job took me away. That was, of course, take for granted I got one. Hell, if Hans kept me on desk duty here and Adrian continued his slothful ways, we could be together forever.Adrian and I kissed for a long time, pressing closer and closer. At last I broke things off. If you had sex in a dream, did that mean youd really done it? I didnt know, and I certainly wasnt going to find out. I wasnt ready for that yet.I stepped back, and Adrian took the hint. Find me when you get some freedom.Hopefully soon, I said. The guardians cant punish me forever.Adrian looked skeptical, but he let the dream dissolve without further comment. I returned to my own bed and my own dreams.The only thing that stopped me from intercepting Lissa and Christian when they met up early in her lobby the next day was that Hans summoned me to work even earlier. He gravel me on paperwork dutyin the vaults, ironically enoughleaving me to file and cover over Lissa and Christian as I watched them th rough my bond. I took it as a sign of my multitasking skills that I was able to alphabetize and spy at the same time.Yet my observations were interrupted when a voice said, Didnt expect to find you here again.I blinked out of Lissas head and looked up from my paperwork. Mikhail stood before me. In light of the complications that had ensued with the master key incident, Id nearly forgotten Mikhails involvement in our escape. I set the files down and gave him a small smile.Yeah, weird how fate works, huh? They actually want me here now.Indeed. Youre in a fair amount of trouble, I hear.My smile turned into a grimace. Tell me about it. I glanced around, even though I knew we were alone. You didnt get in any trouble, did you?He shook his head. No one knows what I did.Good. At least one soul had escaped this debacle unscathed. My guilt couldnt have handled him getting caught too.Mikhail knelt so that he was eye level with me, resting his arms on the table I sat at. Were you successful? Was it worth it?Thats a hard question to answer.He arched an eyebrow.There were some not so successful things that happened. But we did find out what we wanted to knowor, well, we think we did.His breath caught. How to restore a Strigoi?I think so. If our informant was telling the truth, then yeah. Except, even if he was well, its not that easy to do. Its nearly impossible, really.What is it?I hesitated. Mikhail had helped us, but he wasnt in my circumstances of confidants. Yet even now, I saw that haunted look in his eyes, the one Id seen before. The pain of losing his devout still tormented him. It likely always would. Would I be doing more harm than good by telling him what Id learned? Would this fleeting hope only hurt him more?I finally decided to tell him. Even if he told othersand I didnt think he wouldmost would laugh it off anyway. There would be no damage there. The real trouble would come if he told anyone about Victor and Robertbut I didnt actually have to mention thei r involvement to him. Unlike Christian, it had apparently not occurred to Mikhail that the prison break so big in Moroi news had been pulled off by the teens he helped smuggle out. Mikhail probably couldnt spare a thought for anything that didnt involve saving his Sonya.It takes a spirit user, I explained. One with a spirit-charmed stake, and then he or she has to stake the Strigoi.Spirit That element was still foreign to most Moroi and dhampirsbut not to him. Like Sonya. I know spirits supposed to make them more alluring but I swear, she never needed it. She was beautiful on her own. As always, Mikhails face took on that same sad look it did whenever Ms. Karp was mentioned. Id never really seen him truly happy since meeting him and thought hed be pretty good- aspect if he ever genuinely smiled. He suddenly seemed embarrassed at his romantic lapse and returned to business. What spirit user could do a staking?None, I said flatly. Lissa Dragomir and Adrian Ivashkov are the only two sp irit users I even knowwell, aside from Avery Lazar. I was leaving Oksana and Robert out of this. Neither of them has the skill to do ityou know that as well as I do. And Adrian has no interest in it anyway.Mikhail was sharp, picking up on what I didnt say. But Lissa does?Yes, I admitted. But it would take her years to learn to do it. If not longer. And shes the last of her line. She cant be risked like that.The truth of my words hit him, and I couldnt help but share his pain and disappointment. Like me, hed dress a lot of faith into this last-ditch effort to be reunited with his woolly-headed love. I had just corroborate that it was possible yet impossible. I think it would have been easier on both of us to learn it had all been a hoax.He sighed and stood up. Well I appreciate you going after this. Sorry your punishment is for nothing.I shrugged. Its okay. It was worth it.I hope His face turned hesitant. I hope it ends soon and doesnt affect anything. push what? I asked sharply, catching the edge in his voice.Just well, guardians who disobey orders sometimes face long punishments.Oh. This. He was referring to my constant fear of being stuck with a desk job. I tried to play flippant and not to show how much that possibility scared me. Im sure Hans was bluffing. I mean, would he really make me do this forever just because I ran away andI stopped, my mouth hanging open when a knowing spark flashed in Mikhails eyes. Id heard long ago how hed tried to track down Ms. Karp, but the logistics had never really hit me until now. No one would have condoned his search. He would have had to leave on his own, breaking protocol, and come skulking back when he finally gave up on locating her. He would have been in just as much trouble as me for going MIA.Is that I swallowed. Is that why you why you work down here in the vaults now?Mikhail didnt answer my question. Instead, he glanced down with a small smile and pointed at my stacks of paper. F comes before L, he said befo re turning and leaving.Damn, I muttered, looking down. He was right. Apparently I couldnt alphabetize so well while watching Lissa. Still, once I was alone, that didnt stop me from tuning back into her mind. I wanted to know what she was doing and I didnt want to think about how what Id done would probably be considered worse than Mikhails deeds in the eyes of the guardians. Or that a similaror worsepunishment might be in store for me.Lissa and Christian were at a hotel near Lehighs campus. The middle of the vampiric day meant evening for the human university. Lissas tour wouldnt start until their morning the next day, which meant she had to watch her time at the hotel now and try to adjust to a human schedule.Lissas new guardians, Serena and Grant, were with her, along with trine extras that the queen had sent as well. Tatiana had allowed Christian to come along and hadnt been nearly as opposed as Lissa had fearedwhich again made me question if the queen really was as awful as Id always believed. Priscilla Voda, a close advisor of the queen that both Lissa and I liked, was also accompanying Lissa as she looked around the school. both of the additional guardians stayed with Priscilla the third stayed with Christian. They ate dinner as a group and then retired to their rooms. Serena was actually staying with Lissa in hers while Grant stood guard outside the door. Watching all this triggered a pang in me. match guardingit was what Id been trained for. What Id been expecting my whole life to do for Lissa.Serena was a picture-perfect good example of guardian aloofness, being there but not there as Lissa hung up some of her clothes. A knock at the door immediately shot Serena into action. Her stake was in hand, and she strode to the door, looking out through its peephole. I couldnt help but enjoy her reaction time, though part of me would never believe anyone could guard Lissa as well as I could. Get back, Serena said to Lissa.A moment later, the tension in Serena faded a tiny bit, and she subject the door. Grant stood there with Christian beside him.Hes here to see you, Grant said, like it wasnt obvious.Lissa nodded. Um, yeah. Come on in.Christian stepped inside when Grant backed away. Christian gave Lissa a meaningful look as he did, making a small head nod toward Serena.Hey, um, would you mind giving us some privacy? As soon as the words were out of Lissas mouth, she turned bright pink. I mean we just we just need to talk about some things, thats all.Serena kept her face almost neutral, but it was clear she thought they were going to do more than talk. Average teen dating wasnt usually hot gossip in the Moroi world, but Lissa, with her notoriety, attracted a bit more attention with her romantic affairs. Serena would have known Christian and Lissa had gone out and broken up. For all she knew, they were back together now. Lissa inviting him on this trip certainly suggested it.Serena glanced around warily. The remainder of protection and privacy was always difficult with Moroi and guardians, and hotel rooms like this made it even harder. If they were on a vampiric schedule, with everyone sleeping during daylight hours, I didnt doubt Serena would have stepped into the hall with Grant. But it was dark outside, and even a fifth-floor window could be a Strigoi liability. Serena wasnt keen on leaving her new charge alone.Lissas hotel suite had an expandable living room and work area, with an adjacent bedroom accessible through frosted-glass French doors. Serena nodded toward them. How about I just go in there? A smart idea. Provided privacy but kept her close by. Then, Serena realized the implications, and she blushed. I mean unless you guys want to go in there and IllNo, exclaimed Lissa, growing more and more embarrassed. This is fine. Well stay in here. Were just talking.I wasnt sure whose benefit that was for, Serenas or Christians. Serena nodded and disappeared into the bedroom with a book, which reminded me eer ily of Dimitri. She shut the door. Lissa wasnt sure how well noise traveled, so she turned the TV on.God, that was miserable, she groaned.Christian seemed totally at ease as he leaned against the wall. He wasnt the formal type by any means, but hed put on dress clothes for dinner earlier and still wore them. They looked good on him, no matter how much he always complained. Why?Because she thinks wereshe thinks werewell, you know.So? Whats the big deal?Lissa rolled her eyes. Youre a guy. Of course it doesnt matter to you.Hey, its not like we havent. Besides, better for her to think that than to know the truth.The reference to their past sex life inspired a mix of emotionsembarrassment, anger, and longingbut she refused to let that show. Fine. Lets just get this over with. Weve got a big day, and our sleeps going to be all screwy as it is. Where do we start? Do you want me to get the stake?No need yet. We should just practice some basic defensive moves. He straightened up and moved to ward the center of the room, dragging a table out of the way.I swear, if not for the context, watching the two of them attempt combat training on their own would have been hilarious.Okay, he said. So you already know how to punch.What? I do notHe frowned. You knocked out Reed Lazar. Rose mentioned it, like, a degree Celsius times. Ive never heard her so proud about something.I punched one person once in my life, she pointed out. And Rose was coaching me. I dont know if I could do it again.Christian nodded, looking disappointednot in her skills but because he had an impatient spirit and wanted to jump right into the really hardcore fighting stuff. Nonetheless, he proved a surprisingly patient teacher as he went over the fine art of punching and smasher. A lot of his moves were actually things hed picked up from me.Hed been a decent student. Was he at guardian levels? No. Not by a long shot. And Lissa? She was smart and competent, but she wasnt wired for combat, no matter how badl y she wanted to help with this. Punching Reed Lazar had been a beautiful thing, but it didnt appear to be anything that would ever become natural for her. Fortunately, Christian started with easy dodging and watching ones opponent. Lissa was just a beginner at it but showed a lot of promise. Christian seemed to chalk it up to his instructive skills, but Id always thought spirit users had a kind of preternatural instinct about what others might do next. I doubted it would work on Strigoi, though.After a little of that, Christian finally returned to offense, and thats when things went bad.Lissas gentle, healing nature didnt mesh with that, and she refused to really strike out with her full force, for fear of hurting him. When he realized what was happening, his snarky lead started to rise.Come on Dont hold back.Im not, she protested, delivering a punch to his chest that didnt come close to budging him.He raked a hand irritably through his hair. You are too Ive seen you knock on a do or harder than youre hitting me.Thats a ridiculous metaphor.And, he added, you arent aiming for my face.I dont want to leave a markWell, at the rate were going, theres no danger of that, he muttered. Besides, you can heal it away.I was amused at their bickering but didnt like his casual encouragement of spirit use. I still hadnt shaken my guilt over the long-term damage that the prison break could have caused.Reaching forward, Christian grabbed her by the wrist and jerked her toward him. He balled her fingers with his other hand and then slowly demonstrated how to swing a punch upward by move her fist toward his face. He was more interested in showing the technique and motion, so it only napped against him.See? Arc upward. Make the impact right there. Dont worry about hurting me.Its not that simple.Her protest died off, and suddenly, they both seemed to notice the situation they were in. There was barely any space between them, and his fingers were still wrapped around her wrist. They felt warm against Lissas skin and were sending electricity through the rest of her body. The air between them seemed thick and heavy, like it might just wrap them up and pull them together. From the widening of Christians eyes and sudden intake of breath, I was willing to bet he was having a similar reaction at being so close to her body.Coming to himself, he abruptly released her hand and stepped back. Well, he said roughly, though still clearly unnerved by the proximity, I guess you arent really serious about helping Rose.That did it. Sexual tension notwithstanding, anger kindled up in Lissa at the comment. She balled her fist and totally caught Christian off guard when she swung out and socked him in the face. It didnt have the grace of her Reed punch, but it took Christian hard. Unfortunately, she lost her balance in the maneuver and stumbled forward into him. The two of them went down together, hitting the floor and knocking over a small table and lamp nearby. The lamp cau ght the tables corner and broke.Meanwhile, Lissa had landed on Christian. His arms instinctively went out around her, and if the space between them before had been small, it was nonexistent now. They stared into each others eyes, and Lissas heart was pounding fiercely in her chest. That tempting electric feeling crackled around them again, and all the world for her seemed to focus on his lips. Both she and I wondered later if they might have kissed, but just then, Serena came bursting out of the bedroom.She was on guardian high alert, body separate out and ready to face an army of Strigoi with her stake in hand. She came screeching to a halt when she saw the perspective before her what appeared to be a romantic interlude. Admittedly, it was an odd one, what with the broken lamp and swelling red mark on Christians face. It was pretty awkward for everyone, and Serenas assail mode faded to one of confusion.Oh, she said uncertainly. Sorry.Embarrassment flooded Lissa, as well as self- resentment at being affected so much by Christian. She was furious at him, after all. Hastily, she pulled away and sat up, and in her flustered state, she felt the need to make it clear that there was nothing romantic whatsoever going on.It its not what you think, she stuttered, looking anywhere except at Christian, who was getting to his feet and seemed just as mortified as Lissa. We were fighting. I mean, practicing fighting. I want to learn to defend against Strigoi. And attack them. And stake them. So Christian was kind of helping me, thats all. There was something cute about her rambling, and it reminded me charmingly of Jill.Serena visibly relaxed, and while shed mastered that blank face all guardians excelled at, it was clear she was amused. Well, she said, it doesnt look like youre doing a very good job.Christian turned indignant as he stroked his injured cheek. Hey We are too. I taught her this.Serena still thought it was all funny, but a serious, considering glint was star ting to form in her eyes. That seems like it was more lucky than anything else. She hesitated, like she was on the verge of a big decision. At last she said, Look, if you guys are serious about this, then you need to learn to do it the right way. Ill show you how.No. Way.I was earnestly on the verge of escaping the Court and hitchhiking to Lehigh to really show them how to throw a punchwith Serena as my examplewhen something jolted me away from Lissa and back into my own reality. Hans.I had a sarcastic greeting on my lips, but he didnt give me a chance. Forget the filing and follow me. Youve been summoned.Iwhat? Highly unexpected. Summoned where?His face was grim. To see the queen.