Clark, 1

Stephanie Clark
Professor Byrd
HONORS 1700
September 22, 2015
Religion or lack of it
I grew up going to church every Sunday morning and to youth group every week. I also went to a
Christian school all the way from kindergarten to twelfth grade. I am very secure in my faith, and often
take comfort in its truth. So, I wanted my page on religion to reflect that. But, I also knew that I did not
want any of the pages to be busy. I like things pretty minimalistic, simple, and logical.
John 3:16 is probably the most well-known Bible verse. It essentially summarizes the Christian
beliefs. God loved us. He sent his Son, who died for us. Mankind is intrinsically sinful, so we need the
salvation offered through Jesus death in order to be with God eternally. If we believe, we can be with him
forever. But, no one deserves to be with God eternally, no matter how many good deeds one does. But,
Jesus love for us was so strong and unconditional that he died to save us from eternal damnation, which
is what we all deserve. The tablets in the bottom left are the Ten Commandments originally mentioned in
Exodus 20. Most people know about the Ten Commandments, but dont know exactly what their purpose
is. They are a list of laws God gave to the Israelites through Moses. My grandmother used to teach the
children in her church using this set of the Ten Commandments and a felt board. I didnt know about the
history of those pieces until I began working on this project and my mom pulled them out. My
grandmother was one of the godliest people I will probably ever meet. She finally got her wish to see
Jesus when she passed away in February, so the two tablets remind me of her. John 1: 1 is my personal
favorite Bible verse. It reminds me that no matter what I am going through, God has always existed, and
he always will. I have always found comfort in this verse. The two puffy stickers have another two
memorable and encouraging Bible verses on them. If I did not have my faith, I am not sure where I would
be right now, and Im not sure how people without Christ endure through all of lifes hardships.
Politics
Because of my upbringing, I am biased towards the Republican Party. The majority of my family
are members of the Republican Party. Now that I am older, I can see that, although their views and goals
are not perfect, and I do not support all of them, the Republican Party platform aligns much more with my
beliefs than the Democratic Partys platform. In actuality, I am a more moderate Republican than many
Republicans. However, there are some key things that Republicans stand for that I whole-heartedly agree
with. It seems that most Republicans are Christians, like I am. Republicans, for the most part, are also
pro-life and believe that marriage is a sacred bond between one man and one woman.
I am majoring in Political Science, so I figured that it would be wise to begin taking an interest in
the people running the country in which I live. Lots of people my age do not care about politics, and they
do not think that they affect them. That is not true at all. Politics affect almost every aspect of ones life,
so we should vote when given the opportunity. This will be the first election where I am old enough to
vote, and I do plan on voting for the next President of the United States. No matter who gets the
Republican bid, I would vote for them over Hillary Clinton without question, though I do not really like
Donald Trump. The pictures on my politics page are from a caricature my dad found online. Every person
who participated in the last GOP debate is on the page. Donald Trumps head was bigger in the full
caricature; I did not print it larger than the others on purpose. Personally, I like Dr. Ben Carson, but I do
not think that he is Presidential material; although, Donald Trump does not seem to be very Presidential
either. My dad thinks that if the Republicans choose Ted Cruz as their Presidential candidate and he
chooses Carly Fiorina as his running mate, we will stand a chance against the Clinton dynasty. I hope and

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pray that Hillary Clinton is not Americas next President, or else I fear for the future of our once great
nation.
Media
Media offers a way for people to temporarily escape reality. I think that this is a large part of its
appeal. People today feel like they need to be entertained at all times. Boredom is no longer an option,
which in a way is sad, because imagination and creativity often come directly from boredom. Now,
creativity is down because everyone has easy access to media. When a new TV show, movie, or song
comes out, people expect to be entertained. But once people become complacent with what used to be
considered entertaining, the creators of media must amp up their shows, movies, and songs. So, they
gradually get worse and worse.
Although I do not watch as much TV as I used to, I love watching Whose Line Is It Anyway?
episodes on my laptop. Whenever I have free time, I go onto the CW website and watch a new episode.
Currently, I am trying to watch every single episode from all 11 seasons. It gives me relief from the
stresses of life. I watched Red Band Society every single week, until the show was canceled at the end of
its first season. Along with that show, I watched 19 Kids and Counting every week and recorded the show.
It was something my mom and I did together until the show went off the air.
I am much more affected by music than by TV, though. I am almost always listening to music
when I am not in class or sleeping. I currently have 650 songs on my iPod, most of them being from
Broadway shows. The song "Right Hand Man is from a fairly new show called Something Rotten!. The
lyrics are very empowering; plus, the tune is very catchy. The song Love Story is one of Taylor Swifts
most popular songs ever. I love that she took the classic play Romeo and Juliet and gave it a happy
ending. Taylor Swift is one of my favorite non-Broadway artists. I got her picture from a People
magazine. When I had a subscription to the magazine, I checked the mailbox every day for my newest
edition, until my subscription ended, at least. Media has the power to reach ones deepest feelings, but it
also possesses the power to become an idol.
Communal Identity
This page and topic, in particular, gave me a lot of trouble. I had absolutely no clue what to do.
So, I began thinking about ones position in society. How does one get to a certain spot in society? Can
one change positions in society, or is one stuck in that one destined spot? To be honest, I am still not sure
about the specifics of my beliefs for this topic. Every person has a role that he or she can fulfill, but many
people choose not to do what God intended for them to do. Even though everyone has his or her own
place in society, the concentric circles in the community sometimes overlap. There is not just one thing
a person is meant to accomplish in life. Everyone has the potential to grow and better society in some
way; no person is an accident or a complete waste of life.
The concentric circles on the page show that everyone and everything has its place in society. The
circles continually get smaller the closer they get to the center. The higher up in society one gets, the
harder it is to move to the next smaller level. It also becomes increasingly more difficult to maintain ones
position in society the more elite one gets.
The Venn diagram visualizes the fact that although everyone has his or her place in society, ones
positions often overlap. For instance, one can be a teacher, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, and a
club member all at the same. Each of these positions in society is important, but many of them hold few
similarities, while others seem nearly identical.
Ones communal identity is also like a ladder. The higher one gets, the longer the fall. One does
not simply rise to the top. It takes hard work and dedication, like anything that is truly worthwhile.
Sometimes, there will be a broken rung or someone trying to pull you back down to the ground. The key

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is to know where you stand and who you are as a person. Nothing and no one can keep you down if you
figure out how to climb up the ladder of success. This will bring you closer to the center of the concentric
circles and will add more levels to the Venn diagram, but they will also become more fulfilling.
Earth and the Environment
When it comes to environmental issues, I do not have a lot of interest. As long as people do not
destroy the planet while I am living, nothing emotionally affects me. We were instructed by God to have
dominion over the earth. It is up to us whether we chop down all the rainforests or not. And we will have
to face the consequences for our decisions. Though I do not think we could truly destroy the planet or ruin
it enough to force us to another planet like many movies depict, we should try to do the little things to
keep the planet healthy.
My family cannot stand smoking of any kind. We do not want to see it, and we definitely do not
want to smell it. Besides the health risks that come with smoking, it is also bad for the environment.
Smoking is detrimental to all parties involved. Every time I see a smoker with a little kid, I feel so sorry
for that child. They are having to grow up in a smoking environment where there is a higher risk of
getting lung cancer.
I also think that we should not litter, for obvious reasons. Our planet is not a trashcan, so it should
not be treated as such. I think that if we are given the opportunity to recycle and have less waste, we
should take it.
Water conservation is also important. We only have one planet, and there is only a certain amount
of water on it. There are many new irrigation systems and plumbing systems that can help reduce water
waste.
One issue that is important to me is that of endangered species. Some species naturally go extinct,
but oftentimes, mankind is the cause of extinction. Like many things, they are irreplaceable. Once a
species is gone, they cant be reproduced or brought back, naturally or sometimes at all. People need to do
what they can to slow or stop the extinctions of some vital plants and animals, because if they disappear,
life as we know it could change forever.
Gender Issues
Due to my conservative Christian beliefs, my thoughts on gender are firm, though they vary from
many other people my age. Whatever gender you were born as, thats what you are. You are not God;
therefore, you do not choose which gender you want to be. No amount of surgeries or medications can
change that. God made each person just the way he wanted them to be. Whether one chooses to see it or
not, they have a reason for being the way they were. Getting to choose your gender is ludicrous to me.
Gender is not fluid, no matter how much some people wish it was. I, personally, do not even want to
understand why someone would even want to go through countless painful and expensive surgeries in
order to change ones gender.
Also, men should be with women, and women should be with men. Period. Thats it. Women
should not have romantic relationships with other women, and men should not have sexual relations with
other men. God designed men to become one with women. People and animals cannot reproduce unless
there is both a male and a female present. Two men cannot have a family through natural means, and two
women cannot have children through natural means. Homosexuality goes against the laws of nature and is
a sin. If every person on the planet chose to become a homosexual, the human race would die out.
Romans 1: 26-27 says, For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their
women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up
natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing

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shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. Also, Leviticus 18:
22 states, You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. Obviously, God does not
approve of homosexuality, and we should base all of our beliefs on his beliefs and his character. We are
not God, nor should we be. Even if we want to disagree with God (which is quite stupid to do), he will
one day judge each and every person for their actions in this life, including living sin-filled lives.
Citizenship
Being a good citizen involves caring about the community around you, along with being willing
to do what you can in order to improve it. Sometimes, this means following your dream of owning a
business or inventing a life-changing product. Other times, it could simply mean growing a garden in
your backyard or sending care packages to those in the military, like was often done during World War II.
Citizenship is vital to the morale of a city, state, or country.
But, you also need to be proud of your citizenship. Like school spirit, if you dont have any, you
wont be willing to participate in school events. If you arent a proud citizen, you wont want to help
those around you or try to better your community. We need to be proud to be UNC Charlotte 49ers.We
need to be proud citizens of North Carolina., or whatever state you are a citizen of. We need to be proud
to be citizens of the United States of America. A large portion of our communal identity lies in our
citizenship.
When I think of citizenship, my mind goes to the military. I think of the saying I often see on tshirts, Many gave some, some gave all. Dying for your country is the ultimate price to pay for your
citizenship. Both of my parents were military brats. My dads dad was in the Army, while my moms dad
was in the Navy. When I think of citizenship, I think of both of them, even though I never met my moms
dad. He died of cancer about two years before I was born. I felt that there was no better way to show
citizenship and patriotism than through the seals of their respective branches of the military, along with
red, white, and blue ribbon to represent America. I am proud of the sacrifices my grandfathers both made
My parents would not be who they are today if not for them, and I would definitely not be who I am
without that strong American pride I grew up surrounded by. Seeing an elderly veteran is an amazing
experience because you look at them and realize that they fought for your future before you were ever
born. It reminds me of Jesus sacrificing his life in order for us to get eternal salvation, even though it was
two thousand years before my birth. That dedication is rare and admirable.
Arts, Hobbies, Passions
This was by far the easiest page for me. In the top left corner is a picture of my dog, Champ. He
is a boxer-lab Australian shepherd. Champ loves to eat and will happily roll over to be petted. He is one of
the sweetest dogs and loves to play the part of a lapdog. Even though he weighs almost ninety pounds and
is almost ten years old, I call him my puppy. The picture diagonally to the right is Sapphire. She is my
baby and means more to me than anything. I picked her out when I was four years old and she was just
four weeks old. She is a fourteen year old lab-chow mix. When I am home, I am perfectly content to
simply lay down with my dogs and do nothing. Sapphire and Champ simply being themselves is enough
to keep me entertained. When I am upset or angry, all it takes to cheer me up is to go sit with them. It is
an instant fix.
Below the pictures of my dogs are the covers of some of my favorite books, two of which I have
read many, many times each. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is about a girl named Liesel Meminger
growing up in World War II Germany, while her foster parents hide a Jew in their house. I love this book
because it shows that going against the grain and not doing what is expected can lead to a more fulfilling
life in the end. Uglies by Scott Westerfield is about a girl named Tally Youngblood who is living in a
society that surgically changes everyone to look like supermodels when they turn sixteen. The plot
follows her after she runs from the society that is trying to plan her entire future. One of my other favorite

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books is The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart. It is about four extraordinary children
on a secret mission to foil the plans of Mr. Curtain. I love stories that show the underdog conquering ot
that have a surprise ending.
I am obsessed with anything Broadway related. Any of my friends would agree, and it doesnt
take long for people to see my obsession come to light. My favorite show of all time is Wicked, which is
about the witches of Oz before Dorothy arrived. So far, I have seen it three times. The next show I plan on
seeing is called A Gentlemans Guide to Love and Murder. It follows Monty Navarro as he attempts to
reach earldom by killing those in line that are ahead of him. I have never seen Something Rotten!, but I
love every song on the cast recording and wish I could see it in person. It follows Nick Bottom, a
playwright living in the Renaissance, as he struggles to succeed while living under Shakespeares shadow.