What is Worth Fighting For: Nick Vujicic

Fighting For A Successful Life!


Having a disability is never pleasant. The worst part of being disabled, is the fact that it’s not repairable most of the times, leaving people with a disability for the rest of their lives. Both, mental and physical disabilities can stop people from living a regular life, like playing sports or being able to succeed at school. This usually tends to alter the way people look at disabled people, by looking at their flaws and all the things they can’t do. The repetitive judgment that disabled people receive, affects them strongly in the way they see themselves. Most find themselves as useless and worthless people, leaving them with no hope for success in the future. Nick Vujicic was one of these individuals who fought hard all his early life, by being born without limbs. He had all types of trouble with daily activities and tasks. In the end he was able to achieve what seemed impossible and now is willing to help anybody else dealing with the same struggles.

Nick was born without limbs, which in this day and age would be classified as different or unnatural. Growing up in a world where you are very different from other children most likely results on being treated differently or being ridiculed. “Throughout his childhood, Nick dealt not only with the typical challenges of school and adolescence such as bullying and self-esteem issues; but also struggled with depression and loneliness.” In his head, he didn't belong anywhere, making his disability the cause of his depression. Because he was different from other children, he was bullied and seemed to think he had no purpose in life. “He sometimes questioned why he was different from everyone around him. “ He constantly questioned why he was the one born without arms and legs while the rest were normal. Nick obviously felt devastated with the fact of not being able to play the same games or do the same sports as the rest of his schoolmates. He even wondered what the purpose behind his life was, or if he even had a purpose. Despite all the suffering Nick went through, he realized his life was too short to think about all the things he can’t do, and to focus on the ones he can do. This way, he began leading his way into a brighter side of life knowing there was a great life ahead of him.

Life Without Limbs was a non-profit organization Nick founded in order to achieve his goal of helping people. In this place, disabled people from all ages and nationalities are more than welcomed to take part in it. People who go to this special place can receive assistance from all types of things, like specialized doctors or physiologists, depending of what their needs are. Nick has found this organization really helpful for hundreds of disabled people lacking will in life. He believes he has done a big change in the way people think about themselves. To create a bigger change, he also decided to help non-disabled people, creating his own motivational speaking company; Attitude Is Altitude. This organization pretty much consisted of him talking to people from all around the world and teaching them how to enjoy life more. “Since his first speaking engagement back when he was 19, Nick has traveled around the world, sharing his story with millions of people, speaking to a range of different groups such as students, teachers, youth, businessmen and women, entrepreneurs, and church congregations of all sizes.” Nick knew a lot of people thought their lives were pointless, so he knows the best thing to do was to support them and tell them to love life and themselves. He has shown that if he can enjoy life, then everyone else can too.

With all these efforts Nick is putting into place, he has been able to help thousands of people from all ages. Nick will never stop trying to help, as he knows from experience that it’s never easy to live a life with different circumstances. He has taught them that all of us have a purpose in life, and the way you are, physically or mentally, can't decide whether you live a happy life or not. Although he has helped disabled people, he is also able to help people with no problems accept themselves for who they are and stop worrying about all the tiny problems in life. As Nick said once, “No legs, no arms, no worries!”

World Changer - Francia Simons

"Education is the most powerful weapon which one can use to change the world."(BrainyQuote) Studying helps everyone learn and have a successful life. Most people in the Dominican Republic are not able to go to school if they are not registered with a name. Fortunately for them, Francia, who had lived part of her life without a name and no chance of education, worked hard and was able to receive a birth certificate. Francia is now willing to help anyone else who deals with the same problem. Along with helping children receive proper registration, she has given hope to many children by telling them not to give up on getting certified, as it can help you go to school.

Francia, an unofficially registered girl, fought to achieve her nationality, and by doing so, she is now able to study and become successful. Francia, with the fact of not being officially registered, suffered with the fact that she was not allowed to go to school. Her willingness to be successful helped her become who she is today.  “..she carried out extensive research and showed great perseverance in pursuing her own registration.” (2010FranciaSimon)Since Francia did not receive an official registration, it caused her many problems with school. She knew that this problem would impede her from graduating and studying a career. Although she was young, Francia knew that school was her biggest priority, and she was not going to give up until she gained access to education. She researched information for months trying to find a way to become registered. “She succeeded and gained lasting access to secondary education.”(Winner2012KidsRights) After much hard work, Francia made her dream come true. She is now be able to graduate, get a job and make money for herself. Being able to study allows her to become a successful person in life. After all her work paid off, Francia probably realized by that all children should also be able to achieve what she achieved; therefore, she began helping other children in her same position.

Francia, has already helped over 130 children in both the Dominican Republic and Haiti, to gain a nationality so that they can receive adequate education and have an opportunity to study a career and get a job.(Winner2010KidsRights) Francia, who is now starting secondary school, wanted the rest of the children she knew to be able to study like her, which is why she began advising and helping families to go to school. Francia has been using the knowledge and strength she acquired during the complicated registration process to help other children without birth certificates to obtain state recognition.(VideoFranciaSimon) Wile taking care of herself, she has also been able to help a lot more children to get registered into school. This shows how much Francia is willing to give to others in need. Apart from getting official registration, children also need additional support to keep going through life against other problems.

Francia increases the children’s own self-esteem and gives them hope. Francia gives hope and advice to others to keep their hopes high that someday they will become successful and have a life with joy. Francia learned from her past experiences in order to help other children in the Dominican Republic who were in the same position as her. By the help Francia has given to these children, she is making a change. Francia has helped over 100 children in many different countries to be able to have education. She realizes that if she has the privilege of studying, then everyone else should too. Francia’s choices reflect on what the world is today. A small effort could turn into a big achievement. Everyone should help each other, no matter what it is, because that is what makes us human.

This Is The Part Of Me

I’m from the 20^th century 

From Barbies and dolls

 I am from SpongeBob and Dora

My Childhood heroes.

My idols, Jessie J and Muse

Inspire me to believe what I’m meant to do.

I’m from hot and dry weather

And noisy streets

Not always nice to visit,

but beautiful to me

A small house, at north of the town

Makes up my home that I love the most.

I am from my parents, handworkers indeed

They work all week and always support me.

My loving friends are always there,

 to notice what’s the best for me.

I come from amazing delicious food,

Burritos, tortillas, and tacos too!

A Mediterranean family that fled through the world

Looking for peace and no more terror.

All of this means a lot to me, as it fills my life with joy and bliss.

I will always live and cherish all these things

To help me live through the rest of my years.

Understanding - Power

To maintain control, you must have power.

I deeply agree with this statement, for many reasons. Let's say, a man wants to have control over people. The first thing he would do, is try to be noticed, and to be understood. After he is noticed, and many believe and agree with him, he is most likely trusted by those people, which means he can now have power over them.  If a person is not known or noticed by others, they will not follow his rules. No one would care about his opinions. He wouldn't be taken as an important person to follow. 

Take for example, Hitler's rise to power and control. As the story tells, Adolf's will to have control was really big, and he used many opportunities in order to achieve this. Of course it wasn't easy for him. He first had to know what the people of Germany wanted, and once he had all planned out, it was time to get people's attention. Using propaganda, making speeches, creating marches, were all used to make people gain trust and admiration towards him. Once he did this, it was easy to control and take over the people who agreed with him, which was a big quantity. 

Now lets take a look at the Medieval Times. During this period of time, the kings were the most powerful ones in England, and it was because they had complete power over the rest. To do this, the king must first understand the needs of his kingdom, and try to make it as just as possible for everyone. In some ways, he still wasn't so fair to some of the people, for example, the people at the bottom, the peasants. That led into rebellions, which meant that the king wasn't keeping control of everyone. He had to make sure he had the power, so he could stop them from rebelling against him.

The Feudal System - Extension task!

Father Francois, you are my honored guest. Please allow me to explain the Feudal system to you before you ask any questions of me. I am but a simple farmer. The Feudal system is a system of give and take. The lord would give off his land to a vassal for his support in return. If the vassals keep his oath, he could keep the land, if not, it would be returned back to the Lord. Vassals could follow the same system and become the Lord to his Vassals. The king still owned all the land.

1066: Who had the best claim?

Harold Godwinson, along with Duke William of Normandy and Harald Hardrada, all wanted to be the next king of England, after King Edward fell sick. They all had a huge claim to the throne, but for me, the one who deserved it the most, or had the strongest claim, was Harold Godwinson. King Edward had chosen him to be the next ruler. Reasons of why he did this, were that Harold was a noble, with a powerful army, and also that he was the only English man running up for the throne; Duke Will and Harald were foreigners, and had nothing to do with England. Also, Harold and Edward, both had a strong bond or connection, since King Edward had married Harold's sister. But even with all this, it wasn't enough to make him the King of England.

Values & Choices

1) Think about a time you witnessed bullying, ostracism, peer pressure, exclusion, discrimination or violence. How did you respond? How do you wish you had responded? What stopped you from responding that way? Three years ago, when I was in my old school, I witnessed something I will never forget. It was during lunch time, and we all went outside to play. My friends and I decided to wonder around school, and so we did until we saw a group of girls gathered together. It seemed like they were laughing at something. We all got closer and saw a girl from our class crying on the ground.. She had apparently just fell and got her drink all over herself. I was really shocked to see this, because no one wanted to help her stand up. Everyone just stared at her laughing. I felt really bad for her, but I couldn't drag myself to help her. In the end, I just convinced myself that the best thing to do was to walk away from that "bullying scene". I really regret not doing anything for that girl because if it had happened to me, I would have felt really bad. If I could go back in time, I would have stood up for her. I guess the fact of being bullied if I helped her out, scared me too much to take action. :(


2) Where have we seen examples of bullying/ostracism/exclusion occurring in texts studied so far this year- factual as well as fictional? Through out this year, we've seen many different examples of bullying/ostracism/exclusion. One of them was in the book 'Shadow of the Minotaur'. It had shown how Phoenix was harassed by one of his classmates to get Laura's love. That was a clear example of bullying. Also, there is an example of ostracism that we saw when we learned about the lesson of the Holocaust. The Nazis would isolate the Jews all the time, and tried to get rid of them.


3) Select one line/phrase/group of sentences from Eve's video that are significant to yuo. Explain why. "Usually, people are made outcasts because they are in some way different from the larger group." (Eve S.) This particular sentence is somewhat significant to me, as I think it is very true. Regularly in most schools, new student don't fit in exactly well. And even if they try hard to adapt to their new environment, other students may NOT accept them so easily. It may be for many reasons, but the biggest one is differences between them. Not only 'physical' differences, but also how they think. Maybe they have different opinions in some things, and that can lead to big problems.


4) What's familiar about the incident Eve describes? What surprised you? How does Eve's story relate to bullying? Was she bullied? Did she bully? How would you explain her behavior? (perpetrator/bystander/victim) Make sure you justify (back up your answer).She describes how she is not able to stand up for that girl, which relates to my story of how I was a bystander. I don't think anything from her story surprised me. The story she talks about is related to bullying as it shows how people mocked her and another student. She is or was a victim of bullying as she was annoyed by other classmates, but she is also a bystander when it comes to the way she witnessed the girl being mocked and did nothing about it.


5) How did Eve’s need to belong affect the way she responded when another girl was being mocked? Why does her response still trouble her? How do you like to think you would have responded to the incident? Well, as Eve felt like she didn't belong in that school, she thought that if she joined the bullies in a way, they would stop annoying her. But after time, you realize it was not the right choice because it is not fair being treated like that. I personally think that if I was put into that situation, I would have probably done the same thing. But in the end, I would have regretted it.


6) Eve concludes “Often being accepted by others is more satisfying than being accepted by oneself, even though the satisfaction does not last.’ What does she mean? By this sentence she means that being accepted by other people feels really nice, when in the inside you know that's not what you are suposed to to, and in the end you will regret it.

The Mysterious Mayor..

From the story we read today in Humanities (The Mysterious Major)...

When Schmahling said that he destroyed something in himself when he crushed that boy in his classroom, he must have regretted it really badly. When he didn't let the boy speak, he felt a really strong connection with what the Nazis were doing at that time with the Jews, since they didn't have the right to speak up for themselves, and I guess this is why he stopped his rude behavior and changed completely. He didn't want to be seen as a mean and grumpy person. This is why he spent the rest of his life helping people (Jews) because he knew what they were doing to them was nowhere near fair.

Victory.. By Sonia Weitz

From all the poems we saw today, I had to choose "Victory" as it appealed so much to me. I think that Sonia and her father had a really close connection, and even though they were already dealing with problems (being in a concentration camp) her dad showed his appreciation towards her. I think she chose the title to demonstrate the only thing Nazis couldn't take away from them, which was LOVE. I liked the way Sonia wrote the poem in a way to explain the feelings she had while they danced together, specially when she talks about how everything around them stopped for that moment. The only perfect moment for them. Although this poem doesn't have any connection with my life, I believe that if I had gone through what Sonia went through, it obviously would have been a terrible experience for me, as I am really connected with my family and I wouldn't have taken the pain of being away for them. That is why I chose this poem, because it explains how strong she was even in the worst circumstance, and how love can take you anywhere.

Germany 1918-1933

Adolf Hitler was a very powerful mand, He made a LOT of changes in Germany. But, you start to wonder how exactly he got so powerful and victorious in such a short period of time.. There are so many things he took advantage of, some many events that helped him rise to power. The Treaty of Versailles. In 1919, after the Great War ended, a treaty between Germany, the UK, France and others, was made in order to end all conflicts from the war and to make peace. Unfortunately, as the treaty stated, Germany was blamed for most of the damage caused, and was forced to pay for repairs. They had no other choice but to sign the treaty. Of course the German people were not happy with this, and they were constantly waiting for someone to help. That's when Hitler saw this as his great opportunity to convince people of his power. He made people believe he would bring Germany's pride back, and become strong again. People believed. They just wanted a brighter future ahead of them. Another event that helped Hitler's rise to power, was the Reichstag Fire (1933). Even when Hitler was already deeply powerful, he still wanted more. This event was used to convince Germans that the Nazis were the only party that would actually help raise Germany back to happiness, by blaming the fire on the Communists. All of his followers believed on this acclamation. That's when all the others were taken away from Hitler's Game, leaving him in TOTAL power over Germany.

Restrictive Laws In Nazi Germany!

“The Nuremberg laws.”

Who could now be defined as a Jew? Someone would be classified as a jew if they had at least 3 jewish grandparents. Even if that person wasn't practicing judaism anymore, or if they had changed religion. They would also be pointed as Jews.

What was meant by “Aryanizing” Jewish word businesses? Aryanizing the Jewish business meant that the Jewish people would not be able to work or sell anything. The non-jewish germans would take over it and eventually change the prices.

How were Jews who were professionals (lawyers, doctors, etc.) restricted? Any jew who practiced as a doctor was not allowed to treat non-jewish people. And lawyers were not able to practice or work.

How were Jewish identity cards needed to include? The identity cards were meant for every german. But these were different with the jews. They would mark all the cards with a big red "J" to make policemen recognize easily who was a jew and who wasn't. As an addition to that, Jewish had to change their names. If they were males they had to have "Israel". If female, it was "Sara".

What was the “Law for the Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People”? (Sum it in your own words).. The L.P.H.H.G.P. was meant to help the german race healthy and powerful. If two people (man and woman) wanted to have children, they would have to be authorized by the public health department to see if they had the material, in other words, if they were healthy enough to have a baby. The reason of this, was to have the healthiest offsprings to keep all germans the same (healthy and powerful).

Hitler Takes Control: Targeting the Communists and other Political Parties.

1) What are civil rights? Civil rights are rights the government puts on us so that we can live a civil life in the nation without any discrimination or corruption.

2) What are some that we have? Some civil rights that are found in many countries all over the world, are freedom of speech, freedom to vote, privacy and freedom.

3) Why might some of Hitler's measures in abolishing personal freedoms and Civil Rights be seen by some as a positive, or necessary move? Hitler made people believe the building was set on fire because of the communists, so all the blame had to go on them. The payback for the communists was to get rid of all their rights, which meant no privacy and no freedom of speech. Thus hitler then decided to send them all to the first concentration camp in Dachau.

Treaty Of Versailles (Fair or Unfair)

When I looked at the Treaty of Versailles, I was able to see it in different ways. Not only was it an unfair treaty for Germany but also the 'big step' towards World War II. My reasons for this are many, and here are some. First of all, the treaty stated that Germany was the only responsible for the Great War, which it wasn't. For that matter, they were to get a small quantity of arms and other warfare equipment, along with a limited amount of soldiers. This made Germany weaker than all the surrounding countries. This wasn't a fair thing to do as it made Germany vulnerable from anyone more powerful than her. Secondly, this country had to pay for all the damage caused during The Great War. This is a big mistake as Germany clearly didn't make all the destruction by itself. Other countries contributed to the destruction of land and buildings, but Germany was the only one blamed. Germany suffered many years by these conditions, but they of course didn't agree and waited for the perfect moment to get revenge. That is why 20 years after the treaty was signed, Adolf Hitler decided to take a stand and get revenge. The World War II began. As you can see now, the treaty meant to be the beginning of "peace" turned out to be the cause of the next world war and caused even more deaths that the first one.