KELVIN DANG

I know everybody will have his own good or bad memory in his life. Reading the scrawling words which showed on TV tonight made my recall the time when I was in high school. I don’t know I should say that it was a horrible or a wonderful time when I took a Cambodian class. Frankly, it was the hardest thing that I have had in my life. I was so young to learn different language, but it was part of the school regulation. For example, the school I went was Cambodian school, which obligatory to read and write Cambodia. It was going to face so many different things from the school. My first class was a literature class and there were so many students in there. I took a seat in the back of the class afterward the teacher started to explain course syllabus. Then she told us to write down what she wrote on the board. However, I did not understand what she said. I asked a girl who sat next to me for help, but she pretended not to hear my appeal. I try to copy all things on the board, even though I did not know what they meant. After class, the teacher passed out an assignment which was due on the next day when we come to class. I came back home and looked up my homework and try to figure out. Unfortunately, I could not get it done.
I came to class on the next day with nervousness in my mind. It did not my expectation: the teacher wanted me to show her my paper. I had to frankly tell her that I did not know how to write this language and that was why I could not finish my homework. Always new things made me nervous. Yet, the teacher seemed to be patient with my status. She told me to come to her office after class to talk about my problem. And she finally gave me an option: I would stay with her every time when the class time was done so that she would take 30 minutes to help me how to read and write Arabic. End of semester, we got a final. Now, I started to write down whatever came out from my mind and I felt good with something I wrote that fit the topic she gave us. I felt pleased with myself when I received a positive feedback from my teacher. In addition, this achievement made me conceive what I could do for my life because I did my best to achieve my ambition of learning different language. Now, these scribble words ran on TV in front of me, keep going on to end of the news seemed to lead me back to my school where there was a sympathetic teacher, but I am not sure if she is still there or not. It was a wonderful time and great memory that I would never forget in my life.

Posted by dangx055 at 6:49 AM | Permalink

The war in Iraq has been a topic of debate among many Americans, and especially with one woman in particular, Cindy Sheehan. She believes that her son was sent to fight and die in a war for reasons that have been proven lies. She is not the only one with similar feeling regarding the invasion in Iraq. Many other mothers and families have joined together to let their feeling be heard about the true price of the war. Yes, many Iraqi might not have the chance to experience freedom, but in the end it’s costing many families there love ones. Casey Sheehan reenlisted in August 2003, at the age of twenty-four. He was killed in action on April 4, 2004, just five days after his arrival in Iraq. Casey was killed in a rescue mission in which he and several others were killed. This has lead his mother- Cindy Sheehan- to gather up many supporters outside of George W. Bush vacation home in a peaceful demonstration in order to bring troops home and hold politicians accountable.
Cindy’s protests have been very effective since began her movement in Crawford TX. Approval ratings for Bush have been on the decline and she has been of his biggest problems. Her success has led thousands in many gatherings around the nation. The rapidly dwindling minority of Americans who continue to search for some rationale for keeping U.S. troops in Iraq has been driven to the brink of breakdown by the success of Sheehan’s protest. Cindy’s protests are justified because Bush’s claim of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction has been false. Iraq has been proven not to be an imminent threat to America and there is nor reason for us to be over there. The real war on terror was with Al-Qaeda and Afghanistan and all of the focus was instead put into Iraq. Very little has been gained from this conflict and it will continue at a slow progress for many years to come which leads to many more lives lost. Many lives have been lost in a war that might end up being beneficial to only a select few and it has brought a great amount of grief to many families. On August 17, 2005, Jane and Jim Bright attended a vigil in support of Sheehan, saying “their son’s memory would not be lost in the anti-war movement.� Jim Bright went on to ask, “People are looking inside themselves and saying is this war worth it?� The pro-war pundits who continue to defend the occupation of Iraq are freaked out by the fact that a grieving mother is calling into question their claim that the only way to support the troops is by keeping them in the frontlines of George W. Bush’s failed experiment. Bush backers are horrified that Sheehan’s sincere and patriotic anti-war voice has captured the nation’s attention.
Too many lives have been lost already. Only by continuing to support bringing our troops home and rallying around those who have lost loved ones will put and end to this war. The effort will be well worth in the end.

Posted by dangx055 at 5:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Nowadays, people often have lunch at Wendy’s restaurants, or come there for their foods. It is one of the famous restaurants that many people know so much everywhere in the United States. But hardly anyone knows who established it. Dave Thomas, who is Wendy’s founder, died because of his liver cancer when he was 69. His childhood was unfortunate and non-stable. When he was a child, he used to travel from city to city with his adoptive father because of his work. Sometimes, he worked as the poor and street children in the city such as “a paper boy, a golf caddy, a grocery deliverer and a pinsetter.� His life trained him, and he learned many experiences from it. Therefore, what he underwent in his life was accumulated in his mind and formed his specific character to become a famous person who was known as a millionaire.
Actually, nobody wants to be an orphan, especially children. Unfortunately, Dave Thomas was an orphan but he did not give up his status. It made him stand up and keep his position as good as we know by his intelligence, love, firmness of purpose, and his confidence. He was conscious of the value of life, especially in an orphan’s life because he was one. He realized what he had to do and what he should do, especially for the orphans. He was named as a national spokesman on adoption issues by President George Bush and received President Clinton’s thankfulness for championing the adoption of foster children. Feeling of love, taking care from his adoptive father made him overcome many problems in his life. He used to struggle to try to live. When he did something, he did it carefully and with his enthusiasm. “Don’t cut corners� was the advice of his grandmother and his fortitude made him work hard, overcome difficulties in his life, and achieve his position in society. People always saw him on television more than others such as Lee Iacocca of Chrysler or Orville Redenbacher of the popcorn brand. Wendy’s is known as one of the famous names everywhere in the United States today. Now, Dave Thomas is gone, but his reputation will be remembered and recalled when people come or pass by a certain Wendy’s restaurant everywhere in the USA. He deserves to receive this honor.
Reading on his life story, I like it so much because my aunt’s life seems to be shown in it. Her mother was gone when she was five. She lived with her father in the middle of Vietnam that was the poorest area of my country for a long time. Moreover, as we know, after the war in Vietnam, industry was in its early stage of development; being able to get a steady job was certainly not what people could dream of at that time. They struggled to live during the period after the Vietnam War ended but its consequence still remained at that time. Her family had several times nothing to eat. Then they moved toward the South of Vietnam because they wanted to have a better life. There, they rented a tiny house in order to live and work in the new environment. She and her father had to work as the lowest class in society. After that, she got married. She and her husband also had to toil and moil all the year round to have food and clothes for their children. Because of their hard-working, they saved some money and bought a small house. They had had to rent it before. Gradually, their life was better and more and more stable. Now, she works for a foreign company and her husband works as a mail deliverer. They have five children.
Today, their family lives in a beautiful big house which they bought five years ago. Their children, three sons and two daughters, are grown up and gone to school because she wants their children’s future not to seem to be as hers used to be. And now, three of their children have become useful citizens and have their position in society. They are very pious. They never forget what they have received from their parents. Now, her children have their own business and always help their parents very much. Having a happy family and getting a stable job are the two wishes of everyone, aren’t they? My aunt is getting them. Sometimes, I ask her to show me how to get what she is having. She humbly smiles and gives me some advice. To her, like Dave Thomas, if we try to work hard and more patiently with enthusiasm from our hearts, we will gain what we want. My aunt is very proud of her children when she meets people and is asked to talk about them.
Both characters above strongly remind me of my experience. I’ve learned so much from my aunt and now from Dave Thomas such as hard work, assistance, persistence, patience, and enthusiasm. We should try to work hard to get our aspirations. Do not wait for them come to us from the sky. Happiness and success will come to a person who is looking for them by their hard work and patience. Moreover, to make our lives better, besides those, let us love, care, and share together as much as we can; these are things that Dave Thomas did.

Posted by dangx055 at 8:14 AM | Permalink