Yesterday morning began as routine - it's funny how you can be in a place for only a few days before you begin to develop your own little pattern. Adaptation, well in a comfortably warm cottage with endless (touch-wood) sunny days, it's not too hard to get into. I got my breakfast together, sliced nectarines that were on the brim of being over-ripe, the juice spilling all over the counter. I still haven't mastered cutting nectarines, you can't slice them into segments because the flesh doesn't pull off the stone, and slicing it
against the stone leaves you with lots of excess flimsy thin slices that aren't any use to anyon
e. Pear, banana and strawberries joined the mixture, along with a few nuts, seeds and natural yogurt. I sat opposite my dad and brother who were munching on bacon, fried egg, potato cakes and toast. A bit of a contrast.
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| Frisky food art - Joli Lapin |
My laptop was situated next to me, and I pressed play on the 'TedTalks' that spanned my screen, it was titled 'Do schools kill creativity?' (http://youtu.be/iG9CE55wbtY) Sir Ken Robinson's main point being that creativity stems out of having no fear of being wrong. Think about the theories that arose when people thought the earth was flat, had many moons, or was the centre of the universe. These theorists are
still talked about today, and through harnessing their creative streams and having no fear of putting their idea's out their though their theories may have been wrong, they led the way to the right discoveries. Schools today label being wrong as detrimental - I remember being handed back my essay's or projects and seeing red pen spanning the page. Crosses on maths papers, a loss of self-esteem when your grades for that english paper weren't what you expected. Memorizing the exact definitions for exams and the biological processes that we splurged onto the page, only to forget them weeks later. Of course you can see this in positive terms aswell, school's just want to produce kids that will work error-free in a demanding world that's getting tougher by the minute and constantly looking for qualifications that you can only
get if you pass that exam or get the best grades in that English paper. But one big part of school that I always found to be unfair was the focus on awarding
the best. Whether it was for 'academic achievement', or 'outstanding athletic abilities', only the individuals who rose above the rest were recognized, there's nothing wrong with this, but what about everyone in-between? Effort was never really seen as something that important if it didn't get you to the top, competition was constantly thrust into our faces and 'a friendly game' to purely enjoy the activity of writing, dancing, acting, singing, playing or whatever it was, wasn't really an option.
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| It's an apple fly! - Joli Lapin
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| A sports shoe and burgers, oh the irony - Joli Lapin
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The speaker in the video talked of school's focus on developing the analytical left side of the brain, the more prestigious subjects like maths and sciences being of a higher stature than the arts that focus on the right, more
creative side of the brain. The thing that I don't particularly warm to in regards to the analytical subjects is that the answer's either right or wrong with no space for grey area. Yes, there's no room for bullshit or talking/ writing your way around the answer, if you know it you know it, if you don't you don't. But this doesn't allow for any individuality. 50 people can get the right answer, but who stands out if they're all the same? I love that through English, you have to argue your point using your own devices; the basis of these are tools you've been taught, but each argument is seperated by the individuals thoughts and opinions towards the matter. So do schools kill creativity? I think many of the institutions that exist today do, yes.
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| Food art - Joli Lapin
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Interestingly the day before I watched this TedTalks, I was conversing with my dad as we wondered through the Devonshire forests. The 3:00pm sun shining through the trees cast abstract shapes over the bumpy terrain and the stallions on either side of us had their heads lazily hanging over the shaded gates at the edge of their vast fields of green. I was talking about the institution of school, as we have a great friend that's decided not to send any of his kids to school simply because he doesn't believe in its principles. They're still being taught by their parents to read and write, the basics. But instead of spending their days sitting at tables filling out worksheets enclosed within four walls, they walk the trapeze at circus school, prance around in ballet, draw, paint and mould in art classes, and run, swing and slide in the park. They have a truly active and creative childhood - I can see this being more difficult as they get older, especially if some of them want to be doctors or go into other professions that require qualifications and schooling. But it made me think whether the hours, days and months spent reading textbooks and writing essays was all worth it - in such a competitive world where degrees don't take you as far as they used to;
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| Walk back from Gara |
I feel like a bit of a sheep sometimes, going along with the rules and regulations of society to 'hopefully' get to a point of success in the future. End up in a career that I'm truly passionate about (hopefully in food), a stable financial situation and a good degree of excitement and change brought about through travelling and experience. But isn't that the dream most people strive for? And how many end up selling their souls to jobs that earn buckets of money but have them sitting in an office from 9 - 5, 5 days a week. I have too many friends that have fantastic lives financially, but never see their dads/ mums as they're always away on business trips, or stuck at the office. I truly hope I don't get swallowed up in the money cycle.
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| Haha, dad looking slightly senile |
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| The opening Ceremony! |
So my dad thinks schooling and university and qualifications give you choices, especially if you don't know what you want to do in life. And along the way you may meet someone who offers you the job of your dreams or your path might change completely but to have the foundation there is a safe and stable bet. But the thing is, as great as it feels to have an IB diploma behind me, I can't help thinking that if I'd been taken to schools for art, circus, dance, culinary, singing, acting (the list goes on), whether I'd be in a state of passion and drive right now, instead of looking ahead at a slightly daunting three years of university with the hope of coming out with a BSC in Nutrition and Food science. Yes it's well respected, but I don't like that life's about pleasing and impressing others with your 'highly respected degrees' and not about engaging in activities that you absolutely love, without playing it safe. I guess you find those activities and passions along the way? I don't think there's any right answer..
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| The crowd the crowd |
Today was lazy again, at one point everyone had fallen asleep on the grass in the garden, I lay in a patch of sun reading my new, recommended book that's very interesting but requires a high degree of concentration, "God is Not Great"
by Christopher Hitchens, an athiest with strong opinions, and strong support, i'm two chapters in and the grip's tightening.. Everyone slowly started moving and we made our way down to 'Gara Rock' again, spending the rest of the day with friends playing cricket, bat-and-ball and football on the beach. The day ended with a bang watching the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in 'The Pigs Nose' our local pub. It was full to the brim, we'd managed to find a table with a great view but as the masses started piling in, standing on our seats was the only way to see anything. It was an odd but interesting opening ceremony, the queens emotionless face serving to humour everyone, especially when "God save the queen" was sung. Rowan Atkinson definitely had the most laughs - the best addition by far. The energy of 'great British pride' began dying down as the 160+ countries walked around the stadium bearing their flags and camera's and we left the pub in the evening lul. On our drive home we came across a wide-eyed tawny owl in the middle of the street. It looked exactly like the owls you see in books or cartoons. We continued on as it glided up to the telephone wire above us and I fell into a daydream about an old childhood tape I used to listen to 'The Owl who was Afraid of the Dark' by Jill Tomlinson (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOaQ0f6TRsY). I lay down with a cup of chamomile tea after another beautiful day, time to shut-down for a few hours.
Recipe of the day: Classic lasagne
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