Resilience

Sharing the Messages of Paul

(“Why Nobody Is Exonerated From Pain and Hard Work.”)

My letter, 2 Timothy 2:1-26, was written by Paul and includes many messages.  Paul discusses many important messages such as following God despite being judged and to try to avoid temptations, but God will forgive even if temptations overpower.  His other two messages are to spread the Word of God correctly so that others may learn and to work hard now so that success will come later in life.  These messages were written many years ago, but are still prevalent messages today.  Due to the fact that these messages are very important in today's world, I could see myself sharing some of them.  I would for sure share the messages about working hard and avoiding temptations.  These messages apply to high school kids since some fall into peer pressure and others lose the motivation to work hard.  I would share these messages like I did for my project, on social media in different forms.  I think that high school students respond to messages put up on social media, so it is the perfect platform.  Paul wrote many messages, and they are still as important today as they were when he was writing them.  I chose this image since it shows determination and working hard, which was one of Paul's messages.  When the person finally reaches the top, they will know that all of their hard work paid off.  

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New Insights About Marian Apparitions

When I previously learned about Marian Apparitions, I had only heard of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Fatima.  Even though I had heard these stories before, I still learned new insights about them and learned about new apparitions as well.  I learned that Juan Diego's uncle was healed after Juan saw Mary.  One new insight about Our Lady of Fatima was that Mary came to put more of an emphasis on Catholicism since it was lacking in Portugal at that time.  Two new apparitions I learned about were Our Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of Knock.  Our Lady of Lourdes appeared to Bernadette eighteen times asking her to pray for sinners and penance.  Over 5,000 miracles have been reported at the chapel Mary visited.  Our Lady of Knock visited Ireland during a devastating famine.  Even though Mary did not speak any words, she appeared for those suffering.  The few Marian Apparitions that I learned about intrigued me greatly, and I would be interested in researching more of her apparitions.  I chose this image since it is a statue of Mary in Lourdes.  I found Lourdes to be a very intriguing apparition since she appeared so many times, which shows resilience.  

   ("Our Lady of Lourdes")

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Resilience Within Our Lady of Akita

Our Lady of Akita appeared through a statue to Sister Agnes.  The statue bleed, weeped, and spoke to the sister.  The statue told Agnes to pray the rosary and to pray for Church officials.  Mary shows resilience since she appeared many times to Agnes.  Even though there was corruption in the Church, which is why she asked the sister to pray for officials, she appeared to Agnes knowing that she would be willing to hear her out and follow her instructions.  Also, Mary could have given up since Sister Agnes was deaf, but instead she kept reappearing in different forms to show her presence.  Mary was very resilient in this apparition since she appeared so many times to instill her messages.  I chose this image since it is the statue of Mary that weeped in Akita.  This statue represents resilience since Mary embodied her many times.  

(“Apparitions and Messages of Our Lady of Akita (1973-1981).”)

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Self Reflection: Am I Resilient?

("McCarthy, MD Claire.")

When I reflect on my life, I can see myself being resilient most of the time.  Whenever I am facing something I find difficult, like receiving a bad grade, I often feel like there is no coming back.  I then remember that I can put more effort into all of my classwork, homework, and tests.  This effort that I add onto my work demonstrates my resilience.  Instead of giving up and not caring about my work, I try harder to improve what needs to be improved.  Even though this is a simple example, I often show resilience in other aspects as well.  Whenever I am having a bad day, I always try to smile and live fully the next day.  I can always work on resilience in my life to keep me from getting despaired.  I chose this image because it is a great example of resilience.  Even though the ground is hard and lacks nutrition, the flowers still grew and overcame their hardships.  

                                                                                                                                                              

“Apparitions and Messages of Our Lady of Akita (1973-1981).” Rosary Bay, www.rosarybay.com/our-lady-of-akita.html.

McCarthy, MD Claire. “Resilience: A Skill Your Child Really Needs to Learn (and What You Can Do to Help).” Harvard Health Blog, Harvard University, 12 June 2017, www.health.harvard.edu/blog/resilience-a-skill-your-child-really-needs-to-learn-and-what-you-can-do-to-help-2017061311899.

Our Lady of Lourdes.. Photo. Britannica ImageQuest, Encyclopædia Britannica, 25 May 2016.

quest.eb.com/search/300_255675/1/300_255675/cite. Accessed 7 Mar 2018.

“Why Nobody Is Exonerated From Pain and Hard Work.” Goop, 17 Aug. 2017, goop.com/wellness/mindfulness/why-nobody-is-exonerated-from-pain-and-hard-work/.