Archive for the 'Ideas' Category

The Leadership Rally

Published
by
Ricky
1 month ago
in A Dover Dilemma, Dover, Ideas and Ricky
. 1 Comment

It’s over. Months of personal panic and political positioning finally led to today’s assembly, the Dover High School Student Council’s annual Leadership Rally. Our guest was the fascinating John Morello, who performed his one-man-show, Dirt. In a word, John was awesome. Before giving a more in depth review of the show, my opening remarks set this post up well.

Welcome to the 2008 Dover Leadership Rally, Student Council’s traditional springtime gathering with the goal of entertaining you while making you think. Before we start, I sincerely thank Superintendent Dr. Onofry and Assistant Superintendent Mr. Prill for making this assembly possible. Without their help, we wouldn’t be here today.

For those of you who don’t know who I am, I’m Ricky Mondello, your Student Council President. It is with great enthusiasm that I introduce our guest speaker this morning.

He’s been on stage for 15 years as an actor, comedian, and educator. He holds a BA in Theatre Arts and has performed in numerous professional productions throughout New England. Most notably, he has toured the United States and Canada as a headlining comedian. Although he has spent most of his time making people laugh, he has always found himself working with people whose everyday realities are anything but funny.

Born in Detroit and raised in Boston, our speaker considers himself a survivor of a “high risk” childhood. As a teenager, he witnessed friends and family lose their lives to drugs and alcohol. As a teacher in a treatment center for teens, he witnessed students repeating the family cycles of self-neglect and self-abuse.

I am very pleased to welcome John Morello to our school today. Student Council hopes that all of us can internalize his message and make intelligent decisions - tomorrow, Prom - and ever day after. Please give John the respect he deserves and enjoy the assembly. Thanks.

John’s performance tells a story of complex characters whose lives all cross. Masterfully, he crafts how their decisions affect each other in both beautiful and disastrous ways. The show juxtaposes seriousness and humor, keeping an audience on its toes. By sprinkling in pop culture references and very intelligent comedy, everyone in the auditorium was seen laughing.

The defining characteristic of John’s show is its theme. Unlike many speakers who condemn and condescend to troubled teens, John’s message is that of understanding and empathy. It’s not solely a show about drug or alcohol abuse; rather, it explores what motivates us all, including seemingly well-adjusted individuals.

I didn’t need to solicit the feedback of my peers after the assembly - it was everywhere. People all day said, “Good choice, Rick!” or “Great speaker!”. One usually quiet student, a senior, told me that this was the first assembly in his high school career that he truly enjoyed. A group of teachers believed that performance was, “The high point of our year.”

Personally, I’ve been having a hard time coping with the direction Dover High School has been heading. In this time of great hope and fear about its future, Dover needed John’s presentation; I needed it as well. As a teenager, I was touched, and as a veteran at selecting motivational speakers, I’ve never been more pleased. I give John my highest recommendation and hope he keeps spreading his great message for years to come.

Finding Happiness

Published
by
Ricky
2 months ago
in Ideas and Links
. 4 Comments

I just read one of the greatest blog posts ever, linked to by @Pistachio, and felt that I had to share it. It’s titled Let Me Save You $40: Here’s How to Be Happy. Its approach to happiness is so pragmatic that it’s shocking. Go ahead, take three minutes and give it a read.

My favorite part? I agree with Laura (Pistachio):

There are 7 billion people on the world. You can afford to not hang out with that one again.

It’ll make sense soon, I promise.

Objective Decisions or Relationship-Driven Decisions?

Published
by
Ricky
2 months, 2 weeks ago
in Ideas and Rants
. 3 Comments

I read an interesting question on Stever Robbins’ blog from twitter user @stephenparker.

Is it better to be objective in our decision making, or should our relationships play a role? Is it better to be right or loyal?

Stever gave his answer to the question, but I felt compelled to give my perspective. It took me a few days to get my thoughts together on the subject, but here’s what I formed…

There’s no answer to this question that applies to everyone. The right answer is whatever lets that person sleep at night. Just like a productivity or organizational system, there’s no “one size fits all” solution. As long as the person using the system has confidence in it, it works.

Of course, that answer is a complete cop out, so I’ll try to make it personal. Those are two uncomfortable questions to ask myself, but I can’t improve unless I challenge myself. Is it better for me to be right or loyal?

In a perfect world, these two items aren’t diametrically opposed. In this fantasy land I just referenced, being loyal to one’s relationships is the right thing. We wouldn’t have to ask ourselves the tough questions or make decisions that challenge our values; regrettably, this world doesn’t exist. When found, it’s often short-lived.

I’d like to think I wouldn’t violate my moral principles for the benefit of a relationship. But, what if that relationship was more important to me than morality at that time? What if the relationship delivered more value to me than ethics would have? Suddenly, the world isn’t in black and white as emotion and reason collide.

I’ve regretted betraying my principles for relationships in the past, but I’ve also regretted sacrificing the people in my life for my values. A lot of people can’t even imagine themselves stealing from others, but if the situation was desperate enough, they might. Likewise, when the situation is dire, people may throw away their values to help another person or forfeit a relationship for the sake of their values, quite contradictory to what they thought they’d do in such a situation.

Not too long ago, I had this status message on twitter, facebook, and AIM.

People are the most important things in our lives. Put them above everything else.

At the time, I believed that. Now, with some consideration, I’m wavering. It’s not that I suddenly not value people anymore; honestly, I do. It’s just too easy to say something as absolute as “put them above everything else” without being tested. Values, personal beliefs on what is right and wrong, are just thoughts unless translated into actions. Asking a question like this is an interesting thought exercise, but as you can see from my ranting, I cannot answer it right now. It raises too many questions, too many what ifs without a specific situation to think about.

I hope to find the answer the next time I’m put to the test. When that trial happens, I’ll try to do what will let me sleep at night.

Readers, what do you think? Try answering that question for yourself and post what you come up with in the comments.

Event Horizon

Published
by
Ricky
3 months, 2 weeks ago
in College, Dover, Ear Surgery, Ideas, Resolution Experiment and Ricky
. 8 Comments

Rough weeks trigger lengthy and significant blog posts, it turns out.

Due to many personal stresses, including recent developments on the college admissions front, I have dug myself into a temporary sadness and a currently persisting physical sickness. I’ve spent my weekend trying to nurse myself back to happiness and health; my attempts have had variable success. If you’ll bear with me though this lengthy post, I’ve reached a turning point that I’d like to share with you. I’ll break down the recent events of my life and try to tie them together.

The End of High School

This last Thursday marked “100 days” left until my high school graduation, an event I’m eagerly dreading. I haven’t been an officer for my class in two years due to taking a position as Student Council President, but I’ve always offered my support. On account of this, I was pleased when I was asked to put together a slideshow of photographs consisting of members of my class. This slideshow was to be shown at a breakfast to celebrate the number of days left until graduation.

Although I’m glad I put it together, it was a very difficult process. Scanning photos with my friend Matt took hours, and cropping them into a slideshow was tedious. More than that, though, I saw pictures of my friends and acquittances as they grew up, all together, in this small town. It hardly felt fair for me to put the presentation together, seeing as though I had only lived in this town for six years of the twelve years of public education. It was an emotional hurdle I hadn’t anticipated.

Regardless, the breakfast ceremony wasn’t a disaster. In fact, it’s had me thinking about my future. My class’ officers asked a few influential teachers and faculty members to say a few words at the ceremony. One of those people gave us this wisdom about Dover Plains:

You guys all know that there’s nothing for you here. Get out, come back, and tell us how you did. Make us all proud.

I’ve known this for years. The town I live in, unfortunately, is a dead end. Regardless, I love it to death. I even wrote one of my essays for MIT on it, and truly meant every touching word I said. (I’m considering posting that essay on the blog. Let me know if you’re interested.)

What the speaker said had me think about all of the work I’ve done to try to improve Dover High School. I’ve had successes due to hard work, and I’ve had failures due to improper planning, the actions of others, and the bureaucracy characteristic of a public school.

I have a few projects, “unfinished business”, on my list of “help Dover” endeavors. Recently, I’ve been wondering whether or not to scrap that list. I’ve gone through the system and put in more work and hours than most people do. I’ve been thinking, why not just let it rest?

I can’t let it rest. I’ve gone through my time at Dover High School believing that I must always try to make the environment better for the next person. It’s the idea that’s defined my career thus far, and I can’t quit now. It’s why I’m alive, isn’t it? I’ll have some interesting stories involving my final hurrah to share, I bet.

Ear Surgery

In the midst of my normal routine, I’ve been wondering if or when I’ll claim an unknown “amount” of hearing back after my surgery almost one month ago. Since my last appointment with my surgeon, when he took a lot of “packing” out of my ear, I’ve been picking up high-pitch sounds, like a female’s voice. The sensations are very sharp and painful, but I expect them to get better.

It’s been my March Resolution to dedicate myself to healing. I haven’t done that as well as I would have liked to. My “can do” lifestyle hasn’t been kind to me, but I’ve been trying to adjust.

College Admissions

In the last week and a half, I was accepted to Lafayette and RPI. Lafayette’s acceptance letter didn’t come with a complete financial aid package; the big envelope only delivered the news that I had been selected to receive the school’s highest merit scholarship, the Marquis Scholarship. RPI’s letter came with a financial aid package that I consider to be lackluster.

Last Thursday, as I was about to start my last hurrah on the Senior Slideshow, my Mom gave me a letter from MIT - a small envelope. My heartbeat instantly quickened as I rushed to open the letter which I knew would bring me bad news. It started:

We have finished the selection process for MIT’s Class of 2012, and while we are unable to offer you admission at this time, we have placed you on our Wait List.

That was my bitter introduction to the proper noun, “Wait List”. The remainder of the letter told me I could either choose to remain on or withdraw from the list.

I’ve come this far, so I’ve decided to stay. Although I know the odds are impossibly small, I would never forgive myself if I didn’t stick around to see what happens.

Turning Point

I’ve had a frustrating week, one which has plunged me into feeling ill. If you’ve been monitoring my presence online, I haven’t been overwhelming positive. The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated, and I hope to play my cards the best I can. Essentially, I’m not really going to change anything in my life right now. I’m just going to keep going, doing my best. It’s a very faux turning point, isn’t it?

Just bare with me as I get back on my feet. It’s easier to write a blog post than to put thought into action, but it’s a step.

Another thought: A huge thanks to the people who have given me their kind words while I’ve been working through this. 

Jill Bolte Taylor

Published
by
Ricky
3 months, 3 weeks ago
in Ideas
. 0 Comments

My new favorite pastime has been watching videos from the remarkable TED conference. Before I go off to college, I hope to have watched all of the videos available on the TED website. I’ve watched 24 so far and have many times that number to go.

Yesterday, while I was having a uniquely bad day, I put on a talk from Jill Bolte Taylor. Here’s the summary on the TED website.

Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor had an opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: One morning, she realized she was having a massive stroke. As it happened — as she felt her brain functions slip away one by one, speech, movement, understanding — she studied and remembered every moment. This is a powerful story about how our brains define us and connect us to the world and to one another.

I beg you to watch this video. Not only did it cheer me up, but it’s changed the way I view the human spirit. Jill brings a type of genuine inspiration to her talk that’s rare today. Block out nineteen minutes and watch it below, or download a higher quality movie file (recommended). I cannot say enough good things about it.

Perspective

Published
by
Ricky
3 months, 3 weeks ago
in Ideas and Ricky
. 1 Comment

I had an opportunity the other night to sit down with my sister, some friends I’m currently in school with, some friends who have gone off to college, and a few acquittances. We sat around a living room and talked about the past - relationships, jokes, fiascos, whatever.

The night was miraculously uplifting. We all laughed about things that really bothered us at the time at the time they happened, but now seem insignificant. As we joked, I picked up the perspectives of people who through circumstance or by choice, I did not know while the events were happening. The re-realization of my limited knowledge in those emotional times gave me a silent epiphany of sorts:

Plenty of the people we write off as “not good” are in fact only opposed to us by circumstance, not by their own choice or character.

In other words, some people actually are “good”, you just didn’t know it yet. Sit down with people you’ve never gotten a chance to understand. Reach across the aisle, retire a stereotype, and connect with others… or at least try.