Caitlyn Cook

Professor Debra Jizi

UWRT 1102-010
26 January 2016
Double Journal Entry
CRITICAL POINTS

RESPONSE

Page 180 - Paragraph 4

Angela and I have this in common because it is my passion to help others through
the rough times. I believe an outsiders perspective is essential when dealing with
She finds deep satisfaction in helping others storms in someones life and that is what Angela was saying when she said it is
heal from their own words and traumas, for virtually impossible to face ones shadows alone. I like when I read and I can relate
as she reasons, Its virtually impossible to
to the characters on a personal level because then I feel like I know them better than
face ones shadows alone.
other people and can get more invested in the text.
Page 182 - Paragraph 2

Most all girls now-a-days can relate to Shannon through this quote. I know when I
was in a relationship at the beginning of this academic year I was very dependent on
Today she depends a great deal on her
my boyfriend and needed him to tell me I was good enough, smart enough, and so
boyfriend for positive feelings of self-worth on, in order to get through the day. Every girl overspends in every situation because
She is prone to overspend and overreact they have to have the latest trends, which are normally very pricey. Every girl
at such times.
overreacts to almost every situation that does not go the way they want it to go
because it is either their way or the high way. This is what I thought of when seeing
this quote.
Page 184 - Paragraph 3
No one but you knows or should tell you
how happy you truly are.

This generation of teenagers seem to think they know whats best for their peers and
think they know their peers better than their peers know themselves. I believe in this
quote 100% because happiness comes from within, first, therefore, no one can tell
you or knows for a fact that you are truly happy unless you tell them yourself.
Making an assumption leads to disaster for the most part, therefore, one cannot make
the assumption that someone is okay and does not need help unless she/he says so
himself.

Caitlyn Cook
Professor Debra Jizi
UWRT 1102-010
26 January 2016
CRITICAL POINTS

RESPONSE

Page 185 - Paragraph 1

I love this statement. It made me stop where I was reading and put this quote to my
own life. I used to be that person who needed reassurance and needed to wait for
Dont be the person who is waiting for this, something to happen in order to be happy. As I continued on in my life in college
that, or the other thing to happen before she and had to be more independent than I have ever been in my life, I noticed that I
can be happy.
should not wait for events in my life to go according to my plan in order to be happy.
Not everything is going to turn out how I want it to and I have come to terms with
this in order for me to find true happiness in myself.
Page 185 - Paragraph 1
If youre not happy today, then you wont
be happy tomorrow unless you take things
into your own hands and take action.

Page 194 - Paragraph 3

Happiness consists in activity. It is a
running stream, not a stagnant pool.
- John Mason Good

I am a take action kind of girl. When I want or need something to be done I do not
wait around for other people to do that something (people are unreliable), I go to it
myself because I want it done a certain way! The transformation from high school to
college was not difficult for me academically, but socially it was. I did not want to
start over with more friends and have to tell my whole life story and listen to theirs I thought I was going to have a miserable freshman year. But all I needed to do was
take that situation into my own hands and figure out what I wanted from these new
friends and act upon that. And what do you know, I became happier as soon as I
changed my mindset and took action.
As one of the quotes above has stated, to have happiness and be happy one has to
take matters into their own hands and take action. You cannot be continually happy
if you are sitting in the same situation and not changing anything, you will find
yourself very unhappy in that matter. Happiness is like a running stream because
your life is changing constantly and you have to keep up with it in order to be happy.

Caitlyn Cook
Professor Debra Jizi
UWRT 1102-010
26 January 2016
CRITICAL POINTS
Page 195 - Paragraph 1
We are also unlikely to find lasting
happiness by changing our life
circumstances.

RESPONSE
It gets under my skin when people think that they can change certain life
circumstances just because something is not going the way they wanted it to go or
the way they planned. To find lasting happiness you need to be able to find a stable
ground and state of mind for life circumstances that you cannot change. Life is hard
and it throws curve balls at us all the time, but we have to learn how to deal with the
curve balls so we can remain at a happy state.

Citations:

Parfitt, Matthew. Pursuing Happiness: A Bedford Spotlight Reader. Place of Publication Not Identified: Bedford Bks St
Martin'S, 2015. Print. How Happy Are You and Why?