The Power of the Bangles

Danielle Hall has been interested in jewelry since she was five years old. “Remember the game Pretty Pretty Princess? I wore that jewelry all the time, even when I wasn’t playing the game,” she remembers. Her jewelry phase has changed drastically as she has grown older. In fourth grade, she loved dangling earrings. She wore big hoops and earrings that reached down to her shoulder.  Danielle laughed, “My mom hated when I would wear big and flashy earrings. Sometimes she wouldn’t let me out of the house until I took them off.” When she turned thirteen years old, developed a passion for rings and long necklaces. Everyday, she wore at least five rings and one long necklace. That phase stayed with her until she was a junior in high school when she discovered Alex and Ani.

The moment Danielle Hall saw Alex and Ani bracelets in a store in Franklin, Massachusetts she fell in love. “I knew I had to get all of them. They’re so pretty and they each have their own meaning.” Danielle has over ten Alex and Ani bracelets and plans to get more.

The Alex and Ani creator, Carolyn Rafaelian, launched the company in 2004 and named it after her two daughters. The jewelry business was a family tradition. Alex and Ani bracelets started to get popular in 2011 with teenagers. Each gold or silver bangle has its own little story. Some say “daughter,” “niece,” “love,” “music,” etc. Others are just images, such as butterflies, anchors, seashells, etc. Lovers of Alex and Ani, like Danielle, buy them to express individuality and reveal what is unique and different about themselves.

According to the Alex and Ani website, “the company’s mission is to share the benefits of positive energy through the unique beauty and symbolism of their products.” They hope their jewelry creates a chain reaction around the world, promoting peace. For example, twenty percent of the proceeds from the love is alive charm goes to support Project CommonBond, a foundation dedicated to children who have lost loved ones to terrorism. Each of their bangles is infused with positive energy that the owner hopes will make the world into one giant community.

Danielle agrees with the mission of Alex and Ani and believes that the bangles do have a special power. Ever since she got the bangles in her junior year of high school, her confidence has risen and her attitude has been more positive. She only takes her bangles off when she showers or goes swimming. Other than that, she always has them on her right and left wrists. “Hearing the jingling of [the bangles] makes me really calm. I never get annoyed with that sound,” she said. Even though a lot of people say inanimate objects don’t have special powers, Danielle firmly believes that Alex and Ani bangles brought her the power of life and self-worth. She laughed, “I know it sounds crazy. But it’s true. My life has gotten so much better since I’ve worn these bangles. I really do look at the world differently.” 

Right Arm

Left Arm

Danielle Hall

Boston Strong

I may have been born in Franklin, Massachusetts, but I will always consider Boston my home. I love going to that city because I have always felt safe and relaxed. Seeing all of the beautiful sights around me such as Copley Square, Faneuil Hall, and the Boston Commons made me realize just how beautiful the world truly is. Bostonians are very friendly (unless you’re a Yankee’s fan) and never fail to smile at you when you walk by. Everyone who is from Boston is proud to be from there. I will always and forever love Boston. It’s one of the best places in the world.

 As long as I can remember, Marathon Monday was one of the happiest days of the year. Many people who run in the Boston Marathon were participating because they overcame a sickness or disease, running for a loved one, or they just love running. On the sidelines are their supporters. Even strangers support strangers. The people standing on the side want to cheer every single runner on and congratulate them on their accomplishment of running more than twenty-six miles.  There are a lot of signs saying “Go Dad” or “Run Mom Run!” Smiles and laughter fill the air. You can literally feel the joy run through your body. No one has a fear of one another nor does anyone expect anything to go wrong. But that all changed on April 15, 2013.

As I was standing in the grocery store in Franklin trying to decide what the difference was between Fuji and Gala apples, my loud and annoying phone buzzed in my jean pocket. With one apple in hand and trying to unlock my phone in the other, I noticed that I had a text from my boyfriend, Andrew. “I’m not by the explosions, don’t worry.” My face crinkled with confusion not knowing what this text message meant. I decided to ignore the text for the moment and finish my quest of grocery shopping. As I went through the aisles, I could not stop thinking about that text message. I hurried to get out of Stop and Shop. I quickly rang myself out at the self-checkout, and jogged to my yellow Volkswagen Beetle in the parking lot and drove home attempting to obey the speed limit. As soon as I walked through my front door, my phone rang. It was Andrew. Without hesitating, I picked up the phone and asked what happened. Out of breath, he replied, “There were two explosions at the marathon. I was standing right near one, and missed it by about five minutes. I’m okay, but I need to make more calls. Turn on the news and I’ll talk to you later. Love you.”  I was in such a state of shock that I didn’t even realize I was still holding my iPhone to my ear after he hung up. So many thoughts and questions were racing so fast through my mind that I couldn’t keep up. I just didn’t understand.

A total of two bombs exploded during the Boston Marathon. They both exploded near the finish line where many supporters were standing. The bombs exploded around the average time when most marathon runners would be finishing, which was a little bit more than four hours into the race.

But Boston was anything but defeated. Instead, Bostonians triumphed over tragedy. And it wasn’t just Bostonians. The world joined Boston and together all of us created a team: a team filled with courage, unity, and love. This team manifested itself in words on posters, the words of songs, hashtags, and speeches. And what powerful words they are, more powerful than any explosion.

The posters supporting Boston after the tragedy range from a tiny piece of paper that someone is holding at a sports game to an electronic display above the entrance to Yankee Stadium. Even though the posters differ in size and quality, they all have the same message: Boston is not alone. The words on the posters are extremely powerful and touching. For example, at a Yankees game very recently, people held signs saying, “Pray for Boston” or “NY loves Boston.” It’s incredible how two well-known enemies put aside their baseball differences to come together as one. Also, it’s just a great feeling to know that two enemies can come together and be allies. At a time like this, words mean everything to everyone.

In my opinion, the lyrics in a song mean anything and everything. That is what gives the song meaning. Lyrics have the power and ability to relate to so many people. I personally love listening to the lyrics because they have a power to change my emotions and really inspire me. After the Boston Marathon bombings, not only did the whole Yankee stadium show their loving support, but during the 7^th inning stretch the played the song “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond. That was a really touching moment for Bostonians because “Sweet Caroline” is played at every Red Sox game. When the song is played, it really brings the whole stadium together. The most moving lyrics in the whole song are: “Hands touching hands/Reaching out/Touching me, touching you.” When everyone was singing along to that song in Yankees Stadium, it meant New York is extending their hands out to help support Boston and do whatever they can do help the city recover from this horrible tragedy.

Even though it’s a social media website, Twitter also extended their hands out to support Boston. On the day of the bombings, everyone tweeted “#PrayForBoston.” Believe it or not, a hashtag can go a long way, especially in a world full of teenagers. Within an hour of the explosions, “#PrayForBoston” was the number one trending topic on twitter. Tweets were composed all around the United States using that one hashtag and it brought the United States closer. Those three words attached to a hashtag ruled the Twitter world for over three days.

The day of the bombing, President Barack Obama made a nation wide speech. Of course he stated how security is going to increase in the United States and was trying his best to answer questions. However, a few words of his speech were the most powerful and moving. "Boston is a tough and resilient town," Obama continued. "So are its people. I am supremely confident that Bostonians will pull together, take care of each other & move forward -- as one proud city." And that is just what Boston did. The city pulled together as one and not only listened to Obama’s words, but also used them in action.

All of these words used in different forms showed that no one is going to take our Boston pride away from us. With help from around the world, Boston is now more confident as ever. All of this shows that good overcomes evil. Even though I am from Franklin, I consider myself a true Bostonian. “There’s strong, but then there’s Boston strong.”

I got this photo from here!

A Bully World

Sure, Facebook connects old friends and family and holds old memories forever in the form of pictures and comments. Yeah, it helps boost your confidence when someone “likes” a picture or comment you’ve posted. But Facebook is a wide-open opportunity to tear someone down while hiding behind a computer screen. It allows a person to make stupid, hurtful remarks whenever they feel like it. That’s what bullies do.

Whether in cyberspace or at a schoolyard, a bully is still a bully and bullies should be stopped.

That is proven true by a recent story about a fourteen-year-old girl in Georgia who found a fake Facebook profile of herself (“Teen Sues Classmates for Libel Over Facebook Page”, April 26, 2012). A fake Facebook profile page consists of false information about an individual. The person who creates the fake profile only has bad intentions. He or she does it to make a person feel bad and to bring attention to themself for being “gutsy.” This particular fake profile made fun of the Georgia teenager in very malicious ways. It made her face seem bloated and enlarged. It posted that she smoked marijuana. It posted demeaning things about her, and said she spoke in a “retardish” language. When the teen told officials about what had happened, they said there was not much they could do. They could not prosecute bullying off of school grounds.      

That is completely ridiculous. It is the responsibility of the school to keep kids safe. Even though the bullying does not happen in the classroom, it still involves classmates, and that is the school’s responsibility. Cyberbullying causes kids to do horrible things such as cut themselves, and even commit suicide. Not only does this case prove that the problem of cyberbullying is being ignored, but not a lot of action is being taken to help prevent it from happening. In fact, Alex Boston, the Georgia teen, has decided to take matters into her own hands. She is suing the kids responsible.

Alex is also raising awareness about cyberbullying. She may be interested in the campaign against bullying called “Be More than a Bystander.” The campaign encourages witnesses of bullying to help stop it. Another initiative Alex should check out is the Foundation for a Better Life’s Pass It On campaign that promotes positive values that one should find within him or herself. She could also log on to a webpage (link webpage when post on blog) called “The Bully Project.” She can order the film “Bully” available on the website and bring it to her school to raise awareness.

Clearly, bullying among teens and younger children has grown in the last decade. According to this website, about 42 percent of kids have been bullied online, while 35 percent have been threatened online. 58 percent of kids and teens have reported that something rude has been said about them online. 77 percent of kids reported that he or she have been a victim of bullying. 

In Massachusetts, there is now an anti-bullying law that includes cyberbullying. The law prohibits bullying in schools. It’s really great that Massachusetts is really taking a stand against verbal and physical bullying. Georgia should follow along Massachusetts and do the same thing, so Alex Boston can live a normal life. No child or teenager should live their life in fear, and be afraid of simply living their life. A kid does not need to be bullied to be stronger nor do they need to grow up with it. A life without a bully is a healthier one.

Bullying Statistics

News Story

The Journey of Transformation

“For me, middle school was a struggle. I liked boys and not girls. I hated dressing in guys’ clothing because I was more appealed to girls’ clothing.” In 8^th grade, Ryan Trufant had become fed up with living a lie. Trufant knew what he wanted to be -- and do: to follow his dreams and live life without anyone judging him. And that is what he did. As high school began Trufant started his journey. He slowly transformed into a woman. His shorts got shorter and his shirts got tighter. He started to wear wigs of all colors and put on make up. But he still felt like he wasn’t the person he wanted to be. “I was confused. I had no idea what was missing from my life, but I knew it was something that I had to fix.” The day he turned eighteen years old, he figured out how to make his transformation complete. He got a tattoo. It reads, “All the World’s a Stage.” These are the words he wears and the words he lives.

First off, I know you’ve struggled with your self-image. How do you feel about yourself today now that you are almost 20 years old?

I love myself today. Does that sound weird? Because it’s true. I have never been more confident. I know who I’m supposed to be and I don’t care that anyone has a problem with me. I know I am supposed to be who I am for a reason. I mean, I may not know that reason yet, but I know there definitely is one.

Good for you! I’m very happy for you. So after your big transformation in high school, why were you still not happy with your image?

(Pause) This is a really tough question. I was confused. I had no idea what was missing from my life, but I knew it was something that I had to fix. I just wanted to express myself more, I guess. I needed that extra push, if that makes any sense. I was already happy with my hair, clothes, make up, etc., but I wanted something else that made me stand out more. I wanted the whole world to see who I am.

That’s when you decided you wanted tattoos?

Yeah, I wanted a lot of them.

What made you attracted to tattoos?

I thought they made each individual unique. Yes, they are permanent and they’ll be there with me until I’m old and dead. But when I’m old, I won’t care what I look like. I probably won’t even be able to do anything cause I’ll be so old. I decided to get tattoos while I’m young. I think they make my body look a lot better.

So I understand that your favorite tattoo is the first one you got?

Yep. I immediately got it on my birthday. It’s right across my chest and it says, “All the World’s a Stage.”

Where is that from? Or did you make it up yourself?

(Laughs) I wish I were that creative. It’s from a play that William Shakespeare wrote back in the day. Remember in 8^th grade when we were studying Shakespeare? Yeah, that’s where I got it from. That one line has helped me become who I am today.

Why does it mean so much to you?

My interpretation to you might be confusing, but I’ll try to explain this the best way I can. As you know, I do like to dress as a woman, and I decided to name her Anaol Fetale. That’s considered her stage name (pause) and the whole world is my stage, literally. I feel like I’m a movie star minus the being famous part. I have to be ready to perform everyday, even if it’s not on an actual wooden stage in a theater. I must look fierce all the time because I am one fierce woman. The world is my audience. I am ready to show off who I am to my audience.

So that word tattoo helped you see all of that and improve your self-image?

Of course. It has inspired me to be who I want to be.

Do you think words tattooed on a person in general can help improve his or her self-image?

Most definitely. Since they’re permanently there on your body, those words will never leave you. They’ll help you when you need them. It’s like they’re a little reminder of who you are. The best part is that you’re going to have that reminder for the rest of your life. You’re never going to forget about it.

Ryan Trufant

Anaol Fetale