Defintion Essay

The Sweetness of Joy
By Qi Pan
“True inner joy is self-created.
It does not depend on outer circumstances.
A river is flowing in and through you carrying the message of joy.
This divine joy is the sole purpose of life.” –Sri Chimnoy
Joy. According to The Cambridge Dictionary, Joy is ‘great happiness’. What a broad definition. To every single organism on earth, joy is something unique: something that no-one can copy. The feeling is so hard to grasp in your hands. Just when you think that you have joy fixed inside of you, it slips away, quieter than a whisper. It is one of the most valued things on earth, something that we cherish like our own child. Without joy, our lives would be black and white, plain and colorless. With joy comes freshness, color, a rush of blood to the cheeks, and a smile stretches across your face uncontrollably. But, like nearly everything else in life, it comes, and goes, like the sun that rises in at dawn, and sets at dusk. While the sunshine stays, it brings warmth and pleasure. When it goes, it is yearned for. But nonetheless, the faint image of dazzling light resides in our hearts, never fading.
One type of joy is contagious joy, AA Milne displays throughout his classical book Winnie the Pooh. If Piglet feels down, Pooh’s interesting theories and captivating adventures always bring light to Piglet’s emotions. It is like a disease, except it is as innocent as a fly. For example, if your friend tells you about passing a test, you feel happy for her, even though you may have failed. Joy spreads from one person’s smile to another, like a charity donating food to everyone, no matter what race or class they are part of.
Another type of joy is simple gayness. Little things, like feeling the wind brush past your face, or partying with your friends, mean the world to us. The feeling of joy is unique for everyone, just like the sun shines on both Japan and Chile, but never feels the same. It can be caused by culture, weather, marriage, friends, family, school, and many other normal people, places, or situations. Random bits and pieces such as a flourishing tulip or tranquilizing music shape our beliefs and make us who we are.
Joy can also lead to death and destruction. It can come from awful things such as drugs. But drugs are fake. They are a meager excuse for escaping from the prison cell of depression. Drugs manipulate your mind, change your personality. They make you someone you are not. However, joy is natural. Joy comes when you deserve it, when your brain wants to give you a real pat on the back. Nevertheless, people are different, and joy can lead to insanity. Joy is not perfect. It stays, and then goes, sometimes leaving a lifelong scar on those innocent, and causing terrible situations to occur due to the ecstasy of a madman. For instance, a terrorist can find a new beginning, a light at the end of his long tunnel of despair, through death. Suicide is a doorway to freedom for depressed, numb men who cannot feel the sweetness of real joy, men who can never understand how a smile could change the route of a person’s life. Joy is not concrete, and it does not want to be defined. It wants to stay abstract and yearned for, so that greed does not take over. You can never capture joy in a glass. It will always drift away, and come back when you deserve it.
A topic that is not associated with joy is money. “Money can’t buy you happiness” is a famous quote, and it is perfectly true. So what if you have all the money in the world? You can never buy real friends that are glued to your heart. The poorest man can have a smile as big as the world that emits light like a candle. Celebrities look like stars among the blinding paparazzi, but they never will feel the true warmth of joy unless they have time to experience the life of a truly loving person.
Joy is like a little butterfly that flitters from one flower to another, spreading its beauty, but leaving others behind. It is temporary, lasting usually only the time of a mayfly, but, when it is there, it creates laughter and happiness, a ray of sunshine that lasts forever, eternally dwelling in our hearts.

Article #3

PM urges Zimbabwe cholera action

Gordon Brown has urged the world to tell Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe "enough is enough" amid growing concern over the country's cholera outbreak.

The prime minister said the crisis, which has claimed nearly 600 lives, had become an international emergency.

Government in Zimbabwe was now broken and the state was unable or unwilling to protect its people, he said.

Mr Brown added that medicine would get to those who needed it, regardless of any differences with Mr Mugabe.

'Human rights'

Mr Brown did not explicitly call for Mr Mugabe to step down, but said world leaders should stand together to defend human rights and democracy in Zimbabwe.

In a statement, Mr Brown said that over the coming days the first priority would be delivering aid to Zimbabwe, such as rehydration and testing packs.

He said: "This is now an international rather than a national emergency. International because disease crosses borders.

"International because the systems of government in Zimbabwe are now broken. There is no state capable or willing of protecting its people.

"International because - not least in the week of the 60th anniversary of the universal declaration of human rights - we must stand together to defend human rights and democracy, to say firmly to Mugabe that enough is enough."

Mr Brown said he had "been in close contact with African leaders to press for stronger action to give the Zimbabwean people the government they deserve".

He added: "The people of Zimbabwe voted for a better future. It is our duty to support that aspiration."

He also said he hoped the United Nations Security Council would meet "urgently" to consider the country's plight.

'Gross violations'

Mr Brown has joined a growing list of international leaders in condemning Mr Mugabe.

US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, said it was "well past time" for him to leave office.

And the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, said African nations should come together to use military force if Mr Mugabe refused to go.

Archbishop Tutu said Mr Mugabe had committed "gross violations" against Zimbabwe's people and ruined "a wonderful country".

I think there is the potential for Africa to take a decisive stand against Mugabe in the days to come Douglas Alexander International Development Secretary

His comments came a day after Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga said African governments should oust Zimbabwe's leader.

UK International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander told BBC Two's Newsnight that he welcomed the archbishop's comments, but dealing with the humanitarian crisis was of paramount importance.

"I think the first responsibility is to provide humanitarian assistance. The second responsibility is to work with regional partners to affect the change that we want," he said.

He said there was not currently a consensus on the UN Security Council over Zimbabwe, even for further targeted sanctions, but said "the new noises that are emerging from Africa this week" were welcomed by the UK.

Mr Alexander added: "I think there is the potential for Africa to take a decisive stand against Mugabe in the days to come."

Mr Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to share power in September to tackle the country's economic meltdown but they have been unable to agree on the allocation of cabinet posts.

The deadlocked agreement followed disputed elections, which both men claimed to have won.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7768740.stm

I think that this article is very factual and interesting. It is biased, supporting the PM, but I’m on the same side too. I think that what Robert Mugabe is doing to the beautiful country of Zimbabwe is horrifying, and I wonder why he doesn’t care for so many people who are in need of food and shelter. I learned that Zimbabwe is in a crisis, and that help needs to be sent to the people in need. I also learned about Zimbabwe’s corrupt governing system. I have also learned that many international powers would like Mugabe to step off the role of president, but that he refuses. In another article about Zimbabwe’s economic crisis, it said that the conditions in Zimbabwe were like that of Auschwitz. In my opinion, I think that that was probably exaggerated, but still, looking at the pictures of those exceptionally skinny families, it really makes me feel disgusted at how ignorant and uncaring the government is about the people who are suffering from cholera.

This ad is advertising Chesterfield cigarettes. It uses very Christmassy colors to attract the reader and makes the reader excited. And when people are excited, they usually want to buy everything and take unnecessary risks. Smoking may give you pleasure at the beginning, but it also gives you cancer. There is also diversion, because the ad looks so attractive that no-one will care if it causes harm to your body. It is also targeted towards older men, because of the traditional picture and the text which is more formal, who usually don't know so much about the harm of smoking. It is also timed right, because Christmas is on its way. It says that if you smoke, you will have pleasure on Christmas day. So people who feel down or bored will go for Chesterfield cigarettes for "consolation and joy." Also, the cigarettes have "attractive cartons that appeal to everyone," so that people will want to send them for presents. The picture also looks like a normal American family buying a Christmas tree, so that will probably appeal to normal men who live an average life and smoke cigarettes for a support. The ad could state how there should be a limit to how much you should smoke to be more truthful, but that way, they probably wouldn't sell as many cigarettes.

Radio versus Video

There seems no question but that the radio is on the way out. The radio was once the centre for news and entertainment. But now, we prefer to watch dramas and thrillers on TV instead of listening to it on the radio. Where will our imagination drift off to when we can see who is talking and what is happening? Here is an example. Suppose you are listening to a war. Instead of picturing what is going on in your mind, the scene is replaced with an image that may be disappointing. TVs may be really addictive and interesting, but even so, what can be done about the lost meaning of radio as a fun, exciting family experience where everyone gathers around and drinks coffee on couches while listening to the soothing voice of the narrator? Also, if radios disappear, so will our eyesight. Radios are harmless to our eyes, but staring at a TV screen for hours is very bad for your eyes. It will be a frustrating problem for our descendants.