My Truth

For our 2nd unit of our Who Am I class we were asked to create a dreamcatcher and to analyze our bliss and our truth. Throughout the whole unit we learned about doubt and dreams and the meanings behind them. We also partnered up and interpreted each other's dreams. I really enjoyed having my dreams interpreted even if my partners argued more than actually got work done. I was really excited to be able to create a dream catcher as I love doing hands on projects and making art. I also am very creative and I love to express myself in different forms of art. I had made a dreamcatcher before in pre-school that actually hung in my room pretty much all of my childhood. I never really have nightmares. I wonder if that's why? I thought the most challenging part was just making the dreamcatcher, and I thought the most rewarding part was seeing how pretty it looked when I was finished.

CM, Dreamcatcher, (2017)

Here is my explanation:

What is a dreamcatcher? What does it symbolize? I asked myself this question when I made a dreamcatcher for my class Who Am I. A dreamcatcher is a piece derived from Native Americans, specifically the Ojibwe Chippewa and Lakota tribes. The Natives believed that you could filter out bad dreams using a piece called a dreamcatcher. In the dreamcatcher the hoop symbolizes the circle of life. The dreamcatcher catches bad dreams and keeps them there until the sun comes up when they are burned by the sunlight. The good dreams float gently down the tassels and through the feathers to the sleeper to bring them good dreams.

In the story of The Great Spider which comes from Native American Tales, the center of the dreamcatcher is the “Great Mystery” and the web around it is the universe. This is why I chose to put 3 holo covered beads in the center of my dreamcatcher. I wanted to symbolize my one true love: Holographic Glitter. Holo glitter is glitter that reflects rainbows. I usually use this on my nails, but I like it in pretty much any form. Holo to me symbolizes happiness and fascination. When I am looking at holo, I feel calm yet excited and I feel entranced. To me, this is my bliss. Holo is the great mystery,the creator, or simply my bliss in life.

 I want my dreamcatcher to filter out stress dreams. I never really have nightmares, but since I am a performer I get stress dreams a lot and I really get upset when they happen. The dream that I analyzed in our External Investigation was a particularly stressful dream in which I was late to the show and I had forgotten to put on my costumes and my skates as well as remembering I hadn’t shown up for any practices so I didn’t know any of my numbers. I want my dream catcher to bring me better sleep and rejuvenation. This is because I am always a tired person and it seems like I can never get enough sleep and I always feel tired.

Part of my dreamcatcher design is rainbows. Holo is rainbows and I wanted to symbolize color, as I love color. I covered my hoop in grey suede and then painted it with craft glue and covered it in holo. In order to achieve the rainbow, I decided to make my web rainbow as well. To achieve this look I started weaving with pink, and then when I got all they way around, I cut the pink and tied orange to it and kept going. The obstacle I encountered was that in some tribes, they believe their should be no knots in the weave because it can trap evil spirits and can give you nightmares. However in some tribes they purposely put knots in their weave because they believe that it will keep evil spirits from being entangled. This is what I believe my dream catcher does for me. I also chose grey suede as I like the darker cloudy colors. Grey is associated with emotionless, and dingy feelings. In my opinion the holo represents my id which is the part of my mind that has the most instinctive impulses, and if it were up to me I would cover everything in holo. I believe the grey represents my ego meditating between my conscious and subconscious telling me that I can settle for a less intense version of what I want which is holo, but I also like grey for more subtle things.

Works Cited:

Shabi, K. "Dreamcatcher Meaning: History, Legend & Origins of Dream Catchers."LEGOMENON: What Is the Meaning: Online Literary Journal & Magazine. N.p., 14 July 2016. Web. 26 Feb. 2017.

CM, Knots, (2017)

CM, Center of Dreamcatcher, (2017)

CM, Beads, (2017)

This I Believe...

For our first unit in our Who Am I class, we were asked to make a podcast based off of the NPR series This I Believe... We studied famous philosophers and the definition of truth, plus memories and famous allegories. We listened to a few of the NPR podcasts to get some inspiration. We also had some Field Experiences to get us motivated for our projects. The FE  I got the most out of was our trip to St. Paul's House, which is a retirement home and rehabilitation center. We were split up and half of us went to speak with the elders, and the other half did a dance and movement class. I was in the dance and movement class. It was very interesting to see how different songs triggered different emotions in these elders who were very dependent on other people. We were asked to go deep back into our memories to find a specific thing we believe in and what experiences made us believe in this. I liked this project. It was very rewarding to go back in my memories to support what I believe. I didn't really learn a lot about myself because I have always known these things that are in my head. I think the hardest part was coming up with a substantial script to fit the time requirement. The most rewarding part as always, is just having it done and having one more action project on my blog.

This is my script:

My name is Claire and I am a freshman at GCE Lab School. In my limited years on this earth, I have been led to believe in many things, some for better and some for worse.

I distinctly remember the winter of 2008, my great grandmother died at the age of 97. I was 7 years old. This was the first time I had been up to Bayfield in the winter since we had moved. Bayfield is a tiny town on the most northern tip of Wisconsin where generations of my family including me, are from. I remember rolling into town late at night coming around the S-turn coming into town, and seeing some of the biggest icicles I had ever seen. I didn’t really understand the funeral, but we went out to explore a property for sale outside of town. I remember the snow being so deep it was up to my little waist. I thought it was magical and something I wanted to last forever. I have always had a fascination with snow, this is when I really realized it was right for me.

I believe that nature has the power to make me happy. Whenever I am in nature, I feel calm. I feel happy. I get inspired for the future. I think about my future home in the woods on a ranch, on an inland lake, running a veterinary clinic, having many animals and a loving husband. It is my idyllic life. This is what motivates me. I don’t like life right now, because of the stress and where I live. But thinking about my future is what motivates me. Knowing if I can just last a few more years, I can move out and study what I want and pursue what I want to. I also feel jealous, I wanted to have a childhood frolicing in the woods, playing in the streams, and swimming the biggest lake in the world. I sometimes resent to my parents for taking me away from that life. But I know I will go back soon.

I think I have always known that I am not a city person. The city provokes anxiety, stress, and dysfunction to me. I hate the sound of cars, the dirty streets, and the smells. When I’m in nature, I’m my best self. It represents opportunity, beauty, and bravery. Like I said, I have always felt this way for as long as I can remember, and I don’t think that will ever change.

This makes me question why I thought that the Northwoods was the right place for me. Truth may change as I or another person changes. Plato and Socrates were known for believing in universal truth, I could vouch for that. Plato said that many different factors influenced a person’s truth, yet truth is universal and are determined right or wrong for different people. He said that no matter where a person is from or what or what ever else is different we will all come to the same truth.

In the end, I will eventually reunite with the woods, maybe not if the Bayfield area,but one thing is for sure, I will spend the rest of my life in the woods. I encourage all of you to think about what kind of environment makes you happy, It can really make a difference in your life.