Thanks be to God

The type of world I want to create is one where everyone is connected through love and a deeper understanding of each other, which can be achieved by learning and appreciating different languages and cultures. In my Korean language class, I’ve begun to experience this connection with the native people of Korea, and I hope to extend this understanding to many other groups as I explore more languages. As individuals, we can contribute to the well-being of our global community by using our language skills to build bridges and become cultural ambassadors. By sharing what we’ve learned with others, we foster a more understanding and connected society, reducing misunderstandings and prejudice. My theme focuses on God, because I believe that by centering our lives on Christ, we can create a loving global community. We are all God’s children, and while language and culture can sometimes divide us, we must overcome these barriers to create a world where we are all united.

제가 만들고 싶은 세상은 모든 사람들이 사랑과 깊은 이해를 통해 서로 연결되는 세상입니다. 이는 다양한 언어와 문화를 배우고 존중함으로써 이루어질 수 있습니다. 한국어 수업에서 저는 한국인들 혹은 한국어를 배우는 친구들과 이런 연결을 경험하고 있으며, 앞으로 더 많은 언어를 배워 다른 언어를 배우는 사람들과도 이런 이해를 나누고 싶습니다. 개인으로서 우리는 언어 능력을 사용하여 다리를 놓고 문화적 대사가 될 수 있습니다. 우리가 배운 것을 다른 사람들과 나누면 그들을 좀더 이해하고 연결된 사회가 형성되어 오해와 편견이 줄어들 것입니다. 저의 작품은 하나님께 초점을 맞추고 있습니다. 그 이유는 그리스도를 중심으로 한 삶을 통해 더 사랑이 넘치는 글로벌 커뮤니티를 만들 수 있다고 믿기 때문입니다. 우리는 모두 하나님의 자녀이며, 언어와 문화가 때로는 우리를 분리하고 나누는 장애물이 될 수 있지만, 우리는 이러한 장벽을 넘어 모두가 하나로 연결된 세상을 만들어야 합니다.

안녕하세요, 저는 APIS Hawaii 9학년 Jacob입니다. 저는 저의 테니스 코치 데이브 포터를 존경합니다. 그는 열심히 일 합니다. 그는 항상 다른 사람을 배려합니다. 그는 예수님을 따릅니다. 열심히 일 하는 태도를 배웠습니다. 항상 다른 사람을 돕는 것을 배웠습니다. 당신의 꿈과 예수님을 따르시기 바랍니다. 감사합니다.

Hello, I am Jacob, a 9th grader at APIS Hawaii. I admire my tennis coach, Dave Porter. He works hard and always considers others. He follows Jesus. I’ve learned to work hard from him and to always help others. I hope you pursue your dreams and follow Jesus. Thank you.

Consistency is key.  That’s what you always hear.  But what does that actually mean, and why is it so important?  Well, to start, let’s define consistency.  The Cambridge dictionary defines consistency as, “the quality of always behaving or performing in a similar way, or of always happening in a similar way”.  What this means, is doing the same thing, the right way, over and over.  When we apply consistency to our daily lives it can yield incredible results.  When we don’t involve consistency in what we do, we will suffer from decreased results, and no improvement.  Going to the gym is a good metaphor.  If you just go to the gym for a day, and never go back you won’t build muscle.  Even if you lift really heavy weights that day.  That won’t give you improvements.  What you have to do is go consistently over a long period of time.  This is what consistency is all about.  It’s about choosing something, sticking to it, and making those improvements over time.  If we could all apply more consistency in our daily lives, we would be happier, healthier, and find greater rewards from our efforts.

Hangeul and Ohana Reflective Writing

When people come to Hawaii they are always sold on the idea of Ohana.  It has become a widespread commercialized term used in movies, postcards, and advertisements.  Even though they might know that “Ohana means family,” from a popular movie, they don’t know what ohana truly means.  Ohana is a pretty intangible term but the way I describe it is like the town I live in which is Laie.  Laie is an example of what Ohana means because of the community of the people there.  Everybody truly knows everybody in the town on a personal level.  Most everyone is eager to help each other, from yard work to sports training, and when they help each other they do it without expecting anything in return.  Everyone is always having cookouts, beach parties or events and everyone is always invited.  I think this is Ohana.  The spirit of it all, caring about each other, loving each other, and showing it by doing things for others without expecting it, that is ohana

As you know there were wildfires on Maui, they spread fast and caused so much destruction and death.  Many people ask why should we help them?  Is it really our problem if on some far off island some people need help?  I think that when these thoughts creep in you should remember the parable of the good samaritan.  The good samaritan helped a man that was considered his enemy, for no reason, except to help a brother and human being.  That’s what we need to remember.  We need to stop looking at the world through the lens of what we can do for ourselves, it’s how we can help other people regardless of who they are, or where they live.  That’s why we should help the people in maui

“For me, the reason I should learn Korean is because of how much I like the language itself.  I feel out of all the Asian languages I have a special connection with Korean.  I really like it and think that it’s beautiful.  I also feel like I’m able to learn it and understand Korean, which is really great for me because usually it is really hard for me to learn languages and remember stuff.  One more reason that I really enjoy Korean class is the teacher.  I feel like Mrs. Kim is very good at helping me learn, and that even if i make mistakes I don’t have to worry because she helps me learn it.” From Jacob Walker -December, 2023