1. Burgers 2025

   The Greatest Power   As we transition into this new theme of blogs — power — it is important to know what power is. By definition, power is the ability to do something in a particular way. Yet to me, it means much more than that. Although this is definitely one way to describe what power is, there are certainly numerous definitions. In my opinion, everything has power. Art has the power to be admired, air has the power to be inhaled and exhaled. I also believe that there are many different types of powers in the world. The strongest power in my opinion is definitely the power of love.       Love is what inspires people to make decisions. It is what motivates people to continue in life and overcome obstacles. Love is the first power we experience (besides gravity) and it only gets stronger as we grow. We learn to love different objects such as toys we had since a kid, different activities, and most importantly, different people.     ...

Photo Credit: https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ca79f2016b64015238f489f/d75ea06e-40a8-4675-86b4-a642656e175c/deception.png?format=2500w “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist,” said  the great French poet Charles Baudelaire.  This quote hits close to home as it explains a trend all those in power try to follow, i.e. making one's rule or reign legitimate through projecting ideas and thoughts into the minds of the masses in order to cause conformity.  Whether it is through a connection to the divine or fear mongering, power much like deception relies more on the perception of those being influenced rather than strength or control. Many of those who were able to cling onto authority for long stretches of time are those who have mastered the art of demonstrating excellence, even if it might not entirely be the case. This works due to the fact that people believe what they are told if it is well crafted. The illusion of ...

Ego is defined as a “person’s sense of self-esteem and self-importance” by the Oxford Dictionary. Ego builds empires. Ego destroys empires. It is the significant force behind every mastermind’s bold decisions and innovations, and history makes sure that we never forget this. However, history refuses to highlight the same force that is behind every downfall, turbulence, and isolation – ego. The power of ego is not a debate about whether it exists, because in fact everyone knows there is a fuel inside them that keeps them running no matter the obstacle that stands in their way. The power of ego lies behind the individual’s decision to balance between its constructive and destructive side.  At its best, ego provides the reassurance that what they are doing is the right thing, pushing people to strive for excellence. Without it, there would be no artists that think their work is meant for creating, athletes would not trust in their ability to win, scientists would end their work thinki...

  The Rock. Dwayne the Rock Johnson. He’s a driven bodybuilder and actor who has found great success in life. In an iconic rap he wrote, he dropped these two bars: “It’s about drive, it’s about power, we stay hungry, we devour.” The last two lines confused me for a long time. I never gave it some serious thought, but I just remember being very, very confused. How do you stay hungry and then devour?? That doesn’t make sense at all. It’s a contradiction! A paradox! Or even a juxtaposition! Was the Rock hungry when he wrote that line? That makes sense because I can’t think when I’m hungry. I love food; food is so good.  Anyway, I had the pleasure of getting the quote explained to me a while back. I think it goes something along the lines of staying hungry to devour later. My initial reaction was “why? for what? just eat.” I soon realized, though, that he’s talking about discipline and restraint to better enjoy a reward. I thought it was a pretty good idea, I guess. Very fitting w...

The concept of manifestation has always been one regarded with incredulity and scorn. The idea of making something come true by just putting it out into the universe. Yeah, it doesn’t sound too great. Just because a person believes something or wants something to happen, it does not change the fact that there are dozens of other factors which could prevent it from actually occurring. Humans don’t have that ultimate control over their own lives, and to say anything else would be false and seem supernatural.  It also feels like just a lazy way out—trying to bypass all the hard work and still expecting the same outcome. It may at first seem like just an excuse not to put in any effort.   While I do not believe that the act of manifesting is necessarily what can make something more likely to come true, I do think there is immense power in the way we think about our lives—about ourselves, our goals, and our future. When we “manifest” something, we consciously block out all th...

  Music has been around for thousands of years. Early forms of music date back to civilizations from over 500,000 years ago. But in reality, humans were given the ability to use their vocal chords and clap way before then so technically music could have been around since the existence of humans. The point is that music has been around for very long and the power that it holds is something that is extremely undermined in this society. I mean, can you imagine a life without music. Imagine standing in an elevator with random people and there is just silence, no music or anything. Or imagine driving places and there is no radio, all you hear are the engines of different cars. Music adds so much flavor to life and just makes every moment better. Another benefit to music is the fact that there is so much variety. The fact that there are so many genres of music and then there are even more subgroups within these genres makes it physically impossible to not like music. There is a style of ...

A Brazilian butterfly prepares for its first flight, spreading its wings and rising into the air.  Click-click…. Whooooosh .  The butterfly had only flapped its wings once, but the tiny changes in the air altered weather patterns, leading to a tornado all the way in Texas.  “The flapping of the wings of a butterfly can be felt on the other side of the world.” This Chinese proverb is the origin of the butterfly effect, a physics concept based on chaos theory. While the above example is technically hypothetical, it shows that there is a possibility of even the smallest actions having the power to lead to devastating consequences. It can be something as taking the last slice of pizza before your friend at a sleepover. The friend might then struggle to fall asleep due to their hunger. They might go to the kitchen in the middle of the night and decide to make their own meal instead. They might, potentially, spill some oil due to carelessness. And suddenly, the kitchen might er...

Photo Credit: https://d1whtlypfis84e.cloudfront.net/guides/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/26114943/Power-768x505.jpg Power. A word which according to the Oxford dictionary refers to the ability to do something or act in a particular way. It is derived from an alteration of the Latin term “posse” which refers to “be able.” Now, each and everyone of us has from a young age grown up listening to various interpretations of this term, whether it was its use in politics or its random and unknowing presence in a conversation. But what does power mean to you? To me power means a lot. It means to choose my destiny and what I do today, tomorrow, and the day after. It means picking chocolate over vanilla, a cone over a cup, or chocolate sprinkles over marshmallows. It means being free in speech, body, and mind. And finally, it means not having to bend to the will of others. While to others it might mean a lot more. Maybe it is being able to control those around them or it might be invoking fear in th...

America has claimed its reign as global superpower since its victory during the American Revolution. From economics to politics, America has managed to illustrate its ability to dominate the other countries, resembling a play similar to that of Snakes and Ladders. The tactic that is behind the success of this nation’s status, currently unknown to many, is its method of gradually feeding information through the most unsuspecting places such as the movies we are entertained by on a Friday night. Image from an article published in Medium by Nick Howard Disney movies, the enchanting films that taught “true love conquers all,” was nothing but a strategy to disseminate America’s competency in a way that instills a sense of authority and awe. By starting at such a young age, the country subtly shapes individuals’ perceptions from all over the world on America’s supremacy. The film Pocahontas for me was a mystical tale that narrates the love affair between a native American woman, Pocahontas,...

The Power of Now Because my father and I rarely see each other during the day, we read together every night. Recently, my father has been reading a book titled, The Power of Now . He likes to explain what he reads to me, and what he said piqued my interest. To introduce my thoughts on the book, I’ll contextualize it with some personal experiences. In an unfortunate turn of events, perhaps due to stress, regret, or worry, I’ve been having obsessive and anxious thoughts. After opening up to my neighbor’s father, he reminded me to not think about things that I can’t change as those thoughts serve no purpose. Back then, I was so engrossed in my own thoughts that his remark was such a refreshing shock to me. He’s right! I really should just live one day at a time. It’s a miracle that I have a chance to experience my life, and I shouldn’t spoil it by constantly worrying about the past or the future. This idea was also reflected in the book my father was reading. The Power of Now writes abou...

“The Earth is littered with the ruins of empires they believed were eternal.”--Camille Paglia Humans are short-sighted creatures. At least, they are when you consider the breadth of history, the incessant nature of time. We like to believe that we have advanced much from the people in the past who we learn about in history, that this time will be different. We must be stronger, greater, and more powerful than the ancient Romans, the Han Dynasty, or the Mongols, who faced internal and external threats which led to their collapse .  After all, if we consider the here and now, it seems pretty clear. Who still has power and who is only a remnant of our history textbooks? Yet, if we were to zoom out a little from our infinitesimal position on the timeline, how many new powers would we see emerge to the right of us? What fateful date would mark the fall of us? And, more importantly, why do we refuse to acknowledge our system’s inevitable demise when history has yet to provide us with one...