Kimbe Reef, Nature at its Most Jaw Dropping

A Damselfish and three Anemone gather around some coral.

There is an abyss in New Britain, Papua New Guinea that goes by the name of Kimbe Reef. "It is a world more alien than the edges of space" says National Geographic photographer David Doubilet in the article, The Idyllic Reefs of Kimbe Bay, in the November 2013 issue. It's beauty is created by " the congruence of nature, ocean currents, temperature, and the vagaries of evolution," along with its amazing diversity of plant life and creatures that live within this extravagant reef. I have learned that magnificence can expand to all corners of the great big globe we know as home. It can be as small as a pygmy seahorse or even as big as this mile and a quarter deep blue abyss. Only we humans can preserve such wonders, if only we stop polluting the earth, our globe will maintain these habitats and we can enjoy nature as we know it for years to come.

This reef is home to 536 different species of coral, more than half the worlds species, everything from the most common plankton to the beautiful Feather Star Crinoids. In addition to coral, the fish life has a population of over 900 varieties, some of these inhabitants include the smallest of creatures, Damselfish, and anemone-fish, to the decent sized Barracuda, Razorfish, and Hawksbill Sea Turtles, all the way up to the larger than a school bus Sperm Whale. Not only has this elegant body of water proven itself as a life source for fish and sea life, but the native peoples of Papua New Guinea also rely on it deeply for food, as fishing is an important aspect of life in this remote island nation.

The images of Kimbe Bay in this article have left an impact on me in two ways. Firstly I now have a greater urge than ever to receive a SCUBA diving certification, this would give me an opportunity to swim my way down to experience this wonder. The second way this has left an impact on me is the fact it is extremely fragile and vulnerable, I feel a need to preserve this artistic underwater landscape. These two aspects combined lead me to my long thought and unforgettable and future goal, being a Marine Biologist.

The Hobbit

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien is a fast-paced and intriguingly written adventure. It is about a Hobbit, (an incredibly small magical, human like species that try to avoid all trouble, and have a passion for partying, eating, and being social) named Bilbo Baggins. The extraordinary adventure begins when a posse of 12 homeless dwarves and the great famous wizard Gandalf join him for a feast. Their goal is to persuade him to join them on their long backbreaking journey to re-establish the Lonely Mountain as their home, for the giant and ferocious dragon Smaug had taken it away from them centuries ago. The lesson told in this imaginative journey, is that even in the most small and measly of characters, there is still unexpected amounts of courage and sacrifice, and a most definite will to survive and help all creatures in need.

Two examples of Bilbo Baggins courage and risk taking for the benefit of others are, first: leaving his hobbit hole in order to help his unexpected guests, and second: fending off massive spiders that wished to devour the juicy bite-sized dwarves. His first act, leaving his plush cozy hobbit hole with " paneled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted and with plush chairs" was an act against the true nature of hobbits, he truly leaves his comfort zone. When he battled and slaughtered  the spiders that had captured the vulnerable dwarves the night before. He lured them out bravely singing a verse of a song, teasing the spiders beyond insanity:

"Lazy lob and crazy Cob, 

Are weaving webs to wind me, 

I am far more sweet than other meat, 

But still they cannot find me!"

These acts of loyalty and selflessness contributed to his band of companions  gaining respect and credibility for Bilbo. 

Mister Baggins and I are both small, and surprising determined. Like Bilbo fending off Trolls Ogres and Spiders, I a am not intimidated by humongous Orc like pimply raging teenagers whom I race in the 200 meter butterfly against. We may be little and seem meek, but don't count us out.

The Book Thief, the power of reading

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a haunting and extraordinary book about a young girl with a passion for words in the death busy Holocaust. The main character is a young German girl Liesel Meminger, who is raised by foster parents after her real parents and brother died. She is a very sympathetic and warm hearted figure who is very observant of the mistreatment of Jews. She takes great risks not only by hiding Jews in her basement, but also in order to continue her true passion for reading. She is willing to steal books from the mayors library. This main theme, reading, and the importance of it to Liesel is the fact that it is an escape from the reality of war. It brought  friendship and love. It certainly saved Liesel's life. 

An example of Leisel's love for reading that brought friendship into her life was when she read The Whistler to the Jewish hide-a-way, Max (who lived in her basement for the majority of the book) while he was in a coma. To return the favor, Max wrote Liesel a book about her fascination for words and her stronghold on them. "Max and Liesel were held together by the quite gathering of Words". An example on how reading conjures love is seen when Liesel accidentally drops one of her mystery books in freezing December waters of a river, her best friend Rudy jumps in after the unfortunate novel and gains her love by saving the precious book. "She had to give it to him, he knew how to perform."  The most important book she receives is not full of words, only blank lines. In these blank lines she tells us her sorrows, and happiness, losses, and gains. She wrote of the people she had met and watched die due to the terrifying bombs dropped from the rib-cages of foreign planes. This little black book "gave her reason to write her own words, to see that words had also brought her to life."

Luckily, I cannot imagine living in such circumstances, I greatly respect Liesel's bravery to do what was right in a Hitler dictated society. I don't believe I would have the wits to be as immensely brave as her. I do connect personally to her passion for reading, it was an escape from the real world for her. My passion for swimming, two hours a day, is a temporary escape from the challenges of home work, responsibilities of my daily routines. It is an energy boost and which helps me move forward.     

V for Vendetta

 V for Vendetta by Alan Moore is a murderous and devious novel about a serial killer. This brutally horrific story takes place in the United Kingdom of the 1990's. Hidden behind a mask with a hideous bone chilling, phony smile, we the reader never learn Vendetta's, the main character, true name, or identity. He manipulates and charms his unexpected prey, whom are chosen at random, never expecting his frightening smiling face to be their last sight.

What is behind this costumed grin? A deep and powerful urge to fulfill his vendetta against the cruel government and establishment. "Must create crime!" His demented mind creates evil, his body follows. Explosions of blood, buildings, and firecrackers entrapped and fascinated innocent women into loving him, becoming many lifeless sweethearts. "Must create crime, sounds so ugly even on a green dock." He see's himself so superior, even the English Army should look up to him. It is as if he has no beating heart, not even an ice cube of a heart, however, he has rhyme and reason to complete these incomprehensible acts of insanity. It is all to feed his hunger for change for the people. Let the revolution begin.

Seuss I am

Call me Ishmael, not really. Bond, James Bond. No not that one either, its really Seuss Fu-Rubin, I am. I am named after the great rhythmically rhyming, sliming and timing, children's writer Theodore Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. My parents wanted a unique and rare name, and they figured naming me after an artist or writer was the best possible way to fulfill their goal of naming me something unusual, after all, they are funky artists themselves. They settled upon Seuss because he is clever, unpredictable, and creative in a fun and exciting way.

I like my name, I like it a lot, especially in a box, with a fox, wearing socks. Or in a house with a mouse. I like my name, I really do. I get to call myself Doc, it's true. Others seem to like it too. They really do. Though sometimes, people assume my name is pronounced Zeus like the thunder and lightning god of gods, from the high throne of Olympus he sits like King Derwin of Didd, he did.

My last name is equally unique, maybe even more so. It is a mixture of my mom's Chinese last name Fu, hyphenated with my dad's Western name Rubin. Why my parents didn't choose Rubin-Fu is because in Chinese culture, the family name is always said first out of respect for family, and in Western culture, the family name is traditionally said last. So it is as logical as the Lorax and his many great friends, that Fu would come before Rubin.

Finally, my Chinese name is a trans-alliteration of my English name, Fu-Rubin, Seuss. It is 傅魯本澍, pronounced Fu Ru Ben Shu. It translates as: The Rain God that comes and brings rain at the perfect time. My family in Taiwan, and most Mandarin speaking individuals, find this name very original and poetic. I feel very confident saying, I am the only person in the world with the name Seuss Fu-Rubin. Call me Seuss, or call me Doc, or call me 傅魯本澍, I like my name, I like it on a train I like it in the rain. I like my name. Seuss I am.

Heart of a Samurai

I read many books this summer, but none were as fast-paced and as touching a story as Heart of a Samurai, by Margi Preus. This true story is about a Japanese fisher boy in the 1840's that is swept out to sea during a tsunami with his four closest friends. Eventually, American whalers rescue them and take the boys in. Surprisingly, only the main character, Manjiro (later named John Mung) is willing to live ten years from home and experience American life and western culture. On his journey through this new way of life, he finds a new language, friends, foes, love and brotherhood. However, nothing will satisfy him more than going home and becoming his wildest dream... A Samurai, and an important historical figure.

The aspect of the book that is most fascinating is the fact that Manjiro had such a strong will which allowed him to survive and thrive, whether it is being shipwrecked at sea or living in a foreign culture with all it's difficulties.  With this amazing will, hope and knowledge, he believed and eventually achieved all his dreams, no matter how impossible they seemed. The fact that this boy was real and his adventures actually occurred way back in the mid-1800's is really the most astonishing fact.