The driving pump within us is the size of a fist. It steers tall, short, skinny, fat, healthy, sick, old, and young vehicles. We abuse it, baby it, smother it, and recklessly abondon it. Each heart is potentially like the Energizer bunny, the Timex watch, and Old Faithful. And rarely do we think about hearts until they cease to work properly or until one wildly pulsates into overtime.
Millions know first-hand about the latter: the pump that doesn’t work properly. Discovering a bad heart frightens the biggest, baddest, and bravest. Fight or flight sets in; survival mode takes over, realizing we cannot abuse the old ticker any longer, nor did we even realize we had treated it like a second class citizen within our own body-like country. Religiously, diet and exercise try to revive that once healthy, young heart, and promises of undying devotions and renewed efforts spill from our mouths and obsess through our brains. “I’ll never abuse you again.” “God, if you will just get me out of this one, I promise to…” Honestly, yet hopelessly, we devote ourselves with such vehement oaths, knowing full-well we cannot keep up such premises. After all, we are indulgent Americans.
There are many personifications attached to the heart: We love with all of ours; we heartily agree with yours; we animate it; it “goes out” to you; it aches, bleeds, breaks, and sighs; it can be felt; it comes under attack; it’s pained; it’s a Valentine, and it can be found at the center of the matter. Songs, books, and movie themes abound, around the anthropomorphic heart.
In spite of all its allusions and red-blooded American associations, there is another heart that is universal and of utmost importance. It’s the unseen heart that makes one person bitter and another joyful, one person young and one person old.
In a nation where youth is glorified and age is nullified, I had the opportunity to admire a young man’s video that appeared in my email this week. The intriguing short, hailed from one of my favorite cities, Tulsa, OK, and alluded to another interest: ranchers and farmers. The opening revealed the young man Ruben Hopper sitting at his kitchen table and playing a hand of poker, and then later, a relaxed Hopper on his brocaded couch in his overalls; the young Reuben answered all the questions the interviewer had for him about his life and the farm. “How old are you? What do you actually do for a living? Would you change anything about your life, so far? What do you like to eat?” They were simple questions, answered by a simple young man. With each nugget of information, the corners of my mouth insisted on curving into a smile. My eyes glassed over too, at this alluring man, who eagerly talked about how much he loved eating vegetables and how he admired hard work, and, in spite of owning many farm vehicles, he had never had a driver's license.
At interview's end, the young man grabbed his walker and tapped a few Fred Astaire dance moves. Then, as he Ta-da’d his ending, he added, “Did you get 'er?” hoping the camera had not missed his stylishly performed parting shot. Ruben Hopper had just celebrated 106 young years on this planet Earth, attributing his longevity to hard work and those wonderful vegetables he grows. I could see a twinkle in his young eyes and hear mischief in his mirthful voice, and see youth in his heart, as he still receives delicious enjoyment in everything he does.
Heart is what keeps us young; when we lose heart, we lose our youth.
129 comments:
How wonderful, Sister! I love your writing style. Easy to read and understand. Just my type! (No pun intended.)
Thanx Schaunie.
So true...literally or metaphorically, heart is everything. And a lesson to us all, as we sometimes roll through life on auto-pilot. Take care of those hearts, physically and figuratively.
So many people do take their heart for granted, and get upset when it no longer works like they want it to. I watched the video you talked about, and agree that Ruben is definitely a man of heart. Heart to me is someone who cares about others, thinks of others before thinking of themselves, and is the type of person that many people long to be. A heart is not just an organ that we must have to live; it is a way of being, a way of living, and something to be cherished. I hope to have a heart like Ruben’s when I am his age.
Although everybody has a heart every one thinks of it differently. One may say my heart is something very special to me, where another might not ever say anything about his or her heart. There are a lot of people in the world who do take their heart for granted; because really your heart is all that is keeping you alive without it you would be dead! Ruben story is a very heartwarming one. A man that is one hundred and six years old that is still walking and being able to dance. WOW! That is something that not very many people ever get to encounter. This is an extremely good blog! Thanks for sharing!
The first thing that captured my attention when I read your essay was your writing style. It is so simple and yet so insightful. I love how you compare the heart to the Energizer bunny and Timex watch. Our heart does work tirelessly from the day we born until the day we die. I also agree with you that we abuse our heart and we don't take of it until it is too late. Then we try to find ways to make it healthy again. I saw the video and I found the story very touching and inspiring too. It is very evident that this 106 old man has a young heart because he is a hard worker, loves and enjoys everything he does and he is proud of himself.
The first thing that captured my attention when I read your essay was your writing style. It is so simple and yet so insightful. I love how you compare the heart to the Energizer bunny and Timex watch. Our heart does work tirelessly from the day we born until the day we die. I also agree with you that we abuse our heart and we don't take of it until it is too late. Then we try to find ways to make it healthy again. I saw the video and I found the story very touching and inspiring too. It is very evident that this 106 old man has a young heart because he is a hard worker, loves and enjoys everything he does and he is proud of himself.
The heart is something the world has in common, with out a heart we could not survive. It is also the most important organ in our body. The bible tells says that the heart is deceitfully wicked? In some ways that is true. Who knows a mans heart but themselves. Its weird to know that our hearts tell us who we are. It makes us feel emotion. Some people have small tiny hearts like the Grinch,(these kind of people are angry at the world) and then there's people that have big hearts that are pouring love every which way. One person that I know who has a big loving heart is my sister n law Julie. She is such a hard worker. She is such a giving person. Always giving and never taking in return. When I die I want to be remembered as the person that loved everyone and lived a happy life to its fullest. Like Ruben he enjoyed life and was happy doing the little simple things in life.
I like your point that you only become old when you lose heart. To me, heart is the drive that makes you want to go on with life and the motivation to do what you enjoy and what you know is best. It's also the compassion and attachment we have to one another as humans that allows us to empathize and pull together for a goal, and the hope we feel when faced with difficulties. It is the life source; without it, we would merely exist, because it's what pushes us to do the things that otherwise would only be dreams trapped by anxieties.
This was a very interesting and inspiring blog. The one thing that i loved about it was that it is easy to understand but also very insightful. The simple things a heart are compared to were very interesting and true--the Energizer Bunny, Timex watch, and Old Faithful. I completely agree that a bad heart scares the biggest, baddest, and bravest. Once the heart is abused it seems like someone will do absolutely anything to try to make it healthy again, however sometimes it's too late. The story about the 106 year-old man was very inspring. That is amazing to be that old and still be able to dance and walk. Wow! He must really love life, that story is very obvious that he is in fact "young at heart."
The heart is an interesting thing that people use. We use it to love, to hate. We use it for anything that we do with a passion. We cherish it, and we abuse it. When a person says that something they say comes from “the bottom of my heart,” they usually mean that what they’re saying is pure truth, that they really and truly believe what their saying. Honesty is something that I think a person should have to be considered to have a good heart. Another thing that a person should have to have a good heart is kindness. A person I consider to have a good heart should also have a conscience .A perfect example of the symbol of the heart is a baby. They wear their heart on their sleeve and love you no matter who you are, or what you do. They are what I consider wholly pure in heart because they have never lied to anyone, nor have they ever deceived anyone. Another example of the symbol of the heart is a thug. They lie, abuse, cheat, steal. They do just about anything they wish to do. They are not what I would consider pure of heart. They don’t care about anyone but themselves. And yet another example of the symbol of the heart is an average person. They tell white lies, cheat on homework, but would do nearly anything to help you or anyone else. They have a good heart, but not what I would consider pure.
Very nice. What an interesting man. Your choice of words when writing is great! I agree with everything you said, especially the last line that said our hearts are what makes us youthful. Ruben is a very inspiring man. He makes you want to be a good person. I admire someone that age that can still crack jokes, and dance at that. How cool.. We need more people like Ruben in this world! I take care of myself through exercise, healthy eating, and lots of vitamins. I don't believe that what will keep me living the longest. Rather the little and good things I do for people to make me a better person.
When people hear the word "heart" many different visions pop up in many different peoples minds.
A couple of examples are: love and the organ. Though this blog is about the organ heart there are
many thigs you can do to help your heart, for insisince you can excersise more often or even
eat a healthy diet. Having your heart in good shape can help one live much longer than one would
if they did not do anything and ate whatever they pleased. Trying to not get to frustrated and
stressed can also help the heart relax and not be on a constant over drive. Even though all the
things that i have so far listed on how to help your hear are just being an over all healthier person
can help your heart, but so can just being a happy person, it is said that being "broken hearted" to too
long can actualy lead to ones death for they are putting so much stress on their heart that is causes a heart
attack and will lead to a person actually dying of heart break. The story of the man that is 106 years old and
still up and about even dancing, captures my attention, about how he stayed in such good health all his life
and actually be able to get up and dance amazes me.
The heart is a fragile part of Human life. As time passes us by and new generations grow up to be adults, a lot people forget to instill values. In today’s society having compassion, doing the right thing or being full of life, (bubbly,) is viewed as having a defect. When did what other people think of us become so important? A wonderful woman, whom I have had the pleasure of meeting, has lived her life to her best ability with a can do attitude. She is always willing to help a friend, child or stranger with friendly smile on her face. Despite the ridicule of others, she has been and always will be that bubbly, energetic, and full of life helpful human being. If that makes her an outcast, I’d rather be right there beside her. Kudos for the insightful story and Kudos to the young man full of life. I’m positive he has inspired many throughout his life.
I really liked your blog because throughout my life I have met some very interesting people that resembled the 106-year old young man. All of those interesting people that I have met have all had a "young heart" and they continue to live life by how they want to live it. They did not stop what they were doing because it was not acceptable for their age, but rather keep doing it (dancing, playing sports, riding bicycles, etc..) because they love to do it. I definitely agree that when “we lose are hearts, we lose our youth” because many of the people that stop caring about what their true passions are, are the ones who become complacent and are dead inside.
I hope I am always “young at heart”. I am VERY fortunate to have a 91 year old grandmother, “Tutu”, a 93 year old great aunt, Flora, another 89 year old grandmother, “Nany”, and a 90 year old grandpa, “Papa”. Tutu and Flora have daily “tea parties” and just enjoy everything about life, just as Nany does. Don’t get me wrong, I love them all, but I think Papa is the youngest at heart. I love spending time and talking with him. I can spend all afternoon with him and have the same impression as if I was with a best friend my age. Wether were at a family get-to-gether, messing around on the farm, or anything else, his youth is always showing. He may be 90, be he’s the hardest working, and most loving guy I know, but also, the youngest at heart
We often hear we are only as young as we feel and for that matter I think it was a good story. I think age is a number and a mind set. Obviously we can not always move as agile as we once did, and do the things we did as young people but I think some of it is also a mind set. I particularly like the second paragraph, second sentence where it says “Discovering a bad heart frightens the biggest, baddest, and bravest.” To me that says a lot. It says that no matter who you are, what you think you can do, if you have a bad heart you can not amount to anything both literally and figurately.
Ever since I was 12 I've been surrounded by older people. (The reason is because my grandmother lives in Mexico and rarely comes to visit and well I didn't meet either one of my grandfathers.) Some of them have shown their years of life and others quite on the contrary. Some have shown that life has been hard to them, and other hasn't. For those older folks that didn't show their age or those scars that life tends to leave on us they were so young. A total oxymoron, because their age said that they were old but their view of life and the way that they acted was quite opposite. They didn't stop and let life put them down even though some may have started to get health problems. They would move on and act like nothing was wrong. Their spirit is full of life. They don’t get tired of living. They want to keep living and keep doing all that they did when they were young. I don’t believe that the amount of time that their hearts has beat determines whether they are young and old. Just like some people have been called an old soul. They are young but they are mature beyond their years. The old are mature in years but their soul is still fresh and willing to keep living thats what determines whether their heart is young or old.
The heart is known as the biggest muscle in our body. But what people don’t understand is that the heart is much more then that. Like you have said our heart is our youth and if we abuse it we lose our youth. The question is how do you abuse such a machine as your heart? Of coarse you can say that not eating healthy or not having enough exercise can harm your heart but I think it can be deeper then that. Your blog explains how abuse your heart can be deeper.
It really boggles the mind to think of all the work our heart deals with on a daily basis, physically speaking. When one considers the emotional aspect of it all, one cannot help but feel pure, unadulterated awe. We really are wonderfully and fearfully made. The physical and emotional health of our heart is absolutely vital for survival, as Schahara points out. Obviously, a physically unhealthy heart is cause for concern, because our very life is endangered! We often forget that this applies to more than just the physical realm. In the same way, when we lose heart in the emotional and spiritual sense, we make ourselves extremely vulnerable. In life, failure is often inevitable. The thing that really determines the caliber of our character (and the measure of our heart) is how we deal with it, how we get up and try to fly again. Without 'heart', we are doomed to lie where we fall. As human beings, we were built with the need to have that drive inside of us, that steadfast power that is able to withstand the crucibles of life. Obviously, that ‘internal’ drive comes from something, or rather, someone, much greater than ourselves. It comes from the Maker of our heart, our Creator.
I really enjoyed the “Heart” blog which talks about the different hearts we have. It is really interesting. I never thought why young people and old people get heart problems. I just thought most people have heart trouble because they are old. After reading this blog and watching the video about Ruben Hopper, I learned that eating healthy exercising are important. It is also important to stay young at heart and not think about how old you are; because age is just a number. I am 23 years old sometimes and I don’t eat breakfast and I just keep going without eating for 3 hours and I know that this is not good for my health. I’m changing my habits and am feeling better. I hope to live a long healthy like Ruben Hopper.
The human heart, seen and unseen, is a tough and complicated subject to tackle within a page of words, but I am amazed at how well you wrote about it! The heart does push us to "follow our dreams", but it's also what pushes us to treat others badly. "The heart behind what you do" is one of my quotes that I live life from. There is an intention behind everything; whether it is holding someone's hand, or slapping someone in the face. Actions go way deeper than what a person can see physically; all actions come from the heart. One influential man said it well when he said, "Above all else, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life,” (NIV Bible, Proverbs 4:23).
Now that is a story worth reading many time over and over again. That story has so much truth behind it. If you lose your heart then you lose a big part of you. The heart means so much to people and the way they do things throughout their lives. I know that the heart just isn’t an organ, but more than anyone can ever realize. The heart is something that you need to hold dear to yourself. You need to treat it with more respect than anything. You need to keep it close and never be afraid to use your heart in ways that are unimaginable.
I have come to believe that heart is the most important thing a person can have. Not only is it a physical organ that drives our bodies, it is also the mental and psychological push behind our life’s endeavors. Heart is the steering wheel that drives both body and mind. Athletes, musicians, poets, and even teachers all get their passion and desire from heart. However some people need a specific reason and motivation to reach into their heart for assistance. I am one of those people. I feel like I have to be motivated in order to succeed. What seems to give me the most heart and desire to succeed is wanting to prove people’s preconceived conceptions about me wrong. This is why I think I relate most to Nora.
I loved reading about your views of the heart. Everybody has their own opinions about everything, and we all take things for granted. People don’t realize just how important a heart really is and how much we depend on it without knowing. When I was reading what you thought of it, I noticed that I’ve never thought of it that way. To me, our heart is how we feel things like love, hate, remorse, and all of our feelings. I’ve never thought of it in the ways that you do. Without our hearts, everything would be different and our hearts are what makes us who we are.
I really liked your blog on heart. The heart is a very important thing, physically and mentally. To me heart is not giving up and having the courage to keep going, even when things aren’t going well. In basketball and other sports both types of hearts have to be strong. They are physically challenging and require you to have a strong mind to push through all of the challenges. The “young man” from the video that you talked about could have just retired and lived with his kids but he didn’t. He pushed through all of the challenges of old age and enjoyed life.
“Heart” was very insightful. I enjoyed all the different expressions you used to describe how people refer to the heart. The heart had so many functions, like you said. You pointed out the physical and emotional aspects of the heart, but not really the spiritual. Yes, the heart is the center of all things. “The heart of the matter,” so to speak, refers the center, the founding point, of something. The bible talks so much about the heart. Not only does it keep our blood pumping as the center of our circulatory system, and not only is it the place where we feel, but it is the place where God speaks to us and from which out connection with heaven transcends from.
This story made me think hard! I have never really thought about my heart. Of course I am aware it is the muscle that allows me to breathe, the most important organ in my body but otherwise I have never paid attention to it. When I experienced different abstract feelings, they all come from my heart though. When I am in pain, my heart hurts, when I am happy, my heart is full of joy. The heart may be the strongest muscle of the human body but is also the most fragile so we should really take good care of it.
I really enjoyed reading this short story. It really puts a whole new light on how you can look at your heart and what it means to be “youthful”. I very much enjoyed how you compared our hearts to the energizer bunny. It is so true!!! Our hearts are always pounding none stop all of the time without rest and all we ever do is abuse it and hurt it. It is truly amazing to see how strong our hearts are. I have always thought of your heart as what keeps you alive but not on the deeper levels of understanding that you portray in this story. It really has opened my eyes to a completely new understanding of the word.
I really liked how you tied it all in together. Though there are several things we associate with the heart, age is probably the least common. I do agree “wholeheartedly”. As I’ve grown older, I’ve noticed changes in my mom and dad. Their hair has grown greyer, their bedtime is earlier, and they sometimes groan while rising off the couch. Looking back though, the most apparent to me has been what I call the development of my mother’s extra child. As years have passed, my mom has grown old, her sense of humor has wilted and she’s progressively reminding me of her mother. My dad on the other hand, still reminds me of a teenage boy. If called old, he scowls and proclaims that he will never get old, only older; I tell people he’s my mom’s other child. I hope to never lose my heart and never be old, simply older.
The human heart, seen and unseen, is a tough and complicated subject to tackle within a page of words, but I am amazed at how well you wrote about it! The heart accomplishes many things, but one of its most important roles is directing our actions. "The heart behind what you do" is one of my favorite quotes to live life from. There is an intention behind everything; whether it is holding someone's hand, or disobeying authority. I love when parents in my church say, "The moments when your child disobeys are precious; they give you a window into his/her's heart." Actions go way deeper than what a person can physically see; all actions come from the heart. One influential man said it well when he said, "Above all else, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life,” (NIV Bible, Proverbs 4:23).
In a man’s heart, there is a deep rooted craving to lead. They don’t care who they are leading, or when they are, but they feel the need to. In every area of their lives, they are constantly leading, and this is a wonderful thing to witness. I have someone in my life, a father, who yearns to lead his family in a respectful way. Another man who longs for the same thing is Torvald Helmer, from the play “The Dollhouse”. One of his first priorities in the play is to owe nothing to anyone. He deeply desires to work hard for everything he wants, and he wants his family to follow this guideline too. My dad is the same way; he has desires and values that he wishes his family to have as well. I greatly admire this in both men, for this is the way God created man’s heart: to lead, protect, and provide for a family. My dad and Torvald are doing their best to fulfill this drive in their heart to lead a family. I cannot wait for the day that guys my age will learn this valuable lesson and step up to be a MAN. This is one characteristic that every guy needs to have before taking a wife; it is one that I know my husband will have and I look forward to following in his footsteps with all my heart!
The human heart, seen and unseen, is a tough and complicated subject to tackle within a page of words, but I am amazed at how well you wrote about it! The heart accomplishes many things, but one of its most important roles is directing our actions. "The heart behind what you do" is one of my favorite quotes to live life from. There is an intention behind everything; whether it is holding someone's hand, or disobeying authority. I love when people in my church say, "The moments when your child disobeys are precious; they give you a window into his/her's heart." Actions go way deeper than what a person can physically see; all actions come from the heart. One influential man said it well when he said, "Above all else, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life,” (NIV Bible, Proverbs 4:23).
In a man’s heart, there is a deep rooted craving to lead. They don’t care who they are leading, or when they are, but they feel the need to. In every area of their lives, they are constantly leading, and this is a wonderful thing to witness. I have someone in my life, a father, who yearns to lead his family in a respectful way. Another man who longs for the same thing is Torvald Helmer, from the play “The Dollhouse”. One of his first priorities in the play is to owe nothing to anyone. He deeply desires to work hard for everything he wants, and he wants his family to follow this guideline too. My dad is the same way; he has desires and values that he wishes his family to have as well. I greatly admire this in both men, for this is the way God created man’s heart: to lead, protect, and provide for a family. My dad and Torvald are doing their best to fulfill this drive in their heart to lead a family. I cannot wait for the day that guys my age will learn this valuable lesson and step up to be a MAN. This is one characteristic that every guy needs to have before taking a wife; it is one that I know my husband will have and I look forward to following in his footsteps with all my heart!
Writing about the heart can be a challenging subject just because in my opinion, it's hard to describe. We feel certain emotions and at times may tend to care too much about specific things without explanation, but Schahara Hudelson wrote so well about it! I loved how Mrs. Hudelson compared the heart to the Energizer Bunny, a Timex watch, and Old Faithful. I truly agree and believe that "a bad heart scares the biggest, baddest, and bravest." Our heart is what makes us who we are, either for the best or for the worst. "Following our hearts" isn't just a quote people have stated throughout life, it's the truth. Our hearts is what leads us to success and what makes us feel everything we have and will ever feel. I'm really impressed with how well Mrs. Hudelson wrote about this specific subject and kudos once again to her for a well written blog :)
The heart of a person is very complex. I liked all the ways you described the works of it in your post. We feed our hearts, it only does the things it does and feels the things it feels from what we have absorbed from other things. Like that of the shows we watch, the music we listen to, or the things we read results in how our heart will act or feel. If we feed our hearts with filth then we will start thinking and acting like what we have put into our hearts because nothing can grow unless it’s fed, but we need to be careful on the things we take in. In the play “A Dollhouse” I think that I can probably relate most to the wife. She has made a big mistake and doesn’t think much of it until her husband tells her of a man that committed the same crime. All she wants to do is make things right. She feels so bad and thinks that she has let her whole family down. When I mess up, it haunts me and it haunts me until I can make what I have done wrong right. I always feel so bad if I hurt someone’s feelings or do something I know I’m not supposed to do because it hurts my heart. Making things right can be very difficult sometimes, but it’s the only way to allow my heart relief. Therefore, feed your heart with good so you will then be able to act upon others with good.
Our hearts are the most important pieces of equipment we have. Not only do they keep us alive but they help us know what is right. They help us reason. If we didn't have this, we would have nothing. Like you said, our heart is our youth. I know older people who still act like they are kids. My grandpa is 86 years old and he gets around better than a lot of men that are younger. I just hope I can be like him when I get to be that age. I try to put my heart into everything I do and give it my all. It can be challenging sometimes but I use my fiends and family to motivate me. They expect a lot out of me so I need to show them I can do it. Your blog is written well and I can see how you view this special part of us.
I personally enjoyed your piece. You covered many areas that relate to the “American heart”. I was intrigued by the physical descriptions you mentioned. I am an 18 year old male. I discovered about 6 years ago that I had a heart condition called mitro valve prolapse. I also found out I have a rapid heartbeat and that my heart is not physically where it should be. I should have had surgery many years ago, but because I was not held back by the limitations; I have a healthy heart with a condition that has not progressed. I am a three sport varsity athlete. I am also in the top ten percent of my high school class. The reason I add these pieces of information is just to inform you that I did not allow a condition that was supposed to slow me down affect my life in anyway. Actually, I guess it did, it just makes me work that much harder to make sure I stay on top of my game. There have been occasions where I pushed the limits of my heart and it caused severe chest pains and has cause me to pass out, but I have never allowed it to stop me. I find it funny how God gave me such a strong personality and character yet, still holds the upper hand and constantly reminds me that; any problem no matter the size can be overcome if we just put our “hearts” in the right place.
Many people do lose sight of how important our hearts are, and they do mistreat it and abuse it too often. We also lose heart in situations that we deem hopeless or not worth the effort of caring over. The main character, Nora, in “A Doll House” lost heart when Krogstad threatened her with her forgery. She had forged her father’s signature on a loan when she could not sign it herself. The lack of women’s rights demonstrated in this story causes Nora to lose her heart and to give up on that “driving pump within us the size of a fist” (Schahara).
Wow. This blog is pretty awesome. It is so very true and it kind of puts things into a new light. It is true whether you are speaking metaphorically or literally. What is said about a heart being like the Energizer Bunny or a Timex watch is so very true and insightful. And once a heart is abused, it does scare the biggest, baddest, and bravest. It is also so very true that someone who has an abused heart will do whatever it takes to repair it and get it back in working order. Unfortunately, sometimes it is just too late to fix it.
To have a good heart is to be a kind and caring person. I really enjoyed this blog. It was a very accurate description on what having heart is. The story about Ruben is so very amazing. It almost seems like it is fiction. To be one-hundred and six years old and still be able to walk, and even dance, is totally a miracle. This man must truly be what some people call, “young at heart.” He must really love his life with all of his heart. Having a good heart is very important to being happy and going far in life.
A heart is an organ that is taken for granted. Every day our mind, body, and soul function to the rhythm of something that is never thought of. It is very true we have a day when the heart is idolized and is appreciated, yet is never visualized in any true holiday including Christmas, and Thanksgiving or even Easter. Valentine’s Day may be the day of the heart and love, but in the 1929 the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre showed that love and hate still exists and the good side is always seen. A side of the heart gives us sense of hope and faith and the motivation to continue…
A heart can be described as two different things. The first is the hearts actual function in the body which is pumping blood throughout the body. The second is the feelings the people say are coming from there heart. I really liked all of your analogies comparing the heart to things that just keep on going and going. Also the personifications that you mentioned made me start thinking bout how many there really are. The story about the old man really inspired me to live my life to the fullest and always try to keep my heart young so I can keep my youth in my body.
There is so much truth in what you have posted. It is true that whenever a bad heart is discovered, no matter how fearless we may seem, it frightens all of us. We seem to take our hearts for granted until it faces potential danger, which brings potential danger to our lives. But you have shown truth in not just about the organ itself, but in the metaphorical sense of it. The heart is such a fragile, sensitive, and extremely important part of our life. Treat our hearts well, and they fill our lives with joy, happiness, and somewhat of an optimistic attitude towards life. But treated badly, and they bring us down, and bring negativity, lifelessness in ourselves, and depression.
Hearts are a very important part of the body and the word has so many different meanings and use. Obviously the organ is one use, but it is also an emotion. Heart is a symbol of love. It’s a symbol of life. It is life. If a heart’s not pumping no life is living. I admire Ruben Hopper for his health and his love of hard work. Many people in America cringe at the thought of manual labor and therefore try to find the easy way out. I am guilty of this as well. But I admire people who see hard work as an opportunity to improve one’s self and just as a matter of life.
I do believe I enjoyed this post twice as much as the last! Having a heart is a very good thing, it helps us be super strong, but it also makes us incredibly vulnerable to death, for example a quick stab in the heart will most likely end you life, and stabbing seems to be a relatively easy task (I myself have only stabbed whatever I seem to be eating which is nothing like stabbing a human.) But, having “heart” the kind written about in songs and that teenage girls claim is broken or shattered, is what really makes all the difference!
Ruben Hopper can be added to my list of role models! Not only does he act with a young heart, his age seems to have disappeared off of the body. As a farmer, he spent years out in the sun, yet the wear and tear on his face does not reflect that of a 106 year old man. My grandma, Nanya, lives by this mentality: What's the point of living if you can't have fun? And honestly, what is the point? Everywhere she goes, she's laughing and bringing joy to others. I realize now that she's edging up on sixty, but in my eyes she has never aged. Her heart keeps her young.
Prior to reading “Heart”, I had never really thought about the various meanings of the word, “heart.” I realized that our society commonly uses the word to symbolize various entities, but had never really thought about why society had chosen, ‘heart”, to do so. Therefore, I have developed some theories of why society has chosen the word, “heart.”
It is well known that the heart is a vital organ for our survival. For this reason, I assumed that it only makes sense to bestow such meaning on such a “life giving” organ as the heart. But I soon realized that this is not the true reason. The Bible uses the word, “heart”, with a non-medical meaning many times. Therefore I am convinced that this is where the non-medical use of the word, “heart”, originated. An example of where a non-medical definition is used is: “Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”’ Matthew 22:37
The heart is definitely something so many feel, but so many forget they have and need to take care of. It’s odd really; the daily routine usually always makes the heart ‘feel’ one way or another, but our brains rarely think of our heart when these feelings race through our minds. My grandmother used to always tell me the heart is where your soul resides. She said take care of your soul and your heart will love you for it. Of course, at the time, I never really understood what she meant. Now that I’m a little older, and she has departed this Earth, I understand what she was saying.
I can relate so well to Ruben’s story, I have a grandfather just like this. He is 78 years old and still works on the ranch like he is 20, building fences, digging wells, and piddling around being ornery. It is so amazing to see that he still acts just as young every year that I grow older with him. In my past years I have seen older people grow old as they do their temper grows with them, and they seem to not care about life anymore. When we grow older our heart sometimes leaves us behind. Thank you for sharing your story, I loved reading your blog. =]
I really liked this blog. My favorite thing that you said about the heart was how we rarely thing about hearts until they cease to work properly or until one wildly pulsates into overtime. It's so true. The only time I really even notice my heart is when it is beating rapidly and everything just seems to tune out for just a second and all you hear is the sound of your rapid heart beat. I usually only experience this when something scares my or when I'm working out, but my favorite of all of these is right before a game. Right before that first whistle blows everything is silent and I notice a small thumping which is my heart and not once to I think about the fact that with out that little thump thump I wouldn't alive. Like you said the heart is potentially like the Energizer bunny. It just keeps going and going but we never notice that it is the (like you said) driving pump within us, that keeps us going.
In A Doll’s House, I feel that I am most like Nora. Nora is someone who has a lot of heart and truly cares for her family. She does anything she can just to make the family happy. She does commit some wrong doing a couple of times, but it is all just for fun; fun that doesn’t harm anyone. Nora’s husband, Torvald, forbids her and the children to eat sweets. Nora understands but still feeds her and the children some cookies for a little fun and enjoyment. She understands that it is wrong, but it won’t hurt anyone. The loan she borrowed was only for the good of her husband’s health. When she took and loan, she was only thinking about her husband and how she wanted him to get much better. To forge the signature was wrong, but, again, it was only for the goodness of her husband’s health; not for herself. I find myself to be the same as Nora. I may lie at times or do wrong, but in the end it is for the goodness of others and not me.
You talk about the heart in varying ways. A heart (the organ in our body that pumps blood and is vital to our existence), is something we use every day and think very little about. Yes, some of us use it and abuse it, and others think about heart health with every healthy bite they take. But more importantly in my mind, you talk about the heart in the context of the thing that is the basis of emotional life. From the emotional aspect we say that the heart is what we use to love others, we use it to show compassion and we say someone has heart when they overcome difficult odds. This man that you refer to as “young” had heart. I believe his love of life, or the joy in his heart is what kept him alive all those years.
This is another one of your pieces I enjoyed very very much. Your writing style is simple to understand, yet full of description that allows the image to pop right into your head. I also enjoyed your comparison of the Energizer bunny to the Timex watch. We all know that in order to have a healthy heart, we must exercise and eat healthy meals. If we choose otherwise, as the year’s progress, you begin to stumble upon lots of problems that are sometime irreversible. It seems like at times, many take the heart, a simple and delicate organ for granted. Although it is only about the size of our fist, it works many miracles, by keeping us alive as well as allowing us to love family, friends, and pets as well.
This blog is a very good blog. The entire time I was reading it I was like I totally agree with that. It’s true that people can overstrain the heart and make it age too fast. People these days don’t really seem to care about their own hearts. They just want to feel happy, and if that means giving a jerk your heart for the night or to someone you know has done nothing but trashed it, that’s exactly what they’ll do. It’s as if no one has respect for their heart anymore, even though their heart is what keeps them alive. It’s gonna pump on for as long as they live, and they should respect it enough to protect and take care of it.
Many thoughts were running through my head while I read your blog. First I think about my grandpa who passed away in 2008. Then I think about my grandma who is still alive. They were both identical in many ways, but somewhat opposites. About two weeks before my grandpa passed away, we were talking out on the back porch about his life and all the jobs his father made him do throughout his life. Many of them seemed like torture instead of work but I guess that’s how times used to have been. I will never forget what he said before I left his house. As I stood up to give him a hug, he looked in my direction, (which was equivalent to looking me in the eyes due to him being blind) and said “I’m getting tired of doing this Lee”. A long moment of silence followed and a tear came down his face. It was definitely the hardest thing I have ever been through. I walked over and gave him a hug, he had already given up.
My grandmother on the other hand, still fights for her breath each day. She is now 92 years old, but mentally she is in her 20’s; funny, beautiful and very witty. He smile brightens even the darkest of days. She has had a lot of obstacles thrown down her alley, but she hurdled each of them in a laughing manner. It’s sad to say, but physically my grandpa will always be the strongest but mentally my grandma will always win. RIP Grandpa
I love your "Heart" piece. It is simply wonderful. You are an amazing writer who keeps people on their toes while reading. You put everything simple and very bluntly. Honestly, I have never really thought about my heart until I read this piece. I have never thought about the effects that food and exercise have on it. I probably won't actually realize that its bad for you if you don't eat right or exercise until something bad happens to me and my heart. We all try to tell ourselves that we will all try to eat right, but do we ever get around to it? Not usually, unless something bad happens to us. Then after all the years of causing harm to it, it fails or breaks down, and we either die or go on living like we did before. Some of us are lucky enough to live to see 90 or 100, but others die at a young age, such as 40 or 50, of a heart attack or stroke. Usually, the ones who live to be 90 and 100, eat right and take care of themselves. I am grateful enough to have both of my grandparents still alive so i can see them every week or so. They are both about to turn 80, and they have both lived an amazing life. It's safe to say, that you haven't had heart until you have lived to see it all.
Without a doubt this may be one of the best post's I have ever read. So many people will take their heart for granted, and don't love it and nurture it the way that they need to. The heart is the source of all life. Without a a heart no life can be sustained. Just alike the heart is the driving force inside of us. I enjoyed this post so much and look forward for more to come.
We can feel and hear a heartbeat. The beat of a heart is a rhythm that people equated with life and love. We attribute our heart to feelings even though a doctor or scientist will tell you that it is an organ incapable of feeling emotions. People give the heart credit for feeling love because the heart is the center of our body and provides us with something physical to attribute emotions to. To have a heart (along with a body and mind)a that has lived over a hundred years is just short of miraculous. The people that have been touched by a heart that has been around that long are surely uncountable.
Reading this blog has made me question how I treat my heart. I can admit that I mistreat my heart by my eating habits and my lack of exercise. How I really mistreat my heart is by emotional pain. I have the tendency to hold emotional abuse in. For example, when a relative dies I usually fall into a slight depression;or when my heart is torn into pieces because of a relationship gone to waste. These are the ways I mistreat my heart. Heart is the most important gift a person can have. To have a heart is to have the ability to love. Without love many people would lose hope in their lives and in their future. I know I would be one of those people. The message you are sending to me through your words is to take care of our lives and enjoy the time we have on this earth. You wrote an inspiring blog.
I’m like Dr. Rank he could really careless what others think of him just like me. I say it’s what keeps my heart going even when there is a tough time that I’m going through I seem to just over come it since I don’t let the little things get to me as much as so others tend to do. As we look out heart is something price less and should not be taken for granted since it can just come and go if we treat it bad. Of the fact that Dr. Rank is a humane person that just enjoys life although it becomes difficult for him as well as me.
Absolutely! Who knows anything about having heart? I love the way you made the word “heart” about different things. You used it in its literal sense as well as in an unseen object that actually has the power to change a person’s emotion. This blog made me look at the literal value that I have invested in my health, the unforeseen value that could happen to me over time, and the fact that if I choose the right attitude, I could still have some peace and joy at a very late age.
I really enjoyed the tone in this blog and it made me relate to the writer.
I enjoyed reading this post, but I believe what made me love it even more was watching the video of Ruben Hopper. It amazes me to see how a man as old as him can continue to be so energetic, happy, and does not regret a moment of his long lived life. I also loved how you compared a person’s heart to things such as the Energizer bunny and Old Faithful. It is true about how most people do not worry about the health of their heart until it begins to work improperly. I myself do not take much mind of the health of my heart however, you have helped me realize that I need to take care of my heart so I can have a long and happy life such as Ruben Hopper has.
Our heart is truly taken for granted by all of us. I guess it is our "human" nature to do so. You worded it perfectly, calling it an energizer bunny. Although I myself tend to think of my heart in more of the emotional sense. I always wear my heart on my sleeve. I wonder if I abused it (my physical heart) less, by eating better and exercising if my emotional heart would feel the benefits as well as my physical one. Interesting concept and I think they go hand in hand. A man who lives to be 106 must have found a brilliant compromise between the two. As you said it is our battery. It is what keeps us going as a human being. We truly need to take better care of our hearts in both ways, if we did who knows what we could accomplish!
I liked how you brought attention to the human heart by first explaining its bodily function and then working your way to the deeper meaning we put into our hearts. It is true; a person’s heart can pretty much define their whole character and nature. When I got to the part about the “young” Mr. Hopper, I questioned the relevance of a farm boy to the topic of heart. It wasn’t until I learned that this young man was actually 106 years old that I laughed to myself and really reflected on the quote, “Heart is what keeps us young; when we lose heart, we lose our youth.” Apparently, Mr. Hopper chose never to lose his youth-filled heart.
I really enjoyed reading this blog due to the fact that everything that was mentioned was so true. The thing that caught my attention the most is when the heart was being compared to different things. I have never realized until now how our heart can be like an Energizer bunny. However, it is so true. Note many how many times we get hurt, or feel like giving up, but, our heart always keeps forgiving and trying to never give up. Hearts are known to be "taken advantage of". Having "heart" can mean several different things. It can mean you have character, you put yourself above other people, you share your emotions and feelings with others, it can even mean bravery to some. But, to alot of people it means to love and to be loved.
With some classmates said, I wish that when I'm as old as Ruben Hopper, I still feel and act the way he does. Hopefully I'll still stay "young" just by feeling my emotions and knowing that I'm still alive and going just like it was mentioned in the blog our heart is like a Engergizer bunny.
The heart is a magical thing. In the way of love, it can be broken the exact same way it can be mended. The heart is the strongest part of someone but literally and metaphorically. The heart represents love, happiness, but also the heart can used to personify betrayal and an ultimate sadness. Heart is the most symbolic sign of love; without love you can claim to be heartless and with love you can be described as weak. The heart can make or break a person, it can be used as a crutch or a weapon. Although physically the heart itself can not literally be used, it can force a person to crumble or stand tall both physically and metaphorically.
I found this blog very insightful! Having “heart” is a very important to have. There are many different meanings for the word heart. Like being the center of the total personality with reference to intuition, feeling, or emotion. Just like the way you had presented the man in your blog to have a very good heart. To not loose the inner person just because of how old you are, but how you can still be old but have a good heart and still feel as young as you want to feel. The way you look at life can make ones life longer and feel younger when you have a good “heart” inside of you.
Our heart is truly taken for granted by all of us. I guess it is our "human" nature to do so. You worded it perfectly, calling it an energizer bunny. Although I myself tend to think of my heart in more of the emotional sense. I always wear my heart on my sleeve. I wonder if I abused it (my physical heart) less, by eating better and exercising if my emotional heart would feel the benefits as well as my physical one. Interesting concept and I think they go hand in hand. A man who lives to be 106 must have found a brilliant compromise between the two. As you said it is our battery. It is what keeps us going as a human being. We truly need to take better care of our hearts in both ways, if we did who knows what we could accomplish!
As I read your blog about the heart I completely agreed with you when you said that there many personifications attached to the heart. I mostly thought of my grandmother, Tita. She definitely has the heart of a teenager. Even though my Tita is in her sixties she can out run all of her grandchildren. I know thats sad to admit but its the truth. She’s a member of the West Texas Running Club and has advanced to the Senior Olympics in Virginia a couple of times. She runs the 5k most of the time but sometimes her my dad partner up to run half marathons. She’s one of those health freaks. She is really tiny because of it (all the running and healthy eating habits). She’s not like most grandmas, she dresses from young places like American Eagle and fits into a size zero! It makes all of her daughters jealous which is funny because during the holidays they’re always trying to cram sweets in her face. I’m glad my Tita is this way though because it is healthy and it will keep her alive longer. I can’t be without her and trying to imagine life without my Tita makes me cry so her having this young mentality keeps her heart young and that's a better life for our whole family!
I loved your blog. Lately I've been learning just how essential the heart is in both the physical and spiritual sense. No matter what way you look at it, no one can deny that the heart is what keeps us alive. As long as it's beating we are still carrying on. My grandma recently had a heart attack. I learned then just how much we need our heart. We can't live without it. I think the same is true spiritually. It's the wellspring of life. If we are smart, we will guard it. God has showed me lately just how important the heart is. We can choose to let Him come in and live true Life with God. Or we can let our hearts go hard. And as a result we can be living, but not necessarily be truly alive. It's all a matter of the heart and what we choose to do with it.
I wonder why do put so much emphasis on the heart when it comes to life. I suppose I can say we take the heart for granted or unconscious take advantage of our heart. I would like to say I hate saying that we think with our heart and not our head or brain. I guess certain things in life give us that idea to make assumption incorrectly or without thought. I guess in a medical stand point you need to have a strong heart to survive for a long time which includes the others organs in your body, also.
Heart is not simply a beating organ inside someone's chest cavity. Heart is what gives people passion for how they live their life. Heart is what pushes the beaten and battered souls onward in hopes of attaining what they really long for. Individually, the strength of the heart can build and shape one’s life through how personal experiences are handled. Collectively, those with heart can accomplish the impossible. Without that strength, the human race would falter at the slightest sign of difficulty and peril, but it's because we have the passion to live and grow that we thrive as we do and will continue to do for generations.
I totally agree with you on all the different situations and emotions we place our hearts in and feel throughout a lifetime. Through my short time here on earth, so far, I have felt many, if not all of these emotions and have memories, both good and bad, that will remain with me forever. A person’s heart should be cherished and taken well care of as not to let it come to harm, both physical and emotional. To learn how to live a happy life with a grateful heart is a challenge, however, one I would aim for and believe Ruben Hopper found.
That was a wonderful blog about heart and the power of it. I have to agree with you though as long as you have a heart you are youthful. I believe that youth has nothing to do with your age, because age is just a number. I believe that as long as you are young at heart then you can be young in person. Ruben’s story was so inspiring and heartwarming, I mean to be 106 and still dancing and taking care of a farm!! That is amazing. To me that just goes to show young at heart, young in person. Thanks for sharing.
When reading this perceptive blog, I continue to agree with the meaning overall. A certain particularly heart can be used as a symbolism for anything that provides loving care, or that has a certain job to fulfill it continues to represent multiple things in the blog the riveting verbs used show how precious our hearts really are and at any given time within a snap of the fingers it can be wasted by being taken for advantage describing the ways that a heart works in this blog shows how in Ibsen’s play the hearts of different characters perform different function being old or young just simply being different.
I sometimes wonder if the liver and kidneys are jealous organs. Or perhaps the pancreas stops producing insulin to punish the heart for being an attention hog. The heart receives the lions share of attention; it will get you a ride on an ambulance or a white wedding. But when we talk about heart what do we really mean? Even though the word has an unsurmisable number of meanings I believe that it can all be summed up in one word, courage. Whether it is the courage to live, love, fight, or smile every second of the day takes heart.
Heart is something all too many of us tend to lose and regain many times during our lifetime. Still, never do we have a chance to ascertain with confidence when these times shall arise; as a result, not ever are we prepared for the emotional toll it can take on us when it does in fact arise. During these moments we have a tendency to to make hasty decisions and think selfishly, only of ourselves. Of course, all too often we come to regret these decisions, but what has been done is done and there is no way to take it back. On the other hand these choices sometimes have decent effects which prove a point to another individual who otherwise would not have seen the light. One must really know themself before they can truly and happily share their life with another. We in fact learn this from the Nora’s character in Ibsen’s play “A Doll’s House”.
It is easy for people to take advantage of their heart if they believe it only to be an organ of the human body. I agree with you when you state that it is so much more. I believe people to abuse their own heart in ways regarding both health and love. It’s easy for people to regret the abuse when the time comes where life is in jeopardy. I think the heart is important in it function of letting somebody live but it’s what the heart represents that means so much to me. Every aspect of somebody’s personality can be reflected to the heart in which they posses. I often see people taking advantage of their health while living pointless and regretful lives. It seems as if we should really be worrying about how we are going to use our hearts to positively affect the lives of those around us so that we might leave an everlasting impression once we are gone from this earth.
When we see someone for who they really are we describe them as to what kind of heart they have. Some one can be warm hearted, and be taken advantage of, or cold hearted and bitter. The heart can be broken and then later fixed, perhaps by some one that has a big heart. The heart can be lost and then found,or stepped on and healed. Some one can be fool hearted or strong hearted. The man in the video was young at heart, this allows him to live a long and fulfilling life. Showing true heart can let people know the real you. Hiding things in your heart, can break someone else's heart. It is important to look at your heart, take care of your heart, and share your heart with others.
That was an awesome story of Ruben Hopper. I couldn’t imagine being blessed in such a way to live to the age of 106. It is true that many of us abuse and take our hearts for granted. The heart is one of the important organs in our body and with every heartbeat it sends life giving blood throughout our entire body. Our heart is something we need to take more seriously because a heart can be broken. Never hurt someone close to you, always keep your loved ones close to your heart. Our heart is always working into overtime. We get hurt sometimes and we find it in our heart to forgive and forget. You described it perfectly by stating that it is like the energizer bunny.
The heart is such a unique organ. Although it has similar functions as the person sitting next to you, it won't beat like theirs or function quite like yours will. It's so true that people only act as old as they feel. Some young people act like they are in their mid-fifties, while some people in their mid-eighties act like they are still fifty. It's neat to see how everyone reacts when they are a certain age. I fell in love with the story about Ruben! I have some neighbors who share some of those similar character traits that he did, and it’s nice to see them being able to do everything they want to get done.
Heart is most often not thought of as a quality in a person. A heart is most referenced as the organ in our bodies pumping blood or the love one feels within for another person. However, it is much more than just an organ. To love someone, anyone it takes a lot of compassion, compromise, commitment, understanding and patience. For a person to have heart in the way they live, act, and carry themselves requires all of the above also. I am a firm believer in that you are treated as you treat others. Caring and loving human beings surround themselves with other caring and loving human beings. Karma, keeps a close eye my friends… Adriana Gonzalez
Such a beautiful and wonderful story. You were able to explain the meaning of the young man's heart for anyone to understand. you have such a unique and writing style by showing everyone that it doesn't matter what your age is but how you feel that really determines your youth. It really opened my eyes about how true this is. We also do take our hearts for granted. For most of us don't take good care of our hearts and when were in need for help we do look for God to solve our promblems. Making promises that we probably won't commit to just like you said. Your "Heart" story was a great one! Thank you, for sharing it with us!
I completely agree with your last statement, “Heart is what keeps us young”. When you are not having fun with life, no matter your age now, you begin to grow older. Life is only fun if you know how to make it fun. Being old is not necessarily just a number like most people think it is. It depends a lot on how you act and how you deal with getting another year older. People do not always appreciate what they have until it’s gone. Like you mentioned, the heart isn’t even thought about until it’s too late.
I think the heart is something that is used in many different ways but people fail to realize that the heart is a part of our body. It is a organ in our body that needs to be take care of. I do agree that when someone say they are “heart-broken” they are not literally saying there heart broke in two. They are saying they have been discouraged, or left a lover. I think society today makes people have majority of heart problems. People are always working to get the better things, make more money, be happy with someone, that they sit back to realize that those are all guilty pleasures in life. The guy you saw a video about he had no clue about half of the stuff people now days worry about. He just ate healthy and worked hard there fore he lived a happy, healthy, long prosperous life. People now days get caught up in the “drama” of real life and forget to take care of themselves.
When reading “Heart,” I was very touched. This story was very inspiring to know that a man so old and fragile can have so much heart and spunk. He didn’t let his age keep him from doing the things he loved. This is truly inspirational. The play connects to the blog because it shows how heart can be lost and regain. I picked the main female character in “The Doll’s House.” She was so full of life until she became aware that she was being blackmailed. By the end of the play however, she was off the hook and full of life once again. I can relate to this character because she had an obstacle thrown in her way, and overcame it. Having heart means that you can regain your composer after something bad happens. I believe that the character did this. This is also something I always try to do in life. The literary term that seemed most interesting to me about this play was the diction, which is the word the author/playwright chooses to put into the mouth of the characters. I found this very interesting because it is very different then the way we speak in today’s society. They talk so elegantly and use such meaningful words. Teenagers today and most adults use little, meaningless words that were never used during the setting of the play. The costumes were also very different then what people in today’s world wear. I loved that they had so much grace compared to now. The main idea here is heart. And once again I agree with the blog by saying that “heart is what keeps us young; when we lose heart, we lose our youth.”
I think that this post is great! I think that the way you symbolized our heart was a great visual for all of us who read this. This is a very blunt but truthful short article. I think that we all have heart no matter how we grew up, what our past might be, or what we think to this day. I think that when you said if we lose our heart we lose our youth is also very true. We tend to take our lives for granted and expect that tomorrow is guaranteed; but it is not at all. Just because we age physically (and of course our whole body does too) but we can do our best to keep us young and love the things that we do in our lives. We were given a heart for many things, lets use it for what we are suppose to and not think that it is always going to be healthy. Again, I really enjoyed your post on Heart.
-Sabrina Moralez
I find it interesting how many different meanings there are for the word 'heart,' be they concrete or abstract. True, the heart is the essence of life; through it, blood flows and enables us to stay upon this world that much longer. However,as you stated, the heart that beats in your chest and how much heart you have are two entirely, albeit important, things. For example, Reuben no doubt had a heart that pumped blood through his hundred and six year old body. However, he also had the heart to live that long, as well as the heart to dance at such an old age!
Our hearts are our essence of life. There are things in our bodies that are not exactly essential for living, but without the heart, we’re dead! The same holds true for different aspects of life. We’ve all heard the saying, when playing sports, the captain is the heart of the team, and without their leadership the team can’t thrive. Ruben Hopper reminds me a lot of my grandfather. Although my grandfather is not nearly that old, he still works and plays as hard as a young person. He never once thinks about the fact that he’s too old. He is still able to do everything he wants because his heart still has a passion for life. Our hearts are everything.
It would be fair to say that we all loose heart. Especially when we are affected by change and can not predict the outcome of our future. Many of us are about to make the transition from high school to college and "the real world." It is an exciting, yet scary time for us. We get down on ourselves because we cannot see how anything will work out. The world tells us we can't make it as plain and simple as we are. We can NOT listen to those voices though. If we wish to be successful and enjoy life, we must never give up but face each new day with the tenacious attitude of a bulldog. Grab hold and never let go.
This blog about the “heart” was full of great points and facts about life. The word “heart” is used in everyday language but it does not always mean the same thing. The heart itself is the power house that keeps our bodies functioning properly and keeps us going. I believe that the metaphorical heart though is a greater influence. We are faced with countless trials throughout our lives and the one main thing that influences all of us is our heart. The story of Ruben Hopper is a perfect example of what a man with a full heart is like. The world would probably be a better place if people had more heart in everything they do
Mrs. Hudelson, your words aren’t only moving but an extreme understatement. We as human forget how much our heart truly does for us. After all, it is the heart who is the king of multitasking. If it wasn’t busy enough pumping our blood, finding us love, posing as a safe to those who are close to use, and hiding our deepest secrets, it finds a full time job in keeping us alive. No, I am not being redundant. Keeping us alive is so much more than regulating our pulse. It is, as you said, the keeper of our souls’ youth. A kind of youth that age has no affect on, but how lively our souls jump inside at a thought of happiness or even fear. Our heart doubles as the flame within us, the passion inside that we live for. As our flame dwindles, so does our soul and body until the flame goes out taking everything we are with it. Because heart isn’t just what keeps us young, heart is what keeps us strong. Heart is everything.
I really enjoyed this blog because it was so true. Heart is referred to as many different things, but the way you ended it, makes your blog perfect. I had never thought of how much I take my own heart for granted. When you talked about the person making deals and promises with God to have a healthy heart again, I thought of myself. I am not the healthiest person in the world, but this blog made me feel the need to be better to my heart. My emotional heart is very loving, and caring. I have a big heart and I need to treat my physical heart the same as my emotional heart, because I do not want to lose my youth.
I really liked this blog, it is inspiring and insightful. I liked that it was easy to read and I could easily understand it. I really liked what you said about the heart being like the Energizer Bunny, Timex watch, and Old Faithful. Also, it is so true that a bad heart can scare the biggest, baddest, and bravest. No matter how strong you are a bad heart can change everything. Any heart that is abused, someone will do anything they can to find a way to fix it. That can mean many things. A heart can be emotionally and physically abused. It sounds silly, but a broken heart is hard to fix just like a heart with medical issues.
I always say that if your heart isn't in it, nothing is. The metaphorical heart is really just a personification of our souls, our very cores. Sadly, some people are not in contact with this part of themselves and that is where the disconnection with their "heart" begins. I believe that there are so many people in this world just going through the motions. Loving, but never truly letting themselves go into something they are passionate about. Although I am sure there are many out there that feel as I do, there are many more that outnumber us. If only our voices could reach those that have not heard, your “heart” is not only the strength of your body, but the strength of your soul.
Your post reminds me of the old saying “Your only as old as your feel”. Our heart is always pumping and it never stops. It’s most important in our everyday lives. Without our heart we are nothing. We need to take care of it and make sure our hearts stay pure and strong for ourselves and the people around us. We need our hearts to love, care for others, keep us strong, have faith, and I believe pride also comes from that beating thing inside us. Everyday my heart gets tossed around and used due to the everyday obstacles it helps me get passed.
Everybody in the world has a heart. A heart is what keeps us living every single day. While everyone has a heart, there is heart that determines how hard you work. If you don’t have heart in what you participate in, then you won’t do well in what you’re in. To have heart, you have to care a lot in whatever you are involved in. If you are playing a sport, you have to give it your all or you won’t have much heart. When someone has heart in something, they are determined and want to succeed in life. If someone doesn’t have heart in life, then they probably won’t go very far in life.
I enjoyed this blog because it applies to all of us. Our hearts are the places where we hold our true feelings. We feel things in our hearts that allow us to be upbeat and excited. Our hearts allows us to feel things we never want to forget. In our hearts is where we feel love for someone and feel compassion for the ones around us. Our hearts are the true source of who we are. We can let them make us happier than ever before and we can let them feel things we never imagined feeling.When the heart is broken it is not easily put back, but when the heart is raging with love it is not easily calmed
The heart is the single most important organ in our bodies. It is unique in that it has four compartments which the blood passes through before it circulates back throughout our bodies. Most things in life get a break. For example: You might drive a car six hours in one day, but then you power the car off and give the car a break. A lightbulb, such as the lightbulbs in Wal-Mart, never turn off, but eventually they will run out and will have to be replaced. The heart never stops. It pumps day and night, 24-7. While your eating, driving, having fun, right as I sit here typing your heart and mine are both pumping blood throughout our bodies. You could estimate that a human heart beats at least 100,000 times a day. Now just think if your 17 years old and your heart has been beating 100,000 times a day, all 17 years of your life, that quite a few ticks. The heart not only constantly beats, but it also constantly loves. One of my favorite scriptures in the Bible is found in 1 Corinthians 13. This talks about true, perfect love. It says, “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. . . Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrong. . . It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
When I think of the heart, I think of not one, but many different things. It controls our feelings, our body in general, and our way of life. First of all, I think of what is pumping inside of my body and keeps me going every day. I am a very busy person and I never stop to think about how I am staying so busy. Another thing that I think of when I imagine the heart is feelings. Your heart is where you feel pain, sorrows, love, joy, and happiness. These are the feelings that also keep life going. The heart is part of our way of life. It helps us to love and to forgive. Without our heart we could definitely not survive and live well.
You hit the nail right on the head with this one! This blog hits pretty close to home for me. My grandmother has been suffering from heart disease since her heart attack in January. She is a heavy smoker and has been pretty much all of her life. Doctors said that her heart is so damaged from the smoke so she hasn’t smoked since January. Unfortunately, she found out last week that they don’t believe she will make it through the surgery because of the damaged valves. Without a heart, we will not only die physically, but emotionally, and spiritually.
The story “Heart” was an inspiring story. It touched my heart to know that there are old people out there that can still enjoy life with much heart. Vegetables were something he loved, and he didn’t let his age get in the way of his driving heart. The passion he had for what he loved, and the dance he did shows that he still had spunk and heart that kept him moving. The play “The Doll’s House” shows how people can gain heart, and how people lose heart. The main female character in the play was being blackmailed; therefore, she had lost some heart. After the blackmailing was over she felt her life coming back together, and she had regained the heart she had lost. Relating to this character was extremely easy for me. I have had many obstacles put in front of me that discouraged my passion; however, I have managed to pull through it all in the end. Recently, I moved out of my parent’s house making it hard for me to keep my drive and passion alive. My goals seemed to be slipping away, and I seen myself flying down in a whirlwind fast. However, I was able to pull through the rough times, and get my life back on track. My heart was mended. The literary term that the play seemed to iterate the most was diction. Diction is the words that an author has the characters speak. The characters in “the Doll’s House” spoke nothing like individuals speak today. Most people speak with no meaning, and use no elegancy; however, the characters in the play spoke with much meaning, and the elegancy was very noticeable. I enjoyed reading the story “Heart.” Also, I agree with the statement that “heart is what keeps us young; when we lose heart, we lose our youth.”
Our heart’s is our most important feature in our body, in my opinion. Nothing would work without our hearts. The same holds true in life, if we don’t put our full hearts into something, it won’t come out as awesome as it could. I feel like we do take our hearts for granted because we just wake up knowing that they will still be pumping and working correctly. We live in a world today were we believe everything is just handed to us and we don’t realize all the wonderful things we have been blessed with, such as our hearts.
The human heart is a miracle to say the least. Every human emotion essentially stems from the heart, or so it is said. Any strong emotion, such as love, is said to come straight from the heart. Many people don’t take into perspective just how precious our hearts really are. There is absolutely nothing we could do without it, obviously. Your heart has so much to give and at the very same time can withstand so much. It is above all else an organ, a vital organ at that, but at the same time it is the center of all emotions.
In this life, our heart is something we depend on the most. Every heart beat, every pulse that surges through your body it is a strength that I feel as humans we don’t ever really take into thought. Our heart is a powerful thing, it pushes you through your everyday life, from all the pain that it can take, to all the love that it can give… it isn’t something that goes away, it’s something that changes the course of situations, the love changes the hearts of others and all the bravery, determination, and courage… shows how strong it is. It influences others, to find those strengths within their own heart.
The heart is an organ inside the body physically, but when describe emotionally it is the object that breaks when hardships happens and loves when happiness comes along. What most do not understand about the heart is, not only do good exercise and great eating habits help to keep the heart healthy, but also laughing and enjoying life with love ones help to keep a person young. The heart also can keep a person young, if the person continues to be happy. The story at the end about the one hundred and six year old man was truly inspiring. With a healthy, happy heart anyone can live a long life.
The heart is an organ inside the body physically, but when describe emotionally it is the object that breaks when hardships happens and loves when happiness comes along. What most do not understand about the heart is, not only do good exercise and great eating habits help to keep the heart healthy, but also laughing and enjoying life with love ones help to keep a person young. The heart also can keep a person young, if the person continues to be happy. The story at the end about the one hundred and six year old man was truly inspiring. With a healthy, happy heart anyone can live a long life.
Kendal Shoulders:I recently read an article in the Lubbock Avalanche Journal about a man that was over 100 years old and had recently lost the home he grew up in one of the Texas wildfires. I was impressed that his daughter was also a young eighty-something. As I read it, I only hoped I could live to be his age and maintain the sense-of-humor, agility, and health that he had. I started to wonder what he might recommend if asked about his secrets to achieving his age. Would it be a healthy diet, exercise, and plenty of rest? Or, would it be hard work, a shot of whiskey every night, and a red-meat diet? It might be surrounding himself with family and friends full of love, encouragement, and support. Honestly, I think it depends on your genes, family history, and luck. I guess time will tell…
Our heart is not just an organ that keeps our blood pumping. It the metaphorical sense it is what drives our passions and desires. It is the want-to can-do sprit that we all aspire to have. One of the most importing things the have in life is drive. If you do not have to drive to accomplish your dreams or to basically do anything then it is hard to find meaning in your life. To live a happy and fulfilling life you have to find the thing that drive you; the thing that makes you want to start you day early. You need to find the thing that fuels your emotions. This is drive. Sometime at turbulent time in your life it is easy to lose your path and to find your self lost as to what to do next. This can happen when you are faced with any traumatic event from losing a loved one to moving to a new city. You need to look for the thing that fuels your passion. If you can find that then you will be in great shape. I think that it is horrible when some one goes through their entire life what out find a meaning for their existence. When all seems lost just start with what you want to do. Cut back on all of the tasks that you have to do, but do not like. Make time for your self and do the thing that you know will make you happy. The drive and meaning to life is not an easy thing to find for some people, but others simply know what are going to do from the first moment that they can form the thought. The only advice I can give is to search for what make you happy.
The heart is a very powerful tool in our lives. We can do many things with it. Our heart expresses love, sorrow, pain and anything else we may feel. It is what keeps us going day to day. Without our hearts, we wouldn’t be compassionate about things or others and also we wouldn’t be able to survive. This was a very touching, and a very true blog. The old man in the story symbolizes what we should all strive for. Even if we grow to be 106 years old we can still be young at heart. Age is just a number after all.
I think the your post about the heart was truly touching. I think they way you explained how we use personification with our heart is right on the dot. Day to day we continue on without realizing the quality and importance of our heart. Especially in our youth, we put a lot of pressure on the muscles of our heart with how hard we exercise and workout. It is very important to take care of your heart and keep it healthy. I think one of the major things our heart is symbolized in life is our character. People express their feeling about another by stating “They have such a good heart.” Your post was very enjoyable!
The heart is a valuable necessity not only in that it pumps blood throughout our body, but it’s what helps set us apart from others. I say this because there are a lot of people in this world who don’t have a heart. I am saying this because some people have no feelings for other people. For example the few people in this world that is still racist against black people and thinks that they need to be slaves still, have no heart. It’s sad that people are still likes this because that happened a long time ago and also because it states in the Bible that we are all created equal and that we need to treat others the way we want to be treated. I personally don’t want anybody being racist to me so why would I be to anybody else. After reading about the old man who is still young at heart makes me think of a few people in my family like my granddad. It’s funny because although he is like 68 years old he still flirts with girls and plays ball with me and my cousins. All the girls in my class thinks that he so cute because he flirts with them, but I think it is just hilarious because I think my Mema gets jealous. Then I thought of my granny who is 98 and still gets around quite well and thinks that she can drive herself wherever she wants even though she has no license because she can’t see that well. She is still very young at heart which is probably she has lived to be 98.
The word “heart” usually brings three thoughts to a persons mind one being love, another being spirit and the last being the vital organ that keeps each of us going. Through this blog you are talking about all, the “young” man who’s eyes twinkle and whose voice is filled with mischief shared his story about the love of his life, which is also one of my own: ranchers and farmers. Many don’t realize the rollercoaster ride that these brave souls take on each and every day. Ruben has the sprit of a man half his age and takes on enjoyment from everything he does. The heart and everything about it –the tangible or not- is a tough thing to talk about, but this blog does it very well. One of my favorite bible verses reminds me about how important, how vital the heart is in Proverbs 4:23 “above all else, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life.”
Our hearts are what drive us through everyday life. WHen something bad happens you say your heart broken and you feel terrible for a couple of days. If you let these kind of things get to you than it will effect you in the long run. If you are deppressed for example you always feel like your heart is being pulled into two different directions. If your not carefull it can consume your everyday life and everyone in it. You won't be your normal happy self not caring about what happens to you or if you even live to the next day if it is really bad. To maintain your happiness you need to let things go and give it to God and he will help you get through everything.
Your heart is important. You know this is true. Without our hearts we wouldn't be here. Our hearts beat thousands of times a day pumping blood throughout our bodies nourishing us, sustaining us. We rely on our physical hearts. Yet, many people don't pay enough attention to their heart health. It has made all of us very aware of what we put in our bodies as far as nutritional health, and making sure that fresh fruits and vegetables are a major part of our diet, and a lot less fat. In fact proper diet and exercise are the main ways to have a healthy heart....and the main things that most people don't do.
The word heart has many different meaning. You have the literal meaning which is the muscle inside your chest which pumps your blood to keep you alive, you have the form that coaches use, “She plays her heart out.”, and you have the form that means you are giving and kind. People don’t realize and take into concern all these different things. Many people have a healthy heart or are very kind and warm hearted, and many people have both. Heart is a word that changes meaning in the context you say it in. It is a complex word and can be used in so many different ways.
After reading the blog entitled Heart and watching the videos for A Dollhouse one similarity sticks out to me. In the blog you talk about all the admirable matters of the heart and how beautiful it can be. In contrast you also mention the negative attributes of the heart. One that I can connect with the story A Dollhouse is when the heart gives out. Not literally as in a heart attack but in the way that the gives out in the story. By the end of the story Nora feels as if she is a pawn in her husband’s game and her heart for him gives out when she leaves him after eight years of marriage.
After reading the blog entitled Heart and watching the videos for A Dollhouse one similarity sticks out to me. In the blog you talk about all the admirable matters of the heart and how beautiful it can be. In contrast you also mention the negative attributes of the heart. One that I can connect with the story A Dollhouse is when the heart gives out. Not literally as in a heart attack but in the way that the gives out in the story. By the end of the story Nora feels as if she is a pawn in her husband’s game and her heart for him gives out when she leaves him after eight years of marriage.
Your post was entirely agreeable. “Your only as old as you feel”, they say, and it’s true. My grand father was a strong and working man until he passed away. Right up until the end of his life, he was strong, intelligent, and had an excellent heart. My father’s father, on the other hand, had bad habits and was very unhealthy before he passed. I miss him very much, but I am aware that he could have taken better care of himself. It proves the old saying true- one was in a wheel chair, while the other was building entire buildings and computers.
Patrick Wells:
I really enjoyed reading your blog this week! I was slightly confused while I was reading it because you were describing Ruben Hopper as a young person, but it finally made sense once I got to the end I realized that he was an old man with a young heart. There is a 97 year old woman where I live who came to mind while I was reading your blog. She exhibits many of the same qualities as Ruben Hopper and despite her age, you feel as though you are talking to someone not that much older than you.
This post reminds me a lot of my grandpa. In his life, he had a very strong heart that seemed to survive every time. He went into WW2 and was always on the front lines every day. He told me stories about how he almost got shot by a tank and one of his friends had a spare grenade that saved his life. Then after the war he worked as a mailmen. During one of his trips he decided to take a shortcut across a small bridge. Well it went out on his car and his back tires were miraculously caught the newly formed cliff. His car was dangling and he just jumped out and hit the ground without a scratch. During his later years he learned how to play many instruments and was practically a one man bed. During that time he has battled pretty much every health problem known to man as well, and lived for over 90 years. When he passed away my relatives knew that he was happy and had a good life. I remember his funeral not being like the others I have been to, we knew he had lived a full life and was a great person, in fact we joked about how his guardian angel deserving a medal.
I like your explanation of “heart” and agree that it carries your youth throughout your life. Your heart is involved in everything thing you do from what career you plan to pursue to finding the person you want to spend the rest of your life with. It’s amazing to think that your heart never stops working until the day you die, it is what keeps you going. For an organ that works so hard for us we should attempt to take the best care in keeping it in great shape. I know I can be guilty of not doing this all time but I have changed some of my ways to be a healthier person and hopefully it will pay off in the future.
There are two types of hearts.The one that keeps your blood flowing and the other that keeps are spirits alive and gives us the will to go on or the broken heart that hurts. There are two different scenerios in A Dollhouse. You have Nora's heart that loses the will to love her husband, and then Christine's who's heart loves a man after reuniting and learning who he truly is. Heart is the muscle that makes us live, but is also the dwelling place of our warm, fuzzy, and loving feelings. It is also the tool that can hurt do to non trust, disbelief in ourselves, or to the ones we thought we knew best. The heart as two meanings that work in totally seperate ways. Thanks for sharing your story on "the heart."
I could not agree more, from beginning to end. We as Americans do have the tendency to abuse our physical hearts. Which in their own right are marvelous organs. I have seen firsthand the damage that can be done when they are abused and the pain they can cause to a family when not given the proper attention.
As for the young at heart, that I also agree with, it seems that is all in one’s attitude. Something my Mom says, “Your attitude is the only thing that is truly yours. You are the only one that can change it!”
I really enjoyed the moral expressed in this blog. I love how it starts out with the care of one's heart then turns into how your heart is what keeps you young. I know there are very few people that actually care for their heart the way Mr. Hopper did. I guess that taking care of our hearts is the same as everything else “we don’t care for it until it’s needed”. Personally, I think that our busy lives are part of the reason for so many heart problems. Instead of giving it proper nourishment, we neglect our hearts therefore, we lose our youth. Honestly, I had never thought about our heart this way but it makes so much sense now.
Yes, I really loved reading this blog and i totally agree your heart in my opinion is the most important thing in the human or any other living thing body. If you fall to the ground and cut yourself it will hurt for a while and maybe bleed for a while but you will heal pretty quickly. It's different with your heart, when your heart is broken you can feel it for a long period of time or maybe even a life time because the mind and heart works hand in hand, as soon as you remember the thing that hurt you before, the heart suddenly starts back to hurt you all over again. It's the easiest thing to damage.
I like the change of heart that you write about. I find it very interesting to find so many different meanings and connotations to one word, or even for that matter to one symbol. I agree with you, that we are the typical "americans" and we have a tendency to indulge in things that are not good for the heart, and i feel i can further expand on that. I don't believe just the fast food and lack of physical mobility to be the culprit of a failing heart, but also the baggage we carry within our heart. The morality and decline of ethics, the easier it is now one for a man to cheat or steal from another, i feel are also to blame.
Heart is a powerful thing, both in the physical and metaphorical sense. As it physically makes life possible, pumping blood into and out of every crevice of our bodies, it is metaphorically behind the most intricate of emotions, from love to lust, anger to hatred. The role that the heart plays in Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” can be seen in the actions of all characters, most notably that of Nora. Despite her poor decision-making skills and display of irresponsibility, her heart is was drives her to act in a way that can make a positive difference for herself and her family. Her heart may lead her to make mistakes, but it remains in the right place.
Sonya Stanley says...The heart truly is a magnificent organ. It is the center of life itself, as well as who we are and how we feel. The physical well-being of our heart is extremely important, but so is the emotional well-being of our heart. The story in “Heart” really touches on both aspects, living a healthy lifestyle and working hard. It also makes the point that one is only as old as one feels. The things we do in everyday life affect all of these things related to our heart, many of which we have the power to control. In effect, we do control our own destiny and create our own happiness.
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