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This blog is for students learning English at UWC Maastricht with Marcus. It is a depository of Literature and Language resources and activities as well as an interactive learning space for students and the community.
The latest posts inform students, parents, guardians, and other teachers about class lessons and activities.
Posts will be updated every week and whenever new events happen. Enjoy the site and participate in the ongoing literary dialogue.
Keep reading and enjoying… you can tell us what you discover or keep it a secret!
Literature versus Traffic- Melbourne 2012
September 15, 2017 at 8:17 pm
Everything in the world starts with a story. Stories are everywhere. Even a human being is some kind of a story that needs to be expressed. In my early childhood I avoided asking questions thinking that I will bother and make people anxious. Once my mom showed me a video which totally changed my attitude towards the importance of questions. In the video Steve Jobs tells a story: ‘’I called up Bill Hewlett when I was 12 years old and he lived in Palo Alto. His number was still in phonebook and he answered the phone himself. I said: ’’Hi, I’m Steve Jobs. I’m 12 years old. I’m a student in high school and I want to build a frequency counter and I was wondering if you had any spare parts I could have. He laughed and he gave me the spare parts and he gave me a job that summer and he looked Packard working on the assembly line putting nuts and bolts together on frequency counters. He got me a job in the place that built them and I was in heaven. I ’ve never found anyone who said no or hung up the phone when I call. I just asked and when people ask me I try to be as responsive. You want to pay that debt of gratitude back.”
In the end of his story Steve Jobs advised not to be afraid of asking and failing because then you will never move on. I felt so motivated that questions became one of the basic parts of my life and way of thinking.
This is the typical example of how a powerful story can inspire us. A good story builds strong belief in us, we start to trust our abilities and feel more motivated. Stories about different experiences help us move ahead easily and with more confidence. Storytelling is one of the powerful ways to discover the possibility of doing something. Sometimes a story is one sentence long but it explains deep thoughts and deliver a big truth. The value is not in complexity of expressions used in a story but the state of serenity and the warm feelings coming from the life experience of the storyteller.Sometimes we are afraid of acting in a leading role that’s why we are looking for examples, for someone who can show us the way.And because of that some opportunities just pass near us. Never be upset if you can’t find a story that will inspire you just build your own story independently and inspire others.