Black House Chapter Fourteen

14 AT THE TOP of the steep hill between Norway Valley and Arden, the zigzag, hairpin turns of Highway 93, now narrowed to two lanes, straighten out for the long, ski-slope descent into the town, and on the eastern side of the highway, the hilltop widens into a grassy plateau. Two weatherbeaten red picnic tables wait for those who choose to stop for a few minutes and appreciate the spectacular view. A patchwork of quilted farms stretches out over fifteen miles of gentle landscape, not quite flat, threaded with streams and country roads. A solid row of bumpy, blue-green hills form the horizon. In the immense sky, sun-washed white clouds hang like fresh laundry. Fred Marshall steers his Ford Explorer onto the gravel shoulder, comes to a halt, and says, â€Å"Let me show you something.† When he climbed into the Explorer at his farmhouse, Jack was carrying a slightly worn black leather briefcase, and the case is now lying flat across his knees. Jack's father's initials, P.S.S., for Philip Stevenson Sawyer, are stamped in gold beside the handle at the top of the case. Fred has glanced curiously at the briefcase a couple of times, but has not asked about it, and Jack has volunteered nothing. There will be time for show-and-tell, Jack thinks, after he talks to Judy Marshall. Fred gets out of the car, and Jack slides his father's old briefcase behind his legs and props it against the seat before he follows the other man across the pliant grass. When they reach the first of the picnic tables, Fred gestures toward the landscape. â€Å"We don't have a lot of what you could call tourist attractions around here, but this is pretty good, isn't it?† â€Å"It's very beautiful,† Jack says. â€Å"But I think everything here is beautiful.† â€Å"Judy really likes this view. Whenever we go over to Arden on a decent day, she has to stop here and get out of the car, relax and look around for a while. You know, sort of store up on the important things before getting back into the grind. Me, sometimes I get impatient and think, Come on, you've seen that view a thousand times, I have to get back to work, but I'm a guy, right? So every time we turn in here and sit down for a few minutes, I realize my wife knows more than I do and I should just listen to what she says.† Jack smiles and sits down at the bench, waiting for the rest of it. Since picking him up, Fred Marshall has spoken only two or three sentences of gratitude, but it is clear that he has chosen this place to get something off his chest. â€Å"I went over to the hospital this morning, and she well, she's different. To look at her, to talk to her, you'd have to say she's in much better shape than yesterday. Even though she's still worried sick about Tyler, it's different. Do you think that could be due to the medication? I don't even know what they're giving her.† â€Å"Can you have a normal conversation with her?† â€Å"From time to time, yeah. For instance, this morning she was telling me about a story in yesterday's paper on a little girl from La Riviere who nearly took third place in the statewide spelling bee, except she couldn't spell this crazy word nobody ever heard of. Popoplax, or something like that.† â€Å"Opopanax,† Jack says. He sounds like he has a fishbone caught in his throat. â€Å"You saw that story, too? That's interesting, you both picking up on that word. Kind of gave her a kick. She asked the nurses to find out what it meant, and one of them looked it up in a couple of dictionaries. Couldn't find it.† Jack had found the word in his Concise Oxford Dictionary; its literal meaning was unimportant. â€Å"That's probably the definition of opopanax,† Jack says. † ‘1. A word not to be found in the dictionary. 2. A fearful mystery.' â€Å" â€Å"Hah!† Fred Marshall has been moving nervously around the lookout area, and now he stations himself beside Jack, whose upward glance finds the other man surveying the long panorama. â€Å"Maybe that is what it means.† Fred's eyes remain fixed on the landscape. He is still not quite ready, but he is making progress. â€Å"It was great to see her interested in something like that, a tiny little item in the Herald . . .† He wipes tears from his eyes and takes a step toward the horizon. When he turns around, he looks directly at Jack. â€Å"Uh, before you meet Judy, I want to tell you a few things about her. Trouble is, I don't know how this is going to sound to you. Even to me, it sounds . . . I don't know.† â€Å"Give it a try,† Jack says. Fred says, â€Å"Okay,† knits his fingers together, and bows his head. Then he looks up again, and his eyes are as vulnerable as a baby's. â€Å"Ahhh . . . I don't know how to put this. Okay, I'll just say it. With part of my brain, I think Judy knows something. Anyhow, I want to think that. On the other hand, I don't want to fool myself into believing that just because she seems to be better, she can't be crazy anymore. But I do want to believe that. Boy oh boy, do I ever.† â€Å"Believe that she knows something.† The eerie feeling aroused by opopanax diminishes before this validation of his theory. â€Å"Something that isn't even real clear to her,† Fred says. â€Å"But do you remember? She knew Ty was gone even before I told her.† He gives Jack an anguished look and steps away. He knocks his fists together and stares at the ground. Another internal barrier topples before his need to explain his dilemma. â€Å"Okay, look. This is what you have to understand about Judy. She's a special person. All right, a lot of guys would say their wives are special, but Judy's special in a special way. First of all, she's sort of amazingly beautiful, but that's not even what I'm talking about. And she's tremendously brave, but that's not it, either. It's like she's connected to something the rest of us can't even begin to understand. But can that be real? How crazy is that? Maybe when you're going crazy, at first you put up a big fight and get hysterical, and then you're too crazy to fight anymore and you get all calm and accepting. I have to talk to her doctor, because this is tearing me apart.† â€Å"What kinds of things does she say? Does she explain why she's so much calmer?† Fred Marshall's eyes burn into Jack's. â€Å"Well, for one thing, Judy seems to think that Ty is still alive, and that you're the only person who can find him.† â€Å"All right,† Jack says, unwilling to say more until after he can speak to Judy. â€Å"Tell me, does Judy ever mention someone she used to know or a cousin of hers, or an old boyfriend she thinks might have taken him?† His theory seems less convincing than it had in Henry Leyden's ultrarational, thoroughly bizarre kitchen; Fred Marshall's response weakens it further. â€Å"Not unless he's named the Crimson King, or Gorg, or Abbalah. All I can tell you is, Judy thinks she sees something, and even though it makes no sense, I sure as hell hope it's there.† A sudden vision of the world where he found a boy's Brewers cap pierces Jack Sawyer like a steel-tipped lance. â€Å"And that's where Tyler is.† â€Å"If part of me didn't think that might just possibly be true, I'd go out of my mind right here and now,† Fred says. â€Å"Unless I'm already out of my gourd.† â€Å"Let's go talk to your wife,† Jack says. From the outside, French County Lutheran Hospital resembles a nineteenth-century madhouse in the north of England: dirty red-brick walls with blackened buttresses and lancet arches, a peaked roof with finial-capped pinnacles, swollen turrets, miserly windows, and all of the long facade stippled black with ancient filth. Set within a walled parkland dense with oaks on Arden's western boundary, the enormous building, Gothic without the grandeur, looks punitive, devoid of mercy. Jack half-expects to hear the shrieking organ music from a Vincent Price movie. They pass through a narrow, peaked wooden door and enter a reassuringly familiar lobby. A bored, uniformed man at a central desk directs visitors to the elevators; stuffed animals and sprays of flowers fill the gift shop's window; bathrobed patients tethered to I.V. poles occupy randomly placed tables with their families, and other patients perch on the chairs lined against the side walls; two white-coated doctors confer in a corner. Far overhead, two dusty, ornate chandeliers distribute a soft ocher light that momentarily seems to gild the luxurious heads of the lilies arrayed in tall vases beside the entrance of the gift shop. â€Å"Wow, it sure looks better on the inside,† Jack says. â€Å"Most of it does,† Fred says. They approach the man behind the desk, and Fred says, â€Å"Ward D.† With a mild flicker of interest, the man gives them two rectangular cards stamped VISITOR and waves them through. The elevator clanks down and admits them to a wood-paneled enclosure the size of a broom closet. Fred Marshall pushes the button marked 5, and the elevator shudders upward. The same soft, golden light pervades the comically tiny interior. Ten years ago, an elevator remarkably similar to this, though situated in a grand Paris hotel, had held Jack and a UCLA art-history graduate student named Iliana Tedesco captive for two and a half hours, in the course of which Ms. Tedesco announced that their relationship had reached its final destination, thank you, despite her gratitude for what had been at least until that moment a rewarding journey together. After thinking it over, Jack decides not to trouble Fred Marshall with this information. Better behaved than its French cousin, the elevator trembles to a stop and with only a slight display of resistance slides open its door and releases Jack Sawyer and Fred Marshall to the fifth floor, where the beautiful light seems a touch darker than in both the elevator and the lobby. â€Å"Unfortunately, it's way over on the other side,† Fred tells Jack. An apparently endless corridor yawns like an exercise in perspective off to their left, and Fred points the way with his finger. They go through two big sets of double doors, past the corridor to Ward B, past two vast rooms lined with curtained cubicles, turn left again at the closed entrance to Gerontology, down a long, long hallway lined with bulletin boards, past the opening to Ward C, then take an abrupt right at the men's and women's bathrooms, pass Ambulatory Ophthalmology and Records Annex, and at last come to a corridor marked WARD D. As they proceed, the light seems progressively to darken, the walls to contract, the windows to shrink. Shadows lurk in the corridor to Ward D, and a small pool of water glimmers on the floor. â€Å"We're in the oldest part of the building now,† Fred says. â€Å"You must want to get Judy out of here as soon as possible.† â€Å"Well, sure, soon as Pat Skarda thinks she's ready. But you'll be surprised; Judy kind of likes it in here. I think it's helping. What she told me was, she feels completely safe, and the ones that can talk, some of them are extremely interesting. It's like being on a cruise, she says.† Jack laughs in surprise and disbelief, and Fred Marshall touches his shoulder and says, â€Å"Does that mean she's a lot better or a lot worse?† At the end of the corridor, they emerge directly into a good-sized room that seems to have been preserved unaltered for a hundred years. Dark brown wainscoting rises four feet from the dark brown wooden floor. Far up in the gray wall to their right, two tall, narrow windows framed like paintings admit filtered gray light. A man seated behind a polished wooden counter pushes a button that unlocks a double-sized metal door with a WARD D sign and a small window of reinforced glass. â€Å"You can go in, Mr. Marshall, but who is he?† â€Å"His name is Jack Sawyer. He's here with me.† â€Å"Is he either a relative or a medical professional?† â€Å"No, but my wife wants to see him.† â€Å"Wait here a moment.† The attendant disappears through the metal door and locks it behind him with a prisonlike clang. A minute later, the attendant reappears with a nurse whose heavy, lined face, big arms and hands, and thick legs make her look like a man in drag. She introduces herself as Jane Bond, the head nurse of Ward D, a combination of words and circumstances that irresistibly suggest at least a couple of nicknames. The nurse subjects Fred and Jack, then only Jack, to a barrage of questions before she vanishes back behind the great door. â€Å"Ward Bond,† Jack says, unable not to. â€Å"We call her Warden Bond,† says the attendant. â€Å"She's tough, but on the other hand, she's unfair.† He coughs and stares up at the high windows. â€Å"We got this orderly, calls her Double-oh Zero.† A few minutes later, Head Nurse Warden Bond, Agent OO Zero, swings open the metal door and says, â€Å"You may enter now, but pay attention to what I say.† At first, the ward resembles a huge airport hangar divided into a section with a row of padded benches, a section with round tables and plastic chairs, and a third section where two long tables are stacked with drawing paper, boxes of crayons, and watercolor sets. In the vast space, these furnishings look like dollhouse furniture. Here and there on the cement floor, painted a smooth, anonymous shade of gray, lie padded rectangular mats; twenty feet above the floor, small, barred windows punctuate the far wall, of red brick long ago given a couple of coats of white paint. In a glass enclosure to the left of the door, a nurse behind a desk looks up from a book. Far down to the right, well past the tables with art supplies, three locked metal doors open into worlds of their own. The sense of being in a hangar gradually yields to a sense of a benign but inflexible imprisonment. A low hum of voices comes from the twenty to thirty men and women scattered throughout the enormous room. Only a very few of these men and women are talking to visible companions. They pace in circles, stand frozen in place, lie curled like infants on the mats; they count on their fingers and scribble in notebooks; they twitch, yawn, weep, stare into space and into themselves. Some of them wear green hospital robes, others civilian clothes of all kinds: T-shirts and shorts, sweat suits, running outfits, ordinary shirts and slacks, jerseys and pants. No one wears a belt, and none of the shoes have laces. Two muscular men with close-cropped hair and in brilliant white T-shirts sit at one of the round tables with the air of patient watchdogs. Jack tries to locate Judy Marshall, but he cannot pick her out. â€Å"I asked for your attention, Mr. Sawyer.† â€Å"Sorry,† Jack says. â€Å"I wasn't expecting it to be so big.† â€Å"We'd better be big, Mr. Sawyer. We serve an expanding population.† She waits for an acknowledgment of her significance, and Jack nods. â€Å"Very well. I'm going to give you some basic ground rules. If you listen to what I say, your visit here will be as pleasant as possible for all of us. Don't stare at the patients, and don't be alarmed by what they say. Don't act as though you find anything they do or say unusual or distressing. Just be polite, and eventually they will leave you alone. If they ask you for things, do as you choose, within reason. But please refrain from giving them money, any sharp objects, or edibles not previously cleared by one of the physicians some medications interact adversely with certain kinds of food. At some point, an elderly woman named Es-telle Packard will probably come up to you and ask if you are her father. Answer however you like, but if you say no, she will go away disappointed, and if you say yes, you'll make her day. Do you have any questions, Mr. Sawyer?† â€Å"Where is Judy Marshall?† â€Å"She's on this side, with her back to us on the farthest bench. Can you see her, Mr. Marshall?† â€Å"I saw her right away,† Fred says. â€Å"Have there been any changes since this morning?† â€Å"Not as far as I know. Her admitting physician, Dr. Spiegleman, will be here in about half an hour, and he might have more information for you. Would you like me to take you and Mr. Sawyer to your wife, or would you prefer going by yourself ?† â€Å"We'll be fine,† Fred Marshall says. â€Å"How long can we stay?† â€Å"I'm giving you fifteen minutes, twenty max. Judy is still in the eval stage, and I want to keep her stress level at a minimum. She looks pretty peaceful now, but she's also deeply disconnected and, quite frankly, delusional. I wouldn't be surprised by another hysterical episode, and we don't want to prolong her evaluation period by introducing new medication at this point, do we? So please, Mr. Marshall, keep the conversation stress-free, light, and positive.† â€Å"You think she's delusional?† Nurse Bond smiles pityingly. â€Å"In all likelihood, Mr. Marshall, your wife has been delusional for years. Oh, she's managed to keep it hidden, but ideations like hers don't spring up overnight, no no. These things take years to construct, and all the time the person can appear to be a normally functioning human being. Then something triggers the psychosis into full-blown expression. In this case, of course, it was your son's disappearance. By the way, I want to extend my sympathies to you at this time. What a terrible thing to have happened.† â€Å"Yes, it was,† says Fred Marshall. â€Å"But Judy started acting strange even before . . .† â€Å"Same thing, I'm afraid. She needed to be comforted, and her delusions her delusional world came into plain view, because that world provided exactly the comfort she needed. You must have heard some of it this morning, Mr. Marshall. Did your wife mention anything about going to other worlds?† â€Å"Going to other worlds?† Jack asks, startled. â€Å"A fairly typical schizophrenic ideation,† Nurse Bond says. â€Å"More than half the people on this ward have similar fantasies.† â€Å"You think my wife is schizophrenic?† Nurse Bond looks past Fred to take a comprehensive inventory of the patients in her domain. â€Å"I'm not a psychiatrist, Mr. Marshall, but I have had twenty long years of experience in dealing with the mentally ill. On the basis of that experience, I have to tell you, in my opinion your wife manifests the classic symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia. I wish I had better news for you.† She glances back at Fred Marshall. â€Å"Of course, Dr. Spiegleman will make the final diagnosis, and he will be able to answer all your questions, explain your treatment options, and so forth.† The smile she gives Jack seems to congeal the moment it appears. â€Å"I always tell my new visitors it's tougher on the family than it is on the patient. Some of these people, they don't have a care in the world. Really, you almost have to envy them.† â€Å"Sure,† Jack says. â€Å"Who wouldn't?† â€Å"Go on, then,† she says, with a trace of peevishness. â€Å"Enjoy your visit.† A number of heads turn as they walk slowly across the dusty wooden floor to the nearest row of benches; many pairs of eyes track their progress. Curiosity, indifference, confusion, suspicion, pleasure, and an impersonal anger show in the pallid faces. To Jack, it seems as though every patient on the ward is inching toward them. A flabby middle-aged man in a bathrobe has begun to cut through the tables, looking as though he fears missing his bus to work. At the end of the nearest bench, a thin old woman with streaming white hair stands up and beseeches Jack with her eyes. Her clasped, upraised hands tremble violently. Jack forces himself not to meet her eyes. When he passes her, she half-croons, half-whispers, â€Å"My ducky-wucky was behind the door, but I didn't know it, and there he was, in all that water.† â€Å"Um,† Fred says. â€Å"Judy told me her baby son drowned in the bath.† Through the side of his eye, Jack has been watching the fuzzy-haired man in the bathrobe rush toward them, openmouthed. When he and Fred reach the back of Judy Marshall's bench, the man raises one finger, as if signaling the bus to wait for him, and trots forward. Jack watches him approach; nuts to Warden Bond's advice. He's not going to let this lunatic climb all over him, no way. The upraised finger comes to within a foot of Jack's nose, and the man's murky eyes search his face. The eyes retreat; the mouth snaps shut. Instantly, the man whirls around and darts off, his robe flying, his finger still searching out its target. What was that, Jack wonders. Wrong bus? Judy Marshall has not moved. She must have heard the man rushing past her, his rapid breath when he stopped, then his flapping departure, but her back is still straight in the loose green robe, her head still faces forward at the same upright angle. She seems detached from everything around her. If her hair were washed, brushed, and combed, if she were conventionally dressed and had a suitcase beside her, she would look exactly like a woman on a bench at the train station, waiting for the hour of departure. So even before Jack sees Judy Marshall's face, before she speaks a single word, there is about her this sense of leave-taking, of journeys begun and begun again this suggestion of travel, this hint of a possible elsewhere. â€Å"I'll tell her we're here,† Fred whispers, and ducks around the end of the bench to kneel in front of his wife. The back of her head tilts forward over the erect spine as if to answer the tangled combination of heartbreak, love, and anxiety burning in her husband's handsome face. Dark blond hair mingled with gold lies flat against the girlish curve of Judy Marshall's skull. Behind her ear, dozens of varicolored strands clump together in a cobwebby knot. â€Å"How you feeling, sweetie?† Fred softly asks his wife. â€Å"I'm managing to enjoy myself,† she says. â€Å"You know, honey, I should stay here for at least a little while. The head nurse is positive I'm absolutely crazy. Isn't that convenient?† â€Å"Jack Sawyer's here. Would you like to see him?† Judy reaches out and pats his upraised knee. â€Å"Tell Mr. Sawyer to come around in front, and you sit right here beside me, Fred.† Jack is already coming forward, his eyes on Judy Marshall's once again upright head, which does not turn. Kneeling, Fred has taken her extended hand in both of his, as if he intends to kiss it. He looks like a lovelorn knight before a queen. When he presses her hand to his cheek, Jack sees the white gauze wrapped around the tips of her fingers. Judy's cheekbone comes into view, then the side of her gravely unsmiling mouth; then her entire profile is visible, as sharp as the crack of ice on the first day of spring. It is the regal, idealized profile on a cameo, or on a coin: the slight upward curve of the lips, the crisp, chiseled downstroke of the nose, the sweep of the jawline, every angle in perfect, tender, oddly familiar alignment with the whole. It staggers him, this unexpected beauty; for a fraction of a second it slows him with the deep, grainy nostalgia of its fragmentary, not-quite evocation of another's face. Grace Kelly? Catherine Deneuve? No, neither of these; it comes to him that Judy's profile reminds him of someone he has still to meet. Then the odd second passes: Fred Marshall gets to his feet, Judy's face in three-quarter profile loses its regal quality as she watches her husband sit beside her on the bench, and Jack rejects what has just occurred to him as an absurdity. She does not raise her eyes until he stands before her. Her hair is dull and messy; beneath the hospital gown she is wearing an old blue lace-trimmed nightdress that looked dowdy when it was new. Despite these disadvantages, Judy Marshall claims him for her own at the moment her eyes meet his. An electrical current beginning at his optic nerves seems to pulse downward through his body, and he helplessly concludes that she has to be the most stunningly beautiful woman he has ever seen. He fears that the force of his reaction to her will knock him off his feet, then even worse! that she will see what is going on and think him a fool. He desperately does not want to come off as a fool in her eyes. Brooke Greer, Claire Evinrude, Iliana Tedesco, gorgeous as each of them was in her own way, look like little girls in Halloween costumes next to her. Judy Marshall puts his former beloveds on the shelf; she exposes them as whims and fancies, riddled with false ego and a hundred crippling insecurities. Judy's beauty is not put on in front of a mirror but grows, with breathtaking simplicity, straight from her innermost being: what you see is only the small, visible portion of a far greater, more comprehensive, radiant, and formal quality within. Jack can scarcely believe that agreeable, good-hearted Fred Marshall actually had the fantastic luck to marry this woman. Does he know how great, how literally marvelous, she is? Jack would marry her in an instant, if she were single. It seems to him that he fell in love with her as soon as he saw the back of her head. But he cannot be in love with her. She is Fred Marshall's wife and the mother of their son, and he will simply have to live without her. She utters a short sentence that passes through him in a vibrating wave of sound. Jack bends forward muttering an apology, and Judy smilingly offers him a sweep of her hand that invites him to sit before her. He folds to the floor and crosses his ankles in front of him, still reverberating from the shock of having first seen her. Her face fills beautifully with feeling. She has seen exactly what just happened to him, and it is all right. She does not think less of him for it. Jack opens his mouth to ask a question. Although he does not know what the question is to be, he must ask it. The nature of the question is unimportant. The most idiotic query will serve; he cannot sit here staring at that wondrous face. Before he speaks, one version of reality snaps soundlessly into another, and without transition Judy Marshall becomes a tired-looking woman in her mid-thirties with tangled hair and smudges under her eyes who regards him steadily from a bench in a locked mental ward. It should seem like a restoration of his sanity, but it feels instead like a kind of trick, as though Judy Marshall has done this herself, to make their encounter easier on him. The words that escape him are as banal as he feared they might be. Jack listens to himself say that it is nice to meet her. â€Å"It's nice to meet you, too, Mr. Sawyer. I've heard so many wonderful things about you.† He looks for a sign that she acknowledges the enormity of the moment that has just passed, but he sees only her smiling warmth. Under the circumstances, that seems like acknowledgment enough. â€Å"How are you getting on in here?† he asks, and the balance shifts even more in his direction. â€Å"The company takes some getting used to, but the people here got lost and couldn't find their way back, that's all. Some of them are very intelligent. I've had conversations in here that were a lot more interesting than the ones in my church group or the PTA. Maybe I should have come to Ward D sooner! Being here has helped me learn some things.† â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"Like there are many different ways to get lost, for one, and getting lost is easier to do than anyone ever admits. The people in here can't hide how they feel, and most of them never found out how to deal with their fear.† â€Å"How are you supposed to deal with that?† â€Å"Why, you deal with it by taking it on, that's how! You don't just say, I'm lost and I don't know how to get back you keep on going in the same direction. You put one foot in front of the other until you get more lost. Everybody should know that. Especially you, Jack Sawyer.† â€Å"Especial † Before he can finish the question, an elderly woman with a lined, sweet face appears beside him and touches his shoulder. â€Å"Excuse me.† She tucks her chin toward her throat with the shyness of a child. â€Å"I want to ask you a question. Are you my father?† Jack smiles at her. â€Å"Let me ask you a question first. Is your name Estelle Packard?† Eyes shining, the old woman nods. â€Å"Then yes, I am your father.† Estelle Packard clasps her hands in front of her mouth, dips her head in a bow, and shuffles backward, glowing with pleasure. When she is nine or ten feet away, she gives Jack a little bye-bye wave of one hand and twirls away. When Jack looks again at Judy Marshall, it is as if she has parted her veil of ordinariness just wide enough to reveal a small portion of her enormous soul. â€Å"You're a very nice man, aren't you, Jack Sawyer? I wouldn't have known that right away. You're a good man, too. Of course, you're also charming, but charm and decency don't always go together. Should I tell you a few other things about yourself ?† Jack looks up at Fred, who is holding his wife's hand and beaming. â€Å"I want you to say whatever you feel like saying.† â€Å"There are things I can't say, no matter how I feel, but you might hear them anyhow. I can say this, however: your good looks haven't made you vain. You're not shallow, and that might have something to do with it. Mainly, though, you had the gift of a good upbringing. I'd say you had a wonderful mother. I'm right, aren't I?† Jack laughs, touched by this unexpected insight. â€Å"I didn't know it showed.† â€Å"You know one way it shows? In the way you treat other people. I'm pretty sure you come from a background people around here only know from the movies, but it hasn't gone to your head. You see us as people, not hicks, and that's why I know I can trust you. It's obvious that your mother did a great job. I was a good mother, too, or at least I tried to be, and I know what I'm talking about. I can see.† â€Å"You say you were a good mother? Why use â€Å" â€Å"The past tense? Because I was talking about before.† Fred's smile fades into an expression of ill-concealed concern. â€Å"What do you mean, ‘before'?† â€Å"Mr. Sawyer might know,† she says, giving Jack what he thinks is a look of encouragement. â€Å"Sorry, I don't think I do,† he says. â€Å"I mean, before I wound up here and finally started to think a little bit. Before the things that were happening to me stopped scaring me out of my mind before I realized I could look inside myself and examine these feelings I've had over and over all my life. Before I had time to travel. I think I'm still a good mother, but I'm not exactly the same mother.† â€Å"Honey, please,† says Fred. â€Å"You are the same, you just had a kind of breakdown. We ought to talk about Tyler.† â€Å"We are talking about Tyler. Mr. Sawyer, do you know that lookout point on Highway 93, right where it reaches the top of the big hill about a mile south of Arden?† â€Å"I saw it today,† Jack says. â€Å"Fred showed it to me.† â€Å"You saw all those farms that keep going and going? And the hills off in the distance?† â€Å"Yes. Fred told me you loved the view from up there.† â€Å"I always want to stop and get out of the car. I love everything about that view. You can see for miles and miles, and then whoops! it stops, and you can't see any farther. But the sky keeps going, doesn't it? The sky proves that there's a world on the other side of those hills. If you travel, you can get there.† â€Å"Yes, you can.† Suddenly, there are goose bumps on Jack's forearms, and the back of his neck is tingling. â€Å"Me? I can only travel in my mind, Mr. Sawyer, and I only remembered how to do that because I landed in the loony bin. But it came to me that you can get there to the other side of the hills.† His mouth is dry. He registers Fred Marshall's growing distress without being able to reduce it. Wanting to ask her a thousand questions, he begins with the simplest one: â€Å"How did it come to you? What do you mean by that?† Judy Marshall takes her hand from her husband and holds it out to Jack, and he holds it in both of his. If she ever looked like an ordinary woman, now is not the time. She is blazing away like a lighthouse, like a bonfire on a distant cliff. â€Å"Let's say . . . late at night, or if I was alone for a long time, someone used to whisper to me. It wasn't that concrete, but let's say it was as if a person were whispering on the other side of a thick wall. A girl like me, a girl my age. And if I fell asleep then, I would almost always dream about the place where that girl lived. I called it Faraway, and it was like this world, the Coulee Country, only brighter and cleaner and more magical. In Faraway, people rode in carriages and lived in great white tents. In Faraway, there were men who could fly.† â€Å"You're right,† he says. Fred looks from his wife to Jack in painful uncertainty, and Jack says, â€Å"It sounds crazy, but she's right.† â€Å"By the time these bad things started to happen in French Landing, I had pretty much forgotten about Faraway. I hadn't thought about it since I was about twelve or thirteen. But the closer the bad things came, to Fred and Ty and me, I mean, the worse my dreams got, and the less and less real my life seemed to be. I wrote words without knowing I was doing it, I said crazy things, I was falling apart. I didn't understand that Faraway was trying to tell me something. The girl was whispering to me from the other side of the wall again, only now she was grown up and scared half to death.† â€Å"What made you think I could help?† â€Å"It was just a feeling I had, back when you arrested that Kinderling man and your picture was in the paper. The first thing I thought when I looked at your picture was, He knows about Faraway. I didn't wonder how, or how I could tell from looking at a picture; I simply understood that you knew. And then, when Ty disappeared and I lost my mind and woke up in this place, I thought if you could see into some of these people's heads, Ward D wouldn't be all that different from Faraway, and I remembered seeing your picture. And that's when I started to understand about traveling. All this morning, I have been walking through Faraway in my head. Seeing it, touching it. Smelling that unbelievable air. Did you know, Mr. Sawyer, that over there they have jackrabbits the size of kangaroos? It makes you laugh just to look at them.† Jack breaks into a wide grin, and he bends to kiss her hand, in a gesture much like her husband's. Gently, she takes her hand from his grasp. â€Å"When Fred told me he had met you, and that you were helping the police, I knew that you were here for a reason.† What this woman has done astonishes Jack. At the worst moment of her life, with her son lost and her sanity crumbling, she used a monumental feat of memory to summon all of her strength and, in effect, accomplish a miracle. She found within herself the capacity to travel. From a locked ward, she moved halfway out of this world and into another known only from childhood dreams. Nothing but the immense courage her husband had described could have enabled her to have taken this mysterious step. â€Å"You did something once, didn't you?† Judy asks him. â€Å"You were there, in Faraway, and you did something something tremendous. You don't have to say yes, because I can see it in you; it's as plain as day. But you have to say yes, so I can hear it, so say it, say yes.† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Did what?† Fred asks. â€Å"In this dream country? How can you say yes?† â€Å"Wait,† Jack tells him, â€Å"I have something to show you later,† and returns to the extraordinary woman seated before him. Judy Marshall is aflame with insight, courage, and faith and, although she is forbidden to him, now seems to be the only woman in this world or any other whom he could love for the rest of his life. â€Å"You were like me,† she says. â€Å"You forgot all about that world. And you went out and became a policeman, a detective. In fact, you became one of the best detectives that ever lived. Do you know why you did that?† â€Å"I guess the work appealed to me.† â€Å"What about it appealed to you in particular?† â€Å"Helping the community. Protecting innocent people. Putting away the bad guys. It was interesting work.† â€Å"And you thought it would never stop being interesting. Because there would always be a new problem to solve, a new question in need of an answer.† She has struck a bull's-eye that, until this moment, he did not know existed. â€Å"That's right.† â€Å"You were a great detective because, even though you didn't know it, there was something something vital you needed to detect.† I am a coppiceman, Jack remembers. His own little voice in the night, speaking to him from the other side of a thick, thick wall. â€Å"Something you had to find, for the sake of your own soul.† â€Å"Yes,† Jack says. Her words have penetrated straight into the center of his being, and tears spring to his eyes. â€Å"I always wanted to find what was missing. My whole life was about the search for a secret explanation.† In memory as vivid as a strip of film, he sees a great tented pavilion, a white room where a beautiful and wasted queen lay dying, and a little girl two or three years younger than his twelve-year-old self amid her attendants. â€Å"Did you call it Faraway?† Judy asks. â€Å"I called it the Territories.† Speaking the words aloud feels like the opening of a chest filled with a treasure he can share at last. â€Å"That's a good name. Fred won't understand this, but when I was on my long walk this morning, I felt that my son was somewhere in Faraway in your Territories. Somewhere out of sight, and hidden away. In grave danger, but still alive and unharmed. In a cell. Sleeping on the floor. But alive. Unharmed. Do you think that could be true, Mr. Sawyer?† â€Å"Wait a second,† Fred says. â€Å"I know you feel that way, and I want to believe it, too, but this is the real world we're talking about here.† â€Å"I think there are lots of real worlds,† Jack says. â€Å"And yes, I believe Tyler is somewhere in Faraway.† â€Å"Can you rescue him, Mr. Sawyer? Can you bring him back?† â€Å"It's like you said before, Mrs. Marshall,† Jack says. â€Å"I must be here for a reason.† â€Å"Sawyer, I hope whatever you're going to show me makes more sense than the two of you do,† says Fred. â€Å"We're through for now, anyhow. Here comes the warden.† Driving out of the hospital parking lot, Fred Marshall glances at the briefcase lying flat on Jack's lap but says nothing. He holds his silence until he turns back onto 93, when he says, â€Å"I'm glad you came with me.† â€Å"Thank you,† Jack says. â€Å"I am, too.† â€Å"I feel sort of out of my depth here, you know, but I'd like to get your impressions of what went on in there. Do you think it went pretty well?† â€Å"I think it went better than that. Your wife is . . . I hardly know how to describe her. I don't have the vocabulary to tell you how great I think she is.† Fred nods and sneaks a glance at Jack. â€Å"So you don't think she's out of her head, I guess.† â€Å"If that's crazy, I'd like to be crazy right along with her.† The two-lane blacktop highway that stretches before them lifts up along the steep angle of the hillside and, at its top, seems to extend into the dimensionless blue of the enormous sky. Another wary glance from Fred. â€Å"And you say you've seen this, this place she calls Faraway.† â€Å"I have, yes. As hard as that is to believe.† â€Å"No crap. No b.s. On your mother's grave.† â€Å"On my mother's grave.† â€Å"You've been there. And not just in a dream, really been there.† â€Å"The summer I was twelve.† â€Å"Could I go there, too?† â€Å"Probably not,† Jack says. This is not the truth, since Fred could go to the Territories if Jack took him there, but Jack wants to shut this door as firmly as possible. He can imagine bringing Judy Marshall into that other world; Fred is another matter. Judy has more than earned a journey into the Territories, while Fred is still incapable of believing in its existence. Judy would feel at home over there, but her husband would be like an anchor Jack had to drag along with him, like Richard Sloat. â€Å"I didn't think so,† says Fred. â€Å"If you don't mind, I'd like to pull over again when we get to the top.† â€Å"I'd like that,† Jack says. Fred drives to the crest of the hill and crosses the narrow highway to park in the gravel turnout. Instead of getting out of the car, he points at the briefcase lying flat on Jack's knees. â€Å"Is what you're going to show me in there?† â€Å"Yes,† Jack says. â€Å"I was going to show it to you earlier, but after we stopped here the first time, I wanted to wait until I heard what Judy had to say. And I'm glad I did. It might make more sense to you, now that you've heard at least part of the explanation of how I found it.† Jack snaps open the briefcase, raises the top, and from its pale, leather-lined interior removes the Brewers cap he had found that morning. â€Å"Take a look,† he says, and hands over the cap. â€Å"Ohmygod,† Fred Marshall says in a startled rush of words. â€Å"Is this . . . is it . . . ?† He looks inside the cap and exhales hugely at the sight of his son's name. His eyes leap to Jack's. â€Å"It's Tyler's. Good Lord, it's Tyler's. Oh, Lordy.† He crushes the cap to his chest and takes two deep breaths, still holding Jack's gaze. â€Å"Where did you find this? How long ago was it?† â€Å"I found it on the road this morning,† Jack says. â€Å"In the place your wife calls Faraway.† With a long moan, Fred Marshall opens his door and jumps out of the car. By the time Jack catches up with him, he is at the far edge of the lookout, holding the cap to his chest and staring at the blue-green hills beyond the long quilt of farmland. He whirls to stare at Jack. â€Å"Do you think he's still alive?† â€Å"I think he's alive,† Jack says. â€Å"In that world.† Fred points to the hills. Tears leap from his eyes, and his mouth softens. â€Å"The world that's over there somewhere, Judy says.† â€Å"In that world.† â€Å"Then you go there and find him!† Fred shouts. His face shining with tears, he gestures wildly toward the horizon with the baseball cap. â€Å"Go there and bring him back, damn you! I can't do it, so you have to.† He steps forward as if to throw a punch, then wraps his arms around Jack Sawyer and sobs. When Fred's shoulders stop trembling and his breath comes in gasps, Jack says, â€Å"I'll do everything I can.† â€Å"I know you will.† He steps away and wipes his face. â€Å"I'm sorry I yelled at you like that. I know you're going to help us.† The two men turn around to walk back to the car. Far off to the west, a loose, woolly smudge of pale gray blankets the land beside the river. â€Å"What's that?† Jack asks. â€Å"Rain?† â€Å"No, fog,† Fred says. â€Å"Coming in off the Mississippi.†

Human Freedom Essay

In its simplest definition, freedom is the condition of being free from restraints. This condition can be experienced by any living things most especially humans. However, in the complexity of human rationality and mobility, freedom takes deeper meanings and perception depending on human condition and circumstances. The definition of human freedom ranges from philosophical to theological discussions and their translation into day to day experiences. Freedom is the ability of an individual to move freely, to act, to decide, to believe what he or she wants and to freely shape his or her existence without restraints or limitations. But in the context of culture, there has been no absolute freedom. Since time immemorial there has been limitations and boundaries created for humans not to fully exercise their freedom of being. Moreover, these boundaries leave the individual into facing the consequences of each action, decision or belief being made. The fact that we are governed by institutions and that there are strata in the society limits individuals exercise of freedom. On the other hand, the exercise of human freedom is not solely of the individual. There are many circumstances when freedom becomes of the community or society exercising it together at a given time. Though there are the so-called personal choices that individuals make on their own capacity to think and decide, more often than not, the result involves some people or a large scale community. The concept of freedom is often illustrated with being in jail or immobility. However, the â€Å"unfreedom† is more than the presence of structural restraints and limitations. Most of the time, the opposite of freedom is demonstrated in the level culture and the inability to access services provided by the society or government. Human Unfreedom For individuals to fully understand the concept of freedom, we must first understand the avenues where unfreedom is experienced. According to G. C. Berkouwer, â€Å"This ‘unfreedom’ is so evident and frequent in the history of mankind that we must all the impressed by it, by the impressive evidence of dictatorships, deportations, and all sorts of destruction of freedom; and besides, an individual may feel his freedom cramped by physical or psychical weakness, which hinders expression of man’s full nature. † Prior to dictatorships, culture is one of the primary restraints of freedom. For example, it is cultural that some parents chose the life path of their children. They direct them into what they want these children to become into the future thus hindering the development of individuality and exercising their own talents and gifts in the ways they see them fit their future. Laws, as part of culture, are undeniably limiting the exercise of freedom. Whether it’s logical to cross the street in the nearest possible point, the lawful is to cross using pedestrian lanes or footbridges or else suffer the consequences of being fined or imprisoned. Many people actually regard cultural norms and laws as restraints to the exercise of freedom and curtail their ability to explore what they want in shaping their lives and future. Many people take the risk of deviating from these regulations and boundaries to show an accomplishment in fostering their capability to think for themselves. The risk, however, involves other people in the community to serve as witnesses or critiques, moreover, individuals who diverted will suffer humiliation. The inability to access primary services and needs like clothing, shelter, food, health care and education also restricts the individuals’ or community’s exercise of freedom. When people, families or communities are denied of these basic rights, the freedom to act is also being restricted and denied. Food, shelter and clothing uplifts dignity to an individual. In a society where people are often judged by what they eat, wear or where they live, these needs should be supplied for an individual to exercise the freedom to be a part of a community whether of religious or secular. The denial or inaccessibility of quality education also threatens the exercise of freedom in many different ways. For example, people are classified according to their educational attainment or even to the schools or universities where they studied. Whether or not some individuals are qualified to a job post, they are judged according to how they dress or compose themselves and to the kind of community they come from. Fostering Freedom Given all the definitions above, there are still ways for individuals to fully exercise and foster their freedom of being and existence. Considering that limitations and restraints are already existing in any given form, be it cultural, social or governmental, the best way is to make freedom valuable and co-existent with the former. Following cultural norms could actually make an individual fully aware of his or her freedom of choice. It is a choice between social suffering and the freedom to be his- or herself amid restrictions. Following laws is best form of the exercise of freedom than being penalized as a consequence of disobeying. Freedom is being able to choose what it right at the right time and at the right place. For the children, older generation should allow them to exercise their freedom by teaching them the consequences of the opposite while enabling them to fully discover who they are in the process. Should parents be frustrated to what they have become, they should not turn to their children to fulfill to what they have not become; rather allow them to choose the life they want whenever they are already capable of doing so. Reference G. C. Berkouwer. (1962). Man: The Image of God. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, Mississippi. Retrieved April 9, 2009 from http://www. the-highway. com/freedom1_Berkouwer. html

A Place with the Pigs

A Place with the Pigs Essay Further expanding its extensive collection of Athol Fugards works, Theatre Communications Group has just published a new volume composed of Fugards latest South African drama, Playland, and an earlier, highly personal work, A Place with the Pigs.Playland charts the unlikely relationship between a white South African army veteran and a black amusement-park night watchman. The play, which was first published in the U.S. in the March 93 issue of American Theatre, continues Fugards tradition of fervently examining the toll his native nations politics has taken on its people. As they disassemble the legal barricades of apartheid, South Africans struggle with the emotional scars of their legacy and the overwhelming need for mutual forgiveness. The characters in Playland seek true redemption not in the grand proclamations of political discourse, but in the simple gestures between individualsa shared story, a handshake.Also examining guilt and forgiveness, A Place with the P occupies a unique position in Fugards canon. His only play not set in South Africa, Fugard has deemed it a personal parable, and the play reveals the authors stylistic range and waggish wit.The motivation to create A Place with the Pigs was unlike anything else that Ive chosen, Fugard explained to Gabrielle Cody and Joel Schechter in an 1987 interview for Theater magazine. At the time, Fugard was directing and starring in the plays premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre. If you take other plays, he said, there is the opportunity to say something about South Africa, and about broader issues, other than just Athol Fugard. But with A Place with the Pigs, the focus is intensely and purely myself.The inspiration for this singular play came one day in May 1985 from a small, rather unusual newspaper article. Soviet Deserter Discovered After 41 Years in a Pigsty, proclaimed the New York Times headline.After abandoning his Red Army unit during the desperate days of World War II, Pavel Navrotsky commenced a lifetime of self-imposed exile in his pigsty. Despite unimaginable years of personal grief and guilt, Navrotsky could not exorcise his sense of disgrace. When the terrified deserter came face to face with strangers for the first time in four decades, the article reported, all he could find to say was, Will I be punished?'Fugard appropriated Pavels tale, but not as a commentary on the Soviet Unions political or social reality. Despite its journalistic incipience, A Place with the Pigs leaves the real Pavel Navrotsky and his country behind and instead examines the interior landscape of the author, a vista Fugard represents with bold slashes of comic and linguistic color.Its a personal parable, Fugard said, because the style I have used as a writer is very different from that Ive used in plays in the past. It is not a slice of realism. Your whole vocabulary as a writer is very different when you move into the parable. Your gesture is broader, you are not bound by specific considerations of realism and authenticity.This is not the sort of play where you would ask, What sort of language is Pavel speaking? Did he go to a university? Is he a professor? If you ask that sort of question, you dont understand the rules of the game.The play portrays Pavel as an obsessive, blustering man. His self-involved guilt leads him to browbeat both himself and his wife, Praskovya, until finally, in desperation, he is inspired to act selflessly and thus begin the journey of self-redemption. There were a lot of intentions in writing this play, Fugard recounted, and one of them was just to have a lot of fun, a lot of joy and just to bounce the ball, the language ball. This brings us back to the fool: the stupid, pretentious dimensions of some of Pavels postures. He had to be able to reach out and pose in language. His great poses are verbal poses: |My soul, Praskovya, its my soul that bleeds . READ: Women In The Work Place Essay Those are poses. I also wanted the freedom to articulate in fine language Pavels journey in time away from himself.

War on marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

War on marijuana - Essay Example high school seniors have the highest rate among their peers in the industrial world (Author last name, date, p.278). It was the horror stories that spread in the US in the late 1960s that led to strict laws and their enforcement regarding drug use. Marijuana has been found to have the combined effect of the three categories of drugs-simulants such as cocaine and nicotine, depressants such as heroin and morphine and also hallucinogens such as LSD and MDMA- and this is why primarily marijuana is considered more dangerous than other drugs to the health of the user (Author last name, date, p.270). Compared to other drugs, Marijuana is the most used drug in the US and â€Å"the sharpest increase in drug use has occurred among young teens around Age 13†, who are the future of any given society (Author last name, date, p.279). Another danger inherent with this drug use is that it can act as a stimulant for the users to experiment with more dangerous drugs (Author last name, date, p.2 72). And also there has been a strong link found between drug use and crime (Author last name, date, p.280). It has been proved that â€Å"close to half of the crime suspects arrested in the United States had used illegal drugs in the prior three days† (Author last name, date, p.281).

The affect of personal characteristics on negotiation Essay

The affect of personal characteristics on negotiation - Essay Example For instance, Miles, Hatfield and Huseman (1989) identified a spectrum of individuals who have different equity preferences. That's why in negotiations it could be unreasonable to adhere strictly to Adams' 'norm of equity', because bargainers' perception of what if 'fair' may be arbitrary. There exist two approaches to buyer-seller encounters in literature (Bazerman et al., 2000; Barry & Friedman, 1998): cooperative and/or problem-solving approach, and distributive and/or competitive. The first type, known also as integrative approach, presupposes conflict resolution, integration, and information exchange among buyers and sellers (Bazerman et al., 2000; Barry & Friedman, 1998; Pruitt, 1981). The competitive or distributive strategy involves threats and excessive demands, seeks to win concessions at the counterpart's expense (Barry & Friedman, 1998; Perdue & Summers, 1991). Miles, Hatfield and Huseman (1987) stayed that equity sensitivity is an individual difference that influence how individuals react to inequity. Equity sensitivity is a 'person's perception of what is and what is not equity and then uses that information to make predictions about reactions to inequity' (King, Miles and Day 1993, p.135). For example, on the one end of the continuum there are the benevolents, or 'givers' who express high satisfaction in relation to others when their output/input ratios are less than the comparison other; they have higher tolerance for under-reward. Also at mid-range there are the equity sensitives, who most closely adhere to the traditional norm of equity (where inputs and outputs are balanced) (Allen & White, 2002). On the other end of the continuum are 'takers', who are most satisfied when they receive more outcomes than inputs (King, Miles & Day, 1993). According to King, Miles & Day (1993), benevolent negotiators, or 'givers', won't provide more in puts, in comparison to their outputs, to their counterparts. In the negotiations these inputs appear in the form of sharing information, making concessions changes, and discussing preferences among bargaining parties, which are critical elements of the cooperative problem-solving strategy. Entitleds, or 'takers' focus on themselves and the outcomes, and are more likely to take action to rectify any imbalance in the input/output ration when compared to their counterparts (Allen & White, 2002; Miles, Hatfield and Huseman, 1989). In the negotiation process entitleds are likely to be less cooperative than their counterparts. So that, it could be expected the following strategies to take place: H1: Benevolent negotiators will demonstrate more cooperative behaviours than entitled negotiators. Because they are more concerned with the outcomes of the bargaining activity and are more likely to follow the cooperative manner of behaviour, they place higher importance to intristic outcomes such as cooperation (King, Miles & Day, 1993). As a result, a positive connection exists between equity sensitivity and negotiators' perceptions of their cooperative behavi

Profissonal development and communication skills in english Coursework

Profissonal development and communication skills in english - Coursework Example In this formula; b is the peak induction, f is magnetsing frequency, A is the cross sectional area of the sample and n is the number of turns of the search coil around this sample. In order to evaluate the Curie temperature, a sample of the sheet metal is placed in an insulated temperature controlled furnace, which is then heated above its curie point. The sample is then let cool using a low frequency 10hz magnetic field. Curie temperature is established by measuring magnetic induction and induction-temperature. The experiment was conducted using the following materials: a furnace tube, a solenoid tube, a secondary tube, two identical search coils and a sample sheet. The arrangement of above materials is illustrated in Figure 1. The search coils were wound around a smaller tube, which was inserted inside another longer and larger tube in a way that the axes of both tubes aligned together. The solenoid was wound around the larger tube. The entire construction was then inserted inside the furnace tube. The furnace was heated approximately to 840 C; because of it, the solenoid and the search coil also got heated to the same temperature. The steel sample was then inserted into one of the two search coils as shown in the figure 1. After a period, the sample, solenoid and the furnace reached the same temperature. The furnace was switched off, and the solenoid was switched on once the entire system reached the temperature equilibrium. The sample was then allowed to cool unforced. The experiment used 30 x 28 mm steel samples of various thickness; cross-sectional areas of the samples are shown in the attached table. The use of two identical search coils in series connection eliminated air flux induction, thus ensuring that the induced EMF was caused by the sample magnetisation alone from an uniform magnetic field produced by the solenoid. The solenoid used a sinusoidal time varying magnetic field; the strength of it

Relationship Between Accounting, Accountability and Organizational Essay

Relationship Between Accounting, Accountability and Organizational Control - Essay Example The researcher states that accounting is more than bookkeeping, and is concerned about how these records are put, the analysis of the records and also interpretation. An accountant is concerned with the relationship between the financial results and the events that have led to them. They do study various alternatives that are available to the business and use their knowledge acquired in the accounting field to help managers select the best action plan. Shareholders and management need knowledge in this field so that they get to understand what accountants tell them. Investors also need this knowledge so that they can read and understand the financial statement issued by the business. Since it is a business language all the stakeholders of a business will want to know whether the organization is making a profit or not. It will also help show if the business will meet its commitment as they fall due and not run into bankruptcy. These are only answered by use of accounting information o f the company which can be derived by the equation given by, Total Assets= Total Liabilities + Capital Accountability means taking the responsibility or obligation by an individual or an organization. It has to be done in a transparent manner. The responsibility can take the form of money or properties. In relation to accounting, it takes the form of integrity. That is to say that, the accountant has to be able to take responsibility on any issue regarding the transaction of the firm. Organizations do undertake so many activities on a daily basis. Such activities include the purchase of raw materials for the daily operation of the firm, receiving of payments from the customers, banking of the cash received on a daily basis. All these activities involve transactions and hence there is the responsibility for each and every activity. Each is assigned some duty to be undertaken. The three are related to the following perspectives: a) Performances, there is a high degree required while u ndertaking the three issues. This is because in accounting, an individual performance in meeting different objectives of stakeholders of the firm; accountability takes the form of responsibility and obligation of an individual. The responsibility can be in the form of money or properties. Organizational control is important to the general functioning of an enterprise. It entails planning of what is desired; setting good standards, monitoring the performance of the firm; measuring performance - comparing actual output with that which is expected; and taking accurate measures to correct discrepancies. b) Integrity, The three are pegged on integrity. For example, in accounting, the financial information of the company is prepared on the rules and guidelines of accounting worldwide; accountability, on the other hand, gives obligations to an individual. Organizational control gives an illustration of the level of monitoring and feedback, which is achieved by implementing internal control s. It follows a control loop of assessing systems and procedures, establishing appropriate controls, evaluating outputs and adjusting where necessary. The working definition of the concept of accountability and its relationship to accounting Since accountability refers to a capability of being held responsible for something or being held to account, scrutinized and being required to give an account.

Students behavior Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Students behavior - Research Paper Example The sources were evaluated by the date they were published so as not to use outdated information irrelevant to our research. The scope of this research involves a combination of both primary and secondary sources to present arguments that can stand up for critic. The frame of the current investigations looks at the various way ways youths have taken over the running of their countries, their contribution to peace, violence and nation building. Majority of this research occurred in the United Kingdom, Nigeria and India for the sole reason of finding out what the unlimited potential the youth can provide in a country and how their lives can be improved. My response to the current conversation is that the vision of our nation lies in the hands of our young people. They are loaded with enormous and towering aspirations. It will be an incredible wastage of human assets if these adolescents are not given a chance to practice their ability. My contribution here is that our governments shoul d ensure that youths are provided with the resources that they need so as to lift the economies of their respective countries as it has already been established that the youths are the backbone and the most hardworking and young people out there. My personal reflections here are that it remains to be discovered a world where the youth in a country are free from poverty, inequality, exploitation, and discrimination based on their gender, race or language. The question that remains on my mind is, will this ever be achieved or are we living in a pipe dream or simply kidding ourselves. The Keywords used are: poverty, inequality, exploitation, discrimination, violence, society Discussion Background The part of the adolescent youths is the most paramount in today's world. They have underplayed themselves in the field of the governmental issues. People are saying the youth are solid constrains in social developments adolescents are issue solvers. Our countries require them to advance the g reater part of our problems. Countries are nowadays confronting a considerable measure of issues, and I accept that the adolescents are fit for fathoming them. They recently need to be given an opportunity to substantiate themselves. Adolescents have the ability to unite people of different ethnicities. Bigotry is also another continuous issue around the globe. People are battling against one another due to the complexity of one’s skin. The key terms that should be of note to the reader are, violence, unemployment, poverty, joblessness, inequality and exploitation. The summaries of the sources that were of much use to me during this research were as follows: The powerful role of youths in nation building is crucial, the have a positive influence on their fellow young people and are extremely good problem solvers. (Saskian1, 2013) Young people are very crucial to the growth of any society. Without well-schooled youths and empowerment of them, no current society can have the re quired harmony to jump track development. (Joel Samuel Feyisola, 2013) Response My reactions to the current conversation is that, without the empowerment of youth, levels of crime could hit rock high as the unemployed youth would turn to rob fellow citizens of the society they live in, unemployed youth can also cause destruction of

Response and Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Response and Analysis - Essay Example As a result, of intimidation, women suffer in silences. Therefore, it is prudent for Jane to roll up an activism campaign against gender discrimination. Consequently, she will free suffering women from the hand of discriminative husbands. If she pursues the course of activism, men will not impose laws that make it mandatory for women to put on veils. Mary Jane’s father is a significant character in the novel. As witnessed from the story, the father played an important role in informing her about Iranian history. From the father’s narration, Mary Jane understands the extent to which the Muslim laws are misused. On the other hand, the role played by her mother is equally significant. The fathers’ information highlights that not all men support unfair laws. Equally important to mention, the farther inspires Mary Jane to strive for an equitable society. This courage is evident in Mary Jane’s habit of slapping disrespect men. The father’s refusal to leave Iran confirms his desire to ensure that all individuals enjoy equal treatment. This brave act is a show of patriotism and his commitment towards accomplishing change in a fundamentalist religious

The doctrine of Christ and Holy Spirit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The doctrine of Christ and Holy Spirit - Essay Example Throughout his explanation, he desires to reintroduce the ideologies that attempted to rationalize the principles of scripture and depict why they fell off the mark. His writings seeks to instruct the essentials of Christ's time and purpose on earth. He brings forth wisdom as well as understanding by dismantling the dogmas into rudimentary form. Core issues: One of the key fundamental issues that give Christendom its grandiose power and influence is the doctrinal divine mystery of Christ. Grudem illuminated that essential aspect one must know is that he was fully God and man. He addresses the cynics and teaches believers that the being of Christ had to fully manifest in both entities to be our atonement for our sins. "The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God." (Luke 1: 35; cf. 3: 23) The Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary, mother of Jesus, is didactic of illustrating that salvation can only come from God without the aid of human effort -other than utilizing Mary as human vessel. Furthermore, Grudem set out to promulgate that Christ is the fusion of God and man without original sin. Christ's holiness seems to bedazzle many sceptics as to Jesus' sinlessness. Many wonder how can Jesus be sinless if his mother was a descendent of the sinful Adam. The dogmas of Catholicism assert that Mary was also without sin and transferred that characteristic via womb to Jesus. Grudem, however, extirpates that assertion and instructs that the union of God and man prevented Jesus from sinning. (Pg. 538) Grudem hypothetically raised the question of the... Purpose of Book: His purpose throughout this book, especially through this section (The Doctrine of Christ and Holy Spirit) is instruct and explain the fundamental dogmas of Christianity. Throughout his explanation, he desires to reintroduce the ideologies that attempted to rationalize the principles of scripture and depict why they fell off the mark. His writings seeks to instruct the essentials of Christ's time and purpose on earth. He brings forth wisdom as well as understanding by dismantling the dogmas into rudimentary form. Grudem also illuminated the relevancy of Jesus ministry on earth through several points. Not only was he the atonement of sin but also a laymen's example of walking in the Christian faith, a mediator between God and men, the fulfilment of God's original purpose on earth, and a sympathetic high priest that can understand the struggles of man. Ultimately, Grudem claims, based on scripture, the Jesus was both fully God and fully man. After making that claim, he attempts to discredit other variations of the duality of Christ. Apollinarianism was a teaching deemed a heresy because it fell short of matching the description of Christ engendered in the bible. Apollinaris, who became bishop in Laodicea, France, taught that the entity of Christ was a mixture of flesh and spirit.

Persuasive Speech Essay Example for Free

Persuasive Speech Essay I. Introduction â€Å"The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently.† This quote by Friedrich Nietzsche speaks volumes toward the importance of individuality and self-expression. It shows how conformity can lead to complacency and â€Å"corrupt† our most valuable resource, our youth. School uniforms do just that. The requirement of school uniforms can cause more problems than they solve ranging from elevated stress levels to legal issues. People will always have their opinions on the benefits of school uniforms though it’s important to consider both sides of the argument as well as considering other options such as the option of a dress code. Growing up in Salina, Kansas left me with only a few educational options; of three schools, two are public. Which public school you attend is determined by where your residence is in correlation with pre determined district zones. Having never been subject to uniforms I can’t personally speak for their pros or cons, I can however give insight into the liberty and self-expression I experienced by attending a public school that implemented the use of a dress code instead of a strict uniform policy. II. More harm than good A. As more and more people are beginning to associate with the opinion of school uniforms being a beneficial policy, they neglect to take into account how it individually affects each of the students. B. School uniforms are usually expensive and are often times, expected to be purchased by the student’s family. This can raise stress in the home environment due to economic strain on the household creating a less than satisfactory place to study. C. According to Scholastic Scope, another point to consider is that of vanity. Uniforms can be uncomfortable and less flattering to certain body types than others causing the student to become more stressed and anxious than before. D. In addition many researchers believe that uniforms inhibit self-expression and can cause more problems through students â€Å"acting out† (Lauren, Tarshis, 2011). III. Effect on Behavioral Problems A. It’s hard to pinpoint what makes a student behave inappropriately. What’s even more difficult is finding a solution for what’s causing them to do so. For years, people had thought school uniforms could be the solution to behavioral problems with in our academic system stating that they would make it an equal environment where a student didn’t have to worry about what they wore, and how they would stand out in a positive or negative way. B. Initially, in a study conducted from school years 1995-1997 at the elementary school level researchers found that after implementing school uniforms, behavioral problems within the schools studied actually declined. C. Though this argument seems logical, further research proved this theory to be incorrect. In a 1998 study, researchers D. Brunsma and K. Rockquemore found that when other factors were taken into account school uniforms had little to no effect on behavior within the school. They also found that uniforms had no effect on such things as substance abuse, school attendance, and crime within the academic institutions researched (Tanner, 2010). D. School uniforms do provide an equal setting to learn, that much is true, but the problem lies within. If a student feels suffocated by conformity, the student may act out in an attempt to individualize him or herself and stand out in the crowd. E. Without a proper foundation built on research, it’s impossible to say uniforms are beneficial. IV. Legality A. In addition to a lack of a strong foundation built on research, the requirement of school uniforms brings up a legal debate, one of constitutional rights. B. In the case of Tinker v. Des Moines, (1969) it was ruled unconstitutional to force the requirement of school uniforms on the public school system. This was ruled unconstitutional due to infringing on the first amendment right of freedom of speech. It’s stated that you have the right to express your thoughts and opinions on a controversial topic through the attire you choose to wear. (Tinker, 1969). C. A school uniform policy may also force someone to wear something that goes against their religious beliefs, adding fuel to the controversy. D. It’s important to keep in mind how wide of a variety of students attend public schools. If they are truly available to anyone, then you must make the policies flexible for everyone. V. Other options A. To allow for individuality as well as maintaining an equal learning experience for every student, there’s another option to take into consideration. B. One option is tightening dress codes within the school. Instead of a strict uniform based policy, this would allow students to express themselves and remain individuals while still being able to relate with one another, not alienating any student from the other. C. Some of the inner cities that have adopted the uniform policy are finding many students have difficulty paying for the expensive attire. This would also allow for students to have the option to purchase cheaper clothing, still within the dress code. VI. Other argument A. Though there isn’t a strong foundation for research of the subject, many remain convinced that uniforms are the best way to help our public school system. They believe how a student perceives their academic institution plays a major role in how the student performs. B. A students perception of their academic institution and the environment within them is referred to as school climate and is determined with the use of surveys categorized into subscales. C. The National Association of Secondary School principals conducted a study that with the use of surveys such as this, attempted to determine if school climate was better within schools that required the use of uniforms. D. The study proved uniforms to be beneficial with students reporting climate as more positive in 9 out of 10 subscales (Murray,1997). E. With that being said, a students perception of their schools environment is only a fraction of what makes an equal and efficient learning environment for the entire studen t body. VII. Conclusion As John F. Kennedy once said, â€Å"Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.† Whether or not the requirement of school uniforms is a beneficial addition to the public school system will continue to remain a controversial issue though the true controversy lies within the uniform policy itself. Self-expression is an important aspect in shaping a person into who they are. So in order for our public school system and the pupils within it to grow and develop through success, it’s our responsibility to keep uniforms out of our public school system.

Christian and Hopefuls escape from Doubting Castle Essay Example for Free

Christian and Hopefuls escape from Doubting Castle Essay Write a critical analysis of the extract (Christian and Hopefuls escape from Doubting Castle) discussing the characteristic features of Bunyans Style. Bunyan uses allegory and symbolism throughout Part one. This symbolism is used very effectively in this extract; we can see the powerful images that relate to the spiritual nature of the characters. Doubt is powerful and Bunyan emphasises the danger and trappings of doubt through dramatic phraseology and strong physical images: A very dark Dungeon, nasty and stinking to the Spirit of these two men. Bunyans dramatization of these events reflects also on the escape from the castle. Bunyan epitomises the ultimate despair in order to generate the joy and delight produced in the escape. This allows the reader to view the hope and joy that is present in the promises of God: there to condole their misery, and to mourn under their distress. And the door flew open with ease, and Christian and Hopeful both came out Bunyan also implements the use of dynamic verbs such as flew this makes the reader aware of the ease with which doubt is broken. The discovery of the key of promise, which frees Christian and Hopeful from Doubting Castle; shows the reader the hope that remains even in the toughest of situations. Bunyan tries to make the reader aware of the danger of doubt through symbolism. This allows the reader to be cautious of doubt in his or her own life. This is typical of Bunyan, as his work tends to guide to correction, encourage and to issue caution: Thats good news, good brother, pluck it out of thy bosom and try. Christians realisation of foolishness has the effect of reinforcing the promise of Hope. Bunyans representation of this in the form of a speech allows Christian to persuade the reader to correct their foolish ways: What a Fool, quoth he, am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty? Bunyans use of rhetorical questioning through Christians speech have the effect of encouraging the reader to question themselves. They also challenge the institution of doubt. Throughout part one we see the use of dialogue to encourage or reassure the characters. In this extract we can also view this as Hopeful speaks to Christian and questions his doubt over the situation: ; My brother, said he, rememberest thou not how valiant thou hast been heretofore? This has the effect of not only giving reassurance and encouragement to the characters but also to the reader. The use of pausing ensures that it is well understood. Bunyan uses imagery to create Giant Despair, a large and imposing figure this has the effect of showing the powerful and controlling nature of doubt. However Bunyan also recreates the image of the giant to facilitate the ideas and concepts he wishes. As the escape progresses the reader sees that the large and powerful image is not all that is seems and indeed it eventually leads to its own downfall. Bunyan uses this situation to warn and encourage the reader. It allows them to see that even though trials engulf they never actually succeed. Giant Despair, who, hastily rising to pursue his prisoners, felt his limbs to fail, for his fits took him again, so he could by no means go after them. Bunyan uses the Giants wife, Mrs Diffidence, to show the lack of direction that doubt has. It is created by the person and has no power. This has the effect of showing the reader that there is nothing that is worth doubt it is a formality and should be regarded as such. This dramatic characterisation helps to indicate that hope is important and in the setting of this journey it is hope that eventually conquers the situation. Bunyan shows the despondency and discouraging nature of the castle through Hopefuls speech however he also corrects their self-indulgence later in the speech with desire for patience and reliance on God from Hopeful: Also cut off the bread and water from my mouth, and with thee I mourn the light. But let us exercise a little more patience; remember.. The use of such dialogue relates also with Bunyans reliance on the bible as these descriptions may have also linked with the spiritual needs of a Christian. Bunyan uses the very low nature and despair created by doubt and allows the reader to see that hope was always present even if it was not always obvious to the characters. Bunyans use of dialogue extends beyond the pilgrims to the Giant and his wife, Mrs Diffidence. Then he asked her also what he had best to do further to them. So she asked him what they were, whence they came, and whither they were bound; and he told her. Then she counselled him that when he arose in the morning he should beat them without any mercy. This gives insight to the reader and creates dramatic irony, as the reader is aware of the weakness of the trials. One of Bunyans aims when writing The Pilgrims Progress was the instruction of Christians and throughout this extract we can see the encouragement and warnings that he provides and the way in which his writing reflects the authorial intention of the didactic purpose. Hopeful relates the experience of doubting castle to some of the earlier events in the book such as; the meeting with Apollyon and the valley of the Shadow of death. This has the effect of providing a link between the episodes of the dream, it helps to emphasise the representation of a journey and creates a development within the characters. Bunyan combines many different techniques and forms in the extract but the most effective of these is the dialogue between the pilgrims and also between their tormentors. Then, with a grim and surly voice, he bid them awake; and asked them whence they were, and what they did in his grounds. They told him they were pilgrims, and that they had lost their way. This speech allows the reader to be aware of the characters thoughts and emotions; and to immediately identify the characters motives. This also has the effect of furthering Bunyans didactic purpose. The combination of the many effects within The Pilgrims Progress allows it to be enjoyable to all and make it still appreciated from a literary perspective.

Communication Skills in Nursing

Communication Skills in Nursing Communication is a vital part of the nurses role. Theorists such as Peplau (1952), Rogers (1970) and King (1971) all emphasise therapeutic communication as a primary part of nursing and a major focus of nursing practice. Long (1992) further suggests that communication contains many components including presence, listening, perception, caring, disclosure, acceptance, empathy, authenticity and respect. Stuart and Sundeen (1991, p.127) warn that while communication can facilitate the development of a therapeutic relationship it can also create barriers between clients and colleagues. Within Healthcare, communication may be described as a transitional process that is dynamic and constantly changing (Hargie, Saunders and Dickenson, 1994, p.329). It primarily involves communication between the nurse and the patient. If the interaction is to be meaningful, information should be exchanged; this involves the nurse adopting a planned, holistic approach which eventually forms the basis of a therapeutic relationship. Fielding and Llewelyn (1987) contend that poor communication is the primary cause of complaints by patients. This is supported by Young (1995) who reports that one third of complaints to the Health Service Commissioner were related to communication with nursing staff. Studies by Boore (1979) and Devine and Cook (1983) demonstrate that good communication actually assisted the rate of patient recovery thus reducing hospital admission times. This suggests that good communication skills are cost effective. In this assignment, I have reflected on situations that have taken place during my clinical work experience. These situations have helped to develop and utilise my interpersonal skills, helping to maintain therapeutic relationships with patients. In this instance, I have used Gibbs (1988) reflective cycle as the framework for my reflection. Gibbs (1988) reflective cycle consists of six stages in nursing practice and learning from the experiences. Description of the situation that arose. Conclusion of what else would I could have done. Action plan is there so I can prepare if the situation rises again. Analysis of the feeling Evaluation of the experience Analysis to make sense of the experience My Reflective Cycle Baird and Winter (2005) illustrate the importance of reflective practice. They state that reflecting will help to generate knowledge and professional practice, increase ones ability to adapt to new situations, develop self esteem and greater job satisfaction. However, Siviter (2004) explains that reflection is about gaining self confidence, identifying ways to improve, learning from ones own mistakes and behaviour, looking at other peoples perspectives, being self aware and making future improvements by learning from the past. I have come to realise that it is important for me to improve and build therapeutic relationships with my patients by helping to establish a rapport through trust and mutual understanding, creating the special link between patient and nurse as described by Harkreader and Hogan (2004). Peplau (1952), cited in Harkreader and Hogan (2004), notes that good contact in therapeutic relationships builds trust as well as raising the patients self esteem, often leading t o the patients personal growth. Ruesh (1961), cited in Arnold and Boggs (2007), states that the purpose of therapeutic communication is to improve the patients ability to function. Therefore, in order to establish a therapeutic nurse/patient interaction, a nurse must possess certain qualities e.g. caring, sincerity, empathy and trustworthiness (Kathol, 2003) (P.33). These qualities can be expressed by promoting effective communication and relationships by the implementation of interpersonal skills. Johnson (2008) defines interpersonal skills as the ability to communicate effectively. Chitty and Black (2007, p 218) mention that communication is the exchange of information, thoughts and ideas via simultaneous verbal and non verbal communication. They explain that while verbal communication relies on the spoken word, non-verbal communication is just as important, consisting of gestures, postures, facial expressions, plus the tone and level of volume of ones voice. Thus, my reflection i n this assignment is based on the development of therapeutic relationships between the nurse and patient using interpersonal skills. My reflection is about a particular patient, to whom, in order to maintain patient information confidentiality (NMC, 2004), I will refer to as Mr R. It concerns an event which took place when I was working on a surgical ward. Whilst there were male and female wards, female and male surgical patients were encouraged mingle. On this particular day, I noticed that one of the male patients was sitting alone on his bed. This was Mr R., a 64 year old gentleman who had been diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the pancreas, with a life expectancy of 18-24 months. He was unable to control his pain, and whilst some relief could be provided by chemotherapy, Mr R. had a good understanding of his condition and knew that there was no cure available. He was unable to walk by himself and always needed assistance even to stand up or sit down. Because of his mobility problems I offered to get him his cup of tea and I then sat with him as he was lonely. I would now like to discuss the feelings and thoughts I experienced at the time. Before I gave Mr R. his cup of tea, I approached him in a friendly manner and introduced myself; I tried to establish a good rapport with him because I wanted him to feel comfortable with me even though I was not a family member or relative. When I first asked Mr R. if I could get him a cup of tea, he looked at me and replied I have asked the girl for a cup of tea, I dont know where she is. I answered Well, I will see where she is and if I cant find her, I will gladly get one for you Mr R. In doing this, I demonstrated emphatic listening. According to Wold (2004, p 13), emphatic listening is about the willingness to understand the other person, not just judging by appearance. Then I touched MrR.s shoulders, kept talking and raised my tone a little because I was unsure of his reaction. At the same time, I used body language to communicate the action of drinking. I paused and repeated my actions, but this time I used some simple words which I though Mr R. would understand. Mr R. looked at me and nodded his head. As I was giving him his cup of tea, I maintained eye contact as I didnt want him to feel shy or embarrassed. Fortunately, using body language helped me to communicate with this gentleman. At the time I was worried that he would be unable to understand me since English is not my first language but I was able to communicate effectively with him by verbal and non-verbal means, using appropriate gestures and facial expressions. Body language and facial expressions are referred to as a non-verbal communication (Funnell et al. 2005 p.443). I kept thinking that I needed to improve my English in order for him to better understand and interpret my actions. I thought of the language barrier that could break verbal communication. Castledine (2002, p.923) mentions that the language barrier arises when individuals come from different social backgrounds or use slang or colloquial phrases in conversation. Luckily, when dealing with Mr R. the particular gestures and facial expressions I used helped him to understand that I was offering him assistance. The eye contact I maintained helped show my willingness to help him; it gave him reassurance and encouraged him to place his confidence in me. This is supported by Caris-Verhallen et al (1999) who mention that direct eye contact expresses a sense of interest in the other person and provides another form of communication. In my dealings with Mr R., I tried to communicate in the best and appropriate way possible in order to make him feel comfortable; as a result he placed his trust in me and was more co-operative. Evaluation In evaluating my actions, I feel that I behaved correctly since my actions gave Mr R. both the assistance he needed and provided him with some company. I was able to successfully develop the nurse-patient relationship. Although McCabe (2004, p-44) would describe this as task centred communication one of the key components missing in communication by nurses I feel that the situation involved both good patient and task centred communication. I feel that I treated Mr R. with empathy because he was unable to perform certain tasks himself due to his mobility problems and was now refusing chemotherapy. It was my duty to make sure he was comfortable and felt supported and reassured. My involvement in the nurse-patient relationship was not restricted to task centred communication but included a patient centred approach using basic techniques to provide warmth and empathy toward the patient. I found that I was able to improve my non-verbal communication skills in my dealings with Mr R. When he first mentioned having chemotherapy, he volunteered very little information, thus demonstrating the role of non-verbal communication. Caris-Verhallen et al (1999, p.809) state that the role of non-verbal communication becomes important when communicating with elderly people with incurable cancer (Hollman et al 2005, p.31) There are a number of effective ways to maximise communication with people, for example, by trying to gain the persons attention before speaking this makes one more visible and helps to prevent the person from feeling intimidated or under any kind of pressure; the use of sensitive touch can also make them feel more comfortable. I feel that the interaction with Mr R. had been beneficial to me in that it helped me to learn how to adapt my communication skills both verbally and non-verbally. I used body language to its full effect since the language barrier made verbal communication with Mr.R. difficult. I used simple sentences that Mr R. could easily understand in order to encourage his participation. Wold (2004, p.76) mention that gestures are a specific type of non-verbal communication intended to express ideas; they are useful for people who have limited verbal communication skills. I also used facial expressions to help encourage him to have chemotherapy treatment which might not cure his problem but would give him some relief and make him feel healthier. Facial expressions are the most expressive means of non-verbal communication but are also limited to certain cultural and age barriers (Wold 2004 p.76). My facial expressions were intended to encourage Mr R. to reconsider his decision with regard to chemotherapy treatment. Whilst I could not go into all the details about his treatment, I was able to advise him to complete his treatment in order to alleviate his symptoms. Analysis In order to analyse the situation, I aim to evaluate the important communication skills that enabled me to provide the best level of nursing care for Mr R. My dealings with Mr R. involved interpersonal communication i.e. communication between two people (Funnell et al 2005, p-438).I realised that non-verbal communication did help me considerably in providing Mr R. with appropriate nursing care even though he could only understand a few of the words I was speaking. I did notice that one of the problems that occurred with this style of communication was the language barrier but despite this I continued by using appropriate communication techniques to aid the conversation. Although it was quite difficult at first, the use of non verbal communication skills helped encourage him to speak and also allowed him to understand me. The situation showed me that Mr R. was able to respond when I asked him the question without me having to wait for an answer he was unable to give. Funnell et al (2005, p 438) point out that communication occurs when a person responds to the message received and assigns a meaning to it. Mr R. had indicated his agreement by nodding his head. Delaune and Ladner (2002, P-191) explain that this channel is one of the key components of communication techniques and processes, being used as a medium to send out messages. In addition Mr R. also gave me feedback by showing that he was able to understand the messages being conveyed by my body language, facial expression and eye contact. The channels of communication I used can therefore be classed as both visual and auditory. Delaune and Ladner (2002 p.191) state that feedback occurs when the sender receives information after the receiver reacts to the message, however Chitty and Black (2007, p.218) define feedback as a response to a message. I n this particular situation, I was the sender who conveyed the message to Mr R. and Mr R. was the receiver who agreed to talk about his chemotherapy treatment and allowed me to assist. Consequently I feel that my dealings with Mr R. involved the 5 key components of communication outlined by Delaune and Ladner (2002, p.191) i.e. senders, message, channel, receiver and feedback. Reflecting on this event allowed me to explore how communication skills play a key role in the nurse and patient relationship in the delivery of patient-focussed care. Whilst I was trying to assist Mr R. when he was attempting to walk, I realised that he needed time to adapt to the changes in his activities of daily living. I was also considering ways of successful and effective communication to ensure a good nursing outcome. I concluded that it was vital to establish a rapport with Mr R. to encourage him to participate in the exchange both verbally and non-verbally. This might then give him the confidence to communicate effectively with the other staff nurses; this might later prevent him from being neglected due to his age or his inability to understand the information given to him about his treatment and the benefits of that treatment. I have set out an action plan of clinical practice for future reference. If there were patients who needed help with feeding or with other procedures, I would ensure that I was well prepared to deal patients who werent able to communicate properly. This is because, as a nurse, it is my role to ensure that patients are provided with the best possible care. To achieve this, I need to be able to communicate effectively with patients in different situations and with patients who have differing needs. I need to communicate effectively as it is important to know what patients need most during there stay on the ward under my supervision. Whilst I have a lot of experience in this field of practice, communication remains a fundamental part of the nursing process which needs to be developed in nurse-patient relationships. Wood (2006, p.13) states that communication is the key to unlock the foundation of relationships. Good communication is essential if one is to get to know a patients individu al health status (Walsh, 2005, p.30). Active learning can also help to identify the existence of barriers to communication when interacting with patients. Active learning means listening without making judgements; I always try to listen to patients opinions or complaints since this gives me the opportunity to see the patients perspective (Arnold, 2007, p.201). On the other hand, it is crucial to avoid the barriers that occur in communication with the patients and be able to detect language barriers. This can be done by questioning patients about their health and by asking them if they need help in their daily activities. I set about overcoming such barriers by asking open-ended questions and interrupting when necessary to seek additional facts (Funnell et al, 2005, p.453). Walsh (2005, p.31) also points out that stereotyping and making assumptions about patients, by making judgements on first impressions and a lack of awareness of communication skills are the main barriers to good communication. I must not judge patients by making assumptions on my first impression but should go out of my way to make the patient feel valued as an individual. I should respect each patients fundamental values, beliefs, culture, and individual means of communication (Heath, 300, p.27). I should be able to know how to establish a rapport with each patient. Cellini (1998, p.49) suggests a number of ways in which this can be achieved, including making oneself visible to the patient, anticipating patients needs, being reliable, listening effectively; all these factors will give me guidelines to improve my communication skills. Another important factor to include in my action plan is the need to take into account any disabilities patients may have such as poor hearing, visual impairment or mental disability. This could help give the patient some control and allow them to make the best use of body language. Once I know that a patient has some form of disability, I will be able to prepare a course of action in advance, deciding on the most appropriate and effective means of communication. Heath (2000, p.28) mentions that communicating with patients who have an impairment requires a particular and certain type of skill and consideration. Nazarko (2004, p.9) suggests that one should not repeat oneself if the patient is unable to understand but rather try to rephrase what one is saying in terms they can understand e.g. try speaking a little more slowly when communicating with disabled people or the hard of hearing. Hearing problems are the most common disability amongst adults due to the ageing process (Schofield. 2002, p.21). In summary, my action plan will show how to establish a good rapport with the patient, by recognising what affects the patients ability to communicate well and how to avoid barriers to effective communication in the future. Conclusion In conclusion, I have outlined the reasons behind my choosing Gibbs (1988) reflective cycle as the framework of my reflection and have discussed the importance of reflection in nursing practice. I feel I have discussed each stage of the cycle, outlining my ability to develop therapeutic relationship by using interpersonal skills in my dealings with one particular patient. I feel that most parts of the reflective cycle (Gibbs 1988) can be applied to the situation on which I have reflected. Without the model of structured reflection I do not feel I would have had the confidence to consider the situation in any depth (Graham cited in Johns 1997 a, p.91-92) and I fear reflection would have been remained at a descriptive level. I have been able to apply the situation to theory; as Boud Keogh Walker (1985, p.19) explain that reflection in the context of learning is a generic term for those intellectual and effective activities whereby individuals engage to explore their experiences in ord er to lead to a better understanding and appreciation. Boyd Fales (1983, p.100) agree with this and state that reflective learning is the process of internally examining and exploring an issue of concern, trigged by an experience that creates and clarifies meaning in terms of self and which results in a changed conceptual perspective. However, I personally believe that the reflective process is merely based on each individuals own personality and beliefs as well as their attitude and approach to the life. Appendix Mr R., a 64 year old gentleman, was an inpatient on a surgical ward. Earlier that day his consultant had directly informed him that he had inoperable cancer of the pancreas with a life expectancy of 18-24 months. Some relief might be offered by chemotherapy, but there was no cure. Mr R. was understandably shocked, but had suspected the diagnosis. At that time he remained in the care of the specialist nurse. Later in the day, as I was passing through the ward, I notice Mr. R. alone on his bed. Prescriptive A prescriptive intervention seeks to direct the behaviour of the client, usually behaviour that is outside the client-practitioner relationship. My first intervention was to open the conversation and demonstrate warmth. I provided information myself and gave Mr R. the choice of staying on his own or engaging with me. By shaking Mr R.s hands I was attempting to provide reassurance and support as well as communicating warmth in order to reduce his anxiety and promote an effective nurse-patient relationship. Practitioner: Hello Mr. R, I am one of the nurses here this  morning with Dr. M. Is there anything I can get you or would you rather be on your own? (Shook hands). Mr. R: NO, I remember you from this morning, come and sit down. Ive asked the girl for a cup of tea, I dont know where shes got to. Practitioner: Well give me a minute and Ill bring you one in. Do you take sugar? Mr. R: I suppose I shouldnt, then why worry. Two please. Practitioner: (Returning with a cup of tea) Here we are, dont blame me if its horrible, I got it from the trolley. (I smiled at Mr.R. and tried to establish eye contact, then sat down in the chair next to him). Mr. R: Thanks, thats just what I need. 2. Informative An informative intervention seeks to impart knowledge, information and meaning to the patient. My intention was to reinforce the nurse-patient relationship by smiling and attempting to establish eye contact as well as using facial expressions to put the patient at ease and establish a good rapport. By making Mr. R a cup of tea it created a pleasant response in a time of crisis. Practitioner: Jane (specialist nurse) was here this morning, what did you think about what she had to say? Mr. R: Oh yes she was very nice, mind you Im an old hand at this, I looked after my wife when she had cancer. Mr. R: She was riddled with cancer, but we kept her at home and looked after her. She could make a cracking cup of tea (Mr.R. smiles) Practitioner: (smiles and nods) When did she pass away? 3. Confronting A confronting intervention seeks to raise the clients consciousness about limiting behaviour or attitudes of which they are relatively unaware. By meeting the patients needs at that time I felt the urge to continue to show a display of warmth and develop the relationship further. Mr. R: It will be two years next month that she died. Practitioner: You must miss her. Mr. R: Theres not a day goes by that I dont talk to her. Goodness knows what she would make of all this, its brought it all back. 4. Cathartic A cathartic intervention seeks to enable the client to discharge/react to a painful emotion primarily grief, fear and/or anger. Mr. R spoke emotively and angrily by using such words as riddled and cancer. He spoke loudly and angrily with congruent non-verbal cues. Practitioner: Has what youve been discussing with Jane reminded you of your wifes death? Mr. R: Yes, (patient covers his face with his hands). Practitioner: What is it about what youve heard that is worrying you, do you think you can tell me? 5. Catalytic A catalytic intervention seeks to elicit self-discovery, self direct living, learning and problem solving in the client. Mr. R had a broad scope in which to discuss any concerns he may have had, but his response only concerned his wife, not him as his wife was the one who suffered from cancer. Mr. R: (Pause)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..Im an old hand at this and I dont want any of that chemo. Practitioner: What is it about the chemotherapy you dont like? Mr. R: My wife had it and we went through hell. Practitioner: You went through hell Mr. R: The doctors made her have the chemo and she still died in agony. 6. Supportive A supportive intervention seeks to affirm worth and value of the clients person, qualities, attitudes and actions. It is done to encourage the client to say more and to explore the issue further. Support is provided by non-verbal means like giving warmth, supportive posture and maintaining eye contact. I wanted to convince Mr. R that I was interested in what he had to say and help him believe that he was worth listening to that his opinions really mattered. Practitioner: Do you think the same thing will happen to you? Mr. R: Yes, thats the one thing Im worried about. Practitioner:.em, if Im honest with you chemotherapy treatment is not a subject I know a lot about. (Pause), would you like to see the specialist nurse again? She can go over things with you and explain your options. Mr. R Well if she doesnt mind, Im just not sure the chemo will be worth it. Learning outcomes From this experience, I have learned the importance of:- Practice in accordance with the NMC (2004) code of professional conduct, performance, when caring for adult patients including confidentially, informed consent, accountability, patient advocacy and a safe environment. Demonstrating fair and anti-discriminatory behaviour, acknowledging differences in the beliefs, spiritual and cultural practices of individuals. Understanding the rationale for undertaking and documenting, a comprehensive, systematic and accurate nursing assessment of physical, psychological, social and spiritual needs. Interpreting assessment data to prioritise interventions in evidence based plan of care. Discussing factors that will influence the effective working relationships between health and social care teams. Demonstrating the ability to critically reflect upon practice.