Train Tragedy By Ashley Wilson North Campus

I sat at the Laverton station watching how happy my little brother and sister looked. I smelt how fresh the air was and I noticed how happy my mum looked. Nothing seemed like to could go wrong. But within a blink of an eye that all changed. 

As the train sounded its horn I turned for only a second but within that second my mum let out a terrifying scream. I raised my head to look at my mum. Her expression was indescribable. I turned to look towards the rails and that moment a woman plunged to her death. Time sped up and the train seemed to be going even faster. At that moment I felt helpless. 

As her body disappeared beneath the train, her pink top and brown curly hair were imprinted upon my mind. My heart began to race, my breathing sped up, my body was paralysed and my brain was overloaded with thoughts. Why did she do it? She seemed to be in her thirties – she still had so much to look forward to. I couldn’t believe what I had just witnessed. It still sits in my mind to this day. 

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School in Burma By Joe Ingme North Campus

In Burma schools are very different compared to Australian schools.  The schools don’t have many subjects and you graduate after you finish Year 10 and you either get a job like being a doctor or other jobs. It depends on how good your grades are. 

You go to school for five days and get a day off on Saturday and Sunday. In Burma we get holidays once a year. 

Life can sometimes be hard at school if homework doesn’t get done. Teachers aren’t that strict if you do all your homework, but if you don’t do your homework the teacher hits you with a stick.

Students catch the bus to school and some walk or ride their bikes if their house is close to the school. 

Swimming By Khadija Acone Ardeer Campus

My favourite hobby is swimming although I didn’t really like it at the start. All toddlers do, but I didn’t. Now I truly love it and I love and treasure hot summer days during the holidays with family and friends. 

As most families do we went to the beach during summer and this day was like that. It was very crowded when we arrived but we finally found a spot. My older family friends were the first to dive into the cool water. As crazy teenagers they decided to start jumping off the pier. As a little nine year old I followed them.  

We began to dive and then swim further and further out from the pier. I was very confident with myself but finally we reached the edge and passed the floating yellow flag. There were some fishermen here and there. I then started to doubt myself. 

All my family and friends jumped and then waited for me in the water. My heart stopped when they jumped and I heard the sound like a slap as they hit the water and disappeared. Just seeing each of their heads pop out was a big relief. 

Finally it was my turn. ‘One…two…three!’ My family friends cheered me on. My pulse was drumming in my ears like big bangs. Finally I took a deep breath and jumped. I opened my eyes as I sank. Darker and darker it got as I sunk deeper and deeper and I saw my cousins’ legs slowly kicking above me. I looked down into the dark blue water. I saw light and shadows, flashing silver and stared into a bed of floating seaweed arms. It was scary! Then I could feel seaweed arms grabbing at my legs. I struggled to untangle myself and got a bad shock. I calmed down and tried to just hang in the cold water. It felt like I had escaped from the world; it was silent and dark. It was calming. I slowly floated up and it got lighter and lighter. As I reached the surface I took a gasp of air and a rush of sound came to my ears. Seeing my friends made me happy. 

I climbed back up the ladder and onto the pier. I could feel the wood which was warmed under my feet as I walked to a nearby chair. I sat down to catch my breath. 

‘Are you okay?’ a person asked as he walked by. 

I looked up and smiled. ‘I’m great.’

The Most Significant Person in My Life By Jenny Le North Campus

Throughout my life I have met many wonderful people who are lovely, helpful and supportive and also have been a part of making me into the person I am today – like most of my family and friends. 

But besides those people there is one other person who no one can replace and who I would describe as my world.

She is a person I very much love from the bottom of my heart and has been a part of my life ever since I was born. That person is my mum. Without her I wouldn’t be here in this world today. She has taught, loved and cared for me ever since I came into this world. She has worked very hard to provide for us and give us – her six children – a good life. And she has done this by herself. 

Although her English is not very good, she will still sit beside me when I am doing my homework and encourage me. She makes sure all her children are neatly dressed and tidy and have done their homework before we leave for school. She has always been polite to everyone, especially teachers and she teaches us to have respect for older people. 

All through my life journey so far she has been beside me to encourage, help and support me and I know that whatever happens next she will always be there for me. My mum has not just been beside me but she has also done absolutely everything she could to provide a good life for me. My mum is not just my mum, but she is also my best friend, my teacher and a person I call a hero. 

For many of us, our worst enemy is the mirror By Guy McLaughlin North Campus

There are so many people out there who are constantly under pressure and are suffering because of the way they and others relate to their personal self image. These people can barely look in the mirror, let alone go outside in a public place.

In some cases it can get as bad as people suffering mental illnesses such as anorexia and depression as well as constant stress which is also bad for your mental health. This is because of people feeling afraid of being laughed at and being judged because of the way they look, and not the person they really are. 

Someone I personally know suffered from depression because she was being bullied because she was overweight and people usually reminded her of that every day. She was usually a happy girl who could take a joke but over time it got too much for her to handle and she had to undergo constant counselling and even had to leave school because of it. I myself was one of the people putting her down for no reason at all. I have recently apologised for my actions and have changed my whole attitude towards my way of life.

There are numerous people who suffer from idiotic humans saying and doing things that they have no right to. Just because a person is overweight, looks a bit different, is from a poorer background or has different opinions in their way of life. They don’t deserve to be treated any differently because of it. Everyone is human.

So please, think about what you say and do before you do it, it could have dramatic effects on an individual. Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and respect their right to feel good about themselves. After all, everyone deserves the right to be happy don’t they? 

The Media is the Enemy! By Rachael Carter North Campus

Have you ever seen the front of the newspaper and what you see is athletes getting backlash? Whether it’s a footballer having a night out drinking and having pictures taken or an Olympian having a photo taken which makes them not look as good as they should be. All this comes from one thing and one thing only, the media! 

We’ve probably all seen at least one player from the football team we follow get into the media, right? There are times when people make stupid mistakes. But apparently if you’re a footballer you’re not allowed to make mistakes or have a private life -  like partying a little too hard, or doing something they now probably regret. But how are footballers so different from us? We’re all human and we all make mistakes. Footballers get special attention just because they wear a coloured jersey on the weekends. I believe there are a lot of things about footballers that have been blown out of proportion because the media got involved in their private life. Even if they play a high-grade of football they still deserve to have a private life. 

When it comes time for the Olympics all the media seems to focus on is the bad things and mistakes our Olympians have done and made. For example last year in London, Libby Trickett got a lot of  backlash because a photo was taken of her that made her look a little out of shape but she wasn’t because she still did well winning at the Olympics. Another incident this year was the one with two male swimmers who had a photo taken holding guns and then were nearly kicked off the Olympic Swimming Team. In my opinion the media needs to stop focusing on the negatives and focus more on the positives when it comes to our athletes. And if they are caught it doesn’t need to be plastered all over newspapers, magazines and TV. It should be dealt with privately. 

I myself, a swimmer, know how enjoyable it is not just with the swimming but also the social side to it - meeting new people and making new friends. I know as a swimmer you often have wide shoulders and bigger legs because as a swimmer they are the muscles you use. The worst thing as a swimmer is to be told that you look out of shape. Trust me I know how it feels because its been said to me and is still being said but I don’t let it get to me. I just listen and then move on. 

I believe the media is the source of a lot of our sports people getting a bad reputation. We’ve all just got to remember that we are all human and we make mistakes. Nobody is perfect. 

Fairy tales Are Not Suitable for Young Children By Bill Luong West Campus

Fairy tales should not be available for young children because they are filled with crimes, violence, characters ignoring health and safety issues, and the ‘happily ever after’ ending that give children false hopes. Fairy tales should not be told to young children.

Firstly, there are many crimes that happen in these ‘innocent’ fairy tales. One example is ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. Goldilocks broke into the three bears’ house without their permission. That is trespassing and, breaking and entering. Goldilocks then proceeds to sit down on baby bear’s chair and breaks it, which is vandalism. In the end, she gets away with the crimes she committed. 

Another example is ‘The Three Little Pigs’. This big bad wolf blows down the two little pig’s houses, which is vandalism, then tries to eat them, which is attempted murder. The two little pigs then run to their older brother’s house to seek protection. The wolf then tries to blow down this house but it proved unsuccessful because the house is made out of bricks so he climbs down the chimney, which is trespassing, falls into a fire and is burnt in a fiery death (which is a charge of manslaughter for the pigs, or more accurately, wolf slaughter). This can influence children to commit crimes and provides bad examples for the children.

Secondly, fairy tales are filled with a lot of violence which is often horrific. In ‘Alice in Wonderland’, the Queen of Hearts chops off many heads, which in real life is a thing people would not want to see. Also, in ‘Hansel and Gretel’, there is a witch who cooks boys and girls by throwing them in an oven! In ‘The Little Red Riding Hood’, a grandmother gets eaten by a wolf! The list goes on and on. If the real world were like fairy tales, people would not even want to go outside of their homes!

Thirdly, there is the health and safety issue. In fairy tales, health and safety laws are ignored. In ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’, Jack climbs a giant beanstalk with no safety gear! Parents would not want their children climbing giant beanstalks with no safety gear. It is very dangerous. Another example is ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’. The dwarfs work long hours in dangerous mines. Also, in ‘The Princess and the Frog’, a princess kisses a slimy frog. Yuck! How much bacteria can a frog have? This will desensitize children to the seriousness of viruses and bacteria as certain viruses and bacteria can be lethal. 

Lastly, fairy tales have a ‘happily ever after’ that never or rarely happens in the real world. ‘Happily ever after’ provides simple solutions that pull people out of complicated situations which rarely happens in real life. The ‘happily ever after’ will give children false hope. It will continually disappoint children if they are waiting for a ‘happily ever after’. Children need to understand that the real world is not like this and they cannot always hope a ‘happily ever after’ will solve their problems. Continual belief in this will lead to depression as their hope gets crushed again and again.

In conclusion, fairy tales contain many bad examples and influence for children and could lead to children taking risks with terrible consequences.