Beaty’s courage a gift

As with all of the TCU community, I was shocked and greatly saddened by the recent death of TCU student Amanda Beaty. I never really got to know her, but I did see her around campus, and I occasionally held doors open for her as I saw her coming. She always gave a polite “thank you” as she went through the doorway.

According to the Skiff, Amanda had only been here two semesters, but it seemed longer than that, because she was already a familiar sight on campus for me. It saddens me that I will not be seeing her with her dog Nick in tow. They were quite a team.

Death, as they say, is as inevitable as taxes, but it still manages to catch us by surprise. For instance, my grandmother’s death was a surprise to the family, even though she had been suffering the effects of breast cancer for over a decade before she passed away. Why does death always seem to sneak up on us?

I knew in the back of my mind that she would eventually pass away, especially with the cancer slowly sapping her strength and health, but I still wanted her to live forever. A selfish part of me wanted her to stay. I never prepared for her eventual passing, so when it happened, I was not ready.

In January, I had signs of what may be the beginnings of arthritis. My joints were hurting something fierce, and the discomfort I had felt at various times had been enough for me to stay home from work.

I was really starting to feel sorry for myself for a while. However, I couldn’t allow myself to stay down.

hy? Because of the examples I have witnessed, both at home and at school. The discomfort I felt was only that: discomfort. There are others who feel genuine pain and still go about their daily routines.

My grandmother persevered despite the pain to help her family. Her family was her life, and she wasn’t going to let even cancer stop her from enjoying her grandchildren as long as she could (and she did, right to the end).

And then there is Amanda Beaty. I do not know what McCune-Albright syndrome does to the body, but it could not have been easy to live with. In addition, it could not have been easy to put up with the ignorance of those few who were not comfortable with her presence and wished she would leave.

And yet, Amanda went to school and on to college. Nothing was going to stop her from pursuing her dreams. Do you know what you call going out in public to pursue your dreams despite the physical discomfort and the occasional ignorant person that one may endure?

It is called courage.

At its worst, the discomfort I felt with my pre-arthritis attack was not near the pain that both Amanda Beaty and my grandmother endured. And yet, they didn’t let that stop them. Having witnessed such courage from these two women, how can I do any less?

It is a tragedy that Amanda died so young, but the greater tragedy would have been if she never tried at all to pursue her dreams. Had she succumbed to the pain in her body or the fear of the ignorance of others, she would have never given the rest of us the chance to witness the courage that she showed every time she went out in public.

Oddly enough, because she dared to pursue her dreams, we are the ones who are the better for it. What a wonderful gift.

Thank you, Amanda, and peace be with you.

John P. Araujo is a Master of Liberal Arts major from Fort Worth. He can be reached at (j.araujo@tcu.edu).

As a college freshman raised entirely in the public school system, I arrived at college with absolutely no educational background in any subject that dealt with morality, philosophy, religion, or any other course that might anger parents who think their children’s minds are being tainted and their rights trespassed upon.

So, even though I am a little behind, I am ecstatic to finally be in a system where I can say what I want about anything and not be sued for stepping on somebody’s toes.

What follows is a rite of passage that most state-educated students will probably understand. Basically, after more than 12 years of being told what I can and cannot talk about, I’m just glad that I can finally voice my opinions in a free forum.

I am a journalism student, and on principle, I believe in the freedom of speech and the press. While I am a Christian, I do respect the right of people who practice other religions. I do not, however, respect the fact that the politically correct way of ensuring the rights of others is to take mine away.

I’m tired of someone crying foul when a student wants to lead willing members of the student body in a moment of silence or an invocation at a sporting event. I hate that the only way God can be mentioned in a public school is through Christian clubs that meet once a week.

Most of all, I am disgusted by people who look at the aftermath of school violence and yell at the government for more protection and gun control when what children really need is to be taught not to commit such heinous crimes in the first place. The answer is not to make sure that kids can’t get guns.

The answer is to make sure kids do not even want to get guns or go on murder sprees in the first place.

nd how can we expect the youth of our country to be morally secure if we rip away all traces of educating them on morality?

Whether we want to admit it or not, the morality of this country is plummeting, and we are the only people who can be held accountable. I won’t always look to the government to help us, because many of the politicians I have been exposed to are just as immoral as the people I believe we need to help.

Look at the presidential debates. In this country, every minute someone is killed, raped, tortured, beaten, robbed, molested or harmed in some way that makes my nightmares become very vivid. But when I watched the debates, I saw that the candidates main issue is tax cuts.

Will tax cuts make schools safer? Will tax cuts, in any way, shape or form make me worry less when my nephew goes to his first day of school?

Yes, I am out of high school. I will never again be in a public education system. But my nephew will. All the other children in my family are or will be in the future. And if it comes to pass that I have children, they might even end up in public school too. How many people on this campus have little brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews in public school? Do you really believe they are safe?

Just because we are no longer in the system does not mean we cannot strive to change it. It still affects us.

ecause as long as we are in the human race, what affects the children of our country will always affect us.

Laura McFarland is a freshman news-editorial journalism major from Houston. She can be reached at (l.d.mcfarland@student.tcu.edu).

Now that we are halfway into the semester, we decided to comment on a few of the highlights and the lowlights we have seen on campus so far.

Thanks: To Dennis Franchione and his wife, Kim, for commissioning the painting “TCU Horned Frog Football 1896-2000” and making 300 commemorative prints available to the public at $200 each. The money could go to the football team but instead will be given to the Mary Couts Burnett Library and the TCU Band.

Spanks: One word — parking.

Thanks: To the people who donated blood to the Carter BloodCare blood drive sponsored by Alpha Phi Omega and TCU Panhellenic Council. The fluorescent bandages may be fun, but the needles sure don’t feel good.

Spanks: To 11 a.m. TCU football games guaranteed to be on television while most of the fans are still asleep.

Thanks: To the Jewish scholar search committee for seeking an internationally recognized rabbi and scholar to head the new Jewish studies program that will add Jewish courses to both Brite Divinity School and TCU.

Spanks: To the Jewish scholar search committee for now lowering their search to “mid-level” applicants after a year of searching, unsuccessfully, to find an internationally recognized rabbi and scholar willing to move to TCU.

Thanks: To Programming Council for another successful — and busy — Family Weekend..