According to a 2009 report by Pre Hispanic Center, the Latino high school dropout rate is 17%. This is nearly three times the rate of whites and double the rate of blacks.

This is not to say that us Latinos do not value education.  While many Latino immigrants come here for a better life for their children, financial pressures often force their kids to cut their education short and start working.

My family always traveled thru the states to wherever the next season of crops was going to be.  One year my we stopped traveling and I asked my parents why we were not going up north during certain seasons, they responded, “We need you girls to get an education, so you do not have to do this when you get older.”  From that day I knew I had to become someone in life to make my parents sacrifice worth it. Because my parents stopped traveling back and forth my sisters and I were all able to graduate from school.  I will be the third to graduate from college.

I did not get off easy though, every day after school my father would pick up my sisters and I and take us to the produce market.  On weekends we used to travel to Georgia and pick cucumbers or bell peppers.  It was tough, but because they kept on encouraging us by asking us our grades and how was school that day.

If the parents are involved in their children’s education their children will succeed.

A child needs a mentor in their life, and what better mentor then their own parents.

When I go back to the produce market I see how some men and women my age did not succeed and they are still working those extra long hours underneath the sun.  There is one thing that they all have in common; their parents did not encourage them to keep trying.

We are in such a competitive world, that even the simplest jobs require a high school diploma or GED.

Latinos sometimes do not realize the importance of education because we look at what is best at that moment, which is money.  We do not look at the long run and see what will be best for our children and ourselves.

What I learned form working in the fields with my parents has made me who I am today, a hard worker. My parents always tell me up to this day “Siemplre lucha y nunca dejes que nadien te diga no” (keep on trying and never let anyone tell you no).
Many people think that Latinos are not meant to succeed.  If the parents are not involved in the education of their kids then the kids will think this is true and not succeed.

Univision, the USA’s largest Spanish-language media network, in conjunction with Melinda Gates Foundation and the Department of Education, has launched Es El Momento (The Moment is Now).  Over the nest three years, Univision will USA public service announcements, special programming and news coverage to promote the importance of parents getting involved in the children’s education and the importance of a college education in the Hispanic community.
This will help parents and children to be united when it comes to education.

For those who just want to work their abs the best exercises are:

1. The Bicycle
Lying flat on your back, raise your knees to a 45-degree angle. Move your legs in a bicycle-pedaling motion, while touching your left elbow to your right knee, then your right elbow to your left knee.

2. The Captain’s Chair
This is a gym equipment.  Grip the handholds of the equipment lightly and keep your lower back pressed against the back pad. Allow your legs to dangle below, then slowly lift your knees toward your chest in a controlled motion. Slowly return your knees to the starting position.

3. Crunch on Exercise Ball
Lie with your back on the exercise ball so that your thighs and torso are parallel to the floor. With your hands behind your head, or crossed over your chest, tuck your chin in toward your chest and contract your abdominals. Your torso should raise no more than 45 degrees from the ball. To vary difficulty, move your feet wider apart or closer together.

4. Vertical Leg Crunch
These crunches (along with the reverse crunch below) put less stress on the back than typical crunches. Lying flat with your back on the floor and your hands behind your head, extend your legs straight up, crossed at the ankle with a slight bend in the knees. Lift your torso toward your knees, contracting your abdominal muscles and keeping your chin off your chest.

5. Reverse Crunch
Lying flat on the floor with your back on the ground, put your hands beside your head or extend them flat by your sides. Cross your feet at the ankles and lift your knees to a 90-degree angle. Press your lower back to the floor and contract your abs so your hips rotate and your legs reach toward the ceiling.

http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/07/03/07/the-best-and-worst-exercises-for-your-abs.htm

My boyfriend and I argued on the phone over the dumbest thing ever.  It started off as a small little argument and five minutes later we were debating over who did what and whose fault it was.
When I hung up on him.  I opened my planner which has verses of the Bible on the bottom of each day.  For yesterday it had the verse that is listed above.  I just prayed and knew that this was exactly what I needed at the moment.
As I made flash backs at all the good times we had together to the past couple of months that arguing has taken over our relationship I knew we had to do something about it.  At this point it did not matter anymore who did what or whose fault was it.  If we each wanted to stay in this relationship we had to work things out.

My pastor preached on Valentines Day about love and marriage.  He did gave an example using two animals.  There was a giraffe and an elephant walking on a narrow bridge.  Both came face to face and the bridge is so narrow that neither could go around to get to the other side.  Neither could walk backwards because with one little missed step they could fall.  What do you think they did?
The giraffe bent down and let the elephant walk over.
So what does this mean?
Well in an argument there is no stopping the more you two argue the bigger the problem gets and the madder each one of you get.  There is no resolution to the argument.
Many times one person has to bend down and let the other walk over him or her for just one moment so things can be fixed.
Now you may say, I am not going to bend down they can, well that is the problem in the first place.  If you really love the other person you have to let your pride go for a moment.
Then when the arguing is over you will be happy and not remember what you had to do.