Inspirational -The Lessons Of April Fools Day
April Fools Day is celebrated on April 1st every year. Considered by many to be an extra-special occasion, the day has been around since the 1500's. But what do we learn from this momentous occasion? What lessons can we pick up that will help us in our everyday lives?
April Fools Day is all about tricking people. It's usually a lighthearted experience, but if it happens to go wrong and someone gets hurt, it can be very serious indeed.
The lesson to be learned from April Fools Day is that it's important in every day life to find humour in every situation. To laugh at ourselves, to accept that everyone makes mistakes and that there's no judgment, no annoyance or malice involved. As long as we can laugh, life is beautiful.
It's also important to be able to change other people's perceptions of us by accepting different realities. It's all just an illusion after all. Unfortunately, we can't control what people think about us, but as long as we don't take ourselves too seriously we can help others to see things from different perspectives.
All of this seems to sum up April Fools Day quite well. But how can a day that has been around for hundreds of years serve as an educational tool? How does this relate to our everyday lives?
Take for example the con-artist who plans April Fools Day pranks. He or she will carefully plan their efforts and try to beat the competition by being more creative and giving their victim a better experience than they expected. They will often choose a victim who feels underappreciated or left out and pranks at their work or home. The con-artist will make it seem like there is no harm in the prank, even though it may cause emotional distress. Then after their victim has fallen for their trick, they will give them something very valuable in exchange for getting back at them.
This shows that we cannot always trust what we think is happening around us. So much of the time of our lives can be accounted for based on our own perceptions and desires rather than actually being real and concrete. The lesson to be learned from April Fools Day is to always be on the lookout for the possibility of a con. To see what is actually real and what isn't. To take everything for granted and to learn from our mistakes. We need to respect each other, because after all, it's just an illusion.
April Fools Day also brings to mind the story of Milgram's Experiment in which subjects were made to deliver increasingly painful electric shocks as instructed by an experimenter who was not present. When the experimenter gave the instruction to "continue", most of the subjects continued to deliver these shocks for up to six seconds after receiving a signal over a loudspeaker that they had reached their maximum level of shock.
The lesson we can take from this is that we cannot always trust our instincts. Sometimes it's best to go against our intuition and do something completely different, even if it seems scary or wrong. Sometimes what we think is right and natural isn't so. This is very important in everyday life because we need to be brave and go against what everyone else thinks when it comes down to making decisions or acting on something, because often those around us are not as knowledgeable or aware as we are. It is only natural that we trust our instincts, but we have to remember that there are times when we need to put aside our desires and do what is ultimately for the greater good.
April Fools Day should be celebrated by everyone in order to spread good will and help us realize that everyone is special and unique, just as it was meant to do. Although today's reality can sometimes be harsh, there is always the chance of death or loss, it's important to have a sense of humour about things and learn from our mistakes.
April Fools Day challenges you not to take yourself too seriously or get upset about things that don't matter. It's important to be kind to others and show them that they are loved.
The lessons taught by this day are a great reminder of our place in the universe. We should always question what is around us, never be afraid to do something different or break the mould, and never take life too seriously.
The experience from April Fools Day teaches us that sometimes we need to be brave and fight the urge to conform to society so that we can lead a better life. We must be willing to challenge ourselves and make decisions for ourselves because no matter how much it scares us, we need to take control of our lives and live them out as best as possible.
April Fools Day gives us a glimpse into the nature of reality and the many ways it can be interpreted. It teaches us not to take anything for granted and to always question what we think is true.
April Fools Day is a very powerful lesson in our everyday lives, because it can guide us to making decisions that will ensure our happiness and well being.
Written by: Jia-Min Huang, Angelina Tang, Michael Han, Aimee Ng
Date Written: April 1st 2013
Title: April Fools In Classroom Life
Whether you're at school or university, April fools day is one of those must-have days each year. The fun derived from fooling people is not just limited to children, but adults too love it. In fact, on this day, all the teachers can play pranks on the students. As the student council president of a primary school in New Zealand last year, I made sure that I planned an April Fool's Day that would live on in my classmates' memories forever.
April Fool's Day in Classroom Life
The idea was to make them believe that we were doing a lively English class to encourage them to speak English with each other and even with me.
Conclusion
The day was pretty successful. Not only did the school come up with some really practical jokes, but 50% of the students said that they would like to be a part of the school's April Fool's Day next year. The meeting room filled up with laughter. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to use all the pranks I had prepared because the principal took charge at that point instead.