The Zombie Apocalypse

It was 8:45 in the morning. If I had it my way, I would still be asleep. I was in the middle of my big math exam. I zoned out and got lost in my thoughts when an announcement came over the loudspeakers. It was the principal telling us to go home and cling tight to your family, because soon--and then he shouted. I heard a rip and a scream of agony. There was a distinct thirst in the attacker's growl. I could tell it had finally happened--the zombie apocalypse. I live at the house just over the hill from the school. I grabbed my things and ran all the way home dodging bloodthirsty monsters my whole way. All I could think about was my sister and my dad. My mom had died when I was little, so they're all I had. I see my house. All of the windows are closed and the doors are shut. This gives me hope. That meant that my family was in there scared to death probably wondering where I was. Zombies from all over were tailing me on my way home. As they're coming toward me I jam open the door, then immediately turn around and lock it. The news is on. My dad's gun is on the table. My sister must have been trying to prepare herself for whatever was going to happen. I grab the gun and run to look for my family. I scream for my sister, but I realize that there's a slurping and grunting coming from her room. I burst in there with the gun loaded. One of those brain eating demons is hunched over my sister. Out of shock, I shoot he gun and barely hit his back. The zombie gets aggravated at the shot and turns around, but I shoot him straight in the forehead before he could to anything. Then I examine the face of the zombie. I see the face of my own father. He was slumped over her eating the brain of the person he gave life to. I had just shot my father. The two people I had left were both gone. It looked like I was on my own.

Writing Contest Reflection

When there is a large event or contest at our school I always wonder how just a couple people could plan something this spectacular and detailed. Now that I've organized a small contest like that, I know that it can be hard. I planned out a writing contest for all of the sixth graders at horizon. To make a successful contest I had to learn to advertise and organize cool prizes so the kids would want to participate. I went with Hannah to Horizon and we went from class to class explaining the contest. I have to admit, Hannah and I didn't really know what to say. We probably should have had a sheet of things we had to tell the kids, but we didn't think ahead. Some kids asked strange questions that we hadn't thought about and we got stuck. Some of the questions were "Can we submit drawings instead?" or "Can we work with a partner?". Then there were some awkward classes that didn't have any questions and were completely quiet. When I got back to Asa I had a lot of planning to do with coordinating prizes and talking to companies for donations. I called Moe's, Bubba's, the Chocolate Factory, Six Flags, Subway, Cousin's, Noodles, and Starbucks. Of those companies Moe's, Bubba's, and Noodles contributed to the writing contest. During those phone calls it was kind of awkward. Even though we had written out a script of what to say, I would always slur my words or talk too fast. I could never get it right. Now that the contest is over, I realize all of my mistakes, but I don't the think the contest could have gone any better. Everyone was super happy with the turnout. There were a lot of good pieces submitted and Hannah and I chose the right winners.

Speak Point of View

In Speak, the main character Melinda has called the cops at her first high school party because she had been assaulted by Andy Evans, and no one knew it. From then on she was socially shunned and proclaimed her as an outcast. The story is written in Melinda's point of view. From this perspective, a lot events and characters are described in a way that creates a darkly funny despair in the reader about Melinda being sexually abused. One way that Melinda's point of view influences the reader's interpretation is how this perspective shows how the incident happened. Of course it must have been scary for Melinda, especially since she was only 14. Reading from Melinda's point of view makes you feel bad for her. You're seeing other people through her eyes and the way she judges them. They could be completely different people than how she sees them. For example, Andy Evans is interpreted as a stuck up pig that only cares about how for he can get with girls, when the other guys look up to him as a cool guy that's good at sports and has a cool car. However, the reader would feel a lot differently about Andy Evans if the novel was written in the point of view of himself. For instance, Andy thought that Melinda wanted to do the things that he did to her. They were both drunk and he was disoriented. If the story were read in Andy's point of view, the reader might have even felt bad for Andy for being accused for the things he did. As you can see, the point of view of a story forces the reader to see just one side of an event or topic. In Speak, the narrator's perspective makes the reader see Andy as a worthless and disrespectful boy. Through Andy's eyes Melinda is an outcast that's nuts and overly obsessed with him. If the book Speak were in a different point of view, it wouldn't be the same book.

Scout Character Analysis

Imagine a stubborn little girl with mud smudged on her face, adventuring and discovering on a warm summer day. That's Scout. In the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird I almost thought Scout was a boy. Scout always has a mischievous grin on her face, and is constantly up to something. She gets all of her boyish traits from her brother Jem. Since her mom died when she was young, all Scout has are her father, Atticus, and her brother Jem. However, she changes and grows a lot throughout the book. In her eyes there was a childish joy and innocence. Then there was a passion--a thirst for danger. After that came the dignity and poise of a lady. Scout evolved from a child to a dignified woman throughout this book. Aunt Alexandra urged Scout to grow up. That push made Scout more responsible. She learned how to control her mouth and not say the rude outbursts that always popped in her head. When Aunt Alexandria showed up on the Finch's doorstep the second thing she said was, "Jean Louise, stop scratching your head"(138). After she got settled in, Aunt Alexandria immediately started making changes in the way Scout and Jem were being raised. She didn't want Jem or Scout going to the trial, when they had been looking forward to it for quite some time. Aunt Alexandria also quarreled a lot with Atticus about his kids. This is because she always overstepped her boundaries and took control in situations that didn't require her assistance. Aunty often was strict like that towards Jem and Scout. Aunt Alexandra isn't the only one who changed Scout. Society itself did. Maycomb is full of stereotypical gossiping old ladies and strong-set men who follow in their father's footsteps. The expectation for Scout was to grow up to be a tea sipping, book reading woman who kept her thoughts to herself. That is the opposite of Scout, though. Scout loves to discover new things. She's a curious, nosy kid with an attitude. That doesn't fit into the Maycomb community very well. There was a point in time when Scout had to be shown what the real world was like and that was when she was about eight. She already knew the ways of the different families, but what she had to learn to squeeze into the mold of the traditional life of a woman in the South. Eventually, I think the effects of tradition and culture finally got to her, and she changed. Although Scout seems one of a kind, she has a lot of the characteristics that Katniss from The Hunger Games has. Scout and Katniss are both very stubborn. Scout wouldn't leave when Jem wanted her to, and she is always willing to fight over it. Katniss wouldn't quit during the Games. She fought to the death, and took another person out with her alive. They are also very loving toward their siblings. Katniss volunteered to take Prim's place in the Hunger Games,and Scout made up with Jem right after their brawl when they heard their dad and Aunt talking. I think it's clear that Scout and Katniss are very alike. In conclusion, I think we learned a lot from Scout. Although she was stubborn, she always got her point across, and I think she made the Maycomb society think differently about people and their way of living. This stubborn little girl had an impact on everyone.

Literacy Mondays

Studies show that reading makes kids smarter. It's no wonder that all teachers love it when kids read. At every school the teachers encourage reading. Everyone knows that. So at my school the teachers have required every kid in the school to read on Monday during resource, instead of getting our homework done. However, this policy does not allow students like me to be the best we can be. Aren't Mondays bad enough? I like to usually get work done on Mondays. On Fridays teacher assign homework and say we can do it over the weekend, but let's be honest-- we barely do any homework on weekends. That homework that's assigned is due on Tuesday, so I often times like to get it done during resource on Mondays. We middle school students are given lots of homework, and now the teachers want to take away our time to do it. Lots of kids rely on resource to get some work done because various sports and clubs take up most of their after-school time. If kids have their work done and they want to read, they may. That's a pre-established rule in resource. So why isn't the school allowing kids to get their work done? Honestly, I love language arts. I feel like it lets me express myself in creative ways. When I come in I know I'm ready to start learning and working on my most recent projects, but before that we get a nice refresher on a book we've been reading. We spend a half hour reading every day, so I don't think we need an hour straight of reading when we need to get work done. In my opinion, Literacy Mondays are completely redundant. We read about 30 minutes a day in language arts, we read after we finish a test, and we read at least six books per school year. Enforcing reading is pushing kids away. If teachers keep doing this, kids will stop reading and their education will suffer.

Gym Essay

Obesity is a huge battle that lots of people are fighting in our country. Even kids struggle with their weight these days. As cities get bigger, people work longer hours, and a well balanced home-cooked meal can be harder to find. And since lots of people don't have time to cook a meal, they often don't work out. This is why physical education is important to me. Kids need to learn how to get active in this day and age. When people thought of kids they used to think of a playground, or a neighborhood game of kickball. Now when they think of kids they think of iPods, rotten music, and video games. These days kids get more screen time than sunlight. Physical education teaches us to put down the controller and get active. In gym we do lots to make sure we stay active like activity logs and fitness testing. To think some schools have gotten rid of gym is unbearable. As times have changed, gym classes have changed along with them. Physical education used to be about learning how to play a sport, and then running. Now in gym we learn about the nutritional value of food, human growth and development, and the harms of tobacco and other drugs. I have learned so much in class, especially in the tobacco unit. If we didn't learn about that, I bet a lot of kids would have picked up that cigarette, or given into peer pressure. So, why is gym important to me? Gym is important to me because it has taught me lots of life lessons that I will take with me through high school, college, and even after college. Kids learn a lot in gym. It's a part of growing up. With this battle of obesity in our country, I think gym is more important than ever.

Firework Figurative Language

Music can mean many things to a lot of people. It can change your emotion in an instant. Most of that is due to the lyrics. Most of the time people will base their favorite song on how they can relate to the lyrics. When artists add figurative language to their songs it adds meaning and it makes the song easier to follow. One song with a lot of figurative language is "Firework" by Katy Perry. The song starts out with a simile. Katy sings, "Do you ever feel like a plastic bag drifting through the wind, wanting to start again? Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin like a house of cards, one blow from caving in?". When she sings this she means at one point have you ever felt so fragile and thin? Have you ever wondered if you could just start over instead of crumbling and breaking down? With this simile it helps Katy get her point across and paint a picture into the listener's head with imagery. In the refrain Katy sings, "Baby, you're a firework. Come on, show 'em what you're worth. Make 'em go 'Oh, oh, oh' as you shoot across the sky-y-y". These sentences represent metaphors. A metaphor is a simile without like or as, so when Katy calls you a firework she doesn't literally mean you are a firework. By saying that she probably means that you are inspiring and beautiful to everyone around you, so you should let your true colors show. In the bridge the lyrics say "After a hurricane comes a rainbow. Maybe a reason why all the doors are closed so you could open one that leads you to the perfect road". In these couple of lines Katy is using symbolism. Although it may be true that a rainbow comes after a hurricane, in this case the hurricane represents bad times in life, and the rainbow is showing that the problem will get better. In the next sentence the door symbolizes opportunity or possibilities, and when those doors close she means that those opportunities are gone, but the one that you that is left is the one that will be perfect for you. Symbolism was a great choice of figurative language in this song. Many authors and music artists use figurative language to creatively get their point across and engage the reader/listener. I'm glad that they do this because it makes the lyrics memorable and adds meaning. Katy's inspiring song "Firework" has been brought alive by figurative language, and it wouldn't be the same without it.

All Grown Up

"Time sure goes by fast, doesn't it?" We've all said it at one point. Whether it be your neighbor, your cousin, or a little kid at the grocery store, there is one point in every kids' childhood where they grow up. This seemed to be a big theme in the book "To Kill a Mockingbird". The two main characters in the book named Jem and Dill grew up a lot, and so did the town of Maycomb itself. Scout's older brother Jem started out as a playful boy in the beginning of "To Kill a Mockingbird". Jem used to include Scout in everything and play in the yard with her. Then all of a sudden Jem told Scout not to talk to him in school and she wasn't allowed to play games with him and Dill. Eventually, Jem would just sit in his room and not even let Scout talk to him. Toward the end of the book Jem was more of an older brother than a friend to Scout. Jem would take care of her just as Atticus would when he wasn't around. At the trial while Atticus was working he did as Atticus wanted and commanded Scout and Dill to leave the courtroom, but with Scout being so stubborn that didn't happen until Dill started crying hysterically. Throughout the book, Jem changed from a boy to a teenager. Ever since the first summer Dill came to Maycomb, he had been friends with Jem and Scout. Those kids always loved exploring together and making new games to occupy themselves. When he started coming to his Aunt Rachel's for the summer he told Jem and Scout that he had won $5 by entering a picture of himself to a Beautiful Children contest. Already he had seemed a little strange. He was a rather small kid, and was the same age as Scout. Dill just loved Scout. All throughout the book he was convinced that they would grow up and marry each other. He never admitted much about his family until multiple summers later when he ran away from his own home. He had said that his family had just passed him off one at a time because no one wanted him, until his mom finally took him in and gave him a true home. At the end of the book, Dill was grown up enough to admit what his life had been like, and Jem and Scout still accepted him like they always did. Not only did lots of the characters grow and develop, but the town of Maycomb as a whole did, too. When something as serious as the big trial happening in a small town like that, a lot more people realized how wrong it was to treat African-Americans like they were. Atticus wasn't the only one who knew that Tom Robinson was innocent, but everyone was too afraid of ruining their reputation to say anything. The moment Tom got shot in jail I think the town knew how serious his trial really was. The way aunt Alexandria broke down to Miss Maudie really showed me that the ladies of the town weren't just gossipers; they had feelings, and Tom’s death really hit home for her. Growing and developing is a huge theme , among any others in the book "To Kill a Mockingbird". In an instant children can just grow up just like Jem and Dill did. People who say time flies couldn’t be more correct.

My Scary Encounter

Last night, I had a scary encounter. I walk into my room and she's lying there, half dead. Gasping for air, she held on but slowly started seeing the light. I had to act quickly if I was going to save her. I take her and run to the kitchen. I feel terrible. Her husband was next to her, not knowing what to do. Helpless, he's in the kitchen with me. I give the Wanda a clean, healthier setting and Cosmo unwillingly follows. This space is smaller. Wanda quickly realizes that the new air she is breathing is cleaner. She is starting to move around more, and is slowly recovering. Cosmo was nursing her to health. Wanda started to regain her ability to swim as I cleaned out her tank. No wonder she couldn't breathe! Her tank was so dirty, and it really needed a cleaning. I cleaned the tank, and then Cosmo and Wanda returned to their home, safe and sound. That near death experience that my close friend had, was by far the most horrid event I had ever witnessed.

Gone

Author's Note: This was written based off of a painting called "Le Blanc Seing" that Mrs. Reagles showed us one day. When I saw it thought of a lost, broken woman trying to find a way silence her thoughts and get over her loss.
I know he's not with us anymore...but I still feel him here. I felt his presence. I knew in my heart that he was among us. He would always come out here and ride to clear his head. I can see why now. It's beautiful with the light peeking through the trees, the branches swaying in the wind, the everlasting chirping of bird families. This forest is peaceful and serene. Optical illusions everywhere, keeping your mind on its feet. He loved it so much. It was his thinking place. It's just as he left it. I know someday a storm will come and wash away the memories from here, but right now he was all over. This is where he would forget everything. This is where he was happy. This is where he would be right now if he were still here. He gets all of those crazy thoughts here like moving to the city, becoming a lawyer.That's what  made me love him--his crazy thoughts and his free spirit. He always knew what to say, what to do, what to make of things. There's an emptiness that anly he could fill--and that's gone now. He's gone. 

Melinda's Future

If you look at a lot of people who have had bad childhoods, they grow up to be burnouts, outcasts, and low-lives. They usually steal and lie and cheat, then they blame it on a traumatizing event from their childhood. The character Melinda from the book Speak is better than that. Although Melinda has gone through a traumatic event, I believe that she will grow up to be a successful woman.

When Melinda dialed 9-1-1 she immediately brought her popularity level from an 8.5 to a -4. Nearly everyone at that party was having fun, and then she ended it, and got some kids in trouble. No one knew that she panicked and didn't know what was was going on. No one knew how she had been violated. No one knew that what had happened changed her life. Once everyone found out what happened people started to take pity on her. I think that when the book is over, Melinda will gain back even more friends than she had already started to.

I think now that Melinda has been through a traumatic and life changing incident her family will approach her more and talk about each others feelings in ways other than notes. She might begin some type of therapy, and her parents will be a little more conservative. Melinda will definetly get more attention, which I think was probably necessary even before the incident. This could either make or break her parents' relationship. I can see them fighting it out and deciding that they both know what's best for their daughter and getting a divorce. That would be yet another thing for Melinda to deal with, and it could affect the rest of her life with split holidays, trust issues, and maybe even pressure to choose sides. Looking at the big picture, this could cause some serious problems.

I think now that she doesn't have the stress from everyone hating her, and keeping a big secret, her grades will raise a lot. She might be known as the girl who got sexually abused all throughout high school, but that will probably leave her when she enters the real world. In a book called My Life in Pink and Green the main character Lucy's reputation gets saved by starting a beauty business in her family pharmacy. Maybe all Melinda needs is to forget this happened and focus on the future. She will never fully forget, but this would be a good start.

She might have bad flashbacks or other  in the future, but I think if she doesn't use the incident as an excuse to drink and do drugs and make bad choices she might have a normal life. Although this could cause some family issues, I truly believe that Melinda will turn out alright.

"I walk through the doors, and the stiff smell of old paper hits me like a brick wall. I'm the weird new kid again. I've recently decided that work is like high school. Maybe not my high school experience, but kind of like the stuff you see in the movies. The jocks are the guys that started the after work softball team and who are on the verge of being fired all the time. The cheerleaders are the catty girls that always sit together during their lunch breaks. The nerds are the kiss-ups that work overtime for free and still get no recognition. Then there are a couple of the plain-Janes, which is my niche. We keep within our group, and we're real with each other. We know the names of each others' kids and occasionally go out for drinks after work on Fridays. Even though working in a plain office building wasn't the dream, I'm still content with where I've ended up. I have a rhythm going. I get the kids ready for school, work, pick the kids up, and enjoy every precious second I have with them. I've found a great man who I'm eager to call my husband. Everything's just fine with me."

Independence Day

In most popular music these days there isn't much meaning in the lyrics, but I recently found an older song by Martina McBride called “Independence Day.” It has a great story line. It's about an abusive husband who beats on his wife and children. The wife then takes matters into her own hands and sends the kids to the fair on Independence Day. She then burns their house down with her, and her husband inside of it. As you can see, the story line is quite different from many others.

There is one main conflict throughout the whole song, and that is the abusive dad and how his actions affect his family.  It is an example of a person vs. person conflict. In the song Martina McBride sings, "She tried to pretend he wasn't drinkin' again, but daddy'd left the proof on her cheek," and this proves that the father was an alcoholic. This is probably leading up from depression, genetics, or a bad childhood. Because of one of these or any other number of reasons, he released his anger through hurting his family. Sadly, this is a problem everywhere. Many men and women are abusive to others. This song is just another common example when it comes to the conflict.

In the song “Independence Day”, there is a very clear resolution. In the song Martina sings, "Well, she lit up the sky that fourth of July, by the time that the firemen come, they just put out the flames, and took down some names, and send me to the county home". By that, she means that her mother burned down the house while the children were away. If you go deeper, you'll find out what was going through the mother's head. This crime was also technically suicidal. If her life was that bad that she would rather lose everything she has—including her life—instead of just going to the cops, the father must have been raging on her quite often. In the last part of the song it says, "Now I ain't sayin' it's right or it's wrong, but maybe it's the only way". By that, Martina is saying that the resolution for this isn't right because the mother killed her husband, but it isn't wrong either, because he abused her daily.

This story is like many others, except for the burning house part. There was a book released called "The Burning Bed" which was later made into a movie that is based off of the Burning Bed incident in Dansville, Michigan. It is the exact same story as the song. Many say that the song is based off of the Burning Bed incident. 

Even though lots of popular songs don't have meaning these days, this one does--especially when it comes to conflict and resolution. Maybe burning down the house wasn't the best idea, but when you're being physically abused, your options are limited.

This Couldn't Get Any Better.

The sound of the blades gliding across the ice gets me a little too excited. I skate along, leaving my little snail trail of where I lose my balance and clumsily reclaim it. The scarf around my mouth gets wet from breathing. The smell of rich, sweet hot chocolate fills my nostrils, as we laugh and giggle at the dogs playing in the snow. The hopes of a snow day dance in peoples' heads while the piles of snowflakes drift down from the clouds. My aching ankles and blistering heels are totally worth this perfect day. A snowflake falls exactly on the tip of my nose, and I feel like I'm in a scene from a story book. Out of no where I realize that this couldn't get any better.

Breaking Point

Lots of people have that one breakup song that they eat ice cream and cry to. But in most relationships there is breaking point where you both know things will soon come to an end--where the relationship slowly starts to crumble and fall apart. There are lots of relatable songs for that weird period of time that can help you through it.

In "Grenade" by Bruno Mars the theme is crumbling relationships. When he says "I would die for you, baby, but you won't do the same," he's desperately trying to say that he loves this girl with all his heart, and he would give his life for her, but she wouldn't do a thing for him. This shows a crumbling relationship, because if this man feels this way he is bound to break up with this heartless witch. The woman must know this too, because she must have no feelings for him if she isn't feeling the true love he has in return.

Another song that's perfect for the breaking point period is "Not Like the Movies" by Katy Perry. She sings, "He put it on me. I put it on like there was nothing wrong. It didn't fit, it wasn't right--wasn't just the size. They say you know when you know, but I don't know." In this part of the song, she's talking about a ring. This is the moment when she realizes that this isn't the man she wants. She wants something impossibly perfect. She also sings "I didn't feel the fairytale feeling, no, am I a stupid girl for even dreaming that I could. If it's not like the movies, that's how it should be." When she says that, she means that she deserves to wait for the man that you would find in the movies-- if that even exists. Later in the song Katy sings "They say it’s hard to meet your match, find my better half so we make perfect shapes." When she sings that she is really saying that in our head we build up these high expectations, and then we get let down because someone with those expectations doesn't exist.

When you're nearing the end of your breaking point, a great song to listen to is "The Way I Loved You" by Taylor Swift. This song is about a girl dating a guy that's perfect. He opens the door for her and gets her flowers, and she likes him, but she doesn't love him. She can't stop thinking about the guy that drove her crazy and made her cry, because of that passion. In the beginning of the song Taylor sings, "He is sensible and so incredible and all my single friends are jealous. He says everything I need to hear and it's like I couldn't ask for anything better. He opens up my door and I get into his car and he says you look beautiful tonight..." Here she is talking about her flawless relationship with her dream boy. After this the chorus starts and she sings, "But I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain and it's two a.m. and I'm cursing your name. You're so in love that you act insane and that's the way I loved you". This is when the ex-boyfriend comes in and ruins everything. In this song I can almost hear the painted smile on her face when she's around her flawless boyfriend. She misses the flame and passion that came with the boyfriend that made her so frustrated. It shows that her relationship with the perfect guy is falling apart.

Songs like these are critical to most people. Everyone has feelings. It's always nice to know that someone can relate to you, especially if it comes with a catchy beat, and you know even a pop star has felt this way. Lots of people have a favorite breakup song that gets them through every relationship, but maybe they should have a favorite breaking point song, too.

Prediction Piece for Speak

Author's Note: Don't read this if you haven't finished Speak! It's a huge spoiler alert! I talk about what will happen to Melinda after the book, so only read this if you've finished the book please!

I think that when the book is over, Melinda will gain back friends. She might have bad flashbacks or something in the future, but I think if she doesn't use the incident as an excuse to drink and do drugs and make bad choices she might have a normal life. If you look at not all people but a lot who have had bad childhoods, they grow up to be burnouts, outcasts, and low-lives. They usually steal and lie and cheat, then they blame it on a traumatic event from their childhood. Melinda is better than that. At the end of the book she admits that she got sexually abused. Everyone felt bad for what they did to make her feel bad about herself, and she regained some friends.She finally got all that weight off her shoulders and she has turned into a better person. I can see her growing up to be an independent, successful young woman with a loving husband and kids. Melinda could turn out to be okay.

Patriot's Pen Essay

I can see it now, the rust-colored, musty room filled with men writing down America's history with a quill and ink--our Founding Fathers. What would you say to them if you had the chance to speak with them? I know they did a lot of things to start up our country, but not all of them were very helpful.

When all of those men were writing our constitution they said that all men are created equal, even though most of those men had slaves. I believe that everyone should get a chance to have a happy and fulfilling life, but since these people had dark skin, they were automatically judged. The American people continued to treat these people terribly for almost 200 years before it was stopped. If all men are created equal then why were these poor families treated different?

While all of these men were writing the most important document in American history, their wives were probably at home taking care of the kids and making dinner. Why were women so disrespected back then? They were the backbone of the family doing all the cooking and cleaning. Everyone says that men go to work to put food on the table but in reality, who makes that food? Who cleans up after the people eating that food? Certainly not the men. In the Declaration of Independence many of the sentences start with “He has…” but why not “He/she has…”? Do the laws not apply to women now? In addition, in 1920 women were finally allowed to vote. Before then they didn’t have a say in who ran their country. Our founding fathers really needed to think about who kept their houses clean and their stomachs content while they were at work every day.

Although our founding fathers did a couple things wrong, they did do a couple things right. Before they came to America there wasn’t freedom. When they came here, most of them dreamed of freedom of religion and freedom of speech, and now we know those rules a part of our daily lives. We can say what we’d like to and praise the Lord in whatever way we’d like to. Some of us don’t even praise a lord of any kind, but that’s okay here in America. In this case, I think our founding fathers had the right idea.

Overall, I think we have a great country, and for that I would thank our founding fathers. They had no idea what an achievement they’ve made. Hopefully someday in the future I will be able to thank them for all that they’ve done to help form our present day America. 

Cause/Effect

Could you imagine being stuck in an enclosed arena with 23 other kids fighting to the death? That's what a young girl named Katniss Everdeen had to do twice in a three book series called The Hunger Games. There is a lot going on in this series, but the true point of no return--or the climax--was when they announced the Quarter Quell. The Quarter Quell was the 75th Hunger Games were there's always a bit of a twist. This year, it was that all of the past victors names were drawn, instead of the childrens'. In District 12 Katniss was the only girl, so she would be reentering the darkest place of her life for the second time. The Capitol started these Hunger Games to gain control over all of the districts. Due to this, many loved ones had been lost. Many people had been sacrificed. And many people had died a horrible painful death. As more children had died, citizens ad begun to get angrier and angrier. This finally led up to the rebellion. Just because the Capitol was greedy, little children died.

Six Flags Success

The anticipation was killing me. We had been standing in line for two hours, and a single drop of rain hit my forehead. That just blew me over the edge. That means they have to shut down raging bull for at least a half hour after it stopped raining. Well, that was two hours of my life I would NEVER get back. Our small group decided that the day was over for us at six flags, and it was only 4:00. Eventually we head back to the car, and change into some dry clothes, and then finally we're off. Both my aunt and my mom know that us kids are disappointed, so they decide to try to salvage what was left of this day trip. I ask where we're going, but all they say is "You'll see". We pull into a crowded parking lot and I look up at the sign and it says "Gurnee Mills Shopping Center". I had been begging my mom to take me shopping all summer, and now we have hours and hours to do it with my favorite cousins.

The smell of rain was still lingering in the air and the light mist was was sending a chill down my back.We walk through the sliding doors and i come alive with excitement. Our first stop, Starbucks. We all get hot coffees to warm us up from the cold outside air. We continue to doddle around the outlet mall, window shopping and sipping our coffees.We continue to laugh and have a good time. We continue to make memories  without even knowing it.

It gets to be about eight o' clock and we decide that we've been to every store that we wanted to go to. My quiet little cousin Anna chimes in and says "Why don't we go back to six flags?" A surprised look came across my face as fast a a flame would take to charcoal drenched in kerosene. Anna hadn't wanted to ride any rides all day. She wasn't really a daredevil.

"Are you sure?" my aunt asked with a worrisome expression on her face.
"Yeah," said Anna, "I'd like to try and ride raging bull at least once". At that moment, I was so proud of her. She had learned a valuable lesson and was one step closer to conquering her fears. I could see in her mom's as that she was even more proud than I was.

* * * *

 We all climb into our separate cars and get fastened in, and alll of a sudden Anna says, "I don't want to do this. Mom get me out."

"It's too late now, honey. Just close your eyes and enjoy the ride. It will be over soon," my aunt says in a reassuring voice.We slowly start to snake up to the top of the roller coaster.

Anna proceeded to tightly shut her eyes, and keep them that way until the bar over her shoulders is lifted at the end of the ride. Once she got off, she was ecstatic."That was awesome!" she said. I was so glad to see her happy. 

Anna had conquered her fear, and I finally got to go shopping. On our way home, we talked about our favorite parts of the day and laughed and smiled some more. Looking back, I thought it was the end of the world when we decided to leave six flags, but it wasn't. My aunt and my mom decided to make the best of the day and in the end, we all had a great day that I will never forget.

The Life of a Middle Schooler

           As she paints her face with makeup under the florescent lights in the bathroom she slowly covers her identity and leaves the real world. She soon enters the world of middle school. She leaves the loving, caring arms of her parents and enters the jungle, filled with snakes, cheaters, lions, and betrayers. Nothing could have trained her to be here 7 hours a day, 5 days a week.
           Walking through the doors and strolling down the 8th grade hallway, the strong smell of cologne and PINK©  Sweet 'N' Flirty perfume fills the air. I get dizzy from the smell and try to make it past people without completely knocking them over with my backpack. It's 7:15, and most people in the world should be sleeping, but not the students at Asa Clark Middle School. Everyone is talking about the adorable couples and the latest gossip. Every girl is in tight skirts, intentionally ripped skinny jeans, or PINK © yoga pants. Their heads are draped in flowing waves of silk, not a hair out of place. If one hair is out of place, you are considered a loser and become the prey of the creatures at the top of the food chain. No one talks to you, and you are swallowed whole by the worst of them all.

Closet Symbolism in Speak

If you look at a lot of classic books, many brilliant authors have put symbolism in their pieces. When a person proposes to his/her loved one, they usually get down on one knee and present a ring. The circle represents the never ending circle of trust that the couple should have for the rest of their lives. That is considered symbolism. In the jaw-dropping book Speak  the main character, Melinda, has symbolism smacking her in the face left and right.
          There is one connected web of symbolism that really inspired me, and that is the iconic deserted and dusty janitor's closet that she fixes up into an intermediate janitor's closet. She puts up posters and art pieces to try to make it perfect, but it never will be, because it's always going to be a just a janitor's closet. It's kind of like a metaphor for her life. She is trying to hide the fact that she got raped. She is disguising herself to make it look like high school got the best of her and she just feels lonely because everyone hates her, when it's mostly because she was sexually assaulted. If you look at the connection between  Melinda and Andy Evans, it's kind of ironic that his final assault attempt was in her sacred closet. It's a shame that it was in that closet, too. It ruined her chances of ever wanting to have that little hiding place to herself. That closet nearly kept her alive in the crazy world of high school. I guarantee that in the future, whenever she walks past the closet she will cringe or have a flashback, because that is a sensitive spot for her. Poor Melinda just wanted to go through high school normally, but that didn't happen. Then she gets a pad of late passes and a secret hiding spot --which she probably earned--and by the end of the year it was ruined by the same guy who ruined her high school life.
           Symbolism is everywhere. Especially in Speak. Although it's a shame that the closet--along with all of its potential-- was ruined, and always will be, Melinda will still have the short memories of having a sanctuary, a safe place that helped her heal.