Authors note: This piece is written in perspective of a 18 year old girl going on vacation. It is written in first person present tense.
Another long and boring vacation with my family here I come. Whining and pouting all the way to airport just thinking of how I could’ve been on a cruise ship with all of friends. But no, I have to spend my spring break with my little brother and my parents who keep telling me this will be a great family bonding experience. Spending a whole week on the Hawaiian beaches does sound quite relaxing and a lot of fun but not with my family. My kind of vacation is laying on a towel on the beach wearing cute sunglasses while reading a book and sipping lemonade. My parents are the exact opposite. They are way too adventurous for me. They have activities planned for every day of the week. We are going to go explore Hawaii, go fishing, scuba-diving, and snorkeling. They call them daily excursions. I call them having to get up way too early to go on a trip where I will be forced to do something I am extremely scared of.
I arrive at my hotel and my parents let me go to the beach before it’s time to eat dinner. I better enjoy the time I have on the beach because it will be my last. I grab my swim suit, towel, and sunglasses and head towards the beach. I find an open spot and lay my towel down and instantly a little kid who is all wet and covered in sand runs past my towel soaking it and covering it in sand. Grumbling, I shake my towel off and lay down. I am at ease laying in the sun getting a golden tan when I slowly fall asleep. I wake up to my mom standing over me with a OMG look on her face. I sit up, trying to remember everything that was going on when I feel my whole body stinging. I look at my self and see that I am completely sunburned. My mom helps me up and I slowly and painfully walk back to the hotel. As I walk up the beach, every face looks just like my mom’s. What a horrible way to start off an already horrible vacation.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
A True Friend
Authors note: This piece is based on the picture below. This is a picture of Ally and myself. In this piece I went back to the times we spent together when we were very young.
Laying on my front yard completely soaked and covered in grass may not sound like the most entertaining or fun way to spend a beautiful summer afternoon. The only way this can be a pleasurable time is if you are with that one person who you can do anything with. This person is your best friend. Your best friend is someone who knows all your secrets, knows your strengths, knows your weaknesses, and most importantly knows that they can rely on you for anything and everything. This person in my life is Ally. We have known each other since the first grade and have been best friends since the very first day of first grade. When me meet it was as if we had known each other for ever. There wasn’t that certain shyness between us where we were scared of what the other would think. There was an immediate bond between us that I knew was there to stay.
My friendship with Ally has grown since the first day we met and continues to grow. Our many wonderful memories grow every time we are together. We are very different as people but we respect each others differences. The friendship between us is here to stay. “Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget.”
Monday, February 14, 2011
Embarrasment to the Fullest
I twirl and twirl in my pretty pink tutu with a carefree smile at the age of 4. Ballet class was my favorite part of the day with the exception of one person -- my teacher. A crazy old lady with white hair sticking up as if she hadn’t brushed it ever. She scared the living daylights out of me. She was one of those people that you avoided conversation with and just did what she said. I was a cute little girl who followed instructions, always. I never wanted to be first in line but I wasn’t at the end either. One day we were doing our regular jumps and twirls and all of sudden it hit me. It had to use the bathroom. I decided I could hold it for the rest of the class. I continued twirling and jumping, but I had to go even worse now. My twirling probably looked more like a potty dance by now.
Oh no, it was my turn to go in front of the class and leap across the whole dance floor, by myself. I really had to go to the bathroom but I was way too scared to ask. I really, really did not want to ask her. I was afraid she’d yell at me or be really angry, so I decided not to ask her and just hold it. I made my way to the front of the room and started leaping and then the most embarrassing moment of my toddler years happened. I started peeing in front of the whole class while leaping across the room. I did not stop leaping though. I leaped all around the room while I was peeing.
My teacher just kind of looked at me wondering why I didn’t ask to use the bathroom. She had to do something about the mess so she got paper towel and rags and started cleaning up. Surprisingly she didn’t seem even a little bit mad. When my mom came to pick me up my teacher told her about what happened. When we got in the car she asked me why I didn’t just ask to go to the bathroom I said, “I was scared.” My mom just laughed.
Oh no, it was my turn to go in front of the class and leap across the whole dance floor, by myself. I really had to go to the bathroom but I was way too scared to ask. I really, really did not want to ask her. I was afraid she’d yell at me or be really angry, so I decided not to ask her and just hold it. I made my way to the front of the room and started leaping and then the most embarrassing moment of my toddler years happened. I started peeing in front of the whole class while leaping across the room. I did not stop leaping though. I leaped all around the room while I was peeing.
My teacher just kind of looked at me wondering why I didn’t ask to use the bathroom. She had to do something about the mess so she got paper towel and rags and started cleaning up. Surprisingly she didn’t seem even a little bit mad. When my mom came to pick me up my teacher told her about what happened. When we got in the car she asked me why I didn’t just ask to go to the bathroom I said, “I was scared.” My mom just laughed.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
If We Lived Everyday like it was Christmas
Authors Note: This writing piece is based off the song "If you lived every day like it was Christmas" by Peter Eide. In this piece I attempted a more free styled introduction and also tried to use a lot of voice and opinion.
When you think of Christmas you think of gifts, family, food, and love. Families sitting around the tree opening presents and sipping hot chocolate and worrying about nothing. Not everyone's Christmas is like that though. Many families in America are not sitting around the tree and opening gifts on Christmas, but searching for food and struggling for warmth. We need to take action in our communities, in America, and around the globe and help these people not only during the holidays but year round.
In December the most money is spent and also given to those in need through charities. Many companies organize toy drives, fundraisers, and giving trees for children and adults in need, but why only during Christmas time? People struggle all through the year but are only helped a lot during the holidays. There are food drives and other small fundraiser throughout the year but people give more during Christmas. If we lived everyday like it was Christmas the world would definitely be a more giving place.
An example of giving throughout the year is sponsoring a child. My family has been sponsoring a child in the Phillippines for a few years. We were inspired to sponsor a child when we were educated in church on how little money families in the Phillippines have. We knew it was a very poor area but when we saw that kids could not go to school because of lack of money we knew we needed to help. On a wall in the entry way of our church there were pictures hanging of all the children that could be sponsored. We picked a little boy named Arnoldo. Every month we send money to him. He uses the money to buy school supplies, clothes, and food. We also write letters back and forth with his family and him and during his birthday and the holidays we send gifts.When they write in their letters how much of an impact we have made in their sons life we know it is worth every penny.
If you can't live everyday like it's Christmas then try once a week or once a month but not once a year. Make a difference in the life of someone else and I promise, you will be happy you did when you see the smile on their face.
When you think of Christmas you think of gifts, family, food, and love. Families sitting around the tree opening presents and sipping hot chocolate and worrying about nothing. Not everyone's Christmas is like that though. Many families in America are not sitting around the tree and opening gifts on Christmas, but searching for food and struggling for warmth. We need to take action in our communities, in America, and around the globe and help these people not only during the holidays but year round.
In December the most money is spent and also given to those in need through charities. Many companies organize toy drives, fundraisers, and giving trees for children and adults in need, but why only during Christmas time? People struggle all through the year but are only helped a lot during the holidays. There are food drives and other small fundraiser throughout the year but people give more during Christmas. If we lived everyday like it was Christmas the world would definitely be a more giving place.
An example of giving throughout the year is sponsoring a child. My family has been sponsoring a child in the Phillippines for a few years. We were inspired to sponsor a child when we were educated in church on how little money families in the Phillippines have. We knew it was a very poor area but when we saw that kids could not go to school because of lack of money we knew we needed to help. On a wall in the entry way of our church there were pictures hanging of all the children that could be sponsored. We picked a little boy named Arnoldo. Every month we send money to him. He uses the money to buy school supplies, clothes, and food. We also write letters back and forth with his family and him and during his birthday and the holidays we send gifts.When they write in their letters how much of an impact we have made in their sons life we know it is worth every penny.
If you can't live everyday like it's Christmas then try once a week or once a month but not once a year. Make a difference in the life of someone else and I promise, you will be happy you did when you see the smile on their face.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Christmas Morning
Authors note: I wrote this poem just for fun. It is a free verse poem.
I jump out of bed
And run down the stairs
Take down my stocking
And rip the wrapping paper
my face lights up
It's exactly what I wanted
I know it's going to be the best Christmas ever
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Lying
Authors Note: I wrote this essay to show a valuable lesson that I learned when I was younger.
"Tommy!" Mrs. Calvin yelled, "Keep your eyes on your own paper!"
"I was just looking at the clock!" Tommy lied, he had forgotten to study the previous night and didn't know any of the answers on the test.
"I'll see you after class Mr. McDonald!"
Tommy rolled his eyes at his Math teacher. Mrs. Calvin saw him and told him he would have to call his parents too. After class Tommy had a conversation with Mrs. Calvin about how cheating is wrong and he shouldn't do it, but what she was really worried about was that he lied to her. That's all he heard before he stopped paying attention because he had heard this conversation multiple times from different teachers. He was probably more used to staying after class and having detentions than an average student. When his parents were called Tommy was supposed to tell them what he had done wrong. He told his parents a different lie. He told them that he had heard something fall across the room so he looked up. His parents knew that he was lying and told him they would have a discussion when he was done with school. If Tommy hadn't lied the situation would been resolved a lot easier and Tommy would have been in a lot less trouble. Lying is the most harmful way of getting out of trouble.
I was taught at a very young age not to lie. In my house it was, and still is very clear that lying is not acceptable. My dad's number one rule is if you do something wrong, to tell him because the punishment will be less than if I lied. I know that if I lie to my parents and they find out, their trust we will be gone, and hard to get back. You won't know how important the gift of trust is until it's gone.
How does lying help you? It doesn't. You may think lying helps you get "off the hook," that's a lie. Lying makes your whole conflict more complicated and harder to resolve. If you tell a lie it can spread. It may spread to the person the lie was about or it could result in hurt feelings or consequences. What would you do if someone told a lie about you to get themselves out of trouble? When you lie it can be harmful to you and anyone around you.
"Tommy!" Mrs. Calvin yelled, "Keep your eyes on your own paper!"
"I was just looking at the clock!" Tommy lied, he had forgotten to study the previous night and didn't know any of the answers on the test.
"I'll see you after class Mr. McDonald!"
Tommy rolled his eyes at his Math teacher. Mrs. Calvin saw him and told him he would have to call his parents too. After class Tommy had a conversation with Mrs. Calvin about how cheating is wrong and he shouldn't do it, but what she was really worried about was that he lied to her. That's all he heard before he stopped paying attention because he had heard this conversation multiple times from different teachers. He was probably more used to staying after class and having detentions than an average student. When his parents were called Tommy was supposed to tell them what he had done wrong. He told his parents a different lie. He told them that he had heard something fall across the room so he looked up. His parents knew that he was lying and told him they would have a discussion when he was done with school. If Tommy hadn't lied the situation would been resolved a lot easier and Tommy would have been in a lot less trouble. Lying is the most harmful way of getting out of trouble.
I was taught at a very young age not to lie. In my house it was, and still is very clear that lying is not acceptable. My dad's number one rule is if you do something wrong, to tell him because the punishment will be less than if I lied. I know that if I lie to my parents and they find out, their trust we will be gone, and hard to get back. You won't know how important the gift of trust is until it's gone.
How does lying help you? It doesn't. You may think lying helps you get "off the hook," that's a lie. Lying makes your whole conflict more complicated and harder to resolve. If you tell a lie it can spread. It may spread to the person the lie was about or it could result in hurt feelings or consequences. What would you do if someone told a lie about you to get themselves out of trouble? When you lie it can be harmful to you and anyone around you.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
How 4 Words Changed My Outlook on Life
Authors Note: This is NOT a true story. I wrote this story because I have thought about what I would do if I was told I had 6 months to live. Also, the movie, The Bucket List gave me ideas of what to put on the bucket list.
Have you ever thought tragic events only happen in movies or on the news? Have you ever thought that nothing bad could ever happen to you? Do you think that someone will always be there to protect you? Well, that's a lie. The truth is "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get." - Forest Gump
"Pain", pain is the most frequently used word in my vocaubulary. I say, "I'm in pain," when nurses, family, and friends ask how I'm doing, which is everyday. I know I am fortunate enough to have so much love given to me, but I feel that nothing and no one can heal my uncontrollable disease.
"I have your test results," my doctor said to me in a mildly unconvincing voice.
"OK," both my parents and I said while taking in deep breaths. "We're ready to hear them." All three of us were holding hands on my hospital bed.
"It's not good news."
At that point my heart was in my stomach.
"You have," he took a pause and then continued, "6 months maximum to live." He then said, "I'm sorry," and left the room in silence.
The room was silent, only with a few loud whimpers coming from my mom. I didn't know what to think. It didn't seem real but at the same time I knew it was.
Being told that you could die anytime in the next 6 months really makes you think. "Did I enjoy my time here on earth? Did I bring joy to others? What do I want to do before I leave? What can I do, so that when the time comes I'm ready to leave without any regrets?"
I really thought about the third question. "What do I want to do before I leave?" I then decided to write a bucket list. I wrote down the first thoughts that popped into my head.
1. Go to Hawaii
2. Meet President Barack Obama
3. Throw the first pitch at a Brewers game
4. Visit the Great Wall of China
5. Go skydiving
6. Go Bunji Jumping
7. Have lunch with Sandra Bullok
I told my parents about my list containing a passel of ideas, and they of course wanted me to be happy, so they agreed to it. The first event I got to do was throw the first pitch at the Brewers game. It was an amazing experience. The announcer told the fans my story(I don't think there was a dry eye in the whole stadium) and I got to stand next to Trevor Hoffman on the pitching mound and throw the first pitch. The whole stadium errupted in clapping and hollering like they all just won the lottery. After the game I got to hang out with the whole Brewer team. It was an experience that any sports fanatic would pay a lot of money for.
Next, I took a 14 hour plane ride to the beautiful beaches of Hawaii. I stayed there for 3 days and soaked up all the sun I could. After sitting on the beaches I decided to head to the capitol and spend a day in the White House. I had a fun time with President Obama, his wife Michelle and their daughters. I then went to the Great Wall of China, bunji jumping, and had lunch with Sandra Bullok.
When I was 3,000 ft. above the ground about to jump out of an airplane I realized that I wasn't happy with the way I was spending the last part of my life, but I didn't know why. I had diligently done everything I had ever wanted to and more. Something just wasn't right. After I safely landed I finally realized what it was. I wasn't fufilling my second question. "Have I brought joy to others?"
Everything I had done over the last month has been for me and nobody but me. Why do everything for myself when I will be gone soon? Why not make a difference in the lives of others that will still be here when I'm gone? And that's just what I did. I first started in the Phillipians and then went to Haiti. I had made it on the news in every state and in all newspapers. I was proud of myself and I knew my family was too. I went all across the world helping families and children by giving them food, shelter, hope, and love.
When my time came to leave the earth I was ready. I knew I lived 13 wonderful years and made an impact in many lives. That was the best feeling I could ever imagine.
Have you ever thought tragic events only happen in movies or on the news? Have you ever thought that nothing bad could ever happen to you? Do you think that someone will always be there to protect you? Well, that's a lie. The truth is "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get." - Forest Gump
"Pain", pain is the most frequently used word in my vocaubulary. I say, "I'm in pain," when nurses, family, and friends ask how I'm doing, which is everyday. I know I am fortunate enough to have so much love given to me, but I feel that nothing and no one can heal my uncontrollable disease.
"I have your test results," my doctor said to me in a mildly unconvincing voice.
"OK," both my parents and I said while taking in deep breaths. "We're ready to hear them." All three of us were holding hands on my hospital bed.
"It's not good news."
At that point my heart was in my stomach.
"You have," he took a pause and then continued, "6 months maximum to live." He then said, "I'm sorry," and left the room in silence.
The room was silent, only with a few loud whimpers coming from my mom. I didn't know what to think. It didn't seem real but at the same time I knew it was.
Being told that you could die anytime in the next 6 months really makes you think. "Did I enjoy my time here on earth? Did I bring joy to others? What do I want to do before I leave? What can I do, so that when the time comes I'm ready to leave without any regrets?"
I really thought about the third question. "What do I want to do before I leave?" I then decided to write a bucket list. I wrote down the first thoughts that popped into my head.
1. Go to Hawaii
2. Meet President Barack Obama
3. Throw the first pitch at a Brewers game
4. Visit the Great Wall of China
5. Go skydiving
6. Go Bunji Jumping
7. Have lunch with Sandra Bullok
I told my parents about my list containing a passel of ideas, and they of course wanted me to be happy, so they agreed to it. The first event I got to do was throw the first pitch at the Brewers game. It was an amazing experience. The announcer told the fans my story(I don't think there was a dry eye in the whole stadium) and I got to stand next to Trevor Hoffman on the pitching mound and throw the first pitch. The whole stadium errupted in clapping and hollering like they all just won the lottery. After the game I got to hang out with the whole Brewer team. It was an experience that any sports fanatic would pay a lot of money for.
Next, I took a 14 hour plane ride to the beautiful beaches of Hawaii. I stayed there for 3 days and soaked up all the sun I could. After sitting on the beaches I decided to head to the capitol and spend a day in the White House. I had a fun time with President Obama, his wife Michelle and their daughters. I then went to the Great Wall of China, bunji jumping, and had lunch with Sandra Bullok.
When I was 3,000 ft. above the ground about to jump out of an airplane I realized that I wasn't happy with the way I was spending the last part of my life, but I didn't know why. I had diligently done everything I had ever wanted to and more. Something just wasn't right. After I safely landed I finally realized what it was. I wasn't fufilling my second question. "Have I brought joy to others?"
Everything I had done over the last month has been for me and nobody but me. Why do everything for myself when I will be gone soon? Why not make a difference in the lives of others that will still be here when I'm gone? And that's just what I did. I first started in the Phillipians and then went to Haiti. I had made it on the news in every state and in all newspapers. I was proud of myself and I knew my family was too. I went all across the world helping families and children by giving them food, shelter, hope, and love.
When my time came to leave the earth I was ready. I knew I lived 13 wonderful years and made an impact in many lives. That was the best feeling I could ever imagine.
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