8th Grade Closure Piece

authors note: In this piece it some what describes what my middle school life has been like, and now looking back on it I finally have time to analyze what I should bring with me through high school or just leave behind.

   You arrive nervous, unprepared and scared. It seems like such a long stride going from 6th to 7th grade but the biggest leap of all still has yet to come. The year passes and with relief the summer comes, next year you will be in charge as you now enter the highest point in middle school. Finally 8th grade year is coming to a close and you look back with time to remember the memories you've made, all the stupid drama seems so pointless now. We've matured so much, grown, succeeded,  no one knows what the future holds but the feelings of fear for freshman year are just like all the stupid drama, pointless. The realization of growing up is scary but the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

   Middle school was just the beginning of becoming an adult, high school is when we will truly learn to become independent. The unknown is what we really fear, it's a leap of faith to grow up and be who you strive to become. Memories of yesteryear, the laughs, the gossip, the late nights staying up because of homework have made us who we are. We may be scared to go where we've never been but with every end there is a new beginning and with every new start there will be new memories.     

   These past two years seemed like an eternity, and now here we are anxious for summer, for gaining our independence within the next four years. We're all scared of what lies ahead, but when we take time to look back on how much our academics have grown and how much new knowledge we have to carry on with us we are thankful for the ones taking time to give us a good education. This time should be embraced because this will only happen once in our lives.

District Assessment

authors note: This piece I don't particularly like because it was written on a topic without a lot of meaning and I wrote it as if it was an assignment not because it had real meaning. The topics I wrote about were that we strive to please others and determination. 

The Hundredth Dove

                The usual cycle of nature rings in your ears, birds chirping, streams flowing, and trees swaying in harmony with the wind. You patiently wait for your prey to come, silently sitting anticipating the perfect moment to pounce. The time comes and you leap in the air then wrap your net around the beautiful doves, but something seemingly impossible happens, an angelic white dove flies out of the silk net. Determination to catch the bird hits you like a ton of bricks, and you will not give up until you have served your king well. The short story The Hundredth Dove by Jane Yolen proves that in life our goal is to please others, it also shows that we will go to great lengths to make ourselves feel important.  

                Hugh the fowl hunter was stunned when he saw how gorgeous Lady Columbia was, instantly he felt the need to impress her, this shows that he would do whatever it took to show that he was the best hunter in the land. The hundred doves needed for the wedding seemed like a simple task but little did Hugh know that it would be nearly impossible. The dove is a symbol of peace, when Hugh finally caught the white dove it wished no more than to be let go without harm, but still Hugh needed the hundredth dove to please not only the king but his fiancée as well so he brought it to the table, dead. Since the wedding was not held Hugh killing the dove seemed like it was a mistake this shows that he made a bad decision as we all do in life.

                Determination to hunt the white dove showed that Hugh would not give up until the bird was served at the kings wedding. Keeping a positive attitude was a large part of Hugh’s hunting experience but it started wearing down as he failed to catch the bird. Waiting and waiting for the bird to show seemed like an eternity but for him it was worth serving others. As the dove spoke in a velvety tone Hugh really considered not killing it but thought that his job was more important than the bird’s life. There is a fine line between doing what is right and wrong, Hugh crossed the line and ended without any glory or fortune.

                Life has many opportunities that test who we are as a person. Hugh took this chance as time to show that he truly was the best but ended up without anything to show for. Serving others may bring us happiness but we are serving them for the wrong reasons we have to learn that the actions we perform might not be worth the consequences we might receive. Sometimes we need to make our decisions wisely and choose what is right or wrong; we learn from our mistakes and eventually will learn how to make the right choices in life.  

Truman Show 2nd Post

authors note: This is my second post to the Truman Show movie and I wrote it from Truman's perspective. It describes what I think he thought of how far he had come in his life from birth to being free in the real world.

Life

Throughout my life I never noticed how people were told to walk past me carrying a basket of flowers or ride their bike past my home or come up to me and ask a question at a specific time. I never considered for a second that my whole life since birth was a fake. The big man running the show never suspected that I would ever find out about the real reality, but here I stand tall and free. I quickly responded to his plea for me to stay with my common goodbye, "In case I don’t see you, good afternoon, good evening, and good night." Finally I stand on the streets a free man, allowed to make his own choices, allowed to love whoever I may choose. Now I realize how far I have come and the large weight of lies has finally been lifted off my shoulders.

The Truman Show

authors note: This piece was written based off of the movie "The Truman Show". I felt that everyone that cared about him really didn't, and that they were lying just for other peoples entertainment. During this whole movie I really wanted Truman to find the truth and at some points, all hope seemed lost. Once he figured out that his life was a lie and set off to sail the last three lines of the poem describes what I thought he might have felt.


 Everything you thought you knew,

has been proven false.

The truth has finally come out

Your thoughts on life have all been altered

 and the real reality awaits you.

Your fellow co-workers,

Your best friend since birth

All of it were lies.

Your one true love waits for you on the other side of life.

The end is near and as you sail through the sea,

Victory is hear.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

Lies, Life, and, Truth


   My name is Christopher, I am 15 and autistic. I have a very different perspective on things such as lies and life. Throughout my fifteen years I've noticed that people's lies are either a cover up of their feelings or a way to prevent confrontation. Life is different for me than most people, I  never lie, I don't like to be hugged or yelled at, and I love maths. I have a hard time reading peoples emotion based off of their facial expressions because you can never tell if they are telling the truth. I am very different from most people and have been treated differently my entire life because of my condition. The novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon shows people a different perspective on life, lies, and the effects of autism.

   The question, "Is lying wrong?", has been commonly asked but the answer is never the same. Some say that it depends on the situation you're in but others say that is completely wrong. Christopher in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time never lied although his entire life is filled with lies, his father has lied about his mother and about the murder of the dog, both to protect him. He describes a dog as loyal and faithful, in this situation he is truly describing himself. The real reason people lie is to hide how they feel or to prevent confrontation because they are afraid, although in reality the only thing we should fear is fear itself.

   In society we have been taught to embrace those that are different from us. Christopher has been treated differently his whole life because of his autistic condition. His thoughts are unique, from his emotions based off of colors or his ability to not lie. Throughout this novel symbols of life are shown in the dog, loyalty and love are all large parts in life, also truth is consistently shown. Autism by definition is a communication disorder including a short attention span and inability to treat others as people. This definition does not describe Christopher, a highly intelligent boy with unique thoughts and actions.

   Throughout this novel the author describes truth, life, and autism. Christopher is writing a mystery novel but ironically it is about truth and lies; he cannot tell a lie but everyone he loves is lying to him. His father, the most important person in his life, lies about his mother, another important figure in his life. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time  was an inspirational novel that shows what life is really about.

Owl and the Pussycat Imitation

author's note: In this poem I tried to imitate the  style of Edward Lear, which is childish with a deeper meaning. It is about a some what forbidden love between two animals that just don't go together. In some ways I feel that I took this too literally when we were supposed to imitate this author's writing but overall I think I did a pretty good job.

The Owl and the Pussycat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
"O lovely Pussy! O Pussy, my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are, you are, you are,
What a beautiful Pussy you are."
Pussy said to the Owl "You elegant fowl,
How charmingly sweet you sing.
O let us be married, too long we have tarried;
But what shall we do for a ring?"
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows,
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose, his nose, his nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
"Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling your ring?"
 Said the Piggy, "I will"
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon.
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand.
They danced by the light of the moon, the moon, the moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.

The dove and the tiger walked over land
Carrying a beautiful  wagon in their hand

They took some clothes covered with a few holes

Wrapped in a red polka dot bandana

The dove gazed up to the sky above

And sang to a quiet chirp

"Oh beautiful tiger, Oh tiger my love,

What a gorgeous tiger you are, you are

What a gorgeous tiger you are."

Tiger said to the Dove, "You graceful bird,

How enchanting you chirp."

And the dove replied

"Oh let us be wed, for too much time we have wasted;

They went hand in hand, to the edge of the land

And frolicked under the rays of the sun, the sun,

They frolicked under the rays of the sun.

El Alcazar Poem

author's note:  This poem was inspired by the stream of consciousness we had a while back. El Alcazar Castle looked so dark and gloomy I decided to write something the complete opposite of  the usual fairytale. 

El Alcazar

When we think of castles it's always the same

The fairytale prince and princess who lived happily ever after.

Not this time,

This castle gray and stiff

covered in moss bricks and a swirling staircase of doom

held evil prisoners, trapped souls, and

convicted murderers, blood covered knives.

The sky turns from blue to the darkest shade of black

When the heavens see their lips curl into the sickest smile.

Dungeons capable of driving a man insane,

lock their doors so they can't get in.

Punishment seems to be the only answer.

Whips crack, and blankets are taken,

now, does this sound like the happily ever after?