Dear Tracy

Author's Note: "Currently I am reading the book Get Well Soon by Julie Halpern. This book is about a teenage girl who gets sent to a mental hospital and all of her adventures there. The book is written in letters to her best friend Tracy so I decided to make my prediction piece a letter I think Anna will write later in the book."

Dear Tracy,                                                                                                            Day 23                                                          

You know how I told you how Justin and I were friends... well he was a little too friendly with me last night. I was eating my dinner (coleslaw as usual) minding my own business when all the sudden I felt something rubbing against my foot. I didn't think much of it until I got up to go to the bathroom and realized I was being followed by someone. I turned around hoping the I would catch the person in the act but all I saw was a few security guards roaming the corridor. I kept walking, faster and faster until I reached the bathroom.… I was doing my business when all the sudden the lights flickered a few times and then shut off. I couldn’t see anything, but I could feel something… or rather someone. I felt a hands touch me all over, and then he was inside me. I tried to scream but whoever it was put a hand over my mouth before I could let one out. I started kicking and trying to get whoever it was off of me but he or she was too strong and I couldn’t make them budge. Then all the sudden the lights flickered back on and I was staring face to face with Justin. I saw a pair of shoes glide into the stall to the right of mine. As soon as whoever it was locked their stall Justin sprinted out of the bathroom.

I don’t know what to do, for once in my life I was at a loss for words. The whole reason I came to this dumb mental hospital was to fix my problems, not create more. Nothing like this had ever happened to me before.  Should I be happy since it was the guy that I liked or should I be furious because of what he just did. I sat on the toilet motionless and deep in thought not knowing what to do next: should I tell an adult? Finally, I decided to just go back to my room and just forget about it, but I couldn’t. Flashbacks kept coming back and whenever I saw him that’s all I could think about.  After hours of contemplating  whether telling someone about what happened or not I decided to tell my roommate Sandy. She was shocked, she said Justin would never do anything like that. We sat there in silence for a couple of minutes thinking about what to do next but then Sandy spoke out. “Anna, you need to tell someone. You can’t just forget about it.  Justin needs to be punished for this.”

I don’t know what to do.  Should I tell someone and get the guy I like in big trouble or should I just act like it never happened. I decided to sleep on it and give it more thought tomorrow. Hopefully it will be easier to make the decision on a couple hours of sleep.

Love,

Anna 

______________________________________________________________________

Anna has always been a rebel: she likes to skip out on class, sleep all day, and do drugs whenever she can, but when her parents decide to take her to a mental hospital everything changes. At home Anna had no rules, but here at Lakewood they had tons of them. There are rules for everything like how much you could eat or how long you could sleep, but the rule Anna hates most of all was the no touching rule. Since Anna really doesn’t like this rule I feel like later in the book she will break it. I think this will happen because she is developing a friendship/crush on a boy named Justin who is in the hospital as well. If Anna gets caught breaking the rule I will be very disappointed because then it will delay her departure from Lakewood but I feel like something needs to happen because right now the book is getting boring. 

Change

Author's Note: "This is my character analysis piece/essay for L.A. I wrote it about a book I just finished reading and really enjoyed."

Every school has a girl who seems to have everything: perfect hair, perfect figure, perfect GPA, perfect boyfriend, perfect everything. At Greenfield High School  I was that girl, but what so many people didn’t understand was my life was definitely not perfect. My sister Whitney was trying to recover from bulimia and I was suffering from depression. It was a rough time for my family and to make matters worse I got sexually abused by my best friends boyfriend. My life started to spin out of control and that’s when people started to realize that I wasn’t the girl who had everything, I was the girl who had nothing.  The main character in Just Listen changes and influences many people throughout her story.

Annabel, the main character in this book, influences many people but no one more than Owen Armstrong. Owen is a very troubled teen, he has been to spent some time behind bars for beating up a classmate of his but is trying to move on and start a new chapter in his life. Annabel influences Owen in many ways, for example in the beginning of the book Owen was an outcast but once Annabel got to know him she told him, “You know Owen, you don’t always need to be alone. If you open yourself up to people they will see that you’re more than just that kid who beat someone up that year and went to jail.” I think that when Annabel told him that he really started to change and be more open with people and try to make more friends. Also I think that since Annabel was a good kid and didn’t usually get in trouble at school that Owen got influenced by Annabel to be better behaved in school. Overall Annabel influenced Owen in many ways.

Annabel influences Owen a lot in this book but she also changes as a person throughout the story. In  example when Owen asks Annabel if she tells the truth she responds by saying, “No I’m not. But I’m not a liar either..it’s just.. I don’t always say what I feel.” By the end of the book Annabel learns that it is important in life to use your voice and state your opinion. Also Annabel learns that you need to let your feelings out because it’s not good to keep them all bottled up. When you read the book Just Listen it’s clear that by the end of the story Annabel is a completely different person.

Annabel changes very similarly to the way Hollis Woods changes in the book Pictures of Hollis Woods. For instance, Hollis has a lot of trust issues because she grew up in the foster system and Annabel has problems trusting people,  but by the end of both of the books they learn to trust people more. Another way that they change similarly is that they both have major conflicts in their stories that they learn to overcome. As an example Hollis needs to overcome her commitment and trust issues and Annabel needs to overcome being sexually abused. In the end both characters conquered their obstacles and go on with their lives. Hollis and Annabel  change in similar ways  and become stronger by the end of the book.

Throughout the book Just Listen by Sarah Dessen the main character grows and changes but also influences others. Annabel changed dramatically over the course of the book, she has developed into a new person. Not only did Annabel change as a person, she also influenced her friends to make better decisions. While reading this book you learn to accept change and embrace the future.

Love.

Author's Note: "Yesterday I went to target and bought Taylor Swift's new album Red. Ever since I got it I can't get the lyrics out of my head, I sort of have an obsession with her and all of her music. Anyways I was listening to her song State of Grace and it immediately got me thinking. Hope you like it and feel free to leave a comment!"

“Love is a ruthless game unless you play it good and right,” is one of the  lyrics in Taylor Swift’s song State of Grace that really got me thinking about love and what it’s really like. When I listen to this song this line just pops out to me. It has such a truth to it and is so relatable to everyone who has ever experienced love. This quote really made me realize that love is a game and there are two different ways you could play it: you could cheat and lie or you could be open and honest.

Everyone interprets love in different ways. Some people describe love as an attraction towards someone else and others describe it as always wanting to be with the other person. To me love is a feeling that you get when you’re with that special someone. It puts a smile on your face and makes you heart feel giddy. I see love everyday through my parents: the way they look into eachother’s eyes and the way they care more about each other than anything else in the world. Love has a different meaning for everyone who experiences it.

Love is something that you cannot buy or force, it’s something that takes time to develop and strengthen.  It’s one of those things that most people take for granted. Love is a risk, you cannot discover it without having heartbreak. In order to be loved and love in return  you must put your heart on the line and hope for the best which requires you to be vulnerable. This kind of risk can leave your heart shattered into a million different pieces, but if you are lucky enough to find love then all the heartbreaks are worth it.

Taylor Swift says it best when she wrote in her song State of Grace that, “Love is a ruthless game unless you play it good and right.” What I think she means by that is that love is complicated and will never be perfect,  it is not easy to find. Also love is not something that will just happen overnight. Lastly remember that love is extreme: it can either be indescribably amazing or misleading and deceitful, or sometimes a mixture of both. 

The Founding Fathers

Dear Founding Fathers,

You are seven of the most important people in the world. All of you helped our country tremendously. The seven of you helped shape our country into what it is today. I appreciate you effort to make our country the best that you though it could be but I disagree with a lot of the choices you made.

The Declaration of Independence states that all men should be treated equal yet Thomas Jefferson owned slaves.  This confuses me because if all men are created equal then all men and woman should be free to make their own choices, no one should be owned by anyone else. This proves that the founding fathers were hypocrites.

We can still see important figures to our country like the founding fathers today  on our currency. For example Abraham Lincoln on the 5 dollar bill and George Washington on the one dollar bill. We honor them because they helped morph our country into what it is today. I know not all of the choices they made were good ones but they did play a big role in creating our country. Without them I don’t even want to imagine where we would be today.

The founding fathers didn’t make all the right decisions but I still honor and respect them for trying. Although I don’t agree with many of their decisions without them we wouldn’t be where we are today. Our country is what it is because of them.

From,

Madison

Strike Out

Author's Note: "This is my revised cause and effect piece about the story Casey At The Bat."

Dear Diary,

Yesterday I attended my brother Corey's baseball game. It was their playoff game which meant that if they won they would advance to the state championships, but if they lost they were done for the season. At the bottom of the ninth inning the score was 6 to 7 and Mudville was losing. We had a player on second and a player of third and Casey, the best hitter on the Mudville's team was up to bat. The crowd went wild as Casey stepped onto home plate and got in position to receive the first pitch. If Casey got a home run then we would win the game!

As the pitcher threw the first pitch Casey just nonchalantly missed the ball. All of us in the crowd were wondering why he purposely missed the ball, but when Casey did the same thing to the second pitch I was very confused. Why would he just purposely waste two pitches like that? What was his motive, was he trying to sabotage the team? Honestly it didn't matter as long as Casey hit the next ball. The last pitch flew threw the air and the entire crowd waited in anticipation to see if Casey would swing the bat. Thankfully Casey swung the bat, but he missed the ball.

"Strike Three," The Umpire Called.

The crowd sulked and picked up their things: it was a sad day for Mudville. Casey was to blame, his ego got in the way of Mudville getting to the state championships for the first time ever! The whole team and even the coach was upset and mad at Casey, and to be honest I was too. It was all his fault. He wasted two perfect pitches! The team needed him to perform today, but he just was too arrogant to even try to hit the ball.  Ultimately his ego was too big and he figured out that he wasn't as good as he though he was.

I read the book Touching Spirit Bear in seventh grade and Cole, the main character in the book reminded me a lot of Casey yesterday. Cole thought he was the strongest guy around, he even thought that he was strong enough to fight a bear! After getting pummeled by the bear Cole got a big reality check and realized that he wasn't as strong as he though the was. That reminded me a lot about what happened to Casey yesterday and how he thought he was amazing, but then ended up striking out.

If Casey would have it the ball the whole crowd would have gone crazy with excitement. If he would of hit the ball he would be the most popular guy in town, but he didn't. Instead Casey missed the ball, he didn't even try to hit it the first two pitches. I don't know what he was thinking. Because of his actions he let his team and everyone else down. The effect of his choices caused us to loose the game.

I'm looking forward to seeing Casey's new and improved attitude next season. I hope now he realizes to always try your best at everything in life.

Sincerely,
Madison

Big Decisions

Author's Note: "After not getting a grade I was satisfied with I decided to create a new retelling piece that would better represent me and what I can do."

In The Notebook fate reunites two lovers after many years. As they start falling in love one reveals that they are engaged and ultimately makes a decision that will hurt someone she loves. Now a major motion picture with over 10 million copies in print, The Notebook is a book that will pull at your heartstrings and bring tears to your eyes.                                                                                                                                                  

If I Could Only Remember

The sunlight shimmered on the soft bed of bright green grass, it was a perfect day for a soccer game. My team was playing Brookfield, the most aggressive team in our league. To be honest, I was a little nervous; I had no idea which team was going to win. The center ref blew his whistle signaling that the game was about to start. We took our positions on the field and waited for the ref to blow his whistle again to signify that the game would begin.

 At the end of the first half my team was winning 2 to 0. It seemed like we had a really good chance of defeating Brookfield. Our coach gave us a very inspirational halftime speech telling us that if we kept working hard and maintaining possession of the ball that we would win this game easily. Once more we went to our starting positions waiting for the ref to blow his whistle.

 It was our kickoff and Kendall passed me the ball, I dribbled quickly past two of the player on the other team and then turned in an attempt to pass the ball back to Kendall. As I turned a girl on the other team shoved me to the ground viciously and a burning pain struck through my body like lightning.

 I felt my heart beating faster as the seconds ticked by and my lungs expanding with every breath I took. I could hear peopled on the sidelines muttering things and whispering to each other but I couldn’t tell what they were saying.  Suddenly, my hearing began to fade and I could no longer hear the voices that I had heard only a second ago. I could barely make out siren noises in the distance. My head started to ache and throb from the fall and my vision began to blur: then it all went black.

Four hours later I started to regain consciousness; my eyes fluttered open and searched around the room for a familiar face. The lighting was harsh on my eyes and I could only see four silhouettes hovering over me. Who were these people, I thought to myself. Do I know them? The way they looked into my eyes made me assume that they knew me.

My eyes started adjusting to the light and I realized that these people were none other than my mother, father, brother, and sister.  

“Everyone look! She’s awake,” shouted my little brother.

“Hello sweetie,” my mother replied. “How are you feeling?”

 I responded slowly, “Pretty good.”

“Oh, that’s good! Now I know you’re probably wondering why you’re here: you got a concussion, but just stay calm, everything is under control.”

Out of confusion I questioned, “How did I get a concussion?”

My mother replied softly, “You were playing soccer and a girl shoved you to the ground and you hit your head. It was an accident, but you blacked out and we had to have an ambulance take you to the hospital. Don't you remember?”

Could this really be, I thought to myself. Did I get a concussion? I didn't remember anything except my head hurting and blacking out. I tried to make sense of all of it but I just couldn't remember anything.

“All I remember is hitting my head but anyways did we win the game?” I asked with a big toothy grin on my face.

She laughed and said “Yes sweetie, you did.”

A Sad Day For Mudville

Author’s Note: “ This is a cause and effect piece about the story Casey At The Bat.”

It is the bottom of the ninth for Mudville’s Baseball team and Casey is up to bat. The game is tied 4 to 4 and the crowd roars as Casey steps up to bat because he is Mudville’s only chance of winning the game.  He takes his mark and the first pitch is thrown, Casey doesn’t even swing his bat. “Strike One,” the umpire calls. Casey did the same thing to the next pitch and the umpire yelled,”Strike Two!” This was it, if Casey missed this ball, the game was over, and if he made it his team would win the game.

As  the last pitch was thrown Casey swung but missed the ball, the game was over and Mudville had lost. As an effect the crowd was silent and Mudville shaked hands with the other team disappointed in themselves and Casey. If Casey would have gotten a home run this story would have changed completely.  The crowd would have stood up and cheered and the team would all get in a huddle and shout, “We did it!” But instead their team lost and they went home sad because of their failure.

Making Their Own Rules

I recently read The Hunger Games and thought it was a perfect example of  conflict and resolution. The Hunger Games is about a 16 year old girl named Katniss who lives in the future in a country called Panem. Katniss gets picked by the government of Panem to go into an arena a fight to the death with 23 other boys and girls: This event is called the Hunger Games. Only one victor will come out of the arena alive, all the rest  must die, and all this is being recorded and shown on television all across their nation.The main problem is that she is fighting the government to win the Games so that she can go home with her family again.

The resolution in this book is very interesting. Katniss ends up falling in love with a boy in her district once she enters the game. When they end up being the last two standing they don't know what to do, they don't want to kill eachother because they are in love. So Katniss and Peeta ( her lover) put poisonous berries in their mouths at the same time and the nation announces that they are both victors. She defys the capitol by changing the rules to the game. The Hungers Game sis a perfect example of Person vs. Society.

The Notebook Retelling

The Notebook is about a girl and a boy who fell in love when they were young, but were eventually separated. Many years later they saw eachother and started falling in love all over again, but this time she had a secret.Now a Major Motion picture. Read more to find out what her secret was and if their love will  last.

Big Families

Author's Note: "I have grown up all my life surronded by tons of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Big Families can be lots of fun but can also be a pain sometimes."

I have a big family. My Dad is the youngest of 9 and my Mom is the youngest of 8 children. Growing up with a big family is always a lot of fun because there are lots of people to talk to and hang out with. Since my parents are the youngest in their family most of my cousins are much older that me. My oldest cousin is 37 and has two kids already and most of my other cousins have graduated from college and have already started their careers. Family reunions are also a great experience for me because I get to catch up with people I haven't seen in a while. Also I don't get to see my cousins and aunts and uncles very frequently because they are all grow up and busy a lot, but we use Skype and Facetime to keep in touch. For example my cousin Leah is currently studying abroad in Santiago, Chile so we keep in touch with her by emailing, texting, Facetiming, and Skyping.  Family is very important to me and the more family I have to more people I have to go to if I get in trouble or am going through a hard time. I know that my family will always be there to support me no matter what happens.

Growing Up

Author's Note: " Growing up isn't easy and sometimes I miss being a little kid. I hope other kids my age can relate to this."

I miss having childhood innocence. I miss believing that fairy tales could be a reality: that happily ever afters could really be. I think that’s one of the hardest parts of growing up, missing being a kid. When I was in kindergarten I let my imagination run wild, but now everything is different. My friends are different,my family is different, my surroundings are different and because of all those things I am different. I’m not a little kid anymore but I’m also not ready to live on my own. It’s hard to figure out what category I fit under. It frustrates me that nothing can end the way I want it to. In the beginning it’s all smiles but why do goodbyes always have to end in tears. I guess I just miss being a little girl. 2 years ago all I wanted to do was grow up, that’s what every kid wants to do. But I think I grew up a little too fast and missed out on all the great childhood experiences that I missed out on.  I wish I could go back but I can’t so the lesson I will pass on to my children and friends are to enjoy your childhood and make sure you act your age.

Hopeful Haiku

Author's Note:"A haiku is a poem in which the first sentence is 5 syllables, the second is 7, and then the last sentence goes back down the 5 syllables. I wrote two of them because I thought they were very diverse from each other, one is happy and one is sad."

The bright sun shimmered
The waves danced across the sand
This was home sweet home

I feel so alone
In a world full of people
I can’t be myself

Stranded

If you were stranded on a desert Island what would you bring with you?

• Matches
• sleeping bag
• flashlight and batteries
• knife
• book
• flare gun
• first aid kit
• water bottle
• sunscreen and bug spray
• granola bar

If you were stranded on a desert island what 10 things would you bring with you?

Backpack: I would bring a backpack because it is great for carrying things while on the go. It’s portable and can hold a lot of the things I would always want to have with me if I was stranded.

Flashlight and batteries: If the dark I still need to be able to find my way through the woods or the jungle so I would need to bring a device with me that will help me see in the dark. The extra batteries are just in case the first ones die.

Sunscreen and Bug spray: I would bring sunscreen and bug spray because normally islands are very humid and I wouldn’t want my skin to burn. I would bring bug spray because there are a lot of tropical bugs and I hate bugs so I wouldn’t get bitten.

Flare gun: If there were any ships even within a 100 mile distance and I shot the flare gun at night then maybe someone would see the lights and come to rescue me.

First Aid Kit: I would bring a first aid kit in case I cut myself or got sick I would then have medicine and band-aids to help me recover from illnesses or injuries.

Water bottle: I would bring a water bottle so I would have something to hold my water in.

Semantic Devices

Semantic Devices

Is It Really Worth It?

Author's Note:" I oringinally wrote this paper for a Social Studies report, but I found that I had such strong opinions about this topics so I thought, why can't I write it for Language Arts too?"

Alaska is known for many things, such as their cold winters, dogsled races, and the breathtaking Northern Lights. When I hear the word Alaska I think of their wilderness.  I think of all their rare animals that don’t live anywhere else in the world. People pay every month to keep that area pure and not touched. Do you think that it’s fair for the government to just swoop in and take all that away from them? Drilling in Alaska is a bad idea because it will hurt the environment, it won’t boost the economy, and it could kill off many endangered species that cannot be found anywhere else.

                       

Drilling in the U.S. has been a controversy in the U.S. since 1977, but one of the main concerns about this is how will it affect the economy (1)? If the U.S. decided to start drilling it would take 7-12 years to get all set up before they would start producing oil (1).  Currently the United States uses about 21 million barrels a day, and only 6 million of those are produced domestically (2).  According to msnbc, a U.S. news site, drilling for oil will open up jobs but if the oil will only last us 6 months then by the time the oil is gone they will be unemployed again (1). Another great point to bring up in this case would be that by drilling for this oil the U.S.’s economy will not grow, we will simply gain back what we have already lost (3). Lastly the U.S. uses 25-30% of the world’s oil supply, so the best thing that the Unites States of America can do at this point would be to develop alternatives to oil so that we could save more (3).

The ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) is not ready to give up their 19 million acres of land that has been devoted to being a sanctuary and safe place for animals to roar freely (4). This environment is the largest protected wilderness in the entire U.S. To these people this wilderness is their life and they believe very passionately that this land should stay the way it is. Although this does have a lot of affect on the animals it also effects the environment as well. If the drilling is approved it could permanently contaminate the landscape and could have mountains of sewage slush if a pipe breaks or something doesn’t go as planned (1). One mistake and all of it will be gone.

A lot of people argue that this will be a good thing and will help America but what they don’t know is how much oil is actually down there. The oil will only last for approximately 6 months (1). Also the oil is not all in one place it is spread out along the entire ANWR. There is about 10.4 million barrels of oil left in Alaska and what most scientists and trained professionals are thinking is that only 5.7 of those barrels are actually retrievable (3). Are we really willing to take that risk, I mean what if even less than that amount is retrievable. Another main point is how will we repay the people at the ANWR for the oil, we just took their precious wildlife away and destroyed it completely just so that the U.S. could gain some money(4). What will we do when the oil there is gone, we will have destroyed the environment and animals completely so what will happen to that environment?

                  

Killing off endangered species, poisoning the environment, and hurting our economy are all reasons why we should not drill for oil in Alaska. In so many ways drilling is wrong.  I mean honestly, the government has told everyone to saty away from the ANWR yet they want to just change their own rule? Why wouldn’t the United States’ rules not apply to them? What makes them any better than the rest of us? If it could hurt the environment and the animals then we all have to ask ourselves: is it really worth it?(4)

Source 1: "Arctic Power - Arctic National Wildlife Refuge - SHELL OCS Plans Inch Closer to Reality." Arctic Power - Arctic National Wildlife Refuge - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. http://www.anwr.org/Headlines/SHELL-OCS-Plans-Inch-Closer-to-Reality.php.

Source 2: "Arctic Refuge drilling controversy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_Refuge_drilling_controversy.

Source 3: "Oil Drilling in Alaska | Environmental News, Articles & Information | Global Warming News | EcoWorld." Environmental News, Articles & Information | Global Warming News | EcoWorld | Environmental News, Information & Articles on Climate Change, Global Warming and Sustainability. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. http://www.ecoworld.com/animals/oil-drilling-in-alaska.html.

Source 4:"Would drilling more Alaskan oil cut prices? - Business - Answer Desk - msnbc.com." msnbc.com - Breaking news, science and tech news, world news, US news, local news- msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12993250/ns/business-answer_desk/t/would-drilling-more-alaskan-oil-cut-prices/>.

There I stood

Author's Note: “This song was most listened to on my ipod for over a month, the lyrics coordinate to my life how pieces create a puzzle.  When I first heard this song I would listen to it over and over until the lyrics played silently in my head. It just makes me smile knowing that I’m not the only one in this world that sometimes feels invisible. I wrote a poem about this song, but keep in mind I do not write poetry a lot so I’m just trying to take a stab at it. This song is "Invisble" by Taylor Swift.”

She can’t see the way your eyes

Light up when you smile

She’ll never notice how you stop and stare whenever she walks by

And you can’t see me wantin' you the way you want her

But you are everything to me

I just wanna show you

She don’t even know you

She's never gonna love you like I want to

And you just see right through me

If you only knew me

We could be a beautiful

Miracle,

Unbelievable

Instead of just invisible.

There’s a fire inside of you

That can’t help but shine through

She’s never gonna see the light no matter what you do

And all I think about is how to make you think of me

And everything that we could be

Like shadows in a faded light

Oh, we’re invisible

I just wanna open your eyes

And make you realize

I just wanna show you

She don’t even know you

Baby, let me love you

Let me want you

You just see right through me

But if you only knew me

We could be a beautiful

Miracle,

Unbelievable

Instead of just invisible

She can’t see the way your eyes light up when you smile

There I stood: there I stood waiting for you to turn around and come running back into my arms, there I stood wanting you to love me for me, there I stood with tearing welling up in my eyes while remembering all the times where you told me you loved me, there I stood wanting you to want me.

Here I stood: here I stood wanting to leave my world because you weren’t apart of it anymore, here I stood knowing you weren’t going to come back to me, here I stood questioning if you ever loved me at all.

Here I was wishing: wishing the sting of rejection would fade away, wishing I’d never met you, wishing you wouldn’t have broken my heart into a million irreparable pieces, wishing that I could just move on and love another, wishing you had known how much I loved you.

Here I was realizing: realizing you weren’t the one for me, realizing that you had moved on, realizing I meant nothing to you, realizing I was just a piece in your little lying games, realizing I was done with you, realizing I should stop trying to convince I’m your soul mate not her, realizing I was done with you.

I Smile Because of You

Author's Note: " My friends are the best, we laugh, we joke, we talk, we always have fun. I can't imagine a world without them, that's why I wrote this."

I feel like with this one simple quote, someone could write a novel. It is so empowering the way the words almost speak to me. I’ve read this quote probably a million times and I not only believe everything it stands for, but I also believe in what it symbolizes. To me it means that sometimes hearing your friend’s voice, or seeing a picture of her can comfort you instantly. It amazes me that that people take friends for grant it, honestly my friends are what make me happy, they fill my life with joy. I don’t know what I would without my friends, when going through something like middle school I’ve found that sharing your experiences with others and learning about their experiences really helps you understand who they are as a person.
Not only are friends there for you when you need a shoulder to cry on, but they’re always there for you at the end of the day. A true friend would never abandon you in a time of need, they will be there for you, especially when you most need them. I feel that when something good happens to you or your friend, you share the happiness and support each other no matter what life has in store for you. I’m not going to tell you growing up is easy, but when you have great friends to help you through the hard times and celebrate the good times, nothing can bring you down.
 

The Life of a Tissue

Author's Note: "All of us know how it feels to be alone feeling like we are in a distant planet in comparison to the rest of the world, but its okay to feel that way because things will get better.

I've heard it a million times, my life doesn't matter, but I will defend myself time after time by telling them I do matter. What will you do when you have a a cold or a stuffy nose and there is no box of tissues to blow your nose in? How will you feel then? Could you ever imagine crying, but not having a box of tissues to wipe you nose with: I think not. So next time think twice before you mock the life of a tissue because we are extremely important.
We live a hard life: honestly do you think sitting inside a box is really how you want to spend your life. I've lost my mother and father because they were used and thrown away. I've realized over my weeks of existence that once you are used your life is over, you are left to rot in a landfill until the end of time: but that's my dream, to be of some use to someone in this huge world. I will make myself worth something, I will get out of this box someday and be used and it will be the best five seconds of my life.