Two Roads Diverged In a Yellow Wood

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I took the one less traveled, and that has made all the difference. This line in the poem The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. It is pretty obvious what it stands for, the two paths representing a choice. One is worn down by the feet of many, the other has tall grass growing because less people have taken it. The man chooses to take the road less traveled, and realizes when he comes out on the other end that it was worth the risk. The path he had chosen, by making his own path, made him stronger and wiser.

Freedom

Freedom, one of the greatest things in the world. It is amazing, but doesn’t come free. Usually there’s a price to pay for freedom, most likely of those is death. But everyone wants freedom. That is how Otto feels in the book H.I.V.E., where he must escape a school that is more like a prison. Him and his friends must escape, and they know that a likely outcome from attempting such a thing is death. One of the most important parts of Otto’s plan is to not get caught, but he needs people to help him escape. Meaning he would have to risk being caught in order to make it easier to escape. He quickly gets three people to join him and they start scheming their breakout. It is a highly complicated plan that would most likely fail, but to them it is worth the try. All in all, the attempt failed sadly. They didn’t escape, but they learned a lot on how to escape. Not obtaining their goal of freedom only made them want it more, and to try even harder next time. To obtain what everyone wishes to have, freedom.

Conspiracy

Lies are everywhere. Some people’s lives are lies, who the pretend to be are lies. They could be your best friend one second, then stab you in the back when you’re not looking. With all the lies in the world, it is hard to tell what the truth is. That’s why some people believe in conspiracies. For people who don’t know, conspiracies are lies by the government. One of the biggest ones for example, is 9-11. Some people believe that the government planned it to have a reason to start a war. It may seem ridiculous but it isn’t. One of the most important things in war is to have the people of your nation behind you and believing we should be at war. To believe in their leader, to trust in their leader .But such a trust is hard to obtain, unless they use evil ways to get it. The evil and extremely horrible way to get such a trust is to plan an attack upon their own country and blame it on another one. When innocent people die, the nation changes. The people cry for those lost, but that’s not all. Once the grief has passed, it is replaced by a bloodlust for revenge. It burns like a fire, that grows bigger and bigger, stronger and stronger, and it can only be settled of the blood of their enemy being spilt. And that fire builds up and turns into a wildfire, spreading across the nation, all who get caught in it scream out in anguish for revenge. By using such a horrible method, the leaders quickly earn the trust of the people, and are backed by their screams of pain. For the said reasons, it can make some people wonder if the government did plan 9-11 all on their own. To turn our nation into savage barbarians wanting only to absolutely annihilate their enemy, and destroying anything that get’s in their way. Then if the government would create an army out of the bloodthirsty population, they could invade any country they choose for multiple reasons. To have control over it, for money, military purposes, or as one that seems to stick out from the rest, oil. With our nation’s horrible gas prices, the government could have sacrificed a couple hundred lives to take oil from other countries, such as Saudi Arabia. The only people who can know for sure are the highest people in the government, if they truly planned it or not. But for the rest of us, we are stuck in the dark with a knife in our back and not knowing who it belongs to.

Things Aren't Always as They Appear

Things aren’t always what they appear to be. For example, people could secretly be traitors and horrible friends but act friendly, and they are deceptive. That’s what the story, The Lottery, is like. In the beginning everyone is happy, the children are having fun collecting smooth stones, and the adults are talking and cracking jokes left and right. But it doesn’t turn out the way you think. In the story, everyone gathers in the middle of town all happy and excited for the lottery. The children are giggling and the adults are laughing, and then the man who runs the lottery shows up with his black box. So normally you would think, “Oh, so they are all just excited to see who wins the lottery and gets a lot of money.” But they’re not getting money, instead they get a horrible prize. When the winner has been selected, they stand out in the opening in the middle of the town, where everyone forms a circle around the winner. Then they proceed to pick a handful of smooth, hard stones from the pile, and all hold them at the ready. Then once everyone has their stones, they unleash them at the person standing in the middle and stone them to death. So in this clearly deranged story, it starts off as happy story with the children and adults all smiling and laughing, then jumps from Happyville, to gooney town in under three hours. They kill a random person for absolutely no reason, and they even have the family of the person who was chosen throw stones at them until their mother, father, sister or brother is laying on the ground dead. There is clearly no point to is and it is just senseless murder.

The Rule of Galbatorix

Everyone has dreamed of the same fantasy, of a time where there where nights in shining armor, a princess locked in the highest room of the tallest tower, and a land where dragons where either feared monsters or beloved companions. In the four book series by Christopher Paolini known mostly as the Eragon series. To quickly summarize such an enormous series, there is an evil ruler known as Galbatorix who was suppose to be the last dragon rider, is the ruler of all the land. But a secret dragon egg hatched to a young man named Eragon who raised it to become a fully grown dragon. Now Eragon must help the rebels, known as the Varden, overthrow the evil king's rule and start a new world where people don't have to live in fear. But the question is, will Eragon be able to defeat Galbatorix? Who will survive their battle? The reasons why it is so hard to tell if Eragon could defeat Galbatorix are like balanced on a scale, they pretty much even it out perfectly. You want to think that Eragon could win, that good will always triumph over evil, and spread light throughout the world were darkness thrived. But when you see how strong Galbatorix is, given that all the dragons he killed to become the king, and stealing their heart of hearts, which makes the person who has it even stronger. Galbatorix killed somewhere around one hundred dragons and taking their heart of hearts which made him even more stronger. The man has been living for over two hundred years! And he's still going strong! He uses magic to keep him young and strong, and also the fact that his dragon is the size of my school, when Eragon's dragon is somewhere between one half or even a fourth that size. It really does seem that evil would win this fight... From looking at all the facts, I honestly believe that Eragon will not win. That he will be killed, but in the last seconds before his death either he or a third person will hit Galbatorix with a blow so strong that it slowly kills him. I think either that or that Galbatorix would kill Eragon's dragon, and right after Eragon would kill him. I'm not quite sure because I'm not too far into the book and there are numerous ways this book could end, but if I had to pick, it would be one of those two. Whatever the outcome will be, I'm excited to read all the way to the end and find out.

Mysterious Head Master

In all our lives there are mysterious people, people who keep secrets from others. Don't get me wrong, we all have secrets, but some people's entire lives are a giant secret to others. One of these people is Dr. Nero, the Head Master of H.I.V.E. in the book H.I.V.E. by Mark Walden. Dr. Nero's whole life is in secrecy, and two of the biggest secrets is how he got the other half to one of his students necklace of the Yin and Yang, and his whole life at H.I.V.E. Wing, the student with the necklace, just has the yin of the two, but when Dr. Nero jumps in front of Wing to save his life from a monster, it rips open the doctor's shirt to reveal that he has the perfect match to the Yin. This event takes place in the end of the book and doesn't explain why until the next book sadly, so not even I know the reason. Another secret that Nero has is practically his whole life of educating kids to overthrow governments and upset the peace of the world. Nero's plans for the students of his so called "school" are incredibly ridiculous, but the fact that he's been doing it for many years is an incredible fact that it works. What he wants his students to achieve is to accomplish impossible tasks, but to do them in style. Instead of shooting missiles at an aircraft carrier, he teaches them to think outside the box. One of the greatest examples he gave was how one of his graduated students sunk an aircraft carrier, but used a giant robotic squid. Instead of blowing up a building, another graduated student created a giant robot and let it rampage throughout the city. Dr. Nero's vision is obviously insane, but it is admittedly tempting. Most kids dream of being the goody goody superhero who saves the day, but they are secretly attracted to the evil side. They get the better weapons, costumes, and most are billionaires. They are also free to do what they want, not being held back by the restrictions of the law. To be able to do all of this, he must be very secretive and not show his weaknesses, or to say it simply, be secretive.

People Change

People change in this world, doesn't matter if they want to or not. They might not change for the better, but they will change. Friends turn into enemies, enemies turn to friends, it happens every day. Usually changes happen from traumatic experiences, like losing a loved one. But one of the worst of them all is war, and that is what the characters from Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers had to go through. They killed in cold blood, they watched their friends die in front of them, and they themselves were as close to death as possible. Through all this, they would never be the same people.

Richard Perry, or Perry as everyone called him, was one of the main characters of this book. His experiences in war alone would be enough to give anyone nightmares. Perry watched his friends get torn to pieces by explosions and bullets. When he was wounded, Perry was carried away from the battlefield in a medevac chopper, which stands for medical evacuation. He and his friend Brew both got flown out, and as the medics worked on them in the helicopter, they held hands. The book described his hand feeling cold, limp, and lifeless. Then he watched his friend get put into a body bag as the medics zipped it up.

Another traumatic experiences for Perry was when he was searching in a village for remaining Viet Congs who were terrorizing the villagers. As he walked into a hut, from his backside one aimed a gun at his head from point blank and pulled the trigger. The only response he got was a few clicks from his gun, the Viet Cong's gun jammed. So then the both had a quick fight using fists and the butts of their guns, and Perry eventually knocked the Cong down to the ground. He took out his M16 and unloaded a full clip into the Cong's face, tearing away flesh, bone, and muscle. Still scared, he slammed in another clip and started firing more rounds into the dead man's face. Once he was done there was a lump of flesh, a little bone, and a tooth. That was all that remained of the Cong's face.

Being in a war can really mess with your head from all the horrible things you see. Some people have nightmares, others need to be put into a mental institute. The book never did say what happened to the characters in the book except for the people who didn't survive the whole book. They grieved for the dead, yet were happy at the same time that they weren't the one in the body bag. Whatever happened to them, they would never be the same group of little boys who went into the war.

"Big Yellow Taxi" and "Field Below"

Both of the songs "Big Yellow Taxi" and "Field Below" are very sad and depressing when you read though them. They talk about sadness and missing something, but if you listen to the actually song and not just the lyrics, it completely changes how you feel when you hear it. "Field Below" is a slow song with rain in the background and a sad person singing it, and that is mainly what you would expect. But when you listen to "Big Yellow Taxi", it is completely different from what you would expect. The singer sings the song really fast and upbeat, and almost sounds happy. Instead of being sad when you hear it, it makes you think that the person has moved on and is no longer sad about it.

So Good

ChOcOlAtE mIlK
aS sMoOtH aS sIlK
a TaStEy TrEaT
i CaN't WaIt To MeEt
ChOcOlAtE iS gOoD
fOr ThE sOuL
iN mY fRiGe ThErE iT sToOd
MaN i Am On A rOlL
sO nOw I eNd ThIs HoRrIbLe RhYmE
iF yOu LiKe ThIs PlEaSe GiVe Me A dIme
BeCaUsE tHiS tOoK qUiTe SoMe TiMe

Not Highly Educated

I believe that the speaker in the poem Mother to Son by Langston Hughes is a person who isn't so educated. I picture them being from the south and speaking with a matching accent. He seems sort of nice but a little depressing and sad. He keeps using weird comparisons like a splintered staircase which confuses me somewhat. It's a metaphor for how his life hasn't been easy like other peoples. The reason I think he's uneducated is because he used the word ain't instead of hasn't.

Johnson

Everyone knows someone who is bigger than them. Bigger, stronger, more intimidating. In the book Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers, that person is a man who goes by Johnson. He is built better then a skyscraper, and to top it off he gets a hulking M60 machine gun. These two combined demand fear from everyone and thing in that gets in their way or on their bad side. Johnson is a killing machine and no one ever wants to mess with him.

Most of the time, Johnson has a stern look on his face. He rarely shows emotion, the only time was when his Lieutenant died. If you would meet him he probably wouldn't look or smell to nice because during war you have to go weeks without a shower. His clothes would be tattered and worn, and he would look like he went to hell and back. His face would look like he saw a ghost, and he would stink to high heavens.

Never Give Up

Everyone faces obstacles in their lives. Some harder then others, like having to meet a deadline or losing a job. When faced with these obstacles the person has two decisions. He or she can either give up, go home and quit. Or they can keep trying, never giving up. Working hard to find answer to solve their problem. In the book The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, Percy had to face a major problem that, depending on his decision, would change not only his but hundreds of thousands of peoples lives.

When Percy received his quest, he had no choice but to take it and to complete it. If he would complete the quest, he would restore peace to Olympus and the world. If he turned it down, or failed on the way, the consequences would be horrible. There would be World War III, an army of undead soldiers would rise from the underworld and wreak havoc on innocent people, and the war would kill millions of people all over the world. This is obviously a dire situation that sadly Percy has to deal with only two friends to help him.

Another conflict Percy had to overcome was losing his mother. It is really hard to not be upset over losing a loved one, especially your parent. Percy was extremely upset about this for a long time until Hades showed that he had his mother, frozen at the moment she was about to die. This helped Percy move on and save his mother.

By Percy choosing to keep fighting after each monster he fought and each challenge he faced, Percy prevented what could have been the end of the world. It just goes to show that hard work pays off. This reminds me of the saying, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going". That means they dig in, hang in there, and fight until the end. That is one of the greatest traits a person can have, and luckily Percy did. Thanks to him, the whole world was saved from a horrible fate.

Luke

Lost, looking for somewhere to call home
Ugly scar upon his face
Kronos, controlled by
Eternal hate for the gods

Imposter, acting as a friend
Strong sword fighter

Enraged by his failed quest
Valiant before becoming corrupted
Insane from Kronos
Lyeing in wait for the time to strike

Backbiter, Backstabber

Author's Note: This is a character analysis of Luke from The Lightning Thief

No one likes to have someone betray them. Almost everyone has though, by people who pretended to be close friends until it was the perfect time to stab them in the back. When this happens, the person feels horrible that one of their friends could have done something so evil, and that his how Percy felt when he realized Luke's true intentions. From the very beginning when Luke found out that Percy was a son of Poseidon, he planned on how to kill him.

Luke wasn't always so corrupted and evil; he used to be a really good person until he got a quest from his father. Luke's father is Hermes, the god of travelers and thieves. So it would be pretty obvious that Luke's quest had to do with stealing something. It did; Luke had to go to the Garden of Hesperides to steal a golden apple and return it to Olympus. But sadly he failed. After his failed quest, he started to have dreams of Kronons, one of the titans. Kronos convinced Luke and corrupted his mind into believing that the gods should be overthrown and that they were just using him. Luke slowly started to believe him.

Kronos had convinced Luke to give Percy winged shoes like Hermes uses, except these shoes were cursed. When close enough, they would sprout their wings and drag Percy into the entrance to Tarturus which would lead him to Kronos who would then kill him. This attempt failed when Grover was wearing the shoes instead of Percy when the curse activated. Luke made two more attempts to kill Percy after that. It just shows how easy it is for someone to fall from good aspirations and a role model, to a traitor and pretty much insane. All they need is a little push.

Always Has A Plan

Annabeth is one of the main characters in the book The Lightning Thief, and a good friend of Percy and Grover. She is strong, smart, and apparently always has a plan. In the beginning of the book she is sort of mean and rude to Percy, but slowly warms up to him. Annabeth acts tough but has a soft spot for a few people. In the story, she helps Percy a lot with fighting, problem solving, and figuring out what to do. She is the daughter of Athena, a Greek god.

The Old, the Wise, and the Well Fed

Have you ever wanted something expensive that you couldn't afford so bad that you would steal for it? That is what Roger, a boy in the short story Yes Ma'am, attempted to do. He tried to steal a woman's purse with the intention of getting money to buy a pair of shoes, but instead got a lesson that most likely saved his life from a large old woman with a very large purse.

Roger was a boy around the age of 15, who desperately wanted a pair of blue suede shoes. He was so desperate that he tried to steal this lady's purse, but his attempt failed. She ended up catching him, and now the lady, Mrs. Jones, had a choice. She could either have turned him in, or taught him a lesson herself. This decision changed his life forever. If she would have called the police, the boy would have been taken to jail. Then when he got out, he would never be able to get a job because now he has a criminal record. Then he will end up stealing again, get put in jail again, and repeat. This would keep happening until eventually he would be killed before he could get to the age of 30. By taking him to her house, she taught him a lesson so that he will never steal again, which ultimately saved his life.

This world needs more people like the wise and quite intimidating, Mrs. Jones. Saving peoples lives instead of condemning them, teaching a kid a lesson instead of letting him run off to go steal again, Mrs. Jones is a great role model and should never be messed with.

Washed Away

Authors Note: In this piece I tried to score high on voice. It is about a boy and his friend who live next to each other

It was a normal summers day, people would hide inside or swim in the river to beat the heat. Me and my friend Matt liked to swim in the river because of how cold it always was. Matt would constantly complain about him being so hot and he always wanted to go swimming. We would always go swimming because the only body of water within 20 miles was a big river that ran behind our houses. I liked to just stay in my room but I would go swimming with him to hang out. Where we lived, there was usually no clouds in the sky, let alone rain. That's why everyone was so happy when the weatherman predicted that the next week would be filled with heavy rain.

It started off as a drizzle, but quickly turned into an all out pouring. I was doing fine with the weather, but Matt was going insane. Every time he would ask his parents if he could go to the river and swim, they would tell him that the rain was making the river too deep and dangerous. The downpour continued for days. The weatherman warned that the days of rain had swelled the river, floods threatened to break loose. Matt called me just as the weatherman finished his warning, asking if I could go swimming. "Don't your parents not want you to go in the river? It's getting even worse." I said back. He told me that his parent weren't home, and he's going with or without me. I asked my parents and they immediately said no, so I told Matt and he was really disappointed. That was the last I heard from him.

The next day Matt's parents called and asked if we had seen him, saying that he had disappeared. I immediately thought about the river but didn't want to say anything, because he could have just stayed at a friend's house without telling his parents. He did that all the time, but I just had a horrible feeling that I knew what had happened to him.

It took three days before they found the body. Apparently he had been hit by a falling branch from a tree that couldn't handle the high winds anymore. He was knocked unconscious and just floated on down the river, unable to be saved. The funeral was short, everyone grieved, but I was too busy imagining what would have happened if I had gone down with him. Would have I died with him? Or would I have been able to save him. All I know is that he will finally be cold now, not having to complain about the heat.

Two Stubborn People

Author's Note: This is a point of view piece about the story Dead Men's Path.

When two people fight, they both believe that they are right and the other is wrong. That's what war is about, every single conflict ever had to do with two people, each too stubborn to back down. That is exactly what happened in the short story Dead Men's Path by Chinua Achebe. The new headmaster had sealed off one path, and when somebody died, the town chief believed that the fence and sign were evil. So he took them down, both the headmaster and the chief thought he was right. The headmaster wanted to change the school and stop old traditions and start new ones, and the chief believed the blockade was evil because of his religious beliefs. The headmaster refused to take the blockade down, so the chief tore it down and destroyed parts of the school.

A Green Christmas

When most kids who live in the northern area of the US, when we think of Christmas, we think of snow. But not this year for my town. We had our first green Christmas in a very long time. It is the first one that I have ever had, and let me tell you, it stinks. Not being able to go sledding with your friends and having snow ball fights was horrible. Now it is the New years and we barely have any on the ground. There isn’t enough to make a snowman, and you cant get very far on a sled. So far this winter has been horrible. It never felt like Christmas because there wasn't any snow.