The Hope at D'Agostino Brothers

Grace crossed the street as she always did. After school on Fridays, she always went to the restaurant, D’Agostino Brothers. That’s where her parents would meet her. She knew it. Their letter said, when they dropped her off, to go to D’Agostino Brothers. For months she would go every day there, but the waitress, Emily, said that she would look every day for them, and report back on Fridays. She promised, along with a weekly cannoli, and Tina had given her a description. 

The orphanage was, though she did have some friends and cared for Mollie a lot, such a cruel place. Grace had a feeling Miss Henderson hated her the most. No, she was sure of it. Her only hope was the restaurant. She entered at precisely 4:01, like every week, and saw Emily in the usual corner, near the kitchen. She smiled sadly, cannoli in hand. “Not this week.”

Response to Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut

I don't usually read dystopian fiction, and Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut is a good example of why. In this short story, everyone in America is equal by the year 2081, with people who have an advantage (strong, pretty, even smarter than the average person) have "handicaps." People who are smart have earpieces they are never allowed to take off (or they will be imprisoned and fined) which are controlled by the government, namely the Handicapper General. Every twenty seconds, a loud noise plays through the earpiece, disrupting their thoughts. This is pretty disturbing to me, especially since the "average" smart person in the story is REALLY dumb. The two main characters' son, Harrison Bergeron, is very abnormal, and he is killed for defecting the government, which is the climax/falling action.

Reading, I had lots of questions, most of which were Level 2 (meaning their answers weren't found in the text, but they didn't go beyond the text). One of the biggest questions I had was, if everyone is equal, and couldn't do a job better than anyone else, what gives anyone the advantages for being put in a job. Why are the ballerinas chosen to be ballerinas? Is it just a luck-of-the-draw sort of thing? What gives the Handicapper General the right to have the job? I bet she isn't handicapped, as she can shoot pretty well (she shoots and kills Harrison with one bullet). If the answer is "because the government now controls everything and everyone," then I don't like it. I just hope that the world that Harrison Bergeron in doesn't happen in the real world. I want everyone to be equal, but a different solution would probably be best.

Week 5 Comments

Naya - Dialogue
Ellie S - Dialogue: If My Dog Could Talk

Dialogue Between Evan Hansen and J. Pierrepont Finch

"I now realize that lying was wrong. I just don't understand how to get what I want without a tiny little fib. I never meant to make it such a mess. I just wanted Zoe to notice me. How did you get what you wanted?" asked Evan.

"Well for me, I just followed a book: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. I don't think there is a book for your problem," replied J.

"I just never fit in. I always felt like I was waving through a window, and no one was waving back at me."

"And I was a window washer. Listen, kid, you just gotta find someone to give you advice about this."

"Well, I was hoping for that person to be you. You were a nobody, and now you're Chairman of the Board. You have a happy marriage with Rosemary, and seriously considering a Presidential run. That's what want. I want to be successful. I want to be happy."

J. shifted in his chair. "Kid, I'm not the right guy for this. If you want a way to get to the top of business, that's what you ask me for. I can't get you friends or even girlfriends. That's all on you."

Evan sighed. "Well, who do you think could help me with this?"

"There are tons of people who can help you with tons of things. Jean can help you turn your life around. Arnold Cunningham can help see things a different way. Maybe Bobby; he's all about getting married. He's somewhere in New York. Why don't you go find him? You know Amy, right? She should know where he is."

"Thanks a lot, J. I think I'll be able to put everything back together."

"Hey, that thing you said not too long ago. The thing like 'today you're you, and that's enough' thing. That's really true. So go out there, and be yourself, and that's enough."

"Thanks, J. Good luck on your campaign."

"Be good out there, kid. Who knows? I bet there's someone waving back at you, and you just haven't seen it."


NOTE: This dialogue is what I think would be said if two of my favorite musical theatre characters met: Evan Hansen (from Dear Evan Hansen) and J. Pierrepont Finch (from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)

Gate A-4 by Naomi Shihab Nye

Naomi Shihab Nye is maybe one of my favorite poets now. But she also writes pretty amazing short stories, either fiction or non-fiction, as well. I just read one called "Gate A-4," and it had a very strong message. It tells the presumably true anecdote of when Nye was at an airport, and her flight was delayed. She is asked to comfort an old woman who only speaks Arab, who is crying, as Nye later understands, because she thinks the flight was canceled. Nye explains to her that it's just delayed, so they call the woman's ride home from the destination, and end up calling other people as well. They have a fun time, and other passengers join in on the fun. The message is very clear: differences in color or culture don't have to divide people.

Vivid imagery and details are used thoroughly throughout the anecdote. With dialogue, the reader is able to be in the scene even more. When Nye is speaking Arabic, the reader is sort of able to understand, while still having to guess at a couple phrases. She describes the cookies that the old woman passes out so that I can almost taste them, and she also describes some of the women who receive the cookies. I share the same hope the Nye had when she looked around at the gate, and at the greatly diverse women sharing stories and cookies, that a shared world is one I would like to live in. And, like she does, I don't believe everything is lost. I believe that things like this incident, this small little occurrence that happened by chance, can help shape the world into a more inclusive place.

Link: Gate A-4 by Naomi Shihab Nye

Week 4 Comments

Muskaan - Dear 10 year old's

Ethan W - Current Response To Exorcist

Response to Us and Them by David Sedaris

As a class, we recently read Us and Them by David Sedaris. This was a fantastic narrative to read because the narrator uses voice to express the age at which he's narrating. He talks in the past tense at the beginning, when he starts third grade. Now, the narrator is probably an adult, but his voice in the text makes him sound like he is in third grade. Us and Them is about the narrator's experience with his new neighbors when he moves to North Carolina. The neighbors, the Tomkey family (who "don't believe in television"), come to trick-or-treat day after Halloween, which they weren't in town for. He refuses to give away his candy, stuffing his candy into his mouth, but his mom grabs some and gives it away.

The way I believe makes the narrative sound like a third grader is narrating it are the use of exaggerations and thoughts only kids would think. One example of those is when the narrator first moves to the suburbs in North Carolina from the country of New York, saying "I hoped that in walking around after dark I might witness a murder." Another is when the Tomkeys come to trick-or-treat the day after Halloween, and the narrator says "Asking for candy on Halloween was called trick-or-treating, but asking for candy on November first was called begging, and it made people uncomfortable. This was one of the things you were supposed to learn simply by being alive, and it angered me that the Tomkeys did not understand it." An adult would most likely not say these things, so it makes the piece more authentic.

Dear 11-year-old

Dear 11-year-old,

To most of you, welcome to middle school. Don't think of it as too daunting. Just wait until high school. Most people say that the time during middle school is the worst part of their lives. My suggesting is to not let that get to you. You're in a new division, and probably at a new school, so it could be a little scary. Once you get used to it, you'll be fine. However, joining a new school/division could also be a time management problem. Usually, you are offered more sports and extra-curricular activities. But you are also given more class/homework. So use your time wisely, and only choose activities that could help you in life or you enjoy the most, and only do a couple. When I was your age, I did cross country, school/community shows, and Youth Legislature. In addition to homework, that was a lot of work. Somehow, I was in bed by 10:30 pm almost every night. I think it was because my mom gave me the most helpful piece of advice anyone could give to anyone in school: work ahead (especially on weekends).

Moving into a new division/school is not the only big step you will take. No, I'm not talking about the one that everyone talks about. I'm not talking about the "oh, your body is going through big changes right now" step.  It's a much more psychological step: your voice. No, not the fact that it's getting deeper. But the fact that you have one now; that your opinions now matter a little bit more. You're not in elementary school anymore. You can have complex beliefs and opinions. You may start to decide what you want to do in life. You may be interested in the politics of our country, and maybe do something about it. Sometimes, the littlest guys ask the toughest questions. So have beliefs. Voice your opinion. You can make a difference now.

Signed,

a 14-year-old

Week 3 Comments

Robert X - Reading Response: Fairest

Grace S - Hurricane Katrina

Review of BEYOND THE BRIGHT SEA

I recently the finished the book Beyond the Bright Sea by Lauren Wolk. It was a fantastic book, full of details about the Elizabeth Islands and the surrounding area. The story felt authentic, though it was fictional. The characters (Crow, Osh, and Miss Maggie) were easy to root for, each trying to reach their own goals. Wolk describes each character's thoughts so that I know what they're thinking, but I still have to solve some of the puzzle myself. The author immediately starts the mystery by saying Crow came to Osh on a skiff when she was hours old. The plot truly kicks off when Crow begins to wonder where she came from.

When each character is described, it is with vivid detail, and the reader can mostly tell whether they are going to be friendly or not. One of the bird keepers is big, and he is not friendly. The other is very small, and he is friendly. There is also consistency throughout the book about Crow possibly being a leper. People who don't know her as well as Osh or Miss Maggie, but still know she could be from Penkenese (an old leper colony), they stay away from her. The reader wants Crow to know where she's from so this frightenedness can be justified. She definitely doesn't have leprosy, but this is what kicks off her want to know where she's from. However, the quest she goes on to find the answers to her questions turns dangerous after she finds out something she didn't think possible.

This book was really a fantastic book. I couldn't put it down, mostly because I wanted to know where Crow came from. The answer and her journey really surprised me, and it was a complete plot twist, but the good kind. I recommend this book to anyone who wants a fantastic mystery set on a beautifully described setting.

Remembering the Heroes of 9/11

I read a poem called The First Response by Alan Siris. Alan was near Ground Zero and witnessed volunteers searching through the rubble for people. This makes the poem pretty personal, and very real. He recounts what he thought as he woke up, that it would just be a normal day. He tells of the heroes who raced up "those stairwells" to save others, even though it was clearly safer to stay away. He looks back upon how the sky looked then, all black with smoke. The thousands of funerals that took place one by one. He focuses a little on one firefighter who was searching through the rubble and was ready to serve on a moment's notice. This really touched me, and I wish I could have been there to volunteer to help. But, even with all the videos of the planes crashing, I will probably never know what it actually felt like, the terror, to see the what happened as it did.

The poem reminds me of a musical I recently saw, in fact, I've already written about it, Come From Away. I'll explain what happens in it again though, in case you haven't read it. Come From Away is about the small town of Gander, Newfoundland, and how it housed 7,000 people from 38 planes that were forced to land as the US airspace was closed directly after the events of 9/11. While the town people weren't necessarily at Ground Zero searching through the rubbles, they are still heroes, just like the ones that Alan Siris talks about in his poem. Gander and its people housed an amount of people that equalled their population and kept them safe, housed, healthy, and fed until they got home. They are heroes. The firefighters and volunteers who searched for other people on that day? They are also heroes. And we, as a nation and a community, will never forget their service.