Sharks

This picture reminds me of many things but the one I remember most of all is the day I watch Jaws. One day when I was about 5 years old my dad went to the store to get a movie for me to watch. He got a movie called "Jaws" and said "here buddy watch this and tell me if it’s good" then went on his computer. I shrugged and I started to watch it. Now at this time I was 5, so I didn’t know what's real and not real. So the movie starts playing and I have no idea what's it about. So then it starts playing the parts with the shark starts eating people and people screaming and heads are in the water. I was literally frozen in my seat I was so freaked out at what I was watching that I couldn’t even move. About 53 deaths later I went to my dad and said "daddy this movie is just plain freaky, it about this shark that keeps bitting peoples heads, arms and legs off" later that night I could sleep and I was still replaying the movie over and over in my head, I probably couldn’t sleep for 4 days so that has made an effect on me because now I'm super, super, super scared to go into open water in the ocean because I think that  a shark is going to bite my head off.  And that’s what this picture reminds me of when I see it.

Dear Dad

Authors Note: This is about a girl writing a letter to her dad, who she hasn’t seen for years and she’s wondering why he left.

Dear Mark…I mean “Dad”,

            I don’t know how to begin this letter…the main reason is I want to know why you left me and my mom. I mean I feel weird about even calling you “dad” because you’re my birth Dad, but I haven’t seen you for my whole life…I really want to get to know you so please come back. My mom told me to promise her that I would never come looking for you, or even talk about you, and defiantly not write a letter to you, but I just need to hear something from you...I need some of you in my life. Please this is the only thing I’m asking from you, reply to this letter…let me at least see your handwriting. I know I should be mad at you for leaving me, but instead I’m desperate to get you back…if you don’t want to write back that’s fine I guess, but then send me a picture of yourself.

 I thought you loved my mom…if you really loved her you wouldn’t have left. She’s been telling me that you life far, far, far away and that you weren’t coming back ever…but I don’t believe that, you need to come back! Mom said you won’t call, text, email, write or anything because were you were wouldn’t let you. Well if that’s true, move! Move to a place where you can call me! Dad I miss you, even though I never met you I want to meet you, I NEED to meet you. There’s a hole in my heart and not until you come back into my life will it fill up. Dad I need you right now, you need to see me grow up, I want you to read me bedtime stories even though I’m too old for them, I want you to embarrasses me at school dances because you have nothing else better to do, and I want you do attempt to do my hair even though it will turn out horrible, and I want to see you try to make a peanut butter and jelly sand which even though you suck at cooking. I need a father…I need you. I’m begging you come back, come back and I promise you I’ll be the best daughter ever.

Love,

Your only daughter

“Honey what are you doing?” My mom asked, inturupting me from my letter.

“Nothing” I replied quickly, hiding the notes behind my back.

“Yes you’re doing something…what are you hiding behind your back?”
  Then my mom came towards me and snatched the letter from my hand, and gasped.

“Honey....what did I tell you! Never look for your father!”

“I’m sorry! I need to see him mom you can’t just pull me away from him mom it’s not fair! I need him! I need him! He’s my father and I need a dad!” I yelled.

“……I guess you are old enough to know now…” my mom whispered.

“Old enough to know what, mom! Talk to me for crying out loud!”

“Your father…isn’t coming back”

“Yes I know that, you told me that since I was 2.”

“No, honey, I mean he’s never coming back…he’s in the sky……….…your only father is dead”

Dear Me

Dear little 6 year old me,

          Hey you! How have you been? How is school? Did you meet the handsome “Jack” yet? Well if you haven’t…you’ll get there and see what I’m talking about. But let’s cut to the chase, I want to tell you not to make the mistakes I made when I was you. I know this is confusing but you’ll understand soon when you reach my age. Please give mom and dad a break with your whining! Sometimes you’re not always going to get what you want, so just deal with it! And when sissy gets the toy of your dreams….please I’m begging you, don’t cut her hair off when she’s asleep, because otherwise you will get a big whoop from mom (and it will hurt trust me…). Also when Nick asks you out….say yes, I know you won’t want to because you won’t like him then…but you’ll deal with that mistake for the rest of your life.

 Oh, I almost forgot, when Ali asks you to go to the park with her, BEWARE OF THE MONKEY BARS! TRY NOT TO FALL AND BREAK YOUR ARM! (Because there will be a big ugly scar there forever!) And on the day of February 5^th when you go for a bathroom break with the class…you’re going to think that everybody has left already but they haven’t…so don’t start singing Nickle Back’s “Rock Star”. Don’t be afraid to speak what you think, people will admire you for it. Don’t be scared of anything, life will throw many obstacles at you, but you must keep going.

There will be some very hard times in your life and that’s okay, you need to get through them, and remember you have great friends. There will be a time where it gets to you that popularity is the only thing that matters and you will try to get into the highest group. But if you try to get into that group Andrea, you will lose all your other friends and when the popular group is done with you, you will have no one to turn to. Stick with your friends, because they understand you and they love you with all their hearts. The time will come when mommy dies…please don’t get sad, mommy will be in a better place, where there are flowers and no suffering. Mommy always loved you so, so much, and you gotta pinky promise me that you will go on with your life no matter what. As I said before, little one, you’re going to have many tests and problems in your life…but you need to learn to face them.

Sincerely,

Your future self

Essay for "before i fall"

Before I Fall

By Andrea Basile

       What would you do if you saw the real you? That’s what happens to Samantha Kingston in the amazing yet terrifying book “before i fall” by Lauren Oliver. Samantha realizes that she has been a brat and a jerk to the people around her, and in 7 days she changes completely. This story teaches that even though you have everything, you still need to respect others.

          Samantha had it all, the boyfriend, the best spot in lunch, the best car, the best parking space, the best friends, and most importantly, popularity. But what she didn’t have was people who loved her. Samantha never realized how crude she was because she was too into herself and her friends. Many people have this problem. Many people have money and popularity so they think that they can do and say whatever they want to other people. But that’s not true. You need to respect other people and help pick them up off the ground.

          An example of Sam being mean is on page 38 when Sam was at a pool party for a girl named Sarah.  Sam then found a bunch of underwear with mirmaids and princesses on them. She bursted out laughing and she took all the underwear that she found and then went on the balcony above the pool (where everyone was) and through them over the ledge. All the embarrassing underwear went all over people heads and everyone started laughing while Sam screamed “Nice underwear Sarah!”. Another example is on page 274 when Sam is talking to a “loser” “Hey Sam!” The girl says. “Um…why are you talking to me? You’re lucky I even looked at you.” Sam replies then she walks away shaking her hips back and forward.

          Even though Sam is mean to her classmates, she is also mean to her mom and dad. An example is that everyday Sam’s mother makes breakfast and asks her if she wants breakfast and Sam’s reply is “Mother I already told you a thousand times, NO! There. Are. Too. Many. Carbs!” I thought that was so mean because the mother was only trying to be nice and Sam keeps on being horrible.

          So as you can see Samantha Kingston was not the girl to be around when it comes to respect. The truth is, once you say something bad, you can’t take it back. Words hurt other people like poison. And if something happens to the person you made fun of, you’re going to feel so guilty. So as a quote that reminds me how to behave is “If you don’t have something nice to say…DON’T SAY IT!” And it is so true, because you don’t know how much words can hurt people.  This story teaches you that even though you have everything, you still need to respect others.

Favorite Song

Favorite Song

            I love a lot of songs but my favorite would probably need to be “Complicated” by Averil Lavigne. I absolutely love this song because of how truthful it is. Things so complicated, life’s like this and you crawl and you fall and you break and take what you get. These lyrics from the song is so true. Many people around the world have horrible lives, and it just breaks my heart to look at other peoples life’s and then see all that I have. This song reminds me that whenever I think that something is going bad in my life….it’s not as horrible as what other people are going through. For example one of my close friends has a very difficult life and every time I see her she’s crying and I automatically think of this song. This song is supposed to be about love but when I hear it I think about other people’s hard lives. So that’s what makes me love this song, it makes me think hard about what other people are sometimes going through.