Hopes and Milestones

Hope can give us strength, it's what keeps us going. Here are some of my hopes for the future

Hopes

• To have a house in Canada with a backyard
• To visit the great cities of Europe
• To go with lots of friends to the beach for summer
• To be able to go to college and graduate

Milestones, on the other hand, are what make us who we are. For example, my milestones are:

Milestones

• Starting French lessons
• Being an older sister
• The day I got glasses
• My trip to the Bahamas

          One of my biggest hopes in life is to live in Canada, have a house there and have some of my life there. I want to try and study there in a good university, and start to live there in such great place. I have this hope because I have heard about life there, it looks like a pretty good place to visit and, for me, to live there, hopefully. There are safe neighborhoods, it has great views and there's great education in Canada. I have been dreaming on going there for a long time, even if it is just for a visit. I hear it is an amazing place with great life opportunities, and I hope to once day, go to Canada. 


        Most of my milestones can help me reach my hope to go live in Canada, specially my french lessons. Since some Canadian cities speak french, I will be able to move around Canada easier and understand what is going on. Besides, if I want to study in Canada, by knowing french I would be able to get more opportunities in more Canadian universities. By speaking french, I would understand my surroundings communicate better and receive more chances in Canada, one of my life hopes. This milestone, however, can help me in many other great hopes. 

Life Roles

We've all played roles, and not just for school plays, but in life in general. Some of these roles are chosen, other are just part of us and we don't have a choice. But, in the end, all our roles complete us and make us who we are.

Some of my roles in life are the following:

• Best friend: I have had many friends throughout my life. Some just come and go, but
  
  my real friends stay by my side and have been around to help me. Some friends of mine know my entire life, in and out, and give me solutions to most of my problems. Others stay by my side and live most of my memories with me. And, before you know it, some of them will know you better than you know yourself. Most of my friends are from my school, and they stay by my side most of the day. Some, I recently became close to, and they still help me in everything. Others, like a friend I've had forever, she's in another school, but we still find ways to keep in touch. 
• Sister: who else is the older sibling? I am, and I can tell you that most of the time it is not the best role in life for many reasons. First of all, you are supposed to set an example, which means that anything you do, or you'll be watched doing so, or you'll be copied by your little relatives. Second, for some weird reasons, your sibling will always, always find a way for you to get in trouble. And besides, going back to point one, since you are the example, you will get blamed for either way. Finally (and the worst thing of all), a small disguise they use called innocence. When I'm around friends, sure, they become the most sweet people in the planet; once there is no one to blame them, they start to torture you again and again. But, as all siblings, we love each other (even if it is deep, deep, deep down in our hearts).
• Student: I've been a student for the most part of my life. I graduated from Kindergarten in 2007, and since then I remember school as a completely different thing. Sure, you're in kinder and you don't worry about anything. But once I entered primary school, I realized it was completely different, and, I was somewhat scared about this new world; same thing for secondary school. But throughout the days, I realized it was not so bad (besides homework, tests and assignments). And the best part is, you look back at some of those years, and you realize you make new friends, live new memories and you learn a lot. 
  

Mixed Emotions

Who has not had those crazy, sad or happy memories? Here are some of my memories: 

Disappointments: I never got to play a single championship. Just training and that was it. 

Accomplishments: I made it. I got to finally go to a cruise, one of the many things I want to do in my life, and it was one of the best experiences I've had. 

Conflicts: Who knew dealing with two younger brothers would be so difficult? It is like they get together to make my life a whole disaster. 

Fear: It was one of the biggest roller coasters I've seen, and I was one of the riders who was about to take its last breath. Luckily, once it kept running, the roller coaster was fun and all the fear vanished. 

Luck: I am so lucky to have gone to the Bahamas in 2014. It was a great trip and I had lots of fun.

Enemies: I don't know why, it must have been rumors or her actions, who knows. But something in her personality did not seem right. 

Gratitude: I never thanked someone so much for showing me to never give up.That lit up my day, and I will never forget her kind, encouraging words. 

Jealousy: I did not want to show this, but I sometimes I felt like just taking his place in the world. His life seemed so easy..... he had nothing to worry about. 


Who knew dealing with two younger brothers would be so difficult? It's like they get together to make my life a whole disaster. Their both younger than me, one's 11 and the other one's 6; it looks like all they think about when I'm around is to bother me all. day. long! And then, guess who is the one who gets blamed most of the time? That's right, this girl, their older sister who,according to parents, is supposed "to act responsibly and ask them politely to quit, not make things worse". Once, they just decided that I needed to be hit by their shoes, so I got shoes thrown all over my house, mostly aiming for me. And, when they broke our TV, they did not "act responsibly", they simply pointed their finger at me and said in a nice chorus, "she did it, she broke the TV"! 

I am so lucky to have gone to the Bahamas in 2014. It was a great trip and I had lots of fun. It all started with a cruise trip through the Bahamas with my cousins and my grandpa. In the cruise, we ate a lot (sometimes, we decided to have pizza and ice cream at 1am), got lost a couple of times and met new people. When we got off the cruise, we got to know new places, great places with amazing landscapes. The activities were great, we got to see a man make an ice sculpture, there were many contests and, most of all, we had fun, as a family. When all those fun memories were made, I forgot about reality, just focused on those days filled with light, not even remembering that vacation was going to end soon. It was a great trip. 

Decisions and Thoughts

Everyone makes decisions, right? Some of them lead us to good consequences and others to not-so-good consequences. And our thoughts can also lead us in many directions. They fill our mind and sometimes drown us in a maze of thoughts, that only our decisions can lead us to the exit.



I went on the secondary bus towards my first day in secondary, and got to school nervous. In that moment I realized that I just had to find a way through this new world. I did not know what to do, where to find my friends, what class to go to, how to be or survive secondary school.

If only my brother would have made a good impression on my uncle George. My brother all he did was jump around and act all silly, I feel like my uncle now hates me, too. I had to change his point of view on me, I was not the troublemaker. 

It started out as an ordinary day, but then I made the worst decision ever. I went to summer camp, spend the day there and then it happened. I did not go to my house directly, but stayed at a friends house.... my parents punished me for the silly action I made. They kept telling me how I gave them a heart attack because I didn't tell them where I was. 

My Life

Who can describe their life in three sentences? I can, here it is

My life is a basic routine that repeats itself daily. School, home, listen to music and sleep. Most of the time, there's nothing more to it. 

How would your life be described in 3 sentences? 

Alphabetical Autobiography

Here are some of my memories throughout my life so far; each event or memory matches with one of the alphabetical letters.

Anaconda: I went to a museum and saw an anaconda with my cousins 

Beach: When we first bought our beach house, 2013

Cirque Du Soleil: When I saw it for the first time in Las Vegas in 2013

Disney: When I first went to Disney in 2012

Elephant: When I went to the Bronx Zoo in 2007 and saw an elephant

Farm: The times where I go to my farm to spend the weekend there

Glasses: When I went to the eye doctor and got glasses just last August

House: My family moved of house when I was about 4 to another building in the same neighborhood

Islands: My trip in a cruise to the Bahamas, 2013

Juan Javier: When my young brother was born, 2008

Kenny: My cousin's name

Lost in a supermarket: I got distracted and had to find my parents soon.... awful experience and long story 

Mascot: In third grade, I took a picture with the 2010 World Cup mascot

Nevada: My trip to Nevada with my uncle and aunt in 2013

Ocean: On my trip in a cruise, I went to some very light-colored oceans and the water was so clear we could see fishes swimming around us

Papayacta: With my family, I went to the thermal waters of Papayacta

Quito: The city I live in 

Rabbit: When I had a pet rabbit named Pinky

Stitches: Getting stitches just underneath my left eye when I was 5

Tooth: My first tooth out when I was 7 

Universal Studios: My trip there with my cousins in 2014 

Vacation: Visiting Boston and New York during the summer of 2009

Washington: I visited some friends in Washington during the summer of 2010

Xylophone: The first open music class, where I played the xylophone 

Yosemite National Park: The vacation of 2013 where I went to such national park to visit and spend all day there

Zoo: Going to the Guayabamba Zoo as a class trip

The Test

Exam Time!

The short story by Henry Sleaser, "Examination Day", the main character, Richard (Dickie) Jordan, lives in a country where the government takes a test of intelligence to all kids when they turn twelve, and it's Dickie's turn. Before the exam though, his parents explain to him about the test his is going to take, what will it be like; his father also answers the questions roaming through Dickie's mind, about grass, sun and colors. It's exam time, and Dickie is called in to take the test, where they gave him a substance he is supposed to drink before the exam, with a peppermint flavor; and the test goes on. Hours later, Dickie's mother receives a call, informing something, well, unexpected........ she receives a call asking them what do the Jordans (Dickie's parents) want to do about Dickie's body because he, well, Dickie got killed because he was too smart!?!

Characterization and Imagery

In this story, imagery is a big part of the tale and it helps all readers get an idea of what certain part looks, sounds or even tastes like. An example of strong imagery is:

They were at breakfast table, and the boy looked up from his plate curiously. He was an alert-eyed youngster with flat blond hair and a quick, nervous manner. He didn’t understand what the sudden tension was about, but he did know that today was his birthday, and he wanted harmony above all. Somewhere in the little apartment there were wrapped, beribboned packages waiting to be opened, and in the tiny wall-kitchen something warm and sweet was being prepared in the automatic stove. (1).

In this example, we can observe how the sense of sight is shown here with descriptive words that illustrate their kitchen and Dickie.

The protagonist of the story, Dickie (or Richard, however you want to call him), is also described a lot and, based on these descriptions, we know what Dickie's personality is. For example,

‘Why did it have to rain today?’ he said. ‘Why couldn’t it rain tomorrow?’
His father, now slumped into an armchair with the Government newspaper rattled the
sheets in vexation. ‘Because it just did, that’s all. Rain makes the grass grow.’
‘Why, Dad?’
‘Because it does, that’s all.’
Dickie puckered his brow. ‘What makes it green, though? The grass?’ (1).



The example above shows the readers that Dickie is a curious boy who likes to learn and enjoys expanding his knowledge. He likes to learn and he wants to understand things that trouble him. Another example:

‘Your classification number is 600-115. Drink this, Richard.’

He lifted a plastic cup from the desk and handed it to the boy. The liquid inside had the consistency of buttermilk, tasted only vaguely of the promised peppermint. Dickie downed it, and handed the man the empty cup.

This example demonstrates us that Dickie is quick kid, not afraid of much things and does not like to cause much problems., which makes him an obedient kid.

Final Thoughts

This short story was a really good one, the ending was shocking, though it really emphasizes the message. It talks about how government control could bring a lot of problems due to its high standards on ordinary citizens, since the government could be afraid of superior things. I mean, if the government would have not been afraid of smarter people..... why kill them? There is no other explanation than the fact that this strict government is killing many innocent, yet bright, people, and that this story was great in demonstrating that to its readers.

The Unstoppable Heartbeat

The Tell-Tale Heart

In the short story written by Edgar Allan Poe, "The Tell-Tale Heart", the narrator, which calls himself mad, gets a cold, sharp feeling when he looks at an old man's eye, which he also calls "vulture eye". The narrator decides to kill the man in order to get rid of that terrible eye and the cold feeling he gets from such, so he visits the man while he sleeps for seven consecutive nights during midnight, waiting for the eye to open; on the eight night, the old man wakes up and the narrator is able to kill him and hide the body, while he did, he heard the man's heartbeat slowly disappear. Police officers came hours later to the old man's house, and the narrator, with all the confidence in the world, lets them in and talks to them; but as the police officers were still there, the mad narrator started hearing the man's heartbeat again, louder and louder each time, obligating the narrator to confess his act of murder. 

Imagery and Characters

Edgar Allan Poe uses a lot of imagery in order to paint a picture in the reader's mind. For 
example, 

Now I could hear a quick, low, soft sound, like the sound of a clock heard through a wall. It was the beating of the old man’s heart. I tried to stand quietly. But the sound grew louder. The old man’s fear must have been great indeed. And as the sound grew louder my anger became greater and more painful. (4)


This example of imagery connects to our sense of sound, using phrases such as "heard through a wall" and by showing us the narrator reacted to the sound he heard as "the beating of the old man’s heart". You can imagine a clock-like sound haunting the narrator.


The protagonist of this short story is the narrator, which says he's mad (well, he kind of is). Through indirect characterization, we can tell the personality of this important character. For example,

Yes. He was dead! Dead as stone! (3)

This demonstrates to the readers that the narrator has a negative effect on people or objects that he dislikes. In this example, the narrator killed the old man because he did not like and did not want to see the old man’s eye again.

Another good example of indirect characterization is when the author shows us through the narrator's action of killing the man his vulture eye with him, that this protagonist does not think twice before doing some sort of action, and that the narrator is very straight in his decisions.

Final Thoughts

This short story is amazing, mysterious in some sort and the message talks a lot about the theme, guilt. We should always try to not hide your mistakes or bad actions because we will then feel guilty, it is better to confess or just avoid bad actions and think twice before doing something. Thanks to the strong imagery, which gave pictures in my head, and the great form of describing the mad narrator, this short story was awesome and I enjoyed reading it.

A New Beginning

Summary

After a big talk about release with the Giver, Jonas decided to watch the release of a baby

twin, with the help of the Hall of Closed Records, of which his father will proceed the ceremony; it consisted in releasing the one that weighed less between both identical babies to prevent confusions. But, the baby wasn't sent Elsewhere, no it wasn't like that.  The lightest baby got........... KILLED! And guess who killed him? Jonas' father killed a child!!! People that get released get killed with syringes!! Anyways, the Giver later explains that Rosemary (the Giver's........ daughter?), when she asked for release, injected herself in a way to show her bravery and dedication to her choice. And, meanwhile, Jonas kept crying, telling himself that he could NOT go back to a boring life, so the Giver told Jonas to stay the
night with him, to show him a plan! The plan consisted in Jonas ESCAPING from the community, in order to make everyone have memories back, and change their normal way of life! But the sad part is, the Giver will have to stay in the community to help people get through the painful memories, which means that Jonas will have to say goodbye to his family, Gabe and the Giver....... well, everyone but Gabe. Turns out Gabe will be released

the morning before the December ceremony, so Jonas escaped and helped Gabe! But now his plan has changed completely, and he wont be able to receive memories of courage anymore for his trip! As days pass by, Jonas tries an tries to keep himself and Gabe alive, and every day, he sees and experiences new things, such as animals and different landscapes - things he saw in memories, but never actually saw them.  And, with the help of certain memories, the two pale-eyed boys managed to stay alive. For example, Jonas shared cold memories to hide from the heat-seeking planes, and shared the warm memories during cold nights. After many, MANY days, Jonas rides a sleigh down a hill with Gabe and sees a lot of red and yellow lights, along with music, a quality the Giver heard often before becoming the current Receiver. 

Text Responses

These two quotes from the book caught my attention in many different ways:

He killed it! My father killed it! Jonas said to himself, stunned at what he was realizing. (150).

Father killed the baby twin! He didn't send him to Elsewhere, he just killed it! With a syringe he killed the little twin! And worst of all...... he lied to Jonas! But citizens in the community aren't allowed to lie! Maybe, Jonas' father got the same rule as Jonas did: that he

was allowed to lie. Or maybe...... every grown up gets to lie about their work if it has to do with release.  Maybe, the community just tells them to lie about release and tells them to tell their kids about the mysteries of Elsewhere, that they don't even know about. Whatever. But what I am sure about is that Jonas, just as I was, was very confused and I think that the community officially lost Jonas' trust and loyalty, since he knows the truth about release and death and the fact that people don't leave the community alive. And I am also sure that Jonas officially hates what the Elders have done, and not just about life in general, but about death, too. But..... why didn't Jonas say anything to his father? Something like, I know you lied to me, why do you kill children? Or something like that? I mean, he is allowed to ask any questions.......... why didn't he? Somehow I thought Jonas might have said something, though he didn't. 

        Third, he had stolen his father's bicycle. He has hesitated or a moment, standing beside the bikeport in the darkness, not wanting anything of his father's and uncertain, as well, whether he could comfortably ride the larger bike when he was so accustomed to his own.

        But it was necessary because it had the child seat attached to the back.

        And he had taken Gabriel, too.  (166).

Jonas is Gabe's hero! He risked the whole plan and his safety for Gabe's life! I think that Jonas has started to make his own choices and decisions because of the memories, and

now, he is taking the next step. I find it nice how Jonas, unlike anyone else in the community, is actually taking such a big risk, which shows how the memories deeply impacted Jonas.  He broke so many rules, didn't get the chance to receive courage and brave memories, and still manages to keep going. I like it how he follows his guts that lead him to what he thinks is the right path to go into the wilderness - to go Elsewhere - even when he knows that there is no going back. 

Final Thoughts

Wow. I really enjoyed reading this book, it was really good.

As for the final thoughts of this blog post, well, I thought I should share the way the book ends for me, since Lowry didn't decide the right ending. Some people agree that Jonas and Gabe just died, other people think that they got back to their community, just that it was changed because of the memories. My ending is the happy one, my ending is different.

So, Jonas and Gabe were walking and walking, starving and freezing, when they saw a sled at the top of a hill and rode it. When they reach the bottom of the hill, they saw all of these small cabins with red and yellow lights, along with people singing and celebrating together. My supposition is that Jonas and Gabe made it to our world, the world with a normal life, pain and happiness, memories and choices.  And, because I am a person who likes happy endings, Gabe and Jonas lived together as brothers, were never found by the boring community, and lived happily and painfully ever after. They both learned how to work for things, how to use choices wisely and how to live with people and colors and sunshine and snow and animals and sails and lakes and everything Jonas learned in his memories; all of Jonas' hopes to actually experience what was in the memories finally happened. 

THE END

Life With Memories

Summary

Jonas comes another ordinary day to the Annex room and receives the painful memory of war, which the Giver later regretted giving Jonas;  Jonas, though he knows it is his job, didn't want to go back to receive more memories.  The next days, Jonas receives more memories, this time happy ones, like horses (which he realizes he really likes), museums, birthday parties and much more. The Giver then transmits his favorite memory to Jonas, a holiday with a family (new concept to Jonas: grandparents), gifts, warmth and love, a feeling he enjoyed very much. But, since this community doesn't have as many feelings as he does, when he asked his parents if they loved him, they explained to him that that word was obsolete and inappropriate; Jonas wants to change his life without feelings, so the next day, after talking to Gabe about how things could change, he did something rebellious........ he doesn't take his Stirring pill! But the Stirrings will come back! That day, the community had a surprise holiday, and when Jonas went to play a game with Asher and other kids from the community, he remembers the pain of war and tries to explain it to Asher and Fiona, but it was no use. They couldn't receive nor understand memories. 
The next day, the Giver explains to him that the previous Receiver-in-Training, 10 years ago, asked for release when she couldn't handle pain and loss anymore; her name was Rosemary, and even though she only trained for five weeks, the Giver loved her deeply.  The Giver also mentioned to Jonas that, since memories last forever, the people in the community started remembering some of the memories, which was why there was chaos when she got released! While the Giver shares his story, he reminds Jonas over and over and OVER again to stay away from the river, no matter what! The Giver wants to make sure nothing bad happens to Jonas.

Text Responses

During these events, a lot of important and shocking things happened, but mostly, these two scenes in the book are the ones that caught my attention the most.

"Jonas nodded. 'I liked the feeling of love,' he confessed.  He glanced nervously at the speaker in the wall, reassuring himself that no one was listening. 'I wish we still had that,' he whispered." (126).

Luckily for Jonas, he still learns and experiences new feelings! Almost all good memories Jonas receives end with the same comment: "I wish we still had that".  With this, I can infer that maybe, once Jonas becomes the new Receiver, he could change things in his normal community, bring back feelings, colors, and even snow. Just think about it....... Jonas can change their "normal" way of life! He will stop what the Elders have been doing all this time, he will show them the truth.  The community could live with choices, colors, memories, and feelings! 

" 'Asher,' Jonas said. He was trying to speak carefully, and with kindness, to say exactly what he wanted to say. 'You had no way of knowing this. I didnt know it myself until recently. But it's a cruel game. In the past, there have - '

'I said i apologize, Jonas.' " (134-135)

Cruel game you're playing, Asher, cruel game. Jonas felt war while playing, and he really doesn't like that game anymore. But...... why didn't he keep going and try to tell Asher the truth about war? I mean, he's going to have to describe memories to the Committee of Elders soon, so why not practice and give it a try? Jonas knows and feels the need to share memories, just like what he does to Gabe, but, in my opinion, he should try harder to get Asher to understand, not share the memories, just to make sure that he knows something, something true.  This way, when his time comes, he will be prepared to share the truth and make sure the community (the Committee of Elders) makes the right decisions.  

Final Thoughts

As a final thought, these chapters have been the most interesting so far.  What will happen next, is my big question.  What about the Stirrings?!? Why did Rosemary ask for Release?  If the memories Jonas has received so far has changed the way he views life..... will he try and change other people's lives, too? All these chapters and questions have got me thinking like CRAZY! Let's hope these next chapters answer these questions and many more questions in my mind right now.  In the next chapters, I really want to know more dark secrets about the Committee of Elders, and how will Jonas react to them? Will he change these secrets? I would also want to know what will Jonas' next memory be, will it be sad (like the feeling the Giver had when he lost Rosemary) or happy? Will he still view Rosemary in future memories or not? What will Jonas do in the future, with all his knowledge?