The Blog with no name

Thursday, January 18, 2007

A poem from me and one from a poet.

Last week in English class we were working on a poem as part of our poetry unit. This poem had to be constructed using words from two newspaper articles. Lastly, the articles had to have contrasting meanings. For example a house burning down as opposed to a new building being built would be contrasting ideas. Here is the Poem I came up with:

"Healing"

Inspiration critized,
Physically,emotionally, hurt.
Violence against people.
Keep from danger or loss.
Enough. Days are right for reconciliation.
Critized efforts.
Shouted slogans motivate others,
to make changes, not violence.
A plan: to bridge rivalries.
Confirmed goal.

Also as part of the blog we had to go to Poets.org and find a new favorite poet. I found a poem entitled Crossroads by Joyce Sutphen.

Crossroads
by Joyce Sutphen

The second half of my life will be black
to the white rind of the old and fading moon.
The second half of my life will be water
over the cracked floor of these desert years.
I will land on my feet this time,
knowing at least two languages and who
my friends are. I will dress for the
occasion, and my hair shall be
whatever color I please.
Everyone will go on celebrating the old
birthday, counting the years as usual,
but I will count myself new from this
inception, this imprint of my own desire.

The second half of my life will be swift,
past leaning fenceposts, a gravel shoulder,
asphalt tickets, the beckon of open road.
The second half of my life will be wide-eyed,
fingers shifting through fine sands,
arms loose at my sides, wandering feet.
There will be new dreams every night,
and the drapes will never be closed.
I will toss my string of keys into a deep
well and old letters into the grate.

The second half of my life will be ice
breaking up on the river, rain
soaking the fields, a hand
held out, a fire,
and smoke going
upward, always up.

In her poem Joyce Sutphen she most likely writes about her fiftieth birthday. The fiftieth birthday is considered by a lot of people to be the halfway point in a person's life. Some even joke that it's all down hill from here. The author of this poem takes the opposite point of view. She plans on living the rest of her life to the fullest. In her poem she gives numerous examples of this. She says "I will dress for the occasion, and my hair shall be whatever color I please". I believe that she is saying that she only has one life to live and she will live it how she wants not how others want her to live her life.

In life it is expected that a person will make mistakes. Here in her poem she gives some good advice: "The second half of my life will be water over the cracked floor of these desert years. I will land on my feet this time". From this passage it sounds like the author has made some mistakes so far in her life. However, she will not let this stop her from living. Even though she has made mistakes in the past, she has learned from them now. This piece of advice will work for anyone because no one's perfect. Take the advice from this author, do not let your mistakes take over your life, instead use them to make yourself stronger.

Monday, January 08, 2007

New Years Resolutions?

News Years resolutions happen every year. Many people make such resolutions in order to improve on themselves. Some might make resolutions to lose weight, and others might make resolutions to save money. The question is do these resolutions work. They are not magic, they only work if the person is truly willing to commit to the resolution they have made.
This past year has flown by for me. I can hardly believe 2007 is here. Have I made 2006 worth it? Well I don't really know. I would say that it was neither all good or all bad. I wish I would not have had so much work to do throughout the last year. I also wish I hadn't always put it off until the last minuet. I think that this next year will be a challenge as well as a break from my work. The second half of my senior year looks like it will be a lot easier than the first as far as work goes. Also I look forward to going to college in the fall of 2007. This year I will try not to put off my work until the last minuet. Instead I will try to work on it a little at a time. Also since I am going to college in the fall, I want to have as much fun as possible until I leave. Lastly I hope to be able to spend more time practicing karate than I have this last year.
All in all I think this next year will turn out good if I can stick to my resolutions. I guess the thing to do will these types of goals is to do your best at them and if you screw up just try again.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

The Real Spirit Of Christmas

Our Pricipal had this to say about one underprivileged family that the school helped last Christmas: "I received the coolest phone call ever from one of our families from last December. Seems they went shopping, bought about five bags of toys, and want us to distribute them to a needy family this year." Last year this family was a recipient of our generosity drive. The fact that those people would want to help give back to those less fortunate makes the Christmas season that much more awesome.
It is refreshing to see people with a giving attitude. So often in our society today all you see is people taking things for themselves. Maybe that is the problem with our society. As Americans we strive to be the best in everything we do. We want to make more and more money. It seems like enough is never quite enough. Some people will do what ever it takes to get ahead, even if it means that other people will be hurt in the process. To see someone who wants to give back to others because someone once helped them is refreshing. It makes you feel like you will be doing some good when you help someone and perhaps that will inspire them to help someone else.

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