Tristan's Essay

Tristan Yerkes

Mr. Salsich

English 02

26^th May 2009

Memory Lane:

A Last Essay on the Powers of Memory

There are places I remember, I come back to, and float through, for a second becoming the smiling toddler that no one talked to. Magical places, everyone shares as time capsules of wound up memory, ready to tumble loose into the unwary mind. For William Wordsworth, these old feelings, along with new ones are discovered upon return to Tintern Abbey just as they would be if I were to return to Pine Point in the future.

In “Tintern Abbey”, Wordsworth describes how he relives all of the feelings he had in his youth and how he discovers new ones. Wordsworth may not have been in his youth anymore, “five long years” may have passed, but he still felt and saw the same things he felt and saw five years ago. Wordsworth has “thoughts of more deep seclusion” than he had when he was last at Tintern Abbey. These feelings are brought back up from Wordsworth's well of emotion and the revisit to Tintern Abbey is just a catalyst in the equation. Wordsworth also discovers new emotion on his revisit to Tintern Abbey, new things within himself. When Wordsworth says, “here I stand […] with the sense /..
of present pleasure” he refers to his current emotion, and how he feels upon his revisit. This shows that Wordsworth, while reliving his old emotions, has sub-emotions brewing that are more current. The complexity of the emotions displayed in “Tintern Abbey” are so severe, that the birth of such a poem is almost expected.

These ideas Wordsworth experiences upon re-visitation of Tintern Abbey, would also apply to my re-visitation of Pine Point in the future. I would relive my old feelings while roaming the old halls. I would observe the classrooms, and remember the stressful feelings, the anger, the pressure felt in years past, just like the feelings of joy Wordsworth relives when he walks near Tintern Abbey. I would roam past the rock climbing wall, remembering all of the hours spent thinking of clever announcements. As I drink in my old school, I would also be feeling new things and thinking new thoughts. As I look into small classroom windows, I may realize things I haven't before, like Wordsworth saw new sights in the old sights of Tintern Abbey. I would wonder how my memory lived: Did the school I remembered end up remembering me? The memories Wordsworth had of Tintern Abbey were not the same as those I would have of Pine Point, but they retain the structure of new and old thoughts.

Many old dusty vaults of thought can be unlocked by returning to old places. Just as much, shining, new, beautiful thoughts can be created when one is returned to old places. This happens in both my fictional return to Pine Point, and Wordsworth's very real return to Tintern Abbey. In both, these thoughts are celebrated.

Key:

Fast Word

Tricolon

Loose Sentence

Chiasmus

Kyle's Final Essay

Kyle Sebastian
Professor H. Salsich
English 9
5-27-09

The Power of Influence:
An Essay on Influence and its impact

Influence is a very powerful thing; it is used by some of the most important people in the world, but the most important thing about it is that anyone can use it. The influence of Martin King Jr. caused thousands of people to fight for their sovereignity (FAST). He started with nothing, but a dream and turned it into a reality. The influence of even the smallest things can lead to some of the greatest moments in history. Pine Point’s influence will live on with me throughout my life so that I too may make a difference in history.

TS: In the poem “Tintern Abbey” by William Wordsworth a main theme I see is in fact Influence. SD: The abbey influenced Wordsworth’s life very deeply when he visited it. CM: He often rushed to his memories of the abbey when he felt overwhelmed with the chaos of the world. CM: The line “these beauteous forms [. . .] in lonely rooms, and ‘mid the din / [. . .] of towns and cities [. . .] I have owed” explains how he used his memories of the abbey as a relief. SD: The influence of the abbey had stayed with Wordsworth ever since he left it. CM: In the line “thou art with me here upon the banks / [. . .] of this fair river” Wordsworth is saying that on the “banks” of the “fair river” called life Tintern Abbey is with him, he has never forgotten it. CM: It had become one of the most influential places he had ever been to. SD: The abbey had captivated him in a strange way. CM: It did not give him an inspiring speech or do things in a courageous way. CM: Instead the abbey entranced him with its sheer beauty and seclusion from the world. CS: Influence is a theme we see in countless books, movies, plays, and historic moments, yet somehow it never produces a dull story.

TS: Pine Point has influenced my morals and values and has left an everlasting impression on me. SD: Pine Point has taught me things that I will use for the rest of my life. CM: Not only has it taught me how to say the magic words, but I’ve also learned how to interact with people, how to treat people like they want to be treated, how to truly be a part of a community that gives back (Parallelism). CM: Pine Point has taught me things that I need so that I can achieve my goals and enjoy my life. SD: Pine Point has also supported me throughout some of my toughest times yet. CM: The parents and students of Pine Point have given me their hospitality and kindness and showed me that “on the banks of this delightful stream / [. . .] we [stand] together.” CM: The friends I have made at Pine Point have especially supported me during my fifteen years of living by using what Pine Point has taught them to be good friends. SD: If I came back to visit Pine Point after five years it would be like coming back to one of the few safe havens in the world. CM: In five years I would have experienced many disappointing things that life has to offer and coming back to Pine Point would simply make me forget all about them. CM: I would instantly call back memories of friends laughing in the halls, teachers lecturing me about juvenile things, and even homework that I had to do. CS: Going back to such an influential place in my life could only hold the purest form of amazement for me.

TS: In the poem "The Writer" by Richard Wilbur influence is also a theme. SD: A bird is used as a metaphor to show the connection between a girl and why her father is wishing her good luck. CM: The bird is described as "clearing the sill of the world", which refers to the girl clearing her own "sill" out into the world. CM: In a way the bird influences the reader's mind so that they can make the connection to what the father means when he says "I wish her a lucky passage". SD: The bird is an essential piece in this poem's puzzle even though it seems like an insignificant add on. CM: Without the bird there would be no connection between the girl leaving and her father wishing her a "lucky passage." CM: With the bird the reader can more easily make the connection between the girl leaving her father and the father wishing her good luck on her way. CS: Some of the smallest things can carry a meaning bigger than themselves.

Influence has been used by some of the most diabolical minds in history including Benito Mussolini, Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, and Osama Bin Laden (Tetracolon). However, it has also been used by some of the most influential like Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, and even Barack Obama. No matter how it’s used the power of influence is unarguably very strong. The power to use influence after all, is the power to control minds.

Self Assessment
1.) Issues that I've always had and are continuing to have is using correct punctuation whether its a simple comma error or forgetting the rules of independent clauses.
2.) I like that my essay seems to relate to the overall topic of influence through the entire thing.
3.) One of the weaknesses I see is that I didn't really pick challenging exam meterial to use in mmy essay.

Ty's FINAL essay

Ty LeVarge

Mr. Hamilton Salsich

English 02

May 26, 2009

Ruins are said to hold deep secrets. Tintern Abbey was one of those ruins that is popular even today. It was a sacred place to the poet William Wordsworth. I will also return to a sacred place of mine five years from now.

In Wordsworth's poem, "Tintern Abbey", he reflects on how he is seeing Tintern Abbey after five long years. He reflects upon how divine the Abbye seems after its aging years of being alone. The roof was taken off because of the new ruler in Wordsworth's time period and made the abbey closer to being a ruin. Later, it was overgrown with trees, grass and animals that made their home in the Abbey. Wordsworth speaks mainly of the Abbey's landscape and how it has changed since he last saw it. He remembers its beauty before it became more well known by tourists. Now, he sees it tamed and controled and not as natural as he remembered. He appreciates Tintern Abbey no matter how it may look.

Similarly, like Wordsworth, I will return to a sacred place in my life, Pine Point School. I will have returned and encounter memories as i walk into each individual classroom. I walk into Mr. Salsich's room and remember all of the good and bad memories of my past years. I would also explore the computer room and remember our math classes and computer classes we had in there. As I would explore the school, I would probably have sudden memories of certain events. Ideas would appear in my head of things like conversations with friends, classes, dances, and sports. Many memories would appear and make their way into my mind making them fresh again. Seeing this school after five years is going to be a wonderful experience.

Which is more educational, Ruins or places of knowledge? They are both about secrets and old memories. Artifacts and books are holders of secrets. Memories, dust, and knowledge are all that remains when someone leaves for five years.

Ty's essay

Ty LeVarge
Mr. Salsich
English 02
May 13, 2009

The Stones of Time:
An Essay on a Garden Stone, Two Poems, and My Life

(1) What if transformation happened every day? (2) Believe it or not, transformation is always happening. (3) All objects are undergoing mutations and transformations every minute. (4)Everything we see is undergoing a transformation.

TS The garden stone is very similar to the poems written by the German Poet, Rainer Maria Rilke. SD The garden stone is a stone that is weak on its own, but undergoes a transformation. CM Alone, the stone is just a slab of rock in a crazy shape. CM However, when placed in a stone walkway, it becomes part of something beautiful. SD Also, the garden stone has the smoothness and has left history of who stepped there like how like Rilke describes in one of his poems. CM He says, “but the courageous morning melody that hovers and shimmers behind their fading steps” and that seeing, leaves a record in your mind of what you saw and what it did. CM The garden stone keeps the dirt and the weight that was beared (FAST) upon it. CS Everything in life leaves behind a footprint; figurative, or literal, and that footprint is always remembered by every speck of dirt and every inanimate object that that object has left upon the stone.

TS The stone is very similar to my life in one, very specific way; I have transformed as the stone can. SD Like the stone, I was once an individual that was separate from the rest. CM Five years ago, I was a separate unit, alone, helpless, vague. CM The stone is similar because it was new to its environment and was lost. SD Now, in the present time, the stone and I, have changed. CM The stone is now part of an elegant garden and serves as a piece of one walkway. CM This year, we have all become closer as one and I am now part of that walkway making its way from point A to point B. CS All objects, living, and inanimate, can change drastically over a short period of time.

TS Similarly, In both of his poems, Rilke makes many interesting points and ideas. SD One that stuck out to me, is transformation. CM In his first poem he states, "… life is transformation: all that is good is transformation and all that is bad as well" and he means that every event is a change in someone's life. CM Changes always affect someone spiritually and may change the way they think. SD I also like the statement he makes in the second poem. CM He says, "out of whose depths their dearest secrets speak" He seems to be telling that within everything, is a secret that was kept away for a long time. CM After a long time, that those secrets are revealed to all around it. CS Strange how all of life's mysteries revolve around the simplest actions.

(1) We see transformation. (2) We reveal secrets. (3) All happen sometime in our lifetime. (4) We have no power to alter it because only ourselvees can control the transformation, and transfromation is the most powerful

Kyle's Essay

Kyle Sebastian
Professor H.Salsich
English 9
19 May 2009

Past, Future, and Present:

An Essay on a Passage by Rainer Maria Rilke

One always uncovers the mysteries that lay within themselves as they continue their journey in life. As we continue to evolve as a people we continue to find things that suggest how we once were and things that help us discover how we have changed. We will continue to let go of things, gain new things, and in turn change as all life does.

TS: Often overlooked and forgotten about, stones are some of the most boring yet interesting things on this planet (Appositive Opener). SD: The garden stoneis no doubt a solid object. CM: You can clearly feel the rough texture and feel the sheer hardness of it. CM: As in all solid objects a stone is easily picked up, which reminds me of when Rilke writes “so ready to grasp” this supports the idea of how easy some things are to take and are done whatever with. SD: Another example is that a stone is often a symbol for being strong, robust (FAST), or unmovable. CM: When I read “strong and sturdy” in Rilke’s passage I instantly thought of a stone. CM: A stone is one of the simplest symbols of something “strong and sturdy” so it was an easy connection to make. SD: Another thing is that stones can be very old, lying dormant in the ground for thousands of years and even encase things inside them. CM: When Rilke writes “out of whose depths their secrets speak” it reminds me about how a stone or a fossil can be uncovered that is millions of years old and can tell you secrets about what happened in the past. CM: The thought that something so ordinary can basically uncover the unknown in astonishing. CS: Stones are truly some peculiar things, looking ordinary on the outside, but holding untold treasures on the inside (Participle Closer).

TS: I have found fossils inside myself that show me what kind of person I truly have become. SD: I discovered that if I really work hard for the things I want then I can get them. CM: This year I’ve really tried to stay on top of my grades and so far it has been one of my best years academically. CM: You can take the hard way and work for something, or you can take the easy way and do nothing for nothing in return. (Antithesis?) SD: I have also noticed that I have changed since I was in Kindergarten, no doubt thanks to Pine Point. CM: I came to this school only interacting with the family that was already here and closing myself off from everyone else. CM: Now in ninth grade I am more outgoing and its easier to interact with people than it was ten years ago. SD: I have also noticed that all of my closest friends have the same things in common; loyalty, kindness, a sense of humor, and a genuine character (Tetracolon). CM: I’ve never specifically picked who my friends are, but rather called the people that I’ve gotten the most contiguous (FAST) to or are the most comfortable with friends. CM: Never have I noticed that they all had the same qualities in common until I started thinking about next year without some of them. CS: All of these “fossils” I’ve recently dug up have shown me the “secrets” within the “depths” of myself.


TS: Such as their are different fossils holding different organisms I found different lines held different meanings in this passage. SD: The line “If God had only made our hands to be like our eyes - so ready to grasp, so willing to relinquish all things” means that our eyes can let go of things so much easier than our hands. CM: When our eyes gaze upon something they, in a sense, hold it and whenever they close they instantly let go of it. CM: However, when our hands close they only grasp tighter around what it was they were holding. SD: “Property is poverty and fear” because when you hold something dear to you, you “fear” to lose it and once it is lost you feel like your in a state of “poverty.” CM: Poverty is not only lack of money, but can be a lack of anything so its understandable to feel like your in poverty when you’ve lost something important to you. CM: You can only be free of “poverty” and “fear” if you let go of things willingly; that way when you don’t have anything, you have nothing to lose. SD: The final line that drew my attention was "Once out of our hands, however, things ought to move forward, now sturdy and strong, and we should keep nothing of them but the courageous morning melody that hovers and shimmers behind their fading steps." CM: This line explains that once we let go of things they aren't just forgotten, but instead they move forward. CM: A great and apt example of this is the dreaded departing of Pine Point, which so many of us fear, but once we leave, Pine Point will continue to prosper in real life and in our minds.

Rocks and fossils share a similarity to what kind of person you truly are. Rocks and fossils hold some of the things that are truly unique to the earth as your own quirks do for you. Our personality is what makes up who we are and what we stand for, don't ever forget it.

Tristan's Essay!

Tristan Yerkes

Mr. Salsich

English 02

13 May, 2009

The Middle Way:

An Essay Discussing Possession

If you hold a peach too firmly, it will be smashed; this is an idea represented by a passage by Rainer Maria Rilke, a garden stone, and my personal beliefs. Detachment can not only save the possessor, but it can also strengthen the possession.

The second passage by Mr. Rilke shows how one must embody the concept of detachment. Rilke shows how we must always let go of, or be able to let go of our worldly possessions. When Rilke says, “We do not acquire wealth by letting something remain [...] in our hands” he means that everything means much more when we let go of it. Mr. Rilke displays this concept of parting with what we own as a sort of way for us to experience the things we let go without letting them take us over. Rilke also shows how our infatuation with possessions can be our downfall. Being human, we all have trouble letting go of our paraphernalia can be very hard, but Rilke says that if we do, we will live our life to the fullest. When Rilke says, “Our hands ought not to be a coffin for us but a bed” he is suggesting that our hands, symbolism for our possession, should not cling, and be our death or coffin, but feel things, and be a bed. Rilke's thoughts really show that we own our possessions, but our possessions can own us.

A garden stone and this Rilke passage both relate, being about letting things go. The garden stone must let beautiful things pass by it, and not hold onto anything, just as the Rilke passage says. Every day, people and animals step on the stone, acknowledge it, use it, impart some of themselves upon it, and then leave it. The stone is “letting everything pass through [its] grasp” so that it may have “carefree ownership” of the beautiful things in life. If a garden stone cannot be easily stepped onto and off of, it does not do its job, and is replaced. Rilke says that “Once out of our hands, however, things ought to move forward, now sturdy and strong” it's the garden stone's job to make sure the things that step onto it make it on, and if it doesn't, this becomes its failure, its downfall, its “coffin”. The garden stone must hold its role, let things pass by, enhance them, and do its job flawlessly or else suffer repercussions. The Rilke passage is suggesting that we must all lay like the garden stone, and serve as a helper to others, bringing them into our grasp, and letting them pass through, stronger.

Rilke's passage says that garden stone must make things stronger, and my belief is that this holds true for people as well. Many people in our world hold personal possessions, comfort, and gain close to themselves, people should not fritter away their comforts all to themselves. In the Rilke passage, Rilke says, “We do not acquire wealth by letting something remain and wilt in our hands” this shows that we should not hold on to things for too long. If people hold on to things long enough, they start to ruin those things. If people learn to let things go, they can, in a way, own the things. When we hold things too closely, we aren't able to see them from far away, and cease to recognize their beauty. By not owning these things, we own them. My beliefs are quite similar if not the same to Rilke's, we agree about ownership, we agree about greed, and we agree about possession.

The many faces of greed all come down to the one fact: whether you're crushing a peach, or not letting things walk over you, holding onto possessions is not the right way. This does not mean that people should all go out and give away all of their money, this simply suggests that nowadays the human race as a whole tends to hold material goods too closely. We should all find a middle way in life.

KEY:

Fast Words

Participial Phrase (opener)

Participial Phrase (closer)

Tetracolon Climax

Antithesis

Chiasmus

Tricolon

Parallelism

Loose Sentence

In my writing, I am working on fixing my careless errors, and managing my time.

I think for this essay, I did very well with the special tools, and I think that I especially utilized all forms of parallelism.

I think I could have worked on my transitions, and my introductory paragraph. Oh, and one thing I worked out was finding out what the self-assessment was finally.

I would give myself an A, and I think this was my best essay all year

Ty's essay

Ty LeVarge
Mr Hamilton Salsich
English 02
May 4, 2009

Goodbye:
An Essay on How Two Poems Relate to My Life

What is the action of separating and saying goodbye? Separation is a natural cycle that takes place for everyone. We all have to say goodbye to someone during one part of our life. Everyone meets someone new, and they soon have to say goodbye for a short time, or maybe forever

In the poem by Emily Dickinson, she describes parting as a separation from everyone and everything around you. In the first stanza, she says, “If immortality unveil /A third event to me.” This says that she has seen too much of being partitioned with family members and other beings she loved. She seems to have written this stanza with sorrow as if she has lost many dear to her life. Similarly, in the second stanza, she says, “Parting is all we know of Heaven, / And all we need of hell.” Here, she says that when you die, wherever you go, you will have parted from the entire world. She says that where you go after you pass away does not matter, because you will have parted from all that you have had and all that you have left behind. Overall, her poem seems to have been made out of the tears that she has shed from the years before.

In the poem by Naomi Shihab Nye, she expresses parting as a good thing and that it should also be something to be wary of. In the poem “Adios”, she says that you should get to know the word “goodbye” and to bond with it. In the first stanza, she says, “Use it. Learn where it begins, / the small alphabet of departure” and she says that you should know it inside and out. Similarly, she says near the end of the poem, “Think of things that disappear. / Think of what you love best, / what brings tears to your eyes.” She means that you should remember everyone that you love and know that at any instance, they can disappear. You may see someone you love before you go to school, but after school, you come home to find them to have disappeared from your life. Together, being something good, and something that should not be tampered with can run its natural course without you.

At the end of my career at Pine Point, I and many others will be parting from each other. “We were part of something special” is a quote from my speech and I believe it to be true. As the class of 2009, we have shared a bond that has lasted years. We were inseparable for the time we have been together. Now, we are nearing the end of the year as ninth graders and we have cherished the memories that we have had through the years. From random events of joy, to times where we have had tears of sorrow, we enjoyed every moment. We shared it all and we went through it all together. Now, it is May and we are nearing the final weeks of being together as a class. There are many times where we wish to have gone back in time to relive those moments and to save time so that we can stay together. We can still save time by spending as much of the time we have left enjoying ourselves and sharing with friends. We can still IM and Facebook each other, but we will never feel the same.

Parting is everyone’s worst fear and greatest enemy. However, without separation, there would be no reason to truly love someone. Everyone would exist in unity, but without true loving and care for all people. For anyone to get the biggest benefit before being severed from those you love, you and all others need to live together, and live out loud.

Teddy's Essay

5/5/09

Teddy

Mr. Salsich

Room 2

Parting:

An Essay

            Emily Dickinson wrote a poem about parting in her life and what parting is. In Emily Dickinson’s at “parting is all we know of heaven, /and all we need of hell.” Parting is a part of life and a part of death. When we are living, we may part with many things (pets, family, etc.), when we die, we part with everything. Ms. Dickinson writes, “[her] life closed twice before its close.” The two closes in her life might have been her parting with her parents. If her parents died, she would have mourned for them, and her life might have seemed like it was going to end, so she might have counted those points in her life as closing points, like chapters in a book. She just had to say, “Adios.” 

Tristan's Essay!

Tristan Yerkes

Mr. Salsich

English 02

6 April 2009

“Parting is such sweet sorrow”, almost everyone knows this famous Shakespearian quote from Romeo and Juliet, but the concept of parting also has meaning in “Adios” by Naomi Shihab Nye, “Untitled” by Emily Dickinson, and my life. The concept of parting is tough, and many have to deal with it in their lives. In this essay, we will examine how parting affects these two poems and my life.

My life is full of parting, I part with friends on a yearly basis, and I started my school career by moving around a lot. My school career has been recovered from this, some may say, shaky foundation, but this just goes to show that parting makes us stronger. This strength of parting is built off of the basis of independence from common people, places and things. I say common people because everyone needs to depend on something, and my independence is just the relocating of my common dependence to constants in my life, like myself, my family, my camp, and the joys in my life. These constants regulate my dependence, the things I cannot part from, but my strength itself helps me be free, go places, and do things. The strength that allows me this freedom to part with things is basically the strength to cut earthly ties, and leave what is important to me. When I have to leave what is important to me, I do not hesitate to part, this is how I mustered up the courage to go away to my summer camp, which later became a constant in my life. I say it is courage that drives me to part from my friends, family, and homes, many would perceive this as pure heartlessness, and that I simply do not have strong bonds with my friends. The bonds I have with my friends are very strong, as many would agree, and I do not part from them for lack of caring about my friends, family, or home. I part because my dependence is elsewhere, with the constants I cannot part with, I do not need my friends at the my current home for survival, and I think many of them do not need me. In a way, my relocation of dependence may be viewed as a bad foundation for life, but my strength through parting has made me very good at balancing, whereas many have built their foundations strong, but very confined, causing their lives to topple when they have to grow. (Loose Sentence)

Despite others’ life foundations, Ms. Nye’s poem, “Adios” gives views as to how the narrator of the poem, presumably Nye, accepts parting, and uses it for strength. This strength is shown through symbolism in the second and third stanza. The symbolism is shown by the narrator telling the reader to take the parting, and the feelings associated with that parting, and make them strengthening parts of one’s life. These strengthening parts of one’s life are marriage shown as a “golden ring” one must “marry” parting and freedom, shown as “wings”, one must “strap [parting] on [one’s] back”. As well as symbolizing how you must treat that parting, showing how that parting helps you, and saying this in a strong, and insightful way, “Adios” shows that you must think of the things you are parting with to be strong. (Periodic Sentence) When Nye says, “Think of things that linger”, she tries to enhance (SAT Fast Word) the feeling of parting with unwanted things, that lie around, and “linger” so that one can understand the concept of parting better. This comprehension of parting with lingering things helps, but Nye also talks about parting with good things when she says, “Think of what you love best.” Along with making one think about good things that they part with, Nye shows how accepting the feelings associated with parting can strengthen one.

Ms. Nye’s poem expresses some of the best ways to feel about parting, but Ms. Dickinson’s untitled poem shows how parting affects one’s life. Parting affects one’s life, first in a pessimistic way. This pessimistic way is the idea of looking at the good things in life, and only thinking about how you have to part with them. The idea of only thinking about parting with good things is expressed when Dickinson says, “Parting is all we know of Heaven”, saying that “we” only know that we must part with heaven. Heaven is mentioned in the second to last line, but the last line mentions hell. Hell is mentioned in the last line, when Dickinson says, “[Parting is] all we need of hell. This is showing that parting basically is the symbolic hell, and that all we need for hell is to experience parting. To experience parting is an experience that can have many mixed and melancholy (Fast Word) feelings, many of which are shown in Ms. Dickinson’s poem.

Ms. Dickinson’s poem displays excellent points about parting, as do the other two paragraphs. Parting can be shown in many different ways, and whether it is displayed as sweet sorrow, or being shown as a strengthening force, parting has a huge impact on many people. Many have benefited from Parting, and many have suffered, but at this point, my thoughts will part with this essay.

SA

I think that I did a great job managing my time, and finally mastering periodic sentences.

I think I need to improve my transitions. (also, Mr. Salsich, I did underline all of my transitions, but the blog doesn't have underlining, so could I maybe just show you or e-mail it to you or something?)

Kyle's Parting Essay

Kyle Sebastian

Professor H. Salsich

English 9

4 May 2009

Doors Open and Close:

An Essay on Parting

TS: Sometimes something positive can also have negative effects. SD: An example is something called parting. CM: Parting is necessary to move on in life so one can grow, like leaving an old school to go to a new school. CM: However, sometimes it can be dismal and cause pain, like saying goodbye to a loved one for a time or for eternity.

TS: In Naomi Shihab Nye’s Poem “Adios” I saw several things that related to parting. SD: The first was that the poem itself revolved around a word that is often used in parting. CM: In Spanish the word Adios means goodbye. CM: The name of the poem itself is called “Adios”, which may give the reader a clue as to what the poem is about. SD: The second thing I noticed is the line “if you are known for anything let it be for the way you rise out of sight” had to do with parting as well. CM: I think that this line means that once you are finished with your work let people see how you are going to “rise” to bigger and better things. CM: Let people remember how you rose above expectations and went farther than they ever thought possible. SD: The third and final thing I noticed how Ms. Nye says “strap it to your back like wings”, which also connects to parting. CM: “Spread your wings and fly” is a commonly used expression for sentimental moments when someone is parting. CM: It’s also interesting that she chose the word “wings” because wings are often used in parting whether it’s the wings of an angel carrying a loved one off to heaven, or the wings of a baby bird flying away from the nest. (Loose Sentence) CS: These are several good paradigms relating to parting that I found in Ms. Nye’s Poem.

TS: Ms. Dickinson’s poem was more difficult to find connections in than Ms. Nye’s poem, but I successfully made some. SD: Dickinson relates parting to heaven near the end of her poem. CM: She says “parting is all we know of heaven” meaning that all people really know about heaven is that once you part you may go to there. CM: I find it ironic that something good like heaven, can come from something perceived as sad and depressing like death. SD: Near the end Dickinson related parting to the complete opposite of heaven; hell. CM: She explains that parting is “all we need of hell” meaning that all anyone wants or needs to know about hell is that once you part you may go there. CM: Hell is obviously a bad thing that people don’t want to know about so they choose to know as little as they can. CS: Heaven and Hell are examples of a negative and positive outcome of something good like parting.

TS: An example of parting in my life is a song by one of my favorite artists, Mariah Carey. SD: The song “Bye Bye” by Mariah is sung about one of Mariah’s loved ones who has passed on. CM: She sings about how she misses that person and how much they never got to experience together. CM: Songs that are so personal like this are often my favorite because they can really relate to someone’s own experiences. SD: This song reminds me of my Grandfather Ira, who died before I really got the chance to know him seeing as he lived in California. CM: My grandfather and I really only met when I was little and about a year ago before he died, but the time that I did get to spend with him I will cherish forever. CM: Mariah sings “and you never got the chance to see how good I’ve done” which is how I feel when I think of my grandfather because there is so much about each other we didn’t know and now won’t get the chance to. SD: The lines “There’s so much more left to say. If you were with me today face to face” really speak to me because this is how I feel with my grandfather. CM: If he was still alive there would still be so much we could do together that we’ve never done. CM: We could bake, we could dance, we could sing, we could laugh, we could cry, but now I won’t get the chance to do any of that. CS: The parting of my grandfather may have been a very sad and painful experience for me, but it really made me appreciate him and all he has done more.

TS: The yin and yang, good and evil, the Red Sox and the Yankees, partings and meetings, the world always has a balance between things (Periodic Sentence). SD: Parting with things is a daily occurrence for everyone in the world and it has its pros and cons. CM: When you go home after school you are leaving your friends and teachers behind, but you’ll be able to see them the next day. CM: When a family member dies you may be grief stricken, but you know they’re going to a better place.

SA

Something I Like-I think i did a really good job on relating parting to each of required things in this essay.

Something I need to improve on-Again I often have a difficult time fixing and identifying small punctuation errors.

Teddy's Essay

5/2/09
Teddy Purnell
Mr. Salsich
Room 2

Dreams of Life and Kindness:
A Comparison of a Poem, a Story, and Life

My life, "Winter Dreams" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and "Kindness" by Naomi Shihab Nye, all have either the presence, or lack of, kindness. "Winter Dreams" is lacking kindness by Dexter wanting to be with Judy, but Judy doesn’t want to be with Dexter. "Kindness", as the title implies, is about kindness, but it is also about where you can find kindness. In my life, I see kindness and the absence of kindness every day. These three things, although very different, have one thing in common; the virtue of kindness.

In my life, I see kindness on the streets, on TV, at school, everywhere. However, I also see the absence of kindness. On TV, I see people dying because of someone else’s lack of kindness and caring. If the by-standers would have shown some kindness, the death could have been prevented. At school, I see nothing except for kindness. Nobody is mean to anyone, and everyone is supportive of each other. I am glad that our school is filled with kindness, especially because I heard that other schools are actually like the schools you see on TV, with bullies and mean teachers. I see both kindness and the absence of kindness in my life, much like Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem.

In Ms. Nye’s poem, she says that to know kindness, you must also know sorrow. Ms. Nye writes, "Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,/ you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing." This means that you cannot fully appreciate kindness until you have experienced sorrow. Being able to contrast kindness with its opposite, sorrow, multiplies the greatness of kindness, and lets you appreciate it that much more. Ms. Nye compares sorrow to a dead "Indian in a white poncho" by the side of the road. The white poncho adds to the peacefulness and innocents of the scene. Ms. Nye was robbed before she wrote this poem, so she might have been feeling like the Indian, innocent, and hurting. Ms. Nye can appreciate kindness, but Dexter Green in "Winter Dreams" needs to appreciate kindness more.

In "Winter Dreams", Dexter Green needs to appreciate kindness more, and when he has it, he needs to hold onto it. In the beginning, Dexter Green is in love with Judy, and wants to be with her. He tries to get her, but she just won’t be with him. He then gives up and convinces himself that he’ll never have her. He needs to take the sorrow he feels now, and use it to see how much he should appreciate kindness more. He must learn that "Before [he] know[s] kindness as the deepest thing inside,/ [he] must know sorrow as the other deepest thing" like in Ms. Nye’s poem. Dexter and Judy will both benefit if Dexter learns to appreciate kindness more. If Dexter appreciates kindness more, he might appreciate Judy more when she came back to him, or he could try harder to get her in the beginning.

Kindness is everywhere, yet nowhere, depending one the perspective of the person. Some people can’t truly appreciate it, and they are blind to it. Some people have felt it, seen it, and only they can truly experience it. Are you among them?