The Old Man and the Sea: Obstacles

People are constantly running into obstacles, whether it’s everyday life, or even a special occasion. There are disadvantages to almost everything we do, and sometimes we just need to face them. People must make decisions, and sometimes they are horrific mistakes. Something like getting into an accident because you were texting while driving could have been easily avoided. Santiago ran into a number of challenging obstacles while out at sea, firstly, he was alone, also the lack of advanced technology, and the size and strength of the Marlin. Santiago wasn’t prepared to be out at sea for as long as he was, and he was very resentful of this. The old man faced things that he couldn’t handle, and he paid for it in the end.

Sometimes people can’t handle things on their own.This is one of those cases because Santiago was alone for several days on the skiff by himself, with no crew or help. He obviously needed Manolin’s assistance because it was nearly impossible to catch a fish the size of the Marlin all alone. The old man was very wise, and he managed catch the fish anyway, but “’if the boy were [there] he would wet the coils of the line, he thought’” (83). If the boy were on the boat with Santiago and assisting him, then catching the Marlin would’ve been much easier and faster.

Manolin could’ve assisted Santiago on the skiff, but instead the old man is regretful that he didn’t come along. The old man thought about the boy, and talked about him and how much easier it would’ve been with his help. “Aloud he said, ‘I wish I had the boy’” (51). Any type of crew or help would’ve been helpful to the old man, but in the end it was just an obstacle.

Even the simplest technologies help people when they have no attendants. Something as little as a walkie-talkie could save a life or influence a decision. In Santiago’s case, the most helpful piece of technology would’ve been a radio. If he had a radio, he could have let others know his lonely and haunting situation. “And the rich have radios to talk to them in their boats and to bring them the baseball.’” (39). He would have brought many other tools with him, but the most important would be a radio so he could be entertained by sports and, more importantly, contact others to get the aid he needs.

The Marlin was massive, and very strong. The old man was astonished by its strength and size, since he has never seen anything like it. “’No,’ he said. “He can’t be that big’” (90). But the Marlin was about eighteen feet long, and fifteen hundred pounds. It had threatening strength, and its every move was suspenseful. It was a very tense situation, and there was no way out.

The old man stayed very controlled yet anxious throughout the entire book, his every move had to be precise. People face obstacles that are stronger than them, such as bully or boss. Santiago struggled to catch the fish, but he had patience and beat the odds of the Marlin’s immaculate size. Not everyone believed what they saw when the skiff was in the water and the old man was back. “Many fishermen were around the skiff looking at what was lashed beside it and one was in the water, his trousers rolled up, measuring the skeleton with a length of line” (122). The Marlin was an incredible miracle, and the old man had proof of his existence.

The sincere old man had to make unexpected decisions, and some seriously affected his life. If he caught the Marlin and was able to bring it home safely, then he would have enough food to go on the table and money to go around. But he faced obstacles such as the size and strength of the Marlin, being alone, and the lack of technology. His unprepared ness caused him to lose a life-changing Marlin, and he was remorseful due to his obstacles. But obstacles are everywhere, and people just have to try to find the best way through them.

Third Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin. Penguin Books, 2003. Genre: Autobiographical Novel,
nonfiction

Mao's Last Dancer is about Li Cunxin, a peasant boy living in Qingdao, China with his parents and six brothers. His family was incredibly poor, with barely enough dried yams to go around at dinner time. But life changes for the Li family when ten-year-old Cunxin gets chosen to go to Madame Mao's School of Dance in Bejing in 1971. When there, the students learn how to write Chinese, dance, and of course, learn everything in Chairman Mao's red book. Over time, Cunxin improves as a dancer, and finds himself with once in a lifetime oppurtunities. He gets to go to America, and experience fame and fortune as an immensly talented ballet dancer.While there, he runs into language barriers (because he didn't know any English before going to America), and mishaps with the Chinese government. Yet he still tries to find love in the west, and focus solely on dancing. Cunxin lives his dream, and he gives family a proud name.

"[A] fascinating memoir... told simply but passionately, with subtle humor and unguarded emotion." -Houston Chronicle.

Mao's Last Dancer is very easy to read and get into. It is told by Li Cunxin himself, as he and his family stuggle to survive in a poor town. He is given rare oppurtunities to break free from his small town, and his poor country to go to the amazing city of Houstin, Texas in America. I haven't read any other books by him, and I'm not sure if he has even written any other books. But if he did write another book, I would read it in a heartbeat. The paragraphs go by very quickly, and it is easy to read. The reader never knows what the next turn in the book is, and that's what makes it so good.

"I had gone back home and expected to leave them feeling light and optimistic. Instead I was leaving with a confused heart" (437).

I have never really liked nonfiction books, but Mao's Last Dancer convinced me to alter my opinion. It was much better than I expected, and I'm not really into dancing. But I understood this book, and the fact that it was a true story was really what made it inspiring. It is hard to believe that a poor peasant boy can become a world-wide famous dancer, and have the chance to leave his poor life in China for a wealthier life in America. It is an awesome book, and I'd definately recommend it to anyone who wants to give nonfiction books a try. This book is a really inspirational and beautiful tale on how one person can make a difference in their own life.

The Very Last Moment

Sixteen-year-old Grace Bradbury left the doctors office in complete shock, her mother acting morose at her side. Just the night before is when she found the mysterious bruises on her ribcage, and when she pointed them out to her doctor, she was sent for some tests. But now that the tests were over, it was clear what Grace had: Leukemia.

Grace was a normal teenage girl before all this happened. She had a boyfriend named Ray Tymes, who decided to dump her after she told him the news concerning her health status. She had a father, who left her mother and her when he decided he had enough. She had A’s and B’s as grades, and a garrulous personality to go with them. Grace had recently got her license, but she was an obstante driver and never let anyone get away with anything.

Ever since she got the disease, Grace’s mother Nancy has been by her side. That was until about six months ago when she developed a drinking problem. She started because it took off all the stress of reality, but now she has been unable to make educated decisions for her dying daughter. Instead of being by Grace’s side, Nancy has been to bars instead of doctors appointments, or even the drugstore instead of sitting on the end of her daughter’s hospital bed. Grace felt as though she was being rebuffed by her mother, and for the time being, she was able to concur.

* * *

“Mom, Dr. Bracton will be here in just a sec. He wants you to make a decision,” Grace said to her mother patiently.

“Oh yeah? A decision?” Nancy countered back in a seditious tone. She had just gotten back from the bar, and was drunk and confound. Just then, the doctor came in.

“How are you two ladies today?” Asked Dr. Bracton politely, noticing how dizzy Nancy looked as he was doing so.

“We’re just fine Doc. Now lets get this show on the road!” Nancy said with little revere for the doctor. He shot a glance at Grace, and she just rolled her eyes as if this was no big deal.

“Okay, this is going to be a quick appointment,” he looked over at Grace. “I’m just going to quickly examine you, and uh, we’ll see where you’re at before we go any further. Sound good?” Grace nodded her head with a dreadful look. She already knew what was going to happen. She wasn’t going to be well, and is going to need a transplant or Chemo or something else she couldn’t have.

As she was being examined, Grace thought about how her life was changed. She hated having cancer. She felt as though she was being held back, or trapped all the time. It was hard to handle, and she felt like she had a lot of luggage.

“Okay Grace, I think you know what’s happening here,” Dr. Bracton began. “You aren’t doing well, and-” Just then, Grace released fountains of blood from her mouth and nose.

“Hey Grace, time to wake up girl! What are you doin’, sleepin’ in fruit punch?” Nancy said in a garbled tone. Dr. Bracton immediately picked up the phone and dialed the emergency number.

“Unstable cancer patient, room 221 in the leukemia wing, needs medical assistance pronto.” He jogged over to where Grace was lying, and gently shoved Nancy away.

“Hey, this is my daughter, and we’re leaving!” Screamed Nancy.

“No! You don’t understand, she isn’t permitted to leave this hospital in this condition,” Ordered the Doctor. By now the staff was there to bolster Grace, and take her away for some medical attention.

“Ms. Bradbury-”

“I’m divorced, My name is Ms. Jashel to you, Doc,” Said the truculent Nancy as another Doctor, Dr. Williams, came into the blood-stained room.

“My apologies, Ms. Jashel. But by the looks of her exam, Grace needs some emergency Chemo therapy, the only other choice is a bone-marrow transplant. But in order to have the transplant done, she needs a donor. So she’d be on the waiting list of over 100 people, and this wouldn’t be able to be done now. So her only option is for Chemo therapy, and we need your permission to do that,” Dr. Bracton explained.

“No. No! No! No! My daughter has been through too much, and we’re done here. She isn’t having the therapy, not now, and not ever!” Yelled Nancy in a nefarious voice. She was still drunk, and very slow.

“But you can’t just stand here and let your daughter die! She can live if she receives this therapy, or at least hopefully be stable for the time being! Why won’t you let your daughter receive this therapy?” Dr. Bracton was now being tenacious about the situation, and unable to take no for an answer.

“I said no, I mean no. N-O. Now let me see my daughter,” Nancy urged.

“But-”

“Doctor,” Said Dr. Williams who was still in the room. “You can’t make the decision for this family. It’s her child, not yours.”

“But- She’s killing her daughter. I- Ugh. Lets go see Grace to see her views before a decision is made,” Suggested Dr. Bracton.

Grace was in critical condition, she was very unkempt. Her hair was all over the place, her clothes stained with blood. She looked as if she was wizened, and just drifting away. She slowly looked up at her mom and doctor.

“Grace, honey, we’re leaving. Get up, lets go.” Grace looked at her mom then at her doctor. She then slowly started to rise from the hospital bed.

“Whoa, Grace! It doesn’t have to be this way. You can stay here and get treated, this isn’t the only option,” Pleaded the doctor.

“I know, but I’ve made my decision. Not my mom’s, but mine. I’m ready to go, I’ve had enough.” Everyone in the room looked at her, and could tell she was being sincere and that she really wanted to leave. So one by one, doctors made a path to let Grace hobble out the door.

“Bye Dr. Bracton, I’m sorry I let you down. But I have to do this.”

At the very last moment, Dr. Bracton waved and a tear dripped down his face. Doctors aren’t supposed to have emotional attachments to there patients, but Dr. Bracton has grown close to Grace over the past year.

“Bye Grace,” he said before she walked out the door, knowing he will never see her again. He then turned around and summoned all of the staff members to get back to work, and walked to the waiting room and greeted a brand new patient.

Second Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

Just Listen by Sarah Dessen. Penguin Group, 2006 Genre: Realistic Fiction

This book is set in a small neighborhood. Annabel Greene is the main character, she is a model and a victim of rape, though nobody knows it. She lost her best friends, and she gets picked on by Sophie, one of her former best friends. It was Sophie's boyfriend who she thought Annabel was "cheating" with. Annabel's sister Whitney was also battling an eating disorder, which was hard on the family. Annabel's life was going downhill, that was, until she met Owen Armstrong. He is big and strong, and completely obsessed with music. Annabel's life changes after she becomes friends, and then even more than friends with Owen.

"Up until now, The Truth About Forever has always been my favorite Sarah Dessen book. Now that I've read Just Listen, however, I think there's a tie! The characters of this latest release are so honestly real, their dialogue perfectly placed, that you can't help but be pulled into the life and times of Annabel Greene." -Jennifer Wardrip.

This book is about Annabel Greene, and everything that a girl her age is going through. She was raped by her ex-best friend Sophie's boyfriend, but everyone else thinks she was cheating with him. Everyone resents her, except Owen Armstrong. He is strong and big, and he is utterly obsessed with music, and set on telling the truth. Annabel rarely tells the truth, but she tells nothing but the truth and her opinions of music with Owen, which leads him to thinking she is always honest. But Annabel and Owen's relationship grows anyway.

"There comes a time in every life when the world gets quiet and the only thing left is your own heart. So you'd better learn to know the sound of it. Otherwise you'll never understand what it's saying" (349).

This is the second book I've read by Sarah Dessen, and certainly not the last. I recommend her books to all teenage girls, because they will touch you, and make you keep reading. I didn't enjoy reading as much before reading her books. Now I am constantly reading, and I love it. Sarah Dessen has become one of my favorite authors, and I plan to read more of her books in the future. Her style of writing intrigues me and I feel moved by her books, because these things really could happen, and nobody can be prepared enough for the future.

1st Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen. Penguin Books, 2004. Genre: Romance

The Truth About Forever is about a teenage girl named Macy Queen. Her father died a little while ago of a heart attack, and everyone thinks of Macy as “the girl who’s dad died.” Everyone except her genius boyfriend Jason, who is going away to brain camp for the summer. Macy and Jason stay in touch via email, and one affectionate email sent by Macy makes Jason want to take a break from the relationship. So that’s when Macy starts to work for the Wish catering crew with Kristy, Bert, Monica, Delia (the owner), and handsome Wes. At the end of the book, Macy has to choose between her old boyfriend Jason, and the artistic Wes from Wish.

“Again, Dessen creates a fantastic group of characters, including the oddballs of which she is so fond. Her portrayal of teenage life is accurate, friendship and romance are well developed and keep the pages turning, and the small revengeful triumphs along the way are satisfying. Dessen has not forgotten how teenage life is, and she is a master at writing for youth.”
-VOYA

The Truth About Forever shows the life of teenager Macy Queen going through some tough experiences, and how she deals with them and changes throughout the book. Things like her fathers death and her boyfriend wanting to take a break, and what Macy does to find herself happy. This isn’t very similar to other books I’ve read. Though this is the first book I’ve read by Sarah Dessen, I don’t think it is similar to any books that I’ve read by any author.
Her writing style is unique, and the topics are different from other stories that I’ve read. It shows how teenagers deal with situations, and if you take something away from them that makes them happy, then they will act differently than how you want them to act or react. It makes you want to read more, and see how things unfold.

“The first steps were hard; it took me a second to catch my breath, but then I found my pace, and everything fell away, until there was nothing but me and what lay ahead, growing closer every second” (368).

I think that this book affected me in a good way. It taught me to always be positive, no matter what life throws at me. Something that I enjoyed from this story is all the events unfolding. They were already planned for at the beginning of the summer, then happened at the end of the summer. Some things just happened unexpectedly, but others right when they said they were. I really liked the message of this book, and I feel like I benefited from it immensely.

A Pandora for Christmas
Value is a thing that everyone wants, but not something that everyone thinks of as the same. Some think of objects being worth value, and others seeing the valuable moments. We all associate things differently, but how do most people think of value? I personally think of objects being worth money, but I still think of the valuable moments as relatively important. What if everyone thought that valuable meant things having a price, would those special moments be lost?

I spin the charms one by one until they are all facing the same way. Then I stare at it with a grin on my face. I got my Pandora Bracelet for Christmas about a year ago. Altogether, I have eight charms that I’ve gathered over time. My Pandora is very valuable and expensive. With each charm weighing in at an average of about forty dollars a piece, not to mention the cost of the bracelet (about thirty-five dollars), my Pandora is worth roughly about three-hundred sixty-five dollars. That is a hefty price, and definitely not a necessity in times like these.

I get up and look at the clock, then lay back down. Too early, I thought. I struggle to drift back into sleep, so I just wait. I try to pass the time by reading and watching television. A little while later, it was reasonably late enough to go downstairs. The moment I turn the corner into the living room, my face lights up. The fountain of presents under the tree was unfathomable, and I quickly walk into the room to get a better view of the gifts. I’m the first one up, so I rush over to my overflowing stocking on the floor. I take out and examine every single object, then carefully stack them up in a neat pile on the floor. By the time I’m through with that, everyone is awake with anxious expressions on there faces. I cannot wait to live my soon-remembered memories.

I expected to get my Pandora bracelet because I went with my mom to get my wrist measured for it. I was also present when she picked out my first charm. It was a sterling silver Christmas tree with a gold star on top. I admired the star, knowing how pricey it could be if it had gold on it. It was worth sixty dollars, and it was not only my first, but also my most expensive charm by far.
Other charms of mine are the pink flower, the angel, and a glass charm. Since there are so many, I’m only going to describe the one that I most recently bought. So the glass charm is the my newest charm, and it is definitely the least expensive charm. I got it at the flea market for a mere three dollars. It’s obviously not a brand name, otherwise it would be much more expensive. But it is very special to me anyways. It is aqua with lime green stripes, and it’s a great addition to my bracelet.

Once my parents have their coffee and everyone is finished checking out their stockings, it’s time for the best part: PRESENTS!! My sisters Alyssa and Lyndsey and I each grab a present. We open them one at a time, and show our new possessions to everyone. My dad goes around with a trash bag and picks up all the wrapping paper as we start to open the next round of gifts. Then the process goes on until all gifts are open. Once everything is opened, we all put our opened gifts in neat piles next to the other pile of presents that were in our stockings.

The next group of charms are the dolphin, the snowman, the Gingerbread man, and the charm with lots of hearts. Since there are so many charms to explain, I will only describe two of the four. The dolphin was a gift on my birthday from my grandmother. I also expected to receive this for my birthday because she was present when my mom and I got my bracelet. She told me to pick out a charm, and she would put it away for my birthday. I was thrilled! So I picked out the dolphin, and looked forward to when my birthday would roll along.
The snowman was given to me by my old neighbors, whom I’m still very close too, Bill, Kim, and Billy. I didn’t choose the charm, but I still knew that they were getting me one. I was ecstatic when I saw that a little silver snowman was in my palm. And whenever I see the charm, I think of my old house and neighbors, so I will always remember them.

As an ongoing tradition at my house around Christmas time, we always eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast. I really enjoy this part because I can pass on the tradition, and always remember Christmas with my family. I remember the smell, and the taste, and those are just things that I refuse to forget.
As the cinnamon rolls are baking in the oven, my sisters and I retire to our rooms with our gifts. We find a place for everything to go, and are just so relieved that Christmas was finally here. As the timer goes off, indicating that the cinnamon rolls are ready, everyone gathers around and eats them happily, thinking that this is the best Christmas ever.

I will never forget those precious Christmas moments or my costly Pandora Bracelet. The Christmas mornings are priceless, and full of memories. But the bracelet is beautiful and lavish. They are both very different, but they also can have multiple similarities. They are both valuable to me, and are a part of my life. How can one truly decide if a moment is more important than an item? These moments that we treasure cannot be bought no matter how much money we have. We can buy expensive objects, but not prized moments. As you sit to ponder the importance of each materialistic item or valuable moment in your life, you are able to decipher between what has value and what doesn’t.

Heading to Harlem

The Contender- Alfred

Briar Rose- Rebecca

Setting- An early morning in the park that Alfred usually jogs at in Harlem,

Massachusetts.

It was a usual morning at the park in Harlem, Massachusetts for boxer Alfred Brooks. He was doing his morning jog, passing by officers and other joggers, too. He was starting to get restless, so he stopped to sit down on a bench next to a young, red-headed woman. He smiled at her and then took a few sips out of his water bottle. He was about to get up when he heard the woman start to cry.
“Are you alright, ma’am?” asked Alfred.
“It’s just… Oh never mind. You don’t want to hear about my problems, go ahead and just get back to your run. I’m fine,” she said. Alfred could instantly tell that she wasn’t fine when she started to cry even harder.
“No, I can tell that you aren’t fine, and I can listen. I’m Alfred.”
“Oh, well that’s very thoughtful, Alfred. And I’m Rebecca. But I don’t know how I feel about blabbing out my problems to some total stranger. No offense.” But Alfred wasn’t buying it. He could tell that she needed to talk to someone sooner or later. Why not him?
“I understand, Rebecca, but-“
“You can call me Becca.”
“Okay, Becca. I can see that you don’t trust me, but please, I really don’t want to just walk away with you feeling this upset. You don’t have to tell me anything that you’re going to regret later,” said Alfred.
“Okay fine. Well, you see, I live in Holyoke. And I came here to make an attempt to find out who my Gemma really was,” explained Becca. “My family didn’t know much about her, even her name we weren’t sure of. And she recently passed away. But before she did, she said something to me about the story Briar Rose, you know, Sleeping Beauty. We always used to listen to it as kids, my sisters and I. I have it memorized for crying out loud! So she told me that she was the Princess, and she wanted me to find the castle and the Prince and the Maker of the Spells. She made me promise. She even made me swear on her grave. I don’t know if she was going crazy, or if she had high blood sugar or something, and I just, I don’t know what to do! I have been at this for a month now, and I have nothing! All I have is this wooden box. But I have gone through the contents over and over and I still have found nothing!” Becca started sobbing loudly again. Alfred made an attempt to calm her down by patting her hands that were folded neatly in her lap.
“It’s alright, Becca. Don’t cry, its okay,” Soothed Alfred.
“No, it’s not alright! I promised Gemma! I can’t let her down!”
“Well, then don’t. Don’t let her down. You can still do this Becca, but it’s not going to be easy. I can tell already that you’re about to give up. But I have been through something like this before. I still am going through it. You see, I’m in training to be a boxer. I am sacrificing lots of my time, and I’m probably not even going to be good. So I am training to be a contender, the guy coming up. And I am working SO hard, just to be a contender. You should too.”
“I should be a contender?” questioned Becca, now tear-free.
“Yeah. You are going to want to quit everyday because of how much work it is to reach that goal. So you are going through that phase now, I can tell. But keep working, and you can reach that goal. Just remember what you’re doing and why you’re doing it.” Alfred was obviously very proud of his pep talk, probably because it was very similar to the one that Mr. Donatelli gave to him that night he went to the gym for the first time.
“You’re absolutely right. And I’m not going to give up. I can assure you that I won’t.”
“Good. Oh, and I hope you find what you’re looking for Becca. It was nice meeting you, but I have to get back to my jog,” Alfred said as he was getting up from the bench.
“Oh, and Alfred, one more thing,” called Becca.
“Yeah?” She got up off the bench and hugged him.
“Thanks.” Alfred’s simple reply was a smile, then he turned around and continued his jog through the park.