My Secret

May 16th, 2014
To my Dearest Mother,

   It pains me to say that I am struggling with many internal conflicts and I have been continuously going through this struggle for the past few weeks. I have done something terrible to your poor daughter, my poor sister, Jazmire. I am stuck and I do not know what to do in this situation. It all started one morning after she and I left home and went to the store. While we were at the store she had obtained something that was near and dear to her heart. She had cherished this little treasure for the next few days that followed our shopping, until my  horrible misdeed happened. This treasure was perfect, shiny coated, brown, soft, and tiny. We were both oddly found of it and enjoyed playing numerous games with it, and then one evening when I saw her playing with it I got very jealous. I got jealous because although it was hers, I felt I deserved it more than she did. It pains me to explain the events that follow but I will try, and I hope you do not judge me as harshly as I am myself. You see, after Jaz finished playing with her beautiful item and she got ready to lie down with it, I hurriedly snuck into her room while she was in the bathroom and I hid under her bed until she and our beloved treasure came back to go to sleep. Once they were both safe and sound on her bed, asleep, I quickly got up and snatched it from next to her. The next morning, Little Brown could not be found and I made sure I hid him well. It has been three weeks since that horrible jealousy of mine caused me to take away my sister's happiness, and she is still searching for our beloved treasure. I do not know what to do because I want to return our treasure to her to make her happy but I can not do so. You see mom, I have gotten rid of our prized possession. The next day after I stole it, I went back to the store and I spent our little, round Abraham Lincoln penny! I admit that telling you of my secret makes me feel less burdened, but I still do not know what to do. Please write me back as soon as you can bear, my fair mother.

Sincerely, Mariyah Judson

Rejection

A situation where a person may feel they are being repeatedly rejected by others is if every time they try to talk or tell a joke to someone they immediately get shut down, and the people they are talking to act as if they do not know what they are talking about. This can cause a person to feel rejected because if they observe that the individuals are allowing other people to speak and just not them, then they will begin to feel as if they are not as important. The other people's animosity towards them will begin to make them feel unwanted and rejected. The emotional response that the rejected individual might have is complete withdrawal and maybe even depression if things get out of hand. If that person continuously feels rejected then they may begin to feel as if they have no purpose and they can end up thinking irrationally. By the individuals shutting down everything the person says, they will make him/her speak less and feel like they are not cared for by the individuals they care about.

Elements

Of the three elements, atmosphere, action, and supernatural, I think that atmosphere is the most effective element in gothic literature. I believe that atmosphere is the most effective element because the atmosphere of a certain scene or novel is what sets the tone of the story and it controls what emotions the reader may feel while reading. In gothic literature, the authors may want the reader to feel suspense and terror and the easiest and most effective way to accomplish this is by giving the tone and the setting, or atmosphere, that eerie feeling. For example, in the second volume and second chapter of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the monster approaches Victor and asks him to listen to his story. The words and actions are not what makes the readers feel suspense as they are reading, it is the atmosphere of the dark, foggy, secluded mountain that gives the readers that eerie feeling and it makes them want to continue reading to find out what will happen next. Another example from Frankenstein where the atmosphere is the most effective element is when Victor brings the monster to life. The actions and supernatural events in that scene may give a vague feeling of suspense, however it is the atmosphere and the setting that gives the readers the absolute feelings of excitement and anticipation as Shelley describes the dark, dreary night. These are the reasons why I believe that atmosphere is the most effective element in gothic literature.

Frankenstein

      Mary Shelley's opening to Frankenstien had contained four letters written by Robert Walton to his sister, Margaret Sauville. In his letters to his sister, Robert Walton had been going on a voyage to the Arctic Circle to find magnetism, and he was informing his sister about how along his journey he encountered a man on the ice. He then begins to describe the man and his interests in him. As the story progresses he tells about how the stranger is going to tell him about his journey through life, which Mary Shelley then begins to write about in Chapter one. Mary Shelley had used the letters as a prologue to introduce the stranger and she then went on to tell the story from his perspective throughout the Chapters, as if the stranger were retelling it to Walton. If I had to write a ghost story I would begin it by writing an excerpt from one of the scenes that will be encountered later on in the story. I would then end the excerpt and by doing this, I would have gave the readers a sneak peak as to what will happen in the story which would make them want to continue reading. This would create a mysterious feeling and it would make the story more interesting.

                   

Trust: Superhero Edition

     If I were a superhero I would only let a select  few, trustworthy people know of my identity. I would only tell my closest family members because I know they would not tell my secret to anyone and they would not try to use it against me. I probably would not tell anyone else because they could try to hold it against me as blackmail or certain people would all of a sudden try to become my "best friend" and get close to me. I might tell another individual outside of my family if they were completely trustworthy and if there was not a single doubt in my mind that they were real and true. Other people outside of my family would have to prove that they are worthy of knowing because in life you can not just trust anyone since many people can turn against you and just give your secrets away. When it comes to family, they would never tell your secrets because even if there is some type of argument, they would always have your back at the end of the day. As they say, " Blood runs deeper than water."

Invisibility!

If I could choose to have the power to fly or to be invisible, I would be invisible. I would choose to be invisible because if I were invisible I could get away with many things. For example, I could rob many different places and not get caught, so I could have anything I want. Another thing I could do is sneak into someone's house and "haunt" them as revenge, and I would be able to get away with it. That would be a riot! Also, if I were invisible I could get in and out of places without being seen, which means that I can go to places without having to pay and I can get away with breaking rules and curfews. Lastly, if I were invisible I could become a super hero and defeat criminals without any trouble since they would not be able to see me. These are the reasons why I would choose to be invisible if I could have a "super power".

Advice for the OGTs

One bit of advice I would give to the next class about the OGTs is to be completely prepared for anything that might be thrown their way and to believe in themselves because the only way to truly succeed is to believe that they have the power and knowledge to do so. Also, they should remain calm when taking the test because if they are stressing while taking it then they will not be able to perform as efficiently as they will like since they will not be able to concentrate completely. I really hope that next years class takes this advice seriously because although they seem like petty points, they are vital in the process of completing and passing the OGT. I will not be able to personally speak to ALL of next years class taking the OGTs, but I can wish them the best of luck and tell them that they really need to take this year seriously and fully grasp every concept they are taught so they themselves are as prepared as possible.

Desperate Measures

   A time when someone I know had been stuck in an unfixable situation and had to try desperate measures was when my mom's friend had been on a plane and she had to give birth. She has been going on a trip to Costa Rica with her husband and she did not expect to give birth for another month, so imagine her shock when her water broke while more than a thousand feet in the air! When it happened they still had four more hours to go on the plan and she could not stop the baby from coming. She had dilated quickly and her husband knew they could not hold off, so everyone on the plane, besides the pilots of course, helped her push her baby boy out. Once they landed her husband and her got a cab and drove as fast as they could to the nearest hospital. They would have stayed and enjoyed their vacation but they could not because they did not have the things they needed for the baby. Also, they had to take the baby home to meet the family, so as soon as it was safe for their family to fly, they got on the earliest flight home to introduce the new addition of their family to everyone. When I heard this story I could not contain my shock, or my laughter, it was just so unbelievable!

Trust Me!

A time in my life when I had to convince someone of something was when I had to convince my mom to let me get my cat. In my family, everyone prefers dogs due to the fact that we all had grown up around dogs and we are used to them. All of us had believed that cats were sneaky and evil little animals but then my friend, Rachel, had told me that they are not like that at all. Once she told me that, I had decided that I should give cats a chance before I judge them unfairly. In September of this year, I had heard that my mom's friend did not want his cat anymore and he was going to kick it out into the street. I did not want that poor animal to be left in the street as it was getting colder outside, so I asked my mom if we could take her in. She had been extremely skeptical at first, but after a lot of persuasion she finally agreed and her friend brought her over. At first I had been afraid to hold her because I was so used to dogs that I did not know what to do, but eventually I warmed up to her and now we are close. I named her Riley because I have always thought that name was cute, and although she can be a pest at times, I love her and she is extremely funny to watch. The really ironic part is that now my mom is close to her too and she sleeps with her every night. That is why I always say that people should always keep an open mind and try things before they judge them.

My Tenth Grade Year: Teaser

     I have had a few struggles thus far in my sophomore year of high school. The two main struggles that I have faced include my problems with procrastination and seeking help when I need it. Ever since I was younger in elementary school I have had a horrible procrastination problem and I would wait until the last minute to do my assignments, which led to my school work not being completed as efficiently as I would have liked. When it comes to my problem with seeking help from adults, I had either been unsure as to how to obtain it or I had been to afraid to speak up and ask. These are two struggles I have been trying to overcome so far in my tenth grade year.

OGT Test

The OGT test I feel the most nervous about is the Science OGT. I am most nervous for the Science OGT because I feel that science is the subject I have always had the most trouble absorbing and remembering the information. I am going to change my feelings by preparing myself the best I can in the time allotted to me. I plan to prepare myself by studying all of my notes I have taken over the past two years, going over the packet my science teacher, Mr. Jaworski, has given us, and going on OGT websites to take practice tests. This will help me in two ways. One way this can help me is by helping remember all of the information I have learned in the past and most likely help me not forget the information when I do take the test. The other way in which this can help me is by giving me an idea on how the test will be and what I should focus on while I study. These are the things I am going to do to help me change my feelings about the Science OGT.