How Will it End?

I predict the future will not be all rainbows and sunshine for Bruno in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Bruno has made a friend, and that may cost him. There are many variables that can change his life. I think that it will take a turn for the worse.

            Bruno has a Polish friend that he enjoys visiting, named Shumel. Since Bruno lives in Germany and it is 1935, his country is enemies with Poland. I think that Bruno will be caught talking with Shumel, and Shumel will be killed. This may seem harsh, but that’s what it was like in Hitler’s rule. People were taken from their homes and made prisoners, just for being from a different country. This is the same in the book The Outsiders. Ponyboy is part of the greaser gang, who is rivaled by the soc gang. Ponyboy meets a soc girl who he soon becomes friends with. The socs mug and try to beat up Ponyboy, just for living on the other side of town and mingling with a soc. There is no doubt in my mind, that there will be severe consequences if Bruno is caught.

            Pavel is a very puzzling character. Pavel said that he was once a doctor; and this is very helpful because Pavel is extremely secretive about his life. Almost nobody knows about Pavel…. And that is what makes him such an important character. I think that Pavel is an Ex-Medic for the U.S. Army, and was now sent over to their enemies (The Germans) to be a spy. I think that one day Pavel will be discovered, and killed. This is almost the same in The Outsiders. Jonny has murdered a soc and must keep his secret, or he will be captured and sent to the electric chair for man-slaughter. So far, this doesn’t seem like a very happy book.

            There is no great way of predicting the future of the book, other than looking back at U.S. history. Many things have been kept from the reader. Whether it be important conversations, or answers to vital questions. It even cuts out the part where Pavel’s life is being explained. The few clues are just like our enemies. They are very secretive, and hard to predict. At the end of the day, (or the book) I see Bruno’s life getting worse.

Lose Yourself

Edited (Clean) Version of Lose Yourself By Eminem

Author’s Note: This piece explains the meaning of the song: Lose Yourself (edited) By Eminem

Look, if you had, one shot, or one opportunity                         
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it, or just let it slip?

Eminem always says his message or point of singing this song in the beginning of it. Right now he asks you if you have the preparation, and focus to achieve greatness in one opportunity. He tells you that in order for you to own  it, you must  lose all sense of the surrounding world in and literally lose yourself in this one moment……

Yo, His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgetting
What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out
He's chokin, how everybody's jokin now
The clock's run out, time's up, over bloah

Eminem talks about what it is like to “Choke” or forget your lyrics, and now he goes on to tell you how important it is that you lose yourself in the moment and focus, so you don’t miss your only chance at success.

Snap back to reality, Oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that easy
No, he won't have it , he knows his whole back city ropes
It don't matter, he's dope
He knows that, but he's broke
He's so stacked that he knows
When he goes back to his mobile home, that's when it's
Back to the lab again yo
This whole rhapsodyBetter go capture this moment and hope it don't pass him

Eminem now says that if you don’t capture the moment and fail, that you must not give up, and just start fighting again. He also strives AGAIN to drive the point that you can’t let the moment end.

[Chorus:]
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You own it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime,

He now strives yet AGAIN!!!! To tell you that this opportunity comes only once in a lifetime, and that you must lose yourself in the moment…….

Blind Leading

There can be good, and bad leaders. Some leaders strive for power, and some look after the welfare of their people. This can be a common theme in life, and also in the book: The Boy in The Striped Pajamas. In this book, there is a blind leader named Adolph Hitler.

Hitler strives for power, and glory to himself. This tears apart his country, and scars their past with war. He is destined to lose, purely because he is too selfish to care about the people working for him. This theme is the same in the book; The Hunger Games, President Snow rules for all power over his citizens of Panem. He is too focused on his control to see that there is an ever-growing rebel army plotting against him. Snow was unsuccessful because he killed off the people that he ruled. He forced them to kill each other to survive. Snow was soon out-numbered by his enemies.

            There is also a theme of good leaders in each of these books. Hitler’s enemy: America, has joined forces with others and looked after them, to assure a great alliance. These healthy nations fight as one to destroy these blind rulers. Again, this is the same with The Hunger Games. President Snow has scarred his people, and that causes them to rise up and follow a promising ruler: Katniss Everdeen. Katniss truly cares about the people of Panem. This causes them to follow her lead, and rise up against Snow. Katniss is powered by care and unity, which makes her the undeniable winner of the war.

            If you choose to become a leader - and want to be a good one - then you must love your purpose. A good leader would lay everything down on the line, if it would help their people. The reason that these bad leaders couldn’t succeed is that they cared most about themselves. Hitler used his own people as human shields, and Snow killed his people for power.  This teaches us that if you have selfishness in your life, that your goals will most likely not be reached.           i5 � n H�& (�& the side to hear it better. There was a wet sensation occurring by his left ear, and it was weird, because he could feel it. He swiped the affected area, and felt a kind of thick saliva. Steven was appalled, and looked up. The second his head moved, the beast lunged from the tree, and seized Steven’s neck. His life was now over. 

There's a Monster in the Woods

The deep growl made Steven shudder with an impenetrable fear. Maybe the rumors were correct, maybe there was a big brown beast lurking in the darkness of the woods. Maybe he was just hearing things, but he was sure that the cougar was there. He peered into the dark, but it was no use. The black of night covered him like a blanket of cement. Steven couldn’t see his hand inches from his face. He fumbled to find his phone and turned on the bright screen. What he saw would forever change him. It was Chance who stood there with, hackles up, lips curled, foam dripping from his mouth, growling at him.

“It’s okay boy.” Steven cooed, as the dog’s soul-piercing eyes stayed locked upon his. Suddenly, Steven detected movement behind Chance. He broke his gaze and connected with another…… it was a female dog, lying on the ground, with four puppies cradled against her. It turns out, that Chance was a father. The monster of the woods, was truly a mother. Steven slowly backed away from Chance, and made his way back home to tell his father.

The moment Steven turned to walk away, Chance leaped upon him and sunk his teeth in Steven’s shoulder.

“AHHHHHH!!!!!” Steven screeched as the huge hound shook him wildly. Suddenly, the dog disappeared, and so did the female with her pups. Steven found himself turned around in the darkness, which direction was home? Then he realized the paw prints in the dirt. These were WAY bigger than Chance’s. Chance must have fled the scene, and that meant that the cougar was the one who attacked him! Confused in the darkness, Steven didn’t know where to go, so he just ran. He ran, and ran, and ran. After a minute he started to slow from loss of blood. When he thought that his legs could take no more, he plopped to the ground in a mess of sweat and blood.

There was a growling coming from somewhere, but he couldn’t find it. He heard a slow drip, drip, drip, and leaned to the side to hear it better. There was a wet sensation occurring by his left ear, and it was weird, because he could feel it. He swiped the affected area, and felt a kind of thick saliva. Steven was appalled, and looked up. The second his head moved, the beast lunged from the tree, and seized Steven’s neck. His life was now over. 

Developing a Man

Author's Note: This is a character development piece on Wolf Brother with connections to Life of Pi.

In the adventure book Wolf Brother, set in 6000 B.C., the main character Torak develops into a man. The story begins with Torak as a teenage boy hunting with his father. He embarks on a journey of self discovery, facing seemingly insurmountable obstacles, to save himself and his world.

Torak begins his journey toward maturity when he is forced to make a kill on his own for the first time. This event makes Torak realize that he must depend upon himself alone.  In the novel Life of Pi, the title character is stranded in the ocean on a lifeboat. He must go against his nature and kill a fish or starve. Both characters are forced by circumstance to mature and accept life’s challenges or die.

Torak and Pi both continue on their journey of growth as they learn to work together with a partner toward a common goal (survival). For his part Torak is befriended by a wolf and Pi is stranded at sea with a tiger. Both Torak and Pi put aside their fear of these predators and build a bond that ensures their survival.

  Lastly, Torak and Pi learn one of the toughest lessons of all. They learn that love means the sacrifice of putting the needs of a loved one ahead of your own. Both Torak and Pi made a journey with their companions from a place of fear and mistrust to one of cooperation and true friendship. It can be said that the real test of friendship and love is the willingness to give your life for your friend. Torak defends his wolf friend against the demon bear that killed Torak’s father. Pi risks starvation by sharing his food with the tiger while they are lost at sea. In the end both Torak and Pi survive their ordeal, but realize that the wolf and the tiger belong wild, and with their own kind, if they are to be truly happy. They are heartbroken, but their journey to manhood has taught them that love means sacrifice, and they let their friends go.

Torak in Wolf Brother and Pi in Life of Pi both are thrust into battles for their very lives that force them to mature beyond their years. They learn the lessons of courage, self reliance, trust, cooperation, love and sacrifice. While neither Torak nor Pi had a choice in this journey, we do as we develop into men.

Patriot's Pen

Patriot’s Pen

By Jacob Sklenar

What if you were in charge of the future of a country that could change the world? Would you make the right decision to help it grow? The founding fathers of the U.S. certainly made the right decision. They fought battles, and gave everything they could within their beings, so that you could be sitting here today reading this essay. I know that I am eternally grateful for what they have done for our country. If I could write a letter to our founding fathers, and send it back in time, it would probably sound like this:   

Dear Founders of the United States,  

Thank you so much for your commitment to this beloved land! I’m very proud to say today, that you have been extremely successful in the creation of this country. The United States of America is literally the freest, and the most unique country in the entire world. U.S. citizens can say what they want, at any time, do what they want, almost anywhere, and express themselves in any way imaginable. I wouldn’t be here right now, writing about this glorious moment in U.S. history if you hadn’t worked so hard on developing this free country. Thank you so much for doing all that you have done for this country.

With love and pride, Jacob Sklenar

            When first asked “Are you proud of your country”, I think that most citizens - considering its history - would immediately say yes. I would too, but when you take time to think of all we’ve been through; wars, depressions, terrorism, ect…. You can really get a grasp of what makes this country, downright amazing.  

            I’m proud to say that I can give my own opinion on any given topic. I’m proud to say that I can be a Christian, and my friend can be Jewish. I’m proud to say that my friends and I can assemble at a tailgate to celebrate a sport that we love. I’m proud to say that my sister can spend her money in any ridiculous way she wants, without forceful objection, and at the end of the day….. I’m proud to say that I am an American citizen.

Pi's Changing Life

Authors Note: This is a cause and effect about Life of Pi.

       
         In Life of Pi,  there are some major conflicts in this book that cause huge effects on Pi, and his survival. One of them is when his family is sailing to Canada to move their zoo. The ship makes a huge lurching sound, and Pi springs awake. Pi feels as though some thing is wrong. This causes him to go investigate. He tries to tell his brother to go with him, but he won't. The effect of this entraps his brother when the ship begins to sink. Pi is literally thrown into survival, and this gives him no way to save his brother. Pi's survival story starts the same as Torak in Wolf Brother. They are both unprepared to survive, after the death of their only family members. So another cause is: Their only family members die, causing them to go into shock about the entire situation.
         Later in the story, Pi row, and rows, and rows, until he finds an island. This island is inhabited by an abundance of Meerkats. Pi soon discovers that these Meerkats don't know fear, and so they are easy food. The effect of this gives Pi food which makes him stronger. In another effect, he regains his abilities to run, and think straight.These are mere examples, but when you dig through your book, you are sure to find dozens of causes and effects.
         You see, cause and effects can be tricky. Some can be good, and some can be bad.Causes determine what will happen in your future through your actions. Effects are the results of your actions. Some people try to find the silver lining of effects. Pi was extremely good at this, and that ensured his survival.