Are You Gonna Sink or Swim?

                “This is your time. It’s up to you four. I have complete faith you can do it. Now you need to believe that. I know it’s a rough day, but this is your time to do work. You need to take your sadness, your anger, every emotion, and put it into this race. So all I can ask is…”

                This was the most important meet of our season. We were swimming our rivals, and we needed to win this meet in order to win league. Normally this would be just another meet with a little extra pressure. However, this year, this meet came the day after a school wide tragedy. There was a lot of stress, and it was hard to focus.

                When we got to the pool, there was an overall lackluster feeling. No one was ready, and I knew that wasn’t okay. A few of us tried to pump everyone up, and it started working a little. As we warmed up, we started realizing that this was a very important meet, and then we felt the intensity.

                The meet started and we were doing pretty well. Our coach was pleased, but he was also getting nervous. He placed us in events strategically based on our own statistics versus the other teams. Although we were winning at the half, we weren’t up as much as he wanted. The next event, we got a disqualification, and we were down.

                I was in the next event, and it was up to us. We were the 200 freestyle relay and we needed to win to get the points back. Relays are worth double points than individual races, and we knew we needed to produce results. We went into our huddle and our coach came over. He said a speech I will always remember. At the end, he only had one question: “are you gonna sink, or swim?”

                When he said this, it made me think so much in such a short amount of time. I thought about all of my stress and my problems and looked at it as extra weight. All that extra weight was going to sink. By my coach saying that, he helped me to realize that I need to leave my excess baggage at the door and focus on the task ahead. He started to walk away and no one said anything, so I said quickly, “Hey Scott, we’re gonna swim.”

                We all put our heads together and said, “Let’s swim.” We got in order, and there was a still silence in the pool area. The silence spoke to us and brought the intensity level up. When the buzzer went off, everyone went wild. As Maddie did her flip turn, I stepped on the block. This race was for my school. This race was for my coach. This race was for my team. This race was for anyone who cared.

                In the end, we came in first in the race and ended up winning the meet. Our fans, our team, and our coaches welcomed us with opened arms and a lot of cheering. The feeling we had walking over to them was exhilarating. It felt amazing to make such a contribution and help out my team mates. This reflects to my life because it makes me think that when the pressure is on and I’m at the bottom, all I need to do is swim to the top!

The Archer

1.) I chose this essay over my other two because it shows who I really am and also I get to talk about a unique interest of mine.

2.) This essay can relate to people that are interested on learning something new and, what I find to be, cool.

3.) My weakness in the essay could be my organization.

4.) A question I could ask is should I add more personal things or keep it like this?

                Independent. Adventurous. Philosopher. Free. Optimistic. Strong. Honest. Humorous.

                The world of the zodiac is a complex concept. There are houses, ruling planets, traits, and certain times the sun shines through each sign. I never knew about the significance of the zodiac until my freshman year of high school, and since then I have been infatuated with it.

                I have done the most research on my own zodiac sign, which is Sagittarius. Our “sunshine” comes November 22 - December 21. The sun symbolizes when your sign is relaxed and most natural. In the beginning of the month, we get rid of all of our problems to make sure nothing is holding us back. Once we get to the middle of our sun month, we are at our prime. We don’t stress and we stay away from anything that will affect us in a negative manner. At the end of our month, we want change. After such a successful, happy month, we start looking for a challenge that will test us.

                The symbol for the Sagittarius is the archer. The top of the archer is a man which symbolizes strength and the high intellect Sagittarius’s have. The archer has the bottom of a horse which is the freedom and adventure aspect. The archer as a whole is independent and that is the main characteristic of the Sagittarius. The personality traits are my favorite part of the zodiac. I feel that I embody every trait of the Sagittarius, and I can tell what signs other people are based on attitude.

                With the study of characteristics in each sign, I found my favorite personal trait. All Sagittarius are known for being optimistic when things go wrong. We live life thinking the glass is always half full and we never take anything for granted. My positive attitude has helped me get through many situations and it’s also nice to know that my friends count on me to cheer them up. My upbeat personality rubs off on other people and I love seeing people smile when I’m around.

                Many people don’t know anything about the zodiac world. There was a lot to learn and it was confusing at first, but once I learned what I know, there was no doubt that I had entered a whole new side of myself. None of my friends knew what I did and the world of the zodiac is something that has always been my own. I never go a day without looking at my horoscope and I am always learning new things.  My knowledge for my zodiac was the one push I needed to help me reach that independence and make me a true Sagittarius.

Bean Therapy

(The Kite Runner & The Bean Trees)

             As the sun began setting, Amir turned up the heater in his car while frantically twisting his head from left to right. All he had to find was house number 278 on Vega Lane. He had a mix of emotions, and all he knew is he was looking for a Taylor Greer. His main emotion was nerves because first, he was late for his appointment, and second, he didn’t know where to begin. As he thought, he pulled up to a small house that had a sign outside of it stating, “Bean Therapy.” When Amir parked, he saw a shadow moving around inside and he started to question whether or not to go through with the appointment. When he finally decided to go in, he stopped the car and began his journey up the steps to finally ask what he has wanted to know for so long.

            When Amir walked in, he looked around to get a feel for what this appointment would be like. The small waiting room was empty, and he got a sense of safety and trust. As soon as he sat down, the big wooden door opened and there he saw a woman standing there with a big smile on her face and she welcomed him with open arms.

“Hello,” she said, still grinning ear to ear, “welcome to Bean Therapy. My name is Taylor and I will be talking to you today. Come on in!”

Amir felt a little overwhelmed at this point because he thought that Taylor was almost too friendly. But he put aside his doubts and got out of his chair and made his way into Taylor’s office. When he got in there he looked around and she had many different pictures of many different people, places, and things. Although from the many pictures, there was one that really caught his eye; a picture of the cutest baby girl he has ever seen.

            “That is a lovely little girl.” Amir said while now picking up the picture frame to really get a look at it.

            “Thank you,” Taylor spoke as if she’s had this conversation a million times, “that’s my baby girl, Turtle. She’s only one year old.”

            “She looks so happy.” Amir said, and the more he studied the picture, the more his troubles were redisplayed in front of him and he began to remember why he was there in the first place.

            “She’s been through a lot in a year, but it wasn’t all fun and games.” Taylor began to explain, “I am not Turtle’s biological mother. I’m not even sure who is; a few months back she was handed to me through my car window and you could tell she had been abused both physically and sexually.”

            “Wow, that must have been rough,” Amir stated, but something in his voice seemed like he wasn’t overly concerned about Turtle and more about something else. Taylor could sense his distance from his statement, so she knew that it was time to begin Amir’s session.

            “So, Amir, why are you here?” Taylor questioned, just like she would any first comer.

            “I have been living my life for one reason and one reason only. I have a son, Sohrab, and my wife and I adopted him. When I was a young boy myself, I had a best friend named Hassan. We were together a lot, and my father seemed to think of Hassan as more of a son than he did me, and I always held that grudge. One day a few of us were kite running, and I let Hassan get the kite. When I went after him, I saw a group of boys around Hassan and well… Hassan’s pants were down. I let the whole thing happen because I was jealous of his relationship with my father and when he came back with the kite I acted as if I had no idea what happened.

            “I later moved to California, which is where I’m heading back to. I had to go back to Afghanistan and when I got there, I looked for Hassan and when I found him I found out he had a wife, Farzana, and a son, Sohrob, although sooner than I expected, things got bad again. Hassan and his wife were shot right in front of their son, and I could tell by looking at him, he had been through a lot of abuse, just like Turtle. I then adopted Sohrob to give him a better life and to grant Hassan’s last wish. My main question through all of this is… should I no longer feel so guilty for what I let happen to Hassan?”

            Taylor had listened to this whole situation, and when Amir asked his final question, she had trouble gathering her thoughts. She thought about her situation with Turtle and how although she never wanted to raise a child, she felt so much better after taking Turtle in and showing her a good life. Although she didn’t regret any part of it, she never had the guilt that Amir had felt in the beginning. She looked back on her memories with Turtle and she finally had something to say. “I know how it feels to give a child another chance at a good, normal life. Even though you have felt some guilt in the past about what had happened, the joy you have brought to Sohrob is something more amazing than any other feeling either of you could feel. I think you have overcome your childhood issues, and you can go on in peace.”

            With that statement, Amir felt as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He felt like he could go back to California and live a wonderful life with his wife and son. Amir thanked Taylor for her time and all of her guidance. As he left, Taylor hugged him and assured him softly, “this visit is one I will always remember, thank you for that.” As they let go of their embrace, they shared one final smile, and Amir soon drove off into the horizon with not a worry in the world.

Nicole's Interview

            When you’re growing up, you go through experiences that help you find yourself. Nicole Collette has been through enough to know she relies on herself and she’s independent which is why she considers herself more of a cat rather than a dog. Although she usually doesn’t need people to help her out, she plans to grow up with a career that allows her to help those in need. She is currently involved with SMAC and the Leo club and outside of that she participates in cross country. In ten years, Nicole hopes to be married, with one child, and a working woman.

            Nicole considers herself an average student when it comes to reading and writing. As a reader, she enjoys mystery novels and she isn’t as familiar with biographies and fiction. Her favorite author is Jodi Picoult because she likes her writing style. She also likes books with an inspiring message which is why her favorite book is Tuesdays with Morrie because it taught her about personal relationships. As a writer, Nicole finds it easiest to write introduction sentences and she finds it harder to write opinionative pieces and analysis of what she’s read. Nicole’s goal for this year is to learn how to write something more than a five paragraph essay and she wants to broaden her vocabulary.

            In her 17 years of life, Nicole has developed thoughts and opinions on people, places, and many other things. Nicole looks up to her brother’s girlfriend, Kelsey, because she can balance work and fun and she gives Nicole good advice. Nicole also looks up to singer and actress Miley Cyrus. Miley stars in Nicole’s favorite movie, is her favorite performer, and is one of the three people Nicole would want to meet before she dies. Nicole’s favorite color is orange, which is also the color of her favorite food, buffalo wings.

            Nicole is very energetic, adventurous, and a great friend. She knows how to balance her workload with her friends and she knows how to steer clear of drama. Someday she hopes to visit Greece, Italy, and Australia and she wants to be successful. She likes any kind of music with catchy lyrics and a good beat, just like any other teenager these days. Nicole also cares about her money and how she spends it. She works at McCray’s Farm in South Hadley so she makes money on a daily basis. Nicole spends a lot of her money on gas so if she could have any super power, it would be to fly because that would be a few extra dollars she could save on gas! Nicole’s the kind of girl who won’t change for just anyone; she is who she is and there is no changing that.