- The End -

The murderer with wine and wassal

Shakes off his downy sleep,

And with an unlineal hand

Gives swift recompense to the rebel’s whore.

Then, in doubtful joy, cried, “God bless us!”

-----

Treason committed by the porter in heaven,

Be the root of the Great Doom.

God, upon eating the insane root of death,

Becomes the devil.

The multiplying villainies of heaven,

Say, “Death shall shine on all with valour!”

------

As stars overcharged with black and deep desires

Of treachery and screams of darkness,

Fire the cannon of death…..

The murderer hath been killed!

Monologue - Mr.Kiaga

Young Nwoye, I am so proud of you and ecstatic that you have decided to abandon your ridiculous Igbo beliefs and decided to convert to Christianity. You will not regret this choice because God will now look after your well-being and protect you from harm. As the leader of the Christian church here in Mbanto, I will personally guide you to your destiny and to the light of salvation. You will be reborn with a new life, as a proper Christian, ready and willing to support Christianity to the end of time. Like yourself, I used to believe in the lies taught to us by our elders; but no, not anymore, not after I have seen the truth! I no longer believe in evil baby twins, or the lies of the Oracle, no! I am now a proud Christian! With endless support and belief in my religion. Throughout my years, I have obtained a vast knowledge of truths and stories about the creation of the world. I would like to share some with you sometime. But not now. Anyways, we have only established our Christian church here in Mbanto for only a short while. However, God has already taken notice and protects us. Why, just the other day, my converts informed me of an impending attack from your people, but none came. Why? Well, because God thwarted their violent attempt at tearing down the very walls of this church, saving me and the many other men, women and children I have converted over to righteousness. And soon you will become one of them, one of us. As for the other Igbos, let us hope they come to their senses quickly, or they will end up burning in hell. Now come, let us commence your journey on becoming a proud Christian!

To Be or Not To Be..... A Hero

My opinion of Okonkwo before spring break was that he was and was not a hero. In my essay, I talked about how Okonkwo is a hero to the Igbo people according to their culture. However, in modern times and with different views, Okonkwo is not a hero. After finishing the novel, my opinions have changed.

 I now think that Okonkwo is a hero to the Igbo people as well as in modern times. Since I have only read the beginning of the book when I wrote the essay, I thought he was a violent and angry person who mistreated his family. Although that still stands true, Okonkwo is a hero because he fought hard to protect his people and his culture from falling apart. When the missionaries came and challenged the Igbo culture and beliefs, Okonkwo tried his very best to prevent the Christian church and Europeans from taking over. However, despite Okonkwo’s best efforts and realizing the hopelessness of the situation, he commits suicide. Okonkwo is considered to be a hero by his people and by modern culture. To me, I also see a hero, fighting for what he believes in to the very end.  

Liesel's Mini Wars

There are two currently two conflicts the main character in the novel The Book Thief , Liesel Meminger, must deal with: man vs self, and man vs society.

Liesel Meminger’s conflicts with herself include being haunted by nightmares of her baby brother dead on the train, and the worry and thought of being disowned by her mother because of financial trouble. Liesel’s conflict with herself is helped by her foster father, Hans Hubermann. Whenever Liesel bolts upright from her nightmare of her dead baby brother, Hans Hubermann is always there to hold her hand and to comfort her. Liesel’s foster mother, Rosa Hubermann, also helps Liesel cope with her conflict of missing her mother by distracting her by throwing orders and yelling at Liesel.

Liesel Meminger’s other conflict of her vs society includes not being accepted at school. As a young girl growing up in a poor family, Liesel had no opportunity for a proper education. Therefore, after moving into her new city and foster home, Liesel now goes to school. Not knowing how to read or write, Liesel is forced to learn with children much younger than she. Eventually, Liesel was bumped up to her appropriate grade due to obnoxious behaviour. During class, the teacher called on all the children to read a short paragraph in front of the class but purposefully excludes Liesel. Distraught, Liesel picks up a book and attempts to read in front of the class. Failing miserably, she is then teased and picked upon by her classmates. At recess, after much bullying, Liesel snaps and beats up a boy. Liesel copes with this conflict by having her foster father read and teach her words and letters from books.

Liesel’s conflict with society reminds me of a video which has recently gone viral and been on the news. The video shows a crowd of scrawny young kids bulling a bigger kid. Apparently, the bigger kid has been bullied all his life. In the video, after a couple punches, the big kid snaps and attacks the bully. This is like what happened to Liesel when she was being constantly teased by her classmates.

Link to video àhttp://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhmc7v_bully-gets-owned_fun

*caution, video is graphic*

Seeing Through The Layers

Post colonialism: views or attitudes towards a specific race.

Back when the Europeans were fighting to expand their empires, many explorers landed in Africa to claim as much land as possible. While claiming land for the home country, many explorers met local inhabitants. The explorers traded and interacted with the Africans and told stories about them back in Europe. The explorers told stories that depicted the Africans poorly and caused the Europeans to have a negative image on them. Afterwards, Europeans then began to view everything European as good (e.g. being white) and everything African as bad (e.g. being black).

A recent example of post colonialism would be here -->http://www.cbsatlanta.com/news/27393408/detail.html

In that article, a bar owner publically put up a racist message on his sign announcing how "hispanics are criminals". The bar owner is saying that all hispanics are criminals because they sneak into the United States illegally. This is racist because it is a stereotype and it does not apply to all hispanics living in the US.

Edible Puffballs!

Many people believe marshmallows are the most scrumptious treats in the world because a lot of people prefer marshmallows over most treats. Consider that there is a plate of marshmallows and a plate of maggots. Almost everybody would choose the plate of marshmallows; therefore marshmallows are the best. On the professional view, the biggest eater of sweets strongly agrees that marshmallows are indeed the tastiest treats in the world. Some groups are trying to stop the production of marshmallows because they are too chewy. Stopping the production of marshmallows is just absurd as the chewiness of the snack is enjoyed worldwide. Marshmallows are also a key component in a smore. If there are no marshmallows, then there are no smores. If there are no smores, then there are no campfire snacks. If there are no campfire snacks then camping trips will almost cease to exist. Marshmallows don't create themselves, there are employees which work hard and earn a living making marshmallows. If the production of marshmallow ends, then the employees making the marshmallows will no longer have a job. Then, the ex-employees will have no income and will struggle to have food to eat. Marshmallows are like people, if you eat them, they die.

Be Strong Kiddo

 The protagonist of my novel, “The Book Thief” is a young girl named Liesel Meminger. Liesel “[is] skinny and pale”, and “had sores on [her] lips” (Page 24). Her impoverished family of three, consisting of Liesel, her mother, and her baby brother live in Germany during the World Wars. The mother, not having enough money to support her children, takes them away to live in a foster home. To the utter horror of Liesel and her mother, the baby brother dies during the train ride. Grief stricken, Liesel steals a gravedigger’s book after burying her brother to have a memoir of him. She then arrives at her foster home where she tries to stay out of conflict with her short-tempered foster mother. At night, she has conflict with herself when nightmares of her dead baby brother haunt her. The only joy and motivation in Liesel’s life lie within her caring foster father, and the gravedigger’s book. 

I Could Never Survive Without You

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

     The sound of soft snoring and chatter awoke me. My eyes blinked heavily around the unfamiliar surroundings. I rose from my bed of ice cold steel as I tried to recollect my thoughts. The aroma of freshly baked donuts attracted me to the open side of the room where bars hung and policemen were scattered throughout. I looked around the station and found my distraught parents talking to a police officer and signing paper work. I sat down and wondered to myself why I could not have stopped earlier. I already told myself many times to stop, but I decided to go against my feelings. As a troubled teenage boy, this was not the place to be. My regret-filled eyes slowly wandered as I recounted the events that lead me here.

     The blinding warmth of the sun on my face and the increasing annoyance of the 'beep' of my alarm clock caused me and my warm aching body to reluctantly leave the cozy sanctuary of what I call my bed. Shifting slowly and steadily, I headed to the bathroom for my daily wake-up routine. After brushing my teeth with minty toothpaste as fresh as the winter chill, I bolted upright as I splashed clear, cold water on to my face. Feeling fresh and renewed, I headed downstairs to breakfast where a hearty, wholesome meal awaited. Birds chirped and the and news on the television filled the room while the sunlight, shining and shimmering, lead me to my food. Eating the scrumptious food and enjoying a perfect morning, my phone rang. I felt my banana grin fade into a frown as I stared at the vibrating phone. With hands trembling with hesitation, I slowly picked up the phone. I flipped open the cover and read the text message. I put down the phone and slowly backed away. I did not want to agree but I wanted to help my family pay off debts. I could help my family out for good but I ran the risk of getting caught. Tugging the sides of my head with indecision I finally decided on going.
 
     Pacing around the house with uneven steps and jittery motion, I waited for nightfall. As soon as the sky turned charcoal black, I headed out to the rendezvous point. Falling off my bike several times as controlling my motor actions became increasingly difficult, I reached the dreaded destination. Trembling, I cautiously tip-toed through the blackness of the night. Looking from side to side, I unwillingly searched for my "employer" through the thick growth of trees. He found me first. Putting his hand on my shoulder I jumped and turned quicker than a pouncing cheetah. He handed me the drugs that were to be delivered to some students at my school. I quickly shoved the bags into my backpack and ran off to my bike. Unfortunately this was not quick enough as twelve policemen rushed in from all corners, yelling and screaming orders. With utter disbelief and terrible disappointment within myself, I decided to run. I had to. My family already had enough problems. Breaking twigs and branches whipping my face, I ran harder than I ever believed I could. I felt the freezing wind blow me around in circles. My heart escalated to several hundred beats per minute. Suddenly, I felt excruciating pain. Confused, I felt tingles of electricity coursing through the blood of my veins. After a few seconds of screaming, I fell on to the dirt, twitching. I stared into the deep black sky as I heard the police surrounding me. I blacked out. 
 
     The bars of my cage suddenly opened with a frightening bang. My teary eyed parents came in to take me away. I stared at the floor as I was escorted out of the building and all the way home. What will I say to my parents? Do they hate me now? How much trouble am I in? The questions came flying into my head as I could not find an answer for any of them. At home, I stayed in my room, staring blankly into the mirror. I tried to find sympathy within myself, but to no avail. I knew that my ordeal was due to my own actions and I am solely responsible.In that moment, I made the life changing decision of always going with what I felt was right.