Courage

Courage is like running a race
Your heart is beating fast
Adrenaline pumping through your veins

You tie your shoes for the fifteenth time
And tuck your penny into your shorts one last time
The line moves more and more
Soon it is going to be your turn

Why are you even doing this?
They said you couldn't do it
You are am too slow
You are going to mess up

Your  name is called

You set my feet on the blocks
You can do this...
You can do this!

Ready...Set... GO!

BANG!

You drive your feet into the ground
Running as fast as your legs can take you
Bravery cheering you on from the sidelines
Fear creeping up behind you
But you do not let her get ahead
Not today

You give all your power
Leaving fear in the dust
Your legs start to give out
You keep on pushing until you feel the ribbon
You made it even when they told you you wouldn't
You made it...

Poem

It makes us tick

It's a different relationship for all

Easy or hard

We all reach that moment in our lives 

We struggle more than ever

Grades, school, hunger, surviving

We try to fight the struggle

But it always comes back

Reader Response

In I Am Messanger, one of Ed's missions is to go to a old woman's house. At first he was asking himself why? What could be wrong with this old lady? She has the same routine every single day. She lives by herself and no one has come to her house. He couldn't put a finger on it. He went to her and met her. She called him Jimmy and started crying. Jimmy was her husband that didn't come back from war, but he couldn't let her know that.  He didnt want to break the poor ladies heart. She thinks he's Jimmy. This sweet old lady needed nothing but love and nurture. So Ed took care of her. He read to her like her husband used to. He was lonely and so was Milla. They both filled in the empty holes in each others hearts.

For Ed this was the first time someone genuinely cared for him. His mother does nothing but yell and cuss him out. He barely even sees his brother and sister and his father, his father is dead. He has no one. But he has friends, I guess. All they really do is insult each other half of the time. Well that Marv. Then there's Aubrey. His Love. He wants to be with Aubrey more than life itself, but she will never like him in that way. She wants to mess around and all Ed wants to do is love her unconditionally. It hurts like it would hurt anyone seeing the love of your life with someone else. Its burned holes in his heart. Milla fills in that hole and sooths some of the pain. She makes him happy and he makes her happy.

The fact that Ed goes out of his way for this old lady, is the cutest thing I have ever seen. He goes along with the Jimmy thing the whole for the whole entire time. He even eats dinner with her and they reminisce about the past, he even proceeds to tuck her in one night. It just makes me like his character a lot more. It literally made my heart melt and I almost started crying (even if i am a soulless person). He cares so much about her. At the beginning I thought that he was incapable of any feelings and was kind of emotionless but I was so wrong. He feels a lot and he says them in the book. He clearly tells you what's going on and why.

I feel so bad for Milla. She had been waiting for her husband years and years on end, which is probably why she thinks Ed is Jimmy. She may have when crazy one of the years waiting or may have some kind of mental disorder like alzheimer's. It happens with old age. All she remembers is Jimmy, the one true love of her life. Ed has now taken that place.

Charles Darnay

Charles is the guy who’s got it all. Born a French nobleman. He leaves his land and his family in the dust and begins his life over as Charles Dranay. Darnay is hardworking. Dickens writes, "Miss Manette, I am a man of business. I have a business charge to acquit myself of. In your reception of it, don’t heed me any more than if I was a speaking machine-truly, I am not much else. I will, with your leave, relate to you, miss, the story of one of our customers." (Dickens 36). I chose a hammer to symbolize Charles Darnay's hard work. His life kind of revolves around work but he has a soft spot for Lucie and only Lucie. He tells Lucie that he is taking care of her because it's strictly business but he has grown to love her. Besides her, he focuses on work and nothing else. Next I chose money to symbolize Darnay's care for other people.  He doesn't care for the money unlike his family, he wants to give it to the poor. He has a kind heart. For example Dickens says, "'this property and France are lost to me, ' said the nephew sadly; 'I renounce them'" (Dickens 217). This quote indirectly characterizes Charles Darnay, since it describes one of his actions. Darnay wantes to give up his French name and any relation with his French family because he believes that the family has done wrong and wants nothing to do with it. This shows that Charles is a caring and responsible gentleman who does not only care for money and power, so I put a stack of dollars in his hand. He can do a lot with that money but he chose to give it to the poor. The well being of the people is more important to him, and he does not want to be apart of a family that has caused them so much harm. "I am only looking to sharing your fortunes, sharing your life and home, and being faithful to you to the death" (Dickens 235). This quote shows that Charles Darnay is a man who respects boundaries and does not want to get into others person space. He is saying that he does not want to separate and break up Dr. Manette and Lucie's. This characterizes him as trustworthy, as well, when he says that he will be faithful until his death. His true loyalty, dedication, and passion to achieve what he wants is shown here.

Light and Dark

Charles Dickens uses light and dark to illustrate hope for Lucie and Dr. Manette's relationship. To illustrate Dickens writes, "...on her fair young face, that looked as though she passed like a moving light" (Dickens 32). Lucie is the light to her father's world. Dickens shows that Lucie is going to shed light on Dr. Manette and help him with his depression. He didn't even know that he had a child, let alone that child living to an adult and finding him one day. Another example is when Dickens states, "'I want.' said Defarge: to let in a little more light here. You can bear a little more?" (Dickens 30). This conversation is between Defarge and Dr. Manette is when Lucie walk in. Lucie was the light being brought into the room. Lucie is going to bring good/light into his life. He has been locked up in a prison for over 18 years, so anything good that will come his way he will take. Later, when they hug, "his cold white head mingled with her radiant hair, which warmed and lighted it as though it were the light of Freedom shining on him" (Dickens 34). The warmth and love of his daughter are strong enough to bring Doctor Manette back from the cold, horrible place his mind has gone to during his years in prison. His daughter is his chance to bring back his old self that has seemed to vanish. Ultimately, Charles Dickens shows hope when Dr. Manette and Lucie meet by using light and dark.

The Wine-shop

In the book A Tale of Two Cities, Charles dickens foreshadows the French Revolution. He says, "it had stain many hands, too, and faces, and many naked feet, and many wooden shoes" (Dickens 21). When Charles Dickens speaks of the stains he's symbolizing the blood that was shed in the next few years coming. Dickens emphasizes the bloodshed even more when he writes,"...scrawled upon a wall with his fingers dipped in muddy wineless—BLOOD" (Dickens 21). Also he hints how hunger can change a person into an animal. He writes,"some men kneel down, made scoops of their two hands jointed...dipped in the puddles with little mugs... Or even with handkerchiefs from woman's heads… Started here and there, to cut off a little stream of wine that started away in new directions..." (Dickens 21). These people are literally on their knees trying to get this wine. They are doing anything for that wine. The monarchies have all the food they could ever want but then there's these kind of people, the poor. They are feeding their children wine, their young children. The monachary is doing nothing. Dickens foreshadows the bloodshed and the hunger that will soon be coming with the war. 

Importance of Family

Family is important to all of us. It's what keeps us, well us and the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn  by Betty Smith and Stone Soup by Barbara Kingsolver illustrate it very well. The function of family is to keep you sane. To hold you up when there is no one there and help you through life decisions. They are the ones that put you first and keep you on your feet. My family is my backbone, I don't know what I would do if they weren't here.

In Stone Soup, Barbara Kingsolver talks about her idea of having a perfect family, "I started out like any child, intent on being the Family of Dolls" (Kingsolver 10). My family isn't perfect but I love them unconditionally. It doesn't matter how broken the family is, there will always be a strong bond. There is no such thing as a perfect family because no one is perfect. As we get older we start to realize this. When we are younger we always have this image of living in a nice house with your flawless family but its not even close to the truth. Our families fight all the time, whether you like to admit it or not. We sometimes see our parents fight as Barbara Kingsolver says, "every happily married couple I know has loads of irreconcilable differences" (Kingsolver 12). Yeah we have arguments but even at the worst times we know that they love each other. It's okay and healthy to have your own opinion on something.

Your family will always accept who you are and support you. It doesn't matter if your gay, bisexual, divorced, or your 12th marriage, they will never leave your side. If they accept you, you also have to accept them for who they are. In A Tree Grows in Brooklyn it says, "“All of us are what we have to be and everyone lives the kid of life it’s in him to live. You’ve got a good man, Katie.”,“But he drinks.”, “And he always will until he dies. There it is. He drinks. You must take that along with the rest.”" (Smith 102). Sissy tries to explain to Katie that she needs to accept the way Johnny is because that is just Johnny Nolan. Yeah so what, Johnny drinks? You cant change him for yourself. Also in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Francie says, "he bandaged the arm. The cloth smelled of Johnny, warm and cigarish. But it was a comforting thing to the child. It smelled of protection and love.” (Smith 149). Johnny may not be perfect, but he loves Francie, and that is what truly matters most to her. Francie looks besides the drinking problem and looks at the real Johnny. The one who cares for her and calls her Prima Donna. If you truly love and care for someone, then you can look besides their flaws and mistakes and see the real them and love that.

As I said before, family is what keeps you grounded and makes you feel safe and sound. Family will always be around when the ones that you thought would always be there aren't. Family is loving someone without doubt and with your entire heart. My family is what makes me, me.