Happy Summer!

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart. ~Celia Thaxter
Go, hit the pool! Have a great summer! :)

(Last!) Online Journal Entry #28

And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. ~Sylvia Plath

Of everything we've done this year, I think the blogs have been my favorite thing to grade. I love to see what you think when you don't have to worry about saying it out loud in class. Oh, the freedom anonymity brings! Your online responses have allowed me to see your dreams, plans, values--your THOUGHTS--and it has been amazing. You all are a bunch of crazy-talented, creative, intelligent, and introspective people; and I hope you continue to write--for yourselves--for many years to come.

So, for one last time, I want you to tell me something you have enjoyed in this class this year. Something that stands out in your memory or an activity you enjoyed. [Of course, you have the option to say "nothing," but know that is the amount of points you will receive for it as well!]. I have enjoyed this year more than you know. Thank you for being the wonderful, insightful people you are--I know you will go far. Have an awesome summer and an Incredible Senior Year!!

The act of putting pen to paper encourages pause for thought, this in turn makes us think more deeply about life. ~Norbet Platt

Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart. ~William Wordsworth

And one last thought from the Transcendentalists:

How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live. ~Henry David Thoreau, Journal, 19 August 1851

Online Journal Entry #27

It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are. ~e.e. cummings

In our theme projects, we've been discussing the importance of memories. Right now, it seems you have your whole life ahead of you--plenty of time to become the person you want to be. But as Longfellow (of the Transcendentalists) said, "Art is long, and time is fleeting;" the reality is you never know what the future may bring. Think of those young men in the novel; they, too, were only "boys," with hope and a future--until their lives were cut short. So, take a minute and think now: who is it you want to become? What do you want people to remember about you after you're gone? And--if that's not the "you" of right now, what are you waiting for?

Online Journal #26

The thing about a story is that you dream it as you tell it, hoping that others might then dream along with you, and in this way memory and imagination and language combine to make spirits in the head. There is the illusion of aliveness. ~Tim O'Brien

Read the following except from Philip Caputo's novel A Rumor of War, then consider the comments.

“So much was lost with you, so much talent and intelligence and decency. . . you embodied the best that was in us. You were a part of us, and a part of us died with you, the small part that was still young, that had not yet grown cynical, grown bitter and old with death. . . whatever the rights or wrongs of the war, nothing can diminish the rightness of what you tried to do . . . You were faithful. Your country is not . . . “As I write this, 11 years after your death, the country for which you died wishes to forget the war in which you died. Its very name is a curse . . . But there are a few of us who do remember because of the small things that made us love you — your gestures, the words you spoke, and the way you looked. We loved you for what you were and what you stood for.”

Has this novel changed your impression of war? What will you remember most from reading it? Why is it that Tim O'Brien, Philip Caputo, Bill Hagee, and others keep writing about it? What is it they want you to learn? Did you learn it? Were you listening?

And in the end, of course, a true war story is never about war. It's about sunlight. It's about the special way that dawn spreads out on a river when you know you must cross that river and march into the mountains and do things you are afraid to do. It's about love and memory. It's about sorrow.It's about sisters who never write back and people who never listen. ~Tim O'Brien

Online Journal Entry 24

You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm. ~Colette

The month of April has blown in with sunshine, some icy winds, and a myriad of April Fool's Day follies!! The thrill of the end of winter is upon us and many seem to have some extra energy to unleash upon the gullible. So, in light of all that, what is the best April Fool you've ever experienced--either a joke you've pulled or one you've fallen for? Did you see any good ones this year? How do you feel about practical jokes in general? Does it make a difference if you are the joker or the one getting duped? What do you think?

One thing kids like is to be tricked. For instance, I was going to take my little nephew to Disneyland, but instead I drove him to an old burned-out warehouse. "Oh, no," I said. "Disneyland burned down." He cried and cried, but I think that deep down, he thought it was a pretty good joke. I started to drive over to the real Disneyland, but it was getting pretty late. ~Jack Handey

Online Journal Entry 23

Well, spring sprang. We've had our state of grace and our little gift of sanctioned madness, courtesy of Mother Nature. Thanks, Gaia. Much obliged. I guess it's time to get back to that daily routine of living we like to call normal. ~David Assail

I hope you all enjoyed your break--I know you must have enjoyed it as you all were much too busy to think about the Walden projects!! Personally, I thought it was lovely to have some time off and--to tell the truth--I didn't do much work either! With Spring, comes longer days, warmer weather, sunshine--some of my favorite things. What things are you looking forward to experiencing, now that Spring has Sprung? How will you spend your time outside of school in the coming months before summer? Besides, of course, completing AWESOME Walden projects by Friday? :)
A litte Madness in the Spring Is wholesome even for the King. ~Emily Dickinson

Online Journal Entry 22

You don't have to be a "person of influence" to be influential. In fact, the most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they've taught me.--Scott Adams

Our lives have all been touched by special people we know and love. Think about someone whom has a great influence on you? A friend? A family member? A boss? A teacher (not me--you will not get bonus points!!)? Tell me, why were they special and how has knowing them made you a better person?

"The strongest influences in my life and my work are always whomever I love. Whomever I love and am with most of the time, or whomever I remember most vividly. I think that's true of everyone, don't you? "--Tennessee Williams

Online Journal Entry 21

"No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves." ~Amelia Earhart

This weeks blog is a little more complicated. Your assignment is go out and perform a random act of kindness--a kind act for the benefit of someone else which brings no profit or honor to yourself. Then come back here and tell us what you did, how the recipient reacted, and how you felt after you did it. Like the transcendentalists, let's make something of our lives today!

Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver. ~Barbara De Angelis

Online Journal Entry 20

"Normality is a fine ideal for those who have no imagination." - Carl Jung

Consider the above quotation. What does it mean to you? How does it relate to the ideas of the Romantics and Transcendentalists whom we have been discussing in class? What about you? Do you, as Thoreau suggested, hear the beat of a different drummer? Should you?

Online Journal Entry #19

“I want to be very close to someone I respect and admire and have somebody who feels the same way about me.” ~Richard Bach
Ahh, Valentine's Day--that special day for everyone to think about true love--whether they want to or not! :) You may or may not have a special person in your life right now, but you can always think about what it is you are looking for in that person. Are you looking for someone who is just like you? Opposite of you? What characteristics are you looking for in the one you love? Ziglar said, “You can't hit a target you cannot see, and you cannot see a target you do not have.” So, what qualities are most important to you? Think about it!
"I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself, but for what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out. ~Roy Croft

A Must Read!!

Hey, this just went too perfectly with our last few journal entries. You just gotta love Bill Watterson!

Online Journal Entry 18

By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third, by experience, which is the most bitter." ~Confucius

Since we've been so greatly appreciating the wisdom--and vocabulary--of Mark Twain in class lately, let's look at one of his famous epigrams [brief, clever, memorable statement]:

"NOTHING SO NEEDS REFORMING AS OTHER PEOPLE'S HABITS."

Why do you think this is so? Why do we look to correct the small irritating habits in others and fail to reflect upon our own? What is it we are trying not to see?

Online Journal Entry #17

January brings the snow, makes our feet and fingers glow. Sara Coleridge

Are you enjoying your impromptu Winter Break?! Have you been out in the snow? Do you remember the best Snow Day you've ever spent? My wild ones spent a great morning outside playing, having snowball fights, and making snow angels. I went out long enough to take some pictures, then came in and made some hot chocolate!! How about you?

Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather. John Ruskin