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?