Discern By Andrea Pearson - Review

Discern by Andrea Pearson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was awesome. Really grabbed my attention from the beginning. I seriously couldn't put it down after the first chapter. The story is a mix of magic and real life. The main character is really strong and hard headed - in a good way - really determined to succeed! Her room mate is a great balance kind of dizzy! There is a little romance but nothing inappropriate!

I recommend this to any teen!

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The Road Not Taken (from Mountain Interval, 1916)

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

to where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Thought as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how ways leads on the way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –

I took the one less traveled by

And that has made the difference.

Robert Frost

Sometimes because a road is harder people don't chose it. I think Robert Frost meant that people are more likely to follow the crowd, rather than going after their dreams. 

Its sometimes hard to be different and take the road less traveled.

Carry a Big Stick Essay

                         Carry a big stick - Theodore Roosevelt

I was very sad to find myself at the end of a wonderful book. ‘Carry a big stick’ it helped me understand a great man Theodore Roosevelt he always lived fairly and would never ask one of his men to do something that he was not willing to do himself. He had a great sense for adventure and would never shrink from a challenge. He didn’t believe in wasting his time. He made the most out of everything.

 Once when Jacob Riis came to visit him he was taken to the basement where Teddy was having a shave and a haircut, while this was going on he had three secretaries around him to one he was composing the final chapters of a biography he was writing about Oliver Cromwell, to another secretary he was outlining portions of his upcoming legislative agenda, to the final one he drafting a speech for that day.  Jacob Riis asked him how he could do so much at once. Teddy shrugged and said that he was simply trying to make the best of time.

Senator George Wharton Pepper gave this speech about Theodore Roosevelt; ‘We as a people have sore need of Theodore Roosevelt. But not only collectively do we need him. We need him as individuals. When we look into our hearts we find that we shall have sustained a personal loss if we allow the Colonel to leave us. You and I need him as a factor in our daily lives. We have more energy when the Colonel is about. We are less content to submit to injustice, less appalled by obstacles in the path of progress. With the Colonel near we are far braver men and finer women. Where the Colonel leads we are sure of the direction in which we are moving. When he gives commands we are not in doubt about our objective. Happily, it will not be difficult to keep him with us. Theodore Roosevelt alive is easy to conceive of; Theodore Roosevelt dead is altogether unthinkable. Such a man strengthens our belief in immortality. He has but gone to that front from which nobody would dare to hold him back.’ He continued saying: ‘the immortality of personal influence is God’s greatest gift to man. When conscience cowers, when advice proves powerless, when reason plays me false, his influence makes a man of me. I cannot cheat while he is in the game. I cannot drift when his headed upstream. I cannot talk nonsense when he is there to hear. Dead? No. Today we are rejoicing because Theodore Roosevelt is more alive than ever. There is not a tinge of sadness in our celebration. The immortality of his influence makes us glad with an exceeding great joy.’ After this he concluded by quoting Theodore himself.

The thing I like most of all about this speech is the even though Theodore Roosevelt was dead that the memory and the influence of him lasted forever.

He truly was a great, brave, kind, loving, and humble man. I only wish I could talk to him in person. And feel the affect that he gave to so many others.

I am very glad that I was able to read this book the more I read about him the more I was amazed that he could be so wonderful. I agree with Senator George Wharton Pepper that even though he died he will always live because of the example he set and his influence on the world.

 By Lavagirl

 

  

The Pharos - Book Of Marvels

In Alexandria, there is a light house the greatest lighthouse ever built, in any nation, or any age, ancient or modern. It is called the Pharos. The Pharos is made of marble because steel and girders were unknown at the time it was built. Boats can see The Pharos's light leagues away. It is one of the worlds 7 wonders. The Pharos's  base is built like a skyscraper. Which is itself 400 feet high. Above that is a smaller chamber 100 feet high. On the very top is the light, it is unknown if they used wood or oil to fuel the fire. This beautiful lighthouse stood for 1,600 years. Until a foolish king came to reign, he was very greedy. One day a man told him there was treasure under The Pharos. the king tore down the top two layers before he realized he was being tricked he tried to rebuild The Pharos but did not have the skill to fix it and in his clumsiness he smashed the mirror that made the fire brighter and did not know how to make another. The only thing left was the base and soon after an earthquake brought it down.

Cinderella Mouse #writeshop

Cinderellamouse

Once upon a time there was a young mouse who had a wicked step-mom pig and two step-sister pigs. Her father had died and she was very sad. Her name was Cinderellamouse, she was made to do all the cooking, cleaning, baking, and sewing. 

One day a man came and ordered them to attend a royal ball because the king wanted the prince to marry. Cinerellamouse wanted to go to the ball but the wicked step-pig kept her busy all day and left without her. She cried and cried in the garden until her Fairy-Godmouse came and gave her a carriage, dress, and beautiful pink glass slippers.

"Remember that the magic runs out at midnight, so make sure you are home by then!" The Fairy-God-mouse said.

"I promise I will be back!" said Cinderella mouse.

So off she went to the ball. She ate all the cheese she could and danced with the mouse prince. However when the clock started to strike midnight she remembered her promise and ran away, leaving one of her glass slippers behind.

The prince was heartbroken as he had intended to propose that very evening. He sent he foot-mouse out the very next day to find the person who could wear the dainty shoe.

The pigs tried and tried but no matter how hard they squeezed and push they couldn't get the glass slipper to fit on their little hoof.

Eventually the foot-mouse saw Cindermouse in the kitchen sweeping the floor and insisted that she try on the shoe.

It fit! Cindermouse married the Prince and lived happily ever after.

By Lavagirl

A Funny Story - Writing practice

Little Miss Pig

Little Miss Pig sat on a mushroom,

Eating her curds of orange.

Along came the wolf and sat down beside her...

And asked 'Hey, can I have some of that!'

Why being polite is so important...original short story - by Lavagirl

Why being polite is so important

One Sunny day, Monkey woke up feeling very hungry he looked in the cupboard but could not find anything to eat.

He ran to bear’s house and said I have no food give me some!

The bear said you should make sure you are very polite. So bear did not give him any food. 

Next the monkey ran to the bees and asked them the same question very rudely, they said no.

Monkey ran to his house and made a very bad plan, the next day he would try it out.

Monkey had some fireworks from 4^th of July and set them off at the base of the tree the bees all flew away and monkey grabbed some honey he put it on some bread and started eating it. 

But soon the bees flew back and saw monkey and they all swarmed round him and stung him all over.

The next day bear came to where the monkey lay carrying a pot of honey. 

The monkey was astonished and asked him how he got the honey. The bear simply said I asked the bees politely. 

THE END

The moral of this story is, to always be polite when you are asking someone a favor.