Non-fiction Upfront Magazine Article

In the article, "Watching You" by Patricia Smith you never know when you're being watched. How much government surveillance should Americans accept to keep the nation safe from more terrorist attacks? The U.S. government have been secretly tracking foreigners overseas on various sites known to the public. The article mainly talks about how much security  and surveillance the U.S. needs. As the article says, "You ca't have 100 percent security and also then have 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience", Barack Obama stated. We must have security and it may not convenience everyone because of their privacy and they don't want surveillance camera's everywhere. We have increased our security camera amounts because of terrorists attacks. Many people see the amount of surveillance as a serious infringement on their privacy. 

"Cameras mounted on buildings watch for potential terrorists and criminals." The U.S. has increased it's security due to terrorist attacks and it helps with crimes and catching robbers. I agree with Rob Johnson, 21, says, "I'd rather have them track who we're talking to if it saves American lives." This security saves many lives and tracks down those who have destructed. There are so many benefits to having cameras and all surveillance around us, for example The presence of security systems have helped in deterring crimes and theft. This reputation has helped them become popular with homes and businesses. Through the years, security surveillance camera systems have become more affordable. For this reason, more and more households and businesses are being equipped with security cameras with the hopes of protecting their properties. Overall, the importance of a  security system has become more and more undeniable. There are a lot of intruders who are wary of security cameras and are well aware that they can be easily be tracked by law enforcers if they ever get caught in one. They get discouraged with just the sight of it. One of the major benefits of having a video surveillance system is safety. 

Surveillance cameras cause a bit of controversy. Surveillance cameras can be used to keep an eye out for any crimes that are in progress or they can be stopped before they even start. If a suspicious person or item is in the area, the proper authorities can be informed before any crime can be committed or damage can be done. "You have a right to privacy' Maguire says. 'But at the same time, there are some crazy people in the world." This quote is entirely true because we need our privacy yet we need security. 

In conclusion, some people, knowing that surveillance cameras are in certain areas can help create a sense of security. No one wants to fear having to go into an area or feel as though she or he is not safe. Some may believe that there may be less of a chance that a crime will be committed if there are cameras in the area watching over them. We need security even if people disagree.

A Summer to Die by Lois Lowry tells the story of a thirteen year old, Meg Chalmers, her older sister Molly and their parents, Charles and Lydia Chalmers. One day their parents announce that they are moving to a country farmhouse, which leaves Meg and Molly shocked, especially Meg who is shyer and more reserved the her popular and flawless older sister. They are heartbroken to be take away from their school, friends and house that Meg grew up in her whole life. But there is a silver lining, they will only have to live on the farm  for a year. Once they all settle into their new house, Meg has trouble making friends and fitting in, unlike her sister who after one week their has three best friends and a boyfriend. Not for long does Meg stay alone, she meets and elderly man who once had a wife named Meg. They come upon interests that they each share, especially photography. Everything was going swell until Molly began a continuous amount of nosebleeds, the hospital visits, and the hospital visits turned into over night stays, then never going home again. They later find out that Molly has been diagnosed with leukemia. Then they hear that she is slowly dying, but Meg doesn't quite understand because she looked up to her sister her whole life and the thought of her dying tears her apart. My interpretation of this is that Meg's parents should have informed her of what was happening to her sister when they first found out, not a month later. Meg has never experienced death before,  her parents could have informed her about the situation. I believe a humongous lesson in this part of the book is to never take people for granted. 

One important observation in this book is about Meg and her relationship with Molly while she is ill. "Time goes on, and your life is still there, and you have to live it. After a while you remember the good things more often than the bad. Then, gradually, the empty silent parts of you fill up with sounds of talking and laughter again, and the jagged edges of sadness are softened by memories." This quote represents how Meg is feeling and finally understands that what is happenning to Molly is for a reason, and that she has to let her go but still hold onto the memories they shared throughout the years. Another quote that shows her relation to Molly is when Meg realizes that her older sister, that she looks up to is changing for the worst, and Molly isn't Molly anymore. "Then Mom said that if it got worse, they would buy her a wig... Molly's hair is starting to fall out, and this is a really difficult time for her." After this was said to Meg she realized nothing was ever going to be the same with Molly and the way they lived before. Meg knew now that her life has just been turned upside down. In the midst of the slow progress of Molly's leukemia, meg develops friendships with and old man and a young couple expecting a baby. Both contacts help normalize her world, provide her with "reality checks" and give her a quality of attention her parents can't manage at the time. After the baby is born, Meg gains a new perspective on the precarious miracle of life and finds the courage to got to the hospital to see Molly, now in the final stages of the disease. Meg and her parents are emotionally reunited in their loss, and in the last chapter Meg reflects on the paradox of healing that doesn't cover over the loss, but allows life to be good again in different terms. 

Molly is having trouble coping with the fact that she is losing her sister, until she meets reality, she meets people who breath the same air as her. In the book I found a quote that describes when Molly's family could have figured something was terribly wrong. "Molly's had the flu all of February..."

This was the first clue of foreshadowing. Meg and her parents should have figured that it is not normal to be ill with the flu that long, its usually lasts at most a week. The drama in the family is causing Meg to understand her family more.

Molly is like a cut, Meg and her parents are the band-aid, they stick on and try to heal what has been hurt. Then, the cut heals, does the band-heal? No, it was only there to protect. In the book Meg and her parents are being very caring for Molly, yet I feel as if there is no emotion as to how they care for Molly. "Suddenly, very quietly, Molly got up, went over to Dad, and climbed onto his lap. he didn't say  anything. He just put his book down, put his arms around her, held her, and watched the fire." (p.93)

This quote displays empathy. It shows that the parents are there for Molly through the time of trouble. Up until this part in the book is the first clue that the parents were caring for her. Throughout the book, there were multiple parts that lacked emotion, and this is the part where it brought everybody together.

In conclusion, Molly needed the care she never received, Meg's stubborn self left her behind the truth, she was too scared for Molly. Molly dies shortly later in the book, and Meg is crushed she can't seem to remember the memories they had but only the fights. The main character Meg has learned to never take things-especially people- for granted. In the end, they shortly move back to the city, but this time there are only three of them, no Molly.

I choose the poem, "Manhattan" by Edwin Curran. This poem describes New York City as the place to be, where dreams come true and where the sky is the limit. Edwin decsribes New York City in an exquisite way, he takes the good things about New York City and displays them on a shelf made of gold. He describes the ferry boats as the glide through the salt water, the tugs are the organs of the harbor singing a song. He mostly focuses on Manhattan and it's amazing features. He describes manhattan, in the winter, as the Great White City, he brings out the beauty of it using words that draw a picture in your mind.

Oh, marble-spired Manhattan, I look into your thousand eyes at dusk, And your thousand eyes look back at me, kindled with lights over the harbor. You hold the sky set like blue wings on your mountain peaks of splendor, And you will hold the sky until the world ends and the dream is gone, Oh Manhattan.   Toss your towers into the stars, Great Gray City! Lift your peaks until they push over the clouds; Live and throb and beat your mighty heart against the solid sun; You are eternal, Great White City!   Walk over your bridges of the centuries, Oh Manhattan, glorious Manhattan; Tread upon the æons of your remarkable destiny of the future, Imperishable, perpetual, everlasting Manhattan!   I look into your thousand eyes, and your thousand eyes look into my eyes. I look into your face, and your face is full of the glory of God. I look into your soul, and your soul is full of the wonder of the world; Oh nourishing, immortal, beautiful Manhattan.   Nothing is so eternalas a city, and you are the eternal city of eternal cities, Pavemented, walled, carred, lighted, jeweled, crowded city of beauty, God's own city of the western world.   Your ferry boats walk the salt wave crowded; Your tugs are the organs of the harbor singing their deep and sonorous hymns of commerce; Your walls, New York, hold up heaven, parapets of beauty stabbing into the stars! Pillars of the universe.   Oh music in stone, poetry in sculpture, song in architectual marble, prayer in granite, an ecstasy in steel and iron and gold, singing city of the great heart, singing city, You are Manhattan!

Critical Thinking Question:What really hard things are happening in this text? Are these things happening in the world now? Where?

I am currently reading the heart-wrenching story, A Summer to Die by Lois Lowry. This book is from the perspective of Meg who's telling the story of when her older sister Molly got sick, very sick. Meg looked up to Molly, in her eyes Molly is flawless. Meg, thinks of herself as the opposite of her big sister, ugly. When Meg, Molly and her parents have to move to another house, Meg has trouble fitting in. on the other hand, Molly has two friends, and a week later she has a boyfriend. Later that month, Meg bonds with an elderly man who has the interest of photography, who once had a wife (the love of his life) was named Meg too. One day Molly has a nose bleed, one that's bigger than usual, no one was worried because the doctor said that nose bleeds are common in the winter. Just when Molly thought her nose bleeds were over, she was wrong. Meg woke up one night to see her sister drenched in blood, her white sheets were now red. She ran to go get her parents and Molly ended up saying in the hospital for the next few months. Meg was furious because she thought that it was just a nose bleed, but it was something much more. Symptoms kept arising and the doctors kept Molly in the hospital, Meg was baffled yet mad. Her father soon told meg that her sister has leukemia, and then her hair started to fall out. The story was just beginning...

In this book, Meg is quite young to fully understand her sisters condition. In her mind its all still just a big, stupid nose bleed that everyone is making a huge deal about. Then the news that Meg finally understands changes her life. "I knew then what they hadn't wanted to tell me, and they knew that i knew, that Molly wouldn't be coming home again, that Molly was going to die. Dad sighed. ' It's called Acute Myelogenous leukemia". (lowry,118) In this passage, we now realize what is killing Molly. It's terrible for a family to have to go through this, especially with their daughter, at such a young age. However, they could now put a name to this horrible disease. This was a huge turning point in the book because Meg was no longer Meg, her parents were no longer her parents. They were all different people, trapped in an enviorment enclosed with a wall of fear, their was no escaping the sadness. Towards the end of the book, Molly passes away. Meg's family learns to remember the good times with Molly. This was a really hard time in the book and its shows you how to grieve and the move along, but not forgetting what happened.

A theme that I found that was a major part in this book, was death. This theme is happening in the world everyday, whether its suicidal, accidental, or natural disaster and/or even terrorism. So many people in the world die each day, 151,600. It's tragic and in almost everyone of our lives we experience it. Us as humans must experience this feeling of loss and tragedy and we must learn to cope with it.

All in all, this book taught me to not take things for granted, because they may not be there in the future. I felt a very strong connection and relation to this book, when both of my grandmothers passed away, it was a tough time but it actually just made me stronger. This book also had a few illustrations at the beginning of chapters which made the book. I felt as if I were Meg, the tone of the book was well written and made me think.

Childhood book memory Monday Muses

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

When I was little my mother would read "Goodnight Moon" by Margaret Wise Brown to my older brother and I. All curled up against the fireplace is where you would find us with reading this book almost every night. My brother and I would always try to be the first to find the little mouse on each page. Whenever the books name comes up, memories blur by in my mind. This was an important time in my childhood because over all of the books read to me I adore this one. To this day I continue to read it, to the children I babysit of course. They find it fascinating somehow, and I remember that's how I felt when my mother read that book to me. My childhood was formed around this book, and when I was a baby my brother and I shared the doll of the bunny. Boy, did we fight over that! 

Why banned books shouldn't be banned

In class we have recently completed discussing and working on whether books should be banned from school libraries or if they shouldn't be banned. I just finished reading,"13 Reasons Why" by Jay Asher which includes various themes that many parents wouldn't allow their children to read. This book talks about death, sex, violence and betrayal. Each of these themes have lessons in the end. Many parents aren't comfortable with allowing their kids to read this content. This book is on the banned book list. Many parents want to ban books like these, because they are "protecting" their children from reality. Parents should not be able to ban books simply because they're not ready or the books contain mature content.

Many parents want to ban books because of the content that are displayed in them. What parents don't realize is that almost every book has a lesson and they teach us very important things. For example in the article "The Banned Books We Have Loved" by Jen Doll she states that books have taught us crucial lessons that we must know in life. "From Bridge to Teribithia, we learned the importance of friendships and being open to those that might not seem 'appropriate.' We learned that death can be sudden and unexpected, and terribly tragic-but that we owe it to ourselves, and those we've loved, to go on." Some books may contain mature themes that shouldn't be read by children, but why ban it for the rest of the world? Another example of books containing lessons is from Jen Doll too, "From Go Ask Alice, we learned that a life can go off rails all too quickly; that drugs should be considered with caution; that a diary can be an important record of our time." I believe that parents shouldn't be able to ban books because every child should read about these themes. They are simply reading about it not doing these actions.

Many parents aren't comfortable with their children reading books that have mature writing and have themes like drugs, sex, violence and abuse. Most people are more likely to read the book if it's on the banned books list. In the article "The Banned Books We've Loved" by Jen Doll, "It is a badge of honor to have people try to ban your books from schools and school libraries, only because it means your books have become popular and are being noticed." The ban books list with attract people to read the list and eventually read the books. I feel that parents are only looking at the fact that the books have those themes in them but they tell the readers that doing those things are awful and don't end well. For example, in the book I currently finished reading , "13 Reasons Why" by Jay Asher its talks about betrayal and friendship. "Betrayal. It's one of the worst feelings." (3.63) Hannah, the main character, announces this theme early in the novel. The author is saying that betrayal and leaving your friends isn't the right thing to do. Another example of this theme is, "Hannah takes Justin's betrayal so seriously because it affects her life in real ways." This quote shows that when you spread rumors it hurts others and it really affects that person. These themes have various lessons that teach children about how to react to different problems in life. If kids didn't read these in books how else would they learn about them? Parents are too protective of what their children are going to learn about in books, but in the end they have to learn/know about it someday.

All in all, many parents aren't comfortable with allowing their kids to read books that have themes like sex, violence and drugs, but why ban it for everyone else in the world? Parents should be aware that their kids may or may not be ready to read about such mature themes, but parents shouldn't ban books just because their kids aren't ready, other children are and they would want to read the books. Parents should know if their children are ready or not to read a type of book.

Monday Muses

What comes to mind when I envision my childhood...

"An Endless Book"

Never too many toys,

never too much noise,

always a fuss, 

cause there's never enough`

bubble baths,

homework is math,

playing in the dirt,

getting hurt,

mommy's love

fixes all,

when I fall

Not wanting to get clean,

Jack is so mean

stuffed animals,

little snacks,

kissies and hugs

Pretzels and Cookies were a favorite,

such a supply,

I didn't have to savor it

"Oh! Have you grown!"

Have I known, 

I would have treasured

the moments like those

"Mommy I want to go to bed"

she was too busy 

"Mommy can you tuck me in?"

she was on the phone

"Please?"

I toddled away 

and tucked myself in

we gave my turtle away,

bye bye 

we gave my guinea pig to the big guy in the sky,

goodbye 

"Jack hit me first!"

"It's not fair!" 

"I don't care"

"Let's play"

This is what I said.

Trips to the park,

laying in the grass,

pretending,

dreaming,

wishing

I'm a princess today

throw all my cares away,

just me and mommy

and we're here to stay,

singing songs,

chasing butterflies,

tea parties,

playing along,

play dates,

school,

coloring,

giggles,

crayons,

bows,

dresses,

trips to Grandma's,

it's all over now

take a bow

I cry,

I sigh,

I fly,

I fall,

I laugh,

I sing,

I dream,

But I know that you'll always be there for me

// my child hood felt like it would never end //