Founding Fathers

Author's Note: This is my Patriot's Pen piece. Our founding fathers did a lot for us and our country but there are many things people would ask them if they got the chance to. These are the things I would ask.

“Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism”, states one founding father. “Be in general virtuous, and you will be happy”, states another. Throughout history, our past leaders all had one goal in mind for this country, be successful. What we are still trying to figure out hundreds of years later, is what successful means. We all have our own ideas in mind, but the true answer is known only by the ones who set the goal themselves, our founding fathers.

As Americans, we’ve all experienced debt, labor and even false patriotism. Hundreds of years ago I doubt our ancestors would’ve predicted this. But since I’m not hundreds of years old, I have no idea whether or not they saw this coming. That’s one of the many things I would ask one of our founding fathers if I ever got the chance to, did the thought of debt and hardships such as above ever cross your mind when you were forming our country?

When you walk into a store and look at everyday items, have you ever noticed that most things aren’t made here? Places like China, Japan, and Mexico are what keep our stores stocked with our everyday needs.  That brings me to my next point, why doesn’t America make more of these everyday things? That’s also something I would ask one of our past leaders, why didn’t more of our funds go to producing these everyday items right here in America? Why do we have so many things imported here?

Have you ever noticed how different all of our presidents have been? Between personal observations and observations made by others, we’ve all noticed that none of our presidents have been quite the same. So, my next question would be, what advice would you as a former leader, give our current president? Is there anything he should be doing but isn’t?

There have been so many rises and falls as this country has shaped into what it is today. Although some things could’ve been differently, without them being done the way they were, we wouldn’t be where we are today. Sure everyone gets frustrated with our government and society, but without them we wouldn’t have the history that we do, or more importantly, the future.

Cause and Effect

Author's Note: Most actions have consequences. Katie from Pants on Fire learned this the hard way. That's what I'll be writing about in this cause and effect piece.

In this book, Katie hides her opinion about everything. She lies about what she thinks, how she feels, the list goes on. Because of her inability to be honest and tell people how she actually feels, Katie hides a huge secret that could separate her from extreme popularity, to major loser.

Because of how long Katie had been hiding her secret, when the truth finally came out, her friends and family were not happy. The result of finally telling the truth, consisted of Katie being grounded for 3 months, being dumped by her boyfriend of 4 years, and the sadness of losing a beauty pageant.Sometimes it's better to be honest and disappoint others than lie and disappoint yourself.

Conflict and Resolution

Author's note: This is a piece of writing based on the book Pants on Fire by Meg Cabot. I talked about one of the main conflicts in this book and how the main character resolved this conflict.

Pants on Fire is a fiction book by Meg Cabot. It’s all about the life of a teenager so there must be conflict, right? Well there is. There are several conflicts in this book. One of the main ones that is mentioned throughout the entire book, is a problem that the main character, Katie is facing. It’s not a regular problem that involves others, but more of a self vs. self problem. Katie doesn’t know how to make herself happy. She’s constantly fighting with herself to decide how to be the happy person that she once was. The question asked during this book, is how can she beat the odds and be happy again?

Finding the answer to this question wasn’t easy for Katie. What it came down to, was Katie just had to reflect on what made her happy in the past. This helped her focus on what would make her happy in the long run. With the help of her heart, Katie made the decision, therefore ending the conflict within herself.

The Ongoing Pain

Author's Note: When it came to choosing a topic for this personal narrative, I was looking for something that I could easily write about. Feelings are easy to write about therefore making this what I chose.

As the tears rolled down my cheeks, the pain intensified. Looking into the eyes of someone I used to know so well, it was hard to breathe. I reached out to touch him but as my fingers made contact with his face, I realized it was just a picture. This realization made the tears come faster because I also realized, this was all I had left of him.

The pain of losing someone is so horrible that there’s no words to describe it. Even though everyone goes through it, people have lacked words to even come close to describing the misery. Just 3 months ago I lost my best friend. The one person I confided in about most things, was suddenly gone from my life. I remember it like it was yesterday. It had been a normal summer day, yet it was one I’ll never forget. I had been driving to a friend’s house when I got the call. The call that changed my life forever. I remember how the shock had left me numb for the rest of the day. The pain didn’t really hit until that night, when I realized I would never get one of his silly text messages again. I would never see his fiery red hair again; I would never be affected by his contagious laugh ever again. That night was by far the worst of my life. That pain was so awful, so terrible. I feel it every time I hear his name, see his pictures. The pain still hurts as if it were new.

For everyone that loses a loved one, some days are better than others. That doesn’t even come close to the reality of it though. There’s so many things I wish I would’ve been able to say. Now all I want to say is I miss you. That’s all there is to it, regrets and sorrow. All I look forward to is the day where I won’t have to miss him anymore. The day where I’ll be with him again, I’ll finally be able to tell him everything I want to, anything I need to. But that thought leaves me wondering, will that day ever come?

As of right now, there’s something missing inside of me. A hole that can’t be filled. With every passing day, I miss him more. They say that every cloud has a silver lining. That’s what I’m hoping for, praying for. Ever since that day, my happiness has been in jeopardy; I’m waiting for this all to make sense. Waiting for the answer to the question I’ve been pondering ever since that day back in July. Why did he have to leave?

Pants on Fire

Author's note: This is a retelling that I wrote about the book Pants on Fire

Katie Ellison has it all. The football star boyfriend, popular best friend, perfect grades and even the perfect job. But as her senior year starts rolling in, she wonders if she’s doing this to make others happy or if she’s actually happy. An old friend comes back into town and makes Katie wonder, is her life going down the right path?