Sunday, March 27, 2011

Mid Term

Dear Ms. Cline,
This class has been very challenging, I think my biggest challenge is with essay's. This is difficult for me because I feel like I try hard and put a lot of work into it but I never have a good enough finished product, there is always something I do wrong that prevents me from getting the grade I want. However I feel very successful with getting my overall point across in essays and I challenge myself with the war stories because it is out of my comfort zone.
The class readings have affected me a lot. I never realized what was actually happening out there and now I am much more appreciative for soldiers but now I am more afraid to watch some of my friends go off into war.
I feel like in my past classes we actually did literary analysis but we would do them to different topics that weren't quite as challenging. So thank you for challenging me.
My goals for the second half of the semester is to improve on proof reading my essay's and to get things done in a more timely manner. I feel like online is challenging me a lot more with time management and getting everything done. I really hope to work a lot harder with my essay's to improve my grades.
Sincerely,
Kayla Parks

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Sand Storm

The Sandstorm by Sean Huze was very dramatic. This version of war did not have a happy ending but war stories should not have a happy ending.

Happy endings
By Kayla Parks

Happy Endings what are they?
Is it killing the enemy,
making it home,
finding true love?
Does it matter?
BOOM!
what’s next?
Are you a murderer?
Yes or No
Does it matter?
BANG!
Coldness comes over you
your body is hot
 120 degrees
Why are you cold?
Does it matter?
CRASH!
You are standing
Time is paused
You are holding a foot
one hundred mangled bodies surrounding you
Who’s foot?
Does it matter?
No
Is it murder?
Or is it their happy ending?

This war story put a lot through the readers mind. The emotions I felt were mixed. I felt stupid, numb, anger, and sadness. Stupidity was because how oblivious I was when it comes to war, people are dying as I am typing this and i feel stupid because I did not know that, or maybe I just never realized it. I felt numb because of how real his story was, it almost seemed fake. I felt sad because it did not feel real and also because of all the deaths happening and for what? I felt anger because people are dying and I can’t do anything about it. All these emotions came through me at once like a slap in the face.

War and Murder
By Kayla Parks

Torture
Why is it torture?
Who is really being tortured?
The people dying?
Or the people who are torturing them?
KILL THEM
Why wait?
Why are they begging to die?

Torture
Death
Is there a difference?

War and Murder
How fine is that line?
When does it become murder?

Is it really you?
Are you really conscious that you are killing people?
The letters save you
You are real
Don’t regret what you do
Don’t be ashamed

What is murder?
What is war?