July is arguably the hottest month of the year. On a merciful day, the air was dry and hot. The sun beat high in the sky, blistering and unforgiving. But today, the sun played peek -a -boo, hiding behind the thick gray clouds that seemed to beg for release. The air was thick, moist, and extremely uncomfortable. The thud of my shoes on the concrete sidewalk beneath me seemed to grow louder with every step. In a lapse of judgment, I decided to go on a quick jog before the Fourth of July celebration-- (celebration meaning pending disaster) at my aunt’s house, a big mistake. Blood pounded in my ears, and my pace became more strident with every beat of my heart as I rounded the corner and reached my street. At long last, I ambled into my mother’s bright kitchen, feeling that I might collapse if I exerted too much effort. She laughed loudly when she saw me standing in the doorway and pulled a chair away from her oversized kitchen table, signaling me to take a seat. I collapsed immediately, smiling gratefully as she got a bottle of water out of the fridge and tossed it lightly to me. “Hot out there?” she asked, returning to the casserole I assumed she would be taking to the barbeque. I laughed weakly, “It’s not really hot…just muggy and very humid. Hopefully, it won’t mess up the fireworks tonight.” She nodded absentmindedly. I sighed and heaved myself out of the chair, forcing my legs to carry me forward. With my mother and her casserole behind me, I decided it was time to get ready for the promising afternoon ahead of me. After a long hot shower, which mercifully loosened my strained muscles, I curled my long brown hair and skillfully made up my face. I ... ... middle of paper ... ...ler air. The sun was setting; the sky patched with beautiful pinks, oranges, purples, and deep blues. I smiled to myself, feeling a sense of calm settle over me. I walked back inside and changed clothes, hoping that after such a hectic day everything else would go smoothly. I was wrong. After burning myself several times with sparklers, I gave up on the whole institution. I wish I could say the same for my uncle. After successfully breaking a window with a screaming angel and having to run inside to make sure there was minimal damage, my aunt seized the fireworks, and cut short the celebration in fear for her home’s well being. I laughed to myself, glad that the day had ended without any serious injury and that everyone had fun. Regardless of the intolerant sun, the humid air, flaming gas cans and broken windows, it was a lovely day.
D-Day, one of the most important days during World War II, was a pivotal moment that changed an entire continent. Despite the name, D-Day did not occur in just one day, but rather over several days. It was a code name for the start of Operation Overlord. D-Day is well-known for marking the beginning of the end of the war in Europe and Hitler's rule over much of the continent. Many historians believe that without D-Day, Europe would have fallen to Hitler.
Frederick Douglass's "Fourth of July" Speech is the most famous speech delivered by the abolitionist and civil rights advocate Frederick Douglass. It attracted a crowd of between five hundred and six hundred. Douglass’s speech to the slaves on the Fourth of July served to show the slaves that there is nothing for them to celebrate. They were not free and the independence that the rest of the country celebrated did not apply to them.
Cold sweat trickles down Kate's back as she stands over the hospital bed, watching the mother she cares for slowly pass away. The droning beep of the monitoring heart machine pierces through the air. Kate kisses her mother one last time, wiping warm tears from her watery eyes, and sluggishly begins to leave. Step by step out of the door the pain intensifies in her heart, but Kate must keep staying strong and move on. A new chapter of her life begins here. Much like Kate, Anna Quindlen undergoes with the catastrophic death of her mother dying of cancer, leaving her arriving at college with an entire new perspective. Her significant childhood and maturement, experiencing the death of her mother, and giving birth to three children influenced Anna Quindlen with her writings.
When I was younger, the Fourth of July was a time where the family came from out of town to cook, converse, and watch fireworks. It meant for me a day that you could purchase electronics for cheap via 'Fourth of July ' sales. I only understood the superficial definition, and could only take the holiday at face value. It did not have any meaning to me until I grew older. As I grew older I began to realize one thing, that most people who celebrate this holiday do not understand the meaning behind it. The Fourth of July has turned into a commercial holiday that advertises excessive drinking, reckless behavior and it has completely disregarded the idea of what the Fourth of July actually is, a celebration of our independence from, Britain, the
Her eyes were heavy, her body weak. As she crawled into the bathroom two feet away, Abby felt her body slowly succumbing to the numbness. All of her pain would be gone in less than 10 minutes, so why would she want to turn back? What about the senior trip Abby had planned with her best friend? What about the chair at the dinner table that would now be vacant? A couple of hours later Abby’s family came home from her little sister’s soccer game. Little did they know what they would find as they approached the top of the stairs. Her little sister, Ali, stood still as she looked down at her feet. There on the cold floor lay her big sister, her role model, and her super hero. Ali was crushed when she saw the pill bottle in her hand and the pale color of her skin. Her mom fell to her knees screaming and crying, wondering where she
It was not particularly hot that Fourth of July many years ago, but looking back it was the heat that impressed itself upon me the most. The true heat was much more than the temperature. The true heat that I felt was from the long, winding, awe-inspiring chase that the cops gave my friends and me.
Get the kids involved in the making of these Patriotic Strawberries that just screams red, white and blue goodness!
I wake up to the sun shining through the window and the faint laughter from my family downstairs. It's the first day of our annual trip to Rhode Island. I lie in bed for a few moments and think about one thing. Rhode Island. I wouldn’t rather be anywhere else than here. I glance at the clock and it is only eight in the morning, but everybody is already up, enjoying breakfast, and getting ready to head to the beach. It's not supposed to rain until later in the day, so hopefully we can enjoy our day at the beach before it rains. I eventually make my way out of bed and tiptoe across the frigid wood floors and join my family downstairs. Everybody is up except my brother, Thomas.
In both “The Fourth of July” and “Black Men and Public Space” the narrators did one very important thing; they expressed how the encounter made the narrator feel. This is crucial because it almost allows the reader to share the feeling of helplessness that was felt. In “The Fourth of July”, Lorde explained how she truly did not understand why the family was treated differently. She tells of her parents’ fruitless effort to shield their children from the harsh realities of Jim Crow by planning out virtually the whole trip. The highlight of the story is when the narrator expresses both anger and confusion at the fact that her family was denied seated service at an ice cream parlor because they were black.
The 4th of July is supposed to be an extremely fun, and patriotic time as an American holiday. However, I found it hard at the time to believe that this year’s 4th of July was going to be as joyful as the ones that have preceded it, especially with the events that have recently happened. Although our grandpa’s health had been steadily declining over the past few years, we certainly did not expect his health to suddenly dive down drastically, forcing our family and relatives to take him to the hospital. The reasons why our grandpa’s health had skydived wasn’t exactly pinpointed, but it was safe to presume that it was a combination due to old age, and a myriad of other health problems common in the elderly. It was an agonizing sight for my family, and even more so for my parents, to see that their father was in the condition that he was in at the time. The sounds of sobbing and crying filled the room, along with the beeps of medical equipment; the taste of our own tears also find its way into our minds, and effectively, our tongues. As we lamented the state of health our grandfather was in, my family and I closed in and hugged him tightly, and even being in an almost paralyzed state, we could see him tearing up, which would penetrate my mind, and leave a mark in my memory for a long time to come.
Fourth of July is a time where family comes together to enjoy great food and see great fireworks. Coming from Puerto Rico I didn’t know the meaning of Fourth of July, my family and I just knew what to plan out. It means so much more when knowing the history on it because this day means a lot to this country. Many Americans forget that we have so much freedom to live our lives they way we choose to, it’s a time where we remind each other that this is the land of the free. The very first Fourth of July experience I had was at my aunt’s house; she was the only one in the family that was living in the United States.
It was the middle of the night when my mother got a phone call. The car ride was silent, my father had a blank stare and my mother was silently crying. I had no idea where we were headed but I knew this empty feeling in my stomach would not go away. Walking through the long bright hallways, passing through an endless amount of doors, we had finally arrived. As we
The sounds of laughter echoed around the living room and the smell of sweet potatoes, dressing, chitterlings, and turnip greens filled the air. The living room walls were white and red curtains were hanging in front of the window seals. The fire place had black coal around the edges of brown brick that formed from burning short days and long nights. I could hear my little cousins’ feet hitting the brown and shiny hardwood floor as they ran to the kitchen. Their laughter echoed around the dense hallway, and those sounds reminded me that I had the longest day ahead of me. I rolled out of bed and stared at the reflection of myself and let out a deep sigh. As my feet rubbed against
It was not long after the sun set that the city’s organizers of the festival announced the event that everybody had been waiting for. All the younger kids got really excited and ran as far up as they could, the crowd started to settle, and each and everyone of us prepared our necks looking towards the eastern end. Soon loud music began and the fireworks began to soar through the sky! People were in “oooohs” and “ahhhs” every time as soon as rocket would go up and explode in front of a dark canvas, the night sky. The fireworks were in sync with the music and produced a plethora of colorful designs that lit the sky. Although the whole event lasted under 15 minutes, it was by far one of the most wonderful experiences to any party. People let out a sigh once the fireworks display was over and a thunderous applause
Too late. I could already hear my mothers graceful footsteps ascend the stairs. She carefully opened the door that entered my kitchen, and I flung myself into her arms. My mother yelped with shock and a hint of exhaustion, “Meggie honey, Mommy is very tired. Please be a little more careful next time.”