I could barely keep myself from jumping out of my chair. I listened intently, noticing the pronunciation of each word as it danced out of my father’s mouth. “It was pitch black. I was only a year or two older than you, you know. And the forest… the forest was so dark. As we paddled through the water toward the floating black mass of the island, it became hard for me to tell where the water ended and the treeline began.” I felt my heart beating deep inside my chest and fought the urge to leap up and scream with excitement and fear.
That was almost ten years ago. Growing up without a TV meant that my source of entertainment came often from stories that lived within my family. That particular one was the first my father had ever told us. It was about his first night sleeping outside as a twelve-year-old Boy Scout. He had packed his gear into a canoe with a friend of his and the two had set out to sleep on an island on the lake by the camp. As I listened to his dramatic retelling of the frigid and hair-raising night, I craved an adventure like this for myself. Soon after that night, I began
…show more content…
The time spent there became more about meeting family friends and going to dinners. Almost four years passed before I returned to the memory of getting lost in those woods. It was a week before the start to my junior year of high school, and I was visiting my grandparents in Virginia. One morning, after a very early breakfast and a promise to return promptly, I walked outside toward the woods. I walked aimlessly, remembering the similar trips I used to make in the forest upstate. I saw a young kid, eager to dirty his hands with exploration of the tangible world. I was older now, and my summer had been spent exploring a possible career path by interning at a financial services firm. A sudden thought crept slowly into my mind, piecing itself together before my
There is a serene moment when reading John Muir “A Windstorm in the forests,” that rushed through me. Which can only be described as a rush of emotions that one might face when returning home after traveling for so long. I feel that this response is so far harder to write than I could have imagined it to be because the forest Muir is describing within his story, within the Sierra Nevada is one that I grew up with. The same ones that I spent my summers and winter breaks at, I feel a slight struggle when trying to describe my response because I didn’t realize how much I miss all of that and how many of my memories are surrounded by that forest. Reading Muir story brought back the images of seeing stretches of land covered in an endless amount
The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, is an American classic, narrated by the young Scout Finch, the most engrossing character in the book. The novel is about the adventures of two siblings over the time of about three years. Jem and Jean Louise (Scout) Finch were two young siblings who one day met another young boy named Dill. Over time, Jem and Scout grow up under the careful watch of their father and friends, learning how to be adults. They play games, they sneak into a courthouse, and they learn a valuable life lesson. Scout was an intriguing character. As the narrator, you learn more about Scout’s feelings towards the events in the book and soon learn to love her. Let me introduce you to Scout Finch.
“Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (119). [1]Mockingbirds are the most innocent type of bird and cannot defend themselves. [3] Occasionally people tried to mess with Boo Radly, who was a mockingbird because he was in his house defenseless. [5] While Tom Robertson was being tried and in prison he was an undeniably mockingbird. [4] Hurting Jem, Bob Ewell was punishing an innocient kid, who was defenseless. [2] Despite being a man, Bob Ewell, who is showed to be a blue jay, blue jays are birds that no one likes. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy.”(119)[6] Mockingbirds don’t hurt anyone. [1] Boo Radly and Tom Robertson are mockingbirds
Courage is valued in many ways. It is measured by bravery, heroism, physical strength, and morally correct behavior. The world mostly defines courage as having physical strength and being brave. Atticus, Scout, and Jem show many acts of courage through the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. They all have different views and opinions on courage. The novel is told from the point of view of Scout. She, and her brother Jem, live with their widowed father in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s. Their father, Atticus, is also a lawyer who defends his black client, Tom Robinson, who is innocent of rape. The title To Kill A Mockingbird explains that “it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” because they “make music for us to enjoy” (Lee 119). In other words, the mockingbirds are harmless and have never done anything wrong. It would be considered a sin to kill a harmless and peaceful mockingbird. Similarly, accusing an innocent and
Children may start out simple-minded but shift into maturing young adults. Jem is proof of this in Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird since he has many life experiences with the people who influence him most. Through this novel, Jem matures from an ignorant boy to a young and more to respectful young man due to learning loyalty and valor.
“Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people’s gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. Thats why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (119). In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the first mention of a mockingbird appears when Jem and Scout are learning how to use their new air rifles. Atticus doesn’t want to teach them how to shoot the air rifles, but he gives them one rule to follow: do not kill mockingbirds. Later Scout, the main character, is told by Miss Maudie about how it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because they are innocent and they don't do anything to anyone. Throughout this story, there are several characters who are portrayed as mockingbird figures. Jem, Scout, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley all fit the symbol of a mockingbird because they all start off innocent but are later changed dramatically by the brokenness of the world.
Reading the opening sentences, grand visions of my childhood danced through my head. The story took me back to happy times of summers spent alone with my grandfather in the mountains of West Virginia. Like Nick, the camping and fishing trips were a welcomed relief from the city life and school for me. Although we were in a different area of the country the wilderness seems to be the same. Like Nick I remembered being dropped off near the edge of the wilderness to hike in and go camping near the river. “The river just showed through the trees” (Hemingway 480). As with the main character the river always intrigued me as a child. It was many things such as the smell, the sound, and the being apart of nature that I liked. Most of all I really loved having the one on one time spent with my grandfather. Just as Hemmingway describes, we to would tromp through the mountains for what seemed like forever. We make the trek all in order to find that perfect spot to set up camp. I often felt as Nick did “His muscles ached and the day was hot but…felt happy” (Hemingway 468). When we came across that spot, a quote from the story says it best “He was there, in the good place” (Hemingway 471), and “The river was there” (Hemingway 467). A sense of happiness filled my body because I knew what was soon to come. We would set up the camp and get something to eat. I could feel Nick’s pain of being “very hungry” (Hemingway 470); this was one of the down sides of the trip. My grandfather would not stop just to eat we would have to find are site then we would take a break for a quick snack before setting up camp. First we would survey the site and plan the best placement for our things. Hemingway wrote “He pegged the sides out taut and drove the pegs deep” (470), this passage brought flash backs of my grandfather telling me how important it was to get the lines tight and drive the tent pegs deep into the ground.
In the beginning of this story, one expects for the characters to follow the concepts that they represent. This story displays one man's journey to leave his home and comfort zone in order to fully explore his curiosity. He goes off into a forest and undergoes a life changing experience there. He encounters three different things that set him on the path to the journey of knowledge. This forest was symbolic of an assessment of strength, bravery, and survival. It took determination to survive in the forest and the young person entering into it would not emerge the same. Conversely, this story is more representative than realistic and the peril is of the character. This story is more of a vision or conscious daydream th...
Fortunate was I, to grow up in a rural community where almost everybody was the same. I blended in, was like almost all others. I have always felt I received a good education that prepared me fairly well for college and later family life. However, I had no idea how others in the world lived. I grew up in a nice part of town, where everybody I knew was married, middle-class, went to either the “big Lutheran” or Catholic church in town, and the vast majority had occupations relating to agriculture. Fast forward, I’m now a junior high social studies and science teacher living in that same small town. Here, a few ideals guide my teaching practice. The first is to instill a quality work ethic in the students; the second, to teach them to do
The author George Elliot once said “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Appearance can be very misleading, and you shouldn't prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone. This philosophical idea has been included in many works of literature, including the timeless classic To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. The novel takes place in the town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Many citizens of Maycomb tend to make judgements based on outward appearances alone. In the novel, Lee uses minor characters such as Boo Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson to convey the book’s theme of prejudice.
Life is full of lessons. The lessons you learn adjust and fit your character and who you are. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, the characters of Jem and Scout are young, and have to figure life as they go. Jem and Scout witness and live through life lessons. They learn these lessons from others around them. Some lessons come from their town itself, while others come from people. Their father, Atticus, teaches them a lot about life and the right and wrong. Jem and Scout learn what it means to have empathy, courage, persistence and personal integrity. Also, the Mockingbirds themselves adjust and appoint life lessons.
Being invited to a friend’s house the other day, I began to get excited about the journey through the woods to their cabin. The cabin, nestled back in the woods overlooking a pond, is something that you would dream about. There is a winding trail that takes you back in the woods were their cabin sits. The cabin sits on top of a mountain raised up above everything, as if it was sitting on the clouds.
We slowly crept around the corner, finally sneaking a peek at our cabin. As I hopped out of the front seat of the truck, a sharp sense of loneliness came over me. I looked around and saw nothing but the leaves on the trees glittering from the constant blowing wind. Catching myself standing staring around me at all the beautiful trees, I noticed that the trees have not changed at all, but still stand tall and as close as usual. I realized that the trees surrounding the cabin are similar to the being of my family: the feelings of never being parted when were all together staying at our cabin.
I looked up at the black sky. I hadn't intended to be out this late. The sun had set, and the empty road ahead had no streetlights. I knew I was in for a dark journey home. I had decided that by traveling through the forest would be the quickest way home. Minutes passed, yet it seemed like hours and days. The farther I traveled into the forest, the darker it seemed to get. I was very had to even take a breath due to the stifling air. The only sound familiar to me was the quickening beat of my own heart, which felt as though it was about to come through my chest. I began to whistled to take my mind off the eerie noises I was hearing. In this kind of darkness I was in, it was hard for me to believe that I could be seeing these long finger shaped shadows that stretched out to me. I had this gut feeling as though something was following me, but I assured myself that I was the only one in the forest. At least I had hoped that I was.
This area of the world is so foreign to my Oklahoma life; it infuses me with awe, and with an eerie feeling of being strongly enclosed by huge mountains, and the mass of tall trees. However, when my foot first steps onto the dusty trail it feels crazily magical. The clean, crisp air, the new smell of evergreen trees and freshly fallen rain is mixed with fragrances I can only guess at. It is like the world has just taken a steroid of enchantment! I take it all in, and embrace this new place before it leaves like a dream and reality robs the moment. As I turn and look at my family, I was caught by my reflection in their impressions. The hair raising mischief in the car was forgotten and now it was time to be caught up in this newness of life. It was as if the whole world around us had changed and everyone was ready to engulf themselves in it. The trickling of water somewhere in the distance and the faint noise of animals all brought the mountains to