College vs. Hoodhood
Tuesday, April 29th 2012.

"Where your heart goes, the mind follows." In The Wednesday Wars, Hollings older sister Heather wants to go to college but Mr. Hoodhood does not want his daughter to attend a university where classes are on strike to protest against the Vietnam War and racism. I believe that Mr. Hoodhood is wrong because although protesting could be very dangerous to Heather, he should trust that he raised his daughter well enough to make decisions for herself. I understand that his job as a father is to protect his children, but it's also his job raise them into responsible, intelligent, young adults. Heather has every right to follow her heart and believe she can make a difference. It's disappointing to know that this attitude still exists today. When children want to make mistakes and learn from them, but their parents are too protective to let them grow. I've seen this attitude hundreds
of times and the kids don't ever realize right from wrong because they haven't gotten a chance in their life to go out and make mistakes to learn from. I have never experienced this from my parents, but I have from others. It makes life boring. You have to go out, explore, learn and make mistakes; it's how you find out who you truly are. You have to find yourself at a young age because one day your heart will want to go in one direction but your mind will refuse to follow. Let it be.

Holley's Comparison of the Fathers of The Wednesday Wars.

Hoodhood vs. Kowalski
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Mr. Hoodhood and Mr. Kowalski are both fathers of two grade sevens at Camillo Junior High by the names of Holling Hoodhood and Meryl Lee Kowalski. For a living, they are also owners of Long Island's top two
architecture companies. 'Hoodhood and Associates', 'Kowalski and Associates'. These two fathers both take their architectural business very seriously. They also talk about their business a lot, forgetting
the true focus of family life and commitment. Although Mr. Hoodhood and Mr. Kowalski are both very competitive, Mr. Kowalski knows when to fix the mistakes he's made. Mr. Hoodhood is just very careless. When it comes to building and designing his "Perfect House", he works very hard to make it look amazing. But he doesn't focus on what's truly inside the house. His family. He doesn't take the time to fix the
dysfunction that truly matters. Mr. Kowalski has made some mistakes, but he's currently fixed them. He seems to be a good man. Mr. Hoodhood needs to step it up a bit and care more. They both need to think about what they're doing and the consequences in may cause.

Macbeth
A Summary by Holly
 Tuesday, April-10-12
This wonderful play is set in Scotland, where three witches are found brewing a magic potion designed to help fulfill an evil prophesy. As they chant famous words, let me introduce you to the other characters. Macbeth and Banquo are Scottish military generals who have currently defeated two separate armies in battle. King Duncan is the king of Scotland. Lady Macbeth is of course Macbeth's spouse. I'm assuming that Macduff is a royal guest at the dinner that plans to overthrow Macbeth. There is also Banquo's son Fleance and King Duncan's son Malcolm.
In the beginning of Macbeth, the two generals Macbeth and Banquo are on their way to meet the king. As they journey to meet the royalty, they come across three witches. The three witches tell Macbeth that
he is soon to be king of Scotland and that Banquo's descendent will become king of Scotland. Some of the Duncan's men arrived soon after that, and as an award for his brave performance in battle; Macbeth has
indeed been made Thane of Cawdor. For some reason, Lady Macbeth convinced Macbeth to murder king Duncan and take the thrown for himself. Which he did. Macbeth planned to murder King Duncan in his sleep, blame it on the chamberlains and kill the chamberlains just to say he killed them out of anger for "killing" the king. At one dinner, Banquo's ghost haunted Macbeth to act insane. Macduff (one of the guests) wanted to overthrow Macbeth. Lady Macbeth killed herself because of her guilt in convincing Macbeth to kill King Duncan. In theend, Macduff beheads Macbeth in battle and King Duncan's son Malcolm becomes king of Scotland. In later years, Banquo's son Fleance becomes king. All the witches' prophecies were fulfilled.
I think this all happened because of immaturity. Why would you kill someone just for the thrown? Especially when you don't even have a problem with the king. That person was somebody's husband, brother, son, uncle, or even cousin; and you killed them over their spot? How inconsiderate. I don't think Macbeth would like to be killed in his sleep. I don't think the chamberlains enjoyed it either. Macbeth got his karma from Macduff, but one day Macduff will get his karma. Whatgoes around, comes around.

My class Reflection on Shakespeare.

I have heard of Romeo and Juliet. Honestly, I think it's a great story
because Shakespeare proves that there aren't always happy endings.
Romeo and Juliet proves a lot of life lessons like, if you love
someone, it shouldn't matter what your parents or anyone say; you're
feelings matter too. Shakespeare also shows you that nothing can break
love, and if you're doing what's right, it shouldn't matter what the
consequences are. But personally, I think that Shakespeare could have
showed you that even if you lost somebody, you have to stay strong.
You can't just kill yourself to be with them. People would miss you
also. Maybe God made that person leave your life to find someone
better. You never really know. You especially can't know if you commit
suicide. Over all, Romeo and Juliet was alright.

Holly.
Thursday, March 29th, 2012.

Homework is not a waste of time

One of the ways of making it in life. Those are the words that should make you realize why homework is not a waste of time. My point of view is this because I believe that homework is one of the little things in life that make a big difference. Homework keeps us caught up in our curriculum and lets us stay organised in our studies.

Think about it, when you go home with homework, you sit down and take at least thirty seconds to organise your worksheets and assignments. You always think about what you need to do and how you should do it. This is organisation; as growing up with more and more homework, you learn the life skill of staying organised. When you're organised, you get assignments handed in, you stay on top of things. You stay occupied and active.     

Speaking of being active, when kids get home they watch television, go on their computer or text on their cellular devices being lazy. Homework keeps their brains running and it keeps them intellectually inclined. A world famous scientist named Doctor Shoe, has proven that you need to exercise to avoid obesity. Homework keeps them thinking and achieving goals.        

In my opinion, homework is an everyday goal that gives us kids a feeling of achievement and the satisfaction makes us work harder. When we have reached achievements in life, our confidence gives us the ability to work harder so we're proud of the results. Homework is a reach of success in little ways that is just a step closer to getting a good education and making it in life.

Basically, I believe that organisation staying active, staying intellectually inclined, and believing in you is the key to making it in life. It is also part of what homework does for us. I believe that little things like homework make you these things. School is a make it or break it part of life. If you do your homework and achieve in assignments, you're going to make it. Homework isn't a waste of time, it's a life achievement that gives you the pleasure once it's finished.

Holly

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Lenten Reflection

My understanding of Lent

               In the time of Lent, I believe that it is the time to sacrifice forour Lord. It is our time to remember the huge sacrifices Jesus made for us. For forty days straight, Jesus sat in a desert with nothing. No one to talk to, nothing to eat, and nothing to drink. As Catholics we sacrifice an important or little part of life to prove that since Jesus suffered for us, we sacrifice and suffer out of love for him. But in my opinion, Lent is a little bit more than showing our love towards God. It's about proving to yourself that you don't need certain things in life to be worthy of happiness. In Lent, we give up our cell phones, television, chocolate, pizza, video games, and our internet. Some people fast as tradition for respect of God. But why shall we suffer for our Lord? Jesus died for us on the cross to show us his love. He could've escaped in a miracle, but he suffered because he loves us. He sacrificed everything for us. So we shall suffer for him. I'm not saying you should go and kill yourself for Lent, but prove to God that you are strong.

Holly
Friday, February 24, 2012

Asuncion, Paraguay

Ilite

       A lot of people would say iLite is about being a leader. It is, but I believe a little differently. I believe that iLite is about being the best person you can possibly be, in every single way. ILite is held at the Mother Teresa high school in Toronto and it is basically a leadership event for youths with many workshops teaching you about different parts of life. In my personal opinion, the stories and lessons learned there were very inspirational.

       I took two classes about leadership. One was called 'Positive Gear' and the other was 'Teens in Social Justice'. In Positive Gear we learned about communicating without speaking, staying positive, and making a difference. I can honestly say that after that class, I started putting every negative into something positive. I truly learned how to keep a positive gear.   

       As for Social Justice, I learned about the terrible parts of poverty and being poor. That class has made me want to care more and give as much as I can offer to the world. I think that every single human being in this world has a right to be warm, fed, and healthy. Not sick, cold and hungry.

       Now here's the part of Ilite that changed me entirely. Meet Stu Saunders, a youth comedian and one of the most entertaining people I have ever seen on stage. He was talking to us, being all fun and all, but he began to tell us a story. He told us a story about his parent's divorce. When he was just in grade eight, his Dad left the house, Stu was scared and he asked his brother what was going on, his brother told him that his father was leaving the house, and wasn't coming back.      

       By this point I was thinking about my parents and I was in tears, but then something hit me, I'm not alone. There are lots of kids out there that were or are going through the exact same thing as me. But the thing was that, Stu went through worse than I did, and he's happily married now with kids. If he made it, then so can I.

Holly

Monday February 6^th 2012

ILITE

                       A lot of people would say ILITE is about being a leader. It is, but I believe a little differently. I believe that ILITE is about being the best person you can possibly be, in every single way. ILITE is held at the Mother Teresa high school in Toronto and it is basically a leadership event for youths with many workshops teaching you about different parts of life. In my personal opinion, the stories and lessons learned there were very inspirational.
                        I took two classes about leadership. One was called 'Positive Gear' and the other was 'Teens in Social Justice'. In Positive Gear we learned about communicating without speaking, staying positive, and making a difference. I can honestly say that after that class, I started putting every negative into something positive. I truly learned how to keep a positive gear.
                              As for Social Justice, I learned about the terrible parts of poverty and being poor. That class has made me want to care more and give as much as I can offer to the world. I think that every single human being in this world has a right to be warm, fed, and healthy. Notsick, cold and hungry.
                                Now here's the part of Ilite that changed me entirely. Meet Stu Saunders, a youth comedian and one of the most entertaining people I have ever seen on stage. He was talking to us, being all fun and all, but he began to tell us a story. He told us a story about his parent's divorce. When he was just in grade eight, his Dad left the house, Stu was scared and he asked his brother what was going on, his brother
told him that his father was leaving the house, and wasn't coming back.
                By this point I was thinking about my parents and I was in tears, but then something hit me, I'm not alone. There are lots of kids out there that were or are going through the exact same thing as me. But the
thing was that, Stu went through worse than I did, and he's happily married now with kids. If he made it, then so can I.

Holly

Christmas Carol

Origanaity is Key
Holly
                       Be zany, or be zoink'd! Welcome to Zoink'd and I'm going to explain to you how to play. There are four judges from ten to twelve years old and the adult competitors have one minute to wow these kids. If not, you will get hit by confetti, golf balls, soft footballs or gew! You have to do something completely original and if three out of four judges zoink you, well good luck!
                      Blue tuque, green suspenders, and winning smile. Meet Wyse. Wyse is one of the judges in Zoink'd and I would have to say that he is a mix of outgoing and, not so outgoing. When it comes to voting and giving his opinions he's fine. But if you have a girl like me yelling "I love you Wyse!" he's going to blush a little. During the acts on Zoink'd he pulled the lever quite a few time's. I don't know if it's because he's not easily entertained or he just likes dumping gew on people. He is a boy so I'm going to assume the answer is a little bit of both. I will never forget when he shouted "I love you too!" back to me with that big, bright, grade six smile.
                              As an unknown author once said, "The soul becomes died with the colour of its thoughts." When I walked into the studio all the bright colours interested me very quickly. I went from boredom of waiting to, Wow! This place is exciting. There were two huge stands for the audience at each side. The center stage in the middle and the place where the judging happened was on a platform in front of the stage. The best part of the set was all the cameras and the square shaped tunnel over the stage where the gew would fall. The bright, happy colours kept me excited and it totally changed my mood.
                        As an unknown illustrator once said, "A dream doesn't come through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work." When I heard this quote I immediately thought about Zoink'd. I used to think that memorizing lines and filming scenes was easy. The truth is that the cast had to practice about three or four times until they got it right. I really found it interesting for these people to make those kinds of mistakes. I also found it amazing because they never gave up. It was never about it you fell down; all that mattered was weather you stood back up smiling.
                          As a wise poet used to say "Everyone wants happiness and nobody wants pain, but you can't get a rainbow, without some rain." Watching these hosts and judges made me really think about people being perfect. Even though these people may be in show business, living their dreams; their life isn't perfect. Some might have divorced parents or someone in their family might be really sick. I know for a fact that these people are just like you and I and they may not always have a high self-esteem. They get nervous, scared, happy, excited and they mightshed a tear once in a while. But that's okay because we're all human.
Be yourself, or be zoink'd!

Luke 16: 19-31

Holley

Wednesday November 30^th 2011

In this parable there was a rich man who lived in luxury and he dressed in fine, purple linen. There was also a poor beggar named Lazarus that kept faith in eating the bits of food that fell off the rich mans table. When Lazarus died he was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. When the rich man died he was in flames and needed Lazarus to help him. It turns out that when Lazarus needed food, the rich man let him die. So when the rich man needed him, he wasn't there to help him in his agony.

I think the moral of the story is to love others as you would love yourself. When Lazarus was in need the rich man didn't help him at all and left him to die from no food. But when the rich man was in need of Lazarus, he wasn't there to put him into comfort. If you're going to put others to suffer, you're eventually going to suffer too. What goes around comes around so you should care about others. One day that "no body beggar" is going to be bigger. Life gets better. It got better for Lazarus.

Under the Stars

Name: Holly

Date: November 24, 2011

November 14^th – 17^th 2011

                        Ponds, green grass, beautiful horses, bright stars and amazing moments. That's what Teen Ranch looks like. The reason I'm telling you this? People may see it differently but that's what was seen in my eyes. Teen Ranch was one hundred and fifty three acres of pure happiness. It was founded by some Christians about sixty three years ago. This Christian camp is nothing but fun and realizing new things about people. This experience brought me closer to people. The best four days of my life.

Food at Teen Ranch was a definite sensation that danced on my tongue whenever I had a meal in that wonderful dining hall. It tasted amazing and I got to try new foods. The food there was never too hot or too cold. It was always perfectly cooked. I know this might sound weird because we were supposed to sit with new people but I always sat with my friends and had a time to smile about. For almost every meal there I sat with my two friends Hannah and Adam. Whenever I ate at Teen Ranch I was excited to see which meal was going to come next. I was always well fed there and the meals kept me moving for hours. It was very satisfying.      

The Fact about cabin life is that it is never easy. The first night I was awake until midnight because my cabin buddies were up playing truth or dare. Then they woke me up at five in the morning because our neighbours Cabin four were thumping around next door. Showering wasn't exactly what I would call 'comfortable'. Sometimes the water was too hot and the next minute, it was freezing cold. In fact, it took at least ten minutes to get it just right. If you were in the shower, usually another person came in the washroom to help. But likely, you wouldn't always be wearing a towel. Awkward moments. In my opinion, getting everyone to be ready for bed on time was a little frustrating. With four people trying to shower and four others that need to brush their hair and teeth, I wouldn't exactly call it picture perfect.

Oscar was an amazing horse to ride during my turn for the horseback riding activity. He was about 1700 pounds with black, grey and white beautiful fur. There was no problem riding Oscar because he obeyed everything I said. Adams horse Mouse was the only problem I had because Mouse kept biting my horses behind. It was actually very entertaining and I had a lot of fun. The field of wheat was a wonderful sight to see. Skating was really something to feel like a beginner about. Even thought I was one of the only girls that knew how to skate, the boys still skated circles around me. Hide was about the only word I could think of for the game Predator and Prey, but left with five points I was sneaky and had a blast!

When I say love was the word that could make Teen Ranch as amazing as it could be, I really want to talk about the night time activities. After dinner when it was pitch black outside, our whole grade would bring out flashlights and glow sticks.  We all gave each other long, warm hugs and lied in the grass looking at the stars.  It made me realize how much everyone cares about each other. I felt like I was in a big, happy family that loves each other no matter what. Teen Ranch brought us all closer together. I will never forget this amazing trip!

This trip made me realize how lucky I am to have so many good friends that care about me. I could be in the best place on earth with the worst people. Or, I could be in the worst place on earth with the best people. Teen Ranch has really changed me and I'm grateful to have these people to be there for me when I fall...literally. There is no way I could describe how much I care about them. It's not where you are that matters; it's who you're with. As an unknown author once said, "The joy is in the journey".

Holley

The Biography of John McCrae

By Holley

       "We are the Dead. Short days ago we lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow." This was part of the second stanza that John McCrae wrote in his famous poem called "In Flanders Fields". This young surgeon John McCrae was born November 30^th 1872. He was born and raised in Guelph, Ontario. John used to live a fine life. He was educated in the University of Toronto and in the wonderful year of 1900 he was appointed in pathology (the study of disease) at the McGill University in Montreal. Later on after his studies, John became a physician at the Alexandra hospital and also became the assistant physician at The Royal Victoria hospital in Montreal. When World War l started in 1914, John was transferred to Boulogne No.3 General Hospital as officer in charge of medicine and during the war he would come and visit the scene to attend to the wounded comrades of his. John was very used to war when World War l came because he was in the Boer war in South Africa as the Artillery Subaltern. Sadly, John McCrae kept his position as the officer of medicine until his death. He died of Pneumonia at age 45, on January 28^th 1918 in Boulogne-Sur-Mer France. In my opinion, I think that John McCrae was a successful man in his life. It takes a lot of courage, commitment and love to accept war and die for the happiness of others. I know inside that I would be terrified to leave my family and watch my friends die on the battlefield. Hate is easy, but love takes courage.