Reflection

I really thought that this portfolio was a great way to look back on the last two years of being in Menemac and really admiring what I had achieved. I liked this last one especially because it was my offcially last one, and I liked looking at how much I've grown since freshman year. The skills I've learned in Menemac will help me all throughout the next half of my highschool years and beyond.
-Mom and Dad feel free to look at and comment on my GLO portfolio. :)
~Angela

Journal #31- My Passion

1. My passion is dancing. After 9 years of dancing I have discovered that it is something that I have grown to love. Through the hardships and pain comes through the passion that lies underneath. Every week I cannot wait to get into the studio and feel that adrenalin rush I get from getting my leap higher, or my turns faster. This is my passion.

2. My epxperiences with this passion have been, to be honest pretty minimal. I would, do mall performances and little community event performances. But I really haven't taken to the next level. But I have experienced pain, frustation, and satisfaction after dancing for all these years. I also, experienced dissapointment and a difficult transition form one studio to the next. But this summer I plan to take dancing to the next step and compete with my dance team in the Spot Light Reigonals.

3. In the future I want to take this passion and use it to get into college. I want to possibly get a dancing scholorship to USC, or Berkley. I want to take this passion and challenge myself with it. Pushing myself to take new classes and learn harder tricks. Also I want to learn different styles of dance from around the world and expand my knowledge of the history of dance. I hope to someday travel the world through dance. Even if I don't dance for a living I want to always keep on dancing and have it be a part of my life for many more years to come.

The Brown Couch- This I believe FINAL

I've always been the quiet girl. The shy one. The type of girl who "won't talk to someone unless they started to talk to me first" . I guess I've always been content with that. Going with the flow of life, taking opportunities as they come to me, never really seeking them out for myself. I've always thought that if it didn't come to me than it wasn't meant to be.
So, most people don't really know this but I'm a dancer. I have been since I was 5 years old, doing passes' at the barre in that one small studio by the air port. But nowadays I'm in a much bigger studio, and it's practically been my second home. It wasn't always like that though. I was the new girl for some time. It was all so intimidating to me. I remember seeing girls running back and forth from studio A to studio B rushing to change into other shoes or to grab a quick bite, and some would chill outside on the big brown comfy couches in the lounge. And there was me. The awkward girl who'd stare at her phone to make like I had was to busy to talk to the other dancers. Yet secretly hoping someone would come and talk to me. Though of course this would only happen in a perfect world. No one really did ever come up to me. I guess at the time it was expected that this would happen. Again I became content with the silence. It was life, if it's meant to be it's meant to be. This I believed.
But then came the night when the brown couches weren't being bombarded with tons of other dancers. Only with Stefanie quietly reading her book. She looked serene and calm, probably totally into that book of her's. I just remember thinking "talk to her, whats the worst that could ever happen?". After I had put my stuff down I took a seat next her on that brown couch. Something about that couch seemed snuggly and almost inviting, just so comfy. At first she seemed surprised that I sat next to her, but after a while she seemed happy that I started to talk to her about school and choreography and what not. In some ways I felt that she was just like me, quiet, shy, and some what content with being this way. Once I got her talking she was one of the sweetest funniest girls I've ever met. I guess I have to thank that brown couch for calling me to come and sit down and talk to a fellow dancer.
After that night, I became more comfortable in the studio. Being able to talk to more people, and just open up and let me shine through my shy facade. Nowadays I get remarks like "Angie, I didn't know you were so cool." And I'm happy, and I'm content with that. After that night I realized that sometimes you have to make things happen for yourself if you want to live a full life. Because if you wait around for things to come, you'll just be mediocre. I never want to be left waiting in the wings, but instead out the the stage soaking in all the excitement. This I believe.

LC 3 - Angela, Kiara, Ciara

Reader Response: Tim O'brien

Tim O'brien carried with him guilt. He carried with him the guilt of killing a man, who probably had hopes and dreams like the any other soldier in the war. A man who wanted the war to end just as quickly as anyone else. Tim carried the guilt of taking away everything this soldier had. 

The event that focuses on Tim O'brien focuses on the one night watch where he kills the soldier. He kills him, without even thinking about it. It seemed almost automatic to him, to throw the grenade. But the years and the morning that followed were filled with guilt and remorse. On pg. 124 he describes the sight of the dead man; the soldier he had killed. He describes how one eye was shut, and another a star shaped circle. The way he looked clean and how dainty he seemed to look. He describes this sight all throughout the chapter "The Man I Killed." He then starts to think about the man and what kind of life he might of had. On pg. 125 he explains how maybe he'd lye on his back and hope that someday he may be brave enough to fight in the war like his uncle's and his father. And about how maybe he had the hopes of being a math teacher, and having the hope of someday making it all come true. 

Lastly, I gained insight that the Tim O'brien, had come out of the war as one of the lucky ones. He had made the transistion from war to peace smoothly. But still, after all those years he can carry the guilt of the war and the burden of always knowing that he killed a man, and took away everything from him. The insight that was gained about the war was that it almost becomes an automatic thing. A duty that a soldier has to fulfill, not something that gives you a sense of valor or strength. Just something they had to do. Finally, the insight that was gained about life is that, even though life still goes on. The scars and the stories from the past always stick with you no matter what.   

The Brown Couch- This I believe draft

I've always been the quiet girl. The shy one. The type of girl who "won't talk to someone unless they started to talk to me first" . I guess I've always been content with that. Going with the flow of life, taking opportunities as they come to me, never really seeking them out for myself. I've always thought that if it didn't come to me than it wasn't meant to be.
So, most people don't really know this but I'm a dancer. I have been since I was 5 years old, doing passes' at the barre in that one small studio by the air port. But nowadays I'm in a much bigger studio, and it's practically been my second home. It wasn't always like that though. I was the new girl for some time. It was all so intimidating to me. I remember seeing girls running back and forth from studio A to studio B, and some would chill outside on the big brown comfy couches in the lounge. And there was me. The awkward girl who'd stare at her phone to make like I had was to busy to talk to the other dancers. Yet secretly hoping someone would come and talk to me. Though of course this would only happen in a perfect world. No one really did ever come up to me. I guess at the time it was expected that this would happen. Again I became content with the silence. It was life, if it's meant to be it's meant to be. This I believed.
But then came the night when the brown couches weren't being bombarded with tons of other dancers. Only with Stefanie quietly reading her book. I just remember thinking "talk to her, whats the worst that could ever happen?". After I had put my stuff down I took a seat next her on that brown couch. Something about that couch seemed snuggly and almost inviting, just so comfy. At first she seemed surprised that I sat next to her, but after a while she seemed happy that I started to talk to her about school and choreography and what not. In some ways I felt that she was just like me, quiet, shy, and some what content with being this way. Once I got her talking she was one of the sweetest funniest girls I've ever met. I guess I have to thank that brown couch for calling me to come and sit down and talk to a fellow dancer.
After that night, I became more comfortable in the studio. Being able to talk to more people, and just open up and let me shine through my shy facade. Nowadays I get remarks like "Angie, I didn't know you were so cool." And I'm happy, and I'm content with that. After that night I realized that sometimes you have to make things happen for yourself if you want to live a full life. Because if you wait around for things to come, you'll just be mediocre. I never want to let life pass me by, because taking "the bull by the horns" is way cooler, and much more exciting, then letting the bull come to you on it's own time. So this I believe.

Persephone- final

Being down here
Engulfed by all this doubt
pain, and defeat.
Isn't so lovely.

Drowning in the dark
I'm trying to find myself
Through all the hardships
and tiring struggles
It's a constant battle.

But still I push on.
I say to myself
Don't ever give up hope.
But at times that seem hopeless.
I'm beaten and aching
I'm dying inside.

Searching for the light at the
end of this long tunnel.
Searching for freedom.
No matter what.
I push on.

And so here I am.
It is quite bright.
And it's beckoning me.
To come up and rise
from the darkness of
defeat once again.

This I Believe- Brainstorming....Journal #30

Beliefs:
You can't live a full life if you wait around for great things to happen to you. You have to make them happen for yourself.
Story: dance class; being the first to talk to some one, and make friends
Work hard for the things you want in life
Story: ballet, dance class, making it on dance team
Life is unexpected, you have to roll with it.

PERSEPHONE GRAPHIC

Persephone

Being down here
Engulfed by all this doubt
pain, and defeat
Isn't so lovely.

Drowning in the dark
I have been taken.
I run but can't seem to
find a way out.

I push on.
But can't seem to stay
on my feet long enough.
But still I go on.

Searching for the light at the
end of this long tunnel.
Searching for freedom.

And so here I am.
It is quite bright.
And it's beckoning me.
To come up and rise
from the darkness of
defeat once again.

Allusive poem brain stroming

I think that for my allusive poem I would like to reference the goddess Persephon, I'd like to Persephon, because she was the goddess of spring. And even though she was abducted by Hades of the Under world she still kept her head high and never gave up hope.
I think my allusive poem would be about how I am like her, in the way that I never give up. I will probably show that no matter how tough and hopeless things seem I will stick it out and always look on the bright side.

Journal 20-A Dead End

The government has been constantly "bullying" the education fund, and public school children. With the constant budget cuts, furlough fridays, and now our school lunch being upped to $2.20. Yes, we are in a recession and money is low, but there are other ways to make up for the low budget. For example, instead of just making schools pay for the budget short falls, why not just up the taxes. Our governor had refused to do so, so now it left teachers with no other choice than to take furlough fridays over lay offs. With all of these budget cuts, all of us students are suffering, and not getting the best education we can get. When there are less days in the week teachers cram lessons and it becomes harder for us to really understand the concepts. It has become harder to keep track of our work and get help when we need it. The constant bullying on the education has to stop. It is just hurting the schools and has given us a dead end.