Jilynn's Blog

Alone

That’s how you feel.

Lonely like a chair in the middle of a room,

full of desks.

You feel off or wrong,

like a cake baked with salt,

instead of sugar.

You go around thinking you’re nothing.

Just a waste of oxygen or space.

You feel as if you are nothing,

like falling through the universe,

no one cares,

no one is there to catch you,

no one is there to help you up.

Like a chair, it belongs with a desk.

We all deserve someone,

a friend,

but you are invisible,

alone

no more

original intellectual property of Jilynn

Note: This was my life when I moved back from Portugal. I knew no one and no one cared about me. I just hope that students around the world know that this is how new kids feel. So help new kids feel welcome. I just hope the new kids now are luckier than I was as a new kid.

-Jilynn Demerly

 

I was lost in my words.

My lies to big to chew or gnaw.

I was living a false life,

Under a fake law.

 

I was alone and forgotten,

It was empty and dark.

In a forsaken world.

Like dead black tree bark

 

There was a wonderful way,

I could go back.

Out of the ashes, 

Out of the rugged sack.

 

I told the truth.

I tried as I might,

And was forgiven at last.

Now I walk in the light.

Looks like shining lights and glittering ribbons.

Smells like gingerbread houses covered with gumdrops.

Sounds like jingle bells echoing through the night.

Tastes like crisp apple filling in a flaky crust.

Feels like a cozy happiness deep down in your heart.

 

Thanksgiving. What a beautiful time of year when the leaves are turning a crisp autumn brown, while crows caw in the hazy brown skies. I went into the kitchen where I found an amazing amount of smells. I could make out sweet honey drizzled over a powdered sugar bun. I rushed over to where the smell was coming from. I tripped over my dress and fell right next to Rose, our house maid who helped us cook the meals. It had been a long time since we have had a big feast. The Revolutionary war had been going for three years and the poor soldiers fighting for Virgina, like my father, were getting weaker and weaker. My father left his store to my brother Benjamin. My brother had made the choice to stop selling tea because of the King’s tax. All I could think about was my father out in the war. I wanted him to come home very much, but I knew he was doing something good fighting for our independence. I went downstairs to my mother where my sister,  Anna was playing with her doll. 

“Mother, when will Father come home?” I asked, hoping for a positive answer. 

“Now, Charlotte you know that your Father will come home when the war is done. Now go busy yourself with some other job.” 

I went up to my bedroom where I had left my needle point. I decided I would leave this awful sowing and go help Rose in the kitchen. I went down the stairs, tripping over my petticoat and nearly falling on my head. I met Rose in the kitchen shortly and got to work making Thanksgiving dinner. The turkey was being soaked in a bath of spices in the sink and I could almost taste warm mashed potatoes melting in my mouth. I went to work, motivating myself on the meal to come. 

 

                                     ****************************

 

That night I went to bed feeling content on what would happen the next day. I had visions of yams dancing in my head. Right in the middle of my dream, I was startled awake by Mother, crying and holding little Anna in her arms. 

“Charlotte! The house is on fire! You have to wake up!”

I rushed out of bed. The blazes of fire crawled into my room like a lion searching for prey to devour.  I started to climb out the window with my family, but before I did, I had just enough time to grab my christmas present to my father before it burst into flames. I jumped out of the window and ran as fast as I could. My family was close behind. When we got far away from the fire, we took a roll call. Everyone was there, but the house. We missed our home and our belongings. It was very dreadful time, but we managed to make it out alive. We went to bed on the streets that night. All I could think about that night was the Thanksgiving dinner planned. I awoke that morning with the aroma of roast turkey filling the air as everyone put their stuffed turkeys in their ovens so they would be tasty and well cooked for their overflowing table of tidbits and side dishes. It was then that I realized, what started the fire in the first place? I approached Mother slowly.

“Mother, why did the house catch fire? Does Father know about the fire?”

Mother came to me with tears in her eyes, while my baby sister lay in arms, unaware of the circumstances.

“Dear, I went to go get some water for Ben when he came home after he closed the store and when I got into the kitchen, someone cracked our window and broke it. They then proceeded to throw a torch in our house and burn the wood floors. I tried to stop it but by the time I had gotten the water, the fire had multiplied and quickly spread through most of the house. I was able to get everyone and jump out of your window in time before the house burned down. I really know how much it hurts darling.”

 I suddenly grew angry. It felt like someone was stabbing my heart and never stopping. I wanted to kick the wall, but there was no wall to kick. I then started crying. I cried for a long time, but then I had a sudden idea. The story of the pilgrims crept into my head. I then thought of all the people during the first thanksgiving that were not with the pilgrims. The people in other parts of America. They were just like us and they had a right to be thankful. I jumped up and stood right where my family could see me. I cleared my throat and I started to speak.

“I’m thankful! I’m thankful for Mother. I’m thankful that Father is still alive and is doing something right. I’m thankful for Ben. I’m thankful for Anna and Rose and the street we live on. I’m thankful!”

Then Mother stood up and whispered gently, 

“I’m thankful too. I’m thankful for you. I’m thankful for all of you.” 

Then everyone started saying that they were thankful. Just as we finished our speeches, I saw someone walking down the road. I wondered who it could be. No one was on the streets on thanksgiving day. Unless…

I raced over to see who it was and just as I got to the fountain I knew who it was. It was my father. He came running up to me and threw me up in a hug that felt like it lasted for a thousand years. That hug should have never ended. The feeling of joy I had was bigger than all of the universe. I never wanted to let go, but as I saw my mother start tearing up I knew life would go back to normal, even if we lived on the streets. 

 

                                      **********************************

 

We all settled around the Thanksgiving table in silence. We all thought of the dreadful year we had and especially what had happened last thanksgiving. It then reminded me about something. I ran upstairs to my new bedroom and went back with the present for my Father that almost burned in the fire. It had some ashes and a bit was burned off, but when he opened the sampler I had made him of his favorite verse, I knew that even though it was burned on the side, he loved it no matter what had happened to it. That thanksgiving was just the start. We all remembered that thanksgiving. Now, when you come into our home, if you look extra close, you’ll find a family grateful of what they love the most.

My oldest brother thinks my name means 

“a constant consumer”

My other brother thinks my name means

“the best to argue with”

My best friend thinks my name means 

“energetic” and “makes my day”

My old english teacher thinks my name means 

“hyper”

My new english teacher thinks my name means 

“english lover”

My books think my name means

“never ending reading”

A random kid at my church thinks my name means

“unicorn hater”

I think they left out a couple things like

“fancy about fireflies” and 

“wants to save the orphans” and

“worries about math class” and

“Just wants to read by my favorite oak tree”

 

Rain

Somber, Black

Pounding, Piercing, Descending

Clouds, Thunder, Summer, Sand

Scorching, Burning, Tanning

Hot, Peaceful

Sun

On Monday, May 21 my elementary school had a British street party in honor of the Royal Wedding of Prince Henry Charles Albert David and Meghan Markle.

The street party has a dance called the Maypole dance which is a dance that includes a pole with a bunch of ribbons attached to it. You hold on to the ribbons, one per person, and dance with the ribbons. We watched a video about it. The 1st and 2nd grade teacher helped us because she is from England. She numbered us so when she called our number we would do something in the dance. We did it twice. It was my favorite part of the day!

Next, we did a game called “Welly Wanging”. The way you play is see who could throw their “welly” (rain boot) the furthest. You always have a opponent to play against. My opponent was Aliyah and I won! Then the teachers played. My teacher, Mrs. Moehring won! it was amazing!

Then we had British snacks. We had UFO candies, Shortbread, Fairy cakes, and popcorn. UFO candies are candies that taste like Styrofoam then there’ s a sweet and sour dust inside. Shortbread looks like dog treats but taste like cookies. Fairy cakes are cupcakes that have pieces of cupcake that look like fairy wings on top of the cupcake. It tastes delicious.

The Royal street party was a success. Everyone loved it. I hope they do it next year.

(2018). [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.google.pt/search?q=Lewis+and+Clark+images+public+domain&rlz=1C1PRFI_enPT761PT761&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiJt-ueppnbAhVmOpoKHfi-B5kQ_AUICigB&biw=1500&bih=756#imgrc=OrZc-ZlJ6TcXMM:

August 18, 1774, Ivy, Virginia: Lucy and Lt. William Lewis had Meriwether Lewis. In this report, you will be hearing about Meriwether Lewis’ childhood, life, preparation, a great expedition that he went on, his friends, and the last years of his life.  I guess you’re wondering what’s happening. Let me tell you.

Meriwether Lewis had an adventurous childhood. He was named by Lucy, his mother, because her maiden name was Meriwether. He also had one brother, Reuben, and two sisters, Jane and Lucinda. When Meriwether was growing up, he loved to hunt and gather herbs and plants for his mother’s homemade medicine. Meriwether loved to explore the outdoors. Because of a death, he lived with several different families. Lt. William Lewis died from pneumonia when Meriwether was five years old. His mother was remarried to Captain John Marks, and she later had John and Mary, Meriwether’s half-siblings. Then the family moved to Georgia. Meriwether’s childhood helped him prepare for his life soon to come.

Later in his life, Meriwether became a secretary for President Thomas Jefferson, a family friend. This is somewhat amusing because Meriwether was an awful speller. In 1803, President Jefferson asked Meriwether Lewis to be the leader of an expedition through the West. Meriwether was selected for this position because he was a very skilled person. He loved to write and explore. He had learned how to be a doctor. He also loved nature. President Jefferson told Meriwether to find a helper. Secretly, he chose a friend to co-lead the expedition. It took a long time to plan and prepare.

In order to prepare, Meriwether Lewis had to go through a lot of science classes before he left. He went to classes with Dr. Benjamin Rush to learn more about zoology and how to care for the body in extreme conditions. After a lot of hard work, he finally was prepared to go on this hazardous adventure.

Meriwether didn’t go on this adventure alone. He was with William Clark. He also had Clark’s strong black slave named York. When Meriwether left with William, their task was to find a waterway to the Pacific Ocean. A few days into the expedition, Meriwether found a flower. He was so intrigued by the flower that he almost lost his life by falling down a cliff. As he explored, he and his trusty dog, Seaman, found plants and other specimens. They also met new friends.

Midway through the journey, the explorers met 16-year-old Sacajawea (Sa/gag/u/wea) who was an addition to the expedition. She was about to give birth to Jean Baptiste. Sacajewea was married to Toussaint Charbonneau who was a French trader. Toussaint was lazy, so they did not take him. Instead, the expedition took Sacajawea who was very hard working. Sacajewea’s help made the expedition successful which led to a promotion in the last years of his life.

After Meriwether returned from the exploration, he became governor of the Louisiana Purchase in the last years of his life. Shortly after, he unfortunately, started drinking and had to resign his position as governor. Sadly, he died on October 12, 1809. Some people think he committed suicide. Some think he was murdered.

Meriwether Lewis’ childhood, life, preparation, expedition, friends, and last years of his life helped make him famous. His mapping of the western country helped President Jefferson and all who considered moving. Nobody knows for sure what happened to him, but he lived a life that encouraged people to move west.

 

 

Bibliography

Blumberg, Rhoda. The Incredible Journey of Lewis and Clark. Broadway, NY: Scholastic Inc., 1987

Hakim, Joy. A History of United States The New Nation. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2005

“Lewis, Meriwether”. Britannica Junior Encyclopedia. 9. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc. : William Brenton, 1970

https://www.biography.com/people/meriwether-lewis-9381267

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meriwether_Lewis

May 10, 2018, at 1:00 P.M., our concert opened. I stood in the line trembling with fear, but let me take you back a bit and start from the beginning.

I guess your wondering where we’ll start, let me tell you. The most challenging part of the concert preparations, for me, was our dance. I was back in the United States when the rest of my class learned the first part of a dance to go with the song “You are Good”. It was extra hard for me to try to catch up when I returned. Through a lot of practice, I finally learned the steps. When my class and I had finished learning the dance it took a long time to remember and practice it. Our last rehearsal was the worst ever! We were pretty bad and one kid fell off the stage! He was fine, but it was really bad. What will happen? Keep reading to find out!

Next, I will tell you the most fun part about the concert. I love to sing about ALL sorts of stuff, but this was different. We sang 3 songs. The first song had a fun happy melody. Next we sang a song that was a round, during which our class sang three songs at the same time! Lastly, we sang a song about God, our King, and how much He loves us. We messed up a lot, but we worked to make it our songs concert worthy. Continue reading to find out what will happen next.

I really like this part because it shows about an accomplishment that I feel good about. I practiced my piano piece with my mom. I had a lot of struggles, but I found a way to play my song correctly. I played it nicely in the rehearsal, but what do you think happened in the concert?

Now I’m back, at the start of our concert, trembling in line. The music started, I ran in and started the opening dance. The kids didn’t fall off the stage, and my friends danced perfectly. Next came piano, I waited for my turn, and when I went to the piano, I played it perfectly. Lastly, came the songs. I sang with all my heart and soul. It went fine. I was relieved when our GLCA concert was finished and that it had gone so well.

There is an old lady named Cat.

Who needed a wing of a bat.

The bat said bye,

That made her cry.

And that’s why she started this chat.

 

 

There was a really small bunny.

Who liked to eat yellow honey.

But it was dry,

Don’t ask me why.

So she bought some honey with money.