Danielle


 * Place Piece **

I've lived in the same place since I was born. There are a lot of memories there, fourteen years worth actually. I could pick a bunch of memories like when I came home from the hospital and had a yard card, or watching fireworks in the cul-de-sac, or thinking my neighbors dog toy was a bomb for the longest time. No I didn't choose those, I chose the one where I went surfing! Across the street is a hill. It's not big, but it is steep. I was playing outside with my little brother and his friends. Actually it was more like me and my friend Nathalie were watching him trying to slide down the hill on his skateboard. This was about the time that my next door neighbor, Mr.John, came outside to hit golf balls in his yard. He was out there for about 10 minutes when he realized my brother needed help. He walked over and said what are trying to do and he answered and then he walked away. Mr.John came back with a bunch of folded cardboard boxes. We all had confused expressions. He said I used to do this all the time when I was kid. Of course my brother was the first one to try. He put it down on the grass and jumped on. Sliding down the hill, he slipped off and had grass stains everywhere. The second time he ran into the fence. So Zach's friends tried it and then Nathalie and I tried. It was so much fun. We were sliding down the for hours until we had to go inside for dinner. This is one of my favorite memories I have with Mr.John. He died a couple weeks later, so this is a very special memory I have of him and the whole neighborhood now has folded cardboard boxes in their hose.

A Zoom Lens

The blind man, unaware of his surroundings, limped down the street. The moon was full, since there was a faint glow shining down upon him. But he couldn't see it. The house behind him was big, white and quiet. The man groaned as he limped, for he was in pain. He tried to escape last night, but it didn't work out. Last night he had it a little easier, he wasn't limping. But after he was caught last night, he's had a limp. The cane, rough on his already calloused hands, was given to him by the people in the house. That was the nicest thing they've done for him, although he needed the cane because of them. Walking was a challenge now, especially with a limp and a cane, but down a hill was tough for anyone. He heard a door slam and became frantic. He ran as fast a cripple could and hid in a bush near by. He became a little calmer until the owners dog came running at him full speed. Turning his head, he saw the dog followed by the man who beat him last night and was caught.



Personal Essay #1


 * I've lived in the same place since I was born. The neighbors around haven’t changed much. The things that have changed the most are bigger trees, newer cars in the driveways, and faded black tops. There are a lot of memories there, fourteen years’ worth actually, like watching fireworks in the cul-de-sac on my birthday, going on rock collecting adventures, bomb hunting and surfing. The neighborhood really shaped who I’ve become today as a person. Many of my neighbors came to my house when I came home from the hospital, came to my first birthday, we went trick-or-treating, and had backyard parties. I learned a lot from those memories like community and being there for someone. There are quite a few people that taught me some very important life lessons.**


 * Mr. John, a dearly missed neighbor of mine gave me some helpful tips in my life like being neighborly, being a part of a community, and teaching me and my brother easy ways to have fun: like surfing. Across the street from my house is a hill. It's not big, but it is steep. I was playing outside with my little brother and his friends. Actually it was more like me and my friend Nathalie were watching him trying to slide down the hill on his skateboard. This was about the time that Mr. John came outside to hit golf balls in his yard. He was out there for about 10 minutes when he realized my brother needed help. He walked over and said what are you trying to do and Zach answered and then he walked away. Mr. John came back with a bunch of folded cardboard boxes. We all had confused expressions. He said I used to do this all the time when I was kid. Of course my brother was the first one to try. He put the folded up box down on the grass and jumped on it. Sliding down the hill, he slipped off the box and had grass stains everywhere. The second time he ran into the fence. So Zach's friends tried it and then Nathalie and I tried. It was so much fun. We were sliding down the hill for hours until we had to go inside for dinner. This is one of my favorite things to do when we have cardboard boxes to use. He really taught me how to fun with a bunch of random things.**
 * Mr. John always came outside to hit golf balls. When he did Zach and I would sometimes go outside. He never got annoyed when we did. And looking back I’m surprised he didn’t because I’m positive we were annoying. But no, he never did that. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever seen him mad. He wasn’t the type of person to get mad or just burst out in anger. Anyway, when we went over there we would talk to him and have a conversation. Later Zach and I would leave. He was a very friendly man. When he walked out to get the mail and someone was outside, he would wave and say hi and just be neighborly. I kind of caught on to that and starting waving at people, I knew or didn’t know, in the neighborhood. I guess he was like the neighborhood role model. Everyone knew him and talked to him. I mean that’s what a neighborhood is about, right? Getting to know people that lived in the area and befriending them. He was definitely an influence on my childhood.**


 * In life we have new neighbors. I know I have has some different people living a couple doors down. There are only a couple that have really stayed there and watched the neighborhood develop into a greater community. Mr. John has not only seen the neighborhood develop, but the people he lives by grow up. I feel like he made the biggest impact on my life as a neighbor. I pretty sure he made a big impact on the whole community, but I feel he made a very long lasting effect on me. I still wave at people that pass by, even though it’s been four years since I last saw him.**

Practice SAT **To move up the ladder of success, you must not forget the past. The past is what reminds you of why your here, how you got here, who helped you get you here, and what you planned to do here. Your life is like a trilogy. Past, present, and future. To get what's happening in the present and what might happen in the future, you need the past. The past is like the first book in the Hunger Games. Your not going to start reading Catching Fire before you read The Hunger Games.** **Memories help people learn from the past. You need to learn from your mistakes. That is the number one way people learn. When I started to play tennis, my ball kept soaring over the baseline. It was like that for a little while. One night at tennis i really watched how I hit the ball. Then I tried to hold the racket a different way. I did, then I hit the ball and it went over the net perfectly with topspin and landed in the court. I had memories of hitting it and when I tried hitting it a different way, I hit it just fine. I learned from my mistakes. If I had just put the past away I never would've realized the way I was hitting the ball was wrong.** **Memories do hinder us of our past. If we forget the past, put it aside, we wouldn't get very fa in life. Certain things wouldn't trigger in our brain and poof, we wouldn't remember something that could help us now.**