My name is Joseph DePrince and I’m your typical college student at NYU. I try to do the best thing possible. But honestly my life changed in a matter of seconds. First I was laughing with family and friends and then next thing you know I’m sitting behind bars for a crime I didn’t commit. The story that you are about read is my story. My story of when my life got rough. But in the end there was light at the end of the…
People take their lives for granted too easily today. We do not know when something could happen to us or a loved one. Unexpected events take place to people all the time. In the book Forgotten Fire Adam Bagdasarian tells the real life story of how his uncle survived the Armenian Genocide in 1915. Vahan Kenderian, Adam’s uncle, was only twelve when many events started occurring. These events were unexpected and tragic in many ways to not only Vahan and his family, but also all of the Armenians. In a short time, Vahan lost his home and family and, to survive he was forced to live a life he could never have dreamed of. He went through many struggles and saw many horrors that a boy of that age should not have to go through or should have seen. Though, most of these events were very traumatic and life altering, Vahan was able to learn important life lessons as a result of the events. He was a strong and confident young boy and even through all of the hard times he still remained strong and was able to grow not only physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. The three most crucial events that helped him learn life lessons were when he witnessed his two older brothers’ murders, meeting a girl named Seranoush who became his friend, and how he had to work hard and fight for a place to live and survive.…
Lives are taken and hope seemed to be lost in the unforgiving claws of war. Even if the thousands of children who were forced to witness and take part in the atrocities of the Sierra Leone civil war escaped with their lives, they weren’t able to escape with their innocence. Seeing bodies mutilated by gunshots and severed limbs on the street on a daily basis is enough to scar any child. Ishmael Beah was one of the many whose childhood was abruptly taken away from him during the war. Fear ruled over the children’s minds as the tragedies they saw each day consumed their lives.…
On a cold night, a young mother drives home from a stressful day as a social worker. Her love for kids keeps a smile on her face everyday day no matter the weather. The neighborhood was very quiet and a huge wind whistle the crack door of her house. “That boy always forgetting to close the door,” she said. Ms. Emerson open the door suddenly had her worst dream. A young man lying with blood pouring through his chest. She put her hand mouth to stop a loud bursting scream. A river pouring through her red eyes and her heart pounding through her. An awful smell invaded her nostril which cause her to faint but through her mind she is hoping she is having a nightmare.…
Imaginative writing- a poem or rap revealing the story of a survivor of a terrorist act…
This story was over all a really good story I recommend it to anyone who likes love and anguishes stories. These way of life probably as happened to someone out there and if so that must really…
As a child, he makes a number of major mistakes and terrible choices. But that’s a part of growing up. Amir learned from his rough past not to make the same mistakes twice. He learned that inner conflict must be confronted. He learned that in this world, everything does not come easy. He learned that intermittently a person has to stand firm what is right, even if everyone is against them. He learned not to take things for granted. All in all, he learned how to fight back. Amir’s bumpy past truly compelled him to appreciate his present day existence. Without problems people would not appreciate the enjoyable times they have as much or they would not be as memorable. This book has opened my eyes. I have not had a terrible life, although I have definitely had my ups and downs. When I was four I lost my father, it was a difficult time for considering I was young and it seemed as though just as I was learning more about him he was taken from me. “Good night Khalil, I love you and I’ll see you in the morning, now go to bed.” Those are the last words my dad said to me. I still become extremely emotional every time I remember them because I went to sleep expecting to wake up with two parents and that was not the case when I woke up. After that night I never took another thing for granted because nothing is guaranteed. I live and savor every second…
Young people often do not know what to expect of the future. They do not know how to act when something unexpected comes along, and their actions are based on what they do know; usually limited, biased information. This idea is central to the short story, ʺWar,ʺ by Timothy Findley. The young boy, Neil Cable, narrates the day he found out his father had joined the army. He speaks of his actions, feelings, and confusion surrounding that day. At first glance, his actions are all too often misinterpreted as violence and hatred, but after careful consideration, one can see that they are merely his way of dealing with the troubling news. He has not experienced enough in his lifetime to have a true understanding of war, and acts upon what he does know. In the short story, ʺWarʺ, by Timothy Findley, the young boy’s image of war and actions throughout are explained through the use of symbolism.…
This story has some events of how it shaped my worldview, one day you could just be in your daily routine and then the next you're in a totally different place and don’t even know what’s what or what to do. The world is changing, it’s a scary place but it also can be good or bad depending on how you choose to look and react to it, the world is unpredictable. Things will eventually get better, but things happen so you have to be prepared. Life is going to challenge you, but you have to take it by the hand and fight to win the…
It was 115 degrees; the platoon was walking through the middle of the desert each of them with 40 pounds of gear on and an M16A2 rifle. It was summer time in the country of Afghanistan and the temperature was rising. At this point I asked myself what the hell I am doing here and why did I join the United States Army? Right when I was thinking that I felt a tug on my leg and there stood a young boy about 7 years old with only one arm, “Candy,Candy” he asked. Upon speaking with the local villagers we found out that his arm was taken from an improvised explosive device (IED) planted there by the rebeles that wanted to “rid their country of the weak”. That is when it occurred to me that I was here to protect my country from those that think that we are weak.…
O’Briens “How to Tell a True War Story”, is a compilation of war stories and some experiences that men have had while away from home, at war during a battle. The theme of O’Briens short story is to always look at the positive side of all things that may happen in one’s life. There is a positive side in every single action that takes place in people’s lives. O’Brien tries to explain a war story as best as he can but, most believe that to actually know the events that happened and how gory or pleasant each little thing was, one must experience it themselves.…
Young readers will be drawn to this story because of the vivid picture it creates of a violent, war-torn world which they know exists but which they struggle to even imagine. This book presents the stark reality of what life can be like for young people growing up in a country where extreme poverty and bloody wars make their lives into a constant struggle for survival.…
This memoir provides a first hand view on how modern day wars are now fought. At the age of 12 -the author- Ishmael Beah’s village in the country of Sierra Leone in north-western Africa was attacked by the rebels. Ripped away from his family; he spends two years fleeing from the war in a group of seven young boys. Each day they struggle to survive. In time Ishmael becomes one of the people he feared most: a killing machine hyped up drugs and handed an AK47. The marijuana and cocaine are everyday staples that provide the courage to engage in killing as well as suppress all emotions. During this time his family in killed, in which he realizes that everyone in an enemy. This is his reality for two more years. In the spring of 1996 the lieutenant sends him and a few other boy soldiers away with UNICEF representatives. He is relocated to a rehabilitation center in Freetown - Sierra Leone’s capital- where he resides for six months. Here he receives extensive counseling, therapy, and medical care with the ultimate goal of reshaping these war-traumatized young men into productive members of society. He is then released to his last known family member - an uncle who lives with his family of five in the capitol. Short after, Ishmael is invited to speak to the United Nations in New York City along with other children affected by war from 23 other countries. After the conference he returns home only to soon discover war under the country's new leader and is then present at the death of his uncle. Alone, he flees the country and at 16 is adopted by a storyteller he me in New York.…
Despite what the man thinks, the boy almost always convinces him to do what is right. He and the man see an elderly man whose “name” they find out is Ely. The man does not want to help Ely and urges the boy to leave. On the other hand, the boy insists that they help this poor man.…
His father and mother never love him. One day, he ran away from home and he leaned many things in the trip, but when he learned the skill from the people, the people always whispered against him.…