A Publication of The Pennsylvania State University Volume 2

The Best of Four

Volume #2

Making Connections and Examining Our Myths

Faculty Editor

Jim Manis
Student Editors

Jim Pinkstone
&

Christopher White
The Best of Four is a publication of The Pennsylvania State University. The Pennsylvania State University is an equal opportunity university.

Best of Four: The Students Choice

No. 2 1997
How to contact Best of Four
You can contact Best of Four by writing to Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, Best of Four, The Pennsylvania State University, Hazleton, PA 18201-1291. Or phone 717.450.3189 Or Fax 717.450l.3182 Or Email jdm12@psu.edu For the latest, visit our web site:
www2.hn.psu.edu/faculty/ jmanis.htm

Contents
5 ............................................................................................... How to Use This Magazine 6 .................................................................................................... What Is College Writing? 7 ........................................................................................................... The Writing Process 8 ............................................................................................................. Writing for a Public 10 .............................................................................. Bostons Treasure by Julio Rodriguez 11 ..................................................................................... Life is a Beach by Gerard Delisio 13 ................................................................................................ Dreamland by Mat Ciprich 14 ............................................................................... The Central Hotel by Jacob Gerhard 15 ....................................................................... My Hero, Uncle Bob by Deirdre Haubert 16 ............................................................................ Low Fat, Fat Free by Deborah Gaffney 17 .................................................................................... Teen Drug Abuse by Bryce Potzer 19 ...................................................................................................... Trust by Julie Leshock 21 ........................................................................ A True Problem Child by Scott Turkelson 22 .......................................................... My Experience in Health Care by Brandy Knoebel 24 ............................................................................... Domestic Violence by Julie Pellegrini 25 .......................................................................................... Youth Violence by Brad Smith 27 ......................................................................................... The Stereotype by Joel Rivera 28 ............................................................................................... Athletes by Michael Benfer 29 ............................................................................. The Art of Lying by Salena Mrozinski 30 .......................................................... My Greatest Football Memory by Robert Sawicki 31 ........................................................................................... Rock Climbing by Bree Black 32 .................................................................. Why I Believe In Ghosts by Jennifer Standen 33 ....................................................................................... The Championship by Jeff Klein 34 ......................................................................................... The Drab Room by Kristy Rice 35 .............................................................................................. Questions by Kim Devaney 37 ............................................................................ Drugs and Peer Pressure by Mike Reilly 38 ....................................................................................................... Coming up with Ideas

The Best of Four: The Students Choice is a publication of the Pennsylvaia State University. All the student essays contained herein were produced by students registered in English 004 on the Hazleton campus during the fall semester of 1996, and the essays appear here with their written consent. The Best of Four wishes to offer special thanks to Dr. Monica Gregory, Director of Academic Affairs, for her assistance in bringing this project to fruition. The Best of Four: The Students Choice, the Pennsylvania State University, Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, Hazleton, PA 18201-1291, is a non-profit publication of The Pennsylvania State University. Copyright 1997 The Pennsylvania State University. The Pennsylvania State University is an equal opportunity university.

How to Use This Magazine

Welcome to the second volume of the Best of Four. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we have enjoyed bringing it to you. The primary purpose of Best of Four is to bring the best writing produced in English 004 to the widest possible audience. Our students have important stories to tell and powerful voices waiting to be harnessed. The students who read these essays will learn that they too have permission to state what is important to them in a public voice. In addition to inspiring our students, we also hope the magazine will direct them to the sources they will need to access, if they are to achieve mastery of the written language: their teachers, their handbooks, and their fellow students. In several instances through the magazine we have placed hints and friendly advice and on occasion even some direction concerning a few usage matters. Basic skills students have difficulty with mechanics, punctuation and usage. Thats why they are basic skills students. However, at the college level we are mostly concerned with organization, development, and the assumption of a tone appropriate for a college audience. Throughout the magazine we remind students to examine their handbooks on a regular basis. Almost all of their questions can be answered there. Nevertheless, some knowledge and skill level is required to make the best use of a handbook, and some handbooks are clearer about some information than others. Students need to read their handbooks, perform some exercises in them and seek assistance whenever possible. The biggest shortcoming among freshmen students, and this is universally true, is their unwillingness to seek out help whenever possible. No where is that help more user friendly (in the vernacular of our times) than that which can be obtained in The Learning Center. Every student needs to find this out as soon as possible.

v
Above all, we should each of us read the magazine thoroughly, if for no other reason than to discover what it is that concerns Penn State students most. This issue of the magazine is subtitled, Making Connections and Examining Our Myths. Here at the magazine, we realized as we were putting together the issue that the essays were either about making connections or examining myths, and sometimes both. From eating disorders to an examination of heroes, these writers make us take a close look at important issues, not only for freshmen in college, but also for all of us. As we prepare to enter the Twenty-first Century, with all of the astounding changes that have taken place during this centurythis year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the electron, a discovery, physicists tell us, as profound as that of fireit has never been more necessary to take stock of who and what we are, to examine closely those beliefs we hold most dear. The essays within these pages demand that we do just that.

What Is College Writing?

What is this thing we call college writing? The short answer is to call it by its proper name, Standard Edited Written American English. Its English for reasons that ought to be obviousthats the language we speak and write. Its American, because our particular brand of English has some difference from the language the British write. We spell the word color without a u, while the British spell it colour, for instance. And there are other differences, such as the use of quotation marks and where punctuation appears when they are used. The word, written, is part of the name because linguists have taught us that written language is different from spoken language, and our concerns with language are with it as a written product (as well as producing that product). The word, edited, appears in the name because that is what we do with written language at the college level: we edit it. The truth is we always edit language, spoken as well as written, and no matter what the circumstances. Quite often we are not even aware that we are doing this. Simply put, editing means to examine what we are saying before we release the words, and to judge the best we can how the information will be perceived by our audience, including how that audience will perceive us. Think of it this way: When you were young and your sister wanted to borrow your favorite blouse, you didnt just say no. You spoke in a harsh, sharp voice, and you reminded her firmly that she never returns what she borrows. You included a number of verbal exclamation points as well. Even the family dog edits his communication: You just fed him a handsome dog dinner, and then you sit down to eat a steak. He scrunches in front of you, pulling his legs under him, peeks up through long dog lashes and whines pathetically, his body trembling. He wants your food too. However, while the dogs editing of his communication may be standard fare for him, it does not constitute quite what we mean by standard edited written American English. What we mean by this is the kind of editing outlined in the typical college writing handbook. It is a form of editing that has been agreed to by many college professors, professional editors, professional writers, and other folks whose job it is and whose reputations have been founded upon successful written communication. And such things as spelling and punctuation and what constitutes a well written sentence have been standardized so that the language can be easily used and readily recognized. You should know that this hasnt always been true. In fact the standardization of written communication is only about 100 years old; in the main, it has come into prominance in the wake of the Industrial Revolution.

The Writing Process

Years ago, a high school English course, preparing seniors for college went something like this: Every Friday the students walked into the classroom and wrote an essay on a topic that was sprung on them. They had 57 minutes to think of something to say, come up with a thesis statement, make an outline and an exciting title, and write a final draft. The teacher walked between the rows of seats, gazing over the students shoulders, and commented on their work as they produced it. That comma doesnt belong there. You need to start a new paragraph. Youve misspelled a word in that sentence. It was disconcerting to say the least. The students learned not to take chances, not to construct sentences out of the ordinary, not to use new words. This sort of writing was called product writing. The notion was that we were made to fit into molds that society determined for us, and the teachers job was to make sure we didnt slip out of those molds. Times do change, though. Employers began to complain that new employees needed to be creative, able to make decisions on their own, the kinds of workers who seek responsibility. Other forces were at work as well within the world of education. One of the results was that teachers began to focus on writing as a process. In part, they learned this from creative writing teachers and students. Regardless of all the whys and wherefors, we have moved from emphasizing what a piece of writing is supposed to be at the end to how we get there. This doesnt mean that we dont care what the final result is. We do. However, we have learned that being so conscious of what a work is supposed to be when it is done keeps us from producing our best work. Now the emphasis is on the creating of the product, and this means weve got to discover the best way to say whatever it is we have to say while working through this process.
Pre -writing

Dra fting

Pro o frea ding

Revising

Ed iting

It means weve got to do what real writers have always done: produce many drafts of work, revising and editing, editing and revising, over and over again, until we either get it right or run out of time. The Process The writing process has been broken down in a variety of ways, but mostly it looks something like the schematic in the illustration in the upper right hand corner of this page. First, we do the stuff before we begin to actually produce a draftthinking, talking, making jot lists and outlines, grouping information in any number of informal ways, making notes, reading, and anything else that helps us get ready. Second, we make a draft. And then another most likely. Perhaps we go back to the pre-writing and do some more of that, reading more material, talking our ideas out, making additional observations. Third, we make a revision. Some writers say this is where the real writing starts. At this point we have decided that weve got the information we want and more or less the order we want to put it into. We decide that its time to try out

various rhetorical stances, to change our point of view, to reexamine our analysis of the data. Whatever the case, we look at the project from a different direction, under a new light. Fourth, we decide its time to edit the revised draft. We have down what we want to say, but now we go through the piece paragraph by paragraph, sentence by sentence, word by word, letter by letter, and question everything in the paper. Is there a better way to say it, a more precise phrase, a more exact word? And we ask others to read the material; we even read it allowed, perhaps tape-recording it so we can listen to the play back. If were smart, we go to the learning center and have a tutor read over the paper with us. Finally, its time to proofread. This is what we do when we know its perfect. Proofreading is the activity performed on a piece of writing when its done. Yes, thats rightwe proofread when we are done. Is it time to turn the work in? Maybe, have you run out of time?

Writing for a Public

At the college level it is important to realize that we are writing for someone to read. Coming out of the school system, we often expect that our readers will know what we mean when we write something. That is, we accept as a given that our readers will share a background with us so common that a few key words and phrases will suffice to carry our meaning. We learn from a very early age in life to abstract material from the world, to arrive at conclusions about this material, and to base judgements and actions on these judgements.
We also grow up within a culture, not only the American culture, but the cultures within our individual communities. Much of what defines our cultures are the judgements, the abstractions, the values, which that culture passes on or even encodes us with. To be an educated person means to call all of these things into question, to examine them closely, to test them in a scientific manner. It also means that when we deliver our abstractions, our judgements, our values we must be prepared to either defend them or at the very least present sufficient data (the specifics) which will allow our audience (readers, in writing courses) to understand why we hold these values or arrived at these judgements. In addition, as college writers we are often called upon to write for audiences who are unfamiliar with our cultures or our data bases. Some of you are already familiar with the Internet and Email. You realize that you may be communicating with people all over the world. Certainly you will communicate with people from around the country. Think about it this way: A student in Duluth, Minnesota sends an Email to a student in Mobile, Alabama. The Duluth student says it is really hot. How hot is it? Would the student in Mobile agree? Its doubtful. In Duluth a temperature of 75 degrees is considered very hot.

Dear Instructor:

Best of Four serves two primary purposes: to provide an illustration of the best writing produced in the preceding year and to allow the instructor to witness the variety of work produced within the system for the same course. We hope these essays will serve you well as you instruct and inspire your students to produce their best work.

The Administration Building The Pennsylvania State Universitys Hazleton Campus

Bostons Treasure

by Julio Rodriguez

very big city has great things that distinguish it from all others. New York has the Statue of Liberty; Chicago has the Sears Tower; Detroit is known as the Motor City; and if anything represents Boston, it has to be the cherished Boston Garden. Home of Bostons basketball and hockey teams, the Garden has a long history and a rich tradition. It was built in the nineteen hundreds and has been the sight of many great sporting events; however, sporting events are not the only activities held in the Garden.
Walt Disneys World On Ice, Barnum and Baileys Circus, and various musical performers come each year to do their things for the people of Boston. The Garden is located in the middle of the city and is part of the train station, so it is always a lively place regardless Making Connections of the time of day. It was here that Red Auerback molded the early Boston Celtics in to the greatest basketball dynasty ever, nicknaming the Garden Reds House. Young writers often To get the whole feel of a basketball game and the Boston Garden experience, you must praise writing they ad- travel to the Garden by subway. If you look out the window as you approach the arena, you mire by saying it flows can see an intimidating sign that reads, You have entered the Garden, there is no coming really well. Language is back. I still get the same feeling of excitement when I read it, even though Ive seen the sign very much a matter of hundreds of times. When you get off of the train, you begin to blend in with a mob of people dressed in various Celtics Basketball wear who are all very eager to enter the Garden and making connections. cheer on their team. After you pay for your ticket and proceed to enter the lobby, the smell Notice the transitions of hot dogs and popcorn fills the air. When you push open the doors to the arena, you feel Julio Rodriguez makes a quick rush of cool air. That cool air comes from the ice rink that lies under the famous between his paragraphs parquet floor which so many Boston fans boast about. The first thing that one notices once fully inside the Garden are the sixteen eye-catching in his essay in praise of World Championship banners hanging from the rafters (the Celtics have more than any other the Boston Garden. NBA team). As you make your way to your seat, you can glance around to see the huge Look at how he ends one number of fans that the garden can accommodate (about sixteen thousand). When you reach paragraph and then your old, stiff, wooden seat and place your soda on the sticky floor, you can feel the history begins the next. Look for of the garden surrounding you. Listening to the pre-game music and hearing the cheers of the the connecting words. fans, you can feel the intensity building up. Its almost game time! The lights go out and the fans go wild as the introduction of the Celtics begins. You cant help getting caught up in the excitement, so you join the other fans and begin to yell and scream with them. The intensity and pride of the fans is evident through the whole game. Surprised, you look up and notice yourself on the Jumbo Screen. Thats an incredible feeling because you know that all of the people in the whole arena have their Controlling Point of View eyes on you. When the game is over, it doesnt matter whether we won or lost. Its all about the fans Controlling the point of view representing Boston and their love for it. People who are not Boston natives now know from which a piece of how much pride Boston fans have. The excitement doesnt end there, however, because writing is given allows the leaving the Garden is an adventure all in itself. When you finally make it through the writer to direct the readers immense crowd and everything settles down a little bit, you review the experience and attention. We recognize notice that you have never gone to a place like the Garden before, and probably never point of view through the will again. writers use of pronouns. So if you ever travel to the city of Boston, the Garden should definitely be on your list How effective is point of of things to visit. The experience is worthwhile and you might find your new favorite view in this essay? sports arena.

by Gerard Delisio

Life Is a Beach

iving in a coastal area, you are used to beaches and ocean water. Over time these different scenes may even become stale and repetitious. With more and more trips to these beaches you could become bored, sometimes to the extent of disinterest. Depending on where you live, all of the beaches can be similarbut in Hawaii there is a vacant volcano that has opened up to the sea. This area is flowing with exotic fish, clean water, and a beautiful atmosphere.
Hanauma Bay, located on the southern shore of Oahu, is a shelter from the elements of the rough ocean for marine wildlife. It is a federally protected park, and it is home to many fish and sea-dwelling animals. It is an area of extreme beauty both below and above the water, with magnificent cliffs and gorgeous trees. You suddenly wish you were a camera The volcano offers protection not only to the fish in man for National Geographic, just so the bay, but also to the inhabitants located in the volcano, you could share the beauty of both the like animals and trees. The cliffs offer protection from weather factors such as wind, rain, and pollution caused fish and your experience with the rest by the local area, and the volcano protects Hanauma Bay of the world. from the rest of civilization by allowing it to be a small world within a large world. On your journey toward the beach there is beautiful scenery. Depending on the route you choose, you either see breathtaking shores or astounding houses. You know youre close when you smell the salt in the area and there are no houses within a mile. Hanauma Bay is located in a very respectable community because its inhabitants want to keep the area clean and they act on this desire. In the parking lot there are signs that state, Please Kokua (give respect) and take care of the land. When you get down the trail, the sand is hot from the warm sun. You immediately run on your toes through the water just to feel the coolness on your feet. As you get into your bathing suit, you just cant wait until youre in the water to explore its features. As you take your first step into the water, it feels good because youve been so hot all day long. With your mask on you dip your head in the water to look around. You realize that there is a fish eight inches long circling your feet, and before you know it there is a whole school of about forty or fifty fish around you. You cant describe what type of fish they are; all you know The two principal is that they are big and have all of the colors of the rainbow. You suddenly wish you were a types of clauses are camera man for National Geographic, just so you could share the beauty of both the fish and the independent your experience with the rest of the world. As you journey farther into the bay, you notice great caves and caverns with fish you have never seen before, not even on television. You sit clause and the there in amazement, wondering what life as a fish would be like. You are so blown away by dependant clause. the beauty that you forget how far youve gone out, and you have to turn back and go in. Why is one depenOnce out of the water you decide to go on a hike, so you bring your picnic gear. While dent and the other walking across the beach you start thinking about what is ahead, not forgetting how much not? fun you had in the water and hoping to top that. When you reach the trail there are trees youve never seen before that catch your eye, and you have to take pictures. As you hike further you are thinking about where you are going to sit down and eat dinner. Finally you see the place where you want to rest and relax; it is just above the bend and it has the most gorgeous view (overlooking the Pacific Ocean). As you sit down, you are so lost in the view

More about Point of View Notice that in Delisios essay, he employs the second person point of view throughout. Normally writers reserve second person point of view for writing that gives directions to a reader, directions that
that you cant think of any bad thoughts...except for the thought of having to leave soon. When you get down to the beach you head up the trail to your car. While walking up you have a view of the area and all of your memories: the memories of the sand, the fish, the trees, and the view. Just then you start thinking about memories youve had in the past and what the future holds in store for you, and you realize that this trip has topped it all. You start to wonder, Can life get harder after this trip? Then you realize that it can, because you are leaving now.

are meant to be followed. Delisio, however, doesnt expect us to actually go down to his beach. Nevertheless he writes as if he were speaking directly to the reader, and in a sense, he is giving us directions. In fact, in this piece of descriptive writing, which is structured as if it were a narrativethat is, telling the reader a storyDelisio uses the second person point of view to draw the reader into his description, much like an oral story teller. The second person point of view helps to create a sense of urgency. We are made to feel that the narrator, the speaker of the essay, is standing before us, looking us in the eye, speaking directly to us, not unlike a television courtroom prosecuter, leaning into our faces, recounting our actions, our thoughts, our motives. Exercise: What would happen to this essay if the point of view were changed. As an exercise, rewrite the essay in first person. Then write the essay in third person, making the geography itself the subject of the essay. Exercise: In the second paragraph, Delisio begins three independent clauses in a row with It is. Rewrite the paragraph so that this structure is eliminated in all three instances, but make sure that all sentences are complete.

Want an exercise for writing a fun paragraph? Heres one from Professor Bill Ellis: Write a short parapgraph, using one of the following as the opening sentence and one as a closing sentence.
1. You always hear about the Easter bunny, but you never hear about the Easter wolf. 2. Its here! 3. Drive to work in reverse. 4. Have you ever walked by a playground and had your memory jogged by some kids singing a song you sang as a kid? 5. This too is my life. 6. Grasping things. 7. You might earn a future. 8. By the middle of October, Ohio seemed ripe for the frost. 9. I had trouble picking a subject. 10. Oh, never mind.

Dreamland
by Matt Ciprich n the heart of the New York fingerlakes, nestled in between the hills lies the small village of Watkins Glen. This quaint town possesses the same attractions as most of New Yorks waterfront villages, but it also possesses a truly magnificent glen. Tucked away in the mountain, the glen is unknown to many, keeping its mystique alive.
As you enter the unassuming parking lot, the attendant directs you to the entrance of the glen. You begin your journey by twisting your way through a stone corridor. Observing the constant flickering of the guide lamps and the non-stop sound of water trickling, your mind begins to wander to a new state. These sights and sounds prepare you for the realm you are entering. Upon leaving the corridor, you are greeted by a beautiful waterfall that eases your mind into a relaxed state. As your eyes wander, they observe a magnificent setting filled with waterfalls, berry bushes, and an unaltered gorge. As you wonder through these sites you understand what the corridor was preparing you for: a world filled with beauty that brings relaxation to all who visit. You can stop and view After observing your location, you begin to trek up the path of your choice. The paths take you under and over dozens of waterfalls, ranging the everlasting rainbow from five to almost one hundred feet high. The trails allow you to experience from the constant mist of the true force of the water while exposing you to most of the sheer rock the falls. sides of the glen. Throughout your journey you can stop and view the everlasting rainbow from the constant mist of the falls, or rest for a bit on one of the benches overlooking the winding path of the water. The feelings you experience allow you to bounce in and out of reality like a child in Disney World. Once at the top, you can enjoy a cold beverage or an ice cream cone to prepare you for your jaunt back. While descending through the glen you can choose to take many different routes. You may want to skim the upper ledge or continue back down the way you came. No matter which path you choose you will not be disappointed, for all of the routes bestow the splendor of the glen. The glen has so much to offer you could probably spend several days there without grasping the entire mystique of this remarkable setting. Watkins Glen delivers a sense of new discovery that leaves you with an appreciation of what our world has to offer. It adds something to your personality and alters your perception, all the while allowing you to unwind from the tortures of your daily life. You may never revisit the glen, but your mind will drift back often to experience all of its glory. From start to finish, Watkins delivers an atmosphere where perfect harmony reigns.

Using Colons Students often know that colons can be used to introduce items in a series, or lists, but they may be employed for more subtle reasons as well. Take a look at the last sentence in the third paragraph of Ciprichs essay. The words following the colon in this sentence do not constitute a list. How does the colon function in this sentence? Try writing a sentence using this technique. Be careful not to over use specialized forms of punctuation.

The Central Hotel

by Jacob Gerhard

f you like brown leaves, flannel shirts, and big, juicy steaks, then a trip to the north side of Columbia County this fall is for you. Way up north in the back country of Benton, Pennsylvania, there is a small one-road town called Central. Along this road sits the Central Hotel, well known by the local populace, bikers, seasonal hunters, and yuppie summer campers who frequent it for the mild, laid-back atmosphere that the establishment offers.

I had my first experience with this intriguing place three years ago while working as a lifeguard at the nearby Boy Scout Camp. My family decided to rescue me from my monotonous, nondescript camp food and treat me to supper at the Central Hotel. After two weeks of camp food my mind began to fantasize about where I was going and what I would eat. Those fantasies (and much more) came true after we arrived. Before me stood a three-story, white-sided building with a welcoming porch extending along its entire front. As we entered the establishment there was a bombardment of sights, sounds, and smells upon my senses. A taxidermists dream greeted me when I entered the 110 year old structure; I became mesmerized by the inanimate stare of a stuffed buffalo head and the petrified scowls of varied species of critters. Sightless stares of fur and feather and the diverse crowd I became mesmerized of patrons competed for my visual curiosity in the semi-lit atmosphere. The more pleasant properties of pipe smoke mingled with the char broiled smell of burgers by the inanimate stare and steaks. These sensations were further combined with a low-decibel hum coming of a stuffed buffalo from the many heads bent eating and faces full of expression deep in conversation head. ranging from chit chat to heated discussion. The filled-to-capacity dining room strained the operation of the kitchen, causing my stomach to churn for satisfaction. As patrons eyes seemed to search for a specific waitress laden with a tray of much anticipated delicacies destined for their tables, I found my eyes making contact with this varied company of yuppies, bikers, flannel shirters and others doing the same. This sense of common interest gave rise to further curiosity as to what I might also share in conversation or in common. Would these conversations bring me to the conclusion that surface appearance can only be skin deep and just a form of expression, not a barrier to common ground? There is also a bar snuggled in a separate room where patrons may mix more closely for an afternoon drink. It is in this much darker room where the stares become more than chance encounters and frequently evolve into common ground for the comparing and contrasting of ideas. People in the bar always seem to be either talking with other patrons or just salting the night away. A strong sense of adventure combined with a desire to relax and mix with varied but lively company basted by good friends and atmosphere is all that one needs to seek out this institution. Any person in need of relief from the repetitive features of work and personal duty and looking for a divergent weekend evening may act out his or her fantasy by becoming (or at least mixing with) a biker, a flannel shirter, a yuppie, or whomever is nearby to find companionship, conversation, or just a study of humanity at the Central Hotel. The readersturned-adventurers who decide to chance the trip and partake in this true-to-life place may then decide how they want their steaks and how fast they want to become part of a discussion with a friend or stranger.

My Hero, Uncle Bob

by Deirdre Haubert his year at the Fourth of July Barbecue, my family and I agreed to put together a book of family portraits. We each have to choose a family member and write a character sketch of that person. My choice was my rebelling Uncle Robert (Uncle Bob), who was convicted of murder and finally escaped from prison after two years.
Uncle Bob was tall and skinny with dirty blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes that would sparkle like the sun whenever he smiled. His hair, which was very curly, reached his chin where his thick beard was. To most people Uncle Bob is guilty of manslughter; but, in fact, he is the most passionate and brilliant man I have ever met. Uncle Robert was always willing to talk with me about everything and anything. When I was little he would take me out often just to spend quality time with his favorite niece. He took me fishing, Christmas caroling, trick-or-treating, to carnivals, and he even taught me how to ride my bike (which I still remember like it was yesterday). He took me through the steps of learning how to ride my bike with utmost patience and understanding. I will never forget the way that Uncle Robert cared for me. Though the majority of people perceived my Uncle Robert as a criminal, I disagree because in my eyes and in the eyes of the Lord, his actions were done in self-defense. For many years my uncle and his neighbor were in disagreement with just about everything. One day Uncle Bob came home and heard a ruckus next door. He decided to check it out, and he found his neighbor beating his wife to a bloody pulp, which would have soon lead to her death if nothing were done about it. When Uncle Bobs neighbor realized that he was there, he went after my uncle, and in self defense my Uncle Robert ended up killing his neighbor. When he was put on trial he had a horrible lawyer, so he was convicted of murder in the second degree. Uncle Robert never had a doubt in his mind that he was innocent and just protecting himself, and he escaped after two years of what he called hell. After my Uncle Robert freed himself from his claustrophobic cell, he secretly came to me for about an hour and we reminisced about our joyful past times. I realized that this was good-bye, but I knew that he had not wanted me to realize this and hurt me more than I already had been. We both cried on one anothers shoulders. When he said that he had to leave, I could not let go of him and bear the thought of not seeing my beloved uncle ever again. He told me to keep his visit a secret and to always remember the good times that we had. My last memory of him was the silhouette of his back and his half-turned head with tear-filled eyes waving good-byeforever. Until now, I have not told anyone of my Uncle Bobs secret visit. I love my uncle, and although others question the morality of his actions, he will always remain alive in my heart and soul. For me, my Uncle Bob is the greatest man who ever lived.

Ellipsis Marks Young writers like to employ dramatic punctuation to provide emphasis, but you must be careful that the situation warrants it. In the last paragraph of Hauberts essay, she employs ellipsis marks to suggest a dramatic pause between the words forever and good-by. Do you think her essay has earned this dramatic moment? What are the other uses of ellipsis marks? Check your handbook, and make sure you know when to include a regular period.

Low Fat, Fat Free

by Deborah Gaffney

met Kelly on the first day of kindergarten in 1983. We were the only two kids at the bus stop that day, so we found it easy to get along. We became the best of friends during our elementary and high school years, and pressures of popularity and acceptance were a major strain for both of us.
Kelly was the tallest girl in our class, so it was easy to see that maturity had set in earlier for her than for the rest of us. She was always being teased about her height and weight when compared to other kids. During this period I became aware of Kelly becoming obsessive about her weight. Kelly and I planned everything we did together, and one night we decided to go to our friends birthday party. We knew that almost everyone from our class would be there; and, considering boyfriends were our top priority then, we took time to prepare to look our best. We wore our best clothing and made sure that not a single piece of hair was out of place. The night was going well for the both of us until one of our classmates The only priority that made a rude comment about Kelly. She made it clear to everyone that she she has now is to looked sort of fat. I could see that Kelly was upset and humiliated by this keep her weight as remark, so we decided to leave. The whole way home I tried to assure her low as she can. that she was not fat by telling her that I thought she was beautiful just the way she was and that beauty comes from within rather than what is on the outside. Even though my words gave her some comfort, I could tell that she was still hurt from the remark. Over the next couple of months, Kelly skipped meals and exercised frequently. When she would decide to eat, she allowed herself only small portions of fruits and vegetables. I never mentioned any of Kellys actions to her parents or anyone else, but I wish I would have. Kellys weight dropped dramatically. After a few months of continuing this so-called diet, she looked as if she were starving. At the height of five feet and eight inches, she weighed only eighty-eight pounds. One day in school, I overheard my teachers talking about someone passing out in the hallway. They did not have to mention any namesI already knew that it was Kelly. She was taken to the hospital nearby where she was given I.V.s to regulate her nutrition intake. After school I stopped by the hospital to see if she was all right. I can still remember how awful she looked. Her hair was dry and thinning, and her skin seemed almost translucent from the way she had been treating her body. She stayed in the hospital for two weeks before she was released. She then had to attend meetings twice a week to help her cope with her eating disorder. Even after the programs Kelly has attended, she still watches what she eats. Everything must be either low fat or fat free. She eats only twice a day: once in the morning and once at supper time. Her weight still fluctuates from about ninety-five pounds to one hundred and five pounds. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that affects many young women in our society. In Kellys case, anorexia seems to have taken control of her body and mind. At one time Kelly and I were best friends, but now things have changed. The only priority that she has now is to keep her weight as low as she can. I still keep in touch with Kelly to see how she is doing, and I hope that someday she will be able to overcome the struggle she has with anorexia and return to being the person I miss and remember wellmy best friend.

by Bryce Potzer

Teen Drug Abuse

magine being a sixth grade teacher and having the question in the back of your mind, Are my students playing an innocent game or passing around a joint at recess? This is happening in many schools today. It not only happens in the cities, but also in the small towns that everyone has always considered to be safe. Today, a high school student in a rural town can get any drug that he or she wants within twenty-four hours or less.
Students can get a hit of cocaine for as little as ten dollars and LSD for as little as three dollars. These are major drugs that can kill, yet students have immediate access to them. Drug abuse among teenagers is at an all-time high, but who is to blame? What are the causes of drug abuse? Does it start at home because of parents, at school because of peer pressure, or with each person because young people just dont have the information to make the correct choices about what they should do when confronted with drugs? These days, drug abuse has almost doubled among teenagers. Can parents really be blamed for this? The Institute for Health Policys Substance Abuse: the Nations Number One Health Problem states that [b]y the 8th grade, 70 percent of youth report having tried alcohol. Ten percent have tried marijuana and 2 percent cocaine, and 44 percent have smoked cigarettes. By the twelfth grade, about 88 percent have used alcohol, 37 percent have used marijuana, 8 percent cocaine, and 63 percent have smoked cigarettes. Clearly, substance abuse begins early for many young people. ( 22 ) Parents may not be to blame, but they must realize that asking their children questions does not qualify as distrust. Parents usually have less factual information about drugs than the children themselves. Even after speaking to parents at home, students still must overcome peer pressure in school. Peer pressure can cause a student who knows the dangers of drug use to do something that he or she would not normally do just to fit in. The most common drug that students are pressured into trying is marijuana. This is a drug that students can get very easily. Drug abuse usually starts, for example, when Joe goes to a party and sees Jim (whom Joe looks up to) smoking marijuana. Joe knows that it is bad, but he still does it just to be a part of the crowd. Even when students are well informed, they will tend to do what their friends do because they want to fit in. After a person has been taking drugs for a long period of time, that person tends to end up trying stronger drugs, such as cocaine and heroin. Cocaine and heroin are the biggest drug killers of students in college. Colleges are where students have better access to these deadly narcotics than anywhere else. Juveniles who do not have friends who do drugs are in the worst shape of all. They may experiment with drugs that they have heard about. Some of them have no idea regarding what particular drugs will do to their bodies. They only hear vague accounts from people who have taken drugs. They also have no idea regarding how much of a drug to take. This is when the drug situation becomes even more serious. Imagine being a mother or father who gets a telephone call at two in the morning saying that your son is in the emergency room because of a drug-related car accident, and that he is not expected to last the night. This end to his life could have possibly been stopped by just talking to him. Kids like this are the ones who are killed because they think that they can do things that are impossible. In one incident, a girl had taken an overdose of LSD and then tried to remove her skin because she thought that she was a banana. If the kids would apply the information that they

College Writing Often we are required to site from secondary sources in college level writing. In most Liberal Arts courses, this will require you to be familiar with the Modern Language Associations (MLA) parenthetical documentation style. Your handbook is an excellent resource for learning to do this properly.

have learned, then most of the underage fatalities could be stopped. Kids may not like to admit it, but their parents are their most influential role models. Kids have always looked up to their parents. Young people must be spoken to about the effects of drugs, because communication is the best weapon of defense available. Even if all of the information is not known, every little bit counts. It should be known that drugs kill. Drugs are not racist. Drugs are not sexist. The only way to stop the course that drugs can run in life is by acknowledging the truth about them.

Work Cited
Institute for Health Policy. Substance Abuse: the Nations Number One Health Problem. Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1994.

Looking for good sources to quote? Government publications offer some of the best material, especially for statistical data and expert opinions. Dont let the long titles or simple black print on white binding keep you from these valuable resources.

Working with Numbers Potzers essay requires him to use numbers in the quoted material in the second paragraph. Normally, numbers one through twelve are written out while the numbers 13 and above are written in their Arabic form. However, anytime you begin a sentence with a number, no matter how large it is, it should be written in its word form. On the other hand, when you employ quite a few numbers, such as Potzers quoted material does, they should be delivered in a consistent form, unless they begin a sentence. Long Quotes Notice that the quoted material in Potzers second paragraph does not have quotation marks around it. The quote is over four lines in length and is set off through indentation, two tabs from the left hand margin. The Modern Language Association (MLA) style parentheses enclosing the page number from the document Potzer is quoting is located after the period. Check your handbook to learn where the period goes in a short quote of three lines or less.

Trust
by Julie Leshock

ts nine in the morning and pieces of my car are scattered all over the interstate. I hear voices around me saying, Are you okay, Miss? Is every thing all right? It was hard for me to open my eyes because I was in complete disbelief of everything that had just happened to me. In a matter of seconds my life had completely changed course. If only I had not taken my eyes off of the road!

The people at the scene of the accident were concerned with my well-being, and surprised that I was in one piece (thanks to my seat belt). All I could think about was my car, and how upset my father was going to be when he saw its condition. I was miles away from home, and years away from ever gaining my fathers trust again. The next couple of days were hard to face. My father did not know I had taken this journey to Williamsport, and he could not understand why I would take such a risk. I really didnt think that going to visit my boyfriend at college would put my life in danger. I dont mind the physical pain the accident has caused me, but the emotional pain from upsetting my father is tearing me apart inside. Over and over again I ask myself, How, how could I do such a thing? But rethinking everything I could have done does not change what I did. Through the experience of the accident I learned to abide by the morals and values that my parents have taught me because, in some situations, listening to them can save me pain and regret. On the morning of the accident everything was going well. It was Friday before Labor Day weekend, and I was anxious to get up bright and early to tackle the long journey back to Hazleton. Not far into the journey home from Williamsport I had a shooting pain in my stomach that told me something was wrong, but I went on thinking that I had forgotten something at my boyfriends house. Traveling eastbound on interstate I-80, I checked my rear view mirror for trucks. They are my biggest fear while driving on the interstate. I remember thinking how much the truck drivers frightened me when they roared along the route to their destinations. I was so afraid of being in their way that I kept glancing at the road behind me. Before I could grasp what was happening, my car veered off of the road into some [I]f only my well-being could loose gravel. I tried desperately to steer my car back onto the road, but take away the pain and guilt panic and fear took control of my actions. that I feel for hurting my father. Swerving from left to right, I realized that all attempts to counter steer were a failure because I had not tapped on the brakes to take off my cruise control. Everything inside my car was thrown in various directions when I started spinning out of control. My car then continued to spin off the road, hitting both the front and back against an embankment. Everyone Ive talked to has said that accidents happen, and that I should be grateful that I am in satisfactory condition, but if only my well-being could take away the pain and guilt that I feel for hurting my father, I would agree with them. Over the years my father and I have been through everything together. It seems like now, after the accident, I need him the most. Each time my father and I have an argument, I wonder how I will make it through without him by my side. I look to my father for support in everything that I do because I know that he believes in me and can teach me all of the hard lessons in life that I must learn. In learning this lesson I have found that I should trust and believe in my parents. This lesson has changed my whole outlook on life. I now make more responsible decisions (that

also make my parents happy). Learning lifes lessons can be a hard and painful process, but I have found that I should always take my parents guidance. I think that all of lifes difficult lessons are meant to be learned the hard way, which sometimes makes learning through experience very dangerous. This lesson that I have learned not only taught me to think before I act, but also to confide in my parents, who always know best. Many lessons in my life have taught me right from wrong, but never did I realize that learning from them could mean the difference between life and death.

Writing the Time of Day In her first sentence, Leshock begins her essay with the wonderfully dramaticand understatedsentence: Its nine in the morning and pieces of my car are scattered all over the interstate. A question students frequently ask is how do you write time? Generally there are two acceptable ways for college writers to deliver time: We either write it out (five oclock in the morning), or we give the numerical equivalent (5:00 a.m.), always remembering to add the a.m. or p.m. and to properly punctuate the abreviation with periods after each letter. The letters may be either written in lower case or upper, but we should always be consistant. Of course you may see time written in many other formats, even mixing formats, in print, but in college we try to adhere to that strange beast, Standard Edited Written American English.

A True Problem Child

by Scott Turkelson

t is virtually impossible today to be unaware of the prevalence of illicit drugs in American life. The problem is that many people acquiring these drugs are the youth of the nation. According to some sources over 50 percent of all high school seniors have reported using an illicit drug sometime in their lives. Many children who use drugs come from homes that have been broken by divorce. When my Aunt Agnes separated from her husband and received a divorce, her young children were traumatized more than she had anticipated.

Aunt Agnes has two children, Johnathan and Mary Kate. Mary Kate was five and Johnathan was nine at the time of the divorce. When my Aunt and her husband divorced, her children felt alone. During the divorce settlement, the judge ordered them to live with their mother. Like many other single mothers, Agnes had to juggle a full-time job with the responsibilities of raising two children at home. She had no other Semicolons income because her ex-husband left the area and did not pay alimony or child support. It was easy for my aunt to lose track of everything that was going on Use semicolons to join around her because she worked many long hours. independent clauses when Her eldest child, Johnathan, started to act up in class and pick fights with other students. Often my aunt had to go to school and pick him up because he had they are not joined by fought another student. His problems began to worsen from then on, and his cordinate conjunctions. grades took a big drop. He never was a great student, but until then he had always passed his courses. When my aunt received word that he was failing some of his classes, she was furious. She set rules, but since she was not around to enforce them twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, he would break them. Johnathan then started to hang out with a crowd that had a bad reputation. His addiction started with cigarettes, then worked its way up to alcohol and drugs. My aunt missed most of the signs due to the fact that she worked many hours to support her family. At around age thirteen, Johnathan started to experiment with drugs. He used marijuana regularly for about a year, then he turned to harder drugs such as acid and cocaine. This was when my aunt knew that there was definitely something wrong. She had suspected that something was wrong in the past, but when she confronted him he would always deny her accusations. John abused these drugs for about two years. He would not come home for days at a time, leaving his mother to worry about his safety. When he was sixteen, the police caught him trying to purchase illicit drugs. They took him into custody and put him in jail. He was given a choice between staying in jail or undergoing rehabilitation; he chose rehabilitation. Due to his years of steady drug abuse, Johnathan needed a great deal of help. The harder drugs, such as LSD and cocaine, left him with permanent problems, such as paranoia, anxiety, and sleeplessness, for years after he was clean. John spent three years in a hospital for drug rehabilitation; when he was released he was a different person. Johnathans sister Mary Kate, who is now nineteen years old, entered the United States Army in order to escape the problems in her immediate family. At twenty-two years of age, John must reside with my aunt because he cannot function by himself in the Real World. He receives Social Security and is employed at minimum wage when he obtains a job, though he never keeps it for any length of time. Seeing my cousin go through drug addiction and its aftermath makes me think twice about taking illicit drugs. I see what the drugs did to Johnathans mind and soul and think of how I could never be like that.

My Experience in Health Care

by Brandy Knoebel am very experienced in dealing with health care and health insurance. I have seen many close relatives develop severe health problems that have required hospitalization. My mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when I was eleven years old.
Cancer runs in my mothers side of my family. My grandmother on that side of the family died of cancer, and my grandmothers sister (my mothers aunt) also died of cancer. My mother was very aware of the history of cancer that ran in the family. She would go to the hospital to be tested twice a year, and when she was forty-one she was diagnosed. This hit my family very hard, and since I was young I was only told that my mother was sick. My sister was eighteen and in her first year of college, so my parents explained to her what was going to happen. She was told about all of the possible approaches that they could take to eliminate the cancer. The best procedure for my mothers type of cancer was radiation treatment. The hospital started her off with medication to strengthen her body so she would be able to handle the high level of radiation that the body parts around the cancer were about to receive. The radiation was given to her through an out patient process. My father would take my mother to the hospital twice a month. They would go in the morning and the nurses would prepare her for the procedure, give her radiation, and monitor her for a couple of hours afterward; then she was allowed to go home. When my mother and father would return home, my mother would be extremely sick and have very little strength. After a couple of days of being sick and weak, she would return to her normal self. My mother had quit her job when she was diagnosed. My father did not want her home alone all day, so he hired our cleaning lady full-time to stay with my mother until he came home from work. My whole family was very hopeful. Everyone thought the radiation would destroy the cancer. The next year, it was explained that my mothers sickness was not going to go away. My mother and father explained to me what cancer was and how they tried to get rid of it. I remember understanding what they were telling me, but I could not understand why my mother had it; why didnt someone elses mother get sick? I was not ready to accept that my mother was going to dieno one was. At that point my mother was very sick. The radiation did not kill the cancer, and there was no hope of removing it. The doctor said that the procedure to remove the cancer would most likely kill her. My mother wished to discontinue the radiation treatment because it was only making her sicker. My father did so, and he hired a live-in nurse. She took care of my mother twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and my mother started to recover some of her strength. Louise, the live-in nurse, worked with her every day, and soon she was able to sit at the dinner table with us and eat solid food. She could even walk around. One night I was awakened by my sister, who was hysterical. My mother had slipped into a coma. The ambulance took her to a hospital, and my father rode in the ambulance with her while my sister and I followed. At the hospital we were told that they werent sure if she would come out of the coma. We sat with her all night. The next day my father sent my sister and me home to eat and sleep. We came back a little while later, and that night she came out of the coma. We were extremely relieved, but we all knew that the next time we would not be that lucky. Most of my mothers organs werent working correctly at that point. She could no longer sit up on her own, let alone walk. My father had to buy a hospital bed so that she could be comfortable at home, because my mother wanted to spend her last months with her

The Dash At the end of her fourth paragraph, Knoebel uses a dash to signal a sudden change. The situation she is describing is dramatic, and the dash is a more powerful piece of punctuation than a period. Handbooks generally list three uses for the dash; check yours to learn the othr two.? Be careful to use dashes judiciously; overuse simply tips the reader off that the writer is very inexperienced.

family. They set up the bed in my parents bedroom, and my father set up a cot right next to her for him to sleep on. One morning about three months later, I was woken up by the sound of my father talking to someone on the phone. I could hear the pain in his voice; my mother had died in her sleep. I can not say exactly what I was thinking. All I knew was that I was glad that every night for as long as I could remember I was able to tell her that I loved her before I went to bed. This was a life-altering experience. It taught me about life and many other things, and I can say this: if my family did not have health care or health insurance, my mother would not have been able to spend her last months with us. No one has the right to take away that from my family. My father would not have been able to pay for all of the care and hospitalization that my mother needed if we did not have insurance either. Health care and heath insurance are a necessity today. People can not afford to go into the hospital or even get sick if they are not insured.

Paragraph Development In short essay writing there are three basic types of paragraphs: the introductory paragraph, the body paragraph and the closing paragraph. Each of these types have important functions to perform in a piece of writing, suggested by their respective names. The introductory paragraph performs much the same function as you do when you introduce one person to another. If you do a good job of introducing Mary to Bill, you will provide Bill with a connection, a reason why he should know Mary. Sometimes, of course, that reason can be self-evident. When writing, you must know who your reader is, what the reader needs to know about the material, and what the readers needs are with regards to the material and the reason you are providing the reader with that material. If you are writing an exam answer in history for Dr. Aurand, you need not have a very well developed or particularly entertaining introduction; on the other hand, if you are writing an essay about the sibling rivalry you suffered through with your little brother, you need to tell the reader some background material so that he or she can visualize the setting, and you need to provide some rationale for your telling this personal history to whomever your reader is. Just who that reader is will make a difference too. For instance, your psychiatrist has different needs for reading such material than another student in your class who not only does not know you but is a single child and thus has never had such an experience.

Domestic Violence
by Julie Pellegrini

n my short lifetime Ive seen domestic violence on television, but I never thought that I would see it in my own family. My Aunt Carol and Uncle Bob exchanged vows on April 18, 1985. They appeared to be a happy couple and very much in love when she came over to our house one night with bruises and claimed she had fallen down the stairs. We accepted the excuse because everyone has tripped on that particular staircase in her home. Everything went back to normal, or so we thought.
Soon after the unexplained bruises appeared, my aunt became pregnant. We were all happy for her except for my uncle. He had never wanted children because he thought that it would take the time he and my aunt could spend alone together away from them. Throughout my aunts pregnancy my uncle refused to acknowledge her condition, and my aunt continued to arrive at our house with mysterious bruises. We were all suspicious and we questioned my aunt, but she claimed that everything was fine. After nine months she had a beautiful baby boy named Alan. He was one of the cutest babies Ive ever seen, with blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Even after the babys birth, arguments, fights, and bruises were kept a secret from us. I will never forget about one of the incidents that we eventually discovered. By the time Baby Allen was ten years of age, their family had to move in with us. We were told that they moved in due to financial reasons, but the secret that my aunt kept from us was revealed. We heard arguing between my aunt and uncle repeatedly; however, we didnt intrude on their privacy. We probably should have. We never witnessed my uncle strike his family until one hot summer day. Alan used his fathers wrench to fix his skateboard and left the wrench in his room. That day my uncle decided to do some work on his car when he discovered his wrench was missing. He then began screaming at Alan and started beating him. He also struck my aunt with the wrench. My father was outside when he heard the screaming from inside. He ran in and began fighting with my uncle and kicked him out. My aunt was crying, and she insisted that she must go with him. After this incident we encouraged my aunt to get help and leave her husband, but she claimed that they loved each other and that when they got along he wasnt physically abusive. My uncle made a promise to my aunt to never hit Alan again, and so far he has kept it. We just wish he would stop emotionally and physically hurting my aunt. In many situations which involve abuse the authorities should be notified. Unfortunately, we had too much respect for my aunts request to let her solve her own problems. We love my aunt dearly, and we have to respect her feelings. That is why we thought that we couldnt become involved. I guess my aunt stuck to her vows when she said I do, but she has to realize that there is a time when she must learn to say I dont.

Picking Topics As you are well aware, domestic violence is a hot topic within our society. One of the old adages from writing courses is that you must have courage to write well and you must tell the truth. If we are to have impact as writers, we must be prepared to reveal the truth even when it may be painful. Of course each one of us must make the choice about just what we will reveal in a public fashion. Remember, in college we are writing for the purpose of publishing our work.

Youth Violence
by Brad Smith ost people in the United States have experienced violence directly or indirectly. It is impossible at this date and time to not come in contact with crime and violence. In the past I had a first-hand experience with violence. This event left a long-lasting impression on me, and I can still remember almost every detail.
Approximately three years ago (when I was a sophomore in high school), two friends and I went to a mall that was close to where I lived to hang out and shop a little. It was not uncommon for young people to go to the mall to see a movie or to just get together with a couple of friends. On that cold, winter day, we had been at the mall for a couple of hours and had decided to leave. By that time it was dark, and we exited the main entrance and headed toward my friend Johns car. As we went out the doors, my friend Craig noticed about five people following us. He looked at us and said, Something is up. Refusing to believe we were in any danger, we ignored Craig and continued toward the car. When we were a couple of hundred yards into the dark parking lot, one of the guys that was following us yelled out, Hey, wait up! We continued toward the car at a faster pace hoping he was not addressing us. The group of guys ran to catch up, and when they did one of them confronted me and started asking me questions. He wanted to know where I bought my jacket and how much it cost, and then he asked me if he could try it on. It occurred to me that these guys wanted to rob me. After I refused to let the stranger try on my jacket, he said that I wouldnt let him try it on because of his race. I told him it was not like that at all. I was very nervous because the people who were harassing us were older and bigger than any of us. They circled around us and I knew it wasnt going to be easy to get out of this one. One of the people in the group said, Im going to be honest with you. Were from New York City, and were looking to get some jackets and whatever else. I wondered why he didnt get a job and buy these things like other people did. The situation got more drastic when he reached into his jacket with one hand as if he had a gun and said, Somebody better hand over their stuff, or theyre going to get shot. I dont know why, but my gut instincts told me he was bluffing and I didnt move. Was this stupid? Probably, but at the time I valued my belongings enough to take the chance. He then grabbed my jacket and tried to rip it off of me. I threw his hands off me, but another kid helped him push me alongside a car away from my friends. Adrenaline and fear pumped through me. I recall looking for my friends or someone else in the parking lot for help. John and Craig were somewhere being occupied by the others. The two that were now pinning me to a car began to swing at me, and I fought back the best I could. Suddenly, for some reason, they backed off and left, possibly because security was coming. I took a quick look and saw nothing. I thought that my friends had probably taken off. I made my way back to the mall, disoriented and confused. I hoped to find security or some more of my friends; however, I couldnt find anyone. After unsuccessfully searching for help, I decided to go out to the doors and see if maybe Craig and John had come back for me and were waiting in the car outside. I walked out and saw Craig making his way toward me. John soon pulled up to pick us up. We all talked and through this I found out that the guys harassed them both too. Craigs gold chain had been stolen. This chain meant more to him than its cash value because it had been passed down through his family from his great grandfather. Johns jacket was ripped in his struggle to escape.

The Federal Government reports that actual number of violent crime has decreased over the past few years. Yet our perception of society remains a violent one. On the one hand reason seems to rule; on the other the world seems completely irrational. What sort of world do we live in? What sort of world do we think we live in?

Fortunately, we were not physically hurt. I never told the police or even my parents about the incident because there was really nothing that could be done. I felt angry for a long period of time after this occurred, and I guess I still do to some degree. I lost a tremendous amount of trust that I had for people as an adolescent, and I became less naive to the ways of world. Ive found myself being more careful when I leave places at night. I am still very friendly with Craig and John. We dont talk about the incident any more, but I am sure there are times when we have all thought back on it. One good thing that came out of this is that it made our friendships stronger. My friends could have taken the easy way out and left me at the mall that night, but they didnt. I think it is a rarity to find true friends who wont turn their backs on you when trouble arises. They didnt, and I have great respect for them because of it.

Paragraph Development Body paragraphs are the meat and potatoes of your essay; they are where you develop your points, make your arguments, and tell your story. When someone says your essay is underdeveloped, this is the place it is lacking; when someone says you need more specifics, this is where you put them. When we speak of paragraph development, we usually use one or more of the following terms: topic sentences, sub-topic sentences, example sentences, and illustration sentences. Every body paragraph must have at least an example sentence or an illustration sentence.

+ Topic sentences tell the reader the topic of a paragraph and limit the para+ Sub-topic sentences further develop the topic. + Example sentences provide the reader with examples of specific instances + Illustration sentences provide the reader with specific instances of what the
topic is about; in a sense, they tell a brief story or paint a precise picture. within the topic. graph to that topic.

The Stereotype
by Joel Rivera any people across the country see minorities as being criminals or menaces to society. This is proven through television and movies by their characterizations of Blacks and Hispanics in specific roles. The African-American or Hispanic person is often portrayed as a criminal, and that is where I believe the stereotype begins.
Over the years I have dealt with many types of stereotypes, but none of them have hurt me as badly as the one that occurred during my freshman year at Stroudsberg High School. I can remember it very clearly. As I was walking through the halls, a young man approached me; apparently, someone had broken into his car and stolen his car stereo system. It turns out that for some unknown reason, it got around that a couple of friends and I, who happen to be minorities, go around stealing things because supposedly, thats what Puerto Ricans do. His exact words were, Hey, you spic, hows about I kick your ass for breaking into my car and stealing my system? Of course, I was going to stick up for myself, and I spoke out in my defense. The gentleman didnt agree with what I had to say and replied with, All you spics are the same, stealing shit, breaking shit, raping white girls, and you all wear your pants down to the middle of your ass. That statement did not go over well with me, and all hell broke loose. It was my third week of school and already I had to put up with white trash thinking that their shit doesnt stink. I was suspended for five days for that unfortunate incident. That kind of stereotyping has been presented to me on several occasions since then, and I am proud to say that I have learned to control my temper and walk away. That was a lesson my father tried to teach me all my life, but I guess I just had to learn it on my own. Another memorable incident that makes me laugh every time I think about it occurred in English class during my sophomore year. I was sitting there minding my own business when a girl called me blanquito (which means little white boy in Spanish). I turned to her and asked her why she called me that. She stared me straight in the eye and said, Because you look Puerto Rican, but you act and talk white. My reply to her was, What does a Puerto Rican act and talk like? She said something to the effect that they talk as if they were born and raised in New York city, they act as if they are in charge of everything, and they all have bad attitudes. I didnt know whether to take it as a compliment or to take it personally. I chose to laugh it off, and Im lucky that I did because I ended up dating this girl for two and a half years. I think everyone knows that stereotyping can be wrong, but it is done so often that it becomes a habit to some. Not all stereotypes are negative, either. I just seem to agree with the old saying, If you dont have anything nice to say, dont speak (maybe it didnt go like that but close enough). I also agree with this statement: Until we have a nation that can learn to stop criticizing others because of their skin colors or nationalities, we wont be as strong or as efficient as we can be, both economically and emotionally.

Paragraph Development Concluding paragraphs do just what the name implies: arrive at a conclusion. Remember, though, that to conclude something does not me to simply stop; it means that you have arrived at the end. In mathamatical terms, this means the answer; however, in writing we may not always have an answer. Nevertheless the reader must be satisfied that all has been said that is reasonable to say considering what the thesis of the essay is. The ultimate question then is has the thesis been satisfied?

Athletes

by Michael Benfer

onder for a moment how the idea that athletes are stupid may have evolved. Perhaps someone attended a contact sport such as football and saw an injury occur during the game. Maybe the viewer discussed the game with a friend and came to the conclusion that only someone stupid would play football.
The idea that athletes are stupid, however, is very wrong. For an individual to be stupid, he or she must be slow-witted, dull, or lacking in intelligence; and this is most assuredly not the case when it comes to most athletes. The first time I experienced the stereotype that athletes are The main driving stupid was during my comeback to soccer. Although I had made force behind my a full recovery from my ACL injury, my doctor told me that it return to soccer was possible for me to re-tear my repaired ligament if I overexwas the thrill of erted myself during the first couple of games. This meant that if I were side-tackled or tripped in the right way or if I ran for too competition. long a period of time, the chance existed that I could seriously mess up my left knee. It was for that reason that my friends told me that I was stupid for playing soccer again. Even my grandfather told me I was crazy. The main driving force behind my return to soccer was the thrill of competition and the excitement of the game. For example, I make split-second decisions while running down the field dribbling the ball. In my head I must go over tactical plays, such as whether to chip the ball over the defenses heads to my strikers, pass the ball backwards to my full backs, or simply to dribble around my opponents. Just the act of dribbling the ball requires skill; therefore, a slow-witted person would find it impossible to perform such a task. Another example of intelligence is the ingenuity demonstrated by the receiver and his teammates when they successfully complete a pass. After all, it requires a certain degree of creativity and strategy to outmaneuver the other teams defenses, thus proving that football players must be intelligent or else they would not be able to work together to score a touchdown. How then can this stereotype still be considered true? Perhaps what looks stupid in the eyes of others is the athlete pushing him- or herself to the limit without regard to injury. In the mind of an athlete, however, this act of pushing oneself to the limit and beyond is what allows an athlete to improve, mature, and excel.

Semicolons Students often want to know the proper use of the semicolon. Benfers essay illustrates the two accepted uses of this peculiar piece of punctuation: 1) A semicolon can join independent clauses, and 2) a semicolon can separate items in a series when comas are employed within those items. Can you differentiate between the two examples in Benfers essay?

The Art of Lying

by Salena Mrozinski

n most cases, lying should be considered an art. First of all, in order to lie you must be able to think very quickly so that you dont get yourself caught up in the middle of the lie. Second, you must not have a guilty conscience, because if you do it will be difficult to stick to your lie. Next, you must able to think of a good lie which people will believe. Some lies are very dull, while others are extremely well-fabricated. Last, you must be able to keep your lie snowballing. In other words, you must be able to keep your lie flowing in a smooth rhythm. Youll be considered a great liar if you keep these guidelines in mind.

One time I found myself in a situation in which all I could do was lie. The only reason I lied was so I wouldnt hurt Adams feelings. Allow me to explain: One afternoon after school, a guy named Adam asked me out on a date. I really wasnt interested in Adam, so I quickly came up with a plan of action. Instead of telling him the truth, I lied about having a boyfriend named Tylor. I didnt want to tell Adam how I really felt because I did not want to hurt him. When I told Adam about this so-called boyfriend of mine, he didnt believe me. Thats when I made a complete identity for this imaginary guy. I told Adam that I was dating a guy named Tylor Anderson. To make the lie seem even truer, I added an address and a telephone number to Tylors false existence. I kept making the one little lie get bigger and bigger. Finally, Adam did believe my lie. Little did he know, I wasnt dating this imaginary guy named Tylor Anderson. After about a week of lying to Adam, I learned that I shouldnt have lied to someone who really liked me for who I was. I realized that there arent too many people out there who treat others in a civilized and polite manner. I understood that Adam did like me for who I really was, and thats when my conscience started itching at me. Soon after this guilt trip, I apologized to Adam. I told the truth, and he understood all of it. He accepted my apology, and ever since then we have been great friends. Even to this day, we both laugh when the name Tylor Anderson is brought up. I was really happy that Adam forgave me for my dishonesty and stupidity. In conclusion, you can see how much skill I put into my lie; however, I failed because my conscience got the best of me. In order for one to tell a great lie, everything must flow like a stream.

Connections: Making Transitions Notice the way each of Mrozinskis paragraphs begin. The phrase, In most cases, connects us with the title, The Art of Lying, and the rest of the essay, leading us to expect that we are going to receive an example of the art of lying. The second paragraph starts with the phrase, One time, which indicates we will learn of a specific example of the art of lying. The third paragraph starts with When I, which provides a time shift. The fourth paragraph begins with After about a week, which provides another time shift. And the last paragraph announces In conclusion, which signifies both a time shift and a movement away from the narrative to a discussion of ideas.

My Greatest Football Memory

by Robert Sawicki

n a chilly Friday evening on the seventeenth of November, the number one seeded East Stroudsburg Cavaliers were scheduled to play in the District Final game against their rivals, the fourth-seeded Stroudsburg Mountaineers, for the District Title. As I entered Memorial Stadium, I saw an abundance of news crews, fans, and families anticipating the start of the ball game. Walking through the hallway I heard the bands from both schools tuning their instruments amid the hum of excitement from the people around me. In the midst of all this, the bright stadium lights shined into the halls through the doorways which led onto the field. As I opened the door and walked into the locker room, it was as if I had entered another world. Silence had fallen upon the players; each and every one of them was preparing for the championship game.
This was what we had set our goals for at the beginning of the seasongoing undefeated in twelve games, winning the districts, and playing in the state playoffs all contributed to meeting our goal. As I was putting my uniform on, I realized how hard it was to get here, and being senior captain, I was mentally prepared to go out with the intention of being victorious and to have a shiny gold medal around my neck at the end of the game. It was time, and as our coach was giving us the traditional pre-game talk I looked around to find all of my teammates focused and ready. As they put on their helmets and buckled their chin straps, they began yelling and cheering, telling the Mountaineers that they have made a big mistake by coming into the Purple Pit and that they were in for a dog fight. As the CO-Captains and I walked the team through the hallway and onto the field, we were greeted by the screams of our home crowd and the cheers of our cheerleaders. We formed a large circle, yelled championship, and ran through a sign, which read 12 and 0 in big, red letters. As we broke the sign, the crowd roaring and the band playing set the tone for the kickoff. The CO-Captains and I walked out for the coin toss. Unfortunately, we lost. They wanted the ball in the second half, so we made them pay the price. On our very first possession we capped a six-play, eighty-yard touchdown drive to go on top seven to zero. As the defense came onto the field, they attacked like wild animals to stuff the Stroudsburg offense; and when our offense came onto the field, we picked apart their defense like vultures. We had walked onto the field with a mission, and at the end of the game our mission was completed. We beat Stroudsburg with a final score of thirty-five to fourteen. The East Stroudsburg Cavaliers were the District Eleven Champions. Our coach put the gold medals around our necks and congratulated us one by one. Afterwards we received the district trophy and yelled the traditional Ei-Ei-O chant to let the opposition know that we were the champions. This is a moment that I will never forgetI was playing a sport with a group of individuals who were not only teammates but best friends, which made the game fun. It is a memory which Ill cherish for life.

Sentences For the most part students are able to write complete sentences, avoiding the three most serious sentence errors: fragments, comma splices, and fused sentences. But they dont always know what a sentence is, and when they do stumble into a serious error, they can find it difficult to edit the sentence into an acceptable mode. For our purposes a sentence is defined as a group of words that (1) makes sense on its own, (2) includes a subject and a predicate, and (3) begins with a capital letter and ends with a

Rock Climbing
by Bree Black ock Climbing exhilarates the people who have enough courage to try it. It will frighten even the biggest daredevil. Venturing up the rock, the climber receives an ultimate high. My first climb was very thrilling. It helped me learn to trust other people and taught me that determination is very important when trying to achieve a goal.
Securely fastened in my harness, I was ready to begin my first climb. As I stood at the base of the rock, I gazed straight up to the top. From this perspective, the climb ahead of me looked almost impossibleI had to climb about seventy feet in order to reach the top! Not knowing what to expect, I felt a little queasy and scared. After taking a deep breath and chalking my hands, I approached the rock. First, I extended my right arm above my head in order to feel for a decent handhold. I explored each crevice and crack with my fingers as well as my toes. As I probed the coarse, rigid surface of the rock, I found a spot that I felt comfortable gripping. I then raised my leg and slowly pulled myself off of the ground. With each advancing step I felt the abrupt tug of the rope on my harness. As I looked up to see how far I was from the top, my eyes became irritated by the grainy dust particles falling form above. My bare feet uncomfortably scraped against the rigid rock surface; however, I fought the unpleasant feeling. The constant lifting of my arms made me distinctly aware of the horribly potent stench coming from my armpits. Throughout my journey I heard the occasional plummeting of rocks to the ground along with the muffled yells of my cohorts below. As I fell backwards, I I took several rests in order to regain my concentration and courage along the clenched the rope with my way. fists and extended my Keeping a brisk pace, I continued to the top. As I neared the final legs so that I wouldnt stretch of the climb I began to feel very tired and weak. My muscles felt smash my head against tight, and my fingers began to ache. I came to a standstill and started to the rock. tremble. I could taste the saltiness of the sweat in my mouth as it slithered down my face. After a long, hard struggle, I lost my grip. As I fell backwards, I clenched the rope with my fists and extended my legs so that I wouldnt smash my head against the rock. As I was falling, a feeling of bottomlessness assaulted the pit of my stomach. After stretching quite a bit, the rope suddenly jerked and I was swinging in mid air. My feet dangled lifelessly in space. At this point I felt the uncomfortable chafing effects of the harness against my skin. Needless to say, I managed to muster up enough energy to finish the climb and make it to the top. As I was slowly lowered to the solid ground, I felt a great sense of achievement. Using the strength of my arms, legs, and mind along with the helpful suggestions of my companions, I had a successful and exciting first climb.

Parallelism One of the most powerful tools a writer has in sounding convincing is the presentation of parallel structures. However, these are often difficult to manufacture properly, and if not done so, the work can be confusing or simply silly. In order to control parallel structure it is necessary to know the parts of speech and their functions. If you truly wish to write well, this is an area where you must work very hard. Look the subject up in your handbook, and ask your teacher for help.

Why I Believe In Ghosts

by Jennifer Standen hrough the trials of time, many strange phenomena have occurred. These happenings are believed to be real by some, but whether or not a person believes in ghosts is his or her prerogative. I have found that my belief in ghosts has increased over the years. One major cause for this increase in belief is the fact that my fathers house is haunted. This is probably very hard to believe, but it is true.
My dad lives in a farm house that is over one hundred years old. The house has a long history which involves the death of a man named Oscar. Oscar was a man who was married and had a few children, and his son did not get along with him. Oscar died before making up with his son, and my family believes that he did not want to die while having ill feelings with his sonand that is why he is stuck in the real world. We did not think of Oscars death as unusual until we started hearing noises around the house. Late at night when everyone was sleeping we would hear footsteps going up and down the stairs, but nobody was there. My father would hear what sounded like pieces of heavy furniture being moved across the attic floor. The strange thing was that there was absolutely nothing in the attic. Noises and occurrences like these could be described as paranormal happenings, but many believe that they are just coincidences. For instance, We did not think of someone could have gotten up during the night and went downOscars death as unstairs. After all, there were seven people in the house at the usual until we started time. That could explain the noisesbut how would one exhearing noises around plain the fact that my brother once tried to sit in a chair and the house. found himself levitating in mid-air? It was as if he were sitting on someones lap, but no one was there! My dad then got scientists to look at the house to do some tests to determine if our home was really haunted. They looked around and specifically instructed him not to remodel anything. Well, my dad (being the good listener that he is) hired help to remodel the house, and he started with the kitchen. One afternoon the man renovating the kitchen had the scare of a lifetime. His tools began flying around the room, and so did the saw horses and two-by-fours. Needless to say, the man left and never came backnot even to get his tools. The event that fully convinced us that the house was haunted was my grandfathers happening. After every night during which he stayed in one of our bedrooms, he told us that he saw women in his room who were in their underwear; but grandpa was getting older, so we assumed that he had just been dreaming. My dad talked with the scientists about it, though, and got my grandfather to take a Polaroid picture of the figuresand the picture did reveal women figures in his room. Later we found out that the little bedroom that he was sleeping in was, at one time, the dressing room for the ladies of the house. The happenings that occurred in my fathers house have convinced me that ghosts are real. After all, there are pictures to prove it. The noises still occur, and we have gotten used to them. They have become part of the house and Oscar has become part of the family.

Myth In everyday speech this word is used to indicate a lie or a story with no basis in fact. We tend to dismiss myths as foolishness, especially when they belong to other people, but we all have our myths. They are the way we explain the truth about lifes mysteries, which are often more powerful than the facts.

The Championship
by Jeff Klein elieving in yourself is the first step to achieving success. I learned that the hard way during a little league football season. There was about one hour until kickoff, and I was a nervous wreck. I had no self-confidence and I wasnt even sure if my coach was going to play me in what was to be the biggest game of the season. During the week prior to the game, my performance on the field was horrible. I must have missed six or seven tackles, and I let my man score twice. Even though we won the game, everyone knew that I was the weak link on the team. I had all week to punish myself for playing the way I did. I knew that I could play better than I had, but I was scared to make another big mistake. Besides all of the doubts that I had with myself, I was still unsure of one thing: did the coach feel the same way that I did?

Although me head was filled with distractions, I still prepared for this game like I had for every other one. As I was doing my pre-game stretching, I felt somebodys hand on my shoulder. Jeff, when youre done with your warm-ups, I need to talk to you, Coach Doyle whispered through the ear hole in my helmet. Id had a feeling that hed wanted to talk to me, but I didnt know what he was going to say. I quickly finished stretching and darted over to the coach. Even though Mr. Doyle was an intimidating figure, I had always felt comfortable around him and had the highest respect for the man. Furthermore, I always listened to what he said and took it seriously. He looked in my intense and determined eyes and said, Jeff, Im going to be honest with you because I know the type of kid you He looked in myeyes and are. I want you to forget about what happened last week. Pretend said, Jeff, Im going to be it never happened and focus on this game and this game only. Youve honest with you. proven to me during this season that you are one of this leagues best linebackers. This game means a lot to both of us and my decision to give you the start was easy. I know you can handle yourself out there and I want you to play like you always do, with heart and guts. There isnt anyone that I would rather have out there than you. Jeff, play like a champ and make me proud. Despite the way that I played last week, my coach made me feel like the best player in the world. His speech motivated me and made me feel like I could do anything that I wanted to. I had never had anybody believe in me to the extent that Coach Doyle did. I was no longer playing for myself, I was out there for the coach as well. I couldnt let either of us down. Although this was just a football game, it meant a lot to me because I felt like if I could accomplish that goal, I could do anything in the world. I played a flawless game and we won the championship. The speech that my coach gave afterward made me think. What he said didnt only apply to the game of football. The point of his speech was that believing in yourself is the first step to success in any aspect of life. Since that memorable day, any time I face adversity I think back to what coach Doyle said and I do what he told me to do: believe in myself.

One of Americas great myths is that with the proper determination we can win it for The Gipper. Hollywood may have spawned this phrase, but the truth it conveys may be more important than its historical accuracy.

The Drab Room

by Kristy Rice n a dull September morning I sit here in my English class in the Chestnut Cottage. It seems like time is standing still to my sleepy, barelyconscious mind. The walls imprisoning me appear to be two different sleep-inducing shades of gray. The top half is a light gray, the bottom a black gray. There are eight windows that seem to taunt me with the exciting things they hide behind their shades. To my left are five windows, and the remaining three lie directly behind me. All of the dusky, blue shades are in disarray. Some slots are pointed up and some are pointed down, and others are bent. The shades are closed to keep the wakeful rays of sunshine out. Through the propped-open door to my left, the sun ventures through and slants across my paper, almost blinding me.
Along with the sunshine comes a much-welcomed breeze. It cools down my slightly damp skin, which feels tacky against my plain yellow desk. The breeze also brings along a fresh-smelling country air to the stale, dull odor that fills the room, signifying that Chestnut Cottage had been closed for Labor Day. The pleasant notes of cherry crickets and an unknown If this environment is squeal also float into the room. Through the door and past the meant to keep a stutwo large televisions flutters a moth that lands lightly on the dent alert, it doesnt back of a royal blue chair in front of a male student who is seem to be working. wearing blue and white. He seems oblivious to it. These little creatures seem to be telling me that its time to wake up fully and become active. Suddenly, I hear a repetition of sharp coughs echoing off bare walls directly in front of me while the crinkling of notebook paper sounds in the stagnant air. A squeaky desk to my far right begins to annoy me. The only person who seems to be awake in the small classroom is the teacher, who quietly gives explanations to the students in the front of the room. If this environment is meant to keep a student alert, it doesnt seem to be working.

The Five Paragraph Theme This is how student essay writing used to be refered to, but not all writing conforms to the mold. Sometimes excellent pieces of writing help to prove the rule that rules are meant to be broken. Keep in mind that when we say rule we usually mean as a rule rather than this is a law. No one will arrest you if you break any or even all the rules of writing Standard Edited Written American English. However, when you take a course, you are demanding that the instructor of that course maintain those standards, help you to learn the ones with which you are not familiar, and rate your ability to produce written work within the guidelines of those standards. NOTE: If you want to successfully break the rules, you must know what those rules are.

Questions
by Kim Devaney

o, youve finished reading No Disrespect by Sister Souljah and you still dont get the point. Well, what is the point, anyway? Now that Im done reading this book, I am filled with many thoughts and questionssuch as, why? Why do we need this book and what relevance does it have?

Sister Souljah wants us to hear her message and learn from her mistakes, but in order to do so we must know what her mistakes were. The key word here is mistakesSouljah does not claim at any time that her actions were moral; instead, she clearly states her thoughts and values regarding growing up in America. Souljah recognizes the lack of positive role models in our society and the result that ensues from itmillions of children desperately trying to find a way to survive in a hostile society and making poor decisions based on the same poor decisions of others. The children become products of their environments and lack the knowledge or will to get out. Lets open our minds to see the message that is so desperately needed. Otherwise, the gravity of the situation will continue to pull us on the downward spiral that we choose to ignore. Like millions of American children do today, Sister Souljah grew up lacking the guidance of positive role models. Her mother started out to be strong, but when she was forced to move her family to the projects she became a different person as a means for survival. Souljah was old enough to be aware of the changes and stated, I had to come to believe that the woman walking around the house posing as my mother was not my mother. She was Americas creation and did not belong to me (50). Sister Souljahs lack of respect for her mother grew as her mother started to have many boyfriends and lovers visit the house. Souljah saw the ongoing change in boyfriends and the pain that these relationships caused. Although her mother tried to give her advice at times, Souljah expressed bitterness as she wrote, Like many adults she didnt understand the power of her example. As time went on the more I saw and felt the gap between her words and deeds, the more the gap hurt me (4041). If her mother was not a positive role model, then where was she to find one? She was surrounded by similar situations and relationships. As she matured, the scars left on her became evident in the decisions that she made, but she was able to see the changes that need to be made in society. She speaks of her concern for the African-American females in America: [T]he ghetto girl whom nobody ever tells the definition of womanhood, or manhood for that matter (xiv). In the final chapter, she demands our attention in noticing all of the faults in society, including those of racism. Although most Americans would like to believe that we all have equal opportunities to excel, this could not be further from the truth. How can we expect our children to grow up strong when we are not? How is the child who grew up without love, schooling, food, and so on to find it in him- or herself to rise above those hardships? A child like that cannot respect him- or herself, so why should he or she escape such a life? A childs family and friends can be the only life that the child ever knows, so it is vital that these people act as positive role models. We all need to realize the need for reinforcement of positive actions. We should admire Sister Souljah for her bravery. How many of us

would sit down and write about all of the embarrassing mistakes that we had made while growing up and publish them nationally? She exposed her life so that others may learn form her mistakes. Imagine how difficult it was for her to relive all of the painful experiences in her life. Her experiences with the people closest to her were not positive. Each experience left her weak and more removed from her faith in human society. Of all of her relationships, the one with Chance left the deepest scars. She would have done anything for him, and she was not afraid to admit that fact in spite of the faults that he had. Whatever Chance was, a drug dealer, a gangster, a murderer, my minds eye simply refused to see him that way. When I looked at him I saw only what he could be, not what he was (302). She had such a strong belief in her ability to help others that she neglected herself. Souljah offered us a survival manual by illustrating that in spite of it all, she survivedand so can we. We all have made mistakes that we hope no one will discover, but our children can learn from these experiences and someone needs to teach them. If a positive outlook can not be found at home, children will naturally look outward to the community; but there is not much positive action to be found there, especially regarding White Supremacy. White America has discouraged the growth of African culture. We have only tried to suppress the ideas and beliefs that we do not understand and that do not follow our preconceived mode of what is American. We need to take responsibility for out actions and stop expecting everyone to just get over it. Ignoring the problem will not make it go away. Our children are the future; no matter what their races or cultural backgrounds may be, we need to enable them to grow up strongand the only way to do this is by becoming strong ourselves and facing the responsibilities that are crying out for our attention. Work Cited Souljah, Sister. No Disrespct. New York: Random House, 1994.

Citing Sources In college English courses, and many other college courses as well, we use the Modern Language Associations paranthetical, in-text documentation format when citing secondary source material. Devaneys essay provides an excellent example of how to do this for a book. Notice that Devaney places quoted material within quotation marks and the proper citation materials within parenthases. At the end of the essay, Devaney has a work cited entry for the book from which the material came. Failing to properly credit another writers words or ideaseven if you change all the words, the ideas do not belong to youconstitutes cheating, and if you should profit from doing so, could subject you to litigation. Penn State University has a specific policy with regards to this activity, and you should familiarize yourself with it. Ask your teacher for help, and dont forget to read about this subject in your handbook.

Drugs and Peer Pressure

by Mike Reilly

ecently, Music Television News suggested that heroin and other drugs have made a comeback. More and more students are turning to drugs to help them fit in or to deal with problems. In ninth grade, John, a student I knew, turned to drugs and alcohol to be more popular. He earned straight As but did not have many friends and was known as a nerd. Some of the students he had associated with in seventh grade had already started to use drugs, and John wanted to make more friends and to fit in.

In the beginning John started to hang out with his old friends. They had already begun to experiment with drugs, and soon John too was trying them in order to fit in. At first he only used weaker drugs that did not have any major long-term effects. As time passed, however, he was using stronger drugs, and doing them more and more frequently. His goal was accomplished; he had acquired more friends and was popular. His grades He was using stronger also fell to Cs, where they leveled off. drugs, and doing them At the start of the twelfth grade he was very popular more and more freand had the most friends hed ever had in his life. Within quently. a couple of school weeks, he was failing every class and didnt care about it at all. Halfway through the year he was doing so badly in school that he would not have been able to pass all of his classes and graduate that year even if hed turned his life around right then. At this time, John decided that graduating from high school was not important to him and he did not feel like going another year, so he dropped out. Within four years he went from a Harvard prospect to a dropout. He changed his attitude, his clothes, and his hair color. For him all of this did not matter because he would rather have friends than be successful. Peer pressure and the need for more friends forced him into drugs and alcohol. They forced his life to change, and it would never be the same again.

Diction In college writing word choice, diction, is very important. We strive to be as specific as possible or as needed for the situation were writing in. We must know who our reader is, what that reader already knows about the subject, and what that reader needs to learn from us. Keep in mind that in a very real sense, although not always obvious, all college level writing is definition. We define problems and define solutions; we define places and define emotions; we define the world and define the activities in it whenever we write. Thus our choice of words is the magical incantation we recite in order to conjur meaning for our readers.

Coming Up with Ideas

Where do students come up with the would write a phrase like I cant think wonderful stories they have to tell in their over and over again until she did think of essays? Arriving at a topic for an essay as- something new. It didnt matter if she got signment, no matter what the course, is rarely off the topic either. The idea was to simply an easy matter. Probably the most common write like hell and to discover after the ten complaint teachers hear is I dont know what minutes were up what she had to say. Creto write about! Even when a teacher has done ative writers believe that language speaks a great job of creating an assignment and pro- to them, that they actually learn as they vided plentiful examples, some students sim- write. They even believe that their characply draw a blank. Usually the fear of writ- ters speak to them and take on lives of their ingor of beginning to writeis the culprit. own, dictating to the writer what the course Fine and dandy, but how does a writer of a story will be. Essayists, at least in colovercome this stumbling lege courses, block? The number one seldom have method is to simply sit down the luxury of Note: and write. Write whatever defending Dont try this exercise on a computer. comes into your head. Unless their writing Only very experienced typists can the writer is in a test situation, in this fashfree write on a machine. Instead, use this is the only fool proof ion. Imagine your favorite writing instrument, method. Creative writing inthe history preferably a pen, and more than one structors even created a game student exsheet of paper. You should easily fill years ago to help. Its called plaining to Dr. one side of one standard sized sheet Write like Hell! You may Aurand, Im of paper in ten minutes. have played this game alsorry, Profesready. Composition teachers sor, but Genadapted the game to their own eral Lee repurposes, and comp teachers being in the po- fused to order Picketts brigade to charge sition they are in, gave the game a new name: across that field. Free Writing. Composition teachers renamed the In the creative writing game, the writer game because they wanted to emphasize looked around herself, jotted down the name the fact that in this kind of writing (often of the first object to catch her attention and referred to as prewriting) the student then the second object. The second step was should feel free of the encumbrances of to set a clock or a watch for a ten minute time editing; that is, the writer should not be conperiod and to write as furiously as possible, cerned about the reader because the only starting with the two objects (usually some- reader of free writing is the writer herself. thing like a tree and a jelly jar). The trick was Therefore, whether a word is spelled corto write without stopping or looking up or rectly or not is of no concern. If the writer even thinking for that ten minute time period. leaves out all punctuation, it is of no conseIf she couldnt think of anything to write, she quence. Thus the writing is free.