Narrative Essays Most Important Event: An event that defines your narrative and leads it in another direction. Conflict: is the struggle found in fiction. Conflicl/Plot may be intemal or extemal and is best saan in (1) Person in conflict with another person; (2) Persan in conflict in Nature; (3) Persan in conflict with self. Solution: What salves tha problam or resolves the canflict (5). Details: Descriptions of people, places, and things in the narrative. Sensory Details: Descriptions thal are derived from the sanse of small, taste, touch, hear, or sae. Characters: The ‘who of the narrative. Descriptions of the characiers looks, feelings, and his ar her reactions ta avents in tha narrative ara important to tall and deseribe. : Verbs that deseribe, in better detail, the actions in the narrative. Verbs like “ran* instead of “went” and “screamed” insiaad of “said*. Specific Words: Words that add concrete detail to elements in a narrative. Using a real name for something (Tonka™ instead of toy truck) makes the story come alive better for the taader. General Words: fords that give general descriptions to peapla, placas, and things. Transitions: Transitional words and phrases provide the glue that holds ideas together in writing. Examples of these are “First", “Sacond’, “Finally”, and °Sucdenly’. Connecting Words (conjunctions): As their name implias, conjunctions join together elements of thought: words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs. The list includes: “and”, “ar, “nar’,“for’, “so”, “yet, “bur” Verbs: is a word or group of words that exprasses action, shows a state of existence, or links that subject to the rest of the santance. Adjectives: Describe or add information ta nouns ar pronouns. yn: A group of sentences that work tagether 1o develop ane idea or topic within a lager piece of wilting. An affective paragraph is developed, unified, and coherent. Adverbs: Describe or add information to verbs, adjectives, and othar adverbs Beginning-Middle-End: Narrativas are usually arranged in chronolagical order, so the plot is understood clearly. ‘Sequence of Events: The logical order of events that accur ina narrative. Clue words like “Befora’, “Next, “Afier’, and “Finally can be used to guide tha readar in the sequence. Dialogue: A conversation between characters indicated by quotation marks and clue words like “said’, “argued”, and “pleaded”.Tone Vocabulary List Positive Tone/Attitude Words Amiable Consoling Amused Content Appreciative Dreamy Authoritative Ecstatic Benevolent Elated Brave Elevated Calm Encouraging Cheerful Energetic Cheery Enthusiastic Compassionate Excited Complimentary Exuberant Confident Fanciful Negative Tone/Attitude Words Accusing Choleric Aggravated Coarse Agitated Cold Angry Condemnatory Apathetic Condescending Arrogant Contradictory Artificial Critical Audacious Desperate Belligerent Disappointed Bitter Disgruntled Boring Disgusted Brash Disinterested Childish Facetious Friendly Happy Hopeful Impassioned Jovial Joyful Jubilant Lighthearted Loving Optimistic Passionate Peaceful Furious Harsh Haughty Hateful Hurtful Indignant Inflammatory Insulting lrritated Manipulative Obnoxious Outraged Passive Humor-lrony-Sarcasm Tone/Attitude Words Amused Droll Bantering Facetious Bitter Flippant Caustic Giddy Comical Humorous Condescending Insolent Contemptuous Ironic Critical Irreverent Cynical Joking Disdainful Malicious Mock-heroic Mocking Mock-serious Patronizing Pompous Quizzical Ribald Ridiculing Sad Sarcastic Playful Pleasant Proud Relaxed Reverent Romantic Soothing Surprised Sweet Sympathetic Vibrant Whimsical Quarrelsome Shameful Smooth Snooty Superficial Surly Testy Threatening Tired Uninterested Wrathful Sardonic Satiric Scornful Sharp Silly Taunting Teasing Whimsical WryVOCABULARY ENRICHMENT IN NARRATIVE ESSAYS VERSION SOPHISTICATED ADJECTIVES 1.1 To describe places ‘|| Coe a || eon ‘optic 1 Attractive ‘The bazaar was attractive. Mesmerizing, compelling, gripping 2 Beautiful The scenery was beautiful. ‘Spectacular, picturesque, stunning +h ie ert Si hou a the Bz | Cipate ior, cle shopping 4 Busy We left the busy town after | Bustling, hectic, frenzied lunch. > fae The beac was dem Pine Spe aac 6 ‘Clear The sea was clear. Crystalline, crystal -dear, translucent 7} aaa The sky wat dou Sule loom owe 8 ‘Colourful The buildings were colourful. Vibrant, multi-coloured, resplendent s ‘Cool ‘The wind from the mountain was | Chilly, breezy, nippy cool 10 Crowded ‘The crowded stadium was noisy. | Swarming, teeming, jam-packed i Dangerous The road to the apartment was | Treacherous, perilous, precarious read, apo Thee war EEE REET RTE 13 Dirty The public toilet was dirty. Filthy, unhygienic, grubby 1a | Famous We stayed ata famous resort. | Eminent, prominent, renowned is Resh hearers a 16 Grand The hotel lobby was grand. Mejestic, imposing, glorious 17 | Great ‘The waterfalls were great. Magnificent, impressive, extravagant 18 High We took photos of the high | Sky-scraping, soaring, lofty toon apr We an long We bead ander | Serengeti ope sae 20 isolated The camping site was remote. Inaccessible, secluded, isolated 21 Noisy ‘The wet market was noisy. Deafening, boisterous, rowdy 22 Peseta Te tage was peat | Sree, roma, ood 2 Polluted ‘The air in the city centre was | impure, contaminated, grimy polluted, 7a roa The coupe vai roaghs | Rage wi eae 25 ‘Spedal Her village was very spedal. Distinguished, exceptional, notable 26 ‘Strange ‘The forests were strange. Peculiar, bizarre, outlandish 37 [Sone The wooden bdgewns ong. [neared 28 Wonderful The Disneyland was wonderful. Fantastic, superb, astonishing1.2 To describe people (Positive Personalities) No. | Common adjective Sample sentence ne T | Aetive ‘She was an active suid, Eergetie enthud astie agile 2 __| Adventurous He was an adventurous person. | Bold, risky, audacious 3) Beautiful is bide was very beautiful. | Appealing, charming, admirable 7 | Busy "The manager was always busy. | Engaged, he dic, bustling about 5 | Careful ‘We were careful in making | Meticulous, scrupulous, thorough dedsions. @_| Gever The clever boy smiled at me. _| Brainy, wity, bight 7 | Committed He was.a committed employee. | Devoted, faithful, dedicated @ | Confident Twas confidentwe would win, | Optieniste, esdkeure, assured 9 _| Cooperative Everyone was cooperative “Supportive, accommodating, obliging 10 | Famous She was afamous singer. Celebrated, prominent, acclaimed 11_| Friendly Thereceptionist was friendly. | Amiable amicable, affable iz | Funny iM granduncle was funny. ‘Amusing, humorous, hilarious ia | Generous ‘The manager was generous, Philanthro ple blg-hearted, benevolent 14 _| Glamorous He led a glamorous life. Dazzling, alluring, sensational 15 | Good His son had good personalities. | Righteous, virtuous, honaurable 16 | Great His mother wasa great lawyer, | Distinguished, eminent, prominent 17 _ | Hardworking The workers were hardworking. | Diligent, industrious, assiduous 18 | Helpful My best Fiend was helpful Benevolent, accommodating, obliging 19_| Honest admired the honesttour guide. | Trustworthy, unequivocal, frank 20 | Kind The distict officer was kind. Benevolent, kind-hearted, indulgent | Spedal We had a spedal guest. Notable, distinguished, exee ptional 7 _| Strange She was strange when she was | Creepy, uncanny, weird alone. 2 _| Strict Her husbandwasastric man. | Rigid, stem, uncompromising 72a _| Strong He foughtwitha strong man. | Mighty sturdy, burly 35 | Successful "The successful teamwas great | Tlumphant, victorious unbeaten 26 | Tidy Her tidy look impressedus. Presentable, well-groomed, spruce 1.3 To describe people (Negative Personalities) No. | Common J Sample sentence Sophisticated adjedive adjective T | Arrogant Thatedhis arrogant attitude. ‘Shobbish,stuck-up, superelliows Z| ed Teould notstandmy bad neighbour. Dreadful, horrible, awful 3_| Careless ‘She wasa careless driver. Rediless, thoughtless, negligent 4_| Crazy Were they crany? Lunatic insane, loony 5 | ervet ‘The eruel minal was arrested Bavbarig, malidous, atrocious ‘S| Dangerous | The armed robber was dangerous. Ruthless, brutal, meraloss 7 [Dishonest | The dishonest derkwas fired. Fraudulent decettful, corrupt =| el ‘We stayedaway fromthe evilkller. Black hearted, devilish, wicked 3 [rat “The fat landlady chased us out. ‘Overweight, stout, flabby T0_| Greedy The vilage headman was greedy. ‘Avarilous, voracious, venous ii [aay “The Tany students were sleeping STothful sluggish, ndotent 12 _| Rude The nude boy was her cousin. Discourteous, boorish, i-mannered 13 _| Selfish “Their sesh attitucle was bad Self-contred,self-seeking egotistical 14_| Stupid Her stupid actmade everybody angry. | Brainless, half-witted, absurd 15 | Thin ‘The thinman was her father. Lanky, seawny, skeletal 16 | Tired We were tired. Exhausted, wearied, fatigued 17 [Troublesome | He was punished forhis woublesomead. | irksome, annoying, niggling 18 | Usly His face was ugly after the acddent. Gruesome, monstrous, hideous 19 | Useless ‘Adrunkard was 2 useless person. Worthless, ho peless,futle 20_| Weak ‘Rweak leader made no progress. Ineffective, forceless, fall1.4 To describe feelings No. | Commonadjective | Sample sentence Sophisticated adjective a | Anery ‘She was angry when her husbandleft Irritated, annoyed, fuming her. 2 [ad Tfeltbad when liedto you. Dreadful, awful, horrible 3 | Bored ‘We were bored. Bore dto death, bored stiff, bored rigid 4 | Confused Everybody was confused why he ran Puzzied, perplexed, baffled away. S| Disappointed He was disappointed for failinghistest. | Disenchanted, thwarted saddened 6 | Happy "We were happy to be there. Radiant, elated, contented 7_|Tonely ‘The lonely wife criedin her room. Lonesome, forlorn, desolate B | Nervous ‘She looked nervous during the contest. | Panicky, anxious,e dgy 3 | Proud They were proudto be able to helpus. | Pompous, conceited, swollen with pride 30_[sad “They were sad to lose the game. Che erless, miserable, poignant ii _| Seared She was scared to stay alone at night. Petrified, terified, horrified 32_| Surprised ‘She was surprised tosee me. ‘Startled, stunned, astonished 33 | Worried He looked worried. Upset, apprehensive, troubled 1.5 To describe others (favourable) No. | Commonadjective | Sample sentence ‘Sophisticate dadjective 1 | Accurate ‘The answers givenwere acairate. | Predse, exact, faultless 2 | Bright He used a bright colour to paint his | Gaudy, glowing, dazzling 3 | cheap ‘The items were cheap. Inexpensive, under-priced, low-priced @ | Gear My explanation was clear. Lucid, unambiguous, clear-cut S| Belidous ‘We tasted the delidous food. ‘Appetizing, savoury, delectable 6 | Easy Frying egg was easy. Effortiess, undemanding, unconstrained 7 | important 111 January was an important day to | Momentous, historic vital me. 3 interesting The story was Interesting. Fascinating engrossing engaging 9 | tasting Thoped to have a lastingmarriage. | Lifelong, undying long-standing 10 | Perfect “The essay was perfect. Flawless, faultiess,immaaulate 12 _| Strong Her evidence was strong. Undisputed, convincing, solid 13 | Successful ‘Our plans were successful. Fruitful, victorious, flourishing 14 | Valuable He took all the valuable items. Priceless, invaluable, treasured 1.6 To describe others (unfavourable) No. | Common ‘Sample sentence ‘Sophisticated adjective adjective T | Accidental The mistake was | Unforeseen, unintended, accidental. unintentional 2 | Bad ‘The plane crash was bad. | Appalling, disastrous, tragic 3 | Boring We left early as the movie | Dreary, dry, stale was boring. ‘@ | Complex ‘The solution was complex. | Complicated, multifaceted, multifarious S| Diffaae ‘Climbing Mount Tahan was | Arduous, strenuous, difficult. backbreaking 6 | Empy The house was empty. Vacant, deserted, uninhabited 7 | Expensive T Bought an expensive | Pricey,costly, luxurious house. & | Heavy ‘The responsibility _ was | Hefty, weighty, profound heaw.- oh His grandmother was very | Bedddden, alling, frail a. 30 | Milogicat ‘Her reason was illogical. | Absurd, falladous,imational ai | Undear His unclear idea was | Ambiguous, hazy, doub¥ul rejected.You have lived in your ancestral house since [34 birth. The house has to be sold for flats to be built. Describe your feelings and thoughts about leaving the house. ‘© 13, Elgin House had been my home for the last fourteen years. It still stood stately at the end of the narrow, busy street, holding forth. Once a sparkling white colonial bungalow flanked by a sprawling, garden, it was now a dirty yellow building waiting to face the gallows. Tears could not be held back. Mum held my hand. Nothing could comfort me then. Why? Why did we have to leave our home? Even Shiela, my nine year old sister, dung to mum with large tears rolling down her cheeks. There were a million questions in our hearts. I distinctly remember the evening when dad broke the news to me, It was a grey, dull evening, so unlike a summer day. A soft rumble was often heard threatening to pour down in rain. We were sitting in our large, cosy living room. The sofas were almost threadbare but that didn’t bother us. The flaky walls still felt warm and reassuring. We had drawn and painted on them as we were growing up. The ‘walls never complained, though mum’s screams had only got louder and frequent. The remnants were still seen all around, reminding us of our first attempts at holding the pencil and discovering the world of letters. Our life was colourful as we waded in and out of the rooms. They ‘were aplenty, in all shapes and sizes. Several were left unopened for months and years. Servants had, over the years, become sparse and infrequent. But it was still the best part of our life. Dad had definitely something important to share with us, The look he had was like someone who was about to give up a beloved precious toy. He spoke with a lump in his throat. He had decided that the house had to be sold since he was unable to maintain the colossal structure. His business was not making enough money and a builder had offered him a good financial deal. It was like an axe falling on our heads. New, swanky apartments would take the place of our home. My world seemed to come to an end. We argued for half the night. Dad’s arguments were foolproof. We had no choice but to accept. We now stood looking at our home for the last time. We opened the creaking gate to take one last walk in our garden. Our laughter of yesteryears still rung in my ears, The giggles and loud bursts of anger on being caught by the den haunted us as we strolled. My reverie was broken when dad called us out. We drove away. Elgin house was lost to us forever.Write an essay based on Flight I stored at the strange purple envelope, wondering what it could possibly be. A Christmas card? it was too early in the year for that, surely. The annoyingly familiar sights of the HDB void deck greeted me as | walked to my lift: the sticky puddle of melting ice-cream dropped by a careless child, yellowing cigarette butts, and the eccasional cockroach scurrying for cover from the bright noan sun. | sighed, wishing J could escape all this; I wished | could take flight somewhere, far away, where people didn’t need to put urine detectors in the lifts because the residents were civilized enough to use their own bathrooms. Once upstairs, | greedily ripped open the purple envelope. Inside fay a beautiful, thick, cream-coloured piece of paper that smelted faintly af roses. On one side, an address was printed. Gn the other side of the smooth paper, a picture of Aunt Faith, whom we hadn't heard from in 5 years since she decided to travel the world, | turned it over, looking for some small scrap of information that would provide more clues to the reason for this mysterious paper, but that was all there was. | knew she had always been a fittle eccentric, but this was bizarre. Could she passibiy be asking me to lack for her? After a few days of puzzled contemplation, | decided ta do it. J would seek out this mysterious address and let the dice fallas they might: After a grueling twenty-seven hour flight, | finally arrived at my destination ~ Marrakesh. Everything seemed to be obscured in a fog of red dust brought by choking, dry winds. Upen my arrival at the ramshackle hotel, J cansulted the creased and stained map I'd bought from a street vendor. When I saw where my destination was, grew even mare puzeled. The building in the address wasn’t on the map. This entire adventure was getting stranger by the second, A staccata knack an my daor rudely interrupted my musings. “Miss, your quide is here, please, open up the door!”, a young male voice said, cheerfully enough. My head was beginning to hurt. was sure | hadn't ordered any tour guides. | opened the door just a crack, enough to catch a glimpse of my unexpected visitar ~ dark, twinkling, merry chocolate brown eyes set in around, honest face. After politely telling him that t didn’t want ar need a guide, he still refused ta leave, although he was terribly cheerful about it. An idea then occurred to me. "Do you know where this is?” | showed him the address. His eyes widened in mock horrar. “That is the ghost town ~ we do not go there. Na one lives there anymore. Bad, bad piace.” i shook my head impatiently. “Fine, but how can | get there?” He seemed to consider this for several long moments, looking at me doubtfully, as if he were trying to decide if! was quite sane. | appeared to pass his test, however, as he heaved a great sigh at Jast, and mournfully informed me that he would take me there — for a price. balked at the sum he mentioned, but agreed in the end = what choice did | have? I'd come this far already. We set out in the late afternoon, when the sum was beginning to sink lower in the horizon. Through the endless dunes we rode, on sturdy little mules that seemed little bothered by the heat. At last we, reached our destination, a lonely littie cluster of squat white houses, pinkish in the rays of the setting sun. As the sun sank sluggishly beneath the horizon, | noticed that one of the houses had the warm glaw of lamplight coming from it, Ismiled to myself, unseen by my chatty guide in the coo! blue twilight. My search was almost at an end — it appeared that I'd finally found my enigmatic aunt. [Word count ~ 633 words} =boarded the train to Jammu with enthusiasm. | had been looking forward to this day for months, when I would take a train for the first time without my family. But I was not going to be lonely. Far from it. I was taking this train with my closest friends to go and visit probably one the most beautiful places in India. The train started and | looked around, the joy obvious on my face. It was a long journey, and we were starting early in the morning, so I decided to rest. I tilted my head back, closed my eyes and fell into a deep and restful sleep. | woke to one of my friends tapping my shoulder and pointing out of the window. I looked out and gasped in amazement. We were passing over a river valley in the mountains. The water was clear and sparkling like diamonds. The mountains themselves imposed a strong and powerful figure. They stood like ancient sentinels over the river valley. The valley itself was covered in lush green trees and looked like a soft blanket on which a god may lie. There was also this meadow that was covered with beautiful golden flowers that matched the colour of the sunset. It was at this moment that I felt regret at not being able to bring my camera. But this picture was ingrained in my memory forever. We passed the valley in the blink of an eye and continued on our way. Seeing that all my friends were awake, | suggested that we play a game of cards. Everybody agreed and we started. There were occasional moments when we stared out of the window, like when we passed through a forest with trees as high as skyscrapers, and when we passed right undemeath a huge mountain. These sights amazed me and showed me the true beauty of our motherland. This was probably the most amazing and beautiful ride I had taken even to this day, and I am glad I could take an opportunity like that. The stay itself could not be considered equal to the trip, in which I had truly become one with mother nature.Love and Relationships ‘Sometimes I really do impress myself with my ability be amazed by life... seems like some things have never happened to me or lam an alien from some other distant planet. “Human beings” surprise me, make me cry, make me laugh and make me happy. That Saturday morning, my “alien being” went out the house in desperate search of deserted paths, beautiful trees, the smell of grass, the sounds of the sleepy city and something that would make me smile. Autumn was already in the air and I was thinking about how cruel was the world and how impossible was to be happy init. It isnot that Iwas broken hearted by I thought that my patience has come to its end. looked at the blue sky and set at a bench. I was sitting there and thinking about how I want to be another person. Eventually, I realized that my main problem was that I felt that I could not overcome all the “love” obstacles that life made me face. I recalled everything I have read in books about love as well as everything that I have experienced myself. In the books everything seemed to be much smoother and easier. My main thought was “how people can possibly spend their whole life together?”. A small rain started and made me feel even more stupid: alone in the park, early in the morning, without anyone to be here with me and ready to push away the relationship that was very dear believing that I do not have strength to overcome the obstacles. The autumn wind made me wake up from my dreams. took a deep breath and took a look around. Suddenly I saw two people approaching me... As there was no one else in the park they caught my attention. As they were getting closer I heard them laughing..First, this laugh made me feel irritated as if they have broken my unity with this park and turbed my thoughts. But all the sudden I noticed the age of these people - they were old. I could not clearly identify the age, but the woman looked as old as my grandmother. She had grey hair, blue eyes with a smile in them, and a smile on her face. She seemed so peaceful, she was in harmony with herself..Her sweater matched her eyes and made her look very fresh. And all the time she was looking at HIM... = _ Jim, [think we should change the park. It’s the same every Saturday. You know how much I love being around people. Why don’t you ever listen to me? Why do I have to say the same things every time? Isn‘t it just easy to do what I ask you to? - Sus! Hug me.....- that was all he said. He looked at her, smiled, gave her a hug at this very moment I stopped seeing an old man, but a strong man that knows his wife and how grouchy she can be and nevertheless he loves her! | thought about those many things they have “survived” together, so many hardships that made them cry, about all the problems that they are experiencing right now and the probability of that fact that one of them will outlive the other one. And the one that will outlive will think of this life together. was the most beautiful and happy period of life. They left...and I was sitting at my bench shocked and feeling some new special feelings in my heart. This feeling was hope! This old couple with all the grouching and tons of mistakes behind their backs made me fee! that at the end it is happiness that matter. Eventually, all people will get old and die, and what makes the difference is the person you have dedicated your life to. And Imade a wish - to wake up one day, being old and to be proud of being together with the person I love, to feel proud of having had enough forces to overcome all the obstacles and fighting for the happiness. I looked at the sky again... the cloud seemed to have the shape of infinity. I thought that it was a sign. A sign that only such dedication can make life infinitely deep and pure. Finally, | knew. what to do and I was so glad I went to that park early Saturday morning. We can survive in this world even ifwe are aliens as long that we have one more alien to share the life with.H* deep eyes still haunt me. A haunt that does not arouse fear or dread. The haunt of a lingering memory full of intrigue that you know will never desert you. Having asked myself endless questions and trying to fathom how he knew so much about me, I continued to remain disturbed. I thought such encounters were only heard of in thrillers or tales of grandma. I met him late evening last Friday when I was returning home after an evening basketball practice. It was late winter and dusk had already set in at 5.30. My bicycle chain started rattling and to my despair there was no repair guy around, I was another fifteen minutes ride away from home. I decided to walk lugging my bicycle loaded with my ball and heavy school bag. Cars just raced past me and none bothered to even stop and offer a ride. Guess this is what the world had come to. After a while, like a bolt from the blue, I heard footsteps behind me and a throaty, husky voice said, “Can I help you, son?” Caught unaware, I turned back to see him. He couldn’t have been less than eighty, curly ringlets of white hair circled his face. There was such a warm radiance about him that my sudden fear vanished. His clothes were fairly tattered; pyjamas and an oversized jacket covered with a threadbare shawl. | stood struck. 1 started mumbling and words seemed stuck in my throat. Inan instant, his gaunt hands had taken hold of my bicycle and I heard, “Child, I will walk you home.” I seemed to have no choice but walk along timidly and trustingly. 1 don’t remember distinctly what I said nor what he said. I felt safe and we turned and entered the lane at the end of which my house stood. The walk had seemed so short. We reached the gate. I told him to come in but he refused. very softly. I then asked him to wait there till I return. I ran in to get a little box of leftover Diwali sweets to give him. When I returned in just about a few minutes, he was gone. I kept looking around and even called out, “Baba, where are you?” He had disappeared. Who was he? Why did he help me? No answers to any of these questions till now. Often, like out of the blue, I seem to hear him saying that God will always look after me. I then look up to the heavens thanking him for such saviours like him who don’t allow us to give up faith in humanity. He perhaps was such an angel.Describe a time when you and your family faced a near fatal mishap, Narrate what ‘happened. twas during the summer holidays when my mother decided to take my siblings and me to a hill station for a camping trip. With my father travelling and being the oldest sibling, I had a lot of responsibilities on my shoulders. Hill stations have never been my favourite place to be but since my mother and siblings were extremely eager to embark upon this journey, I decided to show some enthusiasm as well. On the day of the trip, I discovered that there were three other families staying with us at the camp which made me feel happier about going. I hoped that there would be other children and we would have more company. We reached the foothills by seven in the morning and waited for the other families to get there as the guide said that we would be going up the hills together. They all arrived soon after and we started the journey. The uphill journey was extremely unpleasant with motion sickness and winding roads. It got worse when our car suddenly started shaking. At first we thought it was because of the poor roads but then we realised it was an earthquake, We were in the middle of an earthquake, while on a hill. There was chaos all around and everyone was yelling, Rocks from above were falling on the car, shattering the windshield. After a minute or two, the violent movement stopped and we continued up the mountain hoping to reach our destination soon, It was difficult to enjoy the view outside after this shock, After a kilometre ascent, we felt another jolt. This time we were in trouble. There was a rock avalanche and all of a sudden, a large boulder landed on the front of our car, My mother, who was sitting in the front, and the driver were injured and stuck in their seats as the boulder seemed to crush their legs. I knew then that I had to step up and help my family I told my siblings to stay in the car and went to check up on the other people in the three cars behind us. I wanted to be sure about the safety of others. I saw that our car was the worst hit in comparison to the other cars. In one of the cars, a lady had fainted with scare, In another, a woman had suffered an asthma attack because of the stress. I helped her out and tried to calm her down. When things were looking better in the other cars, I went back to my family. 1 took my siblings ‘out ofthe car and asked them to sit with one of the other families and went back to help my mother and the driver. The fourth lady from our group, who had escaped unhurt, came to help. Moving the lange boulder from the car was definitely out of question, but we still tried. Not being able to do that, we knew the only way left was to pull them out from under the boulder. We were reluctant to do so as wwe felt that it might worsen their injuries. But when we looked closely, we found that there was a gap between my mother and the boulder with enough space for her legs to fit in. We went over to the driver's side and found that there was a gap as well. Both of them were injured and needed to be rushed to a hospital as soon as possible. I went back to the other cars to make sure everyone was fine, when another earthquake struck. I quickly made sure that everyone was out of their cars and made them stand against the slope of the hills. Boulders and rocks were falling on all the cars. I shuddered to think what would have happened if had not moved my family and friends from the cas. Now we needed an ambulance. Screaming would not have done us any good, so the only option was to keep pressing the horn of the car that was least damaged. Sitting there holding the horn down in the cold, I wanted to do nothing but cry. But knew I had to be brave forthe people around me. When the night passed and the sun broke out in the moming, we heard sirens approaching, It was an ambulance. We had survived and I know that if I had let my fear consume me that day, I would not be where 1 am right now.Narrative Essay Example - Ultimate Chess Match Iwas the fool at school, a member of the “dumb class,” the mentally challenged. | was branded as incompetent in a politically-correct way: a special needs student. Apparently, because | was not interested in school, did not care for my grades, and took a more creative approach to homework, | was termed as such. Over time, | started to believe in my stupidity. | absorbed the fact that | was in special needs classes in high school and regurgitated it out as anger and depression. But one activity changed this view of myself: chess. I started to play chess with my father after school because | wanted to beat him at something. It was as simple as that. My father was a smart man, fond of physics, writing, spirituality—almost every discipline. 1g dictionary. So, winning in chess against my father would be a sign that | had ity. He was called a wal intellectual power. In that limited field, 64 squares, | had a chance to overcome my so-called inal Game after game, | wanted to beat my father even more. | started to study chess books and play against a chess computer to beef up my skills. One weekend, I checkmated my father while we were on a ferry ride to Port Townsend. It made me feel ecstatic. Fast forward two years and some months, and | am the second board on my high school chess team, with our top board being the best high school player in the state. There was an exhibition match held before the tournament season, and our top player could not come. It was my chance to play as top board against the best high school players in the state. I was determined to show who | had become: an intelligent person able to win with calculation, logic, and will. My most memorable game came in the fourth round. Qur team was facing a preparatory school where only elite students attended. It was essentially a match up between a special needs student and a rich valedictorian. | was playing the black pieces and played my usual double fianchetto King’s Indian Defense. The valedictorian was playing well and | was holding onto a little less than equality in the position. He kept attacking and | kept defending, finding hidden resources to keep my king safe. After he thought long about how to take me down, his clock was almost spent. He tried to break down my kingside defense, but could not find the final push. His time was almost up and he started to make rapid moves. | returned with more defensive maneuvers and tried to make it as difficult for him as possible. Before he could make the final deliberation, he lost on time. Honest to God, as his, clock flag fell, | leaped up out of my seat and kissed the floor out of excitement. Of course it was not the most sportsmen-like behavior, but | could not contain my emotions. I went on to draw my last game against the first board from the top-standing high school for chess in the state, and had achieved a lossless result with three wins and two draws. While holding my winner’s trophy at the end, | knew | was not stupid. The stigmatization had melted away, and I realized that underneath our thoughts, each person is a genius.