Scheherazade was the eldest of the two daughters of the grand-vizir, she was

smart and fearless, she was excellent in philosophy, medicine and much more. She
was the most beautiful girl in Persia. This is made clearer when the writer states
“The grand-vizir himself was the father of two daughters, of whom the elder was
called Scheherazade, and the younger Dinarzade. Dinarzade had no particular gifts
to distinguish her from other girls, but her sister was clever and courageous in the
highest degree. Her father had given her the best masters in philosophy, medicine,
history and the fine arts, and besides all this, her beauty excelled that of any girl in
the kingdom of Persia.” The writer uses alliteration when he states “clever and
courageous” to describe the Scheherazade’s personality. This tells us that
Scheherazade had a very fulfilled life where she is strong in all aspects including
appearance and intelligence. The reader would see Scheherazade’s life is an
almost perfect one. There are so many advantages and next to no disadvantages.
Scheherazade later tries to stop the sultan’s wrongdoing by putting herself in the
face of danger. This is apparent when the writer states “Then listen,” said
Scheherazade. “I am determined to stop this barbarous practice of the Sultan’s,
and to deliver the girls and mothers from the awful fate that hangs over them.” “It
would be an excellent thing to do,” returned the grand-vizir, “but how do you
propose to accomplish it?” “My father,” answered Scheherazade, “it is you who
have to provide the Sultan daily with a fresh wife, and I implore you, by all the
affection you bear me, to allow the honor to fall upon me.” “Have you lost your
senses?” cried the grand-vizir, starting back in horror. “What has put such a thing
into your head? You ought to know by this time what it means to be the sultan’s
bride!” “Yes, my father, I know it well,” replied she, “and I am not afraid to think of
it. If I fail, my death will be a glorious one, and if I succeed, I shall have done a
great service to my country.” The writer uses dialogue to show how good
Scheherazade’s persuasion is when she convinces her father to let her be the
sultan’s bride. This also accurately shows how fearless and courageous
Scheherazade is as she risked her life for the greater good of her community. The
reader would almost see her as a hero and support her on her quest to stop the
sultan’s wrongdoing. Scheherazade had a very close relationship with her father
and loves him very dearly. This is illustrated when the writer states “One day,
when the grand-vizir was talking to his eldest daughter, who was his delight and
pride, Scheherazade said to him, “Father, I have a favor to ask of you. Will you
grant it to me?” “I can refuse you nothing,” replied he, “that is just and
reasonable.” The writer uses dialogue to show how her father is very fair and kind
to her. This is further proven when the writer states “It is of no use,” said the
grand-vizir, “I shall never consent. If the Sultan was to order me to plunge a
dagger in your heart, I should have to obey. What a task for a father! Ah, if you do
not fear death, fear at any rate the anguish you would cause me.” “Once again, my
father,” said Scheherazade, “will you grant me what I ask?” “What, are you still so
obstinate?” exclaimed the grand-vizir. “Why are you so resolved upon your own
ruin?” The writer adds a rhetorical question “why are you so resolved upon your
own ruin?” to show to Scheherazade that her idea would end up horribly. This
illustrates how much Scheherazade’s father loves her as he is scared and
concerned for her despite her telling him that she would be safe. This gives the
idea to the reader that they are a very close family and that her father would
protect her even if it means that the region would still suffer from the sultan’s
rule.
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People have always asked me, What’s the best moment of your life? Despite me
winning multiple NBA Championships and being the best at basketball and
building a successful brand and building my own family. My best moment was
none of these. A person’s best moment is usually when they feel the most
accomplished, the most pride.

I remember 2 weeks before the NBA draft where only a few are selected to
become professional basketball players. I was scared to death and those 2 weeks
were the longest 2 weeks I’ve ever waited in my life. I was one of those players
who would either barley make it or barley miss out. I didn’t go to college just to
make it to the draft and if I were to go undrafted, I would be in a very tough
situation.

Our family grew up poor and on the wrong side of town. My brother was
murdered due to gang violence when I was just 10. My sister was diagnosed with
cancer a year later and suffered. To this day I hold the mayor accountable for little
to no healthcare in our city. We had barely enough money to eat and if we wanted
treatment, we would’ve had to leave the state. All she had was her immune
system and her family. I spent my mornings at school where I couldn’t even dream
of affording to buy a book. I spent my nights playing basketball just to get out of
the troubles back home.

From the ages of 10 to 15 the basketball would never leave my hand for hours and
hours and hours. Until one fateful day, it was 2 weeks after my 16th birthday. My
father was driving late at night and there was another driver coming from the
other side who was intoxicated. They crashed and my father fell into a coma. After
that moment I quit basketball. I thought “what’s the point of going pro and
chasing a dream if my whole family is absent” after 6 months of no basketball I
felt empty inside and I heard some inspiring words from my mother. She told me
“Would your dad have allowed you to give up if he was awake? Wouldn’t you
want your father to wake up to good news?” From that moment my eyes were
locked onto becoming a professional basketball player. I used to go to school and
sneak out and play basketball all day long. I then signed up for the high school
team. A year later I got a scholarship to play basketball at the College of
Education. I was on top of the world and so focused on my goal.

When I turned 18, My father woke up from his coma and I was so overwhelmed
with joy. He later persuaded me to drop out of college and pursue becoming a
basketball player sooner than most back then after he heard of my skills. The 2
weeks eventually passed and we were there in a large auditorium and my idols
were up there giving speeches to us. I was waiting and desperately wanted to hear
my name be called out by the announcer. I knew I wasn’t going to be selected in
the top 10 so I didn’t focus until I hear “The first pick is…” and it blanks out it my
head. My father looks and tells me “Get up there boy” with tears in my eyes I get
up and walk to the stage and turn back to hug my father. We both faced so much
struggle in those past few years. I could truly say that that was the best moment
of my life.