Poppies Can Kill

The child is dead but it seems so eloquent. In "Mid-term Break" by Seamus Heaney the death of his younger brother is explained with such truthfulness, yet such understatement. Throughout the poem, the author never enlightens his own feelings, just those around him, displaying how horrible accidents feel out of body when they first occur. Heaney, in the last stanza, shows much restraint. The way he describes his brother, "He lay in the four-foot box as in his cot" eludes to the child only sleeping. By the author understating so much of the trauma, the poem becomes even more heartbreaking as Heaney is most likely in denial of his brother's death. He also chooses to explain the bruise as a Poppy, when Poppies are small, beautiful and harmless flowers. By utilizing the pure flower, Poppy, Heaney shows that even the most innocent things can be damaged; just like his brother.

Did I Skip A Page?

Who knew books could be so mysterious. I sat waiting for a huge event to take place in Tess of the D'Urbervilles, but it never came. Did I skip a page? Maybe it was in the next chapter. Reading Tess has made me question very obvious situations; does Alec hiding behind curtains imply something deeper? Is the fact that Tess works with birds a lesson that can not be directly stated because of Victorian culture? Be careful of these old books, girls might be raped and you wouldn't even know.

Don't Travel Light

We have wanderlust. We fill back packs with the lightest jackets we can find. We bring one pair of pants that can zip off to be shorts. Everything is water proof and can be folded into a ball the size of my fist. In fact, we wear the same clothes practically every day. We are extremely gross when we get home; greasy hair, dirt under our fingernails, stains on our shirts. But, I promise, we don't travel light. Exploring the world is not about what you bring there, but what you bring home. I have enough memories to fill an ocean four times. I bring home smells and happy smiles and beautiful places. I return home with so much that sometimes I forget some of the most important events. In the end, remembering the epic Colosseum will overshadow the shirt, the socks, or shoes you were wearing. So pack little but don't travel light.