Poetry Analysis The Two Streams, Holmes

1.The writer is explaining how he sees a stream of water down a wall of rock. 2.The writer is describing which direction the stream goes as he describes it running through the cleft mountain ledge. 3.The author then describes how the stream stays off out of his vision into a tangled braid. 4.The author in this sentence, describes how even though, he cannot see it, he know that all of the braids in the stream will end. In this poem, the author, Holems uses many metaphors in this poem to describe how the streams are like life. For example, in the third stanza, the author says, "So from the heights of Will
Life's parting stream descends." From this quote, it is easy to see how the author relates the stream to life by using certain comparisons. The author also uses imagery to depict the image clearly for the author of the streams rolling down the rock wall and also as they run off into the distance. 1. In this sentence, the author is explaining the birth or beginning of life as the stream begins. 2. In this sentence the author describes how life can change I'm gay! I like boys! paths quickly as the strema's path turns suddenly as the stream has left its initial path pretty quickly. 3. The author in this sentence is supporting the fact that life takes unexpected turns because the stream left its initial path almost without a trace of where it was going next. In the last sentence, the author describes how even though the stream nmay take many twists and turns, like life, he knows where it will end, as all life ends with death.

My Poem

Alone we learn to show our thoughts so vain
Relate the times we sing our prayers in rain
How plain the life exempt to thoughts unlike
For not all things unheard can oust clear sight
Sedate for once the norm, the cold, divine

Poetry Analysis

I found this blog very interesting. Basically, what the writer is saying is that the world is like a massive tombbecause everyone in the word dies. Even though the author claims that he is at rest and that he is relaxed because e is dying and that nature cams him down, the tone of this poem is still very depressing because of how he words everything. the author of this poem almost sees death as a happy thing because he is being laid down to rest and because he loves nature so much because it always finds a way to relax him or calm him down. The author also states that in life, everyone dies and that even thought dying may be a a very sad event to others, it is actually happy because it gives the author will be buried with nature and with the many people that died before him, and therefore, it is kind of a conforting thought to the author.

Journal #17 Bonding with Nature

One time i bonded with nature was when i came home from school and i noticed that it was a great day outside. So, i decided to hang out on the back deck of my house for a while. Anyway, instead of just sitting on the deck watching the forest that is in my back yard, i grabbed my acoustic guitar and started playing while staring out into the forest. The moment was almost perfect. The temperature was perfect with a nice little breeze that felt just right. I felt extremely inspired just by looking into the distance and just observing the things that happen in nature. It was very very nice and now, i do that on a regular basis. By that, i mean that i go out on my deck and just stare into my forest and just play acoustic guitar. Anyway, that is all i can really say about that one time when i bonded with nature. It was very nice and now i just do it on a regular basis because it makes me very relaxed and also it makes my stress levels go down. Whenever i am playing guitar on my deck, i usually like to have a glass or orange juice or soda with it because those kind of set my mood. Anyway, i really do not know what else i can say about this time. I think i described it pretty well and there is not much more that i can mention about this time. i do not know what else i can say about this. Well...i play a seagull guitar which is very nice and works extremely well for me. i would suggest a seagull guitar to anyone because of its nice playability and tone. I will use this guitar forever and the thing that i really liked about was that it really did not cost that much. It was really only around 500 dollars. i mean that really is not that much when you look at your Gibsons, Taylors, and Martins out there.

Journal #16 My Favorite Song

My favorite song has to be Wishlist by Pearl Jam. And yes, the title of the song is actually one word. I really like this song because it is very powerful in a lyrical way. To me, it is expressing very general feelings in specific ways. I really like the melody of the song also. Even though it is not an acoustic song, it could almost be considered acoustic because of how the song is delivered. It is not a loud or a heavy song whatsoever. It is very soft and melodic, but it is delivered in a very powerful way. To me, songs mean a lot more when they are not extremely loud and sung a little quieter. That type of sound really gets in my head and speaks to me very well. I like pearl jam a lot. Their acoustic music is very good and tends to speak to their listeners a lot. Another thing that i like about the song Wishlist is the lyrics. Eddie makes them almost sad and has a lot of very interesting metaphors and comparisons in the song. It is almost a self-pity song because of how the tone of the song is delivered. I really do not know what else to say about this song. I have really hit a writer's block here. This is crazy. I usually do not do this in the middle of a blog. Not i just basically have to eat up words to get through this blog because i know that i really cannot finish it. Quite honestly, this is madness. What else could i say about the song? I like the tone, the music, the lyrics. The guitar part is really simple but i also like it too because it is almost perfect for what the song needs and it complements the tone of the song very well as well. Anyway, i guess that this is all i have to say about the song Wishlist by Pearl Jam.

Journal #15 When do you use logic and reason?

So, according to the journal topic, i am supposed to talk about where i use logic and reason. Quite honestly, i do not really know what that means. I think that the topic is kind of worded weirdly because it is so vague. I really do not know what to sat about this topic because i do not know if i should take the topic literally because it just kind of sounds really weird. For example, i use logic and reason in the bus station because i have to figure out when the bus leaves and what number the bus is. See? That just sounds really stupid. I really do not know what else i am supposed to say about when i use logic and reason. So, i guess that i use logic and reason when i play soccer because i have to think about where to pass the ball and when to shoot and i guess that that takes some logic and reason because you have to think about it. it is not like you can just know where to pass the ball when you get it, you have to think about it i guess. So, anyway, i am moving on. I guess that i also use logic and reason when writing certain papers because you have to think about what you want to write about and you have to know how you want to bring up certain points and certain ideas when trying to argue your point. Another time when i use logic and reason is when i am in English class writing a certain blog. I have to think ahead to what i want to say and i also have to think about how i want to word something or how i want to bring up a certain point or topic. I cannot just simply write thing without thinking, i have to think about the words that i want to say and i also have phrase them correctly...actually no i don't!

Reflection on Paine

When reading Thomas Paine's journal titled "Common Sense", i found it very interesting. Basically all that Paine talks about throughout the entire journal is how the idea of an Monarchy really makes no sense (Paine. After reading the journal, it actually makes a lot of sense to me why he thinks that about a Monarchy. I think that he does a very good job of explaining why a monarchy makes no sense becaquse he uses a lot of different kinds of support and he also uses support in many different ways. I also like how he relates everything that he says to the Queen of England because this journal basically explains why the colonists should not be listening Monarchy (Paine). I believe that this argument the Paine came up with pretty much influenced many of the colonists that they should not have to listen to England and that they should try to start a country of their own. While reading the journal, i was also amazed by the amount of support that Paine put into it. Because of its massive length, it very clear and easy to see that he felt very strongly about the breaking off from England and that he put a lot of effort into his argument (Paine). In the journal, i thought that there were many interesting parts but one of the parts that stood out to me when i read it was when Paine mentions that in a monarchy, all of the people are meant to one and that are are all meant to be on the same level and equal. He goes on to say that this concept is riduculous and absurd because not everyone is on the same evel in a Monarchy or in England (Paine). In fact, there are many different levels and classes of people in a Monarchy. There are the people who are poor, middle class people, upper class people, the servants of the royal people, the royal people, and the King or Queen. The idea that people are supposed to be equal within a Monarchy is kind of funny because it is so untrue in so many ways. In all honesty, it is not hard to see how flawed this view of a Monarchy truly is in many ways. Another interesting point that Payne brings up in this journal is the simple fact that in a Monarchy, it is assumed that to be successful, it is essential for people to know what is happening in the outside world and that peope must also know everything that goes on within the goverment or civilization so that people can respect what their leader is doing for them. The funny fact about this is that in a Monarchy, no one really knows what is truly happening within the government besides the leared or King or Queen (Paine). Therefore, Paine points out that it is silly for people of England to truly believe that what the Queen is doing is truly justified because not many people know what the Queen has done (Paine).

Paine, By Thomas. "Thomas Paine's Common Sense - Text Version." Archiving Early America: Primary Source Material from 18th Century America. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. .

Reaction to Criticism on Benjamin Franklin

So, i read the artice by J.A. Leo Lemay, i and liked it quite a bit. In my opinion, he brought up some pretty interesting points about the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. First of all, he starts the whole article beginning with discussing the idea of the American dream. I think that the author of the article brought up many interesting points because of how much the whole concept of describing the american dream made me think. In all honesty, before reading the rest of the writing, i had no idea how to define the american dream. I also did not know how specific of vague the term would be if one had to define it. So, i kept reading to learn that the author thinks that the American Dream is the simple idea of going from rags to riches. I thought that that part of the article was very funny because i never thought that the idea of the american dream could be so simpe. i always thought that the idea of the american dream was so much more complex. That is actually waht the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is about. It is about his rise from realy being a nobody in the colonies, to becoming one of the most influential polititians in our nation's history (Franklin 104). The story of Benjamin Franklin is actually one of the first and also most famous rags to riches stories in our country's history. The story of Benjamin Franklin basically influenced the idea of the American Dream. An important idea that Benjamin Franklin also introduced to America, as stated in the article, was individualism. He introduced the idea that one man and ony one man can make a huge difference in the world (Lemay 1). He himself made people realize that you can be one of the most influential or powerful people in a massive crowd of others without having extreme wealth or having a high ranking status from the beginning. To me, after reading the author's article on refecting his thoughts on Franklin's autobiography. I find it interesting how the author uses many different types of quotes from the works to kind of reflect his thoughts and to try to explain the significance of certain quotes or even events in Franklin's life. For exampe i think that it is extremely interesting how the author points out how much Benjamin Franklin's autobiography relates to the American Dream in general. I also think that it is interesting how Benjamin Franklin includes many life lessons and different morals and values in his writing and how the author expains the significance of them. To me, i never realized how much the certain morals and values that Franklin included in his autobiography implied about his writing style. I mean, there is a lot that Benjamin Franklin gives away in his writing just by including some examples of certain morals and values and certain rules that you live by in your writing. The author gives many examples of how these ideas can give away your writing style.

Lemay, J.A. Leo. "Franklin's Autobiography and the American Dream." InThe Renaissance Man in the Eighteenth Century. Los Angeles: William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, 1978. Quoted as "Franklin's Autobiography and the American Dream." in Bloom, Harold, ed. The American Dream, Bloom's Literary Themes. New York: Chelsea Publishing House, 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=1&iPin=BLTTAD005&SingleRecord=True (accessed October 11, 2010).

Holden, Liberty Emery, and Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin: Autobiography. 1898. Print.

Journal #14 The Declaration of Kirk

I am writing about the Declaration of Kirk. The declaration of Kirk is what Kirk lives by. Basically, the declaration of Kirk talks about Kirk's morals and values and it includes everything that one should know about Kirk. In all honesty, i really do not know how i am supposed to write an entire blog about the declaration of Kirk. This blog topic is kind of stupid. Anyway, also included in the declaration of Kirk, are his hobbies and his main interests. The interesting thing about the declaration thing about the declaration of Kirk is that fact that it was actually written by Kirk, so basically anyone who has read the declaration of Kirk, knows absolutely everything about Kirk. Although, only one man has ever read the entire declaration of Kirk. As the tale goes, there was a man who actually led many people to freedom. Because this man had led many people to freedom, they trusted them and kind of became his followers. So, anyway, this man freed these people because he wanted to share the most important document with them that was ever made. So, this man did not actually have the document in his possession, but God had sent him a message and told him where it was. So anyway, as he was following these people, they came to a massive sea. the document was on the other side of the sea. So, this man took the staff of power that God had given him, and he literally parted this sea. He then led the people to the other side of the sea where they came to a cave. Only the one man whop freed the people went into the cave and read the document. this changed the man's life. He knew that he could not share this information, so he became the only person in the world who held the knowledge. I forget what his name was again...it was something starting an M... oh yeah! Matt!

Journal #13 Spirit

OK, so today, i guess that i am supposed to be talking about spirit. I really do not want to talk about this but oh well. I really do not know what i am supposed to say about spirit, but i will figure something out. So, i kind of think that our class's spirit is very weak. All this week, we are supposed to be dressing up based on what the theme is on that day. Well, our grade does not really like to dress up which is really stupid. I think that it is stupid to worry too much about self image to get involved in something really fun. That is why i have been basically giving everyone a hard time who has not dressed up for a certain day. Tomorrow is spirit day though, and that is usually really fun. Our grade will compete with the other grades to see who will win spirit week. It is really fun and i am also excited because tomorrow is a half day. I will get to go home and just finally get to relax for the first time all week. I am so pumped! I have had soccer everyday and that in all honesty has been affecting how i perform in the classroom because i am just so tired all of the time. I cannot wait until the homecoming football game tomorrow. it will be so much fun. I mean, i usually enjoy going to football games in general, but the homecoming game is going to be so awesome because the junior class basically rules the student section and i really like how we all get into the game. In my opinion, it really shows our classes true colors. One thing that makes our class different from every other class is the everyone in our class can find a way to get along. At football games, i can find a way to talk to and have a great time with people i have not talked to since last year.

Journal #12 Working with Partners

so, apparently, i have to write about how i feel about working with partners. so, when i work with partners, i usually like working them, but then again, it all depends on who the partner is. In my opinion, i think that it is stupid to not be able to chose partners because usually when i work with a partner, i want to work with someone who wants the same grade that i do on a project or whatever we are working on. So, i will only oppose working with partners when i am working with someone who does not want the same grade as me. That is all it really comes down to in the end. If i am working with a partner who wants to do a fair share in whatever we are doing, then i am happy. if i have a partner that wants to make me do all of the work and he or she does not want to do any of it, then i will be very angry, and i will not want to work in partners at all. So, yeah. I guess that that is all i have to say about working with partners then. I have no idea what i should write about now though. So, this week is homecoming week, and so i am kind of excited. Usually, i am not that pumped for homecoming week because it usually means more to girls that to guys, but i am happy because this weekend is a three day weekend. So, really, i guess that i am not that thrilled about homecoming. I mean, i never really got time to get in the mood for it because i had to miss the opening parade because i had to work all day Sunday. it was kind of sad, but oh well. I am excited for the football game though because those are always really fun to go to. So yeah, i guess that that is all that is on my mind right now.

Journal #11 Morals/Ethics

today we are suppose to be talking about morals/values or ethics. Quite frankly, i really do not know what to say about these specific things, so i guess i will just blabber about some random thing relating to the the subject. is the word blabber even real? i honestly do not even know. i mean, i think it is, but at the same time, i am kind of afraid to say it if it is not. i do not really want to sound like an idiot whenever i say the word blabber when it is not an actual word. Anyway, what am i supposed to say about values? i am baffled. i wish i knew how to write about this topic. i mean, i do not just want to talk about my values because no one really wants to read about that stuff. Out of anything in the world, why would we have to talk about our values? Why cant we talk about something fun and exciting rather than talk about this pointless topic? Anyway, i think i have good morals. it is called being a good person and going with your gut on decisions. In all honesty, that is kind of all i live by. well, i am proud of myself. i did not just ramble on about something completely random for the entire journal. I actually mentioned something about the topic. but still, i would rather be talking about something that is not as boring. Honestly, who is going to read this journal? Who wants to read about a random kid's values on the internet. that sounds so fun. not really. ha ha i made a joke. not really. i am just so bored and i want to get this journal over with so i do not have to worry about it when i get home. After all, it is Friday, and it would be nice to not have much to worry about when i get home. anyway, that is all. good bye.

Journal # 10 Science vs Religion

The topic of science vs. religion just kind of bothers me because it seems like no one can say anthing about it that will not offend another person. Thats is why i think that this topic is kind of questionable because one can say one thing and it could offend a lot of people, which i obviously do not want to do. If someone wants a good argument on science vs. religion, then that person should read the book Angels and Demons by Dan Brown if he or she has not. it is a great book with tons of action and great argument with science vs. religion. Wow. i honestly do not see why i have to type about this because i think that it is wrong to debste between the two for something that is school related. Even if i try to sound fair, then something will come out that might offend someone. I mean it is honestly really really hard not to do that just because people can take these topics so seriously. To me, i do not really know what to believe. Imean, i have no idea how the world was created and in all honesty, i do not see a point in arguing about it because it gets nowhere. people in science believe that the world was crweated due to the Big Bang Theory and that human came to be because of evolution. Those who believe in reigion will say that God created the world and that we are here because of Him. In my opinion, i think that it is pointless to post your beliefs on a blog because all it does is give people something to argue about. it is definitely a never-ending argument for sure. it gets absolutely no where. Arguing about it just makes people very frustrated and people wil tend to get mad because of the amount of frustration that goes into it. so that is basicallly why i dont want to put my beliefs on this blog.