Ode to Baseball

Playing baseball everyday
There really is no better way
To spend my time
And make new friends
The fun in baseball never ends.

Some people just can’t understand
The base hits
Or the screaming fans

Some people think that
Baseball’s lame
But they can’t play
A thinker’s game

The Old Man's Obstacles

Since the beginning of time, man has struggled against the forces of nature. To reach his goals, man must endure various challenges of nature and by enduring these battles, man’s character is shaped and refined. In the novella The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, the protagonist Santiago, is an optimistic character who seeks to land a great fish and in doing so must endure the challenges of the sea and human emotions.


Over the course of the story, Santiago struggles with loneliness. His wife had passed away and he lives alone. Although he enjoys the boy’s companionship, he seldom has the boy by his side. “No one should be alone in their old age, he thought. But it is unavoidable” (48). In his journey to land the great Marlin, Santiago travels alone. Even though he would welcome the assistance and companionship of the boy, the boy is unable to make the trip and the old man finds himself traveling alone at sea.


Santiago has been unlucky in catching fish. He has not caught anything for 84 days. He decides that he will travel out further to change his luck. He soon finds himself unprepared for the challenges that await him. He ventures into the Gulf Stream in his small skiff. His luck turns when he hooks a marlin bigger than any he has ever seen. However, in catching the marlin, the old man’s struggles are just beginning. The marlin is powerful and saps the old man’s strength as he pulls the skiff further out to sea. After a 3 day tiring struggle with the marlin, the old man is racked with pain and weary from battling the great fish for so long. He finally harpoons the fish. He realizes that he cannot pull the enormous fish into the boat. “Even if we were two and swamped her to load him and bailed her out, this skiff would never hold him” (95). He has to tie the marlin to the outside of the skiff.


Santiago feels great admiration for the marlin. During their battle, he finds he has much in common with the great fish. He envisions bringing the fish in to the village and the money he can earn for such a large fish. However, he is saddened that this great fish will be eaten.


Now far from shore, the old man has to begin his journey back home. He did not plan on going so far out and finds he does not have adequate food, water or supplies. Santiago is forced to fight off many of sharks but he finds himself unprepared. As he battles hunger, weariness and loneliness, the old man tries to fight off the sharks that approach because they are lured by the blood of the marlin. Wave after wave of sharks approach the skiff, lured by the blood of the marlin. At first, the old man uses a harpoon to defend the marlin. But as they continue to attack, he loses the harpoon, rope, a spear he fashioned from a knife and an oar. The old man’s body is wracked with pain from fighting to catch the marlin and the fighting to keep the sharks away. He is weary from lack of sleep. The fish is deteriorated and he is not sure he will survive the journey home.


Left with no way to keep the attacking sharks at bay, the old man watches as the sharks strip the meat from the marlin so all that is left when the old man finally returns home is the head, the bones and the tail. “It was too good to last, he thought. He took one look at the great fish as he watched the shark close in” (101). The old man is sorry he ever caught such a great fish only to see it devoured by the sharks.


The struggles that the old man faced help shape his character. However, Santiago who is down on his luck stays confident. His light spirit contributes to the story by allowing him to not give up or let go of the fish, even after it was destroyed by the sharks.


The old man meets with many harsh obstacles when he tries catching the great fish and bringing him into shore. He must battle inadequate supplies, the big fish and the sharks that attack it. He also battles loneliness. Even though Santiago does not bring the fish back to shore intact, he was still respected by the town’s people for catching such a big fish and he was still a hero to the boy. Although people may not always fully accomplish their goals, they can still benefit from facing the challenges while striving to achieve their objective.

Another Boring Day

Connor S
BG
English
Jan. 30, 2009

It was an early morning in late August – the end of summer, as Sean and his fellow lifeguards headed out to the beach. The sun began to rise over the ocean. Sean and his pals were in their bright orange bathing suits and putting on sunscreen like every other morning. Sean started out complaining about the lack of action in their jobs. However today would not be like every other day.


Sean had extensive training in his life guarding skills but he rarely had the opportunity to put them to use. His days often consisted of staring out at the ocean hoping for some action. Today he would get everything he could handle.


As Sean made his way to the lifeguard tower, he put his gear down and did his normal walk of the beach. It was one of the last beautiful days of summer and the crowds were really starting to pack the beach. By mid morning the beaches were as crowded as he had ever seen them. As the sun climbed higher, the heat drove the vacationers into the water. Sean pulled on his Ft. Lauderdale tee shirt to offer protection against the blazing sun. He scanned the beach with his binoculars.


By midday a sand bar had formed about 10 feet off shore. It drew the attention of many people. Sean rose tall in his chair above the clamor of the beach below him. He had an acute sense that something was about to happen. As he peered through his binoculars he noticed a sudden change in the texture of the ocean. Suddenly, the sand bar collapsed into the sea. Sean saw four kids who were on that section of the sandbar pulled into the ocean. He immediately recognized the signs of a riptide.


He grabbed his bullhorn and quickly ordered everyone out of the water. He radioed for assistance. A lifeguard commander knew something was wrong through the sound of alarm in Sean’s voice.

“Sean, what’s wrong?” the commander asked. “Riptide! Section four! I saw four kids pulled out about thirty yards. I’m going in after them. Send help!”“Help’s on the way, be careful, and remember your training!” The commander replied.


Sean dropped his radio, grabbed his torpedo buoy, and raced towards the water. He grabbed the surfboard near the shoreline and headed into the surf. He cast his eyes out to the children who had been dragged out. He could see that they were panicking and going under. The riptide had ended and the water became placid. Sean used his strong swimming skills to propel the surfboard towards the children. He reached one boy and pulled him onto the surfboard. The boy was about eight years old and he was hyperventilating. Sean calmed the boy down as he searched for the others. He saw two other boys and quickly brought them onto the surfboard. They were frantic and said their friend had gone under. Sean noticed one of the boys had a deep cut along his left leg and blood was pouring into the water. The boys pointed to the spot where they last saw their friend and Sean dove in that direction. He took a deep breath and dove down three fathoms to the ocean floor. The boy was tangled in a bed of seaweed but Sean quickly emancipated him. Sean was running out of air as he pushed hard off the ocean floor and used his powerful stroke to pull him to the surface. Most other lifeguards would have rued ever becoming a lifeguard in this quagmire. However, Sean was indefatigable and he pushed the last boy onto the surfboard as he paddled them toward the shore. Sean had no inkling that lurking behind him only ten feet away was a shark attracted by the blood flowing from the cut on the small boy’s leg. Luckily, Sean was bestowed with a strong kick as he powered the boys towards the beach on the surfboard. He peered towards shore and couldn’t help but notice the fracas. He heard many shrill screams and people pointing in his direction. He did not realize the quandary until he saw the look the in the eyes of the boy who had been under the water. The boy was staring past him. Sean thought he was trembling from the trauma he had just endured. The boy raised his hand and pointed behind Sean. As Sean turned his head back, he saw the fin of the shark that was rapidly approaching. Sean burst forward but he knew he could not out swim a shark.


Just then, Sean heard a high-pitched whine approaching from his left. He glanced over and saw his lifeguard commander cutting through the water in his jet ski, coming between him and the shark. Sean was exhausted as his fellow lifeguards helped pulled the boys to shore. Sean nearly collapsed on the beach trying to catch his breath while a chorus of cheers came from the bystanders on the beach. The paramedics took the children for treatment while Sean headed to the lifeguard station.

As they left work for the day, his friend Matt kidded him, “Just another boring day, huh Sean?”

Another Boring Day rough draft

Connor Sheridan
BG
English
Jan. 30, 2009


It was an early morning in late August – the end of summer, as Sean and his fellow lifeguards headed out to the beach. The sun began to rise over the ocean. Sean and his pals were in their bright orange bathing suits and putting on sunscreen like every other morning. Sean started out complaining about the lack of action in their jobs. However today would not be like every other day.


Sean had extensive training in his life guarding skills but he rarely had the opportunity to put them to use. His days often consisted of staring out at the ocean hoping for some action. Today he would get everything he could handle.


As Sean made his was to the lifeguard tower, he put his gear down and did his normal walk of the beach. It was one of the last beautiful days of summer and the crowds were really starting to pack the beach. By mid morning the beaches were as crowded as he had ever seen them. As the sun climbed higher, the heat drove the vacationers into the water. Sean pulled on his Ft. Lauderdale tee shirt to offer protection against the blazing sun. He scanned the beach with his binoculars.


By midday a sand bar had formed about 10 feet off shore. It drew the attention of many people. Sean rose tall in his chair above the clamor of the beach below him. He had an acute sense that something was about to happen. As he peered through his binoculars he noticed a sudden change in the texture of the ocean. Suddenly, the sand bar collapsed into the sea. Sean saw four kids who were on that section of the sandbar pulled into the ocean. He immediately recognized the signs of a riptide.


He grabbed his bullhorn and quickly ordered everyone out of the water. He radioed for assistance. A lifeguard commander knew something was wrong through the sound of alarm in Sean’s voice. “Sean, what’s wrong?” the commander asked. “Riptide! Section four! I saw four kids pulled out about thirty yards. I’m going in after them. Send help!”“Help’s on the way, be careful, and remember your training!” The commander replied.


Sean dropped his radio, grabbed his torpedo buoy, and raced towards the water. He grabbed the surfboard near the shoreline and headed into the surf. He cast his eyes out to the children who had been dragged out. He could see that they were panicking and going under. The riptide had ended and the water became placid. Sean used his strong swimming skills to propel the surfboard towards the children. He reached one boy and pulled him onto the surfboard. The boy was about eight years old and he was hyperventilating. Sean calmed the boy down as he searched for the others. He saw two other boys and quickly brought them onto the surfboard. They were frantic and said their friend had gone under. Sean noticed one of the boys had a deep cut along his left leg and blood was pouring into the water. The boys pointed to the spot where they last saw their friend and Sean dove in that direction. He took a deep breath and dove down three fathoms to the ocean floor. The boy was tangled in a bed of seaweed but Sean quickly emancipated him. Sean was running out of air as he pushed hard off the ocean floor and used his powerful stroke to pull him to the surface. Most other lifeguards would have rued ever becoming a lifeguard in this quagmire. However, Sean was indefatigable and he pushed the last boy onto the surfboard as he paddled them toward the shore. Sean had no inkling that lurking behind him only ten feet away was a shark attracted by the blood flowing from the cut on the small boy’s leg. Luckily, Sean was bestowed with a strong kick as he powered his the boys towards the beach on the surfboard. He peered towards shore and couldn’t help but notice the fracas. He heard many shrill screams and people pointing in his direction. He did not realize the quandary until he saw the look the in the eyes of the boy who had been under the water. The boy was staring past him. Sean thought he was trembling from the trauma he had just endured. The boy raised his hand and pointed behind Sean. As Sean turned his head back, he saw the fin of the shark that was rapidly approaching. Sean burst forward but he knew he could not out swim a shark.


Just then, Sean heard a high-pitched whine approaching from his left. He glanced over and saw his lifeguard commander cutting through the water in his jet ski, coming between him and the shark. Sean was exhausted as his fellow lifeguards helped pulled the boys to shore. Sean nearly collapsed on the beach trying to catch his breath while a chorus of cheers came from the bystanders on the beach.


The paramedics took the children for treatment while Sean headed to the lifeguard station. As they left work for the day, his friend Matt kidded him,”Just another boring day, huh Sean?”