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On a cold fall morning at 4:30 A.M I got up to go to the Colorado middle school state championship cross country meet. I was the most prepared I had ever been for a meet. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~1 Week earlier~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was training really hard every day and my goal was a pace that

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When people ask me how running is going, I say, "I quit running, I no longer enjoy it," but a year ago, I would never have thought in mind that I'd ever say that. From training for months, racing every week, and friendships, I appreciate them so much.

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Have you ever wondered why some sports teams suck? Well, that’s what I have to deal with. Sometimes they suck, and sometimes they come out with a decent win somehow. My dad introduced me to sports, but the teams have always been awful. But it’s better than being a bandwagon for a good sports team.

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I was in a dream. In the dream, there was nothing to worry about. You played and messed around on the masts of a ship that was forever out at sea, just having fun. It was a perfect life, even if there wasn’t much room to explore. The ship had a pirate ship feeling, made of dark oak wood and with

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Throughout my elementary school years I was committed to being the best soccer player on my team. But I soon learned that it wasn't just like trying your hardest and becoming cool and good and stuff , you see there were other parts that I didn't think about. You see, I used to believe that. But now that I'm reflecting on my journey I realised it requires patience,hard work and perseverance.

My first few years I was kind of confused in a way you see when I thought that I could do it without patience,hard work and perseverance but it turns out I was wrong. At that time as was at max scoring 1 goal every 3 games I thought I just would become better out of nowhere. But for that time I waited and did nothing when I could have been so much better. And I waited for so long and got no result. So I asked my coach and he said,

" There are a few reasons why you may not be scoring many goals and be a very good and respected player. Firstly you need to be more patient about it, you need to wait a while and then you will become good. The second reason you may not be getting as many goals as desired is because of hard work you see you need to work a lot harder for the goal that you are trying to achieve. And finally the reason and the most crucial one is your perseverance. You simply need to not give up ever for such a hard task. ".

I took the advice and I quickly became happy scoring 3 or maybe 4 goals a game. At first I was ferocious that I was not making any progress but soon it all paid off .

I ran across the field, pumping my fists as the ball hit the back of the net. My teammates cheered and patted me on the back and I couldn't stop grinning .

And now this is me reflecting on what happened and I knew that if I took the advice sooner I could have been even better. Even though I did have perseverance and my team helped me understand why I was not good at the start and helped me appreciate it and helped me reflect on it today. The reason why it would be so important is because without it you would not be able to complete your goals. And don't you think that completing your goals is better ? Well that's why you need perseverance.

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Throughout my elementary school years I was committed to being the best soccer player on my team. But I soon learned that it wasn't just like trying your hardest and becoming cool and good and stuff , you see there were other parts that I didn't think about.

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The night began with excitement as my family of six headed to the airport for our flight in a couple of hours, where we checked our luggage and went through security before boarding the plane. After finding our window seats and buckling up, as it was gaining enough speed before the thrilling

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It was the first day of middle school. I was going into 6th grade at Webber Middle School. I was nervous. I started to kick my feet at the ground. Starting a new school because there are a lot more kids than just in my elementary school, and a lot more classes. They had a red carpet outside the

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I used to think the natural disaster drills and things we practiced at school, and the things the school did to keep us safe, were only precautions, and were pretty useless, because weather that bad rarely ever happens. Now that it actually happened to me, I’m realizing that we should take

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“Wake up! You have a game.” mom said at the top of her lungs.
“Ok.” I said as I opened my eyes, as I tried to get up a bright shine of light struck my eyes. As I head to my closet to get ready, a moth jumps out, I put on my jersey but then I look down and see a big brown stain that resembles a

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We wove through the neighborhoods and streets where we lived, then we turned right and continued down our cul-de-sac. The street was long and narrow, lined with house after house. Pine trees towered above them, and their needles caked the ground below. Our house was at the end of the road, resting

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This is a story about me when I started the new school year at Weber. This is also about the amazing memories I had at my old school. It started in 7th grade. I was so excited to start this year. The year started off really well. I was having a blast but then we got some hard news. One of my best

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It was a Sunday, which was “Championship” day, so we were all super excited. It was around the middle of the season for my baseball team, and we were playing one of the other teams in our organization, called Force Noco. My team was 2-0 on Saturday, so we were in the top bracket. We got to the

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The 5 stages of grief; denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. But some feel only fear. Fear of loss. Fear of change. Fear of fear. That’s how I felt almost 4 years ago. As I got into the car in my grandparents drive way, small stones crunching under the tires as the engine roared to

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Part One
One warm summer afternoon I packed up seven sets of clothes, a toothbrush and hiking boots into a suitcase and threw it in the back of our truck. We were packed like sardines-me, my parents, my sister, and our two-dogs with three long hours ahead of us through Estes and the Rockies.

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When my parents first told me we were moving, I was distraught. But now I realize that moving was the better option because I have more friends and an overall happier life. On November 15, 2020, my life would begin to change forever. My parents sat me and my 5-year-old sister, Alexa, down on our

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As I get off the ski lift, the usual whirring noise from the ski lift fades off as I ski away from the landing. I hear the conversations between people as they decide where they want to go. I want to do a medium-level run to “try and set a new speed record for myself,” ignorant of the consequences

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Three years ago, when I was in fifth grade, our school had this trip called Eco Week. I remember climbing onto the bus early in the morning. The seats smelled like old leather and a little bit like sweat, and the windows were foggy from all the breaths inside. I grabbed a book and tried to get lost

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I love traveling-the thrill of waking up at dawn to drive to the airport, or stepping off the plane into a new place. When I was 11, I went to Thailand, and to this day, it remains the best experience of my life. My family and I got up at 3:30 a.m.

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“Here we are!”, my mom announced. We finally made it to the trail head. I stepped out of my car, stretching out my legs. “Man we were sitting a long time,” my little sister said. I was so nervous, but excited. It was windy but it was a nice day. I threw on my windbreaker feeling a warm relief.

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All through the three minute car ride, I stare out the window. My legs bounce up and down. My finger taps non-stop on the car door. I fidget and twist and move until my dad pulls up the low blue green building under its gray roof. The rising sun displays pinks and blues and clouds above the small

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On a cold fall morning at 4:30 A.M I got up to go to the Colorado middle school state championship cross country meet. I was the most prepared I had ever been for a meet. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~1 Week earlier~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was training really hard every day and my goal was a pace that

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Growing up, volleyball had always been a part of my life. I watched it at home, grew up watching my sister play, and although I didn’t truly start playing until I was 10, it was a sport I always knew of. It evidently was going to be something I was on my way to try too. Starting at 10 you aren’t

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I’ve always loved soccer, but I didn’t always know what it meant or how to be good. I was warming up for the last game of the season, it was a hot day with the sun shining down on my back. The dry grass crunched under my feet as I passed the ball around. I was still in the rec league because of my

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Over the summer I swam in a couple of meets, but there is one that I’d like to talk about right now. This meet was the long course NCS Districts meet at EPIC, on Friday, July 11. This was the first meet that I would swim the 800, and the last meet I would swim in before I took leave for cross

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Before 7th grade, I had never really done a real sport. In 6th grade, I was in a lot of clubs, but they never really were beneficial to me. During the summer before 7th grade, some of my friends started to talk about joining football; naturally, I wanted to follow in their footsteps because I

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I still remember that phone call I got on a warm summer night. It was around 9 pm when my mom’s phone rang. My heart pounded as my mom picked up “ Hello… is this Karrie Rolwes?”
“Yes, it is” “ I’m Coach Dean from Colorado Wild, I’d like to offer a spot on the team for your Katrina”
I remember

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When I was about six years old, my family decided to go on a ski trip. I was excited because it looked like fun. However, when the day of skiing arrived, I realized that my mom had signed me up for lessons. Reluctantly, I agreed to take the lessons and started getting dressed for the day.

When we got there, I felt nervous.

"Do I really have to go, Mom?"

"Ughhhhhhhh."

During the lesson, I got cut off by another skier and ended up running into a tree. I felt really angry and began to cry. I told myself that as soon as this was over, I would never try again. On the next run, I took deep breaths, inhaling the cold winter air. My toes curled in my boots from the chill, but I was determined to keep going. I stood up and slowly started to ride, with my instructor cheering me on-though that didn't really help. I extended my hands as if I were balancing on a tightrope. "I'm doing it," I told myself, but when I leaned forward to turn, I fell again. My instructor helped me get back on my snowboard. I was clearly unhappy, but I stood up and started again. This time, I didn't fall, and I was surprised. I asked my instructor,

"Can we go again?"

We headed up the magic carpet lift. After getting off, I strapped in. My boots felt frozen, and my toes curled.

"Will we do any big runs today?"

"Only if you stop falling."

"Ugh," I groaned.

"You got this," my instructor encouraged.

"Sure," I mumbled to myself.

I finally got up and started going. I slowly began making turns, gaining more confidence with each one. Eventually, I reached the end of the hill.

"Can we go to Green Acres?"

We made our way over to Green Acres; it was exactly as it sounds, with lots of trees and about an acre of terrain. We stopped at a little hut to go to the bathroom, then walked to the start of the lift. I was scared; I had never been on a lift like this before. I was used to ones where you simply walked on, and they slowly crept up the hill. This one was different; it was big, had chairs, and was long. Thankfully, it moved slowly.

"I don't know how to ride on a lift like this."

"Just go straight when we get off, and you'll be fine."

I put my board on the not-so-snowy ground, which was mainly ice, making it even harder to learn. Once on my board, we rode the lift, and as we neared the top, I realized my instructor had misled me. Riding off the lift was much harder than just going straight; we were getting closer and closer to the edge.

I set my foot down on the snow as the chair moved us, but when I pushed off, I ran right into my instructor. He looked hurt but said he was "fine," so we moved on. I strapped my other foot in and got ready to go. I slowly started moving, being very precise with my turns, but as I turned to the right, I fell again, feeling frustrated.

I started to realize that getting good at this would take a lot of time, and I wasn't very patient when I was younger. Over the years, I continued to improve, but I began to feel tired of it all. It wasn't fun being behind everyone; it made the trip boring for my family. So, I started working on the things I wasn't good at, focusing on my turns, jumps, and gaining speed. Over time, I got really good at these skills, and now I realize that not all things come easily. It takes time and persistence to become skilled at something.. Over time, and things wouldnt come easy in life like I thought.

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When I was about six years old, my family decided to go on a ski trip. I was excited because it looked like fun. However, when the day of skiing arrived, I realized that my mom had signed me up for lessons. Reluctantly, I agreed to take the lessons and started getting dressed for the day.

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When I was 3, I started to play soccer. I was not playing competitive ’y et and i was just for practice and when when i was 5 years i started to play games of soccer and when i got good at soccer i started to play competitive on arsonal i was 10 to now that im am 13 and i been playing for the

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When I was in second grade at McGraw Elementary, I didn’t like my teacher, Ms. English. She was often rude to the class and seemed to judge the quiet kids. Early in the year, while we were still getting used to things, she split us into two groups: sports players and non-sports players. Ms.

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One night my family and I were watching the NFL and I said, "Can I play football? I want to play football. I Think I would be a good football player."

So my dad said, "What position do you want to play?" I said quarterback." He said, "Ok, we'll sign you up, but try outs probably will be in like a month." I

One month passed and try outs were here. I locked in over that month and was ready to go when it was time for tryouts. The tryouts hit me like a rock. Day one, we went to the position that we wanted to play. So I went with quarterbacks (qb). It was such a hard day because we ran gassers and threw a lot. We did push ups, sit ups, and planks.

I was doing good. There were two other qbs. One was named Kivilin. He was short and skinnier than me and the other boy was named Brady. He was about my height with dirty blond hair and was not super skinny but didn't have a lot of muscle. So I thought I could win the starting spot. Brady and I were doing the best, and we both knew it and so we were fighting to be the starter. I remember one day I was talking to Brady and he was being really nice. He said, "James you're definitely better than I am."

It was too nice coming from him. Brady was a nice guy, but he wouldn't just say something like that nice unless you did something really well or complimented him first. I knew something was up, so I said, "I don't think I'm that good. I think you're better than me b

So we kept battling all week.

Then next week the depth chart came out and Brady was the starting qb, but thought out season coach said that it could change. As the season went on I was being super cocky about making the team and then my chance came. We were barely winning when coach said, "James you're in!" So I went in and led our team to our second win of the season. I thought I was the best at football.

Then one day at practice, I played so badly, I threw three picks in four plays. I was being humbled and everyone knew it too. It was one of the worst feelings of my life. I felt like I didn't belong. So I started playing with confidence and at the same time playing with humility. People were telling me that I was different. It felt good to be recognized. That's when I realized that I need to be humble and not cocky. Anyone can be better than you and you can always play a bad game.

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One night my family and I were watching the NFL and I said, “Can I play football? I want to play football. I Think I would be a good football player.” So my dad said, “What position do you want to play?” I said quarterback.” He said, “Ok, we’ll sign you up, but try outs probably will be in like a

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I never would have thought I would play softball or even play a sport. I have now learned that stepping out of your comfort zone can really change your life. I remember my first time doing something out of my comfort zone and that was playing my first softball game ever. I realized that if you

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When I first joined the competitive soccer league, I didn’t really understand it. I knew very little about how it worked. But now my ideas about competitive sports are more complicated. On one hand, I think it’s a great way to play sports, because it gives players a chance to show their skills,

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This story began when I was about eight years old, and my family was trying to encourage me to start swimming competitively. In my eight-year-old head, my thoughts were meh about swimming. Sure, all my brothers do it, but what’s the point of swimming when I have good friends, food, and games? So

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We went back to the doctor and did another test and "yes!" I was cleared. We had a tournament that weekend and I was able to play in that so I did and got back on the ice and felt pretty good. We ended up winning that game and then the next game we lost to Arapahoe. By now it was December 20th and we had a game that dad played against boulder at our home rink. The game started off strong with us up two points the the second period came and that's when the trouble started we were in our zone then the d passes it up to me i immediately get my head up looking for a pass but i see two boulder players coming at me I quickly get rid of the puck to my teammate who then takes my pass out of the zone on a 2 on 2. After making that pass I am slammed into the boards and both the guys get penalties for the dirty hit. I lay there on the cold ice feeling the pain that I feel like I've felt before and for the rest of the game I am out with a massive headache on the bench. I'm not thinking about it again saying "not again this can't be happening".

I then go get tested again and its another concussion and for the next few weeks i watch my teammates score goals and have a blast on the ice without me i feel a majority of emotion like jealousy but mainly angry because i am out for a long time cuz some kids wanted to hit a kid and did it the wrong way because they don't know how to hit it just really pissed me off and before i knew it arizona was here and i was not going. I had to go to school on the days I was supposed to be missing and the group chat was blowing up about how much fun they were having there and what a great weekend it was and that was really just a terrible week that was not fun.

The next month went by fast. I was back in action but never the same this time when I came back to the ice and sport. I was very timid and was afraid to get hit or make body contact in a game or practice which was reasonable because I was desperate to go to st louis and play in the tournament. But now it was that time we left for the airport early in the morning for our flight. We got there, took the shuttle to the terminal and then got some food and then we went to the boarding area and I started seeing a bunch of my teammates pull up meaning that they were on my flight. Then we boarded the plane and me and all my teammates sat together and watched movies for the whole plane ride.

Then the next day came and we dint have a games till that night so me and my friend Tryce went to the Arc which was so much bigger in person that the picture and we got to the base of it and man it was bit then we went into the museum under the arc then we got into the small little crates that seemed like metal coffins but they took us up to the top and when we got up there it was so high and it was a windy day to so the thing was like shaking and rocking in the wind. When we got back, I had to change into my suit for hockey and head to the rink. After the game we were mind blown because these kids were massive and good we won the first game by a miracle, also the second with a chance of a miracle the we got killed in the third and 4th games. Then, in the championship game we played the team that killed us 9 to 0 we thought we were cooked for sure. We came out hard and it went back and forth until we scored a "goal" we score. 1-0 we play some more and the "buzzzz" period is over. We finished the game and won a true miracle for us! Our goalie saved 50 shots so it was 13 shots to 50 they had fifty and we still won! For me that was a great season even though.

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Now it's early September, and I, Trenton Roth, just got word of making the Bantam a team. It's such a joy. I'm very excited and can't stop thinking about the season in front of me.

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The game was at 12:30; it was currently 12:15. My team and I were wrapping up warmups and were ready to start the game. We all had smiles on our faces, and the energy was high, per usual. As the referee told us we were almost at gametime, we picked up all the cones on the dry green/brown grass that

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When you find something you are good at, stick with it even if you think you may not end up doing it- It might become a huge part of your life. I learned this when I first started playing softball. At first, I didn’t think that I liked it, but the longer that I do it, the more important it became

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It was the spring of 6th grade and I wanted to play a sport so I picked golf because my mom started a year before I started so I picked golf and went to the golf try out. I knew nobody but 1 person on the team. I was playing to try out to get on the team. It was our first try out game as a team.

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I was in the 6th grade and decided to do wrestling. I was excited to start a sport that I would enjoy. I felt nervous, yet excited, all at the same time. I had a wrestling match against a Lesher Middle School. When we arrived at the school, we put on our wrestling shoes and started warming up. Then

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When I was little, I was running around the house in boredom when I found something quite curious. On the puzzle shelf we had a bright yellow puzzle, and on the side was a large 3x5 “what is this strange symbol in between the 3 and 5” I grabbed the box with my grimy hands and slid the puzzle out,

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Neither of our dogs were very smart. Gabby would beg us to go out back so she could do her business and roam around, and we would let her, but she never wanted to be outside for a long time.

She would go outside for a grand total of 5 minutes before banging on the glass door and barking at us, so we should just let her in, right? They had a dog door that they could use whenever they wanted to, but they were just too lazy to use it. Violet was the same way; she would beg us to go outside and then tap/scratch the glass in 5 minutes.

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Death is a confusing thing. Everyone grieves in their own ways, and my way of dealing with grief is to completely ignore it. When my dog Gabby was put down, and my dog Violet went missing, I moved it as far back in my mind as I could.

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One day I came home from school to my mom on the phone sounding frantic and my dad watching TV oblivious. I asked my mom what was wrong and she told me that her dad had to be hospitalized because of a disease that I didn’t know. A week later she had to fly to Maryland with her siblings to take care

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When I was in fifth grade, I had my first panic attack. I didn’t learn that one single event can change the way you live your life forever until years later. I was sitting in class, and the silence was deafening. All I could hear were the voices in my head. You’re not good enough. This is all your

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When I was little, I always wanted to be just like my two older cousins, Emma and Abby. I wanted to dress like them, act like them, and always be around them. They both played volleyball in high school, and when I was in fourth grade, I knew that this was my chance to make them proud of me.

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I’ve never had much struggle in school. Ever since preschool, I’ve been able to take in information and apply it when needed. Looking at my older brother’s detailed math homework, there wasn’t anything I couldn’t do or didn’t understand. I didn’t think this would ever change, but I was proven

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introduced him to my other dog, Burney, which went well and they were good friends from the start. Then it came to naming the dog, we thought of many names, but I thought of a great idea. I shouted the name Clifford, and my mom liked and there were no other good names, so we went with that one

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Let me tell you about my first sleepover. I was so excited to go over to my friend’s house. After I got to her house we had so much fun up until we had to go to bed. We danced, had dinner, and had dessert. Way too much dessert. I have a really big sweet tooth. It’s kind of a problem. So much of a

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The first day of 7th grade was today. I just switched schools from Blevins to Webber. I woke up, took a shower, brushed my teeth, and got dressed. I put on a shirt and shorts, then put on my cologne and deodorant. Then I got in the car and started driving to Webber.

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Ring Ring Ring Ring, Oh no, I’ve got to get to class—the first day of middle school, I was feeling very nervous, and I was scared that my teachers were gonna be mean. I was also worried because this was gonna be my first year without my mom working in the building, and that was new to me. When I

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Back in 7th grade, I had learned how to drive an automatic car, but I love cars, and I knew I had to learn how to drive a manual. My brother, my mom were at my grandma’s house, a short 5-minute drive from our house. It was hot, and we came over to get in the pool. While we were over there, my

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I remember that one time I went down the wrong trail on my mountain bike. I was excited to try a new trail on my bike then I turned into the trail. I thought to myself this is a little technical not knowing this was the complete wrong trail. My bike was smoothly rolling the trail till thump a

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I was born in Pennsylvania. I don’t remember much from those early years just that life felt good, even as a toddler. We only lived there for two years before moving to Ohio to be closer to family. That’s where most of my early childhood memories were made. I lived in Ohio until I was about five,

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It was my first day at a new school. I was going into 7th grade at Webber Middle School. I only knew two girls in my grade from dance, but not well. I was really excited to start somewhere new especially after my last school. My last school was very hard and there were a lot of different rules

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I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to figure out if I'm actually going to throw up or if it's just my nerves. Tomorrow is the day I've been dreading since May - my first day of middle school. What if I get lost?

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When I graduated from fifth grade, I did not want to go to middle school. I thought it would be boring, and it would just be a waste of time. I didn't think I would be able to make many friends and didn't think I would fit in. I was always dodgy and looked like I wanted to be left alone. I didn't have many friends in fifth grade. I only came to Webber with one friend, Matt. My other good friend moved away.

On the day that I was supposed to start middle school, I drove to school feeling dreadful. On the first day, we were told we would be grouped with people called Web Leaders who were supposed to help us and teach us about how the school worked. I didn't really care about this and wanted to get it over with. When I was put into the group, I had nobody else to talk with, and I felt alone. We first introduced each other with a talking piece, and when it got to me, I said my name and said I was doing well. I passed the talking piece along. Afterwards, we played little games that were supposed to be fun, but weren't really fun for me. Nobody seemed to choose me unless it was the Web Leaders' turn. I felt sad that I wasn't ever picked, and like my thoughts about middle school were coming true. I went home feeling bummed.

A couple of days later, I walked into Connect class, bored and not knowing what to do, when I saw two kids playing with the bean bags on the floor and in Mr. Brandon's room. I was chilling in my seat, waiting for class to end And I walked over to the kids and said hi just because what else was I supposed to do a couple of days later after that web leader day showing me that the school is pretty boring and still lonely so I should probably talk to someone and say hi there most likely going to look at me that's what I thought to myself but instead they Wanted to hang out with me I was happy just for a quick sec. However, you could never know if they were joking or not, so I told them I'd think about it. I sat back down in my seat, but it was still boring, though. I didn't know what to do, so I just hung out in my seat trying to think if I wanted to hang out with someone or just try to get it over with. It was a happy day just because I got invited to do something, though things will never last, so have fun while it lasts.

As the bell struck 8:45, class ended. As I left the hallway, I felt a little bored again as I was still sick of sixth grade, but I had to move on. In the end of the day it's not as bad as I thought. I just really want to get over with 6th grade as I only had one friend. At the end of the day it's a good lesson that you should know is in life, we should learn to make the best of things and not try to rush them. Now, I have friends that I look forward to hanging out with at school and learned that instead of trying to just get through things, I should make the best of life. I used to think I was gonna get bored, but now I realize middle school can be fun. I learned this by starting 6th grade because at first, I didn't want to come, but now, I enjoy spending time here with my friends. I can take this to high school and make the best of every day.

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When I graduated from fifth grade, I did not want to go to middle school. I thought it would be boring, and it would just be a waste of time. I didn't think I would be able to make many friends and didn't think I would fit in.

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As I stepped out of my house and onto the sidewalk I felt the warm summer breeze on my face and smelled the sweet smell of blooming flowers. My Dad stepped out behind me and we began the quick five minute walk to our neighborhood park Troutman. Just as soon as we had begun walking we were there.

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I stood on the sidewalk of Rocky Mountain Highschool, looking up at the towering bleachers around me. I stepped back out of the way as people came whizzing past me, from every direction. Compared to Lopez Elementary, this was gigantic. A voice boomed over the loudspeaker. “The girls 100m will

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In July of 2019, we had to go check some cows in the south pasture of the Haper ranch in Wagon Mound, New Mexico. We started saddling up our horses. The process of saddling a horse is kinda complicated, but once you do it a couple of times, you’ll remember it. The first thing you do is set the

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It’s spring break. I was so bored I didn’t know what to do. I saw my dog staring at me. Oh, I can grab a tennis ball. “Wanna play fetch” I said in a baby voice to my dog I heard a car coming and thought it was my mom getting home from work. Drake, my dog, dropped the ball and I watched it

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When I was in 6th grade, I learned not to do things just because people tell me to. I was playing truth or dare with my two friends Drake and Isaih. We were at my house over the weekend and my parents weren’t home. I was happy to hang out with my friends and we were having fun. Drake really liked

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When I was about 4 I walked out of my house to see grandma and grandpa sitting outside. My body filled with adrenaline as I ran towards my grandparents with so much joy “GRANDMA! GRANDPA!” I yelled. I had not realised that after I was done watering some wasps got angry at me and would soon be at

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After weeks and weeks of planning, it was finally time to take our summer trip. The views, the sites, the places. I was out of my mind thinking about the joys that were in store. It was going to be a long 3500 miles, but we were so excited. Our plan was to head up to Washington and see all of the

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Family is the best, we love family, we care for family, but family can sometimes go away. ******************************************************************************************
The Beginning It all started as a normal day. A normal tiring school day. I could already feel my eyelids feeling

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Lying in my bed that night, I listened to the wind howling outside the window next to my bed. I clenched my fists and squeezed my eyes shut, praying Please don't be windy tomorrow, please, please, please.

November 9th

I sat up in bed to sunlight streaming through the gap in my curtains. I listened hard for the sound of wind... and there it was, the howling that had kept me up for so much of the night. I sighed in defeat and dragged myself out of bed to put on the outfit I had been so excited about wearing to my birthday party. I felt a rush of joy as I put on the shirt, knowing that it was finally, finally, my birthday, but not just any birthday, my golden birthday.

For some people, golden birthdays are not a big deal, but back then, I was little, and golden birthdays were awesome for me. I am the only one in my family who has a golden birthday that is not above 20. By then, the charm has worn off for most people, and it is just a regular birthday.

When I rushed down the stairs, a huge smile plastered on my face, I ran into my parents' arms as they hugged me.

"Happy birthday! Did you sleep well last night?"

"No, not really, the wind kept me up."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that. I'm sure your party will be so much fun though!"

"I'm so excited!"

Because we wanted to have the cupcakes fresh before the party, I helped my mom bake them that morning. It was a simple box mix from the grocery store, but it smelled like it was straight from heaven. When they came out of the oven, the whole house smelled like chocolate. I breathed in the scent, wanting to hold on to it forever. I eagerly got out the frosting and the blue dye, but my mom told me we had to let them cool for 30 minutes before frosting them. My face turned downward into a frown, but lightened again when she asked me to help pick out decorations from the giant box in the basement. I wanted my theme to be sparkly and fun, so I picked out some streamers and multicolored balloons, along with decorative paper flowers that I could hang around the park. The last treasure I found was an obnoxiously bright blue tablecloth to put on the table, along with some tablecloth weights to clip on so that it would not blow away in the strong wind.

By this time, my sisters, Ava and Lilly, were up and wondering what smelled so good. I told them it was the chocolate cupcakes that we had baked, and I could practically see their mouths watering to taste them. They had cooled down enough to put the bright blue frosting on, and boy, did I. I mixed it up so that it was as obnoxiously bright blue as the tablecloth, and I went to work.

I started by piping way too much frosting in and then putting an unhealthy amount of sprinkles on top. I stood back and looked at my handiwork and decided, for some reason, that I needed to add even more sprinkles on top, and I did. By the time I was done, the cupcakes no longer looked like cupcakes; they now resembled crushed up rainbows in a fluffy blue sky with hearts and stars mixed in. I was so proud of myself.

When we finally arrived at the park, I went in search of the perfect table. When I found it, my sisters and I set up all the decorations and food, but things kept getting blown over, and I was getting very frustrated with the wind. I was especially excited about some dried pineapple, but when I tasted it, I realized it did not live up to my expectations at all. I decided not to put it on the table because I did not think that anybody else would like it.

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Lying in my bed that night, I listened to the wind howling outside the window next to my bed. I clenched my fists and squeezed my eyes shut, praying Please don't be windy tomorrow, please, please, please. November 9th I sat up in bed to sunlight streaming through the gap in my curtains.

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It was late when we arrived, close to 5:30. We were only coming from a couple of houses over, but the car ride still found a way to tire me. The streets were quiet in that in-between hour, when the sun is gone, but the night hasn’t settled in yet. Even the tires on the gravel seemed to echo louder

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My stepdad passed away when I was five and a half years old. At that age, death wasn't something I could fully grasp. It existed in the background of hushed adult conversations, or in the flicker of a TV screen where it made my mother cry for reasons I couldn't yet understand.

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Once upon a time it was a cold winter afternoon i was doing nothing In my room when i decided i wanted a cat and so i told my parents If we can please have a cat seine there was nothing to do or to play with And they said "we will think about it' a few days passed by and would you know We went to a shelter and first i saw a little kitten it was a Meowing very much and if you don't know tabby cats are very energetic and playful which is a perfect match for me so i asked my mom id we can have it But they were distracted on a she was still a kitten around 5 weeks old and her name was kung foo panda, the staff told us that she was very shy and didn't like loud noises and i thought to myself "uhmmmmm maybe it will work" we adopted her for 250$ as i got home i couldn't resist my self to keep looking at the cat but one thing i didn't like about her was that her name is kung foo panda so my family wanted to name her Mia we couldn't name her Oreo because i had a bunny that was name Oreo and that would be confusing so my dad named her Mia but i wanted to name her coco so while my dad called her Mia i called her coco but for now lets just call the cat coco ok?As i got home, and she got out of her box and didn't know where she was

So was so scared of her surroundings every now and then she hid behind the couch

Or under the couch and that right there was her favorite spot to chill As days went on coco started getting used to the house we bought a 6'7 foot high that was her 2nd best place to be in the housebut then i had the brilliant idea to grab a cage and add bedding outside so I grabbed coco and put her in the cage outside but when my dad came home he said it looked bad so i took it down and my dad took her outside without a leash nothing not even a cage and she just stood there

Standing and he said "see she doesn't run away"

She just walked away but at night she came back

She kept on going out but during night she came back

But one day this orange cat came to our house and stared at coco

Then he stared coming every day and every day coco disappeared

And reappeared and she started coming back late until one day me and

My family went to a party last time i saw her she was loafed outside by my garden that was the last time i saw her

Yet till this day she hasn't come back.

But i still have a glimpse of hope that somewhere out there

Coco is living her best life somewhere out there so i want to bring aware to how to take care of cats and why having an outside cat is very complicated and hard to do because you don't have control of the cats mind and movements so please just keep your cat inside

And if you are going to have and outside cat make sure it is only

For a purpose like the bathroom or if you need a break from it

So if you are going to let your cat outside DON'T do it

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Losing a grandparent is tough, it can change your perspective on life and maybe even yourself. My opinion on losing someone dear to you is mixed, on one hand i think “its okay to be sad!! There is nothing wrong with showing emotions.” but on the other hand i think “dude get over it you will

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Change is always hard, especially when it means a loved one has to move far away. I've always loved my dad, Even after all the arguments I'd still love him as much as I do now. After my parents divorced you would think me and my dad grew distant, but nope, matter in fact we grew even closer!

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Family isn’t just blood, It can be a sport, a hobby, a team, a person, an animal. At the end of the day it’s the things or people who make you feel like you belong, that feel like you’re loved, even support you.

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The morning had finally come, my sisters and I all had our bags packed and ready to go. We were so excited to go to Pueblo to see all of my aunts, uncles, and grandpa for Christmas. Little did I know how much this trip would change my life. I had no idea how important it would turn out to be, and

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I have seen Jocelyn around the apartment, but never really talked to her until I was going home one night and she was leaving. I could see she was around my age, 8 or 9. She has dark brown hair like a coffee bean and brown eyes that remind me of fall.

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When I was 4, my brother was born, and at first, I was thrilled to be an older brother, and I was so excited to play with him. However, after a few months, that changed. He started getting more attention than me, but it didn’t matter that much to me because I was still happy I got to have a

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As I stepped off the plane, the sound of Hebrew being spoken around me was almost surreal. A kid asking his mother what’s in his sandwich, people talking about the baggage claim number, it was everywhere. And it felt great. I hadn’t been to Israel in almost 3 years. There’s always a war or a

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It was the end of the final football game of seventh grade. Jv was playing, and it was the end of the fourth quarter. I watched the clock from the sideline as it struck 00:00. I sighed and took off my helmet and geared down. I had gotten only a few reps throughout the entire season at a position I

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“Okay class time for morning circle,” the teacher said in that tone I could never stand.
All 20 of us moved like a wave to the rug and sat down. I was so excited, I thought How could this day go wrong? Then it all came crashing down, I was the one thing I hated the most. A nose bleed, but this one

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I used to think love was only people by blood and that you can’t love anyone else but I figured out you can love anyone you want to. But sometimes it doesn’t go that way. See when i was little i only loved my family not knowing you can love people if there not blood when i got older i figured

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I was 12 years old when I first got my pitching velocity checked. It was early spring, and I was sitting 58 mph. "Nice, that's about average for my age right coach?" "Dont worry about anyone but your velocity."

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At first, I thought it wasn’t always possible to win, but now I realize that if you work hard and stay positive, you can win at anything you set your mind to. I learned this while traveling to Arizona for a basketball tournament with my team. At first, I thought it wasn’t always possible to win,

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The doorbell rang out with a clear and defined ring. Then I heard the sound of Auggie, Mason’s dog, followed by the sound of the door handle moving and the door hinges moving. The next moment a tall figure walked on the doorstep and I asked, “Can Mason do night games?” “I’ll go see.” He replied

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My Little Brothers By: Harper Tarr Before the twins: I never expected a onesie and a card to change my life. But the day my mom held it up, announcing she was pregnant again, I realized things would never be the same. I was