Through my sonnet, LIVE, I wanted the reader to see that snowboarding is a great metaphor that can be used to illustrate many aspects of life. Most of the stanzas from the sonnet are self-explanatory for explaining the sport of snowboarding (which of course is the topic), but need further analysis in order to relate it to life. The sonnet opens with the line, “The ride down may seem a vertical drop.” This is the initial image and feeling that you get as soon as you reach the top of that mountain and start your descent to the bottom.. In life, the ‘vertical drop’ symbolizes the feeling of free falling or having no control over yourself. “It's scary at takeoff” not only symbolizes the initial feeling of snowboarding, but the start of something brand new. It’s rocky at first, but if you apply yourself, getting the hang of it will just come naturally. This next line, “You'll feel the rush,” adds on and emphasizes what the previous line is trying to say. When you begin new things in life, it may be hard to adjust and you might feel bombarded. On the slopes, this ‘rush’ comes in the form of falling down. However, “never collapse and don't psyche yourself out.” This line means that just because you’re having a bad day (in the real world or in the snow) don’t give up and think that you can’t do it. Instill positive things in your mind and keep on going. “Before you know it, it will all be slush.” Slush symbolizes that the snow is melting and, therefore, the ending of winter. This line translates to, “Before you know it, the hard times (and feelings of being overwhelmed/bombarded) will be over.”
“Gliding through the powder of taking a fall, one must experience the ups and downs.” This line is self-explanatory for snowboarding; sometimes you’ll wipe out and other times you’ll cruise through the powder with no problem at all. In life, gliding through the powder is like relaxing and enjoying yourself. Taking a fall is like making a mistake or encountering a problem; something that holds you back. At any stage of your life, you are experiencing ‘ups and downs’. In order for you to enjoy and appreciate the good times, you must go through bad ones. “When limbs impact the snow, bounce back, stand tall.” This line translates into ‘when you fall, don’t let it get to you. Just bounce right back and continue on’. This same goes for mistakes in life; try not to let that bad choice eat away at you. It may be hard, but the best thing to do is to keep moving on and put it in the past. Sooner or later, “you'll find yourself sailing right through the mounds.” Eventually, everything will get back on the right track and you will learn to put whatever it was behind you.
“A subtle turn can lead to a new place.” This stanza is basically saying that you don’t have to search very far in order to find something new. New and interesting things are always close by, whether you realize it or not- and that’s definitely true when snowboarding on top of a huge mountain. The next line “with unmarked obstacles hard to measure” symbolizes not only the unmarked terrain on the mountains, but the obstacles we come across every day in life. The hard to measure part is just saying that the size of each obstacle differs. “These impediments take you on a chase” simply means that curiosity lures you to follow. These ‘impediments’ are those unmarked obstacles. Humans by nature love to explore the unknown. “But don’t slow down, or you'll miss the treasure.” On some parts of the mountain, there are slight hills which you need speed to get over. if you slow down, you wont be able to get over them and you’ll end up having to take time and unstrap your board and walk over instead. The same goes for life activities, keep going with it with a positive attitude and in the end you’ll gain something. If you have a negative attitude about, it will only slow you down.
“Sure, snowboarding brings me joy and pleasure, but it illustrates life's great adventure.” In the bigger picture, snowboarding relates in many ways to life. If you have the right attitude on the mountain when you’re snowboarding or skiing, then you have the right attitude to get you through a lot of things in life, you just have to apply it. The ride down the mountain is just as enjoyable and thrilling as the ride through life.

'LIVE' Sonnet

Gliding through the powder of taking a fall,
one must experience the ups and downs.
When limbs impact the snow, bounce back, stand tall.
You'll find yourself sailing right through the mounds.
The ride down may seem a vertical drop.
It's scary at takeoff, you'll feel the rush.
Never collapse and don't psyche yourself out.
Before you know it, it will all be slush.
A subtle turn can lead to a new place
with unmarked obstacles hard to measure.
These impediments take you on a chase,
but dont slow down, or you'll miss the treasure.
Sure, snowboarding brings me joy and pleasure,
but it illustrates life's great adventure.

Heritage Paper

It’s A Small Island
Heritage Paper

“I’ll tell you the story of how my father first met your grandmother,” my dad said eagerly.
Since both of my grandfathers have passed away, I rarely get the chance to hear stories like these. I listened to him speak with great interest.
“It was bright, humid, day in the city of Kahului, Maui during the spring of 1939. Even though this city was big, the population wasn’t. In the town, a small, rusty sign that read A & B Commercial Company swayed in the light wind. They sold everything from building to plumbing materials. This store is where grandpa used to work. He established friendly relationships with his co-workers, as he worked six out of the seven days a week. I knew two of them by name; Uncle Sammy and Uncle Jeff. Anyways, later on in the afternoon, he caught a glimpse of a woman walking into the shop, and couldn’t stop staring.”
“He saw her for the first time in this store. She was a full-figured woman wearing white shorts and a light pink blouse. Her dark hair had volume and fell just past her shoulders. Her delicate lips were painted in a deep coral pink. She stood no more than 5'4", however her two-inch sandals gave her a nice boost. Despite the fact that this was a small city, he had never seen her before and didn’t know any of her family. She entered the shop and didn’t pause to wander down any of the aisles or ask any questions. Instead, she walked straight to the back of the shop and talked with Uncle Sammy for a little while, then briskly left. Dad was puzzled. He was really interested in getting to know her but didn’t know when she would be coming back. All he could do was wait.”
“Next week Wednesday, through the tinted and dusty picture window framing the front of the store, he saw her approaching; the same woman he so closely observed during their previous brief encounter. He was determined to meet her. Disappointingly, though, this visit was no different from the last; she walked straight to the back of the shop, spoke with uncle Sammy for a few minutes, then left.”
“Confused, grandpa wondered if she was in a relationship with uncle Sammy, even though he had told him he was single. ‘No’, he thought, he wouldn’t lie about things like that. With all of these thought plaguing his mind, he had trouble concentrating on everything for the next few days, especially work. Realizing that he couldn’t remain in this sad, moping, state for much longer, he made a vow and decided that he would talk to uncle Sammy the next day at work. He wanted to ask him a favor; to introduce him to his lovely lady friend.”
“Dad walked into the shop the next day feeling nervous. ‘Sammy?’ He said.
‘Yea?’
‘I”ve had my eye on that lady who comes into this store every so often and talks with you; the full-figured one with nice curves. I’d really like to get to know her. Could you introduce me since you’re a friend of hers right?’”
“Sammy, with a puzzled yet shocked look on his face, exclaimed. ‘Oh I’m a friend of hers alright. And that’s no lady, that’s my sister!’”
“Embarrassed, all he could muster was a shy ‘Oh’. Sammy reassured him that it was fine and agreed to introduce her to him. Grandpa did know some of her family after all. Like I said, Kahului, Maui was a small city. Anyways, a few weeks after they met, they both decided to go golfing at the local driving range; they were both fans of the sport. Grandpa, trying to impress her, swung his club and sent the golf ball flying through the air. It landed just short of 150 yards.
‘Nice shot,’ she exclaimed. She then proceeded to pick up her club and got ready to swing. Her powerful shoulders rotated swiftly to the right and then swivelled 180 degrees to the left, finishing her shot. The ball, a mere speck against the bright green grass, gracefully fell just past the 200 yard mark. Grandpa’s jaw dropped. It was this moment that made him realize what an amazing woman she was. He admired her skill for the sport. From then on, he never took his eyes off of her. They spent a lot of time together during the next couple of years, and ended up getting married in the Fall. Aside from the humor and love story aspect of it all, hopefully this story will teach you to be careful of what you say and who you say it to, because on these islands, everyone knows everyone one way or another.”
I found this little story to be humourous with a hidden lesson embedded into it. This is the first time I heard this story, and it’s one that’s not going to be forgotten.

About This Blog

This blog is going to be used to display some of my writings for English.