Power of One Narrative

Often in life we find that our actions or decisions are based on the guidance or opinions of certain people in our lives. This can either be a detriment to us or it can turn out to be the reason why we succeed. Just like in The Power of One it can take just one person to make a difference in the life of many. One rain drop raises the ocean. In my life I have had many people along the way who have helped in one way or another. There is one who has had a profound mark on my life.

I have made a lot of mistakes in my life. When I first started high school I had the same goals and dreams that everyone else has: graduate, go to college, have the perfect job, perfect family. I accomplished the first one no problem but somewhere along the way I lost myself in the world and in things that I knew nothing about. I always believed myself to be different from anyone else, if I came up against drugs or anything of that nature I could say no. I would be able to stand up against something that so many others have not been able to. I was wrong. And so began my downward spiral into a world that now looking back I believe should not exist. I was 18 when I got addicted to oxy cotton. There were many people in my life that at the time I thought to be great friends and to be good people for me to have in my life. I was wrong, again. In the summer of 2007 I was handed the single rope that has proven to have pulled me out of where I was. I became pregnant with my son. The knowledge that I was responsible for another person, one who could not fend for its self, could not make its own decisions snapped me out of my false sense of reality. It made me open my eyes and see the world differently; I saw people differently.

Nicholas Alan Cleaver was born on April 21, 2008. At eight weeks early he was healthy and he was born to a clean and sober mother. I have never looked back. I am not a religious person and I don’t credit a lot of things so much to a higher power as I do to the reality of the world and how we are all interconnected. However be it god or be it the natural order of things I was given the single greatest gift that I could have been given. I was given a choice. My son gave me an escape that I might have not found on my own.

The last two years have been hard and have been a journey that most people don’t and will never understand. Every decision that I make every direction that I turn is all based on my son. This is the single reason that I am sitting here in this class today. This is the single reason that this last year I was able to find the person who I hope to spend the rest of my life with. In the last year I have decided to pay it forward. I have turned around and done for others what my son did for me. I want people to be able to really live. I want them to live without addiction and I want them to not be ashamed of what they have been through. In the end I want them to be proud that they came out on top. The best part about my son being the single most influential person in my life is that I am guaranteed that he’s going to stick around, at least for another 16 years.

I think that for people who have been blessed to have a person in their life that has pulled them through the hard times and brought them out on top, it’s time to do the same. In The Power of One the people who influenced PK’s life would have meant nothing had he not gone and made that difference to someone else. We all need someone, and there will always be someone who may need us.

The Red Balloon

this is an assignment i did for a class... where i had to write in my own word the story of te red balloon.... enjoy

On a morning much like every other, a young boy set out on his usual journey to school. While walking through the alley near his house he noticed that high upon a lamp poll was a stranded red balloon. Very carefully the boy climbed the poll and rescued the balloon from its perch and brought it safely back down. Continuing his journey the boy and his new found friend made their way through the city. Stopping to wait for the bus he and his balloon drew a bit of attention from other waiting passengers. One such was compelled to pull him back because he was standing too close to the curb. When the bus finally arrived the balloon was not allowed to go onboard. Weighing his options the boy decided that maybe he didn’t want to ride a bus where balloons were not welcome. Knowing that he was going to be late for school because of his sudden transportation change, the boy began to run the last few blocks to school.

When the boy finally arrived at school he found that the front door was locked, knocking three times he waited the door to open. Running inside he entrusted his new friend to the janitor of the school asking him to please watch the red balloon until class was out. Then hurrying to class the boy left behind his new friend. Watching from a window on the second story the headmaster observed this exchanged with a wary disposition.

As the last bell rang the boy blissfully regained possession of his red balloon and set out on his long was home. Stepping outside of the front door however he was disheartened to see that it had begun to rain. Meekly he asked a nearby passerby if he would mind sharing his umbrella with him and his balloon. Agreeing to share his umbrella, the boy, the balloon, and the man walked down the street. When the man with the umbrella got to his stop the boy was forced to find a new person to share with him and his balloon. This continued for several more passerbies’s until they were finally home. Upon arriving home the boy’s nanny told him that the balloon was not to be in the house and promptly tossed it out the window. The balloon however remembered that the boy had saved it from its predicament that morning and stayed by the window waiting for the boy. When he saw this the boy opened the window and brought the red balloon inside.

The next morning the boy, knowing very well the balloon was not suppose to be in the house, opened his window and told his balloon that it was to meet him downstairs. When he emerged from the front door waiting there to greet him was his balloon and so they started on their journey again. This time the balloon was allowed to tag along behind him instead of being pulled. Making sure that he was not going to be late for school again the boy decided to take the bus and trust that his friend would meet him at the school. Out front of the school the arrival of the balloon causes a stir among the students causing the boy to get in trouble. The headmaster of the school puts the boy in detention and lets the balloon go thinking that this will solve the problem. The balloon having a different idea decided that it is going to follow the headmaster around. After a while and a very unsuccessful try at ignoring the bright red balloon at his back the head master tells the boy to go and to take his balloon with him. Being obedient and not wanting to get in anymore trouble the boy decides that it is best to head home.

The children from the school are very interested in the red balloon and decide that they want it for themselves. Hiding behind a small shed the children wait for the boy and his balloon to walk by. When the boy sees that he is being pursued he runs towards home. When he arrives at his building the boy let’s go of the string and runs upstairs to his house, and opening his window pulls his friend inside to safety. The children below are irritated at this and decide that the next time the boy and his balloon venture out into the city they will not be so lucky. Later that day the boy and his nanny walk to the nearby church, but the balloon does not want to be left behind and decides to follow. This decision however is not a good one the balloon is not allowed in the church. Not long after the boy and his friend leave the church behind along with the angry nanny and church officials. The boy has decided that church may not be so grand a place, who wants to go somewhere where balloons are not allowed.

While walking through the city the boy decides that a pastry is a good way to celebrate escaping both the church and the headmaster. So telling the red balloon to wait outside the boy leaves his friend once again. The children have been watching and waiting and this time they surprise the balloon and taking hold of its string they pull it away. When the boy comes back out of the shop he is confused as to where his friend has gone. So he sets out hoping that maybe it has just decided to go look around. Out of the corner of his eye the boy sees off in the distant the red balloon, he calls to it. Something is very wrong the boy decides so he starts walking to see what the problem is. When the boy reaches the balloon he realizes that it is being held captive. Calling to the balloon he tells it to come over the wall and he will UN tie it. Once it is free from the children the boy and his red balloon flee. Running as fast as he can the boy runs trough alley ways and around corners trying to evade the children.

Unfortunately he becomes surrounded and can do nothing as he watches the children through things at his beloved friend. One boy uses a sling shot and hits the balloon dead on. Everyone goes still as they watch the sad decent of the balloon to the ground. A particularly cruel child then stomps on the balloon releasing any magic that was still in its lifeless form. Alone and deeply hut by the actions they boy holds onto the broken balloon. His eye is caught by movement in the sky above him; to his amazement he witnesses the decent of balloons that have come to comfort him at the loss of his friend. Overjoyed the boy gathers their stings in his hand and lets himself be carried away by the only things in his world that have shown him compassion and love.

racial seperation

“Just Call Us ‘Black Americans’” Mid-Term Essay

Frank W. Terry In a February 1999 article from the Los Angeles Times approached the issue of whether the term ‘African American’ should be changed to ‘Black American’. Political correctness in America is a very hot topic among different races and nationalities, often becoming a debate topic among many. Everyone that lives and is born in the United States of America is American. The term ‘African American’ should not be changed to ‘Black American’.

Deciding whether or not to change the term ‘African American’ to something different is making an issue out of something small. Individuals who move to this country from another have the right to have a separate term to distinguish them from others. Individuals who are born in the US or have taken up US citizenship should be referred to simply as ‘Americans’. There is no reason why one race or nationality should be segregated and singled out saying that they feel that they are being treated unfair. Changing the name that they are allowed to be called further points out their differences and makes room for further debate. The term ‘Black American’ singles in on the color of the individuals instead of their nationality. There are real issues in our communities and our nation of greater importance that should have higher priority than these that are trivial.

Others may argue that the term ‘African American’ should be changed given that not all people of color are from Africa. It is also arguable that not everyone that is from Africa is colored. Racial segregation and debate on what to call individuals of other ethnicities is always going to be a controversial topic. Discussing and changing these things will only hold it off for a while. Sooner or later the issue will be brought up again and there will be more demands and reasons for change. This is not something that is going to be fixed or fashioned to keep everyone happy indefinitely.

In conclusion the term ‘African American’ should not be changed to ‘Black American’ or any other term. Americans should be called just that if they are living in The United States of America. Race and color should not be included when trying to classify someone based on where they are living. Political correct names are just another way to divide a country that needs more unity and not separation.