Banning junk food may seem like a morally responsible decision, but there are some issues that need to be considered before jumping to an opinion.  Obesity is a growing problem and some think schools should ban junk food.  But would banning junk food really solve the obesity problem? Think about it… Junk food is not the only component in obesity and should not be banned from schools.  Not only does banning junk food make kids want more of it, it doesn’t help students learn how to make correct decisions such as eating healthy.  The biggest problem with banning junk food though, is defining what junk food is.  Where do you draw the junk food line?  And who makes those decisions?  These are all important issues to consider before saying no to junk food.

            First, putting a ban on junk food could make students overindulge later when they are able to get it.  Similarly, when people reach the age of 21, many drink too much just because they have the new freedom.    A lot of 21 year olds get sick from alcohol poisoning their first few years of being able to drink.  More than 150,000 college students obtain injuries from alcohol poisoning every year.  Students, likewise, might eat too much junk food when they get home from school.  Often times, putting a ban on something only makes people want it more.  “They (students) may even eat more junk food as an act of a rebellion.” (Newman). Kids would go home and pig out on junk food just because they are denied it at school, or they would find a way to smuggle it into the schools.

            Secondly, decision-making is a very important part of the high school experience.  Students need to learn how to make good choices like eating healthy.  “Taking away junk food does not teach students to eat healthy; it simply removes some of their options.” (Dively). Once students are out of high school, the whole world is open to them.  Some may not know how to stay away from junk food without the previous essential high school exposure.  Also, parents and students should have the option of choosing to eat healthy.  Phyllis Schlafly says that parents who want their kids to eat healthy can send them with a lunch bag from home. (178).  Even if some parents are incapable of sending their kids with better lunches, students should have enough will power to choose for themselves and motivate themselves to eat healthy.

            Lastly, is the problem of defining junk food.  If you take soda out of vending machines, do you also have to ban Powerade?  High fructose corn syrup is the second ingredient in a Powerade.  Should it still be allowed?  The pizza, hamburgers, fries, chicken nuggets, and corndogs that are common in school cafeterias are not healthy, but would not necessarily be considered junk food.  Would you have to ban those too?  Some of those foods are worse than those in the vending machines.  What would school lunches be composed of?  If there weren’t as many choices for school lunch, not as many students would buy lunch.  Many would take lunch from home or go out to local fast food restaurants.  This would mean lots of leftovers and less money for the school. 

            Richard J. Codey says, “School is where children spend the most time and it is where we lay the foundation for healthy habits.”  This, though thought provoking, is untrue.  Two out of three meals are spent at home including what most people consider to be the most important meal- breakfast.  As for the foundation of healthy habits, this should be developed at home at a young age.  If students don’t know enough about nutrition by the time they start middle school, then it is a parenting flaw.  However, this does not mean that schools should not reinforce teachings about nutrition on students and encourage them to eat healthy. All this can be done without banning junk food.  You’re probably thinking about how junk food causes many harmful diseases.  This may be the extreme of eating too much of it.  A little junk food does not take over the body and force into an unhealthy lifestyle.  In fact, a balanced diet consists of a little sugar and fat.  Athletes also need to eat more calories in order to stay healthy for their sport.  If students are careful with their junk food intake, then it would be unnecessary to ban it.  It is important for students and parents to decide what is best for them, not the school board.  How else are students going to learn from experience?

            I do not deny that junk food is a part of obesity and obesity is a problem.  But, schools should be doing their best to address it without putting a complete ban on junk food.  Banning junk food in schools could make students overindulge later.  Also, decision making is an important part of growing up, and there is the problem of defining junk food.  Because of these main reasons a junk food ban is a careless and close-minded decision.  This country is based on personal freedoms, so let’s make sure it stays that way!

Works Cited

“Ban Junk Food in School? (Debate). – Free Online Library.” Free News, Magazines, Newspapers, Journals, Reference Articles and Classic Books – Free Online Library. 6 Sept. 2002. Web. 11 Dec. 2010. <http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Ban junk food in school? (Debate).-a094960203>.

Codey, Richard J., and John Dively. “Should States Ban Junk Food in Schools? | Scholastic.com.” Teaching Resources, Children’s Book Recommendations, and Student Activities | Scholastic.com. 2006. Web. 6 Dec. 2010. <http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=10853>.

“Junk Food Should Be Banned in Schools.” Middle School Debate Program. Web. <www.middleschooldebate>.

Newman, Debbie. “Unhealthy Food, Banning from Schools.” International Debate Education Assotiation. 6 Apr. 2008. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.idebate.org/debatebase/topic_details.php?topicID=760>.

Schlafly, Phyllis. “Schools Should Play a Role in Fighting Childhood Obesity.” Obesity: Opposing Viewpoints. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven, 2006. 177-80. Print.

Yeoman, Barry. “School Lunches Cause Childhood Obesity.” Food: Opposing Viewpoints. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven, 2006. 151-58. Print.

Junk Food. Digital image. Web. 13 May 2011.

No Junk Food. Digital image. Web. 13 May 2011.

Summer is just aroun the corner and I can’t wait!  Spring this year in Park City has been miserable with its on and off snow flurries and days of heat.  I don’t have much planned this summer but I can’t wait just to not have to go to school for two and a half months.  I plan on taking P.E. and Health 10 online over the summer and going to a music camp.  Also I am going to run almost every day with the cross country team starting in the fall.  Usually we get together with our cousins who live in Seattle over the summer but this summer they are really busy .  One of my cousins is going to Morocco  with her school. Lucky!  Anyways, hopefully we’ll get to see them next summer!

What’s your favorite thing to do in  summer?  My favorite thing to do is bike down to the park and play soccer with my friend.  Maybe have a picnic.  I love spending time outdoors in summer because fall, winter, and spring are really cold here.Last summer, I really enjoyed watching the World Cup.  I was rooting for the Netherlands from the beginning.  They almost won!  It’s too bad the World Cup doesn’t come back for another three years!  Another sport I like to watch over the summer is the Tour de France.  I don’t know why I like to watch it but it’s cool to see how strong all of the racers are.

Even though I love summer, by the end of it i am actually excited to go back to school. I know… I’m a nerd!  I like to see all of the friends that went to coll places and that I didn’t get to see over the summer.  But right now, I am really done with school and I can’t wait to sleep in and NOT HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL!

Glitter Summer Sun. Digital image. Web. 12 May 2011.

Summer Sports. Digital image. Web. 12 May 2011.

AHHHH! The AP test is coming up this Friday for AP Human Geography and it is pretty nerve wracking!  We took a practice test in class and it was 75 questions  of pure torture.  Focusing your brain for and hour on impossibly complicated, complex, and detailed questions sure takes a lot of effort.  I never even imagined that there was so much to learn about human geography.  Different classifications of alliances and techniques of subsistence agriculture just aren’t that hot of discussion topics and don’t come to mind very often. But now we have to channel all our brain power to remember minuscule facts that will probably never come up in our lives outside human geography.  Our whole college future depends on the outcomes of this test! Well… maybe not… but still; we spent a whole year of our lives learning these facts to be put to the test on one deciding day.  What would happen if I was so sick the day of the Ap test and couldn’t even stand up without throwing up?  Would I just automatically fail?  That’s what is happening to my sister right now.  I’m doing my best to stay away from her but… stomach flu is very infectious.

I can just imagine the test scene right now in my head.  There we are, sitting in the library, prepared and absolutely ready to take the AP test.  The sixty minutes begins and we flip through question after question, answer after answer.  I stare blankly at the page, my brain numb.  What does supranationalism mean? Balkanization?  Photovoltaic cell?  What does the word and mean?  AHHHH!  Suddenly it starts to rain outside.   Water drips through a leak in the roof.  Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.  AHHHH! The person next to me starts to tap his pencil.  Tappa Tappa Tappa Tappa Tappa. AHHHH!  A school bell rings and highschoolers from all around us pour out of classes, laughing and yelling to their friends.  Their feet pound on the floor above us.  Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Stomp.  AHHHH!  ”Times up!” the proctor announces and an alarm goes off.  WHAT!  I look down at my blank test.  My unbubbled bubble sheet burns a hole into my eyes.  Fail. Fail. Fail. Fail. Fail…

Bubble Answer Sheet. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

Charlie Brown Test Cartoon. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

             What do you think of when someone says the word courage?  Is it Superman? Fighting a raging mob?  Standing up to a bully?   Many types of courage are prevalent throughout To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, but the one type that is consistently used as a theme throughout the book is moral courage.  Moral courage is courage that is often not visible and sometimes goes without acknowledgement.  It is more subtle than jumping into a burning building, but isn’t any less brave.  Moral courage is doing something, despite how others think or feel about it, because you know it’s right.  Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch, Scout Finch, and many supporting characters demonstrate courage.

            The character that best exemplifies moral courage throughout To Kill a Mockingbird is Atticus Finch.  According to Atticus, “Courage is when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see through it no matter what,” (Lee 112).  Atticus acts out of courage when he defends Tom Robinson, a black man accused of rape.  Atticus knows from the very beginning of the case that they aren’t going to win.  He knows that there is no way a white jury in a small, southern, 1930’s town would believe the word of a black man over a white man.  He knows that defending Mr. Robinson would certainly hurt his reputation and his family.  But he defends Mr. Robinson anyway, and he sticks with his belief through all of the scorn the town’s citizens put him through and all the repulsive things that are said about him. Defending Mr. Robinson was ethically right to Atticus, but socially wrong to the citizens of Maycomb.  “This case, Tom’s Robison’s case, is something that goes to the essence of a man’s conscience-Scout, I couldn’t go to church and worship God if I didn’t try to help that man,” (Lee 104).   He does what is right, in spite of the consequences and for no compensation.  That is what true moral courage is.

            Another main character that demonstrates courage throughout this book is Scout Finch.  She displays extreme moral courage for a person of her young age early in the book.  In Chapter nine, Scout walks away from a fight because Atticus has told her not to fight anymore.  Even though she was provoked into the fight and mocked after she turns away, she keeps a cool head and doesn’t let her anger get the better of her because she doesn’t want to let Atticus down.  “I drew a bead on him, remembered what Atticus had said, then dropped my fists and walked away, ‘Scout’s a coward!’ ringing in my ears.  It was the first time I walked away from a fight,” (Lee 77).  This shows a tremendous amount of moral courage.  Scout wasn’t considered a hero for walking away from the fight.  In fact, she was considered a coward by her peers, but she did what she did, despite what others thought of her, because she knew it was the right thing to do.

            Many people may not be aware of how important supporting characters are in developing a book’s theme.  In To Kill a Mockingbird, supporting characters subconsciously develop the theme of courage, while adding to the plot.  For example, Calpurnia, the Finch’s Negro cook, insists on knocking on the Radley’s door to tell them about an approaching mad dog.  Even though nobody in the neighborhood really cares for the Radleys, she puts herself in danger for their well being.  Another character who establishes the theme of courage is Dolphus Raymond.  He has a black wife, half black kids, and openly prefers the company of blacks.  In the 1930’s, these actions contradict all of white society.  “They could never, never understand that I live like I do because that’s the way I want to live,” (Lee 201). Mr. Raymond explained this to Scout Finch and her friend Dill.  In spite of this, it could be argued that Mr. Raymond is a coward.  He pretends to be a drunk to ‘give Maycomb a reason for his actions’.  This could be considered hiding from what people would say or do if they found out that he isn’t a drunk and that he actually does prefer the company of blacks over whites.  A third example of a supporting character who displays courage is Mr. Link Deas.  Mr. Deas stands up for his Negro cook, Helen, by confronting Mr. Ewell about harassing her on her way to work for Mr. Deas.  So, even though readers may not think much about the role supporting characters play in developing a theme, in To Kill a Mockingbird, they add important acts of courage to the plot of the book.

            Courage in To Kill a Mockingbird is expressed most importantly through Atticus, but also through Scout, and other supporting characters.   Throughout the book, these acts of courage are added into the plot until courage becomes one of the most important themes in the book.  Harper Lee makes it clear what she thinks real courage is.  Most people see real courage as a person jumping into a burning building and that’s certainly an important type of courage.  But there’s another form of courage, the kind in To Kill a Mockingbird, a subtle form that doesn’t scream to be noticed.  Moral courage.

Atticus Court Case. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

To Kill A Mockingbird. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

Throughout the world, many people’s Easters are different form ours here in America.  Here are some of teh odd traditions from around the world… Enjoy!

In Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia, women are whipped and spanked on Easter Monday.  Men through water at the women.  This is done  to keep the women healthy and beautiful throughout the year.

In Finland, children dress up with sooty face and beg on the street-kind of like Halloween.  They burn bonfires to ward off witches flying between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

On Holy Thursday in Verges Spain, people dress up like skeletons and perform a ‘death dance’ down the streets carrying boxes of ashes.  This is done after midnight and generally takes 3 hours.

In Poland, men are banned from helping with preparations.  Polish people believe that if the men help out their moustaches will turn grey and mayhem will ruin the preparations.

About 4,500 eggs are used to make a giant omelett in the streets of Haux France.  This omelet is needed to feed 1,000 people for lunch.

In Australia, the native animal of the Bilby is substituted for the Easter Bunny.  Austrailians don’t like bunnies because they eat lots of thier crops and vegetation

In Saafeld Germany, people paint beautiful eggs and hang them on trees.  It is like a Chrismas tree only with Easter eggs!

People in Poland make a lamb entirely out of butter and eat the entire thing starting with the tail and ending with the head.

In Germany it is a tradition to build an Easter fire out of Chrismas trees from the previous winter.

In Greece, people hold a fake trial of Judas and hang him by his neck.  Some put fire works in the fake Judas.

There are many more strange easter traditions from around teh world.  Do you have any wierd traditions?

Giant Easter Omelet. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

Norway Easter Tradition. Digital image. Web. 11 May 2011.

I read an autobiography about Apolo Ohno for my English project.  Apolo is an only child and was raised by a single dad.  His dad migrated from Japan to the United States when he was eighteen. At first he thought he wanted to be an accountant but later decided to become a hair dresser.  He was a really good hairdresser and went to many parties and red carpet events.  When Apolo was born, it was hard for his dad to raise him without a mom.  Apolo’s dad enrolled him in many activities so as to keep him out of trouble.  This didn’t really work because by the time Apolo was in middle school, he started hanging out with kids who were Juniors and Seniors in highschool.  They were the street gang type of kids that stole cars and dealt drugs. Apolo never did any of that but he still hung out with them.

When Apolo was 12, he was the state champion swimmer for the 100 m breaststroke.  He later became the national champion in-line skater for his age group.  Then Apolo found speeds skating,  He quickly became very good and when he was 13, was invited to train with the junior national development program.  Apolo’s dad wanted him to go, but Apolo did not.  One day Apolo’s dad dropped him off at the airport to send him to the training camp.  As soon as his dad left, APolo called a friend and asked him to pick him up.  He stayed at friends houses for a few weeks until his dad found out and picked him up.  Apolo eventually went to the training camp and found hinself starting to enjoy it.    When he was 15, he won a senior national race and left to go train in Colorado Springs for the 1998 Olympics.  In Colorado Springs, Apolo found it hard to stay focused so he decided to take a break from speed skating.  He went back to Seattle for 3 months.  He did not do any sort of excersize and ate a lot of junk food.  He went back to Colorado springs for the time trials to see who would make the 1998 Olympic team very out of shape.  He didn’t make the team.  After the trials, Apolo’s dad told him he had to make a decision about whether or not he wanted to continue speed skating.  He dropped Apolo off at their cabin at Iron Springs Resort for Apolo to make a decision.  One day in Iron Springs Apolo was running when he stopped and prayed .  He asked God what he should do about speed skating.  Thankfully, Apolo decided to continue with the sport.

Steve Prefontaine is arguably on of the best runners to ever run in America.  He was born on January 21, 1951 in Coos bay, Oregon.  Raymond Prefontaine, his father, was a carpenter and a welder.  His mother, Elfriede, was a seamstress.  He had two sisters.  As a child, Steve was very active and rambunctious.  He went to Marshfield High School and joined the cross country team as a freshman.  His freshman and sophomore years didn’t boast very good results.  In his sophomore year he wasn’t able to qualify for the two mile at the state meet.  The two mile was his main event.  After his sophomore year failures, he vowed to never lose again.  He trained hard the summer before his junior year.  In his junior year he went undefeated and won the state meet.  The head coach at the University of Oregon first saw him at the state meet and picked him out because of the ‘fire in his eyes’.  The summer after his junior year he never let up training despite the fact that he worked three jobs.  He was recruited to 35 to 40 colleges, but ended up enrolling at the University of Oregon under the head coach Bill Bowerman.  In his college career he only had two defeats, both of them in the mile event.  He always started out really fast and like to be in front of the pack.  It is harder to run in front of the pack by yourself than to be paced easily by the pack, but Steve still liked to run out front.  In 1972, Steve went to the Munich olympics in the 5,000.  He got fourth and was very disappointed.  During his time at the University of Oregon, he set records in every single event from the 2,000 to the 10,000.  He died when his car rolled over when he was driving home from a party.  He died on May 30, 1975 when he was only 24.  He continues to impact the running community in the Unites States.

Steve Prefontaine. Digital image. Web. 1 Mar. 2011.

Track Star PRE. Digital image. Web. 1 Mar. 2011.

I am sooo excited to cross -country ski next year.  My ‘big’ goal of the year is to make it to Junior Olympics.  Only nine girls in all of Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho get to go to JO’s each year.   This year I was 3 spots away from the cut-off, but I missed one of the Junior Olympic Qualifier races.  Next year, I hope to go with my two friends Brenna and Sophie.  It will take a lot of hard work, but I love a challenge!  Next year, the Junior Olympics are at Soldier Hollow (a little ways from Midvale), so if you get the chance, you should definatley come and watch some amazing youth ski racers.  It’s rare to have the JO’s so close.  The past years Junior Olympics have been held in Auburn NY, Steamboat CO, and Minneapolis MN. Some of the girls from Alaska or the New England are really good.  The New England team almost always wins.

If I do qualify for JO’s next year my coach said that he could put Sophie, Brenna and I on a relay team.  That would be an amazing experience and I really hope we all qualify.  I have the determination to work super hard next season and starting right now.  On Mondays, Wednesdays, and some Fridays, I go to the weight room at the highschool to workout.  Lifting weights helps me physically and emotionally.  When I lift weights, I definatly become stronger, but it also helps to feel stronger and more confident.  When I feel stronger, I know I can dig just a little bit deeper and reach into that third degree of pain.  Training starts right now so that next winter I can ski my guts out.  I love having a goal and being able to acheive it, so hopefully, I will put in more than enough work to reach my goal!

1) It keeps you in shape!  Without running I would definatley be a couch potato.  No, just kidding… I just certainly wouldn’t be as fit as I am today.

2) The team.  The cross-country/track team is really awesome.  Everybody is friends and I love the fact that I know a lot of people from the high school so that when I go up there, it won’t be so weird.  They are always so supportive at training and at races.  It is a really great team environment!  It’s not like other sports where the varsity members don;t really get to know the freshmen and vice versa.  Every body is friends with every body!

3) Racing.  My favorite thing about running is putting all the hard training work into a race.  Races are what you work for so it is great to know that all your hard work isn’t for nothing.  It’s true that everything before the race is really nerve-wracking and you really don’t want to run.  But the feeling you get towards the end of the race is amazing.  When you know you only have so-much left and your force your legs into a tenth gear.  And then, when you are finished, everything just seams so great and you get to go cheer other team mates on.  Some of my friends on the team get really depressed after a race because they didn’t run as fast as they had hoped to.  Before a race, I try not to set any expectations for myself.  I tell myself that I don’t really care how I do and I’m never disappointed!

4)  The last thing I love about running is the team banquets. (except when it rains. Then it really sucks.)  There is always the best food!  Somebody makes amazing pasta and there is always salad, bread, and brownies.  If you read my earlier post then you already know that I am really into free food… I also like the atmoshpere at team banquets.  Everyone is just chillin’ around a campfire or playing pool or soccer.  One time we even roasted marshmallows!

I had no idea what else to write about, so I decided to add my short story to the mess of things in my blog.  Enjoy!

An F#.  That’s the only note I’ll ever hear.  The only note I’ve heard since his death.  It’s the only note I hear as I watch Sr. Kosoto playing in the square.  All the other notes float up and away but the F#’s cling to my clothing, staying with me forever.  Sr. Kosoto’s song ends and he smiles at me with a twinkle in his deep navy blue eyes.  Sr. Kosoto is a bearded old man.  His hair has long since turned white and he has been playing the violin for as long as I’ve known him.  He always plays in the square, his music wafting up all of the street corners and affecting every place that it touches.

            “Do you still play the violin?”  He asks me in a husky voice as he approaches.  I look at my feet.  He knows I haven’t so much as looked at a violin for two years; since it happened.

            “Do not be sad,” he tells me, “music is a way to face your problems.”

            Even though he won’t understand me, I tell him anyway, “All I hear are the F#’s.”

            But he smiles a knowing smile and I take a step back, surprised.

            “You don’t see the music.  You don’t even hear the music.  You have to feel the music.  Don’t focus so much on listening to it.  Close your eyes and you will feel the music as it runs with the wind and floats through the stars.  You will feel the music dance around your head and catch in your hair.  Just close your eyes.”  And then he smiles his wise, twinkle-eyed smile and plucks an F#.  As I say goodbye to the old man, I look at him with my big brown eyes.  I try to digest what he just told me.  I watch him leave, bowing his head to everyone he passes.  Sr. Kosoto is a very respected old man, and is well known for his musical talent.

                                    _________________________________

            It happened two Christmases ago.  He, my dad, used to be the second cellist in the Seattle Symphony.  Every other Saturday he would leave around four o’clock to travel to yet another boring concert. It’s not as though I didn’t like going to his concerts.  I was thirteen at the time and just couldn’t sit still for that long.  Often I would wake up in the middle of one of his concerts to a piercing note from the violins or the sound of thunderous clapping.  I, myself played the violin and was beginning to get some recognition.  My dad was very passionate about music and I found that I shared his excitement.  I enjoyed being able to forget all my troubles and play the violin for hours at a time.

            One crisp Saturday evening, my family left the house for a special holiday concert.  I knew that I would not fall asleep for this concert because I loved hearing the joyful Christmas jingles.  Every year on Christmas Eve, the Seattle Symphony hosts a holiday concert.  Benaroya Hall was like our church because we visited it so much.  The concert concluded with The First Noel.  The last note was a loud intense F# from the first violins, and a low stunning one from the cellos.  That was the last note I ever heard my father play on his large, beautiful cello.  That night when he was driving home, his car got smashed by a drunk driver.  He was rushed to the hospital and died a week later.  One day he would start to look better and the next he would look two times worse.  I kept fooling myself that he would recover.

            That’s why I haven’t played the violin for two years and that’s why I’m scared of F#’s.  Ever since he died, my life seemed to go in slow-motion.  As if this was somebody else’s life, and I was just watching it as a movie.  Eating popcorn with a label that says “Enjoy the Show”.  Yeah right.  But as I walk home, I can’t help but think about what Sr. Kosoto said.  He must be finally off his rocker.  I go upstairs and open my violin case anyway.  The hinges clank in the thick silence pouring over the room.  I let out a breath I had been holding in for two years as I stare at the instrument.  Its arching form is nestled in the protection of the hard case.  A thin layer of dust has settled on top of the auburn wood that looks as if it needs to be polished badly.  The strings, so daintily placed along the fingerboard, are beginning to unravel.  I caress the intricate scroll in the palm of my hand.  When I blow on the woods, dust puffs up in a cloud into the air.  I stare at it for a long time, my fingers moving up and down the different strings.  It’s as if I’ve never seen a violin before.  Never seen anything quite so delicate. 

            Finally, I pick up the case and carry it out onto the balcony, still too afraid to actually hold the thing.  Outside, the moon and stars begin to show.  A sunset is just starting to fade, setting fire to the snow-covered mountain tops.  The sky is that dark navy blue of Sr. Kosoto’s eyes.  A star twinkles and I imagine that he is winking at me, encouraging me to go on.  I stare at the star for a while, then I pick up the violin and tentatively hold it at length.  It looks so fragile in my hands, that I’m surprised it doesn’t just crumble right then and there.  I can’t even begin to imagine how my hands, so callous and clumsy, once flitted effortlessly up and down the fingerboard.  I raise it and place it on my shoulder.  Suddenly, suddenly, a wave hits me.  A wave of what I’m not sure

            I hold my breath as I slowly lift the bow onto the string, my mind careful not to make any mistakes.  Its weight is like a burden in my hand.  But that burden disappears as I let out my breath and play the first note; an intense, piercing F#.  Its sound cuts a hole into the dark, crisp night.  That one note breaks the silence and everything starts to tumble downhill again.  Slowly at first, but increasingly gaining speed as more notes filter out of the instrument.  I close my eyes and imagine each of the notes hitting my skin.  Making little cuts at my heart, trying to free something.  Something long lost inside all of the pain.  The notes rise, getting faster, louder, and stronger.  I can feel my bow moving but do not register the movement.  The notes lift me up and send me crashing down again.  I see flashes of everything.  Everything bad and good and it all falls out around me.  It encircles my head and plays through my hair.  As clearly as I see a movie, I see my life.  And something, a butterfly, opens up.  It struggles against the wind at first, but eventually it makes it.  It spreads its wings and begins to fly.  Up, up, and away.

And the song ends.

Staff Music. Digital image. Web. 20 Jan. 2011.

Violin. Digital image. Web. 20 Jan. 2011.