Next Chapter in Life: College

As May continues to wind down more and more seniors are coming to the realization that high school is over and college is the next adventure. Sports are ending, yearbooks are being signed, senior week houses are paid for and cap and gowns are being tried on. These little events are tiny steps to an even bigger event: graduation. Like some other schools, St.Mark's graduation will take place on June 7, 2014. I can't wait to graduate and take on college volleyball and classes but sometimes I wish I could rewind back to sophomore year. Some people are still in denial that graduation is right around the corner, some cannot wait to get away and others could careless. Graduation is a time to celebrate all your academic accomplishments, sport highlights and the amazing memories you made with your classmates. It's also turning the page to a new chapter in life. It sounds so exciting and invigorating, oh college is so fun, parties every night, new people but then you take a step back to reality and realize its gonna be harder than we think. More assignments, challenging courses, peer pressure to do certain things, tons of strangers, responsibility to the max, etc. Plus every high school graduate I've spoken to said college is so hard but so fun. Besides all those factors college will be the greatest four years of your life. Its a chance to prosper and grow, learn new things, meet new people, try new things and over all develop into the person you inspire to be. I will be attending Chest Nut Hill College in Philadelphia next year. I will be majoring in biology, then I will take on dental school, striving to be an Endodonist; in case you don't know what that is, they perform root canals. On top of all this I will be playing volleyball and possibly walking on for softball. See, college has not even started yet and I am already presented with so many opportunities. Even though I am thrilled, it is a little sad thinking about my good friends I see everyday now I will not see at all later. Especially my best friend whose attending Washington College. I'll miss seeing some of the greatest people I've met everyday but I know/hope we keep in touch. St.Mark's was a great experience I am so thankful for. Everything that happened throughout my four years there have helped me grow as a person and most importantly as in individual. It will definitely help me in my next chapter of life at college.

Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am

This past month I had the pleasure of reading the book Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am, written by Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis. The book seems as if it be old being published in February of 2007, but it was new to me and I could not wait to get started. Mazer and Lerangis are known for writing very realistic novels so once the cover caught my eye and I saw who had written it, that was a wrap. The book took me less than a month to read; lets just say with my busy schedule that is fast, I could not put it down. The book is focused around the tragedy of Ben Bright, a senior graduating and at last minute deciding to tell his girlfriend and family he was joining the army. Ben had it all, the good grades, well rounded family, good looks, talent and the beautiful girlfriend, Ariela. He felt it was his destiny to join the army and he would let his family know in a letter. Everyone supported Ben and his decision except Ariela was worried he would not return to her. So being the wonderful boy he is, Ben asked Ariela to marry him when he returns right before he hops on the train. He was doing well and making a lot of friends until tragedy struck and Ben along with his fellow men drove over a bomb in their tank and Ben was seriously injured. Due to the explosion he was sent home to receive medical attention immediately. He would suffer a few months in a coma and when he finally woke he had trouble doing every day activities/tasks. The most perfect boy living the high life is suddenly suffering and is being challenged by things that came natural to him. By that short little summary you can clearly see why this was such a great book. It seemed so real I could easily relate to my life or someone else's.The emotions were constantly changing and you had to keep reading in order to keep up and understand. The authors also used a smart writing technique; foreshadowing. Throughout the entire book it was switching from Ben in present and past times and when the chapters would end, I would catch myself going wait what?! what just happened?! whats gonna happen next?! ahh i gotta keep reading !!! Over all it was an outstanding book that I would recommend in all readers.. GO READ IT PLEASE !

Murder in the Cathedral by T.S Eliot (Part 1)

        Murder in the Cathedral is a dramatic play composed by T.S Eliot. There are two parts to this play; Part one consists of a chorus of women, three priest, a messenger, Thomas Becket, four tempters and attendants. In the beginning of part one, the messenger addresses the three priest and informs them that the Archbishop, Thomas Becket, has returned. The priest question this because the Archbishop left the King and they fear this is going to cause war even thought the Archbishop seeks peace. All the people of the town are ecstatic to see Becket and are packing the streets to see him. The women chorus do not want the Archbishop to return; they feel he will bring bad upon the town and he is no longer needed in Canterbury. Now, the priests and the women are arguing over Becket, but neither of them know why he has returned or what intentions he brings. Due to the Archbishop arrival, he in convinced on his return he will bring peace and everyone will be happy to see him, not just the towns people. His sudden prescence is causing complications between the chorus women and the priest; they are not seeing eye to eye on if him returning is good or bad. As Thomas stubbles in on the women and priest arguing he is confronted by a tempter. The tempter tries to convince Becket to do certain things that will brighten his future, but Thomas does not fall for it. As part one comes to an end Thomas and the tempter get into a deep conversation and as I kept reading, I noticed Thomas becoming weaker and hesitating more before saying no. Does Becket give in to the tempter, will the priest and chorus women ever get along, does Thomas have good intentioms on returning; hopefully this is all revealed in Part 2.
        When I was reading Murder in the Cathedral, I was captivated by the instant drama that occurred. So much was revealed in a short amount of time, I could not put the book down because I had to keep reading. I felt in part one it was a lot of foreshadowing for part two because that is were Thomas becomes face to face with the king. All the drama that occurred in the beginning is leading into a bigger, more dramatized situation. I mean who doesn't like a good drama? I felt as if the chorus of women helped me as a reader and most likely the audience understand the situation more because they gave another opinion on Thomas's return which made you more interested because you start to question if he is a good or bad guy. Over all, I verily enjoyed part one and cannot wait to update you on what happens in part two!

Volleyball

Okay so I figured since my blog name and profile picture is focused around volleyball I should at some point write about the sport... So here we go! I started playing volleyball in fourth grade and I'm going to be honest, I was not very good. Before volleyball my main sports were cheerleading, dance and gymnastics. I loved cheerleading and gymnastics, it was so much fun getting ready, performing for huge crowds and meeting new people everywhere I went. Dance was my passion when I was younger, it was a great way to just clear my head and set my self free. I still love dancing but the only dancing I do now is at dances and in my house and car. As I got older juggling dance, cheerleading, gymnastics, volleyball and softball got to difficult; I had to pick my favorite two and I chose volleyball and softball. I was never truly serious about volleyball until I started travel ball in 8th grade, I believe. All the time and money my parents and I were spending was starting to pay off and just in time for tryouts as a freshmen at St.Mark's High school, one of the best schools in Delaware for volleyball. I knew one person going into tryouts and that was the one and only Abbie Mirabella. Abbie and I have been playing volleyball together since fourth grade and she one of the best volleyball players I have ever met and it was an honor playing with her all these years. Anyways, going into tryouts I had the right state of mind, freshmen team sounds awesome. I was going into expecting the worse hoping for the best and lucky for me I got the best. My freshmen year I was lucky enough to make the JV  team at St. Mark's and played for an amazing coach, Coach Strocko, or as I call her Strocko Taco. The team consisted of a great group of girls and it was so much fun. I gained a lot of friends through it and some are still my best friends. The season was coming to an end and but my volleyball career as a freshmen was not. After our last JV game the head coach Nancy and Strocko pulled me and my great friend Tayler aside and gave us the greatest news of all time. They told us we had been pulled up to the varsity team for the state tournament (greatest day ever). I will never forget this day, considering it was amazing and I happened to be eating a cupcake at the time the news was shared and I was so shocked my jaw dropped and the cupcake preceded to fall out. Besides the embarrassing moment, Tayler and I were the first to be pulled up and we were completely honored and grateful. That year, the team went on to win the state championship against Ursuline; the longest game ever considering it went to five games and was neck and neck the entire time. I met some great players that season, Steph Zampini (player of the year), Sam Hall (funniest person ever), Kathleen Wilmonth (prettiest ginger), those were just the seniors but it was an honor playing with all of them. For the next three years I would continue my reign on varsity and would soon become a three year started. My junior year we won the state championship against Archmere, we swept them in three. It was a crazy victory and we were now two time state champs, hoping to make it three next year. Sadly the next two years we would not go on to win the state championship but we still ended up with third both years. As a senior I have never lost at the bob and I thank all the amazing players and coaches for those accomplishments. I met great people along the way who I now consider my family. Lauren Talley, an outstanding volleyball player and my big sister, Kylie Truitt, the best princess volleyball player out there and the greatest big mama, Carly Crajewski, the prettiest and smartest alien and Julia Saccucci, so beautiful and fun. There are so many more people I could name but they haven't graduated yet. St.Mark's Volleyball was the greatest four years of my entire life. I played for some of the greatest coaches around, the prettiest and most talented group of girls, the most amazing fans and of course the most loving family and friends. As a senior I was lucky to be named captain along with two other great volleyball players, Abbie Mirabella and Claudia Seemans. By the end of all four seasons I ended with two state championships, two third place finishes, never losing at the bob, first team all catholic and second team all state. I could not have done it without all the people listed above, my family, fans, friends and so many more. St.Marks volleyball taught me more than I will ever know and it is still hard to think it is over, but the memories will never be forgotten. I am undoubtedly lucky to continue my career as a volleyball player next year at Chest Nut Hill college, playing for a a great coach and the best group of girls. I have never been more excited or nervous for something but I have a feeling I'll be okay. Volleyball at high school and travel has taught me so much, not only about the sport but about life itself. I could play all day and never get tired of it. It is so much fun, so exciting and a great way to escape unnecessary drama. I love volleyball and everything it has put in front of me.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

#6. When Shu Lien says this to Jen, her intention is to get through to her and make her realize what she has been doing is not who she is; she was the puppet of someone else. Shu Lien is saying, no matter where life takes Jen she must stay true to the one thing she knows best' herself. Life is never predictable and opioid never know what obstacles will occur or where they will lead you too. I think Shu Lien said this to Jen because in a short matter of time Jen had already experienced many different paths. She followed the rules of her parents and teachings, next she was running away, sleeping with a man that captured her and then siding with the dark side and fighting the ones who truly cared for her. So, I think Shu Lien was speaking with a sarcastic tone or chuckling when saying this statement because she knows Jen is going to experiment more and discover knew things. Of course she was putting the perspective of everything she has already done. The main idea behind her message was, you have no idea what the future holds and the only possible way you can control it, for better or worse, is if you stay true to yourself. No matter how hard the challenges are, how difficult the temptations are to resist and how confusing people will make life. Jen has to follow her heart and do whatever she feels the best absolute thing to do. The path life takes you down maybe the ugliest, hardest, most turmoil filled path or it maybe the greatest path with a few struggles here or there, whether you end up with one or the other you must stick to your truest self. Too much power and wealth (what some would say is the great path) can change you and bring destruction. Too much turmoil, struggles and saddness (ugliest path) can brake you. The only way to survive these paths is being true to yourself and following your heart (the right path). I believe that is what Shu Lien meant.

The Hunger Games:Katniss Everdeen

The Hunger Games series consist of amazing novels and so far two fantastic movies! Katniss Everdeen is the main character throughout all the Hunger Games novels. She is now well known and experienced contestant considering she won the games previously with close friend and lover Peeta Mellark. I chose to write about the Hunger Games because I wanted to take the time to point out how strong of a woman Katniss portrays throughout the novels. She represents so many qualities that girls and women can look up too and stride for as they grow. Obviously she has great physical ability and this is represented all throughout the games but also in her home life when taking care of her family. She makes readers especially women feel empowered when reading these stories because of how she carries herself and her priorities. Constantly putting others before herself and risking her life for her family. A perfect example is in the first Hunger Games when she volunteers as tribute for her sister Prim, because she knew Prim would not be able to handle the games. She represents freedom, dignity, pride, courage, strength, love, bravery, etc. So many amazing qualities that encourages girls to be who they are and to never be afraid to do anything. Also, along with all of this she is struggling with her love life, another thing girls like myself have trouble with today. I believe the way the author portrayed not only Katniss but her love for Peeta and her overall demeanor helped all readers connect and truly fall in love with all the novels. They were truly captivating and if you read one you have got to read the next. They are thrilling, action packed and full of love and surprises; all the things needed to make a great book.

The Hobbit: Desolation 1

Last week on Wednesday January 1st, I saw the movie The Hobbit: Desolation 1. I believe this is part two in the trilogy. After reading the book and seeing the first movie I was very distraught afterwards because the movie and literature were nothing alike. Later on I came to the realization the narrative is so long the producers broke it down to a three part series. The first movie was okay but did not show any of the action scenes because they occurred in the middle of the book, so I had high expectations for this one. It started off rough considering the ticket was $17, a little high even for IMAX if you ask me but in the end worth it along with the stale popcorn. My friend and I went to the IMAX buy the riverfront around 6:15pm and did not leave until 9:00pm. Going into the movie I was the only one who read the book and saw the first movie so course I was like a GPS guiding/filling everyone in the entire time. Finally, the book and the movie make sense! The action began right away with the main character Bilbo, a hobbit who the dwarves call a thief, saving them from viscous spiders, wise elves and enraged town folk. During the course of their journey Bilbo finds himself and develops strong characteristics such as: courage, strength, ambition, trust, bravery etc. Also, the dwarves learn that selfishness, greed and stealing can only get you so far and they show others they will not be the stereotypical dwarf anymore. Bilbo and the dwarves come in contact with the dangerous and legendary dragon Smaug. He lives in an abandoned mountain with enormous counts of gold coins, jewelry, chalices, etc. but most importantly the arkentstone. Smaug is not happy with them trespassing and because engulfed with anger and is seeking revenge. Unfortunately the movie ends with Smaug leaving the mountain and flying towards the town with all the innocent people. Of course this makes me mad because I do not want to wait but I will considering I know the ending. The literature and film were both great pieces and I am excited to see the final outcome in the third movie.