Post Secret

I was not aware that something like this existed. It's very interesting. I look at it as a way for people to confesss to something that they can be carrying, getting something off thier chest, or just sharing news in a way that noone would know who they are. I think it's so popular because people will always have secrets that they can't share with anyone they know.

killing yourself to live

This is great book for someone who loves Rock music, or at least knows about Rock music. I enjoyed the humor in the way he told his personal story, but was completely lost when he talked about rock stars and music; which was about 85% of the time. The story was interesting to me. I started reading it and actually wanted to finish it, which was surprising to me. I liked how blunt and honest he was as the book unfolded. When I started reading I wondered about the title, but now I see why he chose that title and how it relates to artist who became famous after their death. I would recommend this book to a friend who really enjoys Rock music.

Poet Rhina P Espaillat

poem

At the site poetryfoundation.com I found the old children's rhyme Its raining, its pouring. What struck me about it is that if you read all the lines carefully, its talking about death. The old man struck his head and couldn't get up in the morning. I wonder how did this get into the children's world.

The Little Mermaid with Some Spanish Flavor

It was the time of kings and queens and when two different, and somewhat alike, worlds existed. There was human world, in which people walked on dry land, and the mermaid world, in which mermaids lived. In mermaid world the king had four daughters, but his heart was more attached to his youngest one Maria. Maria had a curious and free spirit. She was driven by ambition to learn of people outside her world. Even though the human world was forbidden, she was greatly intrigued by their way of life. She often dreamed of living among the humans.
One day Maria was watching as humans celebrated Cinco de Mayo (May 5th). She was drawn by the fact that they celebrated differently than she was accustomed to. She was fascinated by the fast movement music, the sweet and spicy smelling foods, and the dance movements. She began to drift closer and closer. Just near the sea shore stood a young man named Jose. Jose saw this strange, but beautiful figure swimming in the surface of the water. He started to move towards the figure to make out what it was. He could not believe his eyes, this was a real mermaid. He had read about mermaids in books, but believed it was a myth. He carefully approached her and said: “hola”. Maria was startled and quickly hid beneath the water. Jose jumped in and began to swim after her. He quickly swam away from the shoreline. Maria was too fast for him. He was very exhausted from swimming and began to sink. He shouted for help “auxilio, ayudame” Maria noticed that his life was in danger and decided to stop and help him.

Maria took Jose back to the shore and asked him to keep their encounter a secret. She explained that if her father knew she had contact with a human she would be vanished forever. Jose promised her with one condition, that they would see each other every Saturday at dusk to learn more about each other’s world. Maria agreed. Every Saturday as the sun was setting they met and talked until the sun came up the next day. Maria and Jose became good friends as the months went by. Soon after they became friends, Jose began to develop stronger feelings for Maria. He had fallen in love with her.

Jose had decided that when Navidad (Christmas) came he would declare his love for Maria. When Jose and Maria were celebrating their own Navidad Jose gave her a present. It was a ring. Maria was happy to receive a present from him but did not know that the ring was a symbol of his love for her. His joyful manner quickly changed to gloomy. Maria soon noticed and asked him what made him son sad. He explained what the ring symbolized and that he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life. Maria was so full of emotion that she began to cry. She also noticed strange feelings inside but until this moment did not know what they were. She loved him too and agreed to become his wife. Now Jose had to tell Maria’s Father his intentions to marry her.

Jose sought help from a wise man, how to go into the mermaid world. The “Sabio” (Wiseman) told Jose that on the next Luna llena (full moon) at midnight he had to swim to the middle of the ocean and for only one hour he would become and mermaid man. If Jose stayed longer than an hour he would stay a mermaid man forever. Jose told Maria what the Sabio had said to him. They made plans to go the next full moon. Jose went to the meeting point and exactly at midnight he turned into mermaid man. They swam together to the mermaid world. They were so excited; Maria wanted to show him everything they had talked about before. She took him to meet her father and he quickly took a liking to him. King Juan saw the happiness in Maria’s eyes and agreed for the two of them to marry.

Time was running out. They had to swim back to the place where he turned into a mermaid so that he could turn back into a human. As they were reaching the meeting point, Jose stopped and said to Maria: “Te amo, como a nadie antes” (I love you, like I never loved anyone before). He had made the decision to stay with her forever. Maria was shocked. They looked at each other as time ran out and sealed his fate with a kiss. Jose and Maria were married the next day. He occasionally wrote to his family and told them he was doing well and that his life was complete. True love is almost impossible to find in an entire lifetime.

I chose this image because it's interesting. I like that it looks seren3, tranquil and peaceful. The fact that it's nighttime attracted me. It has all the essential components of an island in which you can survive. There's life, trees, therefore there's food. Crystal water from which you can drink and bathe in. This is a place I would definitely love to go.

response to Ann

This story has a serious twist!
I enjoyed reading it to see if she would find true love like in the original story. Obviously she was very happy alone in the end. I got to see her anger in the end of the story, maybe you can add some descriptive words before the end to show how angry she was at her mother and how all of that was building up inside her. something to give more explanation why she decides to kill her, maybe some dialogue between the two.

Response to Joshoa

This is deep!
It is very interesting. I like your choice of words to describe how you feel, it gives a sense of reality. What I got from it is that the character in your story has a struggle with the loss of his mother. He is trying to cope with that by doing some activities to make him feel like he's living; like running. I was not able to match it with any fairy tale. I know the title says cinda-reila. What is reila really looking for? what is she/he missing? What is her/his real struggle? I suggest you add something that helps her/him fill part of the void left by the loss of the mother, or give examples of her relationships with others to show how this tragedy at an early age affected her.

fairy tale

Fairy Tale
The Little Mermaid with a Spanish Twist

Long ago, during the time of kings and queens, existed two worlds, the human world who lived on dry land, and the mermaid people who lived beneath the great big bodies of water. In mermaid world the king had four daughters, but his heart was more attached to his youngest one Maria. Maria had a curious and free spirit. Even though the human world was forbidden, she was greatly intrigued by their way of life. She often dreamed of living among the humans.
One day Maria was watching as humans celebrated Cinco de Mayo (May 5th). She noticed that they celebrated differently than she was accustomed. She was drawn to the fast movement music, the sweet and spicy smelling foods, and the dance movements. She began to drift closer and closer. Near the sea shore stood a young man named Jose. Jose saw this strange, but beautiful figure swimming in the surface of the water. He started to move closer to meet this young girl. He could not believe his eyes, this was a mermaid. He had read about mermaids in books, but believed it was a myth. He carefully approached her and said: “hola”. Maria was startled and quickly hid beneath the water. Jose jumped in and began to swim after her. He did not notice that he was moving faster and faster away from the shoreline. Maria was too fast for him. He was very exhausted from swimming and began to sink. He shouted for help “auxilio, ayudame” Maria noticed the he spoke Spanish like her, and quickly stopped to help him.
Maria took Jose back to the shore and asked him not to tell anyone he has met her. She explained that if her father knew she had contact with a human she would be sent away forever. Jose promised her with one condition, that they would see each other every Saturday at dawn to learn more about each other’s world. Maria agreed and every Saturday as the sun was setting they met and talked until the sun came up the next day. Maria and Jose became good friends as the months went by. Jose soon fell in love with Maria, and Maria also had strong feelings for him. Neither one told the other of the strong feelings growing inside.
Jose had decided that when Navidad (Christmas) came he would declare his love for Maria. When Jose and Maria were celebrating their own Navidad Jose gave her a present he had bought for her. It was an engagement ring. Maria was so filled with emotion and began to cry. Jose quickly apologized but before he finished talking Maria stopped him and said: “Si”. She had agreed to become his wife. Now Jose had to tell Maria’s Father his intentions to marry her. Jose seeked help from a wise man, how to go into the mermaid world The “Sabio” (Wiseman) told Jose that on the next Luna llena (full moon) at midnight he had to swim to the middle of the ocean and for only an hour he would become and mermaid. If Jose stayed longer than an hour he would stay a mermaid forever. Jose told Maria what the Sabio had said to him. They planned to go the next full moon, so that Jose could meet Maria’s family, especially her father.
Jose went to the meeting point and exactly at midnight he turned into mermaid man. They swam together to the mermaid world. They were so excited, and Mary wanted to show him everything. She took him to meet her father and he quickly took a liking to him. King Juan saw the happiness in Maria’s eyes and agreed for the two of them to marry. Time was running out. They had to swim back to the place where he turned into a mermaid so that he could turn back into a human. As they were reaching the meeting point, Jose stopped and said to Maria: “Te amo, como a nadie antes” (I love you, like I never loved anyone before). He had made the decision to stay with her forever. They looked at each other as time ran out. Jose and Maria were married the next day. He occasionally wrote to his family and told them he was doing well and was very happy.

Hello Everyone!!