Famous Last Words: Surviving April

As April approaches, I am a little nervous. There is so much to do in such little time. I really wanted to finish this class at the end of April instead of dead week because that will allow me more opportunities to study for my other courses. However, with the limited time that I have, it is hard for to get ahead. I think I am just going to try to dedicate this weekend to getting a bit ahead in this course. So far I think I have been doing a pretty good job. I like the stories I have come up with, some of them really surprise me on how good they end up becoming, not to sound conceited or anything. Other I know I can use a little work on. I think what helps me is picking a few specific details to focus on when I am reading a story, and writing it in my notes. That way I can look back at those notes and make a story from what I have written down and the details I chose to focus on. Other than this class, school is stressful, especially since I am taking so many hours to graduate! I am excited because there is basically like a month left of school before I do graduate and that is nerve wrecking but very exciting. It is said that I did not get to take senior pics or anything, but I just do not have time at this moment. I am going to graduate school here in the fall, so I think that is when I will have my big break! I hope to just balance school and work and everything as I have been doing. I know it will be hard to do in April, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

(Source: StaticFlickr)

Week 10 Storytelling: A Love To Confess

Once a upon time there were two families who lived next to each other. The Randolph's had a little girl name Ellie Grace Randolph. The Pierce's had a little boy named Damien Joshua Pierce. Ellie and Damien were five years old when they first met. As the years past, their friendship got stronger. However, it was not until Freshmen year of high school when they both realized that what they felt for each other was a more than just love for their friendship.

It was first semester of Freshmen year and Ellie and Damien were hanging out with some friends on a Friday night. Usually their friend group would just watch movies, play board games, or go out for some desert. However, this night things were a little different. While they were just sitting around waiting for their pizza to get there, one of their friends suggested a new game. She said that it would be fun to try spin the bottle. She was met with weird stares and an awkward silence. After a few minutes of convincing, the group finally agreed. I mean what could go wrong right? 

As they game began, everyone agreed that they would not let this affect their friendships whatsoever. The night was going fine and everyone was having fun, until the bottle was pointing to Ellie. As Ellie looked at who was on the other side, she saw the sweet face she loved and admired, Damien. The room went quiet, and everyone waited impatiently for their kiss. Ellie was nervous but calmed herself down thinking, "he is my best friend, this is just a friendly kiss, this does not mean anything." As they leaned in they both felt a feeling overcome their body. The kiss was truly magical. In that moment, they were alone, they were each other's, and they felt love. When the kiss ended, the game continued and the night went on like normal. However, it was not normal. Not for Ellie and Damien at least.

The next few weeks Damien found himself writing love letters to Ellie. He never gave them to her, but he wrote them every night. Ellie caught herself getting lost in daydreams about Damien. She would doodle his name on her papers, notebook, and anything she could get her hands on. However, she never told him either. Damien caught himself getting jealous when he would see Ellie hugging another guy. Ellie would try not to care when she saw Damien chatting up other girls in class. They both felt so much for each other, but were scared that the other did not feel the same. They did not want to risk losing one another over some crush they had on each other.

Weeks, months, and even years went by and they did not confess their love for each other. Throughout high school they dated other people, but were both jealous of one another. They acted the same regardless of how much they felt, and before they knew it, graduation had come. Ellie was going to stay in their hometown and go to a college nearby. However, Damien had gotten accepted to a school out of state, and was planning on going there. Ellie had decided that on graduation night she was going to tell him how she felt. However, when time came, she looked at Damien’s sweet face. She admired it and did not want him to change his mind about leaving because of her, so she kept quiet. Damien had also planned to confess his love to Ellie, but he could not get himself to do so, in fear of rejection.

The summer quickly passed, and Damien left for college. They both got busy with other people, school, and commitments in their life. They talked on the phone every now and then, but things were different now. They both wish that they would of said something to the other, but it was too late…or was it?

Damien came home for Christmas and his whole family was so happy to see him. Ellie was patiently awaiting his arrival for several months now. It was Christmas dinner at the Pierce’s and Ellie and her family got ready to head over. When they got to the Pierces’ home they were greeted at the door by Damien. Ellie was the last one to see him. For several moments, they just stood there getting lost into each other’s eyes, until they were interrupted by loud laughter and chant. “Kiss, Kiss, Kiss.” Said everyone. Damien and Ellie looked up and saw the mistletoe. Once again, the moment had come for them to share something magical. As their lips met, they felt they were alone, each other’s, and loved. Everyone continued on the night like normal, but it was not normal for them two.

After dinner, Ellie and Damien for a walk. As they talked about their lives and caught one another up on everything, they seemed to grow quiet. Standing there in the middle of the street, on a cold winter night, hugging each other close for warmth, and as they the little snowflakes fell around them, they shared another kiss. Then at the same time, the confessed their love for each other, and muttered the words, “I love you.”

That is the moment they know that they could not leave each other’s side again. Damien did not go back to college out of state after that winter. He stated in town with his beautiful girlfriend Ellie and attended college with her. A few years past and they got Married their senior year of college. It was truly a love to confess.

Ellie and Damien. Happily Ever After

(Source: MaxPixel)

Bibliography:

This story is based on More Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt. Reading Part A & B.

Author's Note:

This story is based on the tale The Elephant and the Dog. In the tale the Elephant and the Dog became best friends. They did everything together. They slept together, ate together, and played together. One day a farmer spotted the dog and asked the Elephant keeper if he could buy the dog off of him. The Elephant keep sold the dog to the farmer. When the dog left, the Elephant would not eat, bathe, or do anything for that matter. When the chief came to inspect what is wrong with the Elephant, they realized that Elephant was lonely and sad cause his friend the Dog had left. The king ordered the dog to be returned. When the dog returned they were inseparable from that day on. I decided to take this story into human form, and have two best friends fall for each other, but not confess their love. Until one day one of the best friends leaves and when he returns from college they confess their love and they are inseparable from that day forward.

Week 9 Storytelling: Honesty is the Best Policy

Kylie and Kendall

(Source: Pixabay)

There once were two best friends. They grew up together and knew each other really well. Their names were Kylie and Kendall. They met when they were both Freshmen in high school. There friendship lasted even though both of them pursed different career paths. Kylie worked as a waitress at Pizza Hut, while, Kendall went on to be a model. Kylie was outgoing and fun. She was the one who was adventurous and willing to take a risk regardless of the cost. However, Kylie was barely making ends meet to live her adventurous life. Kendall on the other hand was very thoughtful and intentional in everything that she did. She spent her money wisely and stuck to a strict budget. One day Kendall was going out of town and needed someone to watch over her condo while she was gone. Kylie offered to help and Kendall was very grateful. 

Kylie was going to stay over at Kendall's apartment to watch the condo, water her plants, and watch her dog. Kylie had only been to Kendall's condo a few times but had never really gotten a chance to see all of it. Kylie was very excited to get a chance to live a lavish life for a few days. However, the lavishness of Kendall's life really got to Kylie and things took a turn for the worse. 

Kylie was awed by all the amazing things that Kendall owned. For instance Kendall owned at least seventy pairs of designer shoes. Her huge walk-in closet was filled with Coach, Prada, and Michael Kors. She had handbags, scarves, hats, dresses, coats, and much more. When Kylie saw her jewelry box she could not believe her eyes. There were so many diamond rings, necklaces, and bracelets Kendall owned. During this state of shock Kylie got a mischievous idea.

She thought,"Why not take some of this for myself? I mean Kendall would not mind. I bet she would hardly notice if anything is gone. She has so much it is not like she’s losing a whole lot. Plus I deserve this! I work so hard and I deserve a break in my life." 

Kylie was dead set on taking some things for herself. Every now and then she would change her mind and tell herself this is was not right, but the more she admired Kendall's things the more she wanted them. Finally, Kylie got a bag and started collecting a few pairs of shoes, some dresses, a scarf or two, a few clutches and handbags, and several diamond earrings and rings. 

A few days later Kendall came back and was delighted to see her friend as well as her condo in one piece. She was so happy that her friend could watch her place that to repay Kylie she told her that she would take her shopping in the next few days. Kylie could barely look at Kendall because of how guilty she felt, but she still went through with it and took some of Kendall's nice things to her home in a large trash bag. Something that Kylie was not aware of was that Kendall had hidden cameras all over her condo. That night Kendall watched the tape and was in complete shock at what her friend was doing. Kendall decided instead of confronting Kylie, she would play a trick on her. 

The next day she took Kylie shopping. Once again, Kylie took advantage of the situation and shopped till she could not shop anymore. Kylie thought she was living the good life. However, when she got home that night she looked at all the nice things Kendall had bought for her and felt extremely guilty. She decided she was going to put all of the things that she stole from Kendall back the next day when Kendall would be at work. Although, that night Kendall had her own plan.

Kendall broke into Kylie's house and took all her things back. Then as the morning came Kylie was terrified because she thought some stranger had come in and stolen the stuff she was supposed to give back to Kendall. Kylie did not know what to do at this point. She immediately went over to Kendall’s place in tears and told Kendall everything. She begged for her forgiveness and said that she was so sorry and would repay Kendall for everything she stole.

Kendall then confessed that she had found out that Kylie had stolen her things. Kylie was shocked and felt ashamed. She told Kylie that she could keep everything that she had bought for her, but never again would she trust her with anything else. From that day forward their friendship was not the same, and Kylie learned that honesty is the best policy.

Bibliography: 

The Giant Crab and Other Tales From Old India by W. H. D. Rouse Reading Part A &B

Author’s note:

In the original story there was man who went on a journey and asked his friend to take his plough till he should return. The man’s friend immediately sold the plough and used the money for his own selfish reasons. When the man came back and asked where his plough went, his friend made up a fake story about how a rat ate it. The man was cleverer and knew his friend stole his plough, so he thought he would play the same trick on him. He took his friend's son out for walk and hid him in his other friend's house. Then he went back and told his friend that the boy got taken by a hawk. In the end the dishonest friend learned his lesson and gave the man his plough back and the man returned the boy. In my story I set the scene for a more realistic story. I had one friend go off on a trip and left the other friend in charge of looking over her condo. The dishonest friend in this story stole her things. The friend returned and saw video footage of her friend stealing her things and therefore decided to play a trick on her friend. In the end the friend learned her lesson and would never steal again.

Reading Notes: More Jataka Tales Part B

The first story I chose to read is called "Beauty and Brownie." It was actually pretty depressing. The two deer had to lead their herd to safety and one did while the other did not. By the end of the story Beauty's herd came back all in one piece, while Brownie had only a few deer left in his herd. From this story what I got was listening skills. Brownie did not listen well to his father therefore faced severe consequences. I can write a story in which there are two competitors on a team. One does listen to his coach while the other does not. In the end, it is the one who does listen that takes the win.

The next story I chose to read is called "The Elephant and the Dog." This story was a lot better than the last, in the sense of that it had a happy ending. The Elephant and the Dog became best friends, but once the dog was taken away the Elephant did not want to eat or do anything without his friend. Finally the dog came back and they were inseparable. For this story I was thinking of having two people grow up together as best friends but never confess their love for one another. Finally, one would leave for college, and the other would be depressed. Then one day when the other came back they would finally confess their love, and be inseparable. I think a cute romantic story would fit the plot line of this really well.

The Elephant and His Friend The Dog 

(Source: Main Lesson)

Bibliography: More Jakta Tales By Ellen C. Babbitt. Reading Part B.

Reading Notes: More Jataka Tales Part A

From these tales I chose to read "The Three Fishes." This was such a cute story. Each fish had their own name, and the Very-Thoughtful fish is the one who found a clever way to let the fishermen let his brothers go. Then they went back and lived happily every after. I like stories with happy endings. I think for my story instead of fish I will use humans. It would be three brothers, each with their own personality. They would get in some sort of trouble and the wise brother would get them out.

The Fishermen and the Three Fish

(Source: MainLesson)

The other story I chose to focus on is called "The Cunning Wolf." The man tried to play a trick on the Wolf by pretending he was dead, but the Wolf was too smart for his tricks and caught on. In the end, it was the Wolf who outsmarted the man. For my story idea I am thinking of doing the same thing but again in human form. Someone could play a trick on a child thinking the child is dumb and naive but in the end the child will end up playing the trick on the person. It would be very interesting to see how this story plays out.

Bibliography: More Jataka Tales by  Ellen C. Babitt. Reading Part A

Week 7 Storytelling: The Battle of the Brothers

There once was a woman named Kunti. She was married to a handsome janitor named Pandu. Kunti and Pandu had been married for five years now and were madly in love. However, Kunti had been trying to have kids for several years and had no luck. They went to the doctor and the doctor told them that Pandu was not able to have kids. She fell into a deep depression and started to wallow. Pandu and Kunti got into fights frequently. They both knew how unhappy they were. However, they still tried to save their marriage. Time went by and Pandu got extremely ill. A few more years went by and Pandu passed away. Kunti's depression got worse. 

One day when she was walking down the streets of Long Island, New York, she ran into a handsome young man. Kunti immediately apologized for the incident. At first the mysterious man seemed to get angry, but after he admired her beauty, he stuck out his hand and introduced himself as Duryodhana. He offered to take her out for dinner, and after some convincing Kunti said yes. 

They had an amazing evening together. He wined and dined her. They went dancing and ended the night lying down and looking at the stars together. During this time, Duryodhana explained that he was on a business trip in Long Island. He told her he was a CEO of a company in California. She admired him even more. He told her he would be in town for a few more days and that they should meet up as much as possible. After the delightful date, Kunti ended up going back to his hotel for a nightcap. 

For the next few days Kunti and Duryodhana met up and messed around. They had so much fun together and Kunti was starting to really like him. Unfortunately, he was leaving for California, and she would not be able to see him for a while. The time had come for his departure and she kissed him goodbye. He promised to keep in touch and went on his merry way. The next few weeks Kunti felt awful. She did not know what the horrible feeling was so she went to the doctor. The doctor exclaimed that she was pregnant with twins! She was so shocked but still did not know how to feel. After the appointment, she called Duryodhana and told him the news. He did not react in the way she hoped.

He was angry and cursed at her. He told her he did not want anything to do with the kids or her. He had his whole career ahead of him and he was not going to just throw it away for her. He told her to never contact him again and that he would file a restraining order if she tried reaching out to him. Kunti was once again disappointed and broken. She decided to have the kids but put them up for adoption once they were born.

Nine months later Kunti had two healthy boys named Karna and Arjuna. When they went into the adoption process, they got adopted by two different couples. They grew up knowing that they were adopted but were unaware that they were twins. They had their biological dad’s features. They both were very career-oriented and grew up to be very successful. They both owned their own businesses which were the top two in the country.

When the economy started to fall, one of their businesses had to as well. Both of their assistants set up a meeting for them to come together and talk about if they wanted to merge their businesses, or which one would buy out which. The meeting did not go smoothly. Both brothers (which they were not aware of) were competitive and strong. Both wanted the other to fail. They started sabotaging each other’s companies and would not stop under any condition.

They finally made a deal. They would play a game of dice, and whoever lost would have to shut down their company immediately. This would leave that person with absolutely nothing. Along with their company, their income, house, cars, pretty much everything they owned would be taken from them. When the game began, the hatred grew deeper. Each played their heart out, but in the end Arjuna won. This felt like the end of the world for Karna, but Arjuna had no sympathy.

When they went back to their homes to tell their family about the news - Arjuna winning - and Karna losing everything, their adopted parents had some news for them. They told them that their biological mother Kunti was very ill and had requested to see them. Both brothers immediately flew to Long Island to see their biological mother. When they arrived to the hospital, Karna and Arjuna were surprised to see each other. Both immediately questioned the other and said, “What are you doing here?” To their surprise, both replied, “I am here to see my birth mother, Kunti.”

They were in utter shock and disbelief. They were brothers? When they met their sweet old mother, she told them the whole story. From the time when she was married to Pandu to the time she got pregnant with Duryodhana. Both brothers felt ashamed and embarrassed that they had turned out like their father. Before Kunti passed away, she made them promise that they would look after each other and would not let anything affect their relationship. Both brothers promised their dying mother and stuck to it. They ended up merging their companies and started a charity for kids in foster care. Since that day at the hospital they never let anything get in between them.

Arjuna and Karna Reuniting

(Source: Pixabay)

Bibliography:

This story is based on The Five Tall Sons of Pandu by Richard Wilson. Reading Guide Part A & B

Author's Note:

In the original Pandu is the father of the five sons known as the Pandava brothers. One of the brothers is named Arjuna which is used in my story. Duryodhana is the Pandava brothers' cousin but has a deep hatred for them. Duryodhana and the Pandavas wage war on each other and the Pandava brothers are the ones who win this war. Duryodhana had appointed many people to be by his side during the war, but they were all killed by the Pandava brothers. One of the people Duryodhana appointed was Karna. Karna promised Duryodhana that he would kill them and get revenge. However, during a battle Arjuna killed Karna. Later,Kunti the mother of the Pandavas, reveals that her firstborn son was Karna. The brothers and Kunti mourned together. In my story, I made Duryodhana be an evil CEO because he is the villain in the Mahabharata. I then based my story of the Karna and Arjuna but tweaked it. I set it to modern day and changed the ending. Instead of one brother killing the other I had both realize they were brothers and vowed to never harm one another.

Reading Notes: The Giant Crab and Other Tales From Old India Part B

From Part B I chose to read "A Bold Begger," This story was interesting because the King was not upset at the end and let the man go free. For my story idea I was thinking of having a beggar play a similar trick on someone but in the end the people would realize how selfish they are being with their money. I liked the wittiness of the beggar, and want to add something of the same sort to my story.

The other tale that I read was called "The King's Lesson." This was a good tale because it gave me some ideas for mine. For example, in this perfect little place they lived in the King did not get conceited after hearing everyone praise him. However, in my story I was thinking of doing something different. I would have two kings who are so-called perfect. However, when they disguise themselves and run into each other, that is when the real selves come out. Each king would be nasty and brutal to one another and would not allow the other to pass. When others would find the kings being so brutal to one another they would see that they were wrong about their king. This is when the kings would learn their lesson and see that it is important to be civil in all cases not just ones where they want to be seen.

The King's Lesson

(Source: Gutenberg)

Bibliography: The Giant Crab and Other Tales From Old India by W. H. D. Rouse Reading Part B. 

Reading Notes:The Giant Crabs and Other Tales From Old India Part A

I chose to focus on children literature because it is a lot of fun to read. I especially enjoyed reading these interesting tales. However, I am not sure if all of these tales really are for children. One of the stories I read was called the "The Hypocritical Cat." This story was interesting because this so called righteous cat deceived the rats into worshiping him, and then he slowly started to eat them. In the end the chief rat caught on and therefore with the help of his fellow rats they ate the cat. An idea I got from this story was writing a story about karma. The fact that deceiving people can never get you anywhere good. I could write about a king who deceived his people but then they ended up rebelling.

Another tale that I read was called "The Wise Parrot and the Foolish Parrot." This story gave me an idea to do a story over two siblings. One would be wise and one would be foolish. The mother would favorite the foolish one until one day when the wise one gets the foolish one out of trouble. The tables would turn and the mother would realize that she had it all wrong. I thought of this because the wise parrot did not talk much until time came for him to speak up.

Th Wise Parrot and the Foolish Parrot

(Source: Gutenberg)

The last tale I focused on was called "The Dishonest Friend." I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. The moral of the story is honesty is the best policy. For this I was thinking of making it very modern. I would one friend who is going away for the weekend and needs someone to watch her dog. The friend who is watching the dog would be careless and would let the dog run off. Then that same friend would need someone to hold on to his mother's diamond ring while he goes on a trip. Then the friend with the lost dog would play a trick and say he lost the diamond ring. In the end the mischievous friend would realize that honesty is the best police.

Bibliography: The Giant Cram and Other Tales from Old India by W.H.D. Rouse Reading Part A

Week 8 Growth Mindset

After pondering through the different dimensions of growth I came up with a few that I know I need to work on. One aspect of myself that I know that needs some work is my attachment to the comfort zone. Once I am comfortable I do not like to go out of my way to try new things. However, I know an important part of growing is to try new things and learn from them. Another aspect I could use some work on is, I like to get things right the first time. However, from our revisions that we have to do, I have learned that sometimes it is better to have practice and gain that experience.

Though I need some things to work on, I have improved in lots of ways as well. For example, coming to OU a very important thing I learned was to ask questions! Ask lots of questions! I know that if I am every confused I always email my professors right away with the questions I have. I have also learned, especially with this class, to set my own schedule and priorities. I have also learned a lot about motivation. I know that having the motivation within myself is really important to meet my deadlines. Intrinsic motivation is the best, because you will not always have external rewards to get you to meet the goals needed.

I am grateful for everything I have learned in this class and everything that I will continue to learn. This class has taught me a lot about myself and I hope to only continue to grow from this experience.

Motivation

(Source: Pixabay)

Week 8 Reflections

I am happy with my reading selections! I think they are really interesting stories to read and they give me enough room to make the story my own. I think my favorite so far is the video that I watch with the transcrip I read about "Sita Sings the Blues." The story I wrote for it is also my favorite story thus far. My reading schedule is still kind of all over the place. I am taking 21 hours, so I try to just get things done depending on my schedule for that week. However, I do have two places where I love writing my stories and reading. I either do at one of those double screen computers at the library from 3 PM - 6 PM. That is my time on Monday's to get my readings done. The other place is in the comfort of my own room. I have an office, and just sitting there with light music playing in the back just sitting in my comfy pink chair is my other favorite place.

My Favorite: Double-Screen Computers

(Source: Staticflickr)

I definitely believe that the Reading Notes is very helpful. It helps me brainstorm before jumping into the story right away. I have also learned how to read like a writer which is so helpful. In the Notes page I usually brainstorm of the several different ideas I have running through my head. When I go to write my story, I always look back at the notes page and take my suggestions from there to write my story.

For the weeks to come I think I am going to go beyond the epics. Though, I have enjoyed reading them I am still wanting to read new stories. I think I am going to focus more on gods and goddesses! I saw that there is even a movie option for that, I love watching the films. I do believe one of the film options will be something I am going to look at for the weeks to come.

I am excited to see what my portfolio will look like at the end of the semester!