Portfolio Index

I hope to add stories that you all enjoy reading! I am excited to see what this portfolio ends up looking like.

A Wife's Blues: This story is about a wife who had an affair because she thought her husband was dead. However, when she finds out otherwise, problems arise.

A New Hero: This story takes a feminist perspective in the type of hero that comes forth and surprises everyone.

The Battle of the Brothers: This story takes you on a journey with two brothers who were separated at birth.

Honesty if the Best Policy: This story teaches the importance of honesty and friendship.

The Circle of Life: This story explains how one life event can have a domino effect and come full circle.

Week 11 Storytelling: The Circle of Life

Once upon a time there was a little boy who was roaming the streets begging for food. He finally stumbled upon a Chinese restaurant. His mouth was salivating and his stomach grumbled with hunger. The restaurant owner came out and saw the boy looking in the window sick and skinny. He took the kid in and fed him until the kid could not eat anymore. 

The kid started to come every day and the man fed him. Soon the man gave the kid a job at his restaurant. Every day the kid would come, work his shift, eat and then leave. Finally, one day the man asked the kid, "Where are you living that there is no food to eat?" The kid told him, "Please do not judge me. I sneak into an old man's boat a couple of blocks down from here. My parents kicked me out, and I have just been doing my best to survive." The owner immediately took him in. 

The kid grew up helping the owner as much as he could. They had a special bond. One that lasted a long time. Finally, the day had come for the kid to go to medical school. The owner was sad to see him go but was glad that he was able to get the kid on his feet. Time passed and they still kept in touch, however the kid got busy in his own life.

The kid turned out to be a really successful doctor. He was known worldwide and was the most credited doctor in the country for the extraordinary successful surgeries he had performed. One day a patient was rushed in, in the middle of the night. The patient had passed out because he had a heart attack. The kid, who was now a doctor, was called and requested to come in. He was not happy about it, because he just worked a 13-hour shift, but went to the hospital anyways. When he got to the hospital he immediately questioned his staff about why the other doctor was not able to help the patient. The intake nurse said, " In the process of his heart attack he requested to see you." The doctor was shocked, and wondered who would say something like that during a heart attack.

When he entered the room, his eyes immediately filled with tears. He went to the patient’s side and fell crying in his arms. It was the man who had took him in. It was the man who had fed him for years and years. It was the man who had paid him enough so that he would be able to attend medical school. It was the man who was the dad he never had. 

He helped the owner get better and get back to his feet. When the owner returned home he came to a stack of bills and his heart started to race again with stress. When he started to open the bills one by one he saw that they all said $0.00. He was very confused. He finally opened the last envelope which contained a letter. The letter was written out "To: The Best Dad Ever."

The guy was confused but continued to read. The letter was a letter of appreciation for everything the owner had down for the kid. The kid explained he had paid off all the owner's bill. Furthermore, there was a check in the envelope for $100,000. This was so the owner could finally retire since everything is paid for and spoil himself a little. That is when the owner realized the circle of life.

The Owner and the Kid

(Source: StaticFlickr)

Authors Note:

In the original story, there is an elephant that has a splinter in his foot. He is hurting when he comes across a few carpenters in the forest, who help the elephant get the splinter out of his foot. Then the elephant decided to assist the carpenters in order to repay them for their generosity by cutting down the trees. The elephant then had a child and taught the child how to help the carpenters because he was getting too old to help them himself. The carpenters would feed the baby elephant and take care of the baby elephant. The baby elephant would play with the carpenter’s kids on his down time, and made good friends with them. Then finally one day, the king was strolling by when he saw the white baby elephant. He was so astonished by its beauty that he paid the carpenters a good amount for the elephant. He then took really good care of the elephant. The carpenters helping the elephant, the older elephant helping the carpenters, and then the baby elephant helping the carpenters came full circle when the king took care of the baby elephant. My story is based on this but in human form. A child needs help and the owner helps him. In the end the owner needs help and the child helps him.

Bibliography:

This story is based on Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt. The King's White Elephant. Reading Guide Part A & B.

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.

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.

Week 4 Storytelling: A Wife's Blues

It all started when my husband John told me that he was getting deployed to Afghanistan. I had no idea how to react. I was hurt and in shock. I mean how could he just leave us? I understand that it is for our county but I do not know what I would do without him! I decided I am just had make the best of it. I spent the next few weeks spending every moment I could with him and our two adorable little girls. However, John wanted his family to have dinner with us twice a week before he left. This includes his brother Adam. Adam has always been so weird. In high school, he would stare at me awkwardly anytime I was around him. Yet, he would never talk to me.

The time passed by too quickly. I dropped John off at the airport with tears in my eyes. I didn't want him to leave but he promised he would be back soon. I kissed him goodbye and off he went. John called me three times every week. He called me on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I was so thankful that I was still able to talk to him a few times a week. Things were fine. Everything was fine. And then my world came shattering to pieces. 

In the middle of the night I woke up to a banging on the door. To my surprise, it was John's team members. They told me that John went missing in action and they believed he is dead... I, I, was once again in shock and my heart broke. I cried for days. I could not control myself. The army had arranged a funeral for him, and though I was devastated I still went. His mother, father, and his brother greeted me when I arrived to the funeral. Afterwards, Adam wanted to come over to talk. When he came we had a good conversation reminiscing about John. It was the first time ever that I had a decent conversation with Adam. I decided he wasn't that weird after all. 

For the next few weeks, Adam came over every day. He helped me remodel my kitchen, he helped with the girls, and he took my mind off of my depression. Adam had become a big part of my life. One night, while having a few drinks, Adam and I were reminiscing about high school. He told me he had a crush on me in high school but I fell for John instead. I am not really sure how it happened. But one thing led to another and before I knew it, I was waking up to him the next morning. We were just lying there when we heard banging on the door. I got up and answered the door, and once again it was John's team members. They said that they found John and he would be returning home in a few days.

I did not know what to think. My dear husband who I thought was dead, is now alive? And I just slept with his brother? I had too many mixed emotions...Let's fast forward to when John got back. He was different. Things were different. He suspected that me and Adam had an affair but I reassured him that nothing happened. I felt so guilty but why? I did not cheat. I thought my husband was dead. I started to feel sick every morning and I thought it had something to do with just how weird things were. I went to the doctor and the doctor told me I was pregnant...

Since John had gotten back we had not done anything. I knew it was Adam's. I panicked. That night I did it with John and in the next few days I told him that I was pregnant. I told him that it was his. I know it is stupid but I did not want to lose John. Though, he did not believe me. He wanted me to prove it. Panicking again, I asked one of my friends who is a doctor if she could help me forge the results to the DNA test. And she did...

Fast forward even more... I ended up having twins. But John was still suspicious and did not want to be made a fool. So he left us. Every night I sang the blues. I sang about John and I missed him. I taught these blues to my twins. They sang it perfectly. I would often take the kids to the park and just sit there while they played. I just think how my life could have been different… One day when the twins were singing the blues in the park John came back... I was so happy to see him. But he wanted me to prove my loyalty to him once more.This time... I couldn’t... I just couldn’t live a life like that. So I ran.

I ran and I ran and I ran. I ran until I didn’t know where to go. And that is how I ended up here. I do not know what to do now. I need your advice. I just feel so awful.

(a few moments of silence went by and then...)

The therapist replied, “It will be okay. We will work figure this out together.”

Image Information

Sitting in the Park, Before John Arrived

(Source: Pixabay)

Bibliography:

This story is based on Sita Sings the Blues Reading Guide Part A and B

Author's Notes:

In the original story Rama is exiled and goes to the forest and Sita goes with him. Sita is taken by Ravana. When Rama rescues Sita he is suspicious that she was unfaithful to him. She proves she was by jumping into fire. Then she gets pregnant. A laundry man hits his wife and says that he does not allow affairs like Rama does. Rama feels disrespected and embarrassed so he asks his brother to take her into the forest and abandon her there. She has twins and teaches them the songs of Rama. Rama hears the twins one day and comes back. However, he still wants Sita to prove her loyalty once again. This time Sita does by reentering mother nature's womb. I based my story off of the movie Brothers. The film is about two brothers: one brother (Sam) is married  to wife (Grace) and has kids but gets deployed, while the other brother (Tommy) is a loner and a troublemaker. When Sam gets deployed he gets taken in as a prisoner from the opposing side. However, Grace believes he is dead. Tommy steps up and starts to act like a family man. Grace and Tommy have an affair, but soon find out that Sam is alive. When Sam comes back he is suspicious about his wife's loyalty. The detailed summary of the plot can be found at Wikipedia. I thought by taking a more modern spin on the story of Rama and Sita, and telling it from "Sita's" point of view would help spice things up. It also shows that constantly testing people can drive them away. I chose this picture because I think it helped create the scene in the park.

Week 2 Storytelling: A New Hero

(Dasharatha's grief. Source: Wikimedia)

"King Dasharatha! Your wives had the babies!" said one of the servants to the king. 

"And?" said the king cautiously. "Are they boys or girls?" 

The servant was hesitant to reply at first. Then he croaked, "A boy! And three girls."

The king was not too happy hearing about the three girls but was thrilled about his son. He knew that now that he had a son who could carry out his legacy. One day the sage Vishvamitra came into town begging the king to let his son go on a journey to beat the demons who had taken over his city. The king was hesitant at first but knew that his son Rama would be the only one who could accomplish this mission. When Rama and Vishvamitra were getting ready to go on their treacherous journey, Rama's sister Lakshmani snuck into their cart and hid so that she could be part of this adventure. Lakshmani did not reveal that she was with them until a few days into the journey because she did not want her dad to get upset. Once Rama and Vishvamitra found out she was with them, as furious as they were, Rama vowed to protect his sister.

The days were getting near to battle the demon, and Rama was ready to make his dad proud. When they first arrived in the city they heard cries coming from a few blocks away. Rama told his sister to stay in the cart until he came back. Rama and Vishvamitra left to go save the city while Lakshmani was left behind. As Rama approached the three headed demons, he grew fearless and cockier about how easy this would be for him. Yet, little did he know that there was a whole army of them. 

Rama began to attack, and one by one the demons fell. However, when he got to the last three he grew restless. He kept trying and yet they would find a way to jab him here and there. Lakshmani was respectfully abiding by her brother's request but started to worry, when she suddenly got a vision from the goddess Thataka. Thataka was a goddess who was actually the wife and mother of the three demons that Rama was trying to fight off. Thataka was ashamed of her husband and sons and did not agree with terrorizing innocent people. Therefore she wanted to help.

In the vision that Thataka sent Lakshmani there were three demons who were each eating a part of Rama’s body. In her vision she also saw three poisonous stones hidden in the city. In that moment Lakshmani knew that she had to do something to help her brother. She quickly left the cart and started to search for the stones. When she finally gathered the stones she followed the cries of the people. She slowly approached the demons from behind and swiftly chucked the stones into their throats. Before the demons realized what it was, they swallowed the stones and fell to the ground.

The people cheered and showered Rama in love and admiration. Rama quickly stopped the parades and confessed to the people that it was not him who had beaten the demons. He looked at his sister in shock but proudly announced her as the savior of the city. The people were as shocked as Rama. A girl defeated the demons? Never had they ever imagined a girl being capable of doing anything such as this. 

Lakshmani and Rama returned home to their kingdom. King Dasharatha was patiently awaiting their arrival. He wanted to congratulate his son for defeating the demons and saving everyone, at the same time, making sure his delicate little girl made it home safe. When Rama explained to the king in detail of what actually happened, the king did not know how to react. He spent many days locked in his sanctuary. As the people eagerly awaited his reaction, there was lots of gossip going around that Lakshmani was going to be exiled because she was disobedient.

However, when the king came out, he decided to exile Rama. He said that Rama was an embarrassment to him and would not allow him to continue to ruin the family name. Rama’s sisters were not happy with this decision and decided to go and bring back their brother. During their journey Lakshmani ran into Ravana, Rama’s enemy. Ravana was very witty and charming, and Lakshmani soon fell for him. She told Ravana that they were on a mission to find their brother and bring him back to their kingdom. Ravana used this as a chance to get back at Rama. He led Lakshmani on and followed the sister around the forest to seek Rama.

When they finally found Rama hidden deep in the forest, Ravana declared a war against him. Ravana and Rama started to fight. They would not stop until the other was dead. Lakshmani, distraught by what she was seeing, soon got in the middle of it. She told them that she cared for both of them deeply and could not live without them both. Rama and Ravana came to an agreement. They would put their differences aside if the child of Ravana and Lakshmani could become king or queen when they were older instead of Rama’s child. Rama agreed and they all headed back to the kingdom.

King Dasharatha was very pleased to see how mature his kids were handling the situations they stumbled upon. He appointed both Rama and Lakshmani as the head of the kingdom. He now understood how important it was to let women have a voice. He also saw how capable they were of solving problems and getting people to come to agreements. Soon all three of his daughters got married and were about to have kids.

"King Dasharatha! Your daughters had the babies!" said one of the servants to the king. 

"And?" said the king cautiously. "Are they boys or girls?" 

The servant was hesitant to reply at first. Then he croaked, "A boy! And three girls.”

The king was not too happy to hear about the boy, but was thrilled to hear about the three girls.

Author's Notes: 

This story is based on Narayan’s Ramayana. I changed a quite a few aspects of the story. In the original story Rama is born with three brothers, one being Lakshmana. Rama is the hero in the original one and is the one that is most loved. One of the king’s wives gets jealous that Rama is being proclaimed king so she asks Dasharatha to send Rama into exile. Though the king dreads this, he does as she pleases. When Rama is sent into exile his brothers go to find him to bring him back. During this time the king passes away of grief. Also, in the original one Thataka is the demon that Rama must fight off. In my story, I changed the plot dramatically. Instead of Rama being the hero I changed the sex of his brother Lakshmana to a girl and made her the hero. I took more of a feminist perspective in my story because I believe girls are strong leaders and are often overlooked. I also tried to end my story with a happy ending because I believe the real world is already full of sadness, stories and movie should end happy. The picture that I choose was one of my favorite pictures from the online reading guide. It does such a good job of depicting all the emotions that are running through the people.

Bibliography:

This story is based on the Narayan's Ramayana Reading Guide Part A and B.