Presentation for "The Twelve"

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Symbolism

A very powerful part of Patons writing is symbolism. He often uses the land to symbolize various situations. The most common would be the low land and the high land. 

In book 1, Paton goes into great detail about the land. He explains the difference between the mountains and the valley. The major symbolism here is the separation of the people. The people lived very different lives. The whites were always one up of the natives. The whites placed themselves on a high horse, which is also symbolic of the placement of the land. The whites lived up on a cloud, while the natives lived in the dark valley. The whites had dug a deep hole for the natives that just kept getting deeper. They weren't looking to help them, as long as they stayed away. 

The mountains/highlands symbolize the happiness of the whites. The rich land up there symbolizes the rich white people. The whites put themselves on a pedestal  and think they are so much better than the natives. That is why they made their residency on top of the mountains. They are also above ground to symbolize how they believed themselves to me above human. The higher land is closer to where the gods are generally associated. The land was very well and cared for just like the white people. The white people are able to live their happy lives segregated from the natives. The destination of the lands being separate shows that the whites and natives weren't together and didn't often crosseach others  paths. They lived very segregated, different lives. The  wealthy whites lived on the upper ground. This symbolizes that the whites were above the natives. 

On the other hand, the valley symbolizes the poor, native area of the land. The whites degraded the natives and made them feel lower than human, which is why they were in a valley and not on normal ground. The valley also symbolizes how the natives are less than human to the whites. There is no middle ground. Paton says that "Too many cattle feed upon the grass." The land of the natives is very overpopulated and can not take proper care of its people. The destruction of the land also symbolizes the destruction of the people. At one time, the land was great and cared for, but then the people destroyed it. "Destroy it and man is destroyed." The men are no longer taking care of the land, or their people.

There are often other times in the novel when the land is used symbolically, but not in such a predominant way. The land always reflects what is going on around the characters. Such as when Paton says the "sun pours down on the earth, but man can not enjoy it." Paton uses the land to show that good things are happening, we just sometimes get blindsided by the negatives, and don't take the time to look around and see all the good. 

Paton uses strong symbolism in his novel. The land plays a huge part in the story as a whole. Paton uses the land to symbolize the people living there. 

Beauty is Everywhere

I believe that there is beauty in every situation. Even in the toughest of situations, there is beauty. There have been countless situations in my life that I never thought I would see the beauty in, but through Christ alone I found the beauty in them. 

As I was growing up, I didn't have the idealistic family with a mom, dad, brother and sister. I'd always sort of strayed outside of my family for role models, because my parents and I didn't have all the same beliefs. We had different morals. I'd grown up going to church, but they weren't raised that way. Don't get me wrong, my parents have always loved me, but I have always had other parental role models. 

When I was younger, I had a friend whose family was basically my own. I went to them about anything and everything. They were my backbone for at least 4 years of my youth. I looked up to them in life and in my spiritual relationship as well. I was always with them, and people even began to think I was actually a part of their family. Then as the summer of eighth grade rolled around, someone new moved to town. I could feel my friendship with my old friend change as she grew closer to the new girl. I lost them, my family. I was left broken, and I honestly didn't know where to turn. After all they knew about me and my past, they still left me. Trust me when I say, I didn't think I'd ever see any good in the situation. 

As October of that year rolled around, I began to get closer to Lindsay Arnold, my fuel group leader and my student ministers wife. Chris and Lindsay began to become parental figures in my life. I used to, and I continue to, go to them for just about everything. They help me with any issues I may be having or any situation I'm going through. They give me good, sound advice, and are always there when I need them, even if it isn't the most convenient timing for them.  They have truly been the beauty in one of my ugliest situations. 

I never thought I would see the beauty in loosing my best friend, but I did. I've made lots of wonderful new friends. This situation turned out more beautiful than I ever would have imagined. Just because something feels unbearable at the moment, there is beauty in every situation. 

Fudge

Ingredients:

3 cups of sugar
3/4 cup of butter
1 small can of evaporated milk
1 package Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 jar Jet puffed marshmellow creme
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:

Line 9-inch square pan with foil. Bring sugar, butter, and evaporated milk to boil, medium heat. Boil for 4 minutes. Remove.

The silence in those four minutes seemed to last a lifetime. In those few minutes, my thoughts consumed me. I lost touch with reality for a while. I thought of anything imaginable: friends, family, school, church, etc. But one time, when I was making the fudge all alone, something out of the ordinary happened, my little sisters came in there. They usually just played in their room anticipating the completeness of the fudge.. This time they decided they wanted to help. I was reluctant at first to accept their help. They had no idea how to cook, and it had to be ready by a certain time. "Lexi, can we pretty please help?" they begged.

"Of course you can," I hesitantly responded. "I would love to have your help."

Add chocolate chips and marshmellow creme- stir until melted. Add vanilla.

As we were all mixing in the chocolate chips and marshmellow creme, my sister started to play music. Of course they were little kid songs, but it was still fun to enjoy some quality time with them. As we mixed in the final ingredient of vanilla, my sisters looked estatic. It doesnt take a lot to make children feel like they have accomplished something big.

Pour into pan. Cool completely.

At last, we can finally enjoy this as a family. Of course it was a big hit, like always. Everyone was so happy in that moment, it was as if any conflict of the past had dissapeared. From that day on, my sisters always help me with the preparation of this family tradition.

Bad things aren't always all bad

Have you ever seen good things come out of bad things? In the story, "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World", good things come out of a bad event. I think a lot of times good things can come out of bad things.
Someone dying isn't a good thing, but it can lead to good things. It can bring families and communities closer than ever before. We see that in the story, and I have also seen it in my own life. Sometimes bad things have to happen to make way for even better things.
If the man wouldn't have died all the people coming together and doing work wouldn't have happened. If the people didn't care about leaving memory for Esteban they wouldn't have done all the work around their town. I think we also do this. if we lose someone to breast cancer we usually wear a pink ribbon to show our support. I think this is kind of the same thing.
Great things can come from not so great things. If you stay on the positive side of things, good always come. You might not always see the good in everything, but everything happens for a reason. Bad things aren't always all bad. Sometimes bad things can bring people together. That can result in great things.
You start to realize that you don’t have forever with people and it makes you get your priorities straight. You start to realize what truly matters and what never mattered. Crazy good things can come from tragedies.   

Sacriifices

Sometimes you have to sacrifice the things you love for the people you love. In the short story, The Gift of the Magi, Della and Jim both thought they had great gifts for each other. In the beginning of the story you learn that Della and Jim are very poor, but they make the best of it. Della and Jim were both willing to sacrifice for each other.
In the story, Della's most prized possession is her hair. She had spent a lot of time working on growing out her hair and she took much pride in her hair. She only had $1.87 to buy her husband Jim a Christmas present. She sacrificed her most prized possession to get Jim a great present. She was willing to sacrifice something she loved for someone she loved.
Also, in the story, Jim had a watch. The watch had been handed down in his family. He took lots of pride in his watch. In order to buy his wife something special for Christmas, he sold his watch. He was willing to sacrifice something he loved for someone he loved.
This story shows that material things aren't as important as the one you love. If you love someone enough, you will be willing to give things up for them. In my own life, I have given up my time and resources to help the ones I love and care about. At the end of the day, it’s not about the things you have, it’s about the people who truly care about you.

This is Me

The pictures below explain who I am.