Halloween Poem

Authors Note: I wrote this poem because of the Halloween holiday and because when I was walking my dog late at night I got a creepy feeling which was the inspiration for this poem.


Halloween Poem

The full moon is shining brightly behind a wall of clouds

You hear a wolf howl and a black cat scurry and remember the stories…

The stories of ghosts, goblins, and ghouls

Vampires, werewolves, and the lurking boogy-man

As you walk through the graveyard with your friends,

One hides behind a tree and yells “Boo!”

You scream then suddenly you hear creepy laughing,

Laughing that didn’t come from your friends.

Everyone bolts, running as if their lives depend on it,

because it very well could.

You turn to see who is chasing you

And as soon as you regret it,

 This thing, this green slimy thing, drags you under.

And you think “This is it”

But suddenly it releases you and you make a break

As you return home and your mom asks

“How was your time?”

You respond

“It was… interesting.”

Veteran's Essay

Authors Note: In this essay the topic was "Does Patriotism still matter?" My opinion is that it does still matter and that there are many ways of showing your love for our country besides fighting in war. The inspiration for the style of writing in this essay was my families trip to New York this past summer and our trip to Washington D.C. which was full of our countries important documents and memorials.

The date was September 11, 2001; people were walking the crowded streets of New York City when suddenly a plane hijacked by al-Qaeda crashed into the World Trade Center. People watched in terror feeling helpless as the building burned. The remaining men, women, and firefighters in the building were true patriots, stopping by every one of the 110 floors searching for survivors. So now the question “Does Patriotism still matter?” is pondered. My answer is yes, because without patriotism life in our country would be unbearable.

Everyday men and women in the 5 branches of the military risk their lives to keep our country safe. With each day soldiers miss their families more, miss not having to worry about being killed, and miss not watching their children grow up. These men and women go through intense training where you either succeed or be worthless, these people are incredibly courageous to even attempt to be part of America’s  military.  We owe each person serving our country a huge thank you because without them we wouldn’t be, or feel safe.   

Although many brave men and women of the military can proudly say that they have served for our country, war is not the only way you can show pride in America. Patriotism by definition is love and devotion to one's country, so you could show your support for our country by cleaning up your community, volunteering, or doing a race for a cure. A patriot goes beyond that definition, throughout good and bad times a true patriot will help and support people through everything, they think of the glass half full not half empty and they go the extra mile to be a better person.  People become stronger and more educated when in the presence of a Patriot, they learn from their mistakes and figure out how to be a better person.

Patriotism is vital to our country so the answer to the question “Does Patriotism still matter?” seems obvious. Without Patriotism our country and world would be in chaos.  There are so many dangers awaiting us in this world but there will always be someone looking out for us.  True patriots are roaming every street and sidewalk, doing good for others and their country.