4.+Vignettes

Rona Sayed Josie Tierney-Fife English 9 Advanced 22 December 2010 Family Adventures Blankets

Snow dances around outside on a cold winter night. The house is quiet as a mouse, except for the gentle hum from the parents above. The only sound around you is the soft breathing of little kids as well as the steady thump, thump of a heartbeat and the creaking of an old rusty door on the screen in front of you. Five cousins, but ten children altogether are huddled under one soft, wooly king sized blanket. Some are as old as ten young, while others as young as two. The children are waiting, waiting for it to happen, then BAM it does! The children jump to the eerie noise. Then it’s over, and the children, some frightened and others confused, sit in silence no one ready to speak, until a brave soul breaks the silence by switching the channel. All at once the buzzing of speaking erupts in the room, some talking about how cool the movie was while others especially the younger ones are still too paralyzed to say anything. Then comes the step to soothe and calm the young ones who are still buried under the blankets not coming out until a full and acceptable explanation is told. When everyone feels fit to do something that will be fun for the younger ones a pillow fight is brought on. The older kids are smacking each other in the face with the pillows, others pounding on the backs of others, the room is filled with chaos. The parents thought for only a second that everyone would be quiet since the movie might have shaken them up, but no, no one can tell what goes on in the odd mind of a child. This game seems to stir up the younger ones, who, one by one like rabbits peek their heads out from under the blanket that holds them together and then you start to notice one smile, then another, and another, and another, until finally all the faces are beaming with joy. Out of the blue like roadrunners they all start to emerge from under the blanket and join right into the battlefield, one by one they take down the older enemies until finally they conquer the battle. Soon, it’s over and the little ones are all bundled up in coats and are heading out the doors to their cars where they will remember their victory. As they leave the doorstep, they have one final look back with a smirk on their faces looking at the defeated thinking if they are ready for another attack soon. What the older children didn’t know was that there was the blanket still there in the basement that brought them together and it cycled the warmth of family around when the little ones needed it most.

Stories

As you peer around the corner of the wall, the first thing that might come to your mind is, the only reason they are quiet is A they killed someone or B they are planning to kill someone. You expect to see something bizarre, something that makes your skin crawl, something that makes you wish that you never had to see it. It is a delightful fall afternoon and you expect kids to be outside in the fresh air, rather than downstairs in a gloomy basement. Then you freeze and the only sound is the sharp inhale of your breath. In an almost perfect circle, ten preteens sit laughing their heads off making them not even have a chance to catch a breath. They have been sitting together and retelling memories about when they were young. There were stories that were cute, funny, embarrassing, mean and all kinds of others. Once a group of us were scientists and we had thought of an experiment to light gum on fire and to see what would happen, that led to burning my little cousin’s leg. Another story was when we were naturists and poured salt on slugs and watched them sizzle and fizz up. There were also times when for fun we would lock each other up in rooms and would make each other stay in there for long periods of time. We would also make each other remember the teams made when having snowball fights and having each other point out that in some of the snowballs, we snuck in ice. Here and there we would slip in a truth about a time in which a lie was told. Now, we were also good to nature by building bird nests for the birds and being gentle to the Earth. The most exciting stories that were told would be about having encounters with the adults, also arguing about which one of us grandchildren were the most beloved by our grandmother. Then I turned around and walked away not wanting to disturb them and a smile creeped upon my face for I knew that the true stories came from the heart and about all being together would be the greatest memory that would last for eternity.

Grills and Battlefields

It is spring, the flowers are in bloom and the sky is a bright blue. Ten almost mature teenagers walk across the lawn and enter the battlefield of the backyard where the games will begin. Smoke circles around them trapping them inside the murky fog from the grill. Waving the smoke away from their faces the warriors divided themselves into two teams and stand facing their opponents. Some looked fierce and determined, while others rubbed their stomachs and kept looking back at the grill to see if something was ready to be devoured. When everyone was in position a little one came by and handed out the weapons. A coin is flipped to see who will serve first, then on the count of three the battle began. A grenade was thrown back and forth between the two teams, everyone in position to make sure that it did not hit the ground or else it would be an out. As the battle progressed on many tragedies happened on each side; then came the final round when the score was a tie. One more out for either side and then there would be a victor. Soaked in sweat, dying of thirst, and having the energy drained out of them, the warriors were focused and were ready to strike anytime when all of a sudden another army entered the battle from the side. The two teams froze and stared at the new arrivals, then another battle began this time the warriors were united under one team and the new arrivals were on another team. As the new battle progressed on the new arrivals seemed to be crushing the warriors. Then finally not willing to accept defeat the warriors came up with a new battle plan that they hoped would be successful if they worked together. Finally, the battle ended when the warriors shot the winning hit and the grenade exploded on the ground wiping out the new arrivals.Victory had been awarded to the warriors and by then the hamburgers were ready and had an excellent taste to them due to the pinch of being a winner. Reflecting on the battle the warriors came to the conclusion that in order to have victory in your grasp, it not always depends on skill, but on the power of being united.