Unfinished works...

Just another beginning to one of the various stories I began writing...

I happened to be sitting on a wicker rocking chair on the front porch when Papa appeared in my driveway, wobbling down the rocky path with his wooden cane. The day was at its peak and the air was heavy with moisture with hints of thunderstorms in the near future. My kids were playing cheerfully in the front yard even though the grass was dry and yellow from the lack of precipitation this winter. Living in the plains of Kansas isn’t always the best place to find comfort outdoors, especially if you grew up in the Great Lakes region. Their curly, blonde hair bounced happily on their heads while they chased butterflies and crickets.

            “Papa!” I yelled from my chair, “What on earth are you doin’ walkin’ down our driveway with bad weather rolling in! You should let us come visit you from now on.”

            I watched him look up suddenly from deep concentration of foot placement and pause momentarily. Squinty-eyed and flushed he managed to hear my voice on the wind.

            “What’s that you say, honey?” He shouted back with a muffled, old voice.

            I shook my head and rose from my seat, stretching like a cat awoken from a long nap. My kids were still oblivious to the fact their great-grandfather was stubbornly making his way down the driveway. Instead their attention was now focused on the huge purple clouds looming in the horizon. I adjusted my sunhat and made my way to greet Papa. My turquoise jeweled sandals crunched on the rocks until I embraced Papa, inhaling the distinct scent of lilac soap and nursing home.

            “Papa, you should let us visit you at the home instead of taking the bus and walking.” I scorned with the hint of a smile on my lips.

            “Oh sweets you shouldn't worry about me, I’d rather die trying to see my granddaughter and great grandchildren than be cooped up in that dratted old building.” He persisted.

            “You know I worry. You also know they've been asking an awful lot to hear your old stories about Scotland.”  I turned to see if the kids were still in sight. “You should sit down with them on the porch and tell your grand stories before the storm hits. Can I get you some lemonade?”

            “That’d be fine, honey. I’ll gather some of the memories this old brain has left.” He wheezed.

            As I helped Papa up the steps, a rumble of thunder rolled over the plains like the muffled sound of bowling balls striking waxed lanes. My kids were running toward the house in no time at all because thunder can mean great danger is coming on the plains. They waved their arms in the air wildly and screamed for help, running away from imaginary twisters.

            “Bella Rose and Jack! My two favorite great grandchildren! Come here you two!” Papa exclaimed.

            Bella and Jack ran straight to their Papa’s arms and gave him big kisses on his cheeks. Their freckles stood out on their tanned skin to mark the stories of ancestry that ran deep in their veins. By the expression on their faces, I could tell they were eager to hear the story of love and despair Papa always told me when I was their age.

Spring semester 2013.

The Necklace

A brief writing about a special object in my life from my senior year creative writing class in high school.

A storm was brewing rapidly as the clouds turned the marl tinted water a deep navy blue in an instant. The tides began pounding harshly against the boat and left a striped path of white foam that had a striking resemblance to the sailboat necklace that would come to mean so much to me. Clasping the necklace in my right hand I suddenly noticed a sailboat in the water a couple yards from mine. The boy on the other boat waved frantically for me to follow him as the storm broke loose with a large crack of lightning that ripped open the sky. I managed to gain full control of the wind crossing into the wind tunnel from Long to Columbia and followed him around the tiny yet fierce lake. We tied my boat up to his dock and quickly let down the sail that was flopping like a struggling fish gasping for water. He grabbed my hand and dragged me to shore under a few sappy pine trees. Pine needles fell softly next to me as I quickly checked to make sure the sailboat necklace was still safely around my neck. The boy watched me carefully as I clutched it once more in my hands. His curly blonde hair fell around his face, soaked from the rain, and his tanned skin seemed to glow even in the darkness of the storm. He introduced himself as Tom from the O’Connor cottage up the hill. I noticed he couldn't keep his eyes off of me as I rung out my sun-bleached hair, a gaze that was intense but as sweet as the scent of the flowers in the bed of needles next to me. We talked for a few hours until the storm began to let up and he finally asked to see my necklace. Handing it to him, I said he could borrow it if he wanted as long as I was to see him again soon. Smiling, he wrapped it around his neck and clasped it in his right hand. Little did I know that because of my necklace I would be spending more time than expected with the boy who saved me from navy blue waves.

Spring semester 2013.

Graduation Day

It was a bright, beautiful spring day the day I graduated from the home of the Comets. Not your typical damp spring day, but one with abnormally high temperatures with the sun beating down on the senior class as we scampered around outside for our special picnic. It was a day most of us had been anticipating for years and years. I woke up late just to be sure I could get my last few minutes of extra sleeping-in time on my last day of high school. I believe Tom picked me up that day and drove us into the student parking lot for one of my last times.

The senior class put on a slide show of our memories from middle and high school. Some of the pictures were atrocious, not realizing Emma Kelley took initiative to send some from our friend group, haha. The laugh was nice, and for the rest of the day I don't particularly remember what the senior class was up to. We may have attended our last few classes, but eventually we were summoned to the gymnasium which was transformed into a ceremonial celebration.

There were exact amounts of chairs to seat the class of 2013 as we figured out where our specific chair was posted. All my life I was bound to sit between Korina Fehrman and Jake Foss, the teen mom and the class nerd. And who was to guess I was to walk down the aisle with Jordan Grenlie, the guy everyone proclaimed as my soul mate in middle school. I looked around me and noticed how different everyone was since the last time I was surrounded by them. I wasn't sitting next to any of my friends, but rather next to people I grew up with, became used to, and built a sort of connection with that is indefinitely irreplaceable. These people were my life whether I had sleepovers with them or didn't see their face for four years of high school, we were all connected in that single moment in time.

Our rather new principal was babbling to us in a microphone about how graduation would progress. For the first time in history we were having graduation at night in the middle of the work week. Not many of us were happy about this decision since it resulted in many of our family members not being able to attend, but we went along with it anyway, because what choice did we have really? So we sat and listened to our lame principal speak to us and tell us not to pull on the strings that connected the ceiling full of blue and white balloons. A few people in my class decided it was extremely silly of us not to have preformed a traditional senior prank, so they secretly told everyone to set their alarms on sound for 2 o'clock. The joke didn't have any effect at all on what was going on. We are lame.

We were let out of school early to attend a picnic by the track concession stand. My friends and I thought it was lame so we walked out to the concessions to grab a hamburger and cookie for on our way to a new adventure. Sarah, Marisa, Bruno, and I headed back towards Sarah's car to go to my house to find some swim suits and towels; we were on our way to Whispering Pines. We found Christie in the parking lot and managed to pack all of us into Sarah's car like sardines in the back seat. Bruno was basically sitting on top of me and Christie was squishing him closer if it was even possible. We jammed out to some intense UK Dubstep I gave Sarah on a burned CD a while ago.

We piled into my house and I think it was the first time Bruno was there. It was funny because we were all changing in different bathrooms/rooms and my parents had no idea what was going on! We left quickly and headed to Marl Lake to catch the first dip of freedom. We were skeptical of the cold, blue water but jumped in anyway, what did we have to lose? With the sun beating down, we felt invincible. No one wanted to get their hair wet before graduation except Bruno and I. It was his first time there so I obviously made him swim across the lake with me to the other dock. We sat on the dock together and dried off, not wanting to go back in. We made bird calls to the others and tried to catch fish and dragonflies. We prolonged getting back into the freezing water, and made everyone else pissed at us. I was just so happy and content to lay on the dock forever in the sun and not even go to graduation, but we needed to head back soon to get ready.

I took a quick shower when  I was at home, but didn't wash my hair. My hair dried from being in the lake and it was shiny and as blonde as ever. I brushed through it a few times and straightened it so my mortar board didn't look funky on top of my head. I threw on the sundress I wore to school and slipped on my class ring and comfortable black flats. I was ready to walk down the aisle and get out of the place where so many things were changing.

For the last time in my life, up to this very day, I drove into the student parking lot feeling like a badass senior, claiming my rightful spot. Walking up to the school for the last time in the student parking lot entrance, seeing the sea of blue gowns running around the library in panic of fly-away hairs and crooked caps. Everyone was taking pictures and talking to each other in a frantic sort of way which made it a very stressful situation. We were bored and wanted to get the show moving. We waited in the library for a little over an hour while Ms. Gorges fixed our caps and gowns.

Eventually we lined up on Main Street in the school and figured out who we would walk down the aisle with. Jordan gave me a high five and we talked with nearby Taylor Fabricius. I became bored because they had more in common to talk about, so I walked over to Jess and talked with her, Jakub Kliestik embraced me and said something I can't remember-that seems to happen a lot- and then went back to sitting with Korina in one of the little inlet things between the lockers. We sat there for what felt like a lifetime. Once people began to get organized into lines in the beginning we knew it was time. Jordan kept whispering things to me and when we took our first two steps into the gym, it felt like we were Katniss and Peeta enter the Hunger Games ceremony with their flaming attire in the back of carts.

My wind ensemble was playing the entrance song I've played so many times before. The stands were completely filled with family, friends, and random people I've never even seen, all there to celebrate our graduation into a new life. Some look at it as an end to a terrible past, others look at it as a beginning to a wonderful life they can create. We made our way to our designated seats and stood in line watching the rest of our class make the walk to the end of a finished chapter. Korina and I were looking around at all the people while she muttered complaints about having to stand for so long.

Once we were allowed to sit, a series of speeches were read and I watched one of my best friends give a heartfelt speech as valedictorian. I was proud and excited for her to be able to have all of the generous receivings that come with being valedictorian, she and her family definitely deserved the break from all the work of having to pay off student loans in the future. I was happy in that moment and an unimaginable amount of thoughts were racing through my head about what the future would bring, how the past played out, and how we all felt in that hot, stuffy gym. I can't say I remember much of who said what in the speeches. I was able to play in my band and sing in my choir one last time, which almost jerked a batch of tears. Singing in the choir again made everything much harder to bare. We were all sad to begin with and Wolfgram is such a sob which left us all heartbroken, but eventually the boring name-calling began. We watched all of our classmates walk across the platform and grab a blue flower on the ramp down.

Of course our school always has to mess something up, the names and pictures on the slideshow were mixed up with the person walking across the stage. At the time we were shaking our heads in disappointment and thinking how stupid it all seemed, but looking back, it makes you realize it was almost perfect. Life isn't perfect, we weren't the perfect class, Waupaca wasn't the perfect little town, and the slideshow-mess-up contributed to our ever so prevailing imperfection.

My row stood up way too early which resulted in us waiting forever to walk up to the stage. The people in the stands were crammed so far down they got in the way of us walking. Becker pronounced my name correctly and I walked across the stage shaking hands with school board people, Haley Johnson, Caleb Kiesow, Kacey Sporel, and hugging Nichole Thorne and Marisa. No one seemed to care that we weren't organized and orderly because the humidity set in on foreshadowing a magnificent thunderstorm. Everyone was too hot and becoming impatient. I was glad I was one of the first row to receive our prize. I could sit the rest of the time and close my eyes or be entertained by everyone's baby pictures flashing across the screen.

When it was time for us to throw our caps in the air, only a few people did in confusion that we weren't allowed to throw our caps anymore. It was just a mess. Balloons fell around us and the senior class of 2013 stomped on them which created a thunderous noise throughout the echoing gymnasium! At least we could improvise our final mark, since no one came up with an ending skit. Jordan and I happily processed out of the gym waving at various people in the crowd. It was our moment in life to feel a bit famous.

Afterwards in the sea of people we took as many pictures as possible to capture some of our last memories with school friends we may not see for a while. I gave a lot of people hugs, and there's no way I can remember them all, I remember I did give Kempfert a hug cuz I owed him thanks though. I took pictures with all of my best friends from high school, because boy did we go through one hell of a trip together. From the band trip to Florida and the choir trip to NYC to the not-so-pleasant speech class to preforming, laughing, crying, and helping each other out...we all went through it together.  So I owe some sort of special thanks to my four best friends, Marisa Landsverk, Sarah Bauer, and Jess Krawczyk, and Tom Garbe. Also to Emma Kelley, Christie Shaw, Jessy Barrows, Dakotah Revai,  Izzi Mielke, Marcus Engle, Jakub Kliestik, Luke Harger, Eric Harrington, Isaac Baumgart, Missy Heschke, Chris Smith, Charlie Larson, Ben Olson, Nicole Mullet, Anthony Olmeda, Jake Pomerenke, Bruno Pessoa, Kenna Orr, Joe Pegorsch, and Logan Ader...that's all I can think of right now. They all shaped me into who I am today, and that's a great thing :)

My parents left right away after taking pictures but Tom and I stayed back to take more and more pictures. It was dark outside by that point and a huge thunderstorm was on it's way to Waupaca. There was red and pink and yellow everywhere on the radar, and they wanted to get home. We were making plans with Emma, Luke, Marisa, and Isaac to either go swimming again or to Isaac's grandparent's hot tub. Emma and Luke were persistent to jump into Shadow Lake while the rest of us opted out. Tom drove me back to my house to get a swim suit for A night with Isaac and Marisa. While we were driving on 10 back to my house it just down poured like nothing else. He had to drive really slow and we couldn't even see out of the windshield at all. The thunder was extremely loud and there was a lot of lightning. Once we got to my house my parents wouldn't let us leave again until it was over. Once it slowed down we met Isaac and Marisa for some relaxation time. Funny things happen when Marisa has a confusing bikini top on- and we'll leave it at that! (Boys are dumb)

The whole experience was just stressful and exciting at the same. We didn't realize it at the time, but now it's something I don't ever want to forget.

Class of 2013 

5/29/13

Fifteen Facts

1. I want to travel the world.

2. I have been to 28/50 states.

3. I collect snow globes and have over 50.

4. I adore swimming every chance I get.

5. I love manatees.

6. I have an obsession with sailboats.

7. I dream of living on a coastline.

8. All of my previous writing was lost before this.

9. I'm extraordinarily good with remembering music.

10. I have seen the Dirty Heads live!

11. The JFK assassination fascinates me.

12. I love my kitty and everyone's else's too.

13. I'm very much an introvert.

14. I'm jealous of people who can snowboard.

15. I'm definitely a pack-rat.

White Doves At Morning

               This is just a taste of my dialogue writing from an assignment in my American Lit. 214 course. Recreating the characters of White Doves At Morning.

            “My momma always says I’m cursed with the gift of Cassandra, and that I’m not going to fit in and I’m always condemned by others, but I feel obligated to fight, you know?” Willie Burke said as he dropped down alongside a tree.

            “No, Willie, you should believe in what you’re fighting for.” said Robert.

            “But if I don’t go out and fight I’ll just be that lazy son of a bitch who is too cowardly to fight. I have to show I care somehow.” Willie continued.

            “Willie, you can’t fight a war and expect to win if you don’t know what you believe or stand up for. If you just go out there killing men it’ll change you.” Robert tried to explain.

            “But I’m too afraid not to fight…” Willie confessed.

            “You’re a good man, Willie Burke. I hope we run into each other again someday, old pal.” said Robert.

            “I will definitely see you again, as long as you don’t get caught up in some Yank prison camp or something,” Willie laughed nervously as he patted Robert on the back.

            “You know that won’t happen ‘cause a man like me won’t get caught with doin something awful risky like a Willie Burke would try,” Robert winked at Willie.

            “I wish I had the bravery and guts you got there, Robert.”

            “It comes with believing in what ya stand for, old pal.” Robert said as he rubbed the pommel of his knife in his pocket.

                “Miss Abby? Can I ask you a question?” Flower cautiously stammered as they mustered together on a park bench.

            “Anything sweetie, you know I’m always here to answer anything that’s troubling you,” replied Abigail.

            “How did you learn to read and write?” She asked while starring at her shoes.

            “Oh Flower, I grew up in Massachusetts and went to school and received a proper education. My daddy also taught me well,” Abigail stated with pride.

            “You embarrass me a great deal with the way you talk to me sometimes, Miss Abby,” Flower stated.

            “I’m sorry, Flower. I have a lot of respect for a woman like you who never gives up.”

            “I forgive you, Miss Abby, I don’t understand why you and Mr. Willie decided to help a poor nigger woman like me though,” Flower wondered.

            “Don’t call yourself that name, Flower! And Willie Burke is a good man at heart, but he should be running off with girls with flaxen hair, not fighting a war,” Abigail said more to herself than Flower.

            “I wish he makes it back safe so he can give me more books, Miss Abby.”

            “He will be back, he always makes it somehow,” Abigail said thoughtfully.
           

            “What is it exactly you want me to do with these men sir? And what are the boundaries?” asked Atkins fixing his meretricious outfit.

`           “I want you to continue to get the same amount of work from these men as if they were your slaves, but treat them a little better so we don’t get shut down.” demanded Jamison.

            “Yes, sir. Do you want us to do anything about the nigger girl?”

            “Leave Flower alone. Any man to lay a finger on her will have to answer to me,” threatened Jamison, “But do with Ms. Dowling as you please.”

            “Yes, sir, she’s ruined your reputation pretty well with all the newspaper talkings and such.” Atkins pointed out stupidly.

            Jamison glanced at Atkins bitterly, “Burn her house for all I care, as long as no one harms Flower and I get my pay from the penitentiary on time.”

            “Should the children of the prison still be required to take on manual labor, sir?”

            “Most definitely, make them work just as hard as they can. Don’t let them screw around or tell them they will go without a day’s worth of food.” Jamison sighed.

            “I will make sure they get their work done. Even if they are now prisoners, they’re still damn nigger to us, and will deserve what’s comin to them...” sneered Atkins.

            “We won’t let the South forget the preponderance of white males and their status.” Jamison reassured Atkins.

            “Carrie, if you wanna save your white-trash business, you gotta help me with sometin.” Jean-Jacques pressed, waving a plot in her face written on a napkin.

            “I’ll do anyting if you can rid me of the terrible tings I done back home, just tell me what to do,” Carrie begged, “Or else God won’t hear none of my whining when the time comes.”

            “I’m helping Miss Abigail smuggle them Negros out of Jamison’s grasp with my ship just up the river into Yankee territory,” Jean-Jacques confessed.

            “I ain’t got any money to spare, Jean, least I can do is leave my money in my will to the poor Flower girl and maybe my house so she won’t be bothered by them bleating paddy rollers no more.”

            “Damn it, Carrie, haven’t you got any money at all from the grog and company at your whore house? Or even some room to hide them overnight?”

            “I can’t risk having them blackies here while the Captain is still in line for my girls upstairs every night!” exclaimed Carrie.

            “Can you at least lend a guy some grog for the trip? You write that will for Flower while I’m gone,” demanded Jean, “You best watch your back ‘cause you know that Todd McCain is on to you and wants your house for his own profits.”

            “ I know, Jean, word has it there’s an auction for that big white house, and I ain’t gonna let Todd McCain start runnin the business round here. I’ll try to help Flower best I can.”

            “Sister, I know I’d never heard myself saying this, but you should see the priest for your guilt if you can’t help me now to save men,” suggested Jean.

            “I reckon you be right,” agreed Carrie, “I’ll write my will and count my days, and try to ask the Lord for forgiveness of my sins. Good luck, brother.”

           

            “We gotta get these niggers and their nigger-lovin folks in line or Marse Jamison might fire us,” Rufus Atkins smiled at his out loud remark while his yellow teeth glistened in the last bits of sunlight before the sun was covered by the gloaming.

                “Those bitches ruined my chances of a perfect place for meetings and making money,” complained McCain, “I say we start with LaRose and Dowling, they both are part of the nigger-smuggling group and are getting in our way.”

                “I know one way we can get inside their minds and rip them to shreds. We begin by ravaging the nigger bitch who walks around likes she owns the town ‘cause she can read and write,” Atkins spat.

                “But Marse Jamison told us not to touch her any more or else we be feeling a lot of pain…”

                “He doesn’t have to find out about it, ‘cause the only person on this land who would go cryin to Jamison about that nigger is Abigail Dowling, and we’re going to shut her down for good.” said Atkins.

                “I suppose she ain’t never gonna come out of her house ever again after we’re through with her.” McCain agreed with a smirk dancing on his lips.

“The Knights are gonna restore power to the rightful white landowners and get rid of this stupid shit idea of niggers walking free with a purpose other than making my meals and picking my crops.” continued McCain as they stepped out onto the gallery.

                “I agree, they’re only good for pleasure and work because they are soulless, and the nigger-loving president should put them all back where they belong. But to hell with what Jamison says about Flower. She’s mine to do whatever I want.” Atkins claimed.

                “Just as long as we send these Underground railroad people back up to their Yankee states to mind their own God-damn business.” McCain noted while the sweet scent of rain gathered from the distant storm.

                “Don’t worry, we’ll restore our power and continue to have our peace after the White Camellias rise above all.” 

Ghost On The Shore

    On a cool evening on the border of Upper Michigan, predictable Lake Superior unleashed her wrath on the cream colored sands of White Fish Point. The lighthouse on shore beckoned to distant ships, piercing the dark fog through the night. When the wind began to pick up I ran over to my boat and tied it to a tree with mangled rope before I found refuge in the tiny room below the beckoning light.

    The rain pounded in sheets against the stone, and gales of wind hammered at the lighthouse entrance like a persistent salesman. To my surprise there was a bed in one corner of the dust covered, spider infested building. I found sympathy with the spiders since I would have been lost forever if I hadn't found comfort with them away from the early November storm. The tiny jail-like window above the bed proved to be a worthless source of light with its moth-bitten curtains hanging loosely over the sill.
    I scoured the wall with my hand to locate a switch or candle to provide some light. I found the flat surface of a light switch and flicked it up and down but no light was produced from the overhead light bulb, just a soft buzzing sound that was drown out by the furious sounds of the storm. Luckily there are a few things I carry with me in my journeys including a handheld lighter. I began searching for another source of light and my hand grazed a cool metal object hanging on the wall near the broken light switch. A rusty old lantern hung there with a generous supply of kerosene ready for me to use.
    Thunder cracked the sky and shook the stone building while I cautiously peered around the small room. The stairwell on the opposite wall from the bed wound to great heights and I was semi-curious to know what else was up there besides a rotating light.
    "Hello?," I called timidly up the stairs, "Is anyone up there?"
    The only response I received was the howling wind telling me I was dead alone. I shrugged off the eerie feeling I received and continue to search the room for some sort of information pertaining to civilization.
    Next to the stairwell stood an unbalanced, dust-covered writing desk with moldy papers and a ruffled quill resting on top of it. I tried opening the drawers but they were stuck and no matter how much strength I put into pulling them open, they wouldn't budge. A gust of wind swept down from the stairwell and unsettled the papers momentarily. The words on the papers were small and slanted and spoke of past ship wrecks and major storms, but I was distracted from reading when I saw something move.
     A spider crawling across the wall above the desk caught my attention as it hurried under a cracked mirror away from the sudden light from my lantern. I caught a glimpse of my reflection when I followed the spider with my big blue eyes. My face was as pale as a ghost and my once bright blonde hair that flowed down my back was now a shiny silvery blonde. I was shocked at first to see myself standing in a damp, dimly lit room with little color added by my presence. I figured my lack of complexion was due to fatigue and the lighting. 
    The spider then scuttled to the bed that was next to the ancient looking mirror and I wondered how long this place had been abandoned. I stroked the bed with the tips of my rough sea-bound fingers and felt no dust or dirt but rather a silky sensation compared to the tattered and worn look it gave off. There was something peculiar about this place, but I couldn't wrap my mind around what it might be, I was only glad to be away from the monster of a storm that crashed all around me. 
   I crossed the room and lifted my lantern up the stairwell a little ways to see if the metal stairs would support me all the way to its summit. It looked fairly safe so I ventured up the stairs making a loud clanking noise with each step. The attic-like entrance to the top of the lighthouse  gave me chills while I tried to find enough courage to stick my head through the opening.
     I set the lantern down on the edge of the hole and peaked over it to see an even smaller room filled with broken light bulbs and seagull droppings. The top of the tower was called home by a number of different bird's nests in the rafters. I hoisted myself up into the room and walked to the back of the rotating light, peering out over the Bay. My mind raced with memories of the previous month out travelling the Great Lakes. This wasn't my first tragic storm, in fact it might have been the seventh storm I encountered within the long, dreary month of October into November.
    In mid October my dear sister was lost in the ferocious tides of Lake Superior when we encountered a storm much like the one I watched from the tower of the lighthouse. We traveled on separate boats, but drifted hopelessly apart by winds that changed direction much like the switchbacks of the Rocky Mountains. I spent hours upon hours and days upon days searching for my sister, but she was no where to be found. The storms became steadily worse as the month continued to drag by, and I could no longer manage without food and shelter on my boat; I was forced to head to shore. My devastation from the loss of my best friend overrode any exhilarating thought of exploring as I floated toward a beckoning light which was the very lighthouse I was standing in now. Adrenaline and numbness must have keep me going in those last few weeks sailing to the sandy beach.
     A forceful strike of lightning branched down from the black clouds and woke me from my dreadful reverie and I focused my eyes back to the storm. My vision was impaired by sheets of cold rain, but I spotted  my boat anchored to the small tree just off the shoreline. It seemed to be holding up alright considering the gales were so strong, but I noticed something I didn't see before sitting on one of the branches of the tree. The object was white but translucent at the same time and I wondered if it was some sort of distorted seagull. It appeared to stretch out its legs and arms and I could see it was not an animal but a human.
    I ran in front of the rotating light and absentmindedly stuck my head out of the lighthouse tower to get a better look at the human sitting by my boat. My face stung as hard pellets of rain struck my face and I retreated almost immediately. I grabbed my lantern and and flew down the metal stairs two at a time. I zipped up my raincoat and ran into the storm yelling at the top of my lungs for my sister. The wind blew me sideways and the rain pierced my body with a thousand little ice chunks  but I needed to save her.
    The sky had an eerie hint of yellow-green over the horizon on the lake and the clouds above were swirling black, grey, and navy blue. Lightning forked through every inch of the sky lighting up the beach enough for me to not take my eyes off of my target. I trudged through the wet sand as fast as my legs would carry me but the lightning began to tapper off just as fast as came and I lost track of where the tree was. I ran blindly in the dark, my eyes not yet adjusted to the darkness of the night, and soon collapsed into the sand near the tree saying my sister's name as another crack of lightning lit up the sky. I was still looking directly at the tree and she was no longer there. I didn't know how this could be possible. The world was dark again and my mind exploded with possibilities of where she could have gone. Maybe she heard me calling her name and ran back to the lighthouse, but she couldn't have disappeared into thin air.
    I'll never know if I was crying for the rain soaked my body to my bones and devastation took control of my mind once more. I grabbed a smooth, round stone from below the tree and flung it hard into the lake's depths. I couldn't believe I lost her again to this terrible sort of storm. The lightning began to strike more and I looked to the water to see my boat tugged loose and was floating away from shore.
    I sprinted toward the water and catapulted myself into the harsh whitecaps to the mercy of the lake. The strange sensation of numbness and adrenaline pounded through my veins again as I drove my way through the waves to my boat. I hoisted myself into it and laid down face first so I wouldn't be thrown overboard or be pounded in the face with ice pellets. Ten minutes went by before I noticed the storm began to let up. The wind and rain ceased and I felt safe enough to turn around and look up at the sky while letting the waves carry me further from shore. The water no longer crashed over the sides of the boat and silent lightning struck the distant horizon. Exhaustion claimed my body, mind, and soul and I soon dreamed of the happy days of sailing the Great Lakes with my sister.
    The screeching of seagulls woke me with a start. My mind was blurry from the events that took place the night before. I sat up too quickly and my head throbbed with dizziness. The air was thick with swirling white fog and the lake was as calm as ever with only the ripples from my boat making tiny dents in the glassy water. I had no sense of time since the fog was barring my sight from the sun. I figured I still must be near land since seagulls were pestering me for fish. I grabbed a piece of driftwood floating near me and began to paddle into the endless fog. It felt like I was paddling for hours until I caught a vague glimpse of shoreline and the outline of a pale object. 
    I nearly tumbled out of the boat seeing the human form again. I stretched my hands over my head and yelled my sisters name. She was starring my way with hope in her eyes. I frantically paddled my way to shore where she was standing and jumped out of the boat. Her green eyes watched the boat with fear as tears brimmed them.
    "Don't cry, sister! I'm right here! I'm okay! You're okay!"
   She ignored my words and starred directly into my face with an expression of deepest sorrow and hurt. She clutched something tightly in her hands, a silver chain with a sailboat charm hanging from the middle. Absentmindedly my hand reached around my neck, I hadn't realized I lost my necklace during the chaos. I extended my arm and touch her hands gently to say a silent thank you. A prominent shiver ran through her body and her eyes darted toward the boat once more. Tears trickled down her blotched cheeks and her breath hitched momentarily. She lifted her hands away from mine and unclasped the necklace carefully and put it around my neck and fastened it tightly. I watched her collapse into the sand in front of my feet and as I looked down, the necklace she just fastened around my neck was laying in the sand right in front of my devastated sister. 
    In that solitary moment I realized I'm the Lord of the lake and I didn't want to leave it. Now all who sail off this coast ever more will remember the tale of the ghost on the shore. My boat was yet again drifting steadily away from shore on the calm waters of Lake Superior.

Nordic Mountain.

It was a great Friday afternoon the first time I ever went to Nordic Mountain; in fact, a better Friday than usual. I was acing all of my final exams I had not studied for whatsoever. I was totally unprepared to take any tests that day, and hadn't even read the book that was also due that afternoon. I managed to get through the day by wearing a nice dress I had picked up two nights before. Since I don’t dress up often, I had many compliments which kept me going throughout the day. Even Tom told me to, “Stop lookin’ so damn hot!” HahahaJ Since I wore a dress to school and I was snowshoeing second hour in gym, I brought some comfy sweatpants and boots to wear outside. Tom let me use his snowboarding jacket and gloves outside so I didn’t have to walk upstairs after second hour to get my own things. He told me to take a certain trail once I was outside snowshoeing to see something that he did. Amber, Zoe, and I were the first people ready to go and walked over to the trail Tom told me about. A little ways up the path I noticed writing in the snow that said, “I <3 4="4" ahead="ahead" amber="amber" and="and" as="as" by="by" cuddled="cuddled" cutest="cutest" ever="ever" girl="girl" guessed="guessed" his="his" i="i" in="in" it="it" jacket="jacket" luckiest="luckiest" of="of" on="on" other="other" p="p" part="part" people="people" that="that" the="the" them="them" thing="thing" thinking="thinking" thought="thought" through="through" trail.="trail." trampled="trampled" up="up" walked="walked" was="was" we="we" went="went" who="who" world.="world." world="world" you="you" zoe="zoe">

 I finished my book by reading through every class and skipping lunch so I could take my last two quizzes on it. I received an outstanding grade in English for the quarter. After having a nice day in choir, I walked into the band room thinking that I would have the whole hour as a study hall so I could finish my book. That idea was quickly changed once I saw an old...friend… standing on the podium waiting to direct our class. I was as unenthusiastic as possible in band that day. Yet, the fact that he was there didn’t bug me at all; I was more worried that I no longer had time to finish my book. Eventually the time came to be 3:09 and I was excited to be with Tom after school for the second night in a row. I still had to take the final quiz on my book and joined five of my other classmates after school to take it. Jake, Erik, and I may have exchanged answers somewhere in there. I was done with test taking for a couple of days though! Free!

As I walked outside again, my eyes instantly started to water being stung by the harsh coldness outside, but I didn’t even feel the cold because I knew I would be warm soon enough with Tom. I hopped in my car, turned up the music loud, and started singing to Young, Wild & Free by Wiz Khalfia and Snoop Dogg. For a day that I thought was going to be miserable beyond belief, it was absolutely great so far.

I arrived at Tom’s to be greeted by his family and taken upstairs by Tom. Since I had never been to Nordic before, Tom basically had to dress me so I wouldn’t freeze to death. I changed into my sweatpants, and we ate some pizza. As we were about to leave, I was having some slight difficulties with boots. I didn’t have any of my own so I had to borrow some of theirs. Tom had given me about 50 pairs of socks to put on beforehand so I could barely fit into a pair of boots! Once I had some on, he had to lace and tie them for me because I just gave up at that point, haha. Such a good boyfriend I haveJ Erin, Tom, and I piled into the back seat and we were off to Nordic! Of course being smushed in the back seat with Tom, we had a definite reason to be close to each other haha. ;) We jammed out to Party Rock Anthem, and they gave me a visual tour of their old house on Erin’s ipod. Once we were on the back roads that lead to Nordic, we could start to see it off in the distance. All these lights were sparkling in the sky that looked so much like stars. It was already dark out by then, and we could see the slight glow of Saxsville in the horizon. Tom’s dad pulled into the parking lot of Nordic and I got out to let Tom out because he had been sitting in the middle. He made me get back in so I wouldn’t be cold. He opened the trunk to get his stuff ready, and Erin and I watched him through the rear window.

After Tom disappeared over the trench, Erin and I left to go watch him come down at the bottom of the hill. We were easily entertained by the people who were coming down and tried to copy all of their moves saying that we were better cuz we could actually land and we didn’t even need a board or skis. ;) We decided that got boring fast and made a mini snowman instead. The snow wasn’t packy at all so we had to keep making him a head after it kept crumbling to pieces. Eventually we got him to stay in one piece and stuck some plants into the side of him that were supposed to be arms, haha. Tom came over by us to see what we were doing, and I’m sure he thought we were being so silly.

We watched him go down a couple more times before his mom and dad came over by Erin and me. We headed over to the fire which was near where were we had been sitting. His mom put down a Packer’s blanket on a log for Erin and me to sit on. We huddled next to each other trying not to die from breathing in all the smoke that was blowing directly in our faces. Then his mom sat down next to me and we all huddled next to each other trying to keep warm. Eventually she got extremely sick of breathing in smoke and moved us over to the other side of the fire after some other people left. His dad put some more wood on the fire, and Erin started to talk about wanting to go tubing. I could tell that Aaron didn’t really want to go tubing, so I said I would take Erin. So Erin and her dad walked over to the place where you get tubes and pay for hours while Suzy and I talked about our bad experiences with tubing on water, lol. I was standing on of one of the logs when Erin and her dad came back over by us and they both had their backs turned towards me and Suzy was facing me….I completely like fell off of the log and Suzy just burst out laughing and said, “Nice Laura!” Aaron was disappointed he missed it, hahaha.

 Anyway, I had to go over to the little shack and sign a paper and get a sticker for tubing. As Erin and I were getting our tubes, I looked over back at the fire and saw Tom there. I didn’t notice until I did a double take and saw that he was shirtless! Haha, I was pretty confused, yeah. Though I definitely didn’t mind seeing him shirtless besides the fact it was like 19 degrees out! Erin and I continued to walk over to the lift until all of a sudden I couldn’t move my tube anymore and I almost fell over from the sudden stop. Tom had jumped into my tube while I was pulling it, haha. He walked with us over to the lift, and Erin and I were becoming more and more frightened of going down! The lady who hooked us up to the lift thought that Erin and I were sisters and that Tom was our brother. She said to me, “Why isn’t your brother coming along too?” I just laughed and shrugged cuz it was too funny.

Somehow, I was hooked up backwards and was facing Erin as we were being dragged up the lift. We laid back, put our feet up and crossed them, put our hands behind our heads, and pretended to be cool, haha. We are cool. Once we got to the top of the hill, Erin and I decided to go down the first lane, and a nice girl named Hannah pushed us down. We went together and held on to each other’s tubes, scared but excited! Once she pushed us down, it was like I was back in Illinois again at Six Flags. I’ve been there twice and tubing definitely was not as scary as Raging Bull or American Eagle. On our way down, Erin and I crossed each other and ended up on different sides, and near the bottom I saw Tom recording us on his ipod!!!! My eyes began to water so bad from the frozen wind that whipped across our faces. All I could hear was Erin’s screaming and the tubes scraping the icy paths that led us to a big pile of snow. We didn’t stop until we went hurdling up part of the hill and then back down again. I fell off of my tube and died a little, haha. Then I hopped up and ran up the steep hill to the top and told Erin to come too. We stood at the top of the hill and held hands up like champions. We had made it to the hill; our goal.

We slid back down the hill, grabbed our tubes, and trudged back through the snow feeling very accomplished. As we neared the lift again, our faces streaming with tears, we talked to Tom and his parents again who though it was the funniest thing ever. Erin and I made our way back to the lift and experimented with something new each time we went down. I was trying to get better aerodynamics so I would go faster and farther, but Erin and I figured out that we go farther and faster when both of us went down together. As we were walking up to the lift each time, we saw Tom coming down on the terrain park next to us. Man, he looks pretttty good on that snowboard. I really do enjoy watching snowboarding. I just don’t know if I’d like doing it myself. So, I got to see him go down almost every time!

As Erin and I were standing at the top of the hill about to go down, I heard the faint ringing of ambulances and fire trucks. I easily dismissed that notion of unease because I hadn’t seen them yet and thought maybe they were going somewhere else. Erin and I stood at the top of the hill waiting for the people at the bottom to move out of the way. They would not move. We started to talk to Hannah again about pretty much everything and anything. We came up with ideas of how to tell the people at the bottom to move out of the way. Eventually Erin just yelled, “MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!!!!” After 10 seconds they started to move! This time when we went down, we both stopped on the same hill and had to get up and jump back on to keep going.

When I took this pause I noticed a loud humming noise coming from above. Once I stopped, I looked up and saw this huge helicopter in the sky above us. Erin and I headed back to the lift thinking that they were just passing by. Then I noticed that the ambulances and fire trucks I had been hearing before were sitting in the parking lot now. Erin and I stopped half way back to the lift and watched the helicopter get closer and closer. It looked as if the chopper was going to land right on us. Over the deafening roar I yelled for Erin and grabbed her hand to run away from it. We ran a little farther to the lift and saw that the helicopter was going to land in the parking lot. Erin and I stood sinking in the soft snow and watched the huge helicopter rise up a good amount of snow in this swirling vortex around it. All around people began to gather at the bottoms of the hills to watch as a young kid was getting lifted into the helicopter on a stretcher. We couldn’t see much because of the large snow cloud that was still in the air which made the lights foggy and the wind blow even more cold snow in our faces. I hadn’t seen Tom come down the hill for the past few times, and I was absolutely horrified. Whether there were tears streaming down my face or just my eyes watering from the wind, I’ll never know. I looked over at Erin with the water freezing on my face, and she started to hug me. I held her while we watched everyone scramble around to try and see what was going on. She told me not to worry and that it wasn’t Tom in that helicopter. I knew deep down that it wasn’t him because I didn’t have any weird feelings. I knew that he wasn’t hurt, but I couldn’t get rid of that feeling that even horrible things happen to the best of us.

After everyone began to settle down, we went back to the lift and went up for a couple more runs. The people who were working told us that they had never seen a helicopter in all the years that they had been working there. As I was going up the lift I could not help but think about what if it was Tom that had been hurt badly. I played the whole scenario in my head and how things would play out, and then I felt as though I was going to cry and never stop. Yet I couldn’t cry because of it being so cold out. Each time Erin and I walked back up to the lift we didn’t see Tom come down. We would be watching with hawk eyes, and got really excited when we would see someone with a striped jacket on. It turned out to be some kid in a blue striped jacket every time. Erin could tell how upset I was and asked if I wanted to go back to the lodge. I definitely agreed that we should, and find Tom. We ran back to the shack to put our tubes away, and ran as fast as we could over to where the trench was before the parking lot. The helicopter was still sitting there like a giant black dragon fly waiting to take off. We jumped the trench and stood in front of the car until an official told us to go back on the other side of the trench. We had to find some way to get to the lodge, so we took a different way through the trees to get there. On the way I tripped over a log or something and almost took Erin down with me. We were so close to completely falling over, but she caught me. Then we interlocked arms and finished our trip to the lodge.

 I was looking for Tom everywhere in the masses of skiers that were just standing around. I looked up and saw Suzy and Aaron looking over the rail of the deck with concerned faces. I took that as a bad sign and that they didn’t know where he was either. They didn’t see us until we were on the deck and then told us that Tom was safe. Nobody will ever know how relieved I was. It turns out that his parents were looking for us instead. They took us inside (All of this is coming alive again for me and my eyes are actually watering) and wanted to buy us something to drink and eat. I didn’t have the least bit of an appetite after that; neither did Erin. All I wanted to do at this point was see Tom. It felt like forever before I finally saw a blur of green and yellow walking in my peripheral vision. I looked up immediately and jumped up and walked over to him. He stood by his parents on the opposite side of the table and I hugged him from behind so tight. I told him that I was never going to let him go. His parents looked at us and his mom said, “Awwww, she really loves you!” You better believe I do. I was relieved into silence.

The moment when I saw him for the first time again was just unbelievable. I cannot even explain the emotion I felt seeing him alright. I’m not sure if he even knows because my reaction was so chill. Believe me; I was already relieved into a state where I no longer had any more energy just because his parents told me that he was fine. I told him that I had already known he was okay before I saw him, and he replied that that made it even sweeter that I still had a reaction like that.  I still felt extremely bad for the kid who fractured his skull and was air lifted to a hospital. None of us were hungry; all we cared about was seeing if the helicopter had taken off or not.

I grabbed Tom’s arm and stayed as close as possible to him as we walked back to the parking lot. At the bottom of the hill we saw that it had left, and ran into Jordan. The guys talked for a little bit and decided what they wanted to do. Us three headed back for the lodge. Tom was going back out on the hills, while Erin and I were going to go to the bottom and wait for him every single time he came down. As he was walking up to the top, I began to sprint towards him as quiet as possible with Erin running behind me. He turned around and saw us and stood solid to try and stop us. We tackled him to the ground and laid there for a little bit; all so happy to be together. I was just so happy to be with him. I love him so much.

Once we went our own ways, Erin and I headed into the lodge to warm up a bit. We sat in front of the fire and talked about what to do next while his parents were still sitting at their table. We decided to go watch Tom again and this time went up to the middle of the hill in the trees. We stood by a pole and watched him a while until we got bored of standing there. At the bottom of the hills again, we screwed around by the fire and tried jumping over rocks until Erin got too cold, and we headed back to the lodge again. Erin and I played Party Rock Anthem and talked about going on vacation to Yellowstone some day. J I felt very much like a part of their family that night; and that was an amazing feeling. Tom came back in then, and we were done at Nordic. We walked back down to the parking lot ahead of his parents. Erin and I tried jumping the trench again in the widest part this time. I couldn’t even make it in the widest part, haha. Erin and I made progress though. Once Tom had everything in the trunk, we headed out for home.

On the ride home, Tom, Erin, and I tried to unwrap Starburts in our mouths. We all got it, but Erin kept on doing it and got them unwrapped really fast too. Tom and I were a little skeptical about this! To make things worse, she tried to draw a whale on the frosted up windows…and she managed to make it look nothing like a whale…….Oh it was so bad. Luckily she had no idea why the Starburst thing was bad, or what she drew on the window. Tom and I were completely geeking out at this. For the rest of the trip we ended up playing truth or dare.

Once we were back at his place, we went up to his room, and changed into some nice, warm, dry clothes. We basically crawled right into bed and almost fell asleep! Haha! We were both so drained, and nothing sounded better than sleeping at that moment. He held me so close in his arms, and we both were drifting off into sleep. It was pretty amazing the way I felt. When he would kiss me, my heart felt like it was going to beat right out of my chest. I was on a high from being so close and in tune.

All in all, great day. And we shall see what the stars bring next.