Owen Johnson
Patrick Romeri
Lucas Lisman
4-29-15


"In the evening I spread the jam on the cakes and eat some. But I have no taste for them. So I go out to give them to the Russians. Then it occurs to me that my mother cooked them herself and that she was probably in pain as she stood before the hot stove. I put the bag back in my pack and take only two cakes to the Russians.”

Excerpt From: Erich Maria Remarque & Arthur Wesley Wheen. “All Quiet on the Western Front.” Chapter 8

Empathy is about standing in someone else's shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or her eyes. Not only is empathy hard to outsource and automate, but it makes the world a better place.

In Chapter 8 of the book, All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, Paul shows his empathy, which makes a huge impact

Before they head back to the trenches, Paul’s father and sister give Paul some jam and potato cakes that his mother made for him. Depressed, Paul has no appetite for the food, and thinks whether to give them to the hungry Russian prisoners. He decides that he will give the food to them, but then he remembers that his mother must have been in pain when she made the cakes and that she especially made them for him. He compromises by giving the prisoners two of the 

In chapter 8, Paul shows great empathy. It illustrates how people even when they are so sad, so mad and overall depressed. Still, have the capability to feel bad for others. And, to realize that they are doing just fine in comparison. This is a great trait that Paul has presented. It is a gift that will only help him in the future. Paul is almost broken and he is barely holding on to sanity. Yet, he still finds the decency in himself to help criminals at the nearby prison.

Excerpt From: Erich Maria Remarque & Arthur Wesley Wheen. “All Quiet on the Western Front.” Chapter 8

Paul's empathy was one huge way that he made an impact on the prisoners.

I like this post because it rhymes also it tells the story of spring into summer.

The new spring flowers blossom 
Down in the city of Boston
The warm sun comes out
All the people out and about 
Little cherry blossoms bloom.
Smell of sweet perfume.
Beautiful roses will sprout 
New plants are short and stout
The April showers start to tinkle

The new grass starts to unwrinkle 
All the new plants and trees are bound
Growing out of the frozen ground
The air begins to warm up
And the winter season begins to close up
Say goodbye to that winter freeze
And say hello to the spring breeze

Lacrosse season starts
All over my living room
Fake green grass, black turf

Is he safe or out
The crowd thinks it an out
The ump couldn't tell

A sunny afternoon 
The long fly ball to right field
Falls into the glove

Where did the snow go?
It's finally warm weather time
Get ready for spring

Rain falls from the sky
Freshly cut grass fills the air
Spring is finally here

The sprinklers turn on
The weather starts to warm up
Beautiful flowers bloom

The NBA playoffs are coming our way this weekend and it's going to be very exciting. This year there are many good match ups throughout both conferences. By far the most intriguing matchup is the Los Angles Clippers and the San Antonio Spurs. The reason this is the most intriguing matchup is due to the super star power of each teams. Many big names such as Chris Paul and Tim Duncan will be playing in this series. Another reason this is the best game is due to how good each team is. The Spurs have been one of the best teams for the last 20 years and now the Clippers are starting to uprise to one of the best teams. The least intruding game is the Atlanta Hawks and the Brooklyn Nets. Both teams have been in a slump in the best few weeks. .Another reason this is the worst playoff game is due to the lack of star power. People love watching NBA stars play and neither of these teams have one

       The glowing light of the nearby iPad fills the room, my eyes glued to the page. Words passing my eyes but no words go into full meaning. I realized I was skimming over the story and was just reading what was on the page and wasn't truly understanding what was going on in the story. I go back and reread the entire page. As I get to the bottom of the page I still have no full understanding on what was going on. I moved on thinking it just happened to be that one page. I kept reading on and on and I keep finding myself lost in words. I decided to finish the chapter and see if later on my understanding was clearer. I finish the chapter and I have a thin understanding of what happened. My teacher had created a website with the summaries of each chapter, I went and looked on their. After I was done looking on the website I felt like giving up, I had no where to turn, I wasn't understanding anything in this story. Next day during school we start to talk about the book in our class. Each student knew a lot of details about the story and I only know the broad plot. After class i go over and ask them how they remembered each thing, one student had said "Try make reading fun and enjoyable not a chore also, don't rush through, it will help your understanding much more. I return home and open my iPad and I try to do as my fellow student had said. I take my time, reread sections and make each line seem like its my last. After some advice from my classmate I was able finally understand what was happening in this story. I was able to understand each line and rememberer what was going on at the same time. After feeling like giving up on the book the night before. I preserved and realized if I keep doing what Im doing, I will have a lot of fun reading this story.


     As I went through the Odyssey I had experienced up and downs. It seemed as if the Odyssey and I were in a boxing ring. At points the story was overpowering me but towards the end I felt I landed the knockout punch. I had learned to make reading fun as I was a person who made reading a chore. Once I made reading fun I was able to understand and take in what the Odyssey really meant. From the ups and downs of the story I was able to grow as a reader. I learned that you should never judge and or give up on a book by the first few chapter. Usually when a story starts off rough it stays that way. From prior reading experience this had been a trend throughout most stores. Not the Odyssey, once you get passed first few boring chapters, the intensity and detail starts to pick and every scene becomes visibly enriched into your mind. At first I thought the story was dull and didn't want to read though those parts but then the story switched from gear one to gear four. I had taught myself to cherish and take in each line and what it really meant, not just read to read. Looking back on the Odyssey theres was many things to take away from it. Not only life lessons such as preserve and power through even if you aren't enjoying what you're doing at the time, but also a great story enriched with action and detail.



Its important to stick with what you're doing because in the end you'll look back and be glad you did.