"To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace." -George Washington

Hey Friends,  below is a paper I wrote for my writing class, it is called 'Chreia.'  Chreia is similar to an argument, and in it, the author's goal is to convince the reader of his point.  I am in a writing class that has me practicing this style of writing at Brighton academy.  This paper is on a famous saying by George Washington.



"To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace."
                                             - George Washington

  It is wise to value George Washington for his ability, for he succeeded in leading his country, becoming a general in the Revolutionary War for his bravery.  He excelled at organization, and won many battles with his strategy and ability to listen to advice..  He eventually became the President and continued to serve his country both faithfully and modestly.  I could go on and on about his wise actions and great accomplishments, but time is short, so I will speak only of his wise words on preserving peace.

  "To anticipate war is one one of the most adequate strategies of keeping peace."  That is his thought, but in my own words, and I shall continue to praise it in the following.

    Consider a newborn nation.  It has a wise, knowledgeable general who insists on being ready and thoroughly trained for war at all times.  Its enemies look at it and believe it to be a perfect target, an seemingly disorganized nation.  Consequently, the enemy, over time, places its men in the newly-born military until the spies knew enough confidential information to send a coded message to their country, the enemy , telling them to attack.  But the new prepared nation intercepts the message, breaks the code with their up-to-date equipment , and sets up such strong defenses that the enemy is discouraged and retreats.

  But, if a newly-born nation lets down its guard in a happy time of joy and peace, presuming the war is far off, their experienced enemies will quickly take advantage of the lazy nation's ignorance.  The ill-prepared country will quickly fall, defeated by its numerous enemies.

  Just as a practiced hiker acknowledges that an accident may occur despite his years of experience and survives by being prepared, in the same way a military trains persistently even in a time of peace, and intimidates their enemies when war arises.

  Consider the day Pearl Harbor was bombed.  America was in a time of peace, with most of its navy simply resting unguarded in the peaceful Pearl Harbor.  When the stealthy Japanese came in with thier planes and bombed the ships, everyone was caught off guard and suffered over two thousand deaths and an additional two thousand wounded , because of how unready they were.

  "Better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear. (Aesop, Fables)"  This is similar to what Washington said, for what he explained as being prepared for war, Aesop showed as giving up small luxuries to live in peace.  Both phrases are alike, just in different words.

Those who hear my words and agree with them must praise George Washington for his educated proverb on preserving peace.

Washington, D.C. (Part 2)

• Gems from the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History- Amazing!!
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• The Hope Diamond!!^
• Virginia Beach- 3 days, Sitting in a heartshaped hot tub, munching Pringles, and looking out over the ocean from the balcony of our hotel room!!! We had a great time in the ocean, and walking along the beach at night, or waking up at 6 to watch the sunrise and collect shells........so amazing!
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Please feel free to leave comments or questions by clicking on the comment button below. :)

Washington, D.C.

Flowers Jefferson Memorial Lincoln Memorial

Hey, everybody!!! Annie and I just got back from an amazing trip to D.C. with our grandparents!! We saw some amazing things, and learned a lot!! Some of our favorites were:

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• The Washington Monument- we got to ride an elevator up to the top!
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• The National Cathedral- amazing! We got to hear a London choir sing hymns!!
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• The National Archives- we saw the original Constitution and Declaration!!
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• The Federal Bureau of Printing and Engraving- we saw them making big sheets of money!!
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• The Capitol Building- We got a special, private tour from an intern from Senator Pat Robert's office!! We also got to sit in a special gallery above the House of Representatives while they were in session!! It was so cool to actually see them in real life, arguing and making laws!!
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Here is Kipper again, he is now 13 weeks old and weighs about 4lbs. He is super sweet and getting better with the potty training!!

Kipper!!

Kipper, our newest member of the family is a Cavapoo. (A Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a Miniature Poodle mix) We'll be taking him home in about 10 days, or whenever he is 3 lb. We are so excited!!

The Boy and the Grapes

Once there was a young Chinese boy. He saw a jar of frozen grapes in a beautiful vase on the table and mused to himself, "Soon my brothers and sisters will be home, and they will wish to have some grapes too. Since there are so few left, I might not get very. I'd better eat them now while they're still here." And so with that, he reached into the bowl with every intention of of pulling out a huge handful. But, as the neck of the jar was small, and his hand was clenched in a fist, it would not fit. "Oh well," he muttered, "I'll just have to pull harder!" So he seized the bottom of the vase and jerked with all his might. But, just as he thought he had it, the expensive vase slipped from his grasp, flew across the room, and hit the floor with a resounding crash! The vase shattered, and the precious grapes rolled across the floor, collecting dust as they went, out the open door, and into a crack in the sidewalk, never to be seen again. The boy, ashamed, went outside to contemplate his mistakes and its consequences. "Maybe if I hadn't been so greedy, this would have never happened. What will Mother say?!"

On a hot summer day in the plains of Africa, all the antelope got together to discuss a way to rid themselves of their mortal enemy, the Cheetah. The Cheetah was constantly trying to run them down. They were always afraid that one day he would catch up to them.

They talked for two hours but no one had a suitable idea. They had just about given up all hope when a young antelope stood up. "I have an idea," he said, "that I think will work. Everyone stopped talking to listen to the antelope. This is what he said. "If we tie a thin string between two trees, and dig a hole deep enough that the Cheetah could not escape, someone can attract his attention, then run away, acting as bait. The Cheetah will chase the 'bait' who would be running straight towards our well-hidden trap. The bait, being a good jumper, will jump, at the last minute over the trap to the other side safely, while the Cheetah, caught off guard, will trip and land in the hole. Thus freeing us of our enemy."

The animal had been silent while the antelope had told his plan. Now they erupted with cheers and hurrahs, each wishing that he had thought of such a novel idea himself. All of a sudden, in the midst of their revelries, and old antelope stood up and motioned for silence. "I think, "he said, "that the young one's plan would work in certain circumstances. I have but one question: who will be the bait??

Moral: It is a different thing matter to suggest an idea, than to carry it out yourself.

The End.

The World Famous Lipizzaner Stallions!!

World Famous Lippizzaners!!

Today we went to see the famous Lipizzan horses. They were amazing! We saw them at the Sprint Center. During the show, we learned about their history, their training and saw amazing tricks, or movements. The Lipizzaner stallions performed their maneuvers with grace and perfection. They were beautiful as they presented their various movements. First, the Levade, where the horse remains at a 45 degree angle to the ground; also, the Courbette - the stallion rears, then jumps! And finally, my favorite, the Capriole. The Lipizzaner is required to leap into the air, then kick out his legs in the middle of his jump. Research their website, www.lipizzaner.com, to learn more about these majestic creatures.

Cinnamon Spills the Sugar : Part II

"WE DOMINATE THE EARTH!!!!!" At this, my sugar clumped up, and my china chipped. Who were these men? They continued. "But first", said Larry, "we'll advertise in all newspapers that the world is going to end, and make a lot of money." Now, I said, it is time for action!! I had a plan, but I had to sacrifice my beautiful sugar. So without hesitating, I dumped my precious cargo ofsugar over the table, down , down, down, to the ground. This immediately brought the manager running. It also roused the other customers and before long, we had a crowd gathered around my table, trapping the schemers. When the manager saw me pointing to the suspicious characters, he grabbed them and said, "Young man, we don't not waste sugar in this restaurant!" The crowd gasped. One little child said, "How could he?!!" Someone called the police. They came, dragged the whole story out of them and took them away. I never heard from Larry or Joe again. And as for me, I was the hero of the day!! I was given more sugar to hold and was promoted to the first class tables.

Morse Code

You can imagine how much trouble armies had when trying to communicate. They were often miles away from each other and it was extremely difficult to contact each other to warn them about the enemy, or news and changed plans. Around 1832, a code was created that enabled people to communicate over long distances. Now armies could contact each other much easier than before.

Morse coke was invented and developed by Samuel Morse. He patented the first functioning receiver in 1837. A partner of Morse, Alfred Vail, having greater technical abilities, later improved the machine. In 1830, Joseph Henry had made the first long distance telegraph machine. It sent and electric signal over a mile on wire. When the telegraph reached the end of the wire, there was a magnet that caused a bell to ring.

Morse code is a series of "dots and dashes, or "dits and dahs" representing letters and numbers. It is a method of transmitting info by on-off tones, lights, or clicks. A telegraph sends electrical signals over long distances. Because of it can be read without a decoding device and is easily sent, it is one of the simplest methods of telegraphy.

Presently, it is still used, thought it is not as popular. The U.S. Coast Guard stopped using it for their distress signals because of their automatic satellite relays. It is often used on ships and in radio telegraphy; and pilots are still required to know it.

Morse did a great deal to help America as it grew. Eventually , it was modified to the point that it is wireless and is known as the telephone. Perhaps Morse didn't know how much it would impact America. Morse code was once the newest device in electronics. Since then, America has developed tremendously.Do you ever wonder, in fifty years, what will have changed? Will cars be considered as old fashioned as horse-drawn carriages?

Ellie the Cucumber

Mayday!! Mayday!! My friend Ellie had just been turned into a giant cucumber!!!! Well, she couldn't stop eating cucumbers and all of a sudden she just turned green and sprouted leaves!! She won't respond to anyone; Ellie just keeps singing, "O, where is my hairbrush, O, where is my hairbrush......." We don't know what to do with her; the police want to lock her up, the zoo wants to put her in a cage, and the local museum wants to put her on display. Yikes, here comes the news reporters!!! Hide!! Never mind, Larry the Cucumber from Veggie Tales just quit and they want Ellie on the show. I think she'd be a natural.........!

Cinnamon spills the Sugar!! Part I

My name is Cinnamon. Except the ironic thing is that I am a sugar bowl. Oh well, I like my name. Anyway, I work, or sit, at Millie's Cafe. One day I was sitting on my table and thinking to myself, "What a beautiful day!!", when two rude, sinister looking men came and sat at - whose table?? Mine!! Out of the 378 table at Millie's Cafe, they picked mine. They sat down and began talking. Suddenly, I was interested again. They were talking about the zoo. Not about going there, no, but of something else. This is what I heard: "So Larry, we need the tiger, lion, cheetah, elephant, cougar, and some kangaroos." "Right Joe" said Larry, "first we break into the zoo at night, distract the guards, then take their keys and make chaos by unlocking all the animal. Next, we'll get out with the above animals, and then the fun part-WE DOMINATE THE EARTH!!!!!"

To be continued.

The Sea of Snow

The Sea of Snow

Sparkling crystals,

A sea of snow,

Icicles dripping,

This sea of snow.

Trees are weighed down,

Covering the ground,

A sea of crystals,

And sparkling white snow.

Last night I watched,

As it all came down,

Flurries and snowflakes,

Covering the ground.

The wind did blow,

Did it stop? No.

A mini blizzard raged,

In our backyard,

Icy blasts,

And snow so cold,

Through the night,

A storm of white.

Now it is still,

A sea of snow,

A silent wonderland,

With a crystal glow.

The trees are covered,

With shimmering ice,

A bright-eyed junco,

On it's snowy perch.

The waves are still,

The sky is blue,

The snow so bright,

The sun shines true,

I an afraid,

I must confess,

I could go blind,

In this sparkling,

Shimmering, icy,

Sea of snow.

So, from the window

I will go,

Leaving behind, a sparkling,

Shimmering, icy,

Sea of snow.

Finish I must,

So leave I will ,

Tearing my eyes,

From the scene so still.

Rainy Day Blues

Meditating on the gloom,

Out the window of my room,

Seeing it might stop quite soon,

To the door I quickly zoom.

Excitedly, I step outside,

Noticing the growing "tide",

Watching it, to my surprise,

All it does is swell and rise.

Alas, goodbye,

O day of play,

Inside I'll stay,

'Till it goes away

A lesson in kindness

Adapted by Caroline Meek

Once there was a lion who was absentmindedly walking through a forest in Rome, when he accidently stepped in a rose bush. To his chargin he had a stubborn thorn stuck in his paw. Try as he might, he couldn’t get it out. Frantically, he roared and charged about until he came to a pasture at the edge of the forest. There he spotted a humble shepherd watching his flock. He pleadingly walked up to him and because he showed no signs of malice, the boy kindly pulled out the thorn without a single thought as to his own safety.

Sometime after this, the shepherd was wrongly accused and arrested. His fate was in the hands of the evil emperor Nero, who sentenced him to be thrown to the lions. The shepherd pleaded miserably but it was in vain. After a lion had been caught and starved, the shepherd boy was thrown into a ring and there the lion was released. He let out a vicious roar, which did nothing to improve the boy’s nervous, no, petrified state, and without warning, began to charge!!

The shepherd lost all hope as the lion leaped toward him. But suddenly, to everyone’s surprise, the lion stopped in his tracks. Wtih a small coincidence, and a great deal of luck, he had recognized the boy to be the same one who had helped him not so long ago in the little clearing in the forest. Presently, he laid down beside the shepherd and gave him a thorough licking. In the end, the king graciously pardoned the boy and let them both go free. Because of his kindness, the boy’s life was saved.