Short Stories

Growing up in elementary school, I loved to write. I've always loved writing and creating a story that is fun. When I was younger, I had a dream of being a writer, and although that dream isn't mine anymore, I haven't lost the love of writing. My writing today, consists of plays. Yes, I playwright. It's different from writing short stories, but that's just how writing in my life as evolved. Writing a play is like writing a short story. You have to plan out the story and objective you want to convey, but you tell it through the characters you develop. Currently, I've written only four plays, but it's a bit hard for me to just write to write. I have to have an idea to run with, and sometimes in all the chaos of school I don't pay attention to those ideas around me. So, until I have time, I write all my ideas down in a "Actors Journal" but I also write down small conversations I over hear and things that stand out to me. I love to read in general, and it's always a plus when I get to read what I want to read, and not have to read what I'm told to read. However, sometimes things I have to read, turn out to be very interesting.

I just read, HOMELAND AND OTHER STORIES by Barbara Kingsolver. This story was about a couple who have been married for three years. Lena wanted to have children, but her husband didn't want to have kids. It was a story of discovering the true happiness in the lives of people. Some people are happy just being married. Other people are happy with a big family. There was a quote in the story that stood out to me. Lena's husband says, "As I looked at her there among the pumpkins I was overcome with color and the intensity of my life. In these moments we are driven to try to hoard happiness by taking photographs..." I think that is so true, I take pictures all the time. I scrapbook and taking pictures is just something I do, to captivate the memories of my life. In the end of this story Lena's husband realizes that this is truely what his wife wants. He realizes that he want's to make her happy. That captivating the memories of his life would be amazing and what he wants if it was with Lena. He wants his life to be filled with joy.

I also read, THE WOMAN WHO LOST HER NAMES, by Nessa Rapoport. This story was about a young girl who is jewish and is growing up in America. She's away from the culture and society of where you family is from. She was given the name SALLY in school, to make the "adjustment" easier. IT was like society just assumed that she'd have a hard time, and so to make things easier they were going to give her a different name. Her name is Sarah Josephine. She went through life feeling different, sometimes it was a good different and sometimes it was a bad different. She wasn't blonde and blue eyed like girls in her class. She had dark flowing hair, and was a true free spirit, however, she felt that it was hard to fully fit in. She met and married a man who brought out happiness in her. She longed to go back to Isreal, and she ended up marrying the man having kids, and she lived in New York for awhile. Finally, the time came where it was the right time to "go home." They went to Jerusalem, and she felt a sence of calmness. She was also thankful. She had a daughter, and it was then time to name her. The struggle to find the perfect name...was presented. They left it to the Torah, awaiting the answer to be read and presented to them. It really is a great short story. Names are so important. I just watched the Prayer for Jabez in church. Jabez was a man who was born, and his mother was in great pain when she gave birth to him. So, she named the son Jabez which means pain in hebrew. The documentary was saying that we grow into our names, we become our names. He prayed to God to expand his territory and to protect him from pain, and God granted the request. His name meant pain, but he didn't have to represent his name, he could change it. He changed his destiny. It's interesting that this story put so much pressure on names, but names are important. I just think that names should be given to the baby out of love and kindness, and it's then the baby's life to grow and learn to be who they want to be. I wish I could say that names shouldn't be taken seriously, they are important, but I think that at the end of this short story the family realized that whatever happens, is meant to happen, and they were relieved.

I love writing and I hope that in my career my writing will develop and help me as a person grow into a great person. I want to continue to be surprised with my life and to continue to learn as a person, just like the people in these stories.