The Bird

Hey guys, this will be my first story, so enjoy!

          There once was a bird, he wasn't too colorful, he wasn't too big, he wasn't extravagant, he was just an average little bird. This bird lived in a small little forest, where he followed the same routine everyday, with

the same people everyday. First he woke up at 4:30am, then he took a long walk to a field where he relaxed and read, then he went home with his friend, a squirrel, and they hung out until about 5pm. That routine was the one this little bird followed day after day after day. He was very content with his routine and didn't mind sticking to it, he enjoyed his friend, the squirrel, and oved his relaxing afternoons.

          Though, one day he met the salamander. The salamander was the craziest, brightest, most unique creature this little bird had ever seen. The bird saw the salamander at his pond one morning on his long stroll and decided he would say hi. He walked right up to the salamander, very nervous because it wasn't often he met new people. The only thing that the anxious bird could think about for discussion was the fact that his alarm, earlier that morning, went off later than usual. This conversation between the bird and the salamander went on for a duration of three or four minutes, until the salamander bid salutations and went on to meet with his friend, the deer. The bird was irked at this notion because he did not particularly like the deer but the salamander had just moved into the forest and the deer was his first and really only friend. Though, the bird said goodbye and they parted ways to continue their days.
          The bird and the salamander began talking and growing closer and closer, talking basically everyday, becoming great friends. Though, about a week after their constant talking the bird invited the salamander over for dinner, which the salamander happily obliged. That day the salamander joined the bird on his long walk where the awkward conversation began to turn into a nice and easy chat where the bird realized that they really vibed. Though, the night continued and the salamander needed to go and so they said goodbye and once again parted ways.

          The bird was very complicated because he had been through so much, from terrible people using him for his food and hospitality to his family issues, he had a hard time trusting people. But the salamander was different, the bird found he trusted the salamander very quickly and that he very much loved the company of the salamander and wanted to see more of them. It was very difficult, though, because the bird didn't know much about the salamander. If there is anything you should know about the bird it is that he loves to talk about himself and does it way too much, though the salamander never seemed to mind. The bird wished he had more knowledge of the salamander's past, which seemed quite scary and sad from what he did know.
          The salamander didn't have a relationship with their parents, which was the first very confusing thing the bird found out. Then the real heavy stuff began to set in, first the depressions, then the love, and more and more, it just continued to deepen and deepen which just grew the feelings the bird had. It got very intense to the point of the bird always wanting to be with the salamander.
          Then one day, as the salamander and bird were once again together having an amazing time, the salamander told the bird something that shattered his heart. The bird had grown to love the salamander and even just for the short amount of time the salamander and the bird had together, he did love them. The salamander told the bird that they were going to live with there family, far away. The bird had no idea how to cope with this news but of course he tried to show that he was happy for the salamander and their new relationship growth in their family life. The bird took every chance to tell the salamander how happy he was for them and how great it was going to be for them but on the inside it really just killed the bird every time they said something about it. The bird, of course, couldn't let the salamander know how he felt because he didn't want to make the salamander feel bad. The salamander and their family weren't the closest so for them to be reconnecting was amazing, but for them to be leaving the bird made the bird's days sad. It was like a constant count down to when the bird would once again be stuck in his little routine, but he knew that the squirrel would help him through this and that, under no circumstances was the salamander allowed to know how the bird felt.

I hope you enjoyed this! <3

Attention Seeking... or Stupidity?

          Hey guys, so I know it's been a minute but I've found something to complain about! So you know how there's always that one kid who manages to get as loud as possible, drowning everyone else in the room out, so that everyone can hear the conversation you are having with that person individually. Well I've now decided who that person is in my life and let me tell you right now, I

want to tear my hair out talking to this person. Humor me for a second, say you are talking to me about that test that you bombed and I decide to scream "Woah! You bombed a test!?". First of all, you literally just told me that so why on God's green Earth would I need to repeat that one aspect of our conversation for anything more than attention. I actually need to tell the person that is doing this to lower there voice and that's when they decide to act as if they are unaware they are doing so, which in reality just makes you stupid.
          The reason I bring this up now is because I would really like to tell everyone that we need to stand up against our foe. This is a serious problem that needs to be faced by the community as a whole. We need to stand together to fix the problem that is these people's etiquette because if we don't we will never hear the end of it. The crazy part is, though, that some of them are like completely oblivious when you tell them to shut their mouths or when you ask them what's wrong with them. Just remember, it only takes one person to make a change and that can lead to a chain reaction, which in terms, could lead to the defeat of this annoying minority.

          The other problem I feel that needs to be openly addressed is when people repeat a question right after they've received your answer! I'm not talking about when they forget your answer but when they ask "Have you seen Star Wars?" and you respond no and they repeat "You haven't seen Star Wars?", like fam, didn't I just answer that like literally four seconds ago. I find that if they do that and you respond the second time with a different answer then they are very unaware of the conversation and it causes great confusion in their feeble minds. Though, like I said, if we face this as one body, under the Lord (just kidding), then we can defeat the people that don't understand how to communicate.
          Please heed my advice and tell these people, being sarcastic is very helpful. Using answers like "Are you stupid?", "Didn't I just answer that?", or "Would you like to ask me a third time?", get the point across very quickly. IMPORTANT NOTICE: by using these examples I've given may cause you to come off salty.
      
         Thanks for reading! Love y'all! <3

Sadie Hawkins Dance

          Hey guys! So for those of you that don't know, the Sadie Hawkins Dance for Timberline High School is coming up here on the third! I would also love to state that I'm thoroughly confused on both the theme (white out?!) and the fact that it's casual. Number one, this forces me to go shopping because who owns all white clothes?! Number two, I'm going to end up with fifty-million stains and sweat marks all over my body. Number three, I don't understand why the school would have a dance

that is casual! We all know, because it's a school function, that the music is going to suck so it's not going to be like a party and everybody is just going to look like trash. At least when there's a formal dress code everybody is going to be dressed as nice as possible to please their dates. I don't know the entire thing kind of just confuses me, especially considering the fact that all the girls fought for this and others will refuse to ask a guy because "that's the guys job", which is totally stupid and frustrating. I also think that if they don't sell enough tickets it will be cancelled is ludicrous. If I'm going to buy clothes (that are WHITE!), plan out my night (dinner before, dance, party after), and plan to dance the night away then I better get at least a month of notice! Well, that's just my opinion, thanks guys!

P.S. Sorry for such the slow and boring posts, my life has become consumed with school recently, which is causing me to spend most my days in anger fits or crying my eyes out! Love you guys!

Your Opinion is Your Problem

          Hey readers, so today I'm getting a little serious and I know that's probably not going to be believable to those who know me and for some it may be boring but I really just need to go off about this because it frustrates me to hear and see these things (Also, please don't take this as a personal attack). I will be talking people and their opinions, because sometimes (most the time) I really don't care to hear the negative things that people have to say.

           I will begin with teachers speaking on the issue of political controversy. Let me make it clear, the First Amendment (which gives Americans the freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly, and petition) gives public school teachers protection to an extent. One scenario which teachers are protected is on social media; if a teacher were to repost an article favoring a political candidate than they would be protected under the Bill of Rights, but if they were to print that article out and share it with their students, trying to convey them to vote or spread that opinion, then they would not be protected. This all according to American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, which states "Some courts have ruled that schools cannot discipline teachers for sharing words or concepts that are controversial as long as the school has no legitimate interest in restricting that speech and the speech is related to the curriculum". This is just saying that a teacher can share controversial topics, articles, and/or beliefs as long as it pertains to what the students are learning about and is not for the soul purpose of getting students to believe what they do. "To teach and educate students according to guidelines provided by the National Curriculum Framework under the overall guidance of the competent education authority; To teach and educate students according to the educational needs, abilities and attainment potential of individual students entrusted to his/her care by the Head of School or Head of Unit" are the two overall functions of teachers outlined by The Ministry for Education. I've now read about 23 articles, personal accounts, court cases, and education reports, all which state in variations, that teachers may not blatantly spread their beliefs, whether it be religious, political or whatever, to influence their students. Though it
seems that "influence" has many translations throughout the internet. What I mean by "influencing students" is them trying to get you to believe what they do purposefully. I think purposefully is the game changer because of course your teachers are going the influence you, especially if they are someone whom you enjoy having.

          The only reason I bring up this issue is that I've had some recent encounters with my teachers and it bothers me that they are wasting my time to tell me their opinions which, first of all, don't pertain to the curriculum, secondly, are irrelevant to me, and thirdly, aren't right/allowed. For example, in one of my classes it was stated by the teacher that Mrs. Obama should run for President. I don't even know where to begin, the first thing that hit me is why, but because I don't want to exclude any of my readers beliefs I will keep my political views (very conservative, which doesn't mean I support Donald Trump) out of it. The next thing that was said was by the student next to me, also very conservative, who stated "Why, the Obamas need to no longer be in the White House", which led to THE TEACHER giving us an in-depth explanation about what he believes. I would also like to point out that I was not innocent in this because I did state few general states but backed out when I saw a chance and that I understand that it seems that the teacher was "baited" but the teacher is responsible at that point to shut down the conversation. Though, can you guess what they did? They decided to give the other student and I a list of opinions, which lasted nearly 3 minutes (feeling like a lifetime), but I will give him the fact that there were pertinent facts against the student which were protected under the First Amendment but they were followed with opinionated statements like "...which made our country a better place" and "...was great". This was an immediate turn off for me towards the conversation, and not because it was an opposing belief but because we had already begun class and yet this "argument", more like a small dispute, was still going on.

          Just understand, I am not bashing teacher, they are absolutely 100% entitled to their opinion, outside the classroom. I strongly believe that a great way to learn in a class is to view both sides, whether it be an equation, argument, piece of literature or maybe even just a conversation. Though, it is necessary for teachers to remember that we are NOT at church, so we aren't there to here them preach. I would like to give a shoutout to teachers, though, because this is not all teachers and it's only a very small amount that do this, which doesn't make you a bad teacher, it's just annoying. I appreciate teachers and hold them in the highest regards because some of the most amazing people I've ever met are teachers and deserve to know that they are respected by their students.

          This brings me to another bothersome topic (haha, I bet you though I was done). Students/peers and their need to tell everyone "who they're voting for", even though they are like 15, 16, and 17, and can't even vote! Someone told me once that "Your opinion of me is not my problem", well in reality your opinion of anybody is not my problem, no matter how juicy the gossip or how amazing the story. Don't read this wrong, I love some good gossip, I mean look at me I write my own blog, and gossip isn't just going to suddenly disappear out of thin air but if it's something slanderous then just keep it to yourself. I'm telling you right now, so many people think I'm fake... SO MANY PEOPLE... but I don't even care because I know who I am and I know how it feels for garbage about you to be spread, but the one think that irks me is when people just tell me anyway.

          I've been in several situations where there are groups of students just talking about stuff that is irrelevant and stupid because in reality who cares if "Tina is a slut because she has slept with 4 guys today" or if "Mark is ugly" (both fake people and situations), but like who cares? First of all, calling anyone ugly is just rude, are you kidding me this is common sense. Yes, everyone is entitled to their opinion but there comes a point when you have to sit back and look and see if your comment is really so crucial/important that you NEED more than anything to tell others.

        I guess in reality, though, this whole blog is just my opinion, but I hope you guess enjoy what I write! Also remember my new project and if you want to be a part of Sojourner Life's: Everyday Fashion Statement Part 1 then contact me! Thanks again and please don't chew my head off for this.

New Project!

To Whom It May Concern,

          If you hadn't noticed by now inner peace, belief in oneself, and body positivity are major values I try to enforce in everyone. Deep down we all know that we are stuck with whatever we got, so our one goal is to make what we got work and look good. This leads to greater confidence and, in terms, a happier life. Look at me, for example, I'm obviously way too skinny for a fifteen year old boy but I hold my head high, tan, and wear skinny clothes, hence, making it work. I believe one way to instill major confidence in someone is through their clothes and you can tell a lot about a person through their clothes. For example, if a person is to wear dark shades, say black, grey or white, then they are probably very comfortable just falling into a crowd. Though, next to someone wearing color, which is by far the most challenging test of self-acceptance, they will fall behind almost in a shadow. Unless of course, that booty be poppin' or that jawline be chiseled. I've decided to take a census through people that I encounter around both Lacey, Washington and people from my home town of Marco Island, Florida. I have decided to ask them, first, why they choose to wear what they do, secondly, what their outfit usually consists of, and thirdly, how their outfits vary in different situations and to describe those which they change. If anybody would like to be a part of this project please send a picture with an outfit that you would usually wear to my email or direct message me on Instagram answering all of the questions I plan to inquire about.

Thank you,

Carson Essi

P.S. My contact information can be found under my picture in the right column on my page.