Love's Victim

In my life, I remain a victim,
Wandering aimlessly in a sea of love.
To be loved is but a journey,
Riddled with emotion and promise.
For me, love is but a disaster,
Riddled with heartache and doubt.

With love, I do not doubt
That everyone is truly a victim.
True love only ends in disaster.
We too often lose ourselves to love,
Forgetting our dreams, and destroying our promise.
Our identity is lost, and so is our journey.

Before we can love, we must embark on our journey.
Be sure of yourself, with no room for doubt.
Remember your worth and your promise
And you will find, you will never be love's victim
We must embrace a kind of self love
Failure to do so, will only lead to disaster.

If you change now, good will come from disaster.
Just imagine living your lover's life, taking their journey
You are willing to do anything to keep their love.
This leads to self doubt
You are no longer your lover's significant other, but their victim
Fearing you cannot go on without their love and promise.

This you must promise.
Try and find stability amidst disaster
You don't want to be the next victim
So go ahead, embark on your journey
Have respect for yourself and do not doubt
That if you try, you will find love.

There is no way to hide from love
This I can promise
It starts with a crush, and then you start to question and doubt
Your every move to avoid embarrassment and disaster
You attempt to hold on to your own life and journey
But-long and behold, your trapped again, your love's victim.

Please do not doubt that you will find love.
You might be a victim, but promise
That when disaster strikes, you will embark on a new journey.

Marriage

Marriage…
The moment every girl plans for her whole life
The day she has been dieting for
Only ten kilo away from her goal weight
She plans everything months ahead:
The red velvet bouquet arrangements,
The four tier wedding cake,
The assortments of cupcakes and the peach parfait,
along with the china glaze tableware.
It is essential she collects:
something old, something new,
something borrowed, something blue.

She can picture all that awaits her over the horizon
A two story house with a white picket fence
The live jazz concerts in Paris
She couldn’t wait for the countless gifts she would soon receive
The pink diamond, racing rubies,
And the sterling silver rose she will get on her twenty- fifth wedding anniversary

Marriage…
The day every man dreads
The day he willingly gives up his freedom
Leaving a life of chaos and wild things
For a life of structure.
Exchanging his sweat pants
For callvin klien.
He must give up his bachelors pad
For a cute house in the country.
Traveling to a café in aspen
Instead of his annual party destination in West Palm Beach.
He must turn in his Ferrari black
For a blue minivan.
He didn’t want to leave his one man show.

He didn’t know how he let it get this far
He felt like he had been under a voodoo spell
Marriage was a contradiction to everything he believed in

She enters the chapel of love
Her heartbeat is racing
She is ready to set her life in motion

His black suit slowly becomes full of perspiration
He must resist his inclination to run
And catch the next taxi

Marriage…
Her life of happiness awaits

Marriage…
His life of chains awaits

Vocab

Gone, But Never Forgotten

The rock of my family. My Uhr Oma. My great grandma. Her once majestic looks were subdued by time. Her amber skin was aged. The delicacy and grace of her walk was no longer apparent. Each wrinkle in her face signified some kind of account. She smelled of coffee and perfume. Her long cords of hair always went astray. Her ebony eyes were softened with knowledge. She was always there for my family. Her love transcended generations. She was dirt poor, yet she still had enough to give her daughter a nickel to spend so she might escape the anguish and realities of being poor. We would spend hours together playing games like Mensch aerger dich nich or sorry. She saved my mother from the brutalities of foster care. When I woke up, I knew a cup of hot chocolate would be sitting on my night stand. She kept her family together during the world war. A woman of valor. We would go for long walks in the forest. The crisp air filled my lungs. Not yet tainted and despoiled by the carelessness of man. We would sometimes walk in utter silence. Not due to the lack of words. But merely to enjoy God’s creation. We were mesmerized by its beauty. I could hear the bird’s mating calls. The echo of branches crackling beneath my hard step. The rock of my family. Every time I would leave her embrace, my body began to quiver and tears would come streaming down my face. A lot can happen in a year. I always knew that this may be my last hug.

Quiver- verb- to shake with a slight but rapid motion; vibrate tremulously; tremble.
valor–noun- boldness or determination in facing great danger
Delicacy- noun-extreme sensitivity; precision of action or operation; minute accuracy
Ebony : adjective -of a deep, lustrous black.
Majestic- adjective-of lofty dignity or imposing aspect
Anguish-noun- excruciating or acute distress, suffering, or pain
Amber: adjective- golden, yellowish-brown
Mesmerized: verb- to spellbind; fascinate.
Despoiled :verb-To deprive of something valuable by force
Brutalities: noun- The state or quality of being ruthless, cruel, harsh, or unrelenting.

Dixie Chicks

"Not Ready To Make Nice"

Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I’m not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I’m still waiting

I’m through with doubt
There’s nothing left for me to figure out
I’ve paid a price
And I’ll keep paying

I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should

I know you said
Can’t you just get over it
It turned my whole world around
And I kind of like it

I made my bed and I sleep like a baby
With no regrets and I don’t mind sayin’
It’s a sad sad story when a mother will teach her
Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
And how in the world can the words that I said
Send somebody so over the edge
That they’d write me a letter
Sayin’ that I better shut up and sing
Or my life will be over

I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should

I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and
I don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should

What it is you think I should

Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I’m not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I’m still waiting

The musicians selected as the band of the year endured scrutiny from their fans, yet were able to defy all odds as their CD Taking the Long Way topped the Billboard’s national album chart at No.1. The Rolling Stones magazine is pleased to give the Dixie Chicks this honor. This recognition is well deserved given that as of May 2008, the female group has sold over 36 million albums and have won thirteen Grammy Awards. Their ever growing fan base is attributed to their gift to incorporate a traditional sound with modern ideas such as the 1990s “Girl Power movement.”

The Dixie Chicks formed in Dallas, Texas in 1989. The group originally consisted of four women, but now, the group includes Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, and Emily Robison. Their musical influences came from Bela Fleck, Bob Wills, Sam Bush, Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Dolly Parton, Indigo Girls, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt. Their song Travelin' Soldier tells a story of a man going to war, and the fears and heartache he is feeling once he leaves his life behind. Dixie Chicks' "Goodbye Earl" tells a story of a women and her high school friend putting matters into their own hands, as they poisoned her abusive husband named Earl. While they made clear they were not advocating harming their spouses, the Dixie Chicks wanted to empower women who were being physically or mentally abused by their husband. Some radio stations even played public service announcements regarding how to report spousal abuse after playing "Goodbye Earl,” which fostered community awareness.

The controversy all started when the Dixie Chicks were in a concert in London, England, and Natalie Maines stated to the fans, "Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas." This remark sparked an uproar in America. Several country radio stations banned their music, and their were rallies were thousands of their records were smashed. In an interview on CNN News, Larry King questions the women about Maines’ comment in London. Natalie Maines states, "It was the wrong wording with genuine emotion and questions and concern behind it. ... Am I sorry that I asked questions and that I just don't follow? No."

The Dixie Chick try to convey to the public that it is vital for people to be involved in their country. In response to their new found attention in political matters, they donated $10,000 to the Rock the Vote website, in attempt to get more young women to register to vote. They also gave their fans the opportunity to register to vote at their concerts. Maines stated, "We always felt like we were searching for ways to make an impact outside of music", and, "I believe everything that's happened in the last few months happened for a reason." Due their disapproval of the war, many found their beliefs and lyric to be unpatriotic. The Dixie Chicks responded to this by appearing on the issue of Entertainment Weekly naked with epithets including “Traitors,” Boycott,” and “Proud Americans,” on their bodies.A few of the countless people influenced by the Dixie Chicks include Taylor Swift and Dan Wilson. They ultimately are calling their supporters to fight for their freedoms, as well as question and challenge the status quo.

Live Your Life

The hypnopaedia uses the art of rhetoric language. By depicting images of people in poverty and contrasting them with people who are overeating, it appeals to one's emotions or pathos. Society always tells us that we have to do something with our lives and live every day to its fullest. We have a feeling of entitlement because we find that we worked for all we have, so we should be able to reap the benefits. Yet, we tend to forget that by living out our lavish lifestyles, we leave our fellow man behind. We find that everyone has the same opportunities that we have. The parallel sentence structure mirrors the two paths that we are able to take in our lives,we can choose whether we want to be a curse to society or a blessing.

Dramatic Monologue- Linda

As I lay here dying

I am finally at peace.

I am finally at home.

Away from diseases,

Where cleanliness is next to fordliness.

My World State is where I belong.

With soma-holidays

I can experience eternity.

I stay here in my room with twenty others

In a sixty-story tower

In the Park Lane Hospital for the Dying .

I lay in bed

day in and day out

Enjoying endless holidays.

The television is blaring

Yet I can not hear a sound.

I am surrounded by yellow walls

And the constant presence of perfume.

I have all the luxuries of a first class hotel.

Sometimes I think back to when we were in Malpais

So dirty, so filthy.

No hot water to be found.

And the clothes

So many holes to mend.

It was just wrong.

‘The more stitches, the less riches.’

The effects of aging there are revolting.

My skin began to sag

And my body became to fat to bear.

And the way people had each other there.

No one should have more than one person.

How can that be?

When “everyone belongs to everyone else.”

My dear, my dear.

I tried to condition you,

But without knowledge of so many things

Conditioning was too difficult.

I used to sing to you.

Childish rhymes

Like Streptocock-Gee to Banbury T.

Do you remember the reading lessons?

The reading instructions for Beta workers.

You gave me such comfort my son.

Without you,

I would not have survived in Malpais

But yet,

because of you I couldn’t come back to where I belonged

Because I am a mother.

You are what separated me from my world.

My son,

You are my greatest love

You are my greatest regret.

Blind Love

Her glittering eyes gazed upon him with dog-like devotion,
Yet their faulty marriage continuously deteriorated in a backwards spiraling motion.
Her love for him eased the pain of her inky-velvety, bruised skin,
Since he became violent every time he touched his gin.
She felt a blind, inward necessity to stay strong,
Just thinking about her children made the beatings not seem so long.
The pain of his physical abuse seemed easy to fight,
Compared to his demeaning words that played through her mind day and night.
Her blood-soaked darkness made her future seem bleak,
Her life became worthless, her soul became meek.