Essay #2

Change and Worry Affects Us? :

An Essay On Change And Worry In My Life And In The Novella Of Mice and Men

An Essay By Mia Perry

8th Grade English

Pine Point School

10-16-11

(TS) Worry and change are key elements in your life, even though you may not realize it. (SD) The song “Love Will Keep Us Alive” by The Eagles says, “Don’t you worry, sometimes you’ve just got to let it ride. The world is changing right before your eyes.” (CM) These lyrics are saying that instead of worrying about everything, just relax, and that there is change happening around you all the time.

        (TS) When I searched for change in my life to relate to the song, I found many more examples than I expected, and I realized that there was plenty of change in my life; even if it seemed bad at the time it turned out for the better. (SD) When I was 5 years old, we got a wonderful aquarium made for a wall of my house that I loved very much, and my brother and I spent a lot of our time naming the fish, feeding them, and finding the temperature of the fresh water. (CM) As many years went by, it was saddening to see various (FAST) fish pass away, and we would have to get used to the new types of fish that would be placed in our tank. (CM) In the summer of 2009, we donated the aquarium to the Coginchaug Regional High School. (CM) This experience was very tough to go through, saying farewell to the fish that I’d seen for five years, but this prepared me for greater losses and changes that have happened. (SD) This song also relates to my life, because one of the lines that says “Don’t you worry, Sometimes you’ve just gotta let it ride. The world is changing right before your eyes,” reminds me of how I sometimes worry about having too much homework. (CM) Having heaps of homework after school is a huge issue because I have after school sports, then I go to martial arts, and I still haven’t showered or eaten dinner. (CM) Furthermore, sometimes after school I go to SSAT prep, away sports games, and Dance Ensemble in the winter. (CM) This line of the song usually relates when I have to let go of my anxiety (FAST), and just “let it ride” so that I can quickly and easily relax and do my homework. (CS) Worry in your life is not as obvious as you think it is, until you take the time to figure out how it has changed you.
(TS) The novella Of Mice and Men is surprisingly centered on worry and change. (SD) George and Lennie’s life changes with every ranch relocation they make. (CM) George and Lennie have to make new friends and acquaintances (FAST) each time they move, which means meeting and getting along with many new people. (CM) Also, when they change locations they have to get used to the new surroundings and living space. (CM) This also relates to the same line of the song “Love Will Keep Us Alive”, because when they move to different ranches they just have to adjust to the settings and let themselves calm down. (SD) Moreover, George always worries about Lennie getting in trouble at the ranch. (CM) George being worried has a good impact on Lennie, because that keeps Lennie alert so that he knows where to go if he does upset any of the farm hands. (CM) In addition, even though this can be good it also places a huge amount of responsibility and even more worry on Lennie, since he knows that if he does disturb the ranch owner he has to know exactly what to do. (CM) This also places more worry on George, because he knows that Lennie has trouble remembering things, so he has to hope that if Lennie has any complications (FAST)  that he will remember to go to the woods. (CM) Since George has to keep reminding Lennie of what he needs to remember to say, George becomes very stressed out. (CS) I think that George has a lot more worry and change in his life than Lennie does, even if it isn’t very obvious.
(TS)   Everyday I worry about something, whether it is if I will have a lot of homework, what the weather will be like, how I will do in a cross country race, or even if I have Ocean Blue Catering for lunch or not. (SD) Worry is not the only obstacle that I come upon in my life. (CM) Change also plays a part in every one’s lives. (CM) Not only do these two elements exist in real life situations, they also play a part in books, such as the novella Of Mice and Men. (CM) As said in the song “Love Will Keep Us Alive”, sometimes we just have to relax when we stumble upon something to worry about.  

Self Assessment

1) One issue that I am continuing to work on is making better music by combining short sentences together to make longer and more complex sentences.

2) Some of the strong points in my writing are the vocabulary and FAST words that I use.
3) A possible weak point that I need to improve are my introductory an concluding paragraphs. I need to make more music in my introduction to hook the reader, and I need to not make a long summary out of my conclusion.