Free Essay

Writing to Remember

In:

Submitted By aprilmhorrocks
Words 808
Pages 4
April Horrocks
EN2010
November 10th, 2014

Angels

September 5th, 2011. I still remember it like it was yesterday. The weather was calm; it wasn’t hot, and it wasn’t cold. The wind wasn’t even blowing. Yet, somehow, it was still very yucky out. I didn’t realize this at the time, but it was the perfect weather for death.
My phone rang at 5:14 AM, and it was a number I did not recognize so suddenly out of my sleep. I decided to ignore the call. Then seconds later, my phone rang again. This time I picked up, not knowing the moment I answered my life would be forever changed. At first I could not recognize the person on the other end of the line, because of all the pain and crying in her voice, but shortly I realized the person on the other end was the mother of my best friend. Burton Thomas Brown, also known as BT, was found dead on his parent’s couch. He overdosed on what we now know to be Xanax and painkillers. His heart just stopped. The instant I heard those words come out of his mother’s mouth, I think my heart stopped as well. I felt it shatter into five million tiny pieces, build itself back up, and shatter again five million more times. “Why would God, my God, allow for such a horrific thing to happen to such a beautiful person?” is the question that kept running through my confused mind. “Why BT?” I thought to myself, “Why now?”
In the days that followed, I experienced a pain I had never knew existed. In comparison to child birth, it was much, much worse. This was an internal pain. A pain that no amount of medication could ever cure. According to everyone around me, this was a pain that only time could heal, but in my eyes, I would be lucky if time could even heal any part of this. In the days that followed, I endured more headaches, heartaches, tears, and sickness than lots of people experience in a lifetime. I attended the viewing, but I wasn’t mentally there. Looking around at all the pictures of his smiling face, and then seeing everyone filled with tears and pain, brought a sense of numbness over me. I didn’t feel much, not even the hundreds of hugs from all the family and friends. I remember looking at his stiff, pale body in the casket and placing my hand on his face. I burst into tears. His once warm body was now cold and lifeless. I don’t recall anything that happened after that moment, but this: As I sat down on the pew, with my head in my hands, sobbing uncontrollably, something told me to look up to the cross they had hanging on the wall. I saw BT. He was standing there, smiling from ear to ear, and he had the most beautiful set of wings I had ever imagined. He was surrounded by a group of angels, and they were all welcoming him home.
The funeral started at 11 AM the very next day, but I arrived around 9. I sat in my car for the longest time praying and talking to the Lord. I wanted answers, but at the same time I knew that God had made no mistake. I kept replaying the image in my head of the angels, and how amazing BT looked with the wings. That was God, by the way. 11:00 came pretty fast, and the funeral started. There was at least 300 people packed into the church that day. As I stood in line waiting to see my friend’s face for the very last time, all I could do was pray. When I made it to the casket, I gently placed my hand on his, and with tears rolling down my cheeks, I said my very last goodbye. As I was walking away, God told me once again to look up at the cross. This time, however, I saw something different. This time, Jesus was sitting on a throne, and BT was standing right beside him, watching over all of us as we departed from the church. I stood there for a moment after the image disappeared, just staring at the cross. I remember people tapping me on the shoulder and asking if I was okay, but once again I was numb. The feeling of pain, and confusion was completely gone.
For a good while, I still felt broken. There were, and still are, days where I break down. I have times where I picture his face and instantly tear up. However, it has gotten easier over time. Although he may not be here on Earth, God has continued to show me that BT is indeed alive, and living for eternity in his kingdom.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Personal Narrative: My Writing

...For me, writing has always been something I do to get my crazy busy mind organized. Writing ultimately is my way of setting my personal game plan. I love to write out my daily and weekly schedule, meal plan, set goals, make lists of every kind, plan and record trips, and even write essays! Writing always helps me unwind and feel more relaxed because my brain doesn’t have to remember everything on its own. Often times I find myself wanting to include every single little detail about everything even when it is not necessary or wanted. I wrote a grant last year in my English class and found that you cannot include every detail in that type of writing or it will come off as unprofessional. I found myself constantly rewriting paragraph after paragraph...

Words: 423 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Literacy Experience Of Writing-Personal Narrative

...was in third grade, I remember learning how to write in cursive. At this point of time cursive was being taught in school. My mom would buy the practice workbooks for writing in cursive. Another literacy experience I remember is learning my multiplication. At school, we would sing songs, solve on paper and they would also time us on how many multiplication problems we can answer in a certain amount of time. Lastly, another literacy experience I remember is learning how to write an essay. I believe I learned how to write an essay in middle school. Learning how to write an essay was helpful because you would be continuing to write essays in high school and in college. I was happy that I learned how to write in cursive because it became helpful for me later on. In fourth grade, I moved back to New Orleans and started to go to school down there. In New Orleans after third grade you cannot write in print. I use to have to write everything the teacher put on the board. I didn’t have a problem writing everything in cursive though my hand would start hurting. Then eventually I moved to Florida with my aunt and my cousins. Sometimes I felt like I was a step ahead of everybody because people my age didn’t know how to write in cursive. Some of them were never taught to write in cursive. Even though many people didn’t know cursive too well I was...

Words: 522 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

English Essay

...and father were both teachers, my mom a kindergarten teacher and my dad a visually impaired teacher. I can remember every night before bed how both of my parents would read stories to my sister and I so we could fall asleep. From kindergarten on I learned to read and write simple words such as; the, this, and why. Learning to read and write was one of the most exciting things for me as a child. Knowing that I could do something that everyone else already could, and being quite good at it for my age. Considering that my mother knew all the tricks to teaching and knew how I would best be able to learn from her, I eventually was able to pronounce and spell harder words than the other children in my class. From then on I “blossomed” as a writer and reader in all of my classes. Once a week our class would get to visit the library and our librarian would always pick a few children that were a little more advanced to help the others choose books appropriate for their reading level. I was one of those lucky children and it was a huge accomplishment for me. Another memory I can recall from my childhood is from a family dinner one night; as the five of us sat there, I noticed my older brother wearing this green shirt with large white lettering across the front of it. As everyone began to eat I blurted out the word on his shirt. Although I can’t remember what it was now, I do remember being ecstatic that I could read a word so complicated. Everyone at the table was very impressed which made...

Words: 1220 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Keyshia Cole I Remember Analysis

...Would you rather remember the good times or the bad times? Often times one may have a certain memory that comes to their heads when they hear a song, or read a poem. Keyshia Cole and Anne Sexton both have memories that come to their head, but they are both different in their own way. The song “I Remember” is about remembering all of the bad times someone else pushed the pain upon them, on the other hand, the poem “I Remember” is about remembering all of the good memories someone shared with him or her. Cole included the technique of fresh, engaging, or beautiful language to make the listener understand that one will never be able to forget the way another has made them experience pain. In her song Cole sings, “For the rest of my life, I promised myself I will love me first genuinely.” This line portrays that loving yourself first is important than loving someone else. The use of fresh, engaging, or beautiful language here makes the listener feel as though they can relate to the song because they understand more that pain is unforgettable and will never be forgotten, also because of the feelings and emotions displayed throughout the song. Along with the writing technique of fresh, engaging, or beautiful language, Cole also included alliteration. Cole incorporated the method of alliteration throughout the song...

Words: 1202 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Global Warming

...professional homework writing service that will meet all your needs? We a the reiable choice of writers to do your homework You have to attend that event yet your assignment is tying u up from moving about with your social activities. Like many students, you might have found yourself in a dilemma faced with a hard task of writing your academic papers. You may have spend numerous hours planning and writing your homework and only end up with discouraging grades. Well, worry no more. Our company is one of the most recognized homework writing services. Here you are assured of an ideal homework that meets all your specifications and it is this facor that has eared us the trust of thousands of studens in universities all over the world seeking homework help. Homework writing service: Dissertation writing service: When the going gets tough, buy custom dissertation online from research paper experts  Phew! Finally, you have completed your coursework and now must write a dissertation? Unless you have written a multitude of formal research papers before this is not going to be amusing. Even to the best of us, writing a dissertation to completion is never a walk in the park. Far from the simple tasks of essay writing or even writing a term paper, the exercise is going to be draining, time consuming, and, if not well prepared or not sure of how to conduct research, analyze data, and present findings, one to forget quickly. There is no two ways about this. Writing a dissertation amounts...

Words: 1706 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

My Writing Experience

...first memory of when I became interested in reading and writing was when I was about 5 and I read Green Eggs and Ham by Dr.Seuss. I remember just loving to read that book that I read it like 10 times and then my parents got me more Dr.Seuss’s books and I remember reading those books very quickly. I really enjoyed Dr. Seuss’s books because the drawings were so colorful and the rhyming I loved how his books always rhymed or how he created words to make the book rhyme. As I grew older my interested in literature varied widely, but I really enjoy reading vampire love stories. My love for this genre started with the Twilight series by Stephanie Myers and since those books did so well, writes continued to make more vampire love stories. Thus, making...

Words: 638 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Thesis

...affect your study habits and make it easier or more difficult to learn certain types of information. Have you ever read a paragraph or two and realized that the information didn't sink in at all even when you try a second time? This could actually be a reflection of your learning style. According to Melissa Kelly there are three major types of learners: visual, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic. “Visual learners are those who generally think in terms of pictures. They often prefer to see things written down in a handout, text or on the overhead. They find maps, graphs, charts, and other visual learning tools to be extremely effective. They remember things best by seeing something written. Auditory learners are those who generally learn best by listening. They typically like to learn through lectures, discussions, and reading aloud. They remember best through hearing...

Words: 1585 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Betec Level 3 M2

...Normally: Question 1: retrieving information from a piece of text Question 2: analysing presentational features Question 3: analysing the feelings/meaning of a text Question 4: comparing/contrasting two texts Question 5: writing to inform/describe/explain (although the question could ask you to do both) Question 6: writing to persuade/argue Question 1: Inferences from the source The first type of question tests your understanding of a text. To answer this well you need to do two things: 1. Find the information the question asks for. 2. Explain why the information you have chosen answers the question. The key skill tested here is how to summarise an argument. For this you need to identify what the text is about and then decide if the writer thinks the topic is a good or a bad thing. You can do this by looking at: • The heading or title - this should help you decide on the main subject of the text. • Vocabulary - the kinds of words (nouns) used to give information will also indicate a particular subject. For example, an article about global warming will include words such as "environmentalist, carbon footprint, greenhouse gasses and sustainability". • Attitude - adjectives and intensifiers should tell you what the writer thinks about their subject. Look for words like "totally brilliant, absolutely ridiculous, complete nonsense, straight forward common sense". • Argument - the author will use points to develop their argument. Look for discourse markers...

Words: 2782 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

Week 4

...Name Date Submitted This is a guide for you to use as you develop your paper on the digital divide. Remember, you may choose to write a two-three page paper, a 10-12 PPT presentation, or use digital tools such as Prezi. Use this paper as an outline of what is expected regardless of the format you wish to use to present on the digital divide. If you choose to write a paper, I have formatted the paper for you according to APA guidelines, so keep the headings. The questions under each heading are there to guide your thinking in completing each section (they should not be part of your final paper; therefore, omit them). I would suggest writing an outline first before writing. I also expect your paper to be double spaced with indented paragraphs. Please erase this highlighted portion before submitting your paper to me. The Digital Divide This is your introductory paragraph and should include the following (please write in paragraph format and double space; do not number your paragraphs): 1. Provide a brief overview of the paper. Think of how you can introduce this paper they will be eye catching for the reader. Do not simply tell me what this paper is going to be about. 2. Have a clear thesis statement. The Writing Center has an awesome tutorial to help guide you in writing an effective thesis statement. Your paragraph should then include the following: (please write in paragraph format and double space;...

Words: 620 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

The Meaning of Poetry

...welcomed back home by her. This proves a point that you must not take things for granite in life because one day something like this could happen to anybody. You must make the best of your life and live a happy life with no regrets, so if this were to ever happen at least you lived your life to the fullest. Your family will have something to remember you for and even if you cannot remember these memories everybody will remember who you once were. First the old man married the love of his life and was ready to be with her forever, and remember all of the good memories that they would have together. The man faced an unexpected turn in his life, and was completely defenseless of what the outcome was going to be. He was put into the hospital and was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. This disease basically erases somebody’s brain, and makes them think like a child and forget how to do everything they once could do with no problem at all. The man now unable to read acts like a child as leaves the hospital that was his temporary home for a while. When he leaves, he walks up to the house that he remembers being his at one time. He remembers certain details about his house and when he opens the door he sees his wife but cannot figure out who she really is and what she is doing greeting him back into his home. Second the speaker is a widow speaking about her husband who once loved her with all of his heart. Now the man has no memory of any of this, and the widow is telling how something...

Words: 1096 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Writing Process

...Process of Writing Kate E. Pandong ASENGL4 ENG71 MWF 7-8AM Thinking of a certain topic. That’s the first thing I do in writing. It is important to first decide what one will write about and where will it end. It’s the most important step in writing since you cannot write when you do not have something to write. Write an outline. After deciding the topic I will write about, I will then make an outline to organize the ideas I have about the topic. It’s where I write the subtopics of the topics and I have. This is important since to come up with a good article, one must be organize and coherent in writing. Also, this one’s for determining the limitation of the topic like what are the things that will be cover. Writing proper. After writing an outline, the writing proper will then follows. I then refer to what I had outlined and follow its sequence. In this part, it is important to remember the significant points, guidelines and rules in writing. It is important to have correct grammar, consistent tenses and proper punctuation, capitalization, and indention. Review. After writing the first draft of my write-up, I will then review my work. It efficient if I review it after 2 days and more, in that case I no longer remember the things that I’ve wrote in the write-up. It feels like, it’s not my work anymore. This is important to review the things that I’ve missed and to correct the flaws I’ve committed in writing. Sometimes, after writing, there are things that I wanted to...

Words: 281 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Refelective Eassy

...My Writing Experience “The secret of becoming a writer is to write, write and keep on writing” (Ken MacLeod). I have been writing since I was in primary school which was simple, the teacher would write on the board and then I would copy and fill in the blanks where necessary, all the subjects and verbs would agree and all the punctuations were in place. As I moved on to high school writing was more difficult as I had to write and organize my own thoughts and ideas. I remember writing the same essay until it was correct. I would re-read and make the necessary corrections. I had to make sure it was easily followed by anyone. I remember one teacher in particular who spoke “perfect English” and she encouraged writing in the same which helped to build my vocabulary. She would give numerous essays to write at different levels and made little notations to follow when writing the next essay. This helped to build my writing skills. Up to date this is my inspiration to try to write as much as possible without flaws whether it be spelling or grammatical errors. There are a couple of things that I do feel I lack the confidence and skill to perform, such as organizing and expressing my ideas and that is what I hope to gain from participating in this course. I expect to be a well- rounded and scholarly writer and speaker who will be able to write and speak at all levels of...

Words: 257 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Smuker

...first sentence puts receivers in a good frame of mind.| ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 86 MSC: Remember 2. What should the organization of business messages be based on? a.|the direct pattern| b.|the indirect pattern| c.|the writer’s mood and personality| d.|a prediction of the receiver’s reaction to the main idea| ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 90 MSC: Remember 3. Which statement about strategies for structuring effective good- and neutral-news messages is true? a.|The strategies should be consistent throughout your writing.| b.|The strategies vary dramatically from one company to another.| c.|The strategies can generally be applied to cultures around the world.| d.|The strategies are generally consistent among North American audiences.| ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 90 MSC: Remember 4. You are writing to ABClothes.com to request an exchange for an ordered shirt that was recently sent to you in the incorrect size. What type of message will it be? a.|a routine claim| b.|a goodwill message| c.|a persuasive request| d.|a negative news message| ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 90 MSC: Higher Order 5. How does the tone of a letter differ from that of other communication channels? a.|Emails are more formal than letters.| b.|Memos are more formal than letters.| c.|Letters are less formal than memos.| d.|Letters are more formal than emails.| ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 91 MSC: Remember 6. How are memos and emails different from letters? a.|They are less formal in tone...

Words: 3894 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Alienated Labor

...Argument a. Identify the issue that is addressed in the argument. b. Explain the argument and identify the premises and conclusions. c. Evaluate the argument. * If the argument has a deductive component, is it valid and sound? Why? * If the argument has an inductive component, is it strong or weak? Why? * Remember that arguments often contain both inductive and deductive components. Do your best to identify all the arguments that are used to support the position presented in the piece. Step Two: Create a Counterargument a. Create a counterargument to the original argument. * Present premises that support your own position while also pointing out the weaknesses inherent in the original argument. Avoid the use of fallacious reasoning and anecdotal evidence. * If you are using inductive arguments, make sure that they are strong. If you are using deductive arguments, make sure that they are valid and attempt to provide sound premises. * Use factual evidence and/or logical support from at least three scholarly sources to support your argument. * This might require you to play “devil’s advocate.” Remember that you do not need to agree with the position for which you argue. You may need to take on an opposing position to your own personal view and argue from that position. Critical thinkers are able to take on opposing...

Words: 977 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Narrative

... BE-122 Professor Rothman English 101 I personally never took reading or writing seriously when I was a kid. I am very fortunate to have my family because they have always pushed me to learn to read and write. Truthfully speaking I don’t think I would have gotten where I am if it wasn’t for my family. In truth, reading and writing are one of the best skills that you can obtain, it is a skill that most of us learn at a young age, and it is also one of the greatest and most helpful tools that will make our lives much easier. I remember the first book I ever read or tried to read was “The Cat in the Hat” and I remember that because that was the first book my uncle ever got for me. My uncle played a big role in my literacy life. It was the first day of elementary when me and my brother who is a year older than me were handed a blank composition book from my uncle. Every day after school my brother and I would have to write a full page of everything that we did from the morning to the end of school and everything we learned. My uncle would come home from work and check our writing and after that was he would make us read for 15 minutes. The reason me and brother would always read very carefully was because at the end of the book we would have to write what the book was about in our own words. I never liked to read but writing on the other hand excited me. I remember in fifth grade when the teacher would make me read in front of the whole class I would hate it...

Words: 864 - Pages: 4