Great Depression; Sadie's Story

       Hey guys! I know some of you have probably already read this, but I wanted to share it here so that I will always have a permanent copy. It was a school history assignment; to find a photo from the great depression and create a 5 paragraph story to go along with it that shows a more in depth look at the great depression. I made up the idea to do different perspectives and times. There might be some small typos I didn't catch. I did use Corn, Oklahoma as a location for two reasons. One, it was a struggling place during this era and two, my grandma lives there. Shout out to Meemaw!! Enjoy.

                                                             OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA        2:30 AM

                                                                                      Sadie                                                        

           Sadie looked at the sky. Her face stared with wide brown eyes that were so deep you get lost in them. She could almost remember the constellations, the exact spot of the stars, and even the stories her father used to tell about them. Her particular favorite was one about a little girl who discovered she could fly. One day the little girl ran away from home to fly around the world. Every time she was lost she looked to the stars, and when she finally returned home, she told her stories to the stars through constellations to show her gratitude. Sadie closed her eyes. The thought brought her back to the farm she was raised, laying on the field, dreaming of her future. The thought also brought her tears. The world was so small then.

         That night, even looking away from the sky, Sadie couldn’t sleep. She’d tried everything, racked her brain of any thought, but could not sleep. Her job was to get a job. How could that have seemed so simple before? And then it hit her. The reason she couldn’t sleep was because she didn’t want to wake up. The day awaiting her was sure to be filled with nothing but failure, and each passing day meant another day closer to when she had to go home and face her family. Were they expecting her to come home with loads of money to spare? In reality she had nothing, definitely not enough to support her whole family-her siblings, parents, grandparents- and definitely not enough to support herself.

           She tried to organize her thoughts. Apparently special groups with long acronyms are supposed to help her; she heard it on the radio a while back. The new president, Roosevelt, was supposed to re-make the system with his new deal. And all these women with the Rosie Riveter cartoon. It was just completely confusing! Sadie passed by those stupid towns filled with hopeless people every day, Hoovervilles.  Because of the crash in the stock market, people weren’t buying as many crops. No one needed food for the soldiers anymore and; quite frankly, the prices were just going to keep dropping. Her family was going to loose their farm, and then, most likely, their house.  Sadie shuddered. The thought of living in one of those shantytowns made her shiver. With that thought, she shifted uncomfortably to sleep.

                                                          CORN, OKLAHOMA               3:00 AM

                                                                                Jacob

       Put the bottle down! This was a lot harder than it looked. Everything spun. Which was it, the feeling he was going to barf, or the fact he knew what he was doing? All alone here Jacob felt as if vultures were picking apart his brain. He took another drink. And this wasn’t the first time; the vultures had been in his head before. Flapping their ugly wings, picking him apart. They were hated by the world; just like him. But he let them in. Again and again.

        Just then Elizabeth walked in, her small body trembling with anger. She started yelling something intolerable, her words just coming like lava out of a volcano. It made everything feel hot, like they were drowning. It rose slowly, her angry words- get out, put the bottle down, get a job – but when she said Sadie, time stopped. What was Jacob doing? Elizabeth’s warn old face looked tired and desperate. She walked out into dark night, unsuccessful and now shaking more then ever.

       Was it possible that even in her sick, old, frail state, even Sadie’s grandmother could tell that something was wrong? His thoughts were clouded. He had tried before to get a job, but lost them due to his absence on days when hangovers prevented him from going. The newspaper had a jobs section, but it seemed like the articles about high unemployment rates and the depression were always blocking them.

         With no one to buy the crops of Sadie’s and Jacob’s family farm, no one had to work to harvest them. It’s not like they could pay the rate migrant workers wanted these days anyway. With no one working and no crops being sold, there was no income. Jacob knew he would soon have to sell the land in order to keep their home. But no one was buying! The endless cycle of the economy grew worse and worse, and now he was spending more money on drinks than on food to feed his own kids. Where were they anyway? With no one hiring and jobs hard to find, more and more of his former friends went without a job. They had no money, so they bought less, and then there were even less jobs! It seemed like there was no way to win this constant battle.

         Where was Sadie? Had he been the reason for her going? He had to go find her! It was just a crazy hallucination. She had left a note, but Jacob was too drunk to read it. His thoughts kept drifting back to her face; perfect brown hair braided down her back, perfectly framing her face and those big eyes. He really did miss her and knew for sure that she would not be returning. He had made her go! Kicked her out, literally. Forced her, blamed her for the countless bills that were overdue. Why couldn’t things be like how they used too? He took another drink. It was her daring attitude to be different from the other girls that had made him fall in love back in the early twenties. But things took a down turn when people in the city lost their money in the stock market once it crashed. And that was the first of many things to crash down. The bottle he just threw shattered against the cold, hard, barn floor. The vultures stayed in.

                                                                    CORN, OKLAHOMA       3:15 AM

                              Elizabeth

           He didn’t understand. She was just trying to help! Even though her life was spent in bed, even Elizabeth could tell that things weren’t right. And now for some reason, no one would tell her where her darling Sadie had gone. It was her who had raised Sadie after her mother died, her who had taken care of her- and now she had simply disappeared? Elizabeth feared she would soon disappear herself.

       Sadie’s children, so young, were without parental supervision, supposed to be watched by Jacob! Elizabeth had hated that man from the start, knowing her granddaughter was just in summer love. But now they had married and he was supposed to watch the kids! Provide a good life for them! What were they eating now, food off the street? Elizabeth cried everyday for them, praying for them. She couldn’t even stand up, and she could only speak on her better days. It was a miracle she had made it out to the barn without falling down. They would never be able to cure her, and absolutely not hire a doctor. She tried not to think it, but she really wished she could just die already-that wasn’t going to happen though, at least for a little while longer. So, she was banished to the bed, with no one to care for her and nothing she could do. Helpless.

     The people from the expensive nursing home in town used to stop by and offer to take Elizabeth away. But Sadie refused to let her go, vowing that the lady who raised her would live with her forever. Now the nursing home people wouldn’t come. Everyone knew they were broke. Elizabeth was alone.                

                                                                CORN, OKLAHOMA            4:00 AM

                                                                                     Micheal 

    He looked around. Carly, the twins, and Timmy were all sound asleep. For night time, it was still offly hot. They were laying in the field a ways away from the barn. Today had been yet another unsucessful day, with still no money and no jobs. Micheal felt that, as the oldest boy, it was his job to keep everyone together. He was the man of the pack, and he tried to stay strong for the little ones, but he knew what was going to happen. Because unlike everyone else, Micheal had a maturity that all the kids lacked. He knew that although it would eventually end, this depression wasn't going to stop for awhile. He needed to get some help and fast- today he had to give up his ration for Timmy, the littlest todler of the group. He had just a few mintues ago heard a crash in the direction of the barn. He tried to focus his attention somewhere else, away from his stupid father and away from this stupid life.

     Micheal looked up, with the same big eyes as his mother. All around him he saw stars, shining so bright. He found comfort in them. They were so solid, like rocks, except prettier and shinier. His mom had always said that one day, she would tell them stories about the stars and their placement, but was always putting it off for a later time. Was there going to be a later time? Micheal prayed with all his heart that his mom was going to come home with jobs and money and food, and everyone would be happy again. But his conciense told him no. And he knew his conciense was right.

     He remembered the little hat he had given his mother before she left. She had told him stay safe and he replied don't get sunburned- although he wished he woud've said goodbye. He had found it right off from one of those shantytowns, probably something that had blown away. Everyday he feared the wind, feared those scary storms would come. But as he looked at the stars with his mothers eyes, he found hope. And with his little boy maturity, he decided he would find his mom no matter what. Under the stars, Micheal felt his mothers presence. With that thought, little Micheal shifted to sleep.

Smile :D

     It feels so good to write again. No matter if no one reads it, if they don't agree with me, or think my sense of humor stupid. It just feels so good to put my thoughts here...because if I do say so myself, my thoughts are pretty awesome.
      So today I had a block-day gym class (1 1/2 hours), and it was rough like any other. We had to do a mile half sprinting, half walking, and then we had an Ultimate frisbee contest. I'm actually pretty accurate with my throws, and I wanted to show off my skills. But of course, like what always happens when I think I'm good at something, I embarrassed myself. Well, let me re-phrase that..I was embarrassed. It wasn't me embarassing myself, it was a boy on my team.
     Before we started every game he would pass it to me first(which in ultimate frisbee is a sign you are terrible). Then after we would loose possession, he would tell me to move around more or block this person. Block that person! And I would keep replying, "Um, okay. I'll do it, but only because I understand you are too busy telling everyone else what to do."
      I wasn't concerned with what he thought of me. He wasn't fond of me already; in the beginning of the year I sort of threw the ball so hard it hit him and he fell down. Apparently he was blind to the fact it was an amazing throw and I have massive strength...talk about holding a grudge, I think he's still angry at me for it. I should be angry at him! While people were paying attention to his falling down they missed my victory dance. He was completely exaggerating, I sware! Well, whats past is past...
     After gym, some people walked up to me and apologized for his behavior. Someone had not only noticed that he was being rude, but the prettiest and most popular girl in my gym class was apologizing..for him. I was so shocked by their kindness torward me- it was a leap from the snarky looks they usually give me.
     After that, I wanted to spread the kindness. I felt like kind of karma mixed with rainbow icecream and Coke. Us girls were all in the mirrors in the locker room, as we usually do after gym, and one girl was still there even after the bell had rung. I've known her for awhile-actually a really long time. Although we were never that close, I saw she was distressed. Walking over to her, she asked me how she looked. I said "Better than me! Long gym totally ruins my hair."
    "Me too! You are gorgeous though. I feel so fat! ugh. Can I borrow you sweatshirt? It's baggy right?"
     I felt terrible myself and was planning on wearing it already. Instead, I told her
    "You can wear it if you like, but I have a Better idea. Wanna hear my biggest secret to being 'gorgeuos'? You can look prettier than Megan Fox and Taylor Swift combined...have a positive attitude and show off your brilliant smile. Boys love that confidence and I'm pretty sure I read in a magazine that girls who are positive look 90% more beautiful."
      She smiled at the mirror, then at me, and laughed a little. Walking away from the mirror she grabbed her stuff and looked straight at me. "Thanks Lydia," she remarked in a grateful way, and I couldn't help but notice the new found pep in her step and the effervescent smile that stayed on her face her whole way out :)
                 

The New Quote

Hey! So I just made an interesting discovery. I can access this on my phone! And guess what? It's pretty nice. As you can see, I added a quote. I really like that quote not only because it covers everything-the golden rule, believe in yourself- but also because I like Gandhi. Let me tell you how I found it.
Although I did know it before(because it's famous) I wandered across it when I was doing a recent project. My mom had showed me this essay contest, in which the theme was "Community Responsibility. I love writing, and decided to take this on. But my problem was, with this broad subject, I had no inspiration. Not like inspiration such as a tragic life event, but...well let me explain(getting off topic here again!)
I believe that all good artists whether it be writing, painting, or doing whatever artsy thing,have had something happen to them. like famous artists who had their heart broken. Their art may be especially touching. Or an artist who was a recovering alcoholic. Their art might feature a series of broken glass, or pictures that really show their emotions. Because of this hardship, I think people like their art more. I'm not sure why that is or why I think that- maybe because it makes the artist more real. You getting this? Here's another example. Music. Listening to the radio, when you hear a song about a man who lost his one and only love (You Found Me by the Fray) you will most likely like it. Because its deep, a good song, and inspirational. On the other hand, when you hear I love you like a love song baby repeat-peat-peat-peat-peating for the millionth time, it's not as appealing. Perhaps because you feel much worse for The Fray's hardships, and less for Selena Gomez's millionth break up song. You get me know?
Sorry for this extreme off topic-ness, but I'm just trying to explain what I'm trying to say. Back on topic. While writing this essay, I was looking for a main topic. Something that would make a 13 year-old girl from Virginia stand out from the hundreds of other 13 year-olds entering the contest. My big thing was going to be how Gandhi was like the spokesperson of community; standing up for India and all. But like many other random projects I take on, I never finished my essay. Just some stuff to think about, if it made any sense at all. Thanks for reading! Bye!

The Urge

    Hola Amigos! I love checking back on my blog to see what I've previously written. I laugh at my own jokes and remember how funny I thought I was. My friends and I used to make these videos which we planned to put on YouTube and become internet stars. We would make funny infomercials for stupid things like 'Cenny Jaig, the all in one Become-more-fitter program' and 'huggies, someone to hug you when you are lonely.' Looking back on them, we weren't as funny as we though we were. Sure, then it was hilarious. But now....it just looks like two 13 year old girls who were bored out of their brains. I guess what you find funny changes and in someway stays the same as you grow up. Of course what I saw on Spongebob five years ago isn't exactly so interesting as whats on Modern Family today. But even when I re-watch the episodes that made me laugh, I still giggle. Those square pants, they just get me every time!
    So as you can see I re-did some of the settings. I changed my colors to kind of a peach&red look, and messed with the fonts. Maybe now with this makeover, I'll actually start writing again. I've been really wanting to write lately.
    I read a book awhile ago; it was about a group of sisters whom a man stalked- I'm not sure exactly how I came upon this really creepy story, but I did- and one day the man kidnaps the girl. Well, long story short (getting off topic should be my job), one of her sisters kept mentioning something called The Urge. She had The Urge often, when she was in a good mood and felt really artsy. She said she had The Urge to speak and liked to tell stories because she was to lazy to write them down. The sister explained everyone has something to urge for. Not like a need for love or a want for ice cream. But something everyone has inside them, a talent almost, that they need to share. Not everyone discovers their talent in their lifetime. And I think mine is writing.
   I'll be sitting in math class, so angry, so I rip out a paper and write down a poem. It makes me feel all gangster, like a rapper. If I'm writing about something that makes me mad, I just randomly bring up everything that angers me. If the subject is life, I'll go all out on a rant complete with Gandhi quotes and past tales from 'when I was a kid.' It explains why and how I get off topic, which I am doing right now. I had to change the title of this post four times; from "Makeover" to "My humor" to "Lectures on Life" to finally "The Urge." Because that's why I wrote this post. I had The Urge.
   I hope I left you with at least some sort of beneficial thought or at least in a good mood. Thanks for reading this till the end and not just leaving when I made a cheesy joke about Spongebob.
              Sincerely,
                       Lydia