I’m thankful for a lot of things.  I’m  thankful for my family. I’m thankful for them because they love me and take care of me.  I’m thankful for my dog too.  He runs around with me when no one else wants to.  I’m thankful my friends.  They play with me and help me.  I’m thankful for my sisters.  They help me with my homework when I don’t understand it.  I’m thankful for my brother.  He will go outside and play football with me. Those are the things I’m thankful for.

       I’ll never forget the time in fifth grade when I caught a baby bird for my brother. It was a cool evening, and I was walking by the fire when I heard my brother, Thomas yelling, “Here, birdie.”

I was in the middle of running to find him when this petite ebony ball of fuzz fluttered right into my face! I heard Thomas scream, “Watch out.” But it was too late the baby cowbird pooped all over my brand new teal and maroon spring jacket. Thomas guffawed so hard he was drowning in his own tears. After I was done screaming, I caught the bird. But then it flew under the porch. So I had to crawl under the dank porch to catch the bird. Before I could catch the bird,a warty toad jumped right into my face. I caught the bird and got it out of there. My parents let us keep the bird. We had kept the bird in a fish aquarium.

The glory didn’t last long because the bird died three days later. He is buried in our backyard next to our dog.

Edited by Alli

I’ll never forget the lollipop moment that happened when I was five.  It was winter. It was supposed to the best day ever, but it turned out to be a trying time.

When Christmas time came, my witty mother bought me new magenta, ivory, orchard roller skates.  First, my mom said that it might be hard rollerskating, but I didn’t think so.  So, we went to the indoor rollerskating rink in Dewitt.  When we arrived, we had pizza.  It didn’t look very appetizing, but actually it was scrumptious.  It had onions, peppers, spicy meat, and salami.  After that, we went in the rink.  At first, I fell a lot because I was scared of falling and plus the jagged wood was frigid too.  Finally,  it seemed I accomplished rollerskating, but I couldn’t feel my legs. It turned out that I sprained an ankle. That is the way an exciting day can turn around quickly.

By: BalRutilant

I will never forget the lollipop moment that happened when I was four years old.  It was a typical Saturday afternoon, and I thought it would be enjoyable to jump on my bed in my parent’s room.  Instead of an exciting time, it turned out to be a tragedy.

I was bored, and I was just sitting on my pliable bed pondering what to do.  Suddenly I started zealously jumping!  Well, I started jumping and I bounced off the wall exactly three times, when the ledge above me shook.  A picture frame corner smashed into my head.  My pajamas were lilac, but then they turned crimson.  My mom called my grandma, and my grandma came over within four minutes.  My grandma is still my role model.  She sat with me on the couch with a cold, wet, immense washcloth on my head, watching Tom and Jerry cartoons.  My mom wisely went out to the store to buy butterfly band-aids.  Meanwhile I was still at home whimpering with Grandma.

And to this day, nobody will let me live it down.  After, I was given a bowl of tantalizing vanilla ice cream, and we went out to lunch at McDonald’s where I had a delectable chicken nugget Happy Meal.  This pampering helped me forget the pain of that terrible day.

In this paragraph I have had several lollipop moments in my life.  I was four, and it was a typical summer day after noon and my Uncle Matt, aunt Megan and I decided to play with the wagon by rolling down a minuscule hill,not a good idea.  While we were going up the hill my Uncle jerked the wagon, and sent me rolling down the rigged road to my house.  It turns out I broke my collar bone, and I had to wear a cast for six weeks.  Another disheartening time was when there was a little crash, and bang.  It was the summer when I was eight years old and we decided to go golfing. Next, I Got a driver And a few balls and started pummeling them. Then, it happened wack I thought to myself this is going long a little right. Crash, I had just broken our pole barn window.  Then, Another weird moment happened at the very beginning of fall, when I was now nine years old. It was a placid day, and we were bored, and I decided to do something extreme.  So  I got some bricks and plywood  and made a bike ramp. I was getting good air and decided to add more bricks.  I shouldn’t have done that,but I did  There I went And It happened I did a 180 in the air but did a face plant. These are some hard moments I have Survived during my Childhood.  

I go to St. Joe because you get to pray all the time and people don’t stop you. Another reason St. Joe is the best is because your friends are supportive and loyal. I like coming to school every day and learning new things like math, science, religion, social studies, reading, and spelling. I like learning religion because most schools don’t learn about God. The teachers here are fun and they make subjects easy. I like the lunches. My favorite is chicken patty and mashed potatoes. The playground is great because it is really fun to play on. We get to go to mass every Friday. St. Joe Musicals are great because they tell about God. The field trips we go on are are fun because it is with your class. My favorite trip is when we go to field day. On field day, we get to play all different kinds of games. At St. Joe, you get to go up and help your teachers with subjects. The fund raisers are great because you get to earn money for your school. We get to have parties sometimes because we earn them. Finally, I love St. Joe because you get to help people who are in need. That is why I go to school at St. Joe

I’ll never forget the lollipop moment that happened to me when I was a preschooler on a family vacation in Disney World in Florida.  What was supposed to be a really exciting day turned out to be quite the oppisite.

    My brother and his friends, Conner, Garret and myself were riding the Dumbo the elephant ride.  After the ride ended, I was walking with my parents but they walked off in a different direction to drop off the stroller.   I kept meandering awhile, and then I realized I had lost my family. I was almost petrified when all I saw was strangers.  I kept blinking to see if I was dreaming, but I knew I wasn’t.  I picked out a police officer about 20 yards away.  With my heart beating like a drum, I swiftly scurried to the officer and quickly informed him that I was lost.  He asked what they were wearing, but I had no clue.  As I was standing next to the officer I, saw my family and friends and without telling the policemen, I sprinted towards my family with relief.  The first thing I did was see what they were wearing.  Strangely enough we saw that officer again while watching a parade.  I got to say thank you and my dad got to meet the police officer, too.  I did what my parents told me to do if I got lost, to tell a police officer.

That moment I will never forget.  I know now that I need to stand next to my family no matter how embarrassing they are. 

Etided by Quinn

      I will never forget the lollipop moment that happened when I was four years old.  It was a typical Saturday afternoon,and I thought it would be enjoyable to jump on my bed in my parent’s room.  Instead of an exciting time, it turned out to be a tragedy.

   I was bored, and I was just sitting on my pliable bed pondering what to do.  Suddenly I started zealously jumping!  Well, I started jumping and I bounced off the wall exactly three times, when the ledge above me shook.  A picture frame corner smashed into my head.  My pajamas were lilac, but then they turned crimson.  My mom called my grandma, and my grandma came over within four minutes.  My grandma is still my role model.  She sat with me on the couch with a cold, wet, immense washcloth on my head, watching Tom and Jerry cartoons.  My mom wisely went out to the store to buy butterfly band-aids.  Meanwhile I was still at home whimpering with Grandma.

    And to this day, nobody will let me live it down.  After, I was given a bowl of tantalizing vanilla ice cream, and we went out to lunch at McDonald’s where I had a delectable chicken nugget Happy Meal.  This pampering helped me forget the pain of that terrible day.

By: BalRuliant

It was a cold winter night, and I was in second grade. My friend Sydni and I were having a sleepover, and we were heading out to Jade Garden for dinner. We turned on to Cass Street and started playing Truth or Dare. Suddenly, we hit a huge bump and her mom pulled over to see what was the matter.

Sydni and I were not concerned about this at all. There were bumps in the dilapidated road everywhere, right? Then, her mom came in and told us we had run over a dead deer that was in the middle of the road. That is when the two of us started to worry. We unbuckled and got out of the ivory van. It was freezing outside, but we must have thought the van was going to blow up or something, because we just kept standing out there and chatting. Sydni’s mom called the tow truck, and after what felt like an hour , it finally showed up. I thought I was staying with Sydni , but then I found out my mom was on her way to pick me up. I was so upset this night would be ruined. I wished my mom would have handed me a lollipop when she got there, but to my disappointment, she didn’t. It was absolutely awful. My mom, however, felt badly about the situation, and promised to arrange another sleepover.

The next morning, to my surprise, my mom handed over a cherry lollipop. This lollipop moment will be in my mind forever.

Who is your favorite music artist, what is your favorite type of music, and why? Comment back ; D

Lollipop Moment

I’ll never forget the lollipop moment that happened to me one summer day. I was visiting my Aunt Carlene’s house, and I was at the neighbor’s house playing with Tyler on a slide, then all of the sudden everything went wrong.

First, Tyler and I decided it would be fun to jump off of the side of the slide. So he went first and made it look so enjoyable. So I said, “I want to try that”! So I did, and I jumped off of it and fell on the pebbly ground and landed hard on my left arm. Then, I started wailing, and my mom came over to see if I was ok. She told me to stand up to see if I could move it. Turns out I couldn’t move it. My mom quickly drove me to to Sparrow Hospital, and I had to get a very impermeable cast which I had to keep on for a very long time. After a while, I got a waterproof cast so I could go swimming, because it was so blistering outside. One thing I had to do was shake my arm so all of the water would come out of my cast.

After that, I had go to the hospital to get my cast off. The doctor used a boisterous saw to cut the cast. After I got my cast off, it felt really comical to move my arm. After a while, I was able to move my arm because it had gotten its strength back. To this day if I ever hit my left arm in the spot I broke it, it hurts really badly.

I’ll never forget the lollipop moment that happened to me in the 1st grade. It was a tepid day, and I wanted to jump off the the diving board at my grandma’s cottage at the lake with my mom watching me. However,what was suppose to be  a sweet summer day turned out to be  a painful experience.

    First, I though I’d try a back flip. So I jumped off the diving board scared out of my mind, and I completely missed the frigid water and landed directly on my shoulder. I cut my shoulder  all the way to the bone. My mom rushed me to the Sparrow Hospital, and I recived the largest band-aid I’ve ever seen. Then I had to get a skin graph. The next day I could barely see where the skin graph was because it blended in perfectly.

    To this day I have a fear of diving boards. Until it goes away, I’ll just have to be a spectator when my  friends have diving competitions.

Once  I tried to clumsily ride my brawny pitbull dog ( who threw me ever so roughly off), but I will probably never do that again. 

It wasn’t to long ago that I got a horrid brain freeze from eating a frigid ice cream flurry too quickly.

 The greatest thing about me is my gregarious personality.

 I wish I could control time.

 Wild horses couldn’t drag me to my brothers basketball practice. It is a minuscule space, rambunctious boys. No Way!

 Last year I had my last Christmas with my pitbull/boxer dog, Petey.

 Yesterday I babysat my grandma’s petite new dog, Cuddles.

 Losing my family is my greatest fear.

 Nothing makes me madder than when someone rudely interrupts me.

 If I could change something in the world it would be wars, criminals, and death.

 I think that animal cruelty is horrid.

 In ten years I expect to be a proud owner of an animal shelter.

 I would really like to try to make a pencil you can eat.

 Something else fascinating about me is despite my stature, I am a proud softball player who has made three triple plays.

Picture by bwinmu

Andy Schmitt, a local high school football star, is a role model to me for many reasons.  Andy has inspired many people, he was dedicated to St. Johns Football program and very unselfish, and his hard working attitude has earned him great rewards.

Throughout Andy’s marvelous career, he has made a path in which many have followed.  His inspiration has effected many people, including myself.  He has inspired me to try out for quarterback, and I am now a starter on my team.  During his coaching last year, he pushed Coach Maroije into having a lot more motion in his offense.  The coaches had so much respect for Andy, that they listened to him, which led to many key victories, such as a win over the 3rd ranked in the state Mason Bulldogs.

    In addition, he believed that he belonged to St. Johns Football in a special way.  He was very dedicated, and he even turned down the opportunity to play back up quarterback for the Lions because he wanted to coach St. Johns.  He was a freak in the weight room, breaking an all time collegiate record of doing 28 200 lb. bench reps, two more times than 2nd place Brady Quinn.  He was definitely the leader of St. Johns football in 2004, the year that he led St. Johns to a State Championship against Lowell, facing off against quarterback Keith Nichol, who is now a wide receiver for MSU.  
    Andy’s accomplishments are a result of his persistence. He suffered an ACL tear against Michigan State, which obviously put him out for the season.  Yet, he was better than ever the next year, even though he no longer played for E. Michigan.  His knee never held him back, so I think to myself, “What should hold me back?” Nothing is the answer.

Throughout this tough, exciting life, we look at all of Andy’s virtues, and all we can help to do is smile.  He is truly the reason that I play football today, and whenever I think of him, I push myself a little bit harder in whatever I’m doing.  He has definitely been an inspiration to me.

       My Papa Harold was very, very special. He was my mom’s dad. He didn’t yell at anyone. He was very skilled at his work. He spoiled us with many things. Also, Papa Harold had bad things happen to him without complaining.

  My mother told me that Papa Harold never got angry at someone. When he yelled, it would be at one of his tools because it wasn’t working right, or the lawn mower broke again. And, when my mom or her siblings got in trouble, he would show his disappointment, but not scream at them. Plus, my mom also informed me that throughout her whole lifetime, she only got spanked twice, when she was a little girl.

    Papa Harold is diligent and prudent when he works. He took my older sister, Challis, and me to his work a couple of times when I was six or seven. He worked at Delta Machining, and his office was quite large. He had a whole room to himself! He designed machine parts. First of all, he had boxes and boxes of blueprints of cool looking machine parts and more. Papa Harold told us he worked on research and development. Almost all of his designs worked, but with a lot of hard work.

    Papa Harold bought us all many toys that cost at least seven dollars or more. I remember one that he obtained for Challis. It was a McDonald’s toy set so that we could pretend we worked there. Also, he always had mints and butterscotches for us to devour whenever we visited. And, he took us to the screen deck every night that we slept over at his house, and we would have whatever flavor ice cream we wanted. He would let us stay up all night just to watch our favorite shows on Boomerang.

    My amazing Papa Harold smoked when he was alive. In 2005, he was diagnosed with cancer. That opened his eyes, and he realized smoking was bad for him. He struggled to stop smoking. At his death bed, my mom had just had my little sister Reagan, and my mom took a picture of her and sent it on her phone to my Aunt Wendy, who showed it to papa. His last words were, “She’s just beautiful.” On August 18, 2007, my Papa Harold died of cancer.

    My Papa Harold was a loving speaker, conscientious in his work, gave us many things, and didn’t blame anyone for what happened to him. Papa Harold was certainly a man who is missed.

First, you hould make a thick layer of torttia chips and sprinkle hot ground beef onto the chips.  Then grade cheddar chees all over it, slid it into the microwave and set it for one miute, press start.  Also add hot beans, sour cream, and  lettuce after that you got yourself a treat.

My grandpa has had a large influence on my life.  You know how you watch people on TV hunting and fishing so you want to be as good as them that`s how I look at my grandpa.  He is such a great sportsman, an amazing teacher, and he perseveres in life`s struggles.  

 My grandpa has always enjoyed being an outdoor`s enthusiast.  Throughout my grandpa’s life he killed several large animals .  First, he always shoots animals in season and obeys the laws, he never poaches.  Next, he taught himself how to clean deer and fish.   He once shot his knuckle out on accident, but he still hunts  This is a life lesson.  His favorite thing to hunt is squirrel with a 22 cal.  My grandpa has enjoyed being a hunter.  

My grandpa has taught me several things throughout my life. First,  when I was young, he told me never to bellow in the woods.  Next, he told me when I am about to shoot at a deer, aim for the crease in the shoulder.  Then, my grandpa showed me how to gut and clean my deer.  He explained math equations that he  learned when he substitute taught.  When I was fishing once, he instructed me where to hold my rod and how to fight the fish.  In Florida, I learned about all of the unconventional species of fish.  He teaches me by example too.  During the summer, he was fixing up his cottage, and I watched the whole time, I learned a lot.   My grandpa has a wealth of knowledge.

My grandpa does not complain about anything.  There are several struggles that have occurred in my grandpa`s  life.  He has  high blood pressure which he tries to change.  When my  family lost my cousin, he was sad, but he never showed it on the outside.  In addition, he never complained about the little bit of sleep he got when he had to get up several times in the middle of the night to help my great grandma that had heath problems.  When my great grandma went to the nursing home he was worried, yet he had a smile on his face.  Once up north,  he dropped a heavy rock on his finger, and he did not scream or yell he just wrapped it up.  I am a better person because of my relationship with my grandpa.

Someday I want to teach everything that my grandpa taught me to my children and grand children.

First, when ever you are hunting with dogs you let the dogs go and the dogs will sweep the grass from side to side. Next, when the dog stops, it will point with its body to where the bunny is. After, the dog will croutch down and start to approach it . The bunny will jump up and staart running. Something you all ways need to know is that the rabbit will run in a circle. You immedietly run to where the rabbit was hiding, crouch down and wait for the rabbit to run by. When this happens you stand up and shoot about 2 feet infront of the rabbit.when you get the rabbit you then clean it.

My Grandma Wisinski is my role model. Her helpfulness, supportive attitude and faith – filled spirit has improved the lives of those who know her.

My grandmother has always made it a point to help as many people as she can. She has ten grandchildren, and she has traveled thousands of miles for each of their births. Whether it was Ohio to Michigan or Texas, she was there before and after to help the parents and the other children. She also has assisted my grandpa with his fight with throat cancer, and she was there for him during both knee replacements. Another way she demonstrates her kindness is by sewing baby blankets and wash cloths for the Pregnancy Crisis Center in Columbus.

Grandma Wisinski is also a very laborious worker. Since she graduated from Mercy College in Grand Rapids, she has had a job. First, she worked as a nurse in Grand Rapids and in St. Johns. When she moved to Texas for her husband’s job, she managed a nursing home. Again, for job reasons they moved to Columbus, Ohio. There, she took care of an elderly couple. When she officially retired from nursing, she worked at Talbots. That is where she currently works.

My grandma’s faith is also a huge part of her life. She started out with Catholic Schools. She helped her son -in- law and her daughter -in- law become Catholic. Currently, she attends Mass daily and goes to the sacrament of Reconciliation often.

Finally, my grandma has really affected my family, and many other people. Because of her kind hearted behavior, hard working attitude and religious devotion, she is held in esteem by many who know her.

Picture given by: Expense

    What is a role model?  Many people don’t seem to understand it but a role model is a kind of person that others look up to whether its for doing something brave, courageous, or for just being kind.  Another thing people always seem to miss about role models is that they’re everywhere!  Some role  models may be famous, and some people may be more privately recognized, like a family member or relative. What I’m here to write about is my own special role model, my Uncle Cameron.
    

        One of the special characteristics that my uncle has is he is always honest.  Cameron is always telling the truth how it should be without alternating the story a bit  or changing it so it fits him better. He always tells the truth even when it can be hurtful, but he always finds ways in his words to make it hurt less. He can also be an honest person and tell a joke or two at the same time, which for some people is a hard thing to do. This is just one of Cameron’s “role model like” actions. 
    

         Another quality Cameron has that I wish to someday emulate is his devotion to his family and kindness towards them as well. Cameron always seems to be around home, which for a college student, is not always an easy thing to do. Whenever he goes out to do something he always checks with his mom and dad to see whats going on later in the day and, if something comes up, he will at his best ability try to be there. I remember not that long ago he had planned to go snowboarding with his friends an hour and a half away the same day I had a basketball game. Even though he was so far away he still made it in time to watch us play. He also has a good attitude towards others if he can’t go do something he had planned. This is one of the bigger, but not the only, thing special about Cameron I wish to be like.

         The final thing I wish to be model after Cameron is that he will never give up. If something difficult comes up in front of my uncle, he will just try harder to get past the task in front of him. He has never given up on something just because it takes a little more effort than he’s used to. He inspires me to be like that because sometimes, when I feel like something is a little challenging, I will put it away and try to forget about. This is not the best idea because I never know when I’ll have time to do it again, or if I ever will have time to get back to it. He has taught me to use what I have and not try to rely on other sources to do everything for me.                                                                                              

            So even if I didn’t get the grade or something I wanted, at least I have the satisfaction that I gave it my all, and that’s what he has taught me from his actions.

So what is a role model? A role model is the kind of person who has always tried their best up to the point where they are now. That is what my Uncle Cameron is like — an honest, determined, and family centered person.  That is what I hope to be like when I grow up.