" I Bless the Rains down in Africa"

All you could hear were the drums pounding loud and clear over the village. The rhythm took a hold of you making you move and shake every inch of your body. Their voices, their songs sent chills down you back all the way through to your fingertips making you shiver. Dead center stood the two people that were the main source of this uproar and every inch of their spirit exuded generosity. Their infectious smiles lit up the whole Chanzga village that had come to watch the celebrations. Now, Peter the man that is ever so deserving of having his life completely transformed could not stop expressing his gratitude in the form of dance. Grabbing his wife, they both continued to move as if they had left all their worries behind and had gone back to the years when they were young. We all watch in sheer amazement at the sight of their happiness. Everyone was well aware that building this family a home would bring out emotions in them that they had never experienced before however, we were not prepared to have theses same emotions rage out of our bodies too. The simple glance into Peter’s eyes was great conviction that if you truly care, the dreams that people think are unrealistic are capable of being achieved.

Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey is a strong, compassionate and inspiring woman that has changed many people's lives greatly. Her television show deals with tough issues that people from all generations and age groups can relate with in some way or another. She tackles these controversial themes with such poise and makes the audience feel as if their not alone. Winfrey did not have the easiest path to all her fame; she grew up in a rural poverty-stricken neighbourhood with her grandmother and was consequently sexually molested by male relatives. She then finally moved to Nashville to live with her father however, her struggles continued when she started abusing drugs and even getting pregnant. Winfrey’s fathers strict rules finally started coming into play when she was awarded a University Scholarship. She took this amazing opportunity to graduate with honours in media and journalism because of this her career arose to abstract heights. Oprah Winfrey is America’s most influential women this characteristic is a vital reason for all her success. Positively influencing others is a niche that has a significant effect on a person’s development and Winfrey is truly the icon for this quality. Winfrey learned from all the hardship she dealt with in the past and inspirationally turned them to advantage. For someone to sincerely influence others they have to be passionate, hardworking, determined and believe in the issues they feel strongly about and Oprah Winfrey demonstrates all these attributes to the highest degree.

Synthesis: "The Lottery and "The Perils of Indifference"

It is very hard to believe that common people could place any harm on others however, “The Lottery” and “The Perils of Indifference” are two pieces of literature in which horrifying violence and immoral behaviour is revealed by “ordinary” citizens. There are direct examples in both pieces of how regular citizens can demonstrate acts of such outrageous behaviour towards others without even considering the consciousnesses.

The short story “The Lottery” is about a small town that holds a local lottery once a year. Average citizens take part in this so-called lottery however; this is not a typical event. The author describes the town as being “clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green” this scene makes the reader feel as if everything is sane and peaceful in the town yet this is not the case at all. The lottery that takes place is for a brutal act of violence on an “ordinary” citizen that by chance has to suffer a death by immoral behaviour from her fellow neighbours.

In “The Perils of Indifference” this same concept of inhumane behaviour by “ordinary” people is demonstrated but to a much larger scale. Elie Wiesel was faced by injustices and horrors as a child. His entire family was tortured and killed by the Nazis leaving him abandoned; this unimaginable behaviour was done none other than “ordinary” human beings that were brainwashed by the powers of Hitler. Theses normal people killed millions of Jews out of fear and the outrageous authority of one man however, everyday citizens watched and took no action, and they took no stand and made no effort to fight for theses innocent people. The blame could be put on all ranges of individuals; unfortunately, the people we most trust took to long to stop the heart-wrenching cries of so many innocent lives.

“The Lottery” and “The Perils of Indifference” both demonstrate how “ordinary” citizens can turn out to be the unexpected and cause pain and suffering to people that are no better or less than there own selves. Would you demonstrate inhumane acts if others were or would you stand and watch? Is causing pain or watching pain being caused any different or are they equal?

Novel Research

Lawrence Hill is a magnificent, inspiring and creative storyteller that touches all generations with his masterpieces. He is an award-winning Canadian novelist that has written books like Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada and of course the 2007 novel The Book of Negroes. This novel has won him numerous awards and has received him much needed praise. For example, it was a #1 Canadian Bestseller and was named one of the top 100 books of the 2007 by the Globe and Mail. Lawrence Hill was born in Toronto in 1957 into an interracial home, his father was black and his mother was white. Hill’s parents and his upbringing have an enormous impact on his writing making his novels greatly more personal. His hard work and dedication has also won him the 2007 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the 2008 Commonwealth Writer’s Prize along with other well-deserved awards. Lawrence Hill is a refreshing novelist that makes his readers question issues and life changing ideas.

Toronto Raptors 08/09 season

The Raptors are full of many talented athletes, however this season they greatly underachieved even though the outlook on the year seemed promising. The team is full of big name stars like Chris Bosh, who is the leading scorer and franchise player of the team, Jose Calderon, who has surprised everyone and has become one of the best free throw shooters in the league. Shawn Marion, who was just traded in this year but has had a major impact offensively and you cannot forget Parker, Bargnani, Kapona and Graham. With all theses amazing athletes the sports media believed they were a team to watch for and could only improve from their previous season. The signing of Bryan Colangelo as the General Manager and the revamping of the team roster greatly alleviated the team and they qualified for their first playoff berth in five years in the 2006-2007 season while doing this they also captured their first division title in the process. Last season they once again qualified for the playoffs giving high hopes to all raptor fans for the 2008-2009 season. However, when this season came along they looked like a completely different team, they showed no passion, no drive, and most importantly, they simply did not work hard enough. This lack of effort and the teams overall performance eventually cost Sam Mitchell his coaching job and he was replaced by interim coach Jay Triano however, the coaching modification did not magically enhance the teams overall play. Excuses could be made that they had too many injuries to the starting lining up and they had a significant amount of outside distractions regarding Chris Bosh’s contract however, they had players on their roster that had the potential to step up and take action unfortunately no one took that initiative. The season for the Toronto Raptors was a complete failure but maybe we expected too much from such an inconsistent team.

Athletes of the Summer Olympics

The top three athletes of the Summer Olympics are Michael Phelps the swimmer, Usain Bolt the sprinter and Simon Whitfield the triathlete. These three athletes have been chosen to be on this list in regards to how many world records they hold, how many medals they received at the Olympics and lastly their overall character and hardworking dedication to their desired sport.

Michael Phelps took the sport of swimming by storm when he hit the Olympic scene at Athens in 2004. This remarkable overachieving athlete began winning medals right away at the Olympic stage when he acquired eight medals at Athens. Six of these medals were gold and only two were bronze. Winning eight medals was not enough for Phelps he set his goals even higher for the 2008 Beijing Olympics where he won eight medals again but this time they were all gold and grabbing on to the record for the most gold medals at a single Olympics at the same time. Overall in his Olympic career he has won 14 medals, the most by any Olympian however, his records do not stop there. He holds the fastest times in the 200m freestyle, 200m butterfly, 200m individual medley, 400m individual medley, 100m freestyle relay, 200m freestyle relay, and 100m medley relay. Things do not seem to be slowing down for this athlete anytime soon by winning five more Olympic medals he could pass Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina record and have the most Olympic medal total of all time.

Usain Bolt has amazingly accomplished so much being only in his first Olympic games in Beijing. He also has set numerous records and has displayed inspirational behaviour when it comes to his passion. At the games Bolt won 3 gold medals in the 100 metres, the 200 metres and the 100 metres relay and at the same time becoming the first man to win all three events at a single Olympics since Carl Lewis, and the first man in history to set world records in all three at a single Olympics. Bolt has had a very successful professional career, winning countless medals, and setting a great deal of world records at World Championships and other events. People at times have questioned his work ethic and enthusiasm however; he has justified all these allegations by leading by example and showing his determination to achieve even higher goals when it comes to his sprinting.

The Canadian Simon Whitfield has given a new meaning to perseverance and overcoming obstacles. Whitfield’s first gold medal came when he astonishing won the triathlon at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. This brilliant performance is one of the most memorable ones by an individual athlete. Whitfield faced adversity when he had to over come a 14 rider bike crash but never gave up and worked vigorously in the foot race to take the victory. His final time still stands at the fastest in an Olympic triathlon. Whitfield continued performing to the best of his abilities and enhanced his training; this significantly helped at the 2008 Summer Olympics where he won a silver medal. This accomplishment was even more inspiring than the last because he was fourth heading into the finale kilometre however; he dug down deep and obtained the lead. His perseverance almost got him the victory but even by winning the silver, he showed Canadians he truly is an admirable athlete.

Superpower

If i was capable of obtaining any superpower in the world it would be the ability to read people's minds. Have you ever just wanted to know what someone was thinking about you or what they actually thought about your new dress? Well with my superpower you could censor who's mind you wanted to read and when. Yes, this superpower might hurt your feelings when you found out what people were thinking about you however, it could also have many positive effects. For example it could tell you who you could trust and what their alter motives were, if they had any, it could help you when your fighting evil opponents becaues you wouldn't have to be stronger than them but just figure out what they have planned and out scheme them.