Dear Mrs. Paul,
I want to take this time to thank you for helping me become a better writer. From invitations to write, short stories, and poetry, I have thoroughly enjoyed your class. Creative writing has always been the greatest part of my day, to escape the stress of college classes. However, it has now come to a bittersweet ending. During the creation of this portfolio, I have been able to revisit some of my best work as well as reminiscence on the fun and irreplaceable memories. Each piece listed on my portfolio holds a special place in my heart. Since this school year is the final year of my high school career, I wanted my writing to reflect who I have become over the past four years and also the elements that have changed my life in high school. As you review my portfolio, it will be seen that my writings will cover three main themes. The theme of self-discovery and developing new perspectives are present in both my poems and short stories, as high school was a time for me to decide who exactly I want to be. The theme of nature describes my solace, as I took to writing about nature when the darkness crept in. I was able to find new perspectives. Finally, the theme of love is dedicated to my high school sweetheart, Alex Miller, who stole my heart junior year and changed my life forever. The past four years have been a roller coaster of a ride. I am excited to share my high school experience through poetry and short stories. Three of my poems are written about nature. Their titles are At Midnight, Nature, and A Natural Encounter. Before I wrote each of these poems, I knew that I wanted to capture the true essence of being surrounded by nature. I wanted to make sure the reader felt as if they were experiencing nature first hand, that they could see, hear, and feel everything that I was describing. Writing about nature, specifically in the poem At Midnight, allowed me to create a calm atmosphere in order to escape the stress and chaos of everyday school life. These poems gave me the perspective that everyone needs a breather at one point or another. It is okay to take a break and recollect your sanity. The poem "Beauty" is about my journey through high school. While the road to graduation was not all rainbows and flowers, I persevered and made it to the light at the end of the tunnel. I created this poem because I want students to understand that they should never give up in times of struggle. There is always beauty in the struggle. There will be challenges and obstacles thrown at you left and right, which is why you travel and take the bumps as they come. I have learned that no matter how difficult things tend to get, it will always smooth over. I have made it to the end of the tunnel and the feeling is highly satisfying. The short stories “Wake Up”, “Onto the Next Chapter”, and “How I Get the Day Right” all reflect the high school experience. I wrote “Wake Up” as a motivational, farewell speech. This piece of writing reflects on the past four years and the realization that now is the time to grow up and get ready for the life ahead of me. “Onto the Next Chapter”, is my way of expressing my excitement for the future. It was very difficult to write because I am speechless when it comes to thinking about graduation. I cannot believe it is almost here. “How I Get the Day Right” was a comical idea about which shoe I put on first every day. I stumbled across the idea while brainstorming ideas for college essays. I thought it would be neat to explain how one decision affects the order of an individual’s schedule. It was challenging to write, but I am satisfied with the final product. The final short story I wrote is called “Childhood”. I included this work because it is a childhood game that is a tradition. All through high school, my friends and I would play manhunt. It made life ten times better! Every weekend, we would wait until it gets dark. The dark makes the game even more thrilling and exciting. The final theme of love is reflected in my final two works, called “Affection” and “Reality”. I met Alex at the end of my junior year. He impacted my life significantly. I did not know that I could fall in love at such a young age. He made my senior year amazing, as I was able to experience both my senior homecoming and prom with him, as well as other senior activities. I have never met anyone more extraordinary in this world. He has made me a better individual. These poems are dedicated to him, as he is my high school sweetheart that has completed my high school career. Overall, I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed creating my portfolio. I will miss you Mrs. Paul. You are the best! Love, Sierra Bertram |