Anticipation

Anticipation is something that happens to everyone in different shapes and forms. Although it may be different from person to person, anticipation is a part of people’s everyday lives. This is what anticipation is to me.
My poem starts out with. “How long until this wait will be complete- this long hearted stretch of pain and trial.” This in a way gives an idea about how nerve-racking waiting for something really is. I mean when something really important to you is coming up, it seems like the time just drags on forever. Because of the never-ending feeling, I ask myself when will this ever come to an end? The next two lines, “Like on your way home in a navy fleet- or the night before you walk the aisle” are two examples in life where anticipation may just overwhelm a person. They really help to set the tone and make you feel what is going on. When you are on your way home in a navy fleet, you’re normally just coming back from war, or some kind of situation where you might never see your family again. So, when you’re on your way home anticipation just fills you completely because you miss your family so much, and you can’t wait to see them again. The next line is about someone who is about to get married. Marriage is no easy thing at all. You are making a lifetime commitment to that person. Plus, for men especially, you are putting yourself in a position to care for someone other than yourself. Also if you ever wish to have a family some day, you have to be able to support them as well. So again, the anticipation of all of this can really get to a person.
The next four lines take a slight turn in direction. It shifts from you not being able to bear the weight of the anticipation, to someone stepping in and helping you. “Without the help of a brother or friend,” shows that you would have never been able to carry the burden by yourself. The poem then moves to the Parable of the Good Samaritan, which then shows that when all else fails, even the most unlikely person could change your life completely. But, there is a catch to it, the Samaritan extends his hand, but you have to be humble enough to take the hand and let the person help you.
After you have let friends, family, and maybe even some of the most unlikely people help you, you are eagerly back on your way. Your journey is moving much faster now, and you finally see your destination within reach. The moment that you have been waiting, striving for, and than you realize that you are not there at all. Your mind had played a trick on you, and the entire journey was just a dream.
My last line can give the poem two entirely different meanings. Both of my intended meanings begin with four crucial words in the last line that really encompass what the entire poem is trying to say. Those words are back to the start. What is the start that you wind back up at in the end of the poem? That start is what you would call a dream. You are back to the beginning, where it all started. You have a dream or a goal that you can depict all the way into the very last second. Something that you anticipate, strive for, and think about every single day. You are going to do whatever you can to get there, and it doesn’t matter how long it takes you. You also know that there may be rough times ahead, but as long as you humble yourself and learn to trust people like family, friends, and even unlikely people that God has put in your life, you will be able to reach that goal. But, for now, you are at the beginning and you must work hard and God will do the rest. The second meaning involves maybe not a passion or goal, but instead the liking or love of another person. It could be that you really like someone, and you know that they like you as well. But, there is something uncertain coming up in your life that you just don’t quite know how that one person will react. You wonder if this will really be able to work out if that slightly uncertain thing in the future really comes true. Unable to take the chance, you anticipate and wait until you know for sure what to do, but then, it may already be too late.
The point of my poem was to express what I feel like when I am anticipating something. I feel as if I am able to walk in the future, but just when I accomplish my task, I am shot back into the present. That is what anticipation is for me.

Sonnet

Anticipation

How long until this wait will be complete
This long hearted stretch of pain and trial
Like on your way home in a navy fleet
Or the night before you walk the aisle
I fear this may be too unbearable
Without the help of a brother or friend
But, just as in the good old parable
A hand the Samaritan does extend
Now on your feet and able to survive
The journey you eagerly wish to end
When at the destination you arrive
Something no one can ever comprehend
My mind had played a naughty little scheme
Back to the start, it was all just a dream.

Heritage Paper

Life of a WWII Sailor
(Heritage Paper)


It was the early stages of World War II when 17-year-old Don boarded the Queen Mary in New York City. He was the youngest of my great grandparents three sons, who all joined different branches of the military during WWII. He spent four days on the Queen Mary before he reached Scotland. From there he boarded a train that took him to Cardiff Wales. This is where he boarded the one and only LST 306, which is the ship he would be on for the rest of the war.
“Hey Grandpa” I said, “You and mom always told me that you were in World War II. Do you have any more stories that you can tell me.”?
“Well, if you want me to talk about the war, I sure can.” my grandpa said.
I arrived in England in the year of 1944. When I finally got there, the rest of the crew and I had to do a couple of weeks of last minute training before we would take part in the Invasion of Normandy. Our ship, the LST 306 was one of the many ships classified as the Landing Ship, Tank or the tank landing ship. The ship was 328 feet long and fifty feet wide. But, that was not the only thing impressive about it when you saw two huge doors in the front of the ship. These doors would swing out and allow a ramp to be dropped down. This permitted tanks, jeeps, and troops to be loaded on and off beaches or ports quickly and efficiently. The ships crew was made up of seven officers and 104 enlisted men. It was armed with two twin 40mm, four single 40mm and twelve single 20mm gun mounts. The ship also always carried two LCVP, landing craft, vehicle, personnel boats cable of holding thirty-six armed men each. This was indeed no small boat. It was more than prepared when it set sail for the Invasion of Normandy.
It was June 5, 1945 the LST 306 headed out into the English Channel. But, the weather was very bad so we had to turn around. The following day, on June 6, 1945, we went out again. This time the weather was nicer, so the invasion was running full speed ahead. Our ship was a supply ship that was carrying equipment to Utah Beach. We also carried and dropped off part of the 4th Army, who were supposed to go out and take the main roads behind the beach. While we were dropping equipment off on the beach, a slight change in plans occurred. Our ship was supposed to become a medical ship after it had dropped off all of its supplies. But the people on the beach needed the supplies for immediate use, so we dropped off all of our medical supplies. After that, we stayed in the combat zone for about two and a half days before we returned to England.
Upon returning to England, we loaded our ship with tanks and other supplies. This new load of equipment was carried across the English Channel, but this time we had to drop it off at Gold Beach instead of Utah Beach. The equipment that we dropped off was going to be used as reinforcements for the British as they were trying to capture the city of Caen. By the time that we went back to England to get another load, the Allies had captured Cherbourg Harbor. So, we picked up about eleven new railway cars and brought them to the harbor, which, at the time, had one working dock. Altogether, we went across the English Channel forty-six times. When the time came for us to leave Europe, practically all of the fighting in Europe had already stopped. We took the LST 306 to New York, where it got repairs. After the ship was repaired and updated, we were on our way to the war in the Pacific. But, while we were on our way, the war ended. So, we pulled into St. Johns River, Florida and dropped the ship off there. We then took a train back up to New Jersey.
Subsequently, this is not just a story, but it is the remembering of some of our families great and unique past. It shows how my grandpa’s immediate family was willing to serve their country in a time of great need. This story is also a remembrance of not only my grandpa’s past, but of all the people who were willing and are still willing to serve the United States. Last of all it reminds me how lucky I am to have my grandpa telling me first hand about probably one of the greatest wars in history. So, to my grandpa and all of the other men and women who have served in the armed forces, thank you very much.

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Hey everyone this is a Blog for my English Class!!!!