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The Oakville Beaver, Friday January 13, 2006 - 21 I T ' S THE S E M I - A N N U A L By Laura Ball, Grade 12 ABBEY PARK HIGH SCHOOL n Grade 12 English the main area of study focuses on tragedy. It seems ironic we are studying this form of writing at a time when most of us are thinking quite optimistically. All around us is news about the impending bird flu, I / L OS E RS W E E P E R S EVENT yet we seem to be f t E S l I i n f l f realize that many of us do have down days, and some students have them more than others, but in general for our age group, I feel we have the most positive outlook on life. We look forward to the future, even though it can be overwhelming some days. We want to fix what we perceive to be wrong in the world. Most importantly, we believe we can. If it weren't for the spirit of youth, then the future would be bleak for everyone. Many young people want to change the world or at leave their mark on it in a pos itive way. Many devote endless hours to helping the environment, doing fundrais ing to help those in need and other volun teer duties. Even little activities can lead to a world that is a better place. Therefore it is difficult to read stories and novels whose emphasis is tragedy. Many of the writers of these tragic stories also led tragic lives. F. Scott Fitzgerald is one who immediately springs to mind. It is not easy to read about someone who has a promising future and then takes a destructive route, thus forfeiting their lives. You want to leap into the pages of the book and grab the character and say, "Stop it, can't you see what you have?" It is so frustrating to watch someone, even someone in a novel, propel them selves recklessly to a bitter end. You get the impulse to try and rewrite the story and give it a happy ending. Sometimes this impulse is so strong it makes reading the assigned stories almost impossible. We want to laugh, and not read about somebody who has the desire to self-destruct. It seems so wrong to have to read about the frailty of the human spirit when our own spirit seems so strong. But then, maybe this is the best time to read about tragedy, when we are the most able to cope with it. Perhaps as the years pass for us, we will look back and be able to fully appreciate the stories of tragic endings and use them as a learning tool. By reading the stories while we are still young, we will hopefully store in our minds that life is a series of choices and we will remember that we have to think about the choices we make, or we may become our own tragic figure, and that would be a very sad ending indeed. School News Home Outfitters has fantastic deals on all our kitchen, bed, and bath clearance items. Hundreds of great products are marked as low a s $5 - $10! Watch for new markdowns every day. FOR A GOOD DEAL MORE, USE THIS COUPON A N D RECEIVE 2 0 % OFF A N Y SINGLE REGULAR PRICED ITEM m m any regular mmm priced item Now through January 20,2006. One coupon per customer. This coupon cannot be combined with any other offer and is not valid on any previous purchase or towards the purchase o f Kitchen. Personal and Home Electrics, Licensees, Hbc Gift Cards, all Hbc Olympic Merchandise or Gift Registry items online. *While supplies last. Quantity and selection may vary by store. See Sales Associate for details. W a lk e r Centre - 4331 W alker Road, W indsor ` W ellington Commons -1 2 5 0 Wellington Road, London · K itchener - 245 Strasburg Road, Kitchener Limeridge Mall - 999 Upper W entworth Street, Hamilton · Erin Mills Centre - 3050 Vega Boulevard, Mississauga · W est Gate Pro Centre - 3135 Argentia Road, Mississauga H eartland Town Centre - 765 Britannia Road West, Mississauga · Square One -1 0 0 City Centre Drive, Missisauga · B ram alea City Centre - 60 Peel Centre Drive, Brampton The Queensway -1 8 8 0 The Queensway, Toronto · Crossroads Centre - 2625 Weston Road (at Hwy 401), North York · Yorkdale Shopping Centre - 3401 Dufferin Street, North York Molson Power Centre - 436 Bryne Drive, Barrie · Yorktown Plaza - 50 Davis Drive, Newmarket · First M arkham Place - 3275 Highway 7, Markham Concord - 3200 Highway 7, Concord · Eglinton Town Centre -1901 Eglinton Avenue East, Scarborough Pickering -1 3 0 0 Kingston Road, Pickering · Thickson Ridge Power Centre -1 6 5 0 Victoria Street East, W hitby