A New Beginning

If I had to choose one person to spend a whole day

with, it would be my mother. If I could have one
day with my mother sober, happy, and disease
free, there would be so many different things I
would do with her and talk to her about. I would
ask her about her life and all of her experiences in
it and try to figure out why she ended up the way
she did. I would ask her about my childhood and
why things ended up the way they did. All of the
questions that burn through my mind every day
would be relieved. Most importantly though, I
would get the chance to forgive her for everything.
Trying to communicate with my mother as she is
today (and has been my whole life) is nearly
impossible. My mother suffers from alcoholism,
drug addiction, schizophrenia, psychosis, bipolar
disorder; the list could go on and on. That being
said, and to make a long story short, my mother is
a very paranoid person who unfortunately suffers
from the majority of the negative symptoms
associated with her diseases. According to Connie
Brichford, from the website EverydayHealth.com,
Negative symptoms reflect the absence of traits
and abilities that most other people have. These
include: lack of interest in activities, a flat
emotional affect, indifference about relationships,
and an inability to complete tasks [] low
motivation, a negative symptom, may be a factor
in social deficits; some people are simply not
motivated to interact with others (Brichford 1).
Suffering from these symptoms drastically impacts

the outcomes of ones social life, which in the long

run affects more than just the person suffering
from the diseases in general: it affects the family
and loved ones associated with the individual as
well. If I were to talk to my mother about
something right now, chances are the response I
would get back would be completely out of this
world and have nothing to do with what I had
asked her, or her response would last about an
hour and ramble on about something completely
off topic. It is so hard to explain how she is, but
holding legitimate conversations with her is nearly
impossible because of how scattered her thoughts
are and how much she tries to avoid conversation.
For example, once I had asked her about an
appointment in the cities she had with her
psychiatrist, as well as some other routine checkups. As a result, I get the response, Why the hell
do you care so much anyways. Are you on their
side? Are you out to get me too? You think I am
crazy, dont you? They send these letters here to
me and expect me to believe it is actually them!
How do I know these letters are actually from who
they say they are from? They are probably trying to
scam or are not trying to spy on me! You are in on
this too, arent you? After some time I figured that
keeping to myself with a smile on my face can do
wonders! My mother does the exact same thing
day after day. In fact sometimes she does not even
remember what day it is. Her routine consists of
waking up, drinking vodka, smoking cigarettes and
lord knows what else, all while sitting at the

kitchen table. The music is blaring in the

background, she has the phone in the opposite
hand of her cigarette, and there she sits: staring in
the mirror across from her as she surfs through all
of the thoughts that flow through that beautiful
mind of hers. I say beautiful mind because I cannot
figure it out. It is so incredibly original and out of
this world. I find its uniqueness beautiful, but I hold
it accountable for how she turned out and how my
life turned out. I do not know what controls a
persons thoughts and mind, but hers has kept her
from living a normal life and has also altered my
life tremendously! There is always going to be a
parental void in my heart because my parents were
not stable and present for a majority of my life. It is
hard feeling like you are alone in the world and not
having parents to share your life experiences and
accomplishments with, but if that is what I focus
my thoughts on, then I will never be happy. I know I
was given this life because I was strong enough to
live it. Every day I thank God for blessing me with
the life I live. I have learned and grown so
incredibly much from all the negative situations I
have been through and dealt with in my life. The
most important thing by far though, is forgiveness.
Having a sober day with my mother would mean I
could forgive her for the abuse and neglect I
received during my time with her, for all the hurtful
things she has said to me, and for not being there
for me at all physically or emotionally in my life. I
would tell her how much I love her regardless, and
that I pray for her to fight off her addictions. I

would explain to her how much I have learned from

the events and trauma in my life, and how I would
not change one thing about it. It would be my
motive to make positive memories and emotions
during our time together; for us to always look
back upon and remember, rather than the negative
ones that haunt us now. I would tell her all the
things I have ever wanted to or thought about: be
one hundred percent real and honest with her. It
would be like trying to cram almost twenty-two
years of life into just that one day. Having one
whole day with my mother sober and diseasefree
would fill the void I have had in my heart for
practically the last twenty-two years. There would
be twenty-two years of bad memories and
emotions vanished in just twenty-four hours, and a
motherly relationship I have been dying to have,
but ceases to exist; it would be a new beginning.
Sample Descriptive Essay
About A Person Shhh!
Here Comes the Librarian Over the years that I knew her,
I gained an uncommon respect for the librarian at our high
school. In one word she could be described as "eccentric",
but only because she refused to accept the stereotypical
notion of what the term "librarian" had come to mean. The
students thought she was just plain weird, but those who
took the time to know her realized she was a person
searching for a comfortable identity. At first glance, she

could indeed be a formidable figure to behold. Her hair

was most often in disarray simply as a result of her
compulsion to go everywhere in tenth speed. Not only was
her gait a marvel, but her purpose was also a wonder. She
always gave one the impression she had a mission, and, at
that express moment, had been called forth to duty. When
classes would commence, she would proudly stride off to
her room, as if a group of novice missionaries awaited her
divine intervention. Her habit of dress, however, was not
in the least missionary-like. In fact, the students used to
kid her about getting a summer job as a highway flagman.
The brighter the colors, the more she became entranced
by their iridescence. As she flashed through the library,
students became hushed as if a bolt of lightning had
struck. In the morning, her emerald greens and hot pinks
were eye-openers for the rest of us when she walked
through the staff room door. Characteristically, her first
words were a singsongy "Good Morning!" whereupon
everyone would look up waiting for the next outpouring.
She had an unconscionable taste for polysyllabic words
the more syllables the better. She used them with such
flair, they looked good on her; and we could only smile,
nod and try to make a witty rejoinder. Too often, we would
be unfamiliar with the words, so she would again march
off to another venue with the assurance that she had
stymied the lot of us. Though she spoke precisely, as you
might expect of one in her position, her voice was always
at peak volume. A favourite response of the librarians

aide was, "You shrieked, madame?" In fact, students could

audit her classes in the hallways, or on a clear day, even
in the lunchroom. Similarly, her other ways did not
resemble those of a librarian. She was easily flustered
not at all cool and composed like some of her
predecessors. One particular day nearing the Christmas
holiday, a very well-established physics teacher on staff
kissed her full on the lips in front of almost all her
colleagues. She went into a rage and made it clear that
another such liberty would be inexcusable. Later that day,
some mischievous students, who had gained access to the
crawl space above the library, lowered a rubber chicken
into her office, suspended a rope decorated with
mistletoe. By the end of the day, her patience was
severely tried and so it was no surprise to any of us when
she polkaed too exuberantly at the staff party and
knocked over the Christmas tree. What would have been
embarrassing for many others was often summarily dealt
with by "The Happy Booker," the pseudonym she was not
unhappy to have bestowed upon her. When our colorful
librarian moved away to a new lifestyle, a chic hairdo and
trendy clothes, we felt cheated when a very acceptable,
but normal lady came to take her place. Who would wake
us up every morning with the word for the day? Whose
voice would be ringing through the halls even after the
last bell had rung? Would she realize she had taken a part
of us away with her? Most importantly, would she realize
the legacy she left behind?

Why Abortions Should Not Be Tolerated

The ideas of tolerance and human rights protection, based

on the idea that every human being is the master of their
own life, have contributed into letting people live as they
want and do what they will in reasonable measures. In
particular, tolerance has seemingly resolved or smoothedout a number of moral dilemmas that humanity faced
during the past centuries. However, there still are several
extremely important and disputable issues, such as
euthanasia, implanted ID chips, biometric identification,
and abortion. Abortion is, perhaps, one of the oldest, and
one of the most difficult issues to sort out among them;
while proponents of abortion call for its acceptance, its
opponents believe that it is immoral and inexcusable. And
though many human rights protectors claim that every
woman can do whatever she sees as just, I am strongly
convinced that abortions can not be tolerated, as they
harm mothers and their innocent children.

Any reasonable and sound person would be outraged and

anxious if someone offered to grant mothers a right to kill
their babies immediately after birth. This would be called
inhumane and immoral it would be a crime. However,
this is what proponents of abortions do by standing for the
etching of an embryo before birth. They ignore the fact
that the baby is already a human being, from the very first
days after conceiving. According to W. L. Saunders, Every
human being begins as a single-cell zygote, grows through
the embryonic stage, then the fetal stage, is born and
develops through infancy, through childhood, and through
adulthood, until death. Each human being is genetically
the same human being at every stage, despite changes in
his or her appearance (Saunders). In other words,

abortion is still infanticide, a killing of a living human

being, despite the fact that the child is still in the womb.

Moreover, abortions do not pass without a trace in terms

of womens health. Though there exist chemical
preparations that allow the stopping of pregnancy without
surgery, they are as dangerous as physical intervention.
According to recent research, abortions cause a significant
risk of ectopic pregnancy, not to mention other diseases,
such as breast cancer and infertility. Statistics show a
30% increased risk of ectopic pregnancy after one
abortion and a 160% increased risk of ectopic pregnancy
after two or more abortions. There has been a threefold
increase in ectopic pregnancies in the U.S. since abortion
was legalized. In 1970, the incidence was 4.8 per 1,000
live births. By 1980 it was 14.5 per 1,000 births (AF).

Another argument is that a woman who has decided to get

rid of the embryo is about to kill herself as well. Though an
abortion may seem to be an option for underage mothers,
or victims of rape, etching the baby does not free a
woman, or calm her down. According to statistics, women
who had abortions tend to commit suicides much more
often than those who chose to give birth to a baby: 28% of
women who committed an abortion attempted suicides
(AfterAbortion). Among other problems are alcohol and
drug abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, sexual
dysfunction, and many other issues.

Though abortions are often seen as an option for women

who, due to various circumstances, do not want to give
birth to a baby, it is perhaps the worst choice. No matter
how a child looks like in a womb, no matter how
underdeveloped its consciousness and nervous system is,

it is still a human being that has a right to live. Besides,

abortions cause severe physiological and psychological
damage to canceled mothers, such as ectopic pregnancy,
terminal diseases, depression and suicidal behavior,
alcohol and drug abuse.

Sample argumentative essay:

HEALTH AND HEALING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Throw out the bottles and boxes of drugs in your house. A
new theory suggests that medicine could be bad for your
health, which should at least come as good news to
people who cannot afford to buy expensive medicine.
However, it is a blow to the medicine industry, and an
even bigger blow to our confidence in the progress of
science. This new theory argues that healing is at our
fingertips: we can be healthy by doing Reiki on a regular
basis.
Supporters of medical treatment argue that medicine
should be trusted since it is effective and scientifically
proven. They say that there is no need for spiritual
methods such as Reiki, Yoga, Tai Chi. These waste our
time, something which is quite precious in our material
world. There is medicine that can kill our pain, x-rays that
show us our fractured bones or MRI that scans our brain
for tumors. We must admit that these methods are very
effective in the examples that they provide. However,
there are some every day complaints such as back
pains, headaches, insomnia, which are treated currently
with medicine. When you have a headache, you take an
Aspirin, or Vermidon, when you cannot sleep, you
take Xanax without thinking of the side effects of these.
When you use these pills for a long period, you become
addicted to them; you cannot sleep without them. We pay
huge amounts of money and become addicted instead of
getting better. How about a safer and more economical

way of healing? When doing Reiki to yourself, you do not

need anything except your energy so it is very
economical. As for its history, it was discovered inJapan in
the early 1900s and its popularity has spread particularly
throughout America and Western
Europe. In
quantum
physics, energy is recognized as the fundamental
substance of which the universe is composed. Reiki
depends on the energy within our bodies. It is a simple
and effective way of restoring the energy flow. There are
no side effects and it is scientifically explained.
Opponents of alternative healing methods also claim that
serious illnesses such as HIV/AIDS and cancer cannot be
treated without drugs. They think so because these
patients spend the rest of their lives in the hospital taking
medicine. How can Reiki make these people healthy
again? It is very unfortunate that these patients have to
live in the hospital losing their hair because of
chemotherapy, losing weight because of the side effects of
the medicine they take. Actually, it is common knowledge
that except for when the cancer is diagnosed at an early
stage, drugs also cannot treat AIDS or cancer. Most of
the medicine these patients use are to ease their pain and
their sufferings because of the medical treatment they
undergo. Instead of drugs which are expensive and have
many side effects, you can use your energy to overcome
the hardships of life, find an emotional balance, leave the
stress of everyday life and let go of the everyday worries.
Most of the chronic conditions such as eczema or migraine
are known to have causes such as poor diet and stress.
Deep-rooted anger or other strong emotions can
contribute to viral infections as well. Since balancing our
emotions and controlling our thoughts are very important
for our well-being, we should definitely start learning Reiki
and avoid illnesses before it is too late.
Some people may still maintain that in our material world,
everything depends on time. It is even lacking time that
causes much of the stress that leads to the illnesses we
mentioned. How would it be possible to find time to do
Reiki to ourselves and the people around us when we
cannot even find time to go to the theater? This is one

good thing about Reiki; it does not require more than 15

minutes of our time. There is no need for changing clothes
or special equipment. It is a wonderfully simple healing
art, an effective method of relaxation and stress-relief.
Most important of all, it is less time consuming than
medicine if we think of all the time we spend taking
medicine for some complaints and taking some more for
the side effects as well.
Having said these, resistance to Reiki would be quite
illogical. Reiki is natural and drug-free. What is more, it is
easy to learn by anyone, regardless of age and
experience. It can be used anywhere, anytime. It also
enhances physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing and the benefits last a lifetime. It is definitely high
time to get away from the drug boxes we store in our drug
cabinet!
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Written by Oya Ozagac, September 2004

Expository essay--How to Understand When a Person Lies

Perhaps some of you have seen the TV show Lie to Me. In it, a
talented psychologist solves criminal cases based entirely on the
behavior of people. Whom of us would not want to be able to
understand whether we are lied to, or told the truth? Fortunately,
this is not science fiction, and reading body language is possible; it
is not difficult, and with some extra attention and experience, you
will be able to distinguish truth and lies rather often.
Deception can be detected by the way a person moves. Usually, a
lying person moves less freely than one telling the truth; gestures,
arm and hands movements, and facial expressions become stiff.
Moreover, these arm and hand movements are aimed in the
direction inward to the liar, as if he or she is trying to incorporate
something within themselves. Lying people often try to avoid eye
contact (although in some countries this is a sign of politeness and
respect), and often touch their face, mouth, nose, ears, and so on.

Also, touching their chest a sign of sincerity is uncommon for

liars (Blifaloo).
A less obvious but still effective way to catch a liar is to watch his or
her eyes. According to recent studies of deception, people blink less
when trying to deceive a person they talk to. Because of
nervousness, liars would be expected to fidget more, but cognitive
load (which is having to think about what you say lying requires
plotting) has the opposite effect. Against all expectations, in
deceptive situations, liars usually behave calmer than a normal
person would, and fidget less. This leads, in particular, to the effect
when liars blink or move their eyes less; in fact, it is common for
liars to stare at one point when talking. This is due to having to
invent and/or repeat lies, which is more difficult than truth (Time).
Slow speech can also be an indicator of lying, especially combined
with the two previous signs. Although many people speak slowly just
because it is in their nature, liars have to slow down the pace of
their speech because they need to hide the truth, and invent new
facts and data instead of it. It is the same cognitive load as in the
case with eye movement. Due to the same reason, liars often make
pauses in their speech. All this is called nonverbal communication,
and it can tell you a lot about a person through how they say
something, not what they say.
Liars behave different from regular people when talking; usually,
there are several signs, which, combined, can indicate if a person is
lying. Liars usually make less movements when talking, their
gestures, pose, and facial expressions are stiff and tensed. Because
of constantly having to think about what to say, liars do not control
their micro-movements; as a result, their eyes are often still, staring
at one point. Due to the same reason, they often speak slowly, with
a large number of pauses.