Through the Thick and Thin: There, Until the End: Draft 1

We have been waiting for this day since the beginning of high school. Everything is planned out and our bags have been packed since the beginning of the week. We are all excited because it is our big trip before we part separate ways and leave for college. For the past days I could hear my plane ticket on my dresser calling my name, anxious to fly to St. Johns, just like me. My phone rang on my dresser and I rushed to pick it up.

“Hello!” I answered and I knew exactly who was on the other line.

“Hey” said Bailey and Callie in-sink.

“Today’s the day!” I excitedly replied.

“Hurry up we only have 2 hours until our flight!” yelled Callie

“Alright, alright. I’m going. I’ll call you back when I am leaving my house,” I sighed.

“Bye!” they both screamed into the phone again.

“Bye,” I laughed and hung up my phone. Everything was already packed except my toiletries. So, I put the rest of my necessities in the suitcase. Finally when I am done packing and have triple checked everything on my list, I pick up my phone and call Bailey back to tell her and Callie I am about to leave. After hanging up with them, I lug my suitcases down the stairs, along with my carry-on. I give one last hug and kiss to my family and head out the door, into the hot sticky summer morning. The air conditioning in my car is on high as usual, I pull out of the garage, down the driveway, and turn right, heading to Bailey’s house.

* * * * *

We boarded the plane, the three of us in one row. Bailey could barely stay in her seat because it was her first time on a plane and we were about to take off on the trip that would change our lives forever. The flight attendant announced for everyone to buckle up because we would be taking off in 5 minutes. Click, click, click was all we heard as everyone buckled their seat belts. Once again, the flight attendant appeared in the front of the plane and showed us how to correctly use the air bags above our heads and the emergency exits located through out the plane. I had been on a plane before and heard this speech more than enough times, but for some reason I paid closer attention this time than the previous flights.

“Thank you and have an enjoyable flight.” said the flight attendant.

“We will be reaching Florida in approximately 3 hours and the weather is looking great. Enjoy the flight” announced the pilot over the intercom. Ding, the seat belt sign flashed on and we rolled down the runway. Slowly, we picked up speed, just as we were nearing the end of the runway, the airplane’s wheels lifted off the ground and we were pushed back into our seats as the plane went higher into the sky. We went through the clouds and every so often I would have to pop my ears from the increasing air pressure. Finally we reached the designated height, just above the clouds. Bailey looked out the window and all she said was “OH MY GOD! The clouds look just like giant cotton balls!!”

“Wow they do,” agreed Callie. “This is the prettiest sky I have ever seen. The clouds look so comfortable I just want to sleep on them.”

“Good luck with that,” I laughed. The two of them stared out the window for the majority of the plane ride to Florida, while I listened to my iPOD. For the most part, the plane ride was smooth and we landed successfully in the Florida airport. After gathering all of our luggage, we headed for our connecting flight to St. John’s. When we saw the plane we were taking, our mouths dropped to the floor. It was extremely small and only carried 10 passengers.

Cautiously and nervously, we step onto the plane. My hands are shaking so much, but I try not to let it show because I want to show Callie and Bailey that everything is going to be fine. Inside the plane there is only 5 rows of 2 seats. To prevent arguing who will sit where, I voluntarily sit by myself behind them. It is not long before we take off. I close my eyes as we ascend higher into the sky. This flight is going to be about 2 hours, which isn’t that long. I have to keep reminding myself that because my gut feeling is telling me something is up. About an hour into the flight, the pilot announces that there is a storm approaching, but it is nothing to worry about. It’s not even 10 minutes after the pilot said we were hating a storm, that our plane began to shake. At first it wasn’t bad, just a few small ones here and there, but soon it became much worse. As I looked up from the floor, I could see everyone’s heads jerking back and forth about their seats. Bailey and Callie had their heads between their legs, trying to stabilize themselves. I realized I should probably do the same thing. Suddenly a lighting bolt hit one of the planes wings and the pilot yelled back to us, “Get the life jackets on from under your seats! Get the air bags from over your head! NOW!” I rushed making sure I did everything he said to do at the beginning of the flight if we ever needed to use them. My hands shaking now more than ever I buckled on the safety seat belts on the chair. I could feel the plane descending faster and faster. All I saw out of the window was the black smoke from where the wing used to be. Over the screams of the passengers I heard the pilot yell “BARE YOURSELFS!” Crash! The plane hit something hard, head-on and I smashed my head forward hitting the seat in front of me. Suddenly, everything went black and it became extremely quiet.

“Madeline, Madeline can you hear me?” someone whispered. I tried to open my eyes but I was so weak.

“I think she’s awake,” said another girl with dark hair. She sounds so far away. I don’t know where I am. Why am I laying on dirt? I slowly opened my eyes and there standing over me were people I had never seen before. Why is everyone stairing at me?

“Madeline, how are you feeling?”

“What happened?” I tried to ask, but all that came out was mumbles of jumbled words. Apparently the girl with dark hair understood what I said and she explained how the plane was struck by lightening and we crashed into this deserted island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. On our descend down, I hit my head on the seat in front of me and passed out cold. Luckily the pilot pulled me out of the plane and I have been out for a half an hour. There is no radio signal so far, she explained, but the pilot is trying to find one.

“Wait,” I mumbled. “Who are you and why were we in a plane?”

“We are your best friends Madeline,” explained the girl with long blonde hair who gestured to the girl with dark hair.

“What are your names?” I questioned.

The tall girl with blonde hair replied, “I’m Callie.”

“and I’m Bailey,” chimed in the short, dark haired girl. “Don’t you remember us, Madeline? We have been friends since we were 5.” The girl whose name was Callie began to tear up.

“Why doesn’t she remember?” she sobbed. A slender man with gray hair walked over to me.

“She is showing signs of amnesia. I am a doctor and I was on my way to St John’s for a patient in need of special medical help. As you can see, this girl here, needs my attention now and I’m going to need you girls to help me,” said the man. “Since we don’t know how long we are going to be stuck on this island, I am going to need you girls to tell me everything about Madeline in order to hopefully help her remember what has happened.”

Today is our second day on the island and I still don’t remember a thing, other than what the people here have told me. Everything is so confusing, it is so overwhelming. The doctor says I am slowly getting better by what I remember from what people have told me, but I don’t see any progress. The pilot is still working on getting a signal to the closest airport from his radio, but he hasn’t had any luck yet. We have little food and water, just what was on the plane and what fish and berries we can retrieve from the island. The ocean is a turquoise blue that is the clearest water. Its calm, cool water, extends all the way to the horizon on all sides of the island. As I walk into the ocean, the seashells jab the bottom of my feet and the smooth sand seeps its way between my toes. As I look up to the sky, I wonder if I will ever remember anything. I know those two girls who are apparently my friends will try to help, but I don’t know how much of a help they will be. The sun is going down and it’s getting chilly, so I wade out of the water and dress into my clothes. Suddenly, the pilot came running out of the tent we made screaming “I GOT IT! I GOT IT!” Everyone ran to him.

“I got a signal!” he announced. “The airport in Florida is going to send an airplane tomorrow for us all!”

“Thank goodness!” we all yelled together. Everyone ran to get together anything and everything that was left of theirs. I went to bed somewhat hopeful of going back so a somewhat normal life again.

Morning finally came and the airplane came around noon. However, it wasn’t a normal airplane it was a rescue one because the airplane wouldn’t be able to land on the island. The airplane roared overhead and a basket came down and hit the sand with a thud. Callie, Bailey and I climed in and slowly reached the airplane. Eventually everyone was lifted up to the airplane and we left the island for good.

“Madeline, you know we will help through this no matter how long it takes. We are your best friends and nothing is going to change that.”

“Thanks,” I smiled.

“Madeline, I know a doctor’s office that specializes in these types of situations. He could really help you to get better,” explained the doctor.

“Alright. Thank you,” I answered. The plane ride was only about an hour and we landed back in Florida where everyone on the plane said good-bye to me and wished me luck with my recovery. I now know that even people you have just met, will always help through difficult times. Also, true friends will be by your side no matter what happens.

Second Quarter Outside Reading Book Essay

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards, Penguin Books, 2005 Genre: Fiction

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is about a doctor, David Henry, who delivers his wife’s twins during the middle of a blizzard and faces a life changing decision. When the first twin is born, it is a healthy baby boy named Paul. However, when his daughter is born, he discovers that she has Down’s syndrome. Immediately Doctor Henry tells the nurse to take the daughter away and bring her to an institution because babies with Down’s syndrome do not live long and he wants to spare his wife the heartache of loving her then loosing her. However, Caroline Gill, the nurse, decides to raise the baby girl on her own. David Henry’s decision to give his daughter away becomes a “secret” that haunts him and changes his family’s life forever. Throughout the book, David Henry continues to struggle with his decision and whether or not to tell his wife, Norah, the truth. The Memory Keeper’s Daughter takes place in Lexington, Kentucky where Norah, Paul, and David live, as well as Pittsburgh, Kentucky where Caroline Gill and Phoebe, David and Norah’s daughter, live.

“In The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, Kim Edwards has created a tale of regret and redemption…of characters haunted by their past. Crafted with language so lovely you have to reread the passages just to be captivated all over again…simply a beautiful book.” – says Jodi Picoult on the book jacket.

Kim Edwards, wrote this book in third person omniscient, which allows you to experience the book as an outsider. However, you know what every character is thinking and feeling, so you are able to read deeper into the story and get to know each character in great detail. As both Phoebe and Paul grow up in different environments and with different parents, you learn how they mature and what they enjoy doing. In addition, you learn and experience each character’s struggles and secrets.

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter was the first book I read by Kim Edwards. However, after reading it, I would love to read some other books by her because I enjoyed her writing style and how she based her plot on real-life struggles. Another book I read with a similar plot was Things Not Seen by For example, in the book Things Not Seen, the main character becomes invisible and has to learn to accept his new life and the daily challenges he endures.

“How he had woken up every morning of his life for eighteen years thinking maybe today, maybe this was the day he would put things right. But Phoebe was gone and couldn’t find her, so how could he possibly tell Norah? The secret had worked its way through their marriage, an insidious vine, twisting; she drank too much and then she began to have affairs, that sleazy realtor at the beach and then others; he’d tried not to notice, to forgive her, for he knew that in some real sense the fault was his. Photo after photo, as if he could stop time or make an image powerful enough to obscure the moment when he turned and handed his daughter to Caroline Gill.” Pg 274.

I really liked this book because it was very detailed and suspenseful. Once the plot began to evolve, I could not put it down. The theme of this book was really an eye opener for me. The Memory Keeper’s Daughter made me think about how later in life I might have to make a decision that could change my life forever. I believe everyone can relate to David Henry and his internal struggle because most people will make a decision they may live to regret. It made me reflect on how he had to deal with his decision every day. His choice also taught me that you should be honest with the people you care about because if you are not, then it can ruin your relationship. Telling the truth may not always be what others want to hear, but at least they will know you are being honest. Keeping secrets and not being honest with yourself and others, often consumes you with guilt and life-long regrets.