Darkness. There was only darkness for a moment, and in that moment Elizabeth Crane thought, "This is it. I guess this is the end." Elizabeth had been in a coma for 2 very long years. Every second of which she was painfully aware of her condition, but unable to give any sign of her undeniable brain activity. So she had simply been...there. In some type of limbo. And now, finally a change. Although a scary one. Most days she was able to start sensing things around her as well as hear. It could be quite dull now. The only ones that visit her anymore are her parents and her fiancé. Or...he used to...she couldn't tell if their relationship had changed. It was hard to tell these things when you cannot speak, touch, or even blink …show more content…
at the people around you... Anyway, today was different somehow. It wasn't just a visual darkness, it was a complete and total one. There was absolutely nothing. Blankness. This had to be it. Death. Just as she finished her thought, a bright light shined directly in front of her. It blinded her temporarily, but then it began to assuage until she could see where the light was coming from. A...television screen? A bright and large television screen, just like the ones in the movie theaters, stood before her. And in front of it, a single chair. Well, there was only one thing to do. She slowly walked to the chair and lowered herself down. As soon as she touched down the screen changed. A clear, mechanical female voice began to speak. "Hello, Elizabeth. Please stay seated and relax. This is The Decision Room. You have reached a point in your physical health that can go one of two ways. You could pass on to the next life or continue the one you've been living. It is your decision. It is, however, a decision that cannot be taken lightly. A series of clips will play based on both decisions that can be made. When the clips have finished you must make a choice. They will start in exactly 5 minutes. Prepare yourself and pay very close attention, they will not be repeated." She was in shock. A robot just told her she had to decide whether to live or die as if it were something as normal as deciding what sandwich to eat for lunch. Was she really expected to NOT choose to live? I mean, this was ridiculous! "Um...excuse me?" "Three and a half minutes." "I don't need to see the clips! I choose to live, ok? I want to live! Wake me up from this stupid coma!" "I'm sorry, I cannot allow you to make your decision until the clips have been completed. They will start in two minutes." She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Asking her this question was just insulting, like she doesn't value her own life enough to choose to keep it! "I sense anger. This is a completely normal reaction. You will now be calmed." What was that supposed to mean? Why was she being treated like a...a... Huh. Actually, the woman, or whatever it was, was being quite reasonable when you think about it. She just needed to watch some clips after all. "The clips will start in 10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1. They will now begin." The white screen started to morph into an image. It was...a funeral. It was a funeral with her parents, her fiancé, her brother, her friends, everyone. And lying in the casket in one of her favorite dresses was...her. Only she looked a little different from what she last remembered. She had a few faint wrinkle lines she didn't remember having before, and she looked slightly thinner. But, that must be normal for someone who had to be fed from a tube for 2 years. Her parents were crying, but not hysterically as she thought they would. They must have had more time to mourn, she had practically been dead for years. But their lack of crying did sting a little. Her fiancé just sat there stoically, trying to conceal his pain. This didn't hurt nearly as much because she knew that's the most pain he ever showed on the outside. She knew he was hurting on the inside. And, as selfish as that sounded, she only really wanted it to be like that for her funeral, then of course she'd want them to regain their usual perkiness or whatever...eventually. The screen changed. It was now her fiancé with...another woman. He looked very nervous. And why shouldn't he, she was very beautiful. They were in a very fancy restaurant, the food looked expensive and the portions were small. He seemed to be on...a date. "I have to be honest, I'm pretty nervous. This is my first date since Elizabeth...well, you know" She smiled and pat his hand from across the table. "Don't worry, you're doing just fine." He looked graciously up at her and the small talk began.
And it went well. And it killed her. Of course she'd want him to move on eventually, but she never expected to have to see it... The scene changed again. It was now a wedding. There he was at the altar. Waiting there with tears in his eyes, overjoyed. That was what she was supposed to see when she walked down the aisle... But it wasn't her that came walking in when the music began to play. It was the girl from the date. And she looked gorgeous. Elizabeth's fiancé came back into view and he was...crying. He was actually crying. He had cried for neither happiness nor sadness when he was with Elizabeth, but this new girl was making him blubber like a baby. Was he...was it possible that he loved her more than he had Elizabeth? She didn't have time to dwell on this thought because the picture changed once again. This time it was her parents. They were sitting at their dinner table with her brother, just sitting and talking. This may not seem bizarre, but her brother hadn't talked to their parents in years. Ever since he came out, they had pretended like he didn't …show more content…
exist. "Listen Paul, with everything that's happened...we just...we've lost one child already and we don't want to lose another. We've decided that...who you love is, well, your own business. And, we love you. We love you and we want to make things right. We're...we're just so sorry. Please say you'll forgive us." "Oh ma, of course I will." They all embraced and started crying, and it was beautiful. She wished she could be there for it, she loved her brother and it always tore her apart that her parents didn't accept him. But...if she was around this probably would never have happened... Instead of a new picture coming onto the screen next, it went back to white and the calm female voice returned. "Now that you have witnessed what will result if you die, it is time to witness what will occur if you live. Get ready. 5...4...3...2...1" The next picture to appear was of her fiancé again, but this time it was at her own wedding. All her family and closest friends were staring at her, starry eyed. She was wearing the most gorgeous wedding dress she'd ever laid eyes upon. But all of this didn't matter to her at all, because at the other end of the aisle was her fiancé, completely dry eyed. Sure he was smiling, but he wasn't shedding a single tear. And it didn't look like he was going to anytime soon either. No sooner did she realize that then the scene changed to one at a hospital. There was a girl in one of the dismal beds with a neck brace and several other casts, as well as several severe bruises. A nurse walked in. "Hello Maureen. We're all so sorry about this. We're just sure you'll pull through. All the other doctors and nurses signed a card for ya. Oh Maureen, you'll make it through this, you've just gotta!" The woman started crying at the end of the bed, but the woman in the bed didn't seem to notice this. "What...what happened here?" Elizabeth asked the disembodied voice. The voice replied, "When you woke up from your coma, the nurse assigned to you decided to stay late to help you adjust. Due to her leaving at a later time than usual, she tried to take a shortcut on the way home to make up some of the time. She ended up in the wrong side of town wearing the wrong colors and got brutally beaten by a street gang. She's in intensive care for her various injuries." Elizabeth was in shock. So this was her fault. She never thought her life could so vastly affect a woman she barely knew. If this happened as a result of just her waking from her coma, imagine what else... The scene shifted to one of yet another wedding.
This time, there were two grooms. Paul and a man she had never seen. He looked overjoyed until he walked up to Elizabeth. As soon as he reached her the light in his eyes dimmed. "Elizabeth, this is the happiest day of my life. But I've got to tell you, I really wish mom and dad were here. I do love them you know. I wish they could accept that this...it's just...who I am." He began to cry, which seemed to be a recurring theme in these clips, but it was still just as powerful. This last image faded back to white and the now familiar voice returned. "The clips are now finished. It is time to make your decision. Whatever you choose you must state very clearly so there can be no mistake." All the visions she just saw flashed once again before her eyes and she thought about all her loved ones. How their lives would be. She looked up broken hearted, knowing there was only one answer to choose. She knew it all along, deep down. "I...choose to pass on to the next life." She had time only for a single tear before the light became blinding
again. "Thank you for your decision, and good luck."
She thought about her family, and the neighbors, and the town, and the dogs next door, and everyone and everything she has ever met or seen. As she began to cry harder, she looked out the window at the stores and buildings drifting past, becoming intoxicated suddenly with the view before her. She noticed a young woman at the bus stop, juggling her children on one side of her, shielding them from the bus fumes.
The theme of this story is that one’s determination and courage can defy the impossible. Elizabeth’s recovery and revival have been dedicated to her faith and her remembrance of family. Smart stated she would pray to God in times of need. Her faith kept her alive during these harsh nine months. At her weakest moments, she would recognize the need to survive by acknowledging her family and friends. Smart’s astounding willpower dictated her situation, and it helped her realize that one day she would be no longer under her captor’s imprisonment. When a police officer finally recognized her, she stated, “For a moment, my world seemed to absolutely stop. I looked at him. He looked at me. I felt calm. I felt assured. Months of fear and pain seemed to melt before the sun. I felt a sweet assurance” (Smart 275). Due to her remarkable resilience against her captors, after nine cruel months, Smart was able to be returned to her
Elizabeth was a strong, cold woman. She knew of John’s lechery with Abigail, who was their servant at the time, while she w...
Experts believe that writing workshops are an excellent way to get elementary school children interested in writing and setting the stage for a lifelong joy of writing. Lucy Calkins developed Writer’s Workshop which was based on many positions taken by her mentor Donald Graves (Feinberg 2). She identified six major components of the Writer’s Workshop, which make it so successful. The six components are: predictable structure, free choice, useful mini-lessons, daily independent writing time, conferencing with teachers and peers and modeling good writing.
The respect that Elizabeth had for her husband she lost it all. The trust she had for her husband was not the same after. She felt like everything he said and told her was not the truth. She had trust issues after that. She felt like her family was torn apart that her life would never be the same after. After all the lies and heart break. But that should ...
Although being wronged, Elizabeth tries to be a good wife and does not tell the court of John’s affair, unknowing that he had already admitted. John loves his wife, so he righteously admits to his sin in attempt to save her while only dooming himself to the good nature of Elizabeth. There is irony in this situation because Elizabeth, a woman who “in her life, she had never lied” does so only to protect her husband’s name (103). In making the decision to lie, she is therefore convincing the court that John is lying to protect her. Emotions steadily build awaiting the dramatic ending between Elizabeth and John. Elizabeth is saved from hanging due to her pregnancy, whereas John refuses to lie and admit to witchcraft. Their attempts to save each other backfire. Ironically, if Elizabeth had not lied, her and John could have been together for years to come.
...or herself. She had just confined to what he wanted to hear and see since she smiled at him while saying this. She could have realized that he took his time coming back and gave up her desperate attempts to keep them together and given up hope that he will be there after the procedure is done.
After everyone has left for Rosings, Elizabeth is still fuming from the news that Darcy was the cause of Jane and Bingley's break up. Elizabeth is then startled by the arrival of Darcy. After a few minutes of silence, Darcy shocks Elizabeth with a sudden declaration of love for her and a proposal of marriage. In the beginning Elizabeth is flattered in spite of her deeply rooted prejudice against Darcy. Elizabeth's feelings soon turn to rage as Darcy catalogs all the reasons why he did not pursue his feelings earlier. These reasons include her inferior social class and her family obstacles.
tears welling up in her eyes and all she wanted was to be back home
Elizabeth gave a small inaudible sigh as she walked through the white grounds of Longbourn, not even pretending to be listening to the constant ramblings of her companion. Instead, she was paying much more attention to the snow that was crunching beneath her feet and to the refreshing cool breeze that hit her face as she walked. She had hoped that her sister Kitty would make this time spent with Mr Collins more bearable, but it seemed that Kitty had suddenly developed an extremely quick pace and was out of their sight soon after they left the house. Elizabeth deduced that this was probably the doing of her mother, who had been trying to get her alone with Mr Collins for days.
To Bring The Horse Home By Julie Bruck As a girl I made my calves into little drinking elephants, I would stare at the wonder of their pumping muscles, the sup of their leg-trunks. I resuscitated a bunny once from my cat’s electric teeth. I was on neighborhood watch to save animals, as many as I could. My damage was easy.
She was stuck. Lost in the cave, Tiffany argued it was more prudent to wait for someone to come and save her instead of wandering off getting more and more lost after every step. She waited, and waited, and waited. No one came for her. Tiffany was wondering how it was in her homeland, the forest and how the creatures were. She thought to herself in the darkness, “I wondered if it was for the best that the creatures were happy and the light shone through the leaves. Maybe I should have come out here on this dangerous trip, or else, I wouldn’t even be here.” After a couple of days, she lost hope and sat by herself in the darkness dreaming of the good life she had before all this commotion started. It was “the end” for
Whenever Elizabeth was sad about Victor postponing the wedding Maureen would make herself smaller by turning into herself and holding her arms tightly. Elizabeth worries so much about Victor that she can not stand still and constantly goes to the window to watch for Victor. To show Elizabeth’s love for Victor Maureen’s pitch would get higher and her voice would fill with excitement when Victor entered a room. Maureen made sure that whenever Victor was in the room, Elizabeth never took her eyes off him. Elizabeth climbed the ladder with such speed and determination, because she knew she would be with Victor no matter how dangerous the situation
The princess and the man were in love and had been together for many months. “Not only did she know in which room stood the lady, ready to emerge, all blushing and
She did this knowing that her loved one would walk in the stadium and immediately look to her for the answer of which door to choose. However, the young boy did not consider the princess’s jealousy when she gave him her answer. Unfortunately for the princess, behind one of the doors “was one of the fairest and loveliest of the damsels of the court who had been selected as the reward of the accused youth . . . and the princess hated her” (Stockton 205). The princess did not necessarily hate this maiden for no reason but rather for an action that the lady may or may not have committed. Stockton claims that the princess had witnessed or imagined this lovely damsel gazing at her beloved and her beloved returning the glances (205). Although the princess loves the young man, she realizes that if she reveals to him the door with the lovely damsel she would have to deal with the agony of watching her beloved rush joyously to the woman behind the door while the celebration of matrimony took place right before her eyes. The princess would have to live her life suffering as she watched the man she loves live a happy life with the woman she