The Gift Of Knowing You

There are gifts of many treasures
For both the young and old,
From the tiniest little trinkets
To great boxes filled with gold.

But, put them all together
And they could not stand in lieu,
Of the greatest gift of all
The gift of knowing you.

When your times are filled with troubles
Sadness, grief, or even doubt,
When all those things you planned on
Just aren't turning out.

Just turn and look behind you
From the place at which you stand,
And look for me through the shadows
And reach out for my hand.

I will lift from you your burden
And cry for you your tears,
Bear the pain of all your sorrows
Though it may be for a thousand years.

For in the end I would be happy
To have helped you start anew,
It's a small price to pay
For the gift of knowing you.

- Dave Stout -

In this poem, Dave Stout uses figurative language to compare a gift, to a friend. Dave explains how friendship is a system that uses support for each other. He expresses this by saying, "I will lift you from your burden," (scout 17). Because of this, we are lead to believe that friends help each other out by lifting their load and help them recover. This leads to when Dave explains that when things aren't turning out the way they were planned, friends will always be there. He shows this when he says, "And look for me through the shadows and reach out for my hand," (stout 15/16). This explains that no matter where you are, your friend will always be there for your support. Because of this comparison, we are able to see that Dave is tying to make society realize that when you need help, or someone to make you feel better, you have the gift of friendship to take your sorrows away.

This poem shares information that is irresistible to overlook. It is compelling due to the explanation of what friendship is, and what it means. Dave Stout looks at friendship as a gift. The gift of having someone as a friend gives you the opportunity to be there for them. He explains that when situations are not turning out the way they were planned and you are feeling grief and sadness, your friend is always there to comfort you. They can lift from your load, cry for you, hold up and support your pain and sorrows. Also, Stout explains that being a friend will make you happy because you helped someone start over new. He believes it is not a difficult task to help a friend, and it makes you feel better.

End of Quarter 1 Blog

In enriched English 10 this quarter I did average in the class. I learned that hard work and determination can help you achieve your goals. Also, I learned to strive for exellence, not for perfection. So far in this class I have managed to improve my writing skills. Also, I have learned to be more responsible with my homework. Unfortunately, I am still struggling to adjust to the curriculum and the tough grading. I am also struggling with procrastination. I leave assignment to the last minute and forget to turn them in. The class environment is very good for focusing on what we need to do in class. There are words of encouragement all over the room, which help me stay on task. Also, the desk angles are put so that we can have class discussions. This makes it easier to hear everyone and to see people when they are speaking. What I can do to further the learning community in our classroom is to help others when they need it.

For quarter two, I intend to do much better. One goal for the class is to get an A this quarter. Also, I want to be less of a procrastinator and be ahead of the homework that is due. This will allow me to better understand what we are learning in class and I will get more time on my essays. I also want to learn how to improve my essay writing and my reading skills. I will try to improve by putting my goals into action and putting more effort into the class. I think that using these goals will help me be more successful in enriched English this quarter. Also, I believe that these goals can help others by example. I plan on doing much better second quarter compared to first quarter.