The following piece of writing was done as a High School Assignment. It is a Secret Chapter of the book, ‘Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D Salinger.
THE SECRET CHAPTER
When Phoebe came off the carousel, she sat next to me on the bench and I started to cry. Phoebe tried to make me stop but I could not stop crying. It took me a very long time to control myself. I told old Phoebe that I had no idea of where I was going to live or go to school, I was so damn confused at that time. Then Phoebe turned and looked at me with a grin on her face, it was clear that she had an idea in her head. She told me that I didn’t need to leave home, because at some point in time our parents would know and I would eventually still have to deal with the consequences, she had a point. Finally, I was ready to go home and accept destiny with open arms. Old Phoebe and I strolled down the street heading home, this time together and she was so happy that she could not stop talking and laughing, and she almost forgot her suitcase.
Upon arriving home, we saw our mother standing at the front door with an unpleasant face as if she was wearing a mask or something. She called out for Phoebe and told her to get in the house with her bag, from her voice you can tell that she was angry but I tried to hide my facial expressions.
“Hey mom”, I said “How are you? You look really nice today”.
She really looks ugly when she’s angry but I would not like to receive a slap from her on my first day back at home.
“Hi son”, she replied with a smirk on her face, “how are you home so early, weren’t you supposed to come home till Wednesday?”
Phoebe was still standing beside mom and she was signaling me to tell mom the truth.
“Mom can I at least come inside first then we can sit and talk”, I told her.
I would really prefer to tell the whole story one time but my mom was not an easy one.
“No, unless you can explain your presence here you cannot enter my house”, She replied.
“I was expelled from school, mom, I was failing four out of five subjects,” I told her very fast, “can I go in now?”
“Sure,” she said as she slowly moved away from the doorway.
I know that I would have to explain the whole story to my father anyway.
In the evening, my father came home looking all stressed and all, I was so worried to tell everything to him unknowing what his day was like, but my mom, on the other hand, told him that I was home at the damn door just as he arrived. When he entered, I was sitting at the dining table eating my dinner. He dropped his stuff, went to the bathroom and came to eat dinner with us.
“Hi son, what a surprise to see you!” he said very calmly as he started eating his food.
“Hi dad, I came home today,” I replied timidly. I was scared as hell, but he didn’t say anything else he just continued to eat his dinner. When we finished eating our dinner, we sat in the living room and dad started talking.
“So…. Holden weren’t you supposed to come home until Wednesday?” he said.
You can tell that he has the strength to deal with me and my problems.
“Well….at Pencey I was doing five subjects and…. I was failing four out of the five. The only one that I was not failing was English, I was doing pretty good.” This time I was talking so that they could understand.
“And…..why are you home?” he asked seriously.
“Well I was being flunked out of school because of that, besides Pencey was full of phonies and it was not for me; it was misleading in a way,” I told him.
He looked at me for a while and was about to hit me when Phoebe stopped him. She told him that even if he hits me or not it still wouldn’t change the situation. She was a very wise girl and my savior. After some time of talking and arguing, they told old Phoebe and me to go to bed. We went to bed and fell fast asleep.
Next morning I woke up finding Phoebe and my mom leaning over me, I was having a headache, I was feeling cold and I didn’t feel like getting up. Phoebe went and brought me some breakfast while I was in the bathroom. I felt like my head was going round and round, so I hurried back in bed. After eating my breakfast I showered and my mom took me to the rest home where I had time to write this book. While I was in there my mom started to accept the fact that Allie was gone and she had to take of me and Phoebe. After a few days in there, I was surprised by the figure that was standing by the door, it was my older brother D.B. He came back from Hollywood to visit me since he heard that I was expelled from school and that I was sick. We talked about each other’s life for a few minutes and then it was time for him to leave, so we said goodbyes.
A few minutes after DB left, I was in for another surprise. It was Jane. you can tell from her facial expression that my eyes were two times the usual size; she was laughing. Seeing her in that state made me feel comfortable and a bit relieved.
“Hey Holden, what’s up?” she said while grinning.
“Aa ….a… I’m good..”I replied hesitantly, “JANE!!”
I was about to jump off the bed to hug her but she sat down beside me and started talking. I was stuttering for a moment however I started a conversation with her. She started to talk about her school and how she was spending her vacation. Then I remembered that she and Stradlater went out when I was still a Pencey, so I asked about their relationship. To my surprise, she said that it was just a one-time thing that there was nothing going on. Then she asked why I was interested, I was actually but I said that I didn’t. Then we talked a little about me and my school life and she recommended some new schools for me also advise on how to enjoy my school life. We talked for some time and then she left. After such a thoughtful company, I just sat on my bed and began to write this book. I wished I didn’t start writing it but it made me reflect on my past and I sort of miss some of the people that I mentioned in the book.
The following are a few poems that I have composed on a night by just looking at the sky and relaxing my mind.
My Star
So far away you seem to be,
Yet your light is so close to me
Shining on my window
Revealing not another person but my shadow
Love seems to be hiding in the darkness.
The Sky
Once you appear like a hollow cave
Of precious stones;
Diamonds, emerald, ruby shining
Across your dark walls.
Twice you seem like heaven,
All brightly colored with God’s creations,
Yet sometimes so lonely.
Forget the different scenes,
You are always calm as ever
No matter what phase you show
Everyone set their goals at your level
“Aim for the sky”.
Below is another piece of work that was not academic work, which was doe in High School, it is motivational speech.
Client: Hey, there is something I would like to talk to you about. Do you have time?
Interviewer: Sure, what is bothering you?
Client: Well, it is kind of a personal problem, can I trust you?
Interviewer: Sure what is it?
Client: Am…I…have been…using drugs and I think it is becoming a problem.
Interviewer: Ok, have you talked to a family member or a friend about your situation?
Client: Amm… No. I am afraid of what might be the outcome.
Interviewer: Ok. Have you neglected your family because of your use of drugs?
Client: Sort of… yes.
Interviewer: Have you had any medical problems as a result of your drug use, for example, memory loss, bleeding or anything of the sort?
Client: Well recently, I have been a bit more forgetful and sometimes I would throw up and there would be blood.
Interviewer: Ok. Do you abuse more than one drug at a time?
Client: No, I have only been smoking marijuana regularly.
Interviewer: Ok, how often would you say?
Client: I don’t know, maybe two times a day.
Interviewer: It seems that you have an addiction. Do you have any kind of reaction when you tried to stop?
Client: Yes, I have headaches and get nauseated.
Interviewer: Ok, these are just some of the physical effects that you will go through, others include vomiting, breathing problems, increased heart rate. Then there is long term and short term memory loss. As you can see smoking marijuana can lead to lower life satisfaction, poorer mental health, poorer physical health, and more relationship problems. Marijuana can lead to many problems, not just for you but for the people around you and now that you know of the risks, you can choose whether or not you want to seek treatment for your addiction and also talk to your family, I am sure that they will try their best to help you in any way possible.
Client: Ok thanks, I feel so much better after telling you that, and I would try my best to get help.
Interviewer: Thank you for trusting me with your personal problems and if you have anything that you would like to talk about, I am always open.
Client: Thank you
Interviewer: You are welcome:
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