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My
Tragic/Comical
Life
By:
Bethany Taake
English
1 project
9-10-99
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I
would like to dedicate this book to my grandfathers.
Table of Contents
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What
is in a Name?
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pgl
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In
the Middle of Nowhere
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pg2
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Hair
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pg3
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Just
Horsing Around
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pg4
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Christmas
Baby
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pg5
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Beginnings
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pg6-7
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Frolicking
in the Snow
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pg8
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Farm
Life
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pg9
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Night
Before Christmas
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pglO
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Just
One of Those Days
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pgll
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Just
Minding My Own Business
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pgl2
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A
Word of Advice
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pgl3
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What
Is In A Name?
My
full name is Bethany Michelle Taake. I guess I don't mind my name because
it is neither, really weird or really common. I have never met anybody
else with the same name as me.
My
parents got the name Bethany from a church in my mother's hometown. In
Hebrew it means "God's Promise," I'm not sure how that relates to me because
I can't judge myself in the eyes of God or of others. But I do know I like
the meaning of my name.
Michelle
came from my uncle whose name is Michael. It means "Saintly," which is
funny because there is nothing saintly about me. The original plan was
for Michelle to be spelled Michael and still pronounced like the feminine
version but when filling out my birth certificate that was forgotten.
My
name may not be elegant or have great meaning for someone else. But for
me it means something because I will never have another name. So even though
it may not be what I personally would have chosen I am content to be Bethany
Michelle Taake.
Pg 1
In
the Middle of Nowhere
My
neighborhood is a farm. Also, referred to as in the middle of nowhere.
My only neighbors are my family and the fields planted with corn or wheat
that seem to go on forever. The closest town, Ullin, is only 5 minutes
away but sitting in my back yard it looks like fields surround you for
hundreds of miles. In the spring you can look out and see fields of lush,
emerald green vegetation that seem to get brighter and more plentiful with
each passing year. In the fall you can see gigantic corn stalks being combined
for their bountiful harvest.
There
are not any teens that live around me so it usually feels somewhat remote.
At times I feel like I would give anything to live in a town where my friends
are close by but other times I wouldn't give up my peaceful home for all
the money in the world. It's nice to be able to walk outside and to hear
the sounds of the breeze rustling through the trees and of birds singing
instead of cars honking, people screaming, and music blaring.
Although
my neighborhood may sound boring to some it really has been a good place
to grow up. With fields to run through and animals to play with I can always
find something to do. Or something to get into that I shouldn't like all
kids are bound to do. But most importantly I can always run home to my
big brown house, my home, where I belong.
pg. 2
Hair
My
family's hair could not be more different. By comparing our hair you wouldn't
think we were related in any way. Each one of our hair is unique in it's
own way.
My
sister’s hair is long and thick. It is dark brown and it looks nice even
when she doesn't do anything with it. My father's hair used to be thick
and wavy but now it is short and thinning. His hair is medium brown with
a bald spot that keeps growing along with a receding hair line.
My
hair has a mind of it's own. Its color has changed from light blond to
brownish blond. And where it used to be fine now it is thick. My hair and
I have a program, I try to get it to do what I want and it does what ever
it wishes.
My
mother’s hair is thick and wavy. It is so dark it almost looks black with
a few gray hairs scattered throughout. So, even though we are related you
can see our hair is pretty different.
pg3
Just
Horsing Around
When
I was younger I didn't have a favorite game or toy. My favorite toy was
actually my sister. I thought that she had been put on this Earth to entertain
me. She on the other hand had other ideas.
I
was always following her around and pretty much just annoying her. When
my mom was pregnant she always said she wanted a sister but now that she
had one she was not thrilled. She had expected a sweet, adoring little
sister and that is not what she got.
If
she was talking on the phone I was at her feet asking her what she was
talking about. If she had a friend over I had to be included. And 24-7
I was top priority for her (or so I thought it should be). Now looking
back I realize how annoying I really was.
It
wasn't always that we didn't get along. Sometimes when I was acting like
a human being and not a little brat we had actual conversations. Occasionally
we even had fun doing things together. We would get into trouble together
and just generally have fun. I know to her I was just an annoying little
sister but to me she was the most interesting person in the world.
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CHRISTMAS
BABY
When
I was 2 years old I already had a mind of my own. It was getting close
to Christmas time and my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas. Without
batting an eye I replied "I want a baby for Christmas."
Mom
thought I meant a doll and thought oh, well that should be easy. Little
did she know I was not thinking of a plastic baby.
She
took me to a toy store to look at the dolls, there were girl dolls, boy
dolls, big dolls, little dolls, dolls that talked, that wet their diapers,
I carefully inspected each one and said I didn't like any of them. We went
to probably three more stores each with the same luck. Finally, my mom
decided that she would bring me back another day and I would find one I
liked.
Mom
had to go in to the hospital where she worked to talk to her boss so she
took me along. She works in OB (obstetrics) and I always loved to look
in the windows of the nursery at the sweet little babies. So after she
talked to her boss my mom took me to look in the windows at the little
babies. I looked with wide eyes into the window and my eyes finally rested
on an especially sweet looking baby and I tugged my moms hand and pointed
she said isn't he cute? I said, "Yep that's the one I want." Mom looked
at me and then she finally realized what I meant, that I wanted that baby
for Christmas.
Needless to say I didn't get that baby for Christmas. My mother explained that it was someone else's baby. Luckily I decided I wanted something else for Christmas (I don't remember what it was). But my mom and sister still love to tell everyone what I wanted for Christmas and it is actually quite embarrassing.
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Beginnings
On my first day of school my emotions were a mix of excitement, fear, and nervousness. By the time we pulled up at the school my stomach was tied in knots. I was so nervous I didn't think I could even talk much less than walk up those huge steps into the building that loomed dark and foreboding before me.
Somehow I managed to make my way into the school and followed my mom through the long hallways to the Pre K room. What I saw there amazed me. Inside the room there were probably 20 kids all shapes and sizes sitting with their parents. Some clutched their mother/father's hand with terrified looks on their faces while others sat staring defiantly towards their parents or the teachers.
My mom and I found a seat and waited for the class to start. Sitting across from us was a little girl with brown hair and brown eyes looking just as nervous as I felt. There were only 2 people in the room that I knew, my cousin and his mother who came over to say hi and then took a seat beside us.
The teachers called for everyone's attention and introduced themselves, then they suggested that we walk around the room and introduce ourselves. A couple of kids took this as an opportunity to run to the other side of the room or as far away from their parents as possible. But not me I sat glued to my chair afraid to move an inch. So finally my mother peeled me out of my chair and half dragged me over to introduce myself to the little brown haired girl who sat watching the wild kids with wide eyes and a look of both astonishment and amusement on her face.
pg6
When
my mother succeeded in pulling me across the room she elbowed me every
so slightly in the ribs and I shyly said, "Hi, I'm Bethany." Her response
was "I'm Melanie." Mom introduced herself and Melanie' 5 mom did the same
then they started talking about what I considered boring grown-up stuff
which left Melanie and I looking at each other unsure of what to say. Luckily,
the teachers regained control of the rest of the class and they decided
to take another approach at this they asked that we took turns standing
up and introducing ourselves.
After
that they let us get out toys and play together. I didn't know what to
do so I looked at Melanie and probably asked her" Do you want to play with
the Lincoln Logs with me," or something equally dorky but it worked and
soon we were laughing at the other kids who were goofing off and meeting
new friends. I met a lot of friends that day but most important to me is
that I met my best friend for all these years that day.
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Frolicking
in the Snow
In
the winter of 1989 we got a big snow. It looked like a winter wonderland
outside; the land was covered with a thick blanket of crystal white snow.
I was 4 years old and so excited that I was going to get to play in the
snow. So my 9 year-old sister and I dressed in many layers of warm clothing
and set out into the cold weather.
The
freshly fallen snow crunched under our feet as we trudged through it leaving
a trail of shoe prints behind us. We were having a great time making snow
angels and falling in the big drifts. We even built a small snowman.
I
was just starting a second snowman when I felt a snowball hit me square
in the back of the head. I turned around to see Erin (my sister) cracking
up at the sight of me with snow plastered to my head. So I threw my own
snowball which hit her in the stomach. It started out we were just playing
throwing snowballs and laughing but then we started to get serious and
got mad. Pretty soon it was an all out fight with kicking, hair pulling,
and yelling. Our mom heard the commotion and ran out of the house, one
look at her face and we knew we were in big trouble.
We
were marched in the house and were sat down and given a stern lecture.
Then we were sent to our rooms and were not to come out until we were told
to do so. Our TV privileges were also restricted for a period of time.
It was most definitely not the best day.
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Farm
Life
Life
on a farm is really not as rustic or boring as most people think. Most
people expect horse-drawn plows and old pickup trucks as our only source
of transportation. When really, due to technology, farms are extremely
advanced and not rustic at all. Sure it is different from living in the
city but it is not a boring habitat.
Everyday
there is something to do. Something to fix, crops to harvest, or an animal
to take care of. Although we don't have cows on our farm any more we still
have plenty of farm animals. Just in my immediate family we have 2 horses,
2 dogs, and 2 cats. On the farm we have 3 more dogs and a whole bunch of
cats to add to that list.
Farming
is a really hard job physically and emotionally. Many times my dad will
be out working until after midnight. We are almost always able to reach
him, though, through the cb. So when there is a problem we communicate
through this oversized powerful walky talky.
Your
never bored here. There are four-wheelers, dirt bikes, etc. to keep you
busy. Maybe you don't want to come live out in the boondocks but for me
it is a way of life. And in my opinion a good way of life.
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Every Christmas
Eve my Grandmother Taake has a family get-together. This has been the tradition
since before I was born. But the flin part, for me, always comes after.
After
our candle lit church service we rush home to change out of our church-clothes
and into more comfortable regalia. Then we pile back into our car and drive
over to my grandma's house. There are always already people sitting around
gabbing. Just about everyone
is there, aunts and uncles, cousins and other relatives. With them they
bring conversation and more importantly food. There is tons of food, sandwiches,
casseroles, vegetables, chips, dip, and a whole table laden with desserts.
The
kids go first taking plates piled high with food and yet barely making
a dent in the food. Then the adults go but it still appears there is going
to be enough leftovers to feed a family for a week. Everybody goes back
for seconds some for thirds and even a few for fourths. By the time everyone
is done only a few things have anything left. After the feeding
frenzy we sit and talk or play games and complain that we are not going
to be able to move for a week. Its nice to talk to people you don't get
to see very often. Around 11 or so people start dispersing and we go home.
When we get home
my mom selects a package for me and a package for my sister from under
the tree (she must mark them because she always knows which ones to pick).
We open them up to find a new pair of pajamas. Every year we get a new
pair of pj's and its always fun to guess what kind we are getting. Christmas
is a tradition in itself but probably my favorite ritual is our pj presents. Pg10 Just
one of those days In
seventh grade I broke my ankle during a basketball game. The day after
at school was definitely not a good day.... I
hobbled into school on my crutches trying not to fall. My sister carried
my book-bag and tried not to laugh as my crutch wobbled and I had to stop,
right myself, and continue. I got a coupe odd looks and quite a few "What
happened to you?" 5 (Which gets really annoying after the fifth or sixth
time). I make it to class as someone carries my books for me and plop down
in my seat. My arms are already tired and sore from being unaccustomed
to the crutches. I had only been there probably 15 minutes at the most. After
class I struggle to make my way through people to my locker, luckily people
usually move out of your way when you are armed with crutches (which I
later learned should be classified as a deadly weapon and can greatly come
in handy). My next class was PE, which means I sat there and enviously
watched kids with strong, healthy, non-broken legs run around having fun. The
rest of my day was more of the same, my arms becoming more stiff and tired.
I got tired of having other people carry my books. Because one thing I
value is my independence, and you can't be independent with other people
carrying your books and treating you like your not capable of getting up
to sharpen my pencil or something to that effect. All in all that day was
definitely not a good experience. Just
Minding My Own Business It
was a Friday the bell had just rung and I was making my way down the hall
to my sister's locker. When I reached her locker we started talking as
she got her stuff to go home. I was just minding my own business when all
of a sudden two people who shall remain nameless started yelling at each
other and before I realized what was going on they started running toward
each other. There
were fists flying and feet kicking and pretty soon one of them was actually
bleeding. People were crowded around to see what was going on and people
were running down the hall to see the action. I was pushed up against the
locker because they were right in front of me. It was a tangle of bodies
and I wasn't sure who was bleeding because both of them had blood smeared
on them. They
were so close I could reach out and touch him and I didn't dare move for
fear I would get hit by one of the wild punches. One of them actually fell
down on my foot and my shoe got blood on it. By this time two teachers
were trying to pull the two off each other and at one time I thought they
had them but they kept swinging and cursing at each other. Those
two only got 3 days suspension but I will never forget that incident. It's
not that I have never seen a fight before it is just they were so violent
and looked capable of almost anything. I just hope that people think about
their actions before they go and do something stupid like those two did. Pg12 A
Word of Advice At my church camp
last year we had a visiting pastor that came to speak to the group. During
normal talks kids don't pay attention after awhile and start being obnoxious.
But during his opening remarks this speaker was so powerful that he got
even the rudest kids attention.
His speech was not
about anything new and it was not about something we hadn't heard about.
It was about something we had heard several times and not really understood.
He had all eyes drawn to him and made the best of it. His speech wasn't
a long one but it was direct and to the point.
He talked about
living life to the fullest. About not letting what other people thought
get in your way of doing what you believed in and what you know is right.
He was so intriguing and actually seemed to understand that being a teenager
isn't easy.
He told us to always
trust in God and let him guide our paths instead of who we mink is cool
and what will make us more popular. He said that we have to fulfill our
dreams in order to be happy and to reach for our goals no matter how high.
I don't know if
that man knows it but he made a real impact on my life and I think many
others. He gave me the best advice that I think I will ever receive. I
hope that he goes on to inspire others as he inspired me.
