Speech : My Mom 's Voice

No more pencils No more books No more teachers dirty looks. It was a great summer. They did all the things that they had planned.

In Shirley Jackson's short story, “The Summer People” the Allisons decided to stay at their summer cottage past labor day. This decision, however may not have been for the best. After making this decision the Allisons began to become paranoid as things started to not go their way. First of all the townspeople began to question them as to why they wanted to stay. They informed them that no one had ever stayed past Labor Day. The Allisons also had to deal with the fact they could no longer buy kerosene or have their groceries delivered as they had during the summer months. They also received an interesting letter from their son that left them feeling confused and a bit concerned because it did not sound like their son’s writing. Lastly they had things in their house that were braking such as their phone. Their car also had somehow broken and was no longer functioning. All of these occurrences startled the Allison. They couldn't understand how they had been able to live so peacefully in their cottage all summer

Starting off with a picture of how days were when she experienced her fifth-grade summer, the author adds in details that seem so minuscule, and unimportant to set the setting. The information about the cost of riding a trolley and the ice truck driving around on a hot day with blocks of ice provides the readers with the background of her story. In addition, by using diction that the author used as a child, such as “that-old-thing” and “help-him-out,” she brings the story to life as if it were still the 1900s. Every tiny detail that the author remembers about her childhood shown in this passage proves to the readers how important her fifth-grade summer was to her.

It was the Saturday before the last week of first grade and my family and I were attending a kickstart into summer barbecue at Scott Shaw’s house. Accompanied by my mother, father, brother, and my father’s 20 plus mountain biking, “crunchy granola” friends and spouses, we all arrived with summer’s approaching warmth on our faces. Everyone shoveling food into their mouths, playing ping pong, pool and swimming, everything was going smoothly.

I heard the faint high pitched beeping of my alarm clock as I opened my sleep covered eyes. I attempted to roll out from under my covers but immediately retreated as I felt the chilly spring air touch my skin. While I was mustering up the motivation to get out of bed, I glanced at my alarm clock. “11:00 AM” it read in boxy, glowing numbers. Had I really slept in that long? I finally rose from my bed, traveling down the stairs to make myself some breakfast. “Hi, girl!” I greeted my dog where she was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. I smiled to myself as I turned on some music, opened the fridge to retrieve some eggs, and turned on the stove. It felt like a fine Saturday morning until I remembered that I had a lacrosse game later

I woke up at 7AM to continuous, banging on the front door. Next thing I know ten policemen have barged into my room. I’ve not been able to stop replaying the words that came out of my mom’s mouth. They were quivering but sharp, not like the normal sweet and soft sound of her voice in the morning.

It was a normal morning, still laying down in the warm embrace of my down comforter. I set my daily alarm to go off at 5:50 a.m., and after about 5 clicks of the snooze button, I muster up the courage to emerge from the sheets like a kodiak leaving hibernation.

sat in my 8th hour room, staring at the clock, waiting for it to finally hit 3:05. After what felt like an eternity I heard the ring of the bell and a wave of students rushed out into the summer air. Summer was finally here and I couldn’t be happier. I had a whole three months to do whatever I wanted. No homework, no tests, no teachers. I hopped on my bus that would drive me home and deliver me to freedom.

Over the summer one can envision the future that lay ahead. Each day we made each other happier than the last. Sharing a similar sense of humor can create inside jokes that the two of us shared that brought us closer together; when we referenced one our friends looked as though as if I had grown a second head. But I did not care what they thought, all that mattered to me was that I had the heart of the boy that I loved.

I remember sitting at our dining room table, looking past the window. I wasn’t much older than eleven. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon, and I was bored out of my mind. I sighed, wishing there was something exciting to do. My mother told me that I should go outside and play, but I had already played at our playground what seemed like a million times already. The playground was only ten yards away from our small 800 square foot apartment, in the heart of Omaha, Nebraska. This was a convenience to some kids, but to me it was aggravating. I sat there in that wooden dining chair thinking how this summer had been one of the most uneventful summers I had ever had. I daydreamed about the summers of when I was living in Upstate New York. Ever since

I have come to the understanding that, as we progress in age, summer is no longer viewed in terms of vacation, but rather a chance for young adults to glimpse into the ‘real world’ of constant work and exhaustion. The cost of college education has made it difficult to enjoy the beauty of summer, and instead forces us to focus on the pressure of student loans. It is because of this that I have spent my past few summers indoors beneath the florescent lights of Younkers in the wonderful world of retail. However, as the past semester came to an end, I decided that this summer would be different.

The mother’s tone seems to be negative and harsh, particularly the critiques that involve calling the girl a slut. It seems her mother has complex feelings towards her daughter. The mother is giving her daughter this list of instructions tells me she wants her daughter to grow up to be a proper lady. I believe the mother’s ultimate goal is to set her daughter up to be a successful woman who is able to navigate the world. I believe she loves her daughter and feels her critiques will teach her how to be a proper lady in society. Although her way of teaching her daughter seems harsh, she wants what she believes is best for her daughter. The relationship between them seems to be restrained. There are no conversations between the mother and daughter.

They set out “with milk cans, pea tins, and jam pots”. He was thrilled to pick the blackberries, and eventually get drunk on them. He was not worried about the dangers, “briars scratched and wet grass bleached our boots”. His childish desires pressured him to forget all risks, and do what he craves for - all year long.

The fleeting changes that often accompany seasonal transition are especially exasperated in a child’s mind, most notably when the cool crisp winds of fall signal the summer’s end approaching. The lazy routine I had adopted over several months spent frolicking in the cool blue chlorine soaked waters of my family’s bungalow colony pool gave way to changes far beyond the weather and textbooks. As the surrounding foliage changed in anticipation of colder months, so did my family. My mother’s stomach grew larger as she approached the final days of her pregnancy and in the closing hours of my eight’ summer my mother gently awoke me from the uncomfortable sleep of a long car ride to inform of a wonderful surprise. No longer would we be returning

For my personal speech, we had to pull three items to describe us from the past, present, and future..My first item for the past was my wrestling patch because I was a dedicated wrestler who gave my best everyday to the sport. My second item was a Jack Daniel bottle because I drank with my friend to enjoy life while I have it to release stess and moivate each other to be the best we can. My third item was an athetic tape to show I am in school studying to be an athletic trainer for my career. For my demonstration speech, I describe how to properly cook a kabob from scratch on what you need of food and spices, prepping it, and cooking it at the end on a grill. For my informative speech, I informed everyone about emotional abuse. I talked about what is it, how people get it by being lonely and unloved, what it cause people to do like depression and suicide, and on how to treat it. I also mention on how I turned out, the lucky one who affect turned out fine, and I end up being normal with no big effect to ruin my life. For my final speech, the persuasive speech, I tried to persuade my class on why we should maintain our body to be strong and healthy, so we do not get obese, and what we can do if we are overweight on how to lose weight.