Mary Meyer
19 December 2019
Ms. Lehmann
English 2-1B
All in a Bottle
And then…
I gently pulled a piece of old paper out. With a pumping heart, quivering hand, and breath caught in lungs, I unrolled the paper. After looking at it and carefully studied it, I blinked and tilted my head to the side, eyebrows screwed in question. It was blank! With a sigh and head slightly bowed, I straggled down the beach to home. When I walked into the kitchen with my findings, my older sister asked me what I had found.
“Oh, just some wood for the fire, a pretty shell, a sealed bottle with a blank paper, and a couple of other things,” I replied. My sister, Meg, got a glint in her eye when I mentioned the bottle and it’s mysterious paper.
“A blank paper, you say? Hmmm, maybe it has invisible ink, like in the movies. Grab a lemon from the fridge will you?” Meg said.
With a grin, I quickly grab a lemon, knowing exactly what she was up to. As I cut the lemon open and squeezed the juice out, Meg found the pastry brush so we could apply the juice carefully and easily.
After we brushed the lemon juice on the paper, Meg got the hair blower and dried the juice. Then, like magic, lines started to form on the paper! Meg and I watched the ink appear until it was all there. It formed a map, and we could tell that it was a map of this very area!
“ Why, it looks like it leads to our backyard, right where that big bush is!” Meg exclaimed.
As we rushed outside into the gathering darkness, Meg grabbed a flashlight and fresh batteries in case we would need them. We ran to the bush, studying it and searching around. Finally, I crawled through the branches to the center.
“What did you find?” Meg asked when I gave a yelp of surprise.
“There’s a tunnel entrance back here!” I replied.
Meg crawled in, and grinned when she saw the tunnel. With only a little hesitation, we headed into the tunnel. We followed it for what felt like a long time, and we eventual came to a large cave at the end. Inside was a huge, magnificent tree growing there!
On the cave wall was written, “ This is the last tree of its kind, which grows by itself underground without sunlight. Whoever finds this place, I ask of you to keep it secret and save.
Meg and I agreed to keep the place secret, as asked. Now, whenever we want, we go down to the secret cave to gaze at that wondrous tree.
Student’s Choice Reflection
1. Explain the process you went through to write this paper. Please be specific.
I had a card with the beginning of a story, and then took off from that. The fun part with the stories that give the beginning, is it can go in any direction.
2. Is this paper narrative, expository, or argumentative? How do you know?
This is a narrative because it is descriptive, has dialogue, and tells a story. This has all of those features.
3. Tell me one thing you learned from writing this paper.
I learned that you can express yourself in stories.
4. What are you particularly proud of in this paper?
The way how I used a paper in a bottle.
5. What does this paper show readers about you?
It shows that I have a relation with plants. However, the false thing in this is that a plant cannot grow without sunlight.
19 December 2019
Ms. Lehmann
English 2-1B
All in a Bottle
And then…
I gently pulled a piece of old paper out. With a pumping heart, quivering hand, and breath caught in lungs, I unrolled the paper. After looking at it and carefully studied it, I blinked and tilted my head to the side, eyebrows screwed in question. It was blank! With a sigh and head slightly bowed, I straggled down the beach to home. When I walked into the kitchen with my findings, my older sister asked me what I had found.
“Oh, just some wood for the fire, a pretty shell, a sealed bottle with a blank paper, and a couple of other things,” I replied. My sister, Meg, got a glint in her eye when I mentioned the bottle and it’s mysterious paper.
“A blank paper, you say? Hmmm, maybe it has invisible ink, like in the movies. Grab a lemon from the fridge will you?” Meg said.
With a grin, I quickly grab a lemon, knowing exactly what she was up to. As I cut the lemon open and squeezed the juice out, Meg found the pastry brush so we could apply the juice carefully and easily.
After we brushed the lemon juice on the paper, Meg got the hair blower and dried the juice. Then, like magic, lines started to form on the paper! Meg and I watched the ink appear until it was all there. It formed a map, and we could tell that it was a map of this very area!
“ Why, it looks like it leads to our backyard, right where that big bush is!” Meg exclaimed.
As we rushed outside into the gathering darkness, Meg grabbed a flashlight and fresh batteries in case we would need them. We ran to the bush, studying it and searching around. Finally, I crawled through the branches to the center.
“What did you find?” Meg asked when I gave a yelp of surprise.
“There’s a tunnel entrance back here!” I replied.
Meg crawled in, and grinned when she saw the tunnel. With only a little hesitation, we headed into the tunnel. We followed it for what felt like a long time, and we eventual came to a large cave at the end. Inside was a huge, magnificent tree growing there!
On the cave wall was written, “ This is the last tree of its kind, which grows by itself underground without sunlight. Whoever finds this place, I ask of you to keep it secret and save.
Meg and I agreed to keep the place secret, as asked. Now, whenever we want, we go down to the secret cave to gaze at that wondrous tree.
Student’s Choice Reflection
1. Explain the process you went through to write this paper. Please be specific.
I had a card with the beginning of a story, and then took off from that. The fun part with the stories that give the beginning, is it can go in any direction.
2. Is this paper narrative, expository, or argumentative? How do you know?
This is a narrative because it is descriptive, has dialogue, and tells a story. This has all of those features.
3. Tell me one thing you learned from writing this paper.
I learned that you can express yourself in stories.
4. What are you particularly proud of in this paper?
The way how I used a paper in a bottle.
5. What does this paper show readers about you?
It shows that I have a relation with plants. However, the false thing in this is that a plant cannot grow without sunlight.