Some background on this piece: it started as a one page college paper about a specific phrase. I would like you guys to read this, and then before looking at the answer try to see if you could figure out the phrase, or be very close to said phrase. So with that in mind here is my seven page one-page college paper story XD.
I woke up way too early on a Monday morning. It was chilly outside, but not too chilly. The wind was just enough to cool down the skin from the radiant sun. My parents said their goodbyes as they went off to work, surprisingly both my parents are employed, not a common situation nowadays. As I get into my car I type in the college’s address into the GPS and buckle myself in. The car has no steering wheel, only windows, seats, and cup holders. I hear a small chime as I hit enter for the address and the car pulls out of the driveway and onto the blacktop. It’s nice, but sometime I want to drive and really take control of the vehicle. My mother has told me stories about her parents driving her in a manual control car, and I sometimes wish I could have been alive to see it. Along the roads there are signs for this weekend’s One Hundred Years Peace Carnival. My town is getting everyone together for a chili cook-off and burgers; but I would rather stay at home and read my history books. History is fascinating, one of my favorite subjects and I take absolutely every history class available at the college. Most would disagree with me, or say that I’m foolhardy for being interested in events long past, but I do not care.
As I arrive to the campus I get out and walk over to the flag pole. Standing there is a boy with pale blond hair and a lanky build, with a book in his hand that’s tattered from use, “At the books again Oliver?”
Oliver jumps, nearly dropping the four-hundred page book, “Late again I see.”
I shrug and put my hands in my pockets as he marks the paper with a plastic sliver. It’s nice seeing other people other than me use traditional paperbacks. Most people have e-books, and it just does not feel the same as a book, “What book is that anyways? It’s different from the one you had Friday.”
The boy grins and shows me the front cover. It’s orange and has a white boy with black hair and glasses. Just above the boy’s nose is a mark in the shape of a lightning bolt. “Looks cool,” I respond shyly, “what’s it about?”
“It’s about a boy who can do magic and has to save the world from an evil wizard with the help of his friends,” Oliver answers his face lighting up with glee as we walk up the side building’s staircase.
“Well, that’s not a lot of information!”
“I don’t want to give you spoilers.”
“How would telling me about a fictional book be giving me spoilers? I won’t read it.”
“I bet you would if you could get your hands on the first book.”
“First book, that’s not it?” I hear a bit of curiosity in my voice.
Oliver gives a cheeky grin, “I knew that would grab your attention. Think of it like one of your history books, except this one is in an alternate universe.”
I smirk, “The past is an alternate universe.”
“You know what I mean.”
We walk towards the end of the hall and into Room 120, Miss Alexandra Grace’s classroom, my favorite teacher. As we walk in there are plenty of empty seats save for a few people in the back of the classroom, and one front and center. The girl in the front grins at us and waves us over. Her blonde hair is curled into a pony tail and her bright green eyes sparkle with excitement. “Oliver! Tamara!”
Oliver and I grin at each other slightly and move towards the seats next to hers. “Morning Kallie, how did you sleep last night?” The boy asks the girl with a bashful grin.
Kallie chuckles putting her left hand up by her ear, “I slept well. What an odd question to ask.”
“I… um... I just was curious.”
I roll my eyes at the two. It’s no secret that Oliver finds Kallie quite intriguing, and likewise Kallie him. Too bad the two are so wrapped up in their schooling to take companionship in one another. Without another word the class door closes and Miss Grace walks in, “Well, isn’t this class full of people today.” She gave such a warm laugh it made my insides like jelly. There’s something about her that I cannot put my finger on, but it makes me turn into goo. It probably has to do with my love for history.
Miss Grace grins and pulls out a pen and points it at the smart board, a power point pops up and on the screen, in bold white lettering it reads History of the One-Hundred Year Peace. ‘Of course....’ I groan under my breath and do everything in my power to keep from glaring at Miss Grace. The professor stays quiet as papers shuffle and bags are unzipped, Miss Grace prefers pen and paper for note taking. A click sound from the pen in her hand goes off and the PowerPoint switches slides. The next slide has the picture of the current world.
Kallie raises her hand, “Yes, Miss Fredickson?”
“Is this not a History class?” The girl pipes up sternly. As I said earlier most people do not like history, and we’ve been taught about the Time of Peace since we were in preschool.
“Yes, it is, can you tell me what is important about this picture?”
The blonde’s face turns red and she shuffles her feet, “This map has been used for the last one-hundred years?”
I try not to laugh, but Miss Grace seems to notice my smirk, “What about you Miss Balztic, care to elaborate?”
With a gulp I nod slowly. Surprisingly I’m not good at answering out loud. I’m rather introverted when it comes to class. “It’s… a post-war map after the Third World War. Large parts of land that once belonged to earth are no longer on the map.”
The professor nods and gives a shy grin. She clicks her pen and then another picture shows up, very similar to the last, but at the same time very much different.
“What’s this?” A student in the back pipes up.
Without answering the boy’s question Miss Grace pipes up, “Can anyone tell me the major differences between the two maps.
“Where are the Chinese Isles?” Oliver responds.
Miss Grace points her pen at the country known as China, “Before World War III the Chinese Isles were a capitalist country known as China.”
“Actually that is incorrect, the country was Communist on paper, but had a Capitalistic economy,” I interrupt suddenly. “When the bombs hit China all that was left were a series of islands.”
“Well, done Miss Baltzic,” The professor then points at a series of three countries around Europe. “Mr. Zanders can you name these three countries?”
Oliver nods boldly, “The top left is Great Britain, and below that are France and Spain.”
Miss Grace nods and clicks the pen again to show the two maps next to each other. The differences become painfully obvious at this point.
“What is that large country at the bottom?” Another student calls out.
“Antarctica, but now it is known as the Antarctic Sea. Most do not know, but that was actually a continent not a country. When Terraforming was first being worked on, it was decided that it would be tested out on the ice. It worked very well as the ice soon melted and floods helped to cover the continent.”
Miss Grace soon continues with the lecture, “This development is what helped to create the TerraBombs for the Third World War, as to not cause health problems like the nukes of the previous Great Wars, the countries developed bombs that would change the environment. The first targets were California, New York, and Florida as these were tourist states on the coasts of the United States. It caused instantaneous earth quakes and floods causing mass destruction and death. The United States had no way to rebuild fast enough to take immediate action as the old capital of the country was also destroyed. The previously stated countries were then bombed leaving the U.S.A with no allies. That’s where China and Japan step in. China took in American refugees, and the United States was allowed to place a military base on their soil. Does anyone know how long it took for the Last TerraBombs to be used?”
Of course I did, but I had spoken enough already. All these great inventions and instruments that could have been used to bring about peace with minimal conflict were used for malicious deeds. Peace… at what cost?
“Five years,” Oliver speaks up loudly.
“That’s right. The United States went into hiding for five years as I.S.I.S. took over most of the leftover countries. Of course when spies from their government found the American military base the two bombs went off destroying much of the Middle East and China.”
Kallie gave a cough, “What about Greenland, why is it further to the left on the New World Map?”
“All the Terraforming causes multiple earthquakes across the world. The Green Quake causes that entire part of the land to be pushed toward the islands on the left.”
Miss Grace looks up at the clocks, “Well, that’s enough for today. We’ll have a map quiz on Friday. Have fun this week at the carnivals, and remember why we are celebrating.”
((Story Phrase Below))
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Did you guess it? If not share what phrase you thought went with the story?
One-Hundred Year Peace
People change and grow as their surroundings change. It begins simply, a war here, a skirmish there, a peace meeting this, and council that could not give a darn whether the survivors lived or died. That is until people decide enough is enough, and tear down the government that is supposed to protect the people. We the People declare those high and mighty to be smited for their wicked deeds. Of course that’s how I like to think of it. My name is Tamara Balztic, and I believe that the world can be changed, if only people would change the world. The year is 2133, and one-hundred years have passed since the Second Cold War that then became the Third World War. It is the historically longest time of peace the United States has had since the founding of the country. This year there will be festivals, carnivals, and great feasts all in celebration of the single century of peace that has passed. The parties will be great, the drinks will be filled, and I will be rolling my eyes at the absurdity. One hundred years of peace? Is that what people really see this as? A time of celebration because of one hundred years of peace, it is absolutely absurd! The truth is during the Third Great War countries were demolished and a genocide three times that of the Second World War occurred. The government wants us to act like everything is peachy, but is it? Let me explain a little about this current world. The unemployment rate is over 19% in worldwide. The poverty rate is even higher, at 32%. Now, here’s the catch, everyone has free medical care, welfare feeds over half of the population, and many communities have city-wide meals. This is what it took to achieve world-wide peace, and I do not believe it was worth the cost.I woke up way too early on a Monday morning. It was chilly outside, but not too chilly. The wind was just enough to cool down the skin from the radiant sun. My parents said their goodbyes as they went off to work, surprisingly both my parents are employed, not a common situation nowadays. As I get into my car I type in the college’s address into the GPS and buckle myself in. The car has no steering wheel, only windows, seats, and cup holders. I hear a small chime as I hit enter for the address and the car pulls out of the driveway and onto the blacktop. It’s nice, but sometime I want to drive and really take control of the vehicle. My mother has told me stories about her parents driving her in a manual control car, and I sometimes wish I could have been alive to see it. Along the roads there are signs for this weekend’s One Hundred Years Peace Carnival. My town is getting everyone together for a chili cook-off and burgers; but I would rather stay at home and read my history books. History is fascinating, one of my favorite subjects and I take absolutely every history class available at the college. Most would disagree with me, or say that I’m foolhardy for being interested in events long past, but I do not care.
As I arrive to the campus I get out and walk over to the flag pole. Standing there is a boy with pale blond hair and a lanky build, with a book in his hand that’s tattered from use, “At the books again Oliver?”
Oliver jumps, nearly dropping the four-hundred page book, “Late again I see.”
I shrug and put my hands in my pockets as he marks the paper with a plastic sliver. It’s nice seeing other people other than me use traditional paperbacks. Most people have e-books, and it just does not feel the same as a book, “What book is that anyways? It’s different from the one you had Friday.”
The boy grins and shows me the front cover. It’s orange and has a white boy with black hair and glasses. Just above the boy’s nose is a mark in the shape of a lightning bolt. “Looks cool,” I respond shyly, “what’s it about?”
“It’s about a boy who can do magic and has to save the world from an evil wizard with the help of his friends,” Oliver answers his face lighting up with glee as we walk up the side building’s staircase.
“Well, that’s not a lot of information!”
“I don’t want to give you spoilers.”
“How would telling me about a fictional book be giving me spoilers? I won’t read it.”
“I bet you would if you could get your hands on the first book.”
“First book, that’s not it?” I hear a bit of curiosity in my voice.
Oliver gives a cheeky grin, “I knew that would grab your attention. Think of it like one of your history books, except this one is in an alternate universe.”
I smirk, “The past is an alternate universe.”
“You know what I mean.”
We walk towards the end of the hall and into Room 120, Miss Alexandra Grace’s classroom, my favorite teacher. As we walk in there are plenty of empty seats save for a few people in the back of the classroom, and one front and center. The girl in the front grins at us and waves us over. Her blonde hair is curled into a pony tail and her bright green eyes sparkle with excitement. “Oliver! Tamara!”
Oliver and I grin at each other slightly and move towards the seats next to hers. “Morning Kallie, how did you sleep last night?” The boy asks the girl with a bashful grin.
Kallie chuckles putting her left hand up by her ear, “I slept well. What an odd question to ask.”
“I… um... I just was curious.”
I roll my eyes at the two. It’s no secret that Oliver finds Kallie quite intriguing, and likewise Kallie him. Too bad the two are so wrapped up in their schooling to take companionship in one another. Without another word the class door closes and Miss Grace walks in, “Well, isn’t this class full of people today.” She gave such a warm laugh it made my insides like jelly. There’s something about her that I cannot put my finger on, but it makes me turn into goo. It probably has to do with my love for history.
Miss Grace grins and pulls out a pen and points it at the smart board, a power point pops up and on the screen, in bold white lettering it reads History of the One-Hundred Year Peace. ‘Of course....’ I groan under my breath and do everything in my power to keep from glaring at Miss Grace. The professor stays quiet as papers shuffle and bags are unzipped, Miss Grace prefers pen and paper for note taking. A click sound from the pen in her hand goes off and the PowerPoint switches slides. The next slide has the picture of the current world.
Kallie raises her hand, “Yes, Miss Fredickson?”
“Is this not a History class?” The girl pipes up sternly. As I said earlier most people do not like history, and we’ve been taught about the Time of Peace since we were in preschool.
“Yes, it is, can you tell me what is important about this picture?”
The blonde’s face turns red and she shuffles her feet, “This map has been used for the last one-hundred years?”
I try not to laugh, but Miss Grace seems to notice my smirk, “What about you Miss Balztic, care to elaborate?”
With a gulp I nod slowly. Surprisingly I’m not good at answering out loud. I’m rather introverted when it comes to class. “It’s… a post-war map after the Third World War. Large parts of land that once belonged to earth are no longer on the map.”
The professor nods and gives a shy grin. She clicks her pen and then another picture shows up, very similar to the last, but at the same time very much different.
“What’s this?” A student in the back pipes up.
Without answering the boy’s question Miss Grace pipes up, “Can anyone tell me the major differences between the two maps.
“Where are the Chinese Isles?” Oliver responds.
Miss Grace points her pen at the country known as China, “Before World War III the Chinese Isles were a capitalist country known as China.”
“Actually that is incorrect, the country was Communist on paper, but had a Capitalistic economy,” I interrupt suddenly. “When the bombs hit China all that was left were a series of islands.”
“Well, done Miss Baltzic,” The professor then points at a series of three countries around Europe. “Mr. Zanders can you name these three countries?”
Oliver nods boldly, “The top left is Great Britain, and below that are France and Spain.”
Miss Grace nods and clicks the pen again to show the two maps next to each other. The differences become painfully obvious at this point.
“What is that large country at the bottom?” Another student calls out.
“Antarctica, but now it is known as the Antarctic Sea. Most do not know, but that was actually a continent not a country. When Terraforming was first being worked on, it was decided that it would be tested out on the ice. It worked very well as the ice soon melted and floods helped to cover the continent.”
Miss Grace soon continues with the lecture, “This development is what helped to create the TerraBombs for the Third World War, as to not cause health problems like the nukes of the previous Great Wars, the countries developed bombs that would change the environment. The first targets were California, New York, and Florida as these were tourist states on the coasts of the United States. It caused instantaneous earth quakes and floods causing mass destruction and death. The United States had no way to rebuild fast enough to take immediate action as the old capital of the country was also destroyed. The previously stated countries were then bombed leaving the U.S.A with no allies. That’s where China and Japan step in. China took in American refugees, and the United States was allowed to place a military base on their soil. Does anyone know how long it took for the Last TerraBombs to be used?”
Of course I did, but I had spoken enough already. All these great inventions and instruments that could have been used to bring about peace with minimal conflict were used for malicious deeds. Peace… at what cost?
“Five years,” Oliver speaks up loudly.
“That’s right. The United States went into hiding for five years as I.S.I.S. took over most of the leftover countries. Of course when spies from their government found the American military base the two bombs went off destroying much of the Middle East and China.”
Kallie gave a cough, “What about Greenland, why is it further to the left on the New World Map?”
“All the Terraforming causes multiple earthquakes across the world. The Green Quake causes that entire part of the land to be pushed toward the islands on the left.”
Miss Grace looks up at the clocks, “Well, that’s enough for today. We’ll have a map quiz on Friday. Have fun this week at the carnivals, and remember why we are celebrating.”
((Story Phrase Below))
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The higher you climb, the farther you fall
The higher you climb, the farther you fall
Did you guess it? If not share what phrase you thought went with the story?
