College Eassy

Chokyab Sherab

Mr. Gallagher

12 CP Period 1

19 Oct. 2010

Dream Come True under Mount Everest

I was born in Tibet.  When I was five years old my parents were involved in anti-Chinese programs.  Fortunately, before the Chinese armies caught them, they escaped to India, but my brother and I were left behind with our aunt. After five years, I was ten and my brother was nine, our parents saved money to pay a guide who was able to reunify our family, which we were dreaming of since they left Tibet. However, we needed to walk through the mountains from Tibet to Nepal, which was the path of the least chance to get caught by Chinese policies.

It was September 30^th, 2002 and it been more than eight years, but I still remember those moments like they were yesterday. We had a group of seventeen people, including our guide Topten.  My brother and I were the youngest. We started our journey from Lhasa with our relatives to Sheka Tsi on a bus likw we were going on a pilgrimage, which was a twelve hour long bus ride. We stayed in a small hotel until midnight and then said goodbye to our relatives.  My aunt’s pale face and unstoppable tears from her eyes made me feel cold lighting going through my whole body for a moment.  We both cried. That first night we walked about six hours and found small cave to hide in and spent all the next day there. I was totally exhausted.  The day after that we started our journey around 9:00 pm, which was dark enough so that other people couldn’t see us.   On the third day, the bottoms of my feet were calloused and it was extremely painful, but I dreamed about life with my parents and it gave me energy to move on. Fortuitously, the next day my calloused feet had burst and the pain was gone; also our bag became lighter as we ate Tsampa, which is a food, made mostly of grain and Yak butter.

            At midnight of the fourteenth day, we reached the base of Mount Everest.  It is the border of Tibet and Nepal. This was also the most dangerous day we had to go through. We had the highest risk of being caught by the Chinese police.  We also had to walk during the day. The temperature around that place was always freezing and snow was falling frequently. Our food was gone. I tried really hard to sleep but I was freezing and hungry.  All I could see were those same stars and full moon that I used to see in my village with my grandfather, who is still in Tibet. The next day, we started our journey around 8 o’clock, still without anything to eat, and that merciless wind blew the snow against our faces.  The sunshine blinded us and put tears in our eyes. After walking about five hours, we saw some mountain climbers and we were very glad to meet them, but we were not certain that they would help us. A Sherpa saw us and stared at us with a shocked face. I will never forget his face.                                                                                                               

Our guide asked, “Please, can you give us something to eat or drink?”

            The Sherpa didn’t answer but he went into his trunk. He came out with a big vessel of hot juice and a package of biscuits. We drank it all within seconds and asked for more. After we all drank three or four mugs, we drank a little slower. Those foreigners with red hair and green eyes came out with chocolates and gave us one bar each, and then took a picture of us. Another Sherpa gave us some wool gloves and socks.

He said in unclear Tibetan “Put these on. Snow will frost your skin.” And then “Don’t go that way. There are three from the Chinese army carrying guns and they went that way”.

None of us could control our tears from their sympathy, helpfulness, and kindness. We said goodbye to them and moved forward and left the kind men behind who had saved our lives.  

After we walked for another five hours or so we reach a pile of rocks with a flag on it.  Topten announced that “Now we are in Nepal and we are out of risk.”  We had to walk for another five days and spend one more on a bus to get to Tibetan office.  We were also able to buy food and other things on our way.

So, we threw snow in the sky and shouted with “ka ka so sola ka lo……………….”, which is a Tibetan prayer for luck that is said when reaching the top of a mountain, in celebration for our achievement and our dream come true.

The Plum Plum Pickers

Chokyab Sherab

Mr. Gallegher

12 CP Period 1

19 Oct, 2010

The Plum Plum pickers

In the passage “The plum plum pickers” by Raymond Barrio suggest that life to be a Mexican migrant plum picker in a White filed is horrible and like a slave. They will unfairly treated you and cheat on you. But only thing that will keep you live is to stand against mistreat and cheat, earn the honor and pride of your life. Author showed that by Manual and his workmates worked really hard in that hot sunning day, but their work boss Morales try to cheat them, so manual savagely against his boss and show his pride and lead the worker, and stop his cheating and save there money.

            The Author uses similes to show that life of plum picker. In the passage “An endless maze of apricot trees, as though forever, neat rows of them neatly planted row after row, just like the blackest bar on the jail of the hell”. Comparing the farm filed to jail of the hell, it was endless work and they couldn’t get away from those neat row field and also he use personification in the passage “the hot dry air suck every drop of the living moisture from his brute body”. To show us, character was working in a really hot and dry, the only the water is their relief and help. By using allusion that “the holy water”.

            The author uses word flow to describe farm boss Robert Morales was merciless and selfish, robber, cheater. In the passage “A real robber, a Mexican general. A gentlemanly. Friendly, polite, grinning, vicious, thieving brute. The worst kind.” And in the passage rising point of the story, Author tell us Roberto Morales announces in the passage “in his friendly tone, “Now I have to take two cent from every bucket, I am sorry” that suggest Morales real cheat and mistreat on those innocent and hardworking workers like a wolf talk nice to get meat.

            But at the end author uses Manual’s bravery to stand against Roberto greedy, in the passage “you Promised to take nothing” to suggest in that quite exhaust worker they have some on could stand on their right, lead the other worker in the passage “all the other worker pickers moved toward their own buckets still standing” all worker follow the Manual to stand for their right and fight against mistreated. Manual save money and could earn respect, pride from his fellow and discover the value of fight for their rights and unity.

            Author use various kind of written methods and work choices and show us that in an unfair and mistreat of the society or place. He/She encourage us to fight against them, for any cost to show our own pride and honor, salvage right and justices, then many other people will stand for your side and thankful you.

Journal Entries

"Though Minos blocks scape by land or water" Daedalus said "Surely sky is open.
Wow sound like he was very smart, and he was very high risk taker.

Landscape with the fall of Icarus

In the “landscape with the fall of Icarus”, by William Carlos William suggests that life is unfair, everyone has they own place, and human are selfish, no credit for inventor. In the poem young Icarus fall from the sky and died for what ever his father did wrong, but people are busy doing their own task and don’t care what going on for other people around them. When they fly to escape Icarus went too high, so waxes got melt and fall down on the ground and died.

Some time life shouldn’t be fair for certain people. In this case even though young Icraus didn’t do anything wrong, he was sent to Iceland with his father for his father’s mistake, he has to fly in order to get freedom. In “The story of Dealaus and Icrarus” by Ovid suggested  “Though Mino blocks escape by land and water, sky is open” Icraus and his father fly over their journey, unfortunately his wax melt in the sun and fall on the ground and died. In the painting “Landscape with the fall of Icraus” by Pieter Bruegel draw a man was fell in the sea and sink in to the water. For the fate of whatever his father did do wrong turn up on Icraus and result been has to die on very young age like a spring of the season as poem setting.

People are selfish and they just care for themselves and their life. In the painting “landscape with the fall of Icarus show that when Icarus fall in the sea, they have one care for that Youngman’s life. The farmer was plowing his field. And guy next to him beside the sea was also kept busy with his own task. In the poem “ landscape with the fall of Icarus” by W C William said “ a splesh quite unnoticed this was Icarus drowning” that show no one was interest to save someone’s life and they just they life and their work.

            On the other hand people don’t recognize someone creative and what they done to risk their life, so some time in some situation it was better to stay simple. In the poem W C William state, “sweating in the Sun that melted the wings’ wax”. Because Icarus fly too high, he wax got melt by sun and fall on the ground and like that in “The story of Daedalus and Icarus’ by Ovids state “Men came to have the compass, and Daedalus in envy the boy,” tell us that Daedalus sister’s son was super smart and did thing that no other can and he lost his life, instead of getting credit for his great invention. So simple life was more peaceful and safer.

            “Landscape with the fall of Icarus” by WC William try to tell us in a society people don’t care for each other and been a selfish, then in that society they will not have a fair and will not get credit for people whop can do great things. So in that kind of society it was better to live simple and quite, other wise you will not get good consequence. On the other they have less develop and less improve. 

“Landscape with the fall of Icraus” by Pieter Bruegel

In the painting “Landscape with the fall of Icarus” by Pieter Bruegel, I see the Sun is rising far behind the sea, and the sun light fall on the clouds and turned the sky to varies colors yellow and blue, green etc. I see sea surrounded by mountains and hills, on the sea there have different side boats. One at front with full load was looked like merchant ship leaving from the town for business head toward the sun, and there had small one in the middle was look like fisher man ship, other one far back side was also leaving for the town too and head toward east side where the sun is rising with help of wind energy, looks like that was also merchant ship or war ship. I can also see four people in picture and at the front they has farmer woman is plowing a small whitish dry hill field with wooden plow was pulling by a horse. She is holding a stick on the hand, looks like she had that for hit the horse when it not listen her, and she wore a white short pant and small black boots, red shirt and like a Long coat on top. There has a guy was herding the sheep and had a stick on his hand, he wore a black pant and grey shirt; black shoes, his pant was folding from the bottom and carried a bag pack on his back, and staring at the sky with full of wonder, looks like something amazing stuff up there in the sky. There had another guy who was near the sea and he was bent down to water, looks like he is trying to reach water to get a sup or get something from there; he wore black hat and white shirt. There had person is swimming or about to sink in the sea, but we can see only his leg is waving. There had a tree and many bushes around those people. There had a small land in the sea grew tree and had big stone beside it flow by two small stone in water like someone brought over there. There had big town in far back behind that high rock mountain, there had many building and some of them were really big, especially one at front building was huge and had very high wall. Part of the sea was inside the town and town was kind of building around the sea, behind that town there had not that high ashy color mountain and seem like not thing was grew on there. Below that tall rock mountain there had nice green hill, look like forest. And further down right side of the sun there had many ashy or white color mountains, these might be Snow Mountain or rock mountain. In the middle of sea there had island, some trees were grow in there, but looks like no one was living there because they have no house or building.

Red shift by Ted Berrigan

In the poem "Red shift" by Ted Berrigan suggests that life around 1960's in New York was terrible, and disappoint, sad. They have to smoke and drink to fit in the society and no dream for their life. Life is full of unhappy and sad lonely, like a red shift of star they are dying from everything.

Poet show life around 1960’s was disappoint by saying “I drink some American poison liquid are which bubbles and smoke to have character and to lean in” that indicated he himself and everyone else knew alcohol was bad thing, as he compared it with poison and as well as smoking, but in order to fit in New Yorker life, it was an essential requirement for everyone and it is because a character of them.

Poet also suggests life was sad by mention “there’s a song “California Dream”, but no, I won’t do that. I am 43”. In this quote although he was already 43 years old, he didn’t pursue his dream. And he said “I will never go away, & you will never escape from me”. He had dreams that he wanted to achieve all the time but he wasn’t pursue it.

Poet suggests life was unhappy lonely, and dying by saying “it did so and now nothing will ever change. That, and that’s that”. In this quote he said all things they did and they doing was unworthy, basically they just ruing their life and life will not turning right.

Poet had lot emotion and feeling toward life and social style they live. It was full of disappoint and sad, also no one was thinking about change and not pursue their dream. So he just point out the fact of their to all.

Letter to Mr.Gallagher

Dear Mr.Gallagher

My name is Choekyab Sherab. I was born in plateau of the world Tibet, in a small village near the capital Lhasa. When I was seven years old because of my parents involved in anti Chinese program, they were about arrest so they exile to India. My brother and me lived with our aunt house for five years, then years 2002 one night my brother and me leave with other fifteen strangers from Tibet to exile India. We walked for seventeen day and two days without any food to eat; these days become unforgettable moment in my life.