If I was a hero, I would sit down and cry

       In almost every book I have ever read, there is a hero. A person who solves the problem, either in a little way by picking up litter on the freeway, or in the book I am reading, the hunger games, saving someones life by beating up bad guys. Go Peeta. And after thinking about it, I realize that being a hero sucks. Every community has a hero, a person who sits on their stoop, and stares down teenagers, and these people are great. But they come at a price.
       Hero's have to give up their own lives, their own desires, to protect and serve us, the people. These people make sure justice is served, again, in little or big ways. In the hunger games, Katniss and Gale risk their lives hunting in the forest, so the people of their town can eat.  It is a true show of devotion, acts like this, and people like this, people who are heroes, are becoming scarce. Because people in society have become selfish. Selfish and scared. People only care about what directly affects themselves, and don't really give a crap about starving children in Africa, or even say the mentally challenged kid in their neighborhood. No, people are no longer truly heroes, and when a person comes along who is willing to help, they are usually cast away as a freak or an outcast. They are shunned because their actions are misinterpreted as prying, or just outright bad.
       Sooner or later, we all die, and we give up the chance to help. We give up the chance to go down in the history books as a good guy. And some people are okay with that. I am not saying that I am a hero, I am not. I simply hope people will read this and think, maybe I should. Maybe I should be a good guy. A hero.

It's a hard life

The book I am reading currently is called extremely loud and incredibly close, by Jonathan Safron Foer. The book, being about a child with autism who goes on a search for the answer to a clue left by his dad who was trapped in the second tower when the two towers fell on 9/11, is full of hard social issues. Death is a huge issue in the book. Not only does Oskar, the main character, experiance his dad dying on 9/11, but the whole thing for him is that throughout the book, Oskar meets new people who help him momentarily on his quest to solve his dads last puzzle, but then pass away. Jonathan Safron Foer almost says, what is the point of meeting new people, and forming bonds, they al just leave or die eventually. This is true, but some people say you have to remember the good times, and I agree. The point of meeting people is not to feel pain, but to feel glee, but the book really talks strongly on the subject. Another huge issue is trust. Paranoia and rumors plague Oskar throughout the book, steering him away from the truth. You can't just trust everyone, the book says, think about who you believe, and it's true. In society, you can't just believe everything you hear, you have to establish trust in people, and it is hard to trust just the right amount of people, you always trust to much, or to little, and that is why the world is not perfect. Because perfection can only be achieved through perfect ideals, and society will always fall short. But thats what makes it so beautiful. The issues it has. Imperfection is it's own kind of perfect.

Mr. C.S. Lewis, the genius, Christian man.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is without a doubt, one of the best pieces of writing ever written. It is creative, thought provoking, and all around great book. People who have read it once will realize the amazing work they have read, and will stand humble in its greatness. I, now having read it twice, stand humble in even more  greatness, as I have done some research into the life of C.S., and came up with some very interesting things.
             Narnia is this crazy imaginative world, right? And it must have taken ages to create such a well thought out world of wonder. Well, it did, but it's not what you expect. When C.S. was 11, he spent almost the entire year up in his attic, creating a world of boxes called, Boxen. C.S. said himself that this was where most of Narnia came from.
                Have you ever noticed how Narnia has no adults except for a crazy professor? When C.S. was 9, his mother died, leaving him to the care of his careless father. You can see how he might have found it hard to put adults into the book.
                I personally feel that the most interesting thing I learned about C.S., is that he is a devout Christian worshiper. At first, this added nothing to the story for me, but later I did a little more research, and found out that in olde' Christian times, every animal meant something. I carefully examined each animal, and found that Lions were the symbol for royalty and wisdom, so Aslan was a perfect match. Beavers were the symbol for helpfulness and kindness. And woman are a symbol of temptation and lust, and that added a whole new meaning to the turkish delight chapter. Researching the author is a great way to give new meaning to an already great book, and I encourage you to try it out.