Nothing Gold Can Stay Interpretation

Taylor Sims Interpretation of Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost is a poem that means as wonderful as any life is, it cannot continue forever. That no matter what is gold in one’s eyes, such as loved ones, young stages, innocence, or one’s treasures, it can only carry on for so long. That perfect cannot remain perfect. No golden times or moments can stay. Once a flower blooms, it must die and that bloom will never be seen by eyes again.The same goes for life, once a person reaches the final stages of living, they will become only a memory. Nature’s first sprout of life is pure as gold. â€Å"Nature’s first green is gold†. Nature may attempt all she may, but it would still be fated to leave. â€Å"Her hardest hue to hold†. A flower then sprouts from the Earth. The fragile and soft petals grow and grow thus completing the blossom. â€Å"Her early leaf’s a flower†. Then, Frost tells us that the beautiful flower is not to last for long. If one had a choice, the flower would last forever.Yet, it would have to go away. â€Å"But only so an hour. † Sadly, as marvelous as the green might seem, it slowly droops and departs its’ life. â€Å"Then leaf subsides to leaf†. Because of this, Eden mourns over the death of the pure. Eden, something that people thought was going to stay perfect and holy still went down. â€Å"So Eden sank to grief†. The day goes on, and with it goes the life and beauty of the flower. â€Å"So dawn goes down to day†. Hopefully one savors the beauty of it because â€Å"nothing gold can stay†.On the whole, something or someone that is great or pure as gold cannot stay for a long time. One must treasure the golden times and moments because of just that. They are moments, and are not meant to last. However, memories can last a lifetime. The golden memories can continue to live in one’s heart. Life is a cycle , and like in any cycle there is a beginning and an end. Nature is ephemeral, and fleetingness enhances human nature. As Frost wrote, nothing gold can stay. Words: 375

Abraham Lincoln Letter to Horace Greeley Analysis Essay

The second Inaugural was writing during the time of the Civil War. The struggle between the north and the south continued. President Lincoln seemed to be mostly supportive of the north, which can be concluded based on being opposed to slavery. Regardless, the president was trying to save the union, even though it would mean not freeing the slaves â€Å"If I could save the union without freeing any slave, I would do so† (Lincoln, p. 1, 1862). Especially in his letter to Horace Greeley, one can see how eager the president was to save the union. With the Quote â€Å"Both read the same Bible, and pray to the same God; and each invokes his aid against the other† Lincoln is emphasizing on the unity that the division actually has, which is being a good Christian and reading the bible. The second half of the quote shows the misuse of the bible. Invoking god to aid against the other is not what prayers are for â€Å"the almighty has his own purposes† and may not even be interested in resolving this issue. Instead, according to Lincoln, it is even possible that god disapproves of slavery and the civil war is part of their punishment. Once again, an attempt is made to let the people realize that slavery is unethical and may even upset god. In conclusion, both sides are Christian, which should be bounding, as religion is supposed to bring people closer together. Secondly, prayers are not used for what it should. America has lost sight of what is important according to god, which is peace (with slaves) and not aiding war. I consider the quote as significant, because of the impact has. The people are again reminded on values of true Christianity, which even in modern America, one can lose sight of.

Adolesent Drug Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Adolesent Drug Abuse - Essay Example This is because the two aspects are majorly social and should be successfully and affordably manageable through social initiatives. Controlling risk factors while promoting counter control measures should have, contrary to the current situation, led to minimal level of adolescent drug abuse cases. However, successful initiatives have not been achieved with respect to these useful tools of preventing and controlling substance abuse among the teens. Risk factors such as environmental change and aggressiveness as well as tools and avenues such as â€Å"family relationships, peer relationships, school environment, and community environment† have been identified for their potential role in controlling teen substance abuse and its eventual adverse effects (Physician, 2002, p. 16). However, persistent trend shows that the structures, family, society and school, have failed to utilize their leadership potential to help the adolescents out of drug abuse (Physician, 2002). The most interesting aspect of adolescent drug abuse is therefore the fact that in spite of its social, readily available, and affordable risk factors and control measures, successful efforts have not been made to identify with social structures’ commitment controlling adolescents’ drug

Developing People and Planning Work Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Developing People and Planning Work - Assignment Example The role of a team player is to contribute and participate whole-heartedly. Understanding the responsibilities and expectations of the team and aligning them to the organizational goals, will enable the player to progress on a personal level as well as a team member. By offering support to the other team members and arriving at a plan and executing the task within timelines will enhance the team performance. A good team manager who in addition to performing the roles of a team player, also tries to bring out the best in his team, by leveraging on the strength of the members and playing down their weaknesses. A team has been defined as "a small number of people with complementary skills who are equally committed to a common purpose, goal, and working approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable."(Katzenbach, Smith, 1993). A group of people does not constitute a team. A team has clearly defined goals and performance objectives for which members are individually and collectively accountable. A team is characterized by being trained and in communication with its other members. Its members support each other, officially and personally and share expertise to achieve project goals. Teams have a set of rules that are enforced and take time to develop and achieve the highest level of performance. The role of performance measures is measurements of performance that serve to inform the organization about the efficiency of achieving predetermined goals. This continuous monitoring serves the purpose of controlling the progress of the work within a specified framework and should corrective action be required, timely intervention is made possible. Motivation Motivation as a business concept Motivation may be defined as the inner force that drives individuals to accomplish personal and organizational goals. Traditionally, employees were just a part of the business entity and were not treated as a valuable asset. However with the Hawthorne Studies began the human relations approach to management, whereby the needs and motivation of employees become the primary focus of managers (Bedeian, 1993). It did not take long for them to realize that motivated employees are more productive and contribute to better overall efficiencies of the organization. Therefore, the onus was on the manager to make sure that the employee was motivated and this was quite a challenge due to the complexity of human nature. Each unique individual had different reasons to be motivated and different methods that were effective and this made it arguably really complex. Source from website http://www.accel-team.com/motivation/index.html Assess motivation of team Teams that are motivated often possess these characteristics Purpose: When teams have a specific purpose, goal or a mission, then the members are united towards a specific path and are motivated to travel along it. Challenge: Motivation is generally high when the task is challenging and has a level of difficulty that excites the team members to perform better. However, if the task is too difficult, members may give up or if it is too easy, members just slack and take it easy. Camaraderie: When team members genuinely like each other, they work harder together and are often

Pursasive essay on buying versus renting Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Pursasive on buying versus renting - Essay Example This is done to take the most appropriate decision according to current financial situation of the world. Economic decisions are extremely important owing to the inflation that has taken place in the world. This results in the want for wise financial choices to prevent the losses that may result. The issue of buying versus renting is an important economic matter. It is a decision that affects the economic condition of an individual for a long time and hence a very careful decision on this subject is required. Renting and buying have their own positive as well as negative points and the final choice needs to be made according to the needs of the individual considering both the present and the future benefits. Buying is basically the purchasing of property where the individual tends to enjoy all rights over his property. The maintenance and every important decision regarding the property are taken by the buyer. The buying may be done by the payment of full amount or it may be done on m ortgage where installments are paid every month. On the other hand, renting is basically a deal with a landlord to use their property on fixed terms and conditions and vital matters lie in the hands of the landlord. A fixed payment is paid every month in the form of rent. According to the analysis performed by the New York Times and which was updated on the eleventh of May 2011, the current global financial situation is better for the option of buying rather than renting. This is particularly true for people who wish to use their property for periods of greater than half a year. The overall financial benefit would be that of $10460 over the six month period (Conner 2010; Quealy et al 2011). Buying makes a person the legal owner of his property. It brings with it a sense of satisfaction that the house that the person is residing in truly belongs to him. He cannot be asked to leave by the landlord as is the case with renting. A person can make any alterations and changes in his proper ty as per his will, without any interference by other people. Buying provides other financial benefits as well. A person receives relaxations in the federal tax payments owing to the reductions of the property taxes as well as the interest of mortgage. With the rising inflation, the cost of living keeps on increasing. The amount of rent also keeps on rising. On the other hand, the installments of mortgage stay fixed and do not increase according to this rule. Therefore, the stability in the cost of living is advantageous for the buyers. During the time period that the person pays the lease, he can also use his property for living and utilize it for any other purpose. This is a benefit as a person basically invests for his own comfort and his monthly payment is not wasted but is rather utilized towards the payment of his property. Furthermore, the property values keep on rising with increasing time. Thus, the lease that the person is paying is basically a form of investment and he wo uld not go in loss. This is because sale of the property after a few years would yield more financial benefit (Conner 2010). According to an economic analyst, Andres Carbacho-Burgos, â€Å"A year ago, it was a better deal to rent. Now you have a significant number of areas, especially those hit the hardest by the correction, where, when you compare prices to rents, you'd be led to believe it's a good time to buy." He provided this analysis in the year 2009 by considering the economic balance between the price of renting and buying in the United States. Renting is an option that may be considered for people who wi

An experiential Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

An experiential - Essay Example tood and in this manner, we build trust as well as compassion with each other and people spontaneously look up to my leadership with gratitude and respect, voluntarily taking part in becoming a developed community that can be well-sustained in different aspects of living. Community, in our common knowledge and as the term implies, makes typical reference to that local spot or group in which find and sense belongingness in a unified body with common goals, interests, or deeds. In it we realize the natural process of a give-and-take mechanism when it comes to allocation of social influences that correspondingly affect an individual’s response and social behavior toward the rest of community members. We may go beyond such usual notion and perceive how else a community may be defined or characterized by the emerging social attitudes which are essentially patterned after a particular origin or structure. Normally, we find ourselves bound to care with one another in a community not only because we readily understand the necessity of survival through interactive relationship but even for the natural truth in historicity where there emerges discernment of historical background that enables one person to gauge the other in terms of a continuing culture they have both lived with though at separate places and time. The mutual respect or concern established toward a cultural or religious tradition, for instance, may hold us within a sensible definition of community in which while we distinguish individual selves with unique identity to develop for personal growth, we know somewhere from the inner core that our mutuality in beliefs and principles sets us apart from certain degree of plural indifference. As a community leader, I personally advocate the aforementioned findings and believe that I can significantly contribute on promoting the essence of communication by allowing more educational and recreational programs to be conducted in order to discover potentials of each

Outline, Introduction, Works Consulted, & Title Page Assignment

Outline, Introduction, Works Consulted, & Title Page - Assignment Example At the end of the paper the hope is that a more nuanced overall perspective of Hoover Dam is achieved, to inform policy and general thinking about the future of the dam and the prospects of the dam in context with the future of the United States (A&E Television Networks; Davis et al; Finn; Hiltzik; Wiltshire), Angelier, Jacques et al. â€Å"Neogene paleostress changes in the Basin and Range: A case study at Hoover Dam, Nevada-Arizona†. The Geological Society of America Bulletin. 2013. Web. 27 October 2013. Davis, Raymond et al. Cement Investigations for the Hoover Dam†. Journal Proceedings of the American Concrete Institute 29. 1 June 1933. Web. 14 October 2013. Finn, Matt. â€Å"See and Learn the History of the Hoover Dam, despite the slimdown. Fox News. 9 October 2013. Web. 14 October 2013. Haven, Janet. â€Å"The Hoover Dam: Lonely Lands Made Beautiful†. The University of Virginia American Studies Program. n.d. Web. 28 October 2013. Koch, Wendy. â€Å"Climate change will disrupt US energy supply, report says†. USA Today. 2013. Web. 28 October 2013. Paulson, Larry et al. â€Å"The Limnological status of Lake Mead and Lake Mohave under present and future powerplant operations of Hoover Dam†. UNLV. 1980. Web. 28 October 2013. Wiltshire, Richard, Gilbert, David and Rogers, Gerry. Hoover Dam 75th Anniversary History Symposium: Proceedings of the Hoover Dam 75th Anniversary History Symposium, October 21-22, 2010, Las Vegas, Nevada. 2011. ASCE

Personal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 7

Personal - Essay Example   While my undergraduate course had been indispensable in carrying out the duties of my current job, I still felt the need to explore more on the studies of public administration to expand my knowledge and skills in public service which explains why I would like to pursue a post graduate degree in Public Administration with the Emphasis in Disaster Preparedness and Executive Fire Leadership as my first choice of academic program and Emphasis in Government and Policy as my secondary program of interest.   Both programs in Master in Public Administration deal with the advance levels of policy formulation, leadership and administrative preparedness in a public service context which explains why it interests me to explore through a formal study. I prefer to pursue post graduate academic training in Master in Public Administration with an Emphasis in Disaster Preparedness and Executive Fire Leadership University in Troy State University not only because of its excellent program and esteemed academic reputation, but also because of its holistic development program and the special emphasis it put on diversity. As a potential student in Master in Public Administration, I believe that I will tremendously benefit with this unique mix of academic training as well as having cultural and professional exposure because it will complement my academic education with cultural education. I believe that exposure to different nationality and profession is equally important especially in government because we are dealing with all kinds of people with different cultural background. I have a high regard of the academic standard of a post graduate study at Troy State University but I believe that my undergraduate study at University of Southern California had prepared me to undertake such academic rigor to be able to one of its exemplary students. I am a quick study albeit I also suffer the weakness of procrastination which is commonly shared by many

Video game industry Essay Example for Free

Video game industry Essay Whenever I look out from my window at home, nothing but memories come back to me. When the time that me and my friends playing together with many kind of Filipino games like â€Å"Patintero†, â€Å"Langit Lupa†, â€Å"Black123† and many more. I was about 7 years old when I was always want to go outside to play with my friends from morning up to afternoon. My only break was when my Mom calling me saying that â€Å"we’re gonna eat our lunch† so I need to come back home as soon as possible. When I’m with my friends, my life has been always happier than when I am inside of our house. I really loved to be outside and play with my friends because it gives me fulfillment of my childhood life. As I become aware that my street has become barren from children playing outside, those memories soon fade away into silence. The truth of the matter is that video games have affected the children who play them. Although video games have been quite influential on our generation, video games have had a lot of negative effects on the children of today. Children have become obsessed with video games. Since 1980’s, the video game industry has expanded so much in the market, it is only getting larger with the growth of technology. And although these games provide much entertainment, it does not come without a cost. Since the rise of video games, more children have become more obese, more violent and less social.

Endangered Species Should Be Prioritized Essay Example for Free

Endangered Species Should Be Prioritized Essay Endangered species are native species that faces a risk of extinction in the future. For example, animals that are already extinct like the dodo birds, platypuses that are going to be extinct and many more. These animals are endangered due to climate changes and habitat destruction. The term endangered species can be used in a legal or general context. In a general context, it means species that are facing extinction but it is not protected by the law. When used in a legal context, it refers to a species that is protected by the law (Klappenbach 2013). According to the World Wildlife Fund, there are 801 animals that are already extinct and 3,789 number of animals that are critically endangered. Although it is believed that we should leave nature to take its own course in determining the fate of these species, we need to start prioritizing these species because if the endangered species go extinct, it will cause the imbalance to the ecosystem, preservation of the endangered animals can bring huge benefits to mankind and wild animals represent the Earth. We should protect these endangered species because if these species go extinct, it can imbalance the ecosystem. Firstly, the ecosystem imbalance can be a threat to the human health. It can prevent diseases and it can also sustain good health for the humans. The ecosystem supplies the humans with shelter, clothing, food and a stable climate. The forests provide the mankind oxygen. If humans keep chopping down all the forests, humans will not have enough oxygen and by the end of the day, humans too will be extinct. Moreover, every single animal is important for the balance of the ecosystem. If one animal has been wiped out, it can ruin the chain life. For example, if algae in the pond is destroyed then the tadpoles that feasts on algae will no longer have food. The tadpoles will die of hunger which will mean, there will be few frogs left. The lizards outside of the pond which rely on the frogs for food will have nothing to eat and the lizards will eventually die. Then the birds that rely on the lizards will die and the food chain goes on and on. As you can see, killing one little life can be abig effect to the food chain. Humans are constantly coming in contact with the endangered species that they have become extinct. Most of the animals and plants are destroyed by illegal logging. According to WWF, 73% of timber production in Indonesia is believed to come from illegal logging, 25% of Russia’s timber exports originate from illegal logging and 70% of the harvested timber in Gabon is considered illegal. Imagine how many species the humans killed from the statistic. It is important to preserve the endangered species for our future children. Endangered species should be our priority because we should also preserve the endangered species in order to cure sickness. Animals and plants can bring us a lot of benefits like medicine benefits. About forty percent of the medicine these days come from the natural compounds of different species. These species can be very helpful and also a life saver (Kurpis 2002). We may never know that in some forests there are plants that can cure AIDS or cancer. If we keep clearing forests, we destroy plants that can save the lives of many people. There are some exotic plants like the Calendula flower. The Calendula flower is use to heal treatments for irritations such as eczema (Hughes 2013). The Ginseng plant can be use internally, it stimulates the immune system, lowers high blood pressure and it has the ability to handle stress. Another reason why we should preserve the endangered species is so that our children in the future can see the animals we have now. Animals like the Orangutans are endangered now. Due to deforestation and hunting, the Orangutans are at risk of being extinct. Our children may see the Orangutans now but if they go extinct, they cannot see the Orangutans anymore. Preserving species can also increase the ecotourism in our country. Tourists from all over the world can visit our country and admire the beautiful nature that we have in our country. It will also increase our economy. Places like Bako National Park attracts foreign tourists to visit and see the unique plants and animals we have. Tourists will be amazed with the beauty of our forests and maybe they will come back again. Protecting these endangered animals is very important for us humans because these animals represent our Earth. Without them, we will not be living on the earth till this day. It is the humans’ fault that the animals are endangered. Humans do illegal logging, poaching and hunting. Many species are destroyed by these human activities. Therefore, it is the most responsible thing to do to protect the endangered species. It is the least we can do to make up what we have done to these poor animals and species. Put yourself in their shoes. What if our home has been blown up and we have nowhere else to go. That is how the animals feel. We should feel some empathy for these animals. This is because, if the animals go extinct, it will disrupt the circle of life and also the food chain. We have more knowledge than the animals. As humans with more education, we know what is best for the animals. We should provide them with good shelter. We also have the money to do so. Animals do not work for a living and get paid. We should use what we have to protect the species. Even though most animal activists believe that we should protect these animals, we can understand that we should let nature takes its own course. Animals die due to environmental change. For example, global warming. Due to global warming, it will cause a draught. The species would not have water to drink and eventually they will die. That is how nature works. We cannot fight the nature. However this argument is weak because we are the one who have caused this change in nature. Humans cause global warming. Humans do activities like open burning, illegal logging, harmful smokes from factories and many more. Due to massive illegal hunting, animals are not reproducing. If humans are always hunting and killing animals, it will be hard for the animals to mate and therefore they cannot reproduce more and the animals are at risk of extinction due to these cruel human activities. It is very important to prioritize the endangered species because if they are not protected, our ecosystem will be imbalance, they provide us with medicinal benefits and they represent our Earth. There are many ways to protect the endangered species. If we cannot donate any money to protect them, we can also protect them by doing little things at home. For example, we can learn about endangered species in our area. We should teach our friends and family about the wildlife that live near us. The first step isto know how important it is to protect the endangered species. The natural world provides us with sources like clean water, food and medicinal sources. We should also use less pesticides on our plants. It is hazardous and it can affect the wildlife at many levels. We should report any shooting of animals to the authorities. Harassing wildlife is illegal. Conserving the habitats is one of the most important ways to protect plants and animals that are at risk of being extinct by protecting their habitats in national parks. However they cannot live with too much interference from humans so we should protect habitats outside reserves such as farms and along the roadsides. We can also plant native plants around our housing area. It will attract birds, butterflies and maybe even some threatened species. This is why we should protect the endangered species and not leave them to die. (1,332 words) References 10 Easy things you can do at home to protect endangered species, viewed 30 June 2013, http://www.stopextinction.org/10athome.html. Endangered Species Statistics, viewed 30 June 2013 http://www.statisticbrain.com/endangered-species-statistics/. Illegal Logging, viewed 30 June 2013 http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/about_forests/deforestation/forest_illegal_logging/. Lauren Kurpis, 2013, Why Save the Endangered Species?, viewed 18 June 2013 http://www.endangeredspecie.com/Why_Save_.htm. Lauren Kurpis 2013, Ways you can help endangered species, viewed 18 June 2013 http://www.endangeredspecie.com/Ways_To_Help.htm. Tim Bowen, Ecosystem is a threat to human health, viewed 18 June 2013, http://www.medicinalnewstoday.com/releases/34791.php. Why Every Animal is so Important for Keeping Earth’s Ecosystem Healthy, viewed 17 June 2013, http://earth.com/why-every-animal-is-so-important-for-keeping-earth%E2%80%99s-ecosystem-healthy-by-admin-on-june-12,2010.

Sainsburys Company Analysis

Sainsburys Company Analysis The food retailing Industry is a huge and fast growing industry in UK .It is a complex and diverse market dominated by various big companies such as Tesco, ASDA, J Sainsburys. Price and quality of goods are the two key elements which the companies keep in mind to increase their sales and defend their position in this competitive market. In the year 2009, food retailing recorded sales figures of GBP 297,478.9 million, along with providing employment to 11.6% of the workforce in UK (Euro monitor). It is forecasted, by the year 2014 the sales would cross GBP 350,000 million. (Euro monitor) This assignment focuses on the third largest food retailer store in UK, i.e. J Sainsbury. Sainsbury is a super market which will operates its business in retail sector from the year 1869. Sainsbury is started by James and Mary Ann Sainsburys. Sainsbury today operates a total of 827 stores comprising 537 supermarkets and 335 convenience stores(J Sainsbury 2010) .With their presence in various other markets such as financial services and Property management, grocery retailing remains their core business. In an industry which employs over 3,335,000 people and with sales figure of GBP 137,590 million (Euro Monitor), Sainsbury enjoys a market share of 16% and serving 19 million customers weekly with a product offering of 30,000. (J Sainsbury 2010) QUESTION-1 Using suitable models identify the customer perceived value for the customers for a product/division/company of your choice. ANSWER- PART 1 Customer value Difference between what a  customers  gets from a  product, and what he or she has to give in  order  to get it. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/customer-value.html#ixzz16OyFiRFr Customer value proposition A  business  or marketing statement that summarizes why a consumer should  buy a product or use a service. This statement should convince a potential consumer that  one particular  product or service will add more  value or better solve a problem than other similar offerings. http://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/valueproposition.asp Types of CVP 1. All Benefits- benefits that an organization brings to its target customers. It tends to suffer from a lack of credibility when the value proposition is not distinguished from competitors or focused precisely on the unique needs of the customer. 2. Favourable Points of Differentiation- it mainly emphasizes the key differences between a firms offerings and those of competitors at the customer interface. It takes into account the notion that the buyer has substitutes. Like the all benefits value proposition it lacks specificity relative to the buyer. 3. Resonating Focus- Resonating focus highlights one or two critical differences between the firms offerings and those of competitors with the forethought that these differences represent those areas that are most vital in the mind of the customer. While most effective, this value proposition takes considerable time to develop as it is strongly rooted in a deep understanding of customer needs. http://www.edbarrows.com/Resources/briefs/valueProposition.pdf IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMER VALUE   A good customer value proposition is a technique why a customer should buy a product and also distinguish your product from competitors. Gaining a customers attention will help in growing sales faster and more profitable, as well as increasing its market share. Understanding customer needs is important because it helps promote the product. A brand is the perception of a product or service that is designed to stay in the minds of targeted consumers. It is desirable to build a strong and positive brand association with your offering. Three key dimensions: Extrinsic vs. intrinsic value Self-orientated vs. other-orientated value Active vs. reactive value PART 2 VALUE PROPOSITION FOR SAINSBURY Sainsbury maintain high quality of its services by keeping up high quality product at a fair price, through well-kept rooms with an attractive appearance to fast service and a friendly staff. Sainsbury ensures that all suppliers have been evaluated by Quality Attribute System (QAS) in order to provide quality product to the customer. It has different prices which are suited to different kinds of customer. Through the execution of high quality product Sainsbury has high price. However to adjust to the needs of less wealthy clients it also offers a wide selection of basic product at a low price. Sainsbury speed is moderately-high. Sainsbury team is trying to reduce queues through recent introduction of basket tills, self-checkouts as well as introduction of newest scan and pack system. Sainsbury also offers home delivery which can be obtained the very next day. Dependability is keeping a word to customers. Sainsbury provides customers quality product at a fair prices, fulfilling custom er expectation for fresh, safe, healthy and tasty food. Sainsbury respects environment by using environmentally friendly packaging. Queuing time is reasonable and deliveries are on time. Online Shopping at Sainsburys is also a great advantage. All the above provide a  high level of dependability  and are the reason why the Sainsburys brand remains on the market for 141 years, and this makes the Sainsbury differs from its competitors. Sainsbury started a new range taste the difference that aims to provide consumers desire to treat themselves at home, rather than spending money in buying expensive takeaways or eating outside. Sainsburys continuously investing in their clothing and home decor items to accelerate the growth in non-food sector so that they can reach to more customers so as to increase its market share and sales. (Euro monitor) Sainsburys continued launching innovate products, 1% fat milk was launched which was consumed by 2.5 million households due to which its sales for basics were up by 60%. (Euro monitor) QUESTION 2 Critically evaluating value proposition of Sainsburys VALUE PROPOSITION Sainsbury supermarkets follow the mission of being the customers first choice by its service and quality. Through the method of working simpler, together and faster it delivers an outstanding good service and quality. Sainsbury accelerating its growth in non-food sector so as to reach more customers. Online facility provides its customers to shop online for non-food items also. The company has a solid brand value although discriminating competitive advantage is clearly missing. It is difficult to slot them in a particular category from a customer point of view. The company is not able to create a good market which will make them distinguish from other supermarkets with concerns to price, quality, customer service and access to variety or inventory. Sainsburys was critised by the city for allowing Tesco in getting ahead in the market in terms of customer service, loyalty and price competitiveness. Sainsburys was also criminated for not promoting itself up to its standards and also running the same type of initiatives which was running by Tesco. So the Sainsbury has failed to promote its products and services. In the process to reconstruct its mission, company has changed its marketing strategy and sold successfully the home based products in the chain of UK market and its business in Egypt. This changes the company to focus on food retailing and related activities. Sainsbury maintains 100% service level as the online business is growing rapidly. Even so, there are some issue that need to be developed for example; delivering orders in full and on time. The online business is developing at a rapid speed gaining growth in overall market. During hectic periods picking large orders from stores could become an issue. (http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/analystreports/corporate/ovum-sainsbury-cs-170835.pdf) MARKETING MIX The marketing mix used by Sainsbury to gain its competitive advantage in its retailing sector -. Product Sainsburys mainly focused in developing new product and its food quality which will be healthier to the customers. It provides more than 350 variety range of foods product which is produced to protect its natural flavour and taste of the product. Currently it has achieved to developed more than 600 organic lines to provide best range of food and major growth in groceries, bakery, and frozen foods. It has also launched a product called Blue carrot Calf known for the clear labelling of kid products which mention clear details of the products. The Sainsburys continuously concentrating on development of its product by launching a new programme every year. Price Price is the important component of the marketing mix for Sainsburys. Now a day Sainsburys is presenting its customers in UK the value for money. A lot of investment is made in improving quality and productivity in order to reduce the overall cost. For the customers in UK Sainsbury is offering, exceptional value for the money and the aim of the company is to lead the quality and become the favoured in term for the customers all through the market. If the price is cut it is not easy to get back again to the previous level without dissatisfying the customer. This is not decent for the business. Hence in short term price gain the store will be less affected where as in long term it would gain less positive. Sainsbury implemented a new strategy value for money after realising its price war in the market. A lot of investment is made in improving quality and productivity what it provides and efficiency of its activity in order to reduce the overall cost. The purpose of implementing a new s trategy is to achieve trust and value from the customer and continue its leadership. Promotion -   Sainsbury gain to build up its solid brand image among the customers through various promotions. It mainly focuses on its own brand rather than the promoting other brands which they sell in the stores to form the greater wealth by its overall retail brand. Sainsbury uses different media for its promotion whereas TV, radio and advertising in cinemas to grow the company image. Sales promotions, merchandising and packing are also the key element for the promotion of the Sainsbury. Sainsbury launched Nectar Card as a main weapon for its promotion. This card is free for customers and gives discount points if customer used it in store at the time of shopping. Many other retailers are also using same type of promotions by issuing the card to customers and giving them free points for their money as these free points can be used automatically for discounts. Sainsbury store staff wears named T-shirt of the supermarket to defer as a worker to serve people. Place As per the Sainsbury it has 872 stores across UK whereas 837 super markets and 335 convenience stores. Various set up of stores are established across the country according to the needs and satisfaction of the customers and area. Sum stores are opened 24 hours a day for the satisfaction of the customers. Sainsbury is making large chain stores in different locations to create a world class distribution of groceries and work more effectively. Sainsburys uses marketing mix to improve and implement its plans by using market mix. It fulfils the needs of customers by improving its strategies which will satisfy customer. Sainsburys study on the market to the customer needs who will buy the products. It continues to implement the market division to progress its business strategies which shows the progress of a business. To increase its overall sales Sainsburys uses the market segmentation to display various varieties of products and sells it to different group of people. It offers a large number of products in a supermarket or convenience store and opens the store for long hours. It also offers easy cash option through debit or credit card and cash back facility to customers on their purchases. http://katamaneni12.blogspot.com/2010/09/macro-environment-and-marketing-mix.html Competitor Analysis TESCO- Competitor Company Profile Tesco is started by Jack Cohen in 1919. Tesco is biggest food retailer in the world, having 2318 stores and giving employment to more than 470000 people who serve millions of customer around the world. Tesco has a largest market in UK, where it operates under signs of Extra, Superstore, Metro and Express. Tesco offers more than 40000 products to customers including clothing and other non-food lines. Tesco vs. Sainsburys TESCO MISSION TESCO is to provide superior technical representation and to add value to a focused group of leading-edge, corporations by offering synergistic, valuable and highly innovate solutions for our customer design, procurement and manufacturing needs with continuous improvement of our quality, service and productivity to a completive advantage. TESCO VISSION What sets TESCO apart from other distributors is our commitment to customers success, by bringing an in-depth knowledge of their technology and the value added services needed to truly support the customer. The result is cost-efficient, rapidly delivered technical superior products that the customers take pride in. (http://www.tescoinc.co.kr/tesco/ecompany1.php) MISSION STATEMENT Sainsburys mission statement Our mission is to be the consumers first choice for food, delivering products of outstanding quality and great service at a competitive cost through working faster, simpler and together. Source: Sainsbury Web site Sainsburys companys vision for growth Sainsbury plcs present focus is to improve the performance of the core UK supermarket chain. Whilst doing so we will continue to explore and develop growth opportunities in other markets. Through implementing Managing for Value we will stretch our ambitions and challenge the conventional wisdom within the Company, thereby unlocking our potential and delivering value. Source: Sainsbury Web site DIFFERENCE STRATEGIES SAINSBURY STRATEGY: Sainsbury aims to provide quality products and good service at a competitive price through working faster, simpler, together and aimed to be the consumer first choice for food. Through a balance in sales growth, reduction cost and on-going margin improvements, Sainsbury look forward to progress growth. The company is dedicated to achieving industry leading margins within a dynamic, competitive market and to delivering strong double digit necessary profit growth in each year of its business programme. TESCO STRATEGY: Tesco has made a good progress with its strategy which consists of five elements reflecting its four established areas of motivation and Tescos long term promises on environment and community. The ideas of the strategy are: To be a successful international retailer To develop the core UK business To be as strong in non-food as in food. To develop retailing services such as Tesco Personal Finance, Telecoms and Tesco.com To put community at the heart of what we do. The market share of Tesco is 31.6% in the retail market and they also capture 50% of the grocery market share while Sainsbury has 16% and 22% of the market share respectively. Tesco sells massive products range and buy in big volume and sell it in cheap while Sainsbury buys product that are popular and their own branded product. 1/3 of the retail market is acquired by Tesco but Sainsbury is enabling to have this power. Tesco achieved its success by selling varieties of products; it is located within UK as well as overseas, they target every people. With this strategy Sainsburys have a difficult to keep up with Tesco. Sainsburys generally attract the middle class people with low class prices whereas Tesco attract all kind of people from all classes. Sainsburys is more concerned about the quality of the food they provide their customers while Tesco is concerned about reducing prices to attract their customers. Tescos main advertising approach is money saving Every little help and Sainsburys Taste the difference however during the crisis time they are one of the same. Sainsburys slip its second position in 2008, losing to Asda. Leader Tesco enlarged its market share in the year, moving ahead of Sainsburys. Sainsburys has less variety of non-food items as compared to Tesco. At the end of the evaluation period, non-food items were the reason for growth for the major supermarkets. ( http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/analystreports/corporate/ovum-sainsbury-cs-170835.pdf) MANAGEMENT Sainsbury CEO Justin king has done a great job in strengthening the brand, improved turnover at a rate of 5.5% a year and profit increases by 6.7%. king main focus was on UK store expansion rather than overseas and total number of store has been increased from 583 in 2004 to 827 today. Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy has different approach as compare to Sainsburys CEO Justin King. In his fourteen year term he has heavily invested in overseas expansion. In 1999, within UK Tesco generated 90% of its turnover and now its less than 70%. GROWTH POTENTIAL Tesco has its setups in 14 countries but that doesnt mean Sainsburys lack growth opportunities. Sainsburys results in past years in the proof of this and continuing achieving high growth rate without international expansions. To exist in this competitive market Sainsburys has done well by opening new stores across UK, adding new non-food products and banking services to existing stores. Tesco on the other hand, have more growth opportunities in Asia and other countries. Tesco is a big player than Sainsburys, for example: if we compare past twelve months results Tesco has  £56.9 billion turnover versus Sainsburys  £19.9 billion. (http://www.fool.co.uk/news/investing/company-comment/2010/07/16/a-foolish-fracas-sainsbury-vs-tesco.aspx) CUSTOMER OUTCOME AND EXPECTATION Brand image and relationship building in a business to company market depends on how well company satisfies its customers. Sainsbury keep high quality of its services by providing high quality products to customers at a fair price. It has different prices which are suited to different kinds of customer. It provide basic product at low price to customer with low income. Sainsbury want to make it easier for customer to shop ethically and sustainably so they making every effort to live up to their expectations. Therefore from the above model, which explains between the company service and quality Sainsbury can be placed into high quality as well as service offered by the company and received by customers. Question 3 http://www.universityessays.com/example-essays/global-markets-sainsburys.php Mission statement serves a dual purpose by helping employees to remain dedicated on jobs as well as boosting them to find innovative ways of achieving company objectives so that productivity can be increased. It is common that large companies spend years and millions of dollars developing and refining their mission statement. NEW MISSION STATEMENT OF SAINSBURYS To become the UK best retailer company and earn customer lifetime reliability. NEW VISSION STATEMENT OF SAINSBURYS NEW VALUE PROPOSITION Source: Barnes, C. et. al., 2009 Creating and Delivering your value proposition p 31 Market: Sainsbury already caters to the middle class customers by providing products at affordable prices, but since Sainsbury maintains high quality amongst its products, the cost somewhat becomes high (in a comparative sense to its competitors). Sainsbury needs to provide these products at a more reasonable price to cater to the working class as well and thereby expand its existing customer base. Value experience: Benefits should include high quality at reasonable price. To reduce the travel costs Sainsbury needs to focus on locations of its stores so that they are effortlessly within the reach of its customers. Online sales should also be made easy. Complaints should be minimised by providing a good after sales service and monitoring customer feedback. Offerings: Place should include a focus on central locations. Product should include highest possible quality at affordable prices, new and innovative products could also be introduced to increase sales. Since the financial downturn of 2008 had drastic effects on the economy, consumers are trying to save as much as possible hence Sainsbury needs to keep the prices of its products as low as possible. Promotion should involve promotion of sales through discount vouchers or limited offers (e.g. buy 2 get 1 free) and continuous advertising through all available media types. Benefits: products need to be provided at the lowest possible price maintaining high quality. Constant customer feedback should be facilitated in order to keep track of its customers satisfaction. Alternatives and differentiation: Since Sainsbury focuses on quality more than the price of its products. The quality of Sainsburys products is higher than most of its competitors, but this phenomenon is not the same when it comes to price. Sainsbury needs to balance between its price and quality since its competitors such as Tesco are providing products at a lower price that is offered by Sainsbury. Proof: IMPLEMENTATION PLAN By using Ansoff Matrix tool for strategic marketing planning help to improve the position of J. Sainsbury. It accelerate to do best strategic direction depending upon the need/desire to penetrate existing or new markets with existing or new products. (http://www.emp.ac.uk/linspdfs/marketi2.pdf) If Sainsbury need to reconstruct their values, strengths and beliefs they need to split up their position in the existing market. They facing extreme competition in the real market they must modernize and create in new markets with their present product offering. Partnership is a necessity in the domestic market since this is the basis of the business and its primary values. It will help the Sainsbury to rebuild its image and the connection with existing customer by confirming them the best quality, best product offers at competitive pricing. Sainsburys need to improve in its Information Technology system so that information can be processed faster and stocks can be reloaded at a faster pace. The shelfs are always stocked well and the customers keep getting informed about the available varieties. All these hard work make the shopping experience enjoyable and satisfying for the customers. As the world faced recession almost globally, Sainsbury should avoid price related conflicts and must follow specific price strategy. Since customer will not be willing to pay high prices even for the best quality products hence low pricing should be planned for the quality product. Identify problems and in time solving them as quickly as possible so that they build strong communication at every step of the channel. To introduce some products this will give a comparative advantage over their rivals. Sainsbury should open local stores in the city rather than on the outskirts of the city. Customer generally chooses to purchase in local shop rather than supermarkets to save time and money. Introduction of pay point or post office to the store would be a good idea to attract customers. The customer immediately after purchase can pay their bills without wasting time to reach these places elsewhere in the city. Sainsburys need to increase its online shopping service in non-food items, so that customer can shop online more comfortably. I would recommend Sainsburys to deliver every little helps to make it a healthier place for shop. Use simple processes so that shopping is better for customers, simpler for staff and cheaper for Sainsburys.

Laidlaw by William McIlvanney :: Laidlaw William McIlvanney

Laidlaw  by William McIlvanney Laidlaw is a novel written by the famous Scottish born author William McIlvanney. His inspirational style of writing has delivered him prestigious awards for all his high quality novels.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Laidlaw is set in the urban city of Glasgow in the 90's and delivers a cutting insight to big industries and crime in society. McIlvanney creates a stunning atmosphere and examines the fascinating issues of why people commit murder and the devastating results of violence. One of the reasons I selected this novel wasn't just because of the quality and origin of the author and the setting , it was because of the infuriating character of Cheif Detective Inspector Jack Laidlaw , he is the main character and the most memorable one.   He is the spearhead of the investigations into the murder of a teenage girl , he has to do this in a city of hard men, villains and fat cat businessmen.   To look more deeper into the mysterious character of Laidlaw and his personality , we need to look at his interests and prejudices , Laidlaw is the main focus , in this novel and he captures everyone’s imagination and thoughts . He is an unorthodox det ective who is always wondering about the nature of society , threading his way through pubs and clubs trying to find the murderer of an apparently innocent girl. Laidlaw is such a memorable character who requires to be looked at and examined closely.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jack Laidlaw is a universe apart from other examples of detectives , he examines the more intriguing issues of how and why people can commit the reprehensible crime of murder and the harrowing aftermath of crime and violence. Jack Laidlaw can deeply understand people more than anyone could ever imagine.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jack Laidlaw is an odd sort detective, and this is an odd sort of novel. He lives and works in the gloomy, cheerless heart of urban Glasgow; and he keeps the works of "Camus"," Unamuno" and "Kierkegaard"in his top desk drawer, "where other detectives would normally rather keep their secret stashes of liquor." Unlike many other detectives with uppity tastes in literature, no one congratulates him for this or encourages him in any way; the whole world tells him that he thinks too much to be a good detective . However, he persists in trying to understand crimes as well as solve them : "You want to live as if the rest of the world was just a necessary evil and that you have to be a monster to be a criminal ,it's fucking not true , it's all in peoples concealed heads.

Japanese Human Resource Manage :: essays research papers

Employee Performance in Japan: Evaluation and Reward Postwar economic development provided quite and immense amount of status and income to the Japanese. Since the 1960s, close to 90% of the Japanese people consider themselves to fall somewhere in the middle-class according to a survey conducted by the Prime Minister’s office. Today, status in society is determined mostly by one’s employment. Out of the labor force that consists of more than 60 million people, 45 million of those are regular employees. And for those who are working in a large firm, they are usually hired at the time of school graduation and retire at the compulsory age of 60. This kind of long-term employment system makes employers feel that labor is more of a fixed cost than a variable cost. Regular employment is not determined by a legal contract, but more in the style of a social relationship, where performance in a by-product of the whole process and not a cause and effect of getting paid. In western societies, industrial identity is more focused on skill, or what one does, but in Japan it is where the employee belongs, or which company he works in is the main concern. Performance is not the purpose or goal of the Japanese firm, instead it is a corporate reality in itself. The Japanese firm also exists in two levels, one which lies in the firm and one that lies outside the firm. Within the firm, the Japanese company tends to be a much more homogeneous group compared to its western counterpart. Large firms hire their workforce, mainly university graduates, from preferred schools to which they subtly assign quotas. These new recruits are hired for their potential. Training and development are essentially an internal affair which the firm is responsible for. This would lead to a system of job rotation and on the job training which is further nurtured by the classic Japanese system between junior and senior (sempai-kohai) found ubiquitously in Japanese society. The firm invests heavily on training generalists, or company specific skills in the sense that any employee should adept all the skills needed for the task assigned to the group, and that the ov erall work organization be as flexible to allow innovation, maintain internal competition and promote participation. Outside of the firm, there is a vast network of banks and other companies that the Japanese firm is vigorously connected to. This is commonly known as ‘Keiretsu’ or a type of inter-personal relationship amongst various levels of the business.

Vampire Academy Chapter 12

TWELVE SLEEP CAME RELUCTANTLY THAT NIGHT and I tossed and turned for a long time before finally going under. An hour or so later, I sat up in bed, trying to relax and sort out the emotions coming to me. Lissa. Scared and upset. Unstable. The night's events suddenly came rushing back to me as I went through what could be bothering her. The queen humiliating her. Mia. Maybe even Christian – he could have found her for all I knew. Yet†¦none of those was the problem right now. Buried within her, there was something else. Something terribly wrong. I climbed out of bed, dressed hastily, and considered my options. I had a third-floor room now – way too high to climb down from, particularly since I had no Ms. Karp to patch me up this time. I would never be able to sneak out of the main hall. That only left going through the â€Å"appropriate† channels. â€Å"Where do you think you're going?† One of the matrons who supervised my hall looked up from her chair. She sat stationed at the end of the hall, near the stairs going down. During the day, that stairwell had loose supervision. At night, we might as well have been in jail. I crossed my arms. â€Å"I need to see Dim – Guardian Belikov.† â€Å"It's late.† â€Å"It's an emergency.† She looked me up and down. â€Å"You seem okay to me.† â€Å"You're going to be in so much trouble tomorrow when everyone finds out you stopped me from reporting what I know.† â€Å"Tell me.† â€Å"It's private guardian stuff.† I gave her as hard a stare as I could manage. It must have worked, because she finally stood up and pulled out a cell phone. She called someone – Dimitri, I hoped – but murmured too low for me to hear. We waited several minutes, and then the door leading to the stairs opened. Dimitri appeared, fully dressed and alert, though I felt pretty sure we'd pulled him out of bed. He took one look at me. â€Å"Lissa.† I nodded. Without another word, he turned around and started back down the stairs. I followed. We walked across the quad in silence, toward the imposing Moroi dorm. It was â€Å"night† for the vampires, which meant it was daytime for the rest of the world. Mid-afternoon sun shone with a cold, golden light on us. The human genes in me welcomed it and always sort of regretted how Moroi light sensitivity forced us to live in darkness most of the time. Lissa's hall matron gaped when we appeared, but Dimitri was too intimidating to oppose. â€Å"She's in the bathroom,† I told them. When the matron started to follow me inside, I wouldn't let her. â€Å"She's too upset. Let me talk to her alone first.† Dimitri considered. â€Å"Yes. Give them a minute.† I pushed the door open. â€Å"Liss?† A soft sound, like a sob, came from within. I walked down five stalls and found the only one closed. I knocked softly. â€Å"Let me in,† I said, hoping I sounded calm and strong. I heard a sniffle, and a few moments later, the door unlatched. I wasn't prepared for what I saw. Lissa stood before me†¦ †¦covered in blood. Horrified, I squelched a scream and almost called for help. Looking more closely, I saw that a lot of the blood wasn't actually coming from her. It was smeared on her, like it had been on her hands and she'd rubbed her face. She sank to the floor, and I followed, kneeling before her. â€Å"Are you okay?† I whispered. â€Å"What happened?† She only shook her head, but I saw her face crumple as more tears spilled from her eyes. I took her hands. â€Å"Come on. Let's get you cleaned – â€Å" I stopped. She was bleeding after all. Perfect lines crossed her wrists, not near any crucial veins, but enough to leave wet, red tracks across her skin. She hadn't hit her veins when she did this; death hadn't been her goal. She met my eyes. â€Å"I'm sorry†¦I didn't mean†¦Please don't let them know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  she sobbed. â€Å"When I saw it, I freaked out.† She nodded toward her wrists. â€Å"This just happened before I could stop. I was upset†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It's okay,† I said automatically, wondering what â€Å"it† was. â€Å"Come on.† I heard a knock on the door. â€Å"Rose?† â€Å"Just a sec,† I called back. I took her to the sink and rinsed the blood off her wrists. Grabbing the first-aid kit, I hastily put some Band-Aids on the cuts. The bleeding had already slowed. â€Å"We're coming in,† the matron called. I jerked off my hoodie sweatshirt and quickly handed it to Lissa. She had just pulled it on when Dimitri and the matron entered. He raced to our sides in an instant, and I realized that in hiding Lissa's wrists, I'd forgotten the blood on her face. â€Å"It's not mine,† she said quickly, seeing his expression. â€Å"It†¦it's the rabbit†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Dimitri assessed her, and I hoped he wouldn't look at her wrists. When he seemed satisfied she had no gaping wounds, he asked, â€Å"What rabbit?† I was wondering the same thing. With shaking hands, she pointed at the trash can. â€Å"I cleaned it up. So Natalie wouldn't see.† Dimitri and I both walked over and peered into the can. I pulled myself away immediately, swallowing back my stomach's need to throw up. I don't know how Lissa knew it was a rabbit. All I could see was blood. Blood and blood-soaked paper towels. Globs of gore I couldn't identify. The smell was horrible. Dimitri shifted closer to Lissa, bending down until they were at eye level. â€Å"Tell me what happened.† He handed her several tissues. â€Å"I came back about an hour ago. And it was there. Right there in the middle of the floor. Torn apart. It was like it had†¦exploded.† She sniffed. â€Å"I didn't want Natalie to find it, didn't want to scare her†¦so I-I cleaned it up. Then I just couldn't†¦I couldn't go back†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She began to cry, and her shoulders shook. I could figure out the rest, the part she didn't tell Dimitri. She'd found the rabbit, cleaned up, and freaked out. Then she'd cut herself, but it was the weird way she coped with things that upset her. â€Å"No one should be able to get into those rooms!† exclaimed the matron. â€Å"How is this happening?† â€Å"Do you know who did it?† Dimitri's voice was gentle. Lissa reached into her pajama pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. It had so much blood soaked into it, I could barely read it as he held it and smoothed it out. I know what you are. You won't survive being here. I'll make sure of it. Leave now. It's the only way you might live through this. The matron's shock transformed into something more determined, and she headed for the door. â€Å"I'm getting Ellen.† It took me a second to remember that was Kirova's first name. â€Å"Tell her we'll be at the clinic,† said Dimitri. When she left, he turned to Lissa. â€Å"You should lie down.† When she didn't move, I linked my arm through hers. â€Å"Come on, Liss. Let's get you out of here.† Slowly, she put one foot in front of the other and let us lead her to the Academy's medical clinic. It was normally staffed by a couple of doctors, but at this time of night, only a nurse stayed on duty. She offered to wake one of the doctors, but Dimitri declined. â€Å"She just needs to rest.† Lissa had no sooner stretched out on a narrow bed than Kirova and a few others showed up and started questioning her. I thrust myself in front of them, blocking her. â€Å"Leave her alone! Can't you see she doesn't want to talk about it? Let her get some sleep first!† â€Å"Miss Hathaway,† declared Kirova, â€Å"you're out of line as usual. I don't even know what you're doing here.† Dimitri asked if he could speak with her privately and led her into the hall. I heard angry whispers from her, calm and firm ones from him. When they returned, she said stiffly, â€Å"You may stay with her for a little while. We'll have janitors do further cleaning and investigation in the bathroom and your room, Miss Dragomir, and then discuss the situation in detail in the morning.† â€Å"Don't wake Natalie,† whispered Lissa. â€Å"I don't want to scare her. I cleaned up everything in the room anyway.† Kirova looked doubtful. The group retreated but not before the nurse asked if Lissa wanted anything to eat or drink. She declined. Once we were alone, I lay down beside her and put my arm around her. â€Å"I won't let them find out,† I told her, sensing her worry about her wrists. â€Å"But I wish you'd told me before I left the reception. You'd said you'd always come to me first.† â€Å"I wasn't going to do it then,† she said, her eyes staring blankly off. â€Å"I swear, I wasn't going to. I mean, I was upset†¦but I thought†¦I thought I could handle it. I was trying so hard†¦really, Rose. I was. But then I got back to my room, and I saw it, and I†¦just lost it. It was like the last straw, you know? And I knew I had to clean it up. Had to clean it up before they saw, before they found out, but there was so much blood†¦and afterward, after it was done, it was too much, and I felt like I was going to†¦I don't know†¦explode, and it was just too much, I had to let it out, you know? I had to – â€Å" I interrupted her hysteria. â€Å"It's okay, I understand.† That was a lie. I didn't get her cutting at all. She'd done it sporadically, ever since the accident, and it scared me each time. She'd try to explain it to me, how she didn't want to die – she just needed to get it out somehow. She felt so much emotionally, she would say that a physical outlet – physical pain – was the only way to make the internal pain go away. It was the only way she could control it. â€Å"Why is this happening?† she cried into her pillow. â€Å"Why am I a freak?† â€Å"You aren't a freak.† â€Å"No one else has this happen to them. No one else does magic like I can.† â€Å"Did you try to do magic?† No answer. â€Å"Liss? Did you try to heal the rabbit?† â€Å"I reached out, just to see if I could maybe fix it, but there was just too much blood†¦I couldn't.† The more she uses it, the worse it'll get. Stop her, Rose. Lissa was right. Moroi magic could conjure fire and water, move rocks and other pieces of earth. But no one could heal or bring animals back from the dead. No one except Ms. Karp. Stop her before they notice, before they notice and take her away too. Get her out of here. I hated carrying this secret, mostly because I didn't know what to do about it. I didn't like feeling powerless. I needed to protect her from this – and from herself. And yet, at the same time, I needed to protect her from them, too. â€Å"We should go,† I said abruptly. â€Å"We're going to leave.† â€Å"Rose – â€Å" â€Å"It's happening again. And it's worse. Worse than last time.† â€Å"You're afraid of the note.† â€Å"I'm not afraid of any note. But this place isn't safe.† I suddenly longed for Portland again. It might be dirtier and more crowded than the rugged Montana landscape, but at least you knew what to expect – not like here. Here at the Academy, past and present warred with each other. It might have its beautiful old walls and gardens, but inside, modern things were creeping in. People didn't know how to handle that. It was just like the Moroi themselves. Their archaic royal families still held the power on the surface, but people were growing discontent. Dhampirs who wanted more to their lives. Moroi like Christian who wanted to fight the Strigoi. The royals still clung to their traditions, still touted their power over everyone else, just as the Academy's elaborate iron gates put on a show of tradition and invincibility. And, oh, the lies and secrets. They ran through the halls and hid in the corners. Someone here hated Lissa, someone who was probably smiling right to her face and pretending to be her friend. I couldn't let them destroy her. â€Å"You need to get some sleep,† I told her. â€Å"I can't sleep.† â€Å"Yes, you can. I'm right here. You won't be alone.† Anxiety and fear and other troubled emotions coursed through her. But in the end, her body's needs won out. After a while, I saw her eyes close. Her breathing became even, and the bond grew quiet. I watched her sleep, too keyed up with adrenaline to allow myself any rest. I think maybe an hour had passed when the nurse returned and told me I had to leave. â€Å"I can't go,† I said. â€Å"I promised her she wouldn't be alone.† The nurse was tall, even for a Moroi, with kind brown eyes. â€Å"She won't be. I'll stay with her.† I regarded her skeptically. â€Å"I promise.† Back in my room, I had my own crash. The fear and excitement had worn me out too, and for an instant, I wished I could have a normal life and a normal best friend. Immediately, I cast that thought out. No one was normal, not really. And I'd never have a better friend than Lissa†¦but man, it was so hard sometimes. I slept heavily until morning. I went to my first class tentatively, nervous that word about last night had gotten around. As it turned out, people were talking about last night, but their attention was still focused on the queen and the reception. They knew nothing about the rabbit. As hard as it was to believe, I'd nearly forgotten about that other stuff. Still, it suddenly seemed like a small thing compared to someone causing a bloody explosion in Lissa's room. Yet, as the day went on, I noticed something weird. People stopped looking at Lissa so much. The started looking at me. Whatever. Ignoring them, I hunted around and found Lissa finishing up with a feeder. That funny feeling I always got came over me as I watched her mouth work against the feeder's neck, drinking his blood. A trickle of it ran down his throat, standing out against his pale skin. Feeders, though human, were nearly as pale as Moroi from all the blood loss. He didn't seem to notice; he was long gone on the high of the bite. Drowning in jealousy, I decided I needed therapy. â€Å"You okay?† I asked her later, on our way to class. She wore long sleeves, purposefully obscuring her wrists. â€Å"Yeah†¦I still can't stop thinking about that rabbit†¦It was so horrible. I keep seeing it in my head. And then what I did.† She squeezed her eyes shut, just for a moment, and then opened them again. â€Å"People are talking about us.† â€Å"I know. Ignore them.† â€Å"I hate it,† she said angrily. A surge of darkness shot up into her and through the bond. It made me cringe. My best friend was lighthearted and kind. She didn't have feelings like that. â€Å"I hate all the gossip. It's so stupid. How can they all be so shallow?† â€Å"Ignore them,† I repeated soothingly. â€Å"You were smart not to hang out with them anymore.† Ignoring them grew harder and harder, though. The whispers and looks increased. In animal behavior, it became so bad, I couldn't even concentrate on my now-favorite subject. Ms. Meissner had started talking about evolution and survival of the fittest and how animals sought mates with good genes. It fascinated me, but even she had a hard time staying on task, since she had to keep yelling at people to quiet down and pay attention. â€Å"Something's going on,† I told Lissa between classes. â€Å"I don't know what, but they're all over something new.† â€Å"Something else? Other than the queen hating me? What more could there be?† â€Å"Wish I knew.† Things finally came to a head in our last class of the day, Slavic art. It started when a guy I barely knew made a very explicit and nearly obscene suggestion to me while we all worked on individual projects. I replied in kind, letting him know exactly what he could do with his request. He only laughed. â€Å"Come on, Rose. I bleed for you.† Loud giggles ensued, and Mia cut us a taunting look. â€Å"Wait, it's Rose who does the bleeding, right?† More laughter. Understanding slapped me in the face. I jerked Lissa away. â€Å"They know.† â€Å"Know what?† â€Å"About us. About how you†¦you know, how I fed you while we were gone.† She gaped. â€Å"How?† â€Å"How do you think? Your ? ®friend' Christian.† â€Å"No,† she said adamantly. â€Å"He wouldn't have.† â€Å"Who else knew?† Faith in Christian flashed in her eyes and in our bond. But she didn't know what I knew. She didn't know how I'd bitched him out last night, how I'd made him think she hated him. The guy was unstable. Spreading our biggest secret – well, one of them – would be an adequate revenge. Maybe he'd killed the rabbit, too. After all, it had died only a couple hours after I'd told him off. Not waiting around to hear her protests, I stalked off to the other side of the room where Christian was working by himself, as usual. Lissa followed in my wake. Not caring if people saw us, I leaned across the table toward him, putting my face inches from his. â€Å"I'm going to kill you.† His eyes darted to Lissa, the faintest glimmer of longing in them, and then a scowl spread over his face. â€Å"Why? Is it like guardian extra credit?† â€Å"Stop with the attitude,† I warned, pitching my voice low. â€Å"You told. You told how Lissa had to feed off me.† â€Å"Tell her,† said Lissa desperately. â€Å"Tell her she's wrong.† Christian dragged his eyes from me to her, and as they regarded each other, I felt such a powerful wave of attraction, it was a wonder it didn't knock me over. Her heart was in her eyes. It was obvious to me he felt the same way about her, but she couldn't see it, particularly since he was still glaring at her. â€Å"You can stop it, you know,† he said. â€Å"You don't have to pretend anymore.† Lissa's giddy attraction vanished, replaced by hurt and shock over his tone. â€Å"I†¦what? Pretend what?†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You know what. Just stop. Stop with the act.† Lissa stared at him, her eyes wide and wounded. She had no clue I'd gone off on him last night. She had no clue that he believed she hated him. â€Å"Get over feeling sorry for yourself, and tell us what's going on,† I snapped at him. â€Å"Did you or didn't you tell them?† He fixed me with a defiant look. â€Å"No. I didn't.† â€Å"I don't believe you.† â€Å"I do,† said Lissa. â€Å"I know it's impossible to believe a freak like me could keep his mouth shut – especially since neither of you can – but I have better things to do than spread stupid rumors. You want someone to blame? Blame your golden boy over there.† I followed his gaze to where Jesse was laughing about something with that idiot Ralf. â€Å"Jesse doesn't know,† said Lissa defiantly. Christian's eyes were glued to me. â€Å"He does, though. Doesn't he, Rose? He knows.† My stomach sank out of me. Yes. Jesse did know. He'd figured it out that night in the lounge. â€Å"I didn't think†¦I didn't think he'd tell. He was too afraid of Dimitri.† â€Å"You told him?† exclaimed Lissa. â€Å"No, he guessed.† I was starting to feel sick. â€Å"He apparently did more than guess,† muttered Christian. I turned on him. â€Å"What's that supposed to mean?† â€Å"Oh. You don't know.† â€Å"I swear to God, Christian, I'm going to break your neck after class.† â€Å"Man, you really are unstable.† He said it almost happily, but his next words were more serious. He still wore that sneer, still glowed with anger, but when he spoke, I could hear the faintest uneasiness in his voice. â€Å"He sort of elaborated on what was in your note. Got into a little more detail.† â€Å"Oh, I get it. He said we had sex.† I didn't need to mince words. Christian nodded. So. Jesse was trying to boost his own reputation. Okay. That I could deal with. Not like my reputation was that stellar to begin with. Everyone already believed I had sex all the time. â€Å"And uh, Ralf too. That you and he – â€Å" Ralf? No amount of alcohol or any illegal substance would make me touch him. â€Å"I – what? That I had sex with Ralf too?† Christian nodded. â€Å"That asshole! I'm going to – â€Å" â€Å"There's more.† â€Å"How? Did I sleep with the basketball team?† â€Å"He said – they both said – you let them†¦well, you let them drink your blood.† That stopped even me. Drinking blood during sex. The dirtiest of the dirty. Sleazy. Beyond being easy or a slut. A gazillion times worse than Lissa drinking from me for survival. Blood-whore territory. â€Å"That's crazy!† Lissa cried. â€Å"Rose would never – Rose?† But I wasn't listening anymore. I was in my own world, a world that took me across the classroom to where Jesse and Ralf sat. They both looked up, faces half smug and half†¦nervous, if I had to guess. Not unexpected, since they were both lying through their teeth. The entire class came to a standstill. Apparently they'd been expecting some type of showdown. My unstable reputation in action. â€Å"What the hell do you think you're doing?† I asked in a low, dangerous voice. Jesse's nervous look turned to one of terror. He might have been taller than me, but we both knew who would win if I turned violent. Ralf, however, gave me a cocky smile. â€Å"We didn't do anything you didn't want us to do.† His smiled turned cruel. â€Å"And don't even think about laying a hand on us. You start a fight, and Kirova'll kick you out to go live with the other blood whores.† The rest of the students were holding their breaths, waiting to see what we'd do. I don't know how Mr. Nagy could have been oblivious to the drama occurring in his class. I wanted to punch both of them, hit them so hard that it'd make Dimitri's brawl with Jesse look like a pat on the back. I wanted to wipe that smirk off Ralf's face. But asshole or not, he was right. If I touched them, Kirova would expel me in the blink of an eye. And if I got kicked out, Lissa would be alone. Taking a deep breath, I made one of the hardest decisions of my life. I walked away. The rest of the day was miserable. In backing down from the fight, I opened myself up to mockery from everyone else. The rumors and whispers grew louder. People stared at me openly. People laughed. Lissa kept trying to talk to me, to console me, but I ignored even her. I went through the rest of my classes like a zombie, and then I headed off to practice with Dimitri as fast I could. He gave me a puzzled look but didn't ask any questions. Alone in my room later on, I cried for the first time in years. Once I got that out of my system, I was about to put on my pajamas when I heard a knock at my door. Dimitri. He studied my face and then glanced away, obviously aware I'd been crying. I could tell, too, that the rumors had finally reached him. He knew. â€Å"Are you okay?† â€Å"It doesn't matter if I am, remember?† I looked up at him. â€Å"Is Lissa okay? This'll be hard on her.† A funny look crossed his face. I think it astonished him that I'd still be worried about her at a time like this. He beckoned me to follow and led me out to a back stairwell, one that usually stayed locked to students. But it was open tonight, and he gestured me outside. â€Å"Five minutes,† he warned. More curious than ever, I stepped outside. Lissa stood there. I should have sensed she was close, but my own out-of-control feelings had obscured hers. Without a word, she put her arms around me and held me for several moments. I had to hold back more tears. When we broke apart, she looked at me with calm, level eyes. â€Å"I'm sorry,† she said. â€Å"Not your fault. It'll pass.† She clearly doubted that. So did I. â€Å"It is my fault,† she said. â€Å"She did it to get back at me.† â€Å"She?† â€Å"Mia. Jesse and Ralf aren't smart enough to think of something like that on their own. You said it yourself: Jesse was too scared of Dimitri to talk much about what happened. And why wait until now? It happened a while ago. If he'd wanted to spread stuff around, he would have done it back then. Mia's doing this as retaliation for you talking about her parents. I don't know how she managed it, but she's the one who got them to say those things.† In my gut, I realized Lissa was right. Jesse and Ralf were the tools; Mia had been the mastermind. â€Å"Nothing to be done now,† I sighed. â€Å"Rose – â€Å" â€Å"Forget it, Liss. It's done, okay?† She studied me quietly for a few seconds. â€Å"I haven't seen you cry in a long time.† â€Å"I wasn't crying.† A feeling of heartache and sympathy beat through to me from the bond. â€Å"She can't do this to you,† she argued. I laughed bitterly, half surprised at my own hopelessness. â€Å"She already did. She said she'd get back at me, that I wouldn't be able to protect you. She did it. When I go back to classes†¦Ã¢â‚¬  A sickening feeling settled in my stomach. I thought about the friends and respect I'd managed to eke out, despite our low profile. That would be gone. You couldn't come back from something like this. Not among the Moroi. Once a blood whore, always a blood whore. What made it worse was that some dark, secret part of me did like being bitten. â€Å"You shouldn't have to keep protecting me,† she said. I laughed. â€Å"That's my job. I'm going to be your guardian.† â€Å"I know, but I meant like this. You shouldn't suffer because of me. You shouldn't always have to look after me. And yet you always do. You got me out of here. You took care of everything when we were on our own. Even since coming back†¦you've always been the one who does all the work. Every time I break down – like last night – you're always there. Me, I'm weak. I'm not like you.† I shook my head. â€Å"That doesn't matter. It's what I do. I don't mind.† â€Å"Yeah, but look what happened. I'm the one she really has a grudge against – even though I still don't know why. Whatever. It's going to stop. I'm going to protect you from now on.† There was a determination in her expression, a wonderful confidence radiating off of her that reminded me of the Lissa I'd known before the accident. At the same time, I could feel something else in her – something darker, a sense of deeply buried anger. I'd seen this side of her before too, and I didn't like it. I didn't want her tapping into it. I just wanted her to be safe. â€Å"Lissa, you can't protect me.† â€Å"I can,† she said fiercely. â€Å"There's one thing Mia wants more than to destroy you and me. She wants to be accepted. She wants to hang out with the royals and feel like she's one of them. I can take that away from her.† She smiled. â€Å"I can turn them against her.† â€Å"How?† â€Å"By telling them.† Her eyes flashed. My mind was moving too slowly tonight. It took me a while to catch on. â€Å"Liss – no. You can't use compulsion. Not around here.† â€Å"I might as well get some use out of these stupid powers.† The more she uses it, the worse it'll get. Stop her, Rose. Stop her before they notice, before they notice and take her away too. Get her out of here. â€Å"Liss, if you get caught – â€Å" Dimitri stuck his head out. â€Å"You've got to get back inside, Rose, before someone finds you.† I shot a panicked look at Lissa, but she was already retreating. â€Å"I'll take care of everything this time, Rose. Everything.†

Concept of childhood Essay

Break their will betimes: begin this great work before they can run alone, before they can speak plain, or perhaps speak at all †¦ make him do as he is bid, if you whip him ten times running to effect it †¦ Break his will now and his soul will live, and he will probably bless you to all eternity. (Wesley, quoted in Reader,Foley p. 28) It was not until the 18th century Western culture began to see a new view of childhood. Philosopher Rousseau in his largely influential book Emile published in 1972 wanted to protect the innocence of the child, believing it was the child’s right to be a child. His writings seemed to suggest the first realization of the concept of childhood being a special time of life. Rousseau was a large influence of literature of this time as children begun to dominate art and literature, and ceased to become souls in need of salvation but childhood became synonymous with innocence. This idea existed in opposition to the older belief that children were instinctively sinful because of the Judeo – Christian belief of original sin and continues to be seen in both literature of 19th and 20th century. In more recent times social construction has been defined by another theory; postmodernism. An important part of the postmodernism theory is the idea of ‘discourse’. Within postmodernism ‘discourse’ is taken to mean a whole set of interconnected ideas that work together in a self contained way, ideas that are held together by a particular ideology or view of the world†¦ The term ‘discourse’ is also used to specify a particular ‘take’ on some phenomenon. The two images†¦ the image of the ‘innocent and wholesome child’ and the image of the ‘wicked and sinful child’ can be seen as being based upon two different ‘discourses of childhood’. (Children in society p29) Although the two discourses within the postmodernism have two very different views on children and how they should be treated, they both share a common concept of ‘concern’ about children. This is a shared belief that adults do in fact have a responsibility towards children. However, they do not agree on what the actions of the adults are but do agree on action. Theses two different discourses are defined as the discourse of welfare and the discourse of control. The discourse of welfare being based on the romantisization of childhood and the assumptions that children are entitled to a good child hood and are innocent and need protection from the adult world. The discourse of control is based on the theory of original sin and children should be controlled and disciplined. The two discourses in turn have influenced policy and practice towards children. The discourse of welfare informs the Children’s Act 1989, which allows intervention where a child is seen to be at the risk of harm and the discourse of control informs education policy imposing compulsory education and strict regulation of the material being taught. Although the majority of time the two discourses can co exist well alongside each other conflicts can arise. Even though each discourse has its own set of professional bodies they can sometimes find the two competing discourses confusing and stressful and can leave employees sometimes failing. This in turn is highlighted by the media and leaves the Government under immense pressure to tighten their policy and procedures leaving it even harder for workers within health and social care Even today childhood is not seen as a universal stage of human life. Variations over time and culture are dramatic. Historians such as Aries and Rousseau had a profound impact on Western society and their beliefs on childhood and how children should be perceived and treated. This in turn has shaped the policies and practices for those working with children and their families.

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 36

Elena had been waiting in her tree. It wasn't, as a matter of fact, all that different from her six months in the spirit world, where she had spent most of her time watching other people, and waiting, and watching them some more. Those months had taught her a patient alertness that would have astounded anyone who knew the old, wildfire Elena. Of course, the old, wildfire Elena was still inside her, too, and occasionally it rebelled. As far as she could see, nothing was happening in the dark boardinghouse. Only the moon seemed to move, creeping slowly higher into the sky. Damon said this Shinichi had a thing about 4:44 in the morning or evening, she thought. Maybe this Black Magic was working to a different schedule than any she'd heard of. In any case, it was for Stefan. And as soon as she thought that she knew that she would wait here for days, if that's what it took. She could certainly wait until daybreak, when no self-respecting Black Magic-worker would ever thing of beginning a ceremony. And, in the end, what she was waiting for came to rest right below her feet. First came the figures, walking sedately out of the Old Wood and toward the gravel pathways of the boardinghouse. They weren't hard to identify, even at long range. One was Damon, who had aje ne sais quois about him that Elena couldn't miss at a quarter of a mile – and then again there was his aura, which was a very good facsimile of his old aura: that unreadable, un-breachable ball of black stone. Avery good imitation, in fact. Actually, it was almost exactly like the one†¦ It was then, Elena later realized, that she felt her very first qualm. But right now she was so caught up in the moment that she brushed the uneasy thought away. The one with the deep gray aura with crimson flashes would be Shinichi, she guessed. And the one with the same aura as the possessed girls: a sort of muddy color slashed with orange must be the twin sister Misao. Only those two, Shinichi and Misao, were holding hands, even occasionally nuzzling each other – as Elena could see as they came up close to the boardinghouse. They certainly weren't acting like any brother and sister that Elena had seen. Moreover, Damon was carrying a mostly-naked girl over his shoulder, and Elena couldn't imagine who that might be. Patience,she thought to herself.Patience. The major players are here at last, just as Damon promised they would be. And the minor players†¦ Well, first, following Damon and his group were three little girls. She recognized Tami Bryce instantly from her aura, but the other two were strangers. They hopped, skipped, andfrisked out of the Wood and to the boardinghouse, where Damon said something to them and they came around to sit in Mrs. Flowers' kitchen garden, almost directly below Elena. One look at the auras of the strange girls was enough to identify them as more of Misao's pets. Then, up the driveway came a very familiar car – it belonged to Caroline's mother. Caroline stepped out of it and was helped into the boardinghouse by Damon, who had done something – Elena had missed what – with his burden. Elena rejoiced as she saw lights coming on as Damon and his three guests traveled up the boardinghouse, lighting their way as they went. They came out on the very top, standing in a row on the widow's walk, looking down. Damon snapped his fingers, and the backyard lights went on as if it were a cue for a show. But Elena didn't see the actors – the victims of the ceremony that was about to begin, until just then. They were being herded around the far corner of the boardinghouse. She could see them all: Matt and Meredith and Bonnie, and Mrs. Flowers and, strangely, old Dr. Alpert. What Elena didn't understand was why they weren't fighting harder – Bonnie was certainly making enough noise for all of them, but they acted as if they were being pushed forward against their will. That was when she saw the looming darkness behind them. Huge dark shadows, with no features that she could identify. It was at that point that Elena realized, even over Bonnie's yelling, if she held herself still inside and focused hard enough, she could hear what everyone on the widow's walk was saying. And Misao's shrill voice cut through the rest. â€Å"Oh lucky! We got all of them back,† she squealed, and kissed her brother's cheek, despite his brief look of annoyance. â€Å"Of course we did. I said so,† he was beginning, when Misao squealed once more. â€Å"But which of them do we start with?† She kissed her brother and he stroked her hair, relenting. â€Å"You pick the first one,† he said. â€Å"You darling,† Misao cooed shamelessly. These two, Elena thought, are real charmers. Twins, huh? â€Å"The little noisy one,† Shinichi said firmly, pointing to Bonnie. â€Å"Urusei, brat! Shut up!† he added as Bonnie was pushed or carried forward by the shadows. Now Elena could see her more clearly. And she could hear Bonnie's heartrending pleas to Damon not to do this to†¦the others. â€Å"I'm not begging for myself,† she cried, as she was dragged into the light. â€Å"But Dr. Alpert is a good woman; she has nothing to do with this. Neither does Mrs. Flowers. And Meredith and Matt have already suffered enough.Please! â€Å" There was a ragged chorus of sound as the others apparently tried to fight and were subdued. But Matt's voice rose above it all. â€Å"You touch her, Salvatore, and you'd better make damn sure you kill me, too!† Elena's heart jerked as she heard Matt's voice sounding so strong and well. She'd found him at last, but she couldn't think of a way to save him. â€Å"And then we have to decide what to do with them to start with,† Misao said, clapping like a happy child at her birthday party. â€Å"Take your pick.† Shinichi caressed his sister's hair and whispered into her ear. She turned and kissed him on the mouth. Not hastily, either. â€Å"What the – what's going on?† Caroline said. She had never been shy, that one, Elena thought. Now she had moved forward to cling to Shinichi's unoccupied hand. For just an instant, Elena thought he would throw her off the widow's walk and watch her plunge to the ground. Then he turned, and he and Misao stared at each other. Then he laughed. â€Å"Sorry, sorry, it's so hard when you're the life of the party,† he said. â€Å"Well, what do you think, Carolyn – Caroline?† Caroline was staring at him. â€Å"Why's she holding you that way?† â€Å"In theShi no Shi , sisters are precious,† Shinichi said. â€Å"And†¦well, I haven't seen her in a long time. We're getting reacquainted.† But the kiss he planted on Misao's palm was hardly brotherly. â€Å"Go on,† he added quickly, to Caroline. â€Å"You choose the first act in the Moonspire Festival! What shall we do with her?† Caroline began to imitate Misao, kissing Shinichi's cheek and ear. â€Å"I'm new here,† she said flirtatiously. â€Å"I don't really know what you want me to pick.† â€Å"Silly Caroline. Naturally, how she di – † Shinichi was suddenly smothered by a great hug and kiss from his sister. Caroline, who had obviously wanted the attention of choice put to her, even if she didn't understand the subject, said huffily, â€Å"Well, if you don't tell me, I can't choose. And anyway, where's Elena? I don't see her anywhere!† She seemed about to say more when Damon glided over and whispered in her ear. Then she smiled again, and they both looked at the pine trees surrounding the boardinghouse. That was when Elena had her second qualm. But Misao was already speaking and that required Elena's full attention. â€Å"Lucky! Then I'll pick.† Misao leaned forward, peeking over the edge of the roof at the humans below, her dark eyes wide, summing up the possibilities in what looked like a barren clearing. She was so delicate, so graceful as she got up to pace and think; her skin was so fair, and her hair so glossy and dark that even Elena couldn't take her eyes off her. Then Misao's face lit up and she spoke. â€Å"Spread her on the altar. You brought some of your half-breeds?† The last was not so much a question as an excited exclamation. â€Å"My experiments? Of course, darling. I told you so,† Shinichi replied and added, staring into the forest, â€Å"Two of you – er, men – and Old Faithful!† And he snapped his fingers. There were several minutes of confusion during which the humans around Bonnie were struck, kicked, thrown to the ground, trampled on, and crushed as they fought with the shadows. And then the things that had shambled forward before, shambled farther forward with Bonnie held in between them, dangling limply from each by a slim arm. The half-breeds were something like men and something like trees with all the leaves stripped off them. If they had beenmade , it looked as if they had been made specifically to be grotesque and asymmetrical. One had a crooked, knobby left arm that reached almost to its feet, and a right arm that was thick, lumpy, and only waist-high. They were hideous. Their skin was similar to the chitin-like skin of the insects, but much bumpier, with knotholes and burls and all the outward aspects of bark on their branches. They had a shaggy, unfinished look in places. They were terrifying. The way their limbs were twisted; the way they walked, shambling forward like apes, the way their bodies ended on top with treelike caricatures of human faces, surmounted by a tangle of thinner branches sticking out at odd angles – they were calculated to look like creatures of nightmare. And they were naked. They had nothing in place of clothes to disguise the ghastly deformities of their bodies. And then Elena really knew what terror meant, as the two shambling malach carried the limp Bonnie to a sort of roughly hewn stump of tree like an altar, laid her on it and began to pluck at the many layers of her clothing, clumsily, pulling at them with sticklike fingers that broke off with little crackling sounds even as cloth tore. They didn't seem to care that they broke their fingers off – as long as they accomplished their task. And then they were using bits of torn cloth, even more clumsily, to tie Bonnie, spread-eagled, to four knobby posts snapped off their own bodies and hammered into the ground around the trunk with four powerful blows by the thick-armed one. Meanwhile, from somewhere even farther away in the shadows, a third man-tree shuffled forward. And Elena saw that this one was, undeniably, unmistakably male. For a moment Elena worried that Damon might lose it, go mad, turn around and attack both the were-foxes, revealing his true allegiance now. But his feelings about Bonnie had obviously changed since he had saved her at Caroline's. He appeared perfectly relaxed beside Shinichi and Misao, sitting back and smiling, even saying something that made them laugh. Suddenly something inside Elena seemed to plummet. This wasn't a qualm. It was full-blown terror. Damon had never looked so natural, so in tune, sohappy with anyone as he did here with Shinichi and Misao. They couldn't possibly have changed him, she tried to convince herself. Theycouldn't have possessed him again so quickly, not without her, Elena, knowing it†¦. But when you showed him the truth, he was miserable, her heart whispered. Desperately miserable – miserably desperate. He might have reached for possession as a defiant alcoholic reaches for a bottle, wanting only forgetfulness. If she knew Damon, he had willingly invited the darkness back in. He couldn't stand to stand in the light, she thought. And so now, he's able to laugh even at Bonnie's suffering. And where did that leave her? With Damon defected to the other side, no longer ally, but enemy? Elena began to tremble with anger and hatred – yes, and fear, too, as she contemplated her position. All alone to struggle against three of the strongest enemies she could imagine, and their army of deformed, conscienceless killers? Not to mention Caroline, the cheerleader of spite? As if to corroborate her fears, as if to show her how slim her chances really were, the tree she was clinging to seemed suddenly to let go of her, and for a moment Elena thought she would fall, spinning and screaming, all the way to the ground. Her handholds and footholds seemed to disappear all at once, and she only saved herself by a frantic – and painful – scrambling through serrated pine needles up to the grooved, dark bark. You are a human girl now, my dear,the strong, resinous smell seemed to be telling her.And you are up to your neck in the Powers of the undead and of sorcery. Why fight it? You've lost before you've begun. Give in now and it won't hurt so much. If aperson had been telling her this, trying to hammer it in, the words might have sparked some kind of defiance from the flint of Elena's character. But instead this was just a feeling that came over her, an aura of doom, a knowledge of the hopelessness of her cause, and the inadequacy of her weapons, that seemed to settle over her as gently and as inescapably as a fog. She leaned her throbbing head against the trunk of the tree. She had never felt so weak, so helpless – or so alone, not since she had been a newly wakened vampire. She wanted Stefan. But Stefan hadn't been able to beat these three, and because of that she might never see him again. Something new was happening on the roof, she realized wearily. Damon was looking down at Bonnie on the altar, and his expression was petulant. Bonnie's white face was staring up at the evening sky in determination, as if refusing any longer to weep or beg again. â€Å"But†¦are all thehors d'oeuvres so predictable?† Damon asked, seeming genuinely bored. You bastard, you'd turn on your best friend for amusement, Elena thought. Well, just you wait. But she knew the truth was that without him, she couldn't even put together Plan A, much less fight against these kitsune, these were-foxes. â€Å"You told me that in theShi no Shi , I would see acts of genuine originality,† Damon was going on. â€Å"Maidens hypnotized to cut themselves†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Elena ignored his words. She concentrated all her energy on the thudding pain in the center of her chest. She felt as if she were drawing blood from her tiniest capillaries, from the far reaches of her body, and collecting it here at her center. The human mind is infinite, she thought. It is as strange and as infinite as the universe. And the human soul†¦ The three youngest of the possessed began dancing around the spread-eagled Bonnie, singing in falsely sweet little-girl voices: â€Å"You are going todie in here, When you die inhere , outthere They throwdirt right on your face!† How delightful, Elena thought. Then she tuned back in to the drama unfolding on the roof. What she saw startled her. Meredith was now up on the widow's walk, moving as if she were underwater – entranced. Elena had missed how she'd gotten there – was it by some sort of magic? Misao was facing Meredith, giggling. Damon was laughing, too, but in mocking disbelief. â€Å"And you expect me to believe that if I givethis girl a pair of scissors†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he said, â€Å"she would actually cut her own – â€Å" â€Å"Try and see for yourself,† Shinichi interrupted, with one of his languid gestures. He was leaning against the cupola in the middle of the widow's walk, still trying to out-lounge Damon. â€Å"Didn't you see our prizewinner, Isobel?You carried her all the way here – didn't she ever try to speak?† Damon held out a hand. â€Å"Scissors,† he said, and a dainty pair of nail scissors rested in his palm. It seemed that, as long as Damon had Shinichi's magic key, the magic field around them would continue to obey him even in the real world. He laughed. â€Å"No, adult-size scissors, for gardening. The tongue's made of strong muscles, not paper.† What he held in his hand then were large pruning shears – definitely not toys for children. He hefted them, feeling their weight. And then, to Elena's utter shock, he looked straight up at her in her treetop refuge, not needing to search for her there at all – and winked. Elena could only stare back in horror. He knew, she thought. He knew where I was all the time. That was what he had been whispering to Caroline about. It hadn't worked – theWings of Redemption hadn't worked, Elena thought, and it felt as if she were falling and would fall forever. I should have realized it would be no good. No matter what's done to him, Damon will always be Damon. And now he's offering me a choice: see my two best friends tortured and killed, or step forward and stop this horror by agreeing to his terms. What could she do? He had arranged the chess pieces brilliantly, she thought. The pawns on two different levels, so that even if Elena could somehow climb down to try to save Bonnie, Meredith would be lost. Bonnie was tied to four strong posts and guarded by Tree-Men. Meredith was closer, up on the roof, but to get her off Elena would have toget to her and then through Misao, Shinichi, Caroline, and Damon himself. And Elena had to choose. Whether to step forward now, or be pushed forward by the anguish of one of the two who were almost a part of her. She seemed to catch a faint strain of telepathy as Damon stood beaming there, and it said,This is the best night of my life. You could always just jump,came the fog-like hypnotic whisper of annihilation once again.End the dead-end road you're on. End your suffering. End all the pain†¦just like that. â€Å"Now it's my turn,† Caroline was saying, brushing past the twins to face Meredith herself. â€Å"It was supposed to be my choice in the first place. So it's my turn now.† Misao was laughing hysterically, but Meredith was already stepping forward, still in a trance. â€Å"Oh, have it your own way,† Damon said. But he didn't move, still staring curiously, as Caroline said to Meredith, â€Å"You've always had a tongue like an adder's. Why don't you make it forked for us – right here, right now? Before you cut it into pieces.† Meredith held out her hand without a word, like an automaton. Still with her eyes on Damon, Elena breathed in slowly. Her chest seemed to be going into spasms as it had when the sucker plants had wound their way around her and cut off her breath. But not even sensations in her own body could stop her. How could I choose? she thought. Bonnie and Meredith – I love both of them. And there's nothing else to do, she realized numbly, the feeling draining from her hands and her lips. I'm not even sure if Damon can save both of them, even if I agree to†¦submit to him. These others – Shinichi, Misao, even Caroline – they want to see blood. And Shinichi not only controls trees, but just about everything in the Old Wood, including those monstrous Tree-Men. Maybe this time Damon has over-reached himself, taken on more than he could handle. He wanted me – but he went too far to get me. I can't see any way out. And then she did see. Suddenly everything fell into place and was brilliantly clear. Sheknew . Elena stared down at Bonnie, almost in a state of shock. Bonnie was looking at her, too. But there was no expectation of rescue in that small, triangular face. Bonnie had already accepted her fate: agony and death. No,Elena thought, not knowing whether Bonnie could hear her. Believe,she thought to Bonnie. Not blindly, never blindly. But believe in what your mind tells you is the truth, and what your heart tells you is the right path. I would never let you go – or Meredith either. I believe,Elena thought, and her soul was rocked by the force of it. She felt a sudden surge within herself, and she knew that it was time to go. One word was ringing in her mind as she stood and let go of her handholds on the tree trunk. And that one word echoed in her mind as she dove headfirst from her sixty-foot perch in the tree. Believe.