What I look forward to the most during Spring Break is sleeping. I can't wait to stay in bed all day, maybe even all week! I just want a lot of rest during Spring Break because that's I do best. I could finally relax without worrying about homework or catching up with late assignments in class. Another thing I look forward to is hanging out with my family and my friends. I don't really have anything awesome planned for Spring Break, but I know that my family and friends and I will have something to do. 
           Spring Break should be cool because I'm not going to really do anything, which is perfect for me. I want to just stay home and relax because I really am tired from school! But in a good way! I've been working really hard this quarter so I think I deserve a break. Besides I got straight A's again! Hopefully I can keep it going until 8th grade. Well anyway, I hope you enjoy your break! 

If I were able to meet any of these two amazing artists, I would choose to meet Leonardo da Vinci. In case you don't know who he is, he was claimed as the Genius of the Renaissance. He was an amazing artist, sculptor, inventor, and even a towns planner. He also made maps. He painted the famous drawing of Mona Lisa. He also studied human anatomy, geography, and space. This man was truly fascinated by everything. He was a man of brilliant ideas. 
            It would be awesome to meet Leonardo da Vinci because he has almost every skill nobody has. Who actually can meet someone like that in their lives? It's almost impossible. It would be cool to look at all the stuff that he has thought of. It would also simply just be an honor to have a friend like that. Who wouldn't want to meet the person who basically invented and developed everything in our lives? I also wouldn't mind meeting Michelangelo either. Who ever I would be able to get to meet would be an honor. 

My favorite topic from the Middle Ages was about the Crusades. This topic is my favorite for many reasons. Well, first, when I first learned about it, I had no idea what they were about. I don't think the Crusades would be fun to experience if you were an untrained warrior fighting till death,  but just the thought of traveling to new places and discovering new things sounds adventurous to me. Learning about all the different places the Crusaders went to made me interested in the first place. Another reason why I enjoy this topic is because it had a lot of action. I'm pretty sure there was A LOT of bloody action, but that's pretty interesting to learn about, don't you think?! In case you didn't know, the Crusades was a long series of war between Christians and Muslims. They fought over the control of the Holy Land. I think being able to see a real Crusade in action would be super interesting, but also very dangerous at the same time. I have a lot of topics I enjoyed from the Middle Ages, but learning about the Crusades was my most favorite. 

The Black Death was a deadly plague that was spreading around Europe during the time of the Hundred Years' War. This disease came from central and eastern Asia. It was brought to Europe from ports that the traders were traveling on. In those ports were nasty little rats carrying the disease. They had fleas on them that feasted on infected blood. Because the environment of Europe was dirty, it was a perfect place for the rats to stay. So the disease didn't stop spreading for awhile.
             This disease was so severe and serious that it killed about 25 million people; most people died in Europe because of this, but some people around the world died from this also. The disease wasn't only in Europe, but also in Asia. Because so many people died, there weren't enough workers to stay in the manor system. Those who survived collected enough money, and fled the town. This really changed Europe. 

     As of lately, Christians and Muslims have been fighting over the control of the Holy Land. Each of them has lost and won some battles. But that's not the point. My uncle was invited by the pope to fight against the Muslims in the Holy Land. The problem is, my uncle is too old to fight. My father is already there fighting. I'm the only boy available to join this Crusade. My uncle tells me that if I do decided to fight for the Christians, it would be a very long journey just to get to the Holy Land. There will be risks along the way. Maybe the Muslims will find us traveling and decide to kill us; who knows. If I am fighting in the Crusade, it is a better chance of us winning, and making my family's empire more secure. I wouldn't want my old uncle to die in battle, either. 
     I must decide soon. But it's a really hard decision. Should I really risk my life for God? My whole family have been trying to convince me to go, and I think I am leaning on that choice. This will be such an experience for me. 

      My father and I had dinner together, and he explained to me about the alliance he had made for me. I was feeling shocked and a bit betrayed. He wants me to marry one of his new ally's children. I'm only 13, I still have things to experience, and I don't think it is the right time for that. If I do marry him though, my father's rule would be more secure and our nation is really in need for that. If I don't do it, I feel like I'm letting my father and his empire down, but if I do, would I be able to handle such a lifestyle at a young age? It would also mean that I have to leave my home to somewhere very far, just to marry someone who I don't even know. 
      When my father first told me this, my answer was no. I felt so betrayed, because I felt like he made a deal without my permission, and he did. I was also shocked at this because I know this would really change my life. The only thought that was going through my head was hatred for my father. I absolutely hated this idea. I know I'm not ready for all of this at all. After calming me down, he later explained about the alliance in farther details. It started to make more sense to me, but I was still furious with the idea. He told me that if I do marry this person, he would have a better chance of ruling securely. This made me think about it more because I did want my people safe. I told my father that I should have some time to think about it, and he agreed. 
     

          As I was roaming around the woods, desperately in search of food, I saw something in the shadow reflecting from the sun. As I went to take a closer look, it was dead man hanging on a tree. His clothes were ripped covered with blood, bugs were feasting from his wounds, and crows were nibbling on his feet. His tongue stuck out and it was very pale. There was also a note attached to him, and it had words on it. But I couldn't read them.  This made me realize that it may be a sign from God. He is probably telling me to be aware of my surroundings. Thank God I am still alive. This gave me the motivation to stay alive.
        I entered a random town. It was very deserted. Wagons were crushed, houses were breaking down, a well covered with mold, and there wasn't a single soul living in this town. Then I realize that this town was affected from the Great Plague. I was still in search of  food. When I entered a building that wasn't so crushed, I heard somebody singing. I was very surprised, so I had to find out who was it. When I did, it was a man. A real living man. But this is when I regret going to see who this person was. He first greeted me, asking me who I was and where I came from. I was a bit suspicious at first. When he offered me a piece of bread, I grabbed for it but he grabbed my hand as hard as a rock. He made me promise to him that I will be his slave!! I didn't know how to react to this. I was scared and shocked. How can this man do this to me? I had no choice but to obey him because he was too strong for me.
          So here I am, now a slave to someone I don't even know. I have no idea what this man is going to do to me, and I knew I shouldn't have trusted him. I feel so hopeless and lost. My life is ruined. This man has already given me an impression of a careless person. Imagine what he will do to me! Even if I try to run away, he will probably find me and take me back to Stormford where I will surely be killed from John Aycliffe. This man will probably always have me on check. May God please protect from harm.. 

        It was a clear sunny day, and I was in a good mood. I was ready to end the day, and return back home to my family. As I was walking back to the village from the fields, I began to smell smoke from nearby. "Someone must be cooking something.", I thought. But as I got closer to the village, my smell for the smoke got worse. Curious, I quickly ran to my village. People were screaming, babies were crying.. I couldn't understand what was going on because it was too much. But then I saw ships sailing away from the river. That was when I realized that my village had caught on fire.
        I tried to help everyone I saw. Many homes in the village were burnt down into ashes. I felt so angry, and also devastated. Who would do this to my innocent village? Everyone quickly ran to river with buckets, and scooped up as much water as they could to set out the fires. I'm glad the village is not that far from the river, or else we wouldn't have the chance to save our homes. After everything was cooled down, everybody got together. I still don't know what caused this fire to happen. When everybody came together, they talked about it. It  seems that those ships that I saw sailing away were invaders. They had destroyed most of the city, and when they were on their way out, they also stuck our village. I was angry at this. Hopefully, our village won't be struck again and we continue to make our village stronger and better. 

     Charlemagne was an important figure in the Middle Ages because he accomplished many great things. One of the things he was most known for was rebuilding civilization; he was powerful and smart enough to do that. He expanded his army and empire, which made him well known around the world. Because he was intelligent and respected, he was crowned Emperor of  the Romans. That made a big impact on his life. 
        Being emperor not only meant to make right decisions, but it also meant dealing with big responsibilities. Charlemagne wasn't only known for his intelligence and greatness, but he was also known for his kindness. He cared for all of his people. Charlemagne made life better for all everybody, including poor people by providing them food, protection, and money. He also built schools, monasteries, palaces, churches. He ruled  for 47 years. 

     This year, I don't have that much resolutions because I know I might not accomplish them all. But I do have some important ones! I have about 3 for this year. My first resolution is to start reading more. I've developed a habit of not reading much, and I know that reading is good for you, so I want to increase my knowledge. I know that it will also pay off in the future. For example, if I have to read a 300 page book in college in 2 days, that wouldn't be a problem to me because I'm use to reading. So I want to get into that habit.
      My other resolution is to not stress over little things. Sometimes, I stress over the simplest things, such as passing a test, but I already studied and know everything. I think that if I stop stressing over the little things, I'll be happier and stress free. My last resolution is to stop doubting myself and have faith. Sometimes, I feel like I don't do enough to be good, but then I know that I work hard to be where I am at. Even if there's a chance of something going wrong, I need to be faithful and hope that whatever it is that I want is going to come true.