The Stupid and Wise

What if I told you that today is your last day, or that tomorrow will be the best day of your life. Would you understand what I mean or just let it go in one ear and out the other. There are many people in this world who act without thinking and then regret it or are really proud of what they did.

If there is a kid who sees a cool looking plant or an interesting bug do you think they will stop and think of what will happen when they touch it, instead like most people they will take their chances with just going for it even if it looks painful or poisonous. It doesn’t matter who you are and if you are smart or dumb, every one makes decisions good and bad. Even the old and wise, like Santiago from the Old Man in the Sea.


One of the choices the old man made was not letting the boy, Manolin, go with him to catch the marlin. Throughout the book he keeps saying “I wish the boy was here,” (50).

He felt lonely on his journey and if he could go back and let the boy come he probably would. Without the boy there he would talk to himself and would say how he seemed crazy. And he knows that it would of helped a lot to have the boy there when he hooked the fish and when he was about to catch it. If the old man was to look back I think he would have liked to change that decision. Just in general what’s the fun of an adventure without a friend.


Another choice he made was not bringing enough food and water. He knew before hand that this could be a special day. Also as a just in case thing you should bring extra food and water so if something was to happen. He was not being very wise with the fact of that he was still holding onto the fish still pulling the boat and having to get ready other fish to eat is much work.

“They were fresh and hard and he laid them side by side and dropped the guts and the gills over the stern.” (78). If something was to happen with the fish he could of lost him. And I believe that he would have regretted losing the fish for the rest of his life.


He also didn’t bring backup weapons. Which he should of thought about when going out on the sea there are many dangers in which weapons may help greatly. Also if some of the things were old there is a change that some could break. And he needed to use them he should of know that he may not get them back. “Now the bad time is coming and I do not even have the harpoon.” (103).

You can see how this is threatening to him and how this will cause him to be tense. And that choice could have also lost him his life as well. Where if he had a little less energy or more sharks had attacked at once there his life would have been done. That was a decision that put his life at risk.


The last choice that basically caused everything else is about catching the fish and not giving it up. In general he feels sad and sympathetic for the fish. “Perhaps it was a sin to kill the fish.” (105) He even said sorry to the fish many times.

The fish is what caused the other problems like the weapons breaking, getting lost and not having enough food. He may be passionate about fishing but in this end he basically went thru all the trouble for nothing. But he made this choice for a reason as for himself. And made himself feel good for doing what he did. So he was probably mentally proud and upset.


Looking back on things you think about the decisions and consequences that had followed. Either good or bad you have to live with the choices you make every day. No matter who you are we all make mistakes. But what makes us different is if you thought about what you were doing before you do it. It could be the difference between you or someone else coming out alive or dying.

Think before you go out to a party and have a beer, think before you say yes to a stranger, or even before you eat that piece of cake. It can make a difference just like if Santiago thought about if he was to catch that fish or if he was to run into trouble. Would you really want to be alone when something was about to go wrong. Think before and give yourself a heads up to what might happen so you have an idea to what you might want to do first.

3rd Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

By: Cindy Belanger

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication, 2005 Genre: Biography

The Glass Castle is an amazing book about a poor family who lives on the edge and with what they got. A mother and a father who has four children one of them being Jeannette. They move a lot and live with what they have. They run from cops and live where they can. The problem is their mother who paints a lot and a father who drinks and smokes. You can see where a lot of money goes. But as they get older thing start to change for the kids.

“Just read the first pages of the Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, and I defy you not to go on. It’s funny and sad and quirky and loving. I was incredibly touched by it.” -Dominick Dunne

The way it’s written is not too different then most books I have read. But there is a lot of feeling and description. And you get Jeannette’s view. You know what’s going on in her head. She thinks a lot and is very smart, in fact all the kids and dad are (not so sure about the mom). I loved the book because it brings you thru what is happening as if you were there too.

I haven’t read any other books by her but this was really great. She also makes it to where you don’t really know what will happen next, but I guess it is because her life is just so unpredictable. She really made me want to go on. And I liked it so much that when it ended it made me sad. And for someone who doesn’t like to read that’s really different.

“She held up her glass. “Life with your father was never boring.” We raised our glasses I could almost hear dad chuckling at mom’s comment in the way he always did when he was truly enjoying something. It had grown dark outside. A wind picked up, rattling the windows, and the candle flames suddenly shifted, dancing along the border between turbulence and order.” (288)



This book really made me think. Think about a lot of stuff like how we take things for granted and how some people have really hard lives but make it thru. I also loved how their family is close even if there are problems with some of them. And how they have so much hope. Mostly the dad has a problem but Jeannette still believes in him and has hope even when she shouldn’t. There was so much to learn from this book.