Fall and Rise

Author's Note:  I haven't written a poem in awhile, so I wanted to write one today, using a different technique.  When I was looking on other blogs, I saw this form of poetry a lot and I wanted to try it out.  I don't know if it makes sense to anyone else, but decided to experiment.  I focused on the format for this piece.  My inspiration was this song that I heard the other day about how life has ups and downs, but you have to pick yourself up and keep going.

Dead or ALIVE

We f

a

l

l

And

e

s

i

r

o        r and o

v        e        v

e        v        e

r and o        r again

NeVeR sEeMiNg To STOP.

And finally I have reached the

                                i

                o                             n

p                                                             t

where I can go no f         a              r              t              h             e             r

                                               

o

I have reached the t               p.

                                   up

Whatever goes                    must come

                                   down.

A delicate feather I f

                                         a

                                                       l

                                                                      l

upon this poor town.

Until the wind picks me UP         

the Angel lays in DiSgUiSe.

                                                       e             g

Ready or NOT our lives will c                                      n                                                       e.

                                                       h             a                                                        s

s                                              n                                                                  i

                o             o                             I will c o  m    e    to            r

Without a Textbook

Author's Note: This piece is about the experience I had with using a textbook instead of doing projects for Academy.  Mckena, Riah, Sydney K, and I tried using textbooks, but it didn't turn out to be successful.  This piece is about how the experiment went.  In this piece I will do my best to describe the experience with emotion and voice.

The possibilities of learning are endless.  The ways you learn doesn't necessarily matter, but the efficiency is what counts.  Textbooks are great resources, but they bore your mind when you sit there reading them as if they are assigned reading novels.  In our school, textbooks are rarely used due to that reason.  Academy 21 makes you go beyond textbooks, learning about everything the normal classes are doing gets annoying so we go above and beyond trying different ways to learn, share, and experiment.  Being in Academy makes you wonder why anyone would ever want to learn in a textbook again.

We sat in the front of the classroom discussing how we were getting work done, if we were getting to learn what we needed, and how we were getting it done.  Academy 21 is challenging compared to the usual classes, in this case the class is social studies.  Coming from the elementary school, we are used to being spoon fed random fact about states, ancient civilizations, culture, and everything in between.  Now, in Academy 21 we have to decide what we are learning about, how we are learning it, and how to share our information.  The first time doing this by yourself is challenging.  That's why we were sitting there; we all wished to go back into a normal class where we sat in front of a giant book filled with facts while a teacher gave us a study guide and told us when our test would be.

A light bulb turned on in our brains and gave us the idea.  Let's try to use textbooks and make a mini social studies class in Academy.  All of us wanted to start right away; we pulled out the books and began to read.  Before we knew it, a schedule of meeting times and homework had overwhelmed us.  I never thought learning from a textbook would be so challenging.  In a result, our way of learning from a textbook failed.

Textbooks are designed for teachers to tell the student to flip to a page and learn a specific part of history.  They aren't meant for students to read through chapters on their own, and try to answer the questions.  All the vocabulary and quiz questions are meant to be discussed as a class.  Regular classes test you knowledge by tests.  In Academy 21 we share our knowledge through writing and projects.  We put what we know to use and share it with others.  When we share our knowledge with each other, we learn more in the same amount of time.

I will never go back to learning from a textbook, because now I know what it's like to learn on your own -- without the step by step guidance.  Textbooks just give you random information about our history.  Academy pushes us to go above and beyond our usual; we strive for advanced.  We don't just learn, we achieve. 

Photograph

Author's Note:  I wanted to write a piece about something very close to my heart.  In this piece I created a poem along with my usual essay.  In the poem I had a pattern with rhymes and the number of syllables, and I tried to use different types of semantic devices such as hyperboles, similes, and metaphors.  I also tried to use syntactic devices like repetitive initial and ending patterns.

It makes you laugh and makes your cry,

A memory you can't deny,

Reminding you of times back then,

Living it all over again,

Marking hearts that tragically tore,

Or beginning love forever more,

Times where everything was perfect,

Washed out by the great clock's effect,

Nothing left except our old talks,

The pictures still lay in a box,

Pull off the lid it makes me laugh,

To see this dear old photograph.

Photograph: a picture or photo created by photography.  My definition: a moment in time frozen on film for you to go back and remember the moment you were there.   Say cheese!  Your dorky smile remembered forever in a book that is too big for your wooden shelf in the closet.  A photograph will take any moment in time and turn it into a flashback, taking you back in time every time you look at it.  Capturing the moment is everything to some people.  Some say it's all they have, because it may just be the only thing that is left of someone special in their hearts. 

When ever an event of any kind is occurring everyone always brings cameras to catch the memory.  Love can be captured, life can be captured, and happiness can be captured with a click of a button.  Through the blurry film and blinding flashes you can get something that will stay with you forever.  Everything that is memorable will find a way to stay with you.  Cameras will bring billions of people together just to take one photo.  Even if everyone in that picture is complete strangers, the picture will still have effect on their lives.  Photographs are all about sharing the love, making great memories, and discovering new things.  Taking a snapshot of your life is meant to treasure forever.

The lenses of a camera are special; you can see everything differently through them.  Every single time you click the button, another memory is created.  The first picture you took might have been at a princess tea party when you were six, and the last one might be at an anniversary dinner.  You can see the change in the people you are with, place that you are at, and the things that you have.  Life changes all the time; you will never know what happens next. 

A timeline of ink and film will show you something that you can't see everyday just looking into a mirror.  When you look at a photo, it's the real you -- showing who you are and who you were.  Remembering the friend you had before now, remembering the bad hair days, remembering everything is what photos are all about.  It's a good feeling to have when you know your past is still inside you.  Through all the changes in your life, you will know something will never change, you memories.

A world where you couldn't remember anything.  Nothing to hold onto after everything is gone.  Life would be nothing: a frame without a picture or a canvas without a painting.  Never anything to look back on.  A camera is how we remember everything.  Photographs are snapshots of your life meant to look back on and say, I remember this.

Five Themes of Geography with Cultural Norms of Vietnam

Author's Note: I created a website to share my knowledge on the five themes of geography and cultural norms of Vietnam.  The reason I created a website is, because I have never tried that type of media before and I thought it would be a fun and unique way to share what I have learned.  Please enjoy my website!

The Link to Five Themes of Geography and Cultural Norms of Vietnam:
http://5themesandculturalnormsofvietnam.weebly.com/

Journey of Friendship

Author's Note:  I wrote this piece, because I realized one day how lucky I was to have friends who liked me for who I was.  This piece is about friends and how you may not see it at the moment, but they are always there for you.

Laughter fills the air as a group of little girls head my way.  All of them giggle about the same joke.  Friends are what they are, always sticking together and being there for each other.  There smiles make me remember how my friends and I used to be.  No one who you were or what you did none of that mattered.  You were just friends, because they were always there.

            When you were little you just met someone and they became your best friend.  You didn’t care if they weren’t playing the sports you like or if they were pretty or not.  They were always there for you and nothing else mattered.  It was easy then and sometimes you wish it would always stay that way.  Being the little kid you were before, you would have never thought that your friendship would ever end.  The friends you had were the ones you would keep forever.

            Now, a few years had passed and you realize you don’t see the friends you had too often.  Gradually, the best of friends you once were fades away.  Not that you would notice, because you’re always making new friend along the way.  In every class a new friend is made, maybe even the one you lost.  You may lose one or two but not completely.  The friends that stay are the right ones for you.  Friends come and go, but the best ones stay.

            As you move forward, you realize something.  The one friend you kept through all the years is the best one of them all.  Trustworthy, caring, and helpful are how you describe this friend.  They were the ones that never left you even when you weren’t making the best choices; they stayed at your side and helped you through it.  Through all the times of struggle and despair, they showed you the light that guided you through the path.   This friend showed you the meaning of friendship.

            True friends are the most important people in life.  They are the ones you can count on and tell anything to.  Friends help you realize how brilliant the world can be if you surround yourself with the right people.  Without friendships the world would be a massive war, no love and no peace. 

            The groups of girls, still giggling, skip past me as the happiest smile of joy spreads across their faces.  All of them seem as they went off to the same happy place without a care in the world.  They all have the same hysterical thoughts.  I can tell by the bond they have that this is a friendship that lasts. 

Music is My Life

Author's Note: For Tri-M, a club that revolves around music, I had to write and essay about music and how it impacts people's lives.  I wrote this piece to express my thoughts about music and how music is my life.

This morning I woke up to the radio, as usual, my favorite song was on.  Cheering up that lousy morning mood I heard the radio once again blasting through the bus’s speakers.  Everything I hear is music.  The rhythmic tapping of people’s feet, the applause after someone shares their report…it’s all music to me.   Music is an essential part of our society.  Life is emotionless and boring without the powerful sound of music.  Every type of music is what makes us unique.  Music is a way of saying, this is who we are.

            Your mood can be created by the music you listen to.  Upbeat rhythms and loud sounds give you a more energetic feeling.  Slow, flowing music makes you calm and relaxed.  People have music in the background of movies and shows for a reason.  In those creepy movies where the girl goes into the closet to find out what’s making that horrible noise, they put low string instruments to create the mysterious aura.  The staccatos, change in dynamics, and dramatic pauses created that spooky feeling inside.  Another example is in those romantic movies where they have the moment where the spotlights is on them, the flutes, violins, and other high instruments help create that one shining moment.  Without music, those dramatic moments would be boring people screaming or standing there staring at each other.

            Our society depends on music in various ways.  Music is how conductors and directors of bands and orchestras, people on the radio, musicians, song writers, music store owners, and all the many other people whose jobs tie to those have a job.  Their jobs all include music in the most important way.  There would be many more jobless people in the world without music.

Music is a big part of culture.  Some people visit places just for their music.  African, Indian, jazz, and rhythm and blues were created somewhere in the world.  Various locations around the world are known for their music.  Their music assists in bringing out their culture. 

            Self expression can be done in many ways.  Music is an incredible way to get everything out; all that stress, happiness, anger, and joy can be let out through a song.  How else do musicians get their inspiration? Musicians write about things that happen through their life that need to be let out, even if it’s just something that has been on their mind.  Deaths, weddings, creations, and many more happenings are subjects of some very well known songs.  Songs are stories of your life that show rhythm, intensity, and emotion through notes.

            Life without music is like a world without color.  Our lives revolve around music in ways that are big and small.  Without music there is no joy in the world.  Music is a way for us to share our feelings, a main source of various jobs, and a way to express ourselves.  Music brings people together from all around the world.  Music is our lives.

A Christmas Story by Kiley and Tien

Author's Note:  This piece was written near Christmas time; Kiley and I thought it would be fun to make a little story to go with the wonderful holiday.  Enjoy our Christmas story!

“Jingle Bells, Jingle bells! Jingle all the way!” go the carolers walking from house to house.It was Christmas Eve and all of the little boys and girls were yelling rambunctiously, throwing glitter and streamers toward the tree. They were practically creating their own winter wonderland. Outside kids were sledding, skiing, and of course playing in the snow.

One house down Santa Street lived a boy, Frederick, and a little girl, Fran. Their parents didn’t approve of Christmas. They weren’t as joyful as their neighbors on Santa St.  In their tiny gray house, no joy was spread. There were no stocking above the fireplace, no glittering crystal balls on their evergreen trees, and of course no presents. Man, this family is boring.

The kids were nothing like their parents. They deserved happiness, not boredom.  They sat outside on their front porch, watching the little kids get ready for Santa to arrive. They wanted the twinkling Christmas lights and the glittering Christmas tree. They savored every waking minute of that, except for the couple kissing under the mistletoe.

Well, maybe the kids were a little bit like their parents. An idea sparked into both of their tiny little heads.“Hey, if we can’t celebrate Christmas, then nobody can!” Frederick said with a cackling evil laugh.  At that moment an evil grin spread across Fran’s face.

At night, they both sat in their living room thinking of ways to stop Christmas. But there was no need for plotting. At that moment, a puff of smoke came out of the fireplace. They thought it was Santa, but no, it was an evil, anti-Christmas witch named Zoe.

“I know what you can do.” Said Zoe with an evil grin on her face.

“Wait, who are you?” said Fran with fright.

“I am what you’ve been waiting for. I will help you stop Christmas. It’s my least favorite holiday.”

But then, another puff of smoke came out of the fireplace. It was a tiny, purple fairy named Callie.

“Wait, stop! Don’t listen to her. She just wants to ruin the holiday for everyone on Santa Street,” said Callie.

“And, how do you know that?” Frederick questioned.

“Because, she is my evil step-sister.”

“Seriously, we aren’t to a Cinderella story, are we?” the kids asked.

“What’s Cinderella? Callie questioned in a serious tone. “Don’t tell me that’s another witch. Now come on and we will ask the Prince for help. Now get into my used to be pumpkin carriage.”

“Oh brother, really?” the kids said in unison.

As they rode away in Callie’s used to be pumpkin carriage pulled by four snow white horses, Zoe, the evil witch, followed behind on her broomstick. When they got to the castle, nobody was there. Not even the servants, it was a vacant area. So, they went next door to his brother’s castle, and still no one was to be seen. So they took the horse drawn carriage to the third castle. The castle that was the biggest and best of them all. And of course, everyone was there.  The prince was throwing a huge Christmas Eve party to spread joy throughout the kingdom.  When the prince spotted us, he danced across the room to where we were standing.  
    “Hello Callie,”greeted the prince, “How may I help you?”
    “It’s Zoe, she is trying to stop Christmas and plans to destroy this holiday forever!” Callie said this in a rushed and frightened voice.
    The prince and everyone else in the room stopped and looked at the four of them. “I, Prince Harold, will not stand for this destruction of Christmas.  Come my people and we will stop Zoe!”
    Everyone cheered and hollered in approval of the plan.
    “Now, wait a second,” Callie commanded, “If we all go Zoe will hear us coming and she will destroy everyone in her path.  We only need daring, brave, and worthy people.  If you want to come, you need to be prepare for the most frightening and wicked plans that Zoe has in store.”
    At that moment, a majority of the people stepped back.  The ones who didn’t move didn’t say anything either.  When they thought they lost everyone, a little girl with her younger brother stepped in front of the crowd.
    “My brother and I will join you.  We want her to feel the pain she gave us when she took our parents.”
    “Your name?” asked Callie in a sweet, gentle voice.
    “Winter and this is my brother, Hunt,” she replied in a proud and strong voice.
    “Thank you for volunteering; any others willing to help us?”
    Winter and Hunt got more volunteers than they could imagine.  Although, they had to remember to keep a small army.  They decided to take the first five that raised their hand.  Now, all they had to do was pack for their journey; they would leave at the crack of dawn.  
    That night Fran and Frederick lay in bed thinking.  Of course, they had the same thoughts too.  What dangerous things does Zoe have planned? Will they be able to stop her?  After all those thoughts running through their heads, they fell asleep.  
    Mean while, Zoe was in her fortress stirring up an idea, literally.  Her cauldron changed colors and flashed lights which signaled another idea.  
    “Ooh, maybe I can send my dragons to destroy everyone on Santa Street,” Zoe thought.  “No, not evil enough.  Maybe I can follow Santa on his flight to America.  When he gets to the border, I can hijack his sleigh when he goes to get hot chocolate.  He won’t make it to anybody’s house, well at least with presents he won’t. No matter what I do, I have to hurry, because Santa Claus is coming to town.”  Zoe marched out of her lair and disappeared into the mysterious sky.

As Zoe took flight in the back of the castle, Callie, Prince Harold, and the rest of the army arrived on a small carriage pulled by 4 chestnut horses.  “Here’s the plan,” Callie started as she pulled out a map with lines and arrows in every direction, “We’ll split into groups of three.  Fran, Winter, Lia, go through the back door and find the lair. Hunt, Frederick, John, go through the side entrance to find Zoe.  Prince Harold, George and I will stop any trouble along the way.  What ever you do, don’t get caught.”  

Fran, Winter, and Lia made their way to the back as Hunt, Frederick, and John went through the side.  Callie and her team waited to make sure nothing went wrong.  Please don’t take them, Callie whispered.  As soon as everyone was safe in the fortress, well as safe as a witches home could be, Prince Harold and his team headed inside.  

The door clicked behind Lia.  “Now where are we going to find a liar in this place?” asked Fran.  Their whispers bounced off the walls.  Pitter patters of little feet and the rustle of wings was heard from every corner.

“Let’s think,” decided Winter, “if Zoe doesn’t want us to find it she’ll put it far off and hidden behind something...terrible.”

Zoe obviously knew they were coming, because as they made their first step in Fran slipped through a trap door and ways holding on for dear life with her left hand.

    “Ah!” screamed Fran,”Don’t just stand there, help me!”
    “Shh!” exclaimed Winter and Lia in unison.  They grabbed on to each of Fran’s arms and pulled her out of the hole.
    Right as she got out, Winter felt somebody’s breath at the back of her neck.  She spun around and saw a boy with caramel colored hair, but it was hard to see because he was wearing a helmet.

“You aren’t supposed to be here. This is Zoe’s castle, and you are definitely not Zoe,” the guy said as he stared at them in disgust.

“Wait a second,” said Fran. “Where is Zoe, and who are you? You look really familiar.”

“It’s none of your business where Zoe went,” the boy commanded in a voice that showed in his lack of confidence. “Why would I tell you my name?  You haven’t told me yours.”

“Fran, Winter, Lia.  Now will you tell us?”

“Fine, I’m Trek.”

“Of course,” exclaimed Winter. “That’s how I remember you.  Your parents were good friends with mine.  We used to go to each other’s houses for Christmas.  Your real name is Kert; it’s Trek backwards.”

“What are you talking about?  I don’t have parents.”

“Everyone has parents.”

“Not me, I’m a part of Zoe’s plan so I can’t trust you, but if you show me my parents I might consider believing you.”
    “I can’t do that, because they were destroyed by Zoe along with my parents.  Zoe must have taken you after your mom and dad died.  If you help us find Zoe, we can stop all this nonsense that she has cause for us; we can stop her once and for all.”

There was a long pause, then Kert nodded.  “Only for my parents.”  They all smiled in triumph.  Then, Kert started to tell them her plan.  “She is going to the border of the united states and is wait for Santa to arrive at the beach of the Pacific Ocean.  Most times, he will take a hot cocoa break once he arrives in a different country.  That is when Zoe will hop on his sleigh and take it, along with the reindeer and the presents, back here, which will stop Santa from going back to his workshop, delivering any more Christmas presents, and spreading joy throughout the world.  Her plan is fool proof.  She can’t be stopped.” He pointed as a map that she gave him.

“Well, if we can’t stop her, then maybe we can help Santa.” Fran suggested.  They all stared at each other and nodded with the same thought.  They dashed off to find the others and share their logical plan.  

    When they shared it with the others, they all thought it was a great idea.  
    “How are we going to get to California on time?” Callie worried.  “It’s on the other side of the country.  Unless we had some magical material we won’t make it.”
    “I know!” Kert piped in. “You can use Zoe’s extra broomsticks in the broom closet. She has at least fifty.”  So they all went and grabbed a broomstick,  and were off into the pitch black sky.  
    They were only a few states away from what it looked like in the sky.  Although, not every plan was perfect.  

“Oh no! We ran out  of candy canes! Does anyone happen to have a hundred with them?” Kert said eagerness.

“Why would we need candy canes?” asked Prince Harold in a confused tone as his broom jerked downward.

“You know how most vehicles run on gasoline, well these brooms run on candy canes, peppermint for the best speed.”

“Sorry, none of us have candy canes with them at the moment.” said Frederick.

“Wait a second, I’m so stupid. Zoe keeps a stash a candy canes and a sleigh in each state. I bet if looked for them, we could fly the sleigh to California.” said Kert with excitement.     

“Well can you hurry my broom is empty,” George stated.

“Mine too,” shouted  John through the wind.  Both of their brooms stopped and fell towards the ground.  “Don’t wait for us, we will go home from here.”  They plunged towards Colorado

The rest of them started circling over the top of Colorado, looking for the candy canes and sleigh.

    “Hey, look!” yelled Winter. “I see a sleigh!”
    They all cheered and rode their broomsticks down to the ground.
    “Oh no, I just realized that the sleigh only fits three people.  Zoe doesn’t normally have guests, and Santa and his gifts will take up some space.” Kert was disappointed.
    “Kert, Winter, Lia, and Hunt, you have helped us greatly,” Callie announced.  “Prince Harold do you mind taking them home?”
    “Certainly not, I would be honor to escort you four to your homes.  Kert, you can stay in my guest suite,” Prince Harold chimed.
    “Thank you, you all have been great additions to our team.”  They five of them hopped onto their brooms, freshly loaded with candy canes, and soared into the night.  Callie, Fran, and Frederick took off in the sleigh gliding in the opposite direction.  They had a Christmas miracle worker to save.
    As they landed on the shore of Huntington Beach, they spotted Zoe on the other side searching for Santa.  Santa shot out of the sky on his big red sleigh.  Zoe didn’t see Santa from the opposite side.  Frederick quickly explained the plan to Santa, “Put everything in your sleigh in this sleigh and attach the reindeer to this one, too.  Zoe was planning to stop the Christmas spirit from spreading, so we are trying to help you.”  
    “Thank you for your help, but I just came from Hawaii, so I need to go and get some hot chocolate,”  decided Santa.
    “No worries we have some right here,” Fran said pulling out a mug full of hot cocoa topped with whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and mini marshmallows.  “You can drink it on the way.”
    “Well then what are you waiting for?”  They left Santa’s sleigh with a decoy gift sack and fake plastic reindeer.  Once they were in the sky Zoe spotted the sleigh.  
    “Yes, finally, my plans never fail, except for when I tried to destroy the Easter Bunny and stop the ball from dropping on New Years in Time Square.” Zoe thought.  She got in the sleigh and rode off towards the east.  “Empty?! No, it can’t be!” Zoe gasped. “No!” She screeched as she dove into the Grand Canyon.
    “It’s a good thing you guys picked me up; my sleigh was running low on fuel.” Santa added through is sips of hot chocolate.
    “Let me guess, your sleigh runs on candy canes.” Callie responded.
    “No that’s silly,” Santa chuckled, “Mine runs on pixie dust."

    “Yeah, that’s not silly.” Fran said sarcastically.

The Life and Formation of Stars

The Life and Formation of Stars

            Stars are a very essential part of the galaxy.  The age, distribution, and creation of the star can show you its galaxy’s movement, history, and evolution.  These building blocks of the galaxy create and distribute heavy elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen.  Without stars, the life of our galaxy would be lost.

            The formation of stars has very few steps, but it takes a few million years to form.  Stars can be formed by the collision of molecular clouds or the collision of galaxies.  Some basic facts about stars are that they form inside molecular clouds called nebulae. Nebulae are cool clouds with molecular gas.  Parts of these dense clouds will break off and collapse.  Then, angular momentum (force or speed of movement) will force the clumps to transform into a rotating disk.  As the cloud collapses, the hot and dense core will collect dust and gas.  Not all the materials will become part of the star; remaining dust will become asteroids, comets, planets, or just stay as dust. Now, the process of creating a newborn star is complete.

Then, the core will become a newborn star, called protostars.  If the protostar has enough matter, it can be roughly 25 million degrees Fahrenheit.  At that that temperature, nuclear reactions will begin.  Then, it will release energy and become a main sequence star which lasts around 10 billion years; it will then become hot enough for the helium to create carbon.  The outer layer will expand, cool, and shine less vibrantly.  In this stage, they convert hydrogen into helium while releasing great amounts of energy.  Afterwards, the core will start to tighten and reactions will occur around the core.  Next, the core becomes a red giant.  Red giants are the ending product of the star formation.

In addition, stars are not all the same size.  Stars can be bigger or smaller than the sun; the bigger the star is, the shorter its life will be.  The smallest stars are called red dwarfs; red dwarfs are common throughout the universe.  They have usually less than half the mass of the sun, generate 1/10,000th of the sun’s energy, and are 10% the brightness of the sun.  Do not judge red dwarfs by their size; even though they are smaller than the sun, they are said to last about 10 trillion years whereas the sun is supposed to last only 12 billion years.  When stars are the size of the sun, it will take approximately five million years to mature.  If the star is too small they cannot become a real star.  Instead, they will become brown dwarfs.  Brown dwarfs are cold, dark stars that are not large enough to produce nuclear effects that create heat and light. 

Even the life of a star doesn’t last forever.  Once the helium runs out and the outer layer drifts away from the core, the core will become a white dwarf.  White dwarfs have come towards the end of the process of its life.  The only reason white dwarfs shine is because they have heat.  The dead star is called a black dwarf.  Black dwarfs are invisible white dwarfs that have cooled down.

Stars are basically the most important part of the galaxy.  Stars are not just beautifully brilliant dots that illuminate our universe.  They keep track of its galaxy’s history.  To add to that, they create light, heat, and distribute heavy elements.  The life and formation of stars helps our galaxy in many ways.  Where would we be without stars?