Haven't you ever had the
thought: if only I could study in my sleep? For sixth grader Adam Wink, he
thought this as he drifted off into sleep after hours of studying about the
ancient cultures of the world. The last thing he remembered reading about was
the Indian culture and how they believed in reincarnation and Buddha. As he
drift off into sleep, his dream became very real and suddenly, there he was in
1920 India. He wandered the streets admiring the architecture and beauty. It
was so different than anything he had ever seen before. Suddenly, he saw a
group of other kids his age gathered in a group around an older teen who
appeared to be telling them all a story. As he walked up, a story of Buddha who
was reincarnated as a hare, was being tested on his word, began to unfold. He
ultimately said that he would have to give up his life in order to save the
king of the gods. As the hare was put to test he was spared and as a
reward the shadow of a hare was placed upon the side of the moon for all to
admire. The teen told of other stories, but Adam seemed to think back to the
first story as he walked away later. It reminded him of a story he had learned
about from the bible, where Abraham was put to the test by God to sacrifice his
only son, that they had waited so long for. When God saw his trust and loyalty,
his son was spared and he was rewarded greatly. As he continued to walk amongst
his dream, he soon found himself in a different place of a different time
period. He again stumbled upon a similar scenario of a teen telling stories
from that culture and he was able to again make connections to things he
already knew. As the dream continued he traveled to many other places, in many
other time periods, and listened, watched, and interacted with the people there.
He began to make similar connections to his own world and things that he
already knew. The next thing he knew he
was back in America walking down the street of his house. As he walked into his
house, and up the stairs to his bedroom, he awoke. It was morning already. "I
feel confident that I am going to ace my test now," he thought as he began
his morning routine. Was he really studying in his sleep? Or was his brain
finally making the connections he needed to see to understand all he had
learned.
Author's Note: My
inspiration came from reading Origin Stories: The Moon from the Anthology we
had to read earlier this week. Basically this story sums up to Buddha, born as
a hare, being tested to see if he would sacrifice his own life to save another.
When put to the test by the king of the gods, he ultimately said he would give
up his own life, thus he was spared, and rewarded by his image being placed on
the moon. I made the connection to the biblical story when Abraham must
sacrifice his only son to God, but just when he is about to do it God spares
them, and rewards him for his loyalty and trust. I wanted to take this connection
I made and put a spin on it, where a middle-schooler, who is learning about the
different cultures of the world, is dreaming about time travel and it helps him
ace his test.
Bibliography: "The Hare that was not Afraid to Die" an
Indian "jataka tale" from Eastern Stories and Legends by Marie L.
Shedlock
Image: Little Boy Dreaming
What an interesting way to combine different stories into one. I think one way to develop this story would be to add dialogue. Rather than describing the conversations, perhaps we hear it as well, so the boy could react, and we would be reacting with him! One little thing is how did he drift off if he was walking? I would clarify what is happening when he imagines all these things.
ReplyDeleteWow, you're first line and the concept of your story reeled me in right away! I would love to be able to study in my sleep! That's the dream! (ha!) Anyway, I think it's cool that you tied in multiple stories like that. It made sense but I think breaking up your ideas into smaller paragraphs would greatly benefit your story. It seemed to run-on in places and got a little confusing as to where the main character was at some points. I wonder if there could be a little more background on exactly what he needs to study for so we, as readers, feel validated for the main character when they achieve their study points. I also wonder what the Adam got for a grade! Maybe there could be a flash forward moment to where he sees a big red "A" on a test or something.
ReplyDeleteOverall, great job! Keep up the good work!
I think this was a unique story in the sense that you were able to combine multiple stories into one. The first line was what really led me to choose this story, who wouldn’t like to study while they’re asleep!? Some dialogue would have made the story a little easier to understand but overall great story, looking forward to coming back to read more!
ReplyDeleteHi Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteThis was a really cool story. I have had similar experiences where I am up late studying and can finally figure something out in the morning. It is interesting to think about whether or not we are learning in our sleep or if we knew it all along, but we just needed to rest our minds. Great idea for a story!