Shepherd's Fright

The night was dark, the air was cold
and suddenly, behold!
A blinding Light has just appeared!
An angel from God's Highest host,
A heavenly man, a Holy Ghost!
My heart is pounding, muscles tense.
What should I do? Should I flee?
The angel says, "Don't be afraid of me."
I listen to him, eyes alert for danger.
He says to me, "Find a babe in a manger,
He sahll be your king to be,
go and worship, go and see!"
Another flash of light I see.
Angels sing, "Come and see,
Come and see, come and see your king to be!
Glory to God in the Highest,
peace on earth, good will toward men!"
I ran quickly toward the city,
Many people stared at me.
I felt their eyes upon my back.
Finally, I found the bed
In which the little child was laid.
I thank God for that moment
in which I could see our Saviour,
At last!

Boston Massacre from a Whig's Perspective

The Boston Massacre occurred on March 5, 1770. This is a poem written from the eyes of what would become known as an American soldier in the American Revolution, then called a "Whig." I wrote this for a school assignment due March 29, 2010.

'Twas early on in the night

A little boy came to tease and fight.

A centinel panicked and struck the boy,

Who cried and cried and called his friends.

They jeered and taunted,

Screamed aloud!

The panicked soldier yelled for help.

Eight other soldiers answered his call.

When the townsmen made a crowd,

The people of the city yelled, "Fire! Fire!"

To lure more men from their place abed.

The more men added,

The angrier the soldiers grew.

They swore and spit and cussed and jabbed

Their bayonets at our ribs.

And, finally, a panicked soldier said,

"I'll fire if you say 'Fire!' again!"

The crowd kept jeering, louder still.

The soldier fired and said, "Fire lads!"

The others, who wanted to fire bad,

Fired quickly, "Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Reloaded guns, and fired again.

After the brutal massacre,

Captain Preston said, "I tried to hold my men,

But they fired once again!"

We hated the British before,

Now we hate them even more!

Hunting

Hunting is an exciting sport. I had my first year of hunting in 2009 and shot my first deer. It was a little button buck and the antlers weren't showing yet. I remember it so well. I was hunting with Kip Grady in the woods near a little creek (the photo shows me reenacting my "moment" when my Grandma Lee visited in early March) and right at dusk three deer came walking toward us. Kip said "Look." At first I didn't see them but when I did my blood started boiling. I took aim and fired. One of the deer jumped straight in the air, at least four feet! It fell into the creek and we thought he was dead but he popped back up on our side of the creek and ran toward us. He came within five yards of us stopped and Kip finished him. We looked for the hole my bullet had made and when we found it, it was right to the heart. Kip called my dad and we celebrated with Big Red. I had a really fun time.

Basketball

You hear the pounding of feet, the squeak of shoes, the bouncing of a ball, silence, a buzzer, and the crowd goes wild!!! The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the San Antonio Spurs in overtime 88 to 86! What sport is this? Basketball. Basketball is a very fun sport that I play and love. My favorite team in the NBA ( National Basketball Association ) is the Minnesota Timberwolves. They definitely aren't the best team, one of the worst, and though the game above is fake I wish it were real. I have a rivalry against the Spurs, long story, and I hope that the Timberwolves can pull off a win against them. Some of the violations of basketball are no double dribbling ( dribbling, picking up the ball and dribbling again ) no traveling ( taking more than three steps with out dribbling the ball )and back court violation ( taking the ball behind the half court line after it has been taken in front of it. ) I have been participating in a league called Upwards for first to sixth graders but will be playing for my school next year.

Backyard Critters

Our family is enjoying many animals that come to our backyard. We put up some suet in a tree outside our dining room window and we see birds daily. Some of the birds we see include Cardinals, Chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers, Blue Jays, and Titmice. We also have a young deer that comes to our backyard via a hole in our fence and eats our bushes. The little deer feels right at home in our backyard and occasionally sleeps there. In our next door neighbor's backyard two Red-Shouldered Hawks have made their nest. We hope that they do not prey on the animals that come to our backyard for we enjoy all of them and hope there will be more.

An interview of myself

Q:What are my favorite colors?
A:Silver and Bronze

Q:What is my favorite food (besides Chick-fil-A menu items)?
A:Papa John's Pizza

Q:What is my least favorite food?
A:Cooked Brussel Sprouts

Q:What is my favorite game?
A:Monopoly

Q:What is my favorite sport?
A:Soccer

Q:What is my favorite outdoor activity?
A:Airsoft

Q:Who are my three best friends?
A:Josiah, Ian, and Victor

Q:Who is my best friend?
A:Josiah

Q:Who do I want to be like when I grow up?
A:Grandpa J.C.

Saw-Whet Owl

Saw-Whet Owl

He lives all year round

in northern states from

Washington to Maine, and

somtimes spends the winter

in southern area rain.

His tiny feathers puff, making him

look wise and vain. He has a seven-

teen inch wingspan, and calls Saw-Whet,

his name. He prefers to perch on evergreen

trees to wait for coming prey.He is a

creature that God made, fragile, new,

and small. Saw-Whet is his name.

a sweet sweet name

WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY PHILLIP J. WORDEN

is Saw-Whet and

shall he ever live.

Veritas Gazette Article #1

The following article was published in the VERITAS GAZETTE, Friday, March 5, 2010. This is the school newspaper for the Lower School K-5 campus of Veritas Classical Christian School in Richmond, VA.

Superbowl XLIV
by Josiah Daigle (5th) and Phillip Worden (5th)

The Superbowl was a showdown between quarterbacks Peyton Manning, the veteran, and Andrew Brees, the rookie. Though the Colts were favored by 3 1/2 touchdowns, this game would lead to one of the biggest upsets in NFL Superbowl history.

The coin toss was won by the NFC team, the Saints. During the first quarter the Saints drove hard but were still forced to punt. When the Colts received the ball, things started going downhill for the Saints. The Colts drove hard and made their way into Field Goal territory. They took the field goal and put the first points on the board. 3 - 0 and the Colts were winning. The Colts threw a touchdown, and the Saints were only able to answer with a field goal. At the end of the first half, the score was 10 - 3 in favor of the Colts. The band during the half-time played good music, but it did nothing to brighten the spirit of the Saints' fans.

Opening the second half, the Saints did the unexpected, an on-side kick. The Saints recovered the ball after it glanced off Hank Bassket's helmet. New Orleans drove and made another field goal: 10 - 6 Colts. Indianapolis drove, but was stuffed by the Saints' defense. The Saints recovered the punt and scored their first touchdown of the game. That gave them their first lead of the game: 13 - 10 Saints. The Colts were stifled again, and the Saints got another field goal. The Colts again didn't quite make it, and the Saints got the ball once more. They charged down the field and scored a touchdown with a two-point conversion, leaving it 24 - 10. Finally, the Colts were able to get a touchdown. They were also able to stop the Saints for a chance to win the Superbowl. But that wasn't in the Saints' plans. They intercepted the ball for a touchdown and put the game out of reach for the Colts. The Saints finally won their first Superbowl title! They gained victory over the Colts and Peyton Manning, 31 - 17, a game they will always remember.

The Prettiest Flower

Today I am introducing my grandson who is sharing a poem he recently wrote.

The Prettiest Flower

by Phillip Worden

The velvet rose,

The creamy lily,

All of these are very pretty.

But the prettiest thing is none of these,

Not rose, not lily nor flower.

But rather love hour by hour

and compassion to those who cower.