Showing results for "To Life" in Family Life

It's been two years since the night that changed Ashley's life. Two years since she was raped by her brother's teammate. And a year since she sat in a court and watched as he was given a slap on the wrist sentence. But the years have done nothing to stop the pain. It's been two years of hell for Derek. His family is totally messed up, and he and his sister are barely speaking. He knows he handled it all wrong. Now at college, he has to come to terms with what happened, and the rape culture that he was inadvertently a part of that destroyed his sister's life.

Dana Fields's father never knew his parents. When Dana secretly does a DNA test for her dad, hoping to find him some distant relatives for his birthday, her entire world implodes. Instead of a few third cousins, Dana discovers a half-brother her age whose very existence means her parents' happy marriage is a lie. Dana's desire to know her half-brother, Brandon, and the extent of her dad's deception, clashes with her wish not to destroy her family.

Mark Twain wrote this essay when asked to share something with America’s youth. Though he begins in a serious tone, his advice quickly takes a turn for the satirical: “Always obey your parents, when they are present. This is the best policy in the long run, because if you don’t, they will make you.” In a similar tone, he goes on to address the matters of respecting one’s elders, rising early, lying, handling firearms, and reading books. This essay is a great example of Twain’s infamous satirical wit and an easy entry point for anyone interested in the writer’s nonfiction.