Montezuma, Emperor of Aztec

The tale of Cortez and Montezuma is one of the most amazing ones in the discovery of the new world. In 1519, Hernan Cortez of Spain landed of the coast of Mexico. In search of gold, he led his men inland to the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan [ later called Mexico City]. Here Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, greeted them in friendship. He thought Cortez was the god Quetzalcoatl, who had white skin, whose return had been predicted long before. In fact, Cortez had arrived in the same day and in the same year that Quetzalcoatl was supposed to return. Also, he fitted the description of the form Quetzalcoatl was predicted to take.

Some of the Aztecs, did not believe Cortez was really a god, and they were angry with Montezuma for allowing Spaniards to stay. One afternoon, when Montezuma appeared on a balcony, he was struck in the head by a stone thrown by one of his own people; although Cortez tried to save him, Montezuma died in three day later. Most of the Aztecs blamed the Spaniards for his death. In their attempt to escape from Tenochtitlan at night, almost of all Spaniards were killed; the few who escaped soon returned with some other Indians in the area who were enemies of Aztecs. The three months battle finally ended in a Spanish victory when wild animals were released from the zoo by the Spaniards. What had ended was not just a battle but an entire culture. The Aztecs had been right to fear the stranger who came from the sea.

That is what friend are for

That’s what friends are for

Having sat side by side every class for 6 years at the time we were about to finish high school, Big and I were best friends; we barely had to speak to each other in a day because we understood what the other meant just by looking. At that time, like everyone in my class, I dreaded everything about university from fitting in the new society to living with strangers without my best friend [ not inly me my best friend does too] . All I knew was that I wanted him to be there with me [ Although, I knew it is impossible to be that ]. However, it was not until one day was a new meaning of friendship I had never thought of made clear to me. One day, I asked him to sign my friendship book. He took it home and returned it to me the next day. I thought to myself that as he had taken a whole night to write it, it must be really long. However, unlike that of my other friends who wrote pages, what he wrote was just a single line that read ”I’ll save a place beside me for you forever, like always”. That was when I learnt that friendship doesn’t mean just being together, but it means being there for each other and realized that whenever I am down there will be a place for me to go back and someone to support me.

Now, I have already knew that what friend is for, being with together in our memory, even though we are not with together. But we can remind that my best friend will be with me nearly like I will be with him for ever. Moreover, I understand friend consists of trust, help, and to understand to each other.

Winter, the sadness of Demeter

In the ancient Greece, Greek believe in the Gods; Zeus [Neptune in Roman] the king of gods, Hera the queen of gods, Apollo the god of the sun, Demeter [ Ceres in Roman] the goddess of the harvest, Afrodite [ Venus in Roman ] the goddess of love, Mars the god of war, Athena the goddess of the wisdom, etc. Greek worshiped many gods and the gods influenced on human. So, there are things were created by the gods. Season is one of the creation of gods. And this is a story of winter. You will know why it happens but, it is just the myth , not the fact.

One day the lovely maiden Persephone was walking alone at a river’s edge. She was unaware that she was being watched by Hades, God of underworld and brother of Zeus. Hades was so charmed by her beauty that he seized her and carried her away in his chariot to his kingdom beneath the earth’s surface. He was determined that Persephone should be his queen. She cried for help went unheeded. Hades did not know Persephone is the daughter of Demeter, Goddess of the harvest.

When Persephone’s mother, Demeter , heard what happened with her daughter she was heartsick. Demeter is the goddess of the harvest, and in her grief refused to attend to her duties on earth. For a full year crops withered and died. She allowed nothing to grow, people starved to death. Finally Zeus, the most powerful of the gods and the king of Olympus, went to Hades to insist that Persephone be allowed to return to her mother. The very survival of earth depended upon it. Hades sadly agreed. But before she departed, he persuaded Persephone to take a bite of a pomegranate. Hades knew if she took even a small bite of fruit she would have to return to him.

Persephone rejoined her mother, and the earth flourished once again. But nine months later she returned to Hades. Again Demeter grieved and the earth became barren. And so it has happened ever since. Nine months of the year the earth flowers abundantly. But three months of the year, when Persephone is with Hades , nothing grows. Human beings call this “winter”.

Frustration

Most people learn about frustration at a very early age. Children are seen bursting into tear as they try again and again to tie their shoelaces. Grown men and women playing golf sometimes lose their tempers when they make a poor shot.

It seems a normal part of life to have one's plans or desires go awry. No matter how well conceived or how executed, an idea or a task often does not come out right. It happens at school, at work, and when playing games.

Usually people accept this. A professional baseball player does not stalk off the mound when he throws a ball instead of a strike. Students do not quit school they cannot get all "A" grades. Most of them seem to make another effort. They understand the old adage, ' If at first you do not succeed, try, try, and again.

What that adage is really saying for young and old alike is to have patience. Some tings take time to understand and do well. The fact that others can do them better and sooner should no cause frustration.

Those that have patience will evaluate what they are trying to accomplish. They will study their own habits and methods to find out how to improve. They will do this whether pitching a baseball or learning mathematics.

If most people did not have this point of view, a lot of them would be walking around with their shoelaces untied. And you should know things do not always go the way we want them to.