Everything Happens for a Reason

Our school is right by the ocean. A perfect spot to learn “new things” and “experience nature in the living flesh.” That is why we are taking a field trip today on boats to experience the wildlife firsthand. I’m not a big nature girl…actually I hate nature. I really don’t have a real big reason why but my hair always gets messy or has some type of weird reflex when I’m outside….therefore, no nature for me Mr. Harm.
It’s a perfect day in California and I rather be laying on the white sand with my favorite drink, tanning than sloshing through the deep water while my “perfect” partner guides me to our overly small boat ahead. His name Josh; The perfect guy that is the quarterback of the football team, the president of student council, the smartest most talented student, and of course he is overwhelmingly cute. Yes, most of my friends fall head-over-heels for him even if they just get to touch him but I’m not anything like that. I am the independent, sweet, Peyton with good grades, a nice house and I won’t let one person get in the way of all that.
I walked slowly to our blue boat upset on how I really have to do this. Josh put his big hand out to help me onto the boat. I look at it, my heart picking up its pace but I refuse to let him do that to me so I reject it and get on all by myself… bad idea. I fall backward from the pressure of my weight. I scream like the world is about to end right there. I swerved my arms around trying to get a good balance but with my luck I fall right into the large, muscular arms of my partner.
“Hey,” He smiles with his is blue eyes bright like the crystal in the water as he showed his perfect smile. “You all right there?”
I couldn’t help but smile. He was too perfect; His shaggy brown hair, perfect shaped eyes, and his smile would all make a male model want to die for it. That is why I hated him. I haven’t had a crush since I was a freshman and he broke my heart; I’m not going to let that happen again.
“I’m perfectly fine.” I said in an annoying tone. He helped me up onto the rocky boat and when I turned around, he brushed a piece of my long, wavy, brown hair away from my eyes. That took my breath away and sent a tingling sensation down my spine. I turned away fast so he couldn’t see my fair skin blush dark red. He hops on gracefully making my attempt look horrible.
“Now, everyone needs a life jacket and a first aid-kit.” Shouted Mr. Harm in another boat with his G.P.S.
I grab my yellow life-jacket and notice it will clash with my outfit. I sigh heavily and slip it on. Josh does the same and I try to seem not interested at all in him as he does. He starts the loud motor and the blades slash in and out on the murky water below. He looks up and sees me gazing at him. He smiles. That is another thing I hate about him. He knows every girl in the school would die to go out with him, but I am not one of those girls. (Or so I’m trying to make it seem.)
He reaches over and pulls the string on my life jacket and it inflates. It blows up so much that I gasp as it starts to cover my head. I pull it down and find Josh looking at me. He has his perfect lips in a hard straight line to keep from laughing but ends up doing it anyway. I must look ridiculous.
“I’m guessing you don’t do this often.” He says it more like a assumption than a question. His cockeyed grin makes my heart skip a beat though I was determined to not give him the satisfaction of making fun of me on this long journey ahead.
“No I love to go boating.” I said very genuinely, trying to make my eyes wide and innocent. I don’t think he bought it though.
“Oh really?” He mockingly says back to me.
“Yes. Yes I do. I love to fish with my dad.” A big lie just layered out in front of me by those few words. My dad died two years ago because of the depth of the ocean and the pull of the currents. He was my best friend and he just went out to go fishing and didn’t come back. I never went fishing with him but always wanted to. Ever since then, I have been terrified of the water of the ocean and blaming it for my father’s death.
He interrupted my horrible past. “Well, since you know so much about boats, you can drive.”
Not only was I afraid of the water, I had no hand-eye coordination whatsoever but I would not let him make me look bad. What could happen? I take the steering wheel and guide the boat to the middle of the ocean.
Josh is looking at me like he is very impressed. Me and you both buddy…. I really don’t know how to drive this thing.
I was doing well for a few minutes and begin to think that I could really do this. I look behind me to see that we were far from the shore but could see my classmates in the boats a little ways from ours.
“Peyton!” Josh yelled with alarm. Just the sound of his voice made me jump.
I turned around fast discovering the large rock in front of us. I hit it hard for I didn’t get to stop the boat in time. We both went sailing over the bolder and hitting the rough water of the ocean.
The next thing that happened went to fast for me to comprehend. I could hear screaming from my classmates but it was very faint. I looked around for Josh starting to create more salt water for the ocean of my own. I spotted him, bobbing up and down swimming towards me. It didn’t occur to me that I was drowning then. I was pulled down with the force of a large wave that took me under making the boy of my dreams disappear. It was all black then and I couldn’t tell which way was up or down; I couldn’t tell which way I should swim so I could gain more air that was surprisingly melting away from me. I waved my arms up and then down going in a direction and then turning around. My feet began to become sore and I couldn’t make them move fast enough.
The ocean took me father into the darkness, getting sucked in slowly into the unknown. This couldn’t happen to me! It all just happened so quickly and now I’m facing my own death. I closed my eyes and began to let my sore joints take a rest from my thrashing… I was giving up.


The soreness of my throat woke me up. It was hard to discover what happened.
“Peyton?” Josh’s voice made me want to open my eyes and start to cry with joy. I wasn’t dead. I didn’t die. I was alive. “Oh, Peyton!” Josh exclaimed when I opened my eyes as the sun nearly blinded me.
“I thought I lost you!” He said, his wet, beautiful hair hanging in his face.
I laid on the sand, too dizzy and week to try to sit up. It took me awhile to remember what happened. I started to get up, but Josh’s large hand softly pushed me down.
“It’s all right. It’s all right.” He said as he rubbed my cheek. I didn’t realize I was crying as he did that though I found out when my eyes got all filled with liquid so I couldn’t see anything. It then occurred to me that neither my teacher nor my classmates were around me. Wouldn’t they be there helping me too? Shouldn’t I be in the hospital?
“Where is Mr. Harm? Where is my mom? Where are we? What’s going on?” My brain was thinking before I could spit out the words so it all came out in a rush. My throat disagreed with me just by the first word I said. It throbbed like someone stuck a knife down there and cut it in every direction. I got up rejecting the signals that my body gave me to sit and lye back down.
Trees, sand, and the ocean were the only things that surrounded me. I started to run down the shore, expecting a building of some sort or a highway but was sadly mistaken. That didn’t stop me from running though. I ran and ran, falling from the rush of my balance, my astonishment, and my short recovery from a near death experience. Josh was there at once.
“It’s okay sweet girl.” He said. His voice was calm like he had everything under control. My brain took a quick turn and totally forgot what is happening. All I caught was his soft voice saying that I was a “sweet girl.” Does he really think that? I think he might like me but what if he doesn’t and he’s just being nice... What was I thinking? I was stuck on an island, my mom worried about me probably thinking the same thing happened to me like my father and all I was thinking about is whether he might like me or not? Wow, grow up Peyton.
I ignored my sidetracked brain and got back to my tragedy. “We’re stuck here…”
“Yes and no.” Josh said. “We will be fine. We can make shelter and have fish for food. We can worry about getting back after I try to fix the boat.” He pointed to the pile of wood near the shore. That just makes me sob even harder.
He picked me off of the warm sand like I was a small child and carried me which again sidetracked me. He had his shirt off which made my stomach become full of butterflies.
“We will be stuck here for awhile but I think we can make it.” He said as he walked back to were I was once lying.
Just him and I would be stuck on the island?! I don’t think I could be able to keep my cover of trying to act like I wasn’t interested in him… I could at least try though.
“I can walk by myself. I don’t need you carrying me like I’m some kind of baby.” My words disagreed with my heart and thoughts when I said it.
He smiled real wide which made me want to kiss him even more than usual. He slowly put me down explaining that he was only trying to help.
“Yah well whatever. I’m fine and don’t need you to try to comfort me.” I turned to walk the other way but was stopped by his beautiful voice.
“Are you sure? I don’t think you were that “fine” when you were crying just a minute ago.” He did his cocky grin and I was astonished that he would be so calm and silly even though we were stuck here. His sarcasm was also not something I wanted to hear at this moment.
“Stop it. I was just shocked because of what just happened so don’t give me such a hard time about it.” I shouted, swiftly wiping away the tears that were still there. “What do you want me to start working on?” I said trying to change the subject that started to make me blush with anger.
“Well,” he said half laughing, “You could always catch us dinner since you are so good at fishing.” That threw me off. I didn’t know anything about fishing even when you were using the stick things…
“Fine!” I said to him walking real close to him so we were nose to nose. “I’ll be right back.” Yes, I didn’t know anything about fishing, but I would not make him make me unravel my little, white lie.

My clothes were already wet so I didn’t care that my body was half in the water. I grabbed a stick before I went in and sharpened it so it would be more like a knife even though it looked more like a dull branch. I am not a nature girl and I think Josh knew that. I looked over at him while he was gathering sticks making some type of box pile. I smiled not sure why I liked him so much but I reminded myself that I was just like any other annoying girl who liked him just that I was the one that became stranded on a deserted island with him. There was a fast movement by my legs which knocked me out of my daydream. I stabbed at the water, screaming. I hate fish. Ugh…they are so slimy and wet and just gross! Once again, because of my “amazing balance,” I fell back into the water having it splash all around me. When I resurfaced I found Josh lying on the sand laughing like he hasn’t seen anything else funnier than me. I winced, embarrassed by myself. I walked slowly back to were our “camp area” is where I still find Josh laughing.
“Alright! It’s not that funny!” He kept laughing. I take a handful of sand and through it at him to make him stop. “I’m not a nature freak…. Actually I have never fished, hunted, or did anything involving nature.”
He looked at me like I told him something he already knew. “I kind of fingered that out when you crashed the boat and almost killed us both.” He then started laughing again. “I just made you try to catch the fish for my benefit of entertainment.”
I then got really mad, upset, and embarrassed at the same time. I wasn’t fooling anyone.
“I really think it’s cute though that you tried so hard to impress me…” He said when he ran his fingers through his soft, brown hair.
Oh no….”I was not trying to impress you!” I said trying to deny the truth. “Why would I do that? I’m not sure you have noticed but I’m not like all the other girls in our school that would die to go out with you.”
“What are you talking about?” He said, his eyes getting all big.
“I don’t have a crush on you Josh and I never will!” I said trying to convince myself more than the angel looking guy I was talking to.
“Okay…?” He said then which made my heart flip because I saw a little sadness in his eyes. I started to walk into the forest that was behind us.
“I’ll be right back,” I said trying to sound like this conversation was boring me. “I’m going to try to look for some food to eat since I didn’t before.”
He smiles a little but I started to feel guilty that I yelled at him Again, my head became overwhelmed with happiness and daydreaming when I made sure he couldn’t see me behind the thick trees and their branches.
After being done doing my happy dance I turned around looking straight into the trees and bushes of the forest. It didn’t take me long to find food (or so I thought) so I began to head back to our camp site with a handful of bananas and coconuts since the sun was fading.
I came back to a warm, large fire, a unbelievable large tent, and my future husband sitting of by the shore. I walk slowly to Josh and place my part of our dinner next to him.
“There… I have 3 bananas and 2 coconuts.” I said breathlessly, not by just walking 1,000 miles but from seeing his face again.
“I thought you weren’t going to come back…” Josh said sarcastically, picking up one of my bananas. He started to eat it and then caught me staring at him again.
“Uhhh, umm…” I stumbled with my words so I quickly sat down beside him to try to cover them up. “This little hut thing you made is very impressive. How could you make something like this in just the time I was gone?”
“Well, you were gone a really long time,” He said smiling with his eyes bordered by thick eyelashes. “…but it wasn’t that hard. Actually my father made me take boy scouts when I was a kid and some of the things stuck with me. You must be glad that I was the one you are stuck with so that you can have shelter.” That was not the only reason I liked being stuck with him…
“Well, thanks anyway and I would have been fine without you.” Yes Peyton, play hard to get…
He smiled then and asked me a question that I didn’t want to answer.
“What are you thinking Peyton? You always surprise me because you say something that does not match your face at all. What’s wrong?”
“I’m not hiding anything…” Except that I might be falling for you. “And why would I tell you what’s going on with me?”
“Because I know that you trust me… when I was a kid my father told me that you could never trust anyone though I believe that you can with me.”
“No.” That was my amazing answer to the guy that thought I could trust him. I couldn’t tell him that I liked him and I can’t understand why he cares so much.
“That’s fine that you don’t want to tell me. I respect you though I know you want to.”
I look out onto the water, where the moon laid a thick path of light through the ocean waves in front of us. The fire sent a rush of yellow onto the shallow end of the water that made me feel so much calmer.
“I don’t have a dad.” I began. “He died two years ago from this exact ocean.” I looked at him then and saw that his eyes were soft and sincere… like he really cared about what I felt and how this must have torn me apart.
“Peyton, I’m so sorry. You don’t have to tell me anything about it if you don’t want to.” I knew that he meant it but for some reason I couldn’t stop. My words fluttered out like there was a door that just became unlocked. I haven’t talked about my dad since he died and my emotions had been built up ever since then. I talked and talked for who knows how long and then came to the sentence that made me start to cry.
“I…I thought that when I was thrown off the boat…. The, the same thing would happen to me as it did to my dad.” He wrapped his arms around me and I think he saw me cry more today than my mom saw me cry all year. No, I didn’t tell him that I liked him and I think that is for the better because to tell the truth I was starting to fall in a love so uncontrollable I couldn’t even breath in his perfect scent.


The whole day was long and I started to become very sleepy after Josh and I talked about everything in the world. He was right… I could trust him I just had to make myself do it. I woke up in the morning unaware of where I was and felt something warm against my cheek and nose. Josh and I both woke up at the same time to realize that we were very close to each other and that he had his arms wrapped around me while we were sleeping. We both stumbled away from each other both embarrassed by our touch. I turned around on my side to look the opposite way and tried to make my heart slow down to its normal pace. I wonder if he liked being around me as much as I did around him.
The day continued like yesterday though we both became very insecure around each other because of this morning.
“So…” Josh began to break the ice while we were looking for something to eat. We were walking on large rocks that were not helping with my balance.
“Yah?” I said urging him on. He was about to say something important I just knew it but of course I ruin it with my clumsiness. I have my foot lodged between two rocks. I didn’t know how it got there but it just did. “Ow.” I winced at the pain it was starting to give me.
“Peyton,” Josh said with a big smile. “You always get yourself into stuff like this!” He took my leg with his big hands and started to pull. He was so close to me that I wanted to wrap my arms around him not from just want but need. With his strong muscles, he pulled enough so my foot was out though it throbbed like no other. I put my hand on his shoulder while he helped me out of the rocks. We kept walking and I was so upset with myself because I ruined the moment were he was about to say something.
We get to a large opening in the woods and walk through looking at each other. He kept walking but I didn’t for the look he gave me made me want to have that type of beauty.
“Peyton! Look at this!” I couldn’t see him for he was on the other side of the opening of the trees. I walked with my head down towards his voice. When I looked up there was the most beautiful thing laid out in front of me. We were on the top of a small cliff with water cascading down rocks to trickle into a large salt-free pond below. The body of water was bordered with colorful flowers that made it look like an artist painted a picture of heaven.
“It’s beautiful…” I said breathlessly. I turned to look at him and he was taking his shirt off. I would have been sidetracked just by that but then he jumped.
He screamed on his way down while I yelled “What are you thinking!”
I looked over the edge right before he hit the water but when he did the cool water splashed all the way up to splash my face making me become wet.
“Jump!” He screamed when he resurfaced.
“Are you kidding?” I laughed with horror. He knew I hated water.
“I’ll be right here when you get down. I won’t let you go under for long.” He said, his hair soaked and his eyes made the beautiful scenery look dull compared to them.
“Josh…. No.” I whimpered. “I am not going down there.”
He looked up at me and gave me this face that made me want to jump just to get to him. “Trust me.” He said in a small whisper.
I looked down and smiled at the ground I was standing on. I ran my hands threw my hair and started to back up to get a running start. I couldn’t believe I was doing this though I couldn’t wait to get down and be with him. I ran to the end of the cliff and jumped. The sensation of falling was better than I ever thought it would be. The wind rushed up my body and blew my wavy, brown hair up to the sky. I then hit the water too quickly but I was in Josh’s arms before I noticed I was under water.
“I told you I would be right here…waiting for you.” He whispered in my ear. The tickle of his breath made me laugh. He let go of me slowly and then went under into the water below. I looked up and he was on the other side of me splashing at the back of my head. I went on my back and kicked my feet trying to get him back and we both began to start laughing and screaming trying to get away from each other so the other wouldn’t come at them with a gallon of water thrown at their face. Then with no warning,, he grabbed the small of my back and moved me to him. We were now nose to nose so that I could feel the wet drops, dropping from his hair onto my face.
“I know you are not interested in me at all. I know that you will never have a crush nonetheless love me but I think I’m starting to fall for you. Peyton, I have had many girlfriends and you probably think I’m a player or a jerk but I have never told them I loved them before; It never even popped into my head that I loved any girl I went out with. Even from when you walked onto the boat and fell into my arms from this moment right here… I’ve been falling in love with you. It’s only been a few days but… but…” He stumbled with the last words thinking I was going to reject him.
He was in love with me. No. No! That could not be true. The perfect guy of my dreams is in love with me and thinks I, ME, doesn’t like him back? I couldn’t help myself and I finally leaned in and kissed him so he wouldn’t have to embarrass himself with the last few words.

We were lying on the beach with my head on his shoulder watching the sun set and waiting for our clothes to dry when I saw the boat. Josh didn’t realize it was coming for us for he didn’t even see it because he was playing with my long fingers.
“JOSH! Josh look!” I screamed standing up from the sight of the boat. He then started to realize it to and lifted me up in his arms and spun me around. Everything just became more perfect… though to be perfectly truthful, I would have been fine if the boat waited another day to come rescue us. From Josh’s eyes I could tell he was thinking the same thing.

Many would think that Josh and I would go back to where we started before our “vacation” though we didn’t. Actually not even close. He took me to prom and we are still dating even now. The small deserted island not only brought me to a guy who I automatically loved, it gave me the strength to get over my fears about the ocean and to accept my dad’s death though of course I still get upset about it. Josh got his boating license and we sometimes take the boat back out to that island that started our future. I found that when you trust someone to take care of you and not blame the world for your problems, life will become a smoother ride. I also believe that everything happens for a reason because without my clumsiness, nor my lie that I tried to make Josh believe, I wouldn’t be able to spend my future with the person of my dreams.

The Hidden Symbols

The bottom of the wet grass covered the trunk of a tree that looks old and still filled with some type of surrender. The trunk twists out into many branches but one is filled with sadness and bending towards the cold, life-struck water below. All but that one is stretching for the warm comforting sun above with their branches filled with bright colors; cherry red and healthy, strong green leaves reach up for the goodness in life. This tree is Melinda; the girl filled with fear trying to overcome it with hope. Melinda is afraid to tell her gut wrenching secret even if she was protecting some of her “friends.” Planting small symbols is what the author of Speak is incredible and remarkable at; for each item in the book, like this tree, has a background, a story to tell, an important clue, and the tension of unraveling what happened the night of the party where Melinda called 911. These three numbers will change Melinda’s shy life and now she will have to choke it down and grow like the top of the beautiful, symbolic tree.


Each word has some type of symbol or mystery behind it. From the beginning of the book, you know something happened to Melinda that is disturbing although you just don’t know exactly what. All readers should notice that if you look at the author’s symbols close enough, you will discover the secret hidden beneath Melinda’s skin. The first symbol of the book that stood out the most was on page 5.
“I order my dinner at 3:10 and eat it on the white couch. I don’t know which parent was having seizers when they bought that couch. The trick to eating on it has to personalities: “Melinda inhaling pepperoni and mushroom” and “No one ever eats in the family room, no ma’am.” I chow and watch TV until I hear Dad’s Jeep in the driveway. Flip, flip, flip- The cushions revered to show their pretty white cheeks, then bolt upstairs.” Just like the couch, Melinda has two sides of her: “She wants to do the right thing and tell a counselor or at least her parents what happened that night” and “Although she can’t forget what happened she wants to hide and forget it ever happened.” Also at the end of this section, you realize Melinda is not close to her father at all for she runs up to her room and disappears for the rest of the night. Already, by just one paragraph you can shed a bright light through Melinda’s life and her unforgettable past.


Two large symbols that will affect the whole story happen on page 50.
“My parents commanded me to stay after school every day for extra help from teachers. I agree to stay after school. I hang out in my refurbished closet. It is shaping up nicely.” Melinda explains that her parents want her to get her grades up but Melinda doesn’t really care, “The first thing to go is the mirror.” The closet shows that Melinda is hiding and likes feeling secure unlike what she usually feels. It’s a place where she can get away from the world of doubt and fear; even when she is home, Melinda runs up to her room and locks herself in there for the whole night. Melinda just wants to forget what IT did to her. IT raped her. IT is Andy Evans. On page 194 the warm comforting closet turns into a place where she will never want to remember ever again but yet maybe it is, for she sticks up for herself finally in this small enclosed space.
“BEAST (Andy Evans): “You’re not going to scream. You didn’t scream before. You liked it. You’re jealous that I took out your friend and not you. I think I know what you want.” His mouth is on my face. I twist my head. His lips are wet, his teeth are against my cheekbone. I pull my arms again and he slams his body against mine. I have no legs. My heart wobbles. His teeth are on my neck. The only sound I can make is a whimper. He fumbles to hold both my wrists in one hand. He wants a free hand. I remember I remember. Metal hands, hot knife hands.
No.
A sound explodes from me.
“NNNOOO!!!”

I follow the sound punching off the wall pushing Andy Evans off-balance, stumbling into the broken sink.”
During this section, Melinda realizes that what happened was not something that will hurt her again and believes she can overcome what might happen by defending herself in this small closet space where she used to feel actually comfortable in.


The second symbol that caught my eye was on this page also. “The first thing to go is the mirror.” This is the first thing that comes out of Melinda’s half bitten mouth when she enters her hiding closet in the large school. Why the mirror? A small object but a large symbol explains that Melinda doesn’t want to look at herself, afraid to see what’s looking back at her; a lonely, blank, innocent shell that has nothing inside to be grateful for. Melinda doesn’t want pity, she wants to be courageous and live on with her expectations like being a good student like she was in the grade before. On page 125 Melinda is crowded by mirrors and realizes that if she wants to get over her past she needs to become the person she was before.
“I squeeze my eyes shut. Jeans that fit, that’s a good start. I have to stay away from the closet, go to all my classes. I will make myself normal. Forget the rest of it.” This part is a great thing yet she is trying to get rid of her past by covering it up. This is not healthy and readers from all over the world should realize this. Also she says that she will stay away from the closet but she doesn’t. That is when IT attacks her.
“I hit the wood against the poster, and the mirror under it, again. Shards of glass slip down the wall and into the sink…I reach in and wrap my fingers around the triangle of glass. I hold it to Andy Evan’s neck. He freezes. He raises his arms over his head.
Me: “I said no.”
At this part Melinda uses the mirror, looks at it and sees a different reflection. The girl who stared back at her used this mirror to get over her past, to move on. She wanted to be the girl in the mirror for the past year and finally, from this small, symbolic object she was able to.


Each book, if you can see them or not, has tiny symbols placed in specific areas that explain the book in a more unbelievable and interesting depth. This book shows that when something happens,you should always look at the bright side and try to overcome it. This book shows the mystery behind each word and relates to the readers in many ways. This book shows Melinda, a shy, scared girl filled with insecurity and wonder. She once was the sad branch that hung weakly over a river stretching for water. Now since she told her secret and overcame her fear by facing IT, she is the beautiful branches twisting up to the sky towards the sun.