The Beginning of the End

It was a sunny day, I was talking with my family in the cucumber patch. We were simply enjoying ourselves when suddenly, it went dark. Giant claws of some sort picked me off the the ground and I was dropped into a basket with many of my friends. They just as confused as I was. We were taken through a portal and into a darker and colder room. We were put on a table and we saw a large jar. Then, the same large claws that took me from my home put me in the jar. It was very crowded. Everyone I knew was packed in that jar, but the worst part was still to come. I looked out the side of the jar and saw a large figure that moved on two legs and had long appendages with claws on the end that matched the ones that grabbed me. The creature opened a door and pulled out another jar with liquid that was green and clear. The creature then walked over and took the liquid and poured it in the jar. All my friends and I were screaming as we drowned in the liquid. Then, we were put in a container. It was dark. I don't know how long we were in the jar, but a long time later, the jar was taken out of that container. We were set on the same table before many more of those same evil creatures. The creatures grabbed some claws that were shiny and the top of the jar was taken off. Then, one by one, my friends were taken to their deaths. They were cut into slices and put into a sandwich. I as I watched in horror, they were eaten. Finally, none of them were left. I was taken by the claw. I was placed on a flat surface. The beings were looking right at me and had the same utensils that killed my friends. Before I knew it, I could see my insides and pieces of me scattered over the surface. My blood was leaving me, I began to feel light headed and was put in a sandwich. It went dark. Then, meeting my fate, I felt my spongy sarcophagus be lifted up and it was slowly crushed. After that, I was gone.   

Angels & Demons Prediction

My prediction for what will happen is that Robert Langdon is going to get caught up in the Illuminati's plot. Some reasons why are that Robert is in Switzerlnd visiting the lab where Leonardo Vetra was murdered. Also, at the beginning of the book, the author mentions anti-matter which could also play a role. Anti-matter can be very destructive and the Illuminati will probably use it to destroy Vatican City where the head of the catholic church resides. Hence, the name, Angels & Demons. Robert Langdon will probably end up going all over Europe trying find clues on what the Illuminati's plot is. Here's an example of what could be a scene.

I walked into a dark room. The walls were damp and rocky, and the smell of mildew and moss pooled in this room. I turned flash light towards the wall and saw intricate plans and drawings of some sort of weapon. Looking further on, a map came into view. It was map of the Vatican City. The map showed secret entrances and there were markings at all the major landmarks. St. Peter's Basilica, The Vatican, The Office of the Pope, and the Governmental Palace. Then I realized what was going down. The were going to attack Vatican City. I found a date on the wall. I checked my watch and the date matched. Realizing what had to be done, I ran out of the catacombs find the police.

Asylum House

The narrator is depressed in the story The Yellow Wallpaper. Her husband decides that the best thing for her to do is to stay in bed with nothing to do. But, her husband isn't her husband. He's just a doctor who's taking care of her and has taken her to an insane asylum to be treated. She doesn't understand that so she goes even more insane. This seen when the "husband" just leaves her alone. He doesn't even  check on her. Also, the bed, which is nailed to the floor like at an asylum, has bite marks on the mattress.  That shows that she could be in an asylum.

Analyzing Boo Radley

            In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, there are many different types of people in the Maycomb County. There are the Cunningham’s who live in the backwoods. The Ewell’s are the white trash in Maycomb County. Normal people like the Finch’s, occupy most of Maycomb County. Then there are the black people, but what about the Radley’s? They’re sort of in their own category when it comes to groups of people. They’re kind of like the creepy people in the neighborhood who never come out of their house but do on rare occasions. Then there’s Boo.

            He’s sort of like Big Foot, nobody has really seen him but there are many rumors about him. For example, Ms. Stephanie Crawford said she saw him looking straight at her in the middle of the night. Jem said that one morning, he saw Boo’s tracks in the backyard and judged that he was six and a half feet tall looking at his tracks. Some people also think he eats raw squirrels and cats.  However, he’s much different. He’s still about six feet tall but has the mental attitude of a child. Toward the end, of the book when Scout takes him to see Jem, he never speaks at all except when he asks Scout to take him home very softly. Boo doesn’t seem like a monster like everyone thinks he is, but a regular human being, cut off from society and judged by that.   

A Wish Come True

     It was the final lap.  I was rounding the last left-hand, slightly banked corner onto the long front straightaway.  There was only one car in front of me.  Out of my peripheral vision, I could see my team leaning over the pit wall with anticipation and the crowds standing up, but my focus was on the car ahead.  My foot was mashed into the accelerator.  Then, drafting my opponent, I used my newfound speed to slingshot around him.   Just as soon as I was side by side with him, I crossed the brick finish line as the flag man motioned the checkered flag.  The race was finished.  I was trying to process what had just happened.  Had I lost?  Was I ahead of the other car when the race was finished?  I didn’t know.  As the rest of the field finished, I went for a cool down lap as did everyone else.  As I pulled into the pit lane, my pit crew, crew chief, engineers and everyone else on my team came over to talk to me.  As they started to ask questions, the PA came on.  In a booming voice, the announcer said, “The finish of this race was too close to call.  So after much analyzing, the officials have called that John Douglas beat Bobby Unser by 0.0034 seconds!”  After that, the crowd went wild and my team picked me up, hugged me, and congratulated me.  I remembered then how I had gotten this far.

            Ever since I was little, I was into cars.  My dad raced on the weekends at a local racetrack.  Whenever I could, I would go with him to the races and watch.  The smell of burnt rubber and exhaust, the sound of brakes squealing and engines revving along pit lane always stimulated my senses.  Sometimes my mom would come along too and we would watch on the pit wall when my dad raced.  He would almost always win.  There was one race I’ll never forget.  Dad was running in tenth place when the flag marshal waved the white flag.  My mom watched with clenched jaws and crossed fingers.  Just a little bit later, the field rounded the last corner.  All of a sudden, the lead car spun causing all the cars behind to get backed up and spin out as well.  A plume of white smoke rose from all the burning rubber and devoured the track.  Everyone stared down the track at the site.  I looked down see what they were staring at.  My mom did the same.  Then, almost like it was out of a dream, a car burst through the cloud and raced toward the finish line with some of the white smoke pursuing it.  I realized it was my dad’s car and got up to go right next to the pit wall and cheer him on.  When he crossed the finish line everyone rejoiced and celebrated.  He drove the car into victory lane and everybody swarmed his car.  I remember he picked me up, hugged me and told me that he almost hit about five cars as he swerved through the wreckage.  That was the last race he would finish.

            When life was at its best, catastrophe struck.  It was a rainy day and people came to watch the race anyway.  I remember my dad went up to the event organizer and told him it was too dangerous to race that day, but he ignored him.  The rain was beginning to pick up and fans huddled under umbrellas as did my mom and I.  Later, the cars lined up according to their finishing position from the last race, which meant my dad had pole position.  The cars then drove off leaving a trail of spray behind them.  The next lap, the field took the green flag and the sound of engines destroyed the quiet.  The cars went around the track to complete the first lap flawlessly.  Positions stayed the same through the first quarter of the race until everyone got comfortable with the track.  Only then people started passing each other.  The first pass that occurred was on my dad. That was when tragedy struck.  It was on the 15^th or 16^th lap when my dad was passed.  One of the cars got a run on my dad down the inside into the first corner and the driver began slide under braking because the water was beginning to puddle on the inside.  He hit my dad and he went off the track full speed into the tire barrier, over it, and down a hill, his car rolling all the way.  The corner workers rushed immediately from their spots to the smoldering wreckage.  My mom ran like a professional sprinter over the wall, across the track, and to the crash.  I got there a little after my mom and tried to get closer to the site but a corner worker held me back.  I told him, “But he’s my dad!” He said, “I’m sorry but it isn’t safe.”  I didn’t care if it was safe or not so I broke free from his grip and went to the scene and found my mom.  She looked white as a sheet and told me the ambulance had just left for the hospital and to get in the car.  We both got in the car and went to the hospital downtown.  I think it was probably quietest car ride I had ever been on and to this day still is.  We got to the hospital just as the ambulance arrived.  We followed the paramedics pushing the stretchers into the ER and were told we could go no further by one of the hospital staff until he was stable.  So we sat in the waiting room for about thirty minutes.  The doctor came in and stooped down to our level and told us that the accident was not survivable and the situation was tenuous.  He led us to his room with a brisk jog.  We came in and there he was, lying on the stretcher. My mom and I both knelt beside his bed.  Tears were beginning to well up in my eyes as I looked at him.  All my memories of him flashed before me and they were interrupted by my dad saying in a raspy voice, “John, stay strong. Be the man of the house while I’m gone. Take care of mom.”  Then he turned over to my mom and kissed her on the lips and smiled.  After that, he just lay down and sighed.  The room was silent except for the flat line of the EKG.  I burst into tears then and my mom took me in her arms.  I was 10 then.

            The funeral took place a few days later in our hometown.  All of our family members came.  Since our town is so small, word spread fast and the town had a big procession.  The pastor who did my parents wedding did my dad’s funeral and some of my dad’s friends from racing gave eulogies about him.  He was buried at the racetrack on the hill where his car landed after the crash.  No one ever mentioned the event to any one in our town.

            It had been 8 years since my dad died.  My mom was in a state of depression and couldn’t work so I was bringing in the money for the two of us by working at the local hardware store.  Everyone knew not to talk about the incident so life was good.  Then one day, I was just at the front desk answering questions and running the cash register until a heavy set man wearing a black dress shirt and pants burst through the door and said in an excited tone, “You’re Ray Douglas’ son!”  The store went silent and several people in line put their heads in their hands and shook their heads.  One lady even started to cry.  I gave him this look of ‘why would you do that?’ and it looked like he shrunk down three times and he left the store without saying a word.  I decided to follow him out and confront him outside the store.  I asked him, “Who do you think you are that you can mention that?” 

“I didn’t know.”

“Why are you even here?”

“I was down at the racetrack and I saw that tombstone and I asked someone nearby and said, ‘Who is this?’ The man I asked said he was some racecar driver who died a while back and his family lives not too far from here. So out of curiosity I just had to find out where you live and here I am.”

 “Why would even be out here in the middle of nowhere?”

“Well, like I already said, I was at the race looking for young talent. I recruit drivers for a racing team so I was wondering if you were interested.”

“No way am I going to do that!”

“Well please, just take my card and call me if you’re interested.”

I grabbed the card out of his hands and stormed back into the store.  I took a quick glance at the card to see what it said.  The card said Kingsley Motorsports Phil Kingsley, Owner (302-739-1673). I put the card in my pocket and returned back to work.  

            That evening, I never mentioned the encounter with this man to my mom. We ate dinner at the table in silence under the amber glow of the light above us. It had always been silent at dinner time since my dad died. After dinner, we each went our separate ways. I washed the dishes and went upstairs to my room. I lay on my bed and took out the card. I thought for a long time about calling or not. When I finally made the decision to call it was around 11:00 PM. So I went to bed and decided to call the next day. When I got to work, I was the first person there as usual. It was 30 minutes before the store opened so I called Mr. Kingsley.

“Hello?” I said.

“Yes” He answered.

“Yeah, this is John, the guy you talked to yesterday.”

“Oh, hi John.”

“Look, sorry about snapping at you when you mentioned my dad.”

“”No don’t be. I understand.”

“Ok thanks. I’d like to take up the offer you gave to try out for your team.”

“Really? That’s great!”

“Where and when should I meet you?”

“Well when are you available?”

“I’m off of work tomorrow.”

“Great! Meet me at the local track. I’ll have a car and contract waiting there for you.”

“Ok, see you then!”

“Bye.”

            We both hung up. I must’ve been pretty excited because when some of the other employees saw me, they asked why I looked so happy. I just said I had a life changing conversation. When I got home, I had to tell my mom. The excitement I had inside was like the excitement that you have to tell everyone in order to keep it from getting out of control. So I told my mom. It was the biggest mistake of my life.

“Hey mom, guess what?” I asked.

“What?” She responded.

“I got a testing session with a racing team.”

            She stopped what she was doing and gave me this wide eyed look of disbelief. I’ll never forget what she said to me that day.

“Get out. Take all your things with you too.” She said sternly.

“Why?” I inquired.

“I already watched my husband die to that barbaric sport. I don’t want to watch that happen to my son.”

            So I went to my room, grabbed some clothes, mementos, pictures, a pillow, and a blanket and rode my bike to the hardware store and slept in the employee break room. It had been an eventful day for me.

            The next day, I woke up sore and hungry. I hadn’t had dinner yesterday so I went to the local diner for breakfast. After breakfast, I got on my bike, and rode to the track. When I got there, there was Mr. Kingsley with car behind him. He welcomed me and told me to sit down at the portable table he brought with him.

“So, how’s it going?” he said as he sat down.

“Pretty bad actually.” I replied.

“What happened?”

“My mom kicked me out of the house for telling her I got a test session with you guys.”

“Oh, that’s not good.”

“I know.”

“Anyways, do you want to get out on the track?”

“Sure!”

“Ok, there’s a suit and helmet in the truck and meet me out in the pit-lane.”

            So I went and put the suit and met him at the pit-lane. The car was a 1961 Datsun 240 Z that was converted to a racecar. He told me go around the track and set the best lap time I could within 20 minutes. So I got in the car, and set off. I never drove on this track before. Heck, I hadn’t even driven a car before, so the whole thing was new to me. The first corner was scary for me. I had no idea how much to turn or the amount of throttle to apply. Then I thought back to when I was little watching my dad race. All of a sudden, I knew the course! I knew when to brake, when to turn and accelerate, and soon enough, I was flying! The laps just kept ticking away. When twenty minutes was up, I pulled in and Mr. Kingsley looked stunned. I got out of the car and asked him how I did.

He replied, “Well, if you consider breaking the lap record by 15 seconds good, I’d say so!”

“I really broke the lap record?!” I exclaimed.

“Yes, you did. After that performance, I’d suggest you sign that contract.”

            After I signed the contract, I went to get on my bike to go when he asked if I needed a place to stay. I said I was going to the hardware store but he insisted. So I put my bike in the racing truck, got in the passenger seat and we were off.

            We drove for about an hour or so until we came to a stop at a gargantuan, modern looking warehouse way out and away from any form of civilization. All you could see were plains with long, flowing grass waving in the breeze and a few hills off in the distance. Phil skillfully drove the truck into the garage and parked right next to a fairly large car lift. I got out of the truck and was amazed at how high tech and luxurious it was inside. There was a kitchen, bathroom, lounge, break room, office, and work area. There was even a small mobile crane inside. The whole thing was a spectacular sight.

“Wow!” I said, “This place is amazing!”

“Yes, it really is,” he replied proudly, “It took 5 years to build.”

“I can see that.”

“You want something to eat? It’s around lunch time.”

“Sure!”

            Phil went over to the kitchen and opened up the fridge. I went and sat down in the lounge and as soon as he opened the fridge, he grabbed two turkey subs. It felt good to be able to relax. The past few days had been very stressful for me and I was glad to have a place to call home. After eating the sub, I was very satisfied and without even trying, my eyes closed and I fell asleep.

            I woke up and the garage was dark. Looking through some of the windows, I saw it was night and went back to bed. Then, I woke up to the start of a very loud engine. I jumped out of my seat and saw Mr. Kingsley in an opened wheeled car laughing and laughing. Now fully awake, I went over to the car to look at it. It was quite a feat of engineering and looked fairly used. I asked him where he got it.

“Well, this car was crashed in last year’s Indy 500.I was watching at the time. I was looking for an Indy car to race so I went to the team’s pit box and asked them if they would be willing to sell it. They said the car was totaled and wouldn’t be much but, I bought it anyway. The team brought the heaping deformed piece of metal to my shop a week later. Got it for $5,000.” He told me.

“That’s a pretty good price.” I said.

“Never regretted spending that $5,000.”

            I looked at the car again and couldn’t tell that it had been wrecked.

“The Indy 500 is in 3 weeks and I was wondering if you could drive and obviously you can,” he said.

I stared and said, “Is that why you recruited me?”

“Yes that’s the reason. You seemed to have that fire in your eyes that all the other drivers have…but it wasn’t the same. Yours was special.”

“Well I sure will drive for you!”

“Great, then get you ready for some practice.”

“But there isn’t a track close to here.”

“Don’t think too fast.” And he opened the door and there was a racetrack right outside behind the ware house. I couldn’t believe it until he gave me the helmet and suit I used at the tryout and he said, “These are yours to keep now.”

            I went to go put them on and went outside to the track. Phil said he would have to call up some of the pit crew to get the car running and monitor statistics so I would have to wait. That gave me time to learn the track. I looked around the shop for a map of some sort while we waited for the other guys arrive. The map I found was the original blueprint for when they were designing the track. I sat down and took a look at it for a while, studying the harder parts of the track. When they arrived, I got in the car and Mr. Kingsley explained the controls of the car to me.

“The car is very touchy and loose when the tires are cold,” He warned, “We’re warming up tires right now and the track is going to be pretty warm so you’ll have plenty of grip.”

“Thanks for telling me,” I replied.

“This is totally different than a Datsun John. Just stay alert and you’ll be fine.”

            With that, they started the car, I warmed up the engine and I was off.

            I spent the first few times around the track just getting a feeling for the car and the track. After the course had become familiar to me and the car also, I started to pick up the pace and start pushing a little. The faster I went, the more grip the car had so I was able to go even faster. By the time I completed my 20^th practice lap, I was flying. Through some of the corners I wasn’t losing control of the car, but the tires were squealing and whining like a bunch of little girls at a slumber party. I was going through one of those corners when the car just let go and spun off the track. The car was way off in the grass but I was able to limp it back to the garage. I got out and looked at the rear tires. The right tire was blown out. I looked over at Mr. Kingsley and he was laughing. I gave him a puzzled look and he replied,

“You are a child prodigy! Those lap times you were pulling out there were amazingly quick. They were unbelievably fast.”

“I really was that quick?”

“Yes you were. Come on, you deserve a break. Just a couple of these practices and you’ll for sure do well in the Indy 500.”

            Three weeks passed. So had many hours of seat time and laps around that track. Pretty soon, we were on our way to Indianapolis. We got there the day before practice to find a garage and hotel to stay in. After Mr. Kingsley and I had put the car away and made reservations in a hotel, we went out to a local restaurant. The food there was homemade and very good. We had a good time talking and talked about the race and what strategy we might use. After dinner, we went to our respective hotel rooms and went to bed.

            The next morning, the team and I were at the track bright and early to get the car ready for practice. We were the first team to get out on the track. The track was very easy. There were 4 left hand turns. Not that hard I thought. I was wrong.

             It’s extremely hard to go flat out on turns that are barely banked but I learned this track just like I learned the test track. Get a feel for the track and the car, and then start pushing your speed. Once again it worked. I began to go faster and faster. Later, I stopped and pulled into the garage and got out.

“You’re doing a great job out there John,” He said, “Second fastest lap time!”

“Wow, I didn’t I’d be up there right away!” I replied surprisingly.

“Keep up the good work!”

            The practice sessions went on for two more days. Our team tried different set ups, strategies, and possible scenarios. Then qualifying day came, the day all the preparation and testing came down to.

“You ready for this?” Mr. Kingsley asked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” I said as I got situated in the car.

            Fans were clambering into the stands and the teams were moving equipment to their pit boxes. We parked our car in our pit box and waited for the three rounds of knockout qualifying to begin. Our team didn’t go out first. We waited some of the other teams to post lap times. After about 20 minutes, I started up the engine and set off. I had experienced traffic before during practice but not enough to be comfortable with it. Doing the best I could to stay away from other cars, I set the best time I could. I pulled into the pits and looked at my time. Third best was enough to get me through to the next round.

            This time, I went out right away when there was no traffic to set a good time. After a couple laps, I stopped the car in pit lane as others were leaving. Pretty soon, their times were coming in but I was still on top. At the end of this round, I remained in first and advanced to the next round.

            To be able to be this far in my first professional race weekend is a real gift. Following the same strategy, I went out first again and stayed out the whole time. My times kept decreasing the longer I went for. After a while, the flagman wove the checkered flag signifying the session was over. Returning to the pits, I saw that my team was in awe.

“You got pole position!” Phil exclaimed, “You got pole position on your first try at Indy with some the best drivers in the world!”

            I couldn’t believe it until I looked at the pit board. It said: DOUGLAS P1. My jaw dropped. A giant smile took over my face. All of a sudden, I was yelling with joy at my qualification.

            Later that day, our team celebrated at a fancy restaurant and went to bed early for the race tomorrow. As I looked at the ceiling, trying to fall asleep, I couldn’t fathom that I was kicked out of my home about a month ago and how my life had gone from terrible, to a wish come true. While I was thinking about that, my eyes shut and I fell asleep.

            Today was the big race. I woke up nervous, but excited. After getting dressed, I walked down to the lobby and waited for everyone to come and meet me there. Once we were all there, we left for the track. We got to the garage and made some last minute adjustments on the car and wheeled it out to the track where the cars were gridding up. The number one spot was still open where our car was to go. I got in, buckled the seatbelt and started the car. The pace car pulled out of the pit lane and the field began to roll.

            It felt odd going at such a slow speed on a track this fast. You really get to take in the scenery. After two laps behind the pace car, the lights were out and the car dove into the pit lane.

            This was the moment where a fraction too late of getting on the gas could cost you the race. This was the moment where reflexes are tested. This was the moment that allies are no longer allies but the track becomes a battlefield. The green flag waved. The sound of 33 engines combusting gasoline and being exhausted through different lengths and sizes of tubing created an aroma of sound through the air. I quickly created a large gap between me and the second place car almost instantly. All the pit stops were flawless. There was only one yellow flag during the race and it was at the 5 laps left mark. By the time we got back to racing there were two laps left. The green flag waved again but I didn’t get a good start this time. Bobby Unser roared into the lead right past me. When the white wove though, I was right on his tail. There was nowhere I could pass him on that lap.

Until turn 4.

            I was rounding the last left-hand, slightly banked corner onto the long front straightaway.  There was only one car in front of me.  Out of my peripheral vision, I could see my team leaning over the pit wall with anticipation and the crowds standing up, but my focus was on the car ahead.  My foot was mashed into the accelerator.  Then, drafting my opponent, I used my newfound speed to slingshot around him.   Just as soon as I was side by side with him, I crossed the brick finish line as the flag man motioned the checkered flag.  The race was finished.  I was trying to process what had just happened.  Had I lost?  Was I ahead of the other car when the race was finished?  I didn’t know.  As the rest of the field finished, I went for a cool down lap as did everyone else.  As I pulled into the pit lane, my pit crew, crew chief, engineers and everyone else on my team came over to talk to me.  As they started to ask questions, the PA came on.  In a booming voice, the announcer said, “The finish of this race was too close to call.  So after much analyzing, the officials have called that John Douglas beat Bobby Unser by 0.0034 seconds!”  After that, the crowd went wild and my team picked me up, hugged me, and congratulated me.

*           *           *

“So that Anthony is how I won the Indy 500” I said.

“Cool! Can you tell me again,” He begged.

“No, I’m afraid it’s time for bed for you.”

“Oh ok grandpa. Good night!”

“Good night.”

“Just one question grandpa.’’

“What?”

“What happened to your mom?”

“Well, after I left home I never saw her again. I went back to my home after the race and visited my house. I still had the key to the house and walked inside. It hadn’t cleaned for a while. It looked abandoned. I walked into the kitchen and I saw a note on the table. It said:

Dear John,

Congratulations on your victory! I’m so proud of you! Thank you for making me realize that I need to forget the past and look forward to what’s ahead. You really are a great motivator. Remember, I’ll always love you no matter what.

Love, Mom”

“So did you see her again?”

“The last time I saw her was at her funeral. I read that note at her funeral. Now, it’s the only thing I have left of her.”

“Oh, ok. That’s all I wanted to ask. Goodnight!”

“Goodnight again.”

Speak Final Essay

What Happens to Melinda?

      What happens to Melinda after the end of the book? Does she go back to her old self like she was at the beginning of the year, or does she remain confident and gain more friends? Events throughout the book can reflect the results of her future.

Her parents are most likely cheating on each other as is said on page 72 when mom gets home close to 2 in the morning and dad gets home before sunup so that’s not a good sign. In fact it’s more of a pre-cursor to divorce. Melinda could be effected by the confusion, anger, and sadness caused by a divorce. If her parents did get a divorce, Melinda might need emotional support from friends through that time therefore causing her to gain friends. Gaining friends would give her a sense of security and comfort along with a better reputation than just being the “party spoiler” from the summer.

Events that happened summer before 9^th Grade began also could affect her friends. The second to last chapter talks about when Andy Evans tries to rape Melinda again in the closet. She screams for help but is able to stop Andy. When she opens the door, Nicole and the La Crosse team see what was going on. From then on, I think Melinda has Nicole on her side because she saw what happened and feels she should be there for Melinda. Even one friend would be good to give her that sense of security and protection.

In my opinion, Melinda’s life and relationships will improve and help her become more confident. Instead of being behind the social tree, she’ll be on it.