A Bird That Cannot Fly

Penguins are marine animals. They are black and white. They cannot fly and they live mostly in Antarctica. Their wings look like flippers. They mostly feed on fish, krill, squid, and other forms of sea life. Not all live in the cold. Some live in temperate climates. The Galápagos penguin lives near the equator. It is the only penguin that lives north of the equator. The average weight of this unique penguin is 5.5 pounds and is nineteen inches long. Their predators are snakes, crabs, hawks, and owls.

On average, adults are about three feet, seven inches tall and weigh seventy-seven pounds or more. The smallest penguin is sixteen inches and weighs 2.2 pounds. Larger penguins usually live in colder climates while smaller ones live in the temperate regions. History shows that some can even grow to be as tall as a human and weigh as much as one. 

One of my favorite animals is the penguin. I think they are very beautiful. Watching them dive into the water amazes me. However, the smaller penguins do not dive too deep. They catch their prey near the surface. Usually they are under for only about a minute or two. Once the female lays her eggs, the male then has to protect it and keep it warm until it hatches while the female hibernates. These eggs are usually smaller than other species. They are very unique in many ways. Lately, penguins are becoming endangered. I would hate to see the species die off completely.

Let It Go

“Don't let your past hold you back in life. Realize that you've already survived and defeated your past. It still hurts, but you won that fight.” –Sonya Parker

This quote means a lot to me. Throughout my life I have been through a lot. Deaths, heartbreaks, and even school have all taken a toll on me. I have realized that my past does not matter because it did not make it to my future for a reason. You cannot dwell on your past. I have learned that if you do, then you may never be happy because you become worried about what others think or if it will happen again. It may be hard to move on but it is only healthy for you. If you continue to worry about the past then you may become depressed and not want to do anything. 

I tend to care too much about my past. I do not want others to judge me upon it. I should worry more about my future and fulfilling my goal of becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. I am currently an STNA and I could not have done it without my teachers’ help. Everything I’ve been through in my past has motivated me to do better. I see a bunch of my old friends getting hooked on drugs. I do not want to be like that. They live in the past. These people seem to not care if they make anything of themselves. It has been a rocky journey so far and I know it will not get any easier but all I can do is try my hardest and hope for the best.

Old Yet Beautiful

The image of the day is the Angel Oak Tree. A massive hurricane back in 1989, called Hurricane Hugo, could not make the tree fall. It is located on John Island, close to Charleston, South Carolina. It is sixty-six and a half feet tall and two hundred, twenty-six years old. Some researches suggest that the tree may have started growing 1,500 years ago. It is one hundred, sixty feet in diameter.

The longest limb is one hundred, eighty-seven feet long. Other limbs have merged with the ground like roots and many wire cables are required to keep the massive limbs from crushing under their own weight. It has survived hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and even humans. It is still holding up strong. It is a tourist attraction and has its very own park. 

I would like to go visit this beautiful tree one day. My favorite tree is a Willow Tree because I think they are pretty. The Angel Oak Tree definitely comes in second place on my list. It is very unique and there is no other tree out in nature like it. No matter how hard one tried, they will never be able to form a tree in this manner. Only nature can create these beautiful structures. Viewing hours are from nine to five, Monday through Saturday and one to five on Sunday.  It has been owned by the city of Charleston since 1991 and they have kept high maintenance on it since then. There are many organizations to help save the tree.

Not a Fish, But a Star

These majestic echinoderms are no longer called ‘starfish’ because they are not actually a fish. Their name has been changed to ‘sea star’. There are 2000 species of sea stars. They are closely related to sand dollars and sea urchins. Some live in tropical habitats while others live at the bottom of the cold sea floor. Usually you will see a sea star with five arms. However, there are some with ten, twenty, or even forty arms. 

They have bony, fossilized skin which protects them from predators. There are no sea stars that live in fresh water. Only few live in brackish water. These creatures are well known to regenerate their limbs. It takes approximately a year for this to occur. A lost arm can grow into a new sea star if it has some part of the central ring included.  

Sea stars do not have brains. Instead, they have nerves that transmit messages to them. They do not have blood so they rely on water to pump their legs. Sea stars eat mollusks, clams, coral, and dying fish. They eat clams and other creatures with shells by opening their shell and inserting their stomach to digest the critter. Some sea stars are poisonous like the crown of thorns, the sun star, the spiny sun star and the leather star. What make these poisonous are their spines. They have tiny suction cupped feet to help them stick to objects. They breathe through these feet due to them having a water vascular system.

Where Has Time Gone?

“Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again.” - Christine Gallego. 

This quote is very meaningful to me. It says that if one does not live every day to the fullest then you might miss out on something that you can never experience again. Just like the song “Don’t Blink” by Kenny Chesney, time goes by very fast. I can relate to this song and quote because I can remember like it was yesterday, how I just started my freshman year of high school and now I am approaching the end of my junior year and soon to be a senior. 

I sit back and think how much I can’t wait to be out of high school, but then again I think about all the memories and I know I will miss it very much. One thing I have learned from all my teachers I’ve had so far during high school is to not give up on my dreams. I know it will be a long, hard journey to fulfill my dream as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner but I am ready for the challenge.

If I could give any advice to an incoming freshman, it would be to not worry about the past because time is too short. All the drama needs to be left in middle school because once you get to high school it’s a whole different story. They’ll be just like me one day, looking back, wishing that it was still their freshman year of high school. No matter how much I say I hate school, I know I will miss all my teachers and, more importantly, all the friends I have made throughout the years.