Free Topic. Write Freely!One of the most diff icult topics to ever write

about is a free topic. The freedom given is enormous. The guarantees given are nonexistent. The inspiration it gives is clouded. One does not know where one stands with a free topic. It is a question mark. It is a pathless wood.

One tries to please – but does not know how to please. One tries to excel – but does not know how to excel. The free topic is one of the most frightening topics ever given to a student. Yet, on the other hand, it is one of the most coveted, at least when not in exam setting. The freedom it gives is exhilarating, enticing but bloodcurdling.

Is it not strange? The student spends half the year longing for the chance to write a “free topic” composition but when the “free topic” assignment is given, the student hopes for the good old conventional composition prompts once more. The nestling spends most of the time in the nest longing for a chance to f ly. Yet, when his mother mercilessly banishes him from the nest, or when he is falling down, accelerating towards the ground at ten ms-2, he wants the safety of his nest. At the moment the ground gets closer, he longs for the monotonous life in the nest. However, what is life for when one sitting in the nest and waiting for food to be stuffed into your beak?

All through childhood, children long for adolescence. When they are about to reach adolescence, they realize that they miss their childhood yet there is no way to gain that back. So all through adolescence, the teenagers put their hope on adulthood. Once reaching adulthood, ironically, the young adults long for experiencing adolescence again.

Is that not the greatest tragedy of growing up? That one is never satisf ied with his or her current state?

Yet, what is the meaning of life if one spends it all by just sitting on a ledge? What is the meaning of life if one goes nowhere and does nothing with it? What is the use of freedom if one fears it? What is the use of a blank page if one does not dare to star t the f irst stroke of the brush?

Falls are created to be embraced. “Free topic” compositions are invented to be written, and written well. In falling, there is a meaning: daring to live to the fullest.

To embrace the unknown is to embrace life. To live is to embrace the fall and dare to dream.

So I sit down and write my “free topic” composition and hope to write it well. I will sit down and write it without a second thought, without doubt, without lingering on the edge of the ledge: for this is the only way to write, and the only way to live.

Lai Wun Chi 5P

The Story of EarthA little boy found some plasticine, Brown, unattractive and raw.For some reason that he couldn’t def ine,He shaped it into a ball.

Manifold tinctures of the crayons the boy owns,Trapped him in shilly-shally deeply.The embodiment of his negligenceSquashed the ball rashly.

The sorrow borrowed the crayons,And embraced the ball with blue.The little boy daubed it with his favourite green, Like ingraining a tattoo.

Being was bestowed.The ball was then named ear th.The little boy fell into raptures with his masterpiece,Until there comes his evil baby brother’s bir th.

The devilkin smudged the ball with his mind,The blackness instantly snaked down the ball,Which reared the seed of devilry in disguise,Covering up the luminous times of yore.

The little boy is hear tbroken,None of the beauty he created ever purif ied the hear ts.He cried and cried,But no one ever heard his voice.

Cheung Venetia 4S

The term “ravishing” is not being exaggerated when it is used to describe the beauty of Russia. With the magnif icent Saint Basil’s Cathedral, the grandiose

Hermitage and the superlative St. Isaac’s Cathedral, Russia is undoubtedly one of the most captivating places on Ear th.

My family and I went to Moscow in late July and visited many magnif icent Eastern Or thodox Churches, including the illustrious Saint Basil’s Cathedral. The Eastern Or thodox Churches stored many religious paintings and sculptures of the Medieval Times, including the famous painting of Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. Coff ins containing archpriests dating back to the f ifteenth century could also be found there, which I found them creepy.

While we were being captivated by the s tunning beauty of the Saint Basil’s Cathedral, this masterpiece had a terrible history behind it. The tyrannical king Ivan IV ordered two architects, Barma and Postnik Yakovlev to build this church. Although it pleased the Russian king immensely as he beheld the beauty of the church after its construction, the poor architects were not spared from the cruel clutch of the terrible king. They were blinded so they could not re-create this masterpiece. I pitied the architects and felt saddened for the people under the tyranny in Russia during the reign of Ivan IV and other ruthless tyrants.

We f lew to St. Petersburg by plane on the four th day and visited the superlative St. Isaac’s Cathedral and the grandiose Hermitage. It was the most astounding when I f irst beheld the beauty of the interior of the St. Isaac’s Cathedral. It was very colour ful, contradicting the dim ex terior. Unlike the other Eastern Or thodox Churches, St. Isaac’s Cathedral was constructed in Renaissance architecture style. With gigantic marble pillars, effulgent sculptures and exquisite paintings, St. Isaac’s Cathedral was my favourite church. Although I have seen many of the paintings in my history book, it was never theless a breathtaking sight to behold these awe-inspiring paintings. With a realistic circular painting and por traits of the divinity, the interior of the central dome was the most marvelous.

I f inally understood the over excessive wealth of the imperial family when I f irst s tepped into the imposing Hermitage, which was a palace reconstructed as a museum. The Hermitage has stored masterpieces all over the world, including exquisite mosaics, realistic sculptures and renaissance paintings. The f loors, doors and ceilings were decorated with gold carvings and there were gigantic lamps hanging from the ceilings. As a result, many rooms were basically covered in resplendent gold. There were rooms storing the por traits of the royal family, famous ar tworks and

sculptures. There was a marble sculpture of the almighty Jupiter, the Roman God of sky and thunder. There were also realistic sculptures of animals, including goats and dolphins. However, most of the sculptures were focused on the beauty of the human body. Therefore, most sculptures were naked in which I dislike. Meanwhile, the effulgent golden Peacock Clock left a great impression on my mind. The majestic peacock stood on a tree stump accompanied by an adorable baby owl and a delicate chicken. The museum also stored many splendid cutlery used by the royalties. However, what I least expected to see in this golden museum were the Egyptian mummies. The mummies were brown, thin and in my opinion extremely unpleasant to look at.

Although Russia was indeed a very captivating and ravishing place, there were undoubtedly many tyrannical kings. The horrendous his tory of the Saint Basil’s Cathedral and the excessive money used in constructing the great palaces are both witnesses in the past tyranny of the imperial family.

On a f inal note, this trip truly enhanced my knowledge in Russian culture, ar ts and history. My family and I had a lot of fun there and enjoyed the sightseeing very much. Russia is indeed a ravishing place!

Lo Wing Fung Abbie 3P

BELILIOS PATCHWORK

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A trip to Russia

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A Warning Letter From A CockroachDear humankind,

Since I am in charge of the Great Cockroach Kingdom, I would like to express our feelings on behalf of all my nationals.

First of all, we know that our appearance do not please you, but we are born this way. Who'd like to be endowed with a bad-looking appearance that scares everyone of f? Do not be prejudiced agains t cockroaches simply due to our appearance. Do not trample our self-respect. There must be something that is as impor tant as beauty.

Have you ever tried to understand our feelings? You may think that we are sinful because we always disturb you, make a mess at your homes and eat the food that you've paid. Listen. We do this because we are starving. Everyone evicts us. We cannot even get a mouthful of food. We've been hungry for a long period. Every species has their own domains and their rights of living. It seems to you that our living environment is awful and disgusting, but for us, nothing can be better. This is our habitat. We do not want to scare you, so we come out to work at night as far as possible. However, you still use those cruel means to kill us. You do not even try to understand us.

Since we cockroaches are enlightened, we prefer to use words to persuade you f irst. I do not want cockroaches and humankind to be sworn enemies. I hope that the enmity between us can be eradicated. That's the limit of our patience. Do try to understand us. If you do not want to do so, we swear not to stop. We will keep sight of you everywhere at every moment. We will use any possible and unexpected ways to scare you.

I hope you can understand us. If not, beware of us. Today is 21st December, 2012. It may be the end of your world.

Yours faithfully,

Bill ChanPresident of the Great Cockroach Kingdom

Tsui Yuen Ying 2S

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan If someone told you that you were supernatural, how would you react? Percy Jackson, who regards himself as a mundane teenager, with ADHD and stepfather issue like many others, faces similar problems. One day, he defensively “vaporized” his monster mathematics teacher, Mrs. Dodds. It marks the beginning of all the craze: Percy is accused by the God of Olympus, Zeus, for stealing a lightning bolt which has devastating power. Dispute among gods is ranging and an imminent war is ahead. Percy has no time to register the fact that his father is the all-powerful God of the Sea, Poseidon, before he has to set off with Annabeth and Grover as a trio to battle all kinds of monsters: Furies, Medusa; enter the intimidating Underworld to confront his uncle, Hades.

The boy is standing with his body half-submerged in water, clutching a dazzling bolt in one hand and aiming it somewhere ahead; the night is dark, a huge thunderstorm swirling and threatening to strike- it was the quirky book cover that drew my attention. Who could have predicted an action-packed, innovative fantasy mingled with Greek mythology? Who could have expected the mundane boy in a blue T-shir t to be a powerful half-blood who is capable of manipulating the fate of the world?

The book cer tainly opens the doors to a world of magic and fantasy. Rick Riordan’s vivid description of the supernatural world with creatures, such as stayrs, centaurs, ten-feet-tall gods, and weapons including Riptide- a ball pen which can transform into a lethal sword, f lying shoes and Yankees cap that gives wearer invisibility lead readers to the daring imagination and quest with the characters. It is the way that Riordan meticulously sculpts the fantasy world blended into mysterious Greek myth that can be successfully visualized by the readers. Riordan’s writing techniques make the book such a captivating read.

Friendship is an impor tant theme in the book. Being a new “half-blood” (half-god, half-human), Percy is bewildered and f lustered. He is uncer tain of his identity and unfamiliar with the new world. To make things worse, he was assigned a quest that could tear the world apar t if it goes wrong. For tunately, Annabeth and Grover offer him suppor t and assistance. Together, the trio travels widely to uncover the lost lightning bolt and the conspiracy lying beneath. “Unity is strength”. They could not have won over Medusa, a snake-headed demon, and got out of the Underworld, alive, without collaborating with one another. The mutual understanding and precious friendship between them can never be replaced. “A friend in need is a friend indeed.” True friends, like the trio, stands hand in hand in times of diff iculties and help each other out.

One of the most impressive plots is when Grover, Annabeth and Percy are evacuating the Underworld. Under the unfor tunate circumstances, one of them must stay behind. It is touching to see three of them are willing to sacrif ice in order to protect the others. Finally, Grover reminds them that it is his position of a “protector” of a half-blood to fulf ill the duty. “If life is a stage, everyone has its own role to play”. The book urges readers to bear in mind that in reality, there are only few protagonists, while others play suppor ting roles. All roles are equally impor tant and interdependent.

The relationship between all-powerful Olympus gods and half-bloods is fresh and intriguing. Being rulers of the world, the Olympus gods are bust with the impor tant matters such as power struggle, battling the evil, etc. Consequently, they have little time to spend with their mor tal children. On the other hand, half-bloods do not enjoy quiet and peaceful lives. They are forced to learn to f ight against monsters and survive parlous missions at a very young age. Some heroes, like Annabeth Chase, are considerate enough to understand their parents’ position and embrace the unchangeable reality. Others, like Luke Crestfallen, work off their resentment and grievances towards the gods by joining the evil force and tearing down Olympus. When in the same condition facing similar problems, different people resor t to distinct solutions. Which should be the mature, wise and appropriate resolution? As the old saying goes, “one false step brings everlasting grief”. It is indeed crucial to consider thoroughly before making decisions.

The story also guides readers to ref lect upon their responsibilities. Percy hasn’t even stolen the lightning bolt but he is liable for f inding it in order to prevent the eruption of the war of the gods. No one enjoys precarious quests with numerous near-death experiences, but Percy understands his position and responsibility in making things right. In real life, it is also true that sometimes, we have to sacrif ice ourselves for the greater good. Being a member of the society, we are granted responsibilities together with rights. We should learn from Percy’s self less act in contributing to the society.

Being an outcast means not being accepted in a community. Percy Jackson can be qualif ied as an outcast in the Camp Half-Blood. This is mainly due to the fact that his father, Poseidon, made an oath many years ago about not giving bir th to mor tal children. According to Poseidon, Percy’s existence is a “mistake”. When Percy f irst arrives at the camp, he is made fun of and not respected. However, people’s attitude towards him is changed after his completion of the quest. This shows that respect is earned and should not be taken for granted. Should we ever feel unaccepted in a society, we should not be discouraged. Time and effor t will be able to alter others’ perception towards us.

“Even strength must bow to wisdom sometimes” is one of Riordan’s quotes in the book. At some point, Percy is dubious about his ability and dwells on his lack of skills and strength in battle. However, Annabeth reminds him to utilize his tactics to win over brute strength. This is how Percy survives his disastrous duel with the War God, Ares. Not only is this moral applicable in war, but also in our daily lives. A thought-out plot allows us to achieve our goals more eff iciently and effectively. It allows us to divide up effor t and multiply effects.

The book also introduces the idea of the “fatal f law”. When crafting the personality trait of his characters, Rick Riordan meticulously included one great weakness in each of his heroes. These weaknesses are dangerous weapons that may be taken advantage of by the enemy. These weaknesses can bring about the fall of a hero if not attended to. Percy Jackson’s fatal f law, as revealed in the later episodes, is exorbitant personal loyalty. He would sacrif ice himself or the world to save his loved ones. In Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Percy’s loyalty towards his mother becomes his strength and motivation in his dangerous quest. How would this nobility become a “shor tcoming” that hinders him in the future? How would the desire of saving people he cares about raze the world? Never theless, the story leads readers to ref lect upon their moral blemishes. Will we be daring enough to admit our weaknesses? Will we be able to avoid making lethal mistakes bring about by our fatal f law? These questions are cer tainly wor thy of pondering.

In Greek my thology, Apollo is the God of Prophecy and Healing. Rick Riordan tactfully included prophecies in his stories. "You shall go west, and face the god who has turned, You shall f ind what was stolen, and see it safely returned, You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end." The element of prophecy creates suspense in the story and paves ways for twists and turns. It is enter taining to see how heroes bravely deal with prophecies which foretell doomed fates. In fact, modern technology and science results in the decline in number of people who believe in for tune-telling, augury, omens, etc. Never theless, it is diff icult for us to image how our ancestors lived in a world of foretold future, which is where superstitious beliefs told many of them about. Some say that knowing the future allows people to prepare themselves, while others panic for things that have not yet happened! So, would you rather live in a world with or without prophecies?

Why can’t people turn invisible with a cap? Why should the use of shoes be conf ined to the ground, but not the sky? Why can’t a ball pen transform into a sword? In my opinion, Rick

Riordan is no less than a scientist who is full of novel ideas and is daring enough to experiment with them. Constantly asking why things are always the way they

allow him to create, but not dwell on regularities. This is Rick Riordan’s key to success and explains why Percy Jackson and the Lightning

Thief is capable of standing out among its kind as well.

Not only i s the adventure over whelmed with unexpectedness, but also inspires readers in a crea tive way. Thr illing,

breathtaking and yet sobering, the book is recommended to all fantasy lovers

and devotees.

Lee Ka Sen Florence 4P

CONTRIBUTORSStories, Quotes and EssaysChan Oi Yan Michelle 4HChan Hoi Kiu 6PLai Wun Chi 5PLee Ka Sen Florence 4PLo Wing Fung Abbie 3PTam Wai Chung 3PTsui Yuen Ying 2S

Art AttackLam Tze Ching Clarice 5KTang Hong Ting 5K

Editor-in-chiefYu Wei-yi, Winnie

EditorsChan Hai Ming, MargaretChan Hoi KeiLau Chung TatWong Man Wing Anna

PoemsChan Sze Wing 1PChan Ying Chi 3KCheung Venetia 4SKoh Wing Ching 1SLam Tin Yan Grace 1SLee Sze Ngo 1SMok Yui Hay 1PNg Cheuk Ying 1PPoon Suen Yee 1PWong Kelley Suet Yau 1SWong Nga Lam 1S

Header DesignerSze Yik Ying 6S

IllustratorsHo Yui Sum Haylie 3PTam Wai Ka Vanessa 3P

This drawing is mainly based on a famous Japanese painting called Kanagawa Oki Nami Ura. The waves are full of movements and I like the style of the ar twork very much – precise and powerful. In the picture, the billows of the ocean are trying to swallow everything that comes into their way – in this case, tins. There are buildings in the tins por traying different cities and creating an image of f loating islands. People living in tiny cities are f ighting against the strong waves inside their tiny hometowns.

I used bold lines in the work to imitate the Japanese comic-style drawing technique. In addition, I used many dots to show the details of shadows. This is another way to highlight the tone and show the aesthetic perception of the picture.

Tang Hong Ting 5K

LITERATURE LOOP

‘Kill the pig. Spill the blood. Bash her in.’ This monosyllabic and crude chanting, ritualised during hunting and tribal dancing, is enough to transform the boys into a herd of savages with no individual identity, with the sole purpose of ‘squeeze[ing] and hurt[ing]’ in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. The power of language is not to be underestimated, for when it is manipulated aptly by a totalitarian government, be it verbal or written language, one’s scope of thought and perception towards the government can be controlled while the ruling of such government can be strengthened indefinitely, as demonstrated in the dystopia created by George Orwell in Nineteen Eighty-Four.

The most signif icant manipulation of language by The Par ty, the totalitarian government in Nineteen Eighty-Four, is the replacement of Oldspeak (English) with Newspeak, which aims to control thoughts by simplifying language. Newspeak is a ‘revised’ version of English in which words and grammar are constantly simplif ied. Clusters of words with similar meaning are boiled down to one single word, its stronger version expressed with prefixes plus- and doubleplus- ; its opposite expressed with the prefix un-. For example, words like excellent, splendid and bad will be replaced by ‘plusgood’, ‘doubleplusgood’ and ‘ungood’ because they are merely words expressing different degrees of ‘goodness’.

Apart from the removal of shades of meaning and rigid limitation of the meaning of a single word, the creation of Newspeak is to purge the vocabulary of any words unorthodox to Ingsoc (English Socialism), the political ideology of The Party, which aims to dictate the f ictional state Oceania purely for power. Words like ‘freedom’ and ‘evil’ can no longer f ind their places in the Newspeak vocabulary. As thoughts depend on language, the abstract concepts of ‘freedom’ and ‘evil’ no longer exist without these words. People cannot think of such ideas when no words can be used to express them, which can be likened to imagining a new colour existing out of the visible spectrum of light. The introduction of Newspeak, the destruction of words, shrinks the scope of people’s thoughts. Under the rule of The Party, they can never be unorthodox, for no unorthodox concepts exist in their language. As Syme the lexicographer of the eleventh edition of Newspeak put it, ‘Newspeak is Ingsoc and Ingsoc is Newspeak’ (P. 55). With a language which only endorses its own ideology and philosophy, The Party may exercise total control over the people’s mind as it becomes the only language that can be used in documents, literature, as well as speech.

Along with the constant refining of Newspeak, literature written in Oldspeak has to be rewritten into Newspeak as well. However, this act of rewriting is nowhere near a direct translation between two languages, instead, literature of ‘Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Byron’ (P. 56) will be ‘subjected to ideological translation – that is, alteration in sense as well as language’ (P.336). Their meanings and messages may be contradictory to what they used to be. The fact that only the Newspeak versions would exist eliminates all possibilities for people to dig out any real connections with the past. To them, the existence of The Party is perpetual, which only helps to reinforce its seemingly indestructibility and thus ruling.

Doublethink, the Newspeak word for the action of holding and accepting two contradictory ideas in one’s mind at the same time, is widely used in both written and verbal languages in everyday life to help to maintain stability in The Party’s rule. The names of the four ministries and their actual jobs may demonstrate the practice of doublethink in everyday life out of the myriads of examples: Ministry of Truth modifies documents to fit in with the current stance of The Party; Ministry of Love is where the psychological and mental torture happens; Ministry of Peace is related to the continuous war Oceania waged against Eurasia or Eastasia; Ministry of Plenty controls the rations of food and goods. The names of the ministries are the complete opposites of their respective functions. In saying these names, people are using doublethink unconsciously.

To uphold its image of an infallible power, constant alterations of the past involving rations of resources, ally and enemy happen all the time. People’s ability to apply doublethink in regard to the ruling of The Party helps it to remain its façade and its power. Doublethink, a method to control thoughts, let The Par ty hide its agenda behind as people accept the changing ‘facts’ without questions while maintaining their faith in the government at the same time. This is evident when the enemy of Oceania is suddenly changed from Eurasia to Eastasia during the sixth day of Hate Week, however, ‘[it] continued exactly as before, except that the target had been changed’ (P. 189). The protagonist Winston is also impressed with how ‘the speaker had switched from one line to the other actually in midsentence, not only without a pause, but without even breaking the syntax’ (P. 189) when he got a slip of paper regarding the change of enemy. Under the ruling of The Party, Doublethink is incorporated into the lives of the people and they practice it unconsciously through speech and reading all the time. This helps The Party to remain as an infallible power, which further strengthens its power.

As mentioned above, the power of the totali tar ian government, The Party, partly comes from the continuous falsif ication of events in the Ministry of Truth. Documents are rewritten and the past is reconstructed all the time at Wins ton’s work place to f i t in with the current position of The Party. As the employees work diligently wi th the frequent use of ‘memory holes’, where old documentations are dropped into ‘the enormous furnaces which were hidden somewhere in the recesses of the building’ (P. 40) for destruction in f lames, the Ministry of Truth ensures that every single written record goes along with the current stance of The Party. Thus, everything announced by The Party is always true. Though one’s memories may tell a different tale, there are no documents left unedited that can tell the real history so there is no evidence against The Party’s falsif ication. Moreover, people’s memory fades with time and they cannot be sure if The Party is wrong or if it is just a f igment of their imagination. As Winston ponders, ‘if all records told the same tale - then the lie passed into history and became truth’ (P. 37). Through the manipulation of written language – falsif ication of documents – The Party controls the past and hence reality. In the end, it reinforces The Party’s power and gives people the impression that The Party is absolutely right at all times.

Furthermore, the repeated occurrence of written propagandas brainwashes people and leave them in a constant state of paranoia and fear. One of the always present propagandas is the national slogan ‘War is Peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength’ (P. 6). Inscribed in massive letters on the Ministry of Truth, ‘an enormous pyramidal structure […] three hundred metres into the air,’ (PP. 5-6) the slogan is impossible to miss, as Winston can still see it even though he is a kilometre away from the building. Apart from this, posters of the Big Brother’s face, who is the ‘embodiment of the Party’ (P. 272), the real or f ictional f igure of authority, captioned ‘BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU’, with the ‘black-moustachio’d face’ and ‘dark eyes’ (P. 4), is the only coloured material on the streets which seems to have ‘no colour in anything’ (P. 4). They can be seen in presumably anywhere – on the wall opposite the lift shaft of every f loor where Winston lives, on ‘every commanding corner’ (P. 4) in the streets outside. These written propagandas repeatedly pop up in people’s lives, creating a brainwashing effect so people will gradually accept and believe in The Party’s ideology unknowingly.

Moreover, the posters of ‘BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU’ everywhere remind people that they are constantly under surveillance – through telescreens, hidden microphones and the spying of the Thought Police. Nothing goes without The Party knowing and nowhere is safe, whether you are alone or with your family. Even the antique shop owner Mr. Charrington, who seems to be interested in the bygone years as much as Winston is and kindly rents him a room without a telesrceen, turns out to be a member of the Thought Police. As a result, people live in fear all the time – fear of being watched, fear of those around you for you will never know if they are a member of the Thought Police in disguise.

Language is the foundation of thoughts and communication; its power is not to be depreciated. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, people’s minds are controlled and brainwashed unconsciously in a totalitarian government, their scope of thought simultaneously narrowed as the ruling power presents itself as infallible. All these become possible due to The Party’s masterly manipulation of both written and verbal languages, namely the introduction of Newspeak, doublethink, falsif ication of documents and propagandas, which produces a combined effect that allows it to retain control over people’s mind while strengthening its rule and power at the same time.

Chan Hoi Kiu 6P

When I was brainstorming ideas for the design for the invitation card for our school’s Open Day, my dear classmates appeared in my mind. Some of them were wearing the uniforms of the four Houses and some of them were wearing different team uniforms: School Band, School Choir, Prefect, Girls Guides, Folk Dance Team and Chinese Dance Team. They all had big smiles on their faces, and holding hands to symbolize unity and harmony. I imagined them standing in our school’s main entrance greeting our guests.

Lam Tze Ching Clarice 5K

When I was creating this design, I immediately thought of the school motto – Climb High See Wide. In the past, our school moved for a few times due to different reasons. The school buildings have witnessed the foretime. That is why I incorporated the features of our four school buildings as well as our motto in the design. In addition, I used sky blue as the background, and added a glow to symbolize hope and bright future.

Lam Tze Ching Clarice 5K

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Chan Sze Wing 1P

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Ng Cheuk Ying 1P

Poon Suen Yee 1P

Koh Wing Ching 1S

Lam Tin Yan Grace 1S

Lee Sze Ngo 1S

Wong Kelley Suet Yau 1S

POETS' CORNERThe Rat’s Plea I am a shabby street-sleeper.You see a round fluffy creature, you expect to see your adorable pet.But then you see a malodorous, mucky and melancholic creatureDarting upon bins and scrounging around for leftovers.I hate myself and I am your enemy – the rat.

You try to keep me away.I manage to hide, but you beat me and set mousetraps.Why can’t I be cuddled?Why can’t I be fed?Please don’t feel sorry for me.Although I am homeless,I am free.

Wong Nga Lam 1S

Tyranny of Louis XVI Dancing along the music in the shining palace. in his golden gown, sparkling.Far away in the grayish street,Peasants would beg, steal and cheat.We desperately cried but he never replied.The wail of men haunted the melodies afar.

‘The tax increase on the Third Estate MUST be implemented immediately,’said the messenger with authority.‘Down with the Bastille! Down with the King!’ we roared.Bravely. Raging.He danced across the room.Walking slowly to his doom.

We marched towards the Bastille and struck.The royal troops stood still then tugged.Bullets and cannonballs f lew.There the Bastille fell!He fled behind his barricade.Like a prisoner escaping from his chains.The blast of guns began to fade.

We danced around with enthusiasm.‘Finally we are free!’ we sang in unison.Joy filled the meadows of France.We danced and chanted untilthe rays broke the beginning of a new day

Chan Ying Chi 3K

A Golden Key

A Star

Politics of language in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four: How is language manipulated to control one’s mentality in a totalitarian government?

The Bat’s Plea I am an invalidand much worse.You see black stuffstuck on the ceiling.

I’m certainly your enemy – the jingo, jinxed bat.You found me and expelled meI’m not as heroic as Batman.Oh, please don’t judge me by my appearancebecause you will never know how hopeless I feel.

Ng Cheuk Ying 1P

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Art Attack

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TELL-TALES

A golden keyin my handslowly turning –

opening a heavy door.

I turned it with a heavy heart.

It Click! Clock! Andit flew open.

A bright beam

of light gently shown

upon me. I stepped

into the room holdingthe golden key.What’s inside?

A room stuffed

with jewels and gems?

A pathway that led me to

the most extraordinary journey?

A chamber with unknown

danger? A long lost big

throne room? I could hardly

breathe! I prayed and opened

my eyes. Wow! The big

room is filled withmy past, present

and future.

Astar

is a in the

dark. A star is

a hope like a helping rope.

A star also enhances your chance. A star guides you

home from the far. A star always reminds you

of your dreams. A star is as beautiful

as a miracle. A star is always

bright and it lights. A star

with a dream is as nice as

ice-cream. Start searching

for your star! It is

really not

that

far.

GoldfishI own two pet goldf ish. I have had them for one year. Last week, when I was going to feed them, I witnessed a jaw-dropping scene! The water in the tank was very cloudy. I saw an enormous amount of tiny bubbles. The tank looked like a giant pool of soda. “What happened?” I thought. I remembered I had just changed the water the day before. How could it possibly become so “dir ty” after one night?

I told my mum the situation. She carefully observed the tank, keeping her eyes wide open. “Eggs!” she cheered. “Thousands of goldf ish eggs!”

My goldf ish laid eggs! I have never seen that before. How amazing! Those eggs were transparent and microscopic. It was diff icult to discover them. You really need to have squinty eyes in order to see them. Luckily, they were all “saved” by my mum.

They star ted to grow bigger and bigger – two black dots star ted to develop in each little transparent gem two days later. Yesterday, all eggs were f inally hatched. They turned into little ‘commas’. They were so CUTE!

My family and I were quite worried about them because we didn’t have experience taking care of baby f ish. (By the way, do you know that baby f ish is called fry? (plural = fries)) They brought great challenges and happiness to my family.

I don’t know whether they can grow into goldf ish under my care, but I will try my best to do it. Feeding little fries is just like conducting an experiment. I haven’t reached a conclusion yet. With my limited knowledge and tremendous care, I hope this will become a great and successful “experiment”.

Tam Wai Chung 3P

Salmon and II remember when I was small, I watched a f ilm in which there’s a world full of Daemons. A Daemon refers to one’s soul that stays by the person’s side in an animal form. It could be different shapes according to one’s personality and characteristics.

From that moment on, I keep thinking what animal would be the most suitable Daemon for me, one that resembles my selfhood.

And for thwith, I think of salmons. They have an intriguing habit, swimming back to their natal streams to spawn. They travel over 1400 km from the Pacif ic Ocean unremittingly. They strive 2100 m back to their streams, enduring the lash of the water. They leap on to the stream boldly even if their predators are secretly waiting for them upstream. They try incessantly even after the water rushes them back to the downstream.

We are alike because once I set a goal, I’d try my best to achieve it, and I wouldn’t waive even when it’s tough or toilsome. If I failed, I would bestir myself and try again, in spite of any setbacks or oppositions.

Being perseverant is good, but excessive persistence would turn out to be stubbornness, which is also our shared shor tcoming. Just like how the salmons’ mor tality increases due to their instinct to swim back to the streams incessantly, for me, sometimes I would not listen to other’s opinions and blindly insist on what I think is right, and hence, unavoidably getting myself into trouble.

Recently, I’m learning to see things from different perspectives, and be open-minded, just like how salmons grow some body par ts in the course of evolution, which will help them to survive in the vast ocean.

So if you ask what animal best describes me, I’ll say salmon, It’s the only one that is the most suitable to be my Daemon, as our characters are nearly identical with each other.

Chan Oi Yan Michelle 4H