Dear Jenna

Abigail Sharpee

Hour 3

Authors Note: This is my creative piece; a letter to Jenna from the book “Rules of the Road” by Joan Bauer.  This piece is describing the cause and effects going on throughout the book.

Dear Jenna,

            I know that life isn’t always the best and with that I can relate, but I do think your choice between going on the Road Trip or staying home, was a good one. I believe you did handle the decision well, and the result was good also; you learned some very tremendous life lessons, some of which will help you throughout your lifetime. I can relate to your decisions, yet I don’t think that you should have run away from your problems. Instead, I believe that you should have faced them before you left. 

If you handled your problems right away, you could have went on the road trip without a single worry on your mind, without stressing about all of the problems you left in Chicago. Also you are only escaping your problems for the 4 months that you are gone; for when you return home, the problems will have worsened for you to handle. I’m not trying to stress you out, but next time I would recommend facing your problems right away, rather than pushing them aside for later and procrastinating.

Also, there is another situation I would have handled a little better. It was when Mrs. Gladstone was having the first problems with her leg; I think you shouldn’t have been so soft on her, and not let Alice do the enforcing. Mrs. Gladstone is a stubborn woman and she needs to be pushed a little more in the right direction to do what’s right. For example, when you were driving her back from the doctors and you asked her if she would like to get a wheelchair or not, she said no. So you moved on even though you thought it would have been a wise decision to use the wheelchair. In the future, you should have just forced her to get the wheelchair because you knew it was the right thing to do for her health, and by not getting the wheelchair it lead to some difficulties for her to get  from place to place, until Alice stepped in and made Mrs. Gladstone ride in one.

Besides those minor situations, I think your decisions have been very good. I can tell that this road trip has had quite an impact on your attitude and outlook on life. You have changed so much as a person as you seem happier and more outgoing then you ever was before. You’ve also learned how to handle tough situations better than you would have before, and how to control your emotions other than bottling it all up inside.

Jenna, you’re a smart girl. You just have to know how to handle things and life would be so much easier for you. Don’t make life harder than it needs to be. Don’t try to hide from problems that will come and find you in the end, it won’t do you any good.

                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                               Abigail Sharpee