House of English--Lamia-story No9

“Hope goes to school”

It was a rainy Sunday evening when Hope arrived in the city of Lamia, a small picturesque town set in the centre of Greece. The children were looking forward to meeting her. They thought that she would be a change in their hectic routine. She greeted everyone, introduced herself and said that Lamia seemed to her like a peaceful welcoming place. Hope was curious to see the place where teenagers spend most of their time, so asked the children to take her to school with them.

The students laughed and wondered why she would like to visit a school.” There’s nothing to see in a place like that. School is boring and everyone hates it! “However, Hope insisted “You can’t be serious! Schools are amazing! You can discover a whole new world there and broaden your horizons. You can meet interesting people and caring teachers who will help you reach your full potential! “The students smirked and agreed to take her with them.

The next morning Hope got up at the crack of dawn. She rushed to the children’s bedroom and hopped happily on their beds. Most days the children would wake up feeling discouraged and demotivated, but that day they woke up smiling. There was a sense of possibility, a feeling that it would be a good day!

On their way to school Hope noticed that most students were walking heavily and seemed sleepy and uninterested. She was standing still, staring at the imposing, colourless, suffocating building, wondering whether all schools were like that. Nevertheless, thinking that one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, she hurriedly run into the classroom, only to realize that the inside of the building was worse than the outside.

In the classroom, chaos prevailed. Children were screaming, some girls were fighting over a makeup kit and the teacher was effortlessly trying to catch their attention. Hope tried to speak up! “Stop! This is not how a lesson should be! This is not a place to learn!” The teacher stood up and started yelling at the students to be quiet. After few minutes the silence was punctuated by the dull and monotonous voice of the teacher who was supposed to be teaching World History in the most inappropriate way… She was solely reading the lesson from the book, didn’t explain anything and to make things worse, she didn’t respond to some students who were raising their hands to ask questions.

At some point Hope noticed a quiet, sad looking boy sitting at the back. He had been trying to ask something but he was repeatedly ignored so after a while he just stopped trying.

Suddenly the bell rung and the students rushed out of the classroom while the teacher was murmuring something about the new generation and how spoilt they all were. The bashful boy was still sitting on his chair. Hope jumped on his desk and immediately realized that she was sketching something. It didn’t take her long to understand that the boy was very talented. Thus, she decided to take matters in her hands – erh… paws. She grabbed the sketches and started running towards the school yard. She wanted to show everyone the boy’s work. On her way out she bumped into the Art Teacher who was overwhelmed by the beauty of the sketches and the feelings they evoked. He wondered who the talented artist was!

Little did he know that the artist was the shy boy who never participated in his lessons.  Hope led the teacher to the young boy who was happy to be noticed at last but at the same time too shy to speak for himself. His Art Teacher decided to send the boy’s drawings to an Art Competition and at the same time he offered to give him lessons after school so the boy could get into University and study Fine Arts, which was his dream.

Hope had to leave Lamia so she never learned what happened to the boy or whether he won that competition. She realized though that in every school there are students waiting to be noticed and that the secret of education lies in respecting the pupil. Teachers, most of the times, do not know if they have made a difference in a child’s life; but for children who are used to being ignored, a good teacher can provide an astonishing revelation and change their lives forever.

Κ.Ξ.Γ. House of English

Κοραή 1, ΛΑΜΙΑ 35131 ΤΗΛ. 2231302256

Story written and edited by the students: Konstantina P

Sia P.

Melina K.

Marilena B.

Rafaela Ts.

Nick F.

Vasilis G.

Sel School of English-Sofogianni Eleni-Volos-story No8

“In search of…..”

“Run, run!!” she cried! “It’s safe now!”

Hope and Jason climbed the stairs, turned left and hid in

the lifeboat.“Stay here and don’t make a sound.We don’t

want to be discovered until we reach the island!”

Jason peeked out of the lifeboat cover and had a last look

at the port of Volos.

Jason, born eleven years ago and raised in an

orphanage,had found his soulmate in a cute orphan

puppy,named Hope.She had been his only friend all

along and knew the story and misfortunes of his life.

“Go find him!’’she kept telling him.“I’ll be there for

you!We can do it!”

“But what if he gives me a cold shoulder?I’ve had

enough with rejection.”

“There’s nothing more important than family.He’s your

twin.The moment he meets you,he won’tbe able to deny

his feelings.We have been through this over and over

again!It’s now or never!”

“I suppose you’re right!Let’s do it!”

The engines of the ship stopped roaring.The two stoways

waited patiently for the deck to be quiet and empty, for

fear of being discovered.They sneaked out and made

their way to the house.

“Wow!Are you sure this is the place?It’s a palace!”Jason

exclaimed.

“Yes,this is where your brother lives.Let’s find a way

in.”whispered Hope.

Suddenly,a ball came over the hedge and landed on

Jason’s feet .

“Could you please give me my ball?”As their eyes

met,they both froze.The two brothers stared at each other

for a few moments and the Peter stuttered “Who are

you?”

Hope approached. “You two have a lot to talk

about.Peter meet your twin brother,Jason .”

“I don’t have a brother”the boy cried. “I was adopted

when I was a baby.Had my parents known I had a

sibling,they would have adopted us both!”He grabbed his

ball and headed for the house.

“I told you so!This is all your fault!Let’s go back home!I

don’t want to hear another word about Peter again!”

Frustrated as Peter was,he went to his parents.After a

long talk,they explained to him that they were

completely unaware of the fact that he had a twin.Mum

insisted on finding the boy and bringing him back.His

father called the chauffeur.“Take us to the port!Hurry!”

Jason and Hope were hiding behind a truck, waiting for

an opportunity to get back on the ship.

“Look!said Hope!” “They’re here!”Jason turned away.

“Leave me alone!I’m done with this!”He started running

towards the port.

“Wait!I’m sorry!Come back!It was very inconsiderate of

me to act like that!I’m so sorry!We have to talk!”cried

Peter with tears in his eyes.

Jason stopped running.He was at a loss forwards.The two

brothers held each other for a while….

“Miss,Miss!!Look who’s back in Volos!!Our friends

Hope and Jason and they say they’ve got a surprise for

us!”

The kids surrounded them and met Jason’s twin

brother,Peter.They were all excited with the great

news,yet sad they’d part with their close friends.

“Don’t worry!You’re all invited to spend the summer on

the island with the boys”,said Hope.

“What about you,Hope?Won’t you be joining us?”

“I wish I could.There’s so much for me to do!There’s so

much for me to learn.”

Adopting a child won’t change the world but for that

child the world will change…, thought Hope and headed

for her new adventure.

Meli School of English Αγγλικά Μαγδαληνή Κ. Γιαννακούλη -Αργολίδα -story No7

THERE IS HOPE AFTER ALLTruth be told, time flies so quickly! That was my thought as I was staring at my little angels decorating our school’s Christmas Trees. That very moment the door bell rang and I went to answer the door. “What a surprise!” I exclaimed!Hope, the beautiful puppy we had been waiting for about a year, was finally at our door step. Hope is a special puppy. One of a kind! She travels from place to place, from English School to English School to spread the word that THERE IS HOPE AFTER ALL.-“I’m Hope. May I come in?” She politely asked. “I’m pretty exhausted.” She continued. “You see, I got lost! Thank God a kind woman sent me to you”- “Please, do come in, we have been waiting for you.” I smiled.In a matter of seconds all my students gathered around Hope. After expressing their love and affection to her they carefully listened to each and every word Hope uttered.Like a contemporary Mr. Fogg, Hope traveled, alone though, round Hellas (commonly known as Greece) in more than 80 days, by the way! The time she spent with the students of the schools she visited was what kept her from feeling lonely when traveling, she confided.-“We are so happy that you are now here with us!” My students exclaimed!-“We have already made plans for you!” they informed her.-“You see, we live in a unique area, full of archaeological sites. Tomorrow we will take you on a guided tour.”Next day, despite the freezing cold, all students gathered and took Hope to Mycenae.Mycenae is not far away from our village (the name of our big village or small town is Koutsopodi), it’s about a 5 minute drive. -“Can you see that castle over there? That’s the palace of King Agamemnon.” Georgia said.-“He was the General of the Greek Army that fought in Troy.” Charalampos added.-“He was murdered by his wife.” Eirini winked.-“ His son, Orestis killed his mother because of this.” Nektaria cued in.- “ The walls are so huge.” Hope mentioned.-“ They are gigantic, cyclopean.” Konstantinos explained, showing the gate of the castle with the famous lions. -“Their missing heads were made of gold” Marilena informed her.- “That building over there is Agamemnon’s tomb and in the nearby museum you can see all the treasures which were excavated.” Konstantina’s turn to contribute to the tour.- “Tourists from all over the world come to visit Mycenae! That is actually how we survive given the economic crisis our country is faced with.” Dimitra added.Hope looked at them all…- “I am so proud of you.” She remarked. - “You have studied History. By studying History, in particular, not only will you be knowledgeable but you will also have an advantage over other nations, as, in a way, you will be able to predict your future. There is no other better way to avert catastrophe, you know. Let the lessons of the past be your guide and Hope for the best. I strongly believe that you can make our world a better place in the future. Be diligent and hopeful. Rumour has it that God is of Greek origin.” She encouraged them. “ Study hard and pursue your dreams don’t let the crisis deprive you of your bright future.” HOPE Emboldened them.

 

Elena Gioti Language School-Igoumenitsa-story No 6

How to save a life
It was almost Easter when Hope arrived to our school. As soon as the kids saw her, they went bananas. Everyone wanted to take her in their arms and they all immediately noticed how much she looked like Mia…
Well, let's start from the beginning. Our school is on one of the main streets of our town, but on the back side of the school there is a dirt road.  Lately, a lot of dogs have been abandoned by their owners due to the crisis and this little one was not necessarily a victim of abandonment, but her mother and father were, so as a result she was victim of it as well. Sadly, she happened to be the runt of the litter that her mom was caring for in an abandoned car port on that one dirt road in our town.
Nobody would have ever disturbed the female dog from doing her job of taking care of her pups, if it were not for the uncontrollable desire for children to have and hold a beautiful puppy that is so cute and fluffy. So, during our students’ breaks from their language lessons, they would go to visit these puppies. They started taking them food and making makeshift houses for their secretly adopted puppies. Yes, every student had adopted a puppy and would take care of them during their breaks and play with them as well.
These children tried to keep their secret as long as possible until they made the mistake of coming back late to class after their breaks. We started asking questions regarding their whereabouts during their breaks, but they all refused to tell us. After, a few days and the continuous tardiness to class, we decided to secretly follow the children to this dirt road and to our surprise we found around 8 puppies and all sorts of bowls for food and water. The kids were shocked and thought that we would tell them to stop bothering the puppies, but these children were in love.
All the puppies were being taken care of except for the runt. She was off to one side and dirtier than dirt, not to mention a lot skinnier than the other puppies. She had no hope of survival. We felt bad for her, but it was not our responsibility. However, we did not realize that our child had instantly fallen in love with the runt with no hope.
The next weeks to come were filled with tardiness to class and that included my child too. Finally, I went back to the road again and my child begged us to take the runt home because everyone else had already made arrangements to take their puppies home as well. As an adult, I was thinking of all the work and long-term commitment that was demanded, but I could not say no. First of all because she had no chance of survival and secondly because I did not want to deprive my children all this extra love you get by having a pet.
And that is how "Hope" came into our lives and made it even more special.

English 4 fun Rosie Goulis-Kastoria-story No 5

'There's always Hope'

It was a cold and rainy night. A liitle boy called Asmar was standing under a shed waiting for the storm to pass. People with warm coats and umbrellas were passing by bristly ignoring the homeless seven year old boy. His tiny body was shaking while he was trying desperately to find a place to spend the night. Where should he go?How could he keep warm?

He removed his dirty raggy jacket  and placed it above his head. He started running till he reached the end of the street, where he came across an abandoned shack. Asmar opened the door, saw it was empty and decided to spend the night.

He lay down on the cold ground and rolled his wet jacket into a pillow. As his muscles started relaxing and sleep was drawing him away, a snarl startled him. He stood up and tried to locate where the noise was coming from...through the shadows a cute small dog appeared.

-'Hey buddy! You live in the streets too? I 'm Asmar' It tilted its small head and waved its tail happily.

-'You 'll be my new friend. How do you want me to call you?' asked the little boy while caressing the dog.

-'Since you are a girl I 'll name you Hope! How about that?'

Hope jumped on the boy's lap and they soon fell asleep together. The animal's warm fur helped the child forget its hunger but Asmar's health was getting worse. He hadn't had a decent meal for ages.

Next morning, the sunlight sneaked through the cracks of the shackwaking them both up.

-'Let's go find something to eat, shall we?' asked Asmar but was unable to get up.Hope started licking him on the cheeks but the boy was too weak to respond. The little dog barked urging the boy to get up but he was unconscious. Hope immediately knew what to do.  She ran as fast as she couldtowards the centre of the town. She soon saw two policemen patroling the area and found a way to make them understand that she needed them to follow her. Hope managed to lead them to the abandoned shack. She tried her best but was it too late? Was the boy still alive?

The policemen opened the door of the shack and were astonished to see a young boy lying on the wet, filthy ground...

Luckily Asmar was able to recover. hope was there at the right place at the right time and successfully saved the poor boy's life.

....If only she could do the same for all the children in need. The world is so cruel and merciless at times....but there should always be....HOPE 

English4 fun

Rosie Goulis

Koryfi Language Centre- Amynteo Kato kleines story No4

HAPPINESS- A STATE OF MIND

It was an ordinary day at Aminteo and we were about to start our lesson when suddenly Mr Chris came and infirmed us about a trip. We were supposed to visit the lake “Vegoritida” and have a picnic near the lake. Everyone was amazed and excited! We were all waiting for Saturday to come!

We took the bus and in a while we were there! The place was flawless, amazing and the weather was sunny and the sun so bright! The whole scenery was breathtaking and we were all staring at the lake, like we had never seen a lake before. We were walking down the road when we saw something strange. It was a dog and to be more specific it was a talking dog! Her name was “Hope” and she did not lose time! She saw us and she introduced hershelf straightforward. It was such a weird creature! “Nice to meet you”, she said. “Now, I am going to swim! See you later!”,she added happily.

Afterwards, instead of having our picnic, we were just staring at the dog wondering what was going on. Were we dreaming? Was it possible? Soon, Hope was at the beach. We wanted to talk with her. Who is she? Where does she come from? She just replied “I have never been in such a beautiful place before! But, there is so much rubbish that make me sad!”. We decided to take bus and pick all the rubbish so as to transform the place into a clean one. We did so! Then, we gathered all around and she told us the story of her life.

-So Hope, where do you come from?, we asked.

-I come from a city. My city is so beautiful and I love it. But do you realize how lucky you are living in such a unique place and so close to nature? If only I could stay here forever!, she said.

That was the moment we realized how important nature is. Hope was a dog, coming from a faraway place only to admire the picturesque and flawless scenery our area has to offer. And what about all of us living here? Have we ever thought that we should take care of the environment? Have we ever thought of volunteering in some group? We wake up every morning and we breath in fresh air, if it isn’t a miracle, then what? Hope’s words made us appreciate some gifts nature has offered to us which we are taking for granted! However, we shouldn’t! If we as individuals don’t take care of the place we line and act selfishly, who will protect it?

Then, we decided to show Hope around. The next day went at Vigla, we did skiing and snowboarding. We enjoyed ourselves and we were laughing loudly. We took many photos, Hope took many photos as well! She said she had never seen snow before and she really loved it! She suggested that we organize trips every week and we invite her! We have already talked with Mr Chris and he agreed! Hope made us appreciate so many simple things which we uses to take for granted!

Finally, the day had come. Hope had to leave Aminteo and continue her mission. She thanked us and she advised us to take care if the place, to take care of the environment as it is valuable! She took the next bus and she left. She said that she wants to travel all around Greece and meet as many people as she can! Her main purpose is to awaken people and make them feel full and happy with what they have! Money do not bring happiness, Happiness is a state of mind everybody can reach! We said goodbye and we really miss her now! “Good luck!”, we all whispered.

We are looking forward to hearing from you soon! Keep on following your dream! Make people laugh, make them dream, make them fell blissful!

Xinta Language Centre- Skidra story No3

A dash of Hope in the plastic soup

Elated that her mission had been accomplished, Hope decided to indulge in some kind of restful recession. She thought that life couldn’t have been so disappointing and bleak, and that the harrowing scenes of war should be replaced at once with fond images and people thriving.
She had heard that London was the perfect destination for someone who wanted to let off steam and taste the experience of a multi-cultural society. A bustling city, teeming with shops, eateries, glamorous theatres, striking landmarks, lush parks, and entertainment facilities that cater to all tastes.
As soon as she landed, she set about strolling along Thames, the Royal River which flows through the city. There it stood, Thames reigned noble and posh, with its bridges and floating vessels dashing up and down the river. While she was walking she heard a muffled sound. She stepped closer and she saw a bird which looked like a seagull. It was covered with a plastic bag and it could barely breathe. Hope decisively pulled the bag off its body and rubbed its wings so that it would get warmer. After taking care of it for two consecutive days in the biting cold, the bird finally regained its consciousness. It then went on to explain to Hope how inconsiderate people had been and how factories and industries had tipping their contents into the rivers, not to mention the floating means of transport which had been producing noxious gases at the expense of residents and marine creatures. Fortunately, over the last two decades, thanks to the joint effort of both the residents and the government, pollution had been deterred.
“Would you care for a flying tour?” the gull asked. In the meantime, hundreds of other birds had gathered and were listening to the gull’s gripping account. Hope nodded and they all decided to take her to a faraway place, where she would see up close a rare sight. In a matter of a few hours they were flying over the pacific coast.
-“Wow!” hope exclaimed. “This is like a floating toy factory! Let’s go and explore it! There are so many colourful objects up above!”
-“Don’t jump to conclusions cutie!” the gull said. “Wait until we get closer. Welcome to the pacific garbage patch!”
-“Oh my God! What is all this? This is so massive! So inconceivable! And it seems to be endless.” Hope muttered.
-“It is, and guess what? All this plastic soup contains bottles and any type of plastic trash you can imagine! It is a floating marine debris which is stationary and is getting bigger and bigger every day.” The gull replied.
Hope could hardly believe what the gull was describing to her and could not get over the extent of the damage. She was now aware that so many marine animals die, since these long-lasting plastics end up in their stomachs. And to make matters worse, this ecological disaster was bound to stay there as human greediness would always be something that prevailed this planet.
-“But there must be something we can do.” Hope cried. “I have got an idea! What if each one of you picked one piece of plastic and carried it in one place so that we can help people gather all the plastic patches? Quickly my friends! We have to let the other birds know! It is never too late and we can do it all together! There are millions of you up there! I can be your captain. Let’s go and polish off this horrendous sight!”
The birds were thrilled at Hope’s idea. Soon enough, thousands of birds were soaring above the pacific coast and were carrying in their beaks bits of plastic.
-“Mission accomplished” said Hope. “At least one part of the problem was addressed. Now humans must take charge! I have to dash off and let them know.”