The Big Change

 Author's note: This piece " The Big Change" was a character analysis on Stanley from the book " Holes". In this piece I was trying to incorporate good solid word choice.
 

Sometimes things don’t always go the way you want them.  This is the case in the book Holes written by Louis Sachar. Stanley Yelnats  is a teenage boy who is unhappy with his life.  He thought he didn’t belong and was tired of getting picked on.  Things get worse when he is blamed for a crime that he did not commit.

Stanley was blamed for stealing a famous baseball players shoes.  The punishment was jail or go to a juvenile camp.  He chose camp.  This is when his life began to change  for the better.  The first change happened when he met Zero.  At first, Stanley was mean to Zero because all the other kids treated him badly.  After getting to know Zero, he realized other kids faced challenges of their own.  He realized he was not the only one.  This gave him confidence.  He didn’t care anymore what the other boys thought he was going to be friends with Zero.

Another change that resulted from camp was he went from heavier set and out of shape to more athletic.  This happened after spending countless hours digging holes.  He was told he had to do this as a character building exercise that was brought upon by the government. 

Stanley knew there was something more to the digging, this leads to the third change. Stanley never had much money but that changed when he found a buried treasure.  He decided to take the treasures at night.   He spent the money on a new home for his family and other much needed necessities. 

When I think of this story and I think of how Stanley changed for the better, it reminds of Josh Hamilton.  Josh Hamilton now is one of the best players in baseball but this came after many difficult challenges.  Hamilton got involved in partying, drugs and alcohol.  This ruined his reputation and negatively affected his early baseball career.  With the support of many family members and friends, Hamilton went to rehabilitation.  Through this he regained the confidence to live healthy life and purse his career in baseball.

Although there are times in your life where it may seem like there’s no way out. You can always make a change. Just as Stanley and josh did, there are many different paths you can take deciding whether you are successful or not.