Alena That is Me

Alena Eilene Colleen Dickerson, that’s my name, that’s me. Over the past couple years I’ve found myself wondering what my name means and if it truly fits my personality. Im one of a kind and so is my name. How will my name affect what people remember and or say about me when I'm no longer here, what will I leave this world with. I hope that I accomplish everything I set out to do, and that I'm remembered as being just being  me. I want to leave this world better than when I came into it . My hope is to keep being one of a kind and for people to remember everything I stand for and what I have strived to do.

I went home and asked  my Dad why I was named Alena and he quite simply said ” it’s just the name that we thought represented the child that we held in our arms.” This was cute but it wasn’t the answer I was looking for. So like any person in the 21st century who’s craving more insight into a specific topic, I went to the Internet, to find out what my name means, and if like my Dad said does it represent me, the 16 year old student who’s writing this paper? When looking into my name I found that it is used in many countries such as Russia and Greece. The origin of the name  Alena comes from Greece and has the meaning of light.

My middle names have always been something that I have been asked about. The story behind them is quite interesting. Eliene is the family name, it’s the name that is given to the youngest girl in each family so a couple of my cousins have the same name as I do.  The significance of Colleen is quite emotional in my family. My aunt Cheryl was pregnant the same time my mom was with a baby girl as well but she lost my cousin, and she was going to name her daughter Colleen. So when my parents were thinking of a name for me they wanted to give me the name Colleen so my cousin’s name could still live on.

 I could never tell you how many times  people have seen my name and have called me something wrong and or  different! When they actually do know how to say my name they spell it wrong, it's either Alina, Elana, Elena, or Aleena. All these spellings could be correct, but they are not in my case. When the school years starts and I know that at least half of the teachers on my schedule will pronounce my name incorrectly. This is nothing against them I just know that I’m going to have to correct them all day long, or at least half of them. At last, I know that not every teacher is going to pronounce Alena the way I do, because there is other ways to say my name. When the leaves start to turn from radiant greens to warm yellows,reds, and oranges I simply let those who do not say my name correctly keep on,  no longer correcting them. I do this because I figure that if months have gone by and they still don’t say Alena they way my family says it and they way I say it then I already know that they probably won't get it, and there's always at least one teacher who when I leave their class in June still call me a name that is not my own.

The question runs through my mind all the time how will I be remembered? Will I be remembered as the person who cured cancer, will I be remembered as the student that I am today? What impression will I leave on this world? I can only hope that what people remember about me is my character. I hope that people will see me as a person they could come to when they needed something or someone to talk too. I hope that I’m remembered as being an individual….someone who was never scared to be them. I

At last, Alena is my name and it fits me. So I guess my parents were right Alena did fit the little baby that once was in their arms crying and not wanting to be put down and now is getting ready to leave their home’s  in  a year to start to find how how she fits into this society. I don't know how I will be remembered or if I even will be remembered. But what I do know is that I'm going to be the best me I can be. I am Alena Eliene Colleen Dickerson, that is me.

What Went Through Erik Larson's Mind

I think Erik Larson wrote this book with the intent on informing his readers of what went on during the building of the World Fair. This is something I believe he did very successfully. This is a book that anyone with the slightest interest in the World Fair or the gruesome murders that took place during this time should read because this is honestly something that would truly interest them and show my even show them things they didn't even know.  When i really think about why Larson wrote this book i think he wrote it to really inform his readers that not everyone is who they say they are.

What does the title have to do with the content ?

     When I first picked up this book I wondered what the title had to do with the building of the world fair, and the serial killer H.H Holmes. When I started reading the book it became clear why the book is titled The Devil In The White City. I believe Erik Larson titled the his book The Devil in the White City because the buildings where the World Fair where white, they used white stucco for the buildings. This was a big thing because compared to the rest of the city it was a big difference. Chicago was also called the White City because of the technological advances during this time with the lights being illuminated at night e street lamps.
     Know that we have figured out the White city part of the name I can explain where the devil part comes in. The devil in the title refers to H.H Holmes.  Here's a little background information on H.H Holmes. Holmes was a serial killer who used the World Fair as a picking ground for potential victims. So when you put those to explanations together you get the title The Devil In The White City. So after I finished reading the book the title made perfect sense. In personally opinion the title is a perfect fit for the content of the book.

All About Erik Larson

   Erik Larson was born on January 3, 1954 making him 61 years old. Larson was born in Boston but grew up in Freeport, Long Island, New York. He attended The University of Pennsylvania were he studied Russian History graduating Summa Cum Laude ( with the highest of three degrees of praise noted on a diploma) in 1976. After sometime off Larson attended Columbia for a degree in journalism he received his degree in 1978. Larson is married with 3 daughters he and his family live in New York and also has a home in Seattle Washington.
   Larson has wrote many other non-fiction books. Including Thunderstruck, Issac's Storm each are New York Times bestsellers. He has won the Edgar Award for his writing about non-fiction crime. Larson's book The Devil In The White City was a finalist for the National Book Award. The Devil In The White City was made into a movie in 2010 by Leonardo DiCaprio. His work writing non-fiction makes him a reliable source to write about the great tragedy that occurred at the World Fair in 1893. He writes about this topic with such meaning and makes it so you don't want to put it down.