Harvey Van Blerkom, 2016

Harvey Van Blerkom                         Humanities A

11/15/16

A Day In the Life of Charles “C.S.” Smith

I am Charles “C.S.” Smith. I am a General. I am fighting for America’s freedom. As I said, I am a General, but I am very new at my job. After General Chase got shot, they needed a new General, and I was the one asked to take over his role. I had been exceeding expectations, and I got promoted. Even though I had been working hard, I was surprised because there was one African man who was working really well. He had stole forty-five cannons from the British army. Forty-five cannons! That is almost not human. Some of the things that Africans can do are just amazing. Maybe I got the promotion because I am English, and only English.

I remember the exact time that I got my promotion. I was very worried because George Washington himself requested for me to meet with him. From my experience with other troop companions, getting called to meet with Mr. George, as we secretly call him, rarely turns out well. I was very nervous because this was not my first meeting with someone near his power. I had some meetings before, but I wasn’t listening because I didn’t want to hear when they kicked me out of the army. I knew that I had been getting lucky, as I was still in the army, but I figured that I should finally listen to him. I knew that this was probably the final straw before I was gone, so I said goodbye to my fellow troop members, and headed over, head down.

I got in, and I wanted to end the conversation quickly so I just told him, “Please, just kick me out now.”

He responded immediately, “Kick you out? I was just about to ask you if you wanted to

become a General with your own battalion, are you okay with that?”

“Oh, yes, I would love that,” I responded.

“I don’t know why you would’ve thought that you would’ve been demoted, or kicked out of the army. You have been doing very well, and we have noticed that. That is why you were called in. You have had many meetings with some of my advisors, and I don’t know exactly what they said, but they told me that they were going to talk to you about how well you are doing and to keep up the good work,” he said.
This was a day that I know I will remember forever. This isn’t a normal day, as I don’t get promoted every day. Nowadays, my usual day is very boring. I yell at the men in my troop, and they listen. I tell them to fire their muskets, and they fire their muskets. I tell them to fire the cannon, and they fire the cannon. Now I don’t even pick up a musket because Generals don’t actually fight. They just tell the people that they are commanding commands. Before I became a general, my life was a lot more fun. Before I became a general, my day consisted of actual fighting. I picked up a musket, and would fire the heavy, metal weapon. I wasn’t always the best shot, but I would always think to myself, and try to convince myself that I was going to get better. I guess that is one of the many good things that came out of my promotion. I have been very happy with my promotion because of all of the great benefits, including much better food. Overall, I have a very eventful day, especially now that the war is in full swing.