-
Finny's Climb
At dusk, Finny, Leper, Chet Douglass, a few others, and myself went down to the river. Finny suggested that we jump off one of the trees into the river and we all looked at him as if he were crazy. Even so, he still pressured me into jumping after he did. I think I gained a friend tonight. -
Finny Saves Me
Finny and I were up there on the limb of the oak tree and I almost fell off! He saved my life today and I've never felt so close to anyone in my entire llife. -
Blame
The more I think about what happend the other day, the more I feel that me being up there was Finny's fault in the first place. -
SSS of SS
Phineas decided to enlist some more of our friends into the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Sessions today and you know what that means. Six other people jumped out of that damn tree! Maybe I'm just a wimp after all. -
Blitzball
Finny invented his very own game today. He calls it "blitzball." It's a mix of the game of tag and the game of football. The target runs around hopelessly while carrying a medicine ball, meanwhile, others run around trying to tackle him. Naturallly, Finny made up each and every one of the rules as we went along. -
School Swimming Record
Today I went with Finny to Devon's pool. I had never been there and wondered why Finny wanted to go so spontaneously. He told me he wanted to break the school record. I timed him and he broke it! He's never been on the team or anything! I have to admit, I was extremely jealous of him. -
Beach Trip
Finny invited me to go to the beach with him and there were so many things wrong with that. First of all, it's against school rules. Then there's the fact that it takes hours to get there on a bike. All that being said, I still agreed to go. We ended up eating at a hot dog stand and scoring some beer! Then something unexpected happened. Finny told me he was glad we were best friends, but I held back in returning the comment. I don't know what it is but it just doesn't sit right with me. -
Trigonometry
We woke up this morning and Finny went for a swim before we headed back to school. We actually made it back before my Trigonometry test at 10:00 but I flunked it. Finny didn't care. He didn't care one bit. -
Finny Falls
Last night Finny said the Leper Lepellier was going to jump out of the tree and become a member of our society. I thought he was just trying to take me away from my studying, but he pinted out that I didn't have to go. I had mixed feelings about my "best friend at this point. We went out to that old tree by the river and we were going to jump together, Finny and I. He climbed out to the edge of the limb but when I got on, my knees buckled, I jostled the limb and Finny fell. -
The Infirmary
No one was able to see Phineas for a few days. I found out that he shattered his leg and would never be the same again. It was only hopeful that he would be able to even walk. One of the doctors said that Finny specifically asked for me. He must want to accuse me of what I did. -
Confrontation
I finally got to see Finny today. I had very mixed feellings going in there to see him. Phineas was a little bit "drugged up" you could say, he was so calm with me it was strange. He brought up how he thought it might have been me that caused him to fall, but then immediately apologized and believed there was no way that that was true. I wasn't so sure. -
The Ambulance
Today I saw my best friend be shipped off in an ambulance. It was horrible watching him go but at least I never had to tell him the truth. Anything was better than that. -
Home
The summer sessions came to an end today. As I traveled down south back to where I came from, all I could think about was Finny. -
Diversions
On my way back to Devon, I decided to take a taxi to see Phineas instead of going straight back to school. He was in horrible shape, in bed next to the fireplace.At first he seemed happy to see me, but I finally told him that I made him fall on purpose. He got upset and told me I was crazy and asked me to leave. So I went. -
Quackenbush
Recently, I signed up to be the assistant crew manager for the rowing team. Turns out the coach, Mr. Quackenbush, is a total jerk. He wouldn't quit bullying me so I decked him in the face, wrestled him into the river, and got kicked off the team. -
Mr. Ludsbury
After practice, Mr. Ludsbury decided to scold me for going to the beach, playing poker, and taking advantage of administration during the summer. After he was done, he told me that I had a long distance call. I got to talk to Finny! -
My New Room
Brinker came over and joked about how I had done away with Finny just to get the room to myself. I wasn't too sure how I felt, but I definitely tried to joke around right back with him. We went down to the Butt Room to smoke and I met his dad. I lied to his dad about joining the army. All I wanted was to be normal and fit in, but I was too scared to enlist. -
Not For Long
The emptiness of my room that Brinker loved to joke about didn't last. When we all came home, everyone's rooms were normal except for mine. My room had a special surprise. My room had Finny waiting for me. -
The Olympics
Today Finny wanted to cut class because he wanted me to show him around school again. Finny's always loved winter. We actually went to the gym and he made me do thirty chin ups! He was upset with me for not joining any teams. Seeing as I wasn't in as good of shape as I used to be, Finny set out to make me an athlete for the Olympics. That was always his goal. -
The Run
Today Finny made me run laps and I felt something I've never felt before. I was running and I was free! I felt as if no one could stop me. It was the best I've felt in a long time with Finny. -
The Carnival
Finny decided to puttogether a little "carnival" which consisted of ski jumps, dancing, drinking, and a decathlon. Finny got up and danced, I competed in the decathlon, and we were all drunk. It was a great time. I had so much fun until I got a letter from Leper, he said he had escaped the army! -
Return of Leper
I traveled to Leper's house in Vermont. He told me he was going to get a Section 8 discharge and he wouldn't let that happen. He accused me of making Finny fall on purpose. He truly was a psychotic man. -
Conflict at Devon
After returning to Devon, Brinker said we should all come together and have a meeting about what really happened that one fatal day when Finny's life changed forever. Leper was the only one that knew the truth, and Finny had seen him earlier. Naturally I was terrified, what would beome of me if everyone knew the truth? -
The Truth
Brinker came in with some of our "friends" tonight and kidnapped Finny and I. They escorted us to the assembly hall against our will. I knew something like this was going to happen, but I didn't think it would be this soon. Leper was the only one who knew the truth and he ended up being there. He compared the scenario with the pistons of his favorite engine, one went down, and then the other fell. Just as Finny had heard the truth, he stormed out of the room and up the marble staircase. -
The Wandering
I spent the night wandering around campus looking for answers. Why did I do what I did? What could Finny possibly think of me now? How could I have done such a thing to my best friend? I slept outside last night. It wasn't a good feeling. -
The Suffering
We all heard Finny fall down the stairs. We all cringed.
We all died a little bit in our hearts for our dear friend. This was all Brinker's fault. If he had never taken us here, none of this would've happened in the first place. Finny, my best friend, had broken his leg. -
Dr. Stanpole
Dr. Stonpole told me yesterday that this break was much cleaner than the first time. He assured methat it would be an easy operation. I also talked to Finny. As hard as it was, I had to do it. Phineas forgave me for everything. He said something must have gotten into me, that it wasn't my fault. Phineas forgave me. -
The Humbling
Dr. Stanpole had said it would be an easy operation. He assured me everything would be okay. Dr. Stanpole was wrong. Finny died after the operation. My best friend was dead. I wasn't sad, I didn't cry, I wasn't guilty, because part of me died with him. -
The Conclusion
As the year comes to an end, we've donated a portion of our school to the war just like everyone else in America. I've come to realize that everyone has there own way of coping with the war. Quackenbush was a bully, Leper went insane, and I killed my one and only best friend. The only different person was Finny. Finny was so carefree and loving that he couldn't see the enemy right in front of his own eyes. He never thought once that I could lead to his downfall.
