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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Joy (05/18/06)
49. Love is to hate as joy is to __________.

Tessa stared blankly at the test question, distracted by the ticking of the timer. English was the last section of the ACT test and she was exhausted.

Why can't I think? It is this stupid question. Comparisons- how I hated them! English had always been her worst subject. Give me a calculator any day. She thought ruefully, twisting her dark ponytail between her fingers.

She read the question again. 'Love is to hate as joy is to _______.' Tessa scanned the four possible answers:
a) despair
b) elation
c) pleasure
d) sorrow

Okay, so b and c are out. But the remaining two choices are so much alike. Which one is right? Despair or sorrow?

49. 'Love is to hate as joy is to _______.'
Love is to hate.... "Good grief," Tessa whispered. "What is the relationship of love to hate?"

Her thoughts drifted to Byron, her baseball-star boyfriend. They had been dating-officially-since her sixteenth birthday, thirteen months ago. But he had been holding her hand and bringing her flowers from his mother's garden since he moved across the street five years ago.

It's true love, I just know it. She grinned, the test forgotten. I would rather sit next to him without talking than gossip with any of my girlfriends. He is the first person I think of in the morning and he is my last thought when I fall asleep. I would rather do what is best for him than make myself happy.

With a gasp, Tessa straightened in her desk. Love was not the opposite of hate. Hate is what happens when the object of love is taken away or changes. All the emotions tied up in love are transferred to hate. Love and hate are the same emotions, just wrapped in different packages! So, what does that mean for joy? She glanced again at the question.

49. Love is to hate as joy is to ________. Despair or sorrow?
What had the same emotion and motivation as joy, wrapped in a different package?

A handful of seconds ticked by before Tessa closed her tested and confidently handed it to the test monitor. She fumbled around in her purse for her cell-phone. Flipping it open, she pressed speed dial and held it expectantly to her ear.

"How did it go, kiddo?" A deep voice answered as she unlocked the door of her silver VW bug.

"The test?" She asked, "It was fine. Just another test. But, Byron, I figured out something that is totally cool."

"Let's hear it," the grin was evident in his voice.

"Love and hate are the same thing, well on is happy and one is mad, but they are two sides to the same emotion. Its, like, the same with joy and sorrow. They kinda seem like opposites, but they are just two sides to the same bunch of emotions. Isn't that awesome?"

"You came up with that during the ACT?" His deep voice rumbled, "I'm impressed, all I came up with was a headache when I took it."

"You know what that means, don't you?" She smiled coyly into the phone. "It means that the madder I can make you, the more you love me. And, like, the sadder I can make you, the more joy I can give you!"

"Tessa?" His voice turned serious. "You have the power to make me madder and sadder than anyone else in the world."

"And that means..." She left off breathlessly.

"Aww, come on, kiddo. You can figure it out!"



The old man sat on the creaking porch swing with his arms around a gray-haired woman. "You give me more joy than anyone in the world."

She turned to look up at him, "But that also means that I can bring you more sorrow than anyone in the world, and I do not want to make you sad."

"As you discovered all those years ago, joy and sorrow are inseparable. Yes, it is going to hurt terribly when this cancer finally takes you. But the sorrow I will feel then is a result of the joy that I feel now. Don't wish that I would not be sad when you go, because that means you wish I had less joy now." He brushed her cheek in loving caress. "I love you, kiddo. You have the power to make me madder and sadder than anyone else in the world."




* ACT Assessment: College Entrance Exam
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This article has been read 857 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
Lynda Schultz 
05/25/06
What a thought-provoking piece! Excellent job.
Michelle Burkhardt
05/26/06
Very cute story. I loved the couple young and then, together still when they are old.
Helen Paynter
05/27/06
WHat a great piece. Clever, thought-provoking, touching - well done all round
Kirralie Smith
05/28/06
Fantastic! I really loved it. Stirred a lot of emotion in me. Thank you.
Martin Strom
05/29/06
A good and deep message told with nice sentiment. I liked it a lot.
Marty Wellington 
05/29/06
Nice twist on the subject of joy. I enjoyed it immensely!
Sarah Johnson
05/29/06
Great! My favorite part is the interaction with the father.
william price
05/29/06
Smart story. You will probably having me thinking for the rest of the day if I would have selected sorrow or despair. I don't know if your character passed her test or not, but your story gets a high grade from me. God bless.