2012/1 Collaborative Storytelling
Autor: Meg | Publicado: 2012-03-17T15:04:00-07:00

This semester started strong at Step1 Idiomas, with everybody thinking outside the box! One activity we usually do this time of year is a Collaborative Storytelling activity, where groups of students finish one of three adapted stories. The results are here!

Scenario A: One night, around midnight, I was reading a book of old folklore. The book was boring and it was late, and I was close to falling asleep. Suddenly, I heard a sound. A knock on my door. I was not expecting any visitors at that time of night. I was very scared, but I opened the door. When I opened the door...

...nobody was there. I was scared! I came back to bed and I tried to forget about it, and sleep again. Some minutes later, I heard a louder sound. Someone was definitely knocking on the door, despite of my not having seen anybody outside. 
I decided to stay close to the door, waiting for that sound again. Some minutes later, I heard some steps. I could realize that it was not just one person. It sounded like three or four guys. I was more scared than before. But, at this time, I just heard some laughs and I could recognize the kids from the condo knocking on my neighbor's door, and doing the same trick. I opened the door to complain about this situation and saw them wearing costumes. I finally realized that it was Halloween!
by Clarissa and Marcelo (N6a)

...no one was there. I thought it was nothing, and I went to my room for reading. The sounds began again. Then, I went downstairs, opened up the door again, but then there was a girl outside. Really pretty. I asked if she was lost or needed something; she seemed scared, so I invited her in.
When she came in, I realized her arm was hurt; I thought it was a cut, but it was really strange. I asked her about the wounds. She had been bitten by a bat, and she was feeling really bad. I gave her a glass of water and went to the bathroom to get a first-aid kit. Then, when I got back to the living room the girl had disappeared. It was really strange... who was that girl? I went outside and no one was on the street, but I heard someone screaming. 
I ran to my room and I found a big black dog on the bed with my book open. I was not feeling well, the shadows were dark, and sometimes they were dancing. 
The book was shining. Everything was so surreal... maybe I was dreaming, maybe I got crazy. I'll never know because on the other day I woke up and everything seemed normal. But... some times... I feel a strange presence in the hospital.
by Ana Luiza, Luiz Fernando, and Ricardo (N6a)

...I saw an old man. He was tall, thin, looking like a homeless person; he started to ask me about my life. He asked me about my wife, my job, my children, and before I responded I questioned him why he was asking me about my life. 
"I know you, I know what you do, and I want to change your life, he answered. I was already scared; after that, I was terrified. Then, my first reaction was to close the door at his face and say, "Get away, you're crazy!" I went to my room and I started to think about my life, and what this man knew about my life.
Not much later, someone knocked on the door again. I was very irritable and I opened the door saying, "What do you want, old man?! Go home!" He was crying a lot, and asked me if he could enter. I said, "Yes?!" He sat on my sofa and started to tell me:
"My wife is very sick and she will die soon. My daughter took away all my money and I'm lost. If you don't know, I'm your neighbor and I have been observing you this month. I saw you cheating on your wife with your secretary, and your wife crying because she'd discovered what you'd done, and she kicked you out of the house. I know that your son has a girlfriend, but she's a cocaine addict. To finish it all, I saw you blackmailing your boss. So I decided to talk to you, because I saw my life fall apart and I'd taken it for granted. I know that you are a good man, but you have to give more value to your life."
When he stopped talking, I gave him a bug and the next day I went to talk with my wife and children, to say I was sorry. My family forgave me, but my wife didn't take me back. Now I am trying to change my life to get it back again. 
by Thaisa (N7b)

Remember the beginning of this scenario is an adaptation of the poem "The Raven" (1845) by Edgar Allan Poe. You can find the link to the full text here, and listen to it being read by actor Christopher Walken here. 

Scenario B: The year is 2175. I am the military commander of a human spaceship, going on a mission to collect a mysterious object from a distant planet. When my team lands on that planet, many strange aliens and robots attack. We fight our way to the mysterious object, but when I touch the object...

...it exploded, and a little creature was born from inside the fire. This creature had a lot of tentacles coming out of its head, big eyes, and no nose.
The baby had a special power. When the humans came closer to it, the baby started singing a familiar song. One man in the team recognized it -- it was Britney Spears. 
The humans brought back the alien baby to Earth, for doing research with it. The scientists performed tests such as DNA and voice exams, physical capability, and reflex tests. 
The results were very impressive. They proved that the baby had a similar DNA code to Britney Spears'. 
The scientists went to the cemetery to exhume Britney Spears' body. When they opened the casket, the body wasn't there. Now, the scientists are studying the possibility that Britney Spears had been an alien.
by Daniele and Leonardo (N8)

Scenario B is the summary of the first mission in the first installment of a videogame called Mass Effect (2007) by Bioware. You can find a video summary of the story of Mass Effect 1 here. 

Scenario C: I am an ordinary person, with an ordinary job, and an ordinary life. I live with my family and work hard everyday. One morning, I wake up for work as always, but something is different. I am different. My body is changed into something absurd and fantastic, and I cannot get out of bed for some time. When I can finally move...

...I realized that there was something on my shoulder. I slowly put my hand there; I felt hair, an earring, and when I touched a nose, I recognize something familiar. It was my ex-girlfriend, who had died two years before. I was sure of it when she said, "OMG you're sooo fat."
I looked at her and said, "Look who's talking now... you're as fat as I am!"
A silence filled the room and when I saw her on a mirror, her eyes were tearing up. I tried to fix it.
"Oh honey, why are you crying?"
She looked at me and said, "I made a spell on a budget for us to be together forever, but the wizard Paul Rabbit is specialized in money spells, not love spells!"
"How much did you spend?"
"I paid 5 University Restaurant lunch tickets", she said.
"You've always been very cheap."
Then, I woke up, hand straight to my shoulder. There was one restaurant ticket there. 
by Jonas, Felipe, and Isabelle (N5)

...I realized that I had a pair of wings. They were very nice and big. And what bright colors! Violet, blue, green, yellow, orange, red -- the rainbow was inside me! They were perfectly symmetric, and very, very light, besides exuding a very pleasant perfume.
When I started to fly, the wings were moving very fast and I thought I was going crazy. It was a very, very strange emotion, passing through the clouds and saying hello to the birds. The problem was that I didn't know how to control this new body. All I wanted to do was to return to my ordinary life and be with my family.
And specially, I wanted to be with my analyst. These kinds of extraordinary things must not happen with normopath* people like me!
by Cirene and Julia (N7b)
*normopathy is a psychological disease in which people have an obsession with being normal.

Scenario C is an adaptation of the beginning of a German short story called "The Metamorphosis" (1915), by Franz Kafka. You can find the full text translated to English here. 

I hope you all enjoy this semester's stories! This semester is going to be fun (: