I think the top 12 were world qualifiers. We are very excited to do that this year, and I'm particularly excited that it's NOT in Europe and therefore IN the budget! She was 64th two years ago (just squeaked into the recall), and 16th last year (missed worlds by 2).

I'm a dad, not a mom, but I run a homeschooling business and lurk here pretty often. We got back from Orlando late last night. I have four daughters--two of them dancers. Both of my girls finished 4th! I've got a U14 and a U9. They worked really hard to prepare, but both did better than we could have imagined. We are very proud of them.

But, for the record, a sentence by definition does have a subject and a predicate. The point is that it's not always necessary to write in complete sentences. I also agree that as long as the student knows what she is doing, she is permitted to selectively break "the rules." You've got quite a gifted writer there!

First, you can rule out the idea that Dante "believes in" the Greek gods. Dante's vision of hell in the Inferno is not intended to be literal. He wrote poetry, not theology. The poem is allegorical on several levels. That means he uses people, places, and things more for their representational value than for what they are in themselves. In other words, Cerberus and the Minotaur, etc. aren't real. They are a device used to communicate something about the nature of hell. Remember, this is a poem in the classical tradition. It's essentially an epic poem, which requires certain conventions, including references to mythology. He uses these references to create an overtly Christian story. Just like Milton and Spenser and even like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkein. The Divine Comedy is the story of Redemption--a journey through hell, purgatory (Catholic, remember), and finally heaven. Dante borrows from the classic tradition and uses their characters and devices and uses them for a God-honoring purpose.

Then again, I founded the company, so I'm not very objective.:D

nt

There are few characters I love more than Falstaff. And Henry's St. Crispen's Day speech in Henry V is pretty wonderful too.

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