Muhammad was the founder of Islam.  He was raised as a merchant and had his own caravan.  The teachings of Islam tell of Muhammad meditating in a cave one day when an angel came to him and gave him a message from God.  Muslims believe that he kept receiving these messages and they are what make up the Islamic holy book called the Qu'ran.  The people of Mecca did not want to follow or listen to Muhammad because his teachings went against everything they believed.  Because of this, Muhammad moved to Medina.  Then he moved back to Mecca after a while and the people began listening to him.  I'm not sure why things were so different then but I think maybe the people might have been tired of their old religions and decided to give Islam a try.  It might also be that Muhammad became wiser and therefore more influential during his time in Medina.  These are two reasons that I think the people listened to the teachings of Muhammad.

I am writing about CORE because there is nothing else to write about.  In CORE class we are finishing a unit on the Roman Empire, specifically the fall of it.  To me this was an interesting topic, because I like studying the ancient civilizations.  Now we are doing another unit on the Muslims and the Islamic World.  The Muslims were the ones who conquered the Goths who had conquered Rome.  We will be reading a book called Shabanu, Daughter of the Wind, which is about an Islamic girl and her family.  Other than that I don't know anything about the book becaus ewe are not starting the book until tomorrow.  In the English portion of CORE, we have read three short stories from our reading book.  They were called "Names/Nombres" by Julia Alvarez, "Seventh Grade" by Gary Soto, and "Thank You M'am" by Langston Hughes.  These were all good stories that I liked. So far I am having a good time in CORE class and I hope it stays that way.

I would join the caravan since it has always been my dream.  I know that my parents dont like the idea but I have always wanted to join my uncle and travel with his caravan.  This would be a lot of fun even though it is dangerous.  I think that if I joined the caravan, I would have a lot more freedom than I have now.  I was to decide to stay in my town, I wouldnt have much of a chance to experience the world other than how I aleady know it.  I will definitely miss my parents and my town, but I have always wanted to join the caravan so that is what I will do.

If I could have had a different roll in the traders and invaders simulation last week, I would have been a barbarian.  This is because of the fact that at the end, they got to invade Rome and pretty much take everything.  That sounds cool because then you would have automatically won.  I was lucky though because my province traded a lot of our stuff to the Romans, and the barbarians didnt ever try to take our stuff.  I still wish I could have been a barbarian instead though!

The book I am currently reading is called Mariel of Redwall.  It is the fourth book of the Redwall series by Brian Jaques.  The series is mainly about Redwall, a big abbey, and all the creatures who live there.  I really like this book.  It is about a mouse who who was thrown off a ship into the ocean during a storm and when she washes up on the shore she doesnt remember anything and all she has is a rope.  She discovers some fresh water and starts drinking it but some bullfrogs come and tell her to leave.  She doesnt, so they attack and she uses her rope as a weapon, but there is still no way for her to win by herself.  Then she is rescued by some rabbits who take her to an old squirrels home.  She is fed, and then the old squirrel agrees to take her to Redwall, but the squirrel and the mousemaid get in a quarrel and end up being separated which means that Mariel will have to find Redwall by herself.  She ends up meeting up with another rabbit who is also traveling to Redwall.  Eventually they get there and are warmly welcomed by the peaceful abbey dwellers.  It takes Mariel a while to get used to normal life but at where I am in the book she is finally starting to act normal instead of hitting everyone with her rope.  I am excited to see what happens next in this story.