This was attempt number two for the stop motion animation. The first time I used pastels, but I didn't like how it looked because I couldn't change up the drawings from frame to frame very smoothly with how simple I wanted to keep the drawings. After trying and failing to use graphite (it's too reflective) I settled for technology's creation: erasable pens! They're pretty nifty. The pens allowed me to make smaller changes easily, so that really helped in the process. At a first look some people may not fully understand what my stop motion represents. Unfortunately, I don't have the talent to ever create something that would do the meaning justice. My stop motion is about losing my sister, Rachael. She died on December 29, 2012. It's all I really think about, so that's what came to mind when the assignment was given. It starts with a drop of water that drips down and is followed by other droplets that add to each other creating a large bubble-type mound of water. The surface tension expands and is meant to illustrate the emotional tension until it explodes, releasing all emotions. The bubble turns to rain, which could be interpreted as tears, and the raindrops fall to the ground. I had four raindrops morph into seeds as a transition. The four seeds represent me and my three sisters. The seeds grow into flowers and are together until a hand reaches down and takes one flower away. Without that fourth flower, the other three wilt and die, their remnants turning to ash. A breeze picks up and blows the ashes away. The last scene takes us to a girl sitting under a tree crying. She's holding the flower she picked. I didn't want to draw myself, so the girl represents my sisters and I. She's crying until the sun shines down on her and she looks up. I'm not religious, but I do want to believe that my sister is somewhere safe and she doesn't have to be in pain anymore. I desperately want to think that she's okay and she's happy. The sun acts as that "ray of hope" I'm looking for. The sun gets zoomed in on and the final word "breathe..." appears. Normally I tell myself that things will be okay, but losing her will never be okay. So I tell myself to breathe... because I have to stay calm and do my best. She was always so proud of me and I never want to let her down..