Hello! My name is Ken! Today, I am going on a trip out of town to see my friend that I haven't seen in a long time. I want you to join me on the journey, so we can learn a thing or two about the economy!

This is the map that shows how to get to the destination. You can see that this route looks like the business (economic) cycle. At the top, you have the peak, downhill is the recession, at the bottom you have the trough, and the uphill is the recovery. 

I start my journey by traveling uphill and over the mountains. Looking at the business cycle, this can easily be compared to its incline. In other words, this increase in the road to me, is the expansion, recovery, and prosperity of the economy.

As soon as I reach the top of the mountain, I run into a BIG problem. The good times are over :( As my tire crosses the peak of the mountain, I feel the ground shake beneath me! Out of nowhere a huge mudslide sweeps up my beautiful car and takes it racing down the mountain, drenching it with mud. 

When looking at the economy, this process of going down the mountain can be seen as a contraction (or if it is a BIG mountain, then it can be seen as a recession [two consecutive quarters]). Mudslides happen due to rising unemployment, lack of money circulation in the economy, and low C.P.I.