Recitatif. By, Toni Morrison

I check on website to check author’s background and I found that ‘‘Recitatif’’ is the only published short story by African-American novelist Toni Morrison. ‘‘Recitatif’’ tell the story of the conflicted friendship between two girls. One black and one white from the time they meet and bond at age eight while staying at an orphanage through their re-acquaintance as mothers on different sides of economic, political, and racial divides in a recently gentrified town in upstate New York. In addition, I do feel that I connect to this story because I do feel that racial divides does still happen today. The story explores how the relationship between the two main characters is shaped by their racial difference. Morrison does not, however, disclose which character is white and which is black. When story open with a description of St. Bonaventure, the shelter where Twyla meets Roberta, when they are both eight years old. Twyla recalls that her mother once told her that people of Roberta’s race smell funny, and she objects to being placed in a room with Roberta on the grounds that her mother wouldn’t approve. Twyla, however, soon finds Roberta understanding and sympathetic to her situation. This first part of paragraph impact me so hard because I realize that I can identity smell different between black and white

Zelah: A tale from long ago. By, Norma Fox

This novel story is number one of my favorite story for leaving home book. This book have lot of emotions of a Jewish girl sent from Poland to America to meet the fiancé chosen by her parents then story was a little difficult for me because I just couldn’t decide if I believe Zelzah was a strong a female or not because she kept confused me by she wrote a letter to Jake that she don’t mind to take her cousin’s place which mean she will be become Jake’s new girlfriend but of course, Jake rejected it. But, she laughed when she read Jake’s letter that he rejected her, that party, I still don’t understand. Also, I can notice that she kept falling idea of marriage but she still being single. Therefore, there is an strong question is she strong female? I do surprise that when she became independent that she is single and still have a good job is teacher for 3rd grader. In addition, I think she is more stick with American culture than Polish because American’s famous is marriage while Polish aren’t. I think she made a big mistake for let Jake go because she kept wrote a letter to him, I think she need to have man around her to have a better life and keep her alive.

On The Rain River. By, Tim O'Brien

When I read that story, I don’t blame on him to kept secret to himself for many years because everyone have their own big and dark secret that you don’t want to tell anyone at all. When Tim O’Brien tells a story about how he faced his first real test of courage in June, 1968 when he was drafted to fight in a war he thought was wrong. Or rather, he didn’t understand how it could be right. There were too many questions that the government hadn’t answered to his satisfaction. This war was not right for him. He was too smart, too ambitious, and compassionate. He hated camping and boy scouts. He decided to just wait. When he said that, this make me feel that he won’t survive in war because he hated camping and against war. Also, first sentence of story said this is one story I have never told before. Not to anyone. Not to my parents, not to my brother and sister, not even to my wife, this make me feel that he have some of fear in his heart that he don’t want anyone to know that he is against war, if they found it out then they will turn and against on him? Imagine, I become Tim O’Brien at 1968, I would be scare because I would rather to keep secret to myself, if I decide to tell someone else then they will spread words to others then they decide to turn against me. I have some to admit that I still don’t understand why we have Vietnam War, it was Vietnam’s problem, it’s not America’s problem. One part of the story, he decides that he needs to get moving again, write a letter to his parents asking them not to be mad, cross the river and make his way into Canada then he pulls the boat near Canadian side, O’Brien has to do is jump and swim for it then he decide to take opportunity, its impact me so hard because can you imagine if you really don’t want go to war but you had to fought for himself instead being fear and hide from America. Remember, America is his sweet home and he hide from America, its not make a sense. The tone of that story is amazing.

Bad Influence. By, Judith Ortiz Cofer

When I read that story, summary of that story talk about the girl name is Rita, who like to sneak out to just her boyfriend without parents knowing and had a bad attitude with her family members. My first thought of that story was sneak out from my mother to just see my friends during school week. Even worse, one night, I decide to took my mom’s car key and driving to see my friends, and I don’t have any drive license; I’m doing this because I think its fun and cool to doing that kind of things because this happen to me when I’m young teenager. Imagine, my mother haven’t found it out until last summer, because I didn’t tell her until graduate from high school, so I feel ready to tell my mother about what happen in all of my teenager life that my mother didn’t know about. Once, she found it out about happen, of course, she is really upset because I can get in bad car accident or go to jail even my mother can go to jail for evading child. Therefore, she decide to not let me drive around for one month which during July. In my opinion of that story, I think they doing right things to send Rita to Puerto Rico from New Jersey because she needs to be polished, self-controlled and apprehend what is wrong and right. Right after move to Puerto Rico, she turned a better person and friendly and respectfully to her family members. In addition, I can’t really feel connect with that story because my mother never and never send me to some where else based on my terrible behavior. Also, my mother promise me that she will never and never kick me out from her home, she would do solve the problem. The tone of that story would be amazing because one of little bit can change your life and behavior, its amazing how human change with attitude. I think that title of that story is bad influence is prefect for that story because if you decide to hang out with wrong crowd, they will bad influence you to just fit in their crowd.

Trip in a Summer Dress. By, Annette Sanford

When I read this story, my first response was shock and stupid because I can’t imagine that I called my sister as mother and called my mother as sister. I said that because once I born by my mother then she raise me and I know who is my mother and siblings while Matthew who son of family decide to called mother as sister while sister as mother, I think its really confused him in the future because when you born, most of babies tend to learn by their mothers and act right in the future while in this story, the happening will be Matthew become so immature and play with his friends’ mother instead his friends. The tone of that story is amazing because there many difference ways of how families raise their own children, sometime, there is weird, right way, and many more. In addition, I think it’s the sadness coming out from the narrator because she was doing what she doesn’t want to but thought it was the best for her. When she was on the bus, she was realizing that she was the mother of her own son, Matthew, and she would give her whole heart to him. What bother me the most was the reason of the narrator’s mother was yelling on the phone at the end of the conversation with her daughter. Therefore, she disowns her own daughter? I think if this happen in toady’s society, there will be upset to Americans because they wont like that because its not how they suppose to raise their children in wrong way. Also, they will upset that she shows no responsibilities being parent. I think she isn’t ready to being mother. In addition, my opinion of that mother who act like Matthew’s sister, I strongly disagree with her decide to being sister instead mother because this will confused to Matthew’s future life.

Beautiful and Cruel. By, Sandra Cisneros

When I read this short story, this remind me of A house of my own, its one of short poem in same book, leaving home. A house of my own talk about one woman finally have her own power because she always been pressure by man and boys in all of her life, so its concept same as Beautiful and Cruel talk about one girl who think she is really ugly and accept it. The first sentence of this story said “ I am an ugly daughter. I am the one nobody comes for. This part is impact me so hard because I can see some people who knew that themselves is ugly and don’t tell me that they are ugly while that girl in that story, she admit that she is ugly which mean she accept who she is. Imagine, I become ugly son in the family, I bet that I will be suffer and sad all the time because there are plenty of bully people which I don’t want to deal with it. Other part of the story said “In the movies there is always one with red red lips who is beautiful and cruel. She is the one who drives the men crazy and laughs them all away. Her power is her own. She will not give it away.” This part make me feel that she wrote that story during her young time because in sixty years ago, there full of women pressure by men and society and watch a movie which I love lucky or any shows during in 1950s because most of actress in 1950s, they tend use red lip and show this clear on the television. Other part of the story, “I have begun my own quiet war” This part make me feel that she knew that she is ugly, therefore, she kept it hide from men and careful with men for some reason. The tone of that story is power because author kept use power words and right word choices.

Rules of the Game. By, Amy Tan

When I saw a book title, Rules of the Game, its my first thought was someone must to be in control by someone else by play their rules. Until, I read one paragraph said one morning Waverly has had enough of her mother’s boasting about her and runs away for the rest of the day. When she returns home, her mother and there rest of the family ignore her, as if she didn’t exist. Therefore, my opinion of that paragraph, when her mother being upset that her daughter didn’t take her advice during chess game or whatever then family will follow mother’s emotion and ignore her daughter, I think its not fair for her daughter because its difficult when adult or someone that older than you and they expect you to better than that which you have to reach over your limit and they still want more. Also, I think rules of the game is actually a chapter about the rules of chess, as well as the rules of life, I said that because Amy Tan’s life is all about chess because if she don’t do well with chess games then she will have family difficult just because she didn’t win. In addition, I notice that most of characters in the book are Chinese Americans. I assume that Amy have two mixed countries culture which its lead her to confused with her life and identity between chess and life. She hasn’t identity that who she is because chess take her life over. One part that touchy me, after their fight and Waverly runs away, she eventually returns, and her mother says she will no longer have anything to do with her daughter. Can you imagine that anyone or everyone in your family relative decide to give up on you which mean you don’t have any place to stay or eat the food. Its never happen to me before because my mother wont and never let that happen to me.

Saturday at the Canal. By. Gary Soto

When I read this poem, I still don’t understood why he being so irony in poem until end of poem, i found that amazing. Also, when I read this poem and I do feel that poem is so real because I live in a completely boring town. I see same faces everyday because my high school is only 300 students, this made me to have day-dreaming about something that big different from my hometown. Sometimes, I just want to going to different city because I want to see different people and breath of fresh air. In addition, sometime, I want to get in a car and just drive to other city because during that time, I was 17 years old and have drive license which mean I just can take my mother’s car and zoom to somewhere else. Also, I think this poem is very interesting because I understand it better after reading about Gary’s life as a child and a teenage. In addition, my favorite line is “School is just a check mark” this made me thinking that the author was present at school but his mind want to learning because he keep to have day-dreaming about going to San Francisco, where everything is so much different than his hometown. In end of poem, I do have feeling that kids who 17 years old should do stupid things like break the laws because once you become 18 years old, your criminal record will gone. I’m strongly related to this poem because I had that kind of feeling that where I just want to get out of my hometown to meet new people, new city, and more. I think this poem is first time for me to interesting. When I look up on website to find background of author name is Gary Soto, I learn that he had difficult life with his family because his father is died when he is only five years old, after that, their family become more struggle with their family’s budget. He was not a good student that’s where lead him to wrote a poem about his life. So, author want to tell us who struggle or boring during 17 years old then suggest us to get out of hometown and have fun with new faces and new cities,

A house of my own. By, Sandra Cisneros

When I read this story, it made me felt that book wrote in 1900s because during that year, man have a power and control after woman. I said that because I notice that author kept repeated that house is her own. In the book, not a man's house. not a daddy's house. A House all my own. Also, I can see her clearly emotion in the book because last part of the story said only a house quiet as a snow, a space for myself to go, clean as paper before the poem. This emotion show that she live in the house with man or someone control after her life until she decide to live in her own house which mean she wont have any receive command from her dad or man. Therefore, all of her point is she want to have freedom and can do everything she want to. In addition, she said in the book, with my porch and my pillow, my pretty purple petunias, why she said color too because she tired of follow boys or daddy or man’s colors tend to be blue, green, and more but not purple, pink or many more of girls’ favorite colors.

This story made me curious from author's background. So, I decide to look up on website on her background life. I found that good website about her and I'm not surprise at all because she had six brothers and have Mexican father. So, I’m sure enough that she tired of life with boys or man in same house because most of boys tend to being tough or mean to girls during young ages, also, I notice that anyone who have Mexican fathers tend to handwork man and like to finish with everything before next day. So, I assume that she don’t want to life in same house with boys or man ever again because she don’t have her girl time or whatever.

I strongly recommend is to anybody with two eyes and free hour to read this short story because its would impact your feeling and view of woman in 1900s during their society pressure by man.

The Circuit. By, Francisco Jimenez

The Circuit talk about one young boy name is Francisco Jimenez who lives with his family in Mexico but his father feel that family have a dream and better living in California. Few days later, the family find the journey to California difficult due to noisy. In addition, when they arrive California, they learn that they don’t want to have that kind of life that they have to pick strawberries from farm field all the day. Start school at California, Francisco found new friend named Mignelito. He is very helpful to Francisco because he help with English. Soon, Francisco starts school, he find that difficult too because he had hard time to understand English. But, he love one class is art because he draws a beautiful picture of butterfly. One cold day, he doesn’t have any coat because he can’t afford one. He decides to go to lost and found box to take one coat from it. He understands English better and better but immigration guards arrive Francisco’s school and his family that they are being deported back to Mexico. My react to this short story is touchy because some of immigration families want to have better life but they cannot. The tone of that story is excited, hope, and sad because they are excited to move to California from Mexico to have better life, they have hope to change in their life and improving with English, and sad is end part of the story because they had to back to old life that’s where they don’t want to. I think this book is one of first book that good thing about immigration people that I read before

Imagine, I decide to become President of United State, if I ask by group who work for immigration guard to arrest that family and deport them back to Mexico, I would said left them alone because I can see some of immigration families who already knew that they wont success with their life if they continue to live in Mexico. I would say yes to immigration family back to Mexico by if they break any of laws because I want to see families become success and happy with their life while if immigration people decide to being stupid around in America then they wont want to success with their life. Therefore, it’s better for them to stay in Mexico and stay out of trouble.

A Gift of Laughter

This story called A Gift of Laughter, wrote by Allan Sherman. When Allan Sherman said “Can’t we have just five minutes around here without kids screaming? This is show clearly that he had important conversation with wife while their son bother them just because son want daddy to see his artwork since his father’s birthday is on Saturday on that week. Flashback to Allan’s childhood with his grandmother, his grandmother isn’t from America, he thought that his grandmother host a football party which upset him because his football worthy on the table which mean his football worthy on the table had to removed just because his grandmother will throw a football party. Until end of this happen, his mother said, “You obvious don’t understand your own grandmother since she was saying fruit bowl.” Which this applied to Robbie too, so Allan decides to get a frame for the picture that Robbie drew.

End of the story, this story is hit me so hard which its actually lead me to tear because I hate the word “ Growing up” because I want to stay being kid and innocent. In addition, when I watch home-movie during my childhood that when my real father is still alive, I notice that I always screaming for daddy, he always process me and listen my feeling then give me a feedback which effect my personality, that’s where I never get mad at or cry front of my family or friends or someone else.

Dancer

In the story, Dancer by Vickie Sears mentioned that the little girl, Clarissa has been in foster homes and she was a loner. It seems like Clarissa went through a lot of tough times with other families and that is why she don’t. “She’d be screaming and crying with her little body wriggling on the bed, her hair all matted up on her woody-colored face.” It seems like she had horrible memories with her other foster families, could be abuse, molesting, or something else. She keep have that nightmare. She was grounded for trying to kill a cat, but her family took her with them to powwow dance so she could feel welcome, being care, and prevent her from doing something inappropriate.

“She just seemed like she was all full up with anger and sacredness like lots of the kids who come to me. Only she was a real loner.” (pg. 21)

Can you imagine that you moving three different families in only months? Its would be so emotion and confused for me because once my natural family give me up to other family, I will be so scare because I don’t know that family so well, they should be abusive family or something. However, I glad that I got stay with my natural family with all of my life.

Clarissa became interested into Owl dance, Circle dance, and Hoop dance. I think that Clarissa had found something that will solve her anger from her past and something that she will love to do when she learn these dances. It also helped her to improve her behavior since these dances are something that she loves to do. I recall when I was younger, I never have any foster families, I have many friends who have foster families just because they just said that they cant handle them which its not true because they just want to save money to themselves.

I also think that family is the best family that Clarissa ever had. She improved a lot when she first came into this family. She found her passion in dancing and music.

My goal in the past was to become a great football player, but I started practice pretty late. But, I decide to continued playing everyday with other players in my school because it becomes one of my passions.

After I read this story, I am realizing that I'm pretty impressed with Clarissa's passion become a dancer.

Learning my Native Language

Three articles about deaf people’s life, all of them are very different from each other because deaf have different experience in their life and how does they process hearing people with their deafness. I will type three different stories of their children’s life, then do I agree or disagree with their parents’ decide and doing to their deaf children. Then, I will compare with three stories the difference and contrast them.
“Learning my Native language” talked about one young deaf child who have hearing parents who had high expectations in him which mean they decide to put him to oral school, force him to learn to speech which he still suggest with it because when his father said legs but he thought this was eggs instead. Other part of this story, “I remember being humiliated in first grade, his teacher asked him, what sound a fire makes? Then he answer, pop which this is wrong answer, this suppose be hiss instead. I’m strongly disagreeing with their parents because this isn’t fair for their son who had tough time to learning how to speak; I think their parents should move him to deaf school instead oral school. “The Hand of my Father”, one young deaf child who live in farm and only deaf family member in his family. One of part of his poem said, “Not once my father signs to me. He was a farmer and his explanations were for the ground. Corn, rain, earth.” This is one and only way for father to commutation to him. I strongly disagree with his father because he wasn’t high expectation in him to learn more of sign language; he just used him as “maid” at farm. “Recollections” is very rarely happen because a young deaf boy and his parents is deaf too even his parents force him go to oral school instead deaf school because of education. Somehow, his mother notices that he isn’t happy with oral school because school would punish him for signing. Then, they decide to move him to Kendall school, which is deaf school, that on Gallaudet’s campus. Once, he moved to that school, he got out of control easily because he don’t used with everyone in that school is deaf which this affect him to transfer to special class. Of course, his parents is very upset about it then his mother decide to become high expectations in him, he become more success with vocabulary, this made him back to regular and love in school. The contrast is showing clearly from three articles is completely different from each other because first article talk about one child have problem with speaking but their parents don’t care and didn’t listen to their child’s feeling. Second article talk about one child is very suffer with his father because he never bother to take him to learning America Sign Language (ASL) or speech therapy, therefore, his father kind of treat him as thing. Third article talk about parents who listen to their child’s feeling always and taught him, their child becomes success. So, all of three articles’ point is any parents who supposed to listen to their child’s feeling then they will be success, if they decide to not then they won’t success or success in tough way.

The First Day

I will like to start with my opinion of that book, A girl who admire her own mother even she don't know how to doing apply for her at school just because her mother cannot read or write at all. I was very impress with her because she loves school so much while her mother doesn't based on her writing and reading levels. In addition, the important question that I left behind after I finish reading the book, Will she success in the school with her mother's support? The tone of that book will be touchy and grieve because her daughter always have feeling of mother around her every minute because in the last part of book said even when the teacher turns me toward the classrooms and I hear what must be the singing and talking of all the children in the world, i can still hear my mother's footsteps above it all. Also, This book had full of grieve because her mother want to have her daughter to be success by education, one example, she walked with her daughter to one wrong school just because she thought that school have better education than her home location's school but they wont accept her daughter to attended their school.

Introduction

My full name is Roy William Barron and I am 18 years old. My expectation for this course is to improve my writing because English is my second language. So, beware when you read my blog and you can laugh about it! It's part of who I am and I'm proud of it, so i won't feel insulted. There is always room for improvement! By using the blogs, it will greatly help my critical thinking skills as well as my grammars from this course's book. In addition, there is one sensitive term that you all will need to know for this course is "dad or father" because I had lost both biological father fifteen years and a stepfather last year.

If you want to get more know about me then add me on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/roy.barron1.