Journal #7 - Chapters 26~29 - Perspective: Scout

Today for the Halloween festival I am playing the part of a ham. Great. My assessment led me to believe that I didn't see a real significance of me being a ham, apart from being related to the agricultural theme, I still wanted to play the part after rehearsing for quite a while. After me bringing up the court case and Jem getting mad at me, I didn't think he would have consented to talking to me for a little while, let alone willing to take me to the pageant because Atticus was too tired to go and Aunt Alexandra was also too tired from setting up the pageant all day long, or at least that's what she wanted us to think. So Jem and I walked to the pageant in the dark, something that used to be scary but not anymore, we were both too old to get scared. Or so I though until Cecil Jacobs popped out of the trees to scare us and we both flinched. 

 

All the inconveniences of my ham costume made it very hard to walk, especially when I had chicken wire stabbing into my skin each time I took a step forward. Even though the outfit was somewhat uncomfortable, it looked exactly like a ham. The chicken wire covered my body from my waist up and covered my head. On the outside of the chicken wire was fabric that had been painted to look identical to a real ham. I was glad that I was able to walk because I didn't want to make a real fool out of myself if I tripped on the stage. Also, I had to little holes that were cut perfectly where my eyes were so that I was able to see everything that was going on, except in the dark, which was when I started tripping over all of the tree roots and bumps in the uneven ground. 

 

When the pageant finally started, I was very tired of standing and had to wait in line for a while until my name was called, so I decided to sit down. The next thing I knew I was fast asleep and I could tell the show was almost over. So instead of staying behind the curtains, I went out onto the stage to join the rest of all the agricultural foods. I thought that going out onto the stage late was better than not going on at all, but apparently I had made a bad decision because everyone was laughing at me when I came out, even Judge Taylor. I completely embarrassed myself. After the pageant was over, everyone was persecuting me for ruining the show just because I came out late, which made me feel very humiliated, knowing that the whole town saw me mess up. When everyone was leaving the show, Jem was nice enough to stay with me and waited until most of the town was gone so no one would see me or laugh any more than they already had. 

 

As Jem and I were walking home in the dark, Jem kept stopping to listen for some noise that he was hearing, although I was talking so I didn't hear a word except what was coming out from my talkative mouth. Finally Jem told me to stop talking altogether, and I could tell that he was getting very paranoid because apparently he would hear the noise when we were walking, but not when we had stopped. The noise was getting louder and louder and Jem's frightening expression spread over my face as well. 

 

All of a sudden I hear a cracking sound and then unexpectedly our visitor allegedly came up behind me and grabbed me, as if he was trying to strangle me to death. A wave of fear flew across my body and I couldn't speak or scream for help and I certainly wasn't able to move. I was so scared as I heard the fabric on my ham costume being torn off and the chicken wire pressed even closer to my skin, making hexagons all over my skin from the shape of the wire. When the attacker had let me free, I knew his job wasn't over. I wondered where Jem was but all I heard was faint screams and I couldn't tell at all what was happening. Finally I regained my ability to see, even in the darkness of the night and saw that someone was carrying Jem towards our house. Then I went into the streetlight and on towards my house to find that Jem's arm had been broken and that the attacker was Bob Ewell, who was now laying under a tree with a knife jabbed into his ribs. 

 

Journal #6 - Chapters 16~19 - Perspective: Atticus

Today brought up some very unfamiliar emotions for me. Stress was taking over my mind, which didn't help with the nervous feeling I had felt all morning and the previous night. After getting out the house this morning and seeing the whole entire town there gave me an overwhelming feeling that just made me want to back out and lie at the fact that Tom Robinson was guilty, which in fact he isn't and It was going to be my job to prove him innocent and free to go home and live a normal life with his wife and three kids. 

 When the trial started I was very unsure about any of the upcoming events. After not being involved with any cases lately, it was a big step for me to defend Tom Robinson, even though I knew I was going to be hated for it, I know it was and still is the right thing to do. With prejudice opinions surrounding me all through the room, I got a wave of anxiety. 

 Recapping on all techniques was all I could do to prepare myself, besides read over my questions. I knew that I was going to win, mostly because I had all the facts to prove that Tom Robinson never raped Mayella Ewell. When Mr. Heck Tate was up at the witness stand, it was confirmed that he saw nothing of the rape after rushing to Mayella’s house. My first questions were intended to just cover the basics, in which I would hopefully be able to rule out some of the obvious conclusions or possibilities.

 When Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father came up to testify, I started by asking him questions that were apparently irrelevant, according to Mr. Gilmer, which was the reason for him objecting. After the objection was overruled, I continued with my correlation between the fact that Bob Ewell used his left hand to write, meaning that if he were to have given her the bruise, then it would have been on her right side of her face, in this case it was.

 Being a lawyer is difficult because you have to have strategies in order to determine whether someone is telling the truth or making up stories or thing that indeed never took place. One of my strategies was to listen rather then watch because even the most subtle changes in voice or hesitations can lead to conclusions of true or false. When Mayella got to the witness stand, that’s when some of the real answers were uncovered. Her stealthy movements and hesitations definitely gave me a sign that she wasn’t telling the whole truth, something she swore on the bible to do.

 At the end of my interrogation was when I really started to surprise her and uncover the truth, in which she reacted stiffly to, trying to hold in her emotions I could tell. The predicament that she was in and the facial expressions she was giving off told me that something wasn’t right about her story and that she knew that she was busted. After supposedly “mocking her” Tom was up at the stand, which gave all of us a different perspective on the situation, as Tom’s story was extremely different, and truer at that.  Asking Tom the questions only helped me to prove he was innocent.

 Today’s trial seemed to go very well as expected. I felt much more confident about the case and was pretty sure that I was set to win by this point. Mr. Gilmer was being very rude today, which made me angry, but I know the turnaround will be different once I win.

 

Journal #5 - Chapters 13~15 - Perspective: Aunt Alexandra

When I got to the house after my trip from the landing, I sat there on the porch simply waiting for someone to return home. Atticus and I had discussed that it was time that Scout and Jem, Scout especially, needed someone in their lives with a more feminine influence on them. After discussing, we decided that I would come down to spend some time with Scout and Jem for quite a while. In my mind I would call it a temporarily permanent stay. I sat on the bench for a while, gazing around across the wide streets just trying to get a feel for the neighborhood and what the houses were like. From my observation, all the houses seemed to be very eclectic. Some houses were small, others were big and some were dark and scary, when others were very light and welcoming.

 When Scout and Jem came home later that afternoon, they were indeed surprised to see me. I figured Atticus would have told them about me coming to live with them, but when I asked them they said he never mentioned anything to them. Knowing Atticus he probably let it just slip his mind. After all he's got a lot on his mind dealing with the trial that's up coming soon. 

 While making my trip over here, I was thinking about what it would do to the family if I left for a long time. Figuring that my husband would be able to take over my daily chores, I decided that it would be okay for me to come here. Staying with Scout and Jem would hopefully enable them to act more like adults. Scout will definitely need to start dressing better and acting more like a lady. Right now I look at here and see a hopeless child whose parents don't care about them and haven't been taught any manners what-so-ever. Being here will hopefully make Scout want to bring out her feminine side and be more willing to wear dresses and do activities that don't involve coming home covered in dirt and mud.

 Jem on the other hand is a very kind boy. As far as I've seen, he doesn't need nearly the amount of work that Jean Louis needs. I can already tell that he has not been spending as much time with Scout anymore and has moved onto activities that normal teenage boys would be doing like reading his football magazines alone in his room. I have a feeling that if their mother was still alive, these kids wouldn't act so wild and Scout wouldn't be such a tom boy. It really annoys me that she acts that way she does and who knows what she will turn out to be in the future once she starts liking boys. Hopefully she will be willing to act and dress more appropriately while I'm here. 

 Being here in Maycomb has been a really great experience for me so far. I met almost all of the neighbors, and the whole town for that matter since this town is so small. It seems as though that I belonged here all along. After coffee and tea with my new friends and eating delicious cakes, I feel very welcome here and I hope that it will continue to be that way for the rest of my visit. 

 

 

 

Journal #4 - Chapters 10~12 - Perspective: Calpurnia

That ole Tim Johnson surely scared all of us half to death. You really do never know what a crazy dog like that could do to the neighborhood. Tim was rather well known within Maycomb, as one of the very few dogs that we have around here, so when we see him with a broken leg, limpin' down the street looking like he's about to die, I knew I had to do something. My first instinct was to warn everyone about the dog, which is exactly what I did. The neighbors seemed very surprised at first and then realized how dangerous the dog could have been to all of us. For all we know it could have spread rabies across the whole town. We were all in a great amount of peril at the moment. 

 As the dog came up the street we all really started to panic, especially when it finally reached the Radley's place, which was awfully close to the Finch's. The county sheriff Mr. Heck Tate came and to all of our surprise, he handed his gun to Atticus to shoot the dog. Atticus' reaction was inaudible, and I could tell that he was hesitating. Someone like me who had already known of his hunting and shooting expertise, was put off a little at the fact that he was going to shoot the dog right in front of Jem and Scout. I was scared, as was everyone else, but Atticus seemed to have quickly picked up his skill again because before we all knew it Tim Johnson had rolled onto his side, his final resting place. 

 The days after that we going by pretty slowly and soon Atticus had to go off to the capital everyday for two weeks. That left me alone with Jem and Scout. It was amazing actually taking a step back to look at them and see how much they have grown. Scout has been pretty sad lately after she found out that Dill wasn't going to come back for the summer and Jem doesn't play with Scout very often anymore 'cause the boy just turned 12 and he's apparently got other  things to do that doesn't involve his little sister anymore. 

 Since Atticus was gone, I decided to take Jem and Scout to my church for a change. I made sure that they looked extra nice because I didn't want the congregation to think that I'm an irresponsible caretaker for the children. Jem was wearing his nice jacket, slacks and tie combination, while Scout was looking darling in a dress that she's probably only worn once before. Scout's new look was far from inconspicuous. 

 When we got to the church I was immediately approached by Lula, someone who always had something to say to me. This time she was giving me a hard time about bringing white children to a "colored" church, something that contradicted the idea of freedom between all races. All she did every week was treat me almost the same was that Ms. Dubose treats Jem and Scout. It's a sad thing to see that she acts that way even though she goes to church. 

 Church was then over and Jem and Scout had finally stopped bothering me about not having a contemporary church just because we didn’t have hymn books like they did. Then Scout suddenly became more interested in my life outside of their house, little did she know that I even had one. At the end of our conversation, she asked me if she could come to my house one day after work. I agreed happily and was thrilled to see that she was interested and showing off her feminine side a little bit more. Having a closer relationship with Scout will definitely be beneficial to the future.

 

Journal #3 - Chapters 8~9 - Perspective: Scout

This morning was filled with the most excitement that I have had in what seems like forever. It was snowing! I couldn’t believe my eyes when I first peeked out the window. The snowflakes were so little and delicate and all I wanted to do was run outside and see what they were really like. I’ve heard of snow before, but never until this morning was I able to actually see what it truly was. I was being so fanatical that I had to run and show Jem and Atticus.

Once I was bundled up in my robe, Jem and I headed outside, hesitating at first at the freezing cold we were about to enter. As I stepped outside I saw our lawn that was found to be covered in little piles of snowflakes forming a thin layer of white. All the adjacent houses’ lawns looked the same—a thin layer of snow, with dirt that showed through and mixed in with the flakes.  Atticus had said that this was the coldest it had ever gotten in Maycomb since 1885. He was surely right about the fact that it was so cold and after stepping the snow with my bare feet I was debating about going back inside.

After that Jem and I built a snowman, made to look like Mr. Avery, our neighbor down the street. Atticus said that it looked exactly like him, which it did because all the dirt had mixed in with the snow, making the snow brown. Since it looked so much like Mr. Avery, Atticus suggested that we somehow disguise him so that Mr. Avery wouldn’t get angry with us. After using Miss Maudie’s sun hat and all the snow from her lawn, her temper began to rise and she wasn’t happy with us after that.

That night was a normal night as usual, except for the fact that it was freezing cold and Atticus had to light the fire in my room so I wouldn’t freeze to death. Lighting the fire wasn’t something that happened, but it was a sure thing we did or else my whole body would have been shaking frantically and my lips would have been blue, just like before the fire was lit.

Everything seemed to be normal, me in my deep sleep and fire blazing in my face making me self consciously take some of the layers off of me, until Atticus woke me up with my robe in his hand demanding me to wake up. I’m sure that my facial expression was filled with perplexity because I had no idea why Atticus was waking me up in what I thought was the middle of the night. Finally when the three of us were all awake, Atticus led us outside. Suddenly fear took over my face as I stared across the street at Miss Maudie’s house burning to pieces from a huge fire.

 Atticus demanded us to find safety by standing over on the Radleys’ porch. I knew that Maycomb was small, but it seemed like it had grown just looking at the amount of people gathered around the house and street. Men were the most prominent because they were all helping control and put out the fire.  Soon after Jem and I were brought outside, there were fire trucks everywhere and men on top of roof trying to help. I was just glad that I wasn’t entrusted with any job that would put me into any danger. I felt so bad for Miss Maudie, but then again I do remember her saying that she didn’t like her house and wanted to build a bigger garden, which might have made this something positive for her. All I know is that this will be a night that I will remember. 

Journal #2 - Chapters 4~7 - Perspective: Miss Maudie Atkinson

Oh how I wish that I could be like the kids, just carefree and happy all day long. Those kids across the street Jem and Scout and then Dill, seem to get together real nicely. I always see them playing and laughing with each other.  Although they are always pretty good kids they can get a little rowdy and suspicious sometimes. That’s why I only let them play around in my front yard. Because with all the hard work and effort I put into making my garden look beautiful, I don’t want any of them to come here and mess it up. Life is very simple for me. I go out into my garden full of peace and tranquility and watch as the kids play games and go off sneaking into the Radley’s yard.

That’s a whole different story for me. Now I feel very, very strongly about how the neighbors and treating the Radley’s. So when I see the three of them making up new games that entail acting like the Radley’s, my gut just wants to yell at them and tell them that they shouldn’t do that because the Radley’s are definitely people that you don’t want to mess with, especially Arthur. I will have to admit that Dill is quite the chameleon when it comes to acting. I see other to staying one person, but Dill’s all over the place taking on character roles and adapting to them so well that he could have been the person himself.  

I remember the good days when I would call out to Jem and Scout and another neighborhood kid to come get some hot milk in the summer. The milk came right from my very own cow. I almost forgot about the cakes! Those kids had the grandest time ever when I made those cakes. They would scarf them down so quickly that I almost felt bad for making the pieces too small. I love watching their grins spread across their faces. To know that I made someone happy was a great feeling for me, compared to all the other ones I get around here in a house that I hate.

After losing my husband, things really started to go downhill for me, especially my concern about the Radley’s. I knew things were creepy around there. I felt that there was always a malignant spirit surrounding and taking over every house close by. Sometimes I feel real bad for all the dirty pranks and tricks they do to torment them. I just can’t watching them trying to dare each other to go and touch the house or get Arthur, or “Boo” as they call him, to try to come out. I swear that Jem is becoming more and more like his uncle, Jack Finch. He always was a troublemaker and rude at that.

Today I couldn’t believe what had happened. I was just living life when all of a sudden I start hearing a loud commotion over at the Radley’s and next thing I knew Mr. Radley was walking out of his out with a shotgun that he shot up towards the heavens. At that point a couple of the neighbors were gathered and I could assume by everyone’s facial expressions that there was a unanimous decision that the Radley’s needed to be left alone and to warn the children. Being a strong believer in faith, I wasn’t very happy with what had come about this whole idea of trying to get Arthur to come out. For God’s sake, if he wanted to come out of the house he would! I see Jem across the street teetering in hesitation on whether he should go over to the house or not.

Not all things are bad though. I still enjoyed spending time with Scout out on the front porch watching the sunset make the day transition from afternoon, to twilight, to evening.

 

Journal #1 - Chapters 1~3 - Perspective: Ms. Caroline

I never knew that 1^st graders could be so annoying and misbehaved! After teaching here for only two day, I have already come to the conclusion that I can’t take Maycomb anymore, especially the kids. Just yesterday alone I already get this girl Scout, who has been ruining my new type of teaching plan. So what happened… oh I’ll tell you what happened. This girl, Scout, comes into the classroom already knowing how to read! Just to test her out a little bit, I decided to give her the book My first Reader, and then the Mobile Register and she was able to read both of them. I wasn’t exactly sure what expression I was portraying when she finished but I knew for one thing it was not pretty. That father of hers is going to have to stop teaching her to read.

 

After a very long morning, lunch time finally came. I noticed that one of the boys, Walter Cunningham, didn’t bring a lunch so I offered him a quarter to buy some, but her refused, which surprised me. He just said meekly, “Nome thank you ma’am.” I was insisting that he take the quarter but he still refused. All of a sudden Scout comes rambling off about how Walter is a Cunningham. While I’m just thinking what that could possibly mean I realized that because this town is so small it seems that everyone seems to know everyone….except me! Just from Scouts little speech about Walter, I learned that the Cunninghams are a very poor family who lives there lives simply on a farm. Right off the bat I could tell that Walter was poor because of his appearance. He came in on the first day of school with some beat up overalls and very dirty. Also they never take what they can’t give back.

 

Sometimes I get very frustrated but not ever like this. First I have a girl who has already destroyed my new teaching plan, which I have been yearning to use since college! I have only been here for a short amount of time and I can tell I’ve become an outsider. The way I dress, talk and teach! Everything has been eating at me and I’m not sure how long I am going to be able to stay here. I practically broke down and started crying in my lap today….here’s the story:

 

It was just after class was going to be continued when a student name Little Chuck Little, or Burris Ewell comes into class and still has this living creating in his hair! I thought I had nearly passed out at that moment. The creature was small but still it was living inside his head! All the boys, except Burris obviously, rush to my assistance as I started in horror at the insect-like creature that didn’t seem to bug Burris the slightest bit. After I drank a refreshing glass of water, I wrote down Burris’ full name on the attendance sheet and then continued class. But before I did that I demanded Burris to go home and wash his hair thoroughly and then treat it with kerosene. The process certainly seemed reasonable to me with the way that thing creped around. Soon later Burris just pinched the creature with his bare hands and killed it within two seconds. I know my face was terrified but not enough to the point where the kids of the class were scared not by the bug but because of my facial expression.

 

After that I decided to read a nice story to the students to take my mind off of the chaos that had already ruined my first day. I seemed to gather more information about the Ewell family after the incident. Basically the Ewells are a crazy huge family with no mother who only attend school for the first day, and then go help their father on the farm the rest of the year. I wanted to feel bad for them but then decided that it wasn’t worth it. I just wanted to go back to Alabama. 

Immigration Project Reflection

I had a very good experience while reading Once Upon A Quinceañera by Julia Alvarez because I was really able to connect with the stories that Julia told, even though they were mostly about the Latino cultures. I feel that I made a very good choice of books because the novel I read was very informative and an eye opener to a whole other culture that I didn't know very much about before reading this book. I also think that I made a good decision because the book was interesting and very easy to follow.

Once Upon A Quinceañera is a story that enabled me to learn all about the Latino culture, and especially quinceaneras. A quinceanera is a celebration for Latina girls when they turn 15 in order to symbolize them becoming an adult and more mature. The celebration includes a ceremony and then a party, in which the father replaces his daughters flat shoes, with high-heels to show that she is now allowed to do more things like wear high-heeled shoes and wear make-up.

While reading this book, I wish I hadn't have spread my reading out so much in between the blog posts because sometimes it was difficult to fully remember what I had previously read for that posting. I think that writing blog posts in lieu of having meetings was beneficial to me because I was able to express more of my opinion in writing, however, with the meetings I was able to show more emotion about how I felt instead of having my group members just see the words.

Overall, I didn't have any major problems writing the blog posts or the comments, except for the fact that not all of my group members’ posts were completed on time, therefore I couldn’t comment on any of them. After literature circles were finished, I learned that even though you are reading the same book as someone else it can be interpreted in a whole different way.

In order to create my image, I first had to choose a topic that I though could relate to my book. At first I chose to do a cultural component, which ultimately is what it is, but I made it into a book cover to add more detail. In addition to detail, I also had to have my image connect with the book. One of the ways I did that was by portraying a very prominent topic from the novel. I chose to paint a dress because it represents quinceaneras. I paid close attention to the colors in order to reflect the changes Latino went through after becoming Americanized.

I think that after all of the minor changes I made, my painting turned out nicely. I was very satisfied with how it came out because of the neatness, but I wish that I could have enhanced it by making the colors more similar to the hues in my final sketch because the colors were very important. Reflecting on my novel with art really opened my eyes to see that art is a form of expression for almost anything and it can be used to represent or symbolized everything from a book to nature and much more.

The interview process for me went well at first and then became very difficult and frustrating. It was challenging contacting my immigrant because she would never answer her phone, and if she did then she was always busy and couldn’t talk. The first and second interviews went very well because she was very kind, however, she did not remember very much from her life in the Philippines which made it hard for me to get enough information. Even though I wasn't able to get as much information as I would have liked I still felt good about interviewing my immigrant and ask her questions, even though I called her each time and never emailed her or met with her in-person.

Because I didn't get a chance to do my third interview, I don't know as much about her immigration experience as others would. From the first interview I learned that she came here when she was just 13, my age, and also that the first thing that she noticed was different was the streets and how they were so much wider and smoother than the ones in the Philippines. During my second interview I learned that she first attended a school in San Diego that was made up of almost all Filipinos and Asians, which made it very easy for her and her brothers, who came here with her, to blend in.

Interviewing an immigrant helped me learn that immigrating was not as hard as it may seem for many people. When we study immigration we learn about all the hardships that people went through, when really only some people's journey was difficult. Making the image for my immigrant made me feel really good because I know that I was creating it for someone who has been through so much. Also being given the chance to make her something that will remind her of her new and old life also gave me a nice feeling. I am excited to see what she thinks of the image I painted for her.

In conclusion, I am very glad that I was able to learn about immigration and how it has affected so many lives in America and across the world today.

Literature Circles: Post #6

"To be Latino in the U.S. is rather to participate in a unique process of cultural syncretism that may become a transformative template for the whole society," Julia Alvarez. Page 232.

This quote relates back to the question of "How do the characters maintain their cultural ties to their homeland while living in America?" because it shows that Latinos also go through the process of assimilation, which is what Julia means when she says, "process of cultural syncretism." This process may come faster or slower for others and different people stay more traditional. One thing that I think every Latino still celebrates are quinceaneras, because of their extremely high importance to all 15 year-old Latina girls.

I can link this quote back to everyday life, because it deals with the way people interpret different cultures and even news that we see on the media. Recently I heard a speaker from Iran who told us about the other people in Iran who are not involved in all of the chaos that lies beneath the country, but rather have a strong spiritual tie to God, or at least coming to that point.

What is one issue that you think is often misinterpreted or you think has a different side or opinion to it?

"Why I come out of this year feeling a deeper understanding of the challenges facing our Latino community as we come of age in the United States as well as the challenges facing our daughters and granddaughters as they come of age a young women," Julia Alvarez. Page 253.

This quote relates to the hardships that the young Latino girls are facing. It seems as though Julia is trying to say that each year or generation there is more weight and pressure on the young Latinos to live up to. Whether is it to keep the tradition going, or have the same career as their parents, we all have to live up to something.

I think that Julia is ultimately making sure that the young Latinos will be prepared to embrace and endure what lies ahead for them. Times are now getting very hard and Julia is trying to send a message out to make young people more aware or what is in store for them and what we will soon have to deal with.

What is one challenge that you think younger generations will have to face in the future?

Literature Circles: Post #5

"I felt I was losing my mind, leaving my American self behind," Julia Alvarez. Page 187

This quote relates well back to the question about the hardships that the immigrant had while in America. Julia Alvarez came to America and was adjusting fine, but she’s finally faced the hardship of missing her home country and being tied between being a Latino and being an American. She really struggled with this especially in her mind because she knew that she would always have her original culture in her heart, but it just wasn't enough to hold on to.

I can relate to this quote easily because there are so many times when I wish that I could revert to the original way things were. Ways that made life easier or less stress, but sometimes that feeling takes over and then I feel guilty about going back to the way things used to be done.

What is one specific thing that you wish you could change and make it go back to the way it used to be?

"And so I chose what I knew the significant people in my life, my parents and family, thought was right for me to do," Julia Alvarez. Page 201.

I feel that this is another hardship that Julia faced. One of the adjustments that I think would be the hardest to make is being able to make all the decisions you make by yourself. This would be very hard especially if you are starting a new and better life in a new country. People sometimes get so caught up with what they want to do that they don't actually think about what the right thing is, which is why Julia thought about what was the best choice for Julia to make.

I have a strong connection to this quote because often times I have to think about what the right thing to do is, as opposed to what I want to do. I think about this with even simple things like doing my chores or fulfilling whatever request that my mom asks me to do. I know that I will have to think about these types of things with the situations I will be faced with in the future.

What kind of situation do you think would make you think about what the right thing to do is and what your parents or family would want you to do?

Literature Circles: Post #4

"True, the subdued, old-fashioned fiesta de quince anos-- the quinceanera in a ball gown dancing a waltz with Papi at the country club--is dying out. Instead, globalization has introduced a new, bigger, blockbuster version of the quinceanera." Julia Alvarez. Page 149.

This is just one more true statement of how America is changing traditional celebrations, like quinceaneras. It obviously shows to what extent Latinos are going to keep up their cultural ties. As you can see, the traditional aspects of quinceaneras have completely changed over time. From dresses to parties and location, almost all 15 year old Latina girls has changed their quinceanera to meet the Americanized standards.

I think that it is great that America has been able to change the way people look at quinceaneras. Assimilating with Americans can be difficult for many Americans, and teens just want to prove themselves to be as cool as everyone else. I'm just glad that coming to America hasn't stopped all immigrants from losing their home country's culture.

If you had a quinceanera, how would you change it from the traditional way to celebrate?

"We had to prove to these americanos we were good enough," Julia Alvarez. Page 167.This quote relates to the question that asks about the hardships that the characters had when they came to America. Proving yourself worthy of being an American is one of the hardest things to do, especially if you are a teenager because of all the drama that is already in their lives.

I think that this is the one thing that all immigrants are afraid of when they come here... being accepted.This quote can relate to me in many different ways. In everyday life, I have to face anything that comes to me like soccer tryouts, or proving myself to be worthy of taking of certain responsibilities. The thought of being accepted is something that is on many, people’s minds, unless they are someone who really doesn't care.

What would you do if you were an immigrant coming to America and everyone in your school hated you?

Literature Circles: Post #3

"My job was to man the front desk, answer the phone, find patient charts in the packed file cabinets behind me, or fill out on for new patients," Julia Alvarez, narrator. Page 105.

The quote obviously relates back to the topic of what the role of the character was back in their home country. In the Dominican Republic Julia worked for her father as the receptionist. During the time when Julia lived in the Dominican Republic, I would have thought that is was not very common for the father and the daughter, or any two family members to be working together.

I can definitely relate to the quote because I have done many things with my dad in which we were working together. Whether I am helping him with a project around the house, making improvements or fixing things, I always seem to end up working with my dad, which seems to be a good partnership because we are always very successful when we work together.

Julia was about our age or older when she was working as the receptionist for her father, do you think you would have been able to be responsible enough to work in a doctor's office? Why or why not?

"The way I might wince at an ethnic joke in which I recognize in exaggerated from a cultural trait I'm not very proud of," Julia Alvarez, narrator. Page 119.

This quotes is something that made me think of all the hardships that Julia faced while living in America. This quote obviously shows that Julia sometimes feels as though she is not proud of her original Latino culture. Julia must have faced situations in the past that made her almost want to regret the fact that she is a Latino.

This quotes really surprised me because is seems as thought Julia is very proud to be a Latino. Especially because she is so involved and dedicated to quinceaneras. They way she talks about coming to America and facing hardships was very minimal because Julia had given me the impression that she did not face any major difficulties coming here.

Why don't you think that Julia is proud of her culture?

Literature Circles: Post #2

"The study confirms Will's point that the up-and-coming generation of Hispanic teens is 'predominately bilingual and bicultural," Julia Alvarez, narrator. Page 70.

I chose this quote because I felt that it really shows how the next generation of Latinos are making an effort to stay close to their original culture. Many of Hispanic teens are learning how to speak Spanish, because that is their original culture's language. Also Latino teens are keeping up with the religious and cultural traditions even though they were born America.

I think it is really great that this next generation of Hispanic teens are interested in staying close with their culture and wanting to learn and keep of the traditions to show that they care about their culture. If I was Hispanic, I would definitely try to be involved with my culture and keep it up by having a quinceanera.

Why or why not do you think it is important to keep up with your culture?

"The Latino population is exploding, and it is mostly a young population," Will Cain. Page 68.

I think this quote relates to the question of how these immigrants are struggling in America, but rather than struggling, it related to the positive things that all the Latino population has to offer to America. Having the Latinos here gives us as Americans a chance to learn about their culture. Also it enables us to be more aware of the lifestyles and hardships that people are going through in the rest of the world, as well as traditions, like quinceaneras that the Latinos still celebrate.

This fact really affects my life because of the expanding population of Latinos. I am able to learn about their culture by just observing them in their everyday lives and even being able to be a part of some of their cultural rituals because many of my friends are Latino.

What are some ways that the exploding Latino culture has or will affect you?

Literature Circles: Post #1

Quote #1: "We've seen the Latina population grow and explode in the last seventeen years and David's Bridal has grown with it," narrator. Page 41

I think that this quote really pertains to the topic of how Americans treat the characters in this book, and in this case the Latina population living in America. This quote relates, because it is showing how stores and shops, like David's Bridal have been changing because of the growth of the Latina girls. David's Bridal shop inparticular, has changed becuase they are now have a line in their store called BELOVED that displays dresses for Latina girls having quinceaneras.

I think that what David't Bridal shop decided to do was very nice and respectful, because it showed that they cared and respected their culture. Besides being able to make more money, the bridal shop made the quinceanera dresses so that the families could pay less for them, instead of having to buy an extremely expensive wedding dress to wear.

What do you think is one way that another store or shop could change to benefit Hispanic immigrants like Monica?


Quote #2: "If she chooses another color, she's ot really and quinceanera. It's more American like a sweet sixteen," Salvador Suriano. Page 41

This quote relates back to the subject of how the characters maintain their cultual ties to their homeland while living in America. This is because the Latina girls maintain their religous beliefs by having a quienceanera when they are fifteen. However, most of their quienceaneras have been tweaked a little to make them seem more like sweet sixteens. One of the ways they change is by wearing a different color dress, other than the traditional pink gown. Many Latina girls have switched to white, and then even more excentric colors.

One of the ways that my family and I have changed our religious beliefs is by celebrating Hanukah in a different way. Rather than reading prayers in Hebrew and just lighting the candles, over the years, my family has added our own traditions. For example, on each of the 8 days, my family and I talk about good traits that we should always follow, such as honesty and what it means to be humble and treat all other equally (which ties in my Christian beliefs as well).

What is one way you or your family have personalized a holiday or event that you celebrate?

Field Trip Reflection

Part I: From Haven to Home

From Haven to Home was a museum, which we visited to learn about Jewish Immigrants and the way they coped while living in America. This museum explored a total of 350 years that Jews have been living in America. The first thing that I learned about was the first Jews that came to America. It was a group of 23 Jews, including adults and children, who came to America in 1654 to seek a better life in America after being kicked-out by the Portuguese who were taking over their homeland in Brazil. When the Jews first came to America, they ran into some complications. They came to New Amsterdam and were discriminated against as Jews, therefore the governor refused to allow them own real estate.

The Jews were also involved with the growth of America, to make sure their religious beliefs were protected. For example, the 1st Amendment was created to protect the Jews right against religious discrimination, as well as other religions. The Jews also were ones to fight in the Civil War, siding with the North and the South, depending on where they lived. In the 1880’s there were millions of Jews that started to come over from different parts of Europe. Emma Lazarus was a Jewish poet who wrote a famous poem about the Statue of Liberty.

In 1923, America refused to let anymore Jews into America, until the controversies of Adolf Hitler came up, in which then America allowed Jews to come in again to escape the hostile concentration camps that millions of Jews went to and died from. Over time, Jews started to prosper in America and settle more into homes and be a part of everyday American life, while still holding onto their religion by building synagogue communities. Jewish holidays also became more familiar with other non-Jewish Americans.

Many Jews were very involved with politics. Some Jews have run for things like Congress and the U.S. state cabinet. Just like politics, Jews have been involved in America’s pop culture by participating in Broadway shows and radio and TV broad casting. Jewish woman have also had a big role in history. For example Rebecca Gratz started the first Sunday school for young Jews.
One of the biggest issues that occurred from the Jews was the concept of Zionism. Zionism was the movement in Europe to have Israel a country again. Luis D. Brandis was a famous lawyer and was also the spokesperson for the Zionism movement. Jews now, have Israel as their homeland again. Over time, Jews have made different lifestyles. The strict rules stated in Leviticus Chapter 11 are what Orthodox Jews follow, whereas different groups like Reformed and Conservative Jews follow a simpler set. In Conclusion, Jews have influenced and made a huge impacted on who America is today.

Part II: Children of Immigrants

The photograph that I chose to talk about is called Walt Disney Magnet School. Taken in 1998, it shows a close-up of a group of kids about five to seven years old who are all smiling. I really like this picture because it shows that all you need is a little effort to be able to coexist and have fun together without having to worry about someone’s background or ethnicity.

“The greatest thing I hope for in my life is to be a successful person and to have a family and friends to support me, not to be looked at by just the color of my skin, but who I am inside,” Samira Durakovic, Yugoslavia. This quote really stood out to me because I think that everyone can relate to what she wants in her future and be able to say that everyone is human, and the color of someone’s skin is not who you should judge them by.

Immigration Reflection

An immigrant is someone who travels from one country to another to establish a permanent life. Many people emigrate from their countries because of problems that they are dealing with. Many people are troubled because they aren't given any freedom, especially when it comes to religion. People around the world have to put up with the current government systems in their country which is often very unfair and does not give their citizens the equality that they deserve. Also, people who deal with family issues or mid-life crisises would immigrate to another country to try to start a new and better life in a different country. Safety is another problem. People all over the Middle Eastern part of the world constantly have to worry about what will happen to them that day and the next. Families often struggle to stay together and parents sometimes have a hard time just trying to be able to feed their children dinner each day.
Many immigrants are seeking a better life in America because of the amount of freedom we are given. We get to practice any religion we believe in and are given the right and freedom of speech anywhere in our great country. Even though our country may seem like one that is falling apart and is full of slobs, it offers a great amount of opportunity to be successful in any topic that you desire to learn or study. Americans today are very spoiled, so it seems. Other countries around the world do not have the luxury of beautiful and grand homes and the technology that we think would be almost impossible to live without. America is a country with freedom and opportunity, which is why our country is so grand.
Immigration has deeply affected the U.S. Without immigrants, we would most likely not be able to enjoy simple things like different foods from around the world. Anything from burritos to delicious curry dishes may not be as prominent in our country today. Having immigrants from other countries also allows us to get a close up of other cultures from around the world. Instead of learning about different life styles, we are actually able to observe different cultures through everyday life. Whether at work, school or around the neighborhood, we can learn about cultures from people who have experienced another life from a different country. Many laws have also been created to give immigrants the equal rights that we have in America. Laws, such as the 14th Amendment, give minorities the equal rights as Americans just because they are immigrants.
Immigration has impacted my life on a few different levels. For one, if my great-grandmother had not emigrated from Russia, I very well may not be here today. That also goes for my other great-grandmother who emigrated from Poland when she was young. Even today I may not have many of the friends that I have if they hadn't immigrated to America. Immigration has mainly affected me through the ancestors of my friends and family. In conclusion, immigration has affected America and its history for decades, and it will continue to hopefully change America for the better.

The Color of Water Book Review

The Color of Water is a memoir written by James McBride that portrays his life growing up, as well as his mother Ruth’s life. This book explains James’ life from the beginning of kindergarten to a recent college graduate and all of the great and tragic things he went through during his childhood and young adult years. This memoir is a great and fascinating story of how James McBride, a black child, coped with his white mother and honored her for all of the discrimination she faced.

This memoir included many characters. The main character is James McBride, who is an innocent kindergartener, has a kind and caring personality and has to deal with eleven other siblings, him being the eighth one, picking on him and bossing him around. Throughout James’ life he goes through drastic changes. At one point he turned to drugs to satisfy himself after the death of his stepfather, which took a huge effect on all of his family members. “At one point I was embarrassed to even go to the local supermarket with my white mother because I didn’t want people to see me with her,” James quoted. After becoming a very independent person, James then becomes faithful in his strong Christian religion which helps him to cope with his troubles.

Ruth, James’ single mother is a very intelligent, determined, spiritual and brave woman. As a mother she enforces many strict rules and has a hard time providing daily needs like food and care for her twelve children. As a child, Ruth grew up through many hardships included sexual abuse from her unloving father. “Tateh was a threat to me. I never wanted to see that man again.” Because of her past, Ruth has been able to overcome many difficult situations that have helped her raise twelve children of her own.

This book is written in first person as if it was a long journal entry. The narration switches off between James telling us about his childhood, to his mother Ruth explaining her life as a child, an abused teenager, to a happy, proud and married mother. In the beginning of the book, it tends to get confusing because you can’t exactly tell who is narrating, but towards the middle of the book you will be able to figure it out by the content stated in the stories.

After reading this book I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is over the age of twelve because I feel that anyone below that age would have a difficult time understanding the book. I think that this book is a great read for anyone over twelve because I think that this story should be read to show people that interracial marriages are okay now as opposed to the hard times they were given during the early and mid-century 1900’s. All in all I think this book was a great read and should be read by others to show that black and white people should be accepted for who they are and seen as a human just like rest.

Ashes of Roses Book Review

Ashes of Roses is a historical-fiction novel written by Mary Jane Auch. The novel tells a story about a 16 year-old girl named Rose Nolan who travels from Ireland to America because it is supposedly “paved with gold.” After arriving in America, part of her family is forced to return home across the Atlantic, leaving Rose and her 12 year-old sister Maureen alone in America. After they are finally settling in and making new friends, a horrible fire breaks out in the Triangle Shirtwaist factory, where Rose worked. From there on, Rose and her sister are left to find out if there is any opportunity left for them in America.
This book takes place mainly in New York except in the very beginning when it describes them on the ship while they are about to pull into the docks of Ellis Island. Throughout this book you will also be able to learn about the huge fire at the Triangle Factory in New York that took place on March 25, 1911. I really like this book because of the characters. All of their different and unique personalities made the book full of drama.
In this book, there are many different and important characters. The main character in the story is Rose Nolan, who also narrates the story. Rose is a poor, Irish girl who is very caring, responsible, determined, strong, brave and intelligent. “…then I told Ma about my plan to find work so we could move out.” This quote, said by Rose, shows how persistent and determined she is to go out and find work so she can support her family and have a good life in America.
Maureen is Rose’s 12 year-old sister. In the story, she stays behind in America with Rose and helps her cope with their daily challenges. Maureen is very snotty and bratty and has a big mouth. She is also not afraid to protest if she is unhappy or unsatisfied. “She grabbed Hildegarde by her potholder braids and dragged her down to the floor. Then she pulled on the braids, poppin’ hairpins all over the floor, and tied them together right in Hildegarde’s mouth like a gag.” This quote describes Maureen’s anger being taken out on her cousin and shows how she is not afraid to show how she feels about someone.
I really enjoyed reading this book because it contained a lot of detail and drama. I would recommend this book to girls anywhere from them ages of 11 to 14. This book really grabbed my attention because I felt as though I could relate to a lot of the types of situations and hardships Rose was going through in the book. I also liked it because of the way it was written. Since it was in Rose’s perspective (first person), I felt as though I was able to grasp more detail because Rose was always in the middle of the action. Overall I think the book was very entertaining and had a great storyline, which is why I recommend this book as a fantastic read to middle school girls.

LOTF Chapter 13

Boot Camp

By: Simone Federici

“Wake up boys! Breakfast is in two minutes sharp… and if you’re late that’s 100 push-ups in front of all of us!” The man shouted with a deep and strong voice as he walked down the narrow halls. The boys all woke up as the man’s voice came closer and closer, getting louder by the second.

“What are you boys still doing in bed? Get up now!” The man was in the dorm now scanning all the boys’ faces and then proceeded in his loud and frightening tone of voice. “Oohh… I see. We have some new faces don’t we?” The man hissed through his teeth with a glower on his face. There was a short pause as the twelve boys, crammed into just 6 bunks, stared with mortified expressions.

“Is somebody gonna answer me?”

“Oh…umm.” Ralph muttered too scared to speak to such a strong and scary person as the man was only a few feet away from his dirty face. Ralph’s face was struck with horror and confusion.

“Where are we?” Ralph now spoke with full projection to the tall man crouched down and staring at Ralph and a littlun that he was sharing a bed with.

“What do you mean where are we? Your recruiter didn’t inform you of the training you boys are about to undergo?”

“Umm… no afraid not… sir--”

“What training?” Jack interrupted with refusal in his voice. “We were supposed to be rescued! Do you really think that you can hold us hostage like this?”Jack’s voice was full of rage, which would put him without question on the man’s bad side.

“We just want to go home,” Samneric complained together as they sat on the very edge of the top bunk above Ralph and the other littlun.

“Well, that ain’t gonna happen too soon… you boys still have to fight! Speaking of fighting… you boys better get to breakfast with your uniforms on before you get caught by the chief. And trust me… it ain’t a pretty thing.”

Percival was now hiding under the covers in the corner of his bed weeping. The rest of the boys were still confused that just one moment ago, it seemed like they were about to be rescued and returned back to their warm beds with their beloved families. Now they were all crammed into bunks in a cold cement room with beds made of uncomfortable spring beds, blankets that were small and rough on the skin and bars covering the one small window on the far wall, the only source of light in the dark room.

“What time is it…sir?” another one of the boys asked.

“Time for you boys to get to breakfast! That’s what time it is! Now go!” the tall and dark-haired man walked away pointing to a set to dirty camouflage uniforms.

The twelve remaining boys’ eyes followed the man until he was headed down the hallway. The dorm was quite, the boys speechless from what had just taken place. By the looks of the outside and the small window that let minimal light in, it couldn’t have been anywhere near past 5 o’clock in the morning. Ralph suddenly leapt out of the hard bed and took control.

“What are you waiting for? Come on everyone… we have to go, NOW!”

* * *

Breakfast went by fast and the boys were only minimally yelled at for not knowing the proper procedure of breakfast. Porridge was served for breakfast today, with all the boys

only having about 3 minutes to eat it.

“That porridge wasn’t good at all. I would have rather eaten the pig from the island,” Maurice said as the whole campus of boys walked outside.

“Maurice you have to be quiet or else they are going to yell at you… again!” Ralph whispered so quietly the other person beside him couldn’t hear.

The cold air stung the boys’ faces as soon as they walked outside. The sun was just about rising over a giant grass field of their left.

“Attention!” The tall dark-haired man called. It was the same one who woke the boys in the morning. “Everyone line up in a straight line!”

All the boys then followed immediate instructions and were in a perfectly straight line about ten feet away from another row of tall men who were instructors. The tall dark-haired man was standing in front of all the others and then quickly slid back into the line. He then took a quick glance at a man in the center that was dressed differently than the others and seemed to be a lot older. He quickly nodded his head once to signal the chief that it was his turn to speak. The chief then took a step forward, fixing his cuffs as he walked the short three steps.

“Okay boys, if you are eight years of age or younger, then please follow Mr. Amherst over here to the right.” The chief directed.

About half of the boys went with Mr. Amherst, while the rest including Jack and Ralph were standing still, with gaps in between them where the younger boys had been.

“The rest of you boys will be starting your training momentarily with these instructors you see here. You boys will learn how to use weapons and begin fitness to get you ready for defeating the Germans who are not with us, the Nazis.”

Suddenly another man, still tall with dark hair stepped in front and guided the boys to their training location. “I must warn you that the location is not very local… so we will be walking a ways to get there. It is about three miles away, therefore we will be staying there for about a week. That means that you boys have four minutes to gather all of your belongings and change into your correct attire. Your time starts now.”

Then all the boys abruptly darted for their dorms. “Hey, Jack,” Ralph said. “I can’t wait to use the guns!”

“Yeah… and you’re gonna wish that we never got to use them once I shoot your head off. So shut up and don’t talk to me anymore or else I will shoot you.”

Ralph, shocked by the life-threatening statement stopped in mid-stride and starred at Jack with an expression that showed confusion and helplessness.

“All right boys you all have one more minute to get your belongings, change and meet the rest of the instructors outside near the East entrance. HURRY UP!!! If you’re late, that will be 200 more pushups each day for the rest of the week!” the tall dark-haired man yelled as he rapidly walked down the narrow dorm hallways.

* * *

“Okay boys, I know that some of you are confused and don’t exactly understand your purpose here. We are the German Nazis. Now there are two different groups of Germans, the Nazis of course who want to kill the Jews, that’s us. And then there are the rest of the Germans who want peace and think that all rights should be equal.”

“That doesn’t make any sense… why would anyone not want peace and equality?” someone standing next to Jack whispered.

“Who said that?” the chief yelled eying Jack and the boys next to him that was whispering. All the boys stood frozen afraid of the consequence that would await them it they didn’t respond. Now the chief was only about a foot away from Jack, staring him like a lion about to pounce on its prey. “I said who said that!” the chief repeated with an even louder and more powerful voice.

“Umm…” Jack muttered under his breath.

“Was it you?” the chief demanded quietly through his teeth.

“No… um—sir… I didn’t say anything,” Jack stated to the chief.

“Yes it was!” the chief grabbed Jack by the collar of his uniform violently and pulled him in between the line of boys and instructors.

“Let go of me! I didn’t say anything!” Jack screamed at the top of his lungs with a slight bit of attitude.

“What was that?”

“I said I didn’t say anything!”

“Well then who do you think was talking?” the chief said with enough anger to cause smoke to start blowing out of his ears.

“It was him, right there!” Jack pointed to the boy that was standing next to him and was whispering earlier.

“I don’t believe him! He looks like a trouble anyway! Guards!” the chief commanded. Within two seconds three extremely muscular and tall men we standing with their arms glued to the sides of their body behind the chief.

“Please remove this boy from the premises of this island!” the chief demanded without one moment to consider if Jack had actually committed talking while the chief was making a speech.

As the guards violently escorted Jack in the direction towards the camp sight, Ralph did something that would change how Jack thought of Ralph forever. Ralph saw it coming… Jack’s death and he saw the fear, the helplessness, hopelessness in Jack’s eyes as he kicked and screamed at the guards, but making no big effort to continue once he realized that the guards were too strong and tough to even budge at what seemed like small taps when Jack kept thrusting his legs at them.

“Wait!” Ralph stepped out of the crowed and protested as they took Jack further and further away.

“What it is now?! Are you trying to stand up for your friend, is that it?” The chief said with a combination of sarcasm and a tone that sounded like he could have been talking to kindergardeners.

Ralph just stood there motionless. The speechless boy didn’t know what to say and was confused by the fact that after being on the island and Jack trying to kill him, he was now the one trying to save him. “Don’t take him,” Ralph said sympathetically. “I was the one who was talking, I should be taken away.”

“Ralph… HELP!” Jack screamed at the top of his lungs from what seemed like almost 100 yards now.

After all the boys had been through, Ralph was saving Jack, yet Jack never once apologized or regretted his actions. It seemed like more and more was realized as the short seconds ticked by and Jack was being dragged away to death and Ralph’s… quickly approaching.