Family Is Everything (Theme Essay)

In the three stories that I have picked they all tie in with the importance of family. These stories are What I Pawn You May Redeem by Sherman Alexie, Lullaby by Leslie Marmon Silko, and Domingo by Oscar Casares. The common theme for these stories that keeps going through my mind is how important family really is. Throughout these stories they talk about coping with loss of a family member. The characters in these three stories are tough, they know exactly what they have to do to be able to go on everyday. Even though it was hard for each and every one of them they knew they had to do it.Without family life can be hard, it feels like we can’t survive but somehow through everything we find a way to seek their attention and start living again.
    In Sherman Alexie’s story What You Pawn I Will Redeem, Jackson Jackson is on a journey to make $999 to buy back his grandmothers regalia. It was amazingly important to him because that is all he has left of her. He did all that he could to get it back, even though it was very unsuccessful. “I took my grandmother’s regalia and walked outside. I knew that solitary yellow bead was part of me” (Alexie 457). He felt whole again once that regalia was finally in his arms again. He could feel how apart of it he was, how it warmed his soul. After losing her a long time ago, having that regalia brought back a lot of comfort for him to know that she is with him always. “I wrapped myself in my grandmother’s regalia and breathed her in” (Alexie 457). He could feel her, smell her, touch her through her dress. It was like she was in her presence again. I think it helped him regain confidence to have a piece of his family with him, so he doesn’t feel so alone. “They all watched me dance with my grandmother. I was my grandmother, dancing.” (Alexie 457). He was his grandmother. He has the same flesh and the same blood as her. I think he missed her a lot more than he thought.
    Lullaby by Leslie Marmon Silko shares Ayah and Chato’s experience of losing their children to the government. It shows you what its like living on the bare minimums then having everything fall apart. The go through the process of the loss of their children and how to cope with it. “She did not sleep for a long time after they took her children” (Silko 98). Losing them to someone else hurt her the most, because she was not able to hardly ever see them. It’s all that she can think about. She was afraid that someone would harm them, or else they would eventually die. As a mother her children were her life and to have them taken from her it’s like they had taken her life. “She carried the pain in her belly and it was fed by everything that she saw” (Silko 99). Her home and her surroundings brought back memories to her about how her children act. Everything that she would see fed that pain and made it greater. Everything that she saw would show her children’s faces and make her think about them. I don’t think she ever thought that she would ever experience something this tough and this emotional. She is a very strong woman and I don’t think a lot of people recognized that.
    Domingo by Oscar Casares talks about the life of Domingo living in America with the absence of his family. He flashes back to what happens in the past with his daughter and his wife. He feels like he is the blame for them losing their daughter when it was just an accident. He learns how to go through every day without them. “He wished he could go back and be with his wife, cross the bridge and buy a ticket for the next bus headed south” (Casares 77). The mistakes that happened pushed him and his wife apart. He wished more than anything that he could take back what happened, but there was no way for him to do that. “His wife had asked him to build a fire pit so she could heat water to wash clothes. He turned around for a second. Even now he had trouble understanding why his wife had left him with the baby.” By this point his daughter had fallen into the fire and was hurt permanently. He felt as if everything was all his fault. His daughter only lived a month after she was hurt. It literally changed his life forever. Domingo didn’t think he would be able to move on from this experience but he knew that he needed to.
    We seek attention from family that has passed on, they give us strength, courage and hope that we will never take on things by ourselves. The loss of a family member can be tough, even if it isn’t losing them to death. The characters in this story experience loss in 2 different ways. For two stories it was death and for one it wasn’t. Family literally is absolutely everything, you may not think so now but later on you will. Theses people in these stories need their family members, they miss them. It’s hard to move on and let go when you don’t want to. Like Ayah, letting her children go with the government, and having her know they are growing up without her. Domingo blaming himself for his daughter’s death when clearly it was an accident. Also Jackson for missing his grandmother but finding comfort when he found her regalia. We have to remember that it is absolutely possible for us to find ways to comfort ourselves from loss. No matter how the loss has taken place there is always room for us to grasp our memories of them but still be able to function through our daily lives. That is why i chose the theme family means everything, because they really do. No matter how they do, but they have impact on our lives that no one else has. In every way our family lives whether its long or a lot shorter than we expected or maybe they haven’t passed at all. We know that they are always there to watch over and to make sure we succeed. We always have them as a guardian angel.

Motivation Weekly Post 6

            So lately I’ve been actually getting off my lazy butt and working out. Yeah it’s not the funnest thing to do in the world but turns out it’s extremely rewarding. I guess you could say that I finally learned how to motivate myself. Which I never thought I would be able to do because it’s kind of hard to lose weight without some sort of motivation. If I could I would just eat and eat and eat and eat and gain weight! But that is definitely not an option here.

            I was catching up on my weekly YouTube videos and came across this video from on of my favorite YouTubers. She was talking about this workout called 30 Day Shred by Jillian Micheals. I got a little nervous cause I remember about a year ago me and my older sister tried that workout and HATED it. I was like ehhhh I don’t think I’ll do it. I definitely changed my mind quickly, because she said all these good things about it so I decided why not! I gave it a shot and I’m not quit to 30 days yet but im getting there.

            I just think that it’s really awesome that I finally just did it with no questions. It’s nice going home from school workingout then being able to sleep before midnight. Believe me its been years since I have gotten 8-9 hours of sleep. Finally I’m able to function at school and not fall asleep every second! All I can say is it can be hard to get motivation from others. You need to learn to motivate yourself, because if you want to look good it is possible. You just can’t give up on it if it seems to hard! Stick with it and trust me you will be happy you did.

Perks Of Being A Wallflower weekly post 5

This weekend I learned what happiness can really do to you. It can really make a difference with the way things work in your life. If you go about things with an up beat and positive you usually get a positive out come. Happiness is the key to getting what you want out of life. It really is, being miserable is not something that I have planned out! I’ve learned to push back things and keep a smiling face.
The reason for me bringing this up is because I finally got to see the movie Perks Of Being A Wallflower. I have read the book 3 times and have waited probably 2 years for it to become a movie. To see how being positive and happy can change your life is something that everyone should do. It’s just not worth it to me to be sad. Like Charlie in the book, saddest kid ever. But yet he still makes a great outcome and is a sweetheart to everyone. He is still happy even though he has problems.
That’s what made me think really hard about life. It may not be EXACTLY what you want sometimes but if you go about it with being happy it turns out so much better. Trust me, you feel like you can conquer the world. That is a wonderful feeling to have. I mean look at me im happy that I saw that movie, it was life changing. I finally got to see that book played in front of my face. It makes you think a lot and learn a lot from it. You learn about how to treat people. Well at least for me, that’s what happened. But then again I learned that when I read that book.
I just think everyone should read the book and then experience the outcome of the movie. To me it was very touching and I’m glad I went out and took the time to see it. I think it would touch anyone. Everyone should learn how that feels, maybe some people think that its dumb but to me its important. We should have a greater feeling if we hurt someone or compliment someone. Who knows maybe we could change someone’s life. That is how I want to be I want to be like Charlie from Perks Of Being A Wallflower. I want to learn how to be positive always and change someone’s life.

Long Distance Weekly Post 4 (I think)

I know by the title this doesn't sound like something many of you would like to read. But don't let it stop you. I have learned pretty much all you could ever know about maintaining a long distance relationship. A lot of people jump back at the idea and don't ever give it a try. Most people think it is a waste of time and not worth it. I am here to tell you that it is so worth it. There shouldn't be hesitation because someone isn't as close as you want them to be.

Through this experience i have learned how to cope with the absence of my significant other. It is extremely hard at first and from time to time. It literally feels like someone had ripped your heart right out of your chest. But when you fill your day up with things that keep you busy it starts to get easier. I've noticed that when i'm at school and then I go to work that i'm not as mopey. It just takes a lot of strength to not let it get in your way and completely ruin any day you have.

Yes, you may think you get farther and farther apart with you're mate but that is not always the case. With me and my significant other we always talk. Whether it is on the phone or if all we can do is text, it doesn't matter. Because when they are gone for weeks at a time, the feeling you get when you see them again is something i can't explain. I never lose that excited butterfly feeling in my tummy. It's always there, whenever it gets closer and closer to us to be together again.

The time you spend together while you're in a long distance relationship is so special compared to others. You cherish every single moment you have together, it's amazing. There is nothing but smiling and laughing and loving. Everything is just perfect. I never thought that I would be able to do it, but look at me here I am still with him with almost 5 months of dealing with long distance. To me, I think it is worth it. If you love somebody that much it shouldn't be hard to go the extra mile and do long distance. Miles don't mean anything when somebody means so much.

Modeling for a Night 9/16 missing blog

Taking pictures may seem like an easy thing to do. When you're put on the spot and some one is taking them

of you it isn't that easy. Modeling is very hard, and I don't think i could ever do it as a job. How you sit still and pose for so long takes a lot of self control. I swear it is one of the hardest things to do.

Friday night i was a model for three hours. Learning how to stand still and making the right face is a tough thing to do. Miss Abbie Warnock is a rockin' photographer and i'd model for her anyday. It's funny how i keep saying i'm her model but really she just took my senior portraits! I know you probably think, wow big deal! But i never have had a photoshoot before and learning what to do is pretty difficult.

I had to conquer some of my fears and go out big time. you may not think that sitting on the edge of a building would be fun but i felt on top of the world. This experience was amazing and i'm so glad I got to do it. Abbie takes you to greater heights and makes it all about you. It's absolutely amazing to feel so confident and good about yourself! Not to mention the attention you get.