Making Writing was a rather short, simple, to the point story that expressed Maynard’s feelings and expressions towards her writing abilities. While I was reading this story I realized the love and the passion that Maynard has for writing her stories. She also talks about her creativity and how she values that also. Her artistic style is one that is quite uncommon; however she makes you understand the beauty that she encounters everyday.
The love and the passion for her writing seems to be her life. She works hard at writing her papers. She takes takes crucial action while writing her papers. For that matter if anybody claims to love something and can do it well. You more than likely will try to do just about anything to perfect your work. Maynard believes that you should make sure that you’re in a place where you can concentrate block out all of the unnecessary. “Control your environment. For me, this does not mean eliminating all stimuli, but it certainly means choosing the ones I want around me, and those I want to remove. It never works, for me, to write in a room (or even a house) where there is a lot of activity. Writing is an excruciatingly private act. You might be just sitting there, for an hour, but god forbid someone should walk through the room as you sit, and say (or not say, but think), "How's it going?" [Maynard, 3]. Establish rituals. And then keep them. Mine, for years, had been to see my children off to school. Come home, clean the kitchen counter, and fix myself a second cup of coffee. I spent years complaining to my children about how much I clean up after them, when they were supposed to clean up after themselves. But the truth is, (though I would never tell them this) there is something valuable, for me, in the mindless routine of certain chores. Putting on a load of laundry (and, later, folding it) being one. Cleaning off counters being another. Making a pie is a core activity for me, as well, though I won't put that in the mindless category. [Maynard, 4]. She obviously gets into the basic routine of making time for everything, even her writing without skipping a beat. Maynard is a very intelligent woman she know what needs to be done to perfect a story, she also knows how to keep the chaos and controversy at an all time low in her household. She just simply lives the life of a balancing act. However if you really claim to love the things that you “love” then no matter what you will always trying to make time for those things in life.
Maynard also says for you to get into the zone. Get into a zone. It's true for athletes (I hear. I have certainly never been one.) It's true for writers too. This one, anyway. [Maynard, 5]. She is just simply stating that make sure your concentrating on whatever it is that you’re supposedly doing. Once you’re lost in your zone of pleasure and excitement, you don’t pay attention to anything else. Just whatever it is that you’re doing.
Maynard says to ease you in and write one sentence. Easing yourself into a story is letting you have a more comfortable feeling and a better understanding of what you’re reading you also begin to relate to the writer and what he or she is saying. Writing one good sentence will soon connect the flow of all the other sentences so you can write better and easier. I do think that these are all great methods for someone to follow in order to become a great writer and to also express yourself.Ease yourself in. You could say, there is no halfway point between being stuck and writing, but I will tell you what I consider to be mine. I jot down words.
Write one sentence. No subsequent act you perform all day will be as difficult as that one, probably. In fact, every sentence that follows makes the next one that much easier.
In conclusion I must say that this story is actually a great teaching device to help people become better writers. To be able to understand, feel, and love what your reading and writing is one of the best feelings in the world. It just feels really good when you know you’re writing something good.
Monday, October 29, 2007
While I was reading a legacy of love I realized that this story has many moral values to it. Florence was a strong African American woman that fought hard to provide for her family. Not know when her families last days were going to come; she did not waste anytime whatsoever. Myself being an African American woman I can truly say that I am extremely grateful for the lifestyle that I live today, because Florence portrays such a strong-willed, and determine woman. Not to say that I am not but she just seems to put the past behind her and she just keeps on going.
She was a very hard worker and she also endured a whole lot of pain. Her father being taken away from her family never to be seen again. Her mother having to sell potatoes and cassava roots just to get by financially. I happen to find that very hard on a young child to have to see things such as those, however Florence did not let that stop her. When Florence was around the age of 13 she married and gave birth to her first child, then her second, and then her third. However the third child passed away in 1997. When I read this segment I was shocked at how a woman could lose her child and then have a strong set mind. To remember that the world will not stop moving just because of a tragic death. However little did she realize her husband had another girlfriend in the village that was HIV positive. When I read this my mind became skeptical and my heart began to race. Just to have to think of how Florence must have felt to have found out that she was HIV positive.
Every time I read a story I try to put myself in the shoes of the main character. Just to see how I myself would relate to that particular character. Sometimes it is harder to relate to some character than others, however in this case with Florence, I just found it so depressing how she would just sit on the couch all day and just stare outside the window, just know that she could die any moment. Being in fear for her children’s lives, that they might have contracted that disease.
However just like her strong will power allowed her to do. She found a better way to cope with her aids. (Then she heard a radio announcement about the National Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (NACWOLA), and mustered the courage to attend a meeting.
"When I walked into the room, there were all these people who looked like me," she says. "They were happy. They greeted me as if we were old friends." Florence began accompanying members as they spoke in public about AIDS and HIV. “I felt free," she says. "I couldn't be ashamed anymore. I decided it was better to talk about myself openly than to let people talk behind my back."
The group also taught Florence how to discuss her illness with her children. In simple language, she now talks to Ronald and Jackie about sexually transmitted diseases, her own infection, and the fact that she will likely die of AIDS.
"I told them everybody has to die someday, even them. It's a part of life. But right now, they know I'm healthy, and they try hard to help take care of me so I stay that way." Even Jackie, who's just 5, now regularly reminds her mother to take her antimalaria tablets, drink plenty of water, and eat greens. [Maynard,5].
During my reading I realized that she has found ways to educate her children and herself on the issue of HIV/AIDS. Even though I must admit it was a sad time for the family to be exposed to that inside their family. It was also a good thing that the children learned about the HIV/AIDS epidemic at such a young age. They were told by their mother and by their social-worker Rose not to be ignorant and to get you schooling become educated and expand your horizon. Luckily the children were tested negative for the disease.
The Orphanages in Africa are filled over the capacitated limit with children that were left behind by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. However Florence hopes that after she passes away if her mother will take full responsibility for her children.
This story is one that I would have never expected the best from a situation such as this, but I mean hey, this is real life. It won’t always cooperate with you and it can endanger you and the ones that you love. If I had to say one thing important from this story it has to be that, even though you may not have received your pay check on time, or you may not have the perfect car. Some people have worse case scenarios but are still thankful.
She was a very hard worker and she also endured a whole lot of pain. Her father being taken away from her family never to be seen again. Her mother having to sell potatoes and cassava roots just to get by financially. I happen to find that very hard on a young child to have to see things such as those, however Florence did not let that stop her. When Florence was around the age of 13 she married and gave birth to her first child, then her second, and then her third. However the third child passed away in 1997. When I read this segment I was shocked at how a woman could lose her child and then have a strong set mind. To remember that the world will not stop moving just because of a tragic death. However little did she realize her husband had another girlfriend in the village that was HIV positive. When I read this my mind became skeptical and my heart began to race. Just to have to think of how Florence must have felt to have found out that she was HIV positive.
Every time I read a story I try to put myself in the shoes of the main character. Just to see how I myself would relate to that particular character. Sometimes it is harder to relate to some character than others, however in this case with Florence, I just found it so depressing how she would just sit on the couch all day and just stare outside the window, just know that she could die any moment. Being in fear for her children’s lives, that they might have contracted that disease.
However just like her strong will power allowed her to do. She found a better way to cope with her aids. (Then she heard a radio announcement about the National Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (NACWOLA), and mustered the courage to attend a meeting.
"When I walked into the room, there were all these people who looked like me," she says. "They were happy. They greeted me as if we were old friends." Florence began accompanying members as they spoke in public about AIDS and HIV. “I felt free," she says. "I couldn't be ashamed anymore. I decided it was better to talk about myself openly than to let people talk behind my back."
The group also taught Florence how to discuss her illness with her children. In simple language, she now talks to Ronald and Jackie about sexually transmitted diseases, her own infection, and the fact that she will likely die of AIDS.
"I told them everybody has to die someday, even them. It's a part of life. But right now, they know I'm healthy, and they try hard to help take care of me so I stay that way." Even Jackie, who's just 5, now regularly reminds her mother to take her antimalaria tablets, drink plenty of water, and eat greens. [Maynard,5].
During my reading I realized that she has found ways to educate her children and herself on the issue of HIV/AIDS. Even though I must admit it was a sad time for the family to be exposed to that inside their family. It was also a good thing that the children learned about the HIV/AIDS epidemic at such a young age. They were told by their mother and by their social-worker Rose not to be ignorant and to get you schooling become educated and expand your horizon. Luckily the children were tested negative for the disease.
The Orphanages in Africa are filled over the capacitated limit with children that were left behind by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. However Florence hopes that after she passes away if her mother will take full responsibility for her children.
This story is one that I would have never expected the best from a situation such as this, but I mean hey, this is real life. It won’t always cooperate with you and it can endanger you and the ones that you love. If I had to say one thing important from this story it has to be that, even though you may not have received your pay check on time, or you may not have the perfect car. Some people have worse case scenarios but are still thankful.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Rake
We were asked to give a personal opinion about Mamet’s The Rake personally I myself can relate to this boy on many different levels I mostly can relate to the relationship with his “father”. In this story the relationship with the little boy and his “father” is at an all time low. His father is very controlling and extremely violent mentally, and physically. When I read this story I did not expect myself to be able to relate to this boy, but when I read this story it almost brought me to tears due to the fact that my father treated my family very similar to how the father treated his family in this story.
When I was younger I always had an unexplainable fear of my father. He would always make it know to me, my sister, and my mother that he was not a force to be wrecked with. When I was younger I loved him with all my heart because at the age of five you are taught that you should love everybody. However the love from my father was a lack thereof. In Mamet’s the Rake I could tell that the little boy wanted to love and be loved he tried to find happiness in his private little life. It is never a crime to want to be loved and “we” being both me and the little boy tried to force of love upon our fathers. However things took a turn for the worse when we tried to do so.
Throughout my life I have always had a sense of a low-key type person because I never wanted to do anything that could jeopardize my freedom with my father. My father had a sense about him that was very strict and just an overall evil man. He never loved me or my family, and everybody knew it. Just like in this story everybody knew that the father did not love or care about anyone. His demeanor was just unbearable he felt as if he was always right about everything and if you disagreed with him he would down play your intelligence with insults and physical violence. I really felt that the little boy in this story had a lot of pain but it is rather peculiar how it did not talk about the little boy dealt with his problems. I would think that the little boy would look for an outlet to help him escape his problems.
His mother in this story is very similar to mine. His mother seems to be a very quiet person with a low self-esteem and she seems as if she is a bit lifeless and has no say- so in the disciplinary acts that affects her son. My mother was also like that my father always made her feel as if she was less than shit and that she did not matter to anyone or anything. She is a soft spoken woman that has endured a vast amount of abuse in her lifetime. In my general opinion no mother should have to take the physical abuse from her husband or boyfriend or whomever because it is hard enough being a parent and when you have people that just want to make it hard on you just for the hell of it, well…. That is just simply uncalled for. Luckily my mother no longer has to deal with my father due to a physical altercation between me and my father. He is no longer allowed around me or any or my family.
Another thing I noticed in this story the sister has possible dreams of maybe becoming an actress or something due to the fact that she took the lead role in her schools play, so it seems as if she has dreams or aspirations to become something in life. However she is quickly bought back to reality when the fear of her family brings her back down to reality. I also have dreams and aspirations to make something of myself and yes my father has tried many a time to prevent me from doing so, but I fought for my life, and for my dreams and I must admit it was not an easy fight but if I could speak to that little girl in the story I would say,” Sista don’t give up on your dreams because somebody wants to playa-hate. You keep fighting for what you believe in and the good lord will bless you abundantly. Because if you don’t fight for yourself nobody else will.
In conclusion people’s lives can be very different, yet similar. Considering the fact I don’t know this little boy or his mom or even his sister, it was not hard for me to relate to them. People say life is whatever “you” make it and I continue to live by that every single day. If you don’t make life then somebody else will make it for you.
When I was younger I always had an unexplainable fear of my father. He would always make it know to me, my sister, and my mother that he was not a force to be wrecked with. When I was younger I loved him with all my heart because at the age of five you are taught that you should love everybody. However the love from my father was a lack thereof. In Mamet’s the Rake I could tell that the little boy wanted to love and be loved he tried to find happiness in his private little life. It is never a crime to want to be loved and “we” being both me and the little boy tried to force of love upon our fathers. However things took a turn for the worse when we tried to do so.
Throughout my life I have always had a sense of a low-key type person because I never wanted to do anything that could jeopardize my freedom with my father. My father had a sense about him that was very strict and just an overall evil man. He never loved me or my family, and everybody knew it. Just like in this story everybody knew that the father did not love or care about anyone. His demeanor was just unbearable he felt as if he was always right about everything and if you disagreed with him he would down play your intelligence with insults and physical violence. I really felt that the little boy in this story had a lot of pain but it is rather peculiar how it did not talk about the little boy dealt with his problems. I would think that the little boy would look for an outlet to help him escape his problems.
His mother in this story is very similar to mine. His mother seems to be a very quiet person with a low self-esteem and she seems as if she is a bit lifeless and has no say- so in the disciplinary acts that affects her son. My mother was also like that my father always made her feel as if she was less than shit and that she did not matter to anyone or anything. She is a soft spoken woman that has endured a vast amount of abuse in her lifetime. In my general opinion no mother should have to take the physical abuse from her husband or boyfriend or whomever because it is hard enough being a parent and when you have people that just want to make it hard on you just for the hell of it, well…. That is just simply uncalled for. Luckily my mother no longer has to deal with my father due to a physical altercation between me and my father. He is no longer allowed around me or any or my family.
Another thing I noticed in this story the sister has possible dreams of maybe becoming an actress or something due to the fact that she took the lead role in her schools play, so it seems as if she has dreams or aspirations to become something in life. However she is quickly bought back to reality when the fear of her family brings her back down to reality. I also have dreams and aspirations to make something of myself and yes my father has tried many a time to prevent me from doing so, but I fought for my life, and for my dreams and I must admit it was not an easy fight but if I could speak to that little girl in the story I would say,” Sista don’t give up on your dreams because somebody wants to playa-hate. You keep fighting for what you believe in and the good lord will bless you abundantly. Because if you don’t fight for yourself nobody else will.
In conclusion people’s lives can be very different, yet similar. Considering the fact I don’t know this little boy or his mom or even his sister, it was not hard for me to relate to them. People say life is whatever “you” make it and I continue to live by that every single day. If you don’t make life then somebody else will make it for you.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Payback
Just the other day i was sitting around listening to the news and how minimum wage is suppose to go up in the economy. Well i was just thinking that if we as Americans recieved enough pay then we would not have to make the decision on wheather we need to raise minimum wage. I myself have brought myself to a few conclusions about what i think about the pay in the United States of America.
Well i myself was once an employee for the Wendy's fast food franchise and i felt that i did not recieve enough pay. Now i thought logically about this if we the employees are the ones cooking the food, serving the food, delivering good, fast customer service, and cleaning to make sure that the customers feel welcomed and at home. Should'nt we make six-figures like the president of the company, or the ceo, or excutive assistant? because technically wendy's would not opperate without the employees.
One more thing about the pay in today's society, one thing that really grinds my gears is when people say."Oh my god it makes me sick to see thoes rap stars of pop stars making all that money". First of all thoes rap stars, country stars, actors, and ect are out there working just like you are. Now really nobody talks about how much you should make but your just no making. Oh but let me guess your going to say well i can't act, sing, or rap. Ok? don't hate becuase you can't do thoes things and somebody else can that is just pure jealousy. If you really want to become that actor or singer then takes acting classes or singing lesson. don't bitch about it!
So in conclusion not to say that anybody's job is more demanding then anybody else's if you don't like what your getting paid and you feel as if you need to get paid like thoes rap stars then go rap or find another job.
Well i myself was once an employee for the Wendy's fast food franchise and i felt that i did not recieve enough pay. Now i thought logically about this if we the employees are the ones cooking the food, serving the food, delivering good, fast customer service, and cleaning to make sure that the customers feel welcomed and at home. Should'nt we make six-figures like the president of the company, or the ceo, or excutive assistant? because technically wendy's would not opperate without the employees.
One more thing about the pay in today's society, one thing that really grinds my gears is when people say."Oh my god it makes me sick to see thoes rap stars of pop stars making all that money". First of all thoes rap stars, country stars, actors, and ect are out there working just like you are. Now really nobody talks about how much you should make but your just no making. Oh but let me guess your going to say well i can't act, sing, or rap. Ok? don't hate becuase you can't do thoes things and somebody else can that is just pure jealousy. If you really want to become that actor or singer then takes acting classes or singing lesson. don't bitch about it!
So in conclusion not to say that anybody's job is more demanding then anybody else's if you don't like what your getting paid and you feel as if you need to get paid like thoes rap stars then go rap or find another job.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
The shooting that occurred on Sept. 30, 2007 was an utter travesty. It affected many lives of students and families but mostly it affected the life of Taylor Bradford. No matter what the reason may be for his death it is still no excuse for someone to die instantaneously like Taylor did. Nobody knows why people do the things that they do. There is just no explanation for everything and we as human may never understand why people do the cynical things that they do.
Just the other day I was sitting in my dorm room wondering why people think the way they do. Why do people feel as if they have the right to play the role of god and take other peoples lives no matter what they may have done to you, that just simply is not your role as a person we are all put on this earth for a reason whether it is to help somebody or just to be loved by everyone but just to feel as if you need to kill someone or cause chaos is just barbaric.
Whenever I watch movies such as “American Werewolf in London” or anything of that nature does not really scare me due to the fact it is virtually impossible for someone to morph into a human with animal feature when a full moon is apparent. However movies such as “Saw or things of that nature make you want to think because those acts could really happen. People are sick enough to hold people hostage and play sick grotesque games with their mind in order to keep themselves alive. It is just something that people should take into account. So the next time you see a movie about a sick cynical individual really pay attention to what could really happen in those movies.
So I conclusion everybody is different and people perceive many things differently. It is really sad to know that some people think that crime is the answer to many things. Some people think that if you just kill people then that will make the situation go away but in actuality god sees everything you do so when you’re a million miles away from civilization and you think that you are all alone and that you may be able to do whatever. Just remember that god sees everything that you do. So yeah…. We might not know exactly would took the life of Taylor Bradford but god does and that’s all that matters.
Just the other day I was sitting in my dorm room wondering why people think the way they do. Why do people feel as if they have the right to play the role of god and take other peoples lives no matter what they may have done to you, that just simply is not your role as a person we are all put on this earth for a reason whether it is to help somebody or just to be loved by everyone but just to feel as if you need to kill someone or cause chaos is just barbaric.
Whenever I watch movies such as “American Werewolf in London” or anything of that nature does not really scare me due to the fact it is virtually impossible for someone to morph into a human with animal feature when a full moon is apparent. However movies such as “Saw or things of that nature make you want to think because those acts could really happen. People are sick enough to hold people hostage and play sick grotesque games with their mind in order to keep themselves alive. It is just something that people should take into account. So the next time you see a movie about a sick cynical individual really pay attention to what could really happen in those movies.
So I conclusion everybody is different and people perceive many things differently. It is really sad to know that some people think that crime is the answer to many things. Some people think that if you just kill people then that will make the situation go away but in actuality god sees everything you do so when you’re a million miles away from civilization and you think that you are all alone and that you may be able to do whatever. Just remember that god sees everything that you do. So yeah…. We might not know exactly would took the life of Taylor Bradford but god does and that’s all that matters.
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