Reading Response Essay- Poetry

Poem Title; “Please Don’t Take My Air Jordans”

By: reg e. gaines

Asia Di Bari 804                                                                                                  February 13th 2014

A lot of people will commit crimes and harm others in order to get what they want just so that they can look good. In the poem, “Please Don’t Take My Air Jordans,” by reg e. gaines, the speaker steals and shoots somebody so that he can have new shoes and new gear in order to look good and have new things like his friends do. He does this so that he can be accepted by his peers. This shows that he doesn't care about how other people feel about what he does. He will do anything so that he can get what he wants.

The speaker in the poem has no money, and wants to steal things from the mall so that he is able to get good gear. One important observation that I made while reading this poem was that he steals things in order to look good, this is an example of one of the crimes that he commits. This is shown in the quote, “and I gots no job no money at all/ but it’s easy to steal fresh gear from the mall” This shows that the speaker knows that there is no other way to get what he wants because he has no money at all. In addition this shows that the speaker needs to have the newest things, and he will get them even though he has no way to pay for what he wants.

The main character in the poem needs to have the freshest clothes and shoes, or he will be judged by his piers. He gets better things by not paying for them so that he can have a good vibe. This is shown in the quote, “but I really must get some new gear soon/ or my ego will pop like  a ten cent balloon” This quote shows that whatever he has now is going out of style and if he doesn't get something new soon he will be “lower class”. His peers judge him because he doesn't have the newest things, and his looks are very important to him. If he doesn't have new gear than it is like he is not up to par. That is why his looks are so important to him.

The speaker in this poem shoots somebody that is wearing the Jordan's that he wants to have. One important observation that supports my focus is that he commits crimes just to get what he wants. This is shown in the quote, “I fired (POW) he fell between two parked cars/ he was coughing/crying/blood dripped onto the street/ and I snatched them air jordans off his feet.” This shows that when the main character in the poem realized that those were the Jordans that he wanted, he decided to do anything that it would take in order to get what he wanted. In addition, it shows that anybody at any given time will do harmful things to get what they want. They don't care about the impact it will have on the person that is getting harmed.

All in all, this poem showed me that there are many people in the real world that we live in, will do all that they can so they can have what they want in order to look a certain way. This related to me in a few ways. For example when I wanted the  Iphone, I fought for it. While I didn’t steal or shoot anybody, I wanted it because everybody else had it and I was the only one out of my friends that didn’t have one. I couldn’t get it myself because I didn’t have the money for it. This relates to the text because the character in the poem wanted things so that he wouldn’t be judged. He wanted to have the newest gear, and be like his peers. I think that when the reader is reading this poem, he or she should think about how this happens in the real world and how it can affect them. People do a lot of crazy things such as shooting and stealing to get everything and anything that they want. If it makes that person look and feel good, that everything is okay...to them. Also, as long as they have whatever is in style, then they are happy. They don’t care about how it can hurt others.

Creative Writing Marathon! Craft a story with the following first line: I slowly backed up and sat in the nearest chair.

I slowly backed up and sat in the nearest chair. It was 3:30 in the morning. I couldn't sleep that night because it was so hot in my room, and when I opened the window all I heard was construction. There was no medium.
When we got to the hospital, I knew at that point that there was a lot of waiting that would have to be done before she came. I was exhausted. There was a very small TV in the far corner of the waiting room that my dad put me in, while my step mom was in the Triage. About fifteen minutes later I saw someone signaling for me to come. At that point her IV was done and her hospital gown was on as well. At least we are making some sort of progress I thought. We had, had so many false alarms, but I guess that is common for first time moms. Everything they feel is alarming, so I've heard. My dad was in the room with a nurse that just by looking at her, I didn't like.
I saw a baby come down the hallway, there were nurses everywhere. It looked like a preemie. I felt bad considering that I was waiting for my overdue sister. I looked at the nurses name tag. Her mane was Precious. She put the bag of IV onto a stick with wheels. Thats what I called it at time. She was kind of rough. This is going smoothly, I thought. I could barely stand up.
A while later, they wheeled my step mom into Labor and Delivery. My dad said see you later, and sure enough, I saw him a lot later. I didn't want to take a nap because I didn't want to miss anything.  About twelve hours later I was starting to get hopeless.
My dad came out at 3:10pm, one minute after Jada Qiana Di Bari was born. He came out crying. I dint remember the last time I saw him cry. There was one doctor who had wheeled Jada to where the waiting room was. When I saw her, I could feel what my dad was feeling. My heart pounding a few pulses faster, and my throat tightening. I started crying too.

Independent Reading Book Response- Character

In all of the books that I have had to read in the past years, the main character named Claireece goes through some kind of change or changes. The book Push, by Sapphire is about a young girl who goes through a lot, between her dad raping her, and her having to raise her children with minimal help from her mother. She changes from being a small girl who didn't like to share her feelings to somebody who was determined and open minded and engaged person. 

In the beginning of the book, Clarice  was very introverted and insecure. Whenever somebody asked what she was feeling, or why  she was the way she was, or even why she was pregnant she would not feel very good about herself.  "'Come on now, you are pregnant, aren't you Claireece?'…'Claireece, I'm talking to you. I still don't say nuffin.'" (Sapphire 7). This is an example of how she feels insecure about being pregnant. When somebody asks her a question that is personal, she doesn't like to answer, especially if they already know the answer.  Another example of Claireece is introverted and insecure is when her mother discourages her when she is in pain and when her mom finds out that she had a baby. "'Thank you Miz Claireece Precious Jones for fucking my husband you nasty little slut!'…'He done quit me!'…I'm laying on the floor shaking, crying, scared she gonna kill me." (Sapphire 19). Claireeces mom doesn't know that her dad raped her. All she knows is that she got pregnant because of him. She dent appreciate her daughter at all, and when she is in pain, she doesn't care. By the ways her mother treats her, Claireece feels put down. These are ways she feels insecure and introverted. 

As the book goes on, Claireece starts to be more and more open to teachers and other people around her that are sort of in the same situation. In addition, she begins to feel more dedicated and determined. "'Well Precious, how about you, do you feel you're in the right place?' 'Is I Miz Rain,' I axes, 'is I in the right place?' She hand me a tissue, say, 'Yes, Precious, yes.'" (Sapphire 48). This shows that she is curious and wants to know that she is secure. Also, it shows that she has some sort of dedication because she transferred schools to be in a better pace, and she wants to make sure that is true for her case. This is a big change because when she was in her old school, if the guidance councilor asked her this question, she would either not talk, or give her an attitude. Another example of when she was more dedicated is when she said that she wanted to learn. When she transferred schools she said she wanted to learn without being judged. This school gave her the liberation to do just that. This shows that she is more dedicated to learning, and she is more open to the people around her. 

All in all, Claireece went from being introverted to determined. She went from being judged to wanted. I think that she only wants to have a guid future and the best for her two children. She is a very complex character and went through a lot of emotions. Clarieece is a very inspirational person because she is so young and willing to do anything.