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. 

Non-Fiction Reading Response: The End of Extreme Poverty?

"Imagine having to pick just one of your children to save, while leaving the others to face death" (Kristof 16). The article The End of Extreme Poverty? by Nicholas D. Kristof is about the life threatening decisions people have to make on a daily basis, and how it is being resolved. In Cambodia, there are people that have to make very agonizing decisions everyday because of viruses in their environment. There are a lot of people that are living in poverty that have very little money and education. The author wants me to know that poverty is a huge problem, and it is getting better because of new vaccines and technology. Since 1980, the rate of poverty has reduced from 1 in 2 to 1 in 5. All of this improvement is due to new vaccines, farming techniques, schools, clean water and technology. "The goal is to end extreme poverty by 2030- and we're close" (Kristof 17).  According to the article, with all of the new technology poverty will soon end.

Poverty makes me think and feel a huge array of emotions. To me, poverty is something that a lot of people just look over, and don't really see how bad it really is. I think that is something not to take lightly. I don't believe that people are doing enough on a daily basis. They focus on poverty when there is a huge natural disaster, and they realize that people are even worse off then they already were. I think that the author of this article wrote this mainly to say how poverty is improving due to all of the new ways people are doing things. In my opinion, poverty is a very depressing think about. A lot of people are persecuted and or punished for things that they believe. While it is similar to poverty in that people are left on their own, it is very sad and people look for hope all of the time.

I think that the author of this article really cares about poverty because he was so positive about all of the improvements that are being made. The author stated that a man by the name of Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft has a foundation that donates vaccines and medicine to save children and adults. I think Kristof added this to show what different organizations are pitching in to help people from dying in poverty. "…in his lifetime the number will drop bellow 1 million (Kristof 17). This shows by Microsofts donations the amount of lives that will be saved in his life will be at or above one million.

In conclusion, poverty is a very serious problem worldwide. While there are many people that are slowly starting to get out of poverty, there are many that are still facing the struggle. I think that it is very good that people are helping out in as many ways as they can, but there is still a lot of work to be done.

Critical Thinking Question- REVISED

        In a typical day, you don't really think so hard about how fair or unfair this world is. You usually think about what you are going to do the next day, or what you are join to wear. It usually takes a while to discover all of the problems on the inside, when all you see is the good on the outside. The book Lunch-Box Dream, by Tony Abbott deals with justice and racial issues. In this book, the main character Bobby and his brother are betrayed and teased because of their race. These charters' deal with a lot because of the color of their skin. That lead me to think about how it related to justice in our world today. People get treated differently because they "are not like other people."

        One way Tony Abbott shows how this book deals with justice in the world is racism. Bobby, and his brother are called names because of their skin color. "They called them chocolate men, Bobby and his brother"(Abbott 7). This shows that people of the opposite race don't want to accept the fact that they are a different color and they are not like them.  Another example of racism in this book is when Bobby asked if a black person dug graves for people. "Did chocolate men dig graves?"(Abbott 17). This shows racism in a not so obvious way. Bobby asked this question to see if a white or black man dug his grandfathers grave. He was wondering if a white man would dig a grave for a black man, and the other way around. He wanted to know that a black man would provide a resting place no matter what color they were. A lot of the time, people don't accept people for who they truly are because they are different. In this case, the characters in the book are being judged because the whites and the black are different. People need to think of everyone the same because we are all unique in our own way, but that doesn't make us anymore  different than anybody else. These are the reasons that racism in this book makes me think about justice in the world in the present day.

        Segregation in this book is another theme that makes me think about justice in the world. "As long as we don't have to take the bus. Chocolate people always sit behind you"(Abbott 24). Bobby and his brother Ricky were talking about how they didn't want to sit on the bus because they don't like that people have to be separated. They were happy when their mother revealed that they were going to take the plane back home. They didn't want to deal with the drama of having to sit in the back of the bus for a long time with a lot of whites in the front. To him it wasn't fair. Another example of segregation is when Louisa is explaining how Jacob and her husband are going to their grandmothers house. "Hershel sat on the inside of him. Then the white passengers got on, then the driver." (Abbott 27) This shows segregation in more ways than one.  One way this shows segregation is that the whites didn't want to get on the bus at the same time black people did because they didn't want to mix. Another reason is that during that time period, there was a lot of segregation going on, and there was very minimal mixing of races. To me, this shows that justice in that time period was very little. I think today, we take it for granted that we have come so far. We need to be aware that people are different, but that doesn't mean we are to treat them  any differently.

        All of the people who acted during the civil rights act were very brave, and did an amazing job of helping our country unite as one. Now, there is a surplus of justice. Segregation was a very difficult and bad time. Now we have so much more and a lot more to be thankful for. During the time when there was a lot of chaos there was also a lot of people doing as much as they could to have change. In the book, there was a very strong racial issue that effected the main character in a lot of different ways. He didn't like it. Just because someone is a different race doesn't mean that they are any less powerful then anybody else. Segregation and racism are problems that people wanted fixed. Although there is some of this left, we are almost to where we want to be. In perfect harmony.

Critical Thinking Question: How does this text make you think about justice in the world?

In a typical day, you don't really think so hard about how fair or unfair this world is. You usually think about what you are going to do the next day, or in my case, all of the things I have left to do before I leave on Friday. It usually takes a while to discover all of the problems on the inside, when all you see is the good on the outside. The book Lunch-Box Dream by Tony Abbott deals with justice and racial issues. In this book, the main character Bobby and his brother are called "chocolate" because of their race. These charters' deal with a lot because of their race, and that lead me to think about how it related to justice in our world today.

One way Tony Abbott shows how this book deals with justice in the world, is the theme of racism. Bobby and his brother are called names because of their skin color. "They called them chocolate men, Bobby and his brother"(Abbott 7). This shows that people of the opposite race don't want to accept the fact that they are a different color and they are not like them.  Another example of racism in this book is when Bobby asked if a black person dug graves for people. "Did chocolate men dig graves?"(Abbott 17). This shows racism in a not so obvious way. Bobby asked this question to see if a white or black man dug his grandfathers grave. He was wondering if a white man would dig a grave for a black man, and the other way around. He wanted to know that a black man would provide a resting place no matter what color they were. This relates to the world today for many reasons. A lot of the time, people don't accept people for who they truly are because they are different. In this case, the characters in the book are dealing with race because the whites and the black are different. People need to think of everyone the same because we are all different in our own way, but that doesn't make us anymore  different than anybody else. These are the reasons that racism in this book makes me think about justice in the world in the present day.

Another way this book makes me think about justice in the world is segregation. "As long as we don't have to take the bus. Chocolate people always sit behind you"(Abbott 24). Bobby and his brother Ricky were talking about how they didn't want to sit on the bus. They were happy when their mother revealed that they were going to take the plane back. They didn't want to deal with the drama of having to sit in the back of the bus for a long time with a lot of whites in the front. To him it wasn't fair. Another example of segregation is when Louisa is explaining how Jacob and her husband are going to their grandmothers house. "Hershel sat on the inside of him. Then the white passengers got on, then the driver" (Abbott 27) This shows segregation in more ways than one.  One way this shows segregation is that the whites didn't want to get on the bus at the same tike black people did because they didn't want to mix. Another reason is that during that time period, there was a lot of segregation going on, and there was very minimal mixing of races. To me, this shows that justice in that time period was very little. I think today, we take it for granted that we have come so far.

 All of the people who acted during the civil rights act were very brave, and did an amazing job of helping our country unite as one. Now, there is a surplus of justice. Segregation was a very difficult and bad time. Now we have so much more and a lot more to be thankful for. During the time when there was a lot of chaos there was also a lot of people doing as much as they could to have change. Segregation and racism are problems that people wanted fixed. Although there is some of this left, we are almost to where we want to be. In perfect harmony.

Independent Reading Response: How does money figure in this text?

In the days of the great depression, there was a serious problem with money. In the book "Out of the Dust" by Karen Hesse money played a great portion of this book because of the Dust Bowl. In the book, Billie Jo, the main character, has to go and get money for the family because her dad isn't a very good of a father. Also, after the death of her mother, her father started to care less and less about her.

One way money played a role in this book is the absence of care that Billie Jo's  dad gives her family. First of all, Billie Jo's father didn't even want her. He always wanted to have a son. That is why she has a boy name. When he found out that her mom was pregnant with Billie Jo's brother he was overjoyed. While her mom was pregnant she got burned really bad. When her mom was suffering from the burn Billie Jo had to try and take care of her mother. Her dad on the other hand didn't even care. He was out drinking. The book quotes, "He went out last night. While Ma moaned and begged for water. He drank up all the emergency money until it was gone. I tried to help her…She cried for the pain of the water running into her sores…the whole time my father was in Guymon, drinking." In this situation, money was a huge part of the book plot because it sets what is going to happen afterwards. Her dad was out using all of the money that they had left. Also, it caused Billie Jo's mom to suffer from thirst because her dad wasn't there to give her water. Another reason money is an issue in the is book because of the o Billie Jo's father continues to go out and get drunk. Billie Jo's dad is a very self centered man. He cares mostly about himself. If he is happy then everything is okay. He uses all of the money that they have and he uses it to go and drink. This ties into the other example that he doesn't care that her mother is in agonizing pain. Instead, he goes out, uses all of their money, and goes about himself. That shows how selfish of a man he is, and how this relates to the money issue in this book.

Another reason that money play a big part in the book is the shortage of crops. Because it was very dry, it caused the dust bowl to come. There was also minimal rain for the season. Billie Jo's father had to go to FDR to and ask for a loan because they coudldn't make any money. If there is no crop, there is no money. He promised her dad that until the crop comes, he doesn't have to repay him. Her dad took advantage of that offer. He decided to start over and start from scratch, but the problem was, it didn't rain. It hadn't rained in three years. Because it didn't rain, it caused Billie Jo's dad to go and drink…a lot.

Money played a big role in this book. It caused the future of Billie Jo, and caused her father to go out of control. It caused destruction to the family. It was part of the reason Billie Jo's mother died, and is caused him to start drinking. This was a very major problem in the book because Billie Jo was mainly left to car for herself with minimal support form her father. All in all, money was a big part of this book.