Greif

           The novel “Peace Like a River” by Leif Enger is a story of a young boy coming of age and the events and decisions he makes along the way that form his character. A part that stood out to me in the reading this week was when Swede and Rueben saw Mr. Finch by the Post Office. In this scene Enger uses many descriptive words and rhetorical questions to bring about emotion for the characters and the reader.

            The word “grief” is defined as a “keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss”. (Dictionary, 2011) Reuben describes Mr. Finch, Israel Finch’s father, and says, “He looked dead, is what I am telling you”  He goes on to describe him as “skinny” and frail. Mr. Finch was suffering from grief of a lost loved one, his son.

This is a shocking moment for Rueben and Swede in the book, which is used to bring the reader back to reality. Enger uses this moment to note that someone loved Israel, no matter what he had done.  The fact was that his father’s life was forever changed because of what Davy did.  Mr. Finch was experiencing great grief due to his sons death and months later Rueben and Swede noticed the difference of Mr. Finch.  The part that nipped at my heart was when Rueben questions “ Was it possible that real loss had occurred at the death of Isreal Finch? That real grief has been felt?”.  It was as though Reuben thought that Mr. Finch was heartless and did not care about his son (who also seemed heartless after trying to molest Davy’s girl and his sister). When I read this part, after the description of Mr. Finch, a sudden sadness overwhelms me. The fact that while reading the previous chapters the writing and the reader focuses on the bad that Isreal had done and how he is killed, but as the reader, we forget to think about the aftereffects of this situation. Until this part it had seemed as though everyone had forgotten about the boys. But not Mr. Finch. Neither Rueben.

This part of the story adds depth and reality to the chapter. It is an important piece in the book and i feel that Enger did a fantastic job of incorporating it and expanding on this idea of grief of a lost loved one.

Dictionary.com. Define Greif at Dictionary.com, 2011.http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/grief. March 30th 2011.

New Face by Alice Walker - Reflective Post

What is love? Love, for me, is the most wonderful word that has ever been “created”. So often it is thrown around and the true meaning is somehow lost along the way.  It is often twisted and deformed from a word with such passion and care to the storge meaning, which has little value. Most would agree that loving someone and being loved is one of the best feelings, but it can also be the worst when love is lost. When that happens, we feel as though we’re the loneliest person in the world with no one to turn to. Not even our family or best friends can help us deal with the pain of a break up. When going through hard times such as these, though absurd as it may seem, quotes and poems help me through.  I have come to realize that poems and quotes help us to understand that we are not alone and that there are other people out there experiencing the same pain of a broken heart. Knowing that others have gone through the same fate and survived gives us solace and strength to keep it together. Also in the same light, Poems and quotes are encouraging even when we are experiencing love.

Letting go is sometimes hard, but I’ve come to realize that “sometimes things just don’t work out with someone because there is some other person out there who is destined to be with us; who will love us just the way we want to.” It’s hard to believe, but God has someone for each one of us out there. There is someone just for me! Who will love all of my quirks and my silly ways. Who will treat me like a princess (I mean, come on? What girl doesn’t want to be Cinderella?) And who will love me for me!

The poem “New Face” by Alice Walker is now one of my new favorite poems. Its simple, yet deep concept gives the reader hope for love. The poem starts by saying, “I have learned not to worry about love; but to honor it’s coming”. This reminds me of 1 Corinthians 13:4 which says, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” This verse shows the Christian style of love. God teaches us to appreciate love, but not to be controlled by it.

The person in the poem goes on to examine “the dark mysteries of the blood” which is a simile within the poem. Blood is red and the color red symbolizes passion. Therefore the poet is expressing that passionate love is mysterious. The poet also uses words such as “spring” to add a sense of continuity of water which continues into a motif that love is “flowing” like a spring. Ergo, God is our inexhaustible source of love and life.  One can note the fulcrum of the entire poem in the lines “the new face I turn up/ to you/ no one else on earth/ has ever/ seen”. When you’re in love, you will show that person a side (face) of you that no one else has ever seen. This is where everything is forever changed.

To conclude, The verse Song of Solomon 8:4 says “I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, Do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases.” This verse is a challege for me. God is telling us to listen and follow where He leads, to walk in his footsteps, not our own.  If we seek God, the rest will follow. When we seek and draw near to God, He works in us according to His good will and pleasure.  He is to be our first love and then all others follow.  “A woman should be so lost in God, that a man needs to seek Him in order to find her.” 

Reflective Post – The Love of a Mother - "Lanyard"

“You don’t know what it is to love until you have a child.” I have heard this saying so many times throughout my life and often questioned love and what it is to love someone.  Love is defined as "a strong, positive emotion of regard and affection." As I reflect on the poem “Lanyard” written by Billy Collins, I think of my loving mother. She is my best friend, and someone I know will always be there for me when I need help. She encourages me to be the best that I can be.  My mother has spent innumerable nights caring for me when I was sick and loves me even if I make mistakes. A mother is selfless, caring and loving.  She bared the pain of childbirth, she wants the best for her children and tries her best to give them everything they need. Yet because she loves so much, she expects nothing in return.

I remember the moments as a child when I would give my mother a picture I drew or a simple note I wrote for her with such pride and happiness.  She always responded with a smile and a hug that overflowed with love for me. To this day my mother has kept many of those drawing and notes that I had written her when I was young. My mother, just like most mothers, never expected anything in return for her love and kindness. When she receives small tokens of appreciation she feels as though she is loved and blessed far more than her children that she selflessly and continuously loves on and cares for. Maybe the saying is right, love possibly does reach to another level when it is because of selfless love.

            This idea of selfless love makes me think of Christ’s love for us. His mercy and grace is limitless love for the world. The most well-known verse in the bible, John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This love is unfathomable! There is nothing that we can do that will ever be ample to repay Him, but he loves us the same. After all, God is Love.  1 John 4:8 says “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love”. We should love one another as God loves us.

Therefore this means we should all love like mothers! <3

Harrison Bergeron - Problematize Post

In society today, we as humans are all controlled in some way or another whether we want to admit it or not.  Especially as teenagers, we allow our peers, authority figures and parents to take too much control over our lives. But, nevertheless we are all striving to be ‘unique’.  Someone once said “Be unique, everyone is doing it.” How ironic is that? Yet, it is so true. So often we judge others based on ‘norms’ of society. Harrison Bergeron represents the part of the American people that still longs to fit in, flaunt their attributes, and be better than their peers. Why is it that we feel that we will only be accepted if we strive to be like one another?

Harrison is described as seven feet tall, very strong, and extremely handsome. In the story the government does everything in its power to hinder Harrison, forcing him to wear huge earphones to distort his thinking, glasses to damage his sight and give him headaches and many other handicaps. But not even jail could stop Harrison. The part that shows his true freedom is when Harrison and his empress danced.

“And then, in an explosion of joy and grace, into the air they sprang.  Not only were the laws of the land abandoned, but the law of gravity and the laws of motion as well. They reeled, whirled, swiveled, flounced, capered, gamboled, and spun.  They leaped like deer on the moon.  The studio ceiling was thirty feet high, but each leap brought the dancers nearer to it.  It became their obvious intention to kiss the ceiling. They kissed it.  And then, neutraling gravity with love and pure will, they remained suspended in air inches below the ceiling, and they kissed each other for a long, long time.”

This was the closest Harrison got to ‘freedom’ from equality. He was able to leap and dance with love. 

This leads me to the question: How many times in our daily lives do we hold back from doing something at our fullest potential?  Are we allowing others to hinder our actions and thoughts? We are given the freedom to excel in so many ways throughout our lives but many times we are either embarrassed or even too lazy to reach to the top. The Bible tells us in Colossians 3:23 - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.’ What if we were joyful unto the Lord and used our many God-given talents and gifts to share with others?