Where I'm From poem

I am from love at first sight,

from Hakunamatata,

from voice stealing villains and the sea.

I am from bright green turtle sandboxes,

shoved into unsuspecting sisters mouthes,

and wide-eyed innocent expressions.

I am from the cold souls of airplanes,

from the sound of hellos and goodbyes.

I am from tears over a thousand mile gaps,

and from sighs breathed across the vastness of the Pacific.

I am from late night chugs of Dr. Pepper,

from heart bled songs in the darkness.

I am from flashlight held life-or-death endings

to the dark circles etched onto next morning cheeks.

Inside the door of the house in my heart

spilling with whispers of smoke filled dreams

Lies a box with a scrawl,

Lies a poem that shows you a small part of

me.

Written By: MeeSoh Bossard

One stanza for the chosen image...

Image selection: A Broken Cup

Title: Not Broken

Once broken, never whole.

Pasted together with words of

Apology,

excuse.

Taped over with

calm,

rationale,

logical,

explanations.

Our relationship now whole,

as before

To the outside world

who don't see the

thin slivered crack of

Doubt,

hurt,

Guilt,

Betrayal.

Side-ways glances of awkwardness

smoothed over with empty smiles,

soft pats on the shoulder.

A rare hug here,

a rare hug there,

and empty compliments

that show us

Once broken, never whole.

Once broken, better left alone.

An everyday news-article connected to "The Pearl" and it's theme...

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/technology/21hayden.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

In this article, there is a man whose wealth causes him to suffer many trials including

-negative comments from the public

-divorce with his first wife

-extravagant spendings to try and please his second wife; most of his money is loaned from others

- he suffers "sudden wealth syndrome"

“At what point does the person with the money have some responsibility to know something about what he’s doing?” Mr. Resnick asked. “If you’re smart enough to have made the money, you should be smart enough to figure out something to do with it.”

(quoted directly from the above article; the link is given for in purple).

I think this quote can be used to describe one of the themes in "The Pearl" as well. Responsibility along with decision making and knowing your priorities is one of the main themes that runs throughout the story. Being able to acquire wealth (money-wise) is one thing, but taking responsibility for it and using that money out of love for the right reasons is an entirely different thing. I think both Mr. Hayden and Kino lacked the proper decision making skills, because both of them were lost. I don't think that Kino realized what he truly needed until after the death of his son. He knew he was satisfied and content in the beginning of the book, but he was also ignorant and innocent.

Reflection on "The Pearl"--> Parable in my life...

“If this story is a parable, perhaps everyone takes his own meaning from it and reads his own life into it In any case, they say in the town that…”

The story of “The Pearl” can relate to my life in the following ways. First of all, John Steinbeck lets us know from the beginning that the story of “The Pearl” was meant to be a parable, or a story that teaches us a lesson through its moral. I believe the moral of this story is not to let greed overpower your love for what is truly important.

This can relate to my life because sometimes I get so caught up in thinking about myself, and how certain things benefit or don’t benefit me that often times I lose sight of what is important. For example, one morning I found myself muttering and complaining about how I didn’t have enough jackets. But when I truly began to think about it, I realized that I had more than enough jackets! In fact, I had over 6 (probably more, now that I think about it…). This made me realize how selfish and pig-headed I was being in wanting more things for myself. One was plenty, and if a jacket was warm then of course it wouldn’t matter how many I had! I now know I am concentrating too much on my outer appearance. Of course, I know my friends have loved me through thick and thin, so of course it doesn’t matter how many times I wear a jacket to school! They loved me before, and they’ll love me the same now. And if they don’t, then maybe it’s time to find some true friends.

The second way this story can relate to my life is because I think sometimes like Kino, I am extremely stubborn. The moral of this story warns us against being greedy but I think it also wants to tell us that maybe we should listen to the advice of others instead of dismissing them because we think we are better than them. I understand that Juana is on a “lower station” than Kino but in all reality they’re husband and wife—If Kino had listened to Juana in the first place, then baby Coyotito might still be alive. When I was reading the book, I wanted to scream at Juana at first because she actually considered throwing away the precious jewel but when I re-read the book again, I wanted to scream at Kino for not listening to her. In my life, I’m sure my mother feels the same way towards me. I think that to become a better person, I need to stop thinking about what’s wrong with my parents but to actually listen to them and prevent further danger from happening to myself and others.

In conclusion, I think this story can show us lots of valuable life lessons!