Privileged by Day and Night

As the semester comes to a close, the English lovers part with their losses of being in their favorite class every day. I am among those lovers as I’ve found English to be one of my favorite subjects. Being in the environment of reading and writing has made my first semester of sophomore year worthwhile. I wish to continue the path of absorbing every new novel I discover and reading on a daily basis. I would like to thank my English teacher for introducing me to a place where I can enjoy reading and not dread every book I pick up.

BEWARE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD

We live in a world where we forget how lucky we are. To wake up without the fear of potential death of others or yourself. While reading Night by Elie Wiesel, I have recognized how privileged those who live in the United States truly are. The novel partakes in the time period of World War II, narrated by a Jew who suffers the daily life in concentration camp. Through days of deterioration of watching those of his kind perish around him, he loses a sense of him. While reading this, I have begun to envisage how truly lucky we are to live in a safe country. We don’t have to deal with war or being locked away in a prison-like structure for believing in one particular religion. We are all accepted regardless of what we believe in thanks to the first amendment. I truly cannot imagine what my grandmother went through as she lived while the war took place. Being in Germany during this time must have been difficult as my grandma watched some of her best friends be taken away due to their religion. One quote in particular provoked my thoughts as the narrator says “We had forgotten everything—death, fatigue, our natural needs” (Wiesel 48). They were going through such circumstances in which their own physical needs meant nothing. In a world we live in, the only thing that matters is our social media, social status, and how the world perceives us. We forget how lucky we are. Through my final blog post I would like to send out one message to my readers. As you go through your week, day by day, hour by hour, stop sometimes and think of how lucky you are. Believe how blessed you are to not have to worry about fighting for your life. Treat those around you with respect and hold yourself high with dignity as we live in a country where we all are accepted regardless of our religion, race, or beliefs.

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

As we continue to inch closer to the highly anticipated Christmas break, teachers begin to shove every last bit of information into us before we reach finals week. Therefore, this leaves me with very little time to spare for many activities such as reading. My reading habits have dropped significantly over the past month because I am simply unable to find the time. I look forward to every independent reading time because it gives me a chance to clear my mind and do something I enjoy. I am very upset about leaving english soon as we move to next semester in a few weeks.

Turn back now if you don’t want to risk the reading of possible spoilers!

Regardless of how one appears on the outside, the beauty of someone is depicted by their personality, feelings, emotions, and behaviors. This message is displayed through the love story of a troubled teen named Eleanor and a typical Korean boy named Park. In the story of Eleanor and Park, two unlikely lovers unexpectedly meet on a school bus and immediately find the common liking of comic books. Their bond grows profusely as they deal with multiple problems such as bullying, the wrath of parents, and dealing with acceptance.

The first time they encountered each other, Park promptly noticed her beauty. The majority of Eleanor’s peers at school demeanor her for her extravagant outfits. This is where the phrase, “Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder” comes into play. Practically what this statement means is that beauty cannot be judged objectively, for what one person finds beautiful or admirable may not appeal to another. Park in this instance can be presented as the beholder. Other students found Eleanor to “never look nice,” but Park found her to “look like art, and art wasn't supposed to look nice; it was supposed to make you feel something” (Rowell 328). Park felt the connection and disregarded everyone’s opinion. While reading this, I transitioned the story into my life. My mom always reminds me to “find a guy who treats you like a princess.” This statement can be represented in the story as Park treats Eleanor like a princess because he truly loves her. As I continue to grow older my one wish is to find someone who treats me like royalty, therefore I can treat them the same. For anyone who comes across this entry, I want you all to remember, don’t give up hope of finding your perfect match because in life, there will always be a Park to your Eleanor.

Perfection Is Just a False Reality

Hello Hello Hello! While finishing my first semester of english, I have successfully completed five novels. This is very unusual for me to finish this many books because I’m not a typical bookworm. Am I disappointed with the amount of time I’ve spent reading? Answering this honestly, yes. But it is quite difficult for an average high school student to find time for reading. Keeping up with the massive amounts of homework along with any possible extracurricular activities, it becomes difficult to create hours to do things for fun. To add to the hours of schoolwork, how is getting a healthy eight to ten hours of homework possible? I am disappointed in myself, but I know I will find the time eventually to rekindle my daily reading habits.

I have just completed my fifth book, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. The story comprises of a narrative of three girls. One scene in particular really sparked my interest and made me come to a realization of how many people that I have relations with feel. In the novel, one of the main characters, Pecola, dealt with a major situation of trying to fit in. All her life she dealt with the constant bullying of her appearance. She came to a place where she believed if she had blue eyes, she would be loved and her life would change for the better. This brings up the main idea of trying to become someone whom you aren’t.

Caution! Spoilers ahead!

To cohere with those around you means to lose all sense of your specific personality and become like everybody else. I have felt in many specific situations like Pecola. Like I needed to wear the same thing as everyone around me to fit in, to act like everyone else and lose all sense of self. As I grow more and more each day, I become more like myself. My personality shows and through this, I have become happier. Pecola, “a little black girl [that] yearns for the blue eyes of a little white girl” believes in order to have flawlessness, “yearning is exceeded only by the evil of fulfillment” (Morrison 204).  She comes to a state of hopelessness and finds herself at a church asking for blue eyes. What she doesn’t realize is that the minister did not perform his task of changing her eyes. Eventually she develops extreme mental problems while constantly putting into her mind that she has the most perfect life. Individuals of our society have difficulties addressing certain problems that occur in one’s lifetime. I have personally dealt with this type of attitude. I reached a point where my grades weren’t to my standards, but I played it off as if they were fine. I became careless until I began to comprehend that I wasn’t applying myself as I should. This book has given me the realization that everyone is perfect. We are all unique and we don’t need to transform our lives into someone else's. If we release all sense of self, we lose our individuality which provides no spontaneity in our world. Fulfill the life you were supposed to and you will overall become a more joyful and loved human being.

Self Worth Without the Hurt

Hello hello hello! During these glorious weeks of the first half of english, I have surprised myself with the amount of time I have spent reading. Rather than reading the two books I anticipated, I have completed three and now about to begin my fourth novel. Recently, I have found that during my spare time, I am reading, rather than scrolling through my endless social media accounts. Also, something that has sparked my interest has been non-fiction novels. I am slowly gravitating to them rather than the mainstream fiction books. My third book in which I am writing about today is a very intense non-fiction novel. A Child Called ‘It’ shares the story of a boy who goes through childhood dealing with severe child abuse. Through the many graphic scenes, a silver lining appears.

*BEWARE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS UP AHEAD*

Despite the horrendous torture the main character faces, he manages to turn his life around. It wasn’t very easy to get to that point though. He dealt with starvation, beatings, and isolation. During one point in the story, a quote that really stuck to me was when his mother said, “You are a nobody! An It! You are nonexistent! You are a bas**d child! I hate you and I wish you were dead” (140). To have a mother that cares nothing of you hurt me more than anything. I don’t know how that feels because when I am home I am fed with unconditional love. While reading this quote I could not comprehend why a mother would have such hatred towards her own child.

While reading this horrific autobiography, I came across the common theme of depersonalization. Throughout many occurrences, the main character, David, was demeanored into believing that he was to be treated as less than a human. At points he felt like he did not belong in the world anymore, that he had no purpose to live. Suicide is a very large issue in our world, even in our school. People don’t realize the impact of “jokes” about death on others. In my lifetime, I have helped a very good friend of mine through suicidal thoughts. She didn’t feel like she had a purpose. With hope in mind, everyone has a purpose, regardless of your situation. For anyone who comes across my blog who reached a point in your life where you feel like you are alone and useless, there is always a way out. Search for that silver lining ahead of you and you will reach a point of true happiness. Every single person on this earth was born to help someone or something in a positive way. It’s your job to come to the realization that you are meaningful.

Reading through David’s situation, he went through an extremely hard time in his life where he was told daily that his purpose was nonexistent, that he should be punished for his wrongdoings. The only thing that gave him hope was the thought of getting out. Of being free. We all need to learn that regardless of the seriousness of our situation, there’s a reason why we’re here. We just have to remain hopeful that there is good things coming our way.

The Dumplin' Digest

From the moment I stepped into room 1560, my immediate goal was to read one book every two weeks. This seemed reasonable because it gives me time to balance my other classes along with reading. I want to challenge myself to read more nonfiction, partially because we are required to read one for the first nine weeks, but also because I have never read one that I have enjoyed. I plan to read nonfiction after I finish the novel I am currently reading called Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy. This novel was highly recommended by my English teacher, Mrs. Mayo, so I rushed to be the first one to borrow it! This story was very compelling and something unlike I’ve ever read before. It offers a very relatable story located in Texas and explains the struggle of a sixteen year old named Willowdean.

The story takes us through an everyday Texan high schooler that deals with the issue of not being comfortable in her own skin. As the story persists, Willowdean idealizes the concept that everyone is not perfect. The thing that sets her apart from other characters in the story is that she does not focus on the outside, for she focuses on one’s confidence and attitude rather than their outward appearance. One particular quote from the novel that stood out to me was when Willowdean said, “I guess sometimes the perfection we perceive in others is made up of a whole bunch of tiny imperfections, because some days the damn dress just won't zip” because it helps explain the reality of our world (369). This quote perceives that what we would deem as “perfect” doesn’t actually feel that way. The entire book focuses on the main idea that we should disregard others' judgement and feel comfortable for who we are, but in reality, everyone sees many imperfections in themselves. Dumplin’ is a novel that you won’t have the ability to put down once you’ve picked it up. It establishes a sense of self-awareness as you connect with the problems that the main character faces. When I was younger, I had a problem with my height. I strived to be taller like all of my friends, but as I grew older, I came to the point where I accepted who I am. One problem that occurred in the story was between Willowdean and her mother. Her mother was persistent for her daughter to lose weight, even though she was comfortable in her own skin.  Willowdean proceeded to tell her mother that “Perfection is nothing more than a phantom shadow we’re all chasing” because her mom wanted her to be “perfect” even though in reality, there is no such thing. This was one of my favorite quotes in the book because of how coherent the meaning is. I have always looked up to my brother because he is extremely intelligent, but in actuality, he saw many flaws in himself. Through reading this novel, it has changed my perspective on life. It allows me to become more confident in who I am and recognize one’s attributes, not on the outside, but on the inside.

An Exploration Through Reading: A Tiffany Smith Story

   Hello hello hello! My name is Tiffany Smith! I am currently a sophomore at Hebron high school. My time is usually consumed by varsity tennis matches and piles of homework. My life is full of wonderful people and experiences! If you don't find me glued to my desk studying, I will be out with friends going on some spontaneous adventure. Also, I devote lots of my time to my new English Bulldog, Harley! She is the love of my life! I don't give myself that much time to read, but I wish I would start to. Reading is something that I would like to make more of a habit. All throughout my life I've never really been one to read a lot of books. I typically read the books that are very popular at the moment, but I would like to begin to shy away from modern books and read more of the classics.

   My reading goal for this year is to read seven books. I'm not too much of a reader, but I feel like this is appropriate for balancing my extracurricular activities along with school. Throughout the past few months I have surprise myself by leaning towards more classic novels. For my summer reading I read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. This has turned out to be my all-time favorite book, so my reading list has shifted into more classic novels. One book in particular that I have been wanting to read for a while is called Paper Towns by John Green. Also I would like to read Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. I would also like to conquer The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. For the first nine weeks, I of course have to read Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I am not too sure of what I would like to read for my nonfiction novel. Then, for the second nine weeks I haven't received the opportunity to view the AP reading list, therefore I am unsure of what I would like to read from that list. Overall, I am excited for this new chapter in my life! I heard sophomore year is spectacular!