Bonny Park

 

   I went to Bonny Park and stayed there for at least 45 minutes. 

 When I first found out that we were required to visit  Bonny Park I was excited because I love parks. Initially I did not know where to go when I first entered the park. I ended up driving around for a little while before I actually found a spot. I had brought my  poetry handout, my bible and my journal. I went alone because I really was craving to be alone for this assignment. Sometimes we get so distracted by others, we are unable to take in everything around us. I finally found a place in the back where it was more secluded, away from the actual recreational area. It felt a little bit unusual getting out of my car and going to sit out in the middle of the grass. One of the things that I loved the most about the poetry selection was how Oliver revealed such a deep appreciation for simple things that most of us take advantage of. 

 In her poem the messenger she states: “ My work is loving the world...”

  So often we neglect to love or even acknowledge God’s beautiful creation. 

So in the hours worth of time that I was assigned I decided I was just going to try my best to love the nature I was surrounded by. It was such an incredible experience. 

One of my favorite parts in Six Recognitions of the Lord was

“ I Lounge on the grass, that’s all. So simple. Then I lie back until I am inside the cloud that is just above me, but very high and shaped like a fish. Or, perhaps not. Then I enter the place of not thinking, not remembering, not wanting. When the blue jay cries out his riddle, in his carping voice, I return. But I go back, the threshold is always near. Over and back, over and back. Then I rise.”

 I love this section of the poem because I can envision it perfectly. Oliver delivers such a lovely description as she takes in her surroundings of the grass, the sky, the birds. 

This is exactly what my goal was in this assignment. To take in and and appreciate Gods beauty not thinking, not remembering, not wanting. This assignment definitely has made me want to be in God’s creation more often. 

Poetry

 I loved Mary Olivers collection of poetry. I have always loved poetry and enjoyed studying it throughout high school.  I particularly liked how she connects her poetry to a spiritual aspect involving prayer. There were several pieces that really stood out to me. 

  The first was Six Recognitions of the Lord.

She begins with these lines

“ I know a lot of fancy words. 

I tear them from my heart and my tongue. 

Then I pray. 

 This really struck me. Sometimes we view prayer as such a fancy thing, as if we are supposed to impress God. This is so funny to me because God already know the deepest parts of our heart. He is aware of our every thought, our every prayer before we speak it. Yet we still fail to throw away our elaborate expressions and detailed wording and just get to the point. God already knows...He understands. 

Praying is another piece that really made me think. 

 She restates the thoughts that I took away from the first poem. 

“ A few words and don’t try to make them elaborate, this isn’t a contest, but the doorway into thanks, and a silence in which another voice may speak. 

This was such a huge thing for me to really grasp for the longest time. It made me stop and examine what prayer was really about and what I thought about prayer.

This Blessed House

This Blessed House focused on two characters, completely opposite in personality. It was interesting comparing and contrasting the characters of Sanjeev and Twinkle. Sanjeev is much more frigid and stiff while Twinkle is more fun and carefree. In class we did learned about levels of being. This definitely applies examining any person, including ourselves. There is the outer self which is appearance, personality traits and how people typically perceive us. Our inner self is defined as our deepest thoughts and feelings. Lastly the core of us is defined as who we are in God. As my small group looked at Sanjeev and Twinkle and their inner and outer levels we concluded that Sanjeev was bitter, angry and logical while Twinkle was fun, creative and bubbly. In class we had to answer several questions about the story. One of the questions asked was which character was more likable. Twinkle was clearly far more likable that Sanjeev. This really made me realize how much we judge people solely on their outer selves. Sanjeev was not exactly this detestable person. In fact, Professor Corrigan was talking about how beneath her bubbly exterior, Twinkle probably had some serious issues she was dealing with herself. One thing that really struck me in discussing this was a statement Professor Corrigan made about out core: "If we must know one thing about ourselves or someone else, it is that they are in Christ. " This is such an incredible thought to ponder. If we viewed everyone we met first and foremost as someone is Christ, rather than what they could do or how they looked, we would be see people in a whole new light. I thought it was really neat how there were small pieces of Christianity all throughout the house. It was interesting how Twinkle was attracted to them. Even though she was  not a professed Christian, she always wanted to keep the statues or posters that represented Christ. It was as if she was being drawn toward the only source that could truly offer her identity. 

Short story

When I first found out that we had to write a short story for our next blog assignment, I was honestly somewhat nervous. I have loved the reading that we've done in literature this year, and was skeptical about creating something as equally entertaining. As soon as I actually started writing, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. To use your imagination like in such a way; creating in depth characters and a story line is such a stress release. I quickly got carried away in developing my main character as I wrote my story. I have always wanted to sit down and write a fictional piece like this but have never done it. In high school I remember one of my teachers reading a short story that she had published. It was so interesting to see how she incorporated her personality into the story! It was fascinating to make up an entire lifetime of events for a single person, imagining everything that has happened to them to lead up to where they are today. I knew I wanted to try to write something inspiring, but that is all I really began with. As I started writing, the rest of the story started to slowly unfold. The more I continued to develop the plot and the the several characters, the more I began to get into the story. I felt as if I knew and could identify with my main character, Cassie. In a way I feel like I subconsciously put many of my  traits in her character.Creating your own short story definitely gives you a sense of control. You are able to choose your own characters, what they say and do, and how the story ends.   I am really glad that we had this assignment. It definitely challenged myself and made me realize how much I enjoyed writing fiction. 

Never Stop Singing

Never Stop Singing

Since she was seven years old there was only one thing in the world that Cassie wanted to do: sing. There was something so powerful about the rich voices and captivating lyrics coming from her grandmothers old record player. She cherished the old days when nanna would blast the music of Aretha Franklin, James Brown , Tina Turner and the rest of her beloved collection of talented artists. Cassie smiled as she remembered dancing around in the kitchen, belting out whatever toon was playing into that hairbrush she declared a microphone. She would prance around, performing for nanna as she cooked at the stove. Nanna was always cooking. She would lift up her spatula on occasion and wave it at Cassie. “ Listen to me baby-you never stop singing...Never stop.” The crowd roared outside and interrupted Cassie’s thoughts. Cassie closed her eyes and inhaled. The rain had been coming down hard less than an hour ago and the air was wet and humid. There was something about the rain that was always relaxing to Cassie. She leaned her head back and took in another deep breath. Backstage, everyone seemed to be assigned a task. The whole arena was full of noise, laughter, screaming and chaos. Yet there was something about today that kept bringing Cassie back her childhood memories.

Perhaps it was the feeling of satisfaction. After all those years of hard work, wondering if she was just wasting time. She had finally made it.

“ Cassie! Carlos was shouting again. “Janice needs you in hair and make-up right away!” Carlos was one of her managers assistants. He rarely ever smiled and always seemed to be shouting at someone. Cassie reluctantly got up from where she was sitting and followed his quick steps. As they were about to enter the dressing room she heard someone call her name. It was a young girl from the stage crew, Kayla.

“What is it,” snapped Carlos. “We don’t have time for any interruptions.”

The young girl looked startled as as her big brown eyes widened. Carlos clearly scared her. Carlos scared everyone.

“Its just, there are some people who want to see Cassie,” the girl stammered. “ A few kids...” Her words trailed off as Carlos snarled.

“Cassie is far too busy to see anyone right now, let alone children.”

Cassie cleared her throat just as Kayla turned to leave.

“I can take a few minutes.”

She turned around to see Carlos raise his eyebrows before turning a violent shade of red.

He sputtered a few angry words before turning and walking away.

Cassie laughed. Kayla looked relieved.

“ Don’t worry about him,” Cassie smiled. Kayla looked nervous again.

Cassie had forgotten for a moment that people acted differently towards her now.

She followed Kayla to a group of young children standing eagerly backstage.

They all stared at her with bright, wide eyes as she approached.

Cassie smiled as she made small talk and signed pictures. She remembered being this age. They were all so young and so full of life. One girl in particular stood out to Cassie. She had curly, dark hair and sparkling eyes. Out of the group she was definitely the smallest, hardly reaching Cassie’s waist. She was staring at Cassie with such curiosity and awe that Cassie couldn’t help but chuckle. She bent down and looked into the young girls eyes. “ And what is your name?”

“Sara,” the girl breathed. Before Cassie could respond, the young girl hurriedly continued. “ Did you always want to be a singer?”

She looked up at her with anxious eyes and Cassie could see so much of herself in the small girls innocent face.

Suddenly Cassie felt a surge of pain for this child. As she examined the excitement and hope written all over Sara’s face, she remembered how she had gotten here today.

“ Sara, do you like to sing?”

“More than anything in the world!” the little girl exclaimed.

“ Will you promise to listen to what I’m about to tell you?”

“ Yes, yes I will!”

Cassie smiled as she slowly spoke her next words: “Never stop singing.”

The young girl looked confused even though she remained smiling.

As Cassie turned to leave she had a feeling that the Sara would treasure those very three words some day.

Sinking into the make-up chair, Cassie closed her eyes again as her stylist, Janice, started examining her hair.

Her mind wandered back to a classroom erupting with laughter. “Cassie, you ain’t never gonna be no singer!” shouted Kel, the class bully.

She remembered running into her grandmother’s arms after school, choking back tears.

“Baby,” her grandmother told her. “Never stop singing.”

“But maybe those kids are right. Look where we’re from. Look where we live. I’m never gonna be a singer.”

“Baby listen to me. Don’t you ever think that where you come from defines who you are. You have an amazing gift. Don’t ever stop.”

Cassie came back to reality at the sound of Carlos yelling out orders to everyone. She missed her grandmother. But more than anything, she was thankful for those words of encouragement her grandmother instilled in her many years ago. She would always remember her grandmother. She would always remember her neighborhood. She would always remember her upbringing. She would always remember those who loved her and those who condemned her. She would always remember words of encouragement and criticism. She would remember her late night shifts waitressing and those months where she barely made the rent. She would remember her first gig at that old club down the street from her house and how excited she was to receive her first paycheck from singing there. This was who she was, this was how she got here.

“Cassie, You’re up in five!” yelled Carlos.

As Cassie stood behind the curtain she caught a glimpse of the large outside arena and the thousands of people that filled it. Her mind flooded with images of the years that preceded this moment. As her name was announced, the audience cheered and she made her way to the center of the stage. She lifted the microphone, opened her mouth and knew one thing: she would never stop singing.

character

    

Characters play a defining part in creating a story line. 

  Characterization is vital when it comes to novels, movies and plays. Every piece of literature requires the writer to establish main characters to act as the protagonist and antagonist. This is crucial when it comes to making an entertaining story. 

   When I think back to some of my favorite pieces of literature, I always remember the characters. They are what truly makes the story come alive and memorable. When you are reading a novel or short story, in a sense you are living through the character. You are seeing how they view things. It is almost like entering a new world an escape. 

  In high school, To Kill a Mockingbird was one of my favorite books that we read in Lit class. Through the use of characters, Lee was able to create feelings of inspiration, love, heartache, joy and despair in readers. She uses characters like Scout, Jem and Atticus Finch to bring the story to life and create different emotion throughout the story. I found myself rooting for Finch while he was defending Tom Robinson. Lee’s vivid characterization allowed Atticus Finch to become one of the most beloved heros in classic fiction. 

    When it comes to memorable characters in literature, I always think of Jane Austen's novels. I read most of her books in high school and always fell in love with the people in them. The way she describes her characters through her words as well as their actions makes them seem very real and allows her readers to feel as if they know them. She usually has a protagonist and antagonist in her novels. In my opinion, Austen does a brilliant job when it comes to characterization. 

   The characters are what draw the person in to the drama or book. The audience or reader is able to relate to the characters and this allows the work to have more of an impact. 

I'm choosing to use my first pass for this post.