Response to Luis' Post

         This is a quote I found in Luis Alba’s blog which I immediately caught my attention:

I love Oakland, but I also like Alameda. Alameda is a nice place to chill and be safe. Even though I like Alameda, there are some things I dislike.

        I have lived in Oakland for nearly all my life, and it’s pretty cool. Nothing bad has happened in my neighborhood, well except a teenager got shot, but other than that it’s been nice. The schools are great; it’s the students that really mess it up. Even in middle school there were already boys who were in a gang and throwing up signs, it was annoying. Other parts of Oakland are really scary though. When I walk on the streets I can usually tell who’s in a gang, who’s on drugs, and who is simply someone you shouldn’t talk to. It’s usually in the way they walk, dress, and look at things. It makes me feel intimidated whenever I’m outside with friends, I don’t feel any of this in Alameda. Another thing I find interesting is that in Oakland it’s extremely rare whenever I see a white person. And the few white people I know that live in Oakland are ghetto. I’m not trying to say anything bad about any ethnic group; it’s just something that makes me think about where I live and what others might assume of me. For instance, today I saw a white woman driving a car with her white son. I was so shocked! I had to stop myself from asking her if I can take a picture of her driving on the trashy streets of Oakland. It was a glorious moment for both me and the Oakland community, and I wonder if others were thinking the same. I just couldn’t believe it, I am still traumatized from what I had to observe. So now I ask myself, why is it so rare for there to be a white person living in Oakland? What does this mean for all the Latinos and African Americans who live in Oakland? Because that’s all I see in Oakland – Mexicans and African Americans. On the other hand, Alameda is filled with so many Asians and White people, why is this so? I also notice that the streets in Oakland look as dangerous as they are especially in West Oakland. Oakland is packed with all the drug dealers, the prostitutes, and the criminals, but what about Alameda? Maybe there is chaos in some parts of Alameda, but I don’t know, I don’t live there. I guess I just think it’s strange how there’s far more Mexicans in Oakland than there is white people.

Book Post: "Speak" part 3

I finally finished the book Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson and I can easily say it was a really good book. In my opinion, the best part of the book was when Melinda finally reveals her past to her ex-best friend, Rachel. When Melinda was at the summer party, she got drunk. While she was intoxicated she went somewhere outside by some trees, which is where Andy Evans took advantage of her. Melinda was so wasted that she couldn’t even scream for help. She finally passed out, and when she woke up she knew exactly what he did to her. She didn’t know what to do and so she called the cops. Ever since then she’s been silent, fighting her mind to forget about that terrible night. Melinda took a step forward, she set her insecurity aside to warn and try to convince Rachel that her boyfriend, Andy Evans, was trouble. It showed that even though Rachel hated her and wasn’t her friend anymore, she still had feelings for her. Obviously, Rachel didn’t listen. She later dumped him when he was getting too physical with her at a prom. A couple days later he tried to rape Melinda again for telling Rachel what he did at the party. But the awesome thing was that she screamed to the top of her lungs, she said no. I like that part because Melinda had always been so traumatized for what that guy did to her; from that night she never spoke to anybody, not even her own parents.

But something happened to her in school that changed everything. It could’ve been her “disposable friend”, Heather who came clean to her and told her she was a negative creep who was no fun to be around. It could’ve been all the time she spent alone in the closet or the times she skipped school to go to the mall. It could’ve been the art project she spent the whole year making for Mr. Freeman. Melinda was supposed to draw a tree. But not just any tree, a tree with her feelings and emotions engraved. She failed to do this at first because all she could think about was the “incident”, and she didn’t want to think about that. But along the way she began to trust her art teacher, Mr. Freeman, and the art project was a bit easier than before. Later a girl named Ivy commented on her tree and said nice things about it. She gave Melinda some tips on how to make it better, by that time Melinda wasn’t as silent as she was before. All these things related to the art project gave her the strength she needed to stand up to Andy. And after she did, she completed her tree with no trouble at all.

Book Post: "Speak" part 2

The first part of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was cool, but this second part I part I read is even better! As Melinda listens to her parents argue, she convinces herself that she was a huge disappointment to them. She blames herself for the damage in her parents’ relationship. But it isn’t her fault. Melinda thinks that because everybody at school hates her now her parents are going to do the same, she’s basically paranoid. All her parents see is a teenager who is just looking for attention, but they don’t know the half of it. If they never bother to offer their daughter help in school and life, how can they expect everything to alright? I think they have to put their differences aside and focus on what’s best for Melinda, because what she’s going through is far more complicated.

                Later in the book, Heather, Melinda’s disposable friend tried to reason with her that they are very different. Heather basically told Melinda that they can’t be friends anymore, in a friendly way. She explained that she is just no fun to be around, and that she has a reputation. Melinda is just so depressed, she doesn’t care about anything, including school, and now because of that she lost the only “friend” she had. If Melinda talked to anyone, she would eventually gain somebody’s trust. Then she could just talk to that person about her problems and get help. She can avoid having these types of things happened to her, she can change her life by speaking out.

                Another issue in the story is the moments when Melinda falls into shock when she reminded herself of her tragic past. She tries to forget about it, but she tries too hard. The effort she uses to blur out the painful memories is causing her more pain. For example, she has no friends because she doesn’t talk to anyone. She doesn’t talk because everyone hates her and nobody understands her, and so the safest place for her to be is alone, inside her own head. That’s when the pain begins, and problems start.

Book Post: "Speak" part 1

The book Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is very interesting. It’s about a girl named Melinda Sordino who never speaks to anyone. The only person she gets close to talking to is Heather. Melinda doesn’t really consider Heather as a friend; she’s more of a disposable friend or a person she could sit with just so she doesn’t look stupid. Melinda’s life in school is miserable. She has no friends and almost everybody hates her, including Rachel, her ex-best friend from middle school. I don’t understand why everyone hates her though. It can be the fact that she called the cops on Kyle Rodger’s party in the end of the summer, but if that’s the case can’t people just get over it? Is what she caused that summer really that bad? And why did she call the cops at them? She knew they were all going to get in trouble, but is that what she wanted? There could’ve been another reason, but not one that she was willing to talk about.

                At home, Melinda’s life was basically the same – except no one made fun of her or hated her. But there was some tension between her parents. Her mom was usually very busy doing stuff for work, and her dad I don’t think he much. It’s like they are so focused on their work that they forget that they have a teenage daughter with a very serious level of depression. One day when she received terrible grades on her report card, her parents got angry and yelled at her. She didn’t say anything to them; she didn’t even look at them as they were talking. They told her to try her best in school; each talking turns to say something to her. Melinda’s mom told her to look at her when she was talking, but she didn’t listen. No matter how much she raised her voice, Melinda kept her eyes glued to the ground. But I noticed that they never offered any help to her, it was only demands and yelling. After that they faced each other and argued. At home, Melinda’s parents never mention anything about her silence; it never occurs to them that she needs therapeutic help.

Essay: The Kite Runner

Author Khaled Hosseini  wrote a famous novella called The Kite Runner, which is about a man who has to risk his life in order to make up for the unspeakable mistake he made when he was a child. This man’s name is Amir. Amir experiences a lot during his childhood. He often had a feeling that his own father is ashamed of him and does not love him. His father’s name is Baba. He feels that Baba is more affectionate towards their servant’s son, Hassan. Hassan and Amir are not enemies because of this, well, at least he doesn’t show it. Amir and Hassan were best friends when they were kids; they did pretty much everything together. It was probably because they were best friends that Amir felt so jealous of him. He wanted his father to care for his son more than his servants. One of the most tragic events happened in Amir’s childhood. It created so much damage in his life as well as in the ones around him. In this particular event, he made the mistake of his life - the error that permanently destroyed everyone’s future. He intruded in the lives of others with a cataclysmic earthquake that took a lifetime to recover from - all because he couldn’t stand up for Hassan. Hassan always stood up for him, he even saved his ass from getting is face deformed by Assef’s fists. And when Hassan was having the definite worst time of his entire life, Amir couldn’t even at least call for help!? He could’ve made one little sacrifice for Hassan, the boy knew for pretty much his entire life. The boy he talked to, read stories to, had dinner with, and helped him win the love from his father in the kite tournament. I’m glad Amir felt guilty for granting Assef the right to rape his best friend, because later, Amir had to pay.

I can sort of understand why Amir didn’t do anything to help Hassan. Amir was very insecure about himself, which could also be why he never defended himself. He may have been insecure because of his father. If I didn’t know Baba I would say he was a very good parent, but unfortunately I do know Baba. Baba wasn’t very good at supporting Amir. However, he supported Hassan very well. At first Amir couldn’t figure out why his father was more affectionate for his friend. But later in his adulthood he found out the truth about Baba. He discovered that Hassan was actually Baba’s son, which made them half-brothers. That was the reason why Baba never showed any love for him, because he had another son. Another life he had to direct and look forward to incase his other one did not live up to his anticipations. That other life was Amir. Amir knew that Baba was not impressed. He knew he wasn’t what Baba wanted. He even heard him talk about him with a friend of his. “Be grateful he’s healthy,” Rahim Khan was saying.                                                                                                                                                                        

“I know, I know. But he’s always buried in those books or shuffling around the house like he’s lost in some dream.”… “Sometimes I look out this window and I see him playing on the street with the neighborhood boys. I see how they push him around, take his toys from him, give him a shove here, a whack there. And, you know, he never fights back. Nev er. He just…drops his head and…” “…You know what happens when the neighborhood boys tease him? Hassan steps in and fends them off. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. And when they come home, I say to him, ‘How did Hassan get that scrape on his face?’ And he says, ‘He fell down.’ I’m telling you, Rahim, there is something missing in that boy.” In these quotes, Baba was explaining how he is worried about Amir. He was not satisfied with the fact that he was so into books and poetry. He never defended himself, and when Hassan protected him he was too ashamed to admit it. I think this goes back to Baba caring more about Hassan than Amir. He knew that Hassan was already Baba’s favorite, so he didn’t want to make him prouder. And as for Baba, I think he only wanted his son to be more like him. He wanted him to follow his ways so that he can end up being as successful as him. But every time Amir was too busy being himself, Baba showed a bit of embarrassment. This is what made Amir insecure about himself. He never had to help Hassan out in anything, and when the time came he didn’t know what to do. If Baba would have showed more care for Amir then Amir wouldn’t have been so unsure of himself and he would’ve saved Hassan’s life, along with Ali, Hassan’s father.

Near the end of the book, Rahim Khan called Amir and asked him for a favor. He told Amir that Hassan and his wife were killed, and they had a son named Sorhab. He told Amir to go to Kabul to save Sorhab from the Taliban. Rahim said this would make up for the miserable mistake he made when he was a kid. At first Amir did not want to do this, he realized how dangerous it was and he also worried about his wife, Soraya. He ended up going, the guilty memories in his mind shattered him for long enough.

 He went to Kabul and found out that Assef, a bully from his childhood who raped his best friend, Hassan, now “owns” Sorhab. In order to save Sorhab’s life, he had to fight Assef in a bloody battle`. Assef nearly kills Amir; he bruises his face and destroys many of his bones.  But that was when Sorhab took out his slingshot and aimed it at Assef’s eye, right before he is about to pound Amir’s face. That was when I visualized Hassan doing the same thing for him back in Kabul. It was the same situation; Assef was ready to punch Amir’s face when he whipped out his sling shot. I remembered him taunting Assef, telling him that if he doesn’t leave they would have to call him “One-eyed Assef”.  It’s like Sorhab did both Amir and his father a favor. For Hassan, he did what his father should have done back when he was a kid. He made his father’s words come true; he was now “One-eyed Assef”.  For Amir, he saved his life. Not only that, but the fact that Sorhab stood up for him the same way that Hassan did most likely made Amir tear up, it reminded him of his best friend.  That event made me think of Sorhab as a miniature version ofHassan, or Hassan in his childhood.

The Kite Runner has been one of the best book I have ever read. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in war or had a tough experience like Amir.  I think Hosseini did a splendid job in writing this book. The descriptions of each character in the book and their life experiences really made me care about them as if they were real people.  I felt hatred towards Assef and sympathy towards Hassan and Sorhab. It’s really heartbreaking to know that the same person that made a father suffer as a child was now making life miserable for the son. So overall, The Kite Runner is a great book and I really enjoyed it.