Poem

        Worry Free

Sitting.

Waiting.

Are they okay? Is what she would ask herself,
Every day.
Anticipation building up as time passes.
Like blocks
Being stacked,
One by one.
Seconds felt like minutes.
Minutes felt like hours.
Days felt like months.
Months felt like years.
She missed you.
You left a permanent mark on her.
Like a footprint stuck on cement.
Her feelings have never changed.
A large weight lifted off of her shoulders.
No more worrying.
She's all right.

Non-Fiction Reading Response

        In the article, "Thigh Gap Trend Raises Health Concerns", the main idea is about how teen's obsessions over a 'thigh gap' may contribute to eating disorders. The author Jim Salter talks about how teens are constantly using social media sites like Tumblr, Facebook, and other blogs as an inspiration to fulfill their dream of obtaining a 'thigh gap'. Vonda Wright, an orthopedic Surgeon explains in the article how a 'thigh gap' is mostly based on genetics, and that it is unlikely to obtain one from starving. Overall experts believe that "exposure to images of extreme beauty standards and the drive to compare does increase the risk of developing eating disorders."
     
         I think the author wants the reader to feel good about their bodies and wants them to take caution when using social media websites by not becoming negatively influenced by them. Jim Salter does a good job conveying his message by incorporating the story of a girl going through an eating disorder in High School, so that many teens would be able to relate to her age, and see what could happen to them. He also included quotes of people who knew a lot about the topic, such as Surgeons, Chiefs of eating disorder centers, and people who work with Division athletes.Vonda Wright also quotes, "and even extraordinary thin people may not have a body type that can achieve a gap." Here the author included this quote to show that it is not very likely that teens will get a 'thigh gap' by starving themselves because of their body type.
     
         After reading "Thigh Gap Trend Raises Health Concerns", it has given me more knowledge as to why I have become more and more insecure and unhappy about my body. Jim Salter's article has changed my thinking by making me realize that I should feel good about myself, and that not everyone can have a body like the super skinny girls on Tumblr or on other social media websites. In the future, I would like to research what really causes insecurity, and what causes someone to think that changing who they are, or the way they look will make them feel better about themselves?

Reading Response

        What really hard things are happening in this text? Are these things happening in the world now? Where?

        Around the world, many people are currently going through hard problems such as abuse, poverty, divorce, bullying, etc. Some people who aren't going through some of these things may take life for granted. This is why I think the Author Craig Thompson wrote "Blankets" to show readers what it is like to go through some of them. In the book "Blankets", written by Craig Thompson, the Author puts some of the main characters through hard things that are happening in the world today.

        The first common social issue the Author puts one of the main characters through is going through a divorce when he was used to seeing his adopted parents happily married for a long time. At a certain point in time, children's parents may not have the same love for each other as they used to. Sometimes this may lead to a divorce. Depending on the person, each child will react differently. One of the common emotions a child will feel is anger. Raina's adopted brother Ben finally expresses the anger he has been holding in for a long period of time. "You can't get a divorce!" He screams to his adopted Father. "NO DIVORCE DAD! YOU AND MOM ARE MARRIED!....IT SAYS SO--IN THE BIBLE!" (Thompson 352). He then slams a chair into the wall, Throughout the book, after throwing that small tantrum, Ben locks himself in his room for long periods of time and refuses to talk to anyone. This quote shows the effect divorce can have on a child.

        Unlike others, some children weren't born into good homes. Some of them may be abused physically, mentally, or sexually almost every day, and are too afraid to tell this problem to anyone. This is what happened to Craig and his little brother Phil. Whenever their parents went out together, they would hire the same babysitter to look after them. He would trick Craig and Phil into going in a room with him to "hear a joke", when really he would just touch them inappropriately and do other things. "Hey I've got a really funny joke. So funny, I can only tell it to you one at a time" (Thompson 31). Is what he would say. Then he would take one of them into a room and when he was done, both Craig and him would come out laughing. This quote shows what some children have to go through in their homes.

        The last common social issue the author puts one of the main characters through is being bullied. Sadly, close to half of all children will experience bullying while they are in elementary or middle school. Atleast ten percent are bullied on a day-to-day basis. ("Bullying Statistics" 1). In the beginning of the book, Craig was constantly being bullied in middle school by a group of older kids. "You know it's not just you we hate, it's your whole family. Your dad looks like a Mexican-- too poor to feed you, and your mom is so religious it makes everyone in town sick!" (Thompson 21). After insulting him Craig would get angry and try to hurt them, but since he was smaller than them it did nothing. They would say, "Sorry we don't fight babies." and then throw him into a pit by the school. This quote shows one of the many hard things people go through regularly.

        This text makes me realize that I should be grateful that I don't have to go through any of those things today, and that I shouldn't take my life for granted.

Monday Muses

Who's perspective is missing in this text? What would it be like if we put it back?

        In the book "Blankets", written by Craig Thompson, I think that Craig's little brother's perspective is missing in the scene after they were sexually harassed by their babysitter. Even though Craig is the main character and the story focuses on his love life with Raina, it would answer any questions about how Craig's brother is doing. For example one question I had after reading that part in the story was, how did he feel about what happened to him? Will he ever be healthy emotionally/mentally? Since they were both sexually abused he had to be damaged emotionally or mentally in some way. I think it would've been better if they added his perspective as well and not just Craig's. The only time the reader see's Craig's brother is towards the end of the book when they are seniors in high school. But even then the Author makes no detail of how Craig's brother was doing.

        If the Author added Craig's brother's perspective, it would allow the reader to fully understand what their childhood was like growing up, and how being sexually harassed effected the both of them. For example, since the author brings that social issue up more than once, it is obviously important. We would've also learned how he felt about Craig after he let the babysitter do that to him when he knew what would happen.

Reading Response On Divergent

        If the character in your book has problems, can you see how those problems are about having or not having money, struggling with others for power, or being cheated, or helped by society's rules?

        In the book Divergent written by Veronica Roth, one of the main characters Beatrice had to struggle for power the become one of the top five in her faction. In this dystopian world, there are five different factions. They are, Eruidite, Abnegation, Candor, Amity, and Dauntless. Every day Beatrice and about twelve others were tested to see how strong they were and had to compete against each other. Almost every day She was matched up to a partner to fight. Based on how well she did in each test, she was ranked. Whenever Beatrice did better than some of the other people competing against her, they would brutally beat and taunt her. In the end, she becomes one of the top five in her faction, and would not become factionless like the others who did not make it.

Monday Muses #2

      My favorite children's picture book is "Biscuit Goes To School". 

When I was younger, I would remember flipping through the pages 

constantly, and always asking my parents to read it to me. Today,

this book still reminds me if my former neighbor's dog Biscuit that

had died of old age.

Argument Essay Draft #1

Today, many parents are complaining about their teens reading inappropriate books in School Libraries. They think that some of these books do not portray a good message to their children. One of the Young-Adult books multiple parents are trying to ban is “Rage” written by Jackie Morse Kessler. Parents are afraid that the protagonist may influence teens to consider self-harm as an option when they are facing emotional problems. As a teenager myself, I feel that some Young-Adult books such as “Thirteen Reasons Why” written by Jay Asher should not be banned from the eighth grade library because banning books makes readers more interested in reading them, and this book can help readers with their problems.

Many parents want to ban most Young-Adult books from school Libraries, but they do not realize that that does not stop a child from reading it. In the article “Banned Books We Have Loved”, Meade, an author quotes, “I honestly don’t think that banning a book ruins it’s reputation or makes children afraid to read it. In fact, the opposite will happen.” In fact, teens read these “dark books” because they are driven by the social dealings between people. They also enjoy reading them because Young-Adult books that are either forbidden or cause great horror are appealing to teens.

What people fail to realize is that allowing teens to read these Young-Adult books can actually help them. In the article “Darkness Too Visible” it reads, “These books can help comfort a teen through emotional times because they can relate to the protagonist. This can help them to eventually manage their emotional problems that they are dealing with.” In a second article “Banned Books We Have Loved”, it talks about how even though some of the classic books may have inappropriate content, they shouldn’t ban them because they actually teach them something.

In the book “Thirteen Reasons Why”, written by Jay Asher, on page one hundred seventy three, the protagonist Hannah says, “Or maybe I wanted someone to point a finger at me and say, ‘Hannah. Are you thinking about killing yourself? Please don’t do that, Hannah. Please?’ But deep down, the truth was that the only person saying that was me. Deep down those were my thoughts.” Here, Hannah is silently reaching out for a cry for help. This book can teach teens what a suicidal person is thinking, and how to consult someone who is thinking about suicide.

Parents need to realize that Young-Adult books aren’t as dark as they seem. Sometimes a book’s blurb makes the book seem more cruel or inappropriate than what it actually is. “Most of the Young-Adult books are leavened by it’s redemptive endings.” quotes the article “Teen Fiction Plots Are Darker And Starker”. A second protagonist from “Thirteen Reasons Why” written by Jay Asher on page two hundred seventeen says, “How many times after the party did I stand right here, when Hannah was alive, thinking my chances with her were over? Thinking I said or did something wrong. Too afraid to talk to her again. Too afraid to try. And then, when she died, my chances disappeared forever.” This is also another example of how teens can relate to a Young-Adult book. It can help them deal with losing someone important to them in their life because the protagonist was going through the same thing in the story.

Hopefully the DOE doesn’t go through with banning “Thirteen Reasons Why”, or Young-Adult books from School Libraries. It will do nothing to stop teens from reading them. I know that if most Young-Adult books are banned teens, including myself, won’t have anyone to relate to them when they are going through emotional problems. This might lead to a more severe illness.