"The Twelve"

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Brokenness Everywhere

Paton has many themes in his book Cry, The Beloved Country.  He has themes such as religion, family, segregation, brokenness, and many more.  Paton’s most prominent theme in the book up until Book I would be that family life in South Africa is broken.  South Africa itself might be broken, but family life is much worse.  In total there are already three examples of families being broken in Book I.

            The first example of a broken family is Stephen Kumalo and his sister and his son.  Stephen was long ago left by his sister and son who went to Johannesburg.  His sister left to find her long lost husband, but never returned.  So Kumalo’s son, Absalom, goes to Johannesburg to find her and he never returns.  Kumalo decides to go look for them in Johannesburg, but once he finds them he has more problems to face.  His sister is now a prostitute and his son has gotten in trouble with the law.  “A liquor seller, a prostitute, with a child and you do not know where it is?” said by Kumalo to his sister.  Kumalo asked his son, “You stole and broke in and-yes, you did these things.  But why?”  Kumalo just wants his family back together, and will do anything to mend it.

            Another example of a broken family is the relationship between John Kumalo, Stephen Kumalo’s brother, and his own son.  When Stephen Kumalo went to Johannesburg he visited his brother to talk about Absalom and catch up on things.  Stephen found out that John was no longer with his wife, and he did not know where his son was.  John told Stephen, “My wife Esther has left me these ten years, my brother.”  Stephen was shocked, but then asked about John’s son.  “So he said he would leave.  He had good work so I did not stop him.  And your son went with him” John told Kumalo and then he added that he did not know where they had went.  John is not as worried as to get his family back together as Kumalo at all.  It seems as though John could care less if his family was together or not.

            My last example of a broken family is James Jarvis’ family.  James Jarvis is a rich man in this book who lives on top of the hill instead of in the valley.  He had a son named Arthur Jarvis.  He and his son had not talked in a very long time though, due to different perspectives.  Arthur was fighting to save the native race by writing books to help people realize that there should be no segregation.  James would not hear of it in his house.  So they both had not spoken to one another in a long time.  Ironically, Arthur gets murdered by a native, Absalom, while working on his work.  When James got into Johannesburg he stated, “My son and I didn’t see eye to eye on the native question, John.  In fact, he and I got quite heated about it on more than one occasion.  But I’d like to see what he wrote.”

            Three families and one country that were all broken.  It seemed as if the only person who was trying to fix all the brokenness was Stephen Kumalo and Arthur Jarvis.  Kumalo went to Johannesburg, a very frightful place for him, to fix his family.  Arthur had a goal to make South Africa a better place by writing and letting people know about things.  Arthur never got to truly finish his goals to fix South Africa’s brokenness.  Will Kumalo’s fate end up as Arthur’s did?  Will Kumalo mend his family, or will a tragedy happen?

Be Positive

I believe in living in a world of positive thoughts.  When I’m around positive people I tend to be in a much happier mood, which is how everyone should be.

            Maybe just a year ago, my mom had this phase of always being so negative.  Every comment she made was scornful or bleak, and she was not  the most pleasant person to be around.  It wasn’t just myself who noticed my mother’s sorrowful attitude, my sister noticed it and so did my father (who doesn’t even live with her!). 

            Eventually, it came to my mother and I never getting along.  So, I told my mother what was bothering me.  I told her that she lives in such a negative world, and that results to her always seeming so gloomy or even mad at the world.  I asked her to think in a more cheery way and become the person I missed.

            Ever since then she’s gotten much better, but every now and then I do have to remind her, “Be positive!”  Our relationship changed by a lot, and it was only because she realized what she was doing.  Her comments that she makes during a conversation are no longer pessimistic or bitter, but are enjoyable and hopeful.

            My mom isn’t the only one who needs reminding to stay positive.  I have a tendency to say positive things to friends at my school.  When people have the attitude that they aren’t good enough or they will never be good at anything, I like to say to them, “Well with that attitude, you’re right!”  I never have the intentions of being rude when I say this, but I have the intentions to give them the strive to think better of themselves.

            My boyfriend, Cody, heard of a philosophy explaining that if you think positive, good things will happen to you in the long run and vise versa.  I thought he was crazy, but then I related what he said to my own life and realized he’s absolutely right.  He’s in college now, and with all the stress he has - tests, labs, and school in general - I have to remind him whenever he seems depressed to stay positive.  We stay positive with what our everyday lives consists of, but we also stay positive with our relationship.

Cody taught me why everyone should stay positive and what positivity can bring you. I think that to live in a world of negativity is not even living, but to live in a world of positivity is to live far beyond anyone could ever imagine.  I strive to help people understand my belief.  I believe in a positive life.

Madeline Pace

 

Mimi's Trash

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
• 1 stick butter
• 1 3/4 tsp seasoning salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp onion powder
• 8 cups CRISPEX
• 1 cup Cheezits
• 1 cup pretzels
• 1 cup nuts

Preparation:

In a very large pan, mix 8 cups of CRISPEX, 1 cup of each: Cheezits, pretzels, and nuts.  In a skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, a stick of butter, 1 3/4 teaspoon of seasoning salt, a teaspoon of garlic powder, and 3/4 teaspoon of onion powder until you get a nice smooth mixture.

When my sister and grandmother, Mimi, would make her famous Trash mix (Chex mix), I would picture myself in her living room watching the Arkansas vs. LSU game, waiting for the Mississippi State and Ole Miss game to come on TV.  My whole family was known for being in the living room yelling about the game.

"What is wrong with LSU today?" says my cousin Zack, an LSU graduate.

"Did you hear ESPN pick which team should end up winning this game?  I don't agree with them." says my mother, who's a fanatic football fan.

Every time I would go in the kitchen to see how everything was going, I could smell the seasoning for the trash, and I'd also steal a couple pieces of cereal without Mimi seeing.

"Mimi!  Madeline stole some cereal!" yelled my older sister, Leslie.

"Oh, Leslie, hush!  Now bring that skillet over here." ordered Mimi.

Take the seasoning mixture and pour it over the cereal mixture.  Stir all the ingredients together and them separate the mixture into flat baking pans.  Bake at 250 degrees for 45 minutes; stirring every 15 minutes.

At this point of the Trash process, Mimi and Leslie were able to come join everybody else in the living room.  By now it was time for the Mississippi State and Ole Miss game, and now the living room would be even louder than before.

"Go,go,go! TOUCHDOWN Bulldawgs!" yelled my Uncle Barry and grandfather, Pa, both MSU graduates.

"How 'bout them Dawgs!" yelled my cousin, Kaitlyn, and Aunt Aimee.

Then, once the oven went off for the Trash, we would all look at Mimi.  Once all the Trash was put into these huge Fall decorated tubs, that Mimi absolutely loved, we all chowed down on it.  Now we were all yelling at the TV still, but this time we had a mouthful of Trash and also a handful of Trash.  Trash never lasted very long in the Staples' household.  We were also known for fighting over who is eating too much of the pretzels or nuts and then end up stealing them out of each other's hand.

"Are you eating all the nuts, Barry?" asked my mom.

"No!  That's Leslie!" exclaimed my Uncle Barry.

Trash is not just a recipe to me now, but it's a memory.  My amazing Mimi may not be here anymore with me, but her Trash recipe is, and also the memories she was able to give to her family.  Trash is one of the many recipes she left for us to conquer, as she did, and for us to remember just how amazing she was.

Disguised Angel

Disguised Angel

            Honestly I have to say that “A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings: A Tale For Children” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez was a very odd story.  It did catch my attention, though, and made me want to keep reading, and that’s what a good story is supposed to do.  This story is about a man who has these huge wings, but no one knows for sure what he actually is.  Furthermore, this man was a mystery.

            Was the very old man an actual angel?  This is one question that popped into my head after I read the story.  When Father Gonzaga came to the chicken coop to finally see the old man, he wasn’t for sure whether the man was an angel.  Since his feathers were not in top condition, Father Gonzaga was unsure.  Then, when he found out the old man did not know Latin, the language of God, he was sure the old man was an imposter.  If the man was not an angel, though, what was he?  Maybe the old man was just an unknown creature who had a very bad past like the woman who was turned into a spider in the story.  In addition, the old man came to the family of Pelayo and Elisenda.

            Was this old man with enormous wings a disguised angel, or a hidden burden?  Pelayo discovered the man toward the rear of the courtyard, and soon they decided to put him in the chicken coop.  Ever since people started to find out about this old man, people rushed in from everywhere.  Pelayo and Elisenda decided to start charging people to see the man with wings five cents.  So many came to see the man that in less than a week they had crammed their rooms with money and people where stilled lined up to see him.  Elisenda hated living with the angel due to his awful smell, and also because the man was a hassle to feed and care for.  I don’t think Pelayo and Elisenda realized how much of a blessing this man was.  Since they had gotten so much money from him being famous, they got their dream house.  All in all, the very old man with enormous wings was a big part of their lives.

            I know that “A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings: A Tale For Children” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez was an odd story, but it was also a very touching story.  The old man came from nowhere when Pelayo and Elisenda’s child was sick and the child got better.  I think the man was more of a disguised blessing rather than a hidden burden.  Therefore, I believe the old man with wings was an angel because of the blessings he gave the family.

Britain Stands Out

Britain Stands Out

            The United States have been battling for years whether or not to allow same sex marriage throughout the country.  Same-sex marriage has grown to be a big issue in the past years, and has also grown to being a huge topic between people.  Britain, however, legalized gay marriage on July 17, 2013.  I believe that same-sex marriage is a choice that people should not judge.  Furthermore, I agree with what Britain.

            The article Britain Legalizes Gay Marriage in Time Magazine talks about how Parliament cleared a bill stating to legalize same-sex marriage in England and Wales.  This bill enables gay couples to get married both in civil and religious ceremonies.  I know that gay couples in Britain are very happy and are also very surprised about what has recently happened due to how people treat gay people.  Gay couples around the world most likely wish for their country to allow what Britain has.  In addition, I am all for gay marriages.

            Whether or not you support gay couples have become a big part of who you are now a days.  People will judge you on just supporting people who are gay.  I believe that people should be able to be happy with whoever they choose to be with.  Britain legalizing gay marriages does not bother me in the least bit, but it may bother plenty other people.  People in the U.S. may fear that now since Britain legalized gay marriage, America will too. 

            The article Britain Legalizes Gay Marriage is about how a country took a huge step against what some people think is right.  People judge you no matter what you do in society lately.  People say being gay is against the Bible, but cutting your hair is also against the Bible.  I agree with what Britain did, and I know that they surprised a lot of people by what they did as well.

My Poems

Reader:
Never on my own, always made.
Writer:
Prompts, quotes, restrictions, aren't my thing.
Myself:
Standing my ground, on everything important.