"The Suitcase Lady" Distractions

The Suitcase Lady talks about "drapes and carpets, castles and kings" to distract herself from her sad life. As the writer says, "with words she spins herself into a cocoon". the suitcase lady would create a false reality that would comfort her and distract herself from the sad and depressing reality.

"Growing up Native" Reflection

After reading Growing Up Native, I realized just how much discrimination and
racism Natives went through. The history of native people is very important and
society should never forget their history and what they had to endure.

The suffering they went through will never be forgotten.

“Suitcase Lady”

The struggles the “suitcase lady” undergoes daily is living on little to nothing.
Another struggle she has is loneliness, she has a son who is 40 but will not
talk to her and they never had a connection.

My reaction if a homeless person were to ask me for money would
most likely be to give some. If I had any spare change on me I would give
it. Or if I have some food I would also try to give that. I wouldn't not know
how to behave because I deal with situations like this quite regularly
whenever I go to downtown Toronto. My parents tell me if i'm going to give
something to homeless people it should just be food. A lot of people say
the same because there is the belief that as soon as you give money to
the homeless they turn the corner and buy drugs, but that isn't always
the case. I do feel comfortable by helping them but I will not lie and say
I feel secure. There is the constant stigma made that homeless people
are erratic and can do very stupid things to people because they have
nothing to lose and I have had a few experiences myself with this so I am
sometimes on edge when I am around homeless people. But I hope I hope
I lose this feeling of insecurity because they are regular people just like me.

Review of Max Beerbohm’s essay “Going Out for a Walk”

Activity Four: The Essay-Assignment One

1. New word from the essay: perambulator

This is the sentence from the essay: “Even while I trotted prattling by my nurse's
side I regretted the good old days when I had, and wasn't, a perambulator”

I predicted that this word means: Useless

This word means: baby transporting

I could use perambulator instead of this synonym pushchair

This is a new sentence using the word: They had a perambulator for their daughter
doll so they could stroll her down the street.

New word from the essay: deterioration

This is the sentence from the essay: “How comes it, this immediate deterioration
in those who go walking for walking's sake?”

I predicted that this word means: worn out

This word means: A process of something becoming progressively worse.

I could use deterioration instead of this synonym decline

This is a new sentence using the word: This leads to deterioration of the vehicles brakes

New word from the essay: convolutions

This is the sentence from the essay: “The brain then wraps itself up in its own
convolutions, and falls into a dreamless slumber”

I predicted that this word means: overthinking

This word means: a coil or twist

I could use convolutions instead of this synonym complication

This is a new sentence using the word: When I look at a complex math questions
my brain convolutions

New word from the essay: inherently

This is the sentence from the essay: “People seem to think there is something
inherently noble and virtuous in the desire to go for a walk”

I predicted that this word means: Very

This word means: permanent or essential

I could use inherently  instead of this synonym constitutionally

This is a new sentence using the word:leaderships are inherently demanding.

2) The distinction Beerbohm makes between going out for a walk and being taken
out for a walk, is that when you are walking yourself, your brain does not function
properly because it is working on making sure your body is functioning. When you
are being walked, as he is in his perambulator, his brain works fine. Another
difference is when you are taken for a walk you don't have a choice.

3)Beerbohm's excuse “I have some letters to write”, doesn't work for three reasons
. One being that it just is easy to tell its a lie, and anyone would be able to tell your
just saying that to get out of walking. Two being that it requires you to actually get
up and walk to your writing-table, and sit their acting as if you are going to write a
letter until the “walkmonger” leaves. Three being that this lie will not work on Sunday
mornings, “There's no post out till this evening”.

4) Max Beerbohm's essay, "Going Out for a Walk," is an informal essay, the thesis
I created is “Walking is a waste of time and serves no purpose”. I chose this as my
thesis for this essay because Max Beerbohm continuously states how pointless
walking is and that it’s a waste of time, that it “stops the brain”.

5) "Going Out for a Walk," is an informal essay. Informal essays are usually written
in the first person, where the writer would use: I, me, my. The writer uses the word
“I” ten times in the first paragraph alone. Another characteristic of an informal
essay is that the writer would write on their frequent everyday events and that
is precisely what the writer is talking about, his hate of walking. Beerbohm supports
his argument with experiences in his own life. Beerbohm explains, "Experience teaches
me that whatever a fellow-guest may have of power to instruct or to amuse when he is
sitting on a chair, or standing on a hearth-rug, quickly leaves him when he takes one
out for a walk." Furthermore, the tone of Beerbohm is perceived as angry and irritable.
He speaks about walking in a personal level. The writer concludes," I never will
go out for a walk."

6) Max Beerbohm’s states: “My objection to it is that it stops the brain”.
I believe he means that when a person goes for a walk, their brain does not
function properly, as the brain is working on keeping the persons body functioning
it doesn't work as well in other areas, like thinking and problem solving.

7) An objection that someone in todays world could use to not be taken for a walk
is a real health issue or anything that actually physically restrains them from walking.
Going for a good walk is a great way to clear and relax anyones mind, so just
because the brain isn't on high alert 24/7, isn't a bad thing at all.

An activity that is popular in today’s world is snowboarding. Two objections/reasons
that people, who do not want to engage in this activity, might give to someone who
is pestering them to be involved. One can be that they have a paranoia of being hurt,
and they would just feel comfortable and safer not participating in a risky sport like that.
Another reason someone could give is that they tried it once and had a traumatizing
experience that left them not able to do it again. I can relate to this because I broke
three bones once when I wiped out snowboarding and personally I don't think I will
ever get back on a snowboard. Maybe a tragic accident happened to Beerbohm,
which left him scarred and traumatized to ever walk again, seeing as he is in a
perambulator.

My own Memoir

My First Catch

In my family I was always the most dedicated fisherman. I spent most of my time at the cottage
casting lines off the boat and dock looking for a catch. Yet despite fishing for hundreds of hours,
I was never able to catch as much as a goldfish. It was extremely embarrassing, seeing
people who never fished before able to catch pikes within minutes of learning how to
use a fishing rod. Many times, I simply wanted to snap my rod in half and give up. People
jokingly told tell me that I had a curse and would never be able to catch a fish in my life, and
that would only make me feel even more hopeless. Eventually I really started to believe that
I did have a curse and would never been able to catch anything.

One Saturday morning, my whole family came up North to our Muskoka cottage for a long
weekend. It was a hot sunny day, with a refreshing cool breeze calling people to the outdoors.
At dusk I convinced my dad to take our family out on a fishing trip to a large open bay. As
I prepared myself for battle, preparing my rod, net and tackle box, I realized just how ridiculous
I looked. Everyone including myself believed I wouldn’t catch a thing, and yet I was the only
person who had so much gear on them. My brother even jokingly compared me to one of his
friends who had the top of the line skateboarding equipment but was barely able to keep his
balance on a board.

As we loaded ourselves onto the boat we set sail for open waters, some points in the ride we
were going slow enough that I was able to toss a line into the water, I knew the odds of
success were practically nonexistent, but I was not planning on giving up after so much effort.
Upon arrival I admired the northern scenery, still water reflecting a beautiful clear blood red sky.
In the silence and tranquility, we started fishing and within minutes my brother was able to reel
in a bass and everyone cheered for him and for his victory. I kept going and lost myself in a
trance until my father came to tell me that we would be leaving in fifteen minutes. Despite
being familiar with failure when it came to fishing, the thought of leaving empty handed again
made me cringe. As I was reeling in my line for the last time I felt a tug, and I prayed to God
that this was my chance. Out of nowhere I felt a huge pull on the line and almost fell overboard.
Suddenly, everyone watching knew that I was having a fight with a very powerful fish. I was
being thrown left and right like a rag doll and although I had a good line and rod I have no
idea how neither snapped from the fish’s strength. The fish was putting up such a fight and
making such waves that my dad jokingly said he “didn't know there were sharks in Ontario”. After
a long tiring fight, I was able to reel the tired fish above the water and get a good view of it. From
first glance I knew what it was right away. A Musky, the Rolls Royce of the lake, everyone the was
shocked and speechless. The weight alone of the beast was unbelievable, I even needed help just
pulling the fish out of the water. The Musky was a beautiful green and grey color, with very scary teeth.

To me this was a priceless lesson in the importance of discipline and the eventual reward found
in not giving up. I could have packed up my fishing rod and given up on the sport at any one of
my many failures, but I did not. Instead, I kept trying even if I looked seemingly hopeless.

Commenting On a Memoir

“A Long Way Gone”, written by Ishmael Beah

1. The title of the memoir and the author’s name.
2. A one paragraph summary of the chapter or memoir you have read.
3. What the memoir reveals about the person who wrote the memoir.
4. Why you feel this event/memory is significant to the author.

1) I read the memoir “A Long Way Gone”, written by Ishmael Beah.

2) This memoir is the recollection of being torn away from his family and becoming a child soldier in the
1990’s civil war in Sierra Leone. I began reading at chapter five, where Ishmael reflected on wandering
through a crime filled country torn from his family. “We were so hungry that it hurt to drink water and we
felt cramps in our guts, our joints began to weaken and ache”, the group of six boys desperately
attacked a 5 year old boy for his corn. Ishmael soon after was overcome with shame for his actions.
Ishmael makes the decision with his friends to return back to Mattru Jong. Upon arrival they're jumped
by an armed rebel who is pointing his gun at them and forces them to go to a group of people. Ishmael
hopelessly watches as the rebels torment an old helpless man by shooting close to his head for fun.
The rebels take Junior, Ishmael's brother as a new recruit, and leave Ishmael alongside the other
people. The rebels tell the new recruits that they will slaughter the leftover people to toughen up the
recruits. Luckily gunshots arose from another area, that distracted the rebels enough for the people
to make a run for their lives. Ishmael gets away and finds his friends and brother. At the end of this
chapter the boys come to agreement that they need to get out of crime filled lands and back to safety.

3) This memoir reveals that the author went through traumatic and sickening events that no one should
ever endure. Endure so much darkness and to still come out in the end, shows pure strength of
character. I think this chapter from the memoir was mainly focused on showing the types of challenges
that the author had to overcome; fear, loneliness, sadness, starvation, and knowing that any second
he could be killed, but still in the end he got through it all and lives to see a brighter day.

4) I feel this memory is very significant to the author because it was filled with moments that aren't easy
to shake off, and stay with a person forever. This was the first time that Ishmael actually stole
from someone, let alone a five year old helpless boy. The feeling of guilt that overcame him will stay
with him forever and serve as a memory of some of the things he had to do to survive. This chapter
also included a moment where Ishmael was tormented by the rebels just before finding out they were
going to slaughter him among others, but luckily he got away. These moments are significant to him
because they highlight his memory of this time in his life.