Blog Post 2/27/12

After watching the first half of Pay It Forward today, I can say that I really liked the concept that was being put into action throughout the movie, it is a very optimistic way to see the world and also an optimistic way to live.  I would like to think that a concept like this could actually work, but I’m afraid to say that I doubt it would work in real life.  One of the character’s talked about that this plan would work if people have faith on other people’s kindness and good hearted soul, and this world has more selfish people than generous people I believe.  There are the people that would follow this idea and actually “pay it forward”, but then there would be people that are selfish or unappreciative that they would not follow the concept; it also does not have to be for a selfish reason  that some people won’t help someone else, maybe it is because they do not have time to think hard about it, or they forget about it, since it is easy to forget.  I do not know if this counts as “paying it forward”, but I helped my boyfriend out with paying for college because if he did not pay they would drop him from his classes and would not be able to attend school that semester.  It felt really good doing something for him that could change his life.  Other than that situation, I do not believe I have done anything to change someone’s life.

Blog Post 2/16/12

I believe that anyone who reads "The Glass Castle", by Jeanette Walls, would come to the conclusion that Jeanette's parents were far from the perfect parents, or even good parents. The article, "What Makes A Good Parent?" lists ten important things that contribute to being a good parent, called "The Parents' Ten".  In my opinion, some of the things that I would think would be at the top of the list, were at the bottom.  However, according to this article, one can say that maybe Jeanette's parents were not so bad after all.

When talking about Rose Mary, I would think that her two strongest points according to the list would be relationship skills, and autonomy and independence.  I would say that Rose Mary taught her children relationship skills when talking about certain times she had with Rex Walls.  Rose Mary stood by Rex' side the whole time and coped with his problems with alcohol.  The biggest thing that Rose Mary taught her children were independence, since all she did was care for herself basically.  She taught them independence by just letting them be on their own and fend for themselves.  Her two weakest points would definitely be safety and love and affection.  I remember a point when Rose Mary did not do anything and did not say anything about a man possibly molesting her daughter.  I really did not see Rose Mary show any love or affection for her children, she just cared about herself and her paintings.

When it comes to Rex Walls, his two strongest points were love and affection and autonomy and independence.  I remember reading times where he would bond with his children, especially Jeanette.  They talked about the Glass Castle and he gave them stars as a gift.  Independence of course, since they left their children to wander on their own and take care of themselves.  His two weakest points are safety and stress management.  I remember when he put the children in the back of a UHAUL truck with no seat belts or protection, they could have died.  The other one would be stress management because he abused alcohol and took it out on his family, like burning the Christmas tree down.

Journal Entry 2/13/12

It is very hard for me to decide whether comfortable living conditions or an enriching intellectual environment is more important, because I believe that both are equally important.  However, if I had to choose one, I would say that comfortable living conditions is more important to a child's development.  If a child is starving or unstable with their living conditions, then they cannot concentrate on "learning".  Schools can provide an enriching intellectual environment if the family household does not, but good living conditions must be present for a child to be mentally healthy.

“When people kill themselves, they think they're ending the pain, but all they're doing is passing it on to those they leave behind.”
― Jeannette Walls

“Things usually work out in the end."
"What if they don't?"
"That just means you haven't come to the end yet.”
― Jeannette Walls, The Glass Castle