hec t'ipyesi

This, in the Spokane Salish language, translates to "it is raining."

On the Spokane reservation it is raining. It is raining anger, depression, poverty, alcohol, and crime. Many people see this and know the sadness to this truth. But Arnold seems to be the only one that has the guts to do something about it. It hits him in the face and so he turned around and made a change. It wasn't easy, but when has anything for Native Americans been easy? The Spokanes have split up before, but when Arnold makes the split for the better they criticize him and treat him with hate. I think that they should look at the actions of their elders and take some advice from them. Because it seems as though they are letting their culture slip away as well as their language. I think this is really sad and if I were Spokane, I would fight to keep my Native American culture alive.

My tribe

Ever since my mother called me "Mary Legs" I have made it my life goal to become a Native American. I really thought I would be an Indian. I began my collection of Indian dolls, I traveled to South Dakota, and I even made friends with a Native American girl and went to a powwow. I thought I was legit. But then I hit the double digits and realized I was not Native American, but just plain American. So while I still have my Indian doll collection, I gave up my goal to become Native American. But here is a list of some tribes I belong to:

the tribe of believers
the tribe of photographers
the tribe of excess shoppers
the tribe of book readers
the tribe of coffee drinkers
the tribe of frugalists
the tribe of unskilled drivers
the tribe of travelers

All of this is me, but in another lifetime it probably would've included the tribe of Native Americans.

Phonies

"I'm only bulimic when I throw up."
"I'm only an alcoholic when I get drunk."

How often do we use this sort of cop out to rationalize in our lives? It's as if downplaying our problems will minimize them completely. When Penelope says "I'm only bulimic when I throw up" implies that she cannot be categorized as bulimic at any other time. "I'm only an alcoholic when I get drunk."Try saying that when the definition of alcoholism is: a chronic disorder characterized by dependence on alcohol, repeated excessive use of alcoholic beverages, the development of withdrawal symptoms on reducing or ceasing intake. I've never really realized how often people do this in their lives until now. A woman in a book I'm reading right now, Eat Pray Love, seems to do this as well. She doesn't necessarily name herself as a Christian, but as religious, spiritual, believing. But as I read more and more about this woman and the decisions she makes in her daily life, it seems to me that she is not a practicing believer. Although she does speak of her prayer often. When I think about it, this would be her statement: "I'm only a christian/believer/spiritual person when I pray."
This is not so much a criticism as a realization. Because, really, who am I? I'm a human and as humans, we do not live our word. And when I think about the past generations of Native Americans, I believe they are much opposite of this. They lived everyday fully to what they believed and spoke little of it. They were honest human beings that did not boast about who they were. I admire this.

Change for the Better

It seems to me that Gordy and Rowdy are very alike. Arnold has noticed this and I think it is helping him move on from his friendship with Rowdy. Rowdy and Arnold have been in eachother's lives for as long as they can remember and have been best friends. But change is inevitable and Arnold is accepting this. He knew he had to make a change for himself when his school put him in a rut and he did what was necessary. Although it is hard to move on from his life-long friendship, I think there are good things for him ahead. I think that sometimes loss is necessary to gain something else.

Give/Take

Every character in this book seems to have an important part and a big personality. No one is really pushed to the side or is dull in some way. One character that stood out to me was Roger. He is introduced as the big macho bully at Reardan. The first scene with him involves him, a racist joke, Arnold punching him, and Roger acting surprisingly scared. But then later on, as Grandmother Spirit's theory becomes more clear, Roger becomes softer and he actually is really nice to Arnold. He is encouraging Arnold's relationship with Penelope and he doesn't rub it in his face that he is poor. He helps him out and seems likes a really good friend. But why does this 180 happen in Roger and why does Arnold accept it so easily after that horrible joke? Is it because they are guys and there is just a secret code or friendship if one punches the other? This doesn't seem very realistic, but maybe it is in some ways. I think that until one person has proven him/herself to another person, they aren't as easily accepted. Arnold proved to Roger that he is tough and isn't the wimp that he first judged him to be. I don't think this completely ties with judgment, but it is just a trust thing. In order to get it, you have to give it right?

"If you let people into your life a little bit, they can be pretty damn amazing."

Or maybe you have to let your guard down in order to gain trust. Just like how Arnold finally told his friends that he was poor and let down the most shameful barrier in his life and his friends really stepped up.

Oh so Lost

Out of all the shows I've ever watched, never have I ever been so obsessed. Or confused for that matter. I started watching the first season in December and I have already watched all of the other seasons of Lost and now I am starting the last season. No television show has taken up this much of my time, besides I love Lucy, and I'm a little embarrassed. But it is just plain addicting.
I started the last season this week (my possibly over-obsessed friend decorated the house with Dharma signs, a tree for a jungle effect, the 10800 signs and even made a Dharma cake...he has way too much time on his hands obviously) and I am left with far more questions than answers. Of course they had to replay the scene with Sawyer and Juliette over and over and over to make me cry far more than I have in the past month. And I am not doing so well with waiting a whole week to watch the next episode. I would list some of my confusions but I just don't know where to start. But I am looking forward to another season full of laughter from Hugo :)

The first photo is of Juliette and Sawyer when they are in love, and the second is of them when Juliette is dying.

Mister Rogers

The World According to Mister Rogers sounds like a lot better one than this one. When reading this, it may seem like you are listening to a guy who is talking about a perfect world. But after having his words really sink in, its not like that at all. He is talking about a world full of nastiness and pain, but through his stories, songs, and anecdotes we are able to better understand how to engage this world. I never watched Mister Roger's show when I was a kid, but I don't think I would've taken his messages to heart as much as I do now. As much as he seems like a big cheese ball, his words take meaning in all of our lives.