Personal Philosophy

Jackie Fulgar

American Literature H, Block 2

Mrs. Fujii

8 April 2014

Personal Philosophy 

"If the only prayer ever say is "Thank You,' that will have been enough." As Meister Eckhart said. Everyone

goes through every day life and not recognizing what they have until it is gone. I know it may sound cliche,

but nothing in this world can make a person happier than saying,"Thank you." When you go through a first

break up or when nothing is going right, we all go to someone to share or pour out our feelings. Whether it

may be to our best friends,parents or any family member. People in our lives may not do much to solve our

problem,s but right then and there, they will always be there to listen. But most of the time when we keep

moving forward in life we hardly ever look and think about the people who mean the world to us. I believe

that it is important to step on the breaks on our lives and just take the moment you have and say, "Thank

you."  

Before my parents got divorced, I would hardly thank them for everything that they have done for me and all

of the good times we had as a family. Since I am the only child, I always thought of getting everything that I

have ever dreamed of and nothing could go wrong. So I guess, I did not feel the need to say,"Thank you" to

my parents. But as they were deciding, this and that about me or the house, things started to come to me. I

looked back a few years before I turned 16 and every moment was amazing with my parents. Every Sunday

morning I got to see my dad and mom make me breakfast together while they would blast there 70's-80's

music. Every holiday we would go to the beach, just the three of us and we would have endless

laughter's.But now that they are divorced I regret not saying, "Thank you." So I attempted to a few weeks

after with my mom. I knew it was the right thing to say but somehow I could not say it. I guess I was scared

because I would not know what her reaction would be. Something was just holding me back. All of the

years that I have not been grateful has set me up in the future to make it even harder for me to say two

words that would make them the happiest parents on earth. 

I have thought about the two words and how much it would mean to them if I said it. So I got the courage

from my very best friend and person that I am grateful to have in my life, Derick. He explained to me how

much it would mean to my parents if I said the two words. So I came home from school and I walked into

my moms room and said, "Thank you mom,for everything." I did not know that I could say more than those

two words. But I did. From then on I became grateful then ever towards my parents, it made them happy

and it made me happy. There are 24 hours, 1,440 minutes and 86,000 seconds in a day. We can all spare at

least a few minutes in day to say,"Thank you" and become grateful for what you have right in front of you. 

*Ch 16-19 Letter H

"A certain physical pattern is needed for the building of a world-water, a river bank,a stream,or even a faucet unguarded. And there is needed enough flat land to pitch the tents, a little brush or wood to build the fires. If there is a garbage dump not too far off, all the better;for there can be found equipment" (195)

This quote is saying that a certain cycle needs to move around everywhere, a continuous one because if the cycle stops none of the migrants could live or start a new life. The water needs to circle around for everyone to use and there should be flat ground for everyone especially the migrants to start a new family. Although the items are not much it is enough for the migrants too get by. The migrants would have a dumpster so that they would not have to throw away their garbage in the rivers so that their drinking water would not be contaminated.

"And as the families moved westward, the technique of building a home in the evening and tearing it down with the morning light became fixed; so that the folded tent was packed in one place..." (195).

As families continued to move westward they had to camp overnight. So they had to build a tent that could easily be put away or when it was time for them to sleep. Their cycle of camping and putting away the tents and setting it up again represents that when they were back in the south they were farmers but it no longer exists because they are now called, "migrants." Who constantly repeats their daily routines as they continue too travel to California.

*Ch 16-19 Letter A

Rules of Camping Grounds...

1)Privacy in the tents

2)Keep the past black hidden in the heart

3)Have the right to talk and to listen

4)The right to refuse help or to accept

5)To offer help or decline it

6)The right of son or daughter to be courted

7)The right of the hungry to be fed

8)It is unlawful in any way to foul the drinking water

9)It is unlawful to eat good rich food near one who is hungry

10)It is unlawful to foul near the camp 

11)The rights of the pregnant and the sick to transcend all other rights

The right of the hungry to be fed is important because migrant families has a purpose to travel to California and while they travel they do not have much to spend for food for their families. So for each stop that each family makes, they have the right to be fed by their other travelers who are going to California because they are all traveling to California for one purpose, so that they could make a better living. If they looked out for one another and helped each other, they would travel faster. 

The unlawful rule of foul drinking water is important because travelers should not waste the water because they do not know what lies ahead of them in California. This might be a foreshadow of when they get to California they might be in desperate need of water. But back when they had water they were wasting it so they would regret wasting the water that they had. 

Ch 11-15 Letter G

"It ain't big enough. There ain't room enough for you an' me, for your kind an' my kind, for rich and poor together all in one country, for thieves and honest men. For hunger and fat. Whyn't you go back where you come from?" (120)

This quote would represent selflessness because the man who is selling the Joad family a tire says that there are two different kinds of class when you go into California. He is implying that California is not a place for the wealthy and the poor. He's saying that even if people go to California, if you are in a different place with the wealthy you would not fit in and people like him, that have a business can only care for himself and not others.

"Take it or leave it.. I can't help what happens to you. I got to think what happens to me." (120)

When the Joad's family stops to talk to the man selling tires he does not want to cooperate prices with the family. He would only think of how much money would he loose if they give him a less amount for the tire.  He would rather help himself then a family that needs a tire to get too California and he would not care what would happen to them because he has himself to think about, no one else.

Ch 11-15 Letter B

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_US_66.svg

Highway 66 was important for the Joad family and for all migrants because this highway was used to get too California. The route was also called, "Will Rogers Highway." The Joad family uses the route to get too California. Since, California was the land of opportunities where people thought that the place was a dream come true people thought that the way was the gate to California.

Letter G Ch 1-10

In chapter 3 the book talks about a women and a man who both has solution on dealing with the turtle on the road.

"A sedan driver by a forty-tear-old women approached. She saw the turtle and sung to the right, off the highway, the wheels screamed and a cloud of dust boiled away" (15).

The women avoids to hit the turtle because back then women were not careless about anything. They cared more rather than men did. During the dust bowl, women wanted to avoid bulldozing the land because by destroying the land, it causes the dust bowl.

"And now a light truck approached, and as it came near, the driver saw the turtle and swerved to hit it. His front wheel struck the edge of the shell, flipped the turtle like a tidly-wink, spun it like a coin, and rolled it off the highway" (15).

Now a man who is driving up intended to the turtle because he was careless of what would happen to the turtle. Men were careless of what happened to the land because they were driven by banks and money that they had no choice but to destroy the land. The cause of them destroying the land, is that they become careless and heartless for what they do to the land.

*Letter F Ch 1-10

Faith.

Cassy talks to Joad about their past together at church, "Oh, no, you wouldn't remember. You was always too busy pullin girls' pigatail out by the roots. The two of you come to Jesus at once' cause of that pigtail yankin" (20).

This quote develops in the book because this is an idea of whether people are connected with the holy spirit or with their community as in the "human spirit." Cassy is starting to believe that people are more human spiritual than holy spiritual because they could actually see one another rather then having a invisible figure to look up too. When Joad went to church he would just be busy pulling the pigtails of the girls. Throughout the book people intend to ask for help from each other because they could physically help each other. Whereas to asking help from god it would not work out because they needed immediate help.

Cassy expressed, "Then I'd feel bad, an' I'd pray an' pray, but it didn't do no good. Come the nex'time, them an' me was full of the sperit, I'd do it again" (22).

Cassy has sinned when he said this to Joad and he kept pleading and asking for forgiveness towards god to help him or forgive him. This tell about a lot of people in the book because when they have nowhere else to run too they would run to god for help. They are putting it in a way that god is the second option for them and not a first option.