The Namesake

Comment on the following quote:  “For being a foreigner, Ashima is beginning to realize, is a sort of lifelong pregnancy—a perpetual wait, a constant burden, a continuous feeling out of sorts” (49).

This metaphore serves as a comparison between foreigners and pregnancy. This metaphore definitely highlights some of the downsides to both of these things and suggests how they are similar. There are constant burdens that are similar between the two from the constant emotional roller coasters. Hormones start fluxuaiting dramatically while pregnant causing drastic mood swings, while foreigners are stressed from the distance of home, they may be frustrated wit cultural and language differences as well. Constant unwanted attention also occurs in both situations. For example, people feel obligated to touch pregnant woman's stomach and ask all sorts of personal questions. Talk about a major invasion of personal space and privacy... Foreigners also are asked multiple questions since people find them interesting. They think that is a valid reason to ask personal questions as well. Physical fatigue from  stress, emotionally as well as physically, is definitely a factor as well in both pregnancy and foreigners. For these reasons, I think that this metaphore is a valid comparison.  

My favorite song

Stop This Train by John Mayer

No I'm not color blind
I know the world is black and white
Try to keep an open mind but...
I just can't sleep on this tonight
Stop this train I want to get off and go home again
I can't take the speed it's moving in
I know I can't
But honestly won't someone stop this train

Don't know how else to say it, don't want to see my parents go
One generation's length away
From fighting life out on my own

Stop this train
I want to get off and go home again
I can't take the speed it's moving in
I know I can't but honestly won't someone stop this train

So scared of getting older
I'm only good at being young
So I play the numbers game to find away to say that life has just begun
Had a talk with my old man
Said help me understand
He said turn 68, you'll renegotiate
Don't stop this train
Don't for a minute change the place you're in
Don't think I couldn't ever understand
I tried my hand
John, honestly we'll never stop this train

See once in a while when it's good
It'll feel like it should
And they're all still around
And you're still safe and sound
And you don't miss a thing
'til you cry when you're driving away in the dark.

Singing stop this train I want to get off and go home again
I can't take this speed it's moving in
I know I can't
Cause now I see I'll never stop this train

The Rhythm of "Stop This Train" is really mellow, like most of John Mayer's songs. His gentle mainstream guitar playing always adds to the overall tone of his songs because majority of them seem to be mixed with some of the blues. This song is about embracing the life you live by loving every moment.The way John Mayer plays starts out really relaxing and gentle, then once he realizes in the song that he "doesn't want to start the train" the song gets alittle more upbeat showing his excitment for life. This song is one of my favorites simply because of the rhythm. If I've had a stressful day this song never fails to relax me and is able to put me in a more positive mood. Pretty much all of John Mayer's songs are able to do this because of the fact that he follows more of an acoustic, mellow tone throughout majority of his songs. It's also the best bedtime music! So relaxing! He plays the kind of music that you'd listen to while you cuddle up next to the fire on a rainy day.

Embrace by Billy Collins

You know the parlor trick.

Wrap your arms around your own body

and from the back it looks like

someone is embracing you,

her hands grasping your shirt,

her fingernails teasing your neck.

From the front it is another story.

You never looked so alone,

your crossed elbows and a screwy grin.

You could be waiting for a tailor

to fit you for a straightjacket,

one that would hold you really tight.

The imagery through the denotations in this poem is what helps the reader to fully understand it's connotative meaning. The words "embracing" and "grasping" prove their lust for connection with another individual. This contrasts with the word "alone" used in the second stanza which proves their lonliness. "Screwy grin" and "straightjacket" are the words which automatically rise some sort of suspision. The fact that these words are used only two lines away from eachother is significant because it shows the individual's possibly insanity.

When I first read the poem, It didn't occur to me right away that the individual is crazy. I just thought they might be lonely and crave attention. But after taking a closer look, I noticed things I didn't before. The word "parlor"  is significant because it is a room in a monastery or the like where the inhabitants may converse with visitors or with each other. This shows a sense of isolation since visitors are required. Then when analyzing the poem further I realized the second line essentially describes what needs to be done while in a straight jacket- "wrap your arms around your own body". In all, the individual can be in some sort of mental instability which is one of the only reasons why people are put in straight jackets. The individual thus is craving the loving care and affection of another because they feel isolated and alone.

Fluffy Black Curly Hair

Fluffy black curly hair

With brown eyes filled with joy

Sun bathes without a care

And always with a toy

Loving, cute, and cuddily

And always sits for her treats

She'll always be my buddy

And always be by my seat

Her ears twitch back with excitment

When she hears someone at the door

Always barking with incitement

Although I couldn't ask for more

Pepper is the perfect dog you see

Pepper will always be there for me

Sending a Poem

Trying to find a poem to send to my aunt was more difficult that I thought. While reading the different poems, it was hard to find just the right words to express how I felt. It reminded me alot of searching for a card for a special occasion. Whether it be a birthday, Christmas, or Valentines Day, searching for a card can be just as difficult because sometimes certain poems don't express the same words as to how one feels towards a person.
I sent alittle note along with the email telling her why I chose that certain poem and she really enjoyed it. She said she teared up alittle while reading it because the words "touched her heart" as she said.