I know to wash the white clothes on Monday and put them on the stone heap. I know to wash the color clothes on Tuesday and put them on the clothesline to dry I know to not walk bare-head in the hot sun and to cook pumpkin fritters in very hot sweet oil. I know to soak my little clothes right after I take them off or when buying cotton to make myself a nice blouse to be be sure that it doesn’t have gum in it because that way it won’t hold up well after a wash. I know to soak salt fish overnight before I cook it.

 

I know that this is how you iron father’s khaki shirt so that it doesn’t have a crease and this is how you iron your father’s khaki pants so that they don’t have a crease. I know that this is how you grow okra—far from the house, because okra tree harbors red ants and when you are growing dasheen, I know to make sure it gets plenty of water or else it makes my throat itch when I am eating it. I also know that this is how you sweep a corner and this is how you sweep a whole house.

I know that this is how to make a bread pudding, this is how to make doukona, this is how to make pepper pot and this is how to make a good medicine for a cold.

But being a slut is something that I don’t know. You’ve raised me to respect myself and respect my body. You don’t have to remind me constantly of what I could become. You can trust me. Why?

Because I know.

 

 

With Virginia Woolf being well known as a war novelist, it is only fitting that five major battles occur in the lives of five of the major characters. Other than World War I, Clarissa, Septimus, Peter, Richard and Sally all fight battles and obtain different results by the book’s ending. These battles sometimes intertwine and may factor into the battles of other characters.

 

First we have Clarissa, who is questioning her surroundings and the position she holds as Richard’s wife. She constantly questions her place in society and life’s greater meanings. Ultimately her battle ends in a draw between her external and internal struggle.

Next we have Septimus who after coming back from the battles of World War I is struggling in a battle between what is real and what he perceives as real. His psyche has been greatly affected by “shell shock” and warps his thinking and perception of life. His battle is lost when he commits suicide.

Sally’s battle is between her fight for advancing women’s rights and the patriarchy that dominates England at this time. She is forced to take solace in the small victories in life, due to the dominate force of the male focused world around her.

Paul’s battle is related to time. Past versus present collide and Paul is forced to confront his own feelings about Clarissa and how he fits into her life. He tries to overtake his emotions but in the end loses to them and can only weep.

Finally we have Richard. A man so enthralled in the idea of male dominance and female subservience that he can’t imagine any other scenario. There is a brief spark that leads the reader to believe that maybe Richard can change, but ultimately he never tells Clarissa that he loves her and surrenders to what he knows is right.

Larry woke abruptly to the sound of his phone alarm going off. It reminded him of a documentary he watched on the CIA and how they would wake prisoners every 2 hours with freezing cold water to make sure they didn’t get enough sleep. His routine followed, shower, shave, breakfast and out the door to catch that seemingly always delayed B train at Brighton Beach. On the train Larry noticed the old Russian man who always got on at Sheepshead Bay to sing a short song and ask for tips. He thought of his own dedushka, Russian for grandfather, and how he would handle his older years as he approached them. Larry got off the B train at Broadway/Lafayette and took the 6 train to 23rd street. As the sun hit his eyes and he stared down Lexington Avenue, Larry could only think of the weekend plans that approached beyond the haze of Baruch College.

 

 

As I made my way throughout the 5th floor of the Museum of Modern Art, this piece instantly caught my attention. There were a few people standing around it taking pictures, but for some reason as soon as I made my way to it more and more began to pile up behind me. Maybe it was the group mentality of a crowd, seeing others flock to something so that something automatically becomes interested. The Menaced Assassin by Rene Magritte tells a pretty interesting tale for a photo. A dead, naked woman lies on a bed. A man inspects a phonograph with the corpse just beside him. He seems very nonchalant so he must be trained at killing. Three men look into the room from the outside, while two men prepare to capture the assassin just beyond the room’s walls.

 

A variety of questions entered my mind as my eyes gazed upon the canvas. Were the woman and the assassin lovers, seeing as how she is naked in bed and he has his coat off? Did the three peering men hire the assassin, or simply hear the commotion of the act? How did the two men in bowler hats know that this assassination would be taking place? As the title mentions, does the assassin feel any regret towards his actions here and his career in general? The picture is relatively simple in its makeup, with detailed attention being payed to shadows and the walls and floorboards. The facial characteristics of all seven individuals are also very detailed. The painting tells a story the same way a thrilling detective novel would, but here using just one still image. Magritte’s power to not just enthrall the eyes but the mind as well is a true gift.

1. I.S. 98 Bay Academy

“I accept Reality and dare not question it,

Materialism first and last imbuing” (Song Of Myself, 23)

This point in my life I rarely doubted the things I was taught in school. From subject to subject I believed every line of text I read and every word that came from the mouth of my teachers. I had little need for critical thinking and was an adolescent obsessed with toys, video games and sneakers. The system had me in its vices and it would be a few more years till I broke free.

 

2. Midwood High School

” Therefore, O Sariputra, it is because of his non-attainmentness that a Bodhisattva, through having relied on the

Perfection of Wisdom, dwells without thought-coverings. In the absence of thought-coverings he has not been

made to tremble, he has overcome what can upset, and in the end he attains to Nirvana.” (The Heart Sutra)

At this stage in my life I was finally able to see the world as it really was. My “thought-coverings” were almost entirely removed due to the literature that I read and the topics that I studied and I was able to gather a better understanding of my life and the world around me. My interest in politics, history and culture came about here and allowed me greater insight into humanity.

3. Baruch College

“Walt Whitman, a kosmos, of Manhattan the son,

Turbulent, fleshy, sensual, eating, drinking and breeding,

No sentimentalist, no stander above men and women or apart from them,

No more modest than immodest” (Song Of Myself, 24)

Whitman does a good job of describing my current place in life. I know who I am and what I am and know what I want to study and what I want to delve into in the future. Baruch has allowed me the opportunity to make meaningful connections and study elaborate topics of interest to me. My place in this world for now is concrete and my academic career close to an end. What waits for me on this path is a mystery but one I will happily indulge in, eyes wide open.