Caddy Poem

I love my Benjy.

He is so sweet.

Though a little slow.

He loves my existence.

He wants to speak.

I am a woman ready for life.

When I was young in my early early life.

He was there that Benjy.

I was a loud mouth always desired to speak.

My feet were not even cold, the snow was sweet.

My brother Quentin is obsessed with the existence,

My existence, the wind carriage ride was slow.

Life goes by slow,

Mother was never in my life,

She never acknowledged my existence.

Never liked I could tell Benjy,

Not very really sweet,

To her I didn’t want to speak.

Do not speak.

Your mother will come in here not slow,

Dilsey said, at the party, she was sometimes sweet.

The caring mother in my life,

Took care of Benjy,

She cared about my existence.

Father was never really in my existence,

Rarely did he speak,

To me so, Nor to Benjy,

Not really slow,

Not a big part of my life,

Not really sweet.

I think I am sweet,

I like my existence,

Though I ran away from life,

To my family I know longer speak,

I did not run slow,

I miss my Benjy….

The sweet air makes me want to speak,

Go back to my existence, run fast not slow,

I am ready for life, Hello Benjy!

 

Sources

Brave New World

3 Anthropological Sources in journal

Websites

Scientific

1. http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2010/02/13/anti-aging-talk-getting-old-or-just-getting-started/
2. http://www.joe.org/joe/2001december/iw2.php
3. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-serious-search-for-an-2002-08

Psychological

1. http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/anti-aging/
2. http://agingus.com/aging-in-a-youth-focused-society/
3. http://www.transgenerational.org/aging/perceptions.htm

Historical

1. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5868712/ns/health-aging/t/ageism-america/
2. http://gerontologist.oxfordjournals.org/content/11/3_Part_1/181.abstract
3. http://womensenews.org/story/aging/060531/alarmist-demography-stalks-women-over-60

Quotes

p. 110 Ch. 7

“'What's the matter with him?' whispered Lenina. Her eyes were wide with horror and amazement.
'He's old, that's all,' Bernard answered as carelessly as he could...
'Old?' she repeated. But the Director's old; lots of people are old; they're not like that. 'That's because we don't allow them to be like that.'”

p. 110 Ch. 7

“But Lenina was not listening. She was watching the old man...
'But it's terrible,' Lenina whispered. 'It's awful. We ought not to have come here.'”



p.118 and 119 Ch. 7

“Lenina noticed with disgust that two of the front teeth were missing. And the colour of the ones that remained ... She shuddered. It was worse than the old man. So fat. And all the lines in her face, the flabbiness, the wrinkles. And the sagging cheeks, with those purplish blotches. And the red veins on her nose, the bloodshot eyes. And that neck--that neck; and the blanket she wore over her head--ragged and filthy. And under the brown sack-shaped tunic those enormous breasts, the bulge of the stomach, the hips. Oh, much worse than the old man, much worse!”

p. 138 Ch. 8

“Bernard looked, and then quickly, with a little shudder, averted his eyes. His conditioning had made him not so much pitiful as profoundly squeamish. The mere suggestion of illness or wounds was to him not only horrifying, but even repulsive and rather disgusting. Like dirt, or deformity, or old age. Hastily he changed the subject.”

p. 153 Ch. 11

“Finally--and this was by far the strongest reason for people's not wanting to see poor Linda--there was her appearance. Fat; having lost her youth; with bad teeth, and a blotched complexion, and that figure (Ford!)--you simply couldn't look at her without feeling sick, yes, positively sick. So the best people were quite determined not to see Linda.”

Perserverance is Key

        Growing up as the oldest child of the Vellela family, I have faced many obstacles in my life that have helped me grow into the person that I am today. As a youth, I considered myself very blessed, living in a cozy single family home in Clarks Green, Pennsylvania. I enjoyed my life very much and when my father informed our family about the upcoming plans of moving to Florida, my little seven year-old heart skipped a beat and was filled with excitement with thoughts of our new life in the renowned sunshine state. Grinning ear to ear, we drove over thirteen hundred miles to our new rental home located in Bonita Springs, Florida and unpacked the few things we were able to pack in the small trailer we pulled behind our Mitsubishi Montero. A few years passed in our new Florida environment, and we had already moved to two different houses due to my father constantly switching jobs. Always moving, it was hard to make friends with the people in the neighbourhood. But in 2004, we finally built the house of our dreams. We had the life, met new neighbours, and finally felt like we belonged. Then suddenly our whole world flipped upside down as the economy crashed in the 2008. With my Dad being involved in mortgage banking and the housing market crash, it was unfortunately the perfect storm to throw our lives into a whirlwind financially. Living pay-check to pay-check, we were slowly losing our home, constantly receiving eviction notices on our doorstep informing us we had twenty four hours to leave the premises coupled with the constant bill collectors calling our phone and knocking at our door. We had lost a lot of money on our house, and were facing foreclosure. Some nights we barely had enough money for food. We knew it was time for my mother to go back to work. With my mother now working, I knew I had to try my best to help out more around the house. Being the oldest child, my siblings looked up to me and I knew I needed to set the right example for them. I transformed from a dependent little girl to a responsible young adult. I began babysitting and learned how to cook meals at a very young age. My siblings were young at the time; they were confused and scared. I always reassured them that everything would be alright, and that they need not worry. Everyday, I assisted my siblings with their school work, and after we would do fun things like go fishing or play a game. Anything that would take their minds away from the drastic changes that were now occurring in their young lives. I tried to make their childhood as stress free as possible, even if it meant to add a little stress onto my plate. Through it all, though it was a very hard time, I always had a smile on my face and shared a laugh with anyone I could; this allowed few to know about how difficult our financial hardship really was. No matter how hard it was at home, I continued working very hard at school and earned excellent grades! Soon thereafter, we moved yet again, and a month in to the new house, sadly our second car was repossessed, followed by another eviction notice at our door step. We were legally homeless for three weeks, and had no place to go. Without any options, we quickly packed up our things and headed back up North to Pennsylvania in the middle of that night. Although it was indeed no summer getaway, my family and I still enjoyed our time together. We certainly began to appreciate things much more. Stopping to actually smell the roses and enjoy the beautiful breeze with open windows in the car. While we were driving I had a great idea, I started sing-along songs and encouraged my sister to get involved, and even thumb wrestled with my little brother at his insistent requests. My grandparents like to call me a fighter for always pushing through and never losing hope that soon we would be back on our feet. Luckily, my father found a small rental home in our budget in Cape Coral. Though it is a little cramped, we are slowly getting back on our feet and improving financially.

           One should not worry about the past and keep moving forward. The past is gone and the present is the gift we are given today. I am more appreciative and thank God for everything I have. I realize I am blessed to be alive and healthy! Perseverance is key. The events that happened in my past made me stronger as a person; I am a strong responsible young woman, always moving forward and am prepared for any obstacles that come my way! I know now that no matter what happens in life, there is always happiness in the future, and that I can overcome anything I set my mind to overcoming! Walt Disney once said, “It's a great big beautiful tomorrow!” and that is something that I never forget. For even the great Walt Disney found himself in financial ruin on several occasions, going bankrupt seven times before actually getting it right. My experiences have allowed me to relate to all types of people, to never judge anyone without walking a mile in their shoes. This is a great big beautiful world we all live in, and it is through empathy, understanding and most certainly never forgetting where we come from and where we strive to go.