Recitatif

  I really enjoyed this story (Recitatif) and it's rugged way of conveying a racial, betrayful, friendship that is so very well ellaborated on.  The one girl's mother is obviously a stipper or something of that nature (in my eyes) due to how she is always said to be "dancing".  And on the other hand, you have a girl who's mother is ill and can't take care of her daughter.  They both (the two little girls) meet in this orphanage (one white, one black) and become great pals.  They eventually get out of the orphanage and have lives of their own and meet back up with another by chance on several occasions, and each occasion is highly contrasted from one another.  That side of things conveys that people change, maybe for the better or maybe for the worst.  The two girls, as women, went through different scenarios of life and had bitter actions and attitudes toward one another.

  But, in the end they ultimately got back to relating about their time in the orphanage together and talked on one another's mother's and realized that their mom's never got well; one being terminally ill and one that just enjoyed "dancing". They both resented their mother's and it came clear that they did when it was evident that the woman, in the story who made the meals, was sought upon by the girls as having the qualities that they hated about their mother's who abandoned them, more or less.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8Zgu2hrs2k

"Sonny's Blues" analysis

       After reading the short story, Sonny's Blues, I instantly felt this familiar and ghostly feeling come about me.  Well, maybe "ghostly" isn't the best describing word for the ordeal, but it was a great read nevertheless.  It reminded me of myself, given I'm not an ex heroin addict. But, it was just oddly reading about myself in some ways.  For example, Sonny's "dreaming" nature and longing for a life worth living seemed like reading old forms of dialogue I've had with family and friends over the years and still today.  I've always been very skeptical about "furthering my education" at a collegiate level.  I've received about the same response to my outlandish view on pursuing the life that I (me) truly long for; "Don't be silly, you need to go through school."  "Honey, you'll be better for in the long run." "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."  The list goes on.  Although I respect and listen to all these recommendations from friends and family, I still (to this day) feel as though I'm in this rut that I could easily get out of if I would just listen to my own heart.

    In high school I played in a band with some great friends.  It was the greatest thing ever.  I truly loved and adored making music with my best friends.  We were good! I wanted to pursue this and live the life I truly desired; making music across the world with my friends, and not trying to just merely go through the motions of life that I see the majority of my peers going through; college, work, undesired ways to spend days, etc.  Why did I have to take this route? Why did I have to settle?  Why couldn't I follow my heart and that be okay in other's eyes?  Long story short, graduation and going off to college came soon and our band was pretty well finished.  And, it's taken me so, so long to really just come to terms that my friends and I had to just let go of  that part of our lives.  The summer following graduation, we played music so much and all tried to hold onto that feeling before our drummer and dear friends left off school in Raleigh and left my friend, Landon, and I here to just kinda fiddle with our dicks and wonder what could have been.  And trust me, throughout that autumn season, we worked to get shows for when Jake and Amit were in town and we were successful on a couple occasions.  We played the Tremont Music Hall in Charlotte a couple times and I had the time of my life.  Seeing faces in the crowd that were intrigued and moved by all these songs my friends and I had written using our hearts, souls, and minds.  It was truly beautiful.  If that doesn't feel a million times better than receiving a green piece of paper with an old white guy on it, then I outta be put down right now.  I then enrolled in to community college to do who the hell know's what? (laughter)  Having my close friends there with me was cool, though.  God, we had a ton of fun.  (Laughter) That's a whole other story.  I won't get into that.

Plain and simple, the story just spoke to me and revealed that there are some sane people in the world like Sonny.  Sometimes the best people with the most potential are held back by the norms of the modern world and that's truly sad.  It happens too often, in my opinion.  I suppose I'm biased, but what can I say?  It just seems like robbery to me that these beautiful souls that desire to live out their days in peace and harmony that they desire, are stripped of their lust and love for happiness and pushed into this mold that the western world (too often) is so concerned with (laughter).  I don't know, man.  I'm really glad we read this story. Sorry I got a little out of hand with the writing, I'm just passionate about this topic. Without a doubt, it meant a lot to me to read this story.