I LOVE BOOKS!

This is what has been on my mind lately...

This school year, I decided to pair the novels The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo and Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Both novels are about taking a journey.

However, The Alchemist is an allegory, where everything in the story could represent something else. For instance, there is a scene where the main character, Santiago, has to go through a desert, and this could represent the obstacles that a person may face as he takes his life journey to find his 'hidden treasure'. And, the hidden treasure could represent a person's gifts or talents. (You with me?)

In The Life of Pi, the main character is forced on a small boat with a tiger, and he decided to literally take a journey. I am saying that he decided to take the journey, because he could have done something like commit suicide, but instead he took the journey. 

So, I see The Alchemist as an example of a metaphorical journey and Life of Pi as an example of a literal journey. Life of Pi is The Alchemist actualized; The Alchemist is the theory, and Life of Pi is the theory applied. (Are you still with me?)

Santiago in The Alchemist and Pi from The Life of Pi both had preparation before they took their journeys. Santiago was a sheep herder before his journey, and he learned a lot from that experience that he took with him on his journey. Pi's family owned a zoo, and he practiced three different religions, and all of this helped him on his journey.

My people, I truly believe that we are always being prepared for next. So, I try to do everything to the top of my potential so that when next come, I am prepared. I teach my very best. I cycle my very best. I blog my very best. However, I am learning that even with doing my very best, I fall short, and I just keep on doing my very best.

Santiago and Pi both had guides along the way. Santiago's guides were mostly people and listening to that inner voice, and Pi's guides were in the form of people, reading, and listening to his inner voice as well.

Now, I know that I have and have had many guides on this journey. There have been people who have come into my life and basically helped me to put some of those missing pieces together. I am sure that I have helped others along the way as well. People need other people.

Both Santiago and Pi anticipated giving up, but something kept them moving forward. After one of his many obstacles, Santiago decided that he was going back home to what he was familiar with, but something nudged him to continue to follow his passion. When Pi finally came to the realization that his entire family was gone, and he was alone: "I lay on the taurpin and spent the whole night weeping and grieving, my face buried in my arm." But, just like Santiago, Pi makes the decision to carry on.

Sometimes, but not often, I think that I should stop blogging or stop cycling or stop teaching, but something always nudges me along. Not sure about you, but sometimes I need those nudges that say I am enough so that I keep on keeping on.

Both characters seemed to put the end result in the back of their minds and continued to move forward and were given enough grace to make it through each day.

Santiago no longer worried about what he left behind, and he kept moving forward. I believe that he soon began to believe that everything would turn out just like it was suppose to. He was told to not focus on where his treasure was, but to keep moving forward, because he would know, in his heart, when he had reached it.

Pi, finally stopped focusing on being rescued. Instead, he remained busy keeping himself and the tiger alive. His circumstances forced him to be in the moment and to not worry about the future. I believe that being busy and not focusing on when he would be rescued, helped Pi to survive 227 days on that boat with a tiger. Since he didn't know when his journey would end, there was no reason for him to focus on the end.

I am practicing doing the same thing; not worrying about the end result, but focusing on staying busy, with a purpose, believing that everything that I am believing for will manifest. This week when I went to exercise, I decided to go hard until each exercise was finished instead of focusing on when the exercise would end. I decided to practice this on a small scale and eventually apply this to my life. My people, I had a whole different workout experience that was quite rewarding. A Dream Comes Through Much Activity not focusing on the end.

Well, no one came to rescue either character, and they both ended up right where they were suppose to. Let me repeat that, no one came to rescue either character, and they both ended up right where they were suppose to.

My people, Superman is not coming. So, we might as stop waiting for him and continue to move forward knowing that we will end up right where we are suppose to.

There is so much to be learned from literature, and that is one of the main reason why I read novels.

I LOVE BOOKS!

Thanks for taking this rather lengthy journey with me!!!

Happy Last Day of Black History Month.....

Some Kind of Way.....

For about a week, I have been feeling some kind of way.....

I can't put it into words, but it is a feeling where I can not focus on one thing for long, and I have found it very difficult to settle down enough to write. This is so unlike me, because I love to write!

One of my friends got a not so good diagnosis from her doctor, and that left me feeling some kind of way. I started to feel a little guilty for being healthy and happy when a really wonderful person is going through something that is quite life altering. I've had to remind myself that "There is nothing to hard for God."

A few other things that are not so good have transpired with other people whom I care deeply about, and this has left me feeling some kind of way..... BUT GOD!!!

Life is good, but it is unpredictable for sure; which makes it extremely exciting and scary at the same time.

Speaking of unpredictable, last week my seniors took their AP English exam, and one of the questions on the exam asked them to write about a story that is an example of a Bildungsroman. "A Bildungsroman is a novel that tells of a spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development of the protagonist either from childhood to maturity or as the result of an extraordinary experience."

Well, we spent quite a bit of time talking about Bildungsroman when we read the novel Life of Pi, because Life of Pi is an example of a Bildungsorman. So, Bildungsroman being on the AP exam helped to lift my spirits, and I hope that the students took advantage of this question that they should have been able to write pages and pages about. What a pleasant surprise!

Saturday and Sunday, I saw the documentary on Venus and Serena, tennis' greatest, and it was awesome. (Yep, I saw it Saturday and Sunday!) Those ladies are committed, and they work their a#@ off. Workout, play tennis, workout, play tennis, and get stronger and stronger and stronger, and WIN, WIN, WIN.... I will never ever complain about one hour of working out EVER again, not that I complain anyway. But, this documentary is confirmation to not complain about one tough hour of working out when according to Venus and Serena's training, I can really do a WHOLE lot more.

Also, the documentary showed how much those sisters love each other.... It was stated that they need each other in order for them to be individually great. (People need other people!)

Mom

Being that Sunday was Mother's Day, I thought about my mother and all of the sacrifices that she made to make sure that my sisters and I had the kind of life that many people only dream about. Saturday at church, my preacher talked about the sacrifices of mothers: not being able to hang out with friends as much, not buying herself a pair of shoes to make sure that her children have shoes, giving up some of her wants to make sure that her children have ALL that they need......And, I thought about the sacrifices that it takes to raise nine children! (WORK, WORK, WORK!!!) I really hope that the sacrifice was worth it for her. I know that I deeply appreciate the sacrifice, and I will move mountains for my momma.

I have a few friends who lost their mothers' recently, and I thought about them a lot and reached out to reassure them that "Everything is going to be alright."

I am not necessary unhappy, because I am soooo thankful for the life that I live, but I am in a space that it is difficult to describe.......

Today, I am still feeling some kind of way, but I guess this is my season of some kind of way!

This too shall pass!!

Thanks for allowing me to share this; I sure do appreciate it.

Happy Monday, My People!!!

A Student's Response to Life of Pi!!!

I was extremely excited to start the discussion on Life of Pi with my students, but they did not seem to share my enthusiasm. I began to question if they had gotten anything from this novel.

So, I gave the students some quotes from the novel that I thought were thought provoking, and I asked them to write their thoughts about one of the quotes. I was nervous about this assignment, but I really needed to know if I should continue to teach this novel.

Here is an example of the kind of responses that I received:

"If Christ Played With Doubt, so must we. If Christ spent an anguished night in prayer, if He burst out from the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" then we are also permitted doubt. But we must move on. To chose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a mean of transportation."  (From Life of Pi.)

"This quote provoked a lot of different thoughts when I read it and other thoughts, Pi had on religion.  The only time I was consistently going to church was when I was very young. When my dad died and my mom married another man, I began to take on my step-dad’s atheist views.  Recently, realizing I had not studied religion that much, enough to decide what my label was, I decided I’d look into it at some point.  Being a teenager, living in the environment I do, it’s easy to be busy and join the majority of the student population in their belief that religion is silly and a waste of time. Hearing many bible stories, I denounced them as ridiculous, contradictory, and some cruel.  When I see all the hate that comes from religious people and learn about all the ancient wars that were started between people simply because of their different religion, it makes it easier to claim you will never be a part of it.  I know it’s most likely hard to believe, that a respectable character in a fictional novel could sway my opinions on something so universal and important, but reading this book changed my way of thinking. When Pi states that agnostic peoples’ way of thinking, doubting that there’s a higher power but never deciding one way or another, is foolish, it struck a realization in me.  Since my church-going years I decide that if you ever had a doubt God exists, you can never go back to fully believing in him, but this quote from “Life of Pi” simply made so much sense, especially with its reference to Jesus. In life you cannot have all the answers to everything, so some things you simply have to trust and have faith in. I was never big on believing in something even if you could never know for sure, until reading this book.  By the end, when Pi was telling the interviewers his second, more sensible story, I found that simply believing the first one was true, came much easier. With the help of the story of Pi’s life and his views on trusting things that are outside the realm of reality, I concluded that believing in things without doubt and with imagination about things would make for a much more enjoyably life.  Granted I do not think every philosophy in the bible should be applied today, because some of it has made this world a hateful place, but simply believing in a higher power, living your life as a good person (which I believe should be the main focus of religion), simply believing things will get better and everything happens for a reason would help any citizen live a more fulfilling life.' 

WOW! All of my doubt is gone, and I'll be teaching this novel for quite awhile.

Life of Pi helped me to do my job: Get Students to Think.....

Our Future is Bright! 

Life of Pi.......AGAIN

Yann Martel: Author of Life of Pi!

So, I finished reading The Life of Pi.......Again, and this book never ceases to amaze me.

When I started the discussion on this book with my students, we talked about the narrator saying that "This book will make you believe in God." We talked about the faith spectrum with atheism at one end and very faithful at the other end.

The students asked "Don't you ever have days when you think the whole day was awful?" and I said "No." Then they asked me a whole lot of other questions, and they came to the conclusion that I am fanatically faithful. (Really!) But, most saw themselves in the middle between atheism and faithful.

Life of Pi is a book that WILL make a person think about his/her faith.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Life of Pi: 

"If Christ Played With Doubt, so must we. If Christ spent an anguished night in prayer, if He burst out from the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" then we are also permitted doubt. But we must move on. To chose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a mean of transportation.

"Things don't turn out the way they were supposed to, what can you do? You must take life the way it comes at you and make the best of it."

"As long as God is with me, I will not die. Amen. (Pi made the decision that he would survive, and he did.)

"I must say a word about fear. It is life's only opponent. Only fear can defeat life. It is a clear, treacherous, adversary, how well do I know. It has no decency, respects no law or convention, shows nor mercy. It goes for your weakest spot, which it finds with unerring ease. It begins in your mind, always. One moment you are feeling fine, calm, self-possessed, and happy. Then fear, disguised in the garb of mild-mannered doubt, slips into your mind like a spy."

"I should not count on outside help. Survival had to start with me. In my experience, a castaway's worse mistake is to hope too much and do too little."

Quite awesome right? And, these are just a few of the many awesome quotes; I could go on forever....

People, if you want a good story about the "The Will to Live," "The Power of Religion," and "The Nature of Truth," read The Life of Pi!

It is at the top of my LONG list of favorite books!

Let's Do This People!

Movies and Books for the Soul!

Life of Pi

Contrary to popular belief, every book is not my favorite. However, The Life of Pi IS one of my favorites. It really makes a person think about religion, and God, and faith, and why we believe what we believe. 

My seniors and I did this book last year, and I want to teach it forever. I want everyone in the WORLD to read it. (I Really Do!!!)

Now, Life of Pi has been made into a movie, and it is absolutely fabulous; it really made my heart happy and was so good for my soul.

Read the book, and see the movie, and please share your thoughts.

One of the joys of a holiday is being able to see a movie during the day on a weekday.

So very Thankful for so many things today...... 

"The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel



Piscine Moliot Patel, also known as Pi, is the main character in Life of Pi. Pi lives in India with his parents and his older brother, Ravi.

Pi's father was a zoo director; therefore, Pi spent a lot of time at the Pondicherry Zoo. His father took quite a drastic measure to show Pi and his brother how deadly animals, such as tigers, can be. A lesson that would save Pi's life later. (God always prepares us for NEXT.)

As a child, Pi loved religion, and he became a practicing Hindu, Christian, and Muslim without his parent's permission.

Pi was out with his parents one day and ran into what he called "The Three Wise Men:" the men who were his religious teachers. The priest said that Pi was a good christian boy; the imam stated that Pi was a good Muslim boy, because he faithfully came to Friday prayer, and he had exceptional knowledge of the Koran;  and the pandit stated that he was a great Hindu, because he frequented the temple for darshan and performing puja.

The three religious leaders got into a huge argument about Pi and his studies. The imam stated that "Hindus and Christians are idolaters. They have many Gods." The pandit stated that "The Muslims have many wives." The priest stated that "There is salvation only in Jesus." All three strongly felt that a person must practice religion singularly and that Pi must chose one. Finally, all eyes were on Pi, and they wanted to know why was he studying these three religions?

Pi stated: "I just wanted to love God."

After this confrontation, Pi stopped attending mass, he no longer went to Friday prayer, and he went to the temple only when it was crowded so that he would not be noticed. Pi decided that he would take matters into his own hands; he asked to be baptised and for a prayer rug. He was determined to be Hindu, Christian and a Muslim; he just wanted to love God.....

Because of the political strife in India, Pi's family decided to leave India and move to Canada. Pi was sixteen years old at this time.

However, the ship that was taking them to Canada sank, and the only survivors were Pi, a tiger, a zebra, an orangutan, and a hyena. He was on a life boat with these dangerous animals. (God always prepares us for NEXT.) All of the other animals were eaten except for Pi and the tiger: the hyena killed the zebra and the orangutan, and the tiger killed the hyena.

Some really unbelievable things happened on that life boat.

Imagine being on a ship with this for seven whole months!

When Pi was finally rescued, he told his incredible story of survival, but the people whom he was telling did not want to believe him; they only wanted to believe what their minds could envision.

When Pi told a story that their minds could wrap around, they believed him. Pi's response was "And so it goes with God!"  It's difficult to believe what we can not rationalize with our minds: mortgages being miraculous paid off, people being healed etc.....

However, I have a true story that confirms that miraculous things are still happening today.

I have been running a lot for two reasons: I love running in cold weather, and I was planning to do a half marathon in Miami this past weekend. So, if you over work your body, it will retaliate: my knee became swollen and sore.

I knew that I was going to Miami, but I was not sure if I would be able to run the race. I laid on the beach Friday with ice on my knee, and I thought about the Life of Pi, my daily bible readings which were about Joesph's brothers selling him into slavery, and I read from my daily word called Jesus is Calling. Finally, out of the my readings, it came to me that God is a healing God, and he can do what does not make sense to the logic.

I rubbed my knee and stated that "it will be healed for the race," and I believed that. Of course doubt came into my mind, but I replaced that with "God is a healing God." I did my part, Advil and Icy Hot creme, and God showed out.

I successfully ran the race and finished. My intention for the race was to start strong and finish strong, and that is what I did. I never run with music, because running is my time to give my undivided attention to God. During the race, I was "raising 'em" and praising HIM as stated by my nephew Vance Lang (Raising my hands and praising HIM), and my knee was more than fine; it was GOOD!

I know that it is difficult to believe what our minds can not logically explain, but God is still performing miracles....

I must give a shout out to Yann Martel for writing Life of Pi that challenges ideas about religion, God, and survival and also for giving me something to turn to when I needed it the most.

Be extremely careful about what you put into your spirit, because that is exactly what you will resort to in your time of need. In a place of need, I instantly pulled on what I put into my spirit: my bible readings, my daily word, and The Life of Pi!

Consider staying in a mode of learning so that you can be prepared for what's NEXT, and NEXT is always coming.

Read The Life of Pi by Yann Martel!!!!!



Me with my running girls before the race.
Look at that left knee: slightly swollen.

 After the race with a healed knee: "raising 'em" and praising HIM!