Found Poem (Rachel)

Man oh man
We got fumigated with the odor
Of perspirating bodies
Aren’t you glad you use Dial?
Don’t you wish everybody did?
Boy, what a place
There wasn’t room to breathe
The delightful odor of
Mud and dead fish
A real fire beat in my temples
And the beat of my heart
Was not my heart
Inside the bright orange rim
Of the fire, some of them
Were dancing with their bosoms
Naked as if nakedness
Were nothing special
Tears ran from my eyes
But I was hardly allowed
To complain about that
One long, drawn-out eternity
No new clothes, no white gloves
No milk and honey
And no primping
I hardly know where to begin
In all this dust and dirt
The earth reeled beneath me
It sounded like a junkyard orchestra
It scorched my eardrums
In all the ruckus,
I closed my eyes
And dreamed of real soda pop
And wept for the sins
Who had brought my family to this
Dread, dark shore

Genesis Extra Credit Post

The one thing cool about this book is that we all have someone in our lives that is like each of these characters. We all know someone like Nathan that we want to stick in a zebra suit and feed to a random African tribe. We all know someone who so obviously craves the approval of others like Leah. We all have a Ruth May in our lives that turns the simplest observation into a television special. But another neat thing is, we can also identify with each of these characters in some point in time. We have all once felt unfairly stripped of something we think shouldn’t be so hard to ask for, like Rachel. We have all been misjudged and alienated like Adah. And like Orleanna, we all have felt completely intimidated by someone who is close to us. And this book is beginning to make me appreciate my life more than I have been doing. I am living like Paris Hilton in comparison to the lives people are leading in Africa. And the thing is, this life for them is permanent. I even appreciate going to school each day and eating the same cereal for breakfast, because for them, that is a luxury beyond luxuries. Which got me thinking… the problems that are so mainstream in our world today such as, “I am too fat” or “I am too ugly” is the least of their problems, and that would be a miracle for them if that was their biggest problem. And while our problems are still legit, we should rethink our mentality. Because we are blessed to have what we have, and we owe it to these people to appreciate what we have, because these opportunities and things handed to us are things they’ll never even have the chance to get.

Genesis Post #2

After finishing the whole chapter of Genesis, I feel almost like a sixth member of the Price women, dragged unwillingly along by Nathan Price. And I dislike everything about him… his sermons, his garden, and his devotion to God above his own family. I realize that this might be the whole point of religion, to worship God so strongly and develop the ultimate relationship with him, but I think it is unreasonable to totally forget about maintaining relationships with those that were put on this Earth with you. It is also frustrating to be apart of a mission that for now seems to unsuccessful and I am sensing that the African natives are not exactly grasping the purpose of the Prices one year journey there. It seems like exactly how Adah pointed out, “Everything that comes of morning undoes itself before nightfall.” (30). And as of right now, I am wondering if that is the case for the mission of “spreading the Word.” That, as soon as the Prices leave Africa, all their efforts will just amount to another dust-collecting yearbook on the shelf. Changing the subject, I am a little confused… did the Grandpa come with them? I thought someone mentioned at the beginning that he was coming to Africa as well, but apart from that, I think he’s been mentioned an impressive grand total of one time more.

Genesis Post #1

After only reading the first few points of views of the different Price women, I am beginning to wish that this story also included the point of view, or narration from the father, Reverend Price. I sense bias and some minor sense of irritation, resentfulness, and distgust towards the father. Orleanna Price reveals how her husband could never love her as a wife, Leah Price portrays her father as a dictating, alpha-male, Ruth-May Price doesn't even mention her father, Rachel Price describes him as an intimidating, and Adah Price keeps addressing the father as "Our Father" which makes it seem like she feels no distinct relationship to him. I want to get to know more about Reverend Price, as he is the reason why this whole story is about to take place. This will be hard, however, because I will only get to know him throught the eyes of his wife and daughters. I also noticed that so far, the Price women stress/bring to attention how segregated and different they feel about the African people. They keep acknowledging the skin difference, and just the overall physical appearance that sets these two worlds apart.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

So to the left is the DROC's flag and country border/outline. Some things i found that interested me about this place was... the religions(how effective missionaries are/were), natural resources(why people take interest in this place), exports(what people need from this place), and major trading partners (people who show the most interest in this place).

The Religions of DROC include- Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Islam 10%, other syncretic and indigenuous 10%.

The Natural Resources of DROC include- cobalt, copper, cadmium, petrolium, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber

The Exports of DROC include- diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt

The Major Trading Partners of DROC include- Belgium, Finland, U.S., China, South Africa, France, Zambia, Kenya, Germany

For more information:

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0198161.html

http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Country_Specific/Zaire.html