Dorothy Allison once said, "Class, race, sexuality, gender and all other categories by which we categorize and dismiss each other and need to be excavated from the inside..." This means we always categorize people by race, sexuality, gender, etc. I agree because everywhere you look people are categorized. This can be clearly seen in the book The Big Shuffle like when Hallie goes to a frat party for people who are eighteen years or older only. Unless you had a fake ID. And she plays poker with some of the people who know how to play. And also the doctor at the hospital thinks Bernard, a family friend, is the brother and speaks to him first instead of Hallie, the daughter.

I Am

I am Hallie Palmer

I am intelligent and responsible

I wonder if things will get better

I hear sorrow

I want things to get better

I am intelligent and responsible

I pretend I am fine

I feel very stressed

I touch my aching head

I worry about my siblings

I cry for my parents

I am intelligent and responsible

I understand it is up to me

I say I can do it

I dream of a happy home

I try to keep things under control

I hope my mother gets well soon

I am intelligent and responsible

The Big Shuffle

The book I am reading is The Big Shuffle is about a girl named Hallie Palmer. Hallie is in college but has to return home to raise her eight younger siblings, because her father died and her mother is incapacitated. She is trying to be strong for her younger siblings. Her friend Bernard and Gil are helping her out as much as they can. But the house is still chaotic.

"A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to preserve and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles."
-Christopher Reeve (superman)


This quote to me means, everyone who can get trough tough situations in life is a hero.You don't necessarily need super powers, you just need strength to get through difficult situations. I agree with this because my hero does not fly or lift cars with one hand. My hero is my mother. She is my hero because she has the strength to get me and my brothers through very tough situations in life. She is just an ordinary woman. She has had overwhelming obstacles put in her way, and yet she has the strength to preserve us from harm.

Delvin, Maurice and Cane are brothers. Delvin is the youngest, Maurice is the middle child, and Cane is the oldest. Their parents took the boys to the Bronx, New York Zoo. It was a hot day in the year 2014. There was so many animals the boys thought it was amazing. It was a jungle in the cages. There was an owl that had eyes bigger than a baby's butt. The owl stared at the boys with peircing eyes. Delvin got scared and ran behin his mom. He reminded Cane of a scared little lost dog he saw at the store once. Maurice thought it was funny and laughed. They moved on to the next section, which was monkeys, Maurice loves monkeys. So he took pictures of them. there was so many monkeys and it was so leafy and colorful. They left home when they finished looking at all the animals. The boys were very pleased with the trip to the zoo.