My Favorite Text

This semester has not only offered me an insight into the Latin American culture, but an in depth perspective to a person’s character and nature. My favorite text that we talked about this semester was Ines of My Soul.  This book helped me gain a better understanding of the conquest of Latin America.  It described the conflicts between the Spaniards and the native Indians, the way the Spaniards treated women and slaves and the spiritual views of the Spaniards.  I found it very interesting how their motivation for exploration was based on obtaining gold, their past time was used to drink and have their way with women, and their tactics to get the Indians to build their towns.  This might sound harsh, but that is what I saw on the surface of the text regarding this culture.

It made for an interesting novel, but what fascinated me most about the novel was the main character of the novel, Ines.  I grew to appreciate her as a strong, independent woman.  At the beginning of the story, her free-spirit caused her to be condemned to a life at home without a husband, however, we find that her free-spirit and independence does not allow her to settle for this and she goes in search of finding her husband.  In actuality, we find that she used that as an excuse to find freedom and adventure for herself.  I appreciate her willingness to not give up when they were in the desert and about to die of thirst.  Her resourcefulness saved them.  I also appreciate her willingness to sacrifice herself for the sake of those around her when it comes to fighting for her people.

The main reason why I enjoyed this text is because I felt a connection to this woman and could relate to some of the same character traits that she possessed.  It was inspiring and educational.

Sacrifice and Love

Under the Same Moon

The movie, Under the Same Moon, is about a nine year old boy, Carlito, living in Mexico with his Grandmother, while his mother has been in Los Angeles for the last four years trying to become a US citizen and earn enough money to make a life for her and her son.  As the movie progresses, the Grandmother dies and the son decides to travel to find his mother.  The story is about his adventures along the way to get to his mother.

My favorite part of the movie is when Carlito is on the bus with Enrique, his traveling buddy, heading to Los Angeles and Enrique explains to Carlito that his mother still loves him and that is why she has been in Los Angeles for the last four years.  He explains that people do hard things for certain reasons and Carlito is that reason for her.

Why is Carlito that reason for her?  It is referring to that undying love that one person has for another.  In this case, the love of a mother for her son.  That is the reason why we sacrifice for others.  It is a matter of loving someone else more than we love ourselves.

In class, I liked how Dr. Mack explained that with attachment seeking behavior it is a way for someone to feel safe.  Once that person feels secure in that attachment to you, then that love grows and it no longer becomes about loving ourselves but a love for someone else, which makes it easier to sacrifice, like Carlito’s mother did.

However, I also see the connection of sacrifice and love for others with Enrique and Carlito as well.  Through the movie, Enrique only cared about his own survival.  His love was focused on himself and not others.  As the attachment and love grew between Enrique and Carlito, when it came time at a vital point in the movie, Enrique did not question the need to sacrifice his own freedom in exchange for Carlito’s freedom from the police officers. 

When we love others more than ourselves, we are more willing to make sacrifices for others.

Experience

“Ultima said to take life’s experiences and build strength from them, not weakness.” 

(Rudolfo Anaya, Bless Me, Ultima, 261)

Bless Me, Ultima is about a young boys journey through his childhood to manhood.  He has several questions about life and through his experience and guidance by an old family friend, Ultima, he is able to find the knowledge that he needs to guide his future path.

At the end of the book, Antonio, the young boy, shares what he has learned from Ultima and I especially like this quote about taking life’s experiences and building strength from them, not weakness.  Even though Antonio has seen much in his young life, he is learning to take the good out those experiences and better himself.

This is a valuable lesson that we can all take into our lives.  We all have challenges, but if we focus on what we can learn from these experiences, then we will be a stronger person.  This reminds me of the scripture given to Joseph Smith by the Lord when he is in Liberty jail and he feels like he can’t endure this trial much longer.  It says: “…know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” (D&C 122:7)

Our experience shall be for our good.  Here again is that important life lesson, if we choose to abide by it.  If we don’t then it becomes a weakness.

There is an inspirational story about a man named Tony Melendez who was born with no arms.  This could be a weakness, however he chooses to make it his strength.  He learns to play a guitar by using his feet.  He makes beautiful music while playing the guitar and singing. 

He said, “God has given me strength. God has given me my family and he has given me my music which makes me feel strongly connected with Him. That helped me grow… It has calmed my heart…” 

His experience has made him grow and become stronger, just as Antonio's experience has made him grow and will continue to make him stronger in his life. It can do the same for us.

Innocence

“I had somehow lost my innocence and let sin enter into my soul, and the knowledge of God, the saving grace, was far away” (Rudolpho Anaya, Bless Me, Ultima 167)

In the book, Bless Me, Ultima, it’s about a young boy named Antonio Marez, who receives understanding during his life experiences by the guidance of a family friend named Ultima.  As the book starts out, he is innocent in nature about the world, but as he goes through his life experiences he grows and matures in his thinking and understanding and becomes aware of the pain and suffering in the world around him.

The quote mentioned above is Antonio’s thoughts about somehow losing his innocence and letting sin enter his soul.  I think it is Antonio’s way of trying to understand that he is not the same boy as he first started.  This is a crucial point for him because he believes that if he is not innocent than he has sinned.  What he still has to learn is that it is not that he has sinned, but that he is merely growing up and the knowledge he is gaining is like losing the innocence and the purity given from God.

This reminds me of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  They were in a state of innocence just like Antonio, but as they continued to experience knowledge and understanding and persuasion from Satan, they made a choice to lose their innocence.  Eve explains it best when she says, “It is better for us to pass through sorrow that we may know good from evil.”

Antonio, Adam and Eve both learned from their life experiences and losing their innocence that it is better for them to experience these things so that they will have the knowledge and understanding to make wise choices in the future.  The experiences that we receive in life are what mold us to become the person we need to become and it is natural for us to lose our state of innocence and to have these life experiences.

Power

“Then with nothing that could cast a shadow or core upon him, high above all, standing on his own shadow, he measured the scope of his power.” (Alejo Carpentier, The Kingdom of This World” 118)

This phrase about power really caught my attention.  It is referring to the time when Ti Noel, a slave in Haiti, is carrying stones to the top of the mountain to build King Henri Christophe’s fortress, the Citadel La Ferriere.  He is explaining that sometimes King Henri Christophe will have a chair brought up to the top of the mountain so that he can look out and ‘measure the scope of his power’.  Why is power so important?

Power is a way to cover up insecurities and fear and makes a person feel special and privileged. Before Henri Christophe became king, he was a slave.  He felt inferior to others and fearful of what others could do to him.  As he was able to gain power in his life, he liked the way that he felt.

This reminds me of the attachment theory by John Bowlby.  The attachment is about having an attachment to someone where you feel loved and respected.  When you have this attachment then you are happy.  So what happens if you do not have this attachment?  You would feel insecure and fearful.  Without this attachment people seek it elsewhere or they can become depressed and eventually give up and die.  In this case, King Henri Christophe sought it through power.  Through his power he treated his slaves badly, allowing him to feel special and privileged.

This reminds me of the character, Loki, in the Avengers.  As a little boy, he knew he did not compare to Thor and sought the attachment that he saw Thor have with is father.  As a result of this lack of attachment, he sought power by taking over Earth so that he could feel special and privileged, when in reality he felt insecure and fearful.  When we have attachments and feel love, we do not feel that it is necessary to seek out power or cause harm to others.

Music in Our Lives

Have you ever caught yourself moving to the music without even realizing it? Music influences our lives whether we realize it our not. I really enjoyed class when we were talking about Samba and Salsa music.  Dr. Mack said something that I keep thinking about.  He said, “Music is about a mood.”  As I have been pondering that, I think he is exactly right.

I went on a field trip with my son to listen to a symphony. The director was teaching the kids how to appreciate and understand the music. He played the music from The Sorcerer’s Apprentice when the kid is trying to clean up the room with magic and the magic gets out of control and all chaos breaks loose. The director told the kids that as the music starts out it is kind of fun and playful that is when the young apprentice is starting to experiment with the magic.  Gradually the music will progress and become quicker, this is when the magic is getting out of hand and the cleaning equipment is creating chaos.  He had the kids imagine the story in their heads as they proceeded to play the song.  The music expressed the moods in the movie to help the children create the story.

Music also helps with our moods when we exercise.  Zumba has become a very popular form of exercise and it has a lot to do with the fast music with a good rhythm that people want to move to.  People get a good workout while having fun. Runners also listen to music that has a quick beat to keep them moving.

Music influences our moods so much, it is important that we make sure we are aware of what we listen to.  If we are listening to any music that is angry, we will tend to be angry.  If we are listening to more mellow music, it will help us remain calm.  Music is very important.

Blame

Maria Candelaria, [film], Directed by Emilio Fernandez, 1943

The film is about a beautiful, young Indian woman, named Maria Candelaria, who is rejected by her own people for being the daughter of a prostitute.  She and her fiancé are constantly facing struggles in the movie as a result of being rejected. At one particular point she is very sick and her fiancé desperately breaks into a store and steals medicine for her.  Once she is better, they proceed to get married, but are stopped by the store’s owner who has her fiancé arrested for stealing.  Periodically throughout the story, a painter thinks she is the most beautiful woman and desires to paint her.  Maria finally agrees to model for his painting if he agrees to pay for the release of her fiancé.  The artist starts to paint her, but when she is asked to remove her clothing, she refuses.  The artist continues to paint the picture with someone else’s body.  When the people see the picture, they assume that it is Maria Candelaria and stone her to death. It ends with the painter finishing narrating the story to a young journalist as to the response why he has never displayed this painting before.

            In class, we discussed several perspectives as to who is to blame for her death.  The painter? The townspeople? The prostitute?  This reminded me of another story taught in my husband’s class. It is a story about a prince who marries a princess, but because of business is away a lot.  The princess becomes lonely and is enticed to run away with a boyfriend, who quickly leaves her.  The princess tries to return home and asks several people to help her but no one will.  She then proceeds to return through the enchanted forest where a dragon has been ordered by a witch to eat any trespassers.  As a result, the dragon eats the princess.  So who’s to blame for the death of the princess?

As the class discussed this question, it became apparent that a lot of speculation as to who’s to blame was based upon the experience of each of the class members.  As a result, it was determined that it doesn’t matter who’s to blame but more on how it affects us as the reader based upon our experience.  I think that Maria Candelaria is similar in this regards.  It doesn’t matter who’s to blame but more on how it affects us as the viewer based upon our experiences.

Masks

“The Mexican, whether young or old, criollo or mestizo, general or laborer or lawyer, seems to me to be a person who shuts himself away to protect himself: his face is a mask and so is his smile.” (Octavio Paz, The Labyrinth of Solitude, 29)

In this article, Paz believes that Mexicans wear masks to protect themselves.  What is a mask?  A visible mask hides the true identity of the person.  Invisible masks also hide something.  They hide the person’s true emotions and feelings.  Paz referred to this when he said that a person “shuts himself away to protect himself” and his face and smile are not true emotion but a mask.

I recently watched a movie with my kids called Radio Rebel.  It was about a teenager who is shy, vulnerable and scared to show her true self.  Her step-dad, the manager of a radio station, allows her to become “radio rebel” for a radio broadcast time.  As she is radio rebel, she expresses her true feelings and emotions without vulnerability.  As she does this, she finds other teenagers feel these same feelings.  She becomes a role model for hundreds.  She finds herself struggling to take off her mask of being “radio rebel” and be her true self.  She is afraid people will not like her once they find out who she is.  As the show ends, she comes to realize that sometimes you have to take risks, become vulnerable and allow people to see our true selves to realize that we can be accepted for being who we are.

The attachment theory comes in to play here.  We have an attachment to other people to feel safe, secure and happy.  Some people are too afraid to attach themselves to others for fear of rejection and insecurity.  People who wear masks fall into the category of being afraid to attach themselves to others for fear of rejection and insecurity and as a result become sad.  If they are willing to take a risk and allow themselves to become vulnerable by showing their true selves, then they will find acceptance from others and feel happy with that attachment.

Change

"Runaway slaves no longer came and thrust themselves into the hands of Candido Neves." (Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Father Versus Mother)

Father Versus Mother is about a man named Candido Neves, who is a slave catcher.  When business becomes slow, he has financial problems.  He loses his home and is pressured to get rid of his newborn baby to save on costs. When there is no other choice, he is forced to get rid of his baby, but at the last moment, comes across a runaway slave and makes enough profit to keep his baby. 

When business became slow, why did Candido not change his career? Even when it affected his family so deeply, he still kept trying. Why? It is pride.  Candido once received good money doing this trade and felt that he could again. So he continued to wait for it to happen. He also might be afraid of change.  Maybe he felt that he would not be able to do anything else.

 

Candido reminds me of Hem in Who Moved My Cheese? In this parable, there are two mice named Sniff and Scurry, and two mini people named Hem and Haw. They all live in a maze and would receive cheese to nourish them and make them happy.  Soon the cheese disappears. Sniff and Scurry immediately set out to look for more cheese. Hem and Haw wait for more cheese to come.  Haw eventually realizes the cheese is never going to come and sets out to find more. Hem continues to wait for more cheese to come, knowing eventually it will come even though he becomes more and more hungry.

Sometimes pride and fear keep us from change. Change happens whether we like it or not, and the quicker we are able to adjust to it, the better we will become.  If we are able to move beyond our fears, we will feel more free and happy.  If Candido were more like the others and realized that when the cheese/money was gone, he needed to change and find another avenue to earn money, maybe he would have still been in his house and had the means to provide for his new baby without any need to get rid of him.

Enjoy the Journey

"His friend and his wife were no longer enough for his being, filled with great desires and noble ambitions."  (Jose de Alencar, Iracema, 93)

As I was reading this section of Iracema, I noticed that Martim lives in a beautiful area that is peaceful and calm, has plenty of food, a beautiful wife that cherishes him and a bond with a friend that is comparable to a brother.  He seems to have everything that someone could want.  So why is it that he is no longer content with what he has?  Is this human nature or just an unappreciative man?

As I pondered these questions, it made me think of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Again like Martim, they are given everything that could make them happy, a beautiful area that is peaceful and calm, plenty of food, and companionship, and yet, we find that they too are not content with what they have.  I’m sure like Martim, they started out with being content.  As time went on, Eve found herself wanting more and when tempted to partake of the forbidden fruit, she realized that this was the only way that she could gain more knowledge and experience more, so she partook of it.

It makes me wonder if even at the beginning of the Earth there was this desire for more, that maybe it really is in our human nature.  But as we discussed in class, there is this fine line in being content with what you have and desiring more.

Leo Babauta said “So contentment isn’t a matter with being content with your situation in life and never trying to improve it.  It’s a matter of being content with what you have – but realizing as humans, we will always try to improve, no matter how happy we are. If we don’t, we have given up on life.”

I think he is exactly right.  We can be content in any situation we are in life, however, it’s not going to change that we always want to improve.  So improving really is human nature, but it is also a matter of being content in the changes that we make in life.  As President Monson says, we need to “enjoy the journey.”  

Simple Pleasures

Almeida Junior, Jose Ferraz de,  The Guitar Player, 1899

Almeida Junior, Jose Ferraz de,

Life in the Countryside: Chopping Tobacco, 1893

Jose Ferraz de Almneida Junior is the artist of Life in the Countryside: Chopping Tobacco and The Guitar Player. While a lot of paintings being created at this time were based off of Greek mythology and historical events, I was drawn to his style in these two paintings. They portray a sense of pleasure in simplicity.

If we look at the Life in the Countryside: Chopping Tobacco, we see that the walls in the background are falling apart and the subject is not wearing shoes. This could symbolize humble surroundings. Looking closer at the subject's appearance, we see that his clothes are dirty. This could symbolize that he is a worker of some sort. A lot of times in modern society, when we depict subjects of humble circumstances it is associated with pity and sadness for their circumstances and how a little contribution could help their situation. This picture does not portray that at all. It actually depicts a look of pleasure on his face. It could possibly be because he is in the process of making a cigarette and he's anxious to smoke it, but I tend to think that he is simply taking pleasure in the few moments he has to himself.

As we look at The Guitar Player painting, we notice the same type of wall falling apart resembling humble surroundings. Their clothes also look worn or dirty from possibly working hard. However, like the painting mentioned above, the look on their faces depicts pleasure for being able to take a few minutes for themselves and enjoy the music.

It makes me wonder, how often do we actually take the time to enjoy life's simple pleasures? We live in a world where we are constantly busy and have no time for simple pleasures. If we were to look at the faces of those that are hurrying from one place to the next, we can easily see the seriousness of their faces and not the few moments of happiness we all desire. I wonder if everyone were to take a few minutes each day for a simple pleasure, if we would be living in a happier world?

Creating Our Own Destiny

"Each of us is master of his or her own destiny." (Isabel Allende, Ines of My Soul, 286)

How can we control our own destiny? Do we do what is expected of us and leave it up to fate or do we take matters into our own hands? If we want to be rich, do we wait for Publishers Clearing House to come knocking on our door with a big check? We know this will likely never happen. However, if we truly want something to happen, then we need to focus on what we want and create our own destiny.

This reminds me of a story in Robert Kiyosaki's book, Rich Dad Poor Dad. Robert is a nine year old boy who wants to earn some money. He works extremely hard for his friend's dad making very little money. He soon realizes there has to be a better way to earn money than what he is doing. At this point, he takes his destiny into his own hands and looks for a better way to earn the money. Opportunity comes in finding discarded comic books. He and his friend open up a comic book library and employs his friend's sister to run it for $1 a week. They allow kids to come read the comics for a small fee. Soon they are making $9.50 a week without even having to run the business. This is a prime example of taking control of your destiny. Robert wanted a better way to earn money, put his mind to it and achieved it.

That is how I think of Ines as well. She never settled for what was expected. She was constantly taking control of her destiny. The example that comes to mind best is when Pedro boots her out and she is ordered to leave Chile. Instead of accepting this news, she focuses on how she can stay in Chile. She then takes her destiny in her own hands and proposes to Rodrigo. She then becomes his wife allowing her to stay in Chile. We could all learn from Robert and Ines in focusing on what we want and creating our own destinies.

Dogged Determined

"I was dogged in the challenge of building a community, a task that in the New World was left to women."  (Isabel Allende, Ines of My Soul, 164)

  

 
Its funny how one simple word, can change the whole meaning of a sentence.  When I first read this quote, I thought that Ines was saying that the men were making the women build up the community.  It gave me an impression that she was simply given a task to do.  Then I looked up the definition of dogged.  It means to have tenacity, show persistence and determination.  Ines was actually feeling opposite that what I originally thought.  She was determined and passionate about building up her community.

Her passion and determination reminds me of several women in history who exhibit these same characteristics for a cause they deem worthy.  One of these examples is Joan of Arc during the French Revolution.  She led the French armies to several victories, which led the way for Charles VII to become king.  She is a French heroine.

Another example is Amelia Earhart.  She was the first woman pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.  She broke several records and became instrumental in creating an organization for female pilots.  She became a role model for every woman to strive to achieve her dreams.

These are just a couple of examples of women that through their passion and determination have made a difference in the world.  Ines is another one of these women.  Not only did she make a difference by building up the community for herself and all those that lived there, but she went on to save the city from an attack of the Mapuche Indians and helped to found Chile.  If we are "dogged" determined, than any of us, man or woman, can build communities, reach our dreams, or even become heroes.

Perspective

“Man is the only being who knows he is alone, and the only one who seeks out another.” 

(Octavio Paz, The Labyrinth of Solitude, 195)

 

Life is about perspective.  If we look at the picture above, what do we see?  Some people might look at the picture and assume that it is a picture of an old hag.  Which is correct, but is that all there is to the picture?  We need to change our perspective or way of thinking to be able to see the young lady.

Life is this way.  We can choose to see it one way or see it another.  It is all about perspective.  When I came across this quote, it reminded me of an experience my son had starting Junior High this last fall.  It was a new school, new schedule and new students.  For a 13 year old that is very scary.  For those first few weeks, he would come home very sad and lonely.  He felt that all of his friends no longer wanted to be friends and all the other kids already had friends and were not interested in being his friend.  Even at church functions he was all alone while his friends would hang out together.  We even had his scout leaders come to us concerned about him.

As a mother, I wanted to help him.  I had to convince him that he was so focused on being alone that he couldn't see the opportunities to meet new friends.  Each day, I would challenge him to say "hi" to someone new.  At scouts, I would challenge him to force himself to be happy and outgoing.  As his focus changed from himself to others, so did his attitude.  He soon found himself meeting new friends and enjoying school and those around him.

Like the quote mentioned above, my son was the only one aware that he was alone, but he was also the only one that could seek out another.  We have the ability to make what we want out of life.  It's all in our perspective.