Community is very important and has many factors like kinship, unity, and identity. Community helps society because it creates solutions, provides security, reveals dedication and lastly discovers truthfulness. Communities can be found everywhere and can be created anywhere. You may be unaware of it, but anyone can be apart of some community not only based on your location, but also based on ones lifestyle, religion, heritage, education, or abilities. In the book Barbarian Nurseries by Hector Tobar can relate to many communities that play to my personal life such as my church community.
The church that I attend every Sunday is called Cerritos Mission Church (CMC) located in Cerritos. Not only do I consider church and its members that come along with it as a community of mine but I also label them as family. Location is a big factor in Barbarian Nurseries and the church I attend. In the novel Barbarian Nurseries, the setting takes place in a not so well off area in “El Paseo Bonita,” also in the Los Angeles city. Although the story does take place in the Torres family household, which can be identified as an elegant or middle class home, the environment surrounding their area could be examined as a run down city.
When the grandfather goes missing, the boys and also Araceli go off to look for him. In the novel, Hector Tobar described the ambiance of the adventure of looking for the kid’s grandfather as a busy area where there are many people walking place to place, business street sellers, cars, trains, and a lot of sound. I can relate this also to my CMC church that I attend. The location of my church is in a not so well off city but the people that attend generates my church to be different from those around.
Cerritos Mission Church does not have a lot of people that attend every Sunday but I am forever grateful that we have such a small close-knit community with one purpose. As my pastor stated, “love one another as I have loved you. ” That purpose is solely to serve, preach, spread and love the lord. Another topic in Barbarian Nurseries can be family. One night, an argument between the Scott and Maureen turns physical, and a misunderstanding leaves the children in Araceli’s care. Arceli, the household maid, also becomes like a mother figure and is someone to look up to while the parents always leave unexpectedly.
In Cerritos Mission, I can consider the members of this church as my brothers and sisters in Christ. Just as how my pastor has once stated in his sermon, “Look to your left and right, those are your brothers and sisters. We are a church community who not only serve the lord but are also there for the members of the church. ” Although I may not know some of the members that consist of this church, but I can also say that each and every member is apart of my family. Some of my great friends are the ones that I have made through church.
Despite the fact that I see some of them once a week, I am relieved that I have someone that I can always talk to and pray about whenever things go wrong. Lastly, a topic that can relate to Cerritos Mission Church and Barbarian Nurseries is the widely discussed topic of culture and language differences. I personally think that my church is limited in numbers due to the fact that it is known as a Korean/American church. People automatically think this church is single handedly for Koreans that speak Korean but that’s not the case because my church welcomes anyone of any race or ethnic background and also has Korean and English services.
Pastor Joseph Suk stated, “I personally speak too much Korean myself but I have set the differences aside and try my best to communicate with the elders of the church. ” Language can be a big barrier in my church community as well as the novel Barbarian Nurseries. Scott and Maureen don’t speak much Spanish, and their employees don’t speak much English. Communication between employer and employee is limited to facial expressions, hand signals and a crude Spanglish. Communication between Maureen and Scott is strained, too. Maureen can’t comprehend why her mild-mannered husband would punch a wall, and he has no reason to explain.
Being in a community, one has to accept the differences of others and have a impenetrable bond with one another. Communities can also be expressed as family such as how Araceli was considered as one to the kids and how my pastor and its members are considered as apart of mine. The book Barabarian Nurseries entails many differences and problems that were overcome through family. I personally did not like this book in the beginning because of the fact that is was a bit too slow for me but then after the story progressed I enjoyed the book much more.
