In class, we took the time to analyze the poem “Family” by Josephine Miles, and respond to it. After analyzing it my view towards family changed. This poem shows that if you are in danger or you need help your family might not always be there for you. Also how sometimes help may come from someone who you aren’t even related to. A few things this poem reminded me of was how people can get together to help one another and sometimes for much greater causes then ourselves. Also this poem reminds me of a good portion of my life.
Family to me is what my dad did for me. I would have to say that the first part of the poem highlights the first seven years of my life. It brings me to the time in which I was still with my mother and brother “eating potato salad” up till age 4 One morning i was play fighting with my . Then the undertow came and took me away on this journey that I am still living. It took me through 4 years of extreme loneliness, depression, and more loneliness. For the first 3 years I was in foster care and was traveling from home to home trying to find a new family.
The trip was not fun at all, I was repeatedly put in to homes that were just not right for me. “Until the loss of breath and the power of play. ” Then came my last opportunity with my real family on the 4th year. I was sent to North Carolina where my grandfather lived. He had just “recently” been re-married, to this Phillipino lady who had a really bad temper. My grandfather and her already had a son, and were expecting another baby soon. I’ll have to say this was by far the worst place I stayed in all of the 4 years of my journey.
I was always secretly hated because I wasn’t their child, I would be forced to finish my meal even if I was full, and if I said I wasn’t hungry they would still force me to eat. After the baby was born, living there became even worse. All of the attention was on that adorable new bit of life, and not me. One day I came home from school early so I could come cry in my room and got yelled at by my grandpa saying “Shut up! The baby is trying to sleep. ” Then he came over gave me a little smack, and carried on with his day.
Time was up and it was time to figure out whether I was going to stay with my biological family or not. Nobody wanted me so I flew back across the country to come to my first adoption home. “That is when the jackstraw expert speaking only Swedish and as remote to this area as a camel says. Look down there is someone drowning. ” Yes I was the kid drowning. I came to this new beautiful home in Walnut Creek California, I was scared and didn’t know what to expect. I had this image that my “new” father was going to be a tall scary black guy.
Boy did I get surprised because what I was assigned to this small wonderful white guy named Thomas. I walked into his home and was just in awe of the place, and thought this is where I want to stay. 6 months later it is time to make the decision of whether I wanted to get adopted or not. We had to go to court, and I was asked if I wanted to stay and be a Malott? “You say, yes, yes, and he throws you a line. ” “This is what is called the brotherhood of man. ” My current father Thomas threw the line to the drowning boy who was me.
I think this is my definition of family; what my dad did for me. Had I never been adopted I would never have met any of the friend’s teachers and family I currently have. I probably would never have come across my hidden talent of pole vaulting, biking and I think I would be a completely different person if I wasn’t thrown that rope. Aside from my first seven years of my life, currently I have a few close friends that I would most likely call family just because of how they are actually always there for me.
Rj, Kyle, and my girlfriend madison will seriously stop whatever they are doing to come talk to me when I’m feeling down, they will give me advice not just to benefit me but teach me if I did wrong, they make me happy, they understand me, and I feel that without them life would be quite dull. Ten years later from when I left my grandpa’s house they say, “Come back here for some potato salad. ” I said no. My family is very weird they didn’t want me or help me be part of my family until now. Why? I’ll probably never figure that out. Finally I think that there is no set definition of family, but it is whatever you want to call family.
