Blog #3-3

Good afternoon everyone! Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend! I just finished reading What's Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges which was an aspiring novel of one boy's role in helping his family and turning around his life. Gilbert Grape has a obese mother who is ascetic mother and a father who had committed suicide in the basement of the house where they lived when Gilbert was just seven years old. He has two older sisters, an older brother, a younger sister, and a younger brother named Arnie who he takes care of daily. Arnie was born mentally challenged and after the death of their father Gilbert was left in charge to ensure his family would maintain their sanity. Gilbert's family has a unique, dynamic, and secretive way of handling situations in this case that is considered a traditional. All of these concepts unfold as Gilbert shares his story with us through the past and present tense. Since Gilbert was 14 he's been working at Mr.Lamson's grocery store part-time and now he's been working their full-time since he had turned 17. Amy his older sister is preoccupied when her boyfriend dumps her and his other siblings appear to have "the mind of a five year old". What choice would you have made if you were given the option to take of your whole family or live your own life without worrying about any one else's responsibilities?

Momma keeps eating, smoking, and watching tv without any furniture as the days go on. Unfortunately Gilbert cannot afford to supply his family with furniture but manages to keep his family alive and healthy by paying the bills, buying an abundance of food, and keeping his love for them. Taking care of Arnie is Gilbert's full time job and he promised everyone that no one would hurt him. Arnie can be a handful among the family, in fact he refuses to take a bath which can be a challenge for Gilbert when he needs to help everyone get ready for school. How would you prioritize in order to accommodate the needs of your family? How much would you give up for them? Gilbert had a dream of leaving his family because he is tired of his mom leaving dirty dishes in the sink, forcing Arnie to take a bath, working part time at the grocery store making minimum wage, and helping himself. He manages to endure the strength to stay and accept his family for who they are. Hedges' teaches his that family that stays together will live, grow, cry, and love each other through any circumstance.

Blog #3-2

Finally Leo won an Oscar! I just finished reading Marvin's Room by Scott McPherson which had a sorrowful tone but has a happy ending. The storyline revolves around two sisters Bessie and Lee, in which they both seek to help out their father who had been diagnosed with leaukimia. Well at least one of them... Bessie is the caretaker of their father and guardian angel who has been helping him for years. Lee on the other hand, is only focused on building her own nail salon and struggles with other distractions in her life. When Bessie is diagnosed with leaukimia she looks for help from her sister to take care of their dying father. Lee and her sons Hank/Charlie fly out to Florida to help Bessie after being disconnected for years. Why did Bessie and Lee choose to have a dysfunctional relationship? Could this have been because of who takes the responsibilty of taking care of their father or maybe they never got along well during their childhood years? The only way to save Bessie is by a bone marrow transplant within one her family members partakes in. Lee,Hank, and Charlie visit the hospital to see if one of them could end Bessie's suffering.

What Marvin's Room argues is that Lee, learns that no matter what happens family will always be important than romance or individual needs. In addition, Bessie learns that after all the years of helping her sick father, she needs to live her own life and for once be happy. Hank, a trouble young youth struggles after being placed in a military school for burning his house down and learning his father left him when he was younger. When Hank discovers his grandfather's tool box, it changes his whole perspective on life and he finally learns that there is good in this world. In fact, before this Hank said "You know something? Nobody ever does anything to be nice. They always wanna get something out of it." How would you justify Hank's statement based on what he's been through? In the end, the two sisters come together to help their ill father and bring peace among their family. Bessie,Hank, and Charlie wait in the hospital room to see the tests results would help to save Aunt Bessie. So what were the test results? I'll leave that for you to read.