Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Annie Dillard, Harper Perennial Modern Classics New York,NY:1974 2/2

Through out her book Annie Dillard was very descriptive of nature. It makes me wonder how she would observe a city. I feel like she wouldn't be able to stand it. At times she would interact with nature but most of the time she would observe. She follows nature through out the seasons. She explores many different beliefs, like the Roman belief that bees can be killed from a persons echo. She isn't afraid to question humans and to try and be one with nature. Her stillness, patience, and watchfulness are very rare especially today. The book is basically full of her observations and beliefs. I honestly can't read through description that long so I had to take it one step at a time. Maybe to her, that would say something about me. How I could never see what she saw or heard what she heard. I'm too comforted by the continuance of noise among other things. The whole book makes me wonder what it would have been like had Adam and Eve not eaten the fruit. Would we have named a tree a tree? Would we be on the same level as nature? I also wonder if people are offended by this book. It did talk of God but of Allah as well and it talked of various traditions/sayings by people. She also compares humans to nature, but one comparison that got to me was one she made on humans and mosquitoes. She labeled us as parasitic like them. We nibble away at things and I guess in a way we do. We kind of suck everything dry if not accounted for. Maybe the Earth would be better off with out us but would the solution be to get rid of us or simply be shown the way to in Annie Dillard's eyes correctly handle nature? I guess that would depend on your beliefs because in the Bible God put Adam in charge of naming all the animals and what not. which actually brings me back to the wondering whether or not we'd be on the same level if he hadn't eaten the fruit. Now she'll always have me wonder if I would've seen a squirrel or a tree differently. Now when ever I see a tree I think of the tree with lights in it.

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Annie Dillard, Harper Perennial Modern Classics New York,NY:1974 1/2

Before I begin I'd like to note that for some reason, as I read the book, I kept thinking the writer was male. I kept wanting to call her him and I'm not exactly sure why. Maybe it's her style of writing. I'm not use to reading a book with so much description of surroundings. Some parts I found boring, but I got through it. Getting through the first chapter was the hardest for me, but once I did it got a little better. Dillard sees the world as something we can never fully comprehend. The reason we can't comprehend it is because we aren't equal with nature. We aren't equal with all the animals. Of course this happened because of Adam and Eve. She wonders how we would view the world if they didn't obtain the knowledge that God had. That's another thing she puts into place a lot, biblical references. Her main thing on religion seems to be of course the Earth was created by some higher being, look at how complex it is. This book makes me think, it makes me wonder what it would feel like to be blind, to be equal with animals. Not every one can observe and get the beauty of nature over all. The complexity of it is fascinating. Being human, we can only try to understand what we see, what's really happening.What really caught my eye was the thing on cataracts. It must e cool to not be able to see and after surgery you see everything. i never thought that they wouldn't know what things are, that they would be comfortable with their disability that they wouldn't like being "normal" when they first opened their eyes. I like the way they would describe colors and things because they hadn't grown up learning it. I wonder how exactly you would end a book like this, the chapters are labeled as seasons or an adjective describing a part of nature. Maybe she'll end with a season.

The Stand 1/3 analysis

In the book The Stand by Stephen King, a modified version of the flu virus leaks out of a military base. Made for biological warfare, the strand of the virus does it's job, wiping out most of the American population as it spreads. The government is determined to cover their own ass, as they have broke a treaty and if other countries knew, then they too might create their own. Introduced are many characters, that are or eventually will be affected by the virus in some way whether it's from them dying or some one close to them. As people die, the government lies saying the rumors of biological warfare aren't true as they continue to try to cover their ass. They say they have a vaccine, and that everyone must remain calm, and anyone who spreads this truth is "dealt with". Among the dying are some survivors immune to the virus and people that have given up hope as society falls apart. Soldiers are forced to shoot unarmed citizens and under pressure some soldiers go awol and open fire on their own. This book shows a society that at first, though it has it's faults, doesn't seem like a dystopia, but as secrets kept from society leak out of the government, many lives are lost. The world can change at a drop of the hat and human error is overlooked as people try to advance technology, even if it may kill them. Biological warfare, once released, can't be controlled, so it's a perfect example of technologies reign over humans. Everything in it's path will die and the government is seen as an enemy that can't be trusted. Before it was what kept society together. This also feeds into the obstruction of power and how humans eventually can't handle all the power and it crumbles under them. The unknown destroys them and though the truth is out, the government is cold-hearted and determined to deny the obvious costing so many lives. This feeds into the idea of society being destroyed by what it doesn't know.

Summarization of Six Sources

Studies have been conducted on the effects of deployment on children. The child isn't really effected until they reach school age. From the time the deployed parent leaves to the time they come back is a different experience. Studies have shown that girls showed more anxiety when the parent left, while boys showed it when the parent returned. There are also so many factors in conducted studies that so many things can make different results. The way the at home parent handles the stress is one of these things. The child learns how to deal with it from that parent. Children were also seen to act out more and want attention. Operation Military Kids, an organization sponsored by the ARMY Child and Youth Services and the University of Vermont. It helps bring families and kids together, as they interact with people their own age who know what it's like for a parent to be deployed. Children's behavior is also effected negatively when the parent has to be re-deployed
Not only does deployment effect the family at home, but the soldier as well. Dealing with war can be stressful and people see things that they wouldn't normally see leading to detachment of real world, nightmares, anxiety, and strain on family communication. Parents are a big part of a child's life growing up, and there have been support groups helping to keep families together.
With the stress of war often leading to abusive behavior, the government has provided programs for soldiers and other government support groups to help keep the family together. They are also working with veterans to help them stay sane well after they've served.
I didn't know that acts of increased healthcare ere being made to help soldiers/veterans with the effects of war. They saw the importance of mental health. Soldiers taking tours in the Middle East showed drastic signs of mental health issues. I didn't thin of gender as a factor when first researching about this but it is an important one. It effects children's behaviors on how they handle it. I know that there are some families who get through it all, while others fall apart. It's a different story for everyone.

Why I chose the topic of army families.

Through high school, I have been more exposed to the "army life" with my involvement in JROTC. I've found it as interesting and a possible career path with me. I want to major in International Affairs at North Georgia and also minor or double major in Arabic. I am currently considering trying to be in Military Intelligence afterward, but I also want a family. I know I want be on the front lines, but I wonder if government work still puts a strain on families and their relationships n matter how close they live. This made me wonder, what are the hardships and differences that army families have than regular families. I know that with a parent in the army, kids can be greatly impacted and so can marriages. The fear of death can also be a problem when you're loved one is on the front lines and as some people have dreaded that knock on their door, it has decided to come anyway.
Some spouses may both be in the army and I wonder what happens to the kids. Do they grow up with their parents getting shipped in and out of their lives, or does one of them have to settle down. I want to see a little of what is the Army's policy, by showing the effect these policies may have on a family. Families might also have their own policies.
The person going into the army may have problems coping with war as well, which puts a strain on human communication, when other people don't understand. I want to see the actual effects and more in depth details on certain people's situations. I also want to know how people try to manage the problems and the stress. Military people don't always have to be on the front lines, but they might get stationed in different places, taking their family with them. The kids have to start over, as does the spouse. When does trying to make it work not work and what happens when you're left with no one, who was taken away by something they so aspired to defeat?

3. Arthur Miller, Viking Press New York,NY:1953

First off I don't get why Danforth would think that Proctor would see all the people that others saw with the devil. he could've seen somebody totally different and they just assume that the same people will always show up at the devil's side, like they're all trying to get John Proctor. I was surprised that he was kind of selling out, but I couldn't blame him. Him and his wife were going through hell and she was pregnant, so I guess that's kind of a reason to live. He started out agreeing with them, but when they wanted documentation he kind of cracked. He didn't want to become a sell out if other people would be a witness to it, his pride got the best of him. It sucks how it was either lie or die in this Christian village. Most of the disputes were over jealousy and land, but when the fever died down, nobody wanted the land. Mr. parris got what he deserved, getting voted out of office. His hate for John Proctor was so great that I bet he loved it when he was confessing, because I bet a part of him knew that the truth had flown out the window a long time ago and that Proctor was in a lose lose situation. Of course Proctor chose death instead of selling out, Abagail mentioning Elizabeth Proctor's name was for nothing, John was just brought down with her and died instead. How can such a child be so vicious and naive, so quick to lie. I never understood how some one could be so vile, but then again I've never really met anybody that would have a man's wife hanged so she could swoop in for the grab. So she says she loves him, but according to her beliefs God is love, and if she was following the word she would've found a good man, one who wasn't already married. I never got cheating either, and then calling it love. If she's going to cheat on his wife, then what makes you think he wouldn't do the same to you. I don't hate John Proctor, Arthur Miller set it up so all you could do was pity him and hate Abigail.

2. The Crucible, Arthur Miller, Viking Press New York,NY:1953

I wonder how Abigail would know that Mary would give the poppet to Elizabeth Proctor. Seems like that question will go unanswered. I know Abagail was behind her when she was making it, but the play never indicated that Mary was all "I'm going to give this to Elizabeth Proctor". It seems like the girls were trying to get rid of all the women, since they were cursing people. Now they seemed like misguided harlots that danced in the woods and blamed it on "witches", which were well known women throughout the community. In that case, the adults have seemingly set a bad example, with exceeding expectations and then when confessing they used scare tactics. Some people were forced to admit things they didn't do in order to live. It was a domino of lies, and it didn't want to end. Seems like none of them were good Christians, only want-to-bees that went about it the wrong way. It shows the motivation a religion can give you, whether good or bad. With something to believe in your life has more meaning and you feel like you have a purpose. So many people in The Crucible wanted to have a purpose, to achieve greatness, and expected to achieve it by going against their own supposed morals. Makes you wonder if they ever really took a good look at the bible or just recited all the right verses like a good little Christian. John and Elizabeth Proctor's life, made me wonder if things such as cheating could ever be forgiven. If it would always leave a hole, that can't help but get bigger and bigger. I'm sure they'll be alright though, because they aren't puppets that follow the crowd. The betrayal by Mary was messed up though. She was pressured, scared, and young; when she tried to tell the truth, there seemed no possible way for it to be accepted. It would only drag her down and she would be labeled as a liar any way. The devil didn't have to disguise himself in this village because he was already all around them.