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Another thing that gives me the same feeling is music. Listening to music is a way for people to express their feelings, and often, music is something that people can relate to. While writing was a good way for me to express my feelings, listening to music and hearing people tell their stories was another way for me to get through my day to day life. Some songs I really love that I believe portray a lot of emotion are linked below. These are all songs that made me feel less alone when I was going through hard times.

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"Speech to the Young. Speech to the Progress-Toward" by Gwendolyn Brooks

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"Speech to the Young. Speech to the Progress-Toward" by Gwendolyn Brooks

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"A Pair of Tickets" shows how sometimes you have to make very difficult decisions. Suyuan, the mother of two twins, trying to escape the Japanese invasion, has to leave her two twins behind. Because of this, the twins sense of identity growing up is confused, not knowing who their birthmother is. This story is especially helpful for anyone going through issues with their identity, and not knowing where they are from.

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"My Papa's Waltz" talks about a child's memory of his father. He speaks about how they used to dance around the room, while he would stand on his fathers feet. Growing up without a dad made this story interesting to read, as that sort of thing was something that I never personally experienced. Overall, I believe that it is important to reminisce on the past, parts good and bad, as is done in this story, and to realize that each persons childhood was unique to them.

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In "America," by Claude McKay, he talks about how living in America is difficult, yet how he loves it. I believe that sometimes, some of the hardest things are some of the best things. McKay describes the struggles he has while living in America, and I believe that this is something that many people can relate to. He explains that while it can be hard sometimes, it is overall worth it, which I believe many people would also agree with.

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"Fences" talks about the fences we build around ourselves, and the fences that others build around us. I believe this story really defines an individuals identity, and how they must sometimes break down the walls confining them for what they want. This story deals with many things that affect an individuals identity. This story is very easy to relate to in many ways, and because of that, it can be applied to anyone's individual life.

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"Everyday Use" demonstrates how race and family changes individuals. When Dee leaves home, she becomes a different person after leaving her family. This story displays how family can hurt a person, and how feelings can change towards family depending on how they treat you. The feeling that Maggie has when Dee returns home is one that others can relate to, feeling compared to their sibling, and being afraid that they are going to be better than them.

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"I Too," by Langston Hughes talks about having a different race. He speaks about how he is just the same as other people, he just looks different. Like Obama said, writing used to help him with sorting out different crosscurrents in life, one of them including race. While I can not personally relate to this work, I sympathize with the feeling of not being understood for something that you can't change. I believe that this work may help to bring light to individuals who are racist that people with differing skin tones are all the same as themselves, they just look slightly different.

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"Harlem (Dream Deferred)" by Langston Hughes

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"Harlem (Dream Deferred)" by Langston Hughes

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"Harlem" speaks about how important it is to go for ones dreams. Growing up, with everyone having their own dreams for you can make it difficult to realize your own dreams. This work talks about the importance of defining ones own dreams. It speaks of the dangers of not following ones own dream. I believe that this work in particular is one that many can relate to, since every individual has drams, some of which are hard to follow at times.

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"Girl" demonstrates the value of literature by talking about how the difference in gender can affect a person. Writing about the social expectations of an individuals gender can help the individual define themselves, and determine if they want to follow societies image for them.

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My Favorite Work of Literature This Semester

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My Favorite Work of Literature This Semester

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My favorite work of literature this semester was "Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid. This was a work of literature that I specifically related to, because growing up, I never truly felt like I was a typical 'girl.' Reading this really related to me on a different level, because seeing someone react to the pressure of society to be a typical 'girl,' is something that I never quite agreed with.

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What Obama says about how writing was the way that he sorted through a lot of crosscurrents in his life really stuck with me, because it really reminds me of myself. While I don't write literature, I used to write in a daily journal, which really helped me when I was depressed to figure out my feelings. I believe that writing is one of the best ways to express feelings, that can be kept private, or that can shared with others. When writing with lots of feelings is shared with others, it can help to make a person understand how they are feeling themselves, and make them feel less alone.

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(From:  President Obama on What Books Mean to Him )
Was writing partly a way to figure out your identity? "Yes, I think so. For me, particularly at that time, writing was the way I sorted through a lot of crosscurrents in my life — race, class, family. And I genuinely believe  that it was part of the way in which I was able to integrate all these pieces of myself into something relatively whole."