When I think of the word “window”, I envision a glass window with bold black frames allowing a ray of sunlight to enter the house. The window provides me with many opportunities to see many great things everywhere I go. A transparent piece of glass that will enable me to see the outside world, the ability to hear all kinds of sounds, the potential to smell all kinds of passing scents in the air, and the capability to feel the snow, rain, and wind. 
   Additionally, I can become motivated to either accomplish my dreams and goal or be encouraged to try something new out of my comfort zone. For instance, wanting to paraglide after gazing at someone gracefully fly against the wind! A window provides much inspiration from the outside world. Either being at home, in a car, on a bus, in a restaurant or wherever… if there is a window, there is an opportunity for freedom to look out and see how great the world is. 

    This emotional ballad represents a mirror of my life because its message revolves around overcoming all sorts of obstacles and the pain that it comes with. The song shifts gear from feeling helpless and hopeless to finally finding the happiness and up-lift in life. However, because of the lingering emotional scars, the singer questions if someone will take this happiness away from her and life would be nothing but despair again. In the end verse, the singer closes the song by singing that even if there are still the emotional scars to deal with and trying to find recovery, she knows that she will be recognized for her hard work, remembered for the things she has done, and most importantly, being able to show the world that she was able to take care of her mental health to continue to live and fulfill her dreams, healthily. 

In my case, I wasn’t doing so well mentally and there were personal issues in my life that had transpired. I had many questions that came to me about my existence, my weak accomplishments, my poor relationships with my family, and how hopeless my future would be. However, this song led me to believe that we all feel this way in life at some point. The point of not knowing what else to do and just wanting to slowly sink to rock bottom. But through this song, I’ve understood that everyone has a place in this world and everyone will leave an impact on this world before departing it. 

  I revisit this song a lot when I accomplish simple things to reward myself quietly. Small things such as passing a quiz, walking my dogs, washing the dishes, making rice, etc.  My favorite verse from this song is when the vocalist sings, “The saying that time is medicine was really true for me, as the days went by, I really did get better, but sometimes when I’m too happy, I’m afraid I’ll be in pain again…but still maybe I could be a bright light in this world”. 

When I was first introduced to this poem, I was already filled with emotions of sadness, emptiness, regret, and the feeling of wanting to go back in time to fix what I could with my relationship with my step-father. There were many things I’ve said out of anger about my father, too many to remember but, I’ve learned that I should never repeat the past in the presence and the future. 

I can definitely say that I relate to the man in Hayden’s poem and I’m not quite proud to say so. I’m still young and learning from my mistakes but this poem has taught me that love from your parents isn’t all about hugs and kisses. My step-father came into my life with nothing to give but his love for children that wasn’t even his. He showed me how powerful a father’s true love can be even if it’s all about yelling, shouting, or rage. But behind these actions, it’s a way to educate me about my wrongdoings and a lesson to learn from. Therefore, my favorite piece from this semester is “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden because it’s a poem worth revisiting to remind me to do better to not have negative outcomes like how the speaker in this poem did with his father. 

     The speaker in this poem is stating that he wants to give the best in this world to his lover. He presents this through his creative and vivid imagination of wanting “heaven’s embroidered cloths, / Enwrought with golden and silver light, / The blue and the dim and the dark cloths” (Yeats, lines 1-3). While he is sharing what beautiful and priceless things he dreams to give to her, there is a shift in the poem as he confesses “I, being poor, have only my dreams” (Yeats, line 6). The emphasis of his confession in line 6 states how rich his love is for her.  However, this richness is not in a materialistic way but through his acts of protection, affection, and unconditionally treasuring and loving her. This vulnerable side of the speaker also shows that despite his financial situation, he still dreamed, thought, and cared only about her. He is displaying that heartache can leave a person hopeless, desperate, vulnerable, and selfless. 

     This poem has opened a new perspective of love for me. I am still young and I haven’t experienced what heartache feels like or at least wanting someone to love me back. But through this poem, I’ve understood that one-sided love can do so much to a person to the point where they can become very self-less. I get a feeling that even though the speaker was prepared for this ending to occur in the “relationship”, he was still hurt at the end. Overall, this poem has taught me that love can either bring contentment to a person or misery.  

As a child, the speaker didn’t know what kind of love his father was displaying as it was all done only through his hard work either at home or at work versus showing affection through kind words or skinship. It was until then that the speaker became an adult and understood that parental love is much more than physical affection. While revisiting his past, he questioned himself, “What did I know, what did I know” (Hayden, line 13) to show readers of his regret and late realization. 

Unfortunately,  I can relate to the speaker in this poem because as a child there were many things that I didn’t understand as to why my step-father did the certain things that he did. I was immature and acted way out of hand verbally. It was until I became older and understood that his way of showing love was totally different from the fairy tales and expectations. Through the harsh tones of his voice and impatience, he is the only man to have supported me educationally and was here to help raise the little family that I was born into. This poem reminds me of my past and encourages me to never repeat my mistakes in the future because I might end up like the speaker when it was already too late to acknowledge a father’s love. 

        London’s poem focuses on the issue surrounding educational institutions that lack equality among students. For instance, he talks about the differentiation between an honor roll student and a “regular” student, the reasons why bullying takes place, and its cycle of causes.

       London’s work is a mirror for me because I could not agree with him more as I attended a high school that was solely appreciative and centered on sports. Ever since I was a freshman, I sacrificed my sleep, hobby, friends, and family as I poured my heart and soul into my academics. In response to my hard work and dedication for four consecutive years, my final GPA was 3.7. Due to COVID-19, the class of 2020 couldn’t have the proper and formal farewell. This of course was not my school’s fault as it was protocol. However, the way sports students were rewarded compared to academic students was awfully depressing. For instance, students who excelled in sports were gifted goodie bags and pictures with coaches, staff, and the principal. On the other hand, students who academically stood out were viewed as the ones who barely passed high school. London’s piece of literature reminds me that not all educational institutions stay true to the words that they advertise to parents and put in BOLD letters on their websites. In conclusion, this poem is a mirror reflection of the emotions that I had when I was in high school and experienced the inequality that London talked about.  

     Present in Brook’s work is a very down-to-earth piece and speaks upon the true reality of life’s difficulties. The overall message serves as a reminder that it is normal to experience obstacles and hardships in life. With this idea in mind, Brook motivates her readers that within time, we will get over these obstacles and continue to live freely. 

     Brook writes, “Say to them…the sun slappers…“Even if you are not ready for the day, it cannot always be night.” … Live in the along” (Brooks, lines 1-12). My interpretation of the sun slappers are negative individuals that are trying to dispose of one’s happiness and light. During the daytime, the sun is the only natural source of light that all living things rely on to function and prosper. Therefore, we must not allow negative people to take control of our lives which eliminates our happiness. There will be people like that who have horrible intentions and the goal to ruin someone's life so they can live with satisfaction. But through this poem, Brook reminds us that we have to stay strong and keep fighting to prove to the “sun slappers” that we will live for another day and so forth! 

      In high school, I didn’t have many friends. I was a loner most of the time until I got into my senior year when I met my first two best friends. But, throughout my times of being alone and keeping a distance from other students, I learned a very crucial and disgusting lesson. People of any age can have negative intentions. During middle school, it was the first time I was not only verbally bullied but also physically. This had been going on for a little over seven months until I broke down to my science teacher. She begged me to tell her as she knew I wasn’t feeling safe in the environment. After some convincing, I told her everything and she had advised the principal that same day. With the understanding that the principal was going to take care of this case, I felt like 10 tons had been lifted off my shoulders! I would finally be able to attend my classes feeling safe and ready to learn. I thought she would either get suspended or the least, lunch detention. Nothing…nothing happened. It was that day that I knew no one would be able to help me. I thought to myself over and over again that, if it has gone to an extent of physical abuse, wouldn’t there be any consequences for her? With nothing else to lose, I began to stand up for myself that day as well as other classmates who were victims of this student. Overall, I can relate to Brook’s poem because I was able to find my voice and stand up against my middle school bully without the school’s assistance. 

  I can relate to this poem and I’m sure many of us females can as well. The transition to womanhood can be very scary and most importantly confusing. We are expected to grow out of our usual routines of playing with toys, relying on our parents, and enjoying life without care or worry. However, this transition is sudden and we are expected to take care of ourselves. This results in needing more privacy and alone time for our own self-care. 
     Children are very innocent and sudden changes to their routines can be very intimidating. I had my first cycle when I was away from my biological mother. I was embarrassed to tell my stepmother because I didn’t know how a “stranger” would react to someone who wasn’t her actual child. However, she handled it completely opposite of what my expectations were. She taught me how to use feminine products, how to clean myself, and if I had cramps I could take certain medications to ease the pain. I was also told that that day I was a  “hluas nkauj'' which translates to a young woman.
  Since then, she would call upon me to help her wash the dishes, make rice, wash the vegetables for dinner, and so much more. It was a sudden change but I enjoyed doing it because I felt like a grown-up. I wanted to touch the warm water and bubbling Dawn dish soap while scrubbing the dishes and I especially wanted to squeeze the raw rice grains in my hands while washing it! 
Although I felt freedom while stepping into adulthood, there were many worries and stress that began to grow on me. Such as taking care of myself, my family, education, etc. I realized that being an adult is tough and I can’t tell you how many times I dreamed of becoming a child again to never worry about a single thing except about my toys breaking! However, as life goes on, we age every day and there is nothing that we can do but to push forward. This coming of age poem hits close to my heart and reminds me of how innocent I was as a child to these changes that my body was producing.