Noah mentions that the children in his neighborhood didn’t see their fathers often, just as he did. He talks about how he was surrounded by women and how they played a big part in his life. This is powerful because in a family setting, women were seen as the main caregivers, housewives, etc. But in a marriage, women were seen as inferior and were expected to abide by the man’s orders. It’s interesting but sad how women were seen as so important, but still treated as if they weren’t. Today, there’s still gender equality that exists, especially in the workplace, where men tend to get paid more than women. As a woman, it’s frustrating to see how long women have been deemed as “inferior” to men and I hope that the fight for gender inequality progresses.

"English prayers get answered first. How do we know this? Look at white people. Clearly they’re getting through to the right person" (Noah,  40).

Noah’s family, especially his grandmother, believed that his prayers would get answered because he prayed in English. They believed that prayers in English got answered first because Jesus spoke English. This stood out to me in his example of white people. White people were given more job opportunities, less violent treatment, leniency with the law, etc. Black people didn’t get any of that. This shows that religion could tie into white supremacy and how not only do they have dominant roles in society, but they seem to also seem to get priority, at least to Trevor and his family, in religion.

I chose this photo because the chapter was about Noah's relationship with praying and how significant praying was to him and his family.
https://miro.medium.com/max/4242/1*-EnSOqPnm7gqh77hOl0fiw.jpeg

This refers to how white people are basically born into a life of privilege. They have always held dominance and power over racial minority groups. The fact that “racial minority groups” is even a thing is because white people have given themselves power over them. Within a racial hierarchy, white people are on top. Because they are born into this privilege, they tend to have more leniency towards certain circumstances. One example I can think of is employment. If you’re white and you have a job, you’re probably making more than the average colored person. In addition, on average, white people are let off with a warning for speeding in front of a police officer. But there’s a history of police brutality towards people within the black community for something as simple as speeding. 

This quote is referring to how Noah realizes that he was shielded from reality when he transitions from a school with diversity to a school without it. When he was in a more diverse learning setting, he didn’t experience racism and segregation. He was comfortable and used to there being groups of different people. But when moving to this new school, he felt that because everyone was so separated, he had to choose who to befriend by who he identified with the most. This concept of racism not being seen but still existing is very relevant as of right now. Lately there have been numerous attacks on Asian elderly, but some people are still ignorant of the situations because they haven’t personally seen a case before their eyes despite there being video evidence on the internet. Racism still exists whether you’ve experienced it or not and whether you’ve seen it or not. 

This photo portrays segregation within schools, which is what Noah dealt with when going to a school that was socially separated into racial groups.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.timetoast.com/public/uploads/photos/9514746/bwon_vboard.jpg

“Learn from your past and be better because of your past,” she would say, “but don’t cry about your past. Life is full of pain. Let the pain sharpen you, but don’t hold on to it. Don’t be bitter” (Noah, 66).
This refers to Noah’s mother’s past and how she decided to live her life in the present, not in the past. She explains that your past is something that already happened, and that you should grow from it. In addition, you should also not hold grudges for too long, as it may affect your feelings more than it should. I resonate with this a lot because it’s something that I’m trying to incorporate in my life. I no longer want to live in my past mistakes, and just escape it and move forward. Although there are some traumatic events that will probably never escape our thoughts, moving in baby steps and trying to let go of the smaller things always helps in progressing towards a better life.

This refers to how Noah didn’t live in luxury as a child, but still had enjoyable moments. This stood out to me because you can tell that Noah was genuinely appreciative of his life, despite his living conditions. This ties into happiness and how it doesn’t all come from materialistic goods and wealth. Materialistic desires only satisfy you temporarily. The enjoyable experiences he made with his family are what provides meaning to his life. Memories like these can last a lifetime. No amount of money can buy you the happiness that memories with loved ones can. 

I chose this photo because it depicts a version of Rosie the Riveter, which is a symbol of female empowerment. This chapter focuses on Noah's mom's strengths, so I associated her with this image because I she is strong and empowering just as Rosie the Riveter is. 
http://bpic.588ku.com/element_origin_min_pic/16/09/25/1657e7913f04010.jpg

This refers to how Noah was always accountable for the ruckus he’s caused as a child, however, it seems a lot more powerful than that. The rules didn’t make any sense during apartheid, such as the racial views and segregation. In the informational part before the chapter  actually starts, Noah speaks on how South Africans considered Chinese people as black and Japanese people as white. I have never heard of this before and I thought it was extremely weird, because even to this day, people have trouble distinguishing Asians from one another. In a way, this is one of the rules then that didn’t make sense to me. As of right now, there are still questionable rules that don’t make sense, such as same-sex marriage still being illegal in some countries, how polygamy is not considered a felony in one state out of the whole country, etc. 

This is how Noah used to conclude the chapter and to justify why he didn’t hold onto the punishment he received and continued doing whatever he wanted to do. This stood out to me because it’s a concept that I want to work on. I tend to let things in the past affect how I act and live my life, however, I want my actions in the past to never hold me from doing what I want to do. An example I can think of is how I quit my current job due to being scared of going through past experiences with my previous job. When I quit, I wasn’t hesitant at all, but now that I only have two more days there, I’m kind of regretting my decision. I don’t think I’m going to take back my decision, however, I hope as time goes by, I realize that my decision was for myself and not because I didn’t want history to repeat itself. 

I honestly just chose this image because I thought the story of Noah burning down the house was funny. 
https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/burning-house-fire-outside-walls-isolated-white-background-flame-family-home-natural-disasters-accident-concept-140856357.jpg

This refers to how Panther, who was the dog who could hear, would help Fufi, who was the dog that couldn’t hear. Noah was confused as to why Fufi didn’t listen to his commands, but the whole time, it was because she was deaf and he just didn’t know, thus him calling her a stupid dog. This was a misunderstanding because he wasn’t aware of her condition, but I chose this quote because this is related to a stigma that still exists today. There are deaf and hard -of-hearing people that face ableism because they cannot hear. They’re constantly told that they cannot do anything because of their inability to hear. I related this to the quote because Noah describes Fufi as the dumb dog, which is a way that society portrays deaf people. After watching a show that is supposed to bring awareness to the deaf community, I have seen that the deaf community are no different than us in terms of intelligence.

This refers to the story Noah tells about how another family claimed to own Fufi and how he got jealous over Fufi interacting with another boy. This quote is so important to me because it is something that people still don’t understand. This is why there are so many toxic relationships out there. Some people think that they own people because they love them. This doesn’t have to be in romantic relationships, but it could also be seen within families or friendships. It could be toxic within any relationship formed. In this case, it was a dog. I personally have gone through this with a friendship I had with someone. He was protective and clingy and I felt so suffocated and trapped in something that I didn’t want to be in. This is a social problem that in my opinion, will not go away any time soon. 

I just found a random cute dog picture for this chapter. I tried looking for a picture of the mix that Noah had, but all of the dogs looked so different! 
https://hips.hearstapps.com/wdy.h-cdn.co/assets/17/39/cola-0247.jpg?crop=0.668xw:1.00xh;0.151xw,0&resize=480:* 

Noah talked about how his Christmas with his Swiss dad was different from how South African families would celebrate their Christmas. Specifically, how they would be against giving presents addressed from Santa Claus. I honestly thought this quote was both funny and true. I never thought about it that way. A white man taking credit for something that you put effort into. It’s even worse because in South Africa, the white men were the ones that oppressed them, giving them even more power just for taking credit over a Christmas present. It really makes sense. But also, I never thought about it that way because I never credit my gifts for people to Santa. Looking at it from a different perspective really made me think about it, and now I know to never start making my gifts from Santa. 

This refers to how Noah’s dad moved to Cape Town when he was thirteen and how he hadn’t seen him in years. He goes on about how he has negative thoughts about him because all he has are questions about him, not facts. It was as if he was creating his own narrative about his dad. I feel the same way. My dad hasn’t been around much of my life. Only holidays. However, I have always had this negative narrative of him in my mind because it felt like he abandoned me for another family. Don’t get me wrong, I love my brother more than anything, but sometimes it feels like my dad favors him over me. When your parents aren't there, all you’re left with are questions spiraling in your head about what they would do for you and what kind of person they would be around you. I completely understand it all.

This was the meal, potato rösti, that Noah's father made him as a child, but also when Noah reunited with him after years apart.
https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/30/2020/08/potato-rosti-cakes-with-sage-leaves-12eeb5f.jpg?quality=90&resize=440,400