Blog post 4

I decided to read Apirams blog

I really liked how his writing flowed from one point to another. Furthermore, the lyrics that he chose related very well to what the children were feeling. Some lyrics in the song was pretty much telling the story. Some lyrics like how life for me was not the same, really brings up a more sad and mature mood, which reminds me of death and depression.

When Apiram brought the topic of relying to friends for different things, it really related to me. Sometimes the things we want to talk the most about can only be done so with our friends, sometimes family can't measure up to how valuable good friends are.

After listening to this song, I can see why he chose it. It has a nice beat, really good lyrics and its awesome. It was good that he related it to family and the story, but it would've been better if there was more connections.

Overall I think he did a very good job on his blog.

Blog - Continued part 3

After reading this chapter, there was a particular song that came into my head. (Us against the world-Christina Milian) Some of the lyrics in the song are very similar to what’s happening the story. Although the song is talking about the love between a boy and a girl, the lyrics still have meaning for this chapter.

If we see the last day and they say we gotta go to war
I'll be fighting with you, baby

…

No matter what anyone could say
This is the only place for me
And no one could ever take that away
Nothing could come between us

These parts from the lyrics remind me of their love for one another as well as their powerful friendship no matter what they go through. The two words “last day” could’ve represented the riots and how after that day, everything was changed. Although there was no “war” there was a big conflict between a Christian girl and an Muslim girl.

Because it's us against the world
The world, the world
You know it's us against the world
The world, the world, ohh

That part of the song can be related to how the girls are in their own world while the adults are in another. The world of the adults seems to go against what the girls are used to, and so that’s how “us against the world” relates.

There's no distance here when we're apart

This line created the same image I had gotten when I read “Selam also appeared, on her balcony…She immediately hugged herself, blowing you a kiss.” The reason for this is because even though the girls are apart, as soon as they see each other, it’s as if nothing has changed and they are still in their own little world.

I would still have you

Near the end of the story, when you finally get to meet up with Selam once again, you are rejoiced at the new language you’ve learned. Not only did this meeting create a special bond, it also reassured you that you would be friends forever no matter what, and for that you are very happy.

End of blog part 3

Blog - Continued part 2

One thing that I’ve been thinking about for the last couple minutes was “Why do people believe in religion?” Aside from all that talking and people convincing them. I think at one point in life, you have to question it yourself. Does a god really exist? What proof do I have of that? I’ve never seen him, touched him or anything else. Some religions say there is only one god, while others have up to 12 more even more. What do I believe? Is any of this even real?

I came across this quote which presents a very similar thought to what I just said: “Faith is believing in things when common sense tells you not to”. My only thought to this is, “Why believe it in the first place if your common sense tells you not to?”

Well anyways, moving on, what this story reminds me of is a time when I was really little, around 5 and I was heading off to kindergarten. My parents told me to stay away from kids of a particular race; at the time I was confused and I didn’t understand why, so I questioned them, and they scolded me. Similarly, in the story, the two best friends are kept apart by their parents, but they find a way back to each other. In my situation, I just ignored what my parents said since they weren’t going to explain why and I decided I would become friends with whoever I want.

I think a very powerful theme was placed in this chapter/story to send a message to us all. The theme is man vs. supernatural; as the religious boundaries are something that many people face today, whether it’s with marriage or friendship and so on. The conflict between you and your parents in the chapter can also be seen as a man vs. man issue.

What Language is that?

After reading this little chapter, the first thing that came into my head was “Wow, this story was boring, crappy, and I didn’t like it at all”. But in a couple of minutes, after thinking about it, I felt sorry for the girl and her best friend. It was sad to see how easily friends could get separated, and how adults are so influenced by what their religion tells them. As kids there’s no real boundary for them; they play with whomever they like, talk with whomever they like.

Quote from somewhere, I saw it on Haaris Mian’s PM once: "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity; when many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion."

In the course of the story, there were many objects symbolizing different things. For example, the remote was a symbol of her anger. The riot was the main conflict of the story, which separated the girls, but also created their new language, which was a symbol of their strong friendship.

When I think about the characters in the story, the author somewhat contrasted the adults with the children. Adults had their own world, where danger and religion kept them from talking to others. As children, more ignorant and carefree, they went and found each other, ignoring their parents. Their only main issue was children that they didn’t like. This really got me thinking about some religions and how they say they’re only teaching people to do the world good, yet so many wars and deaths have come out of religion alone.

In conclusion, the chapter was a very interesting read. At first I found it really boring, but after the 2^nd time, something really stood out and made me really think about how this relates to our world right now.