I don't know about anyone else but if I were to preform this fire trick, I would scream and faint in fear.
How has the human race become so tolerable with a destructive being, in this case fire, that we are able to literally hold it in the palm of our hand? It just absolutely blows my mind that something that can destroy an entire forest can also be a tranquil, small flame. I'm sure our Neanderthal relatives would be so proud.
But it is quite ironic how something so violent has a possibility to be controlled. Jeannette Walls had a long term relationship with fire and it is shown quite frequently throughout her memoir. She mentioned that when she was a child she "...was on fire..." (Walls 5) by the young age of five. Literally. This happens when she was cooking hot dogs in order to feed herself but after she "...felt a blaze of heat on...[her] right side." (Walls 5) , and she was immediately hospitalized. This marked the beginning of her life becoming destructive and without regulations. Like a fire, her life started to burn and the ashes of her youth float away, unable to be assembled back to what it used to be. Walls had opportunities to change her poorly-structured life everyday, but they would all end up floating away, lost in a sea of what would become her memories. In order to gain stability, Walls tried to tame her heated life, (excuse the pun) but there are times when her efforts would burn back. Her life obstacles, such as poverty and abuse, would not succumb so easily just as a fire would.
In an effort to take control, Jeannette had to use her secret weapon, her amazing ability to write, as her firefighter. Using her skill, she was able to overcome her life difficulties of suffering under lower-class lifestyle.
Before reading Glass Castle, I believed that my life can be called anything but extraordinary, and I was always so amazed and slightly envious towards those who had a major accomplishment in their life. But I have realized that, like Jeannette Walls, everyone has overcome a "disastrous fire" in their life almost everyday. Any struggle we have, we end up overcoming at one point by sustaining control. Whether it was trying to reach for the top cupboard to get those chocolate chip cookies (part of my problems from being vertically-challenged), to overcoming your fears of society. We all have a fire that we will need to gain control of but we must use our own strength to take control of it. Like the saying goes, you must fight fire with fire.
Before I make any further comments I must say...YOUR PUNS ARE BEAUTIFUL I APPROVE WHOLEHEARTEDLY, DEAR CHILD.
ReplyDeleteThis post provides great insight into Jeannette Wall's life as well as our ability as humans to overcome obstacles. I never really thought about everyday life in terms of fire before.
As for the fire in your hand video...truly inspiring. I now know what we're doing next time we're in range of a stove.
This was very insightful! And I also like your formatting; it's very creative! You're right, it's strange how something can be so destructive, yet tame. It's amazing how somebody like Jeannette has found the ability to be able to control the fire in her life. Good work! :)
ReplyDelete