A Lucky Lily

Over the years I've read "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman several times for my classes and every time I find new things that stand out to me. During my most recent reading one line in particular stood out to me: "He said I was his darling and his comfort and all he had, and that I must take care of myself for his sake, and keep well."  For some reason, I had always viewed the husband in the story as uptight and uncaring of his wife. That he had moved the family out of town simply to get them away from prying eyes and his peers. After reading this line, I realized the care he must have felt for her and some things started making sense. The husband did move the entire family away but he didn't have to do that, he could have simply shipped the wife off and continued on with his life. Instead, he continually tried to check up on her and urged her to feel better and return to him and their child. This was both surprising and comforting t...

O ne of my fondest memories was during one of my travels as a young girl. Perhaps all those family vacations have influenced my wanderlust and love of exploring. One vacation continues to stand out to me, it's likely due to the overwhelming peace I had while on vacation visiting my great-grandparents in Mexico. They live in Oaxaca, Mexico and as a child we would often visit during the summer or have them visit us. One particular summer my great-grandpa let me accompany him, his donkey and my grandpa to his small farm away from the house. I'll never forget how beautiful the scenery was. We walked along the dirt road with the shining sun peaking through the tall trees, and even passed a water stream on our journey. My great-grandpa let me take a break to look through all the rocks in the stream. I ended up finding a large rock in the shape of a heart and still have it to this day. When we made it to the farm, I helped clean the sheep's pens and husk the corn. After all the ha...