prompt #2-

     I think that when Ray says that the land is an exchange she means that every thing is exchanged . Like in the chapter "Built By Fire" are helping each other because they depend on each other. So they need to exchange things to help the other stay alive. This is an example of an commensalism. this is because both things benefit from the exchange and they don't die because they didn't have the exchange. Another example of this would be a person giving another person some money for food.

where im from

Do you see this picture? This is where my precious life as the person who wants to make a difference started.I have a close connection to this hospital just like Ray was in the Child Of a Pine .This is the place where I was delivered and held in my moms arms. I remember like yesterday. Well actually I cant because I was just a baby. But still it was a special day that will always be special to me. This place has shaped me too me to be the person I am.

Science Culminating Activity-Pamela

Chapter 28, The Kindest Cut, in Ecology of a Cracker Childhood talks about how forests are being cut down and how every individual tree is important. Trees are not just building material but they're homes for wildlife. This has impacted my life because many trees are being cut down in my neighborhood and one in particular was the biggest tree in my backyard. It fell down in April of this year. The tree was old and decaying but it was a great source of squirrel and bird homes. It was also precious during the summertime because of the massive shade that the lush leaves supplied. Today, every time I look out the window the sky seems fuller and now with more sun new plants can thrive. When I look at the rings on the stump I'm amazed at how many years it lived and     how much life it supported.

Driving and Singing :)

Driving and singing, something I do not do because first: my parents would murder me if I ever drove without a license, (that is, if I don’t crash before they find out I’m driving), and second: because apparently singing at the top of my lungs in a moving car is distracting to the driver. But, that is exactly what Janisse and her brother, Dell, would do with their family after supper some days! The whole concept of willingly going into a car to drive around town is foreign to me. Maybe that’s because neither of my parents are from anywhere near Georgia and I was raised differently, or maybe because I get awfully carsick if I am in a car too long... either way I don't really enjoy driving in cars (but I do love to sing, even if im not very good at it:) ). 

In the book Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray,  Janisse mentions getting into the cars in the junkyard behind her home with her brother and pretending to drive off to faraway places like Canada or Europe. They would travel the world through their imagination! That is something my brother and I never had the need to do. My mother is from Spain, and my father is from Minnesota, so as you may infer, we traveled (and still do). A lot. Instead of imagining ourselves traveling the world, my brother and I would gather up whatever old/interesting things we could find and make cool traveling kits and gadgets to keep us busy on the plane to and from wherever we were going. We never used those gadgets or kits, (maybe once or twice when the Nintendo battery died), but my mother still keeps a box of them somewhere in our house in case my brother and I want them.

    My experiences and my ecosystem have formed me into the person I am today. I am proud of where I come from and I honestly wouldn’t change it for the world! Reading her book, I don’t think Janisse Ray would either. :)

The Normalness of Difference

After reading Child of Pine, I realized how real Ray’s games of pretend have become. Though we’re taught to stand out, one’s “normal” could be the most unique of all.

Ray enjoys these games because she becomes her version of different. Through her adventures, Ray shows her unique “normal” ’s beauty.

Like Ray, once all “different”s were taken, I could only be me. While others parade around, changing like chameleons, being myself actually feels pretty nice.

This flower agrees; among the artificiality, her natural beauty shines. Besides, it’s much harder to reach the sunlight with paint on your petals.
Katy Mayfield

prompt #2-

     I think that when Ray says that the land is an exchange she means that every thing is exchanged . Like in the chapter "Built By Fire" are helping each other because they depend on each other. So they need to exchange things to help the other stay alive. This is an example of an commensalism. this is because both things benefit from the exchange and they don't die because they didn't have the exchange. Another example of this would be a person giving another person some money for food.

Science Culminating Activity- Zoe

My grandmother and I when I was younger

In Chapter 19: Beulahland in Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, it talks about Janisse's grandmother Beulah and how she had a big influence on Janisse. My grandmother (or Omi as I call her) had a huge impact on me as well. She's from France, and as a young child my family and I would travel there for long periods of time. I remember her big yard, climbing up the old trees, and the delicious cherries she grew. This has impacted my life because my family celebrates a lot of traditions that my grandmother did. For example, I always open one present on Christmas Eve, and my dad always cooks this special mashed potato dish that Omi always used to make. Now that she is gone, I will remember and cherish those moments when I was younger even more and I will definitively keep these traditions going generation after generation.