Charles Gillick, Class of 2023
Strength and growth come only through
continuous effort and struggle.
All life demands struggle.
~Napoleon Hill
Living in a poor town on a Washington State reservation, a kid seeks to find hope. This boy’s name is Junior. However, nothing can ever be easy. Junior faces countless challenges and adversity; moreover, he needs to find hope if he is to be able to overcome this struggle. I was similar in this way, as I needed to look at the bright side and push through annotating the book. Struggle, while a piercing blade poised to penetrate your heart, is dulled by the rigid stone of hope.
Nothing in life comes without struggle. In the book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, this adversity was true for Junior as he explored the world outside of Wellpinit. Junior realized that he had no future in Wellpinit, so he decided to find hope elsewhere. However, this choice was far from easy and sent him through an emotional rollercoaster. After Junior threw the book at Mr. P, Mr. P came by his house to talk to him. He told him that he had to leave Wellpinit because, in Wellpinit, everybody struggles to find opportunities. Everybody at Wellpinit stays, and nobody has ever gone elsewhere.
You’ve been fighting since you were born,’ he said. ‘You fought off that brain surgery. You fought off those seizures. You fought off those drunks and drug addicts. You kept your hope.’ [Mr. P 43].
Mr. P. believes Junior will never find his place in Wellpinit and needs to go elsewhere. However, this is easier said than done. After Junior makes this difficult decision, he says “It’s real. And I’m transferring now.” Although this helped him find his way in life, it caused him a lot more struggle. Junior faces countless challenges; moreover, he begins to find the inner strength and confidence to overcome his struggles, yet, the struggle will never cease. Junior can never stop. He cannot lose hope. The struggle is an unending battle of a lack of hope and a lack of opportunity.
Hope is the most powerful force. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, Junior finds renewed hope by looking in an unusual place. Junior realized that there was no future for him in Wellpinit; he realized that he needed to change something for a better future. Junior gets mad, throws a book at Mr. P, and gets suspended. During this time, he has time to reflect on his life and his limits. On the last day of his suspension, Mr. P tells him to leave the rez and keep his hope, as everyone else has lost it. Junior is confused, so Mr. P hammers down.
You’ve been fighting since you were born, he said. You fought off that brain surgery. You fought off those seizures. You fought off all the drunks and drug addicts. You kept your hope. And now, you have to take your hope and go somewhere where other people have hope [Mr. P 43].
Junior’s friend Rowdy dreams just like him and yet he is unable to put those dreams into action. It may be because his father abuses him, or maybe because he can’t control himself. And Rowdy hates Junior because he left the rez in search of hope— maybe because he was unable to do it himself. “He’s a big, goofy dreamer, too, just like me” [Junior 23]. Junior’s hopes “floated up in a mushroom cloud”; however, he begins to find the inner strength and confidence to find hope elsewhere, moreover, he transfers and “start[s] school tomorrow at Reardan”. There is no turning back now. He cannot afford to lose hope. In the words of John Fitzsimmons, “Without hope, there is no light. Without light, there is no direction. Without direction, you are lost.”
Nothing great exists without struggle. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian was an extremely good fit for me, but the annotating part of the assignment was what held me back. When I read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, it was a very smooth, exciting, and hilarious book; however, annotating and underlining were my kryptonite, and I struggled to stay focused while doing so. This book helped me learn that I needed to embrace the challenge if I ever wanted to scratch the surface of how truly amazing this piece of literature is.
When I began this reading assignment, I believed that it would just be another boring reading and annotating assignment, but the book caught me by surprise with its captivating writing and images. I was intrigued, and before I knew it, I had finished the book. The only problem was, I had barely annotated. I knew it would be a struggle, and I frankly didn’t want to do it at all. After an hour of procrastinating, I managed to accept it as a reality and got to work. I realized that putting it off wouldn’t help me at all, and I just needed to accept the challenge and push through.
I was always looking for good sentences and phrases to underline and was surprised to find many themes that I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t accepted the challenge to read closely and annotate passages that developed themes. I struggled in the beginning, but I managed to find a groove, and made it through the rest of the book with minimal difficulty. A couple of days ago, you would have heard me complaining, moaning that annotating was a waste of time. Now I realize that the struggle was worth it, as I found many hidden themes that made that book infinitely more interesting and amazing. Struggles will always pay off.
Hope is not always there to save you; real success is not a given; sometimes, the struggle is the only path through.
The struggle is not always a foe. It can be an ally.
