Chapters Thirteen and Fourteen(FINALLY)~ Finding Peace, Letting Go

Once again before we start, I would like to share a song that goes back a couple years. If you remember the old name, Hilary Duff, you know that we all were obsessed with her when we were in fifth grade or so. I think this song relates to "Letting Go."

After a blast from our childhood, let's go back to Bay Ly's experiences. Le Ly finally found someone to take care of her. An American soldier named Ed was finally a person that genuinely cared for her. She was able to go to the United States to live there and raise her new family. On the last page of chapter thirteen, I found the final words to be the THEME of the novel. Those words are :"... your family is waiting"(Hayslip, 337). It was then that she was able to find a family. Basically, this whole novel is about family and how there is always someone out there that will take care of you. It could be an unexpected person who is watching over you. Speaking of someone watching out for you, it also reminds me of another Hilary Duff song that gives everyone goosebumps.

Thanks for reading!

Chapters Eleven and Twelve~ Almost Paradise, Finding a Family

Before we "get socratic", I would like to share this video that I found very fitting to chapter eleven

For all of you Footloose fans out there, there will be a Footloose 2 that premieres on October 14, 2011. If you have no shame, join Mikaela and I as we are geeking out about this premiere. Also, in the summer of 2012, there will be a third movie added to the epic Bill and Ted saga. Hmmm, the earth is going to end in 2012 and the Wyld Stallyns will make their final appearance. Coincidence? I think not.

Alright, now it's time to get serious. Let's go back to Bay Ly's life before she left for America. So she got a job in a hospital and she meets this guy named Red. She thought they were in love, but he tried to turn her into a show girl. Obviously, that did not exactly work out. Then she got involved with a guy from Texas. But, he was emotionally unstable and left her when his job was reassigned. Finally, the love of her life came along and he was able to get her out of Vietnam.  During her encounters with these Americans, they often yelled EPXPLETIVES like the following: "'Le Ly- you come back here!' Red shouted. 'Where do you think you're going? Damn you, woman....!'"(Hayslip, 284). Once again, we see the recurring theme of disrespect toward women.

Chapter Ten~ Pwer on Earth

In this chapter, our author visited some representatives of the Vietnamese government. They met so they could sort out the stereotypes and hatred between the US and Vietnam.  If it says anything about the misconceptions of the United States, Mr. Xa thought that Bay Ly lived in a Vietnamese ghetto. Though the Americans are recovering after the war, Bay Ly says that the Vietnamese are not so fortunate in this statement that includes some Vietnamese DIALECT: "'Most of them are still hurt and angry,' I tell him truthfully. 'They are ho khong chap nhan che do cong san- they cannot accept their country under communism'"(Hayslip, 265). The Vietnamese people did not like the state of their country under communism. It only made their way of life miserable.

Chapter Nine~ Daughters and Sons

Now that now that she has been reunited with her mother, our author learns a rather...strange MYTH from her mother. Basically, the story is about how her mother was bit by a dog. Then a snake showed up and her mother did not want to be bit because she didn't learn a lesson from the dog. So she followed the tired snake to place where it could rest. She believed that it was the spirit. "HIs spirit is finally at rest . He's come back to lie in peace beside your father(Hayslip, 249). 

Bay Ly finally felt that she was reunited with her family. Not just in presence, but also in spirit. If you recall, her mother treated her like a "black sheep" and her brother thought she was a capatalist intruder. In just a day, that all changed and she felt at home once again.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Chapter Eight~ Sisters and Brothers

I know that this chapter deals with Bay Ly's teenage life but I will focus on her return to Vietnam in 1986.  When she returned, she stayed at her niece, Tinh's, house. The next day, she went to the market to look for Lai. Upon reuniting with her sister that she had not seen in a very long time, Lai rejected Bay Ly. This DIALOGUE describes the situation very well:

"'Please- for the love of go- go home!'

 'I- I can't!' Tears are streaming down my face.

'Where are you staying?' She sorts her snails with a vengance.

'I am at Tinh's-'

'Good. Go back to Tinh's and wait. But for god's sake- get out of here!Take pity on us- please! Let us live just a little longer!'(Hayslip, 218).

Bay Ly was happy to be home, but she felt as if she was a danger to her family.

Chapter Seven~ A Different View

I found the title of this chapter to be very appropriate Bay Ly returned to Ky La to find her family home in shambles. Her father was reduced to a living skeleton. She knew her father was dying. When her efforts to find help at the American Military camp were thwarted by the misanthropic translator, she cared for him herself. But, her father could not take the pain and strife that comes with protecting a family during war. He committed suicide by swallowing acid. Though she went through a period of personal grief, she reached a TURNING POINT: "I saw that a determination to live, no matter what, was more powerful than a willingness to die... I believed my father's death was his way of giving me eternal peace- not in the hearafter, but for every instant of every day I was alive... From my father's death, I finally learned how to live"(Hayslip, 215).

Chapter Six~ A Question of Faith

So Bay Ly is poor, hungry, pregnant, and unwed. Her situation is pretty awful. What do most people do in this situation? They question their faith. She has to move in with her sister,Lan, who is...well...a piece of work. She is rather fond of Americans and Bay Ly does not quite understand why. One day, a drunken marine came into her apartment and she did not offer him any hospitality. As Lan was chastising her, she kind of screamed this HYPOTHETICAL QUESTION:  "'You little fool!' she shouted. 'Do you know what you've done? No! You don't know, do you? You're just too stupid! A stupid little girl who got herself knocked up because she doesn't know any better!"(Hayslip, 175). So, little Bay Ly once again found herself on the street. She lived with another group of pregnant women for a little while, but her father went to Lan's apartment and was furious that she had kicked Lan out. Lan took her back in under her father's orders. Then we have a new character. His name is Hung. To support her mother and her baby, she became an entrepreneur. So she sold cigarettes, whiskey, and bracelets to GIs. It was a wartime "souvenir" business.

Another song came to mind while I was reading. Since she really didn't have a place to call home, I thought this song was appropriate.