KatieScrapbook2

=Katie Taylor's Scrapbook= =With the Semanas=

The Assignment
To get a feeling for how the Samanas, Indian ascetics that are found in the novel //Siddhartha//, try to reach enlightenment, we gave up something we enjoy for a week. I chose to give up sleeping with my "Bunny", because it's technically not something I **need**. Technically.

[[image:http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KHDz_iyR_j0/TrM42cYWmnI/AAAAAAAAA6s/11E2mZz8-5I/s1600/Can_tSleep.jpg width="300" height="241" align="left"]] Beginning of the Week-
The first few nights of not sleeping with my Bunny were a little challenging. It took me a while to get to sleep at first and I would wake up a lot in the middle of the night. I think that one of the most difficult things was having "Bunny" be in my bed, and reach to grab her before bed, then realize that Im not allowed to sleep with her. At one point Siddhartha feel his loved ones love "would not always and for all time make him [me] happy, content [me], sate him [me], suffice [me]" (Hesse 2). I began to feel this way as well, knowing that one day I will eventually get over my fear of the dark and to be able to sleep without her.

Middle of the Week-
As the week continued, I was able to sleep easier every night. I realized that as long as I had activities going on during the day and kept myself busy, I would be tired enough at night that I would just go straight to bed and not think about it. At points I would wake up in the night and instead of cuddling with bunny, I would take my comforter in my arms or cuddle a pillow. Through the week I made a goal for myself: to "become empty" (7) of my fears. I want to be able to be empty from my fear of the dark. This will take a lot of will and I will need to understand that not everything is dangerous...especially my house.

End of the Week-
By the end of the week, I had done a pretty good job of not sleeping with my bunny. I was tempted but did not do it. The last night of the week, I was listening to music and a commercial came on for Paranormal Activity. I got freaked out. I laid in bed for a while and just could not go back to sleep. I finally gave in and reached for my bunny. I felt a sort of comfort. I think I did pretty well this week but with every goal like this, "at the end they always" (9) fall through and I give in. I was proud of myself for being able to do it for a few days, and it made me realize that it isn't impossible for me to sleep without her but it brings a sense of comfort to me while Im sleeping. This assignment made me realize that both Siddhartha and I have something in common, we do not like the path to self denial.

The Quote
What does Siddhartha's "Awakening" look like? Siddhartha "looked around as if he were seeing the world for the first time" (21). He saw how beautiful the world is, how much of a variety of beautil things are in it. Siddhartha that there "Was blue, was yellow, was green; sky flowed, and riced; forest jutted upward, and mountains; everything beautiful" (22). As he saw all of this, he was finally where he wanted to be, "on the path to himself" (22).

Analysis
The reason for all of the pictures I drew seem quite simple in the fact that they are all in the text. Siddhartha has his arms up in the picture because he is looking in awe at how beautiful the world is, just like a person who is "seeing the world for the first time" (21) would do. In the picture "river, and forest jutted upward, and mountains; everything beautiful" (22) because this is what the beatiful world is. Siddhartha is on "the path to himself" (22) in the picture, it is going upward as well. People always say that we cant go anywhere but up from here, and this is what I see Siddhartha as. I see him as forgetting about his past and going forward to where the path is leading him into the beautiful world.

=Kamala=
 * Name**: Kamala


 * Location**: The Pleasure Grove


 * Eyes**: Dark Brown


 * Hair**: Black Hair


 * About Me:** I have a very clever face. I like to keep my eyebrows tended in high arches and I wear bright red lipstick. I wear bracelets on my wrists all the time. (28). I have a scent that will draw you close to me. Im a confident women and can teach you how to love. I am a woman who can tear your heart apart, so I would not get too comfordable with me. I get visited from young men who are clean, smell nice, and have elegant shoes on.
 * Hobbies / Profession:** I am a woman to teach men how to love. I will talk to you if you provide me with money, and are fresh looking. I enjoy laying on my day bed, and sitting in my sedan chair. I enjoy flirting with men and pulling them close to me.

**Looking For**
I need a man who is clean and has money. I enjoy when the men who visit me have nice clothes, elegant shoes, nice hair, and with money to reward me with.

=Samsara=

My Daily Life

 * 1) My dad wakes me up
 * 2) I shower and go to the bathroom
 * 3) I get dressed in my room, usually consisting of singing and dancing.
 * 4) I do my make up and hair
 * 5) I go to the kitchen to get breakfast
 * 6) My friend picks me up to take me to school
 * 7) I go to school and see my friends
 * 8) I have weightlifting or some sort of sport everyday after school
 * 9) I go home
 * 10) Do my homework
 * 11) Stay on the computer for a little bit
 * 12) Go to bed
 * 13) Repeat

Quote from Siddhartha
"The years sped by; cushioned by prosperity, Siddhartha barely felt their passing." (40)

Analysis
My life is just one big routine...especially on the weekdays. First, my dad comes into my room and wakes me up. He usually comes in one time to turn the light on and tell me its time to start opening my eyes and think about getting up. Then he comes in again and tells me that it is actually time to wake up now. I slowly get out of bed and make my way to my bathroom. I shower there and wash my face, then I go back into my room and begin getting ready. While I get ready I always blast music to help me get in a good mood and wake myself up more. After I get dressed, do my hair, and put on make up, I go downstairs to get my backpack together and make my breakfast. Around 8:20 my friend comes to my house to pick me up and drive me to school. We finally make it to school, usually a little late and I rush to class. After class I meet up with my friends and we all talk about our day and about what we have coming up. Most of the time along the lines of not studying as much as we should have, and complaining about how hard class will be; its always our own fault. After school I go to the gym to weight lift, or to practice. The season depends on which sport I practice. In the fall, I practice volleyball but in the winter and spring I train for softball. I then go home and do homework, and then go to sleep. This is my routine every day...do I notice that this happens every day? No. Do I mind it? No. Could I do more/ change my routine up to make life more exciting as time passes? Yes. "The years [pass] by... [and I] hardly [notice] their passing" (75). Sometimes I cant remember what I did the day before because every day is the same and all of the days mix together.

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**Song:** "The River" by Bruce Springsteen

 * Lyrics: "**Now those memories come back to haunt me, they haunt me like a curse. Is a dream a lie if it don't come true?"
 * Quote from the text:** "All he knew was that he had left his earlier life behind; he knew that, filled with disgust and misery, he had even wanted to throw away his life, but that he had regained consciousness by a river, under a coconut palm, the sacred word om on his lips; he had fallen asleep, and now, awake again, he was looking at the world like a new person." (48)
 * Analysis:** In this song, Bruce Springsteen is talking about all of his life, doing things that he thought were right and them not ending up to be the things he thought they would be. He talks about how all of the past events in his life haunt him, which reminds me of Siddhartha in this line. The quote from the text shows that as he looks into the river, and sees his refection, he is disgusted with himself because of the memories in the past. Then in the part of the song where it says is a dream a lie if it don't come true, reminds me of Siddhartha because Siddhartha had dreams, some of which did not come true and now he has all of these questions about his life and his past.

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**Song:** "The River" by Good Charlotte

 * Lyrics: "** In the city was a sinner. I've done a lot of things wrong but I swear I'm a believer. Like the prodigal son, I was out on my own. Now I'm trying to find my way back home. Baptized in the river. I'm delivered, I'm delivered."
 * Quote from the text:** "Siddhartha, that willful, strange man; and yet this Siddhartha was transformed, and he was renewed, he was remarkably rested, remarkable awake, joyful and inquisitive." (48)
 * Analysis:** This is the same case Siddhartha was in, In the sense that in the city, Siddhartha did a lot of things wrong but once he got to the river, he is renewed. Once he wakes up, he feels refreshed and like a new person. Siddhartha was also on his own in this journey. Once he gets to the river, he is able to recognize all of the wrong that he has done, but is able to finally realize that he needs to get back on the right path and with this new sense, he is able to feel alive and refreshed.

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**Song:** "The River" by Scotty McCreery

 * Lyrics:** "So don't you sit upon the shoreline and say you're satisfied. Choose to chance the rapids and dare to dance that tide"
 * Quote from the text:** "In this river Sihhartha had wanted to drown; in it the old, tired, despairing Siddhartha had drowned that day. But the new Siddhartha felt a profound love for that flowing water, and resolved in his mind to not leave it behind for quite some time." (54)
 * Analysis:** This quote matches with the lyrics because it shows that Siddhartha had at one point thought about giving up, which is a lot like being satisfied. Being satisfied is settling for something, and to settle means to not go any further than where you are. Siddhartha did not settle, he was able to "dare to dance that tide". He realized that he loves the feeling for the river, and he decided that he does not want to let go of this feeling. Siddhartha is not settling for having the feeling for just a few days, or even a few hours. He wants to have this feeling for a while and with this said, he is willing to make sacrifices to keep himself not tired, not despairing, but happy, renewed, and full of joy.