Literacy History Blog - Destiny Portillo

  Mentors In Life: By: Destiny Portillo    Having finished the novel, we reach the final conclusion in which Wes Moore gives thanks to those who have changed his life for the better.  Of course, understanding he made plenty of mistakes, he views them now as forms of growth and learning.  As well as knowing he would not have been the man he was at the end of this novel if it weren’t for the guidance of his mother, grandparents, aunts, and uncles.  Being human beings we are consistently coming along these instances and paths in life where we have to make critical choices.  There will of course be times where we may follow the wrong path, or make unhealthy decisions that may affect us negatively.      I myself have had my fair share of mistakes and stubbles down the wrong path.  A particular instance that tends to come into mind would have to be the time I lied to my parents about being at “cheer practice”.  During my sophomore year in highschool I hung around with the “cool kids” group. 

  The Impact of Music: By: Destiny Portillo When it comes to music, plenty of individuals can tie it to the sense of comfort.  Music has been known to be a therapeutic form for individuals to increase relaxation and the processing of one’s emotions and thoughts.  In the novel “The Other Wes Moore”, the genre of hip hop music played an important role in giving Wes an identity.  It seemed to give him a form of clear mindedness from the chaos around him from selling drugs, to being told not being in class results in better outcomes for his teacher and fellow peers.  As well as allowing him to avoid facing the inevitable for a split second when it comes to his mother’s anger.  Although Wes has so much going on around him, he still finds a sense of relief from listening or rapping to hip hop. Wes allows individuals to view the idea in which the sound of any music may perform a meaningful impact on one’s life.  A prime example would be myself since I’ve noticed first hand the positive tr

  The Other Wes Moore: By: Destiny Portillo Page 27:  Tony lectures Wes about taking school seriously and staying off the streets. Talk about the relationship between those two.  What advice do you give your siblings based on your mistakes in life?      Within chapter two in the novel "The Other Wes Moore", Tony consistently tries to lead Wes in the path of doing right and focusing on his academics.  Tony is known in the novel to be perceived as the “tough” well known guy in the streets.  This being due to the fact that Tony has made multiple mistakes while younger and has been selling drugs since his early teens.  Of course as Tony is Wes’ older brother; there is the looking up to the older sibling concept at hand.  Wes tends to allow the advice Tony provides him to go in through one ear and out through the other because of how “cool” Tony looks to him.  Which illuminates the crucial factor of being a sibling, because you are leading the way for your siblings who are amazed

  The Other Wes Moore: By: Destiny Portillo            I personally am in agreement with the idea Wes Moore presented of individuals being "a product of their expectations".  This being due to the fact that as human beings we will always be able to live life with options along our path.  Of course this does not necessarily mean that the encounters individuals have within their own “environments” are always going to be positive.  There are going to be times in life where we as human beings must make decisions that will alter the path in life we are paving for ourselves.  When encountering these moments we are choosing whether to follow the “nature” within our own environment that surrounds us or to go ahead and exceed the expectations of what one is experiencing.  We in fact do not need to shed the blame solely on our environment surroundings whether they be poor friendships / relationships, jobs, academics, experiences etc.  As human beings we have the ability to strive for m