Incomplete

Incomplete. The world's simple sound pierces you like an arrow straight through your veins. It's truth is as blinding as the sun and nearly burns your senses because of it. Incomplete. The notion that there's something missing, something not in its proper place. Incomplete. To be incomplete is to be missing an important part of yourself that you on your own may not even be able to see.

The art piece 'Incomplete Open Cube' by Sol Lewitt is a simple piece that may not be considered special at first glance. It is only just aluminum painted white and formed in such a way that it appears to be a cube, but there are sides to it that are missing when you look closely. It appears to be just a simple optical illusion. However, I feel it can be taken in a variety of ways. I see it as a metaphor for people themselves who are incomplete and vulnerable because of it. After all, no matter which way you look at the piece, it just doesn't look right. It always looks as if there's something missing from the art, something slightly off-balance about the whole thing. This in itself is a metaphor.

Just like the artwork, life is nothing but an endless puzzle of shapes and lines, completely disarrayed but still fitting together to form the picture. When there's a missing piece to your life, it can rip you apart until you're a foundation of misery and despair. You'll just wander about, searching for what's missing, whether it be a person, a motive, or just simply finding yourself. When so much is missing, you can't see the full picture of life anymore. When the picture disappears, the meaning goes with it.

The metaphors and connections that this piece has for me are probably not what the artist originally intended. I believe it was just a creative way of organizing shapes, and there are many variations of this piece throughout various other museums. However, I felt the connection that I did because of what I have seen and witnessed in my lifetime already, and I know what it feels like to have a missing piece in my life as well as seeing the missing pieces in other people's lives. I think it's incredible that one simple piece of artwork can have that much impact on someone for being as unexciting as it may seem.

For all those people who are missing a piece or person in their life, don't worry! There are so many opportunities to get out in the world and find what you've been missing. Let life run it's course and you'll  be able to finish the puzzle in the end. You can't just sit by while time passes outside your window, you have to do something about it if there's something wrong. Don't let yourself be incomplete much longer- don't let yourself be missing something that you yourself can't even see.

A True Family

Response to Barbara Kingsolver's The Bean Trees

You trudge on through the blinding rain, shivering as you go. You can see the faint glow of the city lights ahead of you and you wish that your feet would move faster. The only thing that you know is that you must reach the light, you must get away from your mundane life, and you must keep on going. Although the path you walk is hard and full of unpleasant surprises, you are not alone because you have your family with you. Life is a constant struggle of decisions, mistakes, and taking chances for everyone, and sometimes it can bring you down like a smack in the face. However, knowing that you are heading in the right direction with the people that mean the most to you can change everything. Even when times are tough, the trust and love for the people you care about will carry you through.

In the beginning of the novel The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver, Taylor Greer is a teenage girl looking for an adventure. She had spent her life so far in Kentucky living with her mother and working in a hospital, and she was entirely through with it. One day, she just got up, changed her name, packed her bags, and drove off into the countryside. Taylor had planned on just driving until her gas tank run out, so she was less than thrilled when a stranger leaves a baby girl in her car and vanishes. However, over time, Taylor learns to love and protect the formerly abused girl, who she calls Turtle, and Turtle in turn learns to trust Taylor.

Both Taylor and Turtle’s lives were conflicted before they met each other. They were living in worlds where what was sacred was confused with what was profane. Neither of them had any idea what the real meaning of family was before they found each other, as well as an entire set of beloved characters, in Arizona. In life, family is not determined by whether or not you are related by blood to someone, but by the love and trust you feel for one another. The people who are your family are the ones who will stand by you and not let you get hurt. as Taylor did for Turtle. Without the love and support of a true family, life has no direction or meaning.

Love found its way into Taylor’s heart throughout the course of the novel and through many different people. After Taylor found Turtle, Lou Ann, Estevan, Mattie, and everyone else who made up her Western family group, her life became full of love and comfort. She learned things about the world she would never have noticed on her own. By the end of the novel, you can feel a sense of family, trust, and love between these people. “The sky went from dust-color gray and then cool black sparked with stars, and Turtle was still wide awake. She watched the dark highway and entertained me with her vegetable soup song, except that now there were people mixed in with the beans and potatoes: Dwayne Ray, Mattie, Esperanza, Lou Ann and all the rest. And me. I was the main ingredient,” Taylor comments on the very last page. This quote is a reminder to people everywhere that you don’t need a perfect family to be happy; you should be happy with who and what you have.

Life is a series of ups and downs, and there will be many problems that you will have to face along the seemingly endless journey. However, this doesn’t mean you have to face them alone. No matter what your past, there are people who will love and accept you for the person you really are. Even when it seems like there is no hope, the people you trust with your life will pull you through. They are your true family, and will stick with you until the end.