Abiding Appalachia

I usually have a lot of difficulty understanding poetry, but Abiding Appalachia wasn't too hard to read. Most of the poems were about Awiakta's life and her family. The poem Test Cow stood out to me. The author is saying how she's sad that she can't pet the cow now that it is radio active. She wonders if the cow knows about its condition. This is interesting to think about because so many factors are effected in this situation that don't even know. Another poem that stood out was Century Folks Revisited. The idea of the poem is very understandable. She's saying that one day she wants to be buried in a peaceful place where her family can visit her. I think most people want this as well. This book was most similar to Full Body Burden. They were both non-fiction and related to the same subject. I enjoyed reading Abiding Appalachia because it was a nice and short change from what we have been reading all semester.

An apology to the class - Christian Harding

I want to apologize to you, my classmate, for not fulfilling my end by not contributing to this class for the past 2 weeks. I'd like to explain why.

I am permanently diagnosed with Severe Major Depressive Disorder, which was greatly impacted 6 years ago. On December 22nd, 2007, I lost my 6 year old son, my 9 year old daughter and my wife of 15 years in the span of less than a minute. I wasn't doing very well and turned to alcohol to numb the lack of any emotion I didn't feel. I became an alcoholic.

2+ years ago I got help and have been doing very well. However, I have to be constantly on guard against depression. It is no joke.

Two weeks ago, I started a dangerous downward spiral into a depression due to something I was banging my head against. I went for treatment and am doing very well today.

I have experience in all forms of trauma, and am willing to talk to anyone who has questions or who needs help. If you want to talk about anything below, I am always available, 24/7, at (856) 628-2213. I keep myself well and growing spiritually by helping others, so don't feel you would be bothering me. I am a sponsor to others with alcoholism, I volunteer at the VA Medical Center in Coatesville, and I make myself available to anyone who needs help.

I have experience with living through and working recovery from:

• Childhood abuse
• Death of a close relative (father, brother & son)
• Alcoholism
• Depression
• Other things which I won't mention here

My story is in my notes section on facebook, and is marked public. My facebook page is at: facebook.com/theonlybluedragon

I am excited to be able to contribute to this class and it's projects, and I look forward to the rest of the semester.

Thank you,


Christian Harding
(856) 628-2213
kcjdad@ymail.com

John Zim Abiding Appalachia

To be completely honest, I have always been interested in poetry. I enjoy this style of writing and I find it easy to appreciate the art form. With that being said, I sometimes find it difficult to understand the meaning behind certain poems. Obviously some of the poems in Abiding Appalachia were easier understood than others for me, thus I am biased to the ones that I could follow. I would say of the three genres; fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, my favorite to read is fiction. I am not saying that Butler's Parable Of the Sower is the best fiction book I have took the time to read, but of the pieces we have read this year, it is my favorite. I feel that I at times have a rather animalistic nature, so reading Parable revved me up and grabbed my attention with every chapter. The fact that Lauren's gang had to encounter battles with dogs, people, and sexual tensions, amongst other things truly let my imagination guide me through the book. I would hate to see Parable of the Sower made into a film.
In regard to Abiding Appalachia, I felt that I needed to look up more about the author, Marilou Awiakta, and where she came from. In her poems, she references her indian heritage. Not only is Awiakta an Appalachian Indian, she is a Cherokee Indian as well. She wrote this book of poems after the nuclear incident in Three Mile Island after 1978. Another fact that I found interesting was the Awiakta grew up on the atomic frontier on Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Abiding Appalachia Consorti

Awiakta writes several poems and little excerpts about her life growing up near a nuclear power plant. She expresses a reverence for nature and nuclear power. I thought it was interesting how she thought about the Atom. One of the poems mentions its energy has been stored is older than time itself, which I thought was a very fitting thought for a Native American. With respect for every thing in nature, why should the atom be any different? It is something that she believes should not be broke open for its power. Some of her poems made me feel the same way as Iversons early life chapters. She writes "Alice has folks in her front yard.... Jake has some nearby his school..' (Awikata 34) The thought of children living near and playing by and around cemetery's is an interesting one. Although it is not explicitly stated that they died from radiation, after reading Full Body Burden the thought is still in mind. In addition it could be a statement about man-kinds continuing lack of respect for nature, ripping open atoms and building homes on cemetery's are equally disrespectful.

Awaits: Laura Bruce

I honestly felt bad after reading these poems, because I don't think I got what I was supposed to get from them. I feel like I got to see not Awiakta's soul, but not so much into her life. Reading the Adterword gave me so much more insight into what was happening as Awiakta grew up than any of those poems did to make me feel anything about the nuclear age. And that's what really bothered me. I want to feel when reading poetry, and I didn't feel much of anything.

Abiding Appalachia : Nicole Cassell's random thoughts

I enjoyed a hand full of poems, An Indian Walks In Me is one of them. This is going to sound corny but it reminded me of Pocahontas, yes the disney movie. When grandmother willow tells Pocahontas to listen to the wind. In the song ‘the colors of hte wind’ She says “every rock every tree has a spirit, has a name”. In the poem the writer says, “ I hear her say ‘They speak.’”. 

Being a mushy person, the love poems stuck with me. Patchwork was short but sweet, I firmly believe that love is more than saying you love someone. I feel showing someone you care with your actions makes them feel more loved than simply hearing three words.

I like the part in Marriage when the writer says “ Two peaks Alone... apart yet join at the heart”. I believe that to have a good relationship with someone you still have to be your own person, it is unhealthy to grow very attached to someone.

I really liked Mountain Chimney, Tumbled Down. 

Test Cow related to Full Body Burden completely. The cow in the story is “hot”, this term was used many times in FBB. 

I love this quote from Mother’s Advice While Bandaging My Stubbed Toe.

“So chose your path with wary eyes and do likewise with humans too. Be wary, but run on... Go barefoot and feel the joy and when pain comes, bind up your toe and go your way again.” I really like this quote because I try to live my life like this. I want to enjoy life as much as I can even when someone terrible happens, because tragedies are inevitable. 

Abiding Appalachia- Alex Parkinson

I will be the first to admit that I am terrible at reading poetry. However, with that said I can say that I enjoyed Abiding Appalachia. I thought it offered a very direct and different way for Awiakta to share her feeling about living in the place where the atomic bomb was essentially created. To be honest, before and even after reading this I had no idea what Oak Ridge was. I looked it up after I finished and all of a sudden the whole book made sense.

I saw a few similarities between Abiding Appalachia and the other books we have read in class. The first similarity that I saw was the theme of secrecy. This is a topic that is covered in both books but definitely more prominent in Full Body Burden. In Abiding Appalachia she speaks of it as a mystery and not necessarily a secret. Does that mean that when the Manhattan Project was happening essentially right next to her the residents had no idea? I understand that it is important to keep these things a secret from people because of security reasons but I also think the government has a responsibility to let its people know what is going on. When Awiakta talks about the radioactive cow I find it interesting that the cow is locked behind a fence to see what kinds of things happen to it when it's exposed to radiation. This makes no sense to me because if the cow is radioactive I don’t think having it behind a fence is going to keep the radiation away from the people. This is something we also saw in Full Body Burden. Radiation doesn’t know borders

Another thing I find interesting about Abiding Appalachia is that the town is behind fences. This is something that made me think all the way back to Parable of the Sower. Awiakta stays that they were, “sheltered in the secret and free to play as long as we stay inside the fence” (31). This reminded me of Parable of the Sower because for them the fence represented safety and a place where they could let their guard down. I do not believe the same is true for Abiding Appalachia, because they had to keep the secret inside the fence and what was going on was obviously not something that was widely talked about I believe it is a place where their guards had to be put up. I think that one false move could probably get you in a lot of trouble in Oak Ridge.

Mike Giolli-Abiding Appalachia

Understanding this style of writing definitely isn't one of my strengths. For almost the entire book I was lost and couldn't get anything out of the reading. It seemed like random nonsense jumbled together. I noticed that she kept referencing to her Native American heritage. Something in common with Full Body Burdon is that she grew up near a nuclear site.
As far as which book spoke to me best, I would have to say Full Body Burdon. The fact that it actually happened makes it have more of an impact on me. The points that the author tries to get across are real problems, and the examples she uses to explain the problems actually happened. Knowing that it is real gives me more motivation to understand and apply the themes to my own life. The Parable of the Sower had good points and they were easy to understand, but knowing that the story was fiction made me less inclined to apply them to my own life. In Abiding Appalachia, I couldn't understand any point to the writing. I couldn't understand the style of writing therefore I didn't learn or apply themes to my own life. After the readings so far in this class, I've learned that nonfiction/memoirs are best for me to learn while reading.

Ryan Panko- Abiding Appalachia

I don't read poetry often, but most of the time I enjoy it. I like how, when reading poetry, different conclusions can be drawn. Depending on the reader, the poems can have incredibly different meanings. Abiding Appalachia contains many poems that seem to connect. I assume that many people found poems in this book that they like and some they don't. From what I have read, my favorites are Trail Warning and Test Cow. I feel that one can not fully enjoy poetry unless the time is taken to examine what it could mean. Poems sometimes appear to be nothing but random words and sentences, but look closer and there is something more.

Brittanee Schaible Abiding Appalachia

Brittanee Schaible

10/2/13

Abiding Appalachia

After reading all three genres, fiction, non-fiction, and poetry I finally have a sense of the most preferred personally.  Parable of the Sower has been my favorite, although I enjoyed reading the actual life of Kristen Iversen, the scientific interruptions made it difficult to get through the book.  Poetry is often confusing for me, but I have always found it delightful to the ear and interesting.  Abiding Appalachia is pleasing because it has a sense of story to it, and that is captivating when it is written in the form of poems yet it still flows.  All three books have similar themes in purpose and meaning.  Full Body Burden and Abiding Appalachia seemed to have the most connections in it, with the descriptions of childhood through adulthood and the experience of having children and teaching them about what life used to be like.  However, all three books definitely have similarities.   

Jacob Brown Appalachia

   One of the things I found interesting in Abiding Appalachia was all of the author's references to her Native American heritage. In "Tsali's Return" she references the infamous trail of tears, a forced relocation of thousands of Native Americans. In "Arrows of Laughter Arrows of Love" she mentions Awi Usdi, which is a Cherokee Indian legend about a little deer. Awi Usdi is also mentioned in "The Graphite Queen"

Abiding Appalachia: Chad Renner

When we were first assigned to read these poems I dreaded it. I had always admired poetry but yet the essence of a poem seemed to elude me and often times I was merely bemused after reading any kind of poetry. However, the poems in Abiding Appalachia did not evoke the usual sense of bewilderment from me. Awiakta adeptly constructs her poetry but simultaneously she ensures that underlying theme of every poem is explicit to the reader. Inevitably I noticed the parallels between this work and Full Body Burden. Both authors lived in the vicinity of nuclear sites and due to this both authors were obliged to comment on the inscrutable nature of government secrecy and deception. Awiakta conveys this sentiment best in her poem “The Fence” where she describes a menacing fence which seemed to sever the community’s connection to the outside world. “We’re sheltered in the secret and free to play as long as we stay inside the fence” (31). Moreover both authors possessed an abiding passion for nature and its intrinsic beauty. Indeed both authors were intensely fascinated by the relationship between humanity and nature. While Kristen Iversen primary motivation for composing her memoir was to seek some sort of personal resolution, Awiakta is compelled to write by her potent regard for Cherokee heritage and nature. These two ideas appear in numerous poems and are often juxtaposed with portentous specter of the atom. It is the contrast of these two seemingly alien forces which pervades the entirety of Awiakta’s poetry. 

Abiding Appalachia Kasey Gould

                I am not a huge fan of poetry, probably because any meaning I interpret from the poem is usually not even close to being correct. I read most of Abiding Appalachia and thought it was decent though. One poem I enjoyed in particular was “Patchwork”. Awikata says, “It takes more than saying to make love so. It takes being and doing as stitch by stitch love makes a pattern that endures” (25). I enjoyed reading this poem because I feel like I couldn’t interpret it wrong. 

Abiding Blog 1 Gabriella Maddaloni

While reading these poems, there were quotes from a few of them that reminded me of both Full Body Burden and Parable of the Sower.  In “the Removal,” one quote stood out to me the most as pertaining to Full Body Burden.  “…Better to sacrifice the few than let the many die” directly relates to the government and to how I always assumed what the government was feeling when it came to Rocky Flats (18).  When I picture Rocky Flats, I imagine it was designed to look just like any other factory.  I imagine it just as was described in “Genesis,” they build “…a chain-link fence around it all to keep the secret (37). 

            Some lines in “the Fence” strongly reminded me of Parable of the Sower.  I can almost imagine Lauren’s fear of the people on the outside breaking through her community’s wall all over again within the last stanza.  “Our parents say they’re in lands far away… but we know better.  They are here.  We feel them pressing on the fence.  We sense they want what’s hidden here.  But if they don’t get ‘it’ they won’t get us. We’re sheltered in the secret and free to play as long as we stay inside the fence (39).

            The point of the collection of poems, I found in the afterword.  Awiakta’s purpose was to unite “seemingly opposing worlds…the sacred and the scientific.  It is a spiritual union, the reconciling of opposites, to which her poetry gives full expression.”  Upon reading this, “Pine Ridge: Pilgrimage to the Prophet” comes to mean something more in my mind.  It isn’t just about John being in a museum; it explains much more.  “He’s in a museum.  By a giant atom with electrons whirling round it like tiny azure stars, there he sits – sketched leaning on his cane.  His prophecy came true.  They’ve hung pictures to show it’s so”  (52). This is a subtler way to show “where atom and mountain meet” (65).  A religious prophetic man next to a great science-based structure; it literally is where opposing worlds are united, within the same place, the same room, next to each other.  

Abiding Appalachia Jenny Pollack

At first when I was reading the poems, I wasn’t understanding how they all connected to one another. When I read about the author, Marilou Awiakta, I realized she is using her past and her experiences to bind together a bunch of poems. She has a Cherokee and Appalachian heritage that she talks about in a good amount of the poems she writes. Also, she grew up on the atomic frontier in Oak Ridge, Tennessee and uses knowledge from that to write some of her poems.

            I noticed that a few of her poems connected to Full Body Burden and Parable of the Sower. The poem called “The Fence” can be compared to Parable of the sower. It talks about being confined behind a fence because it was not safe to leave because of the enemies living on the other side. Awiakta writes, “We are in and they are out- the enemy” (pg. 30). It’s exactly how Lauren’s family lived being confined within a gated community because of the enemies living on the other side. The poem called “Test Cow” reminded me of Full Body Burden.  “But she’s radioactive now and locked behind a fence…radiation’s just not friendly” (Awiakta 33).  The cow was being used as a test animal for radiation and was hot with contamination. The animals and people living near Rocky Flats had to deal with radiation all of their lives and the contamination from Rocky Flats.  

FBB Epilogue

With the conclusion of the book, it is clear that Iverson is making a statement about the human condition. While the entirety of the book focuses on just Rocky Flats and Kristens life, in the Epilogue she speaks of Fukashima, and chernobyl, and the effects they had on the rest of Europe. Here she mentions the japanese government "Japanese officials downplayed the accident. Initially assessed as Level Four..." (page 343)  I think this is more evidence supporting the idea that she is speaking about the awareness of the public, and not just about the dangers of nuclear power. Later in the chapter she mentions Japanese protests to nuclear power, maybe we should follow their lead? I think she is trying to show that its not just the American government thats evil, but its that it is human nature to be passive in these situations.

Because her book is more about the dangers of ignorance and denial I cant help but feel that there needs to be some more thought about nuclear energy. Its an incredibly efficient and clean source of energy if its properly handled. While the radioactive waste will never go away safe storage of it is possible. It can realistically power large infrastructure just like coal or oil. Solar, geo-thermal, and wind power are all very far from being capable of that. If we proceed as Iverson suggests, with critical analysis of the governments procedures, then I think sustainable power could be closer than ever.

Reactions to Full Body Burden (and Parable of the Sower) as of 5 a.m. 9/30

I excerpted a mass amount from your blog entries (see below); many intriguing thoughts to discuss today, along with how to move forward with our work on saving Barclay grounds. I've spoken with John Cottage, and I'm in contact with another member of the "Save Barclay Grounds" group, so I have things to report!

Spring

Depression

Laura: “I feel swamped with all of this information. I'm overwhelmed with how awful humanity can truly be. And with all of that, I feel like there is absolutely nothing I could ever do to make a difference. I am aware how day in and day out I am consciously choosing to ignore the problems with the world and I deny that anything is wrong. I choose to close my eyes and everyday my eyes are torn open over and over again. I'll be doing my assignments for class and start crying uncontrollably…. [Now] I show up. I take notes. I sit quietly and smile and nod. I eat with my friends, I hang out, I don't talk about the subjects that bring me to tears. I am doing what Iversen was doing for a long time. I close my eyes and I live.”

What Will Our Future Be?

Loren: “In the epilogue of Full Body Burden Iverson continues to talk more about the contamination and risks of Rocky Flats. She talks about other nuclear disasters around the world, and how the government also kept huge secrets from them in other countries. Overall I really enjoyed this book because I was learning about something I have never even heard of before. It is very interesting and extremely scary to me that the government and the people you're supposed to trust can keep such crucial information from you. I think I liked Parable of the Sower a little bit more than Full Body Burden. I liked that it took place in the future and seemed pretty unrealistic. This made me start to think about if it could actually ever happen or not. Not all of the details of the book seemed logical for the future, but it was just something to get us thinking, and it worked.”                                                                                                                                                       

Kasey: “In the epilogue Iverson writes about other nuclear disasters throughout the world and then talks of future plans for producing more ‘pits’ in the United States. Iverson writes of a plan to build a facility to make 450 pits a year. Luckily Iverson writes, ‘So far, the NNSA has failed to gain full congressional support’ (344). Maybe the government is finally learning from their mistakes and caring about the good of everyone. Probably not.” 

Jacob: “One of the things that I have taken from this class is that we seem not to react to environmental problems until it is too late. Although it was a fictional story, the Parable of the Sower captures this very well. All the problems with water and fuel sources got so bad that they are basically irreversible by the time the story takes place. Today we are facing a growing scarcity of fossil fuels, much research is going it to green energy, but probably not as much as we should. The focus on finding alternative energy sources will likely not increase until another spike in gas prices or electric bills force it to. Rocky Flats is another example. People ignored the problem for years and by the time enough people knew about the problem it was too late. It's impossible with today's technology to clean up Rocky Flats without bankrupting the government, but even with a huge budget a clean-up project wouldn't be able to completely reverse the effects of Rocky Flats.”

Fukushima & The Question of Nuclear Power

Jenny: “I have been very fortunate and haven’t had to deal with a nuclear plant like the people near Rocky Flats and Fukushima had to. I could never imagine living near plutonium and the contamination. [And yet, right now you live 20 miles from a nuclear power plant.]

Rebecca: “It was not until the epilogue that I fully understood the severity of what can happen with a nuclear plant. The Fukushima incident is one of the scariest things I have ever heard about…. Kris states, "In the United States we currently have approximately 25,000 plutonium pits in our stockpile: roughly 10,000 in nuclear warheads, 5,000 in 'strategic reserve' and more than 10,000 'surplus' pits at the Pantex plant near Amarillo, Texas" (344). All of those numbers, to me, are extremely scary. Why should we need any of that in our country? If we saw what happened in Fukushima and in Russia, why would our country want to put ourselves in that same risk? I believe that is very scary and that the government is very secretive. The secretivity of our government is also something I learned more about in this memoir and how real it actually is. I remember hearing my parents talking about it and how there is so much the citizens don't actually know. I believe, if we live in America we have a right to know what is going on in our government and why things are the way they are.”

Mike W.: “The tsunami that hit Japan wasn't that long ago and it will be something that I will remember because I was alive when it happened. Everything else in this book I was not alive for, so it had less of an effect on me than something I know of would have. [Except that Rocky Flats was recently flooded!] I know that the point of this book was to make me aware that these dangers still exist, but now that Fukushima is mentioned I really feel like everything is real. The fact that Fukushima is worse than Rocky Flats makes me think more negatively about nuclear power plants. I am sure by this period of time the human race can move forward in phasing out power plants and creating alternative energy. This alternative energy is very necessary, for radiation is literally destroying the planet. In the case of a nuclear war, we could very well find the entire world a radiated mess. Before either a war or a power plant failure occurs again the world should work to make nuclear energy safer.”

Alex: “…should [we] even have nuclear energy as a resource[?] Before reading this memoir I was all for it. Anything that would reduce the consumption of fossil fuels was a good idea in my mind. Reading this made me question the way I feel about things a lot and I am starting to come to the realization that the nuclear energy may be just as bad. I understand that Rocky Flats did not produce nuclear energy they produced bombs. However, that is not the same with Fukushima. I do not believe that as humans we are responsible enough to handle nuclear anything yet. We obviously don't know how to react to it. The whole business just ends up being a lot of scandal and I think we are better off without it.”

Perks of Fiction

Ryan: “Full Body Burden was not meant for me…I think I would enjoy a memoir more if I knew who the person was… On the contrary, Parable of the Sower held my attention and kept me on edge… Keeping an eco-focused class is relevant and important in our society. These issues do not get enough attention from my generation. I am looking forward to continuing this class and getting started with our project.”

Risk of Memoir

Shelby: “I was very shocked that Iversen was able to recount such difficult times in her life and share them with the world.”

Abuse

Nicole: “I can relate to Kristin’s mother in a minor way. I was in a toxic relationship this past year (though I was not married with children). In a previous post I said that if I was her mom I would have left a long time ago. The only reason I reacted that way was because of my own personal experience in an abusive relationship. I now have made a promise to myself to always make sure I'm getting the respect I deserve.”

Smoking and Government Secrecy

Gabby: “Is it worth it to risk the lives of thousands, to simply have the ability of protection?  The Epilogue of this memoir finally made me come to the realization of why nuclear weapons are really being made. At Rocky Flats, Hanford, Fernald, and Fukushima, secrets were being kept from the residents around the plants. People can call the residents naïve, but the truth is that the truth is so much easier to recognize when you have a clear view of the entire situation… Throughout this entire memoir, one question that I’ve had is why? Why would the government risk so many lives? Is it really just because they don’t want to take the blame? …It all made sense what once I realized why the nuclear weapons were really being made. The nuclear weapons are our safety, our last resort defense, in case any other country decides to attack us. The weapons aren’t even for now, or for anything concrete. They are for a “maybe” “what if” situation… It all seems like a paranoid sense of needing safety. It’s too sick and cruel to really even wrap my head around. How deep does the deception really go? What other petty tricks and secrets are being kept from the “peasants” of the government’s “medieval” world. 

“The first thing that came to mind was smoking. My parents have been smoking since I can remember. My mother has ‘quit’ so many times it’s like a tradition, but she only ever lasts a few weeks before she’s smoking again. My older sister and I have always hated the fact that my parents smoke, and we’ve tried everything to get them to stop. I’ve been grounded more times than not from throwing my parent’s cigarettes away. I’ve tried playing the pity card when it came to my asthma, because smoke bothers me the most. I’ve even played the pity card when it came to my sister’s dad dying from leukemia. I begged my parents to stop because, ‘Sissy lost one parent to cancer, do you really want to make her go through having to lose another?’  Nothing has worked, and my question was always, why is smoking even a possibility? I can understand why way back when, when we didn’t really have too much of a clue about what smoking did to the body. Yet, now we know every terrible thing it does, and it seems to me that these days, every one smokes. I ask, why wouldn’t the government ban it after knowing what it does to the people? Yes, people may be upset but no one is going to die from not smoking, there is no mistake in that decision. What I failed to realize, was that there is a reason why the government doesn’t ban it. Yes, it slowly kills people, but it brings the government money, especially because of how addictive it is. It’s really just another trick. They know what smoking does, but all the government cares about is money, not the lives of the people. They lie to us saying it’s “free will,” but really it’s revenue; they need more money for their nuclear weapons and what better way to get it than by an addictive product? 

            “This memoir has truly caused me to care and wonder if all of what I know isn’t truly ‘all.’ It hasn’t made me into a conspiracy theorist; I just simply consider the deeper meaning, and will no longer look at the news as the given truth. I accept that there may be things I will never know, but it won’t be for a lack of trying. Iversen has taught me that the thirst of knowledge is an ever beautiful quality. There will always be something I want to know more about, and I should never stop learning. I like to think of myself as young, free, and passionate, but how do you really know? I think you have to be ready for it, realize an opportunity is in front of you and take it.  It’s all about timing, and when it comes to it, rash decision-making. I wish I could thank Iversen for opening up my mind and teaching me about one more subject I didn’t know about.  I’m one step close to passion, and just waiting for the opportunity.”

Speaking Up

Brittanee: Finishing the last of Full Body Burden brought me to the final conclusion that Kristen Iversen is an eloquent author. Combining a biography and a nonfiction story is extremely challenging but Iversen made it look simple. With her final touch of weaving together the two  most markable themes in her life, Iversen states “Many inescapable decisions have been forced upon us...To speak out or to remain silent is the first and most crucial decision we can make” (344).  A very personally relatable statement, Iversen basically summed up her reason for writing this memoir; to finally speak up. For her whole life she witnessed horrible events that again and again she wished she could just speak up about, but instead she held inside like she was taught. My connection to Iversen is similar, but at the same time different. Being a very independent person, I have always preferred keeping my feelings inside of me. This factor has always upset my mother, making her feel like she could not connect with me or felt like I was not comfortable talking to her. Although this was not true, I never changed the way I handled my feelings. Reading Iversen’s memoir has influenced me somewhat to change and instead of keeping my emotions in and letting them build up, to talk about them. Change is difficult and not always the most favored option, but just because it is difficult does not mean it is not the best thing. It is better to take care of things, avoid procrastination, and speak up when you feel something is not right. Before things approach a level that is more challenging to handle, like the Rocky Flats incident or Kris’s fathers alcoholism, this quote has spoken to me to try and speak out and alleviate the many emotions I hold inside.”

Resolution May Never Come

Chad: “Although I preferred Parable of the Sower, I still was captivated by Iversen’s eloquence and her shrewd ability to blend two seemingly irrelevant narratives into a cohesive story (her father’s alcoholism and Rocky Flats). However, what resonated most with me were Kristen’s family travails, because I experienced a very similar situation during my childhood. Thus, I could relate to her feelings of bewilderment and curiosity at her family’s rapid deterioration. In the Epilogue Kristen concludes her memoir masterfully and the very first page conveys, succinctly, the underlying theme of both narratives. “The serenity of the landscape belies the battles that still wage over who controls the land, how dangerous the levels of contamination are, and what’s to be done about it” (341). This quote personifies both the environmental debacle at Rocky Flats, and Kristen’s family’s own struggle to conceal an increasingly fractious household. Moreover in the Epilogue it is evident that with regards to Rocky Flats that a satisfactory resolution may never be fully realized. Indeed according to Kristen, “The controversy over land surrounding Rocky Flats continues as well. Government agencies claim that the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge is safe and nearby areas are fine for homes, businesses, and recreation (342). Yet the same can be said of Kristen’s estrangement with her father, a rift which may never be completely assuaged. Finally there is also a discernible pessimism in the Epilogue which is illustrated that nuclear disasters are not merely confined to Rocky Flats or the United States even. I found this ending fitting considering Kristen’s style of writing. Rather than tenderly reassuring us that Rocky Flats is nuclear aberration, Kristen assails us with startling facts and statistics which compel the reader close the book with grim uncertainty.”

Comparisons to Parable

Mike G.: "In both the Parable of Sower and Full Body Burden, the main character is part of a community which ignores the dangers that are present and worsening. Everyone in Lauren’s community, except Lauren, refuses to accept the possibility that the community might be overrun and forced to relocate. Since Lauren is the only person who doesn't ignore the true facts, I think the author used Lauren in order to make this theme more noticeable. In the Parable of the Sower, ignorance got the best of the whole town. [In Iversen’s memoir] everybody believed the government when they said that Rocky Flats was safe. Scientists and other educated people began to try to educate the public that Rocky Flats was very dangerous to the community. People started to look into it, and knew that it probably wasn't right, but stayed in the town and were too passive about it… preparing for certain things can make a huge difference."

Barclay Park: Trees

Just so everyone knows, some of the thinner trees in the park can be up to 100 to 150 years old. That means that the really thick ones can even be up to 500. It's rare to see such old trees in this part of the country anymore, with settlers in the past using so many trees for lumber.

FBB: Epilogue Laura Bruce

I know that one time in class, Spring asked us to write about something we've denied. Ever since then, I've thought a lot about the things I try not to acknowledge and it breaks my heart.
Three of my classes this year are on how humans negatively affect the Earth. Going into my freshman year of college, it wasn't at all what I was expecting. I'm not this huge go-green protester that's all about healthy choices and healthy living. I'm a quiet person who recycles and tries not to leave to much of an impact. But now, I realize the way I've been raised and the way I live my life leads me to just see the sunny days and breathe in the fresh air and pretend that all the bad isn't there. I would love to say that now that I've had these classes, I'm much more conscious and I make much more of an effort to be healthy for the environment. Unfortunately, I can't say that. I feel swamped with all of this information. I'm overwhelmed with how awful humanity can truly be. And with all of that, I feel like there is absolutely nothing I could ever do to make a difference. I am aware how day in and day out I am consciously choosing to ignore the problems with the world and I deny that anything is wrong. I choose to close my eyes and everyday my eyes are torn open over and over again. I'll be doing my assignments for class and start crying uncontrollably.
I would love to tell you that these classes have been good for me. And I suppose in some ways they are. They have taught me to think more, and to question things I don't have a clear answer to. But I also feel depression loom over me from time to time. Depression is something I have fought, as I know many others have as well, and for years I was happy to say it was something I had overcome. Now...now I can't always say that. There are other factors that come into play, but everything I've read and learned so far has brought me lower and lower into a black hole that I pretend is not surrounding me.
And thus I show up. I take notes. I sit quietly and smile and nod. I eat with my friends, I hang out, I don't talk about the subjects that bring me to tears.
I am doing what Iversen was doing for a long time.
I close my eyes and I live.

Loren Killian FBB epilogue

In the epilogue of Full Body Burden Iverson continues to talk more about the contamination and risks of Rocky Flats. She talks about other nuclear disasters around the world, and how the government also kept huge secrets from them in other countries. Overall I really enjoyed this book because I was learning about something I have never even heard of before. It is very interesting and extremely scary to me that the government and the people you're supposed to trust can keep such crucial information from you. I think I liked Parable of the Sower a little bit more than Full Body Burden. I liked that it took place in the future and seemed pretty unrealistic. This made me start to think about if it could actually ever happen or not. Not all of the details of the  book seemed logical for the future, but it was just something to get us thinking, and it worked. Both books were of significance to read for this class, and I feel as if I actually did learn a few valuable lessons.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

the last mellon

Full Body Burden to me seemed like a way for the author to pay it forward, for lack of a better term. Kristen was ignorant for so long about what was going on at Rock Flats and even inside her own family that i think her way of making up for that time was writing about it. I don't think this book was terrible, for a nonfiction. I didn't love the book like I did Parable of the Sower, but I did not mind when it was over. I can relate to Kristin’s mother in a minor way, I was in a toxic relationship this past year (though i was not married with children). In a previous post I said that if I was her mom I would have left a long time ago. The only reason I reacted that way was because of my own personal experience in an abusive relationship. I now have made a promise to myself to always make sure I'm getting the respect I deserve. 

Ryan Panko-9/29/13

Full Body Burden was not meant for me. I appreciate the book and the story it tells, however it does not hold my attention well. I think I would enjoy a memoir more if I knew who the person was or had knowledge of the focus before I picked up the book. On the contrary, Parable of the Sower held my attention and kept me on edge. With saying that, I am enjoying class so far. I think the format of posting blogs makes a lot of sense; even if I'm not enthused with the book. Keeping an eco-focused class is relevant and important in our society. These issues do not get enough attention from my generation. I am looking forward to continuing this class and getting started with our project.  

Full Body Burden Epilogue Gabriella Maddaloni

          Is it worth it to risk the lives of thousands, to simply have the ability of protection?  The Epilogue of this memoir finally made me come to the realization of why nuclear weapons are really being made.  At Rocky Flats, Hanford, Fernald, and Fukushima, secrets were being kept from the residents around the plants.  People can call the residents naïve, but the truth is that the truth is so much easier to recognize when you have a clear view of the entire situation.  When you’re on the inside looking out, everything can be much more complicated.  Throughout this entire memoir, one question that I’ve had is why?  Why would the government risk so many lives?  Is it really just because they don’t want to take the blame?  At the end of the day “’many inescapable decisions were forced upon us,’” just as Ruiko Muto stated (343).  The government forced the decision upon all of the residents near nuclear plants, that they simply weren’t going to tell them about or warn them of the danger.  The government didn’t want to freak out the people even though they knew about the risk of living there.  It all made sense what once I realized why the nuclear weapons were really being made.  The nuclear weapons are our safety, our last resort defense, in case any other country decides to attack us.  The weapons aren’t even for now, or for anything concrete.  They are for a “maybe” “what if” situation.  It all comes down to, risk the lives of a few to save many.  Yet, there’s no one to save with the nuclear weapons yet, and we don’t even know if there ever will be.  It all seems like a paranoid sense of needing safety.  It’s too sick and cruel to really even wrap my head around.
            How deep does the deception really go?  What other petty tricks and secrets are being kept from the “peasants” of the government’s “medieval” world.  The first thing that came to mind was smoking.  My parent’s have been smoking since I can remember.  My mother has “quit” so many times it’s like a tradition, but she only ever lasts a few weeks before she’s smoking again.  My older sister and I have always hated the fact that my parents smoke, and we’ve tried everything to get them to stop.  I’ve been grounded more times than not from throwing my parent’s cigarettes away.  I’ve tried playing the pity card when it came to my asthma, because smoke bothers me the most.  I’ve even played the pity card when it came to my sister’s dad dying from leukemia.  I begged my parents to stop because, “sissy lost one parent to cancer, do you really want to make her go through having to lose another?”  Nothing has worked, and my question was always, why is smoking even a possibility?  I can understand why way back when, when we didn’t really have too much of a clue about what smoking did to the body.  Yet, now we know every terrible thing it does, and it seems to me that these days, every one smokes.  I ask, why wouldn’t the government ban it after knowing what it does to the people?  Yes, people may be upset but no one is going to die from not smoking, there is no mistake in that decision.  What I failed to realize, was that there is a reason why the government doesn’t ban it.  Yes, it slowly kills people, but it brings the government money, especially because of how addictive it is.  It’s really just another trick.  They know what smoking does, but all the government cares about is money, not the lives of the people.  They lie to us saying it’s “free will,” but really it’s revenue, they need more money for their nuclear weapons and what better way to get it than by an addictive product? 

            This memoir has truly caused me to care and wonder if all of what I know isn’t truly “all.”  It hasn’t made me into a conspiracy theorist; I just simply consider the deeper meaning, and will no longer look at the news as the given truth.  I accept that there may be things I will never know, but it won’t be for a lack of trying.  Iversen has taught me that the thirst of knowledge is an ever beautiful quality.  There will always be something I want to know more about, and I should never stop learning.  I like to think of myself as young, free, and passionate, but how do you really know?  I think you have to be ready for it, realize an opportunity is in front of you and take it.  It’s all about timing, and when it comes to it, rash decision-making.  I wish I could thank Iversen for opening up my mind and teaching me about one more subject I didn’t know about.  I’m one step close to passion, and just waiting for the opportunity.

Brittanee Schaible Full Body Burden Epilogue

Brittanee Schaible

9/29/13

Full Body Burden: Epilogue

Finishing the last of Full Body Burden brought me to the final conclusion that Kristen Iversen is an eloquent author.  Combining a biography and a nonfiction story is extremely challenging but Iversen made it look simple.  With her final touch of weaving together the two  most markable themes in her life, Iversen states “Many inescapable decisions have been forced upon us...To speak out or to remain silent is the first and most crucial decision we can make” (344).  A very personally relatable statement, Iversen basically summed up her reason for writing this memoir; to finally speak up.  For her whole life she witnessed horrible events that again and again she wished she could just speak up about, but instead she held inside like she was taught.  My connection to Iversen is similar, but at the same time different.  Being a very independent person, I have always preferred keeping my feelings inside of me.  This factor has always upset my mother, making her feel like she could not connect with me or felt like I was not comfortable talking to her.  Although this was not true, I never changed the way I handled my feelings.  Reading Iversen’s memoir has influenced me somewhat to change and instead of keeping my emotions in and letting them build up, to talk about them.  Change is difficult and not always the most favored option, but just because it is difficult does not mean it is not the best thing.  It is better to take care of things, avoid procrastination, and speak up when you feel something is not right.  Before things approach a level that is more challenging to handle, like the Rocky Flats incident or Kris’s fathers alcoholism, this quote has spoken to me to try and speak out and alleviate the many emotions I hold inside.

Kaitlyn Weston- Epilogue

I’m going to agree with the majority of the class and say that I definitely did enjoy the parts of the book the reflected on Kris’s life and how she dealt with every day struggles, but the parts about Rocky Flats were boring and I struggled to read through them.  While reading about Rocky Flats, I knew the basis of what was going on and I understood the dangers of the plutonium, but it felt as though the details given about Rocky Flats were repetitive and unnecessary.  Although the information was informative, it was a lot to take in and very confusing at times.  I couldn’t keep up with which group was which.  But the memoir part of the book was truly interesting.  To learn about how she grew up and what her family was like reminded me of the way that Butler wrote Parable of the Sower. 
All in all, I did enjoy the book and found it very helpful and informative.  I am now more aware of what can happen and how to prevent it from happening again.