Darfur Diaries(Entry 8)

Comments:

1. They continues this journey and found another parent with two children in the verge of dying. They were dirty, filthy and sick.
2. They began to film wit women and boys, as the tried to act normal.
3. African union troops were being deployed to Darfur and they hoped they would ensure calm in the region.
4. Aisha took many photo's so she would be able to elaborate more as to exactly how the people were feeling at the time.
5. They would usually sleep at any random site, they would just pull out a tent and sleep. I don't understand how they had the courage to do so, knowing the situation the family was in.

Question:

1. Why isn't Aisha scared of what might happen to them while they are there, like attacks and such?
2. Where is the safety of the village? no guards?
3. Why don't they just send the kids out or evacuate this village?
4. Is Aisha, and Adam actually safe?

Words:

1. reverently(pg141)-feeling, exhibiting, or characterized by reverence
2. strode(pg158)-to walk with long steps, as with vigor, haste, impatience, or arrogance.
3. droning(pg60)-to make a dull, continued, low, monotonous sound; hum; buzz

Literary terms:

1. "He had pus caked to the corners of his eyes, and there was a chalky whiteness overlaying his black skin"(pg145)- Imagery.
2. "A few hours before dawn, i drifted off into a half-sleep, with the sound of the banging merging and into dreams of janjaweed and Sudanese soldiers attacking the Anka village school."(pg 152)-Irony

Summary sentence:

• Aisha took many photos along with her team, they are now more comfortable with the people and they are more friendly with them as well. The people of Darfur find it very amusing that they are exploring their village.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 7)

Comments:

1. Kirtir Congo preached about his pain and agony on how their lives must be and how they are suffering everyday.
2. "you came over here to find the truth and understand our sorrow. Please take our message to all the other nations"(pg121) Kirtir seems to be fed up with the way they live their life, he would like this message to be sent out to other countries so they can understand the way they are living is absolutely ridiculous.
3. Dero is trying to provide Alisha and Adam with care since they are trying to do the same as well.
4. At this time they found out that president Bush will be the president of The United States of America again, and they are very disappointed.
5. The Arabs killed Ibrahim's people and goats, which is why he hates them so much. I don't understand why there must be so much tension with people from the same country, shouldn't they just love each other instead.

Question:

1. Why cant Aisha understand that some countries are raised to be generous and offer people things such as tea?
2. Did they feel as if they were not going to get as much help since president Bush was the president again?
3. Why did they depend so much on the Americans rather than other countries?

Words:

1. spry(pg102)-active;
2. chiseled(pg114)-sharply or clearly shaped
3. hastily(pg119)-moving or acting with haste; speedy

Literary terms:

1. "his cheek was pressed against his knee. As he got further into his story, he buried his face deeper into his knee until it was difficult to even hear him."(pg128)- Personification
2. "I will tell him the situation I'm in now. I will say when i was your age, when i was sixteen years in 2004, Janjaweed burned our village... "(pg130)- Foreshadowing.

Summary sentence

1. They encounter more children who hold even more sad stories that touches every ones heart. these kids are being tortured continuously, over and over again.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 6)

Comments:

1. The children continued to face an extreme precarious existence.
2. They found a child, Tugud, laying over his mothers lap with a shawl around him, and they instantly knew something was wrong with him.
3. These children lacked energy and fuel in their bodies, they were very unhealthy.
4. They began to help the kids and the kids were not as afraid of them.
5. Aisha began the journey and on her way the made a stop at Dero. Soon when they were back on their way they encountered a woman climbing up the hill with a group of cows. being Tauruses they took pictures of the woman and cow.

Question:

1. Were the getting paid for this ?
2. How are the kids going to actually survive?
3. since the way they lived, lacking food, etc. how did the parents make it? were they just the "lucky ones"?
4. Where do they plan on stopping?

Words:

1. Jutting(pg 74)-to extend beyond the main body or line
2. averting(pg93)-the act of preventing something from occurring
3. albeit(pg94)-although; even if

Literary terms:

1. "The moonscape began to give way o a desert spotted with thirsty shrubs, bunches of grass, and small, thorny trees."(pg74)- Imagery
2. "it looked like a substantial water source, albeit receding"(pg 94)- Simile
   
   Summary sentence:

• Aisha and the rest continued their journey, and since they were so caring they continued to put close attention on the children that were in need. During their journey they observed many unusual things, such as a herd of cows walking by with a woman.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 5)

Comments:

1. Many of the children is suffering from Malnutrition; due to diarriah.
2. Discolored hair was a sign of malnutrition.
3. Instead of the police protecting and helping them, the police would usually kill them, which is just as worst.
4. As stated the children did not really know much about the good things in life; they mostly new all about the negative things. If you were to ask them to draw something they would draw guns, and people fighting.
5. While they were shown around the village they noticed all the negative parts of this community, the emptiness and devastation.
   

Question:

1. Why didn't they just send out the kids to a better place, community, family?
2. At school they should have introduced kids to the good things in life and encouraged them rather then making them feel the way the feel; why didn't they?
3. Couldn't they just send adults to fight off instead of children?
4. Since this keeps on bothering me, why did they make it seem so hard for the children to be like normal children?

Words:

1. ambled(pg62)-to go at a slow, easy pace; stroll; saunter
2. cryptic(pg65)-mysterious in meaning
3. reconcile(pg72)- to cause (a person) to accept or be resigned to something not desired
   

Literary terms:

1. "A tiny girl was happily wheeling around a pair of sticks tied to wooden wheels. Her hair was yellowish at the roots."- Imagery
2. " The truck looked like it was held together with rubber bands"(pg 69)-Simile

Summary sentence:

• These couple of pages made me open my eyes more as to how the children were feeling and it really makes me question why the kids had to live this way.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 4)

Comments:

1. Mathijs was worried; because of the children being as soliders, fighting.
2. Statistics show three-hundred thousand children were estimated to be involved in armed violence, specifically in Africa.
3. Mathijs was stationed in Abeche for six months.
4. Girls often stop attending school at the higher grade levels because they begin to take care of their younger siblings.
5. Darfur needed to be protected but Africa did not come soon enough to help them at all.

Question:

1. If the Girls left school so early, what made the boys not? did they not have to work, to help the family out money wise?
2. Why couldnt they just use the adults to fight rsther than poor, innocent children?
3. Why didn't Africa pull through with their promise?
4. Why was it so hard for Darfur to defend their ownselves? did they lack resource, because Africa did not have much either?

Words:

1. implemented(pg27)-To put into practical effect; carry out.
2. preemptively(pg28)-taken as a measure against something possible, anticipated, or feared.
3. hoisted(pg40)-To raise or haul up with or as if with the help of a mechanical apparatus.

Literary terms:

1. "The sprawl of tents was endless. Eighteen thousand refugees from Darfur were sheltered in this vast tent city. The scene out of nowhere in the barren desert landscape."(pg 32)- Imagery
2. "I wanted to find a a way to protect them: from their pasts, which i could scarcely imagine when looking at their quick smiles, and from their future, which were so precarious."(pg33)- Metaphor

Summary sentence:

• These few pages spoke about the hardwork the children would put into the Darfur, and how much they had to sacrafise. It also elaborates more on the type of situation the people/ residence there were in.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 3)

Comments:

1. They were finally able to settle down; They were told to stay in a tent because the place is actually really disgusting and mosquitoes are everywhere.
2. They started in the north and worked their way down south; North did not have much fighting occurring at the time.
3. Deby was from the Bahai area and from the Zaghawa tribe.
4. Desertification was investing in Darfur at an alarming rate.
5. People volunteered to be teachers and teach the children, even though they did not have tents they taught them on the bare sand.

Questions:

1. Why are they settled in the North, why wont they keep moving down south?
2. Is it safer for them to stay in the North verses the South?
3. Are these teachers professionals or just regular people willing to teach these children?
4. Why is Melissa so secretive as to what she is doing, why didn't she tell her from the beginning.

Words:

1. ibex(pg17)-any of several wild goats of the genus Capra
2. Tripod(pg19)-a three-legged stand or support
3. Dilapidated(pg22)-reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay, as from age, wear, or neglect

Literary Terms:

1. "The ground is disgusting-animal shit all over the place, scorpions and mosquitoes. And Camel spiders!"- Imagery (PG14)
2. "Okay, go away, they all disperse like a flock of birds."(pg21)- Simile

Summary Sentence:

• These couple of pages reveals the type of environment they are all living in; Melissa is in a different area, but doesn't quite reveal the truth as to why she was there.

Darfur Diaries(Entry 2)

Comments:
1. In 1916 sudan gained independence from Britain.
2. South war had broken out in 1955 over Islamization; but ended in fragile peace in 1973.
3. "Jen had insisted on staying in Darfur because she fell in love with someone from the Dinka Tribe." -- funny joke
4. Jen is learning how to work a camera so she would be able to film as well and interview people.
5. I guess it runs in the family, being adventurous, Adams mother also did similar journeys as well.

Questions:

1. What makes them want to go here specifically?
2. Are the getting paid?
3. Is it actually a family thing to journey around the world for Adam?
4. How long do they plan on staying in Chad/ Darfur?
   
   Words:
   1. Rendezvous(pg2)- an agreement between two or more persons to meet at a certain time and place
   2.nuanced(pg3)- a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc.
   3. rampant(pg11)- violent in action or spirit; raging; furious
   
   Literary Terms:
   1. "The ground is disgusting animal shit all over the place, scorpions and mosquito's."(pg14)-Imagery
   2. "The good news is, despite your daughter's stature, your grandkids will have a shot at the NBA"(pg 12)- Irony
   
   Summary Sentence:

• They are getting ready to set off to Chad and observe the life they live.

Darfur Diaries( Entry 1)

Comments:

1. Many world powers were hungrily anticipating an agreement, waiting for safe and full access to the country's oil reserves that is in the middle of the battleground for the last few decades.
2. Seems as if a war is going to break loose since they closed down the borders of Darfur.
3. Darfur was one of the regions that opposed rge government; it was an "impoverished" area with little developement.
4. Marches were developed they walked 3miles in a candlelight vigil to the sundanese embassy. they also gave speeches and accounts of the victims, the crimes, and cries for action.
5. Their goals were to concentrate on children, since they are among the most "marginalized" population- they were usually the ones who suffered way more, physically and mentally.

Questions:

1. Was this actually a war or just a break out?
2. How old is the Narrator?
3. Since they were in so much suffering, why didnt they simply move out of the area? move to another land?
4. Why did they believe that the world would act out vecause of the anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda?

Words:

1. marginalized-(pg. xli) not found
2. impoverished-(pg. xl) poor enough to need help from others.
3. symptomatic-(pg. xxxiii) showing outward signs of a disease.

Literary Terms:

1. "dropping bombs several times on a scene og chaotic panic, some children falling flat on ground gor saftey from the bombs and other.."( pg. xxviii)- Imagery
2. "regional conflicts were erupting in the north at a time when progress was being made to end war.. "( pg. xxxii)- Irony

Summary Sentence:

• These couple of pages were basically an intorduction to the Darfur Story. It sums up th begining of their struggles and how they begin to overcome it.