I Cry- Tupac Shakur

"Sometimes when I'm alone
I Cry,
Cause I am on my own.
The tears I cry are bitter and warm.
They flow with life but take no form
I Cry because my heart is torn.
I find it difficult to carry on.
If I had an ear to confide in,
I would cry among my treasured friend,
but who do you know that stops that long,
to help another carry on.
The world moves fast and it would rather pass by.
Then to stop and see what makes one cry,
so painful and sad.
And sometimes...
I Cry
and no one cares about why."

When I read this poem, I felt an instant connection.  What I believe Shakur was trying to say was that the world is such a busy place and no one take's the time out of one's day to lend a helping hand or be there as a shoulder to cry on.  I'm sure that many people can relate to the poem because it explains one's feelings so well.  Whether it's from a teenager with a broken heart, a widowed spouse, or a person that has lost their way, this text transforms their feelings into words. At times, it's normal to breakdown, just because.  Even I myself have times where I just don't know what to do.  It's so easy to become worked up over the little things and feel as if no one cares about you. 

We often find ourselves becoming so wrapped up in the materialistic and busy ways of the world that we never stop to think about doing well for other people and actually caring about how others are feeling.  Occurrences like this happen every day. They can even be found in normal conversations and just by asking, "How are you? Majority of the time, we don't care how they are; we're just trying to be polite in a quick manner.  Have you really ever stopped, engaged in a conversation, and actually cared about what another is going through? It's very rare in today's times and I believe Shakur would agree.    

What I also gathered from the text was that it's hard now days to find someone that you can actually trust and talk to about the difficult times that you're going through.  It's always good to have a genuine friend that you can talk to because most of the time, other people are glad that you have problems.  However, it's hard to find someone that will actually remain loyal to you and if you do, you're very lucky.  

Some of the literary devices that were used in the poem were repetition with the use of the words, "I Cry".  I think the poet did this to emphasize the many situations that make him cry and to show the sensitive subjects. More literary devices utilized in this poem are irony and personification.  Irony with the phrase "The tears I cry are bitter and warm."  When you think of warmth, you think of being comfortable and that you're in a safe place, not falling apart.  Personification was expressed in the phrase "I Cry because my heart is torn."  You're heart can't be torn; therefore, it is giving human like qualities to a non-human object.  

I do believe that Shakur succeeded in writing this poem.  He clearly expressed his feelings and was able to succeed in his purpose to make me as the reader relate to and connect with him.  

It's not a goodbye, just a see you later.

It's crazy how attached to someone you can become in such a short period of time.  For a year, I had the privilege to know one of the most humble, sweet, and caring grandfathers in the entire world.  My boyfriend, Sam, had the privilege to know this man for his entire life. For the year that I have gotten to know Sam and his family, I have also grown closer to every single one of them.  I can still remember the first time I spent time with them, last year at Christmas.  I walked into their house and there was Papa.  He smiled at me and said "Oh I know who this girl is! I've seen you at school!"

On Wednesday, October 3^rd, 2012, I woke up to a message from Sam saying that Papa had a stroke in the middle of the night and was in the hospital.  For the next few days, the nurses monitored him and said that he was going to be okay.  The next day however, the blood in his brain had spread everywhere, but his breathing and heart rate were normal. If he would have lived, he would have been a vegetable, which is why everyone prayed that the good Lord would call him home soon.  

Sam’s parents took turns spending the night at the hospital with Papa.  You could tell that none of them were their selves, but how could you be at a time like this? It wasn't normal seeing all of them sad and upset, especially Sam. Sam has always been the type of person to tell jokes and make you laugh, which are traits that he received from his grandpa.  For the past year that Sam and I have been together, every time I would become upset, he was there to cheer me up and be there for me.  Now, it was my turn to be there for him.  

I couldn't imagine what the family was going through.  Just the weekend before, we were all sitting around in Papa and Mama's house having a wonderful time, and then the next weekend, Papa was gone. The part that really touched me though, was that Mama (Papa’s wife), never left his side at the hospital.  They were married for fifty- eight years.  A love like that is hard to find and even till his last days, you could tell that their love only got stronger every day.  Another part that touched me was that in Papa’s last few minutes of consciousness, he couldn't remember anyone, but when he saw Sam, he looked up and smiled because he remembered him.  Papa died Saturday, October 6^th, 2012.

When situations like this happen, it's hard not to question God, "Why?" Although that's the last thing that we should do, we do it anyway.  God works in mysterious ways and in my fifteen years, I've learned this and I have come to accept it, no matter how hard it is.  It's true that God gained an angel, but it's also true that Sam gained a guardian angel as well.  Papa was loved by everyone and in just a year of knowing him, I learned that he was beyond a wonderful man.  He was loved by a remarkable woman, who still continues to love him now and always will.  He had two great children and four amazing grandchildren who loved him dearly.  It’s true that life is short, so love the ones who are good to you, respect the ones that are not and always keep the faith.