Jeannette Walls writes about her life growing up in a way that makes you
feel like you’ve been brought back in a time machine. Starting out she tells us
about a recent story of when she sees her mom for the first time in a long time.
Jeannette shares stories of all sorts—from severely burning herself making
hot-dogs alone at the age of three, to falling out of her dad’s moving car.
Their family was constantly moving from town to town; her father’s shady
tendencies caused many problems. The Walls children were all different: Lori the
gifted artist and mother’s favorite, Brian who views his parents as lazy,
Jeannette, and Maureen the baby. Their mother is a very confusing woman. One
second she’s explaining their lifestyle is an adventure, but the next she’s
crying blaming her husband for her children’s hunger. Many of Jeannette’s
parent’s decisions seem to reflect how their parents raised them. The children’s
grandmother forced her daughter—Jeannette’s mom—to get a teaching degree and
follow strict rules. Her childhood wasn’t easy. However, maybe having a simple
life isn’t the best for everyone.
Differing from what many people believe, I see their mother as a strong
parent. Seeing how she dealt with an abusive, drunk husband and raised four
smart children says something. Sure, some of her choices might not have been the
wisest, but all parents make mistakes. Besides, she got them ready or the real
world. Not only was she a starving artist, but a school teacher whose students
adored her. Their mom saw things differently, and treated her kids as equal
humans. Because of the loose guidelines she set, each of her children grew up to
be successful. They learned to depend on themselves from an early age. However,
I’m not trying to say all parents should let their kids run completely wild ad
not care about them, but they should try to be less harsh and give more respect
to a young adult so they too can enjoy life.
My own father follows many of the same principles their mother does; for
example. to learn from your own mistakes. I have made my fair share of mistakes,
but each time I learn from them. I can’t recall the last time the same accident
has been made in my life twice, and that’s because I learned the hard way the
first time. Mrs. Walls didn’t want her kids to grow up not knowing about life,
so she never gave them a taste of a “fantasy childhood”. Their mom wasn’t a
saint, but at least she tried.
feel like you’ve been brought back in a time machine. Starting out she tells us
about a recent story of when she sees her mom for the first time in a long time.
Jeannette shares stories of all sorts—from severely burning herself making
hot-dogs alone at the age of three, to falling out of her dad’s moving car.
Their family was constantly moving from town to town; her father’s shady
tendencies caused many problems. The Walls children were all different: Lori the
gifted artist and mother’s favorite, Brian who views his parents as lazy,
Jeannette, and Maureen the baby. Their mother is a very confusing woman. One
second she’s explaining their lifestyle is an adventure, but the next she’s
crying blaming her husband for her children’s hunger. Many of Jeannette’s
parent’s decisions seem to reflect how their parents raised them. The children’s
grandmother forced her daughter—Jeannette’s mom—to get a teaching degree and
follow strict rules. Her childhood wasn’t easy. However, maybe having a simple
life isn’t the best for everyone.
Differing from what many people believe, I see their mother as a strong
parent. Seeing how she dealt with an abusive, drunk husband and raised four
smart children says something. Sure, some of her choices might not have been the
wisest, but all parents make mistakes. Besides, she got them ready or the real
world. Not only was she a starving artist, but a school teacher whose students
adored her. Their mom saw things differently, and treated her kids as equal
humans. Because of the loose guidelines she set, each of her children grew up to
be successful. They learned to depend on themselves from an early age. However,
I’m not trying to say all parents should let their kids run completely wild ad
not care about them, but they should try to be less harsh and give more respect
to a young adult so they too can enjoy life.
My own father follows many of the same principles their mother does; for
example. to learn from your own mistakes. I have made my fair share of mistakes,
but each time I learn from them. I can’t recall the last time the same accident
has been made in my life twice, and that’s because I learned the hard way the
first time. Mrs. Walls didn’t want her kids to grow up not knowing about life,
so she never gave them a taste of a “fantasy childhood”. Their mom wasn’t a
saint, but at least she tried.