"The Struggle" Life is too short by Brettany

"The Struggle" Life is too short by Brettany - July 2013 Scholarship Essay

The best book I have ever read is The Roots. I have read the book and watched the movie in school. Roots is one of the best books Ive read because it shows us not to take the life we are living for granted. This book made me really understand the hardships that african americans went through. Sometimes we do not realize how good we have life in todays society. Back in the early 1900's they had life very hard. They had to work as slaves, sometimes not getting much to eat, or getting proper treatment. They didnt have cars, buses, or any of this fancy transportation we have today. They had to walk to where they wanted to go or ride a horse if they owned one. Sometimes they didnt have that much to share for thier families. In worst cases, they were all crammed on a boat with no fresh air, no food, no space to move. If they wanted to use the bathroom they would have to do everything right there. They were also chained so they couldnt move unless they were brought above the boat by the slave owners. They were beatened and force to change their birth name to what their slave masters wanted. Sometimes were forced to leave their families. You were not allowed to learn how to read because the idea was that AFricans were ignorant. They were only good for hard labor. The women were used as maids in the households. I like this movie because I believe it is important each child should know about their history. In this movie "konta kinte" made it his duty that his daughter learned about her history. The daughter passed it down to her children. Each generation should know the background of their ancestors. History came along way to where it is now, There is so much new technology now that they didnt have back then. Its amazing how its change drastically during the years. Too many of us take the life we have for granted and are not satisfied with what we have. It is important to be greatful for what you have because others have it worst. Life is too short, embrace what you have before it becomes what you had.