I can’t believe I’m a day late two days late in posting this! I swear, I’ve been mixing up my days all over the place and I knew I was forgetting something. But at least this is happening in the same week as it should be, so we have been doing good with keeping up with the biweekly schedule. I may have to change that up a bit though because I’m telling you, it’s like pulling teeth to get my mom and brother to answer these questions I’m working so hard to come up with.

Clearly we are still going through quarantine, and I didn’t feel like bringing that up again. Instead we are going to look at the kind of people we see ourselves, and whether we see ourselves in any of our favorite characters. Or something like that. I don’t remember. 😅

Just Another Day on the Island is a bi-weekly discussion post featuring the thoughts and ramblings of the Untalan Clan (aka, Leelynn’s mom and brother). We talk about books, family, and other things that come to mind. This feature officially launched on March 25, 2020.

So today, we are looking within ourselves to see what kind of people we are. Or something like that. Again, I don’t remember what I asked but I’m going to remember as I try to come up with some answers to the questions I asked my family.

What is something that you learned about yourself after reading a certain book?

Roxy: I learned that women are much more powerful than they give themselves credit for.  Additionally, it seems like we sometimes are quick to ignore our gut instincts and to make excuses for the person we love, even though everything we are experiencing is showing us the truth about them.

RayGil: Because I’m not that much of a reader compared to my family, I’m going to expand this to a cartoon I like to watch called Steven Universe. (I think it’s valid enough since the creator made a book kind of telling the story of the show and it is in comic book form–I think…) This cartoon is probably the only cartoon that has had an amazing impact on my life. The show was an escape when I was going through a tough time through Middle and High school. And I believe I have learned how to deal with times of stress and generally moments of not happiness, in a healthy and constructive way.

Me: So I legit just gave a super hard question to answer myself, didn’t I? Okay, Leelynn. Okay. Well, I think about this and I feel like after every book I read, there is some aspect about either a main character or a side character that makes me want to embody their strength or courage, or some sort of trait that I just want to have to be a better person. Whether it’s the courage to be who I truly am, love who I want to love, or just have the courage to stand up for what I believe in and be vocal about my thoughts without worrying about whether I will be listened to or supported. I want to be able to have that kind of inner strength to say “This is where I stand, and I am going to do whatever I can in my power to make things right.”

Which literature character do you relate to the most and what kind of relationship would you have with them?

Roxy: I think I am most like the character Samantha Sweeny from the Ashley Farley Sweeny Sisters Series.  I think we would get along just splendidly.  Not only do we have a strong sense of responsibility for our families, but we are headstrong and very passionate women who do things with purpose.

RayGil: Not to be a broken record but Steven from Steven Universe is the character I relate to the most. I would love to be someone that Steven would tell the stories of his adventures to. Possibly be someone he is comfortable in confiding with or just hanging around with. This is a little hard since I’ve watched the show so much that I can’t imagine the story any different than how it is; I usually just see myself as Steven in some cases.

Me: I feel like there are so many characters that I see myself as, and it’s so hard to narrow it down to just one! But I’m going to try and I’m going to say that I relate to Hermione Granger the most and that’s just who I have always related to. I loved how smart she was and how into school she was, not worried about being teased about being a “know-it-all” and was able to help Harry and Ron figure out things that could have cost them their lives. She was the character that I wanted to be growing up, and I grew up wanting to strive to be as smart as her, and as dedicated to education and learning as her. As far as the relationship I would have with her, I would just want her to be my best friend or even like a mentor to me.

Has there ever been a book/movie/show that you would revisit constantly during your childhood or while growing up? What was it about that book/movie/show that made you revisit it so often?

Roxy: I’m embarrassed to share that the one movie I would constantly watch when I was young was Sixteen Candles.  As the youngest child in a family of eight, my parents were very strict and conservative Catholics.  No boyfriends allowed and you had to focus on your studies and helping the family.  I would watch the show and dream that I would have a boyfriend one day when I turned 16. Of course, that would never happen.  But it was something I would watch over and over again and just dream of the possibility.

RayGil: I believe that would be Avatar: The Last Airbender. First of all that show is a piece of art and it holds a lot of memories and nostalgia of watching it with my mom and my sister.

Me: Oh gosh I love Avatar. I seriously could totally attest to what RayGil said because I could watch that show over and over and over again and never get tired of it. I’m actually about to try to convince my brother to do a rewatch with me through WhatsApp so we can watch it together. But when I was growing up, I want to say that it was probably either Pokemon or Sailor Moon. My mom was pretty strict when I was growing up though, so the only time I could watch TV was on the weekends. I honestly don’t even remember really watching a lot of shows because I was more into reading – haha see I knew that was going to continue into my adult life – and I just really loved learning. So actually, now that I think about it, I would remember watching those educational shows on PBS Kids like something about US History during the Revolutionary War and Cyberchase. Those were great. I just wanted to continue to educate myself on things and never allow myself to be stagnant when it came to new knowledge.

Which literature character was your role model growing up and why?

Roxy: I don’t think I had a role model from a literature character. I just know that I loved reading the Nancy Drew Mystery novels.  It was exciting to read about a young girl detective for a change.  She was smart, brave and the hero of the stories.  It gave me something to look forward to as I got older.  Girls can do brave things that would have only been considered for boys.

RayGil: Steven Quartz Cutie-Pie Demayo Diamond Universe. I’m only fifteen. Still growin’ here.

Me: Hermione was my role model! But if I think about another character, it was definitely Sailor Mercury. Sure, she’s not a “literature” character but hey she’s in the Sailor Moon Manga so that should totally count. Again she’s another really smart girl that didn’t allow anyone teasing her about her intelligence to stop her from being intelligent. I guess I just wanted some acknowledgement that it was okay to be smart and it wasn’t anything to be teased about.

I feel like we really got to learn more about ourselves from this blog post, and hey I’m super surprised that I was able to come up with some insightful questions to ask! I think that whether we find someone to relate to in a book, in a TV show, movie, or whatever medium we get our entertainment from, it’s still so relevant to our lives and can teach us more about how we are as people. Sometimes it’s even revealing to see how the people closest to us see themselves through the eyes of their favorite characters to learn more about them that we probably didn’t think about.

Also, mom is still thinking about what book she wants us to group read, so that won’t happen yet. But hopefully next post, I’ll be able to provide an update! And what about you? Who are some of your literature characters that you relate to or served as a role model in your life? We’d love to hear your thoughts on our topic this week!