Jack Gantos Three Words

You always hear about tragic stories that involve drugs, in news articles, tv shows, books, etc. You never think it could apply to you. You ask yourself why would it? You believe you’re a good individual that knows right from wrong, and it can’t happen to you. When we are young, we all believe we’re invincible, some us still do. Jack Gantos recounts his struggle as a young high school student desiring to become a writer. He plans for a college, so he can pursue his writing career, but he feels he has nothing to write about. Through his search for inspiration and absence of common sense Jack goes from a naïve teenager, casual dope user, drug trafficker, inmate, to someone who is aware of his place in the world and is grateful for it. The book
Hole in My life is an interesting read because it shows that good people can easily be influenced to do bad things by others, they can overcome horrendous experience’s in life, and can learn from their poor choices.
This memoir not only features the life of Jack, it gives shocking details of the events in his early life.
He shows that good people can easily be influenced to do bad things by others. “All I heard was the number ten thousand dollars, cash. This was the jackpot. The answer I was looking for My exit from St. Croix and my entrance into whatever school would have me.” Jack was easily influenced to smuggle drugs to New York for a profuse amount of cash, that would predict his future in his writing. Another, “Count me in.’ Those were the three words I would take back if I could. They were my words to Rik and Hamilton. ‘count me in.’ Now I was counted in my cell every day, and I was counted to be there morning, noon, and night.” Jack regretted saying those thee words. He knew he put himself in an atrocious position. “But all I did was smoke it. I never thought dope would lead me to trouble, and I certainly had no idea it would land my ass in jail.” He would frequently smoke weed, but had no idea he would end up going to jail for smuggling
it.
Towards the end of the novel jack shows that people can overcome horrendous experiences. Jack knows he went through hard emotional stuff. He realizes that it was time to leave the negative stuff that was going on and encounter the positive goals in his life. For jack his way of leaving all the negativity was writing. People see impassable barriers, they see challenges to embrace, and obstacles to overcome. Such as, changing friend groups, pursuing a goal, and overall just changing your mindset. Their confidence in their face of distress is pushed by the competence to let go of negativity. From my perception dealing with similar experiences like jacks is to escape the situation and think what’s next, putting myself in a positive state of mind.
“I have learned this: it is not what one does wrong, but what one becomes as a consequence of it.” People can make the worst decision in life, but it’s not what they do that is bad, but what they learn from it.
As a young individual in high school, I had made some poor choices, but I always learned from it do to the consequences and plenty of lectures from my parents. Mistakes can teach us to except ourselves. Most people put themselves down when they mess up. Acknowledging their mistakes puts them in a good position to except themselves. Learning from mistakes can also teach us to inspire other. As an older sibling I can teach my younger siblings that it is ok to fail. So, when they do make mistakes it gives me the opportunity to interact with them and let them know what they could have done
differently.
After reading Hole in My Life it has made an impact on me. It strengthened my faith and questioned how my actions would be in a similar situation. I learned that when some of our friends believe something, your also likely to believe it, too. Also, seeking attention into something you love, will help you overcome bad experiences. Finally, embracing failure and bad choices teaches us who we are and makes us unique. Don’t let mistakes define who you are or who you can be. Learn and grow from mistakes.