Things I Carry In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

In reading the novel “The Things They Carried” in my english class this year, I have learned that most, if not all, people carry intangible and tangible things with them everyday. In my readings, I found that the soldiers in the novel carry their tangible things to help with what they are carrying intangibly. Regardless, the things we carry make us stand out in our own way; they make us who we are. I, for example, carry the emotional stress that attacks me everyday, and a ring that I love.
In fact, I emotionally carry stress and anxiety everywhere I go. If I had a choice in what I carried intangibly I would not choose to carry such things because it greatly affects my life and the decisions I make everyday. It is an embarrassment and I do
In fact, my ring holds a significant amount of value because of the story it tells. When I was only four years old my parents went through with a divorce. My biological dad was wrong and twisted in his ways and made far too many mistakes. He was careless in his actions and abandoned my sister and me when I was twelve. For a large portion of my childhood, I grew up without the guidance from a father that I strongly needed. I was desperate for a father that would be supportive in every aspect and be a leader for me to look up to. However, I did not receive much guidance until I was about nine years old. My mom got remarried to my step dad in October of 2010. Over the years, my step dad showed me with his words and actions what a real father should resemble. Indeed, on a night like any other, our family went out to eat and my dad gave my sister and me a ring. In fact, he gave us both this ring because he wanted us to remember the special night in which he told us that he adopted us. At times when I am too overwhelmed to think or have panic attacks, I look at the ring on my right ring finger and am reminded of how far I have come. I think back on the times when I did not have you in my life and am grateful of ou for how far you have pushed and guided me since then. To you I owe the utmost respect and gratitude for shaping me into the young adult I am today, and the ring that I carry reminds me of it everyday. Nonetheless, both the intangible and tangible things we carry shape and form us into the people we are. My ring reminds me of my past and present while my anxiety reminds me of the travails I have to overcome everyday. Overall, the thing I carry affect my life tremendously in both positive and negative ways.

With Love,
Kayla