Community Song

My Hometown by Bruce Springsteen

I was eight years old and running with a dime in my hand
Into the bus stop to pick up a paper for my old man
Id sit on his lap in that big old buick and steer as we drove through town
Hed tousle my hair and say son take a good look around
This is your hometown, this is your hometown
This is your hometown, this is your hometown

In `65 tension was running high at my high school
There was a lot of fights between the black and white
There was nothing you could do
Two cars at a light on a saturday night in the back seat there was a gun
Words were passed in a shotgun blast
Troubled times had come to my hometown
My hometown, my hometown, my hometown

Now main streets whitewashed windows and vacant stores
Seems like there aint nobody wants to come down here no more
They're closing down the textile mill across the railroad tracks
Foreman says these jobs are going boys and they aint coming back to
Your hometown, your hometown, your hometown, your hometown

Last night me and Kate we laid in bed talking about getting out
Packing up our bags maybe heading south
Im thirty-five we got a boy of our own now
Last night I sat him up behind the wheel and said son take a good
Look around
This is your hometown

      Bruce Springsteen's approach to his former community is full of mixed feelings. He starts of the song talking about when he was young, when his memories of his birthplace were fond. However, once he gets into the second verse, the darker side of his former community emerges. At the time, racism predominated most schools, and there "(were) a lot of fights between the black and white". If not for the racism, his memories would've been better. He sees his hometown as a snare, and uses the term "getting out" instead of simply leaving. He feels tethered to the town because it is his community- his bond to the town only strengthened as he grew up there.

Community

While a neighborhood can be a community, there is a difference between a neighborhood and community. A community is a place where a group of people (whether it be 10 or 1000) work together to accomplish a goal or help one another. Neighborhoods are characterized by distance and geography, while a community is less of a physical thing and more of a spiritual/mental idea.

Communities I Belong To-

• school
• family
• church

My Community
One of my strongest communities is with my family. While we are very comfortable with each other in our house, I feel that my family connects stronger in a different place- Stella's Diner. Stella's has been around since before my parents moved to Chicago, and almost as soon as they arrived they started to frequent the colorful little restaurant. When I was born, the waiters and waitresses (who we know almost as well as most of our friends) would carry me around with them so my parents could eat a meal in peace. Needless to say, little baby Claire was a big hit among the other customers. Now, fifteen years later with two younger siblings, we still go to Stella's on a weekly basis. The building itself is bright and kitschy- the walls are painted a bright lime green, and the purple and orange paint splatters display the daily specials (challah french toast and chorizo skillets on Saturdays). Bright paintings of superheroes frame the walls, and the big blackboard covered with drawings of all of the dessert options greets us with a big chalk 'Welcome!'. When my family is there to eat brunch together, everybody seems happier. Even though my house is obviously a very strong place for the family community, the little diner on Broadway is like a sacred temple for us.

Expectations
Being in a family, each member has a lot of expectations, both from others and from themselves. Communication is obviously a major expectation- communicating is the main reason the community functions. We are expected to tell the truth and talk to each other when we need to. The children of the family are also expected to get good grades and always try our best. In my family, no excuses for laziness are allowed. While we are totally encouraged to socialize and have down time, there is always room for studying and homework.

Why the Community is Comfortable
I feel comfortable in my family community because I know I can always talk to my family. We all trust and love each other, and they will always be there for me when I need them. Even though we may get into fights, we always find ways to put personal pride out of the picture and forgive each other. This community works because we work as a whole, not as separate parts, and a problem for one person is a problem for the whole family. I can be myself with my family.

Jean de Crevecoeur

The essence of America in Jean de Crevecoeur's letter is very different from the idea of it in modern times . Back in the late 1700's, America was seen as welcoming to anybody who wished to come, whereas now it many people are full of thinly concealed prejudice. In Crevecoeur's America, the country was brand new and full of food, fields, and land. Crevecoeur described it as welcoming and ready to house and feed anybody who was looking for a fresh start. Back then, it was a respite from Europe's brutal laws governing religion- in the new America, you didn't even need to worship a god, though most people did. Nowadays, though we are very accepting of most religions, a person can still be shunned for believing in a different thing than others. While as a country we are very accepting of others, our image as the "Alma Mater" no longer stands.

152 words.