I admire Geneva Tisdale the most so far. I think it is amazing that during the time when she started working at the Woolworth's she wasn't ever allowed to sit at the counter, and yet she was the first black lady to be able to sit there. During the time she wasn't allowed to sit at the counter, she made the food for the white guests who came in. After being moved around from station to station, she declared that the sandwich- board would be her permanent station, and so it was. Tisdale's focus is on the counter. She says how much she will miss the counter and her hopes of some day retiring and coming back to sit at that counter. It's a different view than most would have when hearing that their place of employment is closing. I think that is the most creative. She makes it known that she was one of the first to sit at the counter and doesn't describe being sad she won't have a job at the sandwich board anymore, but that she didn't get the chance to ever sit at that counter again.
The son's guilt at the end that is exactly like his throughout the essay surprised me the most. "He tells me that when I am gripped by sadness, he feels responsible; he feels there must be something he can do to spring me from depression, to fix my life." Throughout the essay he says he was the family rock and wouldn't let himself weep. It surprised me that he was able to show enough emotion that it too would bother his son like it did him. I learned that your emotions can rub off on other people unintentionally and the experiences you have really shape who you are and who you become. That guilt he shared with his father, his son now shares with him.
What did Geneva Tisdale do after the Woolworth's closed and what is she doing now?
I thought her continuous repetition about the idea of the counter made a large impact on my view of the story. She made a large deal about a counter that most people wouldn't think much into, but I believe that was her intention. She wanted us to be in her shoes, to realize how much sitting at the counter meant to her. So I found that very interesting as well.
ReplyDeleteThat quote caught my attention as well. I was shocked that he was going to "let history repeat itself" I really was hoping for a happy ending where he would make changes for his son.