The Bodies We Wear Blog #10

"The bodies we wear can only take so much damage. We wear them down and eventually they stop working. But now I know that who we are lives on, even without our bodies." (page 353)

Throughout life, you are going to experience many hardships. The important thing is that you keep moving forward. That sounds very cliche but it is so very true. The way you interpret and take your experiences makes all the difference. I think the fact that the quote talks about our bodies as if it was just a change of clothes is very symbolic. As I said in a previous blog, the way you look is not everything. So the fact that the book makes it sound as if you can just change your appearance so easily is funny to me. The quote also says that we can live on even without our bodies. Now, this can be interpreted in many ways, the main way I see it, however, is that even when you die, the legacy you left behind will always be there. There will always be something for people to remember you by, and with that, you are never really dead. Another way this could be interpreted is through resurrection. I believe that when we die, we get reborn again. So technically you would still be living on, just with a whole new start, which could also represent second chances.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #9

"Instantly I can feel the ache tugging from my scars. The desire. It's time to feed it. If Chael can't come to me, then I'll go to him" (page 338)


Faye really struggled with coping with the loss of her best friend. She also struggled very much when she was trying to fight her drug addiction. So for her to give up that sobriety just to save Chael is something that I find super crazy. The risks that people take for others without fully knowing what could happen is something very brave. What if you risk your life for them and they would not even think about doing the same? Or do you care about them that much that regardless of what they would do for you, you would still be willing to put your life on the line for them? Maybe when you are in a situation like that you just kind of go with your gut, like you do not even think about it, it is a decision you make without the need for thought processing.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #8

"The revenge was mine. I worked hard for that. How could he turn around and take it?" (page 275)


Faye has trouble trusting people; that is a main point throughout the whole book. So when she finally lets her guard down and trusts Chael, he just straight up goes and betrays her like that. I also mentioned in one of the previous blogs that Faye is a person who strongly believes in revenge. I however believe that revenge is not the way to go. I think that karma will always come back to the person that did you harm. Whatever is meant to happen will happen on its own, regardless of whether or not you do anything. If this is going to be the case, you might as well put in the least amount of effort and just watch everything take its course. In the context of this quote, however, while it was very wrong of Chael to betray Faye like that, I think he definitely had his reasons for it, and he should not be punished for what he did.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #7

"The bodies we wear, they're not the ones we always want. They get damaged. Used. It's who we are on the inside that counts. The person waiting to jump free" (page 243)

I think people tend to focus too much on the way they look. Your appearance is only a small part of who you are. I think that the type of person you are is a bigger factor when you think about how others see you. For example, you could be the greatest looking person ever, but if the way you act is rude and obnoxious it won't mean anything. There are also people who act one way with certain people and another way with another person. These kinds of people are horrible too because they are pretty much two-faced, which makes them fake. Another type of person is hypocrites. In my opinion, hypocrites are the worst type of people because they act so wise and all-knowing when in reality all they do is judge others for the exact same things that they do. Basically what I am trying to say is that appearance really isn't everything, and you shouldn't worry about that.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #6

"No matter how lonely I get, I need to remember the truth. I'm not one of them. No amount of pretending will ever change that." (page 178/179)


I really connected with this quote because I feel left out a lot. I have friends and all that but I do not belong to a specific friend group, and no matter who I hang out with, I always feel like the odd one out. People can reassure me that I am always welcome to hang out with them nut my mindset just does not change. It is not very easy for me to explain but basically what I am trying to say is that I really connected with Faye when she said this because I knew exactly how she felt. One difference would be that I do not always feel left out, there are times where I feel like I do belong, and on the contrary, Faye always feels like an outcast.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #5

"I miss being innocent" (page 161)


Faye's innocence was taken from her at a very young age. It was not at all her choice, so it seems very unfair that she should have to suffer all of the consequences of it. As I said in one of my earlier blogs, many children in the real world go through this. I think it is cool that books can be so fictional, but still so realistic at the same time. They can take a serious situation and make a whole new story out of it. They also add interesting twists to the books that can bring awareness to a certain topic in the strangest ways. For example, this book makes me realize that drug abuse is a very serious problem, and feeling alone is an equally serious problem.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #4

"People find dead bodies in the city and don't even give them a second glance" (page 125)


I find it crazy that what is normal for you can be strange for someone else and vise Versa. In psychology, we learned that when your vision is focused on something you will not notice the change so easily, but if something interrupts your field of view, the change will be more obvious. This applies to the quote because Faye says that the people in her city are used to seeing dead people lying around. However, in the context of this quote, Faye is in a much nicer city and she says that the people there would definitely notice if there was a body on the ground. This is crazy to me because, if I am used to eating dinner every day at 7pm, some people might find that weird because they eat dinner at 5pm or something like that. The aspect of people thinking dead bodies on the ground is normal might sound crazy, but this book takes place in a city that is filled with drug addicts, so it's really not as crazy as it seems.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #3

"I am not a monster, but the world treats me like one" (page 104)

People can really be so cruel sometimes. They say things that are really inconsiderate and will never once stop to think about how their words can affect others. In this case, people's actions are what really bring Faye down. Well, I guess she is not affected by it for the most part because she hates everyone and could really care less what they think. The connection I made with this quote was that people are always going to try to bring you down but you are going to have to try your best and not let it get to you. The fact that they depict Faye as a monster shows that people will say things about you without ever taking the time to learn the whole story. That is another reason why you should not listen to what other people say about you, they are not reliable sources.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #2

"If I were him, I'd hunt down each and every one of them and take their lives slowly and methodically" (page 47)

Faye is a very vengeful person and I feel like a lot of people have this mindset as well. What many people do not understand, however, is that revenge is not always the answer. If Faye were to let go of her inner hatred toward mostly everyone, she could have had a much happier life. It is not entirely her fault though because if everyone had not made her feel so left out, she could have been a nicer person overall too. Basically, it is not Faye's fault that she is the way she is. The people around her made her like that. I do not think that it is a good thing that her only hope at feeling better is by putting others in harm's way, but then again, the people she is going after messed up her life pretty badly in an irreversible manner.

The Bodies We Wear Blog #1

"My last stop of the night takes me past the dark bar on the corner where my life ended six years ago"(page 13)

Innocence is something that is so important for young children. It defines who they are as children. Losing that innocence can be very traumatic for them too. For Faye, the main character, losing that innocence feels as if her life ended. When I think about little kids who grow up too fast it makes me sad. They don't get to experience the joy of being a child, they can't create memories of being carefree and having fun. Losing their innocence through one way or another must really suck, and it does not even have to be the way Faye lost hers, by being introduced to drugs. It could just be that these children are given too many responsibilities at such a young age. If you think about it, these children are most likely constantly reminded of what they missed out on. For example, if their friends are talking about games they used to play when they were little, these kids would not be able to relate because they missed out on all of that stuff.

BMU Blog #10

"I bless you in the name of all that is good and strong and beautiful, Antonio. Always have the strength to live. Love life, and if despair enters your heart, look for me in the evenings when the wind is gentle and the owls sing in the hills. I shall be with you" (page 261)

Reading this was very emotional for me because I could picture the pain that Tony felt or most likely felt as Ultima said these final words to him.  The relationship he had with Ultima was very complicated but grew as the book progressed. I feel like Tony thought that he could really trust Ultima and that she was very helpful in aiding him towards his road to self-discovery. Losing Ultima must have taken a really big tall on Tony because like I said she was a big part of his life. The life Tony must live now will be very different than what he got used to not having Ultima but it really ties into the whole loss of innocence and growing up theme of the book

BMU Blog #9

" 'maybe God puts obstacles in front of us so that we will have to overcome them. And if we overcome all the hard and bad things, then we will be good Catholics, and earn the right to be with him in heaven' "(page 196)

My friend Daisy and I constantly talk about how we think its funny that people can have so much faith in a higher power being whose existence is not even certain. For example, when something great happens, my family members say "gracias a Dios". While I think that faith and hope are very important, I also believe that everything just kind of happens for a reason. Like if something was bound to happen then it will occur on its own, maybe that is all there is to it, and there is not necessarily a higher power taking care of that. In this one television show I watched, a man bought a holy candle with a picture of La Virgen de Guadalupe. He then lit the candle and prayed that he would get a job. When the candle ran out and was completely melted, the man went and complained to the store owner and said that the candle did not work. What the man forgot to do, was actually go out and apply for jobs. He put all his faith into that candle and did not put in any effort on his own part. So basically, while I think being faithful and having something to believe in can be beneficial, it also does not always make the most sense and can end up being a bad thing.

BMU Blog #8

"Bah! Little do they care about church. That is only to keep up appearances" (page 139).

As I said in one of my previous blogs, my grandmother used to take my brothers and me to church all the time. In this quote, Antonio's uncle is criticizing those who go to church. This reminds me of when I was little because my grandma would try to get my grandpa to go to church with us and he never wanted to. If he did go, he would fall asleep halfway through the service. When I asked him why he did not like going, he said that he did not think people actually went to church to be with God. He believed that may people went simply to be able to say they went. This changed my perspective because it made me wonder why I was going to church. Was it just to please my grandma? Or was I doing it because I genuinely wanted to be closer to God? Those two questions ran through my head a lot. My father also explained to me he thought people just went to church when it was for a big reason, like Easter or Christmas mass. He said that anyone who went when it was not a holiday only went for bragging rights. Both my grandpa and father did agree however, that some people did exist who truly did want to be closer to God, such as my grandmother. I feel like that inner struggle of religious beliefs I had when I was younger allows me to connect better with Antonio.

BMU Blog #7

"!Ave Maria Purisima!" (page 128)

Although this quote may seem relatively simple, I feel it really represents how much faith Antonio's mother and other characters throughout this book have in religious figures. For example whenever things are going rough or in times of need they tend to pray to higher power or religious figures such as God or La Virgen De Guadalupe. This reminds me of how whenever something would go wrong my grandma would go and start praying. Many of my family members would tell her that this was silly and that she couldn't always depend On a higher power whose existence was not even certain. she would tell them that until they have the connection with God that she had they wouldn't understand. My grandmother reminds me a lot of Antonio's mom because they are both very faithful and have very kind intentions.

BMU Blog #4

"and what a sin it is for a boy to grow into a man-" (pg 31)

I feel like it really represents the struggle that Antonio is going through because it shows what his mother thinks and kind of ties into what she expects from him. His mother expects him to become a priest and thinks that growing up is a sin while his father believes that growing up is just part of life. Antonio is only six years old and he already has to think about what he's going to do in the future and how he can please parents. That is a lot of unnecessary stress for a little kid like that, which also goes with the theme of the story of maturity and how it doesn't come at a certain age and it's basically gained through experience. In the paragraphs after this quote Antonio's parents are arguing over why growing up is normal or why should it be considered a sin. His mother also brings up the fact that if he were a priest he would always be with God which would be good for him but she does not take into consideration that that may not be what Antonio wants.

Bless Me Ultima DJ #1

"The river's brown waters would be stained with blood forever and ever and ever..." (Anaya pg 24)

I feel like this quote really starts off the whole topic of maturity. During this scene Lupito has just been murdered by the men of the town. Antonio witnessed the whole thing and he feels different after. Most people believe that maturity begins at a certain age, but this scene reveals that it can begin at any given moment. Maturity is gained through experience, not age. Since this also took place at the bridge, it supports the idea that the bridge is associated with maturity too. I think that the bridge is where people show who they really are. Antonio didn’t think any of the men were capable of killing someone, but they still did it. I also think that the waters being stained with blood forever and ever and ever has literal meaning but there’s also more to it. It could represent the scarring that this will leave on Antonio, since he has just experienced something very traumatic. It could also mean that what happened that night will never be forgotten. Maybe not so traumatic for the men of the town, probably mostly for Antonio.