Recitatif

When Twyla first met Roberta, she didn’t like her at first because she was stuck in one room with a new girl of a different color. Morrison said that nobody wanted to play with Twyla and Roberta because they weren’t real orphans with beautiful dead parents in the sky. They were dumped. The older children picked on the younger ones a lot. Twyla reminisce about one lady name Maggie. She fell in the orchard and the older children laughed at her. That Sunday both Roberta and Twyla’s mothers were coming. When Twyla said that her mother dances, I assumed she was a stripper because earlier in the story she said that she loves to dance all night. Roberta’s mother was sick. Twyla thought that if her dancing mother met the sick mother it might be good for her. Later Twyla thought that the reason why she got into waitressing later was that so she could match up the right people with the right food. One day while she was working at Howard Johnson she saw Roberta. She acted different. She was with two guys. One of them was off to the Coast because he had an appointment with Jimi Hendrix. After that Twyla felt turned off. Years later they both got older they met again. They acted like long lost sisters. They are both married and have kids. Even Roberta learned how to read which was good. When they talked about Maggie Twyla thought she fell down by herself. Roberta said that she didn’t, that the older girls knocked her down. Twyla didn’t remember that part. Roberta asked if her mother was still dancing. She was, and Roberta’s mother was still sick. Roberta said that back then was different, black and white. After they were arguing more Roberta said that they both kicked Maggie but Twyla didn’t remember it. It was like she blocked out that part. Again, years later they met again. Roberta wanted to talk to her. She said they Twyla was right, they didn’t kick her.

            At the end of the story, Roberta asked, “What the hell happened to Maggie?” That is the question I wanted to know too. If I was in Twyla’s shoes I would be turned off by Roberta that day in Howard Johnsons. Roberta should have acted a little more better instead acting like the regular teens. But it was good that later she acted a little better like she hasn’t seen each other in a long time.

Zalzah

    I think out of all the stories I read in the book so far, I like this one the most. It talks about a young Jewish girl working her butt off so she can survive. When her aunt in America tells her mom about her son needs a wife, Zelzah’s mother tells her sister that Zelzah would make a good wife. So Zelzah goes to America to Vermont.  The family treats her well. She gets to know Jake (soon to be husband) more until one brother’s girlfriend took him away and gets secretly married and pregnant. The aunt was ashamed and asked Zalzah what she would like to do. Zalzah then went back to New York City to a family’s home to work for a while. Then she found a job in a factory. She started receiving her education. She wanted her sister Shulamith to join her so she started sending money for her to come. After a few years she finally came. She joined with Zalzah to work in a factory. After a while she met a man and married him. They have six children together. Zalzah went to college and got her bachelor degree. She became a third grade teacher. She rented a nice house of her own.

    Towards the end of the story, on page 198 she says that she work up one morning and thought how strange life was. She thought of her life back home and her new life here in America. I think she said life was strange because just years ago she was at home working to survive. Then she moved to America and she has a good life now. She worked hard to get where she was now, education and all. She received news from home that her sisters were getting married too. I think she felt relieved that her sisters were being taken care of. I don’t think she ever thought about getting married, just focused on herself first. This story makes me feel inspired because she moved to America to marry but ended up not getting married but making a better life here. I felt bad for her in beginning because she had a big family and shared a bed with her sisters. She had to walk three miles to work on a farm.  At the end of the story she asks what is happiness? I think the answer to that question would be doing things for yourself and others to be better, around things you love.

Little Saigon

       When I first read it I didn’t understand it at all. Then I read it again and I finally understood it. Little Saigon may be a short story but it was empowering! There were five different parts in the story. It seems that the albino peacock was a symbol of the mother.  For weeks the mother was secretly talking to an old man that lived by the tobacco shop. The mother wanted to leave her home to escape. When they arrive to the boat the Jack Pirate told the mother to go on the other boat while the two daughters go on his boat. Before they left, the mother called to the oldest daughter, saying, “Take care of your sister!” They had run out of food so the oldest had to do the unthinkable to survive. She told the Jack Pirate, “Give me water and food for my sister.” Night after night, she had to suffer so her sister Mai Chi can have food and water. They finally arrived, but their mother hasn’t. They stayed with the mother’s cousin in Little Saigon, California. Later their aunt came and got them. They lived in a nice home with the aunt and uncle was very good to them.

      To actually be asked to take care of your younger sibling? Wow.  I don’t think many people have the courage to do it unless they really have to. To do what she had to do every night took a lot of guts.  I don’t think I can ever do that unless it is the last thing to do on earth. I have a little sister. She is two years old. I think that if our parents left and left my sister with me I think I would be able to take care of her because I have my older brother for support, if you think of today’s modern world. I learned that the younger sister is her half sister. The mother had sex with an American black man. The older sister painted but she never showed to anyone except Mai Chi. At the end of the story she showed her a painting of the mother walking in the streets, and the white peacock was beside her, the tail spread out. Mai Chi began to cry and the older sister consoled her by saying that the mother is finally safe. Mai Chi said, “Ngoc Be! So are we…”

Dawn

       Barnsey had to go to his grandmother’s house for christmas. He was complaining to his mother that what if he sat next to a strange person the whole way. His mother was like, don’t even go there. He was only thirteen years old. At least his mother didn’t pay attention to what she was buying for him, a lot of junk food. He got on the bus there were no other seats except for the one next to a girl name Dawn.she was the total opposite of him. She had nine earrings, nose rings, and a mohawk, orange and purple.she dressed in all black and had walkman on. When he dropped his cassettes he accidently got the tapes mixed up with Dawn. So when he was listening to the music he thought he heard nothing. Then he listened closely and heard soft music with rain noises. Dawn said that one band was rubbish. He thought about that word a lot. The bus had to stop because it was snowing badly. So a tavern offered to take them in for a bit. The bus driver gave the twenty dollars back. In the tavern, Dawn got in a small fight with some men but at the end they ended up laughing. But once Barnsey arrived at his grandmother’s home he had gotten the shock of his life. His parents are divorcing, and he will be living with his father. So he ran away but his father came to the station to see him. At the end of the story he gave the walkman to his father and said, “Listen.” They were listening to the rainforest music.

       I had experience that because my parents are dicvorced. They got divorced when I was around two or three. Me and my brother lived with my father. We moved to Florida and he got remarried. We stayed there until I was about eight and we left my step family. We moved back to Virginia and stayed there. When I was in middle school my brother didn’t want to live with my father so he left to live with my mother, and grandparents, eventually living in Florida with a roommate. My mother has also remarried. I like my step father. He is nice and funny. I have lived with my father since.sometimes it is hard having divorced parents because I don’t like going back and forth. But one positive thing is that my parents only live fifteen minutes away from each other. If my father says no about something and my mother doesn’t care but she rather me ask my father because she doesn’t want my father mad

On the Rainy River & The Setting Sun and the Rolling World

In the story “On the Rainy River”, the author O’Brien reminisces about the time he ran away from home to avoid being drafted into the war.  In June of 1968 he graduated from Macalester College with summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, president of student body and full ride scholarship for grad school at Harvard. He got his draft notice on June 17. When he opened it he felt like he was too good for the war. He hated the dirty things and camping. He didn’t like blood. He’s not very good at listening. That summer he was a declotter, which means that he gets rid of the clots from the dead pigs. One day he just dropped his water gun and walked out of the factory. He went home to pack and wrote a simple message to his parents. Then he left. He drove north towards Canada. He stopped at the lodge called Tip Top Lodge and stayed there for six days. The man didn’t say anything and asked nothing about why O’Brien came. They played games together and ate together.  At the end he realized he should not rum from his fears and should face it. He went back home and went into the war. He survived, but called himself a coward. If that was in his shoes and I was getting drafted I wouldn’t run away. I would face being drafted. I wouldn’t be a deserter because I would have to face the consequences once I was caught.

In the story “The Setting Sun and the Rolling World”, I feel like the setting was based in Africa or some country like it. Mungoshi was telling his father that it was time for him to leave his home and find something better. The father was telling him to think about it and that the land and his family needs him. But Mungoshi was stubborn, saying that the land was overworked. Finally the father gives Mungoshi his blessings. He states that the land is still his and as long as the father is still alive the home is open to him. I would leave home to find something better for me even if it means leaving home. I would want a better future for myself.  I would work until I am successful then I would come back home and help my parents. I have never worked on a farm so I don’t know anything about farm life. But one day I would like to live on a farm to get experience.

Beautiful & Cruel/Trip in a Summer Dress

In the short story of Beautiful and Cruel, the first sentence I see is “I am an ugly daughter.” I felt that she shouldn’t say negative words like that about herself. It looks like she is a teenager going through puberty. Cisneros’ sister says she wont wait her whole life for a husband to come and get her. She reminds me of the popular girls that get what they want and play hard to get. She wants to pick her own husband. Cisneros decides to rebel by becoming the opposite of what women are viewed as in society (clean-looking with manners.) she doesn’t want to give in to what women must do when they grow up. She has become a feminist by starting her own quiet war. Which means that she leaves the table like a man, not putting back the chair or cleaning up after herself.

In the Trip in a Summer Dress, I felt a little sad because Sanford got pregnant at 15 and her mother took her son under her wing. Matthew calls her mother, “mom.” Sanford desperately wanted to tell him that he is her son, not grandmother’s. Sanford and her mother went to her uncle’s house to stay until she gave birth. The family didn’t want the people back at her home to know that Sanford was pregnant because at that time getting pregnant and unmarried was frowned upon. Later when Matthew was a little older she tried to explain about the birds about a different bird was taking care of a baby bird. Matthew didn’t understand. Sanford got on the bus to go to Eureka Springs, Arkansas to get married to a guy name Bill Richards. She didn’t listen to her mother about bringing her jacket. She befriends a little girl on the bus.  Her parents are divorced so she visits her parents during the week and other parent on weekends. Sanford called her mother because she wanted Matthew to know the truth. She wanted to tell Matthew that she is his mother, not the grandmother.

I never had experience with having a child at a young age but I do have experience with divorced parents. My parents have been divorced since I was three I think. I lived with my dad all my life. I never really visited my mom until we moved back up to Virginia. Then I visited her ever couple weeks. Now both of my parents are remarried. I like my mom’s side of family because they are more open-minded and like to have fun. My dad’s side is more humble. They are catholic. But I don’t mind it because my grandparents spoil me. So does my dad ha-ha.

Language and Thought

          

           When reading the article English is andocentric (built in bias towards men), I felt like its all about sexist and language. When it said language was created by men, I was like “WTF?’ Then I started to realize men created it. Even though there are fewer words relating to women than men, reality is that there are 220 English terms for a promiscuous FEMALE and only 20 for a MALE. In the past, I know that women were like the person behind the curtains waiting for their moment to shine. They finally start to shine when they had Acts and Laws passed for their rights. Men built English because men controlled society, and The People with the Power were men in society who can build their point of view into the language. The typical male that society view as were men that were white, straight, middle-aged, and able-bodied (average weight.) So basically insulting the ethnic community and the LBGT community. So the people who are not the typical male were ugly, fat, too skinny, short, tall, dumb, weird-looking teeth, glasses, have disabilities, illnesses and a different economic status.

            People don’t notice language is biased unless it affects them. According to page 128, it states that it’s not the word itself that is racist, sexist or whatever. It is the meaning that we give them. In the debate between thought and language, it is thought that language was controlled by thought but some say it is thought that is controlled by language. Language can affect our thinking by helping our thought process. Like the act of explaining something to someone else often helps you understand it better yourself. One example would be a deaf person signing to another explaining what a word means. The more that person explains the more that person would understand him/herself. Even though thought and language are interdependent, language often assists thought and we have to think to understand and use the English Language. What does euphemism means? It means words that present their subject in a favorable light. Imagine you are watching television and an ad comes on. You see a product that looks odd looking. The person telling you about it is saying that the product is exquisite and is easy to use. You immediately think, “that thing??” even though it doesn’t look the best the person will try to advertise it to sell the product.

Bad Influence

When Cofer had to choose between and Catholic retreat and a vacation in Puerto Rico to visit the family, she chose Puerto Rico. She was recently place on house arrest because her and her close friend had a chance to sleep at a guy’s house. They both had to lie to their parents because they know they were not allowed to see a guy. Their parents found out and drove to the guy’s house. Soon as she got off the plane she was soaked with sweat. Her family thought she had asthma so she used that to her advantage. She wasn’t really happy at first because the family watched drama shows and there was a rooster that didn’t know what time to crow. The house still did not have a telephone. They still rely on letters and telegrams. One day they went to the beach to go crab hunting and for papa to work his magic. The girl was around her age. They started to talk and hang out more. When her mama arrived she felt that she wasn’t sure if Cofer was going to hate her for sending her down here. But she actually had a good time. She was bonding with her family.

            There was a strong culture in the story. They drink con leches a lot and special herb drinks to heal problems and sickness. I started to understand the title, Bad Influence. Cofer’s friend back home was a bad influence and were discussing with her new friend about her guy and if he was a bad influence. When her mother came she asked about her friend. Her mother said she was happy at the retreat and was transferring to a new school in the fall. Cofer just laughed and thought of the plans they would make once she got back. She knows her mother was saying that so she would become a good girl again.  This story consists of a young girl that is a teen that is trying to find her identity and fitting in at school while incorporating both heritages, Puerto Rican and America.

            Yesterday, I have learned a new word. Nisei, which means the first generation to be born in America. My siblings and I am Nisei. We are one fourth Japanese. My mother was born in Japan and lived there until she was five years old. She then moved to America and lived here ever since. My grandma lives in Maryland now. She still uses some our culture in her home. I don’t think she has gone back to Japan to visit. I would like to go to Japan one day to visit and maybe live there for a bit.

The Curcuit

Wow. The story The Circuit has touched my heart. I felt bad for them. Getting up before the crack of dawn to move to another place to find work. They were like nomads, moving place to place to find work. The children did not go to school until a season is over like strawberry or cotton season. When the family moved to the Sullivan house for work, they stayed in a run down old garage. There were holes everywhere and worms in the ground. The women slept on the mattress while the men slept outside under the tree. The next morning Jimenez went to school. He enrolled in sixth grade. Mr. Lema is his sixth grade teacher. He was very nice and understanding. When Jimenez struggled with some words he was glad to help. They spent most of their lunch hours teaching Jimenez words and how to play an instrument. What really got me the most was he couldn’t wait to go home to tell his parents the news. Instead of coming home to a cozy home he came home to a home with packed boxes. I then felt really bad.

I’m sure the immigrants in the 50’s had to travel a lot and go to labor camps to find jobs. Life sure was tough for them back in the day but now in this time era many immigrants sneaked in through the border and apply for citizenship. Many have made it successfully but many failed and got thrown back to their country. I want to tell you a story about a person in my family, whom I will call, “Chica” for an identity reason. She is from El Salvador. Chica left her home because there was no work and no way to make money. Before she left home, she cleaned houses, babysat, cooked and worked on a farm. There was a war going on. they made children into child soldiers. She was worried because she has children of her own. Chica left home she walked to a town and caught a bus heading north. At one point she paid a guy five thousand dollars to get her across the border of some country. When she made it to America, she first went to Nevada. On her way to Nevada she walked mostly and hitched a ride. She told me that a person robbed her in Arizona. Then she went to Reno, Nevada and worked in a restaurant there. she eventually made it to Virginia and has been there since. Imagine she had to leave her home, her children so she can find work. Every month she sends money down to her family to take care of them. she married someone in my family and has a child together. She was 27 when she left for America. She has three children back home. She has been here for eight years.

Rules of the Game

When I read the story “The Rules of the Game,” I was feeling bad for the girl because back then Chinese children had to listen to their parents a lot and follow their culture. But her mother taught her how to win at arguments, respect and eventually chess games.

The girl jogs her memories about her neighborhood and all the places she visited with her friends. Her mother named her after the street they lived on which was Waverly Place Jong, but her family calls her Meimei. The mother thought low of the gifts the children received. She thought that if the people didn’t want it then she doesn’t want it. Meimei wanted to learn how to play chess games so she started going to the Chinatown library and engrossing herself in the books. She was only eight years old when she first started playing. She went to a park full of old men playing chess and decided she wanted to play. She lost but the old man gave her tips on how to win. As time went on she started winning games. But her mother kept standing over her and watching her so Meimei got fed up and talked back. She was saying that her mother was embarrassing her but her mother misinterpreted Meimei and thought she meant embarrassing to be her daughter. Meimei ran away and when she came back her mother gave her cold looks. At the end when she lay on the bed thinking of chess and the game against her mother she was plotting her next move.

What does the title mean? I think it means on the rules of chess but another meaning could be on the rules of life. I think that’s what it meant when Meimei’s mother taught her the art of invisible strength. Her mother was teaching her the things of life and how to survive. Nowadays the people are different. Different cultures like the Chinese aren’t the same as before. They are a little open about things and did not expected a lot out of their children. Sure, there are some but that’s just the parents being overly protective and wanting the best for their children. At the end when she plotted her next move she was thinking it was a game between her and her mother. Meimei wanted to outsmart her mother. What happens next is a good question because we don’t know if she will continue the love for chess or gives up.

A Gift of Laughter

In the story, “The Gift of Laughter” the man’s son, Robbie made a drawing for him but the father told him to wait because he was talking to the mother about something important. The son wanted to express his feelings to his dad since his birthday was on Saturday. Soon as Robbie slammed the door the father had a flashback to the day he was a kid. the father misunderstood the grandmother and got her a football. Soon as he found out he misunderstood, he felt shame and went to his room. After a while his mom came and took him to living room. He sees a big glass bowl with food in it and in the middle the football he got for his grandma. She was sweet enough to accept the gift and say “From a child is beautiful, anything.” Soon as the father came back to the present he began to realize that he doesn’t want Robbie to hate him in the future. So he tries to make amends and go to store to buy a frame for the drawing.

I think it was good of the father to make amends. I think it is better to have a relationship while your children are young or the child will have an emotional disconnection from the parent. When I read the story I felt that sometimes parents will do that but at the end of the day will try to make it up. But if you ignore the child long enough he/she will feel like the parent doesn’t love him/her. I felt the tone in the beginning of the story was like annoyed and mad tone and then throughout the story feeling remorse because of the way he treated his son. On page 32 and 33 Sherman capitalizes “Leaves Home” and “Left Home.” I think when he capitalizes it he meant that whenever he (the past Sherman) or his son Robbie tried to run away but was not successful because he will miss home or the parents tries to talk to them. I think the author Sherman picked the title “A Gift of Laughter” because they both shared something in common and felt the same emotions. I supposed they laugh about it on the way to the store. When I was younger I always tried to “Leave Home” but it never works because I don’t have the guts and plus where would I go? I have left one time but I came back after I cooled down. My dad doesn’t always try to talk to me.

The Dancer

When I was reading the story, “The Dancer.” I was thinking it must be an Native American story. At first I thought it meant going to a dance play or something then I realized the author, Sears said powwow and I immediately know it was Native Americans. There were weird names like old Eagle woman and Kicking Woman that was connecting it more to the Native Americans.

Anyways, the foster mother takes in a little girl that came from broken home  to a home where everyone was loved and nurtured. Sears mentioned that the little girl was a real loner and that she had screaming nightmares  a lot. They go to more dances and she observes the other dancers. The little girl finally asks to dance so they practice dancing. Sears sew a dress for the girl’s first dance. As she danced, a spirit swooped down and went inside of her and filled her with spirit’s love of dance.

The little girl’s self esteem is starting to improve and she is interacting with others more and more.  I applaud Sears for taking the girl in to love her and showing her it is possible to be loved and have a family to share with. She didn’t have to do that but I guess she has a good heart and doesn’t want any children to grow up with out a mother or a father.

House of My Own and Saturday at the Canal

        I enjoyed the short story, “A House of My Own,” because the author, Cisneros talks about her first house of her own to call it a home. She is becoming an independent woman and learning the meaning of the word home. It is a house that only have has a woman’s touch, not a man’s or a father’s. She has her own things that make it cozy and comfortable and pretty.  She is happy that she has her own home and doesn’t have to pick up after anyone. I guess the author enjoys coming home to the quietness. My sister got her first apartment few months ago. It is pretty nice and she did all for herself without a man’s touch or father’s touch. She has a job and a car and a sports bike. She is a responsible person. Some day in the future I will own my own home and be independent too, preferably after I graduated from college and get the job that  I really want.

        To me, the story “Saturday at the Canal” is about Soto when he was around 17, I think he when he is a senior. He says that the teachers are too old to understand the teenagers because their culture and language is different than the teens. Soto is reminiscing about him and his friend sitting at the canal talking about wanting to get out of their town to San Francisco. They wanted to be with the people that understood them and wanted to do something with their life instead of regretting it and not doing anything. I am guessing that Soto and his friend is sitting on the Canal years later wondering why they never got out of their town, when they could have had the chance. It makes me think that sometimes the choices I make I will regret later. Currently I am on the right path to my future of becoming a teacher. But every once in a while I do think of getting away for a while and do the things I wanted to do like backpack through Europe. Sometimes I just want to get away from my daily life because I feel like society tells us what to do; go to school, graduate, go to college, graduate, find a job, find husband/wife, have kids, retire. We are made to have fun and be yourself, not what the society tells us to be. Suppose you are a senior in high school and you were rebellious. Do you want to get out of your town and just get away from all the rules and just start fresh somewhere?

Language My Native Language

When I was reading the story "Learning My Native Language, I was thinking she has been through so much! She went through school without an interpreter and relied heavily on lip reading. When she said that she called her teacher Miss Queer and it upped her social level, I laughed because I know she didn’t mean to say that but it made her friends. It was good to see as I was reading she was overcoming her obstacles.

         I felt empathy for her because I grew up in a mainstream school but the last two years of my high school in a deaf school. I don’t know how I became Hard of Hearing. It was either when I was born I had the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck or I got sick when I was few years old. I only had hearing aids to support me. I had to read everyone’s lips but I could hear a little. I struggle a little in elementary school because I couldn’t understand some things. In middle school I had a teacher that helps me with all my homework and he could sign. He helped me a lot. In high school I was struggling just a tad but I pulled through and then I moved to a deaf school. It felt easy for me and I had good grades. When I got to Gallaudet University I felt awkward because I used mostly home signs and was still learning ASL. My family mostly talks loud around me so I can hear them. All my life people ask me why I talk so funny or why I have an accent. I would then tell them I don’t know or I say I’m from Florida. Others would say I talk good for a deaf person.

         At the end of the reading, I still felt empathy for her. I know what she went through because I have been through some myself. Her native language is English, just like my native language is English. I grew up speaking and sometimes interpreting for my brother because my family knows a little bit of signs. She is an professor at a hearing college I think because she mentions she lets the students know that she will sometimes ask to repeat their questions or comments. I think it is cool because I want to be a teacher at either a public school or a deaf school. She can do anything and so can I.

Leaving Home, the First Day

I thought the story, The First Day was a good story and it touched me. The mother wanted her daughter to go to this one school but it was out of her area so she couldn't go. She end up going to the new school. When she had to fill the forms out she actually had to ask to fill them out because she couldn't read or write!  I think she was either an immigrant, alien or someone that was poor growing up and didnt learn. I thought it was a good story because it tells people about the recollection of the girl’s first day at school and letting us know that the mother didn’t know how to read or write.

When the little girl was reminiscing about her first day, I was thinking, "I don't remember my first day."  The earliest school memory I remember was in preschool. I was crying when my father left me for a bit. In the article by August Gribbon of Washington times he said, "Many of the nearly 1,000,000 newcomers who legally enter the nation each year and an unknown number among the estimated 300,000 illegal aliens find it exceptionally difficult to learn English because they can't read or write in even their native language." I agree with this quote because it is the same concept of some deaf students are good at ASL  but they struggle with the proper grammar and have elementary level reading.I think that the immigrants should learn to read and write in their language first then switch to English. It might be a little easier for them. Perhaps fate has bought them to the new school for a reason, maybe she would later take classes to learn to read and write. One thing I did not understand was that the girl was ashamed of her mother.

I do not know anyone that couldn’t read or write but I feel empathy for them. My step mother is from El Salvador. She can read and write but she is still learning English. Sometimes I have difficulties understanding what she says because of her accent. If there was no accent then I would probably understand her more. She used to take night class to learn but she stopped because she had a baby. Since then, I have heard nothing about her going back to night classes. I think it is because she is busy working. In the end I enjoyed reading the story and having flashbacks to my school days.

Citation: http://www.scottbomb.com/english.html

Introduction

Hello! My name is Brandi McGowan. I was born in N.C and then moved to Va for a bit. Then I moved down to Fla for 5 or 6 years. After that I moved back up to Va and still live there. I went to West Virginia School for the Deaf for the last 2 years of my hs and graduated there.
I am currently a sophomore here at Gallaudet. My major will be education. I want to be a teacher at either elementary or middle school. One thing about me: I love sleeping! :) I will be using this blog for English when Dr. Pajka tells us to.