Cramer

Cramer's intimate journalism piece, How the World Turns in West Philadelphia, was very eye-opening, to say the least. He certainly managaed to capture the daily life and routine of the Monroe's unfortunate means of living in West Philadelphia. I have personally never read anything so detailed and matter-of-fact about that particular way of life. Cramer helps the reader to understand how much of a daily battle it is to live off of welfare checks or getting a job that only pays $3 an hour. As one of many students that goes to St. Joe's, it made me feel really selfish. It caused me to step back a little to consider the difficult struggles that other people are facing that live right down the street from me. I really just felt like anything that is a stressor in my life, or even my friends' lives, etc. are all just trivial compared to a difficulty such as rumaging to find twenty dollars to pay for your daughter's graduation dress.
One particular thread throughout the piece that I really enjoyed was that no matter how down and how hard times got for the Monroe's, they found such peace and comfort in God. Mrs. Monroe kept her favorite bible passage on the refrigerator to remind me her that God will help her, and to not worry about how they will be fed and clothed. I think it is important to maintain some sense of stability and comfort when you are experiencing difficult times. Through Cramer's observation of the Monroe family, they truly managed to define resiliency.