The Impossible

The song The Impossible by Joe Nichols reminds me of the time Jeannette and Rex went demon hunting. Jeannette thought she saw something under her bed, so she went to tell her dad about it. Rex then started to describe the "demon" and took Jeannette demon hunting to stop her from being afraid. This is related to the line in the song, "My dad chased monsters from the dark. Checked underneath my bed." Also, when Rex's mother died. Rex never really showed affection for his mother, but when Lori said "The wicked witch is dead," Rex got upset with her because that was his mother she was talking about. Not exactly like the boy seeing his father cry for the first time, but similar.  This song also reminds me of when Rex was trying to get sober for Jeannette. He failed, but he made a large effort, and while doing so, he was screaming in withdrawal, and Jeannette just stood by the door, wanting to help but she couldn't. The Impossible happened when Rex was in the hospital with tuberculosis. He recovered, but then he had to go back to the hospital, where he later died. As I have said, Jeannette didn't like the sight of her father in a hospital all hooked up to machines, since he was such a tough guy. Rex Walls had a lot of stories of all the things he did in his life. When Jeannette was little, her and her sibling all believed these stories. But some of the stories, were a little impossible to be true, but they might be.

Jeannette saying Good-Bye

I chose the song You can let go now Daddy by Crystal Shawanda, at first to describe Jeannette leaving for New York. After listening to the song again, I realized that last few verses about the dad dying in a hospital bed, goes perfectly with when Rex Walls dies. Jeannette could not stand to see her father, the big, strong, Rex Walls hooked up to a bunch of machines that were breathing for him, knowing he would hate that. Jeannette felt that he would have much rather have died in the wilderness, not in a hospital bed. The same thing goes in the song, the daughter couldn't stand to see her father like that.  In the chorus, it repeatedly says, "You can let go now, Daddy. You can let go. Oh, I think I'm ready to do this on my own." That is why I initally chose this song, because Jeannette said good-bye to her dad in Welch. But when Rex dies in a hospital room, Jeannette wished they could check out Rex Walls style one more time.

Shattering of Hope

The name of this book is The Glass Castle. Throughout the story, Rex Walls is constantly "working out" ways to build and perfect the Glass Castle. Rex never starts to build it, and as we progress through the story, the odds of him building the Glass Castle grow slimmer and slimmer. I feel the Glass Castle is a symbol of hope and faith. When all of the kids move into a house in Welch, Jeannette and Brian were the only two that still beleived the Glass Castle would be built. Pretty soon, none of the kids believed the Glass Castle would ever be built. They had all given up on that idea. They had all lost hope and faith.  Everyone knew that they were stuck in Welch and that

it wasn't going to get better. In order to believe that something good will come out of your life, you must have both hope and faith. To me, that is what the Glass Castle meant to the Walls children. But I think to Rex it was a goal. A goal that he never tried to accomplish so it became a distant dream. Before going to New York, Jeannette told her father to build the Glass Castle, but don't do it for her. Without the idea of the Glass Castle, I think the Walls would have lived a different life. I don't know if it would have been better, but I am sure it would be one without faith and hope.

Above are the blueprints the Walls family made for the Glass Castle.

I Loved Her First

The song I loved her First by Heartland, to me helps to describe Jeannette and Rex's relationship. This song is about a father finding it hard to give his daughter away when she is getting married. During the scene where Jeannette is getting ready to leave Welch and go to New York, Rex goes to see her off. To me, this says something since he did not go to see Lori off. Rex was very protective of Jeannette, and before she left, he gave her his knife with the blue handle, and this is the knife he carried everywhere. When Jeannette was going to college, Rex was so proud of her, he even paid the $1,000 that she was unable to come up wtih for her last year of tuition. Rex was definitely the first one to love his daughter, and through The Glass Castle, we were able to see how much he loved her.

Father-Daughter Relationship

The strongest, and most dramatic, ever changing relationships in this book is that of Rex and Jeannette Walls. In the beginning of Jeannette's life, her dad was practically her whole world. She believed that her dad would follow through on all of his plans, and had 110% hope in him. While Lori and Brian knew their father had let them down and failed to keep promises, getting drunk instead of working, Jeannette believed he was working on projects to help make them rich. When the kids moved to Welch, that is when the relationship gets a little shaky. Jeannette constantly tells herself that she can't give up on her father, because she is the only person who still believes in him. As Jeannette grows up in Welch, the relationship changes. As soon as Rex hits Jeannette with a belt, as she says, he knew he would lose her. But we learn she is still his biggest supporter. We really see how much Rex loves his daughter when he takes her to the bus station that will take her to New York. It is obvious throughout the story that Jeannette is Rex's favorite child. From being in the hospital at 3 years old, to when she was visiting him in the hospital, from when he died. Rex was also proud of his daughter for going to college and being who she was. The relationship between Rex Walls, father, and Jeannette Walls, daughter, was the strongest, ever changing relationship, aside from that of Brian and Jeannette, in the book. It showed just how much they loved and cared for one another.

Best Father, or Not

While Rex Walls was not the best father, he came through for his kids when it counted. I was most shocked by this when he came up with $1,000.00 to help Jeannette pay for her last year in college. The strange thing is, the Walls were always trying to come up with money for food, but somehow he always came up with money. How Rex came up with the money is a mystery to me, and I don't even think the rest of the Walls know. In the beginning, when Jeannette and Brian were in elementary school, they had no food in the house. Rex heard this, as if for the first time, and brought in a whole grocery bag filled with food for their lunch. Rex had his bad side also. He would spend a lot of grocery money on alcohol, or just waste it. He was also always taking money that was not his, from the whole family, since he was in charge of the finances. Rex let his kids down in many ways, but when it was least expected, he pulled through and provided the kids with what they needed.

Walls Parenting

The Walls family is extremely different, yet similar, to other families in the United States and the world. Rex and Rose Mary Walls are an interesting set of parents, to put it lightly. They allow for their kids to run around and take care of themselves, barely paying attention to them. Jeannette, Brian, and Lori all became independent from their parents and other people. While the youngest Walls child, Maureen, never really became independant. Maureen depended on her neighbors and friends, but that was okay because she was just a kid. Maureen depending on other people did not become a problem until she was an adult, and could not do anything for herself. I think that moving around a lot actually helped them in life, even though it was not the best situations that they lived in.While both Rex and Rose Mary had their flaws, allowing their children to be independant wasn't such a bad thing. While they could have provided a better living environment for their kids, they did make some good decisions with them. Rex and Rose Mary also had some crazy views on living in the city and eating processed foods, but at least, from what I read, they tried their best to raise and teach their children.