Kissing Doorknobs Summary

The story of Kissing Doorknobs is written by Tarry Spencer Hesser. This book is about a little girl named Tara Sullivan and how she dealt with OCD (Obsessive-compulsive disorder.) It focuses on how she was facing her fears throughout her childhood. Tara had a hard time facing her fears, and it took many years and a special friend to help her.

The passage from this book that stood out to me was “Everywhere you look, step on a crack, break your mothers back!” The first time I heard that stupid rhyme is when I was 11 years old and still in possession of my own thoughts. At first, I thought the rhyme was stupid. “Step on a crack, break your mother’s back!” When I couldn’t get it out of my head, I thought it was annoying. Step on a crack, break your mother’s back! Finally I thought it was scary. But no matter what I thought about it, I couldn’t stop thinking it. Actually, it was more as if I couldn’t stop hearing it in my head over and over again.” The reason why this passage was memorable to me was because it was a saying that Tara couldn’t stop hearing it in her mind. She kept hearing it over and over again while she was brushing her teeth, eating dinner, doing homework, having a conversation, and falling asleep. She wasn’t sure what this phrase meant. I sometimes hear phrases which play over and over in my mind such as “sticks and stones may break my bones but names won’t ever hurt me.” It took me a long time to really understand what it meant.

There were three events throughout this story that stood out for me. They were Tara having a nightmare, her problem with paying attention, and her rituals. The first event that happened in this story is when Tara was little and she had a bad dream. She and her friends were playing and she saw a monster trying to get her and her friends. So she woke up and was screaming over and over again. Then when her mom came in, she wanted her mom to tell her that “it was only a bad dream” over and over again at least 10 times. That’s when Tara had started those terrors and quirks. When I was that age, I used to have similar bad dreams to the point I would cry and scream for my mom but I would calm down when she would come in the room and comfort me. The second event was when Tara was in fifth grade and she was overwhelmed from trying to pay attention in class. When she got home from school, she was explaining to her mother that she was trying to pay attention to all of the different things going on in her class all at the same time. She said it was exhausting, stressful, and noisy. I feel the same way if there is a lot of noise going on in the room where I am talking to people or trying to explain things. I also feel this way when I am in school and if there are a lot of students talking around me while the teacher is directing the class. The last event was when Tara’s parents were going out for a few hours, and she started to get nervous and her anxiety was kicking in. So, she developed a ritual to settle her anxiety when her parents were out. The first thing that she would do is call the Legion club where they were at. She would call at least four times in two hours to make sure her parents were ok and asked them when they are coming home. The next thing that she would do is go to her parents’ bedroom and pray over the Virgin Mary statue that was on her father’s dresser. The third thing she would do is check each clock one by the Virgin Mary and one by the kitchen and see what time it was so she had an idea when her parents were coming home. Then the last and final thing she would do is go outside and walk in the middle of the street and looked both ways twice to see if she saw her parents. She would do this ritual over and over again until she saw her parents pulling up to the street. I often feel that same anxiety when my parents are gone, so I will call them to make sure I know when they are coming home.

The two images that I would draw from this book is Tara making 16 snow angels and Tara with her family going out to dinner.  The first image of Tara making 16 snow angels demonstrated her obsessive-compulsive disorder.  She had to have an even number. The second image of Tara and her family go out to dinner represented her obsessive compulsive behavior, because Tara always organized the food on her plate. This image symbolizes how she wanted her food to be neat and know what everything is on her plate and to make sure there were not any mystery ingredients. These images show me how Tara’s obsessive-compulsive disorder affects her in all areas of her life.

The words that have special meaning to Tara are OCD, rituals, quirks, tyrants, and therapy. All of these words show the main character, Tara’s behavioral problems. She was experiencing fears and anxiety so she created little rituals that would help her get through her quirks. She didn’t know what was going on with her and neither did her parents. Then her dad’s friend, Mr. Jacobson, a local science teacher, came over to visit her and her dad. He asked her a bunch of questions that nobody had ever asked her. While he was asking her questions, he told her that he had a little boy in his class who was older then her and that he thought had a similar problem. She couldn’t believe what she heard. Mr. Jacobson told her and her family that he thought that Tara was suffering from an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Mr. Jacobson was telling her parents that “it’s not a psychological disorder; it’s a chemical one.” After Mr. Jacobson left, Tara talked on the phone and met a boy named Sam who told her that he had what she had and promised to come over the next day after school. While Sam visited Tara, he was telling her and her mom his quirks that he had like he was afraid of germs and he used to wash his hands until they bled from all that soap and hot water over and over and over again. Sam was explaining to Tara and her mom that there are lots of varieties of obsessive-compulsive disorder. There are people with contamination fears, worriers, doubters, and counters.

Before Sam left, he gave Tara’s mom a card that had the name of his behavior therapist, Susan Leonardi. Tara met with her. Susan Leonardi then asked Tara questions about her quirks. The Therapist was explaining to Tara and her family about the disorder. Tara started to receive behavioral therapy to overcome her OCD. Susan Leonardi wanted Tara to confront her fears by imagining her parents hurt, injured or dead for five minutes three times every day to eventually calm her fears down.

This story connects to my life because of my own fears and anxieties that I deal with in relation to being blind. I also have a niece that has been diagnosed with OCD. The behaviors that she demonstrates are frequent washing her hands throughout the day, not touching things that are on the floor, and feeling nervous about failing in school. I have learned how therapy can help her overcome her fears and anxieties and why these behaviors are caused from OCD.

The lessons that I learned from this story include how I can understand a person that has OCD, like my niece for example. Before I read this book, I didn’t know how to help someone that has OCD. I am glad that I read this book because now I can help my niece with her OCD. I think anyone that thinks they have OCD should read this book, because there is a lot to learn from the main character, Tara, and how she handled it and how her family was there to try to help her with it.

10 things that will make you happy

Dear Journal,

The one thing that will make me happy is smile. I chosen this one, because I like making people smile. When I make them smile, then I smile back. Making people smile is great. It is a great feeling to have. I always see success after I do something to make people happy. When they make me happy, then I see the success in that person. Another thing that makes me happy is helping other people. I like doing this, because I care about that person and I want to make sure if they are ok or not. I like to give advice to that person so I know that they can solve their problems or not. There are some people that appreciate my advice and my help. When I see someone that is down, cause of their happiness, I try to cheer them up. I like making people happy. The one that I have done is helping people out. The one that I wish I would do is making people smile more. I don’t like it when someone is down. If that person is down, then I am down. I wish to help other people with their problems and also make them smile. I am not like other people being all negative and mad all the time. I am a person that is very positive and happy! I am very happy now, that I am writing about what I would do when people are down. I think being happy will help me in my life time. Like being in a relationship, I am very happy being with a nice guy then being with a controlling guy. I am happy that school is almost over. Summer is on its way!

The person that makes me happy most is my niece Maliya. The reason why she makes me happy, because she loves being around me. Anytime when she is at my house, I play music for her and she dances all around my room. Her favorite songs to dance with are Down, Love Game and Imma Be. She loves doing the alphabet on the computer. She is a gifted child that knows a lot.  I am glad to have a niece like her. Whenever she needs help, I am there to help her. The other person that makes her happy is her Papa. She loves being around him. Whenever he cooks, Maliya is always there to help him or watch him cook. I think she will be a little chef that will take after her Papa. Maliya is trying to do bowling on the WII! My dad tot her how to use the controls on the WII to boll. Maliya just is so cute, that I wish I could see her. I love giving her hugs. I am very glad that I have a niece in my life that makes me happy and I make her happy. I love it when she laughs. Anytime when she laughs, I smile at her.

Health

Hello everyone,

I am writing to you what I have.

I am totally blind. I been blind all of my life since I was born.

I gained sight in both eyes in 1995.

Ever since then I had 6 cornea transplants, 2 lazers and shunt surgeries.

Just recently 3 years ago I had emergincy gualblatter surgery.

I also have some mental health as well and i am trying to manage it as much as I can.

Introduce Yourself (Example Post)

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

  • Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
  • Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

  • Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
  • What topics do you think you’ll write about?
  • Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
  • If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

Grandma Journal

Dear Journal,

The person that brought me footprints to my heart was my grandma. When I was really little, I didn’t know her. I used to tell her, “Go to the kitchen!” I felt really bad after I said that when I got a little older. We got along great. We both loved to laugh and sing songs together. She used to come to my house every Thursday to stay overnight. Every Thursday night, we go upstairs into the Livingroom and watch ER on TV. Then on the next day, she would stay home and do the laundry for us. After I got home from school on Fridays, I would smell something good in the kitchen. She would make Chicken Surprise or we would order pizza. Every Christmas, My grandma would make pirogues. She makes them from scratch. We still make them till this day. My grandma’s favorite candy was sponge candy. Any time I eat that candy now, I will think of her. Then, when I started to do singing lessons about 5 years ago, she would love to come with my mom and I to hear me sing. She loved hearing me sing. When she got older, she couldn’t come and do the things that she used to do. When she moved out of her old apartment, she lived with other elderly people. My mom and I would come over there to see her since she couldn’t live with us anymore. She still had a blast with me. We would have a snack and watched movies while my mom was cleaning. A month before she died, we celebrated her 88th birthday with the whole family. She got a lot of stuff and everyone got her scratch playing cards for the lottery. She won a lot of money from those cards. I loved making CD’s for her. I made a Christmas one and a regular one. I love seeing her. She really made me happy. When she died a week before my birthday, I was shocked. I was really hurting inside. I was saying to myself, “Why couldn’t she stay alive for my 17th birthday? Did she plan on going?” I just didn’t know why. I still wonder why she had to leave.

Her footprint for me is music. Whenever I hear music any ware, I always think of my grandma (Busha). Her Halo is all around and surrounding me and my family. After my grandma died, we lost 2 other family members. My Uncle Ronny and my cousin Cliff on June 4, 2009. They both died 2 hours from each other. They are both up in heaven with my Grandma. Last year was a hard year for all of us. My grandma will always be an angel to me. It is sometimes hard to sing a song, because I will always think of her. I wish she wouldn’t have left me. I didn’t even say good bye to her and I love you. God! I feel like I hurt her of not saying that stuff. Oh well, I guess she knew what I was going to say. I have a feeling she is in heaven cooking great food up there. I love you Grandma and your halo is surrounding all over me. You were a wonderful person to be with and I will miss you very much. This is why I wrote what my favorite memory was about my grandma and why I love her. “Everywhere I’m looking now, I’m surrounded by your embrace maybe, I can see your halo, you know you’re my saving grace. You’re everything I need and more, it’s written all over your face, maybe I can feel your halo, and pray it won’t fade away.” Beyoncé – Halo