Cry into the
Wind
Othello Bach
Close your
eyes and imagine your life living in the back of a pick up truck with six other
siblings, an alcoholic father, a mother who was caught between more than just a
rock and hard place. Imagine having to run away from landlords, a father whose
temper reeked of alcohol and the abuse you took was not just physical. Imagine
having little food to eat and your father using what little her earned for
himself to get drunk and on other woman. Imagine living in a life that is less
than poverty. The world of Othello
Bach and her siblings was just this and when you open your eyes you won’t see
much more than the fields they passed, the farmhouse they would never live in
and the running water in a sink that they would never drink. Cry Into the Wind
will bring tears to your eyes, anger within your heart and the hope that no
other child will ever have to endure what she and her siblings did. Imagine
your home living in a field. Imagine a father who just did not care. Imagine
having to beg to be allowed to go to the bathroom.
Life did not
get much better for Othello as they all realized food was scarce, their father
was usually never home and they lived for a long time in trench covered with a
tarp to prevent the rain from soaking them. Going to school was difficult and
imagine having no shoes. A father who was abusive and a mother who tried so
hard this family survived on their strength and love alone. As you hear the
voice of the author you can feel the pain, see the tears they shed and simple
joys and triumphs they experience even though they are short lived. Imagine
receiving a homemade sweet potato doll for Christmas made with love by your
mother. Imagine hand made decorations cut out from paper. But, what happens
when Othello’s uncles come to visit bearing food and the police come and
cruelly take it away. With no regard for the children and a father whose answer
to everything is anger and the belt. No child should ever live this life and
maybe if kids today read this book that would appreciate even a simple present
like a hug.
Othello, our
author learns many lessons even before her eighth birthday. When neighbor
offers to make her a birthday party she is thrilled and cannot understand why
her mother has mixed feelings until she herself realizes just how mean kids can
be. Next, she becomes friends with a young girl named Kathryn who invites her
to her home for lunch. But, when she reciprocates what happens will help you
understand the cruelty in this world and the lack of understanding of others
when some have and others do not. Running from her house Kathryn never looked
back. Being poor does not make you a bad person or less of a human being. Sad,
to think others do not see it that way. Tragedy strikes as a fire breaks out
and their mother dies leaving them all alone with their father. Her first
encounter with her father was not exactly what a young girl should endure.
After that they were sent to live in an orphanage and the conditions and the
treatment were worse than horrific and the abuse alone angered me as Ms.
Hornaby needed a night in the basement herself. Separated from her brothers and
sisters and forced to live in this place they were finally liberated by their
father but for how long? Her older brother Don remained in Colorado with Mason
the two that she counted on and really loved. Gordon the youngest lived in
Oklahoma with her aunt and uncle. Then, the truth came out as they learned more
about their new home but their father was not going to be there for very long. Telling
them they were going to be alone and that Mason would be there at night taking
Thurmond with him to earn some money. A simple question was asked: What about
school? Telling them he had to leave in order to give them food and clothing.
But, the food did not last and things only got worse. Othello was humiliated in
school, her father beat her mercilessly and did things that most parents should
and would not. Then her brother insisted she do something and the end result
was not exactly what a brother and sister should be doing. But, when the author
relates how her brother sent money home for their care and he learns that they
were sent to an orphanage things change. Another orphanage this time in Texas
called Tipon Orphan Home. Never looking back at them their father left them and
with a feeling of hopelessness Othello, Amy and Jenny once again were left
alone. The conditions were so bad that she and Jenny decided to escape only to
return again. But, Othello had nightmares and kept dreaming about being locked
away in room with an open coffin. This book brings out the horrific ways parents,
teachers, those that are supposed to nurture kids and protect them use their
power to abuse them and take advantage of their youth. Living with her father
was not any different than the abuse she took living in the orphanage. As you
hear the voice of the author it changes from beginning to middle to end as at
times it is one of hope, then heartache and then despair always hoping to find
that one positive that would change it all. From working in the laundry to the
kitchen to the unnecessary beatings she and her sister endured Othello
withstood more than anyone should in a lifetime even before she reached her
ten. But, when she turned 12 things changed at the orphanage and her father
came to see them to take them for the weekend. Leaving them alone and then
making them wait until he took care of his male needs with Othello. How can a
father abuse a child like that and how did she deal with his betrayals only
wanting him to care for her and her sisters and brothers. Then the most
precious gift of all she bestowed upon herself. She learned to read and the
whole world opened up to her because now she could read her brother’s letters
and the bond was even closer. Not only that it seemed to ease her way with Ms.
Polk her matron. Othello was bright, full of life and made sure she protected
her family when she could.
Then, a
miracle happens and her brother Don returns from Korea. Things changed for a
while since he and his family came to visit and the rest were united for a
short time. Then the unthinkable happens at the orphanage and the abuse roars
on even worse several children were raped. The ending will astound you as
Othello gets punished for reporting what we all know is wrong and should not
have been swept under the rug.
When you
read the Epilogue you will know what the fate of her family members and the
courage it took for Othello to forge ahead, go after what she wants and never
ever have to Cry Into The Wind Again and let her prayers and wishes fly away.
The final
chapter is quite compelling and can be used as a resource for anyone who has
ever been a victim of any type of abuse: Regaining, Self Respect. “Before you
can succeed at anything, you must decide what you want to do, and create a plan
of action to make it happen. You certainly did. Abuse of any type is wrong and
the way the children in the orphanage in Texas and Oklahoma were treated is
beyond horrific and the fact that there are places today and kids in foster
care that are enduring the same type of treatment equally as horrific. I started
with review with Close your eyes and picture your life in a field filled with
mud. Now: Open them and realize that everyone needs to protect the children
from harm and the picture painted in the first chapters of this book should not
be the ones painted in real life for anyone. She concludes with the Happiness
Program and I will quote one line to complete this review of this outstanding
memoir: “ There is Power within you that is sufficient to overcome all
obstacles.” “God gave you that
control because God is Love!
I dedicate
this to all children who seek help and hopefully will be rescued and receive
it. I dedicate this to the memory of Mason and Thurmond and to an author who
shared her thoughts, her life and her goals with us and achieved so much in her
life. Thank you for sending me this book to review.
Fran Lewis:
Reviewer
This book
gets FIVE HUGE HUGS AND FIVE WISHES THAT WILL NOT CRY INTO THE WIND: THEY WILL
BE HEARD!
It was not
uncommon for Othello and her family to be referred to by others as "white trash."
What Othello really wanted in life was something to eat other than greens, a
pair of shiny black shoes and a rubber doll. Her mother told her she might as
well, "cry into the wind" because the possibility of getting any of
those was next to none - hence the name of the book.
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