QuentinHolmes

ObstaclesEssay
Per.2
2/26/15
Billie Jo faces dust storms, lossof her mother,and badlyburnthands(Hesse,K.,Out
of the Dust,pg6061),yetsomehowshecomesthroughwithanevenstrongercharacterthan
before. Out of the Dust is a historical fiction novel by Karen Hesse that tellsthe story ofhow
Billie Jo gets in an accidentthatleavesherhandsdamagedandhermotherandbaby brother
dead. This story shows that challenges assist personal growth. Obstacles such as the Great
Depression,harshweatherandseriousinjurystrengthenonescharacter.
One example that shows challenges assist personal growth is the Great Depression
(19291939). The first part isinthedustbowl.Allofthe peopleandchildrenthatlivedthrough
it, like Billie Jo are tougher than people who were born afterthe dust bowl. Because of the
dust, they had harsh living conditions, so they are fine with living conditions that are harsh
today, which signifies strong character. The second part is the depression itself. Because of
the money shortage, children lived without the leisures we have today. Those children now
would never complain about some tiny thing they have to do, which again,signifiesthattheir
character grew because of the challenges they face. These two examples support the idea
thatchallengesassistpersonalgrowth.
Another example is snow. Snow can make life much harder, presenting challenges
that could assist growth. Walking could be turned into an extremely strenuoustask. People
have to do it, though. If it is snowing, then people still do their everyday work, even with the
snow. My mom sometimes mentions that she had to walk to school in the snoweverydayin
the winter. She does not ever complain about or avoid walking places. This is another
exampleofcharactergrowthbecauseofchallenges.
The last example is injury. In Out of the Dust, Billie Jos hands get burnt. She has
difficulty playing thepiano, yet she still plays because it is the only happything forhertodo.
This shows that she was determined. Another book, the Giver, says that the citizens have
never felt truepainandnobodyexceptthegovernmenthasastrongcharacter(Lowry,L.,The
Giver). In the book, Jonas then feels pain and he suddenly has changed, he has a stronger
character. This also leads me to believe that challenges assist personal growth. Injury isthe
lastexampleofhowchallengesassistpersonalgrowth.
To conclude, asyou can see, all of these challenges assistthe growth of the person.
Snow and dust can be challenges that affect ones growth because people have to dotheir
work regardless of the challenge of weather. Injury can also assist ones growth because of
theirlimitations.These3examplesshowclearlythatchallengesassistgrowth.