Mentor Text A: "Homegoing, AD" By Kima Jones

Kima Jones, from Harlem, New York, is the founder of the Jack Jones Literary Arts literary publishing firm. Jones has been recognized as being exclusively devoted to promoting black and brown writers. Specifically, in her text, "Homegoing, AD" it seems as though the speaker is a child. The text starts off with a description regarding the speaker and their family on a journey. Then the text continues including some reflection, with the majority being inspired by the death of their grandfather. However, there is little emotion explicitly stated in response to the loss of their grandfather. Therefore, there is no sad and devastating vibe after reading this piece. As the text concludes, the cousins are described playing around an area infested with alligators and potential copperheads, with the confidence that they can out run whatever may come in their way. But as most would, they ultimately sprint away, and the text ends. Importantly, though, Jone's writes that a "gator made for water but children born for land." In a way, this sentence is stereotypical as well as defining in terms of specific ways of living - connecting back to how we live on Earth, and then when we die, we go someplace else. Moving on, notably, the language and lack of proper English also plays a distinctive role in the text because it gives backstory to the characters, environment, and the current situation being faced. For instance, there are several purposefully placed comments and intentionally put words in this text that reference the South and people of color. In that sense, this text was probably written for people who can relate to some way or another (whether that be by their race, losing a loved one, or some other reason) - especially because there are several sentences centered around "we." Lastly, after reading this piece, I thought about a book I read during my sophomore English class: "Salvage the Bones," because both texts address funerals, familial relations, and incorporate a meaningful journey.