Chapter 2 - Freedoms


Michael Patrick was protecting his mother's emotions. What Michael was trying to say was that most kids would be mad at their parents for ruining the kids emotions and putting them in the middle of what happened and the mother's emotions. Michael Patrick did the opposite, he protected her. Michael Patrick was one of the special ninth kid that was born within 13 pounds and was the most quietest kid at the hospital. He had his eyes wide open looking around the room while other infants were kicking and screaming with eyes closed. Michael Patrick has Six brothers and two sisters. They included the count of brothers and sisters including the infant that died. No matter what, they include him even he was recently born and died. He was counted in the family, this shows how important he is being part of the family. Ma suffered the spousal abuse and she had to take care of nine kids. Ma suffered the bad marriage, back those days, divorce was not allowed. Catholic religion banned divorce. Even if she married a man that treated her like hell. He can leave and do whatever he wants but no divorce. The reason of one biggest end of the marriage that Ma ended was because Dave MacDonald didn't show up the baby's funeral. He had affair, he drank a lot, the beating was bad, but not showing up to the funeral, that's the end of it and that's it. Ma was done with him. Ma used welfare for financial help for paying the things that kids needed, and food. The father wasn't there for the kids as being a father. Ma turned to Grandpa when she needed a man to be there. He was always there and helpful.

OPINION and QUOTES:  "And we always did include Patrick in the count."   "Soon into the marriage Dave MacDonald beat my mother, fractured her skull on two occasions, and broke her ribs on another. To this day, though, Ma will remind you of that one time she knocked out his teeth with one good kick." She was one strong courage woman because most women wouldn't kick or hurt their abusive spouse because they would hurt them more. Ma kicked his teeth out. She was VERY strong and unbelievable because she had the COURAGE to do that.

Chapter 3 - Ghetto Heaven

Summary of the chapter
Michael's family had to move Old Colony from Columbia Point because they didn't have any money. They noticed that blacks children got along with white children. But it was not true. For example, a kid, Danny, told Michael's brothers that they couldn't mess with anyone and there weren't any snitches because it was the rules. Michael got beaten by a kid for fighting when Danny and he came out of liquor store. A boy beat him with sticks, rocks, and the beer cans. A lot people complained, protected, and in the fights between whites and blacks about busing. Mothers, in Southie, kept their kids home because the busing could cause them to get hurt and in fights.

Two Important Quotations
"When I (Michael) looked down the side streets of connected houses and concrete, I saw more groups of teenagers and kids hanging out in front of corner stores, keeping guard, popping their heads to inspect us and to make sure that we knew better than to come down their streets," (58).

"In Southie the worst thing you could be was a snitch," (67).

My Opinion
I felt sad because of the violence and snitch. People got hurt by getting in fights. People couldn't snitch even though they wanted to. They had to keep it by themselves or get killed. They got hurt, but couldn't tell anyone who did it to them. People were scared.

Chapter 6 - August

Summary of the chapter:
Joe was almost got shot, Because he was get drunk a lot before Mary and Frankie, Joe have parting at Lith Club on Broadway. They was on way to home and making fun on Joe, and Davey was in pain and Michael was into daydreaming. That Day hit happened is that Michael and Ma and Patrick not let Davey kill himself and when Ma go to home Davey was make everything look normal, Ma hear them screaming in hall and saw to Moe Duggan with knife kill to his thirteen and sixteen year old sons and he pull Brian and Joey to inside and call EMTs, Kathy arrive and take coat fur and she not care about Brain and Joey, They was lay on floor with a lot blood. EMTs arrive take Joey and he said take care his brother Brian. Then Ma saw to Drug and Davey was laughing at cop, Cop take Frankie for go jail. and court make Frankie choose go service or marine, Frankie decide go to Marines. Then Davey was flying off roof, that time he was died.

2 important quotations:
"I thought he'd made it up, or else was speaking in tongues like in the story he'd told me before about the apostles when they were filled with they Holy Spirit; with Davey I was ready for any kind of mysterious possession"(137). Quotes mean Davey was one special to his family, Because Davey was one good spirit and Ma was love him and Ma feel Davey was full with Holy Spirit. They are care about him.

"Then I thought about Davey, and his sense of humor, his brilliance, his funny attempts to understand and connect to the bizarre world of Old Colony he'd come to at the height of the busing chaos"(155).That quotes mean Davey was have hard time and he go Mass Mental before and he was breakdown and he want to kill himself and He still love his family so much and He have bad experience from he grow up in Old Colony and his statemented of family. 

My opinion:
This was sad story, Because when Brain and Joey get stab from his father Moe Duggan and Davey too, Davey have hard time with them. Everyone not tell police who and they not want death. That Old Colony was victims. I feel bad thing on Brain and Joey and Davey, Davey was try kill himself for over again.

Chapter 11 - Vigil

At the end of the chapter, One thing that was interesting about this story was MacDonald's has mixed feelings about going back to Southie he lived in Colorado. He hate everything that happened there and everything he lost. He feel like it was still his home. After the vigil in Charlestown once he saw how much he could help there and Roxbury he knew it was that more important to do in his home area. He wanted and wish to have things better in Southie and help people to changed the behavior and become good people and respect each others and stop the violence. Michael is a good person and cares for people and Southie. He grew up in the place. His feeling start to get depressing about being stress to go back to southie or not. He liked being back home but all the painful memories came back with him. It is bad for him. He trying to be strong person.


"I knew someday I'd have to move back home- to Southie. It felt right being back in Southie, but I started getting depressed." (255) (259)
--- Michael want to move back to his belong home town where he grew up and take care of people in southie and want to help the southie. he love southie. 

"That how i found myself staring out at a sea of faces, looking for my brothers among the living and the dead. i was looking for the truth about their lives and about their deaths. Like me, everyone at that night's vigil will forever be looking for the truth in Southie, where nothing's what it seems." (263)
--- Michael remembered his past memories about his family and the death he been through with. he had the struggling through his life. 

OPINION
- My opinion about this chapter is that it is sad that Michael have to deal with everything he have been struggled for and i feels bad for his family and where he been grew up in a bad place. In my opinion i disagree with Michael for moving back to Southie. why would he want to be there and bring the bad memories back and why don't he get a new life and move on and forget the past. The past is the past. 

Chapter 1 - All Souls' Night

At the beginning of  the chapter, Michael Patrick MacDonald talks about his experience growing up in south Boston. His mother use to say " THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD" when there was no violence or death going on.  Michael was in Columbia Point Project, he grew up on the old Colony but in the Lower End. There's a lot of innocence young child and friends dying from either being killed, drugs, violence and other that cause them death. before we go deeply about this horrible place, Michael is Irish and he very proud to be one. Honestly not all Irish are bad. Ma families is nice. He's been working on anti-violence efforts across from Boston since 1990. That's when he got called from citizen for safety.Michael was using the candles for each of his brother death. the candle itself has their name on it.

"When you put your lights out after making sure your children are home, be grateful"(12)

- Ma always makes sure her kids are safe. same old happening in different days, lots of innocence kids has been killed. everyday all day you would always check on your kids to make sure they're safe and happy.

"Help me, you've got to help!, screamed Marie the gypsy."My heart is very bad!i'm gonna die! Help me! My son, they killed him!" (14)

-Marie, Ma' s friend, her son just die from being killed. She was panic and crying cause no one wouldnt answer for her not even the police. Marie was crazy before her son died. 

This chapter is very depressing because kids growing up in the bad place then die young. I feel bad for Michael, he been through a lot of bad situation and growing up and seeing violence and drugs dealer. going around. Even more tragic when most of his families passed away from dangers. And when i meant his families, I'm also talking about his brothers that were dead too.

Whitey Bulger Update

Chapter 10 - Justice

 The speaker is feeling alone, carrying pile of clothes. On every Friday, every time speaker came up stairs, he knew for sure that his family would be there. All together again in the apartment, Ma would be all dressed up to go to the Emerald Isle, doing the laundry. Seamus and Stevie would be watching wrestling tv show and practicing Hulk Hogan moves on each other. Davey would be pacing the floors and smoking cigarettes. Mary and Jimmy and their 2 kids might be over with Chinese food for everyone. Joe would be waiting Frankie to finish eating every last bit of protein in the house before they go out and meet girls. Johnnie would be calling in from some disclosed location with the Navy Seals. Kathy would be all dolled up and sneaking out the front door. Is there a nostalgia or a reversion to the best place on Earth?  The speaker started sleeping at friends' houses all over Boston. He kept all the windows shut, and the air in the apartment was so thick and heavy that he felt he was swimming through ghosts. He changed his clothes and fled out the door everyday. This passage describes that the speaker was overwhelmed and scarred.

Johnnie owns the apartment after leaving the Navy Seals. The speaker never seen Johnnie was outdoing that much. The speaker claims that Johnnie was the one who had "gotten out." Johnnie never spent much time in the project, he was always at Latin school. playing football in the afternoons, and studying at the library at night. He went to the Tufts University and went straight to Navy Seals. Johnnie was immediately welcomed back into Southie, expect by Frankie's old gangs. Johnnie started working as a bouncer at some Broadway  owned by gangsters and boxers. Johnnie and the speaker hardly crossed paths in Southie. The speaker wanted nothing to do with the town, and Johnnie was getting into it.

Semaus and Stevie commented on how poor everyone in the trailer park looked in Colorado. The speaker told Ma that he doesn't like Colorado, too. So, Joe bought a house and the family lived in the trailer. Ma stopped calling the speaker once her phone was blocked for long distance calls. When he called her, Stevie had rung up a big bill calling his friend, Tommy Viens in Southie. 2 kids were begging Ma to send them back to Southie so they can see their friends.This shows that they miss the chaos. Mary told everything to the speaker, that Tommy had gotten to hold one of Johnnie's guns. Stevie was shaking and Tommy had a bullet to his back of the head. Detective O'Leary came and asked questions about the incident. So, people told anything to O'Leary. Stevie didn't kill Tommy. Then Stevie was charged for first degree murder. So, he spent a night in jail. After that, Stevie was still scared about what happened to Tommy. The family tried to talk out of him. They knew Johnnie had guns and ammos because he was in Navy Seals. Tommy had found the gun, but no ammo in it. Seamus and Stevie couldn't figure out how Tommy was killed. Stevie explained everything what happened to the speaker. He said that Tommy found the gun and Stevie told him to put it back or Johnnie is going to be pissed. Johnnie told them that he had hidden the ammo separately  in a pouch, under the pile of old shoes in Ma's closet in the other apartment. Speaker thought Tommy killed himself, Stevie said that Tommy wouldn't kill himself. Then Stevie and the family went to the court for the murder of Tommy  The family knew that Stevie wouldn't kill Tommy, he was his best friend.

Then Stevie was charged with first degree murder and a bail of $250,000. It means if you own a house or something to worth to sell for, but it's $25,000 if you pay with cash only. Johnnie explained that to the speaker. Mary, Joe, Johnnie, and the speaker scraped up $25,000 to bail Stevie. Their life savings are gone. They were happy to see Stevie again. The speaker spent the rest of summer with Semaus and Stevie, hiding out in a cottage on Cape Cod that they rented from one of Johnnie's new Southie friends. They sat and talked about that horrible day all over again, again, trying to figure out what happened to Tommy, why he was killed. They thought that the gun might accidentally went off and killed Tommy. The FBI took Stevie for gun test to prove that he didn't shot Tommy. It was unlikely that Stevie shot Tommy because of the blast had covered his hands in the chemicals. Stevie's hands had no chemicals on it. Then the speaker wanted to have the 911 call from Stevie on that day when Tommy was shot. He heard that Stevie was scared and yelling and he said he shot Tommy. He showed it to Fallon. Fallon was shocked, and the speaker fled Fallon's office, to explain Stevie what really happened. The court happened again with Stevie, with the different evidence  O'Leary appeared in there.  After the court, Grandpa died. After the funeral, the speaker spent nights studying laws, crimes, pictures, gunshots, evidences, etc.Stevie was gulity in the court. The judge said they could sent him to Department of Youth Services, it could be a year or until his 18th birthday. Later, Steive was freed.  They won the case in 4 years.