Dreams From My Father

I just finished reading Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father. It's a very memorable book. It's Obama's first book, a memoir that doesn't cover all aspects of his life until the time he wrote it. It skips many years in some parts of the narrative. It focuses on his upbringing in Hawaii (mainly by his grandparents), his time as a community activist in Chicago, and his first visit to Kenya. The upbringing part (Part 1, Origins) is poignant as Obama is rather an outsider, does not know his father other than in letters and a visit when Obama is 10, and starts to discover what it means to be black, but then of course, he is not that black because is mother is white. While reading this part though I didn't find Obama having many problems adjusting to whatever situation he was put in.

The most memorable parts to me were about his time in Chicago and the Kenya visit. I was impressed by Obama's dedication, planning, and intelligence in helping the less well off in Chicago's south side. What was also brought home was the difficulty and hard work (quite a slog) involved in getting people together to improve their community, particularly for people who are struggling just to get by. The successes that he and his group of activists had were inspiring, but there were still many more community issues to tackle.

I think the memorable things about Obama's first trip to Kenya were 1) he finally met and learned much about his father's side of the family-rather a complicated one, 2) with a name like Obama he found a place where he was naturally accepted, and 3) it was enlightening to read about the simpler lives of Kenyans but also their economic struggles and the legacy of British colonialism. I think the trip must have made Obama feel more complete. His father's family had a history.

Lastly, one impression I picked up about Obama was that he had and I'm sure still does have a strong work ethic. I think that was enforced on him by his mother and even from his father from a distance. I was particularly impressed by his time in New York where he seemed to be the most on his own and when he became rather disciplined, almost ascetic. He declined to go in a conventional route where he could accrue the monetary gains and instead followed his ideals. I was impressed that he wrote all over the country trying to find an organization through which he could get involved. And eventually he did find one in Chicago.

While lately I haven't been happy with some of Obama's recent political positions, I am glad to have an idea of who he is and where he comes from.