Papers On Ordinary Hazards By Nikki Grimes

Peter Levine once said, "I have come to the conclusion that human beings are born with an innate capacity to triumph over trauma. I believe not only that trauma is curable, but that the healing process can be a catalyst for profound awakening—a portal opening to emotional and genuine spiritual transformation." Nikki Grimes has gone through many traumatic experiences in her life, such as foster care, abandonment, a parent with mental illness, and abuse. However, despite her hardships, she was able to inspire many by rising above them and reaching her dreams of becoming a writer in her memoir, Ordinary Hazards.

The most prominent piece of trauma Grimes had to deal with at a young age was her mother's alcoholic schizophrenia, which led her to have insecurities about how much her mother loved her. To cope with her mental illness, Grimes' mother turned to alcohol addiction. This left Grimes feeling a sense of dismissiveness and abandonment from her mother. Reflecting on her experiences, Nikki writes, "Why did mom love liquor more than Carol, more than me?" (Grimes 59).

Early in her life, her father was not very present. When she asked why, he said that he did not know how to take care of little girls. So, he decided it would be best to have someone with experience take care of them instead. In response to this, Nikki writes, "I wasn't sure what kind of answer that was, but I couldn't help thinking maybe Carol and me should've been little boys" (Grimes 88). This further added to the uncertainty Grimes had about her parents' love for their children. However, her father does rekindle their relationship through black activist literature. This is shown on page 285 when she says, "The more I read, the madder I got... but my father kept me dreaming of what words I might bring to the world" (Grimes 285). This period only further inspired her to work for her