4a Group 1

1. Write the story title and author name. .25 point

"The Distant Cataract About Which We do not Speak" by Mary Mackey

2. Summarize the reading in one brief paragraph; be specific in your summary. Remember that your classmates will rely on you for this information. 2 percent

This short story describes the life of author Mary Mackey and her get away in the middle of Sacramento. The American river provides an almost fantasy like paradise in which she and her husband find themselves at on much of their free time. They spend quite a bit of their time at the river and have found themselves in the middle of wildlife as well as a numerous of religious and ethnic traditions. Sacramento seems to be quite a diverse and large city in which all of the cultures take full advantage of the natural treasure that the American river is. Mackey describes the different occasions in which the river has brought people together and the beautiful ceremonies that have been performed there. She also mentions the fact that the river is only twenty minutes from the University of Sacramento and a five minute drive from their home. The American river is quite special to her and her husband in that when her and her husband are there they ignore the rest of the civilized world and pretend they are on a far away island. The distant cataract is the civilized world and while they are at the river they rather not hear it.

3. Which was your favorite sentence or paragraph (include entire quote; use quote marks and page number)? 1 percent

"Once, during a January when it looked as if the levees might break, my husband and I came upon a pile of candy wrapped in gold foil, pinapples and oranges sliced in half, several beheaded guinea fowl, a pack of matches and handful of popcorn-traditional offerings made to the goddess Oxum by devotees of the African-Brazilian religion Candomble. On another occasion, we went down to the river to launch our canoe and found the parking lot occupied by a Russian Orthodox priest and his congregation. The priest appeared to be blessing the river with incense. A precession made it way the edge of the river bearing banners painted with holy icons. I believe their prayers were in Old Slavonic,"(49).

4. What did the reading make you think of? (be specific eg "There is a bridge in SF that spans 4 miles from SF to Oakland and in the middle of the bridge it crosses an island called Treasure Island. This story makes me think of that specific little island where I can see the entire city and bay area. That city was also in the news recently where .... ) .75 percent

When I was growing up my family worked mainly in the agricultural business. My oldest and fondest memories are of my whole family getting together on the weekends to go to the river. Most of the agricultural work in this area is close to the Russian river and that is where you can find us every weekend. My mother recently told me that when we first move to California we actually lived in a pickup truck parked to the river for a hole summer as well. I remember many different kinds of people being at the river and enjoying just being with my family. When I go to the river now it brings back those memories and this story made me revisit them as well.

5. What is one thing you did not know before you started the reading that you now know (again, be specific using concrete examples)? 1 percent

From the story I learned that seventy five thousand Russians live in Sacramento county, many of which are Baptists.