In reading Us and Them by David Sedaris, I felt disgusted. First off,  David Sedaris described his childhood. He talked about his experiences in his new home, including his strange neighbors, the Tomkeys. Although Sedaris was just a child, it was still extremely creepy that he stalked his neighbors. This is seen when Sedaris states, “I began peering through the Tomkeys’ windows…I would creep into their yard and hide in the bushes beside their fence,” (Sedaris 1).  This level of creepiness makes me uncomfortable because I would never imagine doing that to someone else, even if I were to be young again.

Regarding the theme, I enjoyed the overall message that Sedaris attempted to convey. I felt as though he made an excellent point in trying to help out others as selflessly and as much as possible. Sedaris conveyed his message by “[tearing] off the wrappers and began cramming the candy bars into [his] mouth,” (Sedaris 1). Sedaris’ purpose for eating all of his candy was so the Tomkey children wouldn’t get any. Then, Sedaris’ mother found him covered in chocolate and was appalled by his acts. I agree with Sedaris here because of the situation. Just because the Tomkeys were not as culturally aware does not mean that they can’t learn. Since Sedaris’ younger self was not aware of that, he took their situation for granted and ultimately caused issues for everyone.

I like the perspective of this story. Seeing this through the eyes of a child, I found it very easy to understand and follow. Also, since the latter part is about candy, it is also interesting to read because of the appeal of candy to myself. Personally, at the age of Sedaris in the story, I can’t relate to what he did. I never really liked candy that much when I was younger, so if I were in a situation like he was, I would have been more than happy to given my candy away. In fact, I probably would have felt bad for the Tomkeys given their situation.

Lastly, my opinion has changed about television after reading this essay. At first I thought it was very odd that the Tomkeys didn’t watch television. However, as I read more, I began to wonder how much better life would be without television. Half of the world’s body issues and life style choices would be gone since there would be no television telling them what is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’.

Works Cited

Sedaris, David. “Us and Them.” NPR, NPR, www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2004/jun/sedaris/usandthem.html.