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White Noise

I try to live my life with no regrets; regrets seem to be such a negative emotion. Dwelling on what might have been rather than what could be. I had regrets once. Being the only child of a divorced family, both parents entrepreneurs and business owners, I had a lot to live up to. As young child growing up in two households it was hard to grasp the effects of divorce till I was on my own. A graduate of high school with a scholarship to a large public school I was set free, set free to make my parents happy. Unfortunately that was not the case, my independence only led to misfortune. The first year passed with a completion of five credits along with substance abuse and alcohol abuse. Essentially I had taken my parents dreams and flushed them down the toilet, along with their money. School no longer allowed me to take classes, I no longer talked to my parents, and I was in a deep dark hole. I really needed to pull myself out. My walk of shame home in apologies was inevitable, and changed my life forever. I was forced to find a job immediately, and of course the only jobs available were in the kitchen. I found a new love, forgot about drugs and alcohol, and focused all of my time and money into food. As I said before, I had regrets, but when I think about it, I shouldn’t. I do feel bad about what I did to my parents, but that is life. In light of my personal disaster, I learned more about myself than I ever could have if nothing had happened. I found a love for what I do and my parents respect that more than ever. The disaster turned out to be a blessing. While it is natural and in no way wrong to think of catastrophes in a negative context, they have also proven to lead to opportunities.
In his extraordinary novel White Noise, Don DeLillo presents a scene of the technological age. A dysfunctional family of the post-1970's era, two adults and a collection of children from previous marriages, is gathered on a Friday night in front of the TV set, eating...