“And then I saw them. Slouching against the wall were members of the Arkansas National Guard looking like spectators.” (163) Melba Pattillo Beals persevered this by not letting it bother her that the guards wouldn’t help. Even though she was frightened and didn’t know where to go or how to get into the school. “Thank God you know who your real protector is, ‘cause you certainly won’t be able to count on those boys for help .… I didn’t know how to tell her how right she was. But then I couldn’t tell her I had the kind of day that was making me think about running away where nobody could find me.” (166) Melba persevered through this by remembering what her grandmother had said about remembering who her true protector was.
My last literature example is from my nonfiction book “I Will Plant you a Lilac Tree”. “Drawn to the simplicity of the poem, I recited it with immense emotion. The words had a deeper personal meaning.” (15) Hannelore persevered through her father's death by remembering the poem book that he gave her as a birthday present. “We are so close to freedom, and yet it might still go the other way.” (252) She persevered through this by having the hope that she would get out and be with Hillman and start a life with him and he