After thinking long and hard about my topic for this personal essay, I finally decided to write about the mission trips that I have been on for the past four summers. Even though I haven't exactly thought about how I would write this paper, I realized that these were very significant events that took place in my life and with each new summer I find myself wondering the same things. How am I so fortunate in life when there are so many people suffering around the world? Why do we take so many things for granted? How do people survive in these living conditions? How do these people remain so happy all the time? It is questions like these that kept me going back each summer to a new place to try and discover the answers. I have worked on mission trips in New York City, Jamaica, Belize, and Costa Rica. I have returned from all of these places with a new outlook on life and a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. However, when we return from the ten day long trips I find myself disappointed with how little time it takes to become right back where I started. That leads me to ask myself "Why do I conform to the luxuries of my life so quickly after helping people with so little?" That question might not even make sense but it is just another thought that crosses my mind after these life-changing trips that I was fortunate enough to take.
I am really looking forward to writing this personal essay and I hope it will help answer some of these questions that I have left unanswered for so long.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Writerly Roles
My first role as a writer would definitely be a sister. I am extremely close with my sister therefore we talk about everything. However, she lives in Ohio so most of our conversations are on the phone. My sister is actually my half-sister so she is significantly older than I am. Our twelve year age difference makes her my “go-to” girl for any advice that I need. It has been this way for as long as I can remember. When I talk to my sister I definitely use a more informal tone because she knows me well enough to where we do not have to be formal with each other. Email and text messaging are a big part of our communication because it is so fast and easy since we are so far apart. There is more slang in our language and we both talk a bit faster than usual. We discuss social issues that I would not discuss with my grandparents or sometimes even my parents. My sister is my source of advice for everything. There is nothing I cannot talk about with her and I am confident that she will always be there for me. My loving sister makes this next role easy for me to play. I am also an aunt to my sister’s beautiful one-year old girl named Elise. Since my niece doesn’t talk quite yet our conversation is obviously very minimal. However, I wrote her a note for her first birthday that was filled with advice that she can use as she grows up. I used sort of a motherly tone with her, one which would not be used with my friends or teachers. Elise is a different kind of audience member than usual because most of what I tell her she will look up to. Since I am the youngest of three children it will be very nice to be a role model for someone. I have to make careful choices and act responsibly around her so that she can learn from my actions. My actions in front of my niece would be very different than if I were with my school friends.
I also play the wonderful role of being a granddaughter to the only grandmother that I have ever met. Although the rest of my grandparents passed away before I could meet them, it is nice to have such a close relationship with my grandmother. I talk about more important events in my life with her like school, grades, and my plans for the future. I overly use my manners and am very formal when talking with my grandmother. She watches our every move so my discussions and actions are very different with her than they would be with my friends or parents.
My next role is a student in a religion class. I write and speak very carefully in that class because religion is such a sensitive subject for some people. I use a formal tone on the rare occasions that I do speak and take many notes so that I “understand” the material. I also play the role of a student in an Education course which is more relaxing since it is an area of interest to me. I speak more freely in that class, but also tend to pay more attention since it applies to my major. I pick out the notes that are “more important” than others since the material comes more “naturally” to me.
My last role as a writer would definitely be a friend to people all over Texas since all of my friends went to different schools. I use a very relaxed and informal tone with them. Text messaging and emailing is a large part of our communication because we are so far apart from each other. The conversation is very different than if I were talking to my family or my professors. Slang is commonly used and sometimes it is a gossipy conversation. My role as a roommate also ties into my friend role because my roommate and I are very close. We have very intellectual conversations and very pointless conversations too. Text messaging is a good way for us to communicate when we are separated which is very rarely. We are both filled with advice for each other which is very useful in the end.
I also play the wonderful role of being a granddaughter to the only grandmother that I have ever met. Although the rest of my grandparents passed away before I could meet them, it is nice to have such a close relationship with my grandmother. I talk about more important events in my life with her like school, grades, and my plans for the future. I overly use my manners and am very formal when talking with my grandmother. She watches our every move so my discussions and actions are very different with her than they would be with my friends or parents.
My next role is a student in a religion class. I write and speak very carefully in that class because religion is such a sensitive subject for some people. I use a formal tone on the rare occasions that I do speak and take many notes so that I “understand” the material. I also play the role of a student in an Education course which is more relaxing since it is an area of interest to me. I speak more freely in that class, but also tend to pay more attention since it applies to my major. I pick out the notes that are “more important” than others since the material comes more “naturally” to me.
My last role as a writer would definitely be a friend to people all over Texas since all of my friends went to different schools. I use a very relaxed and informal tone with them. Text messaging and emailing is a large part of our communication because we are so far apart from each other. The conversation is very different than if I were talking to my family or my professors. Slang is commonly used and sometimes it is a gossipy conversation. My role as a roommate also ties into my friend role because my roommate and I are very close. We have very intellectual conversations and very pointless conversations too. Text messaging is a good way for us to communicate when we are separated which is very rarely. We are both filled with advice for each other which is very useful in the end.
"I believe that I can learn to write well..."
I believe that I can learn to write well if I practice and out my best effort into wanting to learn more. Writing does not have to be a difficult "task" if you just write off the top of your head. I am slowly finding out that writing can actually be fun if I am not afraid to make mistakes. Even though there are basic "rules" to follow while you write, there is no right and wrong answer. A large part of my difficulty with writing is that I have always been too worried about what grade I would make or what the teacher would think. Those are the factors that I must clear from my head if I want to succeed with my writing. I intend to work hard this semester at my writing because I believe that I could learn to love it. I truly feel so accomplished after writing a paper and usually I am very proud of my work. Now if it wasn't like pulling teeth to get my words out on paper then maybe I would not dread it as much. I hope to learn how to open my mind and write freely, and as soon as I conquer that my papers should look better. I know that it is possible for me to write a great paper because I love to talk and be social with other people. I feel that this characteristic proves that I have a lot to say which I could easily add to my writing. I am so excited about this English class this semester because I truthfully feel that I am going to learn a lot and come out being a better writer. I look forward to learning more about writing and myself as I apply my social skills to my writings.
Introduction
Dear Ms. Patrick,
I figured I would start off with the basics and let you know that I grew up in Houston, Texas. I have lived in Houston all my life so moving to Ft. Worth for school is quite a change for me. I absolutely love Ft. Worth so my parents might lose me to this city. I am a freshman at TCU and I am currently majoring in Early Childhood Education. Children have been my passion and I have always loved working with kids. My mom is a pre-school teacher and for as long as I can remember I have been going to her classroom to help out with her kids. However, as much as I love kids I also enjoy writing as well. That is why I was excited about getting into this English class because I was hoping it would improve my writing and allow me to figure out if I might want to consider English as a major. I really enjoy writing personal essays where I can use examples from my own life in order to tell a story or make a point. I am not a huge fan of writing research papers or reports. I get very overwhelmed and stressed out when I have to write papers like that. Although writing can be very difficult for me at times it is very important in everyday life. Writing allows you to express yourself and discuss matters that you might not feel comfortable talking about in person. I enjoy writing when I am not under pressure and when I can just write in my own way. I lose my focus very easily which makes it very frustrating to write sometimes. I must be in a quiet room where there are very few distractions in order for me to complete a paper. Of course there are always the occasional writer's blocks that I get as well which are equally as frustrating, especially when I have an assignment due. The person who has the biggest influence on my writing is probably my older sister who majored in English in college. She is always the first person I turn to when I was stuck on a paper. She has helped me throughout high school with my papers and she has the best advice for me. I hope that I can greatly improve my writing this semester and that the words in my papers will flow smoothly. I have always seemed to have a problem with transitions in my papers so I hope that I can improve that aspect of my writing as well. I am really looking forward to this semester in English because I hope that I can build up my confidence in writing papers and maybe, just maybe become a better writer after taking this course. I am really looking forward to your class Ms. Patrick and I hope that you are able to enjoy our class as well.
I also have read and agree to the terms in the course syllabus and I am completely willing to abide by these terms for the entire semester.
I figured I would start off with the basics and let you know that I grew up in Houston, Texas. I have lived in Houston all my life so moving to Ft. Worth for school is quite a change for me. I absolutely love Ft. Worth so my parents might lose me to this city. I am a freshman at TCU and I am currently majoring in Early Childhood Education. Children have been my passion and I have always loved working with kids. My mom is a pre-school teacher and for as long as I can remember I have been going to her classroom to help out with her kids. However, as much as I love kids I also enjoy writing as well. That is why I was excited about getting into this English class because I was hoping it would improve my writing and allow me to figure out if I might want to consider English as a major. I really enjoy writing personal essays where I can use examples from my own life in order to tell a story or make a point. I am not a huge fan of writing research papers or reports. I get very overwhelmed and stressed out when I have to write papers like that. Although writing can be very difficult for me at times it is very important in everyday life. Writing allows you to express yourself and discuss matters that you might not feel comfortable talking about in person. I enjoy writing when I am not under pressure and when I can just write in my own way. I lose my focus very easily which makes it very frustrating to write sometimes. I must be in a quiet room where there are very few distractions in order for me to complete a paper. Of course there are always the occasional writer's blocks that I get as well which are equally as frustrating, especially when I have an assignment due. The person who has the biggest influence on my writing is probably my older sister who majored in English in college. She is always the first person I turn to when I was stuck on a paper. She has helped me throughout high school with my papers and she has the best advice for me. I hope that I can greatly improve my writing this semester and that the words in my papers will flow smoothly. I have always seemed to have a problem with transitions in my papers so I hope that I can improve that aspect of my writing as well. I am really looking forward to this semester in English because I hope that I can build up my confidence in writing papers and maybe, just maybe become a better writer after taking this course. I am really looking forward to your class Ms. Patrick and I hope that you are able to enjoy our class as well.
I also have read and agree to the terms in the course syllabus and I am completely willing to abide by these terms for the entire semester.
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