'Tis the Season

My Overall Reflection

Major Reflection

            As we are nearing the last day of English 101 I can honestly say that I have learned so much from this class and enjoyed it most out of all my other classes. I do love writing but never really have the time for it. This class allowed me to better my skills as well as learn new skills to try out in my writings.

 Writing is all about audience and purpose. By keeping that in my mind every time I wrote, I could tell I was writing a lot differently if I hadn’t been thinking that. It kept me thinking critically as to how I should write, such as: first, second or third person. I often had to change or remind myself of the word choice to use, due to the audience I was writing to. I also had to keep in mind if my audience knew anything about the subject I was writing about! So, I had to alter my writing to fit their needs. Getting off track is what I tend to do if I get really into my writing. Keeping the purpose and not adding too much “fluff” was hard for me.

Run-on sentences are my weakness. I tend to have a lot to write but when I put it all down on paper, its coma after coma. Sometimes, I tend to skip the coma altogether. Oops! I have learned to slow down and think before writing! I will still have some long sentences but it doesn’t mean they are run-ons.  I will turn my focus on sentence variety. This keeps the reading flow up as well as the reader interested.

My language in writing has always been fairly good. Tone was something else that I need to work on. I often found myself writing in mono-tone. Yikes! I think I have a very outgoing personality so, why couldn’t put that into my pieces? Because it was a topic that hadn’t interested me. I learned to put that aside because who would want to read something like that? You want your voice to be heard through the paper. That’s why, in my opinion, my word choice is my strong suit.

Figures of speech in essays are always fun to read. I enjoyed the lecture in class when we had the Hershey’s Kiss and wrote metaphors, similes and hyperboles about them.  I have experimented with them throughout my essays and journals. I find them to be quite humorous at times!  Having figures of speech in an essay makes it seem more upbeat and lively to the reader which makes it more enjoyable for them.

Of course my writings are not perfect, maybe, not even close. But what matters is I had fun writing them.  I still have some more learning to do in the future. This class has taught me a lot about author’s writings and taking that information and putting it into my own writing. It’s amazing what you can learn by other authors. Looking back at my first essay to my last one, I can tell that I was a rookie. There are some major differences! I am happy with the way I have progressed through this class.

Reading Response Introduction

Reading Response Introduction

I loved reading all the little short stories in our book, I found them interesting to read and think about.  I learned a lot about how other authors write by reading their writings and analyzing them through our responses.

The Process and Analysis reading response was my favorite. Reading their short stories taught me a lot about how to describe something. There is so much to their writing, you have to focus and watch how they do things. It’s pretty amazing.

I found my other reading response well written. I had good details pertaining to the short story as well as great explanations about my purpose of writing it.

Reading Response: Different Meanings

Different Meanings

Knowing that someone always loves you and that they will always be there to care for you, gives you peace of mind. This is family. Family is there to teach and coach you through hard times, to bring you out of bad places. In the short stories Arm Wrestling with My Father by Brad Manning shows love in a much different way.

            Everyone has different ways of showing love, whether it’s physical or emotional, it’s still love. The father in the story Arm Wrestling with My Father, would always show his love to his son Brad the physical way by arm wrestling with him. Not once did he let Brad win. He is not the type to send cards on Brad’s birthday or even really to give good hugs. Others may think that is meaningless but no, it is not, it's a different way to show affection to one another. "So I offered a handshake; but he offered a hug."(Manning.159) Brad last realized that his dad truly loved him on his last day home, the hug that was given was soft and long, not a quick hard one that will leave someone breathless but the one that will leave you feeling a warm glow inside.

            Loving and learning to love is a task that we all have to learn, not only us but our family and our significant other. Loving someone in a different way doesn’t mean it isn't real, no. It’s just another way to express it. We just have to learn the meaning behind it.

Reading Response: Process Analysis

  

Process Analysis

Learning how to do something step by step is easiest way to achieve what you want to pick up. Process analysis uses techniques like step by step but goes to a much deeper level. The authors June Melby, Firoozeh Dumas and Linnea Saukko have written short stories by using the process analysis method on describing their short stories.

June Melby’s short story, “How to make a Sno-Cone” gives intensely descriptive detail on how to make a sno-cone by using the step by step method. She goes way beyond that with adding incredible detail about how the shaved ice looks white and shiny. Her details that she gives us are more than enough to put thoughts and pictures in our head about how the perfect sno-cone should look like and also what to expect when you take a bite of its icy deliciousness.

Firoozeh Dumas’s short story, “Sweet, Sour and Resentful” guides us through on how her mother prepares a meal. She starts with the very beginning, like going to the grocery store to pick up the ingredients needed. Part of process analysis is giving the reader preparatory steps that are vital to what they need to achieve. She did just that. Describing the herbs so that we could almost taste them. Firoozeh is very specific on describing the details of what she wants us to know.

Linnea Saukko’s short story, “How to Poison the Earth” gives us a background on our planet. Part of processes analysis is giving us a background on the object and what it is we want to achieve. She gives us specific numbers and facts about the earth and the long term and short term effects the chemicals we use on our planet. Giving us details such as number and specific facts will give us vital information and help us better understand the outcome.

Using process analysis is the best way on describing something because it allows you to do step by step writing which is easy to follow and understand. These authors all gave descriptive detail in their stories that allowed us to form greater mental images in our head than other strategies. They brought writing to another level by using process analysis and explaining everything step by step.

Essay Introduction

I chose my two favorite essays that I have written to share with you. In these essays you will recognize my passion as well as my persuasive side! Both of my essays have various sentence structure and well described detail.

            My Nature Seeker essay brought back so many amazing memories! My purpose was to tell the audience that there is so much more to life when you are out in the woods. You find what you are made of when you push yourself to the limits that Mother Nature has to offer. I was able to describe my love of backpacking and the beauty of nature in this essay. I love my word choice in this essay, it makes it that more detailed.

            Talking to my parents and trying to persuade their minds is hard. Writing my persuasive essay Dear Mom and Dad, showed them that I am serious about the topic. I backed up my argument with valid points and facts with avid detail!

Essay: Dear Mom and Dad

Dear Mom and Dad,

I am an adult. I am nineteen now, there is no putting bows in my hair, tying my shoes or packing PB and J sandwiches in my lunch box for school. There’s no need to drop me off at school anymore and to drive me around to my friends’ house, I am able to take care of myself now and I have for a very long time now. I have two jobs, go to college and can drive myself around with no problems.  I am no longer a minor, I'm a young adult that is fully capable of making my own decisions. Therefore, a young adult like myself should not have a curfew.

            Michigan law requires kids under the age of sixteen to be off the streets between midnight and six in the morning (Teen Curfews). There is no law in our state of Michigan that says any limitations of a curfew for a nineteen year old, believe me, I have checked. You should be happy to know it is found that arrests of young adults above the set curfew age has also declined slightly. (Courtney Culey, teen curfews). Which you know that you don’t have to worry about me being arrested.

            I understand Mom, you want me to be home safe every night because you will not fully fall asleep till I am home, in my bed and under your roof. I know that there are people out there that are capable of doing harmful things to me. You have to understand that I act quickly to those situations and I know how to defend myself if one were to come up. You should know that I’m not out loitering on the streets of downtown Grand Haven nor any other town. No, I’m just simply at Morgan’s house or at another friend’s house watching Netflix and eating fatty foods. We don’t go out on the street in the middle of the night to walk around and look at the lights or people, like you say, that’s just asking for trouble. I just want to use my extra time to spend with the friends that I care about. All that we would be doing is playing board or card games with siblings or watching movies that we have rented that night while eating popcorn. I think that is pretty harmless. I will make sure to keep you in the loop.

 You have stated many time that this house is not a “Bed and Breakfast”, which I agree with you. You provided a free place for us as a way to help us save our money for our education. Dr. Kevin Leman stated, “This home may be rent free but not duty free. Both parents need to be on the same page.” (Kevin Leman. living with your adult child). I agree with him, both of you need to be on the same page. From my perspective, Dad, you are just following what Mom says. She is the one that is holding this curfew over my head and I know that you enforce it too but if were up to you, I don’t think that I would have this curfew. Sure, there would be some restrictions and of course I would have to keep you in the loop but I don’t think that you would impose a curfew on me. I agree that you should not have to be woken up in the wee hours of the morning to the dog barking, garage door closing and the obnoxiously loud creaking of my door. Those all can be easily fixed though! But, if I’m not waking anyone up then I don’t see the problem in not having a curfew.   

            I want to show you two that I am responsible enough to not have a curfew, but you are not giving me a chance to. If I go to bed too late, get up early, and have a hard time staying awake throughout the day, it's my fault. Let me learn from my mistakes.  This is what life is about, making mistakes and learning from them. You are just not giving me the chance. Let me learn when too little sleep feels like, like the late nights and early mornings. (Teresa, You and Your Parents, wikihow.com) If I still get less hours of sleep at night and get up easily and get ready for the day with less hours, then it's okay if I stay up till 3am. We can even do a ‘trial and error’ here. What I mean is give this a shot, no curfew for a couple weeks and see how it goes! If you feel like I haven’t been doing my part around the house, then we can go back to the way it was, no questions asked.

There are many teenagers nowadays who are developmentally not “there” yet, not ready to take care of themselves. Even some young adults are slower to mature than others. (Debbie Pincus, adult children living at home). That is not me! No, I strive to be responsible, to be more mature and to be on my own. I want to be on my own, to have my own apartment, to own my own car and make payments on it. It’s the financial issues that are holding me back from moving forward.  Let me get out there and live, I need to be responsible for everything that I do. Taking away my curfew will better prepare me for the world better than you know. It’s not like we are trying to set an example to younger siblings. I am the younger sibling!

            What is the need to impose a curfew on an almost twenty year old adult? Are you afraid of what other parents might think of you if you take away my curfew? Sometimes I think that the main reason that I have a curfew is because other parents might think that you are an irresponsible parent letting her little girl run wild everywhere throughout the night while doing only God knows what. Anyone thinking that is utterly and completely wrong. I have been blessed with you two as my parents!

            It seems to me that having a curfew luring above my head every single night reminds me that you two just don’t fully trust me yet, and quite frankly that bothers me. Both of you know that I don’t smoke, drink, do any drugs and yes, I’m still a virgin. I can honestly say that as God as my witness. There is a small percent of teenagers that can honestly say that to their parents and I’m glad to be one of them. I am letting you know that I’m not a bad seed! Mom and Dad, you have raised all three of us so well and we are grateful for everything. I want you to know that you can trust us to not have a curfew. I want to be successful in life just as much as you do, maybe even more.

            I have had a curfew since I was old enough to have one and have accepted and followed it this long. I may have bickered about having one but we have never fought about it. I am respectful of you two, I try not to talk back and barely ever have. Now it’s time to be respectful of me and my own time. I feel like having this curfew of 1:30 is disrespectful of me and my time with my friends. It keeps me from spending time with them. Having close friends is a must and knowing that they will always be there for you is heartwarming. What if something were to happen to Morgan past my curfew? I would go to here no matter what the time or place and take the hit for being out late, because that is what friends do for each other. 

            Believe it or not Mom and Dad, I’m an adult now. I am responsible for myself, for my actions and my time.  It is time to come to conclusion that I am too old to have a curfew. I have accepted my curfew for long enough, so now it is your turn to accept giving me no curfew that has been hanging over my head for so long. I am completely legal to not have one, not to mention that I am mature enough as well. A young adult, such as myself should not be imposed to have a curfew.

Sincerely,

Lexie Teunis

 

Essay: Nature Seeker

                                                                       Nature Seeker

            I want people to know that there is more to life than buildings and blacktops, computer screens and phones. I want them to know what it feels like to get away from that. To find peace and feel a sense of freedom. We as society are spending too much time looking on our electronic screens and not enough time admiring the leaves on the trees. This is why I am a backpacker, to encourage them to be adventurous! To find that happy place and enjoy getting away from everyday stress even just for a little while.

             Have you ever just stopped and looked at the land around you? At the beauty nature holds in her hands? I find it inspiring; sun rays through the trees is unimaginably breath taking. I could never imagine losing nature, we need it to live, to survive. I love pushing myself to the limits. If I can still walk, I keep going. Miles on end without stopping. When I look back and I can see just how far that I have gone and what I have achieved. It’s exhausting but that feeling you get after a ten mile hike on an island is addictive.

            My longest hike yet has been on a beautiful rustic island in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, called Isle Royale. It was our second day there, so we still had a lot of energy and high spirits. My Dad, Kirsten, and I started early in the morning with the rising sun to our backs. We eagerly headed to our destination ten miles away, Chicken Bone Lake. It was a beautiful hike along Greenstone Ridge, we would often stop along the ridge that outlooks the small bay or inland lakes to take pictures. Our wandering eyes and ears were looking for signs of wolves and moose that we wanted to see so badly. To our left we would see the cold blue waters of Lake Superior, to our right were the thick green pine forest that held the wildlife within.

             With our legs growing tired we had to be more cautious of the sharp rocks we had to step around. The hike went by fairly quickly for how long the trail was. Nearing the camp site, and growing tired and hungry we sat along an old wooden sign that pointed us to Chicken Bone Lake. We all felt the effects of the long hike behind us, tired, blistered and swollen feet. It was time to finish that last little bit of our hike to the camp site for the night. Finding the last available camp site was a relief to us this meant we had time to set up our tent and hammocks. Then finally make a nice warm meal.

             The time passes so fast when you are in the arms of Mother Nature. Nothing else seems to matter other than getting to your next destination. Fresh air, the green of the trees, the bright colors of the blooming flowers, and the cool dry early morning air to the way the afternoon sun shines down from atop of the trees. Those all just a small fraction of a sample of what the wilderness holds. Walking through a dirt trail listening to the birds sing and the chipmunks chirp is a great experience and knowing that you are on an island heightens your senses to nature.

            My most challenging hike that I have ever experienced was also the farthest one away from home. In the breathtaking mountains of Wyoming lies the Grand Tetons. My Dad, my friend Matt and I planned on a 6 day hike through the Paintbrush Trail which totals to just over 20 miles long, through all the switchbacks, and rough terrain. We set off on our journey to our first campground site to Outlier. With each step we took we heard our bear bells ringing on our shoes, you can never be too quiet in bear country. Miles past as we grew more tired and hungry so we stopped for a quick lunch break by a small creek fed by runoff water from the snow on top of the mountain. That water was the most clear and cold water that I have ever felt, it sure felt good to drink as to how hot we were. Our short lunch break came to an end, we refueled ourselves and rehydrated. It was time to press on.

             The weights of my pack weighed down on my boney shoulders, rubbing a nice sized blister on one of them. That didn’t bother me, it was the five dime sized ones that were forming on my feet that had me wincing once in a while. At about three o'clock in the afternoon we noticed the altitude taking a toll on all of us. Having to stop about every half an hour just to catch our breath put a damper on our moral. We mostly climbed up hill, whenever we got to a level part of the ground was a huge blessing. My calves were on fire but that didn’t bother me because I knew that this would be my greatest achievement yet!

            Another hour passed and I grew worried, thinking that we should have gotten there already. We stopped under a huge rock away from the beaming sun and looked at the map, using my compass as a tool to help, we noticed that it should be right here. Luckily we heard some hikers, a man and a woman coming. We stopped them to ask some questions as to where we are. They took out their map and showed us and I was right it was just about a quarter mile away. They were the happiest hikers I have ever seen and probably the nicest, they noticed our dinky little map and gave us their twelve dollar outdoor recreation map. They have been there before so they felt the need to give us theirs. We said our thanks and finished the rest of our hike for the day. It was about seven o'clock when we finished our five and a half mile hike. The trail almost three thousand feet in elevation which we hiked in about seven hours.

            Every year I look forward to the adventures with my Dad and my friends, to seek out happiness and have the best time doing it. Not only are we exploring new grounds of nature but we are finding out more about ourselves and who we are. Hiking and backpacking isn't just a passion, it is in our blood.

Journal Introduction

My Journals that I have chosen to share have different personalities and sides of me. One has an unsure side of me that exposes what I was thinking on that day. I used a different tone and writing method on my "I Am" journal to show a certain purpose to my audience. In my "Winter" journal I was focused on synthesis and expressing my love for winter.  To show what I love most about this beautiful season. I have chosen on my "Duke" journal to have some irony in the last sentence that leaves the reader guessing and thinking.

Journal: Duke

Duke

We have a family dog named Duke. He is the most spastic, hyper and annoying dog that you could ever meet. Somehow buried deep among those negative traits he is also one of the smartest dog I have ever known. Duke has hunting in his blood. Literally. His father and mother were hunting dogs as well as is brothers. He knows when we are going out when he sees our camouflage hunting gear being brought out of the closet. He will start whining, barking and jumping around. His tail will go a million miles an hour! We have spent so much time training him to be the best that he can be when we bring him hunting. Duke is very obedient on our trips but every dog has their days…

Journal: I Am

I Am

 

I am bored

I am tired

I am out of money

I am confused about what I want

I am out of time

I am out of patience

I am struggling

I am not sure of life itself

I am not good enough

 

I am me

I am strong

I am caring

I am smart

I am passionate

I am humorous

I am ME…

Journal: Winter

Winter

            Winter is the last season of the year or the first depending on how you look at it. My favorite part of winter is being able to bundle up. I love the big chucky scarves that practically cover half your body in the front. Oversized sweaters and sweatshirts are the best thing a girl can own, they allow for movement and stylish layering. Perfect for a day shopping or a date out with friends. You feel a sense of comfort and security underneath all the layers of clothing.  Cross country skiing is what I look forward to every winter. Looking at the snow on top of the trees and hearing the soft noises of snow falling off the branches reminds me of a winter wonderland.  Being as outdoorsy as I am, rabbit hunting is a must when there is snow on the ground! The best part is I can sleep in if I do go out. Rabbits are most active in the afternoon because they love to bask in the afternoon sun.