A Risk-Free Life by Leonard Pitts

Jamielle Silvia

ENGL 0250-154

H. Susi

October 29, 2011

A Risk-Free Life

            Leonard Pitts’ essay, A Risk-Free Life is about a women and her family who is suffering from a disease called Alzheimer’s. This disease is a genetic flaw in her family and is very dangerous because it affects them very early in life. This women’s desire was to have a healthy baby, so she went to get her eggs screened for this disease. Her name has not been released for her own safety. Pitts begins to talk about the ability to screen for this disease and soon will lead to screening for hair color, weight, height, and eye color. Next, he explains a doctor will hand you a survey and you would be able to pick your child features through a checklist.

            If I had a genetic disease that ran through the family, I would go out of my way to find out if my unborn child was going to share this same disease. Also I would ask myself, is it worth it to have my child go through the same thing I am? This women’s family is affected by this disease vey early in their life. Her doctor believes her Alzheimer’s will start to take effect in 10 more years, when she is about 40. In that case, her child would only be about 10 years old when her mother would begin to not recognize her. In my opinion this women is only looking out for the safety of her child. Screening her unborn child for this genetic disease was a very smart decision.

            Everyone wants the best for their child and would do anything to give them a good life. I believe this woman should take into consideration of how her child will feel when it is no longer recognized by its mother. It makes me sad that her child will only be10 years old when the disease starts taking effect. I think the child will be confused and not understand what is happening till a little later in life. Also this genetic disease will soon have its effect on this poor 10 year old and then she will soon suffer through the same thing. The cycle will be never ending unless the cycle is stopped somewhere, but of course that choice is up to the mother/woman.

            The quote that really caught my attention was when Pitts stated, “And I guess it would be easy to look at a thing like that and regard it as an intrusion upon your life. But life IS ovarian cancer. It’s Alzheimer’s, it’s a heart attack, it’s mental illness, it’s uncertainty, and it is suffering.” I do not know exactly what he means or what he is trying to say, but I took this quote as he was saying life is uncertainty. Also, I think he means what happens in your life is unexpected and you are not suppose to know what you will be affected by as an egg inside a mothers stomach. As life goes on illnesses come about and you deal with them but for the meantime you live for the things that make you happy.

            After reading this story, I agree with Pitts that one day in the future people will be able to create all the features and genders of their children. I feel very sorry for the woman and the fact that her disease is so severe. I think I will feel worse for the child to grow up with the mother not being able to recognize her. This article has made me very sad because I feel like the child will not understand what her mother is going through. I do believe that no one can live a risk free life and sooner or later we all have to overcome obstacles that get in our way.

Good Grammar Gets the Girl by Elissa Englund

Jamielle Silvia

ENGL 0250-154

H. Susi

October 22, 2011

Good Grammar Gets the Girl by Elissa Englund

            Elissa Englund’s essay Good Grammar Gets the Girl is about her becoming part of an online dating site and how unattractive it is when men use bad grammar. She gives several examples of the grammar errors she has seen. She also discovered that many people make spelling errors when trying to express themselves through writing or e-mails. Englund was interested in this guy named Craig and became completely turn off by his spelling errors and choices of words. Grammar errors can change someone’s first impressions of you and make you seem unappealing.

            Englund states, “Many first impressions are based solely on how you express yourself through the English language.” I agree with this completely. I get so turned off when people make careless and lazy mistakes while writing. In my opinion I would rather have an intelligent conversation with someone, rather than talk to someone who writes like they are in middle school. I believe that first impressions are based on how well you can communicate through English language because it does become very ugly when you do not make sense.

            Many people now are meeting and dating over the internet. The internet has grown enormously over the years and meeting someone online is becoming more popular. To be completely honest I met my girlfriend over the internet. Her first words and the way she typed were very important to me because it gave me a sense of who I was talking to. She sounded very intelligent with the words she used and thankfully she was very smart. So from my own experience her first words were crucial because they could have been her last depending on my impression on her.

            Using good grammar is important for all aspects of life like reading, writing, and even speaking. When reading grammar you want to be able to understand what you are reading. While writing you want to make sure other people can read and understand the point you are trying to make. Lastly speaking in front of people you want to make sense and sound intelligent and confident that you can make you point clear. I feel that this class has already taught me to become a better writer and the little grammatical errors people make on a daily basis.

            Reading this article helped me realize how important grammar can be and ways to prevent making a grammatical error. This article also explains the importance of re-reading your essays, e-mails, or letters because usually you notice a grammar error after reading it over. I never used to read my work over because I was lazy, but as I grew older I noticed the importance of grammar. Englund also made up rules that will help anyone who are making little mistakes and need rules to look back on.

Only Daughter by Sandra Cisneros

Jamielle Silvia           

ENGL 0250-154

H. Susi

October 15, 2011

Only Daughter by Sandra Cisneros

Sandra Cisneros essay Only Daughter is about her growing up the only daughter in the family with six brothers. All her life her father always said he had seven sons and she never corrected him. It seemed all she wanted was to be recognized as his daughter and not one of his sons. After ten years of writing professionally one of her books was sold to a major New York publishing house. Cisneros flew home to Chicago for Christmas to be with her family and she brought a story that was translated into Spanish. She gave the story to her father to read and he loved it, wanted to make more copies for their relatives. This became the most wonderful thing that has happened to Cisneros in the past year.

Not being recognized by your parents can be heartbreaking. You hope to be accepted by them and you want them to believe in you. All Cisneros wanted was her father to accept her for her and maybe look at her differently than her six brothers. He seemed to think all of his children were alike and fail to recognize their differences. When Cisneros showed her father her story and he loved it, it became her happiest moment. I think children need constant praise from their parents so things like this do not happen.

Growing up in a family with all boys must have been very tough. Her brothers can all play and be with each other because they have things in common while she was left to play by herself. All her brothers did not want the embarrassment of playing with a girl in public so they never played with her. Although Cisneros states, “But that aloneness, that loneliness, was good for a would-be writer”, she could have still been a good writer without being alone. I can relate to this because my older brother never wanted us to be around him and his friends. Also I have always had a twin sister to play with so that did not matter. Cisneros believes that she became a better writer because she was left alone so it gave her time to write.

For Cisneros’ most wonderful moment to be that her father wanted to make more copies of her stories baffles me. I think there should be something better than him wanting to make copies of the story to be a happier moment in a girl’s life. For instance, I wrote a story about my father and things he has grown to teach me, and I had to read it in front of our class while he sat in the audience. After I read my story I looked to where he was sitting and he was in tears and I went over to him and he said “that meant so much to me, can I have a copy?” I know it is wrong because to her it was her most wonderful moment I just don’t quite understand it.

This story explains how the only daughter of seven wants to be recognized by her father. Always making a careless mistake saying he had seven sons, and she never corrected him thinking it was just an error. This story made me feel hopeful because her father felt the reason she went to school was to become someone’s wife and instead she became a professional writer. This story also makes me happy because to it proved to him that she was something more than just a wife or a daughter, she proved that she was a writer. Finally after her father read her story he knew that’s what she was destined to do and he was finally proud.

A Brother's Murder by Brent Staples

Jamielle Silvia

ENGL 0250-154

H. Susi

October 8, 2011

A Brother’s Murder by Brent Staples

Could you imagine losing your brother or someone you love to violence? In this essay A Brother’s Murder by Brent Staples he suffers the loss of his brother after previously trying to get him on the right path. Staples grew up in Chester, Pennsylvania where he was surrounded by violence daily. His brother Blake chose to be part of this violence because to him it proved how manly he was till one day he was shot by his old friend. Growing up Stables knew this wasn’t the life he wanted to live, so he moved on finished college and became a journalist. Shortly after trying to lead his brother in the right direction he received a phone call of his brother’s murder and began grieving because he didn’t act sooner.

Teenagers who are wrapped up in violence and gangs end up in jail or worse killed. Most people who get caught up in the “gang” life don’t ever usually get out. They get so used to having to prove themselves as men and they see this as being the perfect way to do it. According to Blake being addicted to the street life was the only thing he wanted to do. Staples tried to get him away from it and plan a date for them to get away for a while. Before he got a chance to follow up to make a date he already got a phone about his brother’s murder. His brother never had the chance to turn his life around because he was killed. If you are into the gang life you better get out before you never have the chance to leave.

Dealing with a close relative’s death or any person’s death can be tragic. Staples would have nightmares and wake up in the middle of the night crying because he felt it was his fault. Staples knew he didn’t want to live the gang life like his brother so he chose to do the right thing. He helped himself and tried helping his brother but felt he was too late. Staples blamed himself for a long time for his brother’s death. Deaths can be harsh but you can’t help a person that doesn’t want to help themselves and Blake wasn’t looking to get out of the life he was living.

People talk about the places they grew up and how they affect them. If you grew up in a nice neighborhood you were more likely to be a good kid but if you’re raised in the ghetto people assume you get into trouble or cause it. I believe it does not matter where you grow up, it matters who you hang around with and how you chose to live your life. Staples stated talking about two men “their manhood on their sleeves.” In this case Blake chose to act like a man by being violent and hanging with the wrong crowd. In the end his actions led to the death of him. Staples chose to head in the right direction but Blake couldn’t seem to find that path.

I think that many people can relate to this story. I have never lost a sibling or a close friend but I know people who have. This essay is about a man who lost his brother to violence and blamed himself for not reaching out to him in time. This essay also made me very sad because I don’t think I would be able to lose my brother or most importantly my twin sister I would feel like a part of me is missing.

Dear Dads: Save Your Sons

Jamielle Silvia

ENGL 0250-154

H. Susi

October 2, 2011

Dear Dads: Save Your Sons

            Christopher N. Bacorn’s essay Dears Dads: Save Your Sons is about a 15 year old boy whom his father had left him 4 years ago. After his father left he became involved in drinking alcohol, gang membership, failing grades, and violence. He hurt someone in a fight and charges were pressed against him along with assigned counseling. When the counselor met with the boy he soon realized this entire time the boy needed a man in his life. Someone to love him, shows him guidance, and spends time with him. Boys who grow up without a father often act out because they haven’t been disciplined or been taught how a man should act.

            Most children end up with a step parent while growing up either because of divorce or the parent has not been there from the start. Bacorn said “Of course there are men who do spend time with children, men who are covering for all those absentee fathers.” When children grow up without their parents it has a big affect on the children whether they want to believe it or not. Children need to be in a healthy environment while becoming who they are because children need love, attention, and a lot of care. This essay shows just what affects it can have on a child because there was no guidance. Children learn right from wrong through the parents and if they are not there the children will never learn.

            In this story this boy needed his father to love him, show him right from wrong, and guide him into becoming a man. A father that lacks responsibility himself is not setting a good example for his son. This man walking away from his family has just created a bunch of confusion and anger for his son. If this world had more fathers who want to spend time with their kids they would not have to go looking for a sense of belonging. Most young boys who grow up without a father usually try to fit in with other boys by most likely joining a gang. This boy will probably do the same thing his father did to him because that is what he is used to. I think of this as a cycle because he could either break the cycle and become a man and a good father or become just like his own father because he doesn’t know any better.

            When I was in high school I took 3 years of child development. In this class I learned how important it is for kids to grow up with the same sex parents. Most girls want to be just like their mom when they are young and same goes for boys. Little girls need a woman they can look up to and boys need a man to do the same. Seeing how their parents act gives them a good overview of how people should act. Disciplining you children teaches them right from wrong and the proper way to act.

            I can relate to this story in many ways. I have always had another man take care of my brother, sister and I. My father has always been there in our life but only on the weekends. Another man watched us grow up, took care of us when we were sick, got us ready for school, but never my real father. In a way I think it has made me stronger because it is hard to take commands from another man who is not your own father. When I think about it now I am grateful that I have had wonderful father figures because I would not be half the grown up I am today. I do miss my father very much till this day and love him more than any other man in my life but he has never done anything for me. I have other men in my life who has acted more like a father to me then my real dad and it makes me sad because if he had the same chance as they did he would have been a great father. Although my dad was not around much when we were younger he is certainly making up for it now.