Looking Back - A Reflection on Eng101

Father. Husband. Student. Coworker. I am many things to many people. First and foremost, I am father to the two most amazing little boys (and a third on the way) I have ever seen in my life. It's a cliché, but it's true - until you have kids, you could never understand how overwhelming your love is for them. It's the kind of love that will drive you to make every sacrifice for their benefit, like being a full time student while working two jobs in the hopes that it will provide a more financially secure future.

I was born on a farm in North Dakota and spent my first seven years there. My parents came to a family reunion on Whidbey Island and fell in love with the area. Upon our return home they sold the farm, packed everything into two trucks, and moved to Washington. We settled in Marysville and my parents joined a church which, in hindsight, was more like the movie "Mean Girls" than a support system.

I knew from an early age that I would join the military. After high school I served six years in the Marine Corps. Aside from my children, it is my greatest source of pride. I was honored to serve my country and to do so in the most elite branch of the armed services. The Marine Corps is also where I met my wife. On the surface it's hard to imagine what could make our marriage work. We come from very different cultural backgrounds and have very different views on everything from politics to the best day to open Christmas presents. But it is these differences that make our relationship strong. We balance each other.
After our service was up, she and I moved to Everett, got married, bought a house, and started a family. We were excited to be living the "American dream" when the Great Recession hit. Both of us found ourselves unemployed with a three month old baby to support. Luckily my wife was able to find a new job within a few months. I was not as fortunate. We decided that I should go back to school and finish my college education, which brings me to English 101...

I could use a lot of words to describe myself, but one I wouldn't choose is writer. I'm not particularly articulate and I rely on Thesaurus.com more than I probably should. Nonetheless, English is a required course so I signed up. I wasn't expecting to be so challenged by this class. Not only was I surprised by the amount of work, but also by how the unit themes are so easily relatable to my life. Because I think of most everything in terms of how it relates to my sons, I found that to be the easiest way to understand each theme and apply it to my own situation. Reading about bell hooks' relationship with her grandparents and how they influenced her sense of identity challenged me to think about how the behavior I model for my children will influence their identity. When she described the psychic genealogies that are the foundation for her talents and temperament, I am reminded of how my eldest son's obstinate streak so closely resembles his mother's stubbornness. Similarly the community unit provided me with a chance to connect with my mother in law. I interviewed her for my community paper and listened to her describe the loneliness of being a newlywed and first time expectant mother after moving to a new state. Contrasting this with my wife's experience of having the support of a "mommy group" was startling. Knowing how much it meant to my wife to have other women to talk to and compare notes with, I couldn't imagine what it felt like for my mother in law to be so alone. It gave me new respect for her. Finally, in the tradition unit, I reflected on how the traditions that were passed down to me from my parents are evolving with the growth of my family. In Discussion Board 1 I described traditions as recipes in that they are a good starting point for you to tweak and add your own flavors. As my wife and I meld our own familial and cultural traditions, we create new ones for our children who undoubtedly will add their own spices with their future families.

I reviewed our various assignments and chose the following four pieces for my e-portfolio. For my critical thinking piece I chose my identity paper. Although it was the first paper we wrote, I feel like it is a good example of taking a group of readings and relating them to a greater theme. My revision paper will be my community paper. I am excited to delve further into the analysis of how communities support their members and the importance of that support. The choice for my voice and audience piece is the discussion board post from the Movie Talk board entitled "Now that I'm thoroughly depressed". In the e-portfolio contents description, the voice and audience selection was described as one that "stimulate[d] others’ thinking on the topic and incite[d] discussion". That was certainly the case as another student and I discussed a comparison between "Rabbitproof Fence" and illegal immigration. My writer's choice piece is my tradition paper. It was the highest grade I received on a writing assignment and showed a great improvement in my analytical writing skills.

I hope that others enjoy my e-portfolio. As I mentioned earlier, this class was a greater challenge than I anticipated and I'm walking away with mixed feelings. I hope in the end it made me a better writer and in some ways a better father.