My essay is about my family tradition where we all light a candle at the same time on Christmas every year (everyone lives around the country). I have not been able to develop a specific thesis yet. I am considering arguing that my family tradition symbolizes “togetherness” or something along those lines. I want my thesis to reveal how important and special this tradition is to my family and I (why it continues every year too). I am still crafting a thesis that poses an argument about my tradition and why it is significant. When I analyze my family’s tradition, I want to use explanations from my family for the significance of the tradition, but I also want to include facts. The facts cannot necessarily “back up” some of the things I’ll be stating about my argument, but I can add to it by using facts about families being away from each other on Christmas, etc. I am going to include all of the interviews from my family members, my own opinions (possibly, if allowed), facts, and detailed explanations. I could also possibly make a thesis about how traditions shape the way people think/view family/time spent with family, etc. I am still working on developing an effective, strong, arguable thesis.

In my family, everyone is scattered all around the country. It is tricky and expensive to try to get everyone at the same place at the same time. It can be difficult not being together on holidays especially. A family tradition that takes place on Christmas day every year is that everyone in the family lights a candle at the same time. This is symbolic to my family. Everyone doing this same action during the same moment resembles togetherness. It shows that we are united even though we are thousands of miles away from each other. During this process, everyone usually posts a picture on Facebook of the lit candle with some kind of sentimental caption. Our family understands that even though we aren’t physically with each other on Christmas day, we are in spirit. It’s a very special moment for everyone involved. This tradition is unique because sometimes when people think of traditions they think of their grandma making a special dish or a special item getting passed down. I have never heard of anyone lighting a candle for a tradition. As long as the flame is burning, we are together. If anyone tries to look up online about lighting a candle at the same time to resemble togetherness, it is not common.

 

 

 

What do people normally experience, understand, or assume about the subject?

Is this subject symbolic of something? (Does it stand for some idea or ideal?)

What is unique about the subject?

In my family, everyone is scattered all around the country. It is tricky and expensive to try to get everyone at the same place at the same time. It can be difficult not being together on holidays especially. A family tradition that takes place on Christmas day every year is that everyone in the family lights a candle at the same time. This is symbolic to my family. Everyone doing this same action during the same moment resembles togetherness. It shows that we are united even though we are thousands of miles away from each other. During this process, everyone usually posts a picture on Facebook of the lit candle with some kind of sentimental caption. Our family understands that even though we aren’t physically with each other on Christmas day, we are in spirit. It’s a very special moment for everyone involved. This tradition is unique because sometimes when people think of traditions they think of their grandma making a special dish or a special item getting passed down. I have never heard of anyone lighting a candle for a tradition. As long as the flame is burning, we are together. If anyone tries to look up online about lighting a candle at the same time to resemble togetherness, it is not common.

 

 

 

What do people normally experience, understand, or assume about the subject?

Is this subject symbolic of something? (Does it stand for some idea or ideal?)

What is unique about the subject?

The sun beats down on the crowd that is watching Ball State’s Woman Soccer Team. A scrawny girl rests on the bleacher in front of me. Her loose curls bounce with every move she makes. The curls are frizzy, and loose pieces stick out of every single strand of hair. She examines the field, turning her head left and right every few seconds. Every so often, the iris of her eyes are revealed, showing an army shade of green. The girl wears a black and white shirt. Lines run horizontally from one armpit to the other. Wrinkles and indentions swarm the shirt, showing off both the fuzzy texture and the flimsiness of the material. As I watch the game, the scent of toasted coconut, and hair grease tickle my nose. It is then that I notice that her golden curls have a spill of brown oil resting on the girl’s scalp. A gust a wind eventually blows the split ends of hair to the side. Pores after pores fill her bronzed neck. One crater in particular possesses a cream colored, puss-filled center. The flaw glares back at me as if we are having a staring contest. The girl brushes her hair back to its original spot with her skinny fingers and chipping nail polish, covering the acne marks. She continues to watch the game, looking to the left and right quadrants of the turf field.

My definition of plagiarism would be stealing another person’s words and work and using it as their own without the creator receiving credit or knowing. All of my life I have been taught that plagiarism was the worst sin when it came to writing essays. I 100% agree with why plagiarism is not allowed under any circumstances. It would be so disappointing if my hard work was stolen by another individual and used as their own without me receiving credit. I have heard of many cases where students were expelled from school because of this issue. In all of my previous classes, my teachers constantly stressed at the beginning of the year that plagiarism was in no way, shape or form acceptable. After they set down the rules and the consequences (sent to the office and have administration and the teacher handle it), we would only talk about plagiarism every once in a while. Whenever I submitted an essay in English class, my teacher would remind us all that she was going to be using a plagiarism checker. This checker leads into my concern about plagiarism. Even if the content that is written is 100% my own thoughts and words, the checker can still read that there is a large amount of plagiarism involved simply because they are thoughts that millions of people write all the time. My worry would be getting in trouble for having my own content that I created myself and having the checker say that I stole it just because several other people just so happen to have the same combination of thoughts.

My topic for the artifact essay is going to be about a family tradition that happens on Christmas day every year. Due to everyone in my family being scattered all around the country, at the same time in everyone’s state on Christmas day, we light a candle. This represents togetherness even though we aren’t physically with each other. My grandma is the first person who came to mind to interview. She would know about the history of this, when it started, and things of that sort. I would also interview my parents or sister about their opinion on this tradition. They could tell me how important this tradition is to them, why they like it, and if they would change anything about it. Some questions I want to ask: when did this tradition start? How did this tradition start? How has the tradition changed? Why did this tradition start? How does this tradition make you feel? What does this tradition symbolize/what is the significance of it? Are you expecting this tradition to carry on with my generation and how would you like that to be done? I would be sure to ask open ended questions instead of “yes or no” questions. I want detailed responses and will most likely ask follow up questions while in the moment.

It was difficult for me to put into words exactly what I wanted to say. I had so many ideas but didn’t know how to put it all out on paper. I had some difficulties trying to explain why this event shaped my relationship with literacy. I found that coming up with my paper topic was easy. The second the description of the essay was released I immediately knew that I wanted to talk about my senior year of English class. Reaching the word requirement wasn’t too hard either. I am used to writing essays that are around that length so I did not struggle with that. Updating my blog along the way was actually a little bit of fun. It was a nice stress-free assignment and was actually helpful. I did not enjoy the peer review. I felt vulnerable when I read my paper out loud to someone I did not know. However, it was helpful for me to hear my paper out loud so that I could catch any mistakes that I wanted to fix. I am also so used to marking all over my peer’s papers and correcting any issues and leaving suggestions. It was a strange experience for me but it was helpful.

When it comes to peer editing papers, I have a bit of experience. Almost every English class that I have ever been has made me go through this process when writing essays. I enjoy reviewing and editing my peer’s papers but I do not like them peer editing mine. I appreciate the feedback and critiques but only when they are kind about it. I do not like the idea of people judging my work and I fear that they will think I am dumb or something of that sort. At the end of peer editing, my paper sometimes has a decent amount of comments but sometimes my peers are pretty vague about any issues with my paper. I am thankful when my peers leave me suggestions instead of just saying “I’d change this” or “good job, nothing is wrong with the paper.” It is pretty helpful when my friends review my essays just because they know me and aren’t afraid to tell me their real opinions about the content of my paper. Sometimes when I have strangers/peers edit my paper they are scared to leave an honest opinion because they don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. I sometimes get very worried about hurting someone’s feelings when I edit their essay but I always make sure that I am kind. Usually when I hand over my paper for peer review I will tell the editor to not hold back any comments because I truly do like the help. The only part about peer editing that makes me uncomfortable is knowing that someone is silently judging my work. 

(changed the teacher’s name)

The potent smell of sugar cookies hits me in the face as soon as I enter the boiling hot volcano that Mrs. Smith calls a “classroom.” It is the dreaded first day of senior year. I should be ecstatic. Senior year English class should be a breeze. There is one issue that’s standing in way of me having a stress free first day of school, my “welcome back to school” test over the lengthy “Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes.” The content was a summer reading assignment and a snooze fest. I walk around the scratchy carpet while scoping out the scene. Coffee colored desks block my every turn creating an obstacle course. Eventually I choose a seat in the left corner of the room directly underneath the blinding fluorescent light. I pull out my scratched up IPAD and begin to study. The minty flavor of my gum burns my tongue and tires my jaw as I chomp away. I read an article online about how chewing gum helped with concentration but so far, no luck. A few seconds roll by until the air is filled with the unpleasant sound of Mrs. Smith’s croaky voice. “Login into lockdown browser and pull up your test. All notes away, NOW.” No “good morning,” no introduction, just demands. My fingers begin typing away on my smooth, clean screen as I start the near impossible test over the lovely mythology book, “Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes.”

 

The hour is late and an unhealthy time to be out studying. I glance at my glowing mac book air clock, the time reading 12:22 am. Bracken library should be dead at a time like this. Nothing but the sounds of crisp papers turning and fingers typing fill the air. I pull my unwashed hair a bit and sigh at the fact that I’m only about 50% done with my homework. Once I complete my assignments, studying is next on the agenda, NOT sleep. My eyes begin to water while the heaviest of bags begin to form underneath my eyes. The table I’m slouched at is scattered with an enormous mess of chemistry study guides and an iced coffee that is supposed to keep me awake but is failing miserably. The nearby seats are filled with students reflecting my exact appearance: boys and girls hovering over books and typing away on laptops, stopping every few minutes to scroll on their phone to keep their sanity. Nearby windows reveal the darkness of the night sky, reminding me of how little of sleep I’ll be getting tonight. I am also reminded of how much work I have to cram into the next almost 2 hours before my second home closes. My homework has taken over my life so much that a simple painting of roses directly in front of me look more like red blood cells than they do flowers. A narrow hall leading to a spiral staircase tempts me to pack up my belongings and jump into my cozy bed but my quizzes and math aren’t going to do themselves.