Looking Back At Me
My name is Vince. Welcome you to my reflection. The best way to describe myself would be as a husband, father, paramedic/firefighter, wildlife painter, gardener, traveler and now an over-the-hill student. With some exceptions, for the past thirty-two years I have been meeting people on the worst day of their lives so it takes a lot of my energy to try to keep things in perspective. I have been witness to many people reaching a crossroad in their lives. Now, I am approaching a crossroad in my own life. The clock says it is time for me to retire; however, just doing nothing is not an option to me. Unfortunately, all of my education has been very focused on my profession. If a new profession is in my future, going back to school will be necessary.
Without a plan of what to do with myself, which classes to take was a challenge. It seemed logical to start with the core classes. This way, the decision of direction could be procrastinated. After surviving a math class in my first quarter, it was time to take an English class. The fact the English 101 class at Everett Community College had a diversity theme was a plus as learning about other cultures is a personal interest of mine. However, school was a very long time in my past. Basic grammatical mechanics were going to have to be relearned. Even though the terms MLA, ‘voice’ or ‘transitions’ were mysteries to me, terms and writing mechanics were not the only challenges to be conquered.
The themes in this class challenged me to reevaluate the way I look at many things. In the Identity component, the simple act of examining the contents of my wallet made me think of how someone else would look at me. I have to admit, my wallet has undergone a few revisions since then. The Community component allowed me to look at a culture I knew little of. After watching the movie “Bend It Like Beckham” I started reading more about Indian culture and history. I knew little of the subcontinent and now I want to learn more. The traditions section was my favorite. The exercise brought back treasured memories of my late father and grandfather. The paper I submitted touched me personally and made the decision for my “writer’s choice” submission easy.
The traditions essay will be my “writer’s choice” piece. It was a joy to write and it brought back memories of going to movies with my grandfather I had long forgotten. I selected my essay about Gloria Anzaldúa’s Essay: How to Tame a Wild Tongue as my “revision” subject. The first document was clumsy and unfocussed. It was difficult to follow as it jumped around and the transitions were very weak or non-existent. It needed a lot of work. Rewriting it feels like a deserved penance. A fleshed-out version of my entry in our discussion board regarding Samuel L. Jackson's essay in Remix will be my “critical thinking” piece. It represents one of my rare times when my communication skills seemed to be on target. Lastly, my blog about communities, "Firefighters are a Community" will be my “voice and audience” piece. This was a difficult choice. Often my voice overrides my audience.
This class and the discussion boards have reinforced in me the value of communication skills. Reading entries from my fellow students opened my eyes to some opinions that while I may not completely agree with, are still very important to learn about. I have also learned, at the risk of sounding like an old curmudgeon, that educational style has changed in some ways that are uncomfortable to me. Some sections used comedy routines or satire websites as citations and seemed to treat them as facts. To me, this feels like education gives too much weight to entertainment influence, possibly to be more ‘hip’ or current. Edward R. Murrow’s fears may be coming true. That being said, it is imperative to keep an open mind, which I will endeavor to do.