“When you have completed 95 percent of your journey, you are only halfway there.” - Japanese Proverbs Janelle Dollar

The Starting Line Before the start of the semester, I envisioned that ENG 101 would be the easiest class I was enrolled in. However, it ended up being quite the opposite. I developed a lot of frustration throughout the course, and I could not wait for it to be done and over with. But when I look back, I am extremely proud of myself for taking the course seriously, and getting so much out of it in return. Beyond the subject of English, the course taught me about life itself. In that, I realized was that the most challenging things that I face, truly will be the most rewarding, and because of that, they are the things that deserve 110% of my effort. Without this course, I feel as though I would have had to face that reality in a much harsher way. This class really pushed my comfort zone, and I am really thankful that it did, because without it, I would still be stuck in the “high school writing” mindset.

There’s ALWAYS Room for Progress In my first wall post, I wrote a little bit about my writing. Here a few sentences from that wall post: “I began to realize my skill level with writing my sophomore year of high school. If I was ever given a subject that I knew nothing about, I would find a way to write an amazing paper on it. We wrote papers just about every other week in that class, and although it irritated me then, it really did help me for the future.” There’s ALWAYS Room for Progress

Looking back on the pieces of work I have written, I can’t help but to laugh a little bit. I came into this semester thinking that I wasn’t going to learn anything, and this piece of work clearly demonstrates that. I thought that I was prepared for what I was about to face, but I realize now that I was everything but that. The biggest problem with this was that I didn’t want, or expect any challenge. I learned quickly, however, that I needed to change my mindset immediately if I wanted to get anywhere in the course. Every paper that I wrote for ENG 101 was an immense challenge for me. I was so used to rubric grading that I had no clue what to do once I was given freedom. I complained day after day about that (how broad the topics assigned where) and now I cannot help but appreciate that freedom. By being forced to think about my papers, and everything that went into them, I was able to learn valuable lessons.

My ultimate fear, is that I will not be successful My ultimate fear, is that I will not be successful. This is why challenges are so difficult for me to deal with. Every time I was trying to write an essay throughout the semester, failure was in the back of my head. That is something that I really needed to overcome, and I finally have. I now realize that challenges are a success no matter what. I didn’t get a single paper back that I was happy with. However with every paper I got back, was an opportunity to grow. I re-read and re-edited every paper that I got back. That in itself, was a success for me. Knowing that a grade doesn’t determine success but learning how to improve from a bad grade does.

Essay One: http://janellerose7.wordpress.com/2011/09/19/fear-strikes-faster-than-lightning/ This essay was the first, and most frusturating essay that was assigned all semester. Everything about it was a challenge for me. From the topic, to body paragraphs, to the writing style, I was completely confused. Needless to say, I became aggravated quite easily with this paper. During our conference, Cindy and I decided to tell the story in the form of a flashback. That is something that I had never done before, and I was eager to start. I ended up with a paper that I thought was well written, and I was really proud of it. However after getting feedback from Cindy, I decided to review my essay. I reworked my essay countless times and thought at the end of it all, that it couldnt have been any better. Looking at the essay now though, I see specific places that can be improved.

Improvement 2.0 “Friends, beaches, bonfires, ice cream, pool parties, tans, and vacations; so many things and barely enough time to get them all done. One thing that would have never crossed my mind when hearing the word summer: camping. Camping is, nothing short of living like humans did during the nomadic ages. People assemble a tent, set it in a spot, find whatever food they can, and hope that nothing bad happens overnight. Needless to say, I would rather do anything else, than camp over my summer break. ” (From Essay One) This is part of a paragraph from my first essay. When writing it, I felt as though I was getting it all right. However, reviewing it now, I see that there are many flaws. For example, The first sentence itself is quite a lot of detail. Followed by some sentences that basically ramble on. I like the comparison to the nomadic ages, however when reading it, it seems as though I am nagging, which greatly affects the mood of the paper. If I were to rewrite the paragraph with an effective amount of detail, rather than providing detail that hinders the paper.

This is a quote that reflects almost exactly how I feel at the end of the course. Even if I construct a paper that I think is perfect, and the feedback I get negates that, I will be okay with that. Before this class, all I wanted was a good grade, I was looking to get past school. Now, I want to learn the best ways to enjoy school. I took a lot out of this class, and I truly am surprised by that. I can honestly say that I have never been thankful for a class, but I cannot say that about English 101. This class really helped me reflect on not only my schoolwork, but on everything I do in life. It allowed me to realize that even if I don’t get it right the first time, there is still time to make it right. I was afraid to try and fail before this class started. Now, I’m afraid not to fully apply myself. I’ve come a long way with the help of this class.

Analysis If I would have seen this quote in the beginning of the semester, I would have completely ignored it. But now that I have completed this course, I realize the significance of it. I’m not sure if I am thinking what Einstein was when he said this, but this quote makes me think of analyzing. Before this class, I had no clue how to do an analysis. I wasn’t really exactly sure what an analysis even was. To be honest, I’m still working on it. What I did grasp though, is that no matter what I read, or what I hear, I can relate it to everyday life. That is something that I never expected to change. I used to just read things for content, and that was all. Now, whenever I read anything, I am almost prone to relating it to something in the outer world. That is one of my biggest accomplishments of this semester. I never thought that I would come out of this class with such a great skill. Analysis is probably one of the best skills to have. It is definitely something that I will keep in mind for ENG 102 along with many other skills that I took from this course.

On to Bigger and Better Things: ENG 102 This class was easily the most beneficial class that I have taken yet. In the beginning I definitely had a negative attitude about every part of it. All the readings that were so irrelevant, the environmental aspect, the blogging, literally every aspect. Now that I reflect upon that I definitely understand how my mindset has changed. I go into my classes with a much more positive outlook now, and that is only because of this class. It amazes me how much I have taken out of an English course. I expected a simple how to write class, and this was much more than that. I learned how two things that seem totally unrelated can actually have a great impact on each other. I learned that writing papers really is more than a homework assignment. I’ve learned that the most important part of writing an essay is what I put into it, and how in depth I think about every word I put into a paper. I’ve learned how to analyze, and how important analysis is in everyday life. Most importantly, I have learned that the more struggle and frustration that I deal with, the more knowledge I will gain. These are all important things that I will carry on with me not only to ENG 102, but throughout the rest of my college career, and probably even beyond that.